#There are some newer pushes that aren't bad but I still. Do not like

[lunarpunctuation]

every part of every suburb or modern (last 20 ish years) city expansion in Texas and Oklahoma that wasn't a historical community that was overtaken.

Worst designed outlying suburb of a major city, Go!

[spacecadet-ticklesinspace]

Tickletober Day 25: New Discovery

Fandom: Avatar the Last Airbender

Pairing: Uncle Iroh and Zuko

Summary: Uncle Iroh discovers something new about his nephew.

(This is a newer favorite of mine so I haven't seen all of the seasons yet ❤️:) These two are my favorite characters by far ❤️ :) Set around Season 2 or 3 ❤️ :))

"You hardly touched your tea Zuko." Iroh turned to his nephew. "Are you alright?"

Zuko looked away from his cup. "I'm fine Uncle."

"Is it the tea?"

"The tea's fine. You did a great job with the recipe."

"Thank you. I discovered a new plant on my walk yesterday and it smelled exactly like ginger root."

Zuko turned to his uncle. "Is it ginger root?"

"Wasn't shaped like any ginger root that I'd ever seen." Iroh set his teapot back down. "So if the tea is not the problem, it must be the company."

The teen's head snapped up. "Of course not."

"Then what?"

"I'm sorry." Zuko pushed his shoulders upright. "I didn't want to cause any problems on today's visit . . . I just had a rough day yesterday."

"Oh?"

". . . Uncle, do you ever doubt your experience as a firebender?"

"My experience, no. My knowledge, yes."

"Aren't they the same?"

"Your experience as a firebender is just that, experience. Experience helps you to learn and grow and mature. Your knowledge is gained through those experiences, but it can also be gained in other ways. Not all experiences are good, just like not all knowledge is good. However, you can more easily move on from a bad experience than you can from bad knowledge."

"So, I'm doubting my experience because of bad knowledge?"

"Perhaps, or perhaps there's something else making you doubt."

Zuko looked away again.

"I see." Iroh leaned forward. "Maybe you don't doubt your experience Zuko. Maybe you doubt your abilities."

The former prince stood. "I need some fresh air. Would you care to join me?"

Iroh placed his tea cup down then stood. "Perhaps a walk would do us both some good. I know a trail we can stroll down."

"That sounds perfect."

Iroh smiled. "Follow me."

With that, the two stepped out into the sunshine.

The older of the two sighed in contentment. "Ahh, nothing like a walk to make you feel refreshed."

"It is nice."

"Just feel the warmth of the sun on your skin, the sound of wind rushing along your ears, the feel of fresh ground under your feet. It helps to ground you and make you feel new."

"Yes indeed."

Iroh peered at his young nephew. "Something is still weighing on you."

"I don't want to bother you with it Uncle."

"Who said anything about bothering? I'm volunteering to be a listening ear. That is not bothering."

"I'd rather not talk about it."

The older of the two stopped. "Zuko, if something is bothering you, it is not wise to keep it in."

Zuko stopped and sighed. "Uncle---."

Suddenly, Iroh's eyes widened. "Zuko, look."

The younger turned only to be greeted by an amazing view. The land seemed to stretch out for miles with the bright colors of the sunset streaming along on top of it. "It's beautiful."

"The best view in all the city." Iroh placed a hand on his nephew's shoulder. "Not many people know about this area."

"Shame, people would enjoy a view like this."

As Iroh talked, his hand moved down to pat Zuko's back. "Indeed, well, atleast we get to---."

Suddenly, Zuko squeaked and jumped to the side. When his uncle had moved his hand, his fingers had brushed against his spine. Not a bad spot, but definitely a sensitive one.

"Are you alright?" Iroh asked.

"I'm fine, just---startled."

"Startled? With the way you moved, I would have thought---."

Zuko pushed away his uncle's hand as he reached for him again.

"Zuko." The older of the two narrowed his eyes. "What are you doing?"

"I'm fine Uncle." The former prince motioned to the trail. "Shall we start back? Your tea will get cold."

"Forget about the tea." Iroh grabbed his nephew's wrist and pulled him closer. "You act as if you're injured."

Zuko held up his free hand. "I'm not injured."

"Then why did you flinch."

"You startled me."

"That was not a startle."

"Please Uncle, let's go---."

"I may be an old man nephew, but I can still pin you."

Zuko's eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"You're hiding something and it may be hurting you. I intend to find it out."

"You're being overprotective."

"Of course." Iroh quickly reached around to feel along Zuko's back. "I intend to be."

"Uncle---!" Whatever Zuko hoped to say was broken off by a squeak.

His uncle's hand quickly felt along his spine. The firm yet gentle pressure traveling along his back sent jolts of ticklish energy through out his entire body. Try as he might, he couldn't break the firm grip currently around his wrist. Uncle Iroh thought something was wrong and he would not be dissuaded.

Meanwhile, Iroh studied his nephew's responses to his touch. Zuko's shoulders were hunched while his entire body shook. At first, the older of the two thought it might be from pain.

However, when he looked closer, he could see a hidden smile appearing on his nephew's face.

Suddenly, the dots connected. "Ah, I see."

"Unclehele," Zuko giggled out as a blush appeared on his cheeks.

Iroh grinned. "We must look into this further."

"Wahait!"

But the older of the two did not. He used to attack his son Lee when he was younger, but Zuko had always been iffy with lots of physical touch outside of his mother. This meant Iroh had never even thought about tickling his nephew for fear of causing him discomfort.

However, the changes in Zuko's life had made him more comfortable with touch so Iroh didn't think twice of tickling him now.

The younger of the two snorted as his uncle's hand moved up to his shoulder blades.

"Well, what injuries are you hiding up here now?" Iroh teased.

"Nothihing!" Zuko squirmed. "Lehet mehe goho!"

"No no no, I'm not satisfied yet."

"But Unclehele!"

"No buts." Iroh moved along Zuko's shoulder blades. "Now hold still."

The younger squeaked and almost tipped to the side from the ticklish feeling.

"My you're sensitive nephew. What did you do to your back?"

"Unclehele plehease!"

"If you don't get checked now, you may have a bad injury and not realize."

Zuko shoved his uncle's hands away. "Enohough!"

Iroh smiled at his nephew's blushy face and residule giggles. The scowl on his face looked adorable too.

The former prince growled. "Why wohould yohou do thahat!"

"You're the one hiding something nephew, not me."

"But tickling?"

"Think you're too old to be tickled?"

"I'm 16! Tickling is for kids."

"Says who?"

"Everyone."

"Just because a majority says it, does that make it true?"

Zuko smacked his forehead with his palm.

"If what the majority said was true, you wouldn't be ticklish now, would you?" Iroh pointed out.

The former prince gave him a deadpan look.

"Can't argue with the truth." The older of the two wiggled his fingers. "And since you hid one injury, I think I need to look for others."

Before Zuko could react, Iroh immediately attacked his sides. The younger squealed and broke into loud laughter. He grabbed onto his uncle's wrists as he tried to squirm away.

The older man couldn't keep the soft smile off his face. He already loved his nephew, but seeing him laugh so freely made his heart melt a little more. "Who knew someone so stubborn headed could be so adorable?"

Zuko snorted as his uncle's hands went higher onto his ribs. The redness on his face was darkening from his embarrassment in this situation.

"Hmm, have you done any injuries to your ribs? One, two, three---."

"Unclehele plehehease!"

"I'm not finished with checking you for injuries just yet. Now I have to start over."

A moment later, Zuko broke free of the grip and took several steps back.

Iroh chuckled and smirked. "You'd better run. I'm not letting you get away that easily."

The former prince's eyes went wide and a moment later, he took off.

Iroh's demeanor softened. His nephew would eventually tell him what was bugging him, but for now, he would keep his mind distracted with his new discovery.

[dribs-and-drabbles]

This is a little something (she says and then writes nearly a thousand words) about Kawi and intimacy and his behaviour towards Pisaeng's affections in Be My Favourite ep 9. I've been thinking about it all week but wasn't sure if I wanted to use my precious free-time to make a post. However, on the cusp of the new ep, I realise I do want to get these thoughts out.

I realised from reading other people's perspectives of the ep that my initial assessment of how Kawi was behaving was perhaps clouded by the 'old lenses' that I was subconsciously watching the show through. For context, I wasn't sure that I liked that Kawi kept pushing Pisaeng away and I even mentioned the dreaded Blushing Maiden trope. After some thought, I realise that my initial judgement was very much influenced by a couple of things carried over from ye olden bl times (which may not have been done away with completely but seem to be on their way out in present times).

First, from having seen so many bl/qls with the blushing maiden trope, subconsciously I guess I still expect to see it because it had been so prevalent. And second, despite the re-wiring my brain has undergone when it comes to Krist, I think I still fell back on the earlier presumptions that Krist was either averse to skinship (particularly with men) and/or wasn't a good enough actor to convey physical intimacy (this, of course, mostly stems from his portrayal of Arthit in SOTUS, which for all we know was how he was specifically directed to act - and which many have interpreted as demi- or asexual, which absolutely has a place at the table).

My conclusions to these realisations is that I need to learn to trust these newer bl/qls that they really aren't going to rehash the old questionable tropes of yesteryear.

I remember some discourse before the last three eps of My School President - when we were worried about the ending - about how Bad Buddy taught us that we can feel safe watching it - "safe in the knowledge that tropes were being subverted, that the usual angsty triggers actually got resolved pretty quickly, that the ep 11 curse wasn't actually a curse at all". And we needed to take that knowledge to help assuage our fears about the ending of MSP. And I think I'm in a similar situation here with Be My Favourite and Kawi in particular.

Staying with Bad Buddy for a bit longer (because, really, when can I ever not talk about it in relation to something else?), I remember feeling a similar disappointment with how Pran was being portrayed in ep 9. I felt he too bordered on the blushing maiden with how he shied away from Pat's advances in his room before Korn came in, before the rugby game, and even when washing up after the hotpot date. I don't see that now because, of course, we know Pran isn't a blushing maiden at all - I mean he's not known as Feral Musky Scented HOE Pran for nothing.

Yes, it took time for Pran to get used to Pat's affections but that was probably because he had pined over this man for so long it was all a bit overwhelming at first. Pran probably needed to ease into letting down his walls, to be vulnerable around Pat, and to believe it was all real. And in the end, when he had gotten used to it all, Pran holds back because he likes to make Pat work for it...because Pat also likes to work for it, because they get off on role-playing - as I've said before, it's like foreplay to them.

I'm not saying this is the same for Kawi but it's a similar situation. I knew this about Pran, and that I was wrong in my interpretation of him, and yet I didn't think to approach Kawi and Pisaeng with the same lens. The lens that so many of you have helpfully pointed out - Kawi is a 30-year-old virgin. This is all so new to him, not only to be intimate with someone but also with a man whom he hadn't even contemplated being with. He's spent 12 years only thinking of Pear (emphasis on 'only thinking' as well as 'only thinking').

@burntsuncomet said it well in their tags: "touch gets very very difficult if you don't interact with people much, so intimacy of normal affectionate touches are tough. Kawi would have to start slow and let Piseang just smack a kiss, maybe hold hands, hug a bit, it's a lot of work before intimacy from touch will be like second nature in Kawi's case." @rocketturtle4 also added that Kawi's "general uncertainty could be very well tied in with his loneliness and, especially, his fear of losing Piseang if he does the wrong thing".

@waitmyturtles offered a slightly different perspective, that almost "everything in this show is totally intentional, and...that [Kawi's] discomfort is totally meant to reflect those accusations from Krist’s past about his clear discomfort in acting out intimacy (especially juxtaposed with how much better he’s done with the intimacy in this show)".

So, all of this is to say that I need to start trusting this new wave of bl/qls - a message I obviously forgot from My School President and which has been proven by several other series this year.

And I need to trust Be My Favourite especially, because, as @williamrikers said, "they've swerved and avoided every other trope so far I believe that they're working towards something here". And I agree. Every episode has been fantastic and I haven't disliked a single thing about the show so far.

On top of that, I need to trust my newfound belief in Krist's acting, because he has pulled out some absolutely brilliant performances in this show so far - so why should I think ep 9 is any different?

[mafuluzx]

AHHH I love your Wattpad FICS they bring so much joy 💖💖

Idk if your still doing request or not but can I request jay x male reader where the readers comforting jay after he got hurt during a battle ( reader is also a ninja please)

And I'll probs ask one for kai later if you don't mind

Have a lovely day/night

AHH THAT'S SO NICE TO HEAR!!!! I PUT ALL THE FLUFF IN MY HEART TO THIS!!! I think I succeeded. :3 It's a little short, but I believe quality > quantity, so this is it for now. I'm also very sorry I posted this so late, I have no good explanation, my dumb brain just forgot tumblr existed or something! I'm so sorry!

WARNING! Needles, I know people who can't handle needles so I'll put a warning about it here!

Jay x male reader oneshot!

Takes place in some of the newer seasons.

Comfort

"...It hurts... Am I going to die...?" Jay let out weakly as he laid his head on (y/n)'s lap.

"No you aren't, silly." (y/n) answered with a calm voice and a comforting smile as he brushed through Jay's hair with his fingers.

"...Am I going to-"

"Jay, ask the same question ONE MORE TIME, and I'm leaving." Kai scoffed as Jay glared at him with tears in his eyes.

"But it hurts!!!" Shouted at Kai before recoiling in pain. (y/n) placed a hand on Jay's cheek comfortingly before trying to soothe the blue ninja with a small "There, there..." Kai rolled his eyes before continuing to sanitize the stab wound on Jay's stomach. Three hours ago, the team were actually worried if Jay would die or not, but thankfully the lightning ninja was tougher than the spear that had pierced through his body a few hours ago.

"It'll only hurt for a bit." (y/n) said as Kai pulled out a needle and thread, ready to stitch Jay's wound closed. Upon noticing the small and sharp object, Jay tensed up and looked up at (y/n).

"Why is Kai helping me?! By the time he stitches this wound up I'll have ten more on me!" Jay raised his voice as Kai glared at him.

"I can still hear you. Ugh, I don't know why i'm here either." Kai said before gently pushing the needle through Jay's skin. Jay gripped your hand tight as you squeezed his hand back just as tightly. Jay looked like he was about to die any second now, tears of pain gathering in the corners of his eyes, so (y/n) couldn't help but feel really bad for him.

"...I'm done." Kai finally said as Jay let out the biggest sigh in existence.

"Thank you, Kai. I didn't trust my own skills enough to treat to a wound this big, I'm glad you did it for me." (y/n) thanked Kai in Jay's stead. Kai rubbed his neck bashfully and nodded before hurrying to leave. He had to get back to the deck to talk about the teams next move, but Jay had to rest under the deck due to his wound, and he had forced (y/n) to stay with him. There was a long silence as (y/n) pet Jay's hair, and the blue ninja laid perfectly still and accepted the treatment.

"...I love you." Jay suddenly said as (y/n) chuckled a bit.

"I love you too." He said back as Jay smiled hopefully.

"Can you make me something to eat?" Jay asked as (y/n) chuckled again, before pinching Jay's cheek.

"Ahaha, don't get ahead of yourself. I'm only babying you because you got hurt. And you are in no condition to sit up, much less eat anything."

"You're so cold!" Jay sniffled as (y/n) sighed and continued brushing through his hair.

"I thought you loved me?" (y/n) questioned Jay.

"I do, but you know what I mean!" Jay said and tried to stretch his body, but it only ended up sending a shot of pain through him, and he dug his nails into his arms to relieve the pain. (y/n) quickly swatted the hand away.

"...I'll cook you something tomorrow, how about that?" (y/n) offered after a small silence. Jay's eyes lit up, but he didn't move.

"Really?! Yay!" Jay celebrated before continuing.

"Can you bake a cake?" He asked as (y/n) chuckled.

"Cole can bake a better cake than I." They both knew what level Cole's cooking was on, so Jay gave up the idea almost instantly. He frowned and sunk his head into (y/n)'s lap.

"Come on now, don't sulk." (y/n) said, but got no answer from Jay. (y/n) rolled his eyes before speaking once again.

"How about egg rolls? With any fillings you'd like." Jay turned his head just a little so he was looking into (y/n)'s eyes, before burying himself back in his boyfriend's lap with a:

"Yes, please."

[magicalgirlpictureencyclopedia]

Idk why I'm back here, but I do want to say that I think we should talk more about gems in the magical girl genre such as Petite Princess Yucie, Jewelpet Twinkle, and Fairy Musketeers rather than niche 2010's titles we've (the fans, idc about them much) all agreed on aren't good. Besides beloved 90's-2000's titles (Sailor Moon, Cardcaptor Sakura, Ojamajo Doremi, Tokyo Mew Mew, Shugo Chara to name a few) and the rare retro fan who is into Minky Momo or Creamy Mami... I see a lot of, "Well, [×] was a bad show and the genre is ruined!", but it always comes off as someone who doesn't really watch the genre. There's a lot of good shows out there if you check them out, but if you aren't actively looking for recommendations or looking for titles then you can't really expect to find much.

As harsh as it may come off, in my experience the average American magical girl fan isn't going to watch or even know of obscure titles much to look for mhch more. Most people's introduction to the genre here was through Sailor Moon, and that expectation of those action oriented media sticked. Therefore, the majokko (魔女っ子, witch girl) and magical girl idol titles are pushed into the background. Some would point the finger at licensing, but it also misses how a lot of these titles aren't commonly talked about as is. It was worse before Retrocrush on Discotek, but at the least you can find people who are into stuff like Magical Emi or Pastel Yumi. Still, it's hard for me to grasp how a lot of the genre is ignored in bigger magical girl spaces, especially on sites such as Twitter. I get highly confused when I only see people talking about Precure or Sailor Moon, yet make a lot of assumptions pushed to places that aren't really responsible for that.

Sure, licensing could be better, but that's a complex issue I've seen people go into. A friend of mines posts about how deals were set up for shows like Shugo Chara, but companies weren't interested. There's a massive problem overall with getting girls media off the ground as well. However, it is also on fans to check out more than what many would call the "cream of the crop" if they want other experiences. The optimizing of "dark themes" from newer fans also does not help, as it relegates the genre into a very odd competition between which is more mature or serious, yet forgetting at the end of the day many of these titles are for kids and cam stand on their own without vague comparisons. If you're not even going to look into say, titles beyond Princess Tutu, then I can't really take demands of wanting the genre to explore other themes seriously when several already have done that...

Yes, I'm saying this because most people in the online spaces I frequent at most will just watch Precure, Madoka Magica, and Sailor Moon, yet refuse to look at anything else and commonly put themselves into discussions to make generalizations about media they know they will never watch. It's especially weird to see as a fan of adv games/visual novels and mecha anime, where I see people do the exact opposite - dig up old titles and openly talk about them. I'm not expecting fans to automatically know what stuff like Galaxy Fraulein Yuna is, or games like Silky Lip and Valis, but I do think with media critique and common complaints your scope of criticism should be beyond a popular 90's titles and a few from the 2000's. I also find so many conversations dull cause I've been in the fandom for a hot minute and recommendations I rarely see, but moreso complaints about the same 6-8 shows instead of uh, idk, watching something else entirely.

Again, enjoy your shows, just don't jump into convos "educating people" (telling me or others stuff like majokko don't count, too many other examples to list here), or claiming all of the genre was boring/good/bad/kiddy before [×]. I also promise you it's actually rare to find a magical girl title that doesn't address "serious themes", cause even the ones about fairy tales and cutesy magical schools have child abandonment and trauma rampant through them. :/

[spongebob-connoisseur]

Not gonna lie but l actually love Modern SpongeBob (Seasons 9-13) than Old SpongeBob. Don't get me wrong, l love both Old and Modern SpongeBob. But seasons 9 - 13 are much more interesting and have a much better animation/art style. The art style is much more cartoony and colorful.

Tbh I get that. I really enjoy the modern seasons of sb. They're equally tied with the classic seasons in my heart. I know that's like a sin amongst sb fans but its true! Its so fun and colorful and you can see that there is a lot of love put into it. It might not always be so strong writing wise but I still adore it. I feel like nowadays cartoony cartoons have gone out of style hence why there's so much vitriol when a show is silly and light hearted.

Go anywhere online and say you like the current show, people would act like there's something wrong with you in the head. They can't conceive that you can just like something for fun. They act like you're an idiot for enjoying something so silly and light hearted. There always has to be some cynicism, angst or some serialized drama to it. Which I do very much enjoy very much but I also like this and I feel like they both have much to offer. I also feel like cartoons in general are SUPER underrated. Unless it proves itself to be "deep" then it nobody cares for it. They think silly expressions or wacky movements means its for only children (and ignoring the fact that drawing those things are actually VERY difficult, I prefer doing realism but I struggle HARD to get down the wacky expressions spongebob does on a regular basis! It takes skill!)

I also like a lot of what the newer seasons have to offer. People always go on "modern spongebob tortures squidward too much" "modern Spongebob made patrick into a jerk" and they refer to an episode that came out 10-15 years ago lol. Its really discrediting a lot of what the show has to offer. They made Patrick much more nicer in recent episodes and he willingly stands up for Spongebob when he gets pushed around. Squidward torture rarely happens. The show constantly experiments and has amazing art all around. I feel like a lot of that gets ignored. Gosh I really wish it got acknowledged more! Season 13 has been pretty experimental I've been really enjoying it.

You know what's funny? The modern seasons get so much hate because its not ""hillenburg"" and it doesn't have the old writers even tho Hillenburg technically never left. He was Executive producer and gave his ok on scripts and episodes. He wasn't as actively involved as he was in the first 3 seasons but he wasn't fully gone. AND he returned around season 9. He vowed to work as long as his health allowed him and so season 13 is the only season he hasn't worked on BUT he trusted the show to the current crew which is mostly made up of the same folks who made the first 3 seasons. Literally you can pull up a modern episode and there's always someone who worked on the first 3 seasons. Obviously they aren't going to produce the same things they made almost 25 years ago but you can tell they're doing their best. Its rare to get the same thing that clicked 20ish years ago but they should be free to experiment and do something new too. Spongebob has always changed and adapted for the times. Most people don't even notice that each season is different from each other. Season 1 is wildly different from season 3 for example.

Anyways classic and modern have a special place in my heart for the same reason. They're both massively comforting to me and I can put on either and they'd make a bad day feel so much better <3

Also Classic Spongebob and Modern Spongebob would be besties. Don't believe the art work of classic sponge hating his modern counterpart. They'd get along SO well.

[tiredassmage]

can we hear more about in dreams, hopes to die... 👉👈 those lines are so tasty..

CHOMPING AT THE BIT, AYE AYE CAPTAIN!!!!

Would you believe me if I reveal that this snippet is from the same piece? It's obviously an overall not very good time kind of piece, so I felt a tiny bit bad about it for once and decided to throw Tyr a bone. Valkorian and Tyr's own conga line of bad times couldn't be the only thing in five years worth of dreams, I figured, lol.

Also, that very scene is where the banger In the dark, it’s easier to hide and easier to tell the truth came from, lol.

Don't get too excited though because that's... very short. And also it's mentally set to Eyelids by PVRIS, so uh. It still punches me in the face.

Eventually I'll hopefully throw him another bone and give him and Theron's time on Rishi or Yavin IV a little pass because I'd like to think Theron's at least a little right and something came up. And stars know Tyr needs a fuckin' break, good gods almighty anlkfdnafldsf. Says she who continues to put that man in Situation after Situation after Situa-

And it was very hard to stop at just the first line for that initial post because the three lines that follow it are the meat and potatoes of what is currently the opening sequence of what I hope will eventually be a coherent fic. Or at least kinda coherent. It's still a very nebulous piece and I kinda like that, so I might not really do much more setup because it seems fitting that there wouldn't be a lot of setup and transition in something like the carbonite dreams era.

And, perhaps unsurprisingly given the nature of the setup of that chapter, but a lot of these scenes flirt with the concept of death. Tyr's dangerous dedication to "finishing the job" isn't anything new to those of us who have been here a while, lol, but this is a good character study piece if you're newer to my favorite blorbo, though it's an undeniably heavy one and obviously a bit fucky and nebulous by nature.

Also, fair warning, yes I'm giving you lines, but also I am going to give you a ramble and a half about Tyr lore because this is the piece I'm stuffing some juicy tick-tock workings into because I realized it was good for that and I love my boy so much, he's so fucked up. I love him though.

Anyway, I teased, so the next three lines of that scene, as foretold beneath the cut:

At first, it’s a firing squad. Mud cakes their boots and the rain pelts heavy on worn, drawn faces.

Tyr pushes to his feet unsteadily. A flash of lighting breaks overhead, glancing off of leveled blasters and hollowed eyes.

It will end as it should: without a soul remembering his name. He’d prefer it that way.

Okay, so... this is also not necessarily a piece I intended to write, but I realized there is... almost no better place to do a deep dive into some of the things that tick inside of Tyr that maybe aren't best portrayed in dialogue alone. This also wasn't meant to be in present tense, but it didn't feel right in past, so I ended up caving and that's... been a theme of the week, I guess, lol.

This is also like. I always chuckle a bit in that scene from Visions in the Dark later where Valkorian threatens you to meet his challenge and grow stronger or die alone and unremembered because wouldn't that just be ideal for a former Cipher. Wasn't that how the story was supposed to end? He didn't ask for your bullshit, grandpa.

There's currently two other scenes I have - they're all relatively short as I try to keep with that sort of drifting feeling. But the other one that might [Large Eyes Emoji] be of... relevant interest...

What’s been done has already been done. It doesn’t matter what it was. Maybe it won’t matter to anyone else.

Because it’s going to end here and now. Such were the decrees of the Sith - of the Empire.

Absolutes.

It matters to him that he tried. This is one of the kinder ways this could go - quietly, without the fanfare of blood on his teeth and a fire in his eyes.

“For what it’s worth, sir?” Nine exhales long and slow as he closes his eyes. “I’ve always admired you… You did your best.”

Finally.

No.

More.

Running.

“But I’m not going back.” The old man’s one of the few he could ever hope to ask this final favor. “Finish this - what we started.”

The Minister of Intelligence pulls the trigger.

It’s over before Tyr feels the ground beneath him.

Also topical given the "are others concerned about their sleep schedule" tag post reblogged earlier today, lol, and the idea of chronic nightmares. That Tyr and I haven't talked about. To each other. Or the world. Possibly not with the people he cares about, either. I'm sure Theron knows nebulously that he can have some troubled sleep - you don't share a bed with someone and not notice how consistently they have trouble falling or staying asleep.

But I think the fuckiest part of the whole Castellan Restraints period for Tyr is how he doesn't want to let the old man down. The Minister is more a father figure in Tyr's eyes than his own father, quite honestly [Tyr has a... kind of non-existant relationship with his entire family, unfortunately - and it's not because he went into Intelligence], and there's absolutely a part of that dynamic that is mentor and protégé.

And it's important to me that he sees this scenario with the Minister and not Shara - at least in Chapter Two, where it first haunts his nightmares with some consistency. Because I made a conscious choice in Shara knowing as Keeper about his Restraints - not because that ever comes up in-game, but because it adds something very crunchy to their already doomed narrative. And the background to that decision is that I decided it's... the kind of silent acknowledgement that the Minister can afford to give of their more intimate relationship. It's damage control, mitigation. With a heavy heart I imagine he tells her this in private, off the record, because Nine was her Cipher. And both of them still hold him in high regard.

Nine's given a possibly unusually loose leash to pursue the SIS investigation because of the Minister and Keeper's word; Watcher Three mentions this in broad strokes when he questions you about the blackout in records.

Anyway, the point to me mentioning this is actually that Tyr makes a very conscious effort to not think about this in the midst of the Restraints causing problems. He's reluctant enough to cede that he should hold the Minister responsible for this gross violation of his privacy and trust, but he's even more reluctant to give that the woman he loves has any knowledge or hand in the process - unwittingly or, especially, wittingly. Ultimately, he stubbornly doesn't hold them responsible. It hurts less to place the blame elsewhere. And he never loses the inescapable nostalgic kick to go home in the sense of the old paradigm - him and Keeper and the Minister.

He gave them everything.

And there's something in here about his regret at not being able to say all of this respect in better words or more directly. There's that acknowledgement that there's one person he trusts to understand why this was his breaking point. And, ultimately, there's the acceptance of the likelihood that none of this is going to end well, that he's living on borrowed time stolen from fate or destiny, or hell, maybe the Force. Tyr doesn't give a whole lot to whatever higher powers might be out there - relying on them hasn't ever saved him and he doesn't expect it to.

It makes it very interesting to watch him knowingly and willingly lie about the Black Codex after he lets Ardun walk with it and promises to double for the SIS. In a way, he's committing the greatest failure and throwing away everything the Minister has fought so hard with him to maintain and keep, especially when both of them have spoken of ideals instead of goals, etc. But it's necessary. It's what's best for Tyr, mentally, at that point. And even one of the figures he loves and respects the most can't override that desperate intrinsic need to fight for himself. The old man is, after all, one of the largest advocates of it throughout his career as Nine.

And, I suppose speaking of the nostalgia for Intelligence, my favorite set of lines from the final scene so far:

She’s sobbing against his shoulder. Dust and blood stain an almost unfamiliar uniform - he hasn’t worn uniform on Dromund Kaas in months, maybe years…

Everything’s been such a blur since Intelligence was disbanded…

so YEAH. I uh. I have a lot of feelings and this is where I'm sniffling and sobbing and word vomiting them into one doc but in story format, I suppose, lol.

Also completely unrelated to this particular fic but I am. Still thinking so intently about Eight x Tyr thoughts. They're now living rent free in my head and all of this.... absolute devotion stuff... hrhrhghghghghghghghrhhg. Brain vibrates because this is obviously all related to it because of the few people who could ever possibly understand any part of this series of events and feelings, it'd be another Cipher.

Tyr really does mourn Intelligence like... ghhghg. I'm unwell about it. He gave everything to it and its success. He doesn't regret it. The SIS investigation and the following fall of Imperial Intelligence were some of the worst fucking years of his life and it's destroyed him, really. He's living in and with the ruins like a bombed out city. It destroyed his everything and he'd almost gladly let it finish the job and destroy him to finally get his retribution. And he'd just as gladly let love destroy it all and rebuild it from the rubble when he has the right person beside him. Something something doesn't realize that he doesn't want or need to continue that destruction, he just needs fucking... idk validation or something. Acceptance. Acknowledgement. And then they can work on what "okay" looks like in the aftermath. He needs to be just as responsible for someone else's "okay" to even begin figuring out what the hell it looks like for him. hOUgh anyway.

I'm fucking normal about Cipher Nine, obviously. Thanks for comin' to my TED Talk.

[kleptomatic]

modern car design has honestly gone to shit

one reason is that it is now cheaper to put touchscreens, servos, and just screens in general than it is to actually engineer a properly working mechanical system, despite those being around for a literal century now

what's with the "one screen in the middle that controls everything" design philosophy anyways? "we want our drivers to look away from the road" is not. y'know. safe

the futuristic aspect also draws in buyers and (probably) investors, which makes it easier to fund projects. because futurism is better. these cars don't need to last!

and that's another problem: cars, ICE and EV, are not really built to last anymore. yes, all vehicles have a lifetime that they are rated for, but honestly it feels like it's getting shorter. or maybe consumerism has something to do with it: you always need to buy the newer and better car.

driving habits also do have something to do with it though, short commutes with lots of starting/stopping the engine do wear out parts faster. a lot of modern cars have the ability to turn off the engine while at a standstill, which does help increase fuel efficiency at the detriment of the engine

EVs do have drops in battery performance/capacity over time, which doesn't help

shifters are also changing. a lot. i mean, some are definitely cool, and I don't mind things like the BMW shifters that are just an automatic but fancy looking:

but then you have uh. well. tesla. with the touchscreen shifter. ok then

also they have the backup shift buttons. on the ceiling. yeah.

and their turn signals suck. that's enough dunking on tesla for this post. but do continue to dunk on tesla. especially the 6000+ lb. deathtrap called the cybertruck

which actually leads into the next point, big dumb trucks (and the general size increase of cars/the move towards SUVs and crossovers, but mainly the trucks). you know what they are. the giant trucks that have hoods taller than most sedans. that had that beautiful graphic of having worse sight lines than a main battle tank

safe for everyone, you see? they exist because of EPA regulations, after a certain size you're a work truck and less subject to regulations. and also the regulations on small vehicles are much higher than larger ones, in terms of like power to weight. so its a lot easier to make big than make small

most of them are pavement princesses anyways

repeal the chicken tax though, bring in light truck competition from overseas manufacturers. i want my kei trucks/cars (although that's the 25 year import law)

SUVs are painted as being safer, but actually have a higher center of gravity and are more prone to rolling over. they are safer though, cause they have more mass, which means what you hit gets damaged more and you get damaged less.

crossovers are weird cause they kind of can skirt regulations? not sure how they work

you can bypass some regulations with the "SUV overbite." give yourself a good approach angle, and now you're not a passenger vehicles and aren't subject to as many regulations. consequence is you look like this (sorry lexus)

electronic handbrakes. what. it makes sense, somewhat, but also manual handbrakes work perfectly well and are far less prone to failure (also drifting but)

push to start. i mean, it's not all bad, but keys are fun. give me keys. manual is better (although not necessarily for transmissions). don't be constantly emitting a signal that can be copied to steal a car. tesla i'm looking at you. a lot in this

i will say that not all digital displays are created equal. as far as i'm concerned, toyota/lexus have some very beautiful gauge clusters:

spicy, sleek, dare i say sexy, and they trickled down from the lexus LFA, which had a 9k rpm redline and got to that so fast they had to make a new digital cluster just to keep up. wild stuff. plus it's not too in your face and still has some mechanical components. nice

honestly no idea where i was going with this, but:

modern car design is getting worse because of futurism, trying to keep costs down, and poorly written/considered regulations

Touchscreens do not belong in cars

[doctorguilty]

ok wait it took me all the way until the boss battle in chapter 7 for it to really hit me why the switch ost remakes aren't vibing with me even though I don't think they're objectively bad or anything but.

hear me out comparing the original vs switch remake magnus von grapple theme

like I'm not denying some level of nostalgia goggles (for your ears) happening but it's also like, I don't think it's just like a Raw Nostaligia (like being a genwunner about it) thing either in that sense I think that's still coming from a place of like, the older music being very intrinsic to being a part of the whole artistic composition of the game and what made it charming and memorable from start to finish

b/c if you compare these two versions, the original one is less complex and idk i lack language for music but, "epic sounding" you know what I mean, but it uses all these weird funky sounds throughout that, without even showing you who this theme belongs to, you might be able to glean what kind of boss it might be! The newer version builds on the main melody and it sounds great and all, but the robotic-alien like sounds end up more in the background, and I just feel like they're way too lost?

I think the switch version sounds great if it were like, a pokemon gym leader theme, THAT'S EXACTLY what it actually sounds like, that's what it makes me picture. and it makes sense given the switch era is like all these 3D pokemon games with ost's composed in this same sort of epic? orchestral? (music words.. idk..) style. but the ISSUE I have is that it doesn't lend itself as well to the aesthetic of like paper mario cause like at the end of the day it's not a 3D pokemon battle it actually looks like this

BUT THE THING IS WITH THAT.. is like my point about the older music being so APART of the artistic composition ... like, the whole world being this papercraft pop up book thing, and the battles take place on a stage with an audience like pic above, it just gets me feeling like the less complex track with all the funky weird sounds makes more sense for a battle you're doing on a stage against a robot that looks like a box with like zigzag paper for legs? like it's supposed to kinda sound silly? but like personally like, as someone who's played through the game and that fight, it is a pretty like epic confrontation in the moment, and by chapter 7 your suspension of disbelief about all the paper and gimmicks is fully held, you're immersed in the world, so regardless of how "silly" anything looks or sounds, it doesn't take away from the challenges or like tone of the story happening (like after this battle for instance, there is an extremely emotional scene the story had been building up to that involves a character death, and I've seen people who've played the remake say it "still made them cry" going through it all this time later)

So that's kind of my assertion here, another strong one I'd back it up with is Doopliss' theme

I find the remake of his themes to be one of the done-dirtier ones!! because, again, it's not that the remake sounds BAD (though I could do without the sharty sounding additional layer they added hfsdgkdsgd what was with that), it's just that it's like, well this is some nice ghost type gym leader music...... but it seems particular egregious to make the changes they did like, getting rid of the church organ (his battle takes place in a steeple...), and pushing the church bells way to the background instead of like practically rattling your bones. like heres the thing with that ok. the chapter is called "for pigs the bell tolls" and the whole thing is when the bell rings a villager is turned into a pig. and it happens many times. sometimes we hear the bell ring off screen and the partner goes oh no mario do you hear that, who do you think got got this time,,, at one point the bell rings after like giving a mother food to feed her starving children and the kids start crying right in front of you. like this is another thing here where I'm like. the music is PART of the entire composition, the whole art piece, I think the track loses a lot of oomph when you're toning down this like, like leitmotif isn't the right word but it's almost like that!! it's this sound you've been hearing that's been a major part of the stakes of the story!

anyway but like........................the weird thing is I have seen very very few people like agreeing with me on this, most opinions I've seen even from like veteran players is that they really enjoy the newer tracks and find the older ones empty in comparison, which is fine and like TOTALLY okay and fair to have that opinion and like in my prev post about it, thanks to nintendo putting the retro tunes badge or w/e they called it, I have no reason to whine and gripe at all like I'm very happy and content because I've been having my cake and eating it too, it's just got me feeling conflicted because it has me wondering if like! like! if someone was going to play the game for the FIRST time......... I feel so compelled to tell them to use the retro tunes badge and experience it with the og tracks, because I truly wholeheartedly believe they are parts of the experience of the game as a whole work of art and the new tracks are just .. not the same, but it also makes me feel kinda like a dickhole genwunner bro like clearly everyone else agrees on the other side of things, I guess it doesn't like Super matter in that sense like it's not like my world will end if they don't experience a piece of work in the 100% more perfect way I think it should be experienced (b/c thats subjective) but maybe part of me is like am I crazy though? like surely I can't be the ONLY one who feels this way, pleading emoji, does anyone else get me about this ...... pleading emoji x2

(and probably what i'd do in the recommending which music to experience case tbh is just like, read me on the Hear Me Out thing and maybe listen to a few tacks to compare the styles but ultimately just go with whatever personally Sounds good to them cause like in the end honestly if someone just thinks the whole og ost sounds shitter than the newer one then it would only take away from the experience to like Tolerate music they don't like than just like enjoy it with the new tracks!)

[bronze-bell]

(This letter has the same treble clef in the center of its seal as before, though the encroaching frost is replaced by what appears to be tentacles, and the paper is notably much newer, folds crisp and confident.)

Dear Victor Grantz (or would you prefer Postman?),

Thank you for replying to my previous letter. I must apologize for the... incident that led to my name being unreadable. I simply had to write my thoughts on whatever I had with me at the time, before the thoughts escaped. Ink only dries so fast, unfortunately for us both, and a careless water spill can ruin so much.

A monotonous day can still be quite productive, even with the matches interrupting anything we do. I've spent a lot of time practicing and trying to create something worth writing. I'm glad this format of reaching out works for you, I hope we can continue to communicate. (And... you're welcome. It's nice to have a letter that responds to me like this.)

I fully understand your point on not wanting to share others' secrets, especially from my own experience. Some things are not meant to be shared or seen by any eyes except those I trust not to tell. I'm glad you're the same way. I've written and received my fair share of letters myself, though I can't say I've gotten to see the same kinds of things you have. I tend to receive letters that follow the same bent, regardless.

Hm... codes and hidden messages aren't my area of expertise, but I suppose those make sense in a lot of ways. They help conceal to those who shouldn't see, and being a translator can feel empowering... though unnerving when you know you're now additionally responsible for secrets that aren't yours to bear, I imagine. Being that messenger, that middleman, must carry quite the responsibility. And... if you hold enough secrets, a risk as well.

You made it to the right place. I've received your message.

Sincerely,

Frederick

(this letter, placed under the door discreetly, is in an envelope with faint embossed details of ocean waves. The wax seal is a glossy royal blue, bearing the same mark it did before. It appears that Victor is doing his best to continue the theme Frederick has set.)

[Dear Frederick,

Would you like some paper to take with you, next delivery? The material you had on hand seems rather delicate, (though I have made sure to take precautions to keep it safe) and I could think of some paper that might fit the decorations of your letters. I would not wish to push this on you, however.

I can definitely understand the feeling of having to note things down suddenly, there's been a few times where I've needed to put down information quickly and have had almost nothing on hand. I am lucky the destinations of the letters in this manor are much easier to remember.

Truthfully, I... am glad you like to keep secrets. I've always been rather anxious about letting them slip. You never know what someone's working so hard to keep hidden, after all, one untied tongue can ruin everything.

On your note about translating, I admittedly find myself with the latter set of people. "Seeing something you're not meant to can lead to quite the bad situation, and soon there'll be a target on your back", so I've been warned.

Sincerely, Postman.

(p.s. I do not mind being called Victor at all, I'm just rather unused to it. Thank you for asking.)]

[timbrrwolfe]

Just a little mainline Zelda game tier list. Figured I'd make it now for posterity as I intend to (eventually, at some point) play through more of the series, and I wanted to have a record of where stuff stood in my mind before playing. TL;DR I have a bias for both 2D zeldas and newer games in general. Longer explanations under the cut for anybody who wants to read my ramblings

The Oracles games are my favorites, with Ages being one of the first games I ever beat, especially without cheating (though I did use a game guide. Miss those things, honestly. Online walkthroughs just aren't the same). Breath of the Wild does a lot of things right but there are some things that very much annoy me (weapon degradation being the main issue that some of the other issues kind of have their roots in), but overall it's a pretty good time. Ignore that I'm technically about halfway through it and still want to finish it before Tears of the Kingdom comes out even though I don't expect to get that right away (because money). Link to the Past is the only other one I've actually played at length, and despite never finishing it, it was a pretty good time. I don't know if it's a good or bad thing that I played the GBA port. Just not quite as good as the others, though it's been a few years since I played it so maybe I'll replay it before I redo the tier list. TotK does look interesting, and while it still keeps the weapon degradation it's got some stuff to mitigate that (hopefully), so I'm definitely interested in getting it. Link Between Worlds is very much on my radar but that's gonna require me to pick up (ideally) a New 3DS/XL(LL) since my own 3DS XL broke years back and I missed it at the time. Minish Cap has been on my list for a while, and I even played a little bit of it but got distracted and haven't gone back to it. Still, I expect if I give it a proper chance I'll enjoy it, and I intend to do that some point soon. Link to the Past I also wanna get to, though I'm not sure which version I'll do. Maybe I'll get the Switch version and play through the OG first to see how it compares.

Windwaker honestly probably should be in the middle haven't played tier, on further reflection. I haven't played it but honestly I've seen a lot of it played so I don't think it would hold my attention to play through it myself. Also it seems like a refinement of OoT and MM which is both good and bad. Twilight Princess through Spirit Tracks I don't know a ton about but what I've seen of gameplay or heard about them haven't really appealed much to me. The Four Swords Adventures games I basically know nothing about, and Triforce Quest I know even less about.

It's a bit disingenuous to say I haven't played some of the games in the final tier, but I definitely haven't put much time into them. I gave OoT something like 20 minutes years after it's initial release but I think I missed the boat on how stunning it was to have huge 3D environments after years of smaller 2D games. So without that aspect of spectacle the gameplay didn't grab me much in the short time I spent with it. Maybe if I had played it alongside, for instance, Banjo Tooie, I'd feel differently about it (since I enjoy Banjo Tooie a lot despite being similar games outside of the tones and details) Majora's Mask is basically just more of Ocarina of Time, with a more sinister atmosphere. So, similar issues, with the added obstacle for me in that it's a game with a countdown, which give me hives. I've also seen at least parts of these games played so it's not like I have 0 idea what they're like. Having said that I'm not completely closed off to the idea of playing certain versions of the games. (Unofficial PC port of OoT, 3DS remakes of both) Zelda 2 I gave about 10 minutes, had no idea what i was supposed to be doing, and never went back to it. The OG is a similar story. Plus, as I said, I am very biased against older games in general. I don't play games to overcome difficulty (if it's fun I'll push through a challenge until I beat it but a lot of older games are hard without being fun. So.)

Just my personal thoughts on the series. I like certain kinds of things and not other things.

[sofiadragon]

I'm with you Maddie. Some of the things I have are sentimental. I'm not going to throw them in the garbage, but I don't buy more and I have returned gifts to the store and made it clear I don't want any new HP merch as gifts.

I'm a fanfic writer, and the first fanfic of mine that got popular and gave me a lot of encouragement was a post-Order of the Phoenix power fantasy in 2003. When Joanne started being toxic I stopped posting new fanfiction, but I never got rid of all the plot bunnies. Sure I moved on to other fandoms, wrote other stories, and got into new things, but I still go back to some of those ideas I never published and play with them in my own head. To the people saying I shouldn't "put it in their face" in the comments, I really did exactly what you wanted. For years I didn't post a word of them, just kept it to myself. Comforting daydreams where I played with my dolls, maybe made a Sims 3 family to poke, and I posted publicly about things like BBC Sherlock and the MCU.

On the other hand under a cut so I'm not 'pushing it in people's faces': I just don't think it matters much to the sales numbers if someone writes a fanfic on AO3 or not. Hey, you clicked read more, you don't want to read this bit the back button is right there.

There has to be space to tell people that they shouldn't spend any money on the Harry Potter franchise. Just that, and not all the rest. It's the same as any other moral argument, you can't come in screaming absolutes and expect to sway someone who is firmly on the other side, they will just ignore it or entrench. It is important that we don't give her our money if this is where she is spending it, but if you say they should throw away things with sentimental value and never speak of it again in public (on a website that lets you block tags no less) then you're going to alienate more people than you convert. People don't get to decide what is and isn't of great emotional value to others and breaking up with a fandom can be very painful.

Lots of people deleted or stopped writing fanfiction in 2019 or 2020 when this all came to light, and it hasn't impacted her bottom line much because she has enough capital now that she can live off investments. If she never got another penny in royalties she'd still be rich as sin for the rest of her life and able to donate to all these same horrible things. Most people who aren't chronically online are going to see that before they see the nebulous connection JKR herself sees between people sketching a cute Severitus comic or writing a steaming PWP and support for her crusade against personal freedom and civil rights. Just because she sees that connection and uses it like a weapon against her own fans to try and punish us for disagreeing with her doesn't mean it's a strong driving force. Let's be real: New people are drawn in by the millions of dollars being continuously spent on marketing the Potter franchise, they'll only find the fanfic stories if they are already deep into the fandom. There is a better argument for fanworks that are more visual, an image can make people curious in ways the title of a drabble can't, but please tell me how many people we think are browsing fanfic categories they know nothing about for anything but the most plot-free PWP?

What's hurting the franchise most is the Fantastic Beasts movies. They suck. Just not an entertaining set of films, and the core message is a hot mess. People should talk more about that, actually. Let's talk about how trash those plotlines are and why the movies feel so uncomfortable when you watch with your brain off. How do you kill a fandom's enthusiasm? Shitty content. It's not even the kind of plot holes that make you want to write a fanfic to pave over them, or a fix-it that sorts out a snarled and messy knot of plot threads. It's not even bad in a fun way that's a bit camp, it's just bad. Her newer books, some written under a pen name to hide them, are also trash (I was gifted a digital copy of a couple that couldn't be refunded so I read them. Save yourself the pain and trouble of reading a pirated copy and just find an in-depth review or Sparknotes summary. Atlas Shrugged was shit but at least I could respect it.)

Going after millennial fans with guilt and blame doesn't work or the boycotts would have been successful. I don't just mean the boycotts against JKR, I mean all the similar ones based on moral outrage where we should feel bad for liking something for reasons that have little to do with the product. It isn't the 40-year-olds who have been in the fandom since they were kids who are buying most of this stuff anyway. The official swag - the bookmarks, the shirts, the diaries, the cheap crap made for $0.25 and sold for $20, the slightly nicer crap sold at BoxLunch - is being bought for new kids and teens who find out about HP after seeing an advertisement by adults who don't care enough to know/remember about the drama showing it to new kids - because the content of the books isn't that bad even if the writer is a flaming hot dumpster fire. Yes, even the stereotypes aren't that bad compared to other children's stories with simplified characters that are one special trait above being a talking trope. It is unfortunately a common thing that happens when you flatten and simplify things too much for the sake of a child audience and then don't have the talent or patience to fix them in the editing process.

The antisemitic video game sales mostly went to Gen Z and I personally know three people who bought it out of spite because they were told they shouldn't - one who had never read or watched anything Potter before. Being an absolutist shuts down the conversation and causes people to stop listening and entrench. Let posts that just say "don't give her money" exist. We need them.

Even better tactics are just leaving the books out of recommendations and making lists of better books. Suggesting alternatives works to prevent new mega-fans in the new generation. My nephew wants a fantasy book? Anne McCaffery's Dragonriders of Pern, it's got dragons and drama and telepathy and teleportation. The Narnia books. So You Want to Be a Wizard by Diane Duane. Tolkien.

The HP characters live rent-free in my head. It's too late for me. My father hasn't quit smoking despite all his attempts and I can't quit thinking about how both Snape and Draco deserved better-written reveal/redemption arcs. Save the next generation, give them Terry Pratchett or Neil Gaiman instead.

I haven't purchased a HP item in close to a decade - I use the books I already had as doorstops or to prop a laptop up for meetings nowadays.

There is NO "death of the author" with JK Rowling - she controls and continues to profit from her IP, and uses that money to fund hate groups.

[intimidating-fettuccine]

Hello, how are you? can I request Toby with a very shy s/o? What was his first impression of them?

I’m doing good, hope you’re doing well ^^ 

I wrote this assuming they're a new proxy at the mansion

He's intrigued. Toby normally avoids newer residents for a while because he's bad with new people, and he does give you some distance, but he finds himself decreasing it a bit faster than normal. You're shy and quiet, which isn't exactly normal around here, and you don't push or prod at him or anyone else, so he starts to find your presence tolerable to be around. 

Then, he starts to find you to be adorable. I'd imagine the two of you became friends at a pretty good pace, with Toby being the more extroverted one of you that drags you into his troubles and adventures so that you're both keeping each other company, and he ends up getting you to talk to the other residents more too, it's just a whole wonderful little process. Still, he starts finding that shyness of yours to be quite adorable. It's hard to imagine that someone like you would have ended up here, and so he finds it quite humorous and ironic, especially after seeing how good you are at the job. He just often finds himself drifting to your side, enjoying the peace the two of you can have when you aren't out getting rowdy.

His feelings for you start drifting in a bit after that. The calmness of being around you, the fact that you naturally begin to come out of your shell more around him, the way your eyes light up and you smile when you spot him in a crowd, has his heart thumping in ways it hasn't for a while, and he has no complaints about that fact. He just really enjoys how you balance him out, and so it's no wonder that the two of you would end up together. His first impression of you wasn't too far off, what with how shy you were, but he's incredibly happy to see you now that you're so incredibly comfortable with him, and you no longer need that big barrier of shyness separating the two of you. You're still incredibly adorable to him, though, that feeling never goes away.

[jinxthequeergirl]

Feel Better

Amanda young x reader

Summary:you help amanda through a tough night the best you can

Warning: uhhh ya know swearing, meantion of blood, panic attack?, slight mention of self harm, meantion of typical saw violence

Enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~

You rolled over and stared at the thin orange glow from under the bathroom door. It was four in the morning, you'd felt her leave the bed almost thirty minutes ago. Part of you told yourself not to bother her. The other grew worried, that part won. You pushed yourself out of bed and wondered to the door tapping lightly on it.

"Mandy?"

There wasn't any response but you could hear something. "Mandy? C'mon you've been in there half an hour is everything alright?" Still it was quiet. You tried the handle twisting it, with luck it twisted all the way, some relife washing over you. "Ok I'm coming in." You said softly before popping the door open.

You stepped inside, shutting the door behind you. To your dismay you found her on the edge of the tub crying, her hands layed out limply infront of her raw and red.

"Shit..." You moved quickly to kneel infront of her taking her face in your hands.

"Hey...hey what happened?" She only sniffled and shook her head, another choked sob shaking her body until she leaned forward falling against you in a type of sloppy hug. "I feel it on me...i can still feel it i want it off..it won't come off..it won't come off..." She sobbed into your shoulder, she had slid off the tub and was now on your level making it easier to hold her.

"Ok...Amanda? Amanda look at me..what it is?"

She shakily offered you her hands, you looked at them, still very raw, all the way up to the middle of her forearm, a lot of her newer scars had been reopened on her wrist, her hands looked the same way they would have if you left them under hot water for too long, or scrubbed them too hard.

Then it clicked.

"The Blood?.." You had said it more to yourself then really a question to her.

"It's not coming off! The feeling won't go away!" She growled sniffling. "Ok..want me to help?" She nodded. You stood up carefully taking her hands in yours and lifting her up with you guiding her to the sink.

"We'll wash our hands together ok?" You asked calmly. She only nodded again.

You placed her hands in the sink and turned on the cold water to maybe help with the burning you imagined she felt, pumped some soap onto your hands and began lathering both yours and her own hands carefully.

"How does that feel?" You asked looking over to her. "Better?" She gave a confirming humm. After a few lathering and rinsing cycles you patted her hands dry and had her sit on the counter while you wrapped her redamaged wrists.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" She sniffled and shook her head. "Not really....I just want to feel better.." She croaked, up planted a kiss on her right wrist after bandaging it and moved to the next one.

You knew the horror stories, the horrible thing she had to go through, you wheren't an expert by any means but you knew what that did to a person. You knew that when you started dating her and you made the promise to her and to yourself that no matter how bad it got you'd stick by her side. You remembered this as you kissed the second arm and beamed up at her with the biggest and most understand smile you could muster. "How else can I help? What'll make you feel better right now?" You found the best and easiest way to help her was by being patient, and giving her what she needed.

"Can you cut my hair?" She asked.

"If thats what you want."

After some scavenging through the closet you found an old dull pair of hair sicorss you used to use and began roughly chopping at her hair like she requested.

"I'm sorry..." She said, dazing at you through the mirror as more hair fell to the floor creating a carpet on the tile floor underneath the both of your feet.

"What for?"

"Putting you through this." You stopped cutting her hair and looked at her. "You aren't putting me through anything? I love you and I'll do anything to make you happy." You kissed her cheek and shoulder, while wrapping your arms around her in a hug. She gave you a thin lipped smile and attempted to hold back tears while kissing the top of your head.

"I like the way it looks." She said you tilted your head looking at her new hair cut in the mirror.

"Yea!? I think its very Rock star!" You joked ruffling it up, she laughed.

"And hey, if something like tonight happens again...let me know."

She smiled and you and placed a kiss on your lips. "Ok..thank you."

[jaedreaminn]

‘Anti Bully Buddy’

Summary

You weren't someone who would take shit from others and a were naturally protective of the ones you loved, but the world just didn't work out in your favour and you always became the bad guy.

Enter Tall, Handsome new guy with too much free time and a goody two shoes complex who's forced to stick by you.

Huh, maybe the world was working in your favour this time...

Pairings: Kun x fem!reader

Theme: Highschool, Bullying, Comical, humour, fluff.

Characters: Kun, Winwin, Ningning, Ten, oc «mentioned» Jisung.

Word Count: 3.7k

It wasn't an uncommon phenomenon for you to find your wrists bruised and, yourself slightly wounded sitting outside the principal's office. There were three other kids sitting opposite you and they were all three years below.

The principal walked out, looked at you and sighed “Bullying these kids again y/n?”

Your head hung low as anger started to boil inside you and you clenched your fists that were on your lap.

“Sorry ma'am” you forced out through gritted teeth.

Here's the thing those three kids belonged to very influential parents in the school so no matter what you said you were always the bad guy. The bully. But you didn't mind it. That reputation helped keep a lot of unwanted people in your life away.

The three boys sat in front of you with smirks and bruises on their faces. You didn't mind the title of bully, but you didn't like when the three devil incarnates always got away with what they did because it was YOU who was deemed bully.

“And that to kids who are your juniors?” The principal scoffed “This is happening way to often, and I don't like it” she said sternly, but you couldn't bother it was the same every time. She'll scold you a bit more and then give you some sort of creative punishment she worked up, and then you go home.

“Well we'll sign you up for the anti bully program I guess” the principal looked at you and sighed while you looked at her, confused.

One of the demons sitting opposite you spoke up asking her your doubt “Anti bullying? Isn't it supposed to help the victim not the bully?”

The principal smiled slightly at the boy “It's a newer approach where we assign someone to keep an eye on the bully, so they don't cause trouble. We could protect one victim, but the bully will just bully someone else” the principle smiled, and you frowned. That means your privacy will be taken away. Not that you do anything secretive, but you just aren't that fond of people.

You groaned and the principal glared at you “We already have volunteers” the principal said sternly her glare still on you “I'll check through whose schedule matches yours the most and tomorrow you're getting your anti bully buddy” the principal said sternly “Or how I like to call it A.B.B” the principal said the last part turning to the three boys giving them a quick smile.

“I'll see you in my office first thing tomorrow y/n” the principal said to you while flashing you a rather strict looking smile. You gave a slight nod and left.

It might be surprising to many how you could take on three boys at once. It had to do with your dad. He was a great fighter and told you that if there ever was a day he couldn't protect you, you should know how to fight. And so you learned, you went for karate classes and learned hand-to-hand combat. But it wasn't something you took very seriously, but then your mom died giving birth and everything went downhill. Your dad wasn't the same anymore, but he had to push through to raise your baby brother, but he was mostly drunk and spiraling while your aunt swooped in and handled the baby, and you were left alone. You needed an escape from that, so you spent more time at your dojo practicing and practicing and using it as a way to let your anger out. Because you knew you would crumble too if your brain didn't focus on something. But slowly everything got better, and you were starting to function normally as a family again. Your dad could smile again. But things changed again and your dad met someone. She made him happy, so you approved of her, so they got married. But they forgot you and your baby brother. Don't get them wrong they were good to both of you providing you with everything you needed and were never harsh or mean but to them, it was as if you weren't part of the family. It was easy for them to forget you. The person who you loved the most forgot you and moved on. And so you did to. You moved on and learned to live with it. And did the best for your brother too. He was the last memory of your happy family with mom and dad. And well know your only family that actually felt like family.

You were so lost in your own thoughts that you didn't realise when you reached class and when it ended. But all you knew was that it was lunchtime now.

“So another fight I see” Ten, one of your closest friends said with a smirk. “They deserved it” you grunted as you sat down next to him.

“I don't doubt that” Ten hummed out and just then two trays were slammed down onto the table in between you and ten. “So another fight and what is your punishment this time?” Ningning who slammed your and Ten's tray of food asked as she grabbed her own tray from Winwin who was behind her and sat down next to you. Winwin took the last seat available on the small circular table, between Ten and Ningning.

“How is jisung?” Winwin asked concerned.

“I got there in time, but he was hurt so he's resting in the infirmary right now” you said grimly.

You the looked at Ningning “Ohhh my punishment might just be the worst one yet because there is going to be someone who will FOLLOW me wherever I go in school to make sure I'm not causing trouble.” she gave a small chuckle at your irritation.

“Not that bad your lonely ass will make one more new friend” Ten said cheekily with an awfully cheeky grin on his stupid face. You punched him lightly and he dramatically fell back and threw his hand over his head and gasped “You wound me y/n” you just rolled your eyes and smiled and then naturally your group fell into conversation.

After you returned home from school and once diner was done (it was just you and jisung for diner) you lay on bed smiling. The day wasn't that bad except for the incident in the morning. You then frowned remembering what was to happen tomorrow.

Tomorrow came in a blink of an eye, and you were now seated in the principal's office next to this...guy. He had blond hair that extended below his eyes, but his eyes weren't covered because his hair was neatly parted showing his dark chocolate brown eyes. He had given you a smile when you entered, and you also saw that he had dimples. The cutest dimples that you had ever seen. But in all fairness you hadn't seen that many dimples because you didn't know that many people- you've mainly just seen pictures of people with dimples. But still his were cuter than the pictures.

“So this is your A.B.B” the principal said pointing at the boy beside you and he gave a small smile, you noticed him slightly cringe at the name.

Your principal started to speak cheerily “His name is Kun! But then her cheer fades and she said darkly "If you attack him too you're getting expelled”

You turned towards Kun and forced a smile. Kun smiled at you, again. He genuinely smiled and his teeth might have actually sparkled by how bright the smile was.

“Now off to class you two have the same schedule except for one class at the end of the week” the principal said and got to the work that was on her desk as you and Kun left.

Your smile dropped, and you turned to Kun “Look” you started, and he looked at you expectantly “You don't have to take this seriously cus I'm not really a bully per se so just mind your own business, and I'll mind mine”

Kun frowned “That's not going to help you get away with it and plus it's my job to stick by you whether you like it or not. I cannot have you bully people. It's sad that you find the need to pick on people and I hope to help you stop”.

You narrowed your eyes “I don't pick on people. You don't even know me”.

Kun sighed “I was already filled in on how you bully the kids from a younger class by the principle. I know your probably going through those teenage angst phases and that's okay I'll help you through it” Kun said not noticing the change in mood and how you were about to snap. “And maybe that is because you don't get along with your brother but beating him and his friends up and sending him to the infirmary isn't goo-” “What would you know” you interrupted him in a low hiss.

“YOU” you yelled stabbing his chest with your finger “DON'T KNOW 𝑨𝑵𝒀𝑻𝑯𝑰𝑵𝑮” you yelled emphasizing the anything as you continued stabbing him in his chest with your finger and then stormed off to your first class.

Kun stood there dumbfounded for a second but then immediately snapped out of his dazed state and realized that you had already left and began to run after you to your shared first class.

The entire day consisted of kun following you around and trying to start conversation with you and you trying to ditch him and ignoring him.

Lunch came and he followed you then too. You turned to him annoyed, but he smiled “Aren't you going to have lunch?” You asked clearly mad “Of course I'm going to have lunch” he said with his seemingly constant smile but didn't move.

“So why are you still here?”

“Like it or not” he said in a sing-song tone “I'm going to be having lunch with you”

“Ugh” you rolled your eyes and stomped towards the cafeteria. You soon saw Ten and Ningning already at the table conversing with each other.

You approached the table with Kun on your tail and Ningning and Ten looked at you confused but only for a few short seconds, soon Ten's eyes lit up knowingly “Oh A.B.B!” Ten exclaimed pointing at Kun who just awkwardly smiled.

“You can call me Kun" Kun smiled.

“But I like A.B.B.” Ten frowned.

“And I prefer Kun” Kun said a bit sternly.

“Kun works too I guess” Ten sighed.

You rolled your eyes at the exchange and sat down. A tray of food was already placed on the table for you and winwin, but you couldn't see your Jisungs tray.

“Where's…”

“Oh ji took his tray and is sitting with his friends in the garden” Ningning said noticing you look for him.

“Kun if I knew you'd be joining us we would have got a tray for you too” Ningning smiled at him apologetically.

“Oh it's alright I'll get my own tray and sorry for just imposing in on you guys but I have to follow y/n around.” he apologized and left to get his tray.

Ningning smiled “He's sweet”

“Not when he's following you around 24/7” you groaned and Ten snickered. Just then Winwin arrived and sat down.

“What misery of y/n's are we laughing at today” Winwin asked, and you glared at him. Ningning just smiled but Ten spoke “oh her A.B.B is here and is going to be following her around throughout the day” Ten snickered.

“Ohh that's nice less trouble for our tiny bully” Winwin said patting your head, and you sneered at him.

“I'm not that short, and I can take you so don't test me”

Winwins eyes widened at the very real threat for a second before he flashed one of his adorable smiles, and you could no longer be mad at him. That's the thing. Everyone loved Winwin. And that's why the brat got away with everything he did.

“Sicheng?” someone called from behind you and everyone turned to see Kun standing there with his tray shocked.

“Kun ge?” Winwin asked his eyes scrunching in confusion before the widened, and he was smiling again.

“Kun ge! What are you doing here” Winwin said immediately getting up and hugging Kun.

“I just transferred to this school three days ago” Kun said one hand wrapped around Winwin and the other holding his tray.

“That's why I haven't seen you before” Ningning muttered under her breath but you and Ten heard it too.

“Oh, and I'm y/n's anti bully buddy to so” Kin said laughing nervously.

“Wait really” Winwin jumped up in happiness and turned towards you “Kun ge was from my old school, and he helped me a lot there” Winwin said beaming at your group. Winwinw was the latest addition to your friend group around two years ago.

Ten had made friends with him first and you and Ningning easily grew fond of him too.

“Yes sicheng and I were really close-”

“Sicheng? Who's that?” Ten asked and you, Winwin and Ningning gave him a deadpanned look.

“Umm Ten.. Winwin's real name?” Ningning said and Ten's jaw dropped and Winwin scoffed in disbelief and threw Ningning's banana at him earning a smal protest from her and a whine from Ten who was hit in the face.

“As Kun ge was saying we were close, but I lost contact when I changed my phone number.” Winwin changed the subject still glaring at Ten while taking a seat, Kun sat next to him. And soon enough your group fell into easy conversation with Kun.

You even decided to finally talk to him and Kun stopped to smile at you in shock, but continued the conversation immediately.

For the first time that day Kun was not unbearable. He was actually really cool guy and talking to him was so easy. You two then talked about everything and anything and suddenly you didn't hate him any more, couldn't hate him any more. You had a class after lunch and then a free period where you continued to talk. You even decided to take him to your favourite spot in the school: the garden.

“Y/n” he suddenly called out and you just hummed in response while continuing walking towards the garden.

“I-” he stared “I had my assumptions about you but their not true and your actually really nice and have friends who are a good influence for you too” Kun said but stopped. You stopped walking and looked at Kun, he wanted to ask you something but was waiting for your permission “go on” you said as you resumed walking.

“How come you're categorized as a bully by the principal and are always in trouble” he finally asked after a long pause.

“Because she doesn't know the truth” you sighed and muttered softly.

“What?” Kun asked not having heard you properly you were going to tell him when you heard a small bang coming from one of the inner school corridors.

You and Kun looked at each other wide-eyed and both ran towards the sound. What you saw made your blood boil.

In front of you were the three boys that you beat up barely two days ago and on the floor agains the lockers was Jisung clutching his stomach. “Yah!” You screamed and that seemed to get their attention.

Kun who was looking at the scene unfolding wide-eyed had now come to his sense but Instead of his usually gental and calm eyes his eyes were in fierce glaring slits.

“Didn't I just teach you three a lesson yesterday” you snarled.

“Yes, and now we're teaching him a lesson. He was being pathetic and showing off in class” one of the three morons you were going to beat up spoke.

You began to charge in their direction only to be held back by a firm grip on your hand.

Kun shook his head, but you didn't care they deserved it, and you shoves his hands off you but he had other plans holding onto you tighter than before.

“Wait” he said struggling to hold you back but failing as you escaped out of his grip again, not that that was really hard to do with your training and skill, but you still waited, impatience clear on your face.

“Let me handle it” Kun said and you thought for a second about it. If anything went wrong you could still take all three of them, so you stood aside your guard up. In all honesty you wouldn't mind a different way to deal with those devils.

“So it's because he” Kun pointed at your brothers figure on the floor “is showing off? How?”

“He's getting all the answers right but refusing to help us.” One of them complained.

“Stuck up. That's what he is” the other added.

“And your solution was...?” Kun asked raising an eyebrow.

“Knock some sense into him” the third one smirked.

“So physically knock some sense into him? As in attack him... physically?” Kun asked the boys, and you were starting to get frustrated you were about to take a step ahead, but Kun held his hand out in front of you stopping you.

“Yes. You got a problem with that ha? What are you gonna do about it beat us up to?” They laughed.

“Oh yes I got a problem, but I won't beat you up. Instead,” Kun pulled his phone that out of his pocket and that's when you realised that he had been recording everything. You didn't know when he started recording or when he carefully placed the phone in his pocket with the back camera facing the boys. All you knew is that this time you got them. You couldn't before because of your school's crapy camera placement a.k.a. it being placed in only a few corridors that were close to important rooms where things could be stolen from and even those cameras were ancient.

“Instead I'll show this to the principle. And life will get easier” Kun said with a smirk on his face. It was kinda attractive but now was not the time to think about it.

Before you could register what was happening one of the boys lurched forward and tried to grab the phone but Kun simply stepped aside, and he went tripping ahead. The other two soon followed, but you had enough time to react and block them.

“So that's what..." Kun muttered still holding his phone in his hand watching you block but not attack the three. Suddenly it made sense to him, after all those conversations he realised you were very close to your brother, and he knew these three boys were also slightly influential in school. Good thing he was more influential than them Kun smirked to himself and made a run for it. He ran towards the principal's office and showed her everything.

What happened next, happened really quickly, the boys and their parents being called, acknowledgement of their bullying and your innocence, because you still used voilence, you were give a lighter and fairer punishment. All three of the boys, to their dismay had an A.B.B now, and you couldn't be happier. Oh and they also got suspended.

“Thank you” you said to Kun, and he smiled.

“Was glad I could help” his gaze then shifted to the floor “I guess I don't need to follow you any more” he said with a soft but dry chuckle.

“Yea…” you trailed off “but you could still join us?” You asked hopefully and Kun's eyes seemed to light up. “I'd like that” he smiled.

“Oh and you have to let me thank you properly” you beamed at Kun.

“You really don't need to”

“But I want to! So tell me how?”

Kun hummed in thought “Give me sometime to think about it, and I'll tell you later” he smiled and patted your head as both of you continued to make your way to class.

Time passed and things got better. You and Kun got closer than ever. You always hung out with him, either in a group or one on one. Furthermore, you found it easy and relaxing to be in his presence.

Maybe along the way you started liking his presence way more than you used to and felt for him in a more than Platonic way. But you kept it in- you aren't going to mistake his kindness for anything else.

One day when the both of you were walking to your house after you friend group parted ways after spending the entire morning and lunch together, with ice cream cones in each of your hands you remembered and asked “I never did get to repay you for how you helped tell me how can I return your favour”

“You know you don't really have to?” Kun smiled at you and immediately you felt your face go warm.

“But you know I want to”

Kun stopped in his tracks and pretend to think, you rolled your eyes at his acting but smiled nonetheless.

He then smiled and bent down leaning in, he was so close that you could see every detail on his face, even the little scar on the right side of his face “How about you take me out?” your breath hitched.

If your face felt warm earlier it was hot now. “O-out? Where do you want to go?” You bit your lip nervously as you kept reciting to your self in your head 'it isn't what you think it is. It isn't what you think it is.'

“I don't know depends on you really” Kun shrugged and then smiled again (it was as if he was trying to kill you with the number of time he gave that smile that caused you to stop breathing) “Which are your favourite dating hotspots?” and whatever defence you built up against him came crumbling down, and your jaw dropped, and you just stood there staring at him.

For a long while- like really long while because now his features fell “I mean y-you don't have to go on a date with me if you don't want to you know...” He trailed off taking a step away.

“YES! YES I'D LOVE TO GO OUT WITH YOU” you yelled and then your eyes widened, and you settled down into a more relaxed position and cleared your throat “yea sure I don't mind” you said making your voice lower and puting on a facade that Kun saw right through (obviously) because he was smiling, and you couldn't help it you smiled too.

“So Saturday's at four?” Kun asked smile still visible, but he was really nervous and you didn't need to know that.

“Yes” you said giving him a big smile.

A/n: To the people that made it to the end....I'm sorry you read that. This is my least favorite fic among all my stuff and I honestly just posted it because I wrote this for a friend who I care for too much to have her idea hidden in my drafts forever. Well more of a demon child but yea she specifically asked for this and my conscience can't keep this hidden.

[killlatrav]

there had been an honesty from travis last year after an incident with a fellow team player that he could be a dick and out dick the best of them. he didn't really mean for it to happen but his mood when bad could be unable to stop. once the weights were settled, "do you realize how you could have hurt yourself if i hadn't held that?" if he had dropped it it could have injured him, sure, it wouldn't be the first time he had had some kind of injury working out from being frustrated. But Taylor, she wouldn't have been able to spot what he was benching, and before her last three shows of the eras tour, to end up injured because she was here... doing... well he didn't really know what she was looking to accomplish or do. "yeah still don't know why you full named me, i only said your taylor swift, not your full legal name." he pointed out, not that that really mattered in the context of things. "i'll be sure to send you one of my newer photos everyone is drooling over, if it'll help you at your bedside table." he quipped giving a roll of his eyes. "my mom will be fine, i was going to call her in the morning after i had time to cool down. there was no point in getting frustrated at her when i already know what she's going to say, what jason is going to say." pretty much what taylor was going to say from what he could guess. "plus this coming from the woman who was leaning out of the fucking suite and hanging completely over the side as if you couldn't fall head first into the stands, and don't say it wouldn't happen, we had a kid last week fall the same way but just from the stands onto the field." he retorted.

travis didn't have a clue what they were doing, and part of him told himself that if he kept doing this, he was going to end up more hurt than he had already been. but maybe he was a glutton for punishment, or felt he deserved to feel pain. maybe it was the only way that he could deal with things, by knowing they were real through the pain. not to mention they were in this weird back and forth of when they did see each other ending up in bed with each other, while attempting... no, he didn't even know what they were attempting. "you don't need to worry about me, t. it's not like i'm here doing anything stupid. i'm working out before i eat something." leftovers he had had for thanksgiving by himself more likely. "no, i get.... look, i understand that winning seems like the important thing with the game, but that's not how it works. we barely scraped by a win against one of the worst teams in the league right now. that wasn't a win, that was a mercy ending." it was why he had walked off the field like he had. "we aren't playing anywhere near the top of our game, where we will need to be to play the best teams in the upcoming weeks. we're barely getting by, and either we should be better than that or realize we're not playing like we should be." to him victory was knowing you played your best. he didn't feel like he was playing his best, that he couldn't play his best when he was being double and triple teamed... but the point was he had been in previous seasons but this year he couldn't shake them off. as much as he wanted to deny, taylor knew travis far better than he wished she did, at least now that they were whatever they were. exes that still fucked? it made it too easy to get under his skin, in both a good and bad way at times. When her fingers laced his neck and pulled him forward till his forehead met hers, he let out of a soft sigh. the stubborn, angry part of him wanted to push her away, say that he didn't need it, but at the same time he couldn't be cruel to her. she had come all this way to check on him, and had he been worried about her he would have hoped for the same thing, to not push him away. "you're not playing fair, t." his voice more of a murmur as his eyes glances up through his thick lashes into hers. "i don't want to kick you out." a husk to his voice, "but i think if you don't want something to happen than some distance would be good." his breathing slightly hitched, eyes darkened as they held her gaze.

Hearing Travis' slightly raised voice, Taylor took a deep breath to make sure that she didn't react to him. Whatever was going on within his mind - she knew that it didn't have too much to do with her in that moment. Whatever happened at the game was plaguing him. She wished that he would understand that putting too much pressure on himself wasn't needed. Sure there were people that had opinions about how he, and the rest of the team were playing, but it was mostly non-supporters, and people that hated for no reason. Taylor also knew that shutting those voices out wasn't an easy task to do. "Why do you think that I held onto the bar before announcing myself?" Taylor shot back - although his weights were out of something that she'd be able to lift easily, at least she had spotted him somewhat. The last thing they needed was Travis getting hurt. That wouldn't help him, or his team morale. "Felt right in the moment. And I haven't done it since last weekend when I invited you to Toronto." Her brow arched slightly, waiting for him to challenge her. "I'll put it in a frame and make sure it's next to my bed every night." Slight sarcasm laced her statement, if he was going to be pissy at her, it wasn't something she'd take easily - maybe it would help him see what he was doing. "She's still worried about you, even if she knows how to let it go. Otherwise she wouldn't have been trying to text. I was there." The singer pointed out, narrowing her eyes slightly. "You could have just sent one message back to let her know you were okay."

At his question of why she was really there, Taylor bit her lower lip. This felt very much like when she asked him the same thing when Travis surprised her at his last show for the tour. Except this time, they had now slept together twice, and it felt like a weird limbo between being friends and not fully addressing what they were doing. Their text messages were friendly enough - and showed they still cared about one another. "I'm worried about you, Trav." The blonde admitted, taking his hands in hers. Thumbs moving along the back of his hands while he explained what had got him in a mood. "Babe. You still won. That is something to be proud of. Even if it wasn't the best that the team played." Locking her eyes with his, Taylor gave the football player a small smile. "You did great out there. You need to stop beating yourself up over every little thing that goes on. You can't control it. That's the name of the game." Shifting closer to him, Taylor rested one of her hands on his cheek. "You can say that you're fine until you're blue in the face, but I'm not going to believe that." Just like he knew her - and called her out for getting in her head about the last couple of concerts happening next weekend, she knew him. Taylor could tell that he wasn't fine. "Tell me what you need, Trav. I'm here - if you wanna talk. If you want to yelling into the void. Get out of that pretty little head of yours." Her hand moved to his neck, pulling his forehead down to hers. "You've got me for whatever you need. Right now. Good luck kicking me out." Taylor let out a small laugh - Travis could be stubborn, but she was more so.