#and they understand each other better than most would

[unperson42]

So, one of the major inspirations for Coruscant (and the first version of the city-planet in sci-fi that I'm aware of) is the planet Trantor from Isaac Asimov's Foundation novels*. In one of the later books Asimov published, Prelude to Foundation, these exact sorts of cultural enclave become a major plot point.

If you don't know the books, a major element of the story is psychohistory, which is able to predict the future with a high degree of accuracy by extrapolating how human behaviour will effect political and social events to come. This science is invented by Hari Seldon, who is dead for most of the books, but tends to show up from time to time as a hologram. In Prelude, however, we see him as a young man, still trying to develop psychohistory.

Without going into the full plot of the book, Trantor ends up being the start of psychohistory. It turns out that a planet sized city has thousands of different ethnic and cultural groups, each explicitly shown to have their own enclave. Seldon makes a study of how these enclaves interact with each other, as well as the wider government of the Empire (different Empire than Palpatine's vanity project), and then treats that as a microcosm of the galaxy as a whole.

The reason I bring all this is up is that, given how heavily influenced Coruscant is by Trantor, I think it makes sense for Coruscant to have similar enclaves, and probably in similar numbers. In fact, they may even have people making similar studies of the different enclaves' interactions in order to better understand the disparate peoples of the Republic, and help maintain unity. I specify the Republic because this feels like the kind of thing the Empire would not care about, maintaining power through fear as they do. Tarkin Doctrine and all that.

I think Star Wars is a marvelously detailed fictional universe, but even the most detailed fiction can't cover everything. Where canon does not provide information, therefore, why not build a headcanon out of the inspirations?

* I assume all this is true of the current Apple TV series as well, but I havent seen it, so don't feel I can speak to it.

Coruscant has GOT to have different places like Ryl Town or Little Shilli or Space Harlem/Space SoHo and all that. Like they’re probably massive and stuff due to the size and population density of the planet but it’s still the same concept. Pockets of certain demographics or developing cultures…

[blueraith]

"How could Vi not notice her sister is suicidal?!"

I feel like people who ask this question have a fundamentally immature understanding of depression and suicidal thoughts/actions, and how the two affect people OUTSIDE of the person suffering from these conditions. Perhaps you guys are young, and you don't know how to view this matter outside of yourselves and your own perception, but it is tragically common for people to miss seemingly "obvious" details that lead up to a loved one's suicide. "I didn't notice anything was wrong" is about one of the most common refrains you'll hear after the fact.

Let’s also remember that Vi does not actually know all of Jinx's emotional tells or signs of an impending episode. She is confused each and every time Jinx goes through one and almost always unintentionally triggers her. This because it's been SEVEN FUCKING YEARS since they've seen, spoken to, or lived together.

Neither Jinx or Vi actually know the current versions of each other very well, it's one of the reasons they keep hurting each other, and part of the tragedy of their relationship.

Look, I have depression. I've had it since I was about 15 or so. I can recall self-isolating or worse and assuming my parents or friends or a teacher would notice and rush to my aid or something.

Never happened. Because depression isn't always a very obvious condition. People mask in different ways, and not always with the conscious intention to hide their symptoms. Sometimes, people with depression mask simply because it makes it slightly easier to get through the day. Jinx's case would likely be even more difficult to spot because of the manic side of her condition.

I ended up getting the bulk of my care taken care of as an adult. Mostly because I could finally advocate for myself and I also realized that NO ONE is going to notice the more alarming symptoms of my own depression better than me.

This is not to say that you can't have a support network. Or that members of that support network WON'T spot something you've overlooked from time-to-time.

But Vi is not Jinx's support network. (Arguably Sevika is far better placed for that.) She might have gotten there eventually if Act 2 hadn't ended the way that it had, but that dream of the sisters being able to recreate their lost family was shattered and the progress they were making in getting to know each other halted at Jinx's realization that she needed to leave for Vi to move on.

I don't know, it's like some of you expect everyone in your lives or in other, unrelated media to have a 13 Reasons Why style reaction any time someone shows symptoms of suicidal thoughts or actions, or when one occurs. This is almost an absurd thing to expect out of anyone unfamiliar with what depression or suicidal thoughts actually look like. Like, if you're American, this idea that everyone everywhere is familiar with what a mental health crisis looks like is even more tragically farcical because we can't even admit that poor mental health is an aspect of mass shootings here as a society and culture.

And y'all expect the ex-con stuffed into a box since the age of 15 or so to be able to just instantly spot that her sister--again whose symptoms she's very obviously not familiar with--is going through a crisis event?

Like, damn, no one in this fandom is cut more slack than Jinx, and this entire criticism of Vi makes that more clear than any other. It's a position ironically devoid of any and all empathy, probably because y'all spent it all on Jinx, and assumes a sort of selfishness and coldness towards Vi that is in no way, shape, or form supported by canon.

It's honestly an argument that I dismiss entirely the moment a person attempts to make it. Largely because I am exhausted of how hypocritical this aspect of the famdom becomes towards Vi. Jinx's actions are a large part of the reason Vi sinks into alcoholism. She then proceeds to taunt Vi about it in the mines as if Vi's pain is nothing to her.

I NEVER hear anyone talk about that. It's almost always about how Vi should have done better. How Vi hurt Jinx. How Vi wasn't good enough.

It's some Grade A, Bonafide Bullshit™

Vi and Jinx were never going to ride off into the sunset together. If that is something you thought was going to happen and are now irrationally blaming Vi for because you're disappointed....? I don't know what to tell you. I personally thought it was pretty obvious that they were Doomed Siblings in this storyline and any potential, permanent reconciliation between them may happen in some far off sequel project or not at all.

[baffledandbewildered]

“Evi4 - can you kill me with the mace at some point?” Betty asks.

“Yes!” Evi says immediately.

It’s been an eventful week - few weeks, honestly - and - well. 

Betty’s been scared of the mace for a while now… it’s a terrifying weapon, and whenever Evi’s used it before she’s always skittered back, all nervous laughter and shaking hands - she remembers that weapon crashing against her helmet, Chips yelling at her to run, be afraid -

And she has been. It’s been months and honestly - she’s sick of it. Especially after what Chips said to her the other day, after Nara - Betty knows Chips is hurting, that they probably didn’t mean what they said, she understands that, she’s not mad - well. She is. A little. The feeling will fade with time, she knows, but for now…

“I want to know what it feels like,” Betty explains. It’s true, but also - I want to stop being afraid.

Evi giggles. “I understand!” And he probably does, even the stuff Betty isn’t saying out loud. He’s always been good at that.

“Should we - now?”

“Yes yes yes yes!”

To make room in her e-chest, Betty hands Evi one of her shulkers - it’s a far cry from where they were a few months ago, when anything left in the vicinity of Evi4 had to be carefully watched for fear of theft - it’s nice, to be able to know that Evi won’t take anything from her without it first being offered. It’s nice to trust.

Evi suggests setting her spawn here - Betty, once again, refuses - her spawnpoint isn’t too far away, and while it’s not the most secure it’s still better than, well - spawn itself. But Evi doesn’t take the refusal personally - Evi knows where her spawnpoint is currently, and really that probably says enough about how far they’ve come as a relationship.

Then she removes her armour, e-chests her gear, and Evi builds a short tower into the sky -

“Ready?”

“Yep!”

There’s not even time for the sound of their laughter to fade before the mace is crashing against her head and she’s gone, respawning in the deepslate box - she really needs to change her spawn point. 

Wow. That was - something. But not as terrifying as she expected - if anything, the tightness in her chest is from laughter. She picks up her communicator, still giggling - Evi’s complaining about how far away she is as she starts putting her armour back on.

Yeah. That wasn’t scary at all - it hurt, sure, but all deaths do and she doesn’t mind that so much - especially when it’s Evi, that’s…

“I’m kind of scared you’re going to kill me,” Betty had said, long long ago, when she was still alone and scared and felt she had no one to turn to.

And Evi had stopped her pacing of spawn, sword disappearing from her hand in less than a second. There’s not much Evi took seriously, or so Betty had thought at the time, but she looked… concerned, before her face brightened.

“I would never hurt a BettyisBaffled!” Evi4 said, grinning, dancing forward into her personal space a little.

“Oh!” Betty said. “Really? I - uh. Thank you?”

She hadn't believed it then. It took a while, multiple murder attempts on the people around her but never coming close to touching her before she realised Evi was telling the truth.

She’s still not sure why.

And then they became allies and then they became more and this time Betty offered her life - “You can kill me! I don’t mind -” … I kinda want you to.

(Yeah, Betty’s a little weird about the. Dying thing.)

And then one thing had led to another to another, to murder plots and engagement and secrets shared, and all that led to today.

The mace feels… like the same sort of power of a lightning strike, inescapable, deadly. A force of nature. Not necessarily bad, not necessarily good.

Not something to be unreasonably scared of, and she giggles again. Wow.

She digs her way out of the room, through the tiny box in the wall Evi made himself so he could watch Betty and Nara kill each other - there’s still some of her and Nara’s blood on the floor, she notes - she really needs to change her spawnpoint, she keeps meaning to, Nara and Aster keep reminding her to and she keeps forgetting.

Then she flies back to spawn. Evi’s been rambling in her communicator the whole time, and when Betty lands in front of them they’re beaming at the sight of her - gods, Betty is so lucky. 

This is her fiance - the label makes her a little giddy. “Hiii - I love you by the way,” she says breathlessly, and Evi buries his face in his hands - she can see the blush on his cheeks and it makes her giggle, lean up to kiss him on the forehead before turning to the chest beside them.

Betty grabs the rest of her stuff she wasn’t able to fit in a shulker, then -

“Oh, can I have the heart back?” she says.

“Yes!”

Evi jumps up from the shulker box they’d been sitting on - they’re so much taller than her damn - then they’re leaning down to kiss her, and that’s hardly unusual but what has her gasping is the feel of the heart passing between their lips, travelling down her throat and settling along her collarbone with only the slightest flicker of pain as it joins the others.

She laughs. Wow. Wow.

Her fiance. Yep.

“I love you,” Evi says shyly, and Betty echoes it immediately, beaming.

Evi presses another kiss to her forehead, then is pacing spawn again - “Wait -” they say, spinning back to her. “Let me try to mace you again it won’t kill you I promise -”

Betty laughs. “Okay! With the armour?”

Evi nods rapidly, once again climbing the carpet tower. “Heartcount test!” Evi yells, giggling, then jumps -

Betty respawns in the deepslate box again. “What the fuck oh my god how were you on full health how did you die -” Evi4’s saying through her communicator, and Betty can’t stop laughing.

[theallianceofcelestials]

About SEA Family and EAPS Eclipse again sorry-

So duo to canon events at EAPS, many people headcanon Eclipse having scars on his back cuz of Mimic and headcanon him needing walking canes from time to time

So i was kinda wondering how SEA cast would react if in their case they knew about it QwQ

Dw about it, I lone answering stuff! :D

They'd each try helping him.

Moon would attempt his best to find some form of cure for the injuries, or make some walking aid that better supports him. He'd go above and beyond with everything if EAPS Eclipse doesn't want to accept a wheelchair to make sure his canes are able to catch him no matter how he falls

Eclipse would be sympathetic, though he'd kinda wonder why he wouldn't want to switch to a different frame that's not so violated. He'd also be more than understanding however, promising to hunt down the mimic for him. He has SCPs he can send after it, after all

Sun would make him a sweater that'd keep him scars warm, in case they were like those injuries he heard hurt even after healing. He'd also occasionally stop by with snacks he bought for EAPS Eclipse, offering himself as a shoulder to cry on

Solar Flare would be a silent guard by his side when he needs any assistance. He'd do anything in its power to make sure their honorary sibling doesn't suffer from anything while on their watch. He's more than willing to play lab assistant or bodyguard if it'd calm EAPS Eclipse

Bloodmoon is like a blood hound itching for the scent of what they need to attack. They'd split up so one of them can guard the vulnerable, injured brother while the other can be on the prowl. Between the two of them, they WILL drag the mimic out of wherever it's hiding, eating it's face

Lunar would try his best to distract him. He's aware he makes EAPS Eclipse the most uncomfortable, so he wouldn't try making him talk about his feelings, nor would he try playing guard. He's just there so he can make sure he doesn't spiral

Killcode would switch between standing guard and being on the hunt for the Mimic. He'd also focus on comfort whenever it's his turn to stand watch, cooking whatever may be asked of him and making sure the charging area of EAPS Eclipse is as comfortable as possible

[mumbojumboshipbrackets]

REMEMBER THIS IS JUST THE CHARACTERS NOT THE CREATORS

MumScarian

Includes: Grian, Scar, Mumbo Submissions: 9 Reasons: - Because Buttercups, my beloved. They fit each other like puzzle pieces. - Chaos gremlin giran, accident prone scar, and mumbo who has to deal with them - Mumbo and Grian are inseparable and in love, and very, very weird about each other. Mumbo and Scar are, in my controversial opinion, in love and very, very normal about each other. Together they make such an interesting dynamic, whether you go an angsty or fluffy route. Mumbo is fond of both Grian and Scar, who are both fond of him, and both fond of each other, and they just meld so wonderfully. Scar has paired Grian and Mumbo together multiple times, telling them to hold hands in season 9 and to stand on the same trap door in the season 8 finale. Grian made a scarecrow with Mumbos face and scars hat. Mumbo has his Scar and Grian armour stands right next to each other in his build. They want to see each other happy so bad and they care for each other so much! - have you seen them - weird soulmate shit idk man - My absolute fav trio, I love grumbo, (mumbo x scar) and scarian why not all three!

LDshadowlady

Submissions: 3 Reasons: - They’d be so silly and awkward. I want the string bean man to have a short fairy girlfriend that flusters him - Imagine they were in double life together- they would have probably been soulmates. Imagine what a power couple they would be? Girlfailure x Girlfailure. Competently incompetent. Lizzie encourages Mumbo to have fun and get silly without being as much of an anxious wreck about it, and in turn Mumbo sticks by Lizzies side and lets himself add to the mischief tenfold. That, or he leaves Lizzie behind and she kills him in retaliation. Both are fun! - Last life parallels!!!!! These two I feel are the only ones who’d truly understand each other’s pain in the life series because most of the other players joined the games in 3rd life which was way less hectic and betrayal heavily compared to last life, Pearl had a much more stable alliance in last life and had other seasons to grow from her experience in last life and Gem only joined in secret life which wasn’t as betrayal heavy and she got to be the instigator of most of the violence which she enjoyed! They both joined last life without knowing how these games were supposed to work, joined an alliance and then watch that alliance crumble apart in front of them, abandoning them once they turned red. This lead to them both getting trust issues in secret life with Lizzie not allying with anyone and Mumbo attacking the Mounders on red. I feel like they’d bond over their similar experiences in the life series which allow them to be more vulnerable with each other, something which they can’t afford with other players, because they both know the struggle better than anyone else!

[retiredteabag]

sorry for informality but i was stalking reading your pinned post and you’re in grad school at twenty!??!!!

unless i’m tripping or misunderstanding something, academic weapon tips please because holy shit that’s insane! what’s ur field of study if you want to talk about it/don’t mind me asking? any application tips/things you wished you knew before getting there/habits you wished you’d formed sooner? independent research has always been difficult for me because of how much i depend on structure (adhd imposter syndrome anxiety lets go) so if you’re working on a thesis/something similar, how has the process been in your experience?

i’m in undergrad atm and heavily debating going further, so i’d love to hear from someone my age who’s actually doing it! also unrelated, but i’m a certified notion/goodnotes girlie if you vibe with those as study resources!

🎸 tagging with an emoji in case i pop back around, yk?

I'm sorry to say, but my tips might come off as sort of typical... but I hope they're at least a little helpful!

I am currently in a masters program within the analytics field. Research/independent studies vary widely depending on the area of specialization, however, my program has an intensive practicum that is similar in nature. I have not started it yet, but what I can say for sure when it comes to research: make sure you are picking a topic that you could speak about for hours/answer argumentative questions about.

For applications, I would say to narrow your options down as much as possible and look into each program before applying. Know the curriculum and standard outline and what stands out to you as you decide.

^ on this same note, you will likely need at least one interview in the application process. Speak slowly and enunciate. Taking a moment to think of the proper words will always be better than speaking quickly without much thought. Most people say to use "down-speak" in these interviews, but in my experience, matching the examiners tone and energy makes the whole thing much more comfortable.

For study tips, I have a large notebook that I keep on my desk where I write down every assignment and the date that it is due. This is just for organization purposes, I find a physical copy helpful for a few reasons but also because crossing them off feels rewarding :]

Time managment is incredibly important. Everyone says this because it is true. Prep everything, organizing your day into chunks. Since you also like structure, this probably wont be an issue. I would also get comfortable with being self-aware of your priorities. There will come a time when you will need to choose between academics/work and other areas of your life.

Keep your spaces clean. Dedicate a day or so to just organizing/doing a deep clean. It will help you stay focused and minimize external anxiety. It’s also much easier to keep a place clean if you have put in such an effort.

Participate in class. I cannot make this clear enough. I promise it is not embarrassing to ask questions or "try". You will learn far easier if you put effort into the classroom/lecture setting.

It is a pretty typical "tip" is to just ask questions. Even if you feel like you might understand, just ask to make sure. And in this same vein, go to office hours if you need to.

Prioritize sleep lol, that and mental rest. You can't always be studying. For me, it is a real challenge to work and be full time in school so it's important to carve out those sections of "you time".

Try not to be on your phone tooooooooo much, I know it’s hard but I make an effort to not be on my phone while eating. Don’t use entertainment as a distraction, I find that it just delays anxiety :(

Lastly, apply for scholarships and know that you absolutely can appeal for more money.

I hope this was useful. Do know that it REALLY depends on your area of study and 5-year-plan. I would recommend not going to grad school unless you're absolutely sure it is worth it.

Good luck!

[waughymommy]

COLLEGE STUDENT IN DIAPER 🧷

Chapter 5

That evening at the dinner table. every time I looked up, Evelyn was staring at me. She would give me a smile when our eyes met. I would smile back.

The time came, time to get our diapers on.

I have and have not been dreading this all night.

Aunt Kathy took Evelyn and I and she cleaned us, powdered us up, then diapered us. Evelyn was  first. I stared up at the ceiling while Evelyn was diapered. When it was my turn, I looked and Evelyn had lifted her upper body up on an elbow. She was watching Aunt Kathy diaper me!

Aunt Kathy and Uncle John left the livingroom and Evelyn cam and put a hand on my diapered front. Being a guy and not knowing if she was going to squeeze me there or not, I grabbed her wrist and removed her hand.

"I can feel your man thing through your diaper!" Evelyn stated.

"Evelyn please don't touch me there,I, I am over 18 and what you want will get me thrown in prison. You are only 17 years old!" I said.

"I will be 18 in three months from today though!" She pleaded!

I started thinking, yep three more months.

"You can watch when mom diapers me, John Jr. used to."

"No I can't, Aunt Kathy would cut my testicles off and poke my eyes out"

Evelyn smiled and said "Yeah she would, wouldn't she! Willy just so you know I have always had a crush on you. I looked foreward to your visits here or ours to your place, they were always the best!"

"Don't tell anyone but I have always had a huge crush on you, you were always the most beautiful girl I knew by far!" I told her!

"You noticed me! With John Jr. being so sick, everybody seen him, I was an afterthought! You took me and I got to see you play football and play tag and other games John Jr. couldnt! The worst day of my life and the best was the day he died, does that make sense?"

"Evelyn believe it or not it does, I understand it. On one hand you lost your brother the only one you had, on the other people started seeing you, mainly Aunt Kathy and Uncle John!"

"That's it, that is exactly it! Thank You!"

Aunt Kathy came back, "What are you two up to, as if I didnt know! Did he kiss you Evelyn?" She asked?

I was shocked!

"No mom, he is 18 and scared of repercussions with the law, and you." Evelyn said.

"Me? Willy your mom and I we always thought you two would be perfect for each other!"

"You did?" We both said.

Neither one of had heard this theory before.

"Go ahead kiss her!" Aunt Kathy said.

At first I looked at Aunt Kathy like she had three heads.

I took Evelyn and I kissed her. I kissed her for another 10 seconds. Aunt Kathy had said "That's enough, that's enough" about 3 times.

We broke Evelyn had a huge smile on her face, "Wow, that was better than I imagined it would be!"

Aunt Kathy said "I guess I will have to keep an eye on you two!"

Evelyn went to her room and I went to mine.

Evelyn now knows how I feel about her! I though.

Aunt Kathy brought me a glass of warm milk.

She waited for the glass I drank it down.

20 minutes later the milk did it's job I fell asleep.

My dreams were of Evelyn and I getting married, it was heaven.

I awoke needing to pee like crazy!

I went to go to the toilet, dammit I was wearing a diaper, a cloth diaper. Even if I could get it off I could never get it back on again.

I looked at the clock 5:43, breakfast was almost an two hours and half away at 8:30am. No way I can last that that long! 

I remembered how disappointed Aunt Kathy was that I was dry yesterday. I started trying to wet the diaper, my toilet training was strong, my bladder wouldn't let a drop out. I wasn't peeing in a toilet. I got an Idea I went and stood in front of the toilet, I was good until I felt the warmness of my urine spreading inside my diaper. My brain said "Hey wait a minute it's not supposed to feel like this!" My bladder shut down again!

"I began to say it's okay I'm wetting my bed!"

My brain said "Is that all?" My flow started again. I was done and my brain said., "Hey wait a minute, were not a bedwetter!" If I hadn't of been done, I knew that a single drop wouldnt get out now! 

I went back to bed my penis was encased in a nice warm, but damp cocoon. That was my last thought before when my alarm went off and I got up to eat breakfast.

Aunt Kathy checked me and found me wet, I had to pee about 5:45am. She looked pleased and disappointed at the same time. 

After breakfast Evelyn and I were released from our diapers. With it being Saturday we cleaned the house top to bottom.

Evelyn and I had a few more opportunities to steal a few kisses.

[qoldenskies]

been into those raph&leo against donnie&mikey pre-movie fics lately. and like. thoughts on don being the more outspoken at how destructive and idiotic the other two are, while mike is more sensitive and overwhelmed by everything? not that im hating on these characterizations! i enjoy the angst they bring, but overanalyzing is fun.

sure, mikey is the youngest and it makes sense to an extent. however, dr delicate touch and dr feelings are very loud and blunt. and yeah the situation is more extreme, but i think about donnie taking a similar position to what he did in hot soup: the game, staying out of the raph&mikey debate until directly addressed.

personally, i see mikey taking the lead on trying to get through to raph+mikey with donnie there to mediate and give his input when needed. and behind closed doors they definitely take turns comforting each other for sure. they’re both shown to be distraught over familial situations (turtle-dega nights and hidden city’s most wanted), so it makes sense to me for them to take shelter in each other as opposed to one of them being a total shield for the other.

oh, i dont like it. i actually find it unfaithful and flanderizing when it comes to their characters, especially since mikey is a lot more outspoken and direct while donnie is passive-- and this manifests in their behavior as a duo, too.

if not directly emotionally affected by it, i could see it slowly shifting donnie's behavior. he starts to close himself off more, works harder, becomes quieter and more standoffish, not really understanding why he feels so bad because the tension is slowly getting to him. being neurodivergent also makes arguing uhhh hard to witness especially if it were to get intense, loud noise and all that. not to mention raph and leo do almost get into a fistfight at the beginning of the movie so there is a VERY good chance that's happened before, especially with how quick donnie and mikey are to try and pull them apart.

i think comfort would be mutual though, yeah. mikey being distresed and fearful doesn't feel like it aligns with the way he normally acts in conflict? like disinterested and annoyed and then determined and frustrated feels like it aligns with him better. he's not a helpless crying child but i could see him getting more and more upset the longer it goes on, especially because he loves both of his bigger brothers and he feels like they're acting so stupid lmao.

mikey's also not really a savant when it comes to mediating because that's ALWAYS been more raph's job, maybe leo sometimes. he's more likely to go "guys stop fighting!" instead of actually breaking it up and that does very little, it'd probably just come off like moral high-grounding. even in the doctor feelings seminar he did with donnie in the show he was not exactly taking a very empathetic approach he was just being condescending LMAO

generally with donnie i feel like it would manifest in more avoidant behavior (and maybe this is a bit of a hot take but i feel like he would be more likely to have an "is it me?" reaction to something like this, especially because so much of this is about team synergy and he plays such an essential role in support), while mikey would be desperate to "fix" it (more than he is to actually resolve it) once he realizes it's becoming a persistent problem, but because he's unable to properly get to the root of it, it'd just make him increasingly more frustrated. and ofc i do think this would also seriously strengthen donnie and mikey's bonds with each other because i could see both of them having a breaking point about it eventually.

i DO actually have a fic in the works about this exact scenario, it's a sequel to coming undone that mostly addresses the kind of pain and frustration of donnie being unable to properly harness his ninpo as seamlessly as the others can, having some gifted kid issues because it's really hard to try new things when he's been so effortless with science for so long, all while there's so much tension in the family because of the leadership switch,,, it's about donnie and mikey bonding and confiding in each other mostly but ive put it on the backseat for canary continuity, maybe one day i'll pick it up again!!

[monvirtu]

What about quackity and reader doing a wine stream ( they get drunk ) by the end of the stream they confess there felling for each other. It kindly reminds me of a the Spanish song of (no me mires con esos ojos )

𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌

⋆ precis ~ while it wasn't shocking you and quackity got drunk during a wine stream, the only thing that was surprising was when you both started talking about your feelings for each other.

⋆ tags ~ alcohol, kissing, use of quackity's real name, romance, and drunk fluff.

⋆ notes ~ thank you for the request, and i hope you enjoy!

to your viewers, it was never surprising to see quackity's name in your stream titles.

'PLAYING MINECRAFT WITH QUACKITY'

'IT TAKES TWO WITH QUACKITY'

'COOKING STREAM WITH QUACKITY'

it got to the point where it was a shock to not see his name pasted on their screens whenever you started a stream.

and just like all the other times, today was no exception.

laughter filled your office as you and quackity held wine glasses in your hands—the crimson liquid swirling in your cups while you both answered questions that filled the chat.

most of them were harmless. it was just people questioning you both about your lives, what things you liked, and what future plans you had for streaming. some were stupid, like asking what your favourite type of cheese was or what lego movie character you were.

but as the stream went on, and the wine bottle slowly grew empty, you stared to notice your chat getting more curious.

ilovemen3423: why are you and quackity always together? are you both dating?

BITEOF87KID: ARE YOU AND Q DATING???

sillybillies: do you and quackity have a romantic interest in one another?? perhaps a little relationship or a 'kiss the homies goodnight' fellow type of thing?

"alexis..." your words were mumbled as you drank from your glass, and his small hum rang out in question. "chat wants to know if we're dating."

"i wish."

"WHAT!?" quackity let out a loud laugh as you grinned widely—narrowing your eyes at him. "you're lying!"

"NO!? i actually wish that—like, every time i hear your name, i wonder what it would be like if we dated."

"what do you think it would be like if we dated?" you questioned, and you watched as quackity shrugged. "i mean, we could find out—"

you both fell silent before bursting into a fit of laughter—the alcohol hitting your mind a bit harder than it usually did. though, you didn't understand why you thought it was funny. it wasn't. he just admitted to liking you, but maybe you just thought it was funny because you didn't believe it. he was drunk.

but even if he was drunk, it had you questioning what it would be like if you both dated.

you stared at him as you leaned against your armrest—examining him.

it's not like you hadn't noticed him before, but now that you looked more deeply at him, he was fairly cute. his eyes were a deep brown—just like his hair. speaking of his hair, it looked good in a beanie, but you liked it better when he didn't have a hat on.

he was also sweet, and funny. you both had a lot in common.

you both had been friends for a while.

would it hurt to give it a shot?

your thoughts were cut off as you heard quackity let out a breathy chuckle, and you could only stare at him in confusion before he spoke.

"stop staring at me with those eyes, amor..." his words were slightly slurred as he took another sip from his glasses—his eyes never leaving yours.

you didn't understand why he was commenting on how you were staring at him when he couldn't even look away from you. his eyes were coated in a gleam of admiration, and he peered at you as if you had just given him the world on a silver platter.

"with what eyes?" your sarcastic remark only earned a drunken smile from him as he placed his glass down on your desk, and he leaned towards you in his chair before tilting his head.

"like you wanna kiss me..." his taunting words trailed as his lazy smile slightly faded—his eyes falling into a lidded gaze before they flickered to your lips. "do you wanna kiss me, amor?"

yes.

no.

definitely.

maybe.

you didn't know.

you stared at him for a minute before you placed your glass next to his—the glasses clinking together as you hummed. "i don't know..."

"well, i know. i want to kiss you, and you should kiss me."

"you're only eager to kiss me because you're drunk, alexis." you words earned a frown from him—though, it looked more like a pout as you slightly smiled.

"drunk words, sober thoughts."

a laugh left your throat at his statement, and while you thought he was joking, the serious expression on his face shut down that thought.

"please, amor? if you're okay with it..." his words seemed so saddened as he asked to make sure you were content with his words, and you could only let out a quiet sigh. "you do realize this is going to get clipped, right?"

"i don't care." he mumbled while you shifted your chair closer to his, and his eyes lit up while one of your hands cupped his cheek.

"you say that now—"

"and i'll say it until the day i die. can you just kiss me now?" you smiled at his question before you placed your lips against his, and you could practically feel quackity melt into the kiss while one of his hands placed itself on the back of your head. the other one grabbed your free hand as he gently squeezed it.

the taste of wine on his lips was evident as you eventually pulled away, and your eyes glanced at his tinted lips due to the alcohol.

"does this mean that you like me back?" quackity blurted out the question while you let out a snicker, and he frowned at you as he gently squeezed your hand. he wanted an answer.

"yes, it does, alexis."

a wide smile replaced his frown as he pulled you closer—your chairs being pressed against the other while quackity wrapped his arms around you.

"can i stay over here tonight?"

"only if you help me clean up after stream."

quackity fell silent for a moment as he slowly turned to look at the camera. "i forgot about that—"

but he surely wouldn't forget it tomorrow when you and quackity's name were trending on almost every social media platform.

©𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐕𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐔𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

writings are to not be reposted, translated, or plagiarized. if you wish to show your love for my work, feel free to reblog, comment, or like.

[bellamoooon]

Childhood best friends to lovers, i love this concept a little too much and got carried away lol <33

She’d never know, at least that’s what he convinced himself of.

She’d never know that she was like a breath of fresh air after drowning for hours, that she was like the first bit of light rising up in the morning, that she was like the feeling of warmth when getting praised, that talking to her was like hearing his favorite song for the first time again, that her laugh was engraved in his brain and he could hear it even when she wasn’t around, that her presence radiated light that seeped right into his bones, that seeing her was like a shot of espresso immediately waking every nerve in his system, that her smile gleamed with such brightness it could light up the whole world in an eternal darkness, that her eyes said so much more than anything she had ever said, that she was a perfectly aligned harmony when everything else was out of tune.

She’d never know, but he did.

She lived within him; His whole life had been reduced to her.

“Wow Art, this is really good!” his literature teacher spoke as she read his paper, “y’know, if the whole tennis thing doesn’t work out, you could be the next big writer, I mean it.”

For his literature class, as a “creative exploration exercise”—his teacher calls it—they had been assigned to write a paper on someone of something which they could understand as unrequited love, of course he had chosen you, because what better example than you and Art.

You and Art have known each other since diapers due to your parents being best friends from their college days up to the present day, which sort of brought the two of you together one way or another, but you wouldn’t have it any other way, and neither would art.

Growing you with you might’ve been one of the best things he has ever been able to experience, he wishes people could actually get to feel what its like to be shined on by your light, for him, it truly is unearthly every time.

Sure, you two had distance shoved in your faces when he went to MRTA, but when he returned home for breaks, it was like nothing changed, it was just you and Art.

And of course as cliché as it may be, the inevitable happened, Art began to fall in love with you.

At first, he tried to convince himself that it was just the affection he had for his best friend, but he had no way to deny it. From the second he stopped just seeing you, but when he started seeing you.

He could try to blame it on his hormones and being a teenager, but everything else contradicted that.

In the summer, seeing you in your two-piece swimsuit didn’t seem the same, especially since you had started to grow into your big girl body, as his nana said.

At Christmas when he saw you walk into the living room dressed as Cindy Lou who from shoes to hair, with a goofy smile, but why did it make him blush? You seemed the same, you did this every year.

Patrick mocked him for having a small picture of the two of you in his wallet, but he didn’t care, whenever he was having a bad day, or missed home, he’d look at the picture, instantly erasing anything that disturbed his thoughts.

But you’d never know that. And he was okay with that. For the most part.

A couple of weeks he went back home for spring break, he was feeing at ease, he’d see his parents, his nana, and…you.

“Artie! My sweet boy!” his grandmother called out as he walked out of the car to the front porch with a suitcase in his hand, and a wide smile. His grandmother ran up to him wrapping her arms around him, her warmth immediately transferring to his skin, he was home.

“Nana, hey, how’ve you been?” he spoke with a sweet tone as he hugged her back. Sure, tennis was his whole life, but coming back home felt like a weight was lifted off his back, he doesn’t have to be THE Art Donaldson, he was just…Art.

“You look so tired baby boy, let me take your bags, go take a shower” his nana said as she shut the door behind her.

“Nana, seriously don’t worry—“

“Will you just let me take care of you while you’re here? You’ve gotta do all this yourself at school, but not here Artie” and well, there isn’t much arguing with nana Donaldson, it’s just how it’s been his whole life.

After his shower, Art walked in his room with a calm breath and loose muscles, how he needed that warm shower, as he walked over to his bag, which was placed next to the window he began to look for some clothes.

He wasn’t one to feel prying eyes on him but by reflex, Art lifted his head as he looked through the window, it was you.

You covered your mouth clearly giggling as he looked down at himself completely naked only covered by a towel wrapped around his waist, “fuck me” he muttered as he looked up once again but now face completely flushed and the tips of his ears burning red.

He waved awkwardly as he pulled the curtains closed feeling flustered, he wanted to get his mind off of her, so he said, how’s that going? Not great.

His nana looked up as he came downstairs with a puzzled expression, your name left his lips.

“What about her?” She asked as she left a plated grilled cheese in front of him.

“Why didn’t you tell me she was home for the break?” She laughed, why is she laughing?

“Sweetie, I thought it was obvious, she always come back home for breaks” she shook her head as she smiled playfully, “though, I think there’s something about her being here that bothers you”

“What— no, no, it doesn’t bother me, I just— would’ve expected something else, I don’t know”

“You sure?” She slid the paper across the counter with delicacy, “are you absolutely sure baby?”

“Nana! I told you to stop snooping, come on!” He said taking the paper as quickly as possible, could this day get any worse?

“One, I wasn’t snooping, it fell out of your backpack, and two, Artie, you know you can tell me anything, right?” He lowered his head ever so slightly as he grabbed the sandwich to then take a bite.

“I know.” He said once he swallowed, she leaned against the counter with curious eyes.

“She’s good, she’s smart, and really talented, did you hear she put out a song?” He lifted his brows in surprise, you really had picked music, over psychology, huh…

“Huh…well that’s great, I’m sure she’ll do great with all that” his nana scoffed as she muttered a small “art…” with a warning tone, “what? I mean it”

“You gotta give me more than that after that thing you wrote, Art, I taught you better than this.”

“I just—! I don’t know what to say, Nana, that’s the problem. Not to you, not to Patrick and most definitely not to her” he spilled, fiddling nervously with his hands, “I’d screw our friendship, one sided feelings aren’t worth risking years of trust.”

“Well you never know Artie, sometimes holding onto those feelings is painful, even if something is on the line, it isn’t worth it if you’re hurting” she was right, but Art would never say that out loud, this was all too much for him.

“It’s just…it’s not easy”

“Well my boy, no one said love was easy, and sometimes, just sometimes, the most complicated loves, are the most beautiful ones” he listened intently as he finished off the grilled cheese, she was right, maybe all he needed to do was tell her.

You had to know.

So there he was at 2:34 a.m throwing small pebbles at your window, just like he did years ago to then go the skate park at midnight and sit at the top of the ramps while you talked till sunrise.

“Stop throwing rocks Donaldson, you’ll wake the dog” you came out the door in pjs but wrapped in a jacket, he turned with a confused expression “I came running down when I felt the first two rocks” you laughed softly as you blushed slightly, God you missed this.

It’s like being kids all over again.

“So how’s tennis and all, Mr. Stanford?” You asked as you swung your hanging feet off the ramp.

“Y’know tennis is the same always, trust me, you don’t care” he laughed as he shook his head, “but Stanford is nice, just not the same without you and Patrick on my ass all the time”

“Ah, of course, because that’s the biggest change you’ve had since we were kids up to today” you rolled your eyes as you tucked a strand of hair behind your ear.

“Yeah…” he chuckled dryly as he looked away, could he be more obvious, goddamn.

“What?”

“No— no, it’s nothing” he insisted.

“Art I know you, it’s not nothing, what’s up?” You pushed as he looked up at the sky biting his lip while humming, “Art?”

“Hm?” He turned to look at you again, you lifted a brow silently asking once again, “ah…I— I love you” he blurted out unable to stop himself.

You opened your mouth but nothing came out.

“I have since the summer you turned fifteen, you just— you kinda started to seem different to me, and I— I fell in love with you.” He sighed, “and I know timing sucks and it’s gonna make things weird, but if I didn’t tell you, it would eat me alive, y’know it’s been so long—“ his rambling got cut off as your lips crashed onto his almost immediately.

His body tensed up completely, the feeling of your lips foreign to his, but so familiar at the same time, the reality was better than any dream he had ever managed to build up in his mind, your plump lips tasting faintly like cherry lip gloss, he was most likely dreaming, he thought, cause there is no way he had told you how he felt, and even less probabilities of him kissing you.

As you pulled away, he found himself instinctively following you with parted lips and eyes shut, he was so high with your mere presence, a soft giggle from you snapped him back to reality as his eyes opened up slowly, pupils blown, he looked as if he had just seen God.

“…Did you just—“

“Kiss you?” You ask slightly tilting your head with a giddy smile, “seems like it”

You shrugged as you snorted softly.

“Oh.” Oh was the only thing his brain could process for him to say still stunned.

“Okay— so you tell me you love me, but I kiss you and all you say is ‘oh’, I mean—“ you said as you licked your lips as you thought.

“I just— I didn’t think you’d— like…you…like…” he fumbled as he tried to pull a thought out of the back of his brain.

“Art, you’re telling me you didn’t expect me to kiss you, when I’ve literally had this…I’ve been in love with you since we were kids, and I’ve been as subtle as a marching band” you tell him as a blush creeps up your face while you chuckle nervously.

“You’re kidding, right?” You shake your head with a small grin, he scoffs as he covers his face with his hands, “am I just that dense?”

“Not dense, more like…oblivious” you laugh as he glares back playfully.

Then there’s beat of silence, that moment where suddenly everything had fallen into place, he’s been pining over you for years, and you’ve waited for the right moment for as long as you can remember, but then the question settles in, what now?

“Uhm…art…?” You turn to him with hesitation, he hums in response “what now? I mean, you’re going back to cali after break and I’m going back to New York…”

“Hm…I hadn’t really thought that far into it” he said softly turning to look at you with gentle eyes, “what now?” He asks back softly.

“I— I like you, Art, I’m in it for the long game.” You spoke honestly as you fiddled with your fingers.

“I’ll play the long game. You’re out there, I’m out there too, we’ll see each other in summer, thanksgiving, and Christmas…I mean it, I— don’t just like you.” He confessed as he chewed on the inside of his cheek nervously.

“I can do that” you said softly, smiling back at him, letting out a small breath, “long game…?”

Your hand cupped his cheek making him face you, he smiled as he nodded, looking down at your lips and back at your eyes “long game.” He muttered as he leaned in kissing you once again, holding you gently in a fear of breaking you.

That right there. That was it, you were the living proof of unrequited love for him.

[darklinaforever]

Even before Charlie, she (Claudia) wasn't calling him (Lestat) "papa" but the lesser "uncle" indicating a lesser connection. Add to that Lestat's intense resistance to even making her, suggests that he is withholding his affection.

Just... what the fuck ? 😂

Claudia calls Lestat uncle it's mainly because of society outside (because Louis and Lestat unsuccessfully try to pass off their relationship as brotherly).

And otherwise... Claudia considered herself as the daughter of Lestat ? She literally tells him at one point that she is no longer his child anymore but his sister companion. That he is not his uncle or her dad now either. And that in the end of her life, Claudia looked at Lestat like a child looks at her father. So, in fact, Claudia considers herself effectively as the Lestat's daughter, all the same as for Louis. Claudia even considers that she was brought back to life by their blood, to both.

And I remind that even though she said Louis was her favorite, that she and Lestat had a lot in common. They even literally have a nickname among themselves (without Louis) for human blood.

Moreover, on several occasions the show shows that Lestat seems to understand and know Claudia better than Louis on certain things (he is the one who notices the dark changes in her, understands that she is a predator, that she does not starve, etc).

Lestat is also the one who teaches Claudia to drive, to be a good predator (because he sees clearly that on this point she has nothing to do with Louis), he doesn't want Claudia to be limited about her nature, he essentially made subtly her sexual education, that they should not mix too much with humans, etc.

The story also spends its time reminding us that Claudia is indeed Lestat's daughter (that she is their daughter to him and Louis, Louis daughter, Lestat daughter, she was even called in the show Claudia de Lioncourt specifically, that they are her parents) and that she resembles him. That they are very similar to each other.

Their connection is maybe less tender than that of Louis and Claudia but no less strong (and certainly not because she calls him uncle).

And uh... wtf ? Lestat's refusal to make Claudia has nothing to do with a lack of affection for her (he don't even know her in that moment), or even a future lack of affection / love for her, but simply because it was forbidden by law and because he knew very well what he was condemning Claudia to if he transformed her ?!

At that moment, it was even Lestat who had more consideration for Claudia than Louis. Lestat thought about Claudia's future, while Louis only thought about himself and what Claudia could bring him and the guilt he felt. Lestat cares, Louis should care but doesn't.

Yes, Lestat didn't want Claudia at first, but he grew to love her anyway over time (and I know season 3 will prove me right about the fact that he loved her).

However, it is clear that he loved Louis the most, but that is something that also applies to Louis. They were both extremely shitty parents.

Lestat and Claudia then began to hate each other because they saw themselves in each other, because they were too similar. Something they can't stand because they partly hate themselves.

And also because Lestat was afraid that Claudia would take Louis from him, which he couldn't stand because of his abandonment issues. Not to mention that big episode when she put their lives extremely in danger with her murders in New Orleans (with was the first big divide on Lestat's side for his relationship with Claudia).

And for Claudia, also because she was stuck in a body too young for her mind (fault of Louis and Lestat equally), that Lestat did not want to create a companion for her (at the same time he is not going to transform someone close to Claudia's physical age a second time obviously, and she herself is aware of the atrocity of her own condition), that he said she was a mistake (which is sadly not technically wrong), that he have a mistress (a post on why Lestat had this affair with Antoinette would be interesting to do elsewhere), and because apart from telling her that vampires from the outside are dangerous (the simple true by the way) and nothing else about them, which annoys her knowing that she absolutely wants to meet them, because she is less and less able to tolerate life in the company of only her parents, which is understandable.

Their relationship became very toxic (something that could perhaps have been mitigated if Lestat had been better at least in simple communication, even with Louis himself). But that didn't stop the love from staying somewhere until the end between them, even with the hate present.

[russilton]

Hiiiii I saw your post where you said that you wrote 400 words of the red bull george au. First of all, yayyyyyyyyy that’s amazing. I am very happy for you :) every word counts and the fact that you wrote 400 of it is truly great. I am so invested in the story and can’t wait for it (not pressuring you in anyway to release it soon. I’ll happily wait for it because i know the wait will be worth it)

I wanted to ask something if you don’t mind. You don’t have to answer of you think it’s big of a spoiler or it’s something you would like to keep a secret. I understand. First question: Would the fans eventually learn about George and Lewis’ relationship and that they are together? Second question: Will Susie and Toto be like George’s non official adopted parents? I live for those dynamics where Susie and Toto practically adopt George.

Another one I waited a year and a half on I’m so sorry whoever sent this—

Honestly I’ve basically plotted the majority of the story onto tumblr already so it’s legitimately hard to find spoilers, but I do intend for the fic to mostly wrap up either directly after January 2022 or mostly thereabouts, because I’m hesitant to dive too far into the 22 season because it would end up drastically different from reality and honestly I think what made the original au so easy to plot is the developments of the 2021 season make it really easy to tie plot points to— with the strong exception that without Perez in the Red Bull, Max has no chance for Masi to cheat and hand him a win in Abu Dhabi. Because in fic I refuse to allow that reality.

Going Public

If George and Lewis were to ever come out as together in that universe, it would be long, long after the end of that story. Honestly it would likely come some point after Lewis’ retirement, I doubt even the most trusted would know about the extent of it with very few exceptions like MAYBE Bono or Shov. Perhaps Toto years down the line.

Part of it is really because the shape of their Relationship in the Red Bull au is so massively different to what we normally approach on fanfic- they spend a good 6 months fighting and antagonising each other, and the next 4 months barely speaking because George is deep in his own hell. Lewis and George basically go from on top of each other every weekend to cold turkey from the summer break through to Abu Dhabi, It’s a rocky start to any relationship, even without adding the hell George is personally going through joining a new team and building what little trust he had from the ground up, and Lewis trying to balance looking after himself and trying to figure out how the hell to look after George or if George even wants that.

It’s a rough first year or two is what I’m saying. The last thing they would want is anyone finding out what’s going on between them, and how that would effect their lives or reputations— they’re already facing weekly prying by the media to see if they’re trying to kill each other yet— but it’s better than when people question if they’re too close, and queries about if George was ever loyal to Red Bull or if he was a plant start flying. People find pictures of young George chasing Lewis for autographs, it’s not hard for accusations to grow, and Horner or Marko would waste no time lying about it if they could bring George down a peg further.

So among that, their relationship is kept as wrapped tight as possible. George moves to Monaco like all f1 drivers do, so it’s easier for them to meet quietly without anyone seeing, but they don’t really go out together for anything more than dinners around the globe as teammates in restaurants that know how to be discreet. They’re not a naturally affectionate pair, it’s not hard to act like they’re just friends in public— RB George is about 5 times as neurotic as canon George and isn’t really chill and goofy, spending your formative years being micromanaged by assholes and then getting a brutal public reality check will do that— so it’s not something they find especially hard to maintain for a few years, it’s only when they’ve been at it a while that Lewis starts to get nagging feelings that it would be nice to be able to sit by George at pool sides when he’s tanning, or go running together, or get George a little drunk in a club so he could see that rare affectionate side. But he also keeps that to himself since George still seems antsy about it, and even years out from his move, George finds it hard to shake the media linking to his past as a bull. It’s hard enough being the man who publically fell out of his team into another one. Being the first Gay f1 drivers would be a lot to add to that, without adding accusations George slept his way into his seat.

But I think, quite a few years down the line when George is creeping up over 30, and Lewis into his mid 40’s, they might get quietly married. They’re not really interested in being in the centre of a big event like that, especially as Lewis expands further on his brands outside of F1 and George chases championships at his side, they have a lot going on. It’s a paperwork thing, but they still don’t tell many people.

It’s only when Lewis has fully retired, and George wins his second Championship that they might quietly let things build. A congratulatory instagram post from Lewis that leans a little into fond, George’s reply’s back that seems just as affectionate. Fans chalk it up to a good teammate relationship until George shows up with Lewis at an event for one of his charities, and more questions swirl about how they ended up so close. They’d probably end up dropping it on everyone in some end of year socials post years after they got married, something about celebrating an anniversary together. They don’t specify which. They’d probably be annoyingly short about the whole thing, tell people as little as possible about how it happened until they’re both retired. It’s such a big story as it is they don’t really need to complicate people’s shouting by adding confusion about timelines and team politics. If George is asked about it while racing, he’d probably say he’s no different than before, it’s just now people know about it. If people tried to pry, he’d shrug and tease them to wait for a future book about it. There probably would be a book some day tbh.

It’s a weird one- I genuinely go back and forth on if they would ever willingly tell anyone, as much as I’ve described this scenario here, I think they’re an equal chance they would just tell absolutely no one until they’re both retired, only to drop it one day with little to no explanation and tell the world that’s all they need to know. They’re both progressively minded and would want to use themselves to further acceptance in their sport, but RB George is so dictated by the trauma he goes through, and that has echo effects. He spent so long isolated and aggressively private despite a veneer of cockiness, I think he would find that hard to move from from the need to keep himself to himself, and Lewis honestly isn’t much different. When you’ve had your entire life paraded across a stage to be criticised, there’s part of you that wants some things to stay yours and yours alone, and after all they’ve both achieved, I can see how they don’t really want their relationship to be put infront of that.

Toto and Susie

George and Toto is such a complicated dynamic in this au, for so many reasons. For one, Toto doesn’t half paternally raise him through his formative years, when they meet and begin to interact properly, George is Toto’s shiny new driver he’s not sure what to make of, because Lewis essentially coached Toto into choosing him.

Toto is shrewd and business minded when he’s not letting his heart rule his head, and he doesn’t have any kind of bond with George to do that. He treats George similarly to how he likely treated Valtteri at first, he’s looking for someone who falls in line and doesn’t fight or cause problems with the team, to set them up and maybe win a few times till they find some future champions material- Toto doesn’t necessarily think George isn’t, but he doesn’t really know what to make of George. He shows up with two wins under his belt and some sparks of potential that could be gold dust, or they could just be light catching water. He has to be realistic no matter how much Lewis throws his weight behind George.

George doesn’t fare much better when it comes to being approachable. He is, for lack of a better word, traumatised by how Horner treated him like a beloved team member and then a pig for slaughter the second he faltered. Marko was even worse, George is used to being berated for any kind of car damage, or having his seat threatened if he fumbled more than one race in a row. The first time George has a horrible session and qualifies low, he probably has to stave off a panic attack. He’s trying to be strong and capable, trying not to act like a fragile wuss, but a cloying part of him is terrified the rugs going to be pulled from under him again, and then he’s truly fucked bc Red Bull would demote him, but Merc might fire him, and he’d have no one.

George is a good liar, Red Bull made him one, but he’s not that good, Lewis would probably drag him aside for a chat, try to reassure him sessions are shit sometimes and Lewis has had plenty of bad ones, the team doesn’t care as long as he’s trying, but for a guy like George that doesn’t really help much, even as he tries to fake a grin and wave Lewis off. That’s probably when Lewis would have to step in and speak to Toto himself.

I don’t want to set a precedent of Lewis fixing George’s problems, because George very much has independence a lot of the time, but this early after the move, George is handling a lot, and not wanting to really talk about any of it for fear of losing it all again. Toto knows some of why George split from redbull, he has to to even consider hiring him, but he’s not especially aware of how George ended up in that situation, how quick the switch up was, how deeply that fear sits in George’s gut. Lewis can’t share all of that, but he can fill in some of Toto’s gaps with what George has told him, and at least point out that when he’s comfortable, just how fucking fast George is.

With that knowledge I can see Toto developing a kind of softness for George, and at least attempting to learn more. He might ask to meet with George a little more in brackley, ask him about his history, and point out they’re not going to fire him over a shitty result or two, he’s not Christian. Toto’s bluntness would be… comforting to George, it may be harsh at times but he knows Toto doesn’t really seem to care to lie to him about it. He tells George bluntly about what they don’t want him to do, and well, George can work with that.

There’s probably also a time Toto tells George that Mercedes intended to offer him a junior seat, but by the time they’d got a contract drafted, George had signed with Redbull. George probably goes slightly white at that, and when probed, will try to say ah well, can’t change the past, all while sounding like he desperately wants to. Susie probably slaps Toto for that one.

I think with time George and Toto would build their own rapport. George learns to relax and tease Toto with maybe a little less ease than Lewis, and Toto learns George will always laugh when he insults Horner, and that part of George is still a kid who grew up too fast and could still use some praise. Toto has three kids, he can do that. George won’t ever say he needs it, but he might lean a little harder on Toto after a mechanical DNF when Toto tells him it’s not his fault, and he gets more comfortable grabbing Toto for a celebratory hug when they do win. The trust takes a long time to develop, it’s a little less paternal than in real life, but it is there. Toto is an authority figure George doesn’t have to be quite as terrified of.

As for Susie, I think George would like Susie a LOT. Lewis loves her, it’s an easy introduction. She’s a smoother voice than her husband and even if George isn’t Scottish, it feels closer to being home, the same ways Lewis does. Susie has whip fast whit and an energy about her that just makes people relax, and George is no different, he likes when she visits the team and always gets a good laugh out of him. George particularly would enjoy watching her and Lewis poke and tease each other, she’s known Lewis so long her quips dig deep, and that’s particularly hysterical to George

Maternal is difficult for George- she’s forever linked to Toto and it’s hard to forget that, so that keeps George at some distance. But she’s also so very different, and when Toto invites him and sometimes Lewis over to their home in Oxford, she’s always the one to greet him at the door and welcome him in. Susie knows all about hostile team environments and would probably happily insult Redbull with a glee and ruthlessness that would make George choke but actually relax a bit. George wouldn’t be caught dead calling her a maternal figure any day, but if he finds Susie’s presence eventually relaxing, that’s between him and God.

[pekkhum]

I fully agree.

Though the efficiency of compression and formatting may vary, resulting in a higher bit rate not always bringing a better experience, not only is it true in this case, but also the fact that it is an order of magnitude difference really can make it difficult for that to matter. In the end more compression for the same amount of displayed data is often achieved through carefully losing information that you hope the consumer won't notice or care about. Often, a consumer won't care about the difference, and that is fine, but it is easily observable.

This applies to audio formats, too, by the way. Even if you don't care about the audiophile analog vs digital, transistor vs tube, and so on debates, there are always trade-offs. The MP3 that you stream or download is kept small through a method of finding all the biggest components of the waveform and forgetting the details. Common qualities of 192kbps through 256kbps will all have this same method applied, even up to the 320kbps that would be considered high quality.

CD audio is a digital format from 1982 with no compression method applied, just the normal analog-to-digital losses that the studio must master the track for (and more recently generated music was likely already digital, though at a higher quality level). CD Audio contains two channels of uncompressed audio, each with 16-bits per sample and 44100 samples per second. This is obviously worse than a studio quality recording, possibly with each separate instrument at 24-bits at 48khz to 96khz, but they won't be selling you their masters, anyway. If they are selling a similar quality FLAC (a much higher bitrate, lossless format), enjoy it, but MP3 vs CDA remains unchanged. CD Audio's 1411.2kbps may not be efficiently used, but that means none of the compression losses that you'll experience in even the highest quality 320kbps MP3. Add the benefits of physical ownership, described previously, and it becomes apparent that physical media has many excellent things to bring to the table, over the most common available formats.

(Side note: your Bluetooth headphones or cheap USB headphone adapter may wreck any value gained, so your mileage will vary.)

If you are worried about the convenience of these formats above all, I totally understand, but do remember that in most jurisdictions you have the explicit right to backup your media and watch those backups, so long as you don't go distributing them or reselling the physical media. Enjoying your backups at whatever quality level you find appropriate can be as convenient as the streaming platforms, with a bit of initial setup. As usual, I understand if you don't want to do that initial setup.

Digital platforms are wonderfully convenient, but other than being optimized for the realities of the Internet, they are optimized for the platform's costa, as well. They are also optimized for the extraction of wealth and absolute control over media, including the option to silently edit older media to better suit what the corporation currently wishes to convey. Even if they choose to keep your favorite story on the platform, it may one day mutate suddenly, as the corporation attempts to gaslight you about their own past or updated message.

If you value convenience and access to what they are putting out right now, then I absolutely understand that these streaming services have value to you, personally. Anyone who tells you that they are higher quality, higher availability, or higher security, however, is selling you lies for the corporation's benefit.

Also, the boxes might be pretty or have little picture cards inside, if you care.

"but physical media is worse quality and will break with time" I DON'T CARE! I WANT TO OWN THINGS I LIKE! I WANT SHELVES FULL OF DVDS, CDS, AND A LIBRARY!

[waitineedaname]

I don't know how to make this thought coherent, so bear with me people, but. I think ritsu calling shou "suzuki" instead of "suzuki-kun" says a lot about their relationship. ritsu is extremely consistent and polite with his use of honorifics, even with people he doesn't like that much (reigen is always reigen-san, for example)

but shou is always "suzuki," he never gets his proper honorific. this might be a stretch, but I think it fits into what I've thought about their relationship in the past, which is that shou gives ritsu the opportunity to drop the perfect kid act. him using everyone's polite honorifics might be good etiquette, but it also might be him creating distance between himself and others while wearing a polite mask. with shou, he doesn't need to bother with that. they met by beating the hell out of each other for fuck's sake, etiquette is out the window here

but while him dropping honorifics might be rude in other cases (the "NO HONORIFIC??" bit with hoshino in that one omake comes to mind) I don't think it is here. I'd forgotten until doing this reread, but ritsu refers to shou as his friend really easily. like, they've known each other for maybe a full day, and they were enemies before that, but when looking up at the cultural tower, he tells mob "my friend is up there!"

so I think him just calling him suzuki is actually a sign of him being close with shou. no bullshit, no using honorifics to maintain a polite image or to intimidate or to impress. he's just being direct with him, because shou isn't someone he has to put up a front around

[curlytemple]

2 shows 12 songs 24 tracks

the epic highs and lows of high school show choir

[procyonloser]

Regardless of being fraternal twins and not identical twins, Adam and Lilith had grown up attached at the hip - but cracks did start to form, the more Adam thought back on it. When Adam came out as bi, Lilith seemed a bit miffed he'd came out first. When Adam was done waiting to start transitioning, Lilith said he hadn't waited like they'd agreed to announce it together. They'd frequently crush on the same person, though Adam was more likely to come away with a date.

Except for one, the one guy Adam had liked the longest and most. Lucifer only had eyes for Lilith, but that'd made sense to Adam, as much as it fucking sucked. They were both in band together, they were in choir, they stuck to each other in their nerdy little clubs. As annoyed as Adam was that his crush liked his sister, he knew why and didn't kick up a fuss.

The problem was, Lilith knew, and when she and Lucifer started dating, suddenly Adam's sister wasn't around anymore. She said she thought it was best if they started to go their own ways, as different as they were. That'd never been a problem when they were little, Adam had thought. It'd led to a massive argument, Adam may have said things to her he regretted, especially when she started crying, but he wasn't cutting her out of his life.

He wasn't even invited to her fucking wedding.

It'd been ages since they'd sat down and spoken, and this wasn't exactly how Adam had pictured it going. With Lucifer there, looking positive and friendly as always, a little nervous, but the man was probably at least half terrier.

"So, we were hoping to at least float the idea by you, let you think about it. You don't have to decide anything, and if you want to say no, we totally understand. But, if you said yes, we'd of course help you out, since it's such a huge ask of you, Adam." Lucifer said, but Adam's ears were glazed over, and he just held eye contact with Lilith, who did not look particularly happy to be there.

"...You want my eggs?" Adam said slowly, reiterating the question. Lucifer faltered slightly, before nodding.

"Lilith and I felt something was missing, and we were talking about having children. Since Lilith can't carry..." Lucifer said, trailing off - Adam could, still had eggs and periods which sucked ass, even on HRT, but he usually controlled that with birth control. "Of course we wouldn't ask you to carry the child, we were just hoping you'd consider donating a few eggs."

Adam leaned back in his seat, looking between them. He didn't have a great history with parenting, not after what happened with Eve and his step kids. It'd left a hurt in his chest that wouldn't go away, and he'd sworn off from ever having his own.

But annoying Lilith was a chance that was hard to pass up. He was pretty sure she'd blink before he did. "So, you'd take my eggs, mix it with your dick sneeze, put it in someone else who would give birth to it?"

Lilith made a face, and mumbled something to herself. Lucifer froze but laughed awkwardly after a moment. "Uh, yeah, essentially!"

"And you can afford all that?" Adam asked, eyebrow raised, arms crossed over his chest. Maybe he should have tried to steal Lucifer from Lilith in the past.

"He made wise investments." Lilith said, one of the only things she'd said to him, flaunting Lucifer's money. Granted, she knew Adam had once thought investing in Digimon cards would be a better pay off than Pokemon, so maybe it was a fair insult.

"Nope," Adam said simply, watching as Lucifer deflated and Lilith let out a short exhale. They'd expected this. "I refuse to donate eggs, but I'll be the surrogate. If you're going to grow a kid with your twinkie filling and my egg, you're going to have to deal with me for the next nine fucking months."

Lilith's face feel in something close to horror, but Lucifer looked like it was Christmas morning. He cheered, wrapping his arms around Lilith and kissing her cheek, clearly still over the moon for her, which Adam did think was kind of sweet - but Lilith was certainly not happy with the news, which Adam figured she wouldn't be.

"This'll be great! It'll be so much better to keep this between family, and we'll be with you every step of it!" Lucifer smiled brightly, practically glowing. "And we'll make sure you're properly rewarded for all of this stress and time, this is a major sacrifice to make for your family that can't have children - thank you so much, Adam."

Adam smiled back. "Course, we're brothers in law, afterall...so, bro, when are you planning on knocking me up? You want to do it old fashion, over the hood of a car or when I'm stuck in a washing machine, or you want to yank your sea cucumber and then shove in the yogurt with a turkey baster and squirt in me. Or, do you want to be a voyeur as a doctor impregnates me?"

Lucifer's face began to fall, and his cheeks began to turn bright red.

Being a surrogate wasn't all bad, Adam thought to himself. Sure, everytime he had to speak to his sister, he wanted to bite Lilith's ear off her head, but there were moments like these ones that brought a smile to his face.

"Do you have a name picked out yet?" The woman behind the counter asked pleasantly enough, but Adam wasn't exactly a pleasant person.

"I'd have to ask my sister what she wants to name it, since it's her child." Adam answered with a grin, hand over his rounded belly. He felt the kid kick under his fingers, it always seemed to be the most active when Adam was actively being a bastard to someone. He liked to think it was laughing in there.

The face the woman made as Adam took his groceries and walked off made everything worth it.

Well, maybe he'd miss it, but Adam didn't want to entertain those thoughts. He was getting paid enough by Lilith and Lucifer to last him a lifetime, just to have the little devilspawn. Plus, after him and Eve fell apart, it's not like he wanted to act like a parent ever again.

It was just a lot of heart ache.

The baby moved again, and Adam couldn't help but clench his fingers over his stomach. He wondered what it would be named, if it would know who he was as it grew up, or if it would see pictures of him and look at it with no recognition.

Adam sat in his car for awhile longer, staring up at the darkening sky.

He'd already signed the agreement, he couldn't back out now, not when half this kid was Lucifer's baby batter. He couldn't just say no, I'm keeping it. Not without getting sued into the streets.

"I hope she doesn't name you something stupid, but I guess that isn't any of my problem." Adam said to himself, blinking his eyes hard to will away any stinging feeling in them, before he pulled out of the parking lot.