#NEW MG JUST DROPPED !!!

[armed-saphire]

found out you can play Spotify over a game on Xbox

[california-112]

.

[taviokapudding]

A heads up to everyone new who just started play Splatoon 3 since Dec 2022.

None of the older and long time Splatoon players told me this and it's not made clear in game. I literally didn't play most of Dec. because it devastated me.

Prior the last Spaltfest of 2022 and due to the algorithm making me fight S ranks with B rank teammates that I ended up over -100p in Anarchy Open. I was trying to build up points just in case I lost series but everyone in A rank prior to the new mode and map update knows what I'm talking about- A ranks were impossible to get out of because of S rank players not having their own mode. So winning and doing okay in Series was priority so you'd risk being in negative & get a minimum of 80p back.

Then I made the mistake of not playing until after the new map update because I was busy and took a break. I genuienly forgor I was in the negatives, had an unfinished series, & my parents had COVID- my priorities were elsewhere.

In short I was dropped down from A- to B because the game auto added 2 losses despite the fact I had only won and lost 1 each in Battle Series. The updates didn't just reset rank p (which should have only dropped me to a B+), it'll automatically add any losses to unfinished Anarchy Battle series. So yeah, 2 ranks since the artifical losses made me over -300p

Level up & finish all Anarchy Battle Series before or during a Splatfest and avoid being on the line of a rank or in the negative before an update/after Spaltfest updates because it doesn't save your results. It will give you auto losses in Series and it does get added together with your overall Rank p.

I'm back to B+ after 2 days of playing because I am good at the game & I should be back to -A by Feb if not sooner; but don't be like me. A whole month's worth of work was undone.

[occamstfs]

Marichismo

Allen, a smug engineering student, finds himself seeking shelter from the storm in a museum for Latin American art. By the time it clears up it's safe to say he'll have a more than healthy appreciation for the arts.

Might've gotten away from me a tad but I think it turned out quite well! Latino Race and Cultural change, MG and language change ahead. Also a couple more people have hopped onto my Challenge since I last mentioned it! Otherwise, espero que disfrutes! -Occam

Allen was on a side of the campus he’s never quite made it a point to explore. In undergrad and in his Masters of Engineering program so far there has simply never been a need for him to venture too far from the engineering building or the architecture library. That is until his partner on a superfluous project requested he venture into the no man’s land that holds the campus’ main library, one that runs absolutely rampant with students he sees as far beneath him.

Even worse than simply venturing beyond his comfort zone, as soon as the pair have wrapped up their progress for the day, heading off on their less than merry ways, it begins to rain. As the first raindrops begin to fall, Allen scoffs at himself for being anything less than optimally prepared. Before he’s able to reflect too deeply, the snobbish student clenches his tech-filled book bag to his chest and sprints into the nearest building, apathetic to whatever space he noisily barges into.

Before his eyes can adjust to the dim light of the new space he finds himself in, Allen hears a crack of thunder as the heavens open up behind him. Sighing in relief at successfully staying dry, Allen keeps his guard up, eying the lobby of whatever building this is that he’s never deigned to step into before now. He grimaces as he finds himself in an art museum. He does not like art museums. It’s not so much that Allen sees himself as above fine art, it’s- well no it is that. Immediately, he begins scanning the lobby for a power outlet so he may continue working while he waits out the downpour.

Head shoved under a lobby bench Allen ignores a caution sign as he forces his charger in, causing an inevitable shock that forces out a less than respectful expletive in this place of introspection. He eyes the empty room around him, slightly grinning at just how barren the lobby is. Clearly he’s not the only one apathetic to this nonsense. Shaking his hand to reawaken its nerves, he hears the clicking of footsteps against the gallery floor as a small woman walks around the corner carrying a stack of books that block her view. Allen eyes a handful of escape routes to hide from the older woman before lightning strikes once more and she trips over in shock, dropping her small stack of books, “¡Dios Mio!”

Judgemental asshole Allen may be but heartless he is not. Setting down his bag with a sigh and a roll of the eyes, the student walks over to help the older woman gather herself. Barely avoiding reflexively chiding his elder as he offers her a hand, he helps her up. The attendant pushes a large pair of glasses up her nose and squints at him with a kind smile, “Ah! Gracias, gracias mijo.” She pulls herself up on Allen’s hand and he cringes back as some kind of aftershock of static goes up his arm. Thankfully it doesn’t seem to affect her. Dusting herself off, she does a double take at Allen and adjusts her glasses, “¿Qué te trae aqui hoy, mijo? (What brings you in today dear?)

Allen hesitates, blowing air as he tries to understand why this woman thinks he knows spanish. Scratching the back of his head he finally looks to see the text blazoned across the front desk, El Gustavo Ramirez Museo De Arte Latinoamericano. Putting two and two together as he is ever so proud of doing, Allen immediately apologizes for intruding. “So sorry uh, Ma’am. I didn’t mean to wander into your, uh, space.” gesturing to the woman and the building around him in a manner to distinguish it not so much as beneath him but as an other. Something that is simply a bridge too far for him to gap. “This place isn’t for me so I think I’ll go ahead and step out.” Thunder peels before he can start to gather his things, immediately reminding him why he is in here at all. 

The older woman also relents, switching to English since, despite some instinct saying otherwise, the man before her clearly speaks only english. “Ah don’t you worry yourself mijo. The museum is for all, para todos. Free with your student ID,” she tacks on with a wink. Allen smiles uncomfortably, baring teeth enough that it could be mistaken as a grimace. 

He can’t just tell this old lady that he hasn’t a thought to spare, in his mind: waste, on the collections behind her. Still he doesn’t want to make conversation indefinitely waiting for the storm to clear either. Fearful of the outlet he’s used thus far he convinces himself there must be one hiding somewhere in the exhibition hall. He’ll just pacify her with entry and go find some place in between ostentatious paintings and droll statues to insert himself and get some actual work done.

Producing his ID wordlessly, he hands it to the elderly woman and she quickly shuffles behind her desk to type his name into some registry. Handing it back with a smile she leaves her hand hanging for a shake, “Wonderful to meet you Allan! Soy Lupe Carvajal. But you can call me abuelita, mijo!” Pocketing his ID with a dismissive laugh he notices not that his name is apparently misspelled on his ID card, instead he packs his charger up and shakes Lupe’s hand. “Hah. Uhm, whatever you say Mrs. Carvajal.” Her hand is wrinkled and frail but surprisingly warm, as if his hand were receiving the full body experience of a hug in but a single shake. 

“You know Allan, I must have thought you know spanish because you look quite like my nieto, my grandson.” Allan puffs his cheeks to bite his tongue, holding a picture in his mind of what this granny’s descendants must look like and knowing there’s simply no permutation that lands at himself. She continues, “Es un joven fuerte! Haha!” She does a little bicep pose which allows Allan to understand exactly what she means without her translating. He shyly smiles looking down at his own thin arms and wondering why this lady seems to be mocking him. After doing her bit, Lupe moves to sit at the desk and pulls a book off her stack, “You just let me know if you need anything mijo, si?” Allan nods and reflexively responds, “Si ab- Mrs. Carvajal.”

Odd taste in his mouth at almost calling this random woman grandmas she asked, he shakes it off and wanders into the exhibit hall, decidedly less worried about using her museum’s resources to his own ends. It has probably been over a decade since anyone was able to drag him into an art museum. Even then was he vehemently against wasting his time visiting. He just didn’t get art, and not for not trying. It’s just, aggravating that some people can get so much from some splotches of paint and he just sees a picture on some paper. Feeling himself get riled up he turns to the exhibit hoping for some distraction, which he finds in an elaborate statue of some dog. himself. 

Allan stands beside a huichol coyote covered in beads about two feet high. Spotlighted in the dim gallery he circles it like a predator, inspecting the bright beaded beast from every angle. See this he gets. This took time, this took care. Leaning in close the warmth of the overhead light pleasantly burns the top of his head. Absorbed by the shimmering light off the beads, Allan is unaware as his hair suddenly begins to lengthen. The buzz he has always kept short for sheer manageability begins to curl over his ears, growing warm even quicker as it tints darker. Not quite black but certainly not the blonde shade he was always happy to keep despite his spending as few hours outside as possible.

Before curls can begin to crest over his forehead, his face is not spared the glare of the spotlight. Immediately as his olive eyes glaze over, absorbed into the intricate stitched patterns they begin to stain darker. The jade he has always seen in his own reflection shades darker ever so slightly. Not brown. No he doesn’t have brown eyes, they’re just hazel? His eyebrows match the suddenly darkened hair on his head as he stands staring at the beast. Not expanding to cover more of his face but growing thicker, denser. Almost as if to shade his eyes from the light. His lips thicken as a grin begins to tinge his face. Reaching up Allan feels stubble begin to prickle his chin and upper lip, as if he spent time shaving this morning. 

Allan moans contentedly as he gives in and reaches fully into the spotlight to touch the coyote. Rules and codes of propriety fall to the wayside as he reaches beyond the realm of rationality to touch the statue of the trickster. His hands burn as they tint ever so slightly darker under the glare of the spotlight. As soon as his middle finger feels the warmth of the first bead he recoils in shock. “Q- What?!” He falls onto his ass, no time to inspect his decidedly browner hands as the commotion made immediately summons Abuelita Lupe. The elderly attendant meanders as quickly as she can into the showroom, “¿Qué pasó Alan?” Alan flexes his hand in shock. Whatever just happened it can’t be his fault.  Surely he didn’t just unprompted mess with some artifact on display. “I, um? No sé?” He pauses, unsure of what he just said, nonsense he thinks. “I mean um, I’m not sure?”

Lupe goes to help him up with what little strength she can muster only for him to wave her off, sure that she would only get in the way. He finds standing takes more effort than usual as he does so with a grunt. Nervously patting him on the back, Lupe asks him if he’s alright after the spill, buzzing around him with concerned pleasantries. Alan doesn't quite hear her as he instead inspects his own body. His clothes are tighter. He stretches and pulls at them, presuming them to just be falling weird on him after the fall. But close inspection shows otherwise. Looking at his cardigan it is clearly strained by his chest and stomach. Blushing at the idea he’s put on weight, Alan crosses his arms and notices how snugly his arms fill the sleeves, how his wrists hang out further than they should, not only that but they are unmistakably darker. Not brown, but without a doubt a few shades darker than his usual porcelain tone.

Recovering from being lost in his thoughts he looks to find Lupe staring, “Oh! Lo, uh sorry. Did you uh, ask me something Senora Carvajal?” Looking down at a sharper angle than he did earlier, he sees the abuela looking at his head with a tilt. “Did you do something different with your hair mijo?” eyes narrowing with concern and suspicion he thrusts his hair into his new curls. He immediately gasps in shock before reconsidering. This is how he’s always looked right? 

Thank god his hair is naturally curly so he can just leave them as they fall without much ado. He smiles and shakes his head at Lupe and she nods happily in return. Reaching up she puts her small hand on his bicep and squeezes it, Alan can barely hear her as he is struck with just how powerful his arm seems next to her small hand as she continues, “Well I like it mijo.” With that she aways and leaves Alan be. Having the floor to himself his expression grims as he pulls out his phone to look for a picture of himself. Something is off. His mind tells him everything is normal. When he looks at his hands he sees them as they have always been right? Why would he have a buzz cut when his hair is so naturally nice? Something in his gut screams out that something unnatural is going on. His camera roll should hold proof. Going through his phone he barely holds back a gasp that would surely summon the docent back as he is immediately greeted by a folder of his own nudes.

“Que chingado…” He whispers under his breath as his face burns redder than the scarlet beads on the coyote. He didn’t take these did he? Zooming in he is once more floored to see tattoos on his body. Looking down at his arm he sharply inhales as there's a sting and suddenly his wrist matches the image on his phone. Or no. He’s had that tattoo for years?

 Aghast at himself he still feels he wouldn’t have taken these photos of himself. Vain in many ways, his appearance is not one of them. He wonders if he’s been set up or hacked or something before he reminds himself no one would be able to do so without his knowledge. He’s a pro after all. Mind going to his technical skills, his chest puffs with pride as it grows to match the one he finds in the nudes soft-core and otherwise on his phone. Alan quickly shoves it in his pocket, finding it a much tighter fit than when he retrieved it. 

Looking around nervously, he walks close to the coyote once more. Narrowing his eyes he feels new memories come to mind from his childhood. Memories of hearing story after story of the trickster, he tilts his head as the slightest whiff of something amiss hides behind them. Staring into the eyes of the beast with suspicion the image of reading Greek mythologies by himself fades away to be replaced by his mother telling him stories from her own childhood. The coyote playing tricks and la Llorona terrorizing their little town just to make sure he stays in line. Alan smiles as he shakes out of the reverie, my mom wasn't morena was she? Headache rising as seconds pass standing near the beast he wanders away, muttering to himself without awareness, “didn’t want him in the main hall anyway.”

His hair continues to thicken and curl darker as he moves deeper into the exhibition space. Scratching at his stubble lost in thought he finds it defining itself into a goatee with a matching mustache. His phone still unlocked in his pocket shifts displays his form as he continues to change unawares. He feels himself begin to sweat intensely as his cardigan grows even tighter. His body decides to ramp up his masculinity as he starts to outright swell with muscle. His whole body twitches larger as he briefly recalls Lupe playfully flexing, “un joven fuerte!” He clicks his tongue and grins as he sees his biceps strain his sweater, almost enough to see his button up through the threads. He fights back a smirk feeling his shirt underneath hug the sides of his chest as his soldiers expand. Feeling his thicker pits start to sweat through said shirt and into the jacket he resolves to remove the cardigan.

His struggled grunts echo through the museum space as he struggles to get the cardigan off over his chest. The sound of fabric tearing rips through the room as stitches finally give way down the whole front of the garment, his pecs bursting larger into the open air. The top few buttons of his dress shirt also explode open as he is finally freed from the constricting sweater, “ayy dios- fuck…” He whispers to himself as he appreciates the ice cold air of the museum on his sweaty skin. The white dress shirt may as well be sheer with his sweat soaking it, allowing any gawkers to easily see tattoos running down his arm and the nipples almost poking through the shirt.

Only briefly does he wonder why he’s not self conscious about being exposed in the gallery before he notices a side-exhibition hall. “Ah si, uh. The temporary exhibit,” he whispers dreamily. Keeping quiet as any respectful museum-goer does. Though he doesn’t quite have the bodily awareness to mute his increasingly loud footsteps, each one growing louder as his upper body expands. He looks up to read the title of the exhibit as the sound of his shoulders widen enough to tear the back of his button up. Marichismo: Taking Back Latino Masculinity. He smirks as he finds the idea compelling, he’s uh, not hispanic of course. Nor has he ever been intrigued by ‘art’ in the slightest, he thinks. But something draws him deeper. Something pulls him further. Something in him begs for more.

His pants creak as he crosses the threshold into the new space, his ass expanding beyond the pale. Similarly does his crotch demand both more room and his attention as Arlad is immediately face to face with a deliberately provocative statue. The blush burning his face is just as soon hidden as his tan grows darker as he’s overwhelmed by everything in front of him. It’s as if Tom of Finland were Chicano. Bulges beyond belief force their way out at every angle. Rigid thick mustaches hang stoic on every face as Arlad feels his own stubble grow darker, thicker, itchier.

The student is torn between instincts, just as he feels increasingly torn between two worlds. His body continues ballooning and his shirt bursts clean off, buttons scatter to the floor and sharp tears launch down his arms. He can’t help but hungrily scan the floorspace as the bright lights bore into him, exposing him as if he were a piece of art on display. He looks down just in time to see his cock burst large enough to blow his zipper out which only addles his mind further, “Tal vez, just a minute…” He wanders into the exhibit hall proper as his eyes finally make the jump into a rich chocolate brown. He trips over his feet, gasping as he feels them stuffed uncomfortably tight in his oxfords before kicking off the shoes altogether. Just as soon do his pants rip off and he is left almost entirely nude in this exhibit hall.

His mouth hangs open as his cock acts almost like a dowsing rod in between pieces. The language in which Arcad thinks rapidly begins to change altogether, already a bilingual medley, with each starved look at photographed vaqueros or bulge forward paintings does English drift farther away. Maintaining fluency in both of course, the man would never let that tongue take predominance over that of his madre y su madre before her. His pecs pump even larger with pride as thick curls begin itching up from his crotch. He scratches at his stomach as he smirks at his body finally getting on brand. This whole show is about displaying masculinity and he needs to be the apex. He needs…

Arcad twitches as these definitive thoughts cut through the fog in which he has been going about. Why does he care so much about this place? He doesn’t like art. Certainly not this uh smut. He twitches as he argues that being provocative is the point, sexualization of the male form is the point. Why could he know that? How does he know anything about this exhibit? Looking around at the photographs he sees men who are almost a parody of masculinity. Fighting back the overwhelming pervasive horniness issuing forth from balls bulging larger he takes a deep breath and ignores the temple to the male form around him. 

It’s impossible for him to notice as his thoughts crest fully into español. After all it simply is the language in which he has always thought, no matter what his teachers demand of him. Back to the matter at hand he is struck with the urge to create. Mierda- this exhibition really inspired him, he should really write an essay about this. Or, no. He moans and clutches at his temples as the shining lights out of sight gleam even brighter, sparkling off his sweaty muscled form as he’s racked with the pain of opposing realities. No, that isn’t right. He doesn’t do essays anymore. That’s not how he creates. 

Memories of long hours at the lab and in dark rooms sitting at a keyboard dissipate. Haughty superiority over fields and forms he deems insignificant thankfully blast away as images of the photographs and artworks around him come to mind with an ease that makes him uneasy. Creeping in from the edges of his lived memory are other exhibits, many that he has visited, some that he has put on of his own accord. 

Tattoos continue to drip down his arm as his treasure trail rushes onto his chest, blooming out to cover his pecs. The space in between his mustache and goatee is quickly filled, as are the entirety of his cheeks as his eyes shut even tighter. Independent muscle groups twitch as his body struggles to forge him even larger, to be more. The lengthy curls on his head fall away as his head returns to a buzz cut, this time black as the night. This time impossibly deliberate. 

Arcadio buzzed it himself, he loved his curls. But he knew for this exhibition he had to sacrifice. Anything for his art. The phrase burns across his mind, Marichismo. It, it was his exhibition. Arcadio opens his eyes to find himself standing across from an oppressive statue staring down at him in disdain. His blood boils as his fight or flight activates. Though staying strong he just clenches his fist as his body bulges larger one last time. “Papa.” He made that statue, he isn’t about to be shoved around by his own art. The feeling of confidence filling him at standing up against the domineering statue is more than he could have held within him as Allan. Reverbs of confidence go through his psyche as he finally gets it. Turning around the confidence that fills him rapidly dissipates as he sees a man posing like a dog.

He exercised complete creative control of the exhibition, but did he take this? Memories of being behind the lens of the camera dance through his mind for most of the images, this one seems obscured. He ignores the cold sudden sting of a nose ring as he leans in close to inspect it, smirking all the while. Who’d he get to model this? Looking at the jockstrap he nods approvingly, mierda it is certainly hot though. His underwear stretches to its absolute limit as he forces his large hand down to paw his cock at the image. Looking down at his hairy forearm he gasps as he sees the tattoo on his forearm perfectly matches that of the model. 

At that moment his underwear burst free from his body and he suddenly realizes that being nude in this space is far worse a breach of etiquette than touching that coyote. Arcadio sprints to his bag and digs around for anything he could possibly use to hide his still bulging cock at half mast. “¡Gracias a dios!” he whispers under his breath as he wraps a towel around his waist, perfectly mimicking a photograph behind him. He smirks at the man thinking how proud Jose will be when he gets to see himself on a gallery wall. Arcadio grunts and clenches his head as memories of the man ahead of him fill his mind. Lightheaded he leans against the wall grimacing as he leads a sweaty handprint on the pristine white wall.

Turning around seeing the exhibit hall as a whole he almost falls over with a rush of memories. Advanced math and the life he once lived as Allan are dust in the wind as his childhood growing up the son of first generation immigrants in San Antonio rises to take their place. Living alone with his mother before his abuela moved up from Mexico to help raise him as if he were her son. Understanding himself and the world around him as he discovered who he was and what he had to do. Finally achieving success, winning grants, booking galleries as an artist. Not too bad for a maricon eh? He winks at the statue of his father, smirking as he feels his power as a man and artist grow.

Looking down at some engineering homework scattered from his bag the last pangs of a headache buzzes through him before he shakes his head and the work is gone. The last shreds of a life he once lived dissipate. Walking out into the lobby he sees his abuelita. She smiles at the massive man before adjusting her glasses and shouting out, “¡Ay! ¿Qué estás haciendo? ¡Ponte algo de ropa! (What are you doing! Put some clothes on!)” Arcadio laughs and waves her off, knowing the museum is closed while he preps his exhibition for opening tomorrow. 

His new voice is rich on his tongue as he speaks up, “Espero que les guste. La universidad no sabe lo que pagaron ¡ja! (Hope they like it. The uni doesn’t know what they paid for ha!)” His abuelita clicks her tongue, she loves her grandson more than the world but boy if he hasn’t made her old beyond her years. She digs through the lost and found next to her for something that might fit her larger than life grandson and throws it at him. The man laughs and his abuelita can’t help but join in the reverie. She wouldn’t dream of going through his exhibit- que obsceno, que cachondo! But he could do no real wrong in her eyes. So far he’s blown her expectations out of the water with his success and she can’t wait to see what Arcadio gets up to next.

[sapphoherselz]

was it casual when you stopped me from running before you even knew me, then became the reason I stayed?

was it casual when you touched my back on your way by, fingers light enough to give me goose bumps?

was it casual when I pressed your palm to the ugly scarring across my abdomen and your eyes dropped to my shirt like you could see the marred skin through the dark cotton?

was it casual when I willingly got tortured for your sake?

was it casual when i hid your armbands under my pillow, or when I gave you back the mean to protect yourself even though I was advised against it?

was it casual when there was nowhere for me to stand except up against you, but somehow I didn't mind, was it casual when your body next to mine reminded me why I stayed, was it casual when I remembered this unyielding, unquestioning weight that could hold me and all of my problems up without breaking a sweat?

was it casual that for the first time in months I could finally breathe again, that your presence was such a relief it was frightening, because I hadn't meant to lean on you so much?

was it casual when "The next time someone comes for you, stand down and let me deal with it. Do you understand?" "If it means losing you, then no”?

was it casual when "You were supposed to be a side effect of the drugs” "I'm not a hallucination” "You are a pipe dream”?

was it casual when I plucked your cigarette off the sidewalk and stuck it between my lips and tipped my head back to meet your unwavering gaze and tapped two fingers to my temple in your mocking salute?

was it casual when I felt a half-second from losing my mind, but then you said my name and my thoughts ground to a startled halt?

was it casual when "You like me” "I hate you” "You never said anything” “Why should I have? Nothing will come of it"?

was it casual when "I want to see you lose control”?

was it casual when "Am I bothering you?” "Beyond the telling” "Interesting, last week you said nothing gets under your skin”?

was it casual when “But I trust you” "You shouldn't" "Says the man who stopped”?

was it casual when I took the pint from your unresisting fingers, stacked it on top of mine, and leaned in, but didn't dare to touch you until you gave me a green light?

was it casual when time was nothing, seconds were days, were years, were the breaths that caught between our mouths and the bite of my fingernails against my palms, the scrape of teeth against my lower lip and the warm slide of a tongue against mine? was it casual when I could feel your heartbeat thrumming against mg wrists, a staccato rhythm that echoed in my veins? was it casual when I wondered how a man who viewed the world with such studied disconnect could kiss like this? was it casual when I had forgotten what it was like to be touched without malicious intent?

was it casual when I didn't know if I could get my hands back in my pockets without brushing up against you, so I tucked them behind my back instead?

was it casual when “It is just a key” "You're a foster child, you know it isn't"? was it casual when I had toyed with your house key so many times I knew every dip and ridge by heart?

was it casual when "If you hit me again” "You'll what?"?

was it casual when I protected you by yanking someone away even though the agony that shot from my fingertips to the elbows almost took me off my feet?

was it casual when your expression was deceptively calm, but there was iron in your grip when you seized my chin? was it casual when you let go of me so you could tug my hood out of the way, when you dragged a finger along the lines of tape keeping the myriad of bandages in place as if looking for the best place to start?

was it casual when you froze with your hand a few scant inches from my face, when your expression didn't change, but there was a new tension in your shoulders that didn't bode well for anyone in the room?

was it casual when I knew better than to touch you yet but I got as close as I could and framed your face between my bandaged hands, when you could have easily pushed me aside, but after a short pause you got settled again?

was it casual when "Am I at ninety-four yet?" "You are at one hundred"?

was it casual when "Get away from us, If you make me repeat myself you will not live to regret it”?

was it casual when "Did they tell you who I am?" "They didn't have to, I choked the answers out of Kevin on the way here”?

was it casual when "If you tell me to leave, I'll go” "You're staying with us. If they try to take you away they will lose”?

was it casual when "I have to go, I don't trust them to give you back"?

was it casual when "Can I really be Neil again?" "I told Neil to stay, leave Nathaniel buried in Baltimore with his father”?

was it casual when you threw yourself out of the goal like all of hell was at your heels?

was it casual when "I thought you knew how to run” I thought you told me to stop running” "Survival tip: no one likes a smart mouth” "Except you"?

[powdermelonkeg]

You know what? I'm gonna make a Minecraft movie

This is a plot I banged out over the course of like three hours at work so bear with me.

Movie starts. Main Guy just got fired from his job or something. He goes home to his house, greets his dog, agonizes over how he's going to pay for said dog with this development. Dog comes up wanting to play fetch, has a mcguffin in its mouth. Main Guy takes it and fiddles with it that night.

Mcguffin activates.

Guy winds up in Minecraft world. Spends a day freaking out about everything. Finds a dirt house someone else made and spends the night there to escape the monsters.

There's a map there. Takes that to a village

Meets Alex. She doesn't speak.

Alex is in the middle of saving a village from an Illager raid. Main Guy helps.

It takes a turn into a rescue mission for captured Villagers. The Illagers are hunting for a Trial Chamber with a legendary weapon (the mace).

After that arc is complete, Main Guy has an Allay as a pet and a new friend in a Villager he saved. Gang's all there, all adventures from here on out will be with MG, Alex, Villager, and Allay.

They go to Alex's home base. It's neat, but it's very clear she's not the only one that's lived there.

MG manages to convey to Alex that he needs a way home. And she's got the Ender Dragon egg, but doesn't have the rest of the equipment to get to the End and make the portal home.

Trip into the Deep Dark, ancient city, Warden fight while getting diamonds.

Villager takes the diamonds and makes a pickaxe for them.

They get obsidian and make a Nether Portal. Trip to the Nether to find a fortress and get blaze rods and ender pearls.

While they're in the Nether, they come across the Wither Briar. It's a new biome that's spreading, wither roses everywhere, with a Wither at the center.

They get the supplies they need, but the Wither catches them and attacks. They barely make it out alive; Villager gets zombified.

Rush to a witch to get Villager healed.

It gets revealed that Alex and her friends once took on the Wither, but it turned out too destructive and they lost the battle and several friends. They split up then. The Wither's been terrorizing the local Piglins and spreading the zombie infection ever since.

MG gets up, determined, gearing up and reentering the Nether. Epic battle against the Wither. The Wither Briar dies, the Piglins rejoice.

MG, Alex, and Villager start gearing up to find the Stronghold, with help from the village, Piglins, witch, etc. MG gets a unique armor trim that's not in the game.

Melancholy travel. Alex and Villager are gonna miss MG a LOT, and he's considering whether or not he wants to leave.

Stronghold leads to the End, End City fight for an Elytra.

Final fight with the Ender Dragon, hesitation, then final goodbyes. The group all jumps into the portal together.

MG winds up back home in his bed, in the real world, but he still has his gear and the sword he used to slay the Ender Dragon with.

He gets the mcguffin that sent him to Minecraft in the first place and is about to destroy it. He second-guesses it. Epic montage of him grabbing the things he needs to go.

He puts on a blue shirt and dark jeans. He packs his bag with apples, a slice of cake, and a map. He grabs his dog, a fluffy gray one with a red collar, then he activates the mcguffin again.

End poem plays, followed by the credits rolling.

Post-credits at the end with Minecraft music playing, Steve rolls up to Alex's house as she and Villager are building a beacon out of the Nether Star the Wither dropped. He helps them finish it, the beacon shoots into the sky, then they go into her house.

Alex looks at the map hopefully, waiting for her friends as the sun goes down, but all it shows is hers and Steve's icons on it…then someone else's shows up, just barely at the border. It's one of the other "default" players.

End of movie.

[bethelighthalazia]

Coachelly, Baby!

Summary:  Mingi gets the call of his beloved girlfriend going into labor. While he's performing at coachella on the big sahara stage between two songs. Will he make it to the hospital in time?

Genre: fluff

Pairing: dad!mingi x fem!reader

Word Count:  1566

Warnings: none? mentions of pregnant reader (water breaks and labor mentioned)

networks: @mirohs-aurora-society

[note: the purple bold italic text is spoken english, every other spoken word is koreanthis is part of a mini-series for dad!ateez]

HJ, SH, YH, YS, S, MG, WY, JH

© by bethelighthalazia. Do not repost, copy or translate. Unless stated otherwise, those works are mine and born from my own ideas. I don't have any claim on the mentioned real existing Idols whatsoever.

Mingi and you had not planned any of this. Of course, both of you were completely in love with each other, and Mingi already had gotten a ring to propose to you, but then, all of a sudden, life happened. It wasn't supposed to be a big thing, neither of you would have thought that this little quickie you two had backstage on their tour, yet a month after that, you had been staring at the positive pregnancy test. Mingi had accompanied you to the doctors and they also confirmed: You´re pregnant. 

Now, almost ten months later, you were sitting in the hotel room in LA. Your best friend, one of ATEEZ´s staff members, is lounging on the sofa. She actually had been on vacation, but didn´t want to leave you alone while the boys were performing on the Sahara stage. so, that's how the both of you ended up in the hotel room, when you felt it. A sharp pain caused you to curl forwards a little, Seonghwa´s Switch dropping from your hands. You knew this pain, fake contractions were normal in the last weeks already, but this time, it felt different. 

“Fuck…I need Mings-” You groan, feeling the wetness of the sofa and your sweatpants. Your water broke. Your friend quickly grabbed the bag that you had prepared and helped you up to lead you down into the foyer of the hotel, where one of Mingi´s bodyguards already waited to bring you to the hospital. You vehemently refused to call an ambulance, yet your legs gave up on the way to the car and the bodyguard quickly caught you, carrying you the last few steps. “Mingi- I need my Mingi!” You repeated, tears in your eyes while you tried to be strong and hold back. The ride to the hospital was quick, only a few blocks down the street from the hotel you stayed in. Unfortunately, since neither your best friend, nor the bodyguard were family, they weren't allowed to accompany you inside. Although, when you basically screamed at the nurses, they did let your best friend come with you. 

A few miles away, Mingi and the others just finished the second to last song and Hongjoong was talking to ATINY and the crowd again. That's when Mingi´s eyes went wide, because through the earpiece, he heard staff tell the group what happened. For a moment, they all were frozen in place, seven pairs of eyes directed at Mingi, who just stood there, mouth agape. “Aish! She really couldn't have waited?!” Wooyoung joked, trying to lessen the tension a little, but in that moment ATINY cheered loudly. Mingi had not kept the news of your pregnancy a secret, he was very open about it, but never revealed your name or picture, to keep you safe, of course. Before any of them could really do anything, the music for the last song started and they all performed Wonderland. Even though their thoughts were with you, Ateez performed fierce and powerful once again and, before the last note actually finished, Mingi ran off the stage. He didn't even stop to get changed, only grabbing Hongjoong´s arm, dragging him to the car to make them drive him to the hospital where you were having his babies.

During the drive, Mingi was basically vibrating on the seat, still feeling the high from the performance mixed with the excitement and anxiety of the infamous ‘dad-panic’. “Hey!” Hongjoong yelled after the fourth attempt to get the younger one´s attention, causing him to look quite startled. “Calm down, she's in the best hands. We´re almost there, Mingi-ah. Take a deep breath, okay? You can't rush in there and cause Y/nie to get even more stressed than she already is, okay?” The captain said calmly and gave his younger member a worried glance every now and then while also focusing on the road. “What if i´m too late? She´ll be upset with me…I promised to be there for her during birth.” Mingi mumbled under his breath, his fingers drumming the dashboard of the car. When Hongjoong parked the car, Mingi already jumped out before the engine was turned off, drawing a chuckle from the captain. The older male also got out and quickly followed Mingi, which was easy, since he towered over most of the people there. 

“Song Y/n, where Song Y/n?” The blonde asked, almost climbing over the counter to take a look at the registry himself, because the nurse was just staring at Mingi. Who could blame her though, he was in the full coachella attire after all, mic monitor and all still attached to him. Stepping in to pull Mingi back, Hongjoong took over the talking, Mingi´s english too butchered by his excitement. “We´re looking for my friend´s girlfriend, Y/l/n /Y/n.” The captain said, after all, you weren't married yet, but the nurse looked a little confused. “Uhm, we only have Song Y/n here, her friend put in the information while Miss Song was rushed to the maternity unit. Just follow the hallway down there and wait there please.” The nurse explained, even gesturing for Hongjoong and Mingi to follow the signs and hallways. The short male didn't have much time to thank the nurse, already being dragged after Mingi, who had spotted your best friend waiting for you. When the two men joined your best friend, Mingi was not able to sit down though, your bestie quickly helped Mingi to take off his earpieces and the microphone monitor when the doors swung open.

“Who's the father?” Another nurse asked, looking at Hongjoong, who nudged Mingi forward a bit, and Mingi was led to you. When he stepped in though, he froze in the doorway, looking at you with his usual boba-eyed pout. “I- I missed it?” He asked, the adorable expression on his face completely opposite to his rockstar outfit. You just smiled at him, your hair sticking to the sweaty skin and you looked exhausted, but to him, you always would be the most beautiful being in the world. That is, until his gaze shifted when he noticed movement on your chest. Very slowly, Mingi stepped closer, leaning in to kiss your lips before looking at the small bundles in your arms. Hold on, bundles? There was more than one moving bundle, but that would mean-

“M- more than one?” His voice was quiet, slightly hoarse as he tried to stay calm. You just nodded, watching him very carefully take one of the bundles out of your arms as he sat down on the edge of the bed. “A boy and a girl.” You whispered, seeing the smile on his lips grow wide, unable to hold back his tears as he held his newborn daughter in his arms, her whole body almost fitting into his hands only. “Welcome to the world, ChanHee and Yujin…” With a choked chuckle, Mingi kissed the baby's forehead gently, your son instinctively grabbing your finger as you carefully poked his nose. After a while, the door to your room opened again and the other seven members came in, Hongjoong and Seonghwa had talked to them beforehand to not be too loud and to behave, or else they´d be in trouble. 

The moment they laid eyes on the babies, Seonghwa and San couldn't stop themselves, tears running down their faces already. “You know…I do hope they'll grow to look more like you, Y/nie, and not like Mingi-'' Wooyoung said in a teasing manner, but is soon shut up by Jongho, who drags his hyung out of the room again. The captain congratulated you and Mingi, he even snuck in a bag with your favorite treats, and then shushed and hurried the others out again as well, so you and Mingi could enjoy parenthood for now. 

“I´m sorry, jagi…I really came as fast as I could, but-” “Mingi, please. You are here now, and that's what counts.” You cut him off, smiling gently at him, the babies by now laying in their cribs next to the bed. Mingi had taken off the jacket he wore and replaced it with a plain black shirt, so he couldn't possibly hurt you or the babies with the zipper and buttons of his jacket. You had made him lay down on the bed and cuddle with you, needing his warmth and comfort now, while he had asked you about almost every detail of the birth. It wasn't really the most casual talk, yet you did try to tell him everything, even though it mostly felt like a blur for yourself. It didn't take long for your head to drop against his chest while talking, the exhaustion finally taking over your body as you fell asleep. Mingi however felt wide awake, holding you tightly and peppering you with kisses. He felt so grateful that you walked into his life and now even blessed him with the two most beautiful babies. With a smile on his face, he carefully climbed out of the bed when Yujin started to make sounds. He very gently lifted her out of the crib and rocked her in his arms, humming the melody of Wonderland, the first melody that came to mind, to make her fall asleep again, a content smile on his face when he looked at his son and then you, his wonderful little family. 

taglist: @mingis-mizu, @tinyelfperson, @hotteokkay, @minkilicious, @bunnliix,

@gong-fourz, @yeosangiess, @dinossaurz, @scuzmunkie, @h3arteyes4mingi

(if you want to be added to a taglist, follow the taglist-link in my pinned post)

[bunnymajo]

Watched the 3rd mg title of the season, "The Stories of Girls who Couldn't Be Magicians"

And I just want to say I'm so proud of this little show?

Like back in 2018 it was announced as the winner of Project ANIMA, an initiative to animate upcoming novels in certain categories. "Mahoutsukai ni Narenakatta Onnanoko Hanashi" was the winner for fantasy and even though the book was released, the only illustration revealed for the anime for years was this

I've had it on my timeline since 2018 waiting for any news to drop about it, I was starting to think it was canceled

But then this past year it was in fact not dead but thriving and looked like nothing I was expecting. It also has one of the most gorgeous art directions this season? I'm interested in how they'll shake up the whole "magic school" setup that's going on.

Of the 3 mg shows this season it definitely has the best opening sequence too (No offense to Acro Trip and Magilumiere, but this kinda stuff is my jam)

Don't sleep on this one magigirl fans, I think it'll be a surprise hit

[misfitgirlwrites]

TO-WRITE LIST!

Take a peek at the things I'm currently working on!

IMPORTANT LINKS

Masterlist | Writing Request Info | Commissions

Sacrifice(s) for which Fandom(s)?:

Hazbin Hotel

Gotham

The Dark Knight

The Joker Blogs

MG's Guide

🔞 | SMUT (18+)

💀 | GORE (18+)

✨️ | FLUFF

💔 | ANGST

COMING UP...

We'll Laugh Together (Re-Write) Chapter One (you're an author returning to Gotham after potentially the biggest writing gold-mine tragedy fell over the city. Determined for some type of inspiration for a new story, you use the perks of your best friend billionaire, and start digging) [The Dark Knight/The Joker Blogs]

Roses are...Blind Apparently-- (Lucifer M. x Fallen Angel!Reader | After visiting Charlie and meeting you, Lucifer couldn't get you out of his head. Once he finally decides to court you, however, you're as oblivious as they come) [Hazbin Hotel] ✨️

Misunderstandings & Stab Wounds (our homicidal ginger is only our favorite when the energy isn't towards us) [Gotham] 💔✨️

Flirting for Dummies (you can flirt with everyone in the hotel with no issue. You know you're not serious, so what's there to be nervous about? Angeldust notices the one person you never flirt with is Lucifer and decides to give you a few lessons in real flirting) [Hazbin Hotel] ✨️

WHAT'S AFTER...

We'll Cross That Bridge When We Get There -> Part One (you did have your eyes on Alastor but you just couldn't help yourself when Lucifer came into the picture~) [Hazbin Hotel]

-> Part Two (Lucifer and Alastor catch onto your game and you have to cross that bridge much sooner than you anticipated) 🔞

The Greatest Showman (Lucifer M. x Imp!Reader | It's an absolute crime that the literal creator of LuLu World can't see a movie that you think he'll love. Lucky for you, smuggling a movie from the living isn't as hard as it should be~) [Hazbin Hotel] ✨️

If any of these interest you and you want to be tagged when it drops, comment and let me know!

[trulyyours-rune]

Heeyyyy😍 I like literally missed you

I was kicking mg feet and wondering if you could do smut of bill x male reader

And like reader is a virgin and bill teases him about it and one day when they get drunk at a club bill and reader end up back at bills hotel and yk yk

You can add whatever else u want

Have a good day/night and make sure u get some sleep

I'm bacckkk (again) 🥳

!GIF is not mine!

Warnings: Smut, alcohol, language, very little plot, mentions of drugs, drunk sex, not proofread. (Bit rushed because I'm busy)

(Dom bottom) Bill Kaulitz x (Sub top) Male reader

You were sat at some rando's couch, drunk and high off of your ass. Some glass of booze that was probably yours was knocked over on the table and a lit blunt of weed. You could barely comprehend anything at the moment besides random drunk people and loud music.

Your head leaned back against the cushion, sighing and just letting the affects taking over you. Bill comes over, a stumbling mess as he sits beside you. "No girls yet?" He asked with a chuckle. "No, why?" You hummed. "You're a boring virgin, duh..." "Oh shut up, Bill." You placed a hand over your eyes, he was irritating you and he was well aware of it.

"That girls cute." He pointed at some random girl dancing on the dance floor. "Not my type." You hummed back, getting up from your seat. Bill got up with you, "Where you going?" His words slurred from his obvious drunkness. "Need a place to crash, head's starting to kill me. I'll just call my friend." "I can take you to my hotel room, it'll save you a call." You were a bit surprised, but it really would save you from a long lecture from your friend, so you gave in.

You guys make it to the hotel room, both of you giggling and messing around as you stumble in. You flop back first into the bed, huffing as you hit a comfortable surface and closing your eyes in content.

"M/n, you're like... Never interested in girls. You into guys or something?" His words were still as slurred as they were at the party. "I mean... I guess so. (Male celebrity crush) is hot." "Oh, so you like him too?" Bill giggled before walking into the bathroom.

You were just about to fall asleep until you hear something like a shirt drop. You go to peek your eyes open, but you're quickly shocked by a weight pressing down on you, as if someone straddling your hips. Your eyes open lazily, but soon widen as you realize it was Bill on top of you. "Bill... What the fuck-" "What? You're a virgin... It's a good night to lose a virginity to be honest." Clearly Bill wasn't think to right in the head. "Bill, my head hurts, so no, it's not a good night." He easily pushed that aside and just focussed on you.

He tugged at your shirt, but you let him lift it off of you. You weren't complaining, someone as hot as Bill taking you? Yes please. May not be in the best condition but it's better then nothing.

"Damn, you're hotter in person then my fantasies." Bill let out a drunken chuckle, just letting out his secret and thinking nothing of it. You obviously got a little flustered at his words, cheeks going a red hue. After him getting both of your pants off, (you had to help his drunk ass), you were starting to get needy for his touch and he was easily using it to his advantage.

You were hard and embarrassed to admit it, but it only just made his teasing go further. "Aw, scared? It's not as scary as you think it is." He spoke as he grabbed lube, does he just take it everywhere with him? Even though he was maybe half drunk now, it still gave you some reassurance.

As you were both ready, he grabbed your wrists and put them above your head, the strong grip he had against you pinning your hands to the bed's sheets. He slowly sank down onto you, not even breaking eye contact. As much as he thought he could easily take it, you were a bit bigger then he expected. The feeling made your breath instantly hitch and for your hips to buck a small bit, this feeling was so new to you, but it felt so damn good.

You let out a whine, only receiving an amused look from Bill as he started to move with a small moan. He looked so pretty above you, instinctively you would've grabbed his waist or hips by now, but by his force on your wrists, it gave a sign he wasn't going to let go anytime soon.

Bill set his own slow pace, only for you to whine and beg at him just to have a small amount of mercy and at least speed up. Your wish was his command, making him speed up the pace a little. You raise your hips slightly, but it only made him bottom out. To him, you just hit a spot he didn't even know existed until now.

He started to speed up even more, letting go on your wrists but his hands were placed on your chest instead for his support. "Bill... Fuck- slow down..." You pathetically whined out. "But I thought you wanted it faster?" Bill put on that damn teasing tone that he knew damn well that pissed you off half the time. You could only let out a moan in defeat. You were a virgin, a sensitive one.

He didn't even lose a beat when it came to putting himself down onto you, your hands scrambling and switching between grabbing his thighs and reaching for the sheets. Your head was tossed back, hell, you were to much in a daze to even care if next door heard your moans.

To him, your whimpers were like a song he could play on repeat and never get bored of. Your hands reached up to hook around his shoulders to bring him down close to you, only catching your lips into a, (way messier then intended), make out.

Beyond this point, you were getting that feeling of a coil starting to form that just needed release. You could tell he was feeling the same from the way his hips finally stuttered for the first time, only making him desperate and rock down onto you harder. Your lips move away from his, feeling your back arch as the feeling got more tighter and forceful. You felt as if it was going to snap any second, only for it to do just exactly that.

"AH- FUCK, BILL!"

...

Next morning you were the first to wake up in bed, your head just having a war with itself as you awaken. You sat up and saw your clothes on the ground. From the motion of you sitting up, Bill woke up, a somewhat pissed off look on his face. You knew it was because you woke him up.

"Why the hell are you up, it's like..." He looked at the clock. "2 in the afternoon?" You finished his sentence. To you, he looked oblivious. "You usually wear a shirt to bed, don't you?" Did this guy really not know what happened last night? Sure you were hammered but it was an unforgettable experience... It was a bit stupid of him, but it doesn't mean you weren't either.

___________

I wish I made this longer 😔😔😔, but I got some stuff to do 😒 so eat this up while you can ☺❤

[obsessivemusicfr3ak]

10/18/24 12:00 AM

NEW FUCKING MACHINE GIRL ALBUM JUST DROPPED WE FUCKING LISTENING BITCH

1:Ok fr tho already heard first song from single its aight (better than i remember now that im listening again) ((theres also no lyrics out yet so im not gonna mention those at all))

2:Second song titled "nu nu meta phenomenon" is fucking INCREDIBLE the sound design and awesome drums continue the awesome trend of live instrumentation mixed with glitchy elements that leads to a heavenly experience!

3:Glitchy goodness continues on the third track, which has some amazing synth leads that are just a fucking amazing vibe. The ending is great aswell! A nice build up and climax to some CRAZY noise.

4:The standout element of this album is definitely the drums. The groove you get from them is exemplified perfectly on this track. Pretty nice track although ill have to let it grow on me a bit ngl.

5:This track is completely unique from anything else ive heard on the album. (I cannot get over the fact that the first verse uses the same flow as your favorite martian on mr douchebag.) The sound design continues to be otherwordly, legitimately so on this track sounding like music from outerspace. The latter half of this track is a lot more smooth and enjoyable than the first half.

6:Ohhh my god this interlude is amazing. Super ambient yet creepy vibes. Just a really nice relaxing track im definitely coming back to a ton.

7:Ive heard this song before. Absolute peak. Easily top 3 machine girl songs ever released, imo. Perfect blend of awesome electronic drums and live instrumentation in the more "punk rock" sections. The idm sections have an awesome groove and the transitions to the punk rock sections are just SO good. When this first dropped i was very surprised by it, but hearing it in context it makes perfect sense and fits snuggly as the center of this album.

8:Super cool track. Awesome drum grooves with some really unique vocals. Overall this is just a really fun song, with the high pitch really "bright" sounding instruments. The switch up later on brings a really nice element to this track aswell. Will be returning to this track many times i can tell. Not much to say here its just really good lol

9:The high pitch vocals really make this track for me. Super (again) groovy feel and awesome sound. The chaotic ending gives this track a good feel that makes it stand out from the rest of the tracklist

10:Living up to its name, "Grindhouse" starts with super dark feeling, as if you are in a house party on acid in a movie. This track just gets me moving man its so dancable! The second part of this track blends themes of house and techno with the experimental dark sound going on here, machine girl style with crazy sound design and distinctly machine girl vocals. This song just has a bounce to it that i love.

11:Another great interlude that sounds like a radio transition on a bad trip.

12:Transition into this song was amazing. The vocals already are captivating me with this aphex twin drukqs synth vibe, similar to cock/ver10. Vibing hard to this crazy ass track, just loving this switchup midway through, suddenly switching to a nice chill beat that still somehow sounds cracked out. AND IT SWITCHES UP AGAIN! Holy this song is so fucking good... the bass synths going loud in my ears and insane sounds im hearing definitely makes this track sound exactly like its name, "schizodipshit". The glitchyness adds to it aswell, and the cut back to reality with this simple beat right after omggg this song is phenomenal!!!!!

13:This was the third single for MG Ultra, and i love this song through and through, from the starting section with amazing drumming and superb chorus. I know the lyrics by heart to this song already i love it so much!! Its super relatable to me with it being about being belittled in small ways adding and not feeling respected by your peers. With lines like "psychic attack, when you're talking shit behind my back, psychic attack when i fall and hear your laughter" reveals this theme. Amazing final track that is a perfect closer for this just amazing album.

FINAL THOUGHTS: This album is the start of a new direction for machine girl, one of punk rock influence and more live instrumentation which I am really excited for! This keeps the same crazy energy and wild sound design and mixes it with punk rock groovyness. A must listen for machine girl fans. They have outdone themselves with this record. 10/10

[myaoiboy]

okay so i saw that post that said "to be loved is to be changed, but in a horrific and unasked for transformation" and this is so snotacon both sides to me.

I mean, think about it. Otacon can't *kill* someone when Snake meets him, and that's true in two ways. Yeah, physically he's a spindly litte nerd who literally couldn't hurt someone if his life depended on it, but he couldn't do it mentally either. He designs weapons. That's a far cry from actually *using* them. He's a pencil pusher who wanted to build giant robots and was willing to believe that MG Rex wouldn't actually be used.

How long do you think *that* lasted, living, working with a mercenary? At what point do you think it sunk in that if he wanted to actually achieve anything with Philanthropy he was going to have to be okay with lethal force being involved?

Surely we don't think everything was non-lethal up to the tanker? I mean, he has to explain the tranqs work at the beginning of the mission, so it's probably new to him, right? So what were they doing before that? And they don't ask themselves if they should pull out when it becomes apparent that lethal force may be necessary, so clearly these won't be the start of Philanthropy's body count.

So when was the point that he resigned himself to the fact that he was going to have to be a lot closer to death and direct killing than he ever had been before? Did Snake insist on having final judgment off the bat? Did Otacon try to convince him that they needed to do it non-lethally, did they run a mission, maybe even a few come off clean, only for something to go terribly wrong? Did they get out by the skin of their teeth? Did Snake have to kill someone, and Otacon get upset by this first death? And did they have an argument where Snake points out that he is the one that has to pay the price for Otacon's personal mission against killing?

:)

But that's all so obvious. Killing is bad, etc.

What about Snake?

I think the idea of caring for anyone is scary to him. Especially the extent to which he cares about Otacon.

I mean, half of his utility is in the fact that he just doesn't give a shit about himself, and has nobody left that gives a shit about him. He doesn't have anything to hold him back from giving 110% to the mission. If he dies, he dies. What does he care? He's a washed up alcoholic with PTSD previously known only to shrimps.

And he clearly values his utility. Even in 4, it's how he refers to himself. "An old killer." What use is he if he's concerned about whether he'll make it home in one piece.

When do you think that sinks in to him? Do you think was the first time Otacon told him to drop the mission and get back safe when things took a turn? Do you think he'd ever been in a situation where someone cared more about his life than whatever they were sending him to do? Do you think Kaz even pretended to genuinely care about his safety in the field? Forget Campbell, that's right out, he couldn't even let Snake be as he's fucking dying. Do you think he tried to finish it out first, only for Otacon to beg and scream at him that he was serious?

Or do you think it was when he got hurt, badly hurt, and he sees Otacon sitting over him at night, making sure he's okay, changing his bandages, and out of the corner of his eye he sees a hand wipe away tears, or hears a quiet sniffle, because Otacon realized how close he was to losing Snake.

Or maybe comms get cut unexpectedly during a shootout, and he gets sidetracked, held up somewhere, makes it back to the rendezvous point just under the wire, and Otacon is bawling because he really thought he lost Snake for good this time.

Do you think Snake realizes that at first? Do you think he's too obtuse to realize the tears are over him? Are from fear for him?

At what point do you think he realizes that the numbness he's fostered, that's been intentionally fostered in him (remember, he's the "Cipher-backed son", he's been moved from foster family to foster family more times than he can count, made intentionally to feel disposable, for the sake of creating a perfect soldier) has been replaced with this new pain, this fear, not even for himself, but for Otacon, for the gaping hole he realizes he'll leave in Otacon's life if something's to happen?

At what point do you think Snake realized that he'd turned a regular civilian into a mercenary, in mind if not body?

At what point do you think Otacon realized he'd fundamentally taken a US military asset and broken it over his knee?

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Open Circuits

I'm kickstarting the audiobook for "The Internet Con: How To Seize the Means of Computation," a Big Tech disassembly manual to disenshittify the web and make a new, good internet that picks up where the old, good internet left off. It's a DRM-free book, which means Audible won't carry it, so this crowdfunder is essential. Back now to get the audio, Verso hardcover and ebook:

http://seizethemeansofcomputation.org

Every trip to Defcon – the massive annual hacker-con in Las Vegas – is a delight. Partly it's the familiar – seeing old friends, getting updates on hacks of years gone by. But mostly, it's the surprises, the things you never anticipated. Defcon never fails to surprise.

I got back from Vegas yesterday and I've just unpacking my suitcase, and with it, the tangible evidence of Defcon's cave of wonders. My gear bag has a new essential: Hak5's malicious cable detector, a little USB gizmo that lights up if it detects surreptitious malicious activity, even as it interdicts those nasty payloads:

https://shop.hak5.org/collections/omg-row2/products/malicious-cable-detector-by-o-mg

(In case you're wondering if it's really possible to craft a malicious USB cable that injects badware into your computer and is visually indistinguishable from a regular cable, the answer is a resounding yes, and of course, Hak5 sells those cables, with a variety of USB tips:)

https://shop.hak5.org/collections/omg-row2/products/omg-cable

But merch is only a sideshow. The real action is in the conference rooms, where hackers update you on the pursuit of their obsessions. These are such beautiful weirdos who pursue knowledge to ridiculous extremes, untangling gnarly hairballs just to follow a thread to its origin point.

For the second year in a row, I caught a presentation from Joseph Gabay about his work on warshopping: slicing up shopping cart wheels and haunting shopping mall parking lots during resurfacing to figure out how the anti-theft mechanism that stops your cart from leaving the parking lot works:

https://www.begaydocrime.com/

And of course, I got to give one of those presentations, "An Audacious Plan to Halt the Internet's Enshittification," to a packed house. What a thrill! It was livestreamed, and if you missed it, you'll be able to catch it on Defcon's Youtube page as soon as they upload it (they've got a lot of uploading to do!):

https://www.youtube.com/@DEFCONConference/videos

After my talk, I went back to the No Starch Press booth for a book signing – which was amazing, so many beautiful hackers, plus I got to share a signing table with Micah Lee. As I was leaving, Bill Pollock slipped me a giant hardcover art-book, and said, "You're gonna love this."

I did. The book is Open Circuits: The Inner Beauty of Electronic Components, by Windell Oskay and Eric Schlaepfer, and it is a drop-dead gorgeous collection of photos of electronic components, painstakingly cross-sectioned and polished:

The photos illustrate layperson-friendly explanations of what each component does, how it is constructed, and why. Perhaps you've pondered a circuit board and wondered about the colorful, candy-shaped components soldered to it. It's natural to assume that these are indivisible, abstract functional units, a thing that is best understood as a reliable and deterministic brick that can be used to construct a specific kind of wall.

But peering inside these sealed packages reveals another world, a miniature land where things get simpler – and more complex. Inside these blobs of resin are snips of wire, plugs of wax, simple screws, fine sheets of metal in stacks, wafers of plain ceramic, springs and screws.

Truly, quantity has a quality all its own. Miniaturize these assemblies and produce them at unimaginable scale and the simple, legible components turn into mystical black boxes that only the most dedicated study can reveal. Like every magician's trick, the unfathomable effect is built up through the precise repetition of something very simple.

A prolonged study of Open Circuits reveals something important about the hacker aesthetic, a collection of graphic design, fashion and industrial design conventions that begins with this realization: that the crisp lines of digital logic can be decomposed into blobby, probabilistic lumps of metal, plastic, and even wax.

It reminds me of George Dyson's brilliant memoir/history of computing, Turing's Cathedral, where he describes how he and the other children of the scientists building the first digital computers at the Princeton Institute spent their summers in the basement, hand-winding cores for the early colossi their parents were building on the floors above them:

https://memex.craphound.com/2012/03/12/george-dysons-history-of-the-computer-turings-cathedral/

You can see my hacker aesthetic photos in my Defcon 31 photo set:

https://www.flickr.com/search/?sort=date-taken-desc&safe_search=1&tags=defcon31&user_id=37996580417%40N01&view_all=1

In this video, Eric Schlaepfer illustrates the painstaking work that went into decomposing these tiny, precise components into their messy, analog subcomponents. It's pure hacker aesthetic, and it's mesmerizing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byKyJ0b04Lo

But Open Circuits isn't just an aesthetic journey, it's a technical one. After all, Oskay is co-founder of Evil Mad Scientist Labs, one of the defining places where hardware hackers gather to tear down, pick apart, mod, improve and destroy electronics. The accompanying text is a masterclass in the simple machines that combine together to make complex assemblies:

https://www.evilmadscientist.com/

Defcon is a reminder that the world only seems hermetically sealed and legible to authorized parties with clearance to crack open the box. From shopping cart wheels to thermal fuses, that illegibility is only a few millimeters thick. Sand away the glossy outer layer and you will find yourself in a weird land of wax-blobs, rough approximations, expedient choices and endless opportunities for delight and terror, mischief and care.

Back my anti-enshittification Kickstarter here!

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/14/hidden-worlds/#making-the-invisible-visible-and-beautiful

[jennrypan]

Didn't we have this "I wa created to destroy you moment" before..and still nothing happened.

Also..I guess we're just ignoring the fact that it was ALL SIX OF THEM, specifically ZEUS that was more so made to destroy Kronos.

(I like Heras god form though, it could've been drawn..prettier. like Persephones titan form but whatever.)

This was so..anti climatic, the Minthe and Persephone chase scene was more dramatic than this.

And oh wow Heras a fertility goddess, and turns out she was being used. SHOCKER. Like every damn woman in this comic, 🙄 God I geniunely hate the fertility goddess plot, it actually means nothing and it just makes it seem all the fertility goddesses are kinda dumb cuz it keeps happening 😶 like..what's the point?? You guys aren't so super powerful if it's easy to just..take from you which is so fucking shitty.

Also. Hera said she isn't a fighter so is she gonna pull a Persephone and minorly inconvenience Kronos???

And ZEUS DIDNT NEED A DAMN POWER BOOST TO BEAT KRONOS OH. MG GODDDDDDD AJAIQN fertility goddesses aren't some weird fucking love battery!! (It's literally like using the power of love by force 😶)

Also wow!! Hades and Persephone get another child they can neglect !! Hades already neglected two kids so let's see how this third one ends up abandoned and never addressed. (Also..Melonies design..sucks. it sucks so much. STOP GIVING CHARACTERS BLUE SKIN.)

Also..American sign language for a Greek child is so 💀 and can..a God even be born deaf?? Like..she's still a God? Take Hephaestus, he got that way cuz he was dropped from Mount Olympus..but?? Can they? It just seems like a very..interesting new detail Rachel added just for brownie points in how 'diverse' her cast is.

(And it's so funny that Persephone stole Zeus' child so he wouldn't be raised by nymphs and yet..this boy has been neglected left and right and now he's in Tartarus. Zeus should punch her and take his son back 🤨)

This comic handles all of them (especially Zeus and Hera) so fucking POORLY and people have the fucking gall to think it's good 💀

[guppylover]

My New Concept!

Hi my lovilies!! It's Rena! Or Sylvia, which my new magical girl name. But anyway, I finished my new concept, so today I'm going to inform you on what I created! The concept is a pmm x precure x cardcaptor sakura x pokemon-ish? I don't know it's based off multiple fandoms so it's kind of complicated!

I am a nekomancer, a magical girl who fights cat-themed nightmares, tames them, and train the monsters to fight on the good side, kind of like doppelwork in pmm.

To do this, you must find the labrinyth where the nightmare subsides. Usually, your fimilliar will teleport you to there, but you can find one by the glow of your transformation item. Just like pmm witches, the give off sigils (theyre really called the "face" of the labrinyth, but you can consider it a sigil.) The face of the labrinyth is the literal face of the nightmare when it was alive. The face gets easier and easier to envision as you get closer to it. You can enter a labrinyth by looking for a shifting or misplaced wall/ piece of concrete near the area, then walking through it and glitching to the labyrinth.

Next, you must fight the nightmare and collect it's soul gem, which contains it's power and it's soul. Nighmares are just possessed versions of cat souls, so they're not that powerful, unless multiple nightmares merge together and fight. In this case, you would get more than 1 soul gem. Your familiar, who works with you in the physical, will travel to the astral and place it in your "inventory", if that makes sense. Once it's in your inventory, you can summon them to the physical to help you in battle.

The more soul gems you collect, the more powerful you become. Once you get all 12 elements (water, fire, earth, air, electricity, light, dark, etc.) you can unlock your ultra form. It is 15x powerful than your regular mg form, so it's great to awaken in in battle.

All nightmares are controlled by the Shiba Force, an evil, dog-obsessed force who are determined to make cats suffer (yes i love cats so much that I made it the center of my concept.) They feed on the life of cats and use they're souls as their minions to corrupt Earth.

However, not all cat souls are corrupted, and that's where my familiar comes from.

All cats who don't qualify for heaven's rules must be recarnated at the CRS- Cat Recranation System- in the astral realm.

Once they are recarnated and dropped off to their desired future magical girl, they must set to work on saving the Earth.

My familiar is a male white cat with blue eyes and has a blue teardrop gem on his forehead. Once I contract, I get the same mark somewhere on my body (chest for me!) and officially become a magical girl.

My magical girl outfit looks exactly like sayaka's except I have a skirt with ruffles, a blue version of Cure Happy's boots, and wings (i can fly!) I also use the same weapons and have healing abilities.

Since I resprent water in my group, Magica Quinet, I can control water/ice and make minions, turn everyday items into minions, make shields, weapons, and start mini-natrual disasters associated with water.

Last but not least, my transformation item is a ring, a blue cat ring with wings.

If any aspiring mg like my new concept, please contact me so we manifest together :3

Thats all for now! Bye my lovilies! Sending love and luck to you all!

[countrymusiclover]

57 - They Grow Up Too Fast

Part 58

Family is More than Blood

@melvia-ito @vavafaure1994 @kmc1989 @tallrock35

All the Mikaelson / Lane kids are now portrayed by the actors on the sequel cover 😁

Five years ago

Entering the main lodge room of the boarding school I felt the stiffening in my shoulders walking towards the podium in the center of the room. The decision I made today would change the course of this school for the rest of its lives. Stepping up in front of the podium I didn’t take my gaze off of my husband who was standing in the back corner of the room near the window. “Good morning, everyone. I know it’s been quite some time before you all have seen me around here and I will report that I am back to my old self. And I have an announcement that deals with the school’s current system in place.”

“Mom, where exactly are Alina and Jackson?” Hope raised her hand sitting beside Missy on the first row with the Saltzman twins.

Tapping my fingers on the podium I paused. “I was informed that your sister and her husband decided to take young Xavier to New Orleans to clear her head for a while.”

“Is it because of all the villain attacks, mommy?” Henrik asked, swinging his legs back and forth.

Nodding my head slowly, yes I placed my hands down on the podium hoping this speech goes well. “Particularly yes that was one of the reasons she mentioned. But y’all don’t need to worry as we haven’t had any attacks as of recently and I intend to keep it that way.”

“So what’s the new system then?” Missy piped into the group conversation.

“It seems in the best interest of you all that we go back to where all the stress of keeping the world safe from these monsters should fall on the headmaster's shoulders. So I have decided that some of you should spend the next year attending Mystic Falls High and get the experience of being somehat human for a change.” I heard muttering coming from the crowd of young students sitting before me. “Now I know that y’all might have objections to this but I assure you this will only be willing participants.”

Missy rose along with Josie and MG. “We’ll go.”

“Okay anyone else?”

The shut double doors opened and everyone turned their heads seeing the familiar face of Andrea. “I’ll go too when I turn 15 of course.” I parted my mouth open not expecting her to be here considering my brother and Hayley had also left the school for safety and other reasons.

“Then it’s settled these four will be the first run and if they are successful some more of you may join in. If you decide being human isn’t for you this school shall always be here for you.” Klaus vamped up to the podium standing by my side.

Footsteps ran into the room standing in the doorway glaring at my husband and I. “We need to talk now, privately.” Alaric left the room before we vamped into the main office that we heard him walk into.

“What do you want to talk about, Ric. We’re kinda in the middle of something here.” I asked moving to stand a few feet away from him.

He huffed, dropping his shoulders. “What were you thinking about sending some of the kids to Mystic High to pretend to be human? The reason we built this place was to protect them from the judgments of the humans in this town.”

“The monster attacks have put too much pressure on these kids. They need to just be kids again and the only way I see that happening is if they pose as humans.”

Klaus entered the conversation. “It’s been years ago, mate. But Caroline, Elena, Stefan, my wife and even Rebekah did your best to pose as humans when they attended that school. I also remember you pretending to be a human professor at a college when you met your wife from what you told my wife.”

“It’s too dangerous. This is a safe place for them.” Alaric snapped back at us.

Running my hands down my face I groaned. “We wouldn’t be kicking them out forever. They all would still be living here. But this gives them a chance to be somewhat normal and just be kids for once in their lives. Some of us never got that chance, this is what we should give to our children.”

Klaus crossed his arms over his chest. “Alaric, you know my wife has a valid point. These kids are supposed to be better. This is how they'll learn like we did.”

“Ric, please just give me a chance. You look after the ones at Mystic High and I'll look after the ones here.” I gave him a begging look where his eyes finally met mine and he did finally cave under the stare agreeing with me.

Walking up the stairs to the Saltzman girls bedroom I was hoping Lizzie would be there since I needed to talk with her about Alina. She was the only person she would contact, so she's basically my inside woman if you will. Opening the door I peaked my head inside seeing her sitting on the edge of her bed. “Have you heard anything from her recently?”

“Sorry Auntie Rae but I've got nothing. I'm assuming it's because she's busy with her hairy breatheron pack.”

I sighed sitting down on the foot of Josie's bed. “I never thought any of my kids would just stop talking to me or even my twin brother for that matter.”

“We just have to hope that one day the people we love will come back to us once they realize the huge mistake of cutting us out had on their lives.” She piped up and I knew she was referring to Josie still attending Mystic High with the others.

Alaric still had his principal job there so he could keep an eye on the group of kids we had sent over there. “We'll just have to keep up hope for that to happen - Henrik!” Whipping my head around to the door that got busted open I saw my oldest son coming in all frantically.

“Mom, it's Charming and Rapunzel. They're sliding down the staircases again.” He said in a huff, running a hand through his tousled curls that made him resemble so much of his father.

I raised a brow figuring he had more to say otherwise he wouldn't have come in here. “They'll be fine, baby. You and your sisters used to do that all the time when you were younger. So what’s really going on?”

“I know what this is really about.” Lizzie smirked in my direction. “Well aren’t you going to tell her?”

He shakes his head in defense. “No, I don't really want to.”

“She’s your mother. She'll find out eventually, might as well tell her now. Little wolf boy.”

Making a confused expression towards the siphon witch I looked back at my son. “Henrik, sweet boy you can tell me anything, remember. But if you're not comfortable that's fine too.”

“It's about a girl, mom. I want to ask her out. And - and she goes here.” Henrik's face turned red with embarrassment but he had a small smile on his face.

My mouth fell open in shock not expecting that response from him. “Klaus! I think we need to have the talk now.” I called his name knowing he'd hear me wherever he was. We'd have to realize that our younger children were growing up.