#and yet despite all this it's still quite funny lol

[theabigailthorn]

NEW EPISODE IS HERE!

It's about death, including mass death (Gaza, COVID, climate change) and why we ignore it. And it's a collab with Caitlin Doughty AKA Ask A Mortician!

[crestfallenyh]

new light ; jyh

cw: yunho x reader. reader making things hard for no reason, so this is quite long. sweet boyfriend yunho. a bit of a corruption kink. unprotected sex. backshot lol. breath play, hair pulling, biting and overall roughness mixed with a natural sweetheart yunho. not proofread, i'm testing the waters to start posting again.

"you should still talk to him, you know"

seonghwa's slightly muffled voice made its way to you as you groaned in disagreement with your face buried on his pillow. he gave you a sympathetic look before laying on the bed next to you, propping himself up on his elbows and seemingly preparing to repeat the same speech about trust and communication he'd already given you twice in the past hour. before he could start, you rolled on your back and laid there, staring at the ceiling where the silver lightning from his bedside lamp drew funny shapes.

"i know i should, i'm just not sure if i'm ready to face his rejection yet"

you ignored the stern look he shot at you, he knew better than anyone how dramatic you could get when it came to your relationship. your fears were not unfounded, though. you had been thinking over and over for the past couple of weeks about the topic and yet you couldn't bring yourself to speak to yunho about your worries, and as much as you shouldn't do it, you couldn't help but convince yourself time and time again that it wasn't worth bringing it up. you wondered why, because your boyfriend hadn't been anything but supportive throughout the couple months you had been together. perhaps that was the problem. deep down you knew he wasn't going to judge you, much less laugh at you, as understanding as he was. it was just that the relationship was still quite new, feelings yet so fresh that despite his bright personality, he was often rather shy around you. the thought of him looking at you with flustered cheeks and doubt on his gaze, not from nervousness and anticipation but because of embarrassment, held you back from getting too sincere with him.

"i know he's gonna listen and maybe even try if i ask, but i don't want him to do anything he's not comfortable with," you sighed and put a hand over your eyes, the lights suddenly too bright.

"you wouldn't, though," seonghwa tried to reason, "yunho is not the type to not tell when he doesn't like something. also, i have a feeling he might be into that even if he doesn't know yet"

and with that you were left thinking. in more than one occasion you tried to play different scenarios in your head on how he could respond. your soft and sweet giant... how would he react if you ever told him about the dark fantasies running through your mind everytime you saw him, simply existing? what would he say if he knew how badly you wanted him to share the same passion for roughness you had, the same hunger?

up until that moment your sex life had been good, for the most part. he was always respectful and mindful of his strength whenever he held you, kissing you with light pressure and fucking you equally as soft. you liked it, but you wanted more. you needed more. you needed his weight on top of you, suffocating and hot. you needed his hands everywhere, those long fingers of his biting into your skin. he was always nice to everyone, it was no surprise he would be gentle in bed too, but you didn't want him to be nice to you. not in that instance.

maybe it was worth a shot. maybe if you told him what you wanted, he would find a new side to himself too. your hope it was, at least. that's why, by the time you met with him at your place a couple of days after your conversation with seonghwa, you were so nervous it was impossible for you to look him in the eye because the possibility of it going wrong scared you as much as the possibility of it going great. he noticed, of course. after all, he was always perceptive of any minimal expression you made and although he tried not to worry, his mind wandered off to sad places whenever he tried to touch you, hug you or kiss you and a slight hint of a wince appeared on your face. were you about to break up with him or something? his mind was restless, and the atmosphere was somewhat tense, with short whispered answers and stolen glances. you hadn't felt that awkwardness in forever. instead of dissipating the awkward feeling, the anxiousness of the situation going in the wrong direction already made you grow even more coy, and you reprimanded yourself. pull it together, you thought.

ten minutes into the movie you were watching and he sighed, pausing it and looking at you with a question in his eyes. impressive, you thought. he held quite well, but it was now your turn to hold your breath. you weren't ready, but you knew you had to let it out. one big sigh of yours after and you tried to ignore the slight shake in yunho's hands as he repositioned on the couch. him being as nervous as you somewhat calmed you, though you didn't want him to get the wrong idea.

"it's nothing bad, i promise," you caressed the back of his wrist with your index finger, rummaging through your brain to find the right words, "it's just... you know, i've enjoyed our relationship quite well so far..."

yunho's eyes were fixated on your expression as you spoke for several minutes about how much you liked spending time with him and how he was the best boyfriend anyone could ask for, so intense that you couldn't help but avoiding his gaze. you said not to worry but your body was sending contrasting signals, eyes looking everywhere but him and twitching hands. he was slowly spiraling, waiting for the 'but' within your ramble. he couldn't even feign nonchalance.

"... i've never quite liked being with someone like i do with you, but..." yunho gulped, "... you know, i just.."

"what is it, love? are you not comfortable with something i did? tell me what is it and i'll fix it"

you shook your head slowly, finally making eye contact, "i don't think it's something you did, yunho. it's more like something i want but i fear i might make this awkward"

"you know when we have, you know, sex?," yunho nodded, more confused than before, "well, there's a lot of things i wanna try, and don't get me wrong, i like what we do now but i just... i don't know if you would want to do most of those things, and that's why i don't want to make you uncomfortable"

you cringed on your seat, suddenly hyper aware of the fact you were finally saying it and wondering if you should backtrack.

yunho's eyebrows furrowed.

"try me, y/n. do you want me to tie you up in the air or something?," he was so very obviously trying to joke but seeing how you made yourself small against the couch, he coughed, "wait, seriously?"

"would that make you uncomfortable?"

he stopped for moment to think about it, and finally shook his head no. he'd never tried in the past and he'd actually never thought of something like that to do with you, so he was surprised at his own answer. he considered himself a pretty standard guy when it came to intimacy, vanilla, if you will. he was too aware of the size of his body, so he never entertained the idea even though he knew people did lots of stuff out there. the more he thought now, the more he found himself interested on how the whole thing would play out. he was only worried about the safety of it all, and as such he explained to you. you listened, still a bit shaken up, relishing on how he was seemingly taking it serious even when barely anything had been discussed and you yourself had never thought of trying bondage, not too much at least.

"but seriously, if you wanted us to try something different, you should've told me before doll," he noticed how his words could come up as nagging, so he explained further, "i believe you when you say you've enjoyed it so far, but i'm always open to listen and i would want you to love it, instead of liking it"

and so, a long discussion ensued. at first it took a lot of courage from you to stop downplaying your actual desires and took a lot from yunho to stop blushing with each word you said. he never thought of you as the type to want to be choked and marked up, if he was honest. he wasn't scandalized per se, but the more you explained, the more he started feeling heat all over his body. he knew he was considerably taller than most and in the back of his head he knew people found that attractive, but knowing now how much you wanted him to do all those things to you and take full advantage of his strength made him lightheaded. he really appreciated how, although you couldn't seem to stop talking once you finally turned off the shyness switch, you still listened to everything he had to say to make sure he was also comfortable and just how far he was willing to go.

once the conversation died down you let the silence sink between you two, processing everything you talked about with your gaze lost in the distant glow of the long forgotten movie. after a while his voice and his hand on your thigh brought you back.

"you were scaring me back there, you know," yunho chuckled, soft eyes and a fond smirk drawn on his handsome face, "i thought you wanted to break up and turns out you just want me to rag doll you around"

the simplicity of his tone made you frown.

"well, now that you say it like that..."

he knew you were joking, and from one moment to the next you found yourself swiftly placed on his lap, curling his soft black hair around your fingers and kissing him, softly at first. his embrace around your hips was tender but firm and you trembled a bit, relief replacing the anxiety from before. seonghwa was right, after all, though you would never admit that to his face. you quickly forgot about your friend when you adjusted yourself on top of yunho and felt his hardness against your body. his eyes met yours and your breath hitched. how come the look in his eyes was so dark now?

"we can wait before trying changing things, you know," your soft whisper fell against his plumped lips, "think about it till you're comfortable"

yunho kissed you again, this time more fierce before tightening his grip on you and starting a trail of kisses down your cheek, jaw and neck.

"do you want to do it now, though?," shivers ran down your spine as his now slightly hoarse voice ringed in your ears, "because i do"

you nodded almost too desperately as those electric eyes of his bored into yours and that was all the confirmation you both needed. suddenly your back was against the couch and he held up a hand to caress your face, moving the scattered hair aside while he positioned himself on top of you. as a reflex your legs wrapped around his lean figure and soon enough you were nothing but a bunch of short breaths and flushed pink cheeks, his hands went up and down your sides and a gasp left your mouth when he gripped your thighs with his ringed fingers. amongst the passion there still existed some gentleness and you whimpered, pulling him against you with need. everything was suddenly too hot. his touch, his breath, his forehead against yours after a particularly long kiss.

yunho unfastened the buttons on your shirt and removed it as well as your shorts, leaving you almost completely exposed under his exploring hands. he glanced at you to check how you were doing and you so badly wanted to wipe off the smugness from the curve of his lips, but before you could say anything, two of his fingers pushed your underwear aside and made contact with your wetness. your head fell back with every movement of his, soon enough his lips were on your neck and for a moment you forgot how to breathe. nothing on your head but him, everything was filled with the feeling of the cold metal of his rings against your folds and the sharp occasional pain from his biting on your neck that made you sink your nails on his broad shoulders.

it was intoxicating having him like this, his instincts so good at that moment that he knew where to touch you so as to pull the sweetest sounds from your mouth. he just knew your body so well. you wanted to return the favor, make him feel as good as he was making you feel but as soon as you lingered around the button of his jeans he used his free hand to grab your wrist and hold it above your head. you whined and his response was a chuckle. it was more fun than he expected, and he was honestly enjoying himself, drinking in the expression on your pretty face and the cloudiness on your hazy eyes.

"no, doll. today you'll just take what i give you, yeah?"

he waited for confirmation and once he got it, he flipped you around, pressing his torso against your back and his clothed pelvis against yours. the roughness of his jeans against your bare thighs made you shiver, griping the couch tightly as he got a hold of your hips with his right hand to stop you from pushing back to feel him. his other hand was busy with his zipper and afterwards with prepping you. he slowly pushed two fingers inside of you and you gasped at suddenly feeling stuffed. yunho whispered reassuring words in your ear and after a while he took his fingers out, replacing them with his cock. inch by inch, you shut your eyes closed until he bottomed out and the air escaped his lips in a quick exhale.

you'd never tried it like this before and he could tell you were struggling a bit to take him, which was unusual. he attempted pulling out to let you adjust better but your muffled "no, don't" stopped him. he raised his already furrowed eyebrows, it was hard to concentrate with your warmth around but he paid attention to your breathing, waiting for it to be more steady before intertwining his fingers with yours from behind for support and pushing down with each thrust.

your moans became sharper and sharper and he almost couldn't resist the urge to go harder and faster, afraid he might hurt you. yunho loved the outline of your body and how you jolted every time he hit the right spot. he laid down on top of you, letting his weight fall almost entirely on you and enjoying the way your whimpering was almost involuntary at that point.

after a moment he grabbed a handful of hair to turn your head a bit, just enough for him to be able to kiss your temple. as if that wasn't enough, his other hand sneaked around your body to get a hold of your throat. he didn't put much pressure, but the feeling of his large hand restraining your air intake little by little and the feeling of his large body trapping yours had you shaking with a silent scream around his cock. as you rode your high, yunho slowed down the speed but not the force of his thrusts and so you were left there, overstimulated in the best way as he was chasing his own high. he was almost there, and the ringing in your ears could only be interrupted by the sound of his grunts and moans.

yunho pulled put and let go of your neck to finish himself off, looking at your exhausted figure and blissed out expression was enough to have him cum all over your back with a choked out groan. you smiled at him, taking in the image of him with his dark hair sticking slightly to his forehead. it shouldn't be as hot as it was, but seeing him practically fully dressed on top of your naked body made you feel fuzzy on the inside. your boyfriend smiled back at you and ran to the bathroom for something to clean you up. you would have to hop in the shower at some point for sure, but for now, after he finished wiping his cum off, the only thing you both wanted and had energy to do was to lay down.

he quickly slid one of his shirts on your body so you weren't cold and held you close, both still too agitated to give in to your heavy eyelids.

after a while of him caressing your back and you drawing shapes with your finger on his arm, you heard his voice again.

"you know, i think i liked that a lot," you nodded in agreement, both you and him knew that figuring out what each other liked the best was going to be a journey, but you were grateful for his willingness to try and he loved that you finally decided to confide in him, "what do you say?"

"depends," you joked with a sleepy voice and fluttering eyelashes, admittedly a bit flirty for his inquisitive gaze, "will you spank me next time?"

[tizeline]

What is Draxum's relationships with each of his kids?

I'd assume he's closest to Mikey due to their shared interest in the mystic arts, as well as Mikey's emotional attachment to anyone he considers family 🥰

I find it funny how similar Donnie and Draxum are in cannon and I wonder how that will play out in this AU

The same thing with Leo and Splinter were very similar to each other despite being on opposing sides.

Yeah, I'd say Draxum and Mikey are the closest with each other. Draxum loves all his sons, but he really has a soft spot for Mikey. Mikey in turn is very devoted to Draxum, I've mentioned it before but Mikey's strong desire to do the right thing paired up with a lifetime of his father convincing him that destroying humanity is the right thing has led to Mikey being very determined to fulfill Draxum's plan. Also him being a prodigy with mystic powers leads to him spending a lot of time training his abilites with Draxum.

Raph is basically Draxum's second in command, as the oldest of his brothers he of course is the leader of the team when Draxum isn't the one issuing out orders. Draxum puts a lot of responsibility on Raph, responsibility that Raph very much takes seriously so Draxum as a result also has a lot of trust in him.

Poor Leo is still very much dealing with some intense Middle Child Syndrome here lol. To be clear, Draxum still loves Leo, and vice versa, but Draxum's role as a parent has a tendency to clash with his role as a... what, a military commander? Something along those lines. Listen, he's preparing to lead the yokai into war against the humans, and with his sons on the frontlines he needs to quickly figure out their individual strengths so that can help them evolve their specific skillsets. Mikey has his mystic abilities, Raph has his physical power and Leo.... Well, we know that Leo's expertise lies in his strategic thinking, except neither he nor Draxum has figured that out yet lol. Draxum is the leader, he comes up with the plans, and Raph's in charge otherwise. He doesn't notice Leo's leadership capabilities because he doesn't even think to look for them.

Leo's situation is kinda similar in this AU to what is in canon, where his self-esteem issues caused by him not feeling like he's bringing enough to the team paired up with him being a total Daddy's Boy and craving parental validation that he doesn't feel like he's getting because Draxum is more focused on Leo's brothers so he acts out to get attention and again Draxum's parental duties clashes with his WAR LORD duties or whatever because dammit son I love you but you need to quit goofing off you're a soldier and uh.... yeah...... Leo feeling a bit like the black sheep of his family (hah, sheep, cuz Draxum's a... hah) is another contributing factor to him being the first to turn sides.

And yeah, you make a good point, Donnie being so similar to Draxum vs Leo being so similar to Splinter is.... ooooooo, that's fun, there's so much potential there. Draxum's definitely dissapointed that Donnie's so gifted when it comes to the sciences only for him to be all like "Alchemy??🤨🤨🤨 Mystic science??🤨🤨🤨 That's not scientifically accurate!🤨🤨🤨" and just rejecting almost anything yokai-related.

Actually, Leo reminding Draxum of Splinter has a lot of fun possibilites too. Draxum being all like "Ah, he's just like Lou Jitsu!🤩" while simultaniously being all like "Ugh, he's just like Lou Jitsu...😒"

[littlelambscandyland]

Let Her Be

CG!House x Little!Autistic!Fem!Reader

Notes- Made the gal autistic because I am and couldn't stop myself from writing this, leave me alone, lol. That being said I just got my laptop working again, so I'll be working on requests again soon!

Warnings- Skin Picking (around the nails), Arguing (Cuddy and House), Hyperventilating, Panic Attacks, Non-violent biting (mentioned),

(Fun Fact the word count is 2,012 which is the same year the show ended)

It'd been 20 minutes. 20 damn minutes and no one even knew what this conversation was even about anymore. Cuddy had come to talk to House about yet another one of the man's many neglected duties. Normally it’d be a quick in and out where he’d complain, moan, and insult but eventually do, somewhat, what she asked. However, when Cuddy entered his office she noticed one of their interns off to the side. You.

You had been hired a few months back. A part-time intern for the psychiatric department. Cuddy was initially hesitant to hire you on because of your own mental disorders. You were autistic, quite ironic that you went into psychiatry. Despite her initial fear you were proven very useful and hardworking. Sometimes she felt herself feeling bad for ever thinking so wrongly of you, thinking how she played into the stigmas wrongly, but other times she feels glad she pushed those aside to hire you on.

Then again, maybe it was a mistake. Not because of you, mostly. You experienced age regression in high stress situations or for reasons Cuddy wasn’t quite aware of, and House had taken some special interest in you. He made excuses for you to work more with his team. Eventually Cuddy gave in letting you help with their cases by, essentially, being the patients temporary therapists. She gave you a raise and promoted you from intern, though most people still thought of you that way as Cuddy basically made up a position for you, just to shut House up.

The problems only really came when Cuddy noticed House having you around, almost, all the time. Noticing that unless he sent you away you were glued to his side. She also noted that you seemed more childish whenever he was around. Eventually, she realized you were regressed during these times. Of course, by realizing it was actually Wilson telling her after ranting to him about her confusion.

Now the actual problem wasn’t all of this. No. The problem was with House keeping you around all the time you weren’t able to do your actual job. You seriously couldn’t do it while in the mindscape of a five year old. It was ridiculous, so with feeling like there was nothing else to do she changed your job again. This time she made you House’s personal intern. Your new job entitles keeping him on track and mentally stable. Tieing in his need for you to be around and your degree in psychology.

Back to the present. It’s the first time Cuddy had to come and remind House of his job. The man had even been doing his clinic hours with a little less complaints. Today, though, House hadn’t been out of his office all day. According to Forman, House quickly dismissed them of any and all cases, and you’d done nothing about it.

So, here Cuddy was trying to talk to two incredibly distracted people. You wrapped up in a chair at a desk House had added just for you, and House sat opposite from Cuddy. He sparred more looks toward you than at Cuddy. Despite the “serious” talk, House just couldn’t ignore you. Sending funny faces or glances when you weren’t looking. If anyone knew any better they’d say House’s eyes were filled with adoration more than fascination.

And if anyone knew any better they’d realize they were right.

House had no idea when or why you became so important. He remembers meeting you, how kind you were. He remembers how he’d made a rude comment and you immediately shot back. He remembers how he called you out only for you to do the same to him. House remembers how you took everything he threw at you in stride. How you were so sweet and funny. How you willingly showed yourself with little doubt. He saw how sweet you were. How smart you were. How honest you were.

It was just you. Everything about you. He felt protective and calm with you. House felt like he didn’t have to mask himself around you. You openly answered anything he asked you and you told the truth. He knew from the moment he saw you that you were an age regressor. House knew that you wouldn’t hide that part of yourself from him as long as he asked, so he did. House confronted you the way he does everyone, bluntly. You answered him with slight embarrassment, but openly you answered with kindness towards his curiosity. 

Ever since he confronted you on it you’ve been completely responsive to every push he’s given. House can’t explain why but when you willingly started regressing around him he’d gotten so happy that he couldn’t help but coddle you. Even he found it odd how you became so special. A simple fascination turned to admiration. He saw you as a new extension of himself. Not because of how physically young you were to him, but because of how mentally young you could be. Even out of regression you had a positive childish view on things, and House was begging to protect that. He knows how rare a girl like you is. He felt even more proud when you asked him to be your caretaker when you regress. He felt even more proud than that when Cuddy transferred you to a new position as his “personal intern”. He liked spending his days with you. He liked how you needed him.

Now he sat looking at you. Eyes filled with boredom that changes to love whenever he looks towards you. You sat at a colorful deskright across from him. Eyes interchanging between a screen, Dr.Cuddy, and House. Sweet distractions and an inability to hear whatever the two of you are being told. Thick irritation unable to crush your five year old wonder.

You remember asking House if he was alright with having you around so often. You knew how it could be being stuck with someone unwillingly. You remember him telling you to shut up and if he didn’t want you around you’d be gone by now. You remember making him smile genuinely, not a sarcastic cocky one. You remember him questioning everything about you like an intense interview. You remember the smile that he tried to hide in pride when you asked him to be your caretaker.

You moved as gracefully as you could with the new changes thrown at you. You acted with stability and a mask that could be unbreakable. Yet. Anytime you were with House, alone, you dropped the mask and he did too. Two people completely real with who they’re supposed to be, if only for a short time. He saw you in a way most people didn’t. He didn’t doubt you because of your disorder. House became, so quickly, such an important part of your life. Platonically, you loved him and he loved you. Neither of you would admit it, but even when you weren’t regressed you saw him as a father figure. Someone who is actually there, who actually cares about you.

So, here you sat at your desk. The mindset of a child as you did your best to do your damn job. Cuddy scolding you and House simultaneously. Her words work too quickly in a tone you didn’t enjoy so you took in kind the silly looks and glances from House. You “worked” on the small computer in front of you. An open document with random words or phrases you’ve typed out being the only “work” related thing open. All your tabs have games or silly videos on them. Despite your current age you did try to listen to Cuddy, it was just so hard.

Cuddy stopped her rant midway through a sentence. A look of annoyance played in her eyes. She looks over to House who is once again making faces at you, and she looks at you trying your best to suppress your giggles.

“Will you pay attention, damnit.” Cuddy exclaims in frustration.

The sudden exclamation made you stiffen. You immediately shot your eyes to your lap, afraid Cuddy would turn her glare to you.

“Hey!” House shouts out just as quickly. “Watch your tone in front of the kid.” He says with a bit of a tease.

Cuddy bit at her words for a moment. Gapping for only a few seconds while looking between you and House. Finding her words she finally speaks again. “She shouldn’t be a child right now!”

“Well, maybe we should be more accommodating.” House argues, playfully.

“House this is serious. I won't have a reason to keep her working here if she isn’t actually working.” Cuddy replies.

“She is working.” He shakes his head. “She keeps me on track.” He says matter-of-a-factly.

Cuddy narrows her eyes at him. “Not today she isn’t. Today she is the biggest distraction you’ve ever seemed to have. Today you haven’t even taken on a new case!”

Their conversation continues. A bickering background as your mind takes in the overall statement “I’m a burden”. Of course, that wasn’t what Cuddy was trying to say. That doesn't mean that wasn’t the message coming across to you.

Your hands shook as you started to pick at the skin around your nails. Your eyes blurred, not with tears, but because of your ragged breaths. You picked and tore at the flesh. The red didn’t really bother you as you continued to rip at your fingers.

Suddenly House was moving across his office.

“What are you doing?” Cuddy questions before her eyes land on you.

“Will you shut up for like five minutes?” House answers with a voice filled with indignation.

House is near you in seconds. He takes your shaking hands in his and holds them tightly. He tries to guide you. Keyword tries.

“Alright well this isn’t working.” He says to no one in particular.

He pulls you out of your chair and to the couch, sits you in between his legs, and wraps his arms around you. He holds you tightly and says something to Cuddy you can’t quite hear between your own heart beats. Something about not telling anyone something, something.

“Tell me what you need.” He commands.

You shake your head feverishly. You’re pulling his arms more and pushing your back against him.

“Alright, alright.” He says.

One hand goes to your head and his other goes to your legs. He repositions you until your face is shoved into his shoulder. A few more minutes of pushing and pulling, and a bit of biting from your side. Finally you're calm enough for him to get an answer from you.

“What happened?” He asks bluntly.

“burden…” You say, your voice lowly.

“You're not a burden..” House replies quickly.

“That’s what this was about?” Cuddy asked dumbfounded.

He rolls his eyes. “You’re still here?” House asks.

She huffs at him before beginning to walk out.

“Next time watch your mouth in front of the kid!” He calls out to her.

House turns his attention back to you. Your mouth latched onto the collar of his coat and you were lightly chewing on it. 

“What’re you a gerbil? Get that out of your mouth.” He says taking his collar from you. “You know how many germs may be on this thing?” He teases.

“sorry…” You whisper.

He snorts. “No you’re not.”

His response pulls a small giggle from you.

“Hey,” He nudges you. “You’re not a burden. You hear me?” House looks into your eyes.

You nod your head.

“Good. Because if that was your takeaway of the conversation we need to teach you more on reading a room.” He tells you condescendingly. “Because I,” He emphasizes. “Don’t think of you as anything other than my kid.”

The way your eyes lit up at his words made House’s heart swell. If humans were actually made of stardust, House could’ve sworn all of your stardust was in your eyes. A moment of peace after what felt so intense.

Thankfully House didn’t see Wilson standing outside his office watching as, what he called, “House makes progress”.

[4str0nuts]

DEEP DIVE INTO HORROPEDIAS AUTISTIC CODING : A GIANT ANALYSIS THING

ALTERNATE TITLE IS WHY THE FANDOM SHOULD CHECK OUT HOW THEY TREAT AUTISTIC CHARACTERS

Disclaimer before I go in; i’m using the global translations and the english voice acting as I am on the global server lol. This may affect some things but hopefully not a lot! Also i’m using this video [https://youtu.be/ygAkz4L2AMo?si=elrUeXGompMKYXUJ] for my proof and will provide timestamps!

Horropedia is one of the most loved characters in Reverse:1999 (bc haha funny autistic guy) , yet I literally see no serious posts discussing his character or even going into his character— even at a basic level. I’ve kinda been off to the side observing how the fandom treats Horropedia and it makes me question if people actually like him or some alternate version of him. Yeah sure this is a problem in every fandom but I’m too attached to Horropedia and i’m going to make it everyone’s problem.

There's all sorts of mischaracterisations of him where his autism is reduced to him being an “asshole” and “uncaring”, or that he is some funny reddit meme sona when that’s the case at all! Every other character gets to have serious posts yet when it comes to a very blatant autistic coded character, suddenly no one knows how to act despite the fact the fandom (going off of the twitter fandom here) prides itself on neurodivergency; so I’m here to dump a ton of analysis on Horropedia using ingame sources as proof as well as my own knowledge (as someone who is autistic myself), whilst also debunking mischaracterisations of him. I’m also doing this as I don’t think people treat Horropedias autistic coding seriously, seeing it as silly and thus ignoring all of his character.

Jumping straight in, Horropedia is not an asshole and is actually quite a caring character, even if he doesn’t show it conventionally. To me, it’s quite obvious that he cannot understand people at an emotional level, and always relies on his logical way of thinking no matter the situation; for example, when he broke Blonneys camera, he clearly does not understand why she is mad/upset and instead tries to comfort her logically rather than emotionally. Even when Blonney is very much showing she is mad, Horropedia cannot process that and cannot understand until she actually explains it [Part 5 54:07-57:20]. I can see why people may see it as an asshole move since he tells her to be “reasonable” over the camera breaking, though it is clear that this is another one of his autistic traits as people with autism have a hard time connecting with others’ in an empathetic way(which can come off as being blunt and uncaring) yet no one seems to mention that. Despite this, he still offers her to buy her a new camera once Blonney vents out to Jessica, coming to terms with what he did and making it up to her. [Part 12 2:10:37]

Adding onto the last point, Horropedia shows concern and care multiple times throughout the story. Even if he is bad at comforting people, he still tries to acknowledge what is wrong in regards to the situation. I’m trying to keep this short as I don’t necessarily think this is due to his autism but a cool detail I found with the English voice acting is that his tone gets softer when he’s more genuine (it could be seen as masking but shrug. Not too sure on this one as I'm making this point to show he does care in his own way.) He constantly makes sure everyone is safe and goes out of his way to protect others [Part 4 51:08 , Part 6 1:16:18-1:16:39], which is a small detail I think people gloss over. It’s just nice seeing Horropedia care for others in his own way since I struggle with expressing affection / emotions like him.

Back to his way of thinking, it’s practically plastered everywhere that he thinks in a logical way and takes everything at face value no matter what, which is a trait associated with autism. At the very start of the very event, he even breaks down Vertins joke and still a conclusion was that she wasn’t the person he was looking for (knowing full well she was) [Part 1 11:06-11:50]. Horropedia also explains things at face value— in a basic and straightforward way no matter what it is, which is another example of not truly understanding things at an emotional level! [Part 9 1:42:45-1:43:09]This does not mean he does not consider the consequences of a situation, and Horropedia actively avoids situations where it poses a threat / harm to others. Mentioning this to point out how some people in the fandom treat him like he is stupid?— Despite how he is the basic definition of a nerd with references to it all over his character and voice lines! Yes, he could be seen as careless considering he goes to Green Lake just like that with no approval, but he certainly isn’t oblivious to dangers around him. Horropedia himself explains that he is into horror movies because of how illogical they are(stating how it is like a puzzle), not necessarily the fear of them; so it makes no sense for Horropedia to directly put himself or others in harm's way.

Still relating to his way of thinking, Horropedia uses his horror logic so he can understand situations around him. He directly links back to his special interest to understand things— and to an extent others— better, special interests are a trait exclusive to autistic people! By using his horror special interest, he can understand the world better from his perspective. I don't even need to get examples of this because throughout the Green Lake event he makes references and links to horror movies, basing predictions on what to do in order to survive in the stereotypical like scene of Green Lake. Horropedia is full of reasoning, and despite his “debatable manners” (thanks Sonetto),he is not always too absurd with his predictions. It baffles me that people treat Horropedia like he is some happy-go-lucky kid, running head first into danger; he takes the time to understand a given situation in a way he would understand before doing anything.

Another really obvious thing is that he can’t understand social cues, or the body languages of others at all. Essentially he cannot read the room. The whole “I know the rules of social courtesy” [Part 12 2:19:19] line doesn’t necessarily mean he understands social cues— rules are (usually) based in logic and reasoning, and not emotions. Social courtesy just means the rules of society (or the foundation in this case? eh), and Horropedia knows he HAS to abide by the rules or else he will be in trouble. Something seen as ‘basic’ and ‘simple’ to people considered ‘normal’ by society may be hard to grasp by people who do not benefit from society (autistic people). Horropedia understands the ‘logical reasoning’ of how someone acts but he can’t connect with or understand someone else’s emotional responses. Literally look at most of his interactions with the film crew and Blonney, Jessica even steps in at one point to stop him from making the fight between Jason and Blonney worse [Part 6 1:11:38]; and even then he tries to use logic to break down the situation. Horropedia can’t pick up on social cues for the life of him, including body language and tone.

Smaller point here but I have a feeling Horropedia’s tone is hard to understand to some of the characters. Tooth Fairy couldn’t tell if Horropedia was joking towards the end of the event , where he shows off his “sense of humour”. Nothing much to add here I just found that really interesting…

Ive rinsed out all the notes I’ve taken on Horropedias autistic coding so far…….. feel free to add on more….. I may have gotten some things wrong because I have been working on this for a few hours straight. Surprisingly I still have more to analyse outside of his autism so if people are interested let me know bc i’m desperate .

TLDR: horropedia is autistic thanks for reading.

[rangerelizabeth]

So, I don’t think I’m dying, or anything, and it’s probably not that serious, but... I’m kinda bleeding. A lot.

Lol this one's a bit of a mess, but these prompts are great because they make me write things outside of what I would usually do! Have a fun little post-war domestic Clegan for your Wednesday night :) Thanks for the ask anon! I hope you enjoy it.

Prompt: "So I don't think I'm dying, or anything, and it's probably not that serious, but... I'm kinda bleeding. A lot."

Word count: 892

After dismissing his undergraduate class for the day, Gale begins the ritual of packing his materials into his worn leather bag when his doctoral supervisor pokes his head into the classroom.

“Gale, there’s a phone call for you in the main office. Seems urgent.”

A jolt of anxiety shoots through Gale. No one ever calls him at the school. Hastily, he crams the remaining papers into his bag, for once not caring if they crease. He hurries to the office where the secretary nods towards the phone, prompting him to pick it up.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Buck,” John’s voice comes through the receiver, steady yet tinged with a slight urgency that spikes Gale’s panic. His hand grips the phone tighter, knuckles turning white.

“What’s wrong?” Gale cuts straight to the point.

“So, I don’t think I’m dying, or anything, and it’s probably not that serious, but... I’m kinda bleeding. A lot,” John says.

“What?” Gale’s voice rises in anxiety, drawing a concerned glance from the secretary. He winces, trying to soften his volume when he speaks again. “Bucky, what the hell happened?” 

“Cut my hand by accident. Tried to stop the bleeding but it won’t quit. I think I might need stitches, and I would drive myself but you’ve got the truck,” John explains, sounding impossibly calm.

Gale’s racing heart steadies slightly, reassured that John isn’t actively dying, but the thought of him alone at home with a profusely bleeding hand still unsettles him.

“Jesus, okay. I’m leaving right now. Just… keep putting pressure on it and don’t bleed out before I get there,” Gale says, running an anxious hand through his hair.

“Don’t count on it,” John teases lightly.

“Not funny, Bucky,” Gale huffs. “See you soon.”

Replacing the receiver, Gale stumbles out a hurried explanation for his abrupt departure, then practically sprints from the building to the parking lot. He drives well above the speed limit, exhaling in relief when he finally pulls into their driveway and sees John sitting on the porch. He’s got a rag wrapped around his left hand that looks far too blood-soaked for Gale’s liking. 

Once the truck stops, John stands and makes his way to the passenger seat, greeting Gale cheerfully despite the circumstances. Gale’s glad John’s so calm, a stark contrast to his own internal worry. Of course, they’ve both seen worse injuries during their time together, but Gale thought they had left such emergencies behind with the end of their service.

“You doing okay?” Gale asks, reaching over John to secure his seatbelt for him, considering his hands are a bit full at the moment. As soon as it’s done, he throws the truck in reverse, backing out of the driveway to head for the hospital.

“I’m fine, Buck. It’s barely a scratch,” John reassures him with his usual bravado.

“Right. A scratch that had you calling me at work to come drive you to get stitches. No big deal,” Gale retorts, rolling his eyes.

“I’m sorry,” John says quietly, sounding slightly chastened.

“Hey, no. I’m glad you called,” Gale hurries to reassure him. “Just scared me, is all. Never gotten an ‘urgent’ phone call to the main office before.”

At the hospital, John receives eight stitches across his palm. Gale stays by his side throughout, John gripping his arm tightly during the more painful moments. As he works, the doctor questions the nature of the accident, and John reveals that he accidently cut himself while handling a knife. Then, he wraps John’s hand and assures him he’ll be right as rain in a couple of weeks.

Driving them back home, Gale can’t help but ask, “So, what exactly happened? I thought you knew your way around a knife without almost chopping your hand off.”

John looks sheepish, fidgeting in his seat. “I uh, tried cooking us dinner.”

Gale arches an eyebrow. When they had moved in together, it quickly became evident that John’s culinary skills were severely lacking. After a series of less-than-successful attempts, they had mutually agreed that cooking would be Gale’s domain.

“Okay,” Gale says slowly, confused.

“Did you realize it’s been a year since we’ve been home? Since we moved in together?” John asks suddenly, his tone softer. 

Gale’s heart warms, the pieces beginning to fall into place in his mind. John’s next words confirm his suspicions.

“I just wanted to do something special for you, especially since you had to work all day. I’m just sorry it ended with you driving me to the hospital,” John sighs, his voice tinged with regret.

Gale smiles warmly at him. “Well, you know what they say. It’s the thought that counts, right?” 

John huffs out a laugh, leaning his head back against the headrest, shaking it in amusement at the entire situation. “I guess so.”

“Anyway,” Gale continues playfully, extending his arm over the console to rest a warm hand on John’s thigh. “I can think of plenty of other ways you can make it up to me once we get home.” 

The implication catches John’s attention immediately, prompting him to sit up straight in his seat. He raises an eyebrow at Gale. “Oh, is that so?” he replies, his tone teasing in return.

Gale simply keeps his eyes on the road, a mischievous smirk playing on his lips.

“Hey, Buck?” John says suddenly, causing Gale to glance over at him curiously.

"Yeah, Bucky?"

“Drive faster.”

[bump1nthen1ght]

A Very Monstrous Kinktober: Day 25 (Pregnancy)

Kink: Pregnancy

Pairing: Male!Werewolf x Fem!Reader

Other Kinks: Fingering

Warnings: N/A

Word Count: 1135 words

Kinktober Masterlist

A/N: This ended up being less of a pregnancy kink and more a smut piece where the reader is pregnant lol. Hope y'all enjoy nonetheless!

“Dear, please, I can take it off myself. I’m not that fragile.”

“Still,” Barrett whines, tail wagging low and forlorn behind him, “It’s gotta hurt! Can’t I aid my partner in pain?”

“Barrett, it's a bra.” You reach behind yourself, unhooking the garment through your t-shirt. “I’ve worn them since I was 9. I’m quite used to it.”

You had only put it on to go grocery shopping with your husband, swollen breasts now easily visible through most of your shirts. Even if it pinched a little more than usual, even though your healthy boobs shouldn’t be a problem, you were still too embarrassed to go in public without the bra. You decided being mildly uncomfortable for 30 minutes was worth it.

Barrett heavily disagreed.

“Let me massage you love. It looks so tight.”

You sigh as you slip the straps off your arms, pulling the bra out through your sleeve.

He had a point; you could feel the dull ache around your rib cage already, boobs sore from the small excursion

“Okay.” Barretts ears perk up,tail lifting behind him. “But!” You hold up a finger, recognizing that anticipatory look in his eyes, “No funny business. I have to write and send some emails for work, and I can’t be distracted.”

Barrett nods excitedly, murmuring a “Scouts honor!” before sitting next to you, patting his thigh. You shuffle onto his lap, laying your back against his chest. His warm fur already lulls you into relaxation, your feet dangling off the ground as you sit on his legs.

Two big, hot paws quickly scoop under your breasts, thumb rubbing into your stiff back while the others rub the indentation left by your bra band. Despite your protests the massage feels heavenly and you easily sink into Barrett's touch. His snout nuzzles into your neck, wandering eyes no doubt watching the way your breasts look in his palms.

Barrett adheres to your deal, massaging your boobs very methodically, as he’s done many times before when they were sore. An act of intimacy, sure, but not necessarily sexual. It has you letting your guard down, closing your eyes and resting your head against his pecs. You can feel the warmth of his calloused paw pads through your shirt, like heating pads for your swollen boobs.

But then there's the sensation of a paw pad brushing across your nipple, lingering in circles, that has you opening one eye.

“Barrett.” You warn.

“I know, I know!” Barrettt moves his finger away, but has already succeeded in pebbling your nipple, pushing through your fabric. Barrettt’s tail thumps against the couch. “Just wanna make sure I’m getting all of ya, y’know?”

You're about to bite back, but Barrett squeezes your breasts together in a way that has pure pleasure rolling down your back. That snark seems less appealing now.

You roll your neck, cheek resting against Barrett’s shirt. He nuzzles further into your neck, hot breath washing across your pulse. Goosebumps run down your skin.

“Wanna help you relax. You work so hard, baby.” There's no complaint when his fingers find their way back to your nipples, gently circling both. “You’ve got this great job, in charge of all these people, but who's making sure my wife is okay?” One hand abandons the pretense of the massage and wanders down to your abdomen, rubbing the small bump. You're only 12 weeks along, so there's barely anything yet, but Barrett has been extra excited to see you grow. “Plus, your growing our pups now.” Barrett nips at your ear and as much as you try to bite it down, a breathy gasp still comes out. “It’s the least I could do.” The wandering hand slides down to the hem of your pants, finding no resistance from your loose sweats; or yourself, for that matter.

Ahh, fuck those emails.

Claws clip past your granny panties, claws retracted just enough to leave pleasant trails down your skin. Still pressed against your neck, you feel Barrettt smirk once he reaches your core.

“Hmm, seems someone’s extra relaxed, huh?”

“Shut up.” You mutter into Barrett’s fur, breath hitching when his rough paw pads circle around your clit. His touch is light, teasing your aching bottom with your own slick. “It's all the hormones.”

“All the more reason for me to help you, love.” His forefinger stays on your clit as his others drift to your wet pussy lips, spreading them open with his middle and ringer. Barrett's gruff “Shit, baby.” rewards with him more of your juices, his voice always being a weak spot of yours.

“Think you could take two?” Barrett whispers in your ear, making you turn toward and give him a dirty look, almost offended.

“In my sleep.”

Your sass has Barrett chuckling, giving you a playful peck. Then another, and another, and another…

By the time Barrett sinks two of his fingers into your aching core, his tongue is down your throat, your moans muffled against his lips. His thick digits splay open in your pussy, pressing against your walls and making your body shudder. Despite all your bravado, pregnancy has made you far more sensitive than before. The gentle stretch feels more like a heavenly burning in your stomach. Your walls squeeze hard on his Barretts fingers.

Barrett's thumb presses and flicks across your clit. Before you can even react, he begins thrusting his fingers, moan catching in your throat and transforming to a desperate whine.

Barrett detaches from your mouth, a stretchy string of saliva still connecting your mouths. His eyes roll down your messy, pajama-clad and trembling body.

“Beautiful.” He moans, fingers scissoring with each thrust into your cunt. “I wish I could have you like this always. In total bliss, gushing-” Barrett punctuates with a particularly hard pump of his fingers, “-around me. Full of me.” Your throw your hand back and clutch onto the back of Barrett's head, holding him and his filthy mouth close to your head. “Such a good mama already, so sweet to me. Can’t wait till our babies are here.” Drool drips down Barrett's jaw, his breath heavy as he watches his hand go in and out. “You’ve been working so hard, I wish I could help more.” Your hips cant upward, entrance clenching around Barretts knuckles. Slicks decorates his furry fingers, slicking the fur. “That's why I gotta make sure you feel good whenever I can. Especially with a desperate cunt like this.”

Barrett emphasizes his T, all but purring directly into your ear.

“Barrett-, I’m gonna-”

“Do it baby, cum for me.”

Barrett's snarl is all you need, pussy spasming as slick gushes across Barrett's palm. His soft voice whispers indistinguishable sweet nothings, kissing your shoulder as your ride your high on his palm.

It’s gonna be a good 9 months.

[theresthespark]

Okay Lestat is canonically a Scorpio and Louis a Libra which are both painfully accurate. I wanted to play Estelle and share my astrology headcanons

Claudia:

Leo rising – the hair, the general slayage, her association with yellow aka the sun

Aries sun – she’s so bold plus libra and Aries are sister signs so they share traits that present different which feels right for Louis and her’s kinship

Taurus moon – not prone enough to over emotionality to be a water sign but not overly practical in the way the other earth signs are. Very stubborn and does canonically enjoy beauty and luxury. Also if you know a Taurus I feel like it just makes sense

Madeleine:

Virgo Rising – She just gives demure when we first meet her and yet no bullshit either. Virgos just seems very put together almost unassuming which is funny since every Virgo I know is crazy lol

Aquarius sun – the decisions she’s made in her life feel the best suited for an Aquarian. Also her talking to Armand? That woman stopped giving a fuck about what everyone else is doing years ago

Cancer moon – Almost did Scorpio here but her loyalty and intensity didn’t feel suited there. Cancer still has some of Scorpio’s snap but its homey and soft too. I also can’t see Claudia gravitating towards someone similar to Lestat at all lol

(Bonus: suspected Aries Venus. The intensity of her!! Her directness when she cares! How she chases life and joy!)

Armand:

Pisces Rising – those big ole eyes are a big marker for this one. Also Pisces have big baby energy despite being the oldest sign which feels perfect for him

Gemini Sun – Please what else could he be? There’s the 27 different faces but more so, the love for technology and knowledge, the urge to always strategize. The near inability to ground into his emotions. The perpetual anxiety. Also Geminis are so funny without even trying but that’s just me

Capricorn Moon – Caps are ruled by Saturn which is in short a struggle bus placement. Fits well with the forever 27 thing (stuck in perpetual Saturn return) and his tendency to self flagellate. Also it being represent by the devil card in tarot. Iykyk

Daniel:

Capricorn rising – When you first meet him he comes off quite no bullshit in a way that only makes sense for Capricorn to me. Also fits for the workaholic tendencies (our risings tend to be a truest to self energy aka us at our best). Also feel that may be what draws Armand to him hehehe

Sagittarius sun – If you look up famous Sags all of them are silly goobers (and lowkey problematic 💀). Like him being a Sag makes SO much sense to me for San Francisco. Only a Sag would make that many dumb decisions just bc it was a vibe lmaoo

Aries moon – Thinking about Eric’s comment about Daniel not taking kindly to bullies. Also how similar him and Claudia feel to me I feel they’d share some major signage too

(Bonus: Gemini Mercury bc his got the gift of the gab, the quick wit)

Louis: (i couldn’t resist finishing their big three)

Libra rising – Ruled by Venus, Helen of Troy, Malena coded. What else could he be really?

Libra sun – Painfully canon

Scorpio moon – With how he talks about himself and his life versus how he moves through the world it makes perfect sense to me. So much emotion but also a lot of passion all bottled unless in the right company. Also he would loooove SZA (plus plus you’re more likely to become heavily attached to people who’s sun is your moon)

Lestat:

Aquarius rising – Leo’s sister sign (perfect for him and Claudia’s dynamic). She’s a rebel she does her own thing she does not give a flying fuck about the rest of yall. Only an Aquarius could be responsible for the events in Queen of the Damned

Scorpio sun – Again debilitatingly canon

Leo moon – Do I even need to explain it? Pull any TVL passage if you want an explanation lmaooo

I hope you enjoyed my analyzes I love astrology and would kill to get a proper birth chart for these characters. The house placements! The Aspects! The CHIRONS!! I need to chill

[yourlokalescholar]

Found this in my notes from months ago. Copy-pasting it here because it’s still funny to me

One of those “modern ancient gods” stories where everyone has forgotten what Loki’s the god of and they refuse to fucking tell anyone.

Hermes: “urgh yeah, I’ve had to give up a bunch of my domains to other gods since I ‘have too many’. Glad I’m still the trickster god tho” / MC: “what about Loki?? I just met them, I know they’re real too.” / Hermes: “oh yeah ofc. They’re not a trickster god lmao.”

Loki: “why does everyone think I hate humans?? I love you guys!” / Athena: “aha! So you’re… some kind of patron god of humanity? Of civilisation?” / Loki: “no lol that’s Heimdall. Good guess though <3” / Athena, vibrating with rage: “how the fuck did you say that out loud.”

MC: “so you’re supposed to know everything, right?” / Toth: “I do, yes.” / MC: “so you know Loki’s domain?!” / Toth: “…theoretically.”

It’s unclear which pantheons are real. Gods occasionally mention other gods outside of their pantheons, but it’s always like Loki or Hermes or some other untrustworthy god so it’s never clear if they’re taking the piss or not.

Hermes: “yeah, so Mercury was telling me the other day–“ / MC: “I thought you and Mercury were the same god??” / Hermes: “no? He’s Roman, keep up.” / MC: “but… almost all of the Roman gods are the same as Greek gods! There’s so much overlap there! How does that work?! Are there two Apollos!?” / Hermes: “wouldn’t you like to know”

Several different versions of almost every god exist simultaneously and paradoxically, because they pretty much become new characters every time their legends are told. Sometimes—but not always—differentiated by different spellings (eg. Dionysus and Dionisos)

Jesus is mentioned often (usually by Loki) but never appears. It is again unclear whether or not he exists

Actually I’ve decided Loki and Hermes are the most prominent gods in this story and it is a comedy

Dionysus and Thor are drinking buddies

I don’t know who the MC is. Presumably they’re saving the world. I don’t know why Hermes and Loki are the only ones helping

Actually wait. Idea: the gods are imprisoned somehow by someone and various versions of Hermes and Loki are the only guys slippery slimy enough to escape

Most of the Lokis ARE imprisoned as they are canonically, but since every version from every myth (presumably—again, none of them are quite sure which versions from which pantheons exist) exists simultaneously, this Loki happens to not be imprisoned yet. They insist they’ve actually just escaped, and it’s unclear if this is true or not

Actually no, Loki SPECIFICALLY is the main god, and Hermes is known to have also escaped and just shows up every so often. He doesn’t like to stay still. Sometimes it’s very clearly a different Hermes, but apart from his appearance he is always exactly the same. Sometimes it’s the one-day-old baby that stole Apollo’s cattle

So, the extent of the worldbuilding so far is: all versions of every god from every pantheon presumably exist, but it’s impossible to tell WHICH ones specifically, or how they’re created, or how far this extends (eg. The modernish satan Loki interpretation exists despite not being from the original Norse myths). The gods are all imprisoned by someone, but Loki and Hermes and probably other gods escape, but one Loki specifically ends up in the MC’s house. The main reason they’re helping is because without Idun’s apples they’re mortal

[ughgoaway]

I need you like a heartbeat

content warnings: mentions of sex... that's kinda it the rest is just very soppy lovey-dovey stuff!! word count- 1.9k

a/n: hi!! so I kinda lied about doing under 1000 words but once I got going I couldn't stop lol. I did write this quick so if it's really bad don't tell me (please do I cannot cope not knowing). This was inspired by this request for some fluffy aftercare, thanks for the request!! this is my first time writing fluff so be gentle with me... I'm not good at being in love (haven't done it irl yet) so we'll see how it goes. also would just like to reiterate I am English but I did use braid instead of plait because I have beef with the spelling of plait, I think it's stupid so refuse to type it. also, I was gonna include a full skincare scene but alas I don't do any so had no idea what to write... anyway here you go!!

Thump. Thump. Thump. All you can hear is your heartbeat in your head, the repetitive rhythm being the only thing keeping you grounded. Without it, you fear you would just float away. You fear your weightlessness would simply cause you to disappear from the earth as you know it.

Soon a pair of hands come up to wipe your tear-stained face, you instinctively lean into the touch despite not quite remembering who it is. “Baby? Darling, you with me?”

Matty.

The calloused hands delicately wiping your face belong to your boyfriend and his touch makes the fog in your mind begin to lift. As it always does when you're around him. 2 years in and still you've never met someone you feel so clear around. That may seem unusual to some people, they all say “isn't the love of your life meant to make you a bit hazy? Make your head swirl and your mind go blank?” But no, not to you. You've never felt anything but clear around him, just so completely yourself it almost hurts. There was never any fogginess in your mind, there was nothing but a clear choice. Him. It was as if there was a spotlight on him wherever you were, he was in plain sight. The first thing you saw no matter what.

Slowly your eyes blink open and you're met with the sight of your very naked boyfriend hovering over you giving you a warm smile, “there's my sweet girl” he says staring adoringly at you. The smile was quickly mirrored by you followed by a small giggle. Despite having seen him naked 1000 times, suddenly this time was very funny. 

“What are you giggling at, hmm?” Matty says, despite lightly giggling himself, he always found your laughter so contagious. Your joy always lit up every room you were in. The pure happiness that surrounded you was so contagious it couldn't help but rub off on him. So for the first time in his 34 years of life, Matty would describe himself as giddy, not just from your giddiness infecting him but from just you in general. The love he felt for you made him feel 15 again like he was crushing on a girl way out of his league. Becoming slowly obsessed with seeing her around school. But with you, that feeling never went away, that slight obsession was ever permanent. And he loved it. He was nothing but absolutely, unbelievably obsessed with you. And he told you as such, over and over again.

“You’re naked” you manage to splutter out in your fit of giggles, Matty felt his heart flutter at the sight of you. Naked also, tears of dark mascara staining your cheeks and dozens of hickeys and bites blooming on your body but also giggling with no care in the world.

“Hate to be the one to tell you this sweetheart, but you're naked too. Don't tell me you forgot about my amazing lovemaking skills so quickly” Matty says, acting offended at your forgetfulness. 

“One,” you begin, acting mock serious at the man on top of you “Never call it lovemaking again or it will start happening substantially less” Matty laughs at you and begins pressing small kisses over the expanse of your face. “Two” you try and list off your second point but soon get lost in another fit of giggles at the myriad of kisses being littered over your face.

“I'll never get my second point out if you keep kissing me” you manage to stutter out, trying to speak but being accosted with pecks. 

“Fine, fine, sorry baby- go on,” Matty says leaning back slightly and looking back at you fondly, loving how you can go from moaning his name and crying from pleasure to giggling at your naked boyfriend.

“Thank you,” you fake clear your throat to assure your boyfriend this was a serious matter, “Two- I could never forget, I just suddenly found it funny you were naked.” You finish your statement and look up at your boyfriend. 

His hair was sweaty and sticking up in 50 directions, a pink flush decorated his cheeks and his pupils were blown so wide if you didn't know better, you'd think he had black iris’. He’d never looked more beautiful to you. Well, aside from the 50 other times you had assured yourself he never looked more beautiful.

You attempt to sit up to return the onslaught of kisses but you hiss as you're soon reminded of what you were just doing. Everything hurts, in the best way, of course, your arms feel like jelly and you can faintly feel his cum leaking out of you.

As quickly as you try to sit up you are ushered back down by Matty, “No, no don't get up sweetheart. I’m going to go get a warm cloth from the bathroom and clean you up a little yeah?”

You nod lightly, closing your eyes and resting on the silk pillowcases behind you. You are almost lulled back to sleep at the noises of your boyfriend moving around the room but a hiss soon left your mouth as Matty begins wiping you delicately.

The various marks on your thigh burn as Matty wipes your wetness off them, he apologises over and over. Only getting more insistent as he begins to wipe at your core. He starts at the top, lightly patting your clit and hushing your whimpers, hating he was hurting you. 

But soon the feeling of him cleaning stopped, you looked down only to catch your boyfriend staring longingly at the sight of his cum leaving you. For the third time tonight, giggles leave you as you stare at the blank expression on his face

“Oops sorry darling, got a bit distracted there but I'm back to business now I swear” Matty assures you before cautiously swiping at your hole and cleaning up the mess he made. The cloth was tossed aside as Matty worked his way back up your body to your face, smiling at your blissed-out look.

“You feel well enough to walk yet baby? We really need to get that makeup off and do your skincare. You’d kill me if I let you go one night without rubbing some oil or serum on your face.” 

You smile and nod at your boyfriend, preparing to walk only to be scooped up in his arms and carried into the bathroom. The cold tile of the vanity soon hit your bum causing another hiss to leave your bitten lips, red and puffy from the nights events. 

“What was the point in being able to walk if you were just gonna carry me huh handsome?” you say staring at your boyfriend while he grabs the makeup wipes and begins wiping your tear-stained cheeks. 

“Always gotta give you the princess treatment baby, just wanted to make sure if you had to walk you could. But I would never make my girl walk all the way to the bathroom! What kinda boyfriend would I be huh” he says jokingly. He's so intensely focused on finding your numerous skincare products he doesn't notice the massive smile that takes over your face. 

Matty has about 20 bottles in his hands, each one causing the confused frown on his face to grow. You stifle your laugh at his clear confusion and grab the various products from him and place them by the sink next to you. 

“Don't worry about all that tonight baby, just some moisturiser I think. I'm too knackered for much else” You notice Matty let out a relieved breath at your shortened routine, not quite sure what he would do if you wanted to do the full thing.

He grabs the small tub nestled between the mess of products on the counter and begins rubbing it in small circles on your cheeks and forehead. You almost catch your eyes closing at the feeling of him massaging your face but force yourself to keep them open to look longingly at your boyfriend's very focused face, tongue out and all.

“You wanna have a bath darling or should I just braid your hair and we call it a night?” Matty says, still rubbing your face despite all the moisturiser being applied. He just loved touching you, anyway he could. Not necessarily sexually, as much as he enjoyed that. But just loving small touches, a kiss on the cheek when he walked past, a hand on the small of your back when you stood together, even just your pinky fingers linked together as you spoke around a dinner table. Little affectionate touches kept Matty going and he wasn't about to pass up an opportunity to touch your very pretty face.

“Just some braids would be amazing, thank you my love” You smile at your doting boyfriend as he nods and grabs the hairbrush, slowly bruising out the multitude of knots caused by him, he's sure.

His nimble fingers pass your hair between them, slowly braiding your now neatly brushed hair. Matty grabs a hair tie and secures both of your braids at the end. Finishing with a flourish and a kiss on your nose that made your face scrunch up in that adorable way he loved.

Silently Matty picks you up again, smiling at the roll of your eyes and a bashful grin that you give him whilst in his arms. He places you on the edge of your bed before going to the chest of drawers behind him to fetch you both some clothes. 

You hold in your giggles at your boyfriend's bare bum, assuming he wouldn't love another fit of laughter at his nakedness. 

He soon returns with 2 pairs of black calvins and your favourite one of his shirts, the peach Panasonic shirt he once wore all the time. But mysteriously he stopped, about 2 years ago.

The first night you'd slept together Matty lent you that shirt, he remembers watching you sleep so soundly that morning in the shirt he adored. He vowed there and then to never wear it again, not wanting to sully it with any other memory than the memory of you.

He slipped the shirt over your shoulders and the calvins up your legs, giving your bum a cheeky pat when you lifted your hips to get them on. He followed you up the mattress and settled on the pillows, facing you and staring fondly into your eyes.

Each time your eyes met you treated it like a staring contest, never wanting to be the first to look away. The pure adoration in the other's eyes always kept you looking, staring, not ever wanting to leave that moment.

Matty broke first this time, a small celebration happened in your mind as he pulled the duvet over the two of you. He swung his arm over your shoulder as you settled on his chest. He leant down to give you a gentle kiss on the crown of your head with a large smile on his face. 

“I love you, sweetheart,” he said, a smile evident in his voice.

Yours was slightly muffled by your head pressed into his chest but you returned his comment, “I love you too baby, thank you for making me feel good”

“Always” is the last thing Matty said, or the last thing you remember hearing before sleep took over you in the arms of the man you were sure was your soulmate.

[misc-obeyme]

In-Game?

Okay next in the daily chat series is this one featuring Leviathan!

"But CC," you may be saying, "didn't you already post a daily chat story with Levi?"

Yes, I did a while ago. But then I deleted it. So if you saw that and were confused, I'm sorry! The problem is Levi lol. No, but seriously, I didn't like how that story turned out, so I decided to delete it and try again with a different chat. I find I sometimes have trouble writing Levi's character and honestly I think it's because his anxiety really hits close to home?? I mean, in the game, it's really not that bad. He just gets nervous sometimes when MC gets romantic and out in crowds of normies lol. But I've been dealing with anxiety (social anxiety specifically) for my entire life, so I tend to overthink it when I write a character with a similar affliction. I think I write the character's anxiety more like my own, which makes it feel too OOC to me. BUT I think I did okay this time, so here it is, attempt number two!

GN!MC x Leviathan

Warnings: none!

LEVIATHAN: Where did I go wrong? For Memory Kiss 2. Ugh, I got the bad ending.

MC: Want to replay it together?

LEVIATHAN: Sure! I just need Suzu-chan's happy ending… … and Shiro-chan's true ending. When you come, bring some drinks. Thanks!

It had all been going just fine. You had brought a few cans of devil crush super spicy mango juice to Levi's room. He had already started up the game Memory Kiss 2, prepared to play through it with you.

You just hadn't anticipated how awkward playing a dating sim together had the potential to be. Now you were sitting next to Levi on the floor of his room, blushing to your roots as the character on the screen swooned at one of your suggested dialogue options. You were both surprised that this option had worked.

Moments ago, Levi had expressed his doubt about it. "That line's just too flirty!" he said. "Suzu-chan will probably be offended that you're being so bold!"

"No way," you disagreed. "It's a great line."

"Why do you think that?" Levi asked.

"It would work on me," you said.

Levi had spluttered at you, unable to respond properly to this revelation. Despite his anxiety at what you just said, he managed to choose the dialogue option in question.

You both watch in stunned silence as Suzu-chan reacted with a multitude of little hearts.

You were embarrassed now because you actually thought Levi was right. It was an overly flirty option. But sometimes it was nice to hear something bold, something that left no room for uncertainty, something that indicated the person you were talking to wasn't just slightly interested, but actually wanted you.

The fact that this video game character seemed to agree with that assessment was pretty embarrassing.

"Y-you were right," Levi managed to say.

You cleared your throat and tried to brush it off. "Of course I was right," you said.

Levi put down his controller. He wouldn't look at you. "B-but you're nothing like Suzu-chan," he said. "And you said…"

"I know what I said," you interrupted, mostly because you didn't think you could stand it if he repeated what you had said. "Suzu-chan is a video game character, Levi. She has a programmed personality. Real people are more complicated. And I… well, I…"

Levi turned to you suddenly, grabbing both of your hands and squeezing them. He still couldn't quite look you in the eye. "Do you want me to start staying stuff like that? This sort of… Asmo-like stuff?!"

You laughed. "I don't know if I could take you seriously if you tried doing that."

Levi drooped a little. "Yeah, it would be more funny than anything, huh?"

"I just want you to be yourself, Levi," you said, watching him smile and blush at this comment.

You let go of his hands and picked up the controller. You had a feeling about what was coming next in the game, so you pressed through some of the remaining dialogue until a new set of options came up.

You selected one of the options, letting the game highlight it without actually choosing it yet. You put the controller back in Levi's hands.

"I want this from you far more than any flirty line," you said softly into his ear, leaning in close to him.

Levi froze at first, his eyes on the screen. You had highlighted the option that said only kiss me.

But then he seemed to gather up his confidence. He hit the button on the controller, choosing to kiss the character, who reacted with a sweet little kiss sound. But Levi wasn't looking at the screen anymore. The controller was abandoned on the floor as his arms circled around your waist, pulling you close.

You could tell that he was still nervous - a slight shake in his touch, the light blush on his cheeks, the way he kept his eyes closed - but he still leaned in to press his lips to yours.

Levi always started off timid, but with a little encouragement, he lost himself enough to let go of that anxiety. So you kissed him back, putting your arms around him and clutching onto his shirt as you pulled him closer to you.

Sure enough, this was all Levi needed. His response was to become needy, arms tightening around you, his movements more desperate, even a gentle nip at your bottom lip.

You pulled away just enough to whisper in his ear. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to distract you like this. What about the game?"

Levi made a low noise in his throat, half groan, half growl. "MC, for once I don't care about the game. Right now, real life is way better."

You laughed because this actually meant a lot coming from Levi. You kissed him again and he was ready for you, both of you losing yourselves in each other while Suzu-chan displayed on the screen, forgotten.

others in this series:

Mammon | Barbatos | Solomon | Lucifer | Simeon

Asmodeus | Diavolo | Beelzebub | Belphegor | Satan

masterlist | Thank you for reading!

[reginalusus]

Just Addispam.

***

When I first met Spamton, I immediately understood what the others meant. He wasn't all quite there, if you understand. Addisons are supposed to be colourful, alluring, beautiful, in the way that candy and such is coloured; to attract customers.

But Spamton was a ghastly white, and a bit shorter than the rest of us, despite being the oldest. He was loud, but only seemed to be that way because he was, well, perhaps the most nervous, jittery thing in all of the city.

His ads weren't like the rest of ours; they were more like pop-ups and, I shudder to admit, like viruses. Byton told me that Spamton had been born from junk emails rather than normal advertisements, and that he wasn't destined to be in the main city with us, selling to people. That he'd 'give us a bad reputation'. Thankfully, his job mostly revolves staying in the email room, sending out ads that way. I know he doesn't like it, and I don't blame him. Loneliness causes a distinct glint in your eye after a while.

That being said, he never stopped working. He never took breaks. He was exhausted all the time, despite my nudges to get him to rest.

He's a fun guy to be around, really. A bit dorky, a bit eccentric, but he's charismatic, naturally funny - he even makes Byton laugh sometimes. He can go from that shy, nervous mien into a confident, ballsy fucker quite quickly, and he's never done any of us wrong.

But on nights out, drunk or not, he's always telling us how he's going to make it big one day, how he's going to be a 'big shot' or whatever, and that he was going to be the most successful salesman in, not just the city, but the world. That Lightners and Darkners alike would adore him. That he would be rich and powerful.

The others laugh, make fun of him, playfully tease him or roll their eyes. I don't. Yeah, he's a weirdo, he's not fit for this game, he's not a proper Addison, but still... there's something about his abnormally larger smile, his posture, his voice... there's something there that we don't have. I just don't know what it is yet.

POV from Crypton (Blue Addison), from a fic I'll never write, lol.

I might make this a 'series' or something though, where I draw Spamton in his chronological stages with an excerpt of someone else's POV to go with it. We'll see.

[autisticlalna]

"You Were Right" (and a behind the scenes on how we got here)

initially i was gonna make a post going over all of Anathra's lore so far but then i realized i do not quite have the spoons for it, and also i'd like to break it up into easier to cover parts anyway. so let's jump straight into the most recent mystery!

i've already talked before about the hidden messages in Rubyco's videos, and about the split-second easter eggs in Viking's. encrypted messages aren't exactly new to Skyblock Kingdoms.

but, okay, let's rewind a little. it's 1 am, a couple days before Anathra's episode 8 premieres. i'm winding down for bed, see the premiere on my homepage, and go: hey! i wonder what Anathra's doing next episode!

hey what the fuck is that. why is there elder furthark

a bit of backstory on me: i love translating things. you probably know this by now. i also knew a guy who was big into norse mythology stuff, and that included him knowing elder furthark. so i immediately peg that as "oh, shit, that's elder furthark" and track down a translation tool.

("why are you going into backstory" we'll get to that. lol lmao.)

anyway, its 1 am, i run it through the first tool i find, and get:

someþiŋ ' weird ' happened

...or "something weird happened".

COOL. THAT'S OMINOUS.

i go to bed. when i wake up, Moxi has shared something from Anathra's discord:

...but i can't figure out what it translates to.

timeskip to the premiere.

Anathra gets a delivery from the End Kingdom after helping Josh out with villager stuff. he goes to place the shulker down, it's suddenly nighttime, and...

hey, what

iou were right

...okay, here's where we loop back to that backstory bit, and also i pull back the curtain to showcase how hilariously bad this went for the dnerds.

i recognized the alphabet as elder furthark

(and yet my dyslexic ass doesnt realize theres two rs in it until now. it has been 5 years.)

trying to translate the box name gave me gibberish ("io nht tuil")

i also knew from the "something weird happened" message that elder furthark isnt 1:1 with the english alphabet

oops there are two translator tools. oops they use different runes for "y"

due to [gestures at cherry and doak], there is a minor scuffle about if it says "you" or if it actually IS supposed to say "iou"

we still cant translate the box

still cant translate the discord message either. this is about to be really funny

people in the sbkcd are also translating it, so we compare notes

anathra steps in to save us:

THANK YOU ANATHRA <3

i am immediately embarrassed because, oops, turns out Angerthas (dwarven runs from Lord of the Rings) has alphabet overlap with elder furthark, so that's where the confusion came from. seeing as it's a post-filming decision, that does mean that the episode description and chat message were translated correctly, but the box is in Angerthas and, despite having the same runes, they do not correspond to the same english letters.

i spend a bit alternating between bonking myself for my mistake and bonking my very tired head against Angerthas for a bit until WhiteQry suggests that maybe what Anathra said in chat is the same thing. later, Aquelon is able to translate it as "IU WER RAIT". or,

YOU WERE RIGHT

...right about what?

skipping back to the events of the episode: Anathra realizes that he's lost time. he says he's only felt this "once before", doesn't know what the writing is, and is generally thrown off by... whatever just happened.

i need to rewatch Anathra's pov before i can dig into what i think the message means-- my initial guess is that it has something to do with his ?nightmare? from episode 5, although im not sure past that. considering his pov plays with the concept of the fourth wall a bit as-is, the message also might not be for Anathra (and he can't read it with glasses on either way).

Anathra's in the middle of something. there's a lot going on with him, inside and outside, and i really want to do more overviews of his lore because it's very fun. until then, keep an eye out for more strange messages i guess.

-

"hey leo you didn't translate the furthark in the 'glasses off' message, what gives" WELL, YOU SEE. I WAS TOO BUSY BEING EMBARRASSED AT THE TIME TO PROCESS IT. AND IT WASNT UNTIL WRITING THIS POST AND GETTING THAT SCREENSHOT THAT I SAW IT AND WENT "wait. hold on" AND RAN IT THROUGH THE TRANSLATOR.

AND THEN REALIZED, AFTER FOUR DAYS, THAT ITS THE URL OF THE SITE IM USING TO TRANSLATE THIS AND IT JUST GOT KINDA MANGLED BECAUSE OF THE "NOT 1:1 WITH ENGLISH ALPHABET" THING.

im in hysterics. how did this happen. please dont ever think im professional. all of these super cool in-depth explainer posts are the end result of so much clownery but i needed to show you guys just how much of a MESS this is lmao

[heroesriseandfall]

Thinking about Tim’s 16th birthday and how it contrasts and compares to what his 15th birthday could’ve been…

Tim and Jack both forget Tim’s 16th birthday is coming up, but Tim’s new stepmom Dana remembers, despite only being around for at most one other birthday. (She became Jack’s girlfriend when Tim was 14 and married Jack when Tim was 15, so the only birthday she’d know him for was the 15th.) Once Dana reminds Jack they plan the surprise party with all Tim’s favorite foods and friends—all in all a much better reaction to Tim’s 16th birthday than what Bruce and Alfred did.

But here’s the thing. Tim’s 15th birthday occurred during No Man’s Land, when the islands of Gotham were cut off from the mainland and it was considered an illegal and dangerous place to be. Tim ran away to NML around July 7th, and was still there 2 weeks later (using this timeline for reference) sometime after which his dad managed to get him extracted from NML via a helicopter (lol). This means Tim was in No Man’s Land at least from around July 7th to July 21st…and Tim’s birthday is July 19th.

There’s no way to be confident what happened for Tim’s birthday, because it had never been mentioned yet. One idea is that in the chaos, Tim & Jack once again forgot. However, this wouldn’t quite explain both Dana knowing Tim’s birthday and being surprised when they forgot it.

Dana could have looked it up or asked when she became Tim’s stepmom, but also. We know Dana was with Jack the whole time Tim was in No Man’s Land. Considering how stressed and worried Jack was about Tim being in No Man’s Land, my guess is he could’ve made a big deal about Tim turning 15 while he was stuck in NML. If Jack made a big deal about the date, that would explain why next year, Dana remembered Tim’s birthdate was coming up, despite having never celebrated it before.

Edit: Remembered/found a panel in Robin #125 where Tim says Jack used to proudly tell stories every year on Tim’s birthdays + Christmas about Tim’s grandpa lying about his age to enlist in WW2 at 15. I dunno if this adds much to my analysis but it’s deeply ironic and funny to me.

[chevelleneech]

As delusional as they are, it’s kind of interesting watching Tkkrs construct their version of events in real time.

I’m usually working when an episode of AYS airs, so I always see their take on things hours later, and after already having seen other people’s opinions. But to be one of the people who watched it a little earlier, so I saw the scenes before seeing anyone else’s opinions, I can genuinely say, it’s honestly almost fascinating to watch them squirm.

People can think whatever they want about JM and JK and their bond, but to see Tkkrs go from “Jimin was the third wheel!” as they cropped him out of stills or as they claimed Tkk were cuddled up despite it being a quick photo, last week to seeing how they are almost completely ignoring the show this week is wildly funny.

The Jikook tag on Twitter is currently a lot of “Jokers will always be Tae’s number one fan!” “Jokers can’t keep Tae’s name out their mouth!” “Even after all their so-called moments, Jokers only care about Tae!” even though there aren’t actually a lot of Tae centered posts coming from Jikookers. And when they’re not trying to claim Jikookers are for whatever reason focused on Tae, they’re saying all the Jikook moments that happened this episode don’t matter, because Tae and JK went on a trip without cameras, while Jimin and Jungkook said in episode one they hadn’t seen each other in a bit.

I don’t know. It just really interests me how they are so comfortable and so confident in how they decide what matters and what doesn’t, and how they twist whatever else is left to be in their favor. Are You Sure? was scripted bullshit for a year, plus the first two episodes. Episode three was proof JK actually wanted Tae, and Jimin was the tagalong. Now episode 4 is irrelevant because Tkk went on a trip last year or whenever, without filming it.

Their reasoning is so extremely unreasonable, lol. Because why watch a show you know revolves around two members you hate seeing interact? At the same time though, them watching the show and being so angry at JM and JK and Jikookers tells me they really do understand where plenty of Jikookers are coming from.

Not shipping Jikook is fine. Disliking the idea that Jikook are together is fine, but it doesn’t make them any less questionable, and I think people who are watching the show are realizing that more and more.

Jimin and Jungkook went from being attached at the hip during the duration of the group being active. When they paused to enlist, JM and JK, in their own words, drifted. Again in their own words, JM and JK realized they weren’t seeing each other often and decided to rectify that by blocking out a long weekend to go on vacation with just the two of them, and chose to document it. Upon having fun, they decided to extend their filming and vacation in more places, again, just the two of them. Once the show was complete, JM and JK did not then go back their separate ways. They enlisted in the military as a collective unit. A choice they made prior to their vacationing being done.

The entire existence of AYS is honestly just a reminder of how much the two of them value their relationship, whatever it may be. Episodes 1, 2, and 4 specifically. They show how much they enjoy being in each other's space, and how much they click with one another, even though they have close and loving relationships with the other members.

So seeing Tkkrs seemingly come to genuinely understand that, yet hate it, is quite a thing to witness. None of us know the status of JM and JK’s relationship, and we honesty don’t need to. But to watch Tkkrs realize it is fully not at all what they want it to be (as in, Jungkook hates Jimin and Tae is the person he prefers to be with) is something to behold. Because no matter how angry they get, what new scenarios they create, or how much they ignore, the reality is what it is.

Jimin and Jungkook want to be around each other, and they enjoy being around each other. They make each other laugh and smile, and people who watch them together in their actual lives, all agree that they click. I would say I hope Tkkrs come around someday, but I think it’s too late. They’ve made up their minds and will never see the joy JM and JK bring each other, because they’ve built an entirely different world in their heads about what’s going on

[sanddusted-wisteria]

Buncha WIP snippets

Since my update post was already long enough and these little segments are all pretty long in their own right, I had to put them on a separate post lol

I figured since I've been so inactive on the fic front for so long, I should repay any and all of your patience with a nice batch of stuff :> Enjoy!

[long post below!]

From Earth and Sky:

Wis was making no effort to keep her footsteps quiet, and yet Qi still hadn’t noticed the lack of her presence behind him. All the caffeine he just downed must be turning off some parts of his brain to reroute power to the others. She felt a twist in her stomach. That certainly couldn’t be healthy. She should probably just find his journal and bolt to Fang’s to see what to do. Qi would probably comb the downstairs floor for it, so she should probably check upstairs. She returned to the main room of his apartment, looking around at the stray books left here and there around the chairs and the table. All textbooks. Only place left was his bedroom. Wis slowly cracked the door open. She wasn’t sure why she was being so cautious. The unfamiliarity of the space, perhaps.  It was a small room, just about the same size as the main room next to it. Simply furnished: only a desk and chair, a couch, and a bed. Books were littered on nearly every flat surface, save a clear path on the floor. In the corner stood a spacesuit, propped up to almost look like someone wearing it. Enough belongings to not feel spartan, but not quite enough to feel homely. A few pictures hung on the walls. Over Qi’s bed, there were what looked to be posters pulled straight from the ruins, advertising majestic cosmic vistas that one could visit. Some of them looked to be real ads. At least the ones still within the solar system. The ones for other star systems seemed more speculative and decorative. Wis’s eye was drawn to the photo that presumably showed his family. Four four-eyed people. His father and grandpa looked remarkably similar, and equally jolly. His mother almost dressed the same way Qi did, her expression warm. And front and center was little Qi, hair a disaster even back then. There was a smile on his face. Did he force it for the camera? Wis couldn’t tell. But she could still see the familiar curve of his mouth, and the way his eyes pinched a little when his cheeks lifted. “You ever miss Vega 5?” “No.” “Not even your family?” “…Perhaps.” The exchange echoed in Wis’s mind. She remembered how his gaze had faltered. She heard how he had hesitated.  And yet, despite that and the happy looking photos of them hanging high on the wall…why hadn’t Wis heard anything about his family until now? She’d hardly heard anything about Vega 5 either, but there was a reason for that, at least.  She shook her head. Curious as she was, she wasn’t here for that. She shouldn’t pry. 

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

Wisteria groaned, evidently still not satisfied. “Enough about the work already,” she said sharply.  Qi frowned. So was she dissatisfied about his lack of progress, or what?  She pinched the bridge of her nose. “What matters is that you’re okay,” she said, a little softer this time. “I don’t care if you take a million years to finish it. I don’t care if you think you need to get it done any faster. But if you hurt yourself trying to rush things, that’s when I can’t just stand by.” Something shifted in Qi with the way she said that. He couldn’t identify what or why.  “…While it is appreciated,” he muttered slowly as he cut off another piece of the fried eggs. “You needn’t concern yourself with me. Despite the setbacks, my state of being always averages out to be satisfactory.” Wisteria sighed, worry creasing her brow again. “I’m your friend, Qi. That’s why I’m worried.” Your friend. The words caused another funny sensation in Qi. Almost a feeling of…resonance in his chest.  Wisteria…was his friend. He’d never realized…but it was true, wasn’t it? Her regular visits to the Research Center, often not for business, the supplemental power stones and fresh tea with the occasional relic, the odd outing here and there… At his silence, Wisteria floundered. “U-um! Well, at least I think. I-I just kinda assumed we were friends. I’m sorry if I misinterpreted anything—” Qi blinked. “O-oh. N…no.” Wisteria glanced away nervously. “‘No’ as in, ‘No, we’re not friends,’ or…?” Qi’s brow shot up. “No! Er…n-no… ‘No’ as in, ‘No, you haven’t misinterpreted anything.’” He swallowed. “Yes. Yes, we’re friends.”  It felt so strange to say. He’d made a friend in Sandrock.  A part of him instinctively wanted to recoil at the revelation, but the warm smile that rose on Wisteria’s face swiftly put it to rest. 

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“S…so… Now you know my ambitions,” he murmured, trying to sound sure of himself. “What…what are yours?” Wisteria hummed, closing her eyes. “I…don’t think I have any. No big ones, anyways,” she said after only a moment. It seemed like she used the silence before to dwell on it. Qi frowned. “You…don’t?” A quiet smile lifted her lips, and she shrugged. “Not really. All I really want is to just…live on my own terms. That’s why I moved out here. I couldn’t do that back in Highwind.” She took a deep breath. “Do what I love. Figure out what makes me happy. Surround myself with just enough people to feel involved and included, and enough space to feel free. That’s it, really.” That sounded painfully familiar to Qi. She was just like his parents. Mere fishermen, simple folk that were happiest with each other and out on the water. Not like him and his grandfather, not dedicated to a lofty cause like the scientific betterment of humanity. Not trying to become a titan of their industry. Satisfied with their family, their one fishing vessel, their one stand at the market, and their simple handmade drying and packing work. He cared for him just as much as they cared for him, which was plenty, but sometimes he just couldn’t understand them. By no means destitute, by no means failures, just so…simple.  Painfully, frustratingly, bafflingly simple. But this wasn’t his parents. This was Wisteria Cyprens, one of—no, THE best builder he’s ever known. The fastest relic hunter he’s ever known. Without her, Sandrock would’ve perished at least twice…no, thrice…no, more than that… It was rare that Qi ever saw anybody with just as much skill and raw potential as himself. And yet… “Is…that all? How…” How stupid. How wasteful. How simple. How pedestrian. “…quaint.” Qi’s attempt at politeness was fairly flimsy, as Wisteria snorted and shook her head. “We’re all different, bud.” It was silent after that. Wisteria turned back out to look at the sky again. Qi’s antsy fingers ran across the spacesuit’s helmet some more. The moonlight shone onto the helmet’s opaque gold visor, illuminating Qi’s reflection. He stared back at his own uncertain eyes.  His mind still couldn’t let it go. He kept running through what Wisteria said over and over again, trying his hardest to find some sort of logic behind it.  Did she really, truly not want anything greater? No recognition? No prestige? She had to be well-aware of what she was capable of… Did she simply lack the confidence? It’d be rather silly if that was her only barrier. She could flourish just about anywhere. Atara, Lucien…they were always in need of builders there. Vega 5…any researcher would kill to have a builder as reliable as her to build their diagrams. Qi would know. Hell, she could outclass even the builders of Tallsky, or go back to Highwind and show them just what they cast aside. Anywhere. Everywhere. It was so easy for him to envision all the ways Wisteria could rise above her station. Couldn’t she see what he could see? Such a remarkable individual, a quick learner, a stalwart companion, with nigh-unparalleled skill, an alert and open mind, a deft hand, a keen eye, a bright smile, a— Qi froze his train of thought right in its tracks. His heart was pounding all of a sudden. Why was it doing that? Against any rational thought, his eyes were drawn to his right, where Wisteria still sat beside him, serene and awash in moonlight. The breeze toyed with loose strands of her hair. Her eyes shone as she admired the stars above. She looked so…comfortable. She glanced over to him, feeling his gaze on her. Their eyes only met for an instant, but there was an unmistakable feeling of shock as they did. It forced Qi to look away. Something uneasy bubbled in his stomach as Wisteria’s quiet presence hummed beside him. His mind whirred, stuck in a loop over the same question: How is it so easy for you to find joy…?

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“So what’s kept you in Sandrock for so long?” Mint asked carefully. “Trying to find a single ruins site couldn’t have taken up every single day of the last decade or so.” “The townsfolk also commission me for their work. There’s no one else to do it. All very…piddly matters,” said Qi, spitting out a very plosive “p.” “Busywork. Some of it may have been essential for our continued survival, but busywork nonetheless.” He pushed his glasses up. “What, saving an entire city from the brink of death like, 5 times now is ‘piddly?’” “All the solutions were trivial. There was no lack of the materials and the manpower required to manifest them.” “You couldn’t just hire someone else and pass it to them?” “Seeking adequate assistants has always been a fruitless endeavor, anyhow. Well, almost. But then city hall wouldn’t let her stay.” Her, huh. “So you chose to do them anyway.” Qi hesitated. Just for a flash. “That is my occupation’s societal role. In order to sustain myself and my funding, I am obligated to fulfill it.” The words were dismissive, but his voice had no fire. No bite. No venom. Suddenly, it dawned on Mint. What had been bothering his friend for what was evidently a very long time. A simple fact that had caused so much discordance in Qi’s mind. “You care,” Mint whispered. Qi’s brow furrowed, his face twisting into scowls of all different degrees and severities. A second passed. And then another. And then another. Yet no retort came. “You care about Sandrock,” Mint continued, digging further. “You care that everyone’s safe. You care about all this progress.” Qi’s jaw was clenched so hard he was almost grinding his teeth, probably trying to put the words together for an excuse about budget. If the town was more successful, then Qi would naturally get more funding. But it was more than that. Mint decided to nip the excuse in the bud by proceeding one step even further. “…You care about her.” Qi abruptly turned the opposite way, shoulders tensed. Mint stared at the tightened-up form of Qi, hearing the slight hiss of his breath through what sounded like gritted teeth. “It’s okay to care, Qi,” he breathed.

From A Builder, a Researcher, and a Rooftop:

“You read romance novels?” Qi looked up from the book he was half-heartedly reading. Grace was standing over him, one hand over her mouth trying to stifle a laugh. “Yes. What of it?” Just as the words left his mouth, he cursed himself internally. He should’ve just made the excuse that there was nothing else to read. Then again, with her pesky penchant for asking just the right questions, the frycook probably would have drawn the truth out of him anyway.  A snort burst out of Grace. “Oooooh, I’m sure there’s a lot of research value there…” Qi just rolled his eyes and tried to get back to the text. He didn’t need to justify himself.  “Heh. Guess you wouldn’tve gotten serious with the builder without one or two of those, huh?” “Indeed.” “Hah! Had to write a whole peer-reviewed article about ‘em with lit review included?” “Well, I had no intention of publishing my findings and therefore had no need for peer review, but I did conduct literature review, yes.” Silence. “…Wait, for real?” “Yes,” Qi said simply. He looked up, and had to fight a smirk at the sight of Grace’s flummoxed look. A fresh plate of food appeared on the side table next to Qi. “Well, I hope you’ve at least read better ones than that, Director,” said Catori, offering another plate to Grace. “That one’s barely suited for the garbage. Woe it be to the builder if they have to put up with what happens in that one.” Qi shut the book. “It certainly isn’t the most engaging story I’ve read.” He was already forgetting the name of the love interest, especially since the author didn’t think it prudent to give them any part in the major plot points. “Hey!” called Ernest from a table across the room. “It’s a slow burn! The passion of love takes time!” “Sweetie, there’s ‘slow burn,’ and then there’s ‘I think I forgot to light the bonfire,’” said Pablo, polishing his shears for the hundredth time. “Director dearest, please tell me your taste in literature is at least slightly better than your idea of a hairstyle…” “I’ve read much better, fortunately,” Qi said as he picked up his food. “And before you ask again, no, I do not require a haircut.” Pablo sighed, twirling his shears. “Yes you do…but fine.”

From Sed Nihil Pretiosius Vertiate (upcoming Grace/Wis fic):

Grace stepped through the door and gently padded over to the side of the bed, directly across from Wis. Their eyes met for the first time in months. Grace had no idea until now just how much she missed Wis’s gaze, deep and dark as night, always lightly inquisitive and aware. But now…it looked so, so tired. Her eyes widened a bit when Grace came into view. Grace slid her bag off her shoulder and gently sat down on the edge of the bed. The sinking of the mattress caused Wis to jolt and push herself up. She grunted, her muscles and joints struggling without energy or recent use.  Now Grace got a good look at the rest of her. The first time in months she’d seen her outside a photo. Her hair was greasy and tangled, her lips chapped, her face unwashed, her whole being just…exhausted. With one shaking hand, she slowly reached out towards Grace, trying to make sure that she wasn’t a hallucination. A soft and sad smile crept up Grace’s face, and she reached out her own hand to meet Wis’s.  Their fingers brushed, rough skin on rough skin, warmth on warmth. Wis took a shaky breath. And with such a simple touch, all of the softness that Grace could never feel—that she always wished she could feel—came rushing out of her heart.  Grace’s smile only softened more, and she couldn’t help but whisper… “Missed me, Wisty?” And Wis crumbled into dust. Her face screwed with pain as tears leaked from her eyes. Her grip on Grace’s hand tightened, lacing their fingers at the way together. Grace had never seen Wis cry before. Not in real life. Not even when she survived the fall from the cliff. Not even when Duvos was pounding down their doors. But here she was, crying for Grace. Grace had never cried in years. She couldn’t. Even when she wanted to after a tough mission. Keeping the agent’s facade for so long had made it instinctual to let the feeling pass. But it never did pass. All it did was leave a crack. And over time, more cracks would form, until a breaking point was inevitable. And so Grace broke. Let herself break. Let her broken pieces fall into Wis’s deft and gentle hands. She made no effort to stop the tears that poured out of her eyes. Tears that were meant to be shed years ago.

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Grace pulled her new wallet out from her jacket and flipped it open to take out her new IDs. “They kept the “archeology major” cover story mostly the same. It’s got a nugget of truth and all. Just now I’m a grad student from Highwind instead.” She handed Wis her “student ID,” complete with a fresh photo of Grace. The second Wis laid her eyes on her new alias, she snorted. “OoOOOooh, ‘Julianne!’” she swooned comically. “Well, Julianne, are you going to julienne some potatoes for my french fries?” Grace stared blankly at that stupid, dumb, smarmy grin on Wis’s face. And in the next instant, she was completely doubled over with laughter. She felt her insides getting jumbled up as breathing started to ache. A snort rumbled her nose as she took another gasp, something that she hadn’t felt in years. It was just so stupid. So dumb. So silly. So Wisteria.  And by every ray of Light in the sky, she wanted this so bad. To laugh. To love. Unfettered to everything but Wis.  The smirk on Wis’s face eased into a more sheepish one, a dusting of pink on her cheeks. “It…it wasn’t that good, hey…” It was hard through the laughter that continued to rack her chest, but Grace managed to warble out, “I-I love you so mu-u-uch!” The flush on Wis’s cheeks only darkened.