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loveroftoomanyfandoms · 1 year ago

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Cooking Up Love, Chapter 7

Pairing: Chef!Matt Murdock x F!Journalist!Reader

Rating: T

Story Summary: Here

Warnings/Tags: Hallmark levels of fluffy, cheesy goodness (and speed that their relationship develops, lol), no use of Y/N, Matt is not a vigilante, idiots in love, pining... so much pining

Word Count: ~3800

A/N: As promised, here's the 2nd half of Chef Matt & Reader's Sunday afternoon together! Enjoy!

And thank you as always to @theradioactivespidergwen for the super cute divider she made for me!

Tag List: @yarrystyleeza @hailey-murdock @mattkinsella @bellaxgiornata @danzer8705 @chezagnes @shouldbestudying41 @thepunisherfrankcastle @mattmurdocks6thscaleapartment

Where the hell are we going? you wondered as you and Matt headed away from Clinton Church.

It wasn't like you weren't afraid he was taking you off somewhere to murder you -- you truly did feel safe with Matt and hadn't been lying when you had said that you trusted him. "Any hint as to where we're going?"

Matt shook his head. "I know it sounds weird, but I'd rather just show you, if that's okay?"

You nodded. It seemed important to Matt that your destination remain a mystery, so you decided not to push. "Okay."

You continued walking past various shops and storefronts until finally Matt stopped. "Okay, we're here."

You peered at the faded letters on the door.

Fogwell's Gym

You remembered Matt saying that he frequently worked out after service, but couldn't quite understand what was so special about the location that required the need for secrecy. Well, at least that explains the gym bag.

Matt pulled a set of keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door before stepping inside. "Come on in."

You followed him into the darkened gym and waited as he turned the lights on before looking around.

Cubbyholes lined the wall to the left of the door while several punching bags hung to the right. A large boxing ring was situated in the middle of the room, with wooden steps leading up to it.

Matt gestured towards what you assumed was the locker room. "I'm going to go get changed into my workout clothes. Be right back."

You nodded. "Okay."

While Matt was in the locker room, you took the opportunity to look at the flyers advertising various past boxing matches tacked to the wall. Johnson vs Lewis, Conway vs Roberts, Creel vs Murdock…

You sucked in a breath, reaching out to touch the poster. Creel vs Murdock. Now it makes sense.

You heard Matt come out of the locker room and set his bag down.

"This is where your dad trained, isn't it?" you asked, your eyes still on the poster.

You heard Matt sigh. "Yeah. Yeah, it is."

You turned towards him and froze. As handsome as he was while wearing his chef's coat and black slacks or a t-shirt and jeans, he was even more gorgeous in a black tank top, gray sweatpants, and tennis shoes.

Your gaze drifted up to his face. His glasses were gone, revealing beautiful hazel eyes that were fixed in your direction.

Matt must've felt you staring at him, because he ducked his head and began rummaging through his gym bag. "I, uh, I started coming here back when I was in culinary school," he explained. "I was struggling during my first semester and thinking about dropping out, so I came to the one place I knew where I would feel close to my dad to see if I could figure out what he would say."

He took out a small bundle of what looked like Ace bandages and began to wrap his hands. "I was having a particularly bad day that day -- there was this one professor who had been giving me a hard time about my need for certain accommodations -- so I began to take my frustration out on a punching bag."

You had found when people started to open up it was better to just let them keep talking rather than interrupt with questions, so you remained silent.

"With each punch I could hear my dad telling me that he was proud of me," Matt continued as he finished wrapping one hand and started on the other. "And that Murdocks never give up no matter how hard things get. So I decided to stay in culinary school and work my ass off to prove that I have what it takes to be a great chef and make my dad proud of me."

Before you could second-guess yourself, you walked over to Matt and wrapped your arms around him in a hug.

You thought for a split second that you might have crossed a line, but before you could let go and apologize Matt relaxed into your embrace, circling his arms around you and tucking his face into your neck.

You held him briefly, then let go and stepped back.

Matt began to redo the wrap that he had begun, keeping his face turned downward. "I've, uh, I've never actually told anybody about that before. Not even Foggy."

Your heart constricted. You couldn't even begin to imagine the hardship that Matt must have had to go through in order to prove himself as a chef. "Thank you for sharing it with me."

Matt paused. "I don't suppose I can ask you to keep that off the record, can I?"

You nodded. "I will, if that's what you want. It'll stay just between us."

Matt huffed out a breath. "Thank you."

You sat on the bench as Matt moved in front of the punching bag. "So, I suppose you're going to show me some moves, huh?"

Matt chuckled. "If you'd like."

You watched as Matt did a few stretches, appreciating the way his biceps flexed as he moved. And if your eyes drifted southward, well… you were only human. Cake, indeed. One could bounce a quarter off of that ass.

Your eyes snapped back to Matt's face, which bore a small smirk.

He reached out and touched the punching bag, found the center, then adjusted his stance, raising his fists in front of his face.

You watched in fascination as he skillfully maneuvered his way around the bag, landing punches as if he was squaring off against one of the greatest fighters of all time. He certainly doesn't fight like a blind man.

Finally he paused, chest heaving.

He steadied the punching bag. "Would you mind handing me that towel, please?"

You resisted the urge to lick the sweat off of his neck. "Oh, uh, yeah, sure."

You handed the towel to him. "So are you sure you haven't had professional training?"

Matt grinned as he wiped his face and neck down with the towel. "Yeah, I'm sure."

He draped the towel around his neck and picked up his gym bag. "I'm going to go take a quick shower and change, but I'll be back in a minute, if that's okay?"

You nodded. "Yeah, of course."

While you waited for him to return you checked your phone for messages, replying to an email from an artist you had featured a few weeks prior thanking you for your article.

You put your phone away and stood, glancing briefly over at the entrance to the locker room before walking in front of the punching bag.

You closed your eyes, curled your right hand into a fist, and swung, missing the bag completely.

You opened your eyes, frowning. Maybe I wasn't close enough.

You moved a bit closer, then closed your eyes again.

You swung at the bag, this time barely connecting.

"...Your stance is off."

You gasped and whirled around, a hand flying over your chest. "Jesus, Matt, you scared me."

Matt stood next to the boxing ring, this time dressed in a dark blue t-shirt that clearly showed off his muscles and dark blue sweatpants.

He smiled softly at you. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

You shook your head, trying to calm your racing heart. "It's alright. I was just… um… just…"

"Trying to figure out how a blind man can hit a punching bag so easily?" Matt nodded in understanding. "I probably should have told you, but I'm not actually completely blind."

"Oh," you replied, feeling slightly embarrassed. "I'm so sorry, I just assumed…"

Matt shook his head. "It's okay. The chemicals that got into my eyes basically fried my synapses, so whatever is directly in front of me looks like a black mass and the rest of my line of vision is what I can best describe as a 'world on fire'."

He tapped the side of his glasses, which you had belatedly realized were back on his face. "The red lenses help neutralize that part."

You huffed out a light laugh. "And here I thought you just wore them because they made you look cool."

Matt grinned. "You think they make me look cool?"

More like slightly mysterious and incredibly hot. Your face heated slightly. "Eh, maybe a little."

Matt shook his head with a chuckle. "Ready to head out?"

You nodded. "Mmhmm."

Matt gestured towards the door. "After you."

"So, where to next?" you asked as the two of you headed outside.

Matt shook his head. "Actually, that was my last errand."

"Oh." You couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed that you had to go your separate ways. "Okay, so I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah, tomorrow." Matt bit his lip. "Um, that is… unless you'd like to have dinner with me tonight? My place? My apartment's not too far from here."

You nodded, unable to keep a smile off of your face. "Yeah. Yeah, I'd actually really like that."

Matt unfolded his cane. "Great! I mean, it's the least I could do after you helped me out this afternoon at the soup kitchen."

Your heart sank slightly. Of course he meant it as a thank-you, how else would he have meant it? "Oh. Um, it was no problem. I was happy to help."

Matt turned the opposite of the way you were facing. "This way, then."

As you headed down the street, you couldn't help but entertain the thought of Matt having invited you over for dinner not because he felt obligated to as a thank-you, but because he hadn't been ready for your time together to end either.

You mentally shook your head. It's just as a thank-you for helping him out at the church, that's it.

…You just wished it hadn't been.

Why the hell did I say that? Matt thought to himself as the two of you walked towards his apartment. He'd had every intention of asking you to have dinner with him as a (sort-of) date, but the second you had said yes he had second-guessed himself and blurted out the bit about it being as a thank-you for helping him out at Clinton Church.

He mentally shook his head as the two of you stopped at a crosswalk. Maybe I can fix this.

Before he could say anything, you cleared your throat. "You know, I'm sure you're tired and I don't want to be an inconvenience, so I actually think I'll just head ho--"

"No!" Matt shook his head. "I mean, no, it's not an inconvenience. I was going to make something to eat when I got home anyway, so it's not a problem to make an extra serving."

He inwardly cringed. Way to make things worse. "Actually, what I meant was that I've really enjoyed your company today and would like to have dinner with you."

He could feel you relax. "I've enjoyed your company today too," you admitted softly. "If you're sure it's not a big deal…"

Matt nodded. "I'm sure."

"Then okay. I'd love to have dinner with you."

Matt smiled in relief. "Great. And actually now that I think about it, I do have one more stop before we get back to my apartment. I need to harvest some herbs from my plot at the community garden, but it'll only take a minute."

"Okay."

The two of you continued on as the crosswalk signal beeped and changed to walk .

"So what kind of herbs do you grow?" you asked.

"All sorts of culinary varieties," Matt replied. "Rosemary, thyme, basil, lavender, and mint."

"Oh, cool."

Matt nodded. "Unfortunately I have to outsource my herbs for the restaurant since I don't have the space to grow the amount that we would need, but this works for my own personal use."

He slowed as you reached the garden. "Welcome to the Hell's Kitchen Community Garden."

"Oh wow," you said. "I never even knew this was here."

Matt led you down the center path then to the right, following along the fence line to his plot in the back corner. "It hasn't been here too terribly long, maybe six months or so."

"And you said Claire from the farmer's market runs it?"

Matt nodded. "Yeah. She petitioned the council to turn the property into a community space and keeps track of who has which plot and everything."

You hummed. "I might have to talk to my boss about covering the community garden for the paper too. This is really neat."

"That would be great. It definitely would raise more awareness and hopefully bring more funding for upkeep." Matt stopped in front of his plot. "This is mine."

He knelt down and felt his basil plants before picking a few leaves and placing them into a small storage container he kept in the side pocket of his gym bag. "All set."

He led you back out of the garden and down the street towards his apartment building, frowning at the distant rumble of thunder. Well, there goes my plan to have dinner on the roof. "Sounds like it's about to rain."

"Yeah, it does seem like it's getting a bit cloudy," you replied. "Is your place much farther?"

Matt shook his head. "No, it's just up ahead."

"Oh, okay."

You walked the rest of the way in comfortable silence.

"Okay, here we are," Matt said as you reached his apartment building.

He led you to the elevator and pressed the button for his floor, the sound of rain beginning to fall as the elevator began to ascend. "Sounds like we made it just in time."

"Yeah, thank goodness," you replied. "I wasn't expecting it to rain so I didn't bring my umbrella with me."

You can always just stay the night… Matt shook his head. "I have one you can borrow if you need to, or I can call you a cab if it's still raining hard when you leave later."

He took his keys out of his pocket as the elevator stopped and the doors opened. "This way."

He led you down the hall to his apartment and unlocked the door, then opened it and ushered you inside as another roll of thunder rumbled overhead.

He closed the door and dropped his keys into the bowl on the side table in the entryway before folding up his cane and setting it next to the bowl. "Come on in."

He tried to ignore his sudden nervousness. It had been a long time since he'd had someone who wasn't Foggy or Karen in his personal space and hoped you wouldn't judge how barren his apartment was.

He turned on the lights then headed to his refrigerator. "Would you like something to drink?"

"Oh, um, sure," you replied. "Whatever you're having is fine."

He heard you walk over to the large window in his living area as he pulled out 2 bottles of beer along with a block of pecorino cheese and some pancetta. He had gotten an incredible deal on his apartment because of the gigantic neon sign that was situated on the roof of the neighboring building, so he was sure that was what you were looking at.

He quickly washed the fresh basil he had picked and patted it dry, then set the cheese and pancetta down on the kitchen island before popping the tops off of the bottles and walking over to you. "Here you go."

Your fingers brushed his as he handed you the bottle, a now-familiar tingle coursing through Matt's veins. "Thank you."

Matt swallowed and took a sip of his beer. "Quite the view, huh?" he said, gesturing out the window.

You huffed out a laugh. "It's very, um… picturesque."

Matt shook his head with a grin. "Funny, that's exactly how the real estate agent that sold me this place described it." He leaned in conspiratorially. "I have a feeling she might not've been telling me the truth though."

You laughed again. "Okay, it is a bit obnoxious."

Matt chuckled. "I really do keep meaning to get some blackout curtains, but since it's just me it's never really been a bother."

You hummed. "I honestly don't mind it. It gives your apartment an interesting glow."

Matt could imagine the two of you together on his sofa, the glow of the billboard the only light in the darkened room as he gently caressed your cheek, your lips inches from his own--

He mentally shook his head and gestured to his kitchen island. "Have a seat and I'll get started on dinner."

He heard you sit as he began to gather the rest of the ingredients, placing the eggs he had taken out of his refrigerator that morning into a bowl and setting it on the island before washing his hands and filling a pot about halfway with water.

He set the pot on the stove and seasoned it with some salt, then turned the burner on high to let the water boil.

He crossed back to the island and roughly chopped the fresh basil he had picked, then quickly whisked together 3 egg yolks and an entire egg before grating a generous amount of cheese into the mixture, giving it an additional stir before setting it aside.

He could feel you quietly watching him as he unwrapped the pancetta and began cutting it into small cubes, unable to help but wonder what you were thinking. You'd had the same focus the day before when he had made your crepes, but you had been recording your conversation then and had asked questions about his culinary process. This felt… different. More personal, like you were deep in thought.

He cleared his throat. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"What?" You startled slightly. "Oh, sorry, it's nothing. Just trying to figure out what we're having for dinner."

You were lying to him, but Matt couldn't figure out exactly why or what about. "Oh, I'm making spaghetti carbonara. It's traditionally made with guanciale, but my supplier was out, so pancetta will have to suffice for today."

"Your supplier… Oh, right, Frank, wasn't it?"

Matt shook his head then moved back to the stove, dropping the spaghetti into the pot of boiling water before moving the pancetta to the pan. "He doesn't do cured meats. I get those and other specialty items from Nelson's Meats."

You made a curious sound. "Nelson… as in Chef Nelson?"

Matt nodded as he stirred the pancetta around. "Foggy's family owns it. Best capicola in the tri-state area."

He finished cooking the pancetta and turned the skillet off, then scooped some of the pasta water into a measuring cup before draining the pasta and adding it to the pancetta. "Dinner's almost ready if you want to move to the table."

"Okay."

As you moved to Matt's dining table, he gave the egg mixture another stir before pouring it into the pan, adding a bit of the pasta water and using tongs to mix it all together.

Once it was a perfectly smooth consistency, he added some freshly-ground black pepper and separated it into two bowls before adding an extra sprinkle of cheese and some chopped basil on top of each serving.

He placed a fork in each bowl, then brought them over to you, setting yours in front of you and his in front of his spot across from you. "Dinner is served."

You gave a slight gasp. "Oh my goodness, Matt, this looks amazing."

"Thanks." Matt quickly grabbed two wine glasses and gave them a quick rinse before taking a bottle of Pinot Gris out of his refrigerator and pouring you each a glass.

He set your glass down before sitting across from you. "The beer we were drinking doesn't really go with carbonara so I've selected a wine pairing, if that's alright?"

You gave a hum of affirmation. "Of course it's alright."

Matt nodded. "Okay, well, enjoy."

He waited nervously as you took a bite.

You let out a pleased sound. "Oh my goodness, this is so good."

Matt grinned in relief. "Yeah?"

"Yes, absolutely. Everything you've made for me so far has been amazing."

"I'm glad." Matt took a bite of his own carbonara, the silky smoothness of the sauce pairing perfectly with the crispy pancetta and al dente noodles. "It's not quite traditional carbonara but it's very close."

"Right, you said it's traditionally made with guanciale."

Matt nodded. "And no herbs are usually added, but I like the flavor a bit of fresh basil adds to the dish."

"Mmm. Mmhmm. Yeah, I like it too."

You both continued eating and once you were done, Matt stood. "Here, I'll get this for you."

"Thanks."

"I'm afraid I don't have any dessert prepared, but would you like another glass of wine?"

"Yeah, I'd love one."

Matt grabbed the bottle of Pinot Gris and refilled your glasses. "Care to go sit on the couch?"

"Sure."

You took a sip of wine as the two of you sat together on Matt's sofa. "I really like your apartment, by the way. It suits you."

Matt shook his head with a small smile. "It's not much, but it's home."

You huffed out a laugh. "It's not what I originally expected, but to be honest, neither were you."

"Oh?" Matt turned towards you. "And what did you expect?"

"About you or your apartment?"

"Mmm, both, I suppose."

"Well, had I based my idea of what your apartment would be like on my first impression of you it would've been cold and industrial with no heart."

Matt winced. "Ouch."

"However, having gotten to know you over the past few days I would say warm and inviting with a certain charm."

A smile spread across Matt's face. "You think I'm charming?"

"Your apartment? Very. You? Maybe a tiny bit."

Matt smirked at the teasing tone in your voice. "A tiny bit? I guess I'll just have to work harder on charming you then."

You let out a light laugh. "No need, I'll send you a copy of my article before publication anyway."

"Okay, thanks." Although that's not the reason I want to charm you.

You finished your glass of wine. "And speaking of my article, I should probably get going -- I have to be at the Bulletin early tomorrow for our weekly staff meeting."

Matt nodded and stood. "Here, I'll walk you out."

"Thanks for inviting me along today," you said softly as you reached the door. "I had a really great time."

Matt nodded, unable to keep a smile off of his face. "I did too."

"I'll see you tomorrow evening?"

Matt nodded again. "Six o'clock?"

"Yeah, that sounds perfect."

"Okay, great."

The two of you stood there for a moment longer. Finally you reached out and gave Matt a brief hug. "Goodnight, Matt."

Matt hugged you back, committing what he could of you to memory. "Goodnight."

He waited as you let yourself out, an idea forming in his mind.

…He just hoped he was able to pull it off.

#lotmf writes #Cooking Up Love Masterlist #matt murdock x reader #matt murdock x fem!reader #matt murdock x female reader #matt murdock x you

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desmos-calculator · 3 months ago

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Hey, pssst!!! Which cool math books do you recommend if I am in the middle of maths degree and I like it very much?? Any theme.

Oh, yeah, sure, Though I will say, I read most of these recently so I'm heavily biased

Winning Ways for Your Mathematical Plays by John H. Conway Comes in 4 volumes, you don't need to read all of them to understand how silly yet profound these books are. Made me fall in love with game theory

Surreal Numbers by Donald Knuth Technically also from John Conway, but this is a lot more mathematical compared to the first one, imo. Still a lot of game theory though

Statistics for the Rest of Us by Albert Rutherford Seems like a read for people who don't do math, but it managed to still be such a great read for me, give it a go even if you're a statistics major

Math Girls by Hiroshi Yuki The least mathy book here. It's kinda a romance novel, but it's mostly people talking about combinatorics.

#math #mathematics #math posting #not really math

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brawltogethernow · 1 year ago

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Who is your least favorite spider-man writer and artist and your most favorite artist and writer of spider-man?

Picking favorites feels surprisingly tricky, not because I can't but because Buscema edges out Romita on art but Conway edges out DeMatteis on writing (by dint of spending thirty straight years + 20 more off and on kicking my ass and how when he falls on his ass it remains fun for me), and these names next to each other are nothing. This is a stupid combination. Really highlights how superhero comics are made by teams and a single dude cannot guarantee quality if they're not vibing with the rest of the carpool. But if I'm picking a team the seventies beats the nineties, and it's sooo disingenuous to try to narrow down one pair of names when that era was Lee/Romita bleeding into Lee/Conway/Romita into Conway/Romita/Kane, also every few issues Mooney dips in to push the Peter having pretty eyelashes agenda and then leaves. Like some of the best art in this era had Kane doing pencils and Romita inking, and I like their combined style more than Romita penciling his own work if we're talking the period where he was still a full time illustrator, but I midkey dislike Kane's pencils inked by everybody else. I looked up who was illustrating 90's Web with Conway on scripts and it turns out the art I like best is a penciler and inker team and the quality takes a dive whenever either of them takes a month off and leaves the other one in a substitute's hands. You know! Team efforts! Anyway here are some iconic combinations in no order cherry picked to cut out overlap and sneak more people in.

Yes Please:

DeMatteis/Buscema

SSM #180

There's a rhythm to this team's work I've full stop never seen anywhere else.

Lee/Romita

ASM #83

The Vibe.

Conway/Andru

ASM #145

The number of times Gerry Conway has kicked my ass. u_u With Romita Sr. and Andru the most distinctive art trait is the faces - Andru's were never as doll-perfect as Romita's, and that's kind of the best thing about them?

Now guys I hate on the other hand. Way less complex. Debated whether to answer this because I try not to go on about who in the industry sucks at their job but this is not because I couldn't.

Please No:

Spencer/Otley

ASM (2018) #30

It should have been difficult to outdo the preceding run, but writing that was simultaneously nonsensical and insulting, deflated pacing where each issue achieved about as much as a single newspaper strip, a teeth-first art style where every face sports a pained grimace and the meandering composition always scores a D-, and the finishing touch of colors that I can only describe as Averaging Out to Oatmeal...combined to create some of the worst comics I've ever seen. Spencer and I appreciate so many of the same comics and his understanding of what makes them good is so poor that it's almost like receiving a personalized hate letter.

Slott/anybody

ASM #546

He can write well which just makes it worse. I don't even know where to start enumerating his crimes. Like do I just pick one anecdote? When there are so many?

Land (the porn trace guy)

Symbiote Spider-Man: Alien Reality #2 but I could have opened anything and found a bad traced yelling face

You know. The guy. Who traces from porn. That guy. He remains gainfully employed despite being known for this. Does he have dirt on an important executive?

Campbell (yes he watermarked the one on the left two separate times AFTER signing it)

ASM (2018) #2 variant, Renew Your Vows #11 variant

If you're distant from the recent comics scene it's hard to convey how omnipresent this guy is. He's like the comic sans of artists. After having the way he draws women ripped to shreds by social media over a decade ago, Campbell doubled down and has since then drawn hundreds of pinups of identical women in invisible high heels making the exact same face. Singlehandedly a huge factor in how people visualize MJ becoming "skinny carrot top with a pointy chin and freckles". He's proud of this.

#letting the negative explanations get longer because with the good ones i want people to go see what the hype is for themselves!#not with the bad ones lol. lmao. i'll take that bullet for you.#asks answered #anonymous #spiderman #marvel #spidey

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nomaxart · 11 months ago

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Happy Birthday, Conway!

Happy 1st Birthday to Conway!

Yep! It is the 1 year anniversary of the release of version 0.01 (or whatever the versions were called back then) Let's have a talk, shall we? February 8th is when I uploaded and released it on itch. Why February 8th you may ask? Well, I had only planned January as an experimental month for myself, with the oil painting and the VN test. So I'd release it on february 1st... And then it, naturally, took longer. But I guess it works out so that we don't have the anniversary right on update release days.

The past

And yeah, what a year it's been! Thank you to all of you first of all for making this possible. Quite simply it wouldn't be possible without the support of all you generous peeps here. As it turns out, developing a game is a fuckton of work, and if I would need to pay the bills through commission work or what have you there would be no way I'd find the time and energy to work on Conway on the side. And I've mentioned it before in a few places, but for a while around May, June-ish it did look really dicey. The first half of the year I was bleeding about 500-700 bucks a month of my savings. The game didn't really pick up and a good amount of my walks were spent contemplating just when I'd have to see a sign before pulling the plug. End of June? Maybe it's worth to stretch it to July? At the lowest point, we were about a month away from pulling the plug on Conway. But right around that time, the trend in people subbing here started to pick up. While it's only in the past month or two that I've reached the point where I'm not actively bleeding money each month, the trend was the bit I needed to see that maybe people are interested after all!

The present

I've attached the itch stats of the past year. So those of you who would like to have a peek can do so. As you can see, Update 10 was a massive success at least in terms of numbers for the game. Update 9 was already the first one to break the record for downloads that the release day set, but Update 10 got picked up by the algorithms and sat in the most popular furry games for a while. Soooo, yeah, quite chuffed with that spike! We'll see what the long-term effects are, but for now I just enjoy the aesthetic of -BIG SPIKE-. And yeah, the game as a whole is just sitting in a good spot. We've had about 12k downloads in total, around 80k page visits, and a rating of 4.8/5 with 127 ratings (which btw, easy way to help, is to leave a juicy 5* rating on itch. Does wonders for the placement of the game in the different categories on the site, plus it gives me a fuzzy feeling in my tum tum.) It's also been such a joy to see that all characters end up having their share of fans judging by comments and that nobody is left in the dry. Of course, some of them have a bit of an easier time, like Samuel and Julian being the more sociable lot they are, and just the screen time they've had so far. While others like Raj or Arthur are slower burns and even they get some mentions as the favorites of some people, and that just makes me chuffed. Naturally, they're designed to cover different interests and preferences, but I'm always nervous if the characters are good, resonate with people and hope that they can be fun to be around. So any time someone mentions a character it just makes me so goddamn giddy. Some of them will be difficult to handle with grace, and I'm not perfect, so I'm sure for at least one of the main cast what I've planned will fall flat, or I mess it up in some fashion. But fuck it, I'll try. Not everything has been peaches and roses recently though, so I have to admit Updates 10 and 11 have been/are a bit of a struggle. I just messed up planning for my support writers, and it's been more or less just me handling everything for both updates 10 and 11. That's why art has been a bit sparse... Because most of my time is just taken up doing writing duty, and I'm not the fastest writer, unfortunately. Like, at this point, with the game having all the branches and 125k in total word count, the story for the characters and how they've interacted on the two initial days. It makes it a bit more difficult to actually get people on board in a timely manner. I can't just go and say, "Hey, write me a scene where this character and that character are involved, and they do that." Since a new writer knows absolutely zero about all the stuff that's been there before, all the stuff that's planned for the characters and all that jazz. So if one support writer is busy or just has writing block or whatever, it may be, my solution so far has just been going, "Well, shit." :') Not the fault of my writing buddies, of course. They've been absolutely invaluable and I can't offer nearly enough to expect to be the highest priority for them. I'm just happy they want to help out AT ALL for what I can pay them in return. I should have planned contingencies but didn't. Simple as that. So, I've made the decision to bring on another writer in Televassi, and also want to hopefully integrate Robert Baird more again going forward. With more of them willing to help out I will be able to assign things to people as they're available. Which hopefully will avoid me having to do whole updates on my own and take the pressure off of wonderful peeps like Rubric. So yeah, I learned my lesson there, but since it just takes time for people to get familiar with the Conway world and characters, it ended up with me being a bit swamped with EVERYTHING for Updates 10 and 11.

The future

Speaking of what's planned, then? Update 10 closes out day 2, and Update 11 starts after our first time skip. I don't know if you've ever looked at how slow these ships were, but if we ever want to make it to Cape Town, then we'll need those time skips. Not only that, but it also allows for characters to just develop in the meantime, and also their relationship towards the player character. While Characters like Nomax and Julian ended up having some raunchy scenes right away, it wouldn't exactly fit to have others throw themselves at you on day 2. So skipping ahead just keeps things moving, keeps things interesting because we can focus on specific parts more, and just show the development of characters at a more natural pace.

So the next sections are this first post-time skip section that subbed patrons already get a taste of in the WIP update, and then next up on the itinerary will be Morocco. Both sections I'm really stoked about! And I hope you are too. :)

Stretch goals? Patreon did away with them a while back, but we'll just make our own stretch goals, with blackjack and hookers. Just instead of blackjack and hookers, how about we talk Animations?! Hell yeah! I'm no animator, and it's not really a discipline I particularly enjoy either from the times I tried. So, since Patreon is currently about break-even, we can start thinking ahead a little, and I think the first point I want to tackle is some simple animations. Stuff like moving tails, ears, and eyes. Stuff like that.

So how about that, we're currently floating at around 1250 USD a month, and if we're crossing the 1500 USD mark, I'll be holding out my feelers to get these small animations into the game. If you like to contribute to making animations possible, consider supporting the Patreon over here: https://www.patreon.com/Nomax

Possibly animations, an exciting new section of the story, some more v2 character art, some more maritime menagerie characters. Sounds good for a year 2 plan?

I certainly hope so and hope that you all will be along for the ride, as it's been an absolute blast, and I can't thank you enough for making it possible. I just want this thing to be the best it can be for all of you. :)

#conway #visual novel #indie dev

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misslavenderlady · 1 year ago

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A Little Bit Country, A Little Bit Rock ‘N Roll - Chapter 14

Summary: Tired and stressed out from Max trying to overstep his bounds, Michael leans on David for support. So much so that they just might take their relationship to the next level.

TW: Chapter contains mentions of stress and implied sex. ***There will be separate, shorter chapter for the n.s.f.w. material~

I APOLOGIZE FOR THE LONG WAIT!! Life just gets crazy sometimes. But rest assured, the chapter I'm pairing with this is EXTRA special and worth the wait~

Song from chapter HERE

Previous Chapter *n.s.f.w. part* Next Chapter

Though David enjoyed his nights hanging upside down in the cave rafters with his brothers, he couldn't deny the fact that he had missed the comfort of sleeping in a bed. He hadn't had the privilege of doing such a thing in decades. The mattress that Grandpa Emerson had set up in the basement was firm in structure, yet perfectly plush and cozy on top.

Between the comfort of the bed and the soft fabric of the quilt wrapped over his body, David almost didn't want to wake up when the sun went down for the day. He was just too comfortable. Still, he wanted to make the most of the night. Sleep all day, party all night, yadda yadda.

With a deep yawn and a stretch of his arms, the vampire finally managed to force himself out of his cocoon of coziness. Not wanting to lose the relaxing feel TOO much, he left his boots and coat where he had tossed them aside earlier that morning. If he and the boys could truly call the Emerson house their home, then he wouldn't worry about dressing up.

David's feet padded against the wood flooring as he ascended the staircase, making his way out of the basement and back into the main level of the house.

"Hello? Anybody home?"

David didn't have to wait long to get an answer. Turning around the corner, his eyes were greeted with the sight of Michael slouching on the sofa. His eyes were downturned and a look of distress was stuck on his face.

"Michael? You okay?"

The brunet snapped out of his trance, turning to face him. He smiled softly at David, trying his best to hide the troubles he was thinking about.

"Hey, huckleberry! Sorry, didn't hear ya right away!"

David raised an eyebrow at him, curious as to how Michael didn't hear him in the silent room. He was no dummy to the stress his boyfriend was experiencing. There was no hiding pain or struggle from a vampire.

"You alright? Something on your mind?"

"Can't get anything past ya, can I?"

The blond shook his head playfully as he held out a hand for Michael to take. When their palms locked together, he hoisted the human off of the couch, pulling him into his arms.

"Anything you wanna talk about, cowboy?"

"Nah, it's nothin' you have to worry 'bout," Michael assured him, nuzzling against his shoulder and kissing his stubbled cheek. "Just don't wanna think 'bout anythin' right now."

If there was one thing David could do, it was provide some fun and excitement to help push away any bothersome thoughts. With a soft smile and a playful look in his eyes, he made an offer to the brunet boy.

“Would going on an adventure help take your mind off of things?”

Michael lifted his head off of David’s shoulder, his baby blues shining with excitement. That was all the answer that he needed.

“Thanks for driving, Michael. It’s been a very long time since I used something other than my Triumph.”

“Ain’t no thing, huckleberry. Just tell me when I gotta turn.”

David hadn’t yet revealed the secret plans he had put together for his boyfriend. While Michael had gotten showered and dressed upstairs, David had collected various supplies from the special room in the basement and packed them up in the bed of the truck that was parked on the dirt driveway. Michael explained that he and his grandfather used it for heavy labor tasks, but it would work just fine for the special surprise that awaited them.

The vampire hadn’t been lying when he said he hadn’t driven in a long time. What Michael didn’t have to know was that the last time he had driven a car it had been with a convertible from a good 15 years before Michael was born. He ended up crashing some drained human's car after he took it for a spin with the boys. Max was so furious about what happened that David hadn't touched a steering wheel since that night. His motorcycle would do just fine.

"So ya can't give me any hints 'bout where we're goin?" Michael said playfully.

"Sorry, but you're just gonna have to wait," David teased. "Don't worry, though. You're gonna really like this."

That was all that Michael needed to hear to trust his word. He tapped his fingers along the scuffed-up steering wheel, matching the beat of the country song on the radio as he turned in the direction that David pointed.

Michael recognized the route as something similar to what he and the boys took to take their bikes to the cave. He knew the way there by heart after going there so many times, yet David still guided him as if it were his first drive. By the time they were wrapping up the trip, David gave a final direction for where he should go.

Only this time, they made a different turn than usual. One that led Michael's truck off the dirt road and down into a steep dip in the sand. He raised an eyebrow at David, confused as to where they were going.

"Just keep heading that way. Follow the path towards the left of those cliffs. I promise we're just about there."

Trusting in his sense of direction, Michael drove the truck towards the area he was instructed to go to. He was still quite curious about what he was going to see up until he rounded around the edge of the passage. When he did, his mouth fell slightly open.

The space looked somewhat like a private beach. It was near the water like the hideout at the bluff was, only it had more of a sandy stretch of land that led into a hidden, rocky structure. The area was surrounded by trees and flora, adding beautiful pops of green to the space that could easily be seen under the glow of the full moon in the sky.

"Woah Nelly! What's this place?" Michael asked, cutting the engine once the truck was in park.

"Ya like it?" David smirked, climbing out of the vehicle and motioning for Michael to do the same. "Welcome to Foxtail Grotto, Michael. One of the hidden gems of Santa Carla."

Michael smiled widely as he took in the surrounding area. Even with the darkness of the night sky, he could still see how beautiful it was. All he could do was stare in awe at it while David snuck to the back of the truck to pull out all the goodies he had packed for such a trip.

"I had no idea this was here! Y'all sure do know your way 'round the place."

"You better believe it, baby," David agreed. "Which is why it's the perfect spot for a night of camping."

The reveal of such a surprise certainly perked the brunet up. He whipped his head around to see David holding a rolled-up comforter under one arm and a large duffle bag tightly stuffed under the other. Michael's toothy grin at the sight was enough to outshine all of the stars out in the sky.

"How'd ya know I liked to camp?"

"Lucky guess. Shall we?"

The two of them worked together to unpack everything. David stacked up piles of the pillows and blankets he had swiped from the basement while Michael got all of the snacks and drinks that had been packed in plastic bags. To tie the look of the campsite together, they scavenged the area for items that would be ideal for a small campfire. Rocks, pine cones, and dry sticks of various sizes were collected, allowing the two boys everything they needed to get a fire going.

"Glad ya had this with ya," Michael commented as he flicked open David's lighter to ignite one of the pine cones for kindling. "But even if ya didn't I could always teach ya how to do this the ol' fashioned way!"

"You mean with flint and steel? That's a pretty impressive skill to have."

"Ya think these hands are just for playin' guitar and cleanin' barns? You'd be surprised with what I can do with them!"

David's eyes were half-lidded and his lips curled up into a sly smile at the sound of that. He did not doubt that Michael could do quite a few fun tricks with his hands.

Once the fire was crackling and glowing nice and bright, Michael scooted away, trying to get a good look at it. He released a sigh of relief, happy to see everything going how he wanted it to. David was more than pleased to see him relax for the first time that night. Not wanting Michael to worry about anything else, he pulled him into his grasp, slipping his arms around the human's waist and nuzzling his scruffy cheek into the crook of his neck.

"Perfect."

The night was exactly what David wanted it to be like. He didn't have to worry about Max being a pest, he could unwind for a stress-free night, and most importantly, Michael was happy.

Between moments of adding extra sticks to the fire, the two of them would enjoy the sensation of the plush quilt blankets wrapped around their shoulders. They munched on trail mix and marshmallows while whispering sweet nothings to one another. It was pure tranquility.

"I didn't realize how much I needed this," Michael admitted with a sigh. "Haven't gotten to go on a campin' trip in a good long while. I loved doin' this back home."

David nodded, kissing along the trail of freckles on part of Michael's shoulder peeking out of his shirt. He could feel Michael tremble slightly from his giggling as he was tickled in certain spots.

"You deserve something much nicer than this for a vacation, Michael. If I had it my way, you wouldn't have to worry about anything ever again."

Michael let out a sigh before wiggling slightly out of David's hold. When the blond playfully pouted at being further away, Michael shook his head and smiled as he reached out to caress his cheek with calloused fingers.

"Does that mean you'd help out with things like shovelin' cow shit and pullin' weeds outta the yard?" he teased.

David snickered and took hold of the hand touching his face, kissing the palm of Michael's hand. Every single kiss he got made the human's heart flutter in delight.

"That depends. Would it make you happy?"

"I reckon."

"Then consider me your number one farm hand."

David couldn't possibly imagine himself getting his special boots and leather gloves dirty from doing chores on the Emerson farm, but he'd be willing to swipe a few spare sets from the local hardware store if it meant being a help to Michael.

To think the big bad vampire gang leader was imagining life on the farm with a cute human working beside him. It was still so bewildering to him, yet he didn't question his judgment for even a moment. He could take care of the Emersons and their home.

"Speaking of getting busy with hands," David said, releasing Michael from his hold. "I have another treat for you."

"Oh? Not done spoilin' me?" Michael teased.

"Not by a long shot," David assured him, pulling one of the blankets away from their makeshift nest to reveal the final surprise of the night. An old, dented guitar case decorated from top to bottom with band name stickers and carvings made from a pocket knife.

Michael's eyes widened with anticipation. If he had known David was going to bring his guitar, he would have brought his own too for another jam session. He expected to see the slick, black Stratocaster but was instead greeted by the sight of an acoustic guitar. Though it was the same color as the electric instrument, it was easy to see that David hadn't used this guitar nearly as much. It was far too fresh and untouched.

"I'll admit it, Michael, I've been bitten by the country music bug. I thought if I was going to play you a song, I'd do it right."

David pulled the guitar out of its case, the light of the campfire being reflected in the glossy paint job. Michael watched in awe as the blond tuned the instrument in his lap, giving the strings a soft strum.

"Just need one thing before I get started."

Before Michael could even open his mouth to ask what it was, David leaned forward and plucked the human's signature hat off of his head. He grinned slyly as he placed it on top of his head, adjusting it to his liking.

"Hey! You little thief!" Michael laughed.

"Sorry, but it's absolutely crucial if I'm gonna do this right," David insisted, still looking proud of himself for getting the hat on.

Though he was in a playful mood, David felt somewhat breathless from the way his nerves grew more and more by the second. He’d played songs for Michael before, but it was always from the rock genre. He didn’t have the authentic drawl or the southern experiences that Michael did that made his singing so genuine.

Even still, Michael waited with bated breath for David to play. It acted as a silent reminder that David had nothing to be nervous about. It was just the two of them. He kept that in mind as he began to play.

“There's a lot of ways of saying

What I want to say to you

There's songs and poems and promises

And dreams that might come true

But I won't talk of starry skies

Or moonlight on the ground

I'll come right out and tell you

I'd just love to lay you down”

Michael’s expression shifted as David sang for him. Any mischievousness was slowly taken over by astonishment. His eyes softened while he watched his beloved boyfriend play the song.

“Lay you down and softly whisper pretty love words in your ear

Lay you down and tell you all the things a man loves to hear

I'll let you know how much it means just having you around

Oh darling how I'd love to lay you down”

The music came a bit easier now. David’s confidence was building up again, and he let his voice sing out a bit louder now. Though he didn’t have the same southern accent that Michael did, the raspiness of his tone added to the song.

“When a whole lot of Decembers

Are showing in your face

Your auburn hair has faded

And silver takes its place

You'll be just as lovely

And I'll still be around

And if I can I know that

I'd still love to lay you down”

Even with the hot, crackling fire beside them, Michael and David had enough heat building between them with just the song. With every line that was serenaded to him, Michael felt his passion for David grow stronger.

“Lay you down and softly whisper pretty love words in your ear

Lay you down and tell you all the things a man loves to hear

I'll let you know how much it means just having you around

Oh darling how I love to lay you down”

Though David could have continued to play more of the song, his makeshift concert was cut short. The reason for it being that Michael had leaned in to push the guitar aside, wrap his arms around David’s shoulders, and pull him in for a deep kiss.

He let out a surprised grunt, his voice muffled by Michael's lips on his own. Even so, he felt himself melt into the sensation, hands wrapping around Michael's body and pulling him more onto his lap. One hand was slipping into Michael's curls while the other was traveling south a bit more. Getting bolder.

God, Michael really did make him feel alive.

"David," he sighed out, breathless and lightheaded with lust.

"Michael."

"How about instead of singing about that kinda stuff-" Michael started, eyes hazy as he traveled his finger across David's chest. "you show me instead."

Never in his life, both living and undead, did David ever want something so bad. This was happening, and he'd never been happier. That feeling only grew stronger as he pulled Michael back in for a kiss.

All the while, the fire crackled as the light dimmed. Forgotten as the lovers focused on only each other.

Tag List: @silvermaplealder @michael-after-hours @legal-lost-boy @britany1997 @ria-coolgirl @crustyraccoon @ghoulgeousimmaculate @kurt-nightcrawler @auntvamp @sunshine-wylan @thelostsouls1987 @crustyboypix @thornthehellhound @solobagginses @6lostgirl6 @american-idiot-jpg @bloodywickedvamp @anxiouslittleweirdkid @juss-soupp @bloodsuckingfiends @f4iryfxies @bezinful @oceansrose2002 @piratesangel @vampirefilmlover @charlizekkelly @blueberrypancakesworld @queerlittlem0nster

#the lost boys #tlb #Spotify #my fic #ao3 fic #au fic #michael x david #michael emerson #david the lost boys

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kitausuret · 5 months ago

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well now I'm on a roll so I'm gonna keep going lol

re: my last post I guess

It is actually pretty fucked up how so many WOC in Spidey comics get just like! Fucked over! Especially when it comes to being love interests! Which isn't like an outlier because love interests are very common in Spider-Man comics -- it comes with the territory of "the best stories in Spidey could be a soap opera plot".

The most egregious example is obviously Sha Shan. Yes, she is a product of her time but let's be real, the White Savior stuff is just cringeworthingly bad. Do I get why she and Flash and their relationship are written the way they are? Do I recognize that in some ways Flash was just trying to repay her for her having saved his life in Vietnam? Yes to both, but there's really no excuse for the way their relationship just imploded in the 80s. Why couldn't they just have a normal breakup. Marvel, please. And of course she's been mostly shelved since then.

Next we have Glory Grant. Does she ever become Peter's love interest? No, but around the time of Inferno she does get into a pretty serious relationship with Eduardo Lobo. It's complicated (he's a mutant/werewolf, also organized crime shenanigans) but she loves him! And she's a huge romantic! She wants to be swept off her feet! Eduardo is dashing and adores her and guess what happens. She accidentally kills him while meaning to shoot Spider-Man.

And then there's her relationship with Randy -- I never understood why they got together tbh. To me it always felt like Mackie just stuck them together because he wanted to do something with Randy post-divorce without actually considering either of their personalities or compatibility. But at least she had a normal relationship I guess.

And after that, nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. How do I know? Because I read every single one of her appearances.

MOVING ON.

We get to Miss Arrow, who was actually Ero, an aspect of The Other. (Don't worry about it.) Anyways, while she was not actually a Human Being, she did take on the appearance of a woman of color, so when it turns out she's been manipulating Flash the whole time she was pursuing him and she's going to forcibly impregnate him? (yeah, really, that was the plot.) Like, oh, okay. I guess here we are. But we can't get any worse, right?

WRONG.

Enter the impeccable and stunning and beautiful and gorgeous and perfect Lily Hollister. (I am very normal about her.) She's introduced as Harry Osborn's latest squeeze. While the narrative initially tries to paint Harry as some kind of playboy (lol. lmao, even) it's clear he's REALLY into her. Or at least he thinks he is. We can dissect the comphet another day. But, lo and behold, it turns out a good chunk of her motivation for sticking around was because she's secretly Malice! AKA a supervillain!

That's the worst it got though, right? WRONG.

Then there was the whole subplot where it's revealed Lily slept with Norman Osborn, she's pregnant with probably-Norman's-child, blah blah blah I don't wanna talk about American Son. There's a bit of a course correction in Origin of the Species but let's not pretend she didn't get royally fucked over by the narrative. And she STILL hasn't recovered. (The whitewashing is terrible in many comics.)

Since then I honestly can't think of any WOC love interests in Spidey that have had any kind of prominence. Even on the symbiote side, we have (checks notes) Manuela Calderon, who hasn't appeared since Conway's Carnage series, even though Vicki Montesi has been around. Flash's latest paramour is Aria, who I love, but she doesn't even have a last name! We don't know anything about her! Yes I want to write half a dozen fics about her anyways but LET'S GET SOME CHARACTERIZATION!!!!!!

So many of these wonderful gals we don't get to know things about them - what are their life goals; their hobbies; their dreams and desires.

Of these, Glory is the best developed, but she's also been around since the 70s. I would argue that the fact that she's not a love interest most of the time has meant she occasionally gets development. But we should be able to have both! Women like Betty, Liz, obviously Mary Jane and Felicia, all get a chance in the spotlight. No, it's not consistent, and yes their stories have issues as well, but at least they have stories. We get to see them in love and heartbreak, often in great detail!

The Spidey office can and should do better by its ladies of all colors -- and not just relegate them to "sacrifice" or "surprise supervillain"!

#vent #i'm just sooooooooo grrrrrrrr #i'm normal i swear

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slaymybreathaway · 2 years ago

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Mixtape (Charlie Conway x reader)

Warnings: none

Word Count: 844

Masterlist

I love music, I always have and always will. I'm the type of chick to have multiple songs circling around my head a day. In fact, one of my worst subconscious habits is that I always start singing these songs under my breath. No matter how hard I try, I can't stop.

One of today's songs was 'Killing me softly with his sing song' by the Fugees. I sang it quietly during a History test my last class of the day.

When the bell rang, I got on my bike and cycled straight home. I was going on a date with my boyfriend Charlie at 5.

It was our anniversary and all he told me was to wear something nice and to meet him at his apartment.

♡

When I knocked on the apartment door, it was Casey who answered.

"Y/n, come in honey," she beckons me in and gives me a hug. I love Casey Conway like a second mother.

"Do you want anything to eat?" she asked as she walked into the kitchen.

I followed her in, "No thanks, I should probably just wait for Charlie."

"I think he's in his room if you want to go in to him," she started, as I walked away she started talking again "By the way, how's he treating you, love?"

I smiled and turned around "Like a princess."

Casey nodded her head and I walked down the hall to Charlie's room. The door was half open so I didn't bother to knock.

Charlie wasn't there but his room was super messy. I stepped through the piles of clothes on the floor to his desk because he left the lamp on. I switched it off but as I did, something on the desk caught my eye.

It was a blue note book labelled "Y/n <3". My conscience was telling me that I shouldn't open it but come on, it LITERALLY has my name written all over it.

When I flipped open the cover it had Day 1: Friday 31st of May 1996 and a list of songs. I was super confused as I flipped through the notebook because each page had a similar layout, but different songs and consecutive days.

It wasn't till the page with today's date that it finally clicked. Charlie has been taking notes of my 'songs of the day' for the past couple weeks.

My stomach was infested with butterflies at the thought that he pays attention to my constant mind radio, let alone takes notes on it.

I was so caught up in this realisation that I didn't even noticed Charlie coming into his bedroom.

"Oh no, you found it," Charlie put his head in his hands.

He looked really cute, I rarely get to see him out of his jersey. He was wearing (insert description of what he wore in dinner scene with varsity in D3)

"Yeah I found it and I have to say, you'd make a good stalker love," I said and walked over to him. I kissed him on the cheek and when I looked at him again, he looked really confused.

"So you're not curious as to why I've been making notes of the songs you sing?" he asked.

I laughed a little before replying "I am extremely curious. I just figured that you would eventually explain yourself so I didn't waste my breath asking," I smiled at him.

Charlie looked down and shook his head "Why are you always right?".

♡

Charlie brought me to a really nice restaurant and we ordered our food.

"Still curious about the notebook?" He asked.

I nodded my head so vigorously that I almost got whiplash. He laughed and pulled something from his pocket. It was a wrapped rectangle shape.

When I opened it, I discovered that it was a tape with the title "mixtape for my love <3"

"Aw Charlie, you have no idea how much this means to me. I honestly don't deserve you at all," I looked up from the present and Charlie was looking at me with a big sappy grin on his face.

"That's where you got it completely backwards, love," he said reached for my hand across the table.

"Oh I almost forgot, here's your present," I gave him the gift bag I had on the chair beside me.

"Oh my god, y/n. I love it," he said as he took out the jacked I got made for him.

It was in the Varsity style beacause I know he doesn't like the JV ones the school has. It is green and has the the ducks symbol on the back with 'Conway' at the top. It has the ducks colours on the collar and cuffs.

He tried the jacket on and it fit perfectly.

"Y/n, I love you more than you could ever know," He said with a dazzling look in his eyes.

I looked up at him, said it back and smiled. I can't believe I'm the girl who pulled Charlie Conway.

#charlie conway x reader #charlie conway #charlie mighty ducks #the mighty ducks #mighty ducks #ice hockey #hockey #joshua jackson x reader #joshua jackson #emilio estevez #Spotify

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wanderingmind867 · 5 months ago

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I think 1985 was the year when comics completely almost lose themselves to me. Based on reading marvel (and reading about DC) I know that this date has to be the date comics lose interest to me. I'll explain: comics from the 60s to the mid 70s seem okay. 1960 to 1974 or 1975 are the peak years, in my opinion. But then things start to go downhill in the late 70s. Frank Miller ruins Daredevil with his edginess, Chris Claremont kills Jean Grey and messes with the X-Men, The Hulk loses his love interest in Jarella, Denny O'Neill ruins Batman by making him darker again, Gerry Conway kills off Gwen Stacy (for no good reason!) etc. I know the Gerry Conway one was a bit earlier than the mid to late 70s, but it was still a bad decision.

Anyways, things only get worse from here (at least for my sensibilities). If i thought the mid to late 70s were bad, the 80s become a bit of a train wreck. Jim Starlin kills Captain Mar-Vell and Jason Todd, The Hulk has the Professor Hulk saga (something I don't really like), John Byrne messes with the Fantastic Four and Superman, Walt Simonson makes Thor ditch Don Blake (which I hate). Really, Jim Shooter messes with Marvel and sadly oversees a lot of bad stuff (I don't know if that's all his fault, but I get a negative impression of him as editor).

But I have time for one last paragraph, so let's talk more about 80s DC. Alan Moore gets brought in, and he brings his horrible pessimism and darkness over to DC. As someone who's already prone to sadness, I don't need depression in my fiction. But even besides Alan Moore, DC had issues. Like the Crisis on Infinite Earths, which was meant to uncomplicate things (but may have complicated things more). Then DC gets Frank Miller, Jim Starlin and John Byrne, and it all goes downhill. I'm really just repeating slander against certain people, but I guess it's just that I'm always opinionated about these sorts of things.

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dr-spencer-reids-queen · 1 year ago

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The Angel Maker: Final Part

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Female!Reader

Word Count: ~2.3k

Summary: You still feel guilty for what happened to you and Hotch even though you shouldn't. If you had seen that bomb before getting blasted back, then maybe you wouldn't have so many problems with your "abilities".

Warnings: canon violence, canon language, canon talk of death, methods of kill

Author’s Note: I do not own anything from Criminal Minds. All credit goes to their respective owners. If there are any warnings that exceed the normal death/kills from the show, I will list them. If you’ve seen the show, then it’s the same level of angst unless otherwise stated

Hotch and Emily headed over there while the rest of the team stayed back to work on the case. It turns out that the unsub wasn't the one who committed the crime, but Shara, the woman you and Rossi talked to. She figured if this killing spree could work for the unsub, then it could work for her.

It's already late, so you'll have to pick this up in the morning. The comment Emily made is stuck in your head for some reason. Why you're upset at this, you're not sure. You're sitting in the conference room and staring at Emily who is outside getting some coffee in the break room. You have a small pout on your face, and Spencer notices this when he enters the conference room.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," you say and look away.

"Is it your head? Are you okay?"

"Spencer, I'm okay. I took my pain meds before we left the hotel, so I'm good."

The rest of the team filters into the conference room while JJ is on the phone with Pen. Penelope is working her magic in trying to find out who this unsub could be. According to her, four hundred and sixty-three children were born in the lower Canaan area between 2006 and 2008, so you'll have to narrow the list a bit more to get accurate results.

One of the letters Spencer decoded says, "I knew even before they told me that the future had taken root", which can only mean that it was the date of conception. The date of that letter was January 7th, 2007, so Pen had to look between August to September of the same year. With that, she came up with nine names, which is a lot more manageable.

After she sent over the names, your team got to work eliminating them. The Sheriff would know more about these names than you would, so you bring him in to try and help.

"Hannah Dreyfus was in an auto accident. She could barely walk. Shannon Conway moved away when the plant closed a year ago," the sheriff goes down the list.

"Any other names you recognize?"

"No, I'm sorry." The sheriff does a double-take and grabs the paper when he recognizes another name. "Well, this one here sounds familiar but I can't really place it. Chloe Kelcher."

"Chloe Kelcher. That is familiar," Spencer says and grabs the file for Cortland. "She was on the jury."

"That makes sense. She would have been exposed to the case evidence and seen firsthand what he did to his victims. That's when she fell in love with him, sitting across the courtroom every day."

"Well, it's one thing to have a relationship with a killer, and it's another to become one," the sheriff scoffs.

"There might have been an incident that prompted the transformation," Spencer says and looks into Chloe's file. "There's a death certificate here. Microvesicular steatosis. Her baby died at the hospital."

It looks like Chloe is your unsub, so your entire team heads over to her house, but like you assumed, she isn't home. The judge signed the warrant very quickly, so you're allowed to enter her house without getting into trouble. After a thorough search, everyone gathers in the kitchen.

"All right. We all know what the end game is. She's looking for her final victim. She may have already chosen one. Let's tear this place apart and look for anything that might tell us who she's targeted," Hotch says.

You, Hotch, and Derek head toward the bedroom and come across a child's nursery with glow-in-the-dark stars stuck to the ceiling.

"Daddy's watching," you say and point to the stars.

"It must have devastated her to think that she could hold on to Ryan by having his child and then lose the baby. Completing his murders became the only way she could hold on to him."

Something isn't right. The second you entered the house, something felt off about the atmosphere. You pause and look around the room until you see it.

Cortland Ryan is sitting on top of some kind of chest located underneath the window.

"What is it?" Derek asks after he sees the look on your face.

Without saying a word, you grasp the end of the chest. As soon as you open it, Cortland mists away. Lying there inside is Cortland's rotting body.

"That's not the only way she's holding onto him," you gag.

"I assume that's who I think it is," Spencer says when he walks into the bedroom. "I have an appointment book here. There are meetings with Delilah Grennan and Maxine Chandler on the day of each murder."

"Sheriff, have you found her tools or the gun?" Hotch asks.

"Nothing yet."

"She has something for this morning: Faye Landreaux."

"She's a CPA," the sheriff sighs. "She does my taxes. She works out of her home."

"Let's go."

Your entire team heads over to Faye's house. As soon as you get there, you can feel how scared she is and also another energy: the unsub.

"My team's ready. Let's get in there," the Sheriff says eagerly.

"Sheriff, we didn't recover a gun at Chloe's house. We have to assume she's armed."

"So are we."

"If you storm in now, she'll shoot, and she'll start with Faye. We need to be smart about this," you say.

"What do we do?" Derek asks.

"I think you should look for an open window," Hotch takes charge. "Sheriff, I need you to bring all your vehicles around to the front, facing forward with lights off, and I need a megaphone."

The sheriff does what he's told, and Derek creeps around the house to try and find an open window to get inside. Chances are, she's locked all the doors so no one can get inside so Derek's only shot it getting through a window without alerting her.

"Hotch, you won't be able to get through to her," you say.

"No, but maybe you can," he says and hands the megaphone to you.

"Sir, the profile is clear. We won't be able to talk her down."

"No, but we can occupy her. If we're right about the MO, she's left a window open somewhere. Morgan will find a way in. We just need to buy him some time. Hit the lights," Hotch says to the sheriff.

Seconds later, lights flood the front of the house, no doubt letting Chloe know that you're here. You take a deep breath and clear your head.

"Chloe, this is the FBI. We know you're in there, and we know what you're trying to do. I know you think that finishing what Cortland started will bring you closer to him, but first, you should know who he really was. I know you thought you were special, but the truth is, he wrote the same things he wrote to you to other women. I've seen the letters." Hotch hands you copies of the letters for you to read to her. "Dozens read the same lines: 'Without the flesh, there is only the soul. You don't need to touch me to feel the love I have for you.' Does that sound familiar? Cortland wasn't who you thought he was. He was a narcissist, Chloe. He wasn't capable of loving anyone but himself.

"To Carla Kettinger, he wrote, 'Ever since your visit, I am crazed with thoughts of you. Already, you have entered my dreams. Each time you appear to me, I am embraced by a feeling of trust and belief as if I've known you all my life. It's clear to me now that you are my fate. We are destined to be together, and when I am gone, that will not change. I will live on in you. In death, our union will be eternal. All appeals are lost. Possessions matter little to a condemned man, but I cannot leave this world without seeing your face one last time.'

"It isn't your fault that he made you feel these things, Chloe. It isn't your fault your baby died."

That gives Derek enough time to get Faye out of the house because as soon as you're done speaking, you see Derek usher Faye to safety. Second later, you hear Chloe yell out in anger.

"It's over, Chloe. We have Faye. You have nowhere to go," you say into the megaphone.

Still, she doesn't respond.

"I think we got some tear gas. I'm assuming it's still good," the sheriff says.

"We're not gonna need it. She doesn't have any place to go."

"Well, maybe she'll do us all a favor and put herself down."

"She's not gonna do that, either. She's not done."

Just then, Chloe comes out of the house with the gun in her hand. All officers and agents draw their guns and point them at her, and she stops at the bottom step of the porch.

"Chloe, drop the gun!" Hotch orders, and repeats himself when she doesn't listen.

"I'm coming to you, baby," she grins at the sky.

She raises her gun to shoot knowing that everyone will shoot to stop her. She goes down in two shots, and you back away in pain from the gunshot. Rossi and Emily rush over to her, but she is already dead. Emily notices blood seeing from her jacket, and she lifts it to see the markings of the final constellation.

If we took her victim from her, then she became the last one.

With the case solved, your team gets ready to head to the airport. Hotch is in the police station finishing up, so everyone is waiting by the car for him.

"Hey, are you okay?" Spencer asks.

"Yeah, just tired," you sigh.

"Did anyone get directions back to the airstrip?" JJ asks when Hotch comes out with his bag in hand.

"This town's only got one road. We'll find it," Derek shrugs.

"Yeah, Morgan doesn't like to follow directions. You didn't know about that?" Emily laughs.

"Yeah, he likes to vibe it," Spencer smirks.

"Okay, smart ass. You drive," Derek says and tosses Spencer the keys.

He unlocks the car, and you're the first one in. The car has a row of seats behind the back seat, so that's the one you take. Spencer sees how much pain you're in, and he looks down at the keys in his hands. He likes driving every once in a while, but you clearly need him.

"Not this time," he says and hands the keys to Emily who takes them with a smile.

He sets his bag in the back before climbing in next to you. After putting both your seatbelts on, you shift and rest your head on his chest. He wraps an arm around you and kisses the top of your head.

You're always able to fall asleep a lot better when it's in his arms.

"The past is our definition. We may strive, with good reason, to escape it, or to escape what is bad in it, but we will escape it only by adding something better to it." - Wendell Berry

Follow my library blog @aqueenslibrary where I reblog all my stories, so you can put notifications on there without the extra stuff :)

#spencer reid #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid fiction #spencer reid fan fiction #spencer reid fan fic #spencer reid fanfic #spencer reid fanfiction #spencer reid angst #spencer reid fluff #criminal minds #criminal minds fan fic #criminal minds fan fiction #criminal minds fanfic #criminal minds fluff #criminal minds fic #criminal minds angst #criminal minds series rewrite #series rewrite #cm season 4

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liminalwings · 1 year ago

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DMBR - Seeking Dragons: Connecting to Dragon Energy and Magick

Author: Virginia Chandler

Book Link

"The most honest, down-to-earth Dragon Magic book on the market. Great for those just starting a dragon path, and a breath of fresh air for those who have already been practicing for several years. This book draws from draconic lore around the world to create a personal system working with dragon archetypes, so does not fall into the trap of other works that presents Unverified Personal Gnosis as some sort of Universal Truth, nor does she make bold claims of a false ‘historic authenticity’ like certain others; the author states clearly that your path will likely not end up looking like her own path presented here as you develop your practice.

This book is very much meant as a thoughtful springboard and introduction to working with dragons and becoming familiar with their energies. Out of the handful of dragon magic books currently on the market, this is the first one I would be comfortable recommending to beginners, as no matter your view on the nature of draconic existence, much of what is presented in here can be applied just as well. "

From the author of Year of the Magickal Dragon, which I've reviewed previously and gave lukewarm approval to (compared to other dragon magic books which tend to run mostly tepid). From the start, Chandler makes it very clear that she is offering a system of working that is, one, based on her own developed path rather than trying to claim a false historic legitimacy or universal truth, and two, is very clearly once again utilizing draconic archetypes. I'm not an archetypal kind of witch but it can definitely have its place and use, and a lot of practice suggestions in this book can be applied to non-archetypal beings as well. She also says plainly that a lot of the practices she presents are just how she does things and that your path, as you use her examples as a springboard, may end up looking very different as you practice; there is no 'this is how it absolutely must be'. As such it goes without saying that with how much personal leeway there is given and the fact that you're working with archetypes, there is little-to-no 'dragons are like this' or other similar absolute statements about the nature of dragons; dragons, in this system, are how you as the practitioner experience them. There is also no talk about Atlantis, multiple dimensions, Draconic Elemental Rulers/Universal Clan Leaders, or equating magic with quantum mechanics, thank gods. She does encourage readers to engage in some level of critical thinking and explore alternate ideas, though I do feel some of her alternate readings of dragon myths can be a slight stretch at times.

It should also be mentioned that her practice is influenced by Neo-Paganism, which is to say Wiccan-flavored, at least a little bit. The meditations included are very similar to the ones she gave in her previous book, and are probably the most rigid part of her work (personally not a fan, but that's okay). Also included are incense and oil recipes for various rituals, and she does make a point of basic health and safety practices (especially fire safety). There is both a 'recommended reading' AND citations, mostly for the lore she discusses with each archetype, but it's still nice to see. Warning though: two of her three recommendations for rune information (pertinent to her path as also taking Scandinavian influence) are by Edred Thorsson/Steven Flowers (of AFA affiliation).

If I had to be honest, a lot of this felt like if someone had managed to turn Tumblr’s collective dragon magic posts into a full-fledged book… with far more UPG than I've been comfortable sharing so far. I almost wish this had been available before Conway's works, and might even deign to make this my first 'recommended book' for those new to working with dragons, instead of my usual stance of "they're all crap." Do I think it's perfect? Well, no. But it's the closest Llewellyn has gotten so far.

#dmbr #sal writes things #dragon magic #dragon witch #dragon work #Dragon Magic Book Reviews

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nyhti · 1 year ago

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I recently had an epiphany about the mannequins in Prey. So. For the longest time I wondered where the hell did the idea for Hugo's mannequin girlfriend come from? Like what on earth made Moench put something like that in the story? How do you come up with such a random and out there headcanon like that? I think I know now.

So let's look at the time line: Batman #356 ”The Double Life of Hugo Strange” (1983) Gerry Conway writes a story wherein Hugo creates perfectly lifelike robots of Alfred and Dick and uses them to fuck with Bruce's head. Batman annual #10 ”Down to Bone” (1986) Doug Moench writes a story wherein Hugo, among other things, uses his robots to fight Bruce and Jason. He has also now made a robot version of himself. Last Pre-Crisis Hugo story. Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #11-15 (1990-1991) Doug Moench writes a story wherein Hugo, among other things, uses mannequins of Thomas and Martha Wayne to fuck with Bruce's head. First Post-Crisis appearance of Hugo and also an edgy reimagining

Are we noticing a pattern? It's honestly a little embarrassing how long it took me to realize that Hugo fucking with Bruce with the mannequins in Prey is all copy pasted from Double Life of Hugo Strange. Moench just re-used Conway's idea, but made it fit the Post-Crisis universe better by having the robots be mannequins with tape recorders inside, because everything had to be sooooooo realistic back then. So if the mannequins of Martha and Thomas are just the robots of Dick and Alfred, who is the mannequin girlfriend? Here's my best guess:

So, Moench used the robots himself in Down to Bone, even created a new robot type – a Hugo robot. Now, we don't see Hugo having a robot girlfriend in Down to Bone, but would you really find it out of the realm of possibility that the thought might have crossed Moench's mind while writing? I mean, look at Hugo around this time. He used to have a good amount of people around him during the 70s and earlier. He had thugs like any self-respecting supervillain, he had his monster men, he once formed a partnership with a racketeer and most importantly he had Magda in Englehart's run. Then suddenly in the 80s he has nothing but robots. Incredibly lifelike robots that talk to him and laugh at his jokes. Doesn't that sound lonely? Now, I will eventually write a post about all my headcanons for what happened to Hugo around this time, because I think about this every day, but to stick to the topic at hand – would you really find it out of the realm of possibility that Moench looked at this profoundly lonely man who could build perfectly lifelike robots and thought, why doesn't he make himself a robot girlfriend? Of course the time wasn't quite ripe yet for a story like that during Pre-Crisis, but during the edgy grimdark 90s? Oh boy, was it time! All he had to do was to turn her from a robot into a mannequin and there we go. Anyway, what do you guys think? I cannot peer inside Moench's mind, of course, but I think my theory is possible.

Also, this is now off topic, but I wanted to talk a little more about Down to Bone and Prey. I used to think these stories, these takes on Hugo, could not be further apart despite being written by the same man, but after reading Down to Bone again for this post and having read Prey again a few months ago, I no longer think so. You can see so much of Prey in Down to Bone and so much Down to Bone in Prey. I already talked about the mannequins, but another thing that I just now noticed was the use of media. As we know, Hugo affectedly used media to fuck with Bruce and to smear Batman's name and you know what he threatened to do in Down to Bone?

Yeah! I find it interesting that Moench had this idea of Hugo using media against Batman way back here, but maybe the story just didn't have enough room for it given that it was only one issue long and most of the time was already spent on Bruce dealing with having lost all his money, home, Jason and Alfred. I'm glad that the smear campaign Hugo launched in Prey was given enough time. Another thing I wanted to talk about was Moench's bad takes on Hugo in Down to Bone. Hugo during Golden Age was about as generic a villain as you can get. Evil genius only after money and power yadda yadda. Listen. I'm not hating on it. It's a classic, but what I'm trying to say is that when Englehart had the divine revelation of giving this character an actual personality and then when Conway topped it all off by giving him an unique goal, I personally considered that an improvement. Moench did not apparently. In Down to Bone Hugo is right back to being a very generic villain. Englehart spent so long showing how much Hugo loved and respected Bruce. How he was willing to ”die” to protect his secret. It was interesting, it was heartwarming and it was fucked up. We see none of this in Down to Bone. The relationship between Hugo and Bruce couldn't be less interesting. There's literally nothing there. No love, no loyalty. Hugo straight up willingly tells Bullock Batman's real identity (which Bullock doesn't believe, of course.) Like what happened? And then the unique new goal Conway gave him? How he got it in his head he wants to be the Batman now? Yeah, you can kiss goodbye to that one too. Nowhere in Down to Bone does Hugo say he wants to become Batman. He only puts on the outfit to frame him. His only goal in Down to Bone was to get his revenge on Bruce. Boring. And to top it all off, just like in Prey, Moench decided to ignore Hugo's well established physical abilities. He doesn't even attempt to fight Batman, but rather runs away like a coward. And don't even get me started on Moench's worst crime of all which was to try to retcon my favorite Hugo story (The Double Life of Hugo Strange) by saying that the Hugo Bruce fought was actually a robot the whole time. I've been writing this for so long I don't even have the energy to go into why I hated this so much and why it was a pointless retcon, so I'll just leave it at this: IT WASN'T A FUCKING ROBOT.

Anyway, love and light everyone!!! ^_^

#hugo strange #there was still one more thing i wanted to rant about but i don't feel like it right now #maybe later #i kinda wanna read prey again

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intertexts · 7 months ago

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OK. OK OK OK. HI. IM AT WORK NOW SO THIS IS GONNA BE DISJOINTED AND NOT MAKE A WHOLE LOT OF SENSE BUT IM COOKING SO THIS REQUIRES AN ASK AND NOT A REPLY BC THOSE HAVE CHARACTER LIMITS (cooking both metaphorically and literally because it's 95 degrees outside at 9am and it is so so so so fucking humid) oh god get me out of the kitchen before i start burning things!!!

this could be Nothing. bc again I desperately need 2 learn more about cauldron and their motivations and such. BUT. going back to the tide/leviathan comparisons because they're making me kind of insane and i want to give him a Complex about it. because if we're not going to lobotomize him I need 2 hurt him in other ways (sorry dad)

so. this doesn't EXACTLY work 1:1 because there are only 3 endbringers and only 2 of them seem to be element-focused as far as i know. but if we have tide as a comparison to leviathan, we also have MAGMA who could be a comparison to behemoth if my thoughts are correct and behemoth is . big fire guy (he sleeps in a volcano so. I'm assuming.) . granted we also have like. whirlwind and shockwave and seismic who are the other elementals and they don't actually have an endbringer counterpart BUT IM !!!! going a little crazy thinking about like. if tide + his siblings are artificial capes, what if they (or at least he and magma because I'm kind of thinking abt them as the older ones. havent listened to the oneshot in a while so this may not be accurate) were given their powers SPECIFICALLY to be counters to the endbringers. or at least in an attempt to make a cape equivalent of the endbringers to better like... study their powerset or something. (I keep saying cauldron studies things bc I said that with david too and this really just comes from my inherent need for a big evil science team. in worm it seems like they're more capitalism focused but let a guy dream here)

this also brings up an interesting point with Elle who i know u don't know yet but she could be an interesting counterpoint to simurgh? Who as far as I know now isn't necessarily elemental but . neither is Elle really!! and that creates the big disaster in the oneshot bc she can't control her powers and goes kind of nuts about it.

anyway anyway anyway. tldr; tide and magma were specifically created as parallels to leviathan and behemoth, this wouldn't really be common knowledge to the rest of the capes bc of cauldrons secrecy BUT i think ppl would definitely notice the similarities in their powersets and that makes a subconscious fear response in people who have seen an endbringer attack firsthand (I believe in scary intimidating tide supremacy but then you talk to him and he's the sweetest human being in the whole world) . tide and magma both know this and have complicated emotions about it. I think tide has a very bad reaction to the leviathan attack if we are keeping that as an event that happens.

OR IT COULD ALL BE COINCIDENCE AND THIS IS NOTHING. but until i learn more about cauldron I am choosing to view them as my favorite trope of big evil science corporation <3333

OHH U R FUCKING COOKING DUDE YEAH <333

it is. so hard whenever u r talking about cauldron.... mallard conway ass levels of "oh okay i literally Cannot talk about this or else im accidentally gonna say spoilers." but. i DO think this goes so hard & conceivably makes sense for cauldron to do...... man one day in the far future we're gonna have to sit down and talk about if cauldron even would exist in this au. but. for now. hehehe :33 & i will say!!! i will say!!! research is. involved, in what they do. you are not off the mark.

ANYWAY. love this for him so much..... the way he moves and acts in a fight echoes leviathan.... does he have that water afterimage too??? when he's fighting?? because that shits cool as hell he should have it. i'm always just really ill over someone made to be a weapon who never wanted to be one.... tide you have to be at the leviathan fight but you shouldn't be :(((

i gotta listen to the elementals oneshot i have it downloaded rn.. i wanna know elle's deal because you have just said something unwittingly extremely funny & i need to know What happens to her before i comment on it!!!! anyway!!!! thinking abt tide lambert forever & always...

#ALSO. good fucking question if we want a leviathan attack on new haven. do we. want to deal with the massive post-apocalyptic fallout of #dealing with an endbringer attack where u live?? we could!! we could also have them be brought in to somewhere else where he's showing up #(which does happen) so they just. get one of the worst experiences ever & somehow find each other again alive at the end & get a helicopter #ride home or something. i'm sure there's other options too... decisions decisions..#anyway GOOD LUCK IN THE HEATTT have a good work dayyyyy pls say hi to the frogs for mee.....#im gonna be thinking abt nhw all fucking day dude. ive got so many more hours in the car what else am i gonna do...#<- wiwi fic actually. but shhh #augh. tide lambert i care you..... it is so important 2 me that he is as kind and stuff in new haven wards hellscape as he is in canon.#head in hands...#mac tag!#new haven wards

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