#I just wanted to share some of my thoughts because unknowingly some people who are hating on Coco are also insulting the tradition

[salteytakesonmanga]

Your explanation about retconing made me think Oda's way of writing is exactly what bring people to think he has every single thing planed down from the start, even if he didn't.

The story has been going on for 20 years, and Oda himself has admitedly had ideas along the way that he added. But the fact he's still able to connect every new idea instead of having to retcon things is what makes one piece feel so perfectly planned and tied.

Anon, you innocently sent me this ask to share your thoughts and unknowingly triggered one of my rants. I’m sorry/thank you.

Anon is referring to this post.

Oda is just a good writer! He is good at the craft of writing! Even if you don’t like the story (I’m assuming you do, but for people who don’t…) it’s just WELL WRITTEN. People really aren’t used to seeing good writing anymore, to seeing tropes deployed effectively and having plot lines actually connect. This isn’t just me being cranky and old, it’s just truth. People are talking about this in film, TV, books… One Piece has been around so long that it comes from a generation of storytelling that is vastly different from our modern media landscape.

I think people are burned out on the way modern storytelling never delivers (looking at you, JJ Abrams) or constantly jerks people around to elicit a reaction, all for the sake of nabbing that viral moment. When they see Oda deploy a trope or a storytelling device they’re immediately suspicious and fearful that it’ll turn into another unsatisfying gotcha. They rush to look for proof that it’s either all part of a detailed master plan, or it’s just a cheap trick to sell more issues.

In both cases, people are looking for a reason to be LESS INVESTED in the story. If he has a master plan, they don’t need to get worried or excited because it’s all heading to some inevitable conclusion that’s been clearly telegraphed and once you’ve cracked the code then you can already tell what the ending will be, so you don’t actually have to care. If he’s winging it, then the story is just a sequence of loosely connected meaningless scenes whose only purpose is to get you hype about a plot leading nowhere, so you don’t actually have to care.

And it breaks my fucking heart.

When it comes to One Piece, so many people are insistent that One Piece is EITHER 100% planned in advance down to every minute detail, or Oda is completely winging the whole thing. But the real answer is somewhere in between, in some muddy grey area that people find really unsatisfying. They want one clear answer that they can hold up as “The Right One,” but life is not made up of black and white answers.

Honestly it makes me really sad that people can read ALL THIS - pirates are evil except actually pirates are good and the Marines are evil except the Marines are trying to protect civilians by keeping countries stable so that's good except the rulers are evil tyrants so that's bad except when they’re not and then they’re good but only sometimes and… - and what they come away with from it is, “Okay but what’s the RIGHT answer.”

The thing that makes One Piece feel like it’s so cohesive despite Oda constantly changing his mind and making shit up is that he has a very strong and clear idea about what’s actually important to the story and what’s flexible. Because he has that as a guide, he can add the Shichibukai and change Vivi from a villain to a princess and make up who Ace’s parent is without diluting what he wants to say.

That’s what it MEANS to be a writer. Foreshadowing isn’t “boring,” it’s good writing. A plot twist you didn’t see isn’t “cheap,” it’s good writing. Fleshing out a backstory isn’t “reconning,” it’s good writing.

[yuri-is-online]

ruggie to (unknowingly) his kid: imma flirt with your mom and potentially erase your existence, sorry not sorry

*cracks knuckles* nothing but the best for my favorite hyena.

notes: they/them used for Yuu, for context on the fyuuture kid au can be found here and here.

The entire Yutu situation gives Leona a headache.  He sees the portal, takes a sniff, rolls his eyes, and goes looking for the only hyena he (or to be more accurate Yuu) knows.  He doesn't outright say “congratulations you're a dad” because he doesn't know if that would be too much to believe but Ruggie takes the whole "time traveler related to Yuu" idea fairly well.  I mean, Yuu’s from another world and Ruggie was pretty convinced that was impossible until .  What bothers him is Leona's saying Yutu is a beastman.  That can only really mean one thing, but Ruggie doesn't want to bug Leona for any more details because what if his first thought is wrong and all his hopes are crushed?  I mean he never said that Yutu was Yuu's kid... just that they are related. Maybe it's an ancestry thing and he can just adjust the streams a bit?

Meanwhile Yutu is thrilled to see what a great partner to his parent his dad is. It makes him feel very warm and safe, something Yutu hasn't felt in a very long time.

Ruggie! Yutu is a bit oblivious to certain things.  He tries to socialize with people, really he does but things always just sort of come out wrong and leave him upset, lonely, and embarrassed. He doesn't have Ruggie's charisma or ability to schmooze, but he does have his laugh. Something that endears him to Yuu which is all he really cares about at the end of the day. Hyenas tend to be more solitary and stick to their clans/family units, and while he might not have his ears and tail in your world he still has his instincts.

Yuu remembers Ruggie as someone who took care of them and took a great deal of pride in that. They tell him about how Yutu shares his laugh, and how they know in their soul he would have loved Yutu to bits. Ruggie has a voice line about how he used to make flower crowns for the neighborhood kids back home, and I can see him teaching Yuu how he made them when they were preparing for Yutu so they "could make some for the kid when they get here." Yuu might not remember that's why they know how to make the little crowns Yutu loves so much, but it makes them nostalgic to watch their little dandelion prince run around their backyard in his crown.

Dandelions are his favorite flower from how often Yuu uses them to make flower crowns, and he quite likes making wishes on them.  When he was a child he used to bring them up to Yuu and insist on them making wishes too, he never told them but he was convinced that one day Yuu's memory loss and pain would go away if they just kept wishing on them. He still makes wishes on them sometimes, but he feels very silly about it now.

He likes being useful, especially to Yuu, and is surprisingly good at negotiating for someone who isn't as unflappable as his dad.  People tend to think he comes off as a bit stupid, so they're very blindsided when he knows all his figures and what to charge for his work.  He doesn't fully realize this which tends to annoy people, which he does pick up on but he's too stubborn to let that affect negotiations.  He needs that money more than whoever is dunking on him.

What does he use that money for? Well he wants Yuu to use it on bills, but you keep saying no so he spends it on fabric and yarn. If he's going to spend so much time alone he might as well be able to clothe himself. And you always praised him when he made you something new. Like I said, he wants to be useful.

As described here upon being transported to Twisted Wonderland, Ruggie! Yutu found himself transformed into a hyena beastman. His hearing is overwhelmingly sensitive, Crewel has to speak to him in whispers for the first few weeks, and still finds himself doing it sometimes. Losing Yuu clearly struck a massive blow to Yutu's sense of self, and now Crewel has to tell him about what happened to his dad.

Yutu really likes the idea that the dead in Twisted Wonderland become stars. He starts stargazing to cope with missing his parents, even picking out where in the sky he thinks you and Ruggie are watching over him. It evolves into an interest in stargazing that he keeps up when he travels back in time.

Now Ruggie. Ruggie. When Yutu meets him he's surprised at how accurate Yuu's memories of him were. He loves showing off how good he would be at taking care of Yuu while providing them the room to take care of themselves too. Ruggie has so much respect for what Yuu can do without magic it makes Yutu a bit teary eyed, he had always worried about Yuu feeling alone in Twisted Wonderland since he knows first hand mages can be very judgemental so seeing one not like that-

"Well it's just nice to see." His father can't see it but his tail his wagging underneath his hoodie. For some reason, Ruggie doesn't seem proud of himself though, he's just staring at the ground long and hard like he's thinking about something.

"Are you sure you should be thanking me?" Yutu thinks that Ruggie sounds sad, and he's instantly worried that he's said something wrong somehow but has no idea what it could be or how to explain himself if he had.

"Um- is is there a reason I shouldn't?" Please don't make him guess that's his least favorite game and he always fails-

"Well I mean I'm flirting with your parent ain't I? That could potentially erase your existence." Ruggie is so serious about it that it shocks Yutu out of his spiral.

"Oh. I don't think that will be an issue."

Listen the instant Ruggie learns he can flirt with Yuu to his hearts content without causing timeline issues he gets three times as "insufferable" (Yutu thinks it's cute) with how direct he is to Yuu. He's still more reserved than some of the other boys, he wants you to make the first move, but he's happy that he wasn't misinterpreting your relationship up to this point. Really happy.

He is significantly LESS happy with what Yutu tells him about the future. Ruggie was raised by his grandma and while he loves her to death the last thing he ever wanted for his child was to A) have to struggle like he did and B) have to struggle alone. Don't get him wrong, he trusts Yuu to have given Yutu the best childhood possible given their circumstances but those circumstances never should have existed. It's literally the one thing he has been working for all this time and vowed never to accept failure for.

Very worried about Yutu's health now that he knows he's been a Hyena beastmen all this time under that hood. He uses his new found freedom to take up Yuu's time to keep them away from Ramshackle (until Yutu is ready to tell Yuu) so Yutu can have a bit more time to relax outside of his disguise. he's very impressed by Yutu's sewing skills and takes the time to teach him how to alter his clothes to be more friendly to his tail and ears.

From the bit of reading I did on Hyenas, and some of Ruggie's voice lines, bringing back food for the cubs is very important to them so Ruggie starts being very concerned about seeing Yutu eat enough. He won't even charge for it if he thinks his kid didn't get enough to eat, Rugginald is going to find that boy a sandwich if it's the last thing he does (but not really he's not going to die on Yutu again.)

Surprisingly, Ruggie is more than fine with Yutu's lack of charisma and social awkwardness. It takes all sorts of peoples to make the world go round and Yutu clearly has a good head for figures and a strong work ethic. He knows what his weakness are and he tries to make up for them, what else could a survival minded guy like Ruggie ask for? (One of those sweaters he made Yuu, a matching one preferably he wants to take holiday pictures he's heard rich people do that.)

Ruggie is another one who has no idea how to fix the future, but he's sure Leona will be willing to make it his problem if he learns just how much more work is waiting for him in the future if he doesn't stop things now. In the meantime he tries not to think about the death that could be awaiting him in favor of working to maintain what he has now, and that's you, your not cat, and your star gazing son from the future. Ruggie's never been one to take stock in the idea that a person can be poor in wealth but rich in friends, but damn if he doesn't feel like it every time Yutu asks him to show him something new.

[the-summ0ning]

𓉸ྀི Linger 𓉸ྀི PART ONE

Roomie!Nick Folio x Fem!introvert!Bookworm!Reader

Word count: 5.1k

Awkwardly avoiding your hot roommate after him walking in on you listening to your guilty pleasure was easy enough, you thought, until it wasn't. Not when you had all the same friends, and you were all in a cabin in the woods for Noah's birthday, and Nick shows up looking like said guilty pleasure.

!!!THIS PIECE IS PURE FICTION ABOUT REAL PEOPLE, NOT YOUR THING TURN AWAY. BUT AGAIN IT'S JUST FICTION AND NOT HOW THESE PPL ARE IRL!!!

CONTENT WARNINGS: swearing, recreational drug and alcohol use, awkward romcom moments, fluff, yearning.

A/n: hahah spooky season is upon us and I wrote this after I had insomnia for over 24 hours after the wildest week of having the flu a few weeks ago, and have been sitting on it debating if I wanted to post this. This could be a totally considered self-indulgent, maybe cringe, but oh well it's my digital footprint & I have to live with. But welcome to my first fic on this blog, and my first piece posted at least for the BO guys in general, had to show the cinnamon roll Folio love first. thank yewwww and enjoy

⋆༺♱༻⋆。 °⛧⛧°。 °⛧⛧°。 °⛧⛧°。 °⛧⛧°。°⛧⛧°。 ⋆༺♱༻⋆。

The universe had a painfully ironic sense of humor. Noah Sebastian and his friends, with their twisted embrace of clichés, unknowingly played right into its hands.

After years of running in the same circles, Noah had grown to resent sharing his birthday with Halloween—except for the rare occasions when he leaned into the theme completely. This year was one of those times. A slasher-themed party in a huge cabin in the woods for the weekend. Cute. Real fuckin’ cute.

If it weren’t for the fact that you’d promised months ago to make all the baked goods—long before you knew the party theme—and that his closest friend and bandmate happened to be your roommate, you would’ve bailed. But you were a good friend, one who loved your friends and kept your word. Even if it meant enduring the mortification of being around Folio, said roommate, fighting the urge to disappear into the woods every time he glanced or came in your direction.

Because Folio knew your dirty little secret.

One you hadn’t even shared with your closest girlfriends. A secret you’d intended to bury in the deepest corners of your feral little brain—until Folio, of all people, unearthed it. He’d come home early from a fishing trip because of a storm and found you in your natural state of debauchery: high, sprawled on the couch, blasting a dark romance smut audiobook through the living room’s soundbar to a concerning decibel. To make matters worse, it was during the most graphic part, and not just any audiobook—this one had sound effects. And masks. And filthy, filthy things.

You’d nearly combusted when you saw him standing in the doorway for who knows how long, looking bemused, at you giggling and quietly squealling into a throw pillow. You scrambled to pause the audio, but of course, the universe wasn’t on your side, and your phone took its sweet time. Long enough for him to hear everything. 

It’s not like you were about to do anything. You weren’t physically aroused, just mortified that he now knew what you listened to when he wasn’t around. Mortified as if his living room had been christened by your smut. Mortified he probably assumed you touched yourself to it when he wasn’t there—or worse, that it was some deep, dark fantasy of yours. No that totally wasn’t your guilty conscience projecting or anything.

You’d only lived with Nick for four months. Four months of being around him more than you ever had since meeting him through mutual friends years ago. Before this, you could count on both hands the number of times you’d been alone together. Not that there wasn’t any issues with him, you just considered the two of you as polar opposites to think he’d actually want to be around you or you’d have enough in common to pass the basis of ‘acquaintance’ or ‘mutual friend’.

He was funny, the kind of guy who made your cheeks hurt from laughing at his corny jokes. He was charming, with that Southern hospitality that always seemed to melt your insides, and his country twang made you melt just that much more. You hated how easily he could make your social anxiety melt away at parties, offering you a hit of his joint or a cigarette and small conversation when he noticed you hadn’t your usual friends you clung to. Confident, magnetic, always ready to be rowdy, a through and through extrovert, everything you were not.

You were an extroverted introvert–at best. A pessimistic optimist. An awkward rain shower on a sunny day. The house cat who only craved attention when it suited you, having zoomies when no one was watching.

That’s exactly what the embarrassing night felt like—your version of a cat caught in a burst of energy when it thought no one was looking. Except Folio was looking. And all he did was give you that dopey smile, the one with the gleam in his dark chocolate eyes, and made some smart-ass remark before disappearing into his room.

“So, this is what you do when I’m not around. Cute.”

As if he were the amused owner, catching his pet in the act.

He never brought it up again, but you both knew. And it gnawed at you. Maybe you were again projecting and he hadn’t thought much of it, but still!

And now, of all the costumes in the world, famous slashers, any other character from a horror movie, or crashed out and went with a basic t-shirt in the same vein of the theme of the party. No. He had chosen to wear a Ghostface mask. You, meanwhile, were dressed as a cheesy, slutty Casey Becker from Scream. It wasn’t planned. You’d done your best to avoid him the last two weeks, conveniently ever since the theme had been known to you. Quick hellos and goodbyes, or hasty exchanges with those days.

But tonight, at the party, there was no escaping him. Between leaving early before he even woke, helping with decorations, and playing the mom friend throughout the night for your own friends, you made yourself scarce. Dodging him became an art form. Until, of course, he cornered you.

You were about to refill Matt’s drink when Nick approached, his Ghostface mask pulled up. He tossed Matt’s empty cup, and handed you a cup of red jungle juice (with gummies shaped like body parts floating the mix of fruit of course), his hand casually settling on the small of your back, guiding you wordlessly toward the quieter part of the yard by the small shed by the brush of woods. The touch sent an unexpected chill through you, even though you tried to ignore it. You turned to protest, but he tapped his ear, signaling the blunt tucked behind it.

You rolled your eyes, laughing under your breath, and let him lead you to the shed. As much as you weren’t ready to talk to him, you hadn’t taken a break all night, and the excuse to get away from the crowd and babysit your friends was tempting. Your social battery ticking away faster than anticipated.

“Didn’t realize you were such a great party planner,” he said, leaning against the shed as he lit the blunt, his eyes catching under the faint glow of the solar lights.

You shrugged, struggling to keep your voice casual as your heart raced and cheeks warmed. His presence was overwhelming, making you hyper-aware of everything—the slight brush of his fingers when he passed you the blunt, the way his lips curled when he smiled. Even the music felt like it was conspiring against you, with Deftones' haunting melodies filling the background, stirring things inside you that you wished would stay buried.

“It was a group effort,” you mumbled, staring at your shoes to avoid his gaze. The warmth of his hand on your back lingered, leaving you unsettled in ways you weren’t prepared for. But when you glanced at him, his eyes were fixed on you, his brow furrowed like he was trying to figure something out.

“Nah, I didn’t do anything. I’m just here to boost morale and be the life of the party,” he chuckled, though the sound felt a little forced. As if he was trying just as hard as you to keep things light, keep things normal. 

He passed the blunt back, and you took a hit, trying to calm your racing thoughts. You couldn’t help but wonder if he thought about that night too. It had been weeks, but it still felt raw in the fiber of your being, especially now with the tension hanging between you.

“And I know half of these ideas were your asshole suggestions, after searching kid halloween party on Pinterest.” He added, smirking. “But they love it. Noah loves it.”

You smiled despite yourself, taking another hit quickly to hide it, the warmth of his compliment stirring something soft in your chest. “Glad to hear it. Sometimes I worry my trolling gets taken a little too seriously.”

“They thrive off it,” he said, his voice quieter now, more thoughtful. He gestured for you to keep the blunt, taking a swig of his drink instead. “All for you, bub. Roomie blunt.”

The nickname hit you harder than you wanted to admit, a surge of affection mixing with the ever-present tension. His voice, low and soft, carried a weight that made it feel more intimate than it should have. You swallowed, trying to push the feeling down. Deflect, deflect, deflect.

“Matching costumes and now roomie blunts?” You teased, though your voice sounded breathier than you intended. “Are we hitting new roommate milestones?”

He laughed, but it was quieter this time, almost shy. “Didn’t mean to steal your thunder.” He said almost apologetically, there was still an edge of smugness maybe arrogance. “I tried to wear a t-shirt with just Michael and Freddy on it, but Jolly told me to ‘piss off and I wasn’t wearing that to our best friend’s birthday party.’ Drove me to a Spirit before we picked Noah up, it was like the only thing left close to the theme.” He explained. “I didn’t even have a plain black shirt. Had to flip this inside out.”

“Oh Jolly said ‘fuck you thought’ for real.” You giggled, the effect of the cannabis hitting you as you rubbed the rough inseam on his shoulder that you failed to notice when he walked in tonight. It was comical and relieving to know this wasn't a jab at you now, and just a half-ass last minute idea--typical Folio fashion.

“Wait for it, wait for it,” he pointed a finger up. Balancing the cup rim between his teeth, his drink splashing on himself as he pulled his t-shirt up exposing his torso as he clumsily tugged his shirt toward you to see a print of Michael Myers and Freddy Krueger holding hands in a meadow.

Through puffs of smoke, you full out cackled, now holding his shoulder for support. “What? Did you think you were too tough to dress up for Nowah’s birthday party?” Mustering your best baby voice in between your wheezing, the tension breaking for a moment. But even as you laughed, your eyes lingered on him a second too long. On the sharp line of his jaw, the curve of his mouth, the way his dark ochre eyes seemed to trace your every movement, as if he were studying you, waiting for something. But then he pulled the mask down, breaking the easiness of the moment.

He smoothed his shirt down, mocking your laugh. “The fuck am I gonna do with this after?” 

Well…

Even with his shirt inside out, with alcohol spills staining it, and ash from your blunt speckling his clothes, the look did things to you--he looked good. The mask, the way he carried himself, all of it stirred something deeper. Your mind flashed back to that audiobook, to the night he caught you—and suddenly, the faceless man from the story wasn’t faceless anymore. It was Nick. It had always been Nick, lurking in the corners of your thoughts, even when you tried to deny it for several months before. You had buried the attraction you felt towards him well enough, denying that maybe your harmless crush was something more. Letting the term roommates be your boundary for him, not wanting to make an arrangement of living with an attractive acquaintance that you had festering feelings for even more awkward.

Despite your best efforts, you could feel the heat rising to your cheeks. And even though your mind screamed at you to say something, to make a joke, you were too caught up in the moment—the way his presence pressed into yours, the unspoken tension crackling between you like static.

You handed the blunt back, your fingers brushing a second too long with his, the touch jolting something within you. “I’m sure you can find other uses for it, Bub,” you said, but the words came out softer than you intended, almost like a promise.

For a moment, neither of you moved. His hand lingered near yours, his dark eyes searching your face, as if he was waiting for something—waiting for you to break the silence. The air between you felt heavy, charged, like the moment could tip in any direction. Your heart hammered in your chest, your breath coming a little too fast. You were standing so close now, the night’s sounds fading into the background. 

Your lips parted, wanting to say something, anything—but the words caught in your throat. Maybe this was your chance. Maybe you could make sure things weren’t as weird as you imagined it to be. Or maybe you could take that small step forward, close the gap between you, and see where it led.

But instead, you took a step back. 

“Thanks for the morale boost! Gonna go beg Ruffilo to play something less whiny and horny now!”

The moment stretched, taut and unspoken, as you turned away, nerves rattling inside you. You felt him watching you as you sauntered off, the weight of his gaze burning into your back, the unspoken tension still thick in the air.

Deflect! Deflect! Deflect!

But as you walked away, your heart still pounding, you knew the moment between you wasn’t over. Not really. It lingered, hanging in the air like a storm cloud waiting to break. And you couldn’t help but wonder if next time, you’d have the courage to step into it.

。⋆༺♱༻⋆。

Nick let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding as he watched your denim skirt ride up slightly with each step you took away. He swallowed hard, the familiar pang of frustration settling in his chest. Admiring you from afar had become second nature to him, an unspoken routine he’d never quite managed to shake.

You perplexed him, right down to his core.

Every time he felt he was getting closer to understanding you, to unraveling the mystery of what made you so magnetic—you were gone. Slipping through his fingers just as quickly as you’d come into focus.

It had been that way since Matt and your friend first introduced you all those years ago. At first, he found your quietness cute—a stark contrast to the loud energy of your other friends. But as you started coming around more, he saw there was so much more beneath the surface. The dry wit, the easy charm you showed only to those closest to you, the way you seemed to light up in the right company. And then there was the obvious—he had been attracted to you from the moment he laid eyes on you.

But the more you intrigued him, the further away you seemed to drift, casting him aside without even realizing it. It gnawed at him, deeper than he liked to admit. Nick Folio wasn’t used to this—he could get anyone to open up, to be themselves around him with little effort. But you? You were a challenge he couldn’t crack, and it was driving him crazy.

It baffled him how Matt had convinced you to be roommates in the first place. Living together hadn’t helped his case at all—if anything, it made things worse. Since the moment he’d walked in on you listening to your smut audiobook, he could feel the shift, how you’d started shutting him out. He wasn’t oblivious to the way you avoided him now, keeping your distance, as though that moment had broken some invisible line between you.

But it hadn’t, not for him. If anything, he loved that glimpse of who you were outside the parties and hangouts. Seeing you comfortable, in your own space, high out of your mind, letting your guard down enough to geek out over something you clearly enjoyed.

Did you think it made him see you differently? Did you think that knowing your private little quirks would change how he felt?

If anything, it made perfect sense. A girl like you, attractive, smart, with a mind that clearly wandered far beyond the surface—you were bound to have something like that. Hell, now he understood why your nose was always buried in your Kindle. He’d probably be the same way if he had something that compelling.

He had hoped the blunt he’d offered earlier would serve as an olive branch, something to ease the tension between you. But now, watching you skitter away, retreating from him again, he wasn’t so sure.

“There’s the kingpin,” Noah grinned lazily, coming up beside him clapping him on the shoulder as Matt trailed behind.

Nick tried to muster a smile, but it was clear something was weighing on him, his usual carefree demeanor dulled by the conflict that tugged at him deep inside.

“What’s wrong Folio?” Matt was the first to ask.

“Nothing, just clearing my mind a bit.” He lied.

“Yeah, okay.” Noah snorted, trying to tug the mask on top of his head down. He was clearly tipsy, enjoying himself. “If you don’t want to talk about it, whatever—but I know what will really help clear your mind.” The lazy grin turned sinister.

The drummer merely raised his eyebrow waiting for an answer.

“Manhunt—slasher style.”

。⋆༺♱༻⋆。

Would it really be a slasher-themed birthday party if Noah hadn’t forced the remaining guests into a game of manhunt, despite how dark it was and how most people were borderline drunk? No, only Noah would think this was still a good idea. You didn’t mind, though. It distracted you from your exchange with Nick—finding hiding spots, giggling quietly, getting chased, and chasing your friends around. It felt cathartic, especially in your tipsy, cross-faded state.

Noah was too far gone to establish real ground rules anyway. The only rule was that nobody hid past the brush of the woods, and he was always the seeker. Brush, cabin, shed, backyard—fair game for your large group of friends. It was the third and final round now, and most of you were out of breath, legs aching, too close to rolling an ankle in the dark. The adrenaline was wearing thin, and the nostalgia for childhood games had run its course. You were all gonna feel the aftermath of this in the morning.

“Once you're found, head to the fire pit, pop a squat, and call it quits for the LOVE of god,” Matt groaned, hands on his hips, out of breath.

With all the cabin’s lights off, the vast space was hard to navigate. Maybe calling it a cabin was underselling it. This was a huge luxury lodge, a weekend splurge to comfortably fit the group with several bedrooms and rooms to hide in. You’d found a bedroom on the second floor at the end of the hall, away from everyone else, deciding to hide alone instead of pairing up like some of the others. You didn’t want to change your spot like you had the other two rounds you played outside. This was it, and you’d let whoever come to you to find you.

You weren’t sure who’d claimed the room earlier in the night when everyone arrived, but it didn’t matter now. The large bed in the center had ample space underneath for you to squeeze under. The bed skirt fell perfectly, hiding you completely as you curled up, knees pressed against your chest, mouth against the sleeve of your knitted sweater to stifle any sound.

Your heart pounded as you heard the seekers stomping clumsily through the halls, doors creaking open, followed by screeches of defeat from your friends as they were found. Finally, Noah and Davis's triumphant laughter echoed through the house, growing distant as they led the captured outside.

For a moment, you thought you were safe. You let out the breath you'd been holding, relaxing slightly. The steady thrum of your heartbeat began to slow, and you debated slipping out the back door to claim victory, imagining the disappointed faces of Noah, Davis, and the rest when you emerged triumphant telling them to suck it.

But then you heard it—a single set of footsteps at the end of the hall. You froze. Your pulse roared in your ears as a familiar laugh echoed down the corridor.

“You guys suck at this game!” Nick’s voice rang out, smug and teasing. Faint bickering followed from outside, Noah and Davis shouting back that they were done, ready to drink by the fire.

Nick scoffed. “Fuckin’ amateurs didn’t even check my room. There’s still people hiding!”

You tensed, silently praying, Please, don’t be in his room. Please, don’t let this be his room.

But your luck had run out. You heard the door handle turn with an agonizing slowness, the door creaking open.

“Bryan, I swear, if you’re making out with your girlfriend in my room instead of hiding—” Nick’s voice trailed off as he stepped inside. You could hear his confusion as he scanned the seemingly empty room. It was his room, of course. The one place you’d somehow ended up hiding.

You bit your lip, heart pounding in your chest as he walked around. His footsteps were soft, deliberate. The room was dark, but you could see the faint glow of his phone’s flashlight as he swept it around, peeking under the desk, inside drawers—absurd places no one could possibly fit.

You started to hope he might give up. His footsteps retreated toward the door, and you exhaled softly, relaxing ever so slightly, your body tense from being curled up so tightly.

But then you heard the closet door swing open with a creak. “Got you!” he shouted abruptly, his voice playful. You jumped, your head hitting the wall behind you with a soft thud. You bit down harder on your sleeve to stifle any sound, praying he hadn’t noticed.

The door closed again, and there was a long silence. Then his voice dropped lower, a teasing edge creeping into it.

“I knew there was a little mouse in here.”

Your eyes flew open in shock, blood rushing to your face. No way. Was it just coincidence? Or had he somehow found out—about the pet names in your books, about your... tastes? Did he find your Goodreads somehow?! You screwed your eyes shut tighter, wishing you could disappear.

Suddenly, a warm hand grabbed your ankle and yanked you out from under the bed. You shrieked as you tumbled out, blinking into the blinding light of Nick’s phone. He was doubled over, laughing, thankfully with no Ghostface mask on.

“Where the hell did you get that from?!” you demanded, fed up, voice hushed but furious.

He was still chuckling, genuinely confused. “Get what from?”

“‘Little mouse?’” you hissed, jabbing a finger into his bare chest since he discarded his shirt after the first round. “What the hell is that?”

He raised his hands in surrender, amusement dancing in his eyes. “I don’t know! It just seemed fitting.”

“You didn’t snoop through my bookshelf?” you accused, heart racing for entirely different reasons now.

His brow furrowed. “Why would I go through your bookshelf? Where’s this coming from?”

“You know where!”

“I don’t, though!” His voice softened, growing more serious. “You really think I would go through your stuff?”

You hesitated, caught off guard by the sincerity in his tone. “I don’t know... you caught me listening to my smut—”

Nick had the audacity to huff a laugh, and it sent your blood boiling all over again.

“It’s not funny, Nick!” You glared at him, horrified by how quickly this night was spiraling out of control. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go tonight.

“It’s not,” he agreed, but his grin remained. “But it kind of is. Because that just confirmed everything I thought.”

You crossed your arms, defensive. “What did you think?”

“That you got weird about me seeing you... be yourself.”

You scoffed. “I did not.” You did.

He said your name quietly, and it made you look at him, caught by the softness in his voice. “I don’t care that you were geeking out over some dirty audiobook. I thought it was cute.”

“I was not.” Your face burned. “And it’s not cute.”

“What would you call it then? Fangirling?”

You grimaced, crossing your arms tighter. “No.”

Nick exhaled, leaning against the desk. “Look, I’m not trying to make this a thing. Relax, okay?”

But relaxing was impossible with him standing there, shirtless, casual like he hadn’t just crawled into your head. He was so nonchalant, while you felt like you were teetering on the edge of something far more dangerous.

Finally, he turned on the lamp in the corner, casting a warm glow over the room. His eyes softened as they met yours, and he gestured to the bed. “Can we sit? I’m not trying to argue, and my legs are tired.”

You stared at him, defiant for a moment longer, before finally sitting on the edge of the bed. He rolled the desk chair up to you, knees nearly brushing, close enough that the warmth of his skin made the air between you thrum.

“You’re a brat, you know that?” he teased, his voice low.

“I’m not a brat,” you muttered, looking down at your lap, “I’m just... embarrassed.”

The silence stretched between you, heavy, until Nick broke it with a sigh. “I said the wrong thing. But I called it cute because... let’s face it, I know you, but I don’t *know* you.”

You glanced up at him through your lashes, his face softer now. The tension in his shoulders had eased, and his eyes held something you couldn’t quite name.

“I could say the same,” you admitted quietly.

“Yeah, but I’m a simple guy.” Chortling to himself. “Half my body shows almost all my special interests.” He gestured to his tattoos, the ones you’d seen countless times but never really looked at until now, trying to avoid finding yet another reason to be drawn to him. “You? You’re a mystery to me. I’ve known you for years, and lived with you for months, but I’ve never seen you just... let your guard down. Sure, in rare passing moments that I wished I could see more of, because I love seeing you light up when you talk.”

Your heart twisted at his words, warmth creeping up your chest, but before you could respond, he added, teasing, “Now I know you’re the quiet girl who secretly geeks out over porn—”

“Nick!” You groaned, immediately burying your face in your hands, the heat on your cheeks unbearable.

Nick laughed softly, tugging your hands away from your face, his grip warm and grounding as his thumbs traced gentle patterns over your knuckles. "Relax, relax, it's our secret," he murmured, his voice softening into something almost tender.

Your heart raced, pulse quickening as the air between you thickened with unspoken tension. His laughter faded into a quiet intensity, and for a moment, the space between you felt charged, like you were both standing at the edge of something neither of you had fully acknowledged yet.

"I like it... that we have a secret just between us," he confessed, his voice quiet and uncertain, as if he wasn't sure how you'd react.

His words hung in the air, and you froze for a beat, the weight of them sinking in and nearly taking your breath away. When you looked up at him, his brown eyes-usually playful-were filled with something deeper.

There was a warmth there, an affection that made your stomach flip as you watched him nervously lick his lips.

Your face felt hot, and you weren't used to being in such an intimate moment with him, your hands still held in his. But despite the closeness, you weren't uncomfortable. If anything, you realized how close the two of you actually were when his eyes dropped to your lips, and your pulse fluttered even faster.

When he started to lean in, your body moved instinctively, meeting him halfway. His lips brushed against yours-soft, tentative, and a little chapped from the night's activities, but sweeter than you could have imagined. The faint taste of jungle juice lingered on both your mouths, and his hands stayed gently on yours, as if he was afraid to push further.

Hesitant, like he thought you'd pull away any second.

But you didn't want to run this time.

The kiss, as surprising as it was, had a way of grounding you-settling the storm of thoughts and emotions swirling in your mind.

You found yourself pulling your hands free from his and sliding one up to the nape of his neck, your fingers grazing the buzzed part of his hair, while the other rested on his shoulder, gently tugging him closer. Your touch seemed to ease his hesitation, and he responded with a firmer grip on your waist, his hands warm against your skin as he deepened the kiss.

The tension of the past weeks, all the uncertainty and confusion, melted away in his touch. His lips fit perfectly against yours, and as he grew more confident, the kiss became less restrained, his hand gripping your waist tighter as he gently guided you back onto the mattress. You both smiled into the kiss, the weight of his body pressing down on you, though he propped an arm by your head to keep from crushing you entirely.

In that moment, with the world outside fading away, you were in a kind of bliss you hadn't felt in so long. The feel of his lips, his warmth, the way his tongue softly brushed against yours-it was all-consuming, and you could have stayed there all night, wrapped up in him.

"Did Y/N kill you, Nick?!" Noah's drunken laughter rang through the wooden door, followed by the sound of Davis and one of your friends giggling along with him. The sudden intrusion startled you both, and you froze, your breath catching as the door handle rattled.

Nick groaned quietly, reluctantly pulling away from you, the absence of his touch making you ache in a way you hadn't expected. You quickly sat up, trying to smooth your hair and fix your sweater, your cheeks still flushed as you glanced over at him. He, on the other hand, seemed unbothered, walking casually to the desk to grab the half-smoked blunt from earlier before making his way to the door.

"We were just deciding if we wanted to finish this," Nick said coolly, holding up the blunt as he opened the door, playing it off like the two of you hadn't been making out just moments ago. His calm demeanor caught you off guard, while you were sure guilt was written all over your face-your hair messy, your cheeks still warm, and your sweater slightly askew as much as you made yourself presentable.

Your friend peered over Nick's shoulder with a playful smirk, narrowing her eyes at you.

"Without us? How rude. You're now officially obligated to share-let's go."

Nick shot you a sheepish smile before offering his hand, extending it toward you as the others started to head back down the hall, unaware of what had just transpired between the two of you.

You hesitated for a second, your heart still racing, before taking his hand and letting him pull you to your feet. The moment might have been interrupted, but the charged energy between you was far from gone.

The universe did have a painfully sick sense of humor after all.

。⋆༺♱༻⋆。

A/n: pls lmk your thoughts as writing this I had so many ideas of how I wanted this to go, and the ending was weaker than intended but this is what I got after being up for over 24 hours 🤷🏼‍♀️ but I will be writing a part two 👹

[bachelorisland]

if the mickey being donalds old super supportive college roommate who donald couldn’t stand who eventually became a famous hollywood actor is still canon in DT17 universe, I’d assume that they lost contact after college and mickey wasn’t there for the downfall of everything. :( CONTEXT BEFORE I START YAPPING!!!

ANYWAYS cringe headcanon but I like to think maybe donmicks friendship was a little fruity back in college ….and it made donald question everything . Maybe mickey was unknowingly leading donald on while he was already in a relationship w minnie (hee hee theyre college sweethearts love u mickmin) BY LEADING ON i dont mean like Mickey being like I Want You Donald 👅I think maybe because he was just so freaking nice to donald. he believed in him, he always took care of him when he was upset, took him seriously despite being a bit oblivious at times, and like daisy, he was one of the only people who could understand him just fine, and mickey would probably say some crazy homosexual shit that you wouldn’t normally tell ur male roommate and friend (just think mickey shorts mickey but 40% gayer) and he’d think it’s completely normal and platonic and donald would be going nuts because JESUS CHRIST!:$:!:$/! Why is my “straight” homie with a whole ass girlfriend treating me like this. and why do I like it So Much. emotional edging challenge idk . donald thought he was annoying but he really really really rely rlly rlly had a huge crush on him to the point where his feelings became more annoying and an inconvenience than mickey himself

so he I think he stopped actively trying to contact him after they graduated and since mick got famous shortly after which pretty much made it impossible to reach him. Donald probably told himself it was because mickey was annoying and clingy and a loud theatre kid who was too full of himself and he lowkey hated him, but it was also because he didn’t wanna get played by MICKEY MOUSE of all people. lol

OMG I LIKE TO THINK GOOFY WAS A ROOMMATE TOO!! They were like a trio. I have quite a few headcanons of them in their college days and maybe I’ll share it later. doesnt even have to relate to ducktales I think its just goof don and mick in college being silly

(ALSO kinda unrelated but i think goof and don stayed in contact but only really started talking again once they had kids to take care of)

(ALSO ALSO GUYS FRANK LITERALLY SAID MOST OF DT17 MICKEYS CHARACTERISTICS ENDED UP IN STORKULES. WHOS LITERALLY HEAD OVER HEELS OBSESSED WITH DONALD. Anyways)

( Sorry if this makes no sense I’m tired and I’m thinking about Disney yaoi )

(Edit I wrote this at 1 in the morning yesterday sorry if its super OOC I think I was going thru it LMFAOOO)

[misguidedasgardian]

Wildcats (part VIII)

VIII. A time to embrace

MASTERLIST

Summary: You negotiate Beth’s release

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Zombie apocalypse AU, living dead, zombies, guts, blood, guns, injures, cannibalism, 

+18, MINORS DNI

Notes: A tame chapter, writing slowburn is just… not what I usually do, arrange marriage is my favorite trope, that’s all I’m saying

You woke up groggy, and with a muscular ache that barely let you get up from the comfortable carpeted floor

“Hey”, you greeted the archer, who had barely changed positions

“Hey”, he greeted back. By the light… you could tell its been hours since you started your little nap, and you frowned when you realized it

“You let me sleep for hours!”, you chided gently, rubbing your forehead

“You fell through the floor!”, he said simply, “it’s fine”, you ate something you scavenge from your old “base”, as you kept watching that hospital

“Anything interesting?”, you asked

“A car jus’ came and went, and a doctor went to tha roof”

“A doctor?”

“White robes”, he muttered, you only hummed.

. . . 

You were actually a bit relieved when you saw the others pulled up, although the team wasn’t complete. Rick hugged Daryl tightly, and then he hugged you

“I thought you had been taken by the Terminus people”, he said angrily, looking at your eyes

“They’re back?”, you asked with urgency, “where…?”, fear settled in your gut

“We dealt with them already”, he said calmly. “we need a bigger place, let’s take some distance before they spot us”, he commanded, and you all got up inside the car and abandoned the office building. “Abraham took Maggie, Glenn and Tara to go with him to DC”, he explained, as you all met in a big room. “We will be meant to follow, after we get Beth”, he said. You nodded, “it's our best shot”

“You are right”, you assured him, “so… what’s the plan?”

If according to Daryl, your plan was so idiotic, you didn’t even shared it with Rick, instead, of course, he took the lead, with the help of Noah, you all hid in a warehouse and started planning the abstraction plan

“We take down those at the office, and then Daryl moves to take out this guard”, he said as his plan involved killing everyone in the hospital

“We were going to be seven, eight once we get a gun to Beth”

Who was Beth anyways? Maggie’s sister and Daryl’s partner? he was the most motivated to get her back, so you’d think she was his… girlfriend or something.

“So you’re just gonna kill everyone?”, asked Tyresse, and a discussion ensued. You also think this was a bit much, to kill them all, they were trained as cops and that made them a good rival.

Daryl grabbed RIck and took him to the side, 

“She thinks we should buy her way out with supplies”, he said quietly, “and medicine”

“She said that?”, asked Rick, with a frown on his face, Daryl looked at his friend and leader, his chosen brother

“Yeah”, he said. Rick saw the reason behind your suggestion, but he shook his head. “It’s too late now, besides, where would we find said things?”, he asked, “the city is completely sacked by now”, Daryl only let out a short growl as an acknowledgement 

You had killed people by now, four, by your counts, did they deserve to die? You had to believe they did, There was no justice system anymore, no religions, nothing, there was only you, and you enemies.

Rick didn’t want you anywhere near the operation, unknowingly to you, because of what Daryl told him, so you had a simple job, which was coming back to your safe house and grabbing everything you could use, including a car.

And it's exactly what you did, you gathered everything, cleaned the pantry and the rest of the weapons, and put it all together in a car you hijacked. 

Carol was with you, watching you intently, as Daryl was needed with Rick, he specifically requested it

“The journey to Washington it's going to be a long one”, you said, to make conversation, it would be an understatement to say Carol really made you nervous.

“Mmm yeah”, she muttered, without much thought, putting everything together, with this you had a couple of day’s worth of food.

“Do you think it’s real… the cure?”, you asked her, she looked at you, frowning

“Maybe”, she said, looking at you with her sharp blue eyes, a woman of few words. You understood her to certain points… you were a stranger, and by your counts, Rick, Daryl, Glenn and Carol went back the furthest, you are talking weeks or days even after everything went to shit, so yes, you’d understand if she was being weary of you, someone who she just met. So you tried not to take it personally. 

“You think they are going to get Beth back?”, you asked her

“I hope they do”, she said, “they will”, she said with determination

“Have her and Daryl… been together long?”, you tried, and you might as well drop a bucket filled with icy water on her, by the way she looked back at you

“You don’t know what you are talking about”, she said, with a somber tone in your voice

“You are right”, you said softly, but surprised, “I have no idea”

“They are not together!”, she said quickly, “Beth is barely eighteen!”, she said then, and you opened your mouth in an “o”

“I didn’t know, by the way Daryl talked about her… I just assumed…”, you said

“He feels responsible because she was with him when they took her, that’s all”, she said, but you didn’t know if she was trying to convince you or herself

You kept working after that, very uncomfortably.

She hated your guts

Now there weren't many personal possessions of yours left in the safehouse, you had tried to take everything with you, but still, you managed to keep some bullets, and a couple of t-shirts and jeans, so that’s that.

When you returned to the group, car loaded, the thing was done, they had taken two policemen as hostages and they were ready to make the trade

You were glad that Rick wanted to spare you from the mess, one of them had tried to escape and got killed by walkers, and Sasha had gotten a bad hit in the head.

You were preparing for the trade in the hospital. The plan was to enter through the main door and make the exchange there. Daryl, Rick, Carol, Tyresse and Sasha were ready to go with him, so was Noah

“Noah”, you called, he looked back at you, “stay here”, you commanded, forgetting yourself a bit

“I want to go”, he protested, Rick had that cray cray look in his eyes, looking back at you for explanations

“They are looking for you”, you said, “they had send men out in a real manhunt, they want you back… men had died because of it, if they see you… they will demand you stay”, you explained severely, “if they ask about you, we should say you ran away from us, that we don’t know where you are”, Rick shook his head, like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing, and how much sense it made

“She is right”, he said, “Noah stay here” 

“But…”

“They want you to keep working, you owe them some sort of debt” you said, he only nodded. 

“You too”, said Rick, looking at you, “stay here, if you hear gunshots…”

“Go in, guns blazing”, you completed, he looked at you quizzically, but didn’t say anything.

You stood with Noah outside, and hid in one of the tents near the entrance, in case they had prepared a surprise attack and jumped them from behind in the entrance hallway.

“It's taking too long”, you muttered, looking inside the hospital. 

You heard an engine coming, and when you looked, a huge fire truck, and descended Maggie, Glenn, Abraham, Rosita, Eugene and Tara.

You came out of your hiding place and received them

“Rick is inside, trading for Beth”, you said, Maggie squeezed your arm with a soft smile and a nod.

The doors opened at that moment, and here they came, the entire group. led by Rick Carol and Tyresse and behind them came Daryl having his arms around a pretty girl with blonde hair and big blue eyes with a big smile on her face. 

And here came all the rest.

Maggie ran to meet her, and engulfed her sister in a big hug.

They were all so happy, and relieved, and you were so happy that everything worked out

For the first time since you knew him, you saw Daryl smile, like… truly smile.

“We are going to DC”, said Rick with a pleased smile on his face, as he watched all of you together 

But the faces of the crew that was supposed to be on their way there said it all 

And they wasted no time in filling you in…

Eugene was lying, he was no scientist, there was no cure, there was nothing in Washington for you all, not that you knew of.

it was childish of you to think there ever was a way out of this.

There was none, there was only one way to stay alive… to lean into your group, to survive, whatever it takes.

The realization dawned on all of the group as you gathered in that warehouse again, luckily for the morale in general apparently there weren't many of those who believed in it in the first place, including Rick and Daryl they never believed it existed said cure in the first place.

“What are we going to do now?”, asked Sasha

You caught Daryl staring at you, he was relieved but stood stuck to Beth’s side like a guard dog, you looked back at him

“(y/n) had a plan”, said Rick pointing at you, all eyes were on you, “she knows there is an island, on lake Lanier”, he said. “close from here, if we can take it, we can be safe there, an island is where more safer”

“According to the map I found…”, you said softly, “there is only one road leading to the island, if we can close that and control it, we can take control of the island, but I don’t know many details of it.

“Noah is from a safe community in Virginia”, said Beth immediately, you looked back at her. “I was going to accompany him there, he says there are tall walls, a thick gate, good houses..”

“It’s true”, he said, nodding enthusiastically, “my family is still there, my mother and brothers”

The group seemed divided. Rick looked at you, but you only shook your head. Your plan was a dot you saw on a map and hers seemed a bit more solid, but oh the pictures you had seen in that catalog, if it was intact, it seemed like a great opportunity

There was a huge hotel, and in the other side of the island you saw small cabins with lots of privacy, you could all live there, plant your own, even get some animals, like cattle, if you get a hold on a boat you could really just just anywhere around the lake and scavenge, it was a good idea.

But you remained quiet, because what if the island was overrun? what if it was a complete bust, what if someone died because of you and your plan?

Rick saw your doubts, and nodded

“Let's get out of this city first”, he said, “let’s go get Michonne, Carl, Judith and Gabriel, and let’s go”, he offered, you all nodded, and started the journey.

Decided to let Beth live, this is supossed to be a happy fic, so...

@crazyunsexycool

[fairuzfan]

Your post about how many people are unknowingly falling for & spreading propaganda... yeah. I typed up a whole spiel of a comment on one of your posts the other day that I ended up deciding not to not actually post because it felt like detailing, but seriously. The amount of well meaning, genuinely anti-zionist people ignorantly sharing zionists' posts because they just don't pick up on the leading undertones is honestly more terrifying than than the amount of actual zionists in some ways.

I'm someone who was born into a doomsday cult, and seeing all these people falling for the exact same blatant (or so i thought lol) recruitment/manipulation tactics I've seen used by them my entire life has absolutely fucking terrifying. These are people who are actively trying to combat zionism, but I guess the general public is so uneducated about propaganda/cult tactics that what immediately reads as blatantly manipulative, misleading bullshit to me just doesn't even register as strange to most people. Not to be repetitive, but seriously: fucking terrifying.

There's so much focus on the way people/groups who want to manipulate you will use language of fear, but in this case especially, people need to realize they will almost always appeal to your compassion before they appeal to your fear.

It's all peace and love and happiness because that's what gets people in the door. You preach (or post) the mushy, happy, fun stuff that makes people feel good to draw them in, and you slowly start peppering in the ideas you actually want to lead them to believe later on once you've got them wanting to believe you.

This also has this added effect of helping the group or person's image. Even the people who you don't manage to draw in will have the impression of you as someone who runs their mouth 24/7 about how you're full of love and want the best for everyone, which is especially useful for when you inevitably want to frame yourself as the victim to demonize the people who will inevitably oppose you. If your first and only exposure to a person is seeing them calling for world peace and universal love, you are much more likely to be inclined to believe they (and by extension their cause) are the sympathetic, loving, peaceful good guys being unjustly targeted.

Sorry for rambling, but like... really. It won't always be something nefarious, of course--the vast majority of the the time, it won't be--but I think we would all be in a much better situation if people took it as a general rule of thumb that you should always be a little suspicious of overly vague talk about peace and love.

You're EXACTLY right. I really appreciate this message, because you put to words a lot of my inherent analysis of arguments and ideas. I like grew up with this rhetoric so it's easy to spot for me, but the way that people speak about "peace" as the overall goal when they're zionist is so blatant to me because there is no material change in the scenario they propose but rather a calmness where Palestinians are ignored.

And picking up on subtext of a lot of messages is something you have to have a muscle for kinda because of how subtle it is. The frightening part is, you're right, that the indoctrination part of zionism is the most harmful part because you appeal to their pathos — their fear, their sense of safety, etc — and you go on down the rabbit hole and slowly start being radicalized and pro-zionism or you might not even be pro-zionism 100% but enjoy... soft zionism as a mutual of mine put it once (if you read this and want to be tagged, lmk). Which soft zionism is the MAIN opinion in many liberal circles btw, its not an uncommon opinion.

I even remember once sharing a post by a zionist because i saw them talk about esims but when i went on their blog a few days later because something rubbed me the wrong way, I noticed their pinned and I was like "oh dam I gotta delete that other post" like that's how often this happens.

Idk, I try to combat this by putting sources or approaching from a standpoint of logical arguments rather than identity-based politics (although, sometimes i think there are some things that people who are a certain identity can be the only true experts on) so that I try to encourage actual engagement with ideas and walking them through thought processes rather than "I'm palestinian so just trust me."

Like even with my one fact checking list, idk if I succeeded but I wanted to emphasize that there are multiple factors you should consider when confronting ANY sort of information and should not blindly trust things. News sources have regularly burned or ignored Palestinians so I know a lot of us are really sensitive to these things, but I don't know! I hope people can engage with ideas more than just surface level thinking in general because it helps everyone when you actually interact with the point of view the other person is providing rather than just blindly trusting/distrusting people.

[snoocupz]

okay I'm a sucker for a rare pair and even more for a rare pair ot3...pls propagandize me im very curious :0

Hi! Oh my god, that makes me SO happy! I never expect my little shipart to get this much attention - let alone have people like the ship and wanting me to talk about it!

I wasn't sure whether I want to share my whole headcanons about them getting together yet or not, and decided to instead collect some headcanons about these 3 that I love! So here;

My little collection on Klapolloquill headcanons! 🩷

- Simon and Klavier have briefly been friends before Simon went to jail. Klavier, as a new and young prosecutor, desperately seeked contact in the office and loved Simons style from the start. Dark clothes, an interest for music and an ex bass player - all while still being somewhat of a nerd abour psychology & birds. He had tried to build up an active friendship to him - unfortunately it was cut short due to Simon admitting to murderer and going to jail. (Klavier should feel this pain again in the following years as not only his best friend Daryan, but also brother go to jail).

- Once finally free past Dual Destinies Apollo and Simon build up some sort of friendship thanks to Athena. Quickly they realise they were mistaken about each others characters and after a whole they start to bond on a deeper level due to the trauma they had experienced... mostly because of Apollo losing Clay, and Simon losing Bobby. (Bonus angst points if Claypollo and Blackbright were secretly canon and they bond over the loss of their ex lovers).

- Klapollo starts dating first. Klavier had feelings for Apollo early on after meeting him, but it took a lot of time and change for them to finally get together.

- Klavier, however, is also the one who is self aware about being Polyam. He previously had crushes on more than one person at the same time and once time passes and he builds up the friendship to Simon he wanted to have he eventually starts crushing on him. Hard.

- He confesses his crush to Apollo, fearing the worst. It is a huge insecurity of his and he doesn't get it across without tears and apologies, clarifying how much he loves Apollo as well, just to be... very perplexed about how calmly Apollo takes it. In fact, Apollo starts gently teasing Klavier about his obvious crush. He finds him adorable, blushing when looking at Simon like this. Apollo is ultimately the one who convinces Klavier to ask Simon out.

- Unknowingly Simon has a little crush on Apollo anyways. This young defense attorney shines brighter than any sun, he is smart, pretty, such a gentle and stronger soul than he believes of himself. Simon enjoys himself around the both of them, so endlessly much, and with passing time Simon feels lovable again, after prison and losing Bobby (the only person that made him feel lovable before).

- Eventually all 3 shyly allow themselves to get closer. Especially Klavier with his gigantic crush on Simon can hardly believe it everytime he gets to sit between both of them on the couch. Just having his knee slightly touch Simons makes his head spin and they keep smiling at each other more when passing each other on the prosecutor halls.

- And hey! Who would have thought! They fall in love! Each of them, with one another. And in fact, their ideas of love fit together perfectly. All 3 of them long for nothing more but a calm, domestic lifestyle.

- What that looks like...? Easy. A cozy apartment, many plants, falling asleep cuddling, with one cat and one dog at the side. Breakfast on the balcony as Klavier slurps his vanilla latte, Simon makes them eggs, and Apollo tries to stop Taka from stealing bacon straight from his bagel.

- Mikeko (Apollos cat) adores Simon. No day passes where this cat doesn't chose to sit on his legs or lap. Whenever the cat chooses him, Simon is careful to not move a single inch. May she rest as long as she wants to!

- Taka (Simons hawk) adores Apollo. After being afraid of her for months (sorry, Taka has always been female in my brain LMAO) Apollo realises that she is not only well behaved but also seeks active contact to him. Simon falls even more in love with him when seeing Apollo feed the bird on the balcony and daring to pat her feathery head.

- Vongole (first Kristophs, then Klaviers dog) is the most sweetest girl of girls. Greeting all of them with enthusiasm and DEMANDING to sleep in the bed at all times, she won each of their hearts and can be considered the true Queen of the house!

- However, it can be complicated to cuddle, ESPECIALLY if you are Simon Blackquill, and a living cuddle sized heater. He must always sleep in the middle automatically as Apollo loves to rest his head on his chest while Klavier has the most freeziest hands in the history of forever. And yes, he will randomly warm his hands under Simons shirt at every possible moment.

- Funnily enough, their household works very smoothly together. Apollo cooks at most, but his desk easily looks like it explodes after one use. He keeps leaving things around and forgetting about them. Simon cleans, and he has no issue cleaning after Apollo at times. Klavier is the one to take the dog and plan their dates, and no date has ever been dissapointing, he's fantatsic at planning them!

So at most! This ship is really fluffy and comforting in my eyes, so here are some random thoughts on them! Thanks for listening to me rambling! <3

[loudclan-clangen]

HEY so the last ask reminded me that this is set in Alaska! As someone who used to live there it makes me very happy to see, so just for fun I brainstormed lore ideas/questions for a Clan there n I thought id share :) this is Long lmao i apologize

The terrain for one thing. Growing up I remember all the horror stories of people getting stuck in muskeg and not being able to get out before the tide comes in. so that’s always freaky, but i imagine that if theres any in the area then the cats might try and take advantage of it as safely as they can? for prey and such. on that note whats their water situation like anyways? braided rivers?

any specific ideas for what area of mountains the cats are in? are they in the higher ranges, the ones wrapped up in clouds, the rocky kind like the ones around Denali? the greener ones with all the trees? is their territory frequented by hikers and/or tourists or are they relatively untouched wilderness? I think i remember it being said that LoudClan is somewhere more towards the south, is it intended to be generally vague? :0

Predators!!!! The cats can deal with all sorts of unique stuff in a setting like this, bears n lynxes n wolves… eagles… possibly even wolverines since theyre up in the mountains? i’d be curious to see how a clan would react to a wolf pack passing through the area lol. also ive always just loved the concept of a queen finding an abandoned lynx kitten or smth and unknowingly adopting it and it just keeps… getting bigger… whoops… oh well its the clans weird child now

So many fun lil prey animals too, ground squirrels n ptarmigans n such!! I bet ptarmigans would totally harass cats during breeding season and that could be funny. maybe standard apprentice training is to learn the different ground squirrel alarm calls. maybe they even sometimes encounter dalls or caribou or moose on patrols (perhaps moose have even been known to kill before, so theyre considered dangerous).

Also just….. the day-night cycle??? I’d honestly be pretty interested to see how that ties in, like it’s daylight forever in the summer-early autumn and pretty much perpetually nighttime in the winter-early breakup. do the cats have any thoughts or beliefs towards that? do they like to look up at the northern lights, and listen when theyre so clear that they can hear them?

Okok thats all now sorry. I got way too excited lol i miss AK sm, i left when i was little 💔 if any of this has been discussed already in a lore post then ignore me its been a hot minute and i rattled this off on a whim!!!

Love this! Okay, let me try to hit all of these questions in a way that will hopefully be understandable for everyone so if you're the asker please skip past the definitions/backstory.

A 'muskeg' is like a swamp or a bog. I assume that you're referring to the area outside of Anchorage that we always called the 'Mud-Flats", because that's where I heard stories of people getting stuck. (Specifically there's a very famous urban legend of a soldier stationed in Anchorage who went out with his buddies, got stuck up to his waist, ended up tied to a helicopter, and when they tried to pull him out with the helicopter he uh... separated. And his legs can supposedly still be found in the flats. (I WANT TO CLARIFY THAT THIS IS NOT TRUE. THERE WAS A SOLDIER, HE GOT STUCK, HE DROWNED, THE SEPARATION HAPPENED AFTER HE WAS DEAD AND THEY TRIED TO RETRIEVE THE BODY. THEY DID GET HIS LEGS BACK TO MY KNOWLEDGE.)) It's pretty much a long stretch of quicksand (but it's like more mud and silt than sand? idk how to really describe it i haven't been there much cause ya know, hearing stories like that will kinda cure your curiosity as a kid.)

Anyway, Ghostclan's territory used to be Mud-Flats, but long before the cats moved in twolegs came and installed the Rip Rap (big jagged rocks that are placed on the coastline to keep it from erroding) that make up Freezingclan's territory and that kinda took some of the danger out of it. Since the tide no longer comes up so high, while getting stuck is certainly not a good thing, it's not a death sentence as clanmates have time to gather help and dig you out. Though it does make it hard/near impossible to launch an attack on Ghostclan without an insider to lead you around the wet spots. Larger prey can sometimes be found stuck in the mud, having died from exhaustion, but the wetness causes the meat to rot quickly, and what is left draws the attention of larger predators, while also adding the issue of having to avoid getting stuck as you retrieve it, so it's not really a reliable source of food as much as it is a last resort. Ghostclan also contains the territory's braided river, which the cats call the "Friendly River" because it's three smaller streams that meet up into one large one. (I didn't do the best job rendering this on the map but that is what I was trying to represent. I'm not a landscape person, I'm doing my best.) Because the territory is a narrow valley set right on the coast they don't have a ton of room for the rivers to braid, but the thought was there!

It is intented to be generally vague, because I'm not an expert on geography and I live a couple of hours from this exact area, I didn't want to say "yeah it's here" and then have people correct me with minute little things. Plus if it's entirely made up then I can alter things to my liking. But the territory is inspired by the land along the Seward highway, where on one side it's these big mountains and on the other it's just a short sloping coastline. It looks like this in real life:

(You can even see the railroad and layer of rip rap that I included in the territory map) I imagine it's a place where the road veers inland so that the clans can have more space to roam. While the railroad runs through the mountain the highway is just on the other side of it. The mountains here are nowhere as tall as Denali, but they aren't anything to scoff at either. I imagine them being something like this, (which I believe is Exit Glacier?):

The lower areas are densely forested with tall trees and thick shrubs, but the greenery gets thinner and shorter as the elevation rises until you get to the higher ridges and peak which is pretty much just rock. Loudclan camp would be located at the transition point between grass and rock, so that there is no place above them where their enemies might hide and wait to pounce. As for humans, the territory used to belong to a small mining town. They dug the mine, installed the rip rap, built the buildings, and leveled the area of the mountain that Loudclan camp is set on, but over time resources dried up and people left. Now it's nearly untouched save the railroad, which still runs through the mountain regardless of whether there's a stop there anymore. The fact that you have to either cross railroad tracks or mountains to get to it, and its remote nature mean that hikers don't usually put in the energy to venture that way. (My mom grew up in Sutton, a former coal mining town and railway hub that was long past it's glory days by the time she was born and so this fictional town is kind of an omage to that).

The cats absolutely will interact with unique predators! The game has done me the favor of adding in wolverines already (and let me tell you, they cause PROBLEMS), but the cats might also face off against an aggressive little ermine (which are much fiercer than their appearance would have you believe) or even find themselves stumbling upon a blackbear gorging on blueberries early in the fall. They aren't really in the correct area for a wolf pack (and to my knowledge i don't remember writing about any) but who knows what's to come? Okay, now onto Lynx. Up until about 30 seconds ago I was under the impression that domestic cats and lynx could hybridize. Why did I think that? Well because everyone and their mother up her SWEARS that their female cat got out and mated with a lynx at one point or another. That or their big long hair tom cat is part lynx. So who was I to question whether that could even happen? Well apparently it can't but oops, too late, already headcannoned that several characters are part lynx so fuck it. These cats are special. They've speciated. Juneaucliff's dad was a Lynx. What are you gonna do about it? Huh? Regardless, yes, the cats do interact with Lynx, but they speak the same language, so it's a bit of a different situation. It probably won't be mentioned unless people ask about specific characters, but anyone with ear tufts/unusually large stature/big paws may have been descended from a lynx at some point.

The prey animals I think are more dangerous than the predators honestly. So many of them are specifically adapted to the terrain in ways that the cats aren't. Imagine chasing a snowshoe hare across the mountainside, following directly in their tracks only to suddenly feel the snow fall away beneath you, because while their big feet allow them to skid across the crevasse without disturbing the crust of the snow, you're just a little bit too heavy and you sink a bit to far and now you're falling to your death. You're sitting on the edge of the river during a salmon run, watching an eagle dive down to grab a fish. What are the chances it changes it's mind and grabs you? A cat weighs a lot less than a king salmon. And moose would be a danger. 9/10 they won't even glance twice at you but the one time you get unlucky enough to jump down from a tree and land between a cow and her calf? Maybe with no snow a cat could outrun a moose but those long legs mean that there's no feasible escape in the colder months. Even in the warmer months a cat can be trampled by a herd of caribou if they aren't vigilant while walking along the flat lands of the valley. Ptarmagins are easy food, but they're annoying and they spook off every other kind of prey within their designated "territory" and are just generally a nuisance. Some of them are useful, though, Dall sheep wool is is great for insulating nests and shed antlers from moose and caribou can be used to strengthen camp walls and build dens or can be broken into smaller sections to splint broken bones.

The day/night cycle absolutely plays into it! That's why starclan moved into the Black Water Pool. It's the only place where night always exists. In moon 14 Part 2 Twistedtail explains to Wildfirecry that starclan had to move, saying "We couldn't survive there. Not when the sun silenced the stars for seasons at a time". Many cats believe that their ancestors can't see them while the stars are hidden, that the light of the sun blinds them, and therefore are more likely to do devious things in the summer when the sun never leaves the sky in order to avoid punishment. They don't live far north enough to experience perpetual night but even so, only having 6 hours of daylight in the winter does make patrolling and hunting much more difficult. As of right now, the northern lights mean something different to every cat. They each interpret them/were taught to believe something unique about them. Are they the last words of dead cats frozen in the air? Are they the souls of your ancestors dancing across the sky? Maybe they're a sign from starclan, demanding that the lead healer come speak to them at the black water or a sign of good luck for a little born beneath them. No one really knows, except for that they're something important. (I'm not committing to anything cause they could be used in so many interesting ways that i don't wanna limit myself ya know?)

anyway, thank you for the ask, this was so fun to talk about! My apologies for not answering as many asks as I had hoped to over my break, I was on a trip and then had to buckle down on school work and then got sick (just a cold. im fine) but things are looking good for a beginning of July return time still! (Note because I know what tumblr reading comprehension is like: I'm not returned quite yet. I still have to write a paper for school. But soon! Yay!) If you have asked an ask in the past month: I'm so sorry please be patient. There's so many of you. If you were sending me actual, physical mail I would be completely buried in it. I love it, and hope you keep doing it, but... just know it might be a minute... or two... or ten.

[the-golden-comet]

Writerly Questionnaire

The very lovely @sableglass , @the-letterbox-archives , @nczaversnick , @drchenquill , @thecomfywriter , @thatuselesshuman , @glasshouses-and-stones , and @theink-stainedfolk , tagged me in this one. (I absolutely relate to your love of escapist romances to read alongside the beach 💖✨)

I’ll answer the best I can. Bear in mind I’m a little bit of a chaos gremlin :)

About Me

When did you first start writing?

About 12 years old. I always took a liking to Disney animated classics, which have inspired me to write and draw similar to the style.

Are the genres/themes you enjoy reading different from the ones you write?

Actually, the two are very similar. What I love to write is what I love to read. I’ve taken more of a fancy to writing romances now as opposed to a decade ago, though :)

Is there an author (or just a fellow writer!) you want to emulate, or one to whom you’re often compared?

Not that I’m aware of. Everyone has taken a little bit of inspiration from different sources, whether knowingly or unknowingly, so there are probably some authors or writers that I share similarities with. I know for a FACT that a lot of my stories draw heavy inspiration from Disney, which has influenced my art and storytelling styles ✨

Can you tell me a little about your writing space(s)? (Room, coffee shop, desk, etc.)

Ahhh, yes. Couch, coffee table, writing laptop, coffee. Soft throw draped across my lap as I get perpetually cold. Thankfully, it’s nice and quiet in this writing space and it allows me to let me do string-of-thought writing for hours. The only thing is sometimes I lose track of time this way, so I have to set an alarm for breaks and meals.

What’s your most effective way to muster up some muse?

Watching movies, listening in on my friends’ DnD campaigns, or reading stories from friends and mutuals :)

Did the place(s) you grew up in influence the people and places you write about?

Not really. I keep my personal life and writing life pretty separate. After all, a great thing about writing fantasy is that it doesn’t HAVE to tie in to the real world, or personal life. It can be whatever I want it to be ✨

Are there any recurring themes in your writing, and if so, do they surprise you at all?

Recurring themes? You bet. I either write a high fantasy BL Romance, or low fantasy slice-of life RomCom. My favorite writing tropes are Enemies to Lovers, Slow Burn, Found Families, Romantic Comedy, Magic in the Mundane, Slice of Life, Call to Action/Prophecy, and Absurdism.

Do they surprise me? Absolutely. I can have a beautiful plot all planned out, and then my characters say, “okay I see the route, but what if we take a sliiiiight detour? :)” and then soon enough I’m on a totally unique and unexplored path in my writing….and that’s exciting. An adventure all on its own ✨

My Characters

Would you please tell me about your current favorite character? (Current WIP, past WIP, never used, etc.)

I fear if I don’t say Peter here, he’s gonna kill me. In my current WIP, my favorite character is Ali because he’s a lovable goofball genie that wants the best for Noah. Overall currently (side eying) Peter because he’s a chaotic-neutral, anti-establishment, insane pirate captain that makes my life entertaining 😂

Which of your characters do you think you’d be friends with in real life?

Ali. Hands down. Dude gets along with just about everyone.

Which of your characters would you dislike the most if you met them?

Any of the villains I wrote, but going off of main OCs? Gosh that’s tough….probably Tyr because he’s really angry all the time (for good reason, but too much of that is toxic)

Tell me about the process of coming up with of one, all, or any of your characters.

Oh boy. That’s a big one. Let’s see….

Character building kinda happens simultaneously to Plot Planning; it’s a bit hard to describe, as there’s no “right order” to my world building. But usually it’s: “Okay, who is my protagonist? Who is the antagonist? What do they look like? Is the protag a hero, or villain? Is the antag a hero, or villain? What is their ‘general moral alignment?’ What are their characteristics? What are their strengths? What are their flaws? What are their goals and aspirations? Etc.” I do this for each major character. Then, secondary and supporting characters, who get a little less polish but still enough to be human (or relatable) in nature, start getting fleshed out.

Once I get the Core Plots and characters made and planned out, I start piecing the events in chronological order in the story. This becomes my “roadmap” that helps drive the narrative. Then….well, the rest just kinda falls into place. Once I have a “Plan of Events,” all that’s left is writing the story around the plan. And, as I’m writing, new ideas may come, and I get to explore that a little further during the writing phase.

tl;dr: I do the “Tree Approach.” Characters are the foundational trunk. Branches are the Core Plots. Twigs are the Conflicts. Leaves are the little details of each conflict (i.e. how characters react, where the conflict is set, what this means for each character’s aspirations, etc.)

Do you notice any recurring themes/traits among your characters?

Yep :)

How do you picture them? (As real people you imagined, as models/actors who exist in real life, as imaginary artwork, as artwork you made or commissioned, anime style, etc.)

Like this:

My Writing

What’s your reason for writing?

Personal enjoyment, mainly. And how far I can stretch and challenge my creative mind ✨

Is there a specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating coming from your readers?

Any story reactions and positive engagement is always appreciated. Just don’t be a dick and you’re good 👍

How do you want to be thought of by those who read your work? (For example: as a literary genius, or as a writer who “gets” the human condition; as a talented worldbuilder, as a role model, etc.)

I loathe this question. As long as people enjoy my stories, that’s what matters. I’m just one silly little guy writing stories for my own enjoyment. The fact that other people can enjoy my wild ideas as well is a blessing in of itself.

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

Comedy and Dialogue. And comedic timing.

What have you been frequently told your greatest writing strength is by others?

Same as above. Also have been told that I have wildly entertaining and outlandishly creative ideas portrayed in “insane, chaotic, and ballsy ways.” Coolio 🤙

How do you feel about your own writing? (Answer in whatever way you interpret this question.)

I’m proud of it. I’ve successfully written stories that I wanted to read, and reading back through my stories is really entertaining and motivating :)

If you were the last person on earth and knew your writing would never be read by another human, would you still write?

I’ve already been writing stories on my own for well over a decade, nearly two. It was my husband and friends who finally pushed me to go public, and I’m very glad I did :)

When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely what you enjoy? If it’s a mix of the two, which holds the most influence?

I write solely for my entertainment, and my personal opinion is that’s the best way to do it, honestly. If I write stories that I want to read, I enjoy them, I spend more effort on them because I WANT to, not to please anyone other than myself. I don’t inhibit myself or censor myself, allowing me creative freedom to write wherever my heart takes me….which has led to some WILDLY entertaining plots. Even if writing is a career to some, if you find yourself enjoying what you write, you’re gonna motivate yourself beyond your wildest imaginations ✨

Man, that was a lot! Thank you @davycoquette for starting the chain, and thank you again Sable for tagging me!

I will gently and no pressure tag the following people as well as my tag list: @nczaversnick , @lavender-gloom , @cowboybrunch , @noblebs , @words-after-midnight , @saturnine-saturneight , @marlowethelibrarian , @aintgonnatakethis , @coffeexafterxmidnight , @astramachina , @justabigoldnerd , @pippinoftheshire , +open tag! 💛✨

✨👇Tag list for writing tidbits below. DM me if you’d like to be added 👇✨

Tag List for writing tidbits (lmk if you want + or -)

@talesofsorrowandofruin , @alinacapellabooks , @gioiaalbanoart , @deanwax , @dyrewrites , @honeybewrites , @paeliae-occasionally , @kaylinalexanderbooks , @katenewmanwrites , @billybatsonmylove , @madi-konrad , @houseplantblank , @far-cry-from-finality , @froggy-pposto , @fractured-shield , @avaseofpeonies , @topazadine , @thecoolerlucky , @theaistired , @willtheweaver , @rivenantiqnerd @somethingclevermahogony , @noxxytocin , @leahnardo-da-veggie , @addicted2coke-theothercoke , @illarian-rambling , @mysticstarlightduck , @ominous-feychild

[campbell-rose]

Helluva Rewrite: Millie

Okay, i dropped my phone in water and was so scared i'd ruined it, but thank the gods it was fine. Though it's fucked so i'm going to post all the IMP redesigns in short order before it dies and i lose them forever. Onto Millie!

I wanted Millie to read as a country girl. I remember being like ‘oh, that’s her voice?’ when I watched the first episode, because for some reason it just didn’t match her design for me. I considered giving her back the white splotch in her hair, but decided to change imps and give fem imps white horns. I’ve got two guesses for why it was removed: 1) she was originally trans and it was changed 2) the dimorphism of imps was thought of after the pilot. Either way, I like it. I suppose the explanation for this version since her horns are fem is she might have been born intersex?

I wanted her and Moxxie to contrast in their designs, as such she’s wearing less while he’s fully covered, she’s tall he’s short, etc... Now, as a Wrath imp, she has a darker skin tone and has spikes on her body.

Now, as a character, i'll build off of what the show has given us.

Supposedly Millie is secretly very insecure? From leaks she’s like willing to die because she thinks she’s holding Moxxie back and in Unhappy Campers she had that whole breakdown. Now, I think this actually could’ve been built up a bit.  

In the rewrite, Millie is the youngest of her five siblings and the second girl. Now, from the bat lets make her a bit of a drain on the family. They hadn’t planned for her birth, and it was another child her parents had to take care of with limited money. She picked up on this when she was little, realizing that her parents often cut corners and struggle, and she perceives this as her fault. This ties into how she mentions her family going to Loo Loo Land, except in this it was once and was specifically for her birthday. She knows her parents had saved up for months to afford the trip and feels innate guilt for it. Boom insecurity explained. 

Now, in this Millie meets Blitzo first. They bump into one another once Millie moves away from the Wrath Ring to Pride to try and alleviate her parents’ stress. During this time Millie has been working as an assassin for a couple months and ends up bumping into Blitzo who was hired by a different person to kill the same target. This would be during Blitzo’s attempt to start his business in hell killing demons. They fight for a bit, then realize ‘oh wait... let’s work together!’ so Millie was the first to join IMP. 

Millie trains endlessly. When she isn’t doing her job, she’s at the gym. She is constantly striving to be the best because her parents pitted her and her siblings against one another (unknowingly, with things like the harvest festival). As a person she is very observant and emotionally intelligent. She is very kind and loves conversation. She also is very tight with money, and very appreciative of any gifts she receives because she grew up with little. She treasures things genuinely and is just all around a very genuine girl. 

Now, other than fighting, she is fairly mediocre at anything else, due to the culture of Wrath mainly being kill or be killed and you have to be tough. One hobby and talent she does have and is working on is singing, something she shares with Moxxie and works as something they can do together. Millie loves to play guitar and sing and is constantly striving to improve. On the topic of Moxxie, Millie loves him deeply and wants only the best for him and some part of her feels like she isn’t enough. 

All around I want this Millie to come off as a very confident and genuine person, trying her best to push down the deep feeling within her that she is a drain on everyone around her. So when people start showing her with praise rather than screaming in agony she is enthralled. She loves the cheers of crowds, as it was often Sallie Mae getting cheered on during the Harvest Moon Festival while Millie was always second best. She wants that kind of adoration and acknowledgement. 

That’s it. Gotta work on finishing Blitzo and Moxxie rn

[bakibakideemon]

I’m back to into Haikyuu!! And before I say anything - I absolutely adore Kageyama. It’s been a minute that have thought about his character/ discussed him. But recently came across some really great character studies of him.

Here is a list of Fics I read recently which I fell do his character justice (and just because I like them). (These are amazing fics by some great authors)

1) The best thing you (n)ever had by eleasofia

Summary: When Oikawa is asked out by Kageyama for the first time, he turns him down, saying he wouldn't date someone who is so clearly inferior to him. Three years later, after Seijou's loss to Karasuno, Kageyama asks again, and despite not really (read as: absolutely not) wanting to, Oikawa somehow ends up agreeing nevertheless. It might really be time to forget about old grudges and move on. Turns out, it's even harder than he thought it would be.

Published: 2017-12-05 Words: 6,425 Chapters: 1/1

2) Normal by AuthorInDistress

Published: 2018-10-15 Words: 5,031 Chapters: 1/1

Summary: A special guest is here in Kageyama's town and he couldn't care less.

3) I don’t know where we’re going, but I’d like to be by your side by voices_in_my_head

Published: 2020-08-03 Words: 8,548 Chapters: 1/1

Summary: "Atsumu doesn’t approach Kageyama Tobio the first day of the youth training camp, but he does keep an eye on him. He’s not the only one; everyone is curious about the main setter of the team that finally uncrowned Shiratorizawa."

Or: once Atsumu got to meet the real Kageyama, he never stood a chance. Honestly, he's not that bothered about it.

4) With all my love (And almost all of my mind) by rumxrs

Kei heaves a sigh, raking a hand through his short blonde curls. Tobio repeats the action unknowingly, and shivers shortly afterwards. A nervous shiver, like death was sending spearmint puffs of air down his neck.

Their story; told in snapshots, phone conversations, and dreams.

Published: 2016-03-29 Words: 2,175 Chapters: 1/1

5) Make It True, Takeru by luvtooru

Summary: After overhearing his uncle Oikawa mention he had a crush on someone with 'black hair and blue eyes,' Takeru assumes he’s talking about Kageyama, the grumpy setter from Karasuno. Unaware that Oikawa actually meant Shimizu-san, Takeru dives headfirst into a chaotic mission to play matchmaker—for the wrong person

Published: 2024-11-10 Words: 7,969 Chapters: 1/1

6) can this be a real thing (can it?) by akaashism (acciomerlin)

Summary: Tobio has an unexpectedly steamy dream about Oikawa one night. He tries his best to grapple with the resulting cocktail of feelings it invokes, but maybe an accidental revelation has its own set of rewards in store.

Published: 2023-06-20 Words: 10,712 Chapters: 2/2

7) What do you see when you look at me? By Aync1lgw

Summary: Three people - A woman who has been pining after Oikawa for years and finally wants to confess her feelings, a taxi driver who just happened to pick Oikawa and Kageyama up from the bar and then Oikawa's old roommate from medical school with whom Oikawa was sharing a rental apartment for the week. What is it that these people see when they look at Oikawa Tooru and Kageyama Tobio together?

Published: 2021-11-24 Words: 5,739 Chapters: 1/1

8) infernal devices by lettucehope

Summary: In a quest for revenge, Tobio learns that store-bought flames work just fine when you're summoning the powers of Hell.

Published: 2022-07-02 Words: 26,886 Chapters: 8/8

9) Cute bastard by mitoe

Summary: Oikawa calls Kageyama cute bastard every time he sees him and Kageyama hates it

Published: 2022-05-03 Words: 4,254 Chapters: 1/1

10)

10)

[jenyifer]

So bad news I may started writing a fic for SVSSS. Now will it be poly like my only friends fic? Ehhh??? Probably not *squints* maybe. 🤔 anyways thought I’d share incase there is already a fic like it or if people won’t enjoy it. Came up with the idea as I thought about how LBH is SQH’s self insert as an author it’s easier to put a lot of yourself into the main character. Yeah it’s an idealized sexy man meat mountain of a man but I think the chaotic clingy curly hair comes from Airplane. So I thought welll what if SQQ is an idealized version of an older student bully who was cold collected things Airplane had a big fat gay crush on which is why he wanted his self insert to be changed by SQQ and kill him.

So just a simple not so simple reversal. MBJ and LBH are friends irl. LBH unknowingly reads and simps for the universe MBJ writes in his free time. The plot of (yet to be named web novel) is more about demon emperor SQQ solving mystery’s and crisis by being intelligent and alluring he’s also overly powerful with his ally Northern King SQH who is chaotic and resourceful. Most people ship SQQ and SQH together even though the romance elements in the webnovel are few and far between and usually some unobtainable one night stands with the villain or tragic woman who will be killed the next day. LBH loves SQQ has all the merch. LBH finds out MBJ is the writer after he reads the latest chapter where SQH is cursed with demise under his skin making him weaken to be a shell of his demonic self. The dialogue between SQQ and SQH is creepily reminiscent of the conversation LBH had with MBJ when LBH had revealed he is dying because of late stage cancer. Of course SQQ is prepared to do anything to save his best friend sacrificing who he was because their friendship means more than the demon empire or SQQ’s morals. SQQ sacrifices his demonic energy to save his friend. Accompanying this chapter was an extra of a clumsy drawing saying this is what the ice king’s original drafts of the characters for the artists. LBH couldn’t help but notice how similar his characteristics are to SQH curly hair terribly thin and short while radiating power through his crazy expression and SQQ was tall and stoic and LBH is horrified to realize his best friend MBJ sees himself this way tall with straight hair with an aura of superiority. When LBH confronts MBJ about the webnovel MBJ who is normally silent and a shut in exclaims that of course it’s his novel. MBJ wanted to dream about a world where they could go out and have adventures together was that such an evil thing? LBH shouts that in this reality he’s going to die and what will MBJ do then. Everything shifts into a portal and they are brought into the webnovel. LBH a half Demon hiding his identity on one of the peaks a student under MBJ who is a peak lord. They decided if they are there they might as well find SQH and SQQ for plot reasons. Haha anyways idk if I can write something like that since… I have to work…. Also the cancer thing might be too real for me (I think it’s been 15 years since I lost a close friend to cancer) But I want to write it 😭

[aibloomie]

them as love interests (aot + jjk | modern au)

✧ ft :: itadori yuuji, armin arlert, eren jaeger, jean kirstein x gn!reader

→ these were so fun to write omg </3 I can't help being a fluff enthusiast MY HEARTSTRINGS

→ ITADORI YUUJI

━ he's the sweetheart who's actually kind of popular but it isn't really known. people talk about him within their friend groups and he's constantly getting invited to events, but he'd rather hang out with his really close friends or people he notices are usually left out or alone.

━ he has his way of making people feel special, especially you. he'll notice any changes you make to your appearances or possessions, and every morning he goes over to your desk and points it out with a comforting smile or if you haven't changed anything then he still compliments you. it always makes your heart jump because it shows he's attentive and he always sounds so excited

↳ "hey! is that a new sweatshirt? it looks awesome!"   "I've never seen you wear this jewelry, it looks great! maybe I should go buy some and we can match." “the design on your keys is so cool! mine are just plain- ah! where did you get them done?”

━ the guy who sees you from afar and he always stops what he's doing to go talk to you and see what you're up too <33 the type of person who can easily slide into a casual conversation and before you know it, the two of you have spent the last three hours hanging out even if it wasn't intended

━ the gentleman who was raised with manners and will always leave you stunned because wow, the bars and standards are low these days. and whenever he sees you coming over to him he unknowingly starts readjusting himself and fixing his hair because he wants to look presentable just for you <3 because he adores you 

━ the guy who is oblivious to how much his physical affection flusters you. the two of you could be walking in a crowded area and he'll immediately wrap an arm around you and pull you close so you don't get lost or to comfort you if he knows you get anxious in crowded places. and he's so close that you can smell him <33 and it's intoxicating. and he won't notice the way you smile extra hard when he hugs you every morning and after school as he says goodbye

━ his friends will always encourage him to ask you out, but he ends up deep in thought because even though he does have a crush on you, he's oblivious and can't tell the difference between platonic and romantic feelings. LIKE PLEASE NO liking him is so infuriating because even when you flirt with him he just cannot take the hint. but oh boy, once he finally realizes he gets so nervous around you. he's suddenly aware of how hard his heart is pounding and the way he stays up at night thinking of you, he's down bad

→ ARMIN ARLERT

━ he’s your best friend !! who has no idea how to tell you how nervous you make him. because, it hasn’t always been like this. when the two of you were younger he had no problem composing himself when you would lean closer to him and whisper a secret into his ear. he didn’t get intimidated by the way you would look at him in the eye, and wouldn’t feel his heart pound when he saw you in the halls

━ it was different now. the two of you had always shared things, and now he’d find his jaw dropping, eyes widening, and cheeks flushing whenever you reached for his drink and drank from the same straw as him. you’d question him with a raised eyebrow and wave a hand near his face, “armin? you okay dude?” and he’d hesitantly nod, which of course gave you the answer, no, he wasn’t okay

━ he's constantly texting eren and calling him at night whenever he can't get you off his mind <3 eren will get very annoyed but who is he to deny one of his closest friends the ability to dreamily sigh and talk about the person he's utterly infatuated with?

━ the type to recommend romance themed books to you as a form of hoping you'd finally take the hint and notice that he likes you as more than a friend. and yes, whenever he himself reads them he always makes scenarios with you and he gets so lost in them

→ EREN JEAGER

━ he's that one guy in your class who has a pretty tight friend group consisting of only a few people, so it kind of makes him intimidating. he's sweet and considerate, but also has a short temper so he gets into trouble often– both with his peers and the school faculty. not a day goes by where you don't hear a teacher say "eren stop bickering with jean or I'll send you out again!", to which eren replies with "yeah? well I'd rather get detention than be stuck in this room with that guy for another thirty minutes"

━ the guy who's clumsy and it makes everyone in the room laugh, well kind of. eren searches the room with flushed cheeks out of the embarrassment, but he always notices that you smile fondly at him whenever he trips in front of the class or drops his papers while doing a presentation. it's the smile that makes him feel calm and regain his composure

━ teachers call him out for not paying attention in class, and that's because he's too busy staring at the back of your head. too busy planning out ways to impress you, whether it be by him excelling at a sport or academically. or maybe winning at a fight against jean, just a backup plan !!

━ honestly, eren gets embarrassed but he doesn't really have any shame. hey, you may have seen him literally faceplant into the grass, or fall back in his chair but at least he got your attention right? at least he made you smile and look at him with those beautiful eyes of yours, right?

→ JEAN KIRSTEIN

━ he'd be the guy who hangs out with the wrong crowd to gain popularity – and therefore, have it easier when it came to social interactions. the guy who would get easily influenced to do mean things to others by his friends. but he has morals, and in his head there's always a voice telling him it isn't right. he walks home alone everyday with a guilty conscious

━ as expected, once he takes notice of you and starts developing feelings, it'll spark him with the goal to change and improve himself. he'll be standing in the hallway during passing period with the douchebag guys he calls friends, and whenever you pass by, his eyes will immediately follow you until you leave his sight of vision. he'll come back to reality and hear his friends planning mean pranks and he'll feel a pit in his stomach, he'll walk away and hear some shouts of, "is it too much for you to handle jean?"

━ the guy that's so insecure due to his shitty decisions that whenever you initiate a conversation with him, he's in bliss because wow you're talking to him! but he also ends it as soon as possible because he doesn't think he's good enough to be with you

━ but once he grows more used to you always being the one striking up conversations, waving at him in the halls with that lovely smile of yours, and making plans to hang out – he'll eventually start doing the same. and before he knows it, he's hanging out with you everyday instead of his previous group of "friends"

━ and yes, he's that one annoying guy who will take your phone and hold it up above just to see you struggle. the one that will throw playful insults at you just to see you roll your eyes and think of a comeback. the guy who will come to class late just to get your attention and have you wondering where he's at. and of course, the guy that tries to make his voice deeper when talking to you but he fails and his voice rises higher because he gets embarrassed 

━ but of course, jean is also very sweet <33 he'll try extra hard to impress your parents when he comes over because he wants them to approve of him. he'll knock on the door holding a bouquet of flowers and with some fancy clothes. the guy who blushes so hard when you so much as hold eye contact with him and he has to look the other way and scratch his neck awkwardly. whenever you trip or are clumsy, he won't laugh but instead he'll be worried and scold you lightly because he's scared you'll get hurt. he takes all your advice because he wants to improve himself, all for you because he adores you.

[redthefortuneteller]

About Snake's death

*Edit: I had to edit out a mistake I made, which was that I wrongly assumed the 20+ people Agni hung upside down in London had died! Thank you for letting me know in the comments and apologies for that! The main focus of the post still stands of course, which is to consider and wonder how the rules of justice in Kuro are applied and which are the rules exactly, if there are any. I also couldn't deny myself of adding a few other things, I once again hope you will tolerate my tendency to ramble on too much!*

From what is generally understood, Yana has a penchant for punishing characters for their wrong doings. I'd mentioned before that we can see this in Snake's case with him getting cut in the same side of the neck that Phelps got the snake bite on. It doesn't look like a coincidence, especially knowing how Yana operates in terms of details and foreshadowing. *Edit: I should like to add that Phelps dying was an accident. Snake, although he wanted to kill Smile, really didn't kill Phelps, specifically, on purpose. I've read someone argue that Snake isn't even to blame for the murder as it was a black mamba who killed Phelps, not Snake. I do not share that opinion, simply because he was the one who sent the snake. But it's still an interesting thought to consider as in "what does the author think or consider in this case?"* This being said, it's still a little hard to stomach that Snake should be dealt with in this way. I will try to explain what I mean. He died not even properly acknowledging Doll's presence, nor all his snakes surrounding him. He saw Finny leaving him behind. He died alone in his mind, wondering why he had such a horribly unfair life, treated like an animal, getting tricked and lied to by everyone, not understanding why or having anyone explain anything to him about why he was made a fool by everyone.

As he had just realized he was in the middle of it all, he was killed. He was dead before he could understand what had been happening all this time. Take Agni for instance, one of my dear long time favourite characters. He died a violent death, but at least died peacefully and happy that he got a chance at redeeming himself by doing good and living for Soma, after his sinful past in which he said he'd lived a life of sin in India and that he "hurt a lot of people". He did get sentenced to death but we don't know for certain, if what he'd done included killing. So I will still refrain from taking that into account. *Edit: Here's a link to a separate post I made, explaining why I assumed Agni had killed those people in London*

So all things considered, why did Agni die with a smile on his face, while Snake died with "why-?" as his last words? Indeed, why..?

I wonder if Yana is also taking into consideration the envenomation of the soldiers in the Emerald Witch arc to up the numbers? If we were to consider this to be Yana's "sword of justice" (haha sounds quite dramatic!), should we expect to see other characters dying such abominable deaths? Because there are so many characters who have killed a lot people and others that have killed some. Starting with the Phantomhive servants and ending with Wolfram, it could be a lengthy list. *Edit: Take Baldroy for example, he likely killed too many to even count. If there's such a concept as a "sword of justice", I dread to even wonder what will happen to him in the end.* Of course, don't consider for a moment that I'm wishing such things! I'm simply entertaining the possibility of this implicit method of justice being employed by the author, if, we were to consider that Snake's death came as a sort of payback for Phelps, that is all. Part of me wishes Snake's death would have been handled with a little more gentleness and grace. As he's such a kind hearted character... he didn't even get the chance to understand what he'd unknowingly gotten dragged into. But alas, this is the Kuroshitsuji universe after all where life's injustices are abound!

Thank you for reading and a virtual hug to all of you who love Snake! ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

[gilbirda]

My (subjective) thoughts on how to survive corporate hell while being younger than 30

I'm 27 and I've been working in corporate office job since I was 23 and I have some advice for any youngster out there feeling unsure if they can even make it in office corporate jobs while being younger than 40.

Don't reveal info about yourself. Craft a superficial version of yourself you can share with peers. Pick a hobby or two and repeat the same speech about what you do for fun. Points if you do something people would remember - everyone says sports and/or traveling. Say something original, but safe.

Your company is not your family. You don't owe them a minute more or less than what says in your contract. You are not less if you refuse to work unpaid extra hours. If they demand that of you, get that in writing and take that shit straight to HR.

Know your rights. If you have paid time off, you are entitled to those days off. I'm european so I have a lot of them, and my company is ALWAYS asking me if "I'm sure I can leave my team down for so long". Bitch I can take the days off whenever I want, is my right. The fact that I'm not taking them in the busiest times is a courtesy.

Be careful with what you say. Everyone will be nice, but not everyone is your friend. Some people would sell you for a potato chip, and finding out who would is vital for your survival. (Hint: if someone spills tea about other people to you, they will spill YOUR tea to other people).

Offices are just like high school. Rumors can and will spread like wildfire.

Another "high school" office cliché: cliques. Yes. Same dynamics will form and identifying them will make things easier. My favorite clique to observe is the people that are shooting for the stars and are always around the Biggest Boss licking their shoes. They will also be the first to speak about how a company project improves their personal life because their personal life and work life is one and the same and they ADORE the company.

Being young can play to your advantage. You are fresh and new, and most of the corporate toxic behaviors won't apply to you by default - but Watch Out, they will also underestimate you and dismiss your opinions. Is a constant battle and a delicate dance.

You Will Be Adopted. That's fact. Be quick to learn who exactly is trying to put you under their wing, and if you are comfortable with that dynamic. It mostly depends on what kind of career you want to make in the company - want to climb higher? Stick with the boot lickers (they will introduce you to Important People); want to be up to date with all the gossip? Attach yourself to the Nice Lady Everyone Tell Their Secrets To. Etc.

I cannot stress this enough: Don't say names. On top of everything else in this list, don't say a single name unless you are absolutely sure you are in a safe space. Names have power, and if you complain about someone and say their name, that will have consequences. Maybe that person will learn you are talking shit, or maybe you will unknowingly make a political stance depending on who you are complaining about, maybe you are implying someone is bad at their job.

Don't assume that young people are your friend. This is a tough one I had to learn, but at the end of the day we are all surviving. Other young people will understand you and stick with you, but if an opportunity opens they will take it without saying goodbye. Or they have other priorities and career expectations and just... not be your friend after all. Not because you are also younger than 30 it means you are besties.

You will be bombarded with boomers and gen Xers talking about "the old days" and "how before things were better". That if you "just worked hard enough the company repays you" and such. Ignore them. Corporate job is not what it was, this isn't the old days anymore. Getting in is not as easy and it used to be, the salary doesn't last as much as it used to be and the productivity demanded is higher than ever. Ignore them. Most of them have been pushing buttons for 30 years and wouldn't understand the hellscape the world is becoming in the last 20 years.

You have to accept the reality that none of your 45+ years old coworkers are as qualified as you. The requirements for regular entry level corporate jobs now are insane, and "back in the day" you just had to show up and have a nice smile. Yes, it sucks. Yes, higher ups are the least qualified. Crazy.

Learn how to talk corporate. Learn how to say no, how to set down boundaries, how to politely ask for help. Normal people talk will instantly work against you because you are young. Talk like them and they'll listen.

This got away from me but eh.

Disclaimer this is just based on my experience and my culture - I live in Spain, Europe. I tried to keep this general, but I understand there's a bunch of social dances and understandings that are unique to my culture and may not apply to other people.

I am also autistic and I understand that it affects how I experience social contracts and behaviors.

This is just the bunch of rules I live by and I'm doing my best at surviving. I'm not a corporate rat and if I didn't need money to exist I would definitely quit, but I can't deny I have learned a lot.

If someone has more advice to add please do!

[heymeowmao]

2024.08.17 - https://weibo.com/l/wblive/p/show/1022:2321325068458969923865

LYN: Hallo everybody, good evening. I am Liu Yuning. Welcome~ LYN: I need to tell you- Happy 817! C: You’re finally streaming! LYN: It’s not that bad, right? It hasn’t even been that long since my last stream. /hic/ Sorry. I ate something before I started streaming. The last time I streamed, it was- /hic/ What’s wrong with me?? Hold on- Let me get some water. C: Did you lie? LYN: No- I had something to eat before I started streaming. Maybe I inhaled it too quickly. I was afraid I wouldn’t have the strength to keep streaming, so I thought I’d eat something beforehand. So I’ll.. stream for a little while today. Someone also said, “you’re finally streaming” and I don’t think “finally” is appropriate, is it? I streamed only a few days ago, it hasn’t been that long. I’ve got to make sure you’re well fed. I’m sure that there are no other artists out there like me, who come to stream when they have nothing better to do. 

C: You’re pink and soft~ LYN: Yes~ After all some of you have spent six- though I’ve debuted for six years, this is the seventh 817 together. You’ve grown with me for seven years! Think about it. If one of you were 35 years old when you first starting liking me back then, and have stuck with me to this day, then you’d be (at least) 41 now. Isn’t that right? If you were 18 when you first started liking me, then this year you’d be… 18 + 6… 24 years old. You’ve probably started a job now, huh? So I wanted to dress young so that we collectively feel younger. C: This is my fifth 817. LYN: For some, this could be their first. Second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh. There might even be an eighth. C: I was 14 when I started liking you. LYN: Then, adding six years you’d be… 20 this year. How nice.

LYN: For the friends who are new or for the people who are just passing by and have unknowingly found themselves here- what is 817? It’s not a particularly special day, but for my fans and I, it is. People are wondering why 817 is a fan-day? It’s because the year I debuted, I had held a fanmeet. I invited a lot of people- I think it was 300? We set 8/17 every year as a festival for my fans. It’s quite a happy thing. Every year around this time, we can be happy and spend it a little like a festival- it’s a holiday of our own. LYN: There are many of my fans grouped in all different locations. For example- I won’t be naming any specific locations. Because if I say, “Shanghai, Beijing, Liaoning”- once I start naming cities and provinces, then I have to name them all. For example, I name Zhejiang, but not Henan. Then the fans in Henan will say, “What’s the big idea? Are you looking down on Henan fans? You don’t even want to mention us??” If I name Henan, but not Hebei: “Are you looking down on Hebei?” That’s not it. In the end I’d be naming them all. There are “sheds”- that is, my fan groups- in all different locations. On this day, 8/17, they’ll gather together to rent out a place, have a meal, and share their stories and the happiness they’ve gained from chasing the star known as Liu Yuning. They’ll use all their different dialects to describe how handsome and cool I am in their eyes. It’s that sort of festival, where they flatter me. No- I can’t say it like that. It’s where they make plans for the next 817 festival day. LYN: It’s just a small get-together for my fans, and they spend it happily. I’ve seen that some rent out a place, and even a huge screen. It’s like a wedding venue! Also, I was thinking- would it be bad of me to stream at this time? Because I’m sure that even at this moment, there are groups that are still in the midst of their gathering. Possibly, many of them are watching right now through their phones, or if they have a big screen maybe they’ll cast this to the screen to watch my stream. Right? :D Look- we’re even interacting. If there are people watching me right now, I’m sure they’d have all collectively answered, “Right!” It’s like a concert, now. LYN: I hope- I’m guessing- that the places you’ve rented out are private spaces? Because if it’s a public space and there are other guests in the area, they’re probably thinking that I’m crazy. You all also don’t look very sane. So, I hope you can be more discreet.

LYN: But I was wondering if it would be okay for me to stream at this time, because it’s past 8p, almost 9p. Tjey probably started eating around 6p or 7p, and eating would take about an hour. Many of my fans, though female, have probably already started drinking. I was afraid that many of you’d already be… so happy you’re dizzy with it. [read: drunk] If you’re watching my stream on top of that, too much excitement might not be a good thing. C: I can drink more than you! LYN: I’m sure you can. I’m peanuts- my tolerance is no good. I’m SURE you can drink more than I can, you don’t need to compare. There’s no need.

LYN: Alright, well. Ning-ge will use water as wine and make a toast to you all. Let’s all raise our cups! You- drink water or soft drinks, if you can. Grab your cola or sprite and let’s go. Here’s to you. Happy Holiday! C: Use tea as wine. LYN: Okay, okay. C: Ganbei! Ganbei, lao-da! LYN: Some of you started a chant: “Drain it! Drain it!” This type of person- that’s not very good of you. You think you’re being very enthusiastic, but we’re trying to get people to NOT drink. Also- I’m drinking water, not wine. We’re not limiting water- drink as much as you want. If our emotions are deep, then- ?? Why did I say that? Well, it doesn’t matter. Let’s go. If our emotions are deep, then down it in one shot. If our emotions are shallow, then just sip. (感情深一口闷; 感情浅，舔一舔.) - /drains his glass but also pours a little water on his keyboard/ LYN: (acting drunk) /hurk/ Sorry- I drank too much, friends. I- My alcohol tolerance is really low. I can’t keep you company anymore, so- drink and be happy amongst yourselves. I can’t drink anymore. Look at how red my face is. I’m not a good drinker at all. I really can’t hold it. One glass and I’m out. You uh- if you want to drink, then you continue. Be happy.

LYN: Many of you are probably at home? I read a comment that said, “I just finished cleaning up the house and you started streaming.” That’s great. If you’re at home you can be nice and comfortable. Grab some snacks and we can spend a few relaxing and happy hours together. C: I’m on a diet. LYN: Oh, you’re on a diet? Then, restrain yourself a little. Don’t grab any snacks.

----------

C: Lao-da, do you know any Mongolian? LYN: I don’t speak any. But I can sing it. :) I think I only know one line, though. Does that count? I don’t know. -- 乌兰巴托的夜 (The Night in Ulaanbaatar) LYN: This probably doesn’t count as Mongolian… - /looking something up on his phone & struggling with it/ -- 鸿雁 (Swan Goose) LYN: No, the- the translation/pronunciation that it’s giving me doesn’t look… Let me try again. - /take 2/ LYN: Again! - /take 3/ LYN: /laughs/ Ah- let’s forget it. I accidentally got carried away with it. Excuse me.

C: Ning-ge, did you drink? LYN: I just drank two mouthfuls of some water as wine, didn’t I? But I didn’t expect that it would go to my head. So, I didn’t drink but I am a little “drunk” with it.

C: If you haven’t checked in today, go do it. LYN: Okay. If you haven’t checked in yet on my Super Topic, this is a reminder to go do it.

C: Rang Jiu. LYN: I think today is also- what is it called- Daomi Festival, right? That is- a festival for fans of DMBJ. What a coincidence, that it’s the same day as my fan-day as well. Also coincidentally, I sang the song for Tomb of the Sea and have acted as Hei Yanjing. I think there’s some fate there. C: What a coincidence! LYN: It is! I don’t know if I’ll be able to sing it well, but how about I give it a try? I’ll try.

LYN: /laughs/ Do these make me look overly cute? Whatever, it doesn’t matter. At least it can cover how red my face will get, because this song is goes pretty high. -- 让酒 (Let the Wine) LYN: !!! It’s been too long since I last sang this song! I missed the timing for the chorus, sorry. Let me start from the top. Let’s stop the previous segment there, and then erase it. LYN: /pretending he’s drunk/ This is, ah- drinking and singing don’t mix well. But I didn’t drink any alcohol. I’m joking, friends. Oh, look. The producer (of the song) is Song Pengfei. That’s our good friend. [t/n: Ning-ge’s fans are called “pengfei.”] Let’s try again, properly this time. Excuse me. -- 让酒 (Let the Wine) (take 2)

C: Lao-da, let’s sing “chi” together. LYN: Let’s not, because the track I have is for the female key. (hard for him to sing along to)

-----

C: Lao-da, read my comment and my heart’s wish will be fulfilled. LYN: You can’t say such things. There is no “fulfillment of your heart’s wish”- you will encounter so many different goals at different stages of your life. This might be your current wish, but you will have many more in the future.

C: (Wang) Yizhe saw your commentary. LYN: I know- he made a reaction video to my reaction. I saw it. It was fun. An interaction between friends.

C: Ning-ge, I want to watch your livestream- LYN: Let me imitate this friend’s way of speech. They’re probably a student, to have made such an innocent comment. [t/n: he uses the word “chunzhen”, yes- homophonous with the yogurt.] They said, “Ning-ge, should I do my homework, or watch your stream?” They asked such a question. I think it’s like this- definitely do your homework first. Your studies come first. As for my stream, there’s always the playback when it ends. When you’re finished with your homework you can lie down on your bed and watch. Or maybe tomorrow when you have the time. You don’t necessarily need to watch me stream live. There’s not really a difference between a live stream and a pre-recorded one. Actually, right at this moment you’re watching a recorded stream, it’s just that you don’t know it yet. This is recorded, and is just playing. You might see me sitting here now, but actually I’m outside eating some hotpot. 

C: But watching “live (at location)” has more feel. LYN: Are you watching a concert, what are you talking about, “live” has more feel??? It’s not worth it. This is all there is to a stream. Even though we are far apart, we’re just meeting through a screen- be that a phone or a computer or cast to a tv or tablet. There’s nothing to watching it “live (at location).”

C: Can you see our comments with those glasses on? LYN: Yes? Just because I’m wearing them doesn’t mean that I’m blind. How could I not see them??

C: Is your blush a filter or what? LYN: It’s a filter I turned on to match today’s pink shirt. /turns it off/ Now it’s normal. My face isn’t pink. It was a filter.

C: Lao-da, when will the soybean oil you owe me come into stock? LYN: My studio really did help me to buy oil and rice today. When I came home today they asked me if they should move the goods into my streaming room, so that I can show you that I have them prepared. I said, “Forget it.” Why? Because if you really start taking me seriously, then this would be a difficult thing to facilitate. Sometimes, and mostly in my streams, a lot of the things I say aren’t exactly outright joking but more abstract and you can’t tell. But I discovered that when I’m trying to be abstract and joking, there are really some people who are taking me seriously. I’m speaking in an abstract sense, but people are really believing it. So… I’m afraid that one day my joke will turn into a lifetime of silence. So I told them to forget it, because if I really bring oil and rice here today, you’re going to spread the news. Then, it will be that I secretly let some people receive theirs and some people don’t get any. Then people will stop checking in to the Super Topic (because they have no more expectations). I don’t need anyone really taking that promise seriously. I’d be in big trouble, then. C: You can only trust 20% of what he says. LYN: Yes. Only trust 20%

- /keeps “cheers-ing”/ LYN: Water as wine. Today we’re celebrating a holiday… C: Raising fish… // Drain it! LYN: /sigh/ It’s just water, what’s there to drain?? I don’t think I should have said what I did, earlier. “If our emotions are deep, then down it in one shot.” I shouldn’t have said it. Because now every time I pick up my cup I get the feeling you want me to drain it. LYN: If you’re going to keep making me do that, then the neighbors will be fighting soon. Very quickly. They’re going to start fighting. Hold on, let me pour more into the cup. But know that if you keep making me drain it, the neighbors are going to be fighting really soon. (t/n: he’ll need to go use the restroom, lmao) C: It’s okay, we have the videos.

C: How about spending the new year? (stream past 12a) LYN: I don’t think I will be able to stream for very long tonight. I have a bunch of scenes tomorrow to shoot, so I’ll stream until it’s about time and then go. Don’t try to force me to stay.

C: Lao-da, I can see your blackheads. LYN: That’s a bit much, isn’t it? Has the quality of the video increased so much that you can even see my blackheads?? That’s amazing.

LYN: (backtracking) So I thought I would forget it, and not show off any oil or rice. I was afraid if I showed you actual product, you all would start requesting your allocations. This venture is a little too large of a scale, I honestly don’t think I would be able to pull it off.

C: Ning-ge, smile at the camera so I can take a screenshot. LYN: /makes a crying face instead/

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LYN: It’s another 817, yeah. LYN: We posted a video for the day, right? And in it there were a lot of clips, especially from my concert. I felt a little emotional seeing it, because it’s been five years ago now. I do miss it. So I was wondering if… it was about time for me to have my next concert. LYN: 1. I am, actually, a singer. So a concert is a must. 2. When I’m watching the video I really will feel a bunch of emotions and miss being in concert. I’ll start imagining what it was like in the venue. I really need to look into finishing up dramas this year and start working on my concert next. I should work on my music. C: Release your album first. LYN: Yes, very soon. Once this drama wraps I’ll go and finish up my album. We’ll make plans to post some things, and then it will be released. After it’s released we can just get the concert sorted out for next year and we’ll be set. That’s my current plan. - C: How many shows for Beijing? LYN: I don’t yet have the confidence to say that all my tickets will be sold out. I’m not like others, where a ticket is hard to acquire. For me, the concert goers are hard to acquire. If I open too many shows and no one buys the tickets I would die of embarassment. There’s no point if I’d be singing to myself. I’ve heard enough of that as is. So I was thinking just a moderate amount would be enough. One stop per city. As long as everyone can see me and I can perform well, that’s enough. C: Arrange more shows. I really won’t be able to fight for a ticket. LYN: That’s nonsense! Many of you always give me the misconception that my tickets are hard to get. The sales aren’t even open yet, and you’re already acting as if they’re sold out. Stop fooling me. I won’t believe it. - LYN: But after I saw that video (for 817), I thought I would finally start making plans to hold my concert next year. It’s about time, and something I should have been working on. LYN: So, I wanted to say that MAYBE next year I’ll hold my concert. Maybe. It’s still only a possibility right now. But the probability is high because I really want to have it.

C: Ning-ge, open reservations and let’s see how many you’ll need. LYN: Are there pre-reservations for concert tickets?? I don’t know about it. I mean, a reservation is fine but when actual sales open and people don’t finalize to buy the ticket, don’t we have the same problem?? So, let’s just see when the time comes. Keep feeding your piggybanks. LYN: I really think that the investment to go to a concert is really very high. It’s not as simple as tickets. Those can range from a few hundred to a few thousand (RMB). But the problem is that many of you are coming from surrounding areas to the city nearest you. There’s the ground transport and airfare, which could rack up to a few thousands. If you live close, maybe you can get away with just a train ticket. But then there’s the cost for hotel. It’s a lot of logistics and expenses to think about. It’s costly, so start saving up in your piggybanks. Once tickets sales are open, you can smash the piggy and rush over.

C: Lao-da, can minors attend? LYN: ? That, I really don’t know. Probably! A lot of my friends are mothers now, and my male fans are fathers- I always see them bringing their kids. I’m not too sure on how the tickets were sold, though. You should be able to buy tickets. I mean, there’s no- I can GUARANTEE that there will not be any nudity (or content not suitable for minors) at this concert. For example if I’m singing, and then all of a sudden it goes to my head and I rip my shirt off. There will be none of that happening, so I’m sure that minors can attend. There will probably be no such impulsive behaviors. C: Kids can buy tickets as normal. LYN: I think so, yeah.You should be able to go. I saw kids in my concerts all the time, so you should be able to come. Rest assured. LYN: Wait- because I said that there will not be any shirt-ripping, will that influence my ticket sales? That is- many of you were expecting to see something, but I told you there’s no chance, so you no longer look forward to it as much as you did before?

C: Where to buy tickets? LYN: You’ll find out later, when I’m ready to have the concert. I’ve only talking hypothetically, up until now. I saw the video for 817 and I missed those times. I’ve spent the last two years constantly shooting for dramas, and I think it’s about time that I work on my music now. C: You’ve spent the last five years shooting dramas. LYN: Yes, I have but I also sang a lot of OSTs. Still though, I haven’t released any of my own music, so I’m really very ashamed. 

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C: Ning-ge, do you need copyright to release/play a song? LYN: In my stream? Probably not? If I’m using it for business (profit) then that’s probably no. But if I’m just listening to it, there shouldn’t be any problem. My stream is strictly no business- I don’t “officially” promote dramas, I don’t try to sell you anything, and I don’t accept gifts. It’s just a normal entertainment stream, so playing some music in the background probably wouldn’t violate any copyright rules. Even if I did, I don’t think it would warrant anyone suing me?? LYN: Right now I am playing YoungCaptain’s song. I don’t expect him to sue me tomorrow. I don’t think it’s worth it. After all we have what counts as a small collaboration. This goes for anyone- I don’t think me playing their songs in my stream would garner such a severe reaction as them suing me. It’s not worth it.

C: Ning-ge, be the spokesperson for the cologne that you always use. LYN: ? You know, I alway see comments online saying, “Every time Ning-ge walks past us, he smells so nice!” ? “What cologne is he using??” I keep thinking about this and I- ??? I don’t think it’s me? It’s probably on YOU, and when I walk by I stir up the wind. So what you’re smelling is the other friends who are there. I don’t think it’s any smell of cologne from me. Probably when I walk by- breeze by- and what you’re smelling is the perfume from the fans before you. Then I bring the scent of whatever YOU’RE wearing to the person next to you. And so on and so forth. So you’ll never be able to tell exactly what scent it is. It’s the combined smell of countless perfumes that you all are wearing, not what I am wearing. LYN: If you ask me if I USE any cologne/perfume, of course I do, but mostly for events where I have to make an  appearance. So at the very least I don’t smell like sweat- I’d like to smell nice. But I always change it up. What’s the basis of this? Because sometimes I use my makeup artist’s. Sometimes I use my hair stylist’s. Sometimes I use my assistants’. Then sometimes I use my own. It’s not a sure thing, so there’s always a different scent. C: How much do you spray?? You must have to use a lot. LYN: Let me tell you- one time- you really shouldn’t spray too much perfume. If you put on too much it’s truly excruciating. One time I took a plane, and the person next to me had so much on. It smelled nice, sure. But I was almost choking on it- even through my face mask.

----- break #1

C: How did the fight go? LYN: Don’t ask! Why do you need to know about things that have nothing to do with you… It’s fine- they weren’t fighting. It was just the sound of the tv. C: They’re watching A Lonely Hero’s Journey (Gu Zhou). LYN: Yes, probably. I didn’t clearly see what they were watching. It was probably GZ.

LYN: There’s someone who keeps wanting me to talk about my work- you can stop spamming. It’s endless. Why would I come to stream, just to chat about that? I don’t know what you’re thinking, asking me to “talk about this” and “how did you feel about that”. Are you crazy? Who am I, to talk about that stuff in my stream? I don’t know what you’re thinking, but stop spamming. LYN: How shameless do you think I am, to talk about those topics?? You really don’t consider me a stranger, do you. You’re still spamming. I’m not kidding. This is a matter of respect for this industry and for the people I’ve worked with.

C: Lao-da, you’re trending. #31. LYN: I don’t believe it. There’s no way. Absolutely no way! LYN: Let me take a look. LYN: … /sits in silence, bc he’s not on it/ C: You were on it, but just dropped. LYN: You’re liars! - LYN: Friends, all of a sudden I am feeling a little sleepy. I feel like sleep is coming. I have a song called 狂风袭来 (strong wind is raging)- but now I feel sleep coming. [t/n: making a language pun] I want to sleep, now. Maybe I should take a shower and then just go to sleep? Everything is possible, in a dream. [t/n: he can be trending in his dream XD] C: Sleep early. Getting enough sleep is important. LYN: I’ll stay a little longer, but good night to you. Let’s not force it. - LYN: Someone just asked a profound question, “Is a trending topic that important?” Let me think of how to respond to that. If I say it’s not important would that be disrespectful to weibo, because being on such far-reaching network and to be trending is actually a huge form of support for an artist? But if I say it IS important, then there’s that added connotation of exploitation. If I say it’s important, then you’re going to think that the only reason I stream is so that I can be on the list of trending topics. It makes me look shallow. There’s no good way to answer this question. LYN: But I do want to say that it does have importance. Because if I am on the trending topics, people might see that and then make their way into my stream. They might not know me, or understand me, or only know of me only due to all the negative comments, but through a single stream- if they stay five or even ten minutes- it’s possible that their impression of me could change. Maybe they’d think, “LYN is not as annoying as I thought. He looks pretty normal, and not as bad as everyone is saying he is.” It’s like that. I believe the purpose of the trending topic is so that many more people get to know me and understand me. Once they know my name, perhaps in the future when I release a song or one of my dramas airs- they’ll check it out because they remember that they watched five minutes of my stream once. Every consumer is important. Each and every one of you is important. So, I still hope that I can have a trending topic, so that people can come to know of me.

C: I never thought a trending topic could influence so much… LYN: It’s not, really. It’s okay if I don’t have a topic, but if I had one it would be even better. It’s just icing on the cake, but life without it goes on as normal.

C: When will you come to Xinjiang? I’ll take you to eat delicious foods. LYN: Okay. I’ll go to play if I find the opportunity, and eat your delicious foods. 

C: Ning-ge, does Daimi lose her color? LYN: ?? Does she lose her color? Do you really think she’s a mop?? Actually… she has changed color. When I first got her, she was black and white. But as I continued raising her, she’s turned grey and white. I think part of the reason for this is maybe what we’re feeding her, which has caused her color to not be as black and shiny as before. She doesn’t really eat dog food. She eats sausages- that’s her main source of sustenance. She’ll only eat dog food if you hand feed it to her. She might not eat it if you give her two pieces at once. You have to feed her piece by piece. When she’s had enough she’ll stop. She likes snacks.

C: Lao-da, I’m about to start school. Can you try to stream on the weekends rather than during the week? LYN: There’s no problem with this. I’ll stream when I stream, and you can watch the playback as needed. The two don’t contradict. My streams are not at a fixed time/day. When the time comes and you can’t make it, you can just watch the playback.

C: Can you help me do my homework? LYN: I can’t help you.

LYN: ! Last time someone in the comments wrote, “Ning-ge, I lost my dog!” and then just now I think I saw “Ning-ge, I found my dog!” Congratulations. Also- I don’t know if you would like hearing this or not, but- small dogs are a part of your family (and should be treated as such). It looks like a small dog, but it’s really a small person. Suddenly losing them is a painful thing, but I’m glad you found it and I hope you learned from that. Be sure to keep a good eye on them from now on. LYN: My dog, too, would run. When I was shooting dramas before- we live in the hotel, right- as soon as the door opens, she would run outside. She just wanted to go outside to play, I don’t know what for. She wanted to be outside. One day, she got out and when I finally realized and started to look for her she wasn’t even on the same floor anymore. It scared me to death. Becuase there are so many floors, I went one by one looking for her. I had already looked for several floors with no sign of her. After a while, I don’t remember who told me, but they said, “There’s a small dog in the first floor lobby.” I went down immediately to see her wandering around. She took the elevator down. It was stopped on our floor and she probably got in and rode it down. Once on the ground floor she was dazed, looking around at everyone and thinking none of them looked like me. I almost lost her, that day. It was a long time ago now, but be sure to keep an eye on small dogs.

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C: Ning-ge, I lost my older brother. Could I borrow you for a few days? LYN: How about no? Forget it. LYN: You can consider me as your brother from a distant place, who you have no contact with. Go ahead and consider me your brother, but our relationship is that we are not in contact. Let’s make an example: you are my sister. We’re born from the same parents, and I’ve always wanted to learn art but we’re a transfer student family that has businesses in all different places. We have billions in inheritance. Our father wanted me to take over the family business, to become the owner of said billions. But I wanted to pursue music and acting, so I refused to inherit and decided to leave home. Our father said, “If you step out those doors, don’t ever think of coming back!” I walked to the door and turned back with a wry smile, replying, “I would never return to this house even if I died!” I slammed open the door and very unpolitely left. I’ve been out on my own ever since then. I deleted every contact from home I had including you, sister. I deleted your contact info. There’s no way I’m going home because honestly I am very happy now. I’m doing what I like to do. Please take over the billions in family inheritance for me. Our family business is counting on you. LYN: I am your brother, but we aren’t in contact and we can’t meet. Just forget it.

C: In order to fulfill your dreams, you won’t even acknowledge your sister anymore?? LYN: I think it’s like this- It’s not that I’m not acknowledging that I have a sister, it’s that this episode is not up to the reuniting step yet. On 8/17/2024, that part of the series has not been uploaded yet. Later my sister and I will fight over the inheritance, but that’s in a later stream. At this point in the story, we are not in contact. I am pursuing my dreams and she is at home preparing to take over the business. Reuniting comes later. C: Reunite when you’re 60. LYN: 60 is a little late. Let me tell you my life plan: after a certain amount of time, it could be one or several years later, I will suddenly come to realize that my family is the most important. I’ve already accomplished what I wanted to for my dreams, and I experience some event that makes me think that family is important. So I go home. There is sure to be such an episode. Let’s not rush.

C: Ge, what if our dad accepts you? LYN: Meimei, you mean that Dad accepts that I want to sing? LYN: There’s no way. I don’t believe it. Don’t try to trick me! I think you must be working together- to trick me into coming back home. No way. I can’t go back. 

C: Ning-ge, my friend says that you’re not sane. LYN: /sigh/ What sort of terrible friend?? /laughs/ You don’t have the greatest taste (in friends).

C: Dad already told me. Ge, actually, I’m adopted. Ge, come back. Let’s start over. LYN: Oh- So you’re saying that Dad is insistent on giving the business over to me and not you because you’re adopted? Oh~ So you’re adopted. We have no blood ties? - [t/n: I can see where this is going (love story), and how LYN is trying to get around that. XD] LYN: /smirks/ Wow, so thrilling?? LYN: But there’s a problem- which is that you didn’t know that I’ve always known about your birth. Dad SAYS that you were adopted but the truth is you are the daughter he had with another woman. Since it’s come to this, I have to tell you the truth. I am still your brother. We have the same father, but different mothers. Our dad tricked you. Don’t overthink this. Let’s maintain some distance.

C: Ge! I also want to be a celebrity. Why don’t you show me the ropes? LYN: Huh?? Sis, let me tell you- the life of an artist may LOOK shining and brilliant but actually it’s hard. It’s hard to get good footing in this industry. It’s not anything like what you’re thinking. Also- it’s not so easy. You think I can help you become a celebrity? I’m not even doing very well myself. If I try to bring you up, I’m afraid that we’ll both fall. Sorry, but it won’t work. I can’t take care of you. Stop thinking about it. LYN: Just take your billions in inheritance and have a nice life. 

C: Ge, if I can’t be a celebrity, then can you take me to meet some instead? LYN: Oh, so for example I have a celebrity friend and you want to meet them, so I take you to see them? So it turns out that you weren’t a fan of me, your brother, after all? The reason you’re a fan of your brother is so that you can see other celebrities?? You’re not going to ask me to help you get their autograph next, are you???

C: Ge, my best friend says that you sound like a duck! LYN: Ah. I sound like a duck??! No way, right? It doesn’t sound that bad, does it? What are you talking about?? LYN: What a terrible best friend! What type of people are you hanging out with all the time?? LYN: QUACK!

C: Ning-ge, so you did have resources backing you after all. LYN: “LYN must have someone backing him in the industry” and today the truth has come out. That’s right- it’s the Liu Group’s business empire. The story goes like this, friends: it all started from ten years ago. I decided to leave home that day- when my father said, “If you step out those doors, don’t ever think of coming back!” and I rudely talked back at him, saying, “I would never return to this house even if I died!” I started out on my own, to pursue my dream of music, me- the prince of the Liu Group. I went to pursue my dreams. At the start it was like hitting a wall, but inexplicably, slowly, I started to become more and more successful. I started finding jobs one after another. But the truth is that the Liu Group- my father- was secretly helping me. He found some companies and told them that if he invested then they would need to bring his son work in return. That’s the truth of it. I have the Liu Group Business Empire backing me.

LYN: Everything I have said so far is just for that variety show effect. I’m joking, so please don’t take it seriously or think I am trying to disrespect anyone. This is purely for show. LYN: (This all started) Because there was a friend earlier who wanted to be my little sister.

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LYN: Someone said that their best friend think that I sound like a duck when I talk. Now that I’m thinking about it, the more they say it, the more like one I become. C: Ning-ge, your voice is a combination of Donald Duck and Minnie Mouse. LYN: What are you talking about?? Who’s Minnie Mouse?

C: Ning-ge, what are you doing after filming wraps? LYN: After wrap I’ll be cleaning up the set after the crew. Move some props. LYN: It’s not set yet, but I have a lot to do after filming wraps. Mostly its music work. I have songs to record and business events. C: Will you have more variety shows? LYN: Only Melody Journey. And then… that’s it I think.

C: Lao-da, this time you’re really on the trending topics. #12. LYN: You’re lying to me! Really? I’m afraid to look! LYN: Let me see what’s up! - /checks it/ /is sad/ LYN: I’m sure that it was not this friend’s intention to trick me, but that they didn’t hit “trending topics” but “MY trending topics”- so it’s not the same list. You clicked on YOUR trending topics- the one IN YOUR HEART, not Weibo’s trending topics! I’m already only #13 in your heart, so what other good news do you have to tell me?? LYN: If you haven’t yet subscribed to my weibo, please so do. Thank you, everyone. C: Gege, I’m sorry. In MY trending topics, you’re #30. LYN: /laugh cries/ Today is 817, isn’t it? You want to anger me to death, don’t you? [t/n: number pun - 把我气] LYN: You dare to trick me? I think that you no longer wish to keep working in this industry. Woman- you’re playing with fire.

LYN: No but really, I’m ok. It doesn’t really matter to me if I’m trending or not. I’m only streaming- what’s there to talk about? I always stream, so it’s not a rare thing. If other artists start streaming and end up on the trending topics because of it, that’s normal. But I always stream. C: You don’t “always” stream, you stream once a month now. LYN: Once a month is already not bad. Since August has started this is already my second stream. What more do you want?

LYN: I discovered that I have an influx of student-fans. I suspect that they’re ELEMENTARY students. Because what they’re saying is so childish. “Lao-da, can you help me do my homework.” Do you think I would have gone to cooking school if I were able to solve your problem sets? I would have gone to Tsinghua or PKU, instead of grilling sweet potatoes.* And you want me to do your homework?? [t/n: 考上 (kǎo shàng) - admitted to vs. 烤上 (kǎo shàng) - grilled] C: I thought you grilled corn? LYN: I’ve done it all. LYN: They were admitted to Tsinghua. You were admitted to PKU. In the end, I grilled sweet potatoes… and corn.

C: Do you think I should go to sleep or continue watching your stream? LYN: Go to sleep. It’s already past 10p. It’s about time. You should sleep or rest when you need to.

C: Let Liu Group’s Business Empire invest in Weibo. That way you can be at whatever number on the trending topics you want. LYN: Liu Group’s Business Empire is in a parallel universe. It’s a different place from where we are right now. Don’t misunderstand. The story I was talking about earlier was about the me from a parallel universe, not the me from this universe, right now. I was merely communicating a little with someone in the parallel universe, is all. 

C: Have you given any thought into being my dad? LYN: /crosses his arms in the shape of an “X”/ LYN: Don’t mess around. You just threw me back to the days when I was playing 劲舞团 (Jin Wu Tuan) [??]. I used to love playing that game, spending my days in the internet cafe like this: /keyboard asmr/. “Boss, could I get instant noodles over here?” LYN: There were families or whatever in that game, and there would always be people going, “I’m the father/I’m the mother. You are my daughter.” At the time I thought those people were so childish. But now Ning-ge has grown up, or rather- he’s gotten old, so I can’t play like that anymore. 

C: Lao-da, I’ll be starting school in a few days, console me. LYN: It’s good to be able to pursue studies. Why should I console you? You’re lucky, but you just don’t know it.

C: Ning-ge, could you get me an autograph from Jackson Yee? LYN: Uhm. I think if I were to thicken my skin and boldly ask him for one, I would probably be able to get one. If I ask, I think he would likely give me one. I don’t think it would be a problem. But I want to ask- why should I?? Why would I do such a thing for you? I just want to ask. Are you associated with Liu Group’s Business Empire? C: Ning-ge, ask for an autograph for me and I will throw 100mil at you. LYN: /laughs/ /muttering/ You all must be crazy!

------ Break #2

C: It’s my first time hearing you whistle. LYN: !! -- 手写童话 (Handwritten Fairy Tale) [Listen-Ning EP] - /singing along/ LYN: Wait- if I’m remembering correctly, I whistle in this song, right? If I’m not wrong it’s this part. Is there, though? I forgot. - /continues singing/

LYN: One day I discovered that I have a LOT of songs… that I don’t remember how to sing anymore. Some that I even forgot existed. But I asked others singers, and they have also had this type of experience. Because sometimes the songs were released long ago or if it was not a particularly well-received song, it doesn’t have a lasting impression.

LYN: Like this song: 不求. Do you still remember it? // I’m trending on the main list at #20?  -- 不求 (Do Not Ask) [Single] LYN: This song is pretty old- maybe abound 2019?

LYN: Let me see what other songs there are… that I can’t remember. LYN: This one I can remember, because I heard it in a video edit the other day. This one’s popular lately: -- 当遇见你 (When I Met You) [Skate Into Love OST]

-- 一番星 (A Single Star) [Looking Up OST] -- 昨日少年 (The Youth of Yesterday) [Penguin Highway OST] (LYN: This one was pretty early on.) -- 隐侠 (Hidden Hero) [My Heroic Husband donghua OST (LYN: I quite like this one.) -- 生命之书 (Book of Life) [Glory of Special Forces OST] (LYN: I rarely play this on in my stream, but I do like it.) -- 爱了很久 (I’ve Been in Love for A Long Time) [Twilight OST] (LYN: This one is relatively recent.) -- 眷恋 (Nostalgia) [You Are My Hero OST] -- 本可以 (Could Have Been) [Rattan OST] -- 风衣 (Windbreaker) [Fireworks of My Heart OST] (LYN: This one, I actually really like. There was a stage I wanted to sing it on…) -- 天判 (Judgement of the Underworld) [A New Ghost Story (game) OST] (LYN: This one is old, isn’t it?) -- 愿重逢 (Wish to Reunite) [Choice Husband OST] [t/n: he didn’t actually let this one play.] -- 阳光, 海浪, 我和你 (Sunshine, Waves, Me and You) [Falling into You OST] -- 忠实观众 (Loyal Audience) [Listen-Ning EP] -- 剑魂 (Soul of the Sword) w/ Tan Jianci [20220611 Hello Saturday] -- 最浪漫的忘记 (The Most Romantic Forget) [Never Say Goodbye OST] (LYN: This one, I really have forgotten.)

LYN: Okay, that’s about enough. There are just so many songs that I liked when I was recording them but I haven’t sung them in so long, so it’s a bit of a shame. Later I’ll have to organize them and see which I can sing, then find a stage to properly showcase them. Otherwise they would have been released for nothing. It’d be a waste.

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LYN: I’ll chat with you a while longer before leaving. Since it’s 817 today, I just wanted to come celebrate with you, and enjoy a relaxing and beautiful night together. 

C: Get Daimi over so I can look at her. LYN: I can’t let her steal my limelight. I don’t want her to. - /calls her over anyway/ LYN: Say hello to all the uncles and aunties.

LYN: Look, she’s still sleep-dazed. She can’t even open her eyes. She was sleeping, how could you have me call her over?? Look at how sleepy she is. She doesn’t want to bother with you. - /pats Daimi/ LYN: It’s okay, I know.

C: It’s “brothers and sisters”! LYN: Nope- say hi to all the uncles and aunties.

LYN: Okay, you can go. Greet them again. /waves her paw/ She’s getting annoyed. LYN: Okay, bye bye. Go play. Go sleep. C: She just left? LYN: Yeah, she’s gone. LYN: ~ She’s gone. Without an ounce of hesitation. It seems like in this world, there is someone more important to her than me. ~

C: Like a gas tank. (round) LYN: No, she’s gotten thinner! These days I’ve been doing my best to limit the amount of sausages she gets. So she’s lost 2kgs. So it’s good- she looks a little less heavy. I think it’s a healthier state of being, for her. She’s definitely not thin, but just a little thinner.

C: She almost can’t run anymore. LYN: Yeah…

C: She needs to go on a diet, too? LYN: No- it’s just that for that period of time she was getting WAY too many sausages. She could eat 10+ in a day. That was honestly a bit remiss of me and totally not sustainable. Nowadays she only gets 5 or 6 a day? 6 or 7? X’D Estimated. It’s good enough.

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C: Ning-ge, do you have WeChat? LYN: No, I’m not on that platform. LYN: Also, people were asking me if I’m on other platforms… honestly the only one I’m on right now is weibo. That’s the truth. I’m mainly using weibo, and I’m not on any others.

C: Ning-ge, didn’t you play QQ Xuanwu? LYN: I was playing that, yes. I was good at it, too. I would practice every day.

C: Ning-ge, I didn’t have a signal so I climbed an electric pole to watch your stream. LYN: … LYN: So unsightly? Are you being serious or are you joking? If you’re joking, it’s not funny at all. You should be careful. Get down from there. Stop watching. Go home to watch. C: I’m on a mountain. LYN: That’s nice! When people used to ask me where I wanted to go for vacation, I would always say I wanted to go to a bustling city- Beijing or Shanghai. Because when I was little I really didn’t get out much. The farthest I’d gone was Shenyang- I’m from Dandong. But I was thinking if I ever got the chance to travel I would go to Beijing or Shanghai. Hangzhou, also. But now I really want to find nature. Somewhere where there’s not a lot of signal. I could have a tent or a wooden cabin and grill something over a fire. Like camping- somewhere with a nice view. I really want to go somewhere like that, now. C: Return to nature. LYN: I just want to find someplace where I can calm my heart/mind. Somewhere peaceful/tranquil. It’s just that these past few years- someone said earlier that they’ve spent six 817’s with me- I’ve just been constantly pushing myself forward. I get the feeling that I need to refuel. Even robots need to be maintenanced. LYN: ~ My body is not as good as previous years. Now I’d just like to find a place to peacefully spend my days. I hope you can leave me to return to the mountains and forests. ~

C: You SHOULD rest. LYN: I didn’t before because the more recent dramas were all scheduled pretty tightly close together. After Cicada Girls not a few days passed before I was in the next crew. After that once ended, I was in the next crew soon after. There wasn’t really a break between them. If I had even a month- I had about half a month but there was other work to do- but there was never any time to be still. It was hard enough even to find a whole day to play games or hang out for someplace. So after this drama wraps I’ll probably rest for… three or four years? XD LYN: For me, a day is like a year.

C: Ning-ge, I’m still waiting for a 60 year old you to tear off your shirt. LYN: Rest assured. When I hold my concert when I’m 60, I will definitely show you an old man tearing his shirt off. You just wait. I’ll perform it for you. When I’m sixty- I’ll wear a shirt so worn that it already has holes and so old that it’s yellowed. I’ll tear it off on stage. Why did I choose such a shirt? Because it’s sure to tear. At that time I’d be an old man and probably not have much strength so it needs to be ratty. So I’d wear my sweatpants and slippers and sing for you. -- /Rang Jiu (old man ver.)/ C: After you’ve described it, I don’t want to see it anymore. LYN: If you don’t want to see it then get out. Who cares if you don’t want to see it or not? Even if you don’t want to, there are still others that do. LYN: Think about it- I’ll be sixty. Many of my friends are older or maybe younger than me, but in general our age difference isn’t too big. When you’re 70 years old, or 50-60, what other forms of entertainment will you have?? I know because I’ve seen my mom- there’s mahjong. You’re either going to be playing mahjong or dancing in the square. At that age, for you to be able to go see an old man tear off his shirt - wouldn’t you call that entertainment? Let me tell you- 60 will be my year. I’m guessing it will be the peak of my career. I’ll be up on stage and the audience will be filled with 50-60 year old ladies, watching my concert. It’s going to be amazing.

LYN: Also- at that time you’d have a happy family with your children and grandchildren. You get a monthly retirement fund, and benefits insurance. There’s nothing else for you to do but be happy. You’d have full economic power. There would be no better time for you to buy tickets. LYN: Someone earlier said that they were a student-fan. In that case, you should study well. One day when you’ve graduated from college and have a successful career, at that time you can buy a concert ticket to come see me. Think about it- when all of you are 60-70, have a family and savings, it’s the best time for you. You’d have both time and money. That’s the best time. - C: 60 is the best age to make something of yourself. LYN: I wouldn’t go that far. - C: Ning-ge, is there a senior discount? LYN: No. But if you’re 50-60 and you don’t have the money to buy a concert ticket, you can go ask your children or grandchildren for it. Then, if they don’t give you the funds I will come to stream to back you up. I will continue to maintain streaming all that time, so that when you’re old and your children aren’t filial, I can come here to berate call them out. I’ll give them pressure until they treat you well. You think you’re a fan of LYN, but really you’re a fan of someone who- in case you’re old and your children aren’t filial- you’ll have a friend who will stand up for you.

C: Ning-ge, tickets for seats on the ceiling are fine for me. LYN: You can get them wherever you want- it all depends on your own circumstances. You can buy a ticket for whatever spot you want. As long as you go and have the experience, at least once.

LYN: I don’t know, though. Let’s talk again when I’m sixty. I don’t know what condition I’d be in. I know I always say that your body (health) is most important. To all the young people who are working hard right now- if you’re only in school, you have it a little easier- and for those who have difficult (labor-intensive) jobs: when have we ever paid attention to our own bodies? When have we stopped to consider whether what we’re eating is healthy or not? We haven’t. So I know I always say that health is most important, but it’s hard to put in practice. Still, we should try harder to make it important. Every time I go to the hospital, it’s terrifying. So please stay healthy, okay friends? Let’s all stay healthy so that we can make it to an old age. 

LYN: If you have not yet subscribed to my weibo, please do so. I am Modern Brothers Liu Yuning. When I have time I come to stream, but I am also shooting dramas and releasing songs. I am a singer and an actor. If you have the time, I hope you can please support my works. Thank you.

C: Ning-ge, if you’re going to tear your shirt during your concert, then how many rounds (shows) will you do it for? LYN: You must be sick. What sort of a question is that?? LYN: I’ll prepare 100 of them, so that I can tear them all on stage. Tear one, put one on, tear that one, put another one on, etc. The whole performance for the night is just me tearing shirts. Tearing 100 shirts by hand. What do you think?

C: Be healthy, be healthy! I’m going to sleep! LYN: It’s 11:30p and you’re saying that’s healthy?? Are you overseas and there’s a time difference? Why don’t you have a meal while you’re at it. They say if you’re full before you go to sleep, that’s healthy. So that there’s something in your stomach from which you can absorb nutrients while you sleep. Why don’t you try that? LYN: I heard something yesterday: A midnight snack is just breakfast a few hours ahead of time. So eat when you want. Eating a midnight snack is not a sin, you’re just eating your breakfast early. Early by six hours… we should be early for things. The early bird gets the worm, right? Whether in life or in work, we should work hard.

C: Ning-ge, I eat 5 meals a day. How would that be calculated? LYN: I don’t have the right to comment. I can only praise you for having a good home environment. It looks like you’re doing well for yourself, if you can have five meals a day. You must own a restaurant, right?? But it’s not like every time there’s a customer and you bring them their dishes, you join them for the meal, though??? // Your family DOES own a restaurant? Oh, then that’s another discussion. All I can say is 1. Eat if you want to and 2. I guess your family business is doing well. LYN: Honestly though, I think four or five meals is still okay. Because some people who work out have multiple meals a day, too. That’s what I’ve heard, at least. They’re exhausting a lot of energy, so they need to eat more to maintain it. I’m not sure how it all works. 

C: How many meals a day do you eat? LYN: Me? Maybe two or three? On average, two. I get up and eat a meal then eat another at night. Most of the time, it’s two. If I need to head out particularly early I’ll have a little breakfast, then a lunch, then a dinner. 

C: Ning-ge, I eat 8 meals a day. LYN: As long as you’re happy. I can’t stop you and I shouldn’t- LYN: There are  two words that come to mind but I am not shameless enough to say them out loud. [Animal feed?] What are you doing- what has happened to starve you so much that you need 8 meals a day?? That’s a bit much, isn’t it? - /some discussion about this/ - [t/n: I’m hearing “pixiu” and “taotie”, which are both mystical creatures, but I think the gist of it is: “Glutton”.] LYN: You’re taotie, you’re a qiling. That is- these mystical creatures that can eat a lot. You’re a… camel. XD LYN: I’m joking, I’m joking. Okay. That’s about enough.

LYN: Now there are people starting to curse at me. Looks like it’s getting a little chaotic in here. That’s okay. It doesn’t matter. LYN: If you’re sleepy, then get to sleep. Rest up. I will come to stream when I have the time.

LYN: I hope everyone had a relaxing, happy, and wonderful night. It was great to have you and I hope you had fun. Thank you for accompanying me, and I hope that you’re here for the next 817. Goodnight, everyone.