#actually went through with!!! at least one of those times being during and immediate world ending level crisis!!! where the earth was gonna

[avelera]

(Arcane Meta) The Staggering Timeline of the Hexgate Construction

The Hexgate timeline is insane, guys, it's actually insane.

So I'm writing a Jayvik fic set in the time skip between 1.03 and 1.04. Most people agree that time skip was about 6-7 years long.

During 1.04 "Progress Day" Jayce says "a few years ago", the Hexgates opened to the world. The year before, we learn from the Enforcer Caitlyn is talking to that Jayce launched a blimp "half way across the continent" which sounds like a demonstration of increased range for the Hexgates.

At some point, I would guess early in Jayce and Viktor's partnership, they also did the Distinguished Innovators competition where they needed to notch their own gears and, presumably, didn't have a lot of assistants or assistance. I only note this to point out that there was at least a year or so at the beginning where they weren't immediately thrust into limelight yet and they didn't have every resource available.

So just because Mel was buying into their vision on Day 1, doesn't mean the whole city had yet. They probably needed to prove an application for Hextech first before that happened and, likely, the Hexgates was what they came up with and that's the one all of Piltover bought in on.

So, mostly likely sometime in the first year or so, Jayce and Viktor had to provide a proof of concept for the Hexgates. Let's say for the sake of argument that by the first Progress Day of their partnership, they have one.

Progress Day / Year of Jayce and Viktor's partnership

(Let's go through the timeline)

Year 1 - Hexgate proof of concept developed and presented. Up to that point, Hextech exists and has Mel's support, but Jayce and Viktor still haven't proven themselves enough to get all the resources they'll need to build something like the Hexgates. The Distinguished Innovators competition takes place somewhere around this time. Maybe they presented the Hexgate proof of concept there (pure speculation on my part but you'll see why I think the first few years had to be laser focused on the Hexgates over anything else for any of this to make sense.)

Year 2 - Hexgates under development.

Year 3 - Hexgates under development.

Year 4 - Hexgates open to the world.

Year 5 - Hexgate distance capacity increased.

Year 6 - Events of Arcane

By the way, I say only one year to develop a prototype, it could have taken longer. But, the Progress Day post-time skip in 1.04 could be 7 years later. So all the approximations up there should be taken as "give or take a year".

Still, that means that within 3-4 years at most, Jayce and Viktor went from this proof of concept that Hextech is viable at all:

To this:

And can I say just as an archaeology nerd obsessed with stone crafting and material cultures, holy shit, do you have any idea how quickly they must have built the Hexgate tower to have it done in 2-3 years? The Empire State Building, which offers us a decent parallel for the technology available in the world of Arcane at this point, took a 1 year, 45 days, it was considered the fastest a skyscraper had ever been constructed at the time.

But the Hexgate tower is more than just a building, this thing goes all the way down into the bedrock, it is lined with Hex crystals. It has that giant globe on the top for pinpointing where to send the ship. It's not just a building, the entire thing is an engineering marvel. And it has to have been done in under 3 years to fit the most generous version of the timeline.

This would, realistically, require incredible buy-in by the entirety of Piltover society. We're talking multiple guilds vying for contracts, red tape being cut by the mile to secure the space, deep excavation beneath it, shipping to bring in materials, endless amounts of masons, metalworkers, and artisans. It's doubtful that Jayce and Viktor slept during those years. The sophistication we see within the Hexgates makes it even more mind-boggling.

Seriously, look at the base of this thing! This is the failsafe, it had to exist before they opened up the Hexgates to the world! It can't be an afterthought or a later addition!

And this Hex crystal-lined channel goes up for miles! (not literally but get my point) It needs sophisticated technicians to operate and switch out the cores!

Now, of course a Doylist explanation, the Hexgates are as sophisticated as they need to be and were built as quickly as they needed to be built in order to serve the plot, and Piltover is as technologically sophisticated as is needed for these to be built in the time required.

But, Watsonian, as someone who can't help but look at building materials and think about just how much time and effort it would take a society that looks vaguely 1880s-1920s (I would say the 1.04 Progress Day is deliberately invoking the Chicago World's Fair of 1893) it is utterly mind-boggling to me how much labor and materials and effort would have to go into building the Hexgates in a 2-3 year period. That's moon launch levels of an entire society mobilizing for one goal.

No wonder Jayce got framed as the Man of Progress, the entire city must have been working on or known someone who was working on making the Hexgates a reality in that time.

[my-darling-boy]

I know you're a reenacter but the iron cross hat selfle pfp is NOT a good look without context. I got jumpscared thinking I accidentally followed a neo-nazi blog

Hey! So this is why eduction is really important actually and exactly why more people need to familiarise themselves with symbols, clothing, and history in general as to be able to contextually identify reasons for genuine concern when you believe you have encountered a red flag instead of immediately leaping to conclusions due to lack of knowledge. And being a reenactor, I’m going to take time to educate you on what these things are because this will prevent mistakes like this from happening in the future. Also I like infodumping.

What you are actually looking at is a British cap badge for the Sherwood Foresters Regiment, also commonly known as the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment, or Notts and Derby for short. It was active in Britain between 1881–1970. I am a First World War reenactor and my impression in the pfp is of the 15th Sherwood Foresters, a “bantam” battalion, a unique battalion within the regiment historically comprised of men under 5’3” (I’m 5’2”). The “Iron Cross” you think you’re seeing is actually a Maltese cross. Additionally, the Iron Cross predates Nazi Germany by over 100 years; the decoration, conceived in 1813, was one such medal able to be received by those in the then-Prussian/now-German military, or in this case, during the First World War. Both symbols went through some changes over the 19th and 20th centuries, but the basic design is the same. Here is a close-up to distinguish clearly between the two:

My uniform is also that of a British soldier (infantry, in my case) during the First World War. I won’t go through the ins and out of the entire uniform, but let’s take a look at the pfp so we can help you to better identify it in the future because another piece of context that can be gathered about my cap badge is from my uniform which would allow you to infer I’m not wearing a German badge because under no circumstances, especially during WW1, would you ever catch a British uniformed soldier sporting an Iron Cross on his cap.

In my pfp, I’m not even wearing all the correct things because it really was just a cheeky selfie I took some time ago with some modern items to replace what I didn’t have at the time lol. But let’s assume for a minute I’ve actually got full kit. It was meant to be winter, 1917. I’m also wearing my gas mask bag backwards for some reason (I also don’t have it secured).

Firstly, my standard dress (SD) British uniform and greatcoat—latter in spirit—is thick khaki wool. Germans, at least for the times you’re thinking of, wore at lot more blue/slate, grey, and black, with some occasional touch of colour trim like red. Many militaries wore green and brown during this time, the British were amongst them. The “Greatcoat” I’m wearing is at-a-glance-similar to one worn at the time by enlisted men. Gloves and scarves would ordinarily be knit (I had modern ones).

The trench cap is much like a standard peaked cap you might’ve seen in various other occupations and is very much like the khaki stiff cap normally issued only this one was meant to be softer and foldable, able to be stowed away in your pack as space was limited: you carried all your belongings with you wherever you went! It also had a chin strap no one ever realistically wore. While it depends on the year, these caps were usually worn when not on the front line as metal helmets were mandatory instead to protect from the falling debris and other projectiles.

Further down, I have my gas mask and small box respirator (SBR) which wasn’t widely used until 1917. Before this came the PH Hood or Gas Hood which was akin to basically a canvas pillowcase treated with a chemical compound through which you would breathe and featured a couple of glass eyeholes and a goofy looking rubber flap nearer the mouth to exhale. Before this, it was a chemically soaked rag or face cloth, sometimes it was soaked in your own piss as Urea (found in urine) was a natural deterrent for early chemical weapons. As things like mustard gas came more into use, old protections were no longer effective. The SBR was created as it used an internal wire and cotton filter also containing charcoal and soda/quicklime in a small metal box and was housed in a khaki canvas bag worn round the neck; air would pass through the better equipped filter, through the tube, and into a mouth piece making it safer to breathe.

Though not fully able to be seen, I’m also wearing Pattern 1908 canvas webbing. This held…pretty much everything. The whole thing comes apart to be just a belt but can be built up to carry about 150 rounds of .303 ammunition in those small front pockets, a sheathed bayonet and entrenching-tool wooden handle on the left, water bottle on the right, entrenching tool spade (for the handle) on the back or right, and a small or large pack worn on the back to hold extra clothes, hygiene items, kit maintenance supplies, personal items, and any other gear depending on the situation. The webbing was to be covered in a protective layer whose brand name was Blanco which gave the webbing that slightly green tinge and was essentially used to keep the canvas from rotting (today it still takes over 4 hours to put one coat on the whole thing with a small stiff brush, it’s gruelling)

While this certainly isn’t everything, I would hope it would slightly better inform you next time you encounter a British WW1 uniform as to not mistake it for a German WW2 uniform. Bit of an older reference, but below is a loose snapshot of what German infantry uniforms looked like progressing between 1914-1918 as to tell them apart from the ones during WW2.

As far as reenacting goes, not everyone who wears the kind of insignia you misidentified is going to be doing SS or partaking in dangerous ideologies. Germany existed before WW2, Germany famously went through WW1 long before the new Chanel designed uniforms were ever associated with industrialised fascism. I won’t speak for anyone who does any sort of German reenactment as that’s not my place since I don’t dress in that impression, but there is an unspoken code of conduct when you’re in any uniform as a reenactor: your first job is to be a living history educator and certain periods are still Hot, as in, even though the event might’ve ended, the aftermath still has an active impact on current society. It’s your job as a reenactor to be aware and conscious of the effects your visual presence has on a modern audience and take responsibility in wearing it mindfully and carefully as the hobby does not exist in a vacuum. I’m not saying there aren’t people in it to just “play bigot” because there definitely are people who do. But knowing who is and who isn’t largely begins with comprehension, at least loosely, of what you’re looking at. While no one expects you to be an expert, young people especially would benefit from knowing more history and multidimensional social and cultural related knowledge to provide further situational context when encountering these symbols, uniforms, and history. Things like this can help you tell the difference between a history nerd reenacting a British WW1 soldier and someone you think is lusting after a man with a very infamous moustache. Being able to distinguish one thing from another is unsurprisingly really helpful when or if you ever encounter these symbols or content outside of a reenactment setting and can indeed allow you to spot the true unsavoury people even in civvies, no uniform or iron cross required. I understand why you would initially react with fear upon seeing something you thought looked like a symbol which today can serve as a dog whistle for something darker, but learning context is key.

Furthermore I’m not sure how I could provide context to a pfp, other than having maybe say a WW1 signaller as my header image, my pinned post being WW1 related, and pretty much all personal content posted to this blog being about WW1 for over the last 8 years.

Hope this helps!

[celestiamour]

hi again i rlly liked ur headcanons for choi su-bong x shy fem reader and i was wondering if u could pls write headcanons of him x foreigner fem reader? ty and have a good day 🫶

ft. choi su-bong x f! reader — squid game

╰₊✧foreign! reader┊0.5k words

contains: headcanons!! reader’s native country is unspecified but she speaks her native language and english while studying korean! 

➤ author's note: alright, this is the last for the short specific reader headcanons, the next thanos fic will be an actual one-shot <3 

╰₊✧ notices you immediately both because you’re a cute girl and because you stand out in a crowd like he does. korea has a very homogeneous population, so people tend to take notice of you quickly. he probably greets you with a casual “what’s up” and decides right then and there that you’re going to be friends or maybe something more, you don’t really have a choice in the matter because people who stick out like you should stick together! he doesn’t mind if you’re shy because of your broken korean, he’s a master of language and wordplay and will gladly help you out!

╰₊✧ because he’s teaching you stuff he already knows and isn’t learning anything, he’s actually a lot of fun to study with. he always finds a way to make it fun and easy to remember with high-fives each time you get a question right. i feel like he was an awful student who went through a lot of tutors (only during exam season when he needed to get his grades up to pass the class though), so he knows all the best tips and tricks that worked on him when he was younger. 

╰₊✧ is probably one of those guys who asks what the swear words are and what cultural insults there are. he wants to use them other people so that he can get away with saying shit to their faces without getting caught, something that he already does in english but would like to know more

╰₊✧ even if you may not fit traditional korean beauty standards, he thinks you’re so hot. might use the term “exotic” because he doesn’t know better, but he won’t use it again once you tell him that it’s objectifying. 

╰₊✧ once you two start dating, he will seriously want to learn your native language. i can see him as someone who appreciates linguistics and admires multilingual people, loving to listen to music of all genres around the world and having a pretty diverse set of favorite artists. he might pout and bitch that it’s too difficult at first, but he’s surprisingly smart when he wants to be and will be conversationally fluent in about a year (it would be shorter if he was more consistent in his studies but alas).

╰₊✧ really looks forward to visiting your home country! he’ll try his best to be as respectful as his obnoxious ass can be, although i see him being accidentally offensive a few times because he can be a bit ignorant. loves to meet fans there and would probably go out of his way to make at least one appearance there if he ever had a worldwide concert tour no matter how off-course it may be. 

╰₊✧ when it comes to meeting your family, he puts all of his knowledge to the test to win their approval (god knows he needs all the help he can get when he looks the way he does, especially if you have a conservative family). however, he doesn’t really care if they don’t approve of him as he finds it to be more of a bonus than a requirement. 

╰₊✧ 100% wants to come back during your honeymoon, maybe even have a second wedding to adhere to your traditions if you so desire it. don’t worry about finances, he’s got it all covered!

[arceus-insanity]

Endeavor Deserves No Sympathy!

I don't understand how anyone can think Endeavor was ever a good dad. It also always comes off as incredibly victim blamie, especially towards Touya, and often Shoto too.

He literally only got married and had kids to use them. He never gave a shit about their well being, never even thought about it until he had the one thing he cared about and was still miserable. I've already gone over the math proving he gave up on achieving his dream himself at 21 at the absolute latest. (https://www.tumblr.com/arceus-insanity/763259515356512256/i-liked-endeavors-character-when-he-was?source=share)

And basic math will once again be used to prove just how little this waste of flesh actually tries.

This time the focus is on how quickly he abandoned Touya and immediately went to emotional abuse via neglect & literally replacing him, and once again risking that more children be born with self-destructive quirks.

For context we only see Endeavor doing anything with his kids that's not him literally walking through and ignoring them in two circumstances. Once when Fuyumi's a newborn and Touya is attempting to crawl (not walk) over to her. And training. Those are the only times he tries to spend with any of them, even after he starts his 'atonement'

Now comparing Touya in the scene of them training and himself as a toddler and all the child imagery this series loves to use instead of actually saving imperfect victims, Touya is at least 3 (probably closer to 4) when he's taken to the doctor and they are informed of his condition

Natsuo is 4 and a half years younger than him.

We know for a fact Natsuo (& Shoto) was conceived after they got the news, not willingly either. Pregnancy takes 40 weeks average, so Touya would still be 3 when Natsuo was conceived. So once again it took this 'man' less than a year to give up and have another child he hoped to use as a tool, and was explicitly making to hurt his existing son. And as I have said plenty of times before, risking that the new kids could be born with the same disorder, I hate how convenient it is that Shoto gets near zero negative quirk side effects.

Want to know what we never see, Endeavor doing something else with Touya and Touya demanding training, it's always him walking past/ away from Touya. Considering all of the shit they've pulled to soften Endeavor's abuse both in the manga and even more so in the anime, they wouldn't skip something like this. It's not hard to tell that Touya's 'obsession with training' is really about spending time with his dad, you know like a human child that literally needs love, proven by numerous studies and research in the real world.

He throws all parenting responsibilities onto Rei, adds more children to that load, and when Touya suffers for it (like everyone else) he does nothing, doesn't even hire a nanny

Another are you kidding me take I've seen is that somehow Touya's quirk issues are worse than Midoriya's and Yuga's. Touya managed to train his quirk to produce blue fire at 13 with zero equipment and less than no help, and only lost control of it, because of the mental abuse Endeavor had inflicted on him leading him to a mental breakdown. And/ or the theory I've only seen once of AFO using his ability to force quirk activation (seen with a passed out chapter 90 during his first confrontation with All Might)

Midoriya was breaking his bones all the way into the Shie Hassaikai arc and was only able to fight because Eri and was breaking support equipment in the following arc as well. Yuga had a support belt all the way back in the entrance exam and was still struggling with that.

Speaking of Yuga let's compare parental effort here, because as much as it backfired Yuga's parents tried a whole lot more. For starters they nearly bankrupted themselves to get him a quirk, so he could feel equal. All For One is a mythic man prior to his arrest, and those who knew of him were shown to be serious long-term villain groups, so they had gone to quite a bit of effort to find that he existed to begin with. They also got him support gear (the navel belt thing) as a kid to help him with said quirk, he literally had it in the entrance exam. Endeavor never looked into that, Endeavor is not only rich too but he's a top hero he would have direct access to support equipment companies that would jump at the opportunity and it never even occurred to him.

Endeavor's name is an irony as endeavour means to try hard to do or achieve something. He never tries hard he gives up incredibly quickly the second there's any road block, but instead of moving on he makes everyone suffer for it. He's a toxic pageant mom who'd rather force their child into a toxic world and a role they don't want than work on himself

And what finally makes him change? Getting exactly what he wanted and still being miserable, and he still expects through his actions his family to cater to him.

Not his son getting a major disability due to his actions, no, he decided to double down, mentally abusing and neglecting the son he supposedly loves, raping his wife who didn't want more kids or participate in this abuse, and again risking that Natsuo & later Shoto might have that same issue. Not when his wife breaks down and permanently scars his precious masterpiece, who proceeds to rightfully blame him, and he just thinks of it as a tantrum despite it lasting a fucking decade. Not when his eldest literally dies as the result of his selfishness. Not literally during any part of this entire process!

Dabi is 23 when Endeavor finally starts to 'try' to be better, that means that for at least 24 years he has only been caring about his fucking precious number one spot in a popularity contest that he couldn't even bother to try to be likeable for, this wasn't one bad decision, this was him constantly choosing to be so insanely selfish that he found ways that shouldn't even be possible for over two decades. And it was all him.

[queenariesofnarnia]

finally found you

gif not mine!

tech x f! reader

wc: 910

warnings: faked death and hidden pregnancy, that should be it.

takes place after s2 e13

tech x f!reader

~after the sea surge~

Every citizen on Pabu was safe. Among those citizens was you and your twins. You helped out the best you could while carrying them. You heard Phee returned so you were looking for her while assisting everyone. You heard your name being called, turning to see Phee.

“I’ve been looking for you all night sugar” She says grabbing your face before kissing the twins on their heads. “Give me one and come meet my friends” she grabs your daughter Selene from you. As you walk with her chatting. Selene babbled along. You look up to see a face you’d never expect to see again.

“Tiny is that you? or am I going crazy?” Wrecker asks leaning down to hug you tightly. You had to stop him, so he didn’t crush Apollo.

“I would love a hug Wreck, but little guy back here isn’t ready for one of your hugs” you say showing him your son who was sleeping on your shoulder.

“You have a kid?!” He asked shocked. You point to Selene in Phee’s hands.

“I have two. It’s why I left actually” you admit sheepishly. He hollers for Hunter and Tech. Hunter immediately recognizes you as does Tech.

“Sarad? There’s no way, you’re supposed to be dead” Hunter gets ready to scold you lovingly before noticing Apollo. Phee hands Selene back to you, telling you she’s going to help Shep.

“Surprise” You say cradling Selene close to you.

“You have kids?” Tech asks raising his brows. Selene’s wild curls were the same color as Tech’s hair. Apollo’s curls matched your hair. Hunter quickly figured it out just waiting for his brother to figure it out.

“Yeah, I do. Well, it was lovely seeing you boys, but I must get going” You started to walk away until you heard your name again. Turning to see Omega. You hand Selene to Hunter quickly before pulling the blonde girl into your arms.

“I have missed you so much” her eyes begin to tear up. “I was so worried when you stopped showing up to the lab. Especially after the last time” She said before burying your face in your shirt.

“I have missed you too. Please meet Selene and Apollo” you say gesturing to your twins. As you let her go from the hug, her hand remained in yours. “Would you like to hold one of them?” you ask, and she nods. You let her grab Apollo who was now showing his brown eyes off to the world. Hunter seemed to be enjoying holding Selene as she giggles toying with his hair. Tech pulled you away for a moment, making sure you could still see the twins.

“How old are they?” he asked, not wanting his voice to betray him.

“They’ll be two next week” you answer not looking at him. His gloved hands reach for yours giving them a squeeze. It was what he used to do to get your attention.

“Is there a reason you did not tell me?” his voice cracking. Emotions were hard for him, this was the moment that he let them win.

“You were a soldier Tech. The Kaminoans would have taken them from me. Nala Se and Omega protected me by getting me off Kamino. I couldn’t say goodbye, I couldn’t let anyone know who the father was. You were not going to get decommissioned because of me.” you answer him finally meeting his eyes. “Master Plo was able to help me leave the order we told the council I was killed in action to make it easy” you added on.

“We mourned you. We hated ourselves because you ‘died’ in action without us by your side” he was expressing his anger, and you weren’t going to stop him. He deserved this moment. “You went through your pregnancy and motherhood alone during the last two years. I appreciate that you chose to consider my feelings. I would have done whatever to be there for you” he finished.

“I’m sorry Tech. I didn’t want to hurt you or the others. I sorry that I made this choice without talking to you. I’m not asking you to forgive me, at least let me introduce you to them properly. You can decide if you want to stay after” your voice was desperate. You had no right to ask him to do anything, but it would make you feel better if he met them properly.

“I would love nothing more” He took your hand leading you through the crowd back to his brothers and sister.

“Tech this is Apollo” you grab your son from Wrecker handing him to Tech. “And this is Selene” Omega hands her to you. The smile on Tech’s face made your heart swell. The way he held Apollo with care made you smile. He wrapped his free arm around you pulling you into his side.

“Dada” Apollo babbled touching Tech’s face. The others watched in awe as their normally logical brother melt into a puddle.

“Dada” Selene mimics her brother reaching for Tech also.

“Looks like were staying on Pabu” Hunter says cracking a smile.

“I have enough room in my home” you tell them. Omega’s arms went around your waist talking about her excitement that they get to stay. You place a kiss on Tech’s cheek causing him to get flustered.

“I believe I deserve a real kiss.” Tech says leaning down kissing your lips like it was the first time all over again.

[nanthegirl]

14.01.2025

• Today started off fine. I woke up on time, started my laundry and worked on the flashcards immediately. I unfortunately had breakfast wayy too late and felt super sleepy afterwards. I tried to push through but I gave up and decided to take a short break. I decided to play the sims during said short break and now it’s 10pm.

• I finished the flashcards for Chapter 4 though and I got through a huge chunk of Chapter 5. Didn’t meet my goals for the day but it’s still something.

• Today helped confirm that I shouldn’t stay home all day to study. The little routine I built up the last few days seems to be what fits best for now. I’ll head to bed soon and go back to my regular schedule tomorrow. At least I got to have fun lmao. Also, this account used to be a simsblr once upon a time, or something along those lines.

🌲: 2hrs 2mins

📖: I may change this category to leisure cause…

☀️: Started a new sims save and I enjoyed it a lot. Also had a very nice breakfast.

Random sims lore⬇️

My current household consists of two werewolf sisters; a young adult and a teen. The teen, Esme, has this super close friend group and they’re so cute😭. They’re actually a bunch of pre-mades; Wolfgang Munch, Kaori Nishidake, Luna Villareal and Jeb Harris. I just made a club and added random teens and they thankfully had good compatibility. She had nearly maxed out the friendship bar with all of them so I decided to break the werewolf news. The first person she told and asked for werewolf sympathy was Luna and she reacted negatively?? Sure the bar with her was the lowest but it was still in best friend range. The rest of them reacted fine and I was able to give them the werewolf ally thing. I actually feel kind of bad about Luna’s reaction. Wth😭. Sure, she was my least favorite of the 4 but still. I’m considering kicking her out of the group but I’m not sure yet.

Imagine being weird to your best friend when she tells you she’s a werewolf and tries to explain she’s not a monster…. The only reason Esme is even so close to her is cause she invited herself over one day and they had a pillow fight. The one time I give the Villareals a chance and this is what I get??

Ignoring that, I’m really really torn about who she should date. Before they became friends, I wanted her to get with Jeb. Then Kaori invited her to prom as friends and they slow danced and it was so cute so I was like 🫣. They also took the cutest Photo Booth picture at prom. Then after prom they went to the little pier thing in Copperdale and she rode the Tunnel of Love with Wolfgang but I rejected the option to kiss him cause I felt like things between them aren’t like that. But then I started thinking about it💀. Jeb literally gifted her a crafted violin. BUT THENNN. I really like their friendship a lot and I don’t want to change it. But at the same timeeee, I feel like Esme is the fall in love with her friends type.

I don’t have to decide now or anything but I’m defs thinking about this when I go to bed lmao.

Ohhhh I just had an idea. Esme has the adventurous trait so what if she goes on a ski trip in Mt. Komorebi with Kaori after they graduate. It’ll be sooo cute omg. She could even stay in Kaori’s home. Or maybe the entire friend group could travel to all the destination worlds together. That’ll be so fun, theoretically. But I think she should do the trip with Kaori separately, so I can see if there’s really something there yk?

Her sister’s storyline is kind of sad in comparison lmao. Her name is Micaela but she goes exclusively by Mic, to me at least lmao. The stories I planned for them in CAS fell apart unsurprisingly. I want her to become a detective but she’s still in the lower levels for now. She has a thing with one of her coworkers and I tried to make them Woohoo partners and the bum blew me off??? She literally thinks he’s basic looking and he’s rejecting her. Okay. I dont know why I was even so focused on him. I planned for her to get with Rory Oaklow but when she had her first transformation, they fought and now they despise each other. I’m not sure what to do with her now honestly, and I’m getting sick of that stupid interactive career. I may just cheat and promote her lmao.

That’s all I have for you. I hope you enjoyed reading this💀

[jakes3resin]

Modern Reincarnation AU Part 4 ✨️

Part 3

"John?"

Bucky storms past Jack into the townhouse. It's rude, but he'll apologize later. He doesn't know why he came here instead of his apartment. Old habits dying a hard drawn out death, maybe? He hadn't been thinking clearly. Hadn't been thinking at all really until he found himself waved through by his father's security detail.

"Oh, is that John?" He hears his father call out, dress shoes clicking against hardwood as he walks closer, but Bucky stomps up the stairs towards his room before he sees the man. His breaths come out in rushes as tears keep burning his eyes.

Shit, he thought he'd gotten those under control on the train.

Slamming his door, he slides down until he rests against the floor. He tosses his bag to the side wincing at the sound it makes. Hopefully his laptop survives. At some point he does actually have to do the work he went to the library to finish.

The library.

Buck and Curt.

They wouldn't, Bucky tells himself. They wouldn't. Curt was one of his best friends, and Buck loved him. They...

Fuck they were roommates! Why the hell were they talking about that shit in public? In the place Bucky considered his? Why even pretend? Why drag Bucky into this? Why?!

Bucky buries his face into his hands. His chest hitches as he tries not to sob. He doesn't want his father or Jack to worry about him. He doesn't want to talk this through.

He wants...

He wants Buck. He wants the other to pull him into his arms. To kiss him again as if today had never happened. There was something else about being with Buck, something he'd never felt with anyone else be they friend or lover. He made Bucky feel safe and wanted. Wanted not because of his family and connections but because he was himself.

Buck would know how to make him feel better.

He laughs quietly through his tears. Distantly, he can hear Jack briefing his father downstairs, the words faint but he hears his name and tears used together. His laughter is more sob than anything else. Of course, the one good thing he'd found would end up belonging to someone else. Story of his life.

✨️

There's too much work to do. At least that's the excuse Bucky gave himself for not confronting Buck and Curt immediately. There wasn't time for a confrontation and subsequent blowup of his life.

At least that's the lie he tells himself.

Bucky chews on the straw of his iced coffee as he skims yet another chapter. There's a pumpkin muffin in front of him that he swore would be his reward for getting through this fourty page reading. Midterms have come and gone, but Bucky still has deadlines to meet and research to complete. He can't sit in his room forever, as much as his father and Jack would sometimes prefer that. Better protection from whatever sent Bucky crying to his room as his father would argue. Better protection for his father's political career Jack would quip.

Speaking of protection, Bucky glanced to the side of the cafe towards his security detail. At least these guys attempted to blend in. His father must have briefed them on his track record with previous details. Bucky smirked around his straw. They'd be easy to lose come rush hour. A bit of fun even.

Bucky turned back to his reading, squinting down at the words.

"American airmen during World War II had a dismal life expectancy. It was not a matter of if an airman was going to be shot down but when. Once downed, airmen faced an uncertain 'reception committee,' as Second Lieutenant Kenneth C. Reimer noted in a drawing he made as a POW in Stalag Luft I in Barth, Germany... 'for every [ground combat] soldier killed in action, three or four others would be wounded; air combat was completely the opposite. For every man wounded, three were killed.'"

"Bucky?" A hand settles on his shoulder jolting him out of his reading.

Bucky kept his shoulders loose as he turns around. Buck stares down at him, a bright smile on his face that Bucky can't help but match despite his grief. It wasn't even something he could control. Buck smiled at him, so he smiled back. Bucky felt pitiful.

Buck's sky blue eyes are clear and happy as they dart across Bucky's face. There's no sign that he realizes Bucky overheard him yesterday.

Bucky lifts a hand to calm his detail, all alert now after Buck's friendly greeting. He sees the nearest agent settle back into their chair but knows none of them are relaxed. He darts a look up at Buck, peering at the other through his glasses to see if he'd noticed the disturbance.

Buck's gaze, as it always does, doesn't leave Bucky's face. Even when he rounds the table to sit down, his eyes are pinned on Bucky and nothing else.

"Sorry I couldn't meet up yesterday," Buck dumps his bag onto the chair next to him. Bucky's smile twitches. Buck sits down across from him. His legs tangle with Buck's own under the table, Buck's foot gently bumping his ankle.

"It's fine," Bucky chomps down on his straw. "How was your advisor meeting anyway?"

"It was good," Buck smiles at him, not even a hint of guilt on his face. "Real good."

Buck had told Bucky he was called to fill in a shift yesterday and that was why he supposedly hadn't been able to meet up. A lie Buck hadn't even bothered to remember. His advisor meetings were also always in the morning on Thursdays. Today was Tuesday.

Buck was still lying to him, and he wasn't even guilty about it.

✨️

"I went by your place yesterday. You weren't home." Buck swings their clasped hands through the air.

"Hmm?" Bucky glanced away from the traffic around them. His detail were staying a conspicuous ten feet back, but they were annoyingly keen when Buck offered to walk him back to his apartment.

Bucky would lose them another day.

Buck laughed, deep and airy. Bucky struggled not to lose himself in it. That was what made this so hard. Bucky still loved Buck, and Buck still acted like Bucky was his whole world and then some.

"Oh," Bucky finally processed what Buck had said. "No, I went to my dad's for the night."

"Really?" Buck squeezes his hand. Bucky hates how much comfort Buck's touch gives him.

Does Curt receive the same...? No Bucky doesn't let himself finish the thought.

"How was it?" Concern bleeds into Buck's voice. Bucky hates how genuine it sounds. He's starting to use that word more than any other. The longer he looks at Buck, the more he has to hate to save his heart.

"Fine," Bucky shrugged stepping further away as they came to a stoplight. "The usual."

"The Bucky I know wouldn't give such a short answer," Buck stepped closer eating up the space Bucky had put between them. "Not unless something happened yesterday. Come on, you okay?"

Bucky felt the words bubbling up his throat.

I saw you. I saw him. Why are you here staring at me like I'm the most important thing in the world when you have him? Why are you doing this to me? I love you. I love you so much it feels like my soul hurts. I hate you.

"Spent most of the night avoiding his staffers." Bucky lied. "Barely saw him, Jack either, yet he still asked me to move home at breakfast."

Buck nods, accepting his lies. Was that what they were now? Not a relationship, simply a lie? Bucky wasn't sure anymore. His heart thumped against his rib cage, anger and love in every other beat, but he wasn't sure which would win.

Buck had become his whole world in such a short amount of time. He thought the feeling was mutual, but yesterday showed just how stupid Bucky really was.

"How about this," Buck nudged his hip. "Why don't I stay over tonight? We'll binge a few movies, order something, and have night in. Then,"

Buck paused with a stupid grin that, despite himself, Bucky still found charming. Fuck, he was truly pathetic for this.

"I'll sweep you off your feet and take you to bed. How does that sound?"

"Won't Curt be expecting you?" The question pops out of him without meaning to. Gale furrows his brow, confusion growing in his eyes.

"Curt won't miss me tonight."

Sure, he won't, Bucky thinks bitterly.

✨️

"John," Jack's voice was a surprise. Especially considering it was his father's number calling him.

"You've gotten much better at your Jack impression," Bucky answers just to be annoying. "Does he know you impersonate him on official numbers?"

"You're not as funny as you believe."

"Ooh, you even have his disapproving tone down. I feel like he's in the room with us!" Bucky laughs. He peers around the corner. Buck's still where he left him, buried in his phone texting someone.

Bucky doesn't let himself think about who that person is.

"Your father wants to invite you to a dinner tomorrow. You can even bring that boy that walked you home. The one that hasn't left." Pages flip in the background as Jack talks. Probably governmental reports his father was supposed to read.

"You know you're not his chief of staff anymore?" Bucky leaned his hip against the counter. "You don't have to read reports or wrangle his kid to government dinners to help his image as a family man. You're his husband now, you're the family."

"You're my kid too by that logic, so wrangling you gets to stay on my resume." Bucky snorts out a laugh. "Besides, it's not a state dinner or anything. He just wants to see you."

Guilt gnaws at his heart. Buck pokes his head into the kitchen, phone no longer holding all of his attention.

"Fine," Bucky groans. "But if he brings up the apartment again, I'm walking out with my food on my plate even if it's the good plates."

"See you tomorrow at 7 then. Bring your boy." Jack hangs up without a goodbye.

✨️

It'll be me, and it'll be you, Buck.

Don't count on it.

Bucky jerks awake. His dream flashes through his head too fast for him to remember anything. Scenes superimpose over each other, words jumble together. At least this one wasn't a nightmare. Those always left him shakey and off balance all day.

His dreams have always been vivid, ever since he was a kid. The child psychologists he'd gone to had said it was normal and simply a sign of a well developed imagination.

Bucky runs a hand through his hair groaning when he glances towards his bedside clock. It's nearly an hour until he has to get up, but he knows that he won't be getting back to sleep before then.

Buck lays curled up next to him on the bed. Bucky reaches out to brush a hand through the other's hair. Buck twitches leaning into the feeling for half a second but doesn't stir beyond that.

Bucky sighs. Extricating himself from Buck's long limbs takes time. Somehow in the night, Buck had nearly fused them together as if even asleep the man refused to let him go. Arms layered over arms. Legs tangled together. It's an excellent distraction from his dreams but not from the problems of the waking world. If only he could forget those once he woke up like he did his dreams.

It's only when he's pouring water for his coffee that he realizes he recognizes the voice from his dream. A first for him.

It'd been Buck's.

✨️

(Not a confrontation I know, but it builds my AU lol)

[nerdalmighty]

hey! so, i just recently started playing baldur's gate 3 after seeing people put it all over my dash for months--and you're one of the people i've seen reblogging a lot of posts about it LOL. so if you don't mind me asking, i was wondering what kind of character do you/did you play as? and do you have any sort of backstory for your tav that you'd like to share?

Hoooooooooooooh my god thank you so much for asking. I have a friend who comes over to watch me play on Thursdays and I make a powerpoint every week to catch her up on what she missed - this week's powerpoint literally has slides about my Tav's background (more on those later). This is about to be long, I'm about to drop ALL my lore so buckle up! AND THANK YOU FOR PUTTING UP WITH MY BG3 BRAIN WORMS!!!!! I'm glad they convinced you to play 😈

So to begin, I've been in my first ever dnd campaign with a group of friends for a little over a year now. I didn't know much about Baldur's Gate except that it was a dnd video game and that you could romance people. Me, being a Big Fan of Romance And Fantasy was like "okay well I'm in" and my friend actually let me start a game at his house. Through that, I met Shadowheart, Gale, and Astarion.

Backing up a bit to my character; I decided I'd put my character from my irl dnd campaign into the game since I already knew her whole deal. I get pretty overwhelmed with making decisions, ESPECIALLY with big open world games like bg3, so knowing who/what I wanted to be really helped me out.

In the campaign I'm in with friends, it's pirate themed, and I play a half-elf bard named Birdie Harp who's secretly half-siren (murder mermaid). To make a long story very short, she was born in the arctic and escaped her murderous pod during a coming-of-age trial where she also lost her siren abilities (hypnotizing voice, breathing underwater, etc).

I've watched a ton of Dimension 20 which is an actual play show on Dropout.tv (an "actual play" is where you watch other people run a campaign of dnd - like Critical Role, which a lot of people have at least heard of - HIGHLY recommend Dimension 20, as I find it incredibly funny and easier to get into than CR because of the episode lengths), and I knew that I really liked the silliness and theatricality of the bard class. I also loved the bards from The Owl House which helped influence my decision as well.

To be honest, Birdie is my first ever dnd character, so she's basically a self insert but with a MUCH more traumatic backstory than me (this IS dnd after all). As for the half-elf aspect, it was more of an "I want to be half mermaid, what's similar to that?" as opposed to a love for half-elves or something.

BACK TO BALDUR'S GATE - knowing I wanted Birdie to be in the game, I felt a lot less overwhelmed to come up with something entirely new - I knew a lot about the bard class having played one so I wanted to CONTINUE playing one (and I've learned even more since playing bg3!).

When I finally got my own game (I no longer play at my friend's house, but in the comfort of my own home), I recreated Birdie and started on my journey in earnest. I'm VERY MUCH someone who likes to be in control and know what to expect, so I've had guides and walkthroughs to help me the whole time - SUE ME! When it came to first meeting Shadowheart, Gale, and Astarion back at my friend's house, Gale actually immediately stole my heart - a kind, witty wizard who likes books and cats? Literally say less. I went home from that session with my friend fully thinking I'd be a Gale girlie until I really looked into the other options and saw The Vampire.

Blah blah blah, he's hot and funny, but he can also be incredibly soft, which really won me over in the end. So I've been romancing That Guy.

Through Acts 1 and 2, I wasn't all too sure about this version of Birdie's background - sure she COULD still be that half-siren from the arctic, but the game kept suggesting she was FROM Baldur's Gate. I LOVED the inclusion of the harpies in Act 1 and thought maybe that was a viable entry point for her backstory, but so far, she was kind of just... me? She was making the choices I wanted to make (and a few that I knew Astarion would like lmao), but she wasn't really her own entity apart from me except for her name. She also felt vastly different from that character I'd created for my friends over a year ago. For instance, my irl Birdie currently has a crush on a Gale-type character, but this Birdie is ass deep in Astarion (hey, sorry I said "ass deep in Astarion"). The thing I love about Baldur's Gate 3 is how you can really come up with your own backstories, since the in-game one for your Tav is so vague. It's totally fine to ignore tiny details in the game and mold them to your own headcanons for your Tav, but I was so unsure of what I wanted for this Birdie that I kind of internalized that she was from Baldur's Gate.

HEADS UP! The following has some spoilers for Act 3 and some side quests, so STOP reading if that's something you'd care to avoid (the last 3 paragraphs of this post are SAFE from spoilers):

When Act 3 finally rolled around (which is where I am currently, I only have the one playthrough so far because I become INCREDIBLY attached to things), I stumbled across the Water Queen's House in Baldur's Gate. Ah ha! Now this felt promising.

A temple dedicated to the Vengeful Sea Goddess, Umberlee, and her loyal Wave Servants to serve her. It's ocean themed, it has mermaid undertones, and their goddess is basically evil. Seems like the perfect place to FINALLY insert this version of Birdie. I wasn't 100% sure until I completed the Iron Throne mission and was faced with either handing a (mostly) innocent man over to the Wave Servants, or fighting to defend him.

Here are a few of the slides from this week's powerpoint that I mentioned all the way back at the start, starting with SOME background on the Wave Servants:

Ass and Shart are what I affectionately call Astarion and Shadowheart (Also I got this beautiful "Birdie" art on Pinterest which originated from someone named Dantrelium on Reddit):

Apologies for the small text here, but there are some more details about THIS Birdie here, which I literally made up/figured out earlier this week:

Essentially, this Birdie was born at the Water Queen's House as Kittiwake Crest - Kittiwakes are common arctic birds, which I thought would be a nice little homage to the original character she was based off of. She was raised by the collective of Wave Servants there, the main one being Flood Tide Allandra Grey who seems to be head honcho at the Wave Mother's House (in this reality, she is).

Since Umberlee is such a vengeful goddess, I imagine she asked her Wave Servants to commit unspeakable acts in her name, mainly drownings, which THEY see as merciful, but I think Birdie always saw as horrifying. Who were they to decide the fates of others? I also think that the Wave Servants themselves were abusive during her upbringing to keep her in line (but much like how Nocturne was a light in the darkness for Shadowheart, I don't think EVERY Wave Servant was evil). GOTTA have a classic tragic backstory.

Upon researching Umberlee, I learned that most of her servants are clerics, so in my mind, that means Birdie was raised to eventually become one, with her official title eventually going to be "Seawind Kittiwake Crest." Is she still half-siren/mermaid though? Not entirely sure. This IS a magical world though, so I'd be inclined to say yes, probably.

But when we first meet the Wave Servants, they're singing beautifully for their drowned sister, Holli. I think Birdie REALLY loved music and singing with her sisters and secretly trained herself in bard magic when she should have been learning to be a cleric. It's also a classic trait of bards to hide their pain through humor, so I often imagine the type of stupid things Birdie gets up to to bring herself joy (my favorite headcanon being when you meet Skittle the Rat in Wyrm's Rock prison - he's a rat merchant who speaks exclusively in puns. I think Birdie and Gale would excitedly throw puns back and forth with Skittle while Astarion and Shadowheart begrudgingly (and affectionately) roll their eyes in the background).

Another thing I love about the game is how you can string together your own ideas of how companions react to things between big cut scenes. For example, in my head, in my game, Astarion has really become a Big Softy thanks to how fucking Stupid (affectionate) Birdie acts in life and has drawn him out of his shell, but also runs a tag team scam with her where she plays her lute to distract people while he loots an entire place. Gale is Birdie's partner in crime when it comes to tomfoolery and loves to joke and fool around with her (so long as it goes easy on his knees). And Shadowheart is basically a sister figure who flip flops between sassing with Astarion and joining in on the fun. THEY'RE JUST THE BEST, OKAY? OF COURSE I'M GONNA WALK AROUND WITH A BUNCH OF IDIOTS. I LOVE THEM.

Anyway, back to Birdie's backstory: she always hated the atrocities that were asked of her, and she was looking for a way out, but was too scared to take that step and leave since the Wave Mother's House is all she's ever known. One night, while stepping out to quietly dip her toes in the water, the Mindflayers captured her, and that's where we start Act One, all the way up on the Nautiloid. She changed her name to Birdie to distance herself from her previous life, fully took up the bard class, and the rest is history.

Back to that dilemma with handing over that (mostly) innocent guy or fighting the Wave Servants: with encouragement from the party, they convince Birdie to face her traumatic upbringing and fight the Wave Servants once and for all. At this point in Act 3, she's basically helped every single person with their problems except her own. Here's another slide featuring Ass and Birdie:

That's right folks, Birdie faced her past! But the bad news is we don't get to see Astarion in this (audio from The Adventurous Adventures of One Direction):

(Video description - Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3 wearing the Wave Mother's Armor with the following audio:

Guard 1: Whoa, check it out.

Guard 2: Hubba hubba hubba.

Gaurd 1: Nice. I love dudes in skirts.

END VIDEO.) I don't want to tell you how many times I recorded that until I felt like I got it right lol. Also yes, I DID do a scum save where I handed the guy over ONCE just so I could see Ass in this outfit, but Birdie did canonically save Redhammer in my actual save file.

And honestly, that's BASICALLY it for now! My most recent save was after that battle, so I need to figure out if Birdie's going to go back with her party to confront the rest of (or most of) the Wave Servants, or if this chapter of her life is closed.

In an ideal world I'd LOVE to make one of those artsy gif edits of my Tav like this and this, but PS5s make it hard to download clips without uploading them to YouTube first which I don't really want to do.

Thank you SO MUCH for this ask, I had a blast writing it!! Sorry it's so long, I just love this game so much and LOVE talking about it. Please feel free to ask more questions OR chat with me about YOUR Tav! I'd love to hear all about them :)

[coneyislandbabey]

high by the beach. -> k. sirko

WARNINGS: profanities, getting high

SYNOPSIS: The feelings that grow between you and Karen Sirko seem to be the easiest thing in the world. word count: 2,039

NOTES: This fic is based on this request! I had such a good time writing it, I hope you guys love it.

You couldn’t believe you were here. Sure, the Laurel Canyon house was rundown, and maybe haunted, as Warren fervently believed. But it was a house in Laurel fucking Canyon. You had all worked your asses off for years, and now you were here, in California, as a band. You finally had something real to show for all of it. 

The house, for all of its positive attributes, was still short a bedroom in comparison to the amount of people trying to live in it. You drew the short straw, meaning you got the haunted bedroom, a room that you would be sharing with Karen Sirko if you were all able to convince the woman to come out to Los Angeles and join your band. You didn’t mind; the room was the biggest one in the house, and you would gladly take some ghostly experiences in exchange for the space, and you and Karen had hit it off when you met her back in Baltimore, playing for the Winters. 

The night you moved in, you all went to this diner downtown, crammed into one booth with your burgers and making plans like anything in the world was possible. And maybe it was– sure as hell felt like it. 

You were thrilled– and mildly shocked– when Karen accepted the invitation to move into the Laurel Canyon house and join the band. You loved your boys dearly and had become very close with Camila, but being the lone woman in the band totally blew sometimes. They didn’t mean it, you knew, but it was clear that the rest of them waved off your opinion often, particularly Billy. You had a feeling it was because they’d known you since you were a little girl, and you were positive that Billy still saw you that way even all those years later. When Karen arrived with all her bluntness and her inability to take shit from any of them, you could’ve cried with gratitude. Her just being there got you more professional respect from the rest of them than you had ever been afforded before. 

You said as much to her, one of those first nights after she moved in. It was after one of her first rehearsals with the band, during which you had tried to suggest a change in one of your bass riffs, and Billy completely waved you off. Karen had stepped in, asserting that she thought the change actually suited the song better, and that you all should at least try playing the song that way. Graham, with his sweet little crush on the blonde, immediately agreed, so Billy begrudgingly did too. Obviously, it turned out that your version was better, and it became the official riff on the song. 

“Thanks for what you did today,” you said. You were sitting on your bed in your pajamas smoking a cigarette. Karen was standing in front of the mirror, brushing out her hair before bed. It had been a little awkward at first, not just sharing a room with the woman, but a bed as well, but you really didn’t have any other choice, considering you all couldn’t afford to get a pair of twin beds; luckily, Karen took to you like a match to flame and now every night had you giddy as sleepovers used to have you as a kid. 

“What did I do?” she asked, looking at you through the mirror. 

“Standing up for my riff,” you clarified. “They never would’ve listened to me about that if you weren’t here.”

“Well, that’s bullshit,” she said, setting the hairbrush down and climbing onto the bed. “It’s a great fucking riff and it made the song better. If they wouldn’t have listened to you alone, they’re a bunch of idiots.”

“I’m not arguing that one,” you laughed. Karen reached over and flipped the lightswitch, settling down on her back. It was a hot night, and the air conditioner in the window was doing its best to cool the room off, but you were both laying on top of the sheets, sticky with sweat. 

You closed your eyes, willing sleep to come to you, but it never did. It was just too fucking hot in that room. After what felt like an eternity, Karen turned to look at you and asked, “you wanna go smoke a joint on the deck?” 

You both made your way out to the deck, Karen leading the way through the dark house and you following behind, a pair of joints and your lighter clutched in one hand. Once outside, you settled into the chairs, handing Karen one of the joints and lighting it for her before lighting your own. You inhaled deeply and then exhaled, your head dropping back to take in the wide, navy sky, pockmarked with stars. 

“God, never saw stars like this in Pittsburgh,” you said, taking them all in. You looked over at Karen in her silence, only to find that she was already looking at you. “What are you looking at?”

Karen took another hit of her joint, blew out the smoke. “You,” she said simply. 

She was looking at you so sure, like you were something unshakable. That’s how Karen was, you had come to realize; she just believed that things were supposed to be a certain way, unfold a certain way, and they did. Nobody had ever looked at you that way before. 

***

Yours and Karen’s nocturnal escapes onto the deck or down to the beach to get high or drop acid or anything else quickly became routine. The afternoons and the evenings were for work, for throwing yourselves into the album you were creating, throwing yourselves into making it the best possible thing it could be. The mornings and early afternoons were for sleeping, first of all, but for hanging out with the rest of the band, getting drunk and going to the movies together, eating at the diner. But the nights were just for the two of you. There was a certain comfortable quiet that Karen’s mere presence encouraged in you; you had never been so content and unworried as you were with her. In the midst of the pressure of putting together the album and trying to make it in Los Angeles, you came to depend on those serene nights, more than you ever depended on any drugs or booze alone. 

And just like that, the recording for your first album was done. All the blood, sweat, and tears that had gone into making it were coming to a stop. You’d all have some time to actually relax for once while it was being mixed, and you had no idea what you were going to do with yourself. The whole band had gone out celebrating, and were just getting in during the early hours of the morning. 

You stood in front of the house, still drunk but well on your way to sobering up, watching the boys stagger up the stairs. Karen came to stand next to you, looping her arm through the crook of your elbow. You turned and smiled at her, and she leaned her head on your shoulder. 

“Let’s go to the beach,” she said, beginning to walk in the familiar direction before you’d responded, because of course the answer would have been yes anyway. The pair of you made your way there in comfortable silence. You felt filled to the brim by the sounds of the crickets and the crashing waves, the moonlight, her very presence, right there next to you. 

Karen dropped down into the dry sand right before the edge of the waves, pulling you down with her. You collapsed into her, slightly dizzy with the receding end of your drunkenness, and she righted you into a sitting position. It was a full moon, and the whole ocean was lit up silver in front of you. Maybe it was your inebriated state, but you thought that the sky had to be full of more stars than you had ever seen in your entire life. 

“Beautiful,” Karen murmured beside you, and you nodded. 

“Yeah,” you said, “I’ve never seen so many stars in my life. Looks like this science project I had to do back in grade school, where we pricked a bunch of holes in a piece of black cardboard and shone a flashlight through to simulate the night sky. I had poked so many holes in mine I think it was more holes than cardboard at that point.”

Karen laughed. “The stars are a wonder, yes. But I was talking about you.”

At this, you turned to look at her for the first time since you had reached the beach. You had almost gotten used to the way Karen looked at you in the time you’d known her, this way of looking like she was really seeing without ever having to try, like she could figure you out with one glance. It had made you feel so vulnerable, so bared naked, until all it did was make you feel comfortable and warm. You didn’t mind, you realized, if Karen could see inside of you like that. You wanted her to, even, you thought. She was the only person in the world that you would want to see you like that. 

The pale ivory of her skin and wheat blonde of her hair glowed blue in the night, illuminated like your own personal moon. You wanted to reach out and hold that glowing face in the palm of your hands. She was peering at you with those lovely dark eyes, every inch of her face serene, but a question still posed in the subtle scrunch of her brow, the pout of her full lips. 

You had tried so hard to parse through your feelings for Karen in the time that you’d known her without touching upon a certain conclusion, a conclusion that could easily end your friendship, could easily upend the band in the worst case scenario. You ignored the way you felt every time she would choose you to stick with in a room full of people, every time she looked at you in that specific way of hers. You tried so hard, and in one sentence she unraveled it all. 

“Karen,” you whispered, trying to convey the warning, the longing, the complexities of your feelings to her all in just her name. 

“I know,” she said, imperceptibly nodding. That was all you needed– in an instant, your hand was on her cheek, your mouth slanting against hers. She pulled herself closer to you, energetically returning the kiss, until any distance at all became too much and she simply moved to situate herself on your lap. Your hand slid past her cheek, up her neck and to tangle in her already wild hair. By the time she pulled away, her cheeks were flushed and her lips were swollen, and you both were panting hard. The moon was bright in the sky behind her, lighting her up like a halo. 

“This life we all have here, this beautiful thing we’ve all built here,” Karen said. Her hands were still on your shoulders, warm and solid. “The magic of it all comes from the fact that I’m doing it with you, getting to spend all of my time with you.”

Your breath caught at her words. “I never thought… I didn’t think there was a chance that you–” 

“I didn’t either,” she said with a breathless laugh, before you had to find the words to finish your thought. “But watching you watch the stars tonight, I had to say it. I couldn’t go any longer without you knowing.” 

You leaned forward, pressing your forehead against hers. “Well, I’m really fucking glad you decided to say it, because I don’t think I ever would have had the guts to.” 

Karen laughed, the sound reverberating through her body and into your own, and you pulled her closer by the belt loops of her jean shorts, pressing your lips to hers once again. There was a lot you had to be grateful for in this life you’d made, especially now, but the mere existence of Karen Sirko in your arms very easily topped the list.

[calekinnieplus]

This looks like a fun idea, so here goes! :

What do you think of this guy🙃?

Oh wow! Good character you chose there ahahaha! Roselle Gustav aka Huang Tao!

First impression

Honestly, I was floating in confusion at the start a bit, considering it was my first Chinese webnovel, so I had a period of readjustment to the writing style (or the translation ig?), so I didn't immediately connect the dots that Roselle was a transmigrator or that he's... kinda "dead" lol

Buuuut, once the dots connected, I did find him quite amusing! Bro's self-confidence gave me second-hand embarrassment, but not That bad. But also, Klein was bashing on him so hard, it was kinda hilarious.

I don't fully remember what impression I had of him, since I was reading pretty slow in the beginning and some ideas were lost, but overall, fun guy lmao

Impression now

Hilarious guy, a meme, a legend.

Yet...

Quite unfortunate that his end was just endless suffering (which will hopefully not be endless haha...). Bro made small mistakes in the beginning when he didn't know Anything, when he was transported to a world he didn't know anything about, forced to adapt and live a new life. I don't know, I find him tragic, just like Klein.

At least he had some good times along the road (especially with a demoness heh). The funny stories were nice to read.

Favorite moment

Basic, but his first talk with Klein. I mean, him meeting a fellow transmigrater and quickly having faith in him was sweet. I really wish to see more of them :>

If we're talking about the diary entries, I'd probably choose when... uhhh the corruption thing. Roselle going to the moon. And when he gazed into the Abyss. I remember how the diary entry abruptly cut off after dumping a lot of info and both Klein and I were Flabbergasted. What did it MEAN-!!

(I have a feeling I'm mixing up the moments, but the feelings remain. The confusion, the anticipation and the wonder from some diary entries were Amazing)

OH, and the last diary entry of course. It was so chill-inducing! It was one of those moments that answered a lot of questions while also bringing even MORE questions. It was just- the atmosphere full of fear and uncertainty, putting into question what that fellow transmigrator went through, wowie~

Idea for a story

Well, let me shuffle in the corner of my brain...

I've always been a fan of Time Travel AUs. So the idea of Klein (at a higher sequence but not Saint Level, maybe? Idk, a lot of possibilities here) travelling to Roselle’s time period and the two of them becoming best buddies (Roselle’s words, not Klein's. Klein's facepalming in the background at Roselle’s shenanigans).

Maybe! It could be a young god Mr Fool using his domain over Space and Time and having a misplaced adventure during Roselle’s time.

(We're pretending the Outer Gods and CW isn't as dauting of a problem as they are in canon, aye?)

Anyway, doesn't matter which version of Klein or during what time he's visiting, it's mandatory that he facepalms at least once :))

Unpopular opinion

Well, I don't know the popular opinions, so I'll guess I'll just go with an opinion.

I mean, he totally could've treated his wife better. I can understand feeling a disconnect with this world and humanity in general, but at least don't bring shame to her name by being a known womanizer, mm? At least divorce or smth, man. You overthrew the government, you could definitely do that.

Unless he actually did divorce her and we just don't know. But otherwise, yeah. Kinda dick move there, Emperor.

Favorite relationship

(Platonic, right?)

Again, basic but. Roselle and Bernadette.

The fact that Bernadette spent so much time searching for a father she was on dubious terms with and how much faith she had that he persevered against all odds.

The fact that Roselle’s one and only tie with this new world was his daughter, his beloved child that he loved with all his might. A child he shared a piece of his old world with. A child he remodeled this entire world's structure for. Absolutely heart-warming.

Favorite headcannon

Hmm let's see...

Huang Tao, as a young individual who surfs the internet, would know a lot of memes or jokes. After becoming Roselle Gustav, those memes aren't easily forgotten.

I mean, is it canon, actually? Maybe he made several Chinese meme references and I missed them lmao. That would be funny

Bonus: imagine Huang Tao and Zhou Mingrui bumped into each other one day, unaware that the next time they'll meet each other, it will be after more than 10 000 years, give or take. ...what's the timeline here?

[ascendingtostardust]

Click

(Sam Kiszka x f reader)

word count: 2.1k

warnings: none, all fluff and dad!sam

a/n: this was going to be a little blurb that turned into 2k words (oops). I didn’t edit it at all so I hope it makes sense and isn’t too hard to read :)

—

Sam had gotten into film photography long before the two of you had gotten together, racking up quite the collection of cameras. Some he traveled with, some he never left the house with, and some he never left the house without. He had a preferred use for each one, sometimes testing their limits when he learned about a new technique or feature. This hobby of his was actually how the two of you met.

On a blanket in the shade produced by a tall tree in the park right by your apartment, you sat enjoying the beautifully warm summer day. You rested with your hands behind you, legs outstretched in front of you as you munched on an assortment of fresh fruit you had just bought from the market earlier that day. Completely in your own world, you almost missed the click of a camera a few feet away from you.

When you looked over, the most beautiful man you’ve ever seen stood lowering his camera to rest against his chest. The confused look you shot him caused him to cautiously make his way over to you and apologize for not asking before taking a photo of you. He said that you “just looked so beautiful when you didn’t think anyone was paying attention” in the most sincere way you’d ever heard anyone compliment you.

And just like that…click.

-

Your entire relationship was documented, which you were extremely grateful for. At first the photos were only from Sam’s perspective, but then also from yours when you felt more comfortable grabbing the camera from him to take a few shots from your own point of view. Being able to show how you viewed each other and your shared experiences through the way you captured those special moments was something you never knew you needed until Sam came into your life.

After a few years of dating, you both knew you were ready to settle down and start getting serious about what the future held for you as a pair. Sam and the band’s schedule was lightening up as his brothers had a few kids of their own and began pushing for more time at home and less time on the road.

When you decided to finally take a pregnancy test after a few weeks of unbearable nausea, your fate as a couple was sealed - you were having a baby. Sam, of course, was over the moon, wanting everyone special in his life to share in his excitement. Bringing new life into the world was a big responsibility, but one that he always knew he wanted to take on. Now it was happening, and it was happening with the love of his life.

Just like every other part of your relationship, your pregnancy journey was documented on the film in Sam’s camera. You swore he sometimes went through a whole roll of film in one day just taking pictures of you and your swollen belly while doing completely mundane, everyday tasks - though he would try to deny it. Every now and then he would get an idea for a few photos and have you pose naturally while he got his shots, but most photos were completely candid. He was respectful of your boundaries, though, and knew when to put the camera down and actually live in the moment that he wanted to capture forever.

From the moment she was born, your daughter heard the click of a camera shutter at least 6 times a day. As a baby, it became a sound that comforted her during those rough moments of nonstop tears. Sam would request one of his less expensive cameras that was devoid of any film and would take the lens off, carefully storing the fragile piece away from any curious hands. You would watch as he brought the old camera to lean against the hip your daughter wasn’t resting on, cranking the small lever on top of the body, and pressing the button next to it to release the shutter.

The fluttering click of the camera would immediately pull your daughter’s attention to the object in his hand without fail, making you stifle a giggle every time you witnessed it. Through her tear-soaked lashes she would watch with wide eyes as Sam repeated the same actions, pretending to take photos of things around the room in an effort to keep his baby’s attention on anything but the cause of her sadness.

As much as she loved the sounds of the camera, though, the same effect could never be repeated by you when Sam was traveling for shows or interviews and nothing you did was calming her down. In those moments the only thing you could do was call Sam and hold the phone to her ear as he sang softly or whispered how much he loved her until she fell asleep. A true daddy’s girl through and through.

-

There was a long break of touring before Sam had to leave again, both of you preparing for months to make sure that all three members of your little family were ready for Sam to be gone for a few weeks. Your baby was now a toddler, though Sam insisted on calling her his teenager because of how grown up she acted. Her curiosity mixed with Sam’s persistence to answer all questions (mostly) honestly and openly gave her a level of intelligence that both of you were extremely proud of.

Though when it was time for her to say bye-bye to her favorite person in the world, her endless tears caused a few of your own to run down your cheeks. Just when you began accepting the fact that she may simply be inconsolable until he got back home, Sam pulled out a small gift bag overflowing with soft pink tissue paper. Your little one sat down over Sam’s crossed legs as the three of you sat close on the carpeted floor of your living room. As she eagerly pulled the tissue paper from the bag and let it fall carelessly, Sam made sure to hold the bottom of the bag steady so she could reach inside and grab the contents.

A book of empty plastic sleeves cased in a smooth hard cover, a few packets of stickers, and lastly…her own camera.

Her eyes widened as she pulled the bright yellow disposable camera out of the bag with her little hands, looking at Sam as if she couldn’t believe what she was holding. Sam had always told her how special it was to be able to capture a moment and freeze it in time, just like the magic in the books he read to her before bed. And now she held that magic in her hands.

Sam placed the empty bag on the ground, wrapping his arms around her softly, head resting on her small shoulder, as she turned the camera in her hands and inspected each feature.

“I was thinking…” He started, taking the stickers and empty book out of your hands to hold in her lap as he spoke. “Maybe you can take some pictures of yours and mommy’s adventures while I’m away, hm? Just like how I take pictures when we’re all together.”

He leaned forward to gauge her reaction, studying her concentrated face as she continued to hold the camera like it was the most precious gift she’d ever received.

“Do you know how many pictures you can take with that camera?” He knew she didn’t, but gently pointed to the number printed on the front label, whispering “what number is that?” into her ear to help her figure it out.

“36!” She exclaimed, looking up at him with a grin for his approval.

“That’s right, buggy! And you know how long daddy’s going to be away?” He paused to give her a moment to think, not sure if he even told her how long he’d be gone in fear of upsetting her before this very moment. “We’ll be away from each other for 36 days.”

He kept his voice soft, almost as if he was afraid the moment would become too real if he spoke too loud.

“While I’m away with your uncles and you’re here with mommy I want you to take one picture every single day that I’m gone, okay? Do you think you can do that?” He kissed her cheek lightly, rocking the two of them side to side soothingly. Your daughter nodded her head sadly, another wave of tears forming in her eyes.

“But hey, I’ll tell you what…if you take a picture every day with your camera, I’ll take a picture every day with mine and when I get home we’ll get our pictures processed so that we can print them out and put them in your special book. Is that a deal? You think you can do that?”

Another kiss was placed to her cheek but this time he didn’t pull away, closing his eyes to prevent his own tears from rolling down his cheeks.

“Mommy will help you decorate your book with these stickers and then we’ll be able to see what both of us were doing on the same day.” He pulled away to show her the small photo album as she flipped through the empty pages curiously.

“I can do that, daddy,” she said after a few moments of silence. A small smile spread across your lips as he gave her a grin and began showing her how to wind up the camera, what button to press “to make it click,” and where to look to see what she was taking a photo of.

And just like that, a few minutes later it was time for Sam to say his goodbyes before heading out the door and leaving you with a very distraught toddler who started missing her daddy the moment he stepped out the door.

-

The morning after Sam left, you expected your little one to be miserable once she realized that her dad was really gone for a while. However, your brows furrowed slightly when you heard the patter of feet quickly running down the hallway and into the kitchen where you stood making breakfast for the two of you. Your daughter immediately wrapped her arms around your leg, looking up at you excitedly as your empty hand found its way to the back of her head to hold her close.

“Mommy when can I take my picture for daddy? We can’t forget.” She said matter-of-factly, making you look down to see her serious look. Her favorite tiny purse that she used for dress-up was draped over her arm, something inside weighing it down slightly. It was a sparkly, baby pink bag that was her favorite because her Uncle Josh got it for her when she became old enough to want to dress up and play pretend with him, however she never brought it with her to breakfast.

“Maybe when we go to the market later you can take a pretty picture for daddy, how does that sound?” You said, plating her breakfast and guiding her to the kitchen chair that had her booster seat attached to it. She nodded and handed you the bag before climbing into the chair and sitting in her seat so that she could reach the table, something she did whenever she had something in her hands but needed to get something else done like the little lady she was.

When you grasped the bag, though, you realized what was inside. The camera. Sammy always made sure that he ate breakfast with the two of you, citing that the day just didn’t feel right if it wasn’t started with his girls and so, even with him away, she brought him to breakfast. You felt a pang in your chest at the realization and gently placed the small purse containing her precious item onto the table next to her plate.

After a few bites, your daughter placed her small fork down and began digging through her bag to pull the camera out.

“I think I want daddy to see my breakfast. He probably misses it.” Her tiny voice, filled with so much confidence, made your eyes misty at the thought of her wanting to share her morning with Sam just like he had always made sure to do.

“I think he’d like that, buggy.” You give her a smile, watching as she refamiliarized herself with what buttons did what, just like Sam had shown her the day prior.

And just like that...click.

[lilacthebooklover]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

@snarky-wallflower Thanks for the tag! This was a lot of fun :)

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

67 currently, but I have deleted a few old ones lol

2. What’s your total word count?

Now, when I tell you I went overboard on this question, I went overboard. My private, unposted, solely-written-by-me fics' total word count is 227,868. My total word count for fics I've collaborated with @charismabee on is 477,549, and my total word count on AO3 is 389,530. However, quite a few of my AO3 fics are collabs with Red, so if you take away everything like Wilting Flowers and Owl House but Kindergarten, you're left with 225,235 words written solely by me. So, if you total up 225,235 + 227,868 + 477,549, then you get a grand total of 930,652 words! Then, of course, there's the whole matter of my old fics on regular Word and not Docs, which would probably add up to at least another 50,000 total considering we're talking about my ASOUE and DT17 phases, as well as all of the private Viva Pinata and miscellaneous musical stuff lurking in there, and we've got that weird writing app on my tablet that I used a lot a couple of years ago whenever my phone got confiscated, but I cannot be bothered to search through all of that right now. So, it mostly rounds up to around 1,000,000 words. Fanfiction may or may not be taking over my life. (Gosh I love maths <3)

3. What fandoms?

I've written mostly for the Kindergarten 1 and 2 fandom, my total fics on AO3 for it totaling 38. However, I have written a heck of a lot of OMORI as well, and dabble in the Owl House, DHMIS, a few webseries on YT as well as the Hatchetverse sometimes, too!

4. Top 5 fics by kudos

1. World's Okayest Uncle at 799. My latest WIP, written for the Hatchetfield Universe and based around the concept of Paul Matthews becoming the accidental uncle of every kid in town. Each chapter focuses on a different child (the three so far about Alice, Richie and Pete respectively), and once all of them have been sufficiently adopted, I've been considering adding some slice-of-life stuff, exploring the changed character dynamics, and looking into parts of canon that would change in the AU as well. 2. Hollow at 455, a Hunter-centric one-shot for the Owl House set immediately after season 2 finished. It was written in the post King's Tide craze of awesome Human Realm content, so it got quite a lot of hits at the time. It focuses on Hunter dealing with the aftermath of Belos seemingly having died, and himself having being thrown into a completely new, unfamiliar world as an unfamiliar God took over his own :) 3. Flapjacks at 279, another Hunter-centric piece because TOH fans can't get enough of him lol (I am very much one of those fans). I began writing it back when Thanks to Them was first released, then got the motivation to finish it after I saw Watching and Dreaming. It focuses on Hunter returning to the Human Realm after the Collector's defeat, as well as Camila's thoughts on being a parent of who knows' how many kids at this point. Hunter finally gets the chance to mourn, and finds out what a flapjack actually is. 4. Gravesfield Historical Society, at 275. In which it's only natural that the Boiling Isles' leading Human Expert decides to do some research, and Gus does his very best to ignore the images plaguing him from looking into Belos' mind. Vee looks for some closure, Hunter is very protective over his little siblings, and Gus just wants to have a fun day at the museum. Things... Don't go to plan. 5. Fading, at 215. Yet another TOH work (I was around when the fandom was active as heck), one of the shortest pieces I've ever written at only 722 words. It's from Flapjack's POV during that scene in Thanks for Them. You know the one. I made lots of people cry, and sacrificed the birb.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Of course!! I thoroughly appreciate every comment I receive; they really make my day. Being part of an active fandom with the Uncle Paul AU has sort of taken me by storm so my inbox is pretty clogged at the moment, but I promise that I have read and smiled over and will reply to the comments all of my lovely readers have left behind! It means so much that someone's not only taken the time to read what I've written, but that they liked it enough to leave a comment behind. Even just keysmashes or "<33"s are really lovely to see, so thank you to the wonderful commentors out there! You guys are awesome :D

6. What’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Ooh, now this is a tough one! Pretty much 95% of what I write is angst, with a good 70% being Hurt No Comfort. Still, I think the angstiest ending I've ever written would have to be that of either "Enough", in which 13 y/o me decided it was a good idea to follow the perspective of kindergartener Theodore Huxley as his brother pushed him to his death, or "Wilted", in which 13 y/o me decided it was a good idea to follow the perspective of suicidal kindergartener Lily as she gave up on finding the one person who cared about her and committed suicide as a result of being bullied. Wilted should probably win out considering the implications of what would happen to Billy as a result, and bc the ending subsequently led to Nugget's death too, but Ted's train of thought in Enough is so gosh darn sad.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Definitely "McDonald's". That's the fluffiest thing I've ever written, no doubt about it. Not a smidgen of angst, just a bunch of kids with colourful eyes and pointy ears walking into a fast food restaurant and discovering what chicken nuggets are. It literally ends with the promise of more cute adventures to come, so I'd say this one's a no-brainer loll

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I've only ever received hate once, on a little Gravity Falls AU I made entitled "Puppet Strings and Stage Curtains". I got some pretty nasty criticism on it and, as a kid who was still very anxious about posting stuff online, it really impacted me at the time. I'm still a little nervous even now to open up my inbox because I think I might have gotten another comment like that shfjdhhgkjh. I wound up abandoning the fic because my motivation was completely destroyed, and I couldn't even look at the thing without feeling ashamed. However, I haven't received any hate since, which is great! There's just no reason for it, really; if you like something, leaving a comment is wonderful, and it makes the author happy! If you don't, just don't read the fic. Leaving a hurtful comment isn't going to make anyone happy, and can be really damaging to writers. Shoutout to @weedkillercentral, who, without fail, leaves the bizzarest comments known to man on almost every work I post.

9. Do you write smut?

Nope! I am a ✨minor✨ (@snarky-wallflower dw I too am a nerdy prude, sex jokes are Ew). Still, I do enjoy writing romance from time to time! Some ships are straight-up hard not to enjoy reading/writing for :))

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Funny story, actually. I used to have Wattpad and, as much as I hated using it, a friend of mine liked the site so I used it to support her. I wound up posting some of my own stuff on there at one point. I will never be able to get over the fact that when you searched up my username online, the images used to show a picture of Sharkbomb Glomgold. How do I know this? Because small me got bored and looked up my username, and accidentally found a mirror site to Wattpad with some of my stuff on. It credited my username and everything, but I panicked about it because as far as I was aware, I had no control over whether I could take it down or what else could be put on it. So, I deleted everything on my account, and just like that, the fics on the mirror site vanished. So no, I've never had anything outright stolen-- at least, I hope I haven't-- but that was a Not Fun experience for little me a few years ago

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, I'm not famous enough for that lol. I did have an offer for someone to make a podfic of smth I wrote a few years ago, but they never got around to it. Still, if anyone ever wants to translate one of my fics, I'd love it if you did! Please just let me know and acknowledge me as the OG author; having a work translated sounds awesome.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes! Many thanks yet again to the amazing @charismabee, my dear co-author and the Kel shirt to my Maverick cosplay wig. The amount of hours I've spent writing with her is actually insane, as well as the times we've just messaged brainstorming AUs or having far too strong feelings about the show Elena of Avalor. We've done joint Whumptobers and Febuwhumps, fics that are combinations of the nichest stories and characters, a lot of redemption arcs for 5-year-olds... If you like my stuff, I thoroughly encourage you to go give her work a read at TheFearIsRed on AO3! :D

If anyone else ever wants to try collaborating on something, I think I'd be willing to give it a try! There are loads of talented authors on here, and co-writing is a lot of fun <3

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

Hmm... Well, Paulkins is an obvious one (remember that one post about "hatchetfield fans when normal man and his barista crush show up for 5 seconds"? yeah that's me). They have a level of mutual trust and understanding that's just really nice to explore, they both have issues galore but will support each other no matter what, half infected Paul content is golden and as an avid Uncle Paul truther, Emma finding out about his many children is just too funny a concept to me. They act like teenagers when they see each other, they're both down bad, she knows he doesn't like the Christmas advert jingles, he thinks she's funny,,, they're so <3

Another strong contender is Pearla (Penny x Carla), from the K2 fandom. @goldmoth82 was the one who got me into writing about them with their absolutely incredible stuff (art, fics, you name it!). They're just a traumatised android and a thieving arsonist, what more could you want?

Gold rush (Kel x Mikhael) is another of my favourites though, mostly because it's so funny. Mikhael has declared them rivals, and Kel could not care less. Mikhael challenges him to races, and Kel beats him easily. Mikhael insults him often, but Kel doesn't retaliate. Mikhael wants to be independent and special, to stand out from everyone else. Kel wants to be appreciated as more than just Hero's brother, to be liked and acknowledged as himself. Mikhael would vehemently deny his feelings until Daphne and Bowen tied them up together and forced him to confess. Rivals are just lovers in disguise, everyone. One-sided gold rush is even funnier, because they're technically one-sided rivals. Kel was Mikhael's homosexual awakening. Mikhael looks so dumb and flamboyant because he's trying to impress him. Mikhael claims he hates him and that his bright red face is from anger after Kel effortlessly beats him time and time again. I love them.

But I think out of everything, Wrightworth would have to take my top pic for favourite ship. Gay lawyers who would die for each other for the win.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

Ohh gosh. There are quite a few, but I'd probably say this year's Whumptober. My mental health went schwoop this October and I only got up to day 11 despite my plans. I still intend to finish the collab one with Red when I have time again (exams suck), and I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to get around to completing it. At least there's always next year! :"]

16. What are your writing strengths?

Definitely characterisation. I have a lot of fun getting into characters' heads and making studies on them in different scenes or just overall, and have a lot of fun bouncing different personalities off of each other. Once I know a character, I know the character, and writing their POV is as simple as breathing lol. I'd also say that I'm pretty good at tension building and breaking, as well as Hurt No Comfort (you need some good old angst, I'm your gal).

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Action scenes, for one, though I've been improving on them since I started the TOH Kindergarten AU! I'd also say that I struggle with slower-paced, filler sort of stuff. I might like to build up to an event, but chapters that don't have plot relevance just sort of stump me lol, even when they're necessary :)

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language?

I enjoy learning languages, and have been teaching myself Spanish for the past couple of years or so. However, writing them is a whole separate thing entirely. If I had a translator, I'd be all good! I just get a little worried when I write any language that isn't Spanish because google translate is unreliable as heck, so I typically tend to avoid it. Luckily, none of my fandoms really require it- but if that Franziska & Miles brainrot doesn't go away soon, I might be in a bit of a pickle trying to write German dialogue hshjhgfk

19. First fandom you wrote for?

A Series of Unfortunate Events (the Netflix show). It was the first fandom I got really, properly into, diving in headfirst at the age of about 12 and finding a lot of awesome content. The obsession I had with VFDBaudelaireFile13's Violet Snicket AU "Misery Loves Company" a few years ago was wild. My writing back then was very jolty, and I wrote in chapters that only lasted a few paragraphs with big, bold titles that often had at least two exclamation marks at the end. Still, ASOUE is one of my favourite shows to this day, and I don't regret a thing from my time binge-reading everything I could find for it (except that one lemons fic I accidentally came across when starved for content), nor any of the silly little unposted AUs I wrote on Word.

20. Top 3 fics I've ever written:

I puzzled over this question for ages, but found it impossible to choose just one! Ignore that I'm cheating a little here, and take three instead <3

1. An unposted collaborative work with @charismabee/TheFearIsRed that we called MPT. It was the first big fic I ever wrote, and it was probably what really got me into writing as a hobby. I got to spend time at random intervals writing about and whumping my favourite characters with someone I'm very close with, making up the plot as we went along. I remember coming up with the initial idea on a swingset, and spending hours colour-coding every segment of those 50,000 words based on each mention of a character as well as who wrote what. MPT is messy, and a tad repetitive in places, and while finished, I don't believe it's something I'll ever post. But it holds a special place in my heart, and it's a lot of fun looking back on my writing from a couple years ago compared to now 2. Not sure if this fully counts, but an untitled Omori WIP I've got going atm is definitely up there. It's Hero-centric with huge emphasis on his trauma, following the course of the year the events of the game occur in. I've had a blast writing his thoughts and time at college, and I'm geberally just really proud of it thus far. Hopefully, it'll be done by January in time for his birthday! :) 3. Now this one is a posted work– Magical Girls: Omori!, another collab with Red. We came up with the idea, binge-watched season one of Glitter Force on Netflix, and ran with the plot. We've planned out all of season 1 with ideas for season 2, incorporated a plethora of great characters, and been able to mess around with a fun fantasy high school full of our favourites. It's always wonderful to write, and I really like how it's been going!

Thank you again to @snarky-wallflower for the tag! You're amazing <3

As for people I know, I've tagged the vast majority of you already sjhkffg oops.

@charismabee @goldmoth82 @weltato @inprisonforsparkling hey there jpr the au mastermind, fanartist of the century, paul whump bestie and king of michie. you guys are some of my favourite writers out there, i'd love to see what you answer with for this (no pressure ofc!) <33

[augustinapril]

Jk jk!!! Can I request dad!steve teaching reader how to play baseball?? Incorporating the coach!steve that u were obsessed with a while back 🤭

this isn't the best and it makes me sad </3 I didn't know where to go with it. :((

wc: 615

warnings: clumsy!reader so mentions of bruises on readers legs due to said clumsiness, an probably inaccurate explanation of baseball

⋆ ☄︎. 

Sam, the sweetest little boy in the world, knew exactly how to compel you into doing what he wanted. You weren’t sure if he was conscious of how impossible it was to say no when he gave what you called his puppy eyes.

His incredible persuasiveness, whether intentional or not, is exactly what lead you here; converse dusted with dirt, Steve at your side, his voice in your ear as he informed you of what to do, and Sam sitting crisscrossed in the grass a few feet away.

You were starting to think this was a mistake, slightly embarrassed with yourself. You didn’t like the thought of messing up in front of either of them.

“You have to make sure you’re standing right,” Steve said, like it was something you knew how to do without anxiety nipping at your heals.

How do you know you’re standing right? 

“It’s a lot easier than it sounds, sweetheart. All you have to do is turn yourself, yeah like that, and make sure your legs aren’t super close together.” He fixed your stance, his hands warm against your hips as he directed you in the direction you needed to be. 

“So, I just hit the ball and make a run for it?” 

Steve chuckled, and you could feel yourself heat up. “I wish it was that simple. My job as a coach would be much easier than it is. There is more to it than that.”

“Well, what exactly is the point of the game?” You asked then cringed at how condescending you probably sounded, jumping to fix yourself. “Or what’s the goal of the game?"

Steve immediately jumped into an explanation, telling you about how both teams compete to get more points each run than the other.

There was a total of 9 innings, two halves to each one where the teams would switch places, and went through the bare-basic steps of what the teams do during those innings.

It was a little confusing, but you think you understood most of it. You hoped you did, at least.

“I’m not so sure i’d fair well in an actual game of baseball," you told him honestly. "I wouldn't be able to run to a base without tripping over my feet."  There was a few more reasons, but this was the main one. The bruises scattered on your legs would be evidence of it.

“You are a bit of a clutz,” Steve light heartedly teased. He’d witnessed some of the many times you’ve accidentally walked into the corners of tables, your bed frame, and the counters of your small kitchen.

He’s contemplated baby proofing your apartment to reduce the amount of bruises you get each month, and he’s jokingly brought it up to you a time or two, though he wasn’t sure he meant it entirely as a joke. 

"You're not supposed to agree with me," You feigned being offended. He just smiled and kissed your temple.

"You know I love your clumsiness."

Sam jumped in, "I don't. Y/n gets hurt too much."

You turned to Steve, patting his shoulder. "Seems like you're the only one who enjoys it. Do you have a thing for seeing me walk into corners?"

Steve shoots his head, denying your statement. "What? No of course not. It's just a little funny, is all."

You gasped. "I cant believe you'd enjoy me getting hurt so much," You turned to Sam, gesturing your head in Steve's direction. "You hearing this, Sam?"

"Daddy's weird."

You gave the biggest smile, nodding in agreement. "He's very weird."

"Hey! I'm trying to teach you baseball and this is how you treat me?" You only shrugged in response, making Steve scoff. "Unbelievable."

⋆ ☄︎. 

reblogs > likes <3

[uchiha-archives]

Hi! You said that he always talks about her to Obito and the poor boy doesn’t know what to do to make him stop. What does he talk about? Does he ever cry? Is there something of her he still has? How does he remember her?

Hello! Thank you for your ask.

I think the conversations would usually start with something Obito says half-heartedly without fully thinking it through. In the beginning he’d just go “No wonder you’re out here hiding while being all wrinkly. If you were a normal old geezer then maybe you’d be married.” Obito didn’t mean much by it, - he was grumpy and upset and battling his own demons. He didn’t realize the floodgates he would open by saying something like that, though. He’d learned exactly like this that the old geezer in front of him was Uchiha Madara, which means he was, in fact, married to Uchiha Y/N. The Uchiha Y/N. Obito knew about them, of course he did. But the words he had spoke to rashly gave him so much first hand information he didn’t even think possible to know.

Those type of careless phrases would immediately launch Madara into a yap session about his beloved wife. Obito was pretty sure he knew more about this woman he’d never met than even her own parents at this point. It’s not like Obito didn’t know, it’s just that now he knew her from this brand new lens, - this more intimate and private lens. If you’d ever asked him, Madara could probably spend the rest of his years talking about nothing but her until his body was six feet below the earth and he still wouldn’t have think he’d told you enough about her.

Later on, once Obito knew everything, he’d have a habit of accidentally thinking out loud and letting some mention of Y/N slip from his lips. Something like, “Oh my good, you’re so annoying, you old geezer. I know you’re Madara and all, but how did someone like Uchiha Y/N ever put up with you?” This would, unknowingly, launch another session.

Madara would call Obito a ‘brat,’ telling him he knew nothing of their love, that he couldn’t even begin to comprehend how deep their love ran, that it was beyond time and life. But this also caused Obito to crack, because how dare he? How dare this old grandpa insinuate that he didn’t know love? That he didn’t know sacrifice? He’s sitting here and moping with a wrinkly old man, all alone. He had a love, - he had Rin. Obito understood love during the war time because he was going through it, too. “You know what, you old geezer?! It’s actually worse for me, because Rin never loved me, and I’ll never marry her! I can’t even think of having her as mine anymore. At least you could hold Uchiha Y/N in your arms and call her yours!”

Some sort of realization snapped then in Madara, too. They were both mourning their beloveds, just for different reasons. But in their own twisted way, they learned to cope together. It was a lot of the reason that Obito went along with the plan, anyway, - because Madara understood the same type of loss as him. He understood that the woman he loved was too pure for this cruel world, that this cruel world which hurt their beloved didn’t deserve to keep standing.

Madara is a prideful man, always. But for his wife, he’d get on knees in front of the Senju brothers if he needed to. He was never ashamed to shed tears for Y/N in front anyone’s eyes, let alone Obito. If he ever spoke of her for too long, he’d cry. They’d be quiet tears, but Obito would have to lay awake at night as still as possible, pretending he couldn’t hear Madara calling her name in broken sobs in his dreams.

Y/N used to make items sometimes to pass the time, - she wanted a slower hobby as a counter for her usual Ninja missions that she worked with. She would make some jewelry sometimes, - handcrafted bracelets she’d give to Madara. He kept every single one. After her passing he definitely snuck into the village and into their home, - he’d go quietly before they cleared everything. He’d take the oils she rubbed on her skin, the hair oils she used and always nagged him to use, and he’d take some of her Kimonos. He kept all these items from her in a chest, - he definitely threatens Obito with torture should he ever touch or open it.

He’s very careful with what he’s got left of you, - he won’t always wear or use these items because he’s afraid of them breaking or getting damaged, but he’ll use them frequently enough. If he missed your scent, he’s rubbing some of the oils into his skin or combing it into his hair. If he misses the feel of you he’ll lay your Kimono down before lying on top of it, - his own way of trying to pretend he’s back in the compound, safe with you in your shared home, in your shared bed, his head on your chest and listening to your heartbeat and you rub circles into his back. Sometimes he’ll take your bracelets and wear, just to feel like it’s you holding his hand again, grounding him and keeping him steady on his feet when he can’t even think straight.

Obito doesn’t need to see much, really, before he can tell Madara thinks of you as some kind of goddess. ‘And maybe you were,’ he thinks. ‘Because you’d definitely have to be a goddess to bring a man like Madara to this pathetic state of desperation and grief.’ It was truly sad to see a man as strong as Uchiha Madara be so broken and crumpled.

[valorant-drabbles]

Hi! can i request head-cannons with female valorant agent’s in a soulmate au?

Hello, I'm more than happy to deliver some headcanons!

Valorant Female Agents

Soulmate AU

Sage [Colourblind]:

Despite seeing the world through a monochromatic lens, Sage always managed to find the beauty in everything surrounding her. Although she seemed unbothered by the lack of colour in her life, she did find herself yearning for the one to which her soul was bound. Not only do she could see the vast shades of colours that the world had to offer, but so she could be united with her other half. She was a firm believer in soulmates, and knew her’s would be delivered to her one day.

When the day does come, it’s unexpected, and comes in the form of a new agent. But it doesn’t happen immediately. After all, it’s rather rude to randomly try and touch somebody out of the blue, even if it was to find her soulmate. So she always treated the agents around her with the utmost respect for their boundaries. After all, some people were afraid to see colour. Others were scared their soulmate was working within the Protocol, their lives constantly in danger.

And though the risk of death is always part of the job, it never scared Sage. Somehow she just knew her soulmate was careful, and wouldn’t fall before their proper time.

Anyways. The day she sees colour, the first thing she sees is the beautiful colour of her partner’s eyes. She was simply attending to a wound they’d gotten during training; nothing major. Just a gash. For the first time, her ever-still hands slipped and her finger gently grazed the other agent’s arm.

Instinctively, her eyes shot up to meet with the agents, about to apologize profusely- only to be met with… absolutely stunning colours. Everywhere. But the most beautiful colours were those worn by her beloved.

After that, everything felt perfect to Sage. Sure, she could be a tad overprotective of her love, but it was to be expected, being soulmates with the medic of the team.

She would make sure every date was in beautiful locations full of colour. A field of flowers for a picnic, or even an evening watching fireworks. She makes the most of their shared newfound vision, and treasures it. Even if she went colourblind again someday, she wouldn’t be disappointed. She’d seen the colours the world had to offer- and she’d always remember how gorgeous her beloved’s palette always was.

Skye [Hanahaki Disease]:

She never imagined she’d get caught in such a situation. Where she was coughing up flower petals, of which made no sense to her. Sure, she was the ‘nature girl’, but in no way were her powers producing flora from her throat!

In a way, her Hanahaki disease is actually a result of her anxiety over her intense romantic feelings towards her crush. She usually didn’t care much for relationships in such a sense… moreso in a way that she didn’t pursue them. It wasn’t something she needed in order to be happy.

At least that’s what she thought. But then, somebody… truly fascinating joined Valorant’s Protocol. And she was stricken with affection, as corny as it sounded. And at first, she’d resent the feelings. Thinking they were a distraction, or just a weird chemical imbalance making her not think straight.

It would become more apparently over time that it was, in fact, romantic interest. And the interest would grow by the day.

By the first month is when she started coughing up flower petals, colours oddly reminiscent of her crush. And despite consulting with Sage regarding her symptoms, they found no way to stop it. The best she could do is keep it hidden from the other agents as best she could.

But a day would come where she wasn’t careful enough. And she’d cough up petals right in front of the one person she dreaded seeing her in such a state.

Luckily, the agent was familiar with the disease Skye had unknowingly given herself. They helped explain the disease to her, and emphasized that expressing her feelings would help the petals fade… assuming the other person felt the same. If not, well… heartache would also be a good cure. Though not ideal.

That would be the moment Skye would cave. She was sick of flower petals everywhere, and would rather stop the pain. Even if it meant heartbreak. So in the moment, she’d confess her feelings.

Her soulmate would be incredibly surprised… yet relieved, as they pulled out some petals from their back pocket, colours matching those of Skye’s aesthetic.

That day would be the last day either of them coughed up any petals.

Skye did her best to make up for lost time, taking her soulmate out on walks along nice nature trails, camping in the wilderness… and perhaps once the trauma of the flower petals subsided, someplace nice and floral.

Although she wouldn’t spoil her soulmate too much, she’d carve little animals out of wood for them, eventually building a collection that laid on their windowsill within their bedroom.

And of course, fresh flora every day.

Astra [Tattoos]:

She always knew she would find her soulmate; writing in the stars never lie, she’d claim, whenever one of her relationships ended. After all, what is a soulmate but a best friend, who would always be by your side, no matter what? The fact she hadn’t been romantically with anybody who fit that bill simply meant she hadn’t found her soulmate. Simple as that.

And when she found them, she was overjoyed, truly. They both had q similar constellation tattoo on their wrists, and when the two held hands, the tattoos lined up to form a heart. Astra is obsessed with seeing the full heart, so is constantly holding hands with her soulmate as often as possible.

She is a little overbearing at first, honestly. The excitement of this moment makes her a little suffocating within the first two weeks. But one conversation about boundaries later, and she’s much more reigned in. But this doesn’t mean she still won’t spoil her soulmate. Baked goods, flowers, plushies, movies… anything her soulmate wants? They shall have. Immediately. She keeps a list of all the things they enjoy when mentioned in passing. She never wants to forget a potential gift.

And you bet she’d make a huge deal out of any milestone. A small celebration every month they’re together, until the 1 year mark. Birthday party with the rest of the HQ, and a more private and intimate anniversary celebration. Truly, she couldn’t imagine herself any happier.

Fade [Lies]:

Everybody lies. That’s just obvious. But she just wished her lies weren’t constantly being broadcasted to the one person who’d judge her severely for it.

With each lie that left her lips, it would find itself scrawled across her soulmate’s arm, and vice versa. Though her soulmate rarely lied, it seemed, as she hardly found writing on her own arm. And whenever she did, it was hardly anything worth scoffing at. Nor was it anything she’d be able to decipher as a clue to their identity.

Fade becomes much quieter when she is in a position where she has to lie about Valorant. Mentioning military secrets in a lie for some poor bystander to come across, and potentially be put in danger by… how was she expected to get information in these situations? When she might be putting her future lover at risk?

As if Fade didn’t already lack enough sleep, she was often restless, staring at the ceiling. Constantly thinking of ways to reword certain lies to be more cryptic, if only for the sake of her partner. She’d write them down in a journal, and memorize them best she could.

Maybe it ended up being rather useless in the end. After all, her soulmate ended up joining the team after a year of herself joining.

Suffice to say, it was a huge relief. Not only that her soulmate was alive, well, and… loved her? But also that she didn’t have to make stupid half-lies and give herself a headache with careful wording.

Now she could tell Cypher she hated his cooking without risk of her soulmate finding her heartless. Moroccan food was great, she just… had too much pride to praise the bastard.

Thankfully for Fade, she found herself actually sleeping much better than she had in over a decade. Her soulmate’s presence bringing a warmth to her, and a calming energy to her heart and mind.

Although she wasn’t much of a romantic, Fade would make an effort for her partner. Bringing them flowers, listening to music, spending simple time together. She often refers to her partner as her ‘dream catcher’, as she is often without nightmares when sleeping by their side, and has pleasant dreams once in awhile as a result.

Neon [Timer]:

Every timer is different. And that’s what terrified Neon. The count-down on her wrist that decreased each second of the day. The time she’d been watching since it appeared years ago

Some timers run out when two soulmates finally unite. It’s a waiting game, and that’s all.

But for some people, when their timer run out… it’s because their soulmate has passed.

God, Neon’s heart ached every time she thought of the possibility. The chance that her timer was counting down the seconds until her soulmate died… and she hadn’t met them yet, so there was no telling which it’d be.

Day by day, her days usually went by slowly. Since she was always running about, trying to get things done as fast as possible- if not only for her own fun. But some days went by even slower when she happened to look at her timer too long.

Impatient hardly seemed like the appropriate word to describe her. She was desperate. She needed to know if her soulmate was going to be okay. Would she be able to save them? Or would they be doomed to die before she meets them?!..

Or maybe everything will be normal. They meet one day, and the timer stops.

But knowing Neon’s own life, she doubted it would be so simple.

And yet, how overjoyed she was the day she did find her soulmate. Safe and sound, and just as the timer had run out. The numbers fading from her wrist, soon replaced with the date of that day. The day they united. Forever ingrained on her and her partner’s wrists.

With the pressure of a constant timer gone from her life, Neon finally felt like she could take life slow. And oddly enough… she wanted to take it slow, despite her speed and energy. Each moment she had with her soulmate, she cherished. As if there was a chance it wouldn’t last.

She would make the absolute most of her time with them. Neon would set up dates frequently, making sure they were creative and each different from the last. Something memorable.

She’s utterly in love with her partner, and would jump up in a second to fetch them something if they needed it. Without a second thought, nor groan (unless she was just woken up).

For their 3rd Year Anniversary, Neon gifts her partner a scrapbook. Filled with pictures she’d taken of them on dates, on missions, in passing… along with some sweet messages, and reciting fun missions they’d accomplished by each other’s side.

She makes it a tri-annual anniversary gift, so every three years they’d have a large book of memories to look back on.

And it gives her more comfort in knowing she has all the time in the world with her soulmate.

Deadlock [Matching Injuries]:

Since the day she lost her arm, Deadlock was convinced her soulmate would hate her. After all, who would want to spend the rest of their life with the same person who’s the reason you lost your arm? The thought that she’d put her partner through such pain due to a mission gone awry… It was too much to bear. It was at that point she gave up looking for her soulmate, knowing there was no happiness meant for them down that path. The path she’d already destroyed with her recklessness.

And yet… she found them anyways. Though they didn’t have any augmented replacement for their arm, and despite the pain Deadlock thought they’d always be in…

Her soulmate was always smiling. The loss of their arm not a hindrance, nor a common thought on their mind. The only thing that seemed to matter to them was Deadlock… having found her. To be united after so long.

Deadlock was… shocked to say the least. Knowing her soulmate held no resentment towards her for the loss of their arm. But this didn’t mean she was without guilt. After speaking with Killjoy and Chamber, she convinced the two agents to aid her in her newest project; creating an arm suitable for her soulmate. It wouldn’t be fit for combat like her own, unless her soulmate wanted such a thing. After all, having a weapon glued to their body might not be desirable.

It takes Deadlock about two months before she stops apologizing consistently to her soulmate. Two months of counselling with Sage about her guilt, and two months of loving reassurance from her beloved. Though she becomes an unstoppable force when her soulmate is in danger, and is willing to do near anything to protect them. They become her new reason to fight.

In hopes that after the war ends, that perhaps she can live a quiet, safe life with her soulmate.

———————————

Author’s Note

I hit a bit of a rough patch while writing this and struggled to find inspiration to continue- so I’m posting this as it is! If people really want the other half of the female agents, I’ll do it!

[transman-badass]

Okay here's what I've got for this Southern Gothic idea

@cljordan-imperium @words-after-midnight @

this is going to be one of my darker stories so under the cut it goes.

The story involves a transman historian returning to the town one of his ancestors founded in Alabama. It's not for pleasure - he has no fond feelings towards the South - but rather he's following up on a theory of his. During the Civil War and Reconstruction period there was a female abolitionist who wrote under the name Mary Tuesday. She was a widow, or spinster, in her 30s, who dedicated her life to the cause, and to charity, and was extremely well-liked by those around her. As the story goes, Tuesday went down to Alabama after the Civil War to help with Reconstruction efforts, but her group was attacked by ex-confederate bandits. The supplies were stolen, the men were killed, and Tuesday taken, along with any other women, presumably to a brutal end. But the historian has a theory, one that's gaining popularity among his peers - Mary Tuesday might have been an early transman, living a double life as a man unknown to most. And the protagonist suspects Tuesday might have survived and escaped the attack.

So down the protagonist goes to the south, to face off the ghosts of the past - his own included. Most people don't recognize him, he transitioned after he left. The class divide, between his lower middle class/working poor upbringing and the world of the upper middle and higher, is immediately on display. He's allowed to stay in a former plantation outside of the city, which he has mixed feelings about. The plantation was the home of the man who legend says led the attack against Tuesday, a man so infamously cruel, even years later, when the town put up statues of quote unquote 'southern heroes', they refused to honor him. They say the only person he loved was his wife Dolly.

And sure, they say the plantation is haunted. Sure the town has some spooky tales, most well known to the protagonist being the local boogeyman figure [that I haven't named yet]. But the ghosts they say still walk the streets and houses turn out to be very different from the ghosts the protagonists actually encounters.

This story is partially a vent. I've lived in the south my whole life. I'm not a fan. All the bad things are true, and all the good things seem locked behind a paywall. And the bigotry is getting worse, at least, that's how it feels in this small town I live in. It's all Jesus, no love. Though I will say, I have never, in all my 30+ years, heard 'bless your heart' used as an insult. Last time I heard it, the full sentence was 'bless her heart, she's so deaf she can't understand me on the phone', said with a smile and small shake of the head.

Another thing that inspired this story was how many damn stories written before the millennium romanticized the south and the confederacy. I was looking through books that are probably long out of print and just boggling at them. The past really is a foreign country.

Other inspirations include Ghostland - highly recommend that book.

I aim to have a reasonably diverse cast, just like the south I've known my whole life. Don't plan to have any romance right now. There isn't really an external goal here. I don't know who's gonna read this, and when I first thought of the idea, I joked that I'd be cancelled for it. I'm writing this story for me, I think, more than some of the rest I've worked on. But if you like this idea, you're welcome to join me.