#but also it makes sense because what the fuck else do you do with a royal palace when you murder the royals

[vevobly]

YJs with a blunt/no filter reader

Yellowjackets With Blunt Reader! [Peri-crash] (1)

A/N: I didn't really have many ideas on this, so I went ahead and asked for help from two people I'm close with — @nieveink & @salfishdelish! Thank you so much :))

Jackie Taylor:

Jackie is instantly rubbed the wrong way by your bluntness. She's used to being adored, so she thinks you're just rude and borderline insufferable at first. You say things that she's so used to people sugarcoating like calling her out for complaining, pointing out her privilege, or mocking her dramatics.

You told her “you don’t actually want to lead, you just want people to like you” to her once during a group argument, and then her face turned red. She just wants whatever is the best for the team! Besides that, who the fuck even are you to just go up and say those kinds of things to her? You don't know her that well.

But after a few weeks, she finds herself liking your honesty more than she’ll admit. You’re the only one she doesn’t walk on eggshells with these days. You’re also one of the only people who’ll call her out to her face, and not behind her back unlike some people. And before she knows it, she starts asking what you think about things just to hear your brutal honesty.

“Do you like me? Because I-I think you hate me, but I still... want to be around you.” She asks, rubbing her arm and avoiding your gaze.

Shauna Shipman:

You make Shauna uncomfortable at first. Not because you’re mean! But because you say the exact things she tries not to think about. One time where Jackie was being incredibly insufferable with her chores, you casually asked Shauna if she ever thought about punching her. And Shauna? She laughed for the first time in days since the whole crash happened.

Shauna doesn't exactly know why, but she feels like she can just be herself around you without any problems. She once confided something small and dark to you. And instead of comforting her? You just replied with “yeah, that makes sense. This place is making us all worse.” Since then, she found herself coming to you with things she can’t say to Jackie.

You guys become close, slowly but surely. One night, she sits too close to you. Gives you half her food for that day and lets her hand brush yours. “If you’re trying to seduce me with squirrel jerky, it’s working.” You teased her. Shauna didn't know what to respond to you, so she just blushed instead before laughing quietly to herself.

“I hope it is,” She replied. “I didn't just risk Jackie getting pissed off at me for nothing, you know?” She smiled softly at you.

Taissa Turner:

Tai doesn't have time for bullshit, and you don't either. So naturally, she respected your bluntness at first until you guys started to clash a lot after the crash. You say things exactly the way they are, and while she appreciated that very much before. It's become a thing that pisses her off. “You’re not god, Tai. You can’t fix this for all of us.” You told her once.

And Tai? She just breaks down and snaps at you. And the fact neither Travis or Nat were able to bring any food back at the cabin that day didn't help either. But instead of snapping back, you just told her that you knew she was scared and that next time you'd rather have her tell you than bottling it up then projecting it onto something else entirely.

It took 2 days before she was able to go up to you and apologize for it. It was only after that, you guys started to get closer. Then she started seeking you and your thoughts on since then. Tai trusts you more than she admits. And when things start getting worse? She finds herself looking for you in the group, every time.

She pulls you aside one day. “I can’t keep doing this. I like you, and it’s distracting.” And then she grabs the collar of your shirt to kiss you like there's no tomorrow.

Van Palmer:

Van likes that you’re blunt. It's refreshing in a good way. And she thinks you're hilarious even when you're trying not to be. That, and she can match your energy. You both rely on dark humor to cope with your situation. And during one night, you said something about eating one of the JV girls if it came to it. Van ended up choking on her stew.

She appreciates the fact you don't sugarcoat anything and say it the way it is. And honestly? You're probably one of the only people who makes her laugh genuinely. When Van started to sit beside you during fire circle nights just to hear your commentary on everything and anything? You guys became pretty close because of it. She finds out immediately that she doesn't just like you, she loves you when you mutter “I stink, I miss showers so much”

She jokes about it at first. “That’s it, I’m proposing. Someone who admits they stink is my dream girl.” She grins at you. But then, you and her are holding each other's gaze too much. Eventually, she pulls you in for a kiss. “Was that to shut me up or because you’re into me?” You asked after she pulled away from you and rested her forehead against yours. Van laughs hard. And you think to yourself about how beautiful it sounds. “Both. Definitely both.” She replied.

“So what if I like you? You wanna wrestle about it?” She couldn't stop smiling dopely at you.

Natalie Scatorccio:

While both of you are pretty similar. Nat is more rough around the edges than anything. You? You're sharp tongued and tactless, but honest at least. At first, she thought you were annoying. But over time? She realized you're the only one who talks to her like an actual person instead of a problem. And she notices how you don't flinch from her, even when she's being messy or mean. You hold her gaze and say shit like “You done throwing your little fit?” back instead.

Nat ends up soft around you, and lets her guard down. You call her out, sure, but you're also truthful in almost everything else with her. You say stuff like “You smoke like you’re trying to die out here before nature even gets the chance to kill you,” and she just stares at you with a small smile on her lips. Since then, Nat has come to sit next to you every time she needs to breathe. No words are needed, because the way she looks at you is enough to tell you about what she needs.

And during one particular night when everyone's fallen asleep? After a whole hour of throwing snarky back and forths at each other, you and Nat just fall silent. It's a bit awkward at first, but then suddenly Nat starts to talk about herself with you. “And here I was thinking you could never talk like that ever with anyone, especially me��� You teased her, grinning a little. She laughs and punches your elbow playfully. “Whatever, no one's gonna believe you if you tell them.”

Then after another moment of silence. “If you say anything about this, I’ll kill you” She smiles softly at you. “But I think I like you. Or whatever...” She avoids your gaze.

Lottie Matthews:

Lottie finds your bluntness weirdly comforting. She's not fully gone yet, but she IS having strange dreams. And somehow, your bluntness manages to ground her. You're skeptical about her visions, but you're never cruel. When she shares weird thoughts with you, you just listen and then respond with something like “Cool! I'm still not eating mushrooms you found behind a dead bird.” Instead of feeling offended, she finds herself laughing at your response.

She feels safer around you than anyone else on the team, and she doesn't know why. But maybe it's because you'll always tell her the truth, even if it's harsh. You once told her “You’re weird, but like… not in a bad way.” and her ears turned red before she shook her head, smiling softly at you. “Should I feel complimented or offended?” Then she's bringing you things—berries, matches, anything useful. Doing things for you without you asking.

You tend to ask about her visions from time to time. “Do you actually believe it, or do you just want it to mean something?” And sometimes when you ask, Lottie finds herself with no words to answer you. “You think I’m going nuts?” She asks once, half joking. You answer without hesitation. “No. But you definitely freak me out sometimes.” She smiles like that’s the kindest thing anyone’s ever said and it makes you feel complicated. Should you feel bad for what you said or good?

“I think you’re meant to be in my life. Or… I-I'm meant to love you,” She rubs the back of her neck nervously. “I don’t know, I.. just feel it.”

Laura Lee:

You and Laura Lee are polar opposites. She prays before meals. And you? You complain about being constipated in front of everyone. At first, she finds you very inappropriate. I mean, you cuss too much. Say irreverent things and question everything, even god sometimes. She worries about your poor soul. “God hears everything,” She told you once. “Then he must be bored out of His mind.” Was your response to her.

She was scandalized! But despite it and herself, she ended up laughing at your words. She doesn't expect to like you, but she does. You're one of the very few people who doesn't treat her own religion like some sort of punchline. You just let her have it, even if you don't believe in it. She starts asking for your help with chores. “Not because I need it,” She told you. “but because I like when you’re around.”

Laura Lee falls for you, slowly and gently. And it scares her. She doesn't think it's love at first, maybe just admiration. But when she finds out it's EXACTLY that? Cue her being helpless with herself! You guys dance around each other quite a lot in the beginning. You're too blunt to flirt with her, and she's way too unsure of herself to even say anything to you. But when she starts blushing a lot around you? You take notice of that. And one day, she finally tells you.

“I… feel something. For you,” She says quietly. “A-And I don’t know if I should. But it doesn't seem like it's bad.”

Misty Quigley:

Misty is a desperate girl who craves for validation. And while your bluntness doesn't give her the warm fuzzies, it does make her feel seen. You just acknowledged her skills without mockery once, and she latched onto it immediately. You catch her staring at you often. And while you do confront her about it from time to time, she just always denies it really badly. “Stop staring at me, I feel like I'm being watched by an owl now.” Misty apologizes quickly for it.

She doesn't know how to flirt like a normal person, so she just keeps doing things for you—fixing your boots, bringing you food, patching you up even when you don't ask. And then you start catching her following you around more often. She's always telling you she's just checking up on you whenever you ask her about it, but you're not dumb. “Are you following me?” You eventually asked her. “W-what? No! I'm not following you.” You raise an eyebrow at her, unconvinced.

One night, she decided to bring you a bundle of wildflowers. You just stared at her for a few minutes before speaking up. “You’re not dying, are you?” You asked. “What? No,” She shook her head, before looking away. “I just… thought of you.” You're not sure what to do with that. But you don't throw the flowers away. And while she isn't expecting anything in return, you decided to carve a pocket sized wooden owl for it. She loved it so much that she takes it everywhere with her.

“You know, most people lie to me” She stared at the small wooden owl in her hands. “But you don’t,” She looked up at you. “And maybe... that’s why I love you.” She smiled softly, cheeks tinting red a bit at her own words.

[riemanifests]

It's okay to accept how the 3d is.

certain people in this community think you have to automatically fix everything, figure out how things manifested, and make sure to manifest the perfect life, but you don't. the whole point of knowing LOA is being able to control your reality the way you see fit. just because you might desire being financially independent without a 9-5 job doesn't mean someone else does too. just because you know that your mindset and self concept manifest doesn't mean someone else cares to change their own. let others live life how they want to and let them control reality how they want to. me and my sp broke up and i decided to go "no contact" with him. ik most people would freak about that, but i've decided to just accept the situation right now and let myself grieve, because while this isn't the way i want things to end i also will never disrespect myself in the 3d by just sucking it up and letting mistreatment continue. i also know that my past with love hasn't been great so my concepts aren't either, and why rush to change that? it's okay to just let things be shitty for now. just process your emotions and let it fucking suck. but yk the next part? when you're ready to get back up and change things, make sure you're actually ready. because at that point it's no longer about the old story anymore and that's not even your story anymore, it's about the new story. but some of you don't do the processing part then you're wavering and it just gets messy. so make sure that when you're ready to get up and change things, that you're ready to commit to making that change. nothing is permanent so that decision you made to accept things doesn't have to be the same decision tomorrow, or even next week. nothing's forever unless you want it to be. you have the freedom, you don't need to run and stress to fix things, and does that even address why those things happened in the first place? cause let's say i just did my thing and manifested him again, but i'm not ready to work on my self concept yet. there's other things i want to focus on and right now i've decided i'm not ready for that part in my life yet, so i've paused working on those things. and yk what, this is just a great example of how your beliefs, your kept stories, and your self concept do affect things and im not mad about it either. yeah im sad and heartbroken, but i also feel a sense of peace. a sense of peace knowing im free to decide whatever i want, knowing that this decision doesn't have to affect my future with him, and right now i'm making the choice that best aligns with me. so for those out there who maybe feel guilty or wrong for accepting things as they are, you're not. this is your life and you're free to do things as you please. you're in no rush, time doesn't even exist really so breathe. none of us are perfect. nobody who knows LOA has to be perfect or change every single thing in life. again, go at your own pace. don't worry about how someone else feels about your journey, because it's YOUR journey. you're the one who has to walk down that path and experience things, so experience them however you want. and i know one day i will come back with an update once im ready to change my concepts around things and manifest sp, but for now, i'm choosing to accept things as they are. if your 3d sucks and you can't be bothered to change it? that's okay, you can accept it. accepting doesn't mean you say yes to it forever or even agree, but you just let it be for now. so give yourself some grace, breathe, and choose peace.

[mikansei]

What are your thoughts on Ratio as a teacher? I want to say that he's not as much of a demon in the classroom as some ppl interpret him as but also I'm not sure if I'm not making him too nice

i'm sure ratio's "3% pass rate" is just a number arbitrarily picked to make him sound super strict, the same way earning 8 doctorates at the age of [vague anime adult] isn't meant to make real world sense, but my favorite pastime is overthinking anime and video game logic so:

we know ratio got into university when he was still in highschool. let's just say he didn't bother with a bachelor's and went straight for doctorates from the start. doctorates normally take a long time to earn, but he's clearly not meant to be as old as welt looks; he's in his 30s at most. his character stories say he's taught 52 courses so far, and if professors teach ~5-ish per semester, he's been teaching for roughly 10 years (while earning 8 doctorates himself. veritas ratio where the fuck do u find the time).

so if he's 30 years old, he started teaching at 20 with maybe 1 or 2 doctorates under his belt - and, again, assuming he went straight from student to teacher without being a TA or anything first, because [screaming at all these hypotheticals].

if you've ever met a 20-year-old or remember being a 20-year-old yourself, you will know that they are fucking insufferable. having just endured the most trying ordeal of their lives (surviving being an 18-year-old), they think they have gained all the knowledge in the world and have uniquely uncovered all life's mysteries. so a 20yo ratio - who actually HAD gained significant knowledge and personally solved at least one interstellar crisis - had to have an ego approximately the diameter of saturn's rings. showered with more praise than he could ever process, hailed as a genius and once-in-a-lifetime visionary, setting his sights firmly on joining the genius society by earning Nous' gaze, he must've been so goddamn full of himself.

THAT is the ratio whose courses had a 3% pass rate. it probably only took him 1 or 2 semesters to realize holding everyone else to his impossibly high personal standards did not, in fact, make him a good teacher. i'm sure it was a humbling experience. i bet he got bad reviews on the starrail equivalent of ratemyprofessors.com and decided to go back and earn a whole nother doctorate about it - maybe medicine, to better understand the psychology behind learning, that he might thus become a better teacher. that sounds like an extremely ratio thing to do.

10 years on he probably doesn't teach, like, psych 101. he probably teaches shit like "applied string theory." top-level post-grad capstone courses, where anyone taking the course is most of the way thru their own PhD, and if they fail his course they just need to shift subdisciplines, not flunk out of university entirely.

i hope the hubris of his old 3% pass rate haunts him tho 😊 keeps him up at night, making him wonder how many students' curiosity and drive to learn was mercilessly snuffed out by his ego 🥰

[wilsonology]

i feel like i need to say this cuz ever since people started (rightfully) realizing that wilson is actually just as emotionally manipulative and messed up as house, i’ve seen a weird wave of “house deserves better” takes like. you guys. they are both disasters. they are mutual wrecks. they deserve each other (and maybe also a psych ward stay)

house isn’t some poor misunderstood genius being dragged down by his toxic friend. house is a grown man with abandonment issues the size of god, chronic pain he refuses to manage responsibly, and a compulsive need to blow up every good thing in his life before it can leave him first. he is not okay. he is not better than wilson!! he is just LOUDER about being fucked up !!!

like. yes. house is brutally honest and emotionally stunted and painfully smart. he’s a bastard and he knows it. but he weaponizes that self-awareness. he uses it as a shield — like, “yeah, i’m a terrible person so you can’t hurt me by pointing it out.” but he cares. so much. all the time. and he hates that he does. so he builds a whole personality around pretending not to

house is constantly poking at people’s trauma and vulnerabilities like it’s a science experiment — not because he’s evil, but because he genuinely does not know how else to relate. he’s terrified of intimacy. intimacy means exposure, exposure means rejection. so instead he picks at people until they push him away. it’s safer that way. it’s controlled

... but he wants people to stay. that’s the worst part. he wants so badly to be loved and chosen and understood and he’s absolutely incapable of asking for it in a non destructive way. so he tests people. constantly (it does not work lol)

AND LIKE let’s talk about the pills. because yeah! obviously! house is addicted. but the way he treats his own pain — physical and emotional — is so self-punishing it hurts to watch. he doesn’t just want relief, he wants punishment. he doesn’t believe he deserves to feel better. he thinks suffering is what makes him sharp, what keeps him useful, what keeps people from getting too close

he’s miserable and mean and brilliant and lonely and he turns all of it into a performance. he turns his trauma into a weapon and his brilliance into a cage and he pretends he likes it in there

also — and i cannot stress this enough — he needs wilson just as much as wilson needs him. that relationship is codependent. it is toxic. it is real. wilson makes house feel human. house makes wilson feel important. they cling to each other because no one else would put up with either of them for more than five minutes. it’s not healthy. yet it’s true

but. yeah. house pushes everyone away. he ruins every relationship he touches. he mocks vulnerability and ridicules emotion because those things terrify him. he solves medical mysteries like they’re puzzles he can win at — cuz diseases don’t leave you. they don’t get tired of you. they don’t betray you. they’re consistent. they make sense. unlike people. unlike his parents. unlike stacy. unlike wilson sometimes

and when people do try to care about him — cuddy, cameron, stacy, wilson, even random patients — he doesn’t know what to do with it. he wants it. but he’ll destroy it just to prove it was never real. because if he believes it was real and then it leaves he’ll actually fall apart. and he knows it

tl;dr: house is a brilliant, emotionally self-sabotaging, pain-riddled, intimacy-phobic disaster who uses cruelty and honesty to protect himself from the fact that he’s deeply lonely and thinks he’s unlovable. he doesn’t trust love. he trusts pain. and that’s why he’s a mess. wilson lies to himself and others; house tells the truth like it’s a knife. they are the same breed of broken. one just hides it behind a smile. the other behind a snarl. equal levels of unwell !!

[notbxnny]

What you think is the meaning behind the clothes benson and randy wear on the movie?

you know i hadn’t really considered that! okay so this is just 100% completely off the cuff, doubt it’s what the costumers intended but here is what came to mind

in the beginning, theyre both wearing more or less the same, except Randy’s work shirt is buttoned neatly to the top, although its not tucked in, it hangs off him boxily and so do his trousers, it makes him look thin and timid, and the plain white undershirt he wears tells us this is it. he’s got this ill-fitting job that he looks like he’s taking comfort in being swamped in and beneath it there is nothing. Benson on the other hand has clothes that are a lot more fitted, his shirt is slightly unbuttoned to show his heavy-metal band tee, the sleeves are rolled up(makes his biceps more pronounced, looks stronger) and it’s tucked into his trousers, probably for conveniences sake. he’s wearing sturdy boots compared to Randy’s trainers, his cap brim has been curved while Randy’s is straight. we can see they’re both competent at their job but Randy allows himself to embody it, hide beneath it, he is content to conform seamlessly, while Benson tries and fails to break from it, to not let it define him. 

Benson giving Randy his coat to cover his uniform is the first indication of Benson’s intentions, effectively Randy goes from belonging to burgers burgers burgers to belonging to Benson. it’s important that it’s the same in that it hangs over and obscures him. he looks equally reedy & pathetic godbless

then: omg yay outfit change!!!

Benson’s cardigan (The Darling of the film) is this almost poisonous yellow, sickly & hazardous, contrasted with its fluff, which always struck me as looking like a birds down. opposed to everything else he wears, it’s pretty loose fitting, and while he draws attention in it, in the final act he seems to retreat into it as a gaudy incongruous camouflage, just like Randy does with his coat, like an animal using batesian mimicry. similarly on his shirt he’s got a skull with bunny ears (ahh i knoww it’s donnie darko, unforch haven’t seen it</3) regardless it’s all this bold contrasting colourful imagery of fuck-off-i’ll-shoot and something soft. him vs the world and him trying to protect randy in his own weird, fuckedup way. he is complex :) is what im saying. also, it’s just. not what you’d expect for a murder, and maybe that was the intended effect, but it’s the direct opposite of inconspicuous or practical. doesn’t make sense as the kind of outfit you’d take off on the run in, especially considering how they go on to make themselves know around town afterwards. and you could call it him being careless or spontaneous when he picked it out. but Benson is smart.

interestingly (and this bit i have actually thought about) he’s still wearing his work trousers and boots. logically this is because he had to get changed quick, no time to put on his very best mentoring jeans when he’s got a hostage awaiting his eager return in the other room, but it still really stood out to me. even beyond him being unable to free from what he did back there, once its over and he tells Randy that he doesn’t work in fast food anymore, he simply cannot imagine what another life for himself would entail. it’s still wrapped around his ankles like manacles. 

Randy on the other hand is dressed completely in Benson’s clothes, there’s no trace left of his uniform, he is shaped clumsily and entirely in Benson’s image. it’s too big, he doesn’t know the band on his shirt, he just looks like a kid playing dress up as an adult, and thematically at this point kinda he is. at the diner, he takes off Benson’s coat to confront him and it’s just Randy, finally standing completely as he is. then in the epilogue we see he stays this way, he’s even more himself, but he keeps the coat, he carries Benson with him.

[whoreiorcats]

we want your thoughts as to where gemma would go from here btw xx

OK so. if you really want to know what I WANT to happen, read the stone.

I don't necesarily think that everything I wrote here will come true, but I do believe some kind of dynamic between Helly and/or Helena and Gemma will be explored next season. We have the Helly/Helena switcheroo set up and Gemma is outside, so it feels natural enough.

I could see Gemma having sympathy for Helena (somehow we would get there, trust) and that being used to help guide the general audience (which is still largely dubious on Helena) into also feeling that way.

The parallels between them were how I came to appreciate Helena's character a lot more than I had before. Among the non-nuance fucker tumblr audience, Gemma seems to be a favorite and garners basically 100% sympathy, so that might have to be the gateway into Helena for the normals (I don't think that's a bad thing, per se).

Outside of that, I really hope that Gemma gets to be somewhat outside of the characterization we've already seen for her. Her environment is neither the familiar world of her pre-Lumon life nor is it the monotony/horror of her Lumon life.

She is naturally going to be in a very unstable, unpredictable environment where it feels like she could be recaptured or assassinated at any moment and there is much to be done still to fight back against those who imprisoned her. She really should respond to this scenario differently than she did the other two.

I could see her being a bit hardened, but I do want her to remain Gemma. I really don't want her to react to the situation the exact same way Mark has (which I have seen some people suggest as an interesting option, I simply disagree) because A) she has very different baggage and characteristics than mark, and B) that would be boring because we would be retreading old ground.

If the shoe was on the other foot, if Mark's death had been faked and Gemma left on the surface, I don't believe she would have severed (tho I do need to read that one fic where she did because undeniably it's a fun concept). I don't think she would/will be unaffected by Mark's absence from her life, but she will react in her own "extraordinary" way, imo.

I think her having way more sympathy/empathy for the innies than any of the other "outies" would make a lot of sense--she should be able to relate to them in a way no one else can. She could be an advocate on their behalf, even though she is wanting to have her husband back--great opportunity for angst and drama. I think she makes a lot of sense as someone who can keep a level head and her morals about her even in an extreme situation like this.

I particularly would love to see her still being the rock for her in laws and eventually getting really fucking tired of it and trying to do her own thing, whatever that might be fucking helena eagan who said that?

Long term, I don't want her and Mark to just be married again and that's it; I think it would be very weird if we just returned to the pre-canon status quo. Again, if you want to know what I really want, it's in the stone (or will be eventaully), what I think could happen is pretty different (tho I am eternally hopeful).

I really truly think endgame markgemhel is not off the table in the slightest. If Gemma ends up single or not in any way with Mark (also fully on the table imo), I think Dan must have something interesting planned for her. I hope hope hope, anyway. I am fairly positive she will survive to the end of the series (I am not sure if Hellyna or Mark S/cout are as safe), at this point it would be insane and annoying to kill her off, so I think it's a no on that front.

Sometimes I think I'm fucking crazy, sometimes I think endgame GemmaHellyna is fully plausible and even foreshadowed and inevitable, but we'll see. They're just perfect reflections/inversions of the other, it will be complete waste if SOME kind of relationship (romantic, platonic, worse) between them is not explored.

This is a weird side thing but I kind of don't want her to kill Mauer, like with her own hands or actions. I think she has proven herself to be a badass and someone (idk Cobel) could kill him for her. I do want her to live in a Mauerless world, I just also think she deserves a break.

And in so far as reintegration, I wonder if that is even possible for her? My guess is yes but it will be a lot more complicated--which is on top of an already dangerous procedure. I could see them OTCing one of her innies to fuck with her and the anti-Lumon resistance and reintegration being the only way to resurface "Gemma". Rebel/Coghabi team up? Three ladies with PhDs work it out :))))))) life could be dream

I think that is all of my future Gemma thoughts!

[lilliths-story-studio]

Drew opens his door on the second knock. Jax is still in there with him, evidenced by the bark of my name and demand to ‘get my ass inside and make it make sense.’ I give one look back to Cassy, who’s lighting a new stick and watching us.

“Yeah, I can spare a couple minutes.” I follow Drew back into the enclosed space and elect to hover just inside the door. Much as I wanna make her wait and piss her off, that only hurts our goal.

“I’m going.” I say to Drew. “I guess Bigfoot has her cousin, and unless we find her, you’re stuck here.”

“Bigfoot?” Jax asks.

I shrug.

“Fuck, I don’t know. Something in those spooky ass woods.”

“Do ya’ll hear yourselves?!” Jax is doing a much better job of holding his temper than he used to. It’s doubtful that the rest of the county even heard him. “Bigfoot?”

“Look, I don’t have time to hang out for another demonstration. I just wanted to let you know what was going on.”

“Better than sneaking out like you did the last time you went with her.” I duck my head, looking anywhere but the old man. “Don’t come back crying this time.”

“Are you serious?” Jax waves off our leader and takes the step and a half towards me. “Tasha-“

“Drew’s telling the truth - she’s a literal witch.” It had just been beer, right? “I’m still coming to grips with it, so I’m sorry, you’re gonna have to spiral to acceptance on your own. For now, I only know one way to undo this…and that’s to play whatever game she’s cued up.”

“You think she’s lying?” Drew asks.

“I think she’s been hiding things since the day I met her, and I think that behavior doesn’t stop overnight.” I shrug. “But she’s also right, I don’t know anyone else like her, do you?”

For a moment, my boss says nothing. Then, he stands and moves to a cabinet next to his bed. Jingling and clicking proceed his turn to come towards me. Jax shuffles to the side, because Drew’s build and the confined space don’t give him a lot of options. A chain drops from his hand, a golden pendant swinging like a pendulum. Or rather, upon further inspection, a coin.

“I knew one.” He says, nodding to the piece and gesturing it towards me. “Mama - she always said there was a lot to the world I just couldn’t see.”

“Wait, your mom was a witch?” I ask. “I feel like this is one of those things you should have told me sooner.”

“Why the hell would I? I thought she’d gone ‘round the carousel.”

“I meant before I went to talk to Cassy. Like, if she might have had friends or something.”

“She did- they were all on the circuit with her until they weren’t.” He shakes his head. “I wouldn’t even know where to begin looking for them now.”

He sounds so unlike himself, so lost. He doesn’t have an answer, and he so often does. I trade looks with Jax, who seems no less confused but a measure more concerned to see our leader so out of sorts.

“So what’s this, then?” I ask, gesturing to the forgotten trinket.

“An amulet she left me - it’s supposed to protect the wearer.”

“So why did you take it off. It was yours, right?”

He shakes his head.

“I don’t mess with the shit she got into - she sure didn’t choose the easy road, and I don’t believe in meddling in that direction. Only reason I kept onto it was ‘cause I know she’d want me to. If it can do you some good, I’m sure she’d like that better than collecting dust.” He presses the coin forcefully into my palm. “Take it, return it.”

Curious, I turn my palm up. A masculine face with the sharpest of beards, and some kind of plant on the back.

“What’s on it?”

He shakes his head.

“I’m afraid I never asked and she never said. She held it tight during trouble, and it always seemed to pass us by in the end.”

“Congratulations on your magic talisman- what the fuck do you mean you’re going into sketchy woods with a witch.” Jax demands, eyes flying between the two of us with half as much chill in his voice. “With your psycho ex.”

“I never called her a psycho.”

“No, I did! She’s holding a man hostage unless you survive her Bigfoot hunt. Do you hear you?” He scrubs a hand over the same dark fade he’d threatened to break outside hands for touching.

“It’s not…ideal. But I’m fresh out of alternatives. You?”

“…bigfoot?”

“I fucking guess.” I shrug. “Just…help Drew with whatever cover he comes up with to keep everyone calm. I’ll work as fast as I can. But…if I’m gone longer than two weeks…” I huff a humorless laugh. “Go to Vegas. Try one of those nut job shows we pass all the time. Maybe one of them’s legit.”

“Hope for the ages.” Drew says, finally waving towards the door. “You said your goodbyes, get your shit and get out of my carnival.”

I flip him the bird and let myself back out, surprised when Jax follows me. He keeps uncharacteristically quiet while I slip into my unit, ignoring the other three inhabitants already snoring away in their bunks. I make quick work of a backpack jammed with clothes and nab my wallet on my way back out.

“You gonna follow me to her car?” I ask, turning to face my friend.

“You distract her, I’ll pop her from behind- we’ll make her let him go.”

“Sounds like a plan- can you rush her faster than she can cast?” Does she have to mumble shit like some alt-Shakespearean character, or is this more of a Bewitched situation? “Why are you so worried anyway?”

“Because I like your dumb ass and don’t want it dead.” He says.

“Oh.” I mean, I knew we’d hung out a few times. My mouth opens to a full beat of silence.

“…are you sure she didn’t break up with you? If this is your standard response time, she mighta gotten confused.”

“Shut the fuck up.” I roll my eyes. “Just help Drew. I’ll do what I can…and uh…I’ll miss you too.”

“She definitely dumped you.”

“Go to hell.”

“I might- tell me all about it after you get back and we’ll see if I wanna go with next time.” He makes a disgusted noise and pivots back towards his own unit. “I ain’t doing hugs. Bye.”

I watch him until he disappears inside, chest oddly tight. The tension doesn’t ease as I start back towards my ex, taking in the colorful tents and listening to the incessant scream of cicadas. This won’t be the last I see of the beat up cars, sun-faded rides and melting pot of lovable misfits. I won’t let it be.

Prompt #1181

"I feel like this is one of those things you should have told me earlier."

[smartzelda]

Sometimes it's frustrating having worked in video game retail and knowing anything about game/console prices and deals watching people just. Say things online

"Look at this nintendo add for the SNES you could get the console and super mario world for like $100! Companies never do that anymore they're so greedy hahaha"

Yes, companies still bundle consoles with games. And yes, often this means the games come at a reduced price. (Mario Kart World for Switch 2 is $50 in the bundle versus the $80 for physical. When Gamestop was bundling games and controllers with new ps5s to keep away scalpers in like 2022, the games included often would be discounted between $10 and $20 for that bundle.)

Don't get me wrong. Of course less than $200 for a console and a first party game would be swell these days BUT. When you decided to get up in arms over prices these days, did you adjust for inflation? (Because like. It's one thing if the new console you're doing comparisons with the old one is much more expensive even when factoring in inflation. But also like some of those old consoles adjusted for inflation are worth about the same if not more than a switch 2, then it's like...okay? At that point the prices aren't the problem. The root issue is the companies not paying you in accordance with rising inflation.)

Believe it or not YES. Nintendo still does console deals where you can buy their most recent home console with a first party game added in for free! (Listen to me. Listen. In 2021 and 2022 for Christmas it was possible to walk into a video game store and buy a $300 switch bundle that included Mario Kart 8 deluxe and like 3 months free Nintendo Online. In like 2022/2023 for Christmas they also did $350 switch oled bundles that included Mario Kart 8 deluxe and 3 months nintendo online for free. The price of a console for a $60 video game and 3 months of the online service. This isn't some mythic business practice that stopped happening in like 2005 or something. I promise.)

Yes obviously the companies are greedy. They use deals to pull you in to get you to spend more than you expected. They also often have more sales than you're even aware of because they benefit more from people paying full price. They underpay people and they use whatever excuses needed oftentimes to raise prices to keep that profit rising. But it does no one any real good other than allow people to get pissed off to lie or assume things which aren't true. There are so many reasons to dislike companies (esp. Nintendo), you don't need to rely on acting like things used to be so much better in cases that they're not, or treating things that are industry wide standards/issues as something one company is the sole perpetrator of.

Moral of the story, maybe perhaps like do a bit a research instead of assuming whatever thing that pisses you off greatly is 100% true, and direct your ire in the right direction. Ground yourself emotionally and mentally, know what's going on. Be pissed at corporations. You're allowed to be fuckin pissed at corporations. Just please know what tf you're talking about and what exactly the root issue is

[talentforlying]

and while i have briefly mentioned the 2019 run and dead in america in the same breath: constantine being told the tulpa!constantine had his laugh when it was torturing a friend. looking at noah with blood on his knuckles and recognizing his own smile. being told he's categorically to blame for noah becoming damned.

in hellblazer: constantine being told he's his father's son. looking identical to his father. recognizing something of himself in the family man who killed his father, who also reminded him of his father. the demon constantine being A Whole Thing in and of itself. the rosacarnis children, his blood, being the cause of his sister's death.

constantine repeatedly being given cause to associate his own joy with evil, his own face with monsters, his own blood with damnation. again, and again, and again.

[selfinflictedgunshotwound]

double, triple, quadrupling-down, even, on being a shauna shipman defender. the more evil she is in the show the happier i get idgaf that's my girl

[coquelicoq]

most of the things about the main couple in blossom i could take or leave but i do love the recurring bit where she's doing something he interprets as foreplay and he's just sitting there quietly getting turned on and savoring the anticipation waiting for her to escalate and then it's revealed that she was leading up to something totally else the whole time and has no idea why it's taking him so long to react to whatever it is she's doing. like hellooooo earth to yantang i just revealed my secret that you've been dying for me to tell you for months and it's that i can see the future as you can see here from the red string conspiracy board i have stitched onto my inner robe. you should be overjoyed to have finally been let in on the secret! chuckling awkwardly is not a reasonable response to this information. but for yantang it's like. My Wedding Night and my wife starts taking off her clothes and tells me she has something to show me she's never shown anyone before and it turns out to be Not Her Naked Body. so he's gonna need a minute to recalibrate.

[velvetjune]

the chapter songs in Alan Wake 2,, flawless

[july-19th-club]

favorite type of villanous characters are the ones whose motivations boil down to

like they dont even have to have any stakes in the broader situation. they just have take pleasure in destruction

[seventh-district]

.

[monty-glasses-roxy]

Was thinking again about Montceratops earlier and how fucking Normal it would be for Roxy to have found another fucking missing animatronic by that point. Like okay cool. Another one. This one is how old??? Aight... okay then. That's a new record I think...

Roxy and Cassie's dad asking for help for Montceratops at this point is like "let me guess. Roxy found a new friend." and it's not even a question. They don't have any idea what the fuck she's found this time but they see Cassie's dad walk in like "hey so uh. You wanna maybe prep the cylinder?" for the very first time asking the other techs for help and they just fucking know Roxy's found some old fucked up lil guy in the god knows where lmao

They learned from the dinosaurs, the chicken, the duck, the Eclipse and the fucking herd of horses that Roxy wasn't gonna get in real trouble for any of this shit. At this point? Yeah they might as well-WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT'S A FUCKING DINOMONTY?! WHAT THE FUCK????