#but! i'd love to garner some attention for it first

[manchblack]

oooohhh you guys wanna ask me about our comic book concept so bad ooooooooohh

[applestoashes]

An update on Apples to Ashes

Hi, it's Prima, the creator and sole developer of Apples to Ashes.

Wow, it's been two years since I conceptualized Douglas and the idea for a visual novel. I think about how much has changed for me personally since March 2022, the different things that have happened to and for me. It's hard to sum it all up into a few words, but to put it plainly, there's been a lot of hardships I've encountered in my personal and professional life since starting this journey, along with some blessings that kept me going along the way.

When I first dreamed up this concept, I was experiencing a lot of new things. I was participating in fandoms for other indie "yandere" VNs, I was drawing a shit ton and garnering a following. I was actually becoming the active, well known artist I'd been striving to become since around 2015. I was so inspired and, somehow along the way, I gained the attention and respect from a lot of other creators. It was so insane to think so many talented people cared about what I was making, considered me worth following, etc.

That only grew as time went on, especially when I started the A2A project. From that point, I watched in absolute shock as people engaged with my own ideas, drew my own characters. They were hyped for this visual novel, they wanted to know more. Douglas started to get associated and drawn with other indie VN characters. This feeling of being put beside all these other amazing creators was disorienting to say the least.

Due to a lot of things I've been through, it feels like the magic wore off a bit. A lot of the drive I experienced at the peak of 2022 kind of plateaued, and... lots of things changed for me. I started taking commissions, I started doing more than just art, like getting back into video editing and voice acting. I got hired by a studio, I got a lead role in another visual novel. I told myself that I can do all these things that I want to, despite the additional need to work a regular job, and the fact that ADHD VERY much has hands. Financial hardship and mental illness... double homicide

A lot can change in two years. My inspirations for the setting in A2A came from my experiences with a job I had at the time. Well, needless to say I've had a few jobs since then, and been through a few very... jading experiences. The person I was when I conceptualized Apple to Ashes and the person I am now are two different people. I was very bright-eyed and inspired, especially by my peers. I wanted to attempt to do something I'd dreamed of for a long time: make a visual novel, and it felt possible, tangible.

I've learned a lot since then. There's a lot that goes into making a game, especially considering I'm largely pursuing it alone. Due to that, and the choices I've made, the things I've been through, Apple to Ashes progress has largely been halted. I feel a lot of pressure to make it something satisfying for everyone that's given love to this project. I feel a lot of guilt about the lack of progress, and feel like I'm earning the ire of people who are tired of waiting, or perhaps losing any momentum or interest I had originally garnered.

All that being said, I'm not saying all this to come to the conclusion that this project is canceled. It's not. I want this story to come to fruition. I want to give everyone waiting the experience they deserve. I want to reach the full potential this concept offers. I want to explore the themes I've attached, use the experiences I've had and witnessed. I want to bring light to these issues using this medium.

The TLDR of this is... Apples to Ashes will happen when it happens, but it is going to happen. To those of you who have offered your patience, I really appreciate it more than I can put into words.

Thank you for reading.

[blossoms-phan]

Hi! I am a X escapee relatively recent Dan & Phil returnee who loves your posts, you seem so reasonable. I have just been given what felt like a 90 min presentation detailing how my innocent assumption that Dan and Phil were anything other than platonic housemates was incorrect and offensive.

The lecture i was given included every reference that highlighted, amongst other things: their "obvious" separate bedrooms, bathrooms, towels, angles of items shown in bedrooms, closets, mentions of wanting to go out and meet other men, lack of real concern (X words, not mine) at each others medical emergencies and every use of bro and friend that they have said post hiatus. It was very detailed, they were very insistent and I was very apologetic. I decided to flee the X hostility and head back to tumblr, but here everyone appears to think they are together. So now I am confused and don't want to offend a whole new group of people.

I think what set the X people off was i said "partner" as I was under the, I now know, incorrect impression that they went public years ago. Oops. Don't trust the internet is what I have learned from this. I thought all this drama would have died out long ago, but I assume this is a topic to stay far away from still? Thanks

hi anon! first of all, thank you for saying that (still can’t believe I’ve garnered enough attention on here that people specifically like my posts!), I really appreciate it. second of all imma be so real with you I am a person that still primarily refers to “X” as twitter bc I refuse to get with the times so this greatly confused me until I realized there was only one possible platform with those kind of people you could be talking about. i’m sorry you endured that exhausting sounding lecture and welcome you to phannie tumblr with open arms 🫶

i am here to gently reassure you that you can take what dnp say and do and show and form your own opinions about it, don’t let anyone tell you you’re right or wrong for drawing conclusions or making assumptions. however I will also be so bold and tell you why that individual is so blatantly wrong and maybe clear some of your confusion.

first of all, i think dnp would refer to themselves as anything but "platonic housemates." it all comes back to this but i dare someone to look me in the eyes and be so fr when saying that just because they've never stated in words "we're dating/boyfriends/partners etc" the simple fact that they share a mortgage on a "forever home" together, (according to them) spend literally all their time together, are partners in work/life/play (vacations), share families (dan being uncle to phil's niece) implies anything other than them being life partners. i'd also like to draw attention back to possibly the most blatantly open statement either of them has made about the nature of their relationship, in dan's video titled "basically i'm gay" where he describes them as "actual soulmates" and more. there are lots of people who have been discussing/answering posts about the concept of a "hard launch" recently which i could direct you to and i am of the mind that there's nothing wrong with conceptualizing the idea of a hard launch or them being more open to sharing details of their romantic relationship to an extent, but BIG is the most profound public statement of the nature of their relationship and, in my humble opinion, "the" hard launch as dan QUITE LITERALLY says "more than just romantic" and goes on to say he and phil are private people and that that's all he will say of it for now (keep in mind it's been 5 years since this statement- still relevant but minds can change, specifically theirs in terms of what they feel more comfortable and open sharing in a post-comeback world)

now moving on to the "references" you mentioned. again, highlighting literally any of this as "proof" that they are just friends or whatever is utterly ridiculous but i'll still go through it for funsies. i'd like to challenge this person that claims they have "obvious" seperate bedrooms by saying... what is so obvious about it?? dnp are highly aware that whatever they share with us will be analyzed or viewed under a microscope, so obviously they've carefully chosen which parts of the phouse to show us and they're not going to be like oh yeah this is OUR bedroom where we sleep TOGETHER every night. now i'm aware that yes, the "black" bedroom with dan's closet is more obviously a dan room that has been claimed as "his" bedroom. can't find it to link rn but they have posted a photo of the shelf of that room and while it is mostly dan stuff on the shelves, there was also a photo of phil's family and some of phil's books and items on the shelves. storage? sure, but if someone wants to claim that makes it so obviously dan's room then i can say that having phil's stuff in there could also point to them sharing the space. the room that phil films amazingphil videos in has been called a guest room/bed by them both, and in terms of rooms we've seen that just leaves the green room. imho everything points towards this being another guest room/possibly a room for family specifically to stay when they come- iirc nothing has been said to claim this as phil's room other than the fact that there is a painting by his dad and he occasionally films in there. i'm not going to pretend to know the ins and outs of their sleeping arrangements, but i think for two adults that own a huge house together and spend a lot of time together and have a lot of their own things it's perfectly reasonable to have "separate" bedrooms, multiple bathrooms/their own towels (?? i don't get this one i assume they're referring to the part of the golden pig video but like. obviously they have their own towels wtf lmao) and utter those things more on camera and then sleep together/share spaces in their own time.

once again, dan and phil know what they're doing. they are in control of what they show and share. calling each other "bro" and "friend" is an intentional choice and very much second nature at this point after doing it on camera for years. also it's not wrong or implies that they aren't romantic- i am of the opinion that they are friends first and they know that too. however, in a post-hiatus/comeback world, it almost feels pointed at this point. like a joke. a wink wink, nudge nudge, look-to-camera "we know you know" thing that they're keeping going just because they can.

in terms of the "going out and meeting other men" bit i assume they refer to jokes made by dan in the wad era? again, i'm not going to dive deep into this but dan is a comedian and post-coming out, wad and those other shows were the first time in his life he was able to be openly, unapologetically gay and himself and i think he was allowed to make a few grindr jokes for the fun of it. if dan values privacy in terms of his personal life, i highly doubt he would go around telling everyone he was hooking up with dudes- these are jokes plain and simple. but if you're interested @freckliedan has a wonderful post about dnp and the concept of monogamy/them sleeping with other people that i don't entirely disagree with and that is worded much better than i ever could so. i'd also like to talk to this person bc in what fucking world have they EVER shown a "lack of concern" at each others medical emergencies????? this is possibly the most baffling claim out of all of these to me. dan could not have made it more clear how scared/worried/traumatized he was by phil literally almost dying recently, and there have been more instances than i can count of him just being there for phil during all of his more recent health issues/scares. if this is referring to the eye incident, again i'm not going to pretend i know all the ins and outs of their relationship bc i don't- we know what they tell us. literally everything about this they said in a joking way, i don't know why people got their panties in a bunch- phil sending dan alone doesn't mean he doesn't care about him or anything, i honestly don't think he wouldn't have been much help going and i think they both kind of knew this, they were just playing it up to be a funny anecdote because they're entertainers. it's what they do. they've been making stories out of their lives for 15 years.

this is getting far too long and rambley as i don't know how to rein in my yapping when responding to asks but. i promise you're fine. discussing their relationship isn't "drama" or some forbidden thing, it happens on here a lot actually. except you will find most people on here use critical thinking and what dan and phil knowingly share with us, as adults with brains, to draw conclusions about their relationship based on everything from the way they look at each other to the little ways they tell us they care about and love each other bc they do. and that's not something they shy from now. come join us! don't let people tell you you're wrong for thinking they're partners bc in the nicest way possible, they literally are (if you want to sugarcoat it and say life partners instead of romantic go ahead bc they've literally described themselves as companions through life which is a more poetic way of saying partners imo) and respectfully anyone who thinks otherwise is in denial at this point

[inked-up-gentleman]

"Stop carrying old feelings into new experiences."

That is what one of your posts says.

I'm curious if you follow this advice for yourself? I ask because I have followed you for a very long time and am very familiar with what you post and how you respond to and answer your anon 'asks'

A lot of the time, it seems as though you blame your past for how you are today and why you don't trust. You respond with words that very much say you're doing exactly that.....allowing your past to carry over into your present. It's very clear you've been hurt and/or screwed over and it's been that way for a LONG time now. When are you going start following that quote? To stop carrying old feelings into new experiences."

I know you love the attention, I mean, who wouldn't? And why would someone post as many photos. gifs, writings/thoughts and anon, asks? You thrive on attention. I'd go as far as to say you need the attention. I think the shit from the past is just an excuse to do exactly what you're doing now which garners tons of traffic and ooooo's and ahhhhh's for you. Is it possible you're not ready to give that up so you keep this front/wall up and use the past as an excuse?

None of this is meant maliciously or judgmentally so hopefully all your groupies stay off my ass about it. That's why I won't ask you off anon. (although I have sent a few asks as myself before so we've had interaction.) I just don't trust that your followers won't respond badly and then start that bully mentality because so many of them seem to be protective (and obsessed) with you. Some of them excessively. I just genuinely wonder if when you saw that post, did you pause and say "yeah, you outta let that shit go man"?

Hope you're having a great weekend.

I wasn't going to respond to this at first but I'll lay it all out for you.

First and foremost, I don't see this as being hostile, but you're definitely making some assumptions here that people have made before. That being said, I ask that anyone who responds to this do so respectfully.

Did I follow that advice from that post myself? Yes, to an extent. You're assuming I don't want to be in a relationship due to last relationship and what my ex put me through. Though that's easy to assume, that's not the entire case. Right now my peace is my number one priority and if I deem it suitable to risk it for someone, I will. Until then, I'm completely content with being alone.

I'm still dealing with the damage, sure. But I've slowly turned that energy into productivity for my business and turning my house into a home. It took time, but everything is slowly coming together. That being said, there's only 1 or 2 people on this entire Hell site that have idea of what I was put through. This was far more than just an 8 year relationship that ended. But I will heal how I see fit.

"you thrive on attention" that's an assumption that YOU made. Yes, I post a LOT of selfies and pictures. But if you take the time to notice, they are pictures of what I enjoy doing. Riding the bike, spending time at the gym, relaxing with the pups, reading, whatever else it may be. Not once have I ever posted a nude of any kind. Which, if I wanted attention, that's probably what I would be doing (no offense to those that do post nudes). The closest thing you'll come to a nude is me wearing silkies, but I also go to public gyms in those.

I post what I post here because this and my TikTok account are the ONLY places I can go to truly be myself without it impacting my personal life or my business and I think a lot of you forget that. I absolutely love all my followers and the support they give me here. But nowhere do you see me trying to lure anyone in with anything. I've been 100% transparent from the start and always will be.

Yes, I get a TON of thirsty asks here. Who doesn't though? And though there are plenty of them, you are also forgetting the ones that ask me about working out, losing weight, starting a workout routine, thinking about getting a bike, first time riding tips and tricks, relationship advice or just for wisdom in general. But I digress...

Did I ever tell myself "yeah, I should let that shit go" absolutely. More than once and long before I ever shared that post. But I still learned some very hard lessons from that experience and it was far more than just pain and trauma that I had to let go.

I hope this answered your questions and helped you (and anyone else that was wondering) understand. And I hope you had a great weekend as well.

[snippy-tano]

Since I don't know where you stand, I'd like to introduce myself as a Fives simp. That being said, my request is for a Fox slash!! Some people have hard feelings but nOT ME. THE POOR MAN DESERVES SOME LOVE. He works so hard and gets abused so much (*cough cough* looking at you Palpacreep 👀) and I would just like some appreciation for the guy. We all know he hasn't slept since last Tuesday and his blood is more caf than it is human cells.

Thanks vod, you're the best! Happy writing :)

thank you for this request vod! I absolutely agree! Fox deserves so much better!! which I hope I delivered in this request! I decided to mix it up and have a super confident reader, so I hope I did that justice! please let me know what you think!

like I said last time, I have a few requests in the pipeline, so keep an eye out for them!

masterlist is here!

taglist is here!

tagging: @pro-fangirls-unsocial-life; @marvel-starwars-nerd; @mackstrut; @dissapointingpancake; @ahsokatano-thetogruta; @welcometothepedroverse; @lightning-wolffe; @fractiouskat; @mandaloriandin; @lussyyung; @lowkeyodinsong; @str-wrs-fics; @bantha-shit; @badbatch-simp24; @katelynnwrites; @s1st3r; @leotatombs; @torchbearerkyle; @rain-on-kamino; @the-navistar-carol; @bombshe77; @arctrooper69; @social-mockingbird; @isabelle-99

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

Late Night Caf

You gathered up your things and waved goodbye to a few coworkers before stepping into the lift and hitting the ground floor button.

It was late on Coruscant, but as a reporter, you were used to late nights. Late nights were when you finished some of your best works. You had started out as a beat reporter, covering local stories on Coruscant. Your articles were far from front page stories, but you worked hard and it showed. 

You got your big break completely by accident. 

There had been an incident on the lower levels and you happened to be nearby and one of the first reporters on the scene. Normally, it would have been an incident that would garner little attention, but it quickly grew into a much larger story and you were just lucky. Lucky to be there from the beginning and get a scoop many others weren’t able to get. 

It catapulted you into being one of the top reporters at your news agency. 

It also happened to be the case where you first met Commander Fox. 

He was quick and to the point, which was something you could appreciate as a reporter. He was gruff at first but then the thief’s showed up again, this time with blasters. Commander Fox and pushed you behind some cover and started firing, shouting commands immediately. 

You had to admit, it was pretty hot.

Your relationship started pretty professional and you think he only tolerated you because your article was incredibly kind and open about the clones. But gradually, he started to warm up to you. On the outside it would look pretty harsh, but to anyone who knew Fox, he was a total softie when it came to you. 

You visited him frequently and were consistently the only one who could get him out from behind his desk. His men had come to look forward to your arrival because they knew someone was looking after their commander who had more caf in his bloodstream than actual blood at this point. 

You checked your comm and didn’t see a message like you had expected. You were set to meet up with Fox for a very late dinner, but it was likely he got so wrapped up in work that he completely lost track of time, again.

You didn’t hold it against him, he didn’t mean to do it. But it did happen with an alarming frequency. You didn’t really feel like you could complain however because it wasn’t like you were seeing him. Despite your best efforts that is.

That was one thing that surprised people. You made it very clear to Fox that you liked him and would pursue a relationship if he wanted to, it was him that held back. You didn’t mind though, you were content with spending time with him, even if it never progressed beyond that. You’d be here as long as he wanted you in whatever capacity that was. 

There was a beep and the doors to the lift opened. You exited the lift and headed down and out through the lobby until you were standing on a busy Coruscanti street. You glanced at the time. 

Well, if he wasn’t going to meet you, you’d have to go to him. 

You began your walk towards the Corrie guard headquarters, stopping on the way to get two frozen fruit mixtures that you enjoyed and had been trying to get Fox to drink instead of just caf. You had yet to be successful, but you were nothing if not persistent.

You arrived at the guard headquarters in no time, tossing your own beverage in the garbage before striding inside the nondescript building. The two troopers at the entrance looked up when they saw you.

“Evening boys!” You called with a wave.

“Thank the Maker you’re here.” Radar said, looking exhausted.

You sighed. “How long has it been this time?”

“At least twelve hours. We know he’s still alive because we could hear him pacing, but he hasn’t left that room in at least that long.” He confirmed and you deflated a bit. 

This man was going to be the end of you.

“I got it boys, don’t you worry.” 

“We trust you!”

“Thank you!”

They both called as you walked by and they waved. You followed the winding halls, wincing at the one overhead light that was flashing. You finally reached Fox’s door, glancing down the hall to see another door cracked and light pouring out. 

Good. Thorne is still here. He can be back-up if you need it. 

You knocked quietly on Fox’s door and slowly opened it, peering inside. The Commander was sitting hunched over at his desk and didn’t react to you poking your head in. You quietly stepped inside the small office and closed the door behind you, continuing to move deeper into the office. 

Fox still hadn’t noticed you, despite reaching his side. He just continued tapping on his data pad and making notes on some flimsy. You peered into his almost empty cup of caf before picking it up and replacing it with the frozen fruit mix. 

And then you waited.

Thankfully it didn’t take long for Fox to blindly reach for his drink and take a sip. It was almost funny how quickly his face contorted as he drank what he expected to be caf and turned out to be not caf. He looked over and saw you, jumping slightly.

“When did you get here? Aren’t you supposed to be working?”

“Good evening to you too Fox. I’m great thanks for asking. I got here a few minutes ago, since we were supposed to meet up about an hour ago.” You replied and he narrowed his eyes, looking at the time before huffing.

“I lost track of time, now give me my caf back.” He reached out and you pulled the cup away.

“Ah ah ah. Not so fast big guy. I’m cutting you off for now. It’s late and you need to get some sleep since I know it’s been far too long since you slept. Drink that instead, it’s much healthier.” You said and he rolled his eyes.

“No, I want my caf.” He made a grab for the caf and you jumped backwards. Normally he would be much faster than you, but because it had been days since he probably slept, you were at an advantage. You darted out of his reach and upon seeing him still intending to take the caf, you raised the cup to your lips and chugged the rest of it in one go.

You coughed. “Kriff Fox. Could this be any more bitter?”

“It’s bitter?” 

“Yes.” You gasped. “I’ll buy you some more sweetener because kriff Fox this is awful.”

“It tasted fine to me.” He said, slumping back into his chair and picking up his data pad again. 

“That’s because you haven’t slept, so you didn’t even notice it was wrong.” You tossed the empty cup in the small garbage can near his desk before striding closer to him. You watched him tap away at his datapad before snatching it out of his hands. 

“Hey!”

“Don’t ‘hey’ me mister. When was the last time you slept?” You asked and he blinked.

“Uh. After the last time I saw you.” Fox said, sounding a bit more confident as you nodded.

“Hmm. That was five days ago.”

He blinked again. “Oh.”

“Yeah oh. Come on, it’s time to go.”

“What? No, I have too much left to do.” He said, reaching for his datapad which you held up out of reach. 

“It can wait. It’s been five days since you slept. Don’t make me get Thorne.” You threatened and he hesitated. 

“You wouldn’t.”

“Try me.”

“Alright fine, I’ll go to the barracks after I finish this report.” He said and you shook your head.

“I’m not falling for that Fox. You’re coming with me now and you’re staying at my place where I can make sure you sleep.” You insisted and he again glared at you. 

“What if I refuse?”

You chuckled. “Normally my philosophy is not to argue with men with brown eyes, because whatever you say gorgeous, but this time I will have to resist and insist.” You replied and he took a deep breath. “Come on, you’ll get a good night's sleep, I’ll make you breakfast, and have you back here by 0700 hours. Promise.”

Fox stared at you and you raised an eyebrow. 

“You can’t keep doing this Fox. Let me help.” Your voice lowered and you could see him struggling. You placed your hand on his armored shoulder. “Come on. I’ll make sure you’re back first thing in the morning, but you need to sleep.”

“Okay.”

You gave him a soft smile before locking his datapad and setting it down on his desk. You went to turn when he spoke again.

“But first-“

You turned so abruptly that your shoes squeaked against the floor. “For kriff’s sake Fox-“

A hand grabbed yours and yanked. Not expecting it, you lurched forward colliding with Fox who was still sitting in his old rickety chair. You would have thought it was an accident that you ended up in his lap, but his arms wrapped around your waist and suddenly you forgot what you were here for in the first place. 

His eyes scanned your face before he leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to your lips. It caught you off guard, that’s for sure. But despite its short duration, it was probably the best kiss you’d ever been given. 

You opened your eyes to see Fox’s still closed. You smiled gently before leaning back forward for more. Your hands tangled in his hair and he let out a soft groan at the contact, just as eager as you were. His arms tightened around you, tugging you impossibly closer. You brushed a hand against his cheek and he sighed. 

Fighting against the urge to continue, you forced yourself to pull away. You let your forehead thump lightly against his, feeling his breath puffing against your lips. 

“Not that I didn’t enjoy that, but can I ask why?” You whispered and Fox let out a hoarse chuckle. 

“I wanted to. Decided it was time to stop holding back with you.” He said and you smiled.

“Good. Please feel free to do that as often as you want.” 

Fox gave you one of his rare smiles before leaning in again, but was stopped by your finger. His eyes narrowed as he looked at you. 

“Nice try Fox. But we’re still leaving. Once we get back to my place however, feel free to not hold back.” You said and he sighed but relented, giving your waist a squeeze before you stood up. You brushed imaginary dust off your clothes and smoothed your hair as he straightened up a few things on his desk. When he finished, you held out your hand. 

Fox stared at it for a moment and for a second you thought he might refuse, but he intertwined his fingers with yours and you grinned broadly. Together, you walked out of his office. You waved brightly at the two troopers at the front who looked terribly confused, but were clearly going to report what they saw right to Thorne as soon as you left. 

And after that you kept your word. Fox got a good night's sleep and breakfast before he returned to his post. 

Fox was admittedly a little late the following morning due to your staying up a little later than you had originally anticipated, but you’re not sure he really minded. Not one bit. 

And frankly, neither did you. 

[itsclydebitches]

for all that it's very clear RWBY took influence from a lot of anime, the writers sure don't seem to have learned much of anything from it. i'm watching the redub of the classic sailor moon anime right now, and it's insane to me how much better this thirty-year-old anime packed with filler was at things like character arcs and believably redeeming villains and having a main character that is at once childish and yet a great leader who, when the chips are down, could talk some of the worst evils in the universe down from their plans.

if anyone could talk salem out of her plans for world annihilation by just being able to love her, it's usagi tsukino.

Right? Man, I'd pay for a high-budget, animated version of that crossover lol.

That's one of the big arguments of the Why RWBY is Disappointing vid though, using Cowboy Beebop as an example, if I remember correctly. There's no doubt that RWBY has been influenced by a number of classic series, but deliberately mimicking something that worked in another show doesn't guarantee success, particularly if you don't understand why it worked in the first place. I'm constantly emphasizing that stories are whole products made up of a thousand smaller pieces, like a puzzle or a patchwork quilt, and simply slapping one piece down because it looks good in another story isn't enough. You have to carefully build everything around that piece so that it fits into the unified whole. Continuity, world building, characterization, setup... RWBY is very good at throwing out those "cool" moments, but it does none of the work ahead of time (or, just as often, after the fact) to make those moments satisfying outside of the initial adrenaline rush of watching.

Plus, RWBY is over-crowded nowadays. Characters, mysteries, real world issues, and those "cool" ideas have populated like bunnies until, I think, it's easy for a lot of fans to just get swept up in the spectacle of it all. The simpler your story is, the less there is to hide behind, which is why I think a lot of manga like Sailor Moon still rings true 30+ years later. If you do right by your core concepts and prove to the reader (often subconsciously) that your storytelling skills are strong, it will resonate even after new generations have different expectations in their media, or these ideas have become "cliche" in wake of that initial popularity. If we go with a food comparison (always my favorite lol) Sailor Moon makes me think of something like good home cooking. Looking at it now it's simple, it's straightforward, it has some technical flaws, but the comparatively low number of ingredients have all been treated stunningly well and there is an insane amount of love poured into the dish. Meanwhile, later seasons of RWBY feel like a semi-successful restaurant serving a special so long it took the server a week to fully memorize it, rattling off an absurd number of ingredients and fancy techniques used until you're not even sure what the dish is supposed to be anymore. Some diners go, "Wow, what an amazing, clearly high-end dish! And they've included this super rare ingredient which means it must be good." Meanwhile, others are going, "... Honestly, that sounds like Too Much. I'd have preferred a simple, well-done pasta." And all the while the restaurant—which is pretty big and popular now, garnering a lot of critical attention—is trying to pass this complicated, fancy-for-the-sake-of-fancy dish off as the product of a humble, mom-and-pop establishment. No, you used to serve that kind of food: simple, technically flawed in a lot of ways, but with so much love poured into the dish that most diners didn't care. Now people suspect that your chefs are miserable and we definitely know they're overworked, so even if that insane dish would have tasted great to certain pallets, it was doomed before it even left the kitchen.

[jjuniesdaydream]

Slush!

not requested

wrote this bc i have been craving for some junseo softness and i think that it's a crime that there isn't more of it. also because i have that one moment of sleepy junseo with no shirt on seared into my brain, so that was the inspiration ig (also pls this is so self-indulgent) i'd obviously recommend listening to Slush by DKB while reading this, as it is its namesake :3

word count: 2,1k gender neutral reader

Junseo knew it would have to be a day of hell for you. Not only did you have your job that you, of course, had to do, and do well, but you were also in the middle of moving out of your apartment and into a new place. He had tried to come over more to help you pack, and you were grateful for the times that he had helped you, but he had his own schedule that was tightly packed and unfortunately didn’t have the most time to help out, much to his dismay.

One day he had managed to carve out a whole evening for you. Giddy, he picked up the flowers and the takeout he had planned to bring with him, knowing that you didn’t leave yourself much time to eat and your meals had mostly been cups of ramen. He smiled down at the plastic bag hanging from where he held onto the handles; he could smell the amazing food as he walked to the apartment that was still yours for a few days. He was wearing his black bucket hat and a facemask, as DKB was finally garnering some attention after Peak Time was aired and he had experienced more frequent times of being stopped on the street for an autograph or a selca, and as much as he loved his fans’ support, that day he just wanted to go straight to his love to help out with something as mundane as packing things in boxes and eating good food out of containers.

When he got there, he knocked, as he usually did, but as you sometimes did, the knocks were ignored. He chuckled to himself, thinking that you were probably just zooming around with headphones on and couldn’t hear him; it wouldn’t have been the first time that would happen, so he did what he had permission to do; he went to your mailbox and searched for the little nook in it where you hid your keys. You had a bad habit of forgetting your housekeys either at Junseo’s dorm or in your personal desk at work, so you decided that it would be good to have a backup plan for when that would happen, which you had told Junseo to take advantage of whenever he wanted to, since you trusted him with your home, even if you weren’t there with him.

He snatched the keys from where you’d hung them inside the mailbox and unlocked your front door, opening it casually like he would usually, thinking you’d hear that and come running to the front door to see him. But not this time; this time the apartment was silent. Junseo’s brows furrowed, worry invading his thoughts. You should’ve been off of work by then and you had said you were way too busy packing to go out with your friends at the time being, so why was your home so quiet that he was feeling as if he was doing something disruptive just by rustling a plastic bag? He toed off his shoes quickly and moved in to put the food and flowers in the, mostly empty, kitchen, walking swiftly into the bigger space. He stopped in his tracks and felt a smile creep onto his face as he saw your form lying on your couch. Your hair was wild as if you had literally just thrown yourself onto the cushions, with no regard to your hair possibly falling onto your face, which he wouldn’t be surprised if that was how it went down.

He looked you over; you had your big dress shirt on, something he loved about your style. When you got the job as a middle school teacher, you wanted to portray yourself as more professional but didn’t want to lose your personal style in that, and so your brilliant idea was to bring some of your love for street style/casual wear, with the oversized tees and huge jeans, was to buy oversized dress shirts, something Junseo had quipped at, mentioning that they were probably his size. You also had your tight slacks on, which looked considerably less comfortable than the shirt. Analysing the place, he could see that you had already devoured the cup noodle you were relying on for sustenance, and so was probably not that hungry. He quickly went out to put the food he’d brought into the fridge, always available to heat up later, and fill a big cup you’d sometimes use as a vase with water and a little sugar and put the flowers in there too, to make them at least look just as fresh when you’d wake up.

After making sure that the front door was locked and all the unnecessary lights in the apartment were off, he scooped you up with ease and walked you to your bed, making sure to put you down on your mattress as gently as possible, as to not wake you up from your needed sleep. He undid and slipped off your slacks but kept the dress shirt on you so that you could be comfortable, but also while making a mental note to wear more dress shirts himself, liking the idea of you borrowing them to lounge around in like this. When he had tucked you in, he went out into the kitchen again. He had come over to help you pack, and he still felt too energised to knock out with you, so he ventured into your kitchen again. You had specifically asked him to help you with the kitchen wares, feeling much better about there being an extra person there to help you handle the fragile glass and such, so without making too much noise, he wrapped up your plates and glass and packed them neatly in the box you had set out for it. One thing less for you to worry about when you woke up the morning after.

After getting the kitchen stuff packed it was an hour later and Junseo could feel his day catch up to him, exhaustion settling into his body. Pulling off his shirt but keeping his sweatpants on, he slipped into the bed beside you, softly wrapping his arms around you, humming to himself as he could feel your familiar warmth against him. He had always thought that you were made for him; you fit perfectly into his arms, into his heart and into his life, and he wished that he had more time to spoil you like he wanted to, but instead, he got moments like these, and well, he could never complain about that. He soon fell asleep, always finding it easier to do so when he had you safe and sound in his arms.

You woke up first the next morning as you had been the one to pass out first, feeling warm and content. You opened your eyes slowly so as to not blind yourself from the light coming from the window but found something casting a shadow over you from said light. You knew exactly who it was, even if the logical part of your brain that said that he’s the only one who it could possibly be hadn’t even woken up, you were sure; that was your Junseo lying with you. You could tell especially from the form of his body’s silhouette and from the arms wrapped around you, and then you could smell the lingering of his cologne mixing with his natural Junseo-smell that you adored so much. You nuzzled your face further into his body, taking in the fact that he was there and seizing the opportunity to enjoy every single second of it. You took your chance to place a few kisses on his broad chest, being the place where you could reach while being in his arms, wrapping an arm around him as well, giggling a little when you could feel his arms tighten around you. You had had a few mornings like these in the time of dating him and you knew all the right buttons to press by now to get Junseo to wake up the gentlest (with some help from his group mates who learned the hard way). You let your fingers travel up and down the expanse of his back, your nails dragging lightly, and you began talking to him softly, only stopping to place another kiss on his warm skin.

“Good morning, my love. Thank you for coming over and for caring for me like this. You're really special; I have no idea how I got so lucky as to get to be with you.” You were about to go on, knowing that Junseo loved waking up to the sound of your voice speaking to him, but it seemed as if it had worked a lot quicker than you had anticipated this time; “I’m the lucky one here,” Junseo grumbled, his morning voice hoarse and, not that he’d ever agree that it was; cute. A smile spread on your lips, blinking up at him with all the love you could muster. “Agree to disagree.” You kissed his chest again and felt one of his hands come up to brush your hair out of your face, looking down at you with a sleepy smile. “When did you come over last night? I don’t remember letting you in.” You questioned and he groaned, digging for the memories in his still sleep-hazy mind. “I think it was around 7:30 or 8 pm? You were knocked out on the couch when I got here.” You took in the words said in his raspy voice. “Sorry about that, I don’t know what happened,” you said in a light-hearted tone. He smiled down at you and loosened his arms around you to stretch them and give you some of your space back. “What happened was that those kids you love teaching so dearly are energy vampires,” he whined and leaned down to nuzzle his face into the crook of your neck. You laughed at his words; “energy vampires?!” He nodded and you could feel him pout against your skin. “Yeah, and when I finally get to have you all to myself, you’re sucked energy-dry!” You laughed even harder and brought your arms up to hug his head even closer to your body. “Oh no, I am so sorry, honey! You know I’m a sucker for those small creatures,” your puns just made him groan even more and suddenly he was escaping from your embrace with you giggling and fighting to keep him hugged to your body. “No, let me go! You're awful for punning me when I've just woken up.” He finally broke free and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. You ended up hugging around his waist, smiling up at him as he looked down at you, your head peeking just around his body.

“You know I’m gonna hold on and be dragged after you if you try to walk away,” you had a certain tone when you told him so, making him think that you were absolutely not bluffing but also knew that he wouldn’t do that to you. What you didn’t know was that he had woken up with an abundance of energy, ready to deal with your silly attitude. With one swift motion, he somehow grabbed a hold under your arms and lifted you up while turning you in the air, placing you over his shoulder, all the while standing up from the bed, making you yelp out in surprise. You knew he was strong and that your weight was really not a big deal to him, but it still surprised you when he just did stuff like that. He walked and spun around with you on his back, mostly to hear your squeals and giggles, only to grab you and throw you onto the bed again, making sure not to throw you far enough so that your head would hit the headboard, throwing himself on top of you, snaking an arm around your body again, to hold you close, while using the other arm to hold himself up. As your giggles died down, the two of you just looked at one another, smiles growing softly on both sets of lips. Junseo leaned down slowly and tenderly placed his soft lips on yours, kissing you properly for the first time since he’d seen you this time. The kiss was delicate and infused with love and went on until the both of you were lightheaded, and by the time you’d separated, there were ten fingers in some hair, four cheeks red with heat and two foreheads touching each other.

The first one to utter any words was Junseo; “let’s just melt into the sheets together for a little bit more.” And you had no objections whatsoever.

A/N: i know that some details or behaviours of the reader were probably oddly specific but as i said before; this was incredibly self-indulgent. when i started writing this i was in the middle of moving out and was so stressed out so this was written with myself in mind a bunch. but i hope whoever reads this enjoys it also! (i am now putting the finishing touches on it in my new apartment on a makeshift bed on the floor so there you go lmao)

[demonfox38]

Completed (Early Access Content) - Palworld

Look, man. I know I can't call this an official completion, given that the game is still in early access. But I trashed all available bosses and 10/10'ed each of those little Pal bastards, so that has to be indicative of some level of mastery, right?

Or maybe I've got to explain why I disappeared down this hole for the last few months.

I'm not what you'd call a cutting-edge kind of person when it comes to technology. Considering that most of my game consoles are old enough to purchase cigarettes and alcohol, it's safe to say I'm fairly retro. A throwback. Happiest with something made between 1986 and 2005 (or, at the very least, looks and acts like that.) Getting in on an early access for a game is not my thing at all.

So, "Palworld" is a bit of an anomaly. Maybe, in many ways.

"Palworld" is a hybrid crafting, survival, base management, third person shooter, and creature catching game. It stars your customizable character de jour who is forced to survive on an isolated island full of inhospitable terrain, monsters of various levels of aggression, and asshole humans. What's the secret behind the looming towers and massive Yggdrasil-like tree glowing in the distance? I don't know. The tree part of the content isn't out, yet. But, you can at least explore the island and wail on the asses of those that dare to conquer it for their own varied ends. That's at least 100 hours of content right there!

Since its early access release in January of 2024, "Palworld" has garnered a fair amount of attention. Good. Bad. All over the place. Definitely a case of the old phrase "all publicity is good publicity." While not the first in terms of creation when it comes to edgy monster collecting games (with "Megami Tensei" loudly coughing in some dusty old corner), it is unique in its game style mix. Perhaps not visually unique enough, given how certain "Pokémon" fans were sharpening their Honedges after the very first glance they took at this game. Its publisher having a previous game that openly used AI art generation didn't help its credibility, either! (Although, that game also is about rewarding players for detecting art made by an AI opponent a la an elementary-school art class "Among Us", so judge accordingly.)

I get it. I've got some degree of Nintendo brain rot, too. Did you check my avatar and username? But, I also know that Nintendo can and will obliterate anything in its path with Death Star-adjacent precision and power, especially when it comes to any potential IP infringement. Hell, they crumpled two emulators into a black hole mere weeks after this game's early access released. If they had any notion that something was off with this game, they'd have it annihilated—for better or worse.

Like most modern games, my attention was drawn to this title via watching several streamers play. (In particular, PatStaresAt, WoolieVersus, and Vinesauce, if you're wanting names.) Now, I'd like to be coy and pretend that online videos don't influence my interest in games, but I also own a copy of the SNES game "Lagoon" because I loved watching PJDiCesare clown on it. Hell, I only backed "Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night" after watching Liam Allen-Miller replicate "Castlevania"-Metroidvania physics in a YouTube preview! I see a video, my brain makes judgements, I variably engage in commerce. And, to be honest, I like games like this. "Breath of the Wild." "Pokémon Legends: Arceus." "Minecraft." I wanted a game like this, so hell. I was willing to gamble $30.00 USD on this, bugs and unfinished status and all.

I think I may have gotten my money's worth out of this.

Was the game play that addicting, or was I in a depression spiral triggered by bad working conditions at my job and my maternal grandmother's health issues precipitating more labor on my family's behalf? Yes. To which part of that question? Yes. While the game attempts to guide the player via an early game tutorial and tasks for building up your bases, you're mostly left on your own to build both the world and yourself in whatever image you'd like. Want to build a Babylonian tower to offend whatever god created this world? Okay. Want to drop everything on the floor like an agitated toddler and/or "Resident Evil 0" protagonist? Whatever makes you happy! Want to build a rocket launcher and shoot it at a dragon's face? That can be done! It just might take some time.

Because the game consists of different play styles, I found myself alternating often between game loop sets. Usually, it broke into a stack of tasks like this:

Determine nearest threat (monster fighting.)

Gather materials (crafting.)

Return to/establish a base (base management.)

Build what I can (crafting/base management.)

Loop steps 2-4 until items of desire were created (crafting/base management.)

Gather/raise Pals to attack nearest threat (monster fighting.)

Return to Step 2 for final repairs and/or weapon creation (crafting.)

Attack threat (monster fighting.)

Reset to step 2 on failure and step 1 on success.

While catching and raising monsters tends to garner you the most experience points, your character will more or less remain just a nuisance to a bulk of the major threats in the game. At best, you've got a rocket launcher, an automatic rifle, a sword, and shot-deflecting shields and armor. You put out maybe around 600 damage with a weapon that takes a second to reload. The bosses you fight? They can have anywhere from 30,000 to 200,000 HP. When it comes to survival, it isn't about how much damage you can take or give. It's about what you learn and how you deploy your so-called Pals.

If you are planning on taking a shot every time I write the word "Pokémon" in this review, you might want to switch off the liquor now and move to a soda. Do your liver a favor.

A lot of the game's rules can be reduced to "Pokémon - 1" or "Pokémon / 2". This includes:

How many monsters you can take with you (5 instead of 6)

How many moves they have (3 instead of 4)

Your level cap (50 vs. 100, but that may just be an early access limitation)

How many elements are in game (9 vs. 18. Also, don't expect much in the way of complex monster typing line-ups. You may end up overthinking fights.)

Having said that, the complexity here isn't lost. You're obviously doing a lot more home ec to keep your bases up to snuff. Where "Palworld" really succeeds is in its battle speed, scale, and options. Pals will automatically engage based on whatever aggression level you have them set at, performing moves without your instruction. Several different monster types and human factions can be thrust together to duke it out. It can get quick and chaotic, often forcing you to get your ass out of the line of fire. When you do want to get manual? Well, hell. Some Pals can be a ridable mount, and some can act as living artillery for your use. Is it responsible to give a giant panda a grenade launcher? Well, who's gonna stop you? The cops?

Also, it's awesome that you can teach Pals whatever moves exist via fruits. It's nice not to have to look up some table online for move compatibility. (A shame that the same can't be said about its breeding, but more on that in a bit.)

"Palworld" certainly has a different take on its so-called Pals, especially in compared to "Pokémon" titles. Don't expect the first monster you pick up to go on and become some powerhouse fueled by respect and love for you as a caretaker. There are Pals that are great, and there are Pals that suck. (The game is more than happy to tell you which is which in its Paldeck.) You're rewarded for getting at least 10 of them, but you won't have the space to keep 10 of every species. You can slaughter Pals for parts or mush a bunch of them together a la "Shin Megami Tensei" to make the surviving unit stronger. Basically, you're expected to keep updating and consolidating your inventory of friends so that you can cut down on your work loop time and challenge the other assholes vying for territory on Palpagos Island. (Seriously—that is its name!) You're not really supposed to be getting attached to any of them.

And yet…well, the nature of a person eventually reveals itself, doesn't it?

While the game allows you to take many unscrupulous actions, you're rarely rewarded for acting like an inflamed, gaping asshole. Yeah, you can slaughter your Pals, but you're losing out on making others stronger if you do that. You can capture other humans like you would a Pal, but they won't provide much in the way of help on your bases or in battle. (Apparently, you can sell them off, too? Fucked up all around.) Hell, you can even kill NPCs and end up having to bolt off like a "Grand Theft Auto" protagonist when the cops show up to bust your ass! About the only defiance I got away with routinely was ransacking Wildlife Sanctuaries, and even that required me to sneak around at night and keep a low profile.

There is a bit of a conflict going on between the game's tone and appearance. It very much wants to be the edgy "Pokémon" game any average teenager would dream up (again, with certain Atlus RPGs coughing and wheezing for attention in the background.) Supplementary journals and Paldeck texts describe a world full of violence, blood, animal trafficking, suffering, death, and birds with cocaine addictions. (I'm not kidding—it's literally the bastard cop's monster of choice.) But, the monsters look like an average social media artist's attempts at combining Pokémon species together, and the humans all have some degree of generic anime cuteness to them. It's hard to take the leader of a bunch of martyrous pyromaniacs seriously when he looks like the protagonist to some Sega Dreamcast rhythm game. (Also, why he has an electric/dragon type as his Pal of choice when he leads a bunch of fire freaks is beyond me.) 

At this point, I wouldn't say the music is much to write home about, either. It tries to kick up for encounters, letting you know how much danger you are in (from piddly little twinkling music for typical cannon fodder to bombastic choral arrangements for tough sons of bitches.) A lot of times, it can be rather quiet. This didn't bother me with "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild," but it does bother me here, especially when I have to take 15-20 minutes to work in my base. I think what the game needs is something like "Minecraft"'s Mice on Venus track. Just a few pieces of music to interrupt the quiet when it's gone on for five or ten minutes.

I'm also not super thrilled with the breeding system in "Palworld." With "Pokémon" games, you generally know what you're getting based on who the mother in the coupling is. (Well, barring the use of specialty items, I suppose. Speaking of things that annoy me…) Here? About the only guarantee you get is if both parents are of the same species. The resulting couplings for other species isn't random, but it is a weird mess. Generally, you can assume the resulting offspring to be of a poorer quality than at least one of the parents, if species of different rarity are mixed. Through on top of that several structural, item, and time-based requirements, and you've got a very expensive and irritating system to work around. Honestly, this was the thing that finally broke me into looking up help guides online. It's just that off-putting.

If you are looking for a breeding calculator: palword.gg has you covered. Mostly. I think I did run into some issues there as well, but I don't know if I read something wrong or was just stupid tired when I set something up.

"How about bugs?", you might be asking.

"There's no Bug type in this game," I would reply.

Maybe you'd start hitting me with a shoe after that.

But, in terms of glitches I encountered? I played from versions 0.1.3.0 to 0.1.5.0, so I saw my fair share of issues that came and went. The biggest problem as of 0.1.5.0 involves terrain clipping and occasionally being shoved beneath the map. (Big Pal bodies + me going all Goemon Ishikawa XIII on them resulted in some unfortunate subterranean exploration.) Generally, I got myself back into the map without too much struggle, but there were times where I did have to respawn myself. I also lost several boss captures to a combination of freezing status + a rocket launcher round blasting them into the horizons beyond, so that was unfortunate. There was also a bug where you could get the game's dungeons to respawn bosses to another Pal type if you didn't like what you got, but I started having issues with the dungeon's barriers failing to drop on the boss's death when I screwed around with that, so maybe just stick with what you get. I also had the occasional text goof-up where my instructions would be in Japanese instead of English. Given the Goemon commentary above, you may surmise that this was not a huge deal for me. Still goofy, though.

If you'd like, the game offers you quite the list of customizable settings to alter your experience. I'd highly recommend playing around with them, particularly when you are vulnerable to taking a one-way trip to the Backrooms via a bad clip. It's one thing to lose your inventory to a fight you lost; it's another to lose your inventory to an issue with collision detection. Do yourself a favor and remove that penalty. I also eventually grew tired of the exponential experience curve and jacked up the multipliers for experience as high as they could go. I put several hundred hours into this game, man. And that was on top of working in a half-staffed job while babysitting my mom's dog for weeks while she got my grandma into an assistant living facility. All of these bitches needed a break.

Also—for the love of your hands, please flip the "Hold to Toggle Interaction" setting to On in your control style of choice. You can recap a shredded controller stick, but you can't recap your fingertips.

While I spent a lot of time on this game, I also spent a lot of time on this game with good reason. Even in its unfinished state, I had a good time. In the midst of building up my first character—a punished tribute to an Abrahamic icon forced to repeat his edict from God once more—I kept thinking about making the next character. Doing it all over again. Honeymooning it. There is a risk that this game doesn't get any further than where it's at now, but I can't say that where it's at is a bad place.

So, you can't get to a giant, sparkly tree. Boo hoo. There's a lot of other good stuff to see. Maybe even conquer, if you're up to it.

[apomaro-mellow]

Rock and Rule 4

Inside the club, music was blaring loud enough to pound Steve's ears. He hoped it was enough to get Creel's goons off his tail. And maybe he'd have enough time to get a drink. He kept his head low and the minions passed right over him. He let out a breath and ordered something at the bar. Just a quick drink and then he was finding the next bus, train, or plane to Hawkins.

"Hey, is that Eve!?", a voice shouted above the music. Then Steve felt someone grab his arm and make him turn.

"Holy shit! I've seen you on the posters! You're gonna be in Vecna's next concert, yeah?"

When Steve imagined getting noticed in public, it was usually due to his or the band's talents. Not from having his face all over town on someone else's posters.

"Um, well, don't hold me to that. Plans change", Steve said, trying to turn away, lest he garner anymore attention.

"Dude, lemme buy you a drink. I'd love to talk shop. You gotta know Lord Vecna himself, right? God, I've listened to him for years..."

Steve rubbed at one of his temples as this guy kept talking. He got up to go. Forget quenching his thirst, he had to get out of here right this second.

"Hey, I wasn't done talking. You're gonna introduce me to Vecna, aren't ya? Come on, you owe me after the drink."

Steve felt his arm being grabbed again and was just about to swing at this man when he was suddenly released. Then he heard a familiar voice.

"Learn to take a hint, chump."

Steve turned so fast, he might've broke his back. Eddie! The guy bothering him looked ready to talk back but then he saw the rest of the band behind Eddie and thought better of it.

"Whatever", he said while sulking off.

"Eddie!", Steve didn't give him a moment to think before embracing and kissing him.

Eddie's hard expression instantly melted as he fell into the kiss as easy as breathing. It took about ten seconds for him remember what he was doing here and why. He pulled off from the kiss but didn't take his hands off of Steve's waist that had mysteriously appeared there.

"You've got some answers to question."

"Huh?"

"I think he means you're got some questions to answer", Jeff clarified.

"We can talk, we just gotta go first", Steve said.

"Right behind ya", Gareth agreed.

The moment they said so though, large hands grabbed them from all around. Steve tried to shout for his boyfriend as they were ripped apart but a hand covered his mouth. He fought and he saw Eddie, Crash, Gareth, and Jeff struggle as well but the hands on him were like iron. He couldn't let this happen. Not again. Steve headbutted his captor and that loosened the hold just enough for him to lunge forward.

That was all he was able to do before something hard cracked against his skull and the world went black again. "It's time for your curtain call, Eve."

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

Eddie felt like he was seeing red as Steve was taken again. He and the rest of the band were thrown into the alley next to the club. And there, Henry Creel was waiting.

"You four are quite persistent. But Steve belongs to me now. Or rather, Eve does."

Crash's face scrunched. "Eve?"

"What's your deal, man?", Jeff questioned.

"'Eve is very appropriate, considering he will bring the downfall of man." Henry had his hands behind his back like he was talking about the weather.

"You're insane", Eddie said. "And a hack and a total sellout and I can't believe I ever listened to you!"

"I think you all just need a little trip", Henry said.

"I'm not smoking whatever messed with your head!" Eddie geared up and tossed a punch only for Henry to disappear like smoke. When he looked around he saw that he was no longer in the alley, but a void, completely alone.

"You misunderstand. But soon everyone will realize", Henry's voice floated through the air.

The gong of a clock sounded and Eddie felt his stomach drop.

"I'm going to send you all back to that town you all love so much."

"Fuck Hawkins and fuck you!", Eddie shouted.

"Oh no, you love Hawkins. You would never wanted to leave it. It's your home after all." Three more gongs went off and the world went completely dark for Eddie.

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

Steve was in fact awake in time for the concert, finding himself dressed in a flowy, white loincloth that just barely kept his modesty. His arms were tied above his head and he was strapped to a beam that kept him upright. His immediate thought brought him back to the screaming blonde woman in King Kong. Steve didn't want to know what sort of creature he was being sacrificed for as the crew did sound checks.

He thought he could fight against Vecna's wishes but right before the show started, a collar was locked around his throat. He heard the crowd getting antsy from behind the curtain and tried biting his tongue but the lights on the collar lit up and notes were forced from his throat.

"Aah ah aah", he vocalized like he was warming up as the band behind him got into place. Vecna was at the ready as well but Steve couldn't see him from behind.

It was his voice but it wasn't him. It was like he was being possessed. Steve wanted to cry. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Just as the show was about to begin, all of the lights when out. He could even feel the collar power down. Steve waited there, tied up, as the techs tried to figure out the problem.

A storm had knocked out the power and there was no hope of it ever coming back on for the evening. Steve felt relief for only a moment. A storm wasn't enough to stop this monster. Henry was already making moves to take the next leg of the concert to Hawkins.

Part 6

[arenabreadandbiscuits]

Working on the first request out of perhaps four or five now (I'll take ten at a time so if you wanna requests for the ships I have mentioned or have a ship I probably forgot to mention or will hear you out on, comment under the book at THIS link.) and it's: Top! Exorcist Adam x Bottom! Vox!

I have a few ideas on how to take this request but just so y'all know it word by word here's a screenshot of this lovely reader sending it in.

I have a few ideas as to how to go about this so pick which one y'all like more and it'll get written. If the commenter here sees this as well of course I want you to vote as well and hopefully your choice wins but if not I promise to everyone it'll be a good story nonetheless!)

Kinks that'll be included? (Possibly and most likely): breeding, fingering, overstimulation, domination, squirting, begging, praise/degradation)

Basically:

First choice - is as it says. I'm thinking when Adam was chilling at the table and eating he probably decides to check on Hell before actually attacking. In doing so he runs into advertising and such of Vox or runs into the V-tower all on its own and out of curiosity stalks it, examining. Vox catches him on screen and is a bit worried about the tower but offers to help Adam relieve himself in a way far more tempting than ruining his business. Allows him inside and pass security so they can secretly have the most sinful fuck session before Adam later leaves to continue the actual battle.

(this would be fun because Vox was so happy seeing the hotel losing at first that if I write this one imma be like that's why he was so happy. Got some amazing pipe from Adam and he can't help but root for him after)

Second choice - I'm thinking before Adam winds up getting stabbed by nifty Adam is launched back enough to see the V-tower. It calls to him considering just noticable and kinda to add on with the first idea he does see it and wonders who Vox really is. I can see Vox seeing some of the wounds, offering Adam inside to regain himself as the hotel deals with the fighting from the exorcist angels and Vox definitely comes off more of a fan boy here. Congratulating Adam, telling him he hopes he wins and that he could help him win, offering him food and drinks and health and Adam manages to be a little flattered and decides if one demon can have his nut. It might as well be Vox for being so helpful and unproblematic like the rest of these 'sinners'.

Third choice - Adam has lost but Vox is stubborn in accepting the answer. He decides to sneak over when everyone else 'thinks' Adam is fully dead. He brings him back to the tower and quickly takes care of 'some' of those remaining damages purposefully. Offers to fully take care of the damage when Adam awakes but surprisingly to both of them Adam is far more curious about the TV demon than he could have ever guessed and he can't help but wonder if he's good at really 'relieving' others considering his job. Aka Vox gets excited at the scene of angel blood and it lures him in like a succubus to Adam, thing is Adam finds himself growing just as eager.

Let me know if y'all understand the differences in these three. I'm reading over them worried they sound similar but really in my head I'd take different routes to have them be written accurate to how I'm seeing it in my head.

Requests are FREE this is really just to garner more attention and followers from people, though I do have my way of going about them. If you wanna request there's five more spaces open currently before I close to focus working on the stories that come. Once those stories are done I'll open requests again and ten more people can ask. Just be quick, and one request at a time or your second request will be added to the next group of ten for fairness.

NOW VOTE! Making a goal for myself to at least update 2-4 times a week so keep that in mind as well, especially when asking.

6/10 requests spots are taken so far, four more are open for people to take right now. Next spot opening will be after I write the first ten stories. :3

[al-the-remix]

I’m sorry what?? You’ve had fic written about you?? Are you famous? How did I not know this?

lol no and that's the part that's actually embarrassing, not the actual fic... It's really not that interesting but if you're curious i'll explain btc

I don't know if you remember 2010-2016 ish tumblr pre porn ban fandom, but it was a slightly different flavour than it was now. Maybe it was just the circles I spent time in, but I feel like that was before tumblr as a whole had learn its lesson BNF wise. This was post the big move of fan artists over from Deviant Art and there was also still a large number of "famous" cosplayers that were most notable for being hot and posting suggestive photos of themselves on the internet. (Which don't get me wrong I'm all for, I was a big fan of having random dicks and tits pop up on my feed without instantly getting community labeled) but this was also the hight of the "tumblr girl/boy aesthetic" which was basically just repackaging heroin chic to insecure, impressionable teenagers, which for reasons beyond me people love to romanticize now. "Oh remember 2011 tumblr, it was so great", what I remember is like 2/3rds of the platform mainlining glamorized anorexia and self harm content non stop, so like agree to disagree... But that's beyond the point, which is: people were super primed to bestow ""celebrity"" on people who didn't deserve it at all, and being in a group of like seven relatively attractive queer people who posted way too much of their personal lives on the internet and were overly familiar with each-other on main was enough to end up with fan fiction written about you.

I'm still good friends with most of these people, and we all agree that in retrospect this was a cringy period in our lives that was a result of our own behaviour not any one else, because like what I wouldn't give to be able to nuke all reposted aesthetic pictures of myself on pinterest, lmao.

But literally the only reason I ever invoke this cursed knowledge is when I think it could be used as like a moral tale to help prop up an opinion I feel very strongly about now, which first and foremost will always be:

there is no such thing as tumblr famous, especially within fandom, the way the site functions works directly against it and that's a good thing. Anyone who tries to gain clout within a fandom and either consciously or subconsciously turns their entire goal of participating in fandom into "making an impact" or becoming a "prominent figure in the fandom" should be avoided at all costs. If they're unsuccessful in garnering attention they'll become bitter, unbearable, and often cruel, if they do end up getting that attention they'll turn into the most annoying person you'll ever have the misfortune of interacting with and will most likely end up trying to dictate how everyone in the fandom should interact with the cannon material. (i've seen both examples play out more than once much to my own and everyone around them's suffering).

RPF... you don't have to like it, you can personal qualms with the ethics of it, it can very simply make you uncomfortable and you don't want to participate in it, all of those reasons are valid and there are interesting conversations to be had there, but I would say about 95% of the time when I come across people arguing about it has less to do with personal issues, and more to do with this sort of overcorrecting when it comes to sex, attraction, and intimacy we see now a days where especially younger people think that if you so much as find someone attractive you're violating...or god forbid...fetishizing them in some way. And there's a ton I could say on that topic, but I'll try and keep this to the point. Obviously what I experienced is like a speck of sand compared to beaches that are some RPF fandoms, and it likely affected me less because I am queer and I was actually sleeping with a number of those people that I was being "shipped" with etc.--though I'd still argue that whether you're queer or sleeping with that person, being written about by strangers on the internet is an odd experience-- But that's really all it is: odd. The same time all of this was going down I had someone who I hadn't seen in a very long time beginning to stalk me. And like the RPF half of this story, I'm using that word in the lightest of terms. This wasn't a man I was physically intimidated by (I was taller and stronger than him), I was lucky enough to be in the process of moving to a different province so unless I went back to my family home he didn't have physical access to me, and I never had to get the authorities involved. But despite all that I was much more affected by him hanging around outside my house, following me, leaving me weird handwriten letters and presents, insisting that we had some sort of connection even though this is someone I hadn't seen or spoken to in 6+ years, then I ever did being perceived by people on the internet. It made me feel paranoid, physically revolted, and worst of all no one around me took it seriously so I didn't have anyone to literally have my back. So after like four years of microdosing having fanfiction written about me and also having someone physically in my space that I didn't wish to be there, I can confidently say the latter is far worse. You're not breaching anyone's (agency?? idk i'm blanking on the word I want) by thinking or writing or drawing them, it's when you begin to try and physically breach that person's personal space, or because we live in the age of social media, their online bubble and directly engage them, for fandom reasons or because you wrongly believe that you and them have some sort of connection, that things begin to get out of hand. To me the whole issue really comes down to the breaking of the 4th wall, which I'll admit is a super delicate balance and becomes harder to maintain the larger the fandom grows. I think you can see some of the most negative consequences of this when it comes to some of the worst behaviour exhibited by Kpop fandoms, just because they're so large, and the management companies play into it feeding the fire, but at the same time we have talk show hosts getting a kick out of showing off character fan art and fanfiction to actors on air... so wether you're engaging with the "actor" or the "character" in your art and fic there are still ways for that forth wall to be breached, and trying to moralize it is a looser's game. You might as well not engage in fan fic at all, which some people will argue, but I obviously don't agree with.

TL;DR life is short, stalking people is bad, and if you want to write fanfiction about your favourite singer no one should be able to stop you, but I highly discourage emailing it to them.

This is why I still don't use my main blog, because even though I nuked all that content in like 2017 and rebranded as a anime/manga/comics blog, it keeps ratcheting up non-porn bot followers and I've discovered I have much more fun on the internet with fewer eyes on me (another good reason to use the block button liberally, lol)

[darkstar225]

Twice's 10th member gets anxious after thinking her Youtube video is gone

A/N: Heyyy, I'm coming up with a lot of stuff for you guys lol! Sry for taking so long to post but the end of the semester is a whole event for me :D I hope that my friend ECKEYYY that gave me this idea on Wattpad likes it! :)

The request: When Reader always feel need to double check and counting her things multiple times so one day Reader feel anxious because Reader thought it was gone, Reader start to feel upset, crying and suddenly Reader hit her head and pulling hair out, Because of it the members didn't know how to calm her down and Momo's the only member who know how to calm Reader down because Momo already witnessed it. I was mean like Reader thought one of her video on youtube was gone

PS: Tysm for everyone that reads what I write, I hope I can bring a smile to your faces every time I post! I'd like to thank whoever sent me this idea 'cause I loved to write it <3

__________________________________________________________

Y/N was the youngest member of TWICE, but her age was not reflective of her immense talent and popularity. Her presence on social media, especially YouTube, garnered millions of fans worldwide. Despite her incredible success, she had a hidden struggle that only a few close friends were aware of. She always felt the need to double-check and count her videos on YouTube multiple times. It was a compulsive habit that stemmed from an intense fear of losing her hard work and creative efforts. The thought of one of her videos disappearing haunted her relentlessly. She would spend sleepless nights verifying her content, going over her playlists repeatedly, and checking her video analytics to ensure everything was in order.

One fateful afternoon, all the girls of TWICE were taking a break from their busy schedule, and the maknae found herself obsessing over her YouTube channel yet again. She scrolled through her videos, meticulously counting them one by one. With a furrowed brow, she noticed a discrepancy in the count. Her heart started racing, and anxiety gripped her like a vice. She was convinced that one of her videos had vanished into thin air.

Panicking, she hurriedly called out to her fellow older sisters. 

Y/N - Unnies, I can't find one of my videos! I'm sure it was there before, but now it's gone!

The other members tried to comfort her, but they didn't quite understand the depth of her distress. Y/N's anxiety escalated, and soon, tears streamed down her cheeks. The situation became overwhelming, and in her desperation, she began to hit her head and pull her hair out in frustration and stress. Momo, who had experienced this before (unfortunately, since it means it's not the first time she suffered like this 😔), recognized the severity of the situation. She gently approached their kid and tried to get her attention. 

Momo - Darling, it's okay. I'm here, and we'll figure this out together. Take a deep breath.

But Y/N was lost in the typhoon of her anxiety, and her breathing was shallow and erratic. Momo spoke softly to her, trying to calm her down and distract her from her distressing thoughts but it didn't work so she gently took her hand and whispered.

Momo - Let's go for a walk, love. A little fresh air might help you feel better.

Despite her emotional turmoil, TWICE's angel managed to nod, trusting her Momo unnie's comforting presence. The two slipped away from the rest of the members and ventured outside, where the gentle breeze brushed against their faces, carrying away some of the tension that had enveloped Y/N. Momo kept the younger girl engaged in casual conversation, talking about their hobbies, their favourite memories together, and silly things they did during their trainee days. Slowly, the storm of anxiety inside Y/N began to subside, and she found solace in Momo's understanding and empathy.

After a while, they returned to the rest of TWICE, where the members had set up a relaxing space for their child. Chaeyoung had brought out a sketchbook, Sana had some colourful markers, and Nayeon had a collection of funny videos to watch. They wanted to create a soothing environment for the youngest to distract her from her distress. Momo stayed by Y/N's side, encouraging her to engage in calming activities. They started doodling together, and the younger girl's tears began to transform into soft smiles. As they immersed themselves in creative play, the rest of the members joined in, making funny faces and telling jokes, creating an atmosphere of love and support.

Gradually, Y/N felt her anxiety easing, and she realized that her fellow members were not only her bandmates but also her family. They understood her, cared for her, and wanted to see her happy. Days passed, and Y/N's anxiety remained a struggle, but she had newfound strength in knowing she wasn't alone. Whenever the fear of losing her YouTube content resurfaced, Momo was there, ready to lend her support and guide her through the storm. The other girls also learned more about anxiety and ways to help Y/N cope. They attended workshops and counselling sessions together, becoming an incredible support system for their youngest. They made sure to create a safe space for her to express her emotions without judgment.

Y/N's YouTube channel continued to flourish, and she found comfort in knowing that her content was cherished by millions of fans. Her journey wasn't without challenges, but she faced them with the love and support of her TWICE family and the inspiration of her passionate followers.

As the months went by, Y/N's anxiety episodes gradually lessened, and she became more capable of managing her fears. She still occasionally needed reassurance, but she had learned healthier coping mechanisms and found strength in her sisters' understanding.

One day, after filming a fun vlog with her fellow members, Y/N sat down at her computer to edit the footage. It was a video full of laughter and joy, and she felt a deep sense of satisfaction as she uploaded it to her channel. She paused for a moment before hitting the "Publish" button, taking a deep breath. But this time, it wasn't out of anxiety. It was a breath of gratitude for her friends, for Momo's unwavering support, and for the journey that had taught her the importance of self-love and compassion.

With a smile on her face, she clicked "Publish," knowing that she had an incredible group of unnies and fans who cherished her for who she was, with anxiety and all. And with that, she continued to thrive, spreading happiness through her content and becoming an inspiration for others who faced similar struggles. This made her have only one thought:

I love my dear chosen family.

A/N: I apologise for any errors, English is not my first language. Pls, let me know if there's something wrong, ty for reading <3

[liskantope]

Three not-so-great takes I've heard since the bombshell of Biden dropping the nomination that I want to grumble about here and may as well roll into a single post.

The first one was in the wake of the breaking news on Sunday, within literally the first minute of Cenk Uygur's immediate comments:

I will say this: as the self-appointed leader within the rebel forces of the Democratic party to oust Joe Biden, I declare victory.

Okay, Cenk, I get it: you ran for president in the Democratic primaries (sort of, and you would have had to win some court cases even to be deemed eligible due to your national status) explicitly to get Joe Biden off the ticket. But this isn't about you or your tendency to talk as though your role in the national discourse and political battleground is more central than it is. This is a product mainly of prominent Democrats pressuring Biden to quit and donors pulling out, not your crusade that ended a good while back and barely seemed to garner attention anyway.

(Sorry, but this is the guy who -- to take just one example I recall from 4+ years ago back when I used to watch The Young Turks all the time -- reacted to Bernie Sanders making the old "Republicans believe in small government only until it's something intimate like your own body" point that I'd been hearing since high school with "Oh my God, he must have been listening to our channel, because that's the exact point that I was the one making recently!")

I'm probably being uncharitable toward Uygur, as he may have been speaking a bit tongue-in-cheek. But still, can you think of a far more prominent figure in current politics who loves making himself sound like the center of every new movement or idea, but might be speaking trollishly or tongue-in-cheek?

The second take, which I'm much more bothered by, is one I heard in person a few hours later, by a mother to her 13-year-old son, in a confident tone: "We're still going to lose with Kamala Harris, because there are a lot of racists in this country and a lot of people in this country who think a woman shouldn't be president."

I don't think she was entirely wrong about racism and sexism giving Harris certain disadvantages (although that's ignoring that her race and gender will directly work to her advantage as well among a different set of potential voters, and I'm not sure it won't cancel out). But, casting aside racism for a moment, this whole "America still isn't ready for a woman president" thing I hear from time to time from feminists is really frustrating, and in my opinion it's not the greatest thing to children (especially not to girls, arguably, but not to any children). I find it both defeatist and reductive in a way that doesn't reflect evidence coming from reality. Hillary Clinton basically did win the presidency eight years ago, in that she got several million more votes than her opponent and would have probably won the electoral college if something James Comey announcement something something. In fact, I bet that if Hillary had won the Democratic primary eight years before that, in 2008, she could have beaten John McCain given the circumstances and current unpopularity of neoconservatism, even if she couldn't have won as handily as Obama did. And while I personally suspect that a lot of the anti-Hillary hatred that seeped through too many of the voters has to do with misogynistic biases that warp people's perceptions, there's a difference between acknowledging that and making out like some major portion of the country doesn't believe that women should be presidents (I would explain sexism the latter way to a 6-year-old maybe, but not to a bright 13-year-old).

(Of course, the "America isn't ready for a woman president" thing is an uprightly feminist thing to say until it's said by Bernie Sanders, and then it's obviously sexist.)

As far as I'm concerned, Harris has at least a substantial, if less than 50%, chance of winning, and a lot will be up to chance circumstances that tip things one way or the other over the next three months.

And the final take I want to gripe about this evening is this fairly popular Tumblr post. Note particularly:

If you continue to argue for anyone other than Kamala, you want Trump to win.

My tentative position on the spectrum of ways of dealing with picking our nominee is that I think there should be some sort of actual contest (at least on the level of open debate) but that I think Democrats should have the nominee picked out (who in turn will have a VP pick) by the time of the convention. I definitely not down for decreeing within a couple of days of Biden's dropping out that, okay, there's only one viable candidate, there is because I say so, we must all fall in line with total unity immediately, anyone who disagrees with me is not only declared wrong by my own authority but declared to be in league with the enemy. Why do so many people struggle so much with theory of mind to not understand (or performatively appear not to understand?) that "those people are in favor of X, which is a thing that I believe will lead to undesirable outcome Y" does not imply "those people are in favor of Y"? I'm pretty sure I've ranted about this before, when it came to rhetoric surrounding a much more contentious cluster of issues, but it applies to a very wide variety of struggles.

[eldritch-spouse]

Hi! I wanted to ask a few things as your art has made me pretty confident about posting mine (I'm getting there!) And I wanted to start drawing + writing yandere OCs of mine but I'm unsure how to start or introduce them (if that makes sense)

While you probably won't answer this or this will get lost in the hundreds of asks you have, I just wanna ask this as I need some suggestions for starters.

Whenever you get this, please make sure to stay hydrated and eat something 💕

This is silly, isn't it?

You've already started posting about your ocs (at least one of them I think). And it seems you've already gathered an audience by making a name for yourself in actual fandoms, so I'm not exactly sure what advice you could possibly want from me- Given I'm mostly just an oc blog, you'll surpass whatever reach I have on your own, automatically basically. People will tune into it much faster, it'll take them less to find you.

I know posting about your own characters can feel embarrassing or "cringe", and honestly, getting over it is something only time allows. Never go into it expecting the same amount of numbers you'd get from talking about mainstream characters, but that's not anything you don't know already.

The way I introduce my characters generally has a cheesy line like "Say hello to ___", a drawing of them, and then either a short fic or a sort of mildly humorous intro about them- But only because that's my style, a goofy side of teratophilia mostly. I think your introductions need to lay your style out first and foremost. I can't exactly tell you what type of information you should put in the intro, because I don't respect the usual "Name: Age: Height: Sexuality: Likes: Dislikes:" formula. It bores me. You seem like a person who enjoys having things very organized, and I feel bad, because my blog is a fucking swamp in comparison and I don't always introduce characters in the same way...

Again, you look like you've been around Tumblr longer than I have, and as such, you can probably write in a way that appeals to a broader range of people (if that's what you're aiming for) much more naturally. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that I'm an awful example to request advice from, because I know the stuff I put out puts me in a "niche". I don't write the more typical yandere things, so I won't get the attention of most. Plus, I have hard kinks. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I think what you need the most is to let things sit. But again, I don't feel qualified to give anyone any sort of advice, considering I often just throw shit at the wall and find out what happens to stick. With no professional/experienced input whatsoever.

I think most people should go into showcasing their ocs with below the ground standards for interactivity. I never did it for the engagement, even if I'm grateful and very surprised, I did it because I love these characters and I thought I should put them somewhere so people could look at them occasionally. Some peeps enjoyed it, and to this day, I don't know why. I wish I could give you a concise formula, but I'm unable to.

I'd say the worst thing you could possibly do is just show an image of them and say "Okay, now feel free to ask about them"- That doesn't seem to garner a lot of attention on its own (unless you already have a large-ish or very interactive following). Make them feel alive, make content on your own about them, don't wait for questions. They will come in their own time.

Good luck, and sorry if I sounded cynical.

[coaarchived]

...Can you write some things about Werewolf or Birthday Cake, please? I'd love to hear your HCs.

I'll do both in due time~ I have some thoughts about them, but I'll do Werewolf first!

These are general headcanons, so no trigger warnings apply as far as I'm aware!

Werewolf Cookie Headcanons

Werewolf cookie was made with a lot of pepper— seemingly black pepper— so I wonder if he's somehow related to peppercorn cookie? Who also seems to be made out of black pepper.

He's a loner by force in accordance to his lore, so I think he's quite touch starved. Not just for hugs— even just a pat on the back is rare for him.

Following the previous point, I think he'd actually be very confused and upset by people physically touching him :( because he's so convinced he'll hurt them

He's a guy who takes a lot of time to trust people, and most give up before they even get there. And when he does— how he displays affection isn't very verbal. To his closest friends, he'll maybe give them pretty rocks he finds.

We don't actually know how he ended up as WERETOFLOW, but I wondered so hard as to how this homeless guy who hangs in the woods became a star I made a whole story about it. See below

WERETOFLOW started with an abandoned guitar and one depressed Werewolf cookie. Upon hearing his tunes, people were amazed by his skills, garnering him sponsors and attention— hence how he even got the outfit in the first place

Last one for Werewolf, the cause of his scar is never explained, but I like to think it was caused by a particularly nasty injury when the villagers had chased him out

[dragonmuse]

Absolutely living for WMITS right now! I'd love to hear more about what outsiders make of Izzy and Charlie. That bartender at their favorite club, or someone who successfully or unsuccessfully cruises one of them, or a neighbor, or a colleague of Charlie's - who has them figured out and who's way off?

(Anon I started this and then stalled out weeks ago, I was going to do like five takes, and realized I just didn't have enough, so here's what I did get through and I hope you enjoy! )

Kingston- Go-Go Dancer at Bastille  

It had already been a great night. Kingston had gotten his favorite platform, the one close to the back room, but still very visible to the crowd, and within the first half-hour of dancing secured his car payment for the month. Everything else was gravy, and he loved to drizzle it on. 

He also had a  good view of the rest of the club. Even with the surging lights, up there Kingston could make out faces and bodies, easily avoid exes and wave over friends. And if he aimed his dancing at some favorite regulars that was all part of the job. 

Scanning the crowd tonight, he saw a few new faces.  An awkward looking guy, who was hanging around the door that Kingston didn’t look at too hard. The new ones could startle away if you paid them too much mind. 

It took him a few minutes to identify a new hot player. The guy was tall, very short golden hair and a lean gym toned, but not overdone body. He was garnering a lot of attention, moving through the dance floor with total confidence. Eventually, he zeroed in on Dante, which figured. 

A new song dropped through the old one and Kingston got to go a little faster, really showing himself off to best effect. He leaned down to grab bills and blow kisses, catching Blondie on the move again. Apparently he’d abandoned Dante, which must’ve stung that blowhard’s ego, because he was on the other side of the dance floor now. He was grinding up on a smaller guy, too far to see details. 

“Kingston!” His friend Sal was below him, holding out a one for plausible deniability. Sometimes the club owner was a dick. 

“What’s up?” He reached out, taking the bill slowly. 

“Come over to mine tomorrow? Do brunch?” 

“Yeah, babe, sure thing,” he laughed. “That what you came over for? You could’ve texted.” 

“No I came over cause I want you scope that fucking hot piece of ass that just murdered Dante in cold blood. It was hot.” 

“Oooh, he’s got some guy going across the floor.” He pointed, “Straight shot, can’t miss.” 

“Thanks, doll!” 

All through the next song, Kingston tried to figure out if Sal had made it, but the lights were really going now and it was hard to follow.  Then he kind of forgot, really getting into the bump and grind and losing himself in the flow of the music. 

It was a least a half-hour later when Blondie appeared at the base of his platform with a smirk and a twenty held out to him. 

“Ooooh, that’s sweet of you,” Kingston licked his lips and drew it out from his fingers. Blondie laughed. 

“Finder’s fee,” he grinned. “We liked your friend.” 

“Sure, sugar,” Kingston beamed at him. “Did you leave him alive?” 

“You’ll have to ask him later,” Blondie had a hell of a smile. 

“Ready?” The smaller guy from before rocked up beside Blondie. He was a tough looking piece of work, grizzled in a way most of even the older guys weren’t.  

“Yeah,” Blondie put an arm around his shoulders. 

Kingston watched them head off.  When he got back to his locker, hours later, there were texts piled up on the phone. 

Sal: i just got double teamed so hard I saw stars 

Sal: Didn’t even catch a name! 

Sal:  the blond guy could just pick me straight off the ground. The other one bit me. Going ot have a mark. 

Sal:  come over at 10, details forthcoming 

Kingston slid his phone in his pocket. Sal exaggerated a lot, but he had the feeling that it wasn’t this time. Something about those guys definitely said wall slammers. Kingston could get behind that. Maybe he’d try his luck next time. For now, Blondie’s twenty was going to buy him a late night taco truck special on his way home. 

Leaf, Barista at the Good Sip 

The thing about working the afternoons was that things were slower. Sometimes so slow,  you might wonder if the clock was moving backwards. So slow that you even did all the ridiculous tasks that your manager left for you and some more that you invented. Leaf had done all that and they still had a full hour left on their shift. 

But they had hope. Because it was Thursday and pretty reliably on Thursday at 3pm They showed up. They eyed the door hopefully. Behind them, Allison was ‘cleaning the counter’ which usually meant she was texting her boyfriend. Fine by Leaf. 

At 3:17pm there they were. The door swung open and the young guy came in first. Leaf had seen him around campus a few times before putting two and two together.  The older guy was the one who approached the counter. Leaf never saw him anywhere, but here and they really doubted that he had anything to do with the college. 

“One small black coffee, no sugar, no milk,” Leaf recited before the guy could open his mouth. “And one large latte, extra shot of espresso and almond syrup.” 

“Hey,” the tall guy smiled. He nudged the older guy. “Hear that? We’re regulars officially now.” 

“Great,” was the dry response. “Just what I always fucking wanted.” 

“Thanks,” Charlie winked at Leaf. “We appreciate it. Could I get a brownie too? Got such a craving for sugar today.” 

“You always bitch about the ones here,” the older guy reminded him. “Too dense.” 

“The brownie cookies are better,” Leaf offered. “They’re lighter.” 

“Two of those then, thanks.” 

Leaf didn’t disturb Allison’s ‘cleaning’. It wasn’t a hard order and it wasn’t like anyone else was waiting. They tipped, the older guy tossing ones into the glass jar. Then they went to their usual table, a two-top right by the windows. 

That was when Leaf got to just observe them. They had a few theories about them, which he had subjected all of his friends to, to the point where they were now also invested.  

Group Text: we the people 

Leaf: they’re here again

Alan: omg the may-december couple? 

Jilliam: why are you so obsessed with them 

Leaf: it’s proof that love is real and it’s kind of mean 

Alan: I’m just being supportive of their interests.  

Jilliam: bet they’re not even real. Like the possum people.

Leaf: that was a mistake anyone could make. These two are definitely real. Not garbage. 

Jilliam: that’s what you say about the possum people. 

Leaf huffed and very carefully aimed his phone up and set his phone to silent while he snapped a pic. 

Leaf: see? Very real. 

Jilliam: father and son 

Leaf: kiss a lot for that 

Alan: hey I think I know one of them, he’s a T.A. or some-

Leaf did not get to read the end of the text. His phone was suddenly not in his hands. 

“Hey!” 

“You think you’re cute?” The older man scowled at him, looking through and pressing a button then handing it back to him. “You don’t take pictures of people without their goddamn permission.” 

“Oh shit,” they whimpered. 

“You get to learn today. I’m not going to report you or whatever the fuck you’re pissing your pants over.” 

“Yeah, yeah okay. Sorry. Really.” 

“What’d you even want with it?” The younger guy draped himself over the older guy’s back, giving Leaf a look that could dissect someone’s brain. 

“Nothing!” They flushed darkly. “I’m sorry, really. I wasn’t making fun. I just notice you guys a lot and my friend though I was being nuts.” 

“They noticed us,” the younger guy grinned, winding an arm around the older guy’s waist. “Think we’re noticeable, Israel?” 

“Apparently.” The intense stare didn’t leave Leaf’s face though the tone lightened. “But no, demon.” 

“Aw, you’re no fun.” There was a laugh, distinctly chilly and Leaf had a feeling very much at their expense. “But fine.” 

And without further comment they just went back to their table. They didn’t pay Leaf a single note further of attention and they had never been more grateful to be ignored in their life. After that, when they saw them coming in, they either made Allison take register or avoided all eye contact.