#BAHA I WAS STRUGGLING SO HARD WITH WORDS

[askgardenerwoods]

what do you think about victor grantz ?

[bronx-bomber87]

Happy Weekend! How exciting we have a premiere date! Feb 20th. The light is at the end of the tunnel wonderful fandom. It’s beautiful and bright. I’m going to crank up to 3 reviews a week so I finish the week before s6 premieres. So this worked out nicely heh

Ahh this episode is another giant friggin work flirt. That competitive fire that drives one of their love languages is prominent af in this episode. Only they could take a shift apart and turn it into a flirtatious competition. The marriage vibes are extreme in this one in the best way ha Let’s get going.

4x06 Poetic Justice

We start off with Tim getting an assignment from Grey. He wants to get Jerry Mcgrady to retire. They’re running out of things to assign him to that aren’t a strain on him. Front desk he takes too much time telling stories. Even the kit room is becoming too much for him. So it’s Tim’s job today to have the ‘It's time to retire talk.’ Tim being Tim says it’ll be a piece of cake. Wanting to prove himself to Grey he can handle it no problem. That the tough conversations aren't an issue.

That if he doesn’t agree he can use his injury for an involuntary retirement. Cold Timothy. Cold. Tim makes it to the Kit Room and is instantly thawed. He is ready to hit him with the cold hard truth as he put it to Wade. Before he can Jerry gives him a load of praise right off that bat. It makes Tim stumble off the blocks super early. It's so sweet and genuine too. How could he not struggle after saying he's proud? I'm sure those are words he never got from his own old man.

Tim tries again and fails for a second time. It’s the way Jerry is looking at him. Tim can’t pull the trigger. Instead he invites him out to ride with him LOL Well done Tim baha This was not the plan at all my love. Tim Bradford is a softie and we all know it. Grey walks up asks how it went? Tim admits he faltered and he’s riding with him instead.... Grey is beaming. Knowing he wouldn't be as ruthless as he claimed in his office. Wade can’t help but give him crap on top of it. Asking what happened to the 'Cold hard truth?' Tim swears by end of day he’ll get him to retire. Mmhmm sure.

In the cold open Nolan and Harper arrested a man digging in a city park. He was following a treasure hunt riddle. With Tim swapping Lucy out for Jerry she is riding with Nolan. He hands her the riddle and she starts to decipher it. Lucy figures out the first clue and they go to the pier. When they roll up people are fighting. A young woman is killed by getting an ax to the chest. People are insane.

This is what brings it to the LAPD’s full attention since there is a casualty. They find out the author of the riddle is a previous criminal. He was apart of a robbery where he hid 2 million in gold coins. They never recovered them. So the city is losing it's collective mind trying to find it. They need to be the first to get it. Grey calls Lucy up cause she was the first to solve a clue. She is beaming as she makes her way up.

Let’s first admire the forearm porn we’re getting in this first gif. Man makes me so thirsty I need a glass of water. Arms-crossed Tim is one of my fav poses. Those glorious biceps popping out of those sleeves too. Whew lord. Anyway Lucy is so very excited to present her findings. How she got the clue she did. It’s adorable how proud she is of it. Look how Tim never takes his eyes off her the entire time. You know he loves when she analyzes and breaks things down.

Her intelligence is a turn on for him whether he wants to admit it or not. He can’t let anyone catch onto his admiration... So he calls her ‘Nerd.’ to make fun of her. Which fails because it comes off super flirty. Negating his idea to to tease her for her brain. It comes across as banter more than anything else. Fail Timothy big fat Fail. Your mouth is saying one thing. Your body language and intense gaze say another...

Jerry is a sweetheart and tells her not to let Tim shame her. It’s a great catch. This is why it's hard for anyone to have the retirement talk with him haha A kind station grandpa to them all. Lucy goes from being annoyed to thanking Jerry. Tim’s sly little smile when she does is so cute. You know he’s proud of her being in the spotlight. Sporting her brain but has to tease her. It's how they function haha They’re so cute I can not. Flirting once again for all of the station to see. It's truly a wonder they're in the dark about it.

I love this moment between Harper and Tim. I'm glad I had the room to add this in. She joins in with Lucy's train of thought for the rest of the poem. Flaunting her brain as well. Tim gives her a look wanting to make fun of her as well. Nyla is on it and dares him to call her a nerd too LOL The looks between them make me laugh so much. I love their teasing camaraderie. It's my favorite. It's how Harper and Lucy get paired up to decipher the rest of the clues. Nolan feels left out cause well it's Nolan. Like that kid picked last for dodgeball. Grey tells John if he asks nicely he's sure he can join them. SMH. Friggin Nolan ha.

The cuteness continues when Lucy asks if Tim and Jerry wanna be part of her task force? That she can make it happen haha She’s adorable and I can not stand it. Tim does what he does best battles back with a flirty tone. Trying to talk down about her ‘task force’. Saying old fashioned policing will get it done just fine for them.

Flirt more you two…oh wait they do. Ha Lucy offers up a bet she knows Tim won’t refuse. Because once again why deal with feelings when they can channel it through a work flirt instead? Honestly how Jerry could allow Tim to date his daughter after this display I couldn’t tell ya. It's so painfully obvious how into one another these two are.

They lay down the terms for the loser. Tim saying she has to be quiet an entire shift. Please Timothy like you really want that…but ok that’s your “reward” if you win. I mean it would drive her crazy not to talk so it’s not the worst pick. Lucy choses something way more apropos IMO. He would have to do something out of his comfort zone. Not only that but it’s her choice. Can only imagine what Lucy would've chosen. Something that would've been good for him I'm sure. Cause she's good like that. Her track record with him is solid.

Lucy's face is so smug from the minute she brings this bet up. So convinced she has this in the bag. Gah these two love a good competition and flirting it up a ton in the process. Like pre-get together foreplay for them haha They then start the worlds longest handshake to seal the deal. They once again are in their own world. Like Jerry isn't even there…

The best part is while they continue to work-flirt they're holding hands. They could've broken it off but nope. Basically holding hands while they fiercely flirt. The flirty competitiveness continues with their jabs. The poetry club shot from Tim. Her being sassy af about their 18 old case files. Saying how ‘easy’ that’ll be for them to crack. LMAO Shots fired. All the while still holding hands. Because the work flirting wasn’t enough of a bat-signal to everyone else. They continue to hold hands while doing so. Seriously Jerry couldn’t you see the man was already taken?

We return to Lucy still at the whiteboard with Harper/Nolan. She gets a text from Tim saying they had a big breakthrough. Lucy could not be more dejected and anxious for them to get their own. Nolan and Harper tell her to ignore Tim. He’s just trying to get into her head. Yeah that's what he does. He kinda lives there rent free and vice versa with this kind of stuff. Good luck getting her to listen to that advice haha She is far too wrapped up in this competition with Tim to have that clarity. She does eventually put her phone down though.

Her taking a phone break does help her focus a bit. Because once she does they have a breakthrough of their own. They’re headed to the Griffith Observatory. Lucy is vibrating with excitement over this. She’s more excited to tell Tim they got something more than anything else. It’s so funny and adorable. The commentary in the gifs above is hilarious.

They are legit just trying to solve this case. While Lucy gets amped that they're gonna catch up with Tim and Jerry. Harper and Nolan’s reaction to her is priceless in the second gif. Lucy is too caught up in her work flirt. Telling them before they go she has to text Tim first. Let him know they’re gonna kick his ass. Because priorities LMAO

The way they look at each other is the funniest part. First and foremost they didn’t ask to be apart of this flirty bet haha They’re in it just to solve a case. Second they’re thinking does she not see it? She has to see it right? We know she doesn’t baha If she does she’s pushing it down real hard since 4x01 and it’s coming out in other ways. I.e. this moment. It’s so funny how lost in her bet she is. Doesn’t notice their hilarious reactions at all. I’m dying haha.

Tim tries again to have a frank conversation with Jerry. Since it’s day 2 of him riding with him and he was supposed to retired by yesterday... Jerry looks at the file again while Tim tries to muster up the courage. It's then he has an epiphany. Says he knows where the gold is. Tim asks if he’s sure? Jerry replies absolutely.

Now Tim’s first thought isn’t yes we solved the case. Or they got redemption for Jerry and his friend who never found the coins. No it’s excitement he’s going to beat Lucy in a bet LOL Man is amped about beating her to it. Like a high he’s been chasing the entire episode. God I love this so much. Flirty idiots in love have no idea.

This next portion is their married moment of the episode. Lots of work flirts but this interaction is all married. They are so ridiculous and I love them for it. The trio have figured out where the treasure is through the poem. An underground subway system sitting beneath the city. One of the people that has been chasing this thing since the jump causes chaos once the trio arrive. He shoots the last person also going after it. He takes off Lucy and Harper leave Nolan with the wounded one so they can pursue him.

They find him and he starts running again. Out of nowhere Tim comes into the picture and uses that sexy forearm of his to clothes line the guy. Lucy is shocked and impressed all at the same time. Me too. *fans self* Asking how they got here so quickly? Tim tells them they were already down here. Lucy then asks if they found the treasure? Tim smirks and says they’re gonna find out. Walks them over to a hole with a suitcase in it.

The final competitive flirting begins. Tim immediately claiming victory for him and Jerry. Because that suitcase is holding the missing gold. Nyla fights him on it though. Saying they would’ve been here first, but they had a police matter to deal with. Tim scoffs and tells them good job but they still won LOL The absolute sass coming off this man.

Lucy backs Harper in agreement and doesn’t let Tim battle back. Sassy return fire with her cocky smirk. Then the ladies just decide it’s a tie LMAO That Tim gets no say in the matter. I love their body posture mirroring one another in this moment. Lucy leans towards Tim then Tim does the same when he's upset it's considered a tie.

I saw someone call Tim ‘Sargent Sore Loser’ for a parallel of this moment hahaha it’s pretty apt when he loses to his wife. I love it sfm. Lucy waving by then pointing at herself as they walk off is amazing. It's hilarious. It's decided it's over and there is nothing he can do about it. Their flirting was off the charts in this episode. It was wild. Their string of work flirts continue on. One of the themes of S4. It makes me so happy.

I do love this next part with Jerry. It’s very sweet. It shows Tim’s wonderful heart. He went into this trying to prove he could handle the rough convos. That he could dispatch people with the cold hard truth. When it came to it his empathy won out. I truly believe he’s always been a sensitive empathetic person. It's been at his core this whole time.

Talked about this before. Just got lost in the shuffle of everything he went through with Isabel. Lucy reawakened that part of him. Now he taps into it like he does anything else. That heart of his let Jerry go out in a much better way. It’s why he thanks Tim for it. He knew what was coming and appreciated Tim for indulging him one last time. It's so sweet I might have a cavity.

Jerry's send off is equally as lovely at the station. Ashley is there to help celebrate his retirement. They all do their radio tribute that is beautiful to watch tbh. Once everyone clears Tim ends up asking Ashley out. (boo) She says yes and he smiles BUT it was most definitely not a 'Lucy smile.' No one compares at all. It’s unreal how by a smile you can tell when it’s Lucy driven and when it’s not. This for sure was not. So ends another ep. Such a good one for them.

~~~

Side notes-Non Chenford

The introduction to Ashley….how I dislike her so….just gotta make it to 5x05 and she’ll be gone LOL Was around longer than she should’ve been but we’ll get into when we hit s5 heh Also I’ll add more of why I don’t like her as the season progress in this rewatch. There is a reason he dates her IMO which I will also go over at some point as well.

I love any and all Lucy and Harper scenes we get . This one had loads. Amazing how they've bonded over the last 2 seasons. I love it so much. Them working on the riddle together at Lucy's place over beers. My heart. Watching them working this case together brings me joy. Hopefully we get more of this in s6. I need more Nyla/Lucy in my life.

Thank you forever and always to those who like, comment and reblog these reviews. You all make me so happy ❤️ See you all in 4x07 :)

[valleynix]

The Fool. As in, the tarot card?

(With that "you have to remember" all I had in my mind was the "remember who you are" from lion king lmao)

"They’re right in front of you-

But they’re not real. They’re gone."

Can you stop?? I need a safe word.

"You won’t let her destroy more and more realities or worlds or whatever.

It stops now."

Yes, that's the spirit! Let's go!🎉

"It seems as though Cassandra has the most control over her urges after she drinks blood from a fresh source"

But little miss Bela will be out there saying she's managing it better than her sisters😭

🥺 Cass draw Reader and Daniela sleeping???? Pls that's so cute.

I wonder if she drew some more moments of her family spending time together. That'd be like family pictures :')

Idk if they have cameras out there so

There certainly must be something wrong with me, because Cassandra is extremely attractive when she's threatening the Reader.

My lil rainbow heart was at its limits doing all the Cass paragraphs 🥴

Reading with Bela 🥺

That would be such a nice experience I bet, her voice is so soothing like she could be talking about how she cut open a manthing in the cellar and that would be like a bedtime story.

Need her to talk to me when I'm anxious <\3

Yhm yhm nvm once again giving me a slap on the face with the sweet moment followed by nothing but pure pain.

Lunatic kinda fine tho 👀 I like their evil mind, games and plans.

Mmm mmm evil people who ruin the lives of others (if only it wasn't Reader's life ). It's a love-hate relationship 😭 we gotta learn self love

DANIELA 💘💝💖💗💓💞💕💟❤

I knew sth bad would happen once again 😩

The way they argued with Bela anyway, about leaving the castle. They couldn't escape it.

Gosh I hope the Reader won't fuck up with the timeline too much this time 😭

And for now I don't trust the woman from the cellar.

And damn what killed those maids from the castle. A mystery that is yet to be solved.

i love that i saw this just as i was about to start writing again hehe

The Fool as in the tarot card >:) i'm glad someone picked up on that sdkjfhskj (there's a shit ton of symbolism that i so far haven't really seen anyone mention just yet, but hearing this made me happy :D)

*THE SAFE WORD COMMENT LMFAOOO

*can't give up hope in these trying times >:)

*listen Bela just likes to think she has that control- little miss Bela "perfect daughter" Dimitrescu is struggling BAHA

*Cass 100% has a little stash of drawings no one will ever be able to find, and it's just sketches of her family doing things she can remember or that mean something to her :')

*also tbf Cass is just attractive no matter what she does. she could threaten to cut out my tongue and i'd be like "wow say it again" LMAOOOO

*so real of you </3 Bela strikes me as someone with a voice that literally everyone loves and wants to hear (cue Daniela begging her to read just because she finds it soothing for her nightmares)

*HEHEHEHEHE, i'm trying to get better at just comfort and not as much pain following it </3

*Lunatic is honestly really smart sdkjfhs, there is a method to their madness (also have you seen the fanart done of them?? bro is cool as FUCK)

*(i promise you will learn to like them more <3)

*IN CONCLUSION: DANIELA <3333333 (i'm on my laptop so no emojis but imagine i spammed hearts)

*some things are just set in stone, as we'll see more of >:) that's the unfortunate reality of fate; no matter how hard we try, sometimes we just can't escape what was already destined to happen at some point or another

*about that...

*i definitely wouldn't! she does mean well, but... yknow... the village is a scary place, and sometimes it gives life to scarier humans forced into a certain role by the horrid shit going on

*i think chapter ten briefly implies who/what killed the maids?? if i'm not mistaken? it's often difficult to know every little thing when we only see things from one POV >:)

i hope you're still enjoying it so far, though <33

[trashyswitch]

Remus's Untitled Machine-inator

Remus created a machine that could tickle people. Amazingly, Logan walks right into his machine and becomes the guinea pig! But Remus wasn't prepared for the adorable laughter, or for Logan's confession about his laugh...

This is Tickletober Day 30: Machine

Remus was smiling to himself as he placed the dummy into place. Instead of using the automatic handcuffs like he would for a real person, Remus manually attached the comfy handcuffs to the dummy’s wrists. Then, Remus summoned a tablet in front of him and clicked the [START] button in the middle of the screen. Suddenly, the handcuffs locked to the dummy’s wrists. Remus clicked the desired spots on the tablet, and watched in growing excitement as the machine did what it was supposed to do! It works! But does it tickle? Remus walked up to the machine, pushed the dummy aside and slid his own armpit in the correct position. The mechanical fingers tickled him for only a second before Remus guffawed and started laughing and running away from the machine.

His armpit was WAY too ticklish for something like that, and he knew that all too well! And so, Remus could proudly proclaim that the contraption was a success! He felt like Dr. Doofenshmirtz with his inators. Only, Remus didn’t have a lab coat on. He was just working in his usual frilly outfit. But, it was still Dr. Doof-like!

Remus happily returned it back to its beginning state and unsummoned the tablet. Now, all he needed was a guinea pig to demonstra-

-knock knock knock-

“Remus? Is that you making all the noise?” someone asked from his room.

Remus paused his thought and gasped! PERFECT TIMING! And, perfect person! Remus ran up to the door and happily opened it. “Why Bonjour, Logan!” Remus greeted in a pretty good french accent.

Logan lifted an eyebrow. “Hello Remus. Was that you making-” Logan looked behind the man and widened his eyes at the huge contraption in his room. “...What is that?” Logan asked.

“Oh thiiiisss? It’s my latest invention! The...uh…untitled invention...so far...” Remus replied, his confidence slightly dropping as he realized he didn’t have a name for it yet.

Logan hummed and walked right by Remus to get a closer look. “Hmm...It looks like it could be anything.” Logan admitted, walking into the machine. It was a walk in-type machine, similar to a phone box. Only, it was curved into a standing, half-cylinder shape. The sides and back of the cylinder had tennis ball-sized holes for...Well, Logan didn’t quite know yet. But there were even two holes on the top of the cylinder, where the flat side was. “What is this even connected to?” Logan asked.

Remus summoned the temporarily closed tablet on the side of the cylinder. “There’s a tablet, that’s connected to it.” Remus told him, before using his magic from behind his back, to connect the headphone cable from the tablet to the back of the machine.

Logan looked at the outside of the cylinder and found the tablet. After opening it, Logan tilted his head and lifted an eyebrow. “Well...I’m afraid that looking at the tablet has further confused me.” Logan told him.

Remus sniffled a laugh. “That’s a shame.” Remus said.

Logan narrowed his eyes in slight suspicion, before moving back to the cylinder area. As he inspected the holes a little further, Remus unsummoned the tablet and the cable, before resummoning it right into his own hands. Turning it on, Remus clicked the release button on a couple of the specific holes.

“Oh?! Oh my!” Logan reacted, widening his eyes at the sudden change:

There were robotic hands with arms that slithered and presented themselves to Logan, each arm coming from a hole in the cylinder. Logan smiled and playfully poked the hand. In retaliation, the hand poked Logan back. But this time, it was right in his ribs! Logan squeaked and put his index finger up in an attempt to signal a warning.

“No.” Logan voiced as well. After that funny occurrence, Logan turned to face Remus. “So...what is this thing? Is it…” Logan asked, hesitant to ask the last thing.

Remus caught onto what he was saying right away. “It can be.” Remus replied. “But don’t worry: It has a much more innocent setting added to it as well.” Remus explained.

Logan lowered his eyebrows and tilted his head. “...Innocent? How innocent- AAAH!” Logan tried to ask. But his words were interrupted by his own scream as he felt the arms from the ceiling holes grab Logan’s wrists and pull them up. Logan’s eyes were widened as he realized just how exposed he was in this position. “Uuuuh...A little help?” Logan asked.

Remus nodded. “Here:” Remus replied as he clicked a couple buttons on the tablet. Suddenly, a green-colored flat ray of light scanned Logan from the top of his head, down to his standing feet. When the ray shut itself off and moved away, the other hands started to move closer and closer to him! And the hands were...wiggling playfully?

WAIT-

“Remus, this is NOT what I meant!” Logan protested before turning to the hands. “Get away! Get! Shoo!” Logan ordered.

But instead of following what he said, one of the right hands struck! And clung its wiggling fingers to Logan’s hip! Logan yelped in surprise and quickly curled and wiggled to try and get the squeezing hand off his hip. But things just got higher in intensity as a left hand moved itself to Logan’s body, and struck! Right onto his armpit! This hand was skittering it’s surprisingly soft robot fingers right in Logan’s armpit! Logan bit his lip and did everything he could to cover up his armpit. But the pinned wrists above his head were...not helping matters.

“R-Remus! Hehe-HELP! Thihihis-” Logan was struggling to keep his new-found forceful giggles inside his lungs.

“This what, Logan? This...tickles? Is this ticklish for you?” Remus teased before he clicked something on the tablet.

Suddenly, another moving hand started wiggling its way to Logan’s other, untouched hip. Logan widened his eyes in horror and wiggled around more to prevent the hand from getting any further to him! But this ended up being pointless as the hand struck anyway, squeezing and drilling into his other hip relentlessly. “BAHA!” Logan guffawed before biting his lip as hard as he could to stop anything else from leaving his mouth.

“Come on, Logan! Laugh for me! I’ve been dying to hear it! I don’t think I’ve ever heard you laugh before!” Remus told him.

Logan shook his head and hissed a “No” at him.

Remus’s cutesy, merciful voice soon dropped. “You wanna know something?” Remus asked. “These hands aren’t gonna stop tickling you until you laugh. So, if you let go and start laughing now, the tickling may not last as long.” Remus offered.

Logan’s frown softened a little as he realized the situation he was in. He wanted to get out of the tickling trap he got himself into, but he also felt the mental strain to keep his laugh secret. He’d always been embarrassed by his laughter, and he spent this long trying to keep it secret. But...The logical part of him was also telling him to let it out and shorten the tickle attack.

Suddenly, a lower hand found his sock and started removing it. Logan shrieked and desperately tried to get the foot away from the hand. But another hand that was just across, grabbed Logan’s ankle and held it in place while the 1st hand successfully removed the sock from his left foot. Logan’s giggles started coming out in titters before the hand even started tickling the bare foot! Logan tugged and tugged on the hand, but all the tugging and breath-holding ceased when his toes were only scratched:

“KAHAAAA-HAHAHA! OKAHAY, OHOHOKAHAHAHAHAHAYY! YOHOHOU- *snort* YOHOHOU BROHOHOHOKE MEHEHE!” Logan shouted, wiggling and finally letting out all the laughter that was trapped in his lungs.

Remus was staring at Logan with the biggest starry eyes even seen by man. The sound was gorgeous to hear and may he even say, absolutely adorable! Logan’s helpless state consisted of wiggling around constantly and sometimes snorting amidst his laughter! Remus could tell which spot triggered what snort, based on where he pulled away or doubled over to cover. “Your laugh...WOOOOOWWW! I LOVE IT!” Remus shouted happily.

Logan’s red cheeks turned a slightly darker color at that compliment. Come on...It’s really not worth loving. “IHIHIHI HAHAHAHATE MYHY LAHAHAUGH!” Logan admitted.

Remus gasped and quickly stopped the hands. When all the hands (but the top ones holding his wrists) retreated, Remus walked up to Logan. “Logan, I love your laugh! It’s so cute to hear! I want to enjoy your laugh more, but only if you want to be tickled by my contraption.” Remus told him.

Logan looked down at the floor. He...he wanted to be tickled, but...he didn’t want the laughter. It…

Remus gave him a small poke to the side. Logan jumped in surprise, but looked away with a smile. “Come on...I want you to laugh.” Remus told him. Logan looked up at Remus’s surprisingly convincing puppy dog eyes, and finally nodded his head.

Remus beamed further and took a step backwards before summoning the tablet once again. Remus clicked the different arms and watched as the hands got closer and closer to Logan and latched back onto him to tickle him. Logan giggled, laughed and wiggled around as the many arms on the contraption tickled his many ticklish spots. There was a hand going for each of his hips, a hand going for his armpit, a hand going for one side each, and even a hand skittering on the back of his neck! It tickled so much, and left Logan in hysterics and snorts!

“Awww! Good job Logan! Your laughing is tickling me, just listening to it! So cute!” Remus admitted.

Oh Remus...Why THAT kind of pun?! Why must he make a tickle pun while he’s being tickled?!

“THAHAHAT WAHAHAS TEHEHERRIBLEHEHE!” Logan complained.

“Hmm...Does it look like I care?” Remus asked him with a smirk.

“IHIHIHI DOHOHOHON’T KNOHOHOHOW!” Logan replied.

“Newsflash: I DON’T!” Remus declared. “Now, how many tickles does it take to make an octopus laugh?” Remus asked with a smile.

Oh god no...Not THIS joke!

“SEHEHERIOUSLYHYHY?!” Logan shouted in slight annoyance.

“Yes! How many tickles does it take to make an octopus laugh?!” Remus asked.

Logan shook his head and closed his mouth to slightly muffle his laughter.

Remus narrowed his eyes and walked closer to the man. “Come on, Logan! You know this one! How many tickles does it take to make an octopus laugh?” Remus repeated.

“IHIHI DOHOHON’T KNOHOHOHOHOHOW!” Logan shouted back.

Remus rolled his eyes and sighed in agitation. “Why must you fail me?” Remus asked. “How many tickles does it take...to make an octopus laugh?” Remus asked.

Logan shook his head and growled slightly. “JUHUHUHUST TEHEHEHELL MEHEHE!” Logan begged.

“Ugh! Fine. Ten-tickles! It take ten-tickles to make an octopus laugh!” Remus replied.

Suddenly, a robotic hand grabbed his ankle and lifted up the foot while a second robot hand started tickling the foot. “HEHEHEHEHEY! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHEHEHEHEHEHEHE!” Logan screamed!

“Wow! I’m surprised at you, Logan! You never laugh at kids jokes!” Remus reacted.

Logan shook his head and tugged on his foot. “IHIHI’M LAHAHAHAUGHIHIHING BEHEHEHECAUHUHUSE YOHOHOU’RE TIHIHIHICKLIHIHING MEHEHEHEHE!” Logan shouted back.

“Tickling you?! I’m not tickling you! I’m all the way over here! There’s no way I could tickle you while I’m THIS far back!” Remus reacted.

Logan just gave up trying to reason himself out of this mess. There was no point in trying to argue his way out of a chaotically evil man’s endeavors. So, Logan took the tickling for a little longer before begging for him to turn it off.

Thankfully, the chaotically evil man was somewhat merciful when it came to tickling. Remus stopped right when Logan told him to, undid the hands’ grips, and even gave him a glass of water to help his dry throat.

Remus wasn’t sure if Logan was gonna believe him when he said “I love your laugh”. He wasn’t even sure if Logan would believe him after all that tickling. But, all that mattered now, was that Logan had fun despite his ‘embarrassing’ laugh.

[ae-diaries]

My First Call Center Experience

I stunned in disbelief when I heard this snarky comment from a schoolmate of mine saying "Grumaduate ng college tapos sa call center 'lang' pala nagtatrabaho!" How insensitive. Wagas maka 'lang' si ati..Do you have PHd to belittle call centers/agents? 

You may know their job title but not their story and the wondrous things they do. Take it from my experience.

BEFORE: 

My perceptions: Call center is a career dead end. More often than not, people 'might' be negatron, wordsmith, westernized, pa-sossy, you name it...(sorry for the terms)

NOW: I was wrong..

I discovered there's nothing wrong being a call center agent; it's a decent job that can be proud of and hindi basta trabaho 'lang'.

Also, call centers weren't the 'walang choice' bunch because it's a choice you make and you live with them..and in choosing to explore this kind of industry, I met the most brilliant yet humble, appreciative, very accommodating and talkative fellas na mas pasmado pa bunganga kesa sa customer on the other line! haha

I like it best because boss mentality wasn't tolerated, customers were valued, and employees were empowered. Anjan yung TLs na strict sa attendance pero ipaglalaban ka sa QA haha. Pupusuan mo talaga. 🤣

Here, I began to ACKNOWLEDGE and EMPHATIZE  not just the customers' concerns, but also, the typical hardships that my former colleagues went through in every call.

I could understand why frontline agents need to press the mute botton and spit out shit words, smoke during break time, drink with friends after shift, head on to expensive establishments, sing their hearts out in karaoke bars, go unli shopping, overuse their VL credits and get easily sick because the nature of their job is stressful/painstaking and so these are their tradeoffs for the crazy hours. They are emotional/social beings, not just human beings after all. Just so you know my observations/hugot on the floor be like: 

1. Agents are stress-absorbers. They bear insults and offensive words, receive complaints and deal with Irate and racist customers. Paligo kana sa profane words ikaw pa toh magsosorry kahit di mo kasalanan. (pasok labas nalang sa tenga day). Then, I experienced one time ung todo explain ka na kay customer tapos naka on pala yung mute botton mo! Gapang beshie. Back to zero ulit. O kaya naman may sasabhin ka pero dehins ka makasingit kasi sobrang kuda ni damuhong customer haha. Kasama sa trabaho yan. Buti na lng na-immune kana sa lamig ng aircon. Just stay cool and be professional.

2. Life isn't a bed of roses contrary to the normal perception. Agents are like zombies na papunta na sa conjuring joke! haha. They sacrifice their sleep and family time - mga bayaning puyat - tulog sa umaga gising sa gabi, which is, quite unhealthy. Yung pumipikit kana pero kelangan mo parin lumaban at lulusong sa baha just to get the attendance bonus.

3. Change is the only constant thing in BPO. It's such a fast-paced environment sobraaa..pali pali culture...yun bang parang tumatumbling lahat ng tao kasi mabilisan ang galawan. People come and go; sa isang iglap nagbago lahat; one day you're important to that person, the next day you're forgotten; nag day off ka lang tas pagpasok mo pinagpalit kana at sa ibang team ka na belong (saklap bes); it's hard to move on esp. when you've  become so attached with your teammates and so you need to Tailor Swift yourself!

4. It's a numbers game, process/performance driven, meeting targets, and hitting metrics. Any time pwede ka ma-escalate or get warnings so green stats lang dapat! Basta ako go with the flow lang and no pressures at all, hindi ko need magandang stats, ganda lang ang puhunan..charot haha

5. Felt like a walking robot. Always let's vault in sa floor. Parang ikaw ang 'itinakda' kasi naka-timer lahat ng gagawin mo at yung feeling na in a relationship kana with cisco/avaya lol. Pati bio break di mo alam san makakarating kasi patakbo pa haha. At times, lunok laway na lang pahinga mo tas yan na naman silaaaaa at pag nag-avail kahit one minute lang jusko happy na! At di pa nagtatapos jan, lagare pati multitasking mo kasi while listening kay nag-aalburutong customer on the phone, you must take down notes comprehensively. Bawal this and that (I'm not complaining though ginusto ko naman toh ma-experience diba haha). 

Commonly used jargons on the floor:  manage your calls, phonetics, manda OT, ASAT, wonder call, team reshuffle, team building (na mdalas mapostpone), post-shift huddle, critical working/wallet days, auto in pls, long hold, overbreak/lunch and yung akala mo avail un pala naka-ACW ka! Sabay flag sa name mo ni workforce (peymus eh haha). Go on outbound when needed and inbound when queueing even if 10 mins. to go end of shift mo na...tapos na-long call pa. Pashnea! Tuloy hanggang sa panaginip ng co-calls ka parin! haha

6. Broken promises often break the heart of customers, so you have to be truthful with your words always (to maintain your company's reputation as well). Give them an assurance because it takes seconds to lose someone's trust and a lifetime to gain it back. If you want to keep the person/customer, don't break her trust...so she won't look for another...uhm...service provider. 

Yes, the struggle is real. TBH, I experienced culture shock and a roller coaster of emotions because this is my first BPO company. It took me awhile to get the hang of it, but the strict compliance and rigorous trainings I acquired enabled me to analyze/explain bills even if I'm not an accountant, troubleshoot even if I'm not an IT, investigate issues though I'm not a detective, pacify customers who don't even care how I feel, increase awareness to fraud, earn masteral degree in empathy, objection handling, and ofcourse salestalk/salesmanship! 

These were the things I've never done before na di ko akalaing magagawa ko pala aside from teaching and singing! Talagang life-changing! Hindi pala biro haha..How did I survive? I just held on tight to my  faith and mantra since grad bay, "If you believe it, you can do it! You just have to know the rules of the game and be a BETTER player!

I owe you big time TT. 

I will never look at Call centers the same way I looked at it before - that's my assurance!

SALUTE to all call center agents out there, my former wavemates/teammates, TLs, OMs, Trainers & Acquiantances! 

Desired position: achieved!

Thank you Lord for allowing me to see life from the other side. 

#dakilangAhente

First day of training be like, "Ano ba tong pinasok ko?" 🤣😅

My very first team #TeamMinchin #Wave14

Our building is located near this place, so this became by #peyboritTambayanbeforeduty😅

After ma-long call pose 😅🤣🤣

[omgstupendousbouquetbasement]

Human Library Project Works to Eliminate Prejudice, Discrimination

The saying, “Don't judge a book by its cover,” means you shouldn't prejudge the value of something by its outward appearance. And that was one of the messages at a college near Washington, where some people became human books, of sorts, as they talked about how appearances can be deceiving and lead to preconceived biases.  At an event called the Human Library Project, students at Northern Virginia Community College in Alexandria, Virginia, could check out a person -- a “human” book -- instead of a book in their library.  The organizer, Patricia Cooper, said the human books are celebrating diversity by verbally sharing the stories of their lives with the students in a non-judgmental atmosphere. In this third annual event, the “collection” included a civil rights activist, NASA scientist, and an opera singer. “The goal of the human library is to talk to people in your community who you may otherwise not speak to because you have your own prejudices, stigma or you're afraid,” said Cooper. She hoped the discussions “in a safe and supportive environment will break down some of these barriers.” Najeeb Baha, director of recreation and wellness at the college, knows all too well what it’s like to try to break down barriers. Because he has fair skin, reddish hair and an Arabic name, people are often surprised to learn he is from Afghanistan. Baha said he has been detained in airports by security because he doesn’t look like what people perceive as the typical Afghan. And surprisingly, he said worshippers at a Virginia mosque were also prejudiced against him for the same reason. “My goal is to inform everybody about the things that I've gone through,” said Baha, as he spoke to student Angel Navia about his story. Baha told him he thinks people shouldn’t focus on skin color, judge individuals by their last name, or discriminate against persons who have an accent. Navia shook his head in disbelief. “The struggles that come from something simple like just a name, or where you're from, and how that dictates some aspects of your life,” he said. Overcoming hardships Student advisor Connie Robinson was another human book, sharing how she survived domestic abuse by her ex-husband. “Life is 10 percent of what happens to us and 90 percent how we deal with it. That’s what I follow,” she said. She explained that a college education helped get her out of a terrible situation so she could control her destiny. “When I talk to students, I just want them to know that whatever they're going through, continue to strive for their education because it is so important.” Human book Siem Sium, an Eritrean immigrant who is also a student at the college, chatted about not judging people who are homeless. He described what it felt like to live in a homeless shelter, at one point, when his hardworking family was unable to make ends meet. But through the hardship, he shared with other students, he learned “that it is what’s inside of someone that counts,” and “the quality of a person is so much more valuable than the quality of their possessions.” Not all the human books were affiliated with the college. Some, like Tyra Garlington, came from the local community. The optimistic inspirational speaker, who said she had suffered loss and abuse and survived cancer, told two women from Africa to take whatever comes their way and use the good, bad and scary to improve their lives. “She inspired me to stay strong and work hard,” said Nancy Blankson from Ghana. Brian Dailey, a human book who is an artist, spoke about his trips to 113 countries in seven years. Dailey said that during his travels, he asked people he photographed for a one-word response to a series of other words, including love, freedom and war. He discovered people in different countries often had very different reactions to the same word. "The word war in southern Africa was considered justification, liberation, and peace,” Dailey said, adding that when he talked to people in Syrian refugee camps, “it was tears, hunger, fear, and destruction.” But he said people in most of the countries had a similar answer when he said the word government. Most people, he said, don’t like theirs very much. from Blogger http://bit.ly/2WkVYUI via IFTTT

[sonnet009]

Anonymous said:

I think it's nice that they would be okay without having kids! It's a cool change from when it's an automatic assumption in stories that the mc and interest always become/want to become parents. Thank you for that. <3 I also just wanted to say that I love your writing more than anything and hope you don't feel pressured at all. Question: If they found a stray dog/animal, how would each react?

<3

Ran wouldn’t hesitate to care for an animal if it was sick or hurt, and would try to feed it if it was hungry; give it a fighting chance, before moving on.

Animals tend to adore Bahadur and stick to him like glue, so even if he wanted to ignore a stray, he couldn’t.

Amir would be supremely uninterested, unless it was an animal he wasn’t used to seeing every day in the forest where he lives. Give him a domestic cat or something and he will be aaaaall over it, like, What’s this? Can I touch it? I’m gonna touch it. Ahhh, I’m touching it~

If Royo found a stray animal, it wouldn’t be stray for long. Consider that critter adopted, yo.

As for Jamal, you might wanna wait for his route and see for yourself. ^_^

Anonymous said:

this is the anon that asked about the title and wow i am impressed. i find titles so hard to come up with because you have to encompass a whole story in just like a couple of words. wilder seems a perfect title due to the believed 'wild' nature of most djinn, and how they cause mc to become wild too, therefore using the archaic meaning of the word. i am a big language nerd so i'm just super into this stuff. glad you're back on track with the game too, and i'll be waiting patiently for release!

Oh, believe me, you’re not alone in struggling with titles. For a long time in development, Wilder was not the title I had in mind. I had to change it unexpectedly and ended up polling some friends and family on a few potential new titles. Wilder was the clear winner.

And thank you! ^_^

Anonymous said:

Did the MC ever have a silly nickname for Bahadur when they were younger? That'd be so cute!!! ^///^

At first, she found it difficult (or perhaps just too troublesome) to say Bahadur’s full name, so instead she would call him Baha. As she got older, it was no longer appropriate to call him by a nickname, so she stopped. Although sometimes, when the two of them are alone and the mood is sufficiently casual, she will fall back into old habits.

(More spoiler-y asks/answers below the cut...)

Anonymous said:

Hey Sonnet! I loved Rans story, and have a wee question- how would Ran have reacted if Yasir's solution would have been to marry MC, and she agreed (for whatever personal reason; being saving Ran, ambition, or a mixture of the two?)- so when Yasir questions her, and she says yes- instead of saying 'You can have him', she says 'I will marry you'. His immediate response? I was really wondering! ^^ Thank you for this amazing game!

He would’ve gone still and cold. He’d look over at MC to confirm that this was really happening. Then he’d have extracted himself as soon as possible. He’d find MC later to question her, ask her with some desperation and a heap of disdain if she was really going to do this. If he couldn’t convince her otherwise, he’d be gone by the next morning.

Anonymous said: 

SPOILERS OMG IM SORRY FOR THIS QUESTION but we never really found out why the Shah was killed or by who so do we get to find out in the upcoming routes?

Come on, anon. You really think I’m gonna leave you hanging? ^_~