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msschemmenti · 1 year ago

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The Bodyguard

Melissa Schemmenti x Reader

summary : reader hasn't mastered the art of self-care yet and melissa helps.

a/n: been sitting with this for a bit, hoping to post more now that i'm kinda getting my adult life together :) i also could not tell you what happened at the end of this...

“Good Morning beautiful educators! Are we ready to change some lives?” Janine called, bounding into the teacher’s lounge. All eyes rolled and a collective sigh fell over the room. Despite the less than enthusiastic response, Janine’s smile remained in place as she shoved her lunch in the refrigerator and sat next to Jacob.

“What’s got you so chipper this morning?” Melissa spoke, eyeing the younger woman over the cat-eye reading glasses she had perched on her nose.

“I just woke up well-rested. With the new schedule I’ve created for myself I’ve had loads more time to get things done. I’m worrying less and feeling my best.” Janine proudly spoke, causing the older women in the room to observe her thoughtfully.

“That’s great Janine. You have seemed much more confident and that’s great to see.” Barbara smiled.

“Good for you Kid. That’s often the hardest part of teaching in a school like this. It’s hard to take time for yourself.” Melissa smiles over her reading glasses, leveling the younger woman with a congratulatory nod. Janine beamed at the camera over the older woman's shoulder and turned to Jacob to listen to his spiel for the morning. As everyone went back to their own morning routines, Y/n slumped into the room heading straight for the coffee machine. The cameras followed her as she pulled a mug from her bag and filled it to the brim with the bitter liquid gold. As soon as she added the sugar and creamer she needed she gazed at her watch gauging how much time she had before school officially started. With twenty minutes to spare she trudged over to the couch and sighed as she slouched into the chair pulling out some homework she wasn’t able to finish before bed. With the young woman’s attention focused on her work and coffee, she missed the green eyes that seemed to track her as closely as the camera did. Melissa watched as the fifth grade teacher busied herself with stacks of paper and a book. It didn’t look to be the work of her students, so Melissa’s curiosity peaked. She watched as the younger woman wedged a highlighter between her teeth and flipped through pages of tiny text. Her eyes moved across the screen frantically as if trying to memorize as much of the information as possible in the next 20 minutes. She didn’t realize how long she’d been watching until she felt Barb bump her shoulder subtly. Melissa’s eyes landed on Barbara and was instantly met with a soft smirk lining her friend’s lips.

“Don’t look at me like that.” Melissa grumbled under her breath, peeking back over to the couch to see if the younger woman had relaxed a bit but she seemed to only have tensed more.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Barbara smirked allowing her eyes to fall to the younger woman as well. “It seems someone hasn’t mastered the ‘taking care of yourself’ part of all of this.”

“What’s she working on anyway? It doesn’t look like anything the kids would be working on. I know she’s upstairs but they’d hardly be reading anything that long.” Melissa asked, finally turning back to Barb.

“I’m not sure, but you know she’s still in school so that could definitely be some homework of her own.” Barb shrugged.

“She’s still in school? What do you mean?” Melissa asked.

“She’s getting her masters. Which you’d know if you weren’t always being so standoffish. She does all her classes and coursework after we get off.”

“I am not standoffish,” Melissa huffed indignantly, “I just don’t like new people.”

“Mmhm, I don’t think that’s the case with one though.” Barbara grinned as she watched the red-head’s cheeks heat almost instantly at being called out.

“Oh shut up.” Melissa grumbled as the bell rang for the school day to finally start. She rose from her seat pointedly ignoring Barbara’s chuckle behind her as they made their way to their classrooms.

“Alright, who has an answer they’d like to share?” Y/n asked from her place in the front of the classroom. Lunch was still about 10 minutes away but she wanted to at least finish the rest of the worksheet her students had been working on before sending them off. She let her eyes roam over the classroom patiently but as she saw no hands raise she knew she’d need to entice them a bit. “I know it’s hard you guys, but if we finish the last two problems I’ll let you head to lunch earlier.”

She waited to see if anyone would take the bait and it seemed to work when Mariah raised her hand from the middle of the room. “Alright Mariah, what ya got for me?”

“4 over 12.” She spoke timidly.

“Uh Huh, and what’s 4 over 12 simplified?” Y/n prompted with a smile. Mariah seemed to be working through it but seemed a bit overwhelmed so Y/n opened it up to the rest of the class. “Anyone? What number can we divide both 4 and 12 by?”

“2.” Jamal called from the back row.

“Yep, but is there a bigger number we could also use?” Y/n asked with a smile glad the students seemed to be getting closer and closer to the right answer.

“Oh! I know.” Jasmine’s hand shot up from the front.

“Alright Jasmine, what number are you thinking?”

“4.”

“Excellent! That’s exactly right. And if we divide them by 4, 4 over 12 becomes?”

“1 over 3!” Everyone answered.

“Very good everyone. Let’s do the last one together and then we can head off.” Y/n smiled, heading to the white board and grabbing a marker.

Melissa really isn’t sure how she found herself in the fifth grade hall. She’d dropped her kids to recess and somehow she’d found herself peeking through the glass window in the door of Y/n’s classroom. She watched as she patiently guided the students through the fractions. She could tell the students really appreciated the atmosphere she’d created in the classroom. Even when someone wasn’t right, there was nothing but support flowing through the space and Melissa had no choice but to admire the work she’d done to capture that. Realizing if anyone saw her up there she’d have no explanation for her behavior, she quickly turned on her heels to head back toward her classroom with the hopes of not being caught. In her descent of the stairs, she missed the camera man down the hall collecting footage.

Melissa hurried into the teacher’s lounge hoping to grab a snack before she needed to pick her students up from their art class. She pushed forcefully on the door and headed for the vending machine, letting the door swing behind her with little care. As the door clanged against the doorframe she heard the startled gasp within the room. She turned quickly with her fist up and ready to attack whoever was in the room. She only relaxed when she saw Y/n sat on the couch with her hand over her chest and wide eyes. There was a book in her lap and highlighter poking out of her hair. Melissa figured she was doing homework again but as she looked closer, she could see the grooved pattern of the couch fabric on the younger woman’s cheek.

“Oh Melissa,” The younger woman sighed as she leaned back into the couch as she started to calm down.

“Sorry Hon. Did I wake ya?” Melissa said, coming to lean on the back of the chair that was closest to the couch.

“It's probably for the best. That was a complete accident.” Y/n shook her head a bit and pushed her hands down her face in an effort to liven up a bit.

“Must not be too interesting, if it’s putting you to sleep.” Melissa commented, nodding her head toward the book still in Y/n’s lap.

“Unfortunately it is not. It doesn’t exactly help that I’m already sleep deprived. A recipe for a great nap.” Y/n chuckled lightly before turning her eyes to her watch. “Looks like it’s time for me to pick my kids up.” As Y/n gathered her things, Melissa watched and hummed in agreement. Once Y/n was done and her eyes met Melissa’s the older woman could see the exhaustion setting back in place. “See you around Melissa.”

Y/n moved to walk past Melissa to the door, but Melissa hand wrapped around her forearm keeping her in front of her. “Hey, make sure you get some rest hon. We can’t have you collapsing on us like Janine.” Melissa squeezed her arm in emphasis and released her arm when she saw the younger woman nod in understanding.

From then Melissa found herself checking in with Y/n more often. She’d shed her ‘standoffish’ behavior and had become one of the teachers Y/n talked to the most. She never spent a lot of time with anyone on the elementary level teaching staff besides Barb, but now she seemed to be running into Melissa more and more. She’d be in the teacher lounge poured over a textbook or a stack of spelling tests and Melissa would appear with a hot mug of coffee. She’d gradually started bringing the younger woman lunch everyday of the week. It had started on a day about two weeks after Y/n had been caught napping on the couch. The fifth grade teacher had waltzed into the room carrying her laptop and textbook and that seemed to be it. It only took Melissa about 5 seconds of seeing her work on homework before she cleared her throat with a raised eyebrow. She, Y/n, and Barb were the only ones in the lounge so far so Y/n was quick to turn her attention to the older women’s table.

“Oh hi.” Y/n said, meeting Melissa’s eyes. Assuming the redhead was upset she hadn’t greeted them when she arrived, she looked back at her work.

“Hello but that’s not what I wanted. Where is your lunch?” Melissa asked, eyeing the younger woman intently.

“Oh I forgot it. I’m just gonna grab a snack after work to tide me over through class tonight.” Y/n shrugged, lifting the textbook from her lap.

“You mean after school?” Barb cut in looking at the younger woman skeptically.

“Mmhmm. No need to worry, I’ve done it loads of times before. I forget my lunch a lot more than I care to admit.”

“Oh sweetheart, well that’s not healthy.” Barb said, shaking her head disapprovingly.

“I know, I know. I try not to but I think I’ve done it so often that I hardly notice anyway.”

“Well that’s not happening anymore, get over here.” Melissa said, pulling out the chair next to her. Y/n looked at the older woman in confusion, not fully understanding what was happening. She didn’t move but watched as the older woman pulled a fork from one of the drawers and wedged it into the tupperware dish she’d been eating. When her eyes landed on Y/n’s face she looked at her expectantly. When the older woman didn’t say anything, Y/n grabbed her books and moved over to the older women’s table and sat in the seat obediently. With Y/n situated, Melissa slid the food in front of her and patted Y/n’s back, “Now eat.”

Y/n went to protest but before she could even speak there was a fork-full of pasta in her mouth. Her eyes widened in shock initially but melted shut when the food hit her taste buds. “Oh this is so good.” At the praise Melissa smirked and went back to scrolling on her phone as Barbara laughed with a smile. From then on Melissa made it a point to pack a bit more food for lunch. And if Barbara asked about it she simply shrugged citing her large portion sized cooking as the reason. As Y/n and Melissa became closer, it seemed easier for the younger woman to take care of herself. With someone checking on her as often as Melissa had taken to, it became second nature.

One day after a particularly demanding week of homework and tests, Melissa found Y/n sprawled out on the teachers lounge’s couch once again. It was a very similar scene to the first time but unlike last time, when the door closed Y/n didn’t start awake. If anything, she burrowed further into the couch and threw her arm over her eyes. Melissa paused briefly watching the younger woman sleep and sighed. She only looked at Y/n for a few more seconds before making her mind up. She sat her things at her table and pulled her jacket off of her arms. She walked over draping it across the younger teacher and then made her way to her table. She positioned her chair toward the door and watched the door. It wasn’t long before the door swung open revealing Janine ready to talk about God knows what, but as soon as her eyes met Melissa’s she closed her mouth. The older woman sent a menacing glare her way before placing her finger up to her lips. Janine, though confused, tip-toed further into the room and took a seat at one of the other tables in the room. By the time everyone was in the room, Melissa had quietly declared that the teacher’s lounge was experiencing a quiet lunch and with her reputation no one questioned her.

The bell rang signaling the end of lunch and that seemed to be the only thing to rouse Y/n from her sleep. By this point everyone had made their way to their own classrooms and the only two people remaining were Melissa and Y/n. The younger woman groaned as she opened one of her eyes to scan the room. She paused briefly as her senses were overwhelmed with a very familiar fragrance. She looked down seeing the familiar leather jacket draped over her shoulders and felt her cheeks heat at being caught asleep again. Before she could say anything Melissa spoke leaning against the back of the chair next to the couch.

“Good morning hon,” She spoke, leveling Y/n with a soft look of concern. “I thought we talked about you taking care of yourself?”

“We did, I’ve just been cranking out a lot of papers this week. Had an extra late night last night trying to finish one before the weekend.” Y/n explained placing her feet on the floor and facing the older woman.

“Well when is it due?” Melissa asked moving to sit on the arm of the chair.

“Not until Sunday night, but I use my weekends to plan for the week here and catch up on grading.” Y/n explained.

“And when do you take time for yourself?” Melissa prompted.

“When I sleep it’s just me and my dreams. So I count those few hours every night as self-care.”

“Haha, very funny hon. You know that actually does not count right? You just slept through lunch. I think we need to think of some new ways to make sure you’re getting things done. Ways don’t include skipping meals and hours of sleep.”

“I slept through lunch? I slept through Janine’s latest life update and Jacob’s flailing? I really must be tired.” Y/n said, shaking her head before moving to rise from the couch. “And I gotta go get my kids for recess.”

“Don’t worry about that right now. I told Jacob to take them with his kids. And as much as I agree that you are extremely tired, the teacher’s lounge was having a silent lunch today. But I don’t think we can do that every day so we’re gonna have to figure something else out.”

“Jacob is taking my kids to recess?” Y/n asked, looking at the redhead in disbelief. Before Melissa could confirm, Y/n seemed to pick up on something else she said. “Wait, did you just say silent lunch?”

Melissa shook her head in amusement at the fifth grade teacher, “Yes to both. And before you ask how? Think about who you’re talking to.”

Y/n nodded with red cheeks realizing the redhead had done quite a bit for her during her slumber. “Thanks.” She finally mustered up the courage to say.

“You’re welcome, I’m glad to help. But I’d be even happier if you’d meet me halfway with this.”

Y/n nodded in understanding, “I’m sorry, I’ve always just been like this and I overestimate how much I can actually handle. I didn’t realize anyone would care so much.”

“Well I do. Listen, how about we find sometime to get you set up with a healthier schedule? I’ll even make you dinner and everything.” Melissa suggested hopefully. “I’d really like that. I have to be honest, I didn’t take you for the mentor type of the group.” Y/n said with a shrug unconsciously pulling the older woman’s leather jacket closer to her chest.

“Oh I’m not. That’s definitely more of a Barb thing, but I have my moments. And my reasons.” Melissa smiled softly at Y/n.

“Well I appreciate it and I won’t take your help for granted.”

“Good girl. Now come on, recess is almost over.”

Y/n’s cheeks heated at the older woman’s words before she nodded and stood to walk out of the door with the woman. Melissa collected her things from the table and grabbed a tupperware container from the fridge and met Y/n at the door. She pushed the food into her hands as she’d been doing for the last couple of weeks and moved to head out of the door. Just as they were about to cross the threshold of the breakroom she extended the jacket toward the woman. “Oh, probably need this back. Thanks.”

“No problem hon, don’t leave before seeing me. We can find a night sometime soon. Alright?”

“Yes ma’am.” Y/n saluted before both women parted ways.

“Knock knock. You ready to go?” Barb asked as she leaned against the door frame of Melissa’s classroom.

“You can go on without me, I’m waiting on Y/n. We’ve gotta figure out when she’s free.” Melissa said casually turning in her desk chair to face her best friend.

“You finally ask her out?” Barb asked with a smirk causing Melissa’s cheeks to heat.

“What? No? What are you talking about? I’m just gonna help her figure out how to take care of herself a bit better.” Melissa sputtered.

“Right because you’re so good at that yourself.” Barb rolled her eyes.

“Hey! I’m pretty good. And you do the same thing with Janine.” Melissa defended.

“Yes, but I don’t want to take Janine to bed. We are not the same Melissa.”

“Oh would you get out of here before she hears you!”

“You didn’t deny it!” Barbara grinned.

“Bye Barb.” Melissa groaned. Barbara smiled in victory before sending a wink over to her friend and leaving the building.

#msschemmenti #lisa ann walter x reader #abbott elementary x reader #lisa ann walter #melissa schemmenti x reader

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raven-at-the-writing-desk · 4 months ago

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I did it! It turned out delicious and I managed to get really good pictures with my Leona merch, the meat cake and suculenta, I’m so happy that it all went well! While I was singing happy birthday to him I could clearly hear Leona’s voice in my head complaining that I’m too loud haha. The Leona’s birthday saga comes to an end! (It had enough plot to become a twisted event), and his new card looks stunning, I had a heart attack

The saga: [ Cake I / Cake II / Flowers / Baking ]

Yaaay, glad it went well! I’m sure he at least appreciated the meat (he had to sit through the singing before he could dig in www).

Related, here’s a picture from my own L*ona birthday celebration:

The buns have shiitake mushrooms (ie Fake/Substitute Meat) and cucumbers (a vegetable… which L*ona hates) 😂 And that acrylic is the only solo official L*ona merch I own (shoutout to the friend who gifted it to me against my will 💀). Sorry to do this to you, but I care about your health, L*ona-san…

And now, let’s talk about the Groovy!

I already shared my general thoughts on his Platinum Jacket Groovy in this post, but I can expand! It’s the kind of illustration I think Leona fans would like b-but I wouldn’t know, because I’m NOT one 😤. He’s giving off a very confident air, with his arms crossed accentuating his slim waist and the positioning of his hair and tail implying he is aggressively turning as he’s sneering at his target. It has this… indescribable elegance to it. There is no big sweeping, grand movement or flashy pose. Just a natural lazy charm to how he holds himself, a subtlety that’s difficult to replicate.

I think the best part is definitely his eyes. They always have this glow-in-the-dark quality about them that really shines when paired with dim lighting like what is shown in the museum. You’ll notice that the eyes also are not entirely symmetrical; the right is slightly more narrowed and that adds to his unhinged look.

… And I’m sure some of y’all are also appreciating the teeth (how Trey of you). It’s rare to see Leona smile this wide in cards. He’s usually smirking and not baring his fangs like he is here. In that sense, this is a novel look for him.

The composition implies Leona is directing his ire at the happy family in the painting, but my brain went somewhere completely different and thought he was looking at someone on the floor????? Like, at his feet???? Like bowing or kneeling to him, begging for mercy or something 😭 SORRy, IDk WHY i DEFAuLTED TO THAT…

But yeah!! Good food for Leona stans ^^

#twisted wonderland #twst #Leona Kingscholar #disney twisted wonderland #disney twst #twst merch #twisted wonderland merch #notes from the writing raven #Leona platinum jacket spoilers #Trey Clover #NOT L*ONA ROT

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dead-lights · 3 months ago

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trai-lore!

because ya know. trailers. with lore.

i'll see myself out

but! before i go - I went and compiled all of the Vampires trailers I could find! I wasn't familiar with all of the shorts and I'm not 100% sure I found them all. There are a lot of contradictions, but aside from the gameplay trailer they can mostly be stitched together.

Also, I recognize I'm trying to wring blood from a stone, reading into things that EA never intended, but ya know. That's the point of exploring lore!

youtube

this is mostly validated by werewolves - Lily's dialogue confirms that Caleb was turned by Miss Hell, and the 7 years unlucky mirror confirms that Vlad ambushed her while she was brushing her teeth.

It looks like the bar Miss Hell attacks Caleb in is supposed to be in Forgotten Hollow. There are plenty of reasons he could've been there, but to me that implies that Lilith turned first, and he was there because that's where she hangs out now.

It looks like you're supposed to be able to see the normie parts of Forgotten Hollow from that cliff with the bench, rather than just more of the mountain. There's definitely supposed to be more than just those 5 lots.

I'm not sure if the person behind Miss Hell in the bar is anyone specific? they feel slightly familiar but I might be thinking of Leila Illes from island living, which came out afterwards.

It's unclear how Caleb ended up in the bathroom or whether he asked to turn - the animation is the same either way. In game, I've had a lot of success with both bat-form bathroom ambushes and the good ol' "ask for woohoo and then cancel the order as soon as you're alone together" maneuver so either is plausible. To me, it looks like she's reenacting her transformation, with her as Vlad, so she would've wanted unwilling prey. I've generally thought that Caleb followed her into the bathroom thinking he was going to get laid, but with that in mind it does make sense that she would've just ambushed him when he got up to pee (poor humans and their bladders can't handle their nectar). @charsimsalot has a lot of interesting things to say about how being forcibly turned would have affected Miss Hell in this excellent post about the apartment they built for the rebellious vampires!

That bathroom door is on backwards. I checked - that door only has a sign on one side. Maybe they really wanted to hammer home the point that this is a bathroom? the sink and toilet do a pretty good job of that...

Caleb is not a daywalker in this trailer - since this seems to show him in his earlier days, that 100% checks out. It takes 15 skill points to become a daywalker, which... yikes.

note: I know the sims is very gay these days but do keep in mind that vampires was released January 2017. Gay marriage wasn't fully legalized in the US until June 2015. It was a big deal that Caleb suave kissed a guy in the trailer!

fun fact: the song used for this, deadly flo, seems to be either very cheap or free to license. It is used in a few episodes of the Baking Championship franchise. Y'all, that franchise got me back into baking and directly inspired GOBC. I lost my absolute shit when I heard it playing! There are also parts of Holiday Baking Championship that sound suspiciously like the sims 2 theme... I kinda wonder if there's a simmer in their sound department.

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Not really that interesting - earlier versions of their outfits/vlad's dark form. Lilith cannot actually turn into a bat in-game.

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vlad bloodvein can use "deprive needs" (must be a master vampire at minimum)

brandy can turn into a bat (should be a minor vampire at minimum)

based on the view outside Brandy's bedroom window, it looks like the virtuous vampires might live in an apartment in San Myshuno?

vlad uses supernatural speed to collect figurines

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Not very interesting - just Brandy and Elle eating.

↓↓↓ WARNING - jumpscare below ↓↓↓

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lmao what

this one doesn't even seem real, but as far as I can tell it was in fact released as a teaser for the full trailer.

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This is the official trailer - it lines up reasonably well with other lore. Also the song is so fun.

Most notably: this trailer shows that Caleb is the one who turned Inna. No context is given. Other promotional material & the in-game paintings show that she was a thrall, potentially for hundreds of years before Caleb turned her.

The exterior of the house where Caleb turns Inna looks exactly like Wolfsbane Manor. However, Inna's bedroom doesn't match any room in the manor. It looks like there is a nearly identical house where Widowshild Townhouse currently is, so either Inna was in that house, or Wolfsbane Manor has since been remodeled. It would be kinda interesting if Caleb and Lilith decided to buy Inna's old house when they moved...

When Caleb turns into a bat, he's in the graveyard to the left of Vlad's house. Maybe he and Lilith lived with Vlad for a time? It kinda looks like Vlad had a lot of vampires filtering in and out of his place.

Elle real horny. I wonder what happened to that guy - he isn't a gallery vampire but he shows up in a lot of the paintings. As far as I'm aware Elle doesn't show up in any paintings.

youtube

This trailer is an absolute mess. It contradicts enough existing lore that it shouldn't be taken as any sort of canon, but it's a decent source of inspiration to fill in the gaps, and I pulled heavily from it when I was choosing powers for the gallery vampires.

Elle uses her mist form (I checked the animations) - she must be a grand master. She can use Command.

Markus Crow has supernatural speed - must be master+

Lilith is using a computer at the beginning of this, which feels weird because this is supposed to be at least 50 years ago. That said, technology doesn't advance in the sims, so, sure.

This makes it look like Vlad just broke into her house and turned her like he did with Miss Hell, but to me Lily makes it sound like Lilith was a more active participant: "I remember when my cousin, Lilith, first told me she'd met a fascinating man named Vlad. After that, she started spending a lot of time "training" with him. I thought she meant they were workout buddies. It wasn't until later that I found out she'd been lured to the dark arts."

Lilith's bed is a reward from the painter career - not sure if the implication is that she earned it herself?

I can't really see outside Lilith's windows, but it does kinda look like Forgotten Hollow? Which doesn't make a lot of sense to me - why would she and Caleb have to move to Forgotten Hollow if they already lived there? That said, that isn't Lilith. And that isn't Caleb. This was from when their names were Gina and Raylan.

Note that "Raylan" doesn't have the good vampire aspiration, and his traits are completely different. The others aren't quite the same as the gallery sims, but at least they still have the same names.

Looking out the window, it looks like the Virtuous Vampires are in Forgotten Hollow with everyone else. In one of the shorts, it looks like they live in a big city. I'm not sure which I like better!

Lilith is used as the example for supernatural strength. While she doesn't actually have that in-game, this is part of why I like to make her fitness 10 brute with vampiric might.

Elle continues to be real horny. Who is that guy? I like the implication that they had to go get it on as bats because Vlad was taking a nap and they couldn't fuck in his coffin :(

Bonus! While this isn't a trailer, exactly, it's a promotional blog post from Vlad's point of view and it is the best. Every last part of this makes me happy, from Caleb and Lilith ganging up on Vlad to Vlad referring to sparring matches as "epic duels" (or, in this particular case, what seems like a pretty good training sesh for Caleb).

Nothing about Lilith makes it seem like she doesn't feed on people except a) her household description and b) this post. That said, those two things about as primary as canon can get.

Vlad claims to own 100 gray coats

Vlad only fought Caleb. There could be so many reasons for that - was Caleb the one who made the challenge? Does Vlad not want to fight his offspring?

Vlad claims that the Encyclopedia Vampirica is mostly based on him. Make of that what you will.

Second bonus: Did you know that Vlad has a normie cousin??? There was a bit of promotional content for seasons involving the Climate family. This is that time they invited Vlad over for Harvestfest.

Please let me know if I missed anything! There's a lot of material out there, much of it no longer available on EA's site, so it's definitely possible there are things I didn't find.

#vlad straud #lilith vatore #caleb vatore #the sims 4 #ts4 #ts4 lore #ts4 vampires

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timmie-p · 9 months ago

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Ivan Interview translation

Ivan, the Next CF Star

Just two months after his debut, Ivan was selected as an ambassador for the famous luxury brand Q. Ivan is the first non-native 'pet human' to become an ambassador for Q. "Ivan's stoic yet playful visuals are perfect for capturing the diverse appeal of Q," said Q's chief designer.

Ivan, who recently topped the Alien Stage live voting, is being touted as the next big CF star after Luca. He's been inundated with requests from designers all over the world who want to put ads on his outfits. He has already collaborated with nine brands, all of them big brands. The public's attention is focused on how his growing popularity will affect the Alien stage.

Interview

Since the third round aired, it’s become very popular. Are you feeling the buzz?

Alien Stage is growing in popularity every day. Did the crew recognise me during the CF shoot? It's funny because at the beginning of the show, there weren't many people in the world who recognized me, and now there are so many people that I can't get through the streets by myself. (Laughs)

You’re currently ranked #78, at this rate top 20 is possible, isn’t it?

Thank you for your kind words. I'd love to keep the momentum going and make it to the top 20, but I'll leave the choice up to the masses.

You have a lot of titles that describe you, right? Do you have a favourite?

My favorite is "Blocell's #1 Brand Reputation" from a recent article. It makes me feel like all those days of photo shoots and commercials weren't in vain.

What do you think makes you unique?

I can think of more bad things than good (laughs), but, um… I think the thing that fans talk about a lot is my partial fang. I think I have a normal face, but there are many people who remember me for my fang.

What’s your secret to getting the best shots?

The day before my schedule, I study the brand I'm going to shoot for so that I can clearly understand the directions on set. Knowing the brand in detail is fundamental as a model. I also think it's important to make it a habit to take care of my body.

What is your ideal girlfriend? Lots of girls around the world want to know!

I don’t have a specific dream girl, I’ve never really thought about it. If I were to choose one…. No, I don’t have one. (Laughs)

Are you close with Till?

What’s your definition of “close”? (Laughs)

We’re just okay. Mediocre at best.

Let me ask you straight up. Do you think you can beat Till?

I don’t know… If you could perform as wildly as him, you might win too, right?

Say something to Till, your next opponent!

…..Keep it up?

read it for your own here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/ivan-interview-99972496

also i’m sure an official english version will be out soon i just like doing these lol

okay!!! i feel like vivinos is dropping red flags here but idk 🥺 ive already been theorising that ivan will be the one to lose and the audience here seems to support him too much..

i translated “힘내” previously as “Come on” in the snippet where till punched ivan but i think it makes more sense here to translate it as “Keep it up” (it’s just generally words of uplifting encouragement)

also for the part about his fang my translator translated that as “false teeth” and boy when i tell you i was confused 💀

also following up the question abt his dream girl immediately with a question about his relationship with till.. real subtle there… kinda makes me go uueeugguh tho

#alien stage #alnst ivan #official art #translations

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strwbnnie · 2 years ago

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i am so upset. we’ve been moots for like a month now and i haven’t come to throw some filth in your ask box yet 😩 buT it’s not too late!

alsO hI miya it’s nice to officially greet you 👉🏾👈🏾 i’m glad you enjoyed reading warm bodies! how are ya?

clears throat this is so long and i’m sorry but i like to ramble when i have ideas

So, I was lowkey just scrolling through your blog (i need to read more of your tasty ass work fr fr) and I noticed you reblogged a short fic about villian Kiribaku… A concept that has been untouched by my brain and was probably for good reason because now all I can think about is Red Riot the hardening villain who uses unbreakable to strike fear into civilians, heroes, and villains who dare to threaten his authority. Red Riot the villain is fucking huge and bulky and still has a smile of sunshine but a heart darkened by a selfish society. He honestly gives me Pain vibes, and idk if you’ve ever watched The Boys but I think he’d fit in perfectly with them, he definitely wants to kill heroes who don’t deserve to be called heroes.

Red Riot is very meticulous about the crimes he commits but there is one thing for sure— he loves a good fight. Doesn’t matter where the fight is or when it is, if there’s a fight brewin’ he’ll be there to find it. Also, random fact, he likes rocks soooo… he robs a lot of jewelry stores when he wants to add to his collection or he goes “shopping” at museums.

For example, big boy Riot has left the headquarters in search of a way to get his knuckles bloody, cruising around, looking for a hero to pick a fight with. Listen, even he’s got standards. He’s murdered a couple of people but never innocent ones, only heroes that don’t deserve their titles. And for that, he’s wanted by the Japanese government… Why’s he still walkin’ around like he’s some regular civilian though? I don’t even know. But… oh! Look at that, a hero.

The name of this hero doesn’t matter, he’ll scrapbook it later. A grin spreads across the villains face, a set of razor sharp teeth reveal themselves as he begins to approach the unsuspecting hero, following them to a more secluded part of the city to minimize witnesses as well as collateral damage.

This particular hero has quite a destructive quirk, so it’s truly no surprise that as soon as Red Riot attacks him, the hero begins to lay in blows that aren’t held back in the least. Indiscriminate waves of the disastrous quirk, that Red Riot easily dodges or blocks, cause nearly irreversible damage to nearby buildings, which no-doubt is putting civilians in even more danger than Red Riot’s presence alone. This is exactly /why/ he does the things that he does. With just one stupid fucking test, anyone could become a hero, even psychopaths like this.

As the hero is attempting to knock Red Riot down, the redhead villian doesn’t halter in anyway, getting closer and closer to the hero that looks like their about to shit their pants right in the alley. He’s nearly a foot away from the hero when he hears a blood-curdling scream that appears to be coming from above. He takes a moment to glance up and sees a woman plummeting to her death from the destroyed building that was just beside the alley. Then he looked back at the hero to see if he would do anything.

No. He was far too busy trying to keep his own ass safe. And for some reason, that pissed him off beyond comparison. He’d been holding back since the fight began, giving the hero a chance to defend himself, but it appeared time was running out. Hardening his fist, he aimed a blow directly to the hero’s face, satisfied with the sickening sound of flesh and bone breaking from the heavy punch, and watched the hero fly back into a pile of garbage bags, deserved.

With the screaming come closer and closer to where he was, Red Riot used the debris of the crumbling building to propel himself upwards and easily captured the woman who’d been falling, only then taking note of the bundle of life that she had protectively curled over. As they approached the ground, he hardened his legs and landed with ease, causing quite an indent in the earth.

While she’d been falling, hero eyes remained shut the entire time, but when she stopped falling, suddenly becoming hyper aware of her surroundings and the big strong arms that were wrapped around her rather protectively, she slowly opened one eye to take a peek at her savior.

In all his glory stood the infamous new Hero Killer, staring down at her with an arched brow on his handsome yet rugged face. The childhood scar on his eyelid had somewhat faded but fresh scars had been added to his face, a few nicks on his chin, cheek, and forehead, but they didn’t take away from his handsome appearance. He’d been wearing a red sleeveless hoodie, that showed off his muscular arms and a sleeve of ink that started from his right wrist, up the entirety of his arm, and disappeared under the hoodie no-doubt covering his right pec with a decorative tattoo, along with some plain black cargo shorts. His hair was spiked in the front and the rest flowed down his back in a mullet of sorts. She hadn’t realized she bad been silently staring at him in awe until he cleared his throat, asking if she was alright. Weirdly enough, she felt comfortable enough to answer him honestly, along with thanking him for saving her life. Unexpectedly, a cocky grin spread across his face and an idea came to mind.

“I’ve got other ways you can thank me, lil’ diamond.”

Next thing she knows, Red Riot aka Hero Killer 2.0 is mumbling some name that starts with a ‘K’ and a portal of purple smoke suddenly forms beside them out of thin air. Poor girl is basically kidnapped right then and there, but who woulda thunk Red Riot wanted a reward for taking down another hero and that reward just happened to be the lil’ milf who’d just dropped from the sky (or destroyed apartment building more specifically).

Don’t worry though, he may be a villain but he’s sweet and kind when he wants to be. And that includes taking care of you and your kid. Just like any normal abductee you question this motives and why’s he suddenly taken you from your home. He easily corrects you, saying that your home no longer existed and it was the manly thing to do to offer his surface to provide for you until you were able to get back on your feet.

(insert that one Soulja Boy audio where he says ‘HUH?!’ hella loud)

Why in the flying fuck would this man offer to take care of you? He had to have some kind of objective. But… to your surprise, he didn’t. In fact, you were free to leave whenever you wanted, and he made that clear.

Much to your surprise, Red Riot didn’t live in the LoV headquarters, he lived by himself in his own lil’ cabin in the woods that could easily fit a family or two. It was strange. You were thankful that he saved you and your baby’s life, but he was still a villain. A really, really handsome one at that. After his oh-so-caring suggestion, he mentioned if you wanted him to he would drive you back to the city and drop you off wherever you wanted to go. You dunno how it happened exactly but he’d been holding your baby while he was speaking to you, rocking the sleeping infant in his arms like he was their biological father. How was this man so fucking charismatic and sweet to you? He HAD to have some kind of ulterior motive.

Spoiler alert: yes, yes he did, but not the one you would expect from him.

Y’see… he’s always wanted a family. And here you were, dropped right into arms for the taking, and you didn’t seem to want to leave anytime soon, so he was going to use this opportunity.

A day turned into a week, a week turned into a month. And just as he promised, he took you out the house whenever you wanted and asked you each and every time if you wanted to be left in the city after your daily adventures (shopping and shit y’know, yes this man goes grocery shopping). But you always went back to his cabin with him, each and every time. Was this Stockholm Syndrome? No… couldn’t be, he openly told you to leave if you wanted to, then did that mean you were falling for the rugged mass-murdering villian? Looks that way.

As expected, the developing relationship between the three of you was not normal in the least, but it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. He’d even introduced you to some of his buddies from LoV, only the ones he trusted tbh, and after that— you now had some willing and ready babysitters on call whenever you two needed.

Who wouldn’t abuse this opportunity? After some time convincing you, Red Riot, who had disclosed to you his real name was Eijirou Kirishima, managed to get you to go on a real date with him with just the two of you. And soooooo, ya did.

Who knew a villain could be so romantic? Certainly not you. He’d wined and dined you like his life depended on it and you were now putty in his hands. Perfect. The real games could begin.

He’s called a driver to take you both home and before you know it, Eijirou’s carrying you over the threshold like the two of you had just said ‘I Do.’

cracks knuckles

Now, this is where the real fun begins.

Red Riot, the hero-killing, tall, muscular, BDE, long-haired, thick-thighed, scarred, tattooed, smiling, thieving, hardening villain… has a breeding kink. And not just that, he’s got a big fucking dick that’s usually impressively hidden behind his usual wardrobe of loose fitting pants. But, you’ve seen him adjust himself more than a few times when he thinks you’re not paying attention, but you’re sure he just does it subconsciously without even realizing.

So there’s no real surprise when he’s dropped you onto your shared bed after a date and you can see the imprint of it through the black slacks he chose to wear. You coulda swore you saw the fuckin’ thing throbbin’ through the fabric but maybe your mind was playing tricks on you.

He’s now staring you down, noticing how your eyes have stayed glued to his crotch, with a timid look with some worry hidden behind your eyes. He grins and decides to have a little show for you. You’re struck back into reality when he suddenly grabs it, giving it a lil’ squeeze and a tug, causing your thighs to rub together in anticipation.

“No need to be nervous. It ain’t gonna hurt ya, baby. Promise.”

He purred, stroking his cock a few for times for you through his pants before moving his hands to start unbuttoning his shirt.

“Think you could strip for me, mamas? I like that dress on ya… Think I’d rip it to shreds if I tried to take it off.”

Sweet fuck, when’d you become so obedient???

Before you know it, you’re both naked and on top of the bed, not even bothering to get under the comforter or the sheets. Seems you two were impatient.

Eijirou was splayed out on his back, cock on fully display as it rested against his stomach that wasn’t exactly chiseled with abs, it was a lil’ squishy but the muscles in his arms and chest were hard to ignore. And would ya look at that, you were right, he did have a nagasode and hikae style tattoo with a dragon, flowers, and other symbols. His monstrous cock was almost teasing you with its ridiculous width and length, how was that going to fit in you? With its thick tanned shaft, and its fat brink pink circumcised tip that was dribbling precum despite being only half erect. The happy trail that led to a trimmed bush of onyx hair made you think about the hyped mane of hair on his head.

He’d decided to leave the gel out of his hair this evening so the bright crimson locks flowed in waves under his head… what kinda conditioner did this man use? Them locks shiny as a muhh’fucka- No, no, no, don’t get distracted.

Where were you?

He’d had you sitting on his chest, beckoning you to straddle his face with your thighs, and when you hesitated he took matters into his own hands and grabbed you by the hips, pulling you right onto his face.

Maybe I should have mentioned earlier that he’d got a forked tongue…? Y’know, the kinda tongue a snake has… He kinda got into a bit of body modification after dropping out of U.A.

And the way he uses his forked tongue on you is heavenly. So heavenly, that you nearly hunch over and run away from his skilled tongue, whining and whimpering his name, pathetically asking him to calm down and give you some time to adjust. The iron grip on your hips forces you stay right where he wants you, thick digits easily sinking themselves into your plush hips like memory foam. He’s absolutely ravishing you with the rapid fire motions of his tongue, writing out every Hiragana symbol in the charts, observing how you react to every trace of ever symbol. And when he draws out that one symbol, his tongue acting as a brush drenched in ink and your pussy acting as the paper, he notices the way you shudder and let out a guttural moan, clenching at his hair hard enough to make his scalp burn just a fraction— he smirks, abusing this new power.

ki ki ki ki ki ki ki ki ki ki ki ki.

Ironically, the symbol that makes you shudder and silently scream sounds a bit like laughter, and laughter you shall receive. It is the best medicine after all.

Abusing this particular symbol, it is no surprise that the hardening villian soon rips an orgasm right out of your body, the searing heat that builds up inside you releasing into his mouth as you squeeze his head between your thick thighs.

Easily, Eijirou laps up your sweet nectar while groaning about how sweet and delectable you are, and gives you a moment to collect yourself, hearing the sweet pants and huffs that escape you as he rubs comforting circles onto your hips. That won’t last long, however.

“Think ya can cum on my tongue a few more times, lovely? Gotta make sure you’re slippery enough to bounce on my cock a lil’ later after all, hm? Be a good girl f’me, ya know ya can.”

my bad, my bad… went a lil’ crazy on this one 🧍 do with this as you please, aLsO i had an urge to draW hIm but i haven’t colored the lineart yet 😩 ill show ya when im doNe

You’ve been reduced to nothing but a whining, whimpering mess on the redhead’s tongue. He’s flipped and twisted your aching body so many times to get you in the perfect position, but nothing beats that good ole spread eagle.

Your hero turned villainous lover has both of those big hands holding you wide open for him, fingertips sunk into your plush flesh.

One knee is flush against the bed, the other is up against your chest, leaving nothing hidden from his fiery gaze. Your pretty pussy is his to abuse, at the mercy of that dexterous tongue and those razor sharp teeth.

Your moans and sounds are so cute to him, so pretty he wants nothing more than to keep fucking you on that long tongue.

You peer down at the beast between your thighs and the sight has you immediately tossing your head back, a breathy sigh passing through your lips.

Eijirou looks so precious—crimson eyes hooded and low, the thin sheen of your slick spread around his mouth while he licked and sucked you to another release.

‘Cu-cumming.’ Is how you’ll warn him before your pussy is creaming around that tongue again. You’re so sensitive, clit so swollen and red even the waft of his breath hurts.

But Eiji loves seeing you squirm, so much that he’s lathering your poor clit in spit, sucking the nub into his mouth just to hear you squeal as you claw at the sheets.

“Ei, p-please baby.” You’re begging, pleading for just an ounce of mercy from your lover’s tongue.

He raises his head to look up at you, or what’s left of you, granting a brief intermission as he flips you onto your belly.

He’s palming the fat of your ass, spreading you until he’s face to face with your delicious cunt and puckered asshole, his moistened lips curling up into a devilish smirk.

He loves this. He loves you and your perfect fucking pussy so much that tonight he plans on making you a mommy again. As soon as you cum for him one more time he plans to split you open and breed you.

“Just one more pretty girl, I promise.”

It’s nice to meet youuu, I love your work 🥺❤️Villian Kiri makes my pussy brain melt 🥹 I hate that it’s so short but I’m writing like 4 other one shots and my brain is a can of baked beans right now 😭

Hey bae, care to join us? @darkmajesty-xo

#kirishima smut #villain kirishima #kirishima x y/n #kirishima x you

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b0njourbeach · 2 months ago

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Is Trey Cater a ship where Cater is an unhinged little freak and Trey is normal, or is it a ship where Trey gets to be an unhinged little freak and Cater is suddenly realizing in horror he's more normal than he thought.

Or are they little freaks together?

-@official-nrc-prophet

(Choosing Beetlejuice bc asking this is to me what is calling his name three times is to him)

Oh boy, I need a moment to get my thoughts in order. I do apologize if it becomes eventually hard to follow. There are too many thoughts running through my mind to capture them all in a sorted manner.

Actually 🤓☝️ They're two freaks in two entirely different directions who are both unleashing the others' freak but also taming it at the same time.

That is, if Cater would Trey allow to do so.

We've seen in canon multiple times that Trey looks through Caters Charade (two major moments I have in mind are Post-OB in Book 1 and the Wish Upon a Star when Trey asks Cater what his wish is) - Something we don't see often in canon.

But we have also seen moments where Trey has unintentionally gave Cater a little freedom to be himself: Not having to pretend to like sweets (Post-OB in Book 1), being Caters choice to "go for a little spin on the dance floor" (Firelit Sky Event) and given they've been roommates since their first year, I doubt those were the only times either.

I do like to think that Trey is genuinely Caters grounding point (as much as Cater allows him to be. He's got quite a lot of commitment issues which are indirectly confirmed in canon but that's another story). Caters type of freak is his fake self which gets fueled by whatever person around - But it takes a lot to make him drop the act or even just knock on the huge wall he has built up to shield his true self.

And Trey has built a camp in front of that very wall, prepared for Cater to let him in eventually (and he does seem to be quite persistent in canon).

Trey, on the other hand,, Where to even start with this guy? I can only imagine there are equally little people who knows how much of a fucking weirdo (affectionate) he is - One of them is 100% Rook. And I don't doubt that Cater is another one of those few people.

Unfortunately I don't have much canon to go on, so this is purely based on my own analysis and opinions (with a bit of HCs mixed in there but I'm trying my best to keep them out of the equation. After all, you asked for their dynamic, not for my silliness).

Trey is the prime example of the Oldest Child syndrome. Teaching his younger siblings, making sure they brush their teeth which lead to the point that he took this trained behavior with him to NRC where he's now conditioning Ace and Deuce (and I don't doubt others as well) to brush their teeth regularly. He most definitely helped his siblings in other ways too. He's the Vice Housewarden, the "Mom" as many twst fans like to call him (I truly dislike them for that but that's smth else) - A submissive position, especially if someone like Riddle is above you.

I'm going too much into a Trey analysis..

My point is: Just like Cater, Trey is rarely himself but they're extremely different in how similar they are. Cater is playing the act of that extroverted friend with too much energy and silliness, Trey is the quiet friend who is calm and friendly. In reality, it is Trey who would be the freak and Cater the quiet one.

So, to come back to your initial question:

If Trey and Cater would be alone in a casual fashion (no romantic intention, just two buddies alone in a room, chilling) and Trey would suddenly show a little spot of his true colors, I can only imagine Cater going something along the lines of "Holy shit dude, you're so much different than you show- And I thought you were the normal one between us." Trey would simply counter by pointing out Caters hidden true self with painful precision.

I tried to limit myself as close as possible to your question, or else I would've written a whole essay on why they're the best couple in twst.

#twisted wonderland #twst #trey clover #cater diamond #treykei #trey x cater #trey x jade #b0njourbeach answers

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nolanfa-fanart · 10 months ago

Text

Funny batfam gen (non-romantic) recs

last rec list was not exactly happy fics, so to offset it, have funny ones:

Gen fic recs for @genuaryficrecs! Fandom: DC, batfam. Focus: Humour (most some also tear your heart out or engage in subtle character building, but you'll laugh while you cry) Humour is very widespread in fic (…in some fandoms at least), ranging from humour woven in the writing style itself, to situational absurd (crack), to making the reader laugh about absolutely horrifying shit (while still acknowledging how awful it is; which is something I feel I've only ever read in fic), to absolutely unhinged character reactions (to more I don't have in mind right now), so here, a small homage to that.

The Lone Ranger Never Had to Deal with Bruce Wayne, by @theskeptileptic (https://archiveofourown.org/works/51476074) Chapters 6/6, 25.522 words G, No Archive Warnings Apply

Main Characters: Tim Drake, Bruce Wayne

Type of gen relationship: uh. Concerned Adult to Kid? Parental-ish? Or just neighbours, depending on who you ask.

Official summary: Tim is an independent, clever, and super mature eleven-year-old. Unfortunately, his dopey neighbor, Bruce, can’t seem to understand that. When he decides to disappear on a “solo camping trip” and run away to Canada, he figures it’s the perfect plan that will make everybody happy. He didn’t expect the Waynes would tag along with him and ruin everything. A six-chaptered tale filled with identity shenanigans, s’mores, soon-to-be-brothers, and a kid who is in desperate need of a new family.

Why I love it: This is. Hilarious. The perfect mix of very competent Tim and him still very much being an 11-years-old. Himbo Bruce Wayne who just so happens to totally accidentally run into Tim several times to innocently inquire about his parents' whereabouts. The horrifying fact of what Tim is actually doing and how he thinks, in his very logical way (and the horrifying fact that his parents agree with him).

Excerpts: from: [email protected] to: [email protected] Mr. Wayne, Timothy told me you stopped by earlier today. I am sorry I didn’t get to talk with you. My thyroid was acting up and I was sleeping. Timothy is a good kid. I can make sure he’s safe skateboarding so there is no need to worry. Have a good day! Sincerely, The Nanny

from: [email protected] to: [email protected] The Nanny, Thank you for your email last week. Timothy is most definitely a good kid. One of the best. I saw him at the Army Supply Store this afternoon and he mentioned you would be taking him to Cheesequake State Park to meet a friend this weekend? My boys and I are heading that way, so why don’t we save you a trip. We’ll make sure Timothy is taken care of. If you need anything at all, for any reason, please call me at this number: 9088780078. This is my cell phone and I answer it at all hours, no matter what. Nothing is too small or too much of a bother to pick up for. Anything that you need, Timothy’s Nanny, please call. Sincerely, Bruce Wayne - “Anyway, I was on my way to the course, and I realized your father and I haven’t gotten a chance to really ‘hang’, as you kids say, and I had a late tee time, so I thought I’d invite him along.” Mr. Wayne’s teeth were bright and Tim wondered if he used some sort of diamond paste on them. He looked around Tim’s shoulder, as if he wanted to see inside the mansion better. Tim hadn’t turned on any of the lights on account of his shitty night, so the early fall haze that Bristol was so well known for didn’t do much for his visibility. “I’m sorry, sir, you just missed him.” A pause. “Well, that’s ok, son. Why don’t you get your mom and I’ll give her a message? I’m sure you’ve got things to do.” He looked at Tim vapidly, smile still firmly in place. “I’m afraid she’s not here right now either. Shopping.” Tim gritted his teeth and went to close the door. Mr. Wayne’s huge ham hands (why were they so large?) stopped it before it slammed. He chuckled and Tim winced. “Your nanny, then.” Tim wasn’t sure, but thought the question sounded more strained than Mr. Wayne’s usual flavor of airheadedness. “She’s sleeping.” “At eleven in the morning?” “She has a thyroid problem. I’ll let them all know you stopped by.” Tim pushed the door closed but Mr. Wayne had somehow entered his foyer while he was speaking. “I’ll write them a note. They can call me when they get back.” He inched closer towards Tim, who sidestepped him before he could ruffle his hair.

Ain't No Compass, Ain't No Map, by @ebjameston (https://archiveofourown.org/works/38048365) Chapters: 9/9, 51.863 words T, No Archive Warnings Apply

Main Characters: Jason Todd, Dick Grayson, Tim Drake

Type of gen relationship: siblings and friends

Official summary: CPS Agent, pointing at Tim Drake: We need to take him with us Red Hood: He's fine where he is CPS: He's a minor Hood: Timbo, you a minor? Tim: Can't prove it CPS: I mean, I can. There are records – Tim, who has just finishing hacking CPS to remove his own file: Oh really, tell me more about these records +++ A CPS agent gets sent to investigate a tip that Tim Drake has been abandoned by his parents and is living with the Red Hood. The CPS agent leaves with no Tim Drake, a date with Red Hood's lieutenant, and an intern who's promising to fix the IT systems at his office. It's a weird day for Theo.

Why I love it: This is probably the first (non-crossover) DC fic I read, and to date still one of my favorites. It's. Listen. It's from the point of view of a Child Protective Services agent. Who, given his whole deal is to Protect Children, has Opinions about the Robins. And interacts - unknowingly - with them when they're grown (identity porn! Banter!). And he likes them! And they like him! But they have… differing opinions. And I absolutely love it. So. Many. Feels. And humour. It's 80% jokes and 70% feels and 50% social commentary about the canon and 20% plot and 40% fluff and 30% angst and some parts are all of that at once.

Excerpt: “Nightwing, wait, serious question,” Theo says. “About when you were baby Robin.” Max’s fingers tense up a bit on Theo’s elbow, and some of the earlier tension creeps back into Nightwing’s frame. “Yes?” “Did the Batmobile have a car seat?” “Did the what have a what ,” Nightwing says. “I’ve seen your stats from when you were just getting started,” Theo says. “You weren’t anywhere close to 4-foot-9. You would’ve needed a booster seat for at least the first two years you were Robin, so.” “So, did the Batmobile have a carseat,” Nightwing repeats faintly. Theo gets out his phone to take notes. “Yes. That is what I am asking.” “Buddy,” Hood says. “Most of the Batmobiles don’t even have seatbelts.” “How would you even know that?” Bernard asks.

IRIS Log #1548, by @deadchannelradio (https://archiveofourown.org/works/51647209) Chapters: 1/1, 8531 Words T, No Archive Warnings Apply

Main Characters: whole batfam

Type of gen relationship: familial

Official summary: A Disclaimer From Your Friendly Neighborhood Oracle: The following is a transcript of Patrol Communications Audio written by state of the art transcription technology, IRIS (Interpretation of Recorded Intelligence Software). IRIS was created to provide easily searchable records, automatically, and eliminate the need to transcribe each patrol audio log manually. That being said, IRIS is still experimental, and may not always be entirely accurate. - (01:25) Red Hood: (Mild static) (Out of breath, slurred) You motherfuckers. Put some fuckin- (01:25) Batman: (Shaking) Red Hood- (01:25) Red Hood: Shut up. Put some fucking respect. On my name. Start fucking copying me. I just got thrown fucking. Um. 40 feet. Into a fucking uh. What's it. Ditch. I'm still fucking conscious. (01:25) Batman: Red Hood, do not move, we're en route- (01:25) Red Hood: What'll I win if I stand up. (01:25) Batman: (Loud) Do not stand up.

Why I love it: The format (transcription of comms) is fun. Also it's. Just. Really funny? The… energy of it? I mean just read the excerpts honestly.

Excerpt: (01:34) Nightwing: Don’t get mad, Red. He’s got a concussion. (01:34) Red Hood: (Agreeably) I am all bonked up. (Laughter: Nightwing) Hey. Cass. Cassie. Is my leg fucked. The right one. (01:34) Blackbat: It. (Pause, 3 seconds) (Reading) I am not your medical provider and can’t diagnose injuries or illness. Please ask your doctor when you are under their care. (01:34) Red Hood: Oh. Um, okay. Can you tell me as buddies? Not as my doctor. (Laughter: Spoiler, Red Robin) Just as buddies. (01:35) Blackbat: …Super busted. Bad. As buddies. (01:35) Batman: Blackbat. We are not medical- (01:35) Red Hood: She said as buddies. It’s fine. (01:35) Spoiler: (Laughing) The as buddies legal loophole.

Bang, bang, by Ididloveyou_once (@ididloveyou) (https://archiveofourown.org/works/30246978) Chapters: 1/1, 5.563 words T, Chose Not to Use Archive Warnings (an accidental gunshot wound played for laughs)

Main Characters: Tim Drake, Jason Todd

Type of gen relationship: very much Siblings

Official summary: ‘You shot me!’ Jason gasped, stunned, ‘Holy shit, you actually shot me.’ Tim’s eyes widened and he froze. They stared at each other for a second, dumbstruck and then- ‘Don’t tell Bruce.’Or: The family enjoy a normal movie night. Except Jason has a gunshot wound and Tim’s the only one who knows and oh- that’s because Tim’s the one who shot him and they really, really need to find a way to leave before anyone finds out.

Why I love it: Hmmm okay so maybe I really like a good Jason & Tim relationship. But objectively. This is great. Peak siblings relationships. The threat of Getting In Trouble forcing an emergency alliance between two mutually annoyed siblings who scramble to hide something? Peak comedy.

Excerpt: ‘Okay, sorry. I didn’t mean it like that either,’ he pinched the bridge of his nose, ‘I just mean. Don’t worry about me being in pain. I’m fine. And don’t worry about looking like an asshole. You shot me, you already look like an asshole. But that’s fine because now we’re even.’ Jason sighed at the kid’s sour expression. So his words of reassurance needed some work, sue him.

Into the Brighter Night, by @shoalsea (https://archiveofourown.org/works/20935463) Chapters: 12/12, 162,894 words G, No Archive Warnings Apply

Main Characters: Tim Drake, whole batfam, Young Justice team

Type of gen relationship: familial and friends

Official summary: When an unknown enemy threatens Robin, Gotham's vigilantes come together to keep him safe. Unfortunately, they're protecting the wrong Robin. Or: Tim Drake plans his own rescue. Things get complicated.

Why I love it: Oooooh not just batfam this time. Tim is way too competent, and the Young Justice have his back (and a lot of resentment towards the batfam). Hyperactive Young Justice energy, Very Good Characterization, miscommunication (as in Bruce -the whole batfam really- is trying but they're super bad at clearly expressing feelings). And the tone of it? The writing? Hilarious and rips your heart out. This is super interesting interconnected character dynamics (with the batfam and Tim's team that's so many more different relationships than usual) and a deep look at canon events, all of it wrapped in hilarious dialogue. One of my fave Tim-centric fics, and I've read some very good ones.

Excerpt: [Impulse on a long distance call with the batfam - minus Tim] Jay makes a disbelieving sound. “You’re telling me that Red Robin—Mr. Responsibility himself—helped you hide and maintain a secret spaceship for years? Seriously?” “Uh, yeah? Duh?” “No offense,” Duke says, “but that doesn’t really sound like the guy we know.” Bruce sighs. Stephanie huffs out a laugh. Impulse just looks unimpressed. “Are we talking about the same person? Robin numero tres, currently Red? The same guy who once hid an extra Batmobile in the batarang budget and shipped it to California in secret? The same guy who founded Young Justice, an unauthorized vigilante group of teens that started out with no adult supervision? And lied to the Justice League and the government to keep Secret safe?” “Secret?” Duke says at the same time Jay sputters out, “He stole a whole Batmobile?” “More like embezzled,” Impulse says. “But yeah, dude, it’s Rob. I know he gives off the straight-and-narrow vibe, like, 90% of the time he’s interacting with the public or authority figures, but that’s mostly because it’s way, waaaay easier to get away with stuff if you don't ‘openly project an air of defiance.’” “Oh my god,” Stephanie says. “He’s given you that speech too?” “He’s given us multiple versions of that speech,” Impulse says. Stephanie’s turned away from the screen now and is explaining to Duke, “Red Robin is kind of the definition of ‘I do what I want,’ but most of the time what he wants to do is at least nominally reasonable or responsible, so no one cares.” “And when somebody does care,” Impulse says, “you just gotta be sneaky and smart. Comply until their backs are turned, you know? I mean, even with the Titans we—what?” he pauses, spinning his chair, clearly distracted by something off-screen. “No, I’m just talking to the Bats. I think there’s a whole flock of them.” Conner Kent wanders into view, towelling off his hair and wearing what looks like some kind of maintenance jumper. “‘Sup,” he says to the camera, leaning in. “Superman’s not there, is he?” “Nope,” Impulse says. “Thank god. Where’s Rob?” “Batnap.” Conner puts his hands on his hips. “Dude. Weren’t you supposed to wake him up?” Impulse spins in his chair again. “Wonder Girl said not to.” “What, and he agreed?” “No. He might have been unconscious at the time. Which, technically, means Wonder Girl is in charge.” Conner groans. “He’s gonna kill you.” Turning to the camera, he adds, “Look, sorry about this, I’ll go get him.” “Heynowaitaminute,” Impulse says. “Listen. I’m the captain, you gotta at least hear me out!” Conner rolls his eyes, but he doesn’t move. “Everything is still going according to plan, okay? Rob did in fact say that we should one hundred percent wake him up as soon as we could get a call through. True. But Wonder Girl said to let him sleep. And he definitely needs it.” “Yeah, but, again, he’s gonna be pissed if—” “Listen. I have thought this through.” When Conner just looks skeptical, he adds, “I have! I worked it out logically. See, if we wake up Rob, Wondy’s gonna be pissed off. At us. Right now. If we don’t wake him up, he’s gonna be pissed off later and he’s gonna be mad at her, not us. Therefore, we should do what Wonder Girl says.”

Beef Consommé, by @vamillepudding (https://archiveofourown.org/works/42348438) Chapters: 2/2; 14.230 words T, Chose Not To Use Warnings

Main Characters: Tim Drake, Jason Todd, Dick Grayson

Type of gen relationship: siblings

Official summary: Parenting is Bruce's thing, and Jason isn't planning on messing with that. But when Bruce fails to spot the countless red flags about Tim's home life, it falls to Jason to step up. Of course it does. Because he's literally the only one in his family who knows how to be responsible, and if Dick disagrees, he can suck it.

Why I love it: I have a weakness for the "Dick and Jason team up and adopt Tim" trope. Also, I love Jason's voice in it. (and this fic is very funny but I feel like I'm repeating myself)

Excerpts: “Pizza?” Tim repeats, sounding hopeful. Jason is on the verge of telling him to go screw himself, but then he starts wondering how long Tim has been in his apartment and whether he ate dinner before he came here. Probably not. Did he eat lunch? Should Jason ask? What would Dick do? “Fine,” he says eventually. “But I’m picking the toppings, and you can’t have dessert.” There’s a beat. “I didn’t want dessert,” Tim says, voice taking on a bewildered edge. “What are you talking about?” - It’s Wednesday evening and Jason is getting pizza. Dick’s waiting back in Jason’s apartment, because growing up with Bruce has him used to getting waited on hand and foot, and apparently he thinks Jason is his own personal servant or something. It’s oppression, is what it is. “It’s not oppression,” Dick yells after him just before Jason closes the door, “it’s called losing a coin toss, asshole!”

Birds on Jaybird Street, by @cynassa (https://archiveofourown.org/works/39115587) Chapters: 4/4, 14.717 words T, No Archive Warnings Apply

Main Characters: Jason Todd, Dick Grayson, Tim Drake

Type of gen relationship: Siblings

Official summary: Jason is both annoyed and weirdly flattered when the replacement turns up to ask him for help. He mentally rearranges his calendar so he can be free Wednesday evening and says, “No, fuck off, I have very important business going on.” Tim eyes his 72” TV playing Japanese wrestling more judgmentally than it really deserves. “Important crime things,” Jason emphasizes. “Make Wingdick do it.” Jason doesn't think much of it when Tim needs his help, or Damian moves in, or even when Dick turns up looking beat all to hell. But at some point he realizes that he might be the best option his brothers have to recover from the cycle of violence that Batman has set up, and all he can think is that things were much easier when he was the villain.

Why I love it: In which Dick and Jason decide to adopt Tim and Damian (Jason's kind of an asshole, but a caring one). Kind of the same reason as the previous one: love that trope, love the tone, very funny.

Excerpt: Jason lies, "Sure, I'll take it up with Bruce " "Sure you will, " Tim scoffs. Jason changes his mind, and decides he will take it up with Bruce. "I don't have the time to keep being your nanny," he announces and then says, disapprovingly, "you skateboard, why don't you have knee and elbow pads?" "I'm Robin," Tim snaps, like he didn't put pants on the costume like a little wuss.

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daydream-cement · 2 years ago

Text

The Interview

College!Miranda Hilmarson x College!Reader

You interview the star volleyball player at your university... and... she's flirting with you??

fun silly lil idea from my pal @booitsrue. who doesn't love some harmless flirting?

The school paper at your university was small to say the least, leading you to take on some odd jobs writing articles about the school’s athletic program. This led you to interviewing many of the sports team’s best players, and today you were interviewing one of the best volleyball players at the university: Miranda Hilmarson.

You had agreed to meet at a coffee shop on campus to keep the interview informal. Sitting patiently, you tapped the end of your pen against the notebook that lay before you, waiting for Miranda to meet you for your scheduled interview. Double and triple checking your watch, 9:03am, you huff at her being officially three minutes late, wondering if she could have forgotten about the interview.

You pull your phone from your pocket, double checking your messages to see if you had misread the time you were supposed to meet.

Hi Miranda! My name is Y/n L/n, and I was hoping to get an interview with you for the school paper about the game last Thursday. Do you have any time to meet this week?

➜ OMG TOTALLY!

➜ I have morning workouts and practice at night.

➜ I can meet after criminal law at 9am Wednesday! :))

Perfect. That works for me as well. 9am Wednesday at the coffee shop in the library?

➜ Oh, for sure!

➜ See you then :D

From her messages she seemed eager for the interview, but as a student of her popularity, you assumed, she could have easily forgotten about the meeting. You decided to give her another 10 minutes, filling in the margins of the notebook with more questions to ask in case she did show up.

Your head shot up when you heard a voice behind you, “Oh my god, Y/n. I’m sorry. The line was so long.”

Craning your head up, you turned to see Miranda smiling down at you. The blonde’s hands were full, an iced coffee in each hand, and she surprised you further when she set one of the cups in front of you. Your eyes narrow in confusion, glancing from the coffee to the tall blonde who now took a seat across from you, “What?”

“Well, I had to get you a little something to sip on for our interview.” The volleyball player smirked at you with a wink, raising her own coffee to her lips. You could see a thought enter her mind as she stopped herself from drinking when her eyes widened, “I looked you up after you texted me. I really enjoyed your article on the student protests that happened last year on campus.”

“I- Uh, thank you.” Miranda was full of surprises, leaving you stumbling to find the right words.

Miranda propped her hand in her hand, resting her elbow on the edge of the table as she gazed at you. Her smile soft and gaze adoring, “Also, I swear I’ve seen you around before. Were we in stats class together?”

You hesitate to answer too quickly. She had definitely been in your statistics class, but if you seemed too quick to answer, she might think you were strange or a fan. After pretending to think for a long moment, you give your reply, “Yeah, I think so. I sat a couple of seats over from you.”

“Oh, I remember you! You used to wear the cutest earrings.” It was hard not to adore the way Miranda moved about as she spoke, gesturing about with her hands and the most expressive facial reactions you had ever seen in your life. You watched her eyes scan you, her teeth biting her lip as she suppressed a smile, “It took everything in me to not turn around and stare at you during class all the time.”

“Thank you...” Your cheeks began to warm, wondering if her words were flirtatious or just friendly in nature.

She let out a soft chuckle, brushing your ‘thank you’ aside with a shrug before she settled deeper into her chair, “Okay, shoot. What questions do you have for me?”

Glancing down to your notes, you decided to start off easy with a bit of a get-to-know-you question to ease you both into the interview, “What made you choose this university, of all places?”

“Volleyball, mostly, but it ended up feeling like home. I’ve really been able to create a loving and accepting community for myself.” You made little notes under the question as she spoke, underlining the term ‘accepting community,’ making you wonder what she specifically meant by the term. Could Miranda be gay?

As it wasn’t quite relevant to the interview, you moved on to the next question, allowing your curiosity to linger at the back of your mind. “Your reputation even before playing college volleyball was pretty impressive. What drew you to the sport?”

“You are pretty impressive yourself...” Yet another crooked smile spread across Miranda’s lips as she complimented you, butterflies swirling around your stomach in response. She leaned back in her chair as she began reminiscing about her start in the sport in which she made her career, “It was just what we did. Go to the beach and play for hours in the summertime. Transferred easily when I was old enough to play in leagues. To answer your question, it was initially just a way to spend time with friends.”

You quickly shake off the compliment and take quick notes, the image of young Miranda playing on the beaches filling your mind. After a pause, you glance up at the volleyball player, eyes meeting, causing the both of you to smile, “How much time do you spend training and practicing in a week?”

Miranda’s face twisted and turned as she added up the numbers in her head, speaking aloud as she walked you through her thought process, “Probably... 3 hours a day... 6 days a week... Give or take a little bit depending on where we are in the season, so nearly 20 hours, but not quite. That includes workouts and practice.”

You joke lightly in response, “Hardly have time for anything else when you add in your studies, hmm?”

“I find time for friends... and relationships.” You were taken aback by the way Miranda’s eyes darkened, her voice becoming low and flirtatious as she leaned forward resting her head in her hand once more. “It all takes a bit of balancing.”

You started your next question, but were swiftly cut off by Miranda, “What-”

“How do you like your coffee? I wasn’t all that sure what to get you.” Hilmarson’s interruption was accompanied by that same adoring smile and excitement. Her change of subject made you cock your head for a moment, not expecting the turn of informality in the interview.

Glancing down to the ice coffee she had set before you, you lower your head to take a quick sip, offering Miranda a smile of appreciation. It’s great... I, uhm, usually get an iced coffee just like this.”

“That’s what I thought. You would usually have something in class with you, so I took a shot in the dark to guess what you had.” Miranda’s facial expressions were all over the place as she spoke, her wide grin shifting about as her hands gestured her thought process. If Miranda was flirting with you, you were beyond okay with it. From class and photos from the volleyball games, you always recognized Miranda as being attractive, but never before did you consider her to be a potential love interest.

“That’s very thoughtful-”

“It’s really nothing. Not every day you have the university's foremost... and prettiest reporter wanting to talk to you.” Miranda’s words caused you to blush deeply and her cheeky grin only grew as she observed your reaction.

“Oh, I-”

She cut you off once more with a wave of her hand, gesturing for you to continue, “Sorry, I’m getting off topic again. Go ahead with the next question.”

With a shake of your head, you needed to refer back to your list of questions in order to focus on the interview. “Uh, yes. Yeah. The next question. What’s it like being this year’s MVP?”

“It feels pretty good. I’ve been working really hard the past couple of years, so I feel like it’s really paid off with this year’s season.” You were glad the interview was being audio recorded as you weren’t paying attention to a word she said. Your thoughts were far too focused on the desire for Miranda to ask you on a date. At the end of all of this, you hoped this wasn’t pointless flirting, but rather hoping she was intending to pursue a relationship with you.

When she was done speaking, you moved on to the next question on your list, “Do they do anything special for the MVPs?”

“There’s a whole dinner and award banquet this year for the MVPs for each team... Do you know what would be fun? You should be my date! It’s in a couple of weekends. We could meet up for another coffee tomorrow and I could share the details.”

You were shocked to hear your daydreams manifest themselves. Had Miranda truly just asked you out? You found it all too shocking that Miranda would want you as her date to the athletic banquet as well as asking you out for tomorrow as well. Glancing up from your notepad, you narrow your gaze at Miranda, unable to help your confusion, “You want to go on a date? With me?”

“Definitely. You’re cute... and intelligent, of course.” Miranda gave you a small roll of the eyes, shaking her head to emphasize how silly she thought your question was. Raising her coffee to her lips, she cocked her brow at you, “Tomorrow morning? I can do it after practice. We could get a coffee and make it a little homework date?”

---------

“Are we allowed to be back here?” You asked in a hushed tone as Miranda tugged you along behind herself, her arm looped through yours. She had grown bored during the long speeches and had asked you to accompany her to the bathroom, but when you took a left instead of a right, ending up in the banquet hall’s empty bar/lounge, you knew Miranda was up to no good.

“Ahh, who cares? That party was a little too stuffy anyway.” Your date took a step closer, her arm unraveling from yours to instead wind around your waist. Her eyes were trained in your lips, causing you to look nervously around the room, hoping no one would enter and catch you both like this, “You know, you look great tonight...”

All of your little dates from the past two weeks had been culminating in more sexual tension than either of you knew what to do with. When Miranda kissed you for the first time two nights ago, you were upset nothing had gone further than the lingering kiss at your apartment door.

Feeling comfortable that no one else was about to enter the room, you turn your attention back to Miranda, giving yourself the opportunity to melt into her embrace. Leaning forward in her arms, you bring your hands to rest at the nape of her neck, brushing small circles against her collarbone with your thumb. “Thank you, Miranda... I, uhm, I like your suit.”

Tilting your head, you ghost your lips against hers, eliciting a happy hum from the depths of Miranda’s throat. Her hand traveled up your back, fingers stroking at the bare skin your dress left exposed. She dipped in quickly, pressing a kiss to your lips, not entirely pulling away when she whispered, “Thanks...”

In a flash, her lips were on yours and you raveled your arms around her neck, drawing her even closer. You knew your lipstick would surely be smudged by the way Miranda began to bite at your bottom lip, not to mention the way your tongues swirl and mingle with one another. You couldn’t help but smile when you felt Miranda backing you up until your back hit a wall.

The ravenous making out continued throughout the rest of the banquet, only realizing how much time had passed when there was a final loud round of applause.

The suddenness of it all caused Miranda to pull away, a wide smirk growing on her face when she noticed the state of your make-up. Her thumb swiped under your bottom lip, her voice low and breathy, “Wanna come back to my apartment?”

#miranda hilmarson x reader #miranda hilmarson #top of the lake #gwendoline christie #fanfic #oneshot #gwen christie #college au

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roseaesynstylae · 7 months ago

Text

Star Wars: Republic Commando: Hard Contact, Chapter 2

"Clone personnel have free will, even if they do follow orders. If they couldn't think for themselves, we'd be better off with droids -- and they're a lot cheaper, too. They have to be able to respond to situations we can't imagine. Will that change them in ways we can't predict? Perhaps. But they have to be mentally equipped to win wars. Now thaw these men out. They have a job to do.

-- Jedi Master Arligan Zey, intelligence officer"

I'm going to add any of these...I'm not sure what these extracts at the beginning of the chapters are properly called, but I'll add them whenever they're interesting.

Zey's comment about the clones reminds me of the line from Andor. "We're cheaper than droids, and easier to replace." The difference here is that while clones are more expensive and harder to replace than droids, they're superior.

And yes, Master Zey, it did change them in unexpected ways.

"It didn't feel so bad to be revived after stasis. He was still a commando. They hadn't reconditioned. That meant -- that meant he'd performed to expected standards at Geonosis. He'd done well. He felt positive."

The implication that "under-performing" clones are brainwashed, at best, is one of the Traviss's additions that I genuinely like, emphasizing the cold detachment of the Kaminoans before they become prominent in the series. It's also just a terrifying idea.

"Darman was careful not to stare -- even though any eye movement was disguised by his helmet -- because Jedi knew things without having to see. His instructors had told him so. Jedi were omniscient, omnipotent, and to be obeyed at all times."

And here we see the official beginning of the Jedi-Bashing count. It's subtler here, but it keeps popping up in ways that are unmistakable in the context of the series' attitude toward the Jedi Order. In multiple cases, such as this one, lines that wouldn't make me bat an eye in a different book, (or more accurately, a different author), but make me grit my teeth here.

The way this specific paragraph is written is very similar to how I'd write a passage from the POV of a character who thinks the antagonist is a good person, or is brainwashed, but I want to make it clear what's really going on. Only in this case, it isn't portraying, say, a Sith cult, but the Jedi Order, which is devoted to helping others, enforcing justice, and studying the Force.

Jedi-Bashing: 1

"'This is your unit of four, then? A squad?' He seemed to be recalling a hurried lesson. 'Almost like a family?'"

This might be a stretch, but I'm not cutting this series an iota of slack when it comes to the Jedi Order. The implication here seems to be "Oh look, the Jedi have no idea what a family is! It's so unnatural and wrong, not like the good, wholesome Mandalorians!" Am I being petty? Maybe. Does Kal Skirata ranting about baby-stealers get really fucking old really fucking fast? Definitely.

Jedi-Bashing: 2

"'My squad called me Atin," the wounded commando said.

Niner glanced at Fi but said nothing. Atin was Mandalorian for 'stubborn.'"

Okay, this bit is just funny.

"Darman -- a soldier able to withstand every privation in the field, and whose greatest fear was to whither from age rather than die in combat -- felt inexplicably uncomfortable at the idea of a Jedi having failings."

Jedi-Bashing: 3

"Etain was neither a natural warrior nor a great charmer, but she was aware of her talent for spotting opportunities. It made up for a lot."

In this book, at least, I really like Etain. She's a good audience surrogate and her headspace is easier to get into than the other three narrators.

Jedi-Bashing: 3

Di'kut Count: 1

Main Post

#star wars #star wars: republic commando #star wars republic commando #repcomm #republic commando #fi skirata #darman skirata #niner skirata #atin skirata #etain tur mukan #arligan zey #bardan jusik #omega squad #pro jedi #karen traviss critical

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anas-aspiration · 1 year ago

Text

Run

warnings: violence-weapons- angst

summary: the w people attack Alexandria, y /n and carl already fighting are forced to huddle together and get over it xoxo. 1683 words

Its a semi cloudy day, perfect for relaxing inside and doing nothing. It was also turning out great. You woke up, got dressed, remembered you have snacks downstairs, and started cleaning up. When you were in the bathroom brushing your teeth you hear your bedroom door open. Peaking out you see its carl, not surprised, since you guys go back and forth “sharing rooms”

"Oh good your up. Did you finish the spare shampoo I had under the sink?"

You covered your mouth trying to be polite and not laugh at his sternness "Uh yeah sorry I can ask Daryl to put that on the list. You'll get it by tomorrow."

He furrowed his brow "K."

"Whats your problem its just shampoo."

"God my problem is you. "

You were taken aback at how fast he snapped back at you. He didn’t usually act like an asshole but you knew he would eventually get out of his little mood swing. Internally you decided to help him get out of it faster by arguing.

You rolled your eyes "oh please elaborate! Because I'm sorry your having a bad morning but that has hardly anything to do with me."

"you're useless. Your ass doesn't do anything except hang around your little friends and eat shit. What good are you?"

Turning from the mirror to him you mustered up the meanest look you could. Then popped the tooth brush out of your mouth and rinsed preparing to go off on him. Who does he think he is calling you useless? He was just your 'bff' yesterday and now he's acting like he has the weight of the world on his shoulders.

"First I am not useless. Do you even think before you speak because that doesn't make sense at all considering I am the one changing Judith's diapers, cleaning both your room, hers, and mine every week, and on top of that cooking your meals, so please come get me when your attitude is looking up. Cause I don't know who put you in this mood but its your job to get out of it."

You walked past him scoffing. Downstairs you grabbed your walkman, a bag of grapes, rollerskates and walked out the door.

You had been rolling around the neighborhood for a little while, enjoying the fresh air and exercise. Eventually, you came across a bench and decided to take a rest. As you sat down, you reached into your bag and pulled out a handful of juicy grapes. As you savored the sweet flavor, your mind wandered to thoughts of Deana and her parties. You realized that you could really use some fun right now, and hoped that Deana would throw another one soon. In the meantime, you decided to listen to some music on your Walkman. You scrolled through your playlist and selected "Rehab" by Lana Del Rey, letting the cute melody wash over you as you enjoyed a moment of peaceful solitude on the bench.

You sat there soaking in your thoughts mindlessly eating your grapes. You started noticing small things that you didn't notice before like how lifeless everything looked when it wasn't sunny. It made you think of Winter which was coming close. The thought of Christmas warmed your heart, but made you wonder how different it would be celebrating during the end of the world. Surely parents want their kids to have something like that. You definitely would even at your age.

Or maybe-

"HELP"

You quickly jerked out of your train of thought at the sound. Was someone hurt? Looking around you didn't see anything. But something told you to get somewhere safe. You stood up gathering your things shaking, when you started hearing more screams. Startled you just grabbed your roller skates and ran in the direction of your house. As you turned a corner you saw the mayhem. People cut into pieces and random people running around with machetes and other weapons. Now officially scared out of your mind you sprinted as fast as you could.

Morgan was in shackles, people being sliced, beaten. You caught a glimpse of someone with a 'W' on their forehead. The group Rick and morgan were murmuring about got inside the walls and are killing everyone. As you neared the house you heard someone laughing close behind you.

fuck.

"No no no no" You Turned your head to see who it was and you almost started crying. A big, probably three hundred pound, man was running behind you with a spear. You picked up the pace still a block away from the house.

You looked to your right hoping Rick or someone was gonna shoot him but instead you saw a handgun laying on the sidewalk. You bolted to it and immediately picked it up and blindly fired two shots in his direction.

One hit his arm holding the spear. You went to shoot again but *click*. You panicked then he charged at you then you fell back. Now your heart was beating faster than ever hoping you didn't just get yourself killed. He was on top of you and you stupidly threw a punch but it hit him. Blood trickled down his cheek and landed on you. He hissed at the pain, not from your power, but from the four cheap and prickly rings you had on. Before he turned back to hit back you pulled out your knife from your boot about to pierce his neck when a shot sounded. You winced then realized Carl had shot him.

You quickly wiggled from underneath him as you had tried earlier then stood up and wiped the blood off your jaw, still in shock.

"I had it."

"Barely." He said in a cocky manner, but with some sympathy in his voice. "Are you okay?''

"um.........Yeah i'm okay." You said

Now you were feeling faintish after only having grapes as a meal for the day and all the stress you had just been through. It seemed he had noticed this too because he grabbed your hand and started guiding you through the chaos back home.

A couple of hours passed, you were boiling noodles for a classic spaghetti in the kitchen. It felt strange casually cooking a meal after what happened. But there seemed to not be any right way to deal with the fact that you almost become road kill.

Carl was upstairs probably putting Judith to sleep and getting into his pajamas. Your feet began to tingle, a sign they were falling asleep so you decided to stroll over to the counter and sit there after turning the simmer down. You ran your soft hands through your hair then slowly rubbed your temples. You heard him come downstairs.

"Hey y/ n"

You looked up "Hey Carl, whats up?"

"Nothin, just uh put Judith down. Are you doing alright?"

"Yeah i'm as good as I can be at the moment. I just have a raging headache. Also- where did the others go?"

"Oh they were helping people clean up, now their at Deana's." He paused "But I just wanted to talk to you about this morning.. Im sorry for being um rude. I didn't mean what I said obviously I was just well.. I don't know. I'm also sorry because its my fault you were out there when the people attacked anyway. Do you forgive me?"

"Yes I forgive you" you said slightly giggling "I can't stay mad at you for long but thank you for also saving my life. Even if it was your fault I was out there you could have chose not to save me, your best friend, but you did."

He smiled at the way you punctuated best friend "yeah" He sat in the chair next to you staring at his hands as if he was thinking about saying something.

As you rose to attend to the food, he said, "Best friend huh?" to which you simply replied, "Yep haha". However, the conversation took an unexpected turn when he asked, "Have you ever thought of like... being more?"

You stood frozen for a second, before realizing he was probably watching you from behind.

You had considered this possibility before, but you didn't want to complicate things by bringing it up. The thought of him rejecting you made you feel uneasy, wondering if he would be scrutinizing your every move after. You tried to shake off the feeling, but it lingered in the back of your mind every time you saw him, thought about it, hell even dreamt about him. You thought it was time to confront him about it, or at least bring it up in conversation. You didn't want to be paranoid, but you also didn't want to ignore your instincts.

"hmm well" you said teasing him a little "what do you mean?"

"I'm just being dumb or whatever"

"No, your not, tell me" You said turning around and smiling. This gave him hope that you would feel the same.

"It's just, I woke up in a bad mood cause I overheard you with your friends last night talking about me. You said I come on too strong and It's obvious who I like and-"

"Oh my god no carl" you interupted " I wasn't talking about you I was talking about Abraham and Sasha. I love them both but it's so funny watching their little friends to lovers trope"

He laughed "ohhh, my bad um" "Well sorry for that too. But what I'm trying to say is I like you. I thought you didn't like me back so I got mad but- It's okay if you don't like me back I just needed to tell you because I couldn't hold on to that secret anymore." he said nervously running his hand through his hair.

You smiled and looked at him. You felt like everything that you didn't expect to happen today was happening at the strangest times.

"That- well I like you too. I was too scared to tell you because I was afraid you didn't feel the same way"

"Really?"

You nodded.

He stood up and walked over to your spot grabbing the warm wooden spoon from your hand and pulling you in for a kiss.

pt2??

A/N! :

HEY!! first post on this acc lmaoo. I posted this on watt pad originally like a month ago along with two other imagines (if you wanna check them out: leinsburg666) I wont be posting them here bc personally i think they are booty and i wrote them two months ago I’m obviously a new person duhh. but anyways i’m gonna write some more like this and PLEASE leave requests like good lord i will probably reply to all of them since i’m not sure a lot of people will see this bc the carl/reader fandom died in like 2018. hope this was enjoyable thoo 🩷

#carl grimes x reader #carl grimes x y/n #the walking dead fic #carl grimes #carl grimes fanfiction #carl grimes x you #carl grimes fluff #stargirl #angst #carl grimes angst #carl grimes smut #star aesthetic #carl grimes imagine #carl grimes imagines

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doueverwonder · 2 months ago

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Do not look under the cut unless u care about city oc's and also fankids k thanks

Mobile AL. (he/him): Est. 1702, born 1990. Currently 17 physically.

Ft. Wayne IN. ‘Winny’ (she/her): Est. 1794, Born 1996. Currently 14 physically.

Huntsville AL. ‘Hunt’ (she/her): Est. 1805, born 1997. Currently 13 physically.

Evansville IN. ‘Evan’ (she/her): Est. 1812, born 1999. Currently 12 physically.

Tuscaloosa AL. ‘Lucy’ (he/him); Est. 1819, born 2001. Currently 11 physically. (twin)

Montgomery AL. ‘Monty’ (he/him); Est. 1819, born 2001. Currently 11 physically. (twin)

Indianapolis IN. ‘IJ’ (he/him); Est. 1821, born 2002. Currently 11 physically.

South Bend IN. ‘Joey’ (they/them); Est. 1865, born 2006. Currently 9 physically.

Birmingham AL. 'Val' (he/him); Est. 1865, born 2007. Currently 8 physically.

(Montgomery and Tuscaloosa are twins bc I found out they were officially established ten days apart so now it's stuck in my head)

(Est. is when the city itself was established, born is the year the personification came into existence however u want to interpret that)

(if u note the years and their ages you'll notice they age at half the rate of normal folks until they hit about 25, they keep aging after that but it slows down substantially)

(Indianapolis' nickname is IJ bc everyone had gotten used to calling Indiana 'indy' so they jokingly called him Indy Jr. to distinguish then it got shortened to IJ and stuck around. South Bend's nickname is Joey bc they're on the Saint Joseph river :] Birmingham got Val bc of the Vulcan statue (long story), and Ft. Wayne is Winny bc Ohio started calling her that and it stuck)

1987 - 2024: 37 years together this November 14th

3 years together, 1990, they had Mobile by absolute accident.

9 years together, 1996, is when they decide they want to have more kids, and that same year Ft. Wayne is born.

10 years together, 1997, they have Huntsville.

12 years together, 1999, they have Evansville.

14 years together, 2001, they have the twins Tuscaloosa and Montgomery.

15 years together, 2002, they have Indianapolis.

19 years together, 2006, they have South Bend.

20 years together, 2007, they have Birmingham.

Tldr; minus the time between Mobile and Ft. Wayne and the couple years between Indianapolis and South Bend they were that couple that was always expecting. Beat Utah in number of kids and smallest age gap >:] (the twins and Indianapolis are barely over a year apart)

Mobile

Typically very warm and friendly, and the top offender when it comes to passive-aggressively making people take care of themselves. Currently going through an aloof phase, he’ll get over it though. Has and has had, a lot of nonconventional pets over the years snakes, turtles, frogs, salamanders, a couple ant farms (fire ants once though he made sure his parents didn’t find out about that…). Locked in a lifelong feud with New Orleans over Mardis Gras (he also has a crush on her but the feud is more important >:[)

Fort Wayne

Personality much like her namesake General “mad” Anthony Wayne. Her passion for just about everything she’s into isn’t always bad but she is very easy to rile up, very short fuse, regular in both the nurses and principals offices. Really much like Alabama, but somehow worse. Very passionate about the environment but in a very 14 yr old way, out here scolding her family members for things like not recycling and leaving the sink on while they brush their teeth.

Huntsville

Loudest of the kids no competition, the child can scream and will not hesitate to do so. Usually just because she’s just so excited and can’t keep it all bottled up or she feels like she’s going to burst. Got her passion for mechanics from Indiana, but instead of getting into cars and developing a bordering unhealthy obsession with NASCAR like mom and dad went “you know what’s cooler than race cars? Spaceships!!” and it all was downhill from there. Definitely a Mathlete.

Evansville

The most mild of all the kids, not really loud and angry like dad, not really quiet and passive-aggressive like mom. She’s the mild salsa of people, and she is definitely happy that way. Very interested in medical fields, particularly the ones most people find the grossest, knows a lot of medicine history though mostly civil war and ww1. Walk away now if you don’t want to hear about the history of amputations and prosthetics.

Tuscaloosa

The rough and tumble kid, much like Alabama when he was young. Stubborn and very opinionated. Wishes he was still the capital, often jealous that Montgomery gets to be it. Football is already his entire personality, wears nothing but Crimson Tide merch, and has played youth football since he was four. Regular in urgent care, not always for football related injuries because he is also just has dumbass as a personality trait.

Montgomery

Most quiet and anxious of the kids, much like Indiana when she was young, and also like his namesake General Richard Montgomery. Even already often wishes Tuscaloosa was still the capital just to not have to deal with the responsibility of it. Absolute history nerd, “did ya know-” could be his catchphrase with how often he walks up to any available family member to go on his latest ramble. Plays football too, but really hates it, too nervous to tell Alabama he doesn’t like it.

Indianapolis

How to kindly call an eleven year old a snobby, self-important, prick. Genuinely thinks he’s the center of the universe, not helped by the fact that he is in the dead center of Indiana. Has that previously mentioned bordering unhealthy obsession with NASCAR. He's also just so... annoyingly patriotic, but doesn't show it until you're too far in to the conversation to just walk away.

South Bend

I mean this affectionately, they’re weird. You either die a weird little boy or live to see yourself become a weird nonbinary teenager. Car enthusiasts, but not specifically NASCAR like the majority of the family, just generally likes cars. While you studied the blade they were at antique car shows. Really close with good ol’ Uncle Michigan.

Birmingham

Greco-Roman myths nerd over here, never going to leave his PJO phase. That baby of the family privileges really make up half this guys personality, gets whatever he wants bc he's mamas baby boy. Not really relevant to his personality but he is a solid kid, v dense.

#wttt mobile #wttt fort wayne #wttt huntsville #wttt evansville #wttt tuscaloosa #wttt montgomery #wttt indianapolis #wttt south bend #wttt birmingham #wttt indiana #wttt alabama #wttt indibama #wttt #welcome to the table

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demigodofhoolemere · 5 months ago

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My personal thoughts on the controversial animation for The Celestial Toymaker, now that I’ve seen it for myself.

~~~~~

I really wasn’t expecting to enjoy this, and bought the DVD out of a combination of the sheer curiosity to see it with my own eyes and the desire to have the escape room feature at my fingertips. The animation style left me very apprehensive as I prefer the 2D and this looked very janky and awkward, and I lean far more into purist territory and am not a big fan of taking more liberties than necessary, which anyone could see from the trailer alone that this production did unreservedly. I wanted to go into it with an open mind but I was pretty positive this was just going to be a train wreck. And there certainly are things about it that I don’t like, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was still kind of enjoying myself.

~~~~~

To get the negatives out of the way:

- The animation itself is obviously the thing everyone is talking about. The 3D motion capture approach is not something I want from these animations. It is definitely janky in places, especially with the movement of mouths. There are a lot of times it’s not synced very well, as well as the fact that they often don’t open as wide as they should, and sometimes I caught mouths not even moving at all when they should be. The expressions are also quite limited, and granted, none of these animations are ever going to perfectly capture the kind of things that folks like Patrick Troughton can do with their faces, but I’ve definitely seen better emotion from the 2D ones — it’s not that they couldn’t be expressive in this, but it’s not as wide a range as it probably should be and you certainly don’t get any particular emotion out of scenes like Steven panicking that Dodo is going to freeze. I’ve always thought his voice and the production pictures we have of that were quite moving, but you don’t really get that here, even with the audio being the same.

You also get some jerky movements at times, particularly in the legs. I will say however that the mocap is a massive improvement upon The Web of Fear, and you do get quite used to it over the course of four episodes. It felt almost normal by the end. It’s definitely got problems, but it’s also not the end of the world that a lot of us assumed it was.

- Likenesses. They’re not terrible, and I’d say Dodo and the Toymaker are the better ones, but none of them are great either. Though I don’t want to attribute this problem solely to this particular animation, because you can certainly get varying levels of accuracy in the others as well — just ask Jamie. But it is a bit uncanny valley. I also wish they could get something as simple as eye color right. This isn’t the first time something official has incorrectly colored Bill’s eyes blue and I’m sure it won’t be the last but it gets increasingly silly each time. And in the opposite direction, surely you can look at pictures of Peter to know that his eyes are blue and not brown? (And this is more of an overall design choice as opposed to relating strictly to his likeness, but I couldn’t stop noticing that Steven’s teeth often showed way too much when he speaks and I found it distracting).

- Liberties in visuals. I get why it would be enticing to play around and make things as grand as you want, and if this were its own story it would look great that way, but I’m more of a purist so I wish they’d be truer to the original. If you pretend it’s not based on something else, it all looks fantastic and lots of fun, and despite myself I did get caught up in enjoying it, but because I know what it was supposed to look like and have loved that for years, that’s what I wanted to see and I do feel cheated out of an animated version that represents the actual sets and visuals.

In the behind the scenes feature the producer talks about how it’s kind of sad to look at the original sets because they didn’t have the budget to match the high concept, and as a result it feels claustrophobic because they’re just small sets when it should be big and expansive, but honestly I feel the opposite way. I think the fact that these spaces feel closed in help add to the discomfort of feeling like they’re trapped in there and won’t get out unless they win, and to the eeriness of feeling like this is a real place that you could really find yourself in. I see the appeal of the surreality and vast openness, but I actually find it less imposing than feeling like you’re in a more real, physical space with walls and everything. I also just don’t think it feels as cramped as he was acting like it is anyway.

The expansiveness is also often to the detriment of things that should be more grounded — the “make your last move” scene is largely black space, with the Toymaker and the Doctor being quite small in the middle of the screen and you can’t see their faces. That completely detracts from the incredibly dynamic shot we have from the existing episode, where things are up close and personal and this is an intimate battle of wits that we’re right in the middle of. I was shocked that they made that moment — of all moments, too! — so impersonal. I think they definitely sacrificed too many things in favor of scope.

There are also things like the blind man’s bluff game, which I found very Escher-like and over the top (though again, fun on its own), and one very bizarre sequence in episode three as they’ve entered the room with the dancing floor. I can’t do justice to the trippiness of those visuals by trying to explain them, but I have no idea why they did that. They’re certainly fascinating, and I generally like that kind of thing, but they were just so jarring and out of place, only to stop as suddenly as they’d started. It was also quite jarring at the end of episode one when Clara and Joey lose the game; rather than going limp and then reverting to dolls and having Dodo look back disturbed, which I find to be a very evocative and unsettling idea that really sells the horror aspect of this story, they just sort of… fall into a void, or something, and it jump cuts to Steven and Dodo already opening the cupboard door and exclaiming that it’s empty, as if the audience even knew it was there for them to step into at all before that very second. They hadn’t shown the TARDIS cupboard appearing because they were so focused on the spectacle. I found these kinds of choices pretty awkward.

- Liberties with audio. Piggybacking off of what I just said about altering a scene, there are a number of times they mess with the audio track. Thankfully there aren’t too many other examples of them actually removing something from the audio (though I’m baffled by them removing Dodo’s use of Steven’s name before she says that she’s frightened near the end of episode one; just why?), but there are a number of additions to the track. And I do get why, it makes sense to want to add car noises to their booth-turned-toy-car and things like that, and it’s not like these are a massive irritant or anything, but I just don’t see the need and prefer that it be left untouched. I don’t need icy noises to sell the fact that Dodo is freezing and I don’t need electricity noises to convey the electric floor.

- Liberties with character design. This will also be listed as a positive, just because it is otherwise a very interesting thing they’ve done, making the guest cast all be different kinds of toys, but from the perspective of wanting a recreation and not a total reimagining, this is a big drawback. I want to see these people actually be people, and I think they’re far more intimidating that way. It would be easy to depersonalize your interactions with a tiny rag doll or people literally made of cards, but it’s far harder to feel detached from what is clearly a person right in front of you, which makes their determination to beat you more alarming. It also makes it far more terrifying when they do revert to being a doll or a playing card — this item sitting there was someone you were just talking to, someone who’s been punished for losing by having their freedom taken away again. The whole world of the Toymaker is far more horrific to me when you lean into the fact that these really are other people; Clara and Joey stop being funny when they realize they’re likely to lose because they’re so scared of what will befall them when they do, the king and queen are trying to win so they can reclaim their liberty and not spend eternity as cards, and Mrs. Wiggs and Sergeant Rugg are absolutely terrified of the Toymaker when he comes to berate them for their failure. These are real victims, real people who have been trapped here, and that doesn’t come across the same way when you’re not looking at an actual person the whole time who only later becomes a doll again as a terrible consequence. I think this is a critical aspect of the story and it really gets lost in translation here — and it clearly ended up getting very lost on Peter Purves, because in the commentary he kept going on about the toy designs really selling these characters as purely being toy creations of the Toymaker and not real people, which is the exact opposite point of original serial. Dodo is supposed to be right, their opponents really are alive and have their own agency outside of the Toymaker, they do human things, and it really is an awfully sad place because of what’s happened to these people here. That feeling does not carry over at all when you only show them being dolls the whole time in the first place.

- Decisions that go against dialogue. This is tied into the previous point, because it kept happening in regard to choices they made with character design. Specifically, it kept making both Steven and Dodo look incredibly stupid. When Dodo suggests that Steven should recognize the king and queen and he says that they do look familiar, and Dodo has to tell him they’re playing cards, that makes Steven look like an idiot who can’t recognize a very obvious literal playing card when it’s right in front of him lol. It also makes for an odd moment when Dodo is told to touch the king’s arm to confirm that they’re just as real as them, and she is indeed convinced by this, even though in this version she’s just touching paper. Both of these moments really only work when you have real people here that are merely dressed as the characters on the cards. You also then have her comment later that Cyril was the Jack they saw earlier, which makes no sense in light of the Jack having been made of card and looking nothing like the porcelain Cyril, and Steven’s reply that all of the Toymaker’s creations look alike to him just sounds insane considering the sheer variety they encounter in the animation. To top it all off, having Cyril be made of porcelain really makes Dodo’s decision to check on him baffling, as if she could think a being made of porcelain might be bleeding. It wasn’t her wisest moment to begin with, but I find it forgivable because she’s usually quite perceptive (far more than people give her credit for) and only fails in moments like that when her kindness overrides her better judgment — it’s a silly human decision, just like everyone else in the story. But you really can’t justify it here when he can’t possibly be bleeding. Both she and Steven have too many of these moments that are suddenly outrageously questionable in the context of the character design choices in the animation.

~~~~~

However. I was surprised to find that it was actually still enjoyable regardless, and I’m happy that I actually have positives to talk about.

- I want to reiterate that the motion capture is much improved. Not to say it’s not awkward in places, but it’s miles ahead of The Web of Fear, and honestly you do get used to it. At some point it becomes quite easy to roll with, and I eventually even came to the point where I… kinda liked it? There are also things that I’m not sure how well they could have gotten away with it in 2D, such as all the jumping around in the hopscotch game. I do have to admit that the 3D lends itself to a level of mobility that the 2D models have had a hard time with. I would not want this on any other story, but it just about works here and it is actually to the advantage of scenes like the jumping from place to place, or dancing together. (And yet it’s also apparently still not enough to help animate a hug, because when they reunite with the Doctor, Dodo just kind of… walks up to him and puts her hands on his arms after a moment). I also want to give credit for the animation of the Toymaker’s characters, because I felt they were a lot more fluid and good-looking than the human ones. I think the painted look of the human skin can be to its detriment, but the non-human designs do look rather good because the materials they’re made of don’t have that same problem and they’re not trying to mimic exact human movement in the same way.

- A plus just as much as a minus, the character designs. As much as I’m against them on principle for the reasons I mentioned before, they honestly did work very well for a reimagining. Clara is a weirdly cute little rag doll, the card designs looked great, Sergeant Rugg and Cyril make good porcelain dolls, and my standout favorite, Mrs. Wiggs is absolutely adorable crocheted out of yarn. I couldn’t stop looking at her, I genuinely could have kept watching her forever lol. As its own thing, these really were very good character designs. It’s only hampered by the fact that I can’t make myself not think about how they shouldn’t look like this. This all goes the same for the set designs and the choices regarding the level of surreality. All of these things were actually great on their own, it’s just in the context of the original story it’s trying to serve that I think it fails, and that I’m a purist at heart.

- Having anything that moves at all for the first three parts. It may be inaccurate, but there’s still something satisfying about watching ANY moving version of these episodes, and I’ve often found that, even though recons are and forever will be my go-to and I will swear by them until the day I die, watching the animations tends to help me process and retain things better from that point onwards — for example, my memory of The Faceless Ones is a lot stronger now for having seen “footage” of the missing parts, and it then helps make the recon even easier to follow than before. This one is no exception. My memory is good for The Celestial Toymaker anyway, but there’s just something about movement that roots it in your brain that much better. I’m not one who struggles with recons — obviously, since I still love and choose them over animations — but it still helps to have these additional aids to cement it more firmly. Whatever problems this animation has, I still feel like it helps to have “watched” these episodes in whatever way possible.

- Plain and simple, it manages to have a sort of charm to it, in spite of me. Even while I criticized it for different things the whole time, I somehow still had a good time. I’m sure it’s in part down to the fact that I’ve always loved this story, and it would also just be hard for me to be in a bad mood watching Classic Who, but there’s something about this that still made me happy even in the face of my issues with it. I dislike their choices but I nevertheless found it hard to dislike the whole thing itself. I don’t know what it is.

- bonus: you can tell in the commentary that this animation made Peter so happy and I can’t be too mad at it when I hear how thrilled that darling man is with it.

~~~~~

Despite the fact that I went on considerably longer for the cons than pros, I did nevertheless enjoy this, to my surprise. I’m much more of a purist and want as-faithful-as-realistically-possible recreations rather than all-out reimaginings, so on principle I’m still against many of the choices they made, and I really wish this were just a fascinating and ambitious fanmade production rather than the official one because it means I’ll never get a more accurate version out of them, but I can’t bring myself to hate this. It’s kind of like when you watch a movie that’s objectively a bad adaptation of the source material but still entertaining as its own movie. Honestly, I would watch this again and have a good time. I just hope that they do NOT get it into their heads that this is the right style to keep using going forwards, because this absolutely would not work for anything else, and only halfways works for this to begin with.

I do recommend giving this release a shot despite the animation, but your mileage may vary. This is definitely something that you could either love or hate and honestly I think both reactions are valid, because I’m clearly quite conflicted myself. You can really only know if you watch it for yourself.

Verdict: against all odds and my own criticisms, I actually liked this. It’s not what I would have wanted for it at all, nor do I want them to ever do this again for anything else, but somehow despite myself I did like it in its own weirdly charming way.

~~~~~

Bonus: special features

- Great commentaries as always on all four animated episodes as well as a separate one for the existing episode four.

- Optional reconstructions as per usual. I haven’t watched these yet so I can’t say whether they’re on par with Loose Cannon or not.

- There’s a making-of for the animation, though it’s much shorter than I expected since they’ve typically been longer on other releases. Still interesting but not much going on there.

- Very nice to include the VHS intro by Sylvester McCoy. I love that they tend to add things like that.

- They have an old audio interview with Carmen Silvera. I haven’t listened to this yet but I’m looking forward to it.

- Photo gallery as always. There were actually a few I’d never seen before, as well as larger extended versions of things I’m familiar with as being more zoomed in. Always exciting when they can still surprise you with something.

- Comes with the standard informative booklet, which I always love.

- And of course, the gem I largely bought this thing for, the escape room with Maureen O’Brien, Peter Purves, and Lisa Bowerman. I’m thrilled to say it’s everything I was hoping for, and if you’re like me and could watch the Classic Who family do pretty much anything, this feature alone is worth the purchase. You’re following them through this thing the entire time and it was such a joy for me. So many things cut down the runtime of stuff like this — I remember during the Infinity War press tour they had some of the cast in an escape room that had a time of 40 minutes or so, but the actual video we got was maybe 10 minutes tops and I felt robbed of all the material we could have been seeing, because I could have happily sat there for the whole length of what they actually did. This is not a problem here in the slightest, because as usual, the people making these fun features for Doctor Who releases care about me and know what I want. What I wanted was to see these three’s entire experience in there, and I received. There are moments in it where being much more knowledgeable about Who than them is painful because you’re screaming at them to get it right, but most of the time it’s just a ton of fun watching them try to work everything out and to see their different personalities try to take control of the situation at different times. There’s one surprise in particular that had me absolutely grinning from ear to ear, and if you’re planning on getting this release, I won’t spoil what it is, but oh my gosh. Forget this feature alone being worth it, that segment alone is worth it. Could not believe what I was seeing, it was great. Overall I can’t speak highly enough of this and how much I enjoyed the crud out of it, and I am very much looking forward to the rest of them that they’ll be putting out for the other Classic eras.

#classic who #the celestial toymaker #missing episodes #review #dw escape room

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bylightofdawn · 11 months ago

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2023 Wrap Up.

It’s officially New Years in Texas. 2023 has been a weird year for me, one that both dragged and flew by way too quickly. There’s so much pain and awfulness going on the world right now that it’s hard to not dwell on or carry that into 2024 but I’m going to try and keep this relatively light-hearted and positive if only because I want to try and start the New Year on a positive note. For me personally? I didn’t really do anything big or notable but I had some smaller but meaningful victories.

I made a New Years resolution (something I’m pretty vehemently against because I always feel disappointed in myself when I don’t follow through) that I was going to start writing again and I would try and write every day. I didn’t manage every day but boy howdy did I still keep up that resolution. The major project of course being Seeds for the Future which I clocked in at 176,456 words minus I want to say around 10,000 words which I’d previously started like 3 years ago before abandoning it. So we’ll call it 165,000 to make it even-ish.

Holy. Shit. 165,000 in one year. I did not in a million years think I had that in me. And it’s been a wild ride. At points I felt like I was being ridden by a damned demon that was demanding I write this NOW. I was especially busy the first six months or so and then I burned myself out which….completely understandable when you consider your standard basic fiction book is around 70,000+ so I wrote two fucking novels in six months length-wise. But I also wrote a bunch of other stuff. I wrote A Fragile World Between Sharp Teeth which I’m still absurdly in love with. Wrote two whole-ass Witcher fics this month and one Star Trek fic as well as some other WIPs.

By my calculations I wrote -drum roll- 233,383 words in 2023.

223,383 WORDS WRITTEN ARE YOU SHITTING ME

And actually followed through on a New Years Resolution.

I also forced myself out of my comfort zone in little ways. I pushed myself to take action on my health to try and figure out the cause of my chronic pain and while the diagnosis was a bummer as was getting diagnosed with diabetes on top of everything else this year, I am proud that I forced myself to do it. I also did silly things like bleached my hair and dyed it all manner of crazy colors.

I think for 2024 I’m going to try and hold myself accountable for my health. I desperately need to go back to therapy and as much as I hate to admit it, I need to join a gym and strengthen my body. It will be the best thing I can do for my RA if I can help strengthen my muscles and I think it will help with my pain levels. It just...it sounds like so much effort though and it scares me so we’ll see how that journey goes. I’m going to keep plugging away slowly but surely.

I’m also going to keep trying to write in 2024. I have so many fic ideas I want to write. I’m definitely not going to do anymore crazy fucking 100K fics again. It definitely takes a toll on me creatively and not going to lie, after a while it feels like I’m just kinda screaming into the void because the sad truth of the matter is, long-fic will turn readers off and they won’t click or interact with it. And eventually my imposter syndrome reared its ugly head and the last half of this year and trying to finish Seeds has been a slog for the most part and not one I enjoyed.

Now, I’m going to go pour myself a glass of Moscato, eat some stupidly expensive caprese salad and I think edit the first chapter of my Gallahir sequel. I think I might be able to get it up and posted today if I can edit the first chapter tonight. Thank you to all my tumblr buddies, both new and old who have stuck it out with me through everything. I love and appreciate y’all and I am hoping you all have a happier, more kinder year than 2023.

#life of el #out with the old #in with the new #ngl I'm glad 2023 is over it's been a slog the past six months

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aemiron-main · 2 years ago

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i’ve got my eye on you: virginia creel still has her eyes and i know how she got them back.

insanity time: it looks like Virginia’s eyes may still be intact. there’s more evidence for this too and I’ll compile it later but anyway.

This shot of Henry from Henry’s retelling, right? The shot where we’re literally seeing through Virginia’s eyes based on where she lands on the table in Victor’s retelling?

And then the shot from Victor’s retelling where we’re looking through Henry’s eyes at Virginia?

Okay so, look closely at Virginia’s top eye in that second screenshot from Victor’s retelling.

Idk about you guys but to me, I can definitely see a pupil, iris, and white of the eye. The iris is blue for some reason and seems to have a black ring around it, which is strange, esp considering that Virginia’s eyes are brown.

Now, I KNOW that this sounds like an insane stretch. Like, what other evidence is there that could possibly tie to the idea of Virginia somehow ending up with blue eyes that’s also tied to vision/illusion imagery?

Oh.

I’m just saying. The vecna vision version of Laura Cunningham/Chrissy’s mom has EXTREMELY similar jewelry to Virginia, similar hair, wears similar pink clothes, and even wears the exact same shade of nail polish as Virginia.

“Well maybe Laura Cunningham’s eyes are blue and that’s why the vecna verison of her eyes are blue” Nope. They’re brown. Laura’s eyes are brown. I’ve hit my image limit but go look at a picture of her. They turned blue as part of an illusion/powers and I think the same may have happened with Virginia, hell, Max’s eyes turn bright blue when she’s tranced, same with all of the other trance victims it seems- their eyes look “white,” but in reality, it’s actually very light blue contacts with the pupil seemingly edited out in post production.

Let’s look at a brightened pic of Virginia’s eye.

Like cmon. You can see the pupil and the blue iris and the white sclera!! It’s right there!!! She has her eye!! It’s regenerated and that’s what that weird, tendril shaped goo is that doesn’t flow the same way that the blood is flowing!

That strange goo around Virginia’s eye… not the blood, but the extra, tendril-shaped stuff.. that isn’t there in previous shots… It’s the same sort of shape and consistency as the goo in the byers shed (where Will likely shot henry, which is shown in the comics), and the same as the goo that the Henrygorgon and S4 vecna Henry melt down into and then later reform from. (the henrygorgon in the byers house and Henry in s4 after Nancy launches him through a window).

Henry canonically has regenerative healing. His healing, like I said, is what we see with the Henrygorgon regrowing it’s foot and reforming after dissolving in s1, and the same with Henry after getting launched through the window by Nancy AND with how his neck tentacle grows back after Max ripped it. And I don’t think it’s the result of his banishment into the UD, nor of the shadow particles, as how on earth would he have survived the lightning if he didn’t have regenerative abilities pre-shadow particles? How would he have survived El banishing him? Imo, his healing is genetic, and he got it from Virginia. Not to mention that Henry’s regenerative healing is very likely what resulted in the vines on his body- they’re vine-like tumors (hence why he also has teeth in his forehead etc- it’s like a rumour), his cells replicate similarly to tumors as part of his healing- why is the vine/tentacle imagery relevant? Because the goo around Virginia’s eyes is shaped like little vines/tendrils, it’s a visual callback to Henry’s tentacles and how both his tentacles AND Virginia’s eye involves regenerative healing.

I also have a more in-depth (but not full) analysis of Henry’s regenerative healing in this post. I’m still not sure what exactly happened with every single aspect of the creel murders- Henry very well may have attempted to kill Virginia and she survived, only to be killed later by Henry or lab officials showing up to the house, but I also think parts of it were an illusion. I’m definitely going to try and get to the bottom of it in a full analysis though. I’m also going to do a full ST regenerative healing analysis at some point because there’s a LOT more to it.

But yeah. That’s why we got that shot through Virginia’s eyes of her looking up at Henry- because she was literally looking at him.

#stranger things #byler #st analysis #creel family #virginia creel

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