#I had to go buy a drill because we don't actually have one after all these years

[afniel]

Big Ikea Leaf

Big Ikea Leaf

[fxrheisenn]

Andrus Laansalu talked about making Disco Elysium at EKA (Estonian Academy of Arts)

"Initially, the church wasn't a focal point. There were certain characters that needed to visit this location, and I asked, "Seriously, what do we have in our church?" The others replied, "Nothing at all. Our church is completely bare—just a wheel, really. It's quite basic."

That's when I decided to unleash my creativity in the design. For example, they chose to install a glass structure at the top of the church to create a reflective surface. It was like placing an optical clock up there. Therefore, one of the most crucial aspects of designing the church was ensuring the lighting was just right to create the desired atmosphere."

"Let me show you an example of Baroque architecture, which is rich in detail. We're also designing the interior of the church based on large cathedrals. However, the foundation you use might not yield the expected results, because the church itself doesn't require such intricate details. Sometimes, it's about simplifying the design."

"I used Articy for the initial scriptwriting of Disco Elysium. The image only represents a tiny fraction of the text and choice variables involved. This system was also the reason I eventually abandoned the project after a year of outlining the script and shifted my focus to becoming a sound designer. My mind struggled to keep up with the dynamic graphic rules, but fortunately, a more talented writer took over afterward."

"In terms of sound design, it's essential to develop different layers to bring out the charm of the church as a cohesive space. Although this represents only a small portion of the overall design, each layer actually requires a significant amount of time to compose the whole....... Whenever there's a shift or a change due to the dialogue itself, you need to adjust the background sounds. Each time you modify the details in the dialogue, I have to refine the background audio, ensuring that these elements build upon each other like an intricate layer of work."

"It's funny how many scenes involve characters getting smacked in the face. My job was to recreate those, so I locked myself in the bathroom with a recorder and hit my forehead until it turned red.

As a sound designer, I really dig those unsettling, drill-like sounds. So, I mixed in creepy lectures, metal scraping, moans, and cries of pain—because I just love that stuff! (laughs)

Players will be moving through all kinds of areas, so it's super important to make the sound transitions feel natural, trying to create a more immersive vibe in certain spaces.

With all the scenes featuring big cranes, you can hear them from far away, and I wanted to capture that eerie ringing in your ears. That's going to be a thing throughout most of the game. I've found ways to really mess with players while they're playing!"

"I've come across a lot of old objects (like phones and radios) that I needed to perfectly replicate the sounds. I started to become a bit of a hoarder, buying up different models of old phones whenever I found one to add to my collection. The sound effects I can simulate from them are really impressive."

"Some of the devices don't actually exist in real life—just a mix of architecture and tech. When I need to create sound effects, I first look for something similar that exists in our world, then I try to simulate what the sound and appearance of that thing might have been like a century ago.

Towards the end of the game, there's a character carrying a fuel canister. We needed the sound of the canister, so we dug one up from our garage—it had been sitting there since it was five! I realized this would make the sound perfect. So, it had been there for 50 years, and after 40 years, it finally found its purpose.

In some places, I needed unique sound waves, and recreating them was a real headache until one day I happened to walk by a swimming pool and stumbled upon an old wartime torpedo. You can rotate the torpedo's probe, and it slowly rises up, like a proud zombie head. The sounds it made were exactly what I needed!"

🙋How did you manage to get funding?

"Well, since we're in Estonia, you just need to know a wealthy person. You don't need five people—just two who can network, hang out together, and convince them to keep investing! (laughs) Back then, we constantly ran out of money and would tell them, 'Oops, looks like we spent it all! Can you invest a bit more?' That's how we made it through!"

🙋How did you all come together to make the game?

"Luck. It usually doesn't happen this way, and that's the key difference. It has to be. If not, you couldn't create a game of this scale - well, I mean in terms of budget. But creatively, Estonia definitely has writers and artists who can pull it off. With such a small population, there are a lot of quirky folks who are good friends. We were really lucky, though - lots of fortunate circumstances came together. It brought the right people together, allowing those talented fools to collaborate with us. They had experience but hadn't tackled projects of this magnitude before. So yeah, luck is pretty important!"

Lecture experience shared by 白兔YIYANG SUN on 小红书, reposted & translated by me with her permission.

[doodlegirl1998]

I'm honestly appalled at the ending of this manga.

It's so mean-spirited of Horikoshi to drill it into the narrative that Izuku can't be a hero without a Quirk, and when he does have a Quirk, he's only a liability with it so he should just give up. Then for him to take that Quirk away from him when that's all he ever wanted is just a slap in the face to Izuku and what little character development he had.

Not only that, but for how much 1A is supposedly close to one another, they sure were quick to forget about Aoyama when discount Goob replaced him. He's been nothing but an asshole to them, so why are they so excited to see him?

Why can't the adults get off of their asses and be the primary ones helping with rebuilding? Why rope the second years into it? Furthermore, why the fuck are they having school so soon after a near apocalyptic war?

Also, I love how Bakugou is supposedly praised for his "effort" when all he did was nearly get himself killed because AS USUAL, he charged ahead without a plan, and just waited for AFO to rewind out of existence. Meanwhile, Izuku's just left by himself with All Might, because God fucking forbid anybody actually give Izuku the time of day for the right reasons.

Bakugou can go fuck himself for making Izuku's Quirklessness about himself and their "rIvAlRy", and Horikoshi can go fuck himself for making Izuku's attitude towards losing the thing he dreamed of having for 12 years: 🤷.

PS: So much for Aizawa's "apology" towards Izuku meaning anything. All he said was sorry, used Izuku's first name without earning the privilege, and then onto the next scene.

Hi @nutzgunray-lvt 👋

You and me both.

Hori hates Izuku. It is as plain a fact as the sky being blue at this point. It is intensely mean to have Izuku suffer for being quirkless (especially at the hands of Bkg*), gain OFA and work so hard with it only to lose it by the end of the story and then Hori doesn't allow Izu to have any form of upset about this. Instead, he is forced to comfort BAKUGOU about this*- the same Bakugou who calls him Deku (useless) for being quirkless! The same Bakugou who abused him for a decade largely for this!?! What the fuck is this Hori? Get boo-hoo'ing Bak-U-Go out the damn door! Focus on Izuku for once! This is traumatising! Let Izuku actually feel it instead of being puppeteered to make Bkg look good!

This is one of the reasons Izuku feels kind of flat now (I hate to say it as an Izuku fan but he doesn't react in a way that makes sense and we haven't seen in his head in so long...)

I don't buy "Class 1A is a Family," not after they chased down Izuku in the Dark Deku arc and certainly not now. Look at how easily they let Aoyama go! No crying or anything? Like wow...

And for Shinsou? Who has canonically only been an asshole to all of 1A this whole time? And no one has a problem with him or is gutted about Aoyama leaving? Nah... that's some B.S. right there.

To add Ochaco, making fun of Izuku's new hair and saying not to talk to her with that hair was in very poor taste. They were all in a WAR, Izuku didn't just have poor luck with barbers. She comes off like a bitch here not gonna lie...

Having school so soon after a whole WAR and floating UA occurring is so unrealistic... 😑 The fact that students are helping proves the school shouldn't be open yet. But Nedzu gives no shit - who is one of Japan's smartest beings, apparently...

Bakugou being praised for his "effort" over Izuku is simply laughable but sadly nothing new.

Aizawa's "apology" was hollow, simply an item on the checklist for Hori, and it shows. Also, using Izuku's first name was OOC for him and rude for him to use without asking.

In addition, we have seen the Bakugou's, but where is Inko? Hori gives no shit to her, clearly. At least she isn't there for Izuku to be forced to comfort alongside Bakugou - about a traumatic thing that happened to HIM! What is this mess Hori?!

[pyjamaart]

I never needed such help / This is my SOS

(Content warning: self harm) (If you don't have a problem with that, huge Drillman essay under the read more lol)

When I said that I wanted to draw Drillman some more, this really wasn't what I had in mind.

This week, I've been shopping for music on various second hand sites, which made me realize I don't physically own one of my all time favorite albums: "Squaring The Circle" by Sneaker Pimps. I had to change that immediately. (As well as buying like 15 other CDs and vinyls, lol.) As I was listening to it once again, I realized just how much the song "SOS" reminded me of Drillman and his struggles.

If you don't want to look it up, here are some of the lyrics:

"I look much smaller seen from inside out/Far too small to see myself/Down on reflection, cast in hate and in doubt/Flawed and flaws I add myself"

"Oh mirror mirror hanging on the wall/Please just show me someone else/My hopes were low and I got so much so less/Nothing left to save myself"

Listen, this dude got some major problems with his self esteem. He feels like an embarrassment because he was forced into a life he never wanted by his father. Now he seeks revenge on the company that bought his families business, along with him and apparently his bodily autonomy. Think about that for a minute. How fucked would it be if your parents wanted you to be a doctor, but a requirement for that would be to have your hand surgically removed and replaced with a scalpel. That's the exact situation Drillman found himself in.

Now a lot of people probably think "Well why doesn't he just ask Dr. Light to give him a new pair of hands then, if he's this miserable?" This is where we get to one of Drillmans biggest problems: the refusal to ask for help in any way. And even after the finale of the season, why would he go to the Lights for help in the first place? Wasn't it Aki who thought the best way to help him through his problems was hypnotism? And in the process embarrassing him in front of the whole city, ruining the last bit of reputation he may have had? (For real though, that episode is so hard for me to watch. I just feel so so bad for him, since I really struggle with social anxiety myself.)

As the guys from the Youtube channel "The D-Pad" (who reviewed all of the MMFC episodes) fittingly commented: "This would be like fucking Vietnam for him." And they were right. Obviously, Drillman is horrified that Aki would humiliate him like this and lashes out, solidifying his opinion that asking for help is a bad idea.

In that episode, there's this one moment that really stuck with me. At around the 8 minute mark, while Drillman is having a breakdown over the terrible "music" Aki made him perform, there's this one shot where he takes a moment to look at the drills that replaced his hands in frustration. The camera perspective makes it seem as if we are experiencing this brief scene through his eyes. It's actually quite upsetting. (A link to the moment I'm talking about: youtu.be/OC_jdhoeTrE?si=ZPzAXu…)

This is also a perfect moment for me to gush over the voice acting for this scene. Andrew McNee did such a fantastic job of conveying Drillmans distress and anger through his voice. That reminds me, giving him a British accent was honestly such a good decision.

The reason he doesn't talk at all throughout most of his first appearance is probably because the writers wanted to surprise their audience a little. As in, you see this big, imposing construction robot and think "Oh man, what a brute. He probably has a pretty deep voice." And then he actually starts to speak and it's this sophisticated, well-articulated British voice instead. Quite the whiplash.

To get back to the original topic, I'm honestly still upset that they didn't give Drillman a redemption arc at the end of the show. This probably would have happened in season 2, as Mega Man even says at some point "I know deep down your inner bits are good", proving to me that the writers definitely had something in mind regarding Drillmans character arc.

And now that all of that is out of the way, we can finally get into headcanon territory.

You might have seen this image while browsing the tags and asked yourself, "Why is this Mega Man Fully Charged artwork littered with content warnings?" And well, now that you're here and reading this, you probably know why. I can't say I've ever made myself sick with a drawing before. That's a first for me.

My headcanon is, that after the finale of the show, Drillman is just utterly lost. Lord Obsidian, who sought him out specifically because he knew of Drillmans problems and offered him a place to stay and a way to get revenge on the people he thought responsible for his predicament, turned out to be a horribly racist human who was just using him to achieve his own devious goals. After getting his ass kicked by the Lights, the same people who had not only humiliated him in front of the whole city, but who had also left him stuck to his abusive father for an entire day (I bet that ride to the police station was horrible for all the people involved, most of all the police bots who had to hear the Drillmen yell at each other the whole time), Sgt. Night is detained by the police. We don't actually see what happens after that, because that's where the show ends.

I'd like to think that the Lights actually try to talk to the robot masters once everything is over, telling them all the horrible things their so-called "leader" has said and done. And most importantly, what he thinks of robots: That they're nothing but tools to him. That once they had gotten him his Mega key, he would have wiped their minds and turned them into mindless machines.  

I'm guessing none of the robot masters would take these news well, but most of all Drillman. I think that after he ran away from Skyraisers Inc. and fought Mega Man for the first time, he was really relieved to have some place to stay and a new goal, maybe even a robot to look up to. That being Lord Obsidian of course. Who knows what lies he told Drillman and the others? Kinda sad that we never really got to see what the robot masters who stayed with Lord Obsidian did the entire day. When they weren't causing havoc in the city, that is.

None of them seemed really friendly with each other in the finale, now that I think about it. I guess "Obsidians robot sanctuary" wasn't really a great place to stay at after all. But still better than being homeless, like that one maniac living in the forest all by himself. Speaking of Woodman, in my AU, he and Drillman already knew each other at this point. This also reminds me of something I forgot to mention in my last post. While I'd love to see them interact in any way, because they're both my favorite characters, I don't ship them in any way whatsoever. I'd also like to think that Woodman and Drillmans father were schoolmates back in the day, maybe even friends? (I'm still holding onto those 30 years).

Anyway, after all the former robot comrades part ways, now without a leader, what was Drillman supposed to do? Once again betrayed by a trusted figure, feeling useless and without purpose, still with these stupid drills mounted to his body... Still too ashamed to ask for help. After all that has happened in the past few hours he begins spiraling, which ultimately leads him to make a very unfortunate decision. Trying to get at least some of the freedom in his life back, he attempts to get rid of the drills making up his body on his own, using the same tools that have haunted him all this time to finally rid himself of this burden.

He regrets this just seconds after, when he's left with an unresponsive limb, metal and wires exposed and oil splattered all over his orange plating. All he can do is stare at the stained drill in front of him in horror.

"I never needed such help/This is my SOS"

Jesus Christ that got dark. Sorry. I mentioned in my last post that Drillman possibly has really bad body dysmorphia, which I'm also trying to convey here. Don't worry, he really gets his hands back after this. Maybe the Lights find him after that and the good Doctor offers to fix him up. By which I mean not only his arm. Because apparently, Dr. Light also doubles as robot psychologist. I just really need Drillman to get his happy ending. He really really deserves it after everything he had to go trough over the course of the show. 

I also need him to have a DJing redemption, besides the normal redemption. I've seen people headcanon that he exclusively likes classical music, but I personally don't believe that. He'd be the kind of music nerd who would say stuff like "I listen to everything" and then you look at his playlists and he actually listens to everything. Maybe not experimental noise rock, though. I can just imagine Aki and Suna helping him put on an actual show, this time without any hypnotizing bullshit, as a way for Aki to apologize for the dread he's caused Drillman during that incident. Drillman would be highly suspicious at first, but actually goes along with it in the end. Maybe they'd also take Fireman along, who Dr. Light also blessed with a brand new pair of hands. The punchline at the end would be that Drillman would have so much anxiety about embarrassing himself again, that he forgets to make an actual set list for the gig. In the end, he exclusively plays Lady Gaga songs, which no one complains about.

Alright then, enough yapping from me. I've really been writing this essay since 8pm. And now it's 2am. My god. I just have a lot of feelings about Drillman.

But now I really gotta go to bed. Stay safe peeps. I hope you actually read the content warnings. Jenny out.

[fuck-customers]

a guy came in last night acting WEIRD, like weird weird. we have candy bars on the counter for people to impulse buy and he was drilling me about the brownie snickers. I told him I don't really like snickers, so I don't have any opinion on the brownie ones. since obviously, I never even tried them before. tell me why he was here for like TWENTY MINUTES trying to make me convince him to buy it and saying that he had "better be able to return it" and demanded his receipt in case. this might not sound creepy on paper but the way he was staring at me the whole time, dead-eyed and emotionless, was freaky. at first I chalked it up to neurodivergency or something since I'm autistic and I look like that sometimes.

when he finally left I was SO relieved, like as if a tiger that was about to eat me left kind of relieved. and then he came back in tonight, this time with a friend.

first off, he was telling me all about how he bought cigarettes earlier. two packs, he asked for the deal that requires us to scan our card for. His friend and him kept bickering about that and not shutting up so that's when I knew I was about to be there for a long time, again. then he saw the snickers again and now they're bickering about it, and asking me if it's any good. I'm like? You bought one yesterday, did you not try it? Also you should have known from yesterday, that I've never tried it before. His friend starts going on about how I'm lying and it's actually bad because the company is making me lie about it. Totally ignored that I kept saying I just literally never had one before. I was about to go insane trying to deal with two of the same freak and then a young woman walks in.

They pounced on her immediately! randomly assaulting her about the snickers and then going in about what she wants to do with her life and where she wants to travel, and then asking her if they could take her to other countries. Said "you wanna hang out with us? So we could do a little one night stand? There's no cameras outside the store" Alarms start going off. These guys are CREEPS for sure, and not just a little awkward. The snickers thing was just a front to be able to bother me longer.

she's like, immune to this though and is acting like they're all friends. They go outside to stand by the car and as she's buying her stuff I'm like, "stay here until they leave". She waves me off and is like "nah they're cool, we're friends now" and as soon as she leaves they're bothering her again. Right after another young woman shows up and says to me that she is going to hang out until they leave because she saw them gawking at her like a piece of meat, and she had no idea why the first woman was crazy enough to hang out with them out there. We waited forever waiting for them to leave, and for some reason the first woman drove off first, letting them have ample time to follow her out. they were driving really really slow around the parking lot and left super slowly.

Posted by admin Rodney.

[lakesbian]

do you think when Alec got a new base he had his minions don laundry only to realize it was similar to Heartbreaker making his girls do laundry or do you neither alec nor heartbreaker did laundry

hooray another alec question. my night is somewhat tragic due to tasks but now i have alec question :) <- ignoring a massive backlog of alec questions because i'm bad at not writing an essay to every one and that would be a lot of essays. i'll get there eventually

anyway alec's character page for the loft era alec says that he preferred tossing old clothes and buying new ones over washing what he currently has. which checks out, because he's 1. depressed and has no one to do his chores for him and 2. is really into shoveling expensive versions of all the things teenage boys think are cool into the eternal void in his heart in hopes that it will make him feel special and like his life is good and nice and worth living. coping with being fundamentally unwanted and treated like subhuman for his entire life by trying to be a special fancy richboy prince etc etc you know the drill. i do think he still has to do Some laundry, especially after leviathan, because it's simply not feasible to buy new clothes every time he changes out of an outfit. like that would be almost cartoonish amounts of underwear and socks to purchase every week. (i can hear someone saying 'are we sure he's changing his clothes every day what if he's being a gross teenage boy' now. to which i refute in advance: his Psychological Issues make this highly unlikely.) so we have now established that he does, probably, need to do at least some laundry

which is actually going to be the bulk of this answer because to be real with you although life is not all sunshine and rainbows for the minions of this violent criminal 15yo whose primary workplace condition is "you have to let me fuck with your nervous system in case i ever need to bodyjack you during an emergency" there is a vast difference between the notion of alec having people he pays to do his laundry and his father having the women he has kidnapped and abused and ruined the lives of wait on him hand and foot. vast, vast difference. alec's Turning Into His Father moments are like...when he gets a bit too upset and revenge-tortures someone largely unrelated to make himself feel better, not when he's a depressed busy teenager paying some people to toss his shit in the wash for him. (which i do think he presumably does yeah.) there's just no comparison there, he is by large Avoiding turning into his father, w/ exceptions that are far more thematically rich on the very rare occasion he backslides. we don't need to try digging something out of the hypothetical notion that it's sort of abusercore for him to not do his own laundry

[lyramundana]

lyra I finally had a thought I think you might appreciate 😈 this is not a request or anything, and if it doesn't vibe, leave it in your inbox BUT

I was building ikea furniture the other day and got thinking about how weird idol's lives are and how many basic life skills they probably lack. like we know most kpop idols at least finish school, but we've also all heard about hollywood actors being dumb as bricks.

so what basic shit do we think our skz boys, and especially our minsung boys, are just absolutely incapable of doing? we know minho can cook, but you can't tell me they didn't all have trouble figuring out laundry in their mojo dojo casa house of a dorm.

also can you imagine reader or your OC literally shaking their head at them hahahah

or would they get turned on by the weirdest shit because reader or your OC is competent and confident in small moments? like she makes really good coffee because she used to be a barista, or whatevs

just thoughts being thunk, do what you will 💓

-May, @skzms

omfg, this is actually one of my favourite scenarios💀 you read my mind or smh??

I totally know what you mean. While I think Stray Kids have learnt more than most after living by themselves in that dirty hole, I feel that after a while they grow used to the chaos and they barely got time to improve, considering their careers. Now they're more famous and probably richer, I feel they have other people doing these stuff for them. Also, most idols have shown in variety shows that they can barely fry eggs without guidance, so yeah

This got long, so beware

It's funny you mention my OC because this scenario fits her perfectly and her story. Vivi comes from a big family and due to her upbringing, she has grown up learning a lot of skills to be completely self-sufficient at a young age. And because pursuing a dance career isn't exactly cheap unless you're a kpop trainee, of course she has worked in some jobs to earn extra money. Shop assistant, waitress, babysitter, and even a bartender at some point, although this one was more like a hobby rather than a job, since she loves anything related to alcohol. It's very important for her to be independent and not rely on people.

Part of being a competitive dancer implies moving around a lot for tournaments, so she's used to live without external support and having no option but do things herself. Assemble furniture, cook food, house chores, handling the bills, you name it. After all, the more she can do by herself, the less money she has to spend.

I believe that most of the boys can do basic stuff, as long as they have the instructions in front of their eyes and can ask for help. Otherwise, they're lost. They know how to cook because they need to feed themselves and do some cleaning for hygiene, but that's it. They're clueless about anything else.

So it'll be like this. Imagine that, for some reason, Vivi and MinSung have to live together for a while, maybe for a show or a dare, or because they have out of necessity, I don't know. The apartment is big and cozy, but there's a tiny problem: There's no furniture, functional electricity or food. This isn't new for Vivi, so she simply accepts it and gets to work, while MinSung stand there like "wait, aren't they supposed to provide these stuff for us?"

So you have this girl acting as a babysitter and provider for two grown ass man, older than her, that can't even start the washing machine.

"So, how do we do this?"

"By pressing the big button with Start written on top..😑"

Going to buy the furniture is a mess, because while Vivi is carefully picking up the options based on what they need and knows where to look, the boys treat it as a fun trip. They're basically her children she has to look after, trying the beds and almost getting lost for going after something that caught their eyes.

"Hey Vivi, what is that? Can we take it? It looks so cool!"

"...that's a drill, Jisung"

They get confused when she leads them to the warehouse underneath and buys some boxes.

"Wait, weren't we going to buy the furniture?"

"Yes, duh, I have it all right here. We'll arrange them later at home"

"Wait, what? do you mean arrange them?!"

Vivi soon realizes she's going to have an extra load of work she didn't anticipate. Lots of face palming and taking deep breaths because seriously, how are they still alive??

She's casually arranging her wardrove like it's second nature to her, quickly and precise, knowing exactly where everything goes. She throws a glance at the boys and finds, well, complete disaster. They're nowhere half done, the instructions a mess of papers around them and none are holding the right tools for it. She's exasperated and shoos them away, taking care of everything as they watch.

And you're absolutely right, they find all of this sexy as fuck.

They stare at her in awe and admiration as she leads them through the different shops, keeping mental lists of everything they need and knowing stuff unknown to their ears. Their eyes sparkle as she speaks with terms they never heard before and takes all the stuff she claims they need. They follow her like lost puppies, eagerly waiting for her next orders. They specially stick to her hips in crowded zones, since she gives zero fucks about pushing people out of her way and telling them to move (their introvert asses could never)

They might have needed some cold showers after witnessing her arranging everything in the house. The furniture, the electricity cables, the pipes, acting like it's all stuff she does everyday. She needs to watch some tutorials for some of those chores, but she quickly gets the hang of it. Her figure all sweaty and red and her light clothing already clinging to her body from all the effort. Her strong arms on display with her tank top, her hair in a messy bun with some wet strands near her cheeks, some dirt on her face and holding a tool that looks like a murder weapon, and...ops, they're hard, time for another shower..

Jisung feels he might nut his pants when she lifts a fucking couch to check something underneath, holding it still with one hand while relying some of the weight on her shoulder. Minho once sat on it to annoy her, thinking she wouldn't be able to lift it with him there...turns out she did it anyway. And now there's two people wanting to nut in their pants.

She gives some easy chores to keep them busy. Minho is in charge of cooking and Jisung bring the ingredients. So after exhausting hours of working around, Vivi comes back to a full cooked meal as a "reward".

She's a professional hunter of discounts, bargains and anything that implies saving as much money as possible. She doesn't have the budget of an entire company supporting her, so she's used to tracking down the best offers and making sellers sweat to give her the price she wants. It's a battle of rhetoric and sheer determination, and the boys are once more in awe.

She discusses with the landlord about the apartment's issues and is ready to argue with anyone about her rights. She handles the bills and most of the financial matters.

Bonus: She once used a whole drill to fix the bed and closets instead of a screwdriver ("this is better, guys, my mother taught me"), headphones on to mute out the noise and the veins in her arms pecking out with the force of holding it, mindlessly doing the task.

Yeah, lots of the money is going down the cold water

@skzms here. I'll love to hear your input

[kzele]

One-Punch Parker

(Note: nothing actually One Punch Man related, it's just a nickname.)

Having to battle all sorts of criminals day and night sometimes takes a toll on sleep, to say nothing of work. This is something that Peter was unfortunately experiencing right now as he stumbled through classes. His grades would be fine as it would take a lobotomy for him to not answer the questions teachers gave him, however, his brain was still operating at bare minimum capacity.

As it turns out, Peter found that social replies were not as easy to retain as formulas and definitions. It took Gwen and Harry a fair few tries to pierce the haze before they got a coherent response of "good" which they obviously didn't buy. Peter was clearly straining not to fall asleep in their discussion, something that Parker Luck dictated would naturally be noticed by one Flash Thompson. Peter Parker having a moment of rest was something that clearly shouldn't last.

"Hey, look guys. Puny Parker looks two seconds away from face-planting into his lunch. Whadda you say that I help wake him up a bit?"

The responses from the rest of his friend group were mixed.

Kenny was naturally on board, and said as much, "Dude, go for it! It'll be hilarious!"

His girlfriend, Glory, was less on board with this as her glare showed. "Haven't you guys done enough pranks? Why can't we eat our lunch like adults?"

Liz and Randy both agreed with her. "Flash, leave Petey alone. Can you not bother him for once?"

"Yeah, man. He looks like he had a rough night. You can always bug him later or something."

Sally just said, "Go for it. What's the harm in a little scare?" She probably would have said more if she wasn't busy checking her makeup in her compact.

"Thanks Kenny, Sally. And the rest of you guys need to relax. What's your deal, anyways? I just want to see him scream like the little girl he is. It won't take long." (That statement would turn out to be truer than he expected.)

Ducking along the side to avoid detection from the dweeb's friends, he slowly and carefully made his way to the Nerd Table as casually as he could. Creeping up on the smaller boy, he grabbed Peter's shoulders and yelled, "WAKE UP, PUNY. . ." *BAM*

Flash saw only black after that.

See, the thing to remember about Peter is that it doesn't matter if he or his brain is asleep. That's because his reflexes don't sleep. Luckily for Peter's conscience, Flash's skull, and the innocence of the M3 student body, Peter has drilled the concept of holding back into those same reflexes. However, it doesn't change the fact that he just knocked a student twice his size, (Flash Thompson, no less) out cold completely.

There was dead silence as the last few seconds caught up with everyone there.

"Holy-"

"Did you see that?"

"Dang, Parker just leveled him!"

Oh no. Peter's mind was now wide awake as the horror of what he did hit him. He scrambled down beside him to check his pulse (thankfully strong) and lightly shook the bully, "Are you alright? Flash, come on, answer me! Be your obnoxious self! It'll actually be a relief for once."

Professor Warren's soft British accent interrupted his panic, "What's going on here?"

Sally grating voice was at full volume, "Parker assaulted our school's football star, that's what!"

Peter grimaced both at Sally's accusation and shrillness as the professor turned to him. "I didn't mean to, I swear! Can you help me check on him please? You can punish me later, promise."

It was at this point Gwen stepped in and glared at the popular clique, "It wasn't really Peter's fault. Isn't it obvious Flash snuck up on him because of how out of it Peter was today? Since when does he assault anybody out of the blue for no good reason?"

Sally was clearly about to argue further when Professor Warren held up a hand and stated, "Given the validity of that claim, I think we can safely put this down as a result of an ill-thought out prank." He turns towards Kenny and Randy, "Boys, can you escort Mr. Thompson down to the nurse's office while I talk to Mr. Parker to get his side of things?"

Peter grimaced but thought that at least the professor didn't seem angry. As Warren led him to the side, they were unaware that the whispers of "Puny Parker" and "one punch" started to meld together. They would be much more aware tomorrow when the nickname of "One-Punch Parker" became official.

[nancypullen]

Creeping Toward September

Shhhh. The last three days we've woken up to temperatures hovering between 58-60 and I don't want to scare it away. I know it's still August, summer is still spreading her fiery breath around, and we're a solid month away from really pleasant weather, but this sneak peek is wonderful. Our daytime highs still soar to the 80's, but I'll take that cool morning kiss and dream about fall. I haven't posted in a week! We had the sweet grandgirl for three days and had a ball. We returned her Monday afternoon and then I took Tuesday off. I didn't lift a finger. Since then I've been cranking out earrings like my life depends on it. I still need to make cards and if I have time, do some of my altered art watches. I'm working on earrings first because they require more time. First I condition and blend the clay and decide what sort of pattern or look I want, then I roll and cut, and into the oven they go. Once they're baked I do a little sanding to smooth the edges, then they get an acrylic glaze and go into my little UV machine. When they're all pretty and glossy, I drill holes and put them together with jump rings and posts. None of it is hard, but it is a bit time consuming. I am building an inventory though, and that's the goal. My plan for Artisans on the Choptank is to have one display of autumn and Halloween earrings, one display of the local high school colors, and one display of just really FUN earrings - all colors and designs. I've made several pairs in the high school colors, and right now I'm in the thick of the autumn batch.

I'm really digging the gray, gold, and white. I was actually just using up scraps when I made those, but I may make more.

I won't be charging much because I know how imperfect these are. I'm not using high end findings, I'm still a bit clumsy with the whole process, and I'm simply not a perfectionist. If anything has to be exact, I'm not your gal. But for a few bucks, surely the ladies of Caroline County would like some fun earrings. I guess I'll find out. I'm planning to post this sign at my booth.

I may also have a little sign with a "days until Christmas" countdown. It's closer than you think.

So, that's what's keeping me busy. I'm happiest when I'm creating, so it's been a good week. I can't wait to complete the earring plan and get started on the cards. I've roughed out a couple of ideas.

Come on over to my booth and buy a gift for the fancy gal in your life and a card to go with it. One stop shopping! I have the Square thing for my phone so I can swipe a card, I have appropriate displays for my wares, and I'll have this banner on the front of my table.

That's me! I think that since my first foray into the craft fair world is in September, I'll use an orange table cloth and maybe some mini pumpkins with that banner. Keep it simple, but noticeable.

I'm trying not to over invest because this may be a flop. Or I might decide that I hate sitting at a booth all day. That banner was $7, my time is free (seriously, what else am I going to do?), and my supplies are mostly inexpensive. Clay is cheap. I don't want this to become a money pit of a hobby. Hopefully I can sell enough to pay for my spot at the event. Booth space for the day is $50 and it's only four hours! I think that's steep. Maybe I'm naïve.

Aright, enough about that. You've probably fallen asleep while I yammered on about clay earrings. B-O-R-I-N-G. Sorry. Honestly, I can't share a zillion photos of the grandgirl (which is what I want to do) and there's not much else happening around here. The mister is still running far and wide doing his photo stuff. The last two evenings he was at Summerfest. That's Denton's BIG send-off to summer, celebrating harvest as well as sending the kids back to school. They don't start school until after Labor Day here (throwback to my childhood!). Anyway, at Summerfest there's a lot of good music, dancing, food, fireworks, a play area for kids with giant sides and bouncy houses, and so on. I probably should have gone, but I end up attending those sorts of things alone. That's no fun. I figured I'd stay home and use those hours to produce inventory (I was trying to avoid saying earrings again). Last year I tried to enjoy it, but I had horrible sciatica pain and I was still feeling puny from a double bout of covid. I did enjoy the music though!

Heyyyyy, speaking of pain...guess who is living practically pain-free these days? Ol' Grancy has found the perfect recipe for feeling whole again! First, movement. Walking for just 30 minutes every morning and being diligent about my stretches and some core work has made a huge difference. I'd like to get a treadmill and increase my waking time. I used to do 3.5 miles every morning and it set the tone for the rest of my day. That was before my ankle surgery. After the ankle surgery I tried so hard to maintain activity, water aerobics, Jazzercise,etc. I even had a routine before Jazzercise - ibuprofen one hour before class, after class I'd drive home with an ice wrap on my ankle and then elevate it. Stupid, huh? THEN WE MOVED. That move was when I hurt my back and the sciatica stuff started. If you want to know how much true sciatica issues hurt, brawny boxer Mike Tyson uses a wheel chair when his flairs up. So PT, stretches, and walking had reduced my pain by about half. I'm not bragging when I say that I endure pain well. That's just how I'm made. An ER nurse once called me "stoic". But that doesn't mean it's not exhausting. It takes a toll, it robs you of joy. It's no bueno. That's when someone I love and trust told me all about gummies. Let me start by saying I've never smoked pot in my life. I've never had a negative view of it, it just wasn't my thing. I've never been a drinker either, I don't care what anyone else drinks or smokes, it just wasn't for me. Do you, enjoy your life, none of my business. Maryland recently legalized marijuana, like so many other states, and people are becoming more educated about the plant, the products, and the benefits. What I knew could have fit in a teacup. I learned that medical marijuana is often used for chronic pain with great success and no side effects. I cringe at the thought of using prescription meds with a long list of possible and horrifying side effects. I was already living on a steady diet of Tylenol (not good) that only half worked. So when that dear person explained to me what she uses and how, I was intrigued. Fast forward to visiting a dispensary and telling the very helpful person at the counter, "I don't want to get high, but I'm old and I hurt." She said, "Gotcha." Because I am a lightweight with everything from alcohol to cold medicine, I tried one quarter of a gummie to start. One fourth of a CBD/THC gummie and I am a perfectly normal, not high, PAIN-FREE person! I am astounded. I knew that THC is used for people who are suffering with conditions from cancer to Lyme Disease, but I assumed that those patients were trading lucidity for relief. Maybe at higher doses they are, I don't know. Still, better than so many of the alternatives. So this plant, possibly put on Earth just for this purpose, criminalized and stigmatized (with the help of big pharma who wants your money), is the simplest solution of all. Of course, just like alcohol, there are people who abuse it. Alcohol, oxycontin, all sorts of legal things are abused. People are people. I'm just saying that 1/4 of a little gummie candy allows me to move through my day without pain and feel like myself again. No expensive, addictive drug with scary side effects - just a plant. Hallelujah. I may regret sharing that, because plenty of people will judge without researching. I'm okay with it. I know what I know. I'm not a drinker, a smoker, a pill taker, or a whiner. I'll just say that if your state has been smart enough to legalize it, and you have any sort of chronic pain, I'm happy to answer any of your questions about my experience. I'm still learning, but I can tell you that it's been a miracle for me. I'm dancing again! No foggy brain, just relief.

If anyone had told young me that old me would be chewing up pot candy, I'd have called you a damn liar. Old me is wiser, thank goodness. Alright, it's past time for me to get some chores done. I've already cleaned the bathrooms but I definitely need to water a few things outside. A couple of days ago I tidied up the gardens and hacked down about half of the spent sunflowers (because I'm pain free!). I stuck the heads into a staked planter so the yellow finches can keep enjoying them.

Once I finish outside I can get busy painting eyes on these ghosties and giving them some glitter.

Can you tell I don't use my good baking sheets for making earrings? Some eyes, some glitter, and some posts and they'll be ready to go! I'm not going to do very many cutesy earrings - just these ghosts and some pumpkins. I don't want to get too stuck on holidays, I'd rather do seasons. Anywho, wishing you a wonderful Sunday. I hope that yours is as busy or as quiet as you like. Do something that delights you, whether that's a lazy afternoon in a hammock with a book or a deep clean of your space. Take care of yourself, body and soul. It's important. Sending out loads of love. Stay safe, stay well. XOXO, Nancy

[seansilv25]

So finally, after a 3-year run, Marvel What If has come to a close. And even though a lot of people didn't like it, I enjoyed it for what it was (Because apparently me and the majority can never agree on anything JESUS CHRIST-)

But if you've been around my page long enough, you know the drill: here's my brief thoughts on every episode of the season.

8: What If... The Watcher Disappeared? [This one just felt a bit slow, to be honest. They were definitely trying to set up for their big finale (Obviously) but just took probably a bit too much time in it. Though I did like how Infinity Ultron got a pseudo-character arc though. As well as more material for a potential Death Battle with Heaven Ascension DIO

7: What If... Hulk Fought the Mech Avengers? [Y'know, I thought a mecha and Kaiju episode would be more entertaining, but I don't seem to remember the mechs doing all that much. Sam and Bruce's new friendship was nice, but I don't know... if you show Kaiju's and giant robots, we want to see them fight! Did that one line of Godzilla 2014 tell you nothing?

6: What If... What If? [The idea of ending the series on the Watcher facing his actions of intervening felt surprisingly fitting since he's the one character who's been in every single episode. I also liked the ending bit with the Eminence learning about seeing and not observing. Though aside from that... not much else.

5: What If... the Emergence Destroyed Earth? [Holy shit, Cy Yu's in this?! This episode was somewhat similar to the Zombie episode in some regards, what with the world being in ruin and only a few surviving heroes remaining. But what this one does in comparison to the other is leaning even harder into the loss of comrades and the dwindling hope of salvaging a better tomorrow, something that I'm sure characters like Trunks and Silver have to deal with on the reg. And seeing the Watcher coming to grips with this world's futility and intervening to help save it did feel a bit gripping. But seriously, Cy Yu in a Marvel show? For real?

4: What If... 1872? [If any of you couldn't tell, some of my favorites often wound up being the ones heavily based off other comics with different themes. First Marvel Zombies, then 1602, and now 1872 ain't too far off from the top. I just like the different atmosphere's the episodes produce, and this one is dripping in wild western flair. Even if having martial arts be a big focus in a cowboy setting is a bit odd.

3: What If... Howard the Duck Got Hitched [Look... I know a lot of people hate the goofy episodes, bit I kind of liked this one just for how bananas everyone went in order to get that egg, not even mentioning the bizarre suddenness of their Raiders-style deaths at the egg's hand. And even as weird as Darcy and Howard's ship relationship is, with the way they talk to each other, I can actually buy them as a decent couple.

2: What If... the Red Guardian Stopped the Winter Soldier? [Wasn't really expecting this one to be one I really liked, but I was thoroughly surprised. It had kind of a Planes, Trains, & Automobiles vibe to it (Or I guess you could go with a Deadpool & Wolverine vibe), and I really liked how the relationship with Bucky and the Red Guardian played out. Even in the end when they went down, they went down together. It's just neat, I tell ya.

1: What If... Agatha Went to Hollywood? [Remember what I said about the different tones of episodes like 1872? This kind of applies here. I like how much they leaned into the 40's/50's Hollywood style, with that dance-off number in the middle being pretty sick. (Take THAT, dance-off to save the universe!) And even though I haven't watched The Eternals, the way Arishem was portrayed (and bitched out by Agatha) was kinda neat as well.

But with that, What if is done. I said this at the top but I still enjoyed this series, even if it wasn't what most others wanted out of it. It even got me into thinking about what ifs for other series, like Dragon Ball and Sonic (I've got some good ones cooking up for the latter, lemme tell ya). But even if the series is over right now, maybe it'll get picked back up to tell more stories later. After all... time, space, reality... it's more than a linear path.

And to all those who bitch about the goofy-toned episodes, in the words of many Foghorn Leghorn cartoons...

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH SHADDAP!!!

[rodolfoparras]

Gotta keep you on your toes 🕺😈

And I am NOT gonna stay away from your husband! Both of you are fun to harass

Anyways, fun fact did you know bees have a burrowing instinct? Lots of DIY bee homes are just drilled homes into chunks of wood and stuff

So! J, my father 😒 (I hate him so he gets first initial), J put cameras up a few weeks ago and instead of buying extension cords, he drilled holes through the outer walls to run cables into rooms with a plugin.

My room is one of them! First day, there is a WASP in my room. I don't mind much, I like bees, and it was just chilling, didn't bother me, he was just freaked out. J promised to Caulk the holes. Guess what?? He doesn't.

Today, I woke up to my cat jumping off me and a loud buzzing. Thought it was the wasp and didn't want her to get stung. It was actually a HUGE fucking bumble bee! I love bumble bees

But my cat fucked him up and he was struggling to fly. So I had to scoop him up and let him crawl all over my arm (which really freaked me out after the spider incident, was also scared he'd crawl up my sleeve) so I could release him out the backdoor, where he kept bumping his head against the glass before flying away

Probably gonna just calk up the hole myself because I don't want more flying bugs in here 😕 J obviously isn't going to, and I won't be asking him again (we got into a fight and are ignoring each other)

But anyways I guess 🕺🕺🕺

Started watching DOOM Patrol, I love you Larry Trainor, you tragic little gay man

-🐧

I did not know that they had a burrowing instinct! However now that you mention bumble bees they have a set path they follow when polluting followers they also follow this set path when flying home or wherever they stay so when they hit their head they get disoriented and lose the track of the path 😭 or if you think a bumble bee is following you it isn’t you’re just in their way 😭

Also no offense but j sounds ridiculous for drilling holes into walls instead of buying extension cords isn’t that double the work you have to 1. Drill 2. At some point patch that up 💀

Also I’m glad your kitty didn’t get bit by any of them but what a legend for chasing the bumble bee down😭

This is my first time hearing about doom patrol! What is it about 🫶🏻

[starlostastronaut]

━ SPORT DATES WITH SKZ

PAIRING: ot8 x reader

GENRE: fluff, headcanons

CW: f-word in minho's

what sports i think bf!skz would enjoy with you. (also this is me projecting a bit cuz chan's and innie's would be my ideal dates lmao) @stayconnecteed provided ideas for hyunlix so thank you sm! <3

masterlist here

BANG CHAN ↬ swimming

this is a surprise to literally no one

pool/beach dates where you just hang out and relax are a regular thing

but once he learns you love water as much as him, it's on

you always want to race him, boasting about how you're going to beat him

spoiler alert, you don't

sometimes he secretly lets you win (though you know he held back)

your first kiss happened while swimming in the ocean

you were holding onto chris for support, when he just leaned in and kissed you

also, underwater kisses !!

LEE MINHO ↬ archery

you complimented him on his skills on isac

you also expressed the desire to learn on multiple ocassions

one day he just said fuck it and took you to an archery range

at first he just paid you a few lessons, but then started going with you because "i need to practice for the next isac"

actually he just wanted to spend time with you but would never admit it

you no longer need a coach but he still likes to give you tips now and then

SEO CHANGBIN ↬ air hockey

while waiting for a game to be available on your arcade date, you noticed an empty air hockey table

"can we try that, bin? please?"

he can't say no to you, so that's how you found yourself on one side of the table with a mallet in your hand

neither of you knows how to play but it can't be that hard, right?

you both are terrible at it

but it's fun and there's always room for improvement

the real surprise comes when you visit the dorm one day only to find an air hockey table in the middle of the living room

"look yn, now we can play without going to the other side of seoul"

HWANG HYUNJIN ↬ badminton

mentioning you used to play badminton in front of hyunjin was a mistake

he immediately booked a court

and bought you both new matching rackets and skirts

he challenged you to a match

and lost

he began secretly practising with felix so he's ready for a rematch

you play regularly now

hyunjin even tried to convince his members to play with you once (they did under the promise of free dinner)

after that it has become stricly your and hyunjin's private activity

HAN JISUNG ↬ basketball

it started as a joke because you're both short

but you took a liking to basketball surprisingly quickly

you have an ongoing competition of who can score the most shots in a row

or sometimes you just play one on one

jisung has a whiteboard with your scores in his room

whoever is the loser at the end of the month has to pay for date night the winner chooses

you try to meet up and play at least once in two weeks

LEE FELIX ↬volleyball

he decided to play when you were visiting his family in australia

can't believe you never played beach volleyball

has made it his personal mission to teach you at least the basics

which meant an intense volleyball drill for the first five days of your vacation ("what happened to my sunshine?" "volleyball is a serious matter, yn. we can cuddle after you get the overhand serve right")

felix somehow roped chan and his girlfriend into it

so now you had a double date/death match (as the aussie boys called it) scheduled for next week

you and felix lost

at least he bought you ice cream afterwards as a consolation price

a rematch was definitely planned for the next time you were all free

KIM SEUNGMIN ↬ baseball

this one is pretty self-explanatory

for your first date he took you to Lotte game since you're both fans

it has become a tradition to go to games together

you love stealing seungmin's baseball caps

but god forbid he sees you with another team's cap

"i don't care the Yankees one is popular, you are not wearing that while i'm the room with you"

will totally make a scene out of it

also will buy you more Lotte merch because "you can't just go around looking like a traitor"

you and jeongin lowkey make fun of him for it but secretly you love it

YANG JEONGIN ↬ motorcycle racing

say thank you to superboard mv for putting jeongin and racing in my mind

one day he randomly joined you when you were watching MotoGP and got quickly invested

during the season he tries to watch with you every race

when he doesn't have time you record the broadcast and watch it with him later

it has become a date without you both knowing it really (seungmin had to point it out)

jeongin promised to take you for a "real" date to a circuit to watch irl one day

for his birthday you got him his favourite racer's merch

you constantly bicker about your faves and passionately discuss the lineup for every season

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

[laqueus]

^^^^ me reading this

MUCH TO CONSIDER, like I really enjoy the contextualisation of magic as both an export & also a tool here. because a lot of the time magic is just, like. there. this is our local wizard who can shoot fire out of his hands. why? because he's a wizard.

but here it's like YES WE ARE MYSIDIA (formerly known as the powerful mage gang) AND THIS IS OUR EXPORT FOR USE IN YOUR HOME BUY BASUNA NOW FOR ONLY 800 GIL! plus how it's distributed between the towns is very crunchy to me (practical use!)

Post-Mateus, I feel like at first there would be attempts at being strict with who can use magic and for what purposes - all to help rebuilding - like, you can only have magic if you are using it for This One Specific Purpose. the best way I can think of it is like getting having to be forklift certified and then you can only use that forklift to move boxes around the warehouse. you can't take it away and use it to run over goblins in the car park outside.

plus, after mateus had his satan-sponsored rampage over literally everything, i don't that people are gonna be thrilled with magic, esp. strong magic, so in regards to using magic for rebuilding purposes, once your magic level in a certain area gets to level five, you get rotated to a different job, get a new tome and learn a new spell. like, people will tolerate your forklift, but once you put spikes and flamethrowers on the front, people are going to be less pleased about you using it. so now you get to learn how to use a pneumatic drill. or something. sorry this metaphor is a bit strange.

HOWEVER, I think that even thought there are people who are like "NO MAGIC", I think that others will spiral in the opposite direction, like, WE NEED STRONG MAGIC BECAUSE OTHERWISE HOW ARE WE GOING TO SURVIVE IN THE MEANTIME??

but because everything is in ruins and there isn't really enough of a government(? or something) to enforce the restrictions of magic, I think that'd it'd be a case of 'yah, there's a restriction on magic, but everyone just ignores and it's not really enforced'. so you're driving around your level 12 forklift, running goblins over anyway.

once things are a lot, lot more stable, then I think the magic restrictions would actually end up being A Thing. BUT over time I think they'd just end up slipping, and in the end things would kinda end up in a pre-emperor state. like. you can certainly level up fire to 16 or whatever, but like. why. why would you need that. (WAIT FUNNY THOUGHT: FRAIL GRANDMOTHER WHO'S USED THE FIRE SPELL TO COOK ALL HER LIFE AND AS A RESULT IT'S MAX LEVEL. GO ULTIMATE-FIRE GRANDMOTHER)

and like, I think the magic restrictions slipping would also be in mysida's interest, because THAT'S THEIR EXPORT BAYBEEEE. and you know they'd be like "We Must Be Very Careful With Magic Because points at History", but people are people and end up forgetting, or just act like things can't happen again, even when it's spiralling that way.

MUCH TO CONSIDER

also i must admit that i haven't actually played ff2 myself, but instead watched longplays on yt of it, and also long covid has riddled my memory with holes, so if i forget or overlook something, i'm sorry. my brain is just. bad these days.

ON ANOTHER NOTE I think one of the funniest things is that for the longest time (and even maybe now) Firion, just. didn't have a fixed appearance. like for everyone else it varied a little but was generally consistent, but firion? different appearance in every bit of artwork. it'd be completely stupid but also very funny if he was this was in the game as well, like you look away for a second, and when you looks back his entire look has changed. king behaviour. you know what. he has so few traits that i am giving him pmdd now. sorry king.

biting and scratching and crying thinking about deumion, like. LIKE you don't want to kill but your skill means that you're now 1. immortal, 2. alone, 3. forced to kill anyone who reaches you (if you're unlucky.) HE'S LITERALLY SHACKLED TO DEATH ITSELF my man cannot catch a BREAK 💔 on a lighter note, leila is so fun! how did she escape the leviathan? who knows! but what I do know is that I have no choice but to stan. I am gently holding all the ffii characters in my hands. except for borghen.

IT MAKES ME FUCKING CRAZY. hes so young. one of the last things he hears before he leaves to be stuck in isolation for millennia is his mother wailing behind him, desperately crying out his name. hes just a KID THEYRE ALL JUST KIDS ITS NOT FAIR. to be forced (ITS STILL FORCED AND YOU KNOW IT. YOU CANT PUT ALL THAT ON A KID AND EXPECT HIM TO SAY NO) to hold the weight of the future on your shoulders without ever even getting to see it. to be able to do nothing but hope that mankind survives with your sacrifice. everyones futures in exchange for your own and youll never even get to see it.

LIKE. he doesnt know that the shit w mateus was going down!! he has no idea how the outside world is doing! its just him and his ouppy and the arcane labyrinth and eternity. AND THATS THE GOOD ENDING. ETERNITY FOREVERMORE ALONE AND FORGOTTEN BY THE GREATER WORLD. THIS IS NOT A GOOD ENDING DAWG IM CRYING!!!!!!

BUT HIS. HIS DESPERATION AS HE CRAWLS AFTER YOU, DEFEATED BUT UNABLE TO LET GO BECAUSE WHAT WAS IT ALL FOR IF HE FALLS HERE. IF HE RELINQUISHES DESTRUCTION TO A STRANGER HE COULD NEVER KNOW. and even then, all the others he himself had slain to fulfill his role, as someone who loves humanity so deeply that his love is all he is anymore.

HES A KID.

cough. erm.

smiles at u. leila. girlbossing it up in here. TBH even without a ship youd have to imagine shes prepped as a swimmer + leviathan would have no reason to attack her after swallowing down firion and the crystal rod plus the tower is otherwise surrounded by that ring of land. so as unlikely as it would seem, i wouldnt say its outside of the realm of possibility for her to make it to land, esp w leviathan fucking w the currents. the biggest obstacle aside from the open water would be the monsters, but then again, it's not like she doesnt come default w thunder (i have so many thoughts abt magic and mysidia and i would LOVE to hear what someone else thinks abt it if ur ever up for that). so its unlikely, but i cant say its impossible for her to make it out of there... her other obstacle would be making it off the isles Also without a ship but tbh if she swam out of the bay i think she can make it across that channel also. to be quite honest.

ff2 characters 🥰 paul my good friend paul. finally, my chance to live up to my blog title has arrived.

[writer-in-theory]

Girl At Home (Spencer Reid x Reader)

summary: after one of the worst arguments they've ever had, spencer storms out of the apartment. he ends up at a bar where someone reminds him how important reader is to him. series summary: a series of oneshots to celebrate the release of red (taylor's version). 19 songs, 19 fics. pairing: spencer reid x fem!reader category: you know the drill. this is angst but happy ending content warnings: language, discussions of cheating, post-prison spencer word count: 2k a/n: hello!! so we’re getting two updates today and i have a reason for that. one, i had to miss a day for important reasons. two, these two fics ended up being shorter anyway so i figured it would work out to post them in the same day. expect ‘everything has changed’ to be posted tonight.

series masterlist masterlist send me a request!

“I don't even know her but I feel a responsibility to do what's upstanding and right...”

Bars were never Spencer’s favorite place to be. After everything that happened so many years ago, he stopped drinking. Even now the glass he was holding was full of water, so he wasn’t sure why he was there. The building was far too crowded, Spencer never liked the majority of the music that played, and overall there was simply no good reason for Spencer to be standing at the bar.

Except it wasn’t the apartment he shared with you, and that was all that mattered for now.

Spencer was desperate to forget the argument you’d just had; the words clinging to him and pressing into his brain so harshly he’d had a headache ever since he slammed the door shut behind him. You’d told him to go stay the night at Morgan and Savannah’s, but somehow he ended up here. He’d texted Morgan, asking him for advice in this situation but knowing he likely wouldn’t get a response until the morning considering the ungodly hour it was now.

Subconsciously, Spencer knew why he was here.

‘If you don’t love me anymore, then just fucking tell me, Spencer!’

How dare you assume he didn’t love you? After everything you two had been through, everything he’d done to make sure he wouldn’t taint you with the weight of his mind, you actually accused him of not caring?

Spencer could show you not caring.

So when you texted him, he turned off his phone, not wanting any reminder of you tonight. When he found an easy enough target, his feet were walking toward the woman before his brain could think about the weight of what he was doing.

Spencer was buying her a drink, it wasn’t you. He was making small talk, and it still wasn’t you. This was wrong and he felt it in his chest, but still, Spencer wasn’t stopping. He told himself it was because your relationship was at its end anyway. After getting out of prison, the two of you had been fighting more often than usual. He was more distant from you, and you seemed to tip-toe around him most of the time like he’d shatter if you said the wrong thing. Spencer told himself you were preparing to leave him anyway, so why not get a headstart on trying to get over you?

“You don’t seem like the kind of guy who’d be a cheating asshole,” the woman he was talking to finally said. He thought her name was Hannah. She was pretty enough—other men might describe her as absolutely hot—but he couldn’t help but think that she wasn’t you.

“What?” Spencer hadn’t thought he was obvious, but this woman could clearly see right through him. Of course, Spencer wasn’t really planning on cheating on you. As soon as his anger ebbed away, he was horrified that the thought even crossed his mind once. Still, he couldn’t go home, not yet.

“Honey, it’s so obvious how guilty you feel right now,” the woman told him, “Wanna tell me why you’re trying to get me in bed when you have a perfectly good girl waiting for you at home?”

“We had a fight, a bad one,” Spencer admitted, “We both said horrible things to each other. I know I didn’t mean what I said, but I don’t know how I’m supposed to make her forget how badly I hurt her.”

“Well, I can tell you that you don’t do it by hurting her worse.” The woman sighed, shaking her head. “It’s obvious you love this girl.”

“I love her so much.” Spencer was thankful every day he got to wake up beside you. When you’d first run into him, Spencer hadn’t known that you were perfect for him. It had been a slow and gradual build-up until suddenly Spencer couldn’t imagine his life without you. It hurt to know that your relationship was on the ropes, that you’d actually told him to go sleep somewhere else because you couldn’t stand to look at him in that moment.

He deserved it, after the argument. Even now, Spencer couldn’t remember why it had started or what it was about. All he knew was that ever since getting out of prison, nothing felt right. His skin still tingled like he was meant to be watching over his shoulder at all times, his heart still clenched when he saw you because he didn’t want you looking at the kind of man he was now. Spencer felt like a monster, and he couldn’t have someone as good as you lay your eyes on him.

“Then why the hell are you trying to throw it all away? That girl is probably the best thing to happen to you in years, don’t ruin that.”

“I know, I know she is. I think I already ruined it.”

“Nonsense,” Hannah scoffed, and Spencer noticed that while she had issues sleeping with him she had absolutely no qualms about indulging in the drink he’d bought her. “There’s always a chance to make things right after an argument.”

“I told her it was hard to love her.”

“Ouch.”

“I don’t know why I said it. We’ve been through so much lately, and she keeps pressuring me to talk about things I’m not ready for. I just snapped, but it’s not hard to love her. She makes me happy, I never thought I’d end up with someone as amazing as her.”

“Can I give you a word of advice?” Hannah asked, and when Spencer nodded she patted his chest and moved to walk away with, “Don’t tell me all of this. Go home, and tell that lovely girl everything. She’s waiting up at home for you, I promise.”

“How do I tell her what happened tonight?”

“Nothing happened. Believe me, with as much guilt as there was plastered all over your face, every girl in this bar knew what was happening. You weren’t going to cheat tonight, you were just looking for an easy way to push her away.”

"How do you know?" It was starting to feel like this woman was a mythical creature with how well she seemed to understand the situation.

"I've been that girl at home before. She's waiting for you, I promise."

It would be the toughest thing he did since getting out of prison, going home and trying to apologize for everything. Spencer would do it though because there was absolutely no way he could lose you. Hannah had been right: you were the best thing that had ever happened to him, there was no way he could let this go.

So he went home despite you telling him to stay away. Sure enough, when he stepped through the door of your shared apartment, you were sitting on the couch. You were wrapped up in a blanket, dried tear tracks still visible on your cheeks. You’d drifted off to sleep recently, but one gentle brush of his hand on your cheek was enough to stir you back awake. Spencer smiled as you yawned, taking in the adorable way you stretched, curling your toes and shaking out your arms a little.

“Hey,” you said softly, and Spencer would hate himself for the pure insecurity lit up in your gaze.

“I’m sorry,” Spencer told you, kneeling down so he was in on the ground in front of where you sat. He took your hands in his, pressing a gentle kiss to each one before he continued. “I am so sorry. There is not one day that I’m not thankful I get to love you. Without you, I don’t know how I would have gotten through any of this. You’re not hard to love, Y/N. It’s the opposite actually, and I’ll spend forever trying to make it up to you just please don’t give up on me.”

You smiled and shook your head, leaning forward to kiss Spencer gently. “I wasn’t planning on it, Spence. You can’t get rid of me that easily.”

“I don’t deserve you.”

“Stop that,” you scolded, shaking your head and taking his in your gentle palms. “That’s what got us here in the first place. If you didn’t deserve me, then you wouldn’t have me. Spencer, you make me happy too. I feel so lucky that I get to be with you. So just accept that we deserve each other, okay?”

“I’ll try,” Spencer admitted, knowing it would be a long road to being in that place again. He’d finally begun to think well of himself before prison, but he knew he could do it. Eventually, he’d get there again.

“Come here,” you told him, patting the spot next to you. Spencer listened immediately, happy to sit and entangle himself with you. There was nothing more comforting than wrapping his arms around you, knowing you were there and you were safe.

After a few minutes of simply holding each other, you surprised him again by saying, “By the way, next time you want to sneak off to a bar, turn your phone off before you get there.”

Spencer sat up immediately, fear flooding through his body. “I’m so sorry, Y/N. I promise I didn’t do anything.”

“I know you didn’t,” you answered immediately, calming any of his lingering fears that you were leaving tonight. “Spencer, you’re not that kind of person. I knew you’d figure it out.”

“Thank you for believing in me.”

“Well one of us had to, you dork,” you teased, ruffling his hair a little, “and I’m just saying if you ever did want to, turn your phone off because you’re still sharing your location with me.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

And with you by his side, Spencer was sure anything was possible.

SERIES TAGLIST

@samuel-de-champagne-problems @reidsbookclub @givemeth @fightingdragonswithreid @girloncorneliastreet @eurydice-but-gay @silverhetdanes @just-a-human-witha-pen @shemarmooresfedora @rexorangecouny @alexlovescriminalminds

[helloalycia]

overstepping [one] // jane banner (Wind River)

summary: after getting several voicemails from your colleague and best friend with her asking for your backup, you attempt to call her back, only to get no answer.

warning/s: mentions of rape, murder and injuries.

author’s note: this is a two parter because i finally watched Wind River and it broke my heart but also lizzie was v cute and i felt the need to write this, hope you like it x

part two | masterlist | wattpad

"C'mon, work you stupid phone," I complained for the millionth time, before standing on the chair to get a better signal.

When I saw the bars in the corner of the screen increase, a grin appeared on my lips. I loved my parents, but the fact that they lived in a remote cabin in Tennessee with zero signal was not my favourite thing.

When the bars remained, my phone decided to actually be helpful and receive all the messages, calls and voicemails I missed. I did a brief flick through, noticing nothing was too important that couldn't wait for me to return to work. As an FBI agent, I rarely got time off. And now that I had taken a two month vacation to spend with my parents, I was adamant on enjoying it, even if I was missing work a smidge.

Next were the calls, which I noticed were mostly from my colleague and close friend, Jane Banner. I furrowed my brows, realising she'd left me several voicemails, too, which was strange since she knew I was on a break from work. What could be so important?

I sighed, glancing down at my uncomfortable position standing on the chair and leaning above the wardrobe. It was the only place in the house with decent signal and the only other place that wasn’t in the middle of nowhere was twenty minutes out. Telling myself I'd just listen to one voicemail to make sure everything was okay, I played the earliest message.

"Hey, Y/N. I'm sorry, I know you're on a break, but I just had to talk to you," it began, and Jane sounded troubled. "I was in Vegas, as you know, but I've been called out to a reservation in Wyoming where this poor girl was–" She paused, releasing a shaky breath. "She was raped and left to die out in the cold. I thought I could send in another team to take a look – y'know, usual protocol. But the coroner won't rule it a homicide and you know what that means."

I swallowed hard, knowing exactly what that meant. If it wasn't ruled a homicide, no backup would come and we had to move onto the next case. But if this girl was raped and left to die, the rapist was still out there and wasn't getting caught by the FBI.

"I can't just leave it and go," Jane continued quietly, with that recognisable passion for her job evident in her voice. "I have to do what I can. But I... I can't do this alone. It's not like other cases, Y/N. It's different out here. And there's only so much their police department can do. I know you're on a break, but I was hoping that, maybe, you could come out here and help me? It's the Wind River Indian Reservation. That's it, I guess. Bye."

The message ended and I found myself chewing on my lower lip anxiously, unable to think about anything other than Jane now. She'd worried me with that one voicemail alone – I couldn't imagine what the others said.

She was usually so good at dealing with cases, but this seemed different. She sounded shaken up, attempting to put on a brave face by the sounds of it. What was so different about this case? She didn't need me. She was capable.

Curiosity got the better of me and I played the second message, ignoring the discomfort in my arms as I stretched to maintain the signal. It was left a day after the first one.

"Hey, so I just remembered that you said you don't get much signal up there with your parents," she began apologetically. "I don't mean to– shit, it's so cold..." There was a pause, a noise in the background, then she continued, "Sorry, just turning up the heating. Anyway, I was saying. I don't mean to intrude on your break. I just– I'm hoping you'll find signal and hear this because I could really use your help. I think we've got a lead on who may have done it. It was hectic today. Really could've used that backup."

She chuckled dryly at her attempt at a joke, but all I felt was guilt. She sounded exhausted within a day of being there.

"I hope you get this," she finished with a sigh. "I should go. Got a busy day tomorrow. Hope you're doing okay. Bye."

I wasted no time in playing the next message. Three days into her case.

"I don't know why I keep sending these," she began with a hoarse voice, and my heart clenched at the sound of it. "You clearly aren't getting them in time. But it's easier talking to you like this than not at all."

It went quiet, so quiet that I thought she may have finished and forgot to hang up. But then she spoke up again, a whimper escaping her lips.

"It's so hard," she admitted. "We've covered worse cases, but this one... everything about it makes me uncomfortable. Something doesn't feel right. I've got a lead – we think it might be the boyfriend who did it and we're gonna see him tomorrow. But I don't know."

I frowned, squeezing my phone tightly because I didn't recognise the girl speaking as my friend. This girl sounded broken and I wondered what she could have discovered that made her like this.

"I've got the police department with me for backup," she said with a sniffle. "And Cory, he's a hunter whose been helping me with the case. They're all gonna be with me tomorrow. But I wish you were here, too. You always make things easier."

The lump in my throat wouldn't disappear no matter how many times I swallowed it. She made things easier, too. Always. And all I wanted to was be by her side and be there for her like she always was for me.

"Sorry about this," she said with a watery laugh, and I could imagine the embarrassed smile on her face as she did. "I sound like such an idiot. Never mind these messages. Just enjoy your break. I shouldn't be worrying you like this. See you when you get back."

The message ended and I checked to see if there were anymore, but to my disappointment, there wasn't. That message was from a few days ago and she hadn't sent anything since which was concerning in itself.

Trying not to panic for no reason, I called Jane. Hopefully everything was okay and I was being stupid. She was a fully-trained FBI agent. She could take care of herself. Right?

The call rang and rang, but nobody picked up. One missed call. No biggie. She probably heard it and couldn't find her phone or something. So, I tried again.

More ringing and no answer. Okay, no big deal. Just try again.

Another call and no answer. The chewing on my lip became more intense. Why the hell wasn't she picking up? Was she still working the case?

I waited an hour, trying again at ten minute intervals, unable to fight my concern. But there was no answer every time and I realised that I couldn't sit and wait for her to call back. Not after how she sounded in those voicemails.

No, I had to go there. She needed backup.

—

Wyoming was way colder than I could have prepared for.

I mean, technically, I prepared for nothing. I bid my parents a goodbye, threw some random clothes in a bag and caught the next plane over there. I tried for Jane's phone constantly, knowing she was never one to ignore me for this long, but there was no point. She wasn't answering, which could only mean so much.

When I reached the reservation, I had no idea where anything was or what I was looking for exactly. I just knew that as soon as the taxi dropped me off in the centre of town, I didn't know where to go.

There were a lot of locals hanging around, so my first port of call was to ask them if they'd seen Jane around – or Agent Banner, as she may have introduced herself. I showed them a picture of her on my phone, described her with vivid detail, but they just stared at me like I was crazy. I was starting to believe I was at one point, until I stopped by the convenience store.

As worried as I was for Jane's whereabouts, the chill in my bones was real. Especially my hands, which I was certain would fall off any minute. So, I decided to buy some gloves and also ask the cashier if he'd seen Jane around or heard anything of her. Whilst I was doing that, a customer caught my attention, probably having overheard my conversation.

"Did you say Jane Banner?" he asked with a quirked brow, interrupting my purchase. "The FBI lady, right?"

I nodded quickly, facing him. "Yes, that's her! D'you know where she is?"

He nodded casually. "Yeah, she's in the hospital. That big shootout that happened a few days ago, right?"

My stomach dropped. "The what?"

"The shootout," he repeated, not aware of the concern in my face. "At the drill site. A bunch of officers were killed and the FBI lady was one of the only one left standing." He tutted as he shook his head. "Very lucky that one."

A shootout? The hospital? Only one left standing? No wonder she hadn't been answering her calls.

"Can you– do you–" I stopped, clearing my throat and trying to stop freaking out. "Which hospital?"

After getting the address from him, I caught a taxi to the only hospital in town and prayed to God that Jane was okay. The one thing she'd asked for was backup and I couldn't even give her that. If I'd just looked at my messages sooner... fuck.

Getting past the front desk and to Jane's room was no issue at all. A quick flash of my FBI badge was enough for the receptionist to give me the details and wave me through. My heart was constricting in my chest the longer it took. What if it was really bad? What if that customer's intel was outdated and Jane was– no. I couldn't afford to think like that.

Upon finding Jane's room, I spotted an older man leaving through the door, being careful to close it behind him. I didn't recognise him at all.

"Excuse me," I called, earning his attention. "Is that Jane Banner's room you just came from?"

He seemed surprised, glancing over his shoulder to make sure I was speaking to him, before nodding. "Yes. Sorry, who are you?"

I pulled my badge from my pocket and showed him, though I doubted anyone would take me seriously when my eyes were watering at thought of Jane being severely injured.

"I'm her friend," I said, swallowing down the lump in my throat before lowering my badge.

"Oh, you're the backup that didn't come," he said with realisation.

My eyes flickered to the floor guiltily. He wasn't exactly wrong.

"I didn't mean it like that," he added quickly. "Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."

I shook my head, lifting my eyes to meet his. "It's okay. I should've... I should've been here." It went quiet as he didn't know what to say, so I looked to him halfheartedly. "I assume you're from the police department, one of the ones who helped Jane."

"Not exactly," he said, before putting out his hand for me to shake. "Name's Cory. I'm a hunter by trade."

Returning his handshake, I recalled Jane's voicemail. "Oh, yeah, she mentioned you... thank you for helping her out."

When I couldn’t, I added in my head.

He offered me a small smile and I couldn't find it in myself to return it. I must have looked like shit, since he gave me a pitiful gaze.

"You want me to catch you up before you go in?" he asked, nodding to Jane's door. "She's okay by the way."

I nodded, sucking up a breath. My nerves were eating away at me the longer I didn't see Jane – half of me was terrified of what I'd find, and the other half was afraid she'd be upset or angry because I left her to it, even when she pleaded for my help.

Cory and I took a seat down the hall and he proceeded to explain about the case and how they found the guy who raped that poor girl. The shootout was the worst bit, making me shiver with discomfort. Apparently, Jane had gotten blasted with a shotgun, puncturing her torso and neck despite the vest she wore. All of the officers with her were killed and by the sounds of it, Jane almost was, too. But Cory managed to take out the criminals and the rapist himself. When he was finished telling me, I had no words.

"She's a bit shaken up, but her surgery went well," Cory reassured with a short nod. "Does she know you're coming?"

I shook my head, voice thick with emotion. "She wouldn't answer her phone. I guess I know why now."

Cory nodded, rubbing the back of his neck before sparing me a consoling glance. "She talked about you a lot. I think it'll cheer her up seeing you. You should go."

My eyes met his, teary and stinging with unshed tears. "Thank you so much."

He shrugged bashfully, but he didn't realise all that he'd done. I gave him a small, tight smile before standing up with a sigh. No point dwelling anymore – I had to see her.

Pushing my selfish feelings aside, I sucked it up and approached Jane's room. She would either want to punch me or not, but either way, I had to see if she was okay. And so, when I opened the door slightly, heart racing in my chest, said heart jumped in my throat at the sight of her.

She was laying on the bed with wires stuck in her and, only from what I could see, bandages were covering the side of her neck. I thought she was sleeping at first, but then her head tilted towards the door curiously, and bright blue eyes widened with disbelief.

"Y/N?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. "What are you– how did you get here?"

I closed the door behind me and hesitantly approached her bedside, unable to stop my eyes from soaking in the sight of her. She looked so feeble and vulnerable and unlike how I saw her last. Then, Cory's words came back to me and I began to imagine the worst scenario of her getting shot, blood seeping from her wounds, the life draining from her eyes...

"Y/N," she called, and I looked to her startlingly, hoping I didn't look as troubled as I felt.

"Sorry," I said, clearing my throat. "I, er– the messages. Voicemail. I heard them and tried calling you back, but..."

She pursed her lips, exhaling with a wince and looking up at the ceiling, as if suddenly remembering she left messages in the first place.

"I'm sorry I didn't come sooner," I said quietly, guilt seeping back in.

"No, no, don't be," she said, and I just about noticed the pink dusting her cheeks. "It's not your fault. I shouldn't have interrupted your vacation like that. I know you said you wanted a break and–"

"Jane, no, don't even say that," I cut her off, reaching for her hand in an instant. She looked my way, eyes flickering between mine nervously. I squeezed her hand gently and said, "I should have been here. You needed me and I– I didn't come. Maybe if I had, this could have ended differently."

She tried to smile, but I could see the discomfort in her eyes. "It's not that bad, honestly. It just looks bad."

I pressed my lips together, eyes falling to the bandage on her neck. Even though it was big and covered her wound, I could still make out the bruising around it from the impact of the shell. I didn't imagine the torso wound looking any different, and that thought alone made me regret leaving her alone. It was very much as bad as it looked; I knew that and she knew that.

Her lips trembled as she avoided my eyes, her own tearing up. I pushed away my guilt momentarily and changed the subject.

"So, I met Cory. He seems like a great guy."

She didn't say anything as she seemed lost in thought. Either that or she was trying not to cry in front of me. I hoped it wasn't the latter, since the last thing I wanted was to make her feel uncomfortable.

"You know," I said, when she wouldn't speak, "I'm pretty sure I told you to stay safe before I left for my vacation."

At my poor attempt to lighten the mood, she cracked a small, tight smile, but a smile nonetheless, and my racing heart slowed down momentarily.

"I'm glad you're okay," I said, now that I had her attention again, and she looked my way with a softened expression. "Kind of okay. But you know... okay."

Thankfully, she knew what I meant and her hand tightened around mine.

"I'm glad you came," she returned, and I couldn't look away even if I tried. She was always able to trap me with a single gaze.

With a tug of her hand, she motioned for me to sit on the edge of her bed, so I did. And then she began to ask me about my vacation, what I'd been up to this past month, how my parents were... basically anything and everything except for the case. And it was understandable, since she was reminded of it all the time. If I could be a form of escapism for her, so be it. It was the least I could do.

We spoke for hours until the nurse came in to let me know visiting hours were over and I'd have to come back tomorrow. With a regretful sigh, I got up from my seat on her bedside and stretched my limbs.

"Where are you staying?" she asked, a slight frown on her lips.

I smiled awkwardly, realising I didn't think that far ahead. "I'm not gonna lie, I don't know. I came straight here. There's gotta be a hotel or something in this town, right?"

She nodded and flicked her hand to the shelves on the other side of the room. "You should stay in my room in the inn. Key's in my bag over there."

"Oh, I don't have to do that–"

"Y/N, it's not like I'm going to be staying there anytime soon," she cut me off, smiling halfheartedly. "Please."

I chewed on my lip and nodded, giving in. When I grabbed her keys from her bag, I stopped by her bedside and gave her a supportive smile.

"I'll back first thing in the morning, if you don't mind," I said, and she finally gave me a smile that reached her eyes.

"I'd like that."

I nodded, resting a hand on hers and squeezing comfortingly. "Goodnight."

—

Though I knew Jane was okay, I still couldn't stop myself from thinking about her all night. The sight of her wounds and the broken expression on her face was enough to keep me awake. And the guilt that came with it all... why couldn't I have just picked up my damn phone?

As promised, I returned to Jane's hospital room the next morning, this time bringing some breakfast snacks from the hospital cafeteria since I knew the food would be much better than whatever they were serving her. Judging by the content expression on her face when I gave it to her, I was right.

When she finished eating, she was able to sit up slightly and move over on her bed, urging for me to join her and watch some TV with her. There was no way I was going to turn down that offer, so I slid next to her and kept a packet of sliced apples between us as we watched whatever was playing on the TV.

About halfway through watching, she spoke up randomly, taking me by surprise.

"When are you leaving?"

I tore my gaze from the screen and realised she was staring at me with intense green eyes.

"When you're well enough to," I answered truthfully.

She looked down to her hands. "You don't have to stay with me. You can go."

I studied her profile, knowing it was the wrong time to appreciate how stunning she looked even when she was makeup-free, sporting a bed head and tired.

"Do you want me to go?" I asked softly, afraid I may have overstepped.

She was quick to shake her head slightly, finally lifting her gaze to meet mine with glossy ones. "No."

I nodded, trying very hard not to smile, cleared my throat and grabbed her hand. "Then I'm not leaving. I'll be right here until you get better and I can take you home."

A ragged breath escaped her lips as she nodded in response. We both looked back to the TV and I noticed she didn't let go of my hand, her fingers warm to the touch and giving me goosebumps at the contact. But I wouldn't have had it any other way.

[sylvia-forest]

[CN] S2 Main story Chapter 22 - Shaw and MC (Last Part)

⚡This post contains detailed spoilers for a content which is not released in EN!⚡

⚡Previous part: here

—

[Surprises]

—

The rubble flies in all directions. The scent of something burning spreads through the air, and chokingly thick smoke swallows my vision.

I covered my nose and mouth and squinted my eyes and looked forward. In front of Shaw, a hole that just happened to be able to pass by one person opened wide, and the lights of the corridor came in from the gap.

MC: It's a success!

I hurriedly ran to Shaw's side and happened to meet his smiling eyes.

?.?: What's that sound! !

At the end of the corridor, there was a sudden scream, and then there was a faint sound of messy footsteps.

My heart tightened instantly, and I turned my head to see Shaw walking quickly to the white cloth covering the desk, ripping off two pieces neatly, and throwing one of them to me.

—

Shaw: Cover your face with this.

I subconsciously understood what he meant, and quickly folded the white cloth into a triangle and tied it behind my head.

MC: This method of masking yourself is a little too primitive, isn’t it?

Shaw: It's kind of, but easy to use.

He quickly covered his face, strode to my side, and grabbed my hand.

Shaw: Let's go.

I followed him through the hole one after the other, maybe because of the damage to the monitoring system, the corridor was temporarily empty.

Only the messy footsteps kept ringing nearby, and I followed Shaw running quickly, and suddenly my heart jumped.

MC: We just ran away, will NW find out that we did the damage to their archive room?

—

Shaw: Yes, but are you going back to explain to them?

MC: …….

Shaw: Okay, save your effort and run!

I closed my mouth, and the pace under my feet accelerated a bit.

—

—

Shaw seemed to be very familiar with NW's route and patrol arrangements. He took me from the back door of the cleaning room to a remote and narrow alley.

Drilling out of the damaged fence on the side of the alley, I found that we had reached the open space outside NW.

It seems that from the first day he came here, he has already thought of a way out.

MC: You are so well prepared, you wouldn't have also hidden the skateboard nearby in advance, right?

As if he heard something incredible, Shaw raised his eyes and looked at me, his eyebrows raised high.

—

Shaw: You want to use the skateboard so much for traveling, okay, I will take you next time.

Without waiting for me to complain, he recovered his usual indifferent appearance, took out a small metal ball from his pocket and put it on the ground.

Then, without knowing what button was pressed, the ball suddenly bloomed like a flower, and a silver light and shadow shot out of thin air from the center.

Shaw: Let's go, let me show you the insights of high-tech this time.

MC: ?

—

—

Before I could react, I was pulled into the light and shadow by Shaw, and when I looked up again, there was already a lively street scene in front of me.

There were many shops on both sides of the street, and the streets were bustling with crowds. It seems that they haven't noticed us.

?.?: Hello, do you want to buy a hat?

I followed the voice and found that we were standing next to a hat stall.

MC: Shaw, here is……

Before I could finish speaking, Shaw suddenly grabbed my arm. He picked up a hat from the stall and quickly put it on my head.

Following the familiar strength, I fell into a mint embrace. The back of my hand was cold and moist, and I looked up and found that it was actually raining.

—

MC: Shaw?

Shaw: Be quiet.

Shaw: There are still people following us.

MC: Are they from NW?

Shaw: There's a possibility.

The raindrops in the air stuck to the fragrance of the soil and penetrated straight into the tip of my nose, mixed with the mint smell from Shaw's body, and my cheeks gradually became a little hot.

He put one arm around my back, and he placed his other hand on my head and began to rub it gently.

MC: You…..

Shaw: I said don't move.

Shaw: Cooperate a little bit.

MC: Then you have to tell me, what's the situation now?

Shaw: You really are ....

Shaw: The orb just now was a transmission device I bought on the black market.

Shaw: Some Evolvers with the ability to convey information can store their Evol in a special box, and allow them to be transacted in the black market.

Shaw: The disadvantage is that it can only be used at the point of departure.

MC: You mean, this "portal" is still at the door of NW?

I looked at him in shock, but he held my head again.

Shaw: ….Hey, can you stay quiet for a while.

The strength of his hand cannot be rejected, but his tone is a little strange and uncomfortable.

Shaw: Fortunately, this one I bought is cheap and can only be used twice.

MC: Then why didn't you use this ball in the archive room just now?

Shaw: Do you think NW is dumb? The entire NW has signal devices for detecting and suppressing foreign instruments from the inside to the outside.

I nodded thoughtfully, vaguely feeling that the force behind me loosened a little.

In the next second, the surrounding temperature suddenly retreated, and Shaw let go of me.

Shaw: They are gone.

I looked around my surroundings, but I didn't see any suspicious people, so I looked at Shaw.

He turned his head unnaturally, with a blush still remaining on his cheeks, took out a few coins from his pocket and put them on the stall table.

—

Shaw: I want this hat.

Shaw: Can you go by yourself?

I nodded, and then shook my head inexplicably.

MC: Where are you going?

Shaw: I also disguise myself in NW, so their target is me.

Shaw: It is not suitable for team action.

Shaw: Temporarily ”break up".

He spoke casually, as if what we were facing was just an ordinary game.

But there were some subtle emotions in my heart, and I subconsciously spoke my inner guess.

MC: Did you deliberately let NW turn the target into you?

He turned around and waved his hand back to me.

Shaw: In fact, it’s good if you don’t react fast enough. Sometimes it’s not a good thing to be too smart.

Shaw: They are still nearby, you helped me this time, and I will pay you back next time.

MC: You wait…..!

I hurried after him, but was blocked by the flow of people. When I raised my head again, Shaw was nowhere to be seen.

The feelings of loss fainted in my heart, I couldn't help but sigh…

After staying in place for two seconds, I lowered the hat on my head and walked away quickly.

In a secluded alley, Shaw knocked on the inconspicuous small door in front of him.

The wooden door opened, and Shaw walked in and put a piece of information on a table.

—

Shaw: Old man, what you said is interesting.

He paused, and the eyes of the person sitting in the shadow of the corner were determined and calm.

Shaw: But if the world is really recorded repeatedly, then there are many things that make sense.

—

⊹ ♡ End of Chapter 22 ♡ ⊹

—

⚡Phone call: in progress