#engage blast is so fun. so wonderful. i love this stupid game.

[didsomeonesayventus]

another lovely comm request from @mintavia! New hip date idea enter a magical synchronized state, hold hands, and SMITE A MAN WITH A LASER BEAM GENERATED BY THE UNBRIDLED POWER OF YOUR LOVE

[kasienda]

The Five Minute Adventures of Snake Noir: Ch 7 - Five Minute Adventures of Ananta

Chapter 1: I Want It To Be You

Chapter 2: Best Friends

Chapter 3: Best Laid Plans

Chapter 4: A Thank You

Chapter 5: Unwanted Revelations

Chapter 6: Miraculous Abuse

Chapter 7: Five Minute Adventures of Ananta

Adrien’s room felt more like a prison than it ever had before, and he had always felt like the walls were closing in on him a bit, and so that afternoon he had snuck out to Nino’s the second he had managed to chase Nathalie out of his room. 

Nino’s room - despite being small and cramped - never made Adrien feel claustrophobic. Adrien suspected it had something to do with the company. 

“What should my snake name be?” Nino asked out of nowhere.

“You’re not going to use it!” Adrien objected. “You don’t need a name.”

“Come on, dude! Just for fun!” 

Adrien sighed. “Basilisk.” 

Nino tapped his lips in consideration. “It’s okay. I don’t feel much like the king of anything.” 

“Python.” 

“Boring.”

“Diamondback.” 

Nino’s eyebrows furrowed together. “What does Diamondback have to do with anything?”

“It’s a type of snake,” Adrien explained, and then turned to Nino with a smirk. “But it’s also a type of turtle.” 

Nino just shook his head. “That’s a better reason not to use it. No associations with turtles! We gotta keep my identity super secret!”

“The best way to keep it secret is to not use the snake at all!” 

“What about something to do with time?” Nino asked, ignoring Adrien’s objection. 

“Cronos.” 

“Also boring! Dude! Why are you so bad at this?”

“I don’t see you coming up with anything.”

“Because you’re definitely the cooler of the two of us,” Nino said.  

Adrien shook his head. “Nino, I named myself Black Cat. I’m not super original when it comes to names.” 

Nino laughed. “Fair point.”

“And you are just as cool as me,” he insisted, though he whipped out his phone anyway and typed out a search for ‘names related to time’ and started scrolling through various sites with baby and pet names. 

“What do you think of Baqi?” Adrien asked. “It means eternal.” 

Nino frowned. “That’s an arabic name. Do you think me taking on an arabic name is potentially identity revealing?”

“Okay, here’s one in sanskrit. Ananta.”

Nino nodded. “A bit of a mouthful, but I like it.” 

Adrien’s eyebrows rose. “A mouthful compared to Carapace?”

Nino laughed. “What’s it mean?” 

“Infinite.” 

“Dude! Perfect. Let’s go with Ananta. I wonder what I look like with the snake.”

Adrien groaned, seriously regretting in that moment giving Nino the Snake instead of Ladybug.

“Do you not want me to?” Nino asked seriously.

Adrien waved his hand in encouragement. “Just do it. I’d be curious too.” He was curious, too. 

Nino grinned and scrambled to his feet. “Sass! Scales slither.”

Adrien found himself mirroring Nino’s excitement. These silly stupid moments with Nino were the ones that were keeping him sane at the moment. 

The rest of the time he was a bit of a mess. 

Keep reading on Ao3

Adrien found himself a lot more resentful of his homework than normal when it stole away most of his time to spend on his friends and on himself now that he was used to being able to finish at least half of it in the space of five minutes as far as the rest of the world was concerned. 

And it didn’t help that it was suddenly so much harder to pay attention in class since he was hyper aware of Marinette sitting right behind him every single day. 

Seeing her in general was really hard because he knew how she felt. He knew that if he asked her out she would likely say yes, and he had to hold himself back. Before he had given up the snake, he had been able to scratch that itch by visiting her in the evenings in a time loop. 

Now? Now, he had to survive off of her garbled greetings and flustered blushes. 

He lived for her blushes. The blush that had always been there since he had apologized to her in the rain the day they met. He had thought she was just shy and self-conscious. But now, it was easy to recognize that she didn’t do it around anyone else - not even Chat Noir. That blush was reserved for Adrien Agreste and Adrien Agreste alone. 

It meant that she loved him. 

It was a good thing that it didn’t take much to trigger. Just a simple greeting often did the trick. 

“Good morning, Marinette.” 

And the pink would bloom across her cheeks like flowers in spring every time. 

That blush kept him from going out of his mind. It reminded him that she still loved him even if she wasn’t able to say it. 

A god, he hoped that she didn’t say anything because right now, he wasn’t ever going to be able to say no. 

“G-good morning, Adrien.”

He smiled. Her stutter was less reliable. She was getting better at talking to him, which he figured was a good sign, but he also loved that he could still fluster her on occasion. “How are you?” he asked. 

“I’m fine,” she said.

He didn’t like that answer. He knew that it wasn’t real. He turned to her as she sat down, and leaned into her space. “Marinette, how are you, really?” 

She looked at him in surprise. “I’m… things were rough for awhile, but I think I’m starting to get a handle on the new order of things.” 

“I’m glad.” And he meant it. Telling Alya had clearly changed things for her for the better. He was so glad she didn’t have to hold the weight of the world alone anymore. 

“How are you?” she asked. 

He shrugged. “I’m still figuring out my new order of things, but I like to think that things are actually trending in the right direction.” It might even be true. He wasn’t sure, to be honest. He was definitely getting better at coping with the absolute insanity his life had become if nothing else. 

“Will you let me know if you need anything?” she asked.

He smiled. “Of course.” 

It wasn’t everything he wanted. It wasn’t everything he knew the moment could be. 

But… it was enough.

At least most of the time. 

When it wasn’t, he called Nino and screamed about the injustice of it all, whines about how unfair and unreasonable his father was,  cursed Shadowmoth’s existence to all nine levels of hell, ranted about how much he just wanted to be able to be done with it all so that he and Ladybug didn’t have to worry about akumas or the end of the world. They could just be teenagers.

They could just be happy. 

But Shadowmoth clearly had other plans. After a lull, the akumas exploded both in frequency and awfulness. The encounters were taking longer to handle - especially without the benefit of the snake - and Adrien was having a much harder time explaining his disappearances and his father was suddenly breathing down his neck even more than usual. 

“Your marks have not been up to your usual standard, Adrien.” 

“I’m sorry, father.”

“Need I remind you that you promised you would continue to excel if you started at public school? If you cannot maintain the usual standards of excellence, I will not hesitate to return you to lessons with private tutors.”

Adrien hung his head. “Yes, father.” 

“In the meantime, you will spend less time with your friends until your grades improve.” 

Adrien sighed, and trudged back to his room. The punishment meant almost nothing because as far as his father was concerned, he only was allotted an hour a week with his friends, and usually a photoshoot got scheduled on top of his scheduled “friend time”. And of course, Adrien was actually hanging out with Nino almost every day without his father’s knowledge. 

But he felt exhausted anyway. He was tired of shoots, he was tired of homework, he was tired of Akumas, and he was most definitely tired of pretending. Tired of pretending for the sake of his father’s company image, tired of pretending he wasn’t worn down to nothing from all the responsibilities of both his personas, tired of pretending Marinette was just a friend. 

He flopped onto his bed only for the akuma alert to go off two minutes later. Adrien groaned. It was the second one that day and the fifth one that week.

But Adrien dragged himself to his feet anyway. At least he would get to see Marinette again.

But it wasn’t Ladybug he ran into on the scene.

It was Ananta. 

“What the hell are you doing here?!” Chat Noir demanded. 

Ananta was hiding hunched over in an alleyway with the whole akuma scene in clear view. “Just offering a little insurance. I haven’t actually engaged in any of the battles, but they’ve seemed a little rough lately.”

“Battles?” Chat Noir repeated. “As in plural, as in more than one?”

Ananta winced. “Yeah, I’ve been doing this for the last four or five akumas because things have seemed super dicey for you. But I haven’t actually engaged with the akuma or anything.”

“How many loops?” Adrien asked harshly.

“So far, none. You’re that awesome, dude!” Ananta raved, clapping Chat Noir on the back.  “You would have known if I had been through a loop because I’d have to intervene to give you the info on the last loop, right?”

Adrien relaxed. “Right.” 

....

But the akuma after that, Nino did intervene. 

But at least Ananta had managed to stay out of Ladybug’s sight and out of any pictures. 

And after the fact, Nino had insisted he had only needed three loops to defeat that akuma. 

“I don’t like it,” Adrien had insisted anyway. “Please, don’t use it anymore.” 

“Dude! I’m not doing this for some adrenaline rush. I’m not like Alya who goes looking for trouble, or like you who insists on throwing yourself in front of the blasts. I’m doing this only because it’s clear that Hawkmoth has stepped up his game, and you need support.” 

Adrien started to object. 

“Ladybug needs support, too,” Nino added. 

Which was such a low blow. Because Adrien was never going to be able to argue with that. 

“Unless you want to take it back?” Nino offered.

Adrien considered it. He didn’t want Nino to get stuck in a battle loop. He didn’t want Nino to experience anything like Desperada. At least in his own case, he was already damaged and traumatized by what he had experienced.

But even the idea of taking it scared the crap out of him. Because there was no way he wouldn’t use it to visit Marinette. 

He missed her with every fiber of his being. It had only been three weeks. Three weeks where he hadn’t been able to have a conversation with her without filters, three weeks since he had been able to kiss her. He hadn’t been able to kiss her for like three weeks. Three excruciating long weeks where he hadn’t been able to tell her that Adrien and Chat Noir were one in the same. Where he had been truly seen for all that he was and truly loved because of it. 

And the more time that went by the less convinced he was that he’d be able to come out of that loop.

“No, you should still hang onto it,” he whispered. 

“Or if you wanted, we could give it back to Ladybug,” Nino suggested. “She could hand it out to whoever Viperion is.” 

Which was reasonable. Though Adrien wasn’t sure he wanted Luka to experience a bad battlefield loop either. 

Then the akuma alert rang simultaneously from both their phones. Adrien covered his hands in his face. 

“Gah! Does he never sleep?!” 

“Come on, mec. Let’s go.” 

“I’m coming! I’m coming!” 

During the battle, Nino had intervened, but he hadn’t intervened with Chat Noir; he had spoken to Ladybug in the final loop. The battle had gone amazingly smoothly after that, but Ananta slipped away before the traditional fist bump and Ladybug was not pleased. 

She was pissed. 

“You lost the snake?!” Ladybug demanded, her blue eyes flashing in anger.

“I didn’t lose it!” he said defensively. “I know exactly where it is.”

“You gave it away? Why?”

His claws tore through his own hair as he took a deep breath. “Because… it wasn’t safe with me anymore,” he admitted softly.

Some of her anger faded, replaced with concern. “What does that mean?”

“I can’t explain without telling you things you’ve told me not to tell you.” Which was mostly true. 

She fidgeted on the spot, considering. “Can you tell me who he is?” she asked. 

He laughed. “Definitely not.” 

“What?! Why not?”

“I gave it to my best friend, Ladybug. If you know who he is, you’ll know who I am. And that apparently might lead to the end of the world,” he bit out sarcastically. 

She frowned. “Are you okay?” 

“No,” he admitted. 

“What can I do?” she asked. 

“You can’t do anything,” he told her gently. “I’m handling it.” 

“I… I don’t like not knowing what’s going on with you,” she admitted. 

He laughed darkly. “Welcome to my world.”

She blushed. She actually blushed! He had made her blush as Chat Noir! Sure, it was probably more out of embarrassment than love, but he would take it!

“I guess I deserved that one,” she said. 

He took her hand and squeezed it. He wished he could sweep her into his arms and kiss her senseless, but he couldn’t risk that. “I know exactly how frustrating it is to be left in the dark.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. 

He shook his head, squeezing her hand through their gloves once again. What would it feel like to hold her hand when neither of them was transformed? He wanted to find out. He wanted it so bad.  

“I’m not trying to make you feel guilty,” he said. “I just want you to know that I understand. And I will tell you everything when it’s safe. In the meantime, can you please just trust me?”

She nodded. “Absolutely. You know that I do!”

And he did, now, didn’t he? 

He smiled. 

“I’m just…  I’m scared that if something happens to you, the snake will be lost,” she said.

“The person I gave it to knows how to get it back to you in that case,” he said.

“And how would he get it back to me?” she asked.

“He’d give it to you or to Rena Rouge during a patrol.”

She seemed startled at his inclusion of Rena Rouge, but she nodded. “You trust him?”

“I trust him more than I trust myself. And as much as I trust you.” 

“And they can handle the side effects of the snake?” 

Adrien sighed again. That was the million dollar question, wasn’t it? Could anyone handle the effects of the snake? “He’s done really well so far. This wasn’t the first battle where he’s been here, offering us a bit of insurance.”

She winced. “Yeah, the akumas have sucked lately.”

“Tell me about it.”

She sighed. “I’m sorry that I questioned you. I do trust you and your judgement. Your friend can keep the snake as long as you think it’s best.” 

“Thank you, LB,” he said softly. 

She nodded and smiled. He returned the expression and offered her a friendly salute. 

Then he vaulted straight for Nino’s family home. 

“How many loops?” Adrien asked without preamble. 

Nino rolled his eyes. “It was nineteen this time. But it wasn’t bad at all, dude. Kinda weird and trippy, but not so bad.”

But Adrien didn’t like it. He feared the number would keep growing. How many loops was too many? 

Adrien didn’t know.

…

His father had missed eight dinners in a row, and Adrien couldn’t decide if he felt relieved or disappointed.

On one hand, his father’s absence meant Adrien could ask to eat in his room, which meant he could escape the mansion that much sooner. And Nino actually wanted to spend time with Adrien.

It also meant he’d avoid his father’s censure about everything from his last photoshoot to the way he held his fork. Adrien simply did not have the energy to be on his best behavior.

But his father’s continued absence also felt like it reaffirmed Adrien’s fears - that his father didn’t care. And the longer his father’s absence the more desperate Adrien was for any sign, no matter how small, that his father had thought about him at all. 

When his father’s scowling face did join him at the dining room table on evening number nine, Adrien regretted ever wishing for his father to make an appearance. 

“Your grades have dropped unacceptably low,” were the first words out of his father’s mouth.

Adrien fought off his eye roll. He literally had two B’s and the rest of his classes were A’s. Admittedly one of them was borderline, but he didn’t think anyone else’s parents in his class would have found his performance subpar even if this was the lowest his own grades had ever been in his life.

“You also didn’t behave professionally at the last photoshoot. You arrived late and your hair and make-up had to be redone.”

Adrien sighed. That had been four Akumas ago. Or was it five? Honestly, Adrien was losing track. 

“We didn’t get all the shots we needed. It has been rescheduled for Monday morning. You have two weeks to turn around both your attitude and your grades,” he father said without an ounce of warmth or concern, “or you will return to home schooling.”

Adrien sighed. “I’m sorry I have disappointed you father. I have been… having a hard time maintaining my motivation lately.”

Gabriel’s expression did not change at all. “Why?” he asked. 

Adrien froze at the question. He didn’t know what to say because he knew there wasn’t a correct answer. And not answering at all wasn’t acceptable either. He was going to lose here no matter what. 

He shouldn’t have said anything other than he would try harder.

Well, if he was screwed no matter what, might as well go with the truth.

“I think I’ve been depressed lately,” he admitted. 

“You’re not qualified to make that assessment.”

“I suppose not,” Adrien conceded. But would his father offer to send him to someone who was? 

Most likely not.

“What do you have to be depressed about?” Gabriel asked coldly. 

And something within Adrien just snapped. Whether it was his sleep deprivation, being beyond overworked both physically and mentally, or his longing to drop all the masks, or some combination of all of it, Adrien didn’t know. 

“Are you kidding me right now?” Adrien demanded. “Every second of every day of my life is planned without my input or consideration. I have no control. But I do all of it anyway. I train for national fencing competitions, get perfect scores, work I-don’t-know-how-many hours a week modeling for you. I have no space to breathe, let alone enjoy anything. I feel like a programmed robot going through a routine!”

The room fell into silence as Adrien’s tirade ended abruptly. Every muscle was locked and tense, waiting for punishment and condemnation. And despite that, Adrien couldn’t bring himself to regret it because, well, he was screwed either way at this point, so he might as well go down with a bang.

“Are you finished?” his father asked. He didn’t raise his voice, but Adrien flinched anyway. 

“Yes, father,” he said meekly. 

Gabriel removed his glasses and began cleaning them. “Clearly, I have expected too much of you.”

Adrien knew better than to find any relief in that conclusion. 

“I will arrange with Nathalie to have your schedule adjusted. She will add additional recreational activities suitable to a boy of your age, and reduce your current obligations significantly.” 

Which translated to they would remove him from school and schedule his so called free time with activities that Adrien had no interest in or with other teenagers he didn’t know.

“Father, I appreciate your concern,” he said formally. “That will not be necessary. I was having a weak moment. I will work harder,” he promised, though Adrien knew he wouldn’t be able to manage much more at the moment. 

His father nodded. “I look forward to seeing notes of your improved performance this Friday.” 

And now he had five days instead of two full weeks. 

Adrien wanted to scream. And he did scream later that night when he had escaped to Nino’s bedroom for the tenth time that week. He ranted and complained about the unfairness of it all, and Nino just listened with rapt attention.

“Can I at least deck him, dude? Please?” Nino asked when Adrien had finally run out of steam. “Just once? He won’t even remember!” 

Adrien laughed. “It won’t help anything.”

“I might feel better,” Nino disagreed. “You might, too.” 

And then an akuma alert sounded from both of their phones. 

They both groaned, but a second later, they had both transformed and were leaping out of Nino’s bedroom window.

The akuma was a porcupine the size of a bus. It’s spines did not look remotely friendly. That first impression solidified tenfold when the akuma started hurling the spines off its back like javelins in a jousting tournament. 

But despite his initial misgivings, the fight could not have gone more smoothly. 

Ananta had barreled both he and Ladybug out of the way, and helped them identify the akumatized item pretty much instantly. The whole encounter lasted about three minutes. 

But when he turned to Ladybug and Ananta for their traditional fist bump, Ananta had pushed past the offered fist and tackled him in a hug. Adrien returned the embrace with a surprised grunt. A second later he felt Nino’s quaking form in his arms. 

Apparently, the fight hadn’t been all that smooth afterall. 

“How many loops?” Adrien asked softly. 

“You don’t want to know,” Nino sobbed into his shoulder. 

“Ananta,” Adrien growled.

“1,674,” Nino admitted.

Ladybug tried to reassure them both with small hands on their shoulders. Nino just pulled her into the hug, too, and didn’t let go. 

“I’m really glad you’re both okay,” he cried and then he dissolved into wracking sobs again. Chat Noir and Ladybug both held him tightly.

But Ladybug couldn’t stay, as she was about to time out. She pulled away from their group hug with a concerned frown. 

“Are you going to be okay with him?” 

“Don’t worry,” Adrien assured her. “I’ll take him home and make sure he’s okay.” 

“I’m sorry I have to run,” she said.

“Don’t worry about it,” Adrien said again, before wrapping one of Nino’s arms over his shoulder and vaulting them both up to the nearest rooftop. 

He then ducked them both into a secluded alleyway that Chat Noir had used to transform before. Nino hadn’t stopped crying the entire time. 

“Nino, can you hear me?” 

Nino nodded.

“You need to lose the transformation, so we can feed Sass. Can you do that?” 

Nino managed to follow the instructions through hysterical sobs. Adrien followed suit and both kwami’s ate a slice of Plagg’s cheese. It was a sign of how serious everything was that neither kwami complained. Adrien transformed again.

“Okay Nino. You need to transform again, and then start a loop. Stay in that loop until you’re able to stop crying, you got it? It doesn’t matter how long it takes. I will be here with you the whole time.”

Nino was still shaking and crying, but he managed to choke out the transformation phrase and called for his second chance. 

Instantly, Ananta stood before him, infinitely calmer than he had been just a second prior. 

“Woah,” Adrien said. “That’s weird. How long?” 

“Just a few hours,” Nino said, his voice was quiet, but it was steady. Adrien wrapped him into a hug. 

“Thank you,” Nino whispered. 

“As you have told me many many times, as many times as you need, whenever you need.”

“I don’t know how you have dealt with it so well,” Nino said. 

“I mean, you don’t remember all the times I was as much of mess as you were just a few seconds ago.” 

“I remember you freaking out about learning Ladybug’s identity,” Nino countered. “I… I didn’t understand why you didn’t want me to use it for battles. I… get it now.” 

“I’m sorry,” Adrien whispered. 

Nino shook his head. “The alternative would have been so much worse, dude. You would have lost this one.” 

“Thank you for saving our lives then. I’m sorry for what it has cost you.” 

Nino shrugged. “I think I’ll be okay. Can I keep it for a few more days? Abuse it a bit?” 

Adrien nodded. “Yeah of course. Abuse it like crazy and it will put space between you and what happened.”

Nino nodded, and actually smiled. And for the first time, Adrien was positive things would be okay. 

“I already have some ideas,” Nino said.  

“Do I want to know?” Adrien asked. 

Nino’s grin was wolffish. That was a no.

“Have fun, dude.”

… 

Nino still felt shaky the next morning. It was too easy to close his eyes and see his best friend impaled through the chest, his green eyes wide in shock. But it almost worked out in his favor because it hadn’t taken any convincing for his parents to agree he should stay home from school. They thought he was coming down with something - that he had chills. 

He didn’t correct them. 

He just rocked himself back and forth, nursing the tea his mother had brought up to him, and waited for both of them to leave for work. The second the door had closed behind them, he had bolted out his window as Ananta. 

The freerunning helped, but it wasn’t enough. He had just gotten too good at it - he could leap across rooftops almost without thinking now, and certainly without any fear. What could seem terrifying after everything he had seen the day before? 

And that was how Nino found himself on top of the Eiffel Tower staring down at the ground below - the ground that according to his best friend was 324 meters below him. Adrien had said at one point long before Nino had ever known of his friend’s superhero identity that it would take just over eight seconds to fall to the ground, probably a little longer because of air resistance. 

Nino had never thought anything of why Adrien had taken the time to calculate that. He had just assumed Adrien was a nerd who liked physics and had too much time on his hands. Now, he found himself wondering if Adrien had calculated that for an entirely different reason. 

Nino activated the second chance and leapt off the tower backwards with an ecstatic whoop. He slid his fingers across the bracelet five seconds into his fall, and rematerialized at the top of the tower giggling. 

Now, that was base jumping. He performed the trick dozens of times diving off the tower in different angles and positions. 

He knew Sass did not approve. The kwami had said as much when he mentioned the idea this morning. Adrien likely wouldn’t either, but Nino would only tell him well after the fact. 

But the adrenaline rush was exactly what he needed to wipe away the memories from the day before. 

Next, he had broken through his homeroom’s window, and swept Alya up in his arms. He definitely noticed Marinette’s disapproving glare, and Adrien burying his face in his hands, but he didn’t have to care about this. In four and a half minutes, this would have never happened. 

“Ask me to tell you that I love you,” he said. 

She arched her eyebrows. “Am I going to regret this?” 

“Nope! No repercussions today.” 

“Tell me that you love me,” she said, her face alight in a grin. 

“I love you,” he said. 

“How much?” 

“More than a superhero,” he said. 

She smiled, and her fingers locked around his neck. Then he kissed her hard. The whole class was catcalling behind them, and Ms. Bustier was trying to restore order. 

Alya was giggling against his lips. “I can’t believe you.” 

“I’m just getting started,” he promised. 

He went through hundreds more loops abducting Alya from parts of her day. It was different every time, and he was insanely grateful that she played along as soon as she realized it was him each time without even knowing that he was having a tough time. 

Or maybe, she did know. Like, she had covered Ananta’s exploits the day before on the Ladyblog. He hadn’t been able to bring himself to read the post, but someone had no doubt had caught the tearful group hug at the end of the battle, and Alya would have had a better guess than most what that likely meant. 

And so when he showed up as Ananta and revealed himself to be her boyfriend she would know that had been him. 

She didn’t ask questions or demand explanations. She just laughed and kissed him over and over. She let him abduct her from their dreary classes over and over and bury his face in her curls and wrap himself in her protective embrace until his senses were overwhelmed with all things Alya.

God, he loved her so much. 

The tricky part was then trying to escape from each of their teachers. Surprisingly Mendeliev had been the easiest to slip around, but Bustier had given him quite the run around. 

Once the school day was over he had followed Adrien’s limo home. He had intended to spend a few loops just being stupid with Adrien, but once there… well, he had been wanting to give Gabriel a piece of his mind since Nino had befriended his son. He had only held back because Adrien wanted him to, and Gabriel was terrifying. If only one of those things had been true, Nino thinks he would have pushed it ages ago. 

Ananta set the timer from the rooftop of the mansion and then broke through the front doors. 

Nathalie jumped to her feet, but he ignored her and stormed straight for Gabriel’s office. 

Gabriel rose to his feet more slowly than Nathalie had to face his intruder. 

“Gabriel Agreste, I’m here to tell you that you are the absolute worst parent.”

The older man gestured Nathalie away from the door. She stepped back, but she did not close the door. 

“You are trespassing on private property. I demand that you leave,” the stoic man said, barely raising his voice, which Nino found infuriating. 

“No! Not until I’ve said my piece.”

Gabriel took a visibly annoyed breath. “You’re clearly a teenager.” 

“Your point?”

“You’re hardly qualified to judge my parenting approaches.” 

Nino wanted to pull his hair out.

“Except that I am because I’m the one who picks Adrien back up everytime you tear him down!”

Gabriel considered him stoically for a moment, his hands hidden behind his back. 

“Mr. Lahiffe, I have already banned you from the premises. Your adopting an anonymous persona does not negate those rules.” 

“Your rules are stupid and unfair! Adrien is amazing! He gets the highest grades! He has an insane work ethic, and is always kind and respectful to everyone! He does everything you ask of him! And then he does more! He’s an Olympic level fencer and is fluent in three languages!

“And somehow, you still find him wanting. You never give him the time of day. You never tell him you’re proud of him or that you love him! At best, you ignore him, and at worst you take the time to point out every tiny fault!” 

“He internalizes everything you say, everything you ask for. He tears himself to pieces trying to meet your impossible expectations, he buries his struggles and doubts, and you don’t even acknowledge his effort or his love for you.” 

Nino was shaking in rage at this point. Gabriel still seemed unaffected. 

“Are you finished?” The man asked indifferently. 

“No! I’m not! I don’t know if you know how much you’ve harmed him! How many times I’ve been legit worried that he was going to hurt himself or give up! 

“Somehow, he’s been able to survive it. But not because of any of the crap  you’ve taught him about being strong and exceptional. He’s just that resilient!” 

“Which is a good thing because he’s also Chat Noir!”

Gabriel’s lips tightened and his eyes narrowed, and Nino wanted to run a victory lap for finally getting a reaction from the asshole. 

Nino barreled forward. “He manages being a superhero in between all the hoops and circus you run him through! And if he’s been struggling more than normal lately, it’s only because Hawkmoth has been putting him through the wringer.” 

“Nathalie!” He called. 

Nathalie marched into the room so fast, Nino was convinced she had been waiting right outside the open door the entire time listening in. 

“Didn’t we eliminate the possibility of Adrien being Chat Noir during Gorizilla?” 

Nathalie typed something into her tablet and handed it to him. 

“It looks like we did not get facial confirmation, sir. The person we presumed to be Adrien was wearing a helmet.” 

Gabriel removed his glasses and began cleaning them. “My own son, this entire time.” 

Nino felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise at Gabriel’s emotionless words that felt like a prison sentence.

Nino’s miraculous beeped. 

Gabriel’s stormy grey eyes shot toward the sound, and Nino took an involuntary step back.

And then Adrien’s father did something Nino never would have predicted. He lunged forward and struck Nino in the knee, and grabbed for the snake miraculous.

Nino dropped to the ground in agony, and jerked his arm just out of reach behind his back. 

“Second chance!” Nino screamed, sliding his other hand over the switch, grateful that he had so much practice in the last few days that the motion was automatic. 

He was back on the roof of the Agreste Mansion. His knee cap was fine, but his heart was roaring in his ears. 

That had not gone as he had been expecting. Not at all. 

Gabriel had actually attacked him and tried to take his miraculous. 

Nino wasn’t sure what it all meant. But he knew it couldn’t be good. 

...

[tothemeadow]

Kyo con-noncon teacher/student roleplay pls? 👉👈

😜😜😜

‘getting A’s and D’s’ / Rengoku K. x Reader

warnings: NSFW, noncon (roleplaying), handjobs, oral sex, facial

words: 1,769

-

Being a teacher is long, exhausting work. There are lessons to be written, homework to be given, exams to be graded. And while Kyojuro loves his job – he wouldn’t give it up for anything else in the world – there are times when all he wants to do is sit back and relax. It’s this very thought of returning home, returning to you, that keeps him going.

Soon enough, he’s pulling up in the driveway, putting his SUV in park. You should be home by now, probably doing something to pass the time (Kyojuro really hopes you’re cooking because he loves it when you cook). A smile comes to his face as he picks up his satchel and flings the car door open, nearly jumping out of the car and sprinting to the front door in his near fit of desperation.

Now, Kyojuro has never been a quiet man. Granted, he experienced an accident as a kid that left him with partial hear loss, so that doesn’t help, but he usually just wants you to know that he’s home as soon as possible. So yeah, it might be cliché that he yells “honey, I’m home!” as soon as he walks in through the front door, but he doesn’t care. If he’s really lucky, you’ll pop around the corner and run straight into his arms.

However, now is not one of those days. In fact, the house is surprisingly quiet. Usually, he’d hear you clanging away in the kitchen, or music blasting away from the stereo in the living room, but there’s nothing. Complete static silence. It’s unnerving, to say the least. Kyojuro saw your car in the driveway, so you’re clearly home, but where are you?

With a sigh, Kyojuro shucks his loafers off and stalks down the carpeted hallway, his footsteps somewhat muffled between the carpet and his socks. He draws closer to his office, already dreading the amount of papers he has to grade; frankly, he’d choose to have no papers or exams whatsoever, but the school requires at least something. True, his students are among the people he holds most dear, and he hated taking exams and the like when he was in school himself, but it can’t be helped. If he wants to keep his job, he has to play by the rules.

Upon swinging the door to his office open, however, Kyojuro comes to a complete stop, jaw dropping and muscles tensing. There you are, his beloved spouse, sitting in his office chair, legs crossed. What really catches his attention, though, is the school uniform you’re wearing, tartan, tie, all that fun stuff. You absentmindedly chew on a pencil, an almost perplexed look on your attractive features. You drop the pencil as soon as Kyojuro appears, a bright smile blooming on your face.

“Mr. Rengoku!” you chirp. “I was hoping to catch you after class…”

Oh, god. The way you say “Mr. Rengoku” has Kyojuro’s blood boiling, and it’s all in the best way possible.

Clearing his throat, Kyojuro tugs at the knot of his tie, loosening it and giving him ample room to breathe possibly. “Uh, uh…” he stammers, unsure of where he’s supposed to go with this. The button up shirt you wear is just a smidge too tight, clinging to your body and leaving little to the imagination.

“Listen,” you say, slowing drawing yourself to a stand, “about that last test we had… I know I failed it, but I really need to pass this class. You understand, right?” Stepping closer to him, you cock your head, a soft smile spreading across your lips.

A single whiff tells Kyojuro that something spicy sticks to your skin, all too tempting and delicious at once. He stands there dumbly, feet rooted to the spot as you get even closer to him. Your chest just barely brushes against his, your warm breath fanning across his face. Kyojuro’s breath quickens, the blood pumping through his veins heading south, leaving his cock throbbing in his slacks. The look in your eyes is too much, too sultry.

It makes him want to eat you alive.

“Then…” Kyojuro starts, but then he pauses, licks his lips. “Then maybe you should have studied more.”

Your lips twitch at that. “Awww, but Mr. Rengoku, can’t we find some solution? Anything? I really need that passing grade…” Reaching up, you place your hands on his biceps, give them a tight squeeze. “My, my, Mr. Rengoku, I always figured you worked out, but I never knew you were this hard,” you coo, tone innocent.

Like a flipping of the switch, your simple touch is enough to shift Kyojuro into this little “game” you’ve set up. It’s not the first time the two of you have engaged in roleplay, but it’s usually a planned occasion, not something spontaneous. Either way, Kyojuro is drawn to the way your hands run over his chest, lightly yank on his tie. Setting his jaw, he drops his briefcase, hands reaching up and taking hold of your wrists.

“What do you think you’re doing?” he says, voice low, gravelly. He doesn’t miss the way you shiver.

“Am I not allowed to appreciate my teacher?” you shoot back. “Besides… We can make some sort of deal, can’t we?”

Kyojuro scoffs at that. “And what did you have in mind, exactly?”

“Well…” Instead of finishing, you force him closer, spinning him around and pushing him towards his desk. He grunts as the backs of his thighs hit the dark wood, but you keep going; dropping to your knees, you send him a mischievous smile. “I thought that maybe… I do you a favor and you do me one in return?”

No, it shouldn’t be like this. He shouldn’t be so affected by one of his own students. It’s hard to miss the way that his cock strains against the fabric of his slacks, but he’s smarter than this. It’s protocol, for fuck’s sake!

“Come on, sit,” you urge, pushing on his hips until he has no other choice than to plant his ass onto the surface of the desk.

Murmuring your name, Kyojuro grips at the ledge, the tick in his jaw twitching. “We shouldn’t be doing this,” he mutters. “I shouldn’t be doing this. This could cost me my job.”

Pouting up at him, you shake your head. “You only get in trouble if you get caught, sir.”

Oh, fuck. The mere name has Kyojuro’s cock kicking in his pants, a fat bead of precum soaking the front of his boxers. Still, he has to retain control in this situation.

“Don’t be stupid,” he hisses. “I refuse to waste away my life over something like this.”

“Oh, come on,” you tell him. “Just give me a passing grade and we’ll forget all about this, okay? Unless…”

Kyojuro swallows thickly. “Unless what?”

You flash him a knowing smirk. “Unless you like it.” With a giggle, you reach up, gripping onto his belt and pulling it loose.

“Hey,” Kyojuro snaps, hands shooting out and grabbing yours. “What did I just tell you?”

“Don’t be a fun sponge, Mr. Rengoku! Or should I say sir?” Leaning forward, you nuzzle your cheek against the tent in his pants, another giggle slipping through your lips. “Don’t act like you don’t like it. In fact-“ Pulling away, you rip your hands away from his grasp, opting to pop open his button and yank down his zipper. “-you want me to continue. If you didn’t, then you wouldn’t be this hard.”

“No, don’t – ahh,” Kyojuro pants. A grunt slips from his mouth as you pull his cock out, hand stroking the heated flesh.

“Look at you,” you purr, fluttering your eyelashes enticingly. “I’ve barely done a thing and yet you’re so wet.”

“You’re not playing this fair.” Kyojuro groans, then, the sound rumbling in his chest as your hand picks up in a steady rhythm. “Fuck…”

“I’m just helping you, sir. A favor for a favor, hmm?” You hum as your thumb digs into his slit, picking up another drop of precum and smearing it over the head. “And I’ll be completely honest with you, sir… I’ve fantasized about you during class. You’re just so big, and I really wondered what it’d be like to be bent over your desk…”

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Kyojuro moans.

“I always knew your cock would be so pretty,” you continue to gush, your hand picking up its movement. “I bet you taste like candy.”

“Stop, stop, don’t- Hnngh, shit!”

Kyojuro groans as your lips wrap around his cock, your tongue darting across his cockhead. His eyes nearly roll towards the back of his skull as you sink down, cheeks hollowing; the head of his cock easily slips down your throat, your nose bumping against his pubic bone. You swallow around him, the moan you release making your throat vibrate. Kyojuro’s blunt nails dig into the surface of his desk, a choked-out noise breaking from the depths of his chest.

This isn’t real, this isn’t real, this isn’t real-

Kyojuro has to remind himself that this isn’t a real student he’s interacting with, but fuck if the implied danger of it makes his cock harder than what it should be. Arousal and heat swirl around his lower abdomen, squeeze his insides in a merciless hold. The wet heat of your mouth is too much, the lewd sounds emitting from your mouth echoing in the room. Moaning around him, you lift a hand, slipping it into his boxers and cupping his balls.

“God, yes, yes, just like that,” he pants, all caution thrown to the wind. “Fuck, baby, so good-“

His impending orgasm is approaching – and fast. He’s not sure if you can just tell by his desperate noises or the way his balls tighten, but you redouble your efforts, hollowing your cheeks so fucking hard that it almost hurts. He’s gonna cum down your throat, make you swallow each and every goddamned drop like it’s your last fucking meal-

But then you pull away. Your hand wraps around his cock, the schlick, schlick, schlick filling his ears and spurring him on even more. It’s like you know it was coming, for you close your eyes and open your mouth just in time. Kyojuro moans, low and raspy; thick, hot ropes of cum splash over your face, leaving such a sinful image for Kyojuro to burn into his memory. He’s a heavily panting mess as you carefully crack your eyes open, a devilish smile spreading across your features.

“On the desk – now,” Kyojuro grits. “I’m going to fuck you until you can’t walk.”

[imaginesfora3]

It’s About the Pining [Kazunari Miyoshi]

A/N: A commission I did for a lovely person who doesn’t mind if I post them to the blog now. If you’d like to commission me please message me over tumblr and I’ll happily give you my email so we can discuss details! 

There was something wrong with Kazunari.

No matter how hard he tried to brush it off, no matter how much he avoided your gaze or made an excuse for having to help another Summer Troupe member with something to get out of the same room as you, you could feel it. The two of you had been close since you’d become the director of the Mankai company and you’d never had him act so coldly before, as if he couldn’t bear to be around you longer than three seconds, and it was beginning to affect his acting. He’d fumble his lines, forget words, Tenma looked ready to strangle him before you’d finally called off practice for the night. You noted the depressed look on Kazunari’s face at being the reason things had fallen apart that night at practice and you thought twice about following him, knowing you might be the cause of his distracted behavior, but decided it was for the best to squash the situation before it got too awful.

Kazunari was struggling.

It’s not as though he hadn’t had crushes before, there were plenty of others that made him feel this sudden surge of excitement when he was around them, that made his heart race and made his cheeks grow hot with just one look. But you were all of that and more. Being around you made him feel at peace, it made him feel like he could be himself without worrying you’d reject the real him. As his precious director he hadn’t wanted to put you in an awkward position by trying to date you but now these feelings had gotten to be so unbearable, weighing heavily on him at night as he got sick at the thought of another person stealing you away from him. But what could he really do to get his feelings across from you?

He remembered the one night where he’d invited you to a mixer with him, to which you begrudgingly agreed; you seemed a bit lost at first, unable to start conversations, but once one of the others noticed your interest in something and asked you about it, sparks flew from there. He’d never felt quite so bitter, the night seeming to drag on now as he was no longer excited to be here. He’d thought the two of you would be able to talk more, that he’d charm the pants off of you and you’d start seeing him as more than just a member of the company, but if anything he’d just ruined his own chances by introducing you to people who seemed to be a better fit. What kind of stupid idea was this?

“Haha, that was fun, wasn’t it?” He lied through his teeth after the painful night had finally ended, looking at you and trying to at least appreciate how beautiful you looked even when you were dressed in casual wear.

“It wasn’t too bad, thanks for inviting me!” Your friendly smile is like an arrow right to his heart and he can’t help but shoot you a genuine smile, glad that at least you had a good time. “I know you haven’t been going out as much as you used to so I’m glad you still get the chance to every once in a while. It’s good to get out of your room and think about stuff other than acting!”

Kazunari had been pleased you’d noticed that he was making an effort to put up a more mature front, one that said ‘I’m a suitable partner and not just flirtatious punk!’ but he feels like you’re still not taking him seriously enough. You laugh off any implications that he has true feelings for you, you rolled your eyes playfully when he told he wanted to take you on a totally romantic date, and any time he implied you’d be the ideal significant other you simply told him to stop buttering you up. He knows he’s to blame for you not taking him seriously, his earlier years with the company had taken place when he was still finding himself, figuring out what he wanted from life and latching onto the things that gave him immediate gratification rather than playing the long game for something much more gratifying.

That night is what Kazunari is remembering when you stop him in the hall, placing a hand on his shoulder and tilting your head in confusion when he jumps like you’d just electrocuted him.

“Are you alright, Kazu? You’re distracted lately and I need to know if it’s something I can help with.”

You could help in more ways than one, he thinks to himself, you could help by not just recognizing his feelings but returning them, too. You could realize that you were his muse, evidenced by the countless sketches of you in his notebook that he had; they were you doing a range of activities from gaming to simply sitting around reading a book. You had a beauty so striking that he couldn’t help but be inspired the moment he caught sight of you, his hand twitching as he immediately go to work. He’d made it a habit to carry around his sketchbook with him, considering buying a separate one as he didn’t want anyone to stumble upon the one that was practically just inspired by you, but he felt that might be a step too far into the creepy zone.

“Sorry, I’ll try to do better!” His fake smile is something you easily see past and you wished you could shake some sense into him, pouting and crossing your arms as you waited for a real answer. “I’m just… Thinking about my birthday! Yeah! I didn’t know if I wanted to go out to celebrate this year or not.”

“The others are really looking forward to buying you a drink for your 20th… I am, too,” Your sad smile is like a brick on his chest, “But it’s your birthday. If it’s not what you want, I can let the others know.”

“N-No! No, I’m fine with it. But since it’s my birthday, you’ll sit next to me, right? I don’t ever get you all to myself~” Kazunari leaned closer, pleased when you don’t pull away despite being so close, “Could that be my birthday present instead?”

“…Sure, if that’s what you want.”

Kazunari let out a deep sigh, giving you another strained smile before he wished you goodnight; this was just another instance of you not taking him seriously! How much clearer could he get, aside from blatantly telling you he was in love with you, that he wanted to be with you?! In a romantic sense, where the two of you could do cute things together and he could look at you lovingly saying ‘all mine’ and you’d nod to confirm you were, indeed, all his. His poor heart couldn’t take this much longer and he threw himself onto his bed, burying his face in his pillow and letting out a deep, discontented groan before he finally relaxed enough to fall asleep.

At least you were his in his dreams.

His birthday was the best night of his life.

He’d tried to push off any depressed feelings he had from his unsuccessful advances on you to simply enjoy the time he had with his friends, which included you, as everyone gave him the little gifts they’d bought or made themselves. He’s feeling even more hyped up as he’s walking with everyone to the restaurant that night, chattering away about all the plans he had now that he was a true blue adult with nothing holding him back! Every once in a blue moon his eyes would drift over to you unprompted, briefly looking you up and down before he returns to the conversation he had been engaged in; this doesn’t go unnoticed by you, quietly wondering if there was still something off between the two of you but figuring his birthday party wasn’t the time or place to bring it up.

The evening goes just as you predicted it would.

There’s plenty of laughter and jokes, Kazunari getting drinks bought for him from just about every member of the company. Tsumugi tries to keep him eating to soak in the alcohol, not wanting the young man to be totally blasted, but in a not very shocking turn of events Kazunari continues to spiral downwards. By the end of the night everyone’s got a nice buzz going for them while Kazunari can barely walk straight, only wanting you to help hold him up; Tasuku was on the other side of him bearing most of his weight but Kazunari refused to unlatch from your arm, excitedly talking about all the things he wanted to do as he got older and all the places he’d love to vacation to with you. You’re a little embarrassed at how blatantly affectionate he’s being and, even if he’d been the same way towards you before, something feels different with the far more direct approach drunk Kazunari is taking.

You don’t know how you convinced Kazunari to make his way to bed, Tasuku once again asking if you need him to take over for you; figuring you could handle Kazunari, and hearing said birthday boys complaints that he wanted you to be the one to tuck him in at night, you decided it was far easier to just handle it yourself. Most of the others had seen themselves off to bed or had gone home for the weekend, Muku’s bed thankfully empty as he surely would’ve been awoken by Kazunari’s giggling.

“I’ve got something super important to tell you~”

“I’m sure you do but you need to sleep now.”

“But it’s super important, don’t you wanna know? Totes top secret, just between the two of us!”

“Kazunari…”

“I love you.”

There’s a piercing silence that fills the room as his brows furrowed, as though he hadn’t meant to say that out loud despite his previous teasing. Every single insecurity he’d ever felt about your relationship, about how you viewed him, popped up again, completely undoing all the confidence the alcohol had filled him with.

“You’re really drunk right now, Kazunari.” You tried to get him settled but his intense stare is still burning into you, his words making your heart flutter in your chest; you don’t remember the last time you’d heard those words from someone who wasn’t a family member or a fan, and coming from him… You didn’t know how you were supposed to feel, but you couldn’t say it was an entirely negative. But wouldn’t that be complicated? To date one of the members of the company you managed?

“I’m not drunk, you’re just really blurry! And it’s how I feel. You never believe me… How can I make you believe me?” Kazunari pouted, leaning against you further and sending you stumbling into the wall. He’s quick to catch himself though it still ends with the two of you pressed closely together, breath hitching as your eyes meet with his. “You’re so beautiful.”

“We can talk about this tomorrow when you’re sober.” Your reply was definitive, sobering him enough as he did the climb of shame into his bed. You left without another word, mind swimming with all sorts of thoughts and anxieties while Kazunari’s did the same.

Morning didn’t bring him any peace.

Kazunari spent at least an hour that morning staring up at the ceiling, hating his life, wishing more than anything he could take back what he said to you last night. It felt like he was being stabbed in his heart and his head, over and over, no mercy being granted to him. He considered spending the rest of the day in bed feigning a serious illness but his stomach dropped at the thought of you being concerned over his well-being so he decided against it, finally dragging himself out of his room and down to the kitchen where you were waiting.

And you were alone.

When you glanced up from your plate to meet him he felt that same painful tinge in his heart, averting his eyes as he remembered almost perfectly the look on your face when he’d confessed to you. He wouldn’t blame you for not taking him seriously, for thinking he was just being his normal, flirtatious self, but he couldn’t have been more serious. Every day that passed he fell more and more in love with you and it was killing him inside now that he thought he’d ruined all that you had together. Kazunari’s heart ached and he wanted to apologize but he felt bringing it up would be even more awkward.

“Can we talk about last night?”

So much for avoiding that problem.

“Uh, haha, yeah, about that… I’m really sorry for saying all of that. I didn’t wanna make you uncomfortable.”

“It wasn’t real?” You asked softly, head tilting to the side, Kazunari’s breath catching in his throat. How did you manage to be so effortlessly beautiful? His poor heart couldn’t take it.

“…It was real.”

“So you will give me a chance to prove myself?”

“Yes,” You smiled at the eager look on his face, “I’ll go on a date with you Kazunari. And why don’t you let me give you a present that I didn’t have the chance to give you last night.”

His entire body froze as you leaned in to press a soft kiss to his lips, a moment that he couldn’t believe was actually happening. He’d pictured how he’d feel, how soft your lips would be, how wonderful and vindicating it would truly be when he finally got the girl. And now that it was happening he was terrified, terrified one small move would puncture the perfect little fantasy bubble he was in and his happiness would explode around him. Yet it was real, you were real, standing in front of him, kissing him, agreeing to go on a date with him.

Kazunari had never been happier.

He’d prove to you that he was a great partner.

One day at a time.

[tibby]

thoughts on other choices books

i’m assuming you mean besides royal romance because that’s what i mainly post about so here are my feelings on the others i’ve played:

high school story: the reason i got into choices (i was like “hey remember surviving high school from the grand old days of 9th grade science? wonder what happened to it!” and it was this) and so it will always have a special place in my heart <3 maria flores is my dream girl michael is the ultimate gbf and our little gang is so cute. minus emma, who is the human equivalent of watching paint dry. berry high forever, baby!

class act: overall not as fun or interesting as hss but WOW my love for skye crandall hit me like a ton of books. insane how a stupid mobile app understands abuse better than most pieces of media. i would do anything for my goth baby lesbian daughter. and i am very fond of ajay too.

it lives in the woods: did what stranger things/clown story thought it was doing. probably the best written and most engaging choices book imo. ava cunningham is the love of my life and #kingkang. wish the game was more sympathetic towards noah because he was clearly a grieving and traumatised teen who was manipulated and shit happens. refusing to make a third book in the series and therefore robbing me of my chance to save him (AND romance jocelyn) is a pixelberry crime i can never forgive.

it lives beneath: inferior to ilitw but LOVED tom’s development and danni is my gf <3 parker can choke tho idc. feels like a third book could have done a lot of justice to imogen but whatever i guess :/ the cult stuff was fun but honestly? the ghost was right.

the haunting of braidwood manor: the idea that i would spend diamonds on a six chapter book for a DEAD GIRL is laughable but probably the nicest art style in any of the books so far and the dead kids were fun. also very funny to me because it is SUCH a victim of pixelberry reusing art. they didn’t expect me to notice that braidwood manor is just olivia’s home in lythikos? or that the youngest dead kid is just young maxwell beaumont’s model? grow up, pb. i’m a royal romance bitch. i know my stuff.

the freshman series: still only on the sophomore book two and i think it’s very fun that they made your friends insufferable or just forgot to give them personalities. except for james, who i am very fond of and i would have romanced if it didn’t give me the option to romance becca. but i see an enemies to friends to lovers lesbian storyline, and i take it. james is cute with reyna anyway. here’s hoping that by the time junior year rules around mc finally has a personality.

queen b: FINALLY, A CHOICES BOOK THAT ENCOURAGES YOU TO BE EVIL!!!! i had such a blast with this one even if the illicit romance with your professor turned out to be dealing with the most clingy bitch in existence :/ poppy is such an entertaining villain and i think zoey is easily one of the most well rounded love interests they ever put out. also just generally a very nice art style and i have to respect any game that allows you to fuck not only your teacher, but also your best friend, your rival, AND have a threesome with your rival’s ex and close friend. genius. plus i named my hometown tumblr which made a lot of the dialogue SO fun. and i really think pixelberry is on to something by making a school gossip blog so important that teachers give out awards based on it. incredible.

with every heartbeat: honestly just playing this one to diamond mine because as avery said, why spend money on a dead girl? mateo and lennox are fun though.

[thrushpot]

Five and Nine dearie! ;)

since you asked about all my stories, I have around 13-ish so this is basically a giant commentary for everything:)🤘🏼😃

hidden in plain sight

what part was hardest to write?

The fucking letters, jesus christ. I thought, ‘hey, wouldnt it be fun to have Billy’s point of view with him reading what she admires about him and make it super lovey dovey and sweet?’ and I almost gave up so many times cause fuck it was hard. Took over a week with switching the wording around and finding what flowed best. Also finding what didn’t sound creepy.

were there alternate versions to this fic?

Nah, I mean I could’ve had their places switch, where he’s the one that writes to her... but I loved writing him feel all blushy and giddy over someone thinking of him like that.

look what you’ve done

what part was hardest to write?

After the fight and the ignoring and all that pent up anger being released, there was an awkward moment with all this tension between the two in her room - that was challenging for sure. Cause he was being a piece of shit and he himself knew it, she knew it, everybody knew it. But what took some thinking was to be able to show the guy he was before the fight and his insecurities getting the best of him.

were there alternate versions of this fic?

I dabbled with a lot of reasons why they’d fight, but Billy as a person is just sensitive and insecure and him seeing something like that, no matter how innocent or short the exchange could’ve been in reality with her and some nameless stranger could still set him off and trigger the monster he’s got hidden inside. I can’t remember other scenarios I had thought of but that one stuck to me.

sixteen

what part was hardest to write?

The relationship felt natural, like I could hear all the conversations they’ve had and seen everything they’d done together, I really really liked that dynamic but one stupid small part that killed me was writing the douchey boyfriend lol. Ultimately it’s such an insignificant part, so I scrapped any further drama with him and his deal because the story wasn’t supposed to be about him; it was supposed to be about her and Billy, their past, how it affected them both when they saw each other again after so long.

were there alternate versions of this fic?

None actually! I had it in my mind right off the bat that I wanted him to be nervous and caught off guard for once. like I said in the commentary for this, I know his personality, I know he’s quite used to thinking/believing he’s the most powerful in the room but I wanted that to change for this instance, and I strayed away from having him be untouchable or macho in any way.

whipped

what part was hardest to write?

THE KIDS. I’ve never ever written them before, and I even debated watching a few episodes before tackling it.... but I didn’t and I think I pulled it off alright. I loved their humor. I knew Dustin was always being a paranoid goofball, Lucas as the same without all the anxiety or nerdy interests, Mike as impatient and pessimistic, and Will as being very quiet. So yeah, I overcame that doubt and just did what I thought felt right.

were there alternate versions to this fic?

I thought a lot about what movie they’d watch - like a rom com would’ve been pretty funny too, but I had to have him tease and scare the kids so I made their movie of the night thing be Nightmare on Elm Street😂

punch-drunk love

what was the hardest part to write?

A lot of this flowed easy and generally wasn’t stressful at all. Describing him as a fun drunk was a blast. Thinking of what he would he say if he had no filter and felt on top of the world. I can’t think of anything that I was held back by this time, it all came out in just a couple hours when I should’ve been sleeping lol.

were there alternate versions to this fic?

When I was brainstorming by myself I thought it would just be more smutty and desperate or even a little more sad. I had it planned that she’d reject him initially, but then I got an ask that changed the game and I’m really proud of how it turned out.

naive

what part was hardest to write?

I hardly went over it or stressed much other than tweaking a few details, but plot was pretty self explanatory - I think the most difficult part to write was all the possible ways there could’ve been scenarios where he could’ve mislead her

were there any alternate versions of this fic?

I almost wanted to write them in class but thought him on lifeguard duty would’ve been more engaging and had a lot more to go off of

old habits die hard

what part was hardest to write?

Literally everything. every. single. PART about writing people have sex is challenging, omg. Foreplay....down to kissing.....then down to actually fucking, I got red the whole time. Especially after posting it I’d almost pissed myself ‘cause it’s so nerve wracking putting smut out there holy christ.

were there alternate versions to this fic?

I wanted to get into their marriage and relationship but.... tbh I thought everyone would just skip it and get to the good stuff. So yeah there was probably an almost started version on my phone where I had backstory on how he proposed and all but thought no one would care too much lol.

obstacle 1

what part was hardest to write?

Hurt/comfort is a little challenging when you wanna do it differently. I wanted to sway away from her being this perfect female caregiver that knows exactly what to say and what to do cause that’s just so hard to picture when it comes to real life and all, not that I’m mixing fiction and life it’s just sometimes hard to believe that every girl is perfect at taking care of a guy breaking down.

were there alternate versions to this fic?

Nothing too different, I reasoned in my head how he’d get into trouble cause there are infinite ways Billy could’ve fucked up but.... stealing chocolate is pretty funny and juvenile, and he knew it too, but he’d absolutely still get his ass whooped anyway.

playing hooky

what part was hardest to write?

I found it hard to know what they’d do after she got blasted, cause.....what would two teenagers do in a small town skipping school? Also easily taking personal experience for her snapping and getting tired of her careful image cause everybody had these impossibly high expectations for her, but what they’d get up to doing that was ‘illegal’ that they could get arrested for took some time to think about.

were there alternate versions to this fic?

At first I pictured them maybe like breaking in somewhere they weren’t supposed to, hence the ‘we could get arrested’ line, but skinny dipping was my favorite pitch.

thick as thieves

what part was hardest to write?

The ending gave me a tough time, I had to think whether or not if I’d forgive someone for doing that shit to me. It’s happened before, to everybody and myself, the pains of drifting apart and the jealousy that comes with seeing them blossom and become social butterflies, the joys of being in high school... Oh and I’m still working on another part:)

were there alternate versions of this fic?

I dabbled with lots of ideas but I knew I wanted two friends growing apart, a push/pull between their relationship...I don’t remember what else I had planned that I ditched.

the craft (1996)

what part was hardest to write?

Maybe the love spell part. I wanted to write it as severe and dramatic as possible, and really show how desperate and gone he was.

were there alternate versions to this fic?

Hmm, I based this off the film and it does show a lot more about the girl group besides the love spell bit, but I wanted it to focus on that cause it was more interesting fucking with Billy. I liked how dark both the movie and the fic was

in utero

what part was hardest to write?

My obstacle with this one was creating this female Billy in my head, which to me was basically a flawed, outrageous, outgoing/promiscuous high school girl who makes a mistake. Writing him pining was definitely enjoyable, and him practicing his lines on how he’d say how he felt and stuff. The wording was switched around a ton, but I’m fairly happy with it. It’s not perfect, he stutters and trails off because he’s nervous, but in it’s own way I think it’s a perfect display of an insecure guy summoning up any courage he has and trying to shoo away any doubt.

were there alternate versions to this fic?

Oh man, tons of ideas came to my head with this one. I wondered if maybe she could’ve never gotten ‘rid’ of ‘it’ and then they run off in the sunset, raise ‘it’ together.... Billy maturing and finding a home with their own family. BUT the reason I chose the path she took was because she’s just a kid, fresh from high school, had no idea what she was gonna do with no money other than visit her best friend. I think she knew she didn’t want it and couldn’t stand the guy who put her in this position, so she ran.

— so there it all is, kudos to you if you actually read this far down and to anyone who has reblogged or commented on any of these.... THANKYOU🖤🥰✨

And especially thanks to Haiden cause you’re the best

[trifoliate-undergrowth]

Episode 4.2: Steve: The Intergalactic Kevin

DM: By popular demand, one night only, a largely improv emergency meeting. If you drive me to alcoholism I’m billing you for therapy.

T: M, if you get sued for therapy bills, it’s coming out of the wedding budget. (T and M got engaged over Christmas break)

Everyone: OOOOOOO

DM: Corellia is one of the major core worlds, in a system with 4 others, but it’s the largest and closest to the main star; part of the Republic but maintains its own navy. Its main specialty is shipping and transportation.

Grif: OK, here’s the thing. I’ve been thinking about what you said, Rralwarr; the ship is a death trap, what if we turn it on them? Like, booby-trap it with bombs, set it to fly off somewhere on autopilot, and when they board the ship it’ll blow up with them in it hopefully. Now, there’s a couple more things you guys will hate.

Taveau: Oh I’m liking it so far.

Grif: You won’t. We’ll need to leave some things behind to make it look like we died. Your armor for one. 

Taveau: Ex-CUSE me

Grif: ...and three bodies off the black market. Also a wookiee pelt. 

Rralwarr: HOLD UP NOW. If I see someone with a wookiee pelt, I’m going to rip their arms off. 

Taveau: Grif? You... seem to be taking this well. Uh, more or less. So, uh. I’ve got some stuff to mention. 

Grif: Go ahead. 

Taveau:  Here’s what I noticed... First, we assist in killing a member of Death Watch; they’re killed with a blast to the throat. A short amount of time passes, and in that time, two things happen: we get a message from Death Watch, showing that they know who we are. And someone kills your mother with a blast to the throat, which is exactly the way that we killed the Death Watch guy down on Hypori. It doesn’t seem like a coincidence to me. It seems like they’re trying to send you a message. And if I’m right, that means there’s already someone on Alderaan, and they know where to find your family.  I still think we should change ships, because if there’s anyone following us, it might throw them off, and we’ll have fewer of these guys waiting for us when we get to Alderaan. But we should do it fast.

Rralwarr: Right. Here’s my concern, Grif; I think these guys are smarter than you think. I don’t think your dad is safe, and I think he said what he did at gunpoint. Your dad isn’t that stupid. There’s something else going on here. 

H, OOC: Rralwarr feels torn that he cannot uphold all of his duties at once. He legit thinks Grif’s idea is mildly OK, aside from the wookiee pelt, but no matter what they do they’re going to end up fighting the Mandalorians.

Grif: Right. So, any way we can get back at them now is a good start. We need to lose the ship that they’re tracking, and we need to get back there as quickly as possible. This idea seems the best for doing that without getting anyone else in danger. If we just leave the ship on Corellia, we could be implicating the people who end up with it. 

Rralwarr still doesn’t like the idea of wookiee pelts. He leaves the cockpit. 

Taveau spins around in his pilot chair. “So. Uh, he’s upset. How much family do you have on... Alderaan, is it?” 

Grif: Yes. My dad and uh.. a bunch of siblings. 

Taveau: Oh, that’s not good. If it was just your dad they’d be more likely to keep him alive to use against you. If you’ve got multiple family members they could start killing them off at any time. 

No one questions Taveau’s knowledge of Death Watch, to my surprise; apparently they just assume it’s cultural knowledge and accept it. Taveau is very relieved about this. 

We land on Corellia, and Grif’s current plan involves selling the ship to someone, because “we need the credits”, but setting the autopilot so it flies away before they can claim it, and hopefully getting off the planet before we’re arrested for this little scam. Taveau doesn’t like it but doesn’t have a better idea. Rralwarr really, really doesn’t like it but is in a similar position. 

Taveau leaves his helmet in the cockpit, so he can have an excuse to run back into the ship after it’s officially been sold and grab it (and also set the autopilot at the same time). Additionally, with his poncho covering most of his armor, he can walk around town looking like your average shady individual, and not a distinctly Mandalorian brand of shady. Upon us asking what the chances of being attacked around here are: 

DM: There is pretty heavy police presence here, CorSec does not take kindly to disruptions. ...(repeats, pointing at M/Grif): CorSec does not take kindly to disruptions...

M: That’s why we need to get out of here fast after we set the autopilot :) 

DM: ...It’s not likely that Death Watch would prefer to start a firefight here. You’re heading into the Corellian Engineering Corp. headquarters, yes? You are immediately accosted by at least 3 dealers, complimenting your hair, your robes, and waving information pamphlets at you. 

Grif: Thank you! Lovely! I’ll consider it. One moment. (OOC: can I roll perception to see who has the best deal?) 

DM: yeah go ahead. (he rolls high) You notice this one guy standing back a bit, close to the wall-- 

M: I GO OVER TO HIM 

DM: What do you say? 

Grif: Ah! Interesting tactic, not rushing me~ 

DM: ...Roll charisma. (fail) Yeah he just kinda... gives you a slightly offended look, says “I’m busy” and walks away. 

M: Oh. 

Meanwhile, Rralwarr is hanging out in the courtyard near our ship, trying to keep an eye on our surroundings. He rolls a 9 on perception. 

DM: ...Yeah, you don’t see anything unusual. You do notice a very fascinating fountain. You stare at that for a while. 

Grif, meanwhile, heads for the table marked “sales and trade-ins” and identifies his ship type to the droid attendant. He’s sent out with a scanner team to check the condition of the ship. 

Taveau, who’d started off to check out one of the other dealers, hears that Grif has it handled and, relieved that he doesn’t have to talk to anyone, rejoins Rralwarr. Taveau also manages to roll a 9 on perception (2, originally, with modifiers). He, too, becomes enamored with the fountain. He stands by Rralwarr and contemplates his place in the universe. While Grif accomplishes things, the two of them gaze at the fountain together. 

Grif chats up the scanner team foreman while the rest of the dudes set up the scanner. Eventually they call him inside to look at something and Grif waits outside, tucking his hands inside his sleeves and gripping the tiny concealed blaster he keeps up one of his sleeves (which I only heard about very recently, and this makes me wonder if Taveau has noticed it. Possibly, as it seems like something he’d notice. But possibly not, because as we all know, he’s kind of clueless.) 

M: Grif feels edgy. 

DM: Do you mean he feels On Edge or is he just... intentionally acting as edgy as possible 

H: Oh it’s definitely that

M: Edgy, probably. I mean it’s not like he’s actually going to shoot anyone, he’s just gripping his gun and feeling edgy for the sake of edginess. 

There’s muffled conversation from inside. oh, really?...huh...well, that’s... interesting...

The foreman reappears, carrying a small device in his hand, and tells Grif that the ship seems to be in pretty good reselling condition, but the scan found a hyperspace tracker on the bottom of the engine. He’s guessing that they bought it from a secondhand dealer, as some of the less-scrupulous of those will often attach a tracker to a ship so they can track it down if payments aren’t met. He also volunteers that it only transmits when in hyperspace, and gives it to Grif when he asks. 

(Lore-wise this tracker bugs me a bit because hyperspace technology was considered brand new in The Last Jedi, which is considerably later than the time period we’re playing in. I then consider the fact that we’re playing a game for fun and not accuracy and that it’s a cool concept and I tell myself to take a chill pill.)

Foreman: Also, you have excellent taste in rum. 

Grif: Oh, yes! Why don’t we get it down, actually, to celebrate the sale? 

Foreman: That’s not a bad idea. I’ll send the boys back early. 

The Rest of the Party: * C O N C E R N * 

M: guys I’m gonna be fine don’t worry. 

And in fact Grif did not die. Grif didn’t even drink (rum). He had water, and he gave the rest of the bottle to the foreman as a gift, considering he couldn’t let Rralwarr see it with him anyway. The foreman, for his part, left in an excellent mood and promised to give his ship a really good report. 

I think this may have been the first time Grif succeeded with charisma. M comments that, thanks to the character change, he’s more focused than usual. 

We reunite and discuss an alternate plan, now that we have the tracker: take it with us on the new ship, hyperspace-jump to the middle of absolutely nowhere, fling the tracker off the ship and then hightail it to Alderaan. Taveau grabs his helmet and, taking the tracker along, we trade in our old ship for a shiny new one. 

DM asks if we’d like to name the ship. H/Rralwarr don’t have ideas. M goes “yeah I don’t think Grif really cares right now.” So it’s up to me. 

“...Steve?” (laughter. The DM is going to accept it) “No wait. The.... The Intergalactic Kevin.” (H really likes that one but I feel like I should come up with a name that isn’t a joke) “Wait, I’ve got it: Blindsider.” 

A good name, as Taveau sincerely hopes that they’ll be able to reach Alderaan undetected in this ship. Everyone likes the name, the DM okays it, and we have a newly-christened ship (with two sonic showers). 

Someone suggests that we get a party pet, some kind of space dog, and name it Steve: The Intergalactic Kevin. 

Rralwarr, a little calmed down now that we’ve found a plan that doesn’t involve massive amounts of deception, swindling, and disrespecting the remains of the dead, goes to talk to Grif as Taveau is starting it up. 

Grif: I’m gonna be fine, it’s just.. this entire day all I’ve been able to think about has been Alderaan. I wanna go home, but also I wanna stay away as much as possible. And when I think of Alderaan I think of mom, but she won’t be there...it’ll just be a house, it won’t be the same. And I still kinda wanna get back at those Mandalorians. But I know we don’t have the power to do that, and it just frustrates me.

The two share a moment. The moment is interrupted: 

Taveau: HEY GUYS ARE WE TAKING OFF? 

Grif: ..YeS

Rralwarr: Grif, I know you’re under a lot of stress, and I don’t blame you for your suggestions, and while your suggestion regarding the wookie pelts deeply offends me, I know you were more concerned with getting us off here safely than with how you did it, and I understand. Don’t do that again, though. You know very well how wookies treat their dead. 

Grif: I know, trust me, humans are the same way. I’m sorry, I know that was out of place, and... I wish I could say that I wouldn’t have done it.

Rr: We’re at war, things happen... I didn’t have a better idea at the time.

Grif: also I’m still not certain that people won’t get hurt because of our ship. 

Rr: there’s no perfect way to handle this. Let’s think of it this way: we’re going back to protect the rest of your family, they’re all targets; we’re all in danger now, we need to make sure they’re safe.

We take off, make the jump, and stop to dispose of the tracker. Taveau rolls really well on piloting and I decide that this ship has really easy controls. Here’s where Mistakes Happen. 

Me: Can I do the honors of yeeting the tracker into space? 

DM: Absolutely. There’s, like, a waste disposal hatch, and you-- 

H: You should roll dex for that!

Me: What? For shoving something down a garbage chute? 

H: Yes. Because it’d be really funny if you failed. 

Me:...ok

DM: Excellent! Roll! 

Me: 

Me: a 1 

H: HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Me: WHAT. WHAT HAPPENS TO ME. 

DM: ....which hand are you using? 

Me, recognizing that this is an opportunity for mercy and deciding not to take it: I mean realistically probably my dominant hand, which is my right. 

DM: It’s stuck. 

Rralwarr: I grab your arm and pull you out!

DM: And now your wrist is broken. 

Me: GREAT. THAT WAS MY SHOOTING HAND. 

Rralwarr treats me with his medic skills and fixes me up with a wrist brace. I’m told that I’ll be alright in a few days (presumably Rralwarr inflicted some sort of rapid-heal treatment upon me?), but I should, in the meantime, avoid stressing my hand. Specifically, I shouldn’t fire any weapons with recoil. 

Yeah, good luck with that. 

As we end the session, I ask H if Rralwarr has any painkillers. H says gleefully that he does indeed, and that he’s looking forward to seeing a high Taveau. 

masterpost

[myhahnestopinion]

THE AARONS 2017 - BEST TV EPISODE

My consumption of serialized TV seems to be inversely correlated to the amount of bing-watching I do. I love the more complex storylines and engaging characters of serialized TV, but I also like having time to reflect on how each episode works as a piece of the whole. That’s why I designed this award to look at the exemplary singular efforts in TV this year. Here are The Aarons for Best TV Episode:

#10. “The Ricklantis Mix-Up” (Rick and Morty, Season 3, Episode 7)

The promise of Rick and Morty taking their absurd antics to the realm of Atlantis was enticing… but it was not meant to be. Instead, the show flipped the script, transporting us into a trio of trope-blasting adventures with some unexpected, but amazing, dark social satire. In a miniscule fraction of the time and budget, Rick and Morty create a high-concept buddy cop examination of systemic racism far more enjoyable and insightful than Netflix’s Bright could ever have hoped to be, along with a surprisingly affecting coming-of-age tale, and a sublime political thriller. A lot of Rick and Morty episodes had a chance at making this list, but “The Ricklantis Mix-Up” ultimately got it for delivering a holy trinity of the show’s brilliant meta-narratives.

#9. “Stupid Piece of Sh*t” (BoJack Horseman, Season 4, Episode 6)

Since its inception, BoJack Horseman has been a blistering portrayal of the depths of depression, but “Stupid Piece of Sh*t” (Netflix’s censorship there) found a way to be even more cutting than usual by finally giving us a glimpse inside BoJack’s head, narrated by Will Arnet’s haunting voice work. Taking advantage of the cartoon format, the episode’s innovative departure from the show’s traditional animation style brought mental illness to life in painfully real fashion, and made it clear that the show’s honest look at these struggles is indeed a story best told through the animated format. Well, that, and because the episode also delivered plenty of wonderful animal puns and sight gags, as always.

#8. “New York, I Love You” (Master of None, Season 2, Episode 6)

Similar to “The Ricklantis Mix-Up,” a large number of Master of None’s second season could have made this list, including its wonderful send-up of Bicycle Thieves and the touching “Thanksgiving” episode, but “New York, I Love You” stood out for its narrative swerve and its triad of empathetic stories. Departing from our regular cast to follow the stories of unique New Yorkers by way of camera pan, the episode showcased Master of None’s knack for finding compelling stories and wise commentary in the simplest of stories. Stories about the characters that make up the character of New York City may be rote material for TV, but Master of None’s unique viewpoints and celebration of diversity, from a Burundian cab driver to a deaf couple, made it one of 2017’s most powerful and important stories to watch.

#7. “Duet” (The Flash, Season 3, Episode 3)

Like Barry Allen with Singin’ in the Rain, I’m a sucker for a good musical, and The Flash’s celebration of the talented cast of Broadway stars and Glee-alumni amassed by it and its crossover show Supergirl was just way too much fun to not include on this list, despite a confusing direction for the episode’s central villain. The stars were all clearly having a grand time getting to put a superhero spin on a classical musical style, and while the show’s covers of existing song were stirring enough, it’s really the two original numbers that made this episode such a delight, including the tender “Running Home to You” from La La Land’s songwriters, and the clever wit of “Superfriends” from Rachel Bloom of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend fame.

#6. “Chicanery” (Better Call Saul, Season 3, Episode 5)

If Better Call Saul indeed ends up lasting as long as its predecessor, than “Chicanery” will sit as the exact middle of the show, and is appropriately a game-changing episode and the height of emotional drama thus far. The entire show has been building towards watching Jimmy McGill and his estranged brother Chuck going head-to-head in the courtroom, and the resulting conflict was one of the most intense watches of the year. The sharp plotting and rich characterization provided the perfect framework for a show-stopping performance by Michael McKean, whose vitriolic courtroom meltdown was absolutely shattering for viewers. Honestly though, the real reason this episode was guaranteed a spot on this list is because, of course, it also marked the return of Huell to the Breaking Bad world.

#5. “The Law of Non-Contradictions” (Fargo, Season 3, Episode 3)

“The Law of Non-Contradictions” was an outlier in the already peculiar early episodes of Fargo’s third season, moving the location of the show outside of frozen Minnesota for the first time, and transplanting Carrie Coon’s Officer Burgle to sunny California. While the pieces all falling into place in its final moments made Fargo my favorite show of the year, “The Law of Non-Contradictions” is one of my favorite episodes precisely because it doesn’t fit into the show’s larger narrative. Burgle’s investigation of her murdered stepfather’s past as a pulp science-fiction novelist ended up irrelevant to the case at hand, but its examination of the role of stories in our lives and the frequent failures of good intentions, themes that are enhanced by a beautiful animated story within its story, made the episode a key piece of the lingering power of Season 3.  

#4. “USS Callister” (Black Mirror, Season 4, Episode 1)

While Black Mirror’s terrifying Twilight Zone-like looks at technological trepidation made it into such an addictive show, it’s the episodes that break this mold that become some of my favorite episodes of television ever. “USS Callister” is the most visual effects heavy episode of the show ever, and, given it also runs at a full 80 minutes, could very well be considered a movie, but, like “San Junipero” before it, the true power of the episode comes from its place within the show’s loose anthology structure. The episode certainly gives a haunting look at the dangers of potential technology through its scathing indictment of the toxic masculinity festering in certain sects of fandoms, given form in Jesse Plemons’ perfect parody of William Shatner’s Kirk. However, what makes it one of 2017’s best episodes is its fulfillment of the intentions of its parody subject, Star Trek, with its thrilling adventure of a diverse crew working in harmony to overcome insurmountable odds. 

#3. “Hero or Hate Crime” (Always Sunny, Season 12, Episode 6)

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia continues to show it deserves to become television’s longest running live-action sitcom, because every year it manages to put out at least a handful of great new episodes. Season 12 had a couple highlights, including a wickedly fun Always Sunny take on The Wiz, but “Hero or Hate Crime” understands that the greatest moments of the show come from just letting the cast bounce off one another. The gang’s debate over whether Frank’s use of a slur to warn Mac of a danger to his life constitutes as a hate crime is a fantastic source for the show’s riotous and outlandish, though never truly offensive, brand of dark humor. It’s all great fun, but it’s the episode’s unexpectedly moving ending, perhaps the first time Always Sunny can be considered an emotional experience, that cements “Hero or Hate Crime” as one of the finest episodes of the long-running series.

#2. “Dance, Dance, Resolution” (The Good Place, Season 2, Episode 3)

In what I like to consider the unofficial spiritual mascot of the Reboot Already Underway podcast, “Dance, Dance, Resolution” was the most madcap episode of a very madcap sitcom, an episode so intent on tearing down its status quo that watching it made one extremely nervous that the show had pulled yet another bait-and-switch and its finale was going to come unexpectedly in only the third episode of the season. Thankfully, the show didn’t end, finding a way to subvert all expectations yet again at the end of this extraordinary, joke-a-millisecond entry directed by Cabin in the Woods’ Drew Goddard. “Dance, Dance, Resolution” suggested that The Good Place truly does have an eternal source of cleverness to draw from for its twisted afterlife, made even clearer by the lengthy list of unused punny restaurant names that episode writer Megan Amram released on Twitter the following day.

AND THE BEST TV EPISODE OF 2017 IS....

#1. “Cryogenics, Lightning, Last Review” (Review, Season 3, Episode 3)

“Dance, Dance, Resolution” may have been such a clever deconstruction of its show’s premise that it seemed like The Good Place’s finale would come in just the season’s third episode, but Review actually did it. Review is perhaps the most underappreciated show of the decade, and, had the viewership justified it, I’m sure it would have never stopped being entertaining to watch Forrest McNeil’s absurd quest to review everything in life, no matter the cost to his health or personal relationships. While it’s sad to see such an ingenious show end, I couldn’t imagine a more perfect note for Review to go out on, an episode that saw the show’s cringe-inducing absurdism and glorious dark comedy in peak form. The tragedy of Forrest McNeil truly deserves a place alongside the great works of the Greek poets and Shakespeare, a downfall that simply must be experienced in its entirety for yourself. So, I’ll say no more than: I give this episode… all the stars.

NEXT UP: THE 2017 AARON FOR BEST TV PERFORMANCE!

[gamerszone2019-blog]

No Man's Sky Beyond Review

New Post has been published on https://gamerszone.tn/no-mans-sky-beyond-review/

No Man's Sky Beyond Review

In 2019, No Man’s Sky

is the water fight of games. When your water balloons are stacked high and your water gun is full it’s an absolute blast. But inevitably, you run out of liquid ammunition and have to pause for several minutes, soaking wet and shivering, while you operate a hose and refill your stores for the next round of fun. While the recent Beyond represents another significant step in the right direction for No Man’s Sky that improves itself in almost every area, the uninteresting harvesting and survival mechanics that underlie it all remain incredibly grindy and frequently mind-numbingly tedious. It often feels like it’s been made by two teams with opposing views on game design, who are each tugging at either side of it until eventually agreeing to meet in the middle or tear it in half.At its best, No Man’s Sky plays like an increasingly elaborate interstellar Animal Crossing. You travel the stars and visit strange, procedurally generated planets in a never-ending quest for loot and money to spend on upgrades for your survival suit and weapon, ships to pilot, rovers to drive, and bases to build. Every time you think you’ll log off for the night, another notification pops up that reminds you about that one last thing you really wanted to do, and before you can say “I need an intervention,” it’s 5 AM and you’re redecorating your fifth base on some remote world or taming a bizarre creature that looks like the lovechild of Big Bird and an octopus.

Here’s how you tame and ride creatures in No Man’s Sky Beyond

It’s easy to appreciate the improvements and additions included in the Beyond update because they’re apparent as soon as you boot it up. Improved graphics highlight things like detail on your ships and a revamped tutorial and mission guidance system makes it much more clear what you should be working toward at any given time. Unlocking new technologies has been reimagined as skill trees that are easy to understand. And these are just a few of the highlights on the massive laundry list of things in the Beyond update that make No Man’s Sky vastly more interesting than it’s ever been.

With Beyond, No Man’s Sky is vastly more interesting than it’s ever been.

“

But the same things that make playing No Man’s Sky a wonderful, habit-forming odyssey that would make Tom Nook proud often work against you — like when you find yourself repeatedly grinding the same materials and crafting the same parts over and over again in an ongoing effort to fuel the numerous engines of interstellar life. You’ll spend tedious hours mining rocks to craft metal plates that you need to make starship engine fuel just so you can take off in your ship and see the still-impressive, completely seamless transition from ground to outer space and back again. And even though No Man’s Sky’s carrying limitations have been even further loosened with the Beyond update your inventory still fills up almost constantly, ensuring that the grind will never be defeated. With few ways to automate resource gathering, exploring the cosmos often takes a back seat to waiting for your mining laser to melt a tree into resources for minutes at a time.

And, considering how central exploration is to No Man’s Sky’s appeal, it’s staggering just how many mechanics still seem dead set on preventing you from doing just that. Why are your sprint and jetpack capabilities meters so limited, and why does using them draw from your life support meter? Why does every language have to be learned one word at a time, meaning that even after dozens of hours of playing you still can’t really understand any of the alien races you encounter? Why, for the love of God, does every planet in the universe have violent weather events every couple of minutes that require you to shut yourself indoors or hide in a cave and wait out to survive? Time and time again, No Man Sky begs you to explore it but then (quite literally) forces you walk, not run.

Hello Games’ Sean Murray walks us through Beyond’s many improvements in the video below.

It’s odd that No Man’s Sky still has so many irritating elements, because it’s also very clearly aware that they exist and tries to smooth over the issues rather than simply fixing them. For example, combat remains as dull and repetitive as ever, so the appearance of hostile lifeforms and robotic sentinel space police has been reduced instead of trying to make fighting them more entertaining. Space dogfights also remain monotonous and overly simplistic in Beyond, and while controls seem to have improved and encounters don’t drag on as long, fighting off pirates is never more than an annoying interruption to your travels.

Beyond brings NMS dangerously close to what we all thought it was when it was first revealed.

“

And yet, there’s something truly special about No Man’s Sky after the Beyond update that brings it dangerously close to being what we all thought it was when it was first revealed years ago. Getting lost among the stars, seeing strange and unique creatures, and claiming a piece of the nigh-limitless galaxy for yourself by building a home are all rewarding and all but completely unique to No Man’s Sky. It’s hard not to fall in love with it in the brief pockets of time where it isn’t forcing you to beat your head against a wall for an hour while you search for a deposit of copper but the stupid Dr. Seuss planet you’re on has is uranium.

In the course of my travels, I found myself stranded on a massive water planet filled with aggressive jellyfish, stared in awe at some bizarre life forms that were made up of levitating crystals, and explored the murky caves on an atmosphere-free moon. Of course, regardless of how they look every planet still has an identical loop of gathering materials, hiding from inevitable and frustrating storms of heat or ice or toxins, and maybe building a base or riding an animal or two along the way. But still there’s an undeniable rush of excitement in discovering and exploring a planet for the first time that doesn’t go away even after hours of play.

Beyond also alters and consolidates No Man’s Sky’s three main storylines into a more cohesive set of quests that intertwine, and they are much more accessible for it. One of the best-kept secrets of No Man’s Sky is that the story is actually fairly complex, with twists and turns that even go so far as to explain the reason behind the universe’s existence. But frankly, the vehicle by which the story is told – an endless chain of fetch quests and vague conversations with generic NPCs – makes the whole thing not at all worth the effort. Your time is better spent doing the things that are entertaining to you, finding your way to the end of the main quest lines only if you manage to find joy in doing so. (Or, y’know, YouTube exists.)

No Man’s Sky Beyond Screenshots

Multiplayer features have been drastically improved with Beyond, though it still falls far short of today’s standards in many ways – especially where organization is concerned. The Anomaly space station is now a social hub that allows you to encounter other players organically rather than by invite or chance (though doing so is still quite rare), and together you can undertake short group missions via The Nexus or even visit one another’s bases by stepping through a massive teleporter. The number of players in a single instance has been bumped up from four to eight on consoles and up to 32 on PC, but actually organizing activities together can be a bit of a nightmare. For starters, you’re given very few tools to find one another in the expansive galaxy, and unless everyone is communicating and staying together it’s easy to get lost or left behind with no easy way to rejoin your friends. If you find yourself without the required materials to launch or pilot your ship when everybody else takes off, for example, you’ll either get left behind by your friends or will hold up the group while you go shoot a laser at some plants for a few minutes. Sharing resources with one another is still, sadly and inexplicably, not an option.

Sharing resources with one another is still, sadly and inexplicably, not an option.

“

Most of the major and strange multiplayer glitches from last year’s NEXT update (in hindsight, a very funny name now that it’s the previous one) have been ironed out, though you’ll probably still encounter the odd bug now and again. I had incidents where my partner couldn’t see the enemies attacking me, or animation issues making it unclear when one of us was firing our mining laser. Playing with others makes the grind of No Man’s Sky much more bearable, but oftentimes because having someone to share in your pain can be really cathartic.

VR makes its debut in No Man’s Sky with the Beyond update (on PlayStation VR and PC, at least), and wandering around an undiscovered planet and hearing unknown critters walk up behind you is an exciting and sometimes unnerving experience. Using hand tracking with Move wands or Oculus/Vive/Index/etc controllers to aim your weapons and tools feels natural, even if you’re still just engaging in the usual monotony of harvesting. Using VR in space flight, on the other hand, is an overwhelmingly positive experience which benefits from your character being stationary and blurriness not mattering quite as much in the darkness of the void. And while it doesn’t fix the monotony of dogfighting, it absolutely makes it more immersive because you can look up through your ship’s canopy.

Watch 10 minutes of No Man’s Sky in VR below.

Movement options offer a static mode with teleportation and click-turning that can be a bit hard to learn but is easy on those of us with weaker stomachs, or a smooth-movement mode that acts the same way the non-VR mode does. However, on the PlayStation VR it was so low-res and blurry that it might make you lose your lunch like it did mine… twice. Still, seeing the galaxy of No Man’s Sky from a true first-person perspective can be a breathtaking experience, even if technical limitations mean there’s still a long way to go before it makes us feel like we’re really there.

Source : IGN

[gokinjeespot]

off the rack #1195

Monday, January 8, 2017

 I gave it the old college try but I was thwarted again from catching up on all the comic books that I wanted to read last week by life's little events. My Dad's 85th birthday meant an evening out with family. Spent most of one day off cleaning the whole house in the aftermath of Christmas being put away for another year. One extra loading and unloading of stuff to take to the monthly Capital Trade Show because I was flying solo for this one took part of another day. Penny came to help and keep me company yesterday at the beginning and the end of the trade show. Thanks to our neighbour vendor Chris for helping me load up after the show. This week has us dealing with our cars having to be serviced. Penny's Soul has to go in for a recall. The ever ominous "service engine soon" light came on the dashboard display of my X-Trail yesterday. The transmission didn't engage a couple of times but I managed to get it going by adjusting the stick shift. I hope it's just the extreme cold of the last week that's causing the problem. I hope I get a bit of alone time to read more this week. Here are comments of the few that I got to.

 Phoenix Resurrection #1 - Matthew Rosenberg (writer) Leinil Francis Yu (pencils) Gerry Alanguilan (inks) Rachelle Rosenberg (colours) VC's Travis Lanham (letters). The gang's all here. I still read Astonishing X-Men so I recognised that team and I figure the other two teams are Blue and Gold. Correct me if I'm wrong. So they're bringing back Jean Grey/Phoenix again just in time for the spring release of the movie starring Sophie Turner better known as Sansa Stark from Game of Thrones. There's enough mystery here to keep me reading but I have issues with all-powerful beings and wonder if we need another super human on the racks right now. This 5-issue mini comes out weekly so I will be able to decide whether it's good enough to read the whole story very quickly.

 Batman and the Signal #1 - Scott Snyder & Tony Patrick (story) Tony Patrick (writer) Cully Hamner (art) Laura Martin (colours) Deron Bennett (letters). This 3-issue mini lets the Signal shine solo as he tries to figure out where his powers come from. I'm not familiar with Duke but I've seen him fight alongside Batman before. DC is probably hoping that his partnership with Batman will help sell this but here we have another young super hero fighting young super villains. I predict Signal will get into deep trouble and then find a way to win the day. The art would be the only reason that I would read the rest of this story.

 Rogue & Gambit #1 - Kelly Thompson (writer) Pere Perez (art) Frank D'Armata (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). This 5-issue mini takes the two off again romantic partners on a mission to save other mutants. The art is very nice and the last page got me good. I'm going to read the next issue to see what happens next.

 The Snagglepuss Chronicles #1 - Mark Russell (writer) Mike Feehan (pencils) Mark Morales (inks) Paul Mounts (colours) Dave Sharpe (letters). The art got me to pick this off the rack to read with it's mix of human and anthropomorphised animals walking around on two legs. The only thing I recall about the old Hanna Barbera cartoon was Snagglepuss's voice. It sounded snooty to me. The one in this 6-issue mini would sound snooty too since he's a big time playwright. The story takes place in the late 1940s when the government was going after communist sympathisers in the entertainment industry. There are a couple of surprise twists that make this worth reading even if you were never a fan of the cartoon character.

 Dark Nights: Hawkman Found #1 - Jeff Lemire (writer) Bryan Hitch (pencils) Kevin Nowlan (inks) Alex Sinclair & Jeremiah Skipper (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). I thought that I was done reading any more Dark Night books but then I saw the creative team on this one-shot and had to see what's up with Hawkman these days. I really enjoyed reading this book. They captured the warrior spirit of Carter Hall very well. I was disappointed by the Groundhog Day twist at the end however. As a fan of Jeff, Bryan and Kevin, this book was a blast to read but it didn't make me want to reach for more Dark Night books.

 Jessica Jones #15 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Michael Gaydos (art) Matt Hollingsworth (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). The return of the Purple Man has a great twist that you don't want to miss. If you've watched the first season of the TV show you will get added enjoyment from having a deeper insight into the relationship between Jessica and Killgrave.

 Action Comics #994 - Dan Jurgens (writer & pencils) Art Thibert, Trevor Scott, Johnny Desjardins & Joe Prado (inks) Hi-Fi (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). Ugh, I can't wait for Booster Gold's guest appearance in this book to be over. In order for this time travel snafu story to have any emotional impact Dan has to make Superman act in a stupid and selfish way. Any hero should know better than to mess with time, but no, Superman MUST find the answers he seeks. That bothers me a lot.

 Moon Knight #190 - Max Bemis (writer) Jacen Burrows (pencils) Guillermo Ortego (inks) Mat Lopes (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). Crazy Runs in the Family part 3. I really like how Moon Knight's multiple personalities are interacting with each other in Marc's head. The reintroduction of an old supporting character and the surprise twist on the last page gave me that "what a great comic book" chuckle.

 Batman #38 - Tom King (writer) Travis Moore (pencils & inks) Giulia Brusco (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). This one is a mind bender. Batman flexes his detective's muscles as he solves a serial murder case. The fisherman in me loved all the red herrings.

 Invincible Iron Man #595 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Stefano Caselli & Alex Maleev (art) Marte Gracia & Alex Maleev (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). The Search for Tony Stark part 3. We're getting closer to finding Tony but meanwhile the Infamous Iron Man has problems with the Hood and RiRi has problems with the board of directors of Stark Industries. It's all very entertaining.

 The Demon: Hell is Earth #2 - Andrew Constant (writer) Brad Walker (pencils) Andrew Hennessy (inks) Chris Sotomayor (colours) Tom Napolitano (letters). Jeepers, this is awesome sauce. Not only is the art incredibly nice to look at but the writing is so much fun. I like this Etrigan and Jason Blood pairing. One of the things that made this evil demon character appealing to me was how Jason could control him somewhat. Things have changed between them now and it makes their relationship more interesting. I am definitely going to read the rest of this 6-issue mini.

 Punisher: The Platoon #4 - Garth Ennis (writer) Goran Parlov (art) Jordie Bellaire (colours) Rob Steen (letters). I know that Frank survives this story but I am also hoping the young Vietnamese guerrilla fighter makes it through the war alive too. She's a great character and I keep wondering when she and Frank will meet.

 Superman #38 - Peter J. Tomasi & Patrick Gleason (writers) Sergio Davila (pencils) Vicente Cifuentes (inks) Gabe Eltaeb (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). Super Sons of Tomorrow part 4. I am assuming that future Tim Drake/Batman changes into a character named Savior in the Teen Titans tie-in. I don't care how that happened so I'm not going to read that tie-in. All I now is that he's bad and his team mates in the future Titans show up to help the kids and Jon's dad. I can't wait for this time travel story to conclude in Super Sons #12 which hits the racks January 17.