#bandit lee way

[theinfinitedivides]

i go from being rendered incoherent at the sheer amount of everything contained in the first ten minutes of ep 8 ('let me go. let me go, you bastard—' 'Kwang Il-ah!' 78 dead 634 injured two fingers lost to gunfire Oscars offered up on a silver platter. local gay mourns the lack of braincells to fully flesh this f*cked up relationship out in a 25k+ fic as it deserves) to losing my sh*t at the thirty minute mark over whatever the f*ck Yoon just tried in order to get Eon Nyeon Yi to help him with his plan to break everyone out of jail (*brushes hair back* 'do you know what i feel like whenever i speak to you?' 'what?' *gives her a slow once-over. aborted finish to the attempted pick up line dies gasping like a fish in the back of his throat when she lights her cigarette* 'ani. never mind.') these people are making me look unhinged fr fr

[brighteuphony]

Some reunions, like Naruto and Lee, are filled with happy hugs and warm welcomes.

Others...not so much.

Ino and Sakura's reunion...yeah it doesn't go great.

Sakura had been invited back into her mother's estranged family after her accident, but on the way through Tea Country, the caravan had been attacked by bandits/dissidents and Sakura ended up jumping into a river to save herself.

Her body was never found, and she was considered dead. She has an empty grave right beside her mother's and father's in Konoha.

Ino, Naruto and Lee were devastated. Ino, in particular, was inconsolable. She'd just made up with her friend and they'd been struggling to find footing after Sakura's accident, so to get the news of her death crushed Ino.

She'd felt so guilty, fighting over stupid things like boys, all the dumb insults they'd leveled at each other, and her helplessness at Sakura's condition ate at her for a long time. Ino threw herself into the job and she left flowers at Sakura's grave every Sunday for a year (and her parents did it for her when she was on missions) before finally beginning to heal.

To learn that Sakura was alive the entire time, that she didn't care enough to send Ino a single letter...that she just let Ino go through all that heart-wrenching grief is a betrayal that Ino can't suffer. It's like having that wound, only just now scarring over, be torn open and salted.

She spent a year mired in grief, and the next three trying to mend the hole Sakura's death left in her life. And to have all of that history, friendship and grief disrespected... Ino doesn't talk to Sakura for almost 7 months.

As for Sakura, she was in such a depression after her accident, she managed to convince herself that she didn't matter to any of her old friends (especially because it was so awkward and difficult to find common footing with everyone after being honorably discharged). So she made the mistake of assuming no one cared, almost as a method of protecting herself from the consequences of her own decisions.

This bites her in the ass, ofc.

Eventually, they enter a 'cold but civil' relationship when Sakura makes a sincere, heartfelt (and groveling) apology. After that, the walls come down, but their friendship won't ever take the same form as it did before, but maybe that's for the better.

Their new friendship is much stronger.

Once again, thank you so much to everyone for all the amazing asks and the incredibly kind words about this AU!

@evaregia

[kpopscatterbrain]

Kdramas i've watched this year

Some of these are older dramas but i'm a procrastinator

Black Knight (2023): Loved this one! I have watched it probably 5 times now. Kim Woobin kicking ass is all i need!

Under the Queen's Umbrella (2022): I didn't watch this when it aired (no idea why). I was worried that the plot would be overrun by romance but thankfully i was wrong. Loved Kim Hye-Soo's performance (i cried a little).

Island seasons 1 & 2 (2022-2023): Honestly i only started this one for Kim Nam-Gil. I loved the cast, but the flow of the plot was a little off (don't know how, i can't put a finger on it). Was positively suprised by Cha Eun-Woo's acting, i think he needs more roles like this! Hot villain alert no.1! Sung Joon as a bad guy is either a blessing or a curse. Cgi could have been better.

Taxi Driver season 2 (2023): Loved the first season so of course i had to watch the second one. Love Lee Je-Hoon. Love the main characters. Love the plot and the message of this drama. A masterpiece. Waiting for season 3.

Weak Hero Class 1 (2022): Only heard of this drama wayyy after it aired (thanks tiktok) and god does it deserve every award there is! I was a bit hesitant because Park Ji-Hoon was the main lead, but boy was i wrong because his talent got me speechless (weren't we all). I cried, i cheered, i shadowboxed, i cried a little more and in the end i called my therapist. Thankfully season 2 is coming.

Bloodhounds (2023): Woo Do-whan and Lee Sang-Yi in the same drama beating people up? Yes please! The plot wasn't mindblowing, but sometimes just simple ass kicking is enough. Bromance was bromancing. Park Sung-Woong with another great villain character.

Revenant (2023): After dropping Mr.Sunshine i wanted to see Kim Tae-ri in other dramas, so when this aired i gave it a go. Her range is phenomenal! I have only seen couple spookier dramas, so i made a mistake and watched this at night (slept with the lights on). The eerie vibes and plot twists were well made. Hong Kyung had great chemistry with Kim Tae-ri and his cop role was refreshing to see after his performance in Weak Hero Class (if you know you know).

Flower of Evil (2020): Okay, this is one of the dramas i procrastinated hard on. It's been sitting on my "have to watch" list since it aired and i'm the only one to blame (i hype up a drama in my mind, then don't want to watch it because now i'm afraid it doesn't go the way i think it does and then i get disappointed blaablaablaa). This year i finally got over myself and why. didn't. i. watch. it. sooner!!!! It is all i ever wanted in a kdrama. 1. serial killers 2. a psychopath (but is he really?) w/ an effed up childhood 3. mindgames 4. marriage problems (but has a lot of soft & cute scenes) 5. Lee Joon-Gi. Also as a plus (hot villain alert no.2) the bad guy is kindaa (i'm sane i swear). I would be lying if i didn't say that i found the wife slightly annoying (might be me, but she went too much back & forth and sometimes i had to take a breather while watching), but all in all this drama will be hard to top and i fell in love with Lee Joon-Gi.

Moving (2023): Honestly one of the best dramas of the year. I don't usually really go for plots that have a lot of romance in them (if you haven't noticed), but i found this one to be really well balanced and the romance scenes weren't "cringy". Although Bong-Seok and Hui-Soo were great and had great chemistry, i looooved the background stories of the parents. Park Hee-Soon also pops up as kind of a non-villain villain. I hope there is a season 2.

Song of the Bandits (2023): Kim Nam-Gil again. 1920s Korea and gunslingers... what more could i need? After Mr. Sunshine left me with a disappointment (this might be an unpopular opinion) i craved for a drama set around the same time period, but with a little less romance (i know, i am defective). I think dramas should explore this time period more, but i understand it might still be a touchy subject. The skills of the cast were obviously great, Kim Nam-Gil killed his role like always, but Lee Ho-Jung as Eon-Nyeon shined with her performance (i am now a new fan). Hot villain alert no.3! I have seen Lee Hyun-Wook in Remarriage & Desires and seeing him as a villain made me feel things. If there isn't a second season i will cry.

The Killing Vote (2023): A "serial killer" in a dog mask making the public vote on punishing criminals and everyone suspects each other? Cyber crime? Chemistry between two cops? Major hot villain (no.4)? Sign me up. I love when crime dramas make you question your people reading skills (i have the tism so i really got none) and have all kinds of theories flying around. I liked that even Kim Mu-Chan and Joo Hyun had obvious chemistry between them it didn't overshadow the main point of the plot. I liked Seo Young-Joo's delivery and i hope he gets more bigger roles. Kim Kwon.... why does the psychopath have to be hot? He also needs more bigger roles. !spoiler! Also Park Sung-Woong killing (heh) yet another morally grey character.

The Worst of Evil (2023): Okay, first of all i have to say... the wife ruined everything (some agree and some don't). We get another bromance duo of the year with Wi Ha-Joon and Ji Chang-Wook. Loved the crime organization infiltration plot, heavily despised the romance plot (sorry Bibi baby). I was constantly on the edge of my seat and the characters started to get so morally grey that in the end everyone needs group therapy. Action scenes were chefs kiss. A honorable mention goes for Lee Shin-Ki as Seo Jong-Ryul (or Chief Seo, knife guy, the man has many names) and Bibi for her performance as Lee Hae-Ryeon.

Evilive (2023): Heavily underrated. Kim Young-Kwang doing what he does best, playing a psychopath. This combined with a bromance plot with the one and only bromance master Shin Ha-Kyun? I'm sold. The dramas literal title "villain story" really sums up the plot. Sometimes you are not sure who to cheer for. Sometimes you are not really sure about your own sanity. But to be fair, so aren't the main characters.

Vigilante (2023): Love it. Currently re-watching it. Needs more attention. Needs more episodes. I'm in love with Nam Joo-Hyuk. The best crime drama of the year, the title is all i needed to hear. Beating up criminals in well made action scenes is my favorite genre. No romance. One sided bromance? Morally grey characters (am i repeating myself now?). Yoon Ji-Tae as a beefy cop and Lee Joon-Hyuk as a slightly insane admirer? If we don't get a season 2 i will start a riot.

[swee7dream]

ilichil as agere caregivers ! nct 127 x f!reader

warnings feminine nicknames dni if you sexualize age regression in any way . author's note i guess this is my opening to start writing cg!127 and cg!wayv ! mahae can be found here and winwin's headcanons can be found in wayv's when it's out .

moon taeil (´ ∀ ` *)

he’s just so entranced with you and age regression in general.

“wait, that’s a thing you can do?”

he can’t keep his eyes of you when you’re feeling tiny, not because he thinks you’re in trouble or anything, but because he views you as the cutest thing in the whole world!

a grandpa-like caregiver. loves pinching your cheeks and pretending to eat you up! nom nom nom

not a big title user. he’s just moonie and ur his kid! his baby :3 his precious bit of starlight

got a rocking chair just to sit in with you to sing you lullabies when you have trouble sleeping!

what’s the opposite of an iron fist? that’s taeil.

if it’s past bedtime and you’re small or you don’t want to eat a certain food on your plate, you can bet one of two things will happen: a) he just lets you do what you want or b) bribes you with a sweet treat

you can try to bribe him in return the few times he puts his foot down, but he’s surprisingly firm. he’s not a pushover by any means.

“please?” you bat your lashes at him.

“no.” the little bugger puffs his cheeks right back at you.

the worst at playing with dolls /lh

“oh no, we got kidnapped!” you gasp, moving the bingo mini figurine in your hand.

“oh no...” taeil moves bandit in his hand with a voice lacking so much emotion it’s actually impressive.

he’s doing his best. try playing pretend instead! (he likes playing doctor the most)

seo youngho (￢‿￢ )

you got him wrapped around your finger! not that he’ll ever admit it

saw a cute dress? he got it for you. your stuffie’s arm ripped? he’s learning to sew for you.

purposefully hides pieces of the puzzle you’re building and feigns innocence just to see you get mad when you find out his schemes

“how’d that happen?” he pouts, cocking his head to the side.

if he every truly upsets you, he’s quick to apologize, pulling you into his arms and leaving kisses all over your cheeks until you’re laughing again because it tickles so much and he’s holding you so tight you can’t get away!

johnny loves being called daddy! he’s your daddy and you’re his babygirl!

loves cheesy, old-fashioned nicknames like honeybun, buttercup, cupcake… he just thinks you’re sweet, is what he’s trying to say

he loves when you sit on his lap and show him the coloring pages you finished while he was gone. he’ll make up stories off them like the purple elephant that wants to be a trapeze for the circus!

another big fan of playing pretend

his favorite game is dinosaurs, stomping around the house in slow motion with an evil toothy grin. you always manage to sneak away from his t-rex arms somehow but he’ll get you one day!

but johnny isn’t just a big goof. he knows when to put his foot down and is more 50-50 with it rather than taeil’s 90-10.

“i said no. put that back, please.”

his serious voice never fails to cause a shiver up your spine, settling you down within seconds.

when you finally decided to tell johnny, it took a minute for him to understand what exactly age regression is but kept the line of communication open. very open.

once, you were at work and your screen lit up with a message notification from him reading ‘do you like pacifiers?’

you almost beat him up

lee taeyong (.❛ ᴗ ❛.)

worrywart !

doesn’t wanna make your regression feel even the slightest bit off. prioritizes your safety and comfort

at the beginning, taeyong as a cg can be seen as… a bit much

in preparation for his first time caring for you when small, he bought so many things. just anything he saw mentioned just once in all of his research of agere.

from itty bitty gear to middle/teen gear, bubu bought it all. if you don’t use any gear at all and have the ice cold heart to tell him so, you watch the color drain from his face.

poor guy

he just likes to be prepared. there’s nothing he likes more than a good plan.

cooking together is always so much fun. never lets you near the knives or heat but likes to keep you around to be his taste tester!

“what do you think, sweet pea?” “so yummy, bubu!”

loves doing crafts with you, particularly finger painting. you do it regularly, always forgetting that taeyong’s going to make you take a bath when the two of you end up with paint all over your faces and clothes

if you are allow it, taeyong is great with bathtimes !! he’s got rubber duckies and bath crayons to play with while he washes your hair.

cackles like a witch with a cauldron when adding a bathbomb to the bathtub, saying he’s preparing ‘baby soup’

“mommy, stop bein’ creepy.” “sorry, bug (っ- ‸ – ς)”

nakamoto yuta (￣ω￣)

“so yeah, it was just me and this big panther booking it down the forest to get away from this bear.” “and then?!” “i dunno i made it up :3”

an evil, evil man that takes advantage of your imagination during your tiny time to make up stories only to not finish them!

“what do you think would’ve happened next, baby?”

evil, but a good storyteller that gives you ideas for games nearly everyday you suppose….

loves playing dress up and salon

learned to do your hair! it’s an ongoing process… how did you end up with one low bun and one high? don’t ask

your breath hitches because he pulled a little too tight and he drops everything. are you okay? are you crying? he’s sorry, so so sorry. you know what? let’s have ice cream for dinner

likes listening to acid black cherry while doing your (v-kei) makeup! lets you sit on his lap when its your turn to do his

“daddy’s making you a total rockstar, baby.”

lets you draw on him! might get one (or several) of your doodles tattooed on his skin permanently just because he likes it so much

cuddling is his true life’s passion. takes out all the pillows and blankets in the house to make a pillow fort for movie nights. if he has any left over he uses them to wrap you up into a burrito

kim dongyoung （´▽｀）

just smile and wave, doyoung, smile and wave

maybe he shouldn’t have introduced you to his friends… they help add to your mischievous streak

“bunny? kangaroo! …pogo stick?” “doie… ‘s obviously you.” “me?” “yeah! when you can’t get the stuff on the top shelf at the the store so you did like this. ‘member? doie so bad at charades...” “:D ?!”

simultaneously the most competitive and worst player when it comes to video games

says he’s gonna win as you load up animal crossing like ….? okay gramps

hates when you call him that so you do it as much as possible because you live to displease

always knows the right thing to say when you’re feeling big feelings that feel only bigger when you’re small

treats you like you’re made of porcelain, his fingers delicately wiping your tears away silently.

never tells you to not cry or to stop, just tries to makes the process of feeling your emotions as easy as possible by making sure you’re drinking as much water as you’re crying out and making sure nothing could trigger you further

when you first told him about your regression you weren’t sure what his reaction was gonna be. he just stared dead at you in silence for like 8 minutes and then whispered “yeah… that makes sense” to himself

what is that supposed to mean? you know as well as i

jeong yunoh o(〃＾▽＾〃)o

he really just wants you to think he’s cool

that’s his main thing. of course, you being comfortable and happy is first, but you thinking he’s cool is a close second

most of his cg work is actually done behind the scenes; trying recipes, researching agere tips, and learning different crafts so that when you’re finally little again he can see the sweet, sweet sight of your awe

if you two planned for you to have some tiny time after a long time spent without regressing because overwhelming stress and responsibilities, you can bet on jaehyun to have organized an entire mermaid scavenger hunt in your home at a 6pm on a wednesday evening

the reward is always a ticket for something like a veggie-free night or a warm hug (he’ll give them to you whether you have one or not)

he calls them baby tickets

yes, that’s really what he calls them. yes, he chose the name himself.

there’s a reason you don’t let him name your dolls or stuffies

you tried once, this is basically how it went:

“hyunnie, what you think?” “it’s a bear… and pink… what about bearie? like strawberry and bear. bearie, haha. get it?” “…”

likes being called mister! but it’s actually rare for you to call him anything other than hyunnie

“say ‘please’ and i’ll think about it.” “please, mist-”

he’s already swiping his card

dong sicheng ♡✧( ु•⌄• )

read here (when it’s published) !

kim jungwoo (☆^ー^☆)

the silliest!!!!! how can you not love snoopy

your number one supporter in every single thing.

“the way you colored the sky with cerulean blue instead of the standard blue is just a peek into the artistic genius mind you have, my dear. how is every single art piece of yours just flawless?”

your babbles? “you don’t say! you know, i never did like that scoundrel…”

loves playing doggy! he could be cleaning around the house but if you slip that dog ear headband on him he’ll drop everything to entertain you.

he’s shattered a few plates...

he’s the most loyal friend you could have. he herds all your sheep plushies together and sniffs out the clues to help you solve the mysteries!

he also lets you doodle on his face. he’s just so easy-going it doesn’t matter what. whiskers? meow! mustache? hm, yes, it’s quite becoming of him, he thinks. you stuck some gem stickers on his cheeks? he’s an alien from the moon.

likes playing pretend much more than playing with toys.

sulky when you choose to play with your dolls rather than him. when he’s literally right there!!! your best friend :(( your buddy :((

i don’t know how else to describe this other than a dog-like caregiver

energy is always up, even when its bedtime which can be counterproductive sometimes. although? not completely? he definitely helps you tire yourself out until you’re knocked out on the couch

his nickname for you is giggles !! your giggles are his favorite thing in the whole wide world and makes sure to tell you that often.

lee minhyung (ᓀ‸ᓂ)

read here !

lee donghyuck ʕ˙Ⱉ˙‧:ʔ

read here !

extra ! ꒰ᐢ. .ᐢ꒱₊˚⊹

cg!johnny+yuta is being hit with whiplash every two seconds because they can either be the sweetest people ever or pranksters from the deepest depth of WICKEDNESS AND DARKNESS. they always, always, always tag team too, so it’s not like you can run to one when they other is trying to tickle you to death

cg!jeno+jungwoo is what happens when a baby is left alone with an old, tired dog (jeno) and his younger brother that has all the energy in the world (jungwoo)

cg!taeyong+doyoung has the same power imbalance as djj, leaving doyoung groveling at the ground even when he’s supposed to be the one taking care of the others

[outro-jo]

the missile is eepy

pairing: lee felix x reader

type: blurb

warnings: none this is soooo fucking soft

request: yes

NOT TAKING REQUESTS AT THIS TIME/CLEARING INBOX

masterlist | info

————————————————

felix had arrived home at a decent enough hour that night. he happily ate the dinner you made him and held a nice conversation before taking over the kitchen table to finish up some work. all of the boys could feel another comeback on the way even if they hadn’t gotten a date yet, and they were all feeling the pressure to deliver good music for their fans. felix spent the rest of the evening with his headphones on, listening to some tracks chan had made, bopping his head and scribbling some lyrics into a notebook.

you were content to leave him there for as long as he needed, tending to the laundry and a few other chores you’d let pile up from the work week. time flew by and when you collapsed on to the bed, you noticed that it was almost midnight and started to feel the exhaustion hit you. felix would probably want to keep working so you thought you’d try to get some sleep until he would eventually come to bed. he didn’t have any schedules tomorrow which meant you both could sleep in if you wanted. after flicking off your bedside lamp, you snuggled into the sheets, bringing the comforter up to your chin.

sleep proved to be more elusive than you thought as you turned from side to side, then felt hot and had to kick your leg outside of the blanket before getting worried about monsters and putting it back inside. the point was: you couldn’t sleep without your koala. everything felt so empty and naked without him, having grown accustomed to the way he snuggled you every night as you drifted off. it felt like your skin was electric, crawling without the steady pressure he provided you every night, like a human weighted blanket.

with an exasperated sigh, you reach over to your phone, the time glowed.

12:45

he’d worked long enough, you decided and shuffled into the kitchen. stopping at the entry way, you took in his appearance. he was hunched over his computer, a knee tucked into his chest. his blue light blockers rested on his nose and though he was writing with a pen, he still had a pencil behind his ear. his long hair with faded color from the last comeback was messily tied up in a half ponytail and you started to realize that when he changed after work he had put on one of your tshirts.

god, he was so beautiful.

without a word you unceremoniously threw your leg over his lap and straddled him. a surprised hum turned into a low chuckle as he removed his headphones and tucked his face into the crook of your neck and exhaled deeply. felix had been so immersed in his work he had forgotten his surroundings and suddenly felt the way his eyes stung as he closed them for the first time in hours. his tight shoulders finally relaxed with the weight of your arms slung across them and he fully melted into your touch, letting the full weight of his exhaustion overtake him.

“it’s time for bed, lixie.” you mumbled cutely with your cheeks squished against him.

he could hear how tired you were but the guilt and desire of wanting to finish resounded in his gut. the aussie thought about his group mates and how hard they worked, especially chris, and he didn’t want the burden of songwriting to rest solely on their shoulders. he also thought about stay and how they deserved well done music and his hard work.

as if you could feel the wheels turning in his mind within the silence—you did— you reached up and playfully smacked the back of his head, still wrapped up against him. once again you felt the rumble of his body vibrate against you as he chuckled at your antics.

“the missile is eepy! he’s had a long day of splashing bandits!” you childishly fussed at him.

felix let out a laugh, knowing the tiktok you were paraphrasing that you likely sent him, picturing the tired cat in his mind. he then let out a long sigh, knowing that you were right and that it was time to sleep, also that you wouldn’t let up on him any time soon.

“fine. you win.” his deep, tired australian accent sighed out.

with you still clutching to him, he saved his work before closing his laptop and lifted you by your bum so he could carry you back into the bedroom. the two of you settled into your comfy bed, your head resting on his chest and his arms ever wrapped around you. the sound of his steady breaths and thumping heartbeat had you asleep in no time.

“good night, my angel. i love you.” you heard the quiet whisper and felt his gentle kiss before you drifted off.

[kokushibosbestie]

pookie can you make a tanjiro playlist?🥺 it’s oki if not ofc💖💖💖💖

✿ Tanjiro Kamado Playlist ✿

A/N: YES MY LOVE HERE YOU GO! I'M SORRY IT TOOK A FEW DAYS :')

Before You Go - Lewis Capaldi Love & War - Yellow Claw, Yade Lauren Arcade - Duncan Let Me Down Slowly - Alec Benjamin Water Fountain - Alec Benjamin If We Have Each Other - Alec Benjamin STAY - The Kid LAROI, Justin Bieber Save Your Tears - The Weeknd Tadow - Masego, FKJ Out of My League - Fitz and The Tantrums Dandelions - Ruth B. Helpless - Phillipa Soo, Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton pov - Ariana Grande no tears left to cry - Ariana Grande Die For You - The Weeknd, Ariana Grande Halo - Beyoncé Just the Way You Are - Bruno Mars Sunroof - Nicky Youre, Dazy Sunflower - Post Malone, Swae Lee Adore You - Harry Styles Sucker - Jonas Brothers Lost in Japan - Shawn Mendes I Like Me Better - Lauv After Tonight - Justin Nozuka Lovebug - Jonas Brothers Enchanted (Taylors Version) - Taylor Swift Rude - MAGIC! Eastside - benny blanco, Halsey, Khalid Count On Me - Bruno Mars Lost Boy - Ruth B. Snowman - Sia Scars to Your Beautiful - Alessia Cara As It Was - Harry Styles Lush Life - Zara Larsson Dinero - Trinidad Cardona House of Memories - Panic! At the Disco Diamonds - Sam Smith Never Say Never - Justin Bieber Shape of You - Ed Sheeran Perfect - Ed Sheeran Maria Maria - Santana, The Product G&B If You Had My Love - Jennifer Lopez Skedaddle - Mannywellz Watermelon Sugar - Harry Styles Lights Up - Harry Styles Nonsense - Sabrina Carpenter i like the way you kiss me - Artemas Sure Thing - Miguel Mayonaka no Door / Stay With Me - Miki Matsubara Rather Be - Clean Bandit, Jess Glynne Stereo Hearts - Gym Class Heroes, Adam Levine Dance, Dance - Fall Out Boy Sugar, We're Goin Down - Fall Out Boy Still Into You - Paramore

So yes, what I'm trying to say is that THE Tanjiro would listen to Harry Styles, Alec Benjamin and Ed Sheeran often. Not much rock for this one because I think Tanjiro wouldn't want to listen to that. Also, the singer and writer of Mayonaka no Door is named Miki too!!! That's so cool ngl!

NONE OF THE PICTURES OR SONGS BEING USED / MENTIONED ARE MINE, ONCE AGAIN THEY ARE NOT MINE. ALL CREDITS GO TO ORIGINAL POSTERS / CREATORS!!!

[kyliafanfiction]

I saw a bit in a Taylor/Amy fic (the latest chapter of Desperate Times Call for Desperate Pleasures) where Amy compared Taylor to a Necromancer Princess (it fits in Context) and that immediately made me think of a Fantasy AU of Worm. No shards/powers, or at least not in the Worm way, but playing with the characters.

And of course that has me thinking about who everyone would be in such a story idea:

Taylor - necromancer, obviously, given the inspiration. Maybe not a princess, but of some high birth. Danny Hebert is still his canon personality, but as a necromancer. Probably a distant father since the death of Annette. Maybe he's consumed with trying to find ways to restore her to full life or something. Doesn't control bugs, maybe? Or maybe she controls swarms of dead insects in addition to or instead of the usual skeletons and zombies? I'd lean to no bugs, just skeletons and zombies, but YMMV. Keeping her bullied/etc experience may be harder, but if Emma is also a noblewoman, perhaps of higher status (maybe Taylor's low nobility? Or not at all?)

Amy - she's a cleric of some healing-related goddess, presumably? The rest of her family are probably all Knights and Paladins of some sort. Her birth father could be some sort of Bandit King type guy who played up a 'honorable highwayman' schtick (and may actually have been a noble as well as a bandit) akin to the 'code' and 'better than the other villains' thing he had going in canon. Her guilt over not healing all the time probably wouldn't be a thing because there'd be too many other healers, but you could still play with the idea, and she'd still have that separation from her family because she's not a warrior.

Tattletale - no magic, just really smart. Probably a 'Rogue', if we were applying classes to it.

Rachel - Ranger, obviously. Has a wolf animal companion, maybe actually gainfully employed as one of the Royal Huntsmen or someone who prevents poaching on a King's Forest type place. or maybe she's a poacher herself. Probably the latter, but the former could be done well, IMO. Either way, definitely still pretty feral from not spending a lot of time around most people.

Brian - maybe some kind of Paladin of darkness type thing. He could be sworn to Taylor's father as her bodyguard (and Taylor still has her canonical attraction to him).

Alec - I'm honestly not sure. If I were wedging it into D&D classes, some form of Bard, but I wouldn't necessarily want to be bound specifically to classes. Still, he could either have magic specially around manipulation and controlling of the body, or maybe he's like, half-demon, or quarter-demon (and Heartbreaker is either a demon or half-demon) and that's the source of his power. I lean towards the latter.

Aisha - Illusionist? Uses her magic for lots of pranks and stuff, and gets really good at making herself invisible, etc.

New Wave - as I noted, the rest of New Wave would probably be knights/paladins of some sort. Maybe Vicky, Sarah, Crystal and Eric ride griffons or some other flying beast? Vicky on a Pegasus sounds really fitting. Also probably a noble family, but definitely recently ennobled or low nobility, to play into the privileged WASP upper middle class vibe New Wave has in Worm

Lung - could be an actual Dragon, could be a guy who shapeshifts into one, maybe a half-dragon (playing on his half-chinese/half-japanese canon backstory and how he was an outsider in Japan as a result). Warlord or roaming bandit type guy, probably. Oni Lee would be a teleporting assassin who works for him, and Bakuda as an alchemist making explosive compounds and such is there.

Armsmaster - a master Smith and warrior. Already has a Halberd. maybe he does enchanted runes into his weapons or something to make them sharper

Miss Militia - either she's a super skilled archer of some sort, or maybe a magic who specializes in big, flashy attack spells (fireball, etc)

Dragon - Secretly a construct (or disembodied animating spirit?) of some kind that has free will and sentience, but pretends just to be a construct-crafting mage? Might not be able to keep using that name if Dragons are a thing in-setting. Depends.

Kaiser - probably a normal noble in his public face (Max, of the House of Anders), known for his charity towards the poor (only the humans, of course), but secretly the leader of a racist militia-type group that persecutes nonhumans in the Kingdom? Or specific groups of humans. Or both. Probably doesn't have magical powers, but does have some cool enchanted gear he paid a fortune for, and hides just how good he is with a sword, except in his secret persona?

Hookwolf - actual werewolf? Still works for Anders, presumably.

None of these thoughts are necessarily final, really, and I have a few more, but nothing quite formed yet.

Obviously, more might need to worked out, including plot and the particulars of the setting (is Brockton the whole Kingdom? Is Brockton Bay one city? A major focus? Maybe Brockton Bay is a larger region, and some of the various parts of the Bay are distinct cities and towns in the Bay area. I have a setting that involves both Paladins and Necromancers in prominent roles that I might repurpose if I was going to write this... which I still might, but not yet).

Other characters could play all sorts of roles, would have to think more on their equivalent versions. Can't just make everyone some flavor of wizard/warlock/witch/etc, and wouldn't want to be married to specific 'classes', but it's a solid starting point anyway.

What would you all envision 'Fantasy AU' versions of some of the characters? Do you think I'm way off the mark with some of them? Obviously 'Fantasy AU' covers a wide swath of possibilities, so there's a lot of variation. Still, curious as to people's ideas with it.

Obviously, if I wrote it, it would be Taylor/Amy in the long run, (I am nothing if not a predictable, hopeless shipper) maybe involving Taylor (and the AU's version of the Undersiders?) kidnapping Amy at some point, who knows.

[bourbonificould]

what's your opinion on ben

Oh Ben, oh boy

I think Ben Paul is great character for the narrative of Season 1. He’s scared, flimsy and makes a shit ton of mistakes. While I don’t really have any personal connection or real “love” for him, I feel like he perfectly rounds up the Season 1 crew.

I believe it was cut content, but the bandits were the same people who… did things to those who lived alongside Ben at his camp, so him being scared of them totally makes sense to me and should genuinely be a common consensus around the fandom.

The one thing I won’t forgive him for doing is living Clem on the street alone, but otherwise I feel like he fulfills his purpose as the scared kid (I think he’s 17-18 tho? Still a kid compared to the others) who can’t seem to get himself together

As for his deaths, I think those are very good actually. The Bell Tower one has good meaning, Ben knows he’s fucked everything up and just wants it to end and Lee can either grant him his wish, or keep belief in him.

The Alleyway death, while I feel like the way he fell was a little flimsy, is a great way to round off his relationship with Kenny and to end his arc of panic in a peaceful way.

All in all, I think when it comes to how he was written, Ben is an A tier character in my opinion. As for my personal favorites, I’d have him Low A-High B.

[stressed-and-fluff-obsessed]

Can you plsss do a switch lee and ler pomni and gummigoo tickle war! :)

I can certainly try!

Passing Time

Summary: Pomni helps her new friend Gummigoo pass time after the truck crash in quite an interesting way

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

Well this was quite the unfortunate situation.

Pomni and Gummigoo had been run off the trail where they were chasing the bandits who stole the maple syrup and technically Gummigoo was one of those bandits but he seemed nice enough and now they were stuck at the bottom of a ravine with nothing to do.

“Soooo…what do you like to do?” Pomni asked the gummy gator, trying to make conversation and the gator glanced her way. “Well I like to talk with my mates during missions, count the stars at night to keep myself busy on long nights. How about you?” Gummigoo asked her, turning to the little jester who looked at her feet.

“Well when I first came here to this digital world I didn’t really know anyone and was really scared but that was before I met my friends Ragatha and Jax, I like to talk with them and go on adventures with them to keep myself sane.” Pomni explained, smiling in Gummigoo’s direction, “Kind of like you.” She remarked and he smiled at her.

“Yeah kinda.” Gummi replied, gazing at the sides of the ravine. Eventually Pomni got an idea, she stood and picked up a rock off the ravine floor and used the rocky walls to sharpen that rock to a point and began drawing with it on the first flat surface she could find.

“What are ya doin?” Gummi asked her, standing up and walking over to where the jester was drawing. “I’m drawing.” Pomni replied and he nodded, observing the drawing of herself she was creating.

“It’s rather good.” Gummi told her and she turned to smile at him, “Thanks! Do you want me to draw you too?” Pomni asked him and the question caught him off guard, nobody’s ever asked him that before.

“Sure kid.” He replied and she grinned before turning back to her drawing and starting the one of Gummigoo.

They say in silence for a while more, Gummigoo had leaned up against one of the walls and had his head back and his hat on his face sleeping before being jolted awake as Pomni exclaimed that she was done.

After being woken up the gator stood, placing his hat the right way on his head before wandering over to look at the work. It was a drawing of him and Pomni side by side and for a digital world surprisingly well done.

“Nice drawin kid.” Gummi told her and she smiled at him, “Thanks.” She replied, walking away from the wall and pacing back and forth.

Seeing that Pomni had figured out what to do once more, he just stared at her confused and slightly impressed. S(Bonk!)t this kid knew how to be productive.

Since Pomni was still pacing and at this point muttering to herself he decided to go back to his earlier plan of sleeping, walking back over to the stone wall and sitting down to lean up against it before once more tipping his head back and covering his snout with his hat and dozing off.

Gummigoo got to sleep for a good 25 minutes before being awoken again by the sound of a thump and a loud yelp. He took the hat off his face and looked to see what made that noise and quickly his eyes landed on Pomni who was now on the ground.

“What happened kid? You alright?” The gator asked her, standing up and walking over. “Y-Yeah I’m okay..I tried to climb the wall to see if that would be a way out, it didn’t work.” Pomni replied, rubbing her head from where she supposedly fell on it.

“Gotta be more careful.” Gummi told her before helping her up and walking over to the edge of a chocolate lake and throwing little gumdrops (rocks) in it.

“What are you doing?” Pomni asked him, walking up beside him as he handed her a gumdrop. “Throwing stones, it’s oddly relaxing you should try it.” He replied and she looked down at the little object in her hand before chucking it at the lake and smiling when it seemed to go far.

“Nice throw kid.” Gummi praised her, glancing her way before throwing another. Pretty soon they ran out of rocks to throw and were bored once more.

Gummigoo walked over to the stone wall and leaned up against it, watching as Pomni walked back out to the stone floor and started pacing one more, “What’s up with this kid and pacing?” Gummi thought but didn’t ask her about it.

A few minutes later Pomni had gotten an idea and walked over to one of the stalagmites sticking out from the floor and broke the sharp end off. “Kid?? That’s sharp what the f{Boing!} are you doin??” Gummigoo asked her, alarmed by what she was doing with the large stone.

“Don’t worry Gummigoo I’ve got this!” Pomni exclaimed, carrying the stalagmite over to one of the corners of the ravine and planting the sharp end in the ground before dragging it across, attempting to write a message in the cocoa powder dirt.

“That’s…actually pretty smart. Good on ya kid.” The gator told her and she threw a thumbs up and a grin in his direction as she continued dragging the object across the ground.

A little while later Pomni had finished and heaved the rock over to another side of the ravine before brushing her hands together and admiring her handiwork.

Gummigoo noticed that Pomni had finished with what she was doing so he stood up fully and walked over to where she was standing. Pomni noticed that he had come to stand beside her so she pointed at the message and he looked down to see that it read, “Help.” How typical.

Gummigoo turned his face away and placed his candy snout in the hand, snickering softly catching Pomni’s attention. “What’s so funny?” Pomni asked him, grinning as he turned around to face her once more.

“Thahat won’t cuhuhut it kid. We gohotta wait.” Gummigoo replied and she crossed her arms over her chest with a mock-offended huff. “You don’t know that.” Pomni told him, sticking her tongue out like a child making his snickers start up again.

“Whahatever gets ya thehere kid.” He replied, going back over to the stone wall and leaning up against it once more, watching as Pomni started to pace again. How would they get out of this ravine?

~*~

Up on the surface the truck crashed and the bandits were tied up nearby and the rest of the circus were standing around. Kinger and Gangle were playing rock paper scissors and Ragatha and Jax were bickering again.

“Come on Jax we need to think logically! How are we going to rescue Pomni?” Ragatha snapped at the rabbit, folding her arms across her chest. Jax shrugged and grinned at her, “Come on Dollface Pomni can take care of herself, she’ll be fine.” Jax replied and Ragatha turned away in thought.

“That is true but still I want to make sure she’s okay.” Ragatha told him, turning back around with a determined look on her face. “Gangle!” Ragatha called out to the ribbon girl and she turned, momentarily pausing her and Kinger’s game.

“Do you have any idea where Pomni might be?” The doll asked and she shook her head no with a small sob, Ragatha nodded in understanding and turned to the chess piece.

“Kinger? What about you?” Ragatha asked him and he placed a hand on his head, thinking. “I don’t know but I do know that they toppled off the cliff that way.” Kinger told her and her eyes lit up as she spotted the cliff he was referring to.

“Yes! You’re the best Kinger!” Ragatha exclaimed and shooed everyone into the truck, the cliff was a ways away so they still had to get there but Pomni would be rescued soon.

~*~

“Ughhh I’m so f(Sproing!)-ing bored!” Pomni exclaimed, sinking down to sit on the ground. “Well not much we can really do about that kid.” Gummigoo told her and she groaned, placing her face in her hands.

“All we can do is wait.” Gummi told her again and she grumbled, annoyed by the lack of things to do, it was a lot different at the circus, Caine was there and he always had something for her and her friends to do. Where’s that ringleader when you need him?

Gummigoo then tipped his head back and his hat onto his snout, folding his arms behind his head which gave Pomni an idea. An idea that Caine would always have her and the others partake in and it would sure pass the time here.

Slowly she crept up to the gator, careful not to startle him and inform him of her plan, she crept closer, watching the ground for rocks and twigs and finally she got close enough to him, kneeling beside the gummy alligator, this would be interesting.

She then reached a single finger out and poked him in the side. At first she didn’t think that did anything before she noticed how much he had tensed up, “Oi what was that for?” Gummigoo asked her, lifting his hat off his face and looking at her.

“You wouldn’t happen to be ticklish would you?” Pomni asked him, a smile slowly creeping on her face as she poked him again and again causing him to stumble away from her. “N-No what kinda question is that?” Gummigoo snapped at her with more aggression than preferred, only proving Pomni’s statement.

“I think you are~” Pomni sang, climbing on top of him when he fell back, trying to escape her hold. “W-What makes ya think that?!” Gummi snapped at her again and she grinned before tapping the spot under her eye indicating that he was blushing, s(Bong!)t.

“Now let’s prove this theory…” Pomni told him before lowering her hands and scribbling over his stomach causing him to flinch and curl up, giggling almost immediately.

“I knew it!” Pomni exclaimed, happy to have learned this about her new friend, “K-Kihihihihid wahahahahait!” Gummigoo protested, holding his hands out in front of him but Pomni only used that as an opportunity and snaked her hands under his arm to tickle him there.

The gator quickly slammed his arms down and started wrestling with her to get her off. “Ahrihihight thehehen, tahahahake thihihis!” Gummigoo exclaimed before reaching his claws up and scratching at Pomni’s ribs.

The little jester crumbled with a giggly yelp, falling off the gator and onto her back, Gummigoo taking this opportunity to get her back. “Hohow do you lihike that!” Gummi exclaimed victoriously as he scratched over her ribs, her on the other hand batting at his hands.

“Ahaha! Guhuhuhummigohohoo!” Pomni laughed, gaining a mock offended look on her face as he laughed with her. “Dohohohon’t lahahaugh at mehehehe!” Pomni whined, reaching up again and scribbling over the gator’s sides, getting him once more.

“Nohohohoho good kihihid ihits nohohot bahahad for me thehehere!” Gummigoo told her but then she got a more determined look in her eye before reaching both her arms up and practically hugging him before flipping herself and him, effectively swapping their positions and lifting herself from him, going for his hips.

“Thehehen how about hehehere?” Pomni asked him and he bucked, bursting out laughing and crumbling more than the previous spot. “Thehehere’s my ahansweheher.” Pomni grinned at him as he tossed his head back and laughed, they would be here a little while.

~*~

Back with the other group, Ragatha had her head out the window, Jax and Kinger were out of the hatch and Gangle was driving. “Any eyes on them yet Dollface?” Jax called from the top of the truck.

“Not yet!” She called back, “Oh Pomni where are you..?” Ragatha trailed off, going back to her seat. “I’m sure we’ll find them Ragatha.” Gangle spoke up, also looking out for them.

“I really hope so.” The doll remarked, gazing out the window longingly. At that moment Kinger and Jax returned from the hatch and wandered over. “Any luck?” Kinger asked them and Ragatha shook her head.

“Not yet but we’re looking, hopefully we’ll find her soon.” Ragatha replied, glancing back at Jax who just looked indifferent. “You doing okay back there Jax?” The doll asked him and the question startled the purple rabbit but the grin quickly returned to his face.

“Never better Doll, touched you care though.” Jax replied in his same snarky tone making her roll her eyes, they’ll find them, it just might take a little while.

~*~

Back with Gummigoo and Pomni, the gator had managed to overpower her once more, having her flat on her back and going after her neck. Her shoulders were scrunched up and her face was covered by her hands as honey-sweet giggles poured out of her.

“Guhuhuhummigohohoo!” Pomni giggled, batting at the other’s hands once more as she ‘fought’ him off. “Yehes kid?” Gummigoo teased her, moving his hand down and wiggling his claws into her stomach making her curl up and laugh harder.

“Wahahait a mihihinute!” Pomni exclaimed before taking hold of his tail that was resting nearby and scratching over the candy spikes. Immediately the gator fell off her with a yelp, dissolving into loud cackles as she ‘attacked’ him.

“K-KIHIHIHID WAHAHAHAIT!!” Gummi cackled, tail flicking violently in her hold. “Are you sure you’re not enjoying this? Your tail is a dead giveaway~” Pomni taunted him with a laugh and he shook his head, covering his snout with one hand and pounded his fist on the ground with the other.

Pomni laughed along with him until she started laughing nearly as hard as he was moments ago as she felt two hands knead at each of her outer thighs, apparently Gummigoo had managed to muster up enough strength to ball his claws into fists and get her back.

Quickly the roles were swapped once more, being practically the main thing needed to stand Pomni fell over onto her side and the gator quickly scrambled on top of her and continued tickling her thighs.

“H-Ha! You wohohon’t gehehet me thahat easy..” Gummigoo pressed out through his giggles, currently amused by the fact that he was playfully tormenting the little jester.

“GUHUHUHUMMIGOHOHOO WAHAHAHAIT!!” Pomni screeched, kicking her legs and thrashing about through bouts of laughter. “Wait? Nahhh I don’t think so mate.” The gator teased her and she lay there, laughing hard until she somehow gained a burst of energy and escaped his grasp, quickly stumbling away from him and breathing hard.

“Thahahat…wahas ehehevil..” Pomni pressed out, “Yeah? I’m a bandit kid and you know what?Because of that comment I’m about to be more ‘evil’” Gummigoo grinned at her, standing and readying himself into a running position and charging at her, Pomni bracing herself the same with a grin as he did so.

~~~~

“Guys we found it!” Ragatha exclaimed, hopping out of the now parked truck as they finally reached the cliff where Pomni fell down. “Nice job Gangle!” Kinger exclaimed as he and the ribbon girl stepped out of the truck.

“Oh yay we found it, now can we find Pomni and go home? I’m getting sick of this f(Splat!)-ing place.” Jax muttered, leaving the truck and wandering over to the cliff side.

“Oi Pomni!! You down there?!” Jax shouted at the space as the other three joined his side. A few beats of silence save for the occasional rock tumble and then they heard her. “Yeah Jax we’re down here!!” Pomni yelled back up at him, backing up into view of her team and seemingly with a yellow and green alligator.

“Don’t worry Pomni we’ll get you out of there!” Ragatha called down to her and Jax scoffed, “Speak for yourselves I did my part.” Jax told them before wandering off. “Pomni take this!” Kinger called down to her before quite literally throwing an anchor on a rope down the hole.

They watched the anchor descend before hearing it hit the ground with a loud *Clang!!* “You okay Pomni?!” Ragatha yelled down at her again and Pomni shouted back a few minutes later.

“I’m okay but no more anchors preferably!!” Pomni yelled and Ragatha chuckled a little, “Will do!”

~*~

Eventually the team got Pomni and Gummigoo out of the hole. “So who are you?” Ragatha asked Gummigoo as they rode back to the candy kingdom to return the syrup.

“Names Gummigoo.” The gator replied, “Your jester friend here makes for some good entertainment, good time passer too.” He finished, grinning at Pomni whose face flushed red.

“Oooo Pomni’s face is redder than Dollface’s hair, what happened? I gotta know.” Jax spoke up, grinning as Pomni shot him and Gummigoo death glares, “Don’t you dare.” Pomni snarked at the gator but he only shrugged.

“She’s ticklish as hell.” Gummigoo replied and immediately Pomni’s gaze shot to Jax and his shot to hers, his grin quickly grew wide and a mischievous glint entered his eyes.

You know maybe some things are best kept secret….

(So sorry this was late, it’s short as well but I did my best, this was my first time writing for tadc but I hope you enjoyed! ^^’)

[thepoisonroom]

hello sorry if you've been asked this recently but could you recommend some good adult trans books 👉👈 no worries if you don't!!

there are lots of good ones and i've fallen out of the loop since i left my bookstore job! there's sometimes this attitude that trans writers can only be successful in some genres but there are great trans writers in lots of genres! so have tried to include a mix of genres here to highlight some of that abundance, and because i don't know what you like so want to include many things that i think might spark your curiosity.

i'm leaving a lot of classics off that i'm sure you've heard of or have been told to read, as well as some stuff i read that i didn't love and don't feel i can vouch for. there's also lots of good stuff for younger readers (have esp heard good things about sisters of dorley hall and when the angels left the old country) which is really heartening when i remember furtively reading the one trans novel for teens at my library when i was little! and i like that there are trans characters for younger readers now who don't have tragic endings. but anyway:

i really like anything by casey plett, particularly her novel little fish! i loved ivan coyote's rebent sinner for kind of autobiographical vignettes as well as gender failure which they wrote with rae spoon. gretchen felker-martin and alison rumfitt are big faves if you like horror, they're both so smart and unsparing. your body is not your body if you want a good taste of lots of different trans horror authors. the seep by chana porter for meditative sci-fi. the fifth wound by aurora mattia which is hard to describe but v gorgeous. paul takes the form of a mortal girl if you want something kind of carefree and horny and fun and not devastating or upsetting. summer fun by jeanne thornton if you've ever been like what if velvet goldmine were based on the beach boys. i like confessions of the fox by jordy rosenberg but i think the ideal audience for this book is like transmasc grad students who are horny in a neurotic way so it's not for everyone. stone fruit by lee lai was my favorite graphic novel of 2022 and it's a really beautiful examination of breakups and caring for children as a queer person and also forgiving your family. gaylord phoenix if you like your graphic novels weird.

books from my own to-read list that i've heard good things about from people i trust (have included author names only where the title alone isn't specific enough to find the right book):

wrath goddess sing (if you like mythology remixes)

a natural history of transition (magical realist short stories)

manywhere: stories (unsettling also magical realist short stories)

chromatic fantasy (graphic novel, trans guy nun has sex with the devil and has a romance with a robin hood-type trans guy bandit)

finna (gay trans multiverse travel in an IKEA)

X by davey davis (bdsm psychological thriller)

idlewild (transmasc fujoshi tumblrinas have a toxic bestieship)

girlfriends by emily zhou (slice of life short stories)

boys weekend (graphic novel, bachelorx weekend turns into a cult murder mystery)

the boy with the bird in his chest (magical realist coming of age)

the call-out (gossipy novel in verse)

nettleblack (victorian transmasc hijinks)

the story of silence (medieval n magical french trans hijinks based on the historical poem)

unfortunate elements of my anatomy (horror short stories)

bad girls by camila sosa villada (magical realist coming of age epic)

apsara engine (south asian graphic vignettes)

future feeling (funny bizarre sci-fi)

everyone on the moon is essential personnel (cyberpunk body horror weirdness)

[fibula-rasa]

Lost, but Not Forgotten: Two Kinds of Women (1922)

Alternate Title: Judith of Blue Lake Ranch

Direction: Colin Campbell & George C. Bertholon (assistant)

Adapted Scenario: Winifred Dunn

Based on: Judith of Blue Lake Ranch by Jackson Gregory (novel)

Production Manager: R.J. Tobin

Camera: Dev Jennings

Editing: Pauline Frederick (editing supervisor), Colin Campbell, & Dev Jennings

Studio: Robertson-Cole (Production & Distribution)

Performers: Pauline Frederick, Tom Santschi, Charles Clary, Dave Winter, Eugene Pallette, Billy Elmer, Jack Curtis, Jim Barley, Sam Appel, Otis Harlan, Clarissa Selwynne, Jean Calhoun, Tom Bates, Lydia Yeamans Titus, Frank Clark, Bud Sterling, Elise Collins, Joseph Singleton, & Stanhope Wheatcroft (not mentioned after release, but listed during production: L.C. Shumway)

Premiere: Opened at Loew’s State Theatre on 3 February 1922; preview screenings for reviewers in NYC, 27 January

Status: presumed entirely lost

Length: 6 reels,  ~6,000 feet (a few sources say 5, most say 6)

Synopsis (synthesized from magazine summaries of the plot):

Judith Sanford (Frederick) inherits the sizable Blue Lake Ranch after the unexpected death of her father. Upon her arrival, she discovers that the ranch’s manager, Trevors (Clary), has been systematically undermining the value of the ranch. Judith confronts him, fires him, and wings him with her pistol as severance. 

The horse foreman, Bud Lee (Santschi), had suspected Trevors’ dirty dealing, but questions if he can work for a woman. Regardless of his doubts, Bud respects Judith’s goals and remains loyal to the ranch.

As there are still men working on the ranch loyal to Trevors, Judith’s employees are divided. One of Trevors’ hires, Quinnion (Curtis) rebukes Judith and suggests she can’t even ride. She challenges him to bring her a horse he thinks she can’t ride. Judith successfully rides the wild broncho and Quinnion is cowed, leaving the ranch bitterly. The incident wins Judith the respect of the men, including Bud and Carson (Pallette), the cattle foreman.

Judith’s next point of action is tracking down the staff Trevors ousted, most importantly the ranch vet, Doc Tripp (Clark). Tripp returns and uncovers that disease-infected animals have been intentionally introduced to the ranch’s stock. Judith runs Trevors’ vet, Crowdy (Appel), off the ranch.

Hampton, a city boy and one-third owner of the ranch, is unhappy when he hears of Trevors’ firing and decides to pay a visit to Blue Lake. (In reality, he’s dodging his creditors.) The visiting socialites are rankled by Judith’s cowgirl togs and no-nonsense demeanor. Alternately, the ultra ladylike Marcia (Calhoun), Hampton’s fiancee, finds a new devotee in Bud.

On the night of their arrival, Judith learns that the employee she sent to collect the payroll has been robbed. Bud races to the bank overnight to return to pay the staff the following day. As Bud is on his way back, his horse is shot out from under him, but he manages to reach the ranch just in time.

That night, Bud and Judith set out to track down the bandits and recover the stolen payroll. At a cabin in the mountains, they catch the robber after a shootout and find it’s the discharged vet, Crowdy. They agree to stay overnight to guard the injured Crowdy. To pass the time, Judith pulls a book from an unexpectedly well-stocked library in the cabin and sees that the books belong to Bud! They’re interrupted when Quinnion attacks to save Crowdy and another shootout ensues.

Fortunately, Judith’s absence from the ranch was noticed by Hampton. He has mounted up with Bud’s assistant, Tommy, and they arrive in time to save the pair and manage to capture another of Trevors’ agents, Benny (Barley). Benny is locked up, but is freed overnight, meaning there are still more of Trevors’ men lurking. Bud pledges his loyalty to Judith, but then has a romantic foray with Marcia.

Despite the hubbub, the annual Blue Lake dance is held. Carson kits out the workers in suits mail-ordered from Sears-Roebuck, which they accessorise with guns and ammo belts. Bud, it turns out, has a tailored suit of his own that he unpacks and presses for the occasion. He is bewildered when he arrives at the dance and sees a perfectly feminine Judith in a fashionable Parisian gown. Fully enamored with “the real Judith,” Bud whisks her off to the porch and kisses her.

Judith is surprised to find an urgent note from Doc Tripp awaiting her after the dance. The note explains that he has uncovered another Trevors mole and has been wounded. Judith rushes to Tripp, but is waylaid and kidnapped. She manages to remove the mask from one of her abductors and it’s Trevors himself! 

Three days pass. Hampton suddenly orders Carson to prepare 500 head of cattle to be sold at a loss. Immediately suspicious, Bud rides to the ranch house and is told that Judith left for San Francisco three days prior. Given Hampton’s fishy assumption of command, Bud and Carson tie him up while they investigate Judith’s real whereabouts. They discover the forged note and confirm with Tripp that he didn’t write it. With mistrust toward Hampton building, they place him under guard and ride to confront Trevors.

In all that time, Judith has been kept prisoner in the mountains by Quinnion. When Quinnion attacks her, Judith seizes an opportunity to escape, but quickly learns that her prison is set among perilous cliffs. Quinnion gives chase, they struggle, and he plummets to his death. Hopelessly lost and exhausted from her ordeal, Judith makes a last ditch effort for rescue by lighting a signal fire before losing consciousness.

Bud and Carson find Trevors and a wild fist fight breaks out. Bud trounces Trevors and Trevors is forced to leave town for good, but not before revealing where he’s hidden Judith. Bud rescues Judith and they all return to the ranch. After they have had time to recover from their respective tribulations, Bud and Judith reunite and embrace.

——— ——— ———

Points of Interest:

Pauline Frederick made 55 silent feature films in her career. Of those 55 films 45-6 of the films are presumed lost or mostly lost. [One film’s status is unclear ATM.] Of the 9 known to survive, 3 are incomplete (2 are missing at least one reel and the 3rd survives in an abridged cut).  Of the surviving 9, three have had home video releases [Three Women (1924), Devil’s Island (1926), and Smouldering Fires (1925)]. Of the 6 surviving films that haven’t had home-video release, 2 have been screened publicly in the past decade [The Love the Lives (1917) and The Moment Before (1916)]. A very rough record for a big star (who didn’t spend most of their career at Fox) to only have a 16-18% survival rate.

——— ——— ———

Winifred Dunn, prolific writer from a young age working in many genres, wrote/edited 33 silent features, 20 of which are presumed lost.

——— ——— ———

Two Kinds of Women was part of the schedule of R-C Pictures’ releases for early 1922. This was a crucial moment in the history of the company, as it was soon after re-organized into F.B.O. The founders exited the company, but so did Pauline Frederick, Sessue Hayakawa, Tsuru Aoki, and Doris May—their biggest stars going into 1922. 

While the contemporary critical response to TKoW was generally positive and exhibitors across the US and Canada cited good ticket sales, it didn’t leave much of a legacy. At least one contemporary critic, Laurence Reid, considered the film of decent quality but ultimately forgettable. Whether TKoW would have stood the test of time or not, we can’t know. Lost or not, I’m sure the re-organization of TKoW’s distributor affected its potential for long-term popularity. There is at least one instance from after the re-org of a theatre owner receiving a faulty print of the film. So, even by 1923, it was hard to come by a decent print of TKoW.

The reason I’m confident in placing blame on R-C/F.B.O. is that, of the slate of 20 films they released in late 1921 and early 1922, 16 are currently presumed lost and only 3 appear to be completely extant:

Lost: The Lure of Jade, The Sting of the Lash, The Foolish Age, Eden and Return, Five Days to Live, The Vermillion Pencil, A Wife’s Awakening, Silent Years, The Call of Home, The Barricade,Two Kinds of Women, Boy Crazy, Salvage, The Glory of Clementina, Gay and Devilish, and At the Stage Door  Extant: Where Lights Are Low, The Swamp (would live to see this one BTW), and Beyond the Rainbow

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Transcribed Sources & Annotations over on the WMM Blog!

[yamatologistt]

im like, what, 10 years late to the whole walking dead game thing but i was way too young back then to understand the game. i hope people still enjoy it, its a really good game (and sad) but im only up to season 3 right now (i only really liked s1 and s2) but im not finished so i cant really make decisions rn

i just want to talk about ben rn and evaluate him cause im rewatching it and now that hes my favourite i notice more things about him now. (i literally look at him everytime hes in frame even if its just showing the back of his head oml)

but anyway i see a lot of ben hate and sure i get it but i dont at the same time ben is so silly how can u hate him

- to start, when we first met ben in the woods, he’d already been through some stuff, like he saw his classmate off herself and turn into a walker, his camp got raided and he was left with 1 friend and his teacher (who both still die btw) so most of what he had left before the apocalypse was gone

- when lee is rationing out the food, if he gives ben food first, kenny comes and tells lee that there’s kids that need food too, and ben literally is like ‘sorry i didnt want any trouble’ like cmon, and he’s literally a kid too he deserves the food as much as anyone else

- on the train he is interested in the controls and being up there, so we can see that he generally enjoyed it. but once lee gets the engine going, kenny comes and ben immediately has to go babysit katjaa clem and duck (he is also visibly upset) AND THEN later on lee asks how ben was doing and he says ‘im watching the girls and not working on a mega cool train’ (let him on the train immediately 😠😠)

- ok, so maybe he did sneak supplies to the bandits and i think this is just me being biased but i feel like him giving the supplies held off the bandits a little. i mean think about it, they moved on from the st john’s farm and started taking from the motel, right? im not sure how the bandits asked ben (if they made it clear then i forgot) but if he refused wouldnt the bandits come attack even earlier? i mean they needed the supplies right, and if ben didnt give them anything to begin with they would have raided the motel anyway. i mean they knew where they were even before the st john incident. idk its just a thought

- i think it was cool how ben managed to confess to lee that he was the one who slipped the bandits supplies. like you can tell ben is a good guy cause the guilt was almost literally eating him from the inside. and even though ben isnt one of the bravest people, he still confessed knowing that lee’s reaction wouldnt be pretty. (also his stance when leaning on the train railing was so silly to me)

- after they meet christa and omid, ben tells lee that his biggest fear was to be eaten by the walkers. i mean he literally said that if he got bitten he would off himself 😢😢

- also ben was always referred to as a child but he was never treated like one, everyone excpected him to be brave and strong but in reality he was just some scrawny highschool student who was scared and couldnt live up to his impossible standards. man, i really just wanna give ben a big hug

- if you tell ben to “kill anything that gets in” he responds with “you know you’re talking to me, right?” poor ben

- even though his biggest fear is getting eaten by walkers, you still have the option to leave him behind, and let him go at the bell tower. i mean how could u do this to him hes already gone through enough

- lastly, the part where ben tells off kenny is literally iconic, that scene singlehandedly made ben one of my favourite characters of all time, i was like everyone else, i didnt care about ben because i thought he was a bad guy since i never really payed attention to him. but i swear when he was telling kenny off it felt like i was being told off too. i mean his point was valid too, kenny had his family to say goodbye to, and ben (and literally everyone else) never got to see their family, (or they saw them as walkers, lee and clem,, :( )

- i know the last point was meant to be the last one but cmon its ben i could type this for ages longer but yeah. he had the literal best character development in the game. at first he was some stupid kid who was always messing up and before he died he was an amazing character who deserved literally everything. omg i cried so hard when he died cause when he fell i was like, oh i think its ok the fall wasnt too far and he said he only hurt his leg, but bro once we saw what really happened my heart sank bro it was so sad i really hoped nothing bad happened to him ☹️☹️ but i think kenny did the right thing cause like we said, his worst fear was the walkers getting to him. gosh i feel like i watched his death for the first time ages ago and i still cant stop thinking about him man

anyways, i would literally do anything to give ben a massive hug, he did his best and he was literally so funny too :((

(thanks if u read this far btw, i just wanted to rant about this man i love him so much and i will defend him with my life) 😠‼️

[everyones-least-favorite-bard]

ORV WESTERN AU MASTERPOST

ill be coming back and editing this as i come up with more ideas/modify pre-existing ones

LORE BELOW

SETTING:

Generic cowboy/western movie city Stella River has been plagued by a violent gang war between two main factions and several subsets for nearly 40 years. One side headed by the owner of a massive coal mine near the town is mostly made up of gentlemen bandits and Robin Hood types--criminals with honor (so they say). The other is run by an oil baron, and is composed of more seedy, ruthless types. Stella River is soon to have a railway line constructed running through the town, and the two factions are fighting to see who gets control of it first.

CHARACTER ROLES:

Han Sooyoung: Stella River’s sheriff. She seems to have been bought out by the less reputable of the two factions and tends to maintain the facade so as to keep her true intentions under the radar. Faked Kim Dokja’s death for him and is gathering players to prepare to completely wipe Stella River clean of both sides of the war. She gets most of her information from Kim Dokja and Yoo Sangah, but a mysterious benefactor has also been leaving her tips...

Kim Dokja: a gunslinger going by the name ‘the Lone Star’. He doesn’t seem to be taking an active side in any of the fighting but still maintains amicable relationships with the majority of each groups members. A former employee of (han myungoh’s saloon), he owed a great debt to the owner until Stella River’s sheriff helped fake his death and brought him on to work with her as a spy running for both sides. He’s probably lost count of how many times over a double agent he is but it’s at least five.

Yoo Joonghyuk: a marshal called in by the mayor to help clean up the town. Born and raised out on the East Coast, he comes from a wealthy upper-class family, real socialite types, who he left behind after his engagement to fellow socialite Lee Seolhwa fell through. He began working as a deputy in a small town and quickly worked his way up the ranks and is now called in only for lost cause type places.

Yoo Sangah: a vaudeville performer at (han myungoh's saloon). She used to have an act with Kim Dokja before he faked his death. Another runaway socialite. Feeds information she receives or overhears from the saloon's patrons to Han Sooyoung directly or through Kim Dokja.

Lee Hyunsung: one of Stella River's deputies. He's not entirely clear on what Han Sooyoung is doing, but he knows Kim Dokja and trusts him implicitly, so he's pretty alright with doing whatever the two of them need him to do. Plays the role of naive do-gooder most of the time, but can be frighteningly capable under direction.

Jung Heewon: a rancher living just outside the city's limits. Before faking his death, Kim Dokja once helped her fend off (read: warned her and attempted to look menacing) a small team of bandits attacking her home. She begrudgingly begins working with Han Sooyoung et co when she discovers that the company she sold her products to was working with Eden.

Lee Gilyoung: an orphaned boy working in the coal mines. He begins following Kim Dokja after he helps clean him up after getting in a fight with some of the older boys at the mine. A remarkably good shot, and prone to attempting to defend Kim Dokja from any and everyone he deems a threat.

Shin Yoosung: a girl orphaned due to a hostage situation orchestrated by one of the warring factions. Kim Dokja saves her while still under his original name, and she is one of the first (and only people) to put together that he and the Lone Star are the same person. 

Lee Jihye: an intern of sorts sent to check on Yoo Joonghyuk. Also raised on the East Coast and another runaway from a more uptight family. Has the tendency to follow Yoo Joonghyuk like a baby duckling. She's brought officially onto the team working under Han Sooyoung as another deputy.

Biyoo: Kim Dokja’s daughter. It's unclear who exactly her other parent is but she's often seen with and has connections to Bihyung. She ferries Kim Dokja information from the mayor's office and often shows up to bail him out of whatever scrape he's landed himself in.

Lee Seolhwa: Stella River’s most capable doctor. A former socialite from the East Coast who, after an engagement with Yoo Joonghyuk fell through, was disowned from her family. She moved to Stella River about three years before Yoo Joonghyuk’s arrival and built a reputation for serving any patient appearing at her doorstep and negotiating payment later. 

Uriel: an heiress to the Eden family fortune and owner of a general store in Stella River. She becomes aware of much of her family’s involvement with Stella River’s corruption early on and blatantly begins supporting Kim Dokja under his alter ego. She's responsible for much of the gossip and sort of propaganda surrounding the Lone Star.

Bihyung: undersecretary to the mayor. Nebulously connected to Biyoo and by extension Kim Dokja. Passes information he gathers off to Biyoo and then pretends he doesn’t know what she does with it. Begrudgingly works with Han Sooyoung in hopes of running for mayor properly once she cleans out the town.

Anna Croft: owner of a nearby coal mine. Has control over several of Stella River’s small businesses and much of the trade/commerce coming to the city. Has nebulous ties to the mayor’s office but the nature of which is unclear. A member of Yoo Joonghyuk/Lee Seolhwa’s socialite circle but retained those connections.

(will add more characters as i put together their roles)

GENERAL MISC BITS:

kdj almost runs over yjh when the latter first arrives in town

(as has been est by the first mini comic) kdj gifts yjh a pocket watch that a la dark castle arc, is left by kdjs hospital bed after it stops a bullet that wouldve killed yjh

kdj fakes his death twice; once as kdj and once as the lone star. this number is not set in stone

the faking of his death as lone star runs much like the star wars clone wars rako hardeen arc

for the unaware: ITS REAL BAD

as @solcarow said. train car uncoupling scene. Oh My God

there is a cigarette lighting scene (yall know the one) with kdj and hsy

kdj makes his own outfit (hsy provides the material). everything is a little too big in the hopes that he’ll put on some muscle and grow into it (he does not)

kdj cannot shoot a gun. half his hits have been incidental and/or the result of rube-goldberg type contraptions

there is a chase scene involving a handcart piloted by hsy and yjh

yjh is somehow capable of every stupid gun trick seen in a western movie

the gun spinny is his happy stim a la sword dragging

lgy has crawled under tables and tied yjhs shoelaces together on multiple occasions

hsy and yjh have a full screaming match when kdj fakes his death the second time that ends with both of them shot (non fatally)

anna croft kidnaps biyoo and kdj goes full liam neeson taken on her ass. my guy confronts her in a traincar and shoots her in the kneecap

he also kills selena kim! just shoots her in the head when croft refuses to tell him where biyoo is

kdj fakes his death (at the time of writing) minimum 3 times, not including all the times people just think hes dead because of general Scheme Shenanigans

third time is the kicker! boy does it suck

im not adding too much here because i do have actual scenes i want to write/draw but! thats what ive got off the top of my head

massive shoutout to @bidokja for contributing at least half the Lore in this au ilysm

NOW WITH A FIC COLLECTION

[twdg-and-stuff]

hi!! could you do reader formerly apart of the motel group that was presumed dead (maybe lost in the bandit raid?) settling in at ericsons’s eventually a few years after and reuniting with clem in s4? it’s random and oddly specific but I hope you find it interesting enough to pursue! thanks :)

A/N: Hello!! I’d be happy to, I hope you like it!:) This kinda reminded me of Michonne and Jocelyn in TWD (minus the kidnapping kids part…) because I was rewatching S9 lol

Warnings: Assumption of death, Usual TWDG stuff

Clementine x Reader

If she was being honest, Clementine had completely forgotten about you. Maybe not completely, if someone randomly said your name she’d remember-but still, not a lot. You were a memory she’d shoved in the back of her head, forgotten but still there. She thought you’d died a long time ago.

You on the other hand, never stopped thinking a bout her. Not just Clementine, but the whole group. You forgot some people’s names, but remembered Clem’s because of how unique it was.

You’d been through countless groups since then, most had either died or just split up slowly. You made many friends along the way but none you remembered as well as Clementine.

One day, Clem was playing war with Louis and Violet.

“Alright, I get to ask Clem now.” Louis said.

He coughed before speaking.

“Someone you remember from an old group?”

Clem thought about it for a bit. They all knew about Lee, Kenny, and now obviously Lilly. She kept thinking, almost like sifting through files in her mind. She’d told them stories about basically everybody-then she remembered you.

“Hm, well there was this person in my first group. They were my friend. I miss them, they died during a raid from bandits that I told you guys about earlier.”

The table went silent.

Then, it was broken by yelling. Rosie began barking.

The three shot up and ran towards the gate.

Clem could make out 3 shadows. Two of which she knew was Aasim and Mitch. The other stood hunkered down between the two.

“We found Them Right outside the old safe zone.”

Clem walked farther towards them.

Her eyes widened when she realized.

It was you.

“Y/N?”

“Clementine?”

You both ran to hug each other, memories instantly flooding back.

“I thought you were dead.”

“I thought you were, too.”

The high of seeing an old friend quickly warned off when you both noticed your best friends, parental figures even, weren’t with either of you. You both assumed the worst.

-

You and Clem spent hours that night catching up.

Clem told you about Christa and Omid, The cabin group, Carver, Arvo, The new frontier, Javi and Gabe, Finding A.J.

You told her about the groups and people you’d met, bad people you’d run into before, anything you could remember.

Clementine was happy to have you back. To have someone who understood the first few months of the apocalypse for her was like.

[trrickytickle]

Clima-Tactics 🍊⛈️

A/N: i am a 🧪💥 SCIENTIFIC 💥🧪 gal. me and my brother went to the science museum of Hong Kong (where we are vacationing + childhood home!) and we watched a demonstration of static electricity and how it works through cool experiments. And I felt like I wanted to share science to you guys because I thought it was cool. I think everything is cool. And I like tickle fanfic so it's the best way to be sciencing. Also scienTIFFICALLY🤓 i don't think electricity can work as a tk tool. But One Piece operates by One Piece rules.

(post Alabasta. lee!Usopp, ler!Nami)

Nami uses her wiles to get even with Usopp after another loss thanks to the Clima-Tact's many built in party tricks.

tagging @duckymcdoorknob bc lee usopp

Again.

Nami had lost yet another fight. The cat burglar was particularly flimsy when it came to using brute force to get herself out of tough situations– now, however, she knew why she had walked away from a group of muscular small-time bandits broken and bruised, and it certainly wasn't because of her own incapabilities.

It was all thanks to the Clima-Tact.

Usopp's invention was intended to be a weapon tailored specifically to Nami's strengths. But unlike the maps she made, the directions were unclear and resulted in flashy theatrics and bitty little bubbles rather than the flashes of blinding sunlight and flashing, crackling thunder that the liar promised. Sure, she earned a victory with it during a small skirmish in Alabasta (somehow, Nami still didn't believe that she managed to take down such a powerful Baroque Works agent), but she was still a novice, mostly due in part to her tendency to back out.

Huffing and grumbling, she decided to alleviate this affliction in the only way she thought she could- which was taking it up with the inventor himself. Getting even, she called it.

"Usopp."

With Nami's scowl of a siren scorned, the door to the male sleeping quarters of the Going Merry creaked open, startling said long-nosed man with a jolt and causing him to jump up quickly from where he was working on a new trinket alone.

"Wh-wh-wh-what is it!?" Usopp's eyes just about popped out of his skull as he was met with the glare of a battered and enraged Nami, expecting a brutal knuckle sandwich.

"How come your huge blue party-popper keeps making sparkles and fireworks whenever I want to beat the tar out of someone!? I thought this was supposed to be a weapon!" Nami ranted, shaking Usopp by the straps of his brown overalls.

"Hey! Like I said, t-the Clima-Tact is a different kind of weapon... it plays to your strengths!" Usopp continued backing away from the quite-literally-fiery redhead, fearing the worst as usual.

"Last time I checked, the new instructions you gave me the other day did not create an "army of fierce lightning clouds that would leave people stunned with bright thunder". You know what they did, though? You know what they did!?"

"Wh-"

"Glitter! Why, you- The "Firebolt Tempo".... made glitter!" Nami yelled, brandishing the very weapon she was tearing to shreds. Usopp whimpered in fear, stammering and attempting to come up with an amicable way of wording his intentions.

"Those were instructions for a new party trick!" he squeaked out.

"You're damn right they were..." Nami brandished the Clima-Tact in a way Usopp didn't like. Rearranging the pieces and clicking them in place, she began to strike with a sly grimace.

"Thunderbolt Tempo!"

Cool Balls and Heat Balls floated around in the quarters, accumulating into a cloud from their combined chain reaction of condensation. However, as soon as a singular Thunder Ball barely kissed the small cloud, not a single lick of roaring thunder was produced from it.

The liar sighed in relief. Due to a misplacement of one of the three weather batons, there was a meager amount of Cool Balls produced compared to the concentration of Heat Balls which were just hot enough to cause them to evaporate into clouds. Less precipitation lingered than usual, and as a result there was but a tiny zap of lightning coming out of the cute little cloud.

Usopp blinked in confusion, giving Nami a nervous smirk in both his relief and fear. Dusting himself off, he rubbed his hands on the dusty brown fabric of his clothing, and as he was attempting to walk out of the room, the kzzzt of an electric shock caused him to double over.

There was a charge– almost like a force field surrounding him, worsening as he tried to swat it off his overalls. They didn't hurt- but they certainly felt agonizing. Not quite as painful as a bug's bite, though– they almost tickled.

They really tickled.

"Ggk! Ng-hh-HA!" Usopp mustered out through every lick of electricity, now laying flat on the floor and trying to avoid the inevitable small shocks by kicking his legs and flailing around. What was this irritating technique!?

Pull yourself together! You're the great Captain Usopp!! he thought to himself, as if he was physically fighting bolts of lightning.

Nami could only smile coyly at the sight.

Static electricity. That was what it was. The small amount of lightning caused by the failed Thunderbolt Tempo resulted in a static charge being imparted onto Usopp, who had spread it further through the friction between his hand and his overalls. The zaps of static now blitzed across his body, causing him to coil, flinch and titter around pathetically as he spreads the charge further.

Oh, this was going to be sweet.

"Hghk! kkKEEE-yihahahahaha! Ahaha-hahaha! Ny-yeee! EEEahaha! Wha-ha-nNy-NAMI!! Whahat is this!? GEHE-hettitoff! PLEASE!! I'll make better instructions, I'd do anything!!"

"Alright then. 500 Berries. Hand 'em over." Nami deadpanned.

"KHAHAHA! Zoro was right, you're a wi-hitch! I said I'm sohOhORRY!!!" Usopp flailed, jolts of lightning crawling across every tickly crevice. The more he moved, the more the sparks would spread, causing his laughter to become more and more erratic.

"Well, if you're not gonna give me any money, then I guess I won't do a thing about it." There was a smug and haughty grin square on Nami's face as she looked down at him. "I think I'll lay back on the deck and watch."

As the pathetic noodling continued, some of the other Straw Hats were drawn to the scene, to Nami's delight. Luffy scampered over, Robin was politely laughing in the comfort of her deck chair with a book by her side, and Zoro only turned in annoyance, the situation interrupting his training.

"You look stupid!" Luffy snickered at his sniper, commenting on him in a matter-of-fact way.

"LUFFY! LU-HUHU-FFY! HELP ME!" Usopp pleaded, curling himself up in a ball as the begging and crying for help didn't help matters– not that it did, but the contortion had only made matters worse as it packed the charges further together, causing them to tickle a hell of a lot more. He of course did not realize, continuing to squeal, thrash and cry out.

"Don't help him, Luffy. He deserves this." Nami stated.

"Okay." Simple-minded as he was, he followed his navigator's order.

Amidst the sparks of static, Nami couldn't help but notice a couple of things. One- Usopp looked like a total idiot. Two- The electricity spread to almost every crevice of his body. It was obviously mildly irritating in some areas, varying in frequency and strength, but when it sparked across ticklish flesh, the feathery pins-and-needles feeling was too much for him to bear. And three- The two spots that were safe from the shocking assault were only protected by his shoes.

And so, Nami bent down to the sniper's level just to tease him some more.

"Oh, boy. You do realize this wouldn't have happened if your stupid weapon didn't make me lose all the time!" she ranted. "Hm, I wonder..."

She looked down at Usopp's footwear, as the sniper gulped in fear, just knowing what deed was about to be done. Enough mischievous glares and wiggling fingers from Kaya since after a risky fib about how "Captain Usopp was not, in any capacity, ticklish" and tag-team attacks from the Usopp Pirates were all that he needed to know to decipher Nami's intention as she held his calf in one hand, feeling the tingle of the tact's discharge of electricity on her fingertips– and yanked his shoe off with a clatter onto the deck.

"N-NO!!!" he squeaked out. Nami's touch was deft– not even the slight shock she received upon her left hand's contact with his skin could stop her. At the mercy of her diligent thieving fingers, Usopp attempted to feign strength– that, he did often, but rarely succeeded at, and at this rate this would be an example of his many failures. He gritted his teeth. He thrashed his head around hiding involuntary laughter with a grimace. He moved about as much as he could, then resorted to not showing any movement at all. But even with the effort to show all that bravado, the sniper soon sang like a bird.

"Please! PLEE-HEEASE!"

"What." Nami said snidely.

"PLEASE STO-HO-HOP!!!"

"Please... pay me first." She gave a small wink, smirking as she skittered fingers across tan flesh. Luffy, who was stretching his neck out to observe the situation, careened from down the crow's nest as he inched too close to the two weaklings, did what he felt like doing– as he did, and grabbed Usopp's other foot for Nami's convenience, whistling innocently.

"NYA-haha! LUFFY! SHE DIDN'T SAY TO HEE-HEHELP!" On the liar's part, this was the truth. Luffy tended to ignore the truth and live his own– so Usopp was completely ignored, and as a result, Nami continued to exploit the amount of freedom she had over his karmic retribution, smiling the whole way through tickling him to pieces. Both of her hands tickled away on his now-flushed soles, one foot kicking in hysterics. The captain also helped from time to time, randomly stretching out a rubber arm to poke and prod, finding fun in the situation. Even while the electricity subsided, she still kept at it sadistically.

"Heehee! You're so funny!" Luffy giggled, poking Usopp's nose while he caught his breath through silent laughter, then continuing to coil around him and make conversation as if he wasn't basically choking on his own laughter.

However what the two other crew members failed to realize in the moment was that Usopp was quite the jack of all trades– artistic talent, marksmanship and a surprising tolerance for insects were some he sported. While cackling from the touch of wayward sparks and graceful mapmaking fingers, the clattering of silver coins came from the two jean pockets at the sides of his overalls. Nami felt merciful for only a moment, eyes shining bright as Berries when she saw the currency on the floor, hoarding each coin with a girlish glee.

Usopp heaved, falling flat in a position akin to a starfish as he hyperventilated from silent laughter and wheezes, feeling the numbness of his limbs and ghostly swipes of electricity across his skin.

"You're forgiven."

There was a pause in Nami's short sentence.

"But counting the loss at the island yesterday, and the Mirage Tempo failure... and the 10 other prior losses... you actually owe me 6000 Berries."

She finished her explanation with a snide wink. A comical drop of sweat fell down Luffy's forehead, and Usopp's jaw dropped in shock.

"Pay up."

[thecrusadercomrade]

How do you think things would change later on if No Time Left went perfectly? Nobody gets separated or killed, and they all attack the stranger together.

How do you think things would change if Jane couldn’t stash AJ safely, or maybe she stuck with Clem after the crash, so there’s no big confrontation. Would Kenny/Jane/Clem survive together, or was a blowout inevitable?

How do you think things would change if Larry didn’t have a heart attack in the meat locker?

My first thought was that the sign would still separate them when it breaks, but since you've said they all attack the Stranger together, I'll assume that they all somehow manage to make it to the Marsh House.

In that case, I feel like we'd still lose at least one person. Once the Stranger walks into the room and sees THAT many people there, he's not going to try and hold them all hostage; he'll open fire right away. The group could probably just charge and jump him, but at least one person is going to get injured, if not killed. Once the Stranger is taken care of, the group takes Clementine out of there. With more people, they're able to keep Clementine from going after her parents while also carrying Lee as he begins to feel faint. Lee still dies since the bite happened in the previous episode, but it's someone else who puts him down, and he dies knowing that Clementine will be looked after.

After that, the group moves on from Savannah. Initially they might try to follow Christa's plan of going to the countryside, but with more people in the group, that just won't be practical. We saw how much Christa and Clementine struggled to find enough food for just the two of them, and unless the group learns how to hunt/forage/fish, I think they'll be forced towards a small town to scavenge. Perhaps they'll find a place to settle down, or maybe they'll be recruited into a community. A lot of ways it could go.

I think a fight between Jane and Kenny, or at least a blowout argument, was inevitable. They clearly just can't get along, and I don't see Clementine managing to fix that. There's just too much anger there, too much bitterness. They're both very messed up in their own ways. If Clementine has been closer to Jane, then Jane might try to convince Clementine to run away with her. But if Clementine has been siding with Kenny, I could see them waking up one morning to find Jane just gone, her having left in the night. I don't see any practical way for them all to stick together.

Honestly, even if Larry hadn't had his heart attack, I'm not sure he'd have made it out of the dairy alive. With how aggro he was, I could see him pulling something similar to Kenny and just charging right in and getting shot. He doesn't seem to know how to manage his temper or his behavior. If he does make it out though, then obviously Lilly would be much better off mentally. Though there'd be even worse arguments about whether or not to leave the motor inn, since Larry is definitely going to side with his daughter. To put a little bit of a spin on the usual speculation I see for Larry surviving the dairy, I'll say that Larry doesn't die "on-screen" during the bandit attack, but he does get shot and injured enough that he can't make it to the RV. Lilly won't leave him behind, so Kenny takes off without them, and that's how they exit the story. That way Carley/Doug doesn't die, but the group will definitely have some guilt weighing on them for leaving them behind.

If Lilly still returns in season four, she'll mention that Larry bled out and she was forced to abandon the motor inn. She's even more bitter in this timeline, blaming the entire group for leaving them to die.

Thanks for the ask! This was a lot of fun, speculating on all these different ideas. Much appreciated!