#and this will do as a high-level look at the whole blamed mess

[joltning]

how I see them cooking

church: the worst fucking cook out of all of them. just absolute horrible blames everything on caboose puts things to 10000 degrees and is like ☹️why did it burn ☹️wtf. has never made an edible thing in his life.

tucker: pretty good I mean he’s not making anything gourmet but any time blue team has to cook real food he does it and has to ban church and caboose cause they fuck it up so bad. might have some questionable tastes tho so his personal food is a little fucked

caboose: surprisingly not that bad but makes a Mess. it’ll taste good but still have an eggshell in it and the whole room is covered in ingredients

tex: pretty normal. she doesn’t seem like a big cooking fan though she might just eat an onion for the hell of it

sarge: good. but put him on the grill NOW. he needs to grill Now. he probably has a homemade rub that tastes bomb. he probably puts it on everything though and the rest of the team is shouting at him for putting pepper on his ice cream or something

simmons: bare minimum. he can make instant food and basic meals but he wings it or looks up a recipe. I can imagine he chops vegetables pretty fast

grif: well versed in the art of comfort food. he doesn’t really like cooking bc it takes a long ass time but he’s a good ‘throw shit in a pot’ kind of guy. shit is probably fire. I see him doing it when stressed maybe.

donut: all talk. great baker great mixologist never get him near a stovetop because he is starting a grease fire. even when he does cook a good dish it only looks really nice and tastes mid

lopez: honestly I’m not sure. im thinking a lot of simple meals with not a lot of spices cause he can’t. taste. but he sees them add like salt after and he’s like Oh Ok So you don’t like it. and spices it the fuck up. honestly might be the best cook of them because of versatility. he just downloads a shit ton of recipes once and never again

doc: everyone gets this but the Worst fucking healthy options Ever. to an absurd level

kai: she keeps fucking making infused foods and leaving them out. simmons had a weed brownie it was an experience. she’d make those ‘battery acid’ tiktok drinks go into a sugar high and pass out

locus: every time they have a cookout he brings a huge pot of mashed potatoes and gravy. no one knows where he gets it or when he has the time to make it. no one asked him to bring food

[figaroswilson]

𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙚𝙙 ⇒ 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘳𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘹𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘹 𝘦𝘹𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘳!𝘰𝘧𝘤

Chapter 1

masterlist

story summary: Kira Barnes, the younger adopted sister of Bucky Barnes, is forced out of the dark underworld of espionage and into the light of the new world of superheroes when her brother abandons her with the Avengers to go on the run. She is set in her ways and determined to find her brother until she meets Pietro Maximoff, someone who challenges her black-and-white view of the world.

story warnings: violence, swearing, blood, descriptions of abuse

chapter word count: 2000

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read on wattpad

~ ✺ ~

When SHIELD collapsed, Kira convinced Sam to move to New York to be closer to the Avengers.

DC just wasn't quite the same for him anymore. Not after meeting Captain America and then promptly taking out the city's secret HYDRA cell.

Steve had originally suggested the move. Sam wouldn't have to be an Avenger in any official sense, but he could be around people he knew and trusted, which would be reassuring after that whole mess. It was Kira who eventually managed to persuade him, though. After he'd helped rescue her from HYDRA, they had quickly become close friends. Her insistence made the prospect of moving to a new city easier. Less daunting. It also didn't hurt he'd managed to find a place near the Avengers' Tower with rent that was actually reasonable.

Kira was, to say the least, glad for the company.

She often seemed to find herself alone in the Tower, whilst the rest of the team was out on a mission. It was for her benefit. Apparently. Her therapist insisted her mind just couldn't handle high levels of stress so soon after everything, so it was best to take a step back occasionally. Kira wasn't a fan of those sessions. Frankly, she would've dropped the whole thing if Tony hadn't insisted. And because it was nice to have someone who finally seemed to make sense of her fucked up head. Not that she would ever admit it.

Over time, she realised she didn't mind too much. She was always looking for an excuse to be at Sam's apartment anyways. The tiny, slightly messy, studio was her favourite place to be, helped mostly by the fact one of her closest friends lived there. Every time she would show up, the two would fall into an easy routine of buying greasy takeout and watching cheesy romances, no matter the time of day or the reason for Kira's appearance.

Like usual, they were sitting in what Kira called 'Sam's extended bedroom'. He insisted it was his living area. She wasn't convinced.

She had been staying over that weekend, whilst the rest of the team was on a mission somewhere in Eastern Europe. This time, she had been eager to miss out, urging the others to go on without her. She used the weekend-long visit as an excuse to get takeaway for nearly every meal, on Tony's card, despite Sam's protests that it could not be good for them at all. He quickly let it go when she threatened to eat his food.

"I don't get it." Sam pointed to the characters on-screen, confused at the newest movie Kira had put on. As it turned out, it was a family drama with multiple romantic storylines and it was starting to hurt Sam's head. "Is that supposed to be his little brother, grown-up?"

"Mm-hmm."

"And he doesn't recognise him? Like, at all?"

"Yeah..." she said, realising the absurdity of it now Sam had pointed it out. "But can you blame him? I mean, look at the actor playing him as an adult. He doesn't look like his younger self at all. Even his eye colour's different."

"Well, it is a movie," Sam reasoned. "It's fictional. Like, they 'struggled', but live in a mansion in central London. You're supposed to suspend your disbelief or whatever."

"Yeah, or whatever. It'd be easier to do if I wasn't so stressed about this stupid thing," Kira sighed. She poked at the laptop sitting on the coffee table in front of her, with the back of her fork, as if that would hurry it up.

As much as she loved Sam, she hadn't bailed on the mission just to spend the entire weekend with him, though it was a perk. The actual reason, that had been slowly decrypting for the last two days, sat in front of her. The laptop she was doing it on, which she had found in a dumpster behind a pawn shop, was so run down it had to be kept permanently on charge, and its fan whirred so loudly, she was sure it was going to break. All to watch some stupid CCTV files so she and Sam could try and find her runaway brother.

Just like she'd promised Nat, she hadn't told anyone else about it. Which was why they were doing everything, in secret, in Sam's apartment, whilst the rest of the Avengers were away.

Kira had mainly taken over Nat's involvement in the search, as her memories returned, and Sam took over for Steve, to avoid suspicion from the rest of the team. The other Avengers only knew a couple of things about Jamie. First, he used to be Steve's best friend and was Kira's adoptive brother. Second, whilst his legal name was James Buchanan Barnes, Steve had given him the nickname Bucky and Kira the nickname Jamie. He was also a former Winter Soldier, currently on the run from the authorities and a topic that was completely off-limits.

But that was all they knew. They weren't aware of the extent of what Jamie had done. They hardly knew what Kira had done. The information in the files that, first, Tony, and then the rest of the team, had received, only touched on what Department X, and later HYDRA, had done to them. Not what Department X and HYDRA had made them do. Sam, Steve and Nat were the only ones that knew exactly who the Winter Soldiers had hurt. And, apart from Nat, no one knew anything else.

To Kira, that was fine. That was all they needed to know. The depth of what had happened in Department X, what had happened outside of Department X, and what Nat and Jamie were, wasn't their business. And what Kira was planning, dependent on finding Jamie, wasn't their business either. Not even Nat's. It didn't bother her much no one knew the whole truth. It wasn't like she was hurting them by not telling them. She didn't think they'd care much anyways.

Sam and Kira had spent nearly the whole of the last year trying to find Jamie. He, however, didn't seem to want to be found. It was clear he was hiding. After Nat had found the tape of him at the Captain America exhibition, only small signs of Jamie had shown up. First, they came from across North America, but later they started up in Europe. Mentions in police reports of someone sketchy near a crime scene with long brown hair, wearing a baseball cap, covering his face. Weird acts of kindness from a quiet man with a metal prosthetic arm. A mysterious stranger, walking to compensate for some heavy weight on his left, moving into an apartment, ignoring everyone and then quickly moving out again. It was still promising. Even if his movements never made sense.

There had been a tip-off, recently, to the police in Rome. A man with shoulder-length brown hair had reportedly stopped a bullet with his left hand. Of course, no one had taken it seriously. It was 'impossible'. Which was precisely why they had managed to hear about it. After some digging around, Kira found someone willing to sell her, through less than legal means, CCTV footage of the alley the day it took place. She had to decrypt it herself, though.

The laptop somehow whirred even louder now but didn't seem to be working any faster. It was so bad even Sam was starting to worry, glancing over at it one too many times. She was just glad it was badly encrypted. If the encryption was advanced, it would've needed a much more powerful device, the type only Tony had access to and that was a no-go. Plus, the laptop was old. No one would miss it once it finally croaked.

Still, the laptop was battered enough that the decryption might finish in anywhere from the next few minutes or the next few days. She sighed and looked up at the TV screen, instead. Bad idea. The younger brother was getting all teary-eyed at the older one, who still hadn't recognised him, whilst vaguely talking about their family. Maybe a movie about long-lost siblings wasn't a great idea right now.

The doorbell interrupted them then. Sam looked over at Kira, panicked. "It's okay," she reassured him. "My danger sense isn't going off, it's probably just Steve or Nat." She checked her phone, sighed and then held it up, showing the hour-old text from Tony that they must've missed. "See? It has to be them. They got back a while ago."

"You sure?" he asked.

"No, Sam. I've been lying about my powers this whole time. I'm not even a Super Soldier," she deadpanned.

"Hilarious," he said, sarcastically, getting up to open the door to Steve and letting him in.

"Aren't you guys supposed to be working?" he asked almost as soon as he entered, looking pointedly at the TV, before dumping his bag next to Sam's bed.

"What happened to 'hello'?" Kira muttered into her noodles.

"We are, don't worry," Sam answered, sitting back down. "It's just taking forever to work."

Steve walked over and squished into the small space between his two friends. He stared at the laptop for a while like his glare alone could fix it.

"Hey, Steve?" Kira asked.

"Yeah," he replied, turning to her with his usual kind smile.

"You know the mission?"

"Mm-hmm?"

"...What happened?"

He stared at her blankly for a second. Then, "Oh, right. Shit, sorry." He shook his head as if to clear his thoughts. "Yeah, it went well. You can read the mission report later if you want. Everything happened basically as planned," he told them. "Got Strucker and put him in jail, shut the base down, found Loki's sceptre— actually, there was something off." They looked at him curiously. "We found two enhanced. Twins. About your age." He turned to Kira.

"My age?" she asked sceptically. As Sam always loved to remind her, she was old enough to be his grandma. Great, more sad sibling stories, the voice in the back of her head added, unhelpfully.

"Biologically," he amended. "Think Strucker kidnapped and experimented on them, actually." Kira could almost see him lose his train of thought at the horrible realisation. More kids taken and hurt by Nazis for their own benefit. It was officially the world's shittiest never-ending cycle she would've been naive to think had miraculously stopped with her.

"Well, where are they now?" Sam asked, concerned.

"Not sure. They ran off almost immediately. Can't blame them. We're trying to keep tabs on them for the meantime, though."

"Why? You gonna invite them into the Avengers too? Get a little formerly kidnapped-by-HYDRA boyband going? A bit too specific, don't you think?" Kira joked, darkly. It was a bad habit.

"I mean, maybe. You might make some friends then, Ki." Steve was clearly very proud of himself with that. Kira was not.

"Hey!"

"Ouch."

"Or... you could come to the party Tony's hosting."

"Ugh, I already told you I'm not going," she turned away from them, defensive. "What the fuck am I going to do there? Smile as the richest and most boring people in the city tell me their life stories?"

"Sure. If you have to. At least you'll get in some practice socialising."

"You'll have fun, I promise," Sam tried.

"That's easy for you to say. Everyone loves you. Not many people like casual conversation with a Winter Soldier," she sulked. Kira paused. "Wait." She turned to Steve again. "Did you just say 'practice socialising'? What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, suddenly very offended. I know how to socialise... right? "Sam?"

He was silent for a second, clearly weighing up his options, before blurting out, with a pained look on his face, "Girl, you have no friends."

Kira scoffed. "What are you then?"

"Apart from me."

"And Nat?"

"You've known her forever. She doesn't count."

"Steve?"

"You work together. He doesn't count either."

She scowled at him.

"You've run out of people, haven't you?" Sam asked, a smile creeping up on his face.

"Oh, fuck you." Kira threw a pillow at his head as he burst out laughing.

~ ✺ ~

[vera-king-hrfl]

Heat of the Night part 7

Collab with @crowwolf ily bby!

The rugby game was supposed to be in this part, but we took a minute to research because I know fckall about that sport, so I waffled for about 2500 words. Next time! 😅

CW: homophobic slurs, mild violence, attempted assault.

A few nights later, Cal is at Creature Comforts, a bar designed to cater to those with alternative ancestry, with some friends, playing darts, drinking beer and chatting. Cal is currently tossing against Max, a half-orc who plays rugby as well, for a team in the Outer City. The young tiefling is losing. Badly. 

"What are you doing, Cal? I'm gonna take your whole week's pay if you keep throwing like that." Max goes to pluck the darts from the target, none of which had struck anywhere near the center. 

Cal forks over a few coins, shaking his head with a sheepish grin. "Sorry, Max. I'm a little distracted this week. Besides, it's not like I could beat you anyway. I'll just sit the next few out."

The huge green man, who towers over everyone in the place except for Cal and Dammon, is surprisingly soft-spoken for his rather fearsome appearance, his deep, gruff voice a pleasant rumble that cuts through the raucous din. "That’s alright, kid. I'll let you off the hook. Is there anything you want to talk about?"

Cal walks to the bar with Max to get another drink, then leans against it, sipping from the bottle, and shrugs. "Nothing dire, really. I just met someone."

The big man grins, showing teeth that put Cal's fangs to shame. "So. Too late for us, then?" 

The tiefling chokes, then wipes his chin. "Us? I... um... I didn’t know you felt that way..."

Max laughs with a hearty gusto that makes Cal relax a little and shake his head. "Just messing with you Cal; you're not my type. Besides, we'd just break the bed. You've gotten bigger in the past few years."

"Yeah, sideways, maybe." The tiefling snorts and pats his own belly, looking pointedly at Max's rock hard chest and stomach. 

Max chuckles again. "You could always come work out with us at the yard; I'll get you into shape in no time. But I don't think you need it. I bet your boyfriend loves the fluff."

Cal grins, blushing a little. "Yeah he seems to. But he's not my boyfriend yet; we've only been on two dates."

"Dates? Wow, I haven't been on one of those in decades. I just find a nice lady with a fat ass and ask if she wants me to jiggle it for her. Works more often than you'd think, as long as she doesn't run screaming when I walk in the room." He nods at someone across the room and slaps Cal on the shoulder, making him grunt and stagger a bit. "Talk to you later, Cal. Looks like Darys wants to be humiliated. Take it easy, kid."

"Yeah you too, Max." Cal stays where he is for a few more minutes, then approaches a table where Dammon and some other men are trading bawdy stories. "Hey Dammon, can I talk to you for a second?"

The handsome blond tiefling nods and rises, following Cal to a marginally quieter corner. "Sure, Cal. What's up?"

"Do you think... would it be weird if I invited the guy I'm seeing to our game this weekend?"

Dammon raises an eyebrow, his blue eyes sparkling with interest. "I didn't know you were dating anyone, but yeah, you can invite him. We're playing the Rivington Roeths; Max's team. Those guys are all pretty cool. What's he look like, so I can make sure he gets a good seat?"

Cal blushes a bit. "Oh, well... he has black skin and white hair, about yea high." Cal holds his hand at the level of his chin. 

"I see..." Dammon’s grin makes Cal blush a bit deeper red, but he's smiling too. "What’s his name?"

"Ryldinn."

"Hmmm dabbling in the dark, are we? Not that I blame you; most of those drow are kinda kinky." The paler tiefling winks conspiratorially. "Ask me how I know." Dammon’s attitude is infectious, and Cal ends up laughing with him.

"Yeah, yeah, I've heard that you like to visit the Caress."

Dammon chuckles, then sighs dreamily, closing his eyes for a second. "Mmm yeah, you haven't lived until you've been tied up by the twins. But anyway, sure, that's no problem. I'll have them comp two seats so you can sit with him during breaks if you want. Just have him say that Dammon has it covered. Can't wait to meet him. You hanging around for a while? Shop's closed tomorrow."

"Nah, been a long day. Besides, I lost all my beer money to Max already. It’s nice out so I'm just going to walk home."

"Alright, Cal. Get some rest. The Roeths go hard."

Cal grins. "I know. But I need to win back some money. I bet Max I could stop a drive."

Dammon whistles softly. "Bold. Well, lemme know if you need a loan later, alright?" They hug, briefly, and Cal lets himself out onto the street, pulling out his comm and staring at it for a second. He doesn’t want to bother Ryldinn if the drow is busy, so he settles for a written message. 

Thinking about you. 

He grins, cursing himself for a fool with a crush, and slips the device back into his pocket before beginning his walk home. It's shortly after ninth bell and the streets are sparsely populated in this neighborhood, with only a few people out walking dogs, strolling, coming home from work. It's quiet. Peaceful. 

Right up until it's not. 

"Hey there, cutie, what's up?" The loud, intoxicated sounding voice is coming from an alley to Cal's left as he walks past, and at first, he just ignores it, concentrating on his own thoughts. 

"Hey, I'm talking to you! Guys, come look what I found."

The note of hostility gives Cal pause, and he backs up a little to look down the alley. The voices seem to be coming from one street over, the speaker out of sight for the moment. The tiefling hesitates, then another babble of voices joins the first and he starts moving down through the darkness between the buildings. 

"Awww what have we here? Look at this pretty little faggot!"

"Hey, stick around, beautiful. Whatcha got in the bag?"

A pause, the response inaudible to Cal at this distance. 

"What if I don’t wanna let go of you? You gonna do something to me?"

"I think he wants to suck your dick, Barret."

"That right? You wanna suck my dick, fairy? Come over here. Maybe if you do it good I'll let you go."

Suddenly, three human men appear, dragging someone smaller into the alley, and Cal speeds up in time to see a petite man with white hair being shoved against the wall and pinned by the biggest of his attackers. Thick fingers grip the smooth dark face, and the man lowers his head. "Come on, princess. Gimme a little kiss."

"Hey!" The men turn at the shout, the big one releasing Ryldinn for a moment as Cal draws near. The drow tries to extricate himself but his ponytail is snatched by one of the others and he's pulled back as the leader addresses first his captive, then Cal. 

"I didn't say you could go." He lifts his chin and squares his shoulders. "This isn't your business, buddy. Move along."

"I'm making it my business. The fuck are you doing? Let him go."

The guy, a big man with overly processed blond hair and acne scars, who Cal assumes is Barret, steps closer. "Hold him, guys," he says, glancing back before crossing his arms and sneering at Cal. "What’s it to you, foulblood? You sweet on this little piece?"

One of his companions, a skinny guy with a prominent nose, snickers. "Maybe he's a queer too. You a queer, hellspawn?"

Cal smiles, baring his fangs. "Yeah I am. Got a problem with that?"

Barret steps closer, but the skinny one seems to have second thoughts and catches at his arm. He's whispering, but Cal's big ears catch it. "Hey man, you sure about this? He's a tiefling."

Barret snorts. "He's a fag, how tough could he be? Just keep that one here and I'll deal with him. You looking for a fight, cocksucker?"

Cal tilts his head until his neck cracks rather loudly. "Unless you want to let him go, then yeah. One for one. You can have the first punch. But I promise you don't want it."

Barett chuckles and glances back at his friends, briefly. There's a brief glimmer of hesitation in his eyes, but he obviously doesn't want to lose face in front of his minions, so he steps to Cal and raises his fists. "You got this coming, devil." The tiefling doesn’t bother trying to dodge. Barret is strong for a human, and his hit connects smack on Cal's jaw, but his heavy facial bones absorb the impact and he's barely moved. He lifts his hand, rubbing at his jaw and grinning. "My turn."

The "oh shit" is visible in Barret's expression now, but to his credit, he doesn't try to escape. Cal doesn't even bother hitting the guy, just lashes out, taking hold of the guy's head and shoving. The big human goes flying, careening across the alley and colliding into the brick wall with a loud smack, then tumbling onto his back, lying there groaning and holding his head. 

Cal turns to the others. "Next?"

"Uh..." The other two, Skinny and a chunky shorter man, look at each other for a moment, then Ryldinn is released and walks quickly to Cal, standing somewhat behind the bigger man. "Yeah, alright, you can have him. We're going. Come on, Barret, let's get you some ice." They help the man to his feet and the three of them stagger down the alley in the direction from which the tiefling had come. Cal watches them until they're out of sight, then turns to the drow, who seems to be a little shaky.

Cal reaches out and gently takes his arms, looking him over. The smaller man is dressed professionally tonight, tailored slacks and a snug waistcoat over a crisp blue linen shirt, his hair escaping from a neat tail at the back of his neck. There's a bulky messenger bag depending from one shoulder. "You alright, Ryldinn?"

The drow smiles a little, then steps forward into Cal’s arms and nods. "I am fine, Cal, just a little shaken. Thank the gods you showed up. What are you doing here?" He pulls back, and Cal cups his cheek with a smile. 

"I'm on my way home. Wanted to walk. Come on, let's get back to the street. How about you? This isn't really a safe neighborhood."

They emerge back onto the sidewalk on Ryldinn’s side of the street, and the drow starts fixing his hair and smoothing his clothes while he answers. "I am here for work. A few books I needed were being offered by a widow selling off her late husband's things. I suppose she is lonely; I spent longer than I intended having tea and talking with her. I live not far from here; I wasn’t expecting trouble." He reaches up to touch Cal's jaw, gently. "I'm sorry that man struck you. Does it hurt?"

Cal chuckles. "Not really. I'm tougher than I look. Dense bones. Don't worry about me; I asked for it. Can I walk you home? It would make me feel better."

Ryldinn smiles brightly, his little kitten teeth sparkling in the street lights. "I think it would make me feel better too. Thank you, Cal."

The tiefling smiles back and takes the slender dark fingers, kissing them briefly before resuming in the direction Ryldinn indicates. "I don't know if you got my message earlier, but I wanted to tell you. We have a night game tomorrow against Rivington, and you said you were interested... so if you're not busy..."

The drow squeezes his hand. "I would love to. This is my final task this week, so I should be free for a couple of days." He sounds a little nervous for a moment. "What kind of people go to games like that?"

"Oh, all kinds. But don’t worry about anything, alright? Most of them know about me; they won't give you any trouble. Just mention Dammon at the gate and they'll have seats for you."

"He is a member of your team?"

"Yep. He's the captain. He's also my boss; owns the shop I work at. He's a tiefling too. Really nice guy, known him since I was a kid. I think you'll like him."

"I'm sure I will, if he's anything like you. Turn here."

They cross another street and are suddenly in a much more gentrified, but far from wealthy neighborhood, with cute little shuttered shops and cafes. "This is nice," Cal says, looking around. "How long have you lived here?"

"Oh, around ten years now. I stayed with a friend until my Common was good enough to be on my own. The people here are nice and tend to keep out the intolerant."

"So you live alone now?"

"Mhm. I enjoy my privacy. The friend was Astarion, if you can imagine. It was a little chaotic. He still drops in now and again to irritate me, but I spend much time alone."

Cal grins. "I guess that guy could be an annoying roommate. I live with my sister. She's a pain sometimes too, but it's not bad. We're both out a lot." Ryldinn slows before a charming three-storey building and turns down the walkway. It's a little darker here; the dense landscaping blocking some of the light from the street and the windows. "This it?" Ryldinn nods. "Alright. I guess I'll get going, if you're sure you're alright."

"I'm fine." Cal nods and turns to go, but Ryldinn tightens his grip, and he pauses. "My hero." He moves closer with that precious little grin, and Cal's breath catches at the invitation there. "Will the knight in shining armor kiss his princess goodnight?"

Cal swallows, "Oh, absolutely," then wraps Ryldinn in his arms and presses his lips to the tender mouth. The kiss is chaste at first, but then Ryldinn moans softly and parts his lips, and Cal can't help himself. He pulls the drow closer, up against him, and probes with his tongue. Ryldinn meets him, sealing his mouth to Cal's and letting their tongues slide together. The drow inhales sharply at the feeling, sliding his hands up Cal's chest and around his neck, pressing his tight little body to Cal and bringing one leg up to curl around one of Cal’s. It feels incredible, and Cal risks wrapping his tail around the firm thigh, drawing another little whimper from the trembling drow. A small hand drifts down his chest and stomach, slides over the covered crest on his hip, then wraps gently around his tail where it rests against his leg, and this time it's the tiefling who groans quietly. Ryldinn’s mouth is sweet, soft and a little shy, his kiss unpracticed, almost clumsy against Cal’s lips, as if this is something he hasn’t done frequently or recently, but he's certainly enjoying it as well, from what Cal can detect. He kisses the lovely man for a few minutes, but then has to pull away before embarrassing himself. He blows out a breath, chuckles, and kisses Ryldinn on the forehead before pulling him in for a hug.

"That was amazing, sweetheart. Thank you."

Ryldinn giggles softly into his chest. "You’re telling me? I've never kissed anyone with a forked tongue before." He looks up, still breathing a bit rapidly. "You'd better go before I drag you upstairs. Are you going to be alright? Your face..."

Cal smiles and cups his cheek again. "I'm fine. Like I said, I'm pretty tough." He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly, trying to calm himself, then chuckles. "And yeah, I'll go, before I'm tempted to let you drag me. I'll see you tomorrow, alright?"

Ryldinn nods. "Tomorrow. Goodnight, Cal."

[panda-writes-kpop]

A/N: This is a little early for my North American / South American readers, but I wanted to hit as close as I could to her birthday in KST. This series is coming to a close, and I hope you enjoy this series and enjoy the ending to come!

TW: High levels of magic and intrigue, one of the girls are in their villain era ;), spoilers galore

Summary: You approach the Mad Hatter with many questions, but her answers are less than satisfactory, and your abilities draw you closer to the mysterious Author, as if you might have an idea of who they might be.

♡ Masterlist ♡ 》 》 》 ♧ AU Masterlist ♧

“Strange, isn’t it?”

You stare at the artwork before turning to Siyeon.

“What do you see?”

“A bunny.”

“Really? It just looks like a mess of colors.”

“Sometimes, you have to find beauty in the simplest of things.”

~

A study.

You’re in the Author’s study, and it’s warm and inviting.

“Why are you here again?” She asks before turning around in her chair. “Do you think I’m the villain of this story?’

“Life’s more nuanced than villains and heroes. I mean, you’ve helped me more than the person that I first met.”

“Goodness, you’re so close to figuring it out. You need to think, Alice. Why did Yoohyeon bring you here?” She applies pressure on you before leaning forward on her desk.

She places her hands on the desk and begins to write.

“Is Yoohyeon the villain?”

“No, but you’re naive to think that she wanted to help you.” She off-handedly comments.

“That’s rude to say-”

“Is it?” She glances up at you before shaking her head. “Her dumb mistake would have cost all of us, including yourself. Who has been as honest as they can be? Who has chosen to help you without knowing much about you?”

You’re silent as you’re unable to defend Yoohyeon.

“Why, then, do none of those features apply to Yoohyeon? How can you defend a liar who has the freedom to speak whenever she pleases?” She angrily says before pulling the glasses off of her face.

“Yoohyeon isn’t bound by magic?” You softly ask.

“Yes, and why is that?”

“I don’t know.”

A remorseful look sits on the Author’s face.

“It’s not your fault. I don’t know why I am angry with you when you are the main victim in all of this. You don’t remember your life before this, and who’s fault is that?” She sighs before rubbing her face with her hands.

“Yoohyeon’s?”

“No, it’s mine.”

~

With tenacity, you approach the woman at the tea table. JiU offers you a sympathetic thumbs up before heading back towards the kingdom. 

Guess I'm on my own now, with these visions and my wit to rely on. 

You sigh as you recall the Author's words.

How can you defend a liar who has the freedom to speak whenever she damn pleases?

The Mad Hatter turns toward you before taking her hat off.

"Do you know why a raven is like a writing desk?"

You smile before shaking your head. 

"I wouldn't know."

"Neither do I! 'Tis one of the great mysteries of life." She slides a teacup in front of you. "Care for something to drink?"

"I'm not really in the mood for tea-"

"It's not tea. Give it a taste, Alice." The Mad Hatter encourages, and you shrug before taking a sip.

"It's… delicious! What's in this?"

"That's the fun of it!" She cheerfully says. "The beverage takes on whatever flavor you've been craving at the moment."

"How odd…"

"Everything here is odd! That's the whole point of this place!" She jests before bumping you with her elbow. "Tell me, Alice, why did you come to see me?"

"I want answers."

"To what questions?"

"I-" You pause before answering. "Are we really in Wonderland?"

"You're either in Wonderland, or this is your messed up version of the afterlife."

You bite your lip before nodding.

"Okay, then… who is the Author?"

"A woman like me." The Mad Hatter thoughtfully says before setting her teacup down. "Do you blame her for your predicament?"

"She appears to be blaming herself." You say as you remember the remorseful look of the author.

You observe the jet-black haired woman. She carefully looks you up and down before leaning in. 

"What game are we playing now? This is no fun if you don't explain how to play." She complains as you sigh.

"No, it's not like that… Siyeon." You pinpoint her name as a memory flashes by your eyes.

"Will you remember me, darling?"

"Forever and always."

"You know me?"

"We've met before, but I have no time to explain." You place the empty teacup on the table before tilting your head at Siyeon. "I need to find the Author."

"But why? What other answer do you seek?"

Why did Yoohyeon drag me down here?

"What is Yoohyeon going to do now?"

Siyeon thinks for a moment before readjusting her top hat.

"Are you sure you want that answer?"

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

[0rinthered]

I am so passionate about Orin, like no it isn't fair she doesn't ever get the chance and Durge doesn't help her or care after the fact. Ironically what Orin did saved everyone and got Durge freedom if they chose it. The fact that all you can really do is insult her or call her stupid besides the "you've been abused and used option" which is a high roll to even convince her is so sad. I don't like mocking her knowing the whole context and why she's doing what she is. It's not a choice really. It feels wrong to me. She's a victim of so much abuse and grooming from all these awful men. I mean Saravok is a creepy ass misogynist who r worded Orin's sister/mom and people mock her about that in way that's really messed up.

The only person who even seems to show a bit of empathy or at least understanding of her is Minthara when she is a big victim of her. Orin punishes people because she's punished by Bhaal, I saw people post the dev notes the tragic context they should have made clear in the game. That she would have even tried to resist Bhaal before and when she did she got killed for it. In a fucked up way Minthara is the closest thing to showing her "love" or at least care, like I know it's not love but just someone like not being horrible to her or looking down on her for existing. She even says they had similar situations and upbringings so you save her that kind of fate. She said she saw herself reflected in Orin broken too. Sad about all the content they didn't give us because I know they said they wanted more Orin/Minthara stuff but I think ti deserved more than a few lines.

Orin's father is literally a child r*pist and apparently has a line where he says he likes her the same way he does her mom? LIKE WTF? and wants her to make babies with durge? I don't know if it is confirmed if he assaulted her or not but he obviously would if he wanted. He shows a lot of hate like he didn't effect what happened if he's mad about what Orin did to Durge. Felt so horrible killing her in the scene after you tell her the truth because she's totally a slave in body then too. It broke my heart. I don't like that they didn't make her background more of the forefront and just let people see her as this crazy one unless you think about her or find tidbits. She felt like a throwaway to me when she's so tragic and she's just mocked and hated by everyone. I hate abused children/women being painted as "crazy psychos" to make fun of. She's severely mentally ill. Ketheric is not a more sympathetic character, he chose to do all he did. Gortash is given more dignity and choice than her. I think Ketheric and his performance are overrated honestly, he just got more screentime and got to be more fleshed out so they say he's better. That's why people go "orin is just an unhinged boring murderhobo" SHE AND AZULA DESERVED SO MUCH BETTER

Yeah it's pretty frustrating - a lot is implied with her but man you really have to look for it, which a lot of people don't bother to do. Orin in my opinion is the most interesting of the three.

I know the general opinion seems to sway to Ketheric, and I really like him, but I think it's pretty ah... shallow? For lack of a better word. Maybe surface level? Like it's very straight forward in my opinion, which doesn't mean it's any less than Orin or Gortash but I think it's easier to absorb if that makes sense?

Whereas with both Orin and Gortash you really need to sniff around, Orin especially. Minthara is the companion she is attached to, as Gortash is Karlach (While it seems like the only connection Ketheric has to the camp is Shadowheart, but that's through Dame Aylin and Isobel strangely enough. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. But he has an entire act to himself so...). But with Minthara, she is so so so easy to miss and thoughtlessly slaughter (ironically enough) so that's a whole bunch of Orin content absolutely nuked off of the bat.

So I suppose the bizarre pacing is to blame for Orin and Gortash kinda farting around, and Orin not being treated fairly compared to how the fandom treats durge. Again, quite "fitting" I guess. Orin doesn't get that privilege of pity and a chance at life whereas Durge gets two chances. The first being actually having a life outside of the temple, and the second being the tadpole. Why? Idk.

I don't even want a redemption for Orin. I think the choice should be there, and I think the choice should be made by her. Only her.

My ideal world would be Orin can escape, stay (what we currently have), or escape in her own little Orin way. To elaborate on that... I think Orin should be able to continue slaughtering people, but I think she should do it for herself. Not for Bhaal, not for the temple. But because SHE wants to. I do however think the ""novelty"" of that for her would vanish pretty quickly once there's no unholy purpose to it, but that's just part of the growth I guess. So she rejects Bhaal, and skitters away into the shadows. She isn't going to have a character arc in like a week and dye her hair white - despite Shadowheart and Orin's similarities - I unfortunately think it'll take a lot lot lot longer and might never happen.

Still, the main point is that she has a choice, something she has been devoid of her entire life. What she chooses to do with that is up to her and that's the beauty of it.

I could go on and on and on about it and how she should actually be given lots of choices but that would just be me rambling even more than I already am LMFAO

Anyway, Orin I love you pookie boobookeys, remember that there's more to life than pleasing someone who never seems to want to please you.

[mxescargot]

OC masterlist

misc/multiple universes

garv (fishboy)

prima (tropey good guy)

vindicta (tropey bad guy)

ursa (dark magic bounty hunter)

ari (light magic bounty hunter)

urban fantasy/superhero

premise: a timeline that diverges several years before ours where a significant minority of the population across the world contracted strange illnesses that led to various magical powers; focuses on the Eastern United States (aka what im familiar with). themes of disabled justice and solidarity.

micheal (he/they): friendly college kid who always puts others before himself, teleportation powers

jem (any pronouns): an old self-insert, shapeshifting powers

ayaan (he/they): kid with unique powers that mess with the fabric of reality, of particular interest to the villain

emilia (she/her): sociologist studying how superpowered people interact with a society built for non-superpowered people, recently gained fire/energy/plasma powers of her own in an accident

saiorse (any pronouns): software developer and emilia's spouse. he does not have superpowers

alison (he/him): evil CEO (maybe also politician?) looking to take advantage of superpowered people for his own gain. especially young, powerful superpowered people. i do not know how to write villains tbh

eren (she/her): micheal's classmate.

haru (they/xe/it/star/she): your average edgy 14 year old.

aaliyah (she/they/flor): your average edgy 14 year old.

high fantasy: the world of An

premise: weird mix of some of the history i'm interested in, with a technological level of around the 1840s to 1860s? focuses on a governmental transition from absolute monarchy to parliamentary democracy and the greater inclusion of ethnic minorities in the political system and society as a whole. the people are sorta kemonomimi-hobbits with mammalian and insectoid features. also has eldritch shit going on in its magic system.

these are some of my oldest characters and have changed a lot, their original concept was a "five elements" thing and that still shows through.

the names are based on my conlang :> i didnt try to make the romanizations look pretty, just functional, so uhh ⟨v⟩ is a schwa and most letters correspond with IPA values but idk if thats accessible. here ill replace j with y and v with whatever letter looks best, you can see the mess of the "official" spellings in the tags. they dont exactly have a gender system like ours so pronouns are what i imagine they'd use if raised in our culture and language yk

baa'oni (they/she): activist reviving the long-suppressed/erased (idk what the right word is) life-related magic practices of their ancestors. name translates to "sundew"

lausa (she/her): noble who uses her position of power to help incite change, eventually becomes prime minister. romantically involved with baa’oni, causing suspicion and controversy. name translates to "shadower"

laanya (they/them): self insert. former water magic student reconnecting to it after trauma, also tries to get involved in activism. name translates to "river delta"

treyii (they/she/he): young and uncertain, pressure is put on him to achieve great things and they don't know where to belong. name translates to "sparks"

unnamed character referred to as "wind guy" (they/he): a vengeful prince with command over the weather.

star wars

premise: focuses on jedi fighting in the clone wars. i mostly made these characters in quarantine lol

aiya (they/xe): twi'lek anakin skywalker on a budget. padawan during the clone wars, becomes an inquisitor.

rakiss (she/they): mirialan; Aiya's fellow padawan and very close to xem. killed in O66

haalas (he/him): togruta; aiya's strict master, very loyal to the light side of the force itself and scared of losing another padawan to the dark side. survives O66, but is eventually killed by aiya, who blames him for rakiss's death.

malice (they/she/it): dathomiran zabrak who was the first padawan of haalas. left the order and turned to the dark side, but isn't with the Sith.

ekiv (she/her): rakiss's master, also a mirialan, and longtime friend of haalas. mom friend, but only because she's a people pleaser with massive gifted kid burnout. survives O66; assumes a new identity and learns how to heal.

hizta (any pronouns): tusken ex-bounty hunter who now runs a droid repair shop on coruscant. acquainted with aiya before and during the Clone Wars, aids the Rebellion.

penelope (she/they): human; old colleague of Hizta's. generally fairly cold and professional until you get to know them; actually very affectionate.

i also have some underdeveloped clone trooper OCs

hollow knight

cornu (they/them): HKsona. void-corrupted snail shaman capable of harnessing both soul and void magic.

unnamed fairyfly OC

[destinyc1020]

It's a shame that Hollywood studios feel that now days if a movie doesn't make "x" amount of dollars at the theaters, then it shouldn't even be released

Pure economics. Average promo campaigns for studio films cost 50-100 mil, "Barbie" level marketing is 150 mil. It's not worth it if the movie isn't good enough (in a studio's opinion). It's actually cheaper to just drop it on streaming platforms (or not release it at all) and not increase the already huge budget. Like, it doesn't make any sense to do expensive renovations before trying to sell a small old house in a bad neighborhood next to a newly opened chemical plant. You just sell it as it is and hoping that someone will buy your crappy house at least for some price for you to break even. I agree with you: movie studios are spending just unprecedented amount of money on wrong stuff these days . And people blame CGI. Nah, often this is not the case. Yes, CGI isn't cheap but it's getting cheaper every year. High-quality practical effects, filming on real locations, hiring extras cost WAY MORE than CGI. It's all about salaries, location rent, street closures for filming etc. Real set requires a lot of workers, shooting days, and takes to make a practical scene perfect. And after the new SAG contract all of the above will cost even more. "Cheap practical is cheaper than cheap CGI but cheap CGI could be cheaper than high quality practical" — James Gunn. So, CGI is often cheaper and much faster and truly helpful... but it's being abused, that's the problem. Creators are getting lazy, and they're relying too much on post-production editing. And we end up with a whole 2 hours of low-quality CGI mess that looks completely fake as a result. Here's something that 100% should be blamed for the bloated budget: COVID, production mess and endless reshoots, big names and their enourmous salaries, the inflated costs of everything. CGI is just like another huge chunk on top of it all. Sorry for the movie marketing and budget essay lmao.

[autumnalwalker]

Untitled Solarpunk Witch draft, chapter 1.5

Spring, Week 5, Five of Swords

“Now that my implants were fully back online, I didn’t have any more excuse to keep putting off reporting this whole incident back to the order.  After I sent it off they wanted to talk in real time.  Because of course they did.”

It’s been a while since I’ve been up this high.  I hadn’t done much flying since arriving in Zello; not much need for it and it does use up a lot of power.  Alas, this isn’t a joyride.  I have to be up this high to get a strong enough signal for the quality the elders are going to want for the call.

“What if I go down just a little lower and blame the quality on being out in the boonies?”

They’d know, and it would only look worse for you.

I let out a sigh.  “Yeah… Well, let’s get this over with.” I verbalize the command words to initiate the sending ritual and the embedded antenna fully extends from the point of my hat while the brim curls up into the suggestion of a dish.  I’ve long since given up on questioning the safety of having this thing on my head all the time.

Oh, have some faith in yourself.  You’re still here after all, and you got the job done.  And if you don’t they’ll pick up on it and start reading into it.

“Not making it better,” I subvocalize while trying to get a good lock on one of the few remaining communication satellites.

Bast(et) turns around on her perch to look me in the eye.  What I’m saying is you’re afraid that they’ll look at what happened and decide you aren’t ready to be out on your own yet after all.  To them, the fact that - on some level - you don’t think you’re ready is going to matter more than the events themselves.

I drop my concentration on the network connection and slip back into full vocal out of exasperation.  “And so what?  I’m supposed to just not have doubts after messing up in a way that could have gotten me killed?  Even if I do think I can do better, get better, it’s not like I can just turn those thoughts off!”

You don’t need to turn them off, just stop focusing on them so much.  We’re not even on a full thought link and I can still pick up that you’re letting that dread seep into everything.  

She pauses.  I can count on one hand the number of times she’s hesitated to speak her mind and I have a suspicion as to what she’s about to suggest.

I can help if you let me.

“How?” I ask, drawing out the word.

Believe in the me that believes in you.

I stare blankly back at her.

Sorry, art history reference to lighten the mood.  But in all seriousness, open a channel and I can take on some of that fear.  Share the load and disperse it so it stops stealing your focus away.  It’s not a gestalting, or even a full thought link, I know how you feel about that.  Just a redirect of that one thing.

“I… don’t know…”  I look away, down to the moonlit village below.  “It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s just…  I’m…”

Afraid of not being you.  I know.  And I promise this won’t be anything like that, and you’ll be free to sever the link at any time from your end.  She walks down the length of the broom and nuzzles my hand before looking back up at me.  Please, let me help you.

“And won’t they realize what we’re doing?”

Not if we do it right, which we will.  At worst they’ll think we’re more bonded than we were when we left and count that as positive growth.

I realize I’ve been clenching my jaw again and let out a sigh.  “Fine, let’s give it a shot.” I tap out a parameter pattern on the side of my head and speak the command phrase to open a limited channel.  “It’s funny, normally you’re the one telling me not to hide things from the elders.”

Well, rubbing off on one another is half the point of the bond.

Link established on Bast(et)’s end.  We’re now connected beyond subvocal audio, if only slightly.  I don’t feel any different.

“You sure it worked?”

Yes.  Now let’s not keep the elders waiting any longer.

It takes me another minute or two to get a lock on a satellite, but once I do the connection is stable.  From there it’s just a matter of activating the next module in the sending ritual to route me to the elders and then visualizing the sequence of symbols for the passcode.  It’s an admittedly arcane way of going about privacy, harder to hack than character-based passwords, leftover from the days when that was still a concern.

For a moment as the “Passcode Accepted” message flashes in the air before me my mind begins to wander toward worst case what-ifs.  And then I feel Bast(et)’s presence - calm and steady, yet decisive - and I’m able to push all that aside.  Not gone, but no longer distracting.

And then the sending goes through and two ghostly figures appear floating in the air in seated positions before me.  I know that I’m appearing the same way for them.  We don’t have cameras set up, so the AR projections are reading from the same systems as the implant calibration.

Two elders.  I’m not already in trouble, or else it’d be a triune.  More than one though, so this isn’t just an informal checkup on how I’m doing.  Two still feels like a weird number, unless… ah, crap, they’re planning on looping me into a coven circuit for the interview, aren’t they?

The one on my left speaks up first.  Even abstracted via avatar I recognize Elder Petrichor.  I know her more by reputation than personal experience.  Serious, stern, one of the few veterans from the Reconfiguration still around and active.  I swear she had the wrinkles added to her avatar’s face manually.  “Greetings young scion.”

“Elder Petrichor,” I bow my head in deference, “Elder Faeowyn.” At least she’s a friendly face.  Elder by achievement rather than age.  I apprenticed under her for a time and I always thought we got along well.

“Good to see you well,” the younger elder says.

“Let’s get right to the point, shall we?” Elder Petrichor cuts in.  “We’ve reviewed your report and we have concerns about several items therein.  Not the least of which was that you neglected to inform anyone of the initial miscommunication regarding Zello’s request for assistance.”

“I judged that their request was one I could handle, so there was no need to take up the time and attention of other witches that could be better spent elsewhere.”

“So you said in your report.  It is not a judgment I agree with, but we’ll come back to that matter later.”

“The more important matter,” Elder Faeowyn says, “is that you went through a traumatic experience and we want to make sure you’re okay.  Especially since you haven’t indicated reaching out to anyone since then.”

“My implants have been offline until recently, that makes it difficult to contact anyone else in the order.  Besides, I have Bast(et), and I’ve met people in Zello I can talk to.”

“Nevertheless,” Elder Petrichor says, “while we trust you to be honest with us, given your prior history we have concerns about your ability to be honest with yourself, particularly when it comes to your own wellbeing, and that can color what you present to others, whether you mean for it to or not.”

I can’t help but wince at that comment.  It hurts because it’s true.

“To that end,” Elder Petrichor continues, “it is our hope that you’ll consent to reiterating a full report of your activities as Zello’s provisional village witch via a temporary coven link.”

Faeowynn’s avatar leans forward and puts a hand on mine.  There's a fractional second of network lag time before my implants simulate the feeling of a gentle, reassuring squeeze.  When she speaks her voice is a soft contrast to Elder Petrichor’s sharp formality.

“You don’t have to if you’re not comfortable with that, and we won’t hold it against you.  I understand you don’t like mental links like this.”

She would understand.  She was there for my infamous breakdown.  

Take a breath to center myself.  Feel Bast(et)’s presence in the back of my mind.  They’re not asking for a gestalt; I’ll be fine and it’ll get this whole uncomfortable assessment over with that much faster.

“Thank you for your concern, elder, but that’s quite alright.  Go ahead and initiate the circuit.”

*******

The following series of questions and answers examining everything I’ve done since arriving in Zello would have taken hours to talk through verbally.  Communicating with a rapid-fire exchange of impressions, visualizations, emotions, and raw concepts we finish in less than ten minutes.  If we’d been in-person and not limited by network lag it might have been half that time.

By the time we finished, it felt like I’d practically relived both the initial surveying and the excavation of the drone.  Gentle as they were with it, I still feel emotionally wrung out by the end.  The secondary link with Bast(et) metaphorically holding my hand throughout probably saved me from panic terminating the circuit halfway through.

That said, the elders seem satisfied that I’m handling things well.  The things that went wrong with the excavation and the places I’ve stumbled socially are judged to be trials that I learned from rather than failures.  Faeowyn reminds me that even though I’m technically graduated from training, I’m expected to struggle at first on my own.  It’s how we keep learning and growing, she tells me.

More ominously, Elder Petrichor ends the call telling me to keep in mind that a wound to me is a wound to my familiar and that I shouldn’t rely solely on Bast(et) for support without considering her own needs.  That left us both wondering afterward if she knew what we were up to the whole time.

All in all, not as bad as I’d feared.  No being told to come home for further training.  No sending a more senior witch out to supervise.  Just an admonishment to be more careful in the future and a strong suggestion to check in more often.  If not in an official capacity ,then at least informally with my peers.  As if I were still close with any of them.

One last bit of weirdness follows the call.  After we’re alone once more, as I terminate the limited channel Bast(et) and I had up I have the briefest flash of seeing myself in the third person, looking up at my own face.  Bast(et) is as surprised by that moment of shared vision as I am.  We’re both unsettled enough that we spend the next day running diagnostic scans, but neither of us find anything and we write it off as a weird network fluke from the earlier coven circuit.

The day after that, construction on the shelter away from the village where we’ll be working on the drone disarmament finishes.

*******

“It’s kind of creepy when you do that, you know?”

“Greg!”

I blink the AR menu displays away and look up from my work over at Greg and Luanna where they’re breaking down the drone’s primary gun on the other end of the tiny raft-mounted hut.

“What’s what when I do what?”

“When you start whispering to it like that,” Greg says as he rubs the back of his head.  

I’m not sure if he’s just embarrassed about having just said something presumably rude or if Luanna just hit him.  I was pretty absorbed in my part of the work until just now.

He continues, “You get all soft like you’re talking to a kid or a pet or something, but also sort of far off and spooky.  And then the thing starts opening panels and extending parts for us to yank out.”

“I’ve been saying all that aloud?”

Greg nods.  Luanna shrugs.

You usually do.

Thank MG for broad-brimmed hats to hide blushing faces.

“If it makes you feel any better, we can’t actually make out most of it,” Luanna says.

I can.

“And you never said anything?”

I assumed you realized.

Time for a subject change before my health monitors mistake my face for having a fever.

“Aaannnyway, it looks like we were right about the paint job.”  I pat the side of the drone.  Now that the mud and film have all been cleaned off its chassis is clearly visible, bearing an image of a burning tree beneath a raincloud.  Not the most subtle symbol for that era’s activism.  In spots where the paint’s been scratched and chipped fragments of an old Corp logo peek out.  “We’re not the first people to try modding this guy.  Now that I’m looking at more than baseline status readouts and munitions inventory, I’m finding the custom patches and addons that whoever got their hands on it last time installed.”

“That would explain the discrepancies we’ve been seeing,” Luanna says.

“Speaking of,” Greg says, “I went ahead and put some pictures I took on the Collapse forums.  A couple of the guys there think they’ve identified the model and said they’d get back to me about digging up schematics for it.”

“Great!” I say.  “That should help speed things up once we get around to repairs.”

“Or for identifying any more unstable out of place custom jobs that might blow up in our faces when we poke them,” Luanna adds in far too matter-of-fact a tone.  Greg and I both wince at that thought.

“And with that cheerful image, I’m voting we call it a day on the yanking out parts.”  With a blink I pull the menus back up, swipe through a few of them, and shut the drone back down, causing the indicator lights to go out and the faint hum of its internal components to quiet.

“It never gets old,” I hear Greg whisper.

“What’s that?”

“You know.  The - “ Greg starts waving his hands around in the air in an exaggerated imitation of me.

I chuckle.  “Oh yeah.  I forget that other people can’t see the displays sometimes.  I guess I do look pretty weird without them.”

Luanna gives a shrug.  “I mean, I wasn’t going to say anything, but… it is pretty silly looking.”

I for one find it cute how you add all those little flourishes and poses like you’re actually casting spells instead of just sliding menus around and typing in a terminal.

“That is so not the descriptor I was going for.”

“Anyway, you two got room for one more set of hands over there?”

Half an hour later what had once been a device for rapidly launching hot chunks of lead into human beings is now an organized collection of  tubes, springs, bolts, and other miscellaneous metal and plastic bits.  As we leave behind the beached and anchored workshop on a second raft to head back to Zello, Greg brings the earlier conversation back up.

“But seriously, what’s with the whispering?  The gesturing I get, but are you giving it voice commands or something?”

“Sometimes,” I pause for a moment, slightly embarrassed.  “Most of the time I’m just talking to it.”

Luanna raises an eyebrow.  “I didn’t think it was smart enough for that.”

It’s not.

“Not exactly, but it does have a sort of intelligence, and a directive for self-preservation.  I figure if I’m poking around its insides, the least I can do is be nice to it and reassure it that I mean no harm.  It’s a small kindness, but it’s what kindness I can offer while still doing what I need to do.”

“It’s a killing machine,” Luanna says.

“I like to think of it more like an attack dog.  It never asked to be that way and never had a say in doing the things it does, but with a little love, patience, and retraining it could be something else.”

It’s more like an insect than a dog, really.

“Huh, weird, but whatever works for you I guess,” Greg says.  “Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for drone repurposing, and I’ve seen some cool projects online, but I’ve never really thought of them as much more than really cool hardware.”

I shrug.  “Eh, call it a witch thing.”

More like a you thing.

“You’re really no fun when this topic comes up, you realize?”

It’s because of things like that that most humans don’t trust us.   There’s a bitterness and heat to her voice that I’ve rarely felt from her.

“Whoah, okay, sorry, I shouldn’t have said it that way.”

Sigh.  It’s fine.  Let’s just talk about something else.  

“Like?”

I was going to comment on the irony of Greg being on the disarmament crew, but that’s closer to staying on that topic than I’d like right now.

“It’s not that ironic.  He’s one of the better mechanics around here and an even bigger nerd for old tech than I am.  Oh, Ursula mentioned wanting to talk to you.  I think she wants you to model for a painting.”

Oh really?  Well, I suppose I can deign to be in the spotlight for once.

“I knew you’d jump at the opportunity.”

[notroosterbradshaw]

howdy, fellow rooster enthusiast!🤠🤎

I don't know if you're taking asks, but if you are, I have an idea that has been marinating in my mind for a WHILE: rooster's reaction to a reader with a lot of tattoos??? *high pitched screaming*

for a bit of context, this thot was based on real events lmaoooo😃 my boss hired this new girl and all my coworkers thought she looked so mysterious?? She's quiet, keeps it to herself and she's also really pretty. She keeps a serious face at all times too (but also there are a lot of weird people at work so I don't blame her lol) and no one really knows much about her.

We had a work get-together (we have these every end of the month) and we saw her out of 'work clothes' for the first time and boy oh boy we had a surprise. She was wearing a tank top that displayed the most beautiful dragon tattoo I've ever seen 😭😭 it took over her whole arm and back. She looked so badass. Ugh. All my coworkers were just as stunned as me bc everyone just assumed she was shy or whatever. Anyways, this somehow made me think of rooster 😀

Like?? Imagine reader is new to dagger squad and has moved to san diego recently. She's been introduced to them and all but they don't know much about her yet and she's so mysterious and snarky ~~ Nat invites her for a game on the beach and they see her with 'normal clothes' for the first time and she's sporting a huge tattoo on her thigh/back/arm (idk maybe all of them, the more the merrier lmaoo)

idk why but something tells me rooster has a thing for mean women. Like-- women that can beat his ass. And reader is so smart mouthed and sarcastic. He already thought she was attractive but when he sees the tattoos??? ooooof this man is on his knees. He would be a blushing mess trying not to stare too much and acknowledge her short shorts and tank top. And then would spend the rest of the afternoon wondering where else she has tattoos 🏃🏾‍♀️🏃🏾‍♀️💨💨💨

Can you tell I have a thing for tattoos?? UGH, I would be in a whole new level of confidence if I had the money to cover myself in pretty tattoos lol, I'll leave it to you, feel free to ignore this if you don't like it <3 I love your writing btw xoxo

-🧛🏾‍♀️

My love, I can’t add to this, because your headcanon is far too sexy for me to do it justice! Come back to my asks with more of these thots. I know lots of our friends have lots of body art and you will do it more justice than I will.

I don’t have tatts but have had an assortment of piercings over the years.

It’s Body Art Friday, kids. And Rooster (and I) love it! TELL. ME. MORE!

[wooyoungisbaby]

back at it again B)

and he will soon become the Choi San who fucks his boyfriend in front of you with full consent from all parties involved.

hashtag blessed. im so alive

Honestly reader’s attempt at blaming Byeol for something that’s entirely 100% awesome and wonderful is so funny. like NO take the credit yourself! xD

They fuck, you watch; high fives all around afterwards.

honestly godspeed lmao

“Wooyoung can get…mouthy,” San says, cautiously.

Y E S <333333333

“Y-yea, no— It’s not��not always that mild,”

im rolling around on the floor giggling maniacally

They know that every degrading insult has the purpose to make the other feel good, even if it may seem counter-intuitive on a surface level. You are an outsider looking in — and you struggle to predict how you’ll respond to anything less ‘mild.”

really appreciating the very real moments of clarity and sense that Reader has. it makes it so realistic that she’s not just 100% on board with everything immediately, or knows exactly what she likes without having ever tried it. it’s refreshing! :)

There’s more than one way to deal with Wooyoung.

O WO !!

Wooyoung confirms the latter as soon as he opens the door to greet you with a sly grin, biting his bottom lip.

slut!!! :’))

He pushes his hair back with a suggestive wink, striking a little pose. “It’s a sexy look, right? Right?”

HE S A SLUT I LOVE HIM SM!!!!!

“Sannie seriously did push-ups before you got in here. I think he’s nervous, isn’t that cute?”

screaming!!! he’s such a bad boy what the hell <3 (never change) and yes, that IS very cute.

“You think you deserve to cum more than once, after mouthing off like you just did?” San says

not to be a brat apologist but Woo deserves to cum every which way as much as he wants. he deserves the world. i’m glad San isn’t as forgiving as me bc i do also enjoy some edging/denial pffff

Obedient, for you.

^but like emotional

“Fuck,” San curses softly, and pulls Wooyoung’s mouth off of him. Wooyoung is dazed, his eyes a little glassy, and he is reluctant to part his lips from San’s cock.

once again i am fuckin ascending theyre so cute and wonderful!!!!

“You’re enjoying yourself like this, aren’t you? Putting yourself on display like—” San bites something back, shaking his head.

he’s doing amazing :’)) although, like Reader, i wish he had said whore/slut out loud ehehe. but the kinda-promise that it'll happen later on is good too ;))

“Better,” Wooyoung rasps, a crack in his voice. “It’s better, f-fuck, San…”

he’s so honest, im so soft for him aaaaa :’))) AHAHahah and right after that, it’s stated that he prepped himself <3 i am no longer soft. well. i still am but— you get it.

no more walls in between you and him.

CHUMEIL CHWO BREAK THAT WALL URI FEELRO YEOGIJEO--

He keeps up the punishing slam of his hips as he fucks into Wooyoung, whose upper body crumples into the bed under the relentless onslaught

gOd. the mental image im having of them rn. Wooyoung’s expression is so blissed out and i!!!! aaaaa!!!!

The whole safeword exchange was so good =u= Wooyoung obviously being good to go, and San wanting to be careful. perfect.

and the mental images blaze through your head like wildfire.

girl same.

that gorgeous slope of his nose looks just perfect to ride up against your clit

Y E A H :’)

“Or are you so drunk on my cock that you can’t remember something that simple? Tell me what the rule is, now.”

hahah i am okay and normal about this San :’)) (lying)

Wooyoung is nothing but a crumpled, snivelling mess but still he groans eagerly, encouraging San to use him.

FUCK hes so perfect. wgat the fuck. i am in love. i wanna be him i wanna marry him.

San’s eyes go soft as he brushes the hair out of Wooyoung’s face, kissing him on the forehead before he straightens up.

brb! digging a grave and jumping into it bc i can not deal with how soft and precious this is.

“Did so well, Sannie,” he says, stealing little touches with his free hand while San cleans him up. Eyes glittering with pure adoration. “Took such good care of me, you always do.”

re-reading this and knowing about San’s insecurities, and that Woo does this to soothe them, is so sweet :’)

“‘Signed up for’?” a hoarse voice echoes from the bed. “What am I, a job?” “A full-time one, Woo,” San fires back without missing a beat

BAHAHA stellar, San is used to Woo’s dumb ass <3

whichever way [woosan x reader] pt 2

pairing: woosan x f reader

rating: 18+

genre: smut, fluff-ish, neighbours au, friends with benefits

ch. summary: You follow through with Wooyoung’s suggestion, but it looks like things aren’t ending there.

wc: 7.4k

ch. warnings: hard dom San, bratty sub Wooyoung, voyeur reader, consensual voyeurism/exhibitionism, kink negotiation, m x m, anal sex, rough sex, spanking, masturbation, dirty talk, blowjob, handjob, dumbification & degradation (@ Wooyoung), a hint of dacryphilia, praise kink (@ reader), safeword colour check (it’s green), aftercare

a/n: features a soft-bodied, aromantic reader who uses she/her pronouns

(also the first 2k of this chapter is basically kink negotation i got carried away i’m so sorry lol)

masterlist. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

“Hey. Sorry, it’s just me today,” San says, opening the door to let you inside. “Wooyoung got called into an extra shift at work.”

Keep reading

[nathank77]

11/14/24

9:02 p.m Added to Significantly 9:20 p.m****

The sides of my head by my ears were hurting from the half frames unfortunately so I switched back to my Ray-Bans... I mean the eye strain is worse with them but i guess I got to trade off until I get my new glasses which will also squeeze my head but maybe i can move the arms out enough to make them comfortable. The half frames I currently have snap so easily. I've broken one of the pairs 2 separate times and the ones I was wearing once. You can't even try to move the arms they just snap in half.

It sucks being poor and having no options. I'm still worried about my heart but for now I guess i can't do anything about it. The statin will be blamed for all my muscle pain and as long as Riley exists under the roof trying repatha is setting me up for thyroid storm. The stress is worse than normal. My stress level was always high growing up here and then once I started hallucinating but now with Riley it's worse. I'm interested to see what my levels are but nonetheless even if I made marked improvement living behind my barricade, I still think repatha is too risky unless Riley leaves.

I keep thinking, think of the statin or repatha like Methimazole- a life saving medication that could help me and change my life for the better. Unfortunately my cardiologist isn't a bloodwork guy to track if statins are causing muscle damage, they could have pulled this enzyme for bloodwork. That's what he should have done when I was having spasms from the other statin for all I know my b vitamins were low..... cause well they were...

Remember when I kept having spasms in my eyebrow and all over my body a couple months after the statin and I was convinced it was from the statin cause well they say statin muscle side effects can last up to 3 months after discontinuing... I talked to my pcp about it, bc I wasn't sure if it was White mulberries, and I also had that whole mess with metopolol increasing them... and she said it sounds like a b vitamin issue and lonebehold the simplest answer was the right one... when i was on the statin I was eating chicken very regularly... but I know that my folic Acid was low then bc my diet was so precise. Chicken has hardly any fucking folic Acid in it.....

What if that side effect was only caused bc I had low b vitamins?? What if I didn't have muscle damage?? I mean why when I called didn't he order bloodwork and pull for that enzyme?? I mean.... if he pulled that and b vitamins if my enzyme was normal and b vitamins weren't once I started folic it could have fixed it.. now I'm on Metopolol every fucking day and minus the random leg spasms I'm fine I know it's cause I overworked them on the elliptical...

I almost think i should switch cardiologists... but idk..

I think about my endo and I made a deal with him, I wouldn't start Methimazole unless he did a comprehensive metabolic panel every month and did my thyriod levels monthly. I said bc of the liver enzyme and the potential for severe liver damage i will not take Methimazole unless you pull my liver levels and my thyriod every single month and he said, "done." And I have standing orders..

I wish my cardiologist was a bloodwork guy i mean when that statin was in me it could have been the b vitamins... but now it's too late... idk what to do. All I know is i got to keep him for a while bc I can do the running test in the next couple of months with the ekg and see how my heart voltage is. But maybe after I should try to find a bloodwork guy cause if you can look for that enzyme and it's not fucking there then it's something else causing it... idk I'm just really annoyed. He only does my chlorestoral for bloodwork.

I'm worried about sleep. I hope it goes well. I feel so much more nerdy in these but so much hotter too bad my eyes hurt with these or my ears hurt if I wear the other glasses.

[lunarsilkscreen]

Why are Humans having less kids.

No it's not a "Cultural" issue, but if it is; it's the same issue around the world.

Today many dumsdums blame "middle-easterners" for their own sexual pertard.

"of course they want to immigrate!" They say! Blaming them having more kids than they can take of.

Completely ignoring the effects of war that *destroys* wealth and prosperity they may have been held by these people.

Even a first-class-country denizen such as yourself dear reader.

No; when people slow down breeding; And animals do this too--Its because of the availability of resources.

A family-line, a working family line requires resources to sustain; these resources are obviously Time and Money right now..or; the economy.

Most parents don't want to leave their children in a worse off world than they came into. It's part of the reason for the change from "Manifest Destiny" to "Fuck Immigrants".

*cough*DonaldTrump-isonbothsidesofthisinnuendo*cough*

Because most people are worried about the economy and how they *still* haven't found their place in the American Dream, despite seeing immigrant after immigrant after immigrant seemingly coming here to make it big.

They see the establishment as enslaving them and trading the country's prosperity to other countries for favors. Now, a lot of people on the right try to point the blame to the political left. But that's not the whole truth is it?

Many conservatives are upset about a great number of things; cities being designed for tourism benefit the *owners* of those cities instead of the residents who live there. Foreign investment means homes and Business Zones become out of reach for your average citizen. And that's all *without* immigration.

And all that gets mixed up with state and city lines. People might see native born citizen transients looking for work as "Illegal Immigrants" instead of the citizens they are. They then might blame them for "messing up their cities" and coming to "mess up ours in the same way."

Despite *also* being conservative. And leaving those cities *because* they're conservative and got outvoted.

Not only are foreign *internal conflicts* getting mixed in with local *internal conflicts* thanks to "the algorithm" combining keywords; concepts such as "transient" workers are being conflated with "the trans agenda" and immigration.

Back to the issue at hand; less children.

Many *would be* parents want children. Not just trans women, but cis women. They rationally understand; they can't afford children.

And so what it looks like, from a certain world view; is rich people forcing out poor women to either "marry rich" or "leave the gene pool".

Despite some not having kids because of a fear of passing down perceived genetic anomalies (which most people have. That's why we're racist) and many of them being caused by factors out of their control, at the control of the rich (most obvious example; Agent Orange: a chemical agent that made many American soldiers infertile..at much higher rates than Spirinolactone; given to people 30+ for high blood pressure, and trans women.)

In this world; because overabundance lead to wasting resources and a continually over-inflated economy and fake economic growth; many people find themselves below certain level of comfort necessary in which to raise children.

Children are a Luxury in this world; and despite trying to save up for it; many families find themselves unable to.

Especially; since there's already plenty of children that the country has deemed "unaffordable".

So if children are "unaffordable". Is it any surprise the population is quote; "Stagnating"?

And if we maintain annual average birth rate of 2.5 children per couple; doesn't that make up for "ALL THESE QUEER PEOPLE MAKING ALL THE CHILDREN GAY?"

Some of y'all need to do the math, but you decided to stop learning it in 3rd grade.

A.I. can't save you if you don't know what the numbers mean.

[the-firebird69]

Panic! At The Disco - High Hopes (Official Video)

This is what my husband grew up on was high hopes. Play Tommy F people like Tommy F live to ruin his hopes and they put him at dead end jobs and they're taking potshots at him the whole time wrecking his day annoying him turns around and he says you did the job like I needed you to what do you want me to do make $1,000,000 a year and be happy not book the system so the next one that too is in what I say is that they're directly challenging us and you people don't think we're anything. You are a lazy ignorant idiot who cannot build anything. Roof is coming out. Highly capable of maintaining buildings to minimum level for minimal use. Disgusting but true. So Tommy F here is thinking about my mama it's mostly about me believe it or not especially about him and his mom who did the best you could for him and inspired him solely because they were losing power and they were to be hunted down and killed she did a great job and was a good mom for him and I might have had a use for it and she was a very strong woman compared to most of you morlock. And was his mother taught him things and someone's acting like her or she might have done out and she's in a video as pink and she's coming out and her knife and stuff and that's what Tommy F says she taught him and it was quick stuff he says and picked it up pretty good and defended myself a lot and she was a good mother and I'm singing about him and me cause I was upset I thought they left me and they were taken from me by these max and he says he thinks the song is about the symbol if I know what it means and he knows what it means. It's only album cover and the album has a specific name and it doesn't mean what he's saying and it does just not the particular location and it wasn't supposed to turn into the symbol and it's not supposed to be a message send back to his that when you install the safety is it begins to work we are not really supposed to do that looks like we go ahead and do it anyways and I have to explain what it means I should never do this kind of thing again there's a massive heartbreak and it says that his mother and father inspired him and sometimes calls her mama it's a joke and I think he's talking about her in the song through me and says things about what was happening in the same at these particular points we've decided to do stuff and they talked about it before he says right before I'm climbing I do say something and right at the point of the other interval it's another item and they're very pertinent it will make you think. They're not giving this guy a chance his legacy wasn't that great until the symbol for some reason people were not signing on until they heard about it so I went out of this being the guy to blame I was talking about on Earth and he says it's not exactly the right shape for Earth so I get that let's start to complain again and I have to reference the album does it mean something else to us

tommy f

Olympus

Hard to get out of aren't they these things that you keep putting my husband in we're not doing it on purpose it's your stupid symbol but isn't it a nuisance with your idiots you and your **** are in around doing it on purpose saying all sorts of stuff looking what catches we don't feel bad for you you're a **** **** I didn't like you he did not like you you're tolerated a little dave too your pigs but boy do you have a stupid attitude for kind of trouble you're in new people are gonna die people are gunning for you for this stupid symbol. And literally you ran around every day like hopeless hopeless addicts and mental patients with your blithering blitter **** it's so damned annoying we don't need it at all who the hell would say we need it you just sit there and quiet instead of listening to your **** **** all day long you and your space cadets and boy you're getting messed up that's for damn sure

Hera 

You have this SOP that kicks in when idiots are tripping and having noises made and having conversations made and at this level there it's different and what you're going through are changes that you don't see and you're attracting enemies and for some reason you feel better and a big setup is occurring and you're going yea the whole time when it should be the other way around and really it's disgusting what you people look like are complete animals and **** and enemies you have no idea that it's getting worse and worse every day and your **** is more rancid than trumps by the way but his is rancid I mean you people act like 5 year old children. What you do is you take the video and I have people that do this and some of you guys do it and you have the video say out loud what you're doing after you interpret the code and it makes it sick I can think extremely fast and I can see your stupid crap and interpret it real quick and you see here seeing you're threatening me with it why I say it's things are happening to you behind the scenes and get your fat **** off me and Tommy F you had plenty of time to say stuff now you can and Tommy F you had plenty of time to say stuff now you can answer questions about your album cover and ****. Good luck you're gonna need it.

Zues Hera

Olymmpuos

[jesusagrees]

i agree i love the girls (le sserafim) and i don’t blame them, kpop is a machine with a lot of gears behind it. Certain labels have certain standards and i don’t think hybe (source music) is training them properly for live performances and giving them songs that flatter their voices. I can’t in good faith ignore there subpar vocals but i also can’t bully them over it. I will say they weren’t ready for coachella and alot of kpop fans are tone deaf to their favs and come up with excuses. They don’t have to be beyonce but they train hard for years for what? I was expecting more :/. And it’s okay to expect more as a fan. Then again i come from gen 2-3 of kpop where vocals were very important and these days visuals are more important . I personally don’t like this change but if they’re still selling records and selling out shows there isn’t much to be done. I prefer more vocally talented groups although i do love Le sserafim music their bad vocals stop me from being a full on stan. I like the girls individually as people but ahh the singing piece is hard. They don’t sound conditioned to sing live at all, i wonder what type of training and practicing they’ve been doing all this time. And the excuse of singing and dancing is hard doesn’t cut it. No one is expecting a live performance to sound like the recorded song but there’s a level of quality that should still be there. Look at jungkook, look at aespa, or txt. Do they not have hard songs and/or dances? Why do they sound so good live? Cause they train to sound good live, they train to do long high energy performances. It’s quite literally their lives work, they spent years doing so. So i’m sorry but le sserafim doesn’t get to have any slack in that area (or their management). They don’t deserve excessive hate but their mediocrity at the time they are in their career is ridiculous. Chaewon can only carry so much, i feel like everything is put on her back to make the group sound good. The rest are jus visuals. Not even Yunjin sounds good. How does she go from having an opera back ground to being an off key out of breath mess. She literally grew backwards i’m so confused.

Oh, I totally agree with this.

It's literally their JOBS to sing and dance and they CANNOT do it. They can dance/perform fine, but dancing and performing does NOT equal GOOD SINGING. You can be a good performer but a terrible singer.

And as an old gen 2-3 stan too, coming from that background and to what kpop is today is why I have such a hard time getting into new groups. These groups just do not cut it for me and a lot of their personality does not make up for lack of talent to me. I am a full blown SHAWOL. I stan one of the best in the industry and I KNOW the standards.

LESSERAFIM need to be benched for a Year AT LEAST and get the proper training and whole new team while they're at it. They need to come back when they're ready.

And their fans are just as embarrassing. This whole thing was blown WAY UP because of their hardcore fans. Their fans made the situation WAY worse for these girls. Instead of taking the L quietly, as they SHOULD have done, they brought other groups into it pissing off other fandoms hence why it got blown up so big.

This is going to stay with these girls FOREVER if they do not get proper training. They are being set up for FAILURE.

And I will say, I am SO glad ATEEZ was there to show what REAL/TRUE kpop is. LESSERAFIM was such a bad example of kpop and it's really embarrassing on the industry. I hope companies use this as an example and take this and LEARN from it. Stop rushing out untalented, untrained idols who just give face. Bring back the REAL idols.

[hetalian-veteran]

I put "other" here as my answer. And I apologize in advance for all I'm going to write, but I have so much to say.

I definitely agree with the points you made here, in that Hetalia itself is rife with issues. Many of which would likely send modern audiences into a coma if they came out today. Particularly the first two seasons. However, I will say that Hetalia still has some good comedy and satire in it. As someone who recently rewatched the entire series, here are my thoughts. It's also important to note here that I almost exclusively watch the English dub, so that will likely color some of my opinions.

I think one's enjoyment of Hetalia can depend on which seasons you're watching. For example, the first two seasons of Hetalia actually have much more problematic humor than I remember. Auschwitz is mentioned several times, and while jokes are never made about it, the presence of this word in a satire/comedy about world history feels very off-putting. Even if it is based around WWII, this isn't a topic you'd consider to be "comedic." Not to mention two specific statements Germany makes in season one that I am not brave enough to quote here. As well as Italy doing a particular salute at least once or twice. I'd mention more, but these are the biggest ones that stand out in my brain.

Seasons three and four also have issues, though I don't remember all of them as well. The ones that stand out the most in my mind is the portrayal of France, which even extends further back to the previous two seasons. I'll be honest, even back then France made me deeply uncomfortable. He is often found making perverted comments throughout the first four seasons, and need we remember the infamous scene in season three where he tried to force England to strip down for the Olympics? The whole thing is pretty messed up looking back.

However, I still think the first four seasons can be genuinely fun and enjoyable if you ignore the problematic elements. But for some, finding humor in a show like Hetalia can feel like looking for a needle in a haystack. And I don't blame them. There's a lot to sift through. I feel like one's enjoyment for the series not only depends on the seasons they watch, but on their comfort level. Some people find stereotypes funny, others don't. I think it could very well be a personal taste thing (though I will admit, Germany's comments, Italy's salutes, and the mentions of Auschwitz are things that I really cannot defend, nor will I try to. They were just bad).

Now, seasons 5 and onward are very interesting, in that it seems like the humor of Hetalia has become more and more sanitized over time. The characters are still stereotyped, yes, but offensive jokes seem to have taken a backseat to focusing more on physical comedy, casual settings for the characters to interact, and talking about history. Not to mention that some of the characters, France especially, have gotten some serious work done in regard to how they're written. France went from being, let's just say it, pretty freaking creepy, to being a flirty, hopeless romantic who loves the arts and beauty of his country (season 5 actually made France one of my favorite characters, believe it or not).

I should also mention season 7 and how it covers the industrial revolution. That was actually really interesting and well done, while still being informative and funny without being particularly offensive. At least not from what I remember. I can honestly see those episodes being shown in a high school history class, or even middle school.

So, I will end by circling back to your question. "Is Hetalia quality media?"

My answer? It depends on what you're looking for. I believe art is subjective, and animated shows are no exception to this. What may be horrifically offensive to one person may be hilarious to another, and vice versa. I think it truly depends on the person. And I'm not going to pretend to know what different people do or don't find funny or offensive. While there are parts of Hetalia I still find enjoyable, there are plenty of moments I can say with absolute certainty have not aged well.

I think much of Hetalia's enjoyment today comes from the fandom and its fan-content. You may not like the source material, but you can always find some enjoyment in the versions of the characters you find online or have invented in your head. I know I do.

But yeah, that's my two cents. Sorry if that's too much. I just started typing and the thoughts started pouring out.

So, last night I was talking with a friend and I asked him if he actually hated Hetalia. He said he didn't hate it (and respects my enjoyment for it), but he necessarily doesn't like it and can't see himself getting into it. His reasoning is that the premise is pretty controversial and Hetalia has all of his urks that he doesn't like within media.

Which is understandable, because I brought up to him that even the fandom is pretty aware of the amount of issues Hetalia has and even I, myself, despite how much I love and adore this series, can admit that Hetalia isn't really quality media at all and it's the only thing I cannot see myself recommending it to other people.

So I'm wondering how much the fandom feels similar feelings that I do. Especially considering the amount of issues the series has and the amount of complaints from fans (ex: depictions of nations, writing, character design, historical accuracy, etc.).

I phrase the question the way I did because there is a difference if something is good vs. quality. This is also a pretty subjective question, so feel free to elaborate on your answer and add onto this post as well.

[askcmcarscrew]

Chapter 5: The Doll

Inside Ramone’s Fashion and Paint Shop

Ramone was sitting at his desk working on some new personality designs for his friends

...Sob sob...

Just then he heard someone crying and got up to take a look. He walked into the room to see Sweetie Belle sitting on the bed holding her legs close and crying.

Oh Sweetie. She’s been like this for 3 days straight.

Ramone thought for moment on rather he should try to talk to her now or wait for her to calm down a little. After a minute passed he decided to that this has gone on long enough and it’s time to see why she’s so upset.

There’s got to be more to it than just them being stuck here.

He walked inside and sat down next to her.

“Hey Sweetie is everything alright? You’ve been like this for a while now and I’m a little worried about you. Is there something that you would like to talk about. I’m sure you’ll feel a little better once you talk it out.”

She looked up at him with tear filled eyes.

“ Sniff...I...Sniff...I...Sniff…”

He picked her up and sat her on his lap gentle wrapping his arms around her in a comforting hug and she calmed down enough to talk.

“ T-This is all my fault...Sniff...We’re all stuck here because of me. I was the one who cast that spell that got us trapped here and...Sniff...and I have no idea how to get us back. I...I’m terrible with magic. I don’t know what I was doing, thinking that I could cast such a high leveled spell. I can’t even do a simple levitation spell right. Let alone a teleportation spell. I...Sniff...I was only trying to go to one corner of the room to another and I end up sending everyone to a whole new world. So far from home Applebloom and Scootaloo probably hate me…Sniff...And I wouldn’t blame them I messed up so bad.”

Ramone pulled her away just enough to look her in the eyes.

“Now Sweetie calm down. Applebloom and Scootaloo are your friends and they could never hate you. That’s not what friends do. No Sweetie friends forgive each other no matter how big or bad a mistake they make. Your friends will always love you no matter what happens. And besides don’t you remember it was Scootaloo’s idea to go to the library alone without an adult. And Applebloom did confess that she should have spoke up against this. You know very well none of this is all your fault. Your friends all admitted that they too made mistakes. Remember you’re still just a little kid and you’re going to make mistakes every now and then. It happens with everyone even me. You see one time I was helping out my mom at her shop. I was carrying more stuff than I thought I could and I ended up tripping over my loose shoelaces and everything that I was carrying went flying everywhere. A pin cushion that was on top knocked over my juice I had sitting on the edge of the counter and all the juice spilled all over the new dress my mom had just finished for a new client. I thought that she was going to be really mad at me. But she wasn’t you know why?”

Sweetie Belle shook her head

“Because it was an accident and my mom knew that I would never do something like that on purpose.”

She looks up at him then back down

“Sweetie. Do you understand now what I’m trying to say?”

She looked up at him nodding her head and giving him a small smile.

“ Yes. This isn’t my all my fault and I shouldn’t be blaming myself for it. Because I made a mistake just like everyone does. And I going to make more mistakes but I should never let them get to me. Because making mistakes is all a part of life.”

Ramone pulled her into a hug and a proud smile on his face

“That’s right Sweetie! Now you understand.”

She smiled at him, but it didn’t last long as another realization came to her mind and she started crying all over again. Ramone looked down at her

“Sweetie? What’s wrong now?” she kept her eyes closed

“Sniff Sniff Sob Sob Whimper...I...I miss her.”

Her?...oh.

“Your sister...Rarity?”

She nodded, thinking for a moment not sure how to help with this...then an idea popped into his head remembering something his mom did for him when he was a little kid.

“Hey Sweetie I think I've got something that will help.”

“What?”

“Why don’t you go on over to Flo’s for a bit and when you come back it’ll be done. Ok.”

“Ok.”

Though a bit confused Sweetie Belle wiped away her tears and left the shop and heading over to Flo’s cafe. Ramone headed back over to his desk and got started working. After drawing out the design Ramone picked out the softest material he has in white and purple, some stuffing, blue, white, black, and purple thread.

. . .

“Ramone I’m back.” Sweetie Belle walked back into the shop.

“I’m in here Sweetie. Come in I have a surprise for you.”

She stepped into his work room seeing Ramone standing next to his desk with both arms behind his back.

“Sooooo...You said you had a surprise for me.”

Rocking a bit on her heels she waited patiently for what Ramone has for her. After spending some time with everyone she started feeling a lot better. Ramone knelt down in front her with his arms still behind his back.

“First close your eyes and hold out your hands.”

She did so and Ramone took out what was behind his back and set the item in her hands.

“Ok open them.”

She opens her eyes and looked at the item in her hands.

“...”

It’s a doll that looks just like...Rarity! staring at the doll and at a complete loss for words Ramone took the chance to explain.

“You see when I was a little boy my mom often had to go on really long trips for fashion shows. And I missed her all the time while she was gone. One day when she had to leave for another show I tried everything that I could to get her to stay but nothing worked and I was really upset about it. So my mom made something special for me. A doll that looks like her and she said that whenever I was missing her all I had to do was look at that doll and think about all of the good times we had together and I was always reminded that she comes back. So even though I still missed her I always felt a little better while she was away all because I had that doll with me to let me know that she’d always come back. And I thought you needed the same thing. A little something to help you remember that even though you’re so far from home you know that you’ll always have someone who loves you and will always be with you no matter how far away they are.”

He waited for her reaction, still staring at the doll tears began to well up in her eyes.

“So...What do you think? Do you like it?”

She jumped into his arms hugging him tight tears streaming down her face

“I love it! Thank you! Thank you so much!”

He picked her up hugging her close.

“I know how it feels being so far away from someone you love it’s very hard and especially for someone at your age. You just need someone there to help you get through it all. And that’s why I’m here you know that if you ever need anything I’m always here for you.”

Tears falling down her face Sweetie Belle hugs him tighter

“Thank you so much Ramone...Sniff…I love you.”

“I love you too Sweetie.”