#I had a different funnier idea for this prompt

[cookiebean2019]

OH MY GUAC your art is so adorable!!!! And the way you draw Shadow Milk makes me want to hug him so bad... what a cutie patootie fr

Anyway, I've got a request for you (It's a little silly, but I hope you don't mind!) It's basically just Shadow Milk making one of those "hear me out" cakes that were trending a little while back, but... every single person on it is Y/N. The whole cake is just... filled with them. There's more Y/N than cake by the time Shadow Milk is done putting all the pictures he has of Y/N on the cake (which he honestly will never be, he just ran out of space on that cake)

I think it'd be even funnier if he had Y/N watch as he keeps putting them on the cake, over and over again. Maybe he'd even ask them to guess who'd be put on the cake next and before they'd finish he'd just be like "that's right! it's you!" and there goes a picture of Y/N on the cake again.

(I'm so sorry if this is too much, and if you don't want to do it that's totally fine!! I'll understand completely.)

Shadow Milk's Hear me Out Cake: Featuring Y/N!

This was so fun to do- ngl-

Sorry for the late post! I was trying to work this into a short comic, but all the drafts just didn't turn out well enough, or was far too long for my style!

(I'll come back to this prompt later if I ever get an idea for something else to do!)

😭

So instead I took the time to make a nice single image! Featuring different Y/Ns that I've seen here on Tumblr!

Created by:

@odileeclipse / @bbyg00rl

@eepy-cookies

@dreamyblanket

[hummingbird24220]

May I please request swordsman! Reader who can understand swords?

I've seen in a couple fics where swordsmen are able to talk to their swords after bonding with them but the idea of reader being able to with out a bond present would be so funny! Idk if it's a skill reader learned (like a special technique) or a devil fruit power but reader just absolutely clowning on the swordsmen in one piece as a whole. Idk if the swordsman themselves can talk to their swords but I feel like it's funnier if they can't. Reader learning all about Zoro as a kid from Wado and all the embarrassing things it's seen (its been with him so long)

The only other swordsmen I can think of are Law and Mihawk. Readers experience with their swords are a little different

I feel like Yoru(I think is the name) has to much respect for Mihawk to tell any embarrassing stories like Wado but would still be embarrassing with how much bragging it does. It's very proud to have Mihawk as it's owner (he's the best swordsmen afterall)

Law's sword, Kikoku is just as cautious as it's owner but can't help but to take this opportunity to tell reader to tell law to take better care of himself

(You don't have to write for law or Mihawk if you don't want to! I just wanted to add my thoughts on them! You could just do Zoro with his three swords or any other swordsmen- honestly I have lots of thoughts about this 'prompt' so sorry for rambling <3)

(I have more thoughts if you like this request enough if not no worries!)

This is a cool idea! Thank you for requesting <3 I havent met Law in the anime yet (still on baby episodes) but i did a smol google and stalk. Sorry if hes OOC! Kinda went into it with the mindset of 'if the sword vibes with the wielder, then the wielder can kinda understand the sword' - but thee reader is fluent in swordeneese ;)

I saw your other message about you wanting a Swordsmith reader - i wasn't too sure how to incorporate it to the story so its a bit of a doozy. I could do a part 2 - focusing more on the swords being cared/repaired if you like, maybe with some scenes with shanks and his sword (reader tries not to acknowledge his sword so he doesn't think shes nosy or something? big bad shank emperor vibes ((when really hes a softie)))

Let me know if you want part 2 ^^

Enjoy <3

Sharp Tongues, Sharper Blades (Part 1)

One piece x Swordsmith!Reader

You didn’t set out to be a menace. That just sort of... happened.

Your Devil Fruit—unofficially dubbed the Blade-Whisper Whisper Fruit by a very drunk shipwright—granted you the ability to hear and speak to swords. Not just your own. Not just special, bonded blades. All swords. All the time.

It was less of a superpower and more of a constantly running group chat in your head, filled with temperamental steel with centuries of backstories and too many opinions.

Zoro’s swords were loudest of all.

You had snuck into the Sunny’s training room while the crew was off eating. You were supposed to be sharpening some of the crew’s utility knives. Instead, you were crouched beside Zoro’s swords, whispering like you were conspiring with old friends.

"Alright, alright—Wado first," you muttered, eyeing the pristine katana resting in its scabbard.

Wado Ichimonji’s “voice” came through calm and noble, but with the weary sass of someone who’s seen too much.

“It’s about time you listened. Do you know how hard it is being the only reasonable one among these idiots?”

You snorted. "You're literally a sword."

“And yet more emotionally mature than your average swordsman.”

"Tell me something embarrassing."

There was a pause.

“…When he was ten, he practiced shirtless in front of a mirror because he thought he’d grow muscles faster that way.”

You had to cover your mouth to keep the laugh in.

Sandai Kitetsu gave off an unhinged energy, like a cursed blade that listened to heavy metal and screamed into the void for fun.

“I told him to stop juggling me. That was not a test of fate. That was plain stupidity.”

"How many times has he tried to use you while drunk?"

“Seven. Eight if you count the time he mistook a mop for me.”

Shusui (grumpy, old, and dramatic) immediately interjected.

“Hmph. That mop had better stance.”

You pressed your forehead to the wooden floor, wheezing with laughter.

"Wado, how do you deal with him?"

“Love, patience, and the ability to ignore shirtless mirror flexing.”

You wiped your eyes. "You're killing me."

A familiar voice suddenly barked from behind you.

“What the hell are you doing with my swords?”

You turned slowly to find Zoro in the doorway, brow furrowed, arms crossed.

Think fast. “...uh, bonding?”

He looked skeptical. You grinned.

“Wado says you used to practice shirtless for gains.”

Zoro’s face turned ten shades of red.

“WHAT?!”

From the sword rack, Wado Ichimonji whispered smugly: “He also cried after losing to a squirrel once.”

-

Dinner on the Sunny was loud, chaotic, and usually filled with the sounds of Luffy trying to steal food off every plate within reach.

Tonight, it was also filled with the sounds of you barely containing your laughter as you side-eyed Zoro across the table.

He was trying to act normal, gruffly chewing through his rice like it hadn’t been hours since you’d had a little... chat with his swords. You could see the tension in his jaw, the way his eye kept twitching every time you looked at him and smirked.

You were so going to milk this.

“So, Zoro…” you said casually, poking at your food. “Ever get into any fights with… squirrels?”

He froze mid-bite.

Luffy blinked. “Wait, what kind of squirrel? Like a big one?”

Zoro narrowed his eyes at you. “You said you weren’t gonna say anything!”

“I said nothing about dinner,” you replied, grinning. “Besides, Wado told me. I’m just the humble messenger.”

Sanji leaned over from across the table, intrigued. “Oi, moss-head, did you really lose to a squirrel?”

“It was strategic retreat,” Zoro grumbled.

Robin was sipping wine, completely unbothered. “How charming. Perhaps we can find you a rematch.”

“I’LL KILL THAT SWORD,” Zoro snapped.

You snorted into your drink. “I don’t think that’s how swords work, sweetie.”

Wado Ichimonji—propped up nearby in its sheath—was practically vibrating with smug energy in your head.

“Tell him I still have the scar. Right on the saya. From when he tripped into a tree trying to dodge it.”

You bit your tongue. Don’t laugh. Don’t laugh. Okay, laugh later.

“Anyway,” you said, taking a bite, “the real scandal was the mirror thing.”

Zoro dropped his chopsticks.

Usopp looked between you and Zoro. “Wait—what mirror thing?”

Nami raised a brow. “Oh no.”

Brook’s skull tilted curiously. “Was it about his form?”

“Or lack of muscles?” Sanji added with a smirk.

“HE WAS TEN,” Zoro barked, face red. “DROP IT.”

You smiled sweetly. “But you believed it would work. That’s the cute part.”

Zoro shot to his feet. “I will personally throw all your tools into the sea.”

You shrugged. “Then I guess I’ll just ask Wado what your favorite shampoo is and swap it with mayonnaise.”

Wado, gleeful: “It’s lavender. He says it’s for 'clarity.'”

Zoro screamed into his hands.

Across the table, Luffy was just staring in awe. “Your swords talk back?! That’s so cool!”

Zoro glared at you. “They don’t talk.”

You leaned back in your chair, arms behind your head, grin wide as the ocean.

“No, Zoro. They don’t talk to you.”

-

The galley was quieter after dinner, lit only by warm lanterns and the soft clatter of dishes. Sanji was elbow-deep in soap suds, humming a soft tune as he washed. You were drying plates beside him, content for once to enjoy the stillness after a meal full of teasing and near sword-based homicide.

“You know,” Sanji said, glancing over, “for someone who spent dinner instigating Zoro into an aneurysm, you’re surprisingly helpful in the kitchen.”

“Gotta stay useful somehow,” you replied with a shrug. “Besides, I only poke the moss bear out of love.”

He snorted. “Uh-huh. Sure.”

As he turned to scrub a pot, a glint from the knife rack caught your eye. A particular chef’s knife—slender, perfectly weighted, lovingly honed. It practically vibrated with attention as you passed.

“Hey,” it whispered, voice soft and precise, like a blade gliding through ripe tomato skin. “That man. The one with the cigarette and perfect fingers. He’s a good one.”

You blinked, surprised. Most blades didn’t care for conversation unless they had drama to spill or blood to remember. This one was… almost reverent.

“You want me to tell him something?” you murmured under your breath, pretending to clean the counter.

“Tell him I appreciate the oil he uses. The cloth. The sharpening stone. And the way he holds me—steady, confident. It’s rare to be treated with such respect.” A pause. “…His julienne game? Immaculate.”

You stifled a chuckle. “Right, I’ll let him know.”

“What was that?” Sanji asked, glancing over.

You hesitated. Normally, you’d play this kind of thing for laughs. But this blade wasn’t mocking. It was genuine. So you dried your hands, turned to him, and leaned against the counter.

“Your favorite knife just wanted to say you’ve got great technique,” you said casually. “Like, really appreciates how well you take care of it. The oiling, the sharpening, the… julienne game. All of it.”

Sanji paused mid-scrub, frowning. “You serious?”

You nodded. “Dead serious. It’s almost poetic about it. Kinda adorable, honestly.”

For a moment, the only sound was the soft hum of the Sunny.

Then Sanji—cool, composed Sanji—turned pink at the ears.

“…Tch. Stupid knife,” he muttered, looking away. “Gonna make me emotional over a hunk of steel.”

You smiled. “Steel’s got feelings too, apparently.”

He shook his head, but there was a softness in his eyes as he went back to scrubbing.

“I always knew that one was special,” he murmured. “But... thanks for telling me.”

You gave the knife a quiet pat. It practically purred in your mind.

“Tell him he makes me feel like art.”

You looked over at Sanji, this man who danced around a kitchen like it was a ballroom, who wielded his tools with precision and pride.

“Yeah,” you whispered back. “He really does.”

-

You hadn’t meant to end up at Mihawk’s castle. That’s what you kept telling yourself, anyway.

A pitstop, a storm, a bit of misdirection from a smug talking dagger who told you “he’s got the best view in the East Blue,” and here you were—on Kuraigana Island, standing in front of the most intimidating sword you’d ever laid eyes on.

Yoru. Black blade. Supreme Grade. Taller than you. Probably older than everyone you’d ever met combined. It radiated authority.

You hadn’t even tried to speak to it yet.

It waited, mounted in quiet glory behind Mihawk, who was calmly sipping wine like you weren’t internally panicking about what this sword was going to say to you.

“I hear you speak to blades,” Mihawk said, not looking at you.

“I do.”

“I presume you’d like to speak to mine.”

“…A little.”

He finally glanced at you, gold eyes narrowing.

“It doesn’t speak to just anyone.”

You tilted your head, smiling. “It doesn’t need to. I don’t ask to hear them. I just do.”

Mihawk raised an eyebrow. “Then proceed.”

You turned to Yoru, stepping close.

The second you entered its aura—because yes, this sword had aura—you heard it.

Rich. Deep. Regal. Like a baritone dipped in ink and forged in centuries of ego.

“Finally. Someone with the taste to recognize me.”

“Oh boy,” you muttered under your breath.

“You may tell the boy—sorry, Dracule Mihawk, Wielder of the Blade Supreme, Greatest Swordsman of the Era—that he is… doing a satisfactory job.”

You blinked. “That’s it? You just want me to tell him he’s adequate?”

A pause. Then—

“…And that I am still undefeated. Still untouched. Still flawless. Unlike that moss-haired one. Wado said he once slipped in mud. Disgraceful.”

You held back a laugh. “You brag more than a sword with arms.”

“My existence is a brag.”

You turned back toward Mihawk, who was watching you with an unreadable expression.

“Well?” he asked.

You cleared your throat.

“Yoru says… you’re doing a satisfactory job.”

He blinked.

You smirked.

“And that it is still undefeated, untouched, and flawless.”

A long pause.

“…Of course it did,” Mihawk muttered.

You hesitated, then added, “Also it wanted me to let you know that Wado thinks Zoro once slipped in mud. So. Clearly, your sword is keeping up with the gossip.”

Mihawk took a very long sip of wine.

“I expect you to never repeat this,” he said flatly.

You gave Yoru a wink. “No promises.”

As you turned to leave, Yoru called out—low and proud:

“Tell me—did the chef’s knife like his compliment?”

You blinked.

“…How do you know about that?”

“We all talk, child. You think I don’t keep tabs on the competition?”

Oh. Oh no.

Even ancient blades were messy little gossip gremlins.

-

You weren’t supposed to be here overnight.

And yet, here you were: Mihawk’s castle guest for the evening, curled up in a surprisingly cozy chair by the fireplace with a cup of hot tea, while the man himself read quietly across from you.

You hadn’t spoken much. Mihawk wasn’t the chatty type. But the sword? Oh, Yoru had no such issue.

“You’re slouching.”

You frowned. “I’m not slouching.”

“Your spine is curved like an inferior blade.”

You glanced at Mihawk, whispering from behind your mug, “Yoru says I’m slouching.”

He didn’t look up from his book. “Yoru says that to everyone.”

You leaned closer to the sword, which rested behind Mihawk’s chair like a smug throne.

“You ever say anything nice?”

“I allowed you to address me directly. That’s the highest honor I offer.”

You stared. “That’s… genuinely the most pompous sentence I’ve heard from an inanimate object.”

“I’m not inanimate. I’m revered.”

Mihawk finally sighed, turning a page. “Yoru, must you?”

“He needs the practice. You’ve been brooding at the fireplace like an oil painting all day. I’m carrying this conversation.”

You snorted into your tea.

“Also, remind him,” Yoru added, voice dropping dramatically, “that it is time to oil my hilt. I detected dryness. This is unacceptable.”

You covered your mouth, trying not to laugh. “You have dryness detection?”

“Superior craftsmanship has superior needs.”

Mihawk glanced up at you, then at the sword.

“…Did it say something ridiculous again?”

“Yes,” you said, barely holding it together. “It wants you to moisturize it.”

“I do oil it,” he muttered, clearly offended.

“Not last Tuesday. You skipped.”

You fell off the chair laughing.

Yoru, ever composed: “She is unworthy of my presence.”

You wiped your eyes. “Then why do you keep talking to me?”

“Because someone must appreciate my glory. And I’ve exhausted Mihawk’s capacity for flattery.”

“I never flattered you,” Mihawk said without looking up.

“You held me up to the moon once.”

“That was a duel. You were reflecting light.”

“It was symbolic.”

You choked.

Later, after Mihawk retreated to his room (muttering something about “blades with superiority complexes”), you sat beside Yoru again in the quiet dark.

“…You really love him, huh?” you asked softly.

There was a pause.

“He is a warrior worthy of me. A craftsman of battle. A bearer of precision, discipline, and solitude.”

You nodded.

“…Also, have you seen how well he grooms his beard? That is commitment.”

You grinned, whispering, “You’re kind of obsessed with him.”

“As he should be with me.”

You leaned back against the stone wall, letting the warmth of the fire and the low hum of Yoru’s self-importance lull you into calm.

Maybe you didn’t mean to stay here. But honestly? You could get used to this.

-

The first thing you noticed when you stepped onto the Polar Tang wasn’t the crew. Or the high-tech submarine layout. Or even Law himself, who was exactly as grumpy and sharp-featured as you expected.

It was the sword.

Kikoku.

You didn’t even have to look directly at it to feel it watching you. Not menacing. Not hostile.

Just… wary.

You’d felt cursed swords. Wild ones. Vengeful ones. But Kikoku wasn’t like them. It wasn’t cursed. It was careful.

You didn’t speak to it right away.

Law met you in the upper hall with a raised brow and crossed arms. “You’re the one who talks to swords?”

You nodded. “They talk to me, mostly.”

“Tch. Great,” he muttered. “Just don’t touch anything.”

“Don’t plan to,” you said, and then, softer, to Kikoku: “May I?”

There was a long pause. Then, softly—softer than any blade you'd ever heard—

“…You’re not with the Marines?”

Your breath caught. “No. Definitely not.”

“You're not with the World Government? Cipher Pol?”

“No.”

“You don't plan to experiment on anyone while you're here?”

“…Also no.”

Kikoku exhaled—if a sword could do that.

“Alright.” A pause. “You can talk to me. But keep your voice down. He's always listening.”

You glanced at Law, who was standing just far enough away to look disinterested.

Yeah, that tracks.

You stepped a little closer to Kikoku, careful not to make sudden moves. “You okay?”

“I am functional. I would be better if he got more than four hours of sleep a night and remembered to eat food that wasn’t coffee and spite.”

You smiled. “Should I tell him that?”

“…Yes. But phrase it gently. He pretends not to care, but he does.”

You turned to Law, who looked extremely done with your presence already.

“Kikoku says you should sleep more.”

Law blinked. “You asked it that?”

“Nope. It told me on its own.”

You paused, eyes narrowing with mock suspicion. “Also said you live on coffee and spite.”

There was a long beat of silence.

“…Tch. It talks too much,” he muttered, brushing past you toward the bridge.

Kikoku, smug now: “He heard me. That’s what matters.”

You leaned against the wall, arms crossed, grinning. “You’re a softie.”

“He won’t listen to anyone else. If I have to nag him myself, so be it.”

You liked this sword. It wasn’t flashy. It didn’t gloat. It didn’t care about power or titles.

It cared. About its wielder. About his health. About keeping him safe.

It whispered like a quiet protector in the middle of a warzone.

You looked after Law as he stomped down the hall, coat flaring like always.

“Hey, Kikoku?”

“Yes?”

“…If he ever needs help, I’ll be around. Just whisper.”

“…Thank you.”

-

You weren’t technically snooping.

You just happened to be in the Polar Tang’s small medbay, tidying up after helping Bepo rewrap a sprained paw, when Kikoku—leaning quietly in the corner, within arm’s reach of Law’s desk—whispered to you again.

“He had another nightmare last night.”

You froze, hand still on the edge of the cabinet. “…About Flevance?”

“No. Corazon.”

That made your chest squeeze a little.

Kikoku wasn’t like the other swords. It didn’t speak unless it had to. And it never gossiped.

So if it brought something up… it mattered.

“Does he talk about him?” you asked quietly.

“Never. But sometimes he mutters his name in his sleep. Apologizes to him. Tells him it wasn’t supposed to go that way.”

You turned to the blade, frowning. “Why tell me this?”

“Because you’re the only one who listens. And he won’t say it himself.”

“…You want me to say something to him?”

“I want him to stop carrying everything alone. If that means you talk to him, fine. But don’t push.”

Just then, the door opened behind you.

“Talking to my sword again?” Law said flatly, stepping in with a clipboard.

You didn’t jump—barely.

“I was just…” You paused. “Yeah. I was.”

Law raised a brow. “You realize how ridiculous that sounds?”

“I realize how ridiculous you sound, constantly pretending you don’t want people to care.”

His eyes narrowed.

You leaned back against the counter, arms crossed. “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop. Kikoku just… it worries about you. That’s all.”

Law scoffed, moving past you toward the desk. “Swords don’t worry.”

“Kikoku does.”

He set the clipboard down harder than necessary.

“…And what did it say this time?”

You hesitated. “That you had a nightmare.”

That stopped him cold.

You added, gently, “That you talked to Corazon.”

Silence. Heavy and tense.

You didn’t fill it. Not this time.

Law slowly turned, shoulders stiff. “I don’t talk about that.”

“I know. And you don’t have to. But you don’t have to carry it by yourself either.”

His jaw clenched.

“Look,” you said, stepping closer, “Kikoku isn’t trying to betray you. It’s worried. I’m not here to drag your past out of you. I’m just… here. If you want someone to talk to.”

Law looked at you for a long moment. Eyes searching. Calculating. Vulnerable, maybe—just a crack behind the walls.

Then he looked away.

“…Tch. Tell Kikoku to mind its own business.”

You smiled faintly. “It did. That’s why it told me.”

You turned to go, pausing at the door.

“Kikoku’s a good sword,” you said over your shoulder. “And you’re not alone, even if you keep pretending you are.”

You left the room in silence.

Behind you, Kikoku whispered, ever so softly: “…Thank you.”

-

It started out simple.

You were at a neutral dockside tavern with the Straw Hats and Law’s crew, sharing a temporary alliance and, supposedly, a peaceful meal.

You had barely touched your drink before Kikoku whispered in your head:

“They’re here.”

You looked up to see Zoro walking in, swords strapped across his hip, expression set to ‘grumpy and ready to duel.’

“Oh boy,” you muttered.

Then Wado Ichimonji chimed in—loud, dramatic, already fired up.

“I smell that blade. The smug one. The one with the silence complex.”

“Wado, please don’t start.”

“I never start. I finish. Tell the butter knife to sheath its judgment.”

Kikoku, cool and sharp: “Your wielder can’t even find the front door without walking into a tree.”

“Okay, that’s—”

Wado: “He’s got spirit.”

Kikoku: “He’s got concussions.”

You choked on your drink.

Zoro and Law sat down across from each other like two cats about to hiss. You sat between them like a hostage.

“I know you’re listening to them,” Zoro muttered to you.

“Don’t drag me into this,” you hissed. “They’re being ridiculous.”

Law looked equally annoyed. “Kikoku never talks like this.”

You turned to him. “Maybe because she’s never had to be in the same room as that one,” you said, gesturing to Sandai Kitetsu, who was screaming in the background.

“FIGHT. FIGHT. FIGHT. FIGHT.”

“Not helping,” Kikoku snapped.

Zoro narrowed his eyes at Law. “Your sword thinks I’m stupid, doesn’t it?”

Law sipped his drink. “That’s because you are.”

You groaned and put your head on the table.

Meanwhile, Shusui had entered the chat like a war general summoned from retirement:

“We should settle this with an honorable duel.”

Kikoku: “You’ve been retired for five owners. Sit down.”

Sandai: “I will SETTLE THIS BY BITING THE OTHER SWORD’S HANDLE.”

Wado: “Tell the emo blade to respect its elders.”

Kikoku: “Tell the museum piece to update its technique.”

At that point, you stood up so fast your chair nearly fell backward.

“I am not facilitating a steel-themed group therapy session right now. You four can air your issues without me as the interpreter.”

Law: “You’re the only one who can understand them.”

You: “And I would like to not die of psychic sword-related migraines today, thanks!”

The entire table stared.

Then Brook leaned in, cheerful as ever. “Yohoho! So are the swords dating or fighting?”

“They’re doing both,” you muttered, pinching the bridge of your nose.

Kikoku and Wado: “We are not dating.” “I have standards.”

Sandai: “...I’m open to a polycule.”

Zoro stood. “I’m leaving before someone stabs someone, and it’s me.”

Law nodded. “I second that.”

You sighed, gathering your things. “Next time I’m bringing duct tape. For the scabbards. And my own ears.”

As they left, you heard the swords start back up again—Wado muttering insults, Kikoku returning fire with surgical precision.

And in the background:

“FIGHT. FIGHT. FIGHT.”

-

You were finally back aboard the Sunny, the sun warming your shoulders as the sea stretched endlessly in every direction. Peaceful. Blissful.

Or at least, it was, until Luffy burst onto the deck holding a cutlass, a bread knife, and a rusty kitchen cleaver like a kid who just found treasure.

“DO THESE TALK?!” he shouted, shoving them toward you.

You blinked, gently pushing the bread knife away from your face. “Luffy, where did you get these?”

“Found them in a barrel! They were just sitting there! Like, waiting to be alive!”

You sighed. “Okay, but—wait. That cleaver is literally still covered in jam.”

“SO DOES IT TALK?”

You closed your eyes and concentrated.

The cutlass: “I was once wielded by a man named Jerry who only knew how to scream and swing. It was exhausting.”

The bread knife: “I'm not technically a weapon. I was forged for croissants. Please stop using me for melons.”

The cleaver: “…I yearn for peace. I miss the days of slicing fruit and feeling needed.”

You opened your eyes. “They’re tired.”

Luffy gasped. “THEY HAVE FEELINGS?!”

“Yes. Mostly exhaustion.”

Brook appeared beside you, gentle smile in place, holding his cane sword. “May I?”

You took it with care.

The second your hand touched the hilt, you felt it. Not just voice, but emotion. Waves of grief, laughter, music. The weight of time. Of silence. Of death and persistence.

And then—warmth.

“…He still plays for them. Every night, even if they can’t hear. I remember each note.”

You swallowed hard. “Your sword remembers your crew, Brook.”

Brook tilted his skull. “Oh?”

You nodded. “Every performance. Every time you stood beside them. Every time you wept while you played.”

A soft pause from the blade.

“He’s kind. Gentle. A little forgetful. He sometimes uses me to stir soup.”

Brook laughed. “Yohoho! I did do that once!”

“But… he remembers them. Always. Even when he forgets where he left me.”

You looked at Brook, voice quiet. “It says you’re the reason it never went dull. That your heart, even now, is sharp enough for both of you.”

Brook put a hand over his chest. “That is… deeply moving. Thank you, (Y/N).”

The blade hummed in your hand, full of music.

Later that night, you sat alone at the ship’s railing, feet dangling off the edge, gazing at the stars. You’d talked to so many swords—heard chaos, tragedy, bragging, battle cries, jokes. So many voices.

And for the first time… silence.

But not lonely silence.

Just… peace.

Your own blade rested beside you, quiet and still.

You smiled. “Thanks for sticking with me.”

It didn’t speak.

It didn’t need to.

You already knew.

[goddessofroyalty]

Hey! I binge read all of your Work/Life Balance fic last night and loved it. The way you kept them in character was amazing. For Viktor, I could hear his lines in my head in his voice.

I saw you were still low-key taking prompts for it. An idea came to mind about Viktor's own reaction to finding out he was pregnant? Especially to be about 3 months when he found out?(If I mathed correctly lol) I know you alluded to his whole "testing multiple pregnancy tests" but I think it would be interesting to see his full reaction, coming to terms with it, and potentially his failed attempts to tell Jayce because it wasn't the perfect time?

Prompt Idea: Viktor's reaction to actually finding out he is pregnant and the failed attempts to tell Jayce that you mentioned in Work/Life Balance? Idk, just kinda think it would be cute

Glad you enjoyed the fic! I think I got all the parts of these two prompts.

In the version of the final scene in my head before I wrote it Jayce actually kept going out and getting a new pregnancy test after the previous ones positive. I feel like what I’ve gone with is possibly funnier (and a lot less repetitive to write/read).

Tags: omegaverse, mpreg, thoughts/concerns about miscarriage

-------------

The nurse hands Viktor a pregnancy test with the same amount of enthusiasm as she had the paperwork.

It is the correct amount of enthusiasm given the circumstances.

Nobody actually thinks he is pregnant. The doctors having years ago had the conversation with him about how, with his health, he would very likely be unable to conceive. They had been so gentle with their words and moved the tissue box closer with them despite how little it had actually bothered him. Relationships and children barely worth a thought compared to his work.

Policy dictates that, as he is being sexually active, they must check to be sure before doing any scans that may harm a fetus if he was carrying one.

He’d just lie about it if it wasn’t for how Jayce’s habit of scenting him every opportunity he can means half the time the box is already ticked before he’s even handed the form.

So Viktor takes the cup and the paper-wrapped stick to the bathroom and waits the ten minutes it takes for the little negative sign to appear so the nurse can tick the box on the form that says, yes, they checked, and Viktor can return to his notepad while he waits his turn. His plans for what work he should be able to get done after his appointment is finished well-formed when the results finally show up.

Viktor grabs the piece of plastic and only pauses to look at the thing because it doesn’t seem to be the familiar negative he knows.

Probably just a different brand than they usually get.

He digs the instructions out of the bin just to be sure.

After unfolding and refolding the leaflet so just the bit with what the results mean is on the front he holds the instructions in one hand and test in the other. Comparing the results against which means what.

Pregnant.

The two lines in that exact position apparently mean he’s pregnant.

When they had first started making him take them Viktor had looked up the reliability of them hoping for some argument that they were a waste of everyone’s time. It hadn’t succeeded at his goal at the time but had left him with the knowledge that false positives were basically impossible.

He is, apparently, pregnant.

He returns to the front desk in the reception on autopilot. Standing before the bored-looking receptionist who expects him to tell her that the test was negative as expected and that she can finish checking him in for the scan.

Because he shouldn’t be pregnant.

He can’t be pregnant.

Yes, perhaps, maybe he and Jayce were not as diligent with protection as they could be. Sometimes they got caught up in their excitement of their latest breakthrough and getting the condoms the last thing on their minds. But nothing should have come from it because Viktor’s body had never been healthy enough to even give him a consistent heat schedule.

“I will have to cancel my appointment today,” Viktor says. Only realizing he had brought the test with him when he clenches the hand not holding his cane and feels the plastic dig into his skin.

The receptionist opens her mouth to no doubt ask why he would need to cancel when he’s already there for it. A flash of surprise crosses her face as she no-doubt remembers what she had had him do and the obvious conclusion of the two pieces of information she has before returning to professional friendliness.

“Of course. Let us know if you need to rebook.”

She doesn’t say congratulations or any of the other things you are apparently meant to when somebody informs you they are pregnant, which is good, because Viktor doesn’t know how would respond.

“Yes, of course,” he says with a sharp nod. “Thank you.”

The smile she gives is devoid of any excitement or judgement. The smile of a professional who has been taught that something like this can mean something very different to different patients.

Viktor shuffles out of the clinic, ignoring the bored stares of the others in the waiting room until he is out on the street. The pregnancy test still in hand.

He tosses it into the first bin he finds of course. It is very unhygienic to carry around something that has had his urine on it. Keeping it with him won’t change the situation. If he needs evidence when he tells Jayce he can always take another one.

How is he ever going to tell Jayce?

No.

No he needs to be realistic. False positives are impossible but it may be a case that an embryo was created and implanted before his body rejected it. A reminder that they should stop being lax about the condoms. There no point mentioning it to Jayce if that is the case.

No, first Viktor should book an appointment to test again under doctor’s supervision. By then if it was just a momentary thing the hormones will have cleared from his system and he can forget all about it.

There is no need to get Jayce involved yet.

-----------------

“When was your last heat?” the doctor asks after Viktor returns from peeing on another stick that does not return the expected negative despite it having been long enough since the scan appointment that had it been an immediate miscarriage any residual hormones should have left his system.

“A year ago.” His heats had never been regular so skipping three was hardly a cause for suspicion or concern.

The doctor’s brow furrows because a lack of an obvious heat makes it harder to figure out any kind of timeline of conception.

“Have you experienced any bleeding?”

“No.” Not that it really proved anything from the reading Viktor had done after the initial positive result. If his body had rejected the pregnancy early enough it is easy for even omegas to miss the resulting passing.

“Has there been a single incident of your contraception methods failing?” the doctor asks. “For example, did the condom break during-“

“Eh-“ Viktor grimaces because there wasn’t really a single incident of a condom breaking but rather a common enough occurrence of them forgoing using one entirely.

“Right,” the doctor says, thankfully saving Viktor from having to say it. “In that case I think it is best to arrange an ultrasound to confirm if there is any evidence of pregnancy, and, if there is, how far along.”

Viktor nods as he tries to figure out where to fit another appointment in with the new project. It would be far easier if Jayce was around more instead of being dragged around by councilors and investors in wherever their whims take them.

“I also wouldn’t suggest informing anyone about this,” the doctor continues. “You may be very early into a pregnancy, and, with your other health concerns-“

There is a good chance he still may miscarry. No reason to bring it up with Jayce until they are more certain.

“Of course.”

-------------

“Have you told your alpha yet?” the ultrasound technician asks as she smears gel over Viktor’s exposed stomach.

“No.” there is no point considering it would likely end in miscarriage.

“Well that’s hardly fair to keep all the excitement to yourself,” the technician says as she reaches over for the ultrasound, moving it around his stomach clearly searching for his uterus.

“It is still early. I will tell him once it is far enough along to not be likely to miscarry.”

“You shouldn’t think like that!” the technician says, glancing at him quickly before returning her attention to the screen.

“I am just being realistic.” A pregnancy does not necessarily mean you will end up with a baby. Especially not if one’s health is like Viktor’s.

“So you are just going to keep it to yourself until you’re 3 months along?” the technician asks, her movements less broad. Likely trying to find any evidence of a very early pregnancy.

“Yes.” Things are easier that way.

“In that case you’re gonna’ want to figure out how to tell him,” she says before spinning around the screen so he can see his uterus and the baby-shaped blog within in. “Because three months is about where’d I put you. Congratulations.”

Viktor likely wouldn’t have believed her if he couldn’t see it with his own eyes. Which is probably why she showed him the screen. But, sure enough, there it was. Not a full baby but also not a bundle of cells of a new implantation.

“I haven’t had any symptoms.” Nothing that made him think anything had changed other than his sickness.

“Some people get lucky like that,” the technician says with a shrug. She presses a button on the screen that causes it to pause on the images while she removes the ultrasound from his stomach and offers him a tissue to wipe the gel off. Her hand suddenly resting on his knee. “I’ll arrange for a printout for you at the front desk. Maybe that’ll help you with telling your alpha yeah?”

“Thank you.” He doesn’t know if a print out of an ultrasound will actually help him tell Jayce but he supposes it is better to have it and not need it than not have it.

--------------

Viktor stands in front of the mirror in just his boxers staring at the reflection of his still completely flat stomach. His hands running along it feeling for any sign of a swell that could be the baby that was apparently in there and finding nothing.

It always takes longer for omega men to show, the ultrasound technician had said with a laugh like he was stupid for asking how he could possibly be 3 months along without a single outward sign. Your hips hold everything a bit further back. I wouldn’t worry through. Give it a couple weeks and you’ll have a bump for you and your alpha to fall in love with.

It still doesn’t feel real though. Not even with the print out of the scan that shows the very real fetus apparently resting in his uterus.

The door swings open but Jayce immediately turns around when he notices Viktor’s state of undress.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realis you were changing,” Jayce says despite the fact they have both seen each other completely naked. The fact that they had managed to make a baby together, even if Jayce doesn’t know that piece of information yet.

“It is fine,” Viktor says, grabbing his shirt and quickly buttoning it up on himself. It’s ridiculous, if Viktor can’t see any evidence of pregnancy there is no way Jayce will. But the idea of Jayce finding out before Viktor has the chance when it is clear Viktor should know is unpleasant.

Viktor grabs his cane from where he had hung it over the edge of the desk. Shoving the scan printout under some notes as he does.

“You can look now,” Viktor says because Jayce clearly isn’t going to unless he’s told he can.

Jayce turns around immediately. Beaming at Viktor in his fond way.

“Does this mean you’ll be joining the dinner tonight?”

“What? No! I was just-“ trying to see if he could see their baby. Which, if he were to tell Jayce now, would not see the alpha attending the dinner either. And while Viktor does not actually care about stealing Piltover’s Golden Boy from his adoring fans, Jayce’s growing social requirements are an necessary evil for their progress. “It does not matter. I will not be attending.”

“Come on Vik, please, for me,” Jayce says, coming over to wrap his arms around Viktor. He easily slots his head onto Viktor’s shoulder, the pout on his face reflected back on them in the mirror. “You can’t force me to go to another one alone.”

“I think you will find I can,” Viktor says, but leans into the warmth of Jayce’s body. “Anyway, they do not want me there.”

“I want you there.” Jayce’s grip tightens as he nuzzles against Viktor’s neck more like a young pup than the proud alpha he is. “Please Viktor.”

“I-“ could cause a scandal if he really wanted to. Drop the news halfway through the party when the gaggle of over-interested omegas swarm Jayce in the hopes of winning his attention. Have all of Piltover talking by morning. “-have work to do.”

It is hard for Jayce to argue with that. Their work as important to him as it is Viktor.

“It’s unfair you know,” Jayce says as he draws away, fixing his coast in the mirror. He looks every bit the charismatic leader Piltover imagines him to be. “That you get to stay in our lab working while I have to keep listening to the same conversation about the weather all night.”

“That is the price you pay for being the face of progress.”

“Not funny Vik,” Jayce says, but leans down for a quick kiss all the same. “I’ll try and sneak out and join you after the first round of being introduced to everyone.”

“Do not do anything that would have Councilor Kirramman unhappy with you.”

“Don’t worry – I’ll get Cait to cover for me,” Jayce promises before slipping out to head to the event.

--------------

Strong arms wrap around Viktor as he stands in front of the blackboard in their lab. Jayce’s head coming to rest against the top of his as the warmth of the alpha’s body seeps through the back of Viktor’s clothes.

“I missed you,” Jayce mumbles against Viktor’s hair. Nuzzling into it was if it is at all an effective way to pick up someone’s scent so far away from any of the actual scent-glands. “You smell good.”

Viktor tenses at that. Of course the pregnancy would be starting to affect his scent, making him even more appealing to his alpha in a biological attempt to keep their support there for the pregnancy and hopefully beyond. If he was as far along as he apparently was it’s surprising it hadn’t started to change already. And Jayce is not stupid. He will likely realize what could be causing it.

It might work in Viktor’s favor though. Let Jayce figure it out and claim ignorance.

All he has to do is act surprised. He can do that.

“Sorry,” Jayce says, drawing away. “I didn’t mean to break your focus.”

He didn’t think anything of the change in scent then.

“It is fine.” Nothing ground breaking had been happening. “Are you finished for the day?”

Viktor could just tell him about the pregnancy. It is not as if there is anything he cannot pause for the afternoon.

“I wish,” Jayce says with a whine. “I have another meeting in an hour. I just wanted to come check on- ah- our work!”

There will be no telling him today than.

“In that case there is something I wanted your opinion on,” Viktor says because he will take what he can get of Jayce’s mind before he has to hand him back to Piltover’s elites.

---------------

“Jayce do you have a minute?” Viktor asks on what is becoming a rare afternoon where Jayce can just stay in the lab without having to run off to some social engagement or investors meeting. Nothing that he need not be distracted for.

“Yeah, of course,” Jayce says, dropping what he is working on to come over. He leans over Viktor’s shoulders to examine what he is working on, expecting it to be about that. “What do you need?”

“What I need is to tell you something.” Viktor can feel how Jayce almost freezes at it. The alpha’s attention now fully on him.

Viktor wonders what Jayce thinks he’s going to tell him. Likely not that he is pregnant.

Before Viktor can find the words the door to the lab swings open and Mel hurries in with a hustle that is as close as Viktor thinks he’s ever seen her do to running.

“Oh good you’re here – I need you to talk to the new investor.”

“What? Why?” Jayce asks, craning his neck to look over to Mel but not moving from where he is leant over Viktor.

“He has concerns about the safety of the Hexgates and is threatening to pull funding as a result.”

“That is ridiculous. The Gates are perfectly safe!” Heimerdinger wouldn’t have let them go ahead if they weren’t.

“I know that! But he isn’t being convinced by me. I have him in a room and he’s agreed to discuss with you first, but, we do not have much time before he walks.”

“Go,” Viktor says before Jayce can think about refusing. “My news can wait.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” The pregnancy isn’t going anywhere but the investor apparently is.

---------------

“You deserve this more than I do,” Jayce says, holding out a drink to Viktor now they have both returned home from the investors meeting where they displayed their latest prototype. An identical glass in his other hand. “You did more of the work than I did.”

“You kept the investors happy.” Viktor would also rather Jayce in the lab with him but somebody has to be the face of their work and Jayce is far better suited for it than Viktor. “And, ah, none for me.”

Alcohol and pregnancy do not mix. Not that Jayce knows about that fact yet. The two barely getting to spend more than a moment together the last few weeks.

“You can take one night off to celebrate,” Jayce says still holding the glass out.

They do have the night off. The project finished and investors and council happy. Nothing that needs to be done that cannot wait until morning. Nothing he might be taking Jayce away from by telling him about the pregnancy.

“It is not that,” Viktor says, meeting Jayce’s eyes and the adorably puzzled expression. “I cannot drink at the moment on account of, eh, being pregnant.”

The surprise that overtakes Jayce’s face is exactly what Viktor expected all the times he thought about telling him.

“What?”

“I am pregnant,” Viktor confirms.

“Really?” Jayce asks, glancing down at Viktor’s stomach which remains completely flat.

“Yes. The doctors are quite sure.” Viktor wouldn’t be telling Jayce if they weren’t.

“The doctors?” Jayce asks before realization crosses his face, because he does actually know of Viktor’s frequent medical appointments – partners and all. “Right. Of course just-“

Jayce puts the two glasses back on the counter and runs a hand through his hair and this is exactly why Viktor hadn’t told him right before he had another obligation. It would be cruel to send him into a council meeting in the level of shock he is in.

“I-“ Jayce starts, before swallowing and nodding, having made up his mind about something. “Wait here.”

“Wait- what?” Viktor asks as Jayce grabs his coat and heads to the door. “Jayce where are you going?”

“I just need to get something. Don’t go anyway!” Jayce says before racing out the door leaving Viktor alone in the apartment.

“Don’t go anyway. Why would I go anywhere?” Viktor asks to nobody but himself. Sighing before making his way over to the couch to sit and wait for Jayce to return. Setting his cane down beside him.

He is sure Jayce will return and not just because it is his apartment Viktor currently is in. Yes, he’s heard stories of Piltover alphas seeming head over heels for an omega in Zaun only to vanish as soon as a pregnancy is in the picture, but Jayce isn’t like that. Their work, at least, is far too important for him to abandon.

“Can you not inherit his recklessness?” Viktor asks his still flat stomach as he leans back on the cushions and waits.

The door swings open at Jayce’s hast when he returns. The alpha not wasting time taking his coat off, instead rushing to where Viktor is and all-but slamming a handful pregnancy tests on the coffee-table.

“I know you said the doctors are sure,” Jayce rambles before Viktor gets the chance to say anything. “But please, for me?”

It makes sense with Jayce being who he is that he would want tangible proof of his own. And, really, it is not that arduous for Viktor to indulge him this.

“Can I have some water first?” Five tests will require a rather high amount of urine from him after all.

[starlostastronaut]

DAY 08 | GOT NO REGRETS

PAIRING: seo changbin x reader

GENRE: fluff, crack

WC: 0.68k

CW: teri trying to be funny again

PROMPT: stealing his clothes

i think this is the shortest one yet, but i literally had zero ideas. also i wrote it with reader being the same as in the last oneshot, because it seemed funnier that way. like at some point they started dating and this is how it looks like lol. anyway i hope you enjoy <3

title from i ain't worried - one republic

general masterlist here

<< previous | mctc masterlist | next >>

"Yah, have you seen my gym hoodie?” Changbin's voice rang through the rooms as he shouted from your bedroom. You were all the way across the apartment in the kitchen, busy with making coffee. “No!” you yelled back and placed one of the cups you made on the counter. You knew Changbin would appreciate it when he came by the kitchen to get some kind of breakfast before going to the gym. 

You headed to the living room with the other cup in your hands, enjoying the warmth emanating from it. It was an early winter morning, which meant that the apartment was still a bit cold and it would take some time to heat up. But Changbin wanted to go to the gym early, and despite his best efforts, he still woke you up. Upon having decided it's not worth going to sleep for the extra hour before you have to get ready for work, you got up and began helping him get ready for the gym. That meant only making the coffee, because Changbin was a big boy who could get ready on his own.

Carefully, as to not spill even a drop of your precious coffee, you sat down on the couch and tucked your legs underneath you. While warming your hands on the cup of coffee and also waiting for it to be a drinkable temperature, you watched the chaos of Changbin getting ready with a smirk on your face.

There was an open bag on the floor with about half of his gym stuff in it, and the rest was scattered everywhere in the line of sight. Changbin suddenly emerged from the bathroom, dressed in matching black sweatpants and a tank top. As he walked past you, your eyes followed him. You were never one to pass up an opportunity to ogle at his arms, not feeling even a slight bit of shame. 

Just as he was about to disappear into another room, Changbin abruptly stopped, walked a few steps back, and looked at you. He raised his eyebrow, and his eyes went over your whole figure, which was drowning in a dark blue hoodie. You gave him your best innocent smile. “What? It's warm and comfortable,” you shrugged and took a sip of your coffee. 

Changbin sighed. “But I need it for the gym,” he said, standing in front of you with his hands crossed over his chest. He tried giving you the “I'm the boss here” look, but all it did was make you laugh so much that you almost spilled the coffee all over yourself.

“I'm sorry, Binnie, but I can't take you seriously when you look like that,” you said in between giggles. You saw the intention behind his attitude; nonetheless, he looked more like an angry Pomeranian puppy. Just so adorable. You laughing only made him angrier, but you could see he was fighting for his life to keep the facade up a little longer. He once told you that your laugh makes him laugh too. And you would never miss a chance to make him laugh. And if the bonus was also making fun of him... It was all out of love, of course. He teased you just as much.

“Seems like you'll need to take a different one.” You said it as if it were already decided.

“Or you could get up and wear something else,” Changbin countered. "Preferably from your own closet."

You winked at him. “Don't pretend you don't love seeing me in your clothes, Binnie.”

Knowing he had lost this argument, he went back to the bedroom. When he came back, he was holding another one of his hoodies, this one in a light shade of grey. Immediately realizing what his idea was, you put your coffee aside and raised both of your arms. Changbin sighed, but helped you take off his gym hoodie and replace it with the one he brought. You could swear you heard him mutter something along the lines of “Seriously? You big baby.” but you decided to let it slide this time.

taglist: @stayconnecteed @saintriots @vivioluh @ivaneedssleep @jazziwritesthings @darkypooo

©starlostastronaut 2023 | do not repost/translate my work without permission

[mxrmaid-poet]

bot drop: september 7, 2024

i did quite a few bots. also happy first month out of summer. it’s already starting to get cold! I had fun with everyone’s requests.

requests ~

nokto and rio

i rlly ate up this edited pic, yeah?

they r at the festival together in benitoite as a poly couple.

judeyyyy

user (a part of my jude and assistant user chronicles) turns into a cat. this was such a funny prompt I started brainstorming early lmaooo and nothing is funnier than my example messages:

thank you, for this

harr silver

he and user r talking abt their world differences. land of reason vs wonderland! it’s a cute established relationship. and harr gets to learn abt what a phone is

william shakey

user has a cold and will is helping them thru it. he actually speaks w old english so AHHHHH IM PROUD

vyn richter

he’s seeing his daughter off for her first day of kindergarten, and he’s more sad about it then she is lol.

jin grandet

modern AU! they r at an amusement park together and r exploring a haunted house attraction.

my first jin bot but not my last hehehe this was fun!

chevalier michel

SUCH A GREAT IDEA! chev ends up having to end things with Belle, now he’s together with user and he’s beginning to see so much of Belle in her; he’s starting to fall in love but feels guilty about it

my own ~

jude jazza

that’s right, more assistant user chronicles. now, user turned into a child.

MASTERLIST 💕

[ciaossu-imagines]

The soulmate mark prompt sounds so cute so could you do that for Bokuto?

C

Of course I can! I definitely agree that it’s a very cute prompt and an interesting one, so I was more than happy to write this request. Thanks for sending it in and I hope you’ll enjoy what I’ve come up with!

If the character lived in a world where soulmates exist, describe what their marks would look like on their other half!

This was a fun one to think about but it was also a hard one for me to think about. Bokuto is wonderful, fun, and adorable and there’s just so very many different types of soulmate AU’s that I could see him working in. I couldn’t narrow it down to just one to focus on! So, while this will be shortish, have a bunch of different soulmate AU ideas for him 😊

Okay, but the first one I thought of was, of course, what the prompt specified, which is what kind of mark would symbolize Bokuto on his partner’s body. I feel like Bokuto’s marks on his partner are pretty sizeable. His soulmate might even feel a little embarrassed about them because they are large in comparison to a lot of other people’s or they’re a lot bolder.

In the case where Bokuto’s soulmate’s mark is something symbolizing him, the first idea in my mind was an owl. However, it’s not an obvious owl, rather just a part of one. I can see it looking something like the below. However, instead of the eyes being those colours, one of the owl’s eyes is the colour of Bokuto’s eyes and the other is the colour of his soulmate’s eyes. It’s large, covering either the length of his partner’s forearm and being pretty wide or it’s running lengthwise along the outside of their thigh, very clear and visible for all to see.

Now, in the case where it’s something simpler, like each soulmate has their partner’s initials tattooed on them from birth, I still see Bokuto’s initials being big and bold. They’re on his partner’s wrist or located just below their collarbone and the writing style is big and bold, with obvious dark lines. I like to think it would look something like this, where it’s a very bold design but also something romantic, with the B resembling a heart, since I also see Bokuto as being a romantic in a sense.

A really fun one for me to think about was what it would be like if Bokuto’s soulmate had the first thing he said to them tattooed on them. They’ve spent all their life wondering why, unlike others, their words were in all caps. They kind of fear what kind of person their soulmate must be for that to happen. It clicks in their head though, when they finally meet Bokuto, who can be very loud but is completely harmless.

I love the idea that the first words are something very conventional, like ‘WATCH OUT.’ It’s something his soulmate has heard a million times before but they’ve never felt that click that tells them the person saying it is their soulmate. That’s until they finally meet Bokuto, who yells the words at them as a stray volleyball heads their way. He’s quick, his reflexes amazing as he gets in front of the volleyball before it hits his soulmate. His soulmate is cringing, their arm raised, ready for the impact of the volleyball that never comes. They open their eyes, looking up at Bokuto who is loudly asking them if they’re alright, right up in their personal space, looking worried, apologizing and there it is, that click.

In a funnier idea, the words are just something slightly obnoxious and braggy and his soulmate is just done with him before they even meet him. Why would they ever fall for someone like that, they think? Until they actually meet Bokuto. He’s bragging, yes. He’s loud, yes. But his laughter is infectious, his confidence and charisma magnetic, and oops, maybe they don’t hate that soulmate tattoo that much.

In an AU where a touch from your soulmate leaves an imprint there, I love the idea of, again, Bokuto kind of saving his soulmate as a first meeting. His soulmate is in a hurry and they’re running somewhere. They’ve just passed by Bokuto and they barely even notice him. Their attention is somewhere else, for one, and they really don’t have any reason to pay any more attention to him than they would any other random person. Why would they? But then his soulmate trips and they’re going to wipe out and wipe out bad. There’s no way around it. They can’t stop themselves in time, no matter how hard they’re trying to. Then, all of a sudden, they feel someone grab onto their wrist. The person’s right in front of them all of a sudden and instead of feeling the impact of them hitting the ground, they’re hitting a solid feeling chest. ‘Hey there! You okay? You gotta be careful – the sidewalk here is awfully cracked and can be dangerous.’ They’re looking at their wrist, where the person’s hand still is, and when the hand leaves their wrist, there’s a distinct splotch there, bright yellow in colour, leaving the imprint of a hand. Their eyes widen, before turning upwards to look at Bokuto’s face, but he’s too busy also staring at their wrist, his eyes wide and his mouth a little agape before he just breathes out ‘that’s so cool.’

[gunilslaugh]

I had an idea that I think could be a cute fic! So basically the reader gets very nervous on airplanes but they randomly end up sitting next to Gunil and he distracts them by babbling about random things. Like a strangers to something vibe. PS: I absolutely adore your work and I always reread your fics when I have a bad day. I hope you have an absolutely amazing 2024❤️

This idea was cute! Thank you that means so much. I hope you don't have too many bad days 2024 💕

Goo Gunil

Summary: Flying always made you nervous, however the guy sitting next to you was pretty good at keeping you distracted. (idol/non-idol au)

WC:915

Warning:none

photo not mine credits to owner.

Your nerves increased the closer it got to your flight time. You woke up anxious in the morning and it only got worse when you arrived at the airport. Leg bouncing up and down in the uncomfortable plastic chair. Your flight was called to board and heart rate picked up as you picked up your bags. Taking deep breaths as you walk. Reminding yourself that you’ve only been on safe flights in the past and this one wouldn’t be any different. 

Once you boarded the plane you made your way to your seat, wiping your palms on your knees as you sat down. You took a couple more deep breaths to help ground yourself. 

“Hi, excuse me. That’s my seat.” A somewhat buff looking guy giving you a kind smile pointed to the seat beside yours.

“Oh uh- you know what it’ll probably be easier if I just,” you murmured about standing up and stepping into the aisle. Then you gestured for him to walk to his seat without having to worry about awkwardly bumping legs. He gave you a small nod still wearing a smile and walked to his seat with you following right behind him. You took a glance over to the guy to find him already looking at you. 

“I’m Gunil,” he introduced himself. 

“I’m y/n,” you took your turn introducing yourself. 

“Nice to meet you,” he commented. 

“You too,” you returned. You leaned back in your seat, starting to feel your nerves setting in even more. 

Soon enough it was time for your plane to take off resulting in your nerves becoming the highest they have been all day. Hands shaking as you try to fasten your seat belt. Your shaking hands catch Gunil’s attention. 

“Are you ok?” he asked you. You look over at him, 

“Yeah, flying just makes me nervous.” you look back down at the buckle trying to click your seat belt together. 

“Here.” Gunil places his calm, warm hands over yours, taking the seat belt from your shaking hands and does it for you. 

“Thank you,” you tell him sheepishly trying to fight off the blush that’s creeping up your neck. 

“No problem. You know I used to attend Berklee,” Gunil shares. 

“Really? So you do music then?” you questioned. 

“I’m pretty good at playing the drums,” he pronounced and drummed his finger against the armrest of his seat. 

“That’s cool,” you said. 

“Do you have any musical talents?” he prompts. You shook your head. 

“I’m only good at listening to music,” you half laugh. 

“That’s still good. Musicians need people like you to support them,” he says. You hardly even noticed the plane beginning to lift off due to Gunil proving to be a solid distraction. “Do you have a favorite artist?” You told him your favorite artist and surprisingly Gunil was a fan of them too. Which leads to you two having an excited conversation about what songs are your favorite. The plane is now fully up in the air and the flight is going smoothly, yet Gunil keeps talking to you. He was definitely good at talking. Being able to seamlessly tell one story right after another and jump from topic to topic with ease. 

You couldn’t keep from laughing after Gunil told a joke, but the joke itself wasn’t really that funny. It was his laugh that made you laugh. You found out that Gunil is a person whose laugh is funnier than the joke. It worked to your benefit though since it kept your mind from being able to think about being miles high in the sky. That was until your plane hit a bit of turbulence causing your heart to drop and anxiety to fill your stomach. However Gunil’s hand easily slipped into your own. His thumb stroking the back of your hand soothingly. Your anxiety seemed to melt away with each stroke that you were focusing on more than whatever story he was telling you now. Even after you had calmed down Gunil’s hand stayed in yours and you were glad about it. Finding that you were quickly growing fond of the man you’ve known for about two hours now. Gunil seemed to be growing just as fond of you as he brushed some stray strands of hair from your face with his free hand. 

When your flight was landing Gunil squeezed your hand extra tight while telling you a funny story about his dog. The two of you exited the plane together and waited by the baggage claim.

“Thank you,” you thanked him. 

“It’s no problem. This was probably one of my favorite flights actually,” he states. 

“Mine too,” you smiled at him. You picked up your bag when you saw it come around. Gunil’s came around shortly after and he grabbed his too. “I guess this is it,” you voiced. 

“Could I get your number actually? I would like to get to know you more,” he asked. He sounds a bit awkward for the first time since he started talking to you. 

“Sure, I wanna get to know you more too,” you told him, taking out your phone. The two of you exchanged numbers. 

“Great, I’ll text you,” he says. 

“I’ll be waiting,” you replied. With a wave goodbye the pair of you split. You had just settled your things into the car when your phone went off. 

“Didn’t want you to wait too long :)” it was a text from Gunil and it made your heart flutter.

[dndeceit]

Meta post for the fic Accidental Noodle Acquisition...

(and also some headcanons about the mindscape, but read that first or you might be confused)

This fic was originally based on a fic prompt from @monkeythefander, which I initially filled as a one-shot here.

While it was kind of a spur of the moment thing, it was actually pretty important. Because when I first saw the prompt, I'd been waffling about whether or not to join the Sleepy Bean Cafe event. The deadline for signup was coming up, and I was convinced with my usual pace of writing that it wouldn't be a good idea. I take a long time to write, usually, and I tend to wind up underestimating how much space the story in my head is going to take to get down. But I saw that prompt and I got an idea, and I wrote the one-shot very quickly and I kind of loved it. So it was basically the push I needed to decide to participate in the event, which was probably the best choice I made all year.

(And then all of my fills still wound up being way longer than I thought they'd be, and here I am, coming back to this idea with another 17k words months later, so...take that as you will. I don't regret it one bit, though.)

I worked on this fic alongside my fills for the event as warm-up writing, and it really helped me keep the momentum going.

I kind of ripped off the vampiric snake-baby from another fic I have notes for but haven't yet started writing. The idea of a non-mammalian species feeding their children on their blood was just interesting, and the idea of a baby snek with tiny blood-letting teefies was too cute an image not to use it here...

I also spent way too long trying to figure out how to put a diaper on a baby naga before deciding that not answering that question by instituting an in-universe hand-wave was infinitely funnier and more interesting in a setting where biology and physics are just a suggestion anyway.

I consider this fic to have a thematic link to two other fics of mine: The Wrong Office and Soft Little Lies. There's sort of a loose idea in my head of Janus being a keeper of sorts for misplaced or forgotten things within the mindscape, self-indulgently collecting stray thoughts and figments that bring him joy and hoarding them like dragon's gold. I've debated with myself whether they might even take place in the same universe. If I ever write a sequel to The Wrong Office or if some other idea strikes me, I may explore it further and make that connection final, but for now it's just a nebulous things.

I'm also revisiting The Wrong Office a bit with how the imagination works, and how figments work, and how they're different from sides. The ability that Roman and Remus have to conjure entities within the mindscape is really interesting to me.

I imagine Figment!Valerie is probably just a reflection of Thomas's concept of Real!Valerie, while Figment!Nico in WTIT was mostly spun out of Thomas's insecurities. The puppies Roman conjured for Patton were probably not based off of specific real world dogs or else they probably would have mentioned it (in-universe...in reality they obviously used someone's dogs), so...they're the idea of puppies. But they never got brought up again, so there's no reason to think they were any more persistent than f!Valerie. But the Slasher that Remus also conjures up in WTIT had a very specific appearance, and I imagine they're probably some vague boogeyman that Thomas has had manifest in his fears before. Maybe it was just Logan being unflappable, but his reaction to the Slasher made it seem like this wasn't anything he hadn't seen before.

The sides aren't real, but they aren't not real. Figments aren't as real as sides, but how real are they? Do they exist when they're not being thought of? Here, the answer is "unsually no".

But, like Emile in The Wrong Office, Jake now occupies a sort of middle ground due to the involvement of the sides (and specifically Janus's reign over suspension of disbelief) making them more real than they otherwise would have been.

And yes, I named them Jake after Janus's mini from the Among Us stream. What else was I going to call them? Jake the Snake was too funny.

Writing the phone call scene cracked me up enough to make this post while I was working on it. Because a. I wound up really overthinking it for a bit, b. I love Roman being harmlessly goofed on, and c. I just love Janus when he's being petty.

Do I have Janus forgive Remus too easily for his cock-up? Maybe. But it's my fic, and I hate it when those two don't get along. Janus is still Big Mad, but in the long run it's not going to ruin their friendship.

By the way, I did not imagine this fic was going to be as angsty as it wound up being when I continued writing it (though I'm not sure why, this is a common progression for me). And yet, at every turn, Virgil kept showing up to haunt the narrative surrounding Janus's desire to have something he could keep...

Clearly I have a lot of feelings about Janus, and about Virgil and Janus, and about having and hoarding and losing things.

(And I've had estrangements happen in my family that made me want to shake the people involved for their failure to talk to each other, so maybe there's a bit of that in there too...)

And, once again, my muse offered cookies in return for vague Moceit feels. They have their moment, but at least this time they settled down and stayed focused on the important stuff, because Baby Cute, and as much as I love their budding friendship as a concept, it's Not About Them.

[writingdevil]

Life [Hermittober24 Day Twenty Six]

(Prompt list created by @collierose1 )

"Grian!Up here!"

Grian followed the sound of his sister's voice, finding her perched on a tree,waving down at him.

He was next to her in a matter of seconds,flapping his wings playfully at her as he said,"Hey,Pearl. What'd you need me for?"

Pearl shrugged and looked ahead at the new season nine land."I didn't.I just wanted to chat."

Grian chuckled as he sat and said,"If you want to talk,then you don't need to send a message that makes it sound like you're dying."

"Yeah,but it's funnier that way."

Grian rolled his eyes and leaned back on his hands, gazing at the view in front of them.Even if the season had just started,there were already starter bases and farms popping up,the Hermits already settling down and working on their amazing ideas for the season.

"Are you excited for this season?"he asked his sister,and she hummed in response,then said, "Yeah,I have some cool ideas I want to try.What about you?Any plans for more giants holes to fall through?"Grian chuckled,shaking his head."No, besides,I think Scar has already had his fill of falling just from the first day here."

Pearl giggled at the memory of constant death messages on her communicator,and then the siblings fell into a comfortable silence.

Grian was enjoying the moment,but was wondering if this was all his sister wanted-a chance to catch up?Even though the season's only begun.

He turned to look at her,but froze at the bittersweet smile on her face."Are you okay,Pearl?"His sister sighed,then said,"Yeah,I am.I guess I'm just still in season eight mode.I woke up today thinking that we had a Boatem meeting,until I realised we weren't-Boatem anymore."

Pearl's face fell into a deep frown,and she lowered her head,her hair almost covering her face from Grian completely.He hated that.He hated seeing his sister upset.

He scooted closer to her,draping his wing over her shoulders as he softly said,"Hey,it's okay.Just because we're not in Boatem doesn't mean we can't all still have fun like we used to."

Pearl shrugged."It's just-weird,that we're all doing completely different stuff,when all I'm used to is being a part of Boatem."Because that was her first season,Grian realised.Pearl wasn't used to the change in seasons.

He tugged her closer with his wing."But that's the life of a Hermit,Pearl.We build.We create.We laugh. Then we do it all over again.Trust me,you'd get bored of us if you spent every single season just with us-I know I would."That got a chuckle out of Pearl,which made him smile.

"The whole point of Hermitcraft,is to be a part of a community of people that will support you and love you,and everything you create.Everyone wants to be a part of everyone's lives,and everyone has ideas for something fun and crazy,and that's what all the seasons up to now have been for.To keep giving people a chance to live the different ways that they want to,over and over again."

Pearl was staring at him now,and the air of melancholy had slowly left her.

"You'll still get to talk and mess around with the other Boatem boys,but you'll also get a chance to be something completely different,and isn't that exciting?"

"I guess it is,yeah."Pearl was smiling now,and it was growing brighter by the second.

"Yeah,and you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because you're a Hermit now,Pearl-and that's the life of a Hermit,to be as amazing and unpredictable as possible."Pearl chuckled at his speech and quickly brought him into a tight hug.

He leaned in closer so that he could whisper in her ear,"But if I'm being honest-Boatem was one of the special ones,and half because you were there."

He felt Pearl shove her face against his neck,and then he felt it become damp,and he hugged his sister tighter.

[jinjojess]

So, what routes in Hundora have you done by now?

I've gotten 10 endings so far, which is what, 10% of the endings? I don't know how many different routes there are, but I've done three (arguably four) so far.

More details with spoiler talk below.

I don't know what this says about me, but the series of choices I was naturally making during the second run-through has mostly kept me on what I assume is the Prime Timeline (my basis for thinking this is that this timeline has included all the extra fluff the first runthrough had, like free time etc, and the chapter select screen refers to it as "Chapter 00").

The first actual route deviation happened to me on Day 33, because while I was okay to bite the bullet and sacrifice Magadori to detonate the bomb earlier on (it felt like the right decision thematically, and it would provide some delicious Jess Place pathos for me to savor), given the choice between Maruko, the character I care about the least and has the least utility to me in battles, and Kurara, a character I like a lot and who is key to my playstyle, it seemed laughably obvious to secure the latter.

So I went into the Chapter 7 offshoot verse, and got all the weird little endings there. Gotta say that they're a touch disappointing, because many of them are just slight variations of the same basic premise, and the only ending with any interesting implications (#022 Donna Donna) fades out without addressing anything juicy because to do so would spoil later reveals in the Prime Timeline. (Presumably.)

I did find the entire concept of having to make Sumino redpill himself very funny, and even funnier is how on Day 34 before any of that even comes up, the game itself just kinda shrugs and is like "yeah, makes sense why you'd sacrifice Maruko, huh. Was anybody even especially attached to that guy?"

Telling my girlfriend about this prompted her to suggest that Maruko living might be less thematically important than destabilizing Nozomi with grief, and based on where I am in the Prime Timeline now (Day 41), I kind of agree.

Yes, please haunt the narrative, Kurara-chan!

Not sure what to think about Gotoh, and the idea that there's a sect of humanity that thinks everyone should make peace with the fact that they fucked up and go quietly into eternity. Well, I kinda do, actually. Interestingly, the Anti-Human Relocation Camp feels very similar in ethos to the religion from niche PS2 SRPG Stella Deus, which makes me wonder if the devs of Hundred Line were at all inspired by it. It's pretty different on the gameplay mechanic front, but in a broader sense there's some underlying themes and style conventions that line up in a way that makes me wonder if any of them were Hoshigami series fans, ya know?

(Now thinking about Hundora gameplay with the RAP system... )

As always, I'm a sucker for representing the Will of Man not as a monolith but as a series of competing opinions, so I like that the Anti-Relocation side exists, but I feel the whole route was half-baked. I can only hope it's addressed in a more satisfying way later on, but there isn't any indication either way so uh... In particular, the turnaround between Gotoh telling the player that everyone's motivation to fight has been twisted to better manufacture consent and the reveal that they made all of that up was way too quick to feel effective.

Actually. Who wrote this route? Because the way it sets up a fascinating premise that challenges the characters' perception of themselves while also potentially challenging how the player sees them, only to just giggle and shrug and go "I made it up lol" feels like a pointed critique of Kodaka trying to Lady and the Tiger the fiction twist in V3.

Hm.

Final thing of note for this route is that I have a very pushy coworker named Gotoh and when I sent a screenshot of ending #015 (I think?) to a friend at his request, to show him what happens if you bluepill yourself, he responded that Nigou is pretty accurate to how he imagines the devil on her shoulder.

After exhausting the 8 endings in that offshoot and having it not take very long, I decided that before parting ways with Kurara in the Prime Timeline, I'd go find out what happens if you try to stop Shizuhara from breaking Nigou. "This'll probably be a quick diversion," I thought, like an idiot. "She got stopped anyway when I just stood idly by, so it can't be that big of a difference."

So yeah. I've also done Chapter 8, aka まったり編 (which I'm choosing to call the Living to the Fullest route).

This one feels more like a proper alternate story path, given that it's far longer and only contains one choice at the very end. I kind of like how it's carved into a handful of major chunks, where you're wandering around and dealing with trivial bullshit, though again I'm not fully convinced that 100 days were necessary. Regardless, juxtaposing stuff like The Mystery of the Potentially Bisexual Sock Thief with actual enemy sieges was pretty effective at getting to the heart of the ultimate route dilemma: do you stick with comfort, knowing it's fake, or do you face reality, knowing it sucks? Hardly groundbreaking or anything, but if the delusion ending is the only true Golden Route in the game, I will be satisfied with that.

Plus it's never not funny to see Veshnis (Veshnith?) comporting herself like a Saturday morning cartoon villain. Yes, Queen! Give us nothing but empty threats!

This answer got way out of hand, sorry.

For those of you keeping score, here's the stats.

Routes I've Played:

Original Timeline

Chapter 00, ongoing (technically nameless, but I'm calling it the Prime Timeline)

Chapter 7 (The Route of Many Decisions)

Chapter 8 (Living to the Fullest Route)

Meanwhile, the endings I've gotten so far are (in the order I got them):

017

018

022

021

020

019

016

015

024

023

Choices I've made so far that were kind of notable:

Chapter 00, Day 015, who sacrifices themself to detonate the bomb. "I'll tell you who it's NOT gonna be. It's not gonna be Kawana, because I refuse to nuke my best flying unit equivalent for no conceivable narrative purpose."

Chapter 7, Day 34, choose to take the red pill or not. "Welp. Guess Sumino's about to become either a girl or a Joe Rogan fan."

Chapter 7, Day 35, who should be convinced first to run away. "I feel like Kurara could easily get the Dai2 group on my side, but Shizuhara could force everyone onto my side so..."

Chapter 8, Day 99, stay in the dream or face reality. "I don't respect staying in Plato's Cave but let's see it first I guess."

Finally, I've got a few other thoughts. First, I'm feeling quite vindicated about my prediction that the planet is not Earth and the shinkousei are the indigenous ones. If that's not the case, it could be that we're so displaced in time/reality that despite the planet being Earth, the shinkousei are humanity's distant relatives or convergent evolutions or something else appropriately Uchikoshi-minded.

The other main thing I'm noticing is that every single death or potential death in Round 2 is a character that survived the OG Timeline. (I don't yet know who dies instead of Amemiya if you forsake Dai2 Bouei Gakuen, in all fairness, so that might screw my theory up a bit.) This makes me wonder if the Prime Timeline will have the only survivors be everyone who died in the original run, which would be interesting, because depending on how you look at it, that's arguably a worse outcome for the main cast. Maybe not for Sumino, whose prime directive is that Nozomi makes it and everyone else is preferred but not necessary, but objectively you'd go from ten characters surviving to like, five, depending on how things go with Eva and Aotsuki.

The interesting question for me at this point is: does this problem extend to Sumino himself, or does he have protag plot armor? I'd gone into the redo timeline assuming he was insulated from the same kind of consequences as the other characters because he's the only one with time travel powers, but looking at it again after seeing how the endings are handled... Sumino doesn't diagetically time leap when things go south like the Ashton Kutcher movie Butterfly Effect; whatever ending he gets is the end of the line for that version of him, with only the player getting to hop around afterward.

A fun detail, because it implies a couple of things. First is that after the original timeline, Sumino is coasting on quantum immortality instead of literally avoiding bad outcomes using time travel. The Sumino in any given route is as unaware of all his grim fates as a fresh Mario is of all the versions of himself who perished in bottomless pits. (Curious to see how Little Runmo this can get.)

The second fun implication is that the narrative is not locked to Sumino specifically, and he could "canonically" die without inviting a game over state. We've seen this before, of course. [Clair De Lune starts playing.] That said, it'd still be a very ballsy move to have the Prime Timeline end with the player character dying after tens of hours as the audience's stand-in. Ballsy, but thematically appropriate for a story about the sacrifices one is willing to make to protect what's important to them.

(We've also seen this thematic self-sacrifice cheated by this very same creative lead before, twice even, so I remain wary. Maybe Sumino will mysteriously be protected by the will of humanity like V3's stupid epilogue, or maybe he'll rock up looking confused and mumble "pretty sure I died" to himself. We shall see.)

So yeah, that's my extremely long and detailed thoughts so far. When I'm not just having a laugh about some silly detail, I have a lot to say regarding this game, apparently.

[phregnancy]

My perception of things is sometimes so different from the rest of the phandom and if makes me wonder if it's bc there are social cues I'm not picking up on that others are or if they're the ones who are wrong. I was so confused when I saw people talking about dan throwing the game and trying to let phil win in the new video. It didn't seem like that to me. It seemed like Dan was playing normally and they were evenly matched until Dan got luckier than him on one hole and overtook him by a lot. This idea that Phil can only do better than dan at something if dan is letting him win is really insulting tbh. Like when they play games that involve choosing the funnier answer. I often think Phil's answer is funnier than Dan's but then I come on tumblr and it's just a bunch of people gushing over dan letting phil win. Maybe Dan also genuinely thinks Phil's answer is funnier. I'm probably alone in thinking this.

long post so putting it under a cut!

i agree that the idea that phil could only win if dan lets him is insulting, but i think people believe that because a lot of the first season of dvp does seem like dan letting phil win (in a way). dan was proposing all or nothings for phil when dan had already won, meanwhile phil never proposed an aon for dan if he had already won. the majority of dan’s aon proposals were when he had already won. dan potentially could’ve won 21 to 15 (more like 19 to 17 bc phil won two of his own proposed aons) if he didn’t give phil second chances to win. consciously or subconsciously, sometimes dan doesn’t play as seriously as he could especially during an aon he himself proposed. all of that said - i don’t think dan was trying to let phil win the last game. dan seemed to concentrate on the game and got some great shots, phil seemed a little worked up when he wasn’t doing well and then made himself have worse shots. i also agree with your feelings about the subjective ‘who is funnier’ games, i’m positive dan thinks phil’s answers are funnier because he thinks phil is the funniest person he knows. my thought is that in a lot of those subjective games, phil doesn’t play in a way that makes sense to me because sometimes his answers are not always well related to the prompt and just the answer itself is funny, and phil will essentially say that, and dan then makes a stronger connection between phil’s two things, laughs, and gives it to phil. sometimes it feels like dan unintentionally changes rules in games like that and phil gets some extra points because of it and those extra points make all the difference when he’s losing by 1 or 2. so not that phil could only win if dan let him or even that dan is consciously throwing the game, but i think on a deeper level dan wants to see phil win and that affects how he plays

[jellyfish-grave]

(screaming into a megaphone) I THINK THE FRENCH BAC IS BULLSHIT (huuuuge ramble under cut. Read at your own risk)

listen. I have arguments.

Finals are coming for me like. Right tomorrow, yeah? Yeah. The written trial consists of two options: You can either write a dissertation on a given subject (which you have studied through the year. There's only 4 parcours in the year) OR you can make a text commentary (but it's on a text you've never heard of before and it's not linked to any of the parcours you studied).

On paper it sounds okay (if not slightly unfair that both exercises are judged the same way, despite the fact that you have much more knowledge to back up your dissertation if you chose that). It tests the student's ability to think for themself, to use knowledge that was given through the year or to use personal culture in order to make an interesting reasoning!

The first time they tried this out they realised "hmmm wait everyone is failing, maybe that's cuz the expectations are too high" and yes! Exactly! That's cuz we're introduced to the exercise of dissertation the very same year that we're expected to make a full one. Before that? Barely mentioned. We make around 4 of them throughout the year, and we're never EVER given a full example. The only examples we get are detailed plans, but never a fully written out dissertation.

You'd think "oh, then the simple solution is to either lower the stakes, or introduce the exercise earlier in the education, right?" and yeah that does sound logic. But what change was made, you ask? Oh. Simply give all the answers through the year.

That's right. We get full on answers for the full dissertation during the year, and you could argue that the subject isn't the same during the year compared to the end of the year's prompt, however. All subjects basically boil down to the same core elements but written out differently. They decided that since students of our age aren't capable of making clear and complex reasoning/analyses of a given subject, they should just. Give us the answer.

This kills the entire purpose of the exercise. I don't think of myself as some literary genius or some shit, but i do think I'm capable of basic reasoning. But that's not what's being tested here.

Besides, if your dissertation plan doesn't fit their exact expectation, your entire work will be labelled as out of subject, completely killing the idea that multiple people can think of multiple reasonings. Which is. Yk. The entire point of a dissertation.

I know I'm being overly dramatic, but for people like me who have horrible memory problems, I just feel like this is entirely unfair. This isn't constructed at all because I didn't try to, my brain is turned off after 5 hours of memorizing the exact order stuff should be brought up in. We aren't allowed the fucking books the subject is about during the trial. What's the point in that?? At what point in life will you actually need the skill to be able to make a literary commentary without the actual support???

Even funnier! Yk how I mentioned you can also make a text commentary? Yeah! You don't get the answers for the text commentary during the year. And the expectations haven't gone down. It's basically a suicide to pick that unless you've got huge personal culture to enrich your arguments. It's highly unrecommended by all my teachers so far for a reason.

Should I even go on about the oral trial? You need to site by heart the exact explanation of the text (one out of 12 extracts your studied during the year) line by line out loud. It's bullshit. You get 30 minutes to prepare (which. Btw. Isn't enough.), then you have a grammar question (really the only fair thing about this whole thing.), and then you need to present one of the 4 (8 for some people) books you had to read during the year. You can thankfully choose the book, but this is STILL learning a lesson by heart.

It's not teaching you critical thinking. It's not valuing your opinion, it's not valuing a student taking risks and talking about a subject in an interesting way, because you're expected to do the exact thing the teachers want. A very specific plan. Even the main question your entire work is centered around is just a rewording of the subject.

What is the point? What. Is. The point.

[bizarrescribblez]

hii mia !!! ik we are newly moots but i just wanna sayy. tyy for the kind tags on the comm i got!!! yes it is lyrics from bizarre love triangle 🫶

anyways . just watched abigail for the first time and i actually ended up loving it!! it was way funnier than i anticipated too ? ("those are onions" made me lose it 😭)

BEING SAID. my musicalpilled brain immediately wanted to offer beauty and the beast au for u n frank?? idk if youve considered/talked abt this already and. maybe its not quite a direct translation but. hey. maybe after the events of the movie he goes into hiding (again). you find him, true love can break the curse (or not yk we ❤️ vampires), yadda yadda.. his name is even adam 👀

OMGOMG HI MISCHA HIIIIIII!!!!!! AND WHAT OFC!!!!!! Best of both worlds.. a super awesome slayful ship + my fav song + art from one of my besties.. ITS PERFECTION!!!!!!!!! 😌💖

ALSO OMGOMG YOU WATCHED IT!!!!!! IM SO HAPPYYOU LOVED IT!! Omg frank’s iconic dumb dumb onions line hehe SAY THE LINE FRANK!!!!

ALSO MISCHA YOU WON’T BELIEVE IT BUT ME AND MY BESTIE KAT HAVE HAD A BATB AU LIKE FOR MONTHSSS i get so shy to vocalize a lot of ideas i have online but IM SO GLAD BATB IS UNIVERSALLY FRANKBUN TO PEOPLE 🥹💖 but also funny bcuz dan stevens was the live action beast heheh SMALL WORLD!! With me and kat’s ITS A LITTLE DIFFERENT where vamp hunter frank gets killed by lambert and abigail and pretty much left to die in the lodge but he wakes up as a BIG (sexy) VAMPIRE BEAST AAA AAAAA!! Yada yada yada vamp hunter joey arrives and gets joeynapped by him then i arrive and take her place THEN AWESOME VAMPIRE MONSTER ROMANCE BEGINS YAYY YAYYYY!! Not to go on a tangent ITS THE ONLY TIME IVE FELT PROMPTED TO RAMBLE HEHEHEHE 💖💖

[tafadhali]

Festivids Recs

What a bonanza of great vids! I received three wonderful vids this year:

So Wrong (Desert Hearts): A lovely, romantic vid to one of my favorite lesbian films, set to one of my favorite country songs! Perfect ending.

Movin' Right Along (Wizard of Oz): This vidder had the clever idea to make a road trip vid for WOZ! It's set to a Muppets song, so peak childhood nostalgia on two fronts.

Twistin' the night away (Wizard of Oz): Obsessed with this concept! Love all the topsy-turvy-twisty clips they found — so fun to watch. And, of course, Sam Cooke!!

Beyond my gifts, I enjoyed so many vids this year. Trying to narrow down my list a bit (and limiting myself to one vid per fandom for now), here are 22 of my faves:

If You Tolerate This (Casablanca): This vid is uncompromising. Really appreciate the focus on politics over romance.

What I Did for Love (Pushing Daisies): Did not know what to expect with this song choice, but wow! It works so well for the terrible trade-offs Ned's gift has, while the vidder also captures everything I love about him and Chuck.

Dollhouse (Mad Men): Killer Sally and Betty vid. Perfect clip selection and a POV I've been dying to see vidded.

f a b u l o u s (Derry Girls): Both Derry Girls vids were a blast but I was so chuffed to see a Sister Michael vid. More eye rolls than any other vid has ever contained!

Tightrope (Blazing Saddles): Captures Bart in all his Bugs Bunny-esque glory. Obsessed with featured artist Gene Wilder.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Some Like It Hot): Terrific cover for this! Just a blast from start to finish.

Hall of the Hot Ones (Hot Ones): Speaking of amazing song choices...this one just made me laugh like crazy. Vidder did an amazing job on the build up.

Things Are Gonna Get Easier (Abbott Elementary): I don't watch the show but I'm a sucker for sitcom vids and really loved both vids! This one hit me right where I live as a teacher.

Campaign Playlist (Dungeons & Dragons): Super clever concept, well-executed.

Plastic (Problemista): I was so hoping someone would make a vid about Julio Torres making weird little things, and they did! What a great song choice. The "Is there recycling?" sequence goes on so long and just gets funnier.

Unwritten (Stranger Than Fiction): I was surprised by how much I liked this movie, and this vid captures it so well! An oft-vidded song that I never get sick of but that also has rarely been deployed so literally and so well.

I'm a Man (Challengers): Loved all three Challengers vids and want 10000 more but I was especially thrilled that someone made a Tashi character study!

I Just Wanna... (Feel Good): Feels like it could be a (terrific!) promo for the show. Great, economical Mae Martin character study and I love the use of a song from a standup album.

Cross My Heart I Hope U Die (Severance): Again, I was really into all three Severance vids, but shouting this one out specifically for the very clever song editing. The whole vid keeps you off-kilter.

The Breaking Light (The Stand): A very moving vid all about a community coming together to face great hardship and evil. Everything I love about the source.

Don't Rain On My Parade (New Life Begins): I know nothing about this source, but all the food!! The energy!! The song clearly matches the chutzpah these women are displaying.

Body of Years (I Saw the TV Glow): Incredible editing. It's incredible to see someone do something so different with a source you've vidded before.

Pisonia Prologue (Invasion of the Body Snatchers umbrella): So cool that someone took Tessa up on this prompt! Love all the shots through windows and shadows. Such a creeping sense of paranoia throughout.

Remember I'm Alive (Wayne Family Adventures): Jason!! My boy! This is so emotional and does really great work with a static source.

The White Tent The Raft (Films from the National Board of Canada): Such a labor of love. It's 9 minutes long and worth it — reminds me how much I love the art form of animation.

Arnaq (Woman) (True Detective: North Country): The vidder's clip selection is so thoughtful as they find the moments of women in the background, women's hands at work, women coming together. Very cool.

Maps for the Getaway (Holiday): For some reason DW ate my first review of this which is fine because it was very tl;dr. The short version is I LOVE this, it feels like it was made for me, I cry every time, and "all we have is time" feels like the thesis of this movie.

[cruesuffix]

70's kitty Mick with his little mustache I can't AAUGGGHHHH!!!!

Give him all the scratches and pets!!!!

Wait what if they actually stayed together? What if she was there when he changed his look? Imagine him coming home and jumpscaring his wife because suddenly he doesn't have a mustache anymore and his hair/fur is black and he has bangs. Or maybe she just walks in on him cutting/dyeing his hair in the bathroom and she just stares in shock...

Anyways we love ginger kitty!!! He gets all the kisses!!

starting to grow very fond of little 70’s orange cat!mick because of you anon thank you so much for that!!!

(omg btw do you know how some cats have different colour fur on/near their lips sometimes?? that’s kinda like micks moustache during that time!!)

also awww i love the idea of them staying together tbh! maybe micks been away for a really long time, maybe he was on tour with one of his bands and had to be away for a while. so, sharons just patiently waiting for him to come back, missing her little orange kitty so bad. then, he finally comes back, and as soon as he opens the door she’s running to him. he’d walk in, leather jacket on, sunglasses still on and black hair/fur and ears + tail newly dyed blue-black. at first she doesn’t notice the change, cause she’s too busy hugging him and telling him how much she and the kids missed him. and then she looks up and gasps. she nearly pushes him away! that’s how much he accidentally scared her.

she’s automatically pouting and playfully scolding him about the new look. he tries to explain to her why exactly he changed it up, but all she can do is whine about no longer being able to feel his moustache tickle her lips when they kiss. all she can do is just stare at him cause… that’s not her husband!! it would take her quite a while to get used to it. like… he looks like a totally different person, and maybe she’d occasionally make jokes about her husband being replaced by a crazy rocker!

but it would be even funnier if he dyed his hair/fur at home. maybe he forgets to close the door while he’s doing it and sharon happens to walk by. as soon as she sees what he’s doing she freezes. she can’t help but walk in and immediately ask him what he’s doing. he stops and looks at her all sheepishly and goes, “i don’t know… i needed a change?” she tries not to show how sad she is cause… well, she liked her little orange kitty the way he was. still, she’d encourage him, maybe even help him cut his bangs. and then he shaves off his moustache and she’s trying not to laugh. ofc mick would notice and ask her what’s funny and she’s just smile.

“you just look like an entirely new person now.” She lightly chuckles and mick can’t help but grin too.

“yeah, get used to it! this is the face you have to look at for the rest of your life!”

ughhhh sooooo soooo cute!! love the fact that mick probably jumpscared everyone he’d known as a ginger when he debuted his new look. cat!mick would be even funnier cause I think everyone would joke about him being an entirely different cat pretending to be their little orange kitty!! oh, and he’d also end up changing his name so that’s even better!

we absolutely do love this ginger little kitty!!!<333 i especially love your prompts about the little ginger kitty anon!!<333

[normanjdroid]

MAJOR HAPPY'S UP AND COMING ONCE UPON A GOOD TIME BAND - 1997

The eighth studio album by The Critters. Released on May 26th, 1997, Major Happy's is regarded by musicologists as an early concept album that advanced the roles of sound composition, extended form, psychedelic imagery, record sleeves, and the producer in popular music.

The album had an immediate cross-generational impact and was associated with numerous touchstones of the era's youth culture, such as fashion, drugs, mysticism, and a sense of optimism and empowerment.

Critics lauded the album for its innovations in songwriting, production and graphic design, for bridging a cultural divide between popular music and high art, and for reflecting the interests of contemporary youth and the counterculture.

While widely regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, at the time it was quite controversial. It was released following the band's open endorsement of PUNCH, which caused a stir in the press and lead to several members of the band being arrested - before everyone realized how stupid the charges of "possession of punch" sounded, leading to their prompt release.

History

“We were fed up with being ' The Critters '. We really hated that fucking four little moppy-toppy approach. We were not children, we were musicians ... and thought of ourselves as artists rather than just performers.” - Bryan "Bubba" Bubbaphant

The origins of Major Happy's can be traced back to the "bigger than god" controversy, where Bryan Bubbaphant was incorrectly quoted as saying the band was bigger than God. Following this as well as other issues due to being the biggest band in the world, the group decided to stop touring, and took a few months off of music. During this time, the compilation album A Collection of Critters Oldies was released by N.J.D.

Original idea ; Songs From The Black Hole

The original album the band began working at this point was quite different. Titled Songs From The Black Hole, a name which came to Kickin McChicken in a dream, it was to be a science-fiction rock opera concept album with tracks that segued seamlessly, ending with a coda that revisited the major musical themes. The characters were to be voiced by McChicken, Bubbaphant, O'Corn and Starrkey, and the Critters collaborator Karl Koch, along with the guest vocalists. However, at the 2016 article The Critters: Turn Left At Greenland noted, the world was not ready for a Critters concept album.

But their interest in making a themed album did not end, and eventually culminated in Major Happy's, which disguised itself as a concert by Major Happy's Up and Coming Once Upon a Good Time Band, a fictional band played by the four Critters.

The Critters in their Major Happy's outfits, holding cups of PUNCH.

The Cover Art

The cover art is widely recognized as one of the most famous album covers of all time. It features the four Critters in uniform. The original idea was to have them standing with celebrities and other figures near them. However this idea was abandoned in favor of "a funnier one"

One of the people who designed the cover, Doubles Daniels said that the idea they went with was wanting to show a band celebrating you getting kicked out of a town.

“They suggested the idea that the band played a concert celebrating the listener being kicked out of a town. The photo then became one from the listener's perspective and the band being behind them was to show them happily kicking you out. At one time the multiple figures idea came back in the form of "townies" Since we decided this should be the idea, we started making cut-outs, the townies could be anyone, dead or alive, real or fictitious. If we wanted Romeo and Juliet, I could take a photo of the Critters kissing eachother without anything else in the photo. I asked the band if they had a list of people they wanted to be added, however they were too lazy to answser, so I stole their list and added some of my ideas to the mix. The local punch addict did one as well and I don't remember if Picktoria Pepstien had their own list. It was pretty stunning how it worked out in the end. I used Kickin's list as well as Bryan's list. Crafty's lists only featured poltergeist spirits, about fourteen of them, and Catnap said "Everyone to exist in this planet" and nothing else. A lot of people were suggested. JFK was in there; he was in the set-up, but he was thrown into the trash and burnt because of fears that people might've thought we were going to "get him again". Same applied to God. There were only two people alive we added who weren't going to sue our asses, Bob Dylan was suggested by McChicken and I added Bono because he is a great favourite of mine.―Doubles Daniel

In the end however, the day the band went for the final photoshoot everyone found that the PUNCH addict who was named "Tricky The Clown" had broken in and stolen all the cutouts, leaving a note stating "CLOWN WANTS THESE". So instead a bus was "borrowed legally" and crashed into the photo studio so that we could photograph the band infront of the bus. Sadly nobody realized the photo was of the band blocking the road into town and celebrating you being kicked out. For what reason the viewer was being kicked out for remains a mystery to this day.

Legacy

Major Happy's led to the Summer of Lunch, an entire three months of people discussing peace, drinking PUNCH, and of course, passing around food. It was released following the band's open endorsement of PUNCH, which as stated earlier in this wall of text caused a stir in the press and lead to several members of the band being arrested. The BBC in Britain banned all of the even tracks on the album from being played on their stations, believing these were all in reference to PUNCH, as at the time the british were still cowardly about anything not relating to them.

Many Crafty is Dead conspirators believe that this album is sprinkled with clues. If you sing the title of "Major Happy's" backward, it is supposed to sound like "Crafty has been dead for ages, honestly." However, this has been proven false, and the person who started the rumor was Tricky The Clown.

Much later, a theory called Dark Side of the Once Upon A Good Time Band of Oz on LSD took hold. This claimed that if you played Major Happy's, Pinkerton, and the The Wizard of Oz at the same time (while also slightly high) they sync up perfectly and create an episode of Doctor Who, which at that time had been canceled since 1989. While not necessarily true, this shows just how excited fans became to experience the album in as many ways as possible.

There have also been multiple tribute albums and songs, including Major Nutter Butter in 1998 and I Saw Mommy Kissing Major Happy in 2001.

An infamously bad film entitled Major Happy's Up And Coming Once Upon A Good Time Band was created in 2008. It starred The Free Gees as the Good Time Band - it was so bad the Critters themselves reunited for free to film a better version in 2009.

In 2017, Major Happy's was remixed and reissued as a super deluxe box set,

- which contained remixed versions and outtakes of Critters tunes, along with many bonus inclusions, such as a hardcover book discussing the making of Major Happy's, all original inserts included in the original 90s release, and outtake covers.

In lead up to release, Picktoria Pepstien herself partnered with around hundreds shop owners to distribute limited edition Major Happy's printed napkins. The production of these napkins was supposedly meant to halt a few months after the release of the Major Happy's Super Deluxe, though it is suspected that Picktoria forgot to get back to them. As of 2024, the Major Happy's napkins are still in circulation.

The Infamous "Major Happy's" Napkin

Track Listing

Side One

Major Happy's Up And Coming Once Upon A Good Time Band

Rendezvous

Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds

California Oranges

Steppin' Into The Sun

She's Leaving Home

Being For The Benefit Of Mister Kite!

Side Two

Within You, Without You

Back In 64'

Just A Man

Rockaliser Baby

Major Happy's Up And Coming Once Upon A Good Time Band (Reprise)

Cheese & Onions

Listen to the album here!

2017 Ultra Deluxe Version;

Disc 1

Major Happy's Up And Coming Once Upon A Good Time Band (Remix)

Rendezvous (Remix)

Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds (Remix)

California Oranges (Remix)

Steppin' Into The Sun (Remix)

She's Leaving Home (Remix)

Being For The Benefit Of Mister Kite! (Remix)

Within You, Without You (Remix)

Back In 64' (Remix)

Just A Man (Remix)

Rockaliser Baby (Remix)

Major Happy's Up And Coming Once Upon A Good Time Band [Reprise] (Remix)

Cheese & Onions (Remix)

Disc 2 (Sessions)

Strawberry Fields Forever (Take 1)

Strawberry Fields Forever (Take 4)

Strawberry Fields Forever (Take 7)

Strawberry Fields Forever (Take 26)

Strawberry Fields Forever (Stereo Remix)

Holiday (Take 6 Instrumental)

Holiday (Vocal Overdubs and Speech)

Holiday (Stereo Remix)

Cheese and Onions (Take 1)

Cheese and Onions (Take 2)

Cheese and Onions (Piano Overdub)

Cheese and Onions (Hummed Last Note) (Takes 8-11)

Cheese and Onions (The Last Note)

Major Happy's Up and Coming Once Upon a Good Time Band (Take 1 Instrumental)

Major Happy's Up and Coming Once Upon a Good Time Band (Take 9)

Rockaliser Baby (Take 1 Instrumental)

Rockaliser Baby (Take 8)

Disc 3 (Sessions Continued)

Stepping Into The Sun (Take 1)

Stepping Into The Sun (Speech and Take 3)

For the Benefit of Mr. Kite! (Speech from Take 1)

For the Benefit of Mr. Kite! (Take 4 and Speech)

For the Benefit of Mr. Kite! (Take 7)

Just A Man (Speech and Take 9)

Lucy In The Sky (Take 1 and Speech)

Lucy In The Sky (Speech, False Start and Take 5)

California Oranges (Take 1 Instrumental and Speech)

California Oranges (Take 12)

Within You, Without You (Take 1 Instrumental)

Within You, Without You (Crafty's Childhood P.E. Classes)

She's Leaving Home (Take 1 Instrumental)

She's Leaving Home (Take 6 Instrumental)

Rendezvous (Take 1-2 Instrumental)

Major Happy's Up and Coming Once Upon a Good Time Band (Reprise) (Speech and Take 8)

Disc 4 (1997 Mono Originals)

Major Happy's Up And Coming Once Upon A Good Time Band (Mono)

Rendezvous (Mono)

Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds (Mono)

California Oranges (Mono)

Steppin' Into The Sun (Mono)

She's Leaving Home (Mono)

Being For The Benefit Of Mister Kite! (Mono)

Within You, Without You (Mono)

Back In 64' (Mono)

Just A Man (Mono)

Rockaliser Baby (Mono)

Major Happy's Up And Coming Once Upon A Good Time Band [Reprise] (Mono)

Cheese & Onions (Mono)

Disc 5 (Bonus Tracks)

Strawberry Fields Forever (Mono)

Holiday (Mono)

Cheese and Onions (Unreleased Mono Mix)

Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds (Unreleased Mono Mix)

Just A Man (Unreleased Mono Mix)

Holiday (Promo Mono Mix)