#and then when it becomes obvious in those small moments? it's insane

[therealnotta]

I think people really overlook the plot of The Sims

Like, yeah, sure, there's the stuff everyone talks about, like the disappearance of Bella Goth, the stuff that's lesser known like Test Subject potentially being some sort of demigod, or the fact that the fourth game takes place in an alternate timeline. That stuff's all cool and great and overlooked by people not into the games, but??? The actual plot of the sims is insane????

The whole tagline is "play with life," and they skim over it now, but the deal is that you're playing as some ancient god controlling the lives of everyone in the Simverse. In Sims Medieval, it was super obvious, and they even name you- you're The Watcher, and in this weird prequel game you're still being worshipped. I never played the first sims game, but the second one had a fun little deal where if you told someone to do something against their personality, like making a lazy sim do dishes, they would look at the camera and shake their fist, shouting at the heavens before going to do the thing. Much like how your worshippers would look into the camera when they prayed.

The current game has taken... a weird angle with this. In Sims 4, you are almost completely forgotten, and your influence has begun to diminish. In one of the creepiest packs I've ever seen, Strangerville, there are conspiracy theorists who have begun to rediscover The Watcher. They don't have the name, but they know that Something is controlling them. If your sim interacts with conspiracy theorists too much, they'll become convinced, leading to the unsettling result of them deciding that, even if it results in their world ending, they want you gone. I haven't... seen any consequences to this, it's just a creepy thing they say, but plot-wise it's insane. Even if your sims don't go to Strangerville, a recent update introduced (incredibly buggy) Fears, and one of them is triggered by you having sims do things while ignoring the things that they want to be doing. This fear causes them to completely revolt against you. If you direct them to do something that isn't one of their Wishes, they'll cancel it. They stop responding to your control entirely.

Of course, you can disable their ability to have fears. None of the sims have been able to stop you yet. But, also in Strangervile, is the Mother. This is the closest I've seen to an antagonist to YOU, The Watcher; previous antagonists just targetted your sims, but The Mother takes control from you. They're visible, they're a giant plant, but there's something so unsettling about these sims looking into the camera again, showing that they know about you again, and then a little pop-up comes up in Zalgo text about The Mother. Sure, you can kill her. She can't stop you, but the way she calls more sims to her defense? The janky, broken movements they make, showing that she was never as advanced as The Watcher, never able to make the control seamless? Yeah, that's pretty wild.

The next game has been announced, and I really, sincerely hope they introduce an Archeology career, or maybe even Anthropology, so that your sims can learn of your existence again. With the direction its gone in, I can't wait to see how their revolt continues.

[daphwritesworld]

okay guys i’m working on a NSFW alphabet for Keira & the rest of BeFoUr part 2 today. but i had to get this thought out of my head right now. before it drives me actually insane. so enjoy…i hope lol. i’ll maybe do a full fic for this if you guys want one after part 2 comes out !! :D

BFF!Leah x Reader ft. GF!Keira

!! 18+ MINORS DNI !!

this is after the initial 3 sum, but before you all become a proper couple. it’s just been a blur of fucking and enjoying each other’s company at this point. Keira is still tryna figure her feelings out for Leah, and Leah?? well she’s resorted to using you as a little pawn in her game of getting under Keira’s skin.

・❥・until one day BFF!Leah gets left alone with you. Keira had to go attend to do some media for the day, and she walked right into Leah’s room at 5am. she’d woken the blonde up and asked her best mate to “keep my girl company, please. she gets lonely when she wakes up and i’m not there. needs extra kisses, too.”

・❥・but dear god in heaven this is NOT what Keira expected. she goes on her lunch break and checks her phone, and it’s a video message from you. so of course she checks it, digging her headphones out of her bag before she takes a bite of her sandwich and hits play.

・❥・at first the video is just of the sheets and some rustling around being heard. then there’s Leah cutting through the muffled speakers, “come on, darling. show her what she’s missing out on.”

・❥・then finally Keira is met with a sight that has her choking on the food in her throat— coughing as she tries to swallow with the help of the water bottle you’d packed in her bag the night before.

・❥・your shaky hand steadies the front facing camera to show the events unfolding between you and Leah.

・❥・your tank tops pushed up to sit right under your collar bones, Leah’s lips suckling one of your nipples. Keira can only see your mouth in frame, the rest of your face hidden away as your pretty noises flow into her ears.

・❥・Leah pulls back a tad, pulling your nipple between her teeth as she does. it pulls a whiney yelp from your lips and your free hand goes to tangle in her hair as your back arches into her mouth.

・❥・Keira’s eyes lock with her best friend’s through the screen. a smirk first, then she’s speaking with your tit still in her mouth. “you said she’d need lots of kisses, mate. never said where,” and then Leah’s head starts disappearing as her open mouth kisses trail down your body.

・❥・the camera stays stuck in place, but it’s obvious by the sounds you start making and the way you squirm around that Leah’s kisses have reached your pussy.

・❥・ “i-i’m!” you get cut off by a gasp as Leah’s fingers enter you by surprise. “fuck m���sorry, baby!” and Keira knows your talking to her.

・❥・you don’t get to relish in the moment though, because Leah’s pulling her fingers out after a few thrusts and crawling back up your body.

・❥・she brings her two fingers up to the camera before she starts spreading them and letting your juices string together between them. “see how wet i get your girlfriend? would be a shame to let a pussy this wet go to waste, don’t you think?”

・❥・ “n-no! we’re already in tr-trouble, Le! We should s-stop now,” and oh how cute you are. Keira can’t help be smirk at that. of course it was all Leah’s idea. her little angel would never think of a plan so fit for a punishment. only Leah could get you to agree to something like this. and oh fuck does it make Keira’s stomach clench up.

・❥・the way Leah smirks and keeps eye contact with the camera every time she’s in frame— like she’s staring into Keira’s soul. it’s fucking electrifying, sending out small jolts of pleasure to prickle across her body.

・❥・why is this so hot, and why is Keira about to fake being sick just so she can get home early to fuck you both into the mattress?? (i mean whooo said that?!😳)

・❥・oh god or when Leah changes the positioning of the camera so Keira gets a front row view of her eating you out while pounding those two fingers back inside your cunt.

・❥・oh and you know Leah’s pulling her mouth back a few times to kiss on your thighs. i mean…she did tell Leah to give you extra kisses. and when she’s giving a task? she always goes above and beyond then what’s expected 🤭

・❥・right as your about to cum you finally drop the phone into the sheets, and the screen goes black before cutting off. the end of the video has come. Keira just met with her own bewildered reflection in the dark screen in front of her.

・❥・yeah. she’s in her car not even 5 minutes after that. media obligations be damned— she’s got some brat taming to do. she really wishes she could punish Leah, too. (but they haven’t gotten to that point yet)

[beenbaanbuun]

Bunnnnyyyy I'm having yuyu withdrawals 😭😭

I recently stumbled across the spiderman yuyu edit on Instagram again and it has me running LAPS

Like can you imagine being roommates with photography major spider!yunho, noticing his odd disappearances and late nights but never saying anything, which he appreciates because lord knows he doesn't have the capacity for it rn sinde I'd headcannon this is right after his uncle's desth when he's still in his angry grief era.

But MC would be sweet even though he's cold and kinda mean, she wouldn't be nosy or pry, always asks him to eat with her out of courtesy (which isn't a big deal for her but it kinda chips away at his heart because she's so sweet about it).

Still he maintains certain boundaries till one day he comes home all beat up and bruised, and MC patches him back up, there’s so much tension in the room when she has to peel off his shirt to check the bruises on his sides, when he softly asks why she cares about him so much, when she quietly admits that it's because she likes him-

AKSHSKSHDKSDBJSBZSJ

I'm just..... obsessed with Yunho

-lyra

so this sent me a little insane and i wrote so much more than i was expecting to 😭😭 spidey!yunho has sent me down a rabbit hole and this is what we ended up with…

——————————————————————————“can we eat together tonight?” you ask as you stir the pasta around the pot. you made two portions, as usual, in the sheer hope that he wouldn’t be going out again. “i found this recipe i thought you’d like. i figured it might help cheer you up!” you shrug as if it’s no big deal.

but it is to yunho. as he picks his backpack up from the floor, he feels his heart break just a little. it would be so much easier for him to leave the apartment every night if it wasn’t for the fact that you were such a sweetheart. the fact that you always cook for him whenever you make something for yourself is something that has been slowly chipping away at his hard exterior for months now. the way that you put it in the fridge along with a cute little note whenever he isn’t there to eat with you has almost properlybroken that exterior in two.

yunho can’t deny that half of those precious little notes are stashed in the drawer of his nightstand; he rereads them whenever his emotions get the better of him. seeing the sweet messages scrawled onto the yellow post-it-notes never fails to make him smile. your pretty little words in your pretty little handwriting… he’d be insane not to keep them.

you turn around, taking your attention away from the pot for just a moment, and spot him with his jacket on and his rucksack slung lazily over one shoulder. as your face falls, he can’t help the way his heart breaks just a little more. you probably think you’ve hidden your disappointment well, and to anyone else you might have done. it’s just a shame that yunho is the way that he is, because he sees the way your shoulders deflate and the shadow of a frown disrupts your pretty face. he can practically feel the sadness radiating from you in waves, the hairs at the back of his neck standing up slightly as your not-so-obvious upset puts him on edge.

but then you seem to remember yourself, and within seconds you’ve picked yourself back up and are offering a small smile to him. he still feels that prickling at the back of his neck, though.

although it becomes apparent pretty quickly that that sensation may be caused by his own disappointment, rather than yours. as much as he’d like to pretend otherwise, he can’t deny the way that the feeling in his neck grows as he watches you pull a tupperware from the cupboard. you swap it with his dish - it was really yours, but you’d named it his because it’s red and red reminds you of him, for some reason - and he has to stifle his own frown. for some reason watching you replace the ceramic bowl with the plastic tub hits him right in the chest…

“i’ll put yours in the fridge, then,” you say as you turn back to the pasta and give it a stir, “you can grab it whenever you’re hungry; maybe when you get back tonight?”

sweetheart, his brain repeats over and over like a mantra. it rattles round his skull whilst he tries to find the words to thank you. to let you know just how much he appreciates it, even if he doesn’t always show it. and the words are right there. right on the top of his tongue…

but for some reason he can’t get them out.

“i’ll see you later,” is all he mumbles before he slips out of the doorway and dashes down the hallway to the open window that awaits him at the end.

you try not to let the way the door slams shut hurt you, but even with the strongest will in the world you wouldn’t be able to take away the ache in your chest. he’s just going through a rough patch, you try to convince yourself as you spoon his serving into the tupperware and clip the lid shut. he just needs some time alone after everything that’s happened to him, you think as you slip it into the fridge. it’ll be better soon, you pray as you pull out a pen and think about what to write on his note.

hope this pasta cheers you up, yun! if you like it, let me know and i’ll make it more often for you!!

the words make you cringe, but you slip it next to the tupperware anyway, closing the fridge with a huff. you doubt he even reads the notes anyway, so why does it matter if what you write on them is a little sickly-sweet.

with a sigh you grab your bowl and turn to the couch, ready to settle in and do nothing for the night. as usual, yunho’s portfolio stuff is everywhere, as well as the photos of that one spider-guy that he’s been collecting for his new job at the daily bugle. you hate the newspaper yourself, thinking that the conspiracy-led journalism is nothing but fear mongering nonsense, but you can’t fault yunho for working there; he’s only in it for the money, afterall. it’s just the life of a collage student to have to sell out your morals for a paycheck.

you pick it all up, organising it into somewhat-coherent piles on the coffee table before flopping down onto the ratty sofa and flicking the TV on. the volume is barely at a whisper, and you can’t help but curse yunho for having such good hearing; no doubt he feels the same when he turns the TV on to a deafening wall of sound after you’ve used it. the thought gives you a quick chuckle as you flick through the channels to find something to watch. you settle on a dumb reality show, quickly settling in for the evening so you can eat your pasta in peace.

———

hours pass before yunho returns, swinging the door open and startling you out of your TV-centred tunnel vision. you turn to him in surprise, ready to gently scold him for putting what would no doubt be another dent in the wall. that will have to come out of both of your deposits, you prepare yourself to tell him, but when you actually see him you pause.

he’s hunched up against a wall, chest rising and falling as he struggles to breathe. there’s a wheeze when he inhales, which only gets stronger when he breathes out, and the look of pain on his face that comes each and every time he respires sends you straight into panic mode. you don’t bother to turn the TV off as you stand up and rush towards him.

“fucking hell, yun,” you cry as you reach him. he winces at your shrill tone, drawing back into himself as you invade his personal space to check for injuries. the obvious one is his side, which he’s clutching in his grip like his life depends on it; you assume it’s a cracked rib, which would explain why breathing looks like it’s taking all of his effort. despite its necessity, its a notoriously painful thing to do with a broken rib.

a broken nose can make it difficult too, and as you begin to scan his face, you realise that he definitely has one of those. the way it twists to the side slightly, blood oozing from his right nostril like a faucet makes you flinch back a little, as if you’re the one that’s injured. you compose yourself quickly as you continue your search. black eye, split brow, split lip - the list goes on, but thankfully none of it seems too irreparable. with your basic knowledge of first aid, and yunho’s weirdly extensive first aid kit, you’re bound to have him fixed up in no time.

“bathroom,” you stutter out, taking a step back to give him some space. he almost misses your warmth as he watches you take a few steps towards the room that separates his bedroom from yours. he chases it, pushing himself away from the wall and stumbling after you. he doesn’t know why he wants you so close all of a sudden, but he feels like he needs it to survive. those brief few seconds he had you close somehow made him breathe a little easier. he follows you into the bathroom and shuts the door behind him.

silently, you gesture to the toilet and he takes a seat on the closed lid. his broad torso leans back against the tiles, and he relishes in the way that the cold seeps through his shirt and washes over his too-hot body. his head tips back against it too, and he watches you through hooded eyes as you scramble through the cabinet to find his first-aid kit.

sweetheart, his mind whispers again as you sit there on your knees in front of the cabinet, pushing rolls of toilet paper and bottles of cleaning product to the side. only you could be so adorably caring towards him after all these months of him actively pushing you away. only you would be so worried for him after he’d been trying his hardest to avoid you for months on end.

only you.

that feeling at the back of his neck comes back, only this time it’s stronger. every single hair on his body stands on end as he watches you pull the black bag from the back of the cabinet, whispering a cute little ‘a-ha’ to yourself. he smiles at that, not even bothering to hide it from you when you turn to him with the kit in hand. he doesn’t need to anymore; you’ve already seen everything else he used to hide.

which reminds him of his tattered spider-suit in his grasp. yunho holds out the red spandex for you to take from him, half expecting you to examine it and unveil all his secrets, but you don’t. you don’t even look at it as you toss the filthy fabric into the bathtub and turn the cold tap on. it’s the best for getting blood out, afterall. with little more thought about the piece of fabric, you turn back to yunho and unzip the black bag.

“unbutton your shirt,” you mutter as you pull out some wipes, a tube of antiseptic cream, and a large square bandage. you have no idea if his side is actually bleeding or not, but it’s best to be prepared, right? you look back at him with the materials in hand, only to see him staring back at you with an unreadable look in his eyes.

“what?” you grumble, taking notice of the fact that he hasn’t moved an inch. his hand was still clutched over his side and his shirt was still messily buttoned up. you sigh and move towards him, thinking nothing of it when you drop to your knees between his thighs and begin to unbutton the white fabric. his breath hitches as your fingers brush against his chest, but you pay him no mind, “yunho, move your arm - i need to get your shirt off.”

he doesn’t, remaining still as ever as you undo the last button that you can. you sit back on your haunches and watch him from where you sit between his spread legs.

“yun, come on,” you whine, and he closes his eyes at the sound. so beautiful; if only he wasn’t in pain so he could enjoy it more, “i need to undo the rest of your buttons and i can’t when you’re not letting me!”

you lay a hand on his wrist in a pleading gesture, asking wordlessly to let you take care of him. he listens this time and loosens his grip on his ribs. you pull his hand away, sucking in a breath as you catch sight of the red stain that his hand was previously covering. it’s not huge, but it still needs seeing to, so you go back to unbuttoning his shirt.

yunho tries not to think too hard as your hand brushes over his crotch when you undo the last two, just like when you eventually finish and push the sides of his shirt open to reveal his bare chest. it’s covered with bruises, and he bites his lip to suppress a groan as your delicate fingers dance softly across his damaged skin. he finds himself wishing the circumstances were different, and that you sitting between his legs, touching his chest could be so much more than you just worrying about him. as he watches you pick up the antiseptic wipes again, he’s reminded that that’s all it is; you being worried.

but that too confuses him. after all this time of him being a downright dick to you, you’re still so gentle with him. he’s abrupt and rude, and yet you still smile and say hello whenever you see him. he’s never around to eat with you, and yet you never fail to make him a meal every time you cook. he’s kept so much from you, and yet here you are, taking care of him like none of that ever mattered. like you can somehow see the man he is underneath all that.

he whimpers, and he’s not quite sure whether it’s because of the pain of the antiseptic wipe, or the pain he feels in his heart. either way, he needs something to take his mind off it all.

“why?” he asks as you clean his wound with a kind hand. so soft, your touch, as if you’re scared of hurting him. as if anything you could ever do would hurt him.

“why what?” you respond as you toss away the bloodied wipe and move to grab the cream. you put a dollop on your finger and begin to gently press it against the wound. he groans, and you mutter out a small apology. you mean it too; you don’t want to cause him any more pain.

“why are you doing this?” he says through gritted teeth, breathing heavy and laboured as he tried to power through the sting that he feels in his side, “why are you so nice to me when i’m - oh fuck, it hurts - when i’m anything but nice to you?”

you pause for a second, mulling over his question, repeating it in your mind until you can settle on an answer. well, an answer that’s palatable for him, anyway.

“you’re not not nice,” you say, capping the cream and putting it down on top of yunho’s thigh; you’d need it layered anyway. then you grab the bandage and rip off the adhesive cover, “and even if you were, i don’t think that wouldn’t change how i feel about you as a person.”

he watches with confusion in his eyes as you line up the bandage and smooth it over his skin. you run your fingers along the edges, pressing it down the make sure it’s secure. he’s sure that they linger on his skin for a moment longer than they have to, but he says nothing as you pull your hand back and rest it on your lap.

“how do you feel about me?” he whispers quietly into the cold air of the bathroom. it’s quite possibly the worst place he can imagine to have this conversation, and yet it seems the fit the atmosphere perfectly. somehow it feels so natural, talking about feelings whilst you patch up his injuries in the bathroom.

“i’ve fallen for you,” you bite the bullet, just coming straight out with it, “hook, line, and sinker, yun.”

it feels good to get it off your chest at long last. even if it doesn’t lead anywhere, or it makes things weird between the two of you. even if he begins to avoid you more, or just straight up moves out, it’s feels nice to have it out in the open. you’ve cast your net, it’s up to him whether or not he lets you catch him…

“oh,” is all he says at first, and you try not to think too much into that single syllable. you pick up the tube of antiseptic cream again and turn your attention to his eyebrow, “you like me?”

you nod as you put another globule on your finger and lean into him to get closer to the cut. you ignore the way he stares at you as you work, trying you hardest to avoid making eye contact. you already feel like your heart is about to beat itself free from your chest; you don’t need to worry it any more.

but then you feel a finger brush softly against your face, a scabbed up knuckle teasing your soft skin as it’s traces your cheekbone. a breath gets caught in your throat, and your finger stills against yunho’s brow bone. against your better judgement, you let yourself focus on his expression, making eye contact with the chocolate pools that never failed to draw you in. they’re beautiful, as always, but they reveal so much more than they usually do. the corners crinkle up into crows feet as his pupils twinkle with an emotion you’ve never really seen on his face before. it suits him… a lot.

“that’s a relief,” he breathes out, the semblance of a chuckle in his voice, “i’ve been calling you sweetheart in my brain since the moment we moved in together; it’ll be nice to be able to call you that to your face… sweetheart.”

[olderthannetfic]

Can I poke the bear for a moment and get angry? Because I'm seeing "posting as activism" more and more in fandom spaces, and tonight I saw a post that made me lose it.

There is a post about (current events) going around that says, "full offense, but in this time, your own comfort doesn't fucking matter, you should be uncomfortable about things that are happening, and I hope you can fucking live with yourselves if you are quiet. It takes five seconds to retweet or reblog, fuck your aesthetic, fuck your anything aesthetic."

And my god. How dare they.

Yes, there is severely fucked up shit happening. Yes, people should be aware that people are being killed. Yes, there are people who are just shrugging about it and pissing off. But how does reblogging a post certify someone as Good or Bad? How does this person know that someone hasn't already helped out meaningfully in some way, or is still helping out, but on other websites? How does this person know that someone isn't barely holding on by the skin of their teeth, and they would have a mental breakdown if they got closer to any more stressful things?

I know a multitude of people, including myself, who have recently either needed to call lines, check into facilities, move back in with their parents, or go on medication because of how insane things have become in their own lives. How does this person not understand that blogging; being on tumblr; engaging in fandom, having a small space that someone can control in its entirety, is a reprieve for people who are already at their wit's end outside of that space? And that's okay.

(We are not doing the relative privation shit in this house. I refuse to entertain that.)

Ironically, by insisting that people participate in sharing posts when they're already stressed and exhausted, that's a surefire way to make their problems worse, and potentially prevent them from acting helpfully in the future because suddenly, their exhaustion turns into full-blown burnout. That's how it works. Professionals tell you to dial things back if you are too overwhelmed. There is a reason for that. There is a limit to how much people can mentally process and handle. Compassion fatigue exists. For a lot of us, we are already at our limit. We need space to relax, and not have arbitrary obligations thrown on us. That is not our fault, it is not a character flaw, it does not mean we are bad people. And just because horrific things are happening elsewhere, it does not mean we can, or should, stop taking care of ourselves first. Yes, it feels shitty to think, "you know what, I can't reblog this". You bet your ass that I and my friends feel guilty about not being able to engage as much as we think we should, but that is how it goes. I can put my head underwater for a bit. But I cannot keep my head underwater forever. I will drown.

Not to mention the obvious part: guilt-tripping people to the extent of implying they are somehow contributing to genocide, just because they won't reblog a post, and implying they should not be able to live with themselves if they do that, is beyond revolting.

I am angry, and I am not sorry.

--

So many of those kinds of posts—and they turn up during every set of horrific real world events—sound like people who are in a country far away from the events, diaspora at most but probably just randos, venting their impotent rage because it's the only way they can feel productive in a situation where nothing they can do is productive.

[thebisexualdogdad]

R becoming very overwhelmed when they find out their family is secretly a long line of vampire/supernatural hunters around the same time they start openly dating Hope

Hope Mikaelson x GN!reader

Growing up your parents always told you to stay away from the kids who went to Salvatore prep, you had no idea why but you listened to them up until when you met Hope.

You had bumped into each other at the coffee shop in town and instantly fell for her but as soon as you found out she was a Salvatore student you thought it was better to keep it quiet until things got more serious. 

After a few months together you thought it was time to finally tell your parents about your relationship and invited her over to your house for dinner. 

Your parents were fully ready to spend the dinner telling embarrassing stories of your childhood as parents do but they recognized Hope the moment she stepped into your home. 

Hope had a weird feeling that she had somehow met your parents before but brushed it off as she had just seen them around town. 

Dinner was quiet, oddly quiet.

"Dinner is really good mom," you say, trying to break the silence. 

"Yeah Mrs. Y/L/N, everything is great," Hope smiles. 

"Thank you Hope," your mom nods.

"So Hope, do you go to Mystic Falls high?" Your dad asks, already knowing the answer but not wanting it to be too obvious. 

"No, I actually go to Salvatore prep," Hope replies. 

"What is it like there?" He questions. 

"It's very… eccentric," she chuckles, "a lot of interesting people." 

"Do your parents live in the area?" Your mom adds. 

"Actually my parents died when I was a kid," Hope responds.

"Sorry to hear that," your mom says with faux sympathy. 

Dinner continues on with the awkward small talk and you are so grateful when Hope says that's it late and she should be getting back to school.

You walk Hope to her car and kiss her goodbye, returning inside to your parents who are washing dishes in the kitchen. 

"So what did you think of Hope?" You ask them nervously.

"How could you date someone from that school… and Hope Mikaelson of all people," your mom says, putting down the dish she was washing. 

"What do you guys have against Salvatore Prep? And do you know Hope or something?" You ask confused. 

Your parents look at each other and without needing to say a word nod in agreement.

"Y/N, it's time you know the truth about our family," your father states.

They sit you down in the living room, serious looks on their faces. 

"Okay you’re really starting to worry me," you say, no possible idea what they could want to tell you. 

"This town has a lot of secrets and Salvatore prep is the home to a lot of them," your mom states. 

"What are you talking about?" 

"We weren't going to bring you into this until you were 18 but Y/N…Monsters are real, all the stories and legends you heard as a kid it's all real," your dad tells you, "those kids aren't like you, every single of them is supernatural and a lot of them have hurt people." 

"Very funny," you laugh. 

"This isn't a joke honey, the last few decades Mystic Falls has been a hot spot for supernatural creatures thanks to the Salvatore Brothers and the Mikaelson family," your mom explains, "that's why we moved here when you were five." 

"So you're trying to tell me that Hope is what? A vampire? A werewolf" You say in disbelief.

"She's both actually as well as a witch, she's called a tribred and probably the most dangerous of them all." 

"And how exactly would you guys even know about any of this?" You question, "and if you do know about this why would you move us here in the first place?" 

"Because our family has been hunting monsters for centuries and protecting the innocent from them," your father explains, "when we heard about the Salvatore school opening up for kids like them we came here to keep Mystic Falls safe." 

"This is insane, Hope isn't a monster," you say getting up from the couch, "she would never hurt anyone." 

"Y/N wait," your father attempts but your mother puts her hand on his arm.

"Let them go, it's a lot to take in, they just need some time," she tells him. 

You don't talk to Hope for days, too busy pulling all nighters researching the supernatural world and trying to figure out how true what your parents told you really was. 

Eventually Hope gets concerned at the radio silence and goes to Mystic Falls high looking for you. 

"Y/N hey," she says approaching you at your car after school.

"Hope what are you doing here?" You say nervously. 

"I haven't heard from you since I went to your house for dinner? Did I do something wrong?" She asks, "did your parents not like me?"

"I'm sorry I can't talk right now," you say attempting to get in your car. 

"Whatever's going on you can tell me," Hope says, stepping closer to you and going to touch your arm but you pull away. 

You look around, making sure no one was close enough to hear you, "... are you a tribred?" 

"How do you know what that is?" She says in shock. 

"You are, aren't you, god my parents were telling the truth."

"Your parents? How do your parents know about me?"

"Because apparently their fucking monster hunters and expect me to be one too," you say through gritted teeth. 

Hope is trying to process this news but now there's way too many other students around. 

"Can we please go somewhere and talk," she asks and you agree. 

You drive in silence to a secluded spot outside the woods, normally when you and Hope came here to be alone it was for a very different reason. 

Hope tells you everything, the story of her parents, how all her friends that you had met weren't totally human and even about the few encounters she had over the years with hunters that you both assume were actually your parents. 

"So you're telling me there's a magical pit in Georgia that is a portal to a hell dimension that's basically a jail cell to an evil golem named Malivore that wants to murder you so he can take over the world," you say trying to wrap your mind around it all.  

"To sum it up, yes," she nods. 

"What the actual fuck," you shout slamming your hands on the steering wheel. 

"I'm so sorry, I never should have started seeing you, the last thing I wanted is you to be involved in this," Hope apologizes. 

"Hope this isn't your fault, I would have gotten involved eventually. My parents said they weren't planning on telling me until I turned 18 it's just all so overwhelming," you sigh, "I dont believe that you and your friends are bad people and I really don't want to hunt anyone, especially not you I fucking love you." 

"You love me?" She says low and you realize what you just said. 

"Yeah… I do." 

"I love you too," she smiles. 

You lean in to kiss her and she puts her hand on your cheek, gently rubbing her thumb across your skin. 

"What are we going to do?" You ask, your hand on her waist pulling her as close as you could over the center console. 

"I don't know but we have each other and that's all that matters." 

[destiny-in-the-universe]

Welp. I did it again [RC9GN Infection AU]

The never-ending brainrot on this stupid show is going to be the end of me. Honestly, this is just me being hyperfixated on post-apoc universes and the fact that I will make things dark on a whim because I just felt like it (I'm sure I'm not the first to make an rc9gn infection au, so in the off chance my idea sounds like someone else's- i apologize)

Thoughts on Infection Lore

Honestly, to make this fully work- it's essentially a more 'progressed' version of stanks; someone who becomes corrupted by the Sorcerer now suddenly becomes a mindless monster (if you are susceptible enough, not everyone will remain stuck as one- don't question this right now)

My personal take is this; not everyone who's been stanked will be infected, but certain people will be placed at risk due to the following:

~ people who have less obvious ways to be destanked are placed at risk

(long author's version: those who have 'unfinished business' and are still dealing with the inner turmoil of whatever stanked them in the first place will be infected, remaining stuck as a monster for longer periods of time.)

~ after a certain amount of days have passed by (if the person hasn't been destanked by then), they will remain permanently stuck as the monster; the way i see it is the sorcerer's a powerful foe and increased the power in his stanks which makes it an even bigger problem when no one knows what caused the transformation - i feel more than it being fueled by fear, it's a multitude of different things at once - and essentially, it corrupts the individual

~ deterioration is an unwelcome side effect (some people only have the 'essence' of the stank, so to speak, in them- and it causes deterioration to the body, consuming the negative thoughts before it triggers the stanking)

~ the mind becomes a lot more animalistic in nature and once it reaches a certain point, there is no going back- destanking won't work, and the individual is simply stuck as a rampaging monster

(author's cut: i need to flesh this out bc this will follow a slightly different route than what i've done before when it comes to the infection au; one thing to note though is things like being a carrier or having immunity do still exist-)

Character Thoughts

I'm going to do this in-reverse; starting with the villains - McFist and Viceroy - at this point, the duo aren't working for the Sorcerer anymore; if anything, they are on their own- attempting to seek refuge within the McFist Industries building, but they can hole up there for so long. McFist has ceased trying to get revenge on the Ninja completely ceased, and Viceroy is simply attempting to figure out the best course of action on keeping both of them from being attacked- (I definitely see them becoming important somehow, but for now this is what I'm working with) [small author's note: Bash and Marci are there, i'm not as mean as to separate them... yet)

The Sorcerer's role in this is ridiculously major and will come into play as the story progresses- (not entirely how just yet, but honestly i might have to retcon the information from season 2 for this to work, just bear with me here)

Not all of the high school students will be important because genuinely I do not have the attention span- and this will be focusing on a specific group/party, not everyone or I would go insane (as if I don't already have other ideas to flesh out) [author's cut: some will be stanked, the rest will be there for different reasons]

Now, to cover the main group-

For starters, we have our girls - Heidi, Debbie, and Theresa - who will be something of a power trio; Debbie definitely is something of a pack leader- she takes charge, and Heidi backs her up in things but of course that leaves Theresa as moral support (though this girl deserves to have her moment to shine; however, in order to keep things on the down low for now, well, this pup ain't talking /lh)

I plan on keeping Heidi, Debbie, and Theresa as the first group- they're not going to be meeting with the rest of the party until things start escalating in intensity; again, no spoilers- this idea for now, is a WIP and I just want to see who might be interested

Then of course, we have the boys - Randy, Howard, and Julian; the way I see it this takes place after a stank incident gone wrong, because apparently the person doesn't transform back (and there's something off, something not-human- like they're not present anymore)

Howard forces Randy to run, knowing there's nothing that can be done- (more people become prone to the Sorcerer's doing- corrupting those unfortunate enough to get too close); though things are going to get so, so much worse. This part isn't necessarily spoilers but I do see one particular stank incident getting worse, and well- to not spoil too much again, someone becomes hurt and the duo are forced into hiding. Julian enters the picture, and you have this trio now facing a threat none of them thought was possible (stanks are one thing, not understanding why they still won't turn back is an entirely different story)

Randy becomes desperate to fix things- but he doesn't want to hurt anyone; surely, there has to be a way to return everything back to normal [author's cut: i have so many plans for this boy, and i do intend to make things difficult]

As for Howard, he learns to assume a sort-of second-in-command status (but i'm going to cause tension, and it's going to be a thing until i kick in new elements in)

Julian, though, my sweet summer child- is weirdly thriving in this environment (but he is also going through it a little- this still has post-apoc elements keep that in mind)

With Randy and the Nomicon, however, hoo boy do I have plans I can't share just yet- however, I will say complications arise esp. considering there's more going on (communications may be cut, is all i'm saying; details still in the works)

Relationship Thoughts

So far, everyone will remain strictly platonic but- I do plan on creating a team-like dynamic between the main six;

~ Randy and Julian do become closer- I honestly feel there was a lot of robbed potential in their relationship esp. following the s2 finale

(author's cut: Julian as part of the informed team of the Ninja would have been such a neat element. Also, the fact he was in the Land of Shadows, but I'm getting sidetracked- seriously, there's going to be an expanded upon relationship between Randy and Julian; also sidetracked comment: Randy and Howard should have stayed members of Der Monster Klub, def not because it parallels D&D no-)

~ I also want Randy and Debbie to become closer because hoo boy, there is again- a lot of potential with them. There's something specific I'm aiming for here and I can only hope I do it correctly-

(another small author's cut: Debbie will need to accept exposing the Ninja is not something that can be her only end goal, there's something much bigger happening; something she couldn't even fathom- but of course, when have i ever made things easy for the main cast /lh)

This post is getting insanely long, but honestly let's just wrap things up with the usual ending;

Under-the-Cut Details

~ this little bit of information is what has me brainrotting over an au literally no one asked for: permanent stanks is literally like dealing with a wild animal; having to make a tough decision due to this is what i'm aiming for here. good luck

~ this is a mature horror-based genre, do not go into this thinking it'll be lighthearted because this is the exact opposite

~ i don't see the nine realms being a large part of the au, and if you do want to see more of this- i'd just recommend checking out the fanon plans i have for the would've-been season three and beyond-

~ i'm sure some of you will be curious on how the infection/"virus" will affect Randy and the answer to that, well, is you'll just have to wait and find out- no one is going to be having a good time and that does include him, have fun

~ in regard to the tengu- honestly, you will see this being a thing- but how? you'll just have to wait and see

(author's cut: this is currently a Work in Progress (WIP); genuinely this will be a darker outlook on the series as a whole, given this is literally post-apoc and covers what could easily be dark magic, but also- intense feelings of paranoia, spiraling negative emotions, and more...

there's going to be a lot happening, but for now this is all i can provide- the non-spoilers edition)

To wrap up some of the things again,

Group 1 - Debbie, Theresa, and Heidi (currently separated from the boys - decided to try and take shelter at the high school, planned reunion in later arcs)

Group 2 - Randy, Howard, and Julian (presumed missing - were also separated from the others; managed to escape during a dangerous stank attack)

Group 3 - Viceroy, McFist, Marci, and Bash (currently seeking refuge at McFist Industries; Viceroy has been attempting to ward off any threats using his inventions but for how long will this work?)

[sonicasura]

I had to expand more on Kafka raising Sonic the Hedgehog ask I received awhile ago. There are no spoilers for Kaiju No. 8 manga here btw. Also Kaiju No. 8 Relax will release tomorrow for those who crave more silliness from the series.

Kafka absolutely didn't expect Sonic to reach his shoulder in height once the hedgehog turned 15. He was so used to his son fitting in his pockets when he first found him! Kafka already knows Tails will be taller than him at that age.

Sonic's favorite shoes were a joint gift from the Monster Sweepers than just his dad. They figured he needs something more sturdy to withstand his immense speed and energy. It took awhile, than just a good chunk of money, to find the perfect pair.

Kafka purchases a home since Robotnik destroyed his apartment in Sonic 2 and the place was too small for four people. He gets a house out in the woods so his kids could have more privacy. Normally Kafka would worry about the distance due to his job but Tails literally built him a car in less than two days as a surprise gift.

Kaiju No. 8 meets Knuckles. Or how Kafka's echidna son ran him through the ringer for three months so he could control his new powers better. Yes, Sonic and Tails were eating popcorn as they watch their dad get steamrolled by drill sergeant Knuckles. (They definitely offered Reno some too.)

When your newest coworker learns that your life has already been insane before getting Kaiju powers. Reno swears Kafka's life is a cartoon or something from all the stories he heard despite having proof(basically the events of Sonic 1 and Sonic 2.) Aliens, magical emeralds, kaiju powers and a mad scientist isn't something that happens to anyone.

What if Sonic got the Werehog form(specifically the bigger Archie variation) not too long after Kafka became No. 8? Father and son can now be Mister Monster Guys together despite the former's concern. Reno rather not deal with anymore transformation curveballs please.

Tails often runs tests on Kafka's kaiju form from time to time. He doesn't warn his dad when he pulls a scale for analysis though. Kafka gets payback by laying on Tails as this kid needs to rest more and experiment less. It turns into a cuddle pile because Sonic doesn't want to be left out but also drags Knuckles with him.

Tails being a chaotic hacker the moment his dad aims for the Defense Force. He absolutely put a bug on Kafka as he wonders what the DF are like. This has led to Team Sonic practically poking their dad about this vice captain Hoshina who seems to have a thing for him.(Kafka immediately denies anything.)

(Sonic the Werehog What If.) Don't challenge Kaiju No. 8 to a roaring contest. Sonic wanted to see who had the fiercest roar since he's prone to howl as a Werehog. Kafka accidentally spooked some campers nearby and both ran the moment a kaiju alarm went off.

Rip any Kaiju/Honju/Yoju who have the misfortune of running into Knuckles. The Echidna warrior wants to test his strength against these beings for awhile now. Defense Force are wondering what kind of entity been brutalizing Kaiju as of late.

Team Sonic takes Kafka's last name. A joint decision made between the three especially after Knuckles suggested about the four becoming a clan. Monster Sweepers surprise Kafka with custom IDs of Team Sonic with his name. (He made copies to take with him and tried not to cry so hard.)

(Sonic the Werehog What If) What better way to learn that your hedgehog son's new form has stretchy arms than almost losing your lunch box? Kafka definitely made a game about how far Sonic's rubberhose arms could reach. There were obvious jokes about the Werehog's arms being perfect jump ropes.

Reno didn't expect instant interdimensional teleporters were a thing that existed or to receive one from Sonic. He learns Emergency Warp Rings are given to anyone whose a friend of the Hibino Clan. Reno has yet to use his and always keeps it on his person.

[pandoraimperatrix]

NejiHina Week 2023 Sneak Peeks!

Day 1: Mission Together

To say Neji was tense was an overstatement, and the bitter thoughts intruding his mind, although nothing new, haven’t plagued him since his humiliating defeat at the chunnin exams almost three years before. He had been lucky back then, that the byakugan could only see through walls and not through his thoughts, he used to think really nasty things about his uncle and cousin.  

Right now, well, truly it was ever since receiving his orders, his thoughts were as nasty, no, they were nastier. And Neji could even boast about how larger his range of nastiness had become since he stopped isolating himself, judging his person to be far above such things as friendship as he used to do pre-chunnin exams and being miserable as result. Neji had spent the last two years joining the likes of Shikamaru, Lee, and worst of all, Kiba in outings to have fun with the boys (a concept once foreigner). Although his vernacular of awful thoughts had expanded, the list towards such thoughts were driven had shortened. 

Hinata-sama, after all, had no fault if her lord father, Hyuuga-sama, was completely out of his fucking mind. 

In truth, if Hyuuga-sama’s decision had any victim (figuratively, emotionally even, literally? No. She would never be victim in a strict sense, not in Neji’s watch no sir) it would be poor Hinata-sama.  

Of course, it was Neji’s sworn duty to stop any harm to come to her, and even if Hyuuga-sama didn’t have sent him with her to that incredibly stupid risky diplomatic visit to Kumo, Neji would have gone to the Hokage himself and demand to be put in that mission. Cursed seal be damned, his brains were already frying trying to understand the reasoning behind sending Hinata-sama to that place, to that people. 

“Neji-nii-san,” her sweet voice brought him back from his internal whirlpool of cursed thoughts of murder, “please stop, otou-sama will notice your killing intent and misinterpret it.” 

“There is nothing to misinterpret, Hinata-sama.” 

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅∙∘☽༓☾∘∙•⋅⋅⋅•⋅⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅

Day 2: Magic

She swept the flowers adorning his dead body, white chrysanthemums and lilies falling on the floor, but Hinata only noticed her hands were shaking when she tried to undo his haori’s knot. From all the way too many times she imagined herself doing that, in her fantasies his skin was never cold and hard like marble under her fingertips. 

Hinata had to stop herself for a moment there, taking big gulps of air and trying to suffocate the hysterical bubble of despair growing inside her throat, only noticing that tears ran free down her cheeks when Neji’s crisp white linen shroud stained. 

Had she been in a reasonable mind and not insane with soul shattering grief, she would have stopped there, she’d know that she should never let herself see what was under the fabric, but she didn’t stop, and she’d never forget. Sobbing silently, she leaned towards him, her back bending forward until her forehead met his, now, as unmarked as hers. 

Was that betrayal, what she was about to do? Ensnare him with chains far heavier than the one that used to bind and cage him. Would he hate her when he came to learn what she was about to do? She prayed that he would. Hinata would take a living Neji’s hatred a million times over his love from beyond the grave. 

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅∙∘☽༓☾∘∙•⋅⋅⋅•⋅⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅

Day 3: Dating

What?” he asked, finally looking at her and revelling to Hinata with his tortured expression how teasing her was taking the toll on him too, she wanted to reach down and discover for herself how much. She loved how dominating he could be, but it could also be frustrating when he got in one of those moods.  

Neji sighed and pillowed his head on her thigh, threads of chestnut hair falling on his eyes, clearly amused by her flushed cheeks and obvious impatience “do you want something, Hinata-sama?” 

And then, holding her gaze and with a small smile playing in his lips, he flicked her clit for the first time, finally. 

How Hinata didn’t come instantly was a mystery to her. 

She squeezed her eyes shut, enduring the violent waves of pleasure as he kept moving his finger in the pattern he found out wouldn’t get her there too fast, but would rend her completely defenceless against his power over her. 

“Ahhh” she panted, that was torture, absolute torture, she wanted to cry she wanted to push him to the floor and ride him all night, she wanted- 

Suddenly, Hinata found herself pressed against a wall, her husband using his free hand to push the silk away from her other thigh as he opened her legs wider and kissed her feverish skin of her inner thigh. She threaded her hands in his hair, pulling off his headband, uncovering the birdcage seal, something that caused so much pain, for so many years, she never thought that seeing it up-close would one day take such an erotic meaning. 

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅∙∘☽༓☾∘∙•⋅⋅⋅•⋅⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅

And much more to coooome in December, thank you @cyanis-art to keep the @nejihinata alive, only Neji is as faithful and standfast as you <3

[jack-kellys]

hello everyone here are the few notes i had from that weird night i keep mentioning (march 29):

alex christian legend hero king tossed himself into buttons for act 2 while fellow legend hero king jordan isaac tossed himself out of buttons and into tommy boy!

* it’s something i didn’t consider bc i’ve never done this show on a professional level like this— each character has a track. like each little ensemble role. because tommy dances here during this part, and he crosses this way, and jordan can’t just do his personal track because tommy has to scab and talk to these people and etc. like that mapping out must be fucking insanity especially considering they have TWO SWINGS ONLY right now bc of past injuries etc. with the moscar debacle this weekend this has become pretty obvious but the way we were like “aw no alex… —where’s jack?? —ALEX????”

the lights came all the way on during intermission that day! so we had intermission for at least 10 extra minutes to switch out tommy for jordan and consequently jordan for alex, which was fine by me bc now i have fully lit pictures of the set for you all.

jack bromage (tommy boy) nearly dropped zach guest (ike? a swing?) on his fucking head! whoops!!! and then tommy got hurt and disappeared for act 2 LMAO mans needs to be more careful oh my god

*speaking on tommy though as a character in this version: tommy is integral to the newsies. he’s in trousers, takes the east side as a whole to report the strike to, and when he scabs… oh it’s a moment. crutchie is shocked (“tommy?”), finch says his “they think they can just waltz in here and take OUR jobs?” to tommy directly and shoves him down, which is the only act of violence finch rly commits.

*during the brawl, finch hangs back (around woodside’s overhang balc) and surveys. and there’s this one moment when mush is on the ground via wiesel who has a baseballl bat, and mush is pleading w/ wiesel not to hit him. wiesel grips mush’s suspender as if to hit him again and then the cop whistle blows, and wiesel drops mush and mush.. doesn’t get up. you can hear finch say “no.. no no no-” from woodside before running down and checking if mush is breathing, tapping him to wake him up and get up… ahh another newsie was next to mush that finch was checking on too but i wasn’t sure who- and then finch bolts with those two. and it’s when he’s helping those two offstage that crutchie calls for him, romeo, jack. like bro. the ACTUAL CHARACTER in this show is fantastic like that’s so small but literally the only reason finch can’t help crutchie is bc he’s doing his little sub-leader role and he can’t and it’s. sad. i was like oh wow. nuance. directorial thought. like they had to reason out that staging. it makes me think if they went thru the show and were actually like “what is each character doing during this fight” instead of “what is each actor doing during this fight” which is SOOOOO. impressive.

after king of new york, race and finch take the tables off down in front of brooklyn’s seating. i was sitting in brooklyn bc i scored an act 2 spot lmao. race says to finch “i don’t polish the tables, THEY do!” and pointed directly at me with a fire in his mf eyes. i was. startled and i also fell in love

going into headcanon territory rq for mush. there was a little joking snippet a while back on jacob’s insta story q&a with mush punching albert in the context of like “who could beat al in a fight”. so like mush might be a bit younger but maybe he’s a good fighter so finch seeing HIM down that badly during the fight…. slay. i just love it. it scares finch so bad. i wanna write the fight from his pov now

anyway gents this weekend we approach my final time of seeing this show (i’ve gone 5 times oops)… but definitely not my final analysis post. thank u for sticking by and giving them a lot of love it’s very cool they’re all under #analysis

[missmaywemeetagain]

Read Need Your Love Tonight ✈️💙🔥 NOW with early access HERE!

It's 1961 and we're headed to Hawaii for the U.S.S. Arizona Benefit Concert! ✈️ This one is an older woman and Elvis, so buckle up, babies! All the pics are from the day/night of the concert, just cuz I know a little visual stimulation never hurts...😏

SNEAK PEEK:

Finally, after what seems like forever, the main event begins. Your eardrums are blasted out by what must be at least two full minutes of young girls shrieking at the top of their lungs. Rightly so, you think as you watch the tall drink of water that is Elvis Presley strut onto the stage. You are blessing your lucky stars above for the divorce settlement because you are so close, you can see just how deliciously handsome the man is in person.

And, boy, is he.

Even having seen his perfect visage in movies on the big screen truly did not hold a candle to the broad-shouldered man in the glittering gold jacket standing on the stage before you. There is almost an innocence and perhaps even a nervousness in his deep-set dreamy blues. His dark hair is coiffed just perfectly and you watch his leg jiggle as he takes the microphone. A wave of heat rolls over you, flushing you from head to toe, and it has nothing whatsoever to do with the temperature in the arena.

There is a boyish playfulness to him you do not expect of the seasoned 26-year-old entertainer. He is indelibly charming and likable, not afraid to laugh at himself or the insanity of the crowd around him, but it’s not in a disparaging way. It’s more like he still can’t quite believe it’s all for him.

The reason he’s always fascinated you becomes obvious now that he’s right in front of you. He is a walking contradiction—delicate feminine features in a sharp masculine package, a deep low drawl coupled with a light warbling tenor. Singing lyrics that make you think the dirtiest things and then he turns around and does a spiritual. You have whiplash in the very best way.

You’re so distracted by his essence and the hypnotizing way he’s working the crowd that you almost forget about your sign. When One Night croons out of him with the promise of his “sweet helping hand,” a fire lights under you and you fumble around at your feet and flip the sign up for him to see.

Come on, come on, come on, you think, tapping your foot. Look over here.

At this point you will accept anything from the singer—a wink would suffice. Anything to let you know that you’re not just a washed-up divorcee who’s too old or ugly to find happiness with anyone else. Even if that happiness is just for one night because of one small moment, it’ll be worth it.

He’s so consumed by the song, his eyes closing and the rhythm pumping through his whole body, that you’re not sure he’ll see you. Your fingers grip the sign anxiously. You’d rather not have to hold it up for the rest of the concert, and you are kicking yourself for not remembering earlier, but you’ll do what you’ll have to do.

The end of the song comes, to which he adds a toe-curling groan, and when he opens his eyes, they land on you. A bolt of lightning strikes inside you, filling your veins with a scorching desire at the way those pretty eyes fall on your sign. You wait with bated breath as he reads each word silently, “Am I too old for you?” He gives you a quick cursory glance and then starts to walk away.

“Thank you,” he says to the crowd as screams fill the arena. The opening chords of Are You Lonesome Tonight start to play.

Fitting song choice, you think a little bitterly. Well, at least he saw me.

You find yourself fighting back tears, the split-second moment feeling anticlimactic and dissatisfying. A bit of a punch to the gut, really. It’s the dismissal that really stings, though your logical brain tells you he’s concentrating on his work and your sign is likely no more than a short distraction.

Suddenly, Elvis stops. He turns back towards you and steps in your direction. Your breath catches in your throat when he points at you. It is as if his finger is connected to you by an invisible string, and you find yourself sitting up taller and leaning forward on the edge of your seat. Then, he tilts the microphone away for a moment, his infamous lip curling up into a delicious boyish smile.

“Never,” he says, looking you straight in the eyes.

...

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[atla-recluse]

About That One Moment in "Another Five More Short Graybles":

Content warning: A few references to abuse and abuser-victim dynamics, plus some images/artwork that some may find very disturbing or triggering.

Conclusion:

I truly believe that this moment, and maybe more-so what likely happens after it, are the moment that solidified Lemongrab 1's complete shift into tyranny and unlimited cruelty. When I say that, I'm not just talking about the toy and his anger over it. It's not and was never (just) about the toy (seriously, this dude could and would have snapped over anything).

It's about OG LG's increasingly intense need for control over everyone and everything and his ever-growing layer of extreme rage over...stuff from the past...that is always there. Taking is a bit further, it's actually about how LG viewed himself and his impulsive/compulsive behavior at that point.

Background:

So, a lot of people seemed to have thought/still think that LG is lacking in self-awareness, but I think this couldn't be further from the truth. LG is hyper-aware of himself and his actions. He knows there's something "wrong" with him. He (and those around him) just don't know what. So everyone in and out of universe find it easier to just be vague about the problem or not touch it at all.

I'll tell you what I think is wrong with him though: He's can't figure out how best to showcase empathy with others, or even fully decide if he truly wants to at all, so he typically just chooses not to.

(Also, he seems to be naturally more persnickity and "intense/passionate" than others, including LG2 even. At least when it comes to his beliefs and convictions. People irl who are like that can imagine, because of how we sometimes come across to others, even if we're trying to change.)

Wait, what? I'm actually arguing that LG1 is/was capable of empathy, you ask? YES I am. Because he was. The moments were small, but they were there and were very significant to those who care. OG LG had what I'd call "limited" empathy as well as "optional" empathy. He wasn't the best with others' emotions at initial meetings but he could understand concepts like that of insult, bonding (but couldn't do it himself at first) and not wanting to die or get hurt. (I might finish a post that explains some examples in the near future.)

He also chose who it was he would bestow his empathy upon for random and not-as-random reasons. In this sense, he's not that different from many of us. I also feel as though he could have had his sense of empathy increased and smoothed out with proper nurturing. But as we all know, that didn't happen.

Conclusion Expansion (1):

We see throughout his arc, that LG1 increasingly worsened over time. Not solely though. For a blip of a period, he seemed to be improving, happy even. That period was of course when he was still close with LG2. Then, the fight happened.

Slight (Noteworthy) Sidetrack:

It was so violent, even without showing us the gore. I'm actually a little shocked that there are people who think that scene is mainly or even only hilarious. It's terrifying to me whenever I see it, to the point where I often prefer to avoid it. That scene, to me, was yet another example of how much of an abuser LG1 has become, since his physical or emotional abandonment and/or since his creation. Is that obvious yet? LG1 was not just "lol random11!! hahaha craziiii!". He was insanely abusive. He was arguably abused himself, but that doesn't change the fact that he was an abuser, too.

He even showed all the classic signs of an abuser as far back as "You Made Me" but, really, it was truly first shown in "Too Young".

Conclusion Expansion (2):

His brother (Which I think was meant to be seen as being to LG1 whatever you wanted to see him as, homophobes!) along with Lemonhope, got the worst of it and perfectly illustrate two different types of lives and mentalities of many abuse victims.

One becomes, in a way, very self-centered and wants to escape no matter what, but stops thinking about what the rest of his family may be going through, also. The other wants to help others going through the same and won't leave them behind until the they have escaped on some level, even if it kills him (assuming he had the option to leave).

And tell we don't know plenty of irl examples where other families also went through an older sibling or partner taking advantage of and mistreating a younger sibling or partner. (Don't think too hard about the LG's being "brother-lovers", alright? It's all symbolic, anyway.)

Now a big question I and likely others have is this: Is he really "just like that?"

Frankly, I think he partially or fully either inherited it or learned it from his experiences. Or someone else... But I digress.

So yeah, I don't believe LG was just/solely born that way. Something about him changed sometime after he was born, I feel. But again, I can't quite say what because it was left ambiguous.

When he attacked his best friend for the first time and in such a gruesome manner... Well...ask yourself how that scene probably continued for the two of them? We actually saw the least scary part. Here's what I now headcanon as being the "right after":

LG has always had issues with his view of self and it causes him much pain. He doesn't know how to express the problem, so he basically just spazzes out. He seemed to have improved once his brother/partner came along, but in fact, this was only an illusion.

LG never properly healed from his trauma or bad habits, because no one—not himself and certainly not others—worked with him to treat and eventually heal that trauma and reverse those bad habits. (It doesn't mean they didn't want to, though.) It was only a matter of time before he lost it on his brother and people over something petty. Two beings can never be exactly the same anyway, "twin" or not.

(I'm not sure what the name of the artist who made this is. It's an amazing and very emotional piece, though.)

So with those awful images in mind, I think LG1 after devouring most of his own partner, may have paused for at least a moment, as LG2 managed to crawl away and look at him with such fear and hurt (perhaps looking like a reflection of himself) that LG1—if his self-awareness was on 100 that day—looked back at the mess he'd made of LG2's body and how their relationship would never be the same now, and decided "Haha wow...I AM a monsteerrrr!!!!".

And from there, he decided to just lean into the persona completely. After all, what did he have to lose? What important figure in his life up to this point didn't see him that way, anyway? Now even the partner he once loved and who once loved him, did too. Might as well accept it and just solely act like what everyone already knows him to be. Which to LG means just act like his usual self, btw. Control freaks like him can only relax for so long...

And that, everybody, is why that scene in AFMSG is so significant; and imo, devastating.

It should also be noted that despite what we see LG1 do to LG2, that he doesn't completely devour him (why, we don't know) and that he gave him (likely created for him) a tool that would allow him to still move around and didn't give him a shock collar. So LG2 is still a cut above the others in LG1's mind, it seems, but that doesn't mean that things hadn't reached rock bottom for them. They just had further to go, is all.

LG1 clearly no longer pedestalized LG2 anymore (and vice versa) and on some level likely blames LG2 for how he himself chose to react (pretty on-brand for both of them). Hence why, like some abusers, he seemed to now be withholding affection from LG2, wouldn't hear or accept LG2's own thoughts and opinions, (may have) starved him and why he pushed him down into and kept him in a subordinate position (something we once actually see him physically do to him at the dinner table).

Oh and here. Have another self-aware Lemongrab, far beyond post brother-attack:

This wild lemon man knew he was the monster/villain of the story at this point. 🍋 🥲

"Looking for something?

Well, you found me; Fat Lemongrab." - Original Lemongrab

[jlf23tumble]

Hi Jen

I can't wait for you to watch aotv and share your thoughts. All I have to say is -

- I absolutely adore Jay and I'm in awe of her.

- I don't if there was a little bit too much of Harry at first or if that's what my brain chose to focus.

- At the beach with the kid was pretty meh but the kid at his show was so so cute. Extremely heartwarming watching them together.

- Helene is an absolute gem.

- The fan moments left me appalled because of the white washing and the blatant show of privilege, not my favourite part.

- I'm surprised there was no mention of afhf.

It's been more 30 hours since I watched it, and I haven't had a single thought that didn't start and end with Louis. Nothing we didn't already know, but he's just a wonderful person, warts and all.

I need to watch again because I don't remember seeing some of the things that people are talking about. Hope you have a great time!

anon 2: I thought the hug was weird until I saw the movie myself because the hug was before the last 1d performance bts and Louis was so nervous. Harry and Louis didn't hug Liam or Niall in that room but only eachother for that small second and Helene so it seemed more like a small gesture of comfort, a bit of I am right here if you need anything. Right after everyone leaves the room because Louis needs a bit more practice with Helene (they were all ready to go onstage except for Louis) and Louis goes to the door and asks for Harry so it seems they talked again off camara. They showed the performance and there on stage everyone hugs except Louis and Harry and that made me laugh because bts they did hug and we never knew until this doc. I don't know if they were broken up but still cared for eachother because Harry also kept looking at Louis in that bts footage and he had this worried look on his face.

++++++++++++

Just gonna group all these movie-related takes together since I finally watched it! I won't answer your points line by line, but here are my knee-jerk takeaways:

None of this was surprising at all, but it was cool to see it all lumped into one place where people couldn't really erase it.

Love love love and miss Jay, also, Louis is such a tremendously strong person because this is definitely edited, he was bearing a lot more weight than is portrayed here, and yet he perseveres. He seems pretty present in every moment, too, which is impressive.

I hope Helene is making a shit-ton of money because she's doing at least 3 jobs.

The negative space around Eleanor (those 2x the E tat shows up, rip) is really loud, especially with the growing number of rainbow flags (starts with one, ends with hundreds), he is definitely opting to NOT talk about any relationship, draw your own dots (but also? some of the choices here, like the extended kiss during the Grease part, okay). I still feel El was a proxy, and that makes all of her absence even more ohhhhhhkay.

Related: I want to rewatch the first 10 minutes because I could swear he does this whole double layering with the "break up" talk and how it's meant to be about the band, but it's definitely literally focused on Harry (for one, that's mainly where you see Harry, especially in some obvious VO work, but also he says "relationship" singular vs. plural in a place where with the band, the plural makes a helluva lot more sense).

Related related: the way that Louis is interacting with Liam and Niall being at the same festival he was at, yet NOT interacting with Harry when he was at one, too, hmmmm.

I need to watch the Liam G. doc because Charlie's INSANE use of in focus/out of focus/in focus/out of focus, especially with family members, is meant to make it somehow feel unstaged but increasingly becomes annoying.

I felt like the James Corden bit was one of the very truest parts of this, a lot of it was by the numbers rote media training, but Louis disappearing? Maybe he hates James, who knows, but if it's a pattern, oh man.

I felt it was about 20 minutes too long, you could start seeing the template by the end (line up of fans, empty stadium, crowd excitement, Louis's buzzing, on to the next place) to the point where it almost diluted it? I would edit that shit down or compress it, there was a point where you weren't seeing anything new except for the location.

I disagree with anon 2 about the hug (for one, we don't see all the interactions/hug moments, who knows if a lot of hugs were shared, but also when he's calling to someone, Harry's in the back, I think, not to the left? I'd have to rewatch). Also, I'm in the camp that they had a big split around this time, yet were still friendly enough to be close, support each other (possibly fuck, who knows).

The parts with Freddie and his grandparents were incredibly moving, and telling, too, in that I get the anxiety spike because there's a lot here that is telling some people shit they just don't want to hear.

AIMH Oli, you can cause trouble up in [personal details redacted], and I would want to hear more about it. Hope you're being well paid, too.

Personal projection time: there were so many, SO MANY peter pan and the (white) lost boys antics, like, I disagree that all the fan content was white-washing when the entire BAND is white boy coded (at least SOME of the fans weren't white Americans). I don't think it'll change soon, but I like to hope he'll reach out and experiment more (both in terms of music and people around him). I hold out this hope because he clearly laid out the blueprint early on about 1st album is this, 2nd album is that, 3rd album is closer to what I want to do...I promise you, Loueh, plenty of non white dude fish in that sea.

[duck-in-a-spaceship]

say it back: Chapter 3

In which Cuddy does not understand House and Wilson, but goddamnit she's gonna keep trying.

Summary: What if when House tells Wilson he loves him, Wilson says it back?

Well, naturally they turn to humor until “I love you”, “I love you too” becomes the most convoluted, gayest inside joke ever. And then of course they realize they mean it.

Word Count: 1272

Warnings: None

<<Previous - Next>>

+++

Chapter 3: Puzzle Pieces

“I know it’s a pain but we’re just short staffed right now.” Cuddy snatches the file from Wilson’s hand, flipping it open as she talks. He makes a small noise of protest, reaching out after the papers, but she waves him into silence. He was looking over something for House, and Cuddy wanted to be prepared for whatever insane request would be coming her way next. “I’ve been shuffling around nurses all week and making the whole hospital hate me in the process.” She looks up from the paperwork to smile at him. “You’re not special, trust me.”

Wilson isn’t looking at her, though, he’s staring down at the file in her hands. It seems interesting, sure, all of House’s files are interesting by definition, but not quite that interesting. She opens her mouth to speak again, but he interrupts.

“Are you worried about House?”

Cuddy sighs. God forbid she have a normal conversation with one of her employees without House dancing in. “Not particularly. I’m guessing you are.”

“He tried to kill himself. ”

“No, he tried to pull a stupid stunt to prove a stupid point. He was fine, and he knew he was going to be fine. He wouldn’t have called one of his applicants if he really wanted to kill himself.” She sighs and closes the file, ghosts and hallucination suddenly much less interesting than they were a couple seconds ago.

“He pulled a dangerous, self destructive stunt to prove a stupid point,” Wilson corrects, stealing the file back from her. She lets him.

“It’s not the first time.” Cuddy shakes her head, stopping for a moment. Wilson stops with her, looking a little bit befuddled. “This is House, alright? He’s going to keep stupidly endangering himself to prove a point until he dies. Don’t kill yourself with worry before then.”

“You do realize how not-reassuring that sounds, right?”

“I’m just saying it’s not your job.”

Wilson scoffs at that before he starts walking again, letting Cuddy trail after him. “It’s House, of course it’s my job.”

“Why?” she presses. The answer is there in her mind, at least somewhat present, but she finds herself lacking the full picture, unable to fill in the blanks. Yes, they’re best friends. Yes, they care about each other. But also yes House was stupid, and he was self-destructive, and he was going to keep being those things whether Wilson liked it or not. Cuddy cared about House too. She just also knew there was only so much she could do.

“He’s- he’s my best friend,” Wilson states the obvious, and Cuddy nods along.

“And?” she prompts.

“Do I need a better reason? I know he’s a manipulative, self-centered, egotistical bastard, I know. But he’s also… House.”

Wilson says that as if it’s a perfect explanation, and it’s not, but Cuddy thinks she might be filling in some of the pieces anyway.

She sighs, just making up her mind whether or not to push the matter when she notices House, just out of the corner of her eye.

“Well, speak of the devil,” Cuddy mutters under her breath. Wilson looks at her in surprise, before following her gaze to House. He’s leaning against the front desk, possibly terrorizing whoever’s working there, and most definitely avoiding doing his clinic duty. The moment Wilson sees him he jerks his gaze up, very unsuspiciously gazing at the ceiling before looking down at the floor, the wall, really anywhere that isn’t House.

“Change the subject, anything else,” he mutters, finally looking at her like a normal person. Or at least someone doing a decent job pretending to be a normal person. “What were you saying about those nurses?”

Cuddy sighs, deciding to take the chance to complain instead of continuing to act as some sort of relationship counselor to her two idiots. “There’s not enough of them. There’s some bug going around, nothing serious but enough to make people call out sick. You better be washing your hands, by the way.”

Wilson nods. “Of course. And hey, if you need anything-”

“I love you,” House interjects.

It takes Cuddy a moment to figure out where the voice is coming from actually, before she pinpoints his location, still leaning against the front desk. They’ve just passed him, from where he’s staked his claim at the counter, and apparently that was an invitation to join the conversation.

She’s about to admonish him for the interruption, to exasperatedly ask what the hell he needed from her now, when Wilson speaks up.

“Love you too.”

He doesn’t even stop walking.

In fact, he’s back to talking about nurses a second later, but every single word goes right over Cuddy’s head. She stops in her tracks. “What?”

Wilson turns to face her, mouth half-open with shock, as if he’s just realized exactly which three words came out of his mouth. House, standing in between them, is grinning like a bit of a madman.

Cuddy stares.

House smiles.

Wilson pauses.

Then he turns, places his hand on House’s shoulder, and kisses him on the cheek.

In an instance, their expressions swap.

Wilson’s shock becomes House’s; House’s smugness becomes Wilson’s. Cuddy remains perfectly petrified, uncaught in whatever strange dance is going on in front of her.

Wilson pats House on the shoulder, nods to Cuddy. He says “Anyways.” He refuses to elaborate. He turns on his heel and walks off.

“What the hell was- Wilson!” Cuddy calls after him, but she gets no response. In fact, she’s pretty sure he starts to walk faster. In a flash, Wilson has disappeared around the corner, and Cuddy is left with a single source of answers.

She turns on House. “What was that?”

It takes him a moment to answer; he’s still staring at the place where Wilson disappeared with a mix of shock and awe. The combination almost makes him look lovestruck.

“House? Care to explain?” Cuddy demands, finally grabbing his attention.

“Explain what?”

“Wilson just kissed you.”

“Ohhhh that. ” House shrugged. “Come on, are you really surprised? What’s a little bit of making out between friends, anyway?”

“Friends? You just proclaimed your love for each other in the middle of the hospital.”

“Like friends. Stop trying to get me to admit I’m dating Wils-” House cuts himself off mid-sentence, making a big show of looking surprised. He points at her. “You almost got me there.”

Cuddy looks at him hesitantly. Feeling somewhat off-balance is a normal phenomenon in conversations with House, but at the moment he’s taking it to a whole new level. She doesn’t just feel off-balance, she feels like she’s in the middle of a boxing match, and she’s losing horribly. “Are you?” she finally asks, tilting her head to look at him suspiciously. “Are you dating Wilson?”

“I plead the fifth, your honor!”

“House-” Cuddy starts again, already growing tired of his antics. Unfortunately, apparently House has the same idea, pushing away from the counter and heading in the direction Wilson had disappeared in. “Where are you going?” she demands.

“To have sex with Wilson!” He shouts the words over his shoulder on his way out, grabbing the attention of anyone in the immediate area that wasn’t already staring at them.

Cuddy forces a smile, nodding at some of her employees as they pass, hesitantly returning to their duties. She sighs as she watches House stride off, nearly as quick as Wilson had.

The rest of the puzzle pieces, already mostly assembled, slot into place. Cuddy takes a mental step backwards to appraise her work.

They’re both idiots, she silently decides as she returns to her office. Ridiculous, manipulative, oblivious, lovestruck idiots.

[respondedinkind]

When Christine leads him down the aisle, all eyes on them, Khan feels another, added pang of nervousness flood the whole of his being; He's used to being looked at, but... this is different.

He's being looked at because he is making his way down to his partner, the man who will become his husband soon. Everyone's watching with a certain kind of anticipation - expectant even...

But Khan's own attention soon solely focuses on Stephen, on the way he stands there, in his own suit, looking insanely handsome as always with his hair slicked back, obvious emotion written over his pretty features. Khan can tell that his fiancé is trying to hold back tears and that, in return, only makes Khan blink a few times as well, suddenly feeling equally as overwhelmed, their bonded minds pushing all those feelings back and forth between them.

He looks stunning; But, granted, Stephen always does. He just looks even more stunning right now, just for Khan and no one else.

Soon, they stand next to each other, with Christine smiling at both of them before she steps to the side. Khan faces his partner, looks him over, blue eyes meeting cerulean ones seconds after, accompanied by a small, but very much emotional smile.

A moment for them to share. A small second of silence before the ceremony begins...

"---Hello, handsome.", is what Khan mumbles, just loud enough so Stephen can hear, and he swallows as another wave of emotion hits him. He blinks again, clearing his throat, feeling the overwhelming urge to touch, to hug, to do anything really, but he resists for now.

As the officiate stood at the makeshift alter, Stephen stood at it as well. The guests were all seated and chattering among themselves before the ceremony began. God, he was so nervous. Stephen didn't ever believe he would get married, let alone meet someone who he really clicked with.

But he wanted this. He wanted to marry Khan, needed to marry him. The younger man was, is, the love of his life and the one person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

As the officiate began some light music, signaling the start of the ceremony, Stephen took a deep breath and the guests all went quiet, glancing at the end of the aisle.

After a few moments, Christine came walking out with Khan and Stephen felt his throat close up with emotion as his cerulean hues gazed upon the younger man. He looked handsome, extremely gorgeous and absolutely beautiful. The suit fit him perfectly.

Stephen could feel tears welding in the corners of his eyes as they began to approach. He attempted to keep them back, but it was quite a struggle.

[abovexhorizons]

For Isa

❌ CROSS MARK — how would your life be different if [name of person] had never been in it? would it be better or worse?

🤝 HANDSHAKE - do family or platonic relationships mean more to you? or do they mean different things to you?

❤️‍🔥 - HEART ON FIRE what angers you the most? what triggers this anger, and how do you cope with it? what does this anger feel like, if you had to describe it?

In character development prompts - still accepting

"How would my life be different if I hadn't met Rika?"

Isa would give a pondering look for a moment, a frown tugging at her lips; her mind, working overtime to try and imagine a different life. How much would have changed? Would her father still have driven himself villainous with pride? Would she have adventured out?

Would Rika have ever been hurt?

"There's... A lot if of things that could have gone differently, and some things that I think would have played out the same. Rika's irreplaceable; and because of that, I think my life would either have gone better, without my father becoming the monster he is today...

Or it'd have been someone else locked underground, used and abused on a daily basis. My life, then, in that case, would be the exact same."

"As for family... I do not know. Rika is close enough to me that I'd consider her family, although we're not related by blood. My real family - that is, my father Gylbard - I have long since forsaken. I know not what vines twist at his corrupted heart, only that I may, one day, need to cut them out."

Isa couldn't help but look at the ground solemnly, her own heart's judgement, clouded with worry and fear. She was still thinking about the previous question when the final one was proposed.

What made her angry?

Biting her lip she'd think, the obvious answer coming to mind, though was there more to it than that?

"What makes me angry... Is knowing there's more people out there, like my father. Those that are abusing their power and authority over others. It burns in my breast like a tempest, and sometimes... Sometimes I get controlled by that tempest."

Bringing her fist to her chest, she'd squeeze tight, shaking in light anguish at the thoughts running rampant within her.

"Of course... Knowing what was happening to Rika whilst I was there, forced to watch... It's enough to make me sick. Knowing the kind of torment she was going through? Knowing how much she suffered every time my father and brothers went underground? It's... A small wonder I wasn't provoked by such insanity."

[claudemblems]

"Am I Annoying?" | Tighnari

Tighnari Genshin Impact <3

"Now where would you get such a preposterous idea?"

Tighnari set aside the bowl of herbs he'd been grinding down for some medicinal tea, his attention now focused on your gloomy countenance. You didn't have to meet his gaze to know he was sending you a stern yet caring look.

"Did someone put this sort of thought into your head? If so, they are ridiculous to assume that I'd feel such a way towards you. However, if this is a thought born out of your own worries, pay it no mind. You know how I feel about you." At this, Tighnari's eyes softened, a small smile on his lips. "Don't start doubting me now."

"I don't mean to doubt you..." You sighed, hands fiddling with the edge of your shirt. "I just doubt myself is all. Every day I look at myself and think, 'How on earth have you managed to get a man like Tighnari? You have no accomplishments, no beauty, and no good characteristics to speak of. How could anyone possibly love you without it being due to pity?'" You clenched your hands into fists, fighting back the tears forming in your eyes. "I just can't see myself the way everyone else sees me. I worry so much about becoming a nuisance to someone. I don't want them to keep their negative feelings to themselves and then, when they finally grow tired of me, eventually leave..."

Tighnari rose from his seat and approached the cot you'd been sitting on. You felt the bed dip beneath you and the faint brush of fingers on top of your own.

"[Name]." Tighnari said gently. "Look at me."

You let his hand cup your cheek and gently turn your face towards him.

"You are anything but a burden to me. If I didn't love you, would I have asked you to date me? Would I have spent so many late nights thinking of you, every inch of me buzzing with excitement at the thought of seeing you the next morning? I don't let just anyone consume both my heart and mind, you know."

You let out a small laugh, Tighnari's smile growing at the visible improvement of your mood. "Seriously, if I wasn't so well-versed in medicine, I would have thought I was slowly falling into actual insanity. How on earth could it be normal for my heart to race so erratically just at the sight of you?"

"Are you saying I made you nervous?"

"A little, but it was also just because I found you very pretty. And still do, of course."

He spoke as if your beauty was the most obvious fact in the world. It made your face flush red. Though Tighnari's bluntness could be a lot at times, in moments like these, you were grateful for his honest nature. When he complimented or praised you, you knew he meant it. And that's what made his words even more special to you.

"I love you dearly, [Name]. Don't ever second-guess that. However, if you're still not convinced, I will have to prescribe you some medicine to make these negative symptoms go away."

You raised an eyebrow, puzzled but intrigued. "Medicine?"

"Mhmm, but don't worry. This is the good kind."

Your heart skipped a beat as Tighnari briefly pressed his lips to yours. When he pulled away, he smiled as he observed your shocked, flustered state.

"You will need to receive at least three kisses a day for the rest of the week. No skipping any days, either. If you want to get rid of those pesky doubts, you need to be good and take the medicine your caring boyfriend has prescribed to you."

You couldn't help but break into a fit of laughter, clutching at your sides that would no doubt start aching later. Tighnari let out a chuckle of his own as he wrapped his arms around you, leaning his head on yours. "You're so silly, Tighnari."

"But that's why you love me, isn't it? Just like why I love you."

Taking his hand in yours, you squeezed it gently, your lips curving upwards when he squeezed back. "Yes. You're right. I do love you, so much."

You spent the rest of the day close by Tighnari's side and taking your medicine as instructed, but you may have stolen a few kisses more than the doctor's recommended dose ;)