#and when i sent in a support ticket i got a response saying i was fine and i wasnt suspended and it mightve been a cache issue

[writingbuckets]

𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞: 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐢𝐢

paige bueckers x influencer!reader

wc: 1.7k

a/n: thanks so much for the kind messages on part 1! enjoy <3

You can feel the energy in the arena even from the parking lot. Fans are buzzing, and you catch glimpses of them sporting jerseys and waving signs in support of Paige and her teammates. There’s a spark of excitement mixed with nerves in your stomach as you make your way to the courtside seats Paige promised.

You glance down at the ticket she sent you through DM with a wry smile. It’s a little surreal, actually being here. The back-and-forth messages with Paige left you curious and maybe a little too interested in seeing her play. Overrated, you’d said. Well, tonight she’d get the chance to prove you wrong.

As you settle into your seat, you text Taylor to let her know you’ve arrived. She’s responds in caps “EXCITED FOR YOU”, sending laughing emojis and a “TRY NOT TO FALL IN LOVE, Y/N.”

In the locker room, Paige’s teammates are already in pre-game mode, stretching and reviewing plays, but Azzi catches sight of Paige checking her phone for the third time in five minutes. She grins knowingly, nudging Jana beside her.

“Okay, what’s up with you?” Azzi asks Paige with a teasing tone. “You’ve got that look.”

Paige pretends not to know what she’s talking about, tucking her phone away with a smirk. “What look?”

“Don’t play coy. This is a new level of focus even for you,” Jana chimes in, eyeing her with mock seriousness. “It wouldn’t have anything to do with your biggest critic being courtside tonight, would it?”

Paige rolls her eyes but can’t hide the grin tugging at the corner of her mouth. “Just trying to make sure she gets her money’s worth,” she says with a shrug. “Not every day you get a ‘critique’ from someone who’s never even seen you play live.”

KK, who’s been stretching nearby, perks up, catching the last part of the conversation. “Wait, is this the podcaster?” She laughs, sitting up and pointing at Paige. “The one who called you overrated? Oh, this is too good.”

“Yeah, we’ve been talking a little,” Paige admits, trying to sound casual but clearly enjoying the reaction from her friends.

Morgan snickers. “Talking, huh? I don’t think she meant that comment as an invitation, Paige.”

Paige gives a mock glare. “Please. She’s practically begging to be impressed.”

Aubrey chuckles, crossing her arms. “Just don’t get too distracted out there, superstar. She might be here to see you crash and burn.”

Paige laughs and waves them off, but there’s an undeniable confidence in her tone. “Oh, trust me. She’s not ready for what she’s about to see.”

**********

You watch the team make their entrance, the crowd roaring as each player is introduced. When Paige is called, the noise is almost deafening, and you find yourself instinctively clapping along, even as you try to stay cool.

Finally, the game starts. Within moments, it’s clear why Paige has all the attention. She commands the court with ease, weaving around defenders with a blend of grace and intensity that makes it hard to look away. Every shot, every pass—it’s like she’s putting on a show, and with each move, she glances your way, her gaze almost daring you to look impressed.

You catch her eye after she lands a particularly smooth three-pointer, and she gives a slight smirk, as if to say, Not bad, huh?

You raise an eyebrow, mouthing back, “Still not impressed.”

In response, she grins and picks up her pace, dominating every play with a flair that seems designed to taunt you. The more you watch, the more you find yourself pulled into the game, barely noticing the time passing. But every so often, her eyes find yours, and it’s like the entire arena fades away for just a moment.

The final buzzer sounds, and Paige’s team wins by a comfortable margin. As the players cool down and talk to the press, she sends a quick look in your direction, clearly reveling in her victory. She approaches the sidelines, her teammates trailing behind and giving her little nudges and knowing looks.

Azzi shoots you a cheeky grin as she passes. “Hey, thanks for coming. Glad Paige had her own personal cheerleader tonight.”

Jana adds with a laugh, “More like underrated, huh?”

Before you can respond, Paige strides up, wiping sweat from her brow and grinning with that signature self-assurance.

“So?” she says, folding her arms and looking at you expectantly. “Any thoughts from my favorite hater?”

You keep your expression neutral, even as your pulse quickens under her direct gaze. “Not bad. You almost looked like you knew what you were doing out there.”

She laughs, shaking her head. “Almost? That’s high praise coming from you.”

You shrug, tilting your head thoughtfully. “Guess I’ll have to watch a few more games to make sure it wasn’t a fluke.”

Her eyes light up at that. “Oh, so you’re coming back?”

“Only if you keep up that level of play,” you reply, not missing a beat. “I’d hate to waste my time.”

Her teammates are still hovering nearby, soaking up the banter with matching grins.

KK gives Paige a nudge. “Careful, Bueckers. I think she’s starting to like you.”

“Wouldn’t be the first,” Paige quips, giving you a sidelong glance. “Some people just need a little convincing.”

You raise an eyebrow, leaning forward slightly. “You think you’ve convinced me?”

“Not yet,” she admits, a teasing challenge in her eyes. “But I think I’m close.”

You can’t help but laugh, enjoying the back-and-forth more than you’d like to admit. She’s good at this—smooth, confident, and annoyingly charming. And the way she keeps looking at you, with that mix of amusement and intrigue, makes it harder to stick to your original opinion.

As the conversation winds down, you start to think about heading out. But before you can make a move, Paige’s voice cuts through your thoughts.

“So, a few of us are grabbing food to celebrate,” she says casually, as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. “You should come. Unless, of course, you have better things to do?”

Her eyes are challenging, and you can feel her teammates watching you, clearly curious to see what you’ll say. Part of you wants to play it cool, brush it off, but there’s a bigger part that’s intrigued, drawn to the idea of spending more time with her.

“Why not?” you reply, keeping your tone light. “Could be interesting.”

She grins, giving her teammates a triumphant look before gesturing for you to follow.

The group heads to a local spot where they’re regulars, filling up a large booth with laughter and chatter. You find yourself seated next to Paige, who’s now relaxed and fully in her element, her focus entirely on you.

“So, tell me,” she says, leaning in as she sips her drink. “What made you think I wasn’t as good as people say?”

You shrug, pretending to think hard. “I think some players need to be humbled sometimes. Keeps things balanced.”

“Oh, really?” She smirks. “So you’re, like, the self-appointed hype police?”

“If that’s what it takes.” You give her a challenging look. “And, judging by your performance, I think you’re taking my job pretty seriously.”

She laughs, shaking her head. “Maybe I just like proving people wrong.”

Aubrey, who’s overheard, chimes in with a grin. “Yeah, Paige is kind of a show-off when it comes to impressing people.”

Paige rolls her eyes, but she’s clearly enjoying the attention. “Hey, I like a challenge.”

You lean back, folding your arms as you meet her gaze. “Good to know. Might have to challenge you more often, then.”

The night goes on, filled with jokes, teasing, and the undeniable chemistry simmering between you and Paige. Her teammates keep throwing her looks, nudging her when she gets too obvious with her attention, but she brushes them off with ease.

By the end of the night, you’re more than a little curious about where this dynamic might lead. Paige, it turns out, isn’t just an incredible player—she’s clever, competitive, and, as much as you hate to admit it, a lot of fun to be around.

As you say your goodbyes and head out, she catches your arm, pulling you back for one last exchange.

“So,” she murmurs, her voice low, “can I ask for your opinion on me now?”

You meet her gaze, a slow smile spreading across your face. “ I’ll tell you when you make an appearance on the show.”

She laughs, nodding as she steps back. “You can count on it.”

You linger a moment, savoring the playfulness in her tone and the easy confidence in her smile. Her teammates start calling her over, and you see her hesitate, glancing between you and her friends. It’s almost as if she’s weighing her next move, and the idea that Paige Bueckers might actually be a little reluctant to end the night brings a grin to your face.

“Better go before they start making up embarrassing stories about you,” you say with a nod toward her friends, who are watching the two of you with unabashed interest.

She chuckles, eyes glinting with something mischievous. “Don’t worry, they don’t have any dirt on me… yet.”

“Oh, so you’re planning on giving them some?” you shoot back.

Paige tilts her head thoughtfully. “Only if it’s worth it.” Her voice is low, suggestive, and you can’t ignore the electric undertone beneath her words. She glances toward the exit, then back at you, taking a small step closer. “But, you know… I wouldn’t mind getting to know my ‘biggest hater” a little better.”

Her words hang in the air, and you feel your pulse quicken. There’s a part of you that wants to keep this light, play it cool, but another part—a part you’re not fully ready to admit yet—is undeniably intrigued by her invitation.

With a playful smile, you shrug. “Maybe you’ll earn that chance. If you’re lucky.”

Her laughter rings out, bright and clear. “I think I make my own luck.”

You offer her a mock salute. “We’ll see about that, superstar.”

As you turn to leave, you feel her gaze on you, lingering, as though she’s already planning her next move. And as you step out of the restaurant, the night air feels different—charged with possibility. You’ve seen a side of Paige that few get to see, and it’s clear this game of wit and challenge between you isn’t over yet.

But for now, you head home, wondering what exactly you’ve gotten yourself into.

[ecofear]

when i got shadowbanned i contacted support via several channels: @ the support account on twitter, dmed the reddit account connected to the support subreddit, and sent in 3 tickets with different categories: other, feedback, and social features.

the only one that got any kind of response was the social features ticket, which emailed me back 1 day after shadowban (banned on sunday, ticket response was on monday). the response was just to say they've unbanned me, essentially.

so if you get shadowbanned, and you don't know which option to use, your best bet may be to contact support and use the social features category. or you can just do absolutely everything and hope something hits like i did

[howlingday]

Goodnight, Father

"Jaune, are you in here?"

"Over here, Weiss!" Jaune waved next to his team. Some would say he was taking advantage of his girlfriend's hospitality in using her family's ballroom for dance practice. However, those close to the couple would know better and that the room had been unused since it's reconstruction, save for the occasional charity dinners that were held once in a complete moon. "Take five, guys."

Oscar and Nora collapsed to the floor, both panting and groaning from their stretched limbs and aching lungs. Nora wasn't used to the former while Oscar was unaccustomed to the latter. Ren rolled his eyes with a chuckle.

"What's up?" Jaune asked, wide toothy shark grin on his face.

"It's a letter from your mother."

"Mom?" Jaune took the letter. Sure enough, his mother's name and address were written hastily on the outside of the letter. Slipping his finger under the sealed flap, he made a tear in the paper. Digging in, he hooked and tore more and more of the envelope until it was open.

"You do know we have a letter opener, right?" Weiss said with a hand on her hip. The smile that accompanied it fell as she noticed Jaune didn't have a response. He pulled the contents free and opened the folded message. Then Jaune made for the door. "Jaune?!"

She picked up the letter unceremoniously dropped to the floor and read the words meant for Jaune. She gave a small gasp, matching the small message delivered to Jaune.

'COME HOME'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jaune didn't buy a boat ticket. Heck, he didn't even pay for a cab! The clothes he wore to arrive at his home in Ansel were the same as when he left New Atlas three days ago. He ran across three continents and swam through both the icy and temperate seas that surrounded them just to reach home. How he wasn't dead could be attributed to his aura, but no one could really explain.

The only surprising thing that happened was when he found his team, and his girlfriend, waiting inside his home. In his panic, he forgot that air travel, as much as he hated it, was the fastest and safest way to get from point A to point B. Still, he arrived, soaking wet from sweat, rain, and sea, right into his mother's arms.

"And you haven't seen him since?"

"No." His mother poured another cup of coffee for him. He hated the stuff growing up, but he's since relied on it after his departure for Beacon. "No message. No mention. Nothin'. It's not like your father to just leave like this."

Jaune furrowed his brow. It's true that his dad wasn't the kind of guy to keep secrets. If he didn't like you, he told you to your face. In fact, he told Jaune it was a stupid idea to leave for Beacon on a whim. Still, his father loved him and supported his choice. He even said he hoped Jaune did it sooner, at least so he could get some training in.

'Ancestors'd be proud either way.' His father shrugged.

Jaune sipped his coffee. "Hey, Mom?"

"Yes, Jaune?"

"Was Dad... dying?"

The room got really quiet. Nora and Weiss, who were playing with Adrian, stared at him. Ren looked around and noticed the rest of the family wasn't looking in Jaune's direction. Oscar excused himself and stepped outside.

"He was, wasn't he?"

His mother nodded. "Said it was something in his blood. He said it got harder for him to sleep."

"And... he didn't tell me?"

She shook her head. "You deserved to know. I've been wanting to tell you for a while, but he said it wasn't something for you to worry about."

Jaune gripped his mug a little tighter. "Somebody should've told me."

"You're right." Saphron said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "The CCT network is still being worked on, but letters can obviously still be sent. Seven sisters and nobody could tell you."

"Why?" Jaune stood up suddenly, surprising his sister. "Because it's okay for everyone else but Jaune the crybaby to know? Because he'd just cry his little eyes out over every little thing?!"

"Hey, I wanted to tell you-!"

"Enough, both of you!" Their mother yelled. She sighed and pressed a hand to her face. "Twenty years and I'm still breaking up fights." She sniffled. "Oh, ancestors, don't make me do this alone..."

Suddenly, Jaune felt like punching himself. Since he came back home- heck, even before that -he was thinking only about himself. He gritted his sharp teeth, flaring his nostrils as he looked away. Years later and Jaune was still a spoiled brat, on the verge of tears because he wasn't getting what he wanted. His mind began to fill with memories of his lifetime in the Ever After, far away from home, like he'd always-

A hand touched his. It was a delicate and soft hand, one with slender fingers that were guided by a tender heart. He looked up and saw the worried look of his love, Weiss. His self-loathing began to fade as he looked into her eyes, entranced by the icy blue that belied a warm and caring soul.

Another hand rested on his shoulder, belonging to his brother, Ren. Attached to him and looking with a smile, trying to cheer him up, was his sister-in-arms, Nora. Entering the room, offering a weaker smile was his friend, Oscar. In his gloved hand, he held a small bit of foliage.

"I... think I found something." He offered.

"Alright," Jaune gave a smile and nodded, "we've got a mission, guys. I know it's late and you all want to go to bed, but I'm not going to let this one get away. We're not getting paid more than room and board, but if you'll help me, I'd really appreciate it. Are you with me?"

"You got it~!" Nora cheered.

"To the end and back." Ren nodded.

"Wherever, whenever!" Oscar agreed.

"I'm not exactly part of this team," Weiss patted Jaune's arm, "but you still helped mine all the same. I'm with you for as long as you'll have me."

Jaune smiled at his team. Looking to Oscar, he nodded. "Where'd you find that grass, Oscar?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was a long walk through the rain for Jaune and his team. The winds blew in their face, pelting rain hard enough to soak through their ponchos. Following the clues left behind, they picked up on a trail leading through the nearby woods, over a stream shifting to become a river, before finally reaching an enclosure, and beheld the beautiful sight before them.

As if untouched by the storm, a blue lake rested undisturbed in the midst of the raging storm outside of the treeline. There was enough light for them to see, despite being so close to midnight in the midst of a huge thunderstorm. Jaune crept low and touched the water with his finger, bringing it to his lips.

"Salt."

"What?" Nora asked. "Are you that hungry?"

"No, it's saltwater." Jaune said, taking his poncho off.

Taking a deep breath, he plunged his head beneath the surface. His eyes adjusted to the change in light and nearly bulged at what he saw. The lake, despite its size, was much deeper than he'd ever expected. He couldn't even see the bottom. More surprising to him, though, was what lined the walls of the lakebed.

Swords. Shields. Axes. Crossbows. All white with gilded trim, each embedded into the muddy walls of the undersea cliffs. Pulling his head up, he shook his head. He couldn't believe his eyes.

"It's..."

"A graveyard." Jaune whirled to see a man, well-aged beyond his years (even by Ever After standards), with a thick, white beard and eyes as blue as the ocean itself. He held himself upright with an alabaster cane with gilded trim, much like Crocea Mors and the weapons located underwater. "It's the Arc Graveyard, Jaune."

"Dad..." Jaune stood to his feet. Meeting his father for the first time in what could have been years, he saw how tall the man really stood compared to his progeny. At his full height, he was six foot even. Now, hunched over, he was just a few inches shorter than that, and even shorter than Jaune. Still, the gaze he held was something Jaune was all too familiar with.

Oh, sure, there was love in his father's eyes, for despite their tiffs now and again, Jaune was raised and taught by a man who did his best to teach him everything he could. Did he succeed? Jaune felt like he did, since he was still alive, and happy, and had found love with a beautiful and wonderful woman in Weiss. None of this would have happened if not for the man in front of him.

"You've come a long way, Jaune." The old man smirked. "And you reek, too. Did you bathe before coming here?"

"Technically." Jaune chuckled. "To be honest, the last time I had a bath, or even slept, was about three days ago."

"Stinky." Jaune's father chuckled. He then coughed, making Jaune drop his smile. "Your nephew loves that word. Giggles every time he hears it."

"Dad..."

"Jaune, you are my one and only son, so I know you feel like you have this idea of what you're supposed to be. Like you're supposed to be some kind of big, damn hero with forty wives and a hundred kids. And as cliche as it may sound, I never wanted you to have such an extravagant lifestyle. Or, at least, I didn't want you to feel like you had to. All I ever wanted was for you to be happy, and ready to be the man you had to be when someone tried to take away your happiness. And my son," a wide, toothy shark grin spread across the man's wrinkled face, "you are that happy man."

Jaune swept the man into a hug, tears pouring from his eyes as he heaved sobs into the man's shoulder. The man chuckled and wept a few tears of his own. Off to the side, watching the spectacle, the rest of group were each weeping along with the men. Finally, however, the time came for Jaune and his father to part.

"It's time, Jaune." Slipping into the water, the eldest Arc swam a few feet to the center. From there, he dove beneath the surface. Bubbles came up as he dove deeper. His shadow disappeared a few yards down. Jaune stood on the shoreline, watching, waiting, hoping that this was some elaborate hoax, as if to play a cruel trick on him. But nothing came up.

"Goodbye, Dad."

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

Fun Fact! In 2022, scientists discovered a "shark graveyard". At first, as they dragged nets across the ocean floor, they thought what they pulled up were just rocks when, actually, what they were pulling up were shark teeth. HUNDREDS of shark teeth, including recent sharks like Great Whites and more ancient sharks like, yup, MEGALODON! Since sharks are cartilaginous, only their teeth are tough enough to make it through decomposition, while the rest is consumed by scavenging wildlife.

[vendetta-if]

I Can Access My Account Again 💖

Hey guys! I can finally access this account again! Thankfully, the Tumblr Support actually moved fast this time and I got an email response from them saying that it was a glitch on their end and that it has been fixed.

And sure enough, I tried logging in to my old account again this afternoon and I'm in! I have exported and backed up the content of this blog and I'll continue doing so regularly from now on.

So, I'll be back answering asks and posting updates here. I'm so glad and relieved. I thought I might lose all the awesome fanarts and asks in this blog.

As for the @jscwrites blog, I'll keep it around as an account where I can blog about stuff that might not be related to Vendetta, such as talking about writing or stuff I love or enjoy. And it might be useful for when I have more than one writing projects in the future. I'll also still use it to reblog the more important posts from this blog and if anything happened again to this main account (God forbids), I’ll also be posting updates there. So, please, still drop it a follow 🥰

Also, it has been brought to my attention that my @jscwrites blog might be shadowbanned for some reason, despite it being created just last night. I saw you guys sending in asks in the new blog, but I can't see them in my inbox.

It seems I also can't message or be messaged in my jscwrites blog, and searching it on the search bar won't show my account. I have sent a support ticket to Tumblr Support regarding that, so I hope they can once again fix it swiftly. But for now, I'll be closing that blog's asks soon because I can't see all the lovely asks you guys were sending me 😭

I'll let you guys know again in an update when @jscwrites is all set up properly and I'll open the asks there. Feel free to ask me about writing process or other non-Vendetta related stuff there! Some of you guys who are in my Discord server might be aware how much I enjoy talking about other stuff with my readers as well 😊💖

Well, that's all the update I have for now. And it feels great to be able to return to this blog and start answering some asks again. Love you guys, and thank you all for the support! 🥰

[brahmsthirdracket]

jack, luke, their long-suffering father and a flying cow 🐮

Jim can only assume that the charter crew must spend the rest of their flight hours couriering coked-up musicians and weird, smelly tech bros around the country because they don’t bat an eyelid at the sight of his disheveled children.

They really do look ridiculous: Jack is sleepy and unshowered, with one arm immobilized in a sling and the other clutching an enormous cuddly brown cow that’s almost as big as he is; and Luke, who’d shown up in Colorado with a body fluid percentage of approximately sixty percent vodka sours, is shuffling along in two different shoes and his mother’s sunglasses.

In fairness to Luke, he’d been sent a ticket for a red-eye to Colorado at 10 p.m. the night before by his father. In fairness to the father in question, Luke’s twenty damn years old.

Luke had frowned when this had been imparted to him in the VIP lounge at Eagle County Regional Airport, the last few stars giving way to weak, early morning sun. Through the glass of the terminal they the dark mass of the mountains lighten into a brown scrub and patches of unmelted snow.

“Like,” he pauses, brow furrowed, and Jim can practically see the cogs turning slowly in his pickled little brain, like some kind of Smirnoff mill. “I’m twenty so I’m young enough to not be underage drinking, or I’m twenty so I’m old enough to be more resp- responsible?”

“Both!” Jim snarls, trying to lean around Jack and his cow, who are each taking up a seat.

The wind sweeps the grasses on the side of the runway in graceful arcs and rattles the chain link fence. Jack, who’s been subsisting almost exclusively on morphine and ice cream for the last few days, sways unsteadily on the first flimsy step.

“Give me the cow, honey,” Jim tells him from behind, already exasperated.

“No,” Jack grunts out, tightening his hold and hobbling up another step. He hasn’t let go since its surprise appearance at the hospital last night, accompanied by a truly obscene amount of Swiss chocolate. Jim perks up at the thought of the nougat, and he patiently shuffles up the steps behind his son, one step at a time and a palm resting securely on his back the whole way.

Just ahead of them, Luke manages to trip on the top step and is saved from concussing himself on the drinks cart by the ample chest of one of the stewardesses.

“I’m an elite athlete,” he tells her solemnly and walks straight into an overhead locker.

Jim breathes in for four, holds for four and out for four, just like he tells his players. Of course it doesn’t really work and he snaps his eyes open just in time to yank Luke by the scruff of his neck in the direction of a seat before anyone has to call a lawyer.

As requested, the cabin crew have reclined two of the leather chairs that face each other and made them up with sheets, pillows and soft, cream-coloured blankets. After a lifetime of cramped sleeper buses and cheap red-eyes, Jim doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to traveling like this.

Jack - who definitely has got used to traveling like this - toes off his sneakers carelessly and collapses down onto the bed, or as much as he can without putting any weight on one side of his body. The ridiculous cow takes up half the seat but at least it supports Jack’s back so they can wrangle him comfortably on his right side.

“Where did the damn thing come from anyway?” Jim asks again, to no-one in particular as the wheels clunk up into the belly of the plane.

Ellen just gives him her patent did-I-really-marry-someone-this-dense look and goes back to typing up a meds schedule for Luke to follow.

“It’s an alpine cow,” Luke says, completely nonsensically, and snickers.

Jim points a finger at him. “You’re lucky the seat belt sign is on buddy.”

He rummages until he finds the chocolate - Jack won’t mind, he can’t have it anyway because of his diet plan - probably. Luke eyes him hopefully from across the aisle but: “He’ll have a double espresso,” Jim tells the hostess.

Jim settles himself into his comfortable leather seat, breaks into a dark milk nougat and calls the only one of his children who could legally operate heavy machinery right now. Quinn’s rumpled and sleepy face appears after a couple of rings and Jim feels immediately calmer.

“Good game, kiddo,” he says, without preamble.

“Yeah, uh thanks,” says Quinn, shuffling around in the frame.

Jim flips the camera - without having to turn the whole phone around, thank you very much - so Quinn gets a view of Jack cuddled up with his ridiculous cow.

Quinn squints into the camera. “Oh, nice. It actually made it in time.”

“So you sent it?”

“What? No, obviously it was-”

But who it was Jim never gets to hear, because Luke starts suddenly making insistent mooing noises across the aisle. Jim covers the mouthpiece of the phone with one hand.

“Hit him for me, honey,” he calls to Ellen, who just gives Luke a gentle cuff around the back of the head without looking up from her iPad, then runs her fingers through his curls.

One of Jack’s feet is sticking out from under the blankets, still in the bright blue hospital-issue socks with the little no-slip stickers. Even fast asleep, and clearly exhausted, he’s clutching the cow. Oh well. At least he and Quinn have a whole damn house now to store all of their weird crap.

“Dad?”

“Sorry, bud - where were we?” Jim curls a hand around Jack’s foot and squeezes gently as he and Quinn get into the nitty-gritty. The crew will have seen worse than a flying cow. Probably.

[bobfloydsbabe]

DEATH THREAT: REVISITED

On November 8th 2022, an anonymous person took issue with a post I made regarding the use of read more on long fics. All I asked in that post was that people used it, and if they didn’t know how, to google it or ask someone how. Simple. It should not have been offensive, and yet, someone took offense and started a tirade against me.

The post in question was this one:

(I know it says drafts, but I did post it here)

I put it in the Top Gun Maverick tags because that's where I spent my time. Usually I wouldn't, but I was fed up with having to scroll past 5k word fics, so I wrote this post. Could I have worded it differently or been nicer? Sure. The ask that followed was this one:

In the next one, they asked me to be kind. I made many of the same points as I did above, as seen here:

This response was clearly not the one they wanted, so they turned to name calling, vile accusations, and inappropriate sexual messages. I'm going to use the read more here to 1. hide the asks I got because they're upsetting and 2. shorten this post. No one wants to scroll forever to get past this.

Some of the asks I received included but were not limited to:

That last one is in reference to a message I answered, asking what evidence they had of me being into bestiality. I also do not have twitter.

This went on for hours, and while I was initially laughing, at some point it turned. I started feeling really upset and anxious about it. I remember shaking. Then came the death threat. It caught me off guard. I wasn’t expecting it, and honestly, calling it a death threat might be a little extreme. Nonetheless, the threat of harm shocked me. I replied, trying to give off an air of nonchalance, when in reality, I was freaking out.

After that, I got a few more asks, upset I was calling it a death threat. I started calling it a threat of harm instead, because it felt extreme. After those asks, I turned off the option to send anonymous asks, which I had not done in all the years I’d been on Tumblr. I had to protect my mental health. I reported it to tumblr support and took a few days off the hellsite to give myself time to process.

Eventually, Tumblr got back to me, telling me they were “sorry I had a bad experience with anonymous asks” and told me to block the anons. I was furious. They dismissed not only me, but the threats I’d received. When I sent in my original ticket, I made it clear they could contact me if they needed more information. They never did. I’m still pissed about that. This was before you had to have an account to send anonymous asks, so they could still come back. I had to block five separate asks to get all of them to disappear.

Anonymous asks are currently open, but I'd be lying if I said I don't still get anxious when I see that grey icon in my inbox. I'm still scared they could come back and start up again. I'm finding it easier to turn off anon these days, and I've had to do it several times since then to protect myself further. I won't hesitate to do it again.

If you read this all the way to the end: Thank you for reading. I know this doesn't affect anyone but me, but I wanted to share this post, regardless. I want to thank the people who have been there for me through it all, and the ones who've listened to me talk about it. I appreciate you.

For now, I'm looking forward to celebrating 10 years in recovery from self-harm next week. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

[wisecrackingeric-2]

So as MOST of you could PROBABLY TELL- this account on December 17th in the afternoon randomly got obliterated. Like totally deleted- it didn’t exist, nobody could view it, I couldn’t log in, etcetera etcetera-

So what the hell happened????????? I don’t know!!!!!!!!

EDIT: just before finishing this tumblr came back to me with an automatic email saying, ‘It Looks as though this issue has already been resolved’. That’s it. No reasoning as to why it was deleted, no apology etcetera.

I’ve never violated any Tumblr community guidelines before, nor have I ever gotten any warnings, and I’ve never posted NSFW, Gore, or any kind of content that could get me banned, so it absolutely wasn’t that!!! My account quite literally vanished without warning- not even a single email or warning message from Staff!!!!!

Apparently it’s a PREEEEEETTTY COMMON GLITCH for peoples accounts to just,,,,,, be deleted totally randomly. With no warning. Out of the blue. And then for Tumblr to come back two-three days later like ‘Whoopsies!!! UwU we’re sowwy we dowwnt know wwhy dat happened!! ÓwÒ-“ Hell it even happened to my partner a few months ago, and if you go searching you can find accounts STILL dealing with this issue!!!!!!

The only other explanation I can think of is that my account was mass reported- by who?????? I’d have no clue!!!!!!!! Recently I was pretty vocal about general racism in the Resident Evil Community, so that’s really the only thing I could think of- but even then, I got no warnings, no emails from tumblr, etc etc, so I HIIIIIIIIIIIGHLY DOUBT IT, and besides if this WAS the case I’m not sure why I would be the only person targeted!!!! So again I don’t think that’s the case!!!

So what did I do to get my account back??? No idea!!!!!!!!

Right after my account was suspended, I sent an email to Tumblr Support on both of my emails- they sent an automatic ticket back and…… nothing. And as of writing this I STILL have gotten nothing. No explanation, no apology, no reasoning behind my account being terminated, etc etc etc

In those three days I made a temporary alt account (which I’m currently trying to figure out how to delete permanently HXNEHENEHEN @evilwisecrackingeric , but that account got Shadowbanned by staff after a day- meaning my blog wouldn’t show up on people’s dash’s, I couldn’t tag people, reply to comments, message anybody etc etc!!!! So I made a second sideblog (@ericseviltwin) on that account- BOOM SHADOWBANNED TOO!!!!!!! I made a THIRD SIDEBLOG- BOOM. SHADOWBANNED (@ericisabouttoexplode. Very fitting names I know) I was most likely shadowbanned cuz Tumblr thought I was a bot after messaging too many people at once, but it as still annoying to deal with!!!!!!

And again, as of me writing this, tumblr STILL has not come back to ANY of my emails three days later!!!!!!!!!! So until I get a response (IF I get a response) I’ll have no idea why I was terminated or why they brought me back so suddenly!!!!!!

So what now????????? Well for the time being I’m probably just gonna lay low. I still HIGHLY DOUBT IT but if this WAS some kind of cyberattack I’d rather not risk it- and besides, I don’t want to risk this account getting shadowbanned too or god forbid getting deleted AGAIN, so it’s probably best for now to keep my activity to a minimum

If there’s any lesson to learn from this PLEEEEEEEEAAAAASEEEE BACK UP YOUR BLOGS. I was DEVASTATED when this acc got deleted- I have millions of conversations with friends, my entire art journey, photos of pets that have passed away etc etc on here and to say I was upset would be an understatement. What should YOU do if this happens to you????????? I have no clue. Unfortunately I just had to. Wait. And even then I STILL haven’t gotten an email back from Tumblr. So I don’t know man!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is apparently a pretty common glitch so back up everything important!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

EDIT: just before pressing the post button tumblr JUST came back to me with this:

It linked me to their abuse/account violation page. Which…. Is very interesting

[disciple-of-frost]

Okie dokie then... (0 A 0)

Also! I'm just going to be answering these as a comprehensive list and not send out more. I'm really really sorry, I just don't want to send more to people I might have already sent this to. Just know I appreciate each and every one of you and my inbox/messages are always open if you want to chit chat more!

Also Also! I'm just going to be answering 12 things that make me happy, a nice happy medium also cuz my brain like to freeze up whenever I try to think about myself and my interests. (T _ T)

--

1.) My mutuals OCs! Seeing the love poured into each character and the unique takes everyone has done to fit MSQ/character dynamics to them is so cool! I know we aren't all a hivemind and we won't like all of the same characters, but seeing you all uplift and be supportive to one another helped me be more open and post about Ishi.

2.) Coffee. I am a caffeine fiend and I have done my damnedest to recreate a lot of the drinks Starbucks has released at home. And I will say, I make a mean Lavender Cream Matcha. If you think you can't make something like that I'd say don't be afraid to try. You might surprise yourself.

3.) Monster High. I was in high school in conservative, small town nowhere when they first released and my parents didn't feel the need to buy things that weren't necessities. So now that I'm an adult and enjoying things I never got the chance to when I was younger I have 5 Draculauras hanging up in my bedroom.

4.) My cats. I know I said Animals already in another post, but I don't care. I have four fur babies and they are so special to me, I'm currently living in a really small semi-beaten up apartment because any houses for rent where I am have pet limits and I am not going to abandon two of my cat's just so I can live in a slightly nicer but exceedingly more expensive house. It's not a perfect place to live by societal standards, but it's ours and my boys are everything to me.

5.) Music. I am expanding my music horizons, but for the most part I still listen to a lot of the music I did as a teenager. Linkin Park, Killswitch Engage, Sevendust, Breaking Benjamin, etc. But I do try to find more independent artists that emulate a similar sound to my old favorites; Mallavora, From Ashes to New, Aviators, Magnolia Park.

6.) Gonna move away from physical/material things for a sec. That feeling you get when you get done cleaning a room and you sit down, take a deep breath, and just smell the clean.

7.) The satisfaction of finding a new recipe and nailing it on the first/second try.

8.) Seeing people be kind. I know there are horrible things happening in the world right now, but seeing seemingly small acts of kindness get's me teary eyed. A person rescuing goose eggs from a pond and returning them to their nest. A man picking up trash from a forest creek. Somebody getting gifted a plane ticket to go see their family in another country or having a family member show up to surprise them. I'm honestly getting misty eyed just typing this out. I'm just a really emotional/sentimental person.

9.) The fact that I have been able to keep a single plant alive for more than a week. My partner and I got a potted plant at a baby shower for his boss almost a year ago and that little guy is still kicking.

10.) Giving compliments to people when I'm out in public. I never got a lot of positive affirmation as a kid so whenever I see someone being unabashedly themselves and just wearing their style proudly I like to let them know they look good and that they're killing it.

11.) Finishing a game that had me emotionally invested. Lookin' at you Persona 3: Reload.

12.) Seeing my friends in person after not hanging out in a while. Being an adult can be lonely and people have responsibilities in their own lives that they have to put first before leisure and friends. So actually finding time to be together with the people I love and being able to hug them is super important to me.

--

Okay then. That's about it for now, if I do get another one of these I'll try my best to list a few more.

Thank you to @paintedscales, @shadesofblades, @myreia, @draconian-empress, and @corsair-kovacs! 💙

[the-scarlet-witch-22]

Hiiiiii me again so prepare for a novel length ask 😵‍💫 sometimes I just can’t shush.

I agree with you soooooo much about the finale and Agatha/Rio. It was so interesting to watch it unfold - like the almost kiss in the forest? My impression of that was Agatha had received special treatment from Rio because of their relationship (which we got confirmation of this) and that she had a moment she thought that happened again - that somehow Rio had given Nicholas back as Billy. And Rio knew that, too, which is why she stopped Agatha from kissing her - Agatha was having soft, grateful feelings to Rio, thinking she had her son back - and Rio couldn’t let her believe that. Or didn’t want her to.

But I agree, they aren’t getting back together - Agatha made that hella clear. Even if she still has feelings for Rio, she can’t get past the loss of her son. Rio took Nicholas, and while it was her job to, there are some things that just can’t be repaired.

I also admittedly laughed really hard when Agatha came back as a ghost. Not only did she keep Rio from getting Billy, she siphoned Death’s power in a farewell kiss, and did…whatever she did, to become a ghost and keep Rio from taking her spirit. Total power move.

Plus..Rio does not like ghosts at all. I wish I could stick it to my ex in that next level petty of a fashion.

Ghost!Agatha x Reader has wriggled its way into my subconscious, so there’s that, too. Ahem.

Was Eras completely magical? Did you go with your wonderful girlfriend? Details on your outfit, please? 💜

Also also, sending you a huge hug on the post about your mother. I am so sorry you have to live that way. I live in a red state and while my family is VERY BLUE, my heart breaks for anyone who doesn’t feel they can be safe and supported with their family.

I hope you’re having a lovely night. 💜

- 🌸

Hi my friend <3 (my response is sooo long so I’m gonna cut it hahaha)

Oh wow I really like your interpretation on that moment between Agatha and Rio in episode 4. I almost took it as a warning, I guess, or to maybe set Agatha's expectations. Because yes absolutely Agatha has received special treatment, like Rio said more than any mortal before her ever did, and I think she's aware to some extent the power she holds over Rio. What's interesting to me when looking at their relationship, is the majority of the manipulation comes from Agatha. It's funny that the personification of Death doesn't hold the upper hand, but I do think it's very fitting with Agatha's character. Anyways, I kind of saw it as Rio warning Agatha, 'that boy is not yours and he shouldn't be here'. And I think her reasoning on that definitely was because she still had feelings for Agatha, ya know? Taking Nick destroyed them, and maybe in her mind she thought 'well I'm warning Agatha, so it won't be an issue. He's another woman's son anyways'.

Gosh that was way too long, hahaha. But yes I completely agree! I am super intrigued to watch them interact in the future...especially with Tommy now being back. I fear Rio is not gonna be too thrilled with Agatha doing all of this for another woman's kids LOLL can't say I blame her. And the Agatha ghost bit SENT ME. Taking ghosting to a new level of petty, in true Agatha Harkness fashion <3

I'm really playing around with a ghost!Agatha fic!! I'm sooo behind on writing but the idea I have is kind of depressing, lol but I'm gonna try and think of a more upbeat version.

Oh my gosh the Eras Tour was actually one of the best nights of my entire life, no exaggeration. I love Taylor Swift, she's on a good portion of my writing playlists. I actually started crying when it started, which is embarrassing af but I don't care!! And yes! I went with my girlfriend (who acquired the tickets, she's a rockstar and we love her), and one of my friends & her girlfriend! I love the song Maroon (which she played a night later rip haha), so I found these sparkly burgundy pants and a maroon themed shirt and paired with Nikes that had a burgundy swish on them.

Also thank you for saying that <3 It's really hard being in a mainly conservative family. I'm genuinely so happy that your family is voting Blue, at this point it just feels like a difference between having morals and not. I'm also tired of these past few elections feeling so stressed, idk, things have just taken such a drastically dark turn and I hate that we ended up here. My response is SOOO long and I apologize but I hope you're well, thank you so much for the ask <3 (I'll post a pic of the concert separately because this is already so long asdhasfhjas)

[shelby-fangirl00]

Ugh I’m sorry that this has thwarted your motivation — I remember freaking out when it happened to me.

You should get a message saying that your support ticket has been received…that way you’ve got a case # attached to it and know someone’s been assigned to your issue. If you haven’t gotten one, I’m not sure if they’ve received it or not because I got one when I sent my ticket in when this happened.

If you don’t receive one soon, maybe send another in? Use as much detail as possible on it and include images of your messaging option and ability to comment being taken away and maybe that could help. I know some of my mutuals on here had to make another account to then message them from so that they got the response with the support ticket’s number, but I got one right after I emailed from this account about it.

Also I’m sorry for sending yet another ask - I figured I’d do it this way since you can’t comment on things.

You’ll have to keep us posted - I hope it gets resolved quickly and you can be back to sharing your amazing stories with us in no time!! Sending much love your way!! 💕

The tumble gods have answered my prayers!! All is well again thanks to you!!!❤️❤️ much love

[peachmango-kombucha]

My First Indie Show :D

Hello everyone!

I went to my first indie show last Sunday (3/19) and had an awesome time. Create-A-Pro held one not too far away from me. I wanted to go for two reasons: 1. I missed the previous one back in February (the one where Caster and MJF were on commentary) and 2. I wanted to go to an indie show for once and support local wrestlers. Plus, the tickets were affordable!

I didn't really know what to expect besides knowing the action would be way closer than I'm used to. I sat in the second to last row just like a shy college student on the first day of class. I didn't want to be too close to the action. As the seats filled up, everyone else stood around us.

But I was close enough to see wrestlers and their family members walk past me. Brian Myers' wife and two daughters walked past me a few times and so did a couple of other wrestlers. I even saw Tommy Dreamer signing autographs and selling merch in a separate room where merch tables were set up.

The bumps sounded brutal and I mean *brutal*. I wasn't the one taking bumps but I could feel the pain from hearing bodies hit the mat multiple times.

The crowd was super hot for all of the matches on the card. A couple of fans yelled at the wrestlers and the wrestlers responded back with their own insults or responses. During one match, a kid yelled out "no one likes you" to one of the wrestlers. That wrestler turned around and was like "who said that?!" Everyone pointed at the kid who crossed his arms and looked very proud of himself. The wrestler then told the kid, "how about I go over there and eat your family?!" That shit was hilarious.

There was a 15 minute intermission to give fans some time to breathe after going crazy for the first half of the show. This was also a great opportunity to meet and buy merch from wrestlers.

The signing/merch room was packed with people. I squeezed my way through to get to B3cca's table. I really wanted to meet her after seeing clips of her perform at 16 Carat for wXw. I was starstruck and my anxiety kinda got the best of me lol All I could say was "It's so nice to meet you! I saw you in 16 Carat and you were awesome!"

She was super sweet and told me wXw was great to her. I bought a t-shirt, a scrunchie, and a picture from her. And this is when it gets even more embarrassing. She asked who should she make this out to and I said "Chloe". "Chloe" is a new nickname of mine I started using on Discord recently but my stupid ass forgot how to spell that shit. I showed her the name on my Instagram profile and she was able to spell it correctly. I apologized and told her it's a new nickname I've been using recently.

And here is where it gets even worse and served as a reminder for me to bring cash to the next indie event I go to. The room where wrestlers were selling merch had terrible service so I wasn't able to send B3cca the money I owed her through Venmo. I apologized profusely. She sent me an Instagram request to follow me and I accepted her request just so she could DM me a screenshot of her Venmo QR code. I told her I'd step out for a few minutes to send her the money and with a smile she was like "it's okay, I trust you."

Finally, I was able to send her the money I owed her and left her a message saying "for the merch. Thank you!" That shit was nerve-wracking omg. This ordeal prevented me from wanting to get merch from Brian Myers cuz I wasn't trying to embarrass myself again.

The rest of the show was even more electric leading up to the main event. And seeing the wrestlers who performed in the previous matches stand along the wall and watch along with us was cool to see.

After the show ended, I went back to B3cca to buy a sticker from her. Thankfully, I had a $5 bill I found in my pocket during the show to give to her. I thanked her again for all the merch.

By the end of this show I told myself that I needed to seek out more indie shows in my area. I may not be able to see AEW or WWE whenever they come around because of ticket prices but I damn sure would be able to afford going to an indie show. And I'll get to discover up and coming wrestlers, too.

100/10, would highly recommend.

[sweetswesf]

Tumblr blocked my messaging 🙄🙄🙄. It’s been DAYS! 0 response on the support ticket! C’mon! I was just trying to thank people for reading my blog! I got flagged however because I sent too many of the same message? It’s frustrating! They’re hella slow! Anyway, I hope y’all are well. I was sooo frustrated yesterday. I worked through it, but man. People kept asking me what was taking me so long to find a job. I’m used to getting that question damn there every day now, but yesterday it was 4 people in a row! One of which who I considered to be a mentor who DROPPED ME and never hit me up about a month after I left. Said he couldn’t help me anymore. He kept his job while I was laid off but he even found a new job before me. I was pretty livid that I was abandoned yet again and only once I reached out did he say “I’ve been thinking about you! Why aren’t you passing your technicals?” Without me offering that I wasn’t passing my technicals, because I do. Not all the time, but at this point it hasn’t made a difference: it’s all been rejections. But I know my time is coming soon.

My mom even called to check up on me in the middle of the week during the day randomly, which, I haven’t had in years, so, I’m grateful for that…

I felt I was making progress yesterday when I was finally able to do a take home assignment that once seemed too difficult to do. Hope y’all are doing well.

[keroascrazy]

Neopets support is giving me a migraine.

I logged in last month, no issues, no problems.

Tried to make a new pet for shits n giggles.

During the process of naming this new pet, I was forcibly logged out of the site. Nothing unusual, happened to me last year when I made a cybunny.

Only NOW, I can't get into my account. Woerd right? Okay. Heard they want you to reset your password anyway. No big deal.

Send in a support ticket.

They ask me for all the fun stuff.

Email, date, details of account etc. Which I send to them.

Get a response that is a copy paste of the "send us your details!" ... so I send them again.

The cycle happens 4 times. I'm not even joking.

I send in a second support ticket explaining that I'm stuck in an automated email loop and FINALLY am told that they couldn't verify the email on my account. No shit. That email likely no longer exists that was 21 fukin years ago.

I send my best guesses as to what it could have been and am told they're all wrong. I ask if there's any other way I can verify that I own the account and they say they would need a receipt from a premium cash purchase which I have NEVER MADE because I generally don't spend money on games.

What kills me about this, is that the incident the previous year was not nearly so irritating. I sent my details in, and got a response with instructions on how to get back in.

Like.

This back and forth shit never happened.

It's a dumb thing to be irritated about but I don't want to start over.

I JUST made a cybunny last year. Ffffu k man.

Like, I even sent them decade old fanart od my neopets? What else do y'all WANT? this ain't even a case of "I forgot my password" it's literally "the website made a fuckey wuckey."

[rubywithin]

Who to Trust? 3

Once again I woke up having a relatively relaxing rest, I checked under my bed just to make sure the cue was still there. Hmm I suddenly noticed a letter on a desk....I felt tempted to open but part of me suspected that doll would take issue. -Beep- huh? some sort of monitor turned on and there he was, (Hedgy) “Now the last sleepyhead has woken up feel free to open your letters. -Tear- huh its a picture of Yuri...what is this about? (Hedgy) “Now you should all be looking at a picture, the person you see is the one most likely to kill you”. Part of me wanted to believe it was just mind games....but I had my suspicions. (Hedgy) “Consider this your first motive and remember if you can kill and not get caught you get a one way ticket out of this place hehehehe”. This is bad it looks like things are going to get even more tense, I made my way over to the living room!

We all signed our names again but a lot of people were shaking, I decided to put my hand on Ellie’s shoulder to try and help her relax. (Sora) “I um propose that we all share our pictures....maybe we can...” (Kyoya) “Look whoever is apparently most likely to kill us probably doesn’t know its them. If we share the info we will just be giving each other ideas!” (Sora) “Yes but not knowing is just going to cause us to doubt each other....”. (Ein) “I agree with Kyoya we just need to try and ignore these dumb pictures and focus on finding another way out of here!”. (???) “That’s easy for you to say plenty of people probably hold grudges against you including that mob...”. Hearing those words stung...father why did I have too.... (Ellie) “Hey leave Ein alone Marie he is just trying to help us all to stay calm and get out of here”. Once again we all went out separate ways, I told Ellie to go with Sora....I had to talk to Yuri!

I walked over to the pool where he seemed to be just be sitting there, (Yuri) “May I ask why you are here?”. (Ein) “I know what I said back there but I was given a picture of you....and I wonder how much you saw yesterday?” (Yuri) “Oh you mean how you got yourself a weapon hehehe, I’m use to people being scared of me”. (Ein) “This is not about being scared....its about wanting to know the truth I just want to understand why its you...” (Yuri) “Honestly I don’t know, personally I thought Kyoya would be the one I would go for since he seems like the type who judged me. Although I recall my uncle being a mobster you got arrested so maybe the host thinks I hold a grudge”. (Ein) “I see thank you for sharing Yuri, I’m sorry for doubting you I’m just a more cautious person!”. I suddenly heard the door close....(Yuri) “Hahaha I can tell with that response, don’t worry maybe it was one of the girls not expecting us to be here”. Haha he is a lot friendlier when he isn’t talking with his puppet.

After reading some more I went to the midnight meeting....no one seemed to be talking so we signed our names and wanted to call it a night. However Yuga wanted to talk to me for some reason, (Ellie) “Can I stay too?” he looked nervous, (Ein) “Sorry Ellie but I think its personal for him” she understood and left but I made sure to thank her for the support earlier. (Yuga) “I’m sorry....I overheard you talking to Yuri so I want to know why are you the one I was sent a picture of?”. I took a deep breath and looked around.....(Ein) “I...I wanted to become a painter but my father expected me to follow in his footsteps as a detective. And due to circumstances....I followed I did follow his career in the end. I imagine the host believes I’m jealous of you for earning the title of Ultimate artist”. (Yuga) “I see I’m sorry you didn’t commit to painting but hey maybe you can take it up as a hobby again if we get out of here”. (Ein) “Yeah that sounds like a good idea” we talked for a bit before returning to our rooms and calling it a night.

[rookiespropeller]

@yaikat okay this is gonna seem like a ridiculously long story that doesn't have to do anything with ur comment but bear with me, i'm going somewhere with it lol

(starting off with an entire essay's worth of me just complaining 💀 i'll put TL;DRs throughout the post for those who don't want to read all of this)

i only played cpr really casually around 2018, blissfully unaware of the whole culture surrouding cppses, all the discord servers, etc. i was kinda forced to stop playing due to my account suddenly telling me my penguin needed to be activated in order to play... over a year after i had verified it. attempting to use a new activation link told me "your penguin has already been activated", yet i was still blocked from logging in.

ofc i was devastated, so i decided to reach out to their support team. the website said to contact their email address, which i did. wrote them a detailed explanation of the issue and prayed that there was something they could do to help me.

i never got a response. over a month after initially reaching out, i wrote them another email, thinking that maybe they didn't receive the first one, or that they forgot about it. it happens, no big deal.

...except i never got a response to that one either. or the next 4-5 i sent before giving up.

i was later told (and by later i mean like, only a couple months ago) that pretty much all of their customer support was done through tickets on their discord server. can't confirm if that's true bc i wasn't in there myself, but other people were corroborating that statement.

there was no indication on their support page that you had to go through discord to get help from them. just an email address that either no one or barely anyone actually kept up with — for good reason: one giant inbox filled with all the issues player might've been having, concerning anything at all, indiscriminately from "there's a tiny visual bug in this room" to "i just discovered an extremely important issue that could potentially break the entire game" to "i got banned but i did NOTHING WRONG >:(" to general questions about the game, or straight up trolls... considering the amount of players, the influx of emails must've been pretty steady too. needless to say that was most likely impossible to navigate, even more so trying to deal with each problem & answer everyone.

even if there had been a link to their discord, that's still... not an ideal situation. club penguin is a children's game, and rewritten was accordingly advertized as child-friendly. meanwhile, discord is 13+ and most parents have either never heard of it or don't have an account. which obviously leads to kids making accounts claiming they're 13 and entering a space where they could easily get preyed on. no matter how strict moderators in a discord server may be, it's impossible to regulate what goes on between server members in dms

i think their solution to this was making access to the server more difficult (by requiring an invite to join & changing the invite link often), but this circles back to the problem of only being able to reach their support team by making a ticket there. casual players and children had pretty much no way to get help from the team.

and i haven't even mentionned the data breaches yet! but i'm sure i don't have to go into detail abt that, there's plenty of articles out there that can explain it better. healthy reminder to always use a burner email when signing up for cppses 👍

(HERE IS WHERE I STOP COMPLAINING)

on the other hand, i've heard their custom parties were phenomenal, and their updates were pretty steady. from what i've seen (and heard! those custom tracks commissioned from Screenhog are lovely), the game was incredibly fun and there was a lot of work put into it, fueled by the passion the staff had for the original game. can't deny that for those who didn't run into issues, it must've been an amazing experience & i know lots of players met people on there that they are still very close with. im not familiar enough with how their content updates went to talk abt that card-jitsu release, as i didn't even know abt that until you mentionned it lol

1st TL;DR:

cpr's biggest issues were not about content updates, but about security and customer service (difficult/impossible to reach support due their ticket system operating through an official discord server that was purposefully difficult to join + misleading instructions on their website about how to get help; the official discord being a security issue in itself; 2 data breaches that affected millions of accounts)

for those who were active in the early days of cpl (im talking april/may/june/july 2022), you know how chaotic things were, ESPECIALLY in april/may. huge lack of organisation and professionalism due to the ''community manager'' at the time having a lot of influence and not really wanting to prioritize safety. in july, everyone had just about enough of that guy's behavior + the lack of communication the owner of the game had with her sole dev and moderation team. long story short: the ''community manager'' was launched into the sun, never to be seen again, & ski (the previously mentionned dev, now mostly known as Joey) took the lead of the game. safety then became number one priority and lots of changes were made.

i won't go into details cuz this post is already extremely long, but one of the most obvious safety-related change (and most relevant to this post) is that the cpl discord server, which was a official at launch, was handed over to the community. along with this, an actual support team was created (instead of it being done by the first mod available, regardless of experience in customer service). the ticket system was also made a lot more accessible.

that was only the first step in organising the team into more fitting categories than ''mod'' and ''admin''. there are now various roles to be fulfilled (it's even possible to apply for some of them rn, u can see it at the bottom of the page). here's the thing tho. Every Single One Of These Departments Are Severely Understaffed (including ones without applications open), bc the good ol' method of ''pick some random active/friendly community member & hope they're a decent person'' that was used in early cpl by that ''community manager'' is rlly unsafe & unreliable.

2nd TL;DR:

cpl used to have the same safety & support issues as cpr when it started out, but since changing leadership, had safety become THE priority above all. which is obviously a really good thing, but it's also somewhat one of the reasons why the team is understaffed (the hiring process being this thorough is really unusual in cppses)

(HERE IS WHERE I START CONNECTING EVERYTHING I'VE BEEN SAYING. if anyone is still reading this i genuinely can't believe u made it this far 😭)

unfortunately, thats pretty much how cppses have operated until now. staff picking other staff bc they're friends w them/think they can trust them — until disagreements start happening, which potentially leads to drama. and, apparently, in cpr's case, a whole data breach.

cpr staff most likely experienced just as much pressure (if not a lot more, due to their extremely large userbase) as cpl staff is currently under. however, i do think that pressure originated from 2 very different areas.

cpr was able to be really ambitious and go big with parties/events, while still keeping up a rapid pace. cpl is attempting to keep up a similar pace, with just as much ambition, but MUCH less staff. so things often get delayed, cancelled, etc. usually because they're incredibly difficult/impossible to achieve without the game going completely update-less for like a month. frustrating for everyone involved. vicious cycle of staff overworking themselves to try to put out impressive content for the community to enjoy, realizing they do not have time/ressources to accomplish what was planned, and having to change things last minute to be less ambitious.

for this next part, please keep in mind that it's pretty much all speculation based on my personal understanding/knowledge of cpr.

i believe most of their issues were internal, and caused by the lack of security measures (which ensured they could have a large enough team to see their projects come to life). alas, hiring without a proper verification process leads to these kinds of situation:

^ that's only 3 of them. there are more if you look at the full list. imo that should never have been allowed to happen over and over; at some point there should've been at least some kind of measures taken to prevent these situations. if they did take measures... it didn't work all that well, apparently. but, as i said, i wasn't there. so take this with a grain of salt

CONCLUSION / FINAL TL;DR:

you were completely right when you said maintening a cpps is ''stupidly hard'', although i'd say it was/is equally as hard for cpr and cpl, for contrasting reasons. cpl's issues are sometimes noticeable at surface-level, while cpr's were mostly internal. either way, club penguin fans are resolute: the game can't die, no matter what. as inspiring as that sounds at first, the more you think about it, the more depressing it becomes — we just want the club penguin we remember so fondly back. and that will never happen. it's gone. forever. and i miss it.

THANK U FOR COMING TO MY TED TALK

im in one of those phases rn where i profoundly miss ogcp's 2010-2012 era. like, i would've loved for the game to freeze there. keep new stories + new parties going ofc, but in that same style & vibe.

which is kinda what cpl is attempting to do, and i really do love the server, but theres only so much u can achieve w a team of around 10 volunteers (only 2 of them able to work full time, soon only 1) when updates need to be pumped out left n right

i watched an old ogcp video on youtube and saw that the lights at the dance club turned a different color as enough penguins changed to wear the same color. i had genuinely forgotten that was a thing, with how long it's been and how used i am to simply... not have that feature. but ofc the memories came back to me instantly and i longed to go back in time to live it again.

i really miss small details like these. not that many ppl care abt them, but to me it makes the world come a little bit more alive. i'm probably never gonna experience those lights changing by color again & it makes me sad

edit: rambling goes on below the cut bc i wanted my the rest of my thoughts to be on the post itself, not just in the tags

ofc its not just about the lights, but u get what i mean. with a large professional team who gets paid to keep things rolling, has enough employees + ressources to work on multiple things at once... theres a lot more u can do. and unfortunately, no cpps will ever be able to have that

like even going back to comparing w cpl. cpl cant have a weekly updating newspaper, or even any newspaper at all, bc theres not enough ppl to 1) write it 2) create/find fitting artwork to go on the pages 3) code it and put it into the game and 4) repeat all these steps on a regular basis. and the newspaper is only ONE thing among so many

there are lots features that are planned & already announced. they'll all get done eventually, but the thing is that if one feature is being worked on, there's no time to work on anything else. meanwhile, the community is expecting parties & events at the same rate the ogcp team was churning them out (and i don't blame them for it, new content and parties are a big part of what keeps the game active & exciting). problem is, whenever parties need to be worked on, development of new features is halted.

& then of course you can't forget to update the hidden pins, the Penguin Style, the Furniture + Igloo catalogs, the igloo music selection, the stage plays, the ice rink turning into the stadium (and vice versa) along with a new Snow & Sports, the blog posts, the community board, etc. etc. this is just what's coming at the top of my head. most of these are already not updating as often as ogcp updated them, yet are still incredibly difficult to keep up with

& THEN between all of that, there are bugs that need to be patched. but ofc no one wants to work on bugs when they're already completely exhausted from the rest of their workload + they're not getting paid for any of it

after all of this, it's near impossible to squeeze in stuff like garden animations at the mine shack, a working puck/soccer ball at the ice rink/stadium, stage scripts with clickable chat... or even color-changing lights at the dance club.

god this makes me so upset but its literally no ones fault. theres not much anyone can do abt it & it breaks my heart

i miss club penguin.

[weirdroute]

mutuals on the dash talking about their urls . did u know i straight up got shadowbanned for a day for putting this url to use