#either way - just like with hop last year - the only thing keeping them together in that time jump is familiarity in grief

[gayofthefae]

Two options:

Mike's speech made her angry and helped

Mike's speech didn't make her angry, Max's choking made her angry and helped. Mike's speech affected nothing and wasted time.

Not looking great, guys.

[catnipaddictt]

Tin can

roommate!anakin skywalker x gn!reader

synopsis: Your normally grumpy roommate feels bad about drinking your last canned beverage and makes it up to you

wc: 1.8k

tw: none, just fluff

Homework. Your least favourite thing about college. The sheets of paper littered your bed as you poured over your work. The sun was far gone and you had officially run out of caffeinated drinks. You took this as a sign to go collect more refreshments before continuing your studies. 

Pushing your selection of pens and pencils to the side you hop off your bed and make it over to the door of your room. Posters half fall off of the aged wooden panels, matching the walls of the rest of your room. Opening the door you are greeted by the sight of your normally grumpy roommate, Anakin. He was majoring in something like engineering, you couldn't really remember. 

He doesn't even acknowledge your presence, either focusing on what he is typing or straight up ignoring you. You wouldn't be surprised if it was the second option. You had been living together for 6 months and he still hadn't warmed up. You had tried to befriend him but he wasn't interested, opting to shut himself in his room and play his music way too loud. The walls were thin and you heard everything. ‘Maybe he was just bad at talking to new people’ is what you told yourself, but it had been half a year by this point.

You make your way over to the tiny kitchen, bee-lining over to the fridge that couldn't keep cold for too long. Upon opening it, you are greeted with well, nothing. Great. You knew that you had stocked up before your upcoming exam only days ago. You should have had enough to last you at least a week. There was only one answer; Anakin. He must have taken some of them for himself. 

Turning on your heel, you face him with a look of disapproval on your face. He doesn't notice you or doesn't care enough to stop what he is doing. You cough loudly which gets his attention finally. “Yes?” He monotones.

“Did you have the last of my drinks?” You try to keep your composure but the stress of your upcoming exams makes your voice crack. You know it's silly to get emotional over energy drinks but it is all too much. You turn on your heel so he doesn't see and return to your room, slamming the door. Way to make an exit.

You stand in the middle of your room trying to gather yourself but you end up just crawling into bed, under your stationary and half done papers. Maybe sleep will fix it. It was late after all and you haven't gotten more than a few hours of shut-eye in the past few days. Closing your eyes you fall asleep almost instantly. Dreamless slumber takes you into its grasp.

Waking up in the morning never felt so hard until now. Blinking the sleep out of your eyes you turn to the side, making the remaining pens tumble to the ground. You almost shoot out of bed after your eyes find your alarm clock. 11am. Oh no. You are late, really late. And you have a test in 40 minutes. One you were supposed to study for as you didn't understand the content as well. Scrambling out of bed you notice you are still fully dressed, you must have forgotten to take off your clothes when you fell into bed. Grabbing the door and swinging it open at full force you notice a piece of paper on the tiny coffee table. 

The handwriting is scrawny but you can still understand what it reads; ‘said you were sick, don't go to class. Check emails’. You do as it says and sure enough you have received an email about rescheduling your test from today. You silently thank whatever force is behind this. You notice there is more writing at the bottom of the page in smaller print; ‘check fridge - A.S.’ 

You walk over to the fridge, paper still in hand. Opening the door you are met with a sight made in collage student heaven. 12 e energy drinks sit there waiting for you. He had even gone as far to select different flavours, all of which were your favorites. He must be more observant than you realised. 

You spent the rest of the day in the deserted dorm finishing your homework and getting started on a project that wasn't due for a while. You knew classes were out when you heard the tell-tail sound of cars and feet in the hallway. Friday nights signalled parties for many students, giving them a break from the stress of lectures and too much work. Normally your nights were spent protecting your peace and watching reruns of sitcoms on your laptop.

You hear the click of a lock from the front door before the shuffling of feet towards his room. A knock on your bedroom door brings you out of your trace, and you let out a “come in!” Anakin's head peeks around the door, “sorry for having the last of your cans” he breathes out. “Don’t worry, I was just stressed and overreacting. But thank you. I appreciate the gesture as well as you bailing me out of class today.” This was probably the longest you had ever spoken to him and he was surprisingly pleasant. Maybe there was a nice guy under his normally cold personality. And to think all it took was some caffeine. 

“What are you watching?” He questions, now fully opening the door. “Um, just some bad sitcom. It's nothing really.” You are confused at his sudden niceness. “Can I watch with you?” He questions what has happened to the Anakin you knew 24 hours ago. He must have caught onto your questions as he speaks; “look, I realised that I haven't been the best roommate and I kinda shut down all your attempts to be friends. And I was thinking maybe we could start over?” he directs his eyesight away from you. “oh sure, yeah, I would like that” you reply and nod to the space next to you on the bed. He steps into your room for probably the first time and you can see him take in the posters and assorted belongings everywhere. Making his way to your bed, he plonks down beside you and you resume play. 

It had been two months since the energy drink incident and it was safe to say you and Anakin were now friends. It made your life a lot easier now that you and your roommate got along. Every Friday night you would alternate picking a film to watch in either of your rooms and you begin to look forward to these small moments with him. You even caught yourself counting down the minutes until he arrived after his classes, which finished later than yours did. It was silly how you had begun to develop what could only be described as a crush on the mechanical engineering major (you had finally picked up what he was studying). 

Pushing open the door to your room, you make your way to the kitchenette. You are about to grab out a frozen pizza to cook for dinner when the front door unlocks and Anakin comes in holding a bag. He shuts the door with his back, kicking off his shoes in the process. “Nope, not tonight” you look at him questionably. “Tonight we dine Like royalty” setting the bag down he pulls out a selection of ingredients. 

20 minutes later Anakin is telling you to sit down before producing 2 plates of actual, non-frozen food. Who knew the guy could also cook. He passes one of the plates to you before he sits down to your side. “I didn't know you could cool” you state, “I don't really either, I had to follow a recipe” he replies, “but it smells good”. You both dig into the warm food, a change to your unpredictable diet of late. 

After a few long minutes of silent eating Anakin looks up at you “not bad if I do say so myself.” You laugh “this is really good, you should cook more often.” “Maybe” he replies before finishing off his food. You also finish your plate and you both stand up to wash the few dishes created. After a lot of stumbling around the tiny kitchen to put the plates back in their original place, you both collapse onto the old couch. 

“That was nice,” he says, turning his head to face you. “Yeah” you agree. The almost set sun makes the room dim and you really should go finish your studying. You nod towards your room and get up, “well the papers call me again” you joke and he rolls his eyes. You almost make it to your door before he calls your name and throws you a can of your favorite drink, which you almost drop. You save your hand in thanks before heading inside.  Something about the drink in your hand feels off, it's lighter than usual. 

Settling down on your bed you take the can in your hands and open it. There is no drink inside. On closer inspection you notice that the bottom has been cut out of it and put back. As well as this there is a roll of paper in it. Fishing it out with your fingers, you unfold it. ‘kitchen counter’ is all it reads. You get up again and open the door, seeing another can on the counter. Anakin isn't here either, spiking your confusion. You pick it up seeing that it is empty as well, apart from another piece of paper. ‘come to the roof’ it reads. 

Curiosity peaking, you throw on a sweater and your shoes before heading out to the roof. After climbing the multiple flights of stairs you reach the door to the roof. You push it open with your side and step out on concrete. The sun is casting its last light over the tops of the buildings, silhouetting Anakin as he stands. 

You step towards him and he smiles at you before he speaks. “hi” you reply with another “hi.” he reaches up behind his head nervously, a side to Anakin you hadn't seen before. He seems to think for a moment before speaking, “I know this is stupid, but I think I like you and I'm not sure what to do.” You stand there stunned at his confession, before he corrects himself, “I know I like you, more than I should. And I know I shouldn't because I was an asshole to you for 6 months.” 

You don't know what to say. He likes you. The guy you like is standing here saying he likes you. You make up your mind before stepping closer to him. “I like you too, Anakin.” He looks surprised, clearly expecting a completely different reaction. You reach him and take his hand in yours, “like I really like you” you laugh nervously. 

“Can I kiss you?” He asks and you nod in reply. He leans down and places a gentle kiss to your lips before you wrap your hands around his neck. ‘It really is something out of the movies,’ you think to yourself and smile. He places his forehead against yours and you and Anakin both burst out laughing. “Thank God for your caffeine addiction.”

I wrote this at an ungodly hour and i'm not sure it makes sense, no beta reader - we die like real men

[kaytheday]

This idea has been bouncing around my head for the last few days so I thought I'd write it out and see if it's worth anything. I might write it when I have more time but I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts on it. It would be a long fic and it would start two-three yearsish after canon. Anyway... let me know what you think!

It starts when Sodapop gets his draft letter. From there, we get to see all the goodbyes and the heartache. Ponyboy is in college and he starts becoming part of protest groups. During this time in the Vietnam war, college campus protest groups were popping up all over the place. He joins one after meeting this girl in his political science class. Partly because she’s kind of cute and partly because he’s thinking of Soda getting shot at. Meanwhile he's sending letters back-and-forth with his brother anyway. 

As we know in American history, these protests quickly turn violent. For example, the Kent state shootings where four kids were murdered and nine were injured. These kinds of things are happening all over the country. Protests are becoming very violent as fights break out and kids get arrested. Ponyboy keeps going with it, thinking of his brother over in Vietnam. 

The first time he gets arrested is because of a protest. It got rather violent and he was trying to stop a cop from bludgeoning a friend of his to death. They take him down to the station and tell him to cool off in a holding cell. He figures he’ll call Darry in the morning or something because he doesn’t want to bother him. Darry finds out where he is through sheer worry because he never came home. Darry yells at him and stuff and Pony apologizes and promises not to do it again. 

Spoiler alert, he keeps protesting and Darry is always the one picking him up so there's some contention there between those two. Darry is obviously very scared for him and also for the person he is becoming and Pony wants to fight because Soda is still in Vietnam and he feels like it’s the only thing he can do. 

Then Soda dies, he gets shot and killed and that about kills Darry and Ponyboy. Ponyboy goes a little nuts goes a little nuts and Darry doesn’t see him for two weeks. In this time, Ponyboy tries to put together some sort of bombing/very violent protest. It fails and he ends up getting beat half to death and thrown in a jail cell. Darry picks him up from jail and breaks down crying begging Pony to stop throwing his life away. 

Ponyboy nods and smiles and sleeps off whatever acid tablet he popped the night before and gets it in his head that Darry would be better off without him. Realizing he hasn’t been to a single one of his college classes in nearly three or four weeks, he decides to drop out of college and move to New York. He tells Darry his plan and of course there is a full blown argument. 

“You’re just trying to give me what you never had-” and “My future isn’t yours-” Anyway, it ends with Ponyboy storming out and hopping a bus straight to NYC. 

He goes to Woodstock. He takes some acid off some guy and has a really bad trip during Jefferson Airplane's set. Maybe he sees Soda being shot over and over or sits with Johnny while he’s covered in burns. Possibly even seeing those two begging him to save them as they’re covered in blood and burns. Either way, it’s really bad. Some guy drags him to the medical tent where he is taken care of this really nice woman with a child that is three years old. He gets really freaked out by how much the kid looks like Soda. The kid's name? Rainbow Pepsi McGill. He quickly realizes that the woman taking care of him is Sandy. She did have Soda’s kid all those years ago. She never cheated, she just needed to go where Soda couldn’t follow. Maybe they go to lunch and talk about everything and Ponyboy deems it too painful to continue talking to her. Because of all the acid in his system, he keeps getting freaked out because of how much the kid looks like Soda. He ends up running out of the lunch and leaving Sandy alone.

After this, he heads back to NYC, crashing at some drifter friend's house to sleep off whatever happened to him. The next day the friend kicks him out because he wants to spend time with his girlfriend or something like that and Pony is left to wander the city. 

He’s wandering around (not using his head) when he wanders into a black neighborhood. He starts getting weird looks and even a couple of stray comments when he notices what he walked into. Right as he’s about to get beat up a woman runs in and intervenes. Who is it? 

Ace freaking Evans. Because apparently I can't write a story without incorporating her anymore because I love her so much. I literally wrote 60,000 words as a testament to how much I love her. 

Turns out she has been living in NYC since she graduated high school with a couple of girls she met at a church on the corner border of Oklahoma and Missouri. She just got back from none other than the Harlem cultural festival. She looks good in her mini skirts with a big afro and her girl friends surrounding her. She pulls Ponyboy into a tight hug, squeezing the living daylights out of him before promptly smacking the shit out of him.

“You know Darry is worried sick about you!” She yelled at him before he looks up at her meekly and doesn’t say anything. Ace then notices how bad he seems to look and she tells her girlfriends to take a hike before pulling him into some restaurant to cool off. They spend time reconnecting and catching up. They both didn’t know that the other made it out of Tulsa. Ponyboy didn’t think that Ace would take Soda’s death as hard as him but she did. I mean… she basically cuts off contact with the entire gang except for Steve at the point. 

Ponyboy hasn’t talked to Darry in about six months at this point, disappearing off the face of the earth. Darry had been tracking down every hood on the East Side to try and find him because we forget, Darry lost Soda too and he’s struggling. Right now Ponyboy is his only blood family left. Ace knows this, Darry calls her weekly to make sure he hasn’t seen him and also to make sure Ace is doing okay. He misses her a whole hell of a lot, even if she won’t tell him where she is. 

But anyway, Ponyboy stays at Ace’s for the night and she manages to put his head back on straight and get him to call Darry. He finally does, Ponyboy apologizes for arguing and disappearing and immediately Darry wants to see him. From here, it all gets wrapped up really nicely. Maybe Ponyboy goes back to Oklahoma or maybe Darry comes up to NYC. Either way they see each other and everyone can start to heal. 

[primamchorus]

Arms and Glaives

In the days following the attack of the Wall that protects the Crown City, both former Arms-in-training are called to meet with Ater Somnium. All the while, both Libertus and Nyx are called to meet with Captain Drautos mildly regarding the state of things.

Word count: 2,630

FFXV: Reimagined Table of Contents

<- Previous • Next ->

Wiping the sweat from her brow, Primam had been taken away to the medical and triage center of the Glaive HQ. She had no say in the matter when Mollis came to retrieve her. After the attack at the Wall just a few nights ago, there were a number of Glaive that had come back, beaten and battered. Ever since being stripped of title alongside her twin brother, this was the new, glamorous life she had to grow accustomed to over the last half year.

"How are we feeling?" Primam asked, her hand outstretched over one Glaive's injury. She was taking care of a deep cut that ran nearly the whole length of the arm of the person she was tending to. Their stitches had already come loose — no doubt a result of pushing themselves after receiving them.

With her grasp of White magic, Primam's Cura spell worked to mend the wound together, leaving behind a smaller scar than if it had healed naturally on its own.

The Glaive moved their arm around and then flexed their fingers before a scoff of disbelief fell from their lips. "I can hardly tell I was hurt to begin with! Thanks!"

"That's good to hear…" Primam said with a small smile before she stood back up on her feet. "Still, treat it as if you still have that injury. I know I have no real jurisdiction to tell you what to do, though I do recommend setting aside some time for rest. You will feel extremely tired within the next half hour due to the magic's speeding up your body's healing process — you'll feel like you've ran a marathon once it catches up with you."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Primam watched as the Glaive hopped off the cot and threw their jacket back on. With a sigh, she could also feel her own body wanting so desperately for rest. There was only so much that she, the other medical-based Glaive, and even those under the employ of House Viridis could do to allay the injuries the surviving Glaive sustained from the attack.

All of it was so worrying. It was not as if Niflheim making advances on the territories of Lucis was anything new… But to have come and try to breach the Wall?

Primam's face scrunched slightly.

The very fact that Emperor Ideolas Aldercapt now wanted to sign a treaty for peace after pressing such a display of force… It beggared belief.

"Prim." A familiar voice made Primam snap her attention over. She saw her twin brother walking in through the doorway, a furrow in his brow as he neared.

"Tandem?" Primam was surprised to see him at all. He was not as magically gifted as she was, so there was barely a reason for him to have been there under normal circumstances. She turned to face him more fully. "What is it?"

"Ater is summoning us…" Tandem kept his words brief and to the point. His expression already spoke volumes as to his discomfort for the situation at hand. "I know you're busy down here, but Mollis made it sound pretty urgent."

"I'll assume Captain Drautos is aware…" Primam replied.

"Who cares if he is?" Tandem asked with a shrug, his question rhetorical. "Either way, Ater's word take precedence over Drautos' any way you slice it."

While that statement was true, Primam could not help the frown that tugged at her lips. It was clear that Captain Drautos had been taken unaware by their placement in the Glaive when they were presented before him. It seemed their mother, Gratia, had not taken the time to inform Drautos of such matters.

As such, it made Primam wary of doing much within the Glaive without 'proper' permission. After all, with the way Drautos often addressed them so curtly since their recruitment… It was completely different than when they had seen Drautos otherwise back when they were made to be at Noctis' side.

"Lead the way…" Primam motioned forward briefly. Once Tandem turned and started walking on his way, Primam fell into step behind him.

Walking the halls of the Glaive HQ always felt like a pale imitation of walking the halls of the Citadel. Sure, the architecture could have been called similar…all just a construct of Insomnia with the telltale Insomnian design. But no matter how long it had been since the twins had been stationed within the Glaive, the sand and ivory tones of the Glaive HQ versus the obsidian and warm tones of the Citadel really just cemented the fact that they walked within the shade of what 'home' was to them. Even the silence that lingered between them as they walked was something so foreign. Especially as it stayed settled between them all the way til they reached the door to Ater's office.

Tandem rapped his knuckles against the door. When a voice from beyond invited them to enter, the twins filed in and stood before the desk where Ater was seated.

"Glad you two could make it," Ater greeted with a smile on his face. He then gestured toward the leather seats, inviting both Primam and Tandem to sit.

Both continued to stand.

"Master Ater…" Primam began. Her brow was set in a somewhat worried furrow. With so many Glaive that needed aid, she did feel torn between standing there and needing to go back to help those within her same station. "Apologies…it's just…there aren't enough medical staff to care for the Glaive. I apologize if I seem in a rush to inquire as to why Tandem and I have been called here by you."

Normally, Primam would have never considered speaking up before those ranked higher than her had a chance to speak their part. These were, however, quite interesting times that they were all living in right now. And these interesting times seemed to make it so that this weight of time needed to be managed properly with each ticking second.

"Ah…yes. The medical situation is quite dire — more given that Arbor is unable to tend to anything since many of us have been required to double our efforts in our stations since the announcement of the peace treaty…" Ater laced his fingers together and then rested them over his mouth, a contemplative expression befalling his face. "I will tend to what I can in your absence should you both be amenable to what I'd like to offer you."

"Which is?" Tandem pressed, his arms coming up to fold over his chest.

"Prince Noctis is due to leave tomorrow," Ater replied simply.

"… 'Tomorrow'?" Primam repeated, her face twisting into confusion. "But…he's due to wed the Lady Oracle here in the city in the next—"

"Is what we want Niflheim to believe is the plan…" Ater interjected. He stood from his desk and walked around it. "Noctis and his selected retinue will be leaving the city to depart for Altissia where he and Lady Lunafreya will be wed instead."

"Why weren't we told?" Tandem's brow tightly knitted together with annoyance.

"Because as Arms of the King, you would have no doubt found a way to go with him, and we need you here." Ater frowned with this statement. "Just as we need Mollie and those of the Voxes here. With the peace treaty signing happening soon, it is now I must tell you to be prepared for anything. As such, I must also ask you to act as Arms of the People until such a time you can reclaim your mantles of Arm of the King."

"Isn't the date still undecided? What the hell does that mean?" Tandem hissed, his fingers digging into his arm.

Ater pursed his lips. "I'm afraid I can't say more than that. All you need to know is that you will know when the time comes."

Both Tandem and Primam fell into silence, mulling over what Ater revealed to them.

"… So what exactly are you offering us?" Tandem finally asked.

"Reprieve from the Glaive HQ and duties thereof for the day," Ater replied. "You can use this time to see Noctis and wish him well. It's the least I can do for the two of you. I know your mother won't."

Primam's lips parted, surprise on her face as she looked up at Ater. "Th…Thank you, Master Ater."

Ater's expression softened. "It's the least I could do… Now go on. The two of you are wasting valuable daytime."

"What if our mother catches wind?" Tandem asked, skeptical for the situation at large compared to Primam. "Don't get me wrong, Ater, I just want to know that Gratia doesn't hear back about this. Or if she does, then it'd be good to know that she can at least shove it up her—"

Ater held up a hand to silence Tandem. "Gratia will not hear word of this. As it so happens, she is currently out all day attending a meeting with the King and the rest of the royal council. Sans myself, of course."

"And why aren't you present?" Tandem's eyes narrowed.

"Someone needs to oversee the Glaive, and given the attack on the Wall last night, we cannot entrust this fully to either Cor nor Captain Drautos. Besides…" Ater sighed, his expression changing slightly to concern. "Cor has already been stationed at the city outskirts per the King's order. He's already taken his own selection of Crownsguard with him."

Pursing her lips, Primam mulled over everything told to both she and Tandem in that time. The more she thought about it, the more her brow creased with consideration. She was about to open her mouth to ask a question before Tandem beat her to it.

"So Cor's not at the stuffy meetings, either? Since when did the Noble Houses go out past the Wall for duty? Surely the Guard and the Glaive are more than enough to take care of the Wall. Hell…you have Prim and I to take care of things as part of the Glaive now — not that anyone has bothered to send us out there." Tandem's voice carried an uneasy edge to it, as if trying to make sense of the situation overall while also justifying his stance.

"We can't send 'new recruits' out to defend the Wall. That's what you are… In a sense." Ater rolled his hand. "Look. Stop asking questions. I told you what I can. Know that there's a reason for everything. Now get on out of here and meet with the Prince."

Tandem's step forward to keep pressing was Primam's cue to grab her brother by the arm and tug him toward the door. She kept her attention on Ater, a tired though grateful smile on her face. "Thank you, Master Ater, for this opportunity. I hope that we can go ahead and repay it at some point."

Primam turned her attention toward Tandem.

"We should get showered and dressed to meet with Noctis."

It took a couple seconds, but Tandem eventually relented and relaxed, turning toward the door himself. "Yeah, let's get going. Thanks, Ater."

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

The briefing room was empty, which Libertus seemed to enjoy, surprisingly. Of course, with his left leg bound in a cast up to the middle of his shin, Libertus was off duty for quite some time as he had to abide by any physical therapy that he was assigned. Most of what his duties included were running any errands he was capable of…which was not exactly much.

Libertus sat up straight in the chair he was in when he heard the creaking of the door opening. Looking at the entryway, he noted a tall man in a captain’s uniform. The man within that uniform was Captain Titus Drautos — the one Kingsglaive answered to if Clarus Amicitia, Gratia Chorus, Cor Leonis, nor Ater Somnium were there to keep watch over every little thing.

“Thank you for coming, Libertus,” Titus said before pausing and scanning the room. His gaze fell back upon Libertus with the barest hint of bemusement before he asked, "Where’s Nyx?"

“On his way. What’s up?” Libertus asked, reaching for his crutches and standing to his feet. It was more out of respect than anything.

“I wanted one of you to see the Prince back to his place in the city,” Titus briefly explained, a frown settling on his lips. Libertus could only imagine that the stern expression was because Nyx was late. If anything, Libertus was hoping Nyx had a good excuse.

“Seriously? Dropping off the Prince?” Libertus sighed, failing at masking the annoyance in his tone as he leaned on the support of one of his crutches. He was hoping for a more meaningful errand than being a chauffeur. “Are we babysitters now?”

“It’s the price to pay for using his car,” Titus replied nonchalantly as he made his way toward one of the Lucian maps.

“To do what, exactly?” Libertus asked, unsure if he would actually receive an answer.

“To safeguard our esteemed guests,” Titus said as if it were obvious. “It’s the only one worthy of the task.”

Irritation and annoyance on Libertus’ face gave way to gloom and worry after Captain Drautos spoke. He pursed his lips a couple times, struggling to find the right words before finally asking: “It’ll be a peaceful exchange, won’t it? Any car should do….”

A twinge of annoyance came back when Libertus heard Titus quietly laugh to himself.

“I take it you’re not a fan of the ceasefire, huh?” Captain Drautos asked, meandering toward one of the great arched windows and staring out at the Glaive training yard. Libertus noticed some Glaives out there practicing how to warp.

“I dunno…” Libertus finally managed to say after pushing away his annoyance to the best of his ability and reaffirming his attention onto Captain Drautos. “I want peace like anyone else. I should be happy if no one else has to get hurt like this.”

“But you can’t be happy,” Titus said, adopting a more steeled tone. “Not with these terms.”

If Libertus could shift anymore of his weight onto his crutches without falling, he probably would have in that moment. Everything about the ceasefire’s terms was disappointing. It was not as if Galahd was going to be rebuilt by Niflheim — the land itself was going to be absorbed into it instead. The prospect was not at all something that Libertus wanted. It was not what most of his Galahd friends and comrades in arms wanted. They were fighting for Insomnia in hopes that they could eventually reclaim their lands — their homes — after all.

“‘Course not…” Libertus spoke, his voice quiet. “You know we’re all thinking the same thing…”

Titus fell quiet, his eyes scanning the training grounds before they went up and glanced around the opposing buildings. His chest heaved with a silent sigh before he glanced at Libertus and then his leg.

“How is it?” Titus asked, changing the subject. “Your leg, that is.”

“Still need these crutches to get around,” Libertus replied, his voice still carrying that dejected tone. A soldier that could not fight was useless for the most part. That was how Libertus felt for the time being.

“I see…” Titus gave another silent sigh. "Sorry for calling you out here, then. Assignments have been updated, so have a look. After that, go home and rest that leg."

Libertus cocked his head to the side somewhat, confused. “What about the Prince?”

“Nyx’ll handle it.”

“... ‘Preciate it.” Libertus straightened himself out and adjusted his crutches at either side of him. “Guess I’ll head home, then.”

“Take care, Libertus,” Titus said, watching as Libertus hobbled out of the briefing room.

Libertus paused only briefly to give a halfhearted wave to his Captain before limping down the hallway.

[ghost-of-you]

Ima hop in talking to throw my two sense about this major break that’s coming up for 5sos, anonymously as someone who runs a anonymous 5sos confessions blog.

There’s a lot of new people in this fandom who’ve never experienced a 5sos break, and still have trauma from either 1D or other bands who took a break and then disbanded before the reunion. Or are fans of bands who are also in a limbo and are worried about what’s going to happen. (Looking at 1975 fans, I wish the best for yall)

And I’m a mixture of both! I was here for the first break, but drifted into other music genres during it, and kinda forgot about 5sos for a while, but came back within the last 3 years.

Plus for those who were here for the first break - there’s a lot of different factors that add into the uncertainty this time, like Michael becoming a dad!

There’s a lot of feelings being thrown around in the music industry of what happens before/during breaks that adds to what a break means now vs when the first break happened. It’s just… a lot.

Okay, look, I'm nice and I'm understanding but right now I'm gonna sound like a bitch and I don't care. Whatever experience anyone has with any other band doesn't matter. What happened with one direction is different from what is happening with the 1975, that's different from what happened with big time rush, that's different from what happened to why don't we, that's different from what happened to the Jonas brothers, I can keep going but you catch my drift. They are different bands, formed by different people, in different ways, with different believes and way to make music. No one thought backstreet boys were ever gonna come back and they just did a world tour, NSYNC was seen together just last month for the first time in YEARS, bands can take breaks and reform and regroup and move on if they want. I think this expectation that you're owed content all of the time is crazy. Album cycles shouldn't be just month long things. They should be allowed to work on something for longer. They should be allowed to not tour every 6 months. 5sos released 5 album in 10 years. An album every 2 years is a fucking good number. But even if it takes them another 2, 3, 5 years, it's their right as humans to take as much space as they want. I understand why people might be scared, but no one has the right to demand anything from anyone. Maybe Luke and Ashton will release more solo music, maybe they'll go on a tour, maybe Calum will drop a poetry book, maybe we won't see them for 5 years and then they'll announce the announcement of a new song. They can do whatever they want. You can't honestly expect to have access or content or tour at all times. They are grown men with lives and families who worked hard to learn how to exist outside a band they started when they were teenagers.

And yes, Michael is gonna be a father, but one, he's not the first musician ever to have a kid so that doesn't mean anything, but you also can't expect him to not be there for his daughter. Baby girl Clifford should be his priority but in nowhere is stated that you can't be a father and a musician.

And to compare 5sos to one direction is not a fair comparison, one direction was formed in a reality show by people who only wanted to explore them. 5sos were friends first and they are still friends first. Maybe they won't drop an album every year anymore. Maybe they won't make a tour with 101 concerts in less than 8 months. But that doesn't make them any less of a band, it they are doing shorter tours and longer album cycles.

Also, if they break up, they broke up, we can't force them to stay a band.

But I stand by the fact that these men went through quarantine, lost a whole record with calm due to an internal error, dropped their label, their management, both Ashton and Luke released solo albums, with Luke signing a 3 record deal if I'm not mistaken , Michael got signed as a dj and a producer, and they still released a whole album independently that was made the way they wanted. If they were gonna stop being a band they would've done in it in 2020. They're allowed whatever breaks they want or need. They are real humans. And they are not one direction.

But this break they are taking is something that they planned around it, or do you think it's an accident the tour ended just in time for Michael to be back home for the birth of his daughter? This tour wasn't scheduled, they could've not done it. But they chose to do it. But to look at them and accuse of being about to breakup and lying about it because they are taking a break for a very specific and unbelievably valid reason is bullshit.

I don't care about whatever trauma you may have about other bands. What happened to other bands happened to other bands. You can't make a different situation about them because it's never gonna be the same because there's different people involved.

Is their life. Their choice. We're just along for the ride. It's a hell of a good one so far and if this is it so be it. It's their choice.

And honestly, if you're actually this affected by one direction breaking up and this is not just some exaggeration for the bit or a joke, get help.

[snkts]

❛   volumes .   gaze  at  my  muse  in  a  way  that  silently  says  ‘i love you’ . [ from scott, for the scogan of it all ]

If you’d asked Logan, oh, forty years ago, if he’d ever consider himself a teacher, he’d have said no. Actually, he would’ve laughed. Or growled. Or thrown something. Maybe a mix of those. He wasn’t a people person. (Some didn’t even think he was a ‘person’.) He shouldn’t be around kids. He was too rough around the edges. He swore too much. Smoked and drank too much. Fought too much. Take your pick. He wasn’t a teacher. He was a soldier. An assassin. A weapon. An animal.

And he had believed it. He had treated those thoughts as gospel because they were the only things that made sense. Everyone else had thought that way, so he'd just hopped on the train with ‘em. It was easier, and every time Logan tried to prove them wrong, something happened to indicate they were right. And then he’d come to the Institute.

Then he’d found the X-Men.

He had forgotten what it felt like to come home before them. And with them, he’d also remembered how to be a person. He’d had to re-learn who ‘Logan’ was. And, yeah, okay, this Logan could be a teacher. He had no idea what he was doing at first, but he’d found his footing. He was figuring out how to make it work. The kids seemed to like him well enough. And he… He liked them, too. He enjoyed teaching. Looking out for the kids felt right, even if they drove him up the wall sometimes. That’s why he was here. Not just in some big, metaphorical sense, either - it’s why he was literally in this spot.

“Keep it up.” He said, shifting his weight and crossing his arms. “Don’t slow your pace. Push yourself.” His eyes tracked the movements of the students as they navigated the course. They were doing well. Working together, communicating… Way better time than the last run of this particular sim. In fact, they-

“Whoa!” His ears prick. His feet move before he fully registers. The world blurs- Then comes to a halt second before one of the students falls into his waiting arms.

“Easy, kid.” He says, propping them up on their feet. “Gotta watch those flight patterns.”

“Right.” The kid scratched at the back of their head and grinned sheepishly. “Thanks for the save, Logan.”

“Don't mention it.” He says, stepping back and crossing his arms. “Keep your eyes open.”

“I will!” They said, running off to restart the course. Logan nods and watches them go. Soon, they’re back up in the air, laughing with their teammates. Movement, footsteps, a heartbeat off to the side. Logan looks up and sees Scott. He’s standing on the porch, his arms folded on the bannister, and though Logan can't see his eyes behind the sunglasses, he's smiling. … His hair looks especially soft in the sunlight.

“What?” Logan asked. Scott shrugged and said nothing, but kept smiling. Logan arches a brow and tilted his head - but there was a ghost of a smile on his own face as he returned to the lesson.

[photon-bytez]

SOMEBODY ONCE TOLD ME-

I know it’s been a very long while since our last episode, but after dealing with other projects, along with real life getting in the way from time to time, we’re finally continuing our next part of the second road trip across the Maasrichtian. While it only has 5 segments like the last episode, and does borrow some of last season’s “Freshwater” thunder quite a bit, I still had a good time with Swamps. And the segments presented here do bring a few things to the table for PHP in general. You’ll see what I mean when we get into them.

Snacks on the wing

The episode starts with the wetlands of Asia, where baby azhdarchid pterosaurs are attempting to fly for the first time. Keeping up with this show’s record of baby animals meeting their end, the pterosaurs have to deal with the threat of getting eaten by a horde of Shamosuchus. Unlike the Simosuchus from earlier in the season, these relatives to today’s crocodiles and alligators comfort more to the shape that we’re used to seeing these reptiles in. While I don’t have much to say about this segment, I find it cool how it draws comparisons with how Freshwater crocodiles hunt flying foxes in Australia. Even when millions of years apart, some hunting strategies are just that good.

Gone fishin’

The episode then cuts to the forests of South America, where the focus is on a truly unique animal; Austroraptor. For those not aware, this was a species of raptor dinosaur that was not only huge for its family (Think 20 feet long), it also lived a life of hunting fish. These of these guys like what would happen if a grizzly bear and a heron had a baby together. The plot of this segment shows a young male trying to score some lunch of his own. Many of the larger adults can only only catch garfish like it’s not their problem (which is something that our male is new to), but they can be aggressive, often attacking each other if one of them disrupts the other’s hunt. Until he learns how to catch prey successfully, the best option that the main male has to take is to snatch someone else’s prey, and try not to lose at least a few feathers in the process.

“Hippity hoppity, get off my property”

We then cut back to Madagascar to see the return of another Season 1 veteran. Y’all must’ve loved Beelzebufo so much, you all wanted to see more of the bay dinosaur-eating frog (And I really wouldn’t blame any of y’all). And fortunately, Apple heard everyone’s pleas for the devil toad to return, so here we are! The segment has a male Beelzebufo trying to find a good place to attract a mate. Unfortunately for the frog, a herd of Rapetosaurus just happened to come back and waddle in the mud, making things even harder for the Beelzebufo. That must be frustrating.

The Beelzebufo then has to find a new place to set up his courtship display, away from the titanosaurs. After a bit of hopping around, and even doing this…

Keep on rollin’

Our champ eventually finds a good enough spot to try again, with the Rapetosaurus herd moving on. They even leave footprints in the mud that get filled with water. The only complaint that I have for this scene is the lack of the Beelzebufo raising his eventual tadpoles. The concept art for the devil toad that was made by Gaëlle Seguillon refers to it as “Beelzebufo adult”, so it could be possible that devil tadpoles were considered to be in the show. Either that, or we could see another Beelzebufo-themed segment in a possible Season 3, taking alot of inspiration from how African bullfrog males raise their young. I may or may not be planning to add that to my hypothetical Season 3 idea, so keep your eyes peeled.

Head Games

Despite the episode literally being called “Swamps”, we cut to a dusty plain in North America, where the area in question used to be a swamp that eventually dried up. It’s here where we see the second pachycephalosaur of the series in the form of Pachycephalosaurus itself. It’s no secret that the domed heads of these creatures were used for some sort of territorial display, so we see an older male fighting a younger and rowdy male, who has been causing trouble for the herd. After a long and hard duel, the old male is knocked down, and his younger rival bellows out in victory. This turns out to be a bad idea, as it gives the old male time to get back up and strike down his rival. With the battle lost, the young male is then exiled from the herd, where he has to fend for himself. I’m not gonna lie, he’s gonna need everything in his kit to survive. Y’know why?

In the night, no one can hear you roar

The last segment of the episode shows us how basically terrifying T. Rex can be when hunting. After the last season shows how these giant predators can be doting parents or a loving couple, this segment serves as a reminder that this is still Tyrannosaurus Rex that we’re talking about. When night falls on the floodplains of Hell Creek, a couple of T. Rex brothers stalk around the forest, spying on a group of Edmontosaurus. The two split up, with one of them stepping on a fallen branch, intentionally causing the herd to get nervous. Thanks to their padded feet muffling any heavy footsteps that could be heard, along with their extremely good night vision, the predators spring into action. While one of them lunges for an Edmontosaurus, the latter is sent towards the other T. Rex. With both of them clamping their bone-crushing jaws into their hapless prey, the hunt is soon over, and the two get to enjoy their hard-earned meal. A funny thing to mention is how neither of the T. Rex crashed into the opening, roaring as they charged towards their prey. Large predators cannot afford to waste precious energy by running out and screaming like a mad man, so they need to be careful, often turning to ambush tactics to catch prey. If anything, this instance of averting usual pop-culture depictions of dinosaurs serves to make these beasts scarier than they already were. Unlike the mindless, perpetually roaring and shrinking movie monster that shakes the ground itself with every step, you’d never see or hear the real thing coming, until it’s too late…

This takes the phrase “Bonehead” to a new level

The Uncovered segment of the episode takes a closer look at how pachycephalosaurs like Pachycephalosaurus used their domed heads in fighting. I don’t have alot to say about this part, but I can say that headaches must be a major pain when it comes to these guys.

And with that, we only have 2 episodes left. I apologize for pumping this review out late into the month. Being busy with other projects, along with dealing with real life stuff and being a lazy ass from time to time can do that to you. Nonetheless, the next review on our list covers one of my favorite episodes in the entire series so far, so that’ll be fun when we get to it. Get ready to “dive” in again next time, because we’re gonna be soaking up the thirst of the land.

…I hope you laughed at that joke.

[tazienimp]

Been thinking of some angst art ideas the last couple of days, hmmmmm.... okay, so, hear me out. I have this one couple? Glitch and Sabrina. Love em to death, my sweet baby girls, I've had them ever since i was a teenager, like longer than I've had Crys, they been around a very long time, but i haven't been able to do much with them until now.

Glitch is a hedgehog, she's a ghost trapped in the digital world, she perished and eventually lost all living memories because she couldn't find the way back to the door she came in from and corruption set in, and her girlfriend Sabrina, a wolf, often visits her and on occasion, when Glitch lets her make them, applies patch updates to try and hold back the corruption.

Digital ghosts will die due to corruption, which is similar to physical ghost starvation in the way it kills the ghost over time, though unlike starvation, which can be cured or treated by providing a robotic body or another living person to use as a vessel, or just handing the ghosts a chaos emerald to refuel their energy once in a while, corruption is the result of too much energy to the point it literally starts dissolving them, and because digital ghosts cannot exit the digital realm just like physical ghosts cannot enter it, there is no cure for corruption, even if they do get their own robotic body. Even the patches Sabrina does make for her girlfriend, they'll eventually not be enough, the corruption will continue to rapidly evolve, and undo all that work in a matter of weeks, or days, or hours, and progress past it anyway, so even if she spent 100% of her time patching Glitch, it'd only give the digihog about 7 years tops, and most of that time would be spent with Sabrina locked away in her office, neglecting herself while Glitch continues to wander alone through digispace between infrequent visits. Glitch convinces her already grieving mate not to subject them to that kind of life, which may as well be a slow death for them both. All she wants is to enjoy her last years with them being happy together, with small patches here and there for managing pain and keeping the rest of her memories intact. She disintegrates after 3 years, the best 3 years of their lives due to this decision, but she leaves happy and contented, holding her soulmate, singing to her to ease her beloved's grief, while performing nothing short of a miracle.

SOOOOOO~ The idea is, showing the moment she finally thanos snaps into nothingness. It's not the end of their story~ there's something digital ghosts can do that physical ghosts can't, the little aforementioned miracle. They can create copies of biosignatures if they know how and if they obtain enough stable data to work with. Meaning, she can and does leave Sabrina a parting gift borne of their love, so Sabrina doesn't have to be alone when she's gone.

I'm not sure what the baby will look like just yet, but she's gonna be a mix of wolf and hedgehog. She'll probably be a bit like Sage, in the aspect that she can hop between realities without the use of extrenal hardware, and she's able to manipulate code a lot easier than either of her mothers could. She would also have a touch of corruption, but unlike Glitch, she's alive. And she was made with the souls of both a living physical person, and a digital ghost. Her condition is actually treatable, her code is made up in a way where she's partialy immune to it, as she can withstand the constant energy that causes it in ghosts. It would be an ongoing thing, but as long as the patches are kept up to date, it has no shot ìn hell of killing or harming her, her Momma will make sure of it.

All of this was inspired by this song, Goodbye to a World, which tbh I've been kinda obsessed with for a few years, the inspo just took a while to hit i guess XDDDD

Also yes i am 100% allergic to happy endings, tehee~

I'll get to work on it when i get home, cause i literally can't shake it XDDDD the brainworms been eating at me about this for a few days, so, YIPPEEEEE MORE LOOOORE, Also a break from Mephdoom stuff, cause i been drawing them way too much and been letting the rest of my au kinda fall by the wayside ^^'

[30306-home]

i got these rolls of 8mm film from j.robinson… the second time in ‘21 that, so i typically, i ran into him- no way out… it was okay though bc he was a lot nicer than the first time (which i’m having trouble getting to- and involved news of awful thing hope had done (when i do get there, and i guess thing is kind of a backwards segway, the biggest thing is that i… this really wouldn’t be important unless i had a really good reason to get it out, and embarrassing her or anything like that is the very very very last thing i thing i want to happen- maybe it’s even beyond the point of her name being attached anyway, and more about the repercussions in that have been so massive for me. it’s not something to just adapt to it and time has been everything but helpful. it’s not even a “healing” type thing. it’s like a broken thing that i am left all the little pieces everywhere i look and it’s not a thing i can let get the best of me, like it has- but is positively not sustainable, i’m out of patience, i can’t get too tired or angry or scared or intimidated to give in . i don’t have another plan (in general, it’s not a “plan” bc that implies that “changing” an option. there’s tons and tons of room to move around and have nothing predictable, as a “plan” would). there’s no way i’d let anything so trivial force my life in any direction that takes away that kind of choice, and it never had any business here in the first place.

i was saying, the film strips… i didn’t finish that part, but i started talking for whatever it’s worth.

back to finish that thought:

the, i retrieved 8mm film, i do not have tons of them that are already on reels and at j. rs’s house- he’s not keeping me from them- i’m not keeping him from his baby book, we just never did that part, and, i’m sorta glad bc there’s even been time to really talk about anything, what’s up (no i honestly don’t think either of us can answer that and or are settle with its lingering, complexity of such a multifaceted relationship- one that’s never faced interference like this, others up in it’s business, being taken advantage of- in every way but the best interest of either of us. more later, but it was a success and yes, hope involved herself…as far as she knows and needs to know it was a success. problem is, besides slighting is both (accidentally/unknowingly j.ro, aimed (why?) at me), by the time that was put together, the tributaries have traveled far.

please consider this a very special writing circumstance that isn’t meant to confuse, but will hit a lot of that, move backwards, forwards, skip chapters for the sake of accomplishing what comes up holds promise at it’s own chosen time. it’s the most doable strategy i can come up with, and right now the only thing missing is “doable”. won’t allow details to take over… can quickly turn “undoable”. this is an excessive amount of prefacing- spanning months/years? i will probably repeat myself by you can accept that, too, bad engrish, hopping, etc- okay. and if you can’t that’s okay, too! i’m just getting a bit out of my head and any bit sound reason is all i hope for… anything really, at all, i’ll take teensy teensy. current state- not okay, no reason, nothing more expected. a comfortable believable area that’s life me in the dust. (and i’m SO nervous to sound “oh poor me”- it just is on me or no body. i should never even know of this experience in life, and it was easy breezy for most of my life (the other part that doesn’t seem to fit). good god, the films. short version, this is all my sweet precious GEM of a dad (j’ro and hope can back that, they were both moved by him… best part- my dad is so innocently oblivious to it all). so i’ve surprised him by digitizing (oh the death of me) these here, will be editing for life- like 70 or something, but only a fraction compared to the rest on reels - which he is aware exist. i don’t think he’s ever seen any, but major things like the worlds fair are missing (possibly even some of his dad who died when he was 7). i’m the sole one that somehow wrangled that house of 4 generations, notebooks and book and films (extreme patience things) being the bulk. he’s hesitantly asked me about the others and i’ve hesitantly said in a shaky voice under my breath that “they are safe and sound………… and ummmmmmmmm at j.ro’s house” and “to not worry, i’ll figure it out, i promise, i’ll just figure it out and they’ll be right here”. my dad asks for NOTHING- he needs nothing, he’s happy and healthy and generous to death. he WILL have those films, projector and all. but not not tomorrow- and not until things are like HE, who ADORE’S j. ro, are back to life. we’re not looking at million years beyond tomorrow either. this is on me- and i’m less than harmless, so and junk, shouldn’t be mine to clean up- but i’m happy to for the love of them both. how? i’m trying to get there, it’s just not going to be an easy ride.

i’m sure i’m repeating that there is/always will be a place in my heart and priceless memories with hope- it a situation, and she’s just in it, and although it’s not accessible to me, it didn’t just walk of, you know it in there, too.

there’s anger here, and i feel extremely guilty and conflicted about expressing anything like that about someone with far too much already… and criticism? with love? i’ve had some major blows, that were deliberate decisions. i’ve really tried to find a way for them to make sense… just a little off the rails in traumatic times and a not acceptable normalcy. it’s like i’ve made some 100% unavoidable life altering “mistakes”(?), so i can’t not worry about everything now- how can i know if this won’t result in that? it’s not to cause anyone any harm, just to untangle some damage done on my end- only so i can be just okay… that= okay=amazing in my world now….. oh good lord the world. i will not stop trying to practice-DEETS LATER, BULLET POINTS NOW. i said i will not stop trying… since it can be jumpy maybe i will do scary parts just fast and quickly take and a special occasion ambien night to celebrate. you’re so going to be, what?? after all this i was expecting something GOOD!!!!

[campmurderparty]

vikram & charlotte.

Vikram gave a little laugh and a slight shrug. “Well, that’s good to know.” though he doubted it was completely true. Even before she found out the truth about his mendacity, there had to have been little things he did to piss her off, especially since they moved in together. Vikram had actually lived with a girlfriend before, either living by himself or with roommates from time to time, so there had been an adjustment period.

“Yeah, well, maybe not a lot of damage, but it would still hurt a little.” she was right, though, that his reflexes had improved since he was turned. “It does change you, the curse. I’m stronger, faster than ever before. The bhaktas are not a sporty family, but now I can run up a wall like spiderman. That’s kind of the only good thing about it all." He never liked physical activity growing up and didn’t like working on a team. It was another reason why the pack lifestyle annoyed him so greatly; if he wanted to be part of some community in his adult life, he would’ve joined a rec league soccer team or something. Now they were all bound together by the moon.

“Oh, you don’t like the rugged wild man look?” Vikram smiled, shaking his hair. The curls tumbled over his face in one big clump, and he already knew his body was streaked with dirt underneath the clothes he pulled on after the change. Once they finished their conversation, he’d hop in the shower and painstakingly comb the knots from his hair. Then he’d probably fall back into bed and sleep for the rest of the day.

He nodded, shrugging one shoulder. “Trust me, it’s a big point of contention in the wolf community. Some people are annoyed by it because there’s a lot of heritage and tradition in our culture, so they think it’s insulting to have our species reduced to weak dogs. Other people like it because it makes humans underestimate us, if they think we’re real and out there somewhere. It keeps our secret.” In his opinion, it was probably better if the general public thought his kind were like they were in twilight or some other show. “Vamps don’t get along with us because we’re on top and there’s more of us than there are of them. They’re more animal than we are.” vikram was being prejudiced, but he was only following in the tradition of his pack. The feud between vampires and werewolves had been raging long before his grandparents were born.

“You’re not crazy, you’re smart and perceptive.” Vikram declared lovingly. “I don’t know much about ghosts, but from what I've heard, they’re very bored, spending eternity on earth and watching humans get to enjoy life. I think they fuck with people just to amuse themselves, or get back at them.” that would probably be what he would do if he ever died and became a ghost, but only humans could linger on after death. Thanks to that trip he took with his college buddies a few years ago, he wasn’t one anymore—but charlotte was. She’d remain a human even if he had to die to maintain that.

He frowned, placing charlotte’s hands in his. “I know, and I'm so sorry that I put you in this position.” perhaps she had made a mistake in following him to the forest last night, but it was all his fault. If he hadn’t fallen in love with a human, then she’d never have been in danger in the first place. “I know that you love me, but I can understand if you can’t be with me anymore. Or if you want to go visit your brother or something, get out of town for a while. I’d find some way to deal with audrina, or i’ll go before the pack and deal with the consequences.” his grip on her hands tightened. “But I promise you, lola, I will not let anything bad happen to you. I love you.”

[ozzni]

how do I do dating?? the only trick I know is to start by being a friend and then making it into a deeper relationship, but I kinda just have the one friend right now (working on expanding this number, but scheduling causes problems) and I kiiiinda don't want to risk ruining the friendship if it doesn't work, and it probably won't given we are both nineteen years old. I could try making a brand new friend to try and date but... the only method I can think of for meeting someone I share an interest with would be like, going to a game night at a nearby games store but the last time I tried that everyone was a decade older than me and I kinda got scared and left... I've heard that bars are a good idea but also im american so that wont work for 2 more years. My only other idea was dating apps but a) the only dating apps I am aware seem to be targeted at either straight people [I am not that] or at gay men [also not that], and b) those systems are definitely aimed for sex things to happen and I do not really wanna do that. so uh. what other routes can I take?? do I have to just keep hopping from shop to shop until I find an age range I can work with? wait until im old enough to drink and try that? Take my friend's joke flirting and make it real flirting but also I am NOT making the first move there no way, she's dated like 3 times, she knows how to do it she can initiate. I want to date but also I don't really... have an opportunity for that? I can wait I guess... but I don't want to wait... but also im 19 so maybe I should wait until the brain juices settle down? but also that would take a while and i really wanna just grab someone and kiss her maybe and we are both grasping so so tight and staring in wide eyed wonder maybe... and also I have no clue how a relationship would be like outside of those moments? I guess we talk and stuff and be friends who also really love eachother at the same time? I want to but I don't know how! Like I guess theoretically I could date someone I meet online but there is like a 99% they live super duper far away and we can't actually date and be together for a while. There are like, maybe 6 girls in my state that are in the same circles as me and want to date. and they half of them probably would say a flat no if I said I didn't ever want to do sex, with one of those last 3 being transphobic or something, and the last two are already dating eachother. Maybe im just being pessimistic... there might just be one girl who would date me. But I don't know who the hell she is. fuckin... if you are that one girl in the Centennial State DM me? so we can like talk n stuff and make sure we do like eachother. and then we can like, meet and play Scythe or something. I still haven't really read the rules of the game cuz I haven't met anybody who wants to play it... hehe...

[someotherdog]

vikram gave a little laugh and a slight shrug. “well, that’s good to know.” though he doubted it was completely true. even before she found out the truth about his mendacity, there had to have been little things he did to piss her off, especially since they moved in together. vikram had never actually lived with a girlfriend before, either living by himself or with roommates from time to time, so there had been an adjustment period.

“yeah, well, maybe not a lot of damage, but it would still hurt a little.” she was right, though, that his reflexes had improved since he was turned. “it does change you, the curse. i’m stronger, faster than ever before. the bhaktas are not a sporty family, but now i can run up a wall like spiderman. that’s kind of the only good thing about it all.” he never liked physical activity growing up and didn’t like working on a team. it was another reason why the pack lifestyle annoyed him so greatly; if he wanted to be part of some community in his adult life, he would’ve joined a dungeons and dragons club or something. now they were all bound together by the moon.

“oh, you don’t like the rugged wild man look?” vikram smiled, shaking his hair. the curls tumbled over his face in one big clump, and he already knew his body was streaked with dirt underneath the clothes he pulled on after the change. once they finished their conversation, he’d hop in the shower and painstakingly comb the knots from his hair. then he’d probably fall back into bed and sleep for the rest of the day.

he nodded, shrugging one shoulder. “trust me, it’s a big point of contention in the wolf community. some people are annoyed by it because there’s a lot of heritage and tradition in our culture, so they think it’s insulting to have our species reduced to weak dogs. other people like it because it makes humans underestimate us, if they think we’re real and out there somewhere. it keeps our secret.” in his opinion, it was probably better if the general public thought his kind were like they were in twilight or some other show. “vamps don’t get along with us because we’re on top and there’s more of us than there are of them. they’re more animal than we are.” vikram was being prejudiced, but he was only following in the tradition of his pack. the feud between vampires and werewolves had been raging long before his great grandparents were born.

“you’re not crazy, you’re smart and perceptive.” vikram declared lovingly. “i don’t know much about ghosts, but from what i’ve heard, they’re very bored, spending eternity on earth and watching humans get to enjoy life. i think they fuck with people just to amuse themselves, or get back at them because they're jealous.” that would probably be what he would do if he ever died and became a ghost, but only humans could linger on after death. thanks to that trip he took with his college buddies a few years ago, he wasn’t one anymore—but charlotte was. she’d remain a human even if he had to die to maintain that.

he frowned, placing charlotte’s hands in his. “i know, and i’m so sorry that i put you in this position.” perhaps she had made a mistake in following him to the forest last night, but it was all his fault. if he hadn’t fallen in love with a human, then she’d never have been in danger in the first place. “i know that you love me, but i can understand if you can’t be with me anymore. or if you want to go visit your brother or something, get out of town for a while. i’d find some way to deal with audrina, or i’ll go before the pack and deal with the consequences.” his grip on her hands tightened. “but i promise you, lola, i will not let anything bad happen to you. i love you.”

she releases the breath she didn't even realize she had been holding. "oh, no, no, no. you have nothing to worry about. when i think about you, it's always good things." the nervous laughter is a dead giveaway that she's lying, but charlotte doesn't feel bad, considering what he had kept from her (and she no doubt could get on his nerves at times - she knew how she was.)

"even if i would want to throw something at you, i'm sure it wouldn't do any damage. i'm also assuming your reflexes are like, crazy good? since you're not exactly human." not that she wanted to hurt him. she may have been upset with him, but charlotte would never resort to violence. it wasn't in her nature. she and her brother couldn't be more opposite from each other.

her brother. she didn't like keeping secrets from jacob, but it looked like she'd be keeping one now. she lets out a small sigh. "you need to shower." she observes, nose scrunching up at the dirt matted in his hair. "and since you're already on the bed, you'll be cleaning the sheets tomorrow, yes?" brow raises.

charlotte didn't really know what to think about this whole thing. she loved vikram, but was struggling to wrap her head around the fact that she had been right - that he was a supernatural being, and wasn't who he had said he was. their relationship meant everything to her, but technically, it had been built on lies. for her sake, but ...

she shakes the negative thoughts from her head. the last thing she needed to do was dwell on them. the love was still real between the two of them. vikram was still vikram - just...not on full moon nights.

"that's interesting, because no offense, you guys are always portrayed as the scum of the supernatural in the media. books, movies, tv shows - the vampires are the ones that are always on top. maybe some of them went into production and did that on purpose to make themselves feel better." a weak attempt at a joke.

"and people thought i was crazy, saying ghosts were real. they aren't exactly subtle at times about their existence. only when nonbelievers are around. suppose they probably do that on purpose." lola chuckles. "vik, there are so many questions forming in my head right now. you know me. once i find out about something, i feel the need to know everything." the brunette sighs. "i will say, i am a bit um, i am a bit nervous. knowing that someone out there knows that i know. and that they might come...after us. after me."

[symbioticsimplicity]

I'm going to combine all of my favorite thoughts together and no one can stop me

Billy doesn't die at the end of S3, and Eddie doesn't die either. Steve grows into a pretty little punk and the three of them have the most confusing dynamic in the entire group. The kids mostly find it entertaining, but Nancy and Robin are slightly worried.

Billy has gotten better, he really has. With him having been dragged into the kid's lives more, he caught Hop's attention more and the man had immediately realized what was actually going on in the Hargrove household. Hop won't suffer an abuser, especially one server enough to producer Billy and has his father arrested shortly before the start of season 3. Billy is still a bit of a dick, but there isn't nearly as much bite behind his bark.

Billy and Steve have an antagonistic relationship that keeps both of them on their toes. Its not exactly playful, they've got too much baggage for that, but they're not really enemies either?

Steve and Eddie get along like long lost soulmates. There's no real reason that they should, bur they see each other in a way no one else really sees them.

Billy and Eddie cannot and should not be left alone together under any circumstances. Too much chaos and not enough braincells. They're smoking buddies, they've got similar taste in music and Eddie intimately understands the rage that lives in Billy, knows he probably would have been just like him if not for Wayne.

When the three of them are all together, its madness. Billy and Eddie act mostly on impulse with Steve being the only thing keeping them from killing themselves on a dare from one another. If Billy gets too hyphy, Eddie can and will tackle and wrestle the violence out of him. Eddie loves listening to Steve and Billy banter back and forth, its one of the few times he just listens rather than rambling on himself. Steve appreciates not being the only person in the group who didn't spend their high-school years being a goddamn nerd even if Eddie looks crestfallen when he and Billy give him twin blank stares when he launches into a DND rant.

The others are happy these three don't seem so isolated and miserable anymore, which is the only reason they're willing to put up with The Tension. They all capitalize it in their heads because its That Bad.

Billy is an incredibly pretty man, everyone knows that. Steve Harrington is also incredibly pretty (more so when he grows into himself) which everyone knows. Eddie Munson is incredibly gay, although not everyone knows that.

Eddie gets distracted by Billy all the time. His eyes are gorgeous and his lips are hypnotizing and hes never wearing enough clothes. Hes also got this fucking thing he does with his tongue when hes ready to fight that Steve is sure has nearly gotten him killed because he was staring at it. Then there's the way Eddie looks when he's shredding on his guitar that makes Billy feel some kind of way he tries real goddamn hard to ignore. Or fuck forbid Steve is wet for any reason.

They're all a mess, and they're all clueless that the others feel the same and it really is painful to watch.

It boils over though when Steve goes punk. Thats the last fucking straw for Billy, who has the impulse control of a newborn. He takes one look at this man in his revamped letterman and his torn jeans, lips glossed and hair artfully tussled, and just loses it. He pins him to the wall of Eddie's trailer and kisses him half stupid.

Eddie stands there awkwardly, feeling a little lie he's dying inside, unable to decide who hes more jealous of and about to to go to the woods for somewhere private to have a smoke and a cry, when Billy pulls off Steve and turns right around to haul Eddie in next. Both Eddie and Steve are baffled, pinned to the wall between Billy's arms.

When he finishes with Eddie, he glances between the two of them with a "Go on, we all know you want to" and waits patiently as they have a silent conversation before falling into each other.

Its odd, definitely, and it takes a lot of talking about (and maybe a bitching match that turns into a kissing match) but they find a way forward, the three of them, thanking God for Billy's shit impulse control every step of the way.

[signedeclipse]

Can I ask for a request for some headcanons about a fem kakushi s/o to some Hashira? Specifically Kyroguro, Giyu, Gyomei and Sanemi?

I haven't seen a kakushi request before, so it might be pretty cool!

Giyuu

Giyuu was actually quite fond of the kakushi

They didn't have any sort of levels, just people who wanted to help the slayer cause in a way that wasn't through fighting

Much like the swordsmiths, their role was integral to the corps

But he also wasn't fond of talking or interacting...or being near anyone

So, unfortunately, he wasn't able to display this appreciation as much as he may feel it

Nonetheless, that didn't stop you, the one assigned to his well-being from always being around

You took care of the water manor, his wounds, and any meetings he didn't want to go to

He would leave food behind for you, nicely packaged and try to keep his place tidy so you wouldn't have to waste your time on it

he got so used to you being there for him that it became mutual, and eventually dipped into the romantic side of things

No one would notice, though, it was too subtle, and it never seemed like anything changed

Just as Giyuu liked, out of the publics eye

Gyomei

Oh, you had to be strong as all hell to remain a kakushi to the stone hashira

Mostly because he lived up a mountain and was hard to follow or track down

That's why you were specialized, it took many years, but Gyomei got used to you being his only helper to make it through every mission

Perhaps there were more reasons than just luck or strength because you were the only one he trusted to act as his eyes when he needed

Everyone else made such a big deal of it or got too touchy, but you'd just click your tongue, so he knew you were there

It was apparent you were closer than what many perceived, but for the most part, you two keep your romances behind closed doors

The last thing you needed was someone or something getting blackmail when you were his only backup

Kyojuro

Oh, he's so obvious about it

All kinds of kakushi help him, but he likes the way you do things most, and you, that he always requests your attendance no matter where he goes

It was hard to keep up with him, though, so he had to learn to give you some time and space since you weren't precisely slayer level, let alone hashira

Others didn't hear enough about you either, especially not after the day he first got to see your face without the mask kakushi wore

He wouldn't want you to come to his aid in battle anymore as you become more official, and he would keep his wounds as they were until it was you who tended to them

You became one of the most well-respected kakushi nonetheless, and Kyojuro loves watching you train the new ones

He would also request you help his brother Senjuro learn about what the kakushi do because he seems to like the idea of that a lot more

Melts seeing you care for his little brother, his heart can't take it!

Sanemi

Sanemi was never fond of anyone

Not that he would be inherently rude to the kakushi, he just didn't pay them any mind and moved along

He also didn't ask much for their help

So why were you and him always chatting, always seen in glimpses together

Why did he prefer your help to Shinobu's when damaged?

He said he felt it a waste of time to bother a hashira that could be out killing demons

That he'd rather not be seen in a bad state and hide in his home

In reality, he just wanted to enjoy more of your company during his downtime

He prods at you for being too weak to become a slayer, but he learns to stop doing that while you are stitching his arm back together

Not that he can't handle the pain, of course not, he just rather not face your wrath when you have a weapon

Authors Note - This was such a cute request! Thank you for the suggestion, I hop eyou enjoy it <3

[beomgyuslilracha]

txt imagine ...

summary for context: for the past couple years, you had been temporarily assigned to work alongside the team for the popular group, tomorrow x together. in a matter of no time, especially thanks to your closeness in age, it was very easy to develop a friendly and playful relationship with one another. unfortunately, some of the other staff thought maybe you six were a little too close after a while.

eventually, the managers decided it was time for you to transfer back to your original job position. you were given a full week notice of this matter and you thought it gave you plenty of time to prepare your goodbyes with the boys, seeing as you had begged manager jisoo to let you be the one to break the news to them. you came to realize later that this was a terrible mistake ... because now it was your last day and you had less than a few hours to tell them.

‣ pairing(s): choi beomgyu x gn! reader

‣ genre: slice-of-life .. maybe ?

‣ wc: 1.7k

‣ warnings: only like a little “sad” for a split second, i guess, but it’s not angst

BEOMGYU { 범규 }

you had never worked so hard in all of your time as a staff member more than you had on your last day in the past two hours. not that you wanted to work, but, rather, you were trying your absolute best to keep beomgyu from coming up to you every two minutes trying to talk to you. you just weren’t ready to face him yet, you didn’t have a single plan set out on how to explain the sudden news.

of course, it surely didn’t help that you kept distracting yourself with all these random tasks.

at first you were doing little things around the studio, where the members were currently filming a ‘to x do’ episode, but you found it was far too difficult for you being in such close proximity to the boys.

most especially beomgyu, who you kept making eye contact with every time you glanced over. and every time, without fail, he would smile his dorky smile and send you a playful wink, which always made your chest feel funny for some reason -- also forcing the staff to get upset knowing they’d have to edit out each moment so it doesn’t look suspicious on camera.

normally, you’d be just as playful back and start blowing him kisses to make him get all giggly, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to do it. your heart felt heavy at just the thought of it being the last time.

instead, you’d quickly turn away and ask anyone nearby if they needed help with absolutely anything to distract you and keep you from looking back at the adorable boy five boys just a few feet away.

although, any time there was a pause in filming, to either change scenery or bring out props/activities, beomgyu would practically hop to wherever you were and start pouting for your attention.

you kept trying to brush him off and telling him you were busy, but that only made him whine more and start tugging on your shirt. “y/nie doesn’t pay attention to me anymore,” he’d fake cry, walking away to complain to the other members about it- who could not care less - only to come back a minute later to ask if you were done yet.

eventually, you couldn’t take it anymore, knowing that the inevitable goodbye was drawing nearer and nearer for every second that passed. you then busied yourself with any task that involved leaving the room - either to search for missing props in the storage, pick up deliveries from the lobby, or literally anything to get you out of that suffocating studio with the closing walls.

it was just way too hard to think about for even a second. the more you distracted yourself, the less time you had to think about the fact that this was your last day. your last day working with your five favorite boys.

with their constantly hectic and busy schedule, you knew you’d never be able to find any free time together to see him them again. you’d go from seeing his their faces for practically every waking hour of the day to probably only on posters and ad displays around the company. you didn’t want to think about any of this and find yourself crying in the middle of the room ... which is why you were doing everything possible to avoid your problems!

“y/nnnnn, are you done yet?” beomgyu once again cried for your attention during another short break, having caught up to you immediately upon reentering the room.

“ah- no, sorry, beoms, i still have to ...,” you started looking around, quickly trying to find any excuse to make in order to busy yourself again. “i have to-”

you were suddenly caught off guard by the light touch to your wrist that sent sparks shooting through your arm, causing your head to immediately whip over to the boy before you.

this time, his face was way too serious to ignore; any sign of your beoms from before was long gone. you had never seen him like this unless he was feeling anxious in public or if he came down with an illness, so seeing him like this now made your heart drop ... because you knew that you were the reason this time.

“y/n, did i make you upset with me?” he finally asked, his voice lower than even that of a whisper.

your heart shattered at his question.

“of course not! i could never be mad at you, beoms!” you were quick to respond, grasping both of his hands in your own. his eyes were still looking down towards the ground, so you continued. “i promise, promise, promise, i’m not upset with you!”

his soft eyes finally looked up to meet yours, but they still lacked that shine that you adored so much. his beautiful lips, that held the smile you loved the most, had yet to pick back up.

“then why have you been avoiding me?”

your mouth opened, so ready to deny his words and tell him you weren’t avoiding him ... but there you were ... mouth agape and refusing to lie to him. closing your lips and swallowing the lump in your throat, you figured you had to explain yourself properly.

you wished desperately that the situation could have been better, but you had nothing else to blame other than your foolish actions.

“i didn’t mean to avoid you. i mean ... i did, but not because i was mad at you,” you began, your eyes now shifting to focus deeply at the design on the front of his shirt. you refused to look him in the eye, afraid of how he might react. “it’s just that ... today is my last day working as your staff. i wanted to tell you sooner, way sooner, but i just didn’t know how.”

silence.

with your anxiety beginning to skyrocket from having yet to receive a response, you found yourself continuing to ramble on.

“it’s just that i wasn’t sure if you saw me as close as i saw you, so i didn’t want to give this heartfelt goodbye just for you to laugh at me and not really care. i wanted you to know how much i was going to miss you, but i also didn’t want you to be weirded out because what if i was just another staff member to you or something, so i-”

“you’re such a dummy, y/n,” beomgyu suddenly laughed, cupping your cheeks and forcing you to look up at him.

this time, it was your turn to pout. “i’m not a dummy.”

beomgyu laughed, making butterflies erupt in your stomach at the mere sight of his bright smile returning. you couldn’t help but wish you could take this cute boy back with you to make sure you never missed him ever.

“you are a dummy!” he laughed, removing his hands from your cheeks to engulf you in the beautiful bear hug that you wished you could stay in forever. “because why do you talk like if we’re not going to see each other anymore? and why would you ever think i wouldn’t miss you just as much?”

your heart was too busy swelling in size and tears were beginning to well up in your eyes for you to answer right away. just the thought of beomgyu wanting to see you outside of work was enough to ascend your soul. “do you really mean it?”

“yes, i mean it! see, you’re such a dummy,” he laughed again, and you could only hope that he didn’t feel how hard your heart was pounding from where your chest was still pressed against him in a hug.

☆

just as beomgyu had said, the two of you ended up seeing each other way more often than you originally thought. he’d simply message you a quick “are you busy?” before suddenly appearing right beside you in your office, tugging at your shirt and telling you to stop working and pay attention to him. when he wasn’t in your office or in any of his schedules, then you could be found sitting in a recording room doing absolutely anything -- either watching him play sample beats that he came up with, watching a marathon of random music videos that you both wanted to show each other, or simply just talking and joking with each other alone. you’d even visit him during dance practice whenever you got the chance - but the other members ended up teasing the both of you often and scolding you for distracting beomgyu from getting the choreo right. when you weren’t at the company, then you and beoms were found either cuddling in his dorm room watching movies together or having him teach you how to play LoL so you could play often together (which was a failed attempt because you weren’t very good at it, but he absolutely loved trying to teach you anyway).

funnily enough, it was during one of his LoL lessons that your friendship took a turn for the better. gyu had left you to battle at least one game on your own without his help, a beginner’s match against the ai, but whatever, and you surprised yourself when you received the victory screen all by yourself. you had gotten so excited, a huge smile on your face while giggling for beomgyu to look at the screen and be proud of you. when you looked over at him, his face much closer than you realized, it was the expression on his face that had your heart pounding at a million miles a minute. was it .. adoration? was it something else? why was he ... looking at you like that? “i’m very proud of you,” he said in a low voice, inching slowly closer to close the gap that was between your lips. it was slow, soft, and absolutely mesmerizing. when he pulled away, you think it took you a minute too long to fully process what had just happened.

you called him a dummy and quickly covered your blushing face, making him burst into laughter as he tried to pull your hands away so he could see just how cute you are.

previous | masterlist | next

a/n:

okay so ... almost 2k words, but i guess that’s just the bias effect. also, fun fact, i seriously just sat here and wrote this blurb in one sitting. anywayyyy i won’t say too much this time, but thank you again to everyone who takes the time to read my little imagines which aren’t exactly good, but i’m trying anyway <3 hope you all are having a lovely morning/afternoon/evening/night. i also hope you pull your bias in your next album!

[therideisfarfromover]

Right, I'm dropping some HSMTMTS opinions, because honestly, looking through the tag, I feel like i'm watching a different show to some of you???

For context, I have loved Rina since 1x05, but I also properly hopped on the Portwell bandwagon in s2, and genuinely enjoy both ships as written. In fact, other than Ricky/Lily, there are v few canon relationships on this show that I haven't enjoyed at some point.

Anyway, a few thoughts on the love triangle that I may get shot for, but oh well.

1) Gina is not emotionally cheating on EJ. Like yeah, her and Ricky have got their friendship back, and the nature of their friendship can come across as flirty, but Gina rn is fully invested in her relationship with EJ. Her and Ricky being close (especially given he was her first friend in Salt Lake) isn't a crime. Even in WDYKAL, she is fully in character to piss off EJ. She is not suddenly over EJ and back into Ricky.

2) Ricky is not trying to get in the way of Portwell. Yeah, he was being a bit of a dick with that comment about EJ stealing Gina because we all know that's not true. But other than that, he has respected their relationship. He had no intentions of telling Gina that these feelings have resurfaced for him, evident from the fact he swears Carlos to secrecy and is devastated when Channing catches it on camera. And he also makes a point of asking "did it show?", demonstrating that he is trying to keep his feelings under wraps. He allowed Gina to talk about EJ without getting defensive, he even answered EJ's question of why Gina was mad at him without a sarcastic comment. Saying Ricky is purposely getting in the way of PW is character assassination for no good reason. The boy has feelings, yeah, but he hasn't acted on them and the narrative has shown nothing to suggest he would while Gina is with EJ.

3) EJ is being a bit of a tool this season, but honestly, I don't think this is the wasted character development y'all think it is. I don't know about all of your own lives, but something I've found in mine is that growth is very rarely linear. Yes, EJ learnt and grew a lot in s2, and there are times it feels he has forgotten that in s3. But also, he is an incredible stressed 18 year old: flaring up in the form of your former self isn't bad writing, that's just what happens when you're a kid going through shit. I am not worried about what they're doing with EJ at all, and I think by the end of the season, he will have developed in a way that is in line with what the writers did for him last season.

4) I completely agree that they should have slowed their horses when it came to reintroducing the triangle dynamic. Especially because it does feel like PW only got a few eps without drama. But also, this is a teen drama, that's kind of how it works? Also, based on the current writing (and I know I'm in the minority here), I genuinely still think PW will be together at the end of this season. Or at the v least, they won't break up until right at the end, and it won't have anything to do with Ricky.

5) I genuinely don't think the Rina storyline is fan service. Maybe WDYKAL was a *little* bit but I loved every second so I'm not complaining. Tim has said right from the start that Rina was born out of them seeing Josh and Sofia's chemistry in 1x05, and the team feeling that they needed to write towards that. And so they did. Similarly, I feel that the PW stuff in season 2 was so great because it felt that the writers saw something v natural between these characters, and just wrote towards it in a way that felt organic with the story. Given how much of a mess 2b was, I still think Portwell is one of the best written parts of it. However , in s2, there was only closure for Rina on Gina's side, so to say it was a 'done storyline' when we've actually never seen Ricky's POV, isn't fair either? Like idk, there are plenty of things I would have done differently when it comes to the love triangle, but also I don't think that any of their dynamic this season has felt out of pocket, like it all seems to follow the tone and prev writing?

Anyway, long controversial venting over. Please don't come for me xoxo