#and tbh anything that makes this slightly harder is going to make the end product hell

[callixton]

it actually sucks so fucking bad that one of my incompletes is in this theatre history class bc i actually love theatre history and learning about it. but these classes are so badly structured and taught that my brain now refuses to associate anything going on with them with actually learning abt a thing i like

[marbleheavy]

Who needs Tinder when you have Romantic Literature

I have decided to start posting some stuff here too, maybe it will motivate me to write more. Anyways, this is moderately fluffy I’d say. It’s a mortal and college AU. Idk how to introduce this tbh, but please enjoy!

(Also, just throwing this out there because this blog is kinda new, I’m down to write requests too!)

Pairing: Solangelo 

Word Count: 3,197

Rated: Teen

You can also read this on AO3! 

Will knew she was coming before he saw her, he had heard the door slam and the unmistakable rapid steps. Whenever Charlotte had a new development with the boy in her Romantic Literature class, Will was always the first to know. He sighed, already prepared for the impending word vomit he was going to endure.

"Will!" Charlotte shouted.

Will turned around to smile at her. Don't get him wrong, he and Charlotte were friends, they chatted in class all the time, they studied together, they even sometimes went to parties together, but it was all very superficial. Charlotte had never met his boyfriend or any of his truly close friends, and he hadn't met hers. However, that didn't mean he was exempt from listening to her pine.

"Hey Charlotte," Will grinned, "What's up?"

Charlotte plopped down on the stool next to him and let out an exasperated sigh, "I can't handle it anymore, Will."

Will frowned, his eyebrows furrowing, "What?"

"I can't handle him anymore. He is so fucking pretty that I am going to lose my mind!"

"Charlotte, I'm sure that you'll be okay."

"No, you don't get it. Like he's hot, we knew that, but he is also so pretty. Like, Greek God pretty. It's truly unfair. I don't know how to handle myself," she ranted.

Will chuckled, shaking his head, "You know, you could always talk to him."

Charlotte looked appalled at the suggestion, "Oh no, absolutely not. I'm way too afraid, I've been basically stalking him all semester. Plus, there is no way someone that attractive doesn't have a girlfriend."

"Hey, you never know, maybe just test the waters, you could be surprised," Will said, trying to reassure her.

"Yeah, maybe, or maybe I will be rejected and I will have to drop out to save myself from further embarrassment. I will just pine from afar."

"You know, my boyfriend is in that class, I could ask him and see if he knows anything," Will offered.

Charlotte grinned at him, "Really? That would actually be great. By the way, what's your boyf-"

Charlotte was cut off by the professor entering and starting the lesson. Will glanced at Charlotte, but she waived him off, already dropping the question.

--- Will opened the door to their apartment and let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't a particularly difficult day, but Will hadn't slept much the night before. "Sunshine, you home?" Will called out.

Will heard a response from the kitchen, so he dropped his bag on the floor and kicked off his shoes, making his way into their kitchen.

"Hey darling," Will sighed as he walked up and wrapped his arms around Nico's waist, resting his head on his shoulder.

Nico smiled, tipping his head back to Will as he continued to stir whatever he was cooking on the stove. Will pecked his lips, not wanting to distract Nico, his hunger outweighed his desire to properly kiss him, which is a rare occurrence.

Nico hummed, "How was your day?"

"It was fine, I'm just worn out. Charlotte had another development with her Romantic Lit boy, it was all I heard about during our Chem lab. How about you?"

"Good, I only had the one class today so I spent a lot of time in the studio. Got a lot done, I should be ready for my showcase a few weeks in advance," Nico said.

Will grinned, "That's great! I can't wait to see it, I'm sure it will be incredible."

Nico scoffed, "Will, you've seen my stuff before, I wouldn't call it incredible."

"I disagree, you're only saying that because it's your work. I am, as always, a totally unbiased source who just happens to believe that my boyfriend's art is the best in the world, because it is."

Nico smiled, turning the stove off and moving to face Will. He looked at him, and reached for his face, "You're too nice to me."

Will leaned down, his forehead pressing against Nico's, "Oh darling, I can be way nicer."

Okay, so maybe Will wasn't actually that hungry.

---

Fridays were Will's favorite day. His only class of the day was his Chemistry Lab and that wasn't until noon, which meant that he could lay in bed with Nico until at least eleven. Nico had seemed particularly angelic that morning, with his hair splayed across Will's chest as he used him as a pillow. Maybe he was just extra appreciative because of all the discussion about gorgeous boys.

Having to drag himself from bed this morning was harder than normal, and as he sat at the lab table stool, he was still longing for Nico. He had just settled into his spot when Will heard his name from across the classroom and saw Charlotte walking towards their table. He smiled brightly at her and moved his bag to make space.

"Hey, Will! Did you ask your boyfriend about the Romantic Lit guy?"

"What? Oh! Um, no, I'm sorry, I-" Will paused, blushing brightly, "I got distracted. But I will ask after class today and text you."

"Oh, okay. No worries, I was just wondering. The other day, we were discussing Walt Whitman's poetry, and oh my God, he's literally perfect. He is smart and well spoken, and he's so gorgeous. I seriously don't understand how he is allowed to exist on this planet," Charlotte lamented.

Will chuckled, “I understand, I genuinely cannot comprehend how my boyfriend is allowed to look the way that he does. The struggle of incomprehensible beauty is real.”

“Oh, speaking of! I really want to meet that boyfriend of yours, maybe he will tell me more about himself since you spill so little. My roommate and I are hosting a party this Saturday, you should come and bring him!” she exclaimed.

Will grinned widely at her, “Yeah! I just have to double check with him but that sounds great! I need to get him out of the apartment more anyways.”

“Perfect! Anyways, I had a question about the lab, I screwed up my balancing of the equations somewhere, was the product nitrogen oxide or nitrogen dioxide?"

Will and Charlotte worked throughout the class, working hard to finish the post-lab questions and the write-up, neither wanted to have to work on it over the weekend.

As class ended, they quickly collected any notebooks and papers and walked out of class, desperate for a break. As they stepped into the hallway, Will assured Charlotte he would check with his boyfriend about the part and the Lit boy, and Charlotte smiled brightly in response.

Will pushed open the door to the science building open and stepped into the fresh air. Spring was just starting and trees across campus were blooming, but he didn't stop to admire the beauty or appreciate the warmer weather as he walked briskly towards his apartment. He knew that Nico didn't have any classes today and wasn't planning to go to the studio, which meant it was more than likely he was still in bed and Will would be able to climb right back in and pretend he never left.

As he rushed up the stairs to their apartment and jammed his key in the door, he was already shedding off his bag, coat, and shoes. Normally, he is much more organized, but today he left his pile of things on the floor next to the door as he scurried to the bedroom. Just as he suspected, Nico was still curled up in bed, dozing lightly. Will heard a hum as he padded into the room and Nico stretched out towards him, silently reaching out to him. Will grinned and climbed into their bed, pulling Nico close to him. Nico quickly curled into Will's chest and sighed. The wave of peace that washed over Will was unexpected and he quickly fell asleep.

---

Waking up late in the afternoon, either because of a nap or some really extreme sleeping in, has never really been Will's thing but as he felt Nico tighten his grip on him and seemingly climb even more onto Will, he decided it was okay. No matter how they fell asleep, Will always woke up with Nico on top of him, not that he minded. Will stared at his boyfriend's face resting on his chest, studying the curve of his nose and the shape of his lips. It didn't really matter how long they've been together, he never got tired of looking at him. Will didn't notice Nico's eyes open so when he finally made eye contact, he jumped a little. Nico chuckled, pulling his head back slightly to look at Will.

"You're a dork," Nico said.

Will huffed, feigning offense, "I don't know what you're talking about, I'm cool. I'm a cool cat."

Nico smiled, leaning down and pressing a kiss to Will's jaw lightly and mumbling into his neck, "No actual cool person has ever referred to themselves as a 'Cool Cat'."

"Well, there is a first for everything."

Nico sat up slightly, but not really. He was lying on top of Will so he wasn't ever really able to sit, but he shifted so he was straddling Will's hips, leaning down over him.

"How was class?" He asked as he leaned down to slowly kiss up Will's throat.

Will let out a breath, "Good, by the way, my friend Charlotte, I talked about her yesterday? Well, uh, she uh-" he stuttered as Nico began to bite lightly on his throat, "She's in your Romantic Lit class, um, and has a crush on this guy and she asked me, ugh, to ask you, uh, if you knew who he was? She said that he's super hot," Will stopped talking as Nico suddenly froze his movements.

Nico moved his head up to look at Will sharply "I'm clearly trying to get in your pants right now and you want to talk about other hot guys?"

Will grinned sheepishly, "No! No, no, I just, I don't want to forget! But I'll wait, yeah, I'll just wait. It's fine, but please, get in my pants."

Nico smirked at Will's excuse, but clearly he accepted it as he leaned back down to finally kiss Will on the lips properly. Will reciprocated immediately, moving his hands from Nico's thighs to grab his face. He hummed into Nico's mouth, biting lightly at his lips and Nico sighed. Nico's hands were on Will's shoulders to stabilize himself as Will began to kiss and suck along the edge of Nico's jaw.

"Tesoro," Nico moaned, leaning into Will's touch.

Will smiled through his kisses, nipping at his ear lobe and whispering, "Yes, darling?"

Nico groaned in frustration and grabbed at the hem of Will's shirt, tugging it off. Will stopped to look at Nico, his chest rising rapidly with his erratic breathing, his face flushed. Will always thought that Nico was pretty, but this was hard to beat. Nico, annoyed by the lack of kissing, quickly moved to reconnect their lips, tangling his fingers in Will's hair. He kissed Will, the kiss surely bruising their lips as he worked Will's mouth open. Will couldn't get enough of the feeling of Nico on top of him, of the feeling of Nico kissing him, it was overwhelming. Every time they did this, it was like the first time, except this time Will knew that if he put his hands near Nico's neck he would moan and if he traced his fingers along his torso he would sigh. His favorite part though, was when he would suck hickeys into his neck and Nico would whisper his name like it was the most divine word in the world. Will pulled his lips down Nico's throat and started biting lightly at his collarbones and pulse points.

"Will," Nico sighed, and Will smiled, there it was.

Just as Nico started to work his hands towards Will's belt, Nico' phone rang. Will pulled away and sat up, keeping Nico on his lap and watching as he reached over to grab his phone from the bedside table. Nico groaned as he saw the caller, "Will, I'm so sorry, but it's Hazel."

Nico answered the phone, greeting his sister, and Will dropped his head to rest on the crook of Nico's neck, still nibbling lightly.

Nico let out a squeak, pushing Will's head away lightly, "William," he scolded, "Stop that."

Will grinned at Nico, looking at him playfully as he heard Hazel chuckle over the phone. He leaned against the headboard as Nico talked to his sister about his gallery opening. When their conversation was finally done, Nico tossed the phone to the foot of the bed and wrapped his arms behind Will's head, "Now, where were we?"

Will smiled, "Sorry darling, I'm starving."

Nico rolled his eyes but climbed off of Will's lap and stood up, "You're such a cockblock."

Will laughed as he stood up too, "I'd say your sister is, so don't get mad at me."

"I can be mad at you all I want, first you talk about other guys and now you say you're 'too hungry'" Nico joked.

Will shoved his shoulder as he walked into the kitchen and toward the fridge. Nico hopped onto the counter, watching as Will searched for food. Will pulled out some leftover pasta and decided to microwave it, "So, that possible boy in your Romantic Literature class that Charlotte loves, do you know him?"

Nico shrugged, "I mean, maybe, I don't really pay attention to the other people in that class."

"Charlotte said that he was talking during your Walt Whitman discussion the other day," Will added.

Nico frowned, "I don't know, not many people participated that day, it was mostly me."

"Well, that's okay. I mean, I'm sure she will figure it out. Also, how do you feel about going to a party tomorrow night?" Will asked.

Nico nodded, "That's fine, but can we go separately? I was hoping to be in the studio tomorrow, and I don't want to make you wait for me."

"Yeah, of course, but I don't mind waiting for you, darling," Will reassured.

Nico smiled softly as Will walked to stand between his legs against the counter, "I know, but you don't get to go out often, and I'm not sure how long I'll be."

Will bent down and kissed Nico softly, resting his forehead against Nico's, "I love you."

"I love you too, Tesoro."

-----

Will had been at the party for about 30 minutes when he finally saw Charlotte. He waived at her as he walked up, and she grinned at him.

"Will! I'm so glad you came! Where is that boy of yours?" Charlotte exclaimed.

"He's on his way, he had some work to do before he could come. Also, he has no idea who your Romantic Lit boy is, sorry," Will said, shouting slightly so she could hear him over the music.

"That's okay! I'm hoping he will come tonight, we invited a ton of people and I'm hoping word got around to him," she explained.

Will smiled and continued to chat with her, sipping at his drink every so often. He knows in the back of his mind that Nico should be there soon and he should keep an eye out, but he figured it would be fine. Charlotte suddenly grabbed his arm, and grinned wildly at him.

"Will! He's here! I'm so excited, look," she whispered excitedly.

Will turned his head around and searched the crowd, he didn't see anybody who could be her Lit boy, but he did see Nico approaching and smiled at him, their eyes meeting. Will noticed Nico's shirt, it was Will's favorite button up with sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He liked seeing Nico in his clothes, it gave him a rush of pride.

"Will! He's so cute! And the rolled up dress shirt thing is so hot!" Charlotte said.

Will whipped his head toward Charlotte, confusion etched in his features. Suddenly it hit him. Oh. Oh no.

"Oh my God, Charlotte wait, no-" he started.

It was too late, Nico had already made it all the way over to them and he smiled brightly, his stupid, charming smile. Will felt Charlotte drop her grip on his arm and adjust her shirt.

"Hi! I'm so glad you could come!" Charlotte said, her tone shifting to something far more flirty.

Nico seemed a little shocked by her, "Oh, yeah. Hi. Thanks for inviting us."

Charlotte's brows furrowed, "Us?" she started.

"Hey Tesoro, how was your day?" Nico asked Will, grabbing his hand and intertwining their fingers.

Charlotte's head flicked between Nico and Will.

Will could feel heat rising in his neck as he looked at Charlotte, "Um, it was good. So Charlotte, this is my boyfriend, Nico. Nico, this is Charlotte."

Charlotte was frozen, staring at Will widely as he panicked, terrified that she would freak out. Instead, she finished the rest of her drink in one gulp and then laughed.

"Oh! Really? That's hilarious! We really do have the exact same type!" She said, giggling.

Will seemed a little shocked, he was unsure if this was real or if she was about to start crying.

"Um, what?" Nico asked.

Will, without taking his eyes off Charlotte who was still laughing, explained "So, you know how I was telling you how Charlotte has a giant crush on a boy in her Romantic Literature that you are also in? Well, that boy is you."

Nico looked quickly at Charlotte, "Oh, um, sorry. You're really nice and smart but I'm super gay and very much dating Will."

Charlotte shook her head, "No, really it's fine! I'm just shocked this miscommunication lasted so long! I'm happy for you! You're gorgeous by the way, like truly, ten out of ten. Will, you caught a great one."

Will was still off balance by Charlotte's reaction and her lack of anger or sadness.

"Are you," Will paused, "okay? Do you want us to leave?"

"God no! Really Will, I'm okay. It was just a crush. And I know how you talk about your boyfriend, I would never try and interfere with that," Charlotte reassured, "But, I'm gonna go get another drink. Please stay, though."

Charlotte walked away and Nico turned towards Will. Will looked down at him and smiled lightly, but he still seemed like a deer caught in headlights. Nico grabbed Will's face, "Are you okay?" Nico asked.

Will nodded, "Yeah, this is all just crazy. I've been listening to her talk about that boy for months and turns out that it's you! I'm just not really sure what to do."

"Well, start by taking a deep breath," Nico said, "And then you can start repeating all the things you said about me to Charlotte that made her just laugh about this."

Will seemed to relax even though his cheeks turned bright red, "Hmm, I don't know. Maybe I won't."

Nico grabbed Will's wrist and sorted dragging him to the nearest closet or bathroom or bedroom, "No sir, you owe me for cockblocking me earlier."

Will laughed, "I didn't cockblock, it was an IOU."

Nico smirked, "Well I'd like to cash that in now please."

[ajokeformur-ray]

Do you ever have insecurities so deeply rooted in you that you think they’ll never go away? I have this fear of no one ever loving me or me not being good enough for someone else. Are there things you do that help you deal with your insecurities?

Do you ever have insecurities so deeply rooted in you that you think they’ll never go away?

Nonnie, I have plenty of insecurities just like that. On a daily basis, these fears/thoughts cross my mind:

My acne and how red and repulsive it is (it’s on one side of my face so I have a Phantom of the Opera thing going on). Who would want to kiss a face like mine, all bumpy and red and gross? I haven’t had clear skin for one day in the last ten years, though it only started to bother me at fifteen.

My body in general terms (why do you think I hide it in baggy clothes? Not just for slappy sleeve wars, though that’s a large part of it). Who would want to hold this body, which is slightly overweight?

My writing. Everything I post makes me feel sick; what if it’s bad? What if it’s so out of character and so boring that people stop reading my stuff and I lose the ��air’ on my blog I’ve worked so hard to create and keep? Who wants to support someone who can’t deliver on their usual standard?

My general sense of worth. I’m not worth anything unless I can do things for other people. My value as a human comes down to that and if I can’t deliver on my own insanely high set of standards, then I’m not worth anything and that usually creates a massive downward spiral which ends in me doubting my right to existence. You can probably guess where that leads, if I let it continue (I try not to lmao my demons are cowards in the daylight).

There are more, all of which are connected to this one ^^ but they’re Super Personal so I won’t share them here. 

Are there things you do that help you deal with your insecurities?

I have had all of these and more since I was fifteen; so I’m very much used to them and as each arises, I know what to do in order to make myself feel better. So, for the first two, I take active steps to avoid mirrors and reflective surfaces. For the third one, I reread my old works and connect with them in ways I haven’t done since they were written. And the fourth one, well... that’s the heaviest and most prevalent insecurity I have, and most days I feel like I have to justify my existence via. productivity otherwise I’m not worth anything.

I deal with them as they come, and I do what I have to do to get through them. Usually, I help others in the hopes that maybe in comforting them, I can work these feelings out of my system and comfort me, too. I don’t want anyone to feel as I do every day, so I try to help and to be there for others as much as I can be.

I’ve had these for seven years now and they’re always just as strong as they were when they first arose, so I’ll probably always have them. Especially the last one; there’s more in that one than I’m willing to share here, though my closest friends will know what I’m talking about.

Most importantly, I reach out to those people. Whether or not I talk to them about the insecurities themselves, I keep myself busy (this is both a distraction and an insecurity in itself; my brain is kinda... if one insecurity rises, they all do.) by talking to them and surrounding myself with things that make me feel good: my friends, my writing, my blog... I essentially just ride out the wave of insecurities with a bright yellow surfboard. What else can I do?

I have this fear of no one ever loving me or me not being good enough for someone else. 

I’m so sorry that you deal with these fears, darling. That’s something incredibly heavy and I’m so sorry that you have to shoulder it. I understand and empathise completely, for I have the same fears:

I will never be loved in real life in the ways that Joker loves me (though, I swore off real life relationships long ago for Different Reasons). I will never be able to work hard enough to make up for the fact that I exist, that I deserve to be here and I don’t have to prove my place in the world by being of service to others. I will never be good enough for anyone, not even myself.

One of the hardest lessons you can learn in life - and it can take a literal lifetime for some, or it comes very naturally to others - is to learn to love yourself. All of that love which is in your chest, sitting there and making you feel like your heart is gonna’ explode out of your rib cage, can be channelled towards yourself. Treat yourself the way you would treat a loved one, and even the worst of days can improve even the tiniest amount. It’s easier said than done, everything is, but life’s also much easier if you’re on your own side. But that’s not to say that you won’t be loved by anyone else until you can love yourself, and tbh that’s a very toxic message to send out.

One day, you will meet someone who makes everything make sense. Your soul kinda goes, oh, there you are and they’ll love you for you. They won’t love you despite your flaws, they’ll love you because of them. This may be romantic love, platonic love, or something in between, but you will find love. You may have to be patient and it’ll be harder some times than in others, but it’s much better to be alone and yearning but overall happy than it is to be in a relationship and still feeling alone. Love will come, darling, I promise you.

The fact that you are you, the you reading this right now, no matter what you’re feeling or anything else, exist and are living means that you have worth and value. You are enough. You will always be enough, no matter what. I’m so proud of you for reaching out and for being so brave and open. I’m really sorry if this answer isn’t what you were looking for or if I was selfish in how I have answered you; you’re not alone in this, is my point, and your fears are just that; fears. They have no basis in reality much of the time because our minds are funny, tricky little things.

TL;DR: You are enough, you have always been and will always be enough. You will find love, and as long as you love and accept yourself, you have everything you already need. Sending you light and strength, dear nonnie.

[littlemeowmeowschimmy]

Threesome [Hoseok x Reader]

credit: littlemeowmeowschimmy

Requests opened // m.list 

Genre: Smut // Fisting // Dirty talk // Oral (fem.)

Summary:  You mentioned you had a boyfriend. Maybe write something about you guys having some kind of threesome with J-Hope (my bias). I think that I'll extremely cute as well hot, maybe he would like it as well. Anyways thanks for the hard work and hope you have a nice day. :)

WC: 3.5k

A/N: Tbh I showed my boyfriend, and he was like “Go for it. I have nothing against it.” and now here we are. Thank you for your lovely comment, it seriously means the world to me. I will have a lovely evening, and you shall as well too. 

»»————-　★　————-««

“You’re honestly considering this?” You questioned, your boyfriend leaning against the breakfast counter. You shot him a look that was a mixture of confusion and desire. He was stripped to nothing but his tight boxers that hugged his thighs. He, much to your amusement and annoyance started to work out more often. Giving him more of a reason for you to fondle over him as every day, he grew more into a masterpiece. 

Carter shrugged his shoulders at you. His dyed blond hair sweeping across his eyes as he continued to shove his peanut butter and toast into his mouth. This conversation you were having was brought up by your devilishly handsome boyfriend. He suggested to invite his friend over for a threesome, but you didn’t particularly enjoy sharing him. 

He said that it could make the bedroom life hotter and maybe even try new things out. Carter wasn’t much of the possessive type; honestly, he was the exact opposite. He could care less who you hung out with because your heart belongs solely to him. He was the type of man you had been looking for your entire life, and now he was starting to suggest things that you were interested yet terrified with. 

“I mean, I don’t think Hobi would object.” If Carter could see you now, he would ultimately start laughing. Out of all the people he could have considered, it had to be Hoseok. The talented, handsome dancer who, if it weren’t for you dating Carter, you would fall in between his sheets. He stood just a little taller than your boyfriend and had beautiful brown eyes. 

His hair was usually styled over his eyebrows, but sometimes was drawn up and exposing his forehead. When he danced, it was like he was drawing everyone’s attention in and keeping it there. The way his body would move to the beats often made you fantasize about him. Before Carter could move to face you, your jaw shut instantly. Cheeks blazing with heat as you glanced down at your fingers. 

Ultimately fumbling with them as you didn’t really understand where he was going with this. Carter had mentioned that if you weren’t comfortable with having someone else in bed that he wouldn’t pressure you into doing so. Nor would he bring it up ever again. Instead, Carter just wanted to get your opinion on this and see where it would land him. 

“C’ mon [Y/n],” he spoke, turning around, finally facing you. Bits of crumbs hung to the corners of his mouth as his devilish smirk still rested upon his lips. “Just think about it okay?” he finished swiftly moving himself over and bringing a hand under his chin. You dart your gaze away from his beautiful sea-green eyes, unable to look at them directly. 

He could get you to agree to anything with just one sorrowful glance. You huffed again, crossing your arms over your chest as your cheeks puffed out. How Carter loved seeing as it made you look younger than you usually wear. He gave a little smirk, leaning in and kissing your forehead as you silently answered him. 

You knew if Carter got his way, you wouldn’t hear the end of it... 

»»————-　★　————-««

In the end, your boyfriend eventually got the end of it. How he somehow convinced you that everything would be alright and you would have fun was honestly a mystery. You scowled at yourself, thinking the situation was a little out of your comfort zone. 

But you couldn’t really deny that you were interested in it. Instead, you were surprised that Hoseok agreed to it at all in the first place. It wasn’t like he was coming in and destroying your relationship. Instead, he was coming in and making things a little more interesting in the bedroom between you two. Not that Carter didn’t do well in bed, but you both wanted to try something new. 

And Carter so happened to be interested in having another person in bed. You bit your lower lip, careful not to smug the already perfect lipstick painted on. Your eyes flickered towards the mirror again, taking your painted mask once again. Foundation mixed with other products lied carefully on your face. Highlighter illuminated the places that you needed it the most as your eyes were done in neutral colors. 

Bringing out your naturally beautiful eyes. Tonight, you decided to wear your hair down, letting some of the natural waves gracefully fall over your shoulders. Turning in your chair, you crossed your legs as you looked down at the netting sprawled across your thighs. Out of all the things Carter could have chosen, it had to be the fishnets. 

The wrapped around your flesh, ending at your feet. Some even torn from how Carter had handled them before. You flushed at the thought, your makeup making it harder to see your pink cheeks under. Standing, you fixed his baggy button-up, making sure everything was in place. Carter had gone down to grab Hoseok, explaining to him exactly what he had you not too long ago. 

“This is all going to be consensual,” Carter explains, pressing a few kisses on your forehead. He knew how your anxiety worked when new things were placed in front of you. It didn’t help that you were already over-worrying about tonight’s events and how it would shape your relationship with Hoseok. “If you don’t feel comfortable throughout the entire process, we will stop at once. Okay, pumpkin?” he whispers squeezing your arm before releasing as you once again gave him a silent answer. 

You scratched the top of your head now. Mind still buzzing from the recent conversation you had with Carter. When Hoseok got here, it would be awkward at first as you didn’t exactly know how to start one of these. Then, you began pacing back and forth before hearing your apartment, doorknob twist. Craning your head to the sound, you quickly scrambled out of your bedroom. 

Since your apartment wasn’t too large, it meant that certain sounds traveled faster. And it also said that getting from point a to point b was rather quick for you as you now stood in your living room. Hoseok was the first to walk in, his heart shape smile spread as he was laughing with his friend.

Tonight, Hoseok wore a light tee that had a rather large v-neck. It ended at the tops of his collar, revealing some of his beautiful olive skin underneath. His jeans were tight-fitted, and he wore some rings his right hand. They looked expensive from where you stood, but you didn’t want to ask him. 

He quickly shoved his oxfords off, then pushed back his bangs. You sucked in air, head-turning to the side as you hadn’t realized how affected you were by him. Yes, you had always thought Hoseok was beautifully handsome, but you weren’t really bothered by him before. Now that you were going to be sharing the same sheets with him, your dirty fantasies come to life. 

Oh, how you always wondered how his lips would feel against your skin. How his plump lips and dirty tongue would touch in places, they shouldn’t have. Just the thought of it made you start to throb in between your legs. Especially so when he finally turned his attention, and his eyebrows rose. 

“You’ve got her out here like a sitting duck eh Car?” Hoseok teases pushing on his friend’s arm as he shuts and locks the door. Carter grunts, you imagined that he rolled his eyes but had a faint smile on his lips. Once more, you brought your mouth back into your teeth, biting gently as you shifted your weight onto one side. 

“I haven’t been waiting for long,” you muse sweeping your foot behind you, making your body shift again. Both men watched as the shirt pulled and changed in your small movements. They noticed how now, your nipples started to harden and poke through the fabric just a little. You watched as their eyes darkened and they both looked like they wanted to devour you. 

“How are we going to do this?” Carter questions, his voice dropping into a low murmur, one that made your stomach turn into knots. 

“I think we should both have a turn at pleasing her,” Hoseok suggests tipping his head to the side. “Make her orgasm as much as possible before the real fun begins.” at the word “fun” Hoseok’s eyes brightened and widened before going back to what they usually were. You quickly turned your head towards Carter, the idea of making his grin turn deadlier. 

“I like that,” pausing for a split second. “Very much.” his tongue sweeping across his lower lip as both men approach you. 

You took a step back as they approached, putting your hands up. They ultimately stopped, both men curious as to what you had to say. But, you really didn’t have much to say in the first place. They hadn’t decided who was going first and preferred to know who was going to make you orgasm. When they saw some kind of look in your eye, that’s when Hoseok turned to face Carter now. It seemed like the two of them were having a silent conversation with their eyes before breaking and approaching you again. 

Carter moves just slightly to the side, Hoseok reaching out to take your hand. He guides you close, Carter watching him like a hawk. You soon realized that it was Hoseok who was going first, and you started to shake just a little. It wasn’t until you felt a sturdy pair of arms wrap around your waist, pulling you to his body. 

“Everything is going to be alright,” he whispers, leaning in to close the space between you. Hoseok’s kiss was tender at first. Allowing you to adjust to his presence before it becomes feverish. Pressing you harder against his chest as his hands were wandering into places you had only thought about in your dreams. 

His slim fingers trickled down your back, sending sparks wherever they touched. You shivered, arching yourself into them as you felt a sharpness against your lower lip. He was biting you, and oh gods, did you enjoy it. Hoseok soon broke your feverish kiss. Pulling back to swipe his tongue disconnecting the string between you two. He attacks your skin against your jaw. Sending kisses and bites across the smooth surface. 

Distracting you from his goal, which was between your legs. He grunts, head pulling back to shifting to look now at Carter. “You never told me she was this wet,” he muses, pressing the pad of his finger into your soaked underwear. 

“She usually gets pretty excited even before I begin to touch her.” Carter answers. Since your back was towards him, you could only imagine that he was shrugging at his friend. That nonchalance attitude of his was really going to land him with - 

“Oh gods!” you murmur feeling Hoseok push the fabric to the side and slip one finger inside. He wiggles it, your limbs shaking as your grip upon his shirt tightened. He grunts once again, removing the digit to swiftly move your legs around his waist. 

“I think it would be much easier in the bedroom, don’t you Car?” already moving past his friend and into your shared room. Carter once again shrugs, stuffing his hands into his pockets. Your eyes drifted down to him since your head was popping up over Hoseok’s shoulders now. 

You could see that he was aroused. Just by how his expression grew and even the pinched tent in between his legs. Before you were lying on the bed, you saw Carter swing his leg over his office chair that sat in the corner. He pressed his chest to the back end, leaning himself against it in a position that you found oddly charming. 

“Eyes on me,” Hoseok mentions setting you down and hot fingers climbing up your thighs. You give a whimper, watching as Hoseok comes dangerously close to your folds. He smirks once again, spreading your legs as he continues his previous statement. “I don’t particularly enjoy when all the attention isn’t on me,” he mumbles, his breath hitting your skin as goosebumps being to claw to the surface. 

Without another word, Hoseok lowers his head. He removes your underwear with quick grace, it makes you wonder who he learned it from, or how he learned it in the first place. He doesn’t even bring it down all the way before attacking you once again. Peppering kisses against your skin, even on your thighs as he bites down. 

His tongue pokes out at one point, sending chills up your spine as he drags it in between your folds and up to your clit. Where he spends the most time-devouring you. Licking each and every inch as your body and mind explode in heat and lust. Each moan was muffled by your hands, only to soon be released as Carter was next to you. 

His big hands wrapping around your wrists and pulling them back. “I don’t think it’s nice to hide such a pretty voice from us.” he purrs eyes brightening only to darken when you gasp. Hoseok pushes two fingers inside, stretching your walls. He opens them, then closes as he proceeds to curl them upwards. 

Pressing them into your sensitive nerves as he begins to pump so agonizingly slow. You arch your body, wiggle your hips, and plea with Hoseok to stop teasing you. His head lifts from in between your legs, another gasp leaves as the sight itself, making your body tremble again. Whenever Hoseok would smile, his lips would turn into a heart. Now, it turns into a crooked lustful grin a he got you right where he wanted. 

They both did as it seemed like they had this planned out from the beginning. “That’s cute darling,” Carter spoke tilting your head to face him as he bends down. Leaning his face in, he tips his head once again humming just a little. “Begging for another man...” he pauses Hoseok pressing a harsh bite to the inside of your thigh, causing you to drag out a moan. 

“She’s such a little slut now isn’t she?” he ponders to his friend who gives your clit quick attention with his tongue. His fingers still moving at the pace they were before, your lips trembling and hips always moving as you tried to find the right spot. 

“One of the biggest Car,” Hoseok answers now probing a third inside. “Look at her pussy, how it easily takes me.” The feeling of being filled makes you moan out again, pushing your breasts upwards for Carter to lean in and bite at your nipples. 

“You know Hoseok,” Carter mentions against your skin, planting a few more kisses as he then continues with his thought. “If her pussy is that loose, why don’t you try fisting her hm?” Your head whips up from where it was, eyes almost bulging out of your skull. Fisting?! You had once tried that with Carter, but since his fist was just a little too giant, he was afraid of hurting you. Hoseok had the same size fist, but his fingers were more extended and slimmer. You could imagine that he could possibly try, but you were just a little afraid. However, your fear didn’t stop you as you were more interested than anything else. 

Instead, Hoseok only grinned at your reaction and simply agreed with Carter. He removes his fingers, saying that he needed lube to do so since he didn’t want to hurt you. As Hoseok left, you whined slightly since your source of pleasure left. But that didn't stop your boyfriend from teasing and pulling at your nipples. 

You never did enjoy boob play before your boyfriend. But the way his lips danced across your skin, fingers twisting and pulling at your nipples, make you almost completely forget that Hoseok was watching. Your head bowed towards him, eyes glassy as you needed some kind of attention again. Carter purrs, noticing your reaction as one hand slipped in between your legs. 

Two digits pressed against your clit, moving them in a slow circle to keep you stimulated. Your hips bucked upwards, wanting to receive more attention from him. But at last, it wasn’t for long as it seemed both men tried to tease you as much as possible. Leaving you hanging on their every string as it became apparent that you could cum at any given moment. 

When Hoseok returned, he was all set to go. Slowly moving two fingers inside of you once again. You didn’t catch his gaze as Carter had held yours. Soon, the space between you two closed and he was kissing you. Stealing all your attention from the man in between your legs. But, the kiss wasn’t enough to distract you from the friction in between. 

Two turned into three, which turned into four. You felt your walls start to stretch as Hoseok gave his fingers and your body time to adjust to them. Your mind was swirling with such dirty thoughts that you could keep up when Hoseok murmured that he was going to push his fist in. You spread your legs almost instinctively, his fist moving in slowly. 

“Oh, fuck!” You groaned throwing your head back as you felt him inside. Your hips wiggled against him, dying for his fist to move inside of you. How could he make you feel so powerless but so good at the same time? 

“Yes, baby?” Carter whispers, pressing a deadly kiss against the corner of your mouth. Hoseok hums against your skin, the vibration of it all making you groan once again. 

“Look at this Car,” Hoseok murmurs, now taking your boyfriend’s attention away. Carter moves towards his friend, a high pitched hum escaping his lips as you pushed back on Hoseok’s fist once he started to move. Gods, you didn’t want him to leave, you didn’t want his fist to even move. The feeling was indescribable as it all came down to you want him. You need him, and now you begging both of them to stop teasing you. 

“Aw, what a pretty little bitch.” Hoseok purrs once again, his first turn inside as he pumps it extremely hard. You cry out, fists gripping the sheets your knuckles turning bright white. 

“I can’t believe she took you,” Carter says tutting. “She really is a little slut, isn’t she?” their conversation making your cheeks flush as you felt your lips tremble again. Carter’s hand came up to press against your clit, once again giving you slow circles as Hoseok’s fist, which was fast and hard, contrasted it. 

Your thighs began to tremble at the new sensation. Gods, they were going to drive out nuts if they - 

You thought process slowed as you get the knot in your stomach completely tear. Stars were beginning to cross your vision as you bucked into them. One hand released itself from its grip on the bed, ultimately covering your lips. You cried into it, eyes squeezing shut as you felt any and all energy escape from your body. Your orgasm was the biggest you had ever given anyone, and you could have sworn that you did more than just orgasm. 

You heard the boys murmuring something, but you couldn’t entirely understand it at first. When you came too again, you realized that they were now looking at you. Eyes darker than before and both hands and part of their shirts wet. You blinked a couple of times, noting that you had not only just orgasmed. 

You had squirted as well too. You quickly shifted yourself on the bed, pure embarrassment stuck to your face as their lips formed into a smirk. Carter started a deep laugh, one that came from his belly and created that oh so familiar knot in your stomach. 

“We’re not done with you yet kitten.” he purrs, reaching out to grasp your ankle, Hoseok taking the other and pulling you back. 

“Just because you had your fun doesn’t mean we get to have ours.” he protests the corners of his mouth hitting his eyelids. If this was just the beginning...what was the end going to be like? 

You couldn’t keep that thought forever as they only continued with their plans. 

[harusha]

What are your top pokemon games??

Official or fangame? I’ll just list both. I will say Pokemon Reborn is my top-rated overall if we combine both lists (with HGSS and Collesseum/XD following as 2 and 3 respectively.)

On Official, it’s 

1. Heartgold/Soulsilver (My favorite region is Johto, and Ethan is my favorite Pokemon protagonist so…unsurprising. The games are still genuinely good though imo because of the massive amount of content and post-game and QoL stuff like following Pokemon, auto-run, etc.) I also love the nostalgic feeling of the region. Lance is also here, and I like him and his design a lot, not as much as Volkner though. Also Proton is here, and I love the dude so. Pedometer is included here.

2. Pokemon Colosseum/Pokemon XD; I include this together since they’re a duo set in terms of story. XD is the better one gameplay-wise because of the new additions of Shadow moves, more Pokemon choices, QoL changes like saving, etc. but Colosseum is the harder of the two games imo b/c of the sparsity of Pokemon–if you can play it on laptop, mod XD with Pokemon XG for massive QoL changes (Fairy Type, more shadow Pokemon, upped difficulty, etc.)

I like how this set tries new stuff and it honestly showcases how if you the Pokemon IP to a third-party, you end up with something that tries to be different and actually plays pretty well.

3. Pokemon BWBW2; included as a set because of joint story line. Honestly, I feel like BWBW2 are objectively the last great mainline series additions. Even if you didn’t care for the story, they at least tried with it and the rivals. You had the nice rival in Bianca and the “focused/ruder” rival in Cheren, and both encompassed the themes of the game (Truth with Bianca as she realizes her ineptness as a trainer and Ideals with Cheren who strives to overcome his boundaries and the player even if he never can). N is pretty awesome, and I think Ghetsis is a better Lusamine (sorry, idc for how Lusamine’s actions are brushed over and blamed on the space jellyfish). There’s a lot to enjoy in Unova imo.

Also massive post-game stuff like Join Avenue (which encourages one of the main tenets of Pokemon, interacting with others and trading; ex. “Magnemite Coil”), half the region opening up for Post-game (White Treehollow, Kyurem’s abode, etc.). The Legendaries also have home locations for the most part, and their items aren’t just given to you by random people. A lot of stuff to do that isn’t just breeding mindlessly for shinies (I mean I love doing that, but options ya know?) or online battle.

4. Pokemon Conquest; Fire Emblem (or more accurately, Nobunaga’s ambition) meets Pokemon. I like turn-based grid tactic games, and this one’s actually pretty fun. You’re encouraged to roam around and give people different Pokemon to see which ones they’re compatible with. Also another example of what can be done if Pokemon is given to a another developer.

5. Pokemon Explores of Sky (and to a lesser extent since it’s the base, Time/Darkness); you can swap this with Colloseum/XD, BWBW2 or Pokemon Conquest depending on if you prefer Pokemon’s style of play, tactics games, or dungeon crawlers. I like this one since the story’s actually pretty good, the difficulty’s nice, and especially the post-game dungeons and content.

6. Pokemon Platinum and Diamond+Pearl to a lesser extent– the region that actually has a reasonably difficult Elite Four and champion. I love the additions they have like distortion world, the melancholic feel you get at times in the Chateau area and snowfields, and the post-game Battle Frontier. However, the games run so slow without Drayano’s mods. In terms of husbandos, Volkner’s pretty nice as well, and he’s pretty high-tier for me. Cynthia’s here as well, so I guess she counts since she’s a feature every time she shows up.

7. Pokemon FRLG-The definite version of Kanto for me. Sevii Islands, callbacks (callforwards?) to the Johto games with the Rocket Admins, decent difficulty and ability to sequence break somewhat, etc. It gives new experiences for those who’ve played the OG versions, but doesn’t change them drastically. The “you can’t evolve anything outside of the OG 151 before post-game” is stupid though. Lance is here as well, but his half Dragonite/Dragonair team annoys me b/c of how repetitive it is, but product of the time as well and the HGSS first battle had that as well but at least they’re all evolved.

8. Pokemon Red/Blue Rescue Team-I like this one since the story’s still good and incorporates the idea of a human being transported to a Pokemon world, but I just feel like Sky’s gameplay improvements and portraits for everyone trumps this one. I like Gengar a lot and his team. I also think the difficulty on this one (depending on starter and partner) is fairly good at times (The Moltres fight is actually pretty difficult if you don’t have Pikachu or a water type partner).

9. Pokemon Emerald and to a lesser extent Ruby/Sapphire–Battle Frontier, Scott and Smeargle cave (ie. post-game content), beautiful promotional artwork (including ORAS’s), fairly difficult battles at time if you aren’t prepared/going in blind with no excessive grinding (2nd May battle, Flannery, etc.), hidden secrets like Regis and Secret Bases. However, the latter half is so boring with the excessive surfing and lackluster variety. Steven’s here, and he’s a dreamboat even with the sprite graphics.

10. Pokemon Channel and Hey you, Pikachu!-Weird I know. This would be higher if I didn’t think this was a niche pick. It’s just really relaxing, and I want another one, especially if you can get more Pokemon to raise. It’s a lot more fun once you play it. I like exploring with Pikachu and it offers a look into the world of Pokemon as a non-trainer. I really want another one tbh.

11. Pokemon Rangers series (Ranked from favorite to lowest; Shadows of Almia–>OG–>Guardian Signs; all are good but that’s my preference) The gameplay is actually pretty fun, and I wish we got another one. They could use Joycons as a styler. Spencer, Sven, and Lunick are also pretty cute

12. Pokken Tournament- What battles should feel like in mainline if they injected millions of dollars into the mainline, so unrealistic expectation. I think Pokken is a decent fighting game. The moves are nice, and the music is good. This can go lower if you don’t care for fighting games.

13. Pokemon Battle Revolution and Stadium games-They’re mostly battle simulators with some mini-games. The animations are actually pretty lively and fun compared to SWSH’s. I would like to rank this higher, but there is no story mode sadly. It’s great if you want to see what Pokemon would look like in-scale.

14. Pokemon X/Y-I think these are actually pretty nice if only for the fact there isn’t excessive handholding; it’s there but it doesn’t force me to put down the game out of boredom. The outfits are genuinely pretty cute. However, the rivals are ridiculously terrible, difficulty is either too low or unbalanced if you use/turn off exp. share. Let’s put ORAS here as well b/c I think the lack of Battle Frontier and mediocre post-game, getting Lati@s early, etc. drops it down from Emerald. The PSS system is amazing though.

15. Pokemon Trozei and Pokemon Pinball series-Yeah, I’ve played these. Trozei’s actually pretty cool as a match-3 game, and pinball is pinball. You also get slightly more lore into the Pokemon world with Lucy Fleetfoot. I like match-3 and pinball so very much a YMMV. Pop Gates to Infinity and Super Mystery Dungeon here as well. Idk, they just lack the magic of the first two entries.

16. Pokemon Snap, Pokemon Dash, all the other spin-offs I didn’t talk about-they all offer something fun, but I just wish it was either updated for modern times and not released again (like with Snap) or a bit more (in the case of Detective Pikachu and Pokepark series). Pop Puzzle League games here as well. I like them, but they aren’t much besides Tetris games. Same goes for the Pokemon Trading Card games; they’re nice, but not super great imo.

???. Pokemon Box/Ranch/all the other storage games and stuff like Dream Radar-Idk what you’d want me to say since they’re storage space or gimmick games to catch HA Pokemon. You do get Extremespeed Zigzagoon which I love since the little buggers are very adorable.

Bottom Tier. Pokemon SM and USUM. I hate these games. They’re cash grabs (more so than usual) with being $40 a piece and the updated versions being barely changed (and actually feeling like what should have been released first). Incredibly handholding, areas feel half-baked, lacks areas to explore for the most part, Lillie is kinda annoying for me tbh (which hurts because you’re supposed to feel for her and the game’s story hinges on that), and the player is an actual detriment to what they’re trying to achieve story-wise. A big shame b/c Alola is a pretty region and Team Skull is great in concept, but execution is awful. Stated as someone who has bought all 4 versions to keep, and 2 extras for gifting.

Absolute Bottom Tier- Pokemon Masters, incredibly terrible mobage game coming from someone who plays FGO, FEH, etc. lack of meaningful content, grinding but meaningless b/c of said lack of content (ex. FGO gates you with mats but it makes you feel like you’re growing with your servants and offers a story and events to compensate; basically, a sense of achievement). CO-OP is pretty bad when you can just hop over to GBF or something if you want guilds and group content. I’m still gonna wait for Ethan and Volkner to appear though.

Unrated-OG RBGY and OG GSC (the remakes are superior outside of nostalgia factor imo so I think it’d be unfair for them to take a spot), LGPE (didn’t buy them b/c pricing but the colors are vibrant and I love that), SWSH (didn’t buy them because I have opinions on the cuts and stuff and price point doesn’t look appealing for what’s offered), Pokemon Mini (these were included with Pokemon Channel), Magikarp Jump+Duel (Duel was a cash grab and Magikarp Jump is cute but no real opinion on it), Pokemon Go (weird spot where I like it, but I don’t live in an area with safe walking areas so very much area-dependent), Arcade games (I don’t live in Japan for that), Perdue Farm games (they’re flash games made to promote so…), Pokemon Rumble (enjoyable but not memorable for me imo) etc.

Fangames-

1. Pokemon Reborn-150+ hours of content, visible themes that permeate the story and characters, beautiful spritework for some of the areas, intuitive usage of TMs/HMs and some logic (ex. Field Effects that emulate anime battling in turn-based rpg such as Corrosive Field; using Rock Smash to break the glass in some areas to solve puzzles, etc.), actual difficulty that hinges on how much you understand Pokemon (ex. IVs, stats, EVs, etc.) that’s fair but still difficult, puzzles and rewards for exploring and coming back to areas, etc. Fantastic game that I wish Gamefreak had attempted to emulate (perhaps not the darker themes but the ambition basically). Has some kinks with the revolving door of characters and such but still fantastic. Also offers custom shiny sprites, custom egg sprites, and online play like Wonder Trade and battling.

2. Pokemon Rocket Edition-Not done but I think this is a fantastic hack so far story-wise and how it implements its mechanics. You’re a Rocket Grunt, but you aren’t OP. It deals with the politics behind Kanto and Team Rocket. Still being worked on.

3. Pokemon Viridian Version-Another “play as a Rocket” game. Funny yet still can be serious; it takes the tone of the anime and understands when to be serious and when to not be. It feels like it would fit into the canon tone-wise, and deconstructs the “it’s cool to be a Rocket!” thing.

4. Pokemon Gaia-Excellent and a huge callback to classic Pokemon in story. It’s an OG region and offers a lot to do.

5. Drayano hacks- QoL updates but his work actually adds a lot to the games+new events.

Anyways, that’s my list. There’s a lot of Pokemon content, but this is how I feel for the most part.

[haruki-ya]

Icy

Summary: Ok so, here's another self indulgent non-canon complacent aged up AU thing where Kaneda and the Capsules, who are more a gang of friends as opposed to a real gang, work with Joker at his automotive shop. Joker runs a black market parts ring under the table which brings all kinds of customers into the shop: Kei is one of them, still a prominent member of the Resistance that continues to fight against the government's unethical and unlawful treatment of it's citizens. Going into the shop, Kei naturally means business so of course, in comparison, Kaneda does not.

What follows is a tense test of wills. One icy, iron clad, seemingly impenetrable. The other aloof, arrogant, endlessly aggravating. Despite the mutual pain they cause one another, both get something out if it in the end. Even if it's not exactly what either of them really wants.

A/N: tbh it’s p much just an excuse for me to write out how I see the foundation of kaneda and kei’s relationship, who are 18 and 20 here respectively...and for me to keep everyone alive lmao. also full disclosure I know nothing about tanks and just picked some parts at random to throw in the story and this is really long i’m sorry haha ok bye

The bell ringing on the shop door as it opens catches Kaneda’s attention, makes him look up past his Shonen Jump and crossed feet on the counter.

There are a few customers wandering around the store, but they’ve been here for at least ten minutes, discouraged by his inattentive, uncaring demeanor- good. He doesn’t wanna explain to them which motor oil would be best for their shitty Honda Accords or where exactly you’re supposed to put the damn transmission fluid. It may be his job, but god damn if it isn’t annoying answering the same stupid questions day in day out. Kaneda hopes whoever entered won’t bother him with twenty useless questions, but with his luck they’ll be askin thirty-five.

The door closes softly with a tinkle and Kaneda takes a cursory glance at the woman who entered before turning his attention back to his magazine- hoping to keep up the air of “leave me the fuck alone" -but that’s before his brain really processes who exactly walked in the store. Or more like what. An angel? He does an unashamed double take.

Kaneda is drawn immediately in by her tight clothes, her straight posture, her well coiffed appearance. The coldness of her features are striking against the warmth of her yellow toned coat, the tan of her flawless skin. Her very presence is captivating, even from across the small store: his eyes are positively glued to the tall, trim figure that sticks out like a sore thumb in the dirty lobby of Joker’s Automotive Inc.

If Kaneda were any less observant, he would immediately write her off as just another flirt lookin’ for a fly to catch- for a free tune up from the eager boys in back. But her hands, while well manicured, look worn, scarred. The sweep of her head left to right is observant, but not of the products lining their isles of shelves: of the people moving between them. Calculating risks, weighing options.

Those are not qualities you find in your run of the mill city girl.

She treads softly towards Kaneda, but her gait speaks purpose. Her heels click click click steadily on the checkered linoleum floor, not asking for attention, demanding. Her eyes are covered by darkly tinted shades, but Kaneda can still see that she is looking at him…and he can’t fight a dopey smile from spreading on his face. She doesn’t smile back.

Oh, this is gonna be fun.

“What can I do for ya’ miss?” She’s only about two feet away now and her approach slows as Kaneda uncrosses his feet and tosses his magazine off to the side. She stops right as Kaneda’s feet stomp on the ground and he pushes himself up to his full height, only slightly bothered by the fact that she lords over him a solid three inches. Must be the heels.

“I’m here to speak with Joker.” Her voice oh shit is sweet like honey, burns in his veins like aged whiskey. She sounds just like she looks: bold, purposeful, husky in that sensual feminine way. Ready to cut to the chase and get down to business. Kaneda idly thinks he hasn’t taken to a girl so quickly in his whole life- and that may actually be true this time.

Kaneda keeps up his wide smile and air of politeness as he spreads his hands in an apologetic manner. Her face remains coldly detached- unimpressed. Time to up the ante.  

“Sorry miss, but Joker’s not in right now. What is it you’re lookin’ for? I’m sure I could be much more helpful in satisfying your needs.” Now that garners a reaction. A slight twitch of the lips, one slowly raised eyebrow. She takes a step forward, now standing more around four inches taller than Kaneda. He cocks his head to the side as her eyes narrow behind her shades.

“You misunderstood. I’m here to talk to Joker, in private.” And that garners a reaction from him.

Sure, people come in asking for Joker all the time. It is his shop after all. Kaneda and the boys just work here. But people only ask twice and in private for jobs that don’t get written into the books- not the federally taxed ones anyway.

Joker runs a black market parts ring under the table, steals and deals high demand items for a specific type of clientele: a specific high paying type of clientele. Joker meets with the customer, estimates the plausibility of their demand, Joker gets paid to complete it, the boys help make arrangements for it, Joker gets it, the boys deliver it. Simple as that.

It’s become as easy as breathing for Kaneda and co., who have no problem with the risks and dangers of such a, well, risky and dangerous job. It’s only cause the pay is borderline lucrative and Kaneda and the boys never really have been good at being good.

What is a pretty girl like her doing asking for a service like that? Kaneda is only growing more intrigued- more eager to make her lose her temper. Something in Kaneda wants so desperately to see that cool facade crack, to see her calm, poised air fall under his “charismatic” ways. He’s always been good at pushing buttons. It really is a wonder he usually gets stuck with counter duty.

“Well, I understand alright, but there’s not much I can do for you since he’s not in right now.” Her face falls back into it’s stony mask and Kaneda shoves his foot in his mouth trying to remedy the situation, wanting to keep up the progression of facial expressions, not shut them down before the real fun starts.

“I can take a name and message though no sweat...and if you’re feeling generous maybe you could throw in your number, just for me.” She crosses her arms swiftly at Kaneda’s broad smile, at his wink- worth a shot.

“When will he be back in?” She chooses not to acknowledge Kaneda’s advance, bold choice he will admit, but only because that means he has to try harder now.

Kaneda shrugs, starts picking at his nails as if he doesn’t really care- but he does, of course. Anyone coming through looking for Joker is just as important to Kaneda as to the big lard-ass himself. They’re both paying his bills after all.

“Not sure miss, I’m not his damn secretary...I’m sure he’d consider you for the job though. One look at you and you’re hired. It'd be nice to have a pretty face hangin' around for once.” Yet another twitch of the lips, a shift in her solid stance.

“Is there a manager in store aside from Joker?” There’s a hint of thinly veiled impatience in her voice and Kaneda grins to himself on the inside. Jackpot.

“Yup! You’re looking at ‘em! All special requests go through me, the right hand man.” Kaneda too crosses his arms, puffs out his chest and widens his stance a little bit to mirror her power pose. “But that’s beside the point, your number on the other hand…”

Something like a smile- more a smirk than anything holy shit -melts away her frown as she slowly, deliberately lowers her shades down the bridge of her nose to glance at Kaneda’s chest. Impressed by his buff arms, no doubt.

“You’re no manager. That much is clear.” Kaneda’s smile twitches, but holds strong. That obvious challenge of his authority, the combative look that glitters in her bright eyes, is not what he expected, but certainly isn’t enough to throw him off balance. Right?

“And what makes you say that?”

“Your name tag is upside down...Mr. Shotaro.” Kaneda flushes at her mocking tone, her confident smirk, resists the urge to fix his name tag which upon a quick glance downwards- yup, is indeed upside down. He plays it cool instead. Or tries to.

“That’s-that’s just the new style. Someone like you wouldn’t know how the working class operates anyhow!”

“Oh, and what exactly makes you say that?” There’s a real edge to her voice now as she parrots Kaneda’s words and he doesn’t miss the way her hands clench slowly into fists. As is she wants to smack him right where he stands, but is holding herself back. A real spitfire he sees. Kaneda uncrosses his arms to throw a hand on his hip and a cocky smile on his face and goes in for the kill.

“Haha really? You look like you haven’t worked a day in your whole life. Probably live off of daddy’s hard earned money. You even know what a tax refund is doll face?”

The woman’s whole demeanor seems to shift at that. There’s nothing subtle about it, like watching fast approaching thunderclouds roll quickly, all encompassing, over skyscrapers and cityscapes. Throwing the people caught underneath into a panic. Powerless against the force of Mother Nature.

Kaneda swallows hard and strains his smile in the hopes that she can’t sense his sudden discomfort. Maybe he shouldn’t have called her doll face...

“I’ll leave a message for Joker. I’d hate to run into you again were I to come back. Get a pen and paper ready, I won’t repeat myself.” Her voice has dropped an octave, entered a dangerous, very obvious territory of “try me again ”.

And so naturally, of course, Kaneda does.

“Hah, pen and paper, how hard can your order be babe? Need an oil change? A custom made paint job for your bug? Want me to show you how to properly lubricate your bearings while we’re at it?” Still, despite his nasty jest, he lazily reaches for a pad of paper and a pen. Just to humor her. 

And well, to write down her order with. 

He’s a jackass and a dumbass, but rarely both at the same time. Is leaning more towards the former at this particular moment.

A fierce scowl mars her pretty face and god damn how does that make her more attractive? She takes another step closer, body flush with the counter, and Kaneda gets a good whiff of her perfume: green tea leaves, bright citrus, and just a hint of earthy sandalwood. Definitely angelic then.

“You’re absolutely disgustingly insufferable.” Her eyes, like her words, are sharp, a biting amber that cut straight through Kaneda, make his knees almost feel weak. Her lashes are long, bat furiously against the rim of her shades.

“And you’re just too damn sweet.” And honestly, he does mean that. Kaneda’s certainly been called much worse.

Sighing sharply out her nose, she uncrosses her arms and leans away. Shakes her head almost imperceptibly in - disgust? disapproval? Probably both if Kaneda’s involved, but he’s confident she’ll come around. That he’ll be able to coax a smile out of her after he makes her scowl a whole bunch more first. He wants to see the calm beyond her stormy demeanor, to know what else can be found beyond her icy expressions.

Right as he’s about to try again, she jerks her head towards him and speaks lowly. Drops her crossed arms to cock her hip and place her hand on her waist, a mirror image of Kaneda's own posture. He notices the fingers of her other hand tap steadily at her thigh.

“I need one GE T700 gas turbine engine, two M1 fume extractors, four drive sprockets, two sixteen toothed the other twenty, approximately seven and a half gallons of liquid EN 1063, and maybe if you’re feeling generous you could throw in a little respect ...just for me and my high paying associates. Does that sound doable?”

Kaneda’s jaw flaps like a fish out of water, both at her deadpan tone and the order itself. Does that sound doable?

“Are you trying to build a fucking tank?!” Is what he blurts out and it’s obviously the wrong thing to say, even Kaneda knows that before seeing her face close off again and something downright unpleasant twist her features. Long gone is that pretty girl scowl, replaced in turn by pure scorn.

Man, cute but intimidating. Who knew that was his type?

“...Right, tell Joker Ryu won’t be happy. Especially not with you, Shotaro Kaneda.” The threat in her voice is just that, a threat. Very real, very pressing, and Kaneda actually does know why he’s put on counter duty so often- he’s good at weeding out potential, at differentiating between empty threats and real ones. And this bitch of a beauty is dishing out some serious, “you’re gonna regret this” vibes.

His words stumble over themselves as she turns sharply on her heel, as if to leave, because Kaneda just can’t have that, pride and joy be damned.

“Wait, wait, wait, look, I’m sorry! I, uh, I’m sorry I haven’t been taking you seriously. I just, well...don’t see a lot of pretty faces like yours 'round here. I couldn’t help myself…and that order request? Totally not what I was expecting either.” She halts suddenly, spins around once again and glowers at him before re-crossing her arms. They’re just feeding off one another’s tension at this point. 

“And what were you expecting? That I’d come straight in asking for the Shotaro Special and have you take me to the break room for a good time?” God damn, she fired that one back quick as a whip, a fire in her voice that ignites so suddenly even Kaneda is weary of continuing his little game with her.

“Uh, well...if that’s what you want, I only aim to please the high paying customer.” But he’s truly sincerely never been good with self control.

“You’re arrogance has no end, does it…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll grow on ya’.” He always does.

“Who says I’ll be back?” And at this Kaneda raises a brow, smirks at her ruffled expression and leans towards it with both palms flush on the counter. There’s a newfound confidence in his words with the ball safely back in his court.

“If you’re serious about this order, no one but Joker can get what you need...I can call him up right now and toss it his way, see what he has to say about it. Or you can go try your luck elsewhere. Be my guest, miss. You won’t find service quite like ours anywhere else though.”

She stares at him intensely with those bright amber eyes of hers, unblinking, unmoving. Pensive. Kaneda thinks he broke her up until the point where she sighs out her nose and uncrosses her arms. It’s as good an invitation to continue as any. Kaneda smiles and pushes off the counter, picks up the pen by his hand and starts to twirl it.

“You mentioned the name Rua?”

“...Ryu. He’s made orders with Joker before. Shouldn’t be a problem but if he asks tell him Kei personally came in to meet with him.” The woman- no, Kei -speaks through a frown, obviously not wanting to accept his apology, but willing to work with it anyway. Smart, sassy, sexy. She just keeps getting better and better.

“Kei, huh.” Three different meanings come to mind: respect, blessing, wise. “…It suits you.”

Kei must sense the shift in his tone, the sincerity in his voice because her brows furrow in thought before she accepts the comment. “...Thank you.” Although begrudgingly, if her hesitation is anything to go by.

Kaneda sends her a smile, not sarcastic, not teasing. About as genuine as Kaneda can manage in this situation. It quickly warps into one of sheepishness though, as he begins to rub nervously at the back of his neck with his free hand.

“Uh, hey though, listen...I know you said you wouldn’t repeat yourself…” Kei sighs and holds out her hand, acting put upon by his attitude and really...it’s probably not an act at this point. Maybe he should tone it down.

“Give me that, I’ll write the order down.” With a laugh he hands over the pad of paper, stained with an aged brown coffee ring, and the pen he’s been fiddling with. Their skin brushes against one another during the exchange and Kaneda’s attention is once more drawn to the elegant shape of her hands, the scars both old and new that mar them. Her skin is soft despite the raised tissue, the callouses, and he swallows around an urge to feel her hands held fully within his own.

“I gotta know, since me and my boys will be the ones getting all this shit…are you trying to build a tank?” He diverts both their attention with that one, tries to keep his mind strictly business from here on out. Kei hums to acknowledge she heard him, but has bent low over the counter to focus on what she’s writing.

“Ultimately...yes. With some minor adjustments here and there.”

“What the ever loving hell do you need a tank for? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I think that’s incredibly se-super badass of you but also uh...a bit big to be riding down the street to the grocery store with.” Nice save, Shotaro. Pet names and compliments, not compatible with Kei. Time to keep it strictly business.

Kei glances at him above the rim of her sunglasses, before turning her attention back to the paper. “...I don’t think you’re a trustworthy person to confide in with such information, Shotaro.” The finality of her tone almost makes Kaneda pout, almost, but he has appearances to uphold here.

“Awe come on! S’not like anyone would believe me if I told them some chick named Kei walked in with her heels and shades asking for parts to build a tank with.” Where Kaneda laughs, Kei scowls. Sends him another shaded glare. She’s just bursting at the seams with those isn’t she?

“So that means you would tell someone.” Not a question so much a statement and Kaneda backtracks again as her eyes stare accusingly at him. She straightens to her full height and damn, is she five inches taller than him now?

“Wha-wait, no, that was just a what if scenario-” Kei cuts him off with a clipped tone. Strictly business.

“The people I work with don’t have time for loose lipped gossip let alone what if scenarios, do you understand? There is more at stake here than you could ever understand.” 

Kaneda, believe it or not, is growing tired of her cold seriousness, of her combative nature- despite himself probably being the driving cause behind it. He thinks at the very least there’s more to her than a pretty face and bitchy attitude and he's just about past the point of wanting to get a rise out of her, bored with his own tactics. He knows now that joking and flirting with her only tightens the reins on her formal cordiality, so he’s at least trying to make an effort and level with her here.

He just hopes not too late.

“Then help me understand. I got things at stake here too, this job, running parts, I like to know what I’m getting myself into beforehand. I’d be putting my ass on the line for you in this situation after all…I’ll personally accept a date as safety insurance though.” Kaneda, acting on instinct as always, is unable to keep that last bit to himself. Is sure she’ll roll her eyes at that one, maybe shoot him a scorching look, but all he gets is an exasperated sigh. A considerate head tilt.

Is that a hint of amusement he sees on her face?

“...When Joker gets in, ask him about the Resistance. I trust him to tell you more about it, about us. Ryu is a strong figurehead in the fight against government tyranny...he’s truly an inspiring man. These parts are detrimental to the success of our next plan to keep the fight in our favor. The last engine we had failed on us before we even left the compound.”

Kaneda, ever curious, can’t help but ask, “And that was?”

“Honeywell AGT1500. A little too old to keep up with our movements, I think.” Kaneda whistles lowly and crosses his arms at her response, a polar shift in their dynamics from the beginning of their fast paced back and forth banter. The tension between them is all but gone now and Kei’s words seem to flow freely and easily. That chip on her shoulder gone with Kaneda’s flirtiness- almost -in check.

“Now where the hell did you get an engine like that?”

“Probably the same place Joker will be getting this newer model.” She pauses to hold up the piece of paper with the order details written neatly on it before sliding it face down towards him.

“This city is full of surprises if you know where to look.”

“Huh…” Kaneda makes a thoughtful noise as he presses his palm flat over the paper. “I gotta say Kei, you’re not what I expected.”

And that comment, the one that usually always rubs people the wrong way, makes her lips curve into the closest thing to a true smile Kaneda has seen throughout the past ten minutes of conversation. If her scowl is hot, makes his knees weak, Kaneda can’t even begin to describe what her small little grin does to him.

Kei tucks a piece of hair behind her ear before replying and Kaneda has to hold himself back from chasing the action, from feeling the softness of her short hair between his own fingers. Damn, he’s got it bad for this girl.

“Let me guess, you thought you had me pegged the moment I walked in. You seem the type to care solely about appearances. Or should I say shallowly .” Kaneda laughs at her comment, lost on cloud nine, and opts to take it lightly despite the slight insult to her words.

Puts a spin on his response, just for her.

“I’m a simple man, can’t deny that, but you...you hold yourself in a different way. Your hands aren’t those of a good for nothin' free loader, I was lying when I said you probably haven’t worked a day in your life. You work plenty, and you work hard at that. Can see it in your eyes, the set of your shoulders too…there’s definitely more to you than just a pretty face.”

Kei is silent at that, her small smile gone. On her face is a new expression, one that almost looks frightened. For a moment Kaneda thinks he said something wrong, should have held his tongue like he’s never been good at doing. Strictly business and all that.

Kei's eyes bore into Kaneda’s own, gleaming in the fluorescent light like two firm copper coins. Her lips part slowly as if she is about to speak, but she quickly purses her lips instead and pushes her shades up to settle more firmly on the bridge of her nose. She takes a step back and...is that a flush Kaneda sees on her cheeks?

Check and mate.

“...I guess looks can be deceiving, no?” Her voice has gone low, almost soft, just shy of sweet and Kaneda very suddenly thinks he might be in love.

“You’re not wrong there.” Is what he says quietly in response and they stand, facing each other, for a long moment. It’s almost tender, their silence. Almost pleasant.

Until Kei clears her throat suddenly and clasps her hands behind her back. The moment is broken, but will be long from forgotten.

“Well...I’ve got to head out, handle a few more matters. Thank you for your help Kaneda, I hope to hear from Joker soon. Although, before I go, I must admit...I’m glad you recognize that I’m not one to mess around.”

Before Kaneda can say anything else, throw back some smart ass rebuttal or maybe just gawk at this amazingly unexpectedly enigmatic woman, Kei turns on her heel and click click clicks her way out the door just like she came in. Kaneda stares after her for a minute, caught up in the faint trace of her perfume that still lingers in the air. He’s not so sure she’s an angel anymore...maybe a devil in disguise.

But that works even better in his favor.

A loud klang from the door behind him makes Kaneda jump to attention and jerk around. Tetsuo is standing there, scowl on his face, oil smeared on his forehead, wiping a lug wrench clean(ish) with a dirty rag.

“I thought Joker said no more girls on the job.” Kaneda rolls his eyes and snags the list of items Kei wrote out from the counter. Very deliberately doesn’t correct Tetsuo and let’s him think she is his girl. No harm no foul.

“You’re just jealous that I’m not stuck doin’ oil changes.”

That seems to bowl away whatever comment Tetsuo had, because he scowls and mutters something- not kindly -under his breath. Kaneda can’t even be bothered. A goofy grin that’s been itching to surface manages to overtake his face now that Kei is gone- not for good. She’ll be frequenting his thoughts for probably the rest of the week.

“Whatever asshole, I’m off on lunch right now. Want Kai to take over and grab a bite with me since it’s slow?” Kaneda is touched by Tetsuo’s offer and expresses as much by clasping his hands over his heart, batting his eyes dramatically. He’s feeling all kinds of giddy after his talk with mysterious miss Kei.

“Oh Tetsuo! I thought you’d never ask! I’m so flattered that you feel this way for me, so strongly that you’d ask me out to lunch!” Tetsuo rolls his eyes at Kaneda’s antics and chucks the dirty rag in his hand at Kaneda, who throws his arm up to block the nasty thing from touching his face.

It’s then, when he’s face to face with her elegant scrawl, that Kaneda realizes he’s still holding the list of items that Kei wrote down. And that there’s also a phone number hastily scrawled below a separate note near the bottom. Kaneda shakes the rag off his forearm and eagerly reads Kei's elegant script.

Don’t even think of contacting me outside of business matters. This number isn’t for personal use, I have a separate phone for that. Maybe if you weren’t

Be less of an ass next time.

- Kei

Kaneda stops moving, stops thinking, stops breathing. There’s no way...He’s always been good at recognizing an opportunity when he sees one. And that  hesitantly written note right there, with it’s crossed out words and clumsy scrawl in stark contrast to the rest of Kei’s neatly written list, means he has a chance.

He has a goddamn chance!

“A chance for what?” Tetsuo, once again, ruins the moment with his sour tone but Kaneda is through the roof with excitement, can’t hold back the whoop of happiness he lets out as he throws himself suddenly at Tetsuo, locks him into a bear hug. He ignores Tetsuo’s indignation, “Hey dumbass, let me go! What the hell is your problem?!”, and instead places a fat kiss on his friends grimy cheek. Laughs at the flush that colors Tetsuo’s face when he pulls away.

“Sorry Tets, rain check on lunch! I’ve got “after hours” business to discuss with Joker. Oh, but grab me a bento while you’re out!” Tetsuo scowls at him and rolls his eyes while violently wiping his cheek with the back of his hand.

“Yeah right asshole. Don’t fuck around for too long or Yama will rip you a new one!” Tetsuo ducks quickly back through the doorway leading to the garage, probably hoping to evade another Kaneda brand affection attack, but it’s a useless gesture.

He’s only got one person in mind he wants to really share those with.

After hurling back a customary, “No promises!”, Kaneda resumes his stationary position in the chair behind the counter, kicks his feet up and reaches for the phone. Impatient to start his homework. After dialing the familiar number, it takes only a short moment for the person on the other end to pick up. Kaneda can’t hide the smile in his voice.

“Hey Joker, it’s Kaneda...had someone come in looking for you a minute ago, she went by the name Kei...yeah, she did...tell me first though, how much do you know about her?”

This is going to be fun.

[myfandomrambles]

Steven Universe Familiar (5x26) Analysis

So I enjoyed it pretty well. I thought it was interesting and the talking walls and her little rock pets were interesting. I liked the environmental characterization of Pink honestly it’s the most honest stuff we get about her not filtered through unreliable narrators which was nice. I liked seeing more of homeworld and most of the visuals were pretty cool.

The animation of the Diamonds had their size bigger again which of course is inconsistent (as was Steven) but it did provide really good imagery with the size difference. The pool scene with blue seemed a bit off though. 

It actually made me wonder about the future too (in a not ugh kind of way)

I wonder if the eyes/status are watching for all of them or are they, white specific spies? 

And if Pinks’ room on homeworld works the same as Roses’ bedroom may be the temple was Pink’s home on earth even before she became Rose? 

Is the statue on the outside is Diamond tech, if so does it move too?

The song was also fine overall not my favourite.

Steven:

Honestly, I think him to some extent “accepting” being just like his mother follows his arc really well. He is using the power that being a Diamond has to his own ends, not even real change just his pet project which sadly makes sense with the latest Steven we have seen and is a lot like Rose. Healing the corruption is, of course, good, it’s “saving the earth” just like his mother but it’s not shifting the power structure to any large degree. He’s not trying to make real change and improvement. Not saving off colours, letting them treat Pearl as his possession, not raising an army. He’s not even trying to learn about the current functions/tech of the regime, how are the other gems working, what are all the differences of era 2, how big is Home Worlds empire now or anything like that. He’s making his incrementalist decisions, playing up is power level and social clout. Nothing about this screams I want to make a better world for everyone I’ve seen have their lives broken by the Diamonds. It’s just his pet project.

Steven adopts the option of trying to throw a party as Pink to try and mend family ties and by that heal the corrupted gems on earth. And honestly this is very Steven, and something Early seasons Steven would do to fix all the problems. This realization Pink was a lot like Steven when she was young (i realize gems don’t age physically but we have seen gems do grow up mentally) is interesting. It's like not even is Steven still trying to put together the pieces of a world and system his mom broke, but now he is doing it by her tactics, in her clothes, in her old room. It actually makes a lot of sense for Steven as who he is, but is still disappointing from a standpoint of who Steven could have been. The person Garnet, Connie and Bismuth saw he could be a leader and a fighter. The independent, funny, goofy kind person Greg, Amethyst and the town care about.

Steven’s is to CGs as Pink is to the Diamonds.

I’m tbh offended saying Garnet, Pearl and Amethyst were just like the Diamonds. Yeah they didn’t bring him on missions but he was what 13? and his powers were weak, they were protecting him. Totalitarian leaders not giving Pink her own colony isn’t the same as three (or four) traumatized refugees protecting their child/nephew figure from the war destruction left by those very leaders.

They did lie to him but Pearl had no other choice, Amethyst didn’t really know much and Garnet didn’t know the whole story and was bound by loyalty and her future vision to really see clearly.  The CG made some real fuck-ups, but it wasn’t all just by the patronization of Steven or an act of petty control of their world. It was a family torn apart and shaped by the mistakes thousands of years ago hanging over their heads trying to work. They didn’t always do the right thing by any means but none of them ended using chemical weapons on a whole planet.

Also Garnet loved Steven it blinded her but it was all a place of love and fear. Pearl is mentally fucked and made bad choices but from a place of lack of options not the same headspace or reality as the infinitely powerful Diamonds. Half the time Amethyst had no info to give, the power to change the situation and really treated Steven as being in charge of him. She was basically cool auntie Amethyst.

Yes from Steven’s perspective the CGs are the only frame of reference he had, so he sees Diamond’s broken love for Pink seem the same. But the Diamonds had options for how to treat Pink all the choice in the empire. Their fight was based on Pink wanting her own world to control and then fight over rather or not pink could go play on earth. All of these family disagreements escalated which eventually became a squabble to decide the right of a planet of people to survive. The CG’s mistakes never lead to them attempt mass murder and were really more emotionally complicated

When do you let a teenager fight disturbed dangerous people? How do you tell a child about a war they lost that killed millions broke their hearts and made those very creatures. How do you tell people of your life in a society that abused you? How do you tell a kid a whole planet wants him dead because his mother tore apart a world and didn’t even when freedom for anyone? It’s just not the same situation

Diamond Dynamics

So, they are for sure still trying to make me give a fuck that Pink’s death disrupted their lives huh? The Diamonds were talking about their armies, and gem production and keeping them in line. That’s some warlord oppressor shit. I don’t think the Diamonds should get to have pool parties! you attempt genocide and I say no fun for you!! The family trouble doesn’t resonate because nothing they have done has really humanized the Diamonds. Like I get they are sad, and they loved Pink but I care way more for the CGs, Peridot, Jasper, the off colours, Lapis and the corrupted to feel sympathy for people who have hurt them so much.

The Dynamic of the Diamonds does seem to be familial. White is a leader and in charge, her affection and is coveted by all of the others. So I assume a top military/governmental leader and a mother or older sister. Blue and Yellow I think viewed pink as their little sister. I never really got maternal from them and like I don’t need lesbian space fascists thanks. Another reason I go, sister, is that Pink thought, she should be equal to Yellow and Blue but was less powerful and smaller. Basically, she was made they never let her “play too”.

Yellow’s comments about searching for White’s approval and her paying attention to steven was insightful as showing not just structurally but interpersonally there is a slight fear of white but more than anything they want her attention back. Yellow seems slightly annoyed Pink gets attention by acting out and “falling” while her perfect execution of terrorizing innocent people doesn’t. Blue shows us they were at one time more close as a family but Pink dying caused this to stop. Blue and Yellow cared for and liked Pink. Pink never seemed to think about the social system as anything but one to be exploited and celebrated. This conversation and the drawing of them as a family I think adds to the fact that Rose couldn’t really fight to hurt the diamonds (though this seemed to apply less to the CG huh)

Though one interesting part of this was the change to Era 2 following earth’s collapse. That would be fun to explore more of how gem society has functioned over time.

Pearl

Like okay, are we sure we’re chill with what they did with Pearl? The character you’ve had declare her independence from the rooftops is doing exactly what she was made to do playing servant for a Diamond (Even if Steven isn’t a Whole diamond). She is taking care of Steven almost the same way she was expected to for Pink. She is filling the social role of a court Pearl. She is following him around everywhere, waiting at the bottom of the stairs, carrying his things, telling him stories, standing next to Yellow and Blue’s pearls, coming at the chimes, helping Steven function with the diamonds. She literally tries to cheer him up similar to how she did with Pink. She talks about his court the goes to get their friends, basically bringing his “court” to visit him. Something it seems she would have done with Pink back in the day. I mean it’s very in character for Pearl and everything to do those things, but it still hurts a bit. Like yeah, they had that “geesh” moment but they never really counteracted that idea.

It’s not the exact same dynamic as before. Pearl was more of a lady in waiting to Pink while with Steven it’s more like she is his nanny. But it’s still her falling back into her patterns as a Diamond's Pearl. I mean they aren’t even considering her threat and keeping her on the ship like the others. She obviously is just Steven’s/Pink’s caretaker and servant, she isn’t a rebel by her own choice (which I mean that's kinda true) she just falls back to playing her assigned role. Honestly, the Imagery in Legs From Here to Homeworld started this. She stood in the Pearl place on the ship, at Pinks/Steven’s screen surrounded on either side by the more powerful diamond. She already started following Steven around with his things, was next to him when talking about Nephrite and didn't push back at the Diamonds. The further continuation of this is depressing.

It makes sense for Pearl to slip back into this headspace it really does. In That Will Be, All she is annoyed and frustrated and hates being told to play Pearl. But these episodes we see her not really fight back, looking slightly annoyed but following the rules and doing all her work. I think this comes partially for safety as going against the orders would be dangerous we no option of leaving, then she is back in the exact same surroundings as before and being told by Diamonds not some third-rate Agate making it harder to not obey. I think also in a lot of ways Pearl never totally stopped viewing herself as less-than even if she no longer followed the old rules.   She learned to be smart, fight and live another way of life but her inferiority complex and conditioning are still in there making this experience I think was able to trigger those feelings in a more powerful way

Conclusion:

Well, it's not my least favourite. The story actually makes some sense that it progressed this way, and they're not OOC.  I hate this direction when they could have chosen a story healing and revolution but they didn't.

Another thing that sucks is at this point the narrative  is driven by two main factors, (none of those being animating themes or ideas):

Rose, The Gem War and Homeworld’s past mistakes. Everything happens in the wake of the destruction wrought thousands of years ago. All of the conflicts with space relates back to what a dead woman did, not our protagonists.

A lack of systemic understanding. Pearl only acted out of love and duty, she liked the more free world of course but it was never really her choice. Garnet has an understanding of the idea of revolution and change but never actually got to fight or win that. She knew what needed to be changed but never had the ability to make it a reality, living in a rose-tinted world, and Steven uses his playground morality that works with Peridot and Nephrite but not with tyrants. He never learned to view anything as bigger than interpersonal interactions.

[margridarnauds]

001 olympe/solene please!!! (also i know i haven't answered in 8 years but please bear with me, i haven't forgotten i'm just very late)

Thank you! (Also it’s fine; I was just a little worried I’d finally scared you away!) The following thoughts might be slightly rambling, given my family’s doing our daily rewatch of Toho!1789 and Maniaque just came on, thus short circuiting my brain. 

when I started shipping it if I did: I seem to recall a conversation between you and @couldntgiveafox some ages ago where you were discussing alternative 1789s, and I believe I stumbled across it in my fall to 1789 Hell. I don’t think I really started actively SHIPPING it until I was writing Pour la Peine and the (still a WIP) Modern AU where they go to Disneyworld, since it showed off more how they would WORK as a couple. (Yes, really. In my defense, there’s something about Solène and Olympe working together to get Artois stranded on “It’s a Small World” that warms the cockles of my shipping heart.)

my thoughts: I think they have a lot of potential as a ship; I would REALLY love to have seen more of them in canon because I think that they’d have had a lot more potential than our canon ship. (Not that that’s SAYING much, but…) The two of them have two very different ways of dealing with things that really make them complement each other well. Like, Solène has a much more direct way of doing things; she probably had to shut down most of Ronan’s fights with the other kids in their village when they were younger, whereas Olympe…can handle herself, obviously, but she tends to prefer sidestepping it if she can and tends to prefer using the gun only as an absolute last resort. And Solène and Olympe both…fill in the gaps, with each other? Like, Olympe’s a woman who everyone sees as this simple little governess who can be walked over but has a spine of steel beneath those stays, whereas Solène is a woman who presents herself as being basically untouchable and unbreakable, but she has a lot of vulnerability beneath the surface. 

What makes me happy about them: Solène has this blunt, rough edge that really works well against almost everyone, but the second that Olympe enters the room? She melts. Even if she’s terrified of what exactly that means and trusting someone again. She’s basically the embodiment of “I’ve only had Olympe for a day and a half, but if anything happened to her, I’d kill everyone in this room and then myself.” And Peyrol. Even if he’s not in the room and had nothing to do with it, she’d still kill Peyrol for good measure. And for Olympe, she has someone who’s genuinely in love with HER and would be willing to bend over backwards for her. (It’s not that I dislike Antoinette or that I’m even particularly criticizing her, but I do think that she can be insensitive when it comes to Olympe’s crush right until the very end when she lets her go and that sometimes, she takes advantage of Olympe’s feelings without realizing it, causing Olympe to get into trouble. See: Je Suis un Dieu.) Like, Lazare and Solène would never ADMIT it, because fundamentally they have way too much between them, but they have more in common there than they’d ever admit. 

Finally: BLESS the Toho for giving me, like, five seconds of interaction between them. It might not have been much, but THEY TOUCHED HANDS. While watching Solène’s brother being brutally shot by his boyfriend, but hey, it’s not the WORST first date idea. And Solène’s CLINGING onto this girl she’s just met in that scene, after rushing herself in front of Peyrol’s line of fire to do it. 

What makes me sad about them: Obviously, the lack of interaction between them, even though, on the positive side, it means the show can’t ruin it for me. Solène is hard as a character to write, because all three Solènes are written so very differently from one another that it’s hard to get a grip on her, especially since it’s obvious that the French really didn’t…CARE about her, as a character, and that also means that trying to get their dynamic can be hard. Like, I still feel after all this time that I don’t have them down as well as I have L/R, which is something that I’m always trying to rectify. 

Also, from an in-universe perspective: I think…Solène is very like her brother, in the sense that she doesn’t see HERSELF as inherently inferior or incapable of love (the one thing no one has EVER accused the Mazurier Siblings of is a lack of confidence), but that so much has happened to her that she kind of takes it for granted that this isn’t going to end well. Our girl’s canonically lost her brother and father, she’s PROBABLY lost her mother (I mean, unless she’s just…living as a hermit somewhere since Ronan and Soléne ran away or left Papa Mazurier to become a famous adventuress, I think it’s a safe assumption), and it’s safe to assume she’s lost at least 2-3 siblings, if not more, and…as much as I’m against the idea of the Tragic Sex Worker, she’s also probably seen Things in her time on the streets. If nothing else, then sex work was very much a transitory job for many women, who would take it up in off seasons in-between other jobs (or marriage, for some women), so there are probably plenty of women who she knew and tried to get attached to who just…moved on. 

And I think that Marie Antoinette’s ghost is always kind of going to be there, in the background, even as Olympe moves on from the full force of her old feelings. And Olympe has her own issues when it comes to loss, not just with Ronan (who was a friend if nothing else) and her mother (if we’re going with the musical-canon where Charlotte du Puget’s been dead for awhile), but also with probably seeing Louis-Joseph die in front of her. 

things done in fanfic that annoys me: WHAT FANFIC? There’s so little of it available that it’s kind of impossible for me to find ANYTHING to really annoy me. The thing that annoys me when I’M writing them is that there’s this…odd tendency, with femslash, for things to be sanitized and clean and saccharine, as opposed to M/M and F/M ships. And, on one hand, I DESPISE that mentality, but on the other hand, I find that I’ve internalized some of that, even though realistically S/O have…so much that they could bicker over. If they wanted to. So I try to keep at least a realistic level of conflict in their relationship, without reaching R/O or even R/L levels. 

things I look for in fanfic: Existing is always a lovely thing. 

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: Olympe/MA is always going to be a tragic crush for me; I’m not sure if it’d have worked in the long run as an actual RELATIONSHIP, but I’d be perfectly comfortable with Olympe being happy. Or accepting Artois’ offer, biding her time in London while slowly poisoning him so that she can retire in an obscene amount of wealth when the new king of France “tragically” dies only a few months into his new reign. 

Even though I’m pretty attached to Olympe being a lesbian and Lazare being gay and/or ace, I’m also not OPPOSED to them marrying each other as a matter of convenience post-canon, though…obviously. After the Takarazuka and Toho productions, there are going to be…issues with that one. (Lazare is incapable of being with someone when he hasn’t at least tried to kill their father.) Matthieu Carnot and Camille Lou in the original cast had HELLA chemistry with one another, and I’m not entirely willing to toss it all away.     

And for Solène…I’m not sure I’d go with ANYONE in the main cast. My main headcanon re: Solène and sexuality is that she’s bi, but the whole “Betrayal by her idiot of a brother” thing has really put her off the idea of being romantically involved with dudes for an extended period of time. Sexually? Sure, for the money involved. It’s her JOB, but she’s not going to go for anything that requires trust. Lucile is the obvious alternative, but I’m not sure how Lucile’s upper middle class upbringing would work with Solène and her profession, and the entire business with the engagement +…Lucile’s ultimate fate would work. (Also Lucile’s part in The Scene in the Toho version…it hasn’t put me off her as a CHARACTER, I still love her very much, but…it’s made me…less keen on her with Solène.) I also crackship her with Marie Antoinette. Marie Antoinette gets all the ladies in the main cast. 

My happily ever after for them: In the canon verse? They leave Paris, either getting out of the country or quietly running into the country, where they can live in peace without the Reign of Terror getting them. They establish a domestic life together, where both of them learn to trust again, even as Solène keeps her own funds Just in Case, because some things are a little harder to move past than others. Lt. du Puget knows, but he’s been too traumatized by his own experiences with the Bastille, as well as too grateful to the Mazuriers for all they’ve done to raise a fuss, and he becomes like a second father to Solène, with Françoise being a sister and partner in crime to her. Solène doesn’t lose track of her friends in Paris and visits them from time to time, even as she gets used to middle class life, and she never entirely loses her fire. They both die of old age, many, many years after the Revolution (because, as we all know, Olympe does not die at the end, and there has never been a time where she died at the end; it is her destiny to outlive the rest of the cast with her girlfriend.) And then, in the afterlife, Solène gets at least one slap in on her brother before they’re one big, happy family again. Because he does deserve it, tbh. 

Out of canon, I would honestly love to see a world where Solène/Olympe and Lazare/Ronan could have co-existed with each other as a family, albeit an insanely unorthodox one. I could see Olympe and Lazare having a marriage of convenience, with both of them having their own sections of the house that are just theirs, and with sex not even being a consideration. (Solène takes it more as a matter of course and the best possible option, even if she doesn’t LIKE Lazare; Ronan runs off and spends, like, a week crying somewhere before they can get him calmed down enough to explain.) Like, their wedding night is spent playing cards in bed until they can sneak out to their separate rooms, and at some point Ronan’s in-between them, drooling on Lazare’s shoulder while Solène glares daggers because if he hurts her girlfriend or her brother, she will not HESITATE to destroy him. Everyone knows that they’re gay AF and that a former under-governess to the royal family is sleeping with a former sex worker, mainly because Artois never shuts up about it (because if he can’t have Lazare under his thumb and he can’t murder the hypotenuse, he’s at least going to do his best to make his life miserable), but, does it matter? No. What are they going to do, not invite Lazare or Olympe to one of their salons? The horror, the horror. One year, for her New Year’s present, Ronan gives Solène a pair of earplugs so she doesn’t have to hear some of the ungodly sounds that come from his and Lazare’s side of the house. Everyone’s happy. 

who is the big spoon/little spoon: See, my GUT instinct is Solène for big spoon, since it gives her a place of security without her feeling pinned in, but also I love the thought of Olympe sometimes taking over, nuzzling into Solène’s neck and having Solène wake up and being like “Holy shit, this is real” even years later. 

what is their favorite non-sexual activity: Taking walks together, reading. I like to think that Olympe helps Solène learn how to read (which is one of the areas where I feel like they differ from R/L. Even though I think Lazare would read out loud to Ronan, I’m not sure he’d go through the trouble of TEACHING him, especially since that’s…giving Ronan some serious power as far as being able to page through any of Lazare’s papers.) Sometimes, Solène just prefers to hear Olympe read out loud, with her absently putting her hand on Olympe’s arm as time goes on and she relaxes, since Olympe has a very bright, expressive voice that suited her well when she was an undergoverness, and even if she doesn’t mean to, she finds herself taking on different voices for different characters, which makes for an entertaining reading experience,. The two of them also help each other with their daily toilette, getting each other’s hair and clothes prepared. 

This? Is an Olympe innovation. 

And this? Is a Solène. She Tries. And Olympe loves her for it. 

[pandxras-blog]

                 hello friends !! it’s ya girl moose again back at it !! this is panda !! she is......kind of a 2.0 of one of my other characters ?? slightly tweaked but still my fave gal deep down in my heart. as always i wanna plot w/ u all so LIKE THIS and i’ll come to u or HMU !!

she grew up in a small town in wisconsin where her parents owned a farm. they mostly had animals (cows, goats, chickens, and sheep) and rented out their farmland to other ppl.

she was an only child so.......she always kind of had to make due by herself. she’d hang out w the animals all day and she usually kept herself busy drawing or readin

the relationship between her parents had always been kinda rocky. she was the product of an unplanned teen pregnancy and it was clear they only rly stayed together bc.....they had to???

they were mostly just together for panda u know. but at some point her dad started seeing another woman lowkey behind everyone’s backs, but like…everyone kind of knew tbh bc.....the town is so small like everyone knows ur business.

panda was oblivious to it all tho, she likes to see the best in people. she loved her dad so much and thought of him very highly. he’s he dad after all!!!! her hero!!!!!!!

when she was 12, her dad just split one day while she was away at school and she came home to an empty house. he’d left to start his new life with his new girlfriend in the city without a word. he only left a pile of old sweaters (which panda kept & wears). a few weeks later some divorce papers came in the mail for her mom & that was that

for a few months, panda was the one that had to pick up the pieces. her mom wouldn’t get out of bed or get any work done or cook or clean or do laundry or do anything so it all fell on panda. she’d make breakfast and dinner for her & her mom and make herself lunch for school. she’d do the laundry and make sure her mom was fed and make sure the animals were fed & she barely had any time for herself.

it was around this time that her uncle and cousin noah came to stay a little while and visit, but ended up moving in permanently to help them around the house and help panda pick up the pieces & panda was kind of able to be a kid again, but.......also not really

pandora was always a kind of quiet and sensitive kid and she always got picked on at school for being a little weird, but after the whole family drama scandal it really only got worse? so she became really reclusive and didn’t do much other than go to school and go home and work on the farm, like she did before. honestly......this was just like her life now rip. she didn’t really have that many friends, but she found a lot of comfort in hanging out w the animals at home

and she also ended up growing a strong bond with her cousin because he was a bit of a black sheep himself. they’d just kind of chill w the animals together and just talk for hours. of course she loved her brother too, but he was like…..a lot cooler than her, so it was harder to relate u know

she also got really into art as a kid. she found it really helped her bc she couldn’t always express herself thru words, but she could always express herself thru art

honestly she’s just spend hours sitting around with the cows n noah, doing her homework and working on her art

the kinda gal that literally.....was constantly doodling ?? like always came home w pen on her legs and her notebooks were filled with little drawings in the margins & stuff u know the type

another thing that she’s always been into is like..........horror & gore & macabre shit ig ?? a lot of her doodles turned into her like designing these like monsters & creatures & it was a little unnerving when her mom found her drawings because like wtf ??? but....she has a very vivid imagination & a lot of ideas.

she joined her town’s theatre production when she was 15 & worked backstage designing & making costumes & doing makeup and was like wow...........this is dope ???? let me do this forever thx

the original plan her & her mother had discusses for her future was that she would go to school to become a vet so she could still help out around the farm, but....she wanted to make a future out of her art??? she wanted to make films and show what she could do with special effect bc.....she’s so passionate about it. she decided that like…the small town life wasn’t for her, she didn’t like everybody knowing her business and all that

and it was like….she wanted to get out asap ?? she just kind of needed a breather too and like…..a change. she wanted to start over, i guess.

she mom didn’t really believe that she could do it ?? like “oh that’s nice sweetie but that’s not a job” & also like she said explicitly at times that her work wouldn’t rly be good enough to make a career out of which was v upsetting. she lowkey believed it but she was destined to prove her mom wrong

so she was like ok !!!!! i’m gonna go to school pce out fam. but she had to take a year off after graduation to like....save money bc she didn’t know if she’d be able to get scholarships

she ended up getting accepted to princeton & she probably cried for a week straight. she’s doesn’t rly come from a lot of money so she needs student aid and she puts pretty much all of her savings into school

so here she is......w a double major of fine arts major & fum bc she REALLY wants to do special effects makeup & character design and make films ig !!!!

ew that was bad but now let me talk about her personality ok

she’s very........pure. she’s an innocent soul who really...couldn’t hurt a fly, even if she wanted to

tho she does lowkey because she’s fucking stupid just not on purpose

she’s naive, and blindly optimistic & overly sweet, almost completely inexperienced with relationships & definitely 100% a virgin

and she’s unassuming and always likes to see the best in people

also tbh…..she’s too trusting. just wants everyone to be happy n eat cake together

very easy to manipulate. will do anything to have ppl like her..........she just wants to have friends and b cool !!!!!!!!!

she has so many feelings !!! but she hides them all ?? or tries to, at least. she definitely avoids talking about her problems because she doesn’t want to burden anyone

she’s very oblivious to flirtation, like she just….does not understand it at all she’s so awkward?

as i said, totally inexperienced when it comes anything romantic at all…….she’s my bi queen but this bitch doesn’t know how to flirt

she gets so flustered and nervous around attractive people i swear to god she’s like giddy 99% of the time she’s a mess

panda is truly….too soft for the world. she’s constantly worrying about what people think of her and she cries so easily like….if anyone says anything mean to her she’ll just breakdown. she needs to harden up tbh……..she straight up cries @ everything its….fucking laME

she’s 100% art hoe tho, like…..she’s always doodling and she’s always got little pen doodles on her thighs n such. bitch always has paint on her hands & under her fingernails prob lil nasty

really knows how to BEAT a face tho but she’s too lazy to do it to herself everyday but pls........let her do ur makeup she’d cry & love u

because she’s so soft she can be like dumb ??? lacks a lot of common sense tbh she’s just....always got her head in the clouds. she will literally trust anyone and honestly..........................if she doesn’t smarten up she’s gonna get killed i swear

luvs bugs & thinks they’re real cool

riddled w anxiety and major self image issues !!!!!!!!!!!!!! lowkey hates herself rip

meme queen. spends hours a day looking at them tbh. she’s always looking at her phone and laughing to herself she’s lame as fuck tbh. she is a meme.

her favorite color is yellow & she makes a lot of movie references & she sux and i hate her

she got long goils !! but...here are some lil wcs if u are interested !!

best friend ofc !!!

sibling-like relationship

a confidant 

sum art hoe friends

flirtationship kinda thing??? she prob tries but fails miserably

a model!!! someone she can......practice her makeup on

a bad influence/good influence type thing

someone she thinks is cool and rly wants 2 impress???

again......anything & everything :’)

[manabingu]

Just a lil side story from Metrocon~*

Just felt like telling it even if it’s just silly. I just wanna have it mostly so I can remember it ;w;o it’s special to me anyways.

So during Metrocon I actually got very little sleep on Friday and Saturday XD tbh hehe. The reason being I was preparing a gift for Takanori cuz he was going to Otakon this year & because the dates of Metro & Otakon were too close I couldn’t make it to meet him... (again....I missed AX too). Anyhow I was slightly bummed out. But I’m happy I am the type of person who is kind to everyone at cons. From fellow cosplayers,VAs, vendors & security I just try to spread some goodness whenever I attend conventions. 

So for a few years now I met this really nice vendor named Kevin. He apparently is LA based originally but he attends all the major cons around the U.S. I can’t remember the exact year I met him but we have been friends for a few years & he remembers me every time he goes to Holiday Matsuri & Metro. We bonded over our love of jrock & he is super cool & kind. When I joined Anime Idol he always rooted for me ^_^ & he wished me luck before the show & enjoyed hearing about it afterwards :)! So this year I casually asked him if he was going to Otakon cuz he knows I really like TMR & always tells me when he’s coming to the U.S. so I can meet him. He has actually hung out with Takanori & knows him so I was hoping he could pass on a simple hello for me. But I saw this as a chance to let Takanori know how much his music has helped me. It literally saved my life & dunno when I’d meet him. So it was kind of a now or never moment for me tbh.

Anyhow I ask him  he said yes he will be attending. And I politely ask if it would be ok if I wrote Takanori a letter of thanks for being a positive influence in my life. This year I made a new friend thanks to ExAid Abridged who speaks fluent Japanese & I could have him translate my letter. So I told Kevin that I could have the letter printed & translated in Japanese so Takanori could read it better without needing a translator. And Kevin said sure, he will be happy to help deliver the letter! And I think I had a small heart attack ;w; because he ACTUALLY said yes to this. Normally I thought the reaction would be “I dunno he might be busy with his commitments & such  I was FULLY prepared for rejection cuz I know that people are busy & I would never force something that was impossible y’know? I have the ULTIMATE respect for fellow artists. But yeah I got emotional & happy & I hugged & thanked Kevin. And after having such a good show tat morning at Anime Idol, AND having Steve Blum compliment my Ginga costume, that was like the best Friday ever (besides meeting Dan Green last year). So that night I rushed back to the hotel & I stayed up till like...2 or 3? Because I was on Discord with SpecialForm12 writing & translating my letter to Takanori. It was WAY harder than I thought tbh...like...how does one tell their biggest idol everything you want to express in a short letter? And like, SpecialForm was SO sweet, he refused to sleep till the letter was done, he stayed with me & that really made me feel very grateful to have him as a friend. I need to repay him for this ;w;o

So next morning on Saturday, I give the letter to Kevin & thank him again. Even though I expressed a lot in my letter, I didn’t think it was enough, so I kindly asked if I could send him fanart too? And Kevin said sure! As long as I gave it to him before the Dealer’s Room closed on Sunday. So that Saturday night, I spent like another 500 hrs trying to figure out what to draw Takanori. Honestly it was between his Undercover 2 outfit cuz its one of my fave concerts & his Vestige PV outfit cuz I love that era. In the end I went with the latter on whim cuz it was super late. I wish I could have drawn it digital but I had no access to a printer by Sunday. So I used the colored pencils I always bring on my trips. And drew something. I wish I had actually done this weeks ago but I had no idea Kevin was gonna say yes to all this ;w;o so I was taken by surprise. Anyhow below, you’ll see the final product. It’s not my best work but hopefully when Takanori returns I can have something better ready.

I gave him the pic on Sunday & I thanked him a bajillion more times for doing this for me. Because I know he didn’t HAVE to, but this was a gesture of kindness. Kevin knows how important music is to me. And I told him “Kevin you’re my hero right now! Thank you!” He was very moved eheh. And he said “Hey, would you like me to bring you back something? Like new merch from TMR?” and I think I did a QUADRUPLE take when he said that to me. I wasn’t expecting ANYTHING like that, honestly I just wanted to send him a present XD! And I was a mess eheh QwQ I said “Umm! I wouldn’t object to it! Like, I just wanted to give him a gift! But IF it was possible, I wouldn’t care if it was big or small like a sticker or something, I would be fine with that!”

Kevin gave a little laugh while he was putting away my letter along with my fanart on his backpack. He said he’d try to bring back something & if he could  and if he could get a pic of Takanori with my gifts, he would do so as well. Needless to say, that was the cherry on top. So after giving him one final hug before the Dealer’s Room closed, I bade him goodbye. He said “ See you at Holiday Matsuri! And if anything comes up, I will have one of my staff see you at Holiday Matsuri in my place so don’t worry!”

I am so happy. Even though I missed Takanori singing SKILL with JAM Project, (which a I mentioned previously was THE dream collab I always wanted) I am so happy that because I am gregarious, compassionate & respectful at cons. It helped get my letter safely delivered. I hope I can make a gift for Kevin too because I am SO grateful for this chance. I will never take it for granted. And All I can hope for is that my gratitude reached Takanori. And I will try my best to catch him the next time he returns.  Anyhow that was the story I wanted to share. It’s lengthy & I know nobody will probably read it but I mostly wanted to document important moments to me ;w;o yay.

[roman-winter]

okay last ones Storm and also Eli

STORM

2-4 songs that are probably on their iPod

storm has the musical taste of my father and i’m not even mad….

take me home, country roads - john denver // blue bayou - linda ronstadt // wagon wheel - old crow medicine show

the one place they sometimes end up falling asleep — where they’re not supposed to

in his office. he’s perfected the art of the discreet office nap. it’s one of the only times he closes his door fully, and because of it, all of the people who work in his office know better than to disturb him when his door is closed, because it usually means he’s asleep

the game they’d destroy everyone else at

storm is really good at like a billion stupid board games, but he kills it at sorry, which feels kind of ironic considering the fact that he’s rarely sorry about anything he does

the emoticon they’d use most often

🤷 but also just ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  he uses both versions of the shrug emoji more than any grown ass senator should 

what they act like when they haven’t had enough sleep

storm’s life is a constant state of not having enough sleep, and so he’s really good at not letting it show, sometimes it just means he makes even more stupid jokes than normal and is a little goofier, if that’s possible, but he’s not one of those people who gets grumpy or bitchy if only because he’s always been watched

their preferred hot beverage on really cold nights. or mornings. or whenever.

on cold nights, he’s a sucker for a hot toddy or a hot buttered rum, but if he has to work, which he usually does, he’ll just go straight up tea, although he prefers sweet tea ofc

how they like to comfort/care for themselves when they’re in a slump

he’s really shit at that sort of thing, and p much generally dealing with his own issues, so he ignores everything and just throws himself even more into work. probably even spends nights at the office working on bill proposals and getting shit done. it’s not healthy but that’s what he was taught, repress and work harder

what they wanted to be when they grew up

storm didn’t really have any other options, since his family already had a political legacy going. he always wanted to be a senator, though, and he couldn’t imagine himself doing anything else. the dream, though, was president, and it’s a dream that’s still plausible considering how young he is

their favorite kind of weather

even though he’s from the south and lives in d.c. now, he really isn’t a fan of the heat, he’d much prefer those slightly chilly but sunny fall afternoons that you can wear a coat and a scarf if you want, but it’s still nice enough to walk around in

thoughts on their singing voice (decent? terrible? soprano? alto?)

storm is a great singer, but it’s not something that he really ever has a use for, except for sometimes singing in the shower, or when he’s working at the office alone late at night

how/what they like to draw or doodle

he doesn’t really doodle, mostly because every chance that he has to doodle is a time when he really genuinely needs to take notes. sometimes he’ll just scribble absentmindedly when he’s on the phone with particularly long-winded senators, but that’s about it

ELI

2-4 songs that are probably on their iPod

i could make a list of 100 songs on eli’s ipod bc it’s just any 80s pop but here are a few:

come on eileen, africa, total eclipse of the heart, don’t you want me, time after time, sweet dreams, careless whisper, take on me, etc etc etc

the one place they sometimes end up falling asleep — where they’re not supposed to

honestly? none really. eli doesn’t need much sleep, and isn’t really a napper unless it’s a cute af nap w andrew like on the couch or in bed or whatever. he doesn’t really sleep in any other places besides those two. although i’m sure when he was in medical school for that brief moment there was A LOT of falling asleep in the library on his books or shit like that

the game they’d destroy everyone else at

eli’s not super competitive, he’d rather just have a chill, fun time than try to destroy at any game at all, BUT he was basically a heather in hs/college so he’s really fuckin good at croquet

the emoticon they’d use most often

LITERALLY LIKE ANY EMOJI. he texts andrew in all emojis and it’s The Worst and The Best at the same time, but probs mostly 🍆 🍑 bc he’s actually still 12 despite being 49 lmao

what they act like when they haven’t had enough sleep

this isn’t really a problem he has bc he gets up at the butt crack of dawn to bake for the coffee shop every day, but i just imagine that he’s a really adorable exhausted when it happens, a lot of eye rubbing and stretching so that you see a little bit of his tummy and yawning, but no complaining bc he deals w shit v well

their preferred hot beverage on really cold nights. or mornings. or whenever.

literally any kind of coffee. he makes so many different kinds of coffee drinks, and he probably has a different one that he makes for every feeling and occasion, and that’s def what happens whenever they have cuddly cold nights in front of their fireplace

how they like to comfort/care for themselves when they’re in a slump

lots of cuddles w andrew and also melody, lush products and a bunch of hot baths, baking a bunch of shit and then eating it all, a good long cry, just generally letting himself feel everything and talking about it with andrew and being such a sweetheart tbh

what they wanted to be when they grew up

eli thought that he wanted to be a surgeon, mostly because all of his older brothers were doctors and so was his dad, but he realized very quickly once he started medical school that he didn’t want that at all, that he really wanted to fight for what was right and make a difference in the world in that sort of way

their favorite kind of weather

SUMMER HEAT BABY. he’s from california and moving to chicago was like the strangest decision ever considering his aversion to cold weather, but he manages, and he loves chicago summers, wearing tank tops and walking melody down on the piers

thoughts on their singing voice (decent? terrible? soprano? alto?)

eli sucks at singing but that doesn’t stop him from singing almost constantly, poor andrew

how/what they like to draw or doodle

he loves to leave andrew little notes and he draws a lot of hearts and flowers on them, probably bad pictures of melody too, just a lot of cute little doodles for andrew

[fluorescentbrains]

End of Year Fic Meme

so i kind of... wrote more fic in the past 8 months than i had ever written previously in my whole life??

Statistics:  I wrote 12 fics, all DS9, all quodo except for one gen, ~34k words between may and now, which is about ~140 words a day.  

questions under the cut:

1. What’s your personal favorite thing you wrote this year?

gonna have to go with Blueshift. i think i just hit a really good note with that one? goofy, cute, a little bit of angst, a little bit of making out, and i liked my prose throughout. also it made drunk face licking a lowkey meme

2. What’s your least favorite thing you wrote this year?

i’m far from hating it, but i’m not much of a fan of To Sleep, Perchance to Dream (so i won’t link to it i suppose lol). it was fun to write and i think it was a good idea, but it doesn’t have much of a resolution? also probably relies too much on being familiar with all the source material i was referencing.

(however, if you are into the quodo dynamic and you haven’t seen a production of Much Ado About Nothing, that’s probably something you will enjoy...)

3. Which of your fics was most different from what you usually write?

amusingly enough, Running Up That Probability Curve. i usually don’t write multichapters because i’m bad at plotty stuff, and it’s by far the longest story i’ve ever written. (in contrast, while Have You Ever Danced with the Devil is something of an unusual fanfic, it’s much more representative of the type of stuff i usually write.)

4. Which of your fics this year was most successful?

RUTPC has 88 kudos, more than twice the runner up (Breathe), and since it was published kind of during like, the first Wave of Actual quodo fanfic, but was also pre-slash and accessible to people who wouldn’t necessarily care about the ship, it got a pretty significant response at the time. so yeah, i’d say it was the most successful.

5. Which of your fics do you wish was more successful?

The Magician’s Heart! it’s a bit odd for a fanfic (but, much like HYEDWTD, representative of the kind of stuff i write) and also not under any ship tags, so it makes sense that it didn’t get much of a response. 

i found the lack of response to Techniques for Interrogating a Suspect a bit surprising, but i did post it during a holiday week. and i guess if you don’t like tickling (which some people reaalllyy don’t) it won’t be of any interest to you.

6. What’s your favorite piece of dialogue you wrote this year?

“Paradise is for dead people” --Indifference. Plus, like, the entirety of Blueshift.

7. What’s your favorite piece of description or narration?

for narration, i’d say sisko’s first person in HYEDW... you get the idea. i wasn’t too confident i was getting his voice down, but i got a very positive response to it. 

as for description, The Magician’s Heart and its cardiac metaphors, and odo’s drunk POV in Blueshift.

8. Which fic this year was most fun to write?

Blueshift wins again lol... i started out not totally sure where i was going with it but it just ended up being a really fun and stress-free fic. i finished it in one sitting i think.

9. If you could go back and change something about one of the fics you wrote this year, what would it be?

probably just tweak characterization and pacing in RUTPC--it was only my third time writing the characters and the first time writing anything long enough for chapters in years, so i feel like there are some awkward and stilted scenes, weird transitions, etc... maybe go even harder with the telepathy stuff now that i know people are into it

10. What, if anything, are you going to try to do differently in your writing in the new year?

i get really thrown off writing when my academics get even slightly intense, so i guess try to write MORE, even little things, throughout the year and not just when i have oodles of free time? also try to write longer things, write up some of the ideas i had plotted out for my longer fic that may not belong there, maybe actually WRITE that longer fic... though tbh my schedule’s looking grim pretty much from january on out until i finish school lol. 

in terms of actual writing, and not just how much or how often, i want to write some less ambiguous endings!! less pre-slash more love confessions!!!! richer prose!!!!! 

honestly, most important is that i should probably try to READ more fiction; i think all the dry academic things i read and write all the time are leaking into my fic writing style

[imissmymarcjacobs]

Ritual Vitamins Comprehensive Review

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A post shared by china frost (@olivecreativeco) on Feb 23, 2020 at 7:48am PST

Why I Was So Hesitant to Give Ritual Vitamins a Try

Honestly, my main issue with Ritual (versus other brands of supplements/vitamins/multivitamins) was undoubtedly the price. $30 USD for just one month of something that really only “works” invisibly is just not a really “fun” kind of purchase, if we’re being real here haha. I’d much rather spend that money each month on some nice skincare or makeup products that I can actually see working when I use them. However, I finally got serious about actually purchasing a Ritual Multivitamin subscription when 1. my doctor said I was anemic (likely because of my vegetarian diet that I’ve been following for the past few years) and that I should start taking an iron supplement, and 2. I found a Ritual promo code shared by someone I follow on Instagram for $15 off your first month. So, since an iron supplement was actually medically necessary for me (the regular Ritual multivitamins contain Iron as one of the ingredients, plus several more good things which I will talk more about later), and since $15 for a month’s worth of pills isn’t too much worse (I think) than what I’d pay for a decent iron supplement or multivitamin from a drugstore or something, I decided it finally made sense to at least give Ritual a try!!!

The Price

Is it Justified Solely by the Ritual’s Cute Packaging & Overall Brand Aesthetic? Or Actual Solid Reasoning Based on Quality and/or Performance?

Now let’s take a quick look at Amazon to see what some of their women’s multivitamin options are and what range of prices we’re dealing with there. Below is a pretty standard, seemingly decent (4.5 out of 5 stars with almost 300 total ratings) women’s multivitamin I found on Amazon. So, in comparison, yes, you can find a standard women’s multivitamin on Amazon (and likely at your local drugstores, as well) for a much more affordable price than what you would pay if you opted for a Ritual subscription, since the Amazon one (the one below that I’m using as an example) is about one-third of the price of the Ritual vitamins, and it comes with double the amount of product compared to the Ritual vitamins. (They both come with 60 pills, but you’re supposed to consume two Ritual vitamins daily whereas you’re only directed to take one pill daily when using the supplement pictured/linked below).

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***Note for the rest of this post: From this point forward (in this post only, obvs), when I talk about the Ritual Multivitamins, I will be referring to the Ritual Essential for Women Multivitamin 18+ (Not the other two current options - Multivitamin 50+, Prenatal Multivitamin) unless otherwise stated. This is only because the two options I’m not really talking about in this post aren’t really relevant to me, personally, right now, and I don’t know much about the needs of the average 50+ person or the average pregnant or soon-to-be pregnant person, so I’m choosing not to speak on those things that I really don’t know much about, at least at this point of my life! However, if you have any specific questions that this post doesn’t answer and you think the 50+ Multivitamin or the Prenatal Multivitamin might be better-suited to your needs, please feel free to contact me with any questions or comments and I’ll do my best to share everything I do know! Thank you for understanding!!! 😇😇😇😇

So, is a subscription to Ritual Multivitamins actually worth it?

“Is it worth giving a try? Is it worth my money at the full monthly price? Is it worth it if I have a discount/promo code?” I’ll do my best to answer all of these questions in the paragraphs below (to the best of my ability, of course!)

Features/Perks of Ritual Multivitamins

‘No-Nausea Capsule Design’ - I absolutely love the fact that Ritual vitamins are specifically made/formulated/designed to be anti-nausea. I’m someone who struggles a LOT (I really mean a lotttttt!!!) with seemingly chronic stomach issues. I’ve been to a million doctors appointments about my stomach issues, but none have been able to figure out a cause or cure for me - yet! I try to remain hopeful but that doesn’t change the fact that this is something I’ve been struggling with for years. That said, a lot of foods, drinks, and medication (anything, really, that goes down my throat and into my stomach) upset my extremely sensitive and picky stomach, making me nauseous fairly frequently. Basically, this is just a long-winded way of saying that I’m already super happy with this claim by itself, because I haven’t noticed… honestly I don’t think I’ve noticed ANY other brand of vitamins/supplements that are specifically supposed to be anti-nausea. And I think it’s really great that Ritual actually thought about this as a concern for many people and made this anti-nausea multivitamin a reality!

‘Vegan Certified’ - Having been a vegetarian for the past 4 years, and a vegan the year before that, I can safely say that, in at least one area of my life, I intentionally go out of my way to avoid most animal products - and since almost 100% of those intentions are because of ethical reasons (factory farming = BAD, SCARY, HORRIBLE, TERRIFYING, DISGUSTING, AHFSDILJLFSD don’t get me started lol but look it up - not anything made by PETA tho tbh - and you’ll find a bunch of stuff that you’ll wish you never had to find out but you still should educate yourself because it’s what’s actually going on in soooo many places “behind the scenes” and it’s NOT okay!!!!), I’m loving the fact that Ritual vitamins are completely vegan! It can sometimes be difficult to find certain types of supplements or vitamins that are actually 100% vegan, especially gummies (don’t forget that gelatin is an animal product and therefore not vegetarian and therefore I try my best to avoid these), so this fact/feature is actually one of the big reasons I’d be alright with paying a higher price - in my head, I’m justifying it to myself by thinking, “It’s okay, the extra money isn’t going towards cute, fancy packaging that’ll end up just being thrown in the trash, but it’s also - at least somewhat - going towards the sourcing of all-vegan ingredients, which aren’t as common and likely harder or just plain ol’ more expensive to get for the company.

‘Gluten and Allergen Free’ - I don’t have any real food allergies (I suspect that I might be slightly lactose-intolerant, but it’s definitely nothing severe and I don’t think that even counts as an allergy haha), but I do really appreciate the fact that Ritual took this feature into consideration and was able to implement it without sacrificing the quality of the vitamins or anything like that. Just because it doesn’t necessarily apply to or affect me, personally, doesn’t mean I don’t wholeheartedly appreciate the intentions behind this and what it means for others who do struggle with these issues.

‘Non-GMO’ - To be blatantly honest with you, I actually don’t really know much about GMOs and wasn’t really taught much about them while I was in school at all - and if they did even mention it in school, you can bet your ass I don’t remember even a lil bit of it lol… 😬😭 So, for that reason only, I’m not going to really comment on this particular feature, but I still wanted to mention it in case you’re someone who does know a lot about this topic and is either strongly ‘pro-’ or ‘anti-’ GMO!

‘No Colorants or Synthetic Fillers’ - The fact that Ritual doesn’t use colorants or artificial fillers in their multivitamins is one of the other main reasons why I can better understand and justify (to myself and my wallet, lol) the higher cost of Ritual Vitamins compared to other brands who add random colorants and weird synthetic fillers all over the place while formulating the product, without regard to how this may affect the efficacy and/or absorption of the vitamins even when taken as directed. Since Ritual’s formula is backed by so much science and isn’t formulated with simply price in mind (“What can we do to make this formula as cheap for us - the company - to actually make, without making the product so absolutely terrible and ineffective that our customers won’t want to keep buying it?” - I feel like SOOOO many brands and companies ARE like this, without considering the quality of their product or the consumer’s needs/preferences at ALL, and it’s so refreshing to see a company like Ritual Vitamins doing pretty much the exact opposite and actually taking into account scientific research studies + their accompanying results, the preferences and needs of the consumer, and the quality, branding, and high standards of everything from their products they sell, to the quality + design of both their physical product packaging as well as their digital website and newsletter emails.), I feel so much more confident in the product I’m purchasing and have less guilt and remorse as a consumer (like I might experience if I were to purchase from a ‘cheap,’ almost ‘fast-fashion’ type of brand or company.

Delivered monthly - Ritual is, in fact, a subscription-only program/service - aka, you’ll either like that if you tend to enjoy subscriptions and paying a lil bit of money on a regular, ongoing basis; or, you’ll hate this fact if you’ve had bad experiences with subscription plans in the past - i.e. not being able to easily/conveniently cancel your plan, getting charged each month despite being told your subscription had been canceled, or if you just prefer paying a larger amount all at once rather than making smaller payments continuously over time. This one is all about preference! I, for one, typically prefer most things to not be in subscription-only format, but if the claim (below - #4 in this list) that Ritual offers ‘free, easy cancellation’ is true, then I wouldn’t necessarily be mad at the fact that it’s subscription only.

Free shipping, always - I do enjoy the fact that the Ritual website offers free shipping (even if you need to/choose to take a break from your subscription for a lil bit and then come back, and even if you need to/choose to rush your package!). Honestly, I don’t think there’s ANYONE who truly doesn’t like seeing the words ‘FREE SHIPPING’ on a product you’re thinking about ordering, so I think this point is definitely a perk for mostttt people!

Control your delivery date - Love this perk/feature of Ritual’s service as well! I also am a user (and LOVER!) of Curology, which is also subscription based, and I didn’t think I would even use this type of perk at all, but since I knew Curology offered it, I’ve actually used it a couple of times to order my next “monthly” product early (I was a lil over-eager and was applying wayyy too much product each night at first and ran out of my bottle that was supposed to last 2 months in like, a lil less than one month lollll 😂😋). I don’t know how likely it is that I’ll end up finishing my monthly bottle of pills too early like that, cause that doesn’t sound like a healthy use of the vitamins lol, but it’s still a nice perk that’s good to have juuuuust in case you find yourself wanting to needing to get your Ritual package on a different day than what was automatically scheduled for you!

Free, easy cancellation - As stated earlier (#1 in this list), the MOST irritating, frustrating thing about subscriptions of any kind is when there’s no easy or convenient way to cancel. Is there a button on your website that I can simply click on and once I confirm that I actually do need to cancel my subscription plan, it’s done? Simple as that? That’s what I prefer and that’s what I feel like should be the 'norm’ for subscription-based companies/brands/plans, but unfortunately that’s not the case. I haven’t needed to cancel my Ritual subscription yet, obviously, but I’m hopeful that this claim is actually true and not an exaggeration or even a lil white lie.

30-day guarantee - Ritual claims that it will give you a full refund (‘It’s on us.’) if you end up giving the product a try and ultimately being dissatisfied with it or just disliking it for whatever reason. Of course this is a great perk, since it (likely/hopefully) means that they really stand behind their product, service, and brand - they’re basically betting on the fact that you’ll fall in love with it after trying it, since if you do decide to utilize the 30-day guarantee, they obviously end up losing money. So, since they’re still in business and seem to be thriving, I have to assume that there’s at least a majority of people liking being a Ritual customer as opposed to those who were dissatisfied enough to seek out a refund. I might not be the best, or even average lol, at math, but betting on the fact that each customer will end up loving your product is a great way to build trust with your customers - even I feel like I put more trust into the company after reading this perk (and all the others!), so it’s great that they keep the customer in mind.

Build better habits - Ritual offers an Apple Watch app that you can use to help you stay on track with your daily Ritual Multivitamins, as well as to learn new tips and things provided by Ritual - all through their app for the Apple Watch!

Ritual is Created ‘For and By Women’

So, the CEO/Founder of Ritual is a woman, which makes me so happy and even more eager & willing to support the brand, but wait, there’s more! If you scroll down past the blurb from Katerina Schneider, you’ll get a glimpse at some of the rest of the Ritual team (and their credentials). After taking just a quick glance at the people shown on that page, I noticed two awesome things: 1. There’s at least one woman, if not more, in every single one of the career sections featured there. I am a huge supporter, of course, of women’s rights and the issue of equal pay, representation, etc., and knowing that Ritual has a number of women on their team is definitely a step in the right direction and something all brands need to learn from, honestly!

This post is getting… rather long haha so I think I’ll stop here and just make a ‘Part 2’ in addition to this post at a later date. Until then, I hope this provided you with some helpful and/or interesting information about Ritual, vitamins, multivitamins, and different features and/or perks that Ritual offers. I haven’t yet shared my complete final thoughts yet, because I think it would just make more sense to do so at the very end of Part 2, since I’ve decided to split this long post.

If you have any questions, whether they have anything to do with Ritual or not, please aaaalways feel free!!!!!!!!!!!! to contact me!!!!!!!!! either using the contact form linked in the navigation bar on this site, or by commenting using the comment form under this post, or by emailing me directly! All of these methods end up landing right in my email inbox in a few minutes, usually, so none of the methods are any faster or slower than the others. If you liked and/or appreciated this review, this website, or anything else I make/produce/share, pleaseeee please please let me know (again, using either of the methods listed above - your choice/preference!).

P.S. When Ritual Vitamins Comprehensive Review, Part 2 is eventually written, posted, and published for the whole internet to see, I will go ahead and link it here at the bottom of Part 1 of this lil Ritual “series.” 🥰

[gulescamisade]

New York:  Day 7

MEULIN: -She can't quite sleep; her dreams have been sort of weird. It's not too unlike usual, but having been bashed through a wall and dealing with serious pain in her ribs isn't the best for rest either. Her sylladex is back, so she's got her overhead light on and her notebook in hand, scribbling new lines. She's writing about Dave and Karkat currently, because they won't answer in the bulletin feed. She's anxious.-

JOEY: =Ugh, plane rides always threw off her sleep schedule, now more than ever since it had been near a decade since the last time she was on one.=

JOEY: =Seeing Meulin's light on, she weaved through the aisles until coming up to her row, sleepily rubbing an eye.=

JOEY: having a hard time zonking out too?

MEULIN: !

MEULIN: -She had kept the glasses on idly, but words scrolling across the screen startle her a little with how "quiet" it had been for some time.- OH... -clears throat, trying to be quiet.- MMHM...

MEULIN: -glances over at looks at Joey more fully- HEY, SO... WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?

MEULIN: I MEAN... NOT SUPER LITTERALLY. BUT WHERE HAVE YOU B33N? BEFORE NOW.

JOEY: tons of places, really...

JOEY: i lived on alternia for quite a while before bouncing between earths and alternias

JOEY: and now im finally back where i started :)

MEULIN: HAVE YOU NEVER B33N TO BEFURUS? -chirps with interest, wiggling in her chair to face Joey more fully-

MEULIN: -she doesn't seem to quite be grasping the plurality. She thinks it might just be a glasses typo-

JOEY: oh....no I dont think so

JOEY: my travels were stuck between the two switching back and forth

JOEY: thats actually a correlation I never really thought about... it's something to tell jude when he's awake haha

MEULIN: OH??

MEULIN: WHY BACK AND FURTH THERE?

JOEY: =is the seat open next to Meu? if so she's taking it. Funny enough, she found trolls easy to trust, having lived around them for so long. But Meulin was a stranger.... WELL, not for long!!=

JOEY: well see, it all starts with a long story, but the abridged version is that ive been trying to find my way back

JOEY: from different universes

MEULIN: -IT SURE IS, until Joey takes it.-

MEULIN: DIFFERENT MEWNIVERSES? -knits brows- I GUESS I'VE B33N TOLD A LITTLE ABOUT THAT... BUT IT S33MS SO SILLY...

MEULIN: NOT THAT I DON'T BELIEVE YOU! IT'S JUST... I GUESS IT'S HARD FUR ME TO MAKE SENSE OF.

JOHN: -he's been listening for a little bit, he didn't want to interrupt- it's the real deal, meulin. jake showed me a picture and everything.

MEULIN: ?! -LOOKS AROUND FOR JOHN.-

JOHN: -he's right here. he waves-

MEULIN: -OH HI-

JOHN: haha, sorry i didn't mean to startle you. i was listening to joey.(edited)

MEULIN: SO PEOPLE ARE JUST... HOPPING AROUND ALL WILLY-VANILLY?

JOEY: oh...im guessing different universes are common knowledge here? hehe i thought i was revealing a whopper of information that would totally blow your mind out of the mind ballpark

JOHN: hey i don't know about all that. all i know is jake is from a different universe too. and he showed me a picture of dirk from a different universe.

JOHN: but as far as i know he only went once. he didn't just...ping pong around like you're saying.

JOHN: -eyes her curiously-

MEULIN: OKAY, SO THIS ISN'T JUST MIND BLOWING FUR ME. GOOD TO KNOW. ~(=^. .^)

JOHN: my mind equals blown.

JOHN: -mimes the "mind blown gif thing"-

JOEY: oh

JOEY: well ping ponging might only work under very specific circumstances JOEY: at least in my case

JOEY: did jake come through a doorway?

JOLENE: ... -shifts a uncomfortably where she's sitting nOW THAT I'M PAYING ATTENTION-

JOHN: man...i don't know. i never asked him.

JOHN: sorry!

JOHN: don't worry though. you'll get to talk to him soon when we go get him.

JOEY: i hope so :)

JOEY: it would be an interesting conversation

JOHN: so uh, what was it like being a human on alternia?

JOHN: i mean tbh it sounds pretty terrifying.

JOEY: the trick is not to be a human on alternia ;)

JOHN: 👀

JOHN: -???-

JOHN: okay now you've got me all intriguied.

JOEY: well as long as you look the part, walk the walk, and talk the talk, trolls can be easy to fool =glances over at meulin= no offense

MEULIN: NONE TAKEN, WE'RE FURKING WEIRD.

JOHN: haha wow. really? so you slapped on some horns and face paint and that fooled the alternian authorities.

JOHN: wow. great job guys.

JOEY: well learning the language, registering as a maroon, and getting a sustainable job was a touch harder, but =shrugs=

JOHN: -raises his eyebrows, impressed.-

---

[SPEAKING OF TRAVEL PLANS, it's been getting a little bit harder to keep going the direct path they've been going in this plane-- between the border patrols protecting against the CANADIAN RESISTANCE LEAGUE and the ships that keep passing them by-- often requesting identification or confirmation of some kind-- it's been getting downright dangerous. The fact that they wound up in the middle of Ontario just to avoid some of the heat is beginning to make this a harder affair than it should be-- especially since they can see several other blips on the plane's radar rapidly approaching them.]

JOHN: -observes this bullshit- aw man...........

MEULIN: -after all her restlessness, she actually ended up falling asleep at last, leaned over with her head in Joey's lap, snoozing soundly. Prr prr.-

JOEY: =She's also sprawled in the chair, one hand on Meu's shoulders and a bit of drool running down her chin. A beautiful sight. Are the passengers able to hear the blips? Or see "blip" scroll across glasses in a lovely marquee?=

[The restfulness is interrupted by a few shrill chimes... it would seem the blips are getting MUCH closer. And much more interested in getting a straight answer out of this vessel.]

ROSE: -She sits up abruptly, waking from some kinda dream where her eyes are open, glancing around the cabin.-

JAMISON: =WHAT THE HOODLY-DOODLY? Is Jamison or Jolene driving either way he's ALERT and peeps at the radar= We seem to be the hot new thing in the clouds!

[ PLEASE IDENTIFY YOUR VESSEL AND ITINERARY]

[also it's jamison if u want it to be]

MEULIN: -She is deaf to the chimes... at least unless something else wakes her up.-

JOEY: =She jumped in her seat at the sudden shrillness of it. The movement may be enough to rouse her.=

JAMISON: =What should he do... should he LIE? He'll lie. Takes on a weird high-pitcher voice= Oh.... hullo!

JAMISON: We're simply a jerky craft delivering jerky from questionable products as anticipated bipbip right right! =Casually flies... how many are there? AIRFIGHTING is much more of a delicate dance than fighting on land and sea... it requires...... surprise=

JOEY: =she's rubbing her face, trying to wake herself faster=

[ There's a good four of them... and it IS a cargo vessel. So it's not exactly handling like a dream...]

JAMISON: =AUGH=

[ There is some mumbling and rustling on the other end.]

MEULIN: -snorks and CHIRPS out of her sleep, ears perked despite nothing to listen to.- WHAT...?

MEULIN: WHAT'S WRONG? -adjusts sunglasses on her face-

[ 'warning shot?' 'yeah dude warning shot' ] [ ' should i do it or--'] [ 'YOU ARE BOTH COWARDS'] [that one was less of a mumbled rustle as it was a scream, as a missile flies directly towards their tail.]

[ ' OH HEY GUESS WHAT ASSHOLES, GUESS WHAT, KOLETA DOESN'T KNOW WHAT A FUCKING WARNING SHOT IS, BIG SURPRISE']

[ the one who evidently named the shot and is ALSO evidently named Koleta shouts something back.]

ROSE: I-- I think you can cut the com channel.

JAMISON: Frigs Koleta! =SWERVES plane=

JOEY: =she puts a finger to her lips, signing "Contact" and pointing to the cockp--= JOEY: =SCREAMS!=

JAMISON: =HE KICKS IT=

[ There is a muffled BOOM as the plane shakes. But the blips are getting closer-- at least there's no obvious major damage.]

MEULIN: ~(=ΦェΦ) !!!

MEULIN: FURK!!!! WHAT WAS THAT???

MEULIN: ARE WE BEING SHOT AT???

JAMISON: We may very well have to make an emergency landing, all!

ROSE: Slightly.

JAMISON: Perhaps if they clip us with another missile we can use debris as a cover while they chase the bum plane on auto-pilot!

ROSE: We're... not too far from a town. I think. -She squints at her phone.- ROSE: That's actually a good plan.

ROSE: We can lay low and secure another transport.

ROSE: And they may possibly believe we're dead.

JAMISON: Right-o!

JAMISON: In which case everyone brace yourselves for a good bailing! =He'll have to pay attention and time this right=

[BOOM. BOOM. And then, BOOM. it sounds like the other three pilots were all showing of that thEY know what a god damned warning shot is.]

ROSE: I--

ROSE: Do we have... parachutes?

ROSE: I haven't been able to do much, since the falls.

JOEY: yes! =flinches at the booms=

MEULIN: -reading as fast as she can- BAILING??

MEULIN: -scrambles out of her seat-

JAMISON: Of course, no good explore leaves without one!

JOEY: they seem a heck of a lot bigger than bullets though!

JUDE: -absolutely has a parachute? you never know when you're going to need one.-

JAMISON: =He's so proud of his kids....=

JOHN: well uh, i can carry a few peeps but a big group might be a target.(edited)

ROSE: Right. Right. Visual cover or something.

JOEY: =She ducked out into the aisle and began throwing open compartments to see if there's anything useful in there? like additional parachutes.=

JOEY: =calls over to jude= we should skydive until we reach a safe distance from the ground to avoid being sitting targets in the air!

JAMISON: I do have a raft which could cover a few souls!

JAMISON: =Hide them behind a raft falling out of a plane.=

[There's some supplies! There's actually a flaregun in there, some walkie-talkies... not that they've needed them, since they have communicators.]

JOHN: oh hey good idea!

JAMISON: =SOMEONE GRAB THOSE WALKIES HE'LL TAKE EM APART AND MAKE EM GUNS AND BOMBS AND GUNBOMBS=

JOEY: =He likely knows this of course, but everyone knowing their game plan is nice= JOEY: =She scooped them into her sylladex anyway.=

JOEY: =brilliant minds=

JAMISON: =Good on ya Joey!! :D =

[BUT NOT THE FLARES JAMISON??]

JOHN: - flips the raft on its side and holds on to it firmly- well anybody without a chute grab on tight!

JAMISON: =YES OF COURSE, they do well for lighting people on fire=(edited)

JOHN: the egbert airline express is ready for take off! :D - salutes-(edited)

ROSE: -Takes a deep breath and grabs onto it.-

ROSE: It cannot possibly be worse than going over niagra falls.

JOHN: smooth rides guaranteed. sorry no peanuts. (disclaimer: smooth ride not actually guaranteed.)

JAMISON: Those with be sure to cover yourselves with the chunks blown clean from our very own flyer!

[ SOME MORE MUFFLED BOOMS. Hitting the aircraft, in fact. And less muffled. And more shaky.]

ROSE: ...Yes. Good timing. -SLAMS THE BUTTON TO OPEN THE CARGO DOOR-

JOHN: nyoom! - SCREAMS THE WORD NYOOM, double checks that everyone is grabbing on and then JUMPS-

JAMISON: =He waits for all to vacate in the smoke and wreckage= GO GO GO!

JOHN: - It's not as difficult to hold on as if they were simply falling. it's more like going down a VERY VERY long and steep slide with the Breeze carrying them- pchoooooo!

JAMISON: =Once they've gone he sets the plane on auto-pilot and dives for the door as well, covering his body with some debris and free falls. Doing spins to appear like normal wreckage.... gotta committ=

[The planes don't seem to pick them up-- all going directly after their cargo plane. They probably see them whooshing overhead, following the trail of smoke and fire.]

JAMISON: =Excellent, he ditches the debris and dives a little closer to the ground before deploying his parachute=

[ Prepare for a ROUGH LANDING. They're near a road-- one that hasn't been upkept all that well, but still a road no less! And a sign of nearby civilization.]

JOHN: - now that the danger seems to be gone he enjoys the rest of the ride, holding onto the raft tightly and at the last second, laughing and flipping the raft over so they land on it-(edited)

MEULIN: -WELL SHIT THEY SURE ARE FALLING. She can almost sort of hear a little bit of this with what tiny hearing she has left, with all the wind whipping in her ears.-

JAMISON: =DOOF! But he doesn't blow out his shins! He's hastily folding the parachute up and shoving it back in his dex, it can be used later!=

[There are MULTIPLE DOOFS.]

ROSE: -kind of wheezes as she looks around...-

ROSE: ...About half a mile south.

ROSE: Is. The town I mentioned.

JOHN: -remains spilled over on his back, looking up at the sky upside down.-

JOHN: great day to be in canada, eh? weather looks fine, eh?

ROSE: John, please.

ROSE: You were practically Canadian already.

ROSE: I've met your father.

JAMISON: Mighty fine weather to be not where we were! =Dusts himself off and looks ahead=

ROSE: I'll agree to that.

ROSE: -She rubs her back, sitting up and looking around. A moose is staring at them, knowing no fear.-

JOEY: =floats to the ground shortly after, Meulin in her arms=

MEULIN: 333333!!! (ノᄌ<。)

MEULIN: -no less than CLINGING to Joey. she glances at the sky to see if their plane is going to spiral down and explode somewhere, since it's likely she won't hear it. She is sort of distracted by that moose, though.- (´⊙ω⊙)

JAMISON: =A MOOSE? WHERE!!=

JAMISON: =Instantly distracted=

http://i.imgur.com/DqDLwfq.gif

JOEY: look at that majestic creature JOEY: :D

JAMISON: =Slides out his knide slowly=

JOLENE: -NO!!-

JAMISON: =WE NEED TO EAT=

JAMISON: (Sssshhhhh.)

MEULIN: -shakes her head, freeing the fur hair.- B33 ARE B33. -crawls off of Joey to prowl...-

JAMISON: =MEULIN gets it!=

JOEY: D: =but it's a moose!=

JOEY: =earth wildlife!!=

JAMISON: =Imagine the honor it'll have to be our meal then..... also if it's running... he's in pursuit=

[THIS HERE EARTH WILDLIFE STARES AT THE APPROACHING MORTALS PEOPLE]

JOEY: =WE MEAN NO HARM OH MOOSE GOD! i mean, meulin and dad proabably do but wow please dont eat us=(edited)

JAMISON: =Hello dinner!=

JAMISON: =He's approaching with fists raised. Giving it a chance to FIGHT for it's life=

JOEY: =s otp=

JAMISON: =HE'S GIVING IT A FAIR SHOT=

MOOSE: -oh it will. IT CHARGES HEAD ON-

JAMISON: Have at thee future meal deal! =He watches this charge and is gonna try to duck under the horn charge to CHOKEHOLD a moose=

MOOSE: -NOT FOND OF THIS ARRANGEMENT!!! IT TRASH-

MEULIN: -SHE'S FLANKING THE MOOSE!!!! and then pounces from behind. EN GUARDE.-

JAMISON: Whoa there! =Is thrashed and HAWs at Meulins pounce=

JOEY: D':

MOOSE: -IS TACKLED TO THE GROUND BY A CATPOUNCE-

MEULIN: -CLINGS TO ITS HAIRY MOOSE BUTTOCKS WITH CLAWS-(edited)

MEULIN: -also, BITES ITS BUTT.-

MOOSE: -WOW????-

MEULIN: - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5GnMR2EB54 –

JAMISON: =They'll try to make this quick mighty beast. Once Jamison gets a good foothold in the snow he's going to try and end it swiftly with his old man muscles=

MOOSE: -DEAD-

JAMISON: =DROPS IT= Well then! Dinner well caught!

JAMISON: :D

ROSE: There was a town nearby.

ROSE: So we could have—

ROSE: Actually, nevermind.

ROSE: Good work.

ROSE: -GOTTA KEEP MORALE UP SOMEHOW-

MEULIN: -HUFF PANT. Her glasses went flying in the midst of this so she misses that too. Retracts claws and offers Jamison a HIGH FIVE.-

JAMISON: =HIGH FIVE!!= :D

MEULIN: - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YMPAH67f4o -

JOEY: =if a baby moose walks out of that forest she's gonna cry=

MEULIN: .... -veal-

JOEY: =NOOOOOOO!=