#GO AHEAD AND ACCUSE ME OF BEING A TERRIBLE

[shownusfool]

parents overstepping boundaries!! we love to see it!! im gonna cry!! im so frustrated!! im so mad!! i don’t want to do this anymore!!!!!!!!!!!!

[minecraftrelatedrandomness]

So You Want to Get Into Pirates SMP…

Do you enjoy dark fantasy series with intensive worldbuilding? Heart-wrenching character arcs and dynamics? Or do you just like cubitos goofing off or flirting with each other and/or NPCs while going on silly quests looking for treasure? We've got the SMP for you!

Pirates SMP was a whitelist-only, modded roleplay MC SMP hosted by POWCreations (Apokuna and OwengeJuice) in collaboration with noName Ideas, and was run from July 30th to December 10th, 2023.

This post covers an introduction to the worldbuilding, the POV characters, and the main server events. Follow-up posts will cover recommended POVs based on character lore intensity (hard/soft and frequency), how accessible those POVs are, plotline-based recaps, and general fandom resources.

Introduction

Here's the gist of the worldbuilding: the series is set in Ecclesiae Sea, a region surrounded by an extensive wall of ice that won't be discovered until a few weeks into the series. In the heart of the Ecclesiae Sea are the Faction Isles, AKA the Pirate Isles, where the pirates are split into four factions:

Herons: They value exploration and discovery. Some members play the seeker archetype who search for the truth, while others may be explorers, historians, scientists, and/or academics. At their worst, they can be arrogant and a bit snobby, and have been accused of historical revisionism for their own benefit (this is never proven in canon).

Kestrels: They value luxury and are basically the materialistic rich people faction. They like their cash money and appreciate people with the ambition to earn that cash money, and tend to be self-serving. At their worst, they don't care about people around them and can be quite classist, except they make the capitalism funny in the "comically evil" kind of way.

Kites: They value strength in combat and are the type of people to fight god whenever things go wrong. Like the Kestrels, at their worst, they don't care much about the people around them, not even in their own faction.

Nightingales: They value adventure and the friends they make along the way, i.e. they're the found family faction. Most people like the Nightingales, but they are capable of being horrible people at their worst. Some people look down on the Nightingales for being the "softie" faction, and there are jokes about them trauma-bonding over terrible pasts – yes, in canon, and according to cc!Apo, "they're not wrong".

Beyond the Faction Isles, there also exist rogue pirates unaffiliated with any of the four factions, some forming unaffiliated factions of their own, others preferring to sail with their ships and crews alone.

In short, it's Sea of Thieves meets Divergent, except dark fantasy and in Minecraft. The exact nature of the dark fantasy in the worldbuilding (i.e. what series it's similar to in that aspect) is a spoiler for the biggest plot twist in the series, so I won't elaborate on that unless anyone asks/DMs me.

After choosing a faction on their first day, the pirates go on quests to get gold and treasure to upgrade their gear and ships by trading with NPCs. Naturally, there are supernatural evil forces at work that are threatening the pirates' way of life forever, so in the greater server lore, it's their job to figure out what's up. Outside of that, though, many POVs have individual character lore and their own stories to tell.

Annotation: The NPCs mentioned above are usually run on an AI chatbot outside of intensive lore moments, where they would be played by inactive server members or admins. These AI-based interactions play little importance in most plotlines and are generally skippable (as mentioned, actual lore interactions are player-based). However, they are involved in a few unavoidable character dynamics in individual character plotlines. I'll tell you ahead of time whenever these interactions are important.

POV Characters

You might know some of the content creators involved on the server already, so I'm listing them by faction, taking note of their RP character names (if they have one) and pronouns, and when their POVs start because a handful of the POVs start later than Day 1.

Herons (discovery)

OliveSleepy – character pronouns they/them, only appears on Day 1

OwengeJuice – character pronouns he/her and does not use they/them

Scott Smajor – character name Scott Denholm

Snifferish – first appears on Day 52 (Sept 19), only shows up for a couple of streams

SoupForEloise

WaterMunch – character pronouns she/her

ZombieCleo

Kestrels (cash money)

GoodTimesWithScar – only shows up for a couple of streams

Guqqie

ImaShep – character pronouns he/they, first appears on Day 52 (Sept 19)

KyleEff – character name Kyle Foster

Martyn InTheLittleWood – part of V-Tuber lore

MythicalSausage

TheOrionSound – character name Oliver (pronounced "oli-VAIR") von Steel but still goes by Oli

Shubble – first appears on Day 52 (Sept 19), only shows up for a couple of streams

Kites (combat)

Aimsey – character pronouns they/them/any

Bekyamon – character pronouns any/all

CaptainPuffy – only shows up for a couple of streams

Eret – first appears on Day 53 (Sept 20)

Krowfang – character name Kuervo [surname spoiler] but still goes by Krow, character pronouns he/him

Reddoons – only shows up for a couple of streams but makes a couple of non-streaming appearances

Seapeekay – first appears on Day 53 (Sept 20)

Tubbo – only shows up for a couple of streams (streamed regularly before joining the QSMP in mid-August)

Nightingales (found family)

Apokuna – character name [spoiler, currently still unknown] but still goes by Apo, character pronouns he/him

ggAcho – character name Acho (Denholm), character pronouns star/he/they

Graecie

JojoSolos – character name Yoyosephinê but still goes by Jojo, first appears on Day 53 (Sept 20)

Michela DarkEyebrows – first appears on Day 2 (July 31)

Roscumber

WillowMVP – character name Will [surname spoiler], first appears on Day 20 (Aug 18)

Do I have to watch all the POVs to understand the storyline?

For the overall server lore, absolutely not! The event livestreams cover what you need to know:

Day 1 / July 30: The Factioning, or SMP Launch Day

Day 36 / Sept 3: In Too Deep – Chapter 2 starts here; foreshadowing up to this event starts as early as Day 26 (Aug 24) from Scott and Owen POVs, but they recap all the foreshadowing in that day's livestream to get everyone up to speed

Day 76 / Oct 13: The Rescue Mission – foreshadowing up to this event starts as early as Day 59 (Sept 26) from Owen POV, but many of the POVs involved are entwined with foreshadowing, so I'd recommend which POV you should watch for this event on a case-by-case basis; the event is technically skippable as a few people missed this event and had the context recapped to them afterward (i.e. at the next event)

Day 77 / Oct 14: The Revenge Raid – Chapter 3 starts here; occurs directly after Day 76

Day 93 / Oct 30: The Halloween event – this is a NoName event and has very little impact on the greater storyline, and can be skipped in the context of the overall server lore, but is a good watch for individual characterization and lore if you're into that

Day 112 / Nov 18: Final Wishes – Chapter 4 starts here; the plot twist in the event is later adapted into a special lore quest and is completed/revealed in some POVs AFTER Day 112 (since they couldn't make it to the event), and Martyn's Issue 3 of the Noisy Parrot newspaper also gives a summary of the revelations for those unable to complete the quest in time as a second backup option

Day 134 / Dec 10: The Finale

For individual character lore, you can just stick to a main POV and go from there. My recommended watch pattern is picking an individual character POV to go with the server lore all the way through, especially due to how server and individual character lore can often happen in the same livestream, so sticking to a singular POV to start out would give the most context.

For episode-watchers, I highly recommend watching the occasional casual VOD as well, because I've seen a few episode-only fans (for both Martyn and Owen, who currently have the most complete adapted series) say they're feeling a bit lost because they don't understand some of the background lore that contextualizes the situation.

Follow-up Posts

POV recommendations based on character lore intensity

POVs by accessibility

Plotline-by-plotline recap

General SMP resources

[titleknown]

So, Adobe's going ahead with pushing that law that'd make it illegal to intentionally "plagarize" someone's style with AI art. And with me, crowing like Cassandra, I feel I must explain why this is a bad idea.

Namely: There is an AI tool that lets you analyze the "style" of an art piece, several of them even. It is called CLIP Interrogator. It is likely the only way this could directly be re-enforced at scale.

There are also zero percent negative legal repercussions for "false positives" when it comes to saying someone infringed on your copyright, even moreso if the accuser is a megacorp and the accused is a small creator.

Put these two together, and you have a recipe for basically legalizing Content ID for visual artstyles over the anti-AI-art moral panic. Anyone who's seen Youtube and its false positives. knows why this is a bad idea.

Not to mention, it would criminalize anyone doing pastiche as they do in other mediums with AI art. Which might not be a big deal, except, when it creates the legal precedent for style being copyrightable, who's to say it might not spread to other mediums?

Like, we already have that as a major problem in music post-Blurred-Lines. And the bloat of copyright from "temporary protection designed to help compensate for one's work" to the idea of "intelectual property" (though that's its own rant) shows that when precedent for expanding copyright law is given, megacorps will always take it farther.

"Copyright law helps artists" only works at-scale if you're one of the Copyrights Georg-type megacorps who've been kicking small remix-based creators in the teeth since the dawn of the net.

If you're worried about the fate of small commission artists with regards to AI art, which let's face it is what's driving 90% of the most reactionary side of this discourse, look into politically organizing as art collectives both to pool resources/talent and to organize against the sites that're actually enshittifying things and doing horny bans that fuck over artists. Not terrible copyright-hell-laws.

You do not want this law.

[starsologyy]

𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐈𝐍 𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑, 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐔𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐌𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔 ─ 𝐆𝐄𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐔𝐆𝐔𝐑𝐔 [𝟎𝟎𝟐].

002. ─── ✦ DRUNK IN LUV [SERIES MASTERLIST} ✧˖*°࿐

synopsis ─ [31 DAYS LEFT TILL THE EXAM] gojo takes home his drunk girlfriend, who's actually geto's little sister, and aka, somebody he is NOT suppose to seeing at all.

content warnings ─ alcohol usage, curse words, and etc.

NOV. 9. 2007. 8:54 PM. GOJO SATORU’S  POV.

satoru knows it’s a dumbass idea to be next to the girl he can’t have. especially at a public library he rented at night, but it was cheap, and no one could possibly blame him. 

if one was asked to elaborate on this institution of knowledge as a birthday venue, one wouldn’t classify this place as a profoundly enormous architectural masterpiece due to its inadequate funding, which lacks to achieve something grand in that matter.

 it’s rather pathetic, looking at it. the knowledge that surrounds them has insufficient funds to where they have lost the dignity to not plaster a scroll of edo period art on the beige walls. but the old lady who runs it; hired satoru a couple of months ago, doesn’t seem to care much.

and satoru isn’t shown to care either since he rented it out for a birthday party for teens who wanted to drink. (when it was only her and him together…)

yet, he feels as if the old woman does care somewhat. she’s bitter, rude, and slips insults off the tongue like the sound of books off the shelves (she wouldn’t be able to hear herself any other way at this age) when he does the shelving wrong. but she’s not always a senile old woman, satoru thinks. she’s nice enough to spare him from a five hour lecture to not spill a single liquid of beer on the ancient books.

 It was only four hours today.  

but never mind that.

he knows he should feel terrible, bottled with immense guilt because he hasn't told his best friend, suguru, about how he likes his little sister. and yet, satoru oddly doesn't feel any of those things.

and satoru gojo, he knows he’s fucked for his apathy.

“satoru!” kana whined, kicking her restless feet against his thrifted, acid washed baggy jeans, “i’m sooooo tired. do you have water?” she asked.

impersonating the spider web that hangs on the corner of the shelf beside them, his barrage of intertwined thoughts rip as he pops his head out of the cramped space and his eventual hangover to rapidly nod his head. 

the snow fallen haired boy soon passes her a bottle of water, watching her chug it.

satoru can’t help the grin growing on his face. “maybe you should go home, you can’t handle your beer.” he teases with a cheshire-like smile. kana scoffs at him before laughing a moment later.

she leans on the table at the end of satoru with a flirtatious expression, “accompany me home then idiot.” kana teases back, and the male’s crystal light eyes widen in a bit of a shock at that invite. the top of his mouth even shrivels as he tries to aimlessly smack his rosy lips for a bit of random moisture.

 “ah well—”

kana rolls her eyes. “my mom won’t see you! don’t be a pussy satoru.” she frowns, “i’m not some fling you’re hiding, am i?” she said as she gave him a side glare, and he rolled his eyes after he shook his head no. 

being afraid of your girlfriend’s mom and your best friend (her brother) will see you, is NOT the same as having another girl on the side, satoru screams within his head. he’s surprised after dealing with her temper and chaotic mess he hasn’t gone ahead and found a different girl yet, but that’s her charm (supposedly at least).

“okay, first of all,” he explains to kana. “if i was hiding you, i would cover up your face with a paper bag everywhere i went,” the boy laughs, wrapping his arm around her shoulder as she scrunches her face. “and don’t do that, you’ll get wrinkles and look like an old hag if you keep scrunching.” satoru adds in a sing-song manner.

“also, accusing me of being with other girls is also pretty much saying I’m with an old hag. like we’re 90 years old  and I looked at some girl at a bingo game because—”

“just shut up.”  she scoffs, pinching his cheek in response before settling down.

she doesn’t do it hard enough to hurt for long he realizes, even if he could technically handle it. satoru pretends as if someone shot him in the foot.

“OUCH!”

“FINE! fine! uragh, i’ll drive you home,  so you can’t complain to me. happy?” he shouts, pouting at the same time. though, it turns to an uncontrollable soft smile when the cerulean in his eyes rise as similarly unmanageable waves, to now mesmerizingly swirl in his pupils once it witnesses the sight of the joyful contortion of her lips. 

“really!? and don’t call me some old hag anymore! for the life of me.” she groaned, and he rolls his eyes to confirm his little tease will be over. 

kana smiles, forcing him up by suddenly jumping up from her seat similar to the cartoon characters plastered on the scratched walls behind him. satoru laughs boisterously at this, only to witness her also hop on his rather wide back once he also leaves the table,  wrapping her muscular arms around his neck to rest her head on his shoulder.

“you’re heavy!”

“fuck off!”

he clicks his tongue, holding onto her thighs to support herself on him. the silence between their lips pursue the delicate tread of the frail bliss known as comfortability. he didn’t mind the lack of their chat. It doesn't last long however. 

“seeeee, you know you like this,” she drunkenly cheers, her clumpy coats of onyx mascara with the shade electric blue on the tops fluttering lightly on her lashes as she takes in the fresh air once they step outside of the library. “how could you not love this? you should drive me home more,” she giggles. the alcohol seems to have set in, and her incredibly soft hair tickles his chin.

“and waste my gas? yeah fucking right,” he yawns mockingly, and she scoffs as she kicks her legs back and forth (ensuring to leave him a bruise for injuring her egotistical pride.) 

“ouch!”

“what’s with you and injuring me?” he grumbles. 

silence seems to have fallen off the thread of comfort now as he’s rather feeling uncomfortable from the sting of hard sneakers hitting flesh. 

her little ‘hmph!’ reminds satoru that it would mean dead silence between them, killing the conversation and giving tension between them as they both struggle to generate another, but he actually finds it opposingly soothing right now. 

they soon end up in his navy blue sports car, kana in the passenger seat as she rubs her eyes a bit. she’ll regret it later he realizes, but satoru stays silent as his engine rumbles obnoxiously loud, probably waking a couple of crying babies nearby. oops. not enough to wake her up though, so he hopes those moms would forgive him.

──────────────────────────────

the drive isn’t supposed to be long, but the time it takes to arrive to kana’s house stretches far into the greedy hands of eternity.  it desperately holds both souls in the stillness of the blinding rich glimmer from satoru’s sports car, and yet as dreadful as infinity may stretch,  he continues this sloth like pace, driving painstakingly slowly, and prolongs the inevitable.

the last time satoru gojo drove this slow, is when he first got it on his sixteen birthday and mommy wouldn’t pay to get scratches removed. 

yeah…

the reason he drives slowly though, is because he just doesn’t want to deal with what comes with pulling up near the drive through. yet he holds that breath of polluted city, or whatever how much a suburban town in the middle of nowhere can be considered a city, just at the center of his adam’s apple. kana sits restless, and exhausted at the same time somehow throughout all this.

she’s a bit naive, satoru thinks. for getting into a car with a man, to clarify. she trusts him sure, but caution lies clear in folktales of those who have been hurt by the ones they hold the most dear. 

she disregards fear like an idiot living near a radioactive plant. it’s impressive, but he’s the one who agreed, so he’s her neighbor in that dumb scenario. he stays silent as she rants about whatever drama could possibly conjure in the hellhole of the 2nd year of a suburban high school. 

but to be fair, she runs her mouth like an american sprinter about far less worse things than what he used to hear at his old, stuck up the ass, high school, before he got caught sneaking out at four am and was sent to this town like some mass isolation. 

“and then he said it’s not his fault he had to cheat because she just wasn’t getting his needs you know? but I was like nooo are you insane—”

…

“kana?”

…

“you there?”

he glances over at her, and his brows raise to the top of his head at the sight of the slight drool lining her glossed lips. the emergence of a buried sound of snoring in the rippling silence of a rural town where no one dares to stay up past twelve o'clock (or be faced with their mother’s rapid pull on rather sensitive ears) makes him chuckle. it’s amusing to watch, sure, but he quickly rests eyes back  on the ever winding road to not crash his expensive ass car into a boulder.

he really does need a new job. and soon. but maybe watching your girlfriend sleep should be a job in itself he thinks. 

satoru’s arms soon rest easy on his thighs as he gets comfortable with this road back to her place, just an easy step on the gas he also needs to refill. he’s unconsciously keeping a steady pace to not wake her up, but he denies it to the gentle, beating of his stone cold heart by saying he doesn’t have the cash to waste another gallon or purchase another tire to go over a pothole carelessly. 

also, he doesn’t want to wake up some family like he did a while ago. after another five minutes or so, they reach their destination.

──────────────────────────────

he glances over once more. “wake up ugly.” the cheeky boy provokes, pinching the chub of her cheek to leave it a hint more rosy than what kana normally brushes on her cheeks. 

“or else i’ll kick you out for not paying me back for gas.” he mutters to himself, his scarred muscles (from being outside more than some barbaric creature who resides in forests) almost shuddering at the thought of paying those ever increasing expenses. 

kana’s eyelids slowly rise to the sight of the slightest frown on the boy next to her, but they almost already fall shut once more from the alcohol she ingested a while ago. her lips remain shut while her head remains slugged on the back of his white leather extravaganza of a vehicle. 

“we here already?” she murmurs.

“just got here.” he nods.

a part of his aching soul is fond enough of kana, that as the girl holds near and dear inside his very calloused soul, he silently pursues the question of letting her sleep a while longer if her hangover needs so. but he disregards that thought. 

the longer he stays, the more likely he is to be caught. even if he wants his girlfriend to get the sleep she needs. 

kana raises a brow in turn to somehow telepathically question why he hasn’t launched some mischievous joke to wake her up. he can tell what she’s asking from that look in her eyes. 

 “since its your birthday and what not.” he quickly adds, as if to deny a disgusting softness that may cultivate in the gentleness of his self if carefulness continues to lack in the streamlining of hushed words.

“oh. okay.” kana sighs, a yawn escaping soon after as she rummages through the back of the car to find her onyx bag. it has a bountiful bunch of multivariety printed pins stuck to the painfully clear false leather of measly fabric and the same galore of cheap key chains stuck to the strap and zipper, but it seems more endearing than he is to her. 

he’s joking, obviously. 

there’s a quietness now as she continues to try to make sure she doesn't forget anything, and it’s usually familiar, but satoru feels a lump like he wants to gag and renchingly expel the hideous bile of his very stomach from its personification of a burden to ask why it exists. the silence from a bit ago was comfortable. now it’s noticeably not. 

why is she quiet? she normally talks his damn ears off when she wakes up, as much as he does her. it’s giving him an unfamiliar goosebump, similar to when he sees a seven foot male at his basketball games. essentially, it’s not good.

at all.

it shouldn’t be there, and his need for the expulsion of a cheap beer isn’t this feeling either. it’s not the same, even if he doesn’t like to drink very often and pukes after a sip.  satoru only drank beer today for kana honestly, but he usually sticks to more sugar cube filled mockery of these drinks more often than not.

she’s gotta be pissed off for sure, or satoru is in hell for not throwing away the empty milk carton from when he wanted cereal from this eerie silence. 

“you mad at me?” he hums, looking outside the clearness of his driver’s window (that he only cleaned yesterday to impress her).

silence again. he looks at her once more. did he wake her up too early? he doesn’t think he did (but men never know what they did wrong he learned). 

 “why would i be mad?” she scoffs, resting her bag in her lap as she then begins to pick up the things she keeps forgetting to get back from his abyss of a car every other time she enters his car. for example, like that vampy lipgloss from the dollar store, she keeps forgetting it, and always forgetting to take it back. 

“you just seem mad all of a sudden. i don’t know. did i suddenly fuck up, your royal highness?” satoru sighs.

“well, i’m not. you’re just reading inbetween the lines.” she glares out of the blue, and his similarly colored cerulean eyes droop at its very cold sight, like her being merely upset freezes him more than what winter may do in the essence of the common occurrence called frostbite. 

he goes back to looking away though, yet she can somehow notice a snowflake of shame as a glimmer in his eyes that she stares at quite often in the haze of her slugged drunkenness.

“so you are mad.” he states with a sigh leaving his lips after he does so.

she doesn’t respond for a moment.

“and if i am?” maybe she’s on her period satoru wonders. just maybe. 

“i drove you home though, like you wanted.” he seems to be insisting of a conversation that may drive him mad the more she could have the time to glare at him in this enclosure of a car. he shrugs, trying to open up a door that probably shouldn’t be touched. “did i forget to do something else? did you want flowers?—”

“just open the damn car door. im like a prisoner!” she responds, angrily trying to open the car’s side door after picking up her forgotten lip gloss. he grabs her wrist in a rather harsh manner, but it softens at the realization of a small wince on kana’s very face. 

“sorry—but, i wanna talk. i know you’re mad at me, but I thought we had a good time at your birthday party, and you know, i can’t understand why you’re mad all of a sudden,” he mutters, “and for being so dumb.” he

adds, and while he repeats the word ‘sorry’ like a broken cd, she knows satoru says his sorries and apologies as much as meteors appears in the very calming night of this town. or a tsunami and what not. 

satoru doesn’t intentionally hurt her. yet, it’s this time where retribution once more comes forth to punish the way kana’s senseless rambles attempt to shelter her from his notions of affection. he wants to know why he hurt her, but the countless occurrences she has pushed him away has comes to haunt her and her fragile femininity in trying to express herself currently. 

she shouldn’t need a man to help her feel better, she thinks. 

her endless polarity of moods continue to antagonize her in a manner that she will never be someone that she wants to be without agonizing over the smallest matters. it’s a shame when she looks at the worry in his eyes again that she's the cause of. 

they’re pure, and hers are troubled. she doesn’t know how to express herself in a matter of care and gentleness in which other women have been characterized to have known since their heart has beat.  

it’s easy to talk to the boy about anything but her feelings truthfully.

she looks down, because she feels the uncomfortable warmth lining her tear ducts. 

it’s weird, crying on your birthday, she thinks. especially over such a good guy like satoru, she just can’t get the words to slip as much as bile does after a crappy special night out. he carefully holds her for a moment now, as if she’s a fragile piece of glass, letting her head rest in the scent of his woody cologne.

“did you care when i was talking about that random girl earlier?”

huh? he thinks, raising a brow. she doesn’t know how else to distract him. she’s drunk. who’s going to blame her? 

“not really, but i guess it was fucked up her boyfriend cheated.” the white haired boy murmurs. “are you mad because i didn’t show interest, cause i was listening it only didn’t seem like it because—”

“because you were driving, i know.” he raises his brow at what could she be annoyed about if it’s not about that, but he stays silent. “i don’t know what i’m mad about then.”

he’s about to open his mouth but, “i don’t know. okay? maybe it’s because im buzzed. it just happened all of a sudden okay? you know i don’t cry often it’s just you know, you know? right?”

she’s repeating words like a mad man, he thinks. crying like a jester on display after a ball falls from the juggle of his rather childish act. she fits the role of one oddly enough, but he likes the spontaneity of it all. 

“so you’re upset at me because you’re drunk? because this happened all of a sudden you know?” if he says the words ‘you know’ one more time, he might bang his head. 

she nods. 

he sighs of some sort of minor relief despite not understanding it. “you’re always an emotional wreck after a beer.” he grunts, and she rolls her eyes, her fingertips obnoxiously wiping away her sudden tears as if she wasn’t wearing smokey eye makeup at the moment. 

she’s glad he’s not forcing her to say more. he’s glad himself he won’t have to provoke her to another mess of her drunken mind. he’s not equipped to deal with the mental breakdowns, but he still allows her to ramble endlessly about others, and then cry in his arms about nonsensical matters. despite him being the forbidden fruit she wants to taste his bitter lips, so she kisses satoru despite it all, savoring the sweetness of his love despite the fact suguru would kill her for dating his best friend. 

taglist? <3. just comment below!

[miguelschamp]

the exit pt. 2

pairing: john b routledge x fem!reader

summary: you see john b for the first time in months

warnings: none

a/n: requested by @mirellef2001. i hope you enjoy :)

it had been a few months since you walked away from john b. from the outside looking in, a lot had happened.

john b being accused of murder, then he and sarah passed trying to get off the island. of course, you didn’t believe that john b had killed peterkin. john b was a lot of things, but a murderer wasn’t one of them.

then you found out from kie that john b wasn’t dead and that he was actually okay. that gave you some relief knowing that he was okay.

now, as of recent, it came out that john b was cleared and that rafe cameron killed peterkin. you were happy that the truth came out, but hadn’t made any effort to actually talk to him.

you were still hurt by what happened with him and sarah, but considering all that happened, if you ever did see him, you wouldn’t rub it in his face.

looking around at the bonfire, you couldn’t quite tell if you still wanted to be there. your friends left you alone awhile ago and had yet to make an effort to come back. you were sat on a brick wall with a half empty solo cup in your hands.

the fire burning in the middle of the party calmed you, but the teenagers running around and drinking different concoctions left and right made you anxious.

you left out a deep sigh as you shut your eyes. your finger tapping the side of the cup as you open your eyes slowly.

“you here all by yourself ?”

your heart drops. you knew exactly who was standing beside you. you turn and your eyes meet the only boy you’ve ever been in love with.

“john b ?”

“that’s me.” he smiles softly. he watches as you look him up and down slowly before you turn towards the fire again. “you mind if i sit ?”

“go ahead.” you shrug. john b takes a seat next to you making sure to leave some space between the two of you.

this was the first time he had seen you in months. he couldn’t believe how beautiful you still were, if not more.

when you walked away from john b this past summer, he knew he messed up. terribly.

the day was on repeat in his mind for a long time. he couldn’t believe he actually let you go. it was stupid. he knew that. and his friends wasted no time in reminding him of that.

“how have you been ?”

you chuckle, “i should be asking you that considering you were on the run and on trial for murder.”

“well, i made it out pretty okay.” he smiles, “but how are you ?”

“i’m fine.” you mumble

john b eyes you as you stare into your cup. his mind reeling for some way to get you to talk to him. “y/n-“

“if you’re gonna bring up you and sarah, please don’t. i’ve thought about it enough.”

john b sighs, “okay, well. can i at least apologize ?”

“for what ? we weren’t together.”

“but we were supposed to be.”

“we wanted to be.” you say finally looking over at him. your heart skips as you look into his brown eyes. they were as gorgeous as you remember. “you didn’t cheat or anything, john b. you don’t have to apologize.”

“i’m still sorry.” he says, “i hurt you and i always promised i wouldn’t. i was just so caught up in finishing what my dad started that i got caught up in something with sarah.”

“you guys were on the run together. you don’t have to downplay what you felt for her to make me feel better.”

“i’m not. i’ll always be thankful for her helping me and sticking with me, but what i felt for her is nothing like what i felt for you.”

“john b.” you sigh as you look away

“i’m serious.” he says scooting closer, “i’m sorry, y/n/n.”

as you turn to him, john b looks down. his hand reaches for one of your hands laying in your lap. he removes it from the cup and holds it gently.

he looks up at you, “i’m sorry and i love you.”

your face softens, “i love you too.”

“i know.” he nods, “but it’s not about me right now. i wanna make everything up to you. i want you to understand how much i really do appreciate all that you’ve done for me despite what happened. i want you to understand how much i love you.”

your eyes flicker between his before his own fall to your lips. as he leans in closer, you heart beats harder in your chest.

you didn’t know if kissing john b was a good idea. was a simple apology really enough ? john b wasn’t one to break promises. once he has his mind on something, he sticks to it. so, if he promised to make everything up to you, then he would.

so who cares ?

your eyes shut as he places his lips on yours. you sigh softly as he moves against you. he pulls away, but doesn’t go far at all.

your eyes open and he’s already looking at you. his eyes swarming with a look only you’ve seen. you didn’t know that, but he did.

he also knew that no matter what happened, he would never let you go again.

[kimberbohwrites]

WIP Whenever, Time is An Illusion Edition ✨

I think I’ve been tagged in the last week by: @honeybee-bard @forget-me-maybe and @blckvstudy at least and I’m sorry I haven’t done anything yet. I’ve not been liking where my writing is at (and I write super slow on very hot days) but we’re back! Thank you for the tag, all of you!

Please enjoy a little of Chapter 2 of “Dusk & Honey” my Halsin x OC Luna longfic.

Also, I’m taking a bit of a unique angle on Halsin — I think he’s crankier than people give him credit for so I’m going to frame this as a little enemies to lovers slowburn action (see below).

When they departed their campsite a few hours later, Luna could have kicked herself for wishing for the Druid’s guidance. She’d gotten it — in spades. Halsin followed up the rear of their group quietly as their newest member and Luna was still glowering over their fight about next steps.

He’d been so rude when she expressed her frustration about not having more answers. Snapping at her before continuing on about the terrible blight of the Shadow Curse.

“I won’t be held accountable just because you’re naive enough to expect easy answers.”

“How dare you?! I’m just trying to help these people!” She had snapped back. She had felt Shadowheart’s hand on her shoulder and heard Karlach’s soothing coo. The Druid had insisted on continuing and Luna had forced herself to bite her tongue. Control yourself, the moon controls the tides as I control me. She had chanted in her head as Halsin went on, forcing her outrage behind the finely polished mask of constant calm once more. It wasn’t until he had brought up the Underdark that she had even bothered to open her mouth once again.

“We found the entrance to the Underdark in the temple after you left to set the grove to rights and I’m not sure it’s such a good idea. I have no idea where that leads. It could be the death of all of us.”

“The Shadow Curse is a fate WORSE than death, Luna! I do not relish the thought of venturing into the Underdark but I would not suggest such a course of action if I thought there were a safer way.”

His tone had at least been kinder than when he’d accused her of being naive but still firm. She hadn’t been able to tell if it was the thought of the Shadow Curse or if it was just her that got that made him this frustrated. Then, when he’d offered to join their camp to offer counsel and support as they ventured to Moonrise, it had taken each of her companions to convince her to agree to the Druid’s company.

She glanced back at him as they made their way out of their camp and to examine the entrance to the Underdark. It was strange, she’d expected him to look sadder as they left the Grove behind. But instead she found him looking ahead with a firm resolve on his face.

No pressure tagging (and remember time is an illusion so do this whenever): @savriea @dutifullylazybread @sorceresssundries @orangekittyenergy and @mothermoth92

[opinated-user]

I'm going to say this right now... I think that 246 bits wtv person genuinely might be Lily.

I'll tell you why....

Because when she said in that post that people who believe Courtney are ' r*apists I'm hiding*, remind me a lot of that time in.. I don't really remember since it was a few years ago, I think it was a video??... Lily said something along the lines that there were these people who SA-ed her, and she said that she believed that they did it because didn't like her Steven Universe video. ( This made me laugh because really? )

And then she said something along the lines that people who didn't like her criticisms would have done the same thing.

I might be getting that not entirely right, but the point still kind of stands.

She will blame people for wanting to get into her pants for any reason. Even if they're just viewers, critics or fans of hers she doesn't know.

But long story short, she seems to like to guilt people she * most likely doesn't know* into silence with accusing them of doing / wanting to do said terrible situation.

I'm also going to say this...

Her treating r*pe and SA in such a way makes me think she doesn't really treat these things as seriously as they should be treated.

that account is now sharing posts about how to recognize a smear campaign, about how you shouldn't call liars because their bad lying might be neurodivergent or trauma responses and just replying to people to tell them that they're wrong and LO is right. for the record, i haven't been blocked. i could share their posts if i wanted to, but i won't because even if they're LO just somehow badly trying to do damage control in the most desperate, pathetic way i have seen in a long time... i don't think any of us should give them any attention. if she is LO, us talking about her is exactly what she wants just so she has even more reason to screenshot and show it to her audience like "see?? they accuse anyone trying to be logical about the situation of just being me! that clearly shows they are a bunch of parasocial vultures whose only personality is to hate me no matter what!" if this user is not LO, we're not really gaining anything by overreacting to their posts. even if they're a troll who literally just want to stir the pot and see people being mad for the enjoyment of it. i think we should all just go ahead, block them and move on.

[lizamango]

Cruel World 3/? (Brainwashed HYDRA!Reader x Steve Rogers)

summary: A war between SHIELD and HYDRA rages on in the shadows of the world. You live for the kill as a Black Widow until you discover Steve Rogers, the weapon for the opposing side who makes you question the side you’ve been fighting for. (inspired by Underworld, just go with the lore on this fic pls)

Part 1 ~ Part 2

warnings: smut later, canon typical violence

word count: 2564

“This is the camp where I was trained,” Steve states as he lands the quinjet.

“Has it changed much?”

“A little,” he murmurs. I look at him as his tone changes. His eyes are distant, jaw clenched. He’s reminiscing.

“It must be tough,” I start and he looks at me to continue. “Being alive when everyone you know is gone.”

“You would know about that, wouldn’t you?” he responds with the words I used earlier.

“I guess so. One fell swoop.” A silence falls upon us and I pace through the base. An American base. I never thought I’d come here of all places, out of my own free will. “Once Dreykov wakes, he’ll set everything right.”

“You have so much faith in him,” Steve states but it was more of a question. He’s asking why.

“Wouldn’t you? If someone saved you from certain death, wouldn’t you believe in them? He has treated me like his own,” I defend.

“You say that the cycle has never been broken before. What will happen to you once all this is over?”

“I’ll be judged before our council,” I hold back.

“And then?” Steve raises a brow, sensing there was more.

“I’ll probably be executed.”

His heart drops, I can practically hear it. He turns sharply and stalks towards me. “What the fuck are you talking about?” he asks incredulously.

I shrug indifferently. “Those are our rules.”

He starts breathing heavily, shaking his head. “You can’t be okay with this? How can you just accept that? I won’t allow it-“

I chuckle. “Steve, you have no authority. This is the life I’ve chosen.”

“You haven’t chosen anything. They’ve indoctrinated you into a program, used you, all the Widows as their weapons. As if you’re not even people, just a means to their ends.” He puts his hands on my shoulders, forcing me to look into his eyes.

“You’re making grave conclusions for someone who doesn’t know our ways.”

“I don’t need a fucking handbook, I’ve seen and heard enough.”

“You’re being ignorant, Steve. Don’t forget that we are not on the same side.”

“No,” we’re not, I expect him to say. “You’re being naive.”

I roll my eyes. “If you think so terribly of our ways then-“

“I’m not going to leave.” This man just loves to interrupt.

“Why not? I don’t need you anymore, Steve. My memories have enough evidence that you are alive. I need only to wait for Dreykov’s awakening and then we can take down Schmidt.”

He says my name in an almost defeated tone. “You need me,” he says simply. “I’m the only one who has your back in all of this. Not your sisters, not your Dreykov. Not even yourself.”

I cross my arms. “And how is that?”

“There’s a knife in your back and you don’t want to pull it out. You don’t even know it’s there.” His words cut deep but I try to shrug them off. He knows nothing. I look back at him and see his eyes have shifted to something behind me. He has a frown on his face though different to the one he was sporting when he was lecturing me.

“What?”

“Army regulations forbid storing ammunition within five hundred yards of the barracks,” he states. He walks towards a building and breaks open the lock. “This building is in the wrong place.”

We walk inside, my gun drawn. I spot the insignia painted on the wall. “This is SHIELD,” I accuse and point the gun at him. “You took me to a SHIELD facility?”

“I didn’t know, I promise you.”

“I knew not to trust you.”

“I am the only one you can trust right now,” he exclaims. “I am the only one who hasn’t lied to your face. So go ahead. Shoot me.” He steps closer so that the gun is resting right between his eyes. “If you don’t trust me, fucking shoot me. Get rid of the only person who’s trying to help you while everyone else is trying to kill you.”

I examine him.

“Kill me or believe me, that’s your choice.”

I withdraw my gun. “You’re so dramatic.”

“It worked, didn’t it?” he answers.

I clench my jaw.

We enter a room with three portraits. Heads of SHIELD, I assume.

“That’s Howard Stark,” Steve says.

“Stark Industries,” I comment. “I’ve seen that logo on weapons HYDRA uses.”

Steve frowns. “That makes no sense, Howard wouldn’t work for HYDRA.”

Are you so sure, Captain? I think to myself. “Who’s the girl?”

“Nobody,” he replies too quickly. He turns away from me and walks down the room, spotting a bookshelf. His eyes scan through each shelf. “If you’re already working in a secret office, why do you need to hide the elevator?” He pushes a shelf and they part to reveal elevator doors.

“After you,” I state.

We both descend to the only floor available and turn the lights on to find a room full of old computers.

Somehow the computers jump to life. Must all be connected to the power.

“Captain Steve Rogers,” a voice calls out.

“Who’s there?” I respond, gun drawn.

“Calm yourself, Widow.” A face appears on the screens of the computers.

“Arnim Zola,” Steve states.

“You know him?” I ask.

“Scientist who worked under Schmidt.”

“How do I not know you?” I question.

“There is much you do not know, Dreykov’s experiment.”

“And yet you know me.”

“HYDRA was founded on the belief that humanity could not be trusted with its own freedom. What we did not realize, was that if you try to take that freedom, they resist. The war taught us much. Humanity needed to surrender its freedom willingly. For seventy years HYDRA has been secretly feeding crisis, reaping war. And when history did not cooperate, history was changed.” Flashes of past news headlines and TV footage are shown on the screens as Zola speaks. Assassinations carried out by Assets or Widows. Facilities burning. “HYDRA created a world so chaotic that humanity is finally ready to sacrifice its freedom to gain its security. Once the purification process is complete, HYDRA's new world order will arise. We won, Captain. You work with one of HYDRA’s most formidable Widows, your death for naught.” Steve punches the computer screen only for Zola to appear on another. “Alas, your affiliation with Dreykov’s experiment has made her a liability, no longer to be trusted.”

I frown. Excommunication? “Why do you keep calling me that?”

Zola states my full name as he did with Steve. “Family slaughtered in Odessa, adopted by Dreykov into the Black Widow program to serve this war. You who are so special that he kept you and your abilities a secret. He read that your DNA had the key to a serum stronger than that of Erskine’s. The power to activate a dormant gene in homo superiors, millennia’s worth of evolution, cut down to mere hours.”

“That is not true.”

“Oh?”

“I think I would know if I was experimented on. I’ve never healed as fast as Steve until…”

“The serum gave you abilities while your x-gene remained dormant, until a gross traumatic injury which otherwise would have killed you activated this mutation. It’s epigenetics, Widow.”

The gunshot wound.

“Why are you telling us all of this?” Steve asks.

“Because I’m stalling.”

The ground begins to rumble and all the computer screens shut down. Steve and I look at each other. I access the quinjet’s sentry mode through my communicator which detects a person. An Asset. My blood runs cold. Fuck.

“We have to get out of here.”

Steve finds an opening in the ground and we escape from under the building. I spot the Asset as he aims for us. Steve pushes us to the ground.

“Who is that?” he grunts. I hand him a gun.

“Get to the quinjet,” I say to him. I look back and squeeze my trigger. “It’s armed with machine guns. Shoot to kill.”

I hear Steve say my name but I ignore his calls as I run towards our enemy. Once upon a time I would have seen him as my ally.

I dodge the spray of bullets and jump up on a humvee, kicking him from the chin. He stumbles back as I land, pulling a knife out of one of my holsters. I slash at him but he counters my moves, blocking them with his metal arm then flinging the knife away. I used to be glad to have that metal arm on my side. His steel fingers grasp my throat and push me until my back hits the humvee but I grab another knife and stab it into his thick thighs with enough force to penetrate his reinforced combat trousers. I hear him grunt behind his mask but I slip from under him, rolling under the humvee. As I run towards the quinjet which is now in the air I hear him kick the humvee out of his way. Fuck. A spray of bullets forms a wall between the Asset and I as I climb up the ramp of the jet but not before I shoot my handgun, the bullet ricochets from the bulletproof lens of his mask. I enter the cockpit to see the Asset remove his mask.

“Steve you have a clear shot,” I say but he stares at the Asset, now with his mask off.

“Bucky?”

The Asset points his grenade launcher at us.

“Steve if you won’t take the shot, I will.” I walk towards the trigger but Steve pulls the jet up so I stumble and the Asset misses. “What are you doing?!” I exclaim.

“We’re not killing him,” Steve says with finality. He flies the jet away from the base.

“He’ll catch up to us,” I shake my head as I sit down. “He’ll find us and he’ll kill us, Steve you don’t know him-“

“I do.”

“What do you mean?” I notice he puts the jet on autopilot.

“I’ve known him all my life,” he turns his seat around and looks up at me. How could he possibly…

“James,” I realise. I scoff at how convenient and absurd this all is. “Schmidt takes your best friend and turns him into our most formidable Asset. This is bullshit.” I start to pace. “So there’s no way you’ll kill him but he won’t stop until he kills us. Isn’t that just perfect?” I feel like I’m losing my fucking mind.

“I thought I lost him… But I’ll get him back.”

“It’s not that simple,” I tell him.

“Why? He probably just didn’t see me. Once he does, he’ll stop coming after us.”

I shake my head desperately. “No, Steve. He won’t know who you are.” I sit in the chair next to him. “Assets… have no memory of their past lives. They’re not like Widows, they come from a different kind of clean slate.”

I expect to see him looking at me with disgust. How could I be okay with this happening to people around me? But he doesn’t. Steve only looks determined. “Then we’ll find a way to get his memories back.”

“Odessa,” I say. Before explaining, I enter the coordinates . “There’s an abandoned HYDRA facility, a scientist specialising in cerebral reprogramming-“

“Brainwashing,” Steve corrects.

I nod. “Brainwashing- he was based there until SHIELD came and tried to take him away. He was labelled a traitor so he was executed. That’s our only clue.”

“How do you know about this?” Steve questions.

“Dreykov trusted me with everything… A Widow defected from us, she was the one to try to take the scientist.”

Steve frowns. “A Widow?”

“Natalia Romanova. She tried to kill Dreykov.” The thought leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Just imagining Dreykov dead along with my family… I would never have survived that night without him.

“How do… how do you know that Dreykov doesn’t have something to do with all this?”

I turn sharply to face him. “Don’t. There’s no way.”

“I’m just saying-“

“Steve, he saved my life. He took me in. He didn’t have to do that but he did.” He saved me in more ways than I can count.

“I’m not saying these things are related-“

“I’m not gonna listen to this, Steve.”

“Like you didn’t listen to me about HYDRA?”

I close my eyes and exhale shakily. “Steve, I mean it.”

“You’re only fighting me because you have doubts now too! Just face it, Dreykov is HYDRA, HYDRA feeds crises, reaps war, takes away freedom! I mean look at you!” he exclaims. “You had blind faith in this organisation, you and your Widow Sisters! They’ve got you all buying into the lie that they care about you while they send you on missions to kill innocent people all while not giving a shit about you when you’re no longer useful to them!” He stalks closer towards me.

“You’re. Wrong.” I glare at him and if looks could kill…

“I need you to face reality.” He looks at me so sincerely that my eyes sting. Why does he have to look like he cares so much? Why couldn’t he just be what I’ve been led to believe SHIELD is? It would be so much easier to hate him. I sense hesitation in his expression as tears threaten to expose how hurt I feel. He’s turned my whole world upside down in a matter of days… “I need you to…” he trails off, his eyes flickering from mine down my face to my shuddering lips.

I bite them to control the trembling but I hear Steve sigh.

“Need me to what?”

“I need you to open your mouth.” His voice is somehow deeper.

I gulp before doing as he says. His lips crash onto mine, his tongue exploring my mouth, almost fighting with mine. Our lips move in tandem, as if we didn’t even need to think about it. One of Steve’s hands rests on my cheek and I hear him inhale deeply as if taking me in. As if to devour me. I would let him.

His other hand is on my waist but it slowly snakes to the dip in my back and he presses me closer to his body. So close that I feel a hardness against my belly. I gasp and slowly pull away in surprise at the growing bulge and he sucks on my tongue as we part. The tear that had been slowly building finally fell down my cheek but he brushes it off with his thumb. He rests his forehead on mine.

“I’m sor-“

It’s my turn to interrupt him as I stop his apology with a tug on his blonde messy hair. I pull his head back with it to expose his neck and I place a gentle kiss on his pulse point. Steve sighs. I feel his heartbeat on my lips, his scent musky with sweat and smoke fills my senses. He’s all around me and all over me. He’s in me. I give his neck a long teasing lick, ending up at his ear. I tug on his lobe with my teeth and he chuckles.

“Have you ever fucked someone on a jet before?” I whisper into his ear, I just know that my voice travelled through him, gracing parts of him I could never physically touch.

He shakes his head at my question. “But I’m about to.”

🖤🖤

smut in the next chapter ✨


[therealslimshakespeare]

Do you have anything else for your POW AU? I want to know what happens to them. Do they run away with Buck or do they stay with Bucky?

I HAVE SO MUCH!

thank you for asking about it, it’s killing me being preoccupied with it and planning it and yet so little has been published that not as many folks are excited about it so the interaction is meager…I’m not whining, or if I am I’m sorry for doing and will shut my trap. I’m just terribly excited for this one and can’t wait to be at a place where we can all scream about it more freely together.

-Which is up to me to get the content out for it. And hopefully that will be soon. Very soon.

As I see it I have one more establishing part of the fic to write, to get them into the camp, and then from then on it’ll be a prompt based thing, hopefully. Which means, regarding who got away and who didn’t … you can ask for that then. 😈

Aaaand here’s a tiny sliver of the draft from Part 2 of Those Who Can:

“All right,” Ida’s voice carried as well as it ever had, commanding immediate quiet and attention, “those in the 420th, 418th, yeah -on me. Gather ‘round. That’s it, come on. Alright, well, we made it, well done. Truly, well done to all of you. Now I know you well enough to not accuse any of you of being idiots, just because we made it to where we wanted to go doesn’t mean any of what’s ahead is going to be easy. Be wary, don’t let your guard down, you don’t know plenty of these men and they don’t know you, I’m sure there are measures in place for spying already. Be sensible. I am certain we can rely on the kindness of those in the hundredth, but even then keep in mind, if you are cold, they are too, if you're hungry, you best believe they are hungrier, the last thing we need is a crisis of chivalry in here. Rely on them, except their help, but don’t ever take from them. Understood? And one more thing, since the human spirit is irrepressible I feel it’s warranted to make one more housekeeping note. None, and I do mean none, no inner relations at all are allowed. I don’t care how cold you are, how sweet he’s been, or how much you’ve missed him. The Red Cross aren’t sending rubbers. You’re officers, act like it. Do you want a one-way ticket to a death camp or a bullet to the head? Get pregnant. Simple as that. You think the Jerries think poorly of you now for being female? Try being a matron. The point is to blend in as much as possible, keep that in mind. Whatever you do, keep that in mind. Understood?”

[lvjyronline]

I don't know if you meant to send this on anon or not, but it wasn't on anon - So I figured I would go ahead and screen shot it instead of posting it with a link to your blog!

Anyway -

I don't necesarily think you're spouting bull, it could be an option that that's what happened, but I personally don't think that's exactly what happened. While mass hysteria is an occurance and could happen in a situation like this - Especially with big creators who can say anything - I don't think that's the case here.

I think that some of these things have been taken out of context - For example, the Billzo situation, to my knowledge, came partly from a point where Bill had handcuffed Wilbur and was joking(?) about throwing out the keys - Or something along those lines, getting the keys out of his reach etc, I'm not too clear on the exact details - Which ended up with Wilbur yelling at him - Which is a fair response to being told the keys to unlock the things that are binding you are going to be thrown from you.

I also think that things may have been taken out of context from their persepctives when Shelby came out with the alligations - Let me explain what I mean by that, because I know that statement alone is kind of confusing.

When a person says someone did something terrible to them, with or without proof, it may make the accused friends, or people who have been around them, look at what happened in the past and reconsider it. That's pretty normal - But I think with such big alligations of abuse it could skew the ideas or feelings that someone had about something.

Since these alligations are so heavy, it could've very well made them look at something that wasn't at all with malicious intent and make them believe that, because Shelby said he did all these things to her and he was doing them on purpose and to hurt her, that he was also doing similar things to them with the intent to hurt them, when in reality it wasn't like that at all.

It's less hysteria and more thoughts by proxy - If that phrasing makes sense. I think it's kind of similar to what you originally thought, but I wouldn't really describe that as hysteria?

I just think it's more of reconsidering things that happened to them with someone elses persepctive in mind and coming to a conclusion because she said it was abuse.

I have no idea if any of this is actually comprehensible, I'm gonna be honest - But I hope it is?? I hope I'm making sense?? I make sense in my own brain but that doesn't mean it makes sense to anyone else lol so I can try to explain better if need be.

What really sends the idea that it didn't happen to the curb is the fact that some people closer to Wilbur said they didn't see it happen - Hell, no one has actually confirmed they saw it happen.

Specifially noting how Jack Manifold literally said he never saw it happen, which brings up suspect considering during that road trip video (meat mountain) they were all together and that would line up with when Shelby and Wilbur were in a relationship - So assumibly the biting would have been going on then and he would've seen it.

I'm sorry this turned into a mini-essay-rant type thing- I didn't mean it to, I'm just trying to get out my thoughts. I know it's kinda long lol

But generally, I think that idea is probably a degree of what happened, I just wouldn't consider that mass hysteria. I know that peoples perceptions of experiances can be changed in specific contexts, and I do think that's what happened to a degree. I'm gonna go ahead and end this so I don't keep repeating myself, haha

Anyway, have a great day/night, and remember to stay safe out there right now, especially since ILGWIS just came out which means more people will be bickering.

(If you need me to explain any of this more/better just ask, I know sometimes when I ramble things off they only make sense to me, so I won't take any offence to my rambling not being fully understood.)

[davekat-sucks]

Im not a poc, or at least if im mixed im white passing so maybe i dont get an opinion on this

But i dont get why people want so badly the trolls who would be out to be racist charactictures of poc, to be poc? Like just because they are stereotypes and shit, it comes off like theyve never interacted with actual poc in their life?

For every "poc druggie" gamzee type ive met, ive met three more who were white or white passing.

Same for like eridan, feferi, meenah, etc. Etc. They all remind me of white people ive met irl over any poc i met. Ive met a lot of meenahs, eridans, feferis, during my life- all white. Most of the time black people ive met or poc on general just break all those molds, while white people just fill the niche? If that make sense? Like theyre stereotypes for a reason, more often than not theyre not accurate, their slander or even just projection.

Hell feferi comes across as one of those white girl who have white girl savoir complexes but still fuck up and fail and secretly hate all the responsibility theyve put on themselves trying to be "perfect ally".

Also Hs^2 attempt to retcon the symbolic black silhouette used for older/adult trolls to make that come across as mythologically mysterious and stuff that were being accused of being black face back in the day that are now just no actually trolls skin just gets darker with age, as if thats not arguably worse? Its a retcon to "unproblematic-ify" the problems of HS proper, but in its attempt to do so.. is worse somehow???

Like as a hole, the fandoms attempt to retcon and fix fhe racism...feels like its just being actually racist. Like go ahead and read into and pick apart Hussi's writing decesions all you want, but like. Even in well meaning jest, i feel like they fail, so terribly hard.

Homestuck trolls are trolls. Not humans. Yes part of the joke is their culture largely is earth but trollified. But i think in their rightousness to do better then the yeah, admittedly shitty aged comic we all love, theyve done it and themselves dirty. Theyve took the joke too far, and i dont think they are even in on the joke at all.

Adult trolls being only shadow black silhouettes were suppose to mirror the human Guardians as they are all white. Part of it was for the mysterious theme, as said. But likely have became an actual thing because of The Condesce being the only living adult troll at the time, who still appeared as a black silhouette even up to her death. She could have possibly stayed that way as a familiarity of kids vs adults and how she is intimidating and the final boss, but it's a thing now that trolls having darker skin as they age is canon. Hey, the fandom wants dark skin on trolls so they can project POC on it. They got their wish. I think when people try to make trolls or humans as 'accurate' as possible for being POC, it soon becomes more of a stereotype than actual diversity and representation. They deny about it and some praise that the over-exaggeration of traits is good representation. The characters become more like someone's OC than the actual characters they were from. Drawing on-model is a sin in the Western fandom. Some also don't realize some implications considering what happens to certain characters to a series. Like if someone headcanons that Eridan was trans, people forget that he was killed by Kanaya. Does that mean Kanaya was in the right for killing a trans person then? What about Vriska being black and Aradia as Asian? Her killing an Asian person is now okay? It's why we got shit like people being upset that Gamzee and Meenah are supposedly black stereotypes.

It's sad that nobody can accept fantasy or sci-creatures as they are. It's why we got shot like orcs in DND now being GOOD people when they were just monsters. Everything has to be connected or related to human standards. They can never have their own customs, cultures, or beliefs.

[waltwhitmansbeard]

turned my water into wine #50

surprise, bitch, bet you thought you'd seen the last of me. this one was prompted by duchesscharliejames on ao3. see my masterpost.

There aren't a great many things that Grog takes seriously. Ale. Bedding women. His axe, which he sharpens with reverence every night before bed. His position within the Royal Guard, even though technically there are no more royals to guard. He's content to keep an eye on the young once-royals when they gallivant about, trusts that his size and his scowl will keep any and all threats away from his charges.

But what Grog sometimes fails to account for is how wily young children can be. Grog is fast, but not as fast as them, and it's easier to keep threats from them than it is to keep them from threatening themselves. Scanlan has accused Grog on more than one occasion of having a death wish—yes, his first thought upon being confronted by an owlbear was to wrestle it, is that so insane?—but his impulsivity could never compare to the way Vax and Keyleth's children throw themselves head-first into danger. How many times has Grog retrieved them from a tree they could climb up but not down, or snatched them back just before they darted right beneath a horse's hooves? Grog takes keeping these young ones alive very seriously, because it is, quite frankly, very difficult.

When Vilya and her visiting cousin, Vesper, wish to go play bandits in the woods, Grog is more than happy to join, mostly because he, too, loves playing bandits. The forest at the edge of Zephrah is bare this time of year, most of the leaves already littering the floor, which the girls crunch happily as they dash between trees. Grog plods along, doing his best to keep both excitable girls in his view at all times.

Vesper runs up to him and tugs on his trouser leg. "Grog, will you be a scary monster?"

Grog would love to be a scary monster. He fixes his face into a terrible grimace and roars. The girls shriek with delight and take off, and Grog gives chase. Vesper was closer, so he goes after her first, taking long, slow strides after her as she howls. He lets her get away from him for a minute or two before swooping in and catching her, lifting her high into the air as she wriggles and squeals and laughs.

Putting on his best monster voice, deep and silly, Grog says loudly, "Mmm, one little girl to eat, but I think TWO would be even better!"

Just as he turns to head after Vilya, he hears a high-pitched, terrified scream, and Grog knows in his bones that it is not the excited scream Vesper gave while being chased. He tears off at once, trying to remember the direction in which he saw Vilya run. Vesper is tucked under one arm like a ball. "Grog, was that Vilya?"

She sounds scared, and Grog doesn't know what to tell her, because he's scared, too. "I think so." His words are punctuated by a growl, low and ominous. It's coming from their left, so Grog turns and moves in that direction. Ahead, he can see her, little Vilya, back up against a tree, but she's not moving, save for the tremble Grog can see even from here.

He stops, turns, and sets Vesper high up in the branches of a tree. "Stay here," he commands, keeping his voice low. "Do not make a sound, and do not climb down on your own." Vesper nods, eyes wide with terror.

Grog's instinct is to creep forward, but the leaf litter will be too loud under foot to allow for stealth. Instead, he bounds in Vilya's direction, throwing himself, snarling and huge, between her and what he now sees to be a mountain lion ready to pounce. He roars, not the playful roar from before, but a powerful, booming, furious roar. The mountain lion ducks even closer to the ground, and so Grog takes a large, threatening step forward. Clearly decided that the delicious child would not be worth the risk, the big cat slinks off, disappearing between the trees.

Before he can turn around, Grog feels something slam into the back of his leg as tiny arms wrap around him. Vilya is shaking so much Grog's teeth chatter. He spins as best he can and crouches down in front of her. "Are you alright, Vily?"

Vilya lets go of his leg to throw her arms around his neck, and he catches her easily. "That was really scary."

Grog hugs her tight. "Yeah, it was. I haven't been that scared in a long time."

Vilya looks up at him, confused. "But you weren't scared. You were brave."

"Well, those two things can happen at the same time, Vily. I was brave in front of the mountain lion, because it's my job to keep you safe. But before that? I was very scared that something bad was going to happen to you."

"Oh." She chews her lip thoughtfully. "I'm glad you were scared, then, because it meant you could be brave, and I really needed you to be brave."

Grog hugs her again. "I'll always be brave for you, Vily, don't you worry. But hey." He tweaks her nose with his massive finger. "You were pretty brave, too."

Her eyes go wide. "I was?"

"You stared down a mountain lion. That's some hero stuff if I've ever saw it." She giggles, and he lifts her up to sit on one of his shoulders, and it's a short walk back to the tree where he left Vesper.

"VIL!" She scrambles onto Grog's other shoulder when he approaches and throws her arms around her cousin over his head. "I was really scared!"

"Me too," Vilya replies, "but I was also brave."

As Grog sets off back toward the cottage on the edge of the castle grounds, Vilya begins to tell Vesper all about her mountain lion encounter. Vesper listens in rapt attention, waiting for the end to say, "Whoa. You have got to tell everyone that story when we get home."

True fear strikes Grog right in the heart—he does not want to lose this job. "Uh, maybe we keep this adventure to ourselves, alright, girls?"

[iris-sistibly]

“Baek Hyun-woo,

In the years that we have been together, I realized that you and I have always been destined to be together. Though we might not have been aware until now–the first time we met when we were kids, that was luck. I was lucky because you were there to save me from drowning. The second time, we were teenagers, you placed a band aid on my wounded knee, that was a coincidence. The third time was when you helped me fix the photocopier at the office, that was fate. I think even without knowing that we have already crossed paths when we were younger, deep inside, a part of me has always known that you were the one.

Although our relationship may be far from a fairytale, I have always had you. You are my light in the dark, my comfort in my most vulnerable times, my calm in the midst of a storm, my home when I am lost and have nowhere to go, and my safety in the most fearsome moments. When I found out that I was sick and dying, I prayed so hard and searched far and wide for a miracle, but I realized that I do not need to do that anymore, because the fact that you are still here with me, and the fact that I am spending my life with you is in itself a miracle. The love that you have given me all these years has healed me in so many ways, and for that I am grateful to you. I am grateful for you. 

I can’t promise to be a perfect wife, but when things get hard I will be with you in every way possible–to fix whatever is broken, to heal the pain, to hold your hand until I couldn’t anymore, to always choose you, to always love you. The years will pass and our hairs will turn gray and our skin wrinkly, but in my eyes you will always be the most handsome man, the smart and sexy lawyer with his sleeves rolled up and buttoned down shirt, the cutest drunk husband in the world, the most loving father to our little Soo-bin, and best lifetime partner I could ever ask for. 

I love you with all my heart, and I will always carry that love even in the afterlife.”

 ****

Spring is all about new beginnings, renewal, and rebirth. Plants start to sprout, flowers start blooming, and the chilling breeze becomes warmer again. As soon as the cold and gloomy winter ends, like a page in a journal that has been completely filled with words that expresses one’s feelings, and the events that happened that day, it was time to flip the page and start with a clean slate. 

May 2nd

To others, it was a seemingly normal day–a day to rush to work, run some errands or just whatever people were planning to do that day. It was about lunchtime, Baek Hyun-woo was just about to head out. He hasn’t seen Hae-in since heading to their respective departments this morning but he was already missing her terribly. He knew she was going to be very busy today, it didn’t help that Secretary Na couldn’t make it to work due to her husband being hospitalized. Coincidentally, his own secretary called in sick that day so someone else had to fill in his role while he recovers. 

“Will you be joining us for lunch Mr. Baek?” Mrs. Oh, his secretary for the meantime asked.

He was about to answer when his phone rang, his eyes lit up when he saw the name of the caller flashed on screen, Hong Hae-in . He couldn’t help but smile, the mere sight of it–even just hearing her name makes his heart jump. “You go ahead, I’ll be taking Ms. Hong out for lunch,” he answered. Mrs. Oh nodded and went ahead. 

Since they started dating (way before their first wedding), Hyun-woo and Hae-in have been the most interesting subject in a lot of rumors and gossip amongst the employees of the company. Some of it isn't true, a lot of it is an exaggeration of the truth. The internet wasn’t any better, nasty comments have been made about them, crazy theories, even accusations that they were lying about the divorce and Hae-in’s illness. Some of them would go as far as to accuse Hyun-woo of being a gold digger. Regardless, they were adamant at not publicly disclosing too much of their personal lives, not even the press. Sure they’d throw some crumbs occasionally, like the time they confirmed that they were together again during the press conference on the day the family returned to the company, but that was it. Most of the time, they keep it professional. Anything that has nothing to do with Queens are off limits. People can assume all they want, but they don’t owe them an explanation. Only those who are close to them know the truth and that is more than enough. 

Most of all, he and Hae-in are what matters.

As soon as Mrs. Oh left, Hyun-woo answered Hae-in’s call. 

“Hey I was just about to call to invite you for lunch,” said he. 

“Sure! Let’s do that, meet me at the rooftop.” 

“What? What do you mean–” 

“See you!”

The phone call ended, leaving Hyun-woo perplexed. Nevertheless, he went there. After being reinstated as the Director of the Legal Team, Baek Hyun-woo has earned a newfound respect from the employees, especially those who have been working with him for years. They kept praising him for doing an amazing job at proving Ms. Moh and the late Mr. Yoon Eun-seong’s schemes and ultimately saving the company. They regarded him as “Queen’s Knight-in-Shining Armor,” but for him he simply did what he had to because he also had grown to love the company and treated it as his second home. It is Hong Man-dae’s legacy, and he knows how important it is to Hae-in and her family… their family. Hyun-woo smiled at the thought, after years of walking on eggshells around his in-laws, he finally felt that warm sensation of belongingness he had always hoped for. That same familial bond he has with his side of the family. 

The warm spring breeze touched Hyun-woo’s skin as soon as he reached the rooftop, and there she was in her white, bow-tied silk blouse underneath a pastel pink tweed jacket and skirt. The pearl necklace around her neck made her look more sophisticated; she wore her hair down as always and even with light makeup, she looked so beautiful. Instantly, Hyun-woo’s heart started beating rapidly, Hong Hae-in has always exuded that confident, classy woman with a hint of sas and charisma. A lot of people say that she is intimidating, Hyun-woo disagrees. She is assertive, and straightforward, but she also has a softer side–the one that is kind and selfless, the type of person who would rather take all the pain than see her loved ones suffer, a woman who would bravely face any adversity and come out stronger than ever. 

That for Hyun-woo is what makes her the most beautiful.

“You’re finally here,” said Hae-in, her voice shook the man out of his reverie, nevertheless his smile never wore off.

“And why of all places in Seoul did you suddenly want to have lunch on the very top of Queens’ building?”  

Hae-in shrugged, “Well…for one the view from the top is nice,” she walked towards him at a slow pace. She is definitely a head turner, the way her hair bounced, and the way she smiled as she moved towards him was like watching a drama scene in slow motion. For a moment, Hyun-woo was out of breath.

“Plus it’s quiet and…” she was getting closer and closer, her voice sounding more sensuous, in her eyes was a hint of playfulness , “There’s only two of us here…” when she finally stopped, their distance was barely an inch. Baek Hyun-woo could hear his own heart beating loudly out of his chest, he knew she was teasing him and it was working–it always has. “...so we could have some privacy together, wouldn’t you want that?” 

God! Hyun-woo has been desperately fighting the urge to not crush his lips onto hers, and he’d do that–gladly–but not just yet. Who says Hae-in is the only one who knows how to tease? Hyun-woo wrapped his arm around Hae-in’s waist and pulled her, their bodies seemingly glued to one another, Hae-in’s hand on his chest, her eyes locked on his, their stares becoming more intense by the second. Suddenly, the temperature seemed to rise. Hyun-woo smirked as Hae-in’s cheeks turned red, her expression was a mix of surprise and nervousness, the former decided to take it a little further. He leaned towards her and gave her a peck on the lips, “Hong Hae-in, the last time we were in this position, we had Soo-bin…” His voice sounded insanely seductive, “By any chance…” he continued planting small kisses on her cheek, down to her jaw, “Is this your way of telling me that you want another baby?”

He could hear Hae-in gasping for air as he trailed down her neck. He has always loved her scent, but today was different. He couldn’t tell if she was wearing a different perfume or it was just him , but she smells so… intoxicating . It was driving him insane, making him slowly lose every ounce of self-control he has, his kisses becoming more lustful, “Oh…” a soft moan escaped from her mouth, which made him even more aroused. Heavens, if this doesn’t stop now…

“Wait!” Hae-in pushed him abruptly. Her face was flushed all over with little beads of sweat trickling down her face and neck, she was catching her breath like she had just finished a marathon. He felt slightly disappointed but he was never the one who would force Hae-in to do things she doesn’t like or isn’t comfortable with. Besides, they are still within the office premises, never in a million years would they want to be caught by someone else doing other business aside from business.

“Hey! Are you crazy?! There’s no way in hell that I’m gonna conceive at the top of Queens building you know!”

Hyun-woo blinked like a dumb idiot, “So…are you suggesting we go back to Germany and try for another baby?”

Hae-in lightly hit his shoulder, “Seriously? I still don’t know how you got to SNU.”

“Why? Our daughter was made there,” he said matter-of-factly.

“I was the one who got pregnant so I don’t need to be reminded,” she replied almost immediately. Her face became serious afterwards, “Hyun-woo, remember when you proposed for the third time? And I said that I’ll marry you again but I’m gonna be needing some time?”

Hyun-woo nodded.

“Well the truth is…the reason why we’re here is because…I want to tell you that I'm ready,” Hae-in took a deep breath, she never crumbles under pressure but today, she seemed genuinely nervous, “You are my husband, you have always been even when we divorced, nothing changed. You helped me heal my past wounds and made my broken self whole again. I became the best version of myself because of you, and now there is nothing I want more than to give my best–as best as you do to build us a loving home. For you and me, but most especially our daughter,” she held out her hand, “But first, let’s make us official again…shall we?”

Hyun-woo was briefly at a loss for words. Hae-in can be candid at times but this was one of the moments where she surprised him–in the greatest way possible. Tears started forming in his eyes, he was grinning from ear to ear as he held her hand. “Yes,” he answered. He then pulled her back once again and kissed her passionately. He couldn't count how many times they’ve kissed over the years, but each time he felt butterflies in his stomach. His friend, Kim Yang-gi once asked whatever witchcraft Hae-in has been using that makes Hyun-woo gush and coo over her like a cute little teenager having a huge crush on a popular girl. Hyun-woo just shook his head and chuckled, “It’s not witchcraft, it’s love,” he corrected. Yang-gi just rolled his eyes and gulped his bottle of soju. 

“I love you,” whispered Hyun-woo when their lips parted.

“I love you too, but I couldn't wait any longer for the wedding.” 

Hyun-woo was about to ask what she meant but was interrupted by the sound of a helicopter approaching. When he looked up, he recognized it instantly, it belonged to the Hong family. Hyun-woo shot Hae-in a quizzical look but the latter just smiled and winked at him, both of them watched as it slowly descended, and landed on the helipad. 

“Hae-in, what exactly is happening right now?” Hyun-woo was becoming more confused than ever.

“Baek Hyun-woo, do you trust me?” 

“Of course.” 

“Then let’s get married, now .”

“What?! N-Now?” 

Hae-in nodded. 

“B-But W-What about our families? Our baby?” 

“Oh don’t worry, they’re waiting for us.” 

Hae-in pulled him and together ran towards the helicopter. As to how in the world they’re gonna get married on that very day Hyun-woo had zero idea, but whatever happens starting today onwards, he will not hesitate to embrace it–the good, the bad, the happiest and the saddest. There is no such thing as a perfect marriage, at times it can be difficult and complicated. But as long as they have each other, then that’s all they ever need. 

Until Forever Ch. 1: No way without you now

By: Iris

Click here for more chapters :)

A/N:

Hello! I have decided to change the title based on the song inspiration or song that I have been listening to while I was writing. For this chapter, it's The Reasons of my Smiles by: BSS ☺️

This part is inspired by an actor from my country who surprised her partner with the wedding of her dreams (they have been together years prior and share 2 kids). I thought it would be cute, but I live for the role reversals, hence Hae-in is going to surprise her hubby.

Soo-bin was supposed to exist in the later parts, but I ended up doing otherwise because it just clicked to me.

Writing a scene where it requires sexual tension is not really my strong point but...I tried.

[genshin-side-piece]

Eagle Eye

Warnings: None Streamer AU - Survival Type Game, based on Escape from Tarkov but not Escape from Tarkov

I'm sorry for this. It possessed my brain and would not let me go until I wrote it.

You sniped him. 

You sniped him. It was all Ayato could do to hold his composure as both your names scrolled across the kill feed, along with the distance of said shot. A 263m snipe. His jaw dropped slightly. There was just no way. He had been bunkered down, well hidden from view. It was impossible to think that you had seen him from that distance, let alone hit the shot. You had to be cheating, there was no other way. 

“Calm down everyone.” Ayato was quick to laugh the sting of defeat off in the hope that it would ease the blur of accusations of stream snipping that were flying through his chat. It didn’t. Instead, the messages only got faster. “It was merely a lucky shot.” Or so he wanted them to believe. “Still, I’d like to check something. Thoma-” Ayato clicked out of the game he was playing and opened a browser window. “Did you happen to grab the name?” His ever diligent mod was one step ahead of him. A link quickly appeared in Ayato’s private discord, along with a clip of the kill for posterity. Ayato ignored the clip, not wanting to acknowledge Thoma’s odd sense of humor. Instead, he chose to click on the link, pulling up your stream. 

You were a smaller streamer, with a handful of viewers. He wasn’t terribly surprised. As your stream loaded, he expected bragging or screaming or even celebrating. That was usually the case with stream snipers. They would hunt him down, get their clip and then tag him on every social platform in existence, just to get their supposed clout. It was the cost of being one of the bigger streamers, or so he had been told. But once the stream loaded, there was none of that. You were calm, distracted even as you continued to rummage around for loot. The chat wasn’t filled with pats on the back or being spammed with clips. In fact, your chat was fairly silent. There was only one congratulations on the shot and that had come from your Mod. It hadn’t even been clipped for posterity. Ayato was confused. “Hm.”

He tilted his head, while furrowing his brow. Did you not know who he was? 

“Well chat-” You smiled, which oddly enough caused Ayato to smile. The warmth in your expression helped to ease some of the sting from earlier. Ayato allowed himself a moment to bask in it, much in the way one would bask in the sun. He liked the feeling it gave him. He liked the feeling you gave him. There was something about you that helped put his mind at ease, despite this being his first time seeing you.“I suppose we should start heading for the extract point.” You pulled up the menu to check how much time you had left in your raid. “I think we’ll have just enough time to swing by our favorite spot before we head out.” Ayato raised an eyebrow to that. You weren’t going to claim your prize? You were just going to leave it, leave him there? The sting from earlier returned. As much as he loathed stream snipers, he loathed your disinterest in claiming his in game tags for yourself even more. You had practically shot him from across the map. Even if you didn’t recognize him, surely you wanted the bragging rights for the elimination? 

Then as if someone had possessed his body, Ayato typed it; What about the Yashiro Rascal elim? He visibly flinched when realized what he’d done. Your chat wasn’t nearly as active as his. His message lingered on the screen. Sitting comfortably in the middle of the window, highlighted as a first time chatter for all the world to see. Ayato couldn’t help the blush that crept its way across his cheeks.

Your eyes flew over to the new message, while your smile grew wider. “Hey there, welcome in!” There was a brief moment where your eyes met on the screen and a small wave. “Thanks for joining-” You then went into what he guessed was your usual spiel of introducing yourself to him. Not that he heard any of it, he was too entranced with watching your lips move. Your voice was amazingly pleasant. It had a calming effect that seemed to wash away any of his previous worries, at least until his in game username passed your lips. The sound of you saying the name Yashiro Rascal snapped him right back to reality. “I don’t really collect tags or anything.” You paused long enough to take a shallow breath. “I’m not sure I’ll even have time to find them. I have my favorite loot spot I like to go to. Is Yashiro Rascal someone important or something? You’ll have to forgive me-” Your smile turned bashful. “I’m still new to this game. I don’t really know any of the big name players yet.” Ayato’s eyes grew wide in surprise while his long forgotten chat blazed with shocked comments as they all had the same revelation he had just had. You really didn’t know. The fact that you had just taken out one of the biggest streamers in the game had gone completely over your head. You thought you just hit the shot of your life on someone you assumed was just another casual player. 

Ayato couldn’t stop himself, he didn’t even try to. He laughed. He honest to archon laughed. It was refreshing really. Most of his streams were filled with endless hours of sweating while he was being hunted by every clout chaser on the platform. He couldn’t even show his screen on entry for the fear of being attacked before he ever had the chance to loot. Sometimes that didn’t even work. Most of his streams had begun to feel tedious and uninteresting. He almost hated doing them. If the game didn’t do the viewership numbers it did, he would have abandoned it ages ago. Before he met you, he still might have. Now he wasn’t so sure. You were still strangers to each other, but it had only taken a minute with you to remember that games could be fun, that they should be fun. Ayato began to wonder just how fun they could be with you.

“You know chat-” Ayato glanced back at the camera, giving it one of his signature smiles. “I think I’d like to try something new.” He took a sip of his boba as he watched his chat emphatically agree. “Duos seems like a fun idea. They seem rather nice, do you think this person would like to join me?” Could you be persuaded to join him was more like it. Ayato had no idea if you played with randoms or viewers and sadly, he was both. Even if he was a big name, it was presumptuous of him to think you would want to team up. Maybe you enjoyed playing on your own. It was rude of him to just barge in on your fun, simply because you’d done the unthinkable. 

Slowly, he saw a few familiar names trickle into your chat. Much to his horror, they launched right into insisting you team with him. It caught you off guard. He could clearly see the confusion on your face. “Wait… who?” Your eyes came up to the camera. “Are they-” There was a flicker of recognition in your eyes. “Are you watching me right now?” Ayato visibly cringed. He knew the intentions were honorable. He knew the people who had found you meant well, but he loathed that they felt entitled to interfere. He’d merely suggested that you game together. As far as you were aware, he was just a new viewer. He hadn’t even asked you to play yet. It was entirely unnecessary to bully you into doing something that you didn’t even know about. “Calm down everyone.” Ayato’s smile faded into a more stern look. “Let’s not run them off before I’ve even had a chance to ask them. Leave them be.” Your chat went nearly silent. There was the odd comment, but the pressure was mostly gone. It gave Ayato the opening he needed to pop the proverbial question. 

Yes, my apologies. Would you like to team up? I’m an experienced player. I can give you some pointers if you wish.

Your surprise was all too apparent. It was cute when you stumbled over your words, especially as more of his chat began to find their way to your stream, filling your chat box with messages and follows, eventually drowning his messages with their own. It was mildly frustrating, because he had liked having all of your attention, but he couldn’t blame his viewers. He’d spent the last  ten or so minutes just watching you. They were bound to get curious and find their way over to you eventually. That didn’t mean they had the right to take you away from him.

“Oh wow, so many new people! Are they with you too?” You furrowed your brow slightly. “Uh wait-“ You sucked in a portion of your lip, pinching it between your teeth as you began scanning what he guessed was your chat. Ayato nearly keened at the site. You were getting more adorable by the second. He almost couldn’t stand it. Much to his regret, he wasn’t good at hiding it either. More than one person had said something about him being smitten and before too long it picked up steam in both chats. “Where did you go?” Ayato was quick to respond.

I’m right here. My apologies, they’re from my chat. Please ignore them if you wish. We’ve been watching you since you sent me back to the lobby and they all decided to come say hello.

You smiled again, satisfied that you had found him. It made him happy that he made you smile. He hoped he could do it as many times as possible before the night was over. “It’s alright.” You paused, clearly pondering his question. “I generally run solos but-” Your smile grew larger. “I don’t mind trying duos.” The celebration in both chats made Ayato chuckle. He had to admit it was a relief not to get publicly rejected in front of so many people. “How do I contact you? Can I just DM you through the platform or is there a better way?” Ayato found himself one step ahead of you. He was already in the process of getting everything ready when you asked.

Allow me to reach out to you. I keep my DMs closed. Just respond back with your info once you get my message.

Within seconds he had his information over to you. It was actually embarrassing how quickly he sent it, but he hadn’t been this eager to co-op with someone in a very long time. The thought of playing a game or two with you seemed far more enticing than the idea of running solos for the rest of the afternoon. You promptly responded, your info being passed to Thoma before either of you could blink. “Thoma, can you set up a chat between the two of us?” He was already on it. Ayato hadn’t finished asking when the convo with the three of you popped up on his private discord server. “Alright chat, let’s all try to behave, shall we? We don’t want to give them the wrong impression.”

Is that advice for chat or you? You’ve done nothing but smile at them since you joined their channel. You haven’t been this infatuated since Tomoki introduced his seasonal boba flavors. Ayato ignored Thoma’s comment, merely rolling his eyes as he changed chat servers and began the call between himself and you. He hated that he was acting so obvious, but it was difficult for him to help. His curiosity had been peaked by you. He wasn’t able to ignore it for the sake of staying aloof.

He started the call, watching you through the screen as he waited for you to answer. There was some hesitancy on your part. Ayato could see it as you sat on the other end, letting it ring. You were nervous. Having strangers join you was always a gamble. They could be perfectly fine or they could be perfectly wretched. It was hard to know. Even Ayato had to admit to the jitters he felt in his own stomach as he waited on you to click the button. He never did this. His brand was everything. Endorsements, sponsorships, years of hard work all depended on him being careful. One wrong move, one wrong word and it would be all over for him. That’s why he generally stuck to a very tight knit group of friends that he knew were safe. They understood what his reputation meant to him and they were happy to oblige him when it came to keeping his public image safe. Offering to play games with a complete stranger was unlike him. Basing it off a feeling was even more unlike him, but for whatever reason, it didn’t deter him. It only urged his desire for you to answer the call on.

Ayato focused his eyes back to your stream, carefully watching you. It was apparent you were searching for something and by your reaction, he only had one guess when you found it. You were looking for him. Ayato didn’t try to hide his smirk, nor did he bother to stop himself from giving you a little wink as you stared. After all, turn about was fair play. Being the equitable man that he is, Ayato was more than happy to give you a show. Your reaction to it was priceless. 

You buried your face in your hands, a deep blush spread across your cheeks, causing him to chuckle. You poor thing. 

I thought you said you were going to behave. I know rascal is in your name, but can’t you hold it in until you say hi to them? If they get any redder, they’ll turn into a tomato. Another small chuckle slipped past Ayato’s lips at Thoma’s comment. Sass me again and you’ll find out how much of a rascal I can be next time I see you.

“Hello?” Ayato’s eyes quickly jumped back to the call, finding that at long last you had answered him. He breathed a silent sigh of relief that for the moment, the worst was over. That was one hurdle down. Hopefully there wouldn’t be too many more to go. “So sorry” His relief gave way to a soft smile. “I never do this. It dawned on me that maybe I should verify you aren’t a creep before I answer.” Ayato nodded, noting the slight apprehension in your voice. “It’s alright, I understand. I’m the same way. Though I suppose I had the upper hand when it came to research.” He heard you let out a small laugh. “Yea. You’ve uh-” There was another awkward laugh as he watched you turn away from the camera in a vain attempt to hide how crimson your cheeks were. “You’re him.” You rolled your lips, flinching at the vagueness of that comment. “You’re the Yashiro Rascal guy-” There was a heavy pause before you decided to finish that statement. “Aren’t you?” There was a hesitancy in your voice that made Ayato a little nervous. For a second, he swore you almost sounded a little scared. But then again, who could blame you? The game itself had a reputation for toxic trolls. You snipe a bigger streamer and suddenly they’re in your chat, inviting you to game with them? The action, while friendly on his part, had to feel a little suspicious to you. Especially when embarrassing content creators on social was all the rage. “Listen about the shot- I 

“Don’t worry about the shot. I’m not mad about it.” He added a little lilt to his voice to help put you at ease. “I’m actually extremely impressed by it.” That earned him a small smile. You nodded, letting some of the tension in your body ease. “I should actually apologize in advance to you. It’s been awhile since I’ve played duos and I have little doubt people will come for us. It might make for a rough afternoon.” “That’s alright. Duos just means that I watch your back and you watch mine, right?” That’s exactly what it meant. Ayato couldn’t be more delighted to hear it. “There’s just one thing.” You paused, taking a deep breath. “What should I call you?” Ah yes. That. “I mean it’s cool if you call by name or whatever, but I’m not sure what to use for you. Do you prefer your gamer tag or your streamer name or something else?” He thought about it for a moment, deciding he didn’t like any of those options. 

Using his online persona implied to him that this would be a one and done. Ayato didn’t want that. He didn’t want you to vanish from his life the second you were done.  It was silly to think that he was reacting this way after such a short interaction, but he couldn’t help it. He didn’t collect friends like he did boba cups. His fame made good people to have in his life hard to find. Most of the time he hung around his sister or Thoma or possibly Itto, when Ayato could find him. Having someone else he could talk to, having you to talk to, even if it wasn’t all the time, felt right. “Um, are you still there?”

“Let’s make this simple, just call me Ayato.”

[subwaytostardew]

I heard a loooot about the famed "saloon cutscene" where you meet all your lovers that didn't want to share you... woooould Ingo & Emmet be a part of that if the conditions are met??

We didn't insert them into the event themselves for better compatibility with other mods that change it, also they just wouldn't be there. We did, however, write the breakup dialogue for it! It was like... the third ever dialogue lines we tackled outside of gift tastes (right behind flower dance rejection and introduction... what a choice).

We wanted to avoid any mentions or acknowledgement of two-timing because realistically, they would get upset and cut you off forever. I can't make them break up and lock their friendship increases away outside of that event... If I could, Emmet would have done that over every slightest thing because I love being dramatic with his friendship decreases. The twins don't like sharing. Not even with each other. This is the only time they mention the farmer dating both of them... Not quite "canon", but it's there.

As for how it fits in-game: It's a small town and they'd eventually pick up on the local scandal. The hard part was coming up with how they'd give you a second chance after that ^^; Anyways, here are the lines! (Under the read-more!)

▷ Station Steward Thylak

💔 Group 10-Heart Breakup Dialogue 💔

"dumped" - Right after seeing the group 10-heart event. Cold shoulder time! What's wrong with you?

"secondChance" - End of the cold shoulder period. Back on track as a two-car train. You're so lucky they're obsessed with you.

@ - Farmer's name

◇──◆──◇──◆

▲ Ingo ▲

"dumped":

"@… When were you going to inform me of your sudden change of tracks? Were you going to tell me at all? I had to find out from the other townsfolk. However, at first I doubted their words- thinking that it was silly of them to accuse you of such a thing- but to hear it again- from Emmet… You could have informed me of any concerns you had but instead you decided to switch the tracks and completely derail the two car train we had. Behind my back no less- behind my own brother's back!

I-I don’t even know what to say… Is there anything I can say? I suppose that it was rather foolish of me to believe in the ideal where I could be your one and only, on the tracks that we have aligned for ourselves….

@… If any of the moments we shared mean anything to you, then let me request this last thing from you- and I do hope you take it into consideration. If you are to align and couple with someone else, then please, do not repeat the same tracks. Do not lead them to a station where they will feel hurt, angry and confused like you made me. I only want what's best for you. Now please… Leave me alone… Leave Emmet alone. I-I do not feel like I can talk anymore today… [Ingo does not make eye contact with you. He seems to be overwhelmed about your presence as he does not utter another word.]"

"secondChance":

"@… I do not understand why you decided to switch tracks so suddenly like you did. And to be honest at this moment- I still do not fully understand. I can only hope that you have reflected on what happened… that you can learn better from it, as you are wanting to realign your tracks with me.

I-I am ashamed to admit that- despite my brother’s opinion on what had happened- and how overwhelmed you had made me feel- I have missed you terribly. I have missed and longed for the conversations and time we would share between our busy schedules. I hope that we have both learned something from this experience @. If you are sincere about your apology, then… I will align with you on these tracks once more, as your lover.

But if you were to cross that particular railway again- then- I'm afraid that there will be no room for forgiveness.$11#$b#Do keep that in mind as we aim for greater heights on this journey ahead.$9"

◇──◆──◇──◆

▽ Emmet ▽

"dumped":

"… @. I heard about what you did. About you loving everyone else. Is… Is it true?

….. Ah. I thought you were different. Like me. I thought I could trust you.

I am Emmet… I need some time alone.

…… Go away."

"secondChance":

"…… @. You made me verrrrrrrry sad. And mad. And upset. And jealous. And frustrated. And too many other things.

But… not having you makes me feel even worse. I missed you.

Even if you hurt me. I still love you. I can't stop. It hurts. I want to trust you again. I will trust you again. Do not hurt me again.

I am yours. Be mine. Please. Okay?"

[painted-kneecaps]

Wait Aiz I think I missed what the relation between Chris and Kristoph is and where exactly she grew up.

Tell me loreeeeeeee

HI LAVII <3

OKAY SO i posted an TON about Charlie yesterday, and it’s all under my OC tag if you’re interested, but i’ll give you the rundown on Charlie’s beef with Kristoph !! Buckle in, this is going to be unnecessarily long.

Charlie’s parents were old college friends of Mr. and Mrs. Gavin. The Tréuses lived in France, but they visited with each other often in Charlie’s younger years, and she and Klavier grew very close.

Charlie hated Kristoph right off the bat. She has insanely heightened pattern recognition (weirdgirl powers) and even as a little kid, she could tell Kristoph was manipulating Klavier, getting him in trouble for things he didn’t do and making him believe it was his fault, and just generally being cruel. She grew very protective over Klavier as the years went on, and increasingly aggressive toward Kristoph.

Charlie’s parents were extremely busy and had to travel a lot for work, so most of Charlie’s summers were spent with the Gavins. The first few summers of the arrangement, before Kristoph moved abroad, were the worst, with Charlie repeatedly trying to confront Kristoph or call out his lies and toxic behavior to his parents, and Kristoph playing her accusations off expertly.

This knowledge that nobody believed her was one of the leading factors in Charlie’s general detachment from and lack of trust for parental figures as she got older, aside from her own parents’ neglect, and when the Gavins later began their weird mission to draw her into their “perfect family”, even going so far as to slowly change the pronunciation of her name over time to match with their other two children, she wasn’t particularly surprised or betrayed, just annoyed, seeing this development as just another easily-thwarted manipulation tactic.

When Kristoph moved to the states, right as Klavier and Charlie were entering their middle school years, Charlie was, of course, ecstatic. Some of her fondest childhood memories are from those few years where Kristoph was just an annoying memory lingering in the background of their lives. He did visit occasionally, though, and Klavier continued to idolize him, which led to multiple explosive fights between himself and Charlie, who tried desperately to point out the subtle ways that Kristoph was terrible to him, but Klavier refused to believe her.

Eventually, as time went on, high school made them busier and Klavier, two years ahead of Charlie, began to pursue his career, the two began to amicably drift apart before eventually losing touch. Charlie often thought of Klavier, still considering him a brother, but did her best to scrub Kristoph from her mind and life completely.

When she heard that he was in prison, she wasn’t even remotely surprised, and when she received a letter, imploring that she “look out for Klavier, as she always had”, she immediately knew who it was from, and that he was attempting to mess with her mind. She reached back out to Klavier regardless, and they reconnected, Charlie staying in his spare room under the guise of looking for work, her real design being to help her childhood best friend work through his trauma.

Charlie, being someone who thinks in logical patterns and often disregards emotion as a factor entirely, being completely shut off from her own, went about this in the most logical and emotionally disastrous way she could- she visited Kristoph, hoping that she might be able to pry something out of him that at last gives Klavier closure. It didn’t work, obviously, and Kristoph attempted to spin their childhood together and his parents desire for the “perfect family” in his favor, telling her that Klavier resented her for being the one thing he could never be to his parents- the daughter they always wanted.

Charlie, who couldn’t care less about Mr. and Mrs. Gavin, and really never had, found this accusation ridiculous, but it bothered her nonetheless. She had always known that the Gavins valued their image above all else, and that she was simply a means to an end to them, which was why their obsessive behavior toward her had never been more than a nuisance to be tolerated. They didn’t actually care about her, and she didn’t expect them to. She knew better than to depend on the adults in her life. What alarmed her was the thought that Klavier didn’t see them the same way, that he had actually been grasping for their care and love and approval, and that he had perceived their attentions toward her as competition.

She began to doubt her own perception of the situation, to pick at the threads of her own warped childhood and realize, especially as she became acquainted with Mr. Edgeworth’s little family of Mr. Wright and Trucy, that her childhood was not normal. That she had never felt safe, or protected in her upbringing- that she had always been the shield between Klavier and his family. That her own parents, whom she often went months without speaking to, even when she was a child, were completely oblivious to the psychological warfare that made up her summers as a child.

This crumbling of her defenses was, of course, exactly what Kristoph had been aiming for, and a part of her knew that- but she kept visiting him regardless, increasingly desperate for the missing piece of information, fond memory or scientific data lurking in their shared past that would click everything into place and knit her world back together. Her hatred for Kristoph was still visceral and biting, but she had begun to understand that his own upbringing was a factor, his parents’ subtle manipulations, so familiar to Charlie, twisting him into the man he was today.

She had always been so immune to his designs previously, repulsed by his mere existence in her vicinity, but she had a weakness, now, a crack in her defenses- a strange, begrudging understanding for the man that could almost be mistaken for empathy. So desperate for someone to relate to, and too aware of Klavier’s own fragile state of mind to confide in him about her own rapidly deteriorating mental state, that she had fallen prey to the one person in the world capable of hurting her the most. She had begun to see herself in him, and that scared her more than anything.

Klavier, understandably, was furious when he found out she had been visiting with Kristoph, and their mutual hurt and confusion culminated in their first fight since high school, and possibly their most vicious ever, and resulted in Charlie moving out and sleeping on Ema’s couch while she searched for her own apartment.

Edgeworth was the first, besides Ema, to notice the changes in her demeanor, usually so bubbly an involved in the investigative process, now distant and spacey, going through the motions at work and hardly even speaking to her peers. Holding a conversation with her had become like pulling teeth, and though the quality of her work did not suffer, she had become deeply withdrawn, and any attempts to reach out to her were skillfully evaded and politely declined. Finally, Edgeworth asked Athena and Simon to please speak to her and try to figure out what had changed.

And then, because this is Ace Attorney, after all- she gets accused of murder :))