#and the entire joke that “we're all in on” is that everyone finds them annoying and grating for basically no reason

[cascadianights]

Officially voting we remove the trope of "awkward but very loving person everyone fucking hates and that's the joke" from television

[tachimichishrine]

"the cat came back"

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h. p. lovecraft x fem! natsume's daughter! reader

lovecraft is canon afraid of cats! now you know >:)

warnings: uncontrollable fluff ; that was a joke idk how to fluff ; made him ooc af womp womp ; i want to eat lovecraft ; just a little nom nom is that too much to ask; tentacle hentai (reader eats his hair) ; fishing boats (derogatory) ; intended lowercase

moonlight was his favourite time of the day.

his eyes peeked out from the rippling surface of the water, hair floating and spanning out like branches of a tree. he was sleeping a short while ago, until...

"shh!! it's the middle of the night, someone's gonna yell at us for doing this!"

disinterested eyes glanced at a boat. a fishing boat. he shuddered; it appeared like two adults were sitting down on it, giggling mischievously at each other while the motor grumbled loudly, scaring away the sea life from the secluded corner along the coast.

"bah, it's not a big deal," the other person responded, sporting a confident smirk. "we're out in the middle of nowhere. who are we going to disturb, the little mermaid?"

another round of giggles. the couple bickered about something else, something he didn't care to remember, then ate each other. lovecraft watched curiously as their lips met, then sighed. he wanted to sleep.

he reached a tentacle from under the surface of the water and capsized the boat.

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another week, another goddamn boat. he just wanted to sleep: ever since the guild had fallen apart, he didn't have to do anything, and he enjoyed it very much. he'd occasionally leave the comfort of the sea for some ice cream, but the looks he'd get while out in public made him anxious, so he'd stopped doing that a long time ago.

"I heard the spooky sea beast lives around here..." a voice said lowly, holding a flashlight out to the murky waters. "some say it's the kraken, others that it's the soul of the deceased..."

he didn't like to be disturbed. lovecraft flipped them over.

the next night, it happened again.

by the end of the month, it seemed he had become a local folklore story. he wasn't particularly interested in hearing all the stories about himself, and what was worse is that he found himself at the center of attention. gross.

he would keep flipping boats until they would leave him alone.

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"[_____], come on, get in the boat! you're such a scaredy cat!"

"yeah, I am!" the woman yelling from the shore exclaimed. she was watching a few of her friends get into a wooden tub of death and paddle in the direction of a sea creature that had been terrorizing their city. it wasn't a myth, as everyone who doubted would go and find themselves thrown into the water promptly. the question was mostly as to what on earth was doing this. "you know I hate getting wet, and I don't want to get eaten by a sea beast today, thank you very much!"

the friends pouted, pleaded for her to come along, and the only agreement they came to involved the woman following them from land. she watched them as her boots squelched into the damp earth in the same direction as their path, and they spoke from a far distance.

which woke up lovecraft.

he grumbled, displeased. this was never fun, and it was getting even worse now. the top of his head peeped out from the water as he got a look at the young adults laughing and joking from their fishing boat, and he flipped them with one movement.

they all yelled out as they splashed into the water, arms desperately gripping onto the upside-down boat as they looked around fearfully, then at each other with chuckles.

"told ya it was real!"

"gahh, my shirt is soaked!"

"dude, your entire body is soaked."

it was all a game to them, he seemed to notice. they thought this little escapade and mission of disturbing him was all for fun. he didn't have time to feel annoyed about it, because it was time to sleep. on the verge or disappearing back into the abyss, he felt a pebble bounce on the back of his head.

he turned his head around, his neck contorting as he saw a young woman looking at him, eyes wide.

they stared at each other for a few moments.

she let out a yelp, and her entire body compressed down to that of a calico cat.

he saw the cat and yelled out in response, tentacles sprouting, bursting out from various parts of his body.

the cat ran away and nothing was said. the group of friends were still laughing as they had gotten back into the boat and began paddling to shore, not seeing the iceberg underneath their feet that was the body of a real sea monster.

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the next day, lovecraft was out of the water, in the middle of the day nonetheless, simply to dry up a little bit before he went back into the water. somehow, this logic added up to him.

all was fine until he saw the woman again.

she was leaning against a rock, not quite sitting but not quite standing. she looked nervous, glancing around her everywhere as if she was expecting to get attacked at any moment. her eyes darted to the water, where she saw nothing, then back to her surrounding. back to the water. back the the surroundings. her foot was tapping the soil incessantly and her lower lip was being abused by her teeth as she nibbled to distract herself.

this time, she saw him.

they looked at each other again, but it was much more tamed than the previous time. she didn't turn into a cat, and he didn't turn into a natural catastrophe.

her mouth seemed to open, but lovecraft didn't hear any words from out of her. she just creased her brows together, then sighed. "um... hi, hello. I'm... I'm [_____]. you're howard phillips lovecraft, aren't you?"

he hovered at the surface with only his dark eyes and long hair visible, maintaining blank stare.

she extended her hand out to him, then realized it was stupid to shake hands with someone who was several meters away, several meters deep into the water. laughing nervously, she rubbed the back of her neck.

"I didn't... I didn't mean to scare you the other day, you just caught me off guard. you see, I'm in the business of keeping track of the ability users in yokohoma, and you never came up on my radar. so I asked around," and here she kicked a rock with a chuckle to herself, "actually, I just asked my dad, and he told me about the guild."

still no reaction. lovecraft had fallen asleep with his eyes open.

she crouched down, grabbed a pebble, and flicked it onto his forehead. heavy eyelids raised for a moment.

"would you be willing to uh... get out of the water to speak with me, for just a moment? I can... well, I don't really know what to offer you."

she babbled on, face flushed and looking at the ground and her feet as she kept speaking, saying things that neither of them understood, and it was only when he got close that she took notice the tall, dripping wet figure looming over her. he was wearing clothes and everything, even had was appeared to have been a nice jacket in the past before... whatever tore it apart. she met his eyes.

"thank you! it just makes this... whatever... easier... ahh, forget about it. could we... walk and talk? I don't want to lure you away from your... your home?..."

"I'm hungry," he proclaims, a statement more than a request.

"sure!" she nodded, although a little confused and uncertain, leading the way as she walks through the rugged terrain of the trail before arriving at her car and opening the passenger door for him, waiting for him to hop inside.

now, he looked confused.

"is there food inside?"

this was going to be a long discussion.

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[_____]'s job was simple: she had to keep tabs on all of the ability users in yokohoma. know who they worked for, their relationships, their dreams and aspirations. when you can turn into a cuddly ball of fur, it isn't particularly hard to gain information.

she had no clue what was going on with this man, though.

rumours had sprung up about the sea monster. she knew, of course, there was no such thing, but in the spirit of the approaching holiday she indulged her friends in a trip.

seeing a man living in the water was not what she had expected, much less to surprise herself by getting flustered enough to accidentally use her ability and turn into a cat. it was just her luck that cats seemed to terrify the man.

speaking was hard too, since he didn't really seem to know much about the ways of the world. she knew he was from america, but common courtesy of not trying to eat someone's car for dinner was likely the same there as it was in japan. likely.

it was cute how ice cream was the secret to taming him.

"lovecraft," she snapped her fingers in his face as he zoned out for what could be the seventh time in the same sentence, "look, I don't mean to take your entire day. I was just hoping you could lay low on the boat flipping for the time being."

"I am laying low," he stated blankly, a smudge of chocolate cream smeared across the corner of his lip, like a child. she chuckled warmly and pointed it out to him, but he just shrugged and kept licking the frozen treat. "the boats keep coming."

"because you've become a horror attraction," she retorted. something deep within her caused her to run her thumb along the edge of his lip to clean him up, partly because she knew he wouldn't do it himself, partly because she thought she'd go mad over the messiness. "leave the boats alone and they'll leave you alone. it's as simple as that."

he wasn't paying attention again. he'd gotten tired of licking and dislocated his jaw just to swallow the entire cone in one bite. the paper wrapper and napkin around it were still not removed, too, but he didn't seem to care as he pushed his jaw back into place and kept walking by her side, as if it were nothing.

she decided it was easier to not comment.

they made their way back to the vehicle, and she dropped him back off at his corner of the water, verifying multiple times that he didn't want help looking for a place to live. a slight pause and hesitation; she wanted to give him her phone number in the event he needed something, but she quickly realized he probably doesn't even have a phone, let alone one he uses.

another ability user to add to her list. what a bunch of weirdos.

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boats kept coming.

this time, they were getting louder, more intrusive. some people brought diving gear and headlights, eager to explore the water for the sea beat. lovecraft was not pleased.

it was hard at first to take the advice of the strange woman. then, when they put on loud speakers and played blaring music during their expeditions, it became impossible to ignore them. a blizzard of tentacles and otherworldly monstrous body parts ravaged every boat on the lake.

[_____] showed up a dozen minutes later, not pleased.

no one was injured, but news reporters had gathered and were making a bug fuss out of it all. they dispersed after some time, and she was the only one left. she tossed pebbles into the water, hoping for him to resurface for them to talk.

"I specifically told you to do one thing," she grumbled, glaring into his sleepy eyes that peeked up. "now the whole town knows there's something going on here."

he briefly racked his brain for past interactions with his former partner, steinbeck, and realized this was the sort of situation where he was supposed to apologize. she looked at him with distrust when he did (quite blandly), but ultimately sighed and shook her head, saying it wasn't a problem.

"maybe you just need to get out of here," she proposed. "if you're not in the water when the tourists arrive, you won't have to endure all of it. do you have someplace else to go in the meantime?"

a shake of his head signaled he didn't, but also that he didn't seem to care. of course he wasn't picky about where he lived, he was currently residing in what amounted to a swamp.

"would you like to stay with me until this whole thing goes away?"

lovecraft shrugged, "okay," as if it weren't a big deal for either of them. she scolded herself for being baffled at his nonchalant reaction, which was to be expected.

she insisted he dry himself up this time before getting in her car, though.

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lovecraft made himself at home by eating just about everything she had in her pantry, then trying to eat the pantry.

a smack on the back of his neck with a rolled up newspaper, and he was set straight. she indicated that he could sleep on the couch for the time being, just as long as he double-checked with her that it was okay before eating anything, emphasis on thing.

"I'm not around most of the time," she told him as she put on a coat while near the entrance, eyes darting around to make sure she wasn't leaving any valuable around in the event that they magically disappear upon her return. "so, the place is yours. are you sure you don't have anyone you want to stay with? I was told you had a partner when you were in the guild, a young lad named steinbeck. I can track him and the remnants of the guild down, if you'd like."

"no."

not a trace of anger, disgust, or even any emotion from his response. he simply wanted to be left alone, she realized.

her expression softened and she put the coat back down, walking up to him.

"how about this, would you want to go get some ice cream again? I can pay, of course."

money didn't seem to cross his radar, so the final comment went through his head. she wanted to understand him, as was the task her father had delegated onto her to know all ability users, but it was proving a lot harder than she'd thought.

that's how she found herself, a disgusted look on her face as she watched lovecraft jump into a small pond near the ice cream shop, the treat still in his hand. the ball of frozen cream floated on the surface of the murky water, and he opened his mouth to eat it like a koi fish.

"there's... there's so much wrong with what you're doing right now," she frowned, watching him happily ruin the clothes she'd just bought for him by swimming around in them. again. "howard, you're going to have to take it easy on my wallet, I don't have an infinite supply of clothes to get you."

he vanished under the surface and did not come back up for an entire minute.

she couldn't handle water - she retained quite a bit of feline features even in human form, after all - and there was no way in hell she was going to jump in to save him if he were drowning. he wasn't drowning, of course, he'd just made his way along the floor and chomped down on unsuspecting sea-dwellers. since she'd said she can't pay for everything, this was free. at least, he thinks it is.

when he came back up, she sighed with a tired smile on her face, leading him back to the apartment.

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"how does your hair never get tangled?"

she was watching him curiously as he spread his lanky limbs across the sofa, bones breaking and body distorting to make it more comfortable for him. he didn't seem to hear her question until fingers raked through silky locks.

"why would it?" he raised a brow, eyelids still shut. after a few weeks, he'd gotten better at conversation, but the horror fanatics were still invading his little corner of the sea. besides, he liked it better here.

"oh right, I forgot that you don't have the problems the rest of us mortals have," she said jokingly, but realized she wasn't even sure if it was a joke. she started having doubts that he had an ability and wasn't really just a sea monster after all. fingers combed through obsidian streaks. "ahhh... it's so soft..."

she stood up in front of him, and made her entire body visible. "I'm going to turn into a cat, now."

they agreed to make it clear to the other before doing anything that scared the other, and that involved using their abilities. she liked being a cat, most of the time, as it was more pleasant to nap and lounge around in that form. however, it still caught him by surprise, and he nearly shattered the entire apartment once when he went into the kitchen for some food and caught her sleeping in a bread basket.

grey eyes watched the calico cat pounce up from the floor onto the sofa, hobble along the edge of his body until it twirled around itself and slept in the waves of hair.

he was already asleep by then, so he didn't mind when little cat teeth nibbled on the strands. they tasted like sea water, to no one's shock. paws stretched out with a yawn, then went back to snuggling themselves under the warm body of fur.

maybe this arrangement wasn't so bad.

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he was getting much better as weeks turned into months. the craze over the yokohoma sea monster died down, but he found himself attached to someone for the first time in his existence. he didn't know how to describe the feeling other than warmth and that of a full stomach.

giggles exhaled in clouds of fog as she walked on the empty streets at night with him by her side. she was cold, and so was he; the only difference is that she felt it whereas he simply didn't care.

"can we go home..." he grumbled, albeit glad for the absence of people in the vicinity. they made him uncomfortable, all except for her. he didn't know why his lips were tugging upwards as she took his hand in hers.

"you're freezing," she remarked against icy flesh. "I'm sure there's a café or something nearby, if you want to warm up before headi-"

his other arm wrapped itself around her waist and pulled her against his frame, face buried deep enough in his chest to cause her to suffocate. her feet were kicked upwards behind her, body no longer touching the ground as he carried her entire weight with his one arm.

"you're cold too. this will help."

"MFMFMFMNMNMF!!"

he took her muffled cries for confirmation that he did the right thing, and walked them home in just about the most awkward position possible. she managed to crane her neck to the side, gasping for breaths, but just laughed to herself at his peculiarities.

he was right, it did help.

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she remained curled up against him even as they got inside, slipped under blankets and were laying on the couch. not that she had a choice; he didn't seem keen on letting go anytime soon.

"my limbs don't bend like yours do. could I..." she squirmed, grateful that he seemed to get the message and loosened his hold on her. she repositioned herself then curled back up into him, rubbing her head in slow circles against his chest from feline instinct. she muttered a thanks into his slowly warming shirt.

everything felt so uncomplicated in his presence. even as a horror movie played in the background, she nearly fell asleep on him, and he had long gone into the realm of dreams. they were both snoring softly when a dramatic scream emanated from the television, jolting him awake.

her eyes were still closed, and he just took a look at her face for a few moments before having what was more of an urge than an idea.

he ate her mouth.

this sprung her wide awake as she pulled away from shock once she'd realized he was biting her lips.

"what are you doing?!" she shrieked, hands pushing on his chest to lift herself up and off of him. "you can't just... what... why would you... ?!!!"

he looked at her with a dull expression, a sliver of confusion revealing itself on his long features. "I saw... I saw people do this when they're content. I-"

"oh my god," she let out a breath of relief as she understood that his actions didn't align with his intentions, even chuckling softly as she let herself fall back onto him, body now completely on top of his. her face was hovering on top of him, and she kept a gentle smile. "people do that when they're in love, howard. it's called a kiss."

again, confusion and a grumble. "oh. what does that mean?"

she squinted, almost as if looking for the answer to his question in the backrooms of his irises. "I don't know how to explain it, but it's what people feel when they're really happy around each other."

"I feel like that," he stated blankly, watching as her face flushed in embarrassment.

"you can't just say that like it's nothing," she managed to croak out without combusting on the spot. "love is a very big thing. you have to mean it."

"why wouldn't I mean it?"

her lips parted as she tried to respond, then realized just how simple everything was with this man. lovecraft didn't care about the specifics, and maybe she shouldn't either. she exhaled through her mouth slowly, then brought her hands to his cheek.

"okay, fine. I'm going to kiss you now, alright? don't do anything like try to bite my flesh off, just... just let me kiss you. can we try that?" the words felt silly as they spilled out, but he nodded. if it didn't involve him doing anything, that was even better, he thought.

his eyes were open as lips met again. he took notice that hers were closed, but he couldn't quite understand why. it was nothing like what he'd tried earlier: she was soft and slow about it. he could feel her chest fall and rise in sync with the gentle breaths she let out. it was clear she wasn't sure about what she was doing, but after a few moments, she leaned in closer and he could taste her on his tongue. she rubbed her lips on his, and smirked once she felt him trying to reciprocate by copying her movements. fingers slid from his cheeks to his hair, and she pulled his face deeper into hers.

she let out a soft yelp as his tongue dipped further into her, now an addict of her taste. he tried to be careful, he really did, but his teeth bit down into her tongue a little harshly as he tried to get the hang of this. as soon as things got too messy, too fast, she slowly pulled away, his lower lip flicking back upwards as her own let it go. her eyes fluttered back open, and she found herself giggling as she saw that his were open the entire time. of course they were.

"that," she whispered with a smile, fingers stroking his hair and weaving through them at his scalp, "that is a kiss. how did that feel?"

his face literally melted and he became a gooey mess of tentacles and monstrous shapes as he felt his entire body explode internally.

watching his version of being flustered be to turn into his alternate form, she was tempted to giggle at how adorable his reaction was. however, she quickly found herself projected across the room as he accidentally threw her out of panic.

she chuckled, back slumped against the wall while sitting on the floor on the opposite end of the room, a hand on her head feeling for any bumps or cuts. "I take it that means you liked it."

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a hand around his hips, a hand holding a cup of hot chocolate.

a hand on her waist, a hand gripping five different ice cream cones all at once.

they sat on a bench in the dead of the night, which was really the only time she could get him out of the apartment. during the day, she would go out and work while he stayed home and slept. during the night, they would occasionally go out, then come home and sleep. it was quite the schedule.

she took a slow sip of her hot chocolate, head tilting to the side in order to rest on his shoulder. in order to not disturb her, he contorted his neck at an angle that would make anybody call on for a higher being's protection, and tossed all the cones into his mouth in one motion.

"want a sip?" she offered her drink, unfazed by anything he did anymore. "not the whole cup, just a taste."

his eyes met hers, and he shrugged yes. she smirked and kissed his lips, the chocolate flavour lingering even as she pulled away.

thankfully, as they were in public even though there was no one out at this unholy hour, he just blushed and did not morph into an enemy of the state and humanity. she liked it when he blushed; his sharp features softened and glistened under the moonlight. another kiss to the high of his cheekbones paired with fingertips sliding along his abdomen, and the red deepened.

"m'just messin' with you," murmured against his skin. "want to go home now?"

it was a stupid question: he always wanted to go home.

only, his home was no longer a place, but a person.

[strawheart-pirate]

Letters

Shanks x gn!Reader

December 5th 2023 Words: 1009 CW: SFW / non/pre relationship, some rage, some alcohol, but most of all fluff

Writing a letter to Santa Claus. You were a pirate and Santa Claus was not even real. Why would you do that? Read and find out about a Christmas tradition of the Red Hair Pirates.

The Red Hair Pirates have a tradition. Everyone writes a letter to Santa Claus. Captain's orders. It was your first Christmas with them, and you frown as your captain stands on the railing and makes a solemn speech asking the crew to hand in their letters by tomorrow morning to be sent to Santa with a seagull. Shanks ends his speech with a toast, and everyone begins to cheer. Everyone except you. You stood there speechless. A bunch of grown men were happy when their captain told them to write letters? He must be joking. He must mean something else. A 'letter to Santa' has to be a code word for a special operation. I mean, we're talking about red-haired Shanks, one of the Emperors of the Seas. This can only be a bad joke...

"Captain, what does 'letter to Santa' mean?" You plucked up the courage to ask, but the moment you uttered your question, the crew fell silent. Everyone was silent except your captain. He laughed.

"It stands for a letter, written words on paper, a kind of wish list that we send to Santa Claus. Isn't that obvious?" He explained happily.

Your eyelid twitched. "Wait, you guys are serious? A letter to Santa Claus, the Santa Claus? How old are you all? He doesn't even exist!"

You were annoyed. They can't be serious. Why would an emperor's crew cling to such a childish tradition?

Your complaints fell on deaf ears, and your captain just laughed it off. He patted you on the shoulder as he walked past you. "I'll expect your letter by tomorrow morning, okay?" Before you could answer, he was gone, off to wherever. Your frown deepened and you clenched your hands. It wasn't that you didn't like Christmas, oh no, it was the pointlessness of the task.

"It's not that bad, you know." Lucky Roux came up to you, munching on a chicken wing.

"Are you listening to yourself? This is ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous. Why would I even write a letter to a fictional character? This is madness!" You were taking out your anger on him.

"You're taking it way too seriously. Even the captain writes one." Lucky Roux tried again, but you threw your hands in the air and stormed off. Maybe you shouldn't have joined them... there doesn't seem to be a single sane person on this ship...

Three hours later, you were panting and sweating from your workout. The bag took some strong blows and serotonin flooded your brain as exhaustion showed in your muscles. It felt good to throw punch after punch at the bag until your muscles refused to cooperate. With a smile on your face, you stepped into the bathroom. The warm water soothed your pain and eased your mind, and you felt like a new person when you stepped out of the shower.

As you walked back to your room, you saw that the door to Shanks' quarters was ajar, and you dared to peek inside. Shanks was sitting at his desk, a quill in his hand, and he seemed to be writing something. Maybe Lucky Roux was right... Thoughts flooded your mind and you found yourself knocking on his door.

"Captain?" You spoke, your voice barely above a whisper.

The moment Shanks heard your voice, he jumped out of his chair and opened the door to let you in. "Yes, it's me. Come on in." He led you to his sofa and you both sat down. "Would you like some sake?" He offered you his bottle.

You were taken aback. He was so friendly and welcoming, even though hours ago you had snapped at him in front of the entire crew. "Ah, no, thank you. I..." You were about to apologize and ask him your questions, but he interrupted.

"Have you finished your letter? I'm almost done with mine. I write one every year. And I always get what I want. I must be a good boy." He flashed his signature grin.

You couldn't help laughing. It amazed you how enthusiastic he was about the letter. No one would ever think that this strong man could act so childish.

"You want to talk about the letter, right? And don't worry, every member of the crew was just as confused and annoyed as you were." He smiled and took a sip of his sake.

"Oh... Yes, and I'm sorry." You wondered why he always seemed to know what was going on in your mind.

"It's all right." He laughed softly before becoming serious. "Look, I'm not going to force you to write a letter. If I did, it would defeat the purpose." He paused to take another sip of sake, and you wondered what intention he could have in asking his crew for letters. "Everyone on this ship is part of the crew, a family of sorts. Most of them had lives before they came to me, and they all dream and wish. They would never tell their captain, for the sake of the crew or the world, but everyone would tell Santa Claus. That's why I'm asking you to write letters. That's why even I am writing a letter," he explained, looking at you with a gentle gaze. He took another sip of sake.

You were speechless. You would never have thought of it, but he was right. You felt stupid for your outburst earlier, for cursing that letter and letting your anger get the better of you. You thanked your captain and went back to your room. As you lay down on your bed, you closed your eyes and welcomed sleep with open arms.

Later that night, you found yourself on your bed with a pad, paper, and a quill. The night light was on and you were in the process of writing your very own letter to Santa Claus. You were so deep in concentration that you didn't notice Shanks walking past your room. He was leaning against the doorframe, a gentle smile on his face as he watched you write your letter.

All content unless otherwise stated belongs to: ©Strawheart-pirate. Please do not copy / modify / translate / repost my writing, banners or art on other platforms. Comments, reblogs or likes are highly appreciated! Snowflake banner by ©firefly-graphics

[your-average-teenage-mess]

The first time I ever watched ride the cyclone, I was watching the slime tutorial on my phone with a friend, who's already watched it before. And when I saw Noel's character, I was legitimately prepared for pain.

Cool, a stereotypical gay teenager who's a drama queen and sex-obsessed and kind of annoying to everyone around him. Literally me, but he's gonna be turned into the butt of the joke we're somehow supposed to find empowerment in, right? He'll have his little moment of self-expression and pride, everyone around him will be embarrassed of how cringe it is and be framed as the normal ones, and we'll just have to take it because at least they aknowlaged the existence of gay teenagers. Very cool and not upsetting at all.

And then there was Noel's lament, and I was just like, "that's gonna be it, right? He's having his moment of expression, which he'll then be made fun of to hell and back for daring to be gay while expressing vulnerability". And I kept thinking, god this is beautiful, god do I relate, god am I so sorry for what's about to come. Because the thing is, I also experienced stuff not so different from what he went thorough. Being openly queer from a young age, everyone around you being cool with it on paper but also seeming to think you should stop being so weird, and so you try to keep it down, and be normal, and inside you turn to escapism, because all the heroes in all the stories had a better reason to feel hurt than you do, what are you complaining about, and you wish you were traumatized, because then all that pain and feeling of repression and preformence would not feel like you're just looking for attention even though you're trying to hold it back even though you CAN'T because you have no fucking filter, and... And right after Noel's lament ended, when he was just sitting there in hesitation, waiting to see how the others are going to respond to how he just poured his heart out, I just reached and paused the video, and I turned to my friend, and I went "just... Give me a second," because I wasn't ready to see another gay character I can relate to being degraded for having emotions that are messy.

And then she told me, "no, look," and unpaused the video, and... The other characters didn't act like he just humiliated himself. Mischa thought his performance and creativity were really dope! Ricky loved how he got to play the accordion for this, that was really cool! The only one who was being weird about it was Ocean, and she was presented as an annoying judgmental stuck-up who's trying a tiny bit too hard to seem like this doesn't make her uncomfortable, and was immediately side-eyed by literally everyone, as she should have been because for fucks sake that is how this is literally always like. He poured his heart out... And the story didn't punish him for it. It was genuinely radical for me to see that.

I'm not saying ride the cyclone is perfect in terms of representation- there is a LOT to be said about what they did with Ricky (#saverickypotts). But this is proof that you CAN, in fact, have queer characters and their stories inside of stories that are not inherently queer, and this is why you SHOULD. Because we don't deserve to feel as if the only way we'll ever be accepted is by locking ourselves in a room with only each other and become completely unable to engage with the outside world because every interaction with it becomes so fucking draining. If you're writing a story with mostly straight people, and one of the characters "happened to be (insert queer identity)"... I just want you to know, they don't have to act hyper-respectable all the time, they just need the narrative to treat them with respect. Not just about their identity. About their entire internal world, too. Let them have the dignity of people even if they're sometimes cringe, or weird, or overshary, or bad at communication. Because this is how much it can mean to someone.

[monstersdownthepath]

Herald of Iomedae: The Hand of the Inheritor

CR 15

Lawful Good Large Outsider

Inner Sea Gods, pg. 292 (image from the Wrath of the Righteous video game!)

Among the most famous of the Divine Heralds is the first one we'll be looking at during Heralds of Hope Month. I say 'most famous' for a few reasons; he's one of the most active Heralds on the planet, what with that whole Worldwound problem going on in the north. There is rarely a moment's rest allowed for the Hand of the Inheritor in the tireless battle against the Abyss' expansion, so it's perhaps no small surprise surprise that he would eventually make a terrible and tragic mistake and end up the mercy of someone without any.

There's other reasons he's famous, in and out of universe, and those reasons are why he's no longer the Herald of Iomedae.

But this isn't talking about the now, we're still in the then! When he was at his strongest, healthiest, and least corrupted most devoted to the ideals of the Inheritor Goddess. Fittingly enough for the servant of what is essentially the Goddess of Paladins, the Hand is an angel blessed with the powers of a Paladin, built for and unafraid to put himself right in the middle of a pitched battle and cut his way through Evil like a hot knife while they struggle ineffectually to harm him. Like all angels, he's protected by a 20ft "nuh-uh" bubble that shields himself and all his allies from Evil creatures, granting them and him +4 to AC and to saving throws versus Evil creatures and effects, while also hedging out Evil summoned creatures and stopping any spell of 3rd level or lower from entering this sphere of protection, stripping many fiendish minions of their ranged options.

But of course, that's just what every angel can do. Let's look at what the Hand's unique powers have in store...

HAH, gotcha! The Hand of the Inheritor has no unique powers! I wasn't joking when I said he was basically an angel with Paladin class levels. ... except not really, because an angel with Paladin class levels would actually be much better than the poor Hand actually ends up being. But we'll get to that in a moment, so first, the positives!

Perhaps fittingly for a man who finds himself fighting alongside the front lines against demons, the Hand is just as useful bolstering his allies as he is actually leaping ahead of them into the fray. He has Aid, Lesser Restoration, Dispel Magic, and Magic Weapon all at-will, can grant himself or his allies Bull's Strength or Resist Energy 3/day, can swath the battlefield in a calming Prayer up to 3/day, and give everyone around him some extra stats and 18 temp HP with Burst of Glory 3/day. Any ally that falls in the midst of battle may be re-raised with his 3/day Raise Dead, but actually killing anyone he's trying to protect in order to draw out that resurrection is incredibly hard because of his 1/days: Death Ward, Dispel Evil, Greater Restoration, and Heal.

Killing HIM is even more annoying, because he's got 15 charges of Lay on Hands, which means +9d6 hitpoints for him as a swift action, IF you manage to get past his 32 AC. With such a menagerie of protective magic, you may think he's got no room for offense, to which I answer: 3/day Flame Strike, Holy Smite AND Order's Wrath to bring down on his foes from a distance, smiting entire crowds of them at once, and of course that's nothing compared to what happens when he gets in close. His 150ft flight speed lets him cross entire battlefields in seconds and settle down to begin Full-Attacking up to four times a round with his +2 Holy Longsword for 2d6+9 (+2d6 vs Evil) damage. Not only does he have a threatening sword, but his shield isn't just for defense, and he can indeed bash someone twice a round with his +2 Heavy Steel Shield for 1d6+5 damage. Anyone slammed by his shield is subject to a free Bull Rush attempt from the Herald as well, letting him reposition dangerous enemies as he needs.

Quite the force! But, sadly, that's about where everything of particular note ends. His Protective Aura is always on, and he's also got a 10ft Aura of Courage to grant his allies +4 against fear effects... But nothing else. Why, exactly, he lacks any of the other aura abilities a Paladin of his HD would have is a question I have no good answer for, and while he DOES have Lay on Hands (9d6 HP, 15/day), he lacks any Mercies to flavor the ability in any way or make it any more substantial... and, even more damning AND more baffling, he has no ability to Smite Evil. Given where he works, you'd think Mercies and Smite Evil would have been the second things Iomedae wrote on his sheet right after she finished giving him his gear.

Fun fact on that note, though: He wasn't originally Iomedae's Herald, he was Ragathiel's, and joined Iomedae's crusade after being awed by her skills and her sense of justice. She didn't even make him! But being the Herald of Ragathiel just makes his lack of auras, Mercies, and Smite Evil even MORE glaring, because Ragathiel has all of those.

There's also one unfortunate choice in regards to his skills that feels like a pretty big weakness: His impressive flight speed goes to waste with his lack of Fly ranks, meaning anything but a straight line is difficult for him to manage, and certain weather conditions or enemy attacks can severely impact his ability to remain airborne. He has more ranks in SWIM than in Fly! SWIM!

A lot of the Heralds in Inner Sea Gods have similar design choices, which is a huge shame, because that's where almost every Good-aligned Divine Herald is found! Whoof! His showing in the Wrath of the Righteous video game was significantly more impressive, with the ability to use Wall of Force and apply Smite Evil to entire crowds of enemies at once.

I'm not saying he's weak, no, he's actually a very powerful and stubbornly resilient melee beatstick that's outright immune to most demonic tricks and tools, but he's got some design flaws and odd choices that make it hard for someone like me to be interested in him. Perhaps this is why he's eventually superseded by someone with actual Paladin levels.

You can read more about him here.

[s10127470]

As I'm sure many of know, it was announced this week that the Max original animated series, Velma, has been officially cancelled after two seasons and a Halloween special.

And the entire Internet collectively went.....

And rightfully so.

Velma was truly a one of kind show.

It was the thing that brought just about everyone....

From all walks of life....

From all cultural backgrounds....

Together. To all collectively say...

"This is legitimately one of the worst things to ever be created by a human being."

Just about everyone has gone over everything wrong with this show, as it's flaws are blatantly obvious to anyone over the age of 10.

The mystery and story is bare bones and a total joke, with hardly any effort put into it.

The humor is an unholy amalgamation of all the worst styles that have been plaguing tons of media for the last decade.

From ha-ha funny man quips, to pop culture references, to everyone's favorite.....META HUMOR!

In the words of my GOAT Cartoonshi.....

"The Marvel Cinematic Universe and Rick and Morty and their consequences have been quite disastrous for the human race."

The show prioritizes an agenda over the actual story.

And even then, it's done so half-assed and with little to no sincerity.

It's social commentary is borderline offensive and is often years to DECADES behind the curve.

Its characters are either bland, terrible, annoying, or in the case of Velma herself, The Anti-Christ.

And most importantly of all, it's a DISGUSTINGLY spiteful show.

Like, I've seen shows and movies made out of pure incompetence.

I've seen MANY made out of pure greed.

But I've never seen a show or a movie made purely out of spite.

Like, this series is just dripping with disdain towards the Scooby-Doo IP and the even medium of the animation as a whole.

And with all that considered, you can't help but wonder....

Why was this show made?

It's pretty clear that the people behind this show hate Scooby-Doo, so why are they even trying to make a series based on the IP then?

Well....

If The Witcher, Rings of Power, and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law has taught me anything, people in Hollywood have these vendettas against popular IPs for some reason and wanna spite people for liking them.

So they create pretty half-assed and unfaithful adaptations of the work because they love seeing the fans of those IPs getting angry at them.

I know that sounds dumb, but this is Hollywood we're talking about.

But anyway, pretty much everyone on the face of the Earth was happy to know this piece of shit was finally dead.

Made even better with the fact that the series ended with Velma literally DYING and getting her soul sent to Hell.

If there's one thing you give the show, it at least had a happy ending.

But back on topic, people were celebrating about Velma being over.

Except for a few individuals.

Yes. There are a few individuals who have a problem with people celebrating the cancellation.

And guess where this is all happening.

You guessed it, it's Twitter.

Because of course it is.......

Where else can you find people having a problem with something actually good and positive?

As for why those individuals have an issue with people celebrating the cancellation of Velma, it's because of the fact that the artists and animators on that show are now out of a job and basically we're celebrating these people losing their jobs.

Okay, I have some things in response to this.

If there's one good thing about Velma, it was that it had really good art direction.

The character designs and art-style were really strong and dynamic, the animation was solid throughout the series, and the backgrounds were really pleasant to look at.

It's pretty clear that the artists and animators on this show were very talented.

Wished their talents were used for a much better show....

Also, I can kinda see why this would look bad.

The animation industry has been in a very turbulent place lately.

And one of the many reasons for it has been the mistreatment, overworking, and underpayment of animators and artists.

So celebrating the cancellation of a show does seem like a dick move.

Even if the show is terrible, at least the artists and animators are getting work.

However, in typical Twitter fashion, I feel like they've blown this whole situation out of proportion.

And the reason I say this.....well, allow me to introduce you to Lauren Mattson.

She's an artist based in Burbank, California, who currently works at Warner Bros. Animation.

Just this Wednesday, YouTuber Saberspark had posted a video on the recent announcement of Velma's cancellation.

And among the comments, one of them was from her.

Essentially, she revealed that was part of the crew that worked on Velma for entirety of the series.

And she did confirm that Velma was in fact over and done with, as the execs at WB have their minds on other things right now.

But the thing that really caught my eye was that Lauren said that she's glad the show is gone.

She pointed out how in spite of the friendly production crew and the surprisingly good work schedule, working on this show was a total chore.

Though she didn't really go into detail on why besides having to sit through the animatic reviews.

And I honestly think she doesn't really need to.

Why?

IT'S FUCKING VELMA.

It's flaws are just that apparent.

Like, I already had the suspicion that nobody besides Mindy and her circlejerk of writers actually enjoyed working on this show.

But this essentially confirmed it for me.

And if you want to bring up the problem of the artists and animators being out of a job, well.....

According to Lauren, she and rest of the crew have already moved on to other projects.

So yeah.....this cancellation is not really as bad or disgusting as Twitter keeps trying to make it out to be.

Like, the artists and animators have already moved on other projects, so I don't see the problem here.

And even then, out of all the shows that got cancelled in recent years, why are people pulling the whole "artists and animators losing their jobs" card for VELMA of all things?!

I don't even recall seeing this for shows like Inside Jobs or The Owl House.

You know, shows that were actually good and liked by the majority of the Internet.

And even among the seas of bad shows, I've never anyone pull this card for shows like The Prince or Santa, Inc.

Which may I remind you, both of which were cancelled after just one season.

Hell, the latter of the two was essentially canned the moment it premiered.

But anyway, that's all I have for now.

I know this wasn't exactly the most structured, but remember, I was trying to make sense out of something from Twitter.

That already speaks for itself.

[cannedapricot]

oatmilk shaken espresso. || ldh

in which you dread heading into your weekly shifts at the coffee shop 5 minutes away from campus. between your inconsiderate manager telling you to lock up and the 4pm after school rush, you always claim to be a hair's drop away from submitting your two weeks. to make matters worse, you're always scheduled with a man who never seems to shut up. however, his one saving grace is his delectable shaken espressos, which may or may not be the single reason you haven't stormed out yet.

word count: 3.1k

genre, warnings: fluff, slice of life, one sided enemies to lovers?, college!au, coffee shop!au, mentions of consuming alcohol, profanities, one singular "that's what she said" joke

a/n: cracks bones im back from the dead with a university degree and a stiff spine. i haven't written in a hot minute so this might be a mess but i hope you enjoy it nonetheless!

4:30PM, WEDNESDAY - DONGHYUCK, RENJUN, Y/N

4:30pm on a Wednesday is the worst shift anyone had to work. Some of your friends would argue that the closing shift on Fridays are actually the worst ("I want to be piss drunk on the streets, not working."), but it was precisely because everyone would be out drinking, no one would think to set foot into the coffee shop on the corner. No students in uniform flooding the cramped shop, no office workers fighting the crowds for that espresso shot to get them through the week, and most of all, no Lee Donghyuck, your worst nightmare.

It was a known fact that Donghyuck, who also goes by his loving nickname Haechan, never shows up to work on a Friday evening. Even if rostered. One look at his social media and you would know where he's at on a bustling Friday, the student bar. This drove whoever was on shift nuts until eventually, the manager learned to not roster him for the dreaded Friday closing shift. Which meant, for you, Friday was bliss and you would do anything for that shift.

Instead, you were rostered for the closing shift on a Wednesday. Upon clocking in and donning the coffee colored apron, you were greeted by an annoying grin.

"Ooh, y/n, we're closing together tonight, you'll get to be with me alone."

You almost spun right around and left the shop at his teasing voice and grotesque wink. If it weren't for Renjun asking you to take orders because he has his hands full, you swore you would've left.

And so, with a deep sigh and a fake smile plastered on your face, you start another shift at your minimum wage customer service job.

"Welcome to Coffee House Aroma, what can I get for you today?"

12:30PM, SATURDAY - DONGHYUCK, JISUNG, Y/N

"Stop glancing at the clock, time isn't going to tick by any faster."

You scowl at Haechan in response, settling the mug you were drying down with more force than you originally planned. Your shift started at 6am today and ended in half an hour, you were ecstatic at the thought of leaving. Haechan, to nobody's surprise, showed up hung over this morning and was extremely confused when you told him he had to train the new barista today.

"Shit, that was today?" he had said, fingers combing through his hair in attempt to recall this information. Jisung, the new recruit simply stood there, flustered, as you felt the heat rise to your cheeks in frustration.

The entire morning was spent with you teaching Jisung the reigns of working at a coffee shop while Haechan spent it in the back storeroom, claiming it was helping his headache. Thank goodness it was a Saturday morning, which meant business was slow as everyone was sleeping in instead of making their usual morning commute. Otherwise, you would've decked the man in the face.

"Well, excuse me for hoping I can leave faster." Spinning on your heel, you grab a shaker, wanting to make yourself the signature drink that always managed to bring your spirits up.

"Making something?"

"Yeah, iced brown sugar oatmilk shaken espresso."

Haechan hums in response, eyes following your figure as you try find the lid of the said shaker.

"I'll make it for you today," he offers, "an apology for coming in hung over."

"Huh?"

"Don't make that face, you'll get wrinkles." He winks before yanking the shaker out of your grasp. Your fingers fly to your face in attempt to smooth out any lines that may have appeared, only for your brows to furrow again at the sight of your worst enemy producing the lid out of his pocket.

"If I get any premature wrinkles, they're all on you."

"What an honor."

Jisung returns shortly after the exchange, blubbering about how the trash bin outside wouldn't close, so you left momentarily to sort it out. By the time you come back inside, Haechan had finished the coffee and left it on the counter for you.

You take a sip.

He smirks at your reaction.

The stupid shaken espresso was delicious.

11:00AM, THURSDAY - DONGHYUCK, Y/N

"Enjoy the rest of your shift!" The glass door triggers the bell to chime as Renjun leaves for the day, having completed another morning rush. You wave in response before watching him dash across the crossing while the light was still green for pedestrians.

"He's in a rush today." Haechan comments, leaning on the till.

"Meeting with some friends before class apparently. I think he's trying to impress this girl in the group." You allow yourself to snicker at the thought.

The past few shifts involved you pestering Haechan to know what he did to your coffee to make it taste better than when you made it yourself. He always shrugged at the question with a smug grin.

"Maybe I'm just better." He'd say.

Of course, you weren't a sore loser or anything. But you've been trying to recreate the taste every shift you've been on to no avail. Haechan, being the absolute bane of your existence, would laugh at your attempts.

Perhaps he caught you staring at the shaker. Your co-worker strolls up to you and teasingly puts an arm around your shoulder.

"Missing my coffee?"

"Fuck off."

"Ouch, that's so cold of you." Though the words sounded accusatory and offended, the mischievous glint in his eyes told you he felt the opposite.

"How about I make you my shaken espresso again?"

"Really?"

"If you refer to me as "my beautiful angel of a co-worker Hyuckie" I'll consider it."

"Nevermind, I'll figure it out myself."

9:00AM, SUNDAY - JISUNG, RENJUN, Y/N

Sometimes, you really admire Renjun's ability to be able to open the shop on time. He always seemed to prefer opening shifts. 5:00am wasn't the ideal starting time but somehow, Renjun is always there fully awake and greeting you with a bright smile.

You, on the other hand, showed up with messy hair, bags under your eyes, and a crumpled shirt. The iconic underpaid and overworked college student look. It didn't help that you stayed up late the night before to finish a five page essay. You must've looked like you just rose from the dead because when Jisung came in at 6:00am on the dot, he asked,

"Are you feeling alright?"

Yeah, you were never agreeing to a 5:00am shift ever again. At least it was a short shift, because in an hour, you got to leave with big plans for the day ahead (a nap).

"Y/n, could you clean the table by the window please?"

With a cleaning rag and a spray bottle as your chosen weapons, you find your way to the said table under Renjun's instructions. Only a few crumbs, a glass, and a plate to clean. That's not bad at all, you've had much worse.

You hummed a happy tune as you stacked the mug and dish. Once you overlook the inhuman starting time, the shift wasn't so bad. You had your two favorite co-workers with you, the only people in on a Sunday morning were gossiping middle aged ladies, and you got the whole day ahead to do whatever you wanted.

This small bit of happiness lasted until you looked up and out the window, making direct eye contact with Haechan, who was on the opposite side of the street, waiting for the signal to cross.

So much for a peaceful morning.

"Good morning- oh y/n, you look terrible."

"This is my normal face what do you mean?"

"Terribly nice!"

Jisung stifles a giggle at the exchange and you look at him, betrayed.

"Haechan, you're here early. Your shift doesn't start until 10." Renjun double checks the time as Haechan moves behind the counter to give the opener a hug.

Which was obviously dodged.

"My 8am class finished early so I thought I'd drop by and check on my favorite people."

A scowl found its way onto your face at his statement and your stomach threatened to empty the croissant you ate an hour prior.

"Well, since Haechan's here early, y/n, you can finish early. Remember to clock out."

With sigh of relief and a high five with Jisung, you happily moved to the locker room to take your apron off.

"Alright, I'll be going for the day then- whose drink is this?" A cup of coffee on the counter catches your eye as you bid farewell.

"Oh, Haechan said it's for you."

An oatmilk shaken espresso.

7:30PM, TUESDAY - DONGHYUCK, MARK

No matter how much you tried to convince yourself the opposite, you couldn't deny that Coffee House Aroma was the perfect place to study. Not only was it only a five minute walk from campus, as staff, you get free coffee. Which meant unlimited refills as you slave over your final assignments before Christmas break.

The scent of coffee being brewed, the sound of rain hitting the windows, the fireplace crackling from the 12 hour long video on Youtube, was there anything more perfect?

Though you admit, you forgot that Haechan and his best buddy, Mark, would be on shift today. So periodically, you would hear giggles coming from behind the counter.

"Hey y/n, listen to this, Mark said his lecturer gave him extra marks for the embarrassing lyrics he wrote on the back of his test sheet." Haechan makes himself comfortable in the seat opposite yours as Mark throws a paper straw at him jokingly.

"It was for a creative writing class alright? It somewhat makes sense to get extra points for that."

"Why do you have tests for creative writing? What are they testing you on?"

"To be honest, I have no idea - and I took the test."

The boys burst into a fit of giggles again as you simply roll your eyes and return to your studies.

"I see that smile on your face, y/n. It's alright, you can laugh. You don't have to be cold to me all the time you know."

"I'm not cold to you all the time. Only when you're being insufferable."

"So all the time." Mark comments, disregarding Haechan's fake pained expression and presenting a slice of cake in front of you.

"New cake the managers said we'd be selling from next week. Of course, we're special so we get to taste it beforehand."

"Don't mind if I do."

"Hyuck, you've already had your slice, this one's for y/n."

You stuck your tongue out in flaunt before taking a bite of the dessert, watching as the man in front of you pouts.

"This is good! It's the perfect cake to go alongside coffee."

"Sounds like someone wants the Haechan special shaken espresso."

"You're being insufferable."

After letting out a fake cry, Haechan dramatically runs behind the counter, probably to seek comfort from his friend. You shake you head before letting yourself be swept away by the lullaby that is your lecture recording with a small smile on your face.

9:00PM, FRIDAY - DONGHYUCK, Y/N

Upon looking at the roster earlier that week, you nearly cried out of joy seeing that you were assigned to Friday's closing shift. Even better that they rostered Haechan with you, because he most definitely wasn't showing up.

You loved being the only one behind the counter at a closing shift. You loved watching the customers and guessing the reason as to why they're at a coffee shop late at night. The quiet whispers and giggles from the loving couple that's enjoying a date, the student frantically scribbling exam notes, tight grip on their pen, the group of cheerleaders after a game, chattering about their win. There was so much happening, yet not much at all. You loved it.

The door swings open, bell chiming, letting a cool breeze into the warm shop.

"Welcome to Coffee House Aroma- oh."

"Pleased to see me?"

His usual cocky grin plastered on his face, Haechan crosses his arms and leans against the counter separating the two of you. Clad in a leather jacket and gel in his hair, it was evident he had planned to be someplace else.

"Aren't you supposed to be at a bar somewhere?"

"How could I be drinking when I'm rostered on for tonight?"

"Haechan, be real, you never show up on Friday nights. Why are you here?"

"I missed you." He says, teasing laced in his voice. You turn away from him in embarrasment and scoff. Part of you assumed he was drunk and got seperated from his friends, but you couldn't smell alcohol on him at all.

"Well, you're about," you check the time, "five hours late. We close in an hour."

"Better late than never. I'll make your favorite drink in apology."

Before you could come up with a clever response, Haechan jumps over the counter (thank goodness it was clear of anything) and grabs a shaker.

"Also, you live on campus, yeah?" He asks, grinding beans into the portafilter.

"Yeah, why?"

"I'll walk you home."

5:30PM, MONDAY - DONGHYUCK, MARK, Y/N

"Caramel Frappuccino for, uh, Shohei?"

Monday was nobody's favorite. Back to classes, back to work, back to the coffee shop rush hour. The three of you on shift at Coffee House Aroma were extremely busy. Mark was manning the till while you and Donghyuck were flying on your feet, making sure the orders were made and sent out.

It was always during rush time that you see a side to Donghyuck you usually don't see. A focused and serious Donghyuck who did his work efficiently without any extra steps. You didn't mind this polar opposite side to him. In fact, it made for good marks in your books. Though you would rather die than to admit that you miss his teasing when he passes you on the floor.

"Ugh." You let your head fall into your arms at the counter. The rush had died down and the three of you finally got to take a breather.

"I can't anymore, I'm going on break." Donghyuck drags himself to the break room, groaning dramatically, per usual.

"So dramatic." You mutter under your breath. You then turn around to do some dishes piling in the sink only to bump into a smirking Mark.

"So... What's up with you two?"

"What do you mean?"

"I can't help but notice that you're calling him by his actual name rather than "Haechan" these days."

Your ears suddenly feel hot and ticklish.

"Well, Donghyuck's his name isn't it? It's not weird for me to call him that."

Mark hums, an eyebrow raised while you shuffle past, eyes on the tiled ground.

"He didn't drink and left early last Friday. Said he had to take someone home. Know what that's about?"

Last Friday? He showed up to a shift he never shows up to and walked you home.

Oh.

"And I also heard about that time he made you your favorite coffee after hearing about how tired you were." your co-worker didn't even try to hide his intentions, "Renjun told me."

"You should check on him. I heard sudden changes in personality isn't good news."

Mark says nothing, a grin etched on his face. Instead, he messages Renjun.

"There's definitely something going on."

"I told you so."

4:30PM, WEDNESDAY - DONGHYUCK, RENJUN, Y/N

Wish as you may, the shift you dread will always come rolling around in the end. Yet again, you find yourself behind the counter at Coffee House Aroma, the clock hitting 4:30pm with a familiar annoying presence by your side. Renjun called in sick, you don't blame him - the storm was raging outside, you wouldn't want to get caught in that either. But thanks to the buckets of rain, the coffee shop was quiet. Everyone was rushing to get to the warmth of their homes, no one even thinking about stopping by for coffee.

"The rain doesn't look like it's going to stop any time soon." Donghyuck says, chewing on the straw to his drink. You sigh, glancing at the clouds through the glass.

"Hopefully it at least gets lighter around 10 - I really don't want to get wet on my way back."

"That's what she said."

His joke was met with a glare.

"You set it up, not me."

The shop was empty, save from the two of you. Both of you were leaning against the counter in boredom and you were doubtful that any customers would brave the thunder and lightning for a cup coffee.

"Do you think we can get away with closing early?"

"As if, you know how our manager's like."

It was true, your manager never, under any circumstance, closed the shop early. There could be a volcano eruption and he'd tell you to keep the shop open in case anyone wanted coffee.

"Aren't you glad to be stuck here with me?" Donghyuck had his signature smile on his face as he asks, "I am one of the most attractive individuals on campus you know?"

"Said who?" You retort, playful scowl on your face.

"Renjun."

"I'm positive that was a sarcastic remark."

He laughs and a calm silence settles over the two of you. It's funny how things turn out. A couple of weeks ago you would've sworn you'd be at his throat by now.

"Why? You don't think I'm one of the most attractive individuals you've laid your eyes on?" He teases, tilting his head to one side.

"I never said that."

Donghyuck was taken aback. He didn't expect this from you, heck, you didn't expect this from yourself.

"So you think I'm hot."

"Maybe. A little. I mostly think you're insufferable."

He chuckles.

"You want to date me so bad right now."

Indignantly, you serve your head to give him a good glare, only to find him closer than you were expecting. Did he always leave the top button to his polo unbuttoned?

"Wanna skip the rest of our shift and go on a date instead?"

"In this rain?" You ask, glancing at the pouring rain.

"I've been chasing you ever since you started working at this establishment, I'm not letting a thunderstorm stop me. Besides, dancing in the rain's romantic, right?"

A smile threatened to creep onto your flushed face. Your stupid co-worker had his stupid smirk on while looking straight at you.

"Tell me what you put into your oatmilk shaken espressos then I'll consider it."

"My love for you."

"You're disgusting." You say, closing the till with a smile on your face.

[aroaceleovaldez]

...Has anyone else noticed that everyone defending Will"s characterization in this book. Hasn't actually hit upon any of the things people are upset about? I keep seeing people talking about how he always was portrayed with anxiety and, yeah, we're not contesting that; I'm upset about how he inexplicably won't let Nico shadow travel despite the fact that he shadow travels with Nico all the time, and I'm upset that the book fails to differentiate between constantly trying to "fix" Nico and trying to get him to rest because he was literally going to die that one time.

I honestly did not at all get the feeling from this book that Will was supposed to have an anxiety disorder. As someone with an anxiety disorder. When we're in Will's head it... doesn't feel like an anxiety disorder. Ever. Maybe some normal level anxiety at best? But it literally just feels like dread and apprehension because they're going on a quest to literal superhell. Not an anxiety disorder.

I definitely agree that Will constantly trying to "fix" Nico is incredibly annoying, and is one of my major gripes too, especially since the narrative keeps trying to prove Will right and validate Nico being in the wrong constantly. And yeah I totally agree the mischaracterization of Will fussing over Nico when he's literally one foot in the grave in misinterpreting that to be Will never allowing Nico to use his powers (and conversely, when Nico attempts to do the same thing paint it as Nico being harmful and not knowing what's best for Will, despite Will apparently being entirely in the right for Nico according to the narrative. The book just can't stop infantilizing Nico and making him completely helpless. grrrr.)

The main mischaracterization issue I take with Will is that they made him an asshole. Just an absolute insensitive huge asshole. This isn't even like low-empathy/autistic Will not realizing he's being rude, it's him actively being mean and the narrative never showing repercussions of that, only validating him. Will is a complete and total asshole, particularly to Nico, and the book says he is right about it. Which is HORRIBLE. And this is completely atypical to how we've seen Will in the past! In TLO, Will is serious but empathetic. In most of HoO, he's chill and lax and helpful. In TOA he's both. The only time Will is somewhat rude is in BoO when he's actively trying to keep Nico from keeling over and also this is the first time we see them interact significantly, so we can chalk up this discrepancy to just them trying to find their footing talking to each other. It's absolutely not the kind of dynamic they'd have one year into their relationship (especially not when we literally never see this in TOA). The book also completely retcons the fact that Will actually has an incredibly strong stomach due to being a medic, if not actually finding typically "gross" stuff kind of amusing. The closest acknowledgement we get to that in TSATS is Will liking true crime podcasts, but that honestly just feels like more of a joke poking fun at millennials/gen z kids being really into true crime. At every other point he gets so easily off-put, disgusted, and revolted by absolutely everything. I mean, heck, there's the whole bug house thing - Apollo is literally the god of midges and locusts! That's not a joke, that is a legitimate thing. He's also the father of the god of bees. Give me Will seeing the bug house and going "Oh shit that's epic." We should have gotten Will stumbling through the entire Underworld going "Oh, gross! I love it!" (I've heard others also compare Will's disgust towards the Underworld as feeling coded like someone refusing to respect their partner's culture, which I think is also a very accurate comparison and particularly notable given Nico canonically immigrated to the United States).

Besides the anxiety disorder thing, heck, I asked the PJO discord if anyone could check their ebooks/pdfs and it doesn't seem like the book even references ADHD/dyslexia, which is the literal foundations of the entire series. And throughout the entire book we never get any notes about it, or do Will or Nico ever show any traits of it. The closest we get is Will bounces his leg like one time. They couldn't even get that much right. Not to mention them referencing Nico's eating disorder at the beginning of the book and then immediately forgetting about it and it being implied to be "cured" by the end, and them only remembering Nico's autistic traits when it was to infantilize him, and in general them handling PTSD and depression extremely poorly. Basically the only neurodivergence/mental health topic they touched upon that actually seemed to be done somewhat well was Will have a very overt seasonal affective disorder metaphor/coding. And admittedly, it's kind of hard to fuck that one up with how they coded it.

Literally the only reasons I can think for them characterizing Will as they did in this book are:

a.) They completely mixed him up with Michael Yew, aka basically the only other Apollo kid with a fleshed out personality (and that personality is "asshole") b.) the book was blatantly going for a Percabeth 2 dynamic, and so tried to make Will some awkward fusion between Percy's snark and Annabeth's stubbornness and know-it-all attitudes, resulting in him just being a Huge Jerk c.) Solangelo had too healthy of a dynamic in previous books and to create conflict that would inevitably be overcome within the book they had to completely change Will and Nico's characters to insert it into the story for narrative purposes or d.) they were entirely drawing upon popular "fanon" for solangelo, particularly back from pre-TOA (circa 2014-2016), and because Will in that era was usually characterized as somewhat of an asshole due to his behavior in BoO and everybody was still trying to figure out what to do with him, that interpretation of his character was put into the book.

Whatever the case, it's definitely disappointing and they really didn't succeed in trying to code Will as having an anxiety disorder at all.

[pomegrantemoths88]

Ch.4 Foundations? (Till We're Safe: AU The Maze Runner, Gally X FemReader)

After a Greenies first 2 weeks, they get chosen for whatever job they were best at during the rotation. However my 2 weeks aren't done till 2 more days, this morning Alby decided to keep the “best” for last. The Builders. I think it was pretty apparent that my first job Med-Jack was the job I was going to get chosen for, however to keep up the order you gotta go through all of them. 

However after breakfast, I decided to find Gally to just ask what I needed to get started with and I found him talking with Alby near the hammocks, as I walked over, a person who I gratefully forgot about till a week ago and again today, decided to grab my shoulders. 

“Hey Greenie.”

“Oh, what’d you need?”

“I can’t say good morning?”

“What’d you need?”

“Alright then, I’ll go straight to it, have dinner with me today. I know the builders aren’t going to be the most pleasant group today, least of all Gally, so what do you say?”

Yeah I didn’t like this guy one bit, and I’d rather stomach Gallys nagging over whatever the hell Joffrey was going on about. Since the first day he’s never sat right with me, thankfully he wasn’t somebody I’d have to interact with much as a med-jack.

“Sorry Joffrey, I think I'm okay.”

“Cmon y/n, what’s your deal with me? I’ve tried to be nice, listen I’ve heard the guys talking, they’re waiting for your routine to set in before anyone tries to “talk” to you, and there's no telling what any of them might do after that, hell even Alby laughed about it, let me help you. ”

I considered his words for a bit, there could’ve been some truth to what he was saying, but I remembered another important detail at this point. He was the only boy in this damned prison or wherever we were, that succeeded in making me uncomfortable beyond measure. I'm grateful I remembered what “red flags” were because Joffrey lit up every single one. 

“Listen Joffrey, I don’t know how much clearer I need to make this for you. I don’t want to eat dinner or breakfast with you, and I don’t need your protection.”

“Careful y/n, you wouldn’t-”

“She wouldn't what?”

We both quickly turned to the side to see Gally walking up to us. A soft feeling of ease sat on my shoulders when I realized he was here, but as quickly as it came, I dismissed it.

“Go on Joff, finish it.”

“Just making sure she knows that we all need to get along”

“Yeah I think she got the point. Get to work.”

As he walked away, I wanted to wipe that smug smile off his face. I wondered if there was a 3 strike system for hurting another Glader. I found myself stuck in thought till Gally finally spoke up,

“Are you coming to work or are you gonna waste more time?”

That attitude of his was becoming a really annoying prick in my head. 

“Hey, he came up to me and bothered me first, I’ve been trying to tell him to back off since day one! I probably could’ve made it clearer if you hadn’t butt in.”

“Yeah you're welcome now he won’t bother you again.”

“Yeah well if Minho couldn’t get him to shut up, I doubt he’s gonna stop because of you.”

“The hell did Minho tell him?”

“He just told him he was messing it all up on the first night, it’s not like there's anything to mess up, I don’t think anybody should be “trying”.”

“When did I ask?”

I shot him an annoyed look and I watched a smug smile appear on his face. That face of his made it really difficult to stay mad or annoyed at him.

 As we walked to the new building, it seemed like they were laying groundwork for a foundation. As the hours passed by, Gally stood beside me helping me. I got the hang of using tools pretty quick, they worked hard and fast, it wasn’t a bad job to have. Despite the jokes and banter, the builders weren’t as dumb as everyone said they were. Airheaded and stubborn? Absolutely, working with Gally for a few hours solidified that. The only bad thing the entire time? Oh, Gally not letting me fucking work. It’d go something like this…

“Watch your hand.”

“I got it.”

“If you didn’t I wouldn’t tell you to watch your hand, you’re gonna smack a finger.” 

“Gally I’m using the smallest and lightest mallet you have already, I'd have to use my whole body weight to bruise my hand.”

“Okay fine break your finger then, matter of fact, let me do it.”

“Why would I let you do it?”

“Shucking hell just move, you’re doing it wrong anyway.”

If it wasn’t irritating moments like this, it was more. I went to carry some logs and a tool bag. We were getting more supplies for the foundation until…

“Lemme carry that.”

“It’s not that heavy, I'm fine.”

“You're gonna get hurt. Just carry the bag.”

“You might as well be carrying half the shack, just let me do it.”

As he walked around to my other side, he grabbed the logs without asking again, leaving me only a light tool bag. 

I hated how good he looked walking away with all of that, and just as that thought came, I shook my head and cursed at myself silently, this was becoming a regular problem.

I decided to think about the other jobs, I pulled in as much weight as I could, and that was fine, if anybody slacked off, that was a problem. But for some reason when I’m here with the builders, they don’t mind. At around the end of the day, my duties were reduced to handing things to them or holding certain things in place, if it wasn’t for the hot sun, I would’ve barely worked a sweat in. 

“I didn’t work today Gally.”

“Yeah I know.”

“I got the hang of it at the start, why didn’t you let me do more?”

“You’re gonna be a medjack, so one, there wasn’t much point in you working with us today and second, you can’t really get your hands injured before being med-jack so…”

““So that's what you were talking to Alby about this morning. You know I could’ve been better at this job.”

“Yes and sorry princess, leave the building to me and the rest of these guys.”

“You’re not gonna let up tomorrow either will you?”

“Nope.”

The dinner bell rang and everyone was quickly dismissed. I stayed instead.

“What? Are you waiting for me?”

“Waiting for you, hurry up I wanna eat.”

“Alright Greenie if you wanna work, then help me so I can finish faster.” 

It didn’t take us very long and we worked the rest in calm silence. As we walked to dinner I heard him softly say, 

“If you want, you can eat with us so he doesn’t bother you again.”

He really didn’t like eye contact, it was either smart remarks in front of others or quiet comments that confused me, even after 2 weeks I still didn’t know what to think about him. Others would’ve said he was brash, blunt, or a straight up shank to the rest of them, there was some truth to it but that wasn’t all he was.

“Thank you.”

I ate my dinner and sat with the builders, who despite me not pulling enough weight, they welcomed me still. I didn’t say much and instead listened to the chorus of laughter and conversations. Sitting next to Gally brought back that feeling again, the feeling of familiarity and habit, and it almost made me forget where I was. 

Once dinner ended and we went our separate ways, I decided to climb up a small tree close to Homestead. I figured maybe I used to like star-gazing.  Usually at this time of night, I would’ve found myself trying to remember my life or I would’ve repeated my name in my head till I went to bed.

 But this time I found myself thinking of Gally, I wondered who he was, what his parents would’ve looked like, what did he do in his spare time, did he always like building? Did he have a favorite color or a favorite anything? Questions I asked myself, I asked about him. 

But of course that was ridiculous, I didn’t know him, I didn’t know any of them. I don’t know where the hell we are or why we’re here. I stayed wrestling with my thoughts for a while until somebody else had the same idea.

“Oh heya y/n, see you found my spot.”

“Oh I'm sorry Newt, I can get down.”

“No it's fine, I like having company anyways.”

We stared at the stars for a bit till he chimed up,

“How’re you holding up?”

“It’s weird, when I'm with people, doing my job, I forget where I am, I feel almost comfortable with certain people. But afterwards the gravity of where we are just sets in and I'm reminded of whatever we could’ve lost out there.”

“Yeah you get used to it after a couple weeks. Wanna know the cool part?”

“Not sure if there's a cool part about it but go on ahead.”

“We come up the Box with no memory and not a bloody clue who any of us are, so we have a clean slate. We can make our lives here for however long they keep us here, take it from somebody who tortured himself for a year about what I could’ve lost out there, we only have each other here.”

I heeded his words and as I thanked him for easing my anxiety, we stared back at the stars. I thought about what he said that night and all I could think about was how I just wanted to go back to work tomorrow and hear Gally complain again.

---------------

[randomthefox]

People with standards: Surely idw sonic can't get any worse than this. Surely, they can't make their characters anymore insufferable.

The idw crew: we're about to blow your fucking mind.

Seriously how are they managing to make the comic worse with each arc?

If you told me back when the comic first started that the edgy zombie apocalypse and Sonic being turned into mr principles isn't the worst of the comic, I wouldn't have believed you.

But here we are in the present. Somehow, the soap opera zombie apocalypse and Sonic's character getting mutilated beyond recognition aren't even among the top five most dogshit things to come from this comic. That's pretty impressive when you take in how awful those two things are.

Idw portraying Sonic as a bossy asshole who forces his ideals onto everyone else was mostly terrible because of the fandom. The comic's version of Sonic is still unacceptable but not as excruciating when you analyze the comic entirely on its own and ignore the discussion surrounding it. In my opinion, I find it easy to go "this is idiotic and wrong" and move on. It's the fans defending this garbage that piss me off most.

This Lanolin character is an atrocity that only generates rage and confusion no matter what angle you look from. There's nothing redeeming or worthwhile about this pile of sewage they keep trying to pass off as a misunderstood leader.

Every other character at least has a concept or cool sounding premise attached to them. Lanolin has nothing. There's no justification for her existence. She's only there to be annoying. She ONLY exists to make things WORSE!

That's all she does. She sucks and brings down the mood. But I can't tell if this is intentional or not because NO ONE EVER STANDS UP TO HER AND SHE NEVER GETS PUNISHED FOR BEING AN ASS!

Idw is the master of inventing characters so fundamentally broken and dysfunctional that you'll turn yourself inside out trying to understand how things could be so shit.

(This was originally only gonna be the little joke at the beginning, but it turned into a mini rant lol.)

It really is crazy how it started bad and only got worse. It's like a nightmare.

Thankfully the Sonic video games started coming out again and they're all amazing so we aren't trapped in the waking nightmare of IDW being the only thing that exists with Sonic's name on it anymore, like we were for a while there.

[invisiblegarters]

23.5 Episode 7

Looks like Sun and Ongsa are entering the mutual awkwardness stage of their relationship. We love to see it. Now it's not just Ongsa being an epic dork and I love that for the both of them.

Okay but I also love Sun flirting and knowing just how cute Ongsa finds her. Both are good.

Pffft oh Charoen. She wants to look at Sun. In that way I guess it's bad feng shui.

Okay Tin lbr here. Ongsa as a cheerleader? I love her and she's way prettier than she thinks, but she also has the coordination of a newborn fawn.

I swear to god if she becomes a cheerleader and thus loses the glasses to do it I will scream. Let the girl keep her glasses!

Sun the flirt is hilarious I love her.

HA oh please Aylin don't play. You know you like it when Luna is around.

Sun is really working herself up towards the top of my list right now she's hilarious. Honestly I love all these girls, they're just great.

They're taking it slow dammit! Which hopefully means that they'll be making out before the ep is over.

Thank you Alpha. Ongsa needed that smack.

Ooh a wild Sun appears. And she's jealous, isn't she? That is adorable. I bet the only two who don't know and didn't expect this are Ton and Ongsa, lol.

Annoying mosquito! DYING.

Then again maybe he does. But I don't think so. Although I think he might be clueing in the longer we go on. Poor little himbo discovering gay people are everywhere.

This show was brought to you by Loreal!

I'm just loving this theme of liking people for wo they are and not for who they could or should be. And I think that Ongsa especially tends to forget that Sun fell for her over Insta. That said, I'm glad no one but Ongsa is pretending she isn't gorgeous.

KISS KISS KISS

OH don't you fucking fake me out with this show I will fight you.

DAMMIT SHOW we're fighting now. We are in a fight.

Let the lesbians kiss come on it's episode 7 there'd be at least one in a BL by now. I know we're going for cutesy here but they can still kiss dammit.

Ongsa: looks pretty much the same as always

Everyone: You're so pretty today!!

Okay show. Well at least she seems to be keeping her glasses.

Lol Sun is gonna murder Ton.

They are gonna set up a TonGharoen thing aren't they? Sigh. Boo I was hoping she'd hook up with Alpha. Gay all the way down baby.

"I don't think Sun likes my new look."

Ongsa. Girl.

You know what I will take my AylinLuna crumbs. I hope to see more of them next ep.

And there go the glasses. I really hope they don't stay gone though I will cry. Real tears.

She does look absolutely lovely though. Not that she isn't gorgeous anyway but you know what I mean. The outfit suits her.

Jealous!Sun is great. More, I say.

I love how everyone is just enjoying the hell out of poor Sun's misery.

Oh ha. Okay Ton is definitely in on this. He totally just got shooed over to interrupt. I would take back the jokes about how dumb he is, but I don't wanna.

Well okay, then. I'm not thinking Ongsa will mind in the least.

Okay damn Sun is on a roll here. Go girl! Get your girlfriend and get her now.

Does this mean I'm gonna get my kiss?

Aw Sun's poor friends. Last to know.

"My plan" he says. His plan my entire ass. We all know that was all Alpha and Luna. But this is why I think that I can't dislike the dude even though the self-obsessed character type usually puts me off a bit. He doesn't have a mean bone in his giant body.

OOOOH next week we're getting more AylinLuna and some crumbs for the teachers too???

I LOVE THIS SHOW.

[fonulyn]

I've been thinking about Infinite Darkness again, as one does lol, and especially why I'm not super fond of Claire in it. it's been hard to come to terms with that because I started out loving Claire, she's always been one of my favorites, she's fierce and loyal and does anything she has to for what she considers to be the right thing, the fair thing. I love her fierce attitude in re2 remake, and I despite Degeneration's shortcomings as a movie I loved how Claire was portrayed in it, that she'd chosen her own path and she was working tirelessly to make the world a safer place her own way.

which is also why I don't agree with the take that she was sidelined in ID because she didn't get to go in guns blazing, because to me it felt very natural to her almost anti-gun stance in Degeneration, AND because holy shit people a female character does not need to go around waving weapons to be badass?? she does the brainy thing, she figures out the entire conspiracy on her own, but she gets no credit for that feat?? bc she doesn't shoot enough guns?? yeah no. she did great. but I digress.

so, I went into ID loving Claire and came out of it annoyed as hell, feeling like she'd been betrayed and done dirty, but it's so hard to put a finger on why exactly. there's something about how she acts, something about how she specifically interacts with other people, that feels so awkward and so unlike her. she's so needlessly antagonistic, for one.

(and the ramble continues under a cut bc this got long)

and honestly, I think the main issue I have with her is that they dumbed her down. she's not an idiot. and somehow she still apparently assumes that a government agent can just answer all her questions and spill all secrets, and then she gets huffy when he doesn't? I get it that it sucks being dismissed by a friend, but at the same time they're not interacting as friends there, but as representatives of their respective organizations. I can't assume my doctor friend would spill all the info on her patients just because we're friends, exactly like I wouldn't tell her private info about my students. sometimes a person's job does come in the way. and Claire should be clever enough to know that and not just get pissy when she doesn't get what she wants.

and even bigger issue is the ending scene. it starts off so nice, all joking, and then when Leon says that he thought he told Claire not to do anything stupid while clearly in on the joke, Claire suddenly goes all "HEY I'M JOKING"?? yeah Claire, we know, everyone knows, but suddenly she decides to flip a switch and go from joking to angry.

and the "when are you going to stop treating me like a kid" line? it's just blatantly wrong. in re2? they don't even spend that much time together but when they do, they clearly treat each other as equals. in Degeneration? another character dismisses Claire and Leon immediately jumps in to defend her and let them know how capable she is. he and Claire talk about different paths, but in no way is it ever even hinted at that one of the paths would be better or worse than the other. there's never ever been anything but mutual respect between them. and I think it's a huge disservice to both to just dimiss that.

AND the infamous Chip of Destiny™. again, Claire is not stupid. she should know that the conspiracy goes deeper than just Wilson, and just exposing him will drive all the rest of the bad guys deeper underground where they'll be impossible to find. and even more importantly, exposing that information would paint the most ginormous target on her back, she'd be hunted down. and while that might be a risk she's willing to take, she also should respect that it's not something Leon is willing to do to her.

(I'm not saying Leon is blameless in that scene either, he could've spelled it out for her, like he did to Shen May earlier on. he could've at least tried to explain his side. instead he just clams down and makes things worse. I understand his motivations, he thinks he can dismantle the corruption from the inside (erroneously as we know but he's operating with way more limited info than we are) and he doesn't want to put Claire in danger. but damnit boy, open your mouth and say it, if not in that many words then at least some vague version of it!)

so yeah, I think that sums up my biggest issues with Claire in ID. she clearly is bright and can use her brain but then she has a couple of moments where she just. doesn't. for some reason. and how she's so needlessly antagonistic. she's always been ready to throw down if necessary, which I've always loved, but she's never snapped at people like she does at Leon in ID. it's like she's intentionally trying to be mean and I just can't fit that into my perception of Claire, I can't.

with all that said, ID is still one of my favorites of the animated RE movies (yes it's a movie lol), it just bothers me that they did this to her. she deserved better!

[kittyball23]

Out of the Zone (a Trolls fanfic)

Summary: A glimpse of BroZone’s final moments together

__________________________________________

"Why are you acting like this?" The question came out in a combination of frustration and exasperation, the teal Trolling in sunglasses who had uttered it flinging his arms out at his brothers. To him, they were being entirely unreasonable out of nowhere. To the others, this was not the case. "Because I'm tired of it, JD!" Spruce exclaimed. "You're always mentioning that you're the leader - " "Uh, that's because I am," John Dory cut in. He shut his mouth when Spruce held up a finger. "SHH! I'm not finished," the purple Trolling said harshly. "Like I said, you're always mentioning that you're the leader. Well, you know what? A 'leader' listens. A 'leader' lets the group make decisions to-ge-ther." He enunciated each syllable of the last word. "You're just one Troll, and you're not the boss of everything!" "Yeah?" JD said, getting annoyed. "Well, someone has to be the boss. Somebody's gotta remind you guys why we're in this band. Somebody's gotta show you the ropes!" "Yeah, well, if ya ask me, you're showing us more of your uptightropes," Clay said, snickering at his own joke and nudging Spruce so that he could laugh along with him. The purple Trolling did not find the joke funny, however, and whirled on the yellow Trolling. "You pick the worst times to joke about stuff, you know?" he grumbled. "Can't you take something serious for once?" Clay frowned, not appreciating his dismissal. "Wow, okay. As if you're Mr. Perfect. The guy who's more concerned about what girl's heart he's gonna break next!" Spruce glared at him. "No, I'm the guy who's more concerned about what the future of our band is. Maybe if you're not so busy with your silly pranks and actually got your head in the game, you'd see that!" Clay shook his head and crossed his arms, not liking how his usually chill brother was behaving. "Like you haven't laughed at some of them," he muttered, making note to get back at Spruce with one of his so-called 'silly pranks.' Unable to help himself, Floyd spoke up. "Well, some of them aren't really that funny. I hated that time you did what you did with my eyeliner." The magenta Troll shuddered to even recollect the horrible, bright neon green that had been on his eyelids. Clay rolled his eyes. "Whatever! It was funny to me. And as long as it's funny to someone is what counts." JD ignored the little scuffle between the Trollings, wanting to get clarification. "Why is it that you're backing out of the dream, bro?" "Dude, he never said that," Floyd piped up, trying to show support. It wasn't met positively however. "I can answer my own questions, thanks," Spruce said, a little annoyed at his brother's interference. "I'm just trying to help," Floyd said. "Well it's best you don't," Spruce snapped.

Floyd frowned. "This involves me just as much as you guys. I write a lot of the songs here, in case you forgot! Like you always like to forget about me," he said spitefully and crossing his arms. "Just because you're older doesn't mean you can think that you're better!"

"We don't think we're better," Clay said, "we know we're better!" Not at all meaning it, he laughed, hoping Floyd would laugh at this joke too, but the magenta Trolling shot him a dirty look. Clay rolled his eyes. When did his brothers become such party-poopers?

"Cry me a river, Floyd! You seem to be real good at that, too!" JD snapped, annoyed. "And if you're talking about that one song you showed me the other day, I already told ya we can't do it. Not all of us have that vocal range!"

"You mean you don't have that vocal range," Floyd muttered, knowing very well that he could hit the required notes, and knowing that JD likely didn’t want to feel like he was being upstaged.

"What does it matter if we're all singing songs and everyone likes them, anyway?" JD challenged. "As long as my band is popular, why does it really matter?" Spruce gawked at him. "YOUR band, huh?" The purple Trolling shook his head. "I knew it." "I mean our band, ours!" JD quickly tried to correct himself. "OURS. Geez, Spruce, I thought Floyd was the sensitive one here!"

"It has nothing to do with being sensitive," Spruce said. "It has to with the fact that I feel like I can't trust you anymore, JD!" he blurted before he could help himself. He instantly regretted it, however, noting how crushed the aquamarine Trolling looked as a result of his words. It felt like a harsh thing to say. But, the more he thought about it, the more the regret began to dwindle away. This really was the way that Spruce felt, and seeing that Clay and Floyd were not quick to jump in and protest, he knew that they likely felt the same way, too.

"Actions speak louder than words do, JD," Spruce said. "And so far, you've been doing a lot of talk and not coming through with any of the promises you've said."

JD swallowed, thinking hard. Had he... had he really been as blind to his brothers as Spruce was making it seem?

NO! His conscience nearly screamed at him. You're doing what is best for the band. And if Spruce, and Clay, and Floyd can't see that, well, then... then...

JD's face hardened. "All right then. Problem solved." He clapped his hands together once and plastered an insincere smile on his face. "I'm going to be removing myself from the equation, then. I say it's about time the world gets introduced to John Dory, the solo artist, anyhow, without anyone else holding me back. Don't you think?"

A part of Spruce wanted to stop his brother's train of thought. He did not like where the situation was heading, but at the same time the purple Trolling was angry. It wasn't an emotion he usually felt, his demeanor usually that of good vibes, but even he had his limits. This was one of those times that it couldn't be helped. He really had had enough of JD's controlling ways. And right now, he wasn't about to move over to stop his brother – his closest brother in bond amongst the bunch, admittedly – from walking out the door that he was making his way towards. "Agreed," he simply said. He knew the anger he felt would go away eventually. He wasn't the kind to hold much of a grudge, and perhaps one day he might even be happy to see JD again. But he also knew that it would likely not be for a long, long time.

JD glared at Spruce, his hard gaze drifting over to Clay and Floyd, too. He shook his head, that small part of him not really wanting to leave. But they had a lesson to learn. "Who knows," he said, his anger getting the best of him. "Maybe I'll even find better brothers than you guys."

"So you can treat them the same way you've been treating us?" Spruce asked, but JD didn't hear. The aquamarine Troll was already gone, sunglasses, teal vest and all.

A silence hung in the air for a moment.

Then, Floyd spoke.

"Guys, we can still make this work out," he said, hopefully, peering at his brothers. "Look, we can maybe be a quartet until JD decides to come back, and then we can be BroZone again, right?"

Clay scoffed. "And I thought I was the funny one," he muttered, starting to walk off.

"Yeah, who put you in charge now?" Spruce said, frowning at the magenta Trolling.

"I'm not trying to be in charge," Floyd said defensively. "I just don't want things to end like this for us." He sighed and rubbed an arm, unable to look his brother in the eyes.

Something flashed across Spruce's face. Perhaps regret? Floyd couldn't be sure, as it was gone the very next second and the purple Trolling frowned. "Cut the sap, Floyd. Can't you see it's over? Save your breath for your solo career."

With that, Spruce rolled his eyes and waved a dismissive hand at them as he walked off, muttering something under his breath about needing a vacation as he too walked out the door. Left alone in the silent pod were only Floyd and Branch now.

Branch had so far been a silent witness to everything, standing to the side and hovering by the magenta Trolling's legs. The baby stared wide-eyed after Clay and Spruce, not quite understanding things completely but knowing something was very, very wrong. Why were his brothers leaving? Why weren't they singing and dancing and hugging like they all usually did? Distress starting to prick at him, Branch peered up at Floyd, confiding in the magenta Trolling for some kind of answer.

Floyd stared down pitifully at his baby brother for a long moment and then sighed. "Branch," he began, trying to sound as gentle as he possibly could. "We're... out of sync."

Branch cocked his head, as if to say "Huh?"

Floyd nodded slowly. "You see, we've gone from boys to men, and now there's only one direction for us to go." He gestured out the front door. "The backstreets."

Branch blinked at him. What was Floyd talking about? Branch knew Floyd was poetic, but he wished that his brother wasn't talking in these confusing riddles right now.

Floyd seemed to get this vibe off of the little one and he kneeled down, putting a hand on his small blue shoulder. "It's time for us all to move on, Branch."

Branch whimpered at this, and Floyd patted him on the back. "I know it sounds a little scary. But it's really not. We all have to move on sometime. You'll understand someday." With that he stood up and began to make his way over to the door. But suddenly, he paused. The magenta Trolling then whirled around and knelt at Branch again, scooping the baby into a tight hug. Branch liked hugs from his brothers, but this one was a different kind of hug. He didn't know what exactly it was that made it different, but Floyd did, and it was tearing the magenta Trolling's heart apart. This was a goodbye hug.

"I'm going to miss you," Floyd whispered, his voice on the verge of breaking and the familiar sting of tears starting to pool in his eyes. "Please don't forget me." He held on a moment longer, his grip tightening slightly before it finally went slack and he released the baby. Then he shuffled off and began to move to the door. Branch began to toddle after him, but Floyd put a hand up and shook his head. "No, Branch. You have to stay. Someone has to be the man of the house." He forced a chuckle, but wasn't really feeling all that into it. "Take care of Grandma for us, okay?"

Branch glanced worriedly up at his brother, but did not put force any resistance. He stepped back, watching as Floyd shot him one last sad smile and then turned to leave.

It was only after he'd made sure that the pod was far behind him that Floyd allowed his tears to fall.

__________________________________________

A/N: I think there were multiple factors at play when it came to BroZone’s disbanding. This is just my wild guess 🤷

[daisyvramien]

CALLING ALL STAR WARS FANS:

🌟 Ahoy, fellow intergalactic wanderers! 🌟

Listen up, because we're about to blast off into a Star Wars extravaganza like no other! That's right, folks: May is right around the corner, and you know what that means: STAR WARS MONTH, BABY! Time to dust off those lightsabers and channel your inner Wookiee roar! 🚀✨

Now, hold onto your R2 units, droids and x-wings, because I've got some stellar news for you all. I'm gearing up to host a cosmic cavalcade of Star Wars themed Dungeons & Dragons adventures on my Discord server throughout the entire month! We're talking small D&D dungeons, epic games, mind-bending challenges, one-shot adventures, and even a full-blown campaign. And hey, if you've got your own original characters (OCs), you're in for a hyperspace treat!

But before we embark on this epic voyage through the stars, let's lay down some ground rules. Buckle up, because we're going full throttle into the Rulebook of the Jedi!

No Binks Allowed: Harassment, racism, homophobia, or any other form of discrimination is about as welcome here as Jar Jar Binks at a Sith convention. Let's keep it classy, folks, or you'll be banished to the swamps of Naboo faster than you can say "Meesa in big doo-doo".

Use the Force and common sense, Not the Dark Side of the Dice: When it comes to decision-making, let's rely on a healthy mix of common sense and Jedi wisdom. No using the Force to steal your fellow players' snacks, and please, for the love of Alderaan, don't try to mind trick your way out of every situation. Play fair, or face the wrath of a thousand Force ghosts (joking, just a very annoyed DM)!

Punch It, Chewie!: This is a celebration of all things Star Wars, so feel free to unleash your inner smuggler and spice things up with some banter, references, and good-natured roasting. Just remember: Han shot first, and if you can't take the heat from a little friendly ribbing, you might want to rethink your allegiance to the Rebellion.

Don't Be a Sarlacc: In other words, don't hog the spotlight! Everyone deserves their moment to shine, so let's share the spotlight like a band of merry Ewoks sharing a roast Porg. And hey, if you find yourself feeling a bit too much like a Sarlacc, maybe it's time to pass the torch to your co-pilots and let them take the helm for a while, or even dm your GM (yours truly).

So, if you're ready to join the Rebel Alliance (or maybe even the dark side – we don't judge), send me a DM or drop a comment below to reserve your spot on the Millennium Falcon of fun! Let's make Star Wars Month one for the holocrons folks, and remember, May the Force be with you, always! ✨🌌

[mrsnancywheeler]

Okay I know like nobody cares but imma tell you anyways. Soooo… the recording for our song went badly (that guy and I) in fact, it didn’t even happen and I ended up walking out of the studio in a very Daisy Jones way. He ignored me the whole time and was texting my cousin the entire time… I don’t stand for that

I believe what I said was “Don’t waste my fucking time, I have better shit to do.” Before walking out.

The thing is is that him and I played leads in a short film where we had to kiss but after mess ups where the kiss was awkward they took it (per my request). Then at a party we went to he was clinging to me and I kind of was starting to recognize my feelings but then at a rave we went to he went off to smoke with this girl who has literally played at Giants Stadium. And my cousin is obsessed with him. I’m feeling very much Daisy Jones right now and my song writing has never been better

daisy jones vibes go hard with this one and I'm obsessed, I care so much, tell me all the tea

ugh men, so annoying, like I need them to give more consistency. but the song and the short film and the girl who's performed for the Giants game, like you're literally in a movie right now and I'm obsessed. I'm so glad it's helped your song writing, I love passion in writing, make yourself a main character and suddenly the inspo goes wild.

Since we're talking about guys let me fill you in on my drama. There's three different men in my life rn bc I'm just a (I forgot what I was saying them bc one of them started messaging me and I got distracted.

anyways one big problem is I'm really attracted to immature guys, not willingly at all. I want to be taken care of, I want a man, but when I get a crush it's always on a younger brother type, immature guy, probably because I'm the oldest daughter.

so number one we'll call, band boy, he's so so immature. I've kinda had a crush on him since we met but he had a girlfriend so I told myself not to get involved, but I had a feeling they wouldn't last long. I ended up hanging out with them in groups and at parties and really just have started to like him more, but she broke up with a few days ago. I just got cast in a show with him and like kind of want to shoot my shot and spend the summer flirting, seeing if it goes anywhere, but I also feel bad because I've liked him for so long and he just got broken up with. he's super immature though, but really so sweet at the core. but literally first night we ever really talked, we spent all night sending voice notes to each other so yeah (after the show we're in, he's in the other show I'm helping out in)

then there's the tall guy, also super immature, but he's in a show I'm helping out with, helped cast. and when I saw him, literal butterflies, and everyone was automatically saying he was my type, we were trying to find out how old he was. I just literally get butterflies thinking about him and we haven't really talked, but he's so talented and hot like idk, so that's another avenue this summer.

or we have actor guy, he's also cast in the show I'm helping out with. and idk the moment he started talking, making jokes, I just felt some sort of feelings/attraction. he seemed a lot more mature and we also didn't talk much but kept making eye contact and I'll be working a lot with him this summer too.

so many guys, all actors, that I'm into and idk what to do, or how to flirt, or if they're into me 😭😭😭😭

[r0ttente3th]

hey if anyone wants the Who Killed Markiplier and a bit of Wilford Motherluvin Warfstache lore, heres all of it! (that i know of!)

WHO KILLED MARKIPLIER + WILFORD MOTHERLUVIN WARFSTACHE SPOILERS BELOW!!!!

have fun!! also please have watched WKM and maybe WMLW before reading

so damien, mark, and will have been friends since they were young. there is a woman named celine in all of this, who is damiens twin sister. mark dates celine because he loves her, but she cheats on him with will. so mark of course is beyond fucking angry at will, even though it was actively celines choice to cheat on him. so mark invites them all over for a dinner, all of them being damien, will, abe the detective (not an ego), anddd i think thats it?? other than us, the viewer, the district attorney, who happens to look a LOT like damien. mark dies. will doesnt care too much because he understands mark was angry at him, and damien gets upset with will because yknow, their friend just died and hes kinda nonchalant. so with abe, we start to try and find clues of who killed markiplier, of which will is always a bit suspicious. All the sudden, celine knocks on the door, and lets everyone know that something is happening that involves black/ evil magic.

everyones kinda like, woah, huh? and she just kinda, forces everyone to do some stuff? she does something with a crystal ball in a room, upon another character (forget his name) says "hey, ive prepped for this, we gotta get out of here or youll all die". damien says no, goes in to try and help his sister, and will and abe fight because will is sus. will accidentally shoots abe through the heart, and while we're trying to wrestle the gun away from him, he shoots us, and we canonically die. we wake up in a black void, where damien and celine are there. they explain to us that actor mark has actively possessed damiens body (through the crystal ball thing celine i did i guess??) and has the ability to basically warp time and space, and create his own personal timeline in a way. but before we "died", damien had an encounter with mark (where he learned this info, celine already knew and was trying to protect him ig), and this is where actor mark tells him "im going to make my own story, the one where shit goes my way, but every story needs a villain" and he actively pushes damien to be said villain. anyways, we meet in the void, get informed, and celine tells us she can do something (i cant remember), but whatever happens, whatever she does, results in all three of us, damien, celine, and us, repossessing the district attorneys body. but considering i think it involves black magic, damien, or the body, now known as darkipier, has dark powers as well and is a little bit goofy! anyways, dark decides to be actors villain, but in the way he doesnt want him to be.

Darks entire personality to me is ironic because his main goal is to literally be as fucking annoying as possible, fuck up all of actors storylines and basically just be a pain in his fucking ass throughout the stories he creates

anyways, we wake up to will sitting on a nearby bench, clutching damiens little staff (because he had one), and we can see hes yknow..... fucking shocked! is beyond happy that we arent dead, and proceeds to be delusional, think its all just some funny sick joke, and stumbles off screen calling for damien. and this is where it gets kinda complicated??? so, think of like, each of marks videos as well,,, a video, or a comic book! actor can create videos of his own, and proceed to crawl into the white space of the comic books. dark and wilford (who becomes wilford after the WKM incident, william J barnum quite literally no longer exists) can also do that. each character has their own story, which is obviously written! but william was pushed out of his character because he ran into a scenario that wasnt scripted for him, which is where he becomes wilford warfstache. so what he does, is he spends years hopping into other peoples storylnies, trying to break them out of character because hes the only one who is truly aware. and then "wilford motherloving warfstache happens", where abe comes back (because he wasnt supposed to die), and is actively hunting him down because he killed us, the district attorney.

all he remembers is, the stuff that his character needs to know. he doesnt know where hes been ig, hes just the classic detective noir character. he knows hes hunting down warf, doesnt need to know the specifics bc his CHARACTER already knows it. but, he encounters warfstache! manages to capture him, which im presuming wasnt meant to happen, because this is where he realizes: 'wait.. i dont know anything about where youve been, i dont know any of the specifics, i dont actually have all the places youve supposedly been'. and warfstache manages to break him out of character. abe ofc is freaking the fuck out because that technically means none of this is real, and none of it makes sense. so warf technically presses pause on abes youtube video, and says 'hey, you need to destress, lets have some fun before you have to go back to your story'. because in a sense, wills story already ended, so warf has to create his own story line. he has no destined future. so they dance and have fun because inevitably, abe will have to resume his own story, and warf is gonna be left alone with nobody bc nobody is sentient! which is why hes constantly trying to fuck shit up too! breaks in suddenly in the middle of videos, causes havoc, because hes trying to create a scenario that breaks the person out of their character, so theyre aware like him. anyways, he inevitably starts to go insane and desperate, which is why hes known for 'haha shooty shooty bang bang!' because hes just, kinda fucked in the head i think. anyways we havent had a continuation in awhile really, but thats where they all kinda are atm!!

have fun!!