#Which is still funny because if you improvise something and also have no idea how to read or identify musical notes then you will

[eyivibyemi]

✧ I won’t really write descriptions for these, but see original post tags for explanation/commentary on the song snippet ✧

[ariseur]

OKAY SO I SAW YOURE ALSO A LATINA AND , WANT REQUESTS; IVE ALWAYS HAD THIS THOUGT, what if Satoru and Suguru were BOTH dating a foreign reader (Mexican if you wanna be specific) idk I just though it’d be kinda funny when they remember the reader has an entirely culture than them!!

((btw that “BOTH” was about a poly relationship with satosugu, which you obv don’t have to do!!))

FOREIGN LOVE - SATORU GOJO

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ notes - decided to change up my formatting a little bit, just experimenting lol. but!! unfortunately i don’t write for suguru ( yet, i’m still trying to get a better sense on his personality n his character since i’m almost done w/ s2!! ) and i dont write polyamorous pieces!! so i just decided to write about gojo for now 🫶

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ warnings - intended lowercase, mentions of japanese culture that i’m not educated on so lmk if there’s more common stuff i could mention instead, lmk if i missed any warnings!!

✧˖° SATORU GOJO dating a foreign reader would actually be a pretty cool dynamic to experience — anon i like your way of thinking about how gojo ( and geto ) would sometimes forget how their foreigner significant reader has an entirely culture from them because .. they probably would lol

✧˖° if you’re not that well versed in japanese / asian culture and traditions, i feel like he would just like casually bring up certain things or events that go on in japan like obon or setsubun or maybe you’re unsure of certain common etiquette, so he’s confused when you’re like “???”

✧˖° but!! if you’re interested in learning stuff about japanese culture then he’ll be like “you’ve come to the right person” and i can just imagine GOJO making that one tiktok emoji face— like the [proud] one lol. he’d love to tell you all about it though, he thinks you wanting to learn more about his culture is just another sign that you love him, and he wants to know more about you too!! he’s willing to sit with you for hours on end and ask you questions about what you do for your culture.

✧˖° if you’re new to japan and you’re unfamiliar with certain places around town and stuff, i think one of the best things that GOJO likes to show you is the food around town. i dunno about you guys but i literally love takoyaki and yakitori and that’s not even relevant to the headcanon i just felt like sharing that for no reason it’s so good to me. but of courseeee!! we can’t forget about kikufuku, a small daifuku with mochi and we all know how SATORU recommends the edamame or cream flavor, so lord forbid you don’t like it — he’ll be so dramatic 😭

✧˖° howeveerrrrr—!! since anon mentioned about shedding light on reader possibly being a latina or mexican, let’s talk about a hispanic!reader with GOJO, yeah??

✧˖° i love the idea that he can’t handle spice, and i dont even know where it came from and i feel like he probably could handle somewhat spicy foods? but i just love envisioning GOJO freaking out over like a tiny lil poblano chilé or something like that. i’m sure he’d love the food but i feel like he’d be so confused watching you make foods from your culture. like, tres leches??? why are you just soaking cake in milk???

✧˖° i’d say SATORU is a somewhat good dancer .. when it comes to certain songs 😭.. he’s not the worst when there’s some spanish music in the back but he will def try to improvise and will make both of you trip. i think he’d like dancing norteñas but i can just see him doing all these unnecessary dips in the middle of the song because he’s just seen it somewhere. he might even give you a kiss when he dips down a little lower, usually towards the end of the song. and when you call him out on it, he’s just like, “what? i can’t give my baby a kiss?” like the bastard he is ugh i need him rn

✧˖° don’t even get me started on him speaking spanish. he swears he’s suddenly this suavé latin genius once he surprises you with a few words. i think he’d be like that with any language though honestly except i’m pretty sure he knows a little bit of english since someone said he traveled abroad?? but with certain languages, he’ll definitely butcher them a lot lol. in the end, you praise him for trying and that alone results in him giving himself a pat on the back.

✧˖° i dunno about you guys in hispanic households, but growing up the way to shush someone or like a baby or something would be like “ya”. it could also be used in like “ya callaté” which is like “shut up already,”? i’m not sure if there’s a direct translation in english but i think like the closest thing to it in english is kinda like, “enough”, in that context?? so im just imagining you saying it to a dog barking or a baby crying and he’s just confused all “wdym ya ya, are they a horse??”

✧˖° i think you and him would really bond when learning about each other’s cultures, though. it’s a learning experience for the both of you and you unlock a new topic in which you guys can both learn about. you can count on your tour guide, satoru gojo ^.^

𐙚 join my taglist here !!

𐙚 requests are open — june thirteenth, 2024

[dartagnantt]

It's a Trap! | Dangerous Spells to keep those pesky adventurers out of your tower!

PDFs of this and more can be found over on at my Patreon here!

Some trapping spells, which while not technically 'sealing' as per the theme, are similar, that and I think the ranger needs more iconic spells. These spells, are (at least initially) inspired by the Snare spell from Xanathar's which I modify here for… reasons, and because another thing I like in my spells are the ability to scale. Which I made sure every one of these could do.

As I alluded to before, these spells are designed for rangers, and only really have expanded options, because, making things is the artificer's thing, and wizards classically have wacky traps. But, with the ranger in mind, almost all of these spells have a material you need to gather or pre-prepare which seems like a vary ranger thing to do.

Guillotine

A classic dungeon trap, and one of the few whose materials cannot be improvised but I couldn't help myself. Now the party barbarian can kill their foes in their sleep, assuming they lend you their axe

Pitfall

A classic trap and one whose construction seems very in the vein of what a ranger would produce

Rake-in-the-Grass

I couldn't resist, this idea was just to funny to pass up. It's not powerful in the slightest, but incredibly irritating and I made it a ritual for the sole purpose of, if you were to put in the time, you could absolutely booby trap a massive area… assuming you had enough rakes, I'm sure there's a feat for that somewhere. I considered making it a cantrip based on how weak it was, but instead decided that the 8 hour duration was still too powerful for that, so ritual it was.

Rising Action

Another classic dungeon trap and a contender for the spell with the most oddly specific material component. I seem to have a thing for rising pillars that crush people.

Rockfall

Speaking of crushing, rocks fall and everyone die, or are moderately inconvenienced if my experience in Skyrim is anything to go by.

Sling Snare

This is like the snare spell, as follows, but with the comedic power of those traps in cartoons that involve flinging the offending party a great distance.

Snare

As mentioned before, this is based roughly on the spell of the same name from Xanathar's but with the important change of, if it's not triggered, giving you the rope, an actually useful material and one of the few here that actually costs something, back.

Sudden Spikes

A final familiar dungeon trap with some built in versatility, in case you want to stab people with adamantine spikes.

And now to plug my stuff. I release homebrews weekly over on my Patreon. Anyone who pledges $1 or more per post don't have to wait a month to see them, and also help fund my being alive habit.

At the moment, they have exclusive access to the following:

Judgement Domain

The Greatwyrm Patron

Breaking and Exiting

Dungeon Delver's Survival Guide

I also have three classes, and a splatbook over on DriveThrueRPG to check out:

The Rift Binder. A class specialising in summoning monsters and controlling the battlefield.

The Witch Knight. A class that combines swords and sorcery in the most literal way.

The Werebeast. A class that turns you into a half beast to destroy your foes.

d'Artagnan's Adventurer Almanac. A compendium of races, subclasses, feats, spells, monsters and more!

[slotumn]

not to be a rhea slut on main but 2 12 and 22 for the archbishop

also shahid 1 25 14 if u want

Rhea

2. Fave canon thing

The fact archbishops externally claim to be descendants of Saint Seiros means that Rhea consciously chose the official stance of "not only did Saint Seiros FUCK, her lineage has CONTINUED TO FUCK for ONE THOUSAND YEARS AND ONGOING." She could have gone with reincarnations/receiving visions or smth for passing on the archbishop seat but no it's "SAINT SEIROS' DESCENDANTS ARE FUCKING TO THIS VERY DAY"

12. Headcanon

I hc Lycaon was a Wilhelm/Seiros child but he wasn't born by conventional means because if he was there probably would have been records about it. The in-universe mythology goes something like "Wilhelm needed an heir but couldn't find a consort during the war so Seiros prayed for him and by the miracle of the saint he found a magical egg that Lycaon (who was obviously related to Wilhelm due to matching Crest + appearance) hatched from months later," and because of this Seiros is called the mother to imperial lineage.

Most people think that's in a spiritual sense but what they don't realize is that the egg was a magitech Nabatean incubator and Lycaon is literally genetically Seiros' kid as well as Wilhelm's, albeit closer to humans in capability (and appearance) than Nabatean.

But the fact this odd genetic/biological engineering attempt, which was honestly slapped together on the fly because Wilhelm needed an heir, worked is what sparked the idea that maybe she could use this ability of hers for other things too if she just fine tuned the process some more...? If she can successfully modify and hybridize human and Nabatean material into an offspring, then can she also modify and distill Nabatean material until it becomes akin to the physical and spiritual progeny of the Nabateans...?

22. What I like/dislike in fic portrayals

Tbh I don't particularly read much of Rhea-featuring or even Rhea-centric fics because in case it wasn't obvious already I'm very particular and picky about interpretations

I think I do like it when for the serene and mysterious exterior she presents as archbishop, she still shows moments of on-the-fly/snap decision making, and not because something pressed the trigger about her trauma. She did start out as a general on the battlefield and is apparently ready to lock it as one again should the need arise, so I think it makes sense that kind of improvisation/adaption instinct, a battlefield instinct if you will, remains.

I don't like it when she's portrayed as being, idk, completely unable to approach things from a diplomatic/political point of view because she's that overtaken by personal grief/rage/other emotions. The emotional aspect is important to her characterization but she also did help raise an empire and compromise with the descendants of Ten Elites while the emotional wounds from the Red Canyon were fresh.

Byleth is directly related to her closest personal issues so obviously we see more of her being emotionally volatile from Byleth's POV, in situations that involve Byleth's connections to Sothis, but I don't think that's how she acts around just anyone. In most situations she can probably calmly lay out and explain military logistics to the troops before she goes raging on the battlefield, otherwise her side probably wouldn't have won the War of Heroes.

Shahid

1. Why like/dislike

I like him because he is Claude's brother and he is just so flat and pathetic that it wraps back around to being funny. His main character traits are being racist and arrogant and incompetent. Good for him

14. Assign fashion aesthetic

He already wears a jacket that looks vaguely like a striped sports zipup and has gold necklace-ish coin decorations around his neck this is just the logical conclusion

25. First impression vs now

First impression: lmao this bitch has 5 mins of screentime

Now: writes awful PLAP PLAP SPLURRRRT porn fics, has the collector's edition of Femboy Asspussy Paradise, is a failson

[hello-nichya-here]

Was Meg White a good drummer?

*sighs eternally* Yes, she was. She was the perfect drummer for The White Stripes, and I can't believe some dumbasses still try to argue otherwise in 2023

Ya know what? Let me rant about Meg White now that you gave me the chance, because this woman:

1 - Was the reason the band started in the first place. Jack said many times that jamming with her ONCE was enough to let him know that they had something special (musically speaking) and it just HAD to become a band instead of just being a one-off thing, or just something they did for fun. And let's not forget, she is reason the reason behind the NAME of the fucking band.

2 - Was an active participant in creating the songs all the Stripes fans, including the ungrateful bastards that shit-talk her for no damn reason, absolutely love. Yes, Jack made the lyrics, but he usually wrote them while playing the piano. The final versions we all know came to be when he AND MEG would "cover" them together, to turn it into THEIR music. Jack also trusted her input so much that they would rework on any song she said she didn't like or didn't feel quite finished yet.

3 - Usually had a very "simplistic" childlike way of playing the drums. That made perfect sense for a band with a guy like Jack, whose deal is "restraint forces you to be creative" and "the best ideas are the ones you have when you think like a kid." Her drumming was a feature, not a bug. "We Will Rock You" is a ridiculously simple song, yet people still treat it as the classic it is, and give Queen a ton of respect for it. But Meg does exactly what she was supposed to, in that exact same vein, and suddenly "The White Stripes deserved a better drummer" (funny how we never see Jack get called a shit writer despite trying to keep lyrics extremelly simple, huh?)

4 - Had to perform without a setlist because once again Jack just has to be different. She had to immediately recognize any song he was playing (and he had plenty to choose from), remember how to play it, AND adapt to Jack's constant improves - which often included stuff like interrupting a song, playing part of another one for a minute, then go back to the first one. All while suffering from severe anxiety and performing in front of HUGE audiences - some of which, as we know, were dying for her to make any mistake, no matter how small, so they could go "See? I told you she sucks!"

5 - Could often go fucking nuts on the drums when necessary, to help Jack build momentum, and then just suddenly stop or go back to normal whenever he gave her a cue - and again, he liked to improvise, so she had to be ready for EVERYTHING.

6 - Had soooooo much chemistry with Jack on stage that it became a show in it of itself. Let's face it, rock is often as much about the "image" as it is about the music (and this band sure knows it considering their thing of only wearing red, black and white to stand out and be memorable), and by God, I cannot think of The White Stripes without picturing all the times I watched a video of some performance of theirs and thought "Jesus Christ, get a room."

7 - Was a joy to watch when she was just on stage, not giving a fuck, and having fun while playing the drums. I don't care what people say, to me she had as much stage presence as the guy that took her last name.

Bonus: Wrote "Little People." I know, I know, that song is not one of the big ones, but I think it's dope and this is my post. Jack could have easily just sing the lyrics while not touching his guitar, because that song is all about Meg creating the rhythm and the melody with her drums (like she did in "Little Room", another treasure). It's simple, catchy, and an underrated gem.

Bonus 2: She sang "In The Cold, Cold Night." I know, nothing to do with drumming, but that song is in my top 10 AND was frequently played in the show long after it's release. She managed to secure a little moment by herself in the spotlight despite not really being a professional singer, and that just shows, once again, that she could deal with ANYTHING her band-mate threw at her.

Meg wasn't just a drummer that was allowed to tag along to the Jack White show because they were married/siblings, like some people love to pretend. She was his partner and a core aspect of what made the band so great. There's a reason why when she retired from her music career, Jack didn't just get someone to new and continue using the band name. He KNEW it wouldn't be the same, he knew Meg was as irreplaceable as him. If either of the two is missing, then it's just not The White Stripes.

It doesn't matter how much some trolls try to pretend Meg was useless or even holding Jack back. The simple fact that they praise Jack's work on their dyscography proves they are wrong, because they're weren't two people coming up with stuff separately and then stitching it together. Jack's riffs, intros, solos, outros, and the instrumental chrous like the one in "Seven Nation Army" were only able to exist because he and Meg were playing off of each other, exchanging notes, trying new stuff, keeping up with each other, working and creating music together.

If you like The White Stripes, you have to thank BOTH of them for it. It's that simple, and I don't know why people are still struggling to understand that.

[lebenspurpur]

What about how would slashers propose their s/o? :3

How would the slashers propose:

Michael Myers

Michael wouldn't.

As funny as that sounds, I'm pretty sure Michael doesn't understand marriage and its concept at all.

After all.. who'd marry you? A deranged serial killer and his spouse.. pretty difficult to find a priest for that kind of couple.

If anything, he'd propose to show that he cares. Michael isn't the best at showing emotions and a proposal would be his personal way of showing that he does adore you.

It would probably be nothing big though. He'd just hand you a stolen ring and then march off, leaving you alone with your confusion.

Are you ever getting married? Probably not but he'll wear a ring similar to yours if you'd like.

Vincent Sinclair

Oh, Vincent will try his hardest to be as romantic as he can be.

Dozen of candles, hundreds of roses, and he'll actually wear an old suit he found in Bo's wardrobe!

His brothers will be out of town, driven out by your big lover.

He'll make dinner for you. It might taste a little interesting, considering his below-average cooking skills, but hey the idea alone is so adorable.

After dinner, he'll sink down on one knee and you just freeze.

He's super nervous too! What if you don't want to marry him? What if he's too fast and you're not ready for that commitment yet?

The ring will be from a victim but he polished and perfected it himself. He'll design it like his knives, dragons wrapping around the gemstone in the middle.

As soon as that "yes" leaves your lips, he inflates, probably ready to pass out.

Bo Sinclair

Bo.. doesn't necessarily want to marry.

But he wants to spend the rest of his life with you, that's for sure.

You're something he doesn't deserve and yet you're here, with him.

Bo won't be as romantic as his twin, that's not really his strategy.

He'll most likely blurt out his proposal while he's watching TV and make it seem like the most normal thing ever, even though he's frightened on the inside.

If you ask him what he said, he'll repeat it real quietly and you swear he's turning red.

Say yes and Bo will actually flash a big grin, a real one, not his usual smirk, finally pulling you closer to seal his lips with yours.

He can't believe someone would marry him but you wanted to, and he'd always deem that a miracle.

Lester Sinclair

Oh god, Lester will be so nervous.

He has everything: the ring, a nice suit, a romantic dinner but what if he fucks it up?

He even wrote a note containing a few words of his "speech" so he won't forget it.

So it's after dinner and he kneels down, nearly tripping on his open shoelace, and.. uh fuck what'd he want to say???

He can't find his note! Lester is now panicking.

Your reassuring smile grounds him again and he somehow manages to finish his proposal without fainting. How? Lester doesn't know, he has no recollection of what happened.

The ring will be from a victim but he got Vincent to make it prettier. He feels really bad about it as well, please tell him that that's okay!

Baby Firefly

Oh, Marriage? A big, pretty white dress? Sign her the fuck up.

Okay, being with you for the rest of her life is really nice as well.

She's probably talking to Mama when the subject first emerges and she just freezes in excitement.

She's soon skipping down the stairs, calling out your name.

"Y/N LET'S GET MARRIED!"

You don't even have a choice, she will marry you whether you like it or not.

I doubt that she'll even ask you the question, it'll just be a determined "We're getting married." and she's gone again, probably planning for the wedding.

A ring will be there though. She probably stole it but oh well.

Otis Driftwood

Marriage? *Insert him scoffing.*

Yeah no, he's too edgy for that.

However, he is down to invent his own kind of marriage for you.

But you're not getting a ring, oh no.

Otis is showing up with a collar. And it has his name on it.

After he's given it to you, he'll just hold a 15-minute speech about how you belong to him and how this collar will show everyone.

If you say yes afterward he'll be confused. This wasn't a question.

Billy Loomis

Oh Billy has it all planned out... and it can go both ways.

It's either a super romantic, high-school sweetheart-like proposal with flowers, a cute ring, balloons, and all that boring stuff or...

He dresses up as Michael Myers and jumps out at you, scaring you to death, just to hold a ring and propose to you.

I can see him totally scaring the shit out of you the whole evening just to make your proposal a special one.

Stu also helps him which makes you question which of the two you're really marrying.

Stu Macher

Stu will propose in his own way, to be frank, everything he does is done in his own way.

He'll be quite sweet actually, taking you out on a Ferris wheel to ask the question.

He's serious about the whole thing but he doesn't quite show it.

He makes it seem as if this whole thing does nothing to him so you can't see how nervous he is.

After you say yes he'll still act cool but the shake in his voice gives him away.

If you cry, he'll tease you for years so be careful.

Brahms Heelshire

The only idea Brahms has of proposal and marriage is from the books he's read. And those are either porn magazines or some old romance novels from way before our time.

He'll wear a suit. You don't even know where he got it from, it's astonishingly old.

There's no dinner or anything, Brahms can't cook and after all, that's your job.

He'll give you flowers though!

And his grandmother's proposal ring that he found somewhere in the mansion. He just can't buy his own so he has to improvise.

If you say yes he'll smile excitedly and jump into your arms. He's not getting off too, you have to carry him now.

Sometimes he forgets how tall he is.

Thomas Hewitt

Thomas will marry you pretty early into the relationship.

After all, his family is very religious and you know what they say, no sex before marriage kids. I doubt that Thomas will obey that rule but let's pretend-

Luda will help him with everything he needs, she'll even get Hoyt and Monty to leave the house with her for a night so you two have some privacy!

Thomas will be very nervous and you very confused. Thomas never stopped working unless it was something important.

You'll eat and have a nice time, you can finally spend some time with your lover and this time, not in the basement. He even takes his mask off, just for you.

After dinner he'll clear his throat and actually say the whole proposal out loud. This is important and Thomas doesn't want to ruin this just because he doesn't want to talk.

He could never ruin anything but he's insecure like that.

If you say yes he's going to grin brightly and just pick you up, spinning you around until he actually kisses you, once again feeling so grateful for you in his life.

Josef

Marriage isn't that important to him so he takes a while to even think about that idea.

Of course, a life filled with you is absolutely amazing in his opinion but he trusts that you won't leave him, with or without a promise binding you to him.

After a bit of thinking, he decides to do it just for the gesture.

He'll buy a ring that he thinks fits and then plan a nice dinner with a few candles, red wine, expensive food, all that shit.

Josef is an amazing cook so that food will be to die for.

After eating, he'll intertwine your hands with his and look into your eyes, quietly bringing up the whole idea of marriage.

If you seem interested and I mean positively interested, he'll pull out the ring, surprising you like always.

Say yes and Josef will get quite emotional, never did he think someone would actually marry him.

He might cry but one word about that and you'll get the silent treatment.

you'll get a gif, as a treat

Amanda Young

Marriage? Uh, not for her.

Amanda hates the whole idea of marriage, stupid love-sick couples marrying just to break up and divorce a year later, leaving children to grow up in an environment that's shaped by isolation and abandonment.

However, she's not against a ring to show that she's never going to leave you.

Amanda will make one for you, yes you heard me, make.

It's so important to her, anyone else but her would fail her.

It takes a while but seeing your happy tears after she gave and explained it to you makes everything worth it.

She'll often admire it, sitting so perfect on your finger.

You're hers and hers alone.

You can't see it but she's smiling.

[earlgreymon]

un-dok(a)i

👟 taichi + sora // [day 2] sports day (relationship) - for @digiweek 2022 the prompt for this day is sports day, and one of the subprompts is to tell about a (favourite) relationship. it happened (i swear this is all a coincidence) that the fic i planned last year for the prompt sport on taiora week was about them doing undokai, so i tried to write it now after postponing for almost a year lol. at the end of the day, taiora will always be my otp no matter what. let's assume this was after tri. when they were in their last year of high school. also, the idea was from a shoujo titled ui x kon.

___

Although her birthday was in spring, there were many things that got her more excited about autumn. The heat slowed down into a warmer atmosphere. The leaves turned to her favourite colour. The seasonal chestnut cake from the local bakery.

Also, undokai.

Indeed it made her sound like a fifth-grader when in fact she was already in her final year of high school—but that was why it became more important. This would be her last sports day ever before graduating. While her choice of college had some good sports clubs for its students, there was no guarantee if she could ever experience the same feeling of working together with the whole class to be the school's champion.

The said thought might be a one-sided opinion, though, because she was blessed with athleticism, while some students might not and dreaded the event. Well. Lucky for those who were her classmate, then, because she volunteered to participate in as many games as she could.

Sora was not the only one; their class also happened to have Taichi—former captain of the football club, the MVP of last year’s competition, consistently at the top of the rank when it came to PE subject. They were the powerhouse of their homeroom, the Captain America and the Iron Man of their own Avengers. Unless there was a sports prodigy among the first years, it was almost guaranteed that victory would lay in their hands.

And, oh—also, unless Mimi reinvigorated the undokai in a very Meems-way. She was on the committee this year after getting frustrated with the way things worked previously, which was—as quoted—profoundly deadening.

As predicted, many antics were spotted during the event, but it also became a mirthful entertainment for the entire school. Like how the baton for the relay changed into a weird-shaped headpiece, so you might witness someone fleeing with a rice paddy hat or even a boy running with a wedding veil. The tug of war was also conducted on the edge of their swimming pools, which would lead the losers to fall and soak. The most hilarious one was probably the cheerleading battles because you could watch the squads getting pranked by the committee because they changed the music midway and they had to improvise. The fact that most classes sent their heartthrobs (like Yamato, of course) made it better because their flawless image suddenly turned into something memeable.

By noon, Sora had finished all the games she signed up for. She didn’t get first place in every sport but obtained enough points to push her class to the top of the leaderboard. Each time she passed her classmates, they would shower her with either a cheer, a thank, or a compliment; yet the only thing she needed right now was a quiet rest. And for that reason, she sat down under the tree—the one that still had its leaves—sitting with her legs stretched out. There was a peace in watching the crowds from afar, the comfort of being by herself in the middle of all the motions.

That was only until Taichi found her.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. It was funny how she was so immersed in her distanced observation but barely aware of her own surrounding because his sudden voice almost made her jump.

“Nothing,” she answered. “Just… you know. Resting. Witnessing the youth pass by in front of me.”

“Gee, Sora, you really need to stop speaking like a grandma.”

“Do you think a grandma can run a lap in under thirteen seconds while keeping a sombrero on her head?”

“Touché. Congratulations, by the way.”

But instead, she was the one who handed him the trophy in the form of a bottle of cold water. “Sit down. You must be tired.”

“Nah, thanks. I’m cool,” he only welcomed the bottle, drinking while standing still with one hand on his waist. His towering figure was looming over her, and it finally dawned on her how much her best friend had evolved. Sora still remembered the day when they used to walk home together during sunset after football practices. There was one period around the first grade of elementary when she often bragged about how her shadow looked longer because she was taller. He would say no, but they both knew that it was his hair that made the difference seem less obvious. Cursing at how puberty worked, he then swore that one day he would get taller than her to the point he could reach the top of the goalpost without jumping.

And now he did. He didn’t even have to tiptoe to be able to grasp the goalpost.

Unknowingly, she muttered in a daze, “You’ve grown up, Taichi.”

He stopped and put the cap back on, peering at her through his shoulder only to chuckle. “Seriously. Stop acting like an old lady.” Twisting the now-empty bottle, his attention then turned to the incoming announcement from the main field. The doki-doki scavenger hunt would happen in a few minutes, and it was a cue for Taichi to go as one of the participants. “Alright, onto the final battle!”

“You think you’re going to finish first this time?” Sora asked; her tone was far from underestimating him. After all, Taichi had a bad history with scavenger hunts. In his first year, he joined the competition and wasn’t able to solve the required riddle. It annoyed him so much that he signed up again the following year, and while he managed to understand the puzzle, it took him some time, so he wasn’t quick enough to win. This was his last attempt to satisfy his competitiveness in this particular game.

“We’ll see if Mimi really holds onto her words when she says ‘oh I’m gonna make it so easy for that big head of yours’ or it’s her mouth that’s actually big,” Taichi scorned, actually quoting Mimi’s mockery with a high pitch. “I’m not as smart as Koushiro when it comes to the riddle, but man, these feet are ready to run.”

“Well… it’s Mimi. Even if it’s easy, I’m sure she’ll still find a way to make it…” agitating? “—memorable. I wonder what they mean with ‘doki-doki’ though.”

“Jumpscares, I bet. Yamato must be grateful he’s in the cheering squad.”

Taichi then bid her goodbye, and Sora wished him good luck in return. From her seat, she could watch the participants gathered in the middle of the field, standing as someone from the committee explained the rules. Once they did, the whistle howled and the game started. Everyone immediately rushed to pick up the instruction card, but instead of scrambling around, they somehow remained in the position still. Did the committee—or Mimi—choose to make it harder instead?

Like the other participants, Taichi also had not yet departed. However, instead of looking confused, he seemed… hesitant. And somehow, when he lifted his head, the first thing he looked at was her direction.

(And despite the distance, why did it feel like his gaze was going straight into her eyes?)

Her assumption was proven valid because the next thing he did was run to her. “I need to carry you to the rooftop.”

“What—”

“Come on, Sora! There’s no time!”

His fervent tone startled her to the point that her body voluntarily stood up. She was waiting for Taichi to turn around, but instead of his back, Taichi swooped Sora into his arms before running with all his might. He was so fast that Sora had to circle her hands around his shoulder because she was afraid of falling down, yet the arms that hold her felt so strong. It was as if she was a princess being rescued from the wrath of an evil ogre.

They received a loud cheer every time they passed a crowd on their way, except Sora wasn’t sure if they were cheering for their victory. It didn’t seem like the red on Taichi’s ear was caused by the thrill either.

They crossed the field, stormed through the corridors, and climbed through the stairs. Mimi was waiting on the rooftop along with some committees, and her grin was too mischievous to be missed. The other competitors were only to be seen after Taichi put Sora down, which should mean that they were the first to arrive. Even so, it became her least priority now that she realised all the participants come in pairs of; one of them she recognised as the couple from Yamato’s class.

“Everyone’s here already! Congratulations on finishing the doki-doki scavenger hunt!” Mimi’s voice echoed through the mic. “Now… anyone wants to reveal what was written in your riddle card?”

But she didn’t even give the opportunity for the participants to answer because she then grabbed a card as if she didn’t remember each and every single word on it. Mimi cleared her throat, and her voice was notably loud when she announced the big reveal.

“Go to the rooftop while bridal-carry someone you can really see as your potential bride in the future!”

And all of sudden, Sora could hear her heart beat louder than Mimi’s voice just now—doki, doki, doki, doki.

Taichi squatted down and laughed in defeat despite winning first place. His entire face was now flushed. “I’m so going to kill Mimi after this….”

[stick-named-figure]

🗣️👀

ask list

anon this is like pandora's box of questions. i still have like 5 essays i want and need to write about. like. here i'll put some mini analyses under the cut.

parkour, what it says about how the color gang handles problems, and also how they carry themselves

yes i want to write another essay on parkour. like. god. parkour is a fucking goldmine into how the sticks process getting around and how they handle competition, winning, and (very literally) obstacles.

like that green jumps over yellow's hands on the ironbars course, or that red and blue (despite punching each other every opportunity they get) aren't that competitive with each other, often being more cautious about getting around over speed.

PLUS how they planned each escape from the endless loop. like that it shows off green's ambidexterity or that orange's a very fast thinker!

god i love parkour so much. so much 😭

note block universe, the whole thing

like i've been planning this essay since i first saw episode 29 and it WILL get done some day i swear. there's just so much about it. i was listening to big band villagers today and like, there's this shared bass line between a trombone and a tenor sax i had never consciously noticed! it's really good! like aaron grooves and scott buckley just went SO hard in this and i can't possibly overstate that.

ALSO there's just. all of green's character building leading up to this episode? like obviously the note block episodes are part of that and that green's musical skill is a pivotal part of it. but there are other things that are insanely important to why note block universe works the way it does, most notably being green's ability to mimic and copy.

in the second build competition episode (episode 17: build battle), we see it very clearly that green is good at deriving other's works. green's first move is making banners for their build of the combine (it's a pretty cute vehicle ngl), which isn't something you can really... do unless you have a very good idea as to what you're building (or it's already built). green keeps looking over at blue's build! (it could be seen as them looking at the image. it was probably that too but i can't look at green's build and explain it any other way ngl).

there's also that alan made blue's build worse on purpose in the first build competition (episode 2) so that green's would look better. that doesn't quite have anything to do with what i'm saying about green but it's funny as fuck. sorry blue, you're too good at building so we had to nerf you.

but anyway, green's ability to mimic and improvise on what someone is doing is pivotal, like how they instantly rephrase their question to the baby zombie to match their genre.

i have SO much more to say on it. the essay's gonna come in like... at least three parts because i have a lot to say and it'd become too directionless otherwise.

king in general

OK LOOK. my obsession with king is a little embarrassing and i'm not even sure i can fully explain it but like. there's a lot to talk about their character and there's plenty i just made up. it is that deep, actually.

like how king would rather destroy an entire world than process their trauma and emotions. i think that's really funny (<- closest word for "i think that's terribly human of them and also tragic").

plus i think that king's intelligence is kinda... glossed over in a manner? obviously we have no clue on HOW much king had to teach themselves but it's insanely impressive to learn enough physics in the span of... say a year or two to create that staff.

i estimate the time between gold's death and king's entry to the nether to be at least half a year, since the warden exists (first in-game appearance in february 17, 2022) and the version of minecraft gold died in has since been changed to be 1.17.0 (released june 8, 2021). i kinda... have to ignore the desktop dates, since if the dates were true the series wouldn't be possible (first seen date is june 12, 2021 [episode 25], last seen date is june 14, 2021 [episode 30]). plus... a week-ish turnaround from gold dying to king creating the staff just. idk! i can't suspend my disbelief enough for that! i literally have to make it be a few months at least.

plus... if it's only been a week or so since gold died... it makes their relationship with purple like... uncomfortable. like more so. it's... i don't like rating coping mechanisms. it feels unproductive, y'know? but like... finding a new kid to project your "my kid died" feelings onto, especially one who has previously been abused isn't the... best way to cope. it has to be longer for me to be able to buy into their found familial dynamic.

[hanna-water]

Part 2 “I’ll Be Fine”: Talk about Popculture, Druck and Gen Z Popkultur Festival Berlin 2022, wednesday 24.08.2022 with Eren M. Güvercin, Nhung Hoang, Naomi Bechert (social media team during s5 – s6, writer of s7 and s8) Moderated by Aidan Riebensahm Aidan: This might confirm an image that we have of Gen Z. That you are very motivated to get involved and to take part in creating these roles. This seems to fit into the cliché that Gen Z is always very active and participating in everything. Also you are the first generation that grew up with the internet since your childhood. How has this influenced your work on Druck or generally how did you experience growing up with the internet? Eren: I think it shows in the fact that it’s a transmedial concept and even in the script you can see what will be posted and what won´t. And that its always connected with the dramaturgy and the storyline. That is interesting to experience. On the shooting days we are also creating the content for Instagram. I grew up with Instagram and facebook. I always used the facebook account of my mum to play animal farm. I don´t remember the name….farm world? (laughs) This was my first experience with social media. I also used to have multiple IG accounts. One of them (laughs) is still public but I don´t have the password anymore. It`s a bit embarrassing. Nhungi: Please don´t try to find it. Eren: All the stalkers now “making typing sounds” (laughs). That was my first experience with IG and when I first heard of the series and came in for filming, I did not exactly know what to expect. I also did not watch Druck before. Sorry btw if I appear a bit sick. I am a little hoarse. (laughs nervously) Uhm… so I came in and had no idea how storytelling would look like if you connect it with social media and additionally real time. What if we film something in summer now and when its released its raining? What happens then? Those were question I was asking myself but then I learned while shooting that its actually a lot of fun. Nhungi: Especially the social media aspect was a concept that did not exist in Germany before and accordingly it was still a little unclear in the beginning. Like, ok what is being recorded and what is going to be posted/published? We ourselves had improvised everything of the social media content. It was like “ok they go to the park and have fun.” But we improvised our lines and what everyone was doing. A lot of very funny situations happened this way but you also felt “ok this is something completely new” and you don´t really know how to handle it. And there was also the aspect that many people saw Kieu My and Isi as real people and we were even addressed on the street as Isi and Kieu My. Which is not a problem overall…- Eren: it was a little weird. (laughs) Nhungi: … yeah but then I was asked where my girlfriend Fatou is and then I was a bit like aaahhh oops. But otherwise I found it very interesting because our generation is on the internet a lot and tries out a lot and therefore its important for Druck to be sharing important things through these channels. The first time I ever experienced something like like this was with iCarly. Its was a TV-series but at the same time you could access a website and for example could chat with the characters. And this was kind of developed further with Druck. You were able to see almost everything of the characters, even private chats. And it was possible that certain topics, like climate change for Mailin, which had no room in the other characters POVs in the series, could be shared via social media. Eren: It`s maybe also important to say that we have no access to the IG accounts. Its social media managers… - Naomi: me for example. Eren: …Naomi for example. Naomi: I was able to see all dms. (laughs) Aidan: tell us more. Naomi: uhm many love declarations to Josh. Very cute. And generally, many questions “how are you right now, Nora? Is everything ok?”. So there was this assumption that is was a real person or the question “is this real or is this just acting?”. So it became clear that this world was experienced as an authentic world and the fans are very emotionally invested when the characters are going through a crises. This is an effect of the real time concept and that the clips are released one by one. So only about 5 minute long clips are posted and then there is silence for a few days and you have to wait for the next clip. That was intense and interesting to see. Some also shared personal stories and we tried to react to this in a appropriate way. So if there was a call for help for example also in the youtube comments, there was always a big care-aspect for the community management.

[oxiosa]

@disaster-fruit I’m sorry, I’m starting a new post, I don’t care that it might be short but I’m tired of that endless threat. SO EPILOGUE.

Caju said:

Okay EPILOGUE NOW PLEASE JESUS CAN WE HAVE IT JESUS

I do have things other than smut in mind, so lets start with them. First, it’s what martin and luciano’s life will be like now that they’re finally together. I’d like to give martin some kind of occupation eventually, because he’s not the type to just wait around the house for his husband to get home. It would be cool if it was something like in the movie, tied to what he knew and did on the fairy tale world, but im on board too if it is a new talent that he couldn’t have discovered here. Unfortunately unlike Alfred who i immediately knew should be a minecraft youtuber, i’m not as sure for martin. My first thought is that he can be an instructor for sword fighting classes, it’s something that he knows and is good at, a talent he kept from being a prince. Other possibility is that he takes after dani and grows an interest at voluntary work, trying to help people with his time. I could also see him working on things like wood construction or even owning a small restaurant, but im just throwing ideas here to see if any spark your interest or inspire you.

On that same vein, there’s lots of things for martin to learn about the real world that we didn’t get the opportunity to explore. One that comes to mind and is funny to me is football. Imagine the process from which prince charming becomes a football fan? Starts with him joining luciano as he watches a match on the couch, while martin has to ask about the rules and trying to figure out for himself. And maybe he starts watching even when luciano isnt aroud. And we can get a football game date when luciano gets them tickets so martin can see it live. Idk i just feel like its charming and funny to imagine things like that.

Another epilogue point i’d like to discuss is the wedding. I think they wouldn’t get married immediately after, though they’d be living pretty much like husbands from the get go, with maritn living in luciano’s place and whatnot. I have a scenario for how the marriage proposal would go: Luciano feels they’ll eventually do it, but he doesn’t think much about it. They’ll cross that bridge when its time, plus martin would want a super elaborated fancy proposal as the prince he is. But one day they’re just cuddling and kissing and luciano says he loves him, for maybe the hundredth time already; martin beams and tells him to say it again, and Luciano does as he kisses his face. He tells him he loves him, that he loves him a million times, that he wants to say it forever, that he… wants to marry him. He just blurts it out, without thinking, at the wrong moment, with no ring, no proposal. Martin is taken aback (but not negatively YK IDK THE WORD IN ENGLISH), asks if he means it, but after a moment luciano thinks and says yes, he does mean it. And boom, we got a proposal. Martin would still want a ring immediately but it would be something silly and improvised, like luciano would draw a ring on his finger with a sharpie, or make a ring out of folded chocolate paper, or take like a mood ring that is buried at the depths of his drawer. It’s just meant to be a promise, it’s symbolical. I like this scenario because of the contrast with luciano’s previous engagement: perfect ring, perfect proposal, perfect big wedding, everything so perfect, yet he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He couldnt put a stop to it before it was right in front of him, everything was planed to a T and still all that perfection just hid his insecurities and fears. Now there’s none of that, no perfection, not even a real ring, a blurted out proposal in the silence of their bedroom, and it is all they need.

He’d eventually get the fancy gold ring and they’d throw the crazy lavish wedding of martin’s dreams, but that’s not because luciano thinks its how its supposed to go, but because martin wants it and he wants to see him happy. It’s similar but so different, and he has no doubts this time when the moment to walk down the aisle comes.

OKAY NOW THE SMUT-

I have in my mind how i think their first timeS would go, but i said a lot already, so i’ll pass the ball to you to start if you wish. I have the weird feeling we’ll have similar ideas for this section and i want to test it :3 fire at will 🔨🔥

WE CAN :D

For Martín we need to find something Prince Charming was good at but that can work in the real world, like Giselle did with tailoring. I think sword fighting is indeed something he could teach, but I was thinking about something even more mundane?? I'd rather Martín put the sword down, his days fighting are over and he gets to enjoy a quiet lige with his husband yk? Maybe he can give riding lessons or he can take care of horses, y’all know I’m a sucker for horsegirl Martín. It’s something that fits him and that he can do since WELL princes ride horses. It's hard work but it goes along with this calm “domestic” lifestyle I envision for him.

I do like him growing a bit of an interest at voluntary work ngl. I think it’s nice to see Dani somehow influenced him for good. I also think it shows a little growth in him; he gets to help others not just in a heroic Prince Charming way, but more on a human level. This sort of help doesn’t get him flower crowns or cheering crowds like he used to, but that’s not the point of helping and he gets to learn that.

Another one I can’t help to see but I think is more of a meme is Martín pursuing DRAMA. It gives the little cartoon-ish Prince Charming left in him a place to breathe and I think it’s hilarious. So maybe he joins some drama club, earns a little money giving acting classes. All very extra of course, almost roleplaying at some point.

Re football: he DEFINITELY watches while Luciano isn’t around. Martín is proud and doesn’t like to be in the dark but he also doesn’t like to ask for help, so I can totally see him secretly consuming content as he tries to understand the rules and dynamics. I think Lu’d find it very cute how Martín suddenly seems to know, fully aware he must have been making his research, and of course Tincho eventually becomes as passionate about football as Lu. Luciano truly won the lottery with this one ♥

Another scenario I can’t help to imagine is Martín vs technology. I think he’d struggle in general, but I think Lulu might eventually get Martín a cellphone for it’s important Martín learns to use one, but it proves to be a pain in the ass. Martín is worse than a grandpa with all his questions, and I feel it’d take him some time to understand and trust technology. Luciano used to make up all this “it’s a genie” and “it’s a magic mirror” white lies before, but now that Martín is staying in the real world he needs to understand how it all works and it’s so exhausting. Luciano doesn’t have the answers to Martín’s questions most of the time, he can’t explain how TVs or how phone calls work or where all the stuff uploaded in the internet is. It’s very frustrating for the two of them.

Aah I love the proposal, I think it’s perfect ♥ I really like the intimacy and spontaneity of it and the little ring Luciano makes at the moment. It’s perfect, they go on Luciano’s terms and pace and Martín is just happy to have him. That’s the only thing both want at the end of the day, it’s the culmination of their stories; they just want the other, nothing else. I’m not sure I’d give them a huge wedding tho. I agree normally Martín has the classic dream of a perfect wedding, but I think this particular AU is different. I can’t help thinking it needs to be something small and private. I say they have a little ceremony on the beach or even in Ibirapuera since the park was part of their love story.

Ngl Caju I get the feeling we won't have very similar smut ideas BUT let’s see. Our disagreements are a pain in the ass but they are the reason we are forced to get creative and come up with stuff we otherwise wouldn’t normally do SO LETS GO

I think sex is a thing that kinda goes unspoken for some time between them.

We know Luciano is a sex god, yes we’ve heard it before, but I wanna bring up that besides being good at it, Lulu kinda *needs* sex. It’s important to him, he has fun and enjoys it yes, but I think he has a very sexual nature. He craves the intimacy of it, it is a way to connect to his partner. And I feel this suddenly puts him in a tough spot: Luciano wants to have sex with Martín but he doesn’t know how Martín feels about it.

Martín literally told him he never had a boner before, and Luciano had just assumed he was crazy. After everything they went through (after seeing a dragon and a portal and the fairytale world), Lulu knows for a fact that Martín has been saying truths all this time so now he does believe him. Thismesns not only Martín is a virgin, but he possibly has no idea what sex is like beyond the educational sex ed videos Lu put on for him. So Lulu finds himself in this very delicate situation in which he wants one thing, but he wants Martin to want it too, but he also doesn’t want to be the one to direct them there since it feels wrong to “take advantage” of oh sweet innocent Martín. He doesn’t want to overwhelm him and scare him out of ever having sex again. For once in his life, he doesn’t know where to start with sex and we know Lulu is not the best with words, so he’s not even sure how to approach the subject. So he’s kind waiting for Martín to take the first step, to hint he wants to take the next base.

And here’s the catch; Martín is showing no signs of wanting sex. He is not interested in it. Martín’s first approach with sex were the sex ed videos and porn, and he was not impressed. He was kinda weirded out by it in fact, which makes me think he wouldn’t see the appeal, he wouldn’t want any part in it.

So for some time Lulu is stuck in these long make out sessions on the couch that are just awesome. Lu has zero complaints, listen, he loves to make out and Tincho is getting better and better at it, picking up the tricks Lulu pulls on him and using them back on Lu. But yk it could be better and Lu’s getting a little blue down there. He wishes they could take it to the next level, but Martín normally cuts them when things are getting a little too interesting. Lulu respects it, ok, but it’s so frustrating, he’s going a little feral inside dying to get some action.

I think it’s not until one day Martín gets another inconvenient boner that they do talk about it. Maybe it’s during a hot make out session, or maybe it’s during one of the moments in which Lu accidentally turns Martín on and makes him go “do that but to me”. The thing is Luciano notices and sees his chance to test the waters. He insinuates himself, maybe offers a hand. But he’s totally cut short when Martín says he’ll just take a cold shower.

There is something off in the way he says it, kinda like this was some pesky mild inconvenience. As this were some condition Martín has to live with. So Lu asks (a little frustrated) if that’s what he’s been doing all this time. It’s a bit of a rhetorical question, something he just says but doesn’t expect to get a “yes” for an answer. But that’s exactly the answer he gets: Martín explains he’s been taking cold showers whenever this happens, like Luciano showed him the day of his first morning wood. Luciano stares at him for a long moment, speechless, and asks if he’s being serious. Martín frowns at him, not appreciating Lu’s look and tone at all, and a little defensively says yes. Now Luciano realizes not only is Martín a virgin, but he’s never touched himself either. Which he finds incredible and horrifying and wait really? Never? He never tried to… yk? And he makes a pumping gesture with his hand in the air. Martín frowns deeper at him, confirming that no, he never tried, and Luciano basically needs to sit the fuck down for a moment, this is CRIMINAL, how has Martín been living these past few months.

He has so many questions, but a glance in Martín’s way makes him reconsider. His reaction has made Martín go defensive - he is watching him crossed arm and with pursed disapproving lips and a frown - so Luciano tries to soften his approach. He takes a deep breath, and asks why he never indulged. Martín explains he didn’t like what he saw on the TV. Luciano asks about the sex ed videos, but Martín says that he means the other videos. Luciano asks what videos and Martín says the ones with the muscled greasy plummers coming to fix the sink and ending up bending the nerdy college boy over the couch. And this is how Luciano learns Martín has watched porn.

Strangely enough, as ridicolous as it is, this is a bit of a relief for Luciano. It means Martín might be a virgin but he’s not clueless, he’s seen how it works. That makes this easier, Luciano can work knowing Martín understands how it’s supposed to go. He was afraid of taking Martín to bed before, thinking Tincho didn’t know what he was agreeing to and being afraid he might scar him for life, but this gives him the courage he was missing.

He explains those are not real. Well, sex is like that but also not. Porn is kinda like a play, yk, Martín had plays in the fairytale world right? There is both reality and fantasy to them. Martín lowers his defenses but he doesn’t seem to be sold. Luciano thinks for a moment and then asks if Martín would let him try. Martín seems a little startled but he doesn’t seem against it, so Luciano gently presses forward. He gets closer and smiles and lowers his voice a little and says maybe Martín has no interest playing with it, but Luciano does. He is in fact very much interested, he confides in a hot whisper. He’s been thinking about it, he says, daydreaming about all the things he could do with it. Martín listens and much to Luciano’s delight he seems turned on by the way Lu is looking and talking to him - a light blush creeps up his face and he looks down at Luciano with heavy lidded eyes. Martín takes a moment to think about it, and nods his head and agrees. Luciano kisses him, slow and hot and sweet the way he knows it makes Martín go weak in the knees, and pulls apart to take his hand and lead them to their bedroom.

[babymetaldoll]

Quarantine with Matthew Gray Gubler (MGG / Reader)

(Not my gif, thank you to whoever made it! )

Requested: Yes :)

Vivir en cuarentena con Matthew, y él hace en vivos por Instagram con y/n respondiendo preguntas de fans

Category: Fluff

Pairing: Matthew Gray Gubler / Reader

Summary: Matthew loves making people happy, and in quarantine, he finds the best way to keep in touch with his fans and do what he loves the most: spend time with (Y/N) 💜

Warnings: Nope

Word count: 2,2K

Masterlist

A/N: I am so sorry this request took me forever!!  Hello guys!!  thank you for all your comments, and love 💖 You are awesome!! hope you have a great week!!

.

Living in quarantine isn't as bad as many people think. It all depends on who you are spending your time locked in with. (Y/N) knew it pretty well, 'cos she had been locked with her husband, Matthew Gray Gubler, in their shared house for the last month.

And even when most people were sick and tired of being home, (Y/N)and Matthew managed to keep themselves busy and mentally sane. In fact, you could feel more stressed considering there was a pandemic and no one could see their loved ones and friends. But being with Matthew made it all so much bearable.

Considering Gubler's job kept him busy most of the time during a normal year and that he didn't have many chances to be home the way he was now, he enjoyed it.

Sleeping in was heaven. And the fact he could stay in, wearing pajama and kimonos, just enjoying his wife's company, was what he needed.

He didn't realize he needed to take a break after years of hard work until he was forced to do it. And god, it felt good.

(Y/N) would keep herself busy writing and reading while Matthew painted and draw by her side.

Their daily activities included: trying new recipes at least three times each week. Gubler would always come with some random exotic dish he always wanted to recreate. And six of eight times, he nailed it.

They would also spend a day in their pajamas doing nothing. Usually, it was Sundays. That was their official cuddles day. Just movies, ice cream, and cuddles.

Matthew also started teaching (Y/N) some magic tricks. She had insisted a few times, but he was very reluctant to do it at first.

- "A magician never shares his tricks, Bunny"- he argued for days.

- "Ok, but what if I am a magician too? Then it would be ok?"

(Y/N) was sitting on his lap, playing with some curls of his hair between her fingers. They were in their backyard, having a picnic. They had set a blanket and had some cookies (Y/N) had baked, along with two tall ice coffee Matthew had prepared, with an obscene amount of whipped cream.

- "And how are you planning to be a magician if you don't know any trick?"- he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

- "Just because you haven't taught me any trick doesn't mean I don't know any!"- she answered, pretending to be insulted.

- "My wife can do magic, and she never told me?"

- "There are a lot of things about your wife you still don't know"- (Y/N) teased and smiled at him.

- "Bunny, we are locked in this house until further notice. I think I have enough time to find out all those things I haven't seen in the last years."

(Y/N) had finally convinced him when she showed him a simple card trick her father had taught her when she was a kid. Gubler got so excited he even presided a ceremony to name her an official magician and invited their friends to be part of it via zoom. Everybody enjoyed their magic tricks and shared a good hour of fun and laughter with them, just like they would do live.

It felt good to be with their loved ones, even if it was just online.

That gave Matthew an idea.

- "Hey, Bunny!"- he walked into the kitchen holding his phone, scrolling down his Instagram feed.

- "What is it, honey?"- (Y/N) asked him as she kept chopping vegetables for dinner.

- "I was thinking maybe I should start doing Instagram live streamings with the fans. Maybe do some magic tricks, tell jokes. I don't know."- (Y/N) raised his eyes from the food and smiled.

- "Sounds awesome! when do you wanna start?"

- "Now?"- he answered a little hesitant

- "And what do you have in mind?"

- "Maybe answering questions and asking them if hanging out via Instagram is something they'd like to do."

(Y/N) chuckled and walked to her husband, pinching his cheeks, making him giggle.

- "You are so adorable, Gub. Like anyone wouldn't love to hang out with you."- he blushed and shook his head.

- "Ok, I'm gonna do it here anyway."

- "While I'm cooking?"- (Y/N) looked confused

- "Yes, I want you near so you can stop me when I start rambling"- (Y/N) laughed and kissed her husband's lips sweetly.

- "I can't stop your rambling, Gubler. But I can mute the video"- she teased, and he pecked her lips, chuckling.

- "Just stop me when I start saying anything embarrassing."

- "Deal."

No one could say Matthew Gray Gubler didn't care about his fans. He was committed to being always nice to anyone who would ask for a picture or an autograph. Why? Because nothing made him happier than making people happy. And if his job gave people joy, he honestly felt his life had a purpose.

That's why he enjoyed his improvised IG stream so much. He just sat on a couch nearby the kitchen and started talking with fans, answering questions.

- "Where am I spending my quarantine? Here is my hunted treehouse. I don't think I had ever been home this much, and it's been awesome."- Gubler stood up and started walking around the room.

- "Who am I spending it with? my gorgeous wife, of course,"- he said and pointed the phone at (Y/N), who was still cooking dinner. She simply waved and smiled

- "She is making sure I eat proper food now... Bunny, people are asking what you are cooking."

- "Pad thai"- she answered with a huge grin- "Gubler's request for tonight's dinner."

- "Maybe we could make a cooking class one day,"- Matthew suggested, and the screen started filling with "YES!!" immediately- "I could teach people how to burn every pan in the house, and you can cook."

(Y/N) nodded, laughing.

- "You can teach everybody how to make the best hotcakes."- (Y/N) answered and walked away from the phone.

It wasn't that she didn't like being part of her husband's activities, but she figured she wasn't really that important. Fans were there to see him, not her.

But Matthew followed her.

- "Yeah! I'll make my famous chocolate chip hotcakes, and you will have to top them!"- (Y/N) laughed and looked at her husband, raising an eyebrow.

- "Battle of the hotcakes?"

- "Yes!"

- "Set a time and a place, and I'll be there"- (Y/N) put her hands in her waist and raised an eyebrow, looking as serious as she could fake it.

- "Tomorrow, noon, here in our kitchen, because we can't leave the house,"- Gubler answered and mimicked his wife's attitude, still streaming everything.

- "Bring it, Gub."

And just like that, another livestream was scheduled.

The next day, at noon, Matthew streamed the funniest hotcake competition there had ever been seen by humankind. At least that's what he described.

- "Let's say it's a tie"- Gubbler decided and finished the last piece of hotcake in his dish- "I'll leave a poll in my stories so you can decide what you wanna see in tomorrow's live."

- "Really?"- (Y/N) asked, surprised- "Which are the options?"

- "Magic tricks or... I don't know. I didn't think this through"- he answered, making his wife giggle.

- "Maybe you could make a Rumple reading"- and Gubler's eye brightened at the idea

- "With my Rumple costume?"

- "I don't see why not"- Gubler looked at the screen and grinned like a kid.

- "Ok, you'll decide, magic classes or Rumple reading."

It was a draw. That's why Gubler did a Rumple reading the next day and decided to prepare a magic class with his wife for later that week.

His followers were having a blast with each one of their streams. Matthew would always try to take a step back and let his wife shine in front of everybody. He thought she was so funny the world needed to see more of her.

And (Y/N) always tried to be the best sidekick for her husband. Helping him make his streamings as fun as possible.

For the Rumple reading, Matthew sat in an armchair by the fireplace, dressed like Rumple, and read the whole book, impersonating voices and everything. Then, (Y/N) read the questions from the fans, and Matthew answered everything.

Gubler dressed like a classic magician for their magic streaming, and his wife was his assistant, helping him with each trick.

And by the end of the week, the people picked Q&A streaming with the two of them. It was the Friday "Chilling with the Gubs special."

- "Your girl is about to steal the whole show"- Shemar called Matthew that week and made him laugh- "She's the best part of the whole stream."

- "Don't flirt with my wife!"- he answered and chuckled.

- "I'm just saying she has a lot of potentials. She should try to do some stand-up comedy."

Gubler loved that comment, though. He knew his wife was awesome, and he wanted the world to know. As simple as that.

- "Ok, Bunny, ready to answer some questions?"- Gubler set the phone in front of them as they sat in their backyard. One more time, they had set a blanket in their favorite spot. And they had cookies and coffee.

- "Hit it!"

It was fun to do those things together. (Y/N) had never been one to be in the spotlight, but she loved being with Matthew. And if he was happy, so was she.

And it took only a second to see how happy Matthew was. He beamed each time he looked at his wife by his side.

- "Ok, this is a good one. What did we have for breakfast today?"- (Y/N) read and chuckled.

- "Good question. Waffles. (Y/N) made waffles, and I ate five, with ice cream. I'm gonna get so fat in quarantine"- the actor answered and felt his wife's hand in his hair.

- "What's your next project"- (Y/N) read- "Oh! that's a good one!"

- "But I won't say anything about it,"- Gubler answered and chuckled- "You'll have to stay tuned."

- "But I can assure you, it's amazing,"- (Y/N) added smiling- "How did you two meet"- the couple looked at each other and giggled.

- "At a party in my best friend's house"- she answered- "She was dating one of Matthew's friends, and they had a huge celebration when they moved in together."

- "And when I saw her, I knew I had to talk to her, but her friends didn't leave her alone."

- "Why didn't you just walked over and talked to me anyway?"- (Y/N) asked and crossed her arms on her chest

- "Because they were intimidating! and I am a shy guy!"- he explained- "I had to wait until you walked away to get yourself a drink to talk to you finally!"

- "You literally appeared by my side as soon as I walked away from them"- (Y/N) laughed, remembering the moment- "It was so funny!"

- "Hey! it might have been my only chance! I needed to take it!"- Matthew held her hand and played with her fingers, thinking he was glad non of that was in the camera angle.

- "And it worked"- (Y/N) answered and smiled at her husband, thinking as soon as that livestream was over, she was going to have a serious make out session with him

- "I'm glad it did. Quarantine would suck without you."

Gubler answered and smiled, thinking as soon as that stream was over, he was going to jump on her and kiss every inch of her body, just because she looked so beautiful that day.

- "Are you guys planning on having kids?"- (Y/N) read and turned all kinds of pink. There was a silence between the couple as they just looked at each other and shrugged.

- "We'd make cute babies"- Matthew answered- "And we could clearly keep them entertained."

(Y/N) laughed and shook her head.

- "We are not streaming that!!"

- "What?"

- "The baby-making part!"- she joked, and Gubler blushed, laughing and falling back on the blanket.

- "That idea never crossed my mind!"

- "I had to say it! Just in case"- (Y/N) argued and chuckled.

She had thought about having babies in the last few months. But getting pregnant during a pandemic didn't sound like a good idea.

Or was it?

- "Ok, everybody. We are signing out for today"- Gubler announced and waved at the camera- "Take care, stay in your house this weekend, and we'll come back maybe next week."

- "Maybe people can suggest what they'd like to see"- (Y/N) said and looked at Gubler, smiling back at her.

- "I'll leave the option in one of my stories so that you can leave your suggestions. See you!!"

The livestream was over. Gubler left his phone aside and looked at his wife. She was sipping her coffee and fidgeting with her fingers on the fabric of her jeans.

- "We would make cute babies, though,"- Matthew whispered and watched her beam at those words. That was all he needed to know.

- "You would spoil them so much"- (Y/N) replied, giggling.

- "Only because they will be just like you, and I love to spoil you so much"- he opened his arms, and (Y/N) leaned in, resting her body against his.

- "So... do you wanna have a baby Gub?"- she whispered against his chest- her voice was muffled, but he heard her clearly.

- "I think I do. You?"- Gubler answered, feeling his heart beating faster.

- "Me too."

(Y/N) muttered and giggled. Matthew looked at her and leaned in a little closer, kissing her lips sweetly.

It was a massive step for them, and they were very excited to do it.

- "Do you wanna start now?"- Matthew suggested, and (Y/N) blushed immediately- "I mean... I was going to suggest sex before, but now..."

- "The sooner, the better, Gubler,"- (Y/N) replied and bit her lips- "After all, we are gonna have to do a lot of practice before we succeed."

[wenellyb]

My journey in the MCU fandom on Tumblr: Sharing my thoughts on the Falcon and the Winter Soldier, racism in the MCU fandom and the best and the worse of the fandom

I wasn’t going to write this much but here I am… I don’t even know where I’m going with this but since The Falcon and the Winter Soldier just recently came out, I wanted to share some thoughts.

I joined Tumble because of a show I loved but most of you don’t know it “ Hit the Floor”

I stayed on Tumblr for two reasons only, Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan.

Before the Captain America:Civil War premiere, a friend sent me the link to the Sebastian and Anthony ET interview, and I was hooked. In just one interview. I discovered Anthony Mackie. The guy was hilarious!!! I just couldn’t get enough and I knew I had to know more about him. How could he improvise so many funny lines on the spot? He was just amazing.

I had pretty much watched all the avengers movie but that was it. I was not involved in the fandom. So I knew Sam Wilson’s face, but I couldn’t even remember his name if my life depended on it. That’s how much the MCU treated him as a side character.

I was like how the f*ck don’t I know this guy?

His talent reminded me of Eddie Murphy, Jim Carrey or Robin Williams, like yes they can make some emotional or serious movies, but when they want to make you laugh, you will laugh. Whether you want it or not.  I kept wondering how this guy wasn’t more famous.

And the banter with Sebastian Stan? Wow, you could tell their friendship was strong, the way Sebastian lighted up when Anthony was talking, and keep bouncing off his jokes. It was art. the way Sebastian said “ I love you” at the end of the interview. Pure gold.

I then started to watch some of the interviews and boy was that a mistake!!! I literally couldn’t get enough. So I watched all and I say all their interviews, it was the best. We got some gems:

“Why aren’t you looking at me as much”

“Which way is the beach Seabass”

*Them saying nonsense in Spanish and then Sebastian Saying Papi Chulo*

 ¨And so many more, ....

I watched other solo Anthony interviews and he was still HILARIOUS, but you could also tell he felt a little bit more at ease with Sebastian around. I won’t pretend I know him or his personality, but Sebastian seems like a little bit more of an introvert and looks like he doesn’t enjoy the interview experience unless Anthony id around him. Just my thoughts

I watched the interviews before I went to see the movie, I even cosplayed as the Winter Soldier to the movie premiere and I was IN!!! When I saw Captain America Civil War, I became a SamBucky shipper, these two were hilarious and I really so the potential for a great realtionship I love enemy to lovers stories.

I also shipped Stucky because, to me, the trope of the movie was Superhero gives up everything to protect his long term friend” Hollywood movies have some codes and if Bucky were a female character, there is no doubt in my mind that the movie would have been marketed as romance.

Stucky really was an easy ship! But then the MCU fandom of Tumblr fandom messed up everything for me. You see I really liked the CACW and I I liked Stucky, I liked Sambucky, and I loved the introduction of t’Challa’s character, but one of things that affected me the most in the movie was that it was the first blockbuster I watched with 3 black main characters, Rhodey, Sam and T’Challa. That, and the fact that they were planning to realease a Black Panther movie in two years, I was super excited, and that’s the main reason I got involved in the MCU fandom so much, when before, I was just a casual watcher.

If this seem weird to you, then you have no idea how we were only getting crumbs before. For me it was soo huge, I even told all my friends, and they were laughing at me. But usually blockbusters, especially superhero movies get one black character and that’s it, usually the best friend or something and never the leads. So, for me it really was a big deal. How sad is that by the way…

I became more involved in the fandom and, at first, I wasn’t focusing on anything special, Sambucky, Stucky, Stackie, the Black Panther, and even Zemo, whose character I really liked.

But soon I noticed that the CACW tags were always flooded, and I mean flooded with the same two white characters: Steve and Bucky. I told myself, ok that’s fine Steve is the lead after all, but it would be good to see the other characters too.

And then I noticed another interesting trend: Evanstan…. Wait what?

Chris Evans, and Sebastian Stan… did I miss something? Listen, obviously I’m sure they must be friends or something, but you’re going to tell me you watch all MCU the actors and you’re going to focus on Steve and Sebastian? I’m sorry what?

Sebastian and Anthony are right there… Or Chris and Anthony, they even have a secret handshake, only the 2 of them do… what more do you want?

Tell me one iconic Evanstan moment… go ahead tell me… See??? There isn’t.

Because of this and because of how badly some Stuckies were treating Sam and Anthony. I became less and less of a stucky shipper . I mainly focused on SamBucky, Stackie and the Black Panther,

And then the Sebastian Stan stans saw how popular Stackie, Sambucky, were becoming and I started to see some problematic stuff in our fandom too.

I don’t want to generalize, but when you go into the Stackie tag, and you see cropped pictures of Sebastian without Anthony, it’s easy to assume that a Sebastian fan did that. And we know damn well you cropped out Anthony because we watched all Stackie interviews and know exactly which interview your picture was taken from. We know that Anthony was sitting right next to Seb.

You post a picture of Sebastian laughing but you crop out the person who was making him laugh??

“but it has nothing to do with race” How do you know that?

“Sebastian had more screen time” More screen time than Anthony in CATWS or CACW? I don’t think so.

“I have been a fan of Sebastian for longer”, that’s fine but don’t go out cropping Anthony, just post gifs of Seb in his usual, sad, and Anthony-less interviews, not the ones where he’s smiling because his best friend is next to him.

Some of you really are the worst. And just so you know, your fave Sebastian is Anthony’s biggest fan, if he saw pictures where you cropped out Anthony, he would block you on the spot.

When I realized that Anthony Mackie would be the next Captain America I was screaming, no actually, I was crying, Sam Wilson will be Captain America, and Anthony would finally get the recognition he deserves.

You would think that the MCU fandom would focus on Captain America or at least one the two leads, instead of just Sebastian? Right? Right? WRONG.

Anthony is handsome, he’s funny, he’s a great actor, he went to freaking Julliard, he’s at the top, I don’t see what else the man can do??? He should already be a superstar, but no, you will side-line him even to he is the lead of the show.

Even when they are the actual leads, you guys would do anything to bring up the White characters even if it means ignoring the Black characters.

I remember I was having a conversation about Black Panther with my friends and I asked one of my white friends who was his favorite character in BP was and he told me Martin Freeman (don’t even remember his name in the movie) Martin Freaking Freeman, there are half a dozen of great characters and your fave is the only white man??? Ok, ok, that’s great.

Don’t give out automatic reply like “It has nothing to do with race, if you haven’t thought about it first”, because there’s a high probability that it is indeed about race. Stop saying it isn’t, sit down and ask yourself, “Am I biased?” “Why am I reblogging only stuff related to the white characters”.

One of these days you guys are going to make me hate Sebastian with the sh*t you are pulling.

I looove the Stackie friendship and the Sambucky dynamic but after seeing the way some of you treat Anthony and Sam’s character, it make me want to focus on Sam’s character and forget about the rest.

 I remember they were some posts about how Anthony was problematic, and I just lost it. Apparently, there was an old article that resurfaced were Anthony was making a joke about women making sandwiches or something.

If you were offended by the sandwich joke, that is totally ok, and I can understand that.

But if you were offended by the sandwich joke, and saying Anthony is problematic BUT you still stan Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, ScarJo or even Sebastian Stan, just know that there is a high probability you’re racist.

They have all said or done problematic stuff, and people only seem to remember stuff related to Anthony, which was probably just a joke by the way.

Chris Evans and Jeremy called Black widow a wh*re, ScarJo took roles that she maybe shouldn’t have and I didn’t forget Sebastian shady Instagram post, when Kaepernick was kneeling. There are so many more things to be said about Jeremy Renner but google is your friend.

Anthony also got hate for hating on Tom Holland? Like what? Do you guys even hear yourselves? Don’t you have any friends you like to tease? If you hate someone, do you go around talking about him every chance you get? It was obviously friendly banter but some people wanted to turn it into something it was not. Sigh.

I really cannot with this fandom

 The stackie fandom was small at the beginning and the Sambucky fandom even smaller, but we were there and it was amazing. Sebastian and Anthony received the same amount of love from the fandom and I wish we could go back to those days.

Stop pretending the fandom isn’t racist. Stop saying “it isn’t about race” when you haven’t even thought about.

Saying “it has nothing to do with race” only shows that you haven’t thought about anything but don’t want to be called a racist.

There is racism in this fandom and it will always be there, but if you guys want to do anything about it, you have to acknowledge it first.

You can’t be pulling off stuff like “I don’t see colors”, “ it has nothing to do with race”. Stop, sit down, think about it and then we can have a conversation.

If you’ve made it till the end, I apologize for the typos and grammar mistakes, I wasn’t planning on writing this much.

[theshelbyclan]

Family Secrets

Summary: Polly finally lets slip what the real Shelby curse is and as the youngest Shelby, with a little encouragement from John, you feel obligated to use it to your own advantage

(Gif by @mistress-gif​) A/N: I wrote this one when I couldn’t sleep, a long time ago, fuelled by my own frustration of being picked on as the youngest. This has been a headcanon of mine for ages and I finally put it to paper. I never had any intention of posting it, but because I’ve reached the 500 followers mark, I decided to share. It’s short, fluffy and a lot lighter than the actual series. Enjoy!

Words: 3220

*** 

“Give me the fucking book, John!” you bellowed through the kitchen. Your aunt was adamant that you’d all eat together, one day a week, on Sunday. These dinners were great and important, but they always ended in chaos. Tommy usually left early to get on with work, so he was never part of the sibling banter that ensued.

You had just finished eating and while Aunt Polly was busy clearing the dishes, you thought you could read a little. How wrong you were.

Holding the book out of your reach, the most annoying brother in the world was grinning broadly at you. “I will punch you in the fucking throat…” you threatened. This only made John laugh harder and he threw the book over your head towards Arthur who caught it nimbly. “How about me, little sister,” Arthur said playfully, “Are you going to cut me?” With a sigh you turned around and made another failed attempt at grabbing the book. Arthur threw the book back at John and a little game had started that you had no energy for. Still, you wanted that fucking book. “Forget the book, Y/N,” Ada commented from behind her own book, “Let them have their fun.”

But you were too stubborn for your own good, “I’ll be damned if I let them win…” which gave rise to more laughter from your brothers. So you grabbed the nearest tea towel and threw it in Arthur’s face. Before he could remove it, you pounced and actually felt the book beneath your fingers now. Polly paused her work and watched the scene with interest, partially because it was sweet, in a very Shelby manner, and partially because she wanted to put a stop to it before her kitchen got destroyed. You were so close, but Arthur grabbed you around your waist and managed to get the book back to John. Now you were well and truly stuck. “Right, what now?” he teased in a low voice. “Get the fuck off!” you screamed, when John walked over to you and dangled the book in front of you. Stretching out your arms as much as you could, you could almost reach it. But John, evil as he was, used his other hand to tickle your ribs and you immediately crumpled down in Arthur’s arms. The second brother soon joined in and now you were being attacked by two pairs of hands. You dissolved in a mess of giggles within seconds and there was nothing you could do. Sliding down onto the floor, with very little hope of rescue from your sister or aunt, you were at their mercy completely. And then, like some miracle, Ada intervened. She grabbed John by the collar and pulled him back. You gasped for breath as soon as you could. “She’s had enough, John,” Ada said sternly, “Back off, or you’re next.” Arthur looked down on you with a huge grin on his face, “Ada, we both know she can take much more than that…” “Noo!” you whined and without waiting for him to finish his sentence, you rolled away on your stomach across the kitchen until you bumped into your aunt. “Should’ve punched him in the throat,” she said softly to you. “Don’t be a baby!” John called out, “It’s your own fault.” “How the fuck is it my fault?” you replied indignantly from the floor. “For being so fucking sensitive,” John grinned. Arthur joined in, “That’s right. Just turn it off.” You rolled your eyes almost audibly. 

John scoffed and pushed Ada away, “You’re fourteen now, Y/N. Time to learn.”

Polly turned around swiftly, “Oh, like you ever did!”

“What?” your head shot up.

Ada looked at you with a smirk, “What, you thought you were the only one?”

As you got to your feet, Polly helped you up and said meaningfully, “That’s the real family curse, sweetheart.”

Years of them pinning you down and teasing you bubbled up in frustration, “Are you saying that I’ve been going through torture for all these years, thinking that it was just me, when all this time…”

Arthur shrugged, “You’re the youngest and smallest. Comes with the territory.” 

“Besides, we’re stronger,” John added smugly. He was right of course, which made it all the more annoying.

Polly threw down the washing cloth and theatrically said, “Welcome to the Shelby family, feared by all in Birmingham and where everyone is ticklish as fuck!” Your entire worldview had been altered in seconds. Apparently this wasn’t news to your siblings, because they all looked completely unimpressed by this bit of information, while you stood there with your mouth hanging open in surprise. After thinking about all of this for a while, you asked, “Even Tommy?” “When we were kids we used to make fun of him,” John recalled with a glint in his eyes, “It’s just his ribs, but if you poke him suddenly, he literally jumps.” “He went absolutely feral,” Arthur nodded. An idea was taking shape in your head, “Would that still work, you think?” “You’ll only get yourself killed,” Ada commented in her usual bored tone of voice. “Do it!” John urged, “Come Ada, you know she’ll get away with it.” You and John had always been the most mischievous in the family and you shared a look with a similar twinkle in your eyes. You finally knew something Tommy didn’t know. This was your one chance to catch Thomas Shelby by surprise. ***

For the next couple of days, you tried to get your brother alone. It was strange, because on the one hand you couldn’t wait to try out your plan. Envisioning how he would react was brilliant already, but the feeling of power you had was even greater. However, you also feared his reaction. Thomas Shelby was a busy man and he had very little time for anyone these days. When he did spend time with you, it was short and it often involved him reprimanding you. In all honesty, you were a little scared of him, but not scared enough to let a prank like this one go to waste. You’d deal with the consequences, whatever they were.

John might’ve been even more excited than you were and whenever Tommy left to go somewhere on his own, he motioned you frantically to follow him. Finding the right time proved almost impossible though. So you decided just to get on with it. This was the day you would find out if your brother shared the family curse. Unfortunately, he’d been in a bad mood all day. He’d called a family meeting at breakfast and had left quickly after that. They’d all reconvene in the evening. Dodging all your other responsibilities, you shadowed Tommy for most of the day, but he had one business meeting after the other. His mood was getting darker and darker, and you began to wonder if you were actually suicidal. But then, unexpectedly, you found yourself alone with him outside. “Y/N,” he said strictly, “Tell me what’s going on.” You’d come outside for some peace, because today was one of the busiest days at the shop and you’d had enough of the noise. Outside, you planned on reading your book and you’d forgotten about Tommy for a minute. Until he had appeared suddenly. “Nothing,” you said, looking up.

“Then why have you been following me all day, eh?” He sounded annoyed almost and all courage left you.

Improvising quickly, you said, “Missed you at dinner last Sunday.” “I was there,” he lit a cigarette and sat down next to you on the stone steps.

“For five whole minutes…”

“There was business to attend to.” “And there’s family to attend to as well,” you replied, without missing a beat. Silently, he side-eyed you and a small smirk played around his lips, “You’re right, I’ll do better next week. Am I forgiven?” “No,” you feigned anger. He turned his head towards you and he smiled, and you couldn’t help but smile back.

The bond you had with Tommy was a complicated one. In many ways you were very similar, but the war had changed him the most. Sometimes you felt like you’d lost him completely, when you thought of how you used to talk and laugh with him when you were younger. These moments were so rare now. And these exact thoughts did the trick and you decided that you had to be the one to make that old Tommy come back, if only a little. So you said a silent prayer, decided not to overthink it and poked him in the ribs once. The effect was immediate. Thomas Shelby shot up and nearly rocketed himself off the steps. With a wild look of betrayal he turned his eyes on you and you almost burst out laughing.   “Are you okay? What’s wrong?” you asked innocently.

He cleared his throat, ran a hand through his hair and sat back down. Apparently, we’re pretending this never happened, you thought. 

A few seconds of awkward silence later, you poked him again. This time, a small yelp escaped him. The most feared gangster in Birmingham yelped, and you couldn’t stop yourself from laughing any longer. 

As you were still trying to regain composure, Tommy pointed at you with a menacing finger, “Do that again and you will not live to tell the fucking tale.” You could only snort in reply. He was trying so hard to act all scary and while that had an effect on most people, you just couldn’t be bothered right now: It was too funny. Besides, you thought you could detect just a hint of mirth behind those pale blue eyes and decided to risk everything on just that.

“I mean it, Y/N,” he repeated, raising his eyebrows, “Do it again, I fucking dare you, and see what happens.” So you did it again. 

In a flash, he was up and dove for you. But you were faster and jumped out of the way. Like the two of you were a part of a bad play, you started circling each other around the small yard. Neither said a word and seconds felt like hours. Then Arthur called from inside the house, “Tom!”

“You called a family meeting,” you reminded him, while relaxing a little at the prospect of escape.

Tommy’s eyes stayed on you and he cleared his throat again, “Fuck, alright. You’re coming with me.” And he lifted you up and threw you over one shoulder. Your shrieks filled the house as he walked through the betting den, over to the table where the family was already gathered, with you still on his shoulder. Without blinking, the leader of the Peaky Blinders announced, “Right, well you’re all here. Let’s talk business quickly…” Aunt Polly pointed vaguely at your arse, which was sticking up in the air, “You do realise you have my niece in your arms?” “Well aware, Poll,” Tommy continued, like it was the most normal thing in the world, “Business! We’ve done well this week. John’s shown me the books and we’re making more money than ever. Next week, we’re buying a new horse and I’m going to race her.” Flabbergasted, the family stared at Tommy. You could see the million questions on their faces, but they decided to wait until he was done talking. You had also refrained from protesting by now. “Poll, as treasurer I need your permission to buy the horse.” She blinked a few times and mumbled, “Buy the horse. Y/N‘s still…” Tommy held up a hand, “Not finished,” and everyone closed their mouths again, “John, I need you to talk to that old widow down the road. She’s recently lost her son and she should become part of our fund. Arthur, for fucks sake, get the books from the Garrison in order.” “It’s those bloody numbers, Tom…” Arthur grumbled in reply. “Are we all clear on what to do?” Tommy finished off in a hurry. When no one replied, he answered for them, “Good!” With this he plucked you down from his shoulder and held you in his arms bridal style. With a grave and business-like tone he announced, “As you all know, this is Y/N Shelby, youngest member of the family. While we were away in France, she kept the fort and she has often provided us with some relief in times of stress ever since we’ve come back. But not anymore.” John started to get nervous and looked from you to Tommy. Had they gone too far this time? But then he saw Arthur grinning and even Ada had a small smile on her face, so he knew Tommy was only playing. “Gentlemen,” Tommy continued, “This is the day that Y/N Shelby dies. Say goodbye to your sister.”

And that’s when you decided not to await your fate, so you made a sudden movement and jumped out of Tommy’s arms. Dashing past the table, you sought refuge behind Polly’s back. 

“Told you this would happen, Y/N,” Ada said, not helping at all.

For some reason, Polly got up and left the room, while stating triumphantly, “The secret’s out, Thomas. Deal with it.” Now you just had an empty chair for protection. Tommy pointed at you directly and practically growled, “And it’s going back in.” With three of the largest steps he was at your side once again.

So you held up your hands, “Okay, wait, I can explain.”

“Too late, little sister,” Tommy said in a low voice, “These are family secrets that are not spoken of.”

“You’re such a drama queen, Tommy,” your sister commented, while getting up to leave. And all you could think was: why would you leave me alone with these mad bastards?

You really should’ve known better but decided to go for the cocky approach, “There’s no point in trying to scare me now, Tommy, knowing what I know.” You raised your eyebrows in an attempt to show him you were still in control. You weren’t. In a flash he’d tackled you to the floor and had you pinned down, while whispering ominously, “You picked the wrong brother to fuck with, Y/N Shelby.”

And for the second time in a week, you cursed your own sensitive skin as dexterous hands attacked your sides. Incapable of little but laughing and screaming, you flailed around hopelessly. Tommy’s face was slowly softening into a smile as well.

“Tommy!” you pleaded between giggles, “It was John, not me!” “Was it now?” he taunted without stilling his fingers, “And who was the fool to listen to his ideas, eh?” He moved up to your ribs, which made the pitch of your laughter increase. “Toohoohoom! Wait!”

Now, it was no secret that your major weakness in life was your sensitivity. Usually it was John who took the most advantage of it, being the mad joker that he was, but he often got Finn or Arthur to join in. Arthur on his own could be absolutely brutal, which was due to his strength as well, so there was no hope for you at all. Ada didn’t bother much, but when she did, she was merciless, much like Polly. But Tommy, he was a whole other story. You didn’t have many moments like this with him anymore, but when he did play and did get his hands on you, it was hell. He knew exactly how to reduce you to a small heap of giggles, pleading for your life and regretting all life choices up to that point. And this was happening right now. His smile was widening and he shook his head, “You thought you could beat me, eh?” “Yeheeeheees,” you admitted. Then he stopped for a second, allowing you to breathe, “Alright, you little devil, I’ll give you one a chance to speak.”

Residual giggles were pouring from your mouth, “Never… listen… to… John.” Tommy looked up at his younger brother who was showing zero remorse on his face, and he nodded slowly, “Good. What else?” “I’ve learned that Thomas Shelby sounds like a girl when…” but you never got to finish that sentence, as he continued his assault.

“Wrong answer. And you are way to ticklish to have an attitude like that, Y/N,” he said calmly. 

As he dragged your arms up and dug his hands under your arms, you squeezed your eyes shut, “NOOOO, I’M SOOHOORYYY!” “Are you?” he asked, now smiling broadly at your reaction, “Then tell me what you’ve fucking learned from this, eh?” “YOU DON’T FUCK WITH THE PEAKY BLINDERS!” you managed to shout out between laughs. “That’s right,” Arthur commented, watching the scene while sitting back in his chair, “Finally, she gets it.” Tommy paused and looked at both of his brothers, as if he was waiting for their verdict. “Nah,” John decided to cause more trouble, “I don’t think she has…” Still struggling unsuccessfully to get out of Tommy’s grasp, you shouted, “John, shut your fucking mouth or I swear to God…” Tommy rolled his eyes and interrupted you, “Get her, boys,” he called out, “Let’s teach our sister some respect for her brothers.” So now there were three brothers trying to keep you in place, while you were being tickled from all sides. Why did you listen to John? Why did you not know better than to challenge Tommy? Spluttering, kicking and fighting like crazy, you managed to kick them a little bit at least, but the fact that they were all grinning down on you still meant that it didn’t help much. 

Tears leaking out of your eyes, you shrieked, “YOOOUAAHAHAH AHAHAHALL SUAHAHACK!”

Then Tommy stopped them and crossed his arms in front of him. The amusement was twinkling in his eyes, “Had enough?” “Yep,” you said quickly, wiping the tears from your eyes. “Whatever Polly has told you,” he widened his eyes and brought his face close to yours, “Family secrets are not spoken of.” “Fine!” you called out, “They’re not spoken of.” His smile grew again, “Remember this, Y/N. And remember this was nothing compared to what we can do and what I will do, if you ever feel the need to cross Thomas fucking Shelby again.” You got up, again, and brushed yourself off while sending a death-stare to each of your brothers. But when Tommy smiled at you, there was a certain warmth to it that you hadn’t seen in ages.

“Wankers…” you mumbled carefully. Tommy smirked slightly, “You brought this upon yourself, Y/N. Now you know what happens…” “…when you fuck with the Peaky Blinders. Bladibladibla…” you finished his sentence. Making your way to the door, you turned back for a moment, “To be fair, Tommy, I did just saw you jump up about a foot because you’re actually fucking ticklish. So much for the whole gangster act, I should say.” Tommy’s eyes narrowed, John burst out laughing and Arthur managed to shout out a quick “Oi!” And before anyone could react, you sprinted away. Somehow, this still felt like a victory. Sure, you were the youngest and probably the most sensitive in the family, but you had discovered your own weapon now. John would be next, just for setting you up. Arthur would involve more planning. But finding Tommy’s weakness, that was the real triumph. Behind you, you could hear Tommy sit down and sigh, “Well, boys, we’re well and truly fucked now…”

And you grinned to yourself. The game was on.

***

Masterlist

[issaxcharlie]

Owen hosts Couple tag

Pairing: Charlie Gillespie x Artist Fem Reader

Summary: We play pretend world guys✨ (I missed them, I’m SoRryyyy.) So, Charlie wants some reassurance after starting to prepare his proposal to Y/N and makes this “genius” plan with Owen to find her answers without being suspicious. (She totally knows tho) also a lot of friendship fighting between Owen and Y/N because I had to, I made myself laugh a lot so I’ll hope at least makes you smile🤧🤣Anyways, have fun!

This is also my weird and nonsense way of doing sweet @marvel-ousnesss request of the we play pretend couple to do a couple buzzfeed quiz 💖

The blonde takes a deep breath before picking up his phone and heading to the living room, where his couple of friends and roommates are on the couch. Charlie is lying down watching television and Y/N is lying on top of him with her face snuggled into his neck, he hugging her around the waist while gently running his fingers down her skin.

The plan was simple, to help Charlie plan the perfect proposal and give him an idea of what she expects from her wedding, they were doing a “Couple tag” video. That way the questions wouldn’t be as suspicious. Of course, there are easier ways but we are talking about Charlie. They convinced Kenny to call her and tell her that it was to promote the second season that is currently being filmed, and she agreed.

Charlie mentioned many times that someone else had to ask her the questions because she reads her boyfriend like an open book, so his improvisation had to be perfect to keep his best friend’s clever girlfriend out of the hook.

He decided to start the live from his room so as not to give the singer the opportunity to think much about it, so he sits in the living room and focuses the image on his friends who are not affected in the least by their positions. After all, everyone already knows that they are a couple and that they live together.

“Hello, I’m Y/N Y/L! And yes, that sexy, beautiful, adorable and talented man is my boyfriend, Charlie Gillespie.” He blushes as the memory of their first night back as a couple invades the mind of the Canadian, who had his girlfriend in exactly this position when she was, as she said, 'practicing' her introduction. Sadly, this time it will not end like that night because his best friend and about 500,000 people are watching.

“Welcome to my first edition of the Couple tag everyone! Here's my first guest couple, I know it’s not much, but I promise to find someone worthwhile next time, this is just for practice." Charlie laughs but looks nervous. Instead, his girlfriend sits down and rolls her eyes.

"I can't believe you chose him over a puppy or a hamster." The girl says to her boyfriend while laughing at her friend's offended reaction.

“I'm going to write that down in my long enemies list, but for now I have a live to lead. Okay guys, so basically I will ask them questions and I will also choose who answers them because I’m the only one hot enough to call the shots here."

She laughs and sticks out her tongue. Charlie sits down too and she takes his hand to fiddle with it. She keeps arguing for a few minutes with Owen but shows no signs of not wanting to play the game so he starts before she regrets it.

“Okay, first one is for Charlie. How did you guys met? This is actually a good one because a lot of the fans think you met on set and are like this really intense couple who started to date the very first week without even knowing each other’s last names.”

They both start laughing at the comment. The truth is that they have seen multiple posts and comments online from people judging their relationship and how fast they were going, especially when they did that last interview together and Y/N said that Charlie was taking his sweet time to ask for marriage, since for the fans they only have one year and months of knowing each other.

“We have known each other since forever. Our moms were best friends and we were born only a few weeks apart so we've always been together. We grew up as best friends and were dating before Y/N moved to New York to play Daniela on Stardust." Charlie tries to shake off the memory of the last tearful kiss before Y/N got on the plane. Hopefully he’ll never have to part from her for so long again. Sometimes he can't even understand how he managed to get through those 5 years.

"So no, we don't know each other for just one year, but 22." She adds, kissing his nose.

"Y/N, honey. I didn't ask you, don't be rude and wait for your turn." Owen says teasingly, the girl laughs and throws a pillow at him.

“Okay, rude again. Y/N, What is the first thing that he ever gave you?”

“Oh my, this beautiful valentines card! We were like eight I think. The paper is red, and it is filled with gold and silver glitter stars. Inside is a big star that has written in the middle, “My bright star, happy valentine’s day. I love you. And a lot of doodles of my favorite things, like my guitar, a microphone, chocolate, and a little Charlie. Just adorable, I still have it and to date it is one of my favorite gifts.”

The emotion with which she responds makes Charlie's heart melt. That was the first time he called her bright star, and he kept saying it to her during every audition, every performance, every practice. The exact reason not even she knows, but maybe one of these days he'll tell her.

“Rude and a liar. The 22-year-old Charlie's handwriting is horrible, the 8-year-old Charlie handwriting could only be close to a squiggle, nothing more. Oh, and probably only you had the ability to read it. I very much doubt that was beautiful."

She opens her mouth in surprise and wrinkles her nose, feigning annoyance. “I liked you more when you had a crush on me. You were nicer.”

Owen's eyes widen and he turns to see Charlie looking for help but he just starts laughing. “Wh- What are you talking about, mean girl?”

“Oh c’mon, you totally did, Ohio.” She smiles at the camara while showing a superiority face.

“Really? I already told you a thousand times, I'm from Oklahoma. But hey, how funny, forget about Stardust and audition for Funny Girl!”

“Jokes on you, I would nail Fanny Brice.”

“Man, defend my honor!”

“Bro, I can’t. You totally did, I even got worried for a second there.” It is incredible to think about how their friendship has grown and matured over time. They went from Owen fangirling every time he saw her to being really good friends. All these fights are more of a show than anything else, the truth is that when nobody is recording they tend to be very cool around each other and the three of them have quite a pleasant dynamic now that they are living together for the show.

“I won, Idaho. Now, please continue.”

“Well, my friends embarrassed me on my own live. I can already imagine the headlines tomorrow. Anyways, Charlie, Would you let yourself in danger to save her?”

Charlie starts laughing as he drops his head on the girl's shoulder. "I think she's not going to let me lie, I always have and will continue to do so. For me it's always her safety first."

"Which has given me more than a scare but he's so freakin stubborn." She adds while looking stressed and Owen can't help but imagine all the situations Charlie must have put himself in before.

“I prefer you scared than in danger, beautiful.” He grins and kiss her lips, her facial expresions relaxing at his touch.

“Gross. Y/N, do you prefer a small wedding or a big wedding?” She can feel Charlie tense at the question, so she leans her body back to support it against him and give him a lowkey reassurance.

“I hadn't really thought about it, but I know that my almost mother-in-law has been planning it all her life so you should check with her.”

His mom. Y/N is right, as always. His mom is their biggest shipper and the wedding is probably something she’ll want to be an importart part of, maybe way more than with his brothers since she adores the girl as much as her own kids, and the fact that his girlfriend is even more aware of that fact than him makes him smile.

“Do you love it when someone refers you as ‘her boyfriend’?”

“Always. Especially if it's her. She has that little knack of saying it whenever she can and it’s the most adorable thing in the world.”

“Oh I thought she was just showing it off to me because she was intimidated by our chemistry. I don't feel so special anymore.” Charlie chuckles and sends a secret air kiss to his friend, who just smirks and fakes to blush.

“How would you handle it if you thought another man was hitting on her?” Owen asks the guitarist raising an eyebrow.

“She usually takes care of that situations, her method is to take me by the shirt and kiss me hard on the lips. I’m never going to complain about that.” Charlie says smirking and blushing.

“We are a celebrity couple, for better or for worse. I’m not having him in a fight when I can just kiss that beautiful lips and solve the problem.” Charlie smiles as he wraps his girlfriend in his arms, so she can't see his face with the next question.

“What do you dream of your marriage? Mmm, let’s go with Y/N.”

“Anything will be perfect if I spend it with the man of my life. My Char is my everything and my biggest dream is to live my whole life laughing by his side.” Owen pretends to vomit as Charlie fills her with kisses under the ear, clearly moved by her answer.

“Let’s get to someting less cheesy because I really can’t with you both anymore. Has anyone ever tried to break your relationship?”

Charlie rolls his eyes and thinks for a moment. “Yes. We were like seventeen, and this guy from hockey had this big crush on her, so he tried to flirt with her many times even though everyone knew she was my girlfriend, until one day that he made her too uncomfortable and things escalated between him and me. Luckily my brothers intervened before something else happened because he was much bigger than me. I would have totally lost.” He chuckles while his girlfriend turns to see his face and gives him another sweet kiss on the corner of his lips.

“Yes guys, they are this annoying all the time. How do I survive? A lot of yoga. Next question, If three guys are standing, and you have been blindfolded, then how would you recognize him? Guys we actually did this like three days ago on set.”

“It was awesome! We put my bandana on her eyes and since it had my smell she couldn't be guided by that to choose.” Charlie explains excited.

“We got the three of us, first Jeremy then Charlie and then me in front of her, then she began to lightly touch Jer's hand. Then she went to Charlie's, it didn't take her a minute to recognize him and she took him from the hair and draw him to her lips, it was actually a pretty smooth and risky move, I’ll give you a point for that, prodigy brat.”

“Char's body inadvertently reacts to mine. It was pretty easy to tell the difference, especially after touching Jeremy's hand.” She turns her head to give Charlie a soft kiss on the lips and then Owen starts laughing like crazy and telling her to come see a specific comment.

She gets up and goes to sit next to him, Owen changes the camera so that now they are the ones in the image and she begins to read aloud. “Charlie I could give you my... Oh my god!” Owen continues laughing, resting his head on his friend who simply watches the screen in shock.

“Thank god Charlie doesn’t know how to read.” Owen, who was just recovering from his giggling fit, laughs again as Charlie giggles and sticks his tongue out at his girlfriend.

"Who needs to read when you look this hot with sleeveless shirts." He jokes while winking at his partner, which seems to melt in front of the camera that is still pointing directly at her.

“The man has a point. Okay, Y/N move your ass back there I’m still in charge of this show. Would you prefer a silver or gold ring?”

She makes sure to move off the screen and sticks her middlefinger at Owen before heading back to her place with her boyfriend. “Good and really random question.” She smirks, not making contact with her boyfriend. “I don't have a preference, but I would love Char to design it. Obviously with the correct guidance, but yeah he choosing every detail and then explaining to me why he choose it would be the dream.”

Charlie smiles. He was already imagining something like this after so many years of gifting and has already been visiting the jewelry store several times to make sure he designed the perfect ring for his girl, a slight feeling of pride filling him.

“Which series does she thinks resembles your relationship?”

“She loves Boy Meets World and see a lot of us in Cory and Topanga. I can totally see it too, after all they too have known each other their whole lives and have a bond as strong as ours.”

“Well that explains why she’s always telling me ‘Life is though, get a helmet’ instead of actually help me.” She grins at the memory of Charlie’s last prank on Owen a couple of days ago, it was really good since she secretly helped him plan it.

“Man, It wasn’t personal. I do the same with Char. I’m not going to be known for being the one ruining prank war. Take it to the end of the road, if you need me to take you idiots out of jail I totally will... eventually.”

“My girl, everyone. Isn’t she awesome?” He watches her adoringly and she blushes in response, buring her head on his neck.

“She always has this enormous energy and personality but all it takes is for you to see her for her to melt, that’s... kind of cute actually. Okay next question Stardust, What about If Charlie tells you to marry him tomorrow?”

For the thousandth time that night Y/N can feel Charlie stressing out. The fact that he planned together with Owen and Kenny all of this just to make sure he was on the same page with her is the most adorable thing in the world.

“I’m pretty sure he knows I would always say yes. He could have gotten on a plane when we were 18 and told me ‘I don't want to be without you, let's get married.’ And I would have said yes. He’s my person, I have nothing to think about, I have always known it’s him."

Now it's Charlie's turn to melt, and Owen himself can't help but smile.

Charlie's confidence in what he has planned is higher than ever, and the day when he can finally make it official is near. He has been dreaming of this day with his Y/N for years and he will finally get it.

“Well guys, that was it, give it up to my favorite couple of dumbasses and please stop asking obvious questions. Will I be Y/N’s maid of honor? Of course I will. Oh, and tune in next week to see me becoming Kenny’s new favorite after I challenge Y/N in a dance duel with I got the music. Golden star is GOING DOWN."

Thank you for reading✨

NEXT PART HERE

Taglist: @writerinlearning, @ghostofmgg @strangerthanfanfiction713, @thebloodthirstyvampress @kinda-really-lost, @kcd15, @magnet-girl, @aliandthephantoms, @stxrkspidey, @pinkrockstar19, @s0uz4s, @shycupcakealissa @cookiebuba, @fangirlangioma, @sageellsworth05, @twist3dtinkerbell, @sunsetcurvenotsunsetswerve, @caitsymichelle13 , @ifilwtmfc, @luckylouiebug, @bibliophilewednesday, @totomoshi, @siennanoelle01, @lunashadow6955, @bookfrog247, @morganayennefertyrell, @kiss-themoongoodbye, @rachelle3musicals, @imsydneywalker, @really-dont-forget-it @agentstarkid @talksoprettyjjx @kaitieskidmore1 @lukeys-giggle @katie-navarro @crybabyddl @cocopuffs0211 @marvel-ousnesss @blackhood5sos @dpaccione @tuttigunner

[tamersmile888]

How to Rock a 10th Anniversary (Continued)

#4 Creative Storylines:

One of the best parts of the show for me was getting introduced to new ways to tell a story. Not only was the original premise a unique perspective I've never read or seen before, but this show took ideas to a whole new level.

“How to Rock a Singing Telegram” is my favorite episode. I loved the concept of using singing telegrams to help the students ask out dates for the school dance. Then they took it even further when Kacey accidentally ruins Nelson's meticulously organized board forcing them to try and figure out which telegram went to who. And I laughed so hard when they got a request to sing in the style of Big Time Rush. I don't know why. I just thought that was hilarious.

I also like the way they handled the uniform loophole in “How to Rock a Uniform.” I thought that having the students come to school technically wearing the uniform but in unconventional ways was brilliant.

The writers really thought outside of the box and switched up ideas we may have seen before so they seem fresh and unique. I appreciate the effort it took to create well-thought-out plots for every episode. I never really knew what to expect a lot of the times and that's what makes it so much fun to watch.

#5 Special Guest Stars

I'm so glad Nickelodeon alumni Romeo joined the cast for an episode. It was nice to see him and Cymphonique work together. Cee Lo Green also made a guest appearance that played a huge role when it came to the future of Gravity 5. And who can forget the Big Time Rush crossover when the BTR guys meet a passionate and persistent Kacey who hopes to get them to play for her school.

These guest stars weren't just there to show their faces. They played a major part in their storylines and were usually the deciding factor of whether Kacey and the gang reached their goal or not.

#6 The Comedy

I'm not sure, but some of the jokes in the episodes felt like they were improvised by the cast, especially at the end of scenes. Their conversations felt organic like they were just talking instead of reciting lines. It brought realism to the show which I started looking forward to.

The jokes of this show are actually funny. As an adult I've laughed so hard tears were running down my face. If you ever need a good laugh watch “How to Rock a Fashion Victim.” The writers don't lean on absurdity to try and make you laugh at something ridiculous or throw in lazy, overused punchlines. They don't talk down to their audience. The jokes are smart and clever a lot of the times and the humor is authentic to their conversations. It is a sitcom for kids so it does go over the top, but always in a good way. The over-exaggeration of these characters makes them so memorable and fun to watch.

#7 The Fashion

Kacey may have been kicked out of the Perfs, but she never stopped looking fabulous. The navy blue and white ensemble she's wearing when we're first introduced to her character is my favorite outfit of the entire series. The Perfs' outfits compliment her beautifully. Coordinated fashion is their thing and they do it well.

As the show progresses, Kacey switches up her style. Her looks become less glamorous and more laid back, yet still sparkly because this is still Kacey Simon we're talking about it. Her new wardrobe represents her transformation from someone who always has to be in the spotlight, to someone who's willing to share the spotlight with her friends.

[tossawary]

Because my brain does NOT stop even when I’m grounded, today my brain told me, “Hey, I figured out how to make a Hobbit Fusion AU work.” And I was like, “Great! We’re working, though.” And my brain was like, “I’ve figured out how to make it a Pre-Canon Canon Divergence AU for Moshang.”

And I was like, “...I’m listening.”

The Hobbit is another one of my Comfort Media and it got brought up when I was asking about that, but I was feeling kind of “eh” about mixing Tolkien mythology with SVSSS. I mean, the mental picture of Dwarf Mobei-Jun is extremely funny and Shang Qinghua would make a great hobbit! But that interpretation felt a little too direct for my AU tastes.

So, hm, now I have another potential Big Bang contender. My love for The Hobbit is very, VERY strong and looking at my current outline, I have to be like, “Yeah, this could be 50,000 words, no problem.”

It’s a very good outline!

-

After saving Mobei-Jun, Shang Qinghua bailed A.S.A.P. because he honestly thought Mobei-Jun was going to kill him. He psyched himself out of sticking around before Mobei-Jun woke up. Mobei-Jun didn’t get enough information to track Shang Qinghua down.

Shang Qinghua (who isn’t SQH because he isn’t the Peak Lord) decides that he can’t fucking take it anymore and bails from Cang Qiong Mountain Sect too. The System objects, but also falls into line when Airplane shrieks at it. Airplane is going to go become a humble merchant and inventor and there’s nothing anyone can do to stop him!

It turns out that Shang Qinghua’s presence or help was actually crucial to stop some Emperor of the Abyss from taking over the Ice Palace and the Northern Desert. Airplane is like, “Oh, yeah, I remember… offhandedly writing something about that happening in the past off-screen?” It was one of those things that he just threw in there because it sounded really cool, and it gave Mobei-Jun another reason to “owe” Shang Qinghua and not kill him immediately, but he never got to elaborate on it because he was too busy writing stallion novel bullshit.

So, borrowing the lore from my “Horns” one-shot, an extremely powerful Emperor of the Abyss escaped the Eternal Abyss. This is some devouring horror being from the depths of the abyss, which ate everything in its vicinity in the abyss itself and crawled into the Demon Realm to eat more things. The Emperor of the Abyss was attracted to Mobei-Jun’s father. They fought. Mobei-Jun’s father should have won, but didn’t, because he was too fucked up (thanks to his own hedonism or something) to fight properly. What an asshole.

Mobei-Jun’s father was killed and devoured by the Emperor of the Abyss, which has made it… exponentially powerful. It’s now… basically a calamity. The desolation that it leaves in its wake across the Northern Desert is unspeakable. Mobei-Jun and his family, their allied clans, and pretty much all demons in the Northern Desert have had to flee.

Mobei-Jun is currently essentially a “guest” of the Sha Clan. He’s homeless. He’s lost the power of his ancestors. He’s a “king” without a kingdom. It’s humiliating. He needs to kill the abyssal creature to retrieve: his title, his ancestors’ power, and his kingdom.

While working for other demon clans to support his family and people, Mobei-Jun crosses paths with Airplane. Airplane has become a relatively successful merchant and inventor, and he calls himself Shang Houhua. He lives a very comfortable life and does his best to ignore anything resembling the plot. He’s pretty successful at ignoring the plot.

Mobei-Jun is never in a good mood these days, but he’s especially pissed off to see that human who abandoned him all those years ago. Airplane tries to argue that Mobei-Jun told him to fuck off, but Mobei-Jun is too angry. Airplane makes lots of offers in an effort to get Mobei-Jun to spare his life, one of which ends up being a claim that he can help Mobei-Jun kill the Emperor of the Abyss and make him a king again. Mobei-Jun pauses, now even more pissed off than before, and Airplane just starts babbling desperately to save his own skin.

Mobei-Jun was already forming a company to take on a Quest for the Northern Desert - in the hopes of slaying the Emperor of the Abyss and retaking his homeland. Part of the issue has been that forming the company is difficult. Mobei-Jun wants people who are loyal to HIM and ONLY to him. He won’t owe anyone else anything or promise them pieces of his homeland.

(Airplane is like, “Bro, I don’t know if you can afford to be so picky, but okay.”)

So Mobei-Jun is like… “I still want to kill you, but fine, you can come on our quest and help us.”

So Airplane ends up on the Quest for the Northern Desert, led by his very angry future murderer the “king without a kingdom” Mobei-Jun, to fight the calamitous Emperor of the Abyss who killed Mobei-Jun’s father. Fuck.

Some details beyond this opening premise:

Airplane and Mobei-Jun fall in love over the course of the quest, obviously. They have their own hijinks like each chapter of The Hobbit (equivalents to the trolls, to Rivendell, to Goblintown, to Beorn, to Mirkwood, and to Laketown, etc.). 

Oh, damn, I just realized that making a pre-fall Tianlang-Jun and Zhuzhi-Lang the Beorn equivalents would be so fucking funny.

The Emperor of the Abyss is a horrifying Smaug equivalent. It can totally talk because Airplane having a conversation with a draconian horror sounds incredible. I would love to have Airplane outwit the Emperor of the Abyss in some fashion.

Mobei-Jun and Airplane somehow manage to successfully kill the Emperor of the Abyss together. Like, together. Probably using some plot device whipped up or some clever plan devised by Airplane on his feet. Mobei-Jun trusts Airplane at a crucial moment and it all works out. Airplane actually gets Mobei-Jun his kingdom back.

I’m tempted to just skip over the Ring and not having a Ring equivalent. BUT if I made this into a longfic instead of a one-shot, I would have a Ring equivalent (if it was a one-shot, I would ditch the Ring equivalent). I think I would make Xin Mo the One Ring equivalent. During the Goblintown equivalent event, Airplane falls either into the Eternal Abyss or into Bing-Ge’s dimension, where he proceeds to successfully take up Xin Mo because he knows the trick and portal himself out of the Eternal Abyss, or he proceeds to outwit Bing-Ge in some fashion and uses the Xin Mo sword to portal himself back to the right dimension.

So then Airplane is stuck with this super powerful sword that he doesn’t want to use again because he KNOWS that it will fuck him up. He KNOWS that it will FUCK HIM UP. So Airplane has to go through the rest of the quest ignoring the temptation of the Xin Mo sword that he is absolutely not supposed to have and can’t possibly let anyone else have.

(Oh, man, imagining the influence of Xin Mo giving Airplane extra horny thoughts about Mobei-Jun on the rest of the quest is very funny. Like, Airplane was already hot for Mobei-Jun, but now it’s worse and he might never have a normal thought ever again.)

Bagginshield Movie Hug when Airplane turns up again, for sure. Mobei-Jun thought he was dead. Mobei-Jun smiles and everything, until he remembers to frown again.

I’m feeling like I don’t want Airplane to use Xin Mo to help defeat the Emperor of the Abyss, but it makes sense if he does. Him not using it doesn’t make much sense. I do like the idea of Airplane dealing the killing blow and Mobei-Jun’s pride being hurt by Airplane being the one to kill it. I also like the idea of Mobei-Jun being a little smitten by Airplane just… loyally handing him his kingdom and restoring the power of his ancestors. I also really like the idea of Airplane just… not having some super powerful plot device up his sleeve on the quest.

Like, instead of Airplane’s Author God knowledge totally setting him up to deal with this thing no problem, Airplane had NO FUCKING PLAN when he set out with Mobei-Jun. He was talking completely out of his ass when he said he knew how to help Mobei-Jun. That this all worked out at all is almost completely due to luck and improvisation.

That feels MUCH more true to both Shang Qinghua and to Bilbo Baggins. Lucky lads of fast-talking, complaining, lying, not knowing what the fuck is really going on, thirsting after kings with tragic backstories, and somehow not dying despite winging it all the time.

Instead of goldsickness, Mobei-Jun is forced to deal with some side-effects of consuming the Emperor of the Abyss to regain the power of his ancestors. (Demon cannibalism rituals. Yeah.) He starts acting really scary and out-of-character and forceful, until Airplane loses his nerve and runs away. Maybe under the influence of the late Emperor of the Abyss, Mobei-Jun actually tries to kill him? I could see Mobei-Jun trying to kill Airplane for the Xin Mo sword which dealt the finishing blow on the Emperor of the Abyss.

(I need a better name for this thing. If I can’t come up with something that actually sounds good, I might just call it “The Calamity”, but that’s giving me BOTW vibes so I don’t like it. Maybe I’d call it “The Desolation” or something? Ehhhh, I don’t really like that either.)

I want to have a Battle of the Five Armies equivalent, if only so Tianlang-Jun and Zhuzhi-Lang can swoop in as benevolent helpers as the Beorn equivalents. Currently, I’m seeing three options. 1) The orc army equivalent are neighboring demon lords who want to strike while the new Mobei-Jun is getting established. 2) The orc army equivalent is Linguang-Jun trying to kill his nephew and take power at the last minute. 3) The orc army equivalent is Bing-Ge here with an army and he’s pissed off and wants his sword back.

On one hand, 1 and 2 would be SO MUCH EASIER to pull off. I could be really lazy about the whole thing. On the other hand, 3 would be much fresher (more surprising and links back to the Xin Mo element), more challenging and the idea of pre-fall Tianlang-Jun facing off with Bing-Ge delights me. Kick his ass, Tianlang-Jun!

(Su Xiyan gets involved? My brain says YES. Kick his ass, Su Xiyan!)

Also, I was sad about there being no Fili and Kili equivalents, because Mobei-Jun has no friends, and I’ll have to make up a company pretty much from scratch. (Sha Hualing is too young and Luo Binghe hasn’t been born yet.) BUT then I was like, “Where’s Linguang-Jun in all this?” And I would absolutely have Linguang-Jun be a part of Mobei-Jun’s Company. Instead of nephews, Mobei-Jun has a sketchy uncle who might be trying to kill him. Keeping Linguang-Jun out of it might be easier, but actually doing some character-building with him sounds fun and challenging, and I’d rather limit the number of OCs if possible.

Mobei-Jun manages to shake off the goldsickness equivalent somehow, probably through “the power of love” (and/or straight-up “dual cultivation” with Airplane?). Moshang makes up while Mobei-Jun is apparently mortally wounded from fighting Bing-Ge and Airplane thinks this is all his fault. But Mobei-Jun doesn’t die! It’s all good!  

It’d be pretty funny if there was a “Returning to the Shire” equivalent where Airplane leaves because he thinks Mobei-Jun hates him now and never wants to see him again. So then Mobei-Jun has to track his man down like, “Get back here and marry me. (Also I am so sorry for trying to kill you. Please forgive me. I hate myself so much for that.)”

And they all live happily ever after!

Holy shit, this wasn’t in Proud Immortal Demon Way.