#I caved in and got the free camera for this game and gods

[nen-the-pigeon]

Two warlocks in a camp, they might kiss

[ameraincandy]

💗 𝒱𝟣𝓇𝓉𝓊𝒶𝓁 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁𝒻𝓇𝒾♡𝓃𝒹❣ ! 💗

Synopsis: What is it like for your favorite characters to have a streamer girlfriend? /⁠ᐠ⁠｡⁠ꞈ⁠｡⁠ᐟ⁠\

Characters: Modern C.E.O. Yae miko & Rival streamer Scaramouche.

!tw!: NSFW under the cut, mentions of established relationships, special toys, and head. (Ifykyk) mostly wholesome though.

𝐂.𝐄.𝐎.! 𝐘𝐀𝐄 𝐌𝐈𝐊𝐎 🌸

Occasionally, Miko didn't have a problem with you being a streamer. In fact, she's the one that suggested it since she knew your potential of being one, some may call it her scouting skills for talent. So with the use of her..."persuasion" , you finally caved in to her with a shaky sigh as you've begun to use one of the many expensive streaming equipment she bought for you. Thanks to miko, you weren't a deadbeat freeloader of a girlfriend to her anymore with the amount of superchats you were receiving! Aside from the fact that most donations came from her though...

NSFW under this!

You let out a quiet whimper as you felt your legs shift uncomfortably against the vibrator that miko had slipped inside you. Per request to a loyal viewer of yours, one of tonight's streams was a gaming stream to a famous horror indie game of their choosing! Despite not favoring horror, you did your best to navigate the game's mechanics... although you missed out on the fact that your girlfriend had that mischievous look in her eyes as soon as you got that donation, tricking you somehow into that punishment of hers...

”T-thank you for the s-super..ah-superchat! Darklord69, yeah! I'll beat this level in no time-ee..time...“

Your voice crooked as you squeezed your legs shut to stop the miniscule of vibrations, praying to god that it won't be obvious to the camera or else you'll be banned for life!

Miko, on the other hand seemed to be enjoying herself as she sat across from behind the monitor, testing the waters by lightly pressing each setting on the remote controlled vibrator....ignoring the way you would shoot panicked glances at her direction, begging...begging for her to stop! Yet to your dismay, Miko would only press a finger to her lips; signaling for you to stay quiet.

”Nnmmp...” But luckily for you, none of your viewers seem to be none the wiser when you took a quick look at the stream's chat box, they probably thought you were just really scared of the game you were playing, not the other absurd fact that you were about to squirt all over the computer screen.

“Fuu-FUCK!~“ you jumped out of your seat with a loud cuss falling head first under your desk after a jump scare was shown, then chat was flooded with several “R.I.P.“'s, “LMAO“'s and ”IS SHE OKAY??"'s messages.

The stream soon ended abruptly after that fiasco. While your girlfriend approached your fucked-dumb state with a grin.

“Enjoyed yourself little one?~ You sure did put on quite a show...“

Miko teased as she knelt down to quiet your pants with a feverish kiss that caused you to let out a guttural moan, her free hand pulled the vibrator outside as white liquid oozes out of your legs..♡

𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐀𝐋-𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐑! 𝐒𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐀 👾

Before you were a well-known streamer, you were a surprise occurrence in Scaramouche's streams at random given times, riling up his viewers as you were known as that mysterious girlfriend of his, adding more to their curiosity by not showing your face and entice them with only the lower half of yourself.

Off-screen however, you would jokingly tease Scaramouche with remarks such as; “The viewer count seems to rise whenever I appear on screen you know?“ chuckling as you show him the cockiest smirk known to man, enabling Scaramouche to give you a sarcastic laugh.

“You brat, who do you think you're talking to huh?“

When he said those words to you, your brain (and cunt) automatically knew that you were in deep shit from the way his fingertips found it's place under your chin, all to just sink his nails in the flesh juust a bit...tilting your head upwards to reveal a condescending smirk.

“Why don't you try being a streamer hm?“

Yet, to Scaramouche's disappointment, your debut as a streamer fared far better than he expected; not soon after your viewer count was rising in numbers, not to mention that bastardly amount of simps that contributed to your boyfriend's dismay. As if karma was going to bite him in the ass, some of your viewers raided his streams chat box with links to your stream instead. Since then, there has been a running joke that you two are each other's mortal enemies.

Don't get him wrong however, despite the petty rivalry you two show on streams together... Scaramouche doesn't hate that you're a streamer. Your boyfriend just dislikes those types of scummy eyes watching his girlfriend's content with obvious unhinged thirst. So he found a way to fix that.

NSFW under this!

Scaramouche didn't know what kind of sick fuck he was with the way he was reeling in the sight of you completely wasted after he spent hours throatfucking you, brashly wiping away the tears that swelled in your eyes from after you attempted to push his shaft down inhumanely deeper than it already was. You can tell that he was about to cum for the 5th time that night with his thrusts getting sloppier and his pace having seemed to vanish.

“H-hah! I've always known you were a whore... honestly I- oooh god..!” Scaramouche gritted his teeth after you unexpectedly flattened your tongue on the tip of his cock, deliciously drenching it in your saliva just as he likes it~

The back of your throat slaps against his cock that elicited a groan to vibrate around him that added a lot more to his pleasure; just before he could spill his seed, he clumsily slipped out in time and forced your mouth open with his fingers, letting out a breathless laugh as Scaramouche coats your pretty face in his cum.

“Ffuuuck...that was amazing haahh..“ Scaramouche lovingly cupped your cheek as he places the stray hair behind your head while catching his breath, he could feel his dick growing hard again by just admiring his bratty girlfriend all over his control, picking you up in his arms to rapidly throw you on the mattress all the while scattering kisses between your thighs as a rushed apology from how much he was going to ruin you tonight. Although what Scaramouche wanted to confess was actually a protest to you continuing streaming...why need hundreds of eyes adoring you when he has been doing so all this time and better? (Not-so-Regretfully) It has been muffled from the amount of orgasms you two had that night, it was probably for the best anyways.

Since you didn't even notice that blinking red light on your monitor the entire time.

-♡

[lil-melody-moon]

Year Summary #3

We're going with games today so without further ado!

The ones I've started and finished: 1. Pokemon Moon - Second/third time that I played it. I had started a save a long time ago, but I borrowed my 2DS to a dear friend of mine, so I just started everything from beginning. I enjoyed it as much as the first time actually, getting different Pokemon this time - or kind of? This is also where I discovered that tiny Pancham looks like Paul McCartney. Don't ask me from where I took it, but yeah. I named my Pancham Paul XD

2. Final Fantasy IX - I figured out that there has to be at least one Final Fantasy game during the year and this time it happened to be this one. Again, a replay, third fucking save. I had a new pc at that time, had to install Moguri again but you know. The worst was the fact that the old saves were gone, along with the one where I almost did everything in the time before the final boss. My first, almost complete save was gone, I was sad about that. That didn't discourage me tho, I played the game again, only to regret that I didn't use other names than default - it would be so fun, I have to do it next time. Anyway, I still love this game, I will gladly come back to it at any day really - crying at the end again, God, the credits song ;A;

3. Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc - I think this platformer will come back to the list of "play at least once a year". I love this games to bits, first platformer, my entire childhood and beginning of being a nerd is stored there - and again, Polish dub in this game is *chef's kiss*

4. Rayman Legends - replay after a few years and as much as I love the musical levels, the game itself is fun to certain point, I think halfway through, it gets kind of repetitive - or it might be me who played this game way too much in the past. Either way, I'm not coming back to it anytime soon. Had fun nevertheless tho <3

5. Murder by Numbers - got Epic Games Store, got my hands on free games and there I went, choosing this one as the first one. It has repetitive mechanic over finding clues - it's a detective kind of game, similar to Ace Attorney, but much more tame - but like, if you're bored you can cheat through them just to get on with the plot. I did that at the very end and really, I enjoyed the plot, characters, music. The tiny computer who helped the main heroine was adorable <3

6. Earthbound - you thought I will forget to play it? HAH, jokes on you! The end of year is nearing and my mind is already set on to play it again! I will never grow bored of this game and this time the team consisted of Ringo, me, John and Paul, Beatles themed team and truth be told, I WAS SO FUCKING UNLUCKY ON THIS SAVE. Like, I even did simplest mistakes, forgetting about the freaking shields which got me an instant kill. Had to repeat the last cave three fucking times, I never had such a bad playthrough in my life! Ringo borrowed his luck this time it seems

7. Spyro the Dragon - what did I do when I got a new PC? Downloaded PSX emulator and played Spyro. I'm a whole mood as my friend described me and honestly I don't regret this decision, even if I had to take this game in parts. The camera made me sick to my stomach - oh God I hope it'll be better in later parts and in the remaster - but like taking one level per day was a good idea to solve the problem. Plus the soundtrack - Copeland my beloved! - is just so good. One of those games which soundtracks I'll be listening to when I have time. ...Which reminds me that I have to make cleaning on yt with the games' music. MAJOR CLEANING *looking at my young self* You did fucked it up

8. Deponia - Oh yes, I came back to his fuckery and now I'm having a break before tackling the second game which I don't like very much, but about this one! The beginning is kinda long, but once out of town the game shows what it is capable of with puzzle solving, plot, humor, characters. I still love it and will probably nerd the third part like I usually do, because it's my favorite, but this time I did one major change. I've played with English dub, not like always with German and fuck, it is better somehow so I'm sticking to that <3

Now to the ones I've dropped: 1. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - Being younger I loved this game, but this time I just couldn't get into it anymore. Might be because my smart ass thought about erasing the save I didn't finish years ago and starting a new one, but who might know. I do regret I didn't finish the game for some weird reason those years ago, but maybe it was for the better? Either way, I sold it with a few other Nintendo Wii games, leaving only two Kirby games for myself so yeah

2. Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time - now I really had high expectations for this one. I always heard good opinions about it and so I started it, curious, only to discover that I'm bored of it in the long run. There's not much variety in the battle mechanics. You either do that or this and push buttons. There's no excitement like it is in Final Fantasy for example, it's simpler, much much simpler and the same goes too...

3. Super Mario RPG - while having an amazing soundtrack, this game suffers the same thing as the previous. Repetitive battle mechanics and like this is probably the worst thing you can do to rpg. I know a lot of people love it and I can see why. The plot is great, dialogues, characters and world building is amazing, but for me if the battle mechanics ain't anything good, then I'm gonna drop the game and move on

4. Kirby Mass Attack - I always wanted to play this game. It was actually the first ROM I've downloaded on Nintendo DS emulator right after getting new PC and I had fun in the first world. I love the mechanics with the touch screen, the fact that there's 10 tiny Kirbys running around, but what threw me off guard is the fact that even if you have 10 Kirbys, you're gonna end with one at the beginning of the next world. I felt like all the progress was lost and I had to start from the very beginning. It somehow didn't feel fair you know. This was a big let down

And the ones I'm playing now: 1. Cave Story - first time after hearing what a good game it is, and I finally agree with an opinion! It's smooth, like the older games, the graphics are cute, music is amazing, plot simple, but engaging somehow. And true, some part for a new player are difficult - I'm playing on easy, I don't think of myself as of a great gamer and I still find it difficult. One boss was really unreadable for me, the one who was driving, I don't know the name of it, but like I had to have a few tries to figure out what to do and that is the only complaint I have about this game. Second would be no checkpoints between bosses at the very end, but like there was a chance for me to get a life refill, but like I didn't know about it, so I screwed myself on my own wish. Plus, I'm having a break from it because I'm stuck at final bosses. In the meantime I jumped to this one:

2. Yooka Laylee - which I bought on sale on steam and honestly, I don't remember when I had such a great time with a 3D platformer since Rayman 3. I know a lot of people are saying that it's not the same as Banjo-Kazooie - which I didn't play YET - but like, is it really worthy to compare instead of having fun with a game? I mean, the plot is simple, characters are fun, mechanics are great, the moveset is good, it's not limiting the player at all, the freaking soundtrack is a whole orchestra really, always giving the vibe of the world in a great way. There are a few bugs here and there, but they are not game breaking or anything. I was only throw off my guard when I learned that I need 100 pagies to get to the end. Guess what I am doing as of lately XD

And that would sum up this year. Thank you for reading all of this and i wish all of you a Happy New Year <3

[blackwaxidol]

look i KNOW the submarine-friendly entrance to the Lost River is at the Blood Kelps by the northmost point of the map but i set my base 300m down on the edge of the south blood kelp ravine intersecting the sparse reef and the LR entrance there is near-impossible to traverse with a submarine AND has a Ghost Leviathan waiting for me but i am NOT travelling to the other end of the map god bless

[thefanficmonster]

Time And Time Again

Dream x Reader (Female)

Warnings: Swearing

Genre: FLUFF, Romance, Humor, RPF (Real Person Fic)

Summary: Basically a rundown of some of the most recent cute moments brought to you by the most adorable will-they-won’t-they couple: Y/N and Dream.

Requested by Anon. Hi dear! Thank you so much for your wonderful request, it really made my day when I received it! I hope I captured what you wanted and what you had in mind in the fic and I hope you enjoy the read! This is my first time writing for Dream so I hope I don’t mess it up hehe. Love, Vy ❤

“I don’t wanna go in the cave!“ Y/N squeals in terror when she realizes that in order to make progress in the game and continue moving onward with the story, she has to walk Blake through the dark, dingy and danger-ridden cave in Outlast 2. The gang’s all there with her on a Discord call to keep her company, knowing she’s a scaredy cat underneath that tough girl exterior. And being the scaredy cat she is while also having a preference for horror games has made Friday nights very interesting for her and her friends: her, Clay, George and Sapnap sit on a Discord server while she streams whatever horror game she had planned for the evening to her close to her thousands of viewers. 

“Don’t worry, Y/N! I’ll come with you, imma hold your hand the whole time.“ Clay volunteers wholeheartedly without a second to waste.

Much to his disappointment, however, Y/N’s reply to that is: “Not until you go wash off all that cheeto dust that’s all over your fingers.“

Clay gasps dramatically, “How DARE you? I offer you help and comfort and this is the thanks I get? I hope one of those heretics in teaches you a lesson!”

While the pair are now in a full-on ‘heated’ dispute on their manners and politeness, bringing back things they did wrong as far back as three years ago, George and Sapnap are just connecting the dots silently.

“Wait, Y/N...“ George is the one to finally speak up, “How’d you know he’s eating cheetos?”

Taking a momentary break from the bickering, Y/N reassumes her more sweet tone of voice as he addresses him, “He freaking raided my cabinets and has eaten all my snacks already! He’s only been here for two hours, damn it!”

“Don’t make it sound like I inhaled a mountain of snacks in two hours! You literally had only two bags of snacks - meant for one person, mind you!“ Clay argues back, neither him nor Y/N realizing that this accidental outing will send their fandoms in a fit.

Of course, people hang out at their friends’ all the time, nothing weird there. This wouldn’t have been such a big deal to anyone if Sapnap didn’t say:

“How come Clay has the privilege of coming over to place and George and I don’t?“

Oh boy...

                                                             *  *  *

“Hi everyone! I know you guys couldn’t care less for an intro so Imma get right into it...“ Y/N says, all seemingly in one breath, “You see this masked man next to me? This tree of a man right here? Yes? Good, well judging by that poorly made cardboard mask he’s wearing - curtsey of yours truly - you probably already know who he is. If not, meet Dream, aka Clay, aka the raincloud above my parade.“

That specific laugh echoes throughout the room as the said tree-of-a-man wraps an arm around the significantly smaller girl’s shoulders, pulling her closer till their sides collide, “She loves me, trust me, she does.”

“Only when you bring me food though.“ She corrects him, wiggling his shoulders to see if she could set herself free from his grip but relaxing in his embrace when she realizes she won’t be going anywhere unless he willingly lets her go.

Clay tilts his head to the side to look at her through the holes poked into the mask before lifting his free arm to reveal the plastic bag he’s been holding all this time. “Oh, well then I wonder what I’ve got over here...”

“Oh my God, Panda Express! You’re the best, Clay.“ She squeals, grabbing him by the collar of his hoodie and pulling him down while she simultaneously pushes up on her toes to place a kiss on his cheek which is a tiny bit exposed to her between the mask and the hood he’s got over his head.

Before the man could even recover, he finds himself empty handed, having lost the girl and having lost the bag of food to the girl.

That kiss was worth it though.

                                                             *  *  *

“Ok, so I’ve seen this ‘my girlfriend does my makeup’ challenge going around and since I’m single as all hell, I got my best friend Y/N here to do my makeup.“ Clay points to Y/N who’s holding a makeup bag in one hand and is giving him a very disappointed look, “Judging by the look on her face, she’s not at all impressed but I promise to make her a bit more excited to be here in editing.“

“Of course I’m unimpressed, this is the troll video of troll videos!“ She complains, throwing her arms up, “Sure I’ll do your makeup and get a kick out of it myself but none of them will see it!“ She points to the camera, “None of them will know what amazing makeup artist skills I’ve got.“

This leaves Clay speechless for a moment, uncertain of how to reply to her statement before just deciding to say: “Well, at least you’ll be getting a kick out of it, that’s all that matters to me.”

“Aww...“ Y/N bats her eyelashes at the camera as her bottom lip forms an emotional pout, “Please don’t be so sweet to me after I just verbally kicked your ass. You always do that and make me feel like the meanest person in the world.“

“Aww Y/N, I’m so sorry.“ He says, sounding genuinely apologetic as he wraps his arms around the girl that’s tiny in comparison to him, bringing her closer to him with his tight hug.

“YOU’RE DOING IT AGAIN!“

                                                             *  *  *

“Hey Clay, I bought lunch on the way so I hope you’re-” Walking into her friend’s recording room abruptly, Y/N finds herself face to face with his webcam, the light next to which is glowing, suggesting the device is on and she’s currently on the screens of the thousands of people watching Dream’s stream. His mask is on - the one she made for him - of course, but she can still feel the aura of him smiling, relieving her of the worry that he’ll be irritated by her walking in like that - unannounced and without knocking. To be fair, they never announced to one another when they’d be stopping by and by this point in their friendship they have also stopped knocking too. “You’re streaming, huh?”

“Yup!“ The word is said in such a teasing manner she almost allows herself to blush, “What you got there tho?“

“Chipotle.“ She answers shortly, “And I’m starving so can we please turn your stream into a Mukbang?“ She furrows her brows as she inspects what’s on his computer screen, looking at a comment section instead of the usual screen of a game she’s used to seeing. “What are you doing, anyway?“

Looking back at his screen for a brief moment before turning back to her, Clay replies, “Oh, just reading mean comments, as one does to boost their self-esteem.”

The flash of anger he sees on Y/N’s face is most certainly not what he was inspecting to see. Mockery, yes. Humor, yes. Faux sympathy followed by some mean comments of her own, definitely. But he anger he did not see coming at all.

“Who’s talking shit about you? I’ll end them!“ Putting the plastic bag of delicious food aside, forgetting all about it in the process, Y/N grabs a chair and drags it over next to Clay’s so she too can look at his screen.

And that boy has never felt so much adoration for his best friend. Their fans - and especially their shippers - would’ve lost it if they had been able to see the look he was giving her.

                                                             *  *  *

(back to the ‘girlfriend/best friend does my makeup vid’)

“Ok, so what kind of look do you want me to give you?“ Y/N asks as she sits down on the stool in front of Clay, her makeup products placed on the dining table which is to her right.

“You ask me as though I know what I want.“ Clay laughs, the sticker of his mask floating above his face, following his movements as to keep his features hidden, “Just do the look you do on yourself everyday. It looks really cute on you, who knows, I might be able to pull it off too.“

“Sure thing.“ She smiles at her friend’s compliment, “Just stand still, ok?“

“Yes, ma’am.“

                                                            *  *  *

“Y/N, no! Stop!“ Clay warns her via the Discord call while the two are streaming Minecraft together alone for once, “Not another word!“

“But I really do feel bad!“ Y/N whines in response, “Why don’t you allow me to apologize?“

“Because there’s nothing to apologize for!“ He says, clearly done with the conversation, “I willingly gave you my jacket, you didn’t ask for it.“

“And now you’ve got a cold because of it!“ She continues arguing her case, “The least I can do is come over to take care of you.“

“I don’t need a pity nurse, thank you very much.“ Clay bites back, “But your company would be nice. Though I don’t want you to catch whatever cold I have.“

“I’d catch any cold for you, Clay.“ She replies teasingly - with a ton of honesty underneath that teasing.

Honesty both her and Clay are aware of. As well as the mob of people watching their streams right now.

                                                             ~  ~  ~ And so the snowball effect continues with little moments sprinkled throughout their online presences that make the snowball of shipping get bigger and bigger. Every now and then, both Y/N and Clay let little bits of their true adoration and admiration for the other slip through. And time and time again do those moments send their fans in a frenzy. 

Rightfully so.

@kia-isabelle

[vyeoh]

this is your chance: wax poetic about an Empires or DSMP character of your choice to a fan who is new to both. Explain why I should love them. I need guidance in this new and meme-populated land.

okok this is a lot of pressure haha. Spoilers for EmpiresSMP and DreamSMP below, obviously. I wrote a lot so prepare yourself, anon

I watch a lot of empires POVs but the ones I most anticipate every week are Scott and Sausage.

c!Scott (I'll call him Smajor for the sake of simplicity) starts off the series chilling, not really getting involved with the rest of the server, and staying aggressively neutral. After all, he's an elf. He has lived far longer than most of the other rulers already, and will most likely outlive them for many years. So, the best thing is to stick to his mountains and not get invested in the dealings of mortal affairs, maybe sometimes causing problems on purpose and dipping because what's life without a little spice right.

But then, this demon comes to the server, Xornoth. He's going around causing havoc and wants to send the world into an eternal winter, but he doesn't bother the kingdom of Rivendell much so Smajor stays tentatively cautious but ultimately unbothered. But then, the puzzle pieces start falling together. The first thing that the audience noticed was was Xornoth sounded like Smajor, but we mostly thought that this was just due to cc!Scott voicing both of them and there was nothing more to it. However, then, the people the demon starts possessing start chanting in elvish. The demon hates mortals, and the elves are conveniently one of the two confirmed not fully mortal races in Empires.

This culminates when Smajor stumbles across a cave that contains the backstory of the patron god of Rivendell, Aeor. Basically, there's two opposing forces, Aeor and Exor, and both have a champion. In a previous life, those champions were two brothers, where Aeor eventually prevailed and banished Exor. In this life though, the champions are - you guessed it - Smajor, and the demon Xornoth.

So now Smajor is like. Well fuck. It's my literal god-given destiny to be responsible for defeating this demon who is technically my brother, and if I fail the server gets plunged into an eternal winter. And I have no fucking clue what is happening because I've just been here on this mountain actively trying to stay out of the issues outside my kingdom. We watch him panic and teeter on the verge of spiraling for an entire episode, and when the followers of Xornoth go to the End to kill the dragon, releasing Xornoth's full powers, he fails to stop him. Smajor is a character who was used to being the smart one, the prepared one, the one who has the least deaths on the server. But he's also a character who runs away from his problems and ignores them. Before and during the dragon fight, we hear the desperation in his voice, as he's thrown into a situation he is wholly unprepared for, and it's bigger than him going to the Cod Empire to kill their king, or assisting in other people's plans to kill the codfather. He can't run from this. cc!Scott plays this scene so well as well, as I've said before, one of the best parts of Scott's acting is how he's never super dramatic, but he's so effective in the little things like inflection to make you feel, viscerally, the panic and dread.

So after the dragon fight, Smajor realizes, I can't do this on my own. I've tried and failed. So he gets allies. We watch him, someone who has so strongly been an isolationist, learn the benefits of allies and watch him learn to trust others and watch him learn how to get that trust in return.

My favorite thing about Smajor's characterization is that he's an incompetent protagonist, but not in the way of the "plucky young adventurer". He's capable skill-wise, and fairly jaded and very pessimistic. However, his issue is that up until recently, he did not care about the rest of the server at all, and by the time he learned to, it was way too late.

Also, in 3rd Life, cc!Scott and cc!Jimmy were canonically married and they reference it sometimes in Empires. Like, Scott goes over to the Cod Empire every so often both in and out of character to kill and/or flirt with Jimmy, the ruler of the Cod Empire, which may develop as a secondary plot into the future who knows. So ty Scott for giving the gays what they want o7

Now onto Sausage: his is a story of Icarus, his hubris and ambition being his downfall. He's one of the two followers of Xornoth, who promised him endless power in exchange for his servitude. He started the series being eccentric, but not outright unhinged, but slowly gets more and more extreme as the series progresses, as he gets brought more and more to Xornoth's side.

One of the best parts of Sausage's character, in my opinion, is how his gradual corruption affects the people around him. Initially, he got into a conflict with the Cod Empire and was allied with two other people in the Witherrose alliance. They were allies, but also close friends. The fandom liked to joke that the three had sibling energy, and I'm pretty sure the ccs played to that even more lol.

It was painful to watch the other two members, Gem and fWhip, watch Sausage get corrupted right in front of them, and see them desperately clinging on to this old idea of Sausage in their head because if they faced the truth, it would mean that their friend was gone. Eventually, they do finally cut him out of the alliance, leading him to fully commit to the side of the demon. Sausage felt very clearly betrayed by this, and declared the remaining two Witherrose alliance members to be enemies.

He gets more and more possessed, and we even see the other Empires, his enemies even, slowly realize that something is very wrong with the ruler of Mythland. He starts doing more and more evil things, like killing people more, making sacrifices to the demon, and eventually helping to kill the dragon to free Xornoth. So things are good for Sausage, for a bit. He won, and is more powerful than ever. Then he finds out: he's going to die. Xornoth's possession is slowly killing his soul, and eventually, his body going to be fully taken over and he himself is going to be trapped in the spirit realm. So how do you react to this? Over the next few episodes, we watch Sausage struggle between "the demon is literally killing me" and "the demon has given me so much, and I love it", all while Xornoth takes over more and more of him. We hear him exclaim that "don't worry!! I'm still about 15% there!" while trying to downplay every time Xornoth completely takes over his body. We watch him willingly oppose anyone who is trying to end the thing that is killing him.

My favorite thing about Sausage is that he is undoubtedly evil and proud of it, but he's also undoubtedly human. If you like to watch evil characters go absolutely feral, he's the guy for you. He makes the deal with Xornoth in the beginning, knowing and fully embracing the evilness of the demon, but at the same time he knows what he's doing is detrimental to both himself and everyone around him, but he's gotten in way too deep at this point, and to be fair the demon has held up its end fo the bargain, right?

Also, I would be damned if I don't talk about cc!Sausage's editing. Every one of his videos is like a movie. The way he does camera angles and uses music is so skillful- every lore scene feels like something out of a high fantasy action saga (think: LotR). Every big lore event I always wait in anticipation for Sausage's ep because his editing truly takes lore to another level.

I'm just generally very excited to see where this series goes. Empires is such a good mix of talented builders and good lore. Part of the reason why the series is so immersive for me, beyond any other lore smp, is that they have the settings to back it up. There is a certain charm to the DreamSMP's objectively terrible builds (with a few exceptions) but in Empires, the settings help sell the plot so much.

Another part of why I love EmpiresSMP is how much the ccs are involved with the fan community. I'm sure you've seen the memes about Scott being on tumblr, and Sausage regularly goes through the EmpiresSMP fanart tag on Twitter and likes art, even ones not related to Mythland. Most of the ccs, in fact, have brought up tumblr content on stream at some point or another. Like, several ccs have said that they read tumblr lore theories and hcs and stuff and sometimes take inspiration from them. Fun fact: Rivendell's church was inspired by my pinned drawing; confirmed by Scott Smajor himself. It's just such a good cycle of ccs and fans being excited about each other.

As for DreamSMP, I'm gonna be honest here, the only person I really am invested in in Technoblade. I started watching when he joined the server, and he's the only person whose lore I keep up to date with.

Techno's fun to watch because he's like the Deadpool of DreamSMP. Virtually unkillable, very skilled and scary, but consistently cracks jokes and breaks the 4th wall during plot. His POV is just fun. Like, he does wild plans and gives speeches and some of the stuff that happens to him should be called deus ex machine if it wasn't for the fact that Technoblade is the one who's doing it, and all the stuff is grounded in the fact that cc!Techno is just that good at the game.

However, the fact that he rarely takes anything seriously makes the few times Techno is 100% serious so much more impactful. His whole character has a basis in being perceived as inhuman and being treated as such, and therefore in return trying to hide his humanity. So, when he shows that humanity, whether that's fear, anger, or genuine love for his friends, it really makes you go "oh shit."

Techno's often said not to have character development, but I'd argue that while he remains steadfast in his moral code, he develops leaps and bounds as a person. Like, at the beginning, he's brought onto the server to help Wilbur and Tommy overthrow a government; them knowing he's 1) an anarchist and 2) very very powerful. His character was more of a plot device at that point and was treated as such in the canon. Wilbur and Tommy straight-up lie to him about their plans to establish another government after they overthrow the current one, while he was led on to believe that they were abolishing all governments in the area. But he isn't a plot device. He's a person, as much as he only shows the terrifying, blood god side of himself.

After the establishment of New Lmanburg (the new government its a long story), his friend Phil joins. And for the first time, we see him be fully human with someone and we see someone treat him like a human. Like, we saw glimpses before, with Wilbur and Tommy in Pogtopia, but Phil is the first person we noticeably see he trusts 100%. Then Doomsday happens, and Techno essentially retires to the tundra. During this time, we see Techno learn to be more human, first with Ranboo, then Niki when he establishes the Syndicate. In fact, the two of them, along with Phil, canonically throw him a birthday party, which is a far cry from his treatment in Pogtopia.

Techno's development is one of a god learning to be human, and I just think he <3

[thatringboy]

Hey there!

Saw ur post bout wanting requests and I'm happy to oblige. Percabeth is my absolute OTP and so I would love to read some fics based on them, esp when you write them soo well🥺

1.I've always wanted to read a fic where Annabeth spoons Percy! I think that wud be so cute.

2.Or would love to see a fic where one of them cant sleep at night so they go do smtg spontaneous, like stargazing or roadtrip or trip to McDonald's hehe.

3.A prompt (if that's how you take requests): "Did you just kiss my Achilles Spot?"

omfgggggg the amount of fluff i shoved into this is almost puke level. but percabeth will never get to that level. anyways i decided to do all three prompts because i couldn't pick one. enjoy!

Stargazing in Grey

Warnings: Rachel Elizabeth Dare being a little shit, but we love her anyways (so in other words, none)

Characters: Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, Rachel Elizabeth Dare (but only for like two lines at the very end)

Ships: Percabeth

Word Count: 1,405

Summary: Percabeth sneaks out of their cabins to go stargazing and realize (again) how much they love each other. Takes place between the end of HOO and the beginning of TOA

“You know… we could have just taken some Melatonin or something.” Percy made a confused face.

Annabeth rolled her eyes despite knowing that he probably couldn’t see her do that in the dark. “And where’s the fun in that?”

“Who are you and what have you done to my rule-following Wise Girl?” His smile was audible in his voice.

She elbowed him in the stomach and fell back onto the grass of Camp Half-Blood hill, her grey eyes searching the night sky. Constellations danced across her gaze and a smile curled over her lips. Percy’s eyes adjusted to the night enough for him to be able to see her features illuminated by the moonlight.

Gods, she’s the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen.

“What was that?” Annabeth sat up.

Percy realized he had whispered his thoughts out loud and plopped himself down in the grass next to her. “Nothing! So tell me, Wise Girl,” he pointed up at the stars. “Which one is that constellation?”

She laid back down and followed his finger to where he was pointing. “Oh, that’s just Heracles.”

Percy made a gagging sound. “Oh gods not that guy!”

That was the game they played: Percy pointed out a constellation, Annabeth identified it and they repeated. Percy told stupid jokes just to hear Annabeth’s laughter and he felt like he was walking on air everytime he heard it.

This was his Wise Girl, he realized. Starting from “you drool when you sleep” all those years ago and now sneaking out of their cabins at night to watch the stars when the nightmares became too much. Everything else in his life was fleeting and frankly at the mercy of ungrateful gods, but Annabeth was his constant. She was his tie to mortality when he dipped in the River Styx, she was the one thing he remembered when Hera stole his memories and sent him west and she was the one who held his hand in Tartarus when the world quite literally swallowed him up. And now that they had survived two Great Prophecies and were finishing up the summer in Long Island before heading to New Rome, the realization of how much Annabeth completed him struck Percy in the heart. She was the one who kept him humane when he wanted to unleash his destructive powers, she was the one who treated his wounds when he hurt himself against monsters and she was the one who curled up and cuddled him when the whole world was against them.

How in Hades was he so lucky to have fallen for her and for her to have fallen right back - quite literally in their case.

When they had finished their game, Percy found himself staring at her once more. He could examine her face for years and still find new things to fascinate himself with. If he was given Pandora’s box and told that the Hope at the bottom was Annabeth, he’d rip the lid off in a heartbeat and slay all of the monsters that jumped out with her.

She yawned, pulling Percy back into reality, and stretched her arms. “We should probably head back before Malcolm wakes up and flips on us.”

Percy pouted like a child and turned over in the grass to face away from her. “No! This was your idea and I wanna stay!”

Annabeth sighed and scooted closer to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her face into his back. “You’re such a child, no wonder you live with your mother at eighteen.”

He wiggled a bit so that he could turn his head to glare at her. “I’ll have you know that I missed half of being sixteen and half of being seventeen!”

She squeezed the skin of his stomach to shut him up and the two laid there spooning in the grass for a bit. Annabeth could feel his heartbeat and the way his lungs expanded when he breathed and sighed at the realness of it all. For six months, she was without him. After years of fighting by his side, he had just vanished and both of them were pulled into another Olympus-Destroying calamity that they had to fix. She had found herself cursing out the gods during that time, begging to know why did it always have to be her family that got messed over by the gods? For once, couldn’t someone else take up the mantle? Thalia had died then joined the Hunt, Luke was… well, Luke and all of the other campers moved on and away as time passed if they weren’t killed by monsters. Percy was the only constant she had and Hera had taken him away. Her Percy, the one who held up the sky for her. Her Percy, the one who fell into Tartarus for her. Her Percy, the one who held her tight when a curse had taken her vision and promised to never leave her. Her Percy, the one who turned down immortality for her. Annabeth hugged him tighter and pressed a kiss to his back. She was never letting go of him again.

"Did you just kiss my Achilles Spot?" He turned his head to look at her again.

She pulled her head back and blinked. It must have happened subconsciously while she was reminiscing about the past. “I guess I did, sorry.”

He rested his head on the ground again. “No no it’s fine, I just haven’t had anyone touch there in a while. I guess I’ve always protected it from people, even after the curse is gone.”

And that was another thing. His only weakness, the small of his back, he exposed it joyfully to her. He took his life and placed it into her hands because there was no one else in the entire world who Percy Jackson trusted more than Annabeth Chase.

She untangled herself and sat up. “But seriously, we should get back before the harpies start their pre-dawn rounds. Washing dishes in lava again does not sound like fun.”

He sat up with her and brushed a stray piece of grass off of her cheek with a wide smile. There was still a tiny sliver of grey hair from when they were younger and took turns holding up the sky. “Yeah… you’re right.”

“When am I not?” She leaned into his touch.

Inches, centimeters, touching. The only thought in Percy’s mind was how soft Annabeth’s lips felt against his own and how much she smelled like fresh ink on sunwarmed paper. Was that a scent? It was now. His calloused hands caressed her face like if he let go, she would crumble into sand between his fingertips and she eagerly gripped his shirt right back. For either the third or fourth time that evening, the whole world seemed to melt away. Two heartbeats became one, two souls linked together and two bodies pressed together in such a loving embrace that even Aphrodite herself would have turned away with a blush.

They came crashing back to the real world when the sound of a camera clicked behind them. The two jerked their heads to the sound to see a familiar redhead holding up a camera.

“Rachel Elizabeth Dare!” Annabeth's voice came out as a harsh whisper.

The Oracle of Delphi cackled as she turned heel and ran down the hill towards her cave. Annabeth moved to chase after her, but Percy grabbed her wrist, covering his mouth with his free hand to keep from laughing. “Let’s just get back to our cabins before she goes leaking that to Lou Ellen and Piper.”

The daughter of Athena couldn’t argue with that. They gathered themselves and made the trek back to the Athena cabin. They stood outside the door, not wanting the moment to end, but also understanding that they both needed sleep. Annabeth moved closer and pecked Percy one last time on the lips before heading inside.

Percy made the walk back to the Poseidon cabin with a goofy smile on his face and was humming a tune who’s name he couldn’t remember. His Wise Girl had broken the rules and was ready to fistfight the Oracle of Delphi to keep it a secret. He was so proud of his negative influence on her. He silently made a vow to get that picture from Rachel to hang up in his room in New Rome. It would brighten up his dorm tremendously.

[icecreamkink]

watched all of the untamed / cql in two weeks after my friend 1 told me abt mdzs a hundred years ago and my friends 2 and 3 tried to get me into cql for like two whole years and there are.

feelings.

very first scene is a very dramatic death in the middle of nightmare battle on sith planet land . i will forget abt it in the next tenish episodes and then will be very surprised when it becomes Extremely Painful

anyway magic flying gays and possession and human sacrifice! we are off to a great start

in retrospect, chaos goblin wei wuxian must have had a blast pretending to be so cRaZy and be as disruptive as he could as mo xuanyu lbr

listen. why is fire always evil coded. cant a magic clan wear red, black and orange and have flame motif while being wholesome?

For Legal Reasons These Are Not Zombies

i wish the politics of the sect were a bit clearer, especially at the beggining when the wen clan had sm power, was wen ruohan the chief cultivator? is that why they were so slow in responding to the attacks? im v confused by the pre yiling patriarch politics

fighting in the roof by the moonlight as way of flirtiiiiiiing. as i understand this is a wuxia/xianxia trope and honestly...... thank u for ur service

slight bullying and being a nuisance in general, as a way of flirting we love to see it

wwx: if i drink on the rooftop, thats not inside the cloud recesses! hmmm check and mate :D lwj: i will fuck u up so help me god   wwx: :0

i lov them

through hell or high water (quite literally) wei wuxian rem ains a trashfire gremlin till the end and i love him with my whole heart

in the pt subs wei wuxian calls jiang cheng a stubborn duck and i dearly wish that had come back

my opinions on almost every character goes from love to hate u - Hmm Me Like U - BABY. ILY. and i am Very Pleased w that. its been a while since i loved such a complete cast so much i think

no really. i WONT go into a detailed rant abt what i love about each of these characters and each of their relationships to each other. but i COULD. 

some lan disciples in the loudest whisper ever: YEAH THATS THE JIN BASTARD MENG YAO HEARD THE GOT SUPER HUMILIATED BY HIS DAD LOL SURE HOPE HE DOESNT TAKE SLIGHTS TO HIS CHARACTER TO HEART

lan xichen, immediately: i must Love him 

being into problematic ppl is in the Lan genetics, we come to realize

wen qing deserves so many awards for so many things but not snapping and just stabbing wen chao is at the top 

that scene at lan qirens class where wwx talks about using resentful energy to fight a violent spirit. exquisite.

 It establishes Good Student lan wangji, wei wuxian as curious and questioning and not afraid of taboo,  lwj sees that wwx is not, in fact, a dumb ass hes just a Dumbass,  shows us the audience (esp. a western audience) how shocking the idea of disrupting the dead/dying and controlling resentful energy actually is,  the theoretical foreshadow arguing, everyone else like ‘shUT UP’,  “and how could you ensure that the resentful energy would obey you and not hurt other?” “well i havent thought that far” and of course, lan qiren just straight up lobbing a hard object at wwx head,. chefs kiss

fellas is it gay to bother the hot rule obessessed nerd from ur school and make drawings of him with flowers in his hair and then hide gay porn in his book to antagonize him and ask him to hold ur hand and be ur friend and talk to him all the time and get him drunk and give him bunnies bc you know he likes them and give him a lantern and always want his attention and dedicate yourself to getting him to smile-

and after all of that wwx rly said oh i Admire him, aksd like yeah we all were there in high school buddy

i have Learned. caves = gay.

 accidental marriage +beint physically tied together with the sacred married ribbon+ gay panic+foreshadowing+bunnies! in the cave (1)

the story abt lan yi and baoshan sanren tho. i would like to see it

early days wen bros pull my heart strings like a guqin 

EVERYTHING about the lantern scene; disaster hets jiang yanli and jin zixuan; how wwx made lwj a bunny lantern. how soft and touched lwj was. wwx gleefully pointing out he was smiling and lwj IMMEDIATELY PULLING HIW SWORD ON HIM LMAO. tragically foreshadowy promises to do right by pepople, living without regrets. lwjs 'oh no do i love him??' face. just. all of it. 

i have it on good acc that in the novel lwj is explicitly Repressed Gay Panicked Big Horny which is delightful and rly Adds to the performance

 baby lwj is really just conceal dont feel dont let them know u have EMOTIONS (derogatory)

jiang cheng rly went "why dont.u go play with HIM if u like him so much"

jc and wwx have big BIG annoying sibling energy dont think too hard abt it or youll cry

lotus pier is soo pretty :((((((((((((((((

up until episode 13 you could think this could be a magical ancient chinese gays pride n prejudice w swords and shenanigans ................youre just not prepared for the game of thrones of it all

seriously ha ha ha i cried so much w this show my eyes genuinely swelled up . like. physically. fun timez fun timez

that being said, its hilarious that wen xu goes to cloud recesses like 'come out or ill kill all these hostages' and then DOESNT WAIT FOR AN ASWER AND KILLS THEM ALL IMMEDIATELY. do u know how blackmail works sir

 would like to make it recorded that from day one i was like 'CALL A GODDAMN CULTIVATION G20 THIS ASSHOLE SECT IS LITERALLY MASSACRING YALL!!' and it took them like 3 or 4 massacres to do anything and they STILL sent their heirs into their territory  LIKE

when wwx cites the gusu lan rules to wen chao tho. that rebel/attention whore/cutie pie 'look lan zhan i DID memorize the rules after all' ‘also a big fuck you to the wen sect :D :D’ sweet spot that scene achieves . delicious

all the cultivator young masters being petty af even though they are practically prisoners at the cave is hilarious and i love them

hurt and comfort + gay mistunderstandings + watsonian gay declaration music + accidental evil acquisition! at the cave (2)

its like where do i start? the fact theyre both trapped and kind of heavily injured inside an isolated cave with a murder turtle? wwx gay panicking lwj into coughing up bad blood? lwj being jealous as wwx babbles abt mianmian? telling him he shouldnt play with people and wwx saying he never played him? wwx going Oh. I See what is happening. YOU like mianmian, and lwj absolute done face ??? (iconic) wwx touching the sacred married ribbon Again? the telepathic communication? the sword? WEI WUXIAN ASKING LAN WANGJI TO SING TO HIM AS HE IS PASSING OUT AND LWJ SINGING HIM. THE SONG. HE WROTE. FOR WWX. AND THAT HE CALLED. THEIR SHIP NAME????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

they are SO insufferable pleeeeease

in the words of my friend 1 : “CQL is so gay we were all amazed how it got past the censors Ofc unfortunately it can't be novel level gay But they did their best And we love them for it”

in the theme of songs THIS OST. WUJI HAS BEEN LIVING IN MY MIND RENT FREE SINCE I FIRST HEARD IT the whole ost is so so sO beautiful.

 the costuming in this is also soooo exquisite. the embroidery? the fabrics? the details? how every sect and clan has a distinct style and architecture? (also ik they based each off of dif periods in chinese history which is REALLY fucking cool) just chefs kiss

the direction too!. i enjoy the unusual camera movements and i think they give it that Vibe, also their composition is PARTICULARLY good when it comes to telling the subtext through position of camera/position of character (like nhs off to the side in scenes he at first glance doesnt need to be/ how lwj is often centered when hes Jealous Yearning at wwx being affectionate w other ppl, wwx return from burial mounds etc)

ik madam yu is like Badass Milf Check and shes not getting any mom of the year awards but im delighted at how messy she is. IMAGINE that woman on tiktok

you better have enjoyed gay cave (2) bc its Just Pain from here on out! 

jiang fengmian and madame yu win the Most Dramatic Way to show they do care about each other, actually ..... ever :)

i thought jiang yanli jiang cheng and wei wuxian forcing themselves to escape yunmeng barely holding on after their parents are killed was going to be the height of pain in this show. ha. 

the family dynamics in general on this showwwww, both blood/ adopted/ found families, brotherly bonds and lifelong friendships just. rly. truly. fucked me up. theyre all so important and complicated and well rounded and beautiful and tragic

and beyond being a Win For the Gays im so glad the relationships w wwx and jiang yanli/ wen qing were NOT changed from platonic bc they are so much better like that imo. like maybe if we didnt Live In A Society it wouldnt be so, but the fact wwx and others can love and value them so much and theres nothing romantic or sexual abt it is like. so refreshing. especially @ jyl, with the way he and jc are overprotective of her and shes such a nurturing/care taker figure for them, it would just not vibe as well if they made it romantic

i love that this is a story abt Wei Wuxian, the Yiling Patriarch aka Actual Satan/Boogey Man/Village With/Public Enemy Number One , my dude is literally a necromancer who only dresses in black and has evil smokey black tendrils wafting out of him, but the really edgy one is still jiang cheng, pastel purple fashion icon

and speaking of best/worst siblings wei wuxian and jiang cheng *immediately starts crying* 

The Golden Core Transfer i just. no thots only tears 

wen qing and wen ning putting themselves in so much danger just.... to help them. wn saving jc from wen chao. wq finding a way to get wwx to transfer his core. like thinking about the monumental work these two did to help wwx and jyl and jc... jyl trying so fucking hard to be strong and keep on moving and giver her little brothers comfort after losing everything... jiang cheng. losing his parents and his home and his ability to do anything abt it and his complete desperation and lack of self worth and turning on them with agression  when he didnt realize all that they did for him ... hhhhhhhhhhhhh

me, pointing at the whole cast “i just LOVE them mom!!!”

its sad tho, that BARELY ANY of the women have like.... actual important conversations let alone relationships with each other at all in the story. and like wq and jyl have stayed at the same place for extended periods of time, where wq actively took care of her TWICE,  and still! not one measly convo, nothing! ................ .𝓌ₕᵧ

everyone in this show need a good sip of Self Worth and Stop Sacrificing Yourself juice 

ngl the sword flying looks very dumb 

“a-cheng, please bring a-xian back.” “i will, i promise.” ;-;

the whole calling each other by the More Intimate Version of the name, first as teasing and later as true intimacy. mmmhmmm yes

untamed where everythings the same but wwx evil flute song is eoeo

related that scene when wwx comes back from the burial mounds for the first time w demonic cultivation and he acts all formal and calls lwj hanguang-jun and keeps being evasive and distant and mean and soooooo................. facetious 

and how hes kind of desperately trying to keep intense lwj at bay (A FIRST) and avoiding actually talking to either of them and its all tension ughhh and then he MOCKS his and lwjs relationship, he jokes w him in this like... mean echo of their usual ~banter~ oof 

 and like!!! uncertain but so relieved jc who just HUGS him w no reservations for once and its not like he isnt just as worried as lwj abt wwx and what hes doing, but he chooses in that moment to enjoy getting him back first and mmhmMMMmMm yes (maybe my favorite scene in the whole show? MAYBE SO. ) 

highkey hurt me but also. i might be into mean wwx. i will take no criticism.

lan zhans sad eyes tho :((((((((( 

on one hand i wish we could have seen what happened at the burial mounds but on the other the timeskip adds so much flair to his return so im hnnn

also i love that hes been missing for 3 months reappears kinda melancholic and bloodthirsty and knowing malign tricks and jc is like 'so. are u sad bc of lan wangji'

when ur bae survived the war but he thinks ur evil/ might be evil so you cant kiss :///

hmmm talking at the rooftop under the moonlight not mentioning everything that stands between usssss

they are the two jades of lan and we’ll be the two heroes of yunmeng is the type of line u dont even need to know whats gonna happen to know thats gonna be sad

when they fight wen ruoshan at the nightless city i thought that was the battle we see at the first ep and its not and its so easy and theyre all like ‘yayy we won go wwx!’ i was just. SCREAMS WHAT is gonna HAPPEN

so like. post burial mounds/sunshot campaign pre yiling patriarch wwx is like. ultra arrogant, ultra mocking, peak lil shit and it gave me e v e r y t h i n g i wanted

even tho having the wen prisoners at the targets at phoenix mountain and still having wwx and jzx shooting the arrows was???? so.... tone deaf 

wwx: fucking w demonic energy   jyl: he has never done anything wrong in his life, ever <3 <3 (mood)

the parallels between meng yao/wei wuxian (and even xue yang a bit?) are Seen and they are Valid

wwx post burial mounds: can yall SHUT UP abt the goddamn sword (suibian left the chat)

LIKE truly, we talk abt the angst and yearning with wangxian. but what abt wwx and suibian. xianbian / xianqing angst and comfort 100k

take a shot everytime someone coughs up blood

zidian is simply the coolest spiritual weapon rip to suibian and chenqing and bichen and sendou and baixa........ but tis the truth 

cons: everyones families died in a nightmare war! everyones homes burned to the ground! everyone is traumatized! pros: everyone gets cooler clothes and weapons!!

wen ning and a-yuan and yanli bestest babes squad dont touch me rn

everyone: brooding and fighting                                                                wq and jyl: why dont you try some acupunture/drinking some soup and calm down huh? how abt that bitch?? 

showing the battle/massacre at the nightless city first was genius actually bc then everytime we have a cute scene w yunmeng bros and theyre like 'we'll be together forever! uwu' youre like oh. oh no. oh no no no. 

justice vs lawfulness vs means and ends 👁

jc: stay in the right path and practice the art of the sword                        wx: yeah thats not gonna happen chief

my reaction to wwx renouncing to the sect politics to help the wens was just that elmo burning gif in succession

the dramatic rain. wen qing desperately calling out to wen ning. the ghosts/puppets killing the guards. how terrifying wn actually was while wwx was controlling him :( lwj goeing after him to try and stop him and then he just; he Sees him and understands him even if he cant actually do anything about it other than let them go. 

“there must be somewhere in this earth we can go to :(((((((((”

"IF I HAVE TO FIGHT THEM, I'D RATHER IT BE YOU. DYING BY YOUR HANDS WOULD AT LEAST BE WORTH IT." oh my god oh my god oh my goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooddddddd

also lwjs umbrella is white w black smoke.. .  . nice

yiling patriarch / demonic farming burial mounds settlement is like one of my favorite concepts. they an "EVIL" FARMING COMMUNITY LED BY THE VILLAGE WITCH COME ON

they planted TURNIPS and LOTUS FLOWERS and ONE (1) baby and made lanterns and a common hall :(((((((

wen qing and wei wuxian, baddest bitches and genius science best friends i absolutely LOVED to see it. they rly went ‘is anyone gonna sibling/project partner that’ and didnt wait for an answer

both wwx and jyl getting lotus ponds at the burial mounds and in lanling bc they miss lotus pier ;;;;;;;w

;;;;; wish jyl had actually gone into the burial mounds. we were robbed of jyl and wq meeting again and jyl meeting a-yuan and seeing the settlement and the homes and all ;w; at least jc did go, stab wounds and broken arms and all

wwx like... having thrown his whole life away to help the wens (yeah the sect leaders and jin guangshan in particular wanting his stygian tiger amulet was an Element but still) and not.... necessarily regretting it, but grappling with all of the consequences of it... becoming moody and drepressed at times, missing his family and lotus pier and his friends and probably simply missing being around people and causing trouble, extrovert that he is, lashing out at the wens and at a-yuan, just in general the whole messiness of that experience

the way the resentful energy does affect his temperament is rly nice bc its not too in your face,(i mean outside of the Shaky Hands of Rage) but like he clearly has a much lesser control on his anger and impulsivity (tall order) than both before bm and after hes ressurected

on that note A-YUAN BABIEST BABY BOY BEST BOY

lan zhan being like oh hey there wei ying fancy meeting u and our son here. just passing by u know how it is hmmmmMm and then PLOT TWIST having defied orders to go see him and being punished for it. oof;;

 they habent seen each other in like? a year? and now theyre tgt 10 seconds and are already parenting a child together

also lwj rly kneels down in the snow way too much to be healthy

wwx: calm down guyssss i wont lose control of demonic cultivation omgggg  .   spoiler alert: he loses control of demonic cultivation

did u enjoy cute children? good bc now the Real Pain Begins

jiang yanli and jin zixuan rly out there APROPRIATING both disaster gays AND bury ur gays huh ;w;

i KNEW jin lings birthday was gonna fuck something up but the GASP that left my body when wwx lost control of wn and killed jin zixuan .. . . 

im sorry and thank you aaaaAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaAAAAaAAAAA 

when wen ning and wen qing were telling wwx their plan i was saying NO NO NO NO NO NO out loud in despair 

also can we talk abt how wq is definetely talking about only the both of them surrending themselves but then? everyone else just surrenders w them? IT MAKES NO SENSE LIKE WHY WOULD THEY what would be the Point

 sometimes there are some pretty gaping jumps in logic and continuity that are just like                     ?          ?

wwx: oh so when you try to murder me its justified but when i survive through dark magic and murder all of you its a "war crime"

unsurprisingly, his most feral, most spiraling moment talking to the sect leaders on the roof and attacking them and even fighting lan zhan is among my favorite scenes... its like, so painful to watch but also   so       thrilling   (and maybe my wen bbs dying arose some resentful energy in me what can i say) 

and its JUST, all they ever wanted was to do good but then... war. and trauma. and hubris. 

jiang cheng on the ground clearly thorn between what to do and feel is a Mood, lets just say

i was already crying when jyl showed up, but if i wasnt-

 i suffered SO MUCH through this series trying to figure out WHY jc would kill wwx. and when i understood. its somehow not as bad as i thought and also MUCH MUCH WORSE

a look into my group chat during the last flashback episodes:

SO ANYWAY. after the BLOOD BATH and RIPPING YOUR HEART OUT and FEEDING IT TO YOU  the untamed goes ‘ayy back to the present!! tu du dud ud du’ 

literally it ends a quarter into an episode and then KEEPS GOING i had to pause and stare blankly at the ceiling for an hour

babie cultivators and detective soulmates . i do need some cute after All of That 

(not that the pain is over LOL)

lwj is significantly less emotionally repressed in the present and its delightful. hes just ALL IN with wwx. and not just in the ‘i would and have killed various men and risked my reputation for you’ but also ‘ur tired here have a drink i brought it up cause i know u like it and it want you to be happy, always’

“when everyone praised me and wanted my power, you were the only one that challenged me. now that everyone hates me and wants me dead, youre the only one that stands by my side.” hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 

and just filling in the blanks how lan zhan searched for him. for all of those 16 years he searched for him and was punished for it and raised a-yuan, the only survivor of the burial mounds settlement, as his own in gusu......

and jiang cheng.  being the tough love uncle . having raised the yunmeng jiang clan from the rubble all alone, his whole family dead, some of it on the blame of his own brother, his siblings, his closest friends gone.......and only jin ling there needing his guidance. 

THE PARALLEL BETWEEN JIN LING BEING A LIFELINE FOR JIANG CHENG AND A-YUAN FOR LAN WANGJI AFTER THE BATTLE AT THE NIGHTLESS CITY  

great now i made myself sad

and like . the fact! that lwj and jc dislike each other!!. jc projects blame onto him for wwx both “leaving” him and indirectly causing their families deaths and when hes so consumed by it he makes wwx an enemy, lwj is there now? trying to protect him?? and lwj, who can never understand the pain that wwx , indirectly or not put jc through, but who was right there when jc tried to kill him and will never allow him to hurt wwx again. and how they like. in a way project blame of their tragedies onto each other while dealing with some type of survivor guilt and in their own way still loving wwx through it all???  amd in way its kind of fundamentally selfish but also tragically understandable? and like when u put it against the fact that after he disappears during the sunshot campaign they were looking for him together and fought together??

JUST. THE CHARACTERS. AND THE RELATIONSHIPS IN THIS. MAN. UGH. GOD. 

and like i think thats what makes it so good? its such a sad and painful and violent story, edgy even, but its compelling bc at the center of it there are all of these relationships and different types of love and hope and. :( i love it

enough crying lets talk abt wwx sleeping at the jingshi with lwj and wearing his under garment for a minute 🙏

 jin ling just has that Was Raised by JC energy tho lmao i love him

babie cultivator squad is the perfect ammount of cute and comedic relief while still bearing the weight? of the narrative in a way, both from sizhui and jin lings existences, and also. like. how do i put this. they feel hopeful? they were born after a war, they came of age at a time of relative peace, they dont hold on so closely to the resentments of their parents/father figures, they are specifically shown as more accepting and open minded. and its like.... Hope for the future  

one of the ?? things  i love the most is the fact that the main cast are often in situations where theyre hunted/running but they like. never wear disguises... just going around in their gorgeous expensive clan clothes and hair ornaments and distinctive spiritual weapons.... maybe w a straw hat on, just for kicks

wwx teacher 🥺🥺🥺

so this is why its called Yi City Misery huh

a-qing is such. an icon. im so sad. my girl even knew to leave xys dumb self rotting by the road but no one listens to her thats why theyre all dead or sad 

her and xue yang measuring each other up was so entertaining lmao

 its the funniest thing when hes like. HERES MY SAD STORY. FOR WHY IM A SADISTIC MURDERER. I BROKE MY HAND ONCE. 

like ok someone broke his hand in a horrible way, and like Poverty, i get it but also like.......... that lost the brunt of a proper sob story like, 50 sadistic murders ago bby

and i love that xingchen does not entertain that for a second hes like ‘not ?????? good enough???’ and the best thing is he wasnt even like 'u hadto be the bigger person' or sth but ' well then break that dudes hand back, rip his arm off for i care, what do the rest of us have to do w anything???” 

anjo sensato :(

xue yang is like..... the sexy sadistic evil version of a himbo..... a meanbo...

the fucked upness of xy’s feelings for xxc/ xxc and sl feelings for each other... like my dude literally gave his bf HIS EYES. and xy getting so attached to xxc .... the fucked up fake domesticity.... having him hurt sl..... then desperately trying to bring him back ...................... oof

song lan........... literally had his eyes AND tongue removed, his bfs eyes put in place, was almost killed, turned into a puppet by his bf unknowingly, manipulated by xy, sees his bf killing himself in despair.... and STILL finds the strenght to get up from there, and keep on traveling and helping people and attempting to fix xxcs soul.......... like, my man. damn. 

wangxian looking at songxiao and seeing an Actually more painful parallel for themselves. ft. that Color Coding. 

THE A-YUAN/SIZHUI REVEAL PUNCHED ME IN THE HEART but in a good way for a change

should have know that he would be the Best Boy the cute one w all the braincells

the butterfly AND the bunny lantern. i see how it is

u know is very convenient that no one can see the stark black veins on wen nings neck, ever 

BAT WEN NING 

wns face when lwj comes into wwx room like ‘:0 omg did u two finally get your shit together? good for you master wei good for u’ 

(they didnt) (yet)

DISASTER DRUNK LWJ. JUST. THRUST SOME CHICKENS TO SHOW UR RESSURECTED BAE THAT U LOVE THEM.

i have absolutely no idea WHY they gave lwj the same punishment for fighting his own sect/allies to protect the burial mounds as when they got drunk on cloud recess class days.... like? its such a ... emotional continuity error again

also is lwj gonna get an actual friend besides wwx , ever

mianmian marrying and having a family and a cute life after saying FUCK U AND UR SYSTEM TOO in a much less unhinged and dramatic way than wwx......... fills me w joy

also lol the idea that like. her husband not knowing that shes friends w satan/the boogey man/the village witch is hilarious

i love nie mingjue bc hes the resident Though Guy but also the most dramatic bitch in this show and thats Saying Something

jin ling cant have one uneventful relative can he

the fact that everyone present already knew “mo xuanyu” was wwx at the stairs is so funny, their faces are like ‘oh............ wow. that. sure is a development. shock” 

in the tradition of extremely loud whispers wwx tells lwj with twelve guards standing like one meter away from them: HEY PSH LAN ZHAN PRETEND IM FORCING YOU TO STAY W ME DO IT

oh my god oh my god

the absolute Yearning on his face when he leaves wwx and a-yuan at the burial mounds and refuses to stay for dinner was already Enough but the fact?? they brought it back?? to this declaration of love?? their expressions??????? strike me dead right now just go ahead

lFor Legal Reasons We Cant Kiss but we will have a very sappy declaration of love and trust and look at each other in way that is the actualization of 💞💘💗💖💓💘💞💗💖💘💗💖💕💞

also icb all the sect leaders and guards are standing there watching them say they like like each other with a dozen swords pointing at their neck

i enjoyed the depiction of the fickle public perception and how easily it can be used to scapegoat people. when the sect leaders turn on jgy and wwx knows thats its more for convenience than anything else...

poor lxc is literally like 'oh so when YOUR problematic boyfriend gets called evil its a misunderstanding but when its MY problematic bf-'

ok like i cant get over nmj let jgy play a song that messed with his temperament at all, like maN u KNEW he might be shady wth

wwx: “hey dont say anything bad abt lan zhan hes not an arrogant dick, thats just his face. 

ME ON THE OTHER HAND"

the cultivators as wwx is poking holes in their narrative is literally *nazaré meme*

"wei wuxian-!" "what did i break your leg, too?" not to be problematic but i laughed so hard

not as hard as "you dont have the rank to talk to me " tho

i Enjoy that, over the course of story, wwx sees that... theres nothing truly to Do, but move on. he saw how his arrogance and his mistakes hurt others, and hes trying to fix what he can, but he already did die for his mistakes and there are things he cant fix and that's. just how it is. even towards jgy, the narrative doesn't go gleefully and completely with "lets make THEM pay bc theyre the big bad" bc its not that simple, and it wouldn't lead anywhere but more pain...

re him and jiang cheng and the wens and kinda. isnt that what nhs did? scheming to displace jgy out of revenge more than any justice and doing so in the most painful way?

idk if that actually makes sense im truly just babbling

i thought the scene at the lotus pond would be CUTE but the context was PAIN again

jiang cheng finding out about his golden core and his conflict with wwx at the guanyin temple .... destroyed me but in a nice way kinda.... same way it destroys him look at his face oh god

and. the fact??? he sacrificed himself for wwx?? first?? and he'll probably never tell anyone much less wwx???? keeps me up at night

i havent decided if the neckbreak transition between jgy does sth super Evil or does he he does OR Does He yes he does O R does heeeee is sth i dislike or not

jin guangyao and wei wuxians most interesting parallel is that... theyve both seen 'hmm hey this system is fucked up' and wwx went 'so fuck it all i will renounce it and challenge it' and jgy went 'so fuck it i will use all of it to my advantage and manipulate it to my goals and whims'

the fact jgys mom was actually great and he loved her and his whole issue w it was more than simply being ashamed of being a bastard kinda got me ngl

never trust a dude with a fan.

nhs and jgy: the first rule to a convoluted and decades spanning violent revenge plot is to have fun and be yourself! 

when a-yuan finally FINALLY remembers ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;-;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; wen ning has someone in his family back and a-yuan has someone to talk abt his wen family and wwx has him back bc he survived and lwj raised him anD HES THEIR SON. THEYRE MARRIED AND HAVE A SON. UGH.

and theyre allowed to heal. everyone is allowed to try and recover and be happy

netflix put all of the 3 endings on top of each other and it looks kinda weird actually BUT I DONT EVEN MIND :’’’’’’’’’)

the gasp that left me when lwj says ‘wei ying’ and wwx turns.........

there was also a screen with ‘thank you mxtx for creating these characters, we hope their wishes come true’ and i might. have cried then too. maybe. 

that was . a ride. as is proven by this behemot of a ramble clearly i just really needed and Outlet. i am currently trying to convince dumb monkey brain to not consume the other medias of mdzs immediately bc i REALLY need to like. live. a life. and take care of real responsibilities.  *longest oh boi ever*

[siempre-pedro]

Silver & Gold

Pedro Pascal x Reader 

Summary: It’s all fun and games until someone pins the other against a table and starts something they can’t finish at the SAG Awards

Warnings: Light Smut, endless sexual tension 

Word Count: 1.6k

A/N: Let’s add this to my repertoire of award show-themed smuts. I’m still really rusty forgive me. 

The afternoon of the SAG Awards was a blur, not because of the stylists or hair and makeup people buzzing around your room but the game Pedro decided to start when you woke up. Your phone blew up with congratulations and good luck messages and one photo of your boyfriend in his favorite Hugo Boss underwear…and nothing else.

So ensued the back and forth sending of scantily clad photos and cheeky messages. “Mi Amor, you are the death of me,” he tells you over the phone before your people arrived to get you ready. You bite your finger and grin, closing your legs.  His voice was low and husky and god did that send you over the edge.  

“When does the game end Pedro?” you ask twirling the ribbon of your silk bathrobe.

There’s a brief pause followed by a low chuckle on his end “Oh don’t know, whoever caves first?” he teases.

You laugh and lean against the cold cream-colored wall “In front of all those people? Pedro, I didn’t take you for that kind of guy,” you mock.

“I’ll stop when you stop.” You didn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. After you two hung up you documented and posted everything, and when no one was watching you let your robe slip off your shoulder and your chest just enough to get the idea, quickly snapping a photo to send to him before anyone could notice.

On the other end, Pedro hid his phone as he opened the photos from you, his pants becoming a little bit tighter with each one. Since for him getting ready for him was easy he opted to write out his thoughts ‘Jesus fucking Christ, Y/N? Do they see you doing that? If only they could see what I’m going to do to you later, their blushes will be redder than your ass.’

On the carpet, you did your best to keep it pg. Your dress was enough to let his imagination wander, it was a strappy long gold sequin dress with a plunging neckline and back. You didn’t tell him about it for a reason. You walked the confidence, your head held high and smiling towards the bright cameras, inching your way to Pedro who was almost nearly done.

When the actor heard the fans yell your name his head whips over and see your figure. His brown eyes blown with lust as he looked at you up and down. Your skin was glowing, and your gown was absolutely stunning. You glance over at him and wink before turning your attention to the cameras. He took it upon himself to come to you, concealing the lovesick puppy look. You turn to him like you were just friends, embracing him like you haven’t been sending nudes to each other all morning.

“Silver,” you comment with a smile as he pulls away.

“Gold,” he says shakily, his eyes trailing down to your almost bare chest, the thin spaghetti straps lying delicately on your collar bones. Your breathing made your chest rise and fall, the ungodly amount of gold highlighter you begged your makeup artist to apply sparkling in the sun. His eyes stared for a moment too long before you coughed and reminded him where you were “Do you think they noticed?” he asked between gritted teeth.

“Let’s hope not, babe. We should go, it’s going to start soon.”

It felt good to have the upper hand, he was a mess as he sat behind you in the building. You sat there amused next to your costar, chatting about the a-listers at the tables. Pedro sat there and listened to your every word, mind wandering back to the photos still saved on his phone. As he watched you, the strap of your dress slowly started to fall down your shoulder. He could only imagine ripping the whole thing off of you starting with that damned strap. Pinning you against the wall with his hand around your throat, leg in between your thighs and lips on your bare flesh. The man's legs spread a little wider, his erection rubbing against the fabric of his dress pants uncomfortably. He suddenly lunges forward and pulls up your strap, earning the attention of you and your costar. She didn’t notice the desperate look on his face but you did.

You turn around a little farther and watch him sit back in his seat, you put your hands on the back of the chair and rest your chin on your knuckles “Aww,” you pout, your eyes as wide like a doe’s “pobrecito,” you whine at him. Poor thing. Pedro took a deep breath and bit his lip, his eyebrows lowered in annoyance. He lowkey had a kink for you speaking Spanish to him.

You didn’t have that upper hand for long when Pedro got up on that stage to present, he pulled a trick out of his sleeve. It wasn’t much or too obvious, it was a wink. A wink in your direction in front of the acting elite and millions of viewers. Following that wink, he rubbed his upper thigh slowly with his fingers spread. Sure, it looked like he was smoothing out his pants, but it meant so much more. Your favorite thing to do was ride his thigh, it was the best way for him to pay attention to your and your sexual needs. You would gently ride him while he read a script, thinking nothing of it until he would throw said script to the side and grip your hips.

Fuck this guy. Fuck him. Fuck him for making you soaking wet in your seat, your clit dying to be touched by his fingers. You rose from your seat, knowing it was your turn to present after the commercial break. You rushed past the stagehands and lifted your skirt, dodging all the obstacles in your way. A woman on a mission you were. He noticed the clacking of your heels, his hands stuffed in his pockets as you made your way to him.

Pedro pulls out one of his hands and as you approached he puts in on your lower back, his hip bone purposely touching yours, making you stop walking “Oh pobrecita,” he growls in your ear, mocking your words from earlier. His fingers were trailing down your spine, sending a cold shiver throughout your body.

“Want to call it quits?” you ask him.

“But we’re having too much fun,” he chuckles, removing your hand from your back. Before you could protest you were whisked away on stage to present the next award. Keeping your thinning composure you came back to find your boyfriend leaning on the wall next to a supply closet. “You were excellent.”

You smirked and cocked your head to the side “Empty?” you ask, manicured finger pointed towards the door. His eyes look side to side before nodding slowly, you grin and made sure the coast was clear before being pulled inside.

Pedro grabbed you by the waist and hoisted you up on a nearly empty wood desk, pushing the extension cords to the ground so he could put his hands on either side of you. Once the door was locked you grabbed his lapel and pulled him in for a heated kiss. His strong hand wrapped in your Y/H/C hair and the other sliding up your leg. You instinctively pushed the silver jacket off him and let it fall to the floor, before you could mess with the buttons of his shirt Pedro forced your strap down and connected his lips with the soft skin of your breast. “Pedro,” you moan softly, moving your chest forward.

“You’re such a fucking tease,” he growls as his finger slips into your panties and onto your throbbing clit. You gasp and thrust your hips into his touch, gripping his shirt tightly.

“You started it,” you breathe, your head thrown back in pleasure. His fingers make swift circles, his knee forcing your legs to stay open.

“Where’s my good girl? Keep your legs open,” he commands, his lips sucking on your neck, nipping gently at the soft skin. You move your head and look down at him, fuck this was a sight to see. Pedro’s dark hair disheveled and his hand working its magic in between your legs. Your legs were nearly shaking, you take your hand and pull his hair, dethatching his teeth from your skin. His brown eyes looking up at you with such need, his soft lips turned up into a smirk.

“We don’t have long, please Pedro, I need more,” you beg him. He rolls his eyes playfully and slowly starts to sink to his knees, pulling your dress up higher with his free hand. As he starts to come closer to your core you hear PA’s and producers calling for you from outside the door. Pedro quickly moves and stands on his feet.

You jump down and start to readjust your dress in a panic “I look ok?” you whisper. He nods and hides behind the door so that no one would see him. You nod and pull open the door, your hands come up to your lear like you had lost your earring. “Sorry, I lost my earring. Tiffany would have a fit,” you laugh nervously.

The producer sighed in relief and pushed you towards the stage where you saw your costars and creator “We won?” you ask your friend. The woman looks at you and starts to laugh.

“Yeah and you got lucky,” she tells you and winks. You blush madly and look behind you into the wing. Pedro stands at the side clapping for you, his hair still disheveled and his shirt a wrinkled mess. Game over.

[kayte-overmoon]

"Slow Cherry" Chapter 4

(cross-posted on AO3)

Tags: Mild Depressive Episode, Drinking (everyone is of age; no alcohol abuse), drunk texting, accidental face reveal

Snippet: A soft laugh drifted over the line. “Are you still drunk, Dream?”

He hummed. “Maybe a little.”

“You’re a mess, Dream.”

“Yeah, I know. Thanks for putting up with me.”

“Anytime, love.”

Read Chapter 1 Here

Read Chapter 2 Here

Read Chapter 3 Here

No sexual content in this chapter.

Dream spent the next few weeks losing himself in his schoolwork.

Every time he closed his eyes, he thought of George, heard his voice, saw his smile. It was wreaking havoc on his attention span. His feelings toward the older man were confusing to say the least. It was easier to hyperfixate on school than to try and sort out why he felt this way about a man he’d never even met face-to-face.

Knowing they were only a few short weeks away from living not only in the same country, but the same city made it very, very hard to think about anything else.

Luckily, he had a hardcore coding assignment coming up, so he locked himself in his bedroom with the lights off and drowned himself in Python.

Sapnap noticed something was off and made sure to text Dream whenever he got food (conveniently always with a little more than one person could eat alone). On the rare occasions Dream emerged from his cave, Sapnap looked at him with concern written in every corner of his face, but he didn’t ask what was wrong. He just pushed a bottle of water or a granola bar across the counter to him and told him he looked like shit.

Dream was sure he was right. It was winter, so he hadn’t properly been in the sun in months—for a Florida boy, that was too long. He’d skipped a few showers, and the only time he’d eaten was when Sapnap made sure he did. He shuffled into the bathroom to scrutinize himself under the fluorescents. He squinted in the bright light, so used to the darkness of his room. His hair was a mess, several days overdue for a wash and unbrushed for longer than Dream could remember. He also needed to shave, not liking the scratchy growth around his jaw. There were dark circles around his blood-shot eyes and his skin was paler than it had been in years. He scoffed at himself before stripping and jumping in the shower.

The hot water burned his skin, but it was a religious experience. He hadn’t realized how far he’d pushed himself and how deep he’d let himself fall until it was over. His last final was the next morning, so he was almost done. Thank God.

As it usually did when he had a free moment, his mind strayed to George.

They had still been snapping back and forth, which soothed some of the ache. But it felt like he was looking down the barrel of addiction: he knew that taking one more hit, one more drink, would land him far beyond his limit, pushing him past the fabled Point of No Return. He considered ghosting George, but just thinking about that made his stomach turn. Sex workers got enough shit as it was without their clients pushing boundaries, trying to make something real out of their arrangements, or dropping them outright without warning.

Dream was so fucking pathetic.

He emerged from his shower scrubbed raw, physically and emotionally. He didn’t feel great in his head still, but at least he didn’t stink. He brushed his teeth to cover all his hygienic basics, put on a clean pair of pajamas, and went to bed.

And just like that his semester was over. He did well on his final—not as well as he’d hoped, considering how much time he’d spent studying, but well enough to stay on track to graduation.

He emerged from his final to find a snap from George waiting for him on his phone.

The older man was sitting on his bed, throwing a peace sign to the camera with a huge, cheesy grin. There were boxes stacked around the bed, the only thing left in the room being his bed.

Good luck on your final! Getting ready to put my stuff in the shipping container. Only a few more days.

Despite himself, Dream smiled at the message.

Dream and Sapnap celebrated the end of the semester that night in the only way college kids knew how: by buying as much beer as they could afford and inviting over as many people as they could fit into their apartment. Someone connected their phone to the sound system in the living room, blasting hip hop music over the subwoofer. Dream knew they were going to get a noise complaint from their neighbors, but he was too excited—and drunk—to care.

He got a few drinks in him and danced when he was pulled from the couch. Faces blurred before him, but he knew almost everybody there, so he didn’t mind whenever someone pressed up against him. Someone else pressed another beer into his hands. He was sweating, the heat in the apartment still fighting the December cold even with a few dozen people packed into the cramped space. His jacket came off at some point, so he was only in his beer-stained t-shirt and jeans.

He could happily say he had nothing on his mind. He was just happy, done with school for the next month and surrounded by his favorite people in the world.

But not his favorite person in the world.

No, that person wasn’t here.

He stumbled to the bathroom at one point to piss, wobbling a little and struggling to aim. He washed his hands and stared at himself in the mirror. He looked much different than he had the previous night: he was flushed from the alcohol and dancing, for one, but he also felt lighter. Maybe it was the beer talking, but he felt good. He always liked life better when he wasn’t in school. And that message from George made him so, so happy.

Only a few more days.

George.

Just thinking about him made Dream smile.

He pulled out his phone just to look at the photo, which he’d screenshotted. They’d agreed they could save anything they sent each other except for nudes, which they had to get permission to keep. But innocent little messages like that one were free game. Dream was thankful for that, since it let him get a fix whenever he needed it. He found himself pulling out his phone to look at pictures of his camboy whenever he had a free moment to twiddle his thumbs.

He wrote a message to George, not really paying attention to what he said. Mainly he just wanted George to think of him while Dream was thinking of George. He sent the message and pocketed his phone. The music became unmuffled as he opened the bathroom door and someone immediately grabbed him and pulled him back into the fray.

Dream had… many regrets come morning.

Before he even opened his eyes, he knew how much of a doozy this hangover was. His head was pounding with the beat of his heart, his mouth felt packed with sand, and his stomach was turning. He felt like he needed to puke, but he was too numb to get up. Besides, he had a feeling he’d only end up dry heaving.

He scrubbed a hand over his eyes, debating going back to sleep. Something on the bed shifted next to him (much bigger than Patches), alerting him to the fact that he wasn’t alone.

After some coaxing, he squinted his eyes open and blinked against the scarce light peeking around the curtains—it wasn’t much light, but it was enough to make him want to die. He turned to see someone’s back facing him in the bed, a dude. Dream sent up a silent prayer of thanks that both the dude and Dream himself were fully clothed. He levered himself onto an elbow to see who was next to him. It was Skeppy, of all people, and he wasn't alone. Puffy was there too, curled up against Skeppy’s chest at the edge of the bed. Dream had no clue how neither of them had fallen off yet, so tightly wound together on the ledge. But they were there, snoozing happily.

Someone was snoring, but it wasn’t either of them. Dream sat up further and poked his head around to find Bad sprawled on the floor beside the bed. It seemed he’d wanted to get in with Skeppy and Puffy, but there hadn’t been enough room with Dream there as well. Skeppy’s hand was dangling off the side of the bed where Bad was; they must have fallen asleep holding hands. Despite his head and his stomach trying to remove themselves from his body, Dream smiled. They were all so sweet together.

He extracted himself from the bed slowly, not wanting to disturb them, and grabbed his phone charger from the power strip at his desk. He slipped into the bathroom and closed the door behind himself carefully. His phone was dead in his pocket, so he plugged it in at the bathroom counter as he set about cleaning himself up. He contemplated trying to throw up but decided against it. It might only make him even more sick. He washed his face and brushed his teeth. He definitely needed a shower and a change of clothes, but he didn’t have the energy for it yet.

A soft ding told him his phone was back on. He dried off his hands and picked it up. He had a couple of missed notifications. Karl left one saying he was taking Sapnap back to his place because someone had already taken Sapnap’s room. There was one from his next-door neighbor asking him to turn the music down or they would call the cops. Dream assumed that was a bluff, considering he didn’t remember the cops showing up at any point.

The last notification caught his eye.

It was a Snapchat message from George, received around 3 a.m.

Dream, call me when you get this. I don’t think you meant to send that. I need to talk to you.

Dream’s heart sunk.

What had he sent George? Had he drunk texted him? What had he said?

Oh God, he hadn't told him anything... incriminating, right? Had he said anything about wanting to be more than a sugar daddy, a friend with benefits, a casual observer?

There wasn’t anything saved in their chats above George’s most recent messages. The last message before that was Dream’s response to George’s “good luck with finals” message.

Wait. No it wasn’t.

The time stamp was wrong.

Dream had sent George a picture around 2:30 last night, when he was several drinks deep. He remembered going to the bathroom and texting George, but he couldn’t remember what he’d said no matter how hard he’d tried. He thought it had been a typed message in chat, not a picture.

Maybe he’d sent a dick pic? He hoped not. He had been too drunk to get it up at that point. If that’s what it was, it had to be horribly unflattering. And if not a dick pic, what had he taken a picture of?

His blood ran cold.

He was hitting the “call” button before he could overthink it.

George answered a few rings later. “Dream?”

“What did I send?” His voice was rough. He was trying to keep quiet so he didn’t bother his guests, and his mouth was dry even after brushing his teeth. He sounded like shit.

George sounded uncomfortable when he spoke. “Dream, I’m sorry. I don’t think you meant to—“

“What did I send, George?”

He knew the answer in the silence before George spoke. His stomach dropped when he said it anyway. “You—you sent me a picture of your face.”

Dream hung his head. Perfect. Of course. He’d had grand plans to pick George up from the airport and reveal his face then, or he’d at least make it sexy over their video calls or something. He wanted to make it a spectacle. Instead he’d drunk texted him a selfie.

“It wasn’t bad,” George tried to reassure him. “I couldn’t see it too clearly anyway. It was in the mirror, and you were very drunk. You were a little blurry.”

“What was I doing?”

“You were, like, leaning on the counter. You were smiling. You had a, uh…”

Dream frowned harder. “I had a what?”

“You had—have—a hickey on your neck.”

“What?” Dream stood up straight and pulled the collar of his shirt. Sure enough, there was a dark red mark on his neck, barely hidden by his shirt. “Huh. How the hell did that get there?”

George snorted. “Sounds like you had a fun night.” There was something bitter in his tone.

Dream scrambled for a response that wouldn't put him in the metaphorical dog house. “I don’t—I didn’t sleep with anyone. I would know. It just—my friends are super touchy. One of them probably did it while we were dancing.”

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me, Dream,” George said softly. “I’m a big boy. I know I’m not the only person in your life.”

“I do have to explain myself, though.” Dream ran his hand through his hair. “I care what you think about me. I don’t want you to think I sleep around. I don’t. Not really. Not anymore, at least. And I wanted to surprise you when you saw my face. I wanted it to be a thing.”

“Dream, calm down.” There was something calming about the British man’s voice, especially when he used that tone, like he was soothing a spooked animal. Which, for all intents and purposes, Dream was. “It’s okay. I’m not upset. I was just worried about you. I know it’s a thing for you, people seeing your face.”

“Oh.” Dream’s heart was thundering in his chest. It was making his head throb harder, but he didn’t particularly care at that moment. “Thank you. That’s—you’re really considerate. And did you—I mean, did…”

“You’re very handsome, Dream.”

Dream was dumbfounded. That wasn’t what he was going to ask, but he’s glad George said it. He wasn’t really concerned about that particular aspect of this whole ordeal, but it was nice to know. “Oh. Thanks. That’s… you too. I mean, I think you’re—fuck.”

George’s laugh echoed across the line, settling Dream’s frazzled nerves. “I know, honey. You’ve told me before. But let's continue this conversation when you’re not so hungover, yeah?”

Dream hummed in agreement. “You can tell?”

“You were sloshed last night. I could tell just by looking at you. Partied hard, hmm?”

Dream snorted. “Just a little. I don't even want to see the state of my living room right now. And there’s, like, two-thirds of a thruple in my bed right now.”

“Oh?” Amusement and interest tinged the older man’s voice.

“No, not like that,” Dream laughed. “They passed out in there. Their third is on the floor. They’re good friends of mine. No clue when we all fell asleep though.”

“Sounds like you need to get started making coffee for everyone, then. Be a good host.”

“Probably. I thought about ordering pizza. I have no clue how many people stayed over though.”

“Celebrating the end of term, then?”

A yawn worked its way out of Dream. “Yeah,” he said. “We all finished up yesterday so we just bought a bunch of beer and invited folks over.”

“Sounds fun.”

“We’ll invite you next time,” Dream said, his tongue loose from his hangover. Oh well. “I think you’d like my friends. They’re all… absolutely insane. But they’re the coolest, nicest people you’ll ever meet.”

A soft laugh drifted over the line. “Are you still drunk, Dream?”

He hummed. “Maybe a little.”

“You’re a mess, Dream.”

“Yeah, I know. Thanks for putting up with me.”

“Anytime, love.”

Previous Chapter

Next Chapter

[allegra-writes]

The Intervention

Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

General audiences

Warnings: none

The Request:

Peter and Reader hanging out at the compound. They fall asleep together and Tony finds them. They insist they are just friends but have feelings for each other, even if themselves don't know it yet.

Tony ships it.

For @sovereignparker

MY MASTERLIST

Tony Stark was at his wits end.

He, who had built the first iron man prototype in a cave, invented time travel, and pretty much single handedly defeated Thanos and his army, didn't know what to do. And it was all your fault. Well, yours and Peter's, actually.

At first it had been… kind of cute. Endearing. The way you both were so obvious yet so oblivious. You and Peter had grown really close after the blip, a little too close, in fact: Always hanging out together, watching movies or playing video games, or just doing nothing. Tony had never seen Peter spend that much time at the compound before. And he was sure you definitely didn't use to hang at the lab so much before either. 

Then had came the most noticeable signs, like you wearing Peter's hoodies and Peter sporting one of your hair ties on his wrist. Peter's ringtone for you was "Uptown girl" for fucks sake! (some stupid punk-pop cover, cause his protegee had no taste apparently).

It had all reached its zenith during that mission in Bahrain, where the enemy had managed to land a solid one on the quinjet and the whole team had been stuck on land for the night. They had been forced to pile up in this cheap hostel, all six in the same room. And there were enough beds for everybody but you and Peter had started fighting over the top bed of the bunk and it had been vicious. Until you both had agreed to share it, that was. 

Every single one of the Avengers had been convinced you guys were a couple after that, including Tony. But the thing was, Peter Parker was shit at lying. And he insisted you and him were just friends, and he did look like he was telling the truth. So Tony had started looking through the security cameras, watching hours and hours of footage of Peter and you together. Pepper had scolded him, telling him what a horrible invasion of his firstborn's privacy it was, but the thing was there was nothing private there: No making out, no pda, NOTHING. Not even pecks on cheeks or hand holding. 

So he had resigned to the fact that you and underoos were completely platonic. 

Strangely enough, he had felt… disappointed.

"That's not strange at all, Tony. You love Peter like a son. Y/n dating him would be the perfect way for him to officially become a part of this family" Damn Pepper and her way to psychoanalyze him.

"Yeah well, apparently, when I wanna do that," Pepper raised an eyebrow at his husband's use of 'when', not 'if', "I'm going to have to adopt him. Cause I have to do everything in this house!"

The redhead rolled her eyes and went back to her book, leaving Tony to his brooding, blissfully ignorant to the ideas already taking shape in the billionaire's mind. 

But for the first time in his life, nothing Tony did seemed to work. He had tried sending you notes from a secret admirer, but you knew Peter's handwriting. He had tried pairing you both at galas and balls, but you both had disappeared with Harley and that crazy socialite Kate Bishop for an impromptu shooting competition. He had even tried locking the both of you in a closet, but since the vulture guy incident Peter had developed claustrophobia and a panic attack wasn't very inducive to romance. Steve had drawn the line at sending you undercover as a couple on a fake mission. 

"He just doesn't want to lose the bet" Clint had told him. Tony was too afraid to ask.

That's why he wasn't even surprised to find the both of you, asleep together on the couch that sunday morning. Oh no, what he was, was completely fed up. He walked past you, straight into the kitchen where the rest of the team was having breakfast, like a man on a mission, standing in front of the coffee maker, capturing every one's attention. He turned around, meeting Rodhey's eye. 

"It's time"

That was all he had to say for the Avengers to leave their plates and cups where they were and stand up, following the man of iron back into the living room. They formed a semicircle in front of the couch, with Tony standing tall (or as tall as a man who was 5'7 could stand while surrounded by gods and giants and supersoldiers) and assertive in the middle. 

Peter's tingle must have sense something was amiss because the boy immediately stirred.

"Oh, hey, mister Stark" He greeted, rubbing his eyes, voice hoarse from sleep and low, obviously trying not to disturb you, "sorry, we must've fallen asleep watching the movie.."

"Cut the bullshit, kid" Tony interrupted, unsmiling and straight to business, "this is an intervention"

"Wh-what?"

"We care about you and y/n very much," Clint continued, not giving him time to react, "but we can't go on like this any longer"

"This situation is hurting all of us, especially yourself, kid" Cap took over. Whatever this thing was, they had obviously rehearsed it, "There comes a time in every boy's life when he has to stand and take responsibility of his feelings like a man"

"So this is us, giving you an ultimatum," Bruce chimed in, "either you tell y/n how you feel…"

"Or we do" Thor finished. 

What. In the everloving. Fuck? 

"Guys, we're not… it's not… I-I'm not" Peter sputtered helplessly, very aware of what a light sleeper you were and how awkward things between you could turn if you heard this conversation. You were even shier than he was, even though you hid it better, and he didn't want anything to ruin your friendship, you were too precious to him. "I am not in love with y/n!" He whisper-yelled at last.

Tony crossed his arms, turning defensive.

"Why not? Is my daughter not good enough for the amazing Spider-Man?"

"What? No- I mean yes, I mean…" Peter sighed, rubbing his face with the hand not wrapped around you, still keeping you close to his chest throughout that whole… intervention debacle, "Your daughter is brilliant, and kind and amazing, and with all do respect mister Stark, she… well, she's hot! But not like in an objectifying kind of way, more in a she's really beautiful and I'm not blind kind of way and I don't care what the press says she is perfect and any body who can't see it is either blind or an idiot. If anything, I am not enough for her, but even so, I still want to be by her side because she's… because I…" Peter's rambling came to a halt, the boys eyes opening wide in horrified realization, "... Oh my god, holly shit, I'm in love with her, aren't I?!" 

A chorus of "finally" and "duh!" and "it was about god damned time" filled the living room, as Tony repressed the urge to roll his eyes and instead smiled kindly at the teenager holding his older daughter in his arms. He used to think that the day he saw something like that he would have felt dread, or anger, or at the very least protectiveness. But he felt nothing of the sort: he felt… calmed. He knew you were in good hands. Maybe that was what was making the difference. 

He patted the boy on the shoulder,

"Glad we could have this talk, underoos. Come on, team, I feel like getting donuts for breakfast. To celebrate, you know? Let's go get the jet!"

The room got emptied as quick as it had been occupied, leaving Peter stunned, his head a whirlwind of emotions. He was in love. With his best friend. With the most perfect girl he had ever seen.

With a girl in fact so perfect, so out of his league, he might as well have been playing a different sport. 

His heart sank into his stomach, killing most of the butterflies nesting there, and severely maiming the rest. He was screwed. There was no way you would like him back, just… none. He looked down, maybe your peaceful sleeping face could bring some calm to his disturbed brain, you usually had a soothing effect on his nerves.

But your face wasn't peaceful, or sleeping. No, you were looking back at him with a thousand different emotions flickering behind those pretty doe eyes of yours.

He closed his eyes, as if that alone could deny the reality of that moment, the moment his world was sure to fall apart.

"You heard all of that, didn't you?" 

"Yeah," You murmured, voice catching slightly in your throat, "yeah I did"

"Great. Awesome" he pinched the bridge of his nose with his free hand. He didn't want to ask this, he really didn't. But he had to know the answer. "Now what?"

Frozen in place, he felt you crawl over his body, until you were nose to nose with him.

"Now? I think now… we kiss" You breathed against his lips.

His heart skipped a beat. Right before starting running, galloping wildly, like an untamed horse.

Yeah, he liked that idea...

The end.

[taliaquinn]

Why Me!? Chapter 16

A/N: Hey peeps, I hope you guys enjoy today's update. I hope you guys like the fact that I uploaded so soon. Also I have a lot of oneshot ideas however the tricky part is actually WRITING. Who knew am I right? 

“Kaalki quick open a portal to that old alley, It’s better to transform there, Tikki you can finish Game of Thrones later” Marinette ordered a previously napping Kaalki, while pulling out a miffed Tikki from her mini-room in the closet. Tikki was almost done with the first season of Game Of Throne. The only reason it was taking so long was mostly that she had to watch it whenever Marinette wasn’t around due to uh reasons.

“Priorities much?” Marinette teased, quickly making a fake sleeping Marinette on her bed in case someone checked on her.

She quickly leaped through the portal, after appearing in some Paris alley she quickly ducked behind the dumpster and transformed into Ladybug, and made her way to the Attack.

To no one's surprise she was facing off with Lady Wifi again. Except for this time she was busy tracking down her ex-boyfriend Nino who had broken up with her over text. Ouch. Good for him regardless. The darker part of Marinette was pleased. He came to his senses. Finally. 

Unfortunately for her Lady Wifi was pissed, which made taking her down harder. She had to leave to recharge, Chat showed up during the last few moments but still proved himself useless by getting frozen by Lady-wifi somehow. Luckily Ladybug was sadly used to this and left him frozen. 

Quickly ducking to the side she delivered a blow to Alyas' side. Throwing her yo-yo she managed to tangle Lady Wifis legs, causing her to drop her phone. Ladybug quickly scooped it up to destroy. Seriously, what was it with this girl and her obsession with phones? 

Purifying the Akuma, she used the Miraculous Ladybug to instantly repair all the damage. Releasing a heavy sigh she turned to face her ex-best friend. To her disgust she was facing a pouting Alya and a smiling Chat. 

The instant that Alya saw Ladybug she immediately stood up and ran towards her, 

“Oh my gosh Ladybug thank you for saving me, I don't know what Nino was thinking breaking up with me like that, he KNOWS how mad I get” she said huffing out a laugh. 

Oh. my. god. She was trying to make it seem like Nino was at fault! Marinette was furious. She was acting just like Chat!!! Marinette is going to need so much therapy after all of this is done.

“Alya, you need to apologize to Nino,” she finally told her. “and afterward leave him alone, you have to respect his decision and space.” She added. They might not be friends anymore but that didn’t mean that Marinette didn't care about Nino. 

“L-L-Ladybug, you don’t get it, he broke up with me for no good reas-”

“It was a good enough reason that he felt the need to do it through a text” gesturing towards Nino's home she added “and as it turns out he was right to do so”

Alya huffed, “You just don't understand Ladybug”. She moved away from her and took out her phone to begin live streaming. 

She made her way towards Chat noir who was standing on the side watching the whole exchange a bit nervous. “Chat Noir, Are you aware of a certain girl named Marinette who got caught on camera criticizing you, when she had no right to mind you, about your most recent actions?. Do you have anything to say in response to it?” She asked pointing her phone camera in his direction. 

Chat Noir immediately leaped at the chance to defend himself.

“W-well like you said she had no right, what could she know about the struggles of being a superhero, heck I even had to save her a couple of times and that’s how she thanks me?’ He mentioned facing Alyas' camera. “Honestly I think she’s just jealous and mine and m’lady's partnership, but what can you do am I right?” he teased.

“What partnership chat?” Ladybug cut in. No way was she letting rumors spread when she was standing right there. 

“M'lady's just jealous as well,” Chat said with a wink

“Oh for Pete's sake” Ladybug pulled Chat away from Alyas prying eyes (and cellphone) and yo-yo away without a goodbye to the blogger.

A few rooftops away she finally plopped down and released Chat none too gracefully. The look on Chat noirs face wasn’t the charming one he was displaying for Alya and her Camera, he had the nerve to look annoyed.

“What was that?” He spit out

“What was what hmmm?” Oh she was annoyed now too.

“Al-that Cesaire girl has been your biggest supporter since Day One. You just don’t know what's going on with that Cesaire girl”

“I do, her boyfriend broke up with her because he was involved in an extremely toxic relationship” She stated, “I have to make sure she understands that, she’s trying to shift the blame!!!” 

“And what was that about our partnership, you sounded like you agreed with that Dupain-Cheng girl” He complained annoyed “That's cause I do”

“WHAT!?”

“You said it yourself Marinette could never understand the pressure cause she’s not a superhero, I on the other hand AM,” Not to mention they were one and the same but he didn't have to know that, “frankly you’ve been lacking in the superhero department if I can show up for every Akuma battle why can't you?” 

“Because I have a life unlike you” 

“Pfftt I am an independent business owner who still manages to be a stellar student AND I manage to handle Akuma attacks alone more often than not, what about you?”

“What does that matter? Marinette's gotten to you hasn’t she? You know she's been sent away for assaulting a classmate?”

“That's weird from what she told me she quit” she shouted “really chat you should leave the manipulating to Rossi and Cesaire”

“YOU TAKE THAT BACK, I DONT MANIPULATE” He screamed at her. Why was it that everyone was turning against him lately?

“You’re right, you only do that after you try everything else to make yourself seem good” Ladybug finished staring back at Chat noirs infuriated green eyes, His eyebrows were furrowed and he looked the angriest he ever had. 

Staring at him Marinette came to a realization, she took a few step backs “We’ll talk later” She jumped off the roof and started making her way to a specific location.

Batcave                                                                                                      Wayne Manor, USA                                                                                      12:30 pm

“Master Dick I must ask you to please refrain from breaking your ribs in the future” Alfred sighed, Luckily Batman was able to arrive in time to stop Nightwing from getting kidnapped or worse. Red Hood quickly arrived and hauled an unconscious Nightwing to the Cave.

Batman, Red Robin, and Robin were currently spread around Gotham and Bludhaven trying to track down any stragglers. 

“Sorry Alfie, I’m way too cute for the criminals to stay away” Dick mumbled sleepily

 “-humph- Regardless No patrolling for 6 weeks,”

“You hurt me, I hope you know that Alf” He joked. Eh, they were all fast healers, he’ll probably be back on patrol in 4 weeks. 

“Heya Alfred, Now that Dick is alright I am going to head back out” Jason said adjusting his gloves and strapping his knives in place.

“Before you leave Master Jason please pickup the Tupperware filled with food I have left for you in the kitchen, And please escort Master Dick to his room for rest” Alfred knew good and well that his charges love not listening to doctors, er butlers, orders.

“Thanks, Alf, Comere Dickwad” Helping Dick up from the cot “but I don’t want to,” Dick whined. “Tough luck”

Making there way throughout the manor, Dick suddenly stopped “Marinette's room is right there, lemme check on her” 

Jesus sometimes Dick can be more of a mother hen than Bruce “Come on Dickface, It's almost 1 am any sane person will be asleep by now” he said tiredly but a part of him wanted to check up on her too. Curse these big brother instincts. “Fine only a peek”

Once they stumbled to the front of Marinette's room, Jason gently cracked open the door seeing Marinette sleeping he moved aside to allow Dick to take a peak. To Jason's shock Dick unwrapped his arm from His shoulder and pushed open the door, stumbling to Marinette's Bed. Quickly pulling off the sheets he revealed a bundle of pillows under the blanket. 

Marinette wasn’t in her bed.

 “Crap”

I just Love cliffhangers, don’t you guys love them as well? I am asking that you guys please message me any prompts you would like for me to write for my one-shot series. Else I’m just going to keep making sad angsty one-shots. Stay Safe and Healthy guys <3. 

Feel free to reblog,like and comment :)

Taglist:

@maribat-is-lifeblood @kass-is-weird @another-fan-of-anotherplan @damianette-is-life @amayakans @parallelparabox @miukiiu @valeks-princess @toodaloo-kangaroo @vixen-uchiha @thezestywalru @dreamykitty25 @pirats-pizzacanninibles @mochinek0 @shamefullove @mochegato @souleateralicestein @thestressmademedoit @throneoffirebreathingbitchqueen @aestheticnpoetic @mysupporthyperfixations @itsmeevie01

[harryshollands]

HERE FOR YOU  ( T.H )

Requested:  Nope!

Warnings: Angst, Fluff

Pairing: Tom Holland x Reader

Summary: A few months after your break up with Tom, you run into his brothers at the grocery store. Paddy manages to convince you to come to his football game by bringing up the pinky promise you’d made almost a year ago.

A/N: Let me know if you want a part two! I really really love writing imagines that involve Paddy and Y/N being adorable. This is no exception. Feel free to send me requests for the Hollands + Haz!

Masterlist! Send a Request!

Word Count: 2.3k

You were doing good. You were drinking your water, you were getting the right amount of sleep and your skin was pretty clear.

That was the overall definition of good, right?

But by your definition, your heart was hurting and you couldn’t bring yourself to chuck out all of the crap that your ex-boyfriend had left you with. It sucked. You’d given five years of your life to Tom Holland and now you had to find yourself once again. Your routine had always revolved around Tom. When you’re dating a movie star you take what you can get.

During your post-breakup slump, you’d managed to eat all of your junk food and now you needed to stock up in general, because once you ran out of sweet stuff you managed to eat all of your cereal.

So, here you were, in the middle of Tesco’s with a shopping cart full of cereal, ice cream, frozen meals and milk, trying to choose between two different types of Oreos.

“Y/N?”

You spun around, glancing at the person who had called your name before breaking out into a grin.

“Hey there, kiddo” You joked as Paddy flung himself into your arms, squeezing you tightly as if you were about to disappear.

“Paddy! Jesus, where are you- oh! Y/N! Hi!” Sam was rushing after his sibling, coming to a halt as he saw Paddy wrapped around you.

“Hiya” You laughed awkwardly, setting Paddy back on his feet as your finger’s gripped your shopping cart in an attempt to calm your nerves.

“I made it to the finals” Paddy blurted, a grin on his face as he watched your own light up.

“I knew you would! Congrats, Paddy! That’s so cool” You congratulated, giving him a high five as Sam glanced around the isle awkwardly. 

You and Sam had been the closest. You had considered him your best friend, so when Tom had ended everything with no warning you both snapped apart.

“Can you come?” 

“Huh?”

“Can you come to the game? You’re always there and we miss you” Paddy clarified, a hopeful look painted on his face paired with his best puppy dog eyes.

Your face fell slightly, but you quickly masked t with a small smile.

“I miss you guys, too, but I can’t just turn up, Padster. It’s different now” You told him softly, attempting to let him down easy before his older brother piped up.

“You should come. You’ve always been the only one who can stop Mum from screaming at people on the other team. Dad made her stay home at the last game” Sam admitted, trying not to laugh at the memory.

“I don’t know, you guys-”

“Tom is still filming in Italy so you won’t have to see him. Pleaaase, Y/N? You promised to be at all of my big football games” Paddy cut you off causing Sam to choke on a laugh at his little brother pulling out the promise card. 

Everyone knew that you kept your promises, and so, reluctantly you nodded your head, caving in to the youngest Holland’s puppy dog eyes and fake pout.

“Yes! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” Paddy cheered, hugging you before rushing out of the aisle in search of Harry who had been flirting with an employee in the freezer section.

“I think you made his day” Sam joked as he gave you a grin, you smiled back awkwardly before nodding.

“He definitely made mine” You mutter softly causing Sam to frown.

“I’ll text you the details for the game. Maybe we could get lunch beforehand? It’s been really weird without you” Your eyes lit up at the thought of hanging out with your best friend again.

“Righty-o, my number is still the same.” You agree, a goofy grin your face matching Sam’s.

“I’ll leave you to your big Oreo decision. Let me know who wins, yeah?”

And that was when you knew that you were going to be okay. With or without Tom, you were going to get back on track and you weren’t going to let him stop your friendship with Sam just because of a break-up.

“I’m stuffed” You laughed as you split the check for lunch with the Holland family. Harry let out a groan of agreement as Nikki and Dom tried to persuade you to let them pay for your meal.

“Really, I can pay. You guys don’t have to pay for me when we go out anymore” You stated, your tone soft but firm and you saw Nikki’s face drop. The reality of the break up was back in her mind.

She’d loved you. You were always a daughter to her, and she really thought that one day you’d be her daughter-in-law.

“I want to” She replied, equally as firm as she squeezed your hand, pressing a kiss to Paddy’s forehead and walking over to the counter. 

Sam gave you a grin from beside you and by the time his mother had come back, it was time to pile into the minivan and head to Paddy’s game.

“He’s got this” You muttered to Nikki as she sat beside you, passing her camera to Harry for photos.

“I don’t trust those punks on the other team. Broke poor Toby’s ankle last year, you remember how distraught Paddy was for his friend? Disgusting. Should be banned” The woman grumbled causing you to giggle as the kids poured out onto the field.

You were always the calm one at these games. It was always you. But not today.

You decided to stand up and cheer.

Sam’s eyes were wide and Dom watched in amusement.

“You’ve got this, Paddy!” You shouted as the game began, Nikki grinning and standing up with you.

It didn’t feel like it used to. It felt better, you felt at ease and happy.

Harry was laughing to himself as he recorded the two of you screaming encouragement at his brother, not thinking twice before posting it on his Instagram story.

Nikki was laughing loudly and holding you close to her, almost like she was scared that you would slip away from her and her family again. But you wouldn't. Nothing could make you leave them.

Tom was whining as Harrison drove carefully through the crowded parking lot at the football field.

“Just get out, you div. Walk over there while I find a park” Haz grumbled, eyes squinted as he tried to find a small spot for his car.

“Good idea. Good luck!” Tom called to his best friend as he rushed out of the small Prius, slamming the door behind him.

It felt weird being back in London so soon after his break up. He’d pretty much left the day after he’d called it quits with you due to filming. It felt abnormal.

The brit weaved his way through the crowds, looking for a glance of his family, but his eyes landed on you. Cheering next to his mom whilst his family laughed along.

Tom felt like he couldn't breathe.

Seeing you again was like a kick to the gut.

You were with his family.

Not that he forbid them from seeing you, but he thought that you’d all go your own ways considering he broke up with you. 

It really was because of the distance. It sucked. He’d let some things that he didn’t mean slip out, too, and then you cried and broke down whilst he wheeled his suitcase out the front door, not looking back.

Before he even knew what he was doing, his feet were carrying him towards his family.

Harry was the first to spot him.

“Look at what the cat dragged in!” He laughed as he pulled his older brother into a hug. Tom laughed along with him before hugging Sam and his dad.

His mom had her hands over her mouth in shock. She hadn’t expected him to be home for another three months. You, on the other hand, were trying not to frown at the sight of your ex-boyfriend.

Nikki glanced at you before pulling her eldest son into a hug and turning back to the game, screaming tactics at her son and his teammates.

“Hi, love” Tom greeted you softly, his eyes drinking you in. 

He didn’t think that you could have changed much but he was wrong. 

You looked stronger. You oozed capability.

“Tom.” You nod back before shrieking as Paddy scored a goal.

“GOOD JOB, PADDY!” you screamed causing Tom to jump a little.

Paddy had won. Everyone was ecstatic, except for Paddy. You’d all gone for celebratory ice cream and Paddy was quiet the whole time.

“Why are you back?” Paddy asked Tom suddenly, the whole group falling silent. Tom frowned, seeing the grumpy appearance his little brother was maintaining.

“I wanted to see your game, Pads, what do you mean?” He questioned feeling slightly dejected as Paddy frowned at his reply.

“It took me two months to see Y/N/N and get her to come to the game. I don’t want her to go away because you’re here” Paddy replied bluntly, looking between his brother and you.

You narrowed your eyes at the child lovingly, shaking your head.

“Padster, I would’ve come anyway. I’m really happy to be here, but your brother came all this way for you and I think he’s feeling a little left out. I’m not going anywhere anytime soon but Tom is. Catch up with him while you can” You told the kid, and he listened. 

Tom looked at you in awe as his brother finally warmed up to him again.

God, he missed you.

“But I don’t want you to go again” Paddy mumbled causing your heart to shatter again.

“Hey now. I’m here right now, okay? And that’s what counts. Don’t blame your brother. Breakups are a two-way street” You console, pressing a kiss to Paddy’s forehead before motioning to Tom.

“Now go and hug him”.

The whole table was back in their bustle of a conversation, Paddy and Tom getting along marvellously and you and Sam cackling about Harry’s blurry photos from using the wrong lens.

“So you guys are still close, huh?” Tom asked you eventually. You glanced at him with a grimace on your face.

“No. I haven’t seen them in a few months. I’m only here for today”

Tom grinned and you already knew what he was thinking.

“I’m not here for you. I’m here for Paddy”.

You glanced around the table, looking at the faces that were permanently ingrained in your memory. It was time for you to go and let them be, you thought to yourself. You leant across the table to Nikki, a small smile playing at your lips.

“I think I’m going to head out now” You inform her, trying not to linger on the way that her smile turned sad.

“Are you sure? You could always crash at our house, sweetheart. You always have a home with us” The mother of four offered, trying not to sound desperate. You shook your head, playing with your fingers.

“No thank you, I think I’m going to call it a night” You whisper back before pushing your chair back, gaining the attention of all of the family at your table.

You cleared your throat and smiled awkwardly,

“I’m going to head home now. It was nice seeing you all again” You address the table, a sad smile on your lips as Paddy rushes over to you.

“Do you have to? We can make Tom go? Will you stay then?”

“Pads, you can’t boot your brother out” You laugh lightly, pulling him into a hug and smoothing his hair down.

“I’ll see you guys around eventually, yeah?” You mutter, pressing a quick kiss to the youngest Holland’s temple bone. 

One by one, the family stands up and hugs you before sitting down once again. Tom doesn’t know what to do with himself as he says goodbye.

“I’ll see you around, Tom”.

The young adult watched as you walked out of the parlour, his eyes following you until you were out of sight.

Nikki looked at him with a frown, shaking her head at her oldest son.

“Why did you have to let her go again? It hurts every time, Tom. Every godforsaken time” The woman sniffled, leaning her head on Sam’s shoulder and grabbing napkins to dab at her tears.

Tom looked at his mother, jaw slack and completely flabbergasted at his family’s drop in mood. They were all less lively than they had been only moments ago.

“I didn’t- she wanted to leave. I’m confused.” Tom admitted, his eyebrows furrowing as his mother continued to sniffle.

“I haven’t seen her since you left her, Thomas. I loved that girl like she was my own. She would walk in the other direction if she saw us in public. Can’t even look at us, Tom. I thought that one day we’d be sitting in a church watching you marry her and now all I have is a photo of her from Christmas last year and the birthday present she got me. Today was the first time we’ve seen her since everything happened and I saw the way you looked at her as soon as you saw her with us. I thought that maybe- just maybe you would stop her, talk to her- something! Anything! But you didn't and it’s like I just lost a child all over again.” Nikki ranted, shaking her head and standing up from the table, brushing off her husband’s attempt to comfort her by grabbing her hand.

“I’m glad you’re home, darling, but I wish that it was different.”

And with that, Nikki paid for their ice creams and told Dom that she’d see them all at home, leaving Tom and the rest of their family in silence.

[dogboyzen]

Summer activities w/ the RFA + Saeran & V

Hi hi!! This is my first post here and my first time writing one of these!! Feel free to leave feedback or requests as well :)) I’m super excited to be here and I hope u enjoy!! <3

Yoosung Kim

•you had to drag him off his computer at the start of the summer

•but now he’s LOVES going outside and doing stuff with you

•he comes up with fun little road trips for you 2!!

•definitely loves the amusement park and will drag you on rides all day

•he also really likes the beach but the sun tires him out easily

•but him being tired doesn’t stop the fun!! This boy loves doing anything, anywhere with you

•sometimes you both need some time to recooperate energy, so you watch those coming of age summer movies on the off days

•In fact yoosung loves those movies!! He’s a sucker for clique but happy endings :))

•summer is his favourite season and as long as your with him, he doesn’t care what you 2 do!!

Zen / Hyun Ryu

•lots.of.sefies!!

•no matter where you 2 are, he loves taking photos of your adventures together and he loves to show you off !

•this man is all for the beach

•but if one guy looks at you the wrong way in a bikini he will make sure the guy knows your taken

•zen will definitely bitch about being in the sun too long cause it could ruin his skin

•comes up with super romantic but simple date ideas

•going on picnics together became a regular thing for you 2!!

•he suggested going to the amusement park with you but when he instantly saw how big the rides were he nearly shit himself

•but when he saw how excited you were to go on them, he sucked it up and came with you on them

•he ended up loving them and by the end of the day you both were exhausted from rides

•zen loves being in your company no matter where it is and made the most of the summer with you!!

•by the end of the summer, his storage was nearly filled with photos though

Jaehee Kang

•Jaehee usually would rather stay around town than going out on crazy trips

•but Jaehee loves going on roadtrips with you!!

•going in the car while listening to music and having small conversations was very relaxing for her

•you can bet your summer was filled with baking and trying out crazy recipes

•when you both couldn’t sleep, you’d do some 3am baking while having deep conversations on the kitchen floor

•she loves going hiking with you!!

•so you 2 ended up camping for a few days :))

•it was a bit of a disaster as it was both of your first times camping, but it certainly was super fun!

•Jaehee loved going on cute dates in the park w/ you, where you both would find a quiet place to watch the sunset together

•you both would go to the beach late at night and go swimming at sunset

•it was a very relaxing first summer w/ her and you 2 already had made plans for next summer too!!

Jumin Han

•you can guarantee Jumin would plan something expensive vacation for you both

•it was a blast!! You 2 went to Hawaii and explored the island together

•you decided to take Jumin to an amusement park!!

•when you told him about it, he didn’t understand as he could easily rent out the place for the day for you 2 calm down Jumin not everything needs to be so extra

•when you got there, he didn’t know where to go as he’s never been to a place like this before

•when you took him on a rollarcoaster, he wasn’t too big of a fan, but enjoyed seeing you smile

•so you guys went on a few smaller ones together

•Jumin would find really cute restaurants with an outside patio to go to w/ you!!

•Jumin would take you on dates on his boat since Elizabeth the 3rd could come and you’d end up spending the day there

•you 2 would dance together in front of the moonlight before heading home

•Jumin loves being in your presence so the summer was spent together, doing a variety of things

•it was the best summer of your lives since you spent it together, and you both couldn’t wait for the future summers to come :))

707 / Luciel / Saeyoung Choi

•‘MC wake up, wake up, we need to get ready for the amusement park’

•‘Saeyoung it’s 5 in the morning let me sleep”

•this boy was excited to go anywhere and planned something super fun almost everyday with you!!

•he didn’t get to experience a lot of things during his childhood so the summer was spent living out his childhood fantasies!!

•he LOVED the amusement, like yoosung

•would try to go on every ride with you

•by the end of the day you both were exsuated, arms full of stuffed animals, won from the carnival games which he was literally a pro at

•it was 7am one morning and you woke up to water get splashed on your face, it was a waterballoon.

•you, Vanderwood and Saeran all looked pissed off coming out of your rooms, to see what the hell happened

•it took no less than 10 seconds to realize this was one of Saeyoungs pranks

•and as soon as you realized that, Saeyoung popped up from behind the couch and hit Saeran square in the face with a waterballoon

•if Saeran wasn’t already pissed, now he was, and 30 minutes, 130 waterballoons, and 4 soaked adults later, the waterballoon fight was over

•this was just one of the many pranks Saeyoung pulled this summer, but you eventually started to get in on them with Saeyoung!!

•you both had such an exciting summer together, and Saeyoung was bummed it was over :((

•but that doesn’t mean the fun is over!! Saeyoung had already started to plan next summer to be even crazier with you!!!

V / Jihyun Kim

•if you thought Zen took a lot of photos, wait til you see the amount V took

•he took his camera everywhere so he could capture the fun moments he had with you!!

•he wasn’t a big fan of commercial attractions, but rather more relaxing trips

•you 2 went camping together, by the lake for 2 weeks!!

•you loved to help V by modeling for his photos! So you both would do adorable photoshoots together!!

•you guys were literally a living aesthetic

•this man would work so hard on coming up with the cutest dates for you guys!!

•you 2 would go on a small vacation together to a private beach 3 hours away!!

•you 2 would play in the water and every chance he got, he couldn’t stop telling you how beautiful you looked god this man is literally an angel wtf

•On the days you stayed at home, you 2 would cuddle together while watching movies

•your summer was spent together surrounded by relaxing scenery

•it was the first time since he left Rika, he realized that they were never meant to be together and you were always the one for him

•when he told you this your heart melted someone give this man a hug

Saeran

•it took a few days to convince him to leave the house and do stuff

•Saeyoung convinced him to go to an amusement park and he refused at first but seeing as you seemed excited to go, he caved and went

•he never liked crowds but nothing mattered as long as you were with him! He didn’t want to admit it, but he was having the time of his life there

•he wasn’t the biggest fan of rollarcoasters but enjoyed the smaller ones, and he was surprisingly good at carnival games, much like his brother

•he would watched a kid fall in line and laughed ‘shhh Saeran they are looking please’

•he was determined to try 50 flavours of icecream this summer, and it’s safe to say you guys doubled that goal

•no matter where you went, you would always find an icecream shop and you 2 would try all the new flavours

•your local icecream parlor knew you 2 by name, at the end of the summer

•you guys would go for cute walks in your community garden together and when it got late, you 2 would stargaze together!!

•Saeran loves watching the stars, and being with you made everything better!

•you 2 went on a lot of cute dates!!

•he surprisingly enjoyed the beach a lot but preferred to find a more private one where there was less people

•by the end of the summer he came a lot out of his comfort zone and even though he didn’t admit it, you knew he couldn’t wait to do some of the same things next summer!!

[xb-squaredx]

Please Don’t Sleep on Hades

2020’s…been a real year, huh? At a time when in-person gatherings aren’t much of a thing and people have to stay in, video games are suddenly a pretty attractive option. That said, few games have really grabbed me this year; in a roundabout way, 2020’s been a year of reruns, as I go through a lot of games I’ve already played or games that are just yesterday’s news (but new to me!). However, in the nick of time, the folks at Supergiant Games delivered unto us their latest title, Hades. While they’ve been working on this game for years, with it hitting Early Access on Steam back in 2018, the full version of Hades finally hit Steam, the Epic Game Store and made the leap to consoles with the Switch, which is where I picked it up. It has been a WHILE since I’ve had a game grab me so strongly so early on, and I’ve been hearing this game’s praises for years now already, so allow me to happily state why I think Hades is worthy of the hype and is a fantastic game I’d easily recommend!

DADDY ISSUES

OK, so first things first…you don’t actually play as Hades in this game, but rather his son Zagreus. Ol’ Zag has had it with his father, and tries to literally fight his way out of hell to reach the surface, and no matter what his old man puts in his way, Zagreus (and the player) will meet the challenge. And probably die, but hey, that’s OK! In the underworld, death is more of an inconvenience than anything else, so after taking a moment to dust himself off, Zagreus will head out for another attempt. For as long as it takes.

Hades is a rogue-like, meaning it’s a game based around randomization and adaptation. On any given “run” of the game, the level layouts, enemies present and the variety of power-ups Zagreus can find will be left to chance, with the player challenged to amass the best build they can to eventually break out of hell and reach the human world and if you die…start from scratch. That said, Hades is among the ever-growing sub-genre of rogue-lites, in that there IS some permanent progression, which takes a bit of a sting out of dying, but more on that later. Now, most games of this type aren’t really big on story. They have a premise that’s little more than an excuse to play. Splunkey wants you to explore a cave, The Binding of Isaac sees you escaping a basement and in Enter the Gungeon you uh…e-enter the gun—you get the point! But what separates Hades from most rogue-likes/lites is that there actually IS a very interesting story that unfolds as you play.

There’s more to Zag’s desire to get to the surface than just getting away from his father, though their strained relationship certainly doesn’t help matters, and over the course of your many, MANY escape attempts, players learn of the rather screwed-up nature of Zagreus’ family of deities, though any mythology nut could tell you to expect that. Hades has an incredibly charismatic cast, superb voice acting across the board, and some real sharp writing that really got me wanting to meet anyone and everyone and learn more about this world. You’re likely to run into Hypnos first, who always has a “tip” ready for you when you meet your end to a given enemy or hazard, or the fabled hero Achilles, who acts as a mentor to Zagreus. There’s Dusa, the adorably frazzled flying gorgon head who acts as the House of Hades’ maid, and of course…Megaera, of the Furies.

She serves as the first proper boss in the game, and will be a pretty sizable challenge for most players, but as you eventually overcome her again and again, she and Zagreus end up attempting to reconnect with each other, and her recurring fights become an excuse to flirt and test each other. I may as well say too that it’s easy to fall in love with the characters in this game because…I-I mean, just look at them! This game is a bisexual’s paradise, that’s all I’ll say.

A bit of a fun fact, but Zagreus’ voice actor, Darren Korb, is also a composer at Supergiant, so he’s a man of many talents, since Hades has a killer score. From the laid-back tunes at the House of Hades where you can unwind and recharge after a botched run, to the pulse-pounding boss theme, there’s some GREAT music on display here. And that’s before you meet Orpheus and Eurydice, two characters with amazing singing voices that, if you play your cards right, might start singing together. The game’s visuals, meanwhile, aren’t a slouch either. While the level layouts are randomized, everything manages to look well-crafted, each region of the underworld having their own distinct look and feel. The fiery pits of Asphodel end up juxtaposing well with the paradise that is Elysium. Now, character models are generally less-detailed since the camera stays zoomed out to give players a good view of the action, but the portraits for the various characters more than make up for it with their distinct, detailed designs. A-And I’m not just saying that because everyone’s hot! Now, admittedly you might take a look at Zag and think he’s nothing but an edgelord and the game itself might be taking itself too seriously, but in reality, Hades strikes a pretty good balance, and definitely carries a sense of humor. Characters love to snark at each other, the various Shades chilling in the House of Hades’ lounge have some funny conversations you can listen in on and all told, the game only gets serious when appropriate. Really, I have no real complaints with the game on a presentation level; it’s all aces so far, and thankfully the game-y part follows suit!

LIVE.DIE. REPEAT.

Hades is best described as a dungeon-crawler. You have an isometric view as you move about, avoiding hazards and fighting off enemies as you climb each chamber on your way to the surface. Defeat every enemy in a chamber and get a reward. Sounds simple enough until you factor in all of the various permutations of events; Hades aims to make sure no two runs are alike, with different enemies, power-ups and challenges awaiting you. All of this is doled out slowly, as with each subsequent playthrough you begin to have more of the game unraveled. First and foremost, Zagreus can gain various Boons from the other Olympian Gods, who are sympathetic to his plight and lend him some power if he makes contact with them. Each God has their own twist on the abilities they grant Zagreus. They can all increase his stats in some way, or affect either his dash ability or his Cast, a projectile attack. For Zeus, naturally, all of Zagreus’ moves will gain an electric effect, whereas Artemis focuses more on upping Zag’s critical hit chance. Dionysus, the God of Wine, grants you the “hangover” status effect, allowing your attacks to uh…make enemies drunk? Sure! You’ll be given a random selection of three Boons to pick from, of varying rarities. Over the course of a run, you might try to nab as many Boons from the same God as possible, or vary it up and see which abilities synchronize together. At times, you might even be granted a Duo Boon, where two Gods decide to combine their power for a special ability that plays to both of their strengths. Still, at other times, you might be forced into a Trial of the Gods, where you must choose one God’s Boon over the other, with the snubbed God lashing out afterwards. Hey, just because they’re Gods, doesn’t mean they’re nice. Of course, you’ve also got a variety of health and weapon upgrades too. In fact, let’s gush about the weapons for a second, shall we?

At the time of writing, Hades has six weapons to play with. You start with a sword, which is the all-rounder of the set, but as you gain keys to unlock more weapons, you can start to really experiment. The bow and rail cannon serve as ranged options with different approaches, while the spear is the melee weapon with the best range at the cost of pure power. The shield grants you absolute defense at the cost of range, while the gauntlets let you unleash your fisticuffs on underworld scum, though leave you with limited ranged attacks. Each weapon has specific Boons and weapon upgrades you can find as well, some of which can radically alter how a weapon works. The rail cannon, for example, fires a lot faster than the bow, but this is balanced by needing to manually reload…unless you get a weapon upgrade that gives you unlimited ammo with the only catch being that you can only do burst fire. Adding to this, players eventually unlock hidden Aspects of weapons, morphing them into different forms which can also influence their moveset. Change the shield to the Aspect of Zeus, and when you throw your shield Captain America style, it stays out and continually spins, dealing tons of damage over time and effectively forcing enemies to get sliced to bits if they want to get near you. I didn’t expect this game to have half this many weapons or to have them balanced so well. Really, just like anything else, weapons are another tool you can poke and prod and experiment with until you get a truly killer collection of Boons and upgrades that let you just demolish anything in your way. It’s very satisfying when you finally clear a run with a great build…though depending on the RNG, you WILL get some crummy builds, but that’s the nature of the rogue-like!

It’s likely that a bad build (or really, just getting hit with a new boss or enemy you aren’t prepared for) will lead to a death, but as already established, death isn’t really that much of an inconvenience in the underworld. Zagreus just spawns back at home and is free to immediately try to escape again, but this brief reprieve lets you chat up whoever happens to be around, give them gifts, advance some side-quests, pet your dog Cerberus and practice with weapons and such before you’re ready to go at it again. It’s after a run that you also get to spend a lot of the spoils of your escape attempts. While you lose Boons and weapon upgrades and the like upon death, there’s a LOT of various items you keep with you that have plenty of uses. Darkness shards are used for permanent skills that can be applied to Zagreus, like Death’s Defiance, which grants Zagreus another life upon dying, which can eventually be upgraded to give him THREE extra lives, just as an example. Precious gems can be used to fund a variety of cosmetic changes to the House of Hades. Just because Zagreus doesn’t want to live there anymore, doesn’t mean he can’t at least make it look good! Nectar can be gifted to other characters to improve your relationships with them, with bottles of Ambrosia being required later on, while special keys can be used to unlock weapons, more upgrades for your Darkness shards, or just used as a secondary currency for trade. There’s really a LOT of different items to mess around with, though admittedly if you’re the type to want to max out EVERYTHING you’ll be in it for the long haul, as there is not only a LOT of stuff to upgrade and purchase, but the random nature of things means rewards are never a guarantee. Though it’s worth noting the game’s totally beatable without going nuts with completion. Which I guess leads me to the biggest compliment I can give this game: even after “beating” it, I still can’t stop playing, and there’s plenty of reason to keep going.

REPLAYS AND REWARDS

So, full disclosure, I’ve gotten Zagreus to the surface. Several times, actually. But I haven’t quite “beaten” the game yet. In fact, at the risk of sounding pretentious, it is as if the true game begins after you’ve beaten it once. Without getting into specifics, let’s just say the game gives you a very good in-story reason to keep playing, and you won’t reach credits without several completed runs under your belt. And even then, there’s still stuff to do. I’m almost 30 hours into Hades and I’ve barely scratched the surface honestly. Every major character has their own sidequest you can undergo, but it can be slow goings when it comes to advancing them. Trying out all the weapons and boons and different combinations will easily take dozens of hours to fully experience, though the game has a handy in-game list of what you’ve done and haven’t done, as well as in-game achievements with tangible rewards that will spur you on. I was admittedly surprised at how dense of a game Hades can be. A successful run will likely take you somewhere between a half-hour to an hour, which is pretty devious. Just long enough to stay engaging throughout, and short enough that I can keep convincing myself that I have time for “one more run” and then suddenly several hours have gone by. Strangest thing.

Something that’s become a bit of a staple of Supergiant’s work is customizable difficulty, various modifiers you can flip on to make the game harder if you so desire, which in Hades takes the form of the Pact of Punishment. After a successful run, you can turn on a given pact to spice things up for subsequent runs. Maybe enemies do a bit more damage, or you give yourself a super strict time limit to clear a run. You can give enemies armor that makes them sturdier, or jack up the in-game shop’s prices. You can even be forced to give up Boons in order to advance past certain doors! Probably the most impressive Pact is Extreme Measures, which ends up greatly affecting the boss fights in the game…trust me when I say you won’t be ready for them the first time you flip that on. Activating a given pact increases a “heat gauge” that, should it reach a given level, will end up granting you various special items to help with fully upgrading and unlocking stuff. Of course, with each successful run completed with a given Pact activated, you’ll have to raise the heat more and more in order to keep getting these upgrade materials so be prepared. You can also still gain these materials (albeit at a much slower rate) playing through the game normally though, and there’s really no penalty for choosing NOT to activate a given pact. On the flip side of things, there’s also a God Mode you can toggle on that makes Zagreus a little stronger with each death, which can help those that want to see more of the story but are struggling with the game. Have your God Cake and eat it too!

All and all, this game just delivers on every level and I’ve been devouring it since release whenever I have a spare minute. You can see that Supergiant is taking all the lessons they learned from each previous game and combined it to make what is easily their best game yet. I don’t throw around words like “masterpiece” lightly, but Hades is just such a slam dunk that I’m sorely tempted to call it just that. I mean, if you hate rogue-likes, I’m not sure if Hades will really push you over the edge admittedly? You get way more rewards retained after death than just about any other rogue-like I’ve played, but if you’re the type that hates having to constantly adapt and not being able to memorize what’s coming, I can see this not working for you. But for me at least, I’ve had an absolute blast with the game and the only issue I really have with it is a small nitpick at best. When it comes to getting to know various characters, you can talk to them and give them Nectar or Ambrosia as a gift right? But what happens if they don’t show up on a given run? Or what if they DO show up, but they’re locked into a conversation with someone else? That means you can’t really advance anything with them until a given dice roll pities you. MEGAERA I THINK YOU’RE COOL, PLEASE JUST TALK TO M—oh sorry, don’t know where that came from… So yeah, that’s the nittiest of picks.

I adore this game’s cast, the voice work and music is excellent to the ear, the combat is engaging, the gameplay loop is addicting…need I say more? I mean, I’ve said almost 3000 words, but to really sum it up…I highly recommend Hades and I hope you don’t pass it up if you’re even remotely interested. You can find it on Steam, the Epic store and Switch as of right now, and I don’t think you could go wrong with any version.

Blood and darkness await you.

-B

[marvinswriting]

tiny swap part one: damian and aaron

"This is stupid." Janis huffed. "I don't wanna go with Gretchen."

"Hey!"

Damian laughed at the girl in his hands. "It's only for a week. Besides, we all have pretty similar schedules. I'll be there."

"Who am I supposed to talk to while I'm in art?"

"Uh, Gretchen?"

Janis shook her head. "It's not the same."

Damian clicked his tongue. "Just don't be too reckless okay? No jumping off tables or climbing on arms. I don't want you getting hurt."

"Nu-uh. If I have to be miserable, I'll make it fun."

"Janis."

"Yes?"

Damian gave her a pointed look and the artist caved. "Fine. No fun. Totally boring week. Got it."

"That's not what I said."

"Sure sounds like it."

"Are you guys ready?" Karen called out. Each tiny and their giant were talking a bit before a swap. Damian wanted to laugh at how dramatic this whole 'event' was being made out to be. They're still gonna see each other. He'll just be holding Aaron in the halls and making sure Aaron doesn't dive of tables. Not that Aaron would do that. 

"Yeah," Cady said, Aaron gave a thumbs up.

Regina mumbled something and Gretchen just shook her head with a smile. "We're all good."

"Same here." Damian pulled Janis close to his chest as everyone met in the center of the empty classroom.

"It's Monday, seven am, before the official school day." Karen reminded them. "You will all be 'swapping'." She did air quotes. "The giants are in charge of making sure their new tiny gets to everywhere they need to be safely, whether that's around school or rides to and from school. Tinies need to make sure not to drive their temporary giant insane." 

Janis laughed nervously as Karen pointed to her. 

"This is mainly so Damian and Gretchen will stop arguing over who has more bullshit to deal with."

"Hey! Wait a second-" Regina made a noise of offense.

"Everyone will swap back, Friday at lunch." Karen continues. "Obviously if something bad happens, we can switch back, but let's hope it doesn't come to that.

Damian nodded. There have been plenty of times where Janis would get so worked up over something and only Damian could calm her down. It comes with being friends with her for so long. He knew Gretchen and Regina were the same.

But let's hope it doesn't come to that.

"Everything clear?" Karen asked. After receiving a chorus of 'yeahs' she grinned. "Then lets swap!"

Monday, 7:10 AM

Damian walked down the hall, Gretchen to his left and Cady and Karen on his right.

Aaron sat closest to Cady and talked with her, Regina, and Karen.

"So, Janis." He grinned to her girl on Gretchen's shoulder. 

The artist crossed her arms. "Sorry, I don't talk to traitors."

"Okay, Jan." Damian rolled his eyes at his best friend's antics. 

She blew a raspberry in retaliation.

She'll get over it in ten minutes.

The group made their way to period one. A class they all had together.

Gretchen sat in the front row with Cady behind her and Karen next to her, while Damian sat a couple of rows back. Typically Janis would be with him, probably trying not to fall asleep and it was easier to hide her from the teacher form the back of the classroom.

But not this time.

"Bye, you guys!" Damian said, waving to the group.

Aaron threw up a peace sign as everyone sat down. 

Damian watched as Janis let Gretchen place her on the table instead of slipping down herself. He smiled to himself knowing Janis was paying attention to what he said at least a little bit. 

Monday, 2 pm

"You sure?" Damian asked. 

"Yeah, I take the tiny bus all the time." Aaron said waving his hand. 

They stood at the tiny pick up zone.

"We both know Cady isn't the best driver. I just take the bus to and from school, it's no biggie."

Damian grinned. "Do I even want to tell Cady you said that?"

"Oh, she knows."

"Alright then. Get home safe Aaron."

Tuesday, 12 pm

"Lunchtime!" Regina cheered as Damian sat down, lowering Aaron to the table. 

"So," Karen grinned. "Everyone is here. Who's been dropped yet?"

"Almost." Janis wiggled her eyebrows.

"It was her fault!" Gretchen raised her hands in defense.

"I believe it." Damian teased. "Just be glad you only have her for a week."

"You love me." Janis huffed.

"I do." Damian agreed.

Aaron walked over, sitting next to Janis and Regina.

It was during lunch when things felt normal. Janis and Regina would bicker, everyone would ignore them until Regina threatened violence and shoving people off tables. Gretchen and Karen would carry the conversation for the most part, while Cady, Aaron, and Damian join in whenever.

"It sucks not to be able to just-" Janis made vague motions with her hands. "Take a nap whenever! I'm so fucking tired all the time."

Damian laughed. "Miss me?"

"Just your jacket."

Wednesday, 8:56 am

"Damian."

The boy looked up from his classwork. Aaron was sneakily texting on his phone. 

"Yeah?"

"I'm gonna stay after today, do you think you could give me a ride home? I might not be done before the tiny bus, it's unclear."

"Of course." Damian nodded. "What are you staying after for?"

"English afterschool help."

Well, Damian knew what that meant.

Wednesday, 3:15

"They haven't had any of their secret rant meeting in months," Cady said, standing at the tiny pick up zone. "Do you know how crazy we must be driving them for them want to have English help again?"

Damian laughed. "Speak for yourself, I'm having a great time with Aaron. He doesn't jump off my shoulder while I'm walking."

"Janis is a nightmare," Gretchen said, sipping coffee at three pm.

"Damian tried telling you." Karen points out.

"I'm gonna be so grateful to get Regina back. She can yell at me for a month and I won't complain oh my god."

Damian laughed. Yeah, he was nervous with the idea of Gretchen carrying Janis around. It wasn't a big secret that Gretchen wasn't the best at not dropping tinies. Add that onto Janis's overall reckless behavior and somebody's gonna get hurt. 

Probably Janis.

"I will say though," Gretchen pauses to sip her coffee. "She isn't nearly as bad to me. Like yeah, Janis has no regard for her safety, but it's clear she doesn't trust me as she trusts you. For good reason, too."

Damian smiled softly. "For still seeing Janis all the time, I'm sure miss her a lot this week."

"I don't." Gretchen sighs. "You got the easy tiny, Damian."

"Yeah," Cady nods. "Regina is a nightmare. She's no Janis but I'm so used to Aaron that this is wild."

Karen laughs. "I have to deal with them whenever one of you is sick from school."

"A true wildcard." Cady grins.

"If this week is teaching me anything, its to respect Karen a hell lot more." Gretchen said.

Thursday, 12 pm

"I would like to take a moment to point out that Gretchen hasn't dropped me yet." Janis says from her perch on Damian's shoulder. The gang agreed lunchtime could be a free pass since the tinies typically sat with anyone regardless of whos giant was whos anyway. 

So naturally, Janis didn't hesitate to scale Damian's arm. 

Just when he was starting to get used to this whole, not having a reckless tiny thing.

"Thank you, Gretchen." He laughed.

"It's not easy." She grumbled.

"Trust me, he knows." Janis grinned, leaning into Damian's neck.

"I would like to say right here right now that Aaron no longer gets tiny support group rights. Cady's an angel." Regina said from her spot at the table, leaning against Karen's water bottle. 

"If we're playing that game, Damian isn't half bad when you aren't jumping off high points every thirty seconds," Aaron said from his vantage point in Cady's shoulder. 

"That's just because he's with you," Janis said shaking her head. "Damian would worry if I was in his pocket all day."

"It's true, I won't deny it," Damian said with a grin. 

"But I also think maybe Regina is more reckless than we thought. Because Gretchen drops her a lot more than she drops me." Janis said.

Thursday, 5 pm

"The final day is tomorrow." Damian said, Aaron's face filling his phone screen. 

"Yeah. This week wasn't bad, actually. For any of the tinies. I though Janis would go through it, but we all had fun."

Damian would never get over how tinies sounded on call or camera. Their voices were louder, more clear. And slightly lower. 

Aaron was no exception.

Wild. 

"It was nice to have a tiny who wasn't trying to jump off me at all times."

Aaron laughed. "I do try and prioritize health."

Damian smiled. "Seriously, thank you, for making this week easy. I have a hunch Janis wasn't on her best behavior, intentionally."

Aaron just laughed. "You know Janis. Did you ask Cady how Regina's been? When I asked Regina she told me to mind my own business."

Damian shook his head. "Cady had been oddly quiet about her experience. Gretchen and I won't shut up and she just sits there. I hope everything went okay for them."

Friday, 12 pm

Damian weaved his way through the halls, heading to the cafeteria with Aaron on his shoulder.

"You excited to be with Cady again?" He asked.

"You and Cady aren't too different, Damian," Aaron says. "This week wasn't a drastic change. I had fun."

"I did too." Damian smiled, entering the cafeteria. 

There was an excited buzz in the room-

-and a crowd around their lunch table.

"Oh, that's not good." Damian pushes passed people, mindful of the tiny friend on his shoulder. 

He reached the center of the crowd as gasped filled the cafeteria. 

Everyone fell silent.

well shit @realmisspolarbear @smallsoysauce @musicallygt @sourishlemons