#I dont really know if it needs that but just in case yknow

[skyward-floored]

I don’t mind if it’s public! I just wanna share it but not in a full post XD so this is better! Here it is! Less so about Kori shenanigans and more so Link being depressed but next chapter will have Kori shenanigans if I ever get to it!

~~~~~~~~~~

Link has made plenty of mistakes in his life, some that would almost kill him, some that hurt his heart so much that he could barely function, and some that could almost ruin his life.

That mistake he made… he thought it wouldn’t be serious. Sure it was a serious mistake, but it was one time. Surely the goddesses would be merciful on him just this once, right? Surely they would forgive what he did. He understood it was wrong, he’ll never do it again.

He hoped that they would forget about when he made love at twilight.

It was a moment of weakness for him. The girl who he spent his entire adventure with, who stuck at his side, who helped him, who saved him, who he loved, was dead. Or so he thought. He killed the demon king with righteous anger swelling within him, grief gripping his heart so tightly it physically hurt, wanting to kill the man who killed her.

It was only until after he was dead when he discovered that she was alright. When he saw a familiar silhouette among the light spirits, he couldn’t help himself as he sprinted towards her. Pumping his exhausted legs to where she was sitting to just make sure that she was real. That she was alright.

And she was… she was alive and well… and different. The light spirits removed the curse upon her that turned her into an imp, changing her into a beautiful twilight princess. He remembered when he first saw her. She was tall, with such loving eyes that stared back at him, her hair tied in the front, and her face… His brain short circuited, and he didn’t say anything. He just stared.

“What? Say something!” She finally broke the silence, with a familiar teasing grin forming on her lips. “Am I so beautiful you have no words left?”

It was her, she was real. This was the Midna he spent so much time with, the Midna he fell in love with, the Midna he wanted so desperately to protect because of all she did for him. He smiled a relieved smile, and hugged her tightly, crying into her shoulder. She wrapped her arms around him and cried as well. They were both alright.

Zelda arrived shortly after to be with her dear friend, talking about what happened and what should happen next. Due to Link’s injuries from Ganondorf, they decided to head to Kakariko where he could rest, and they spent a long time together.

When Midna and Link were alone, they would talk for hours, quietly so no one would know about her, and one night, they got a little carried away. They were sitting on Link’s bed at night, and they exchanged kisses, and they snuggled up next to each other, and kissed again. One thing led to another, and it turned into a huge mistake. After what had happened, Midna started avoiding him, whenever she saw him, there was deep sorrow in her sunset eyes. Link didn’t know why she was suddenly acting like this, but he knew he was at fault. He should’ve stopped, he should’ve slowed down and got her off of him, he thought she wanted to do it, but clearly not. He was afraid he put too much pressure on her. He was just so happy that she was alive, that Ganondorf was dead, that finally, he can have peace, that he wasn’t thinking. He tried to talk to her about it but she’d just brush it off, so he stopped asking

Finally, when Link was healed enough, Midna said that she needed to return to the Twilight Realm, so they traveled to the Gerudo desert, his heart hurting from having to say goodbye to Midna. She may not think of him that way anymore, but she was still a dear friend to him, and he still cared about her deeply. And though they could visit each other, it was always sad to see a friend go.

But sad did not describe the feeling he had when the mirror was shattered, with Midna gone forever. That feeling was sheer agony, the worst pain he’s ever had to endure in his life. It almost ended him, he almost changed into someone unrecognizable. And thoughts plagued his mind over it. Was it something he did? Was she that upset over that night? And what ate away at him the most: would she have a child because of that night? The thought of her being pregnant and giving birth without him being able to support her killed him on the inside. He felt like a complete failure, he hated himself, he wished that none of it ever happened. He just wished the pain would go away.

So he prayed to the goddesses to be merciful on him. Just this once. To not let Midna suffer because of his foolishness, to simply let that mistake be. He would never do it again. Just please… don’t let anything come of it… please…

Two years later had passed, and so did some of the pain. With help he was able to recover, Zelda tried to reassure him that she didn’t shatter the mirror because of him, that she still cared for him. It helped, even a little. And so he slowly began to move on from Midna, move on from that night. He never told it to anyone, no one needed to know about the best and worst night of his life. Though he did wonder, even though it hurt, if he had a child out there somewhere, a child that he could never give his love to.

But his question was answered one night.

It was a rainy night, and Link was tossing and turning. He couldn’t do anything to get his mind to relax and finally sleep. He let out a sigh and stared at the ceiling. Normally rainy nights helped him sleep, but for some reason that wasn’t the case tonight. He closed his eyes and let out another sigh. He knew it was better for him to stay laying down with his eyes closed, but being alone with his thoughts was almost maddening.

He listened to the pouring rain outside, the different sounds it made as it hit his tree house made him grateful that he had a roof over his head, and a roof over Epona’s head. Being wet was the worst feeling for him. He rolled over and tried to let the rain soothe him, and it almost worked until—

Thump thump thump.

He opened his eyes at the unnatural sound, sitting up and staring at his door, slowing his breathing so he could hear better. Did he imagine that? Who would be banging at his door in the middle of the night?

He flinched when there were three more loud thumps at his door. Ok he definitely didn’t imagine that. He got up as his heart grew worried over who could be at his door. Was it Rusl? Was he alright? Was something wrong with his daughter? Or was it Illia? Was she alright? He reached for his door and let out a breath to calm himself, opening the door quickly.

But who he saw sent his heart into his throat.

It was Midna, she was standing there, a desperate look in her eyes. Her clothes were soaked as she stood in the rain, and the two were silent for a moment as they stared at each other.

Midna… after two years of accepting that he’d never see her again, here she was. She got much taller, almost double his height, her jewelry was more extravagant, but she herself, she still took his breath away.

Finally after a moment of silence, he finally found his words.

“Midna?”

Her breath hitched, and she shifted a bit, a bundle in her arms that he finally noticed. His heart stopped when he saw a child, no older than two, crying silently in her arms. He was clearly a twili, bright red hair, dark blue skin, black markings. He looked like Midna, but when he opened his eyes, it was without a doubt that they matched his own. Gray-blue eyes stared back at him in fear. For Din’s sake…

“Link,” Midna breathed out, “I… desperately need your help.”

Link stared at the boy in silence for a long moment, but he got ahold of himself. He took a deep breath and gave room for them to head inside.

“Y’all will get pneumonia if you stay out for any longer,” he said gently, gesturing to his home.

Midna smiled and a relieved tear rolled down her cheek as she slowly moved inside. Link got dry blankets, ignoring his thumping heart. The child was cautious around Link as he tried to dry him off. He stared at Link with confusion and awe, his mouth agape as he got dried. Link paused when he noticed his left arm covered in bandages. He gave Midna a look, but she did not return his gaze. She just stared at a corner in the room.

“What’s your name, little one?” Link tried to ease the pressure, being as gentle as he could with the child.

The kid looked at Midna, then back at Link. He had fear in his eyes, Link could tell.

“You’re safe here, I promise… What is your name?”

The child looked down, it took a moment for his sweet little voice to speak up.

“Um… my name is Kori,” he answered.

“Kori?” Link repeated, just to make sure he heard him right. Kori nodded and Link smiled. “That’s a lovely name.”

Kori smiled. “Tank you. What is your name?”

“I’m Link.”

“Nink? Is Tat like when tings… when… uh… when light happened… and you uh… connected wit everyting?”

Link chuckled at the little boy trying to speak. He barely understood him, but it was the cutest thing in the world. “Yeah, sure.”

Kori nodded and rubbed his eyes. “Mommy talked about Nink a lot…”

“Really?” Link looked over at Midna, who continued to avoid his gaze. He sighed and looked at his arm. He reached for the bandage but Kori froze and pulled back. His eyes were full of fear again. “What happened there?”

No one said anything this time. He looked at Midna and stood up.

“Midna… What’s going on?”

Midna closed her eyes and finally looked at him.

“It’s… He’s…”

“My son?”

Midna looked up with shame written on her face. Link looked down, she shouldn’t be ashamed…

He finished drying off Kori and changed his bandages as gently as possible. He stopped talking, so it was silent, only the rain could be heard. As Link cleaned and redressed Kori’s arm, he noticed that it was a nasty wound, a slash mark went up his arm, and from the looks of it, it was fairly new. Who could’ve done this to a child? Kori whimpered as he cleaned it the best he could.

“Sh, it’s alright Kori. The pain is only temporary,” he said gently. He wrapped up the arm and gave it a slight pat. “See? You were brave little one, good job.”

Kori smiled and rubbed his eyes again. He must be exhausted. He didn’t know if Twili ever slept, so it must’ve been a Hylian thing for him.

“Here, let’s get you nice place to sleep ok?”

Kori followed Link as he set up a comfy bed made of blankets, gesturing for Kori to sleep in it. The boy looked at Midna and she nodded at him. After waiting a moment, he got down from the chair he was in and wobbled over to where the bed was. As soon as he laid his head down, he was out like a light. Link smiled, he was a sweet little boy. He stood up, and the situation returned to him. He walked to where Midna sat, still and unmoving. He took a deep breath

“Midna… I… Hello again.”

Midna stared at him with no expression on her face. She looked like she was contemplating on what to say. Link pursed his lips and decided to get something off his chest.

“Clearly my actions have hurt you Midna, and I’m so sorry…. I’m so sorry about that night, if I could take it back I would!”

Midna’s expressionless face changed to confusion.

“What?”

“That boy… he’s ours… because of what we did…. And I’m so sorry… I know I hurt you and I wasn't there for you when you had him and I’m really sorry and I should’ve stopped and–”

Midna raised a hand to stop him, stepping closer to him.

“Link, do not blame yourself for what happened that night. It… wasn’t your fault alone…”

“Alone?”

Midna sat down, her head hung. “I didn’t do anything to stop it either… I knew that I needed to break the mirror, and I tried to keep my distance from you but… I didn’t. You didn’t know what I was going to do.”

Link stared ahead, hearing that didn’t help truthfully. He still felt confused, guilty, and almost sick to his stomach.

“Did that night mean anything to you?” He asked quietly.

Midna stared at him, her mouth slightly open.

“It meant everything to me.”

“Then why did you break the mirror?”

Midna looked down. “You know why. Deep down you know why. Shadow and light cannot mix. You saw what happened when Ganondorf went through the mirror, you saw what happened when Zant found him. You know why I broke it!”

Link looked over to where Kori, his son, laid asleep.

“Clearly shadow and light can mix,” he said quietly. Midna sat down and rested her head against her hand. She looked exhausted. “How did you get here Midna?”

“I can't say. It must stay a secret.”

Link nodded, he figured that was the answer. Now for a more important question.

“What happened to his arm?”

Midna buried her face in her hands, clearly the memory upsetting her. Link walked close to her and rested a hand on her shoulder.

“It’s ok, he’s safe now. What happened? Why did you bring him here?”

Link stood by Midna for a while, but she made no moves. She raised her head and went to say something but shivered pretty harshly.

“Here let’s get you into some dry clothes…” Link finally said after a moment of silence. Whatever happened, she’ll tell him, eventually.

Link quickly dried her off and offered some of his clothes, even though most of them wouldn’t have fit. He was somehow able to find something for her to wear that would fit her large frame, and when she was dressed he sat down, waiting for her to explain herself.

“I…. I hoped that nothing would come of that night,” she finally said after some silence, “because if something happened, then leaving this world behind would’ve been nearly impossible for me to do.”

“But something did happen.”

Midna nodded, not looking at him. Link sighed, the goddesses weren’t merciful to him. His prayers were not answered. He wasn’t there for Midna, he didn’t watch his son grow up, he wasn’t there when he said his first word. To Kori, Link was a stranger, not a father. And Midna had to raise him all by herself. A lump in his throat formed and his stomach felt hollow.

He should’ve stopped that night.

“As princess of the twilight realm, when I’m supposed to have a child, she should be a female, so that the monarchy can pass on. But I had a son, and he wasn’t fully Twili��� that scared some people. They thought that he was going to bring destruction to us.”

Link’s heart sank. She didn’t have to say, he knew.

“They hurt him.”

“I’ve been trying to find a way back here so he could be safe… as soon as I found a way… he… got hurt badly by my advisor.”

Her breath hitched at the memory, and Link grabbed her hand. She smiled at him, a small but genuine smile.

“He’s safe now. You both are.”

Midna stared into his eyes for a long moment.

“I missed you Link.”

He sucked in a breath. He’s missed Midna more than anything. He wanted to see her again, to talk to her again, to tell her about all of the things he’s experienced. But now that she was here, he didn’t find anything to say. He didn’t make a move to hug her, to cry, he just felt… awkward. Midna’s smile went down when he said nothing, and she gently rubbed his hand.

“I know I hurt you. And it’s not right of me to ask this of you but… I was hoping that Kori could stay here… he’ll be safer here, with you.”

“Safer here? Yeah I won’t hurt him, but I can’t say the same for Ordon. How do you know that everyone here will accept him? How do you know that they won’t be scared of him too?”

Midna finally looked at his eyes.

“Because they’re your family Link, you have a better influence over them than I over my people.”

“That doesn’t make sense.”

“Just because I’m the princess doesn’t mean they listen to me. It’s complicated but clearly I couldn’t do anything to protect him from my advisors. Your family loves you, they trust you, they’ll try to understand you.”

Link pulled his hand away, staring at Kori.

“So you expect me to raise him here then… alone…?”

“No. Not alone.”

Link looked up at Midna, a sliver of hope forming within him.

“We both made a mistake that night Link, neither one of us should get off scot-free, it takes two to make a child,” she grabbed his hand and continued to stare into his eyes, Link’s heart beating against his chest, “and it takes two to raise one.”

They stared at each other for a long moment, and the past two years separated withered away for them. When they were together now, it was almost as if they were never apart.

“I can't abandon the twilight realm, but every new moon I will visit, I will be here, but I just need Kori to be safe.”

Link looked down and their clasped hands, then at the sleeping child. An overwhelming feeling of protectiveness came over him, and he nodded. “I understand Midna… I promise I’ll keep him safe.”

Midna smiled. “I knew you would. Trust me, I wouldn’t ask this of you if nothing bad happened but—“

“Don’t apologize. I’m his father, it’s like you said, it takes two to make a child, and two to raise one.”

Midna stared at him for a long moment, then she leaned in, Link’s heart nearly thumping out of his chest. He wanted so badly to show how much he missed her, he wanted to scream to the heavens on how happy he was to see her again, but… he felt too much pain for it to be perfectly fine. He turned his head away.

“I’m sorry Midna… there’s a lot more we need to talk about.”

Midna let out a sigh and smiled.

“That’s fine, I’m staying for a while anyways. Let’s talk.”

Abfdgjfjllljffhk AGH THE KIDDO 😭

You were right thatLink was depressed whewwwww he’s got a lot on his mind (who wouldn’t?) poor guy. And KORI oh no hurting him just because he’s not a girl??? Midna better give that guy what for

This was so goooood, thanks for sharing it :D

[epicfirestormer]

What I love about Hellboy and Abe Sapien's dynamic in the comics is that, if you came into this blind, you'd expect Abe to be the voice of reason or the straight man to Hellboy's impulsive and hotheaded personality. But no, Abe is more often than not the crazy one. Hellboy would deal with fighting evil monsters and bad guys by just sighing and getting it over with, while Abe is going rabid over tearing the creature apart when he does get into a fight. Hellboy acts like it's a 9-to-5 job and will reasonably talk things out with a guy that had nearly killed him before, Abe acts like a madman in a slaughter house and his first instinct is to shoot first kill second and ask third. They're both insane, but on completely different levels.

[strawberryseeded]

i wish we had gotten more of kugisaki nobara. i just watched dis vid and all my contained RAGE abt dis topic suddenly HIT ME LIKE A TRAIN GOD IM UPSET

ive talked like 32893882 times already (and its still NOT ENOUGH) abt how upset i was abt nobara's death cos she was such a good character, with so much potential!! i really REALLY liked her. she was funny, strong, confident and kind!!!! i loved her char design!! her cursed technique and weapon were cool as hell!!!!!!

and her (recently SOMEWHAT(?) confirmed(?)) death sucked so fucking much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

she was just. fucking fridged. as much as it pains me to admit it. from a narrative standpoint, she died so yuuji would get upset and further develop his character & then move the plot along. even mahito admits that he wants her to die to make yuuji suffer. like yeah he also recognizes her a strong opponent (ofc. cos she is) but at the end of the day he wanted to kill her just to wreck yuuji. and he succeded.

nobara has no say on the way she dies. she's just.. slapped, kinda. its so sudden. its so... weird. not that she's accepting of it (we already know that she knows she can die at any moment and she's ready for it (cos she's a freak like the rest of the sorcerers lol)), but its weird bc its like its not a personal moment for her. yeah we get a flashback & her speech about how, even tho she always was a person who refused to let other people affect the way she is and decides to live, there still are people who, by being accepting of her, managed to gain a place in her heart... and she's happy for that. its rly beautiful.

but its the impact her death has on yuuji what the story really cares about here.

and like. thats fine! im not even saying killing nobara is a bad choice or that its bad if her death also developed yuuji's character. but the way it was done, its like her death only had that purpose. its a way too transparent device, that's what i dislike abt it. i dont mind being upset bc a character i love dies? i like feeling strong emotions when i engage emotionally with art/stories.

but i think she was killed off too soon. we didn't get to properly say goodbye to her. both her character arc and her death were rushed.

she could have been developed so much more! it feels like she was taken away way too soon in the story. i wanted her to fight sukuna along the others. i wanted her to use her cool technique to help yuuji nail sukuna's soul. i wanted to see just how much stronger she could get. i wanted her to finally meet saori. I WANTED HER TO HAVE A COOL EYE PATCH!!!!!!!!!!!

why is she barely mentioned after she dies??? she was one of the 3 main, dude, are u kidding me? yuuji's the only one who mentions her but he's almost afraid of talking about her. its like the whole world forgot about her!!!!! and what about maki?????? werent they girlfriends?

what is nobara's LEGACY? why did gege not make her death matter in the narrative? even if she (for whatever reason) came back(??) at the end, id still be rly mad & sad abt it cos i wanted to see her DO STUFF!! i wanted to see her kick some ass!!!! i wanted to see her grow!!!!! to open up with others!!!!! I WANTED TO SEE MORE OF HER. IM SO UPSET I WANT OUT

[bmpmp3]

post ankle-twisting clarity

[cfrog]

im gonna write about the significance of robot names in my robots' culture. under the cut.

First and foremost, the names that the bots are most commonly referred to (Xiphoid, Nautiloid, etc.) are actually their model names. Like how people refer to cars. Their "legal" names are the model+ID number code (Xi01, Naut0324, etc.) but those are kind of a pain to remember and say. So, how do you refer to a bot in a situation with multiple of the same model?

Well, the other big difference within models is color, which is a lot easier to figure out than checking IDs. Distributors will do their best to avoid repeat colors within the same project or area, so just going "the blue one" is usually a safe bet. That's the basic solution.

The long-term solution between bots, however, is nicknames. All bots (that associate with other bots) have at least one, but none are kept on any official records, so it's exclusively shared between bots. These names can be shortenings of the model name, references to their number or color, or something about their appearance or personality. The giving of a nickname is an act of closeness as well as convenience, a way of saying "We spend so much time together, and I refer to you so often, that I need to have my own method of specifying you." Popular bots will have a multitude of names they'll respond to, with some being exclusive to a certain bot. By contrast, more anti-social bots will reject nicknames and refuse to respond to any new names.

To continue to use Xi01 as an example, they get priority on being just Xiphoid, most bots will refer to them as such. The other Xiphoids will call them Xiph if they're being friendly, or 01 if they're not. Naut uses their preferred title of Dr. Xiph, or just Doctor, because they know it makes Xiph happy. Similarly, Vi calls them Doc, because it fits their casual tone better. (I actually wrote the first time Vi calls Xiph "Doc" in chapter 4. wasn't sure how much attention to call to it since readers wouldn't have this context. but now you do!)

And for examples of names within models, some of the other Xiphoids' names include: 03 (or very rarely Xi), Fi (but they prefer Fifi, it's cuter), Xoid, and Ex. Earlier models get first dibs on the obvious ones, so any Xiphoids past these first few have to get a bit more creative.

Humans who work alongside bots probably come up with names as well (because they're humans, we love naming things) but all the bots I'm writing about don't actively interact with humans, so it is not relevant. We're talkin robot-only culture here.

That's all thank you for reading my robot ramblings

[orcelito]

I've got my advising appointment for next semester tomorrow, so I got to checking it all out. I will need to take Three more classes, out of the following...

Two of them have to be from the list of packaged app software solution, software development methods, and advanced systems design & integration. First two are prioritized, tho the third is there of either of the first aren't. Tho I'm a little confused bc none of these are listed in the class offerings for next semester??? But theyre requirements???? I'm gonna be asking my advisor about that.

And Then I have a selective. Just one. But I made a list of a bunch that I Could take & potentially would be useful in my career, ordered in preference priority:

Six sigma data quality

Enterprise data management

Policy, regulation, and globalization in information technology

Front end web coding

Applied machine learning

UNIX administration

Advanced systems development methodologies

Quality engineering in IT

Research methodology & design

Network engineering fundamentals

WHICH IS TO SAY...

A lot of tech possibilities lol. Last two are down there only bc they're restricted to another sub-major until open registration, so I probably won't get in. But I included them just in case :p

In general, out of my last semester I'd like to get more knowledge about coding and enterprise IT shit. Whatever could be most useful for me in an IT career.

[gibbearish]

guy who is really mad some people don't like having cake smushed in their faces

guy who is really mad that people smush their friends’ faces into birthday cakes

[arolesbianism]

Y'know now that I'm seeing a small handful of ppl actually giving a shit abt oni lore it's making it so much harder to not become a nerd emoji every five seconds anytime I see someone talk abt oni because I forget that every source of oni information is comically outdated

[trashbaget]

*

[elysiae]

do you think operator & drifter treat their warframes wildly differently?

somewhat insufficient TLDR: i think the operator and drifter are emotionally attached but in vastly, strikingly different ways, and it manifested very, very differently too.

in operator's case, it isn't that they dont *care*, but they know how durable a warframe is. they know they can take one hell of a hit, and they'll be okay because that warframe takes the brunt of it (albeit with some phantom pain if the damage is bad enough). theyre less comfortable outside the confines of those large, bulky war machines because they know they're ultimately safe. those warframes can take hits. they cannot. the operator knows they were people, but they never met those people before the tragedy. besides... a lot of them really are just empty shells. they're hardly the people they once were, especially since they recreated those warframes from blueprints. don't get me wrong, they do remember the anguish of the originals - they were there, they lived it, and they still have empathy for them... but the operator knows the limits of every warframe like the back of their hand - they can maneuver however they want, they can take hits, they can run into armies and not be too afraid because they (as in the operator and the warframe this time) be fine. even if the warframe is damaged, they can fix the damage, so no harm done.

but drifter on the other hand? at first i think they never really realised the power they had. in their mind they were still them, just running, rolling on the occasion, it took them ages to maneuver those things *properly*, and probably only ever really learned with the operator's guidance. they would not let a warframe take a hit, not because they felt empathy for it (at least not a lot, last i checked you kind of need at least *some* to have effective transference?) but because they were so used to walking around vulnerable. yknow, not inside a killing machine. but what would've really solidified the difference was after they went to 1999. sure, hearing that these things used to be people is one thing, but at the end of the day, to drifter, they're still just machines. drifter never got to experience what the tenno did, they never had to deal with reaching into their freshly scarred minds to ease their anger, sorrow, fear, rein them in like the terrified animals they were turning into and hush their cries with understanding - they only knew the dead inside remnants... but it's an entirely other thing when you go to the past and see the people who were hurt. you meet them and you get to know them, become their best friends - maybe even date one of them - and it hit drifter like a fuckin' freight train. they have this entirely different view on warframes from that cold perspective they had at first. they weren't just war machines. those are people. every time they go into the head of those machines, they're looking through the eyes of *people.* people who had families and desires and hobbies, things they looked forward to, entire futures ahead of them that were snuffed out. people who were scared, people who didn't know what was happening. people who knew what was happening, who lived in fear knowing they weren't able to stop it... people who lived in fear of losing themselves. and i think it hit drifter a lot harder than they'd ever admit.

but thats not to say one of them is more attached than the other - both of them care deeply about their warframes. it's just that, they have different ways of looking at them. after all their experiences were so vastly different, it'd be impossible to look at them the same way.

(too lazy to type it out all over, but i have an example in the tags i think kinda helps pull it together more)

[halflifebutawesome]

List of observations from the first 20 minutes of HL2 that are honestly probably really base level takes but I think about alot .

I made a post about it months ago but Barn literally turns his ENTIRE FUCKING BACK to Gordon and FULLY OBSTRUCTS HIS OWN VISION and completely bares his throat when he takes off his mask. This man is incredibly stupid and incredibly lucky that Gordon didn't just like. Jump him.

kind of fucked that when teh other CP asks barney if he “needs help with this one” (refering to interrogating and presumably Hurting Gordon in some capacity) and barney replys “no ive got this” the other CP jsut. Believes him. Fully accepts that Barneys capable of enough violence/force that he doesnt need backup. Like. Okay. The alternative here is that the other guard is also undercover but like. Yknow.

I've thought about this before but him saying "it's me, Barney, from black mesa" isn't just a line to tell the Player who this is, it's also in case. Well. The Combine canonically have been wiping peoples memories and making people forget. Here comes Gordon, missing for 20 years and looking probably disoriented, one has to assume he just Forgot everyone somehow and doesn't know what's going on. Saying it's me, Barney, from Black Mesa, he's trying to in some way jog his memory, just in case

the guards will just straight up attack you in the train station if you keep bothering them. I jsut didn't know this and I think it's scary and interesting.

Gordon running through city 17 before you meet Alyx genuinely feels so frantic and scary and disorienting I really like it.

Alyx takes out like ~7 CP by herself. God what a woman. They way they're like strewn about the room though fucking kiiills me. WHAT DID SHE DO .

I also just really like all the npc dialog and animation. Its got such a good feel to it all it makes me smile. Theyre FRIENDSSSS OKAY. theyre friends and they care about eachother and they care about Gord. sniffles. This time he doesn't have to do it alone......

NOBODY TELLS GORDON FUCKING ANYTHING. they're like well. Get in the HEV Gordy. Get in the Contraption Gordy. Okay here's a crowbar go run around in the canals see ya later and it's like. COOL. SEE YOU. I LOVE YOU. I STILL DONT KNOW WHATS GOING ON. CAN I HAVE A GUN

[bonefries]

IIIIII want to hear the nsfw franco headcanons. pretty please w a big cherry on top and sprinkles and whip cream PLEASE

Here are my headcanons, under the cut. I dont have like a ton but here are my thoughts! : v : )/

( tw flashing image ) just in case

-I personally think his foreplay game is strong, probably the strongest thing he has. The reason I think this is because he knows he is about to ask whoever he is doing to do some weird shit with him. So like, he over performs and does really incredible warming up. It's a pride thing, or sometimes even just fueled out of pure spite. God forbid the person laugh too..

-i remember a document mentioning the girls at the gator hook lodge not wanting to engage despite the money franco was dishing out, because of something to do with his hygiene. This was too vague for me to understand what it was specifically referring to. I wanna think it wasn't anything to actually do with his genitals or like STDs of sorts. I think outside of trial carnage, he can clean up extremely nicely when he wants to. he lived a luxury lifestyle so i think when he wants to "wow" he absolutely will, especially if that means its going to get him laid that night. - his dick is out in the comic and it does look maybe a little under average, but genuinely im not sure. i think he's a clean average maybe erect who knows very basic list of things i think about him: -face sitting -oral is his favorite activity, this is the #1 -probably a dry humper/thigh rider -clothing on (getting his expensive suits messy because he's so desperately horny it's sad and pathetic, ykno, to aid the humiliation kink) -tit sucker ,tit fucker -probably claims he's a great masseuse -maybe a fancy lil drink before and smoking a cig after sex -gun play, probably (whatever this entails make your own lines but like.....LUPARA IS THERE SO!! THATS HIS BIG FANCY CAR. YKNOW.) -he is a biter, and he will leave marks (and his teeth marks will be so specific it'll be kind of cute in a way) -the little brat needs to be taught how to do proper after care because based off of how he talks about himself (and sex workers for that matter) i know he has no fucking aftercare etiquette at all so someone needs to beat that into him

thats all i got for now off the top of my head!!

[aeon-uriel]

Hi! I really want to know the fic recs of the trope of married at first meeting for zolu!

heyya!!! here they come

❤️💚 ꕀ 𖠳 ᐝ ꕀ 💚❤️

oh temptation (i could be a part of you) by meteorablues

they are so married but not 'married' but thats only because its something more. they love each other so much since the first time they meet and their logic goes: if theres a beginning theres an end so their relationship is just there with them as long as they exist hes mine and im his its that simple but some things need to be put into words because because!!!! i might or might not cry what a concept (the fics about the rest of the crew being baffled because of that and its beautiful) (also ft nika luffy i just love that so much and this fic delivers so incredibly) (LIKE FOR REAL THE NIKA PART IS EUEGEHGEHEGEHHHGGHHH i dont wanna spoil it but!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!pls read this im begging on my knees

Just Because You Didn't See It, Doesn't Mean It Didn't Happen by anarchycox

this one is a pov outsider story which is one of my fave tropes ever. a real fun take of zolus marriage being such a part of themselves that even the other crew didnt notice it as a separate thing; oh yeah thats just how those dumbasses are. (apparently married.) (oh look another person falling for luffy.) (but hes already married.) (but we didnt know for the what feels like the longest time ever because we thought thats just how they are.) Or. Yknow. perhaps this one time the rest of the crew could be the dumb ones

(bonus) How It Happened, The First Time by anarchycox

companion piece of the one above! first night on the dinghy! so mind the rating. its quite fun and chaotic just like them

Love is where you find it by Alone77

another pov outsider but specifically jimbe's and the other crew actually knew! love that old fish man slowly realizing his new captain and first mate's love as palpable as the sun

honorable mentions:

baby you're my north star by galaxyninjer

5 thingy format of luffy proposing to zoro BUT WHERES THE ONE TIME THEY ACTUALLY GET MARRIED i really wish i could write a continuation for this im sobbing sm send help

Hearts Can Break Any Cage by anarchycox

its a abo au so cw for that plus the rating and not exactly "marriage" because. again. abo. :D not everyones cup of tea i know, but just in case coz it still fits and they make me go insane. zoro using a muzzle zoro in a muzzle zoroINAMUZZLE

❤️💚 ꕀ 𖠳 ᐝ ꕀ 💚❤️

writing this answer got me realizing yknow maybe i should actually write this trope from their povs in shells town and there is not enough of this trope pls pray for my muse to graciously make a comeback

[ohbo-ohno]

I'm gripping the bars of my cage desperately, I'm chewing at the bars, begging, pleading for more zombie ghoap x reader au.

zombie ghoap x reader au coming right up chef 🫡

btw this is super similar to charliemwrites' jaw dropping ghoap x reader "the (scottish) cabin in the woods" so you need to go read that immediately (and leave a nice comment because charlie rocks)

cw for noncon puppyplay below the cut

i was talking to ceilidh a tiny bit about this earlier, and i think that johnny and reader met in like a cannibal cult kinda thing. very much so like that episode of TLOU, yknow? they both think they've found a little commune safe haven, but it very quickly becomes clear that that's not the case.

anyways, they end up trying to get out together when they realize what's going on, and have to kill a few of the cult members :/ they've been "stuck together" ever since

they threaten to leave the other for dead (or kill them in the middle of the night) constantly. it hasn't happened yet, obviously, but boy oh boy do both of them bring it up nonstop. they act like they hate each other, but honestly they just need to fuck

but they're sorta stuck together now. you're better off paired up with someone than on your own, that's something they both learned pre-cult fiasco. and, really, they don't dislike each other nearly as much as you might think based on the way they gripe

enter ghost. he spots these two survivors wandering through the forest, one injured and both filthy, and basically thinks to himself "hm. could be good in home entertainment"

(here's the deal with puppyplay like this - it's absurd, and we're just going with it. alright??? just WORK with me here)

if you didn't see, i put in the tags of the original post "#btw - he takes you home then chains you both up outside and says something like “this is where dogs stay” :/#dont worry you're perfectly safe (he has a high fence keeping zombies out) but he likes to hear how scared you get when you're out there all#you're both quite well behaved when he lets you in for dinner the next night <3#he only has to scold you once when you both complain about being made to eat while kneeling on the floor next to him"

you're probably both "behaving" because you don't want him to. you know. fucking KILL YOU. but this is also a zombie apocalypse au, so you're both totally feral too. and this is an apocalypse ghost too, which means he's probably way harsher and way rougher around the edges than he even is in canon

anyways i think soap and reader here are more likely to be like "lets wait this out and try to escape when he's not expecting it" except they're like... really bad at trying to play along

ANYWAYS!!!! ghost takes you two back to his compound, ties the both of you up outside for the night. he wraps soap's ankle first, gives him a stern command to stay off of it, and goes back inside like everything is normal. he watches you two over the camera while planning out how he'll build some outdoor kennels for the two of you

you're both cold and tired and hungry and scared the next morning, so it doesn't take much coaxing on his part to get you inside. it takes a lot more coaxing to keep you two on your knees :/

honestly johnny's ankle is so fucked that it's almost a relief to keep pressure off of it (even if it means crawling around on the floor like an animal) but you care a hell of a lot more. ghost threatens to break your ankles before you finally listen :/

he ties the leashes to your wrists, to keep you both out of trouble as much as he can. it's not like either of you are eager to go very far - his house is warm and you're both chilled to the bone from your night outisde

anyways. that's all i've got like, linearly. but i can offer some random little tidbits about their lives after

ghost makes you both eat from the floor. he gives you plates (no silverware) at first and lets you use your hands, and gradually works the two of you up to eating from bowls with just your mouths

you and johnny bicker constantly and simon frequently makes the two of you kiss to make up :( forces you to make out with each other while he smokes a cigarette and enjoys the show. no matter how mad you are, you both end up needy and humping the air when he finally lets you stop

he tries to have you two sleep in the same crate, but it does not go well. ghost very quickly realizes that you two will try to tear each other's throats out if forced that closely together for an entire night

sometimes one of you will try to get the other in trouble. there's one particular night where you trick johnny into misbehaving and he's stuck in the outside kennel all night - but it rains. and every time you glance out the window you see how sad and cold he looks :((( ghost lets you love on him the next morning, and soap is more than eager for a bit of comfort after such a miserable night

[cconfusedkat]

Spooky month means spooky ideas and spooky ideas ??? Lead to AU's!! >:-D i was dwelling on it for a few months and wasn't really sure on how i wanted to create this up?? But nonetheless i managed :-]

"Vampyres of the Old Faith" is an AU centered around the sudden uprise of vampyr (which are the Bishops in this case) and the vampyre hunters intend to stop this revolt before it gets any worse !! This takes place in the eaaaarly 2000's ,,, so it's a modern au ,,, and is a little funny to consider that the vampyr are Old as hell and arent adapted well enough to modern society 😭😭

YIPPEE Now that i got that down here are the four main vampyres :-3c there is a Green Coven, Golden Coven, Blue Coven, and Purple Coven. Each vampyre is able to shapeshift into smaller forms—like how a vampyre can change into a bat—these four can turn into different animals !! Theyve all been alive for different amounts of time, yet 300 years ago they all managed to find eachother and create a pact of vampyr covens!!

Leshy is Def known as the cruelest and invasive one,, he does happen to be the only one to mess with the shaping and mirroring of reality,,,, which honestly is concerning the most 😭 throughout history people have claimed they've seen "a big tree creature walking and taking people's skin" ,,,, So the eldritch rumors are NOT very helpful for him-

Originally i wanted to give heket a hellhound form but i actually liked the snake form better :-] !! Deciding her outfit was a little complicated but ,,, i think it turned out well ? Hekets known for being the most angry and cold vampyre. Despite , yknow, using fire magick . HELP

Kallamar o kallamar !!! She is a siren and she stays only in the water :-) if her siblings needs to speak to her then they make sure to have a water circle in the middle of their meeting room so they can all talk with her there,,, kallamar is known for her manipulative tactics and ways of persuasion which help her catch and convert people into vampyrism

Lastly is our main coven leader Everyone knows that built up the ideas for a vampyre uprising would be none other thann Shamura 👍👍👍 known for their sadistic self and invincibility , using wind magick to get away with a variety of things in a literal snap of a finger ,,, because of being a vampyre longer than all of them they're uniquely the one with sensitivity to blood?? They can still take blood but they dont drink it as often as the other three do (minus the way leshy does it because he literally latches himself onto a victim's shoulder with his mouth ,,,, )

With all the vampyres in mind who are our hunters ???

Well here's the first three bigshots of the company >:-D Sozonius has been hunting and obtaining information about vampyr for years, narinder is fairly new to vampyr bounty hunting yet still exceeded the expectation of a regular bounty hunter (surprisingly the strongest 23 year old), and lamb only recently started researching the vampyr after they lost their mother to vampyrism,, they are mainly known for being a detective and trying to help people out with finding their lost family members or attempting to help revert a vampyr they found back into a mortal !!!!

The company (which im,,,, Honestly not sure of a name about still 😭 i dont know what to call it) has been a benefit to society more than they realize. The unmentioned references happen to be Forneus and Monch. The head scientist is Monch, and Forneus IS the founder of the company to hunt down vampyres! Shes lost her family to vampyrism all the same, especially her two sons (aym & baal) which were kidnapped by Shamura too since theyve stalked narinder and knew he had a fondness over those two kittens just as much as forneus did.

There are more roles within this universe,, ive also been trying to think of how many characters I could add into this,, BUT YEAH !!!! Something really silly and self indulgent over the past few days of making finalized refs for them :-D

Ive been kinda plotting out another secret story for Narinder on how *he* was the one who caused this sudden uprising,, how the betrayal of leaving his siblings caused them to rage in revolution,, but that can be for another time 🕺

[miwiheroes]

Narrative-wise and character-arc wise based on what we know up until s4, do you think Mike and El break-up is better before or after the time skip?

aghhhhh this is such a hard question because it could actually work both ways tbh but it would just have to handled differently <3

If it's before the time skip:

this would feel extremely rushed and disingenuous if it is not done correctly. It would honestly feel like the Duffers just decided to fuck with their viewers by giving milkvan a 'good' moment in the last ep of season 4 and then taking it all away in season 4. I think if they were to do it before a time skip, the whole of the first episode would have to be before the time skip so it feels like the episode doesnt just BEGIN with like a big breakup, because closure to a storyline doesnt usually get done in the first episode or the beginning of the first episode.

I know, I know, we really want milkvan to break up immediately and have no romantic moments or whatever. I don't think this will be the case, I think if it's before the time skip, then El will likely break up with Mike, but honestly I have no clue how they will write it. Because the situation is way way more complicated than people actually write in fanfiction (I have literally written a milkvan breakup but i dont think it will happen in that way).

I think the only way that Mike can know about the painting is if he hears it from El, and I think it makes the most sense for her to tell him during the breakup, but this will make less sense if this breakup happens before the time skip. HOW IS MIKE MEANT TO RUMINATE ON THIS FOR A WHOLE YEAR AND A HALF ??????????????

If it's after the time skip:

this would be so weird because like <3 what do you mean they've been in this weird limbo space for a whole year and a half?

however, i think if it's after the time skip, it would make sense if mike keeps saying i love you to el and is now able to because he said it in the pizza place, but el still thinks that he is being fake. but then again it makes NO SENSE for her to not confront him about this for over a year yknow? therefore if this happens after the time skip then it would have to be mike breaking up with her after realising he's gay or something - therefore it would not be in episode one and would have to be after he's had a self-discovery arc. Maybe he realises what the painting really means, leading him to break up with her.

i would not like this however, because it does not make sense for his character to do this up to this point, since he has been so afraid of losing her, so honestly i think it needs to be el exercising her autonomy to break up with him if that happens, but this again makes no sense to do after a year and a half IM JUST SO CONFUSED ON WHAT THEY WILL DO HELPPPPP THIS IS JUST A STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS AT THIS POINT................

okay sorry for that rambling: honestly i think that it should happen before the time skip, and that pre-time skip should occur for a whole episode (episode 1) and the break up should happen around the end of the episode, where mike finds out about the painting so he can think about it for a longer time (1 year) which i guess means he can be the one pining yay

TLDR; i have a breakdown