#finnrnertens

[holdmecloser-gandydancer]

I’m gonna say hair dye stain + with tears in my eyes I begged you to stay. And I’ll give you dealer’s choice for characters but I have a feeling you’re on my Wavelength here

[from this prompt list!!]

Hair dye squelches against the paper thin gloves meant to protect Taako’s hands from the countless chemicals that are doing their damnedest to permeate his scalp. Ones with long and horrible names like methylparaben and lead acetate and solvent red number one. 

Some animals use brightly colored markings to act as a warning, like don't eat me, I'll kill us both. That’s why he could only see the cool frogs he liked as a kid in the zoos. He couldn’t get one at Petco or something. If he really wanted one, he’s certain enough money could have greased the wheels; some dickheads have endangered tigers in their homes, what’s the harm in having a few poison dart frogs? But it was a good lesson that money can’t buy everything. 

He looks at the small window in the shower and curses himself for not opening it sooner. This shit stinks to high hell and the last thing he needs is to pass out in the bathroom. Some places in the apartment have to be sacred. He rips his gloves off and tosses them in the little trash can next to the toilet before stepping into the shower to deal with the window. Once he can figure out the godforsaken lock that Lup had installed on it, it glides open with ease, letting all the fumes out into the steamy LA night. 

He leans over the counter and switches the song on his phone to something high energy and loud. 

He picks up the tube of dye and squeezes a big glob into his hand. Good enough for his scalp, after all. He massages the rest into his hair like shampoo, making sure every inch of his hair is saturated. He brings his hair up into a wet and mucky ponytail and twirls it about its base. Likely getting hair dye over everything, he roots around for a plastic bag under the sink. Finding his bounty, he puts it on his head as a makeshift cap. He gives his hands a quick and futile wash; it looks like he’s killed someone in the bathroom. Red dye staining his hands, the sink, probably his face by the end of this. 

At first, he intends on practicing some mindfulness; relaxing while the dye sets, maybe doing some sudoku on his phone. But sitting with that for even a moment makes him want to crawl out of his skin and stuff it down the garbage disposal. He spends a frantic thirty seconds looking for the hair dryer before laying eyes on its place on the cluttered counter. 

He cranks the heat up as high as it’ll go and begins evenly toasting his head like a little marshmallow. A scientifically appropriate number of minutes go by and he rips the bag off his head before sticking only his head in the shower. He braces himself for a minute before letting the icy water wash over his head. He works the remaining dye out of his hair and spits out the bitter water that drips into his mouth, bringing all those long and horrible chemicals onto his tastebuds. He’s like his own personal poison dart frog now. 

He blindly reaches for a towel and plops it on his head before scrunching, not scrubbing, at his hair. Supposed to keep the dye from fading too fast. Or keep him from ruining the towel. He’s really not sure which. He slips his phone into his pocket and opens the bathroom door to air out some of the fumes. And that’s how he finds himself face to face with Lup. 

“Your bathroom full?” he asks flatly, turning his eyes anywhere but her face. All he ever fucking sees when he looks at her now is her concerned, pitying gaze. It disgusts him, he’s not a fucking ASPCA commercial. 

“I just wanted to do some laundry,” she says meekly. 

“At midnight?”

“I was up anyway.” Thanks to your loud music, obviously being stuck on her tongue. Not his problem. 

He moves to the side and gestures to the closet hiding the washer and dryer. Lup steps into the bathroom, glancing at Taako’s hands and face. 

“Your hair looks nice,” she says, tossing a small load of laundry into the washer. She dumps some flowery smelling detergent into the tray. 

Any more chemicals in the bathroom and Taako’s sure mustard gas is soon to follow. “Thanks.” 

“I have some rubbing alcohol if you wanna get that dye off your hands,” she offers. 

Can’t even trust me to take care of myself, Taako thinks bitterly. “I don’t need your help,” he says instead. 

“I just…” Lup says, her protest dying in her throat. “You wanna watch a movie tonight?” 

Taako drops his towel on the counter and starts tousling his hair in the mirror. “Can’t. I’m going to a party in West Hollywood.”

“Oh. Uh, cool. Who’s hosting?” Her judgment is so palpable that Taako’s a little amused. 

He scoots past her to exit the bathroom. If he has to be in a confined area with her any longer, he’ll scream. Besides, the damp hair look is cool now. “If you have to ask, you already know.” 

She follows behind him and sucks in a quiet breath. “Taako, listen. You’re an adult and you’re allowed to hang out with whoever you like—”

“Gee, thanks Mom!” Taako snarks. 

“That’s not what I meant. I just, Taako, I'm worried about you.”

“Worried that I have more friends than just you? Worried that I don’t need to mope around your palatial apartment and look down upon the poor plebes out there like you do? God fucking forbid that I do anything anymore.” Taako wasn’t always this eager for a fight. Especially not with Lup, but these past months have been filled with cloying pity and a superior concern that he just can’t vibe with anymore. 

Lup scoffs. “This isn’t about you going to West Hollywood at midnight. This is about you hanging around people who don’t give a shit if you live or die,” she says tersely. 

“Oh, like you do?” He challenges. He grabs his shoes and sits down at the kitchen table to pull them on. 

“Of fucking course I do, Taako! What kind of question is that?” 

“I dunno, Lup, it seems like all I’m good for is embarrassing you. Your shameful fuck-up of a brother!” He snaps. He shakes his head, getting small red rivulets of hair dye on the wall. 

“Taako, you really think I think that lowly of you? You think I give a shit what TMZ or Twitter o-or any other vapid internet wasteland has to say about you? They don’t know you, Ko. I know you,” she says tenderly. 

Taako almost believes it. “You don’t fucking know me, Lup. You haven’t in a while.” 

“Don’t say that.” 

“Thought you didn’t want me to lie to you anymore.” His phone vibrates and he rises from the table.  “Don’t wait up.” He grabs a bag he stashed by the entryway. 

Lup hurries after him. “Taako, please. Can we just talk for a little longer? I’ll make up some cocoa, I’ll drive you there.” She’s all but begging now. She’s tearful and it makes Taako’s stomach churn. 

“I’m done talking, Lup.” Taako says. He can’t look at her when he says it. He slams the door behind him, ignoring whatever she calls down the hallway to him, and hurries to the elevator, ready to forget about this whole melodrama.

[vonlipvig]

i was tagged by @tomshivbaby (i just realized the new url omg love it) to post my lockscreen, last song i listened to, and last screenshot!

r3al b0ss b1tch moodboard here, don't know what you expected lmao

i'll tag @uncalamar @thedeafprophet @house-of-mirrors @finnrnertens @pinkpuffballdude

[minervacampbell]

finnrnertens -> minervacampbell

[viir-tanadhal]

thanks @finnrnertens for tagging me to share my lockscreen, last song listened to, and last screenshot!

[cometcrystal]

@finnrnertens yeah shes abusing him by calling him seaweed brain. Sure

[barry-j-blupjeans]

7 “slow dancing in the kitchen turns to giggles when a cheesy ad comes on over the music” + blupjeans please and thanks? :0

7. slow dancing in the kitchen turns to giggles when a cheesy ad comes on over the music

((trope with a twist writing prompts here, please send some in!!))

--

Faerûn technology might still be majorly behind their original planar systems' but at the very least, they have radio. Barry had gone through far too worlds without the sweet sweet pleasure of his favorite electromagnetic wave music box and it hadn't been fun. The one he had playing right now was technically from their homeworld, but he had fixed it up to attune to Faerûn's system. It made lonely cave days a lot less lonely.

Now, it had a permanent spot on their kitchen island. Last time Kravitz and Taako had been over, Kravitz had turned the dial to a smooth jazz station and he and Lup liked it so much, they didn't bother to change it back. It was a fitting atmosphere for right now, anyway.

"We should take a vacation," Lup said quietly, leaning her forehead against the top of his head. She wasn't exactly tall enough to rest against his head completely, but that didn't stop her from trying. They were swaying gently to the music.

"Yeah," Barry agreed. He opened his eyes, bringing her hand up to his lips and kissing them. "Where do ya wanna go?"

"Beach is always good," Lup said and Barry made a sound of agreement. "Could I convince you to go hiking?"

"I thought you said vacation," Barry said, and Lup laughed under her breath. "Joking, joking. Anywhere is fine, Lup, as long as your there."

"Sap," Lup whispered. She cupped a hand against his jaw, pushing his head up to met her lips this time. Barry reveled in the kiss a little but smiled when she pulled away all the same. "We should go-"

"TAAKO'S AMAZING SCHOOL OF MAGIC," the radio interrupted loudly, shattering the moment. The look of betrayal on Lup's face was almost comical. "NOW OPENING UP A SPANKIN' NEW LOCATION ON THE SWORD COAST."

In Barry's defense, it was a very funny situation, considering this station never played ads, but he had to step back from Lup because he was laughing so hard. The look of utter betrayal on her face was only outmatched by the very obvious way she was trying not to laugh too.

"IS YOUR CHILD BAD AT MAGIC?" the ad continued. "DO THEY LACK THE FINESSE TO BECOME A GREAT WIZARD? FEAR NOT, FOR THE EAST COAST BRAND OF TAAKO'S AMAZING SCHOOL OF MAGIC IS NOW OPENING UP ITS DOORS FOR NEW STUDENTS. THIS IS YOUR CHILD'S CHANCE TO BE TAUGHT BY THE GREATEST WIZARD EVER KNOW-" and that broke Lup, who doubled over against the kitchen counter- "AND BECOME A MASTER WIZARD THEMSELVES.

PLEASE REACH OUT TO TAAKO-ACADEMIA AT FANTASY GMAIL DOT COM TO ENROLL TODAY. THAT'S RIGHT, TODAY!" Barry felt like he was going to have an asthma attack from all of this. "DON'T LIMIT YOUR CHILD'S POTENTIAL BY GOING TO A DIFFERENT, SHITTIER MAGIC SCHOOL-" Lup banged her fist on the counter. "JUST CONTACT TAAKO-ACADEMIA AT FANTASY GMAIL DOT COM RIGHT NOW!"

The ad abruptly cut off, slamming back into the middle of a smooth jazz song. Barry wondered if he could sue Taako if he died from an asthma attack. Lup was crying by this point, clutching at her stomach.

"Th- that dumb piece of shit," she managed to get out, after a solid minute or so. Barry had slid down against the cabinets, giggling to himself. "He fucking h- hijacked the ra- the ra-" She couldn't finish her sentence, instead launching into another round of laughter, which set Barry off too. It was another full minute before she tried catching her breath again. Barry almost covered his ears, knowing whatever she had to say would make it worse.

"I want a vacation!" Lup demanded through her laughter, slamming her fist down on the counter. Sure enough, Barry had been right. He waved her away, trying to get her to shut up, but it just made them both laugh harder.

They could figure out the vacation another time.

[petrosapian]

......69

so this is the theme song for a puppet show i was obsessed with when i was like 6 years old. theres like an unfortunate number of childrens shows theme songs on my spotify wrapped 

[lilblog-asatreat]

Got tagged by @pretzelcoatll to post the albums I've been listening too recently! :D

Thank you for the tag!!

As the big nerd I am still being hyperfixated on taz...

These are the albums I listen to most often! Lol

Other than that, even when I was listening to other music, I never really listen to anything by album. The only exception to that is when I was obssessed with the album Beautiful Trauma by P!nk when it first came out and a while after that. Other than that, it's just a playlist of a bunch of random songs, or if I fixate on a particular artist or band, I just make a playlist of a bunch of their songs without regard to what album it came from or when it was released. I usually listen to music on YouTube, and I mostly exclusively look up lyric videos because if I can't see the words, especially after the first dozen times of listening to a song, then I can't actually understand what the song is saying, so I have no idea what the music video for anything actually is either lol

Okie! Tagging @iwilltranscend @strawbebby-boy @starry--skies @taniushka12 @finnrnertens @x-cottage-goblin-x and anyone else who wants to do it! :D

Also, if y'all don't want to do it, that's cool too :) No pressure!

[playchoicesconfessions]

Sent by @finnrnertens

'was there a point in us picking a house at the beginning of trm? genuinely curious, like does it make a difference at all?'

POST/CONFESSIONS DO NOT REFLECT THE MOD’S PERSONAL OPINIONS!

[neige-leblanche]

@finnrnertens

[holdmecloser-gandydancer]

“theme park employees...one wears a stupid mascot suit and the other is crushing hard” dealer’s choice on who I just really like this idea <3

From this prompt list! (still accepting!)

Taako’s had a lot of shitty jobs. A roller-skating server, receptionist at a gym for the most obnoxious gym rats, teacher’s aide for a youth gymnastics class, and a mall elf over Candlenights have been some of his most beloathed gigs. But when Lup sang the praises of her current job and begged him to apply, he figured it couldn’t be that bad.

He really should stop begging the universe to prove him wrong.

The Adventure Zone is, strictly speaking, your average amusement park; it’s full of overpriced, under-seasoned food, sodas the size of your head, thundering rollercoasters that will ensure both of those items make a reappearance on the person next to you, and shitty souvenirs being sold by unenthused workers in uncomfortable polos and khakis. Truly the happiest place on earth.

All of that is shit Taako can and has handled before. But Taako’s bad luck can never let him be. It wasn’t until after he was hired and doing his paperwork that he got the slightest inkling the job could be more than he signed up for.

“Now, son, you’re not claustrophobic, are you?”

--

“Shoulda just lied and said I was claustrophobic,” Taako grumbles to himself as he pulls on the scratchy jumpsuit. He stands in front of the mirror in the staff room and frowns at his reflection. He swears that management had to get the most pathetic looking lion costume in all of existence. It’s simultaneously cartoony and bloated and a bit too realistic. The head is so much worse, though. He shoots it a murderous glare as it sits on a table and watches him with soulless, plastic eyes.

His standoff with his new identity is cut short by the hinges on the staff room door protesting loudly.

“Afternoon, Taako!” Davenport, his manager says brightly. Taako sends him a dead-eyed look before getting a glimpse of perhaps the most gorgeous man Taako has ever seen. Like, Taako’s heard people describe seeing their partner for the first time, saying that the rest of the world just falls away and it’s like angels are singing and he’s always thought it was bullshit. But right now, all Taako can attend to is this handsome dude with a bright smile and an even brighter polo. He thinks he might even hear little bursts of harp music.

“Taako, did you just hear a single word I just said?” Davenport asks, snapping him out of his stupor.

“Uh. No,” He says, feeling his face heat up. Handsome absolutely caught him staring.

Davenport sighs a little, probably already regretting taking Lup’s endorsement of Taako. “This is Kravitz. He’s going to be your handler.”

“My handler?” The last thing Taako needs is someone cramping his style, no matter how handsome.

“Host is probably the better term. Basically I’m here to make sure toddlers don’t yank on your tail and to keep angry parents from literally ripping your head off,” Kravitz says easily, smile still fixed on his face.

Oh god, Taako’s gotta keep himself from mentally planning a wedding. Or mentally jumping his bones. Or both, actually.

“Cool.” Taako reaches over and grabs the head off the table. “Let’s get this show on the road, then.”

--

“God, I cannot believe that kid started crying, I actually feel kinda bad,” Taako whispers to Kravitz as they both wave at a family leaving the area.

“I have a feeling that’s gonna be happening a lot. You don’t exactly have the most welcoming face.”

Taako scoffs melodramatically. “Now, you can’t see my face right now but just know I’m giving you such a bitchy look. Are you saying I’m ugly, Kravitz?”

Kravitz ducks his head. “No! You know what I meant, that lion’s head is an affront to god. Didn’t take you for the type to fish for compliments, Taako.”

“You’ll find that I don’t need to fish for them. People hand them to me constantly.” Flirting while wearing a rejected Lion King Jr. costume isn’t exactly something Taako has experience with but he’s all for trying new things.

“Hmm. Guess we’ll see if that holds true. But between you and me, you’ve already got some points docked.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. I mean your ugly as sin fursona here is not doing you any favors,” Kravitz says airily.

Taako gently smacks Kravitz on the shoulder with his humorously oversized paw. “Oh my god, I’m not a furry! This is not my fursona! I’m getting paid for this!”

“The furry doth protest too much, methinks.”

“I hate you,” Taako lies. He very much does not hate Kravitz.

He’s determined to get something good from this shitty job.

[vonlipvig]

ok well! top five pop girlies!

LET’S GOOOOOO

Top 5 Pop Girlies:

Carly Rae Jepsen (QUEEN OF BEING A POP GIRLIE)

Taylor Swift (I am, sadly, a Swiftie)

Dua Lipa (Future Nostalgia really Did That)

Rina Sawayama (STREAM SAWAYAMA)

Little Mix (I’M STILL SAD BUT THEY’RE GONNA KEEP SLAYING)

I wish I could put more, Marina, Lizzo, Kesha, I’d even say Normani IF SHE HAD ANYTHING OUT

Ask me more Top 5 anything!

[cometcrystal]

@finnrnertens thats what i figured LMAO like “oh people are complaining and didn’t even watch the video” it’s perfectly reasonable for someone not to wanna watch a movie-length thing. i plan to watch it at some point just because im the same person who watched that entire livestream those nerds did with jenny nicholson’s joker video (every second a pause is the channel, i think) so that’s just part of my perfectionist virgo ass. but like... someone not wanting to watch that when contrapoints’s same genre video was like. pretty flippant and didn’t seem very apologetic? is completely realistic

[barry-j-blupjeans]

Ise I would luv 2 see prompt 2 "It's you, it's always been you" + blups if it hasn't already been done! :0 -Hali

2. “It’s you, it's always been you.”

--

Finding your soulmate is supposed to be magical and fantastical and perfect. It's supposed to be brushing up against their skin and just knowing. The world in color is beautiful compared to the shades of gray that had coated life before. It's breathtaking and awe-inspiring and, on top of it all, you have finally found your person. The one person who will finally make you feel complete, whether than be through romance or friendship, or any number of family dynamics.

It's supposed to be like that. Instead, Barry had stumbled home, head pounding and eyes burning from the sudden onslaught of color, with no idea who in the world his soulmate was. They work at the Institute, maybe, but what department? Engineering, like him? Arcane science? Maybe they're a custodian? Maybe they had been a reporter that Barry had accidentally bumped into or someone visiting from out of town to see the press conference. Barry didn't know. All he knew is that his apartment looked a lot more awful now that he could the clashing colors.

There's no time to figure it out, either. The Institute was on the brink of an important discovery and Barry had been assigned to work on the yet-unnamed ship. And after that, he had been assigned to work on the freshly (and hilariously) named Starblaster. And then, of course, the apocalypse and the Hunger and the, y'know, whole world ending kinda put a stop to ever figuring out who his soulmate was.

There are other people on the crew with soulmates. Davenport's had been his sister, who died when she was five years old and Davenport himself was eight. Barry had worked up the nerve to ask once, late in the first cycle, what the colors looked like to him now. He was a little more reassured when what Davenport described (dull, seeping back towards gray, but not quite) wasn't at all what he saw. The world, however dark Barry's outlook may now be, was bright as ever.

Merle claimed to have been born with his colors, which wasn't too unusual. Barry had asked him, much later on in the cycles, what it was like to not have a soulmate but to have colors. Merle waved the question away with "life itself is my soulmate, man, I don't need anyone to complete that!"

Magnus and Lucretia were still colorless, though their stories were a whole different kind of weird. They started getting colors around cycle fifteen and gradually began to see the whole spectrum. Barry was glad they could. The Hunger was awful, but in a horrible sort of way, it was beautiful, too.

And Taako and Lup. Born with colors. Born as soulmates. Barry didn't need them to confirm that. If anyone even looked twice at them, they would know. It was always Taako and Lup, or Lup and Taako. Nothing was going to change that for them.

And then Lup died.

Barry had been there- he liked to say he wished he wasn't, but to be honest, he was glad he had been there. Lup had never died before- Barry did, once, in cycle six, and it had been awful. The world seemed to quiet around them as it happened. It wasn't as painful as Barry's own death had been, he hoped, but it still wasn't pretty. There was blood, a lot of blood, all over her clothes and the ground.

Taako held onto her until she died. And then he stood up, his front covered in Lup's blood, and told Barry "don't fucking move". Barry's mind had gone too blank to remember how Taako had gotten them out of that situation, but he did. The only thing Barry did know is that the color around him was slowly seeping out, the vibrance fading.

He might have been a smart guy, but grief tended to cloud the mind. So what if he didn't notice the colors right then? Lup was dead. Of course, he didn't notice. The world just reflected how he felt. And when the colors came flooding back in the next cycle, could he be blamed for not putting the pieces together when all that really mattered was the fact that Lup was here again?

The endless loop of life and death they were in never stopped. And finally, Barry started to piece things together. The colors weren't the first clue, but once he knew, once he realized? They seemed a little bit brighter. And every time that Lup died, every time he saw her get killed, or they came back with her body, or they had to leave her somewhere because it wasn't safe, the colors rolled back. They weren't gone, but they were like Davenport had said. Dull, seeping back towards gray, visible enough to tell the difference, but not enough to have an impact on anything.

"Barry?" Lup asked. They were on the Starblaster's roof after everyone else had gone to bed. The skies above The Legato Conservatory were vivid but incredibly different than the skies back home. Lup was laying on her back and trying to find the constellations that Barry described.

"Hm?"

"Do you ever..." Lup took a deep breath, looking toward him. "Do you ever miss your soulmate? Back home?"

Barry's heart did a funny little lurch in his chest.

"Uhm," Barry said. "That's a... complicated question, Lup."

"You don't have to answer it," Lup said. "I was just, y'know, wondering. Because you've said before that your pretty sure it was romantic love and I just- I was curious. You don't really talk about it. And, again, you don't have to."

"I don't talk about it because I didn't know her when we were home," Barry said. "We never really, uh, met. As soulmates, at least. And she's already got her soulmate, so I don't really think she ever knew."

"Ah," Lup said. "Right."

There was a silence between them. Barry cleared his throat and shut the book of constellations, setting it aside.

"There's probably, uh, probably something I need to tell you about her, though," Barry said before he could make himself too anxious about it. Lup glanced back at him.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said. "You know when like... when Taako dies, sometimes, and the colors kinda fade."

"Oh, Barry," Lup said. She pushed herself up into a sitting position, frowning. "Did she-?"

"Not- not exactly," Barry said. "It's a lot more like the Taako situation, actually. Where she keeps dying sometimes and then coming back and then the- the cycles keep going and- fuck. What- what I'm trying to say is- geez, okay, I'm messing it up."

"I think I got it," Lup said quietly. She leaned over to him, placing her hand on his arm. Barry swallowed, his throat feeling tight. Lup was beautiful and he was an entire mess. She looked up at him and squeezed his arm. "Is it who I think it is?"

"It's you, Lup," Barry whispered. "It's always been you."

A smile grew over Lup's face, slowly, but going so wide that she got lines around her cheeks. Barry couldn't help it, he smiled too. There was a giddy feeling rising in his chest, unsteady, but real.

"I was hoping that," Lup said, bringing a hand up to his face. She wiped away a tear Barry hadn't even realized was going down his face. "We've got a lot to talk about, babe."

"Yeah," Barry said, a little laugh in his voice. "I think we do."

[petrosapian]

Was tagged by the gorgeous @bilqisaaliyah for 9 2021 selfies

I never know who to tag for these games lots of y’all don’t really post selfie’s so don’t do this if you don’t wanna but if you want to and I didn’t tag you you can say I I tagged you @halalgirlmeg @neopuff @cyclone-rachel @audiodramatist @ladytemplar @collectoroflovelythings @vonlipvig @finnrnertens @sunflowermoons @mazharking

[lilblog-asatreat]

Tagged by @finnrnertens to post my last selfie, my lockscreen, and the last song I listened to

Thank you so much for tagging me!!

So I'll do the lockscreen one first and throw in my homescreen too because they're both really gorgeous backgrounds from @mynerdylockscreens and you can find the posts with them and a few other really good ones here and here (they're all some of the best taz quotes I love it!!)

This is my lockscreen:

And this is my homescreen:

(Fun fact: I'm planning on eventually getting a tattoo with that quote + "you're going to be amazing" :D )

The last song I listened to was Kepler, WV because I've been listening to Griffin's album Radio Quiet from Amnesty obsessively for the past few days. It's one of my favorite albums of his.

And then for the selfie thing, I realized when I saw I got tagged that I forgot to make a 3 months on T update!! So here's my last selfie from when I put on the cool outfit from my last selfie post:

And this is me now! (Not too different lol but whatev 🤷🏽‍♂️)

I don't know who to tag because I don't know who would be comfortable putting their face out there, but if you see this and want to do it, have fun!!