#Best part of grand fest

[gaytorsk8or]

Great work with the big run everyone! Wanted to draw the agents joining in on the action in the grand fest style

[starshideurfics]

Thirsty Thursday - Shut up and dance with me

steddie, omegaverse, a little bit of fun during my angst-fest to celebrate some follower milestones 🥰

Steve keeps saying he feels goofy wearing a suit, even if he’s happy to do it for Robin. It’s non-traditional, sticking an omega in black-tie. But neither is an alpha like Buckley having an omega as her best man. Her mating ceremony is beautiful, Chrissy absolutely sparkles, and Steve cries through half of it because he’s so happy for his best friend.

Eddie might cry a little, too.

He’s seated in the front row, with Robin’s family, since he and Steve are ‘capital S’ Serious, and Steve has practically been adopted by Robin’s parents. Melissa catches him crying and smiles; she’s certain to ask when he and Steve are going to tie the knot themselves.

He’s nowhere near ready to answer that one. Especially without Steve to help. Eddie hasn’t wanted to rush things, even being friends so long beforehand. Knows that he loves Steve more than anything. But they’ve barely been dating a year…

After the ceremony, Steve catches his eye from the reception line. “You good?” Eddie mouths, quirking a questioning brow.

Steve makes a dumb face—pretends to cry—gives him a thumbs up, and it’s like everything rearranges, his whole world shifting a couple inches to the left.

He knows.

All his worries about it being too fast float away like so much dust on the wind. He’d be happy enough watching Steve from across the room for the rest of his life, to giggle and mime at one another.

But after the reception, he gets to take Steve home.

Not being in the wedding party, he should honestly head over to the venue soon—after going through the receiving line. He kisses Chrissy’s cheek, tells her she looks stunning, high fives Robin for locking down her perfect omega, and whispers, “I’ll be waiting for you with a cocktail,” in Steve’s ear.

He manages to cop a feel, squeezing Steve’s ass before pulling back, earning him a tiny whine as they part.

Forcing himself to keep walking, Eddie hates leaving his m—

Hates leaving Steve. He wants to run back and scoop him into his arms. To keep him close.

Instead, he gets in Steve’s car and drives to the reception, grabs a scotch from the open bar, and distracts himself from missing Steve by chatting with Jonathan who is just as in need of the company since Argyle and Nancy are also in the wedding party.

Eddie’s on his second scotch when he hears whispers that the limo has arrived, and he goes to order a Manhattan for Steve with extra cherries. He’s barely got the coupe glass in hand before the DJ is announcing the new Mr. and Mrs. Buckley.

They’ve changed into their reception outfits: Chrissy’s dress short and frothy, Robin in metallic pants and a shirt unbuttoned halfway down her sternum, both of them already dancing as they make their grand entrance.

The whole room hoots and hollers as they burst into cheers.

The rest of the party has changed too. Nancy’s in a slinky dress, the depth of the black of it the only thing hiding the outline of her dick. Argyle is in shorts that make him seem ridiculously tall, and Heather is in a romper covered in rhinestones.

Then there’s Steve.

He’s dressed to match Robin in silver-sequined pants, trading the button-down for a loose tank top that shows off too much of his golden skin, freckles and moles like so many stars in the sky.

Eddie’s mouth waters as he makes his way over to him, drink in hand.

“Damn, sweetheart!” he says, eyes locked on Steve’s tits, needing to hold him by the sides and slip his thumbs in to tease his nipples.

Steve grips hush chin, tilts his gaze up until their eyes meet. “Thanks, babe.” He smiles into their kiss, uses his teeth a little.

Eddie offers him the drink, and Steve happily accepts, plucking out a cherry and popping it into his mouth. Another kiss, this one cherry-sweet, and Steve downs his drink, holding his extra cherry between his teeth for a long moment, grinning as he bites it in half.

“Why is it so hot when you do that?” Eddie rasps, his dress pants suddenly a little too tight.

Steve smiles, pulls half the cherry from between his lips, and presses it to Eddie’s mouth. “Shut up and dance with me, Munson,” he says, laughing, barely containing his delight.

He drags Eddie onto the dance floor, the alpha going willingly, hands easily finding their way onto Steve’s hips. Falling to the beat, into moving with one another is easy. So easy, Eddie nearly forgets his revelation from earlier.

And he’s distracted again by Steve’s chest.

“You okay there, Munson?” he teases, using a single finger to direct Eddie’s gaze back up to face him. “Keep your eyes on me.”

A purr rumbles through Eddie’s chest as he leans in close. “Why d’ya still call me Munson all the time, Stevie?” he murmurs, then kisses Steve’s ear.

“Like the way it sounds. I like everything about you, Eddie.” The words are soft and vulnerable, barely audible over the pulse of the music.

It makes Eddie brave enough to be vulnerable, too.

“How do you like the sound of Mrs. Munson? Or Ms.” He smiles. “Whichev-”

Steve cuts him off with a kiss.

“I like the sound of that a lot.”

[dr-spectre]

honestly the only thing i wish now since team past won is that we don't get a great turf war game.

A more past based aesthetic sounds inherently cooler for a game no matter what people say.

I think i was being a little too harsh and mean towards Team Past and I was riding the high of the Grand Fest....

At the end of the day, what makes Splatoon's world so special is that it's world follows our time, a year passes in our world, a year passes over there. Stopping the timeline would be a bad idea and I think the developers know better. I have faith in them.

I dont think we're gonna get a great turf war game because Splatoon 4 was most likely already in pre-production before the Grand Fest, and they are just choosing what aesthetic to wrap the game in. They probably have a bunch of storylines planned out too and now they can get to work on the next game. That's just how game development works, especially Nintendo ones where gameplay is first and story is second.

The results of the final Splatfest of each game do make an impact but not THAT big of an impact. Callie vs. Marie decided who was gonna play the villain role in the next hero mode as they already placed down the set up for that story line in the songs Tide Goes Out and Bomb Rush Blush, as well as the Splatfest dialogue creating tension between the two.

Marie won so the developers gave Callie some angst, and she strolled down to Octo Canyon, said to good ol' Octavio "Hey I wanna be evil and stuff." And Octavio was like, "aight sick yo. But you gotta wear these hypnotic shades first tho." And Callie was like "COOL! :D"

Chaos vs. Order impacted what the next game was gonna look like aesthetic wise, and even then it's not as extreme as a lot of people envisioned. Splatsville is Inkopolis but basically... a little bit more chaotic and clearly not as wealthy of a city as Inkopolis. Deep Cut's aesthetics and personality were based on the theme of chaos, we would have probably gotten a three person Idol group regardless but what team won in Splatoon 2 impacted what they were gonna look like. The rest of Splatoon 3 is just regular ol' Splatoon. It's not a crazy Mad Max chaotic land like what some were expecting and that Inkopolis was gonna be up in smoke.

And, of course, the losing team was yet again the central theme of the villain, this time, the idea of Order itself and even then its different from how Callie vs. Marie played out. Marina becomes Marina Agitando at the start of the story to get it out of the way and to subvert expectations. And then the real villain, Overlorder takes centre stage.

I dont think we're gonna see the whole "losing team becomes evil" thing because its a tired old trope and it created so much just.... bullshit in the community, I'm gonna be so real. Like you know this already and my stances on Hypno Callie and what people say about her but... I digress!!

I wanna end off my rambles by saying that the best part of Team Past winning, is that Callie and Marie got to win TOGETHER! It feels like the perfect cap to their arcs and it feels... good.... you know? It just, makes me happy that these two girls are just finally happy and are on each other's wavelengths so well. They even show that in Blushing Tide but ive already gushed about that song.

I feel like thematically Team Past/Squid Sisters winning feels.... perfect? It feels... right? I guess? Starting off in darkness and hate, fighting each other, coming together after being reminded of the good times they've had, healing their broken bond, finally winning... as a team...

I think im taking the loss pretty well LMAO! I mean I was on the winning team of Chaos vs. Order so I'm perfectly fine with coming in second place.

[hockeyandhrsepwr]

On the Seas

Charles Leclerc x Yachtie Reader

**I've been watching a lot of Below Deck which is how this came about - Enjoy:)**

Part 2

F1gossip

Is there a new WAG on the horizon? Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc was spotted chatting to a pretty woman on a boat ride, then later on a larger yacht, Monaco Grand Prix weekend. After a little bit of digging, we found that the woman was yntakestheseas. She appears to be based on the south of France/Monaco and the same age as Charles but we can’t quite figure out what she does. Her instagram is full of scenic, party & boat pics. Do we think trust fund baby? Gold Digger?

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Ferrrari4657 y’all are ridiculous. He was spotted with a woman, he must be dating someone. sure jan

F1fan19 You saw one blurry picture & found all of that? Thats such an invasion of privacy but I’m kind of impressed. 

Fan58 do you not see the uniform? She clearly works on the boat, it’s not like they were making out of something. 

Fan856 god forbid, a single man talking to a pretty woman 🙄

F1083 saying she may be a gold digger is so out of pocket. Maybe she’s just rich and honestly if she is, good for her. 

yntakestheseas

yntakestheseas It's the Grand Prix, I never miss the Grand Prix

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Bestfriend1 did Red Bull win?

yntakestheseas you can fuck right off

Bestfriend1 rude

Fans57 thats the same club the driver were in 👀

yntakestheseas along with half of Monaco babes, its not that deep

yntakestheseas

yntakestheseas Yes, I Cannes, finally walk the carpet at the film fest! 

📍Cannes film fest

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Bestie finally seeing what its like on the other side

yntakestheseas I don’t like it mom come pick me up

F175 Charles is there, coincidence?

yntakestheseas Pierre, Max and Lando are somewhere here too. That mean I’m fucking them? Hell, Tom Holland is here, maybe I’m

Bestfriend1 You mean to stop there?

yntakestheseas no, I just realized that that might not be the best example because I would fuck him so…

Fan0237 Oh shit 😂

Fan477 She definitely gives off socialite energy, but how have we never seen her before

F1946 she must be new money, seems a bit tacky

yntakestheseas babes the 24 euros in my bank accounts say I’m no money

yntakestheseas

yntakestheseas people jumping to conclusions in my comments 

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Fan466 What does this mean!!! bestie3 ooh girl 

MaxVerstappen Why you gotta do me like that?

yntakestheseas

yntakestheseas when the captains away, the crew will play 

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BoatCapJoe you know I can see this right?

yntakestheseas Sir yes sir, its a joke. We are actually working very very hard right now folding your underwear into roses. 

BoatCapJoe youre lucky I like you

Bestie babe…..

yntakestheseas I’m coming to live with you if I get fired

Bestie no youre fucking not, I've seen what C's apartment looks like when youre there

CharlesLeclerc do you ever actually work?

yntakestheseas No, my daddy pays for everything thanks for asking

CarlosSainz55 ew 

yntakestheseas what? All I said was my dad pays 

CarlosSainz55 You & I both know what you meant 

yntakestheseas

yntakestheseas You can call me captain #8 years 

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PierreGasly your mental age? Yeah we know

yntakestheseas I think you have me confused with lando

LandoNorris or himself

Bestie only took 8 years

yntakestheseas you know what, at least I did it

Charlesleclerc did what?

yntakestheseas bag someone rich enough to own the boat

CharlesLeclerc that all I’m good for?

Bestie you have a nice car!

yntakestheseas no, you have a decent dick too

PierreGasly 😲

yntakestheseas oh shut it mr 🐶

Charlesleclerc Decent isn't what you were saying yesterday

LandoNorris My EYES MY EYES Jesus guys 🤢

PierreGasly yeah I dont want to know that 🥴

Ferrrarifan3 Things I didnt expect to see today. This comment section 

yntakestheseas you should see the group chat

Fan4646 THERES A GROUPCHAT?????

xx

[yuurei20]

Rook Info Compilation part 2: Advice

Rook is often dispensing advice: his advice to Deuce in Book 5 indirectly contributes to Deuce discovering his unique magic, and he coaches Epel outright on how to summon his own unique magic after it manifests for the first time.

Rook and Jamil witnessing Epel’s unique magic is referenced during Glorious Masquerade, with both characters less worried than others when Epel stays with Riddle to protect the group from the encroaching fire lotuses, as they know that his unique magic works on plants.

Rook also helps Epel with his table manners, advises Kalim, Silver and Ortho to not discuss Beanfest strategies where they can be overheard and a significant turn in the Port Fest event comes from Rook’s advice to Jack:

When Jack can’t (or won’t) heed Rook’s attempts to guide him, Rook advises that he speak with someone whom he deeply respects and admires. Jack goes to Leona.

Rook’s advice is also a significant contributor to Book 5 when, after witnessing Ace and Deuce stand up against Vil to protect Epel, he encourages Vil to select them for the VDC team.

Vil is incredulous until Rook explains, “You are a grand diamond whose radiance draws eyes the world over. Now imagine, if you will, a tiara packed with precious stones all crowding one another out. But another option is a tiara in which a single, grand diamond has a smaller, more colorful array of gems inlaid around it. Personally, I would find the latter more tasteful and appealing,” thus convincing Vil to accept Ace and Deuce on the team.

Rook also explains that “There is beauty to be found in perfection, but imperfection has its own unique allure,” indirectly explaining why the VDC team would ultimately lose to Neige.

As the music producers explain, “Their dancing is out of sync, and their harmonies are clunky at best…but I’m glued to the performance. I want to root for them!” and “Mega-hits aren’t born from simple trendiness and beauty.”

It is also on Rook’s advice that Vil promotes Epel’s village’s apple juice on his Magicam, helping their financially unstable situation and saving Vil and Epel’s relationship.

When Epel returns to Pomefiore (after running away in frustration with Vil), Rook advises Vil not to punish him (or Deuce, who took Epel off campus without permission), and Vil agrees to give them a second chance.

In Book 6 Rook advises Vil to invite Ortho to join the Film Club. Ortho later approaches Vil himself with an interest in joining before he can be invited, and Vil accepts his application without requiring an audition.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

best friends forever <3 ✌️

***Spoilers for White Rabbit Fest!!***

So far, there have been four hometown events (if you include White Rabbit Fest): In Silk City, we met Najma, Jamil's little sister. In Harveston, we met Marja, Epel's grandmother. In Sunset Savanna, we met Kifaji, the Grand Chamberlin of the country (and Cheka, Leona's nephew that we first saw at the end of book 2, had a cameo). Now, in Clock Town, we've met Dylla, Deuce's mom.

I noticed that of the hometown events, White Rabbit Fest was the only one so far where the SSR boy actually demonstrates a strong bond with Yuu and Grim that extends beyond "they're my classmate". Dylla specifically notes that Deuce talks about hanging out with Yuu and Grim both in and out of class. It kind of makes sense for Jamil and Leona to not be buddy-buddy enough with Yuu and Grim to talk about them with their family + head of the royal household, respectively. Beyond helping them in their respective books + asking for their help in the book proceeding their own, Yuu and Grim did not interact with them much. Even when Leona appears later in book 5, he seemed slightly annoyed at Grim approaching him in his homeroom and acting friendly. As for Jamil, he clarifies to Najma that the guests he has over for the fireworks festival are "classmates, not friends" and that "there is a difference". He clearly draws the boundary between those two labels. Epel is more debatable in terms of intimacy, since Yuu and Grim are most often depicted as being close with the first year group more than the second or third years. There's also a very strong story emphasis on Epel as a part of the group in book 5, as well as parts deep in the main story (Ortho's Fairy Gear vignettes, brainstorming ideas to catch Mickey, being relevant at Lilia's farewell party around the same time rather than being relevant at the same times as their respective dorms) and events (like the party at the end of the first Halloween event) where Jack, Ortho, Sebek, and Epel are also portrayed as being part of the "main" group. However, when Epel introduces his classmates to Marja, Marja never makes mention of Epel talking about Yuu or Grim before to her. She just greets them just the same as the other classmates that Epel brought back with him for the sledding race.

Deuce's mom is the only new character we've met in the hometown events that makes an explicit point to mention that Deuce has actively talked about Yuu and Grim (and Ace) before to her. She's even sort of surprised that Ace didn't join them for the trip to Clock Town for the White Rabbit Fest. Furthermore, other event characters (Silver and Epel) comment on the tight bond between Adeuce, Grim, and Yuu. This further cements the idea that Yuu, Grim, Ace, and Deuce are the "core" group (an idea which was first introduced in the prologue), while the other first years are sort of secondary (still friends, just not as close as the first four are), which makes sense with their less frequent appearances in the main story.

ahjbayodybqer For as much as Deuce and Ace argue, it sounds like he still talks a ton about his rival 😅 That's how you know it's true friendship/j

[clickoly]

(super late) @oknutzy-week-2024 Day 5!

Thank you for the fantastic prompts and the amazing fest. And, of course, thank you to @lumosinlove for these wonderful characters.

Here’s the fifth part of Starboys, a Cubs Formula One AU.

Prompts: Party, Surprise visit

Links to: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Ao3

•••

Down for the ride

Leo had lost count of the number of planes he’d taken in the past months, always on the run for any opportunity to fly home to his family, or just to follow the team around. But it was never on a private jet—much to the dismay of his miles-long legs—or with such good company.

According to the radar on screen, they were flying over Kuala Lumpur. A quick look out the window took Leo's breath away, stunned by the still disbelieving feeling of being on top of the world, with the sun sinking behind an endless field of cottony clouds. 

It looked like the sunset in Milan had a couple of weeks earlier—warm and magical—from a terrace overlooking the skyline of an already quiet city. That night, they were supposed to attend the annual party in Monza after the Italian Grand Prix, but Logan had come up with a better plan to celebrate his victory, and perhaps to cheer Finn up a bit. 

They had ended up in the fanciest bar Leo had ever set foot in, tucked away at a table out of sight, bathed in the late summer breeze that pleasantly cooled the open space. Leo had felt pampered and maybe out of place, but never within their conversations and their warm smiles. Not with Logan reassuring him that he deserved all that and more, nor with Finn making him feel freer than ever before, in a way he’d never experienced with someone he barely knew.

Finn O’Hara, whose Italian was fluent enough to order the finest wines Leo had ever tasted, and to chat casually with a group of fans they had run into—who had also congratulated Logan and Leo on the good race.

Finn, who was now relaxed in the chair opposite him, obviously lost in the pages of his book, barely moving from time to time, except to push his glasses up his freckled nose.  

When Leo glanced at him furtively, their eyes met, and so did their smiles.

"Everything okay?" Finn said.

Leo tilted his head and peeked across the aisle at Logan. "Does he always sleep this much?"

Logan was wrapped in a very warm looking blanket, long since fallen into a deep sleep. Finn's laugh was teasing, but he was looking at Logan with nothing but affection. 

Leo had seen that look before. Never in public, where insatiable eyes were constantly on the hunt—for an autograph, a selfie in the best case, otherwise ready to catch a breaking scoop. It had been there the night before, back in Leo's humble apartment, where they had all sheltered after an exhausting day at the Silver factory.

I'll get something good for dinner, Finn had offered. I got you.

Leo had seen Finn wearing new shades of that lopsided smile, so private, something he probably kept to himself and the few he trusted. How he got lucky enough to witness it, Leo couldn't say.

"Rarely," Finn answered his question. "We usually have very strict routines for flights like this one, so we don't get jet lagged."

"And which one of you is breaking the rules today?"

Finn pointed a finger in Logan's direction. "The baby will get all grumpy at the party if he doesn't nap." 

That made Leo giggle, but then something urgent and completely unrelated came out of his mouth. "Thank you, Harzy."

Finn's face lost its playfulness, but it was nonetheless bright when he hummed questioningly.

"I don't know..." Leo laughed softly. "I'm just... happy. Yeah. Glad I met you two."

Leo didn't know what surprised him more. He had imagined Finn making a joke, telling him that he was being silly. He certainly hadn't expected to see him still, his cheeks turning a soft shade of pink as he tried to mouth words he apparently couldn't let go of.

"Oh boy," Leo's jaw dropped. He raised an eyebrow at Finn's flattered look. "Did I just leave Finn O'Hara speechless?"

Silently, Finn closed his book and sat up straighter, shaking his head dramatically. "Nutty, Nutty, Nutty..."

"That's me."

Finn leaned his elbows on the tray table between them, his brown eyes—beautifully bruising—locked with Leo's blue. "There's no way you can shut me up," he said, dead serious. "You'll never stand a chance."

"Is that a challenge?" Leo bit back.

Finn shot him a sly wink, "Please, be my guest."

Leo didn't miss a beat. He mirrored his position, dizzy head supported by his hands, impossibly close to Finn's impassive face. 

Could Finn see his fast pulse pounding hard against his throat or was it just a feeling? 

"Looking forward to it, O'Hara.”

A moment passed, filled only by the insistent roar of the plane's engines. And then they burst out laughing, so uncontrollably that Leo had to wipe tears from his own eyes as he leaned back in the seat. He watched as Finn muffled his loud laughter behind big, strong hands, shoulders still shaking as he tried to control himself.  

"What the hell are you laughing at?" a sleepy voice grumbled, and a flying pillow hit Leo's head. 

"Ouch," Leo laughed louder. 

Logan groaned from where he was propped on one forearm, his dark curls a mess, glaring at them with just one half-open eye. "Weirdos." 

"C'mon Sleeping Beauty." Finn reached out to grab the pillow from Leo's lap and tossed it back to Logan. "It's almost time for Nut's first night out in Singapore." 

It was another one of Leo's dreams to cross off the list.

In less than an hour, he'd be wandering the busy streets of Marina Bay, the same ones that once a year were transformed into a spectacular circuit—probably Leo's favorite on the calendar.

It was captivating in so many ways. The race was held at night, on a track that wound its way through downtown Singapore with a combination of low and high speed corners, making it one of the most twisty and challenging for the drivers—and exciting for the spectators to watch.

Leo wondered if it would look like it did on TV, a spectacle of lights from the city skyline and the circuit itself, painting a stunning backdrop against the dark sky.

"Oh sweetheart," Eloise Knut cooed over the phone. "I bet it's going to be even better than you ever imagined. I'm so proud of you."

Leo's lips curled into a smile, pure and wistful. "Wish you were here."

"We miss you too, honey," she said softly. "Time’s not moving fast enough. How long till Austin? Two weeks?"

"Yeah," the excitement in her voice made Leo laugh. "I can't wait."

"Ready for tonight?" his dad nearly shouted. Leo could picture them sitting together at the kitchen counter, the phone on speaker at full volume.

"I think so." Leo gazed at himself in the mirror of his hotel room. Unruly curls aside—still drying after a much-needed shower—Leo thought he looked good. He ran a hand down the silky white button-down, tucked neatly into his tailored navy pants. The sleeves were loose on his wrists, and Leo reached down to button the cuffs, cradling the phone between his ear and shoulder to free his hands. "I'm just waiting for Logan to text me when he's ready."

"Logan, as in... Logan Tremblay," Eloise guessed.

Leo felt caught off guard. "Yes?"

There was a pause. "Huh."

"What?" Leo crouched down near the suitcase to find the bow tie. 

"Oh, nothing," she said casually. "Nothing, sweetheart."

"Mama."

"Have fun tonight," Eloise subtly avoided the topic. "And send me some pictures!"

Leo's deep sigh was a bit exasperated. He had told them everything about the last few weeks, about having Finn and Logan over for dinner. He had been thrilled to even say out loud that he had friends he felt he could trust, and talk to endlessly. But something in that huh hinted that she had clearly sensed more than that.

"I love you both." He let it all slide. It wasn't the right time, and frankly, he wasn't even sure what to say. "I'll call you soon."

–

Singapore Airlines was hosting an exclusive Grand Prix opening party. Big sponsors usually meant big events, and people were already speculating about all kinds of crazy things online.

"Marketing strategies," Logan explained. They stepped out of his car, provided by the team for the week—a recently released gem from Silver Motors, artfully customized in matte green to match the colors of Logan's racing helmet. With a quick smile and a confident nod, Logan handed the keys to the valet and led Leo to the grand entrance of the venue. "It's basically a business meeting," he said. "A shit ton of handshakes, pictures for the print..."

"Yeah, with an open bar, tremendous food, music and friends..." Leo scoffed. "It can't be that awful."

Logan was about to reply when he froze on the spot. A redhead, who Leo swore looked like Finn, was walking toward them, arm in arm with a girl. Bronze skin, chocolate brown waves tied up perfectly in a high ponytail. Leo knew it when she was close enough, as thick, long lashes fluttered open to reveal emerald green eyes. Logan's.

"Ugh, the enemies are here," the man's snarky remark was punctuated by a familiar grin, earning him a quick slap on the shoulder from his companion.  

"That's my little brother you're talking about, O'Hara."

Her accent, also Logan's.

"Okay, what's going on?" Logan huffed an incredulous laugh.

"Salut," the girl leaned forward to press a tender kiss to Logan's cheek before holding out her hand to Leo. "We finally meet," she said warmly. "I'm Noelle, Logan's–"

"Sister, yeah," Leo laughed bashfully. "Leo Knut, it's a pleasure to meet you." Leo's gaze shifted to a stubbled, freckled face and golden brown eyes. "And you must be..."

"Alex," the redhead shook his hand firmly. "I'm the better-looking O'Hara."

Well… Not exactly true, Leo thought. But he clearly had a point.

"What are you doing here?" Logan playfully shoved Alex. "Why didn't you tell us you were coming?"

"Supportive sibling duties, Tremblay," Alex threw an arm around Logan's shoulder. "And we haven't been to a race together in ages."

That made Logan smile. "What about the tickets? How did you–"

"Celeste," Noelle said as if it meant something obvious. "She arranged everything, of course. It was very short notice, and we thought..." She and Alex exchanged a meaningful look. "We thought we should make it a surprise."

Leo watched Alex's jaw clench, a hard, bitter bite on the inside of his cheek. He swallowed hard before asking, "Where's Fish?"

"He just texted me," Logan put his phone back in his pocket. "He's waiting inside." 

Finn's expression was priceless when they found him. He broke off his conversation with James and his wife Lily mid-sentence and, in the blink of an eye, his eyebrows knitted together, a gleaming grin spread across his face, eyes wide, and then his lips quivered slightly as he all but threw himself into his brother's waiting arms. A couple of flashes lit up the dim room, greedily capturing the moment.

They got less than ten minutes of peace before a woman in a fitted black jumpsuit and high heels came to fetch Logan and Finn, asking for a quick interview with a representative from Richard Mille, one of the few sponsors they shared.

Leo looked between Alex and Noelle and smiled nervously. He wasn't sure what to do, he didn't want to be rude. Was he intruding? He probably should have left them alone.

But Alex wouldn't let him.

"The man of the moment," he said, placing a firm hand on Leo's shoulder. "Let's get something to drink, shall we?" 

Soft jazz and low yellow lights warmed the ambience. Waiters danced around groups of chatting people, flawlessly carrying full trays of gold-filled crystal glasses. 

Smooth tequila burned its way down Leo's throat. The zesty smell of lime and the rough grains of salt between his lips brought back bittersweet memories of fading tastes on his mouth that Leo rushed to wash away with another swig of his Margarita. 

When, when, when would he finally let it go? 

Meet me later, Le?

Alex and Noelle sat on the L-shaped couch across from him. They both looked stunning, Alex in his dark blue suit, tie already gone, and Noelle in a white halterneck dress that made her tan skin glow. Straight out of a James Bond movie, the two of them. And Leo didn't quite know what to do with himself. 

"Okay, I'm gonna tell you this in confidence," Alex began. "I know I'm supposed to be on the other team's side, but..." He sipped at his whiskey, dark and neat, and leaned forward to put the glass back on the small marble table between them. "That call in Monza? Fucking amazing, man."  

"Mhm," Noelle agreed. She nodded over the rim of her glass of sparkling wine. "And how you managed to get Lolo to listen to you, now that I'd really like to know." 

"He's got a reputation, huh?" Lolo. Leo couldn't help but laugh, face burning, remembering all the times he'd heard Logan's voice on TV, the scratchy team radios, making it a point to show his disagreement with any team strategy he didn't approve of. 

"You bet," a wry grin curled her full, red lips.

"You work in motorsports too, right?" Leo asked Alex. He was pretty sure he'd read his name on some article about the recent 24 Hours of Le Mans. "How come you chose the WEC instead of Formula One?" 

"Oh, y'know..." Alex breathed out a weak laugh, eyes dark, just as Noelle turned to look at him. "Right opportunity at the right time," he smiled at Leo. "Fish always insists, but... Maybe someday. For now, I enjoy being able to sleep in my bed for more than a week a month." 

Curiosity got the better of Leo, and the three of them ended up discussing the ins and outs of the World Endurance Championship, getting fascinating insights from the perspective of a front-page journalist. Alex seemed as caught up in the conversation as Leo was, telling him stories about his experiences in a way that reminded Leo of Finn, ever so enthusiastic when talking about something he loved.

Leo sank into their tales, too distracted to notice two blond heads moving in their direction. He caught Natalie's smirk just as she stood two steps away from the couch, behind Alex's back. 

"So you actually listen to me, Freckle," she said as she reached out to pinch at Alex's waist. "I told you that blue would suit–" 

Alex turned and Natalie went pale. 

"...you. Jesus Christ." Her eyes widened comically, and a dark flush quickly spread from her cheeks down to her bare collarbones. She blinked twice, lips moving tentatively, until she called out in a barely there voice to Kasey, who was behind her, biting his bottom lip to suppress a full blown laugh. "Babe?" 

Alex stared at her, suddenly speechless. Noelle had her eyes on Kasey, her mouth drawn into a thin line. 

"Yes?" Kasey managed. 

"There's two of them." 

Kasey let himself laugh. "Just the wrong O'Hara, hon." The tension of the moment broke when Alex let out an amused laugh that was impossible to resist. He stood, holding out his hand to squeeze hers, and properly introduced himself. 

Then, one in front of the other, Alex and Kasey hesitated. Leo thought they looked lost, and perhaps a little scared. But when Kasey pulled Alex into a tight hug, Leo could read the words you came on Kasey's trembling lips. 

–

It was a roller coaster of emotions. A whole new beginning, new people, possibilities, discoveries. And now this. 

Two sets of beautiful eyes stood out in the crowd, scanning every corner of the room until they found the source of their beaming grins. Two souls forever tied together, impossibly kind, generous. Surreal. 

They moved in sync, elegantly, sharing a swift glance that spoke volumes. And then they were there, right in front of Leo. Strong shoulders pressed together, shiny black and dark green fabrics shimmering in the low light. Surreal.

Having fun without us, Nut?

The music grew louder, people began to move to the improvised dance floor—Alex, Natalie, and Kasey; Remus and Lily; Noelle with a rather flattered Thomas Walker—and Leo felt his world stop, a sudden brake in the middle of a high-speed ride.

Leo wanted to know what analytical, practical or rational thought could explain what was happening to him.

Why did everything feel so easy with those two?

A hard-earned life made of numbers, methodical strategies, and considered decisions, cautious. And now something unknown was pushing Leo to his limits.

"So," he managed to say. "What do you guys feel like?"

Another look, another unspoken agreement. Finn lit up in ten different shades of charm, his signature smirk on his lips, and pressed one hand on Leo's back, the other on Logan's.

Leo had promised himself that he would be careful. He needed things to be under his full control this time.

But there it was, the fire, the rush of adrenaline. This new feeling of sprinting through the narrowest streets at 150 miles per hour and not being in danger.

Leo looked between them, holding his breath.

"Let's go dance," Finn said, and Leo went, full throttle, because it felt right, and he wanted to trust himself more than anything else in the world. 

[hyperfreshisms]

"We did our best, and I am so proud of all of you. The important part is that you had fun at grand fest!"

[nine-blessed-hero]

Only Shadows Walk Beside

Universe: TESIV: Oblivion CW: Angst, threatening a minor Words: 600 Context: Written for the TES Summer Fest prompt: Companion. Tagging: @tes-summer-fest, @jacqueswriteblrlibrary Also read on AO3

On the hill above the Priory, Divine Crusader Lorinda Rue sits, hugging her knees, as twilight settles a shroud around her shoulders. Three of her knights gone. Her brothers, her comrades. Her friends. She repeats their names: Sir Areldur, Sir Brellin, Sir Geimund. Lorinda presses a face already puffy and eyes already red-rimmed into her knees. Dead, because she wasn't fast enough. Wasn't strong enough. Wasn't leader enough. They knew the risks, whispers a part of her. Did they? Did they? Brellin was so young-! Areldur, for all his faults, so pious and trusting. And Geimund, so skilled, looking for orders…

Lorinda had tried to say a few words about them. Standing over their freshly turned graves, the remaining knights and the new recruits clustered, expectant. But words had failed her; only a sob made it out. She fled. Mercifully no one had followed. Sir Thedret had been so excited on her return – stumbling, confused from the Undercroft. Had named her Divine Crusader to the other's cheers. Then she had learnt of their losses. Divine fuckup, another part of her whispers. Crusader of folly. Her hands ball into fists. No leader, she. This must not happen again. Never again.

–––

The Black Arrow stumbles from the bloodworks. The Basin of Renewal may have healed her physical hurts, but it does nothing for the hollowness of her 'victory' against the Grey Prince. The Raiment of Valor hangs heavy on her shoulders, Matron Andronicus's victory lap making it feel more like a millstone than a trophy. She wants nothing more than to go down to the lakeshore behind her house and strip it off, diving deep into the precious waters. A squeal sounds, somewhere behind her, to the right. Footsteps converge on her location. She reaches for an arrow, spinning– – to find a boy, yellow haired and dressed in green, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "By Azura, by Azura, by Azura!" he squeals, hands bunched by his chest, and looking fit to burst. "It's the Grand Champion! I can't believe it's you! Standing here! Next to me!" The Black Arrow drives her ammunition back into its quarrel. "What do you want?" The boy has a book and stick of graphite. If he just wants a signature… She thinks she could deal with that. "I saw your fight against the Gray Prince! You're the best! Can I…" He suddenly goes shy. "You want an autograph? Sure." "No! Well, I mean, yes, but…" "Spit it out." "Can I follow you around? I won't get in the way, I promise." Her head spins. "What?" "I could– Carry your weapon. Or shine your boots. Announce you to your enemies. Anything you need!" The boy is a bosmer, like Brellin. So young. Her guts churn. Never again. "Please? I just want to follow–" "No!" He stares at her with wide, shocked eyes. "Piss off!" she yells. He takes a step back, autograph book clutched like a shield. "I don't need some spineless, toadying little shit hanging around me." "Are…" His voice wavers, too much courage for his own good. "Are you sure?" "Fuck off. Go on, toerag, get gone!" He takes another step back. "But– I–" In a blur of movement, one of her arrows, with their special fletching, is nocked on her bowstring. Drawn back. Pointing at him. His trews darken at the crotch. "I said: Leave." He utters a wordless, fearful, anguished cry and flees. The Black Arrow relaxes her bowstring, replaces her arrow. Nausea fills her from head to toe. Crusader of folly. She grips at the deprecating moniker as hard as the bow in her bloodless hands. Never again.

[ervona]

Day 5: Forgotten / Devotion for @tes-summer-fest

Once there was a tower, a twisted thing with winding corridors and roots sunken deep into the ground. It had stood in its place for ages longer than many now abandoned ruins, and it was alive. The master wizard liked his tea bitter, his stew warm, his estate orderly and his patients content. He kept busy, shrouded in mystery, far from power struggles and political squabbles, making few enemies in his long lifetime. In the end, his greatest enemy turned out to be himself.

Before the great calamity, Vvardenfell was teeming with wildlife in grasslands and ashlands alike. Each day marked their struggle for life, which mer deemed as survival of the strongest. One ought to know that a nix-hound was no match for a kagouti, such a spindly thing in comparison. But when a pack of nixes descended together, they could best the mightiest kagouti and leave nothing but bones.

All creatures wished to survive, and some of them even wove secret arts through intricate magics to further lengthen their lives, but that didn’t necessarily keep them safe from harm. The tower would outlive its maker, and in turn make good use of him.

On the highest spire of spores was a mer clad in bone and brass. Having just unmade her maker, one could guess that she was distraught. In truth she was taking in the morning air, like a newly hatched kwama's first breath. Once, twice, she clicked her feet and her magic boots soared. Unlike how netch would float high with an innate sense of limits, for the time she was lighter than air and they helped to weigh her down.

So high above one could see the whole island, from other towers to castles of stone, black sand and green plains and rivers of fire, and at the very heart of it the corprus-spitting mountain. She thought of the woman who’d last visited them looking for the cure, grumbling under her breath in the tongue of that old friend Vistha-Kai.

Perhaps that floe in the sea of her normalcy had come to note when the patient survived, impatient and insistent that she had a god to kill for what he’d done to her. The tides of inevitable change came for all. For all the effort to remember her parting words, she could not.

Four sisters scattered to the four winds and set out for the sights they’d been sure to never see. One wished to look for ways to aid the afflicted alongside an old friend, another wished to have the world sing and dance to her tunes, and yet another wished to make a name for herself in the circles of noble mer.

One was floating ever still, with no particular devotion for anything, so she stayed and pored over the ancient tomes and artifacts left in her keep. She’d never been alone before, it hadn’t been allowed, so she used the quiet to think upon who she even was on her own.

When calamities struck one by one, she found it difficult to care. Unfortunately, her tower was dying, and she had little interest to maintain it further rather than let the cycle of decay and growth finally be. Let the elements take it, the undercroft swallow it and monsters claim the treasures.

Of herself she made a falling star, and she saw Azura from stone standing strong as ever while the eruption clouds choked in ash her whole world. And she laughed, though out of breath. Goodbye tower and sand and plain, goodbye shimmering coast kissed by an impassive Prince, goodbye Vvardenfell. Goodbye sisters, whom the winds took to where their hearts pointed, may the sun shine on you.

She had never gotten to visit the ruins of old that dotted the landscape, nor seen the snow fall like ash as it did in the north of Telvannis. When she stood on the highest peak of the Velothi Mountains, she had no doubt about journeying further westward to find her place. So she found herself a mountain, and bone-weary from her travels, fell into a deep slumber.

Ah, no, not quite. But that was certainly how it felt when she awoke one day to the sight of a statue–grand one by the looks of it–being built almost in her courtyard. Soon enough she would have pilgrims and busybodies all over her peaceful, frozen mountain and the home she’d made for herself in its forgotten corridors. She was of course fuming like an alchemist’s attic, more vexed than she'd been in so long, having almost put her temper behind her.

Rather than simply let them disturb her peace, she would come to them first. Winterhold–which had stood for ages longer than she’d known, cared or moved into its vicinity–was a city of mages, and they were awfully curious. These fools could be content with aught that sounded like arcane knowledge, but she would teach them lessons that they’d never forget, if they survived where she sent them.

Once again came a heavy knock on her door. “I have a letter for the wizard Fyr… not sure who from,” the courier’s voice came in muffled, but the howling wind was as sharp as ever.

“Give it over,” she said, then rushed the poor thing inside, if only for a moment of respite. Must have been truly devoted to her work, to come all the way up here. But word traveled even faster. How did she even find her, was the question. “Do you know who I am, girl?”

“I… think you are very old and you come from Morrowind. I’d love to visit it someday. And you were of House Telvanni, correct?”

The courier left after having poked her with more questions, but she’d begun to tolerate this. She’d never been alone before, and now she was the wizard Fyr. As far as they were concerned, the only one that ever was and ever will be. Still, she burned the letter unopened.

It took another great calamity to strike her home for her to stir once more. Something in her had sought company for so long, but she’d never expected to find it where she had, to find herself sitting at the foot of the shrine as a habit, supping with its last remaining keeper.

“More tea, Alfe?”

“What? Ah, and more honey. Thank you.”

“You are going to use up all my stock,” she tutted, but mixed in the honey ever still.

“But you don’t mind, right?” Alfe slunk to her side on her fur bedroll. It was no position to drink in, but she liked to tempt fate. After all, fate had led her to the strangest places.

“Certainly not! There are but two of us here.”

Aranea Ienith was by her own account a strange mer, but she was no stranger than herself. The path of sorcery taking a sharp turn into monastic life must not have been so rare, though she didn’t know enough people to tell. She was only strange in that she remained assured Azura had a plan for her yet to be revealed, even after everything that had transpired.

The sea had never stopped hungering for the land, and in years uncounted after her move to Mount Anthor, the raging waves had devoured half of the city below. Winterhold had been a passing interest, rarely a necessity, but to Aranea it’d been much more. This image of Azura was just as uncaring as the one back home had been, looking upon what remained with silent acceptance.

Alfe simply wished that she could offer what her Prince didn’t, and so she did, for they ate and drank and even laughed together despite it all. They discussed at length the lost art of spellcraft while cleaning up the snow piled on the shrine's entrance that so few ever visited.

On the coldest nights made warmer by her presence, she thought of an old book of Aldmeri ballads that she’d left to rot, illuminating what she was feeling and decided to keep close to her chest. She was not the Nerevarine–wherever that woman was now–to contest with gods.

Ofttimes she wondered if they’d met before, somewhere on her rare outings to Sadrith Mora, and it had slipped their minds like so many moments of their long lives best left behind. She was sure she’d seen Aranea before, the same copper hair framing a silver face, only younger, as she had been. It mattered little in the here and now.

Their lives had grown entwined like the roots of old trees, and the priestess' striking devotion was her own now. Not necessarily for the Lady of Twilight, but for each dusk and dawn spent together, for the promise of tomorrow that neither of them would have to face alone.

Thus the tale of Alfe Fyr went on, and would go on for quite some time. As for her sisters, one might wonder, had they each found their place under the sun? Theirs were tales for another time, but rest assured that they lived and prospered, and may yet live to this day.

[dramioneasks]

HP FESTS: DramioneFanfictionForum (Part 5)

Deflower Draco 2023:

Broken Arrow by Fictionismyescape - E, one-shot - This wasn't the time, not when there was a war happening. But it might be the only chance they had.

Summer Skin by echoofpromise - E, one-shot - Her skin is warm and glowing beneath his touch as he glides his thumb across the rigid edge of her collarbone, and Draco thinks this is heaven. This is what God wanted for his children, for them to feel just as weightless and defying and cosmic as he feels in this moment thanks to Hermione Granger and her cinnamon tongue.

The Perks of Dark Magic by sarena - E, WIP - Two decades after the war, Draco Malfoy is an innovative, renowned Grand Master Potioneer. His draughts are sought-after and often aid the DMLE with their most difficult cases. Hermione Granger, a highly acclaimed curse breaker for the Ministry of Magic, encounters a curse she's never seen before. Reluctantly, she approaches Draco Malfoy for assistance, not knowing that his profession's darkest secrets come with a life-changing price.

The Promise Of A Parent by KrysKrossZee - M, WIP - After the death of his mother, Draco finds out that the Blacks and the Malfoys both had high hopes and great expectations for him - and now at the tender age of twenty-three he has only two years to find someone to help him produce the next Black heir or he will be punished, severely, for his failure.

Magically Bound by aCanadianMuggle - M, one-shot - Hermione has written a novel and in the magical world, a handbound copy without a spark of magic must be used as the master copy from which all duplicates are made. In a workshop in Wiltshire, she will find the artisan who will make her book and to who might just bind them together.

Growing Sideways by inadaze22 - E, WIP - For years, Draco has been complacent. His career is on track, his future is arranged, and he's adapted to the darkness plaguing his restless nights. When paired with Hermione Granger on a top secret project, he begins to question if the comfort of familiarity is enough. As long nights dwindle and their connection grows, she shines a light on possibilities he's never imagined.

Lovegood's Love Cure by Saberspooky - E, WIP - After being abruptly dumped by her boyfriend and abandoned by her best friend at the Hogwarts train platform, Hermione vows to make the most of her final year at Hogwarts. Luna Lovegood provides just the opportunity when she attempts to cure her friends' broken hearts by matching students up with their soulmates based on an extensive compatibility quiz, but everything goes awry when Hermione Granger is paired with the last person she would expect.

virgin violets in bloom by riddikulus_puff - E, one-shot - Throughout their time at Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy had hidden away the fact that he was actually sexually inexperienced and was actually a massive virgin. Two of his closest and best friends, Pansy Parkinson and Daphne Greengrass, had helped him to spread rumours throughout the school that were the total opposite of who he truly was. They spread rumours around the school that Draco Malfoy was the most sexually experienced Slytherin they had ever been with and that he hasn’t actually been a virgin since late in their fifth year. But, once leaving school, the inexperience he truly had followed him and his unlucky strike with girls was running thin with his self-esteem. He hated it. However, one night, Draco drunkenly stumbled into Hermione Granger and she slowly informed him that she was willing to teach him everything he needed to know to pleasure women. Hermione Granger was fully prepared to deflower Draco Malfoy.

F*** the Pain Away by damsel_in_mistress - E, one-shot - "Three things happened simultaneously: His left hand shot out to grasp the intruder’s wrist in a death grip, he realised who the intruder was, and the Stupefy died on his lips. Brown eyes open wide with surprise, brow furrowed, mouth ajar in a soft gasp, Hermione Granger stood before him." When Draco's world is misery and dread, Hermione happens upon him in Myrtle's bathroom. None of them could have forseen what this would lead to.

Expect the Unexpected by starboygrove - E, 3 chapters - A humiliating moment at the beginning of Hermione's Eighth year at Hogwarts leads her to an unexpected scenario. Draco Malfoy, a reformed Death-Eater who she has become fast friends with, makes an impossible request. Hermione battles her feelings while helping Draco with his odd predicament.

Last Nite by shaparecium (Dinkycharlie) - E, one-shot - Draco is sentenced to five years in Azkaban. On his last night in freedom, Hermione Granger visits him and he confesses that he is still a virgin.

Lessons from Professor Granger by JCOBryan1990 - E, one-shot - “You are drunk, sir.”  She laughed out as he continued to stumble forward, his hands clasped the frame; his face landing inches from hers. “I may drink a of had.” Laughing she gathered him closer into the room, “Really?  And what pray tell has you drinking so much on a Tuesday?  Testing the potions from your students again?”

Sounds Like Dramione 2023:

With a Whimper by anne_ammons - T, 7 chapters - Once upon a time, he was in love... 

Stolen World by Fictionismyescape - M, 4 chapters - no summary

Deep, Deeply by vannminner - M, 5 chapters - Stripped of himself, of his home, Draco Malfoy has lost all hope of restoring his missing pieces. That is, until hope comes in the form of a childhood rival he's hesitant to befriend.

pillowtalk by riddikulus_puff - E, one-shot - pillow talk noun pillow talk is the relaxed, intimate conversation that often occurs between two sexual partners, sometimes after sexual activity, usually accompanied by cuddling, caresses, kissing, and other physical intimacy. It is associated with honesty, sexual afterglow, and bonding, and is distinguished from the dirty talk which usually forms part of foreplay. - Hermione Granger was in love with an older man. She couldn't believe that she had fallen for someone that was old enough to be her own father. It was crazy to think about but she was in love. Draco Malfoy was the one holding Hermione's love and attraction. He was the perfect boyfriend. Their relationship had started out as a sugar daddy relationship before developing into a friends-with-benefits relationship before they both admitted that they had romantic feelings for each other. They had been dating for almost two years, and Hermione couldn't be happier with him.

After the War by tambrathegreat - M, one-shot - Draco floats between life and death. He reviews his life and a certain know-it-all plays a surprisingly large part.

Beneath the Starlit Sky by Fractured - E, one-shot - Draco Malfoy faces a double conundrum: 1. His temporary role as Hogwarts Astronomy Professor is coming to an end in six weeks. 2. He's fallen for the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

The Deal (Running up that Hill) by aCanadianMuggle - T, one-shot - It's an eighth-year conundrum as Hermione balances researching why Malfoy has been acting so strangely and maintaining a fake relationship with Ron so he can come out on his own terms.

This fest is ongoing.

[a-lil-strawberry]

I trauma dumped in the tags of that poll but then realized op probably doesn't hear all that. I'll subject you guys to it though bc I could use advice or comfort about it

I have no idea what it is that he wants to discuss about the wedding. I'm guessing it's maybe to ask us to be in it? I don't want to do that. But when I'm in the moment trapped in his house it's going to be so difficult to feel safe saying anything that I actually feel. That's the whole deal with him. Everything is about his emotions and wants, and if you stray from that he gets verbally or emotionally abusive. Nowadays I don't expect it to be verbal abuse, it's more likely to be a sob fest and he'll try to emotionally manipulate. I just do not want to have any part of his life or his wedding or his emotional bull crap anymore. I am trying to heal and live my life now. I spent my whole child and teenage hood suffering irreparably because of him. I am working through things in therapy and constantly coming across new ways in which he messed my mind up, and I don't think I will ever stop having to heal. I think I will be somewhat damaged due to him for my whole life. I'm also starting to realize my mom's toxicity and narcissism and I'm getting ready to move out finally. It is time to move forward, not back.

I suppose I don't have to go firmly no contact or engage with him right now. I can just flake. Say "oh yeah I can make it to this meeting" then day of get "sick". And then I can ask to be filled in afterwards over text.

Wait a minute I just had a grand idea. So in this text he just sent, he did say that him and his fiance have a date down. I can text my friend and I'm sure she'll say yes to this. I can just magically be out of town. I can say "I've had plans with my best friend for a trip for that weekend. We already have the hotel booked" which would be lying but I do not give one singular flying you know what. And the cool thing is that me and my friend can actually go on a trip. It would keep my mind off of it and I've been wanting to go on a trip with her anyways.

[blossom-hwa]

hi it's my first time requesting hehe

can i request modern au for if you'll have me yeonjun?

- chip, it's chip we need modern au yeonjun annotating books lina (no pressure tho :^))

I died writing this. it was amazing. I need to soak in regency era yeonjun a lot more (including the modernized version). thank you chip <3

(in case this is a bit confusing, this is a sort of spitball modern au take on my regency au for yeonjun, if you'll have me!)

summertime drabble fest: send me an idol from the list (Stray Kids, Ateez, TXT, Seventeen) + a prompt (check out the post for ideas) and I’ll write a drabble for you!

REQUESTS CLOSED!

~

Title: In This World, and the Next

Pairing: Yeonjun x gender neutral!reader

Word count: 1.4k

Genre: fluff, angst, university!au, modern take on if you'll have me

Warnings: cursing

~

In one world, you meet Yeonjun under crystal chandeliers in a grand ballroom, candlelight glinting off jewels and glass and carefully coiffed hairdos. He knows you immediately, the season's diamond crowned by the queen herself, and you know him, the famed Duke of Hastings and the most eligible bachelor in town, and that is how it begins—with smooth, sweet words, a kiss to gloved knuckles, and a lovely turn around the dance floor. 

In another world, however, where pens have replaced quills, where Lady Whistledown's society paper is a campus journal's gossip column, where long silk gowns and elegant jewels have turned into crop tops and jeans and sneakers and boots, you meet because of a mutual friend, and a party, and some certain desperation equal to that which you both had in a previous life. 

Enter Yeonjun Choi—no longer Duke of Hastings but son of CEO Choi of a fashion brand under the same name. Business and fashion double major, the best (or most eccentrically) dressed student on HYBE campus, desperately looking for a fake date to his cousin's wedding so that his parents will shut up for just a little bit about finding a decent partner. 

And from the other side of the stage, enter Y/N L/N—not the season's diamond as you once were, but a transfer student to HYBE university after a family member's illness brought you back to your hometown. A literature and creative writing double major, not too fussed about spending the rest of your university years back home, but still a little lost on a campus you don't know with very few friends left to hang around. But there's Wooyoung, and then there's Taehyun, and in the end, because of both of them—

There's Yeonjun. 

Smooth, as he is in a previous life. Charming, as he is in a previous life. Handsome, and sweet, and respectful in a way most men of his station aren't. You like him and he likes you, and so when he broaches the idea of a fake date (just once, just to get his parents off his back and so he doesn't have to show up single to yet another wedding), you don't take long to say yes. Because it's Yeonjun and he's charming and sweet and has offered to pay for everything (no expense on your part because he's the one who asked). 

The wedding is several months away. Which, in your opinion, gives you several months to not think about this at all. But then Yeonjun texts you one day with something about wedding clothes, and that's when it really starts. 

Not a grand ballroom. Not a quadrille around the dance floor. Just an apologetic, very sweet text asking if you have anything suitable to wear, and upon your horrific realization that you do not, another text offering to buy or make you something. 

You say no, of course. You can find something, you're sure, or can borrow an outfit off a friend. But Yeonjun insists—"I'm making something for a class anyway, it may as well go to you"—and with that as his excuse he schedules you for measurings and fittings and leaves you reeling with what in the fuck just happened. 

And so you learn Yeonjun. Beyond the charming smile he presents to everyone except his closest friends, beyond the fashionista who's the constant face of his family's company—you learn the Yeonjun with sleep-mussed hair and pins sticking out his mouth, the one slumped over his textbooks at one in the morning after a botched fitting that you made him push off until the next day after he nearly fell asleep on top of you. You learn the softness underlying that cool, unbothered exterior, and bit by bit, you allow him to learn the pieces of your soul that create you. The books you love and why, the tiny poem excerpts you've written and aren't sure about, the way you look at three am with tears running down your cheeks because stress and worries hit in the middle of a fitting and no one's around to see you except Yeonjun so it must be okay. 

By the day of the wedding, you can't help but feel like the fakeness of this date...isn't so fake after all.

It's lovely. Yeonjun's cousin is very sweet, and her husband is very kind. His parents are ecstatic at his no-longer-single status which makes you feel a little bad for basically lying to their faces, but you don't get to linger on that much in the whirlwind of the moment. The clothes Yeonjun made for you fit like a glove, showing off all of your best features, and it's not hard to smile when the wedded couple looks so happy, when the food is so good and the guests are all laughing, when Yeonjun is standing next to you, holding your hand, and beaming gently at the world. 

Then you go back to university, and everything ends. 

He doesn't ignore you. Not exactly. But it's like with the end of the wedding, with the end of those weeks of him fitting the outfit to your exact dimensions, there's just...nothing. Which doesn't make sense to you—you're certain you're not that terrible of a read on character, not that bad at judging interest, but you barely talk to Yeonjun now and you'd be half convinced the past few weeks were a fever dream if the outfit he made for you wasn't still hanging in your closet, pristine and lovely as ever. 

In another world, your anger and sadness and loneliness drives you to depression, to a gray cloud over your head that flares to a lightning storm when provoked just once. In this one, you hunt him down first. 

And you find that your feelings weren't as unrequited as Yeonjun's actions had at first led you to believe.

There are tears. Two choked throats, a lot of awkwardness, a bit of yelling. But in the end there's a smile on Yeonjun's face, not the cool, confident curve of his lips that he pastes on to show the world but something so much softer, so much sweeter, so much more vulnerable than you've ever seen. 

There's a smile to match on your lips, too. 

In this world, there are tablets and iPhones instead of paper and quills. In this world, the gossip column of your university journal is even more cutting than Lady Whistledown's barbed society papers, and it wastes no time analyzing every piece of your not-relationship with Yeonjun just as much as it scrutinizes every moment of eye contact you share after the air has cleared and you can smile again. But for soulmates in one world, they'll find a way in every other world where they meet. 

In this universe, you still read Yeonjun poetry when the sun has set and no one is awake to hear your voice but your love and the stars. In this universe, he still takes an interest in the books you love, begins scribbling his own notes and reactions and doodles into the space between your own careful annotations like little presents for you to find. You still dance with him, dance with him everywhere—at the gala opening his father's latest fashion collection, at the clubs around your university, in your eventually shared apartment under the bright ceiling lights, no music but your giggles in your ears. 

Love is not solely turmoil, nor is it solely peace. In both worlds and all the others in which you meet, you learn this lesson the hard way. But what matters is that you do learn—that you find each other, that you fight for each other, that you come together through your conscious decisions to continue loving one another all the way to the end. 

(In one world, Yeonjun kisses you in bed, whispering promises of love in your ears for as long as you'll have him. In another, you're the one who pins him down on the couch of your shared apartment, smiling almost too hard to kiss him, as you assure him you'll have him forever, now, and always.)

[stardomyx]

“PROMARE” Theory -Burnout Burnish: The strange case of Governor Kray Foresight.

Originally from my Wordpress site: DISCLAIMER: I would like to establish that nobody has to agree with or even like my theories, especially since this particular post is on a Canon character. These are purely my headcanons and my thoughts on this character, I am not about to force these ideas/headcanons onto anyone.

It’s no secret that Studio Trigger’s 2019 animated movie ‘Promare’ is a fun, emotional ride from start to finish, and is more than likely to leave you with both a headache and a lot of questions, for it’s also no secret that this fiery fun fest is filled with more plot holes than a fine Swiss cheese. But some – including myself – would argue that this presents an opportunity to theorise and fill in the gaps for ourselves.

So that’s what I’m going to do.

Throughout the film, we see various characters succumbing and becoming hosts to the vibrant, alien fire life forms known as the Promare and as a result, this group of people go on to become known as the Burnish. The biggest montage of this occurrence happens right at the very beginning of the film, as the audience is introduced to the basic premise of the story. Throughout this bright, colourful, yet pretty grim series of shots, the majority of the newly awakened Burnish all appear to manifest their new powers in very much the same way, it’s almost worth calling it a pattern. 

The film shows us that a Burnish’s awakening is often intense, sudden, and destructive to the people and property that are unlucky enough to get into its way. The Promare manifesting in this manner is undoubtedly a big part of what caused the Great World Blaze to be as devastating as it was, with half of the human population being reportedly wiped out. However, after I’d watched the film through a few times, I started to realise that most of the people who became Burnish throughout the story follow this pattern. The pattern being that the colourful fire would come bursting out from either their eyes or mouth, sometimes both; but most of these awakenings are generally centred around the facial area, as seen below. 

The only, tiny anomaly to this strange pattern appears to be poor Thyma – who in “Galo Hen/Side: Galo” is seen to have Burnish flames rise up from directly beneath her while she’s lying on the ground. However, this first burst of flame does still appear to have manifested in her upper body, and upon closer inspection; her eyes are blank and her mouth is open. I would count her as a slight oddity, and perhaps that this is all owing to the fact that she was on the ground when the Promare manifested, but in the grand scheme of things, her awakening doesn’t stand out terribly alongside every other Burnish in the film.

As for what causes the Promare to manifest in these specific areas the most – I’m honestly not sure – my best guess is that it’s a metaphor for their minds and possibly also their wills merging together with their hosts; as human and Promare. Professor Deus Prometh is heard to claim that the Promare sync with the humans it resonates with, so perhaps the brain is where this resonance happens the most. Lastly, it’s worth noting that Lio himself says that the Burnish can clearly hear the Promare, as they urge their human hosts to let them burn, the Promare are in their heads. So with all things considered, the fire life forms manifesting in this way makes sense.

However, like most things in the world, there’s always an exception, and that exception just might take the form of one character.

That being the villain of the film: Kray Foresight.

Kray’s awakening is drastically different from any other we see. Not only is his first ‘spasm’ – as he so delicately describes it – concentrated into his arm rather than his eyes or mouth, but the resulting blaze also amputates that arm completely, burning it away to nothing but ashes.

So what happened here?

My best guess is that – canonically at least – this is all metaphorical; simply put, Kray’s bitter resistance to the Promare messed up his own awakening. Most of the Burnish we see in the film are proud of the fact that they are Burnish in defiance of the oppression they face. This rings particularly and especially true for Lio and the rest of Mad Burnish, but Kray very obviously doesn’t share that sentiment. His disdain towards the Burnish has lead to him shunning this part of himself, which is most likely why his awakening was depicted in such a way. There’s also the fact that he’s the antagonist, and this radically different awakening was most likely done to portray that fact. But I like overthinking things, and I quite like the idea that this is beyond just being metaphorical, and that there’s something seriously, scarily wrong with the way Kray synced up with his Promare. To the point that I’d argue that they didn’t actually sync up at all.

I’d go further than just saying that Kray’s Burnish awakening got off to a rocky start, I would say that he never received the immunity to the Promare’s power in the first place. The protection that the rest of the Burnish obviously have against the heat of their flames is very much absent here, and his big reveal towards the end of the film just solidifies the theory – to me – that his flames actually hurt him as a result of this imperfect awakening. Actively using his flames cause him pain as a result of his resistance to becoming a host for the fire life forms, which would no doubt result in strengthening his hatred of the Burnish and of the Promare. Lets dive in.

-

I’ll start with the most obvious point; Kray wants and perhaps needs to keep his Promare subdued to the best of his ability, not just because he’s the Governor actively campaigning against the Burnish, but also possibly because slipping up has a painful price tag attached to it. Thanks to the technology he has at his disposal however, he has been able to keep it under wraps.

There are a few scenes in the film which suggest that his uniform is infused with freezing tech of some kind; maybe even the same kind used in the anti-burnish cuffs. Of course, there’s the scene atop the Foresight Foundation building where Lio’s destruction of Promepolis almost leads to Kray using his powers, but thanks to Galo, there ends up being no need for it. The scene ends without there being a Burnish reveal on Kray’s part, but not before we’re treated to a tiny wisp of steam rising up from his palm. Besides that, there’s the more obvious and yet somehow simultaneously more inconspicuous scene where his flames – now well and truly free – have to blast through what’s quite clearly a coating of ice to get to their target. It really puts me in mind of – again – the anti-Burnish handcuffs, as well as the weapons used by both Burning Rescue and Freeze Force. This kind of icy shield would keep his Promare locked in and deactivated, thus decreasing the risk of injury.

This either implies that Kray wilfully deactivated the cooling tech in his uniform because he knew it was Crunch Time, or his Promare simply burnt through the safety features he’d installed. I prefer to go with the latter option, just… Because it’s kind of scary to think about. 

Towards the end of the film – where we see the most of Kray wielding his Burnish powers – he appears to prefer the use of his prosthetic arm throughout his fight with Lio and Galo. This could just be because he’s a lefty and he never truly got used to losing his dominant arm, but the fact that the majority of his attacks all come from his prosthetic arm, does point towards the theory that his flames cause him discomfort. Sending the flames down through this prosthetic limb would probably divert some of the pain, and judging by the way the arm is seen to warp and swell up in size – more so than the swelling in the rest of his body – tells me that this is where he’s concentrating most of his Burnish power in an attempt to keep his body safe. Though, considering what happened to the rest of his body anyway, it looks to me as if his efforts are mostly in vain; more on that later.

However, there is an instance of him using his organic arm for his powers – while his prosthetic is busy treating Lio like a squeaky toy. The flames from his organic arm are actually the ones seen blasting through the freezing tech in his uniform, pictured further above. Once burnt through that protective, cold layer though, he visibly strains and almost flinches before sending his flames to attack Galo for a second time, like he’s bracing himself for the pain, and this is the only part of the film where we see him using his Burnish powers with his remaining arm.

Even before his Burnish reveal, it’s clear that his body is slowly gearing up to let it all out, the choice of sound design used for Kray straining against his Promare after Heris overloads the Prometech engine is absolutely terrifying and uncomfortable to listen to. But the situation is dire, and with Starship Parnassus’ engine destroyed, Kray might not even be in a clear enough state of mind to fully process the fact that it’s going to hurt. The fact that it takes him this long to consider letting loose and using what is clearly his last resort to get what he wants, just puts across how desperate a situation has to be before he even entertains the idea of using his Promare. The same can be said with how he reacted to Lio’s rampage on Promepolis, he was ready to resort to using his own powers then, only after all of the anti-Burnish technology on the outside of the Foresight Foundation building had failed to stop the fiery dragon.

At the risk of sounding like I’m siding with him – I can’t really blame him for going this far to suppress it all, if using his Promare is going to do… This to him.

I’ve made the argument before about how Lio’s “Kakusei” form and whatever happened to Kray differ in a few ways. Lio’s overall physique stays the same while he’s laying waste to Promepolis – despite the drastic change in colours and the ‘horns’ he grows. To me it looks as if he’s merely adopted the appearance of his Mad Burnish mech in an attempt to make himself look more threatening, though he uses his great, flaming dragon to deal out most of the destruction. Kray meanwhile looks as if he’s properly going through it, just to allow his Promare to burn, his skin takes on a strange, pink hue almost like that of a first degree burn, and the less said about those fangs he sprouts, the better. (Though Kakusei Lio also grew his own set of chompers.)

The dark circles around Kray’s eyes also don’t sit right with me – while they’re almost definitely just there as a design choice to make him look more threatening and more unhinged – I can’t help but think back to the fact that the Promare often manifests itself in humans by rocketing out of their eyes and mouths. If we are to assume that this is the first time Kray has properly used his flames since his initial awakening, it could be that – out of a desperation to burn after being denied that for so long – his Promare once again attempted to sync up with him properly, to perhaps start anew. But of course, it’s too little too late, as Kray’s pent up flames ultimately do their host more harm than good; blistering his flesh, singeing the skin around his eyes and causing his whole body to swell up to the point where his epaulettes buckle and the metal insignia on his left breast splits apart. Whether his constant suppression of his own Promare has lead to the fire corrupting in some way or not, is a topic I’m hoping to touch on in a little more detail in the near future; because a few things could theoretically happen when you keep fire simmering away without release for a long period of time, and none of them bode well for Kray.

And I could understand such over the top measures on Kray’s part; like the freezing tech in his uniform, if his Promare were completely out of control, or corrupted in some way. Lio, Gueira, Meis and the rest of the Burnish in the film all appear to have a degree of control over when and where they use their flames. The Promare want to burn hotter and brighter, the Burnish hear them and as a result they fulfil their wishes, but – far from simply spewing out fire all of the time – the Burnish decide when and where to use their flames, often calling upon them to aid them in battle. After seeing the film through multiple times and watching how most of the Burnish use their powers, I certainly wouldn’t call them “controlled by the Promare” as Kray describes it. There’s an understanding between a Burnish and their flames, there is – certainly in Lio’s case – a trust and almost a love, but if Kray’s awakening was so botched, it’s possible that he may not be able to hear the Promare as well as the rest of the Burnish, and therefore he might not actually know how to get it to stop. 

From his big reveal right up until Lio and Galo go off to save the world (with love!) he’s burning constantly. His hair is ablaze, his prosthetic is repeatedly warped into various shapes and sizes with the heat of the flames, it’s around his eyes, it’s there simmering away beneath his skin, still resolutely kept cooped up by the remaining cooling tech in his uniform. The uniform that – despite the various scraps and fights he gets himself into – stays stubbornly and completely in tact throughout all of his time on screen, in tact and doggedly doing its job of keeping those devastating flames at bay, even when its wearer is actively using them. The Burnish themselves may not be controlled by the Promare – but to an extent – Kray just might be. It’s only after he’s brought back to reality with a bang that it finally stops, and when it does stop, the disgraced Governor is incredibly subdued. Once the Promare leave, we see a very, very different character to the one we’ve seen throughout the film, even his faux charm and charisma as the beloved authority figure is gone, everything about him in those final scenes is muted and dulled.

I will say that isn’t just him, the very last scenes of the film use a slightly less saturated colour palette for everyone, but Kray takes looking pitiful to a whole other level. Now a far cry from the bright, in your face colours he had just minutes before, at the very end of the film, he looks nothing short of drained. If you’ve ever seen the gorgeously animated ‘Firebird’ short from Disney’s ‘Fantasia’ you’ll probably know where I’m going with this, the animation there puts me in mind of what we’re seeing here; the man truly does look like he’s about to be swept away, carried off on the wind like ash. He’s burnt out, a Burnout Burnish who refused to let his flames burn – so they burnt him up instead – and whether there are other Burnish in the world who took resisting their powers to the same extremes as he did, I doubt we’ll ever know. Though there does certainly seem to be a link between a person’s mindset and how well they’re able to control their flames, and yes – Thyma could certainly be a candidate for this.

On a final note; as I write, I’m thinking back to something Professor Deus Prometh was quoted as saying right at the start of the film: “The oppression of the Burnish may lead to concurrent blazes worldwide.” 

In other words, the longer you keep it down, the longer you resist, the longer the destruction will continue and the bigger and more serious the consequences will be. This is most likely in reference to the magma at the centre of the Earth slowly growing hotter in response to the oppression of the Burnish, but it can absolutely be applied to Kray’s Burnish awakening too. Perhaps if he had listened to the late Professor, things may have turned out a little better for him, he still would have become a burnish, yes, but his flames would’ve been untainted, perhaps he’d still have his arm, and perhaps he wouldn’t have come as totally undone as he did at the end of the film.

But, even with Trigger’s messy timeline, it’s safe to assume that Kray was a child when the Great World Blaze first swept across the earth, and when half of the population was wiped out. And as uncomfortable as this may be to acknowledge, it’s quite hard for me to imagine someone who witnessed that level of destruction at such a young age, being particularly happy about then being advised against resisting should they ever feel a Burnish spasm. That they should just give in to it, let it sync, let themselves become one with the Promare.

Let it burn.

[thegreathomestuckreread]

been listening to grand fest music again and y'all deep cut absolutely killed it the whole way through

best part of three wishes AND best ending to rainbow colour inkantation

grand fest rly got me realizing just how much i love their stuff, i really wish they got better character development

squid sisters have been building their story since the beginning and are deeply entwined in like everything, off the hook got depth and development in octo expansion and side order, and deep cut got... their flat simplistic character arc in return of the mammalians. there's so much more potential there, they rly did not get their justice on this one

[feathertru]

Grandfest is making me emotional

Something about Grand Fest ending the day before Freshers week starts and on moving day is just poetic for me.

I started Splatoon 1 when it was just 3 days old and I had turned 9 not long before it came out. I have taken part all Splatfests from Splatoon 1 in Europe (did I win many? No!) and it was a core childhood memory in my late primary school days.

I will always remember the day Splatoon 2 came out as it came out on my final day of primary school, I was 11, and it was there for my whole 5 years at secondary school. The game I had played since primary school got way bigger and I loved Salmon Run (despite only being able to play it some of the time). With the release of the Octo Expansion I got way more into the lore of Splatoon, realising it was far more deep than it originally appeared, and it was the best Splatoon single player mode without competition until Splatoon 3. This time Splatfests lasted 2 years (and I was on the winning side for Finalfest this time). I played it throughout my secondary school days.

Then when I was 16, on my first week of Sixth form, Splatoon 3 came out. This saw quite a few changes like Three way Splatfests and a different structure to updates. Salmon run was FINALLY available 24/7 and more improved then in Splatoon 2. It was around then that I got into digital art rather than art on paper that I used to draw with in secondary school. Side Order was a unique take in single player that with it's rogue-like made it stand out from other single-player modes - this coming out in year 13- After I was mere months away from A-levels.

And now, here comes the final Splatfest comes, right before uni starts. And it looks ABSOLUTELY HUGE and it feels unreal that these 9 years passed so quickly.

This game has been here my whole childhood since I was a 9 year old kid. And once Grandfest ends. I will be a uni student. Time really does fly

As the nostalgic veteran I am Im picking team past especially if we could possibly see a prequel in some shape or form. Whichever side you are on in Finalfest, Good luck!