#at least it's very easy to rhyme with

[mumblesplash]

i hope evil anvil is somewhere out there piecing together the entire limited life song around a rhythm specifically chosen to fit the line "if you're gonna be an absent father, could you be at least absent?"

[ikeukiss]

〔 𝒾 〕 You bend to Jay's every whim with a smile on your face, knowing it pleases him when you do as he asks. So when he asks you to spread your legs in a random Prada store, you don't think twice. You barely think once, truthfully.

𝗋𝖾𝗊𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖺𝗇𝗈𝗇𝗒𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗌 ── 𝙎𝙀𝙉𝘿 𝘼 𝙃𝘼𝙍𝘿 𝙏𝙃𝙊𝙐𝙂𝙃𝙏

𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐣𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐬𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝓍 𝐟𝐞𝐦!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫, 405 ⋮ 18+ ⋮ smut, mob boss!jay, daddy kink, exhibitionism, voyeurism, unprotected sex, dirty talk

When Mr. Park has an order, his lackeys will follow without question. Rhyme or reason doesn’t need to be addressed when their boss is involved, blood being shed for far less than a directive going unaccomplished.

For the love of his life, the rules still apply. But you do your lover’s bidding without fear in your eyes or the trembling of your fingers like the idiots Jay bosses around. You do it to please him because it pleases you, the smile on his face from the satisfaction you provide worth all the money Jay could ever make. And when you provide him with such pleasures, he returns it tenfold

When you walk into the Prada store for a new handbag, Jay pulling you into the expansive dressing room doesn’t phase you. You giggle as his arms wrap around you, your heart light as his hands wander underneath your tiny slip of a dress.

“Baby,” you say in between his kisses smattered in your neck and collarbones. “But the cameras!” You couldn’t give a fuck about them, admittedly. But playing the part of the prudish princess is easy when it turns Jay on this much. His bulge thickens against your thigh with every word.

“They can’t see us from this angle if you can stay still, babydoll,” he whispers darkly, yanking your underwear off to put in his pocket. He knows it makes no difference, but the pair is one of your favorites, and he can still be a gentleman when he wants to be.

His dick slides between your folds without issue, and you moan into the side of his neck at the thrust that puts him deeper inside of you. Your cervix kisses his tip with every push, the pleasure overloading your senses.

“That’s it,” he groans. “Let everyone in this place know who fucks you so well.”

The employees and customers have to hear every second of it, the way you whine and keen as Jay brings you closer to your release. His bodyguards stand by and keep their eyes peeled for signs of danger, but you know Jay is pleased they can also hear the way he gives you his dick like there’s nobody else in the world for you. Because there isn’t.

You’d give him heaven and earth if it was in your possession. But, at the very least, you can give him your body, whenever and however he wants it.

── .✦ 𝗧𝗔𝗚𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗧 (𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗟𝗬 𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘):

@lovetaroandtaemin @filmnings @innocygnet @jaylaxies @xylatox @xomakara @gyubookeries @tinycatharsis @prkhaven @hannieoftheyear @frenchkisstheabyss

© 𝗜𝗞𝗘𝗨𝗞𝗜𝗦𝗦; 𝖣𝗈 𝗇𝗈𝗍 𝖼𝗈𝗉𝗒, 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗍, 𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗇𝗌𝗅𝖺𝗍𝖾, 𝗉𝗅𝖺𝗀𝗂𝖺𝗋𝗂𝗓𝖾, 𝗈𝗋 𝗆𝗈𝖽𝗂𝖿𝗒 𝗆𝗒 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄 𝗂𝗇 𝖺𝗇𝗒 𝗐𝖺𝗒 𝗈𝗇 𝖺𝗇𝗒 𝗉𝗅𝖺𝗍𝖿𝗈𝗋𝗆𝗌!

[technically-human]

So I've seen you mention fics in the tags of some of your art and I'm just wondering if you write fanfics???

I do, though not very often! I wrote The devil wears black and I'm currently writing a post second movie one from the Doctor's POV. Here's a scene just in case I never do finish it

When Robotnik was around 4 years old, bored with the coloring books and the rhymes in the ones that actually had words, he had read about symbiotic relationships, and concluded it was a good enough way to classify human interaction.

Parasitism was easy enough to understand, and something to be avoided. He knew himself extraordinary, and was aware of how that could attract all kinds of leeches to him. He couldn't allow anyone to benefit from his spoils while actively harming him. If he was prone to that kind of analysis, maybe Robotnik would claim that was when his paranoia and distrust began to build. In reality, he considered that his default mode ever since birth.

Mutualism seemed like something to aspire to, beneficial for both parties, strong. Unfortunately, Robotnik would later learn that while lots of people –and institutions– wanted something from him, rarely did they have anything to offer. He was self-sufficient, and although some things he couldn't get on his own, he was sure he could find suitable replacements if he felt so inclined. Mutualism was rare, perhaps even unrealistic, at least for him.

Commensalism was stupid. Even if he wasn't being harmed, why would he allow someone else to benefit from him without giving anything in return? Sounded like slightly more subtle parasites, in his opinion.

So Ivo Robotnik learned to live surrounded by leeches and ticks.

People, yes. Foster parents who only wanted the benefits of having a genius at home, colleges that wanted him to attend even if they had nothing to teach him, because his presence made things more prestigious, government organizations that intended to put a leash on him, to guide his genius like it belonged to them.

He managed. He learned when to say no and when to say yes, when he could tolerate the sting and painstakingly squeeze some benefits for himself.

He didn't reconsider his stance on commensalism until he got Agent Stone assigned to him. Robotnik didn't actually need him, he had lived more than enough on his own to be confident in that assessment, but… having him around actually didn't hurt. Stone never took from him, never subtracted. He just attached himself to the Doctor, clearly got some things out of it, but without stealing them from him. Like a barnacle.

What do whales think of the barnacles that cling to them? Do they even notice? Robotnik certainly did notice his, but found he didn't actually mind. Even while knowing that Stone held on waiting for future compensation, he found that it was acceptable. When he eventually revealed his true nature as yet another parasite, Robotnik concluded, it would be fine, for he, unlike everyone else, had earned it. The Doctor had bled for lesser men, he could spare a few drops for a pest that at least was loyal.

The idea that he could be the parasite had never occurred to him before.

Ivo Robotnik was the man with the resources, the one with the brains and the plans and the irreplaceability. People wanted, needed things from him. Even when he was a child, an orphan with nothing but his half-baked plans and the few spare parts he could collect and transform, it was easy to see potential in him. It was easy to know he had a lot to offer, if one was willing to take the risk of trying to steal it.

Ivo Robotnik had nothing now, defenseless and empty in a way he had never been. He couldn't even move. He couldn't even build or create or think. And he was only alive because he was taking from his own agent.

Subtracting.

There weren't mosquitoes in the crab, but Robotnik could almost visualize it. Stone distractedly slapping his hand on his own arm to eliminate the pest. Looking at it, at the tiny trace of blood with disgust. Then pausing, turning towards the Doctor, who couldn't move and wouldn't speak and had nothing anymore, and realizing…

Well, the crab was underwater and mostly free of living organisms, except for Stone himself and, if one felt inclined to count him, Robotnik, so that wasn't realistic.

The image still played in his mind every now and then.

[kyri45]

✨ShadowPeach Bio Parents Bio AU Q&A! 05/03✨

Welcome to the Q&A! A space where I can answer related or similar question about the Shadowpeach Bio Parents AU! If you submitted your ask anonimously, then you’ll have to check the whole post if it’s answered here, if it’s not, worry not! Your asks might have been used for a future comic or just in the queue~

@roseville140 ha chiesto Love your art so much 💗 💜 💖 💕 ❤️ 💓 💗 💜 💖 💕 ❤️ Also question ask this a few times(sorry): What will mk do? Will he make them immortal or be next to them till their last breath?

I don't think he would force them of make them immortal without their consent. He is too good for that

@blossomships ha chiesto: Okay, first ask, but hey, what the heck! Your art is awesome, and the story, It went from "Oh, this boy might be our son" to "omg he's our son and let's fixed our relationship" that's what I think about this in a nutshell lmao and it's crazy how far it has come. So thank you for your contribution to gay monkies- I mean to the fandom, and you are awesome.

Aww thank you!

@anidiotkid ha chiesto: What's going to happen when the comic ends? Do you have any more big projects in mind?

I have other life things to focus on, the ISAT comic, but also I want to share here all the art that I've made in the past 2 years that I never posted on Tumblr

@yuistarlmk ha chiesto: I don't think I'm ready for it to end but i knew this would happen so thank you soooo much for all the stuff you have done for all of us, making us believe in ourselves and more so I'm happy for being a HUGE fan of you. Thank you ⭐⭐

THANK YOUU!!

@jamcyote ha chiesto: Not really a question but... I'm so glad I'm not the only one who thought that it would be a cool idea if the writers made it so that chaos energy/ magic is a perfect mixture of Shadow and what I like to call physical magic (which is what Wu kon has) Slight rant. Chaos magic I don't think is as chaotic as people think. Chaos is more like not seeing or understanding the pattern of something, but everything has a rhyme or reason chaos magic is just rare so people don't know how it works and it probably works very differently than other magic and doesn't have an easy to see pattern (when people don't understand how things work, they become afraid of it). Therefore it's chaos. Chaos tends to have a bad rap but it is not always bad. It just needs to be understood and once it's understood it's no longer "chaos" and is instead another form of magic (that is most likely more powerful than the other forms), but magic itself isn't good or bad it's the person wielding it that makes it One way or the other.

I'll also share my own thoughts about it: I know the whole "Harbinger" thing doesn't mean that he brings chaos, but the connection between that kind of energy and MK for me it always has been "cool, he is a SYMBOL of chaos" like, he's a big ass chaos flag that, once born, has been flying screaming at everyone "HEY YALL! IT'S CHAOS TIME SOON!". Like, the chaos that is coming is literally the primordial chaos that will come once the cycle end because from it must start a new one. But it would make sense that, since there seems to be a whole ass society of people in the chaos realm, that he would at the very least be one of them, like when you are sending someone from your country as an ambassador to give a message

@lordmushroomkat ha chiesto: Ohhh he's never tried to use Wukong and Macaque's powers at the same time before, has he? Ohhhhhhh my stars

nope.

@steadylandface ha chiesto: What’s Nüwa’s reaction to what has completely happened so far in your Shadowpeach Bio parents Au?

She still is dissapointed by MK choice to not end the cycle, so she hasn't been so present. I would suspect she's surprised mostly for the fact that all of this resulted in the biggest un-divorce of the millenia

@candlefox1 ha chiesto: Hi so I hope it’s not too much to ask but I thought mei was also part immortal as well since her great grandfather the dragon of the east was a dragon so doesn’t that make her part immoral or could she visit her dragon relatives to ask ??

She can live longer than a normal human, and, if she only stays as a spiritual dragon, she could, theoretically, live even longer. But not forever.

@primroseprime2019 ha chiesto: You just loooove hurting me with the immortal bit, don'tcha?

yes. Becaue it hurts me too.

@emmabuggy ha chiesto: Are pigs, and tang scared that Mk only will have the monkeys as parents to guide him?

I mean, he has a bunch of people immortal that will also help him.

@injuvanillafruit ha chiesto: Do the monkie trio like bubbles? 🥰🥰

I guess Macaque and MK do. But Wukong doesn't really like anything with water too much.

@vinnillastrawberry ha chiesto: So since you confirmed their will be a dance party I wonder, How many chapters will the dance party be maybe like 4 or 5 ?

3.

@xaelanyx ha chiesto: hello!!!! I love your comic so much. when will you draw another spicy scene for spicynoodles and shadowpeach???

Not soon, the story is ending.

@roseltelle ha chiesto: Do they celebrate the day he was adopted by pigsy and tang as his birthday? I would assume so since they wouldn't know when his stone was cracked.

Yes, since it's also the same day when his stone hatched.

@shadowlilly101 ha chiesto: How did Macaque and Princess Iron Fan meet and become sworn siblings?

They knew each other from the brotherhood, but then bonded over having lost their housbands

@vevebcu ha chiesto: Can I make a fanart with my OC inside your comic? 🥺👉👈

yes

@atrocity101 ha chiesto: Hi! Sorry if I am bothering you in any way, shape, or form by messaging you, but I wanted to ask an important question. I have tried several times to research the details in how demons go about the rules of courting their chosen mate and what they can or not do beforehand or afterwards. You seem like one of the more detailed people to ask for info, could you possibly provide any details of the whole demon courting rules and such? Or provide a link to anywhere that’ll help me understand the logistics of it? (PS: I am in love with your AU and I adore every bit of it, thank you for all the hard work you put into it and please continue it! Have a wonderful day/night, and stay safe out there.)

It's mostly a fan-made thing. I don't have many resources except fanfictions that explain it more in details, like this one: https://archiveofourown.org/works/56963272

@ava115 ha chiesto: Is Redson in your au immortal like Mk? Or can he just live long sense he's a demon?

He's not exactly immortal, but can live an absurd long time.

@thenerdycupcake ha chiesto: I just realized something. Since MK can hear the past, that means he can hear his loved ones’ voices whenever he wants. No matter how much time has passed.

yes, similar to watching videos of your loved ones.

@alixzanrite ha chiesto: I thought that Pigsy, Tang, and Sandy were stuck in a reincarnation cycle because of Journey to the west? And if not wouldn't Mk be able to see them in heaven?

*sighs* I'm in no way qualified to talk about those religions, but technically if they are reincarnations of the old gang, they could be stuck in reincarnation still and might be reincarnated in the future again, bu they wont be the same people of course. If they reached buddahood they could stay in heaven. I think

@s-p-r-i-n-g-t-i-m-e ha chiesto: okay newest chapter was devastating. BUT. WUkong shirtless and Mac wearing his husband's pyjamas?????? (also Wukong spooning Mac when he originally allowed Mac to be the big spoon so he'd maintain control over the situation but now Mac trusts Wukong enough to give up that control???)

technically they were facing each other, and Mac had his arm over Wukong waist, but sweet nonetheless

@kiwi-kiwidraws ha chiesto: More heart break till the very end, right Kyri?

yes

@fresastar ha chiesto: just have to say is Will mk and wukong have a talk about everything that will happen from mk becoming immortal because wukongs friends later on dies naturally and wukong may have been sad and devastated about it, So maybe wukong can tell mk how to handle this realization or he tries to help because again he lived his whole life seeing his family go on and his friends leave and dies. sorry if this is much, you don't have to answer this😅

Yes, they will talk about it, but that's more a future conversation.

@worddraws ha chiesto: Wait so is MK immortal in the until the heat death of the universe way, in the immortal immortal way, or in the there’s no heat death of the universe and the earth exists forever way? I wish to know how angsty him being immortal is

He is "there’s no heat death of the universe and the earth exists forever way" immortal, but he's NOT INVINCIBLE! He is still capable to being killed.

@angelikis1 ha chiesto: HI!! 😁 I'M A BIG FAN OF YOUR COMICS!! also i have a question: are we ever gonna see any of MK's clones?

Eh, not for now.

@5hiny5tar-ceph ha chiesto: Heyyyyy!!!! So! I've really liked this last ep (almost made me cry ngl-) But- Shouldn't Pigsy and Tang spend more time with Xiaotian know that they know that he's immortal, and have more moments as a family, instead of doing that cooking activity with Wukong and Mac (like, I get why but still- (no offense))? Or do they just make this activity when Xiaotian is not around (Maybe hanging out with Mei or Red Son I dunno-)?

MK was with Mei when they did this.

@purplemango26 ha chiesto: Random question, but this popped up into my head a few seconds ago. Since you know and watch Lego Monkid Kid and even have an amazing au of it, I'm curious. Do you also know/watch Ninjago? Considering the whole thing with the switch of animation for Lego Monkie Kid from Flying Bark to Wild Brain who just happened to animate Ninjago, I want to know if you have at any point watched the series and or movie. By the way, huge thanks for all that you've done for feeding the LMK community. You are my top 1 provider of Shadowpeach content so I hope that you'll stay nice and healthy in the long run 💜 It's amazing how consistent you are when staying on schedule!

I watched Ninjago when I was a kid, but like only up to the 6th season (yes, I know, I'm very much behind). I also saw the movie

@roonotrue ha chiesto: Hi, Kyri!! This is my first ask on your blog, but I was just curious, with your ShadowPeach Bio Parents AU, what are your height headcanons for all the characters?? I've been trying to find some to use as reference for some of my own Ao3 fanfics/what everyone generally seems to agree on, and I figured since you're literally my favorite lmk artist, I'd ask for your headcanons!! (Idk if maybe you've answered something like this before, so feel free to ignore it you have, lol) Okie, thank you for your time, and I love your art a lot, and I'm super excited for the next update, okay byeeeee-

I'm not gonna list all the character, just the main ones, also I'm using the international metric scale because I'm a normal human being.

Macaque: 180cm

Wukong: 175cm

MK: 166cm

Mei: 172cm

Red Son (glamoured): 179cm

Red Son (True Form): 205cm

Tang: 178cm

Pigsy: 140cm

@peanut-with-wifi-access ha chiesto: Would you be okay with people writing their own sequels/continuations of the shadowpeach bio parent au when it eventually ends?

yeah sure, as long as you credit me and the au

@alastair-1205 ha chiesto: SOBBING OMFG but I also have a question lol. What exactly did MK mean when he asked Nezha to "check his aura"? As in like see if he's immortal or something else? I'm just a bit confused lol

yes it was for his immortality

@roseltelle ha chiesto: I'm curious in a universe where Wukong raised Mk when would macaque have met mk?

there are several fics exploring this concept, like A Son of Two Dads or Squished Apricots. Some of them consider that Macaque knew from almost the beginning, in others Macaque discover it after they met in the show.

@internet-grab-my-tumblr ha chiesto: So i have a baby monkie OC, but I’ve never been able to decide how to start it…if I were to, I’m, use your AU as a springboard (after all this nonsense Nuwa decides to give the monkies an apology gift in the form of a child they can actually raise together), would this be okay? It would you prefer any fics inspired by your work leave out OCs?

you can use your OC as long as you credit the AU part you want to use in your story.

@lagt-trinket-box ha chiesto: Sorry to bother But are you gonna create a thread of all the redraws of the art event road from parenthood? Just asking because I am curious to see more people redraws!

I’ll try to reblog as many as I can!

@twilight-bai-he ha chiesto: Is mei gonna be the maid of honor for spicynoodles wedding 🥰🥰? High chance she will be 🐉

of course!

@shay-bug ha chiesto: Hi! Sorry to bother you, but would it be possible if you could make car stickers for your shadowpeach bio parents au? You don't have too I just thought it would be cool since I got a new car Also, I thought I read a while back that you said after shadowpeach bio parents au comic you were might make a sonadow comic? Is that true, or did I make it up in my head? Even if you changed your plans, I'm sure the next comic you make is going to be wonderful! I love you work! Sending lost of kudos! Also, at this point, I think the shadowpeach bio parents au is a graphic novel, lol.

unfortunately RedBubble doesn’t have the option for car decals….

@darker-moon ha chiesto: are panel compilations allowed in the new shadowpeach bio-parents takeover?? i have zero talent and zero time to do anything else :'D

up to 10 panels yes.

@shadowlilly101 ha chiesto: So was she going to put mk into the piller or was she saying that if wukong had gotten mk he would have died

that if Wukong would have found it in one way or the other also heaven would have noticed.

@domo-fan1 ha chiesto: I love that Wukong acknowledges that whole yes they were happy in the past, it wasn't exactly healthy. And when they met again after years, they weren't happy but it was more healthy just because they weren't holding back their thoughts as much. True, it was mostly negative but honestly is nice. But!! As they move forward as a couple, they have to leave the past behind as it's nice but it's riddled with problems of the variety and that the future should be better. Also I feel like they'll be that sickening sweet couple every now and then, before returning to typically them. But their sweet moments are just so random that just makes everyone around facepalm. I mean we already saw them do that when they free fall in the sky to kiss. If MK follows in their footsteps, Redson is gonna have speed run in adjusting lol.

poor redson he’s going to print a tshirt that says “do not interrupt him, or else” since MK is never gonna let him go and will remain climbed to his man 24/7

@straightally2001 ha chiesto: I'm confused though. Wasn't MK a kid, not a baby, when he ended up at Pigsy's Noodles? Also, I love your Shadowpeach Bio Parents au comic series! You are one of my favorite artists ever Kyri! If you are open to suggestions, I have an idea for an au you can make after you complete this one. How about an au where Macaque was never brought back to life by LBD and was instead reincarnated. Obviously with the ships Shadowpeach, Spicynoodles, and Freenoodles

he is around 3 years old, he looks much smaller because Guanyin is wayy taller than a normal human being.

also I’m 70% sure I read a fic about that.

@raspberrymixin ha chiesto: O k we've got kai in the fray of spicy noodles child but what about Nya? His sister? I have an idea for her to me like Mei's adoptive child? And them growing up be be close as siblings? Cuz you know nya is the water ninja and Mei's family blood line are Chinese water dragons - just a thought- It's okay if you don't answer

yes Nya is Mei child and the two of them are so close that they consider themself siblings, much like MK and Mei.

@green000moth ha chiesto: Do You plan to do more spicy scenes in Shadowpeach biologic parents au?

nope

@lordmushroomkat ha chiesto: I'm a spicynoodles shipper now and I blame you <3

good

@fanficmaniatic ha chiesto: I mean this in the best possible way but the way you draw Macaque makes me want to hit him rEALLY hard in the facee with a commically large harmer. It activates my cute agression in the worst possible way I need to smash his head. I undertand JTTW Wukong on a molecular level. It wasnt a fight, It was cute agression.

when I draw Macaque I get hit by a comically large hammer because In realise I will never get a man like him.

@shadowlilly101 ha chiesto: He can hear and see the past and show others?

yesss

@king-ryuusei ha chiesto: okay. So first off, i LOVE this serie. Always excited for every chapter drop ! Your art is amazing, love what you did. now on to my question : how does Chaos energy does exactly in your au ? (Went on the lmk wiki and the lack of explication of what it dies exacly is criminal) so could you explain to us what exactly it does ? Pretty Please ? (PS: i know i said it once but i love the comic. Can’t believe we're almost at the end. Hope you have a great day/night. Byeeee!)

i’ll redirect you to THIS post

[1960z]

replaying 999 and seeing the treatment of lotus is interesting cause like. okay. she has a very sexualised design inconsistent with the designs of the rest of the characters which would lead people from the outside looking in to assume the game doesn’t treat her well but from my memory at least, her design never reflected her actual role in the story — it’s not as if she was superfluous and just meant for fan service or anything like that.

replaying it now I realise the narrative actually disrespects her in a completely different way, lmao.

like lotus is meant to be kind of a contentious character, she’s argumentative and can be pragmatic often the point of cruelty, she’s not always someone who’s easy to trust. however due to those traits, they’re used as a justification to give the other characters (often male) free reign to insult her without much rhyme or reason with the narrative endorsing, or at the very least remaining neutral on it, to the point where said treatment starts before she’s even had a chance to do anything.

junpei and seven have this whole aside about how the mercury symbol represents lotus because it’s a “female symbol with devil horns” and literally all lotus had done up until that point is assert her own wants just as emphatically as a lot of the male characters had.

there’s also kind of an ageism aspect to it all — lotus is supposed to be a middle aged woman which contrasts with the other two women, akane and clover who are in their early 20s and late teens respectively and because of that, lotus’ age almost becomes a defining character trait, she’s portrayed as the “stubborn old woman” even though I believe she’s only in her early 40s.

which I feel like also reframes how we’re encouraged to think of her oversexualised design, I don’t think we’re really meant to look at it as malegaze-y fan service, rather I think we’re kind of supposed to believe it’s embarrassing. like “why is this middle-aged woman wearing something so revealing when she’s passed her prime etc” which doesn’t really line up with her character design because she’s obviously still very conventionally attractive; however, within the narrative itself she is never remarked upon to be particularly beautiful or stunning but rather, again, viewed as stubborn and old, which I think is very telling.

this isn’t to say I don’t think the game offers lotus no dimension or sympathy, the traits that often put her in conflict with the other characters are the same traits that also make her incredibly compelling, not to mention her being objectively one of the smartest characters in the cast. but there definitely are undercurrents of misogyny and ageism in how she’s presented that I didn’t notice until now.

[pink-amethyst-tarot]

What your angles/guides are dying to tell you!

Take a deep breath and focus on which pile you think would be best for you

P I L E 1 P I L E 2 P I L E 3

Pile 1

Seven of Swords, Three of Swords (Reversed), Two of Swords, Ten of Cups, Four of Wands, Page of Cups, Two of Cups, The Lovers

After facing some deceit and hardships, you are healing and now is the time for you to open yourself up again because LOVE IS ON THE WAY!!!! This love coming in is what you have hoped for. This person is *your person* - your soulmate. I feel this wave of peace washing over me as I type this out and it is such a beautiful feeling. I can also see a wedding happening or just celebrations in general for you. Congratulations! I feel like the way this person is going to come in, it's gonna be a nice surprise. There is something that is going to just be a pleasant surprise. Like "OH! There you are! I didn't think I would see you here!"

Pile 2

Three of Swords, King of Swords, Two of Wands, 5 of Wands, Three of Cups, The Fool, Knight of Cups, King of Cups

Before I could really get started on any pile, the first thing I heard was, "Pile two, I'm proud of you!" (Hey, that rhymes!) I'm actually doing Pile Two first!

OMG PILE 2! You dealt with some kind of heartbreaking situation and I deeply think that it's related to romantic love but please take it how it resonates. But did you let it stop you? NO! You wiped your tears and decided to take on the world. It wasn't easy but you got through it and you leaned on your support system and you have been have a ball! I'm seeing fruitfulness and abundance in all areas of your life and because you have healed so much you are ready for a new beginning and a new chance at love! This person will be open with you and understanding. You've earned this.

Pile 3

Queen of Wands, Three of Pentacles, The Magician, Five of Swords, Five of Cups

Pile 3, to put it bluntly, you can be very pig-headed. You are stubborn and everyone else is wrong and you are right. Despite that, though, you are taking the time to unlearn those parts of you, and you are noticing new truths about yourself. I'm seeing the classic mean girl trope like Regina George but like using your bitchiness for good! GOOD FOR YOU, MAMA! Your guides are proud of you for not being so reactionary anymore. It seems you are finding other ways to solve conflict that are the least harmful for everyone one involved. I feel like you're in the beginning stages of this change and it doesn't feel good despite the good you are doing. It's all about finding balance and taking it one step at a time. Truth without kindness is just cruelty.

Divider Credit: @firefly-graphics

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[harrywavycurly]

Can you imagine you’re on your couch enjoying your second glass of wine and on your Bumble account, just checking to see if anyone new has joined recently that strikes your fancy when you come across a very recognizable photo of Harry. Making you instantly go to his profile and feeling a bit unsure about it since it’s not the most detailed thing on the planet and filled with things that someone could easily find on Google. But you decide to swipe on him anyway just to see what happens, and to your shock it says you’ve matched so it’s up to you to send the first message, that’s why you enjoy Bumble because it lets you control if and when you send someone you match with a message.

Thinking that this profile can’t actually belong to the real Harry Styles you quickly type out something silly that even a Harry imposter would probably get a laugh out of, hitting send before taking another sip of wine while you read the message again giggling to yourself.

“If it stays between just us can you please tell me if Olivia is a person, place, emotion or if it really did just rhyme?”

You expect the person to take a while to respond so you feel your eyes go a bit wide when you see a message suddenly appear underneath yours.

“Sorry I can’t talk about songs that aren’t fully finished yet but…I mean picking a word just because it rhymes? Talk about lazy songwriting.”

You lean your head back and laugh at what they sent you and for a moment, just a brief one, you think it might actually be Harry Styles who just messaged you on Bumble. But you quickly shake it off and assume this is just a very good Harry impersonator who knows the lore of Olivia not being finished and the lazy songwriting quote that was said back in an interview with Niall. So thinking nothing of it you message him back.

“Oh well since it’s not fully finished may I make a suggestion?”

You barely have time to take a sip of wine before a new message appears from “Harry” making you smile.

“I’m listening…”

You bite back a giggle as you type out one word, and it’s not the word the person you’re messaging is probably expecting if they really do know their Harry facts.

“Saxophones.”

But unbeknownst to you only a few miles away tucked into the corner of his couch in his dimly lit living room Harry is laughing as he holds his phone in one hand and his whiskey glass in the other as he reads your suggestion. Taking a quick sip of his drink before leaning over and placing it on his coffee table his thumbs are typing back a message and hitting send before he’s even fully leaning back and getting comfortable again.

“You know what? That’s brilliant. I was thinking it needed some horns.”

Harry chews hit bottom lip as he waits for you to reply, a grin taking over his face when he sees your message appear just below his. He can’t help but find himself intensely enjoying the way the conversation, as silly as it may be, flows between the two of you making his nerves about even wanting to join the app fade away with each new message he receives from you.

“Don’t worry I won’t make you credit me or anything. At least this time.”

He doesn’t let even a minute go by before he’s hitting send on his reply and he wonders if you’re possibly doing something similar to him right now, just having an evening in with a drink and smiling at your phone like an idiot.

“Ah so your next suggestion won’t be free then? Is that what you’re saying?”

He runs a hand through his hair as he waits for you to say something, not sure if maybe he accidentally ruined the fun and easy tone of the conversation but before he can really begin to overthink anything he sees a message appear from you making him let out a quiet chuckle.

“Exactly.”

[togglesbloggle]

Man and Superman

So my Tumblr notes are currently dominated by this thing, which is, you know, very cute and everyone's being very nice and the usual amount of weird about it. Everyone keeps wanting to steal it for their fanfics (yes, you can, feel free and do not be ashamed), a truly alarming number of people have cried at the club (none of you people are at the club, you're all liars), eighteen separate people have warned me to get him a mouthguard (working on it).

It's a small thing, but- a little while ago, I noticed offhandedly that I hadn't mentioned my gender in it. Ritter's gender is explicit, but I speak only in the first person. "Toggle" isn't a traditionally gendered sort of name either, unless you count the freudian implications. The icon's technically a male portrait, but only if you're real good at squinting and even then those aren't terribly diagnostic. So anyway, the post hit escape velocity without my gender being particularly along for the ride, and people had to interpret it accordingly.

As of this writing, the husbandposting has gotten a bit north of 25K notes. I know with confidence that its path has taken it through trad tumblr, catholic tumblr, it's at least skirted the edge of radfem trumblr, and any number of other places. And not once has anybody made any particular assumptions about what my gender is. They don't wonder out loud, either. Nobody has assumed that I must be a woman because I am in bed next to a man, or that I am a man for that matter; nobody treats my gender as a puzzle that they have to solve before they know how to feel about the post, at least not where I can see in the notes.

People (the younger ones, anyway) have this superpower nowadays: the power to appreciate a romantic situation without filtering it through sexed lenses in any particular way. They don't know it's a superpower, because it's so obvious to them, but it very much is- back in the 90s and early 00s, almost none of us had it. I know I didn't, though I've since discovered the capacity. If this kind of thing was printed in the newspaper back then, I guarantee you that the median reader would absolutely, 100%, be assuming I was a woman, and feel wrong-footed and disoriented if they found out otherwise.

There's something instructive in that. We don't get to choose our children's ideology; even the thousand-year reign of the Morally Correct Imperium must eventually confront year one thousand and one. Those descendants may well despise us, may have values we find abhorrent or pathetic, and may well see us the same way. If that's true, then, whence progress? It's tempting to think of social progress as the march of a particular ideology, but no mere moral imperative will ever march into the future unaltered.

But sometimes, something real does change. Sometimes, people get superpowers. Which is to say, tools, useful and unilaterally better ways of seeing the world. 25,000 people correctly navigated the ambiguity of my husbandposting without making strong assumptions about its author; they were better at reading than their parents would have been, a strict improvement regardless of the moral values involved.

At its best and most real, social progress rhymes with technological progress- breaking free of the aimless cyclicity of history not by imposing a particular way of thinking, but by expanding the space of what can be conceived. Sure, there are predictable consequences to the existence of a superpower- once it's easy to appreciate romantic joy without anchoring it in a baseless assumption of heterosexuality, there are certain moral values and ethical policies that follow- but this is merely a knock-on effect.

The core of it, the thing that makes it persist through time without effort by some authority, is simply that it is more deeply entangled with reality than the alternative. It catches a little bit more of the Dao's subtlety, makes each of us a little bit more free- more capable of understanding our own corner of the world and expressing our own values, whatever those may be.

[azapofinspiration]

There was a post that I saw recently that happy endings aren’t the only endings that have to be earned — you have to earn tragic endings too.

I’ve been thinking about this in relation to Zenshu and A Tale of Perishing.

Natsume said that although she’s seen the movie, she doesn’t quite get it (though that’s part of why she loves it; I figure because she’s still trying to figure it out). We haven’t been told what exactly it is she didn’t get though we now have the full synopsis of the original movie. Is it why Luke gave up on everything? Where did the Voids come from and know to attack if their leader was Luke as the Ultimate Void? Or is it that whoever destroys the Soul Future is the one who becomes the Ultimate Void?

Some answers were perhaps left on the cutting room floor, like the motivations behind Memmeln’s actions in the original story. Why the Voids attack and where they come from (and who’s currently controlling/making them) was probably there as well even though we don’t know that answer yet (maybe next time?). But it seems clear that perhaps not everything was taken into account.

Perhaps she’ll say what she fully meant soon. After all, when the director derides her for changing the story to happier circumstances, it was clear she hadn’t even full realized she was changing it because she was simply trying to protect herself and the others. (Which the story seems to be overcorrecting now.)

It makes me think that perhaps her confusion was this: why did this story have to be a tragedy?

It’s kinda easy to see why it was a flop even though it seemed very well animated and the characters beloved. The story is a true downer. And as the director seems to be pushing, there was never (originally) a hope for a better end. Even the movie’s elder prophetess reveals that the prophecy was of the Nine Soldiers winning. It was more a means to keep people pacified and hopeful until the bitter and inevitable end. Because they weren’t going to win, Luke wouldn’t save them from the end of the world, and people were always going to grow bitter and seek to blame someone when it became clear that the Voids were never going to stop.

Which is why the movie is a crap tragedy.

Tragedies are tragic because it’s a choice. It’s because there was genuine hope, a better way that things could have turned out if better decisions were made, if the characters were not who they were and made decisions that would lead to the inevitable.

Here there seems to be no genuine hope as even the Nine Soldiers were only meant to fight until they were gone and the end came. Their decision to fight seems to have no effect on the incoming ending as the story suddenly takes a swerve to even worse than the original events. Their deaths either on the battlefield or when the end is triggered were assured from the start, because that was their role.

It’s just pure angst for the sake of angst. No rhyme or reason.

And Natsuko brought hope. Because her power could change things. To not only make a potential happy end but even a good tragic end if things weren’t suddenly forced out of nowhere like Destiny getting married out of the blue or Voidism rising or the townspeople’s sudden turn, because there was suddenly more choices for all of them. And the director knew that, though I’m not sure if she’s doing it or the very narrative itself.

There are still threads left astray for now: mainly, Natsuko’s creative block that started all this even though she’s at least learned to rely on others, what seems to be her inability to create something that only she can make. That seems to be the core of not only her arc for her real world problems but also what could save them in A Tale of Perishing as well.

Though I guess we’ll have to see where she and Unio end up on the other side of the Void first. Because even as Luke is driven to despair over losing both his family and his love at the same time, I’m sure it’s not quite over yet.

We’ll see if this series can earn its ending either way.

[havenoffandoms]

Of Mutants and Men (Geraskier, Gen)

Read it on Ao3

In all his years of being a Witcher on the Path, Geralt always tried to stay out of politics. It’s a lesson that’s been ingrained in him since his youngest years at Kaer Morhen. His teachers, Vesemir more vocally than others perhaps, had been absolutely categorical about the role of witchers in the world. If you know what’s good for you, Vesemir would remind him and his classmates incessantly, you will keep your noses out of the business of kings and the assholes who have something to gain from being involved in politics. It only breeds conflict, Master Rennes would add in a subsequent lesson, not least because fanatics only need one person to sway their way to feel validated in their stupidity. It is not a witcher’s job to play mediator to a bunch of spoilt brats whose temper tantrums have disastrous consequences, Master Varin pointedly underlined any time he had a drink in him (or any time the opportunity presented itself, which was far too often in Varin’s case). Geralt’s teachings have been very clear about taking sides in the conflict of men, elves, or dwarves - don’t fucking do it, no matter what. 

Master Rennes and Master Varin will be turning in their graves right about now, and it goes without saying that Vesemir can never know about Geralt’s adventures in Bremervoort. 

Easier said than done when Jaskier is already working on his newest, best selling ballad. 

“A good rhyme for surf?” Jaskier asks, dragging Geralt back to the present moment. 

“Uh… murph?”

“Oh dear,” comes the unenthusiastic response from a slightly offended bard, “well, we won't make a poet of you yet!”

“I am as good a poet as you are a Witcher.”

That, in turn, pulls a disgruntled guffaw from the other man, exactly the reaction Geralt was betting on. He tries not to smile at how easily Jaskier rises to the bait. He has a reputation to uphold, after all, and there are too many witnesses to break character now. 

“I'll have you know, witcher-” Jaskier points an accusatory quill in Geralt’s face, his elegantly shaped eyebrows furrowed in a discontented frown. “That I did not do too badly with a sword while you were busy pirouetting your way into certain death on that kraken! Which is more than I can say about your so-called rhyming abilities! What even is a ‘murph’?”

“Quiet, Jaskier.” Geralt shoots the other man a pointed look, nodding at the frolicking merfolk in the water. “This is a sacred union, show some respect.”

“Pah! Respect!” Unable to resist the call of romance, Jaskier's eyes do end up drifting back to the scene before them. Even though his features soften at the sight, Geralt picks up the moody wouldn't know respect if it slapped you in the face that falls from Jaskier's lips. Leaning down conspiratorially until his lips are a breaths away from Jaskier's ear, Geralt whispers:

“You make it too easy for me, lark.”

“Far from me the thought to dampen your good mood, but must it be at my expense?” Jaskier complains, though Geralt instantly notes the way the bard’s shoulders relax as he leans into Geralt’s space. Too forgiving, so is Jaskier. Geralt just knows that had Zeleste not fallen victim to Melusina’s clutches, Jaskier would've forgiven the man his faults, too. 

“Exasperation has never looked more dashing on anyone else I know. It is a burden you bear very gracefully.”

“Oh, you flatterer!” Jaskier playfully shoves at Geralt’s shoulder, with too little strength to achieve anything other than ruffling the witcher's uncomfortably tight doublet. “Very well, you win. For now.”

As Sh’eenaz and Agloval disappear into the deeps, the shell-shocked guests slowly rise from their seats to head back to the castle. King Usveldt, disgraced and having lost the respect of most of his subjects, has since retreated into the comfort of his home, where he will no doubt drown the sorrows in expensive wine and lavish feasts. Geralt doesn't envy the man, nor does he pity him. Usveldt got exactly what he deserved. 

“Witcher!” a voice, unfamiliar and ethereal, calls him from the edge of the water. Geralt glances over his shoulder and meets the gaze of the siren King Basim. “Witcher, a moment of your time?”

“What else could they possibly need from you now?” Jaskier folds the piece of parchment he's been scribbling on throughout the ceremony and stuffs it back in the inside pocket of his doublet. “Want me to come with you, dear heart?”

“No need.” Geralt meets Jaskier's gaze, his tone softening now that the crowd has somewhat dispersed. “Go back to Roach, tack him up for me?” 

“Only if you're sure,” Jaskier relents, though the worried crease between his eyebrows doesn't go unnoticed by Geralt. “Shout if you need me, yeah? I won't be far.”

“Off you go, witcherling.”

“You are so calling me that in front of your family next time we're in Kaer Morhen,” Jaskier calls out over his shoulder as he saunters away, his lute firmly strapped to his back. Geralt watches the bard leave, a small smile edged on his lips. Only once Jaskier turns a corner and disappears from view does Geralt make his way to the edge of the water. 

“Your Highnesses,” Geralt greets the couple of sirens in his heavily accented Elder, “it was a beautiful ceremony, that of your daughter and her new husband.”

The King and Queen are kind enough not to remark on Geralt’s clumsy syntax. He's not had much opportunity to practice his Elder recently. 

“We thank you for your words, vatt’ghern. And for your help during the battle,” King Basim adds, his eyes holding Geralt’s gaze easily. “We are indebted to you. You have our gratitude and friendship.”

Geralt nods his head in acknowledgement at the siren king's warm words. 

“King Usveldt compensated me for my part in this. I do not expect payment from you, also,” Geralt is quick to reassure them. 

“Perhaps you don't expect payment, but you sure deserve it.” This time, it's Queen Dahut who speaks on behalf of her husband. “We have no coin to offer, but that doesn't mean we will not compensate you for a job well done. Here.”

The Queen extends her arm, her closed fist hovering over the water expectantly. Geralt takes a few steps forward, until the seawater laps gently at his booted shins. He crouches so he's at eye-level with the Queen and reaches for her hand, stopping shy of touching her. A small vial is dropped into Geralt’s open hand. 

“What is this?” the Witcher asks as he studies the purple liquid sloshing inside the ornate vial. 

“You spoke of how beautiful our daughter's wedding was.” Basim stares pointedly at the vial in Geralt’s hand before locking eyes with him again. “And we have noticed your… attachment to that bard of yours.”

Geralt freezes, his eyes narrowing suspiciously as his gaze drops to the vial in his hands again. He curls his fingers around the glass, careful not to shatter it while also pondering how rude it would be to toss the damned thing back into the ocean whence it came. 

“We don't mean to pry into your relationships,” Queen Dahut assures him, hypocritically so though Geralt is not foolish enough to so blatantly spit on their gift. “But if there is one thing this near-war has taught us it's that love can be a very powerful weapon, to be used for evil as much as for good. What we're giving you is a choice.”

“A choice, eh?” Geralt says, unable to mask the bitterness of his tone. 

“The choice to turn into your lover's form,” Basim clarifies, just in case Geralt is too slow to catch on. 

“Afraid this generous gift might be wasted on the likes of me,” Geralt tells them, already handing back the vial to Dahut. “Jaskier is a human, as am I. A mutated human, but human all the same."

“Yes,” Dahut agrees, though there is an edge to her tone Geralt can't quite place, “and how attached are you to your mutations, Geralt of Rivia ? How often have you laid awake wondering what it would be like to be just human and nothing more?”

Too often for comfort, Geralt doesn't say. Every night on his very first year on the Path, when instead of accolades and praise Geralt’s efforts to rid the Continent of monsters was met with contempt and prejudice. The life of knighthood he'd wished for himself was a far cry from his reality as a mutated monster hunter, so far-fetched that Geralt had to kill that part of himself if he hoped to survive his second year on the Path. Turns out fair maidens aren't so quick to give out favours to scarred, cat-eyed men carrying two swords on their backs and usually covered in some kind of monster guts, or stinking to the high heavens of sewage. Geralt couldn't remember what colour his eyes were before the mutations, but there are times when he wouldn't mind finding out. Unconsciously, his fingers tightened over the vial again. 

“Please accept this gift, with our thanks,” Dahut insists, her eyes knowing. “It is your choice what to do with it.”

Before Geralt has a chance to answer, both Basim and Dahut disappear under the surface, never to be seen again. 

*

“Ah, there you are, dear heart!” The relieved smile stretching across Jaskier's handsome face is like a balm for Geralt’s soul. Not that he'll ever admit to that out loud. “Was wondering where you were.”

“The King and Queen insisted on a reward for my services,” Geralt explains off-handedly, hoping Jaskier won't ask any questions about the vial in Geralt’s pocket, the weight of it burdening him like dragging a boulder on a chain. But expecting Jaskier not to ask questions is like expecting water not to be wet, and Geralt really should've known better than to bring up that stupid conversation at all. 

“Oh, another reward! Is it more coin? Unlikely, seeing as the merfolk don't really deal in our money. Did the Queen give you her necklace? Bet that gem’ll go for a pretty fortune!”

Geralt ignores the questioning, hoping Jaskier will talk himself into a circle as he's known to do, then get distracted by something else equally asonyne to blabber about for the next few hours. Jaskier is the type to talk himself into an early grave. 

“So?” the bard prods once Geralt settles himself in his saddle. 

“So what?”

“Your reward from King Basim and Queen Dahut. What was it?”

Fuck. 

“Their friendship and eternal gratitude,” Geralt supplies, too quickly to be natural and not for the first time does he thank his mutations for his inability to blush under Jaskier's scrutiny. “Come on, Roach.”

“Woah, hey, hold up!” Jaskier steps in front of Roach, who doesn't take kindly to this fop of a man barricading his path, and lets him know as much with an irritated snort. “Why are you lying to me?”

“I'm not,” Geralt lies, badly. 

“You're acting all shifty. I can tell, you know!”

“Not one of your best qualities,” Geralt mutters under his breath as he manoeuvres Roach around Jaskier. 

“I heard that,” the man declares before grabbing a hold of Roach’s reins and only narrowly dodging the offended bite from the gelding. “Geralt. Why are you being so secretive about this? I thought there were no secrets between us.”

And whether it's those words or the fact that Jaskier looks genuinely distraught at the thought of Geralt hiding anything from him, what with his big pleading eyes and his stupidly expressive face, Geralt isn't sure. All he knows is that he finds himself unable to keep up the mystery any longer. Heaving a long-suffering sigh, he pulls the vial out of his pocket and tosses it at Jaskier, who almost doesn't catch it before it hits the ground.

“Geralt, what… What is this?”

“My payment. The same potion Sh’eenaz gave Agloval.”

Geralt watches as a series of complicated emotions flashes across Jaskier's face, ranging from surprise to confusion, before finally settling on something carefully neutral that has Geralt’s insides twisting anxiously. 

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Oh,” Geralt agrees, at loss for what else to say. Jaskier examines the vial in his hand, his brows furrowed in concentration as he does so. 

“I see. And…” Jaskier pauses, pondering his next words carefully while averting Geralt’s gaze. “Is this something you're considering?”

And that's the big question, isn't it? Geralt doesn't have a fucking clue. Part of him is definitely curious, but another, albeit smaller part of him, resents the idea of having to change who he is, what he is, in order to fit Jaskier's worldview. They've been travelling for over a decade together, not only as travel companions but also as something more, something neither of them has felt the need to define in too many words. This thing between them feels good, better than anything Geralt’s felt before, but it's also fragile and unchartered in a way that throws Geralt off balance. 

“Because if you are,” Jaskier continues when it becomes apparent that Geralt can't find the words to express himself right now, his voice impossibly tender as he meets Geralt’s gaze again, “it is your prerogative, of course. So if you choose to take this, I just need to know that you won't do it for my sake. Or for anyone else's sake other than yours.”

The words take Geralt by surprise, because this is not how he expected to see the conversation going. He realises that he anticipated Jaskier to want him to take this potion, to become more human and less Witcher. Being confronted with the exact opposite scenario is almost more frightening, because now it's up to Geralt to decide what he wants for himself and isn't that a fucking thought? In nearly six decades no one ever really cared what he wanted from his life. It's never been part of the deal. A Witcher doesn't get to choose another path than the one he's been created to walk. Except now, Geralt does have a choice to make and he finds himself unable to think straight.

“For what it's worth,” Jaskier adds, a loving smile now tugging at the corner of his lips as he levels Geralt with a look so full of adoration it makes Geralt feel sick to his stomach. “I like you for who you are, Geralt. Not because you're a Witcher, not because you can do cool pirouettes and slash your way through a monster kraken when you drink one of those potions of yours. I love you because you're funny in a way not many people bother to understand, because you speak to your horse like he's a person, because you won't kill a monster simply because you're hired to do so. You're a principled man who cares deeply even though he doesn't show it. There are so many things I love about you, you being a Witcher doesn't even crack the top twenty. Mutations, no mutations. It's all the same to me. As long as you're happy within yourself, I am happy.”

As Jaskier speaks, Geralt lets out the anxious breath he's been holding since he left King Basim and Queen Dahut. His chest feels lighter and the feelings of nausea ease, giving way to something gentler, something warmer. Geralt manages a lopsided smirk which is met by Jaskier's beaming smile and mischievous wink. 

“Come now, Roach.” Jaskier pats the gelding’s neck affectionately before feeding him a juicy apple, buying his forgiveness with that single gesture. “Let's move on to our next adventure. Cairngorm, here we come!”

As Jaskier leads on, the vial safely tucked in his breast pocket, the world suddenly straightens on its axis. 

[yujisbabyy]

L is for Losers

Reggie " Rejection" X Reader

Dating your furniture is not an easy job, hell dating isn't even the top 100 easiest things to do! Like who can honestly keep their eye from rolling to back of their head every time your god damn HVAC tells you they are ugly as hell! (Sorry hector Love you babes<3). Who can give a damn your " World's Fattest Ass" mug is man who cant working and is so lonely to the point the it makes him look a very attractive NPC? Its people who can't keep a job anyhow! And WHO gives an absolute fuck that Vaccuum cleaner is pissed at you for telling them to throw away moldy cheese... I care, I give a fuck.

" That was trainwreck" a plain and disappointed voices comes from behind you, right after you got a hate ending from Hoove, you turn to see the living version of Prince if purple wasn't a color. The tall, dark, and fabulous being before you make you drool as your eyes sets on their abs and perfectly covered curves. " And who the hell are you?" A snarky voice follows out of your mouth as you lift your brow.

" Well damn, no Hi or Hello? I see why he didn't want "suck" you... See what I did there"

" No. Like I said who the hell are you?" Annoyed at the joke and him but, he doesn't pay you no mind as he places his right hand on his hip smirking deviously at you. "I'm Regina Rejection! But you can call me Reggie Big Shot"

You see why Skylar was so iffy about him, his entire aura oozes trouble and seduction like Poppies from the Wiz, his broken heart shaped clothing gives a clear-cut definition that Love isn't his forte, a smile with all his teeth graces your welcoming you or daring you to continue the conversation. But you never minded danger, after all getting a love ending with Eddie and Volt taught you something, you love it when people are a tad bit mean. And Reggie is all the mean you can get.

" So, you pop up like this every time I'm rejected orrr..."

" If you knew the deal, why ask? See I knew you were a little slow, but I didn't expect you to slower than Christmas baby" He comments with an almost nasty look, you've been offended if his glare didn't turn you on a bit. You look him up and down wondering if he was even romanceable but looking at how a charge went down, you see he might just be.

" So, you got dumped in your laundry room? I would make a joke, but you don't seem too bright to understand it. But never all that! Tell how you did" Your face turns confused for a moment

" Did what?" It his turn to look confused

" Obviously bitch, how YOU get that easy ass vacuum to HATE you. I mean I watched this whole thing with, and you are not good at flirting, and you suck at drinking, but I had hope in you"

"Really" You look up with a face

" No, but I love your enthusiasm, I mean he was ready to get down over a damn baseball game and you fumbled over..." He pulls out a red sheet of paper you see it labeled " Hate- It" and it seemed to have all your hate endings. " I see...HA! THAT; S ONE FOR THE BOOKS ahem- You got Hoove to hate you over CHEESE! HA!"

Your face cringes as you remember that night you kind of forced him to throw away the cheese, I mean it was green and moldy and even HE DIDN'T LIKE IT HIMSELF!

" I mean... I really didn't like him that much"

" Mhm, and I'm Brittany Spears third cousin, anyways you've gotten a few of these objects all riled up! Good for you" He snickers

" It's not like I'm trying on purpose! I really did like Jean Loo! I just suck at rapping"

" And flirting and rhyming like... who the hell rhymes fart with time? and Oh! you are REALLY bad at telling jokes"

" At least I got a friend ending with Curt and Rod!"

" Anybody can with how loose you hung them on the wall, they as easy as Sunday morning sweetie but I'll let you have that"

With the way he shades you, you'll think he was sent in by them to help! Reggie looks at you and sighs complains on how you want to " freak" on your furniture

" Isn't that what I'm supposed to do? Date them"

" Oh noooo, you're supposed to work how dating but you obviously bad at it and THAT'S when I come in"

"Are you going to teach me how romance and flirt so I can rizz up Hoove again!" Hope fills your eyes so quick only to shut down so fast.

" HA- no bitch" He glares " You are truly desperate"

I'm going to teach you how be a little mean, don't you get sick of sucking up to that damn Bathtub's ego? OR You want to cuss the hell outta that Rubber duck you keep bitching about?"

" Rebel is a bit... I dunno bitchy?" You wince out, and that's it takes for Reggie to grin, a not so nice grin, a evil ass grin

" Oh, she is a bitch ain't she? and she's our first target"

You and Reggie are in the attic the next day, your pumped and excited to finally tell that rubber ducks who's boss.

" Firstly, you got to lose that sad ass puppy dog loo whenever shit don't go your way. Rejection is all about toughness and being the FIRST one to say ' Ah hell nah' you writing this down"

" Yes!" You show him a pen and paper borrowed from Penelople

" Good, because pop quiz tomorrow"

" That soon?"

" Yea and it all points now pay attention. From what I've seen your easy to walk over so imagine that Relish bitch- '

" Oh you mean Rebel-"

" WHO asked?" he says exasperated

" Now, Revlon all sad and shit becuase she cant find $2 and she wants you to help her, what do you do?"

" Well its her money so.. I'll help?"

" NO!" H e claps hard and loud making you flinch. " Sahe jst called you a two- dollar hoe on Wednesday and Thursday you wanna help her? You tell her she better find her own shit

" Isnt that like mean though? WHta if shes having a bad day?"

" Ain't she always? Listen that's the shit that gets Rayray to not take you seriously, grown a pair and say NO! Hell no is even better but we ain't there yet" Reggie sighs again and shakes his head, turning to you his gives you a grin.

" Lets go slow, okay? Pretend I'm ole Rubber ducky and I just went off on you, called you a bitch, your mama, your daddy, and great granny all some bitches. What do you say? Think realll hard"

You think to yourself the meanest thing you could say to Relish- I mean Rebel. Thinking of all the times she ripped off on you, and how shameful and irate you got.

" I'll say... Shut the fuck up you big moogly- googly ugly ass big back delusion ass bitch! Yo wide-neck ass, Short stacked ass, low value $ dollar hoe ass, the biggest bitch up in here! and you ain't even the BADDEST! How was that?"

For the first time in all the two of you conversation its the first time he a bit shocked, his eyebrow pointed high in the sky as his eye bulged out. His hand covers his chest and points at you

" A little heavy but, I think... I think you got our first lesson aced baby! Work on the punchline though, it's little overplayed"

" Yea, saying ass a lot doesn't seems as cool now that I'm thinking" and he nods as a smirk still lays on his face

" Now that I see you can make a comeback, we'll work on comedic one-liners that'll make these object hate your guts-AH! This is my type of party"

A genuine smile crosses his face, and it makes you smile back. You never said praise wasn't also a kink!

" This was a fun lesson! maybe we can do this again! Maybe as a date..? wink wink"

Reggie stops smiling as he looks down at you, that panty dropping glare setting across his face

" You pushing it bitch" and with that he vanishes from sight.

" So... you'll call me?" No one answers. You sigh and leave attic walking past Dorian who looks at you weirdly, deciding to try what Reggie says you try again.

" The fuck you gawking at?" Dorian looks at you pointedly for a while... a stare that fills you up with imtiadation.

" You right, I was- I was doing wayyy to much man." With quick head bow you run off

A.N: As yall can see I haven't wrote shit in a while, and it shows. But i love this man like I love my left right ear.

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

Hobie Brown & Non-Conventional Relationships

How to Write Hobie in Non-Conventional Relationships - & How I incorporate it into my own writing

{Non-Conventional Relationship Abbreviated as NCR}

This is Part 2 - Check out Part 1 here if you want! Hobie Brown is unconventional is every way - and he likes it that way. From his music to his views, Hobie is always ready to challenge the norm - choosing to look for healthier, kinder, and freer alternatives.

And that extends to his romantic relationships too.

I talked HERE about Non-Conventional Relationships, the lack of them in fics, what they could look like for Hobie, and how they're a reflection of his values - including his feminism.

In that one, I wanted to talk about why Hobie needs Non-Conventional Relationships, and I analyzed why NCRs are so scarce within the Hobie fandom (hint: it's sexism). I also spoke about how I purposely designed my Spidersona - DiscoSpider Diane - with subversion of a sexist trope in mind, and how we as a fandom can write healthier 'Y/N's.

But I also wanted to talk about - and give clear examples of how a NCR might work for Hobie, and how to write it in fanfiction.

This is a Writer's Guide to writing Hobie Brown in NCRs, and writing 'Y/N's that challenge the norm. As well as how I apply these tips directly in my own writing with Hobie.

[I offer tips and writing advice as well as the ways I use these tips in my writing. I touch on alternative forms of affection, intimacy, polyamory, independence, and labels] Heads Up!! This post is LONG and Detailed. At the end, I have a full deep dive and analysis of my Spidersona DiscoSpider Diane, Hobie, and their NCR - feel free to pass on that if you want or check it out if you're curious or want an example :)

I hope someone out there finds this helpful or at the very least, entertaining! With that said,

Let's Begin~~~~~~~~

Hobie Brown & Affection:

Showing and valuing alternative forms of affection can be a great foundation for Non-Conventional Relationships. There's a wide array of ways to express affection in a relationship - ranging from full on playfulness and messing with each other - to being romantic but only in private. And anywhere in between. In order to challenge stereotypical romance, here's where we can start.

First things first: Cut the generic pet names One of the most common things across all Hobie fics, are generic pet-names. It's hard to find a fic without one 'luv', 'darlin', or 'sweetheart'. And it makes sense, it romantic - and a classic way to show affection. But it can be easy to use these terms as a crutch to infuse romance into dialogue. A good way to diverge from this convention is by dropping the generic pet-names all together. By abandoning words like 'luv' and 'darlin' we're forcing ourselves to find more personal terms for him to call his partner. Hobie calls Gwen and Miles personalized pet-names, and this can extend to his partner too. These names can be personal - When writing OCs, you can use things like inside jokes, a shortened version of their name, or some form of rhyming slang. Having something happen within the story that Hobie pulls a nickname from is also a great idea, or having him call them by a defining trait or something tongue in cheek. [Like if your character is known for being a bit gloomy, have him call them sunshine. If they sing, he can call them songbird, etc.] When writing xReaders, you can subvert typically 'negative' terms into loving and playful names. For example, if the !Reader is portrayed as shy, he may loving call her Mouse Whisper. If they're hotheaded, he may just call them 'hot-head'. But by having personalized pet-names, the reader is shown that Hobie and them have history and past connections that Hobie finds meaningful.

Annoyance can be affection too I talked about this HERE We all love attention from our partners - some just seek it out in different ways. Annoying ways. And I can see Hobie being one to do this - Adorable, but annoying ways. Playfulness is a great way to substitute romance in NCR. We all know those relationships where they love messing with each other or pissing each other off. Having inside jokes about each other, or teasing in a way only the other person is allowed to. It's never mean, but in a way, a form of intimacy. And when romances are written like this, it shows that the two know each other well, down to the smallest things that make them tick. They know each other well, and have a clear soft spot for each other when one starts bugging the other and the other doesn't snap (lol). When writing, you can give them small pet peeves that Hobie may do to irk them. When writing OCs, Hobie can give them nicknames that irk them. Or point out things that annoy them. Maybe he likes a food they hate, and eats it in front of them all the time. It's all in good fun, and shows the two aren't shy around each other. You can also have them bring up embarrassing stories of each other, to show they're close and spend a lot of time together. When writing xReaders, you can have him popping up at the worst times, hanging off of the reader, and overall trying to distract them from what they're doing. He could also play light pranks to mess with the reader - and vice versa - always making sure to end it with a hug and a laugh. At the end of the day, it's all about getting their partners attention and playing around with them. And talking about that -

Touch as a Love Language: Don't be afraid of playfighting Some IRL couples playfight. And it can be adorable. If the pestering goes to far, then the reader finally has to give him all their attention - and they can playfight him. Which is what he wants, their attention. This is something that can be done with both OCs and xReaders - and if they're a Spider-person EVEN BETTER. Don't be afraid to have Hobie pick the reader up, having the reader jump on his back, or punch his arm lightly. Having them wrestle for something, and it can turn into cuddling. The character can jump on his back playfighting, and doom - Hobie's running and it's a sudden piggyback ride.

While on the topic of Love Languages: Laughter as a Love Language Laughter can be a HUGE love language. In addition to annoying their partner, some people aim to making their partner laugh whenever they can. Whether this be making jokes, or doing things they think are hilarious. Not only is is super playful - but it shows that they're close and know each other well. They know what they other think is funny, what's sure to get a laugh, and most importantly, when their partner needs it the most. It shows that they care about their partner's happiness, and they want to bait it out them every way they can - even if that means making themselves look silly from time to time again. This is one of my favorite tools when writing NCRs and it works for both OCs and xReader.

If really want to challenge yourself and show a new form of romance: Abandon 'I love you.' Ever heard of Han Solo and Princess Leia? The whole "I love you." - "I know." trope? Saying 'I love you' is of course one of the easiest ways to show love - but when we abandon it, we can find cuter and more personal things to replace it. In doing this we begin to show a NCR relationship that openly challenges romance. By doing away with 'I love you's in favor something personal, we're showing that their feelings go beyond 'love' into something more personal and intimate to them. They can still be madly in love and not say it - it can be completely unspoken cause they both know. And so, they don't take it too seriously. When writing OCs, you can replace the phrase completely, substituting it with a repeated phrase on both sides. "I hate you" also works as a playful subversion. When writing xReaders, you can have the other side not respond the usual way - "I love you." - "Uh-huh." Or you can have them not say it at all. And have it completely but clearly emotionally implied.

Hobie Brown & PDA:

Hobie is a natural touchy guy. He likes standing close to people, leaning over them and putting his hands on their shoulders. So by having him display limited romantic PDA with his partner, and treating them no different than anyone else, you're challenging the norm and forcing yourself to write other ways.

Prioritize Privacy Hobie is often (or rather only) characterized as a very open person with his relationship, openly kissing, making out, and touching his partner. And this is very typical of a romantic relationship. If you'd like to write a NCR you can try to challenge this. Hobie is from a police state, a world where surveillance is prevalent and freedom is limited. Plus he's a rockstar - people get nosey. And don't even get me start on The Society snooping. You can reflect this by having him prioritize privacy - either out of survival instinct, or just personal preference. Hobie keeping his relationship a secret, or simply not mentioning it, allows a freedom not often see in traditional relationships. By doing this, the relationship can develop naturally without typical pressures or outside influence - whether dangerous or Society wise. The two are allowed to take it as slow - or as fast as they want, without worrying about anyone else getting in the way. And with Hobie being a guy who likes to share often, him keeping one small thing to himself can be special. This can be used for both OCs and xReaders.

Keep Kisses in Private Stealing kisses can be extremely cute, and saving them for private can make them 10x more intimate. Plus this is another one that can be used by both OCs and xReaders. By saving kisses for private moments, those rare instances automatically become more intimate. And by having them restrain themselves, when they do finally get to be alone it can feel romantic (not just sexual). By having them save their kisses for only them, they become more special to Hobie and his partner. They may choose to not kiss at all in public and leave it at that or try to steal kisses when they can - or even substitute a different form of intimacy in place of kisses. Ever see that couple that one of them will walk by the other, and one person will put their hand in the other's for a moment as they pass by before letting go? Like that. Cheek kisses can also be a good substitute for public. Plus in the rare times they do kiss in front of someone, you can save it for super emotional or heated moments (or moments like parties, bars, etc - those are always fun. The gang finding out the two of you have been dating a year after you both get drunk at a party and make-out? Love it.)

Or you can take it over the top - and make it openly committed and intimate, but label-less. Having a partner he kisses, hugs and lives with but does not refer to as his girlfriend also challenges norms of possessiveness - bonus points if they're poly (which I'll touch on in a second). By having him clearly involved with someone, and seriously committed but having it between them can be a NCR. The character doesn't have to be his girlfriend or boyfriend. That can simply be 'his person' or 'the one'. Or he's 'seeing somebody' - or 'with them'. He's not outright saying they're dating, but yeah - they're solidly involved. They may have a kid together, sleep in the same bed, or say 'I love you', but by both parties rejecting labels, they're openly denying people an inside look to their relationship. Are they together? What's that got to do with you?

Or have them be 'life partners' aka - marriage without marriage. This one may be easier to develop for OCs, but can be done for xReaders too. Have them openly express interest in being each other's life long partners. Have them speak as if they're married, even if they aren't. By verbalizing this connection, they don't need rings or a wedding certificate to speak to them, because they openly say it as a form of PDA. Having them believe in soulmates, or 'other halfs' takes the 'caring boyfriend' trope and pushes it into something far more intimate and personal. This could include things like matching tattoos, sharing a home together, wearing things of each other's in place of a ring, etc.

Hobie, Labels, and Polymory (Open Relationships)

Every single fic I've seen of Hobie assumes both parties are monogamous. Let's challenge that.

Do away with the idea of Hobie and jealousy It's unrealistic for his character. Hobie is openly supportive, non-possessive, and EXTREMELY confident. Jealousy is an attribute that feeds off of insecurity first, and sexist tropes of possession second - the idea of having no one touch 'your' partner. Any partner Hobie has isn't his - no one belongs to any one. They can be with whoever and do whatever they want when he's not there. So long as he sees his a priority in your life, he'll be there. Let's just hope the OTHER guy is okay with that (and not extremely intimidated by how perfect Hobie is). This applies to both OCs and xReaders.

Open the relationship - and keep it honest The priority when writing this is honesty - because Hobie values it A LOT. And I cannot stress this more. If his partner is honest with him, and genuinely makes an effort to make him a priority, then Hobie is happy. Hobie himself may not choose to have multiple partners, but by having option on the table and having his partner exercise that shows a huge degree of maturity, communication, and freedom. By having a partner who can openly pursue romance outside of Hobie, but still chooses Hobie as their primary partner, their relationship becomes a lot freer, but still just as close - if not stronger. Sure they've got options, and sometimes they may have flings, but at the end of the day, there's no one they connect more with than each other. Better with OCs, but can be done with xReaders.

Let his partner have the last say Hobie can't be a player if he's not the one calling the shots. Have a xReader or OC that is openly outspoken about what they want and the label they're interested in. (even if thats 'unlabeled) Have the reader be the one who doesn't want to make it official, or on the inverse, have them insist that either they make it official or else they'll stop seeing them. And have them stand their ground. Do not have them budge or waiver or second-guess. Have them leave the ball in Hobie's court - and sort it out for himself. By doing this you're giving them a sense of agency and independence outside of him, and inverts the sexist expectation that men be the ones who define the relationship.

In the words of Coi Leray "Cause Girls is Players too." Kick slut-shaming in the teeth. Where are all the city girls? Directly challenge sexist tropes that are prevalent in the Hobie fandom, by writing a female character who is openly and sexually liberated, knows her worth, and knows how to handle her feelings. Have her be the one seeing multiple people, have him be the one to pass the guy on the way out. Its not more shameful when the character does it. If you want to make Hobie a player who can run game - acknowledge that some girls run game too. And many girls can call that shit from a mile away. Having a character who has multiple partners, but slowly finds themself falling for Hobie in specific is an interesting dymanic. It forces you to show a woman's sexuality in a different and positive light, one not connected to her lust for a specific man. And it forces you to challenge the idea of 'fast girls' or 'groupies'. Ever seen 'She's Gotta Have It' by Spike Lee? That. And you can have her other partners acting as a contrast to Hobie. If she starts realling her other partner really ain't shit - Hobie starts looking a lot better. And let me just say - this doesn't have to cause drama. Having Hobie and the character both be polyamorous, only to connect with each other and laugh about their other escapades can be CUTE. And neither are threatened, because they know it's all in good fun, and they know they've got their partner on lock.

Find alternative labels Take 'boyfriend and girlfriend' off the table and get creative. They can be life partners, or Best Friends with Benefits (who are genuinely friends, stay that way and are not just thinly vieled romantic tension), or the xReader/OC can simply 'his girl' or 'his guy'. By doing this, you're able to put a label on it, without taking it serious at all. It signals that there is something there and they know it, and they don't need normal terms to define it. Good for both OCs and xReaders.

Hobie & Gender Roles

Chivalry is dead. Romance your boyfriend to death.

I spoke in the last post of about Hobie's feminism and his understanding of the patriarchy and the way it works. And I think Hobie would work to openly defy gender roles in his relationship. Here's are some tips to do that.

Have the xReader or OC initiate the romance Have them confidently ask him out. Have your OC or xReader be the one to approach him at a party and hit on him. Just by doing so, you're putting your characters in a situation that subverts gender roles - where the many is typically the one to approach his mate. It shows confidence on the part of the xReader/OC and let's them step outside the traditional trope of a passive feminine partner.

Have them initiate touch/affection as well Have them touch him first, or wrap their arms around him. Have them kiss his neck (if they can reach lol). Instead of having a shy and quiet xReader who only accepts compliments from Hobie - have them openly and boldly compliment him. A girl who openly loves her partner/boyfriend and yeah- she's gonna talk about him cause she can. Have them call him pet-names first. And show Hobie enjoying it or feeling comforted by it. In doing so, you're allowing him to show a softer side that is also absent in a lot of fics. Plus you're breaking the trope of once again, the partner just passive accepting Hobie's affection without active reciprocation.

Actively show Hobie being comforted and taken care of - not just when he's in crisis Have the character ask if he's okay - in the way a couple will look at each other and be like "You good?" even when nothings going on. Have the character be the one to ask if he's eaten. Don't only do this when he's about to emotionally crack, or when he's physically beat up. Do it on the daily. Men shouldn't have to break before their emotional needs are addressed. So often in fics Hobie is seen as the perfect protector who never gets tired - and then there's no mention of him ever taking care of himself in any way. That's now how this works. Hobie is community based. That means he looks after the people he care about. If the character cares about him, they have them go out of their way to show it - the same way he does. The xReader/OCs can hold him while he's crying or make him go to sleep when he's up all night. They can hear him out when he's annoyed with Miguel, and help him when he's feeling not 100% too. SO many fics are about the reader NEEDing Hobie for some often asinine reason. Sometimes Hobie needs his partner too.

________________________________________________

HI HI! If you've read this far, thank you so much! I really appreciate it and would love to hear your thoughts! The next part is centered around my spidersona Disco-Spider Diane, her relationship with Hobie, and how I incorporate all this into their dynamic. This part is LONG and detailed (I'm unhinged) so I don't blame you if you wanna peace out now! If you do peace out, thanks again! - here's a photo of Hobie for the road!

_______________________________________________________ Now let's talk about Lil Miss Disco and her Boo Thang

DiscoSpider Diane and Hobie -

How I write a Non-Conventional Relationship For more info you can check out Diane's Character Sheet here and her tag here

I spoke briefly in my last post about Hobie, feminism, and how subverting sexist tropes contributed to her characterization - so this time I just want to give an overview of how that translates to a NCR - and how that can be shown clearly in writing.

Hopefully this will give some ideas or at the very least, I can ramble about Diane lol Diane & Hobie - A Basic Overview

[You can check out Diane's Character Sheet here!][And check out her tag for more art & writing here!]

I don't have a word for what Diane and Hobie are supposed to be, and that's intentional.

They aren't dating. Because they don't go on traditional dates - they just hang a lot. They're not boyfriend and girlfriend because that's rigid in it's confines. Even partners can be a bit of a stretch. I wanted to write them instead as two people who care about each other and make an effort to be in each other's lives. They're the other's largest emotional support and cheerleader - and their emotional reactions take focus over the romantic ones.

Diane and Hobie have a Non-Conventional Romance because they're in an emotional relationship rather than a romantic one. There is romance there - but the same way a romantic relationship isn't a 'sexual relationship' because sex is involved - an emotional relationship does not become entirely romantic once romance is involved.

Their emotional relationship is very committed, but their romantic relationship is extremely casual. Here are some ways I show that.

DiscoPunk & Affection:

Diane and Hobie do not use typical pet-names. Instead, Hobie is more likely to call Diane 'Daiquiri' - a nickname left over from the first time they've met. It's an embarrassing memory for Diane - and a story Hobie loves to tell. But by calling her Daiquiri, he's sending the reminder that he thinks about the night they met often and remembers it well. Including the 4 Daiquiris she made him buy her. He also calls her Clover - as she's one of his 'Lucky Charms'. Diane is the same, preferring to call Hobie by his name - or over the top names like 'pookie', 'honeybun', or 'hot stuff'. Though the most common she'll default to is 'babe', though she will only do this will they're completely alone. Hobie openly annoys Diane and she lets him. Diane is easy to mess with, easy to sneak up on and easy to confuse (sorry girl). It's easy for him to make her jump if he's too quiet, and despite being fairly outgoing, Disco gets embarrassed easily. Sharing constant silly stories, calling her embarrassing nicknames and ruffling her perfectly manicure hair, are go to ways to piss her off. And you can usually tell when she asks "Am I playing with you? Does it look like I'm playing right now??" In turn, Diane does her 'groupie act', which involves running up and hugging him hard as hell, jumping on his back, or talking about how cute he is in a baby voice while pinching his cheeks. They playfight A LOT. Hobie is known to come up behind Diane, lovingly slipping his arms around her waist. He lifts her up - and then tries to bodyslam her. He's holding her like he's about to do a judo flip and Diane is shoving at him telling him to cut it out. In turn, Diane likes to run at him from a far and jump on his back, and she's known to punch his shoulder if he gets too cheeky with the jokes. (Thank god they both have Spider Strength). And while they may not be quick to cuddle or hold each other in public - if Hobie is asking for it they WILL wrestle, and with matched strength, they don't stop until someone (usually Jess) tells them to cut it out. And Laughter is one of their biggest Love Languages. Hobie LOVES making Diane laugh - mainly because it's such a spectacle. Diane will scream and cry in laughter, doubled over so hard she has to sit down or leave the room. And for Hobie, it's easy to do this, so he does it whenever's the most inappropriate. Him dancing is a HUGE way because it brings Diane to tears almost instantly, without fail. She begs him to stop cause she can't breathe - she's laughing so hard. Hobie refuses and keeps dancing, just to mess with her. On the inverse, when Diane does it, most of the time she doesn't mean to. Diane is clever, but she's blunt and a little.. easy to confuse. And when she blurts something out or asks a question that sounds a bit ridiculous, Hobie can't help but laugh. Like when she saw Peter B. unmasked for the first time, and immediately asked him "Wait, why are you white?" Hobie will almost away burst into laughter, which is usually followed by Diane going "Whatttt? What did I say? Why are you laughing at me :(' Everytime she does this she is completely serious, which Hobie finds even funnier. If she's confused, he'll try to explain it to her, and he never teases her for it. It's just that Hobie chooses his words very carefully, and Diane says exactly what comes to mind.

They very rarely say 'I love you' and only do it in private. Usually, they'll only say this when one of them is going through it, the other just did something awesome, or they're alone and in a good mood. It reserved for moments of intimacy or spontaneity. With a relationship that is so playful, the two of them would probably think that saying it outright is a bit too sappy and plain. Instead, they substitute it by asking the other if they love them -

If Hobie does something for Diane, instead of Diane saying "I love you", Hobie will be the one to say "Don't you love me?" If Diane does something for Hobie, instead of him saying "I love you", he can swap it with "You must love me." (Usually the other person may say "I do" or an equally loving "Shut up.")

DiscoPunk & PDA:

They prioritize privacy. They don't label themselves - to anybody, even close friends. They let people make their own assumptions because it doesn't matter anyway. Plus with Diane being very committed to her place in the Spider Society, it's preferable to just keep it between them. Hobie doesn't really care either way. But the less people bothering him and asking questions, the better.

Diane and Hobie never kiss in front of other people. Save for a few exceptions. Despite being very physically and playfully affectionate, Hobie and Diane choose to keep most of their PDA completely private - and they're more likely to link arms than hold hands. When it comes to kissing, the two saves it for behind closed doors, or hidden spots in HQ. With relationships between Spider-people being prohibited at HQ, it's just easier that way - and the both of them prefer it. This even extends to close friends, including Pavi and Gwen. They may dramatically kiss the other's cheek to annoy them, making kissy sounds and grabbing each other's faced - and on occasion Hobie may give Diane a forehead kiss (she's tall enough to do this). They may cuddle in front of others too, but that's about it. But kisses in specific are just for them. Wasn't a conscious choice, but they like it that way. There's two exceptions though: 1) Shortly after meeting Hobie, Gwen ran into Hobie and Diane kissing at a hidden spot on campus. Nothing heated, but kissing. Diane felt her looking and seemed very disturbed and uncomfortable she had seen. Gwen left quickly, and although Hobie assured Diane that Gwen was okay, the two of them didn't meet until a later date, and Diane seemed a bit embarrassed.

2) Parties. After shows and while drinking Hobie and Diane are completely fine making out in public and showing full PDA. Why? Because they have the cover of the 'groupie act' and they can argue that they were drunk and were only messing around or even say they straight up don't remember. Their terms of commitment are unique. Neither Hobie (in my little universe) nor Diane believe in soulmates. But they do consider themselves 'committed', but they're not life-partners either. They don't care if they'll be together forever. The idea is nice, but it's not their focus. If they wanna spend their lives together, they can start but showing up for each up daily, rather than wearing rings daily.

DiscoPunk, Labels, and Polyamory:

Diane and Hobie are in an open relationship. Since they've never officially asked each other out, monogamy hasn't really been on the table ever. And both are fine and comfortable with this. Because they're great at minding their own business. Who's the girl leaving houseboat when Diane comes through? Who cares - but if touched the makeup Diane left on his bathroom counter, she'll be sending her an invoice and an angry letter. This is equal on both sides.

Diane is without a doubt more active, and more prone to one-night stands (she has a kink for guitarists) rather than full on relationships. Maybe it's the fact that having Hobie in the picture is intimidating as fuck to most guys.

Hobie also has his share - though he usually finds himself in flings and short relationships - going more for romance than sex. In fact, Hobie was with Diane for the duration of his relationship with his Felicia Hardy.

Naturally, Felicia and Diane knew about each other - though they hadn't met. Diane was fine with this and at most would ask how Felicia was doing. Felicia however really wanted to meet Diane. Like dying to meet her. So she found out Hobie's secret identity and just - turned up at one of his shows. Diane was...understandably confused. She was nice, but confused. Asked Hobie later like "Why's she here. Nothing wrong with it but like forreal why is she here?" and he's like "IDK I aint invite her m8 she always does this." Eventually the two got to know each other and although Hobie isn't with Felicia anymore (it's messy), her and Diane are still close friends.

Hobie perfers to let Diane have the last say when it comes to labels.

He's fairly unbothered. What's he gonna do - tell her he has to be her boyfriend? Or brush her off and still expect her to be there? Nah, Labels are the last thing he's worried about. And that's because he's fine with all of them. So long as they're clear. If avoided labels, and demanded to be label-less, that was still caring about labels.

This is where there's conflict - and instead of most fanfics in which the conflict is coming from him - in their case it's coming from her. Diane avoids commitment, terrified of the threat it could cause to the multiverse and Hobie's universe in specific. She's drank the society Kool-Aid so to speak, and will dance around the topic. Hobie has on occasion mentioned monogamy between them being a good option, but when directly approached, Diane will try to dance around the topic - mainly afraid of what Jess and especially Miguel will do if she falls out of line.

This, along with canon events, are the only things that can get them to actually argue - and it can sometimes decend into screaming matches (more about the Society rather than their relationship). They try to avoid bringing it up. But Diane is still paranoid and avoids it.

They use alternative labels instead. For sake of implicity, if you ask them directly "What is x to you?" Hobie will either say "Diane's my bird." or "Why do you want to know - You interested in me or her?" He may also say 'The Old Ball n' Chain' (mocking boomer humor) or simply say "That's Daiquiri."

Diane will most likely say "He's my little boo thang." She may also call him her 'hubby', or say 'I'm his biggest fan.'

WE'RE ALMOST DONE I PROMISE

Finally, DiscoPunk & Gender Roles

I wrote in the last post about how feminism and inverting the sexist trope of 'groupie' contributed a lot to Diane and her behavior towards Hobie. This can mostly be seen here:

Diane initiated the romance. Diane has always been Hobie's groupie, and outspoken in her affection for him. She thinks the girls hiding how much they like Hobie is silly - He KNOWS he's hot. Why not come out and say it - hype him up. Diane is also a way bigger flirt than Hobie - and I really wanted to write the two of them this way, because so much of the time Hobie is the one flirting, usually on a passive OC or xReader that simply passively accepts.

It's rare in dialogue that someone outright points out how hot Hobie is. So Diane does it. She was fine with being like "You're so hot it's distracting and that's not a joke. :) "

Diane usually initiates touch. Hobie rarely wraps his arms around her (unless he's doing that stupid judo shit she hates), but Diane does it to him all the time. She's tall enough on her skates that if she holds him by the waist from behind, she can see clearly over his shoulders. And it's not unusual to see Diane's eyes peek over Hobie's shoulder when you're talking to him. She's not listening, she's just there.

In turn, Hobie accepts this touch very much like the way an xReader would. He's usually the one intiating and offering touch, but when Diane does it him, he finds it comforting to be on the receiving side.

And I usually see this/show this as him softening into her touch, complimenting her for it, or baiting her into cuddling (like plopping down on her on the couch)

They supplement this a lot with closeness. Hobie and Diane always seem to be shoulder to shoulder, whispering inside jokes into each other's ears and trying not to crack up. Most often, Hobie with hput his arm around her shoulder, or if she's in her skates - a hand on her waist to steady her. Not that she needs it. Their relationship is mainly and largely emotional. And that's the basis of it. Hobie was the one who recruited Diane, and has been there for all of her canon events since, seeing her in her most venerable states.

Diane is dedicated to canon - and letting Miguel write her life for her - and although she finds herself conflicted and cornered by the Society, Hobie wants to be there for her always. And he'll be along for the ride as long as she'll have him. Diane in turn, tries her best to be positive when they're both from worlds where things can get really negative. No matter how much he tries to hide it, the constant battles and brutality with the police of his home world wears on him - and he's aware that he's different than most other Spider-people. He's killed before. Usually, he lets it out through his music and when it isn't that - it's through anger and protest. But like Hobie, Diane is a huge supporter of radical happiness. If you can think of Hobie's music as a call to arms, Diane's music is a love song to the sweeter brighter things in life. Diane was raised by The Black Panthers, and she knows just as well as he does what the brutality and pain of oppression can feel like. She has her feet firmly on the ground and her head happily in the clouds.

If anything, Diane is a person of comfort and escapism for Hobie. A reminder of the sweet life that he's fighting for. Diane lives completely free, free of labels and limits - even while living under the thumb of the Society. And she tries to remind Hobie what freedom feels like, when he gets tired of fighting every now and again _________________________________________________

In this way their emotional connection is mutual.

More than anything, I wanted Hobie and Diane to be emotional rocks to each other, before romantic partners. I didn't mean to write it that way (in my head), but it kinda ended up that way.

So often in the Hobie fandom we see the extremes of either Completely Detached Hobie - who sleeps around and wants nothing to do with labels - or Completely Committed Hobie - who is madly in love with his partner in a traditional sense. And in their relationship, I hoped to challenge that. By writing a Hobie than didn't care either way, or went with the flow. A Hobie that was just as thoughtful in his relationships as he was in his friendships. Instead, I wanted to shift the focus to Diane and making it about her choice. By having the woman be the one to define the relationship, the story can now focus on an internal struggle. And seeing his partner being the one to struggle with labels - whereas he's made peace with them.

And by having their affection shift more into playful - that was just because I think it's really funny. Hobie's a little shit.

All of this allows Diane and Hobie's relationship to be something based on mutal care and admiration for each other - rather than lust and clear-cut commitment.

They're able to be independent people, with independent lives and beliefs, while still being a large part of the other's life. They're able to excecise freedom in their situation, while still having an underlying conflict or struggle driving their story.

Hobie and Diane deeply care about and love each other, multiverse be damned. And even if they may not always see eye-to-eye, they're willing to put that aside if it means they have a chance at a peaceful future together - no matter what universe they're in.

They're not conventional, but they're in love. Cause I said so.

___________________________________________

So uh....yeah. That's how I incorporated Non-Conventional Relationships into my uhhh..deeply complex mental world that isn't written down yet besides glimpses in comics I make in photoshop.

If anyone read this far I will genuinely be so surprised, cause I literally just wrote an essay about their entire relationship lol

I feel like I could type anything down here and be safe cause it's hidden in a cattacomb full of TEXT like lemme just-

(I laughed at the second one til i crrriieeeddddd bro thats so foul)

But if you did read this all, thank you SO SO SO MUCH! As you can probably tell, I think about this a lot. And these characters mean a lot to me so I love sharing them when I can. I hope this helped someone and someone finds it helpful or at least entertaining! You rock <3

Writing this is normal, well-adjusted behavior. Cringe is dead.

Stream Diane and Hobie's album 'BackAlleyJazzLettuce' aka their Funk-Rock fusion ship playlist

Now take this photo of Hobie Kissy Kissy Face and get off my property.

Bye.

[slashers-and-rats]

Could you make Michael Myers' reaction to entering a house during a hunt and see a mother and her two children sleeping hugging on the couch?

rat chat: micheal seems like the type that would have some general morals. that’s kinda what this fic in general is demonstrating.

micheal myers x fem!reader | sfw |

micheal felt the autumn leaves crunching underneath his boots. no matter how silently he crept through this backyard, the sound still managed to escape into the quiet of the night. he was lucky that the wind was blowing, hard and loud, as it covered up any of his footsteps.

he was careful as he slithered up to the back of this house. there wasn’t anything special about it, nothing that drew him in and made him sure this was the target. there was no rhyme or reason in what micheal did, not always. sometimes, when hunting, he just needed to make a choice based on nothing but his own instincts. there was nothing different about this home. the only thing he noticed was a few balls strewn about the backyard.

‘must have a pet to watch out for’, he thought to himself.

he pressed himself up to a window, peering into the dark of a random room. upon further inspection, it seemed to be a living room, since in the very middle there was a couch. on the couch, laying as if she were bait in a trap, there was a woman.

micheal didn’t see much of her, only her head laying back against the top of the seat. she was dead asleep, clear by the way her mouth hung open in silent snores. he took note of her position, lingering for a moment. she seemed peaceful. he almost felt as though he shouldn’t ruin this moment- maybe he could find another house, and satiate his needs that way. but, it was too late into the night, he had to commit. didn’t he?

he pried himself away from the pane, stepping back and going to a nearby door. he found the knob and tried a few times, finally feeling it creak open and swing out near him. this neighbourhood was notorious for unlocked back doors (as if an intruder would only try the front).

he stepped up into the house, glancing down at the welcome mat he was met with. ‘remember to wipe’, it read in colourful, bubbly font. he tilted his head, amused that some woman would not have grown out of such childish things. he shrugged, deciding to amuse this little request, and he wiped some of the dirt from his boots off onto the mat. he then began his ascent into the home, weaving his way through the halls until he was back where he needed to be.

right there, sitting on the couch, was the woman from the window. micheal could hear her soft breathing now, and see the way her shoulders rose and fell with each breath. he examined her from the doorway for a minute, tracing over the shadows that adorned her face.

something tugged at him, urging him to leave and abandon this prey to its warren. he didn’t understand it, thinking that there was some… performance anxiety, or something of the like. it usually happened when he was walking into a bad situation, like a trap or a victim that liked to fight, but this didn’t seem like something he should be nervous about. it was just some lady, a sleeping beauty unaware of his presence. this was an easy target. it should be, at least.

he stepped up closer to the couch, and rounded it so that he was at the front. it’s then that he learned what the feeling was, or what it was trying to tell him.

sitting at both sides of the woman were

two kids, one to each hip. they laid over her lap and nestled into the warmth of their assumed mother, sleeping just as soundly as she was. upon closer look, micheal could see they had fallen asleep while reading a story book. a version of red riding hood, warning of wolves in the forest, and intruders like him thirsting for blood.

he was a villain. he had been well aware of that fact for a long time. he had abandoned his own virtues, deciding to find comfort in unforgivable sins, but seeing such a sight made him feel… dirty. it wasn’t common for him to be so self-aware. he usually targeted people that could be justified, a bully or a selfish landlord, but this. he could feel hell nipping at his heels.

micheal stared down at them. if one could see through the holes in his mask, they would see the intense focus in his gaze. he tried to untangle the knots that had developed in his stomach. regret, apprehension, the need to retreat- they swirled around inside of him and made him step back towards the middle of the room. doing this only gave him a greater view of the home. toys strewn about the floor, a child sized table littered with photos of the kids and this mother, and the same sort of balls from outside sitting in a heap near the same window he looked through. he should’ve known when he’d seen the yard there were kids here, he should’ve listened to his own intuition, but…

he shook his head. micheal had standards. he had needs, sure, but somewhere deep inside him there were morals, buried under years and years of neglect. he couldn’t do this, he couldn’t raise a blade to these people. yet he still felt the need to disturb, to bring some fear. maybe… maybe he could.

he went over to where they all lay, resembling the corpses he had seen many a time before, and picked up the two children. he was gentle, and they seemed to nestle into him, most likely mistaking him for their mother. she stirred only for a moment, but settled relaxed against the couch. he then got to work.

in the morning, when you were awoken by the birds singing sweet tunes, and the sun shining on your face, you found yourself on your couch. it wasn’t rare that you’d fall asleep in your living room, but this felt different. you recalled the night before, and how your children had been their with you, and it made you pat the seats beside you.

they weren’t there.

for a moment you panicked, eyes widening as you sat up and began scanning the room. it had been cleaned. toys were put away carefully in their bins, pictures had been pinned to their proper cork boards, snacks had been swept off the rug- this was not how this room had been left. you knew the kids wouldn’t have cleaned it either, not without a bit of a fight. it filled you with dread. someone had been inside, and had decided to… clean? such a kind action, and yet you were filled with unease. your home had still been entered, after all.

you pushed yourself up from the couch, beginning to look around the home, calling out for the kids. the more you called without answer, the more your chest tightened. room after room you checked, until you finally shoved your way into their bedroom, and-

there they were. they were still asleep, blankets tucked tight to their chins and peace on their faces. you made sure they were breathing and all in one piece, before sitting down on the edge of a bed. your heart was still racing, the pounding filling your ears.

you had to take a moment to breathe, to reassure yourself that it was all alright. maybe you had done this and didn’t remember. you had been so exhausted yesterday. it was a weekend, and the children had been particularly energetic. maybe, in your own half-asleep state, you had put them to bed and cleaned up the living room.

you insisted that must’ve been it, nodding your head and looking up to the window.

it was open.

you stood up quick, going over to it and leaning outside over the sill. you never left their window open, as one of the children had believed there to be fairies that would whisk them away. no, no you wouldn’t forget such a thing. you couldn’t have.

you looked outside, seeing nothing in the horizon. it seemed safe. you leaned back into the room, shutting the window tight and closing the curtains.

micheal watched from the tree line.

[lunarpeonie]

midnight in the ocean

In which Geto is a sweet pea and tries to help you, but you’re just not a morning person. 

2.2k words, fluff

Mornings were easily your least favorite part of the day. You were a night owl and as such, spent the dark hours of the night searching random questions on Google like Why are clouds white? and scrolling through Tiktok. However, recently your late night plans had been foiled by a certain long haired, gauge wearing sorcerer whose name might rhyme with meadow. Geto had been on a crusade to get you to bed earlier ever since you had slept through three alarms and six phone calls from him the morning of a semi-important (read: very important) mission a week earlier. So what if you had been a little late? A few hours late when a curse had been there for weeks really didn’t make a difference. (Only… it did. You had been assigned the mission with specific directions to attack the curse at sunrise because that had been its weakest point during the day, before it could take cover in a dark crevasse of the abandoned building it was inhabiting. Something about it being manifested by people’s fear of the dark and it being afraid of the rising sun. Instead of an easy fight like you had expected, you had been thrown through a few more walls than you would’ve liked.) 

Ever since, Geto had been trying his hardest to get you to bed early to avoid any other possible incidents. He was being ‘responsible.’ Whatever.

Attempt 1

First, he had taken your phone and hid it deep within the confines of his baggy pants after returning to the dorms from an outing with your classmates.

“Are you serious right now? Give me my phone back, Geto.” He shot you back his tight lipped smile, eyes shaped like crescent moons. 

“Ah, no can do. You need to start a habit of getting to bed earlier. What better way to do that than to rid yourself of your main distraction?” Your jaw dropped. The audacity of this man to act like you were an unruly child in need of parenting. Sure, was it a little irresponsible to keep up your night owl activities when you had to be up early in the morning some days? Yes, you could admit that. But that didn’t mean you needed someone else, someone your own age, to parent you.

“If you think that putting my phone in your pants is going to stop me from getting it, you really must not know me well enough.” You challenged, eyes narrowing so that he knew you meant business. He just continued to smile back at you in a way that was starting to feel a little condescending. 

“Try it.” 

This had ended with you crouching on top of Geto, foot to his neck, and hand fishing down his pants. (Awkward in retrospect, but you were desperate and on a mission to get your phone before your favorite Tiktoker went on live for the night. You only wished that Gojo hadn’t been walking by at the same time. He now had a plethora of pictures from what he deemed “the indecent incident” and was determined to remind you of it every chance he got.) 

Attempt 2

The next thing Geto tried was another tactic that made you feel like an unruly 5 year old. A knock on your dorm door had you pausing the DIY rug making video you had been watching and rolling your desk chair over to answer it. Standing on the other side of it was Geto wearing his signature smile once again. He was clad in his silky black pajamas and had his eye mask sitting on top of his head. 

“Can I help you with something?” You rolled your eyes, knowing that him showing up at your door at 11PM meant he was trying to prove a point. 

“Yes, you can.” He said cheerily. Much too cheerily for past 10. This was ‘me’ time that he was interrupting. “You can try these.” He held up a purple jar with Z’s plastered on the label. “Maybe then you can get to bed at a reasonable hour. You do know that we are supposed to be on the road to exorcize that cursed spirit at the elementary school by 8AM tomorrow?” You stuck out your hand to grab the jar and leaned your head closer to the label to see exactly what he meant by these. 

For a healthy sleep cycle. SLEEP! No next day grogginess! 

“Are these…” You started, “Melatonin gummies?” He happily nodded his head, his inky bangs swaying back and forth as he did so. You could feel your blood pressure rising with irritation that he had interrupted your ‘me’ time for something so stupid. You still had 20 minutes left on your rug making video and there could be dire consequences if you didn’t finish it. Didn’t he understand that? So, out of frustration, you aimed for the biggest target (his head) and threw. 

You were late again the next morning. 

Attempt 3

It was a few days later when sitting at a bench along the many walkways around the school, ready to chow down on your lunch of leftover pepperoni pizza, Geto plopped down on the bench beside and laid a white, half moon shaped contraption between you. 

“Uh, what is that thing?” You asked with a mouthful of pizza, closing the latest edition of a teen gossip magazine that you had been lazily flipping through. 

“A sound machine, it makes a variety of sounds and the reviews say that it helps put babies to sleep.” You could already feel a vein throbbing on your forehead at the thought of Geto treating you like a kid once again. He began pressing buttons on the machine to show you just how many it made. After shuffling through fan noises, whale noises, and copious static noises, you placed your hand on top of his as a signal to stop. 

Closing your eyes, the words began to roll out before you could stop them, “Look, it’s not that I’m against going to bed early and going on a normal sleep routine. I go to bed late because I have a hard time sleeping by myself. At home, I always had someone around. I shared a room with my sister, so I never had to sleep alone. I just… don’t feel safe when I sleep alone.” You sighed, feeling embarrassed to admit the real reason behind your wacky sleep schedule. 

Geto’s signature smile lit up his face. “Why didn’t you just tell me that? We could’ve had this solved so much sooner!”

“Yeah, how?” You asked, confused and eyebrow raised. 

“I’ll just sleep in your room from now on.” Time screeched to a halt. Birds stopped chirping. Wind stopped flowing. Did… you hear him correctly? 

“Do you know how seriously indecent it is for you to propose something like that?!? What kind of girl do you take me for??” You rolled up the magazine you had been flicking through and began hitting that tall pervert with it like he deserved.

“Ah no! You misunderstand. I only mean to help, nothing indecent! I’ll sleep on the floor. Just so that I’m in the room and it’ll be enough for you to comfortably fall asleep.” 

You paused in your magazine assault and contemplated this offer. You did love having the extra time to browse the internet, but you were always sluggish in the morning and didn’t recover until late afternoon. As much as you tried to hide it, it was really starting to drag you down.

Hesitantly you replied, “Okay… we’ll try it. But no funny business, I’m serious! One weird look and you’re getting kicked out.” You waved the curled magazine around in the air to emphasize your point. 

•

That night, right as the clock struck 9:30, you heard a steady knock, knock, knock on your door. Opening the door, a pajama-clad Geto Suguru leaned into your doorway, pillow and blanket in hand. “Are you ready for our sleepover?” 

You blinked twice and tried to remind (read: convince) yourself that this was a good idea. As long as no one (Gojo) found out. 

“Come in,” you said with an arm extended to the small space. “You can set your stuff up right here. I moved my rug to the corner so that you had some space.” You pointed to the cherry print rug wadded up in a haphazard ball. Rug making had not exactly worked out well for you, so that may as well be its home forever. You sat on the edge of your bed, nails digging into the soft down bedding, as Geto arranged his things on the floor. You were nervous. You’d never had a guy sleep over before, even if this wasn’t like that. 

Geto had placed his striped blanket directly on the floor and his pillow in the opposite direction of where yours laid on your bed. “Are you sure you’re going to be comfortable sleeping on the floor? I feel kind of bad… since you’re the one doing me a favor.” 

“I’ll be fine. As long as this helps you, I’m happy.” There was that smile again. You would never admit it out loud, but his smile felt like warm rays of sunshine and you were thawing from the cold. He truly was a kind soul. What kind of person sacrifices their own comfort just to make sure that their classmate can get a good night’s rest? A generous one. 

Biting down on your bottom lip, maybe it was your nerves talking, but you couldn’t help but offer, “Do you want to sleep on the bed? I feel really bad about you sleeping on the floor. I could make an indestructible pillow wall to separate us.” You fidgeted with a string on your plaid pajama bottoms, unable to look him in the eye while you offered and awaited his answer. 

“Sure, I’ll even help you build the wall. I need to make sure you don’t cut corners and damage the structural integrity of it.” He winked. You felt a quick flutter in your stomach, gone almost as fast as it had come. Together, you worked quickly to arrange the pillows into double layered stacks neatly down the middle of the bed, with the occasional break to hit each other with them. Designating the wall side to Geto, you watched as he climbed over the pillow wall to lay down. You gulped, feeling your pulse quicken. Are we really about to do this? 

Geto extended a long arm and patted your side of the bed. “No sense in wasting more time. If we don’t get to bed now, we’ll continue your bad habit.” 

Wrapping your blanket tightly around your shoulders, you nodded your head and flicked off the corner lamp. Moonlight continued to flood in through the windows on the other side of the room. Your feet made a light pitter patter as you took a few small steps to get to the bed, now with considerably less space due to the large man laying in it. Geto slid his finger through the black elastic holding his hair in a bun and flicked it to the floor. His hair fell down past his shoulders in dark waves like the ocean at midnight. He was beautiful. This wasn’t calming your nerves one bit. Still, gaining your courage, you gently laid next to your artfully built wall of fluff and turned your head up to the man occupying your bed. 

“Thank you for doing this. It was really kind of you.” A pink blush began to fill the apples of your cheeks and you could only hope that it was hidden by the darkness in the room. Geto didn’t say anything, instead opting to pat your head with his large hand, fingers dipping into your hair. Closing your eyes, you felt more comfort than you had ever felt, even at home. You knew, with one half of the strongest duo laying next to you, there wasn’t a safer place in the world than where you were at this moment. 

As sleep began to take its hold, you almost caught a whispered voice replying, “For you? Anything.”

Sometime during the night, the pillow wall had scattered across the bed and a strong, muscled arm made its way around your stomach. The both of you chose not to mention it in the morning. 

•

It had been a month since you started this charade and you had never felt better. Who knew a full night’s sleep (conveniently with your own personal very attractive furnace) could make you feel so great? With a sigh, you turned over to face the formidable pillow wall between you and Geto, only to find him peering over it already awake. You giggled, butterflies fluttering through your stomach. That had been happening more often around Geto recently. His gentle manner and the way he took care of you had caused feelings to blossom deep down in your chest. 

“You know,” you said quietly, your voice barely above a whisper, “I’ve never been a morning person, but then I started waking up to your face and… Maybe mornings aren’t that bad, after all.” 

You never had a problem getting to sleep early again. Geto made sure of that. 

fin.

Inspired by a prompt from @dumplingsjinson on Tumblr! Cross posted to ao3.

I demand more Geto fluff!!!! I can fix him, I swear! I had a blast writing this (even though it was at 1AM…). The writing bug caught me and I couldn’t stop until I was done. 

[ancha-aus]

RealAgeAU Drabble - Third time the charm?

I am back! @spotaus

Look I got the week off and I am sick. there is very little else I am going to do except game, write and watch vods. So here I am again!

Back to filling up the, in my mind, holes in the story so far before we continue on!

First Drabble Prev Drabble Next Drabble

*------------------*

Dust looks at the many books before him as he tries to think of what to get for Nightmare. Nightmare meanwhile is being a good babybones and stays by Horror eating ice cream.

Dust continues to stare at the books. Trying to think back. What did six year olds have to learn at this point anyway? And how far ahead of that is Nightmare?

Dust knows that Nightmare is smarter than the average six year old. That is a given. Dust knows his vocabular and reading skills are also far above average.

Dust just isn't sure how far certain skills and knowledge got reversed for him.

"Still no luck?"

Dust blinks out of his staring and looks up at Horror "What?"

Horror nods to the books, Nightmare easily held in one arm against his shoulder. Nightmare looks even tinier in Horror's hold and Dust already thinks Nightmare is smaller for his age than he should be.

Smarter but smaller.

Dust shrugs and turns back to the shelf he had been searching "Not sure on his skills."

Horror hums and looks at the books himself. Dust turns back to the options and thinks. They are still moving and universe hopping a lot making it impractical to take too many. One or two at most. That way they can at least start with some classes.

Horror turns to him and Dust looks up to show he has his attention. Horror nods towards the shelf "test level?"

Dust shakes his skull "I could but to specific." if he happens to pick a subject Nightmare still knows about it would set Nightmare up for more difficult classes, even while Nightmare may not be ready for all of those.

Horror hums in understanding as he searches the shelf.

Dust turns back again and thinks. They should at least get a math book. Math is after all to train your brain and problem solving skills. Which would be helpful. Probably basic add and substractions. He searches the shelf and picks out the book that looks promising.

Horror looks at the book before nodding and turning back "What else?"

And that is the problem isn't it? Because most subjects are still too complex for Dust's taste to get. history and geography while both would probably interest Nightmare both are very universe depended and just teaching him stuff about a world they may not even stay in would just be a waste of time.

Horror nudges his shoulder and once Dust looks at him he nods towards the english section "He likes poetry."

Dust blinks and nods. Maybe that is fine? He is already for ahead with english anyway. Maybe giving him something to work and read which is familiar and liked by him while they struggle through math together will be good for his motivation? Dust nods to Horror and walks over there.

Dust frowns at all the titles. He knows very little about this kind of stuff. He searches the story and finds a store clerk and walks over to them "Hello."

The person jumps and turns quickly "oh! Hi! I am sorry i didn't notice you... euh... what can i help with?"

Dust nods to the poetry books "Want a book."

The person blinks and nods "okay.... are you looking for a theme? Or a certain writer? A specific age or focus?" they walk towards the right shelf and look back at Dust.

Dust frowns and glances over at Nightmare nad Horror. Nightmare shrugs and hides his face while Horror looks unsure himself. Dust thinks for a moment "Need a book for the babybones. He already has one." Dust can't remember the name or writer of the book.

The clerk smiles and takes out a thin book with easy rhyming "This should be fine!"

Dust takes it and studies it and it doesn't feel the same. he shakes his skull and hands it back "There was a line in the book... of a poem he reads a lot..." and Dust has read a lot to him. "It went something like 'The dark goes deep but it is no end. Because in the night broken things mend. A time to rest and time to heal, it is the moment when we have a meal.'" Dust frowns as he tries to continue "something something... then later 'The night holds and the night protects. hidden away with all its gems. Holding the stars and letting those shine. until...' and that is what i remember from that..." and he waits.

The clerk frowns "That kinda seems like a few writers from the great depression..." they search the shelf and pull out an older looking book. They hand it over and frown "It seems a bit complex for a tiny child though..." and they shoot a smile in Nghtmare's direction. Not that nightmare is looking at any of them.

Dust looks through the book and nods "I think this will work..." it seems more on par of the book that Nightmare has been reading.

They go to the counter and Dust pays for the two books.

Dust and Horror leave the store together. The person says something but Dust isn't paying any attention to them as he checks the math book. the poetry book already in his bag.

Horror looks a bit embarrased and Dust frowns "What is wrong?"

Horror shrugs and rubs his cheek sheepish "Just... the what that person said."

Dust frowns as he glares back at the shop "Something bad?" he can go back and make them pay easily enough-

Horror holds up his one free hand "no no! Nothing like that... just..." and he shrugs as he keeps a tight hold on Nightmare. Seems like Nightmare is getting fussy. meaning either he is tired or hungry and he goes to acting grumpy because that is easier to hide behind than admitting he needs something.

Dust blinks back and nods at Horror "If you are sure-"

"Horror! Dust! Wait up!"

Dust freezes and glares "Oh are you fucking with me." That are the fucking stars. shit. He looks at Horror and sees that Horror made the same conclusion and that Nightmare is frozen in his hold.

They share a look. Dust is holding unto too many things to do the same as he did before and he doubt he can use the same tactic twice to get them out.

They have both been spotted.

Horror looks at Nightmare and clearly gets an idea as he pulls Nightmare back a bit "Stay still and don't move."

Some confusion brekas through the panicked look but Nightmare nods and that is all Horror needed as he lifts his shirt and just puts Ngihtmare under it nad IN his ribcage.

Moments later horror has the shirt on normally again and Nightmare isn't in view at all.

Right. Nightmare is small enough to be hidden like that-

running steps and Blue and Dream stop by them. Blue pants "FInally! Am I happy to see you!"

Dust and Horror share a confused look and Dust frowns "Since when?"

Blue looks a bit sheepish and looks at Dream. Dream looks very uncomfortable as he rubs his hands "I... euh... I was wondering... euh..." he looks around and spots the books Dust is holding "oh! Getting things for your little one?" and he smiles.

Dust nods and only after agreeing he remembers what Cross said last time they came across the Stars.

Dream nods once he realises that Dust isn't going to speak "Right! Yes. That is amazing! I... I see everything is well? How is the little one?"

Blue nods "We realised you never told us the little guy's name..."

Dust knows he is glaring as he speaks slowly "He is doing fine." and he stops there. shooting them a challenging look.

Blue coughs in his hand before looking at Horror "sup!"

Horror however looks many times more annoyed then Dust feels. Probably because Horror right now feels the nervous and anxious magic of Ngihtmare a lot more directly than they feel when they are just holding him. Putting him more on edge.

Blue gives a slow nod and looks away "Right..."

Dust raises a brow "Did you want anything specif or just wanted to waste our time?"

Dream flinches before smiling "I... I did have a request... I was... I was wondering... If you guys could ask Nightmare to meet with me?"

Dust freezes for a moment before his glare gets worse "Why the fuck would we do that? Just so you can lure him into a trap? Hunt him down some more?"

Dream shakes his skull quickly "I just want to talk..." he rubs his arm. "It is... personal."

Horror crosses his arms "I remember this happening once before." Dust nods and glares himself. it had been a whole thing where Dream tried to stage an intervention about Nightmare needing to be better and see that there are other ways to continue on instead of this path of hate he had set on.

The fact Dream had gone it to an adult Nightmare was bad. The fact that they now knew that their tiny babybones boss was in there the whole time just makes it worse.

Drema looks pale and shakes his skull "It isn't liek that! and... I know i shouldnt have done that back then either! I... I didn't have all the facts and information but I need to talk with nightmare about it-"

Killer appears and has his knife right by Dream's chin "Don't bother. You try to go near Boss ever again and we will end you." Killer's voice is low and dangerous. "We haven't been doing shit to your precious multiverse. leave us alone."

Dust watches the standoff when Cross joins his side and looks him and Horror both over worried and anxious. A small whine starts to leave his throat when Dust signs that Horror has Nightmare hidden. making sure to use their personal coded signs for it. Cross relaxes and leans against him as the tension disappears.

Dust looks back at the standoff to see that Dream has backed up, still looking pale and now heartbroken as well. Blue seems to be trying to reason with Killer but you have more luck reasoning with a pig in the mud than trying to get Killer to stop doing what he wants.

Dust raises his voice a tiny bit "We are leaving." the other three nod and Dsut looks at the two Stars "Stop bothering us." this was already the third time they happened to be in the same universe and Dust did not want to make it a fourth.

They quickly leave and once out of sight make a portal somewhere else. They hide away and quickly check on Nightmare. dust watches as Killer coos and nuzzles Nightmare and feels a bit calmer.

It is fine. They will not let anyone get their babybones.

*----------------*

And the third time the Stars came across the gang and Nightmare! (one of which they didn't fully notice but it still counts!)

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[strqyr]

as fun as new outfits for every new kingdom are, it also ends up working against the story—mainly because the reasoning behind these outfit changes aren't treated equally.

for the most part, these changes happen regardless of where the character's development is at in the moment the story focuses on a new kingdom, very much seemingly working under a "new outfits to sell new merch" way of doing things (whether or not a new look affected the merch sales tho is a whole different question altogether that likely won't have an easy answer so like. don't focus on that bit lmao).

but occasionally there are moments when the change in outfit does line up with the development and is done incrementally in a way that highlights this.

like with jaune; he starts with an everyday outfit with what looks like a makeshift armor on top of it, gets a moment in the first episode of V4 where he changes his outfit, still wearing the same clothes underneath but changes his armor into a professionally made one and his sneakers into proper boots made for traveling, and his new outfit in atlas only further highlights his growth since. with just his outfits, jaune went from "doesn't know what he's doing" to "knows what he's doing".

and while this is happening with jaune, ruby—who's purposefully stagnant character, one of the youngest of the group and any real emotional growth severely limited by the burden of leadership—changes her outfit all willy-nilly, no real rhyme or reason behind it.

but just imagine the contrast between ruby and jaune if that wasn't the case, if ruby—like jaune at first between vale and mistral—never fully changed her outfit, but unlike jaune who makes changes both big and small intentionally, the changes to ruby's outfit are unintentional; her cloak slowly but surely fraying throughout their travels, her hair gradually getting messier when she has neither time or energy to take care of it, any wear and tear to her outfit getting fixed to the best of her ability, all while she tries to keep herself together, convincing everyone—including the audience—that she's doing fine despite everything that has happened.

though it all, with her outfit ruby attains what looks like growth and maturity, but really isn't—not the healthy kind, at least—, rather just experience, which, for someone who started out as a 15-year-old aspiring huntress and is then relied upon by all her friends and even family as their leader, isn't really a good thing at the rate she's going.

and this would only be highlighted even more if everyone else was getting new outfits at their own pace, fitting to their character development, like. just imagine if by the end of atlas everyone else in the group has changed outfits at least once and ruby is still in her original outfit that's definitely worse for wear, but hey. it's still ruby, ya know? she always knows what the right thing to do is, everyone trusts her to follow her lead, why would she need to change when she's the simple, more honest soul? surely she's got it under control!

. . . until she doesn't, and the signs were there all along.

but when ruby's outfits change along the rest of them, it doesn't really do. . . anything. it just happens, which wouldn't be a problem if that was the case with every character but when that's not the case either, what you end up with is a thread that doesn't really go anywhere, and uncertainty on how much the audience can actually read into the meaningfulness of these changes.