#bring broadcast twice a week

[inspectorspacetimerevisited]

During Lynda Bellingham’s run as the Inspector,

the programme turned more into a soap opera, even being broadcast twice a week.

[anaalnathrakhs]

love this part of my life where the things that are difficult but challenging and good for me are things i can stop and skip and halfass, but the things that are difficult and painful and pointless are the things i have to live with no matter what

[astonmartingf]

NOT MY FAULT ; FA14

dbf!fernando alonso x ex-red bull engineer! reader . . . if there are many fish in the ocean then fernando alonso is a catch, and it's not your fault if you fell for his hook, line, and sinker.

amgf a lot of appearances from other drivers, an actual plot! allusions to toxic work environment, red bull drama, the math is not mathing but okay. enjoy!!! thank you for still being here pwahaha it's been a while lbh but i hope you enjoy it like always!!!! wchagt update soon along with other wips <3

The only good thing that came out of your mother remarrying was the new found relationship you built with your step father, granted it took a while to get there- you first met him he was twice your age and dating your mother. Growing up you spent your formative years in the Red Bull garage answering math equations with Adrian Newey behind you, Sebastian Vettel laughing as Newey hands you a different worksheet after another.

It was an unusual dynamic, you mother 13 years older than your stepfather, being friends with your stepfather’s rival and teammate, it was unlike any other, but something you wouldn’t replace for the world. 

“Is it true you’re leaving Red Bull?” You were greeted with an over enthusiastic Oscar Piastri as you visited the McLaren motorhome using Mark’s pass. Your lip presses into a thin line, brows raised with a shrug from both shoulders leaving the younger groaning in frustration.

“I’m taking your silence as admission, also entering a McLaren motorhome on a race weekend? Seems like they finally fired you, it’s giving jobless.”

You roll your eyes, “This is a motorhome Osc, not your garage, I doubt they’d be hiding any of your data here, not like they’re secrets to me. Also they didn’t fire me, technically I was the one firing them since I will be leaving the team.”

“So you are leaving Red Bull.” Oscar deadpans, while you hiss as your tongue slipped faster than the thoughts in your head. You just promised yourself you won’t tell anything to anyone before you discussed it with your stepfather. 

Arms crossed to your chest, you face Oscar with the biggest smirk plastered on his face, proud for taunting you out on revealing your plans for the next seasons. “Well now that you know, I personally would like it if you kept your mouth shut. Mark doesn’t know yet and I plan to tell him before finalizing the contracts.”

Raising his hands with a small nod, Oscar moves leading the way to his quarters where you find your stepfather. “You’re free?” Mark looks up from the files in front of him glancing back and forth from you and Oscar. “Are you two in trouble?” 

You stop yourself from rolling your eyes, “No, why do you immediately think that? I for one am responsible, as for Oscar he can handle himself and no, we are not in trouble. I need your help.”

Just hearing the four words leaving from you, Mark closed the folders in front of him grabbing his keys, standing up. “Where do you want to go?”

It’s been known that the team principal has a preference for Daniel Ricciardo, the same can be said for Helmut with Yuki and Max, but for Newey it was you. Everyone in the team was well aware of your relationship, Newey taught you everything you knew about engineering and cars.

News of you leaving Red Bull wasn’t broadcasted on any social platform as you wanted to quit the team quietly, not bound to any long term contacts, yet within the team, your move was associated with Newey’s future whereabouts as whispers of him leaving Red Bull increased as the days went by. “You didn’t tell me you’re leaving Red Bull.” 

In front of you sat Newey, bringing forth a cup of coffee and the waffles you ordered prior. “You didn’t tell me you were leaving as well.” You scrunch your nose, whispering touché under your breath before taking a sip of coffee. 

“So, I’m assuming you told your father. Why did you leave?” You take a stab of the waffles, mulling over your conversation with Mark last week. “I told him what happened of course. You know why I left, it’s because of him. Well, partially. Everything was just slowly building up you know, they pushed me to the corner, I left. Simple as that. Mine’s boring, tell me yours. Why’d you leave?”

You felt Newey’s heavy stare into yours, “I heard what he told you, after that I left hoping to convince you to leave but you’ve surprised me once again.” Blinking, you put down the forkful of waffles in shock. Studying his demeanor, Newey continued taking bites of his club sandwich as if he didn’t drop the biggest revelation in front of you.

“You know you’re contractually not allowed to poach anyone right?” Newey rubs the crumbs off of his hands glancing at you with an incredulous look on his face. “I thought you knew me better than anyone, people always assumed I put Max in my clause. He’s a big guy who can handle himself, I put your name in. If I were to leave, I could take you from me. You know Horner said something along the lines of that when I ended my contract one year earlier. He asked about you- if you convinced me to leave. I told him you’re smarter than that, then I- are you crying?”

You raise your hand to your cheeks, wiping the tears you didn’t notice were falling off. “I just thought you’d stay there, and of course I would 100 percent support you wherever you went, I didn’t think you’d stick up for me when I left.” Now you were just full on bawling in front of him, early morning in a semi-busy cafe on a Friday morning. 

Newey laughs at you, throwing a napkin at your face. “I hope you’re ready to receive love calls for the next few days, we’ll be looking for some new prospects.”

You know time is of the essence, and when Newey advised you to keep an eye out for calls, you didn’t think they’d be calling you in the early mornings. Maybe it’s timezone differentiation but with the calls you’ve been getting for the last months have been more than alarming. A groan leaves your lips, before glancing over a familiar contact photo.

“Are you coming to China?” “It doesn’t seem like I have a choice now does it? Sounds like you want me to go now.” You hear movement from the other side of the line, “Yes, we’re stopping by to pick you up, get ready in 30 minutes.” “30 minutes? Am I not given time to prepare?” “Just bring yourself, if you’re worried you can use my money to buy whatever you need.” You scoff, jumping out of bed. “Just because I’m unemployed doesn’t mean I’m broke.” 

“Are you sure you want to pay?” 

“Hell no, I thought unemployment meant time for myself, didn’t think I would have to wake up at 4 AM catching flights to the Chinese Grand Prix.” You hear Mark’s laughter from the other side of the phone. “You better start getting ready, I’m on my way.”

“Never thought I’d see you sell me to another team. I thought I was sitting with you in the McLaren garage?” You explain to your stepfather as he walked with you to the Aston Martin garage.

Mark shook his head from your antics, “It’s a favor for a friend, you know to learn and see the company and team… it might make you enthusiastic to join.” You raise your brows listening to him sell the idea. “Are you not poaching me to join McLaren? Or are you worried about nepotism?”

Mark raised his hands to his face, panicking at the mention of nepotism right in front the Aston Martin garage, glancing around before shaking his head in disapproval while you’re giggling as he fusses over you. “I know you’re old enough to do this but please behave yourself, I just want you to see for yourself and not just because my friend asked for a favor, but I hope you enjoy yourself. I doubt McLaren is having any issues but if they wanted you, they would have to talk to you themselves instead of beating around the bush from me.”

You smile to yourself, “What about Aston Martin? What’s so different? And this favor from your friend, you must be really close with them, you’re offering my time so easily.”

“Fernando personally asked me to invite you.” You raise your brows glancing at the mechanic working on his car, “He couldn’t do it himself huh… Okay. I guess he had to go through such lengths seeing as he’s using you to invite me.” You take the ID Mark prepared for you, your name embossed with Fernando Alonso’s Guest below.

Your eyes wander around the green walls of their garage, you envision yourself in a dark green uniform, sitting on one of the pit lane garages looking over data. When Newey told you to prepare for new prospects you began looking around different teams, McLaren first and foremost due to Mark being involved, dabbling in offers from Mercedes and Williams, even from the junior Red Bull team which you immediately turned down, not wanting to be associated with the team any further. 

The news of Newey leaving hasn’t left the confines of Red Bull, despite Newey mentioning you as the reason he left, you don’t believe it’s the whole truth. You could be a partial reason, but there are many more underlying reasons behind his leave, especially to him who spent almost 20 years with the team, Newey leaving came as a shocker even to you, but what you’re waiting for is his future plans. 

You watch Mark slowly disappear from your sight, leaving you alone and for the first time in the 20 years of your life you felt exactly that. No one would have prepared you for what happened in the last two months of your life all leading to you leaving the first team you joined and spent your childhood in.

Sending a message to the only person you knew who spent his time in both Red Bull and Aston Martin garages, your phone rings as Sebastian calls you instead of answering your message. “Fernando invited you to the Aston Martin garage?” You stand from your seat to a quiet corner in the garage, away from the hustle and bustle, but more for your privacy. 

You rather no one listen to you talking about one of their drivers in his garage. “He asked Mark for a favor apparently, I was whisked away from my apartment to come here in China, now I’m in his garage, only for qualifying though so that’s that I guess.” The silence on the other side starts to make you question your own response.

“That's not the reaction I was hoping for. That’s that? That’s it? Where is the energy?” You roll your eyes at his implicating tone.

“It left the moment I got unemployed.” Sebastian laughs on the other side of the line, “Sounds like he’s trying to promote you as an elite employee.”

“Where the fuck are you learning these from? It’s so unlike you, has retirement made you younger?” You shout at your phone appalled by the words you never once thought would leave his mouth. “I kid, I kid. But you know what I think that message was?”

You sigh, trying to ignore the clammy feeling of your palms as you inch the phone higher to your ear, “I think that was a call for help. All those years of denial haven't changed? I’ll say this, green doesn’t look like a good color on you.”

“Fuck you Seb, calling you was a mistake.” Pressing the button furiously, you end the call. It’s funny how Sebastian always knows how to get on your nerves, maybe you were somewhat similar to your stepfather. That, or Sebastian is easily a mischievous prick who you’re unfortunately friends with and one of the only people who knew about your little something with a certain driver in the grid.

Your phone chimes, a reply from Seb, “I hope you get uncomfortable in his garage while you think back to your escapades in Barcelona, in the summer of 2019.”

It’s not your fault that of all the men available on the face of the earth, your eyes linger a little longer on Fernando Alonso, even if he is your step father’s friend he is hot, is he not?

[accio-victuuri]

from this article about wang yibo’s new show with discovery channel 📝

Discovery Channel's latest masterpiece "Exploring the Unknown" officially announced that Wang Yibo's first outdoor exploration full record

Produced by Warner Bros. Discovery and exclusively broadcast on Tencent Video, Wang Yibo's outdoor exploration documentary program "Exploring the Unknown" has officially been announced. Starting from August 31, the 12 episodes will be updated twice a week on Tencent Video. Actor and singer Wang Yibo, as the initiator of the program, will follow six Discovery Chinese explorers to start an outdoor exploration journey deep into the polar regions. Cheng Er will be the special interviewer to explore Wang Yibo's mental journey and personal growth in participating in the program.

It is the first outdoor exploration documentary program that Wang Yibo has participated in. The program unites six top survival and outdoor experts in China: Lao Xue, a jungle survival skills expert, Zhou Peng, a leader in China's mountaineering community and the first mountaineer to win the "Asian Golden Piolet Award", Wang Hao, an extreme explorer who focuses on cave exploration, Zhou Fang, a natural documentary director and senior underwater videographer, Abang, a world-class rock climber and rock climbing instructor, and Wu Xinlei, a former member of the French special forces and desert survival expert. In the 12 episodes of the program, they accompany Wang Yibo to six extreme geographical destinations such as snow-capped mountains, deserts, islands, and tropical rainforests to complete the exploration mission.

Through real-life footage it presents the audience with the entire process of natural wonders, exploration challenges, emergencies, and outdoor fun. In the trailer, Wang Yibo follows the explorers to extreme environments such as snow-capped mountains and tropical rainforests, and embarks on outdoor challenges such as rock climbing and waterfall rappelling, showing a strong learning ability and sense of skills. When exploring the snow-capped mountains, Wang Yibo faced altitude sickness, quickly adapted and handled it calmly, and successfully reached the summit; when rock climbing, he faced the danger of the rope falling off, but he still did not give up the challenge... His determination and attitude to overcome adversity, his passion for love and exploring the unknown, show the vitality and vigor of young people.

The program not only presents the process of young artists exploring the world, but also focuses on exploring the spiritual world of explorer Wang Yibo. Through six exploration themes, Wang Yibo constantly challenges his physical limits, explores the boundaries that the body can reach, discusses topics about growth among young people, and shows Wang Yibo's attitude and thinking towards big topics such as living, ups and downs in life, fear, and loneliness. Each challenge brings him one step closer to his true self. Contemporary young people can project their own mental state into the program and follow Wang Yibo on a journey to find inner answers and inner strength.

[thecontroll]

⠀ა̸⠀𝐑ai Control Up⠀⠀ 【 TEMP:01CAP:01 】

Art by: Caroless. Write and created by: Control (me)

⠀ ✦⠀Synopsis -

It's been 4 years since the definitive defeat against the fearsome Dr. Eggman. The world seems to remain in peace after that, however, there is something big approaching while people are disappearing into the darkness.

￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣

The end of peace.

It was a busy morning, the typical comings and goings of any big city. Our old and beloved hero finds himself in a corner cafe - a typical downtown cafe, very cozy with an inviting atmosphere.

Sonic seemed to be waiting for someone, which was true, he was waiting for Miles "Tails" Prower, his best friend. It was taking a while to get to the agreed location. The runner had refused service to the waitress twice and became even more impatient with each second.

In the background you could hear the establishment's old television, broadcasting major, prominent broadcasters, which generated public interest. It's time for the big newspapers, with the hottest news of the moment, the hedgehog listened to the new report carefully, remaining discreet to his customers.

"- We have just had another case of disappearances. This is the twentieth reported in recent days, the fourth in the last 5 hours " the reporter says. "The victim was a young civilian, resident of the Sunset City. We give the floor to the detective, -------- listening?"

"- Positive Ms.--------. The question that intrigues us most at the moment is whether there is a relationship with the other cases of disappearances registered in recent weeks. What scares us and which were in various parts of the world . All the victims appear to be young people and the kidnapper seems to have attacked in the same way: at the best time, leaving no trace."

"[---]"

The reporter speaks again, instigating that old television panic: - Will we return to a time of constant attacks after years of peace? What if it's a plan from a new villain ready to bring the world to ruin? And where are our heroes in all this? "

- We're here - the blue one thinks out loud. It wasn't just his friend's delay that made Sonic restless. He's been like this for days, all these strange cases and with Dr. Eggman out of the game it was hard to think about who was responsible for the crimes.

The door bell rings, suggesting that a new customer has just entered, however, he was not there for coffee or dessert. The hedgehog becomes excited and then says:

- Wow Tails, this is taking so long! I was starting to want to run and look for clues.

The fox had finally arrived - much to Sonic's relief. He was holding a bunch of paperwork awkwardly, giving an idea of ​​the delay. They were going to solve this case right then and there, and now!

- Sorry Sonic. It was a lifetime to catch all the bulletins - He justifies himself - listening to the report in the background, now from another sensationalist broadcaster - and speaking of the devil.

- Yup, that's right - Sonic makes a sarcastic expression - they're charging us again.

- Well, your charges will cease. We came here for a reason - Miles throws the files on the table and sits down.

Now they could analyze the piles of files and start the "detective talk".

- The journalism was right: it's the same kidnapper. If we can identify a pattern between the victims and how they are approached - The fox begins, searching through the information on the files. Everything was written down and it really must have been a real headache to get all the information.

- There's something about the civilians ?

- Maybe, let me see. It has all the personal data of the individuals. Name, gender, species and ethnicity, residence, marital status and blood type - Prower pauses for a moment to look at a paper - Sonic, pay attention to this last one.

- They all have the same blood - something catches your attention - type "C", Tails what is that? - The blue one says surprised.

- Blood type C is a blood type very similar to A. It is very difficult to discover because of this similarity - he pauses - I only know that they produce a supposed "miracle protein" but it is just a hypothesis created by Dr. Wire - *sigh* - You know, this blood is extremely rare and exotic. There is no very in-depth research on it, just theories and hypotheses.

- So if the targets are a select group of people, that helps a lot. But the fact that people with common sense know little about it scares me. .

- I'm worried too. Someone has probably discovered something revolutionary and is going to use that knowledge for something terrible, and that someone isn't Dr. Eggman. - The fox looks outside for a minute - Not knowing your enemy is worse than getting used to the atrocities he commits.

- Whoever it is, let's put an end to this - Sonic stands up determinedly, punching his fists and encouraging his friend - after all, we are still heroes, and people are in danger right now... we have to act!

- I don't want to let these people be used either! - the scientist says determinedly, then takes his trusty Miles Electric and begins to calibrate his precious device - Let's see... there must be a record of all individuals cataloged with type C somewhere . . .

The old hero sits back down and watches his faithful companion, all determined. Suddenly a cry of "eureka" is expressed by the fox, affirming his success in the search.

- Here are all registered so far, by counting the number of cases and attaching the names of the victims with the archived data we can make an estimate of the next target - Prower says.

- The criminal has only kidnapped young people so far, which means we can eliminate the older ones - Sonic concluded.

- There are 68 people in total. That number has just dropped to 30, counting recent cases - pause - the kidnapper has a tendency to hide any trace, it's not that hard to make ordinary civilians disappear. I don't believe he/she/it would bother to go after high-class or famous people.

- So we have 27. We need to identify another pattern. How about we take a look at the regions recorded in the investigation records?

- Good idea. Let's see... - Miles looks deeper - Apparently he or she is looking for their victims from North to South, going to West.

Now they just needed to make statistics of the missing regions. That part was left to the fox, a master of quick calculations. The old hero seemed a little more relieved. Seeing all those numbers going down eased the heroes' minds.

In the background, the TV stations continued their narrative of chaos, and the two were fed up with it. It was one of the reasons they had chosen a public place - Tails' idea. They didn't want to admit it, but the newspapers were right about one thing: "we have to put an end to the new threat."

Looking for more information about the cities and countries that suffered the attacks, young Prower seems to have found the answer he was looking for. He exclaims excitedly:

- Found it! Sonic we need to go!

Miles quickly flies off with his tails, collecting all the confidential paperwork. The hedgehog understands the message and follows him, making the coffee machine's dirty towels fly. The people around look surprised, already knowing about the two's presence, passing it off as a fresh suffering - they don't even bother anymore. Despite everything, most of them feel safe seeing the duo in action. .

With the Tornado ready to fly, Miles shouts the destination point:

- TO THE SMALL TOWN OF BLUE COPPER!! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ •

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ •

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀•

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀.

*hmmn* *hmmm*

A grumble can be heard ...

A white-furred cat with purple spots has just woken up from an induced sleep. She was young, her clothes said she was a freshman. Her name was Rai, a Mainecoon cat. .

The girl opens her eyes, still sleepy, and it took her a while to notice the distorted green vision. She was trapped in a laboratory tube, submerged in a type of chemical saltpeter liquid. She could hear the wires in the compartment pulling the bubbles.

Waking up scared when she realized this unusual situation. Now she was awake and with an accelerated heart. In fear of losing her breath, looking in all directions with agitation.

Realizing that she wasn't drowning, she stops. "- What is this!!! Breathable water? W-where am I?!?" Rai thinks scared.

She tries to look more calmly, trying to focus her vision on specific points, escaping the "cloudiness" of the green liquid. She uses her fingers to feel the glass by touch. Her breathing was labored, heavy, still trying to stay calm.

Waking up in a completely different place is not a pleasant experience, especially when trapped in some kind of crazy capsule. Rai can visualize the place where she was. It was a large room, with low lighting and endless metal walls. She was not alone, but she had not noticed the dozens of people in the same situation as the cat - but still unconscious.

The girl began to despair. This was not a dream! Even if she tried to wake up, it was very authentic, this was real! "- Why . . . w-why me???" The feline questioned herself in despair.

She still had so much to live for! So many things to experience, learn, and be moved by. It seemed like he was living his own idealized purgatory.

It seemed like he was living a horror movie, but he wouldn't accept the fact that he was left there with the weight of doubt. It's time to act! No matter how, no matter the consequences! His thoughts were taken over by one feeling: panic, and by luck or bad luck, Rai will use them to his advantage in this traumatic moment.

The girl takes up some space in the small reservoir. Then she hits the glass with her fists. Without any result. Her breathing starts to get more labored, her irises completely retracted, "- crap, of course it wouldn't work. Well, in the end it's my only choice" Rai concludes desperately.

Then she continued to repeat the movement, even though her hands could not handle the pressure. The young woman also kicked hard to compensate for the weak punches from above. And finally, the glass began to show its cracks.

With more blows, kicks and panic and *trick*!! The floor was full of shards, dripping and spreading over it was the green liquid from the capsule. The cat finally managed to free herself.

Trembling, the girl remains in the position in which she fell: on her knees, with her hands tightly gripping the fabric of her pants, her legs scratched by the shrapnel. She looks up, paralyzed.

Rai laughed (a genuine laugh) although it didn't represent happiness. Was it relief? Maybe with a dry mix of fear. At least he had managed to get out, all that was left was to reach the outside.

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ . . .

Oh . . . the outside. Now the feline comes to her senses and thinks: "- I have no idea where I am haha". Well, one step at a time.

With some effort, she stood up. Rai, who had surpassed herself in strength a few minutes ago, was exhausted from fatigue. So the next step would be to catch her breath.

The feline slowly tries to recover. The young woman looks down, trying to ignore the pain from the scratches. After a few minutes, the girl becomes active again. She needs to be quick and careful, a difficult task for someone who is in crisis.

Rai leans on one of the capsules in the room, looking slightly to all sides of the corridor. Everything was clear, with no sign of guards, robots or any other kind of bizarreness. Seeing that the coast was clear, the girl runs out - awkwardly given the circumstances.

Look! There's a door ahead: sturdy metal, automated. It seemed to be locked with some kind of technological panel, something Rai couldn't 100% understand.

This gave the feline a certain amount of clarity. In a way, the young woman knew this structure of subjects, articles and newspapers. Obviously, it would be more common for a hero, however, the cat was a simple civilian. She was sure: she was in one of Dr. Eggman's bases. But how? Hadn't the doctor been arrested a few years ago?

Rai felt a strong chill, anything bad could happen, and these thoughts and conclusions were making a hurricane in his head.

Did this mean the scientist could have returned? Or that someone else had taken his place? Was it a distant cousin taking over his Empire? Would someone rescue she? How long had he been there? Had anyone come to see him? This was running through the poor feline's brain, which was beginning to tear up. She was so overwhelmed that she had almost forgotten how to access the door.

Rai I wasn't good with technology, although she was sure that she would have difficulties even being an enthusiast, she was not the prodigy Prower after all! If that room was an incarceration area, security should certainly be reinforced.

The panel glowed red with several codes she didn't understand. Should she try to touch it? She was afraid that an alarm would go off, but nothing compared to her panic at being trapped in this horrible sector.

The feline freezes for a moment. She doesn't know what to do. She leans against the sealed door and slides down to the cold floor, tired and terrified. The girl puts her head between her shoulders and tries to control her distress. Her thoughts consume her in this moment of silence.

"- What am I going to do? I don't want to die"

"I don't want to die"

"Don't--"

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀"I-I won't go"

Rai raises his head in crisis.

- I refuse to die here!

She gets up and tries to break the control panel. She was furious, in the throes of a panic attack. She would go to hell to try to access the other side.

The device was no longer useful. The girl already had several wounds on her hands. Nothing seemed to have solved it.

And in the hour of despair, behold, the light appeared:

The sound of the huge metal door opening.

Your chance! Rai runs into the endless corridors in front of her. "Just run, even if your body can't handle it" was her thought, her need to live guiding her through this chaos.

The entire base goes on alert, Rai doesn't try to think about it. The lights flash in shades of red and the noise of the sirens is deafening. She just follows her path without looking back, without knowing what's right ahead.

But was that a bit strange, achieving what she wanted so much out of nowhere? Deep down the young woman knew that she was counting on luck, however, she reconsidered having someone else involved in this.

The feline continued at high speed, her body seemed to want to stop at any moment. The corridors seemed to have no end. She went from "here to there" but didn't get anywhere, even with the warning sign in effect.

Finally, Rai seemed to have reached some relevant point. She was in a huge hexagonal room, the glass window in front of the perimeter shone with a clear glow in shades of blue, barely illuminating that dark environment, the place had several counters with devices and buttons. There was no doubt, she was in a command center. The cat also came across a living figure, one she didn't want to see.

The girl stands still as she sees the giant in front of her, watching her with glowing red eyes, shining in the low lighting of the room. With an unmistakable appearance, purposely made to seem familiar, he was like the hero loved by all, but vile, evil and cold. The person staring at Rai is Neo Metal Sonic. Expressing that angry indifference on his metallic face, he shouts at the cat:

- What are you doing here?

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣

📌 Author's notes: I see you've reached the end of the chapter, thank you very much for your attention. Sorry if the writing seems a bit strange (maybe) I don't understand anything about American literature (I'm Brazilian). See you in the next one.

[jokeroutsubs]

[ENG translation] Joker Out at Eurosonic 2024: an interview with Kris for Val 202 radio station

Today, 22.01.2024, Slovenian radio station Val 202 broadcasted an episode of their 'Glasbena zgodba' ('Musical Story') podcast about the Eurosonic 2024 festival that happened last week. Eurosonic is an annual showcase festival and music conference in Groningen, The Netherlands, where emerging European acts perform for industry professionals and festival scouts. Joker Out performed there this year, so today's podcast featured a short interview with Kris Guštin. You can find the original post here or listen to the original audio in Slovenian in the embed above. Here is the translation of the interview, translated by a member of Joker Out Subs and proof read by @flowerlotus8.

Host: The first group we mentioned, Joker Out, performed twice during the festival. First on Wednesday on the MAAS main stage, and the next day, on Thursday, in the Platosonic record shop, where The Strokes also performed in the past. I invited Kris Guštin, who talked to the fans there in Dutch, in front of the microphone.

Kris: Well, my great-grandma and my grandpa's entire side of the family, who are from Indonesia, live in a place called Assen, which is 30 minutes out of Groningen. It's actually the closest big city for them.

Host: Joker Out haven't performed at many showcase festivals, Kris counts Eurovision and the PIN festival in Skopje among them.

Kris: Showcase festivals are maybe not that important or necessary for us anymore, but we still liked doing one or two, to experience it. It is, however… For performers who are really still looking for an international audience, and especially those who would like to present themselves to industry people from abroad, it's a pretty great chance. It's the same with MENT¹, for Slovenia, of course.

Host: Were you thinking about, or were you under any pressure, considering that there were many music professionals in the audience?

Kris: Not really. It's… We were aware that it would be harder to make a good show, because people wouldn't be that oriented towards us and our music, which is totally understandable. I have to say, however, that I was honestly surprised and happy that we had the first three rows or so of our fans, who really made the atmosphere more lively, otherwise it would've been pretty hard. I did, however, also see... The best kind of validation is to see these people who, at the beginning, are standing in the back and not participating in the concert, who are then bobbing their heads by the end. That's always a good sign of a good concert.

Host: The members of Joker Out, who will release a new single in February and go on another European tour soon after that, are currently living in London, where they are getting used to life there and, as Kris says, creating new music outside of their comfort zone.

Kris: But just as a fun fact, well, I will say that now that we are in London, we've made a song that is the most Balkan song we've ever made, so it's… it might have a completely opposite effect. We don't really have any idea yet where it will take us.

Host: In Slovenia, you made a living with music. Now that you've gone abroad and have all these concerts, is it as profitable as laypeople imagine?

Kris: I'll say it like this: if we stayed only in Slovenia, we would be making more money right now than we actually do. But we have, I don't know, some kind of a chronic flaw where we never know how to stop investing in ourselves, well, how to say it. Which is actually a great thing, but such... touring abroad is definitely not a profitable thing for a band at our level, but I will say that it is less of a financial burden than I thought it would be. We are lucky to have so many listeners that in the previous season, the previous tour, we sold out almost everything, which means that it did bring us some money, but with all the... plane tickets, accommodation, transport, it amounts to so much that in the end, we just managed to nicely finance all of it, plus maybe get some money for the album this year. Otherwise, it's not like we're making big money. If we had stayed in Slovenia, we would've just pocketed all that.

¹MENT Ljubljana is one of the leading showcase festivals and music conferences in Central and Eastern Europe and the largest event of its kind in the region.

[pollymorgan]

Oh my God, how embarrassing... I did it and translated my German fanfiction into English... into bad English! Don't be too harsh on me, but rather make suggestions for improvement: So now a little phone sex with Coach Negan. 🙈😌

Warnings: arrogant Negan, frustrated woman, explicit phone sex

Today is one of those days again, where nothing seems to work as it should. Just like so often lately. Why couldn't I transfer those damn photos to the laptop? I've never been very tech-savvy, but the modern world practically forced me to. I'm actually a cookbook author and used to be quite successful with it. Some of my books were bestsellers and I even had my own cooking segment on a nationally broadcasted morning show. But then I was suddenly replaced by a younger, "cooler" colleague and ever since then, I've been struggling to keep afloat with social media, more or less. If only the technology would cooperate..

Even in my personal life, I have been replaced. Four months ago, my husband left us. By us, I mean my three children and me. After 19 years of marriage. But love goes where it goes, right? Nothing can be done against that. At least, those were his words when he got into his Porsche with a blonde woman who could be his daughter and disappeared.

Since then, he has managed to do something with his children exactly twice. But in exchange, he has already disappointed them seven times by canceling the meetings at short notice. Yes, I'm keeping count. At least for now.

My oldest daughter Penny is 15 years old and fully immersed in puberty, and it seems that this situation is hardest on her. She and her father were always a unit, his little princess. But there's no trace of that at the moment. Most of the time, he doesn't even bother to answer his damn phone when she tries to reach him.

I see her suffering. She's lost interest in school, and her circle of friends is dwindling visibly. I would love to help her, but how? At the moment, I just can't seem to reach her. Our communication mostly consists of doors slamming.

But back to my current problem. These damn pictures! The article is supposed to go online today. I cooked an Indian dish and had to drive halfway across town to get these damn spices. Thursdays always bring an international post, and now, of all times, nothing is working again. My laptop doesn't recognize the memory card, and the camera won't connect either. I keep plugging and unplugging the cable, hoping the error will magically resolve. Which of course it doesn't. Suddenly, I glance at the small display in the lower right-hand corner. Damn it! So late. I won't be picking up the kids on time again, the second time this cursed week. Annoyed, I close the screen. Grabbing my purse, I walk quickly to the garage. Where's the damn car key? Nervously, I rummage through my chaotic bag, spilling half of its contents on the floor. Finally finding it, I get into the car and speed out of the driveway.

The first stop is the kindergarten to pick up my youngest. She's a real bundle of nerves, but so sweet that you can forgive her anything. Of course, she throws a tantrum right at pickup. It's a real struggle to get her into the car. Like a madwoman, I drive on to the elementary school to pick up my 9-year-old son. He is the calm one in our family and thankfully waits with his best friend relaxed in front of the school. At least one who's not mad at me. Lucky me. And off we go, heading to my daughter's high school. From a distance, I can see her and immediately know that - once again - something is wrong. She stands all alone and pretty annoyed on the street, looking out for me. When I park the car right in front of her feet, she angrily drops onto the passenger seat.

"Penny, I can explain, you know what a loser I am when it comes to technology..." I try to justify myself.

My eldest rolls her eyes in annoyance. "Mum, this time, for once, it's not your fault..." I see tears forming in the corners of her eyes, and automatically, I feel a lump in my throat.

"Mister Smith... he..."

She doesn't need to continue speaking; just hearing that name fills me with such anger again. Right from the start, there have been issues with her physical education teacher, Negan Smith.

I've only seen him twice so far, at parent-teacher conferences, but Penny's stories are enough for me to know that he's an absolute failure as a teacher. He has his favorites whom he praises to the skies, while the less athletic students suffer under his authoritarian ways. My daughter already feels uncomfortable in her own skin, and that jerk doesn't even realize the impact his remarks have on the young girls.

A few years ago, his wife passed away from cancer. A terrible tragedy, but apparently that did not make him more empathetic; quite the opposite.

I'm currently looking in the rearview mirror to avoid hitting anyone in the chaos outside the school. That's all I need on this crappy day. Then I catch sight of none other than Penny's physical education teacher.

"Isn't that him?" I ask excitedly.

My daughter buries her face even further into the backpack in her lap. "Yes, Mom, it's okay, please just drive..."

The anger that had been building up recently had just found a good release.

With the words "Nothing is good...", I yank open my driver's door and head purposefully towards my daughter's physical education teacher, who is just stowing his bag in his car.

"Who do you think you are?" I stand behind him with arms crossed, eagerly awaiting his reaction.

Confused, he turns around to face me and suddenly a big grin spreads across his face. "Negan Smith, nice to meet you, and who do I have the pleasure of speaking with?"

What a cocky jerk!

"The mother of a rather offended young girl, because of you..."

Can't he just drop his arrogant smile for once? Quite unimpressed, he closes the door of his car.

"Penny has so much potential and she's wasting it on the damn bench..."

Such an idiot, he clearly knows who I am.

"Maybe you should listen to the young students as well, instead of just spouting off random remarks at them?"

Amused, he shakes his head. "I did... her excuse for skipping today's P.E. class was menstrual cramps..."

"And in your opinion that's not a valid reason or what? How dare you even pass judgment on that? Your students' bodies are going through changes and such discomforts should be taken seriously..." I respond a bit too loudly, causing some students to turn towards us.

Resigned, he raises his hands. "Of course, but not every damn other week. Maybe you should give your daughter some biology lessons again and explain to her that her P.E. teacher isn't completely from another planet."

Oh God, what does this man think he is..

"And you should work on your teaching skills... Otherwise, maybe I should consider contacting the school board!"

„Oh wow, you're actually a bigger drama queen than your dear daughter!".

Did he really just say that? Did he just seriously insult me? My daughter's teacher. I look at him in disbelief, but he just grins.

"And now she's quiet... I really have to go now, but I'm pretty sure we'll meet again soon." With these words, he jumps into his car and drives off.

Completely perplexed, I walk back to my car and am greeted by my daughter with the words "That was soooo embarrassing.."

7 hours later

Finally peace! Why does it always have to be such a struggle to get the kids to bed? Isn't it unfair that you are a thousand times more tired than the dear little ones? What a crappy day! I'm glad to be freshly showered in my bed and finally have some time off. Just me and my phone, no one else. No more whining, arguing, and crying. As much as I sometimes curse technology, I also love being able to connect with people over the internet. It's fun to respond to comments, the direct exchange with like-minded people is the only positive thing about social media. As I scroll through Instagram, I suddenly see comments coming in at a rapid pace. Confused, I open them. From "Do you always look so good when you cook?" to "Can you cook that for me sometime?" to heart emojis, and they all come from the same account. As I read the name, a shock runs through me. Can this be for real? "Coach Negan" is he not only a tactless asshole, but also a real psychopath? Excited, I click on his account, but apart from a profile picture where he is clearly recognizable, there is no further information.

I quickly open the messaging function and type "What is this???" into my phone. It only takes a few seconds and I receive a response.

"I am a fan 😉"

For a while, I stare at the screen, unable to believe what is happening here.

Suddenly, he sends me a picture. I open it and see a photo of me from my highlights, showing me from my post "Valentine's Day." I had cooked a three-course meal and written a pretty cheesy text back then. It's one of my most liked posts.

"Red lipstick suits you. Matches your fiery nature.." he writes.

What does he want to achieve? Did the confrontation before school hurt him so much that he is trying to provoke me? But to be honest, it seems like he's the one giving me a warning. Well, but if there's one thing I've learned, it's that the best defense is a good offense.

"Oh, do you think so? Most men say I look better without wearing anything...I mean, without lipstick, of course.. 😉".

"Are you already in bed?" he asks next. What a bizarre situation? Why does my daughter's teacher want to know where I am? The same teacher who called me a ‚drama queen‘ just a few hours ago.

I keep trying to type a suitable response on my phone and then delete it again. Finally, I write briefly, "Yes, and you?"

"Yes, and I'm studying your profile. Do you realize how crazy you can drive a man with these pictures? Why am I even asking, of course you do. 😉"

The feeling of small electric shocks runs through my body. The whole thing feels strangely forbidden. Maybe what I'm doing here is damn wrong, but right now, the consequences seem pretty irrelevant to me.

"How mean, you can look at my pictures, but you don't have any online yourself."

"That's true, but how about you hear my voice instead?" Attached to this message was his phone number. Okay, this is all moving pretty quickly, in a pretty strange direction. I'm so excited that I can feel my heart pounding wildly in my chest. But what do I have to lose? I haven't felt like this in the last 20 years. Okay, it's a damn bizarre situation, but I'm an adult and single. So I can finally talk to whoever I want. Even with the biggest jerk I've come across lately.

Feeling totally tense, I dial the number and as it rings, it gets even worse. I take a few deep breaths, and suddenly the deep voice on the other end answers with a "What took you so long to decide?" and I can practically feel his grin.

"Well, I had to think for a moment about what would be so sensible about calling my daughter's narcissistic gym teacher in the middle of the night," I say calmly.

"And what would be sensible about that?" he asks with interest.

"I haven't really found a solid reason yet, but maybe you can tell me?"

He thinks for a moment, and I imagine him lying in his bed. A slight tingling sensation spreads in my stomach, which is intensified by his response.

"Well, I can make sure you feel a little better... forget all the everyday crap that's weighing on your pretty shoulders right now."

I briefly close my eyes to focus more on his voice, which really manages to relax me a bit with just that simple sentence.

"And how do you plan to do that?" I ask softly.

"When was the last time you were really well fucked?" As soon as he says it, my lower abdomen tightens, and I automatically press my legs together.

After I take a moment to collect myself, I honestly respond, "That was much too long ago..."

"Oh, poor girl," Negan provocatively replies, but instead of getting upset about it, it triggers completely different feelings in me. "Tell me about what you imagine when you stroke your lonely pussy at night."

I have to swallow briefly to get rid of the extremely dry feeling in my throat.

"I can tell you what I think about when I do it in a moment..." I say softly but firmly.

And his tone changes too. His breathing becomes heavier. "Then tell me, come on," he commands.

"I imagine it's your fingers running over my body and finally sliding my panties to the side and penetrating deep into me..." My cheeks feel like they're glowing. I've never talked like this with anyone before, and now I just did it with a man who is actually a stranger to me.

"Come on, sweetheart... touch yourself for me and tell me if you're wet," he interrupts.

Without thinking, I click on the speaker icon on my display and place the phone next to me on the pillow, then I slide my right hand under my nightgown into my panties and I'm surprised at how aroused I already am, how swollen my clit is, and how sensitive my whole intimate area has become. I sigh softly.

"Fuck, the sweet little sounds you're making... they make my damn cock twitch in my hand with joy..."

Just the thought that he's so aroused by me on the other end sends waves of pleasure through my body.

"I'm already so wet because of you, Negan..." I admit breathlessly.

"You dirty, pretty lady, if I were with you right now, I would slowly penetrate deep into you... you need that now, don't you?"

"Yes!" I can only whisper.

"Okay, now do everything exactly as I tell you, understood?" he demands.

"Yes, please tell me what to do.." I focus solely on his voice, completely tuning out everything else.

"Take off your panties. Use your index and middle fingers to gently stroke over your mons pubis and then slowly over your outer labia, but not more, just right there.."

Immediately, I follow his instructions. The air feels cool on my bare lower abdomen. I feel strangely exposed, even though I am alone in my bedroom, but it's not uncomfortable, quite the opposite. I begin to caress myself gently.

"How does that feel?" his voice breaks the silence again.

"Good, but I want more.." I plead.

"I already knew that.. Bend your legs and spread them wide.. as far as you can.." He gives me a brief moment to comply with his instructions. "Now push your pelvis even further forward.. Imagine I'm between your legs and you want to present me with your beautiful pussy, you would like that, wouldn't you?"

"Yes.." I say and nod vigorously, even though no one can see me.

"Such a good girl.. and now run your index finger through your slit, spread your juices.."

I can't and don't want to hold back my moans now. There is silence for a while at the other end, then I speak heavily.

"Are you also pleasuring your cock for me?" I ask as I continue to touch myself.

"Oh, sweetheart, so your thoughts are currently only about that.." he says snappily. "Yes, I am, and if you keep moaning so sweetly into the phone, it won't be long, so it's time for you to start massaging your clit, but don't be too timid, circle it with two fingers and use some pressure, even if you're very sensitive now, you can take it.."

Oh God, that was exactly what I needed right now. My body felt like in ecstasy and I could feel the orgasm slowly building up.

"Don't come yet," he commanded, and on cue, I immediately removed my fingers from my most sensitive spot.

"Now, bring your knees close to your body!“

"Yes," I replied, completely exhausted. "You're doing it perfectly, how much I would love to see you in this position right now, just the damn thought!" I could clearly hear him softly moaning. This sound made my body twitch with excitement.

"Penetrate yourself with two fingers... nice and slow. Focus entirely on the feeling of stretching your pussy wide... Tell me when you're all the way in!"

"Now," I whispered, already quite spent.

"Then add your ring finger, once you've done that, you can come intensely as a reward, I promise."

Slowly, I press the third finger into me, which initially causes a bittersweet pull, but I'm so wet that it's not a problem.

Without me telling him, Negan knows that I fulfilled his request.

"So perfect, sweetheart! And now, pleasure your clit! Bring yourself to climax and don't hold back any sound, I want to hear every sweet noise from you."

With the first gentle touch, my body twitches like crazy.

"Negan, please come with me," I stammer into the phone.

"Yes, I promise, beautiful," he replies breathlessly.

And these words are enough for me to come as intensely as I haven't in the past years. My thighs tremble uncontrollably and my heart almost jumps out of my chest. My lower abdomen contracts in waves and I can barely breathe. It feels like I am weightless for a few seconds.

"Do you feel good?" he asks after a short pause.

"Perfect.." I reply and can't gather my thoughts yet.

"Okay, then I expect you tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. for a parent-teacher meeting at the school, and, by the way, without panties.. Good night!" After these words, I only hear a beep on the line.

[hunn1e-bunn1e]

Bonten Sanzu Haruchiyou - "CRAZY S/O 2"

🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.

But it's headcannons this time..... so yeah...

Warnings -> Implied drug abuse, Mentions of holding Koko hostage, Implied domestic violence (throwing shit), sex near a corpse, Burglarization of houses, Theft, Misuse of prescription medication, and side effects of drugs.

                                                                                                   

💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉

💊 It was mentioned in the first iteration of this but Sanzu and you live together. But he wants his lover to be safe so the both of you live in the nearest neighborhood to the Bonten headquarters. This also helps him get home much faster compared to where you both were living beforehand.

💊 Sanzu will startle you when he holds you from behind and tilts your head back to kiss you while you hold a gun to his head and he holds a knife to your throat. Iconic? Sure. Romantic? Eh...Not so much. Maybe to him though, we'll never really know what goes on in whatever is left of his brain cells.

💊 Often times Sanzu brings his work home to you and let's you watch. If he's in a good mood he'll even let you help. Isn't he such a sweetheart? Although the most he let's you do is help him move the corpse into his trunk once he's all finished. He doesn't want some rando's blood on you even if it make you look really hot.

💊 Kokonoi still hasn't forgiven you for holding him hostage. Especially considering that this was the fourteenth time you've done it already..... He's gotten far more cautious of his surroundings and now completes a threat assessment every half hour without fail. You really have scarred this man.

💊 Sanzu always ends up having to shell out a ton of money on fine china because his lover flies off the handle and throws dishes at him fairly often. It's really starting to take a bit of a toll on his paycheck so he's in the process of trying to convince you to throw less fragile objects instead.

💊 You and Sanzu have in fact made love in the same room as a dead body on multiple occasions... It usually happens about twice a week and he really looks forward to it, actually. Weirdo...

💊 Sanzu actually tends to get his drugs from you. It seems you've developed a hobby of breaking into neighboring people's houses and stealing only their prescription medication. You never go for anything over the counter for some reason and still have yet to get caught.

💊 You bought Sanzu a parakeet and he quickly taught it to say 'Kill the traitors'. Haru Junior still lives with you guys to this very day; just chilling in his massive birdcage and watching 'Judge Judy' or whatever was on the old line up of t.v. broadcasts in the afternoons.

💊 On days when you're feeling more yourself, you'll patch up Sanzu's wounds and help him down from any of his particularly bad trips from whatever drug he'd decided to take this time. Maybe you'd even order take-out from some shitty restaurant on the other side of town and complain about the wait time while you both lazed around on the ripped up some, watching some crappy movies that he rented from a Redbox on his way home.

💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉•♡•💉

🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.

Wanna see similar content? Check out my Masterlist!

[ranmagender]

New Fic!

Joyce York is the host of a morning radio show that's broadcast across Wonderland. It's on at 8 AM twice a week and brings news, discussions and music to the citizens of Wonderland. Today as the the citizens are embracing pride month a host of news has hit causing shakeups in the community.

The pride special of sorts that I promised, I personally think its rather fun if I do say so myself. Not to be biased of course.

I had a lot of fun with this one and managed to include a variety of characters in this one such as one from my buddy @marvelousmop

I really wanted to make something special for pride month.

Enjoy!

[fcble]

On December 10, 2023, MINGEUN and JAESEOP took to Instagram Live for an unsanctioned response to an incendiary YouTube video from a few weeks earlier. The livestream lasted fifteen minutes and was obviously unscripted. The two of them frequently talked over one another and jumped from topic to topic without saying much of anything. Mingeun was noticeably out in nature somewhere, going as far as attempting to fish during the broadcast. His seemingly nonchalant attitude led some viewers to believe he couldn't care less about the issue at hand.

Also noticeable was the presence of BYEONGHWI in the live’s comment section, though he appeared to disagree with Mingeun and Jaeseop.

TRANSCRIPTION, TOP TO BOTTOM, LEFT TO RIGHT

JAESEOP: I assume everyone has seen the video by now. MINGEUN: [interrupting] If you haven’t, don’t go and watch it now. Watch it after.

JAESEOP: [reading a comment] ‘Where are you?’ Hwi, I’m not answering that.

MINGEUN: [in English] ‘Blink twice if you were forced to do this.’ Forced? Don’t make me laugh.

JAESEOP: It’s fine to dislike or disagree with us. MINGEUN: [interrupting] But if you’re going to criticize us, don’t bring up something that happened to me years ago.

MINGEUN: [still interrupting] I get it. I’m sorry. It wasn't my fault.

MINGEUN: [in English] Where am I? Outside. You should try it sometime.

MINGEUN: I didn't ask for any of this. I didn’t want to represent anything. Did any of us know we had that responsibility? JAESEOP: [interrupting] Go catch a fish, Mingeun. He doesn’t mean that.

MINGEUN: [catching a fish] JAESEOP: We’ve changed our perspective. In the beginning, the concept was supposed to make us stand out. Every group has to start somewhere.

MINGEUN: [still catching a fish] JAESEOP: Since then, we’re improving ourselves to be idols capable of properly sharing the past with the world.

[lemonluvgirl]

PROMPT REQUEST!! ❤️❤️

[Post-mj, growing back together]

katniss goes down on peeta for the first time?? Bonus if she asks advice from johanna beforehand and johanna being johanna, goes into explicit detail causing katniss to panic HAHAHA LOVE YOUR WORK ❤️❤️❤️

bonus pt. 2, if Peeta returns the favor 😏

Alright anon. I’ve been working on this all week. So I hope you like it. Also this song I Was Born to Love You  by Ray LaMontagne was the track I picked for this fic. The lyrics: 

You’re the only one I can talk to  The only one I can really read  I know you give because you want to Don’t you think its time to let yourself receive? 

really resonated with me when I was writing this story. 

The Only Opinion That Matters

"And then what?" Katniss asked in a choked whisper.

"Well, once it's in your mouth there are only a few things to worry about. First of all, try not to choke. You don't want to take too much at once, especially on your first try. Just fit however much feels comfortable in your mouth. Remember to leave a little room for thrusting. He may get excited if it feels really good. If that happens, and it's too much for you, pull back a little and use your hand to cover the rest. Use a rhythm you already know he likes in tandem with bobbing your mouth up and down. It's basically like giving him a hand job while using your mouth to stimulate the head of his penis. You've jacked him off before right?" Johanns asked very matter of factly.

Katniss felt like her face was turning scarlet at Johanna’s words. She probably looked like a bright red beacon broadcasting her embarrassment to the world. She cringed self consciously even though she was alone in her kitchen and Johanna couldn’t see her over the phone. This conversation was seriously testing her comfort limits. And yet, she had to finish it. There was literally no one else she could ask about this kind of thing.

"Yeah, I've um," Katniss couldn't quite bring herself to use Johanna's crass name for the method she had been using to bring Peeta pleasure lately, "used my hand on him before." Katniss finished, thinking about how she had just used her hand on him this morning, and he had said thank you by using his mouth on her. Twice.

That was Peeta for you though, always giving twice as much and never really asking for anything in return.

It made Katniss feel, well not exactly guilty. More like his selflessness spurred her to forget her own insecurities and focus on how much she wanted to give back to him the same kind of pleasure he gave to her on a regular basis. Her only problem was her lack of knowledge and experience. Hence, the call to Johanna.

"Then you already know how to work that aspect. Just keep a steady rhythm. Remember to breathe through your nose. If you’re feeling confident and you already know he likes to have his balls played with, or his ass grabbed while getting stroked then try adding that in as well. But whatever you do, don't use your teeth! Most guys don't like it, and even if they do it's got to be done with a very light touch, and only someone with a fair amount of experience can usually pull something like that off. So stick to using your tongue, hands, and some moderate suction. Right now your main objective is simply to cover the basics." Johanna advised.

"But what if he wants something exciting instead of basic and-" Katniss asked in a nervous voice.

"Brainless, he's probably gonna lose his shit three minutes in. If he can last that long. No need to get fancy. Trust me. Just pay attention to his cues."

"Cues?"

"Cues, tells, signals, you know the things he does when he's about to come."

Katniss thought for a moment about the way Peeta's breathing changed, the way he tilted his hips, and made little noises every time he got close to finishing.

"You do know what his tells are, don't you?"

"Of course I do." Katniss bit back a little indignantly. She and Peeta had been slowly but surely progressing further in their intimate relationship for a while now. There was hardly a night where his head didn't end up between her thighs and she didn't stroke him to completion. Many nights it happened more than once. 

Johanna just chuckled at Katniss’ obvious annoyance.

"Well, alright then. Good to know you've started paying attention to the guy, finally. Now there's only one more thing we need to cover."

"What's that?" Katniss bit back angrily, growing more frustrated because of Johanna’s subtle digs. 

"The finale, of course! If you’ve been getting hot and heavy with Loverboy like you said then you ought to know what I'm talking about, Brainless!"

Finale? Katniss wondered to herself, bewildered. She had no idea what Johanna was talking about. The only finale she could think of was the showdown between the final two competitors in The Hunger Games. Which was not something that she wanted to remind Peet of while they were...

At her prolonged silence, Johanna started snickering and then she started talking again.

"You know, the end of the night fireworks, the volcanic eruption, the bursting of the dam...” 

“I think I-” Katniss tried to interrupt but Joahnna just spoke over her.

“The explosion at the yogurt factory, the erection ejection, the-” 

“I GET IT JOHANNA!” Katniss’ shouted indignantly. It was immediately followed by loud cackles coming from the other side of the phone line. 

“Glad to know you’re up to date on the lingo, Brainless. But tell me this, have you decided what you want to do with said finale when the time comes?” 

“What do you mean? Like swallow it or something?” Kantiss asked, voice barely above a whisper, and extremely nervous and strained sounding. She knew some people did that. But she wasn’t sure she wanted to try it. The thought kind of terrified her.

“Swallow, spit it out, pull back and let him come on your tits or stomach, the possibilities are many.” Johanna replied with a lazy sounding hum.

Katniss was positive she could actually hear Johanna grinning at her discomfort over the phone. 

“I hadn’t really thought that far ahead, actually.” Katniss admitted. It was enough for her to juggle the logistics of all the things she was supposed to do to get Peeta to orgasm.

“Well, you should really think about it. It could happen pretty fast….. Anyway, I’d better let you go. I’m expecting a call from my head doctor at 2, so...” 

“Yeah, of course. Sorry to keep you-and thanks again, for all your....help.” Katniss replied. She cringed again at how awkward she sounded, like she had just thanked Johanna for lending her a book or something benign like that. 

“No problem, and Katniss?” The teasing tone suddenly left Johanna’s voice and Katniss waited breathlessly for whatever she said next. 

“He’s crazy about you, and he’s going to love this.” Johanna said so sincerely that Katniss was caught off guard for a moment, but then Joahnna had to go and ruin it by adding, “So even if you screw up, and don't get him off he’s still gonna think the sun shines outta your ass, no matter what.” Johanna finished with a loud belly laugh and Katniss groused at her to shut up. She reluctantly thanked her again, in a grudging tone and promised to call back tomorrow and fill her in on the results. It had been the price Johanna had enacted for all her ‘help’. 

The call clicked, and ended and Katniss was left alone in the kitchen with her thoughts. 

She mentally went over Johanna’s checklist in her head a few times, after she ran through the instructions on how to get things started there was nothing else to do but shower and wait for Peeta to come home. 

~

Peeta returned home promptly at 5:30, as usual. He washed up and they had a light dinner while discussing their respective days. Katniss left out her phone call to Johanna, because she wanted to surprise Peeta later. 

After working on the plantbook for a bit, Katniss felt anxious. She wasn't able to concentrate properly so she feigned being tired and suggested they retire to bed early. Peeta lifted one of his eyebrows in surprise, clearly not buying her over dramatic yawn, but he followed her up the stairs just the same. 

Once inside the bedroom Katniss had to get a hold of her nerves. She allowed Peeta to use the bathroom first, and scurried to her closet to take a deep breath. She tried not to think of all the many ways this could go wrong, and instead focused on finding what Johanna had called a ‘mood setting outfit’. 

There were an array of possibilities, her closet was literally still stuffed with clothes that Cinna had made for her before he--

Katniss shook her head to clear it of melancholy thoughts. She had spent many a day mourning Cinna and his prodigious talent for creating things of beauty with needle and thread. She and Peeta had vowed not to wallow in grief and instead to remember and treasure the good memories and beautiful things left behind by the ones they had lost. 

Cinna had no doubt come to the conclusion that one day she would wake up and realize that she loved and wanted Peeta just as much as he did her, and he had diligently crafted several beautiful night gowns with more than just comfortable sleep in mind. But those Katniss felt had always been meant to be used on their honeymoon. It just didn’t feel right to use them now. 

Maybe someday, if Peeta ever decided to ask her again, for real....

Focus! Katniss told herself sternly, as she recalled Johannah’s advice. 

Since you’re not the type to casually tell a guy to drop his pants, you’ll have to get your intentions across some other way. It could be as simple as giving him a certain look, or even wearing something sexy to bed.

While Katniss wished she knew just what look to give Peeta to communicate her desires wordlessly, she knew she just wasn’t that good. Yet. 

So she cast around for ideas until her eyes landed on a shirt that lay on the floor of the closet, near the hamper. It was a plain white shirt that belonged to Peeta, that he often wore around the house and to sleep in. It was a piece of clothing that she often borrowed from him in the morning when she couldn’t find her own clothes and was too lazy to go hunting for them behind the bed.  

It was large and soft and comfortable. Plus, it smelled like Peeta. Like his skin and his bath soap and the lingering traces of his baking spices. Just heavenly. 

She undressed quickly and took off her slippers. Then she gingerly unhooked her bra and let it fall to the floor, and she grabbed the shirt from the hanger and slipped it over her head. Nervousness and excitement flooded her body at the same time and her hand shook a little when she turned the knob to exit the closet. 

She found Peeta in bed. The main overhead light had been turned off and only the bedside lamp was on. Peeta was already reclining atop the sheets and reading a pamphlet about the new laws governing opening small businesses. His chest was gloriously bare and his gray cotton sleep pants hugged his trim hips deliciously. 

Now that the world had changed and she was convinced that she would actually get to keep him after all, she had stopped being so afraid of staring at him. 

She drank in the strong lines of his body. Every part of him was beautiful despite the lines of fire that licked across his body and left behind their mark. Now that he was hers, she could admit that just the sight of him made her want. Deep in her bones, there was something that ached for him in an ancient way that went beyond words, sometimes beyond thoughts. 

She just knew that Peeta belonged with her, to her, and she to him. 

He looked up, as if he sensed her, and Katniss felt her breath catch at the movement. The way his breathtakingly blue eyes roamed up and down her body made her feel a million things at once. 

“I love it when you wear my shirt.” He stated, his eyes catching on the naked skin of her thighs and lingering there before returning to her face. 

“I know,” Katniss replied, more confidently than she felt. She walked towards him slowly, just as Johanna had instructed, to draw out the tension. 

You gotta build the anticipation. Give him a naughty look and then walk over really slowly. Make his head spin with possibilities. Once you've got him thinking about sex you're halfway there.

Katniss heard Johanna's advice playing in her head as she tried to sway her hips seductively with each step. It was a good thing the distance from the closet to the bed was relatively small. 

She managed to make it to the corner of the bed before losing her balance. She covered up her stumble by leaning forward on all fours so she could inch her way towards him. He hadn’t seemed to notice her failed attempt at seductive walking.

Katniss watched as Peeta’s eyes darkened in real time, and his pupils expanded outwards to drink in the sight of her crawling across the bed to him. 

“What are you up to?” Peeta questioned, when she swung one leg over to the other side of his hip and sank down to straddle him. 

“I just wanted to try something.....” Katniss replied evasively, and before he could ask another question she sealed her lips over his and gave him a deep, passionate kiss. 

Peeta moaned into the kiss, his hands reaching out to bracket her hips and pull her down over him. Katniss sighed in relief. 

Kissing Peeta put Katniss at ease. It was something she knew how to do by now very well, and she took some time to revel in the softness of his lips and the tantalizing flicks of his tongue before breaking off and moving in a downwards trajectory. 

She kissed his strong, square jaw and down his neck, lingering for a bit over his pulse and nipping at his ear until she could feel him stirring beneath her. He was half hard by the time she kissed across his collarbone and by the time her mouth reached his stomach he was rocking against her subtly from underneath. 

She looked up at him from under her lashes as her hands moved to pull down the waistband of his pants, and his breath caught. 

She knew the image he was likely seeing was a new and unexpected one. She had helped undress him before, but not in this position, with her mouth so close to his cock. 

“Are you--? I mean do you want to? Katniss?” Peeta’s flustered questions made her cheeks heat, but the desire and hopefulness in his eyes was easy to read. 

Once you start getting each other naked cut the chit chat down to a minimum. When the clothes come off it should be all feeling. Skin on skin, the way he smells and tastes, the way he moans your name. The only conversation required should be some dirty talk. If you're up for it.

Johanna's voice reverberated in her thoughts. Peeta had often used her name when they were in bed together but he'd never said anything explicit or dirty. Katniss wondered if by taking this new step that might change things between them...

She wasn't sure if she was in favor of that or not. She’d never done any of this before but she thought there was a good chance that if it was Peeta who was whispering naughty words to her in the privacy of their bedroom she might enjoy it. 

So in answer to his question, Katniss just bent down and took the elastic band of his underwear in her teeth and proceeded to gently tug them down. 

“Shit, holy shit.” She heard Peeta murmur and his excited, almost disbelieving tone made her chuckle softly. 

With a little help from him, his boxer briefs came off quickly. 

Once he was naked, Katniss sat up and slowly inched his shirt off her body as well, leaving her only in her plain cotton underwear. 

Peeta groaned out loud, and whispered her name like a plea when her breasts came into his field of vision and Katniss smiled a small, secret smile, pleased that something so simple could affect him so deeply. 

But then again, didn’t he have the same effect on her? She looked down at his hard length, thick and swollen with want and she squeezed her thighs together to relieve the ache seeing him erect and ready caused in her. 

She wanted to touch him, taste him, make him feel good. 

But all of Johanna's instruction went out the window the longer she stared at his erection. She forgot how to even start. 

How was she going to get it all in her mouth? And what happened if he thrusted too hard and made her gag? Would she throw up? Something gross like that could traumatize both of them. What if he wanted her to swallow? She didn't think she was ready to do that!

"Uh, Katniss? Where did you just go right now?" Peeta's voice broke her out of her internal spiral.

She looked back up at him, wide eyed and blushing in embarrassment. She hadn't even begun and she had already messed up.

"I'm right here." Was the only thing Katniss could think to say.

Peeta gave her an incredulous look.

"You know you don't have to do this. I don't expect you to go down on me just because I like to go down on you." Peeta told her in a serious voice.

Katniss cringed at the conclusion he had drawn. She obviously had been putting out some kind of signal that had been interpreted as reluctance. She felt terrible.

"That's not it! I really, really want to do this! Not just for you, but for me too!" She cried in frustration.

Peeta eased her off his lower half and sat up then.

"Okay, then talk to me. What's got you so..."

“I just…forgot how to start! I’ve been going over and over what Johanna said to do in my head all night long and I forgot the first part!” Katniss finally admitted, unable to look up from the bedspread to meet Peeta’s gaze. 

“You asked Johanna? For advice about…us?” Peeta’s amused reply ignited fury in her. 

“Because I don’t know how to do any of this…complicated sex stuff!” Katniss spat, and crossed her arms over her breasts. Peeta followed the motions of her arms and his brow furrowed in confusion. He looked momentarily put out by her covering her chest up, but he quickly returned his eyes to her face. 

“Complicated? What’s complicated about it? It's just you and me. It doesn’t matter what we do Katniss, as long as it's just us and it's because it's what we want.” 

“Yeah, you say that but what if I take too much of you in my mouth too quickly and I gag? Or throw up? What if I can’t find a good rhythm or I accidentally scrape you with my teeth?! Johanna said guys hate that!” Katniss argued. 

Peeta got that amused look back on his face. 

“Katniss, if any of those things happen, we’ll deal with them.” 

“But what if I’m not any good or-” Katniss continued pouring out her doubts.

“Katniss.” Peeta said more firmly, as he placed his hand on her forearm. 

“I won’t ask you to do anything you’re uncomfortable with. Nothing in our relationship is ever going to be forced or coerced for either of us again. Now, if this is something you actually want to do, we’ll take it one step at a time. You don’t have to worry about impressing anyone. It’s just me and you, and ours is the only opinion that matters.” 

Peeta’s words got through to her, as they always did and suddenly her swirling and confusing thoughts settled and her mind became clear and steady once more. 

“Lay back.” She asked him with a small smile, her confidence returning. 

Peeta looked momentarily surprised. 

“Please,” Katniss added and that seemed to move him. He reclined gently against the pillows and watched as Katniss sat between his thighs. 

She began to kiss the tops of them, her lips tickled by his coarse but nearly invisible leg hair. She reached up to massage his balls gently as she kissed her way up his legs, something she knew he liked from her previous experience exploring his body when she only used her hands. 

When her mouth reached the crease between his hip and groin the earthy, spicy scent of him grew stronger and she flicked out her tongue tentatively to taste him. 

His breath hitched at the tiny wet sensation, so near to where his erection was coming back to life. The closer she got to his cock, the harder he got. Katniss could practically feel the anticipation rolling off him in waves. He was probably imagining what her mouth would feel like on him. She was just as eager to experience it as well. 

She had been wanting to do this for him for a while. 

So when she kissed the last bit of space before she reached the base of him, she pulled back and looked in his eyes, to tell him just that. 

“Peeta, just so you know, I want this. I want to do this for you, and with you. You make me feel so good all the time. So happy, and safe. I just want to give this to you right now, because I want you to feel just a little bit of how happy and alive you make me feel everyday.” Katniss told him, and she only waited a second to register the look of utter adoration he gave her in return before she descended on him, laving her tongue along his length from root to tip. He tasted interesting. The fluid that leaked from his tip was slightly salty, but his skin smelled like his shower soap and that indefinable Peeta-ness that she associated with him alone. He was hot, and hard in her mouth, but his skin was so smooth and silky. She could feel his texture even better on her tongue than when he was in her hand. 

“Oh, fuck.” She heard him say in a shocked but pleasure filled voice when she flicked her tongue out to circle and dance around his head, so she did it again. Then she started exploring.

She licked him, without self consciousness, teasing around the crown of his head, along the path of his veins, in the crevice between his foreskin and his shaft, everywhere. 

Soon he was swearing to a long forgotten creator, and whoever was listening. Then she wrapped her lips around his tip, sealing him in the wet cavern of her mouth and he let out a groan so tortured and full of pleasure that Katniss felt wetness seep out of her body and soak her underwear. 

She hadn’t anticipated how arousing it would be to be the one giving the pleasure in this way. She did what felt natural, and added her hand to cover the rest of his thick shaft that didn’t fit in her mouth, and when she got a good rhythm down she began to add suction. 

“Oh! Fuck! Please suck it like that, please!” He begged in a ragged voice and Katniss obliged him readily. 

“Baby, you’re so good at that,” Peeta panted as he reached out to run his fingers in her hair. “I don’t know why you were so--Ah!--so nervous!” Peeta praised her and Katniss looked up at him through her lashes without stopping her ministrations. 

“Oh my fucking—Just look at you! Fucking beautiful! Sucking my cock so damn-ah-so-so-good!” Katniss felt her breathing pick up at Peeta’s words. 

So that was dirty talk? She felt her cheeks heating even more and her clit literally throbbing with need. She had to break off from sucking for a second to get her breath back, so she used her hand to keep pumping him. She squirmed on the bed restlessly before moving to straddle one of Peeta’s legs, then she resumed sucking him as she rubbed her soaked panties along Peeta’s thickly muscled leg. 

“Is this making you wet? Oh, god, Katniss…I’m gonna eat you out so good after this. I’m gonna fucking live between your thighs until morning. You just wait.” Peeta promised and it only made her redouble her efforts. 

She alternated between longer periods of sucking and quick pauses to lick around the head of his cock, never stopping the movements of her hand. 

Then she felt it. The change in Peeta’s breathing. The subtle angling of his hips. The more primal sounding edge to his moans. 

“Katniss, I’m gonna come, move baby,” Peeta said in a thick voice. 

Katniss suddenly, stubbornly, resolved to see things through. 

She knew what a little bit of him tasted like. Johanna had described the clear fluid that had leaked from his tip as precome. That hadn’t been so bad. So, Katniss thought she’d probably be ok letting him finish in her mouth. 

“Katniss,” Peeta warned, as he pushed back on her shoulder, trying to dislodge her. 

But she resolutely remained, bobbing her head and moving her tongue along the underside of his cock as she sucked. 

She wished she could have watched him as he got closer, but she got caught up in the moment and forgot to open her eyes, navigating mostly by the feel of his body’s responses and the sounds he made.

“Fuck, fuck! I can’t—Ohhh…..yeah, god, baby, take it. Take it all…..” Peeta moaned the words brokenly as he gently palmed the back of her head and thrust in just a little at the end. His cock pulsed inside her mouth and she actually felt each twitch on her tongue. Her mouth filled with each spurt of his cock, and it happened so fast that she could barely angle her mouth in time so that it pooled on top of her tongue instead of shooting down her throat. 

That was when Katniss realized that semen actually tasted different than precome. A little saltier, definitely thicker, and also slightly metallic? 

She had never tasted anything like it and it wasn’t actually something she was expecting, so while Peeta collapsed boneless and sated into the mattress, groaning, she gingerly got up and slipped into the bathroom to spit the stuff out into a towel, which she then promptly tossed in the dirty towel hamper. 

She looked at herself in the mirror after wiping her mouth. 

She looked flushed and bright eyed and slightly dreamy. If she didn’t know better she would have sworn she had been the one to just orgasm. 

At the thought of orgasm, Katniss felt a small proud smile creep onto her face. It widened into a full blown grin when she remembered just how enthusiastic Peeta had been and how much he seemed to like everything she did. 

Johanna’s going to be so surprised I went through with it. Katniss thought to herself smugly. 

She had actually really enjoyed herself, and she knew that the days of only giving Peeta handjobs were at an end. 

“What’s taking so long in there? The night’s not over yet, Sweetheart. And I’m nowhere near done with you.” Peeta’s voice interrupted her thoughts loudly. 

Katniss smiled again, as she made her way back to the bathroom doorway. She leaned against the frame and tossed Peeta a cocky grin before replying. 

“Right back at ya, Loverboy. I hope you’ve recovered there, because that was fun. And I might just want to get in a little more practice before I hand over the reins.” 

[youngerdrgrey]

must you do the things you do? // The Morning Show fic (1 / 2)

about: 2x06 Episode Tag. After outing Bradley and Laura (via The Vault), Cory stops over at Laura's dressing room for a chat. Laura pieces a few things together. or, Laura gets the chance to call out Cory for his crush on Bradley at the most inopportune time for them all. (Read on AO3) . notes: the title is literally from "The Boy is Mine." Here's another oneshot I started in 2021 and cleaned up this week. In 2x06, after Bradley and Laura were outed (by Cory in exchange for protecting Hannah’s memory), we saw the conversation between Cory and Bradley. He told her she didn’t have to explain herself, and she told him that she thought maybe it would be good for her to have to admit to everyone that she actually wants to be with Laura. But what could the convo between Cory and Laura have looked like?

~

Laura never should’ve come back to The Morning Show. If it weren’t for Bradley, she wouldn’t have. Leave it to Laura to somehow get outed twice on the same time slot. At least last time, she didn’t have to do a live broadcast as the news broke. And there was no Twitter back then. If people wanted to call her a predatory lesbian, they had to at least try calling the station.

Cory chuckles from the doorway of her dressing room. It’s probably meant to sound disbelieving, or comforting. It mostly sounds hollow. Almost pleased.

Laura may be projecting. May be possessive of Bradley in the face of a man she knows would do far more than he should for their favorite news anchor. He might even enjoy seeing them fall apart.

She speaks first. “All these years, and this might be the first time you’ve been in my dressing room.”

He goes for the joke. Voice lowering to a conspiratorial show whisper. “You don’t see many of my type.” When her eyes don’t stray from her vanity’s mirror, Cory pulls on his most sympathetic grin. “Forgive the joke. I thought a little levity could help on a difficult day. It must… bring back memories.”

Laura’s done a lot of work to keep as many of them buried as possible. The strain might tinge her words. “It must. But I’m not the one you should be talking to.” Nor is she the one he wants to. His eyes betray him.

He offers first, “Bradley’s not answering her door.” That explains it. She can’t help the soft chuckle that brings up. Cory adds, “I also wanted to have a word with you.”

He shifts as he says it. Cory always has the sort of chaotic energy of static trapped inside a bottle, unable to break free.

Laura turns in her chair to give Cory her full attention. In turn, Cory finally steps further into her room. He stays standing, which is either a power play or a move for a quick exit.

“Now I won’t ask you to confirm or deny what I’m seeing,” he says. “From a studio standpoint, it can and should be treated as gossip. I can understand how things could be misconstrued. Something as simple as two friends headed home….”

Is that how he wants to play it? Turn UBA against The Vault? Play Laura as the horrified mentor who can’t be near a woman without dating accusations. Bradley’s just a victim. A sweet ally on the wrong side of salacious rumors. A spurned woman who triumphantly powered through the broadcast while the whole world questioned if she was sleeping with her co-anchor.

“It’s interesting,” Laura starts before the thought has fully formed, “that this happened on my first day back. How fortunate this is for the ratings.”

Cory smiles that crooked, too wide smile at her implication. No denial, but then again, she has no proof. 

Laura adds, “I will defer to Bradley on how to handle this situation. Your input is appreciated, but as you’ve already referenced, this isn’t my first time on Page Six.”

He nods, but he doesn’t say anything else. His hands wring, knuckles circling under the pads of his thumbs. He’s teeming with something. Building up his courage to ask what he really wants to know.

He snaps his fingers. “You know I do wonder how we got to this moment. One second, you had to be coaxed to interact with our anchors, and the next….” His eyebrows pitch up for emphasis. He tries to sound so casual.

Laura reminds him, “You brought me into this. You asked me to get close to Bradley.”

A fire lights behind his eyes. “I said coach her, not poach her to your — this —“ Laura lifts a sculpted brow, but Cory holds up a finger as he retracts and rephrases. He tries again with a humorless laugh. “Hey, a lot can happen in thirty-six hours.”

“A lot can happen in a year as well. I can sense how you feel about Bradley.” 

This, he denies. “I worry about her. She didn’t have the benefit of the mentors that you had, and—“

“And you think I’m taking advantage of her? Hypothetically speaking.”

“I wouldn’t dare think that.”

Laura leans forward in her seat. “Yet you’re here, in my dressing room, to what? Defend her honor? Pretend to check on me so that you have the right words to comfort her later? Let me help you. When somebody chooses to out you, first it’s terrifying. Your heart pounds. Blood rings in your ears until eventually the shock settles in.”

She’d seen the exact moment it clicked for Bradley. When the world snapped back into focus with the eyes of the nation on Bradley and that ridiculous prank nose.

Laura continues, “Then it’s a bit easier to breathe but impossible to do anything else. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s lying down now. Staring at the ceiling, or the wall, or squeezing her eyes shut. She’ll get the strength to respond eventually. But the internet is there, so the tweets will find her before anything else does. Then her family, then whoever else has access. And regardless of how she responds, or the show does, she’ll spend the rest of her life aware that this is what happened, here, on your stage.”

He stiffens. “You were seen.”

“Seen what? Going into a hotel room? People do that. Particularly people who’ve interviewed each other and don’t want to talk about sensitive topics in the public eye. People can laugh and hold hands, but the moment a lesbian is involved, it’s a problem. It’s sensational. It’s the type of information that can change things.”

Change the conversation. Laura’s eyes widen as it clicks. This news would take the focus off of Hannah, off of TMS and UBA+ and Alex in Maggie’s upcoming book. This news would be enough to bury something.

Cory watches as Laura processes. He at least has the decency to meet her eyes. Her friend. Her boss. Her traitor. Then he blinks, and his smile is back like it never dropped. Brighter than before even.

He says, “I’ll check with Bradley. See how she wants to handle this. I’ll let you know.” He reels around, and that’s when a second click happens.

Yes, Cory could’ve done this for UBA. But he absolutely did it for Bradley. To tear her down and then scoop up the pieces. To save her in the way only her boss can. To ruin her and Laura before they had a chance to become untouchable. They won’t survive something like this, not alone, and Bradley won’t let them be together.

Laura has to fix this. She has to talk to Bradley. She can’t lose her, not yet.

.

.

read part two

[jonnysinsectcatalogue]

Black-Legged Meadow Katydid - Orchelimum nigripes

Earlier this week (on Tuesday's post), I posed the question, "What you do think will happen if a Katydid hears its own chirping played back to it?" Before doing so, I speculated three possibilities: The Katydid would either ignore the sound/do nothing, move towards the sound or move away from the sound. While anecdotal to this individual, I played the video of its singing back to this individual, and it moved toward the sound. How astonishing! Not only did our stridulating friend move towards the sound, it actively pursued it as I moved the phone through the foliage. It even leapt from stem to stem in order to pursue the source of the sound, its antennae pointing either upward or forward! This male only stopped briefly mid pursuit to stridulate once or twice, and then resumed chasing the phone. Once I stopped playback, the Katydid became still again and resumed its consistent mating call. It's likely that this Katydid pursued its own sound as it mistook it for a much louder rivalling Katydid intruding on its territory, hence the seemingly aggressive behavioral response. As it turns out, there have been multiple observations of Katydid-on-Katydid aggression for the securing of territory between males, particular among the Orchelimum genus!

When two loud, stridulating males find each other, some have reported that they will ward off each other with acoustic signals. If neither backs down, then both individuals fight to determine which singer is the subordinate via Bush-Cricket combat! Such a battle consists of the males trying to grapple each other, scrape at each other with their tarsal claws and bite any vulnerable areas, resulting in body damage, and outer wing/tegmina damage! The latter is particularly disastrous as calling a mate would become more difficult. For herbivores, this behavior is surprisingly vicious! The fight ends when a Katydid concedes and flees to another plant, while the victor can broadcast its song for all to hear. As such, our Katydid friend would have only moved away from the sound if the phone would have caused it harm, but that would never be the case. Moreover, while loud individuals fall into territorial disputes between rivals, silent males do not provoke louds ones, and are thusly allowed to pass. I would wager however, that some older males use this technique to their advantage and strike without provocation in attempt to secure a territory. Females are also silent, so they can pass through a loud male's territory unharmed, but of course the whole point of the singing is to attract a female. With sound, this can be done while bright or (in this instance) in the dark.

Although I had many fresh Mosquito bites as a result of these images, it was worth it to bring you this story and this knowledge. On a funnier note, as this individual was singing into the dusk, my ears were able to find it. However, it took my eyes a bit longer to catch up. It's all the more embarrassing as I was looking directly at it and didn't notice it. This is quite a handy crypsis to have, but other animals may be better suited to track via sound. Thusly, sometimes louder individuals draw the interest of predators as they stridulate. This is the equalizer that allows some quieter, subordinate Katydids to continue singing into the night.

Pictures were taken on August 24, 2024 with a Google Pixel 4. For another refresher on what a Black-Legged Meadow Katydid's song sounds like, you can check out this post as well.

[bitchinbarzal]

13. "It is so cold, warm me up please” With Dylan Duke please?🤍

Dylan was in the dog house.

He had messed up, he forgot your date. He left you alone in the restaurant on a Saturday night and you were mad.

So mad that you hadn’t spoken to him in a week.

He was trying everything to get your attention.

It resulted to this; standing outside your house with a speaker like this was some 80’s romcom.

“Duker go away she doesn’t want to see you!” One of your housemate shouted out the window.

He only turned the music up louder and shouted “I’ll stand here forever if I need to”

It began snowing not long after that.

Passing the window in the hallway you peered out to see Mackie now on the front lawn draping a coat over Dylan.

You rolled your eyes and continued on, ignoring him.

Two hours later you were all sat watching tv when a broadcast interrupted

“We interrupt your scheduled programming to bring news of a weather warning in the area tonight. Temperatures are set to drop below -10° and a snow drift will be setting in the coming hour”

Your eyes drifted out to the front lawn, he was still standing there.

Pulling yourself off the couch you opened the door. He had that dopey smile on his face even if he was shaking.

“Dylan it’s going to get freezing tonight, go home!”

He shook his head “No! I need you to accept my apology because I’m sorry!”

“Dyl… please just get out of the snow!”

“I didn’t mean to miss it! I had every intention of going, I was so excited then Tampa called” you cocked your head, confused this was the first you’d heard of this.

“Luke is signing in February and so is Mackie but Tampa called because they wanted me to sign before Christmas… they want security for injuries in the playoff run” your heart started beating twice as fast.

“I was so distracted I forgot! And I’m sorry I really am”

“What did you say?” Was all you asked.

His lip quirked “I told them no”

“Dylan…” you trailed and he began to walk closer “No, I can’t go yet because I have you and I don’t think I’m ready to leave college behind yet! I was just so in my head but I am really really sorry”

You nodded subconsciously and opened your arms “come here you idiot!”

He gladly accepted, rushing into your arms while chittering his teeth “You’re freezing!”

“It is so cold, please warm me up” was all he managed to say before you pulled him into the house wrapping him in every blanket you could find.

[fangbangerghoul]

WIP WEDNESDAY

LEEETS GOOOOOO Thanks @atonalginger for the tag! I think everyone I know has been tagged but if you haven't been tag, look at me, in the eyes, you are now tagged. You are bound by honor and duty to post.

I had to dig for this. I realized when I said I had something to share I shared it on snippet sunday already so I had to find the *other* thing.

This is technically a finished scene but here is a WIP/sneak peek into the off shot series I have been working on. It's just little scenes that get stuck in my head of Ghoul that I want to write.

Deep Pleasures 

The smoke lingered up to the ceiling of the ship as the source of it hung out the side of Delgado’s mouth. He sat shirtless next to her organizing his various pistols and ammo. It was nights like these she actually allowed herself to enjoy the peace and lack of chaos. Her legs were lazily on his lap and she was occasionally tossed one of the daggers he had sat on the table in front of them towards the wall. The next one she threw was closer to his nose than she intended and his honey eyes glanced annoyingly at her in warning. 

“Do you mind?” He growled and tossed the cigarette that he had been smoking at her. She laughed at his attempt to get her with the hot end of it and managed to catch it with her two fingers before bringing it to her mouth. She took a long drag and exhaled it directly into his face with the biggest grin of pride and satisfaction on her face. 

“No, not at all, Del.” Ghoul responded as she pulled back her newly blue dyed hair. It was something she had snuck off to get done recently and Del was still not entirely happy about her running off without him considering they were still under heat for their last GalBank heist. Their photos were plastered all over the SSNN broadcasts for the past two weeks. He knew she could stand on her own two feet but he was more protective over her nowadays. 

“Oh, you’re a real piece of work sometimes, mi amor.” He said theatrically and rolled his eyes. He then grabbed her ankles and yanked her closer to him with ease. Delgado pressed his warm body into her as she playfully tried to squirm away, the both of them knew she could if she tried hard enough. When Ghoul finally surrendered, she grabbed his face and dragged him closer to hers. His scruffy mustache tickled her lips as she pressed them against his without hesitation. His mouth engulfed hers and his tongue forcefully invited itself into her mouth to even out the temporary power imbalance. Their mouths performed a slow and steady dance for conquest and dominance. 

Delgado broke the kiss and his soft honey eyes stared at her face while his thumb traced her jawline with gentleness he would never display to anyone else. Ghoul caught her own breath as she took in every line, scar, and beauty mark on his face as if it would be the last time she ever saw it. They were locked in the moment and enjoying the comfort of each other. They could relish when they were alone like this away from the horrors of their everyday life. Sure, piracy was fun and his ambitious goals would always take them further and further into the plight of chaos. Ghoul was just as impulsive and never thought twice about where her blades would strike in the heat of the moment. None of it mattered as much without the insane grip they had on each other and for once they both felt something as deep as the abyss that surrounded their home at The Key.  

The End

[chiskz]

CHICHI AND THEIR SHIPS

inspired by @cafemilk-tea ♡

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Miyawaki Sakura (LE SSERAFIM, ex. HKT48, IZ*ONE) - Sakura really liked Chichi's work and vice versa, they met through Changbin who knows Chaeyeon (soloist, ex. IZ*ONE, JYP trainee). Since then, they spend a lot of time together (as much as their busy schedules allow). They often play console games and watch dramas together while expanding their Korean vocabulary. Chichi also confessed that she had watched Sakura on stage since HKT48.

Komiyama Haruka (AKB48) - The girls met not long after Haruka confessed in an interview that Chichi was her ideal type. Both are big fans of the "Love Live!" series.

Ushio Sarina (HINATAZAKA46) - The girls met after one of Stray Kids concerts in Japan where Sarina attended. Chichi quickly "fell in love" with her gentle personality, and they have exchanged letters frequently since then, which they both find very cute and more personal. As part of promoting Stray Kids with "Circus", Chichi received a 15-minute segment on Japanese radio, "I Can Say It!", with Sarina as co-host. The program was broadcast twice a week for 2 weeks (4 episodes). During the show, there were many cute interactions between them, which ultimately stole the hearts of fans.

Myoui Mina (TWICE) - The girls obviously know each other from the label. Both are trained in ballet, sometimes spending their free time recalling some choreography. In addition, they often bring each other gifts from Japan whenever one of them is there. Both Mina and Chichi have mentioned multiple times on Bubble that they are currently together - they both always send then a short text message: "🐧🤝🐯".

Changbin, Hyunjin & Jeongin ➡️ ♡♡♡

Song Mingi (ATEEZ) - They became friends during Guerilla choreo making period, where they quickly became the loudest duo, mainly due to their loud laughs. They also often teased each other, to the point that most of their conversations, taken out of context, would have indicated that they hate each other - which only shows how similar their sense of humor is.

Choi San (ATEEZ) - San was the first one to approach Chichi during Kingdom. He then complimented her amazing dancing skills and unimaginable condition. Achieving something similar, he stated, was his goal. Chichi was very touched by his words, and after the show, away from the cameras, they quickly became inseparable. The two often train together. Chichi on one of her vlives confessed that she and San often like to tweak existing choreographies by making them more difficult. They like to feel tired and see how far they can push their limits.