#I would have liked to increase contrast a bit too but there's no setting for that in my laptop

[elektroyu]

Had my sister over during her work hours this week because her internet is currently not loading properly, and because big changes in routine mess with my ability to focus I switched from one personal project to this older one. The last time I'd worked on this was during 2022 where I added the block-in of the Gordon Setter and I felt now was a good time to finish it. Maybe I spent a little longer on it compared to the other busts, but apart from that it's interesting to see what a difference 2 years can make. It does look a little bit out of place 😅 but we'll see how much of a disturbance it'll be once more busts are added.

[blackleatherjacketz]

Frostbite

Loki x Female Reader

Summary: Set before the events of Thor (2011). You’ve been having sex dreams about your friend Loki for weeks now. After your betrothal to another man, he gets jealous and lets you know he’s been having them, too.

Warnings: 18+ Only! Explicit Smut, Mature Content, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers, Sex Dreams, Sleep Walking, Dubious Consent, Confessions of Love/Lust, Asgard, Enchantment?, Kissing, Face-Grabbing, Groping, Possessive Loki, Jealousy, Loki Using His Frost Giant Powers To Go Down On You, Cunnilingus, Vaginal Sex, Multiple Orgasms, Rough Sex, Bonus points if you catch my Hamilton reference.

Word Count: 2.5k+

Thank you to @mrsbuckybarnes1917 for brainstorming this with me!

Read more Loki!

The crickets are well into their nocturnal symphony as the flames from the worn down torches illuminate the great hall. Their warm, amber glow radiates into the apertures and hallways that branch off from the main path, highlighting them just enough to guide your way. You can’t recall exactly what had awakened you from your slumber, or when you had left your chambers in the royal palace, but your feet somehow seem to know exactly where they’re taking you.

Just as one accepts an amount of false realities in their dreams, you can’t help but accept this blissfully hazy version of your friend graciously greeting you in his personal quarters. You’ve dreamt of him like this before; his face always a little blurry and the details a little bit fuzzy, but a few things about him remain the same. His scent as he draws you near, the flavor of his kiss and the way he cries out your name always seem to stick with you, haunting you well into your waking hours. These dreams have increased in frequency as time went on, eventually making it harder for you to look your beloved friend in the eye. You had almost resorted to ignoring him completely during your everyday life, anxiously awaiting your time together once you resigned again to the mansions of rest.

You can smell him again here and now as you walk in the twilight of consciousness, that deep crisp scent flooding your senses as his face slowly comes into focus, the sharp angles of his features more beautiful than ever in the wavering light of the torches.

Wait a minute, that’s never happened before.

“You’re really here.” His voice is clear and undistorted, yet softer than the one he puts on for Thor and Odin. This gentle timbre must be reserved only for you.

“Wait a minute, this isn’t…” You blink a few dozen times to try and focus your vision, squinting as you look around his bedroom to make sure that you are where you think you are. You can clearly see the ornate details carved into the furniture at your side, noting that none of the designs are shifting or blurring together like they often did in your slumber. “This isn’t a dream?”

“Not this time, I’m afraid.” He shakes his head blithely, a satisfied grin curling his lips upward as he approaches you.

“This time?” You ask, wondering how he could possibly know about the fantasies that kept you coated in a film of sweat beneath your covers at night. Has he been watching you? Reading your mind when you weren’t paying attention? Or is he merely toying with you like a cat would a mouse before biting into its neck?

“I’ve been having them, too, you know,” he starts, the deep collar of his nightshirt revealing a peek at his chest as he gets closer to you. “The dreams we dare not speak of.”

He knows. Your heart drops into the bitter acid of your stomach, tightening your insides as he stares at you expectantly. But wait a minute, did he just say…?

“I thought it was nothing more than a mere coincidence until you started to avoid me.” He touches a strand of hair that cascades down your shoulder, contrasting against the sheer material of your night dress that barely covers your naked form. “Until I noticed your cheeks flush scarlet at my gaze.”

You watch his eyes darken as they take you in, forcing those dreamlike feelings of longing to rush to the surface once more. That all too familiar moisture begins to pool between your thighs, triggered by the mere warmth of his touch as he slowly breathes in your scent.

“I don’t,” you try to protest, cheeks blushing again despite yourself as you try to find the right words, any words in fact, to defend your reaction. “I didn’t…”

“I wanted to see if it was more than just some misconstrued fantasy of mine,” he ignores your mindless bumbling, snaking his fingers through your locks up to the base of your neck. “And after tonight’s announcement, I knew I had to find out for myself.”

It’s all starting to make sense now, the sudden betrothal Odin had announced at dinner tonight had caught you both off guard, forcing you to glance up at each other in a shared, silent panic that you didn’t quite understand until now. You knew that this day was coming eventually, but you didn’t think it would be this soon; that a complete stranger would show up and derail your hidden feelings for your best friend whom you were secretly dreaming about for months now.

“I didn’t have any control over that,” you admit.

“I know that!” He spits, grabbing onto your face. His thumb and forefinger press your lips into a pucker as he all but picks you up and backs you up against the wall. A jealous shade of green flashes wildly in his eyes, nearly drowning out the icy blue in them entirely. “It’s maddening to think that he gets to taste you every night! Like he even knows how to please you, how to make you moan his name in every pitch on the scale after all that we’ve done together!”

All that you’ve done together? Your chest heaves as that twinge of jealousy turns to a dangerous hue of anger as he bares his teeth at you. “Loki, those were just dreams.”

“Were they?” His voice cracks for a split second as his lashes flutter against your cheek, his stifled breath hot on your lips as he holds you in place.

With your heart beating wildly against your rib cage, you recall the deeply manipulative nature of his powers, wondering just how coincidental these shared dreams actually were. Had he enchanted you into falling for him night after night, or were your romantic feelings there for him all along? As impossible as it is to say which came first, what you can tell Is how strong your feelings are for him right now, and what you can do about them in this moment.

You decide to close the gap between you by pressing your lips against his, feeling him willingly lean into your embrace as he loosens his grip on your face. All those dreams from all those nights have finally led up to this, his hands finally venturing down your shaking frame, surveying every curve of your body as he presses his against it. His fingers grasp at the linens of your dress, hurriedly pulling them up above your thighs as his tongue parts your hungry lips in order to taste in earnest what he’s been dreaming of for so long.

Without breaking the kiss he lifts you up, hoisting your hips onto his as he squeezes the muscles in your thighs to bring you even closer. He stumbles backwards with your legs wrapped around his waist, his hands feeling their way up your backside as he fumbles against chairs and tables, desperately squeezing onto your cheeks. An ancient vase topples over in his attempt to guide both of you onto his bed, shattering into hundreds of pieces before he tosses you onto his bed with a force you hadn’t seen him use before.

“I’ve been waiting for this,” he says under his shortened breath, lifting up your skirts to needily massage your inner thighs. “For so long.”

“So have I.” The sight of him above you like this is absolutely unreal, the gravity of it not quite sinking into your brain as his fingers graze deftly over your needy center. In your dreams, this part always seemed to merge together with your inevitable climax, his groans mixing with yours in a cluster of images and sensations, the details never quite being laid out before you… until now.

A single strand of hair falls in front of his eyes as his fingers pass over the length of your swollen heat, taking their time to spread your lips apart as your hips instinctively roll toward him. He grins at your eagerness, dipping his head down just enough to blow his ice cold breath over your sex. It freezes your nerve endings in a prickly, tingling sensation you didn’t think possible, shocking you to your core. It forces your body to shiver, contracting your muscles in rapid succession as you hear him laugh mirthfully before dropping his head down even lower to lick a strip up your now frozen cunt.

“Loki!” You breathe out, limbs already shaking from his little parlor trick as the chill runs up your spine, hardening your nipples even more. Your teeth begin to chatter as he spreads your legs further apart, his saliva now warming your icy organ as every hair on your body stands on end.

“You look even more beautiful like this than in my dreams,” he huffs, his mouth finally melting the liquid barrier of your opening as he slides two fingers inside. His tongue dances over your bud as he pushes his digits in, working together in tandem to stimulate that internal organ as sparks of pleasure shoot up into your core.

“Oh gods,” you mumble, the shivering in your limbs finally calming down enough for you to reach down and stroke his hair as he enthusiastically thaws you out.

Those internal sparks come faster each time, speeding up as your convulsions from the ice die down, the two opposing forces balancing each other out as every sensitive nerve he touches inside you comes alive. You let your eyes fall shut as he bites down on your clit, adding yet another sensation to your nervous system as a needy whimper escapes your lips. He sucks your bud into his mouth, greedily tugging on it as he nibbles just hard enough to turn those sparks into flames. His ministrations send them blazing their way up through you as they light a path through your muscles into every layer of your skin, igniting them into the very tips of your fingernails and strands of your hair.

You cry out his name as your pleasure finally combusts, exploding into a giant firework of ecstasy as your body shivers and shakes despite the freezing cold that was there only moments ago. Your internal warmth vibrates within you as you instinctively clench down, pulling his fingers in even deeper as he relentlessly dines on your melting flesh, hungry eyes glancing up at you periodically as your bones rattle in delight.

Wow, you should have sleep walked into his bedroom a lot earlier.

“That never happened in the dream,” you jest, still shaking as your bliss gradually fizzles out.

“No,” he smirks, finally coming up for air with a sinister gaze. “Let’s make reality better than our dreams.”

He slithers up your body, his mouth leaving a messy trail of your juices on the fabric of your dress while what little remains glistens on his nose and chin. His hands peel your sleeves off your shoulders, exposing your breasts just before taking one of your nipples into his mouth. He groans into it as your hands travel down his neck and back, massaging the muscles along his spine beneath his shirt as he tastes your skin. The twinge of his teeth on your nipples send your body into overdrive as your moans occur more often, growing in volume.

“You’re making so much noise and I’m not even inside you yet,” he chides, kissing his way up your chest and neck as your moans reverberate in your throat. He pecks at your chin and jawline as your body relaxes from the brief lack of stimuli, your hands smoothing their way up into his hairline as he finally kisses your lips. He tastes even better than before, his frosty tongue mixing with the tang of your arousal as he rhythmically thrusts his clothed erection between your legs, all but soaking through his night clothes.

“Wouldn’t want to wake Odin, now would we?” He chuckles haughtily into your kiss for a moment, his lips pulling into a mischievous grin as he slowly leans back from your embrace.

Your body yearns for him already, addicted to his touch as that short amount of time devoid of contact seems to last too long already. You watch him push his pants down past his hips, freeing himself from the only barrier left between you as your hands reach out, grazing up his biceps and over his shoulders as he crawls back on top of you.

“Only I get to ruin you like this,” he whispers, his voice dropping an octave as he grabs hold of himself, gliding the tip of his cock over your well spent cunt. “Not him, not anyone.”

You nod as he blinds you with pleasure, passing over your bud a few more times before pushing all the way in, filling you up without mercy. His girth stretches you out, his length hitting your cervix with each needy thrust up into you as he gives himself over to you again and again. His breath hitches as his mouth catches yours, his moans turning into whiny whimpers, nearly losing himself before sliding his arms beneath your thighs to push them up toward your chest.

“I want you to think of me every time he touches you.” His hips snap against your thighs, hitting that bundle of nerves at a delicious new angle as they promise another orgasm to rival the last. You want to wrap your thighs around his waist, to pull him in as close as possible in order to share the impending euphoria just as you had your dreams. But he continues to hold your legs in position up by your shoulders, straining your muscles as he keeps rocking into you. It triggers your body to convulse again as it nears the brink, the rhythm of his thrusts a little more desperate each time. “I want you to promise that you’ll always be mine.”

His efforts flip a switch inside you didn’t even know was there, encompassing you in a delightful ethereal glow that makes you feel as if you’re floating, levitating through all nine realms at once. It’s beyond exhilarating, washing away any other thought from your head besides him pumping mindlessly inside you. Nothing else seems to matter now; not Asgard, not Odin, not your betrothal… all that matters is Loki. All that matters is this.

Your skin tingles as he slides into your cunt at a much more frantic rate now, sweat dripping down his chest as his eyes roll back into his head, a sudden deep shade of blue flushing over his skin. A breathy growl rattles in his chest as he sheaths himself inside you faster, further, deeper before he comes undone and that blue tinge fades just as quickly as it had appeared.

“Promise me!” He collapses on top of you as he finishes spilling himself inside your walls, his chin tucked snugly into the base of your neck as he finally releases his grip on your thighs.

“I promise.” You kiss into his forehead, hearing him pant his way down to a regular rate. You can feel his heart beating against your own now, a detail your dreams never seemed to give you as his breath chills the skin behind your ear as he remains inside you. “I promise I’m yours.”

“Good,” he whispers softly, lazily tracing the outline of your face. “I’ll be sure to visit you in your dreams even after you get married.”

[chihoshisai]

Begrudgingly Yours

Smoker x Reader

cw : set in post timeskip, friendship to lovers, reader has a bit of an attitude, Smoker looks out for reader, denial of feelings until they explode // wc : 3, 188K BUT the following will be around 1,8K as a preview. Link to ao3 will be provided at the end of the preview or you can click here to directly read it there

“You swindler! What’s with these prices, huh?!” The frustration of your voice echoed through the market, only to seamlessly blend with the cacophony of conversations that buzzed daily in the diverse pathways. Before you sat a grumpy fruit stall vendor, who seemingly just as tired of your tactics at negotiation had his arms crossed with a look of annoyance trying to pierce through that fierce skin of yours. 

“If you’re not going to buy anything, get lost,” he sighed, pointing his head towards the other stands in a rude manner. 

However, haggling had been a regular occurrence for you regardless of your skills.  “They’re way too out of range for what you’re selling!” you breathed in the hope that the vendor would eventually fold. With a steady grip, you grabbed the nearest apple and tried to vouch for a lower price, bickering in an endless back and forth until a gloved hand appeared in your field of vision, handing dollar bills to the vendor. 

“Is this enough?” The familiar voice rang, causing your shoulders to momentarily tense whilst you forbid every part of your being from looking up at the towering figure that stood behind you — the smell of multiple cigars enveloping you in a familiar embrace, as you secretly breathed in the toxic nectar of the fumes.

Seeing the nod of the vendor, along with the swift way in which he packed you the desired amount of fruits, handing them in a surprisingly polite manner to your extended hand, you couldn’t help but feel slightly annoyed at the uncalled help. Placing the fruits in your shopping bag, you rolled your eyes at the additional words of the individual.  

“You suck at negotiating prices, so don’t bother wasting your time like that,” the words pointed out, causing the increase of the bitter feeling that boiled in your chest, much in contrast to the sizzling sensation that threatened to char your heart. 

“Smoker,” you perked your head to gaze into the usual frown of your friend — not without stealing a glance towards the parted lips that holded an unusual number of cigars — before making your way towards the bustling streets. “That’s quite a heroic way to let me know you’re back,” you flatly remarked, letting your eyes wander throughout the different stalls and boutiques.

“There’s no need to thank me,” his low voice floated through your ears, as he walked by your side. His presence had both been a blessing and a curse — ever since he had been appointed as the leader of the G-5 unit one, he had frequently been visiting your island during his time off. And with the twisted passing of time the two of you had enough encounters to pass from acquaintances to friends — and lately with the uninvited butterflies and churning that found refuge in your body, it left you fearful as to what the future may hold.

“I never knew marines handed out money to the poor,” you sarcastically scoffed at the thought of how these so called protectors of justice often seemed like ruffians. With few exceptions like Smoker, who secured his place in your life by that simple difference. 

Ignoring your remark, Smoker studied your unnoticing self — who purposefully prevented any form of eye contact — until his eyes landed on the grocery filled bag that wobbled in your arms. With adept hands, he successfully grabbed the content of your arms as you absent-mindedly persisted to keep your attention elsewhere. 

Having no choice but to peer over at him in these circumstances, a sigh escaped your lips, before they formed an angry pout. “You don’t have to do that,” you told him with a slap on the shoulder which in all honestly probably didn’t amount to much on his far too toned body. 

Though, knowing Smoker’s nature, you knew it was useless to try and convince him to do otherwise. “Oh whatever, suit yourself,” you quickly added with a side glance to his exposed skin. No matter how much time passed, such features would never fail to make a rush of heat run throughout your body. And you blamed him for making such a bold decision upon his fashion style. What good is there in exposing one’s chest either way?

“Where are you going?” he asked after resuming course along the market, his eyes eyeing you still, in the hopes of finding an answer.

“Home,” you flatly answered. “I’m assuming you’re here to get some of your clothes mended too aren’t you?” Never in your seamstress career had you ever thought to have a marine as one of your customers, but Smoker insisted he’d rather have his clothes done by you under the excuse of trust in your skills. In all honesty you knew it was most likely his way of supporting your business and an excuse to crash at your place as he waited for his clothes to be as good as new. 

“I don’t have anything that needs to be fixed,” Smoker pointed out, lowering his gaze to meet the expected frown you latched at him.

“Then why are you here?” Your brain raced trying to find other reasons as to his visit, “then is it Tashigi? Is she too self conscious to ask me a favor or something?” you blurted out.

“No. Do I need a reason to come visit you on my day off?” He somewhat innocently asked, making guilt creep in the nook of your conscience. 

“I guess not,” the words trailed, with your head lowering to the ground. If you weren’t about to busy yourself with sewing while Smoker was here, then what would the two of you do? The thought of a foreign future somehow worried you, as the sincere feelings that coursed through your body came to a high. 

When your feet had finally led the both of you to your place, you begrudgingly opened the door to the boutique, which buzzed with a few customers along with the bright grin of your mother greeting you in. 

“Smoker, you’re here too. Is there anything you’d like us to fix for you today?” the honeyed voice of your mother asked, whilst you somewhat sourly made your way backstore — your mind still racing to find a way to entertain the unforeseen guest. 

“No, I’m simply here to hangout,” he replied to the overly compliant mother who urged him to make himself at home, before shortly following your tracks that led to the home hidden behind the store and into the kitchen. 

“Help me with the groceries,” you instructed, a hand extended towards the bag he effortlessly holded.

“Are you that eager to get started?” He skirted over you with the hint of a smile, to place the bag on the table.

“I just want to get done with this chore,” you grunted, grabbing the bag of fruit Smoker had previously paid from his gloved hands. Sometimes your mood was even more gruff than his whenever he was near, providing for a clear contrast to the chirp and easygoing attitude you had while working — courtesy of the strange phenomena that seized every inch of your body at the slight mention, thought or dream of him. 

Now that the man in question stood in your kitchen, placing ingredients here and there as he was familiar with the place, you striked fierce glares whenever his back was turned — blaming him for the feelings he caused you to foster. And no matter how hard you tried to suppress them, the wretched thing seemed to nurture itself on its own, until you were left with no choice but to accept that you were in too deep to back down. In spite of that, chickens would have more chance of flying before you allowed yourself to act on the sensations. 

Plus, with a man like Smoker, chances were he valued his work more than anything else — and with the passionate way in which he spoke of his encounter with the Straw Hats and how many times he vowed to catch them, you lost count of how many times you jokingly told him to marry the crew if he was so obsessed with them. 

“It’s raining,” the serious voice of Smoker snapped you from your train of thought, your head perking towards the window to see the gray filter casted by the rain on the outside. You grumbled some incomprehensible words that sounded like ‘My laundry’ before bolting out of the room with a frustrated grunt, leaving Smoker with free reign in your home. Used to your antics, he simply resumed his task, as he assumed you would certainly snap had he followed you. With a puff of his cigars, he sighed, his head dropping at the thought that you had been more and more grumpy towards him as of late, failing to understand what he had done wrong.

***

“Sorry I took so long, I had to fold clothes,” you began before entering the kitchen, only to find it empty. The grocery bag already having been disposed of and the splatter of the rain echoed through the dimly lit room, as though to provide an additional presence. 

“Where did he go?” Frowning at the absence of Smoker, you went on to search various room of the house, knocking on the bathroom door, taking a peek at the living room, and even reluctantly bursting through your sibling’s room and leaving without a word after having scanned the place without seeing the fairly noticeable size of Smoker.

As the idea that he might have already left formed in your mind like salvation, you went to the boutique with the intention of confirming his disappearance. “Mom, did Smoker pass through here?” you asked, seeing her pack already made clothes for the lady that stood next to the counter.

“No, but while you’re here could you quickly mend these for me?” She asked, giving you a simple pleading glance which you happily replied with a nod and without complaint went on to aid around the shop, while the thought of not having to entertain Smoker danced in your mind. But with a start came an end, and you found yourself faced with no choice but to return to the silent home with only the rhythmic disturbance of the rain as company.   

Being faced with your previous dilemma, a tired sigh escaped your lips as you dragged your body through the residence, visiting each room once more in the hope Smoker might have resurfaced. “I give up!” The frustrated words escaped your lips while your feet led you back to the kitchen to grab a pack of cookies before climbing the stairs and for them to unceremoniously open the door to your room.    

Unexpected phenomena kept appearing today, as though each were trying to test your patience, as you walked in to find the relaxed form of your friend in a deep slumber on your bed, eyeing him with a gaping mouth. He truly had made himself at home. The faint smell of smoke still floated around, filling your nose in its familiar smell, with your eyes daring to take a proper look at Smoker since the settling of your feelings.

Continue on ao3 !

[autumnywinter]

Im crazy for this blog! Do you mind writing for yandere Baizhu or some hcs? Maybe a modern au?

Baizhu's more just a clinician than a pharmacist here because I'm obsessed with yandere doctors. It's been a while since I wrote for him, I'm not very confident in this but I hope it's still good ^^

Yandere!Baizhu x Reader

TW: Heavily implied noncon somnophilia, drugging, doctor/patient, gaslighting

You had been seeing and hearing things. It started with little noises outside of your window at night, rustling and shuffling. It scared you, but not enough to do anything about it. Next thing you knew, you swore you were seeing white flashes through your window at odd hours of the night. You'd look out the window, and there'd be not a thing in sight except for the stillness of the night.

It got worse.

Items of your possession began to go missing, mostly clothing, oftentimes dirty. You told yourself it was probably due to your own absent-mindedness, but you knew deep down that something was wrong.

The thing that set you off was when you'd wake up sore and hurting. There'd be scratch marks on your arms and back, and bruises you swore were hickeys on your shoulders and neck. They were in places you couldn't have reached yourself. Your mind had jumped to the worst case scenario, and you were terrified.

Yet your trusted doctor brushed it all off, saying you were getting hallucinations and stressing yourself out far too much. He claimed what you were so sure were hickeys, were actually just bruises. He said you were likely a sleep walker due to your increased stress, hence it made sense that you'd unintentionally hurt yourself while asleep. You'd bought into his reasoning, because he'd always been so trustworthy and reliable.

He gave you medication to help you, but you couldn't help but feel like what he prescribed made it worse. You found yourself more groggy than usual, and often having nightmares. You felt physically sick most days.

But Doctor Baizhu was so trustworthy, you felt like it was the right choice.

You noticed how his fingers would linger longer than they should whenever he took your pulse. You noticed how his eyes would dilate when staring at you for just a bit too long. You noticed how his touch felt wrong, like there was something else behind it. But you were just being paranoid, just as Baizhu said.

"Feeling sick again?" Baizhu's cold hand pressed against your forehead. The touch sent a shiver coursing through your body, the sharp contrast in temperature setting your nerves on edge.

"Yeah," you managed. Your voice was barely a whisper.

"That's unfortunate," Baizhu sighed. He clicked his tongue a few times in thought. "Well, if you continue taking this medicine, you should start feeling better soon. Although I'm starting to worry the side-effects are a pain. I have something else to try, so if you would just give me a moment..."

Baizhu walked off to the other end of the room, leaving you alone. You swallowed hard, wincing slightly at the uncomfortable feeling. Your throat was always dry lately, and you found yourself struggling to swallow, let alone eat. You wished you could sleep, but the nightmares always left you a groggy mess. You could never remember them, only that they were terrifying.

"Ah, here we are," Baizhu smiled, snapping you from your thoughts. He had a bottle of pills, shaking out one singular white one. "It'll dissolve in your mouth. It's to help ease your nausea. I know you haven't been keeping anything down well lately. Hopefully this should help."

You extended a hand, to which he placed it in your palm. Were doctors even allowed to give out pills directly? You weren't sure, but shrugged it off. You popped it into your mouth, and Baizhu was right. It quickly dissolved, and you were surprised that it didn't have a funny taste. You were expecting something bitter or awful, but there was nothing.

"It'll take some time to kick in," Baizhu assured you. "I'd like it if you stayed here until it does. It might make you a little dizzy."

"Sure," you nodded. You had no reason to distrust Baizhu, despite every fibre of your being telling you something was wrong.

The medicine kicked in quickly. Within ten minutes, you were feeling a bit weird, like you were floating. Your head was lighter. Baizhu noticed you swaying and pushed you gently onto the examination table.

"Dizzy?" he asked.

"Uh huh," you replied dumbly.

"Stay lying down," he instructed. Your vision was spinning and your head was empty, so empty you could hardly process the fact he was digging into your belongings and then leaving the room. You wanted to ask him where he was going, but couldn't find the energy. Instead, you let yourself lay there, staring at the ceiling as it spun round and round.

Baizhu came back, rolling in a wheelchair. He lifted you up with a quiet groan, and set you gently into the seat, draping a blanket over you. It was scratchy and thin.

"We're going for a walk," Baizhu said. He wheeled you out, and as loopy as you were, a spike of hazy panic hit you when you saw him leading you to a car in the parking lot that wasn't yours. You tried to protest, but Baizhu cooed, petting your hair and whispering sweet nothings.

"Shhh, it'll be okay. Everything is fine. We're going home."

Baizhu opened the passenger side door, pushing the chair close. He lifted you out with a low grunt. You felt weightless in his arms, like a feather. He buckled you in, and his minty breath ghosted across your face.

"I love you," he murmured.

You passed out before his lips could even touch yours.

[nerdieforpedro]

A Certain Fae's Melancholy

Jack Daniels (Fae) x GN reader

My entire masterlist and blog are for readers 18+ MDNI. I do not consent to my work being used in AI, recommended on TikTok, borrowed or plagiarized.

Summary: You were lulled into a world you never asked for and the reason that Jack Daniels wanders.

Warnings: Angst, Attempt at Humor, Shifting perspectives, Drinking, Alcohol. References to Depression, Scheming, Stalking, Lonely souls, Mild Sexual Content, Aging, Sorrow, Character Death

Word Count: less than 3k

Notes: This is for the Monster (S)mash challenge hosted by @quinnnfabrgay-writes and @hauntedhowlett-writes. This wasn't this fic I intended to write, but it's the fic that I wrote. I certainly smashed something with this, just not what I expected.

Not Beta-read, back on my "shoot it out there and hope for the best" mantra. This is the first thing I've written in a few weeks so...could be why maybe? 😅

Main Masterlist/ Jack Daniels-Agent Whiskey Masterlist/ Challenges Masterlist/ AO3 Link

The low rumble of laughter rouses you from your slumber. You don’t remember falling asleep. Only that you’d come to these woods while it was daylight. The sun is setting, it must have been at least a few hours but you suspect longer. Looking down at your arm, your wristwatch is gone. No use trying to tell time now.

Taking a deep breath, someone is watching you, likely the same person whose laughter woke you. He’s tall wearing a tan stenson, tipping it toward you like a greeting with a grin as he steps toward you from underneath the shadow of one of the towering trees. It’s then that you realize two things: the first is that the trees look different from the gray-brown wood that are near your home; the second is that you know this man. Your conversations have been increasing in number and you found yourself coming to appreciate his appearances at your local bar. They weren’t too often, meaning he wasn’t there every time you went, but enough that he seemed to be a regular.

“Now that’s sweet of you sugar. You got that little rabbit’s foot I let you borrow for your interview. How did that go?” The observation and question don’t match the situation. You find that despite the unease you feel, you take his large hand as he guides you to your feet and steadies you. The grin softens into a smile and he pats your head, pushing questions that your should be asking him aside, you utter two words that bind you closer to him without realizing: 

“Thank you.” His hand glides from your lower back to the nape of your neck, his thumb stroking your exposed skin and it is warm at the friction, but cool to the touch. “Your hands are cold Jack. That old saying might be true, ‘cold hands make for a warm heart’ and all that.” It’s your turn to join him in making birds vacate the trees at the boom of your combined glee. 

Looking up into Jack’s eyes and they flash a bright shade of green and it catches your attention, to both the color and the direction that you both are heading. You don’t remember walking with him or him stating a direction. He takes one of your hands in his and interlocks your fingers. “Now, now, gorgeous. Don’t be scared. You’ve already given me so much, a little bit more won’t hurt.” Slowly making your way up the steps of an all white house. It appears almost brand new, everything is painted, the door is a crimson red with emerald ivy having overgrown and covers up part of the front of the porch. It’s a stark contrast, given that the shutters are a sienna brown as is the roof. Jack says your name and points down, your name appears after his on the doormat welcoming any would-be visitors to what you presume to be your shared home now. Once inside, Jack eases you down on the couch and pats your thigh. “Now. I’ll give you time to adjust, I see the wheels turning in the noggin of yours.” His rough palm cups your cheek and you place your hand on his, to remove you had thought but then you remember some of the conversations you’ve had with Jack at the bar. 

The first time you met Jack, you made a cowboy joke. He expected it given the form he decided to take on. He finds that many men and women are attached to the allure of a rugged cowboy and possibly being the one to tame them. Daniels had gotten this same sense and considered just having some fun romps in your bed and not thinking twice about it. Unlike many of the humans he’d encountered, he found you funny. Jack normally laughed when he’d perceived that it was socially acceptable to do so. Thankfully, being alive for five or six centuries, he’d gotten the hang of figuring out when to do so. The years blend together and so do the various humans, you stuck out to him. He genuinely laughed while the two of you drank that night. He was able to have the first two pieces of getting his next fix of companionship: deciding on you as his partner and your name. 

The second time Jack saw you at the bar, he was upfront and told you what he was, a fae. A creature that has seen empires and civilizations come and go, explored a myriad of cultures and experienced maybe that many lovers. Not many companions though. Powerful beings are typically lonely after all. You followed that up stating that you had Scottie beam you down and were going to give the humans in area fifty-one to talk about. You could make some of those probes happen with a tentacle or two and would ask to borrow some of Daniels’ fairy dust to sprinkle on a few of your friends to give them some good luck. Also to get a few of them laid, they whined about that a bit. While Jack did get a kick of what your plan was if you were an alien, he assured you that indeed he was a fae and not a fairy. “That’s some Disney horse shit sugar.” 

Subsequent nights were spent with you sharing different details of your life with Jack and him telling you different stories of his adventures. He knew you weren’t taking him seriously, likely believing him to be full of tall tales and bluster, but it was the night that you told him of your interview for a higher position at your job that his eyebrows raised. He’d been trying to think of something to give you that wouldn’t seem too out of the blue, something that you would accept with limited questions. He just needs it to be something of his, that way he can draw you further into his world. Most people would have blown off someone seemingly talking out of the side of the neck or giving so many false (to you) accounts of different events, but Jack knew that glint in your eye. He’d gotten you excited to hear what outrageous tale he would tell you next. “Next time I see ya, I’ll have a little somethin’.” You’d mentioned that your interview was next month, so Jack would take a week, maybe a week and half off. Distance creates longing and it would be less suspicious when he saw you the next time. 

That didn’t mean he wouldn’t still see you of course, you just wouldn’t know. That was how he discovered you’d spoken to someone about him. Actually that same friend group you wanted to use his so-called ‘fairy dust’ on. Daniels does appreciate that you speak of him in a positive light, it’s nice to hear, but the fact that you mentioned him at all is the third piece of his plan. One he hadn’t been counting on and he considers a happy accident. Encounters with fae are not to be spoken of, not that you wouldn’t have known. It’s part of the game and Jack is more than half of the way there. 

Feeling you embrace him in a side hug with a hand clasped on his shoulder, Jack Daniels can be honest with himself that he’s begun to care about you and that it may not be just a companion he wants - he may want a relationship. One of those give and take sorts that he hasn’t experienced since the Industrial Revolution, after a shot or three of whiskey is when he gives you a good luck charm - the rabbit’s foot. The very same that you hold in your hand as you sit on the couch. He’d wished you good luck on your interview then. 

Jack has taken to the kitchen and is making black tea with honey. Normally it would have milk, but as he mentions when he gives you your cup, he despises the taste of milk. “Only good in cereal, baked or cooked in something. Don’t want none unless it’s one of those three.” 

“So, am I just going to be here now, with you? I also didn’t get the job. Guess the charm didn’t work.” You look down at the tea, unable to meet his eyes. Your anger at the situation is starting to seep in at how you’ve been lulled into coming to a secluded house with this man and he’s clearly targeted you, but he’s being polite about it. “All of this is disconcerting Jack.” Your lips nearly touch the mug before he speaks.

“I was upfront with everything darlin’ and told you I’m a fae. We ain’t like them fairies in the story books or movies. We like entertainment and mischief. Think like that twiggy guy who’s always fightin’ with his brother but less daddy issues and no delusions of grandour.” Slurping his tea, he runs his tongue along his upper lip and smirks as you watch. “You can act like you don’t wanna be here, but I didn’t ask you to keep talking to me, give me your name, or to even come to these woods. You were trying to get promoted because your job is always putting the cart way before the horse and making you deal with it for less pay. You’re lonely just like I am and tired of it. Now if you wanna stay, you drink that tea and I can stay by your side until the end of your days. I’m a man of my word.”

“Is something in this tea?” You stare at it and it smells and looks ordinary. His words sting, you’d told him too much about how you feel about your life right now. His ochre brown eyes are fixed on you, matching them you see it. The emptiness that looks back at you when you ready yourself in the morning and when prepping for bed at night. “The void. It truly is the same for you isn’t it? But won’t be painful for you when I’m gone? My life has got to be a few blips in your lifetime. Wouldn’t I be getting more out of this?”

“One might see it that way, but I’m different from most fae. They’re fine being on their own for the most part, but allows those in who I feel I may be able to build a life with, even if it isn’t that long. If there’s one enviable thing about you humans, you match one another in time where I also seem to have too much of it.” Jack removes his stenson and lays it on the coffee table, sipping more of his tea with his eyes still on you. “Tea’s getting cold sugar. What’s it gonna be?”

Maybe you were swayed by his words, maybe it was your own feelings of someone who understood what it feels to know the pangs of heartache were, maybe it was the chance to escape everything and start anew on a curious journey that very few have had the privilege of. Gulping down the tea gave you your first view of a surprised Jack Daniels. His mug clattered on the table next to his hat and he grabs you by the shoulders. “Hot damn baby! Looks like you’re ridin’ with me for the long haul!” 

Slowly, food you had been used to eating lost its taste. Jack explained that because you were now eating food he prepared, you were becoming more acclimated to the fae world. About a month in, Jack showed you where he gathered the food he prepared. It turns out, it’s actually odd little berries that he uses magic to make them appear and taste like foods you’re more familiar with. Picking the fruits is a fun outing and leads to the two of you getting caught in the rain, where you had your first kiss with Jack. The only reason it took this long is because he was indeed a fae true to his word and wasn’t going to force you to do anything you weren’t ready for. He also explained after you kiss, that he may have had to initiate soon because his kiss or other intimate contact would protect you from the Fae Queen. It sounded like one of his many jokes, but by this point, all of them as they relate to fae have proven not to be jokes. 

Things progressed quickly after that, it seems having less of an appetite for substance led to other needs strengthening. At first you thought it was just Jack’s libido that was high as he normally sought you out around the house, but when you pushed him on his back flat on the dining room table and you riding him like one of the bucking broncos he normally joked about, it was clear that sex had replaced food for you too. 

Over the next few decades, Jack took you across the seas, continents, deserts, plains and more. In the span of ten years, you’d nearly crossed off all the places on a bucket list you’d compiled. You aged slower due to your consumption of the fae fruit, but time still marched on and Jack looked the same as the day you’d met him. Mustache still dark and bushy, all his hair atop his head and a beautiful shade of umber. His excitement and joy at watching you marvel at what he could show you kept him going. Jack knew he could do it as long as he had you with him, holding his hand and laughing like in that forest all those years ago. 

Daniels had also taken you to explore the fae world, it was on a different plane than the human one, almost overlapping at different points but also had fixed pockets of space. He told a few of the fae about your old joke about fairy dust and they did give you some. It was disappointing though, only made your hands itchy. The fae would come visit you both at your home as they found you quite interesting. Apparently, you’re the longest lasting human Jack has been with, usually they’re dead by now according to them. Jack hushes them but you wonder how many have been before you, it can’t have been that many but it does cross your mind sometimes, even when Jack it rutting into you or if you’re looking up at him as you help relax with your throat after spending another afternoon watching the sun set again in Aruba. 

With your advancing age, you and Jack travel less and he’s more careful with you. Almost like you’re made of glass which you assure him you’re not. Neither of your parents were glassmakers. Still with that humor that Daniels loves. He’s thankful that you’ve made it to your twilight years, well past your eightieth year. Daniels still sees that funny soul that keeps his heart feeling light with every touch and verbal exchange. A rather odd couple that draws many an eye when you’re out and about, such an older partner for this hearty cowboy, if only they knew the truth. It is not for them to know.

Just as it is not for anyone to know what Jack Daniels sounds like when he assumes you were asleep when he arrived home from gathering more fruit for the two of you. Your body, always so pleasantly heated when he’d rest his head in your lap or on your shoulder. Even the touch of your hand was a tepid treat against his cool skin, but today it matches his. Jack wants to toss the idea away and just carry you inside to warm you up by the fire but he knows it will do nothing. Your skin will remain cold as that humorous soul he loved is no longer there.

Jack Daniels finds that your death is the hardest he’s experienced thus far. He was able to have you with him for decades. His home is now barren and the fruit he has gathered doesn’t matter. The solitude he had eliminated with your presence has returned with such an abrupt embrace. Daniels fights it as he picks your body up and carries it to the backyard, though he did not stop there.

No one, fae or human has seen Jack Daniels since. It could be he has assumed a new form and identity, but most believe that he’s still wandering somewhere with the remains of the one he loved the most in both worlds: You.

A few people who may be interested in the sads 😭: @megamindsecretlair @soft-persephone @readingiskeepingmegoing @604to647 @lady-bess

@morallyinept @trulybetty @maggiemayhemnj @tinytinymenace @angelofsmalldeath-codeine

@guelyury @yorksgirl @fhatbhabiee

[hyuckmov]

haechan — gold-skinned, eager baby pt.2 (teaser) read the full thing here anticipated release date: valentine's day 2023 <3 read the first part here! 

haechan x fem!reader teaser wc: 653 teaser genre: fluff & suggestive fic details: total wordcount tbc, smut (seriously almost entirely) and fluff anticipated warnings: as always our chest/boobs fixation, hair-pulling, my take on the classic riding him in his gaming chair scene, fingering, oral (f recieving), haechan being a mastermind male manipulator (in a sweet way), haechan not knowing what ovulation is, breeding kink, the usual brainrot topics....

a/n: NOW now now now now.... i have a good feeling about being able to make this deadline so i decided to post this now to motivate me to work towards it to :) i have a taglist set up (fill out the form in my pinned) but also you can just reply to this post/state in the tags if u rb that you would like to be tagged and i'll add you to the list (no need to do that if u alr filled up the form) !!! anyway i hope u enjoy this little bit and look forward to the actual fic <3 and thanks for 600+!!!!

haechan would say that his standard of living had increased exponentially since your second anniversary. 

the two of you had become more open with each other, communicating your frustrations and needs more easily. there was also a faint buzz of something in the air, moments when you would look over at him and he would feel a blush spread across his cheeks, burn low in his stomach. it felt a little like he was falling in love with you for the first time — it had been a while since he had felt so vulnerable and loved by you. 

"what are you thinking about?"

but perhaps the most significant improvement made to his life was the way he could now reflect on your loving and healthy relationship with his face nuzzled against your boobs.  

"love you so much," he mumbles against your skin, placing a small kiss on your cleavage. "that's what i'm thinking about." 

he feels your hand come down to stroke his hair gently, and he closes his eyes at the feeling. sunday mornings with you in bed — you scrolling through your phone while he's given the freedom to love on his favorite parts of you, have become just another routine that started ever since your second anniversary. 

focusing on freckling kisses on your warm skin, he's therefore completely unprepared for when you card your fingers through a handful of his hair only to give it a light, but still significant, tug. 

the sensation sends a feeling shooting down his spine, a slight shudder to his body as he lets out a small gasp muffled against your chest. feeling something stirring in the pit of his stomach, his legs begin to twitch against the bed, and he nuzzles his face into your chest. 

"again, please," he mumbles. 

he feels the giggles you let out right from where his face is pressed up against your chest. kicking his feet, he whines lightly in protest.  

"what's so funny?" 

"found something else you like," he hears you muse. "you're so sensitive, baby."

frowning, he scrambles to push himself up into a sitting position. the visual is slightly amusing — his hair mussed up, his lips swollen, eyes narrowed. 

"it's not fair," he states. you reach out a consoling hand to him, and even as he continues to grumble, he still intertwines your fingers gently, a contrast between his unhappy tone and his tender actions. "you have too much power over me." 

"what are you talking about?" you laugh, and he scowls. 

"you know." he mumbles. "you can just flash your tits at me and i'd do anything you ask-" 

"i can?" 

"-and now you know i like it when you pull at my hair," he whines, a permanent pout forming on his features. "it's like there's nothing i can do that makes you go crazy." 

"that's because i love all of you," you soothe. "all of you makes me feel crazy." 

"do you have any kinks you're keeping from me?" 

"you're my kink," you tease, but your smile drops when he scowls. "sorry." 

there's a pause. haechan looks at you, hard. scanning your face, his gaze doing a slow drag down and up your body, his expression darkening. something had shifted in the air, and suddenly you're a little scared to breathe too hard. 

"haechan?" 

"i'm going to find it," he breathes. 

"what?" 

"i'm going to find it, and then i'm going to make you beg for me to fuck your brains out." 

"what the fuck?" 

but haechan shakes his head, and when he next refocuses his eyes on you, his eyes have the familiar twinkle in them. moving over to you, he cups your face in his hands and plants a kiss on your cheek. 

"love all of you too babe," he beams. "i'm going to go make breakfast, okay?" 

and with that, he all but skips out of the room, leaving you sitting on the bed, feeling unsettled and also just a little bit excited. 

maybe it was time to call mark again.

tags: @91qowngus, @joonpantheress, @sundhaelatte, @jaemboi64, @sassy-author, @krazy-kpoppy

[adobe-outdesign]

geodude line review pls plus the alolan forms

Geodude is a rock with a face and arms. Which is great if you like rocks with faces and arms. It's not my favorite rock creature (I'm more of a Roggenrola person myself), but it is simple and straightforward, and the concept of a boulder creature that rolls around to move is pretty fun. Not much to talk about visually, other than it being a very low-contrast design. Also, I like the segmented mouth.

Graveler always seemed like just a better Geodude to me. It's the same premise—monotone boulder creature that rolls around with a face and arms—but they do an interesting thing by making the face smaller, adding a ridged, craggy area above said face, and giving it not one, but two sets of extra limbs. It adds a lot of interest and fleshes out the premise while not really changing anything too drastically. Surely the next evolution will be even better, right?

Nope, never mind.

I mean, I don't hate Golem—the reptilian features are interesting and provide a unique twist on the basic rock monster model, and hey, it's at least unique. But it does undeniably come out of the left field, sporting a higher-contrast body, a separate head and limbs, and reducing the number of said limbs down to four.

I've heard a lot of speculation as to why, but most of it is just that, baseless speculation. The most likely reason is that it's a Blastoise situation, wherein two separate rock creatures got merged early in development to avoid repetition. Regardless, that doesn't make it work any better with the rest of the line.

Also, as a design itself, I can't help but not like it as much as Graveler anyway. The head makes it impossible to roll despite the 'dex claiming otherwise, and the overall design is just less coherent. Like I said, the reptilian parts are interesting, but that's about all it has going for it.

Alolan Geodude is actually pretty solid. It drops the rock/ground typing (which I always found confusing anyway; what about the original justified it being ground?) in favor of rock/electric, represented by adding some magnetic shavings to the body.

These shavings really help the design, mostly because they greatly increase the contrast and help break things up without over-complicating anything. Those big 'ol black eyebrows just feel right, and the addition of "hair" is fun.

In addition, this design also makes the body more of a gray color (once again, fits with the dropped ground typing) and reduces the hands down to two mitten-like structures, which does feel good given the shape of the body. Overall, a solid improvement across the board.

Unfortunately, things go downhill a bit when we get to A. Graveler. The eyebrows still look great, and I like the little shavings that accent the head ridge as well. It still retains the similar mitten-like hands, the shape of which now really compliment said head ridge.

However, it randomly adds these yellowish-orange crystals all over its body, which I just do not get. They compete too much with the shavings, and they feel like an afterthought. I guess the idea was to add more color to the design? But they already fixed the low-contrast issue with the shavings. Maybe they wanted yellow to hint at the electric-typing more? Who knows. Either way, the design would look much better without them.

Also, for some reason it goes back to a brownish color instead of retaining the cooler gray of A. Geodude. Why? The gray not only looked better, but further helped with the contrast, and dropping it just reduces the line's coherency.

And A. Golem... yeah no, never mind.

The shavings have progressed from body hair to a straight-up beard, which is fine, I guess, though something about the body hair kind of worked; maybe it's just because it added to the "strength" idea with Graveler's bare arms, whereas the beard just feels random.

However, the beard wouldn't be too bad in and of itself... except they also added a giant rail gun to its back. It's just like, what? Why?? Where did that come from? I know that it's electric-type, but there was no thematic build-up to this (unless you count the inside yellow crystals from Graveler). It competes way too much with the beard, and makes the overall concept harder to disconcern.

Also, even putting that aside, the colors are really muddied here (still retaining the brownish color while using three different shades of gray/brown, none of which are high enough contrast), and it has these really weird baby arms. The simplified toes look good at least, and I do like the extra definition added to the face with the eyebrow ridges, but this really does not work as a whole. Which is a shame, because A. Geodude was a fantastic start.

As a whole, the original line is simple but effective, bogged down only by the sharp turn into Golem. The Alolan line starts off strong and tries to improve the design a bit, but unfortunately gets bogged down with too many details as it goes on.

[sticklovezone]

stupid gay stickbranch fanfic i wrote

im not the best writer but a bitch tried ok!!!!

He was a man of many talents, though none of them were particularly admirable. 

Being a crude salesman with a deep desire for money, Mr. Stick pretty much scams and steals from people for a living. His office, cluttered with half-empty coffee cups, stacks of tools and wrenches for his strange inventions, and an assortment of questionable merchandise that he made himself truly showed how much of an ‘innovator’ he was. Nobody really likes the guy, as he’s always so…negative.

And then there was Mr. Branch, the very definition of a pushover. Branch was Mr. Stick's assistant, being a coward that was pretty much terrified of just about everything. While Stick thrived off of his snarkiness and incompetence, Branch would mumble apologies even when no offense had been given. He often spent his days following Stick around, trying to avoid his boss’s outbursts. Whenever Stick got frustrated with a customer or a deal gone wrong, Branch would shuffle away as he hoped to go unnoticed. Branch kept everything running smoothly, even if it meant enduring his boss’ dumb attitude and mean jokes. They practically needed each other, as Branch kept him out of trouble and Stick gave him commance.

Despite the contrast between the two, Stick had a soft spot for Branch. Maybe it was the way Branch never seemed to complain about Stick’s pissy behavior or how he always seemed to kiss up to him. Perhaps it was simply that Branch treated every day as an opportunity for the genuine friendly connection that they both seemed to lack. Whatever the reason was, Branch's weird but undeniable loyalty made Stick appreciate him a tiny amount. 

It was a dusky Thursday night, and while he was scribbling down the typical notes for another questionable sales pitch for himself, Branch hesitantly approached Stick’s cluttered desk, his fingers nervously fidgeting with the cuffs of his sleeves. 

“Sir….” he stammered, glancing around as if the walls themselves might eavesdrop. “I was wondering if… perhaps… we could go out somewhere…?”

Stick didn’t even look up from the dusty papers. “What for? I got a lotta money to make, Branch. Don’t waste my time.” His voice was rough, coated in the rasp of annoyance. 

“Well, I—uh—thought maybe we could have a bit of fun? You know, take a break?” The strange suggestion made Stick raise an eyebrow.

“Huh. Fun. What do you have in mind? Your ‘fun’ usually implies me getting roped into something stupid like watching you bake muffins or something.” Stick replied with the usual sarcastic tone.

“No! Not baking! I mean, we could go to the bakery downtown…” Branch’s excitement was obvious, and he couldn’t suppress the grin creeping onto his face. He loved the bakery, always visiting whenever he had time to himself. 

He could admit, Stick thought it was a stupid idea at first. But after some thought, he decided to just give in and make the little guy happy. 

“Fine…” Stick grumbled, rolling his eyes. “But if I’m going to waste my time on this nonsense, you better make it fun!”

As they set off in Stick's beat-up car, the unpleasant screeches from the tires filled the air and made the ride a bit uncomfortable. Branch, filled with excitement at the thought of visiting the bakery with his beloved boss, tried his best to make conversation, but Stick mostly ignored him, filled with attitude. The bakery, adorned with pastel colors and wafting with the enticing aromas of sugar and yeast, welcomed them like a warm hug. Both of them had your typical sweet tooth. Stick even kept a jar of candy at his desk all to himself! 

Branch held the door open for Stick, but of course he ignored the kind gesture. As they stepped inside, the cheerful jingle of the bell overhead signaled their arrival, increasing Branch's anticipation.

“What do you want? You’re the one who insisted on coming here,” Stick said, tapping his foot impatiently.

“Uh….I can’t decide. There’s too much.” Branch replied, his eyes scanning the plethora of treats.

“Well, clearly! Just decide already, damn it! Nevermind….” Stick barked, his voice echoing through the cozy shop as he leaned over the glass case. “I’ll get a dozen doughnuts. Maybe I can get the extras later.” His smirk was sinister.

Branch watched him order with his usual smug behavior, shaking his head slightly. “Y’know sir, I didn’t bring that much money so—”

“I’m not paying for anything!” Stick snapped back, rolling his eyes as he snatched the box of doughnuts from the cashier. He just HAD to make a scene everywhere he went.“Just hand over whatever you got, will ya? Sheesh…”

After pulling out a few crumpled bills from his pocket, Branch handed them over reluctantly. Once the whole ‘ordeal’ was complete, they sat down by a window table. Branch was enjoying every second of those damn doughnuts, as he stuffed them into his mouth quickly with crumbs getting all over his suit. Stick watched as his assistant ate, with a look of both admiration and confusion. How could one person eat that much…? 

The joy on Branch’s face showed as he patted his stomach, feeling full and satisfied. Stick rolled his eyes, but couldn’t help but admit that there was something a little funny about the sight.

Branch slept peacefully in the car as Stick drove them back home. Despite the loud snoring, it was strangely adorable to Stick. He continued driving, not really paying attention to the road but rather the thoughts that swirled in his mind about that damn idiot. 

He was so cowardly and wimpy but yet, Stick couldn’t help but smile a little while thinking about the little guy. He tried his best to make him happy, and Stick thought about it. He growled, trying to deny the obvious affection he had for him.

“Damn idiot….”

[cloveroctobers]

EM HAYWOOD — summer prompts 🍋

A/N: writing this quickly with a cold and before that vertigo has me spread out like Anderson Paak in that one music video lmao. This was meant to be out last month during pride but there is no limit to that sugar in your tank if you catch my drift! 😜 Also we’re always spreading love to THEE mother Keke so I thought why not? Hope ya’ll are still out there reading and it might be time for me to give NOPE another watch this summer! This is a mixture of fluff & humor mostly since the last one I wrote ages ago! really wasn’t that. Although I love a little spookiness too, otherwise I wouldn’t be called “Octobers” for nothing! You’ll find that out towards the end ❤️‍🔥

PROMPTS are from here & I’m using: “i know it’s hot but we have to go grocery shopping, get up...” + “roll the windows up, I’m about to put the AC on.”

ੈ✩‧✧.* ↟ ੈ✩‧✧.* ↟ ੈ✩‧✧.* ↟ ੈ✩‧✧.* ↟ ੈ✩‧✧.*

The sleep was hitting okay!

Especially when it took forever to get comfortable in this new home and you were managing the electric bill. Emerald was used to the heat SoCal would bring growing up in Agua Dulce but moving out to Lancaster? That dirt was bringing up a different type of heat—despite being only twenty something minutes away! But she didn’t mind spending the extra money so that the both of you could be comfortable.

With the way inflation is set up and companies are increasing everything every month just because they felt like that was the answer to their problems was a problem. You weren’t having it and settled on opening windows and fans majority of the time while Emerald let it slide…except for today.

You’re sleeping on your stomach, cheek pressed into a pillow made for hotels, covers a tangled web over your now room temp body as you rest peacefully. Which was a contrast to what started at the beginning of the hot uncomfortable night, you were home alone dressed in nothing but a oversized white t-shirt and Em was hanging out at the ranch with OJ and Angel. The invitation was always open for you to join but you needed to get some last minute things done for work, so you stayed behind to meet that deadline.

It was funny how that worked out, you being a digital journalist who fell in love with a charming woman, who went through a unexplainable experience that is still talked about to this point in time. If you thought Emerald Haywood was a talker, then that made you a believer and combined? That made the both of you a invested duo.

You thought you had it all figured out, since the trio received a nice “settlement” if that’s what you want to call it—once the higher ups were involved but that didn’t mean you didn’t want to put in the effort towards this home. Em’s name maybe on the deed and she wanted you to live with her but you’re the piece that made this feel like home.

Emerald’s dreams were always big and bright, she had no issue being a hustler but with you by her side you had to level her out just a bit and so she wouldn’t get too crazy when it came to home shopping. Sure house shopping was actually kind of fun; you personally didn’t think too much about it before, since you were still scrapping for money once living underneath your elementary school teacher mother’s home. It was just the two of you since your brother moved off to Texas with his girlfriend; that your mother didn’t particularly like but respected that her eldest wanted to start a new chapter elsewhere.

She just didn’t expect her daughter to go off and do the same thing a year later. Your mother tended to be harder on you than she was on your older brother but you stemmed that as your mother being dependent on you. Relax! Y’all were finally in therapy working that out and it definitely wasn’t with the help of Em’s ex, that would be a huge red flag.

So yeah there was some things going on along with some heat? You were going to do everything in your power to ease that electricity bill. Even if a nagging throbbing headache started to occur? Ice packs were in your reach for your dear forehead and back of your neck. If the walls were getting sticky? Put the fans on blast and rotate and open up those large windows to allow some fresh air in. You had it figured out and definitely was known as the DIY queen.

Emerald was staring down at you adoringly, kiss going right to the side of your neck before she lightly shook your shoulder, “wakey wakey, baby.”

You huffed, keeping your eyes closed, normally Emerald was the heavy sleeper but for some reason she wanted to be up and at ‘em, “huh?”

“We got things to do.”

“…like?” You croaked, knowing you needed some water soon.

“Plenty. First we need to get more gas and fill up the portable tanks, then we need to pick up Bam Cooke and Cathaway.” Emerald started counting your to-do list as she began pacing beside your side of the bed.

You honestly forgot your mom had your dog and cat (they were named after some soulful legendary singers, name creds completely go to emerald for this one!) for the weekend.

Peeking over at your nightstand you squinted trying to see the time and settled on snatching your phone instead.

8:56am.

Unlocking your phone you checked the weather and sighed, “there’s also a heat advisory today and tomorrow.”

“Girl what else is new? We also need to eat. I know it’s hot but we have to go grocery shopping, get up.” Emerald stated with her hands digging into hips, after she just yanked the curtains open to reveal the sunlight.

Slapping a slighty damp arm over your eyes after resting your phone back on the night stand, you exhaled, “can’t we just do a delivery service?”

“Yeah, we can. But you’ve been cooped up in this house for who knows how long. Like when’s the last time you’ve been to the office or been interacting with people?”

You’ve interacted with plenty people! That’s the perks of working remotely, you chatted only when necessary—although that also started to feel like a ghost town? Ghost server? it was still enough socializing for you with a employer that was basically a chatty Kathy that loved video calls and phone calls that could go on for hours every other day.

“Interacting with you and my mom is more than enough,” you mumbled, “plus we still have to get this house together, things are still in boxes, and we’re still waiting on backordered items.”

Emerald scoffed with a fan of her hand, “we’ll worry about that in due time! There’s no timeline to when this place has to be together, it’s about what we make of it.”

Which didn’t stop her from having a house warming with her group of close friends and your best friend. You wouldn’t have minded if it was just family but having friends over when the decor wasn’t even in the state was a little annoying. However emerald was open to sharing with everybody, her success was basically everyone’s success, although you tried to hint that one of her friends out of the group seemed to be moving a little funny after Emerald came into that money.

True tea.

You repeated after a yawn, “Grocery shopping?”

Emerald nodded as she approached the bed in her bra, brief’s, and rodded hair. She then climbed up onto the bed, standing over you as she lightly sang, “oooowoaaahyeaaah!”

Snorting you teased with some snaps, “Okay, Hannah.”

Winking, Em spun off the bed as you pushed up onto your elbows, “you need help taking your rollers out?”

“I got it, baby, thank you.” Emerald called out as she entered the bathroom, “you can help me pick it out though…never mind yo ass is heavy handed.”

“Compared to who?”

“Me myself and I.”

You rolled your eyes as you tossed the covers back, reaching for your tumbler so you can down some water, before joining your girlfriend in the bathroom to get ready for the day.

Now…drives to the grocery store was just as if you were in the south. This you knew since you were originally from North Carolina but finished your senior year and attended college in California. Emerald was always in the driver’s seat out of your relationship but it was amplified with the new car y’all were leasing. You offered to get out and pump the gas along with refilling the extra jugs, leaving Emerald to sit sideways, checking social media while her elbows dug into her knees with the door wide open, legs begging for some air since…you guessed it! wouldn’t drive with the AC on either.

Gas stations were never far from the house living in Lancaster but going to the grocery store? That required at least a thirty-five minute drive on the highway and there was a accident, which was taking this little outing much more time than usual.

Emerald was getting impatient while you sat with your legs up on the dash of your Honda sport, hands throw up and locked behind the headrest while you gently nodded your head along to the Afrobeat mix.

The side eye game was strong as Emerald peeked over at you, completely at ease in this weather. Yeah she should be used to this weather and normally she is but with a heat wave with barely a breeze brought on some agitation for real.

Sitting bumper to bumper, tumblers of water in the cup holders, heat rays roasting the brown on Emerald’s hands and arms, and the drip of sweat sliding down the back of her neck towards her back was enough for Emerald’s Patience to wear very thin. With one hand on wheel and the other shooting out to mess with the knobs and buttons on the dash, caught your attention.

“roll the windows up, I’m about to put the AC on.” Emerald started before sitting up straight and glanced over her shoulder, “I’m also about to float this motherfucker.”

Your eyes went wide after cautiously rolling your window up and latching onto the door before Emerald whipped the car out of the slow lane, now flying down the emergency lane towards the next exit, quickly influencing some cars to follow right behind.

You breathed, “Excuse me, Samuel L. Jackson.”

“You ain’t know? That’s my uncle.” Emerald curled her lips into a smile, proud of herself before increasing the volume of the music by the steering wheel.

Shaking your head, you lowered your feet onto the floor, stretching before sitting up on the passenger side. You were already comfy before but now you had to reach into the backseat to reach for your crochet blanket you made last winter to toss over your bare thighs.

“Sorry but we’ve been inside the house with no AC during ninety degree weather and there ain’t no type of breeze outside! If we’re gonna be outside, we need to survive.” Emerald claimed as she paused at the stop sign before turning right.

You shrugged, “We got a full tank now so it’s whatever.”

Emerald hummed at this before holding her hand out to rest on top of your blanket, “Guess that means now we can be cute and hold hands without being sweaty.”

“Uh uh, both hands on the wheel Ms. Float this muthafucka.”

A laugh bubbled out of Emerald’s lips at this, “Fine, if that’s how you wanna do me.”

“Safety first,” you raised one finger in the air before pushing your glasses up the bridge of your oily nose.

“You right, can’t have nothing interfering with my baby and I.”

“That’s riiiight.”

“Oooh, alto.”

You laughed.

Eventually the both of you made it to the grocery store after eleven, the parking lot wasn’t packed but had a nice little crowd filling the area.

“Good, now we can use the corporations’ air instead, knowing they’re about to sell us some overpriced eggs.” Emerald told you as you walked the aisle, making a elderly woman glance at you two.

You laughed, watching as the woman slowly smiled at your conversation before carrying on. Emerald was pushing the carriage and you were rotating between hanging onto the crook of her arm and holding onto the side of the carriage.

“That’s my girl.” You praised as Emerald pointed at you.

Stopping at the vegetables section, you bounced up on your toes as you noticed the organic section up ahead, “Ooh, I see that tangerine juice we like. Let me grab that before there’s none left.”

“Yes please do! I’m gonna get into these bell peppers and zucchini.”

“Alright,” you tapped the carriage before departing.

Folding your arms and humming to the soft 80s jams the store played, you took your time heading over to the organic section, briefly glancing at the other sections before getting to the main one that sparked your interest. Standing in front of the mid-sized section, you scanned the various of drinks and decided on three main ones.

First you picked up the tangerine juice, tucking it underneath your arm, some kombucha that people were raving about on tiktok, and finally when you reached for the small bottle of pomegranate juice, you paused as another hand was reaching for the same thing.

“Oh,” the voice says, making you turn to them.

Hey listen, normally you weren’t the type to say much on anyone’s appearance but the woman with the sun hat and wicked smile made you feel some type of way. Her green eyes were large, almost too large that they looked too big for her tight pinched face. Her ears were also pointed and stuck out from her long frizzy jet black hair, lots of teeth, thin barely there brows, and pale skin the color of powder.

“Looks like there’s only one left of the little ones.” The woman spoke, taking note that your eyes went to the four large bottles to the right of the smaller bottle.

“Mhm.”

The woman’s eyes almost widened as she said, “A little goes a long way, don’t you think?”

“Sure does. My mimi—my grandmother, used to have a pomegranate tree. Learned to love them from a young age.”

“How wonderful,” the woman commented, “I sense southern roots…where about? Princeville?”

You halted and pushed your glasses further up the bridge of your nose at that. You knew your history regardless of being a journalist or not but this didn’t feel like good ‘ol southern chat with this woman. It felt invasive and unsettling.

Clearing your throat, you pulled on the top of the bottle, weighing the juices in your arms as the woman cradled the basket that held small amounts of pink petals that grew from the lengthy green leaves and stems. Almost as if she pulled the shrubs up herself, which you noticed she had lace gloves covering her hands. You’ve never seen flowers like those and planned on picking up some here later but there was a feeling in your gut telling you otherwise.

“A much bigger city,” you responded with a small smile, “my family leaves their mark wherever they go. We tend to be active in many communities. Excuse me, I have to get back to shopping.”

The woman kept a smile on her face as you talked, not blinking once as you conversed. She turned while you walked by her before she called out to you, “Yes, Miss. we all have to finish our deeds before God pours the storm on us. You should enjoy that juice to ease his suffering and return.”

You didn’t grant the woman a word or a glance as you sped-walked back to Em who also happened to be chatting with a bald buff man. You caught their attention as you placed the items back into the carriage, almost roughly.

“Hey baby, this is my new friend, Duncan. He listens to Angel and I’s podcast…matter of fact, why don’t you snap a pic on our phones so I can send it to him and our socials?”

“Really? Oh no. I don’t want to trouble you.”

“Oh please! Anybody that’s a supporter of mine, can get something as simple as a conversation and a picture. Don’t be shy on me now, Duncan!”

The man grinned as he cautiously held out his phone to you, “Only if you don’t mind?”

This was nothing new.

Ever since operation nope hit the internet and radio stations, people were intrigued to know the people who took it on. You didn’t feel any sort of way when people would come up to Emerald, you admired how she handled herself with grace, chatting with people with ease as they inquired about the what and the how.

Although she was advised not to speak much on it, with hush money, her and Angel still touched on some of it on their supernatural podcast: UNO U KNOW U.F.NO! Yes it was lengthy title that was abbreviated when you search for it but it makes sense if you’re observant and think about it. The listeners that get it, get it and those that don’t?

They don’t listen.

You seemed to be on autopilot, taking the phones as you snapped a few pictures, which Duncan thanks you two for before the both of you carried on shopping. You didn’t see the woman around anymore and that still didn’t make you feel alright.

“Can we hurry out of this section, em?”

“Yeah sure,” Emerald responded as she finished up some texts before shoving her phone into her back pocket, “we only need some fruits then we can head out into the main aisles.”

“I think we’ll be fine with frozen fruits, we don’t eat the fresh ones fast enough.”

“Speak for yourself, there’s nothing wrong with stocking up.” Em leaned on the carriage as she pushed forward, “don’t worry about a thing, I’m buying.”

Quietly you responded, “okay,” eyes still searching the area around you.

Emerald raises her brows at this, stopping in front of the pineapples, “…you okay? Is The AC making your head hurt again or something? Usually you’re all up for debating on who wants to pay.”

“I’m fine.”

“If you say so,” a look of uncertainty passed on Emerald’s face as she wrapped the pineapple in a plastic bag for protection before placing it into the carriage.

The tension in your shoulders almost faltered as the both of you went through the main floor, breezing through two aisles until you got to the third one. You stood in front of the carriage while Em voiced her complaints on oat milk and coconut milk. She had her back to the opposite end of the aisle while from your peripheral you saw a flash of black.

Turning your head, you glanced out the aisle and saw no one for awhile before a customer walked by with a carriage.

“I mean I don’t even care for oat milk like that, I think it messes with my stomach. Almond milk ain’t all that and coconut milk is only good for certain meals…wait a damn minute they got rice milk? How do they do that?!” Emerald browsed the milks in awe.

It was when you turned back, you saw her. She was walking by the aisle, raising a few fingers to wave at you, sickening smile planted on her lips, except her green large eyes were almost see-through, a silver tone that flashes as she went by.

Hell. nawl.

Leaving the carriage behind, you backed up in the other direction and took off into a sprint.

“Aries?” Em called out to you.

However you didn’t look back until your back was pressed up against the car. Emerald was only seconds behind you, hands on her knees as she finally caught up to you.

“…what…the…hell…was that? you never told me you were a track star?!”

You pulled yourself from the heat of the car that seeped through the thin material of your shirt and yanked on the car door handle. Emerald was completely confused but something was clearly going on as she rested a hand on your waist.

“Hey, tell me what’s going on?”

You swallowed, “There’s a shapeshifter or some shit in there that’s been following me—or us around!”

“Say what now?” The look of seriousness washed over Emerald’s features as she let go of you to start patting herself for the keys.

You nodded your head, not showing a ounce of humor on your own face and Emerald knew she had to ask questions later. Unlocking the doors, you threw yourself inside, waiting for Emerald to jog around the car to get into the driver’s side. She locked the doors and stuck the key in the ignition as specs of rain began to platter against the window shield.

Before she could turn the key, the both of you turned to the right parking space to see a yellow Volkswagen beetle pulling up beside you with their window down. It was the same woman with the bow sun hat, smiling and her eyes flickering silver like a coin about to be spun in circles, just watching you two before she sped off.

That action alone made your glasses fog up more than the humidity outside.

You sank into your seat, ripping your glasses from your face, other hand holding onto the strap of the seatbelt as you croaked out, “Did you see that?”

“Uh uh. And I don’t want no damn parts,” Emerald stated as she started the car, putting it in reverse not bothering to use the back up camera this time, “Let’s get the hell up outta here and call OJ.”

You pulled out your own phone with shaky hands as Emerald led the both of you in the opposite direction. As the phone rang on the Bluetooth, Emerald reached out to grip your hand in her’s.

The touch was comforting enough but you couldn’t help but to think:

Here we go again.

However it was round one for you and round two for Em but with the warmth of her hand in yours, maybe you’ll make it out just fine with her by your side.

Or you could both simply ignore this?

Yeah…

Right.

ੈ✩‧✧.* ↟ ੈ✩‧✧.* ↟ ੈ✩‧✧.* ↟ ੈ✩‧✧.* ↟ ੈ✩‧✧.*

Continue along with my summer anthology prompts here.

[generalluxun]

So, I now we've discussed the Marinette Butterfly user Villain AU a bit and I wanted to share some musings I thought you'd find interesting.

I mentioned in talking I sort of had two distinct themes/ideas in mind that don't really fit together but that both are interesting to me.

So the basic set up is the same in both versions, something bad happens to Marinette's family over the school break. So she's got enough isolation from that when she's gifted a pendant as a comfort present, no one is present enough to notice her shenanigans.

She & her family are good people and they didn't deserve this (True) he resolves to access the power "Greater than Death" to right this wrong, & starts by sending out butterflies to locate the Miraculous.

With the broad empathy of the pendant & the more direct line via the butterflies, her perception of people becomes deeply bitter. People are becoming as miserable and angry as she is over the most minor of things! Leading to an increasing alienation from other people that makes her fall to villainy after a disastrous (Through butterfly) conversation with a transformed Fu.

This leads to "Dark Wings Rise."

Anyway the two variants I envisioned are as follows:

1: A deconstructive theme on the nature of "Good social skills VS bad social skills.

By which I mean, Marinette canonically is quite deft socially when not flabbergasted by her crush or super stressed. She offers genuine aid to those around her and gifts gives freely. This leads her to being very well liked.

In contrast, Chloe has terrible social skills in most casual scenarios she's exposed too and is actively disliked. & Lila, while well liked is only that way through using "Bad" skills, such as lying, rather than genuine one's.

The contrast would be in them, despite falling into the traditionally 'bad' category being her opposition. While Marinette uses her influence in the class to target them cos good skills can still be used for bad things.

In this context I imagine her Catalyst would be Sabrina. Whom she whisked away from Chloe and whose drive to be useful to others made her very easy to convert into an Akuma that existed to empower Marinette.

Lila's response to the class would basically be, "Is this a cult? Am I being educated in a cult class?" While Chloe's is more just "Everyone hated me anyway, & I don't trust anyone any-how bring it!"

The biggest hurdles would be Marinette's social skills not taking a dive with her head space. That she'd need to be transformed to use Nooroo's empathy power. & the fact she's not naturally that kind of schemer anyway.

2: A Good Victim Becomes a Bad Victim, VS a Bad Victim

Messily put, but fairly straightforward. A big issue many have with the show, and that can be analyzed inside it, even in the earlier seasons. Is how "Bad victims" who act out of hurt, ignorance or malice brought out in them don't usually get the same kind of empathy as the "Good victims". IE, the people whose trauma doesn't manifest in ways that are inconvenient or unpleasant or messy.

Let alone the perception of needing to earn people's assistance by improving before you get support, even when one is a child with no support networks, minimal guidance and struggle even identifying the problem. Yeah sure that may make it easier for people to help them but that's like asking someone with PTSD to stop having panic attacks before they get therapist for their panic attacks.

In this case, Marinette's not a character who canonically can easily grasp the "Bad victim" experience, or more subtle coercions. As a result, even when in a position like Ladybug she sometimes fumbles some major points or misses red flags Chloe & Gabriel/Audrey respectively.

So thematically she's unaware of it but her decline into villainy also involves her becoming a "Bad victim". One who chases away people trying to comfort her, if perhaps less overtly than Chloe, as her pity well taps out because "being embarrassed over a crush isn't as bad as what I went through but you feel as bad, how dare you!"

Meanwhile Chloe, largely due to circumstances is put in a somewhat better situation, be it a team, or via access to the Kwami or even just the admittedly clumsy efforts of Fu to stop her from getting killed by Akuma every few days.

The point is she's getting the help first and improving her standing in class and her mental health because of it. A fact which boggles Marinette who can't see how, or why, this is happening and perceives it as another injustice.

Her Catalyst would be Lila who sees the skilled seamstress has become socially isolated by her own hand. Her casual use of Akuma & efforts to see if Marinette can be a useful 'friend' lead her to becoming an accomplice. One who likely realizes too late just how out of hand this all is.

I think he big struggle with this idea would be how things got 'that bad' and 'that isolating' for Marinette. At least without making either her social network look shitty, or her own inclinations being naturally towards villainy regardless.

Conclusion:

I think over all the second version feels more coherent. Good social skills can be used for bad is more like an episode theme than a series theme. Plus as said it requires more explanations for how things go the way they do than the other.

Especially if Lila's less "Machiavellian villain" and more, "Oh she makes good outfits & has no friends, I can fix that & get free clothes! Oh she has magic powers, I want magic powers, I-... I think I am in over my head here... Double down double down!"

Notes:

Though it could also easily be linked with some other ideas I had recently. Like that more expanded villain cast from the regular AU.

IE, Sorcerers seeking the Miraculous, temple monk survivor after Fu, the Tsurugi's being anti villains/antagonists but not villains. Lila actually being Volpina, ETC.

Let alone the recent "Butterfly can do everything Peacock does with creative thinking" idea. Tough in that case explaining where Adrien came from may be hard without more of an overt AU...

Unless, the story starts into the school year, and Adrien, having befriended Marinette early on gives her his mothers pendant perhaps? Could still have Gabriel causing his own kind of trouble too... Hmm...

I muse, even as I know I likely lack the time to write this ><

Anyway I hope it was interesting!

I like the analysis. Second scenario definitely feels more viable. Drop senti-Adrien and the blending of the Butterfly/peacock doesn't matter. I would *not* bring sorcery/other stuff in. You already have a *lot* going on. You are past the point of adding complexity.

[bethanydelleman]

Northanger Abbey Readthrough, Ch 5

Mr. Tilney is still missing! He is not to be found at the theatre, the pump room, or out of doors. However, according to the narrator, this absence is very clever of him:

This sort of mysteriousness, which is always so becoming in a hero, threw a fresh grace in Catherine’s imagination around his person and manners, and increased her anxiety to know more of him.

Also, poor Isbella keeps dropping hints about James, She liked him the better for being a clergyman, “for she must confess herself very partial to the profession”; and something like a sigh escaped her as she said it but Catherine has no idea what she is hinting at! The fact that Isabella wants "delicate raillery" reminds me of Anne Steele from Sense & Sensibility:

Miss Steele wanted only to be teazed about Dr. Davies to be perfectly happy. (Ch 34)

Mrs. Allen is highly gratified to find friends that are shabbier than her in dress! But she and Mrs. Thorpe hardly ever actually talk to each other, in what they called conversation, but in which there was scarcely ever any exchange of opinion, and not often any resemblance of subject, for Mrs. Thorpe talked chiefly of her children, and Mrs. Allen of her gowns. If you want an example of Austen actually writing one of these conversations down, check out the "bragversaion" between Mrs. Elton and Mr. Weston, where he only really talks of Frank and she brings literally every statement back to Maple Grove. (Emma, Ch 18, V2)

Catherine and Isabella rapidly become friends, perhaps a bit too rapidly. Their quick friendship will be contrasted later with the more properly and far slower intimacy between Catherine and Eleanor Tilney. However, I have definitely had vacation friendships like this, where due to the amount of time together and the knowledge that you will soon go home, the friendship moves very fast.

They called each other by their Christian name, were always arm in arm when they walked, pinned up each other’s train for the dance, and were not to be divided in the set; and if a rainy morning deprived them of other enjoyments, they were still resolute in meeting in defiance of wet and dirt, and shut themselves up, to read novels together.

And then we come to the famous rant against the degradation of novels! And you know what? Austen has a good point. Why not have heroines of freaking novels read novels? What a strange brand of doublethink! A heroine must not read novels whilst existing within them. Funny to think that many of the novels that Catherine might have been reading would be considered classic literature now, though many more have faded out of recognition.

Austen also rightly points out that people are far more likely to actually read novels than "edifying" materials such as poetry or history, something which will come up later on the country walk. This makes me think of the scorn towards YA novels and comic books/novels today, which I still see way too much of. Let kids read what they like! A general love of reading will get anyone far in life.

(To be honest, I still kind of prefer fantasy YA because way too much of the adult stuff features rape/non-con/sexual assault and that's far less likely in YA)

But yeah, you just tell me the last time someone came up to you gushing about a History of England, it's not those books that capture our imagination and make us feel, it's novels. There is a reason I'm still reading novels from 200 years ago today and little else, and it's not just because factual information is far out of date!

Only a novel indeed!

[shizukateal]

What do you think about Eternal Sailor Moon? What would you change to improve her design?

It sucks. I'm sorry, I wish I could give the single most famous and influential magical girl ever a more tactful sentence but I can't. It sucks. The layered skirt and it's color scheme sucks, the thin belt ribbon sucks, the excessive pearl adornments on the hair and gloves suck, the lack of proper contrast for the white wings of the eternal moon article sucks, and those goddamn pink bubblegum sleeves especially suck.

Ok, I got that out of my system, I can be respectful now. Buckle up anon, you're getting more than you asked for.

Let's analyze first why Takeuchi-sensei might have made some of these choices. The pink bubblegum sleeves? She probably realized that there was too much white around her torso already and there was a need for a color break. The ugly 3 layering? Takeuchi-sensei likes figure skating, which is why in the manga and Sailor Moon Crystal the skirts are not stiff at all. So she gave Usagi something that would work in a figure skating costume, not realizing that every other element of the torso and gloves is too stiff to pull that off. The thin belts and ribbons? She probably wanted a swallowtail butterfly effect with the wings, but she realized that a big ribbon behind would compete with the wings so the put those thin strands and then realized that the usual belt is too thick for them so she changed that too, again, under the assumption that it would work in the same way for a figure skating costume.

And the excessive accesorization? Well, how else are you supposed to "upgrade" a base as concise and short as the og uniform? You can't even enlarge the skirt all that much without a jenga cascade of new problems, that's why all of the variations within the senshis are so subtle. So Takeuchi-sensei resorted to just add "more" stuff to give the outfit more importance. And she kinda had to, because she had already kneecapped herself with the Moon Crisis outfit:

Now, not all of the choices of this outfit are bad. Changing the skirt to white is subtle but powerful enough, and when the yellow and blue stripes aren't an ugly ombre that doesn't work on plates that stiff they actually look ok. Adding more lines to the collar is also good. However the pearls in the hair compete with the rest of the head accessories. The pale pink of the ribbon comes out of nowhere, and so do the translucent, pointy, three-layered sleeves. Aaaaaaand I hate that the brooch gets repeated on her crotch of all places.

But because Naoko chose to go with this, she set up the expectations a certain way. Essentially this outfit claims that an "evolved" Sailor Moon is a Sailor Moon with more accessories, cohesion be damned, so what else was she going to do when she had to out-perform this?

Which takes us to the second part of your question. If I want to change the Eternal transformation, I need to change the Moon Crisis transformation first so that the contrast between each other becomes a conversation that makes them stand out more. Luckily, DollDivine's Senshi Maker is miraculously still alive, so I don't have to give you an exceptionally shitty illustration of my own.

Let's start with Moon Crisis:

As you can see, my changes from the first transformation are pretty subtle, but I think they work well enough. Without the pearls in the hair the other accessories from head to neck still work as well as ever, only the choker stands out a little bit more and the difference in the hair accessories may be slightly more noticeable. Between those, the longer gloves, and the white boots I figured the amount of surface space for the color white had increased enough to make this version seem more ethereal, so I put one last touch of it on the outer edge of the skirt and made the belt red for further contrast. Keeping the ribbon red as well means it no longer clashes with the rest, and the Crisis Moon Compact can still be the nice touch of pink to tie it all up with the Kaleidomoon Scope (which, btw, should also be a fucking sword instead of a rod with a handle).

Then, finally, we can get to the Eternal Moon redesign:

So! I made 3 different versions distinguished by color scheme. Two work with the usual combination of white + primary colors and the other is white + pink and gold. I made the pink one first because I wanted to match it to the eternal tiare, and I figured that since white is the more important color it didn't matter much if I left out the rest. And while I still like it and I think it would match the show and be a proper evolution, I get why some would find it too disjointed from her original outfits without the red and blue. So I experimented with those colors instead and those are the results. I find them comparatively tackier than the pink and gold, but no more than the original eternal costume, and all in all they work well enough. Maybe I'll do a poll later so you can choose which version you like best.

Now with that out of the way I should go into the shape of the outfit, since I did make some radical changes. Believe me I don't like taking the "sailor" out of Sailor Moon anymore than you do, but in my defense the options of the flash game are limited, so hear my reasoning before you chew me out:

First and foremost, the wings present a problem. Because they are white and spring from above her shoulders they were always going to compete with the bubble sleeves, since both elements fundamentally alter the silhouette. Ergo, I chose to get rid of the sleeves, since the wings are a more powerful symbol. I chose the sweetheart neckline because it was what was available and I think it looks good, but there might have been other options if the game had more variety (which is saying a lot because the thing has a lot of options). Before you ask, no the sleeveless approach Ami has on her costume doesn't look good on her and no way no how am I doing the Shadow Galactica Senshi thing of unattached collars. Fuck that nonsense. I also left the pearls without the hair bun accessories because, again, they competed too much with everything else.

So we go with a white mini dress. I put a ruffled underskirt to give the outfit a bit more volume and looseness without fundamentally unbalancing the silhouette and since it's pale yellow and translucent it gives the idea of a halo of moonlight with the main white skirt. Without the sleeves and collar the mini dress looks more like something a figure skater would wear, so the string-y belts actually work well here. I kept the back ribbon short so that it wouldn't compete with the wings, and I put another one under the wings of the eternal moon article to balance the excess white. This leaves us with the boots. Trust me, she looks better with these than her usual ones. With a strapless and short dress like this either you go short and blocky with the footwear or go long and skin tight. Anything in the middle will look awkward. I will admit however that they need a band of color on top, but that wasn't an option in the game. Or rather there was an option and it didn't look good so I didn't take it.

In any case, I said before that the reason for re-making both outfits is so that the contrast between them makes a design throughline. So there you have it. We have the second evolution, which is a more elongated version of the first one without changing or accessorizing it too much and then our final version goes the opposite way, being more sparse and ethereal, even fairy-like as it fits an ascended, mythical figure. I hope the redesigns satisfy you, but who knows! Maybe when I get better at drawing I can come up with something else. Or not. After all, if you, like me, don't like the original eternal outfit you're always welcome to redesign it yourself. The world is our oyster 💖🌙

[art-res]

hello! if its not too much, do you have any tutorials on how to do lighting coming from an electronic like a phone or laptop?

Hi there! Great question!

To recreate lighting coming from an electronic device like a phone or laptop in a 2D artwork, treat it like a baby sun / light source. This means it will add to whatever other lights you have in the scene.

Here is a general workflow to try :)

Study reference: Look at reference images of electronic devices to get a sense of how the light they emit behaves. images from unsplash

When there is a lot of other light, the rim glow that the computer screen adds is a lot more subtle.

The computer screens give a nice big glow in lower light settings.

Highly suggest taking your own pics w a friend/selfie camera of what you are envisioning, as I feel this reference would be easy to make and can match what you are going for.

Now for the actual rendering process. This workflow kind of involves some knowledge of form/lighting, so definitely read up on that before.

Create a base: Draw the device and any surrounding objects using base colors. (Works for traditional paint/digital, but for colored pencil probably work dark to light, which can take a bit more planning...)

Define the light source(s): Sketch in the light source(s), making sure it appears to come from the device. The tricky part is to take in account the global lighting, so other light sources you want might make the screen glow more subtle or more pronounced. I like to paint shadows before light, so at this stage just kind of mark out what you want to do later.

Add shadows: Use shading to indicate shadows cast by objects in the scene, taking into account the light sources you've defined. I use multiply layers. I also try to think about each light source separately in my head and paint in layers to make the process a bit less complicated.

Add highlights: Use lighter tones to indicate areas that are lit by the light source, creating contrast with the shadows. Computer screens usually add a soft glow to planes that are close to the computer, and also a rim light. I'd zoom in on the reference more. If working digitally, try using overlay or soft light layers and build up the effect. If traditional, try glazing/using less opaque mediums/slowly adding in your values. Remember, the device screen is like a rectangular lamp, and since the brightness can be adjusted, I feel like you can make it believable with a variety of different value choices. Gaussian blur can help you with the glow effect as well.

Adjust as necessary: Make any final adjustments to the lighting, such as increasing or decreasing the brightness of the highlights or shadows, until you're satisfied with the result. Reference is key to this I think. You can make your own references pretty easily, if you have a camera and a friend!

Hope this helps!

<3,

Ali

Thank you for reading and all the support!

If you are interested in helping fund the website/keeping this going, I have a pattern at https://www.patreon.com/astrikos and http://buymeacoffee.com/aky.

[canary0]

August 23 - Dracula 2023

The Diary of Mina Harker

I'm getting worried. We have been keeping a watch lately, but Lucy managed to get the crucifix down from her window in her sleep and made it out to the churchyard again. It almost goes without saying that her health has taken a turn and she's quite weak now. We've made the decision that moving forward, I should sleep in her room with her. I will miss out on time with Jonathan, and I am quite worried about him, too, given the fiend's equal interest in him, but Lucy appears to be his main target for now. Lucy herself much approved of this plan, and sweetly spoke of how it would be like sleepovers when we were just girls.

Jonathan is recovering as well after the increase in his illness the other day. He remains quite pale, though, and I worry for lingering anemia. He and Lucy look a bit similar at the moment, but Jonathan seems to be stronger... more than he used to be, if anything, which is surprising. He and Lucy are rather comparable in build, with Jonathan perhaps slightly the smaller of the two. I wonder if Mr. Morris would be willing to room with Jonathan to keep an eye on him and make sure both of the monster's interests have an eye on them?

Fortunately, Dr. Seward has been a great help with Lucy's health. He's been keeping an eye on her vitals and ensuring that she eats well for reviving her health.

Dr. Stankiewicz arrived today, and she looks a good bit different while on vacation than she did while working, with her lab coat traded in for torn jeans, and a flannel overshirt. She did bring medical equipment and, of all things, her own autoclave, which she set up in the kitchen. Fortunately, the Westenras' kitchen is quite generously sized, and the machine itself isn't huge. She quite brusquely informed us that she expected to be here on a working vacation, so she came prepared, though she didn't expect two people. I was a little put out - both of them had been very careful, but fate had put them in the wrong place at the wrong time. She smiled at that, though, and told me she knew, and that neither was in any way at fault for their situations. We would try to improve them.

She proceeded to take down everyone's blood types. Lucy is apparently AB+, which is good to learn. She can receive blood from any of us, so transfusions won't be an issue for her. Jonathan will have a bit more trouble, with B- - not exactly common, and he can't get it from just anyone.

Dr. Abraham Van Helsing arrived later that same day. Unlike Dr. Stankiewicz, he seems like quite the jovial and personable sort. He is also quite in contrast to his protege, Dr. Seward, in that way. By the time he arrived, there was only time for a late dinner, however. We will start the arduous process of going over what information we have tomorrow. Hopefully Arthur will be able to make it soon. I will be arranging the physical records during the meeting tomorrow and starting a file on everything we have.

God willing, we and the three doctors together will be able to make some sense out of everything going on.

---

The Diary of Jack Seward

Woken in the middle of the night by a report from the hospital. Apparently more strange behavior from Renfield. Apparently he became quite agitated around sundown, yelling and seemingly trying to shake the bars on the window, immobile though they are. "That's it! It's you!" He was yelling out according the the nurse's report.

She moved to the window to try and see what he was yelling at, but all she could see outside was an unusually large bat. She apparently did call animal control to report a potential invasive species appearance, but there wasn't much else she could do. Renfield remained upset, but he was not a danger to himself or others, it seemed, so he was allowed to express his piece. Eventually, after roughly 45 minutes of terrified ranting, he calmed, seeming to exhaust himself.

I'm concerned about this new change in him. I've given orders for the therapist to speak with him about it tomorrow. Hopefully we'll find out more.

[crystalelemental]

I remember reading about you saying something about the lack of IVs and EVs in Nexomon but now I can't find the post;;

Would you say it's a bad or a good thing?

That's correct! Nexomon does not have EVs or IVs or natures. Essentially, two of the same species of Nexomon at the same level have the same stats and access to the same moves. They are functionally identical. Whether that's good or bad depends on your stance on things. I'll go over it bit by bit under the cut:

In Pokemon, if you pick your Bulbasaur starter, you have to immediately contend with both a nature and the set IVs in each stat. Depending on what's rolled, your Bulbasaur may perform better or worse throughout the run. Those starting factors can have an impact on how it operates. Having this variance means no two playthroughs are exactly the same, because your stats are going to change how well certain options will work.

By contrast, if you pick Petril in Nexomon 1, it is the same every time. You know exactly what you picked, and every playthrough you use it, it will perform the same. There's no variance. This could be seen as kinda limiting to replayability, depending on your stance on its importance. It also means there's no reason not to just trade out something you have for a later catch at a higher level if it's the same species. Which can make it less about cherishing your specific monsters, in a way.

But on the other hand, depending on the Pokemon, variance is a huge problem. Bulbasaur can kinda get away with deciding between Adamant or Modest, you know what I mean? Hell, it can operate with Bold or Impish, or even Timid or Jolly. Flatlined stats worked in its favor. But something like Abra? Roll an Adamant and experience something that's just objectively worse for no reason. IVs are similar. Very little in the games really necessitates 31s in each stat, but rolling 0s? I had a Platinum run with a Piplup that had 0 in both offenses and speed. It was constantly outsped, and couldn't OHKO a Geodude two levels below it at the start of the game with Bubble.

While you never strictly need to concern yourself with the factors involved in Pokemon, I personally argue that most of them exist to be more of a burden than a boon, especially as new generations introduce more and more min-maxing of base stats. IVs only hinder when they roll too low. Natures effectively have four beneficial options, and at least eight that are devastating. Statistically, things are more likely to go badly for the player than positively.

I think there's something to be said for standardization. You don't even have to consider things beyond catching what you want to catch. It does mean that there's no way to power up weaker options that way...at least in the first game. Extinction has cores, which can be used to increase stats, and those are pretty flexible to use with whoever. They're percentage-based, so it's kind of a "rich get richer" situation like Z-moves were, but I didn't encounter much in Extinction that felt like...unusable, you know? That's a whole other post, but your moveset is just what you learn naturally, and as a result, type matchup is wildly more significant, and every tool operates well if you're using it where it can function. In comparison to Pokemon, where movepool bloat through TMs and egg moves have resulted in it being borderline impossible to work a type resistance in your favor.

Anyway, the short answer is I prefer it. It makes the game a lot more streamlined for me. But I'm also a lunatic who resets for Pokeon natures I want regardless of the game's difficulty.

[kyogre-blue]

Mostly finished the Wuwa 1.2 festival event, largely in one go.

I have minor nitpicks but tbh I liked it quite a bit? This is kind of annoying angle to take, but I think it's actually better than any of Genshin's festivals (that I actually paid attention to).

I don't passionately love Jinzhou, but I like it well enough. I'm an easy sell on emotional appeals in general, so I like the welfare girl squad, I like Jinzhou's NPCs and the Midnight Rangers, I like Jiyan even though he's boring, and I was quite fine with the other characters too. So seeing everyone happy, having fun, looking forward to the future was very nice. I think the little stall quests were cute enough, the NPC sections were fine and consistent with Wuwa's overall themes, and the Xiangli Yao storyline was like... better that at minimum 95% of Genshin's story quests. The guy actually emoted at the climax!

Overall, it wasn't quite enough to be called amazing, but it was pretty enjoyable. (I still have to finish getting popularity, but I doubt there's much story behind that.)

Small notes:

Leaks are saying that 1.3 will be Black Shores related and then 1.4 will the be last 1.x patch, followed by 2.0. This is starting to look more plausible after this event. There's several mentions about how Jinzhou is now going to be at peace because we stopped the Threnodian's awakening, which has a very "time to move on to the next plot" feeling.

Additionally, we have a few namedrops of the next Sentinel, Hsin. A fox, apparently. They are definitely starting to gear up to move on.

I like that you can interact with the fireworks to set them off. I love being able to press F to interact. There's also a bigger firework on the fortune stick terrace, which looks very nice.

I also love buying stuff in game. I bought all the recipes I could already. But I am disappointed that the firecrackers will disappear after the event period. Let me keep them?? (Also, let me buy a fan?? This is just rude teasing.)

I'm fine with the stall management minigame, but I kind of wish there were a few more. Like a more extensive shooting or gulpuff minigame.

Initially, I was going to say that Taoyuan village has too few decorations compared to Liyue at Lantern Rite, but it fills up as you build the stalls. It's pretty lively by the end.

There are some stalls you need to interact with daily. The fortune sticks give you an actual buff (I got increased echo drop rate today), the riddle and lottery give prizes. You can also get more of the request coupons daily.

It's kind of a hassle that you need funds to run the requests but you also use funds to do the stall upgrades. This means if you rush to do an upgrade right after you get enough funds for it (which makes an exclamation mark appear, btw), you'll end up with not enough funds to run the high tier requests. The requests don't even use the funds, you just need to have them.

The game crashed on the final cinematic, though I think I only missed the group selfie at the end. lmao, honestly

Just on a personal note, I appreciate that Pascar wasn't crazy and that his research meaningfully contributed to the world. I was almost expecting some kind of rugpull that would undercut the moment, but it really was just a good, hopeful thing. Although this is just circumstantial, he also contrasts well with Geshu Lin, who had a surface similarity in his "my goals at any cost" approach to what Pascar is initially presented as.

But dang, Wuwa faces are so pretty. The models really do look so good.

I can't believe I have to wait two more weeks to get this man. CRIMINAL

Does anyone have the welfare girl squad selfie? I missed snapshotting it...