#anyway. if this shows up in the tags after all these extra rambly tags i will be

[wickedlittlecritta]

it's so funny to me that everyone complains about the daine/numair age gap and not alanna/george when george was like, 19/20 and alanna was ELEVEN when they met

tammy just has an age gap kink leave her alone

[welcometogrouchland]

Decided to spontaneously watch three seasons of Craig of the Creek in like. A couple days and the first thing I'll say is it's a very good show. The second thing I'll say is that Craig Williams could defeat the Collector in 2 minutes of screentime if he were there

[lunaviee]

can i request where reader cant go to their match and they got angry which makes them say the word "i shouldve invite *ex's name*, she wouldve come." and reader reaction can be up to you! with rin and maybe chigiri? thank you so much and please stay hydrate! sending loves <33

OHHH MYYY GODDD ANONNN……..

the way i gasped so loud when i saw this OMGOMG

okay so, idk if you’re wanting PURE ANGST for this but like i’ll add fluff at the end anyway bc the more the merrier😇😁😁

OKAY SO UMM..i’m a procrastinator, it’s no secret. so uhh chigiris will be posted when i remember to work on it, sorry😭

“are you serious?” “you’re..kidding, right?”

chigiri hyoma and rin itoshi x reader (seperate) click here for chigiri’s

tags/warnings: angst to comfort, swearing, arguing, NOT PROOFREAD…

synopsis: if he’s so insistent on you being there to support him, why doesn’t he do the same?

a/n: i am SO SORRY this took so long </3 i got busy but this request is soo..chefs kiss i hope i did it justice😓

RIN ITOSHI—

the faint mumbles from the tv filled rin’s apartment as you made a quick snack to eat, knowing your boyfriend should be home any minute. you sat down on the couch to eat, turning the tv volume up as background noise while you looked out the window. it faced a gorgeous view of your city, along with a nice view of the sunset.

after some time, you were back in the kitchen to clean up a bit.

*click*

the jingling of keys indicated rin was home, a tad later that usual but you payed no mind to it.

“hey,” you smiled, “welcome home, how was practice?” arms wrapping around his neck as he set his bag down, taking his shoes off. his arm snaked around your waist to pull you closer to him, planting a kiss on your temple.

“eh, same as always. those lukewarm lunatics don’t know what they’re doing”

you hummed in response, rin pulling away from you to look you in the eye. he spoke again. “we have a game in a few days. you’re going, right?” it sounded more like a demand than a question.

“oh uh about that” you broke eye contact, a twinge of nervousness tainted your face. “i was given an extra shift at work so i’ll be swamped, i don’t think i’ll be able to make it, sorry”

his before softened gaze now pierced right through you, full of annoyance. “really? i thought you’d want to come to my games.” his arms left your torso and flopped to his side, lower back resting on the counter.

“i do! i always do..rin you know this, i go to your games when i can but lately i’ve just been more busy an-” you rambled.

he cut you off, “quit the excuses.”

“excuse me?” you replied, shocked at how his silver tongue was so quick to interrupt you.

“i get it. you’re busy. you don’t have to make up these half-baked excuses and try to make me feel better.” he moved from the counter, straightening his back and showing his full height, looking down on you as if you were less than him at that moment.

“excuses? rin, what the hell are you talking about? i’m being serious.” confusion swirled in your mind, what was up with him??

“you know, i never had these problems with *ex’s name*. she was always happy to come to my games. no excuses, no lies. every game, she was there. why can’t you be like that?” rin’s venom stained words singed into your brain, glints of annoyance pooled in his eyes. a twinge of guilt settled in his gut the minute those words spilled out of his mouth, but he payed no mind to it.

“what?” your eyes widened in disbelief, “are you fucking serious?”

how could he say that? sure, rin was petty and used bitter language when he was upset, but comparing you to his ex? that was a new low, even for him. after all of the crap you two talked about when mentioning both of your exes in the past, you’d assume he’d want absolutely nothing to do with her. right?

“why wouldn’t i be?” not once did his gaze leave your figure, was he serious? “she actually took my career seriously.”

you were beyond shocked, eyes narrowing as your brows knitted together. “invite her then.” you retorted. “maybe i will, maybe then i’ll have someone who actually supports me there.” he scoffed.

his words made your blood boil, eye twitching before you spoke again, “get out.” you gritted through your teeth, fingers fiddling with the hem of your (his) sweater as to not lose your cool.

“what?” he scoffed, not expecting such a response (he really should have, what was he thinking??)

“did i fucking stutter? or is your skull too thick to hear what i have to say. get. out.”

the strikers face further scrunched, yet not moving an inch. “this is my apartment. if you’re upset, then leave.” he brushed past you without a single regret as to what he had said, not entirely believing you’d actually leave, where else did you have to go?

“fine then.” you slipped your shoes on while dialing a number on your phone before slamming the door, leaving the rin to sit with his thoughts. you had much, much more to say, but the thought of having to stay in the same vicinity as you made your stomach churn.

who did you call? why, your best friend of course, who else would you trust with this information. sure, rin’s teammates weren’t bad people to open up to, but you needed someone who could understand your feelings through angry sobs and incoherent mumbles.

it was only a matter of time before you were sat on yours friends bed, angry tears burning your cheeks as you rambled on about how dumb your boyfriend was.

“break up with him” your friend mumbled, only half joking. “me personally, i wouldn’t stay with a man, nah, a BOY who brings up his ex when he’s mad..”

you lifted your head from the tear stained pillow to meet your friend’s gaze. “yeah but……ugh i hate when you’re right” your sentence ending with a laugh

“i’m kidding..kind of” she sneered “either way, screw him, ghost his ass until he comes crying at your doorstep”

“what??” you shot up from your position, now almost on top of your friend. she was faced you, a more serious expression painting her face

“seriously though, you shouldn’t have to deal with that shit [n/n], he has the be the one to apologize.” you nodded in response, good thing your friend had a bit more common sense than you did in that moment.

“yeah, you’re right, thanks”

“any time, now do you wanna stay here or are you good to go home?”

“i’ll stay here and bug you more”

“okay then” she laughed out, the two of you now laying on the bed on your backs, staring at the ceiling

• { time skip - two days later } •

the radio silence that came from rin was like torture, did he not care? not a single text or phone call, not even a message given from one of his teammates. it was hard to stay positive.

sure, he deserved the silent treatment, but he was your boyfriend. his company single-handedly made your days better. being separated because of a fight that he didn’t want to resolve was stupid.

your friend tried taking you out today to get your mind off of the situation. it was going well, up until you walked into your favorite cafe.

you were met with a face you were too familiar with. rin’s. his eyes widened in disbelief and he twitched, almost as if he was about to run after you. and so you and your friend took one good look at him and immediately left. if the argument was going to be resolved, it wasn’t going to be in a public cafe.

your friend pushed you by the shoulders as you both shuffled out of the doors, you pulling out your phone to find another place to go to at the same time.

“shit.” was the only thing that rin had managed to mutter out as he saw the two of you running away from the cafe. it’s not that he wanted to avoid you. it’s that he was ashamed. he was scared that nothing he would say would amount to enough of an apology for what he said.

rin was scared that this was the end of you two. his worst fears of losing the one person he knew loved and understood him were coming true and is was his fault. the past few days were filled with doubt and regret, his teammates even noticing his practices were depleting.

the rest of the day came and went, your friend dropped you off back at your apartment where you collapsed on the couch, left with your thoughts once again. you were about to just pass out on your couch and ditch work the next morning, like you have been for the past few days.

that was until you heard a frantic knock on your door, jolting you awake. your worried expression dropped to one of annoyance and bitterness; it was rin. but, he looked different. his usually blank expression was now one of exhaustion and hurt.

he’d been..crying?

your eyes widened in confusion, you opened your mouth to tell him to leave before he cut you off.

“i’m sorry” he blurted out

he was looking down to you, except it was much different than before. rin looked desperate, his eye contact only further confirmed it.

he reached his hand out to place it on your shoulder, hesitating. you opened the door to let him in, sitting on the edge of your couch next to each other.

“i’m so sorry [name].”

“i know.”

“it was stupid, you mean so much to me and i..i ruined it.”

“i know.”

“please, you don’t need to forgive me now i just…”

he paused. rin’s head moved to look at the ground.

“i just need to know you won’t leave me. you can ignore me for as long as you’d like and i’d understand. but just…please i need you back” he begged, small tears brimming at his eyes, what a rare sight to see.

silence fell between the two of you, but it wasn’t like the comfortable silences you’ve shared before. it was tense and awkward.

“okay” your voice was barely above a whisper, “i won’t leave you, i think we both know that” you say with a smile.

rin looked back up at you, eyes wide, full of hope and relief.

“but listen i…” the moonlight only further highlighted just how much the two of you had been crying

“it’s gonna take some time. that was really fucked up, you know that?”

“yeah..yeah i know. i’m sorry. you’re nothing like her i-”

“i know.”

the two of you were now looking at each other, faces flushed from crying and relief. the silence was comfortable again.

“let’s just..go to sleep, yeah? we can talk about it in the morning, i think we both could discuss better afterwards” you offered, leaning closer to the armrest of your couch as you were too tired to go to your bed

rin hummed back in response, laying on your chest as he wrapped his arms around your waist. your hands found their way to his hair, heartbeats practically synchronizing.

“you know..i’m still not going to your game” you whispered, peeking one eye open to watch your boyfriend. he smiled, “i know” a laugh spilled out of his mouth before you both fell asleep.

[in1-nutshell]

Third request since you opened them, I just have a lot of ideas. I was rereading the Bee's team meets megatons daughter with the opposite personality Buddy and it got me thinking. You know how Knockout, Breakdown, Steve, and maybe Soundwave? Couldn't tell. But you know how all of them switched side because of Buddy in that one fic you wrote? (Or maybe not, there's a nagging thought in the back of my mind that I dreamed that.) Imagine they all notice that Buddy's missing and there's a slight panic because yeah, Buddy can take care of herself but why wouldn't she tell them? They find out that Buddy's back on earth and now there are a few ex-cons standing at the scrapyard's gate. (Or maybe Knockout never left earth and already knew she was there? Because there's that one episode where Bumblebee and Strongarm are thrown into the car lot with the uhm, wheel cuff things, and it pans out to a very suspicious cherry red Aston Martin. I refuse to believe that's not Knockout. And since Fixit (I think, can't remember.) and the humans had to go and rescue them maybe Buddy tagged along and Knockout saw them? Buddy might've also seen Knockout and decided to get the wheel cuff off of him as well. (Or maybe he didn't have a wheel cuff, can't remember. Jeez, how much have I said that?)) Anyways this was just a really long ramble of an idea that can be taken multiple ways. So do what you wanna do with this.

There's a bit of an explanation on the timeline in here. If it sounds a bit confusing, feel free to let me know so I can explain it better.

Also, added a little extra in here...

Hope you enjoy!

Megatron's daughter with the opposite personality reactions from Knockout, Breakdown, Steve, and Soundwave finding out she went missing

SFW, Platonic, Romance, Familial, Cybertronain reader

RiD 2015

Going through the canon timeline of megs daughter.

Soundwave does get sent to the shadow zone through an altercation.

Buddy never finds out what happened to him.

She believes that he left Megatron during the chaos.

She was a bit sad that he never came back to talk to her or anything, but she also believed that he was taking some time to find himself after being a Decepticon for so long.

Knockout and Breakdown end up having joint stay between earth and Cybertron.

The pair loved driving through Earth scenery and was a place to escape Cybertron for a while.

Most of the Decepticons had started their new lives on Cybertron now that the war was over.

Buddy was no different.

Not only had she started a brand-new life, Buddy and Steve had recently become Conjunx Endura after a while of dating.

Steve had been on an away assignment for his work when Buddy left through the portal of their shared habsuite.

Steve walking into their home.

“Buddy! I’m back!”--Steve

Silence…

“Buddy! I’m back?”--Steve

Silence…

Steve starts looking around the home.

“Buddy? Buddy if this is another joke, I don’t like it!”--Steve

A few minutes later…

Knockout looks at his monitor seeing Steve calling.

“Breakdown its Steve!”--Knockout

“Put him on.”--Breakdown

Steve shows up on the screen.

“Hey Ste—”--Breakdown

“SHE’S GONE!”--Steve

Breakdown and Knockout out jump a bit.

“Gone? Who’s gone?”--Knockout

Steve has his servo on his helm.

“BUDDY! BUDDY’S NOT HERE!”--Steve

“Calm down Steve. Maybe she went out for a walk or something. Or maybe she went to go visit a friend. Remember last time?”--Breakdown

“…Maybe your right…”--Steve

“But if she doesn’t come back in a week then let us know.”--Breakdown

“Steve nods and hangs up.

One week later…

Steve starts calling Knockout and Breakdown.

Breakdown answers.

“Hey—Primus Steve!”--Breakdown

Steve looks tired and on the verge of a literal break down.

“SHE’S STILL NOT HERE!”--Steve

Soundwave, meanwhile, had spent his time looking for Megatron’s signal. He escaped the shadow zone a couple weeks before Buddy showed up, so he didn’t know that she was here.

Soundwave picks up on a frantic link between Knockout, Breakdown and Steve about Buddy disappearing.

He follows the frequency to Breakdown and Knockout which scares them half to death.

“Soundwave!”—Breakdown and Knockout

Soundwave stands there with his arms crossed.

“Breakdown—Knockout—Buddy?”--Soundwave

“We don’t know. Steve just told us she went missing from their home.”--Breakdown

Soundwave clenches his servos a bit.

The sound of a portal gets their attention.

Out pops out Steve.

“I’m here! I’m—SOUNDWAVE?!”--Steve

“Explain.”--Soundwave

“Steve is here to assist us on the search for Buddy.”--Knockout

Soundwave steps to Steve.

Knockout and Breakdown step to Steve’s side.

“He is Buddy’s Conjunx Soundwave. He has the right to be here.”--Breakdown

Soundwave freezes a bit hearing it.

“Buddy—Conjunx?”—Soundwave

Steve gulps a bit but puts on a brave face.

“Yes, I’m her Conjunx. A Conjunx that’s worried for her safety. We’d really appreciate it if you helped us find her.”--Steve

Soundwave pauses a bit and turns to Knockout.

“Continue.”--Soundwave

“As I was saying, a day’s weeks ago I was booted and taken to the yard where I saw this other Autobot get stuck there too, awfully annoying mind you. And then look who shows up but Bumblebee and his new crew.”--Knockout

“He has a new team?”--Steve

“Yes, and I swear I heard him say ‘Buddy’. I thought at the time he was remembering her from Cybertron, but now that she went missing, there is a chance that Bumblebee might know where she is.”--Knockout

“What are we waiting for? Let’s go!”--Steve

“Slow down Steve we don’t even have a trail on where—”--Breakdown

“Signal—found. 30—minutes—east—city. Coordinates on—commlink.”--Soundwave

“Now we go!”--Steve

Steve transforms and speeds down the road.

“…He’s good to Buddy. Their a good match for each other.”--Breakdown

Soundwave looks at Steve’s retreating form.

“Soundwave—will see—about that.”--Soundwave

It’s nighttime when they arrive to the scrapyard.

Knockout thinks about literally knocking on the door.

They hear Buddy yelling.

“Okay we need a good plan—”--Knockout

Steve uses Breakdown like a steppingstone and launches himself over the high wall.

“Or we can go in guns blazing I guess…”--Knockout

“Soundwave—approve.”--Soundwave

Breakdown offers Knockout and Soundwave a way over.

He could wait until they opened the door.

Soundwave and Knockout are now over the wall.

All the scrapyards’ alarms are sounding.

The team is on high alert when Fix-it mentions the Decepticon signals inside the scrapyard.

Bee tells Buddy to get Denny and Russel out of the area.

Buddy grabs her friends and sets on leading them to the other side of the scrapyard with Fix it.

Steve is dodging blasters and staffs like it was his job back in the Decepticons.

He is slightly hurt that Bee didn’t recognize him but then again, he does have a pretty basic frame.

Steve raises his servos in surrender.

“HOLD IT! HOLD IT!”--Steve

“Freeze Decepticon!”--Strongarm

“Hey! I said hold it! Now, I’m not here to hurt anyone—”--Steve

“I am.”--Soundwave

“Soundwave?!”--Bumblebee

The weapons get charged up and ready to attack.

“WE are not here to attack. Listen, Bumblebee, we’re just here to—”--Steve

“Where did everyone go?”--Breakdown

Breakdown and Knockout walk in on the standoff.

“Knockout? Breakdown? What is going on?!”--Bumblebee

Steve face palms.

“That’s what I’ve been trying to explain but everyone here seems to keep on interrupting me!”--Steve

Silence.

“Now. We came here to ask you if you’ve seen Buddy around?”—Steve

“Buddy?”--Bumblebee

The team immediately gets ready to attack.

“If you think we’re about to give her to you, then your sorely mistaken.”--Drift

“So, you do know where she is!”--Steve

Grimlock steps up front.

“And you’re going to have to go through me if you want her.”--Grimlock

“Fine by me.”--Steve

Meanwhile, with Buddy...

“I think we’re safe here.”--Buddy

“Thank the Prime’s.”—Fix-it

“AAAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHHHHH!”

Buddy freezes.

She quickly looks at Denny Russel and Fix it.

“Stay here.”--Buddy

With that Buddy sprints back.

Grimlock had grabbed Steve and slammed him to the ground when he tried to get past him.

Steve luckily manages to get out of his grip and falls back.

Buddy is sprinting back to the main part of the scrap yard ready for whatever she was going to face.

She hides behind some used oil barrel and takes a peek at who the trouble was.

Buddy spots Steve on his knees, holding his side a bit.

She runs out of her hiding place.

“HOLD YOUR FIRE! HOLD YOURE FIRE!”--Buddy

Most of Team Bee looks in shock that Buddy starts running past them.

“Buddy! Don’t—”--Grimlock

“HOLD YOURE FIRE!”--Buddy

The team hesitantly puts some of their weapons down.

Buddy rushes over to Steve, who was frozen seeing Buddy there.

“Primus Steve are you okay? That denting doesn’t look too—Oof!”--Buddy

Steve fights the shooting pain on his side and flings his arms around Buddy pulling her incredibly close.

“Oh, Thank the Allspark you’re okay!”--Steve

He lets go to look her over.

“Are you hurt? Where did you go? Were you kidnapped? What’s—“--Buddy hugs him tight making him go quiet.

He just wraps his arms around her and stifles a sob in his throat.

“I’m sorry… I didn’t know this was going to be such a long mission, but when Prime calls you, you gotta go.”--Buddy

“Excuse me when Prime what?”--Steve

“CAN SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN WHAT IS GOING ON?!”—Sideswipe

Team Bee is extremely confused.

Soundwave takes a few steps forward and Buddy launches at her uncle he hugs back surprising everyone.

Then she goes to Knockout and Breakdown.

There is a lot to explain.

Steve stays by Buddy’s side the entire time.

“Hey Buddy, who is… Steve exactly?”--Denny

“He’s my Conjunx.”--Buddy

Steve feels a swell of pride and love hearing those words.

Steve grabs Buddy’s servo.

“That’s still sounds nice, you know.”--Steve

Buddy smiles shyly at him.

“Your Conjunx!”—Team Bee

“How come you never told us?!”--Sideswipe

“It never came up?”--Buddy

“What’s a Conjunx?”--Russel

“The Earth equivalent of a significant other.”--Breakdown

“You’re married?!”--Russel

“How?!”--Sideswipe

Buddy looks at Steve.

“That’s a story for another time.”--Buddy

“No, that’s a story for now.”--Sideswipe

“Another time.”--Buddy

“Now!”--Sideswipe

In the end Knockout and Breakdown end up going back to their home on earth. They do offer their services in case something bad does happen in their area.

Soundwave decides to take some time for himself not knowing what to do with everything now that the war is over.

Steve decides to stay in the scrapyard with Buddy and Team Bee.

[ssaaaronmontgomery]

Morning, Mon

I'm thinking about after Hotch was in the bombing in Mayhem and lost some of his hearing, with reader who would be careful to always be on the side of his 'good' ear, or always really enunciate their words and try to speak with their mouth clearly in front of him since he has to rely on lipreading a bit more these days. Plus! they would totally show Jack to do the same since he loves to babble happily to his dad, but he sometimes misses what's being said. Being hotch though he's always too embarrassed to admit when he needs help or can't hear.

Have a blessed day, Beautiful

A Helping Hand

Warnings: Hearing loss, brief mention of the bombing, Hotch being too proud to ask for help (but eventually does), fluff.

Word count: 806

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x gn!reader

A/n: Oh yes yes!! This is one of the more recent ones I've seen when rewatching some of CM. It might be less of a fic?? Idk. BUT I'm posting it as one anyway 😌. Sorry if this isn't exactly what you wanted </3. I hope it's still enjoyable though :) This one was also not proofread so I apologise if there are any mistakes.

Forever tags: @greg-montgomery @boredelle @hotchsdoormat @ssahotchnerr @criminalskies @beardedhotchh @hotchnerbau @mrs-ssa-hotch @ssamorganhotchner (let me know if you want to be added🫶)

After the bombing and Aaron losing some of his hearing in one ear you've tried to be considerate of his new situation and how he lives now. You know he doesn't always catch everything that's being said to or around him but you also know he hates asking for people to speak louder and more clearly because of his hearing.

You've taken it upon yourself to do whatever you can to help him. And if everyone thought you liked being around him before, they should see you now. You're by his side almost constantly when you're on cases. It started when you noticed Aaron furrowing his brows even more and trying to lean in and turn his head so he could hear the officer more clearly, whether he realised he was doing it or not. When he still looked puzzled as to what was said you had walked over to him and made sure you repeated the officer's words into Hotch's good ear. He thanked you, though he did seem a bit embarrassed that you'd had to do that for him.

Hotch needs some extra care and consideration right now and though you know he hates needing extra help, or any help for that matter, he does need it. And you're happy to help him however you can. You're stuck to his side often. Even outside of work.

When everything happened and Aaron was spending time at home more, you visited every day if there wasn't a case. The first couple times you were there, you noticed Jack rambling about everything that popped into his head but Aaron was clearly not catching most of what was being said. He was trying to see the boy's face which was directed downwards as he played with his toys. Aaron would hum and nod even though he wasn't getting most of it.

When Aaron stood up to get you all a snack, you explained in a very nice and simple way to Jack that his dad can't hear very well right now. That it will help Aaron if he can see his mouth when he speaks and that it's best to speak as clearly as he can. "You understand what I'm saying, bug?" He nodded and said everything back to you so you knew he understood what you meant. For such a young child he was very intelligent and very understanding. He made sure to do just what you'd explained and you could see the look on Aaron's face when he was able to hear so much more of what the boy said to him.

Aaron didn't know you'd said this to his son. But if he knew, he'd have been very grateful regardless of the embarrassment he'd have felt. Because knowing what his son loves and wants to tell him all about is far more important to him than anything else.

Whenever Aaron was on the plane you always sat next to him, making sure to be on the side of his good ear. He noticed this after the first few times. He never mentioned it, though you knew he'd figured it out quickly.

He appreciated it. You always made sure he was fully informed and aware of what was happening. If someone threw an idea into the open and he looked a little lost, you would repeat it in his good ear. Or if you hadn't realised he missed something he would look to you and if you made eye contact he leaned in a little closer to you and you'd tell him then. Or if you hadn't been looking at him he would give you a slight nudge to get your attention. He was starting to get more comfortable asking for help, but only with you. He still wouldn't ask anyone else.

Everyone tried to be mindful and considerate. But they didn't go to the extent that you did.

Aaron's new situation was frustrating and irritating to him. It caused him more stress than he already had, which you knew was quite a bit. Sometimes it would overwhelm him and you were always there to pull him back down and comfort him. You were always there for him to lean on for support. He knew you didn't do all of this out of pity, but rather out of love and care and understanding for him.

There were a couple of times that he came to you in need of a shoulder to cry on. Both times it was mostly about him being afraid he'd never hear the same and that he would miss things he had taken for granted when he could hear them. He wasn't embarrassed around you anymore, especially not about this. He knew he could always come to you for support and he was always thanking you for how much you've helped him.

[alastor-x-reader-stories]

HELLAVERSE x Reader - Part 2 of ? - Life with Owl Boi

GIF by honey-im-still-free

GIF by fatboychedda

GIF by idzymi

Summary: You're just some person who lived on your own in a slightly spooky town. Who knew demons would show up! Who knew they'd end up living with you?

Tags: Reader Insert, Hazbin Hotel Characters, Helluva Boss Characters, Fluff, Humor, Friendship, Romance

Relationships: ( & for platonic, x for Romance)

Stolas & Reader, Fizzarolli & Reader, Alastor x Reader, Lucifer x Reader

Stolas was actually a pretty good roomate. After the initial awkwardness and hour tour, you quickly established some rules:

No breaking my stuff

No stealing my stuff

No hurting my cat

No hurting me

Don't be a jerk

Stolas agreed, saying these were rather reasonable terms.

You lived in a rather run-down house which was great because it was rather cheap. It had working wifi and the roof didn't leak and the water was clean so it was ok. So what if the doors were slightly ajar and the paint was peeling?

Anyway, because you had this run-down house you had an extra room to spare. you admitted to Stolas that it was rather dusty and mainly used as a storage room but he was just flattered you were giving him his own space at all.

Between the two of you, the room got cleared out and dusted and the small family of opossums living there were chased away, You didn't know they were there but that'd explain where your peanut butter kept going.

Stolas was talkative and somehow never said a thing. He'd often ramble about plants and stars or whatever interested him at the moment but would quickly end up apologizing over and over. You let him know you didn't mind. Also that you might zone out but it had nothing to do with him you just had a hard time focusing for any extended amount of time.

"I believe that's called Attention Deficient Disorder, yes? Or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder?"

You told him you had no idea and just left it at that. He didn't pry, which you were thankful for.

Stolas told you a lot of things, and you did your best to remember the things that seemed important. You got him a small potted plant you saw at the hardware store as well as some basic plant-tending supplies. He was overjoyed and was basically in tears. So much so you were confused and worried that you had done something wrong.

"O-oh my, no!" Stolas fretted, wiping the growing tears off his cheeks "These are happy tears, my friend. I just- I can't really remember the last time someone got me a gift. It makes me...it makes me happy."

That gift opened the floodgate for you to get more random things you think he'd like. Glow-in-the-dark star stickers, small succulents and flowers, a funny looking stuffed animal of indeterminable species... That last one wasn't based on anything more than you just thought it'd be something he'd like.

It was.

He hugs it in his sleep.

Once Stolas saw you fretting over bills, he started feeling kind of...well. Very guilty. He was just staying here this whole time doing nothing while you constantly gifted him with things simply because you think he'd like them (and he does! it honestly doesn't matter what it is because you gave it to him and that alone make him happy).

And here you were paying for it all. It reminded him of his rather sheltered and pampered upbringing. And how selfish and conceited he could be because of it.

So, the owl demon threw on his best human disguise, went to town, and got a job.

...

You know this because you had to comfort him after said job.

"-and they just YELLED at me because I sat down for, like, five minutes??? My feet were hurting and the customers were so mean even though I didn't do anything to them??"

Man was not made for retail. You asked him why he got a job at all. His answer made you feel rather fuzzy on the inside. You hadn't even brought that up, but he noticed and tried to help.

You still asked him to quit because of how stressed he was. Maybe he can be like a live-in maid kind of thing? You couldn't really pay him for that but you'd take care of the money stuff... He agreed to that but insisted he try to find a different job.

You were just confused as to how he got one so quickly in the first place.

Eventually, life calmed down and you and your new roommate got into a bit of routine. Work, play, research ways to return to Hell, etc etc...

...then The Storm hit.

[wannab-urs]

The Spreadsheet Digest - Fic Recs | Vol 7

Howdy, folks! It's time for this week's recap of what I read :)

As always, you can find the spreadsheet here, and you're always more than welcome to tag me in your fic if you'd like to be included. New and old fics both appreciated; anything from a drabble to a 400k word series is fine; and the only Pedro boy I don't really read is Pero Tovar.

Without further ado here are the fics I read this week and the unhinged ramblings of a madwoman (me) to substitute for a coherent recommendation.

One for the money, two for the show a Joel series by @cowgurrrl

Rockstar!Joel AU with such a sweet fake dating trope lead in and then the most delicious yummy angst. As your resident angst whore this was everything because it was so REAL and so fucking heartbreaking. And then the happy little hopeful ending and then all the drabbles and extras??? AH! My favorite part was the lil instagram stories i think <3

sharing is caring a Frankie/Santi one shot by @walkintotheriveranddisappear

Your friend Santi introduces you to his friend Frankie and uhhhh you guys go make a sandwich.

Only Lovers Left Alive a Joel series by @atinylittlepain

I love every single thing about this. Revenge. Vampires. Blood play kind of? Biting. Etc. This shit rocks.

Waiting Room a Joel one shot by @beskarandblasters

I fucking love what kel did with this song. The repetition of one for the road really fuckin got me too. Angst angst angst.

The Special One a Joel series by @toxicanonymity

What if a reluctant soulmates AU was also a vampire!Joel AU? It would be perfect, that's what. I'm loving vampire!joel rn anyway, but this was such a cool twist on it. Also his vibes in this are fucking immaculate

Copycat Killer a Joel series by @beskarandblasters

Bitch this is so good. Stalker!Reader x Rockstar Joel... fucking perfect. I love how they both kind of suck as human beings a little bit. And that blow job oh my GOD.

Sweet Creature a Dieter series by @wildemaven

I really really love how this story is going. The little town is so real to me and I love all the little places we get to see. The bookstore sounds like a DREAM. And I can't wait for Reader to bond with D over art ahhhhh.

Stitches a Din series by @djarinsbeskar

This fic is so fucking good dude. I love the set up for the whole thing and the reader character is really fuckin' cool. The like... 8 consecutive parts of incredible smut that continues to be genuinely interesting and really fucking hot even after like 200K words is extremely impressive. I'm also pretty sucked into the story and the way Medic is being interwoven into canon. Oh and the introspection we get from Din's POV is *chef's kiss*.... anyway pls god finish this story i need it

False God a Frankie series by @swiftispunk

Frankie asking for what he wants is so... yummy... especially when it's wanting to be your subby lil pussy eating king like... PLEASE. And his praise kink??? I am in Frankie heaven

102 a Frankie one shot by @tieronecrush

I fucking love this ahhhh. I felt so bad for Frankie but also their friendship is so cute??? I love the unrequited love//idiots to lovers trope

Safe in my Arms an Ezra one shot by @mishasminion360

Ezra struggling to adjust to having one less limb and me crying about it. This was so fucking good. The raw emotion he feels and reader's unwavering support... the realism in saying something that accidentally hurts his feelings and trying to take over tasks he might find difficult AGH. I love this so much

Leave Off Your Wandering a Joel series by @oonajaeadira

Adira, I fall in love with every single little world you create without fail. This is obviously no exception. Your sheep ranch is a dream. The way you build up this backstory with the Roostlings and the friendship with Tommy and Maria and just all these extra little details you take the time to flesh out and weave into the story... makes my heart sing, friend. I adore this <3

-------- fics i read a while ago and never recommended -------

Name a Javi P one shot by @joelscruff

Consent a Dieter series by @fuckyeahdindjarin

Whiskey, Dark and Deep a Jack one shot by @prolix-yuy

Stay on the Screenplay a Dieter series by jazzelsaur (ao3)

A Safe Haven a Joel series by @joelsgreys

Psychomanteum a Dieter series by @whatsnewalycat

In Name Only an Oberyn series by @forever-rogue

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I haven't written a word in weeks, so once again no updates for me :/

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Happy Reading

[autumnslance]

Hi! I’ve been trying to make an introductory post for my WoL, but when I tried doing so freeform it ended up overly long and full of rambling. I’ve searched for templates all over the internet, but the only ones I can find are in the general style of D&D character sheets that include irrelevant information about stats while not properly dedicating space to the actual character traits. I saw the format you used for your OCs, and it seems to be about what I’m looking for. Is there any chance you could provide a blank template along those lines for me and others who might have the same problem?

Funnily, while I keep them all similar, I didn't have a template before now. Also reminds me I need to do some updating and revision on my own OCs, it's been awhile and they can use a refresh for character and plot updates.

I recommend making static pages over posts; easier to track and edit. I am a stickler for organization, so keep my pinned post to the bare basics with links to the profiles and other pages, to keep from stretching the post to a mile long, in part, and to keep the info where it's easily read and relevant. Also because mobile app view won't show one's theme and links, and the pinned post is more likely to be seen and accessible than a sidebar or menu.

I have tutorials on how to set a custom theme (and access full blog features) as well as how to create those static blog pages. Tumblr may have made some updates since, but the gist is the same, and the Help pages have newer details if necessary.

I do urge keeping colors and format simple, accessible, and reader friendly, including screen reader friendly. A row of asterisks or tildes as a separator line are usually individually read out by screen readers, as is the code used to make those fancy hard-to-read gothic letters folks use for "aesthetics." In a lot of my profiles, I split sections with images of the character (which should also use alt text if we're trying to be kind and inclusive, and it's to the point of a profile page anyway).

I think I will put the intro and template here in the post under a cut, and then in a Reply Comment add a link to the Google Doc version, cuz of how Tumblr is about external links. An actual blank copy-pasta is on the GDoc, what's below has some thought processes for each section for guidance.

This a pretty modular template, that can be added to or subtracted from as needed. Move descriptive blocks around as they seem more or less relevant for your OC, substitute things that make sense over things that don’t; this is just a starting point!

I see these as broad strokes; a quick introduction and general overview of your character, meant to give an at-a-glance idea of who they are. It’s handy for other writers and artists, and even oneself for keeping track of some details. I recommend practicing succinct writing here; these blocks should each stay between 100-300 words or thereabouts. Use links to other pages and tags to point toward longer details and stories (and keep them handy for yourself!). It also makes it much easier when you want to revise things when characterization marches forward, or if you want to retcon something entirely.

But these are all just my opinions and ideas on how I approach OC profiles after making them in some form or another for about a quarter century. Make it as long or short as it needs to be, change it up, go nuts, I ain’t your mom, and so on 😉

-

Statistics: The basics; barebones, at-a-glance stat blocks, handy for quick reference. Can be added to or shortened as needed. If a stat starts to word wrap on a standard screen, trim it and move that extra detail to the “Description” paragraph below the list.

Race: (for FF14 fantasy possibilities) Nationality: (or Ethnicity, whatever works. Where are they from, as that helps shape them?) Height: (both feet/inches and centimeters are handy here) Eyes: Build: (I prefer this to weight, as that’s ridiculously variable depending on one’s build, which is more important visually anyway; are they broad, stocky, skinny, muscular, stringy, etc) Hair: (color, type, texture, preferred lengths and styling) Skin: (sometimes I fold scars into here, if there’s nothing too outstanding) Scars: Voice: (how do they sound?) Nameday: Age: (depends on your personal timeline for your OCs, but I recommend an age range over specifics; mid-20s, 25-35, late teens, a little over a century, etc. Less updating and fits with the handwaved time bubble anyway) Disciplines: (what are their main job[s]? The adventuring or professional skills they’ve learned?) Hobbies: Birthplace: Current Home: Occupation: (Their actual day job, different from or part of their disciplines?) Signature Items: (A particular weapon? A piece of jewelry? Always wear a specific coat?)

Description: A very short "immediate impressions" type description; what would someone "on the street" see when meeting/looking at your character on a typical day? Taking some of the info from the stats but then how you want those barebone facts to be seen; is the OC elegant, or rough? Expensive clothes or simple attire? Any particular smells, or sounds? I recommend around 100 words.

Biography: Very brief, general overview of the backstory that led them to the point where they become a story protagonist (adventurer, the WoL, or other roleplay archetype). Don't have to go into great detail, keep it short and simple; it's a blurb that sets up how they got here in broad strokes. I think my longest bio is around 300 words, and it probably shouldn’t go over that here.

To get more details, one can always link to specific stories, or to a tag. I have multiple OCs, so I might make my tags something like "Aeryn Backstory" or "Iyna Lore" or "Punchy History" or some combo thereof (I usually try to keep them consistent though for ease).

Persona: What face do they present to the world? How are they perceived by the public, acquaintances, coworkers, family, actual friends? Some of these answers will be the same, some may change depending on if and how they code switch in various social situations.

From there, what lies underneath the surface? What are some general internal attitudes, traits, feelings?

A hundred words for outward demeanor and another one hundred for innermost self ought to cover the general broad strokes.

Romance: If so inclined, details about the OC's relationship details; sexual and romantic orientations, relationship history, current situations, how they view and approach intimacy (or not!).

Links to relationship tags or stories or art can work well here, too.

Echo: Does the OC have an Echo at all? Is it a "typical" Echo, or do they have some special abilities, some things they're better at than others? How does it affect them, how do they feel about it?

This is another section that may be a free space section to remove or swap to something else relevant to the character.

Hobbies: The stuff outside of work and heroics. Ways they relax, special interests, side jobs, things they enjoy, and so on. This can be an expansion of the listing in the stat block, or you can cut out one or the other to avoid redundancy.

Companions: What’s their chocobo like, or do they have another favored mount? What pet(s) do they have? Are they practically a Disney Princess? Have a familiar? Do they prefer arcane entities? Technological constructs? Or do they eschew companions entirely?

How to find the OC in game: This is where I list things like realm and data center, and addresses for the FC house and personal house or apartment. Not necessary if you don't want folks to go looking.

Links: The links can be scattered through the post in relevant sections, or gathered together here. I tend to put my basic tag for the character, if I have an aesthetic tag for them, their story tags, any links to art references or other miscellaneous items I want easily found for myself and others. I often put this close to the top if a profile is longer and I want those links to be quick referenced.

OOC: Any particular notes one wants to make about the character from a meta perspective. Can also be combined with the Links.

[delucadarling]

Current rambling thoughts on dieting/weight loss, nothing that's a downer:

Back in April I got blood test results that showed my cholesterol was high and my sugar was barely shy of being diabetic. It spooked the shit out of me, as despite being fat most of my life, I was also pretty healthy and somewhat active. It was after getting covid that I was so fatigued I dropped the active thing pretty much entirely.

The doctor was more focus on the sugar, and recommended cutting back simple sugars, adding in more fiber, and increasing my weekly activity.

I'd been wanting to get back into shape for a long, long time but I've been nervous about trying the gym again. My dad was one of those shithead people that secretly films people in the gym doing things 'wrong' or committing the sin of being fat in public. It had me terrified of trying to get fit where other people could see me, because you know, most people don't want to be mocked.

Lucky me, I have the most amazing, supportive girlfriend ever. She took me by the hand and very gently showed me around the gym, helped me learn how to use the machines, and didn't mind when I shadowed her around as she did her workout. From there, I got excited! I used to LOVE working out, I just mostly did simple stuff, running, and swimming. I did a lot of WiiFit when I was younger, and this one Jillian Michael's DVD I found at Walmart for like $5 at the time. Running was the big one though (hello Zombies, Run folks).

So just making those changes (less soda, more fiber, more exercise) over the course of maybe 3ish months I dropped almost 15 lbs. I hadn't been tracking my weight, but I did compare the results the doctor took from my previous three appointments. I was kind of shocked! I've never had a healthy relationship with weight loss, and every time I've tried to lose weight it lead to a lot of heartache, misery, and doubled weight gain. So I more or less wrote off my ability to trim down and decided to just be fat and happy.

I will say though, the extra bulk has recently frustrated me. I can't do yoga the way I used to. My limbs are still flexible but I keep getting blocked by my own fat. I have to go real easy on my joints because of all the extra weight, which is frustrating, because I'd honestly love to try jogging again. I just don't want to fuck my back and knees up again.

I decided to give losing weight another try, with a lot more self-love, after a lot more research, and with the support of someone who has loved me even at my fattest and never said a word about it.

It hasn't been too hard this time. I don't feel like I'm depriving myself. I am impatient, I want to see results NOW, but obviously that's not how things work. And slow is better anyway.

I know tumblr has a generally negative view on weight loss, and I fully include myself in that. I bought into the 'starvation mode means you'll never ACTUALLY lose weight permanently) thing, I was convinced anyone trying to lose weight had the same disordered ideas on it that I used to have (and still struggle with sometimes). It's a loaded topic for a hundred reasons, so I am trying to be conscious of when I talk about it and around who. Hence the tags and putting it under a cut. I'm happy and excited to be trying this out, putting my health first, trying to feel strong and capable in my body, but I absolutely know first hand how upsetting hearing about dieting can be. Not to mention how hard it is to avoid the more toxic side of trying to change your diet and fitness.

I've found a lot of resources that are very facts based, cut and dry, and leave out the moralizing behind weight loss and weight gain and just weight in general. There are a lot of very encouraging resources as well.

So yeah! As said, this is just a ramble, I like to write to get my thoughts down, and it always comes easier when it feels like I'm talking to someone, not just myself. I probably won't post a lot about this, but it's been just over a week since I started tracking my food and daily weight specifically, which always used to be something that would send me into a bad habit spiral. This time feels different. I've been doing fine. There have been a few moments of disappointment, but they've been easy to shake off. Mostly I'm just astounded to learn more about the macros involved in the food I eat, and I'm also happy to have tools to help me find portions that make me feel full and not stuffed. On the days I've been not kept to my deficit goals, it was because I was hungry and decided it was more worth it to feed myself than stick to a number and I didn't feel a bit of guilt about it afterward.

I'm pretty pleased with how it's going so far. I feel stronger, I feel more energetic, and tracking my food intake and weight makes the part of my brain that loves a spreadsheet very happy.

[slashersteve]

THIS KISS

pairing: Steve Harrington/Female Reader

warning/extra tags: cursing, angst tm, understandable trust issues, my oc timothy taylor from just friends makes a comeback aslasjlaja, cheating but not actual cheating, break-up, beta read by the bestie, edited by me

note: first fic of the new year! happy 2023 everyone! i was inspired by a scene in that 70s show during my 1000th rewatch. Anyways, peep the short (well shorter than usual) imagine format I’m trying :) Thank you for reading and enjoy ♥️

✦ ✦ ✦

It was one kiss. One measly kiss that you didn't even really return when it happened. And yet, Steve kept bringing it up whenever he could. You understood why he reacted this way, considering his past relationship's ending was somewhat similar. He was very clearly masking his hurt with a failed attempt at humor of the situation, but it didn’t make his words hurt any less.

Because of this, you let his comments slide. You didn't say anything when he would say 'oh where you'd learn that? Timmy T?' after you tried something new with your tongue when you kissed. Or the time he had joked lamely and said ‘you’re not going to kiss him again, right?’ when he found out you were on a late shift with Tim at your job (because of course the guy was still your co-worker).

In your defense, you and Steve were not together when it happened, as in when Timothy Taylor kissed you. In fact, the words break and up were apart of Steve’s vocabulary of your conversation before it happened, words straight out of his own mouth. You would have never let Tim kiss you when he asked had you and Steve still been together. So, the short kiss came from a broken heart more than anything else. And also, it had been quite sometime since that kiss, since your first break-up as well, and you didn’t know how much more comments you could handle.

It felt a little silly when you couldn’t bring yourself to confront him when he said those stupid things, you'd roll your eyes to show your irritation, but you never actually said anything to him. Eventually though, it could no longer be avoided.

Steve and you were in your bedroom, his body halfway on top of yours, one leg slotted between your thighs. You hardly got time like this together anymore, with both of you working long hours. You were on cloud nine, having missed Steve and his kisses. You could stay underneath him forever if you could, just him holding you or you holding him. It was your personal heaven, one might say…until he pulled away from your lips with a torn expression on his features.

“God- I’m sorry…but it’s like every time I kiss you all I think about is how your tongue was down Taylor’s throat,” he had said, crawling off of you and settling on the edge of his bed with a sigh.

You were still disoriented, barely registering what he had just said and you were leaning upwards on your elbows, eyebrows furrowing as you asked him to repeat himself.

He sighed again, bringing his hand upward to push his brown strands of hair out of his face before he turned his head to rest his eyes on you, “Your stupid kiss with Taylor- I don’t know if you noticed but I just can’t get over it.”

You gave him a look because you doubted he hadn't noticed that you've noticed- as he hadn’t exactly been hiding it, but ignoring that you sat up, fixing your skirt as you did so and replied, “I already told you I was sorry, Steve, and it didn't mean anything.”

You were frowning at him, and he started to frown deeper too, making your heart clench in your chest that this was bothering him so much and understanding why, but still feeling like he was taking it too far.

“Yeah, I remember…it’s just- I can’t get past it okay? I think about it all the time, and you working with him still- I mean the nerve of him-“ Steve started to ramble, and you pressed your lips together, moving to actually sit next to him.

“He’s nobody to me,” you tried to tell him.

You felt the sarcastic remark coming before he even said it.

“Oh he was totally nobody to you when you and him frenched in front of theater 3,” he said, then laughed bitterly. Your jaw tightened at this, and you were moving to stand. He lifted his head to look at you.

“Would you stop saying stupid shit like that?” You demanded, “I told you I was sorry- but I honestly don’t see why I have to be. You broke up with me…we weren’t together for two weeks or did you just forget that part?”

His eyes widened slightly, and he started to say, “Hey! I didn’t want to break up with you, though! I told you…”

You huffed, “But you still did- you know what Steve, I’m sick of you shaming me, news flash I already feel guilty enough even though I shouldn’t have to!”

He dropped his head at your words as if in defeat, an exasperated breath releasing from his lips. You crossed your arms, feeling your eyes well up at the next thing you knew you had to say because you felt like you were at a breaking point.

“I think we should break up…again,”you stated, voice as steady as possible. That made him look up at you, eyebrows furrowing and brown eyes finding your serious ones. He opened his mouth to speak, to probably protest as his eyes became frantic, but you were shaking your head, "You should go, Steve."

"Wait- wait," Steve tried, head following yours as you walked toward your door, pulling it open to indicate further that you request was more like a demand. He stood up, walking toward you and said, "Can we at least talk about this more? Breaking up- I don't..."

He was in a loss of words, clearly not expecting the conversation to end this way. You tightened your jaw, moreso to fight the tears that threatened to well up in your eyes, not wanting Steve to see them. He seemed to have your same reaction, except he wasn't trying to mask it like you. His eyes were growing slightly watery as he met your pointed expression. Then, he dropped his head, causing some strands of his hair falling forward, and he sucked in a tight breath before stepping past you into your hallway.

You followed after him, sticking by the entrance to the hallway as you watched him pick up his things and leave. He did spare you another glance, heartbreak written all over his features that threatened to make you march over and hold him. You didn't do it though, holding your ground and needing him to understand how serious this was. Then, he turned and he left without another word.

He didn't even bother to put on his shoes that he kicked off by your front door, he'd just grabbed them and left the house with a soft slam of your front door.

That was when you started to cry. It wasn't intense, it wasn't angry, it was just sad. Tears just slipped down your cheeks as you went back into your room, and sat on your bed with your head in your hands.

✦ ✦ ✦

You missed Steve. Terribly. And if you were missing him, then he was missing you too.

It had only been a few days, close to a week since you brought your relationship to an end. And it hurt. You had felt a sort of numbness, seeing as most of the things in your home had reminded you of him. Some of his shirts were still there, sitting in a drawer in your bedroom (And he had some of yours too), photographs you've taken together, gifts, and your favorite...notes he had given you still pinned up on your mirror like you were still a high schooler in love.

It wasn't like your prior break-up, which was insanely messier and made you more angry than the melancholic feeling that was there to stay heavy in your chest.

The truth was, you desperately loved Steve, and everything about him. You didn't want it to end like this, you didn't want it to all come to an end because of something like this. You and him...you had been through too much to let this situation that could be fixed ruin your relationship. You wanted him back, badly, but you weren't entirely sure on how to tell him that, feeling stupid crawling back to him after you were the one who broke it off.

Then again, he had come back to you. You decided, after another day of post break-up depression that you weren't going to let him go, or at least not let it end this way that left a bad taste in your mouth and your stomach in knots. You had to at least try and hope Steve wants to too.

Steve hadn't expected to see you coming into the Family Video Store. He himself had been in shambles, still in quite disbelief that you ended it with him. He had hardly been getting sleep, everyone around him had pointed out, especially Robin whom he told about what happened the very next day.

She was also in shock to hear it, but after Steve had told her why, Robin seemed to understand completely why you had...and Steve did too. He'd been beating himself over it for days now, like he knew the things he was saying were stupid and mean, and unfair because you were broken up when it happened, but it's like something takes over him whenever it catches the opportunity to remind you of it. He hated it. He hated it when he said them, he hated it when you would frown at him and become visibly hurt. And yet, he couldn't help it.

Very clearly his behavior from coming from a broken heart, perhaps one that hadn't quite healed since his relationship with Nancy.

Not that he still loved her, no, that was long gone...long over, but the aftermath still affected him in a way he didn't expect it to. In a way that didn't show itself until recently when he saw you and Timothy Taylor kissing in that theater when he wanted to talk you about your relationship, which was stupidly stopping him from seeking you out right now...afraid he'd see that again. He hated his brain sometimes.

So, it was a surprise, a relief even, when he heard the door open and lifted his head to see it was you. He stopped stacking videos almost instantly.

You looked breathless, and tired too, but more importantly, you looked determined, especially when your eyes found his. His heart practically swelled up in his chest as you approached him with urgency in your step.

"Steve-"

He said your name at the same time you said his, the tone of both your voices breathless and colliding with one another. You just stared at each other afterwards, as if unsure who should speak first. Steve did, just as you opened your mouth again to speak.

"I miss you," he said, then shut his mouth quickly, embarrassed because what if you'd just come to tell him to pick his stuff from your house? And to ask for your stuff back as well? He just blurted it out, and swallowed thickly, feeling his cheeks heat up and turn red.

But then, you had said you missed him too.

And as Steve stood there, still processing that you had told him it back, you were walking around the center counter of the video store and joining him behind it. When you were close enough, you said, "I don't want to be broken up, okay? I know I broke it off, and I probably sound stupid-"

"No!" Steve quickly said, shaking his head, "No, no you don't sound stupid."

He wanted to tell you so many things, wanted to bare his soul to you in the way he should've instead of making those stupid, snide comments whenever given the chance. He wanted to tell you how he actually felt about the kiss and why he felt that way, because then you could talk and properly get passed it. Like what you had thought, you and him had been through so much, like surviving three separate attacks from interdimensional creatures who wanted you for their next meal, to let something like this destroy your relationship.

Before he could get the chance to, not caring that you were in the middle of the video store where a group of girls just waltz in making it almost full, not caring that they would hear him confide in you this like he wanted to, like he should've the day you ended things with him, you were speaking.

“I have an idea, okay? If we can't get past this... just kiss some other girl, I won’t be mad I swear,” you said, making Steve's brows furrow with confusion, “We’re broken up right now, everyone knows it so I can’t be mad. So just…kiss any girl you want.”

You were gesturing around the store and all Steve could do was stare at you. You wanted him to kiss another girl? He was not expecting that to come out of your mouth, not at all, and he was genuinely taken back by this.

“Are you…are you serious?” Steve asked more out of shock than excitement, which your saddened expression made him think you mistook it for excitement to kiss somebody else.

You nodded sadly before you sucked in a breath, and said in a bleak tone, as if wanting to sound unbothered, “Any girl okay? In this store, in this town. Anyone.”

He blinked, still in disbelief that you’d just said that and he absentmindedly did look around the video store, eyes finding the group of girls that were around both of your ages that had just entered the video store. Two of them had looked over at him, flashing him flirtatious smiles as they must've heard you.

He pressed his lips together, and looked back at you. You weren’t looking at him anymore, your gaze set at the girls as well after following his quick glance. You were very clearly bothered as you more than likely wondered which one he had chosen in the span of the 3 seconds he'd been looking at them.

Steve shook his head before he was reaching forward, gently grasping your chin and making you turn your head to him. Before you could react, before you could even really make eye contact with him, Steve was leaning in and pressing his lips against yours.

He felt you go still against his lips as he kissed you softly, fingers still holding your chin upward. After a few seconds, Steve was leaning away and said with a smile on lips in the softest his voice had ever been, "I choose you."

You were visibly taken back by this, looking up at him as your eyes began to shine.

In fact, your heart was actually fluttering in your chest, body once overcome with melancholy turned into nothing but pure warmth for Steve. You hadn't expected it to to this way, you’re mind overcome with heartbreak convincing you this would be the only way to rekindle your relationship.

That didn't matter anymore though, because Steve had chose to kiss you and you wanted to melt on the spot. It felt very similar to how it felt when your friend Steve had kissed you for the first time and you became something more. His brown stare just as intense underneath his thick lashes, but there was something stronger underlying them. You don’t know why you expected him to kiss another girl because despite everything, you were always aware that Steve desperately loved you too...as if you ever should've doubted it.

It was a nice reminder too that Steve Harrington still had his overtly romantic charm to him, and it was all you found yourself commenting about with a blissful smile growing on your lips.

"That...that was so romantic," you said, voice still breathless but this time because he had taken your breath away. Steve chuckled softly, eyes flickering downward to look at the smile on yours lip, having missed seeing it these past days since your break-up.

"I mean it," he told you, moving his hand to gently cup your cheek, his eyes growing serious, "I choose you."

And you knew, even if he hadn't of kissed you, that he meant it. You nodded, and told him that you would always choose him too.

Then, it was you who was kissing him, pressing your lips tenderly against his the way you always did, but there was a sort of desperateness behind it fueled by being apart. Steve kissed you back with just as much intensity, like you were in private and not in the middle of his job. This time you did melt into his lips and arms.

The two girls Steve had initially glanced at turned away with frown on their lips, a handful gave a double take as if they were aghast by such a sight, and a man holding some tapes had rolled his eyes and knocked on the counter impatiently.

Steve opened one eye, lips still connected to yours, and he leaned away as he told him he was on break. You laughed, and pulled his lips back to yours with little care of the audience. The man left after that, tossing the tapes aside and you were quite sure that Steve was probably going to get a stern talking to by Keith about PDA in the workplace.

And you two would talk as well, Steve would tell you what he wanted to before, and you would listen and talk through it with him. Because that's what people in love should do when things get hard, especially if they don't want to let the other go.

[redwolfxx]

Memories

next

James/DG x reader

tags: angst

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                                "Diego"

You had grown up together, inseparable. You would study together, you would train together. You would watch shows together and be little delinquents together. You would skip class to watch Diego (Dora's, in your opinion, much cooler cousin) and snack on whatever you raided out of the kitchen. You practically lived together with how often you hung out together. You were best friends, almost siblings, but you couldn't be.

After all, you can't look at a sibling the way you saw him.

He was always there for you. Late nights when you would be stressing over homework he would sneak in and bring you food. He would then help you with your schoolwork and then hangout with you before leaving for the night. Your parents loved him, he was so kind and polite to them.

You, like him were an amazing fighter. You would spar together, the score was often left uncounted due to the closeness of each match.

He knew you so well and you knew him like the back of your hands. You could just look at each other and know exactly what the other was thinking. Two peas in a pod. Nothing would get between you

Except everything did.

High school. Although you went to the high school you were both so different. Your grades were above average but they weren't like his, you weren't as good as him in school. But, you weren't complaining, especially if your struggle meant more time with him after school.

Popularity wise, you were different. You were both known for your looks, however you both had very different personalities in school.

You would sit in the back by the window, daydreaming of all the things you would rather be doing than listening to the teacher ramble about his wife who left him because he was, and I quote "too ugly to even be in the same room with." Which, was sadly an accurate statement. Your popularity was more of the "mysterious" (girl/guy/etc) at the back of the room that people would talk to if they weren't afraid.

James on the other hand was popular, girls loved him, guys wanted to be him. He was the school's golden child. Perfect grades. Fast track times. Amazing charisma. And a heart of gold.

At least that was during school hours. After school though, you were both very different.

You were the kind (girl/guy/etc) who the grandmothers loved and asked if you had a significant other. You would feed stray cats, you would play with neighborhood kids. But more importantly you were the reason why thugs avoided your neighborhood.

James was the kind of guy who did his homework during class, or occasionally asked others to do it for him (after all who wouldn't want to do his homework, who can say no to that smile?). He would hang out behind buildings with other friends (read: wannabes) who would smoke and basically act like gangsters. After an hour or two he would go meet up with Charles Choi and discuss plans for the future. When he wasn't doing any of that he was starting fights with other crews for extra sparing practice. He loved fighting, but his fights consumed his life. He started seeing you less.

When he did have free time he would spend it with his girlfriend if the week from his school making out in the hallway bathrooms.

Some wondered why the two of you never were a thing, especially with how close you were - used to be.

----

It was a New Years Eve Party, it was at one of your "friend's" houses. She was nice, rich, and probably thought that being nice to you meant James would like her more. Anyway, it had been a few hours since you had arrived and the balcony started feeling like a good idea to get away from all the noise, sex, and smells.

You walked out and took in the nice warm air, a cooler breeze running through your hair every now and then. As you watched the streets of people below the penthouse you didn't notice the presence next to you. With a flick of a lighter and the smell of smoke, your concentration was broken bringing you to focus on the new presence beside you. James.

"Hey, haven't seen you much." You say, breaking the silence.

"Yeah well you seem to avoid me these days" He responds carelessly.

"It's not you I'm avoiding, but that crowd you surround yourself with. Anyway, when did you start smoking?" You ask.

"When did you care so much?" He snaps back, returning the two of you to a silent tension.

The silence enveloped the two of you as you looked into each others eyes, the sounds of the city below you and the party behind you two.

"I've missed you." You finally breathe out.

"Yeah, me too." He says, his warm eyes giving you a once over.

You both return your gazes to the city below watching the city lights go dark as the buildings all light up with the same numbers.

"The year is already over and I haven't even  completed my New Years Resolution from earlier this year." He says, sneaking a glance over at you.

"Well you still have 5 seconds left it seems." You say, still glancing at the city below.

Before you know it he's turned you so your facing him. Eyes looking deep into one another's. Without warning he drops his cigarette crushing it beneath his foot and grabs your waist pulling you into him.

Surprised you gasp, your gasp is met with a passionate kiss as the city breaks into noise announcing the New Year. Fireworks burst to your side announcing the arrival of the New Year.

You break for air and ask, "Why?"

"I always complete my resolutions." He smirks back.

Your face blushes a deep red as you avoid his sharp gaze. He grabs your face and pulls you to look at him.

"Do you want to know what my resolution for last year was?" He asks softly.

"What?"

"To kiss you."

This time his ears turn a soft pink shade.

You laugh at his sudden embarrassment and lean into him. Your head on his chest and arms around his neck with his arms around your waist. His head rests on your head as you watch the fireworks.

"Will you go out with me?"

"No."

"What?" He pulls away slightly, surprised.

"I'm not a one week fling, I'm not two week fling. I have feelings and a heart and I can't bear to be with you if you leave at the drop of a hat." You say, pulling away.

"No, no. I would never do that to you. Do you understand how much I love you. I've loved you for years. I promise I'd never hurt you. Never"

"Promise?"

"Promise. Will you go out with me forever?"

You laugh at his rewording, "Yes."

----

It had been almost a year since he had asked that. You'd been dating for a while now. It was almost the same as the friendship you had before with the exception of you seeing him more often and the physical contact.

Each night, however, he would start coming home later and later. Mumbling about a plan and leaving. Being the middle of the night you forget by the morning to ask him. After all he promised he would never leave. So what did you have to worry about?

You had been on countless dates. Amusement parks, fancy restaurants, and more. He was so kind to you, so good to you. He would buy you gifts and would never accept any gift you gave in return saying he was buying your love an affection and not to spend money on someone like him. You would always reassure him that nothing was wrong with him.

Over time he would start developing your habits and you would correct his. Always replacing his cigarettes with lollipops. Although he grumbled about it aloud, he always felt warm inside at the sight.

You both loved each other so much. You believed nothing would ever stop a relationship this amazing.

One day he disappeared. No note, no message, no call, no goodbye. He just left.

No one knew where he was, he was gone. As if he never existed to begin with. The only records of him were the photos on your wall and the pain in your heart.

And with that, he was gone. He left your heart shattered. He left you alone, with no trace of him to love.

He left you broken, destroyed, abandoned. Your heart filled with sadness which developed into anger. Over the following years you would love again, but never the same, no one was him. No one loved you like him.

Your anguish would fade and you would distract yourself with work, and when you weren't working you would watch videos of kpop idols. Although one in particular stood out to you, familiar almost, but with no reason as to why. It would never be him, he always complained of the color pink, "it's blinding" he would whine as he would cover his eyes as you laughed at him.

Pink hair must be popular, there is always a pink haired customer who arrives before your shift and leaves around the same time you get off everyday, his eyes a familiar brown. But still distant.

One day he would give you his number asking you to call him one day. You never saw his face and you were cautious of strangers so you thanked him and threw it out after his back had turned.

You would later discover a new message in your phone from a"Diego."

"Can we talk?"

[jadevine]

More acting stuff on exactly HOW American Gods shafted Orlando Jones (and a lot of their minority actors)

I don't know how many of my followers are like... still following me, or if they're just waiting on me to start on a new hyperfixation or update my works, but regarding current events in the fantasy/writing world, the allegations against Neil Gaiman are rocking a lot of people at the moment. Honestly, I'm only SOMEWHAT less upset about it.

You know why? Because I've distanced myself from Gaiman's works/fandoms after hearing how the production team of American Gods treated Orlando Jones, and by extension, a HUGE chunk of the minority cast.

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So it is fairly well-known by now that Orlando Jones started writing parts of the American Gods scripts. The scripts he was rewriting? His character Anansi's scenes, and basically all of the minority actors' scripts.

Given the response to his work (being widely acclaimed), I have no idea if most people realize that an actor taking on SOMEONE ELSE'S WRITING is actually a very bad sign in a production. Yes, even if they're credited like Orlando was, and yes, even if the results are fantastic like Orlando's writing was.

His response to being fired really hurt my heart because he mentioned somewhere that 1) he did not want to end up writing for the show and be responsible for so much, but 2) he kept doing it because the fans (especially the Black community) loved his work.

There are two implications with "an actor taking on writing," that make a nice little "shit is happening behind the scenes" sandwich:

-The actor is taking on an extra job, because

-The writers can't do their jobs.

In one of my Discord groups, I stayed up too late and made half a ramble about why actors doubling up on writing is a bad sign, especially when a non-white actor is rewriting something conceived by white folks.

Now I'm a hopeful theater actor instead of a TV actor, so there's definitely some details I'm missing, but the basics of "what does an actor DO besides memorize the script?" should be a good briefer.

Here are my screenshots behind the "read more" button!

I don't even know how I'd tag this, so I just did "American Gods" and "Bridgerton," but it's not like Tumblr's shitty search function would help me find my own post anyway.

Also, if anyone wants to hear more about my little addition about the OPPOSITE problem, where "Bridgerton's Season 1 had a shitton of unfortunate racial undertones because the writers seem like they just swapped out characters' ethnicities and called it a day, but we know damn well that young, inexperienced, and minority actors don't have the knowledge/freedom to do anything about it," feel free to ask.

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[reserved-system]

Love is Blind [HSBB]

You know that moment when you've known someone for so long that it feels like you've own them forever? That how this fic reads :D It's so light, and fluffy. In this AU Grian is blind and has a massive crush on Scar, whom he shares an apartment building with. How does the rest unfold? You'll have to read the fic and find out yourself!

[Link here!]

Maggiee did such a wonderful job, and was our biggest supporter during this! So let's go show them some love! Another huge shout out to the mods and specifically Dux for putting this event together! Check out the #hsbb 2023 tag for more works and fics like this!

Extras under cut - Wips, rambles, the whole nine yards

Over the course of 2 months, this piece took us nearly 16 and a half HOURS. Up until switching to Procreate I never had an art program that timed how long I worked on something. If CSP has this feature I must've not been able to find it.

The amount of time is pretty stunning to me. I'd say 16 hours isn't that bad! At least by my own standards.

Absolutely shocked by the amount of strokes btw. That's fucking insane.

So for once I actually went at this with a few thumbnail sketches and this was the winner out of the 3 and I blew it up to size and started the finalized sketch.

The funniest thing is I started this right before my art style decided to change so I hope you enjoy the old art style :P <3

So, I did something interesting here. In the past when we would do full pieces we would do a lineless background, so everything besides the characters were painted lineless.

THIS time we decided to line the background with maroon instead of black to help break up the characters from the background so they pop! more and I really like how it turned out and we're happy to say this has carried over into other pieces. :]

I want you to pay attention to Scar's wheelchair in these shots, it's the only thing that changes. I remember doing the shading on the background and main color on the characters all in one night because I was having a bad bout of insomnia and I posted my progress in the artist wip-sharing channel on our event server and looked back at it the next morning and was SO embarrassed I had to fix it. This is also when I changed references.

For some reason I didn't capture any in progress shots of the shading but we did manage to get a few shots of Grumbot. :] He's modeled after a labadoodle! While working on this the team and I discovered that's what they were originally bred for, to be hypoallergenic guide dogs! Isn't that cool!?

[With the source we found here]

My partner and I own a poodle and he was kind enough to be my reference/model. He was well compensated with treats don't worry.

Anyways, thank you for reading our rambles! Whether you're here from a reblog, from the fic itself, or were already following us. I hope you enjoyed! Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for the rest of our pieces for the event.

From the Reserved System, Happy HSBB everyone!! <3 <3 <3

[styrmwb]

I beat Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

There's gonna be spoilers in this just in case you care, hopefully I tagged it correctly, and also yeah this is a long one (I don't have it tagged game ramblings for nothing)

Anyways, loved this game. My gripes with it are very few, but unfortunately one of said gripes is very major and hasn't changed from Remake; but in the effort to Pretend like my thoughts are organized, I'm gonna section this cause sectioning is fun :)

Actually, one thing I wanted to note here (writing this after like, 3 paragraphs), is something that influences a lot of my love for this game is the fact that it... Doesn't suffer from translation problems like the OG. It brings factors that i never truly appreciated into the forefront, and clears up a lot of confusion. I wanted to put this here because I realized it would be weird to say all of my nonsense without clarifying this.

Gameplay

Rebirth (and Remake) is what I think is What modern FF should be. I absolutely love this style of combat so much. I do wish there was a very small passive ATB charge cause sometimes I get stuck in a situation where I can't do anything, but other than that the rotation of hack and slash then classic menu, and switch between party members is so fun, in the best of times I can make a really cool action scene, everyone showing off their own moves; it's a blast. I'll go a little deeper into the characters when I go to That section, but overall I found everyone really fun in some way, even though end game I ended up using the same party as I did in Remake (and also the OG VII lmfao).

I know to some/possibly most, the amount of open world (and Chadley) and the side quests might feel like a bunch of fluff and garbage, but I actually kinda really enjoyed it? I loved how the world intel all changed slightly as you progressed. Moogles as an example, annoying as they were, did add an extra level of challenge every time you saw them. When you had to catch a chocobo, it was a different style of stealth minigame. Summon crystals all had increasingly complicated patterns. Hell, even the towers were slightly different every time with how you had to climb or even reach them! I think this being the strength solidifies itself when I think of my least favorite intels being the Fiend Intel, because I think they were the most samey the entire game through. The side quests I compare to XVI. XVI's side quests were... like XIV. A LOT of dialogue, run here, more dialogue, fight one enemy or gather 6 items, then go back. Rebirth's quests felt... a little more alive? A little more varied? Sure, side quests are usually going to be the same in these styles of game, but I think of chasing a dog through the region while the dialogue happens along the way, I think of the options to gather more resources than the bare minimum for different rewards and dialogues, picking different flowers, having to pay attention to notes, having to interact with the minigames: it all felt more interesting and like I actually wanted to do them. The varied nature of everything is what made me enjoy it.

Oh and Queen's Blood? Greatest FF card game don't even @ me I had so much fun with it it better stay

Characters

One of my favorite parts of Rebirth is how much it helped or made me love the cast. Even characters that I did not care about or possibly actively disliked, this game made me enjoy. Main characters were all expanded on, side characters were silly, and brought back into relevance when I would never expect (Like holy shit I swear every named NPC from Remake came back which is so cool), and they all make the journey an absolute joy to take, and the world as colorful as FFVII SHOULD be. But let me talk about a cast that went from "yeah I like them" to possibly one of my favorite parties in the entire franchise.

Cloud

I honestly already considered him my favorite character in VII (which is a very hard thing to admit without the fear of people thinking you like him for the wrong reasons), and Rebirth being essentially half the game lets me get to see why again. A man who presents himself as serious and uncaring, but OOPS he actually does care and is really silly but unfortunately has some major mental problems! (please help him he is NOT ok). Sure, they kinda speed up his realization of certain aspects, and maybe they go a Little too hard on the fact that Something Isn't Right, but I really enjoyed seeing his declining mental state, its effect on the world, and his relationships with the party. The Sephiroth juice is intense at this point in the story, and I am very excited to see him in the next game. His gameplay is classic yet fun, with big swordy slashes and huge hits that don't have to be slow (they're sometimes slow).

Barret

My favorite part of Barret in Rebirth compared to Remake is how he didn't wear his sunglasses for most of the game. He's open, he's feeling, he's emotional; he's the big tough softy I love. This is where him and Cloud's relationship really gets to shine, where you can tell there is respect, trust, and concern between both of them. The Gold Saucer and side quests are where I think this is at its strongest, and I love seeing it. His gameplay makes him a really fun support, and just like Remake I had him as a sort of paladin healy tanky type, staying behind with GUN as he takes care of the party, which is really fun and consistent.

Tifa

This game does wonders for Tifa enjoyers (it's me I'm Tifa enjoyers), giving her a lot of focus and emphasis on that caring, observant nature that is her strongest suit. Her concern for Cloud and friendship with Aerith feel very strong here and it makes me happy to see. Her gameplay had her in my party the entire time no other reason, her fast attacks, dodges, ATB filling, and stagger damage multiplier being extremely huge in every single fight.

Aerith

The big one. Honestly, I'm gonna keep my real big story thoughts for later, but I will say I loved seeing her enjoy life, the open world, and helping others in the side quests. She's a great character to see happy :) Also, her scene in the Gold Saucer is probably now one of my favorite scenes in the entire series. It was so fucking stunning that I cannot get enough of it. Unfortunately, her gameplay is easily my least favorite out of the group, as her slow attacks and dodging (yes I know she has an ability to boost her attacks but that takes a while to get to) makes her kind of a slog in my hands, and better off in the computer's.

Red XIII

One of two characters that I did not expect to grow to love as much as I did. I'll prob mention this again later, but... I didn't REALLY know the extent of his change when I played the original. Yeah, I knew he was young for his race, but he always felt like just that wise grumpy dog man (some of this could be on me not reading well enough but between poor translation and Advent Children and the fact he didn't make it into DFFOO I'm gonna give myself a break). Rebirth showed me how much of a joy Red is. Despite the trauma and pain he went through, he's silly, he's excited for life, he has fun and loves his family. But also, despite this and his youth, he doesn't COMPLETELY lose his knowledge and wise nature after his reveal; he just relaxes more. I care about Red so much more than I originally did now because this change was made clearer. His gameplay is also really fun, fast attacks, strong defenses, and even stronger abilities (stardust ray my beloved).

Yuffie

We already got a good amount of Yuffie in Intergrade, so having her again here felt like anyone else from last game. However, I do absolutely love how she was integrated into the main plot instead of just being Girl in Forest. She served as great comic relief (and literally says this!) for her appearance in the story (although I do think there were a couple occasions where it was a bit much but that's ok her arc is next game), and I really enjoyed that she started to become a cared for member of the group (really shown by Cloud in the Skywheel date and her and Barret's relationship). Gameplay was just as fun as Intergrade, the throwing/ninjutsu swapping being a joy, and I loved using her doppelganger attack in combination with elemental weaknesses and Sonic Boom. Yuffie was key for some of the harder fights, the MVP fr fr.

Cait Sith

The other of two characters I did not expect to enjoy, and Cait Sith here is the absolute king of it, as I DID NOT like him in the OG. But here? He's a larger character, he's more sympathetic, he's a little more understandable, and his gameplay doesn't suck shit lmfao. His betrayal I think was done a lot cleaner this time around, where he really Felt like part of the group, and his return was done pretty smoothly but honestly doing anything other than being like "hi hello I'm back!" while Cloud beats the shit out of Aerith is an improvement I really enjoyed his melee/ranged nature being similar to Cloud, and his heavy hitting attacks. Despite the fact that he still had RNG, it was RNG that felt good no matter what and I appreciated that.

Cid and Vincent

Our poor poor "you're not allowed yet" boys. No gameplay section here cause they ain't got any! But that's ok, because for what little role they had, I really enjoyed their presence. Early Cid was very interesting to me, and while i do feel like he loses a little not being introduced as a complete dickwad, I still love having Cid around and giving him a little more connection to the party. He didn't seem as aggressive and %#*^-y, but I kinda hope we get more of that in part 3 when Rocket Town happens. Vincent, similar to Yuffie, gets tied into the story in such a great way. Getting to fight him was super super cool, and I loved that small amount of comic relief he gives by being Overly edgy yet out of touch with the world. I'm very excited to see where both of them go.

Zack

It took me some time to... Accept what Remake did to the timeline. Once I did, I was all in on the train for more Zack. I love Zack! He's my other favorite VII character other than Cloud! This game gave me more Zack, and I appreciate it for that. Not to mention his whole interactions with Aerith and Cloud made me very happy and filled a void in my heart I needed (that fucking synergy attack between the two of them???? DUUUUUDE) Unfortunately however; he didn't get to... get the story treatment I would have liked. Gameplay wise; I don't care much for his charge mechanic, sadly.

Sephiroth

I don't have much to say here. Sephiroth is Sephiroth. He appears, says "pee your pants cloud", then fucks off, and he's really good at that, and that's what he's supposed to be. My grudges against him aren't against him and more against who's writing him. Playing him was hype though, and I enjoyed his counter mechanic which I feel got later reincarnated into Red.

As for people other than in the playable cast, Dio was incredibly fun, Elena felt like a treat and a more threatening than the original but still showing that silly nature (pink gun???? no tactical advantage whatsoever I love it), Hojo is still the scum of the earth as he should be (he never gets better!), I got to actually understand what Bugenhagen is, and so on and so on. Nobody was worse than their original appearance and I loved that.

ALSO CISSNEI GANG RISE UP WE LOVE OUR GIRL AND I'M SO GLAD SHE GOT TO RETURN

Story

So. This is the big part. If I had to choose where my biggest gripe with the game would be, it would be in the aspect of story. This is the Exact Same Gripe I had with Remake, that being the aspect of whispers, alternate timelines, and whatever Sephiroth is cooking. This being.... I don't really like it? I don't think it adds anything?? It's confusing, intentionally vague, and it really ruins the flow that these games have otherwise. Cause aside from this singular (big) aspect? Dude! This game fucks! It takes every story beat that was in the original, and expands on it in a way that i feel makes me love the story and world way more! I feel like a lot of aspects got tied together a lot more smoothly (although again, I also attribute this to not terrible translation), and every experience that I expected from the original was a joy to watch in this game. The swamp, Junon, the boat, Costa del Sol, the Gold Saucer, Cosmo Canyon, Nibelheim, the Temple of the Ancients. These were all done so well. All of the side content and side stories were really fun, added a lot of character to the world. And with the slight changes they did make, like with Cait Sith's arc being changed to be more sympathetic instead of blackmailing and Cloud being controlled by Sephiroth NOT beating Aerith I think were actually done really tastefully and improved the experience (actually thinking about it Dyne's just felt like they wanted to hurt Barret more why would they do that). I just... I wish if they were going to do this whole alternate timeline dealy, they were a little more clear on it? i wish I could feel like it actually mattered to this series, but what i get is "oh wow the unknown journey" that turns into "yeah here are these extra bits that are confusing and don't change anything and actually instead ruin the impact of one of the most well known scenes in video game history)

With that I will talk about the ending. I was willing to ignore the fact that we didn't get to walk through the City of the Ancients more. I was still shaking and nervous until the very end, thinking "oh man what's going to happen???? oh fuck!!!" and what i was instead rewarded with was a constant whiplash of emotions and confusion that left me numb to what should have torn my heart out. I shouldn't have to be left wondering if a character truly died or not for the sake of "OHHH MAN TIMELINESSSSS WORLDS???" that didn't DO anything when I could have gotten either a successful changing of timeline, or a 4K edition of something to tear my heart out, and hearing the absolute pain in Cloud's voice in his speech afterwards. I am Really Hoping that part 3 will clear this up, and retroactively improve an ending and story beats that I think single-handedly knock this game down from a 10/10. I shouldn't have faith in them, cause they've beefed two endings in a row, but I do, because they've shown that everything else they can create are honestly perfect.

Graphics

shortest section in the world this game is beautiful the landscapes are beautiful the characters are beautiful (or ugly when they needed to be and it still worked) my eyes were given a treat this entire 80 hours

Music

shortest section in the world this soundtrack is amazing hamauzu and suzuki cooked and made so many good songs

it's like they knew tifa's theme was one of my favorites and proceeded to give me 20 versions of it also gold saucer getting individual remixes???? a top 5 battle on the big bridge? NO PROMISES TO KEEP???????? GOD FUCKING DAMN.

Unorganized Ramblings/Finale

I really did have a lot of fun with this game. I didn't feel soured until the end for the most part, even during some frustrating game segments (fuck you Rufus and Odin and then Odin again and also that last Fort Condor). I really appreciate getting to see the wider world of FFVII in a modern sense, and I think overall I appreciate what I didn't previously a lot more. I also loved how with the addition of a card game and Gilgamesh, it got to match up with VIII and IX, the other 2 PS1 FFs to really feel like a unified FF vision. This game kept the silliness that the original had on top of its incredibly dark setting for something that I love to describe as the same vibe as Yakuza. I laughed seeing Red get a whole scene instead of a single bit in his person outfit, and then cried at a newfound caring for Cloud, Tifa, and Barret seeing Jessie's poster in the Gold Saucer. The vibes were immaculate and I'm really really excited to see what they do for the final part (which is going to be called Reunion I'm betting my left materia on it)

9/10. The peak of modern FF gameplay that enhances a classic, but fails its mission of being different.

[seekingthestars]

tagged by @koalammas!! thank youuu 💞

buckle up ladies and gents time for some rambles okay go

1. Are you named after anyone?

nope lol my middle name was going to be Rose after my great-grandma on my mom's side, but my parents didn't want to offend either side of the family by using a name from the other side of the family so they ended up opting for completely random names for me and my brother hahaha

2. When was the last time you cried?

around april 21 (friend's funeral, her brother was speaking during it and i did not keep it together)

3. Do you have kids?

nope! only my cat, who i love and adore with my entire heart, she is my sweet lil angel muffin

4. Do you use sarcasm a lot?

kinda depends i guess? sometimes?

5. What is the first thing you notice about a person?

ohhh good question hmm i guess if i'm just seeing someone in passing, probably appearance? otherwise how they interact with and treat other people.

6. What’s your eye color?

brown, but leans a little hazel-ey some days.

7. Scary movie or happy ending?

agree that i like satisfying endings that are also hopefully happy! but between these two options, happy endings, i cannot do scary movies or tv shows or anything, i get freaked out and then can't sleep lol

8. Any special talents?

i genuinely don't know L O L i don't know what would constitute a special talent??? i can memorize song lyrics pretty quickly and then they sorta embed themselves into my brain forever, does that count??

9. Where were you born?

southern usa!

10. What are your hobbies?

video games, watching movies/dramas (though i do not always have the attention span for it lol), reading, crafting (i like physically making things with my hands since i just do design on my computer all day for work! i like trying lots of different things, recently been trying a little bit of hand embroidery. also painting little ceramic figures and stuff like that), cosplaying. i've been trying this year to build taking a walk into my daily routine, not sure if i count it as a hobby or not lol

11. Do you have any pets?

my sweet sweet rileycat!!!! i love cats!!!!

12. What sports do you/have you played?

am not a sports girlie LOL i did tap/ballet/jazz for six-ish years when i was younger! in high school i took theatre classes and was in the plays/musicals instead of sports.

13. How tall are you?

5'4" which is like 162.5cm??

14. Favourite subject in school?

oh i love english, i always loved english. and math! i actually really loved math up until i took calculus. my calculus teacher was horrible, he made you feel stupid for asking questions and he intentionally made the tests too long to finish in a class period and made them extra confusing, it left me in tears more than once. cried at school bc i failed a lot of those tests. anyway i got a 5 on my AP exam for calculus (highest score) so i understood the material, my teacher just sucked and made me hate math after i'd loved it my entire life so ✌️

also loved my theatre classes in high school ahhhh

15. Dream job?

i think something working with cats / big cats / red pandas would be really fun. not a vet necessarily, i don't think i could handle it lol, but like a cat rescue or animal sanctuary maybe??? idk honestly

but yeah mostly agree with the "something that won't drain me and actually leaves me with savings and a will to live" answer. i like my current job/workplace/coworkers a lot more than my last job, but i still don't know if i'd want to be in this field until i retire, that's so many more years and clients sometimes make me wanna bash my head into a wall lol

i have a hard time with the ~dream job~ question bc i've just never felt like i had a "calling" or any overwhelming grand idea with what i've wanted to do with my life, i'm just vibing my way through somehow

Bonus: any significance to your blog's name:

NOPE lol when i was making this blog uhhhh 12 years ago everything that i wanted at the time had been taken and this was the only thing i could think of that i liked that was available and it was just something random 😂 i've thought about changing it but idk it's been too long now LOL

[cherrygorilla]

My first impressions of The Outsiders musical (plus my extra notes on your reaction to ✨Starlight Express✨)

As promised, I've compiled all the notes I made whilst I was watching the show you so graciously introduced me to into a neat little post for you to read. I know it's not nearly as exciting as a video, but hopefully you can still enjoy reading through them as much as I enjoyed watching it. It was so cool getting to watch it after knowing how important the story has been to you over the years, and how much it inspired your characters. It felt like I was unlocking new Danelle lore - I loved it 😂 But anyway, enough wasting time! I'll start with my reactions to The Outsiders (the overall show and each song), and then I'll tag on my comments about Starlight at the end. I did them as little bullet point-esque comments as I went along to try to stop myself from rambling too much, but I don't know how successful that was... 😅

The Outsiders:

Okay, first of all, I love that you can hear time period accurate music playing in the theatre before the show starts - I love when productions do that; it adds that extra layer of immersion and helps you get even more excited for the show to start - at least it does for me anyway.

The actor playing Ponyboy has a really unique voice - but I think it works well for the character. It feels really authentic. 

The use of the screens in the set to show the movie scenes at the start was cool - for what sometimes felt like a more limited/sparse set with the sort of scaffolding backdrop, it added an extra element of interest.

The contrast between the Greasers and the Socs in that first number was shown in such a cool way too - with all the Greasers playing around and doing their own thing to reflect their imperfections, but good hearts nonetheless - and then with the Socs being more reserved and putting their jackets all in perfect synchronisation to show how much more 'put together' they are. That's such clever choreography! 

The staging of everything is great too - it feels like such a big set but they use the space so effectively. And all the gravel on the stage is a great touch; it helps set the scene so well! I think I saw actual water in that tire too, which is another really cool feature.

Tulsa '67 - great song to set the scene - sets everything up really well - no notes - fantastic opening number 👏

The car pulling onto the stage was so cool - it reminded me of when I went to go and see the Back to the Future musical last month (which was amazing btw - gave me some very entertaining ideas for a one-shot 👀), because the way they used the delorean in that, and made it drive, was genuinely incredible haha.

Whilst I felt really sorry for poor Ponyboy when he had that run-in with the Socs, the way they did the fight scene (and all the ones that followed) was just brilliant. The way the lighting and the sound design and the way they did the choreography with the slow-motion sections - it was fantastic!! I've genuinely never seen anything like that in a show before - no wonder it won so many Tonys haha. It deserved to after seeing that!

Also - no matter how many fight scenes there were - I still couldn't work out how they got the fake blood all over themselves. Maybe it was just too late at night and I wasn't paying close enough attention - but that felt like genuine magic to me 😂

Grease Got a Hold - fun song to show the brotherhood of the Greasers - very time period accurate too - at least it sounds it to me lol - which works really well to help sell the story - it did a great job at introducing us to the way all the different main characters act too

Runs in the Family - really liked Darrel's character in the show - maybe it's because you made that connection with him being so similar to Miles, and you know how much of a sucker I am for that guy lol - but I also did just genuinely think he was a great character to add an extra layer of conflict - and the actor did a brilliant job of portraying it; I really believed him in the role, and I thought his voice was beautiful.

The scene with Ponyboy and Sodapop talking on the bed definitely gave me Bentley and Royce vibes - especially because they share a room. That moment about the book and how many pages it had got a laugh out of me too - the guy who plays Sodapop acted that bit really well. That whole exchange was just really sweet - they played out that super close brotherly bond so well - I can definitely see how their relationship could have influenced how you wrote the Murphys.

Great Expectations - really moving song that was great for showing off the guy who plays Ponyboy's voice - it was so powerful! I've got to admit I'm not always overly fussed about slower songs/ballads in shows, so I didn't necessarily love this at first - I thought it was a good song, but I don't think I fully appreciated it until I came back to listen to it again and could link it back to the rest of the show; I think it becomes more meaningful once you know the whole story - at least it worked that way for me

The exchange between Dally and Johnny Cade (I can definitely see why you thought August was a good match for him btw) was really sweet - they really sold that chosen family vibe between them. And it was clever how they incorporated the set-up with the switchblade knife too, what with it being so important later on. 

Friday at the Drive-In - nothing really groundbreaking, but it was a fun, catchy song - and I liked the choreography!

I loved getting to meet Cherry for the first time - with her bravery standing up for herself I can definitely see Vivien selling that almost defiant confidence really well. And how she speaks to Ponyboy afterwards - I could so see Vivien acting that out with Bentley. I sometimes forget how close of a bond Vivien and Bentley have because I usually think of them as a trio, or just Vivien with Royce - but I'd love to see them tackle this scene together; I think they'd do a great job. 

Going on from that - I Could Talk To You All Night - such a pretty song that is so enjoyable and easy to listen to - it works so well for the scene, and I think Vivien and Bentley would kill it - BUT, your idea of a one-shot with Miles and Carrie pre-relationship is absolute perfection for this song. It works amazingly - right down to their places in society and everything!! Aaah!!

I loved Cherry sticking up for herself when her boyfriend barged in and started being an asshole too - she's such a strong-willed girl, I'm obsessed with her. I could very much see elements of Carrie and Eric in her and Bob's relationship (unfortunately lol) - especially in TMM. If only Carrie had the same balls Cherry did to actually put herself first lmao.

Runs in the Family reprise - whilst I understand it was a little overkill for Darrel to fly off the handle like he did, I can appreciate his point of view and how he cracked under all the pressure he'd placed on himself. Like you said in your post, it's hard to imagine the Murphy brothers ever arguing like this - but it could be something interesting to play with just as a one off, to see how they would react - especially that element of Darrel talking about all the things he could do with his life if he wasn't tied down to providing for his brothers - I feel like Miles could share at least some of those struggles (I just don't ever think he'd express them lmao - especially not like that). Also - I feel like in this reprise, even more than with the song the first time around - part of the melody reminds me of What'd I Miss from Hamilton. Maybe it's just me though lol 😂

Far Away from Tulsa - what a pretty song! And what a sweet moment between Ponyboy and Johnny Cade - this was such a good way to show how close the characters are. And omg just imagining Bentley and August singing it 🥹 - I couldn't cope

Probably just me watching too much Starlight Express (as usual), but the "you're nobody" part of the following run-in with the Socs was very reminiscent of the "he said nobody, so he's nobody" bit in the show when the other trains are all picking on Rusty. Weird coincidence haha. But again, the staging of this fight was just brilliant - it was like I couldn't look away! And the underwater effects!! That was so cool!!

Run Run Brother - what an exciting end to the first act! Again, the staging of it was brilliant showing their escape - and I loved the song in this one too; I feel like it showed off Dallas' voice really well. 

Justice for Tulsa - this was a really cool opening to the second act - I loved the way they staged it with the interrogation; that was so clever and it set the tone really well how everything is a little darker and more tense compared to the bright and cheery opening of the first act. I really liked the second part of the song too with Cherry sticking up for the Greasers even though everyone else was turning on her because of it - she's definitely feeling like one of my favourite characters at this point. The tone of her voice is so pretty and clear too - you can tell there's a lot of power behind it as well. She's great!

Also - I know it's not really a comical show - but that cut back to Ponyboy after they'd cut and bleached his hair… 😳 Girl. I gasped. That wig. I know the point is that it looks bad but I was still speechless 😂 The poor guy! Wanted as an accessory to murder AND looking like a clown?! He can't catch a break!

Death's At My Door - what a sweet duet - not the most exciting of songs - but it's really heartfelt and showed off the characters' close bond really well. 

Throwing in the Towel - I already had a bit of an idea what this was like from the TV performance of it, but omg seeing it fully staged, and knowing about everything that led up to this point, made it so much better! What a beautiful song! Everyone put so much emotion into it - and then when Ponyboy started singing too to show how they were all thinking of and missing each other despite being apart - ugh, it was so good!! Definitely a stand out song of the show for me. Brilliant vocals, and amazing acting too from all three brothers. I can totally see the similarities to your Murphy brothers as well, which made it all the more enjoyable to watch. The actor who plays Darrell did a particularly great job here, and as an oldest sibling myself, I definitely felt the most connected to him - he's another favourite of mine from the show.

The comedic timing on that "Do I look like Julie Andrews?" line was impeccable - that whole section with them talking about Ponyboy's hair was so good - they delivered the lines so well; it felt so authentic. And Dally's reaction just made it even better.

Soda's Letter - another really pretty song - you could really feel the sentiment behind the lyrics - it felt (at least to me anyway) that even the music itself was showing that internal conflict in Ponyboy: the need to stay safe and loyal to his friends, but also that comforting pull of his family back home. It was really beautiful!

Dally's monologue that followed was really powerful too, with him trying to keep his 'found family' safe - definitely felt like his advice was driven by the fact that he didn't have a choice in his matter of just keeping moving on though, and that he was potentially a little jealous that Ponyboy did have a loving family he could go back to. There felt like there was an element of pride there too - where he felt like their new big brother who could look after them, especially after his talk with Darrell, so he didn't want them to go back and not have them solely relying on/looking up to him anymore. He wants to try to keep that control over them  - maybe because there's nothing else he can control in his life? Idk, maybe I'm reading too much into it lmao.

Hoods Turned Heroes - that whole fire breaking out really took me by surprise, but it was so brave of Ponyboy and Johnny Cade to go save all those kids despite being so weak and tired themselves. No wonder they were deemed heroes! It was a fun song to show off the upswing in luck for the Greasers back home though - and it provided an even starker contrast to the next scene with Dally carrying Johnny Cade like that. That was a really powerful moment.

Hopeless War - another beautiful song showing off Cherry's actress' voice - I'm obsessed with it. She's really great. Definitely gives me turf war vibes that could be used in a throwback one-shot/au or something before the surfers and bikers made up.

The set-up for the rumble had me so nervous ngl - I really appreciated Darrell coming back and trying to help though, even offering to take Ponyboy's place and fight for him (not that Ponyboy was ever going to let that happen, but you know, the sentiment was there haha). Very good big brother energy - very Miles energy too. I liked it haha.

And then the rumble itself: genuinely unbelievable theatre. I know I've said it before, but the way they used the sound, and the lighting, and the choreography of everything - and the rain and the fake blood too - it quite literally took my breath away. Sooooo insanely brilliant. I can't believe how synchronised everything was - it was really, really impressive. 

Little Brother - another seriously powerful song, made even more powerful by that amazing performance by Dally's actor. Omg he totally killed that - the pain and the emotion in his voice - he sounded totally broken, it was such a brilliant performance! And aptly heartbreaking after what happened to poor Johnny Cade - it's just a shame Dally felt so lost and angry that he ended up meeting the same fate.

That conversation between the three brothers centering around Ponyboy and his grief was so emotional and, again, really powerful. They acted it out so well - I could really feel their love and frustration with one another. Again, I could totally see the Murphy brothers acting in a similar way if they were ever in that situation, especially with the way they were talking about their parents and how they're all each other has left. May or may not have helped me a lot with later parts of TMM too hehe 👀

Also - the part with them saying Johnny Cade's mum never showed up to the hospital to collect his things: what the hell! That's so sad! Poor boy deserved so much better 😢

Stay Gold - I've always known about this phrase being linked to The Outsiders in some way because I think you've had it in your bio at some point, but I didn't know the full meaning behind it until I listened to this. And omg what a beautiful song - definitely one of my favourites from the whole show. It's so delicate and heartfelt and pretty - that melody is just so gorgeous. It really feels like Johnny's last way of comforting and reassuring Ponyboy, all wrapped up in a song. Sooooo pretty. I loved the touch of them getting Johnny to be the one to sing it too; it sounds so much more meaningful coming from him. I could totally picture August singing this as well - the lyrics all felt very 'him' with that soft, almost poetic edge and the link to nature. At least that's the vibe I have in my head of August anyway haha.

The way they brought Ponyboy's writing back to end the show with felt so satisfying - it was a great way to tie it all together as one big story and show how their lives had changed, but part of it would always stay the same. A great way to end it with some really nice harmonies!!

So yeah, in case you couldn't already tell, I really loved the show - thank you so much for introducing me to it! I'm so glad I'll finally have an idea of what you're talking about when you bring it up now lmaoooo. And I'm so excited to see your reaction to it, because I feel as though it'll just make me love it even more!

Anyway, speaking of reactions, here are all the things I had to comment on after watching your reaction to Starlight Express. They're in that same sort of bullet point-y style, and I didn't comment on everything because I'd have probably bored you for hours. But here were at least my main things I wanted to share with you! So yeah, thank you again for putting that video together for me; I had such a fun time watching it and seeing you experience the show for the first time. I can't wait to see what ideas it sparks for you in the future (even if they're just new, awesome nail designs 😉)

Starlight Express:

It was so cool hearing you say that you bet you'd have loved the show when you were a kid because that's when I fell in love with it - and how you hoped that there are kids in the audience that fall in love with musical theatre because of the show because that's exactly what happened with me, and is exactly what the musical set out to do. Andrew Lloyd Webber has said many times that Starlight was designed to get kids into theatre and get them excited about going so the fact you picked up on that so early on was so cool! 

I LOOOOVE that you fell in love with Greaseball so early on - Greaseball's always been one of my faves, and this London version just cemented it for me. She's such an icon. I always used to love Dinah because she got to be WITH Greaseball - now I just want to BE Greaseball 🤣

That's so cool that you've seen stuff from the Bochum version (and that you've been learning German?! That's awesome!), and that you can appreciate the costume changes and everything. This video version of the London production might not be the best because the costumes aren't all finished off with the lights on their chest yet - since it was taken during the previews - but I agree that they all still look insanely cool. 

Also - with Dinah being one of my all-time favourite characters in the show - those Dinah inspired nails you got (which I may or may not have clocked in the intro because I'm a freak like that 🤣) are AMAZING! They look so good!! I'd love to see what you get done for Greaseball/The Outsiders if you end up getting them.

I loved your interpretation of the coaches being like the Muses in Hercules - that's such a cool connection; I'd never thought of that before but you're so right! And I loved your comments/analyses on their costumes too - they were so fun to hear. And as someone who LOVES really reading into details - especially when it comes to colours and things - listening to you talk about everything you picked up on was soooo fun. 

You giggling at that moment at the end of Whistle At Me was so cute 🥰

Also, I know you realised by the end of the show, but they definitely do sing AC/DC in Electra's main song - which is cool for both the music connotations, and because of the alternating current/direct current electrical terminology connotations hehe. 

I LOVED your reactions to Pumping Iron because that's one of my favourite songs in the whole show - it's just so FUN - and I had a blast watching you experience it all. Also - the way that your homemade slushie exploding lined up perfectly with Control saying "uh oh" had me cracking up so hard 😂

You picking up on Pearl saying "lovers" in Make Up My Heart was so entertaining too - the characters used to be a lot more romantically motivated in other versions of the show, and carrying songs over without changing the lyrics much (this one in particular) doesn't always work so well 😂

Totally agree with your score for Momma's Blues too - I love Momma as a character, but I always skip that song because it's just so random and unnecessary - genuinely don't know why it was ever included other than to give the Poppa/Momma character something else to sing 😂

I'm OBSESSED with Rusty's voice in this production too - obviously all the other Rustys I've seen have done an amazing job too, but there's something about Jeevan's voice that is just sooo beautiful. It made me appreciate 'Starlight Express' and 'Starlight Sequence' so much more than I used to because of how gorgeous his voice is to listen to. Also, can you believe he was only 17 when he started the show?! Insane!!

Unfortunately Greaseball is always kind of a jerk to Dinah in the shows, which is such a shame because they are so cute together otherwise. I've seen a few different interpretations of it though, like where Greaseball's so hellbent on winning that they don't want any distractions from anyone (no matter who they're from), and their desire to win just completely takes over. But another interpretation I thought was quite cute was that Greaseball is so desperate to look tough in front of their competitors that they have to disregard Dinah so that they don't look weak, because every time they DO properly acknowledge Dinah (like at the end) they're just like putty in her hands haha. 

I'm glad you still liked UNCOUPLED so much too, because as much as I also love it, I feel like it works much better with an American accent. Every other English-speaking version of the show has had Dinah being American, and since that number is so country music inspired, I just think it sounds better with an American accent. Eve's acting definitely helps to sell it though - and the more I listen to it, the more normal it's starting to sound. So maybe it's growing on me after all 😂

Your analysis on the 'money-driven' aspect of Slick's character was really cool too. That's a new aspect for this production too, because usually it's CB in that position just wrecking the trains for shits and giggles because he's a little psycho - but the link to the big oil rigging industry is a great one to make! I kind of wish they did more with Slick's character tbh - I feel like what they show of her is a very base level of her character - I wish we saw more of her desperation and intensity. And like I mentioned with how I imagine Abby would play her, I wish there was more of an element of Slick wanting to help Greaseball because she idolises her, what with their almost identical colour schemes and their joint reliance on oil. I think Wide Smile, High Style kind of falls a little flat because Slick's motives were never really shown up until that moment. But oh well, I suppose the show can only be so long haha. 

That moment after Rusty wrecks in the first version of the final race being Royce and Vivien coded is so true!! I'm so pleased you saw elements of them in those roles like I did!

It was so cute seeing how excited you got about Hydra each time he came on stage too - everyone seems to be really loving him, which is great since he, and all the other fuel trucks, were new additions for this production. He just seems like such a cool, chill guy - he's great. And that musical hook of his is really catchy haha. I'm pleased you could see how I could link him to Ethan lmao.

I love that you enjoyed One Rock and Roll Too Many - that's such a fun number in the show. I wish they'd made it more obvious that the trains had wrecked though, because in other productions they roll out in tattered/falling-apart versions of their costumes, which I think sells it more. But I also understand that that might not have been possible this time around with the way that the costumes are so rigid/plasticy. Either way - it's still a really fun number.

In terms of their makeup too - I've seen some of the cast on tiktok doing videos about their makeup and they have to do it all themselves! I think they were taught how to do their specific looks initially, but they have to do it all themselves every night, which is super impressive.

Also - yes - I totally agree Hydra should have been up there on the podium with Rusty at the end. Pearl didn't even race with him once!! 😂

And your utter confusion with Greaseball's poor spelling 😂 I love Al's portrayal of Greaseball but I don't think she hams up the dopey/dumb and embarrassed aspect of that part where she struggles to spell 'sorry' nearly enough. 

Overall, I absolutely loved your reactions though - getting to introduce people to stuff I love and seeing their reactions is one of my favourite things to do, so getting to watch you experience the show for the first time and fall in love with it was soooooo special. I can't wait to see your reaction to the Outsiders one if you choose to do one for that too!

And with that, I think I've got through everything. And to save you from reading through even more of my ramblings, I'll leave it here. Thank you so much for getting through it all if you made it to this point though - you're a real one haha. On a serious note though, the dedication you've put into editing together that video and watching the show purely because you know how much I enjoy it, and going to the trouble of helping me watch The Outsiders, is insane - you've gone above and beyond any of my irl friends with all that, so thank you soooo much. You truly are the best! 🥰

Now, back to TMM! 😂