#I haven't been able to draw properly in a bit

[niechys]

My hand slipped on this

I use @keferon 's design for obvious reason.

At the end of the day. I like doing manga : P

I swap the dialogue a tiny bit just to get the impact, I guess....

out take under cut

At first I was gonna do the "oh no he's hot" thing. But as I draw I think it's more funny if Aid just say it out loud.

I also still love it that he punch Vortex XDDD

[lucky-draws]

a few of the latest pages from my sketchbook .... 🌿

[applecrispy]

Oct. 2 ; Begging

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Male! Reader x Finnick Odair (The Hunger Games)

HEADS UP!

Second Kinktober prompt, set! Enjoy this drabble

Ended up being a bit sweeter and not too 'begging' as the prompt said, but hey! There's always another chance to re-write this after kinktober!

Also, ignore the fact I haven't posted day one yet ajdhkcjks I'll probably post it later since I'm a tad stuck on it.

And how out of practice I am in writing- but I swear, all my thirsts will (hopefully) get better overtime!

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Finnick moans, his hands claw at the kitchen counter top as his boyfriend pounds into him from behind. He aches a bit, but god it's amazing and worth it all.

He had teased (Y/n) earlier today, he was in the mood, and seems like (Y/n) was as well after having Finnick drop to his knees and suck him off from under their dinning table. He wouldn't admit it straight up, but Finnick has been itching for his lover's touch since a few days ago when (Y/n) had returned from his trip to District 13 to check in. The kiss they shared at the station, Finnick liked it a bit too much, maybe he missed (Y/n)'s lips against his, the gentle touch on his sides, how he didn’t push him-

"(Y/n)- baby, fuck!" Finnick chokes out, another moan leaving him.

His chest felt cold from being pressed against their marble counter, but (Y/n) simply continued to piston into him. A hand gently holding his thigh up to the side, granting him a new angle, and Finnick felt his legs shake, and at some point he's pinned to the counter. He can barely keep himself up on the floor, and (Y/n) seems to notice because Finnick yelps briefly as he's flipped over and he's now with his back to the counter, staring up at (Y/n) as he hikes his legs up. Now presented with a canvas, Finnick reaches up and wraps his arms around his boyfriend's back, moaning as he tries to bite the noises back by biting his bottom lip.

His hair is disheveled, messy, and not in the usual styled and seductive manner that his ex-stylists used to fix it into, but rather into something raw and honest. His fingers draw down (Y/n)'s back as he shudders and soon sputters on a noise and breath.

"Another- inside, please-" Finnick begs quietly, he doesn’t care how he aches faintly from the past three orgasms he's already had which have stolen all the air from him, he needs another load inside of him. One more.

(Y/n) smiles slightly, both love and pure unadulterated adoration, and he leans down to groan into Finnick's ear "You want another inside? And here I was thinking of pulling out and finishing all over your thighs instead... why so desperate?" He teases, and Finnick scoffs as much as he can before he breaks into a choppy whimper mixed with a moan "I- Oh right there... There! Nail right there!" He can't help but purr out, and when (Y/n)'s thrusts slow and intentionally miss, Finnick is digging his face involuntarily into (Y/n)'s neck "Please- please please... So good, please, inside. Another, right... right tHE-" his words are cut off and hit a high as he throws his head back, and if it weren't for the gentle hand on the back fo his head that stops the movement by catching his head and curling a hand into his hair, Finnick would've slammed his head open. But he's too lost to properly adore the action, instead he only lets out a heavy, and noisey high pitched moan.

(Y/n) had shifted his thrusts, and was now thoroughly fucking into him, right into his prostate as he had asked, and the tease just chuckles breathily.

"There?"

"Yes... Yes! Please inside, inside." His last few words mold into messy shapes and noises, still coherent in a sense, but debaunched with his ecstasy. He lets out another softer whimper, and Finnick swears this man is the only one who has been able to reduce him to these honest words, begs, and noises. He's a mess, but shit it's so nice.

It doesn't take too much longer, and (Y/n) gives a small tug to Finnick's hair, reeling his mind back to quickly ask for honest confirmation "Inside?" And Finnick can't help how he begs.

"YES! Inside, inside, please- please (Y/n), need it. Please, need to feel it, feel you-" and Finnick is cut off with a yelp and moan as his hips are grabbed and he's pulled down to be plush against (Y/n)'s hips. He shudders as a weak orgasm leaves him, untouched, oversensitive, and the feeling of being filled and pumped with a orgasm once more in him, Finnick lets the fingers he hadn’t noticed that dug down (Y/n)'s back fall lax.

He lets his expression drop, content as he bathes in the after glow, breathing in heavily as he lets out weak little noises. He gently holds onto (Y/n) as his partner seems just as breathless as he is, pulling back to smile down at him as Finnick feels his heart briefly flutter at how he looks at him.

"Seems like you've missed me." And Finnick groans in complaint and jokingly tries to shove (Y/n) away with a little tired grin on his own face "Oh piss off!" He scoffs out a playful laugh despite how breathless it sounds, quickly diving in to kiss (Y/n) once more in something sweeter.

Yeah, he had missed him.

[hai7ani]

divorced parents au / with your faves

When your daughter turned two, you and your husband had brought her to Disneyland as her birthday gift. Growing up, Umi was always fond of the 12 Disney Princesses ー more specifically Princess Belle ー and she keeps a photograph of her and Belle at a meet and greet on her nightstand. Her father's half-expected her favourite to be Ariel, given that Ariel and Umi do go pretty well together. (Ariel and the sea.)

In Disneyland that summer your baby has had the time of her life, so she starts asking for it every birthday (which slowly turned into every milestone) and up until then you both have had no issues with bringing her there. He'd told you once that if going there makes her happy then he was willing to visit again, no matter the amount of times and the slight boringness he'd have to face when waiting in line to go on rides or booths.

Today she had learned how to properly draw a flying bird in art class after failing a few times and drew flying chickens instead. When you picked her up from school, the first thing she said after showing you her art proudly was, 'Let's go to Disneyland, Mama! Let's go with Daddy!'

You would bring her if you could. You know you would in a heartbeat.

But it has been two years since her last visit to Disneyland, and you and your husband aren't together anymore.

So when he comes over for dinner tonight ー just like he has been every Friday without miss ever since your divorce ー you show him Umi's drawing of the flying bird.

"Can I bring this back with me? I'd like to frame it up." He asks. In his head he plans to hang it on the wall of his living room, right on top of his television, next to your family portrait.

You eat a piece of the orange he'd peeled. "Of course."

/

At noon when your daughter asked, you told her no. So at night she is tugging on her father's shirt with a red face full of tears and she is begging for him to stay.

"Stay here, daddy. Don't go." She cries to him at the foyer. Only one side of his shoe is put on and he kicks it away quick when she attempts to climb into his arms.

"You'll see me again on Sunday, Mimi." He attempts to console her. "We're gonna go to the mall together 'n we'll find the toy you've been wanting."

Her father scoops her into his arms and sits on the floor. She kicks her feet in the air and wails.

"But I want to go to Disneyland with you and Mama." She sobs into his arms. He pecks her crown and shushes her a little.

When your chest gets too heavy you push yourself off the wall you've been leaning against and turn your back to them.

(You've been watching the duo since the moment her father was putting on his shoe, ready to leave, and your daughter came running after him in her pyjamas with wet tears already streaming down her cheeks.)

And Umi continues to cry while her father rocks her in his arms, trying his best to console her.

While walking away from the scene, you pick on the skin around your thumb. Your nose sours and you try pinching it in hopes of soothing it a little.

"Why d'ya wanna go to Disneyland?" You hear him ask before you disappear into the hallway. It's funny how he still asks even though you and him both know that going or not going to Disneyland was never the problem.

Umi sniffles. Her father hums for her to say it.

You hide behind the door of your bedroom.

"I want Mama, Daddy and Umi together again."

Just the three of us together in Umi's favourite place.

You cry.

/

"She's asleep now."

You pause from folding laundry at the couch and look up. He's got both hands in his pockets and a soft smile planted on his face.

He's also a mess, you notice ー his shirt a little stretched and out of place from how hard your daughter had been tugging on it earlier, the fabric wet from tear and snot stains, his hair a bit disheveled (you figure he was resting beside her when putting her to sleep), and he's moving to sit beside you on the couch now.

You smile back. "Thank you. I haven't been able to calm her down easily these days."

He picks up one of the garments from the pile and starts folding it beside you. "It's fine. You know I like doing it." I like being a dad, is what he wishes to say. But he knows you know it already and he holds his tongue.

Neither of you say a thing to each other after that and he continues helping you with the laundry. He folds your bra the way you prefer and your daughter's school uniform neatly so that it doesn't crease.

You steal a few glances at him without shame while stacking his sweatpants onto his pile of clothes.

"Your hair's getting long." You comment.

"Is it?" He raises his brows, genuinely wanting to know.

"Yeah." You reach a hand up to comb through his soft strands of hair. You push them back and try parting it on the middle.

"I've been busy." He's got a boxy, kind of nervous smile on his face when he explains. "Can't really see well through the mirror anyway." He rubs his nape.

You chuckle. "Want me to cut it for you?"

"Okay."

/

You still keep a room for your ex-husband even after the end of your marriage and he's given you the house.

You like telling yourselves it's solely for the sake of your daughter, for when she misses her father a little too much and refuses to let him leave.

But both of you know that's not really the case.

Somehow it didn't feel right when he was in the process of moving out to his new apartment somewhere in Meguro, and you slowly realise that you'd be having an empty room all to yourself.

(Back then you didn't think you could cope with living alone in the house you used to love each other in ー in the house you'd both created a life in.

You still don't now. Not really, anyway.)

So you transform the room that used to be his study into his own bedroom just right across the master (yours). He didn't reject the idea when you told him so.

And because of this, you leave your bedroom door open whenever he stays the night.

Tonight you do it again, and you watch him across the hall, in his room, drying off his freshly cut hair. Your head is resting on the edge of the bed with one hand tucked under your cheek and the other playing with a plush toy he'd gifted you many years ago.

When he turns to hang his towel on the wall he sees you like this. You don't shy away when he smirks.

"Goodnight." You mouth to him. You stay like that until he leaves his door open and finally gets in bed ー until he, too, shuffles around, and dangles his head off the edge of his own bed.

"Goodnight." He mouths it back to you.

You spend some time looking at each other like that ー really taking your realities in ー in rooms across each other with heads dangling off the edge of your beds, two hearts connected by the sea, and your daughter asleep in the room next to yours.

On most nights he comes over sometime during the night and helps you back on your pillow when you accidentally fall asleep like this, and every time, you'd unconsciously tug on his arm and beg him not to go.

He stays every single time.

Tonight, however, he pads over to your room while you're still awake with a pillow clutched in one hand.

"Hi." You scoot on the bed to make space for him as he throws his pillow next to yours and lays down beside you ー face to face, heart to heart. "Hey." He sighs upon getting comfortable on the bed he'd grown to find so much comfort in.

You bring the blanket up to cover his shoulders. He scoots closer to you, sneaks a hand under your shirt, and rubs a warm hand up and down your spine. (You always sleep better when he rubs your back like this.)

And while falling asleep you think to yourself that perhaps someday you'll get to try again as lovers.

You know for a fact that you'll always love him in your heart, and you'll never stop loving him even though it doesn't really make sense anymore ー just like how he'd sworn to never love again after your divorce.

Perhaps someday the both of you would be ready to move on ー still loving each other, but ready to move on from your past, from your love.

And perhaps someday the two of you wouldn't have to argue about money or time anymore. Perhaps someday he'll find a suitable work-life balance, and you're able to trust him enough to keep himself safe at work.

But for now, he's content with rubbing your back as you fall asleep next to him in the bed you'd once shared. You're content with the flowers he still buys you from time to time and cutting his hair whenever it grows out.

For now, you know that you're not ready to move on just yet. Both of you are not, and both of you have something else in mind...

You want to try again.

And you know that trying again will not be easy, but you both also know that you're willing to start all over again with everything you have if given the chance, the opportunity.

Maybe someday.

Maybe you'll give it more time.

(You feel a nudge on your elbow.)

Or...

"Wanna go to Disneyland tomorrow?"

(You smile.)

"Yes."

...Maybe tomorrow?

(He reddens all over.)

"Okay."

You'll see.

(just some characters i have in mind) TOKYO REVENGERS RAN, RINDOU, KAKUCHO, DRAKEN, NAOTO JUJUTSU KAISEN GOJO, NANAMI BLUE LOCK SAE, RIN HAIKYUU KITA, OSAMU & your faves

(i have never been to disneyland before. 😹)

© HAI7ANI ON TUMBLR. DO NOT STEAL

[meo-eiru]

I've always been an illustration gal and enjoy the process of spending hours rendering one image but for the sake of posting more often I shifted towards quick non-colored comics

Of course I love drawing comics to death too, I wouldn't be able to draw daily if I wasn't, but I decided to draw a detailed illustration for valentines instead of a comic and doing so has been quite therapeutic. I also feel like I haven't really posted any properly colored drawings here so I hope this can help me show my skills in different areas a bit

[vulpixisananimal]

[A: 4 C: 75]

[Warning, graphic violence.]

(Ramos) [Alex] {Nihil} |Jasmine| <Altiare>

"Oh you're such a flirt, my big Red Giant~"

[Loops teasing voice echoed down the street as you, they, and Isabeau walked home together.]

[Tonight was a rare moment of tranquility in your chaotic life. Loop led you and Isa to a secluded part of the city by the lake to stargaze. Loop was able to tell most of the stars apart, and was able to remember many of the constellations.]

"Dawww I just can't help it with you guys!" [Isabeau responded; his fun, silly self.] "I just wanna lean down and kiss you right now."

"Do it then, big guy." [You comment. Keeping your eyes ahead.]

"M-maybe I will- whUH-"

[You didn't need to turn to see Loop pull him down by the shirt to kiss him first. Heh, cute.]

[You do, however, turn so you can properly roll your eyes.] "Will I need to sleep somewhere else again tonight?"

"Oh like you’d be complaining~" [Loop giggled while Isabeau recovered from the effects of public affection.] “I’m sure Madame has plenty of room in her bed for you~”

"At least I have tact!" [You huff, then turn back around. Then do a double take.]

[It’s late, and you haven’t seen many people around at all. But there’s a stranger in a grey cloak a few meters down the street looking away from you.]

“. . . Eeeeverything alright?” [Isabeau asks, glancing behind him.] 

“. . . Yeah.” [You turn back and continue down the street.] “C’mon, I’d like to get at least some sleep tonight.”

[The three of you walk home a bit faster. You swear you’ve seen that stranger before. Was he following you? Maybe, but. . . No, probably not. You’re just tired and anxious. Chances are he’s some fan, or some poor mind controlled spy sent by Perci.]

[What were the Monets doing, anyways? As much as you loath to admit it, Perci was right about the sadness thing, well, things plural, in retrospect. A door to an old antique shop opens a few meters ahead of you--]

[Oh Speak of the void and he FUCKING appears!!!]

"Blinding-"

"Oh! Great!"

[Perci and Merlon stepped out of the antique shop laughing and joking to each other. They pause in the middle of the street, with Merlon leaning down and kissing Perci. And then, Merlon sees you. You start walking forward, faster, angrier.]

[That BITCH.]

"A-ah!!" [Perci turns to you.] "Alex! Loop! Isabeau! How are my favorite little saviors doing~?"

[You stop a few feet away, and try to make pulling a pen out of a pocket intimidating, Loop and Isabeau at your side.] "Better, if you weren't here."

"Ahaha, I can imagine." [Perci grumbled.] "So! Loop, have you all reconsidered my offer yet? Just one handshake and I could be out of your life!"

"Oh like that'll ever be an option~" [Loop giggles.] "You’re as trustworthy as a snake, Perci! And Merlon, you seem alright but you have terrible taste in men."

"I assure you I do not." [Merlon scowled.] 

"Listen, I know we haven't exactly gotten along, and usually I'd want to fix that, but. . ." [Isabeau crossed his arms.] "But you’re being obsessive! Siffrin told you no and that’s that!!!”

“I’m not being obsessive!!!” [Perci retorted.] “If anything I am deeply frustrated at your refusal to even listen to me!!!”

“Oh We’ve been listening alright.” [Loop puts a hand in front of their mouth.] “It’s just that we decided annoying you bears more fruit~”

"You ignorant-!" [Perci started to draw his blades, but hesitated when they were halfway unsheathed.] “. . .”

“. . . Cici?” [Merlon puts a hand on his shoulder.]

“No. We don’t need to fight. There’s no time limit to our negotiations, after all.” [He huffs, and sheathes his swords.] “I know you’re itching to try our plan, Mimi, but could you wait just a bit longer? Please?”

[Merlon pauses, and looks back to the three of you. They sigh.] “I, I will try, my love. For you-”

(Home and Return; Godnight sleep of imprisoning nightmares. Final rest of wickedness.)

[The thought boomed in your mind. It was, what, a book title? Or maybe a-]

[Perci dropped to the ground.]

"P-Perci?!?" [Merlon knelt at his side, eyes wild.] "What, how, what is-"

[You look confused to your two companions. Isabeau shrugged, Loop rolled an eye.]

“Sir Percival!!!” [From behind you, that stranger rushed past you, putting himself between you and the Monets.] “Perci- YOU!! You’re the one who abducted him!!!”

"W-what?!?" [Merlon's head snapped to glare at the newcomer.] "W-what, what do you- YOU!"

"I know you've been using Sir Percival for your, your schemes!!" [Said the stranger.] "I'm here to save him!!!"

(Hello, Perci.)

[That thought came from the stranger. You felt a familiar wave of fear from Perci as he lay on the ground. You could feel him struggling, feel his heart beat faster than a rabbit.]

(What- Y-you try to get up. H-how, how did, you, find, ah-)

(Ah? Did you forget your manners while on your little escapade? No matter, you'll relearn your place in due time.)

"Save him?" [Isabeau asks.] "Wait, you’re saying Merlon’s been using him?"

"Y-yes!! I've been looking for him for years!!" [The stranger turned to you, his face a painting of agony.] "Oh the saviors, t-thank you I, I-I'm sure I can take it from here, but. . ."

[You look at Loop and Isa again. What were they thinking. . ?]

(Why did Perci just collapse?!? You lower your fists, Something seems wrong.)

[Well, that seems wildly out of character! You glance at Alex. Don’t you agree~?]

[You smirk. Loop couldn’t hear your thoughts back, but a smirk could get the message across. Looking back at the scene in front of you, Merlons eyes were devoured with rage, and the stranger looked far too confident. You focus back on the conversation.]

(I must say, it was such a disappointment, seeing your absence. You had the makings of a great leader, and yet you threw it all away, and for what? An outsider? A forgotten? A sheep? You could do so much better than her, you know, you could have any man or woman in the country! If only you just listened to my lectures. . . You should be ashamed of yourself, Percival, truly ashamed.)

(FUCK. YOU. DO NOT-)

(Oh? Have you regrown your tongue? I'll make sure to fix that before we get back. I'm certain all the tools are still in place, perfect for if you keep up your disobedience. What should we start with, Percival? Another finger, perhaps?)

[You wince, hand to your head as- (NONONONO PLEASE ANYTHING BUT-) -Percis thoughts scream- (HURTS RIPPING TEARING BURNING-) -into your own hea- (YOU CAN'T MOVE YOU NEED-) -stars ABOVE!!]

"LIAR!!!" [Merlon shouts, standing up, light crackling at their fingertips.] "You are no friend to him!!"

[You focus on Perci and the stranger more; ignoring the auditory conversation.]

(You're only making this harder on yourself, you know. There is no one to hear you scream here, just you, and me; but you should know that by now. Don’t worry, you and I both know how good I am at correcting troublesome little things like you.)

(J-just, don't touch Merlon please, p-please you, please-)

"Saviors, I-I" [The stranger turned back to Merlon.] "I don't want to ask this of you, but, i-if you could, help. . ."

[Perci catches your eye. He's staring at you, pleading with just a glance. He knows you can hear him, if anyone was going to try and save him, it would be you. Your grip was tightening on your pen, twisting the hidden switch to extend the blade.]

(Why would I spare the one who led you astray? Ah, but I'm nothing but merciful. I'll give her a quick and clean death, if that's what you desire.)

(N-NO!! NO NO NO!!! You, you get, a hand, up, onto, onto your, hands and knees, you, n-need to-)

(Difficult as always, I see. No matter, I will properly deal with you once I'm done with your companion here. And just because of you, I’ll make it a slow and agonizing execution.)

[His pleading echoed through your head. You couldn't take it any more, you ran forward and extended your paper sign, [PAGE TURNER!!]]

"!!!!"

"A-AL?!?"

"!?!?!?"

[You stabbed the stranger in the hand, and took the chance to kick him to the side.]

"Wh, what are you doing?!?!?" [The stranger looked pained. (Is she stupid? In their eyes you're trying to help them!)] "I swear I'm not lying to you!"

[Drop the act. You stand there, unmoving, as the stranger stands up. Drop. It.]

(Ha! What, do they think you're a mind reader like Percival? Well you are, but it is an idiotic thing for a bug to assume! No, they’re taking a wild guess and hoping you expose yourself.) "I'm, just trying to-"

[It's not a guess.]

[The stranger looked shocked. (. . . How. HOW?!?!? This isn't some craft for a bug like you! It’s ours and ours ALONE!!! How do you-)]

[Beginners luck.] "And stop trying to act all snobby."

"Oh good strike, Alex!" [Loop walked forward, chuckling.] "So! Mind filling us in~?"

"This person did something to Perci," [you respond as Isabeau joins your side too.] "Whatever it was, it terrifies him greatly."

[(T-thank you. . .) You hear Perci, he sounds weak.]

"I-I, I, you-" [The stranger starts.]

"Oh I knew something was off." [Loop interrupted, twirling their dagger.] "But would Perci being dragged away really be that bad?"

"Don't." [Merlon's voice w- (NONONOPLEASENOPLEAS) -STARS Perci calm down!!!]

"I. . ." [You glance at Loop, then to Perci.] ". . . We might be enemies, but that’s no excuse not to be kind, right?"

"Yeah, I don't like Perci, but," [Isabeau glanced at your two antagonists, then back to the stranger.] ". . We can't just stand and watch!"

"Are you mad?!?" [The stranger yells, before shaking his head, regaining composure.] "Perci has done nothing but harm! He is a thief, a liar, and a crook! I'm trying to help you! Is that so bad?!?"

"Tools still in place? Correcting troublesome things? No one to hear you scream?!?" [You spit at him.] "I hate Perci with every part of my soul, but I've seen what his mental self-image looks like, I’ve felt his panicked flashbacks. Are you saying you did that?!?"

"I-I, no! I-" [(Well you did, but they don't need to know that.) The stranger said and thought.]

"You did." [You gripped your pen, angry.] "You did, you blinding monster."

"Change. . ." [Isabeau grits his teeth and takes a fighting stance.] ". . . Okay, yeah, I've made up my mind. We're fighting now."

“Ugh.” [Loop shakes their head then gets low to the ground, ready to dash in.] “I hate that you’re making me care about him!! Fine, I’ll take the anger out on this lovely stranger then~”

[The stranger scowls at you, finally dropping the act- (You’ve made a mistake, little bug.) -STARS, focus. He reaches up and tosses the grey cloak he wore to the side, revealing a pristine, and familiar, uniform.] “Stupid little stick-eaters, all of you! Why did I even consider trying to get you brain dead nobodies to help me. A little lady bug, a faceless disgrace of a man, and a weak forgotten little sheep!! How disgusting!!”

“Two sheep.” [Merlon steps up a few feet to your side.] “One of them is dipped in the blood of your betters. You will be no different.”

“HA!” [The stranger stands to his full height, drawing a menacing sickle from his belt.] “I, Sir Gornemant the Enlightened, will strike you down and make you beg for my forgiveness!.”

[He ran at you and waved a paper sign, in an instant three duplicates of him were running with him! One at each of you! You had a split second to react, you couldn’t tell which was real! All you could do was avoid the sickle slice going for your throat.]

[The attack passes right through you. You hear a yelp, Loop caught the real stranger's sickle with their arm. Isabeau moved in and swiped at the stranger, who jumped back, and dodged to the side again as Merlon snapped their fingers.]

[Gornemant wasted no time, running in low against you next, you moved to dodge his swipes, but they were relentless, one after another af- (###############!!!!) -SSTARS--]

[The stranger SCREAMED inside your head with an incomprehensible sound!! Completely knocking you off focus. You felt a slash across your chest--]

<You tag in. The stranger jumped back fast enough to block Isabeaus' crafted attack- (My! More than one of you in there? I’m surprised you’re even allowed outside at all!!) -What is THAT supposed to mean!!>

<Loop slashed at the stranger, metal clashing on metal- (It means exactly that~ Broken things should be fixed before being used.) -What a nasty piece of work. With a flick of your wrist your deck was in your hand. You want to play? Then let’s play.>

<You throw your cards, sharp enough to cut the cheek of the stranger- (Cute party trick.) -Who moves around Merlons next snapping of fingers, dashing in and catching her arm with the sickle- (I wonder who I should kill first.)>

<You’re not going to kill anybody. Loop snaps their fingers, making you all faster, and Isabeau cheered you on, raising all your stats. Perfect.> “A rock move, Merlon?” <You ask as you use [Raise]>

<She must trust you, because the next explosion is exactly that. Gornemant dodges easily and rushes at Isabeau, bypassing his defenses with a slash and- (########-)- NO. Not. Listening. Tune it out!>

“S-stars. . .” <Loop slashed at Gornemant, protecting Isabeau.> 

“Hold fast, Stargazer.” <Merlon encouraged.> “These fools bleed like any other.”

“Easy for you to say.” <Isabeau grumbled, nursing a wound.> “Plans, anyone?”

“Oh, I have a plan~” <You grin. Your signature skills played with the jackpot meter, [Fold] cleared it and healed everyone, [Raise] skipped your turn but made the next jackpot stronger, and [All In!] would trigger a jackpot. And with three rocks and two scissors, you were [All in!]>

<You drew five cards from your deck that made a full house! You rushed in fanning the cards at the enemy as Isabeau closed the distance and swept his legs. The stranger moved from Isabeau but got caught by your flurry of cards. An explosion flew him into the waiting dagger of Loop. They swiped three times at him, and grinned as he fell to the ground.>

“HA! AHAHAHAHA!!!” <Loop was laughing like a maniac.> “A SHEEP?!?!? I’M A SHEEP, RIGHT?!?!? AND YET I’M THE ONE THROWING YOU AROUND LIKE A TOY!!!!”

“Loop, I’d step back-” <Isabeau starts, but before anyone can react the stranger jumps up and grabs Loops neck.>

“NO!!!” <Isabeau yelled and ran at them. Neither Loop nor the stranger said a word until Isabeau shoulder tackled the stranger down. Loop stumbled back, but you held them up.>

“Loop, Loop talk to me!” <You shook them lightly.> 

“. . .” <Loops head snapped to you, eye wide and fearful. You felt a cold presence wash over you, you had to act fast! You grab them by the neck and project your will.>

“A-alex!!” <Isabeau was between you and Gornemant.> “What’s going on?!?”

<You force your way into the nerves, through the spine, up the brain, into the deepest mind. You could feel the sea breeze, close enough. You FORCE your craft into them, the smell of mint washing over the two of you. You felt the mind craft of that killer, it was powerful, much more powerful than yours.>

“Stay sharp. Move, fighter” <Merlon ordered. They snapped their fingers as Isabeau moved back. The ground under the stranger exploded, and this time He was too slow.>

<The stranger landed with a thud, before scrambling to a knee. His leg is twisted, pointing the wrong way.> “. . . You, you insolent dogs!!! You mutts, you should all be put down and your corpses strung up for all to see!!!”

<You flood the sand dunes with plants, a rushed effort to expel Gornemants mind craft. You glare at him.> “And, you’re supposed to be the good guy? Just give up already.” <Beads of sweat ran down your head, but you could feel Siffrin coming to front now.>

“Like I would ever surrender to the dirt under my heel!” <He wipes the blood from his mouth and tries to stand up, only to fall again.> “No, no less than dirt!!! Dirt at least knows to stay where it’s TOLD!!! Dirt could become something BETTER!!!”

“Your leg is broken.” <Merlon stood in front of him.> “You already lost.”

“Ha. Ha, hahahahaHHAHAHAHAA!!!” <The stranger grins, bleeding from the mouth.> “Not yet I haven’t.”

(Shattering Glass Stained Skies.)

(AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA--------)

<You grip your head in agony. It felt like someone was using your head as the clapper of a giant bell!!!! That scream, that scream where was- P-perci?!?!? Perci was--- >

“S-STOP!! THAT!!!” You scream. Your skull was being split open by the sound. You felt secondhand pain, fear, horror. “HE’S, PERCI, HE’S SCREAMING!!!”

“H-he is?!?” Isabeau asks, turning to look at the collapsed scholar. “Wha, how-”

“You.” Merlon stepped forward. “Stop it, NOW!”

“I don’t take orders from sheep!” Gornemant smiles. “If he stays like that much longer, he’ll go mad~ So Beg.”

“I. . .” [Merlon stops.] “. . .”

“M-merlon.” [Siffrin mumbles.] “Don’t-”

[They’re cut off by Merlon, who moves down to her knees, and rests their head on the ground.] “. . . Please.”

[Sir Gornemant stood up, and raised the sickle.] “. . . . . No.”

“N-NO!!!” 

“WAIT!!!”

“MERLON!!!”

[The stranger's sickle strikes down.]

[And then there’s a sound like lightning in a bottle.]

[There’s a blinding flash of light, you have to cover your eyes. But, eventually it clears, and when you look up, you see the sickle in Merlons shoulder. Your eyes trail up the blood stained cloak, up Merlon's outstretched arm, all the way to their hand. Their pinkie and ring fingers curled in, the middle and index fingers held out forward, and the thumb sticking out straight. It was like she was pointing at something with two fingers-]

“O-oh, oh stars above--”

“Holy, h-holy crab.”

[They were, pointing, at, Gornemants head. There was blood, dripping from his chin.]

[And a hole clear through his brain.]

[The stranger fell over, dead, the screaming stopped. Merlon lowers their hand, panting.]

[After a moment to catch his breath, Siffrin walked over to Merlon and crouched down.] “. . . A-are, you alright?”

“Just, one moment, Stargazer.” [She was breathing steady, yet shakey.] “And, I should be asking you, that question.”

[Your mind was already racing. Someone’s dead. Someone you were fighting just died. Merlon just killed him. They killed him with one craft, right through the brain. You could still smell the sugar, feel the crackling energy in the air.]

“We just killed someone.” [Isabeau murmurs next to you.] “We just, w-we just. . .”

“No.” [Merlon stands.] “You didn’t. You didn’t kill him, I did. I did it, and only me.”

“But-”

“I am your enemy, your antagonist, your villain. Of course I wouldn’t spare the life of anyone, even if death is a mercy compared to what he deserves.”

[You all are silent.]

“. . . He was. . .” [They paused, then shook their head.]  “An old. . . Stalker. It’s not my place to give details.”

“. . .” [Siffrin stood next to Merlon, after a bit of hesitation, they put a hand on her arm.] “. . . I-if, if you guys ever want to talk about it, then. . .”

[You all were silent. The weight of a long forgotten grudge echoed from Merlons psyche onto you. You looked up to the stars and started counting them; not letting your mind wander to her private business.]

“. . . So,what now?” [Isabeau asks.] “I, I don’t know how to hide a body, or. . .”

[Merlon nods, then raises a palm. You smelt sugar. Strong, strong sugar. They waved their hand, and the body disappeared in sparks of light. You saw Siffrin flinch, pulling their hand away.]

[Siffrin shook his head, and looked up to Merlon.] “S-stars. . . What was. . . What’d you do?”

[Merlon glanced down at him.] “I transported him back to his home as a warning- PERCI!!!”

[In a flash, Merlon ran past you all and knelt at the side of their beloved. She reached out, and gently put a hand on Perci’s cheek. She was muttering something softly, you and the others walked a bit closer.]

“I’m here, I’m real, you’re real, I’m here with you, okay? I’m here, it’s okay. You’re safe.” [She spoke so softly to him, like one would to a wounded animal. Eventually, Perci grabbed their arm, and half dragged himself and was half pulled onto her lap. He buried his face in her robes, arms tight around them.]

[Merlon gently patted his hair.] “It’s alright, you’re alright, little bunny, I’m here. I promise you’re okay.”

[There was a mumbled response from Perci, which made Merlon smile. They picked him up easily and held him close.] “He’s gone, I’m still here, I’m not going anywhere anytime soon, I promise.”

“. . . . . . . .” [Okay that was enough of a pause.] “. . . Little bunny?”

[Merlon flinches, before looking at the three of you with an embarrassed blush on their face.] “A-ah, well, it’s, ah, i-ignore that.”

“Nope! No chance.” [Isabeau chuckled then elbowed Siffrins side.] “I wonder if he acts like a bunny just for them.”

“Isabeau please!” [You knew that tone, uhoh.] “That talks not warren-ted!”

“HAHA! HA!!!”

“PFF- HAH!”

[You grinned, Merlon was clearly trying to hide in her cloak, but both arms were taken up with their little rabbit. You shook your head and walked over.] “. . . Y’know, Loop’s right. I really hate that I can’t hate you guys.”

“That’s. . . Not a smart thing to say to your enemy.” [Merlon sighed, and stood up, still holding Perci.] “But, I understand the feeling. Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.” [You grumble, crossing your arms.] “. . . Would it help if I, took a peek in his head?” 

[Percis' reaction was instant. He clung tighter to Merlon, and his fear grew stronger. You step back, message received loud and clear.] “Alright, better question. You guys have any other stalkers?”

“. . . Maybe, but not within a year” [Merlon looked away. Your friends joined you on each side, Isabeau and Siffrin hand in hand.] “They know where we are now, however, so. . . Nevermind.”

“What do they want, anyways.” [Isabeau crossed his arms and started thinking.] “That guy sounded like a self-centered egotistical crab. And that name, enlightened. . .”

“They wanted to hurt my bonded.” [Merlon replied with some venom, before turning and walking away.] “Don't worry, as far as they know, you all are not involved. You’ll be fine.”

[You all started following her.] “And you’re really not going to tell us more than that?”

“No, it’s our burden to bear. Besides, you lot have enough headaches to deal with already, like us.” [They turn to look back.] “Why are you following me?”

“In case there’s another.” [Siffrin pipes up.] “A-and I. . . I dunno, it just, feels like the right thing to do?”

“Herding instinct.” [Merlon giggled.] “It’s alright, I get that a lot. . . The company is, welcome. Even if it lasts just a minute.”

[You sneak a peek at Percival. His thoughts were calm, now, but buried below layers and layers of mental defences. You could only imagine what was going through his head. You all continue on in silence until you reach a well made two story house. Merlon stops before stepping inside.]

“. . . Siffrin.”

“Y-yes?” [He perks up.] 

“Do you miss it?”

“. . . .” [He looks away, staying silent for a minute.] “. . . I do.”

“. . . . . Would you ever want to go home?”

“. . . . . .” [They’re silent for a bit longer now, before looking back.] “I am home.”

“. . . I see.” [Merlon sighs and looks down, then opens the door.] “Stay safe, saviors, for tonight anyways.”

[The door closed with a click.]

[katescribblesabit]

I love your fairy Timmy turner au and your art! It’s amazing and wonderful!! Sending virtual hugs your way since you absolutely deserve it!! Make sure to stay hydrated and take breaks from drawing when needed :3 I hope you have a great day/night wherever you are !

I have a question about the au, considering the jimmy timmy power hour still happens, did Jimmy Neutron and his friends ever hear about Timmy going missing from the national news channels? I’d like to think they were probably really sad about it and tried looking for him themselves :( OR since they already know about fairies and everything, when Timmy turned into a fairy, did he ever pop by and say hi and told them that he was alright and everything was fine so they wouldn’t be so sad? If he did, does he still visit them in Jimmy’s lab even as adults so they all can still hang out once more and ever explain why he became a fairy? I wonder if that would sort of get Jimmy to maybe just a little bit believe in magic

Anyways I’m sorry if this is so long 😭

aw don't apologize! its fine, and thank you for the virtual hug haha

i haven't even thought about including the Jimmy Timmy power hour in the au honestly. i did some quick research and it seems like many people do consider the trilogy canon on both shows.

so.. if we do wanna take it into the wacky crossover territory. well,

Sheen probably pestered Jimmy into visiting Timmy again since its been a while and he was bored. Jimmy eventually faltered and dug out the old portal door he had build. setting it up attracted their other friends and they all wanted to go.

When they arrived at Dimmsdale however they quickly learned about Timmys disappearance from AJ and Chester. they offered to help look but they also couldn't find anything that day. they eventually had to go back home.

Jimmy however couldn't really let it go. he was a genius! if anyone could help, then it was him right? so he cooked up a plan and went back and asked around for some kind of DNA samples of Timmy. Jimmy then build some kind of locating machine that brings them to the one they want to find.

he then teleported right into the living room of Cosmo and Wanda where Timmy currently was. to say they were all surprised is an understatement haha

since Timmy was a fairy now, there were no consequences of telling Jimmy the actual truth anymore. (since Jimmy is from an differente Dimension - LOOPHOLE hehe) So Timmy was able to properly explain that yes magic was real in Timmys dimension and that he simply wanted to stay with his fairy family. (maybe he properly introduced them hehe)

Timmy also begged Jimmy not to tell anyone. ESPECIALLY anyone from Timmys dimension.

[periwinkla]

I just wanted to thank everyone for the lovely tags/comments you always leave ;-;

As you know it's not an easy time for me so it means truly a lot to know people enjoy what I make... I still haven't been able to properly go out so drawing is my only means of, you know, not letting my brain go up in smoke (ᵕ—ᴗ—) Walking on flat surfaces isn't *too* much of an issue but steps and inclines are a bit of a problem... and where I live there are way too many of them... I look at my hometown so differently now.

I'm thankful I can at least draw, even though I need to take many breaks.... And I'm doubly thankful people are always so kind to me here (｡•́︿•̀｡)

[in1-nutshell]

I have been thinking a lot about the neutral teen not buddy Who is skillied in combat and edgy, like maybe they keep meeting with smokescreen and eventually properly meet the others?

Another Buddy we haven't seen in a while, lets see how this works!

Hope you enjoy!

Bot Buddy the edgy neutral assassin meeting with Smokescreen again

SFW, Platonic, Cybertronain reader

It was a couple of days before Buddy realized the bot they had been chatting to wasn’t another Neutral.

He was an Autobot.

One of the new recruits named Smokescreen.

That was their mistake for assuming.

They originally thought of just ignoring him since he did give them a nice talk.

But soon enough they found it nearly impossible to ignore the mech. He seemed to be everywhere Buddy was going and they did not want to draw attention to both.

They weren’t going to lose the only other nice bot in this war.

Not again…

Ultimately, they decided to maybe talk to him again. At least then they would be able to talk with peace of mind that no one would be watching them.

Hopefully.

Maybe they could even get him to see their side of the war, maybe join forces.

Become an assassin duo.

Oh, how were they kidding, Smokescreen was not assassin material.

He was more Wrecker material than anything.

Not good for stealth.

Buddy waited at the same place again a month later.

They found him seated in the same spot.

They quietly joined him when he waved and patted the ground next to him.

His grin grew once they sat down next to him.

“Hey! It’s been a while!”--Smokescreen

Buddy nods and takes the spot next to him.

“I saw a cool looking bird heading north with a whole other group of the same one. Where do you think they’re going?”--Smokescreen

“Maybe they’re heading home? Doubt it’s because of any cold temperatures.”--Buddy

“Why would they want to get away from the cold? That white stuff that falls from the sky is awesome!”--Smokescreen

Buddy chuckles a bit.

“Yeah, it kind of is when is falling.”--Buddy

He didn’t say anything about the war much to their surprise.

Or maybe it was because he didn’t know who they were yet.

Smokescreen talked more of the things he saw around while on patrol.

This little routine continued for about another two months.

It was a nice change of pace for Buddy.

A little breather from their usual activities.

“I have a question.”--Smokescreen

“Yeah? And what would that be?”--Buddy

“How come you haven’t offline me yet?”--Smokescreen

Buddy stiffens.

“You came across one of my friends not too long ago, you spared her. But we’ve been meeting for a while now and have had multiple times that you could have…you know. So, why?”--Smokescreen

Buddy looks down, playing with some of the sand.

“I’ll admit. I didn’t know you were an Autobot before, I thought you were another Neutral. When I realized that you weren’t I planed on just ignoring you.”--Buddy

“Why not…”--Smokescreen

“You were nice to me. It’s been a while since I had any nice talk like the ones we have. Nothing with the war, nothing about political views… just peaceful things.”--Buddy

“So, if I wasn’t so nice to you—”--Smokescreen

“You wouldn’t have made it back to your team.”--Buddy

“…”--Smokescreen

“…Listen I know this could change our thing and that you probably want to leave… I’ll respect your decision and I won’t—”--Buddy

“Who says I want to leave?”--Smokescreen

Buddy looks at him with wide optics.

“Any bot with any common sense would leave.”--Buddy

Smokescreen chuckles a bit.

“Well, I have been told I lack some of that.”--Smokescreen

“…You really want to keep meeting? Even after all I admitted?”--Buddy

Smokescreen pats their back.

“I still want to be friends with you Buddy. You’re a good bot.”--Smokescreen

Buddy smiles at him.

Both look back at the horizon in silence

Smokescreen did bring up the option of bringing them to the base to meet the others.

But they declined.

They didn’t want to give either side any idea that they were going to join a side.

He pestered it a couple more times before just dropping it.

Smokescreen knows he’ll wear them down eventually.

But for now, he was happy being their friend outside of the base.

[yoonia]

Chance Encounter | 06

⟶ Title | Chance Encounter

⟶ Summary | Sometimes your fangirling can cause you a lot of problems. Add alcohol and your clumsy thumb into the mix, followed by waking up to an accidental DM getting sent on Instagram, and your life changes forever. The entire mess leads you to an odd form of friendship with the man who you had always admired. But what happens when your two worlds collide, blurring the lines between reality and dreams? Will you be able to return to your real-life once this is over?

⟶ Pairings | Christian Yu ( DPR +IAN / Yu Barom ) x reader ⟶ Genre | Teacher’s Aide!AU, College!AU, Fluff, Future Smut ⟶ Ratings & Warnings | +18 / M for Mature theme and upcoming smut chapters; Mentions of alcohol consumption, sexual tension, flirting, accidental text messages with revealing pictures ⟶ Word count | 9k words ⟶ Story Masterlist: Chance Encounter | ⤎ Previous Chapter | Next Chapter ⇢ ⟶ Main Masterlist | Mailbox | Taglist | Music Playlist | Ko-fi ⟶ Cross post | AO3

⟶ Author's note | It's finally here! After a long wait, I have finally returned with this story. I think this would be the perfect time to reveal the reason why I haven't been updating this series in a while and that is...*drum roll*...because google docs lost the entire files for the rest of the chapters lol I'm back, though, and I have every intention to finish this series because I still have a ton of ideas to share featuring this amazing man. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter!

Chapter Six

“Are you guys still at the mall? Seriously, did you have to take so long to pick your—bathing suit?” 

Pressing your hand on your mouth, you muffle the sound of your laughter while Christian continues fuming on the other side of the call. “Bathing suit? Damn, you sound older than Momo’s Dad,” you almost choke as you tease him, unable to stop yourself from laughing. 

“Okay, bikini, swimsuit, whatever,” he says, grumbling on the phone, causing you to laugh harder. 

“It’s not that we lost track of time because of the bikinis,” you answer him with your voice lowered, not wanting to draw any more attention from the people roaming around you when you had already drawn enough eyes on you just by giggling to yourself. Having people glancing your way is already making you feel uncomfortable enough, even more so when it feels like you are hiding a big secret from the world and you have an irrational fear of getting caught growing on you. 

Speaking to Christian like this makes you feel that way. It feels like you are keeping an important secret from the world. Although you have to admit that this is exactly what he is—a wonderful secret that you want to keep to yourself for a bit longer. 

Thinking about this puts a smile on your face. One that stays with you when you cheerfully add, “We just had a little detour while shopping, that’s all. We’ll be back on track and finish things up in no time.” 

Just as you are saying these words to him, you cast a glance towards the other side of the store where you currently are. There, you see Momo leaning over one of the glass showcases lined inside the store with rapt attention, eyes glowing over the collection of expensive branded watches lined up properly on display. Right beside her, Em is basically doing the same, and it is almost comical to see their expressions mirroring one another, with the bright lights coming out of the glass display reflecting on their faces to make them shine. And neither of them is even bothered by it, too mesmerised by the flashy collection that they have been eyeing on.��

“Is ‘detour’ a code word for saying that you guys are getting carried away at the mall? You’re not trying to buy everything you see on display, are you?” Christian speaks on the phone again, and you are forced to stifle your laughter as you listen to what he is saying. Even without seeing him, you can already picture his pouty face and the curious frown that he normally gives you when he is trying to understand something that he couldn’t get a good grasp on, which often happens when you share some of the things that you do when you are not with him. You turn to look at the watch counter, watching silently as Momo is helping Em choose between a couple of watches that the storekeeper has personally picked out for them. 

“No, it’s an actual detour. We sort of encountered some kind of—distraction.” A smile comes to your face when you recall what had happened. To remember the reason why you and Momo had ended up in the exclusive watch store with Em, the last person on earth that you would expect to be hanging out with. 

It was quite awkward at first to have Em join your shopping date, when you barely knew anything about her except for what you have learned through the few cordial encounters you had with her, especially after the cryptic comment she made about the gift she is looking for. 

But you are thankful that you had Momo here with you today, as she managed to defuse the situation, knowing exactly well about your habit to overthink and worry about the things that you don’t fully understand. Once Momo jumped in to break the ice, you finally gained enough information to not be as wary as you were when you first met Em earlier. 

“What kind of gift are you thinking of getting?” Momo asked her while the three of you were browsing through the shops and did some window shopping before making any decisions about where to go, and Em—having no knowledge of the turmoil happening in your head at that moment—nonchalantly answered, 

“Something that would give a nice message as a congratulatory and send-off gift.” 

Momo stole a glance your way then before asking. “Send-off? Is it for a friend of yours?” 

“Yes,” Em said, looking at the two of you with a bashful smile that told you more than any spoken word could. “He’s a really special friend of mine who is moving to the States sometime next month. He got this terrific offer that would allow him to make more music, which is basically a huge upgrade to what he’s been doing here lately,” she explained, then she turned to you with a request, “He’s also a good friend of Rome. I mean, Christian. Since they’ve been spending time together quite often lately, would it be okay if I ask you not to say anything to Ian when you see him? I don’t want to spoil the surprise too soon. We’ll be leaving for the States together once the date is set, but my friends and I are planning to have a send-off party the weekend before. I’m thinking of giving the gift to him then.” 

The smile that came to your face was almost spontaneous. The relief that you felt must have been palpable, yet you couldn’t get yourself to reel it in. Though you did manage to control your composure when you promised her, “Your secret is safe with me,” while you tried to qualm the feeling of guilt for having suspected the relationship that she has with Christian. 

On the phone, Christian gives you a sarcastic scoff and says, “Riiiight—” 

“It’s not what you think, I promise.” 

“No, I get it. Those discount sale offers can be quite intriguing,” he says, obviously having the wrong assumption about what you are truly up to. You wish you could explain, yet this is just another secret that you would have to keep from him. At least until the end of the month, when Em would finally be able to reveal her surprise gift for her special friend. “Look, just go ahead and have fun with your friend. You deserve it,” Christian adds, though his voice sounds lighter, no more of his feigned annoyance is heard. In its place, you can hear his smile, which only draws your own to appear. 

“Thank you,” you say to him. “Aren’t you supposed to be busy right now?” 

“Yeah, I’m in the middle of a break, but we’re getting back into it in a minute,” he says, already sounding a bit distracted just as the noises behind him start growing a bit louder. “Call me when you’re back. Maybe, you know, you can give me a little preview—” 

Knowing where this is heading, you quickly cut him off before he could say the words, “Goodbye, Ian.” 

He chuckles on the phone. “See you later, baby,” he says, before ending the call, all while your heart is racing so violently in your chest for the endearment that he had just given you. Immediately, your face grows hot, and your mind seems to be swirling up to the air with the joy blooming inside you. 

Still feeling as if you are on cloud nine, you almost miss it when Momo turns to call you over, “I think we’ve found the perfect one. Come here and take a look at this, try to see if you like it too.” 

Putting your phone away, you rush towards your best friend and your new shopping companion, Em, who appears just as giddy and excited as Momo is to show what they have found. Seeing their combined reactions, you cannot help but share the same sentiment, and it adds a bit of pep to your footsteps as you come to join them in finding the perfect gift for Em’s secret crush. 

“How about this one?” Em asks you as she shows you yet another pair of bikinis that seems a bit too revealing compared to what you are used to. You make no comment about her choice of outfit as she hands the delicate pair to you, choosing to take a good look at the piece to appreciate her genuine effort in helping you to find the piece that might fit your taste more. 

Ever since the three of you came into the store, both Em and Momo have been assisting you to find the perfect pair for you to buy, as they took notice of your indecisiveness right away. Everything you are seeing in the store has been lovely that it is making it impossible for you to choose, yet the two girls have only been of little help to you. Because when Em keeps choosing the most revealing and extremely daring ones she could find in the store which makes your face burn each time you try to imagine yourself wearing them, Momo has been choosing the ones with the brightest colours and flashy frills that you would never be able to wear without getting your face burning in embarrassment.

This time, however, the piece that you are holding in your hand seems to have caught your eye. It is a solid coffee-coloured triangle set with beaded strings, and a halter top that covers just a bit more skin compared to the previous ones she showed you. The piece sure looks like a major upgrade from the small black piece that she showed you earlier with the top which barely covered your boobs and the thin strip bottom, and while it looks revealing, it seems a bit more appropriate to wear at Momo’s house this weekend—where some or any of her family members might be present—compared to the other ones she has shown you so far.

“You know what? This one actually looks quite nice,” you say to her, acknowledging her taste in style and suddenly believing that you might actually look good in something that seems quite daring. 

Your comment seems to please her as her face instantly brightens. And for some reason, it makes you just as happy to see her getting excited for you. This new feeling is quite—odd. Not more than an hour ago, the air of awkwardness that was present had made it hard for you to start a conversation with her without Momo’s help. You cannot deny that the underlying doubt that you felt about her relationship with Christian had made you feel inferior while being around her. Added with the way she looks and dresses and how she wears her confidence so openly, something that is quite the opposite if compared to you. 

But that feeling is no longer present now when you have finally gotten to know her a bit better, and once you got to see her bubbly personality that seems to fit your and Momo’s energy perfectly.

Once that bridge has been crossed, you begin to see and understand why she is able to get along with Christian and his friend group. The more you spend time with her, the more you are able to see how kind and friendly Em really is. And that despite her pristine appearance, she could be quite—clumsy. 

Much like you are.

Perhaps knowing that you aren’t completely different from one another has been the reason why you are beginning to feel comfortable hanging out with her without anyone else’s helping you.

“Great! I knew you’d like it. The set comes with a cover-up too,” she says, plucking the thin piece of coverup from the rack that appears to be a part of the set for you to try on. “Here, try them all on together and see if it’s something you’d like. Oh, and try the black one too,” she insists, quickly snatching the similar set in black before handing them to you along with the coffee one. She looks at the sets you are now holding and sighs dramatically. “I still think the previous one was hotter, though.” 

“Oh, no,” you quickly say to her, shaking your head when you recall the one she mentioned. “The black one you picked for me was not a bikini top, those were nipple patches.” 

Your comment makes her laugh. “Yeah, I admit, those were more daring than the rest. But I have a couple of them at home and they’re really comfortable. And I bet you’d look really good in them.” 

You almost grimace as you try to picture yourself wearing those tiny things, though you hide it the best you could, knowing that Em has rocked those types of bikinis perfectly and is evidently loving them to bits. You know this because she has shown you a few photos of her wearing them from her social media, and you have to admit, she does look good wearing all the daring pieces you saw that you almost feel envious of her confidence.

Em leaves you be as you make your way to the fitting room at the back of the store, only to suddenly return before you can get there so she can slip a couple of new items into your arms to add to the pile that you are about to try on. 

“Here, try on these too while you’re at it. Can’t hurt to know how they would look on you, can it?” she says, while you only roll your eyes and laugh at her.

“Fine, if it makes you happy.” 

Sliding into one of the vacant booths, you finally get to take a look at what you have gotten with you so far. Aside from the two complete sets that Em got you earlier, you also find the black top which you classified as nipple patches among the pile. This one is adorned with gold chains tying the top up to hang around your neck, making it look a bit more classy compared to the ones that Em initially found when she first started helping you. 

Shaking your head and chuckling at Em’s sneaky antics, you put the tiny thing away to have a look at the others. Other than a new pair that looks similar to the black and coffee sets that you liked earlier, you find another bikini set which Em managed to slip in. This one looks just as revealing as the other ones, if not just a bit more, with a brighter colour that makes them pop in your eyes. You hold up the red halter bikini top which comes together with a thong-like bottom that leaves almost nothing to the imagination. Although, there is a sheer long skirt that comes with the pair, what seems to be a coverup that looks to be sufficient enough to cover the bottom half if you need it. 

Surprisingly, you find yourself liking this piece as well. Just when you are pressing the pieces against your body just to imagine how it would look on you, you hear a knock at the door before Momo speaks to you from the other side. 

“Em told me that you’re in here. So, have you finally found something you like?” she teases, while you can only shake your head and laugh. 

You look down at your stash with a sigh. “Will you be patient? Perfection takes time.” 

A scoff is heard from your best friend, and you can almost imagine her rolling her eyes at you. “Or you’re just being too picky. Hurry up and try them on, then come out here so we can see it. Em already approved the ones I picked.”

You smile at your reflection in the mirror when you recall Momo slipping into a fitting booth with an arm full of bright-coloured bikini sets. “Why should I show you mine if I didn’t get to see what you’re buying?” 

“You’ll get to see them later when we’re paying for them. I only want to see yours to make sure you’ll look hot in my jacuzzi,” she says, making you laugh. 

“Okay, let me try these on. Now leave me alone.” 

You hear nothing from Momo other than a simple, “Okay,” and you start choosing the ones you want to see yourself in. Surprisingly drawn towards the red bikini set, you immediately pick that one to try first. While you can never possibly imagine yourself wearing it this weekend, you want to see if it would be something that you could wear sometime in the future. 

The thin fabric feels like silk on your skin, but they are surprisingly comfortable. You are originally not one to wear something this revealing, always have been choosing the modest ones whenever you could, yet you can definitely see yourself in this set even if it may not happen for a while. 

“Which one are you trying on now?” you hear Momo asking, and you absentmindedly answer her while admiring your own reflection, turning left and right to see yourself from every angle, making sure that the piece actually works for you before you can buy it. 

“It’s the red one that Em found for me.” 

“Really?” you can hear Em squealing from outside, excited to hear that you are trying out the piece that she seems to like. It makes you stop to hear her voice, realising that she is also out there, crowding the front of your booth with Momo. 

“Seriously? Are you guys actually standing out there together waiting for me to show these?” 

“We just want to see them,” Momo whines, while Em chimes in curiously,

“So? How do they look? Do you like them? Don’t they look gorgeous?” 

They actually do look gorgeous, and it makes you look more appealing while wearing them. You feel the sudden urge and excitement to show them, especially Em, just to make her happy to see you trying this on. Yet, thinking about stepping out of the booth right this minute makes you feel a bit insecure. 

“Um—do I have to step out and show you guys? They’re really—well, I feel exposed,” you hesitantly admit, feeling every bit self-conscious about stepping out of this booth.

It is one thing to wear this on a beach or while you are lounging in a fancy jacuzzi. It is another thing to be flaunting it around while being in the middle of a mall. With strangers around you to see. Momo seems to get this when you hear her snickering from the other side of the door.

“Then take pictures of them and send them to me so we can have a look.”

“Ooh, good idea!” Taking out your phone, you start taking pictures of yourself. Posing right in front of the mirror, you find the best angles that would be able to show the set that you are wearing, before covering your bottom half with the sheer skirt and taking photos of yourself wearing the complete set as well. “Hang on, let me try out the others before sending them to you.” 

You barely hear Momo’s response as you quickly change out of the first bikini set, then repeat everything again as you try out the other two which you liked earlier—the coffee and black ones that you would feel more confident to wear. Feeling cold, you rush to quickly send all the pictures, adding a short comment for the coffee-coloured one in the message, ‘I’m getting this one for the weekend.’

Once you are done, you place your phone aside and change back into your clothes as you wait for Momo’s reaction to the pictures you sent. When you hear nothing from them, you simply figure that they might be still looking through the photos and think nothing of it and focus on sorting out the pieces you tried on before taking them with you. 

But then Momo calls out to you from outside, getting you confused when she asks, “What’s taking you so long? Did you take the pictures yet?” 

You stop in the middle of tidying yourself up. “What do you mean? I sent them all to you already.” 

“Really? I’m getting nothing on my phone though.” 

Wondering what the hell went wrong, you pick up the phone to see what happened with the messages you sent her. Only to have your stomach dropping once you open your message app, finally realising what you have done. Because you already did send out the messages and the pictures, except that you had not been messaging Momo the entire time. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck—” you curse at yourself when you see Christian’s name and his profile picture on top of the message thread. Panicking, you quickly begin deleting all the photos, even though deep down, you know that it would be no use. Minutes have gone by since they were sent out, and while Christian would often take a while to check on his phone whenever he is busy, you can already see that he had seen the pictures already, even if it had only been mere seconds before you started deleting them. 

A sharp gasp and a desperate cry leave your lips as you drop down to the floor, feeling like your legs are giving up on you, drawing Momo’s concern when she can hear everything from outside. 

“What’s wrong? What happened?” 

Covering your face with your palms, you groan defeatedly before answering, “Nothing’s wrong. Just give me a minute.” 

With a deep breath, you pick up your cell phone again to call Christian, who answers the call within the first ring, confirming your suspicions that he has been holding his phone the entire time to witness your shenanigans. The photos showing off the outfits you were trying on wouldn’t be such a big deal if you hadn’t been showing that much skin, or the funny and sultry poses you did to show off the sets which were originally meant for your best friend, or the fact that you have not even been dating this man for more than a day for you to be showing him—all of these things together. 

“Did you open the text message? Please tell me you didn’t get it,” you immediately question him even before he could finish saying hello.

“Mhhmm—” is the only response he is giving you. 

“That wasn’t supposed to be for you,” you continue blabbering, hoping for any slight chance that he might have not seen them and you had been quick enough to delete them before he could. “I’m so sorry. I was too shy to come out and show them to Momo when she asked to take a look so I took the photos for her instead.” 

“Mhhmm—” 

“What does that mean? Oh my God, you’ve seen them,” you worriedly question his lack of response and groan deeply when you realise what had happened. Though knowing that he had no doubt seen the photos only makes you grow more concerned about other things. “Oh no, you’re still working, aren’t you? Did anyone else see it? Is someone there with you?” 

Christian chuckles softly on the phone. “Yes, I’m still at work. Don’t worry, Dabin had just stepped out of the room when I opened your text.” 

“Okay—” you softly answer, though your voice fades to a muffled groan as you sit back against the booth and hug your folded legs as if it can help you hide from the world, which is clearly not missed by Christian. 

“What’s wrong? You sound funny.” 

Sighing, you refuse to raise your head as you answer, “Nothing. Just trying to figure out how to bury myself so I would stop feeling embarrassed.” 

While you are busy covering your burning face, you can almost hear the smile on his face when Christian speaks again, “I guess I have to get used to this, huh?” 

“To what? What do you mean?” 

Chuckling softly, he answers you with a teasing voice, “Getting stray messages coming in when least expected. I don’t mind it, though.” 

Burying your face deeper into your folded knees, you let out another groan. “Please stop. God, I wish I was at least drunk.” Thinking of how often this has happened between the two of you, you can only sigh to yourself. How could you have forgotten that you have been messaging constantly with Christian while you were out the whole day? “Fucking stupid. I should’ve paid more attention.” 

Your comment makes him laugh, though he quickly tries to console you by saying, “Hey, it’s fine. The messages are gone on my part too. I was just about to ask you about them when you finally noticed and they started disappearing.” 

“Thank God I was quick enough, though,” you say with a sigh. “I’m sorry again. Please forget that this happened.” 

You hear him chuckling softly on the phone. “Forget? Hah—Now, that would be a bit hard to do,” he teases, making you smile. It is quite funny how easily he makes you feel calmer, when you were so close to crying over your own stupidity merely moments ago. 

“Ian, please.” 

“I’m just teasing you, baby. Don’t worry about it, okay? Besides, no one else had seen them and they’re no longer on my phone. Although, I wish I had saved them—” 

Your cheeks have been growing warm with how gentle he is when speaking to you and calling you with this new endearment that he has chosen for you, but that quickly changes with his teasing that you roll your eyes. “Really?” 

He laughs. “I’m joking, baby. I wouldn’t do that to you. Besides, I can always keep them in my memory—” he says, while humming softly as if he is closing his eyes to recall the photos again, “—or wait for a chance to have you showing them yourself for a private preview.” 

“Hah, we’ll see about that, Mister,” you scoff at him, making him laugh. But as you find yourself feeling better and feeling less like an utter idiot, you cannot help but whisper to him, “Thank you, Ian.” 

“Anytime. Now go on and continue shopping with your friend. Don’t mind me while I’m here trying to work and not think about those photos. I’m going to be dealing with a ton of stuff here anyway, so I probably won’t remember any of them by the end of the day,” he says, drawing a smile to your face. You feel grateful for the way he is able to help you qualm your trepidation and dread simply with his gentle voice and comforting words. 

Yet, in a typical fashion of his, Christian reminds you of his mischievous ways as he teases you for the last time before ending the call, “Hey, babe? I think I liked the red one the best on you.” 

Past the entire shenanigans happening during your shopping spree, followed by the busy week where you had to go through classes and assignments while Christian was keeping up with work, the weekend finally comes. 

There was nobody home when you arrived at Momo’s house in the morning, as her family members were mostly out for the weekend, so you and Momo got to enjoy the entire house to yourselves and hang out in the new jacuzzi for as long as you like. While lounging in the hot water during the afternoon, the two of you talk about the day you spent at the mall. You share with her your apprehensions about Em and how your feelings changed after spending time with her and getting to see what kind of person Em truly was. Then Momo shares her curiosity about the secret crush that Em harbours and who it might have been directed to. 

“Could it be Dabin?” she curiously asks you after chugging down her cold beer, while you shake your head. 

“Not sure. She only said that it was one of Ian’s music producer friends, and Dabin has a lot of projects coming up with Ian so I don’t think it would make sense for him to leave,” you tell her, to which Momo groans softly. 

“Yeah, that would be hard to figure out then cause we know Christian has a ton of friends, and I doubt you’ve met every single one of them already.” 

Hearing this makes you smile. “You’re right, he does have a lot of friends and connections.” 

“Speaking of Ian,” she suddenly says, turning to you with a sly grin on her face. “Are you excited about tonight?” 

Your eyes grow wide, and you immediately feel your nerves spiking when you are reminded about what is happening tonight. After having only met Christian in person twice the entire week and only during classes, with both of you being so busy with your daily schedules, he finally called to propose taking you out on a date once he is done with his project this week. Once you found out that Momo has another plan tonight after hanging out with you, both you and Christian agreed to set the date for tonight, once he is done with the day and after Momo drops you back at your place when she leaves at sunset. 

“I’m more nervous than excited, to be honest,” you admit to her, while Momo waves her hand at you. 

“It’s fine. Everything’s going to be just fine,” she says, consoling you in her own way. “You’ve gone out with him before, so it’s going to be nothing different than those times, right?” 

You ponder about it for a moment, and it only makes you frown just to think about seeing him tonight. 

Because, no, absolutely not. It wouldn’t be anything like the times you shared with him previously. 

Because this time, it would be a date. A real date. Not just a simple meet-up at the coffee place like the times you had to meet him after class to discuss about the class assignments, or when you came with him to the work party, or the night you joined him and his friends for drinks. This is different. It would be just the two of you—no friends, no assignments, no other people around that he has to meet up with as he is handling his business. It would be just you and Christian doing whatever it is that he has planned for you. 

“I don’t think there’s anything for you to worry about, though. The guy likes you, and you like him too. I’m sure things will be great. Just like how it’s always been. Both of you are similar in a way, so I’m sure he’ll make it comfortable for you instead of making things awkward for a first date.” 

You rest your back against the side of the jacuzzi, with the hot water bubbling against your sides, massaging your toned muscles and rubbing away the tension you have in your body. You relish the pleasure you are getting while taking in what Momo is saying. She wasn’t completely wrong. Things with Christian have been flowing so easily. You have always been so comfortable when you are near him, while he seems to have always been able to sense your mood, always keeping up with your pace instead of going about things in a more rushed and lavish way. 

Perhaps the only thing that makes you worried is the fact that things have also been proceeding the way you had never once thought they would. How everything that is happening now feels like a dream, and there is a deep fear haunting you that once you are with him, once everything between the two of you changes to a new direction, you would be forced to wake up and face reality, to see that nothing is as beautiful as what your mind keeps telling you to see. 

Just like what happened back then with—

Shaking away your worries, you tell yourself that things are different now. Things have to be different. Because you have no idea how you would be able to deal with it if things turn the other way around once again. 

“You know what? Maybe you’re right. I’m worrying too much,” you finally say to Momo, making her smile with relief, not realising that you have also been consoling yourself by saying this.

“Good. That’s the spirit. Just enjoy everything and have fun with him. I’ll help you get ready if you want to and we’ll make sure you’ll be knocking him off of his feet once he sees you tonight.” 

Closing your eyes, you try to relax and give in to the comforting warmth around you, trying not to overthink and let your agitation takes over when you are supposed to be having a good time. Both now, as you are lounging in this fancy jacuzzi without having to spend a single penny, and later, when you are about to see the man who has always managed to cause your heartbeat to race wildly in your chest. 

You remain in the hot tub only for a while later, stepping out just as both of you start feeling more relaxed and you are ready to continue the lazy afternoon pampering each other and relaxing on her cozy pool-house. It isn’t until sunset when you are finally ready to leave, with Momo dropping you off before she heads out to where she needs to be. 

“Remember—” she says, once you stepped out of her car, “Don’t be so nervous and relax, enjoy your night with him. You won’t be able to have a good time if you’re worrying too much.” 

“I know. Thanks, babe,” you answer her gratefully, somehow finding yourself believing in your own words this time.

“Anytime,” she says, before quickly adding, “Oh, and wear something sexy!” 

“Goodbye, Momo,” is all you say to her as you shut the car door close, and you soon watch her car rolling out of the parking lot, leaving you all on your own to get ready for your first night out with your new boyfriend. 

[06.58 PM] From Christian: I’ll pick you up around eight. Will that be okay?

[07.03 PM] To Christian: I’ll be waiting ;)

[07.04 PM] From Christian: I can’t wait to see you :)

Just when you had thought you were ready for your fateful first date, the text that Christian sent you only makes you feel on the edge. Once again, you feel tense. The tension that you feel as you are reading his texts may not be as daunting as it was before, when your imagination kept running wild and your insecurities kept taking over with still many hours left before the date happens, yet it doesn’t mean that you are not nervous enough about tonight. 

The thought of meeting up and being alone with him tonight seems nerve-racking. But just like how you managed to get over your worries earlier, you keep repeating the same comforting words in your head like a spell as you continue getting yourself ready to see him. 

Everything is going to be okay. 

You continue reminding yourself of this as time continues to pass. The clock is ticking, your heartbeat keeps racing, and your feet would not stop pacing each time you try to relax. You can barely able to get yourself together with nothing distracting your running thoughts, but by the time eight o’clock rolls around, you have gathered up enough composure to stop pacing around your living room and pulling at your dress as you wait for him to arrive. The long trails of discarded clothes that you left behind in your bedroom when you couldn’t decide what to wear would have to wait until you return home. Right now, all you can think of is how you are going to keep it together once he is here.

A knock comes at the door, and it makes your heart do funny things even before you get to see him in person. After giving yourself a brief pep talk while shaking your trembling hands to make them calm, you finally open the door. Your heart begins doing that funny thing again, skipping a beat and rushing at the sight of Christian standing right in front of the door, waiting for you, wearing his dashing smile on his face while being surrounded by an air of confidence that makes you look at him in awe.

Stunned speechless, you say nothing to him, giving him a chance to take the sight of you in. His eyes trail down on you with an appreciative look. Going from your face to your dress, and it makes your skin grow warm under his perusing gaze. Seeing that you are still unable to speak, a smile expands so subtly on his face as he greets you first, “Hey.” 

“H-hey,” you stammer in response, which only makes his smile grow wider.

“You look great,” he says, making your cheeks burn even hotter. 

“Thanks,” you chuckle softly. “You too.” 

Christian laughs softly at this. “Are you ready? I have an Uber ride waiting for us downstairs. I hope you don’t mind. I figured if we were both going to have drinks afterwards—” 

You look up to him as he speaks and feel an instant sense of relief. Because it suddenly becomes quite obvious to you that he might be just as nervous as you currently are when you notice him rushing as he speaks, and he doesn’t seem to know what to do with his hands when he keeps slipping them in and out of his pockets or running them through his immaculate hair. 

“I’m set to go. Thanks for thinking ahead,” you quickly reassure him before he could continue with his rambling, and a visible look of relief appears on his face. 

“After you,” he says as he steps aside to let you join him once you have your jacket and purse with you, locking the door behind you as you leave for the night.   

It is a warm night, so the two of you decide to have the ride drop you off a block away from your destination so you can enjoy the short walk there, with the sight of the city’s main river accompanying your walk. As you walk side by side with him, his hand entwined gently with yours to keep you by his side and the conversation flowing slowly as you talk about your day, you find yourself steadily getting more and more comfortable. The tension that has been following you the whole day soon fades, while the familiar ease that you have often felt when you are with him starts coming back to you. 

It doesn’t take long before you finally reach the restaurant that he had chosen for tonight’s date. Situated right at the end of the boardwalk that you have been walking on and not too far from the clear river is a quaint pizza place, partly hidden from the main road but still open to the view around the neighbourhood to allow you to enjoy the comfortable atmosphere around you. He finds a table for two outside, quite a distance away from the sidewalk that you can have your own space without having to worry about the passing crowd. A soft tune of music is playing from the restaurant, giving you a pleasant welcome as you both begin perusing the menu. 

He makes a suggestion to order their signature dish, the cheese pizza, which you are completely fine with, while you choose the appetiser and one of their pasta plates to share between you two. As he hasn’t been drinking alcohol as often lately, Christian chooses a glass of their special draft beer to taste and a bottle of soda to go with his dinner, while you order a glass of cheap wine that costs nearly the same as his orders. 

This is all happening so fluidly—how you talk about the menu without worry and choosing what the two of you would like to have and share—that it feels almost natural to do something like this. There is no hint of awkwardness existing between you, helping you to forget that you are on an actual date instead of casually hanging out with him, even if the feeling lasts just for a brief moment. 

Your stomach has been in knots since you left home with him. While the short walk here and the conversation that was shared from then until this moment have helped a little to put you at ease, he would constantly bring back the tension either with his gestures or by being particularly flirty. Each time his fingers come brushing gently against your hand, sparks instantly start flying in the air around you. Your skin would tingle when you are talking to him and he leans closer to listen with rapt attention, and your chest would feel tight when his eyes are looking deeply into yours. 

And then he reminds you the reason why you have always been so captivated with him and how you began to harbour a deep crush on him, as he shares with you about everything that he has been up to lately—of the long hours he spent filming with his crew and the long nights he spent working on post-production, and also about how he is slowly diving back into making his music again. It is the moment you look into his eyes when the flutter in your chest returns, when you get to see the clear sight of his love and passion for what he does, the look that is so captivating to see that you are once again lost for words. 

The waiter returns to your table just then, setting down the drinks that Christian ordered before pouring the red wine into your glass. Once he is done, Christian leans forward to get closer. 

“So—how about you? You said this week has been busy for you,” he inquires so suddenly, sounding genuinely curious to know what you have been up to this week while he has been busy with his own thing and you haven’t seen each other after attending his last class. 

“Oh, just the usual,” you answer with a shrug. You tell him everything about the classes you went to this week and all the mundane things you would usually do during the day. But then as you begin sharing with him about your assignments, and the exciting things you do during your part-time job in the night, your excitement grows. He should be able to notice it from the tone of your voice, or the way you keep twirling the wine glass in your hand as you speak. Either way, there seems to be no way Christian would miss the way you are enjoying these things, as he keeps his eyes on you the entire time, looking deeply at you as he listens, taking in everything you are sharing with him. 

“Speaking of your work—” you hum, suddenly recalling the day you joined him during filming. “I kind of missed being in that environment, to be able to see you work and see how you handle things in the set. Your crew seems so fun to work with too.” 

Hearing this makes him smile. “You’re right. I’m lucky to be working with a group of talented people. Working with them has been fun,” he says, before he suddenly tilts his head and you see him getting curious about something.

“You know, I’ve been wondering—” he starts as he leans closer over the table to gently ask you, “How did you get here?” 

You raise your eyebrows. “You…picked me up. At home,” you answer him, feigning innocence, even if you have quite an inkling of what he is trying to ask. 

“I’m not talking about being here,” he chuckles softly. “How did you end up studying film production? Have you always been so interested in making videos and movies?” 

You bite your lips. Not feeling sure how to answer him at first. “It’s quite a long story,” you finally tell him. “And a part of it might be a bit embarrassing to share.” 

Christian gives you a reassuring smile. “I got time. And I won’t laugh, I promise.”

Sipping your wine slowly, you try to decide where to begin. Once you gather enough courage, you finally admit to him softly, “Actually, I could probably say that I got interested to dive deeper into this because of you.” 

Christian’s eyes grow wide in shock, obviously not prepared enough to hear this. “What—?” 

Chuckling softly, you begin to tell him everything. “When I started college, I knew I was either going to study art or film, but I have to admit that I had no direction to know where to go. I’ve always loved movies and old films, and I loved the artistry behind creating music videos. I’ve also been drawn to documentary videos for a long time, but I never knew if I would be able to take up the challenge to dive into that world. And then I remember stumbling upon your videos during that time—” you stop briefly as you recall finding his raw videos before his crew grew into what is known today, but it was seeing him sharing those raw videos and making the process behind them seem like such a fun thing to do that got you so drawn into the entire process and finally getting to love it as well. 

“I tried to see if I would like it, so I started by learning and doing photography while saving up to buy my own camera set. Then you started sharing your travel videos and your post-production process online, and it got me interested in learning more about photography and film. And I was right about it being so much fun. I found the kind of challenge I was looking for in film major.” You stop for a brief moment and cannot help but smile as you recall those days when you finally had your mind set on it. “Let me just say that switching from art major to film production was the best decision I’ve ever made in life.” 

You turn to smile at him just then, realising that you finally get the chance to do the one thing that you have always wanted to do. That you finally get to do what you had always imagined you would be once you meet him in person. “Thank you for inspiring me, by the way,” you say to him with a grateful smile, before adding playfully, “And if it wasn’t for you, I probably wouldn’t end up taking the post-production course to finally meet you in person.” 

Christian has been in such awe as he listens to your story that he seems to be lost for words. You feel worried that you might have been oversharing with him and that you are making him uncomfortable with your confession. A part of you is relieved that you get to say all of this instead of keeping them to yourself, but another part of you is afraid that he might feel burdened by the admiration you have for him, and you are worried that it might only push him away. 

But seeing him getting flustered makes you feel intrigued, curious to know how he feels about what you had just said to him. Clearing his throat, he rubs a palm over his lips to cover his bashful smile, though you can still see the crimson shade materialising on his skin. 

“You’re flattering me too much that I have no idea what to say,” he says with a nervous chuckle. Noticing your silence as you are waiting for his response, and perhaps noticing how shy and tense you seem to be feeling, Christian scoots his chair closer until he is within inches of you and reaches for your hand, once again igniting the sparks between you as he takes your smaller hands between his larger ones. 

“But I’m glad that finding my videos was what led you to me,” he gently says as he rubs his fingers against yours. “Or else, we probably wouldn’t be sitting together like this tonight, and I wouldn’t get to know your amazing personality and talent.” 

This time, you are the one who is flustering in the middle of what was supposed to be an innocent conversation. With his hand on yours, his deep eyes looking intently into yours, and his presence being so close, you are not only feeling sparks rising between you, but also heat simmering in the air that you start feeling a different kind of tension. The kind that gets your chest filled with delicate flutters and your body growing warm. 

The food arrives, granting a short moment of reprieve from the rolling tension as he finally leans away and the two of you soon dive into the beautiful meal while the conversation between you lightens.

“So,” he says while eyeing you expectantly as he slowly devours his food. “Tell me more about your, um—little adventure at the mall.”

You immediately laugh at this. “There is nothing more to share. If any, I think I may have already overshared with you by accidentally sending you those photos.” 

Christian softly chuckles, and he glances at you with a sly look dancing in his gaze. “I have no regrets of it happening,” he says, while you can only shake your head. 

“I’m sure you don’t,” you taunt him in return. 

Despite playing along, he probably suspects that you are still feeling uncomfortable about the mishap that happened that day. He reaches across the table to once again cover your hands with his. “Don’t worry, nobody else saw those photos, I promise. And you deleted them from both devices already so you won’t be able to find those photos anywhere on my phone, I’m sure,” he says, reassuring you. Though it is hard to feel immediately relieved when you see the playful grin growing on his face soon after. “Lucky for me, I have quite a good memory, so I won’t have to look for them again to remember everything. Like the coffee-coloured one that you said you were buy—ow! I’m kidding!”

Rubbing his upper arm which had just become the victim of your reflexed slapping, Christian laughs, pleased to see your reaction. You tease each other a while longer while you continue enjoying your meal, with his hand occasionally reaching out to you at every chance he gets, from brushing against yours to entwining his fingers between yours whenever he likes it.

When casting your gaze down on your joined hands, your heartbeat would start racing rapidly. Everything still feels like a dream that you want to pinch your skin so badly to see if you would wake up from this, yet you can still feel his warmth through your entwined fingers, letting you know that this moment is real. 

Then you would look up to see his face, to see his smile from up close and listen to his voice as he chats with you, and you realise that he is real. 

Instead of allowing your nerves to take over and have yourself be intimidated by his presence, you choose to savour this moment. Because the more you open yourself to him, and the longer you are together with this man, you finally realise that the infatuation that you feel growing between you isn’t simply a figment of your imagination. That it is truly there, and it is just as real as the two of you, present and blooming steadily even without any of you realising it. 

Once dinner is done, Christian takes you to another walk just to have more time with you. This time, he chooses to make a stop at the small dessert spot not too far from your place and start from there. 

You can feel his eyes on you while you are slowly licking at your ice cream, savouring the taste and this serene moment you have together as you walk on the side of the street, with nobody paying attention to any of you. 

“Have you been enjoying the night so far?” Christian suddenly asks you once you arrive at your place and he is now walking you to your door. 

“Do you hear me complaining?” you question him, drawing a smile to his face. “I had fun. I think it was the most fun I’ve had in a while, to be honest.” 

Chuckling softly, Christian nods his head. “Same with me. I always love being with you,” he admits slowly. “You always make me feel—” he sighs, as if having trouble finding the right words to say. “Comfortable with myself, if I have to describe it with words, and that’s not even half of it.” 

Soon enough, you are standing right in front of your door, with your hands entwined and he is not showing any sign of letting you go. Deep down, you also feel like you are not ready to part ways with him. Your chest feels heavy as you are not ready for the night to end this soon. 

So you turn to him, smiling as you nervously ask him, “Do you want to come in?” 

His smile grows, and there is something showing in his gaze that looks quite unfamiliar to you when he says, “I would love to.” 

He follows you as you walk into your warm home, still with your hands interlaced with one another. The moment the door is closed right behind him, Christian reaches out to you and pulls you to him, before he finally does the one thing he seems to have wanted to do all night long, as he soon leans down, capturing your lips in his to a deep, long kiss that takes your breath away. 

And the heat that has been simmering between you the entire night erupts into flame.

— © 2018-2023 Yoonia, all rights reserved. reposting/modifying of any kind, translations, unsanctioned adaptations are not allowed.

[diviningrodtv]

Oh yeah, NSH Time.

I've been holding this post back for like a week😅

I absolutely love how NSH came out and I think he's currently my favourite rain world model that I've done! (Sorry Pebbles, I'm going to upgrade you later anyway :]

I also made his scarf easily removable so you can see how the stripes aren't just on his head! The stripes and his irises also glow, but a bit brighter than the areas on Five Rotten Pebbles.

His antennae are pretty similar to how I did Sliver's, especially considering I did his first! XD They're separated from his head a bit.

Also if you've noticed in my art that his eyes are the exact same as in the model here, that's because they are! I tried finding a way to draw them how I usually might, but I just couldn't get the same vibe! So I said, "Fuck it!" and I've been drawing over his model ever since XD

NSH is also who I used to make the "umbilical arm" model! So if you saw those posts, that's why the textures are all messed up!

And here it is in all it's glory!

It's mostly made of ball joints with a flexible joint attached to the back. The last segment also twists just like your forearm bones!

Also..... lore shit below cause I have, plans™ so-

If you don't want to know why NSH is acting strange on my blog yet, read no further!

(there's also some downpour spoilers, and some other disturbing things)

*slaps top of can* This bad boy can fit so much fucking insanity in him. (cw: self-harm yeah you heard me)

If you haven't figured it out already (I did drop hints :) NSH's structure is damaged! His legs are giving out because a group of scavengers thought it would be funny to transport all of their explosives at once.

So he's in a bit of a pickle!

This is when Looks to the Moon and Five Pebbles' communication tower is repaired! During their first conversation in a very long time, NSH finds out about good ol' Hunter long legs, and is rightfully distraught! He feels like a total failure, that he wasn't experienced enough to properly create his messenger.

That's what this whole post was about!

But, experience is something that can be gained.

NSH figured if Five Pebbles was able to leave his can, then he should be able to as well, but that requires solving the three problems I mentioned in the Five Rotten Pebbles post:

The self-genome modification barrier,

A general lack of puppet central brain matter, and

No material processing within the puppet.

I'll talk about my umbilical lore for this AU here since it's relevant.

Either the "cord" or the "arm" can be disconnected, but not both. This is for ease of repair by administrators. Disconnecting them both would leave the unfortunate Iterator fully functional. Although, they would be blind in the visible spectrum (apart from overseers), unable to speak directly to someone in their chamber, and would otherwise have their workflow be severely impaired. They would effectively be trapped in their own head.

NSH realised that even if the barriers existed, they could still have the intentions, to break them. So what would happen, if he broke one? Not by writing it out of his system, Five Pebbles already proved how risky that method was, but instead by setting his actions in motion faster than any barrier could stop them? This was something to test, and wasn't that what Iterators were built to do anyway?

Umbilicals can only be disconnected by administrators, but what if he were to do it anyway? He needed to leave his can after all, it wouldn't be much of a loss if he was stuck on the floor of his chamber or floating aimlessly in zero gravity for a while.....

So what if he just ran fast enough to rip himself off?

What if he moved his arm back at the last second, could he gain enough inertia to pull it out of his back? Even if it took a few tries?

What other choices does he have? Perfect Five Pebbles' method until he collapses and continue even then? He had time, but not enough for that, and The Hunter certainly did not have any time for waiting around. NSH had to fix his mistake, he had to.

So this bastard goes and does exactly that, and short-circuits his entire system.

Not just breaking the umbilical maintenance barrier, but every other one in the process.

And it all hurts like hell.

But that's the first problem solved, and now he can help keep himself afloat longer. So that now, he can figure out how to solve the other two problems with precision.

Of course, the others won't like any of these plans, but, after what Five Pebbles did, they wouldn't dare disturb him if he stopped responding, right?

And maybe, he could even hijack their communications array, to look for help.

>:]

yeah so NSH is not sane

[bokettochild]

Opera House AU Roles

Okay, so I keep getting asks about this AU, so here's the roles each of the chain/princesses would take in the opera house

Lullaby: Director and owner

She started the opera house and runs it like the leaky ship it is. They make good money and do good work, but every work is like a piece of embroidery; pretty from the front, but when you look at the back....

Time: Blocking Director

Lullaby runs most things, but Time is the person who runs everyone through choreography and plans how to enact things on the stage. He's Lullaby's partner, but that doesn't mean they agree on everything.

Malon: Voice Teacher

Time hired her when Twilight joined, because he really wanted to help this kid get back on his feet, but working in the house means you need to be able to sing, if only for back-vocals. She occasionally helps out backstage and will fill in roles if needed, but she's not officially part of the company. Yet. Lullaby is trying to recruit her, but Malon kinda loves working for the music school that hired her out.

Twilight: Actor and stagehand

His preferred work is backstage, helping move props and scenery quickly between scenes, and he's good at it. Sometimes though, they need someone to fill various roles and he gets slapped in there. Luckily, he can avoid most singing roles, and his main thing is action.

Sky: Actor

Sky is the best stuntman in the whole cast, but not as good an actor. He's good at both, but action is far better than line delivery. He's most often called on to play antagonistic roles as a result, since his skills in fight scenes actually leave the audience worried he will destroy their hero. Many people are surprised to find out he's such a great guy off stage.

Fi: Sky's fencing instructor

She neither works for the opera house, nor at it, if she can help it. She comes over from time to time to work with Sky though, and if he asks, she might help some of the others. Time is her former protege, but they have beef between them for some reason so he doesn't like having her around. She loves the kids though, in her own way, Legend and Wind specifically.

Warriors: The Diva

He picked up something of a following in high-school and college, and when he came to the opera house, needing work, he basically brought his fans with. His is the headline name they use to draw crowds in most times, so more often then not he's the male lead in most plays. Surprisingly though, he's pretty decent about it, and while Legend and Twilight may say otherwise, his ego is properly held in check. He's a great singer and performer, and second best to Sky in action related things.

Artemis: Diva No. 2

Warriors pulled a few strings to get his ex-girlfriend from college a role when Lullaby was short some actors. Her chemistry with Wars on stage has quickly made her a fan favorite, and her own performing sealed the deal. She and Wars have a good relationship for being ex-college-sweethearts. Both of them were already up and coming stars before coming to the opera house, and it's still a bit of a shock to folks that they haven't left for greener pastures, but they're attached dang it.

Dusk: Singer & Dive No. 3

While her acting skills are less varied than Warriors and Artemis, her voice is far superior to either, which more than compensates for her lack of versatility in roles. She's the last piece of the Diva Trio, and her most common roles are either villainesses, powerful women and mothers (ironically). She's not as close with the rest of the crew as they are with each other, but she's new yet, and has only been with the company for a year. Her bond with Wars and Arty is pretty strong though, because they won't let her sit alone, and have pushed down the walls a bit.

Sun: Starlet

Sun is one of the up and coming performers. She's not nearly as big a name as the Diva Trio, but she does pretty well and her voice is to die for. She and Sky both study under Fi, and so she's pretty good with stunts, although not as great as Sky (yet). She's also a decent hand at needlework, so she's something of an emergency seamstress when a seam is popped or some such.

Fable: Actress

Not as present in the team as she'd like, due to her somewhat overprotective guardians, Fable is a skilled actress who Artemis is convinced will one day follow in her footsteps to become a radiant star. The only thing stopping her from gaining a big name in the industry is the aforementioned guardians, who love her, but again, worry endlessly. She joined by the suggestion of her old classmate, Flora, and to this day remains the only person who can reliably tame their wild child.

Legend: Jack-of-all-Trades

His official job is non-existant. He's been here since he was a literal infant (Twilight couldn't get a sitter) and it shows. He's picked up just about everything there is to know about the opera house, and never got formally hired (although he is paid). He's the go-to guy for just about anything and everything. He takes acting roles, particularly those more dance or trick related, as he's the only guy who actually knows genuine acrobatics and most forms of dance, and because he's young, he can take literally any role, even that of females. Most of the time though, he's backstage with a tool-belt of everything possible, fixing last minute costume, make-up, or set issues. He also tends to pick up strays.

Ravio: Prop Manager

Ravio's job is to construct and make sure props are where they should be at all times. He and Legend work hand in hand on most things, mostly because Legend originally was prop-manager (of sorts) before he got Ravio into the opera house. Ravio is one of "Legend's strays" as the boys ran into each other shortly after Leg came back from abroad, and the Lorulian was desperately searching for a room-mate. Legend helped him get a job better than where he was (pawn shop) and Ravio feels utterly indebted to him, and makes sure Leg knows it.

Styla: Costume manager

While Legend helps out in costume, it's actually Styla's domain. She's skillful in her work and quick to make unfortunate mistakes and pieces turn out surprisingly well. She's blessed with good speaking skills and copious charm, so she sometimes take on roles on stage, but she can't sing any more than Twilight can. She does not want lessons. Ravio and Legend are desperately trying to make her take them anyway; they work closely with her as a trio of their own, and much as they love her, she gives them headaches.

Hyrule: Assistant jack-of-all-trades

Another of Legend's strays, Hyrule, like so many others, is a fresh-out-of-foster street kid. He saved Legend's life by chance, and Leg determined to pay him back by getting him a job as a stage hand at the opera house, and a room in the living quarters there. Lullaby is used to the pinkette, so she didn't object, but everyone's glad Hyrule joined because he's absolutely amazing. What he lacks in natural talent, he makes up for in hard work and a quick mind. Warriors is certain Hyrule could make a killer performer, but with his lack of confidence it's slow going. The diva is utterly intent on taking Rule under his wing though and teaching him little by little. Ravio and Legend do not appreciate Wars stealing their assistant though.

Wind: Gofer

Wind is Warriors' kid cousin. Freshly in Hyrule from overseas, he's working at the opera house after school. He's pretty close with the other stage crew, and a huge reason Hyrule didn't get scared off in the first week. This kid is the most in touch with reality out of most of the crew, and acts as a buffer from their insanity to any newcomers. He tends to run and fetch for the most part, but at times has been known to also help craft the sets with Legend. They are artists and they do shit talk everyone while they do it.

Four: Special Effects

You know that one tech-nerd with too much coffee in their system, not enough sleep and perpetually frazzled hair? That's Four. Four handles lights, sound, special effects and all things mechanical. Everything's always on the fritz, so he is too. He does enjoy acting, but he gets anxiety about letting anyone else run his job, so he tends to avoid taking roles unless he's 110% sure Flora can handle without him.

Flora: Assistant Light Technition

Officially, she works lights, unofficially, she's Four's assistant. This girl was bred for the stage and avoids it like the plague. Her family is famous for acting but she's content to play lights and sounds crew with Four, and no one has seen her happier. She joined by her parents insistence, as an actress and learning under Wars and Arty, but one show gone wrong had her throwing herself in to help Four just in time and he's considered her irreplaceable since. She has no interest in going back on stage and no one makes her.

Groose: Tech Assistant

Working with the backstage crew, Grooise's official job title is technical assistance, but even he will joke that he's actually just a glorified ladder. He, like the others, acts on occasion, although his real passion lies in planning out the more difficult mechanics required to pull off certain effects and stunts. He essentially bridges the gap between the costume and props department and the special effects team.

Robbie and Purah: IT

This insane duo are known as "the basement dwellers" or "the witches" to most of the team. They're technically on payroll, but rarely seen. Purah is something like the last resort when Groose & Co. can't figure stuff out, and Robbie is her somewhat reluctant assistant. They emerge on occasion with all sorts of crazy ideas and items, and are some of Legend and Wild's favorite people in the crew because they never fail to provide the prop master and prop breaker with cool new toys.

Wild: Actor and Stuntman

Where Sky is their swordsman and Legend their acrobat, Wild is the guy who will pull all the stunts the others won't. He's still in uni at the moment, but his acting skills are to die for, as he can manage the stoic and dashing hero or the playful jester types with equal skill and believablity. He is, however, a risk to props and costumes in general, so he and and the prop/costume team don't always get along well and they're often dubious about letting him take key roles with key costumes/props as a result.

Linkle: Effects

Four and Flora officially work special effects, but occasionally call in Warriors' twin sister for some specialty stuff. No one knows what she does normally (except Warriors) and they're all a bit too scared to ask

Dawn: Secretary

Lullaby's a busy woman, so she hired Dawn to help her with some of the office work. Generally speaking, Dawn stays in the office and her only contact with the cast and crew is to handle complaints and any official work. She is, however, fantastically talented on the piano, something Lullaby and Time both encourage her to pursue. She plays the grande they have in house on her breaks, and occasionally in shows. She croaks like a frog when she sings though, end even Malon can't seem to help her with that.

Aurora: Front of House

Aurora works the ticket collections and generally minds front of house. Her warmth and eccentric attitude help add to the magic of the opera house and enchant the guests.

Dot: Think Tank

While a capable actress when called on, Dot's skill lies with the pen, and while the opera tends to preform classics as their main attractions, Dot does see that they have an abundance of new content for their smaller shows. She also acts as the outreach to the community to open the opera house to the public for use in community events. She and Dawn work pretty closely.

Dei: Trainer

Time's mentor after Fi, he's a bit of a hard ass and tends not to get involved in his protege's work. He is, however, currently training Warriors, so he is around from time to time to help the diva with his work. Time and he remain somewhat cordial, but there is some tension there, although not as bad as with Fi.

And while I know people are counting through and going "what about Tetra?", I am going to point out that Tetra wouldn't be caught dead working in the opera. She comes to support (and heckle) anything Wind is in, but generally stays out of the building otherwise, at least while the cast and crew are actually there.

And that covers it! At least for the time being.

If y'all have any further questions or thoughts, or character I may have missed, feel free to share them!

[iniziare]

I'm finally moved in! I need to unpack some more (and rearrange this kitchen's cabinets, because my god who lived here before me— a tall Dutch person?) But I need some rest before I get to that, for my arms and legs are killing me after last night's repeated walks here. Peace, god, I've missed you with every fiber of myself. But as I (still) wake up from my nap, I wanted to touch on a quick little Kafka thing that I'm not sure how many people have noticed, but hopefully will add to their perception of her, and most importantly, how I actually approach her character.

I think it's easy to say that Kafka's character appears to be 'inconsistent' if you look at her through only the singular lens of the 'spider', and I think that's doing a massive disservice to both her and Hoyoverse respectively. Let me try to explain this for a moment: Kafka is not solely represented by the arachnid, she is also represented by the butterfly. Yes, you read it right. Listen, it's so easy to see the plethora of motifs that pretty much force you to acknowledge the former, in anything from her attire, to the webs, to her very calculating and cunning nature. But they hide, to me, an obvious thing right in plain sight: the butterfly brooch, it stands out like a sore thumb. And like many on X, I used to associate it with the Trailblazer, and their 'transformation' and how that may play into the 'loss' that Kafka is insinuated to have suffered. Ergo, it would carry a fair amount of emotional weight. But ever since I saw it pinned on Blade on official promotional art, this started feeling a bit too ill-fitting for me. HYV doesn't do things willy nilly, and Kafka is very specific and sentimental with certain things, so it didn't feel right that it would be given to Blade even temporarily (it's not specific to him, it is simply that it's too important to give to anyone, ever), so instead— I wanted to see what else this could mean. Now, without overthinking anything, a butterfly stands in almost direct opposition to the spider, in that it is often perceived as restless, or impatient, with the way that it flutters from flower to flower, never keeping its attention on the same thing for too long (does this sound like Kafka's boredom yet, anyone?) — unlike the spider, which is often considered a symbol of patience. And in that journey, I found the second butterfly motif: butterflies that appear behind her as she uses her skill, the skill that, mind you, constructs a web in front of her. And they're not just butterflies, they're black butterflies, which evokes an even richer symbolism and imagery that goes beyond even the 'foundational' concept of what the butterfly on its own means for her character.

Any way, all of this rambling to say that a long meta on this topic for her is still long overdue as this is something that I've been sitting on for months now, but haven't been able to properly put into words because, well, life. But I'm looking forward to being able to get to all of it now. But hello, does this add to your perception, and explain a bit why I write Kafka with such a curiosity? That, boredom, restlessness, and an intrinsic draw to 'beauty', she may not only be potentially 'other' in terms of possibly not being entirely human, but she is, and has always been 'other' in her nuance. Seeing Kafka as merely represented by the spider sells her, in my opinion, very short— because it takes all of the nuance away from her very intricate character. This duality is vital to understanding how she works and ticks, because otherwise I think it's too simple to fall into 'this doesn't suit her character', while actually— yes, it absolutely does.

[baqki]

hey, long time no see

to anyone about to read this novel, have a rockin' monday!

i don't know exactly what sparked me wanting to log on to this account that's been collecting dust for a millennia now, but here i am

honestly i think it's because i'm rewatching something that i was heavily involved in the fandom of on this website back in the day, and i ended up reminiscing about a lot of things and seeing my old art in places, and i just wanted to.. i don't know, come over and talk

firstly i just want to be clear and formally apologize for. well, a bunch of things. i joined this site back around 2011 or so, back when i was still in high school. i'm 32 now. that's a big chunk of my life to dedicate to a website.

a lot of great memories were made here. i'll treasure that, always. but there are also a lot of bumps in my history that are still very painful to think about. losing friendship after friendship, making people uncomfortable, that last one especially. it's strange to look back at my online life and want to do nothing but curl up and kind of vanish, but i can look at it all thru a new lense- turns out i was very, very, very autistic, and didn't know it yet. that was the final piece of understanding why i've been so weird and offputting my entire life.

if i ever made anyone that might be reading this uncomfortable, whether it be thru my actions or my art, i'm sorry. my entire online life has depended on bouncing from thing to thing to just fit in and be approved by people i looked up to. sometimes that pushed myself into directions i am not proud of. so did hyperfixation, by the by- stuck on something so intensely it keeps me from being able to properly function because it's the only thing in my head.

i kind of just have to deal with pieces of me being out there in the world on platforms that i can't control anymore or delete, and that's okay, i guess. it's really hard for me, it's a scary thought, but at least i can give myself a bit of kindness and kind of understand Why a little more. why people just seemed to not deal with me well, why i treated others the way i did. none of it is an excuse but being undiagnosed at the time plus living the majority of my early youth online and especially on this website, it just makes sense now, like i said before.

i don't do much actively in fandom spaces anymore. my friend circle is small, i am too disabled to draw anymore, which is why you don't see my art on any platform that i'm on. maybe one day when i have access to proper medical care and medication, but not right now. right now i am just hanging out with some lifelong friends (some of which i met on here) and playing final fantasy 14.

this has been kind of a major ramble, so i'll try to summarize it here:

to anyone i made actively uncomfortable for whatever reason, i am so, so sorry i did that to you. i won't say i didnt know any better at the time or something like that, but it was very difficult to understand what i was doing and why it was a problem. i know now. it's a case of genuinely understanding my mistakes and learning from them and just doing better, and overall i have been doing better for years. i think so, anyway.

to anyone i've met along the way, i still think about you, i really mean that. i don't forget anyone that's been in my life, right down to the occasional follower that i would consistently see in my notifications. i hope every single one of you is doing well. it's been a really rocky road and i'm not quite satisfied with where i'm at, but for the most part, the journey to get here was fun, and i appreciate everyone.

thanks for bearing witness to my most embarrassing moments! with 2025 going down the tube already, i just hope that we can all do our best. that's all i really want. i haven't read this back, so i hope it makes sense.

if anyone wants to reach out, dm me, i have discord, i'm on xiv, i'm trying to use bluesky but i don't know if i'll bother giving that one out because i have like 7 posts total at most. be cool, all right?

love ya,

dal

[knight--of-the-stars]

Day 33 <3

🎀✨Day 33: I tried to astral project to make my contract, and I zoned out so much I was unaware, but then I zoned back in, and I was able to continue like normal! I almost astral projected too, but my meditation turned off on accident, so that threw me off a little. I just noticed I have 100 followers now, so thank you all very much for following me! ^_^ ⏱💣I feel a very strange, very strong connection to Sayaka Miki for some reason. I don't understand why. I don't feel like I am Sayaka or anything, I feel like I'm supposed to do something for or with her. It's hard to explain. Maybe the summer heat is getting to me. Update: I think it was just the heat. I don't feel it anymore. 💐☕I'm going to reality shift as a bit of a break from astral projecting because I haven't even tried shifting in who knows how long, so I'm going to mess around and have fun in other realities for a while. 🎧🌊I've been drawing a bit for the magiazine. It's only sketches for now, but it's a lot more drawing than I've done in a while. Sometimes it feels like a drawing just isn't working, but since it's a sketch, the important part is to properly convey what I meant to, so I guess I'll need to push through for now. 🍎📿I'm still going to be astral projecting every day or every other day. The first time I tried, I fell asleep. The second time, I was interrupted. And the third time, I got to the end of the meditation, but I stopped before I could project. Since I've been making progress every time, it would be bad to stop now. It should only take 1 or 2 tries to get to the astral realm, and I think I know exactly what to do when I do get there.

[ducktracy]

How would you rank the entries in the Hunting Trilogy (aka Rabbit Season, Duck Season) from favorite to least favorite?

ALRIGHT, i just rewatched the entire trilogy to properly answer this! so, prepare for rambling HAHA. but as it stands now, i would personally rank them:

Rabbit Seasoning

Rabbit Fire

Duck, Rabbit, Duck!

BUT. if i were ranking on which i think are the BEST in a more objective standpoint? then:

Rabbit Seasoning

Duck, Rabbit, Duck!

Rabbit Fire

i've expressed this grievance before, but i, like probably most other people, grew up when the landscape surrounding LT was Chuck Jones Chuck Jones Chuck Jones. the hunting trilogy is the main association of the series to many. for good reason! all of the shorts are fantastic. it's amazing that Chuck was able to keep such a streak going as long as he did with the trilogy--especially since all 3 shorts are so reliant on being extensions of each other and utilizing the same formula. that novelty can get old REALLY fast (exhibit A, at least in my personal opinion: the Pepe cartoons), so it's sort of amazing that all three are as sharp and have defining characteristics against one another

however, i've definitely become victim to the Jones saturation of the 90s-00s, and the hunting trilogy has been one of the biggest offenders. i don't go out of my way to watch the trilogy often for this reason, and i haven't entirely been able to shake myself OF that oversaturation like i have with other Jones shorts of the era. which stinks! i'm very frustrated by this

NEVERTHELESS! Rabbit Seasoning is tops for me and is probably my favorite Bugs and Daffy period, next to Beanstalk Bunny. i think it has the greatest balance of what makes the hunting trilogy so successful and memorable. snappy wordplay that happily indulges in Mike Maltese's writing credit--"STILL LURKING ABOUT" i think pops into my head the most. really nice balance of funny and REVEALING facial expressions, Daffy getting his beak blown off unfortunately gets old for me very quickly but i feel this short is more reliant on finding other avenues that reach a similar goal in comedy. the lipsmack Daffy does to the camera after seeing Elmer fall for Bugs made me laugh really really hard the first time i gave this one a chance again in recent years

likewise, Bugs' introduction in that one is something i really appreciate. i'm not sure how purposeful this was (but i certainly feel it had to be), but Bugs humoring Elmer at the very beginning is a direct mirror to his introduction and subsequent banter in A Wild Hare. Carl Stalling even uses the same music cue, which is an original music cue!! i feel that's not only an endearing callback to the roots of both characters, but likewise establishes just how much progress has been made since then AND seems to even be poking fun at the original scene itself.

i also think that the drawings are sharpest in it, they feel the most solid and confident and tight. Duck, Rabbit, Duck is visually solid for the most part, but i think can get a bit melty in some spots--and i know i may be in the minority for thinking this, but there are some frames in Rabbit Fire that are just plain ugly to me i'm sorryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!

BUT, moving on a bit. i personally enjoy and get more out of Rabbit Fire, but i think Duck, Rabbit, Duck! is the funnier cartoon and more structurally sound. Fire has some understandable growing pains, including some odd jump cuts and a lack of hook-ups, whereas DRD has the benefit of getting the formula down. with that said, i feel DRD is much more dependent on formula, and i tend to enjoy cartoons that are a little more freeform--all of the hunting trilogy shorts are heavily character based, but i really enjoy the prevalence of character acting in Fire.

copy and pasting something i literally just sent to someone else: i was just thinking about the disguise bit in Rabbit Fire, Mel doing the characters imitating each other is so crazy good, but i also like how with Daffy's impression of Bugs, you still feel some of those Daffy-isms present. he doesn't entirely commit to the bit as faithfully as Bugs in WHAT he actually says. and i think that's an amazing attention to detail in character acting; Daffy's impulses just can't help but bleed through everything he does

i feel DRD doesn't have that same sort of intimacy? if that makes sense? but, at the same time, it doesn't need to--Fire was the first formal Bugs and Daffy outing, so it makes sense for there to be a heavier presence on figuring out how they play against each other vs DRD being the final effort in the trilogy, all the fat has been cut, now it's just time for gags gags gags. DRD likewise has the benefit of really snappy, fetching dialogue ("I'M A FIDDLER CRAB")... but Fire appeals to my sensibilities more. i also like that it's the short that gives Bugs the most to do--he still has a little bit of his scrappiness, and that's always always always a point of favorability to me.

i still feel like i have so much more to say on this and yet i also can't think of much else to say! i feel i have more to justify but don't know what that is LOL. BUT YEAH, Rabbit Seasoning indisputably takes the cake for me. it's easily the short of the trilogy i revisit most and is actually one i feel an active desire to watch every now and then. i think it has the best balance of everything and is egalitarian in where it pulls its comedy from--it's not all from the faces, not all from the acting, not all from the situation, there's a really solid balance of all

and the "wait til you get home" bit is just one of my favorite endings to a Chuck Jones short period. flawless execution. i deeply love Carl Stalling's gently climactic crescendo in the music and the abstraction of the gunfire caricatured with color cards through the house's windows.

that, and this just cracks me up