#Unfortunately I won't get the chance to play with these for another month or so. At least until this conference/paper is over.

[iamthepulta]

@pickledfingers (Raw chalcopyrite data)

Our most recent synthesis batch! 101, and 104 were doped with silver.

100 still seems to have made cubanite and some variants even though our XRD results came back as tetragonal Cpy. For both 101 and 104 though, we either got cubanite (Ag included) or Nukundamite (no trace Ag) and for both, it partitioned to the bornite of the samples.

(Graph ends are for Cu-Fe-S wt%.)

[kvrokasaa]

Pretending to be their s/o

Includes -- Kuroo, Bokuto, Iwaizumi

Testuro Kuroo

It's the usual day at the grocery store, picking up food for you and your pets. You grab one little outfit for your cat and smile, she would look good in this. While you're walking around, you hear someone talking. You're not usually a nosy person, but you overheard some conversation. "Look, I'm sorry ma'am, but you're really not my type." You can hear a girl whining and trying to flirt.

You peek your head around the aisle and see a man trying to turn down a girl. He looks about your age. You take pity on the guy and walk over to him. "Babe! Don't you think Cosmo would look good with this!" You raise the frog hat and smile, looking up at the guy, hoping he gets the hint and plays along. It would be embarrassing if he just asks who you are. But he smiles at you, sending you a quiet thank you.

"You already have enough of those hats for her, take pity on the cat." You pout and look over at the girl. "Oh? Who's this, a friend?" You smile at her as she scowls at you. "You know this girl, Testu?" The girl puts on an obnoxious whiny tone. You're tempted to cover your ears. But now you know what to call him. "Yes, I'm his girlfriend." You smile at her again. Then you look up at him and pout again. "But you and Cosmo looked so cute with the matching bunny ears last month. I still have pictures that I can send to your sister." Kuroo blushes and looks towards you, "I thought you deleted those." He sighs and grabs one of the things he came into the aisle for, "fine, you can get the frog hat." You smile and you both leave the aisle, leaving the girl confused and a little mad.

You check out and leave the store, Kuroo offers you a bow and smiles at you, "thank you for helping, I didn't know what I should've done." You smile at him as he takes your bags out of your hand, "how about I walk you home? As a thank you."

Iwaizumi Hajime

"Wow! Your arms are so big!" The girl puts her hand on Iwaizumi's arm, not reading the signals that he's uncomfortable. Iwa smiles a little and thanks her, trying to lean away from her. "Sorry I'm late!" You run into the gym and see Iwa with a girl. It leaves a sour taste in your mouth.

You've liked Iwa since high school, but you didn't know how to confess to him. But you can see the uncomfortable look on his face, so you take the initiative. You walk up the Iwa and grab his hand, "who's this, baby?" You look over at the girl with a slight glare. Iwaizumi looks down at you and sighs, "I don't know." He looks over to the girl and scowls a little. "Just some girl that won't leave me alone."

Iwa never cared about being nice to someone if they bother him. He'd rather outright tell them, but this girl kept cutting him off, not giving him a chance to tell her to leave. But finally, you came. "Let's just go."

You both walk away, telling another staff to take her out of the gym, she doesn't work her so she can't be here. Iwa pulls you away from the scene and smiles down at you, "thanks for helping." He could feel his heart beating, hoping you can't hear it. He's liked you since high school, maybe this is his chance to confess. "You know, you're cute when you're jealous."

Kotaro Bokuto

Bokuto is a very cheerful person, but he can get very mad, sad, or just change his emotions very quickly. People usually label him as someone who is stupid, someone who can't read social cues. But that's far from the truth, he just doesn't know how to tell someone no.

And unfortunately, that's what got him into this situation. He couldn't say no to Kuroo bringing him out to this restaurant. And here he is, getting hit on by some bartender. He just came for a drink, but the minute he sat down, this lady wouldn't stop bothering him. Gushing about how she saw him on TV, how he won nationals and how big of a fan she is. He understands that he has fans, but this is too much.

"You don't understand. I'm like your biggest fan!" He smiles, trying to find an opening to leave, but she wouldn't stop talking. "Thanks, um, can I get my drink now?" She pouts and brings her hand up, placing it on his bicep. "How about coming back to my place? My shift ends in 10 minutes~"

"My love, who's this?" You saw Bokuto from the other side of the bar and took pity on him. Of course, you knew him, your brother gushes about him every time he turns on the TV. Bokuto looks over at you, quickly understanding the situation and smiled. "Just some bartender." You smile at the girl, "two shots of tequila, please." The girl glares but gets to work.

"Thank you! I didn't know what to do." Bokuto rubs the back of his neck, smiling at you. You nod, accepting his thank you. Bokuto grabs the shots and leads over to his table, getting ready to be teased by his friends.

[worriedvision]

A romance with no romance - Sunday

Gender neutral reader, readers good friends with Robin here and they've had a big crush on Sunday, knowing he doesn't like them back. Angst lol, includes heavy spoilers from the most recent trailblazer quest (inspired by it tbh!)

--

You were a fellow singer, and you landed up meeting Robin and Sunday at the same time. It wasn't even related to your work, and at that point you were an upcoming vocalist. You didn't have a good time that day, your mentor seemingly disappointed that you couldn't find the confidence to wear an outfit too revealing to 'accentuate your voice'. Robin invited you to join the both of them, which you accept, and you start talking to the both of them.

Truth be told, Robin was such a lovely person to speak to. Free from the singing conversation, just talking as if you were just normal people. You didn't speak that much to Sunday, he seemed more reserved. It was when you saw him and Robin interacting that you foolishly fell in love. While he was embarrassed to say it out loud, you could feel how much he loved hearing Robin's performances. It made you want to strive to get an ounce of that attention, starved of positive attention in your pursuit for a successful career.

"Robin, I want to get better with my singing." You admit, Robin waiting for you to continue. "It feels like I'm trying everything I can, and I know I have some potential, but I'm so scared because nothing I do works."

Robin falls silent for a moment. She's smart enough to know that she is a very talented singer, but there's another factor that can be in play here.

Her influence from her brother.

Robin gives you an idea - ask out Sunday, and once he says yes you both will be out as a couple. You honestly didn't know what to think when she said it - was it really the fact you weren't being out there enough? Or surrounding yourself with the right people enough?

Regardless, you go ahead with the plan. Surprisingly, Sunday accepts. In any other scenario of this happening, you would be over the moon.

But you know Robin spoke to Sunday about the plan, and nobody was more important to Sunday than his sister. You weren't jealous of Robin, absolutely not, but you felt a twinge of guilt when Sunday accepted as you knew by the look in his eyes that you had some sort of feelings for him, and these feelings would never be returned.

He would hold your hand, tell people he loves you and you were like an obedient cat that would willingly curl up in his lap - leading to the inevitable 'thats so cute' reactions.

He did this publicly for months, but he wouldn't share any affection with you when it was you, him and Robin. He would always have Robin between the two of you, and you'd just hang out as you typically would before you became a 'happy' couple.

Fast forward to when Sunday had his downfall, you were suddenly in the spotlight for a strange reason - people were worried you were being used by Sunday as a pawn, as he would be projecting you out more than he did with his sister at times. When he got locked away, you got more popular. Your career was taking off!

But...you weren't happy. Neither you nor Robin were happy. Neither of you blame each other - you both know Sunday did those actions of his own discretion - but you silently thought to yourselves 'what if I did this differently '?

One night, you get visited by a strange figure. No features to identify by, you fear for good reason, and they give you a proposal.

"If you are willing to ensure your partner's punishment, Sunday will be set free." They state.

"...But how could I possibly help here? Even if I do that, isn't there a chance he gets caught and gets punished more?" You query.

"Sunday is a very capable man - he can survive." The cloaked figure replies.

"And what about outsiders? Won't they get suspicious when I disappear?" You tilt your head.

"That's a simple answer - people will pretend to care about your unfortunate disappearance, and then move on swiftly." The figure bluntly explains.

"...I'll do it. I'll take his place." You nod, the figure giggling before grasping you by the forearm. You lose consciousness, unable to stay awake.

--

When you next wake up, you're in a dark room. Thorns wrapped tightly around you, securing you as if you could run away. No windows, only a door in front of you somewhere, and even if you could get out of the room what was the chance of you getting caught?

Or of Sunday getting caught, as you were in here to essentially be a substitute.

Looking back at his way of describing you, you really begin to realise he felt hunted by you. As cute as his descriptions were, he described you as a cat as opposed to a songbird. He would talk about Robin as a songbird, perhaps he thought you were going after Robins career.

But it doesn't matter now. Your life as you knew it is now over. No career, no friends, pure solitude. The only thing you can truly yearn for is Robins wellbeing. You knew Sunday would be fine, and Robin would likely be fine, but you can't do anything more than what you have done already.

[crowandmousewritingco]

Locked Room Rivals

Pairing: Max Philips x trans!reader, Dave York x trans!reader

Words: 3.7k

Summary: Your boyfriends won't get along no matter how hard you try so you take matters into your own hands.

Warnings: Theres a lot of smut in this one guys. (18+ MDNI!) Max being Max.

Author: Mod Mouse

Notes: This is my gift for @bruhlpng for the Pedro Stories Secret Santa Gift Exchange! I will say I've never written for these P boys before so I hope I did them justice!

“Oh come on toots you can’t be serious,” Max complained as he followed you through the apartment. This was the third time you were having this conversation today, and you were just going in circles. Despite your best efforts your boyfriends, Dave and Max, had yet to get along with each other. They were always making snide comments at each other whenever you invited them over for a shared dinner. It was like two cats fighting over the same rodent, and you were no mouse. So you gave them an ultimatum. Spend an hour together in a locked room or no sex from either of them for a whole month. That got their attention. 

You glanced over your shoulder making eye contact with him.  “Do you really wanna find out?” The month wasn’t gonna deter you. You had your trusty dildo and the number of a goth man who was happy for late night rendezvous. 

Max threw his hands in the air, frustration lacing his feature. “You really expect me to be in the same room without killing that agent.” Max sneered, his lips curling at the last word as if it was a rotten egg. 

“What did I say about playing nice?” You reminded him as you picked up an apple from the way too expensive fruit bowl that Max bought as a last minute Christmas present for you. 

Max sighed and rubbed his temple despite the fact that this man never had a headache in his life. “You’re really making me do this huh?” He glanced at you, slight irritation furrowing his brow. 

You bite into the apple, keeping your eyes on Max. Normally this would get him going but his attention wasn’t on your lips. “I can’t have my partners fighting every time I want to have a nice evening together.” You sighed as the sweet taste of the apple coated your tongue. “I know you’re not the most empathic creature, but if you cared even a bit about me please just give it a chance.” 

Max paused a moment before sauntering over to you, gently pressing himself between your legs. “Of course I care about you.” Despite his arrogant exterior, Max always held a softer side when it came to you. You were the one to show him kindness when others didn’t give him a chance. 

“Then will you try to be cordial?” You asked, taking in his dark eyes. 

“For you I will try not to kill him over a Pinot Noir,” Max chuckled. 

You rolled your eyes and settled your hand on his hips, the soft fabric of the expensive joggers that hung low on his hips, brought your anger down a peg. “Thank you for your consideration.” 

A smirk graced his lips slightly flashing his vampire fangs. His hands crawled up across the counter taking the apple from your hand. “Now let me be the one occupying your mouth.” He teased. 

“None of that.” You smirked in response, slipping underneath his arm. “Remember none of that before the meeting.” Max growled softly, a low sound vibrating from his throat. You gave his ass a few pats, and said “Down boy” before returning to your bedroom. You had a dinner planned with Dave. 

“We will have drinks at 7:30 allowing time for you two to settle,” You reminded Dave as the waiter brought you another glass of wine. You quietly thanked them as they continued to make their way around the tables. The lights were dimmed and a gentle piano music filled the space. This was your usual spot with Dave, it was the first place he brought you after you were an official couple. For him it was a way to reclaim a spot he took Carol, and you found that very sweet. 

“And you’re sure there is nothing to sway you?” Dave asked, a hint of hope in his words. 

“Unfortunately this is something that needs to be done,” You sighed and picked up your glass.  “I want to spend time with both of you in my house without have your snip over my head.” 

“Usually I’m not the one starting these arguments,” Dave muttered over his glass. 

You kicked his leg lighty raising your eyebrow at him. “Careful hun.” 

Dave set his glass down. “Okay okay I admit my faults, but still,” He sighed “I know you care for him, but and I mean this seriously, he sucks, pun intended.” He tilted his head at his joke. 

You sighed, setting your silverware down with a clink. Tenderly you took his rough hands in your, running the pad of your thumb over his scarred knuckles from many years of fights. “It might be strange to you but I do care for him. He…” You paused, smiling to yourself at all the memories you shared with that unlikely man. “Means a lot to me.” You gaze up at Dave’s face and your heart soared at his sympathetic stare. 

“For you I will not drive a stake through his unbeating heart,” Dave grinned before bringing your hands to his lips, planting a kiss on each knuckle. 

You couldn’t stay mad at him. “Thank you,” You whispered as he set your hands back onto the delicate table clothes. With soft conversation, the two of you finished your meal in relative peace, but you still wondered how this interaction would go. 

Just like you requested, the doorbell rang precisely at 7. You quickly adjusted your suit jack in the mirror making sure you looked perfect for the show you knew the boys would put on. With a quick pat down, you opened the door revealing the pair of men standing on your doorstep. Both dressed up in well tailored outfits, making you a little weak at the knees from the sight. Max (of course) wearing a bright red tie that contrasted deeply with the black two piece. On the other hand, Dave appeared more casual, of course casual for Dave was still a nice light blue button up with a navy tie, but his classic trench coat accompanied the outfit instead of a suit jacket. 

“Well you two make a handsome pair,” You smirked as your eyes took in your partners. 

“Of course we dressed up for our favorite person,” Dave smirked. 

“Some of us more than others,” Max quipped, side eyeing Dave. 

“Some of us don’t need to showcase our wallets to impress our boyfriend,” Dave shot back, returning the glare. 

You crossed your arms against your chest. “Boys what did I say?” Dave cleared his throat, mumbling an apology. “Better.” You turned to quickly lock the door, slipping your keys into your jacket. “Now do you have everything?” You asked, tucking your hands into your pockets. 

Both nodded and you smiled. “Good now we wouldn’t want to be late,” You smiled, pressing yourself in between them and looping your arms around theirs. 

Max glared at Dave about your head and Dave returned the glared, but you pretended not to notice. There would be plenty of more time to witness their arguments. 

The soft jazz music floated throughout the small hall as couples and business men chatted at the dark red tables. This was a familiar spot for all of you. A nice inclusive club for humans and vampires alike. Max had brought you here a short time after you had started dating, and the atmosphere both intrigued you and frightened you. Max had introduced you to his other vampire associates and you had felt like a trapped creature under the eyes of all the undead. But whenever a monster made you uncomfortable, Max was there to pull you close, giving the perpetrator a glare. Everyone in that club knew you were his thus marking you as untouchable. 

 The host led you to your favorite spot, a nice corner both with red leather contrasting against the black marble tables. It was slightly secluded from the rest of the seats, a black velvet hid half of the booth, leaving this open for secret meetings and illicit affairs. 

“And what drinks shall I get you?” The host asked, holding his hands out for your jackets.

“Just a Sex on the Beach for me,” You answered, gently handing the material over. 

“Your best Pinot Noir oh and make sure it's of the night variety,” Max winked, giving the code for added blood. 

“Top shelf whiskey on the rocks,” Dave ordered.

The host gave a small bow and disappeared through the curtains. You slid into the middle of the curve forcing the men to be in direct line of sight of each other. The two of them locked eyes before sitting down, (Max on your right and Dave on your left) not letting any form of weakness show. 

You rolled your eyes to yourself. They were the loves of your life but damn they were really showing their cisness. A heavy silence hung over the booth despite the light jazz music. You could cut the tension with a knife as you sipped on your drink, hoping that one of them would have the guts to start a conversation on their own. But having these two pseudo enemies act cordial for two seconds was too much to ask. 

It was time to pull out your plan B. You sighed and rummaged in your pants pocket. “I was afraid this would come to this.” 

Dave was the first to break the staring contest turning his attention to you. “What does that mean?” 

With a flourish you dropped the small box on the table with a thunk. “Since you can’t naturally start a conversation I’m making you talk. I refuse to sit here in silence.” You answered as the host returned with your drinks, setting them on blood red napkins in front of each of you. 

“Thank god,” Max muttered, as he picked up the crimson glass of wine taking a generous swig. The liquid stained his pale lips. 

You thanked the host as you took off the lid of the game, pulling out the stack of cards inside. Grabbing half the deck you shuffled them in your hands. “These are ice breaker questions. I had a feeling since you two can’t seem to have a civil chat, I’ll make you have one.” You explained making eye contact with both of your partners before pulling the top card of the deck. “A genie appears before you, what are you wishing for?” 

Max scoffed while taking another sip of wine. “This is ridiculous. I don’t blame children’s games.” 

Dave glanced at Max's judgement, adding to his already negative opinion of this man. “I on the other hand know exactly what I would wish for.” 

You leaned forward resting your chin on your hand taking interest in Dave, thankful for his participation. “I would love to know.” 

“I would ask for my daughter’s tuition to be paid for as long as they want to stay in school,” Dave answered and you felt your chest fluttered at his words. 

“That’s so thoughtful of you.” You held his hand on the leather seat, admiration filling your chest at his love for his daughters.

Max’s eyes bounced between you and Dave, irritation in his eyes. “Okay maybe I will play this game. 

You smirked looking up at your partner, knowing he would break at any sign of Dave getting an advantage. “That’s the spirit.” 

Max tapped his fingers against his lips debating on how he wanted to answer the question. After a while he finally answered, “I would wish for anything you wanted toots.” 

You rolled your eyes, but couldn’t help but laugh. “Babe, while I find your wish very romantic, I know you wouldn't pass up the opportunity to own a 1796 Lenox Madeira.” You took a sip of your drink glancing at Max above the rim. Max’s love of wines was borderline obsessive and he would kill to taste the oldest bottle of wine. 

Max leered at you wanting to challenge you words, but soon leaned his head back laughing. “Touche, you know me too well.” 

“You have a passion for wine?” Dave asked, extending the olive branch.

The vampire studied his face for a few moments, dissecting every inch of his face. “I do. I found that it is the only human drink I can consume. Plus adding a bit of blood adds to the bouquet of palate.” 

“He was appalled that I drank strictly Franzia when we first met,” You teased. 

A shiver chilled Max’s body at your words. “And then I taught you right. I couldn’t have you drinking that vile shit.” 

You shrugged. “It was good for what you got.” 

“But now you can get better vintages,” Max debated slyly tilting his head to the side knowing he was right about this. 

You leaned over planting a kiss on Max’s cheek. “And I appreciate you teaching me.” 

The night was going as steady as it could be. With every ice breaker question, Dave and Max had loosened up to each other better than you thought they could as if their cold exteriors were melting away. Dave had even gotten Max to laugh at one of his jokes, which was something you would have imagined happening in a million years. It was all going smoothly until a coworker at Max’s business approached the table. 

“Hey there Max! I see you’re out with your boyfriends.” The coworker joked, nudging Max’s shoulder with his elbow. 

The air around the three of you chill, and Max glanced at Dave with the usual contempt. “He’s not my boyfriend,” Max said through gritted teeth, pointing his finger at Dave. Dave stiffened and held the highball glass in his hand shooting back the expensive liquor into his mouth. 

The coworker chuckled uncomfortably at the tension in the air, and said a quick goodbye before rejoining his group. You sighed and rubbed the bridge of your nose. Goddamn vampire ruining all the hard work you had done. It was like trying to tame two wild animals. Once you got them to trust each other and then boom a loud noise spooks them. 

Time for the actual plan. “Okay boys time to go home.” You announced quickly packing up the cards from the table and returning them neatly into the box. 

Dave scooted out first motioning to the host for the coats.  Max on the other hand kept his gaze away from you. He would never admit it out loud but he hated disappointing you. The host punctually returned your coats, asking if Max wanted the drinks on his tab. The vampire gave a quick nod, and helped your put your jacket on. Once everyone was ready to go you grabbed their hands practically dragging them out of the establishment like they were misbehaving children which wasn’t far from the truth. 

Outside the club Dave hailed a taxi and soon you were on your way home. The ride back to your apartment was tense. You sat in between the two men keeping them from killing each other in the back of this taxi. Each of your hands occupied one of theirs and you could feel them tensing in your gasp. You leaned your head back against the headrest hoping that this plan would work. 

When you arrived home you gave them no chance to settle practically pushing them down the hallway to your bedroom. It was now or never. If this didn’t work then you would have to call on whatever deity existed out there to aid you. 

With less than gentle prodding your pushed them into your bedroom, making sure there was no way they could escape their fate. “Now boys I expect to see you both alive by the time I return,” You said leaning against the doorway of the bedroom, barricading the exit. 

“Well at least one of us will be,” Dave quipped side eyeing Max. 

Max flared his fangs at Dave who just to spite the vampire. You rolled your eyes used to this behaviour and pulled the door behind you. Before it was fully closed you shouted behind you, “You better behave yourselves in there. Remember one month,” You reminded them of the threat, and shut the door, sealing the fate of your two boyfriends. The pair paused for a moment staring at their escape. All hope left their heads as the soft tick of the lock keeping them in that room for the duration. 

“We could just leave,” Max mentioned, leaning against the wall putting as much space between himself and Dave as he could in the modest bedroom. “We can unlock it from this side.” 

“I’m not doing that to our partner.” Dave sighed leaning back on the bed with his hands. “I care deeply about him though I can't say I can say the same for you, bloodsucker.” 

Max chuckled darkly, his eyes filling with more annoyance. “I care immensely for MY boyfriend. How is it caring for someone when you’re gone for most of the month.” 

Dave slowly turned his head anger filling his gaze. He didn’t realize Max would come out the gate with such low hanging fruit, but nothing was too much for this business man. “The divorce is getting finalized in the next few weeks. You know I have a house already bought not too far from here.” Dave stood from the bed, making himself look taller than the creature. “Don’t you ever say I don’t care for them.” 

Max gritted his teeth as a low growl rumbled in his throat. Words escaped him for the moment and reluctantly he didn’t win this one. 

With a nod of his head, Dave said “That’s what I thought.” 

A few beats went by without either saying a word to each other. The tension was so thick it hung heavy like a thick fog. No one made a move to provoke the other. Normally Dave liked the silence considering his busy life, but usually it was never spent with Max. 

“I don’t know what they see in you. If I would have know better you didn’t actually care about him,” Dave sneered. 

That made Max snap and he rushed forward grabbing Dave by his shirt claws tearing into the fabric. Their faces were so close Dave’s breath was hot against Max’s lips. Something snapped in both of them and with a force that could rival a hurricane. Lips crashed and teeth bit against each other as the other fought for dominance. Dave could feel a trickle of blood on his lips and Max moaned at the smell of iron in the air. Hungrily he lapped up the dribbling substance savoring the tang. 

“If I had known you tasted this good I would have bitten you months ago,” Max groaned his hand quickly grasping the evident bulge in Dave’s pants. Dave gasped and pushed his hips against Max’s hand. The vampire tipped his head to the side in amusement. “Oh I will get such an ego from your submitting.” 

Dave chuckled a bit darkly and copied the movement with Max’s cock earning a groan from the other man. “Don’t ever think for a second I will bottom for you.” With a quick jerk of his hands he clasped his balls. 

It was Max’s turn to gasp, earning a smirk from Dave. “That’s what I thought. You like it just as rough as I do. Maybe we aren’t so different.” 

With deft fingers Dave unbuttoned Max’s pants pulling them down to expose his cock. Dave glanced up at him. “I see someone was preparing for something,” He commented, running his fingers over Max’s shaft. 

Max quickly looked away with a scoff. “I ran out of underwear this morning.” 

“Mmhmm,” Dave hummed, not buying it. 

“Well okay Mister Hot Shot what about you,” Max growled and unbuttoned Dave’s pants. Just as he thought, Dave’s cock sprang out with no sight of a pair of underwear. Max's eyes raked over Dave’s body. “What was that about not wearing underwear?” 

Dave grumbled something inaudible, but it quickly turned to moaning as Max caressed the underside of his cock hitting just like you would when you sucked him off. The moan that escaped his lips was downright sinful, and Max raised an eyebrow. Dave quickly covered his noises with a cough. “You reminded me of something.” 

“And would that be our handsome boyfriend on his knees with cum dripping down his cheek after giving you head like there was no tomorrow,” Max guessed, repeating the motions. 

The memories of your good submissive eyes flashed in Dave’s mind and he moaned missing your touch. He caressed his hand up Max’s cock rubbing his thumb against the head. Max groaned beads of precum dripped down his shaft. “And does this remind you of them lapping up your taste teasing you with their tongue.” 

Max smirked, the times you bratted also brought a wash of pleasure over his body. “Shit he’s always so good with his tongue.” 

“Our lover knows how to take care of us,” Dave panted as Max slowly pumped his cock faster spurring him to do the same. 

“Fuck yes he does,” Max moaned tipping his head back in pleasure. 

Through the noises Dave replied, “You know if we can get along then we can tease our boyfriend together.” 

The idea of seeing you writhing under two men instead of one sent filthy images flashing in Max’s brain. “Fuck yes god I want to see him oversimulate by our cocks and mouths.” 

“Shit yes,” Dave panted as his cock twitched under Max’s touch. “For our boyfriend’s pleasure I’ll tolerate you. 

“Ditto,” Max agreed as they furiously stroked each other off, images of you filled to the brim with their cocks fueling their pleasure. 

It wasn’t long before both of them spilled their seeds, their cum trickling down their shafts in tandem. Curiously Dave brought his fingers to his mouth tentatively tasting his rival. He smirked. “You actually taste pretty good. Might want to taste you again.”

Max smirked, mirroring Dave’s motions. The taste of Dave’s cum on his tongue was magnificent. “I hate to say it but that’s up their with a nice glass of wine.”

“We really aren’t that different huh,” Dave smirked and Max chuckled in agreement. “We’re gonna have to thank him after all.” 

You pressed your ear to the door finding the sounds of laughter emanating from the closed room. A wide smile formed on your face, knowing your little plan worked.

Credit to @carnage-cathedral and @inklore

All Works Taglist:

@for-a-longlongtime @romanarose

Pedro Characters Taglist:

@littlemisspascal @burntheedges

@carusolikey @thebeldroramscal

@morallyinept @lady-bess

@pedrostories @rivnedell

@pascalsanctuary @readingiskeepingmegoing

@jessthebaker

[loudn-mcyt]

SBK Finale Liveblogging: Vintage_Applesauce

Spoilers below the cut:

I have never been more ready or less ready for this. I'm so afraid.

The title immediately jumped out to me. "Surviving the end"???? I don't believe you Vintage

I don't think cherry is getting out of this one guys...

If I'm wrong I'll be so happy but Ruby and Vintage have not been filling me with confidence

Everyone subscribe to Vintage right now. I am no longer asking

The countdown has started...I'm not ready...

STARTING WITH RUE THATS NOT FAIR

WAUGHHHHHHH

I love the manipulation montage

"It wasn't supposed to be this way" NOOOOOOO

WHEN SHE AGREED TO BE OLMS HOST AUGHHHH

"I did not do it with the intent of harming others"

Oh my god. I was so close on so many of my predictions.

Ruby is what vintage got out of the deal with Olm???? I'm crying

She wanted companionship...she didn't realize what she would lose...

Another point for Olm god of betrayal (said through tears)

Based on chat Ruby played Olm in the flashbacks. Woo Ruby!

She's manipulating Yellow so much. But in her defense. He's so easy to manipulate

I support her in doing so. I don't support Olm though. Only Vintage.

8 months??? Olm's been playing them the whole time...

"getting out of this". That was already hinted at im Viking's finale but I can't wait to find out what he's trying to get out of.

The picnic is so cute

The shulker monster...Vintage...

She described the picnic as romantic :( my heart

She opened the pen pal message and closed it augh

I love the void cathedral I've said it before and I'll say it again

Why is the screen going dark. Why is everything quiet. Vintage. Vintage.

"Your end of the deal????" WAUGHHHHHH

Olm die die die die die

Leave her alone. Get a job.

This is incredible storytelling. Unfortunately it is incredible storytelling with the express purpose of SHATTERING MY HEART INTO PIECES

Ruby is there but Vintage is NOT looking at him even a little bit augh

She just walks right past Ruby...they don't interact she just brushes right past...

Volm manipulating until the very end. I might be imagining things but this almost seems like it's a little more anxious than before, trying to get Viking to do this before Olm loses his chance

"this is therapeutic to watch" OLM I HATE YOU

"I never leave" EAUGH

It's time for the ritual. It's time to find out what happens.

I love her evil laugh...I may not like Olm but I do love evil Vintage

Olm is free. FROM WHAT. FROM WHAT?!?!?

Vintage :(((( she's so sorry :((((

"I need to make things right."

She's scrambling so hard to hide

RUBY WAUGHHHHH

"Stay back" NOOOOOO

RUBY DOESNT VELIEVE HER THAT SHES SORRY

I'm in agony

"An apology to me is not really. I mean. Do you hate me that much?" WAUGHHHHH

"You didn't go looking for me."

I CANT TAKE THIS ANYMORE

SAKURA SPOUSES DIVORCE REAL. I HATE IT HERE

"You were all I wanted!"

Vintage betrayed everyone she loved, used everyone around her, to try to keep Olm contained. Because she wanted love. Because she wanted companionship.

She built the sewers on purpose to make the island safe from what would happen...

Vintage and Ruby's acting is so good. Moment of appreciation for how good this is

I'm going to rewatch this episode like 5 times there's so much here to sink my teeth into

"How do I know you're not just using me again."

"You told me to trust you...and I trusted you."

She knows that she cant regain Ruby's trust but it's the only thing she wants

Vintage is BEGGING Ruby to come with and be safe but Ruby won't go...because they remember their family...they remember the world before Skyblock...

THE BOOK

"As soon as I knew I couldn't trust you anymore, I knew I couldn't trust anything."

"Your end of the world doesn't involve me."

"I can't." "You can. Because I trust you."

"Maybe we'll have our happy ending one day."

The poppy...

"Of course I'll remember you."

I'm in shambles. Im dead. They love each other so much no matter what they will always find each other but that doesn't mean it'll be a happy ending

"No matter how many deals you make. No matter how many times you try, how many times you pray. Sometimes it's just not meant to be." WAUGHHHHHHHHHH

"we'll meet again in another lifetime. We'll be friends then."

THEY'RE SOULMATES YOUR HONOR

"this is my final goodbye." WITH CLOUDLESS STARTING IN THE BACKGROUND???? NOOOOOO

"Bye Ruby...I was glad to be given a partner like you. I just wish I could be given a second chance."

She puts away the compass by the poppy but keeps the clock...

She forgot to turn the stove off

It's over...

Yeah. Calling this a bittersweet ending makes sense.

I'm not going to be normal about this I'm going to continue being so abnormal about this.

I'm dead. I'm dead and gone.

This is so good...

EVERYBODY GO SUBSCRIBE TO VINTAGE APPLESAUCE. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST. DO IT.

Aughhhhhhh

[wwwinky]

A Very Belated Review of If We Were Villains

I read this book months ago so if the details are off forgive me.

The problem with this whole book I think comes from The Secret History. I'll admit I am a bit of a fan of TSH, but I will say that it is definitely not as amazing as people in the Dark Academia fandom make it to be. The thing about this book, that I'm glad most people over the age of 15 see, is that Tartt doesn't really like these chcarcters and we're not supposed to either. But, if you've fully bought into the aesthetic and image Tartt is satirising it becomes really hard to dislike these students. On a surface level Rio understands this principle but I think she’s tied her characters and identified them so heavily on the aesthetics of TSH.

People get very defensive when you say that IWWV was inspired by TSH but let's be honest here... I won't sit here a list every similarity but anyone whose read both has to admit the inspiration. Inspiration is not plagiarism and no one is accusing Rio of being a thief.

Rio buys so hard in to these characters that she literally cannot paint them (except Richard) as being anything but interesting, beautiful and charismatic. That's where the whole book falls apart, Rio cannot bring herself to make these characters unlikable, so the entire novel feels like she's revealing the bad things they've done followed immediately with an excuse about why it's not their fault. The only characters that doesn't get this treatment is the one that Rio wants us to see as the villain. How do you write a murder mystery and forget to add the bit about murder?

Fillipa was the most annoyingly useless character I've read in a long while. I think if you could remove a character completely and have no issues with the plot there's a problem, and this is an issue she shares with the other female characters. The egregious thing about this character is that she is the only female of colour (I think she was some type of South East Asian). I think a lot of people on the internet falsely attribute authors portraying racism in their work as them endorsing it. It's not racist to have a character who is asian be the one person in the group who doesn't get a sexy Shakespearean archetype, because that is unfortunately the reality for a lot of woc. The problem is when you don't correct or address that reality in any meaningful way. In the real world, Fillipa would have been assigned a spare role because she's asian, and in the real world that would have been painfully obvious for the other characters. In the real world, Alexander would have been assigned the villain because he was latino.

The novel started on a scene where the main character, Oliver was sitting around with the other students and mentally assigning them with their on stage archetypes. When he outlined how these roles are so heavily cemented in their group and how they tend to influence their relationships with one another, I was sure the central conflict would have come about after they were cast in unusual archetypes. That did happen to an extent in the halloween scene, but this shuffling didn't involve Fillipa or Alexander at all.

So you're telling me that this asian girl who never gets the desirable female role, and is often cast to play men, never gets her chance to be the main girl? None of the other characters see the discrimination and but justify it with her personality and appearance?

Again with the archetypes because it seems all the issues with this books comes from this, Rio refuses to betray them. She doesn't feel the need to twist them in interesting ways or use them to tell us a convincing story. It’s not bad that I guessed that Jason was the murderer since he’s the archetypal hero, but it’s bad that the real twist was that no murder even took place.

[fkinavocado]

okay...my unfortunate dating app stories...

after my divorce i joined an app, i don't remember which one. i met a few of the guys who just wanted hookups, which i expected. then i started talking to this other guy who seemed sweet but he was already like ready to make us a couple before we even met. it kinda freaked me out so i ghosted him and deleted the app. i felt bad because i hate having it done to me, but i think i just wasn't ready yet. a few months later i joined another, i think it was okcupid. i started talking to three guys, all younger. one of them lived nearby, the other two on the other side of the city. i met the first one, he was cute and we hit it off, then he ghosted me the next day when we were supposed to get together again. he'd blocked my number and everything. second guy i think was just a fake who was having fun flirting and pretending. i never met him. third guy i hooked up with several times. but i should have noticed the red flags from the beginning. he claimed he had a female roommate who had horrible anxiety around new people, so i had to come over when she was at work. his bathroom was full of female stuff like makeup, etc. he claimed she didn't have a phone. the first night we went to a motel and he said he had to get home because his roommate was home and freaking out about something. i asked how she could text him without a phone and he laughed and said she used facebook on her computer. over time, i told him i was fine with meeting her, i wasn't gonna bite or anything. then it finally dawned on me that she was not just his roommate lol. i felt so dumb. but it wasn't until he broke it off with me. like i knew, but i didn't wanna admit it, you know?

months later i heard from the first guy again. he told me he had this crazy ex gf who saw our interaction and was threatening him and to kill herself or some shit. but that he finally got rid of her and wanted to see me again. i gave him another chance like a dummy and he ghosted me again. i think he was just having fun playing games.

so a year or so later, i finally got up the nerve to try a third app, hinge. i started talking to this guy who messaged me first. we talked for a while and he said he was from london but had been living in my city since before the pandemic and was currently in la on business. we made plans to meet up when he got back. but he kept pushing back the date of his return. this went on for a couple months until he sent me a "new" pic that had the name of his business in the background. i googled it and it was a company that he supposedly owned, or at least the man he claimed to be owned. but it didn't add up because the guy he claimed to be still lived in the UK. i found his instagram, his website, and even some youtube videos. this guy had never lived in the US. in fact, he had gone to a wedding which he had a video of on his instagram. i called him out on it, saying he couldn't be at two places at once. long ass story short, this guy owned up to it, but would never tell me who he really was. no surprise. he even had the nerve to keep trying to contact me after all of this shit, so i finally changed my number, my email, and all other personal info. i nearly had a nervous breakdown over it, and lost $400 which i won't get into. let's just say it was the most humiliating experience of my life. i will never do dating apps ever again.

oh lordy lord. girl all of that was such a rollercoaster!!! i absolutely don't blame you, i mean i talked to some weirdos (thankfully found out they were weird before we actually made it to a first date) and then had this one date that was fine, i just wasn't into him in person- and i feel like never giving anyone a chance on these apps again!!! but what you guys are telling me really puts things into perspective! damn. i can't pick which one is the the most traumatizing for me... (just conceptually ofc since i don't know the full story) but i feel like the what must've been married guy would've been the worst one for me :( i'm sorry hun. clearly the one thing all these man had in common was they were pathological liars. you didn't deserve any of that:(

[a-weird-writer]

not a request, but hear me out… Guy Crimson’s s/o, who is thoroughly covered in his scent, leaves on a journey that lasts weeks, if not months. Once returning, they don’t smell the same, they smell… like all sorts of different majin that aren’t him. His s/o even has the scent of another daemon on them from their visit to Tempest and their time spent around Rimuru and his secretaries. (Honestly, it can be assumed that Diablo/Black spent much time around s/o intentionally, knowing, and finding it amusing how much it would irritate Rouge, the Red Primordial to have his mate returning with the scent of another primordial.) While there was not a chance in hell that s/o would ever betray Guy, it’s inevitable that the scent of others would rub off on them. I wonder if Guy would appear needy, desperate to rescent and reclaim his lover.

I know that the Red Primordial has existed from the dawn of time, but boy would it be a joy to see him desperate.

This red motherfucker acts so fucking unaffected by it.

Wearing that classic Cheshire cat grin, damn "happiest" Guy has ever been so it seems. Clean cut in the visible light of your eyes, so undeniably unnatural to the human eye. And it may very well blow over an ignorant fool's head.

But you know Guy, his one and only; how he plays across the midnight air free as bird. And you, of all the people in his long, long eternity, are likely to notice that strange smile, that joyous uppercut of his lip doesn't feel the way it normally does. Forced. Far from smooth. It's cracked right into place, edges of a sword, stabbing every truth to rip it apart further. Not that he doesn't trust you. Oh no, Guy does trust you, but a lion doesn't attack another lion wandering its territory for the gazelle's sake.

Guy's thin-laced smirk rubs alcohol onto a wound that shouldn't even be there, a pricking sense of dread and despair.

But it is,

said wound is a reminder. One for you.

Any shift in Guy Crimson's mood tips at the drop of a hat, and those notable shifts happen simultaneously hand in hand with foreign encounters.

The ancients-who don't see eye to eye with him, do understand Guy Crimson, in defining remembrance of his 'happy-go-lucky" demeanor-scolds; a somber, quiet weight for those unfortunate enough to summon him, what truly lies beneath the twinkling stars of his bloody façade, no one can really pin it in place.

Any face of Guy is skillfully crafted; Sinister smile-too straight not to be fake, seething his cheekbones, thinning out the handsome layers of his face in the smoothest slit of the mouth. No wrinkles, flaws, or mild stumble of the brow; a wild brush, crinkled black. A hollow shadow upon his closed, ruby-laced lids; children cry at the sight of such an abominable facet.

Guy Crimson is a fairly reasonable dude, no admirable primordial like him can avoid treading the soils. Dirt will get on your shoes; nature is an inevitable thing to allow. Something was going to rub off eventually. If it was Diablo that "accidently" rubbed off on you, Guy knows better than to fall for the trap that devilish little sea urchin set up, especially when Guy has better things to think about.

But Guy doesn't have to like it, nonetheless, no matter the intention. That scent-something not his-itches the back of his head. Countless bugs crawling, stubby legs creeping up his throat. That specific irritation peaks every time you enter the same room, although it isn't obvious for the unknowing ones-it isn't mild in the slightest and will worsen the longer the smell lingers. God help you if it ever gets stronger.

He won't take the sudden change of scent as a threat, heavens no. Guy Crimson is more than a little self-aware of the disastrous threat proposed in his footsteps, his very name was inspired by the fearful screams of his victims. The people effected by him-especially under, know how far they can truly throw their rocks across the lines of his tolerance. Which is fairly high, you must admit for someone of his intimidating stature.

Mentioned many times before, while Guy isn't exactly emotive, he is possessive to a demonic degree with no issue showing it. Guy isn't blind to human moral logic, but it won't apply to himself in general sense. It's his nature; to frown upon anyone who intrudes upon a claim walking on his land, rightfully his by law alone.

Under the sheets of bed, the star-littered cover of night-Guy won't exactly turn this situation into a problem, not technically, but that doesn't mean he won't eventually do the inevitable and pout.

He turns an entire fucking wheel and crashes himself into a pole while he's at it; Silently scuffing each time he smells anything remotely like somebody else, cheeks huffing and puffing like a child. Sharp pins, annoying fingers, poke and pry away pinches at your flushed plums.

Rest assured, the moment a chance seizes to wipe off the intrusive smell, the pitiful intruder on your flesh,

Guy will erase it.

[malleablemusic]

unfortunately, my boyfriend unironically listens to weezer, and has caught wind about this blog. after a month of trying, he has successfully convinced me to use this album for this week's blog. let the record state that i have heard island in the sun before, as aquamarine is one of my favorite movies in the entire world (for anyone wondering, he will now be watching that fantastic piece of cinematic history with me in exchange for this post). anyways, here's my review of weezer's self titled album:

don't let go: 3/5 stars

i love when a man sings "ill be down on my knees" for some reason its just so vulnerable

loving the simp energy he is giving, whole song is just begging so far

this is transforming me into a 14 year old boy with a spiky haircut, learning guitar in my room, suddenly i want to play basketball in my driveway

his voice is very classic, especially for the music genre, but doesn't feel unique enough for me

photograph: 2.9/5 stars

i always love clapping in songs, especially in an intro

such a fun beat, i could dance around my room to this

i think he just liked getting to repeat "re-erect it" over and over

hash pipe: 4.6/5 stars

oh okay raaaangeee!!!! is this a completely different singer

feels like such a different vibe than the first two

what happens when that 14yr old spiky haired kid gets older and gains access to marijuana lmao

i didn't know weezer could be angsty this is great

"you've got your problems / i've got my eyes wide / you've got your big g's / i've got my hash pipe" he's truly speaking words of wisdom

island in the sun: 5/5 stars

it is very hard for me to separate this song from the film that means so very much to me (aquamarine) so i simply will not be

the pure joy and light and love this song exudes its insane

i am instantly transported to a beach, in a bikini and big shirt, hair damp and sun-bleached, off a margarita and dancing in the sunset

i am obsessed with the guitar solo and need to learn how to play just for this

the way he sings "we'll never feel bad anymoreeee" !! IM HEALED

crab: .1/5 stars

okay continuing with the beach theme

brb googling what it means to crab?

according to the internet they're just complaining about the women. ok way to let me down after one of my favorite songs ever

is this just a man upset a woman won't sleep with him

"crab at the booty / 'taint gonna do no good" shutttt uppp ! just shut up (:

this is really gonna lower the album's average huge L for them

knockdown dragout: 2.5/5 stars

lyrics are kind of giving nothing, repetitive

i do enjoy the guitar, they always eat with that, but this is kind of boring

smile: 2.8/5 stars

i like his little belting when he sings "'cause i don't wanna break"

the guitar solos in this album !! even the short ones, so good

follows the common theme i see of wanting a girl to give him a chance...

simple pages: 2.8/5 stars

yup okay another song asking a girl to give him a chance - truly, i get it, and this is a valid form of art you go sir, i just do not see myself listening to this kinda music

i do enjoy pining every once in a while do not get me wrong

another bangin guitar solo

feels like i don't have much to say about this..

glorious day: 3/5 stars

angsty nerdy boy decides its time to finally make a move and ask a girl out

i like these kinds of weezer songs more, the "grittier" sound

giving angry high school band in a battle of the bands competition

o girlfriend: 2/5 stars

i think what i don't like about them is while their sound is good and i enjoy it, the lyrics are truly so generic and not special

i think I said this in an earlier post, and i am not trying to be disparaging, but an AI chatbot could've easily written this in 30 seconds- i just don't believe he's actually hurt and grieving a love, i want to feel the artists genuine pain, this does not sound like a man torn apart

sadly, i was very underwhelmed by this album. to my partner's credit, this is not his favorite of their work, so maybe i will give the rest of their music a try eventually, but for now that was very mid (aside from the perfection that is island in the sun) and i'd give the album 2.7/5 stars.

[delucadarling]

:D directors commentary on your lovely Wayhaven regency au? (I've been meaning to ask if you have a masterlist of those entries at all, because I'm not sure I caught all of them and the Tumblr search wasn't working! No worries if not!)

Oo, oh man I've barely thought about the regency au in a minute (I chalk that up to Emma and I having busted through Bridgerton months ago). Unfortunately, I don't have any sort of masterlist of that fic, though iirc there's only 5 parts posted at the moment. They'll all be on my writing blog, @delucadarlingwriting under the tag 'regency au'. Making a masterlist of fic wouldn't be a bad idea though 🤔

Commentary down below!

I'll start with some backstory from part 1:

So, I'm sure I've mentioned before, but this is not really historical fanfiction. I'm doing some baseline research, but I am also deliberately twisting certain things, like racism, homophobia, xenophobia...lots of a 'phobias u kno. They don't not exist, but they are more or less not present among the majority of people. It's only the upper class that gives those things much thought, because they're rich bastards obsessed with their own bloodlines and being better than other people based on arbitrary standards. You get the gist.

Patriarchy is still very present, and Barbie and Lucas' mother (and father before he beefed it) were very invested in upholding that. Their mom in my version of canon is a fundie boy mom, and that translates pretty well to this au. She's obsessed with Lucas, especially now that he's the Earl. Barbie is...there. Something the be bragged about in company and to complain about in private. Kira, despite being the ward of the Peachtree house, manages to escape most of the complaining. Barbie's mom most just ignores her.

Another thing here is Lucas and Kira are both gay, but because of their status in life, they can't be open about it. Kira isn't even fully aware at this point, but it won't take much for her to realize why men don't interest her. Barbie is still bi, but her preferences have always leaned masculine, which means she doesn't have a lot of opportunities to realize she's attracted to women as well.

From part 2:

Again, this is an AU that @crownleys and I work on together, so Rebecca is Kira's mom. I don't remember if I've mentioned it anywhere else, but the way we've had it, is Rebecca was not part of high society before marrying Rook. She was a working woman within the Agency, which was socially appropriate for someone of her station. However, once she and Rook fell in love, there was stiffling pressure to change herself. Rook himself never asked her to change, and even offered to retreat from high society entirely. So for a time they did.

Then Rook died. Rebecca maintained his wealth and the title she married into. She had no other support though, so she tried to re-enter society. It went so poorly that she gave it all up, including her high born daughter, so she could go back to what she was before meeting Rook. In her mind, this gave Kira the best chance at a good, safe life, while also allowing Rebecca to escape her grief.

With Murphy targeting people within the ton though, Rebecca has no choice but to use her unwanted place in society to track him down.

I can't really think of much else I had in mind while writing this! It was a very fun little series to play with, and I do want to add more to it with time, but I do suspect it will be a perpetual WIP. If we ever get Bridgerton season 3, that'll probably be what sparks my desire to revive it.

[abandonhopegame]

Dev Log #4: Walking Alone in the Dark

Girl Illustration by famahima. Logo by Didik Wahyudi. Bloodspatter and rose graphics by Canva.

Hello, all! Maks of Mushroom Witch Games back with another Abandon Hope dev update. A lot has happened since the last update so let's get started!

GAME DEVELOPMENT UPDATE

The game main draft is still at 17k words. I'm waiting for a few folks to send back feedback and then I will go from there. But that said, one reader's feedback gave me the chance to add a new class! I won't say it just yet - I need to tinker with it first, but I'm sure I'll mention something down the line!

Abandon Hope: Walking Alone in the Dark released next month! The Abandon Hope team is happy to announce the release our first solo journal RPG, set in the Abandon Hope universe. You are an unfortunate soul who has stayed out too late - and now a twisted entity stalks your every move. You can check out the announcement post or view the trailer here.

Mushroom Witch Games will be opening a Ko-fi page November 1st! Members of our Ko-fi page will get to see game illustrations, drafts, be given opportunities to play test games, and other juicy bits before everyone else. There will be several levels of memberships and all support will be used to make more games, advertise our products, and buy snacks for the creators. (Because snacks power creators). If you would like to follow us and, bookmark our page, please follow us here. A bigger announcement will be made November 1st.

HOW I'M FEELING ABOUT THE PROCESS

I feel like I might be at a standstill with the main game because I'm taking so much information in. The feedback I've received so far has been immensely helpful and since I am in not rush to release the core multiplayer game, I feel like I can take my time with it. However, I also feel very insecure since I have so much to learn. But I am still going to do the thing, no matter what. That said, the more I create the spinoff solo games, the more I gain insight on how I want the main game to be!

That’s all from the desk of the Mushroom Witch. See you all again next week with another update!!

[notquitejiraiya]

hi! I was one of your readers of ‘Grandmaster’. I'm probably never getting another chance to say this, there's a lot i'd like to say about your story but sadly I'm only now coming here to thank you for writing such a heartfelt piece. It's unfortunate i'll won't be able to know how it comes along. I read the sand siblings follow-up where Temari and Shikamaru get into a runaway wedding (not sure of this expression but I hope I'm understood). Sorry for my poor english btw, it's not my first language. I'm not sure if you will follow this ending but I had fun imagining that scenario taking place. Because of ‘Grandmaster’, I went back to playing chess. When I was a junior in high school, I was part of my institute chess club, then the pandemic happened and it was just one of a ton of things I parted ways with. I've played at least once a week since my first binge reading back on late December. Today I reread a few dozen chapters (4th time rereading). All I can say is that Grandmaster is very loved and that I'll miss it. I wonder if you continue writing, hopefully it'll be possible.

Dear author, I wish you well. Thanks a lot. These months have been way less hard because of your creation. If I can, I'll try to continue following your fic. There's so much more I wanted to say but I'll be comforted if my sincerity finds you

Dear Anon, I have to start this by thanking you as much as humanly possible for your kind words, your time, and for sharing your story here with me. You are perfectly understood, don't worry, and I hope my reply can do justice to the gratitude I feel for your ask. I hope you don't mind that I am replying to it - I thought long and hard about doing so, but I couldn't leave you unanswered. Your words have found me, and they have touched me, and I'm immensely grateful to have heard them.

I'm so happy to hear that you've enjoyed Grandmaster so far and Strangers, too. It makes me even happier to hear that it has brought you back into the chess world, too - that is so very wonderful, and I hope you continue to love the game going forward.

Whatever your situation may be, I am sorry to hear that times have been hard. I wish you only the very best going forward, and if you do continue to follow Grandmaster (which will be finished, don't worry), I hope you can continue to enjoy it. I would love to hear from you again if you do.

Take care, and thank you again for your kindness. Much love and all the best to you <3

[ottspot]

The Highs & Lows of Switching To Physical Music - My Journey

Allow me to invite you in on my (in-progress) journey of switching from Spotify Premium to listening to all of my music ripped from CDs and digital purchases through foobar2000. I'm listening to the music I like and doing only that, while also owning what I listen to. No subscription expiration is gonna bar me from that. Read more below!

Streaming music through services like Spotify, YouTube Music, and Apple Music offers many benefits to the user. Listening to an album as soon as it releases at midnight, easily sharing playlists with friends, as well as their little "collected user data from the past year presented with a pretty little bow on top". Oh, sorry. I mean "Spotify Wrapped", "Apple Music Replay", and "YouTube Music Recap".

Though, there's also some downsides to using the services. One of them is the pricing. Spotify Premium is currently $12 a month at the time of this writing, with YouTube Music and Apple Music being priced just a dollar lower. There's also different features spread between all the different services. Spotify has its Daily Mixes, podcasts, and audio books, Apple Music and Tidal have their high quality Dolby Atmos streaming, and YouTube Music has… switching between the music video and audio. It's too much sometimes and things can be pretty bloated, especially when all you want to do is listen to music. Nothing else.

The biggest thing to me, however, is the fact that you don't own the music you stream. Once that subscription runs out, it's off to YouTube for you. And you can't even listen to music with the screen off or in picture-in-picture without a Premium subscription. Now, you can always "arrrgh matey" this shit and truly be a rebel against the system, in which case I won't stop you. Do whatever you want. The rest of this doesn't really concern you. But to those who prefer doing things more legally, then I'm about to tell you about how I started this whole journey, and how I'm going to keep going on it for as long as I want to.

How I Got Here

This first started when I got my Blu-ray drive in the mail. I just have this for DVDs and Blu-rays (and I even have a modified firmware to play 4K Blu-rays), but realized soon after getting it that there was another optical media I could take advantage of: CDs. I have a CD player already, and I could just listen to the songs on my large speakers, but this was my chance to back up and preserve what I own. Disc rot is very much a thing with CDs, and while it hasn't taken my discs yet, I don't want to risk anything. Plus, my Spotify Student plan was going to run out after I graduate. So, I did some research and tinkering to find out how to rip the songs from my CDs and listen to the music backed up on my hard drive. What I found is that a program I already used for listening to music I ripped from video games, foobar2000, was great at handling all of this. So, for the past few months I've been working to back up my collection and ultimately ditch Spotify to use it as my main music listening app. It even has an iPhone app as well! Though, in replacing Spotify, this means I've also been working to get the songs I love on CD, by whatever means possible. Discogs has been a big help with this journey, as it led me to discover different variants of albums that I had no idea existed. Did you know that while P!nk's version of "Whataya Want From Me" is readily available on streaming and digital stores, it's only on the German and Australian versions of that "Greatest Hits...So Far!!!" album? I didn't. It's one of my favorite songs from her, and now that's a release I'm looking to get my hands on soon.

This is unfortunately going to be more and more of a common practice for me as time goes on. Importing. A lot of deluxe editions of albums release only for a limited time on CD, only on vinyl, or just don't have a physical release at all... in the US, anyway. Japan has a lot of CDs of deluxe editions readily available to import from sites like CDJapan or sellers on eBay. I happen to have three examples of those (though, I only needed to import two). Midnights by Taylor Swift is a complicated mess when it comes to owning the complete experience physically, and it shouldn't have to be. The "Lavender" CD at Target is the only physical release with "Hits Different" and two remixes, while the "Late Night Edition" is the only release with any of the "3am Edition" songs, "You're Losing Me", and two different remixes, this time of "Snow on the Beach" and "Karma". The first problem with the "Late Night Edition" is that it doesn't even have all of the songs from the "3am Edition". It has 5 of the 7 bonus songs from it, omitting "Paris" and "Glitch". Now, I'm unsure if this was a storage issue with all of the songs, but they very easily could have just made it a second disc instead of trying to cram everything onto just one, and cutting songs in the process. But even then, you'll need the "Lavender" CD to have the other songs for the (almost) complete experience.

The second problem with this edition is that it was only ever sold in the US during the 2023 shows of The Eras Tour, starting in late May with East Rutherford. It wasn't even brought back for the 2024 US leg. It had small drops on Taylor's website during the 2023 holiday season and was available as a digital download for one day only, but outside of that, there is no other way to buy it in the US. It never even got a release in Europe, Australia, Mexico, Brazil... literally any other country stop on her tour. This has led to the CD rising in price ever since then, and even bootlegs being made to trick people. These are usually pretty cheap and ship from China, sporting darker colors for the front cover and inserts, as well as having an incorrect sticker on the front. People might have to (understandably) settle for these just to own the songs physically. Thankfully, there is another option, but time might be running out until their prices go up as well. Japan thankfully has a wide-release of the "Late Night Edition" that is more readily available. It comes in a 7-inch vinyl-like sleeve with a larger poster, a lyric booklet, and some even include a guitar pick. The disc contents are also completely identical to the US release. You can buy it from UMG Japan's store as well as YesAsia. eBay also has copies but for a bit more money.

The second and third examples are the deluxe editions of Olivia Rodrigo's GUTS and Sabrina Carpenter's emails i can't send. GUTS (spilled) has a vinyl release worldwide, but emails i can't send fwd: does not have a physical release at all. Of course, both have CD releases in Japan. They, like the "Late Night Edition" of Midnights, were released to commemorate their respective artist's tour stops in Japan. Unlike that release however, they boast that they're "Japan-only" special editions. This means that there's probably no chance of the CD ever coming out anywhere else.

The good news is that they're not at risk of selling out anywhere. You can even go to my regular site CDJapan to purchase them.

But yes, that's my long and convoluted way of telling you that if you're wanting your favorite songs physically, you're going to have to shell out a bit more money to import. Like me. There's another way to obtain the files of the songs you like, though. Sites like Qobuz let you buy the high-quality FLAC files legally, so you can download them and have them with the rest of your songs. I recommended this way if your song doesn't have a physical release at ALL (or is only on vinyl) or if you don't want to spend more money to import the CD.

Now that we're all caught up with how I got obsessed with all this, it's time to get to the juicy bits. If you want to do any of this yourself, I'm going to go in depth with what tools I use and how I do certain things so that you can have an ideal listening experience.

Ripping Discs + Playing Music

When it comes to actually ripping the discs, I'm gonna be honest. Any cheap CD USB drive is going to work (I assume), and what I have is very much overkill for this sort of task. For a disc drive, I have an ASUS BW-16D1HT internal Blu-ray burner drive, paired with a Vantec NexStar DX2 enclosure so I can use it externally. As mentioned before, the software that I use for playing and ripping my music is foobar2000. It's a completely free program that has a lot of customizability and versatility when it comes to its design and layout, as well as having plugin support for anyone who happens to make any. You can even install one that adds a Discord Rich Presence - and it looks just like Spotify!

When you load a CD into your computer for the first time, naturally you're given options as to what to do with it. You're going to want to set it so that foobar2000 opens when you put a CD in the drive. From here, your music will play and everything should work just fine. Sometimes the metadata for the album, like the artist and track names, or release year might show up immediately. Other times, it does not. If this doesn't bother you, then you can leave it alone. For me, though, I prefer having the details there so I know that I'm listening to.

So, here's how you fill that metadata out. Right-click on a track (or album) in the program and select "Properties".

You'll be able to change all kinds of data here. This is an example of a track that I filled out some of the data for. Once you've done this, you can click "Apply" or "OK". It'll do the same thing.

You can also see that you can change the artwork, but this can't be done with the tracks on the discs themselves. You're going to have to rip the tracks to your computer, and edit those files. Something I'm going to teach you how to do as well!

Edit (February 11, 2025): This method is for if you are SURE you want to use foobar2000 with ripping your CDs! I have another method that I use now that's documented after this. Just look for the next edit, like this one. When you right click on a track, you will also see a "Convert" option.

There are a couple of options here, but what you want to do is to go into the "..." menu.

This lets you choose what to convert the file to, where it goes, and any other processing.

In "Output format", there's a number of options. I personally use FLAC at compression level 5 for all of my music. The difference between level 0 and 5 is incredibly minimal, only a hundred or so kilobits that an extreme audiophile with crazy headphones might notice. True lossless would be converting the CD tracks to WAV files, but that almost doubles how much storage your music takes. Only go this route if you care about a 1:1 CD rip and have the storage.

Edit (February 11, 2025): Well, um... somehow this is already dated. I use Exact Audio Copy to rip my CDs now. It's a pretty simple program once you figure it out. If your CD is pretty scratched up, it can try to fix it up so that the ripped files sound good as new. Plus, it can apply metadata and cover art to the ripped files automatically!

Edit (Continued): Be sure to follow this guide to get the program set up. I recommend choosing MusicBrainz as the metadata provider, though. Follow this guide next to actually rip the songs to FLAC. You can also just convert them to MP3s. There's multiple settings for MP3 encoding, so you can have high quality files while still saving on tons of space. Just right click on the option and "Edit".

Note that you will need to have the LAME MP3 encoder executable somewhere on your device in order to be able to do so. You can obtain an already-assembled version of it here. Just place it anywhere on your computer and define the path in foobar2000, and you should be good to go.

Edit (February 11, 2025): You can also rip tracks from the CD compressed to MP3 immediately with Exact Audio Copy, though you will have to do some configuration in the settings. I haven't done this before, but I assume you'll still need the LAME encode executable. Once you convert the files, it's up to you how you have them stored. I personally make folders for all my albums and set the icons of the folders as the album art. That's just a matter of converting the image to a .ico file and setting that as the icon in the customize tab in "Properties" in Windows Explorer.

This makes everything easy to visualize and nice to look at. I even have this Music folder pinned to my Quick Access so I can easily get to it. Of course, now you're going to need to have foobar2000 actually see where this all is. If you go to "File" -> "Preferences" (or just hit Ctrl+P) you'll bring up your settings. Click on "Media Library".

Here, you're going to want to define where your music is located. Click "Add" and navigate the Explorer window to where your music or folders of music are located. Select the folder, hit "Apply", then close out of the window. The albums and songs should now show up wherever your album list is located, which is usually on the left side. Now all you have to do is scroll through it, click on the drop-down menu of the album, and play a song!

Extra foobar2000 Tips and Features

I have foobar2000 set up with a few more features and settings that make everything easier to handle, just so I spend less time in Explorer. This way, you won't have to do what I used to and drag the whole album into the program every time you wanna listen to it. The first thing I want to go over is the layout. You can edit your layout in "View" -> "Layout" -> "Quick setup".

This is what "Album list + Properties + Visualisations" looks like, and is my recommended layout if you don't want to mess with anything. Of course, this isn't what mine looks like. Same colors, but a bit of a different look.

I've removed the properties and shrank the visualization portion, while adding the album art in the bottom left. This is through the layout editing mode, in the same dropdown menu as "Quick setup". I recommend you play around with it and see what you like. If this is a bit too complicated for you, I also recommend searching for foobar2000 skins. I don't have experience with installing them, so I recommend using this video here. Earlier, I also mentioned a Discord Rich Presence add-on you can install. That's found right here! Download the file from the "releases" section (I'd use foo_discord_rich-x64.fb2k-component if you're on a modern system), double click it, and it should install right away. If you want something that looks like this though, there's a few more steps to follow.

Under the "Preferences" menu, "Discord Rich Presence Integration" should be a new selection under "Tools".

These are my settings for the plugin. You can see in the first image that you can have the plugin try to find the album cover from the internet. But what if the cover isn't the right one? Or what if you want a custom one? This is where the "Art cache" window in the second image comes in. Select "Open containing folder..." and you'll find a lone .json file. It looks something like this.

The program takes the linked images and displays them in the plugin. If your album doesn't show up here, just copy the formatting and replace it with the artist and album name, and a link to the image of the album cover. You can get it by searching for the album cover, right clicking, and selecting "Copy image address". From here, go to "File" -> "Save", close the document, and go back to foobar2000. Select "Reload from disk" and play the song again. If you check Discord, it should show the album art you linked. If you want a custom album cover you made yourself, try something like Imgur. Make an account and upload the image as a hidden image (it defaults to this anyway). Copy the image address from that and put it in the .json file alongside the artist and album name, just like before. I also wanted to mention that if you're buying a file from Qobuz, the metadata of the files you ripped from the CD and the file you bought might not match up, if you plan on having them as the same album anyway. You can easily go back to the songs you ripped and select the metadata in the "Properties" menu, copy it, then go back to the "Properties" of the purchased file and paste it over. Make sure to apply the changes before closing the window. If everything worked, you should see that they're under the same album in your album list. Double-check the track numbers and edit them if needed. The album covers might not match, too. This is easy to fix, though. It's all in the "Artwork" tab of "Properties".

Just right click on the art, export it to a file, then go back to the file you wanna replace the artwork on, remove the artwork, then import it. It's best to remove it first so the file doesn't have multiple artworks assigned to it.

Closing Thoughts

I'm not gonna go much longer with this, so I just wanted to close with a few things.

Get the mobile app. You'll be able to transfer your music over through an FTP connection. For those who don't know, it's through the internet. I don't wanna explain all that right now, but I can recommend FileZilla as a program to use.

This is going to cost quite a lot of money initially. Buying a whole bunch of CDs and/or files at once to replace what you have on Spotify is going to be hefty. But in the end, you won't be paying a monthly subscription. Unless you buy an album a month, then I guess that's your monthly subscription.

Discogs is your friend. And mine. I mentioned the site before, but it's an amazing tool for finding what album variants have which songs, and it's even a marketplace like eBay. I've bought from the site before and I can recommend it for that purpose as well.

That's gonna be all from me for now. It's been ages since my last blog post on here, and I have two in the drafts. I'll revisit them soon and continue working on them, but for now, I'll see you guys later.

[the-crafting-gremlin]

I haven't done much knitting since my last update, in large part because when I'm at home I'm helping care for my bed-bound grandmother (she had an accident a couple of months back that left her without use of her legs, and with very little use of her arms and hands). We're hoping with therapy she'll regain some use of her hands and arms, at least, but for now she requires help with everything...and it's just my mother and I caring for her until a long-term health care plan my grandmother has kicks in. Without it, we can't afford to pay for any sort of in-home care aside from a nurse coming out once a week to check on her. (And even after that, we'll only be able to get someone in for maybe four hours at a time, a couple times a week. Gotta love the American health care system...)

Now work is my only time to do anything else, including playing the newest Dragon Age game. Which is what I've been doing today. (I hadn't really planned on getting it, for a lot of reasons, but several mutuals on my main blog got it and are enjoying it. I caved in and got it this past weekend. So far, I think the game is gorgeous graphics-wise, I love the companions, and I'm disappointed in the writing. I went in with really low expectations, though, so I'm not disappointed.)

I did get a few more rows knitted, so there's been a little bit of sweater progress. Just not what I'd been planning on, thanks to video games, and work meetings, and busy phones/being short-handed. We were down a third of our team yesterday, and it was busier than it should have been given most of the service area was being rained on (which normally slows phone calls down to a trickle), so I didn't have time to knit, or do anything else aside from answering what felt like a never-ending queue of calls.

And my math wasn't quite right on how many rows I still had left for the body of the sweater; I'm actually going to have one more chart repeat after I finish the one I'm on. I was just guesstimating before, and my guess was off, unfortunately. I'm pretty sure I still won't need more than a little bit of another ball of yarn to finish the body, though. There's a chance this ball will be enough on its own, but I'm not sure. I definitely have enough to finish the whole thing, at least, so I'm calling that a win.

I did need to do more increases for the hip shaping than I originally thought I would. The original amount wasn't enough, and three more increases might have been enough (I'm having to kind of guess now, because I don't have any cords long enough to go around my hips even with the needles attached. I did my best to measure while it's still on the needles, and three extra increases was barely at my hip measurement), but I opted to go for six increases more than the pattern called for. That should be just enough to give me a little extra room without it being too baggy.

When I left off, I'd just finished the fifth increase, so I'll probably do a quick measure to see where I'm at. Then maybe knit until lunch and use lunch to play some more Dragon Age.

[hurryupmerlin]

There's a lot going on in my life and today has been hard, cos I spent all day fighting a mental breakdown. I mean, it was just a question of time, really. I've felt it coming for weeks. But I still wish I could feel something else.

So here's a diary entry in hopes of someday reading it and thinking "man, things have be shit but it turned out just fine after all."

In January I posted my to do list for 2024 here. More than half a year has passed since then and unfortunately nothing from this list is checked off and there has been gradually less good news to report with each new month.

All my life I have never had the stamina to learn an instrument. When I stumbled across Handpans, the opportunity arose to change that. I've since been to two beginner workshops and the organizer was gracious enough to lend me a handpan for a month. I was really motivated to follow through with his 17-days-challenge because I knew if I could manage to play every day, even if it was just a few minutes, I had a real chance of forming a habit and finally fulfilling my dream of mastering an instrument. But my days were long. I set up the handpan a few times at ten o'clock at night or even later, completely exhausted. And then came the executive dysfunction. Every day I see her standing there. Every day I want to play it. Every day something in my head blocks me of setting it up. The fear of having to explain to Pierre that I've only played it 5 times this month eats away at me. I want to play. But I can't. And in four days, the month will be over and I'll have to give it back. He'll then ask me if Handpan isn't for me after all. And I'll say: "Yes, it is. It makes me happy. It's fun. It's healing something inside of me. I can let go of the world when I'm just playing for myself. But my broken ADHD brain won't let me and I don't have the money to buy my own and stash it in the closet for the few times a year that I have the strenght to set it up and play." It feels like losing. Like I missed my one chance for something great, that could've changed me for the better.

When I moved into the house, I had these fantasies of sitting at my desk in my tidy, light-filled beautiful room. Drawing digitally, writing, singing. Painting on canvas and composing music. But my aunt interfered in my life and the building site has been frozen ever since. I live between masking film and plaster dust. I've been incapacitated and feel so powerless and helpless. I want progress. And I want my art back.

And then there's the matter of the dog. That goddamn dog Kröte. My colleague told me there's a technical term for when you make a terribly bad financial decision and then cling to it, pouring more and more money and resources into it in the desperate hope of turning it around. She couldn't remember the term, tho. I could be so happy with just my own dog, but instead I've brought this beast into the house. Because of which my own dog has to spend every day alone at home and because of which my neighbors hate me. Because of which my house stinks of piss and because of which my ears are ringing with barking.

My car has been giving me problems since September last year. I've lost track of how many thousands of euros I've spent trying to get the recurring fault fixed. Something between 4500-6000 euros. Most recently it was in the workshop for a month. What's more, after every repair, another new fault occurs. I can't take any more. Emotionally and financially. My aunt's friend is urging me to take it back to his garage. But I thought I'd made myself clear when I said "if it's not fixed this time, I'll keep driving it until the engine fails and I break down." I was supposed to bring my car over today. Which of course I wasn't told directly again, but via the old game of wisper down the lane. Which I said before I will not accept any longer. I put my cell phone on airplane mode afterwards. I can't do it anymore. It's Saturday and I finally needed a day off. I've been borrowing spoons from the future for days - my body told me very clearly that I had overspent.

Things aren't going well at work either. It's not news that we're bankrupt. But the way our bosses and colleagues treat us graphic designers is now unacceptably disrespectful. I am the only employee left who is still interested in contributing her own ideas in order to offer the company advantages and new opportunities. That makes me stand out - in a negative way. Because thinking along might officially be required, but since it also shows where the problems lie, it's actually unwanted. The very real fear of losing my job while being in debt so badly is gnawing on me every day. I am on the hit list. They just need me to finish a few projects first.

Despite all this I cling to hope.

[michaelmyersofficial]

21/06/2024 Friday Morning

It probably won't be morning anymore by the time I finish typing this out and post but. . . It was when I started. Got rejected for disability again. I managed to get in contact with a lawyer who is going to help, though I am a little afraid of fees. I know if we win, they get paid through my disability back pay, but I don't really understand what happens if we don't. Still, this is probably my best chance. I'm filling out the paperwork for this currently, so we'll see where it goes from there. I need to make copies of my rejection letter as well. I also need to make a doctor's appointment. I'll try to do that today. I realise also that I never wrote about getting a boyfriend, because I feel like when I talk about romantic relationships I get judged for them. But I made a mistake and fell asleep during an important conversation last night. I know it wasn't my fault but it was still important, and I still upset him. I am so guilt ridden over it because I just wanted him to know how grateful I am that he is in my life. I think about it a lot, how I'm not worth his affection. He says that's not true but. . . I still believe it myself. This has just been another thing that makes me feel like I'm a shit boyfriend. Like I can't or don't do enough.

Honestly, thinking about talking about people in my life I should probably use an emoji key but it would have to be unicode emoji, since I type these up on pc. I went to the pride event in the city with Kaitlyn. She's very kind and sweet, but largely I don't think we have much in common. Still, she liked the band, so I'm glad for that. She also said that I could go to one of the pubs in town with her and her friend Ethan and he could teach me to play pool when he's back in town. So I do think that would be nice, but as I said I don't know if I really have anything in common with her. Mother also took me to the city for a several hour costco bonanza. I don't mean to say that was unenjoyable because I don't hate costco. I also managed to convince her to buy me some books from the bookshop. To be fair I have enough of a tbr that I probably don't need them, but I like being organised about it well in advance. I also missed my hair cut appointment, or rather I had to cancel because for the past week I have been sick out of my mind. I even went to the local hospital about it. I had a fever of 103F / 39C / 312K. I was very convinced I was dying. Unfortunately the local hospital is run by nuns so they just told me to go home and pray as there is nothing they can do. Horrific medical treatment tbh. The thing is I'm not opposed to things like natural treatments or prayer (though I don't pray personally, I do meditate) because natural treatments often have some basis and things like prayer usually help a person's mood which can improve their chances of healing, but I don't think these are cure all solutions and I don't think they do anything for a 103F fever.

I have to reschedule the hair appointment but I'll probably call on that on monday rather than today because it's not relevant to my legal paperwork. I also signed up for the fable reading tracking app. I talked to my cousin about books, but she seemed upset that I didn't share her opinions on the ones I'd read. I'll talk about that more in the reading update post, of course but my reading goals have not gone as planned this month.