#but i'm doing my best and i'm working on a gifset with moments from the performance

[schnaf]

inkigayo 20240519

[mikelogan]

hey!! would you mind doing a tutorial on how you blend your gifs? they're so perfect! if not, then that's fine but thanks anyway :)

hi there! first of all, thank you for the kind words, i appreciate it so much! and i'm always more than happy to make tutorials! below the cut i'll do my best to explain my process when it comes to creating blended gifs like these:

original gifset

original gifset

original gifset

original gifset

disclaimer that i in no way consider myself an expert when it comes to blending. i actually struggle with it quite a bit sometimes and there are tons of gifmakers far more talented than myself. here's a link to all the blending tutorials i've come across for my other blog @gifmakerresource just in case!

when it comes to blending two or more scenes/shots together, i cannot overstate how important the scenes you choose are. i'll go more in depth on this in a moment, but there have been so many times when i'm making gifs like the ones above where i spend ages testing out different scenes together to see if they'll actually work and give me the desired effect.

so, what should you be looking for when selecting your scenes? in my opinion, what's most important (and can therefore cause you the most trouble) is lighting and contrast. dark on dark is what blends best. now, you can obviously tweak these things using adjustment layers, but i think it's best to set yourself up for success right from the very start.

if we look at my first and last examples above the cut (luke in hill house and pruitt in midnight mass), these are the two that show this the best. the scene of adult luke is high in contrast to begin with; we've got areas of bright highlights and dark shadows and the latter are the areas where the blending shows through the most clearly. luke's hair and shirt are darker as is young luke's shirt and hat. the same can be seen in the midnight mass example. both scenes are on the darker side to begin with, but the shot of pruitt praying is silhouetted and makes for very stark contrast, allowing the shot of the angel's blood to be seen most easily in the darkest parts.

now, a lot of this does and can come down to trial and error and i want to make a point of saying that before i get into the actual process. there have been numerous times when i'm working on gifs like these where i have to try out multiple different shots and scenes until i find something that works. sometimes, i just save what i've done so far as a psd and go work on something else for a while, and then i can come back and look at everything with fresh eyes at a later time -- never underestimate the power of doing this, btw. some of my most popular and most favorite sets have happened as a direct result of taking a break!

now it's finally time for what you came here for! how do you do this? i'll walk you through this step by step and for now, i'm just going to be walking through 2 gifs blended into one. i've done 3 and even 4 blended into one, but they are outliers adn should not be counted. blenders georg, who created photoshop and blends over 10,000 gifs a day -- [gunshots]

step 1: make your base gifs. i'm assuming basic gifmaking knowledge, but if you need some help there, here's a tag on my resource blog with all beginner gifmaking tutorials (and i'm willing to make one of my own, personal process if anyone shows interest).

i'm mostly talking converting them to timeline and into a smart object. each person's process varies a little, but i personally use an action i made that converts from frames to timeline and applies the sharpening settings i use all in one. it's entirely up to you if you want to color your gifs before or after you have them on one canvas. in this case, i colored mine after, so this is what i have right now. two separate sharpened but un-colored gifs.

as an added note, when i'm blending gifs, i almost always keep them at their original dimensions until i bring them to the new canvas. i find it easier to position them where i want them and then crop to my desired dimensions. that way i don't have to worry that i accidentally cut something off. but for the purposes of this tutorial, i'm using my psd from this gif, which has been cropped to 540px x 500px.

step 2: bring both gifs onto a new canvas. as i just stated, the dimensions of this particular gif are 540px x 500px. if you're unfamiliar with tumblr's dimensions, i whipped this up. what matters is the width, whereas the height can be whatever you want. i saw something recently (though i can't find it now, of course) that said the middle gif in the row of 3 was no longer 178px and is now also 177px, but take that with a grain of salt! the gutters (the automatic spaces between gifs that tumblr puts in) are 4px.

so, since this is a single gif in a row, the width must be 540. bear in mind that the larger your dimensions, the larger the gif file will be and tumblr's upload limit is 10mb per gif. with blended gifs typically being on the larger end, i try to keep mine somewhere between 35-50 frames. this particular one is 35, which along with 40 frames is what i most commonly use.

create a new canvas with your desired dimensions and either copy your gifs to it or drag them onto it. you should have something like this now:

for now, ignore the other layers. as i said, using my psd of the completed gif.

step 3: add a black fill layer. this step is personal preference and therefore completely optional, but when blending, i always add an all black layer at the very bottom of all my layers. i find it helps when using layer masks (more on that soon) to make the blends appear more seamless. play around and see if you like it or not!

to create this layer, i use the keyboard shortcut (i'm on pc) ctrl+shift+N and then press G to call up the paint fill tool. once you have the color selected, just click anywhere on the canvas and it fills it. then drag this layer to the very bottom, beneath all other layers.

alternatively, you can go to layer -> new fill layer -> solid color -> choose your color but i heart keyboard shortcuts.

step 4: set the blending mode of each gif layer to SCREEN. right now, we can only see the layer that's on top. when you switch the blending modes from normal to screen, the blending begins! this is also where you can move your gifs around until you find the best placement for each one.

brb, crying about baby luke for the 800th time.

step 5: color! if i haven't already colored my gifs, i would likely do it now. that way, when i go to apply the layer masks, i'll know i'm working with a mostly-finished product coloring-wise. this is what i have now:

you can see just how important the contrast of lights and darks becomes. look at the difference between how visible the right side of young luke's face/hat is before coloring compared to after. when we lighten the highlights and darken the shadows, the blending becomes much more apparent.

step 6: layer masks! before i even tell you how to use them, we need to know how to apply them. you'll do this a layer/gif at a time. with one gif selected, press this button:

and you'll now have this:

that selected white box is our layer mask. now do the same to the other gif layer. you should see this:

now that we've applied our layer masks, what are they for and how do we utilize them? layer masks allow you to, at their most basic, adjust specific parts of a single layer without permanently deleting them. the beauty of layer masks is that you can get rid of a certain area on a gif and if you realize later you want to bring some of it back, you can! all by using the colors black and white and, in this case, a soft round brush.

the most important part of working with layer masks is that you make sure the mask itself is what's selected. in the last image, the layer masks are NOT selected. in the one before, the layer mask IS selected. you can always tell because of the little borders around the corners of the mask. if you find something isn't working quite right, chances are that's your issue (speaking from personal experience).

as i said, we're only working with black and white here. using your brush tool (press B on your keyboard), select a soft, round brush. i personally set the hardness to 0 for the most gentle fade possible. i don't want hard edges in my blends. the size of the brush depends on how large of an area you're working with. sometimes i'll go all the way up to 150px+ and other times, i'll be well below 50px. the smaller the better for more detailed work. black (#000000) erases and white (#ffffff) brings your image back.

for a visual example, with a black brush, i'm going to mask an area of adult luke:

pretty obvious, right? because both layers are set to screen, masking an area of adult luke's gif reveals young luke's gif. because that area of the gif is no longer blending with anything, we see it purely with its coloring. now i'm going to take a smaller brush and switch the color to white (to do this quickly, pressing X on your keyboard will switch between the two colors [foreground and background] on your color picker).

you can see the lines/cuts where i ran the brush through the mask and it brought back the parts of adult luke we'd erased. if we did this same thing on young luke's gif, black would erase young luke and reveal adult luke and white would bring back young luke. i know this might sound a little confusing, and even though i knew a fair bit about layer masks before i started giffing again last year, there was still a learning curve for me.

now that we have our layer masks, we need to identify which parts of which gif we want to mask/erase. for this one in particular, i didn't like that adult luke's ear was smack dab in the middle of young luke's face. to remedy this, i selected the layer mask on adult luke's layer and, using a fairly sizeable black brush, i colored over young luke's face and up into the top-right corner. i wanted to see more of his hat and because that area was so light, i covered that whole part. this is what my gif and layer mask looked like after:

the black on the little layer mask corresponds to where i colored on the gif. now that corner only shows young luke's gif and his face is much clearer without an ear in the middle of it.

step 7: that's it! maybe.

in theory, this could be a completed gif. from here on out, nothing changes as far as blending or layer masks. you could save and export this and upload it and be done. but in this case, i just didn't like the coloring. because mike flanagan wants to see me suffer, his shit is almost impossible to color and i just didn't like the difference in coloring between present day adult luke and 90s young luke. this is also part of a larger gifset with a color scheme.

regardless of that though, i have to confess that i do this almost every. single. time. i make gifs like these. i slap a big fat gradient map on those puppies and somehow they look 10x better to me. i scrolled back through a shit load of my gifs and i only found 2 examples of blended gifs that weren't under a gradient map. oops. maybe this is the easy way out or maybe i just love colors, but idk i think it helps them look more cohesive! if you're interested, read on. if not, that's pretty much it!

if you still have questions or encounter any problems after following this tutorial, PLEASE let me know! i'm more than happy to clarify things or help out if i can! otherwise, check out some of the other blending tutorials i linked at the beginning! if you'd like me to make tutorials for anything else, feel free to send an ask, anon or not! i'm quite literally always happy to help as i don't believe in gatekeeping resources or knowledge!

step 8: i ended up applying two gradient maps on this gif. it's important that these go on top of all your other layers (namely, the gif layers). if you're unfamiliar, you click this to apply a gradient map:

then you'll see this:

photoshop automatically applies a gradient map using your current foreground and background colors. to edit the colors, click on the map itself (my arrow). unless you're going for an inverted x-ray sort of look, your darker color needs to be on the left and the lighter one needs to be on the right. click on the bottom color points to change their colors:

normally, the right one will be all the way to the end, but moving it in will let more white show through and brighten the image, which i wanted in this case.

my second gradient is the green one, which looks like this and goes from #211f20 to #88a188.

i encourage you to play around with gradient maps. as you adjust the colors, you'll see the changes live as long as you pull the window to the side a little bit. i think they're super fun and can completely change the vibe and aesthetic of a gifset.

from here, i added my typography (lyrics, naturally) and then exported and saved the gif! and here we have this gif that literally made me cry while i made it because HE WAS SUCH A BABY

again, i hope this helps and if you have any further or other questions, don't hesitate to ask!

[thlayli-ra]

I Love My New Handyman! (Chapter 1)

(Read on AO3) (Read next chapter on Tumblr)

Characters - LA Knight, Cougar FemDom,

Pairing - LA Knight X Cougar FemDom

AU - Cougar AU

Rating - Mature

Warnings - Power Imbalance, Power Play, Dom/Sub, FemDom, Non-Consensual Groping

Words - ~3.5k words

Summary - A rich, powerful cougar hires herself a new handyman to play with.

(Inspired by this gifset, the one above in particular)

I love my new handyman!

He came highly recommended by a dear, trusted friend, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt and brought him in for an interview despite the ridiculous name on his business card. I mean, I understand this is Beverly Hills but honestly, what kind of professional calls themselves 'LA Knight'?

Fortunately, things took an upswing the moment he swaggered through my front doors. I had Marcel show him to my study and I told him to sit quietly and wait while I finished up some paperwork. This task proved too difficult for him apparently, but I forgave his constant squirming and need to make every noise imaginable as soon as I first laid eyes on him.

Closing my laptop, I took a while to study the specimen seated at the other side of my desk. He looked to be in his early forties, with short dark curls and the biggest baby blue eyes I'd ever seen in my life (and I've seen plenty!). Square jaw lined with tawny bristles (a few greys creeping in, not that I'm complaining in the slightest), strong neck and big broad shoulders. The rest was regrettably hidden beneath a soiled white T-shirt, tan leather jacket, filthy worker jeans with the knees worn away and big brown boots. He had dust in his hair and dirt smudged on his cheek.

He was the prettiest thing I'd encountered in years.

He apologised for his appearance, he'd just come from another job. Times were hard, his bills were rising faster than he was earning and his dilapidated van was in and out of the shop, exacerbating his finances. He couldn't afford to refuse any work that came his way. I listened to his woes with a sympathetic ear, trying my best to hide my glee until he was finished his tragic tale.

'Well now,' I said, reaching into my drawer to remove a file which I elegantly slid across the desk, 'let's see if I can help with that.' He went to grab the file but I kept my hand firmly on it, chasing away his overeagerness with a sharp eye. He withdrew his arm. Good boy.

I outlined the main details of the job. My mansion and estate needed a full-time handyman to keep up with the repairs and maintenance. Preferably someone with an extensive skill-set who was willing to turn their hand to anything - plumbing, gardening, possibly some minor building work - whatever was required to fulfil my needs. A van, tools and uniform would be provided, and one of the outhouses could be used as a base of operations. 'You may still take on extra jobs if you need, but, saying that, the salary..' I gave a salacious smile, '..well, have a look for yourself.'

Finally, I let go of the paperwork and his large, twitchy hands grabbed it up, his blue eyes nearly popping out of their sockets when he saw the very generous figure typed in plain black and white.

'Well?' I asked, getting to my feet and buttoning the front of my suit jacket. 'Are you interested?'

He glanced up at me, grinning from ear to ear. He looked almost boyish when he smiled, despite the lines in his face (which were few, I must admit, for a man of his age and profession). I noticed his cute little buckteeth and imagined them biting down on a bridle gag. Made me a little hot and bothered, I must confess.

'Where do I sign up? YEAH!' he enthused. I handed him a pen and indicated where to put his signature, then, once all the 'i's' were dotted and the 't's' crossed, we shook hands to seal the deal.

'One more thing,' I broached before he left. 'I'm not calling you LA Knight. What is your real name?'

His smile changed, becoming something more casual, flirty even. 'Eli,' he replied. 'Eli Drake.'

Eli started the following Monday, arriving bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. I gave him a guided tour of the mansion and the estate and showed him the shed he would work from. Finally, I presented him with his uniform. Initially, he scoffed when he spied the skimpy pair of black briefs I held towards him. 'This some kinda joke?' he chuckled, smirking haughtily out one side of his mouth.

'No,' I returned primly. 'I specified in the contract that uniform would be provided.'

'Yeah but...' Eli eyed the briefs warily. The smile slowly slipped away.

'Look, I even had your business name printed on them,' I noted, opening them out to prove the point. 'I often have friends, acquaintances, business associates, all kinds of people, round to visit and they may have use of your services too. I can certainly put in a good word for you.'

Yet still, he hesitated. I could see it in the way his bushy eyebrows furrowed and his jaw clenched. He was furiously considering whether to just turn around and leave through my front gates. But he was both smart enough and dumb enough to stay put. And desperate. A perfect mixture, just like my favourite cocktail (which is a margarita, if you're curious.)

'Good boy,' I praised him, seeing the way his shoulders stooped with defeat. 'Get changed then meet me at the pool-house for your first task. You may keep your boots on.'

I left without a backward glance.

It was difficult to wait. My laptop lay open and forgotten as I chewed the end of my ballpoint pen in ready anticipation. I personally feel he made me wait so long on purpose, although it's possible that he was simply a little self-conscious and it took a while to find the courage to leave the sanctuary of his shed. Although, I can say with complete objectivity that he had nothing to be self-conscious about.

The wait was worth it. The moment Eli walked into my line of vision, my normally composed jaw dropped, the ballpoint pen clattering gracelessly to the ground. I had an inkling that there was something exciting beneath his filthy work clothes but even my wildest fantasies could not craft such a Herculean frame. His shoulders were indeed broad and sloped magnificently down to a pair of imposing arms complete with bulging biceps. His chest heaved with a pretty pair of plump tits, under which a chiselled six pack rippled through his tanned skin with every stride. A slim waist, neat hips and two thick-set legs with strong, powerful thighs completed the masterpiece.

And as for the tiny scrap of black fabric I gave him to wear? It left very little to the imagination. Generously bulging in the front and straining at the back, I acknowledged that this was no mere man but a Greek God, a marble statue carved by a master of his craft.

It was then I realised that I held a true Adonis in the palm of my hand.

He came to stand before me, awkwardly, with his hands twitching by his side, deciding whether to cover himself up or not. Poor thing was feeling shy. Even his golden skin flushed a deep pink on the bridge of his nose and the tips of his ears. In the end, he placed them behind his back, lifting his chin to feign some pride even though it was already gone, along with his dignity.

'So then, Mrs...' Eli faltered, stumbling over his words, '..or it is Miss? Ms?'

'You will call me Mistress,' I told him.

His blush deepened. 'Ok then. Mistress.' He worked his jaw over the word, not happy about it at all. One thing I love about these so-called 'manly-men' - they don't like a woman pushing them around. No, not at all. 'What do you want me to do?'

'The pool-house windows need cleaned,' I ordered him. 'Everything is here ready for you. You can fill your bucket up from the outside tap.'

He went to protest, probably thought himself too high and mighty to be reduced to a simple window-cleaner, but he eventually saw sense. He shut his mouth again, sniffed loudly through his nose then walked over to the equipment I had waiting for him when I called his name, stopping him in his tracks.

'Oh, Eli. Before you go, I dropped my pen. Could you please-?'

He huffed loudly, clenching his jaw again. 'Sure,' he retorted gruffly and went to fetch my pen. It had rolled a few feet away by now, so when he bent over to retrieve it, I got a perfect view of his perky, round buttocks, admiring the way the printed letters stretched in the skin-tight fabric of his little briefs. He stood back up with a grunt and stomped towards me, holding the pen out. I picked it up from his palm, letting my fingers linger on his skin a moment. Our eyes locked, his studying mine with a fresh, new intrigue - mine like the hungry cat sizing up a fat, juicy mouse.

'Good boy,' I said. 'Now get to work.'

'Sure,' he muttered under his breath.

'Sure, Mistress,' I corrected.

He scrunched his nose again, this time his fists clenched at his side. 'Sure, Mistress.'

I owe my dear, trusted friend a new Prada handbag. Or perhaps a Luis Vuitton. Whatever expensive trinket she has her eye on because I am deeply in her debt. I could have scoured the murky depths of Craigslist for weeks and never have found a more perfect match.

My work was swiftly forgotten as I sat watching my newest employee beavering away. The more I observed him, the more I craved him. He truly was a find; a gorgeous, meaty himbo who was too loud and too clumsy to be anything but utterly endearing. I watched as he struggled with the ladder, fumbling to prop it open and when he was finally all set to go, he scrubbed the sponge so sloppily against the glass that the soapy water splattered all over his near-naked body. I found myself dazzled by the golden skin of his shoulders glistening in the Californian sun, the poor thing sweltering in the heat as much as he was soaked with the suds. A collection of bubbles had gotten caught in his curls and when he tried to wipe away some perspiration from his eyes, another clod lodged on his eyebrow.

I watched his big, oafish hands at work. Watched as they wrung out the excess water from the sponge, taking note of his thick fingers and gnarled knuckles. The skin had broken on a couple of them, old wounds that had now scabbed over. Working hands. A tradesman's hands. I thought about applying my cocoa butter lotion onto them, rubbing rough circles into those swollen knuckles. Pressing down on the healing cuts until he yelped. I imagined leather cuffs around those thick wrists, the clink of unbreakable chains as they struggled to break loose.

I licked my lips, my hand wandering south.

Easy, I scolded, resisting the urge to touch myself. It's only his first day. Don't scare him off just yet. Let him ease into the situation, slowly.

I had to acquiesce. Naturally I had no chance arguing with myself, after all, I am always right.

But I did so begrudge it. Especially when he stretched up to dry the top edges of the window frame and I could make out the hard contours of his ribs pushing against his glistening skin and the soft, tender underbelly of his hairy armpit. He looked so good with his arms up - I would have to remember that.

'There, done!' he said aloud to himself with a satisfied nod and I bit hard on my bottom lip when he tucked the corner of his rag into his sopping wet briefs.

Then he went and kicked over the bucket.

'GOD DAMMIT!' Ohhhh, he was so loud. My toes curled at the possibilities.

'The mop is inside, in the closet,' I smiled, cocking a brow at the poor dear, up to his ankles in filthy soapy slosh. 'I don't want to see a single sud left to dry on my tiles.'

I'm not unique in my liking of younger men, in fact most of my girlfriends enjoy the taste of lamb. However, they find my taste in older younger men endlessly entertaining. Yes, men in their twenties are cute and naive and oh so eager to please but to me they're still babies. Most of them have barely left home and long for a surrogate mommy to look after them. I'm not interested in mothering another child. I'm currently revelling in that delightful period of my life where my own kids have grown up and flown the nest but are not yet popping out grandkids and I aim to enjoy myself as much as possible.

No, I much prefer the ones who are long out from under their mother's coattails, who have enough life experience to know that the way they're being treated is inappropriate and bristle with the indignation. I love when they push back, when they try to resist.

I love it most when they cave in.

Now, it may have slipped my mind to pre-warn Eli that I was having the girls around this afternoon for martinis. The look on my newest plaything's face when he walked into the lounge and found himself heavily outnumbered by a pack of hungry cougars was delicious. I found myself wishing I had my camera ready to encapsulate that look of terror forever.

Eli scrunched in on himself, shoulders stooped and slightly hunched, his large hands draped over the sagging bulge in his briefs as he hovered timidly by the door. I knew why he hesitated. I had him clear out the gutters - filthy work! - and my plan had worked to perfection. I wanted his hands blackened. I wanted dirt lodged under his nails. I wanted my little wench tarred and feathered before he was presented to the rabble.

'Come in, Eli,' I cooed midway through laughing at a friend's joke. He gave a uncomfortable nod and took a step in, his muddy boots soiling my cream carpet. I let it slide. I will enjoy him getting on his hands and knees to scrub it clean tomorrow.

He wandered closer, eyeing my friend beside me, the same one who recommended him. 'Oh, uh.. hi Mrs Castellanos.'

'Good to see you again, Eli,' she replied with a tip of her glass and a grossly unsubtle peek at his buttocks in his tiny briefs.

'Uh yeah. You too. Um-' turning towards me, he looked ready to burst, his cheeks burning a deep scarlet. 'You wanted to see me, um...?'

'Mistress,' I finished for him. But dear me, the word was well and truly stuck in his throat this time, when he had an audience present. Every voice stilled, every eye languished on him as I spurred him on a second time. 'Mistress!'

'Look, I gotta get back to these gutters, so what do you need?' There it was. The push-back. The resistance. He was a strong-willed work horse, I'll give him that. But I had far more stubborn stallions in my stables, humbly eating sugar lumps out of my hand.

'Go speak to Greta over there.' I pointed my friend out across the room, already downing the remnants of her third drink. 'She needs your assistance with something.'

Eli huffed an exacerbated groan through his teeth. I noticed him scanning the tall, older woman up and down. Not that I blame him; Greta is a fitness guru and maintains her figure remarkably well (although don't be fooled when she says it's all natural - she's been under the knife more times than yours truly). Eli paused, for a moment I was sure he was going to refuse. 'Yeah sure,' he relented and walked towards Greta who beamed at my new handyman and beckoned him to follow her out of the room.

It must have been only five minutes before Eli returned. He was not a happy bunny! He rushed over to me immediately, no longer caring about the boot prints he was leaving on my cream carpet and growled in my ear, 'we need to talk. In private!'

I shrugged casually, made my apologies and took my leave. Once outside, Eli slammed the sliding door shut to stop any stray ears hearing.

'Look, this aint workin' out!' he groused.

'Oh, really?' I clutched my literal pearls. 'Why? What's happened?'

'I was already havin' my doubts when you got me all dressed up like some damn Chippendale but I draw the line at being 'entertainment' for you and your randy friends!'

I took a pause to 'mull over' his complaint. 'Did something happen with Greta?' I asked, innocently. Truthfully, I knew she couldn't keep her hands to herself. As soon as I asked him outright though, Eli got coy. The large, wide mouth zipped tight and he shuffled awkwardly from mud-caked boot to mud-caked boot. 'I can't help you if you won't tell me, Eli.'

His face went through a thousand different expressions, his left eye twitching, the corners of his lips sliding and it took a while for him to find the courage to finally reveal what happened. 'She was having problems with the toilet in the bottom bathroom. It wasn't flushing right, so I got down to have a look and see what the issue was when...' he ducked his head, chewing his cheek. 'She kinda, well she... she slid her hand down my... into my... my uniform.'

'How dreadful,' I replied, very sympathetically for this was very serious business, you understand. 'Did she hurt you?'

'No,' he admitted with an aggravated roll of his eyes. 'But she copped a good feel of my ass.' Both of his bushy brows shot up as if to say 'can you believe that?' I could. She actually let him off lightly. 'Look, I'm only here to do my job. You want me in skimpy panties? That's fine, it's a hundred degrees out, I aint complainin' about that but this right here? Nah-nah! This is a deal-breaker. So, thank you for the opportunity, Ms... sorry Mistress but you're gonna have to find some other dummy.'

He turned to leave. I let him take one step, two then asked, 'how much did she slip you?'

Eli went still. Glancing back over his shoulder, he narrowed his pretty blue eyes at me. 'Huh?'

So I repeated myself. Slowly. So that even he could understand. 'How. Much. Did she slip you?'

'Slip me?'

He's so dumb. I think I'm in love. 'Check your trunks.'

Blinking at me like I was insane, Eli buried his hand into the back of his briefs. The moment he found the little gift Greta had left him, his eyes locked onto mine, wide with confused wonder. He jaw hung limp as he brought it out and around into his field of vision. His big bug eyes grew to the size of vinyls when he unfolded the crisp note to reveal a one hundred dollar bill. Then it came away, revealing a second hundred dollar bill underneath. He gaped at the pair of bills, stupefied like a teen boy seeing his first pair of breasts.

'Oh, she must have been pleased with you,' I said, unable to break him fully from the spell. 'My friends are very generous that way. Do remember to thank her, will you?'

His gaze stumbled up to meet mine, his fingers trembling. 'Huh?'

'Before you leave, you will remember to thank her.'

He closed his mouth and swallowed loudly. I watched his Adam's Apple bob, imagining a leather collar strapped around that thick neck. 'Uh yeah, um... sure.'

'Such a pity it couldn't work out, Eli but I'm sure you will find some other way to-' I was stopped by a firm, filthy hand on my arm. Not a rough touch. Gentle, but firm nonetheless. I arched a brow at him.

'I'm sorry,' he said, his head bowed shamefully.

'As am I, but you must do what you think is best for-'

'No, I mean, I'm sorry for what I said,' he swallowed again and this time I was sure I could see some of his pride go down with it. 'I still want this job.'

I broke the tension immediately with a large smile. 'Oh good. I am pleased to hear that.' I placed my palm against his grimy cheek, stroking it lightly like I would one of my prize-winning horses. 'I know it's been an eventful first day and there's a lot to adjust to but I assure you, it will all be worth it. That tip you're holding in your hand is only the beginning.'

'Really?' he queried, his interest well and truly piqued.

'Make me and my friends happy and you will never have to worry about your finances again, Eli,' I assured him. 'Now, run along and go thank Greta then finish up the gutters. Once you're done, you may leave early for the day.'

'Yes, M'am, I mean, Mistress.' (Hmm, we'll have to work on that.)

I tested the waters and offered him my hand. He kissed it without prompting then hurried back inside to find Greta. I took a moment to enjoy the warmth of the sun on my face. To bask in the glow of my victory.

Like I said, I love it when they cave.

(She's being easy on him - it's only his first day after all! More to come soon 🤭)

[brandytusk]

The following thoughts, or maybe confession, contain Arcane spoilers. Please keep that in mind should you continue. It's a long story, I apologize in advance.

Now I will say, I am no LoL player, thus unfamiliar with its lore with the exception of what I search for, or what education I get from others. I had a passing interest in Arcane due to my best friend's insistence, rambling on about its beautiful art style, symbolism, and compelling writing. It was one of those things I did in fact, try and make a habit of to sit and watch at dinner, see what all the rising hubbub was about. I'll admit, I don't know where I stopped in season one, but I didn't finish it. As I recall, the plot felt too grim. To me, it felt like it was a show getting praise for being artistically depressing. When season one's ending was spoiled for me, I was glad I hadn't got as invested as other people I knew. To have developed characters so sincerely in a season's time, just to end it the way it was done…I disapproved, and I shook my head. Forgot it all at the time.

I'm a millennial who has lived through recession, through pandemic, and I am not middle class. I'm anxious, and there are days that feel hopeless and painfully long. I want to escape into the media I consume, let characters take me on a journey with them, far away from the oppressive, hanging air of everyday life in late stage capitalism. I don't want a tragic story, no matter how much it is praised for its art direction. Moving forward every morning can be bleak enough. Maybe others like these kinds of harsh stories for its relatability, and that's fine! I am happy for those that can appreciate it in that way, but I cannot. I'm tired, and perhaps not just as a struggling individual, but as an LGBT+ person with a husband.

Mainstream, popular shows (that get shown to American audiences, at least) don't often get obvious queer representation, or when it does, the show is often cut short. I felt baited in what I did see of season one, and rolled my eyes that fanfiction writers were fed enough to work their magic and fill the holes, as per usual.

Then, the next season of Arcane releases, and my social media feeds became flooded with screenshots and spoilers. I didn't block said spoilers and told myself I was no longer invested in Arcane -- only to see the most alarming screen captures I'd ever seen.

I especially liked what I'd seen of Viktor and Jayce in the past. I enjoyed seeing two intelligent, determined male creatives share screentime and share their story of a growing, deepening friendship. As far as I was aware, Jayce and Viktor were well bonded colleagues, if not each other's 'ride or die', once mutually and deeply invested in a greater outcome to benefit the whole. Compared to the rest of what I'd seen of Arcane's first season, it still hadn't gripped me enough to stick around as I wanted to save myself from heartache. Long story short, season two's spoilers revealed to me Jayce making a frantic, truly desperate effort to revive his fallen, disabled partner Viktor after the explosion. While he's successful, this fuses Viktor with tech Jayce once swore to destroy. Jayce draws close and is just relieved Viktor, in his birthday suit at this moment mind you, is alive, while Viktor is disappointed Jayce didn't keep his promise. They go separate ways, and the scene felt like an intimate argument, a break up. Well, at this point with that much revealed to me, I was relieved to see the two of them alive after the first season's ending. I was curious again, so I continued to look at screen captures and gifsets.

Viktor develops magic skills to heal others, and in his new body things, seem to fall into place for him. He is appreciated, and maybe it's suggested he gets a following. While its unclear how 'good' the arcane is, what he's doing with it seems right for the character. It looks like a victory…until Jayce comes along and puts a hole in Viktor's chest, keeping his promise. Viktor only meant to talk to him. Jayce, who had fought so hard to revive this man, kills him, as far as I'd seen it. It felt like petty shock value. Not knowing there was more episodes to come, I thought that was it. More tragedy, more pain.

My husband knows me well. I very rarely get affected by the shows I watch, and when I do, I am reserved about it. Instead, I sobbed, the kind where you can't see passed the tears and the snot. I felt so betrayed by my curiosity, by my hopeful feelings. I spent days ranting to my friends and my husband, offended and angry. How dare these writers throw around this disabled character and give him no relief, and what was more, develop two men in such a way as to suggest one simply cannot exist without the other only to shoot down one of them, by the hand of their partner? I had let myself be baited again, and I was feeling it. It burned, it hurt, I raged. I gave up.

A day or two ago, my best friend chimed in again: I should check in on Arcane. There had been more episodes, the season had finished. Trusting they knew how sensitive I was about all of it, I did. Again, I was moved to tears, but for different, much better reasons.

What was this?

Fortiche and its writing team had bothered to weave together and tell a story of two men ultimately destined for each other through every timeline, the kind of trope reserved for romantic movies and literature? They held hands, kept each other close, were honest with each other in the starry nothing. Hand to nape, forehead to forehead, and colorfully blinked out of that current existence, together? Such intimacy didn't need a kiss or a sex scene to feel real, there was love there. Their fated, interwoven existence, their deep and complex relationship, saved the world. In the end, there was hope.

You can tell yourself that it wasn't romantic if it makes you feel better, but in all its passionate details it very much was. To this stressed, exhausted LGBT+ person in these real uncertain times, I needed to see it. I felt deep relief, satisfaction, and most of all a need to pursue the Arcane fandom, a desire to enter. To at the very least, gush about my impression of it all, and what it means to me to see two men tenderly portrayed in ways they typically aren't. Fortiche, well done. You did give the Caitvi shippers something to blatantly feast upon, you also gave lesbian characters depth and variation, but this isn't about that.

You let two male characters show dedication, affection, and softness. Thank you. Jayvik folks, I am with you. Arcane, let's start over at the first episode, I can't wait to watch all of you now.

[christopherdiazz]

WIP Wednesday

Tagged by my beloveds @bidisasterevankinard and @confetti-cupcake tysm babes!

So I saw this gifset from the amazing @cafecitoeddie and got this instant need to write an Eddie x Terry fic (don't worry I'm still working on my buddie longfic and all my prompts). I'm not sure about what I've written so far but here you go

If Eddie were to say that today was a day then that would be the understatement of the fucking millienia. After what felt like forever, they had finally found a bloodied and bruised Chimney. Tommy had even flew in a fucking helicopter so the groom could finally marry the bride – after getting thoroughly checked by Hen of course.

And now here they are, everyone happy and dancing like Chimney didn’t almost die, again. But that’s okay, because if any of them learned anything from their job and all the trauma, is to enjoy what you have when you have it.

At that thought, Eddie looks away from the bride and groom carefully but still lovingly dancing to see Buck and Tommy in their own little world swaying to the sweet love song. He quickly turns around and walks towards the drink table to grab another flute of champagne.

Eddie downs the entire glass and sighs.

It’s pretty damn awful timing to break up with your girlfriend because – surprise! – you realized that not only you’re gay but you’re in love with your best friend only after said best friend also discovered his queerness but is starting to date a guy that you’re pretty sure you also had a crush on as well.

The universe is a cruel, cruel bitch.

“Hey, Eddie!” A voice comes to break himself out of his thoughts.

Eddie turns to see a face he hasn’t seen since working at dispatch.

He pushes all his anguish aside for now for him to process later with Frank, and lets out a genuine smile.

“Hey, Terry! Long time no see.”

The other man gives him a bright smile in return. “Yeah, it’s been a while. How’ve you been?”

Feeling like a sad gay disaster, he thinks. He says, “Great. How ‘bout you?”

“Pretty good.” He looks tentatively at Eddie for a moment before continuing. “I know you’re where you belong but I have to say I was kinda sad when you left dispatch. The LAFD twitter is just not the same without you.”

Eddie laughs.

That was a dark time in his life. But where Josh made him feel like an outsider, Terry – along with May, Linda, and Sue – helped him feel welcomed there. It’s nice to feel like he was missed.

“Yeah, I do not miss that. But I do miss y’all over there.” He pauses. “Even though I'm so glad I left.”

Terry laughs, his smile wide, and something in Eddie's stomach flutters. Like butterflies.

It then hits him. He’s attracted to Terry. He likes Terry.

That both terrifies him and sends thrills down his spine.

Tagging: @wh0re-behavi0r @honestlydarkprincess @monsterrae1 @saybiwithme @eddiediazisascorpio @parva-noctua @steadfastsaturnsrings @insecuregodcomplex and whoever wants to do it

[thundercest]

love the latest gifset because YES they were acting so married the whole episode. literally on the same side for every decision with chloe, working together the entire time, just a united front.

also kind of dumb but the pottery scene reminded me of the scene from ghost where the ghost of molly’s husband is helping her do pottery and guiding her hands or something (this is a crap explanation but it’s been a while since i watched the movie, hopefully you get what i mean or know the scene)

it kind of makes me think about how much trust phoebe must have to let max control her like that though, it’s so intimate - not the pottery, but allowing someone to direct your every action, knowing they have absolute power over you

AW, I'm so glad you love it! I couldn't resist gifing it to be honest. It was such a cute, domestic moment that felt more like a married couple asking for a quick word than anything else. especially if you consider that all I changed was one word and it doesn't even affect the scene at all. max could have said 'wife' and no one would have batted an eye. anyone that doesn't know them probably thinks they're together anyways (further proven by the new episode lmao) and they're basically married in every sense of the way. the lines are very blurred and I'm here for it!

nothing is ever dumb babe!! ♡ but oh my god, yes! I love that you mention this because when @solunaxo and I were watching the episode I actually mentioned how it looked like the telekinetic version of the pottery scene as well! I didn't realise it was from the movie ghost (I know, I know I'm an uncultered swine lmfao) but I do know what scene you're talking about! It's very famous after all lol!

I hadn't even considered that but you're right! to give someone almost full autonomy over your limbs and trust that they'll have your best interest at heart takes a lot of faith but it also means you're comfortable reliquishing a certain control and allowing the other person to take the lead. if you consider the fact that both max and phoebe actually struggle with this aspect a lot in their day to day life it becomes even more meaningful. they both prefer to be in charge. phoebe especially seems to fear the uncertainty that comes with not being able to control the outcome. she likes to be on top of things, be able to direct them in a certain way so everything flows smoothly, including the way people perceive her. but she doesn't even blink when max suggests this solution. she's completely fine with giving him the reigns in this situation, even glancing back at him for confirmation at one point.

and that's what's so funny about max and phoebe to be honest; they love to tell everyone that they're not close, that they're not compatible, that they don't work well together but they always end up proving the opposite.

[hyunin]

hiiii everyone, this blog hit 1k followers the other day 🥹 tysm to anyone that has followed me here over the years! i'm sure at least a third of my followers are dead blogs from my suju (🤮) era in 2013 before i returned to gifmaking tumblr in 2020, but so many of you joined me once i returned and i'm so thankful for everyone that has reblogged my content and chatted with me and followed me up until this point! 🫶 i wanted to write some fun lil messages for my mutuals and pals below the cut, as well as shout out some people i don't necessarily speak to but like having on my dash also 💗 if u aren't mentioned on here and we're mutuals that doesn't mean i dislike u it just means i'm stupid and missed you 😭 before i get into the messages i also want to ask anyone who can to consider commissioning me for a gifset or writing by donating at least €10 to this fundraiser and sending me a screenshot of your donation! more info on that via this post. thank u so much again everyone!!! 🥳 (edit: i don't think half the mentions in this post are working so please check to see if you were mentioned even if you weren't notified!)

@redvelvetcult hi ele 🫶 i know we don't speak as often anymore but i'm always so happy to see u around and i love you <3 thank u for running yangjeongin with me even if it has been in spirit for 99% of its run LKJSDLFKJSJLKFD still wouldn't be the same without u @bataranqs hi kid! this is going to sound so lame but it's been rly fun watching u grow up over the years through awoo9, every time u use our weird ass humor it's so much funnier coming from u. thank u for hyping up everything we all do, especially my writing!! i really appreciate it and u @anyujins iwin...whew....LLKSJDKLFJLSKF i'm rly happy that we're a lot closer now than when we were last time i made one of these posts. i think we are anyway?? i forgor...but either way ilysm, thank u for your support when i've been going insane over the years and it would appear both of the stories of our love lives that we've been following for so long will have a tragic ending. LJKSDFJLKSLK but i hope we can be friends for many more moments of insanity to come and that we have more good news than bad news to share w each other soon. in the meantime it's always rly fun to talk to u and i am glad i have u in my life @miyawaki ver. i appreciate u v much if only bc u are a major provider of quality shitposts on my dash, u also being into kpop and giffing is a bonus. u are also so funny even if u are also MEAN!!!! it's funny most of the time. and u have also supported me a lot in ur own ver way over the years, and i can always count on u to give me feedback on giffing and such. i'm so happy for u that u are going to uni again and i hope u have so much fun but also don't forget about us 🔫 🫶 @seulggi gfx queen minya! u deserve a shoutout if ONLY bc u are carrying the gfx side of kpop tumblr on ur back fr. and i love seeing what u make on my dash. but u are also an awoo9er so i will give u a long AWOOOOOOOOO of appreciation ❣️ @meongppangz RI omg idk what account is best to tag u on so i tag u here. i rmr the last one of these i made i was like 'hope to talk more under better circumstances' and now we talk nearly every day LJSDFLKSDF i love that for us. thank u crazy person gc for bringing us together fr....love that we can bond over loving ggs and also hating collecting pcs and any other random shit of the day skz is doing. and giffing ofc. talking to u always makes me happy so i hope we continue talking and being friends for a long time to come 🫶 ily. also i'm going through my follow list for this in order of oldest blogs first and i just discovered y'all were one of the first skz blogs i followed. how cute @curiosityjams hi drea, we haven't spoken ages but i wanted to shout u out individually as well because i still enjoy seeing u on my dash and i still consider us friends 🫶 fellow eunbi stan...i will never forget waiting for the 2020 election results w you LMAO abt to do it all again soon...but i hope you're well and hope good things continue coming to u 🙇‍♀️ @hyunjinz agnes, backbone of stayblr that u are, i love u!! i know we don't Personally speak much at all i still feel like u are a dear friend of mine. you were one of the first ppl to support my skz content and i think you're that for a lot of people on stayblr and i think that is so sweet of u and also important for the community. u are so brave for going through the tags all the time and reblogging everything i do not have that kind of energy but i'm so glad u do!! i miss ur gifs but i'm happy that you're still around even when you don't gif. we're some of the last remaining pre-kingdom era skz ccs left 😱 so i will always appreciate ur company here <3 @innielove hi vi, i just want to say i love that u are giffing skz again. i've probably missed a lot of ur sets bc i'm bad at checking tags and dash but when i DO see them i'm like omg vi's gifs r really looking better than ever. thank u for returning to us 🫶 u have also actually been on stayblr for a long time so i'm always happy to see some of the oldies (can u believe we are oldies now...) back on the dash 😌

@kazuhas MS KALE it always makes me happy to see u on my dash here. ur gifs are so lovely and so are u!! i know we mainly know each other from off cc tumblr 🫣 but i wanted to give u a shoutout among all of my other tumblr beloveds bc ily. it's what u deserve @seo-changbinnies marie...another fellow stayblr hag at this point...u are still one of the funniest people on this site i swear. and i'm so glad u are still here and making gifs and blessing us w your funny tags. i hope u always stay just as insane, i love u for that <3 @seungs HI MIAAA we don't talk that much anymore but i wanted u to know that i still always love seeing u and your gifs on my dash 🫶 @felixies luna, legend of stayblr that u are 🙇‍♀️ i think ur work largely goes unappreciated by the fandom but u are an icon for keeping createskz running for all these years despite everything going on in ur life. tysm for your service 🫡 @huiracha marie huiracha...this is how i refer to u in my head btw. like 'huiracha' is ur last name. LKJSDFKLSKLD we have barely spoken but i want to give u your own shoutout just for surviving and continuing to gif on stayblr as long as u have. veterans' discount fr @hyunsung hi mona 🫶 we haven't spoken in a while either omg but i am still always excited to see u on my dash when u gif something or reblog something from me i'm like omg that's my friend mona :D SDKJFSJKLDF so thank u and i hope you're doing well 🙏 @hyunpic VILMA HYUNPIC...u know i am so glad we are better pals now. u are so funny and fun to talk to but also the sweetest ever!! thank u for always listening to me and being kind to me and also making me laugh. every time i feel like an rper named their hyunjin character something dumb i am glad i get to report it to u. some things only u will understand and appreciate. LKJSDKLJFSKLJFKLFD @sungtaro eri <3 we don't talk much anymore and maybe we NEVER HAVE??? but i have always felt like u are a dear friend and beloved mutual. i love seeing u on dash even if we don't have too many groups in common anymore. ur content is always lovely and so are u so we will always be pals as far as i am concerned 🫶 @exocean hi mo!! i must admit i don't have much to say but i wanted to mention you individually because you are so sweet and i love seeing u around and u deserve to know it <3 @hyumjim i don't even know what to say (positive) u know i am so glad ur squirmy wormy tag on one of my hyunjin sets brought us together. idr if we have ever properly spoken like via dm but bc u follow me on all my accounts i feel Seen by u....nd u haven't unfollowed me yet so god bless u. i always enjoy seeing ur thoughts and the posts u put on my dash whether they be a funny text post or someone's hot take getting dismantled or something Thought Provoking. my dash is definitely a better place because of u so thank uu 🫶

@wolfchans lau the Actual backbone of stayblr tysm for ur service fr. without u providing files for us i genuinely believe most of stayblr would be lost. not only do u do that but u are also genuinely very kind and make great content so i appreciate u so much!! thank u for making stayblr (and my dash) a better place @hyunebear hi adri i gotta admit i didn't even realize u were back on tumblr until i was going through my following and saw that u posted recently akljsdflkjdsf goes to show how much i'm on my dash...but i wanted to mention you individually even though it's been so long because you have genuinely touched my heart a lot and i will never forget ur compliments 🙏 ok maybe i did forget some of them word for word. but i will never forget how sweet u were to me. how about that. so thank you and i hope to see u around more!! i probably have to be on my dash more for that tho huh... @romanceuntold hi jen 🫶 i miss u on stayblr i'm ngl but i'm also still glad to see u on my dash through all your phases. you are such a warm and kind person and another person who i will never forget being so sweet to me. thank you and i hope you're doing well ❣️ @wearehappiness sidrah <3 the fact that we were both on stayblr but met properly on pc ig first is still so silly to me. me intending to wait on ur mail to get to me then being like 'stayblr perk i'll send ur mail rn' after i found out u were here LKJSDLKFLJKSF but you are suuuuch a sweet person who makes lovely gifs too. i miss ur gifs also!! and just you in general. wishing u the best in life always 💗 @mybodyfails hi oli 🫶 another person who has been soooo sweet to me, i'm so glad i got to help w leeknoween and i still have all the freebies u sent me from it preserved safely in my freebie photocard binder 😌 you are always lovely to talk to whenever we do, and thank u for reading my fic too despite zombies not being ur thing i appreciate u!! @strayklds / @facethesuns em i just think it's so funny that we like didn't speak before i invited u to the gif streaming server and i just did that on a whim bc u passed the vibe check and now i feel like we are good friends. despite still rarely speaking KSLDFLSDLKF but i love that for us and love ur gifs and seeing u around always 💞 @neohyune hi fae <3 i know us speaking is like a very recent development but i also wanted to mention u individually to thank u for your help 🙏 i need to write more of my fic tbh...but i Will be checking our conversation again for Notes. you also seem like a very sweet person so i would love to talk to u more in the future also 💕 @linoyes another very recent friendship (yes i am calling it that already) in my life, but thank u for your generosity, let's meet that fundraising goal together 💪 i hope we're also able to talk more outside of this context too. i just have a feeling i will have a lot more to say about u once i make another one of these!!

i'm ngl i don't know how many of you actually follow me here and i don't have time to check everyone's username individually so i'm just going to list a bunch of blogs i follow who may or may not follow me JKLSDFLKSDF but y'all make my dash a better place, thank u for all u do! 🫶 feel free to talk to me anytime too

@dazzlingkai @theseulgis @joytual @anyujin @cchuu @cherry-heartss @boynextdoors @hyunchans @ambivartence @minzbins @everglowz @chogiwow @ttathinker @minhosblr @minho-knows @yang-innie @leegahyun @bu99erfly

[thisautistic]

Hi! Question for you, as a gifmaker: how do you compliment someone who makes gifs?

For artists you can mention their line work, their colour palettes, composition etc, and for writers you can mention quotes or imagery or character moments you enjoyed - what sort of things should you mention for a gifmaker?

I'm sure it's appreciated to have someone say "wow your gifs look really cool/pretty/amazing" etc, but I know it always means more to me when someone picks up on specific skills or methods needed for my craft - not to downplay more general nice comments! But having someone mention specifics always feels better (to me at least 😅)

I love seeing all these incredible gifsets but I don't know how to give specific compliments - what kind of details do you notice in gifsets that people can look out for to comment on when they see them? All I can think of is sharpness? Image quality? I know there's SO much more to them but I don't know the language to talk about them 😔

I'd really appreciate any pointers you have!

oooooo! okay so first I'll explain about how you make a gif:

you make gifs by taking a video clip (or screenshots depending on how you do it) and you form them into a timeline. then you use adjustment layers to change the brightness, colors, vibrance etc

Imo the BEST compliment i can get as a gifmaker is 'wow your colors are so beautiful!' 'theyre so bright, uniform (because sometimes its hard to get them looking the same in different shots (yes really!))'

like you said I like getting compliments like 'these gifs are so SHARP (smooth, the quality is so good)' that's a great complement to get for sure

and last but certainly not least 'i love these moments you chose!' because depending on the quality gifs can range from about 20-100 frames (that is 1-5 seconds) so sometimes we are not able to get exactly what we want in each gif.

personally my favorite thing about giffing is the coloring part so it always makes me feel amazing when someone mentions that!

I love this question! I'll add more and reblog if I can think of any.

also gifmakers please sound off in the replies about what your favorite compliments are to get!

😘💖🫂

[bilgisticallykosher]

No Need To Pan-ic

Assorted pastries and other revelations.

Masterpost | AO3

Word count: 1,129

Warnings: brief perceived homophobia (it isn't), and one kinda sexual line.

I want to give a big thank you to @i-can-kazoo and @genesisexorcistleviathan for helping me! Much better fic now, thanks to them.

So what happened was that I saw the post with these tweets (not that last one) and this canon line gifset. And then they lodged themselves in my subconscious until a line popped into my head. So I thought I'd better just write this.

---

The station's relative peace was broken when Shawn and Gus burst in through the door, evidently in the middle of one of their bickering sessions.

"I'm just saying, Finchy seems to have moved on from your cocoa dream boat self." He gestured at Gus before putting both hands on his chest, gesturing down at himself. "Looks like he's into some vanilla bean nowadays."

"Vanilla beans are black, Shawn."

"Don't just make up facts to throw me off, Gus; jealousy doesn't become you."

"I am not making up facts. I know what common pastry ingredients look like." He paused and then amended, "And I am not jealous of you! You shouldn't have even been over there. It was a work meeting!"

"And I was meeting people from your work!"

"The meats and cheeses are touching, Shawn. You're treifing it all up!" Gus pointed at him angrily.

"It's under one sixtieth, Gus!"

"Boys, boys," Juliet stood up from where she had been looking at papers by Lassiter's desk. She clapped twice to get their attention. "What's going on now?" She asked like a teacher looking over her misbehaving class.

"Jules!" Shawn smiled at her brightly while Gus nodded politely, crossing his arms. "We were just discussing how Finchy- you remember Gus's coworker, right?" He hopped up backwards onto a nearby desk.

"The one that was in love with Gus?"

"Tsk!"

"That's the one! Well, I think lately he's been interested in me instead." He paused to let McNab pass through to Lassiter's desk with some files. "Offered me a little 'private jam session' when I was over there with Gus. He wants him some Shawnie boy!"

"Don't make me sick," Lassiter finally spoke up, lifting his head from his work that clearly wasn't getting done with the interruptions. McNab gasped.

"Detective!" Buzz was shocked. "Now, what kind of attitude is that to have?"

"Homophobia is not in style," Gus chided, uncrossing his arms.

"Oh, please." Lassiter rolled his eyes, leaning back in his chair. "I'm just Spencer-phobic. The idea of anyone willingly flirting with him gives me the heebie jeebies," he clarified.

"I'm right here..." Juliet frowned, arms out.

"I'm hurt, Lassie. Truly."

"Yeah!" Buzz put his non-file-holding arm around Shawn's shoulders with a grin. "Shawn's a great guy!" He gave him a pat on the arm, Shawn looking a combination of cocky and pleased, before taking his arm off again. "No matter what gender he likes!"

"I'm touched," Shawn put a hand on his chest. "You're the best, buddy!" He winked and took his hand off to point and shoot a finger gun at him, making a noise as he "fired" it.

"Aw." He waved his hand at him as though pushing the praise away. "You're the best!" He grinned, all teeth, and continued on his way back to the file room. Gus frowned at the display, shaking his head a little. Lassiter unintentionally mirrored him.

"That kind of thing doesn't really matter to me, anyway," Lassiter continued on, as though he hadn't been interrupted. Juliet nodded.

"Well, your mom is married to a woman. I guess it makes sense that other people's sexualities wouldn't bother you." Lassiter turned to her, frowning with a raised eyebrow.

"What do you mean 'other people's'? I thought we were talking about me."

"Wow..." Juliet's eyebrows raised up, and she sucked her lips into her mouth, amused.

"Mm-mm-mm." Gus shook his head again. "That's some ego."

"Truly aspirational." Shawn intoned solemnly. There was a brief moment while he processed his words. "Wait, so what did you mean by," he adopted a snooty voice, "'That kind of thing doesn't matter to me' then?" Lassiter shot him an unimpressed look.

"I mean, woman, man, in between, neither. Doesn't really matter to me," he shrugged easily. Gus squinted in thought.

"Oh!" Juliet looked surprised. "I never knew that..." Lassiter looked surprised at her reaction right back.

"You never asked."

"So, it sounds like you're pansexual?" Gus tilted his head curiously, more statement than question.

"Wow," Shawn golf clapped. "Way to go, Lassie! Good for you." Lassiter rolled his eyes again. Shawn brought two fisted hands up to his mouth, pointer fingers up in thought. "So when you're going at it with your preferred breakfast food, would you say the butter or the syrup is more helpful during your trysts?" The other three cringed.

"Ugh, Shawn." Juliet looked disgusted.

"Do not ruin pancakes for me!" Gus straightened up. "Pansexual, usually defined as someone for whom gender isn't a factor in attraction, although some people may define it differently." Lassiter raised his eyebrows and pursed his lips.

"Yeah. I guess that's accurate." Lassiter nodded. Shawn snorted.

"Well, thank you for being such an ally, but 'for whom'? C'mon!"

"I can not do this with you right now, Shawn."

"Gus, don't be exactly three point one four."

"Aw, man!" Gus scrunched up his face in distress. "Now I want pie!" He pulled out his phone to look for a place to get some nearby.

"So, Lassie," Shawn got off the desk and wandered over to him. Lassiter watched him warily as he made his way behind him.

"Cherry. Pumpkin. Key lime." Gus scrolled through his options. Juliet was hiding her mouth behind her hand, trying not to laugh.

"Pan-"

"Apple."

"-sexual, huh? Well, good for you, man." Lassiter squinted at him, suspicious.

"Spencer, if you have some immature joke in mind, you can stuff it." Shawn lifted his hands up in surrender.

"Naw, hey, come on! I have my limits. I'm not making fun of you or anything." He let his arms flop down, hands coming to rest on Lassiter's shoulders. "Really," he gave him an encouraging rub. "Good for you. Proud of you for coming out." Lassiter sneered and rolled his shoulders to dislodge him before swiveling in his chair so he was facing him.

"...Thanks." Lassiter was still glaring at him, until he turned back to Gus suddenly.

"Hey!" He called over. "To the blueberry to eat some blueberry?"

"We're not eating it in the car," Gus shot back, not even looking up.

"But now I'm hungry. You can't expect me to wait until we get back to the office!"

"No eating pie in the car. It's a company car, Shawn!" The bickering continued in the background, and Juliet leaned over.

"Carlton, thank you so much for telling us. It means a lot that you would trust us with this private information." She smiled at him.

"But I don't c-" he paused when he looked at her face, all happy and delighted, then seemed to think better of it, and sighed. He smiled. "Not a problem, O'Hara." And without a word (aside from the background noise of the pie argument), they went back to reviewing the case file.

---

First line that popped into my head was the "We're talking about me" one.

Did you find the hidden pineapple?

Tagging: @gothfoxx @brain-deadx0 and @callboxkat because you've expressed familiarity with Psych...although tbh Kat, you'd have gotten the tag anyway.

[backjustforberena]

Ok, so I've really...really wanted to ask this but what do you think would happen if Rhaenys just...✨ SNAPPED ✨ after every humiliation she faced repeatedly? Like especially when she burst through the glass ceiling? What chaos do you think that would cause?

I have always thought Rhaenys to be someone who hold restraint even when it seemed almost impossible, so what if she didn't hold back? What do you think that would cause?

I'm really excited for your answer!

Oooh, that's such a good question. And I'm forgoing answering this in terms of a "what if" and looking at the scenarios and the political ramifications and all of that, because you can literally go from "war is really easy" to "she made things worse" and "she's hailed a hero" to "she has to be sentenced to death".

So, I'm just going to try and look at it from Rhaenys's heart: what the act and the weight of such devastation, murder and kinslaying might look like. And, on a broader level, what a loss of control might mean for her.

I don't think she could come back from it. I think there's even a question of whether she could survive it. I've been looking at a lot of quotes from Eve Best, specifically talking about Rook's Rest (I'm working on a gifset, putting quotes against applicable moments), and I think Rook's Rest is where I have to take a lot of my inspiration when considering a question like this because it is the moment where she presses that button.

And whilst it's not done as a direct emotionally-led reaction to her own injustices and her own grief and loss, it's symbolic of her temperament and, certainly, her perspective on bloodshed on battle, as well as there being the obvious defensive undercurrents: it's done to fight for Rhaenyra's claim, it's done in defence of her kin, it's done, on some level, because it's the right and just thing to do.

Rhaenys is someone who is led, not just by restraint, but by control. It feels like every foot she ever places is well-calculated. Every decision she makes is a very, very conscious one: good or ill, painful or not. Eve has spoken before about how Rhaenys always has a bigger picture in mind and boxes away the personal.

I always like to liken her to a really tight, closed fist. It's something that looks stationary, or, to some degree, passive but there's so much potential for violence and so much effort to keep it both tightly closed but also just to keep it from swinging. To throw the punch would be the more instinctive and easiest thing to do. Even, perhaps, more satisfying. It's far more weighty and difficult to keep it as it is: and such an effort is also constant, without relief and it feeds into frustration, naturally.

So for Rhaenys to go "nuclear", is something that is fundamentally within her capabilities but against her better nature and her better judgement. She's so strong that she's strong enough not to be ruled by instinct, fear, or her weaker qualities. If she didn't hold back... there would have to be a moment where it hits her.

I don't think she could keep going like that without it leading to her eventual destruction. In some way, shape or form... it's her end.

The way Rhaenys approaches Rook's Rest is as something that she has tried everything to avoid. It's something that she takes little pleasure in but absolutely commits to. There's a surgery to her: a logic and a clarity and a determination to the mission. Because that's what it is: it's a mission. And for her to lock into that mentality, it requires a sacrifice.

That's something that crops up again and again in Eve's interviews. To volunteer and carry out Rook's Rest is a sacrifice and you can interpret that as a metaphorical sacrifice - something more based in the idea of a "point of no return" or as Rhaenys's own humanity and morality when engaging in the battle in the first place... or the literal sacrifice that she actually ends up making, with her life. It's a big deal, it's why she's so vulnerable with Meleys, even back when she thinks that it's just a simple clean-up operation against Cole. It's inviting more destruction, it's opening a can of worms, it's saying that this is now permitted in war; a dragon wreaking devastation. There's no coming back from it.

I'd have to assume that, even if Rhaenys wouldn't feel that within the moment or action that you're suggesting, it would come back along with her senses. When we have Episode 09, even though she shows restraint and doesn't start a nuclear war, there's still the sense that she's done something overt and something big. Her response to that is worry and fear - she wants to grab her granddaughters and barricade them in High Tide. She wants to fortify and defend. She's expecting consequences and she's outlawed herself in some way.

So it's a spiritual shift whichever way and whatever canon event you use to try and add some perspective. She can't just do it easy-breezy and then continue on that path, I don't think.

[jkvjimin]

PAT I'M SOOO INCREDIBLY HAPPY YOU LOVE THE MAKNAE LINE SET 😭💗 it's fortunate that i coincidentally giffed something that's really meaningful to you. i was aware of your love for lights so my original idea was to gif that performance for you. i thought that with the yellow lighting in the footage & it being a bit unclear at times, i wouldn't be able to make it look nice so i made gifs of their ending ment instead. there were some clips of jungkook from lights that i was able to work with & i posted that so consider it dedicated to you!! i share your enthusiasm about their outfits! their looks for that muster are STUNNING. also, your comment about having a mole in the same spot is so precious hehe 💖 how can i express my appreciation for your compliments about my editing? omg it means the whole world that you think i have any amount of talent for it! i kind of feel like i don't know what i'm doing & i'm just adjusting settings until i think it looks nice. i try my best. your creations are so top tier & marvelous. you inspire me!! it brings me so much joy to know that you liked my gift. sending you all of the love 💓 (thank you for pinning my gifset too 🥹)

Maeve you are so precious! How am I going to answer this without crying? Im a emo girl don’t worry but this time I have purpose for it. Your words are appreciated in this household as the gift you made for me! The fact that your first plan was to gif me the lights performance is twice the meaning for me! And hold on! I’m your inspiration? Noooooo don’t say that or I’ll be the happiest person ever 😭🤧 this is cute aaaaa! Can’t believe you were holding your talent from us, I know this feeling and enthusiasm of being a beginner but you don’t feel like a beginner at all 😭 everything you made already is pure magical! And I mean it! The one that should be thankful is me!

Btw sorry that I let a tmi moment overwhelm me but I was already overwhelmed so-

I’ve never said this before online EVER so I’m a bit embarrassed but thank you for not judging me aksjspskdk 💟

But yeah, it's the truth… We share the same mole on almost the same spot

anyway! I love you my dear, thank you so much for everything!

[twoidiotwriters1]

The Curse of Oenone (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: Yes I'm still using the gifset shut up -Danny Words: 2,811 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter // Next Chapter Listen to: ''Til Kingdom Come' -by Coldplay

LIX: I Wanna Go Home

"What are we looking at?"

"Ah, Señor Zhang, you know how you're always saying, 'Leo, you are the only true genius among demigods'?"

"I'm pretty sure I never said that."

"Well, turns out there are other true geniuses! Because one of them must have made that work of art down there."

When the eery-looking boy taps away in the Archimedes sphere, all Ara sees is her favorite person on Earth, and the closer they get to fighting Gaea, the more Ara wastes her time staring at him.

"It's a stone circle," Frank raises a brow. "Probably the foundation of an old shrine."

"No, it's more than that," Piper studies it carefully. "Look at the ridges and grooves carved around the rim."

"Like the teeth of a gear," Jason points out.

"And those concentric rings." Hazel adds. "The pattern reminds me of Pasiphaë's pendant: the symbol of the Labyrinth."

"Huh." Leo frowns. "Well, I hadn't thought of that. But think mechanical. Frank, Hazel... where did we see concentric circles like that before?"

"The laboratory under Rome—"

"The Archimedes lock on the door," Hazel nods. "It had rings within rings."

"You're telling me that's a massive stone lock? It's, like, fifty feet in diameter." Percy scoffs in disbelief.

"Leo might be right," Annabeth shrugs. "In ancient times, the temple of Asclepius was like the General Hospital of Greece. Everybody came here for the best healing. Aboveground, it was the size of a major city, but supposedly the real action happened belowground. That's where the high priests had their intensive-care super-magical-type compound, accessed by a secret passage."

"So, if that big round thing is the lock, how do we get the key?" Percy asks.

"Way ahead of you, Aquaman."

"Okay, do not call me Aquaman. That's even worse than water boy."

"You gotta give me something, man, you don't let me call you Nemo!"

"My name is Percy."

"Boys, focus," Ara presses.

Leo shifts his attention to Jason, Piper, and her. "You guys remember the giant Archimedes grabber arm I told you I was building?"

"I thought you were kidding," Jason frowns.

"Oh, my friend, I never kid about giant grabber arms!" Leo rubs his palms excitedly. "It's time to go fishing for prizes!"

While Leo and Jason open the entry to the secret palace, Piper pulls her away from the group. For a moment, Ara feels a wild desperation, because she isn't ready to say goodbye and others can see it.

"You okay? I'm getting big waves of 'Help me!' from you, and I was standing pretty far away."

Ara watches how Leo works from a distance. "He treats machines in a kind, gentle way—they need care as much as us... He'll be sorely missed in camp."

Piper tries to get a real answer. "Ara, what's the matter?"

"Take a wild guess," she turns to her with frustration. "Jason is at risk of dying too. How do you feel about that?"

"I don't need to think of Jason to understand it," Piper responds dejectedly. "I'm scared for Leo too—even if he pretends to be okay, he's dreading it as much as us... I can try and make him reconsider."

Ara gives her a dry smile. "And what about me? Are you going to try and charmspeak me too?"

Piper looks like she might cry, but her face sets determinately. "If that's what my General orders me to do."

"This is my order, McLean," Ara squares her shoulders. "We can't fail, so make sure we stick to the plan."

Piper hugs her. "Ara..."

"It's opening!" Leo calls to them. "Piper, Ara, get ready!"

"Idiot mode," Ara kills the flames on her shoulder, groaning as they walk through the empty corridor. "I would've never thought of that."

"I do the absurd thinking for you," Leo winks, looking just as beaten. "I don't know why Hazel was so worried, it was easy."

"Yeah, right," Jason scowls at his ruined T-shirt. 

"At least now we're seeing a doctor," Piper says. "He can fix us up."

"If he's a nice doctor—but maybe he's the father of apathetic medics," Ara jokes.

"Sometimes I wish you used your inner voice," Jason grumbles.

Piper knocks on the door gently. "Dr Asclepius?"

The guy behind the desk reminds Ara so much of her father—Paul, not the other idiot—that it softens her. He's got the hair, and smiles in the same playful yet calming manner her dad does, Ara almost expects him to start talking to Leo in Spanish.

"Hello!"

"Doctor." Piper smiles. "We'd be so grateful for your help. We need the physician's cure." Six months ago the girl had to lean on Ara to get her charmspeak working, now she's pouring it out of her effortlessly. 

Asclepius presses a hand to his chest. "Oh, my dear, I would be delighted to help."

"You would?" Piper pulls herself out of the shock promptly. "I mean, of course you would!"

"Come in! Come in!"

The tug of nostalgia grows stronger when they enter his office: it reminds her of the infirmary in the camp. It's crazy, she's been away for only two months, but it comes down on her just now, as she's reaching the end of her trip—being so close yet so far from home is pure torture.

"Please, sit!" There are only two chairs, so Leo and Ara remain standing behind Jason and Piper. "So, I can't tell you how nice it is to actually talk with patients. The last few thousand years, the paperwork has got out of control. Rush, rush, rush. Fill in forms. Deal with red tape. Not to mention the giant alabaster guardian who kills everyone in the waiting room. It takes all the fun out of medicine!"

"Yeah, Hygeia is kind of a downer," Leo replies.

"My real daughter Hygeia isn't like that, I assure you," Asclepius chuckles. "She's quite nice. At any rate, you did well reprogramming the statue. You have a surgeon's hands."

"Leo with a scalpel?" Jason gets goosebumps. "Don't encourage him."

The doctor laughs openly. "Now, what seems to be the trouble?" He scans Jason. "Hmm... Imperial gold sword wound, but that's healed nicely. No cancer, no heart problems. Watch that mole on your left foot, but I'm sure it's benign."

Jason's eyes widen. "How did you—"

"Oh, of course! You're a bit short-sighted! Simple fix." He draws out a case and scribbles something on a notepad before handing it to the boy. "Keep the prescription for future reference, but these lenses should work. Try them on."

"Wait," Leo smirks. "Jason is short-sighted?"

"I—I have had a little trouble seeing stuff from a distance lately, I thought I was just tired." He puts on the glasses and blinks a few times. "Wow. Yeah. That's better."

"You look very distinguished," Piper smiles.

"Your transformation to nerd has been completed," Ara pipes in.

Leo snickers. "I'd go for contacts—glowing orange ones with cat's-eye pupils. Those would be cool."

"Glasses are fine," Jason glares at them. "Thanks, uh, Dr Asclepius, but that's not why we came."

"No? Well, let's see then..." He turns to Piper. "You seem fine, my dear. Broken arm when you were six. Fell off a horse?"

"How could you possibly know that?" Piper breathes in awe.

"Vegetarian diet—No problem, just make sure you're getting enough iron and protein. Hmm... a little weak in the left shoulder. I assume you got hit with something heavy about a month ago?"

"A sandbag in Rome. That's amazing."

"Alternate ice and a hot pack if it bothers you," Asclepius looks up at the person behind her, which happens to be Ara. His smile falters like he's reading something nonsensical. "Who are you?"

"Arae Jackson..." she voices reluctantly.

"The daughter of Olympus! That explains it," the doctor chuckles but still looks slightly tense. "You'll be fine."

"Cool," Ara tries to push her sarcasm to its lowest level. "That'll help me sleep at night."

"You sleep? Even better!" The doctor moves to Leo. "And you... Oh, my—Oh, I see..." The god's happy demeanor deflates as if there's nothing left to do.

"What?" Jason demands. "What's wrong with Leo?"

"Hey, doc," Leo clears his throat. "We came for the physician's cure. Can you help us? I've got some Pylosian mint here and a very nice yellow daisy..."

"Hold it," Piper interrupts. "Is there something wrong with Leo? Because he's planning to do something crazy, and if that won't help him—"

"Seriously, guys," Leo presses. "I'm fine, except for the fact that Gaia's destroying the world tomorrow, so I'm a bit bummed out about it. Let's focus."

"So this daisy was picked by my father, Apollo?" Asclepius continues. Ara has to admire his determination to maintain Leo's dignity.

"Yep—He sends hugs and kisses."

"I do hope Dad comes through this war all right," he glances at Ara. "You should too. Now, the only missing ingredient is the heartbeat of the chained god."

"I have it," Piper says. "At least... I can summon the makhai."

"Excellent. Just a moment, dear—Spike, are you ready?" The doctor asks to his staff.

Leo can't help snorting. "Your snake's name is Spike?" The python spreads its deathly-looking crown with a hiss. "My bad," he squeaks. "Of course your name is Spike."

"He's a little grumpy," Asclepius explains. "People are always confusing my staff with the staff of Hermes, which has two snakes, obviously. Over the centuries, people have called Hermes's staff the symbol of medicine, when of course it should be my staff. Spike feels slighted. George and Martha get all the attention."

"Unacceptable," Ara retorts plainly.

"Pylosian mint—certainty of death," the god lists the ingredients on his desk. "The curse of Delos—anchoring that which cannot be anchored. Now the final ingredient: the heartbeat of the chained god—chaos, violence and fear of mortality—My dear, you may release the makhai."

Wind surrounds Piper before it slides across the desk, carrying screams with it, and landing directly into Spike's mouth. The python then swallows the rest of the ingredients.

"Won't the poison hurt him?" Jason asks with curiosity.

"No, no," Asclepius brushes it off. "Wait and see."

Spike regurgitates a glass tube containing a dark reddish liquid that looks like thick blood, it's fragile, thin, and unassumingly small. "Lovely," Ara gulps, feeling sick. "That's it?"

"The physician's cure." Asclepius picks up the vial and blinks in confusion. "Wait... why did I agree to make this?"

"Because we need it to save the world. It's very important. You're the only one who can help us." Piper says, reaching out for it.

"Of course," Asclepius smiles again. "I forgot. But you must be careful. Hades hates it when I raise people from the dead. The last time I gave someone this potion, the Lord of the Underworld complained to Zeus, and I was killed by a lightning bolt. BOOM!"

Ara makes a face. "I know how that feels..."

Leo tilts his head. "You look pretty good for a dead guy."

"Oh, I got better. That was part of the compromise. You see, when Zeus killed me, my father Apollo got very upset. He couldn't take out his anger on Zeus directly; the king of the gods was much too powerful. So Apollo took revenge on the makers of lightning bolts instead. He killed some of the Elder Cyclopes. For that, Zeus punished Apollo... quite severely. Finally, to make peace, Zeus agreed to make me a god of medicine, with the understanding that I wouldn't bring anyone else back to life. And yet here I am... giving you the cure."

"Because you realize how important this is," Piper insists when the god's eyes lose focus. "You're willing to make an exception."

"Yes... At any rate, the potion must be administered as soon as possible after death. It can be injected or poured into the mouth. And there is only enough for one person. Do you understand me?" He looks pointedly at Leo.

"We understand," Piper glances at the boy with concern. "Are you sure you don't want to come with us, Asclepius? Your guardian is out of commission. You'd be really helpful aboard the Argo II."

"The Argo... back when I was a demigod, I sailed on the original ship, you know," he smiles. "Ah, to be a carefree adventurer again!"

"Yeah..." Jason lowers his gaze and pouts. "Carefree."

"But, alas, I cannot. Zeus will already be quite angry with me for helping you. Besides, the guardian will reprogram itself soon. You should leave. Best wishes, demigods. And, if you see my father again, please... give him my regrets."

This is a haven she'll miss, but she must face the world no matter how much it stresses her out—it is what she asked for, after all. Ara doesn't want to leave, but the reason she wants to stay is ridiculous.

"Birdy?" Leo tugs her hand. "Time to go."

The girl clears her throat and nods, turning around quickly. "Gods, I miss my parents."

"So where are you putting that?" Percy asks. "It has to be close to you when you die, so where are you keeping it?"

"Festus," Ara and Leo reply.

"We've been working on something... Leo did, since we started building the ship," Ara glances at the boy, still grumpy about it. "The blueprints never made much sense because they were two machines combined."

Annabeth raises a brow. "You're trusting Festus will work perfectly on its first try?"

"All my machines work on their first try, Chase, don't insult me," Leo scoffs.

No one speaks against it, all they know is they've been talking to Nike and Apollo, and their plan is solid enough to give them a glimmer of hope. That is all they'll get while handling two prophecies at once.

"Okay, then!" Leo claps, bringing them out of their stupor. "Athens tomorrow morning, gang. Be ready to fight some giants."

"Yeah..." Frank heaves a sigh. "I know I'll sleep well."

***

Leo sets the cure in place. "That'll do."

He traces the outline of Festus's open panel with reverence and Ara's heart tightens at the scene. Leo spent months perfecting the ship, and now they'll have to say goodbye to it... It's meant to be, but that doesn't mean it hurts less.

"Stop staring like that," Leo mumbles. "You make me feel like a wounded animal."

Ara looks away. "I know we didn't have a blast here... but I love this spanking hot war machine."

Leo scans the room wistfully. "We had our first kiss here, remember?"

All she can do is nod. Leo stands and hugs her loosely, leaning his head on her shoulder. Ara takes a shaky breath. "Such clumsy and unromantic first kiss—"

"Shut up." Leo scolds her. "You don't get to decide what it was. It's my first kiss. Mine." He shakes his head and steps back slightly. "I've heard all of your stories—even the ones you probably don't want me to know, and they tell me that inside this immaculate Barbie, there is a human girl who doesn't care about perfection. Why do you torture yourself like this?"

"That Ara isn't good enough," she scowls. "I'm better this way."

Leo frowns. "Do you know how much I love you just the way you are?"

"Do you know how long it took me to become the Ara that you know?" She asks back. "Nothing comes naturally, Leo. I don't wake up and simply exist—it's a full-time job..." Her voice dies a little, her words reminding her of what Eros hissed at Nico.

"Love is no game! It is no flowery softness! It is hard work—a quest that never ends. It demands everything from you—especially the truth. Only then does it yield rewards."

Ara's voice quivers. "I know you love me, Leo... I don't think I've done a good job loving you, that's all."

The boy cradles her face so she looks at him. "You warned me of the risks, and I fell in love anyway. You didn't trick me into being here, and I'll never regret it."

"I'm sorry," she sulks. "I focused on being a leader and I pushed our relationship aside, I should've—"

"Look at me," he insists, holding her firmly. "I dare you to say we weren't happy."

Ara tears up. "I thought I had more than enough to get by and then... I met you. I laughed and loved so much—life was beautiful for a moment. I was so lucky."

Leo's hands are shaking, but he manages a crooked smile. "Honestly, I still can't believe my luck either. My girlfriend is the hottest girl to ever live—" He lowers his gaze a moment when his voice breaks, unable to hide his true feelings. "Gods, Ara..." he takes a shaky breath. "I used to be so lonely."

Festus interrupts and Leo responds without looking up. "Yeah, buddy, it's time." The dragon creaks again and the boy chuckles weakly. "Yes, she'll wait for us. Won't you, doll?"

Ara pouts and nods, Leo wipes the tears from her face tenderly. "I've been waiting on you my whole life, and I'd like to say there is no pressure, but..."

Leo smirks. "I love a challenge."

Ara grins through the tears, then glances at the cure in Festus's panel. "So this is really happening, huh?"

"Too late to change plans," the boy nods, also staring at the vial.

"You can sleep in my cabin tonight."

"PUT SOME CLOTHES ON!" Bufford hollers.

They burst out laughing. "Don't worry, son," Leo tells the small table as he closes the access panel. He then holds Ara's hand and pulls her out of the engine room. "We'll save that part for when I get back."

Next Chapter –>

Taglist.

@siriuslysirius1107 @ask-giggles1303 @im-planning-something-look @bandshirts-andbooks @coolninjapaper @thewaterlily @whenisthefall @1randomcomic @you-bloody-shank @sunflowergraves @owlalex44 @taylordaughter @typicalsolangelolover @writingmia @espressopatronum454 @slytherinnqueen @orbitingpolaris @obxstiles @ellipsisspelled @thepixiechicksh @ebony-reine-vibes

[eobardthawneallen]

hii quick question what was your reaction when you saw dosd ?:))

Oh, that's a quick question to make not to answer because you have activated my trap card >:3 Favorite movie question, where I answer all the ways that I can to that question and I choose to not notice if I'm being annoying while explaining my love (*lying*, that's why I made a short version to answer this, to avoid annoying).

Short version:

Amazed to find out its existence, still amazed from start to finish.

Got obsessed with Seto Kaiba's obsession to get his bf back to life and marrying him💕

All this time yu gi oh! was teaching us, about heart, about dedication, and about how gay love can pierce through the veil of death and save the day. (I thought this twice in the movie)

for some unknown reason to me some people think or thought at the moment that at the end Kaiba time traveled, but I'm on team dimension traveled (come on, it's on the name of the movie)

And I've analyzed this movie so many times and I'll keep doing it, I love DSOD so much, fav movie, my shipper heart can't and won't let it go💕

Long Version:

warning I can and will explain why I loved this movie divided on scenes (mostly in order) on this version and feel free to picture me like the image below

So I was away of the fandom, then re entered around when the movie came out, I didn't re join for the movie, I had just rejoined and was searching the tags when found out a screenshot or gifset from the hologram duel in the movie, and I was like "this is so beautiful! where is this from?!" then found the movie.

The reaction to the actual movie was me squeeing, loving the style, I found my love for Takahiro Kagami way to draw the characters and love that Kazuki Takahashi himself had worked on the movie directly, also love the palette colors, the plot. everything in that movie is a work of art and I've and will continue analyzing it forever.

replaced the bbt movie as the best ygo movie, and also replaced whichever I had on 1st place in general as my favorite movie (still is)

I love so much the plot and how they took it as continuation for the manga, because it was so unfair for Seto to be negated the last moments of seeing Atem on earth then.

and as I said in my short answer, I got obsessed with Seto's steps of grief.

how the duel with the I.A Atem was in a church scenery, he is so in love with him and wanted to marry him the faster he could.

I know now that it can also be read as in "Is in a church so it can also be the part of him giving a funeral to Atem" but fuck it, this is about my 1st reaction and also I can prove that can also means what I 1st thought and was that Kaiba was practicing for his wedding duel.

we'll go back to this a bit later.

squeed again when Seto talked about how much he worked on the I.A to be a good copy.

loved that the I.A got gold arm bracelets, so lovely, and oh boy (gn), when the scene of Jonouchi is saved by Atem I was like "!!!! ATEM HAS THE GOLD ARM BRACELETS! HE'S BEEN WATCHING SETO AND APPROVES THE CLOTHES!!!" (or maybe he was just using the I.A to save Jonouchi or was the I.A itself? however my first thought and the one I keep thinking is the real answer is the one on Caps)

now let's talk about finding the puzzle pieces scene and Diva using his dimension powers to banish people and how Seto avoided it with tech, I went 🥰 "yeah! boy you got this!" and also yelled because that moment pointed Seto's plan to bring back Atem.

the miracle! oh god, I cried, the battle city tournament memories of their souls crossing, oh boi (gn), their souls crossed again 😭💕 they were so connected.

"Gay love can pierce through the veil of death and save the day." (ghost facers, supernatural 03x13)

let's continue, loved the tournament to get the puzzle complete again, I was alone watching this but I pointed to the duel disks and I was like holy shit is a wedding ring! is a ring for Atem!

allow me to explain myself, he made just 2 duel disks and they're themed with their colors combined (the black of Atem and the blue of Kaiba for his own disk, the white of Kaiba and the pink of Atem for the other), he gives it to Yugi because that's the vessel, but the disks as shown in the getting the puzzle pieces scene has the power to stabilize the person to the dimension that currently is. Seto planed to bring Atem with the puzzle but keep him on earth with the duel disk! the guy is so in love and I love him for it.

in love with self sacrifice Seto for Atem to be back again in the duel vs Diva, I cried there too, and specially because he was right.

again we're reminded that "Gay love can pierce through the veil of death and save the day." (ghost facers, supernatural 03x13)

and the end using the dimension canon and arriving to his bf resting place was *chef kiss* 🥰💕✨ go for him and bring his ass back!

later found transcend game manga and just made me love the movie even more 😭💕

I have seen this movie in 3 languages:

1st on Eng dub, didn't grow with it but they did a good job, I loved it :)

2ndly on Jap with subs, loved it more, Atem's voice in the "will see about that" phrase 🥰💕💕💕💕💕💕💕, Seto's voice in the is not a monster is a God , uff hot.

3rdly in Lat. Spanish, sadly not with all the original voice actors, since the ones that were in charge to dub it didn't ask correctly the voice actors for their help 😭, still did a good job to dub

now I wait for a possibly 30 year anniversary movie and see how they talk about Yugi's or Atem's hair, haha 2 years to see if it happens (bbt is for the 10, dsod for 20... is too delusional to hope for a 30 anniversary movie? imo it's fine)

and that's all, in conclusion:

I love this movie so much and I won't stop loving it. 100/10! 💕💕💕💕💕💕✨✨✨✨✨

[rauchendesgnu]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💗 (i don't know if you do these sorts of chain-letter things, or if you'd prefer not to, but for my part i do like to know which of their works a given author is especially hype on, so consider this an opportunity to gush!)

hi there! I'm not really a fan of chain letters, but I do support people gushing about each others' (and their own) art. I hope you don't mind if I open this up to anyone who sees this (to anyone who sees this: if you're feeling like showing off your favourite pieces of writing or art or gifsets or music or sculptures or whatever you do, then please do so! I'd love to see everyone's best ofs! @ialwayscomewhenyoucall @al-in-my-head @chaosheadspace I am herewith asking you specifically to show me your favourite fics :D)

These are in no particular order:

A Gentleman's Guide To Dancing Fandom: The Witcher Pairing: Geraskier Rating: T Words: 8,433 Why is this a fave: Gay Regency Pining™️and dance lessons Other Stuff Worth Mentioning: Regency Era, Witchers still exist, Slow Burn (ish, with only 8k words)

Insane Twink Takes On Military (or how Lambert learned that Geralt's husband is actually terrifying) Fandom: The Witcher Pairing: Geraskier Rating: T Words: 1,068 Why is this a fave: BAMF Jaskier, also intimidation is one of the best skills in DnD and Jaskier rolled a Nat20 in this fic Other Stuff Worth Mentioning: BAMF Jaskier, do I need to say more?

New Perspectives Fandom: The Witcher Pairing: Geraskier Rating: T Words: 4,226 Why is this a fave: vaguely Victorian setting, people respecting boundaries, trans character, supportive husband (and friends) Other Stuff Worth Mentioning: trans Jaskier, Arranged Marriage, Historical Fantasy (ish) AU (don't ask me to define the settings my brain comes up with), transphobia (not from Geralt), dysphoria

For A Moment We Are People Fandom: The Magnus Archives Pairing: LonelyEyes Rating: T Words: 3,075 Why is this a fave: Hurt Elias. Also Peter trying to justify falling in love with a horrible man called Elias Other Stuff Worth Mentioning: Illegal Soft LonelyEyes, Peter finds out he doesn't like Elias in pain if it's someone other than him who does the hurting

Five Times Jon Faces His Dysphoria Alone... Fandom: The Magnus Archives Pairing: JonMartin (Teaholding because I think it sounds cute) Rating: T Words: 4,266 Why is this a fave: the trans. also I projected a bit. maybe. and again, supportive partner and friends Other Stuff Worth Mentioning: trans Jonathan Sims, gender dysphoria, comfort

I know it said five fics, but since everything I write concerning trans characters and being trans is kind of very personal and important to me, I'll have to add another of those fics (and feel free to check out the trans fics that I have not listed here)

Questions Of Identity Fandom: The Magnus Archives Pairing: JonMartin (Teaholding) Rating: T Words: 4,496 Why is this a fave: the trans (again, yes). again, projecting and me being angry at ignorant people. supportive partner and friends (do we spot a theme yet?) Other Stuff Worth Mentioning: trans Martin Blackwood, gender dysphoria, comfort, pre-T Martin

I'll have to add another note (sorry): I haven't done so for my earlier work, but my more recent fics all have content warnings about what kind of dysphoria is discussed. If dysphoria in fics is triggering to you, feel free to check the content warnings and take care of yourself <3

Last thing (I promise): feel free to ask me anything about these fics or any other stuff I write and post. I also love recommendations, if you feel like I might enjoy something you've seen or read :D

[electricbluebutterflies]

Hello I know these are a lot but for the ask game:

🕯️ ⇢ on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that?

🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

🦋 ⇢ share something that has been on your heart and mind lately 

🧩 ⇢ what will make you click away from a fanfiction immediately?

🌸 ⇢ do you have any pets? if you do, post some pictures of them

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them

🦴 ⇢ is there a piece of media that inspires your writing? 

🏜️ ⇢ what's your favourite type of comment to receive on your work?

Oh, this is a TREAT for me, thank you!

🕯️ ⇢ on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that?

I don't edit. Like, ever. I let the concept flow through me and then post immediately. So... 1??

🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

Let's do a broad one here that I think applies to almost everything I'm actively writing at the moment (with one exception y'all may try to guess if inclined) - all of my girls run colder than their respective partners and all of them are clingy during sleep as a result. Circumstances and size differences are irrelevant here, this is just as much a part of my Type as the personality dynamics I'm drawn to.

🦋 ⇢ share something that has been on your heart and mind lately 

I've been exploring my practical-femme side / what that actually means for me and the depth and the power of it and what to do next with it. Also, my position and interests within another one of my creative outlets are changing in a kinda surprising way so there's some reassessment going on there...

🧩 ⇢ what will make you click away from a fanfiction immediately?

Bad formatting / not enough paragraph breaks. Also, depending on the ship, some specific characterization choices make me nope out.

🌸 ⇢ do you have any pets? if you do, post some pictures of them

Right now I do not, sigh. Apartment barely has enough space for me let alone a little furry love.

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them

First three people who come to mind:

@judgmental-eyebrows - my non-romantic soulmate, best friend of 10 years and counting, constantly sending me gifsets of stuff we don't overlap on and listens to my rants about the same... I could go on, she's perfect and I love her

@tricksypixie - DOES at least know what's going on with all of my shinies because I drag him down with me, sends cute prompts for all the things

@missgrantscheerleader - only one overlap at the moment but she leaves the best comments on those fics

🦴 ⇢ is there a piece of media that inspires your writing? 

Not anything specific consistently, but whatever I've been listening to will find its way into what I'm turning out. Lately I've been in existential-crisis mode and that means a lot of Lana Del Rey and I think that comes through a bit...

🏜️ ⇢ what's your favourite type of comment to receive on your work?

I'm happy with any comments I get, but I do especially like when people highlight specific lines of dialogue they like. I think that's my greatest strength as a writer and I like the confirmation.

[cringefaecompilation]

(Haven't seen much of MN, so this is a very incomplete view)

The thing that puts me off trying to get back into it is what seemed a lack of character responsibility/consequence - to npcs, and each other. (again, just from first impressions, and a few things you've mentioned about MN)

I find the suspension of disbelief harder when you feel a person realistically shouldn't be able to act a certain way without push back. (Chetney attacking that shopkeeper then being capture dozens of episodes later for it, people being scared when Laudna does something scary...)

All I can remember is Beau getting flack from the other pcs for being rude, but that's about it?

I'd like to enjoy MN, and you're pretty objective about it, so would you say I'm way off base with my impression of it?

this is kind of a tricky subject to talk about given i doubt i’m very objective but i’ll try my best to work it out. for the most part, i would say your initial impression feels like it's very much rooted in early c2, so we'll work from there.

if it’s a “how dare nobody yell at jester or punch her in the mouth for being annoying to soldiers or goofing off in temples! she should have been punished for not taking things seriously!” put off, that gives off vibes of “how dare fearne never face legitimate consequences for stealing or trying to steal!” sometimes a joke is just a joke and i feel if jester was given anything harsher than getting thrown out of a library it’d feel gratuitous and kind of cruel. i don’t want to watch jester lavorre get the shit kicked out of her for drawing a dick on a building.

if it’s a “i’m disappointed that the characters will make super important game-changing dice rolls that allow them to coast by in the story without much conflict that would have been interesting to explore” put off, then on some level it does bug me too, but what am i supposed to do if the dice decide beau and veth should get out of jail free by jester giving the hag a cupcake or caduceus sneezing and sinking a million ships or bringing back a fan-favorite character? i do not control the way the dice roll. the same thing just happened with laudna and briarflop

but if it’s a “this serious rp moment was ruined by a joke or they straight-up forgot it happened or refused to engage with it because it didn’t personally affect them at the time” put off, now we’re getting somewhere. i did notice that post-bowlgate the players basically got scared into being a little less punchy with each other in ways that felt realistic (there’s way more gifsets of beau and caleb being actively aggressive at each other post-molly’s death than prior to it, let’s put it that way) and while i do appreciate a lot of the heart-to-hearts i feel like they can get a little… too nice to each other? some of the best moments in the campaigns are when tensions ride high and it isn’t so "yay look at us we are friends" coded. angel of irons arc you will always be famous!

(will say was horrified when both liam and travis said they might have left the nein 80-90 episodes in. because, holy shit what do you mean you were going to abandon everybody?)

this is a problem with all the campaigns; for example, in campaign three they sped right on past the talking tree the second it gave ashton the info he needed and nobody else got a turn with it, which pissed me right the fuck off. though i appreciate that for the most part we always get conclusions to small things that come back to bite the cast later on even though it has been a pain in the ass watching orym’s arduous journey into class consciousness for the past 40 episodes because of the plot getting in the way of the character moments and i just want it to happen already. i know it’s going to happen but fucking when

the one time i genuinely think there was a moment with an utter lack of responsibility or consequences was how they handled xhorhaus and the kryn dynasty. on some level, sure, ashley had a busy schedule and they didn’t have a lot of time to get into her backstory with it but they really did just speedrun getting the bright queen on their side and the moment they had her trust, away went them interacting with the war or with anti-monster sentiment. which felt double weird given fjord and how he was bullied for being half-orc but when it came to that possibly getting addressed in that context… crickets.

and of course… essek. the guy who kind of ruined countless lives without them knowing it. and i agree with caduceus that punishing him then and there wouldn’t bring back all the people he hurt. i can see how caleb could tie his own struggle believing the lies of a superior to his. but then, it’s kind of uneven. caleb was a teenage boy and essek was an adult man. nothing that the nein did or attempted to do (veth threatening to reignite the war as payment for the hag does not count as actually doing it!) possibly matched up to the actions he chose to perform with no coercion. they were also under no pact to allow him to brainwash someone into thinking they did it with the only excuse being “he was a jerk to essek and we like essek!” and having that total stranger getting his life ruined to end the war with zero fanfare.

there could have been an interesting story beat there with someone they trusted and saw as a friend turning out to be a traitor, but they said no, so let’s throw in a sexy beholder to be the last bbeg! and then we can mug an old guy and oops we only have five minutes left in the campaign, let’s set up a five-year-plan to stop the empire which we just now decided needs to go.

i was told there apparently was a huge argument at the end of campaign two about the ending feeling like neoliberal feel-good “change the system from the inside!” trash and while i wouldn’t go that far, i’d say it’s so disappointing because you know it’s not going to work. you know that you can’t change the system incrementally and eventually it’ll be too much to handle and blow up in your face.

conversely, campaign three’s biggest flaw is how violently it shatters the illusion of a perfect fantasy world and makes it impossible to enjoy previous campaigns without that nagging feeling in the back of your head. it shows the world’s ugliness in full overdrive that even a fantasy world is not exempt from. and that can be jarring for people who were just here to turn their brains off and enjoy people doing stuff alongside blue people and magic and the lack of downtime added to that can make people feel like they're just going through the motions or listening to a boring worldbuilding infodump

so i guess, sure, if you’re annoyed by a noticeable lack of consequences with character actions that either get brushed off as jokes or are never fully explored due to the players’ own incuriousness, then you might wanna watch crit recap animated for mighty nein or wait until the cartoon comes out. if you can overlook that, i say give it a shot! it’s still a good story even if i feel like it could have been better had they tried to take more risks and not be so safe with it.