#but i'm hugely hugely curious about what y'all would read more of

[u3pxx]

💛🕊️ Five times Aziraphale gave Crowley a gift plus one time Crowley gave a gift in return.

DID YOU KNOW THAT @contritecactite, once again, wrote a VERY GOOD fic about my bad omens spouses??? and it's so wonderfully GOOD???!?!?!!

anywhooo, a very big special thanks again to elle for writing this! it's been just a real treat talking to them and the klapollomb gomens s2 support group about bad omens 🥺 i'm really, really thankful that y'all decided to indulge me and my freakingg swap au wheezes <33

i'm gonna cut myself off here and ramble more under keep reading :0]

like these drawings? they're prints, here! | like what i do? support me on ko-fi!

seeing this get written was an experience! one of the things keeping me alive during prelim exams LOL if i remember correctly, this kind of started bc i was curious if bomens zira would actually have, i guess, a real demon equivalent the way shax (stork), beelzebub (fly), and furfur (deer) do. so i looked up the words 'crow demon' and whaddya know!

a crow demon!! and what's that? "cause Love"?

what a perfect fit for demon!aziraphale! and really, i was only messing around the first time i had the idea of "haha lol wouldn't it be funny if demon aziraphale was a crow", and then bam! all of it started to, surprisingly, fit well together pfttt (special thanks to bepo for being the one to piece it all together wheezes <33) (also, just really thank you all for bouncing ideas with me, it really does make me happy dfgdhjd <3333)

and then elle wrote a little snippet at first (IIRC) and then he just feakign!!!!!!! WOAGH!!!!!!! just, tasty delicious words, a fic that made me kick my feet like i was a schoolgirl while reading the whole thing ASKSKS <333

i'm really happy with all the spot art i drew for this! wanted it to look very uhhh, i wouldn't say storybook, but watercolor illustrations were definitely a huge inspiration! i wanted them to feel as nice and cozy as YOU would feel while reading elle's fic <3

i do gotta thank elle again for making these two fem-presenting when they were at the dowlings' bc then i get to draw butch gardener crowley. do you know how much that means to me? do you know do you do y do you know how m how much that how m b butches butches butches .

and a little bonus, one where crowley did not want to pose for the painting PFTT

i am once again putting the link here if you've scrolled this far down without reading it yet, go! go! go!!! IT'S SO GOOD!!!! <3333

[barnesafterglow]

sweet like honey

summary: you have a thing for bucky's height. he just might have a thing for all of you

pairing: neighbor!bucky barnes x fem!reader

word count: 2.1k

warnings: modern au, smut (unprotected sex, pull out method, fingering), voyeurism but also not really?, size difference, bucky has BDE, bucky is BDE, bucky is also tall as a motherfucker, excessive use of the word honey, lesbian nat and wanda as always, fayth if you're reading this i'm sorry in advance

a/n: here's the next prompt of my kinktober! i've actually had the time the past couple days to write and and motivation is high so i'm so happy to share this with y'all! please make sure to reblog and comment if you enjoyed this. every single one means the world to me

you can join my kinktober taglist or follow @theafterglowlibrary to stay updated on my fics! 🤍

kinktober masterlist ─ main masterlist

It started as a joke at first. Bucky would pat you on the head as he passed you or comment on how cute and short you were. As if everyone wasn’t short compared to him. Even his roommate, Steve, had to raise his eyes just a hair to meet Bucky’s.

It started as a joke, but somewhere along the way it started to…do things to you.

The way he treated you like something delicate and precious. The way his huge hands touched you so casually. The way his hug completely engulfed you when he was drunk and a little more touchy.

You had moved into your apartment almost a year before, and immediately befriended the two girls - Natasha and Wanda - across the hall. They introduced you to Steve, in the apartment next to yours. They talked about Steve’s roommate, James, who was in Romania visiting his family. You were curious about him, because everyone talked so highly of him. And they were such amazing friends in such a short amount of time to you, you couldn’t imagine how James would be.

When he finally did come home, you didn’t even meet him again for almost a week because you just had opposite schedules.

But when you did… Holy shit.

He was the most gorgeous man you had ever seen. And no one had mentioned how fucking tall he was. You thought Steve was massive, probably 6’6” or so, and even he had to look up to James - or Bucky, as he immediately insisted you call him.

The five of them - you finally met Sam not long after you met Bucky, who lived in DC most of the time but stayed with Bucky and Steve when he had a few weeks off - welcomed you with open arms and became some of your best friends.

Which is why you kept your ever growing crush on Bucky pushed way, way down. You didn’t want to lose them and if anything went wrong - whether it be dating and breaking up or him just not being interested in you that way - you knew you would be the odd one out.

That all changed one day in the early fall. Nat and Wanda - who, you learned very quickly, were a couple - had taken a trip for their anniversary and Steve had gone to visit Sam. Bucky had volunteered to stay behind and make sure their cat, Alpine, was okay. He also said he didn’t want to leave you lonely, but you blushed and swatted him away.

You had just got off work and it had been a completely terrible day. The only thing that got you through was the promise of a movie night with Bucky. 

You wanted to go and see him immediately, but stopped by your apartment to change into something more comfortable first. By the time you were ready to head over, it was still a little earlier than you had originally planned, but you figured Bucky wouldn’t mind.

The door was unlocked, so you let yourself in, but Bucky wasn’t in the kitchen making popcorn like usual. You stopped for a moment and heard to shower running. You debated on whether or not to wait on the couch for him to get done or crawl into his bed and wait for him there. The comforting thought of his soft mattress and the scent of him encompassing you won out, and you were already curled up and ready to start the movie when you heard the shower stop.

You don’t really know what you had expected. You guessed you figured he would at least put underwear on before he came into his room, but you were very, very wrong.

When you looked up at the sound of his footsteps padding down the hall, you sat up to see him completely naked. You gasped and tried to avert your eyes, but ended up looking down and… wow.

Bucky wasn’t just tall. Didn’t just have big hands. He was big - absolutely massive - everywhere.

Panicked, you looked up again at his face to see he was utterly unphased. In fact, the corner of his mouth was turned up into his signature smirk, the kind you’d only seen when everyone went out to the bar together and he was trying to pick up someone to take home for the night.

“Like what you see?” You could feel the heat flood your face at his question, and you turned your head away from him. “Hey, honey. Just look at me.”

You refused, shaking your head, and you heard a shuffle from the other side of the room. Suddenly he was crouched in front of you, gently lifting your chin so your eyes met his. You thought it might be the end, your friendship was over and you would lose your favorite people in the world. But there was a reason you adored Bucky so much.

“You don’t have to be embarrassed,” he said, trying to comfort you. “We can still watch a movie and forget this ever happened, if you want.”

Taking a deep breath, you nodded and let him rearrange you back into bed. You were thankful that he had already put on a pair of boxer briefs, and then put on a pair of sweatpants before sliding into the other side of the bed.

Trying to steer things back into a normal direction, you asked him what movie he wanted to watch. He thought for only a moment before answering.

“I’m in a nineties mood, how about Basic Instinct?” You nodded in agreement, just going with whatever he wanted and not thinking much about it.

He still wrapped his arm around you like he usually did, and everything felt normal.

At least until the scene with Sharon Stone came on - one of the most provocative scenes in film history. As it played out, you felt heat spread through your core, and squeezed your thighs together in hopes that you could stave it off. 

Of course, Bucky immediately noticed something was off.

“Are you okay, honey?” What was with the nicknames tonight? They were an everyone once in a while thing usually, but tonight he was showering you with them. You were too busy trying to calm your swirling thoughts to notice the knowing tone in his voice. “Is something wrong with the movie?”

“N-no. Just forgot how graphic it was.”

“Is that an issue?” Now you heard that cocky tone, and you had no idea what it meant for you - or your relationship with Bucky.

“Of course not, I just -” You stopped, not entirely sure where you were headed with your sentence.

“It was just getting you wet, ain’t that right, honey?” His hand moved slowly down your body, giving you a chance to stop him if you wanted.

You thought about it, but you wanted to see where this would lead you. 

His hand slipped under the waistband of your shorts, and was met with your soaked core.

“Not wearing any panties? No wonder I could smell you.”

You whimpered at his words, at the thought of him knowing this whole time how affected you were. 

He slid his middle finger through your folds, collecting some of the wetness, and pulled his hands from your shorts. You wanted to protest, ask him why he was no longer touching you, then he stuck his finger in his mouth, tasting your juices.

“Sweet like honey. Just like I thought you’d be.” He didn’t give you a chance to answer before his fingers crept towards your waistband. This time, though, he didn’t move under them. He stopped, looking directly into your eyes. “Please tell me you want this as much as I do.”

“I want you,” you whispered, and that was all he needed.

Suddenly, Bucky was on top of you and his weight pushing you into the mattress was just as amazing as you had imagined it, late at night with your hand between your thighs.

Which is where Bucky’s were now, slipping down to pull your shorts off. He settled between your thighs, spreading them wide, and skated his hand back up your body, purposely avoiding the one place you needed him most, and instead slipped under your t-shirt to pull that off too.

You tugged at his sweatpants, wanting him to be as bare as you were, and he happily let you. Once his sweats were off his legs, you tried to reach your hand between them, but Bucky lightly slapped it away.

“Buck,” you whined, high and needy, and he looked down at you, eyes boring into your own. “C’mon.”

“Need to get you ready for me, honey.”

And the rough timber of his voice could have made you come right then. It did make you clench your thighs together again, trapping his hand there.

“I know you’re desperate for it. But you’re gonna thank me, I promise.” With that, he slipped one finger into you.

It slid in easily, more than wet enough for him, but even that one finger on that huge hand of his stretch you open just a bit. You threw your head back in pleasure, and when he added a second finger you turned your head to the side, moaning into the pillow.

He pulled his fingers out, slapping the inside of your thigh and leaving a streak of you there.

“I want to hear all those pretty sounds you make. Hearing ‘em through the wall ain’t enough anymore.”

You stared at him, wide eyed, and he just chuckled before sliding his fingers back into you - three this time. And even with just three fingers, it was the most stretched out you had ever been.

If you weren’t so needy for him, you might’ve been scared of just how big you knew he would be.

“Bucky, please. I’m ready for you.”

“If you say so, honey.”

He spread your legs even wider, somehow, and you finally got a close look at him. 

It was beautiful, tip red and leaking, and bigger than you could have ever imagined. This time, he let you reach out to touch him, and your hands barely wrapped around the girth of him - middle finger and thumb hardly grazing each other as you tried to slide your hand up and down.

His hand came down to replace yours, and he tapped his length against your stomach, showing you just how far he would fuck into you. Tip going just beyond your belly button, you clenched around nothing at the thought of it. 

You lifted your hips, trying to tell him with your body that you were more than ready.

Bucky pushed down your hips - one hand spanning nearly the entire width of your abdomen, and slid his cock through your folds to get it slicked up.

His tip teased at your entrance, and just before he slid into, he looked into your eyes.

“You’re sure?”

You nodded, grabbing the hand that was on your hip and intertwining your fingers, squeezing tight.

With that, he pushed into you, little by little, and your moans were so loud you were certain the entire apartment complex could hear you.

“That’s it, honey,” he said as he finally bottomed out. “Take all of my cock.”

You clenched around him, squeezing him even tighter, and when you came from just his first thrust, you knew every other man would be ruined for you.

Every thrust after was like a punch to the gut. You whined, trying not to pass out at the intense feelings he pulled from your body. He bent down, kissing you much too sweetly for the way he was fucking you, and you realized it was your first kiss of the night.

You always thought romance books were bullshit when they talked about sparks flying, but you knew now that they were right. Bucky’s kiss consumed you, setting fireworks off that made you dizzy; made you see stars and planets and the rest of the universe. You knew from the look on his face as he pulled away that he felt it too.

What really did you in, though, was when he pushed down on your stomach, right at the spot where his tip caressed you inside. The feeling pulled another orgasm from you, and the tightness of your walls around him pushed him over the edge too. He pulled out, coming in large streaks over your stomach and tits.

The warm feeling made you moan again, and he swallowed it down with a deep kiss.

“Are you okay?” he asked against your lips.

“I’m gonna have trouble walking tomorrow, that’s for sure.”

He let out a loud laugh, kissing your nose and rolling over to set you on top of him, paying no mind to the mess between your bodies.

“Gotta make sure I really do a number on you, then,” he said, pulling you down for another kiss.

kinktober taglist *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

@treatbuckywkisses @sgt-barnesveins @bucky-barmes @opheliastark @sweetascanbee @writing-for-marvel @christywantspizza @hi-sarahh @highlyintelligentblonde @jjbunny14 @buckysfavoritereader 

[ichangedmycornyahhname]

Aged up!Lo'ak x Fem Omaticaya!reader

A pain in the ass

Summary: Lo'ak and Y/N were never fond of one another, always teasing and taunting. Usually Lo'ak could deal with her teasing, but one day he reaches his breaking point.

Warnings: It's smut y'all | Dominant Lo'ak/Bratty reader | The usual smut stuff | p in v | Not proof read

Her head tilted with amusement as she sat with her friend Emu. The two had perched up in the huge trees, basking in the cool shade as they observed the scene below them. Lo'ak, the son of the great Toruk Mokto was currently being lectured at by the great warrior. While Y/N had originally been up in the trees to relax, it would seem today she struck gold. She watched intently at the hunched shoulders of Lo'ak, his shameful demeanor being no surprise. This occurred a lot. Lo'ak getting in trouble, Jake lecturing him, and his big brother Neteyam attempting to defend him. Except this time seemed different. More intense. Like he'd really screwed up.

"Ooh he's done for this time." Emu joked as she swung her legs in the air. While Y/N didn't turn to her, she did give a chuckle in response. "Definitely. I wonder what that Sxkang did this time. Probably tried joining the fight again. Eywa he's so stupid." Y/N said as she stood from her spot on the tree top. It seemed as though the argument was coming to a closing, or perhaps an opening for her. She glanced over at Emu, her friends jubilant expression coming as no surprise. Emu was always a joy, no matter the circumstances. "C'mon, let's go. I'm not going to let a chance like this go to waste." Y/N urged as she made her way to the trunk of the tree. She began to climb down, her friend following closely behind. The rough bark wasn't anything unfamiliar. In fact, Y/N enjoyed the forests welcoming nature.

"How come you're always trying to bother him? And dont use that lame excuse like 'He's fun to annoy'. You know you enjoy being around him Y/N." Her friend spoke slyly, a grin painting her lips. Y/N could only roll her eyes in response, a look of distaste now on her face. "No, I don't. Now quit trying to put those crazy ideas in my head." She grumbled as her feet thudded against the dirt and grass. Her friend landed next to her, a knowing look on her face. "Okay Y/N, whatever you say. I'll see you later after your little playdate with Lo'ak." Before Y/N could get in a word, Emu departed, making her way in the opposite direction. Y/N could only sigh as she pondered on her friends words. She couldn't quite wrap her head around the thought of actually enjoying Lo'aks presence. Sure he wasn't horrible to be around, and his sense of humor wasn't bad, he was Lo'ak. The same boy who she teased years ago, curious as to how he managed to have four fingers instead of three.

She trudged through the shady forest, wandering flora and fauna catching her eyes along the way. Soon she passed a marker. The small notch that was etched into the tree beside her. An L, for Lo'ak. Months ago Y/N had found this little hide out of Lo'aks, managing to patronize him even further. Now that Y/N really thought about it, she was always around Lo'ak. Maybe Emu was right- No. Hell to the no. The thought itself made her face crumple into one of distaste, the desire to rid her mind of it growing strong.

"Ew, what the hells wrong with your face?" Her head snapped towards the voice, a scowl replacing the previous distaste. "I know you're not talking, not after you just got in trouble. Again." The man could only scoff at her words, eyes rolling as he leaned against a tree. "You're such a bitch. You really came all the way out here just to talk shit? Man get a life." Lo'ak snapped out, his brows furrowing at her attitude. Y/N did the same, her brows furrowing as her arms folded across her chest. "I'm the bitch? Yeah okay, but who gets yelled at on the daily? I'd say you're the biggest bitch of them all Lo'ak."

That did it. Lo'ak pushed his body off of the tree, making his way towards Y/N. He stared down at her, his eyes lingering on hers with his intentions unclear. While the sudden closeness should've intimidated her, Y/N had grown used to it over the years. With the constant bickering between the two, she wasn't surprised by his aggression. "What? Gonna talk to me like your dad talks to you? Or you gonna beat me up huh? I wish you would pussy." She snorted, her arms unfolding as she held them up in defense. "I'm so sick of you and your big mouth." He grunted as he spun her around and grasped at her wrists. The male pushed her up against the nearest tree, pressing her face into the bark as he neared her ear. "Alright ma, you wanna keep fucking with me? Fine." He nipped at the tip of her pointed ear. "We can keep fucking.." He aired out as his free hand grasped at the side of her pretty waist.

Eywa, she could hardly contain herself as he rubbed against her ass, roughly pressing himself against her. His cock felt hard against her, the feeling being completely new to her. She groaned out, her hands digging into the flesh of Lo'aks wrist. His grasp on her was unyielding as the two made out sloppily. He was rough, assertive, and so damn hot. His little sighs and grunts had her shaking her ass for more, the pressure of his cock becoming a nuisance. She was growing sick of the same motions, and with her clit throbbing beneath her untouched folds, she was growing irate. "Fuck..you really are a pussy huh? Too scared to actually fuck me.." Lo'ak only laughed in response, amused by her display. "Can't take it any longer Mama? I knew you'd break first. Want my dick huh?" He pulled gently at her loincloth, not quite removing it. He enjoyed leading her on, teasing her as she had done to him before.

"I don't think you've earned it yet..maybe if you beg for it I'll give in." Was he stupid? Had he fallen during his hunt? Who did he think she was? Y/N whined at his ultimatum, her head shaking as best as it could against the tree. "Damn..Lo'ak you're such a punk." She breathed out as she began to squish her thighs together, the slight friction bringing slight satisfaction. But it wasn't enough, and wasn't what she wanted. "Trying to prove a point Lo'ak? Or just mad your ego is bigger than your dick?" That struck a nerve. Y/N suddenly found herself a moaning mess as the young hunters fingers pressed at her clit. He continued this motion until finally, Y/N broke. "Lo'ak please! Just give it to me..I can't take it any longer." He smirked, his fingers slipping from her loincloth only to rip it off instead. "That's all you had to say Ma.." He smirked as he aligned his cock with her pretty pussy. Slowly he slid it in, the squeeze of her gushy cunt sending jolts of pleasure up his spine. "Fuck ma..you're so warm. Mm you love this don't you?" He moaned out as he began his rough pace with her. Y/N mewled as she stood onto her tippy toes, the pleasure within her pussy growing stronger. "Ohh this slutty cunt is sucking me in so good..is this what you wanted ma? Me to fuck the attitude outta you huh? Fuck..m'feels fucking incredible.

His hand finally released her wrists, allowing her to grasp at the trees as support. All while his other hand came up to tangle into her hair, somehow finding its way to her queue. He tugged gently at it, testing the waters. Y/N only jolted in response, the combined feelings beginning to overstimulate her. "Lo'ak please..please.." She whimpered out, her eyes softening as she glanced back at him. Their eyes met, Lo'aks smug look turning into one of fascination. He wanted to see her reaction again, and this time with her entire face. He slipped his cock out of her, her slick connecting the two with a squish. "I love that face you make mama...make it again for me hmm?" Lo'ak turned her around, and lifted her legs, pulling them around his waist with eagerness. He stretched his cock back into her, earning a gasp from her as he began to fuck back into her. Lo'aks hand found its way back to her queue, giving the same gentle tug and earning another whine of desperation. "It's so sensitive. S'too much Lo..." He grunted, leaning into her neck to lick harsh bite marks. "Say it again. What you just called me.."

"Lo..!" She cried out as his thumb found her sensitive clit. He brushed over it roughly, causing her legs to spasm with pleasure. And suddenly she couldn't hold it in anymore. Her orgasm felt like being heaven itself, a fog washing over her as she rode out her high. All the while, Lo'ak chased his own high, groaning out with a clenched jaw and hurried breaths. The warm gush of his cum dripping down the lips of her cunt sent a whimper out of her. The two remained still, Lo'aks face buried in her neck while Y/Ns fingers threaded through his braids. "If I knew teasing you that much would make you fuck me..I would've done it a long time ago.."

"Shut up ma.."

[dootznbootz]

Can I ask why you hate OdyDio? I’m not super familiar with Greek mythology yet, and I’ve seen OdyDio as fairly popular so I’m curious about the other side lol (I personally don’t ship it just because I can’t imagine Odysseus with anyone other than Penelope tbh).

Because people are literally mischaracterizing both Odysseus and Diomedes to make it work and it spits in the face of what Homophrosyne means 🙃

And people are nuts about it in a way that pisses me off more than any other NOTP/crackship I've had before.

I guess this post, This one, and This one that people have done about vague fandom is a good explanation if that's all you want as I do rant here lol. NGL, I don't...really care if I'm being mean right now. Like block, unfollow, or ignore me. I wanna rant.

Btw, yeah, I'm being a "hater" but I'll tag right so you can block "#anti odydio" if you must.

I already didn't care for it in the first place, (I've vented about it before) as I agree, OdyPen are literally soulmates. To the point where they have their own WORD for their love. And yet people will fucking insist that "Oh, Odysseus and Diomedes are more compatible". WHERE?

The Odyssey is literally about him trying to go back home to Penelope and their son. And even in the Iliad, Odysseus mentions her. The Odyssey only mentions Diomedes three times and never once by Odysseus (once by Nestor, twice by Menelaus) so... that goes to show how Odysseus feels about him. 🤷

I was just neutral about the ship existing because it's like one of those absurd crackships to me but with how popular, fanonized, and just...With HOW people have behaved about it to me ;~;

Ofc, I'm a huge Penelope fan but even with Diomedes, you can't go into his tag without OdyDio. I'm not even joking. I'm sad I've had to block Diomedes' tag as well because people don't tag right AND don't apparently see him as more than Odysseus' "fling" ;~; (I mean at least Penelope and Diomedes can relate to the fact that it sucks that a lot of people are only caring about them because of Odysseus and not because of who they are. :/ )

Even with OdyPenDio. I've noticed that it mostly means OdyDio (+ Pen in the footnotes) :/

Just in general, with my own reading of the Iliad, I...WHERE?! xD Where is the "ship"? They are comrades and they're very different from one another personality wise. Sure, they're a good team in combat but in life??? They are not "likeminded" at ALL.

They also have a fairly large agegap, Odysseus being one of the older kings while Diomedes is one of the youngest. I have them around a decade apart in my writing If you bring up pederasty, you will be smited. You're fucking disgusting. They also have very little in common other than them both being Athena's pets (which um. Penelope is one too, you know?). Odysseus is a fucked up lil warrior trickster who loves his wife and child more than life itself while Diomedes is a young child soldier boy who is incredibly duty bound and war is where he feels most comfortable.

Diomedes would not put up with Odysseus' rambling about his family and Odysseus WANTS to talk about that. They're like co-workers.

Diomedes is a younger king who looks up to all these older and more experienced kings. "Notice me, senpai" energy, and I love it!

That's just the Canon texts itself as to why I just simply disliked it. The fandom was... yeah ;~; made me hate that it even exists. (Not all! Some of y'all are incredibly kind and respectful of boundaries and I appreciate that! It's just that...Some were not.)

I mean I've had to deal with Aphobia surrounding my OdyPen and along with some asks/people in the past who were TRYING to make me write about OdyDio despite the fact that I've never liked it. "Hey, I know you don't like this thing, but maybe THIS will change your mind. You have fun ideas so I wanna see what you do with OdyDio!"

Do you know how shitty that feels? 😞 To have people, WHO KNOW YOU DON'T LIKE SOMETHING, try to make you like it? By sending you links and "headcanons" that will "still work in your writing?" Sending in your asks, DMING YOU SOMETIMES.

That was like, a year ago and thankfully it's stopped for the most part but I was in such a funk that I didn't even wanna write ANYTHING for a while.

Funny enough? I USED to have this "Oh, Odysseus and Diomedes are exes who fucking hate each other." idea where I aged up Diomedes to make it work, which I now no longer have because I realized I only wrote that way because I thought I HAD to in order to get people to be nice to me. ;~; Because if they're romantic at some point but simply don't click, maybe that'll be enough. To get people to just shut up and stop sending me things. (fuck the anon who sent smut last December. you suck.)

I changed that (now it's Greater Ajax who's his ex. lol. idk ask about it if you want.) because I realized yeah, it was making me unhappy and because I felt like I HAD to. ;~;

I also think it's weirdly because some Odysseus fans almost block out the Odyssey, you know, HIS story, and pretend like he didn't do everything to get home to his loved ones.

I've seen some ridiculous shit about Penelope as well. >:( like holy shit, misogyny everywhere.

"Oh, she didn't trust him and made him cry when she tricked him. She's abusive!" Literally one of the most stupid things I've ever fucking heard. She HAD to be sure it was him and when she knows for sure, she apologizes, explains, and kisses him. Kisses that he desperately and happily returns btw.

"After all Odysseus goes through from the Goddesses, he's afraid of women so he and Penelope separate." ...WHAT?! He literally wants to "embrace in love in their bed" as soon as they stop crying! And she holds him back only to know Tiresias' prophecy, which he DOES TELL HER BTW, before they DO "show love".

"Penelope becomes Odysseus' and Diomedes' surrogate!" ...Wow. Just wow. Love how people will talk about how ancient men in the past only saw women as "breeders" as though they're any fucking different with THIS fucking take.

It's annoying that I'll post a headcanon on tumblr and then the tags are "This but with OdyDio." or that people will often only like/reblog my ODYSSEUS shit and not my Penelope. ;~;

I love how people will be adamant about how "Odysseus never cheated" (true), and yet have him with Diomedes :/ Like at LEAST have OdyPen agree to have an open marriage before they're separated if you're going to pull that stance. (also give Penelope a girlfriend if Odysseus gets a boyfriend, you cowards)

So many people for some reason only see Penelope for what she is for her husband and that's all. As though that's all she is. And as if Odysseus isn't as intertwined with her as she is with him.

I just... stdrfgyh ;~; I wouldn't hate it so much if people were nice about someone not liking it but the fact that I literally cannot escape it and because some people were just so pushy, I just negative memories I guess.

Either way, I love Diomedes and Sthenelus together :) whether as a QPR or romantic or whatever, those two are like bonded pairs that cannot be adopted separately.

[asahicore]

moonlight - psh (teaser)

pairing. dancer!sunghoon x fem!reader synopsis. In August 1963, your monotonous summer vacation becomes a lot more exciting when you meet a group of dancers that work as the entertainment staff of the resort you and your family are staying at. Your fascination with them, and particularly dancers and close friends Sunghoon and Chaewon, pushes you to help them out by taking Chaewon's place at another hotel's show when she's unable to dance. The week you spend with Sunghoon as he teaches you to dance and the events thereafter give you a lot more than the ability to mambo. genre. dirty dancing au, rom-com type beat, summer au (yes in the dead of winter shut up), poor boy x rich girl trope, full fic will contain the Big 3 (fluff angst n smut) word count. teaser is at 2502 words, expected full fic 30-40k? release date. lmao a/n. i'm back. did y'all miss me.... i hope you guys will like this! i plan on editing and reposting my old stuff but i wanted to post a brand new fic first !! if u enjoy lmk, if u hate it lmk, just lmk it'll make me a very happy girl :)

You were on your way to the bungalow, you really were - but just as you reach it, light from a tall lodge about three hundred meters away catches your attention, and you’re too curious about that building you barely noticed before not to investigate. And so, you continue walking up the small hill where all the guest lodgings rest, until you find yourself before a sign that reads “STAFF QUARTERS - GUESTS KEEP OUT,” which you promptly decide to ignore.

In just a minute, a wooden bridge reveals itself, enabling you to cross over the current that separates you from the other bank, where the lodge stands. If you looked to your right, you could’ve made out some more, smaller and dingier-looking bungalows than the guests’ that hosted the staff behind all those trees, but you run into a familiar face before you notice them.

In just a minute, a wooden bridge reveals itself, enabling you to cross over the current that separates you from the other bank, where the lodge stands. If you looked to your right, you could’ve made out some more, smaller and dingier-looking bungalows than the guests’ that hosted the staff behind all those trees, but you run into a familiar face before you notice them.

“Hey! I recognize you. Baby, right?”

“Yeah, and you’re Jake!” you beam, surprised not only at seeing him again here, but at the three huge watermelons he carries in his arms like oversized triplets. 

“Yeah…” he trails, squinting his eyes at you, his enthusiasm turning into suspicion. “You can’t be here. Max would kill me. Go back to the dance, Baby.” He can only take a few steps forward before you grab a watermelon from his unsteady hold, putting your most convincing smile on.

“I’ll help you carry these!” you state more than offer, and march forwards across the bridge. Behind you, Jake sighs and shakes his head, then rushes to stop you in your tracks.

“Didn’t you read the sign? This area is staff only, you can’t be here,” he repeats, punctuating his words. He stays unwavering even at the receiving end of your very menacing glare, so you simply huff and stack the watermelon back on top of the other two and turn away. It takes him approximately two seconds to change his mind. “Can you keep a secret?”

Jake doesn’t prepare you for what you’re about to see when you enter the staff common lodge, but you don’t think anything could. The smell of a room full of people sweating and moving about hits you instantly, the heat it creates hanging heavy in the air. The breeze coming in through the open windows is practically useless in bringing the temperature down, but you aren’t curious to find out what it’d be like with the windows closed.

The music, a genre your father always bristles at when he hears it on the radio, is now blasting in your ears rather than whistling through the wind, and it takes you a few moments to adjust to the volume and intensity of the bass and drums bouncing off the walls of the room. The guitar sound is sensual and almost yearning, the singer longs for his lover, and the tempo is just fast enough for the dancers to find a swaying rhythm.

As if the lyrics themselves aren’t enough to make you blush, the way the staff dances makes you feel like you’re intruding on something. You try to look away as a couple thrusts their hips into each other’s, only to find another lowering themselves to the group until they’re crouching then slowly rising again, using each other as support the whole time. Skirts bunched up around hips, shirts almost fully unbuttoned or even discarded, hands grabbing onto the partner’s clothes or bare skin - you’ve never seen anyone dance that way. Far from the choreographed performances you’re used to, here, they’re simply letting their bodies move to the music without any second thoughts or a care in the world. You hadn’t even known this could be considered dancing, but surely, when your body molds itself this perfectly to the melody and to your partner’s hands, then you can only be dancing. 

Watermelon in arms, you follow Jake as he snakes his way to the back of the room through sweaty bodies holding each other close. You recognise a few people here and there as the entertainment staff who host activities, teach dance classes or help guests find their way around. They peer back at you, expressions either confused or disdainful - you aren’t sure whether that’s because they don’t know who you are, or because they do and don’t like seeing you there. Even if they don’t know that you’re Baby, your dress at least is a dead giveaway of your being a guest. Your mom had picked it out for you - a white sleeveless summer dress that reaches almost to your knees and cinches in at the waist before flowing out over your hips. And no cleavage, of course. Along with your impeccably curled and styled hair, your prim and proper attire is a far cry from the short skirts, tight t-shirts and denim that the staff wears, revealing sunkissed skin and toned muscles. And if all of that still wasn’t enough to tell you apart as someone who isn’t used to this kind of setting, then your wide eyes like a kid seeing fireworks for the first time should do it.

You finally reach the back of the room and set your watermelon on a bar counter. Jake rests his hands on his hips and watches the dancers, a smile on his face, the kind of smile you wear when you can never get enough of a sight even though you witness it everyday. You watch them too, but you look a mix of fascinated and terrified - sure, they all look terrific, but if your dad caught you here, you’d be dead.

“Where’d they learn to do that?” you lean in to ask Jake as the next song starts playing, your gaze not leaving the dancers who switch easily to the more upbeat tempo, not even needing a second.

He looks at you, stunned. “Don’t you know? This is how the kids dance these days. This is what American basements look like on Friday nights.” His surprise turns into amusement and he steps in front of you, facing you with one hand extended for you to take and a mischievous look on his face. “Wanna try?”

Your eyes immediately double in size and you shake your hands in front of you, but he grabs one of them anyway and starts leading you back into the middle of the room. As if saved by the bell, the doors suddenly burst open, catching everyone’s attention, and in run Sunghoon and Chaewon, wearing the same clothes from earlier, although Sunghoon has ditched the suit jacket and popped the top buttons of his shirt open. Your stomach flips at the sight of his flushed cheeks, hair slick with sweat and expression like he’s on top of the world.

Jake chuckles when he sees how transfixed you are by the two of them, dancing so differently from earlier, their moves far more sexual, hands not so polite anymore, completely free to do whatever they wish. Rather than a smile, Sunghoon bears a small frown and bites his bottom lip, deepening his dimples, and it all seems to make each of his moves that much harsher. The sheer sex appeal that exudes from him is absolutely undeniable, and it makes you feel things you’ve never felt before - things you’re not quite unsure how to name. You let out a small gasp as Chaewon jumps and hooks her legs around his hips effortlessly, then as she leans her upper body back until her head almost touches the ground, Sunghoon’s hands tight around her waist and his biceps apparent under the thin fabric of his dress shirt. You realize how strong Sunghoon must be when he carries her all the way to his shoulders, letting her rest her knees there as she plays with her skirt and swings her head from side to side. You’ve never seen anyone look so good while seemingly having so much fun.

“They look great together,” you blurt out without thinking.

“Don’t they?” Jake says, looking out at them with a fond smile. “You’d think they were a couple.”

This piques your interest. “Well, aren’t they?” you ask, head pivoting towards Jake.

“Not since we were kids, no. They’ve just been dancing together for so long that they’ve developed this chemistry and understanding of each other.” 

“Do you know them well?”

“Sunghoon’s my best friend from home. He met Chaewon when he started working here when we were 16, and then he got me this job when we were 17. The three of us are 22 now.” He meets your gaze and his smile grows wider. “Why, you interested?”

The sudden question (and the very obvious, very embarrassing answer) takes you aback and you stammer out a few nonsensical syllables before frowning at him. Your reaction just seems to amuse him. “No, I’m not. Just asking,” you manage to say.

He looks back at them, and you follow his gaze. “Well, good, cause we’re not allowed to get involved with the guests anyway. Which is why you shouldn’t be here in the first place.”

Just then, the song ends and Sunghoon and Chaewon laugh before they separate, finding another partner to dance with. As Chaewon heads towards someone else, Sunghoon catches your stare and walks to where you and Jake stand, eyes fixed on your face. You feel small under his gaze, but you will your knees not to buckle underneath you, although that’s hard to do when his eyes sweep your figure, giving you a once-over.

“What’s she doing here?” he questions Jake without looking away from you.

“That’s Baby, she came with me,” Jake says, not really answering the question.

“I carried a watermelon,” you blurt, not really answering the question either, but that seems to satisfy Sunghoon. His eyebrows raise slightly before he heads back to the dancefloor and starts dancing again. You release a breath you hadn’t known you were holding, but another one catches right in your throat when, after barely thirty seconds, he pivots back around as if there was still something he was curious about. His eyes stay focused on you, unreadable.

And then, he bows his head slightly, looks up at you through his eyebrows, raises his hand, and beckons you to him with his index finger. As if spellbound, your feet move on their own until you find yourself in front of him, his hands reaching immediately for your hips and holding on tight there. All the nerves in your body are on edge and your heartbeat speeds up, almost matching the fast tempo of the song resonating throughout the room. Simply remembering to breathe becomes an arduous task. Jake’s voice is a faint sound as he says, “So you go dance with him, but not me?”

This kind of dancing is completely unfamiliar to you, so you have no idea what to do. Thankfully, Sunghoon doesn’t seem to expect anything else, and he knows how to guide you so that you get the gist of it. “Keep your eyes on me,” he commands softly, gesturing with two fingers for your gaze to stay on his. “And move your hips in a circle, just like that,” he adds, executing the move for you to mirror. “Just relax, you’re too stiff. Relax your arms. Put them around my shoulders.” His hands brush down from your shoulders to your wrists, sending a trail of fire all along your arms, grabbing them and resting them on his shoulders himself before settling back on your waist. His arm snakes its way around it, bringing you closer to him. You aren’t sure what’s more electrifying, his gaze or his touch.

You start to focus on the music and on getting your body to move along to it, and it feels like a miracle when your hips, firmly pressed against his own, sway side-to-side in rhythm. Remembering what you saw earlier, you lean back slightly, hips still moving in small circles, trusting him to keep you from falling. You lean back as far as you can, and something about it is so liberating, you feel the adrenaline rushing through your body as if it’s the only thing keeping you alive. When you come back up, your palms are flat against his chest and he looks at you with a proud but surprised smirk that lits your insides up. “Just like that,” he whispers, but his face is close enough for you to hear him over the music.

He spins you around a few times, and as quickly as he appeared, he’s already gone, having weaved his way through the crowd back towards Jake. It takes you a few seconds to register his absence, but when it does, it’s like all the warmth he filled you with is gone; you’re left only with the heavy heat weighing the room down and you with it, when you’d felt light like air not a moment ago.

Before you can decide on what to do next, someone taps your shoulder, and you turn around to find Heeseung frowning down at you. In the fraction of a second, you can tell this is the snarky Heeseung that you’d seen when you were snooping around the day before rather than the polite Heeseung that had waited your table that night.

“Baby, right? I don’t know what you’re doing here, but your sister and parents are looking all over for you. If I were you, I’d go now, and quick.”

Alarm shoots through you as you realize you’d been here for twenty minutes at least, the sort of absence that wouldn’t go unnoticed by your family this late at night. You thank him rapidly and practically run towards the door before risking a look back at Jake and Sunghoon, still standing in the corner of the room. Jake looks worried, so you send him a thumbs up, but Sunghoon simply peers at you, sipping on a beer as his back rests against the wall, that same unreadable look from before back on his face. You don’t linger to figure it out and rush to your bungalow, coming up with an excuse that you got lost on your way back for your parents to believe. Because their Baby would never do anything she isn’t supposed to, right?

That night, as you toss and turn in bed, trying to fall asleep, your mind wanders off to those warm, big hands firmly planted on your waist, and how they had guided your body until it moved on its own accord, until it let itself go and only followed the rhythm. How far can you go until your body no longer belongs to you but rather to the music, or to the person holding you close, you wonder? And if that happened, would you, for a moment at least, no matter how fleeting, be freed of all your worries for your future and of all the pressure on your shoulders?

Your feet already ache - from dancing or from wanting to dance some more, you can’t quite tell.

perm taglist: @drunkjaked (ask to be added!)

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[shiny-jr]

I've read the sneak peak for the fourth, and genuinely, this one is the one I'm most excited for—especially with that sneak peak!

I wonder how Jamil will realize that the parrot is no longer the same person he knows, and when the reader accidentally threads past a line that they shouldn't have with Jamil. And if the reader will have their relationship with Prince Jaseer progress further, and take a change—then, the thief too, that will be playing Aladdin, how would they interact? And the genie! I'm excited to see who will get to the genie first, will it still be the thief, Jamil, the reader, or someone else entirely? (It would be funny if the story takes a drastic stir away from the original and things become more complicated, that the reader realizes, that they could no longer rely on the story anymore, but their mind to thread now because the story became so obscured). And of course, the dynamic between Jamil and the reader is so fun! It feels more livelier than the last ones.

It felt comfortable in a way—yet that's the thing that makes it disturbing when things finally become downhill. When Jamil has a shift in the way he speaks towards the reader, or when he realizes that it isn't the parrot. And what if another character entirely realizes the change too (similar to how Jade did)? And what happens if the reader does get to the lamp first? What then? And what if they couldn't wish to return, but instead, have to waste a wish for somethin else entirely?

I'm just filled with so many what-ifs right now that I'm getting so excited! I think this may be my favorite one already compared to the others, and straying away from peak-4. I'm also curious if you'll have one of the readers for the chapter take the role of the hero, or the villain instead, and the yandere takes the role of something else—a hero, etc. Someone just unexpected, it would be fun, though, I do love where you're taking this story <3!!

(Savanaclaw)

I think this one's so good—yet at the same time, I wish we got to see more interactions between Leona and the reader, it would be lovely. But at the same time, it was perfect, the scene where Leona spreads the blood on his hand to their face was so lovely and it in a way, it was like a message to say, you (we) did this. And it just stuck to my mind so hard!! Compared to the rest, it felt the most intriguing one.

And just a question, did you consider having the reader's identity be discovered by Ruggie and the people, or having reader possess a different person? And what made Leona say that the Hyena chieftain wouldn't be this "daring to speak like this to him" (quotations because I can't exactly remember the exact bit, I'm so sorry 😭) have he interacted with the chieftain before the reader? And why does Leona want the reader? Is it due to them being "outwordly?"

And did Ruggie sometimes felt something was off with the chieftain or no? (As he did knew the chieftain since they were young). And did you thought of placing Jack in another role, rather than being a guard? And imagined a what if that the plan still fails, and Cheka still manages to escape? Or a different role entirely?

I'm so sorry if I have a lot of questions and just, word-vomitting on you right now. But I hope it's not too much of a bother—if it is, feel free to ignore this, and have a great day!

Long comment about damnation, let's goooo. I love these, y'all have no idea. I love explaining little lore and tidbits and behind the scene stuff, because there's a surprising amount that goes into making such a long project like damnation. I even have a Pinterest board I like to work on and add to the further I get into the project. But anyways, back to responding to this ask.

I'm so so happy people like the Scarabia sneak-peek! It's a huge relief! I read over the first draft and was just :// meh, this is kinda boring. This is not it. Which is why I decided to change it and spice it up, so I'm glad that it paid off and I made the right decision to do so! Here's to hoping that I can make the rest of it as interesting, hopefully even enough to make people wonder if Scarabia was better than Heartslabyul.

About the whole Jamil find out mc's real identity, I can't exactly reveal that because it would be major spoilers, but I have that roughly planned out. Whether it'll actually happen or not, I guess you'll just have to wait and see. Of course the same goes for the whole plot thing. Can't reveal too much. But again, I am happy people are enjoying Jamil and mc's relationship dynamic!

Like I said in a previous post, writing this based off Jafar and Iago is a lot more fun because they had really fun interactions and dialogue between each other. Like, mc is the only one that can call Jamil a snake to his face and he'd actually be cool with it, anyone else and he'd be plotting their demise. I guess I can reveal this, but at some point in the story, something will happen and I plan for mc to talk to Jamil and say something along the lines of, "Okay, master, I'll get you the dark wizard daily so you can enchant yourself some bitches." I really want to add this line, not sure if I actually will though.

Anyways, about the roles, the mc will never take a role other than the henchman. The characters we know will remain villains, and the protagonists will remain heroes. That's kinda like, the whole theme of this project. Henchman mc, nothing else.

As for Savanaclaw, I tried to give Leona more time than the others. Technically he does have more time with mc when compared to Ruggie and Jack. Leona meets mc a total of four times. It was harder to come up with reasons for Leona to appear considering the situation with him as a prince in the kingdom and mc not in the kingdom. Compare that to Ruggie who was with mc since the very beginning, and eventually Jack who would choose to stay beside mc. It was a lot easier for them to appear because they're literally right there. As for the blood thing, you hit the nail on the head. That's exactly what it was! Some people said it was gross and weird, but like... come on, that's kinda the point? The message I'm trying to convey is mc caused this, yes Leona plotted it but mc is just as guilty. The mcs of this project aren't meant to be morally good.

Ruggie? I mentioned in another post and went into detail about how I originally planned more things for him like him finding out about mc's identity but I ultimately ran out of time for that. Talked about it a bit here.

Anyways, ever since I came up with the concept of this project, Chief!mc was one of the first ones I decided as soon as the ideas formed. Them as well as King!mc. They were the first two I knew for sure what role I wanted them to be. If it's not obvious, Chief!mc is loosely based off Shenzi. Fun fact: I looked for as many voice acting clips that I could find for the Lion King, specifically more for the hyenas and Scar. Might've mentioned this before, but I liked to analyze the voice actor's expressions, the way they moved, or little habits they might've showed and think about adding little similarities to what I was writing. One clip I rewatched a lot was this one. This doesn't account for the fact that I rewatch each movie at least once (usually up to three times or more), and usually replay certain scenes a dozen times or more just to note down every little detail. This process was how I noticed Jafar actually rolls his eyes when Iago is talking and I thought that was a good bit to add for Jamil when mc was talking because it fit perfectly, lol.

Okay, I'm getting way off track. Back to your original question. About what Leona said about the chief. If you think about it, the environment and plot before mc arrived, of course Leona would know about the hyena chief because the hyena folk were always causing trouble for the kingdom he was the prince of. In the beginning, Ruggie reports that Leona was on the borderlands again, meaning he's done it before, he's tried to meet with the chief at least once before. If you take into account the assumption that Falena too has also likely encountered the chief probably more than once likely due to conflicts, it's even safer to say that Leona knows who the chief is and has meet them before too. Finally, Leona doesn't really want them because they're otherworldly. At first Leona may see them as an asset once he realizes that they know way more than they let on, but eventually he comes to enjoy their bickering and teasing and such, and has a lot of fun seeing how certain words and actions puts them on edge. That's how his attraction starts, and begins to snowball into something much more once he realizes that mc is similar to him.

Whew, that was a lot. I hope I answered everything, or mostly everything.

[kittymaine]

The Husky & His White Cat Shizun Vol. 5 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou

I finally got around to reading The Husky & His White Cat Shizun Vol. 5 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou. With this book, I think I'm caught up on the recent books I've bought, and I'm going to have to start digging into my back list now. I'm trying not to sound like I'm suffering.

This book picks up with the wedding of Nangong Si and Song Quitong fast approaching. Somebody has started spreading a rumor that Song Quitong has been cheating on Nangong Si with Ye Wangxi, her original rescuer. During a banquet thrown on the night before the wedding, a strange masked man appears to make the same accusations, saying in front of all the sects of the cultivation world that Song Quitong has been unfaithful, and the wedding shouldn't go forward. It causes a wild commotion in the hall, all the other sects hungry to see the biggest and richest sect in the upper realm suffer such a public humiliation. But, before the truth of Song Quitong's betrayal can be revealed, a huge commotion begins in the fields behind the banquet hall, as a rift straight to the infinite hells is opened. Could it be that the true enemy will finally be revealed?

ANYWAY! As usual. I'll talk about this book under the cut, since I don't want to spoil this book for anyone who hasn't read it, but I really need to scream about this book to someone.

This book was such a bait and switch, though not in a bad way. I went into the book thinking this was going to be a little diversionary story about Nangong Si and Ye Wangxi. And, it was, for a little bit! Honestly, I didn't think I would care much about the whole Rufeng Sect thing, but once I realized what was really happening, I was hooked. I had been wondering why Nangong Si and Ye Wangxi didn't show up muck in fanfic and I guess I have my answer now. Though, it makes me kind of sad. Ye Wangxi is so tragic, how she's been used and abused by Nangong Lu, what's been done to her voice and body. We don't really get to see how she feels about any of it and we don't get to see where the three of them get to after the fire (Nangong Si, Ye Wangxi and Song Quitong), but I'm really curious. I wish there was more fan content for Ye Wangxi. I kind of want to hunt it down, but I don't want to spoil stuff for myself.

Then, oh my god, that twist in the middle with Xu Shuanglin? That was brutal, but also I was fucking living. My primary theory so far is that Luo Fenghua and Xu Shuanglin had some kind of complicated love affair. Why else would he steal his spiritual core? I was on the same wavelength with Mo Ran, assuming that he plans to use rebirth on him. It's the only thing that fits all the loose pieces of the puzzle we have floating around.

And then the interlude at the end with Mo Ran and Chu Wanning and yet another cute little ramshackle cabin. OMG y'all there was only one bed, who could imagine! I hate how this book can wind me up into little knots with the will-they-won't-they tug of war that happens when these two finally get a chance alone. They both are aware that they like each other! Mo Ran put down so many invitations! But, they're both such little cowards, they won't make a move. Until, you know, finally Mo Ran took the plunge. I'm so proud of him, my sweet little guy. The image of the two of them sitting on that stupid sword in the sky and Chu Wanning telling him "I'm ugly. I'm no good." I felt like my heart was dying, like god please someone kiss this man he's breaking my heart. I mean, I think he definitely broke Mo Ran's heart with all that. It's so brutal that the depth of his own tragedy is still landing. Like, not only did you love him, yet tortured him to death, he also loved you and still let you do all that to him. The part where Mo Ran's tear dropped onto Chu Wanning as he kissed his cheek took my heart and threw it on the ground and did a tap dance on it.

Like, fuck, dog. You don't gotta do me like that.

Anyway... ANYWAY! I ordered the next volume already. And the cover has them both in white in front of a verdant green background. THEY'RE MARRIED ALREADY GUYS, but that's okay, my body is ready for the pain.

[inventors-fair]

Battle Commentary: War Changes a Lot, Actually (and for the better)

I'll let you in on a little big secret: I didn't like MOM limited at all. It felt swingy and uncoordinated, lumpy and unfocused, not quite format-warping but more about the spectacle than the impact on gameplay. I also had my absolute best limited tournament in my life playing with MOM, but that's a story for another day. The point is that battles, in the end, were pretty okay in a format not designed to fully showcase their abilities, in my opinion. So what did y'all do? You had some absolutely bonkers choices that are thoughtful, creative, weird, and show some wonderful ways that Magic players think about their cards.

The main strength of these submissions were their dynamism of ideas, for sure. "What does a battle look like" is so fresh in the universe of MTG players still, and how we go about looking at that together has made for so many cool possibilities. My most common stumbling block was the inverse/parallel problem that planeswalkers have: where do I attack? Attacking an opponent's planeswalker is a way to get rid of a threat, but attacking a battle is a choice of advantages and a choice of defenses. Where does one go in their combat step, and why, and how do the cards change that decision? I don't feel that every card really considered that, but we'll see what that looks like in the commentary.

I had a lot to say about the good of these cards, so I reserved the JUDGE PICKS for two ideas that piqued my understanding of players' understanding. Read on!

~

@bergdg — Invasion of Berimish / Avoid Casualties

Don't worry about the formatting for this card. I'd worry more about the novel being more or less unknown to me—but don't worry, I checked the synopsis, and I understand the purpose of this card's various pieces. The invasion feels pretty identical to the planning part of the described siege, and avoiding casualties feels on-point as well. I'm impressed that this card feels like something that could ultimately be depicted in MTG's history; what I mean is that, despite this novel perhaps not being the most well-known among newer players, it fulfills all the expectations of players familiar to the source material.

In terms of power level, I feel that the cost to effect ratio is lacking on the backside and on the starting defense for the battle. Attacking the battle should feel pretty difficult, and gaining a not-insignificant amount of life is fine, but at the point that you're attacking, I feel that you'll have already needed to get to a game state where you're able to swing through. So what do the stun counters add? I like this card a lot even without the background that you have because of the clear love put into it. My question is, do you think Avoid Casualties can have an effect that more clearly rewards the combat required to hit the Invasion? Heh, in a multiplayer format, it would be interesting if the sorcery also made you the monarch.

~

@coolcoolcooltighttightight — The Bant-Grixis Conflict / Crux of Battle

This card has a lot of moments where I get the principle behind the card; at the same time, I'm a little iffy on the choices of mechanical representation. Mainly, I'm curious why black and white were the colors you settled on here. Esper and Grixis overlap in the UB category, and if your intention was to show the general conflict without necessarily one winner, why not have colors that either could share, with a reward that was specific to one side or another? Black and white makes this fairly easily to cast in a dedicated Esper shell, but not a Grixis one. That said, I suppose I get why you went with the modal choices that you did, and gameplay-wise, this card feels totally normal, if not envelope-pushing conceptually.

Now, I'm a huge Alara fan, and I think the flavor text is a cool way to go about this battle. I appreciate this card's dedication to that. When we're on the battlefield, the concept stumbles with the fact that we are indeed not looking to tell the story of a nonspecific aspect of the world—rather, the player should feel in control of their presentation, and feel the specificity of the action being presented. How, for example, would the action on the back side differ, art-wise? Negotiations vs. conflict? The result of a battle is a decisive victory, and the crux, as a choice, doesn't feel right now like it gives direction to said action.

~

@cthulhusaurusrex — Retake the Capital! / Plaza of the First Tree

Well, this card certainly doesn't like the dragons of Tarkir, that much is clear. I do get the desire to have the clans return to the world in the forms that had taken shape post timeline-reconstruction. I think there's this inherent problem of the multiple generations that had passed between the shift from FRF to DTK. Like, there's this newly established relationship between dragons and denizens, there's this historical division that separated the clans from one of their colors of mana, resulting in new strength—y'know? Flavorfully this card can't really make sense of its own story.

On the gameplay side, while you portray the action clearly, this card feels oddly off-kilter. A four-mana three-color Plummet isn't exactly appealing when, following that, you have to send six damage at a card that already nixes a huge chunk of flying creatures' power. The anthem is good, but at that point the winmore of reach feels almost...well, I won't say "tacky," but the degree to which it's clear that the dragons are hated is almost too evident. Without the story basis or the mechanical resonance to hold it together, this card feels like it could use sturdier bones before taking flight.

~

@greensunzenith — Battle for Thraben

I assume that you control this card, and that it enters the battlefield under your control, but who defends it? Does each player defend it? There's this really cool sense of possibility on your card but the mechanical background feels frustrating to parse. The other problem is that, uh, I think I grok it completely and it would be a pain to explain rules-wise. But once again: my gist is that each player can choose to attack this card during combat, and other players can defend it? Sure, sensible. In a multiplayer game, who can defend this card? Can each opponent choose to defend it if it's attacked? If so, hoo boy, that's either gonna put a target on your back or just prolong the game with creatures galore.

Pausing just for a moment, because I think it's actually quite funny how much this messes with the game state by making sooooo many bodies. You basically have the ability to defend this battle with any of your dorks and then get six more power on the following turn because you'll have stopped the opponent's attack. Right? That feels unbalanced to me. Multiple battles mean that your opponents can basically never catch up without evasion, and you'll have at least one defensive turn. So, I love Innistrad, but this card may have needed a little bit of tweaking and rules explanation before I can love it too.

~

@izzet-always-r-versus-u — Race for Orazca

I don't really know how to feel about this card, actually. In limited, if I can connect for four damage, what's the likelihood that I'd be swinging that at a Rampant Growth every turn? In a Commander game, perhaps it would be easier to justify with a strong evasive group, and I can see the application in a group hug deck. The question is how much winmore-ing can something like this card type suggest before the benefits become not worth attacking.

"Pursuit" as a card type is absolutely cool, though, and I think that this idea is worth exploring. Considering something that can be more impactful for an opponent's board, or give you benefits with abilities that would help you in other scenarios besides just combat. Or, benefits can be suggested after a certain amount of defeating; for example, what if you got a combat benefit from having a number of lands or land types whenever this entered? It would encourage you to attack it more, instead of being basically a sorcery-speed ramp card that stopped your opponents from losing life 'cause you're swinging at a battle instead. When you have a card like a battle, the question becomes that of what benefit you'd get from a battle that's better than just hitting your opponents in the face. What environment does that looks like? What can a card looks like to suggest something about that environment?

~

@mmmmmin — Battle of Duplicitous Rage (JUDGE PICK)

Once more we run into rules questions of where this battle is, who can defend it, etc. This time, what I want to highlight is the importance of the multiplayer aspect and what this card does on the battlefield. This isn't so much a goading kind of card as it is a twist on combat that highlights just what a battle can do. A nontoken attacker might prevent an opponent for being able to swing with their most important (targetable) creature at you, but if you can get the battle to stick around, you can force the swings at other players. If that's beneficial, they may choose to defend the battle for you, but it's a complicated choice. What does combat need to look like?

Of course this card is hella situational and there are aspects where the right deck could use this card and annihilate its opposition. Myriad and attack triggers and all that jazz is...quite powerful. Another thing I like about this card is its understanding of commander/multiplayer flavor. Perhaps it is set on a specific world, but it's a card about rage, and it can be a little abstract, because the evocation is around the emotion created on the battlefield associated with gameplay rather than the action-specifics of the story or art in question. You've got a card that knows it's a card and that players can connect to their in-game emotions. I think that that's neat. I grok the implied rules text, too, but we for sure need them written out for general purposes on cards like this.

~

@nine-effing-hells — War with the Dragon Tempests / Khanfall

This kind of sorcery is what a back side needs to be. Big effect, big gameplay swing, worth the effort. I'm right there with you. It's interesting how many parallels some of these cards have with each other within this contest, and also how their uniqueness changes both the feeling of the cards and how it demonstrates people's understanding of battles. The double-removal of defense counters (attacking or dragons) is an interesting story call, too, and that's where I have my interrogative questions.

Is this card supposed to depict how both the Tarkirians and the Dragons initiated the Khanfall? Presumably, your warriors will be attacking the battle, and also the dragons once they enter, so that's...somewhat disconnected? No, not disconnected, but I'm just not fully certain if the conflict being depicted is the same as what would be happening on the battlefield—or rather, who's fighting the battle. The dragons win, but what is the depiction on the gameplay battlefield? I think this one might be a problem with my understanding of the Tarkir story and not something the card is doing wrong necessarily. It's a strong card and that flavor text is awesome with the implications around it.

~

@reaperfromtheabyss — Elspeth's Entire Krokt-damned Life / Beseech the Powerful

I'm not not amused by the name. It's a bit much, though, and I'll take it with a grain of salt despite that. What gets me is that I'm really not sure what it's supposed to be depicting here, what the battle actually is in the end. On the flip side, I assume that the sorcery is supposed to be calling Elspeth to wherever the battle is, so maybe the front side is depicting the various fights that have summoned her? Either way, for the back side, you might want to have changed the name down there. What I like about the back side is that the recurring battle allows for this card to employ long-term legendary toolbox strategies, which gives the battle reason to want to be attacked. That much is super cool.

With the name thing, this really shows how much the name matters. I think that my understanding is really impaired by a lack of serious specificity. If this is supposed to be serious and I'm just not groking it, that's on me, and I apologize. Maybe I'm just distracted and that's that. On the goodside-flipside, I like where this card is going, with battles that demonstrate planeswalkers' abilities and histories as they relate to the multiverse-spawning locations and situations that seem to call them. It could be fun to see more of them, like Garruk's hunt, Chandra's search, Huatli and Saheeli's honeymoon, etc.

~

@ship-of-skitties — The Brothers' Final Fight (JUDGE PICK)

So I want to give this card a judge shoutout because it's immensely frustrating to me how well those symbols work. The opposing colors are all fine for their types of tutoring because tutors and planeswalker tutors are centered in white and black, so you need one of those. Cost reduction of certain spells, well, that's in both blue and red. Shablam. Some of these combos are weird, like how this could be run in a red/white deck, but then you have the battle that turns into the message and it's clear the kind of deck that this is supposed to be going into. I do want to add, and this isn't so much a criticism as it is a weakness of Magic's visual system: all that hybrid next to each other isn't the most aesthetically appealing and would 100% never be printed. But we live in the best of all worlds here.

Mechanically, this card's fine, and flavorfully, this card is also pretty great. The flavor text on the front side isn't what I would usually like from a MTG perspective but works well from a poetic perspective. Teferi's quote is sensible—is that directly from the story? I actually liked the BRO fiction pieces a lot. Right, all the same: checks out. I don't recall seeing your username a lot, so I assume you're a fresher contestant than some here, so like, props for swinging for the fences and landing gracefully. Great restrictions, great build-around, great choices for specific setting, great power level to rarity balance, weird weird weird card.

~

@sparkyyoungupstart — The Second Apostasine War

Speaking of swinging for the fences, wowzers. There is a lot of text on this card but I'm not completely lost. I grok it completely, and I want to give you a hint: every instance where the name of this card appears outside its name box could be shorted to "this battle" and remove a lot of space. The thing about this card is its power level and where this would be played. I assume this is for commander, because once this card is dealt its twenty damage, the defending player would most likely have lost a significant amount of life. How do you expect this battle to be defeated before that player loses just from this first trigger alone?

It seems like a fun exercise, but there's a paradox of sorts. If you swing with a bunch of small creatures at the battle, the defending player will lose an immense amount of life and probably die. If you swing with one massive creature, chances are you'd be better off just swinging at your opponent. The point of MTG gameplay is, in the end, to incentivise ways to win the game, and this card doesn't do much of that past the first ability. If the first two triggers were advantages and the last one was more directly about life loss/damage, then that would certainly make more sense. The way that you have created this card is amazing and I love the thought process. The actual in-game text is in conflict with how this card works to win the game.

~

That's all for now! Pick your battles and count your blessings—or the other way around, too.

@abelzumi

[ssahotstuff]

I hope you're having a great day/evening/night! Here's a bit of a head cannon, (with pictures!) for when Hotch has his black GF and meets her family (and stuff). This is a lot lmao, thanks for taking the time to read this 😅I'm sending this to all the black Hotch gworls to get y'all's opinions, I'm curious lol 

So, these kids? Your niece and nephew, twins, you call them double trouble because your sibling is always sending them for the tea. Aaron fell (easily) into the trap and now they're asking him a million questions. He takes them all in stride of course, because no one is coming to save him. 

Now this is your nephew from your older sibling, y'all all met up at the pumpkin patch and Hotch is trying to listen to the audio tour of the farm, but like the twins, he has taken to Hotch and won't leave him alone, but Hotch is happy to oblige him.

Of course we know who this is, but Aaron didn't know that she was your Auntie. (She's your youngest Aunt that kind of slipped in there later, so she's more of an older cousin). Of course he'd heard about her work, but you never mentioned her in that context, until she started working for the BAU. For her, it was like meeting Aaron all over again, she can be kind of forgetful, but he made sure she knew that he was "that white boy" from the cookout. She realizes almost immediately because she roasted him for reneging in spades, but she never put "SSA Aaron Hotchner" as the guy head over heels in love with her niece. It was like two different people.

The influence of being with you is bleeding into his wardrobe and poses, need I say more? (😂)

He asked Quavo for the picture, what more can I say? (I feel like he knows Fight Night word for word, bar for bar.) 

Thoughts, changes, add ons?

JESUS I LOVE THIS SO MUCH THESE PICTURES OF HIM MADE MY DAY

I have a HUGE family (23 brothers and sisters and probably 60 cousins, along with so many nieces and nephews that it isn’t funny) so imagining bringing him to meet all of them at a family reunion would be WILD. The kids have so many questions; why is he wearing a suit for starters? They take turns wearing his sunglasses and they even ask to wear his badge, proudly showing it off as they run around the yard and play 🥹

Aaron is so good at spades and your uncles immediately make him a part of their circle. He sits at the table with them while they keep an eye on the kids playing, drinking bitter scotch and playing spades while you work in the kitchen with your grams and your aunts and older cousins; he’s already a part of the family traditions and they accept him so easily it makes you so happy that they all get along

You and your Aunt Tara basically share a brain. You were her shadow growing up, wanting to be just like her even though you took your own path. You have no clue she and Aaron know each other but she makes sure he knows you’re her favorite niece and he better not hurt you! She’s so protective but she knows Aaron will always take care of you and keep you safe 🥰

The pumpkin patch 😩💕 the boy in the photo reminds me of my nephew Davien, they both have the same smile it made me miss him so much 😭 by the end of the day, he’s riding on Aaron’s shoulders, calling him Uncle Aaron 🥹🥹 he spoils him ALL DAY LONG, buying him souvenirs and snacks any time he bats his eyelashes, which turns Aaron into MUSH! You start making visits a regular occurrence because he’s always asking about Aaron and when he can see him again 💕

It’s no secret that Aaron has good taste but you start buying him clothes just because and soon he adopts your style; you have matching timberland boots and so many matching pairs of sneakers that it isn’t funny(however the first time you surprise him with a pair of Nikes, he almost loses his mind and the price, so he starts ordering you matching pairs so you’re not paying for them) even the people at work are noticing his new change of style, complimenting his colorful polos and the shoes that match. Derek would be like 🤔 the first time he saw him in a pair of exclusive sneakers, maybe some that are retro and cool as hell and super expensive because he didn’t realize Aaron was the type to dress in anything other than a suit and leather shoes.

The picture of him and Quavo made me smile so big. He LOVES Migos, but especially Fight Night. You both sing them so loud in the car, making up your own ad libs, and to no one’s surprise, he has incredible rhythm(because dancing) and you love that you can vibe together on long drives! His playlist is so similar to yours now that you can barely tell them apart.

Also! Back to family gatherings! My family has me cook the majority of the food for every function because I can throw DOWN in the kitchen, but so can Aaron, and when your Grams finds out he made the collared greens this year, she’s hesitant at first but after one bite she’s like “honey you gotta keep him around, he put hot sauce in the greens” and you’re like 🤭 because you taught him the trick but you don’t say anything because it gets him so many more points with your family that you let him take credit 🥰

Also Aaron excusing himself from the card table to help y’all clean up in the kitchen 😘 your auntie talks about what a gentleman he is, how glad she is to see a man helping as he loads the dishwasher, but he’s only doing it because he’s barely seen you all day and he wants to be close to you 😩

I absolutely loved this. Aaron getting to know the family literally gives me butterflies

[professionallydorkish]

OK (lots of) thoughts about tf Rise of the Beasts (spoilers below)

I'm just gonna put these thoughts as bullet points bc there's no real rhyme or reason to the flow of these thoughts . THAT SAID I watched the movie Friday night and have been stewing on some things, and reading some other people's thoughts, so thought I'd throw my own together here

OVERALL I thought it was a fun movie, and mostly good - like, I'd go back to watch it maybe 1-2 more times at the theatre. On discount ticket days or smth. That said, unpopular opinion, I don't think it was AS GOOD as people have been hyping it up to be (but I really WANTED it to be that good)

And like, I can probably tell y'all now that the things bugging me are probably nitpicky, but were bothering all the same. For instance,

Mirage - I *adored* him as a character. He was SO SWEET and fun and has SUCH FUN RELATIONS with the humans, and it's extremely enjoyable to see other Autobots forming those human relations outside of Bumblebee. BUT. Why... Mirage? There are DOZENS of other characters that could have fit this bill without having to give a total personality change to an existing character (thinking of Smokescreen, Jazz, Tracks, Hot Rod, either of the Lambo twins, even Blurr ... all of these characters can fit a youthful / pranking / kind of reckless speedster profile that cares about their appearance and is slightly anti-authority but heart of gold enough to go against Prime's wishes in a charming way). It's not *bad* to see Mirage like this, but again .... it just threw me a little bit. It also makes me curious as to what this means for characterization in the future. Again, I really liked him, thought he was super sweet, and obviously his abilities were super cool to see on screen!

I'm also extremely conflicted on having Unicron & co as the big bads for this movie. I've seen some mixed opinions on this as well, and generally agree that having Unicron as a looming presence and not actually destroyed at the end of the film was handled well. HOWEVER - and this is probably coming form my own wishes, seeing as it was called Rise of the Beasts, and REALLY just wanting to see more Beast Wars characters - I think they could've gone a different route with the antagonists that wouldn't have felt so grand life and death

Actually, tangent here, I think that was one of the things that actually had me feeling disappointed with the movie. I think I went in with expectations and standards close to what I felt after watching the Bumblebee movie for the first time. And the conflict in Bumblebee isn't some grand end-of-world threat (as seen on the screen - sure it's a looming possibility etc etc but), it's a small cast and a very personal conflict in that sense. ROTB returns to having huge stakes, larger cast of characters that can't ALL get a chance to shine, but imo not a large enough cast to take on a threat like UNICRON

So like. I'm glad that it wasn't directly Unicron, and instead got to see his power play out through Scourge and his team.

But still, I think it would've been cool to have our antagonists be those from Beast Wars as well (although I admit that I'm not super familiar with the series both tv & comics but STILL. I think it would've been cool to see Dinobot and Inferno and shit). I think this would've been SUPER COOL to see the Maximals shine even more!!

They all had such cool designs, and I really loved Primal & Air Razor. I wish we could've had more of Cheetor and Rhinox ;-;

I was actually annoyed with the resolution of the warp bridge explosion to send Unicron back 😭 particularly since it was ESTABLISHED that an explosion would have the FORCE OF A SUPERNOVA -- a fucking SUPERNOVA MY FRIENDS Earth should be PERISHED in an explosion like that!! The opening of the bridge portal to Unicron could explain SOME of the force being applied back through the opening but for the Earth to not really experience any of the damage, AND FURTHERMORE FOR NO GRAVE INJURIES TO COME TO PRIME, PRIMAL, OR NOAH/MIRAGE IN SUCH CLOSE PROXIMITY....

Just. If you're GOING to prop up something as a danger, and have an action posed as a non-viable solution to the problem (and have a good alternative ie. the passcode!), but then ultimately have to go back to explosion -- it should be held up as impactful as stated!! Like listen I KNOW we go into movies with the expectation that our friends on screen will be okay BUT OPTIMUS SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GET OUT OF THAT THAT EASILY. It also, imo, feels like it weakens Primal's oath to him in his sacrifice.

Also side note I actually did quite like the humans & the interpersonal relations happening - between Noah, his brother, Elena, and with the bots - I wish there was a bit more of it even! In concept, ex-military man who values family over the country & archeologist intern, BOTH POC, are FASCINATING CHARACTERS TO HAVE AND PLAY WITH. I think there's a lot of potential.

ALL OF THIS ASIDE. I thought it was a fun movie, I'm hopeful for what the franchise will bring. I'd REALLY LIKE for Travis Knight & Studio & Bee movie writers to come back on future movies (getting to the credits of this film and realizing it was Bay, Spielberg, and NOT writers from the Bee movie actually felt like that explained a LOT for where my disappointment and story inconsistencies were coming from)

[missmaywemeetagain]

I truly hope you write your own romance novel someday (if you haven’t already) and make millions. I’m more invested in your pink scarf series than my own life ❤️❤️

OMG Nonnie, THANK YOU and you are making me blush, honey, because this is my ACTUAL DREAM and the fact that you think it's even a possibility is amazing. Like seriously. Or that you think I could've already done it brings tears to my eyes, you have no idea... (Because ALL my insecurities want to tell me it could never happen.)

My very serious question(s) for y'all, if you don't mind (and I promise I'm not asking this fishing for compliments, I am just really interested to know), is if I published a romance novel, would you want to read it? Would you want to pay money for it? Would you read it if it weren't quite as smut heavy/not about EP (but in a similar vein)?

One, I cannot BELIEVE how amazing and supportive this community has been to me and my growth as a writer. I never in a million years expected this response to what started out as a teenie one-shot in my head. Pink Scarf has pushed me in so many ways, and I know I'm still learning and growing with each sentence and PS certainly isn't perfect, but y'all still take precious time out of your lives read and comment and reblog and share and just WOW. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. 💜

Two, the reason I ask (and would be hesitant to share if not for so many of y'all being so kind and supportive) is that I am in the very beginning stages of attempting to make this a reality...like I'm actually in the process of making a huge career change. (Well, I actively quit my very stable career this summer because it was killing me and because writing has been calling out to me for years. Now I'm figuring out how to make it actually happen and how to try and make a living at it and OMG is it a terrifying prospect for someone who has made all previous life choices in the name of stability LOL)

I am truly curious to know what y'all think (even if it's "girl, get yourself a day job cuz there's no way!" LOL)...or if any of y'all out there are published author/creatives who have any pointers, feel free to message me!!

[allieebobo]

Hi Allie!! The update was really gooooodddddd! Anw, ive been stalking and reading through the asks & while I’m enjoying those, i don’t think anyone has asked u about urself yet. Or maybe i miss it but I’m interested to know more about the author who wrote 2 of my fave IFs. Just general questions like;

1. which part of SG were you from?

2. Fav food?

3. Fav place to lepak?

4. Pri/sec school (if you were educated in sg)

5. What made you migrated to USA?

6. Where are u currently based in?

7. Are u still a student or a full-fledged career womann

8. One place in sg that will always carry beautiful memories for you, now that u’ve moved abroad.

9. What sparked your interest in writing these IFs?

Hehehe. If some of the questions are abit personal, you don’t have to share ur answers. Have a good day ahead 🤍

Ooh!! Anon, these are great questions hehe!! Sure, we can do a get-to-know-me session!

I will answer a couple, and get back to the rest at some point, OK? If there's a question that I didn't answer that y'all are really curious about, you can send me an ask with the number and I'll get to it sooner rather than later.

(P.S. no, none of them are too personal, I just think it'd take me a gajillion years to reply if I tried to answer them all!)

Got long, so the answers are below the cut!

1. which part of SG were you from?

Redhill/Bukit Merah! There's a moment in Merry Crisis where MC talks about it, and that's directly from my life! West side, best side! If me and my partner were entitled to a subsidized public housing flat (we aren't, for so many reasons including we're queer and she's not Singaporean), I'd absolutely buy a flat in the exact same neighbourhood.

2. Fav food

Wow... I can't really choose one, but if I could cheat and pick a whole cuisine then Peranakan food, hands down. Petai (stinky bean) with ikan bilis is one of my fave dishes—and it reminds me of my grandma. Otherwise, ban mian is a big comfort food for me, and so are red chili oil dumplings. I also love kaya toast with eggs for breakfast. Herbal bak kut teh and teochew fish are things I love but wouldn't eat every day... All of these might show up (the fish already has I guess!) in the game at some point!

For non-Singaporean food, I could eat udon, all kinds of pasta, and som tum all day every day.

3. Fav place to lepak

<Lepak is Singaporean/Malaysian(? I think) slang for like, 'chill' or 'hang', btw.> As you can already tell I added a lot of my own experiences/things I love into Merry Crisis already, so I'm going to have to go with Labrador Park and Sentosa. As a kid my mom would bring me and my brother to the rocky coast in Labrador after school with a box of Sarpino's pizza and we'd play in the water and eat and get really sandy. Sentosa back in the day was less commercial/touristy, and we'd just park in the carpark for $2, and spend the entire Sunday just chilling on the beach (yes, I'm a huge beach person haha), and my dad (not a big beach person) would be napping under a big tree probably wishing his wife weren't such a big beach person because it's been inherited by his kids and now this is how he'll spend his weekends for the rest of his life.

6. Where are you based in? 7. Are u still a student or a full-fledged career woman

Have a full-time job, sadly. I've been working as an urban planner in Singapore for three years now. (Think that answers both questions at the same time.) So yeah, I plan the city. Mostly I make sure future generations have enough housing, even though I'm not entitled to one myself. 🤷‍♀️ I enjoy my work and I think it's fulfilling, but it's also tough and my hours are too long. One day I hope to write full-time but I really don't think it'll pay the bills. Maybe if I live somewhere cheaper than Singapore!

Quite excited to answer 8, 9 as well, but maybe those are for another day?

[edgepunk]

Okay, filtered MSM 2 thoughts:

We knew Kraven was gonna show up in the sequel, however, I def did not expect The Lizard/Dr. Connors and the fact that Kraven is focused on him instead of Peter or Miles is very interesting. I wonder if they're gonna sort of recreate/reference Kraven's Last Hunt 👀

Either way, I'm very excited to see these classic villains showing up. Maybe we'll see Yuri Watanabe/Wraith too??? They were building her up in one of the DLCs quite well. Also, interested to see how Peter will react since they were friends.

Gameplay!!!!!! I already loved the gameplay in the first game, and the Miles Morales game improved upon that. And they seemed to take it another step further, it's like they actually listened to the criticism that people had, and I didn't know it was possible to improve the already banger gameplay (tho yes the first one was a little clunkier but still v intuitive)

The new traversal features look so good hello?? The web wings used as a glider? Miles slingshotting himself across the city??? aoughhfg and also!!! It looks like we'll be able to explore other parts of New York like Queens and maybe Brooklyn??? tbh Manhattan became a little restrictive after a while in the first two games, so it would be cool to expand the map a bit. Y'all know I'm meh about huge maps with some exceptions, but if done right, I think it's gonna be good.

Putting this under a read more bc this game is driving me insane I'm eating drywall

So I was right that we'll be able to switch between Peter and Miles. I kinda guessed that they're gonna be mission specific, and maybe, we can switch between them in free roam like with Jacob and Evie in AC: Syndicate (this specific feature isn't confirmed, just speculation on my part)

Looks like Nuform changed Miles' abilities since his Venom (heh) powers can turn blue? I'm interested to see what it did to him and if they're going to address it. Maybe it's purely for aesthetic/gameplay reasons. Who knows, I'm still curious.

Also, love how they incorporated Ganke as their guy in the chair. I loved him in MM and the fact that he helped Miles with the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man app. Just give me more Ganke please, he was really charming and they managed to differentiate him from MCU Ganke Ned that he feels like his own character.

Okay, I'm done beating around the bush and I'm going to address the elephant in the room - the symbiote. This is all we've been waiting for, we knew from the post-credits scene from the first game that Peter is gonna have the black suit. I'm glad Insomniac were like "yeah let's get this over with" and showed it to us.

And people are already calling him Bully Lowenthal 💀

Now, I was a little bit iffy about the design of the black suit, but after I watched the trailer a couple of times, it's starting to grow on me? Maybe I'm looking too much into it but the organic armor/exoskeleton design gives me xenomorph vibes, and I love the tendrils in the "exposed" exoskeleton. The texture looks gross and slimy and I love it. I was wondering if they're gonna add some subtle sci-fi horror elements to it and they delivered. I've always said that the symbiote has a lot of space/eldtrich horror potential.

Which brings me to the tendrils (I can already hear the p*rn artists working hard), jokes aside, they look so cool and they're animated so well???? The way Peter fights with them??? He straight up turns into a uhhh tentacle monster for a split second. And his fighting style is so brutal, I liked when he kept repeatedly kicking the guy as if he was a punching bag ddjhsjh

but the scene where he shows up in the sewers(???) yeah this shot legit gave me chills bro looks fr intimidating

And do I really need to gush about Yuri Lowenthal's voice acting? Ben 10 off the shits I'm gonna do it anyway bc holy shit he got the guttural growl down to a T. However, I do wish they put a very subtle filter on his voice. Doing that kind of growly voice must've hurt his throat real bad. Maybe his voice is gonna become more monstrous as the game progresses, that'd be real neat :3c

Honestly, I'm really curious to see how it will affect Peter since May is dead, the whole thing with Otto (I think they're gonna have a convo on the Raft maybe???), he's got a lot of debts to pay and he mentioned that Harry is dying. Bro's going through it fr also parksborn angst???? I'm ready for the homoerotic undertones in their cutscenes kdjkdjdkj I'll take any crumbs I can get 👀

And the way that Peter just dismissively shoved that one civilian away??? Ah?? I'm not ready for Peter to become an absolute cunt and be mean to Miles. There's a high probability we're gonna have to fight Peter in a boss fight as Miles aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

ANYWAY THAT'S IT I'M LOSING MY MIND

[bcofl0ve]

correct me if i’m wrong but i thought priscilla herself wasn’t involved in the production of priscilla? so i’m hoping it’ll be a bit more nuanced than just the exact same view as in Elvis + Me. the other thing is that one of sofia’s big things (imo) is the use of the slightly unreliable narrator + she’s said that it’s ‘marie antoinette in graceland’ so i’m assuming the whole point is that the audience is meant to view that it’s from the perspective of a young girl in a world that’s new to her? and therefore isn’t entirely reliable in her viewpoint but still ultimately it’s *her* view? idk if that makes any sense! i’m just a huge flawed elvis fan + huge sofia stan (i have no strong opinion on P - i think she’s mismanaged some elements of epe, and exaggerated some things but i also think elvis must have been really difficult to deal with in the 70s in particular) and am praying that she allows for both an understanding that elvis is flawed but so priscilla’s perspective! but also it’s still valid as HER perspective?

(anons are off for right now because i was getting overwhelmed and want to be able to give thoughtful answers to my current inbox. love y'all and thank you for understanding)

i was just reading a priscilla fanpage say that she said at one of her tour stops in glasgow that she's not involved directly, and that she's a producer but only is a money way not an input way. and i think i saw someone else say she was screened the film in april? there's a little clip of her talking about it with someone on @priscillasdoll on instagram saying she thought sofia did a good job and that she got emotional watching her life on screen like that.

but that aside you make a really good point abt the marie antionette at graceland thing that i hadn't thought about even though ive read that sofia interview like 6 times. i'm curious to see how the film handles the 'retaliation cheating'/mike stone stuff, and think that would be a good place for what you talk about re: showing her as *also* imperfect. i actually have a whole list of things frm elvis and me that i'm curious to see be translated to the screen, esp by someone like sofia.

[chaotic-on-main]

ok i didnt know the best way to do this so here you go lol. ty for even doing this ;-; i probably gave more than you needed aha.

personal color scheme:

i'm a hoe for purple pastel colors uwu

specific aesthetic:

guess a minimalist pastel soft aesthetic? ngl i had to look up different types of aesthetics lmaoooo im so out of touch with reality

general outlook on life:

tbh i'm pretty nihilistic and am a heavy believer of the heat death of the universe, but that's why we should appreciate what little time we do have :)

favorite shows/animes/books/manga:

aot (obvs), bungo stray dogs, code geass, witcher, i like video games too (world of warcraft, fallout 4, skyrim)

your favorite characters from said things above (and if you're able to, explain what draws them to you):

aot: levi (because i thirst but also because he's such a complex character that's gone through so much shit yet still turns out the way he is and i love him sm i a;ldk fj;laksjfd)

bungo stray dogs: dazai (similar reasons to levi although he's much more morally gray), chuuya (because he's pretty <3 also similar to levi and is badass)

code geass: lelouch (bc jun fukuyama is a god in the va world)

witcher: geralt (because I thirst, plus i love reluctant dad figures)

general likes:

levi, coffee, gaming, writing, cats, being stoned

general dislikes:

zeke jaeger (baka vibes), superficial shit, most people, politics, macho man vibes, most republicans (lol)

hobbies:

writing, gif making, playing piano, gaming

astrological sign and or MBTI:

i've taken the MBTI a million times, with the most recent rendition as ISTJ-T, i'm also a gemini :)

the season, time of day, type of land or body of water, and weather you associate yourself with:

fall, sunset, oceans, idk for weather type lol

niche interests:

space, psychoanalyzing traumatized characters :], was into greek mythology for a bit

things specific to you and your life that you want represented visually:

gaming-related stuff, coffee, i try to channel mental health positivity vibes but idk how that would be represented lmaoo

5 words or phrases that you feel explains who you are as a person:

chaotic (adhd-vibes), somehow able to read people's energy's/moods to an annoying amount, the type thats shy as fuck until i get to know you, always thirsting, partner also just said im stubborn as fuck lol

ALSO I like to do this thing where I add in something incredibly specific to you, like the most specific thing you can think about:

uhhhhh i guess add in something semi-colon related? tmi but mental health recovery is a huge part of my life so i have like 3-4 tattoos that are semi-colon themed (maybe you can help me generate another tattoo idea lmao)

If I feel like I need a little more, please be okay with me DMing you! I want to make sure everything is perfect:

you can also dm me anyway, i'm trying to make friends and its hard

I GOTCHU.

I had so much fun making this one laksjdf the colors are so damn pretty!! I hope you like it! Normally they're a little more layered and messy but I went for a more simple, minimalist look. Also the background was too pretty, it had to show.

@humanitys-strongest-bamf

☆ As always, if y'all are curious in what I’m doing with my spare time, you can go here! My game is open!! ☆

[haptureratch]

Being on wellbutrin (WHEN IT'S NOT TAKING YEARS OFF MY LIFE BY MEGA MARIO STAR RAINBOW RAVE BOOSTING MY ANXIETY) is so funny

Like I'm reading an old idea for a fanfic in my Samsung notes and lighting up punching the bed because DAMN THAT'S SUCH A WILD GOOD IDEA AND I -SEE- WHAT YOU DID THERE

Like.

Chill you goofy hypomanic binch XD

I'm comforted by the fact that these sleepless nights will end eventually because the psych plan has shifted to bringing my anxiety down and letting me sleep. I guess I can kind of enjoy extra verve now that I'm not thinking about the implications of it, and knowing that it got as bad as it would and the professional said "no worse". And that there's no work in a few hours (huge relief bc I obviously can't stay home while trialing meds but they do have the ability to impact work). But this is still soooo not normal lol. It's almost 2am. I was so ready for bed and then nope I started singing again and here we are. It's the music and the singing that fire me the fuck up lately.

I hope I'm okay when it's out of my system. I feel okay now. I feel lighter in some ways (heavier in others like my headache and tight carotids and EVEN MORE hyperactive startle response and reflexes). I feel the self-amusement side of me is turned up. I'm better at writing (that TORRENTIAL MESS I wrote on....Sunday? No one is allowed to read it unless they are a mentally ill girlie on the internet. Y'all are allowed. Y'all will understand.) I feel more at ease around people and non-autistic (conversation just comes, I don't care if I'm doing it wrong I just do it). Life around me tastes good (instead of .... what's a word .. jarring? I thrive off the vibrancy and possibility. I see the lights and I want to explore where they lead. IS THIS HOW HE LIVES???? Like a stabilized form of this?? FuKc)

I think this med just takes everything I already am and heightens it. Deepens it. Maybe I'm prone to insomnia and it's just so much worse. I do have a natural rhythm of getting fatigued and my body is ready for bed but if I stay up through that I get a second wind. That's kinda what's happening on this med just INTENSELY so. And music is my shit, I feel it so deeply. It moves me. I love it.

I'm so chatty.

I ted talk all by myself but, again, this med cranks it up quite a bit. I'll need to share the positives of this med with my psych so maybe she can get me something with a similar mechanism or like....she'll do her double board certified thing and COOK.

I'm glad I was able to accept my mom needing to go home. The first instinct was to feel abandoned and scared but something in me got brave and accepted it.

Is this all divine timing? Is the med at some kind of level that's helping me (but, again, taking years off my life by stealing me from my sleep) and I was able to polish off the fear veneer [[I swear to god I'm cooking so hard .. note to self go absolutely OFF on wellbutrin, get deliciously hypomanic, and write a BOOK MY DUDE]] -- anyway, am I going through a period of growth right now?

Side thought: if I already worked through my touch issues with Amy and had all those epiphanies, why am I still struggling with issues under that umbrella? I went back to being weird and feral about touch which is a basic human need. I didn't incorporate daily platonic touch. I didn't connect with others. I can think back to that bedroom in Galveston and I THOUGHT I had my whole life laid out in front of me and I saw it and understood it. But here I am. I'm not drowning in grief over it currently, I am just genuinely curious. Why did I forget it all over time and just revert back? Not to attack myself but to GENUINELY WONDER

Oh thank god I might be getting a wave of sleepiness

HA HAAA nevermind beech we back.

Maybe this experience can make me braver. Look at that. PAUL RUDD MEME LOOKATUS. I trialed a med and had super difficult relationship stuff and got into a bad physical state (weight/nutrition) AND went to work and did the work. Wow. I should be proud. I survived a difficult med trial along with all that. I wish that alone, that realization, could cure this core nagging negative thought that I am too weak to make it.

I just get so caught in that feeling of extreme anxiety. There are stronger words to say but my mind is slowing and my eyes are growing heavy

Sleep please take me

Carry me off and steal me for 10 solid hours

No I had to get up and use the restroom. And that gabapentin... I FELT THAT. Swaying around searching for ANY HINT OF PROPRIOCEPTION to maneuver myself to my bathroom. Meds are a fun experiment when they aren't terrifying. It's interesting to feel the science in your own body. Brings the reading and the research to life. Real kinesthetic learner style type shit.

No, yeah. This staying up because I have a stream of thoughts isn't outside the realm of expected Jess. I've done this with my creative writing. And read over it a million times late into the night trying to perfect it. But I think the medical response is still back off that med. Hypomania can still be bad for you even when it feels good. I need to be able to sleep. I wonder if this is just a reflection of how unstructured I am outside of work. Wait. Oh my god. OH MY GOD THIS IS JUST LIKE WHAT I DEALT WITH IN MED SCHOOL. REBECCA TRIED TO GET ME TO STRUCTURE MY DAY AROUND STUDYING AND HOBBIES AND I DIDN'T.

Oh my lord, my sweet lord this must get solved.

I'm glad Rilley got me into handling it mode. Instead of backing away in fear mode. I don't think I'd be doing all this life analysis now had we not had the hard talk earlier. I love and trust her so much. She is truly an incredible individual. She would make the absolute best therapist. She's basically there, she's so close. Fill her up with some training and I swear to god she'd blaze to the top.