#forming a small team is a much better option though

[valmillion]

wanting to make games but not having the motivation, attention span, and technical skill to do it all yourself. many such cases.

I'd say the better solution to achieving your indie success dreams is to form a team instead of going alone but then you just have multiple people all losing motivation and attention span instead of just one

[inzuinzudesu]

Please zoom in to see small Kakashi! �� He kinda disappeared 😭😭😭

Text translation: "Infinite Tsukuyomi" (無限月読)

Drew these in mid-July - when I started doing digital again actually 🤔

Took inspo from the Balut - a street food in my country; I hear a lot of people are grossed out by it?? Don't know if this is controversial, but I personally love the dish. Essentially grew up with it after all!

Wanted to draw something that feels a bit creepy but still has a sense of mysticality to it???

Meh, don't know if the feeling got across or not

I thought since Halloween is coming up, might as well post this haha

About the process of drawing these!

These were very fun to draw! I messed around a lot with photoshop to achieve this glowy dusty effect?? From the brushes to the blending options, and maaan the filter gallery 😭😭 Such fun tools to play with.

The main brush I used to achieve the dusty effect is called "KYLE Bonus Chunky Charcoal", in the Kyle Dry Media brush set. If you can, I recommend checking it out! There are definitely other ways to achieve this sort of effect, though. You can probably just use some sort of scatter texture brush and it'd work just fine. Studying is all about trying things out, right? This is like my first experiment with this type of effect, and I was happy at the time. Now looking back, these could most definitely turn out better, no? I really went overboard with just the effect and forgot everything else. The blood and the plate looks horrible man. If you look closely, you can see the sketch lines haha! I got lazy!

Also, for Obito's pose, I relied heavily on a reference I found on pinterest 😭 I wish I'd changed the pose more tbh, it looks really boring.

And I gotta say, these just look underwhelming in this smaller size. Like reaaaaaally underwhelming. Would love to show you the big version, but oh well! 😭😭😭

Brain vomit time!

I love the prospect (??? is that the right word) of Obito being all god-like and powerful after Tsukuyomi, having control over everybody's dream worlds?? And like he jumps from dream to dream, but stops at Kakashi's and picks it apart???? Observing and tormenting Kakashi with his childhood form that has both sharingan???????

Kakashi would probably be confused with Obito's appearance at first, asking questions like "What are you up to this time, Obito?", but then wouldn't receive any answers??? Like little man would just stare at him creepily, and Kakashi would push this to the back of his mind for a while???

Umm below is the technical stuff, I guess??

My headcanon is that the time span in the dream world is the same as the real world. Meaning, 30 years in the dream world feel incredibly real, with no gap of memories. It's essentially a different timeline. Whether this makes sense or not, who knows haha!

Let's talk about the dream events and how they affect Kakashi! Due to Sakumo and team Minato still living, this Kakashi probably wouldn't be as lax nor sad as in canon?? The relationships and personalities would be different huh???? I'm having a headache thinking about this, so let's just say that: 1. Sakumo lived because the villagers weren't as harsh, but the animosity still remained. Kakashi still developed this obsession with rules, but he doesn't blame his dad as much. 2. Kannabi happened, Kakashi was given the sharingan, along with Obito's ninja way. Team Minato thought that Obito died for a while, but Obito is 'rescued' by Madara, same as canon. 3. Rin would still be targeted by Madara, but Obito came in time to help with the situation, blocking Kakashi's chidori from connecting with Rin's chest, but also knocking Kakashi away. Then, a Mist enemy took advantage of the situation to attack Kakashi, injuring him gravely, to the point where everybody thought he died. With this, Obito activated his Mangekyou and exploded on the Mist enemies, killing them all. Meanwhile, Rin tried to heal Kakashi, just barely saving him. As Obito had dealt with the enemies, there was no need to rush back to the village, and the Sanbi wouldn't be released till then. And so, they waited for Minato to come and help with Rin's seal. (About Obito's Mangekyou activating with Kakashi's death - would that be too far-fetched? My reasoning is that Obito would think that it was his fault Kakashi died, because it was Obito who knocked Kakashi away into the enemy, no?) 4. Because there's no one to become 'Madara' now that Obito came back to the village, Naruto is born, Minato and Kushina live.

5. The Uchiha massacre doesn't happen.

(Everything is incredibly convenient, because I don't have the brain power to make it otherwise, please help 😭😭) -> In conclusion, this Kakashi resembles the Kakashi of the real world, but less depressed and self-destructive??? He loves his living comrades. My man still has a massive obsession (more like crush lol) with Obito by the way, just like in canon. He just doesn't show it.

-> About Obito of the dream world (I'mma call him Dreambito), he is all sunshine and brightness, but he exhibits some dark thoughts and deep rage from time to time due to the residual effects of Madara's seal on his heart. The seal has been removed though. And he has this obsession with Kakashi's safety, as he almost pushed him to his death once, albeit accidentally.

-> I was debating whether to just start this dream world at the point where Obito got crushed, or to start it at the beginning of Kakashi's life. In the end, I went with the latter, cuz ya know, I like the idea of Kakashi living through a whole life all over again, just to finally come to the realization that it's all a dream. Does that make any sense at all??

Obito (child form - 13) first appears in front of Kakashi at the start of the Naruto series, when Kakashi has officially become the teacher of team 7. (Let's not change this okay, my brain would fry haha I'm not gonna deny that the idea of Obito and Kakashi becoming co-teachers of team 7 isn't incredibly fun though)

After the first encounter with this child Obito, Kakashi begins to have flashes of memories from the real world, and he hallucinates about people's deaths - mostly about the members of team Minato. This young Obito is always in the corner of his vision, most of the time silent, sometimes saying things like "You trash" to Kakashi whenever he encounters Rin, who is whole and grown up in this world.

Kakashi exhibits more destructive behaviors as this goes on, the line between the dream events and the real events slowly blurring. He takes more dangerous solo missions out of the village, and shows strong signs of PTSD, just like in canon.

The two Obitos would contrast each other?? Like Dreambito would be all concerned with Kakashi's decline in health (both mental and physical) and goes to confront and comfort him, many times over because that's how it is with them??? Dreambito might even move in with Kakashi, being the obsessive and protective Uchiha that he is. Meanwhile young Obito would be an absolute asshole, saying all these horrible things to poison Kakashi's mind haha

At this point, Dreambito'd be in the last stage on the journey of becoming Hokage, gaining the all the trust from the Uchiha clan, the village elders and the villagers as a whole. I don't know about Rin, though? Should she be romantically involved with Dreambito or no? Would Kakashi dream that??

I think Kakashi's dream would somewhat focus more on Dreambito being happy and satisfied, to be honest. I know there's Sakumo and team Minato as a whole, but as a degenerate shipper, I love the obsession between them🥺

I don't think Obito would directly interfere with what Kakashi is dreaming about, i.e. changing Dreambito's behavior, or like the political situation of the villages (?). But he would most definitely insert himself in Kakashi's psyche, no? Mess it up real good.

Kakashi would slowly realize that he is living a dream world, after all the flashes of memories that Obito generates in his mind. He would most definitely deny it at first though, I think? And then it would reach a point where Kakashi remembers everything from the real world, but he has also lived through 30 something years of the dream world, meaning he'd be in his 60s?? Does that make sense or no?

And so, while Kakashi now knows that everything is a dream, his feelings for everybody in the dream are real. If that's the case, is it really that important anymore that he escapes the Tsukuyomi? Can this dream world really be called fake at this point? Is there even anything in the real world for him to return to?

What's to say 'the real world' isn't a dream at this point?

-> Kakashi would completely close in on himself after this. He still does things that he would normally do, but it'd be all an act. He would feel completely isolated.

-> Dreambito would notice and confront him again, now that they live in the same house??? Kakashi would like say everything is fine and try to act more convincingly, but Dreambito would still know something's wrong????

-> Obito is observing from afar, who knows what his motivation is at this point.

Because this is Kakashi's dream world, I suppose he would have the power to change this world to his will, now that he's aware? This is like a lucid dream situation???

The people in the dream have their own will up until this point, but Kakashi can somewhat change their behavior if he really wants to, whether it's subconsciously or not??? Example: He can probably will Dreambito to kiss him or something lol

So on and so forth!

Man, I'm having waaay too much fun imagining the pain. There are probably like a thousand things that doesn't make sense haha! I do wonder how this sort of storyline should end though, does anybody have any ideas? Personally, I prefer slow burn with a (sort of) happy ending, but ya know, angst all the way is good too! I can't write, but I love thinking about all the things that could happen 😭😭 English isn't my first language, so this might have felt weird to read at some point haha

If anybody wants to develop this, please feel free to do so! And if you've read this far, thank you for reading this absolute brain vomit of mine! I love to yap, as you can tell haha Have a good day!

[peachhcs]

macklin giving blarie her first piece of sharks clothes with his name and number ! also mack got this awesome sharks bomber jacket for the draft and i definitely seeing him wanting blarie to wear it because it would look so much better on him

celebrini 71

figure skater x macklin celebrini au (macklin + blaire)

after becoming official, blaire makes her debut in mack’s official sharks jersey as a surprise

wc: 1.7k

i swear you guys are just writing the au at this point i’m just here to add the details :) i combined two requests since they were basically the same thing but i thought this was super cutie

au masterlist

now that they were officially together, it was just a matter of slowly telling everyone else and the fans who mack knew would go crazy when they found out he had a girlfriend. knowing how crazy they got sometimes, he didn't wanna scare blaire with it all, so before the next game, they talked about how ready she was to make their relationship public. 

"we totally don't have to do any of it," mack said making sure the girl understood that he wasn't pressuring her into any of this. she giggled though. 

"i don't know, i kind of want to. plus, so many people where your name and number so i'd just blend in with them. people will think i'm a fan or something," blaire grinned and those words were like music to the boy's ears. he'd been dying to get her into something that told people who's she was. not in a possessive way, but in a way that he wanted to show her off. 

"i guess you're right. are you sure though? i don't wanna push you into this if you aren't ready. people online can be pretty brutal," the brunette admitted because he's seen it before with so many guys and their girlfriends where the fans were just ruthless and saying horrible things—especially to will and samy after they got back together. 

"i'm sure, i promise. i hardly even use instagram or twitter to even see those comments," the girl reassured him, pecking the bridge of his nose. 

"okay, well in that case, my whole closet is yours to choose from," mack jumped up and opened the doors so blaire could see the full layout of all of his sharks merch she could wear to the game. she blushed, her eyes wandering over all of the options. 

"i mean i'd love if you wanted to wear my jersey, but if that's too much too soon you obviously don't have to. i have a bunch of shirts with my name on them—oh, and..i may have gotten you a small something," the hockey player rambled nervously as he jumped back over to his desk. blaire watched curiously as he brought out a two boxes wrapped up in blue wrapping paper. she raised her eyebrow.

"mack, what is this? you don't have to get me things," she quickly complained but the boy shook his head. 

"i know, but i wanted to," he smiled softly. she eyed him before slowly ripping the paper open. the first box she opened was a sharks t-shirt that one would see in the merch store or something, but after flipping it over, macklin's 71 and last name was displayed across the back. the girl quickly grinned.

"i wanted to get you your own," mack explained.

"this is so sweet, mack. i love it. i'll wear it everyday," she brought him into a hug. "good, i'm glad you like it. i had to keep up the tradition you know? of you having all my team shirts," he kissed her cheek and then urged her to open the other slightly bigger box. 

blaire tore into the wrapping paper again and eagerly lifted the lid off the box. her eyes widened when she saw the same sharks' teal in the form of a jacket. she lifted it up to see, admiring the detail that was the san jose sharks across the back and then mack's name and number along the sleeves. 

"woah, this is crazy," blaire mumbled

"i got it from the draft but i thought you'd look better in it than i ever would," he chuckled a bit.

"are you serious? you don't want this??" the dirty blonde admired the jacket in disbelief that her boyfriend didn't wanna keep something like this for his memories. 

"i'm sure. i probably wouldn't really wear it and i want you to have it," he insisted. blaire looked at him, a soft expression coating her features as he brought him into another hug. 

"you're so sweet. thank you," she said and they exchanged warm smiles. 

"of course. i hope i'll see you in one of them tonight," mack grinned, excited to see what outfit blaire would choose. she smirked, "looks like you'll have to wait and see." 

—

blaire was gonna go all out for the game. she layered the new shirt mack just got her with his jersey which she was already planning on wearing before he got her the new shirt and jacket. she did her hair in a half up braid and those teal and white ribbons she wore to every game. she really hoped mack would like her outfit because she'd been planning it since last week when they finally became official. 

the girl pulled up to the rink an hour before puck drop. she got through the front security and headed towards her seat, eyes on the lookout for mack down on the ice. like blaire suspected, she blended right in with the other fans wearing the player's jerseys so everyone would just think she bought mack's jersey herself when in reality it was his actual jersey she was wearing. 

the brunette was busy warming up that he didn't notice her in her usual spot right away. the girl just admired him for the moment and the focus on his face as he ran the puck between his stick. it was something blaire had always admired about him and his dedication. mack never once let up, always ready, always giving it his all. it was why they bonded so quickly way back when they met because she was super dedicated to figure skating. she put her whole life into it, so meeting someone who was just as passionate about his own sport was something blaire really admired. 

finally, the rookie looked up at the stands for his girlfriend. he didn't see her at first because she blended right in with the other fans, so the boy became puzzled when he thought he didn't see her in her usual spot. he looked at the time—20 minutes until the start of the game. if mack knew anything about blaire it was that she hated being late. she always got to places early, so he was confused when he didn't see her. 

mack started growing concerned and was about to ask will when he finally saw her face in the crowd of people. she was looking at her phone, but mack recognized those ribbons from a mile away. his eyes traveled further down her figure and that's when he realized why she blended in so well and he didn't see her at first. 

she was wearing his jersey he gave her the other day. his jersey. the brunette was so shocked that he stopped everything he was doing to stare at her which made it quite obvious to others watching him. 

"mack?" will grew confused when he saw his friend just standing there not moving. the blonde tried following his eye line and that's when he saw blaire sitting up in the stands with a 71 on her back. 

"that's my jersey," the boy mumbled still in disbelief. 

"celly, you're staring," will nudged him before other fans caught onto what he was staring at. 

mack finally broke out of his stare, face completely red when he realized how hard he was staring. he ducked his face so fans didn't see and acted like he was still doing warm ups. blaire finally looked up, oblivious to her boyfriend's staring. she smiled when will offered a tiny wave in her direction. the girl waved back and then she watched him nudge mack. the boy's head slowly lifted and that's when she saw his crazy blush and she knew he had seen her in his jersey. 

mack wasn't sure how he was going to get through this game knowing blaire was up there in his jersey. not some knock off from merch stores, it was his. a jersey he's put on his body and been out on the ice during games. 

the team was called back down the tunnel. mack sent her a quick wink as he skated after will making blaire giggle. 

it was safe to say blaire was mack's good luck charm that night. he got two goals and two assists—his best game yet. the fans were on their feet cheering the rookie on, but the only cheers that mattered to mack belonged to the dirty blonde jumping around with pretty little ribbons tied into her hair staring directly at him. 

he was out of the locker room in record speed once the game finished to where blaire always waited for him in their secret hallway in the back of the arena. he laid his eyes on her as soon as he turned the corner and was practically running to spin her into his arms. blaire giggled when mack immediately lifted her off the ground, spreading a thousand kisses across her face. 

"hey," she giggled at his affection. mack pulled back to really take her in up close, his pupils literally turning to hearts as he made her do a slow spin so he could see the whole jersey on her. 

"wow," he mumbled. 

"i wanted to surprise you," blaire grinned and she felt his fingers gently trace his last name on her upper back and then down to the 71. 

"you look so good," he turned her back around, cupping her face in his hands. 

"so you like it?" 

"like it? i love it," the brunette kissed her, not being able to hold back anymore. she stood on her tiptoes for a better angle, her own hands clutching his wrists. 

"you look beautiful," mack hummed when they pulled back. 

"you're so sweet. brings me back to shattuck days," blaire remembered the old days where mack always gave her the jersey he wasn't wearing that game for her to wear and she wore it proudly every time. tonight was no different. 

"for sure, but this is even better," the rookie leaned in to kiss her again and she quickly reciprocated. it was such a good thing no one came back to this part of the arena ever.

[hellfire--cult]

– 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙞𝙥𝙩𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙧𝙙 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙩 📏

Eddie Munson x Tall!F!Reader

wc: 3k

warnings: fluff, absolute fluff, high school (character +18), insecurity about height, bullying, eddie munson being the cutest fluff of hair there is.

You definitely know your height, and you are reminded of it everyday. And then you find out that a certain metalhead seems obsessed with you.

a/n: just a small thought i had the yesterday night and i just wrote it. haven't seen many tall!reader fics out there.

reblog if you enjoyed

STANDING ON TIPTOES AS A THIRD TALENT

You know. You are aware.

You are aware of how painful the stretch was when growing up.

You are aware of how many times people ask for your help to reach things for them.

You are aware of how you don’t comply with those stereotypical feminine looks. 

You are aware of how guys don’t see you as an option because their masculinity is crushed by you being a few inches taller than them.

You are aware of how tall you are.

“If only we could get you on the basketball team.” Carver stood in front of you with his hands inside of his jersey, looking up at you. You never stopped walking, why would you? He kept walking backwards as he waited for a response.

“Why Carver? Though you are right, I bet I would do a better job in winning an actual game.” You could see Andy and Chase holding back their laughter but shaking it off as Jason turned to shoot a glare at them and then back at you, finally stopping because you are just tired of him following like a puppy. You will just listen to what he has to say and he’ll leave you alone.

“A little cocky, aren’t you?”

“No, but you for sure have one.” And he was confused by your response for a second, so you moved around him and continued walking. You heard him calling out your name with a curse after the idiot figured out your insult. You rolled your eyes as you opened your locker, looking inside to find a picture of Robin and you, a smile forming on your lips, trying to remember if you had band practice today or not.

You turned your head to look at some freshmen girls talking, whispering to one another as they looked at you and kept walking. Yeah… you are aware of how tall you are.

But you don’t need these people to remind you of it everyday.

You look back into your locker and start browsing, looking for your Spanish book, only to get pushed on the back, making you slam yourself onto the lockers. Your anger fuels as you take the book out and slam shut the locker door, turning around to face whoever pushed you in such a manner.

“Who the fuck–”

And not exactly eye to eye, still having to tilt your head down slightly, very so, and there stood a mop of dark curls. The whiff of tobacco and worn denim filled your nostrils as deep brown eyes collided with yours. 

“Sh–Shit um–” You never spoke to Eddie Munson before. You shared some classes together, and you were surprised when you heard the news that he was finally graduating. You don’t really care for him graduating two years later because you yourself got held back a year. So, you two would be leaving high school hell together in a few months.

“You need anything?” You ask and the guy has yet to talk to you. You look behind him to see two of his friends snickering at one another. Oh. “Look, if this is a dare of ‘Talk with the tallest freak in Hawkins High’ thing, you already won, I talked to you.” 

You turned, not really letting him speak as you walked forward to your Spanish class. It wasn’t the first time something like this happened to you. Guys jokingly asking you out, girls not bothering to lift their heads to look up at you, except for Robin. That girl decided to stick to your hip in fifth grade and she never let go. 

Not that you would let go of her either. She knows too much.

Shit, you still don’t remember if you had band or not. You groan loudly as you sit at the very back of the classroom, knowing that you would just cover the view for anyone else who sits behind you.

After class you head to your locker to put your Spanish book back inside, only to see a note waiting for you on the side. You grabbed it and saw that it was Robin, telling you she had something to tell you and to meet her in the woods at the back of the school. You furrowed your brows at that but shrugged, closing the locker door and heading towards the woods.

Your long legs help to get to places even faster, so in just five minutes you had leaves crunching beneath your feet. You assumed she either meant the picnic table or the fallen trunk that’s more towards the parking lot. Closest to the building though? The picnic table… but the figure sitting on the table wasn’t Robin. 

You heard him mumble as if practicing something, his mop of curls bobbing a bit as he said a few things only to then call himself ‘stupid’ and start over again. You rolled your eyes as you finally reached him, your arms over your chest.

“I knew you were crazy Munson, but not to the extent of talking to yourself.” You saw him jump up with a shriek, flailing his limbs around as he fell to the ground but quickly regaining himself as he turned to face you, wiping the leaves away. You held in the giggle, because– damn he is cute.

“Yeah well, um– I do worse than that sweetheart, trust me.” You raised your eyebrow at the nickname, feeling your cheeks heating up just slightly, but you shook your head and looked around.

“Have you seen Robin? She told me to meet her here.” And at your words, Eddie chuckled nervously while rubbing his cheek, trying to avert his gaze from you.

“Yeah um– Buckley didn’t put that note in your locker… I kinda– It was me.” You saw him put his hands behind him like a small child ready to get scolded, and to be honest, you were angry that he tricked you but–

“Why?”

“I uh– You kind of misunderstood something a few hours ago? I know I bumped into you and I didn’t really want to talk to you–” You raised your eyebrows at that in surprised offense.

“Excuse me?” He winced as he put his hand in a fist and hit his forehead a few times while shaking his head.

“Sorry, sorry– That is not what I meant! I definitely wanted to talk to you– talk to you, I mean, I wanted to talk to you for a long while, and I still do and well, we are talking now–” The boy was rambling and your confusion was growing the more he talked, so you took a few steps forward, waving your hands in front of you to get him to calm down.

“Hey, slow down Munson, jesus. You’re gonna have a stroke.” He looked up at you and nodded, taking a deep breath in and then letting out a nervous chuckle as he started pacing around with his hands in the back pockets of his jeans. “Okay, I get it, you apologized, everything’s fine.”

“No, no, um… My friends, they tried to help me talk to you but you make me kind of nervous, so.” Ah, it wasn’t the first time you heard that. 

“Yeah, my height sort of does that.” You shift in your place as you see him put a stop to his pacing, looking back at you with confused eyes.

“What?”

“Well, people tell me my height intimidates them, so… they’re nervous to talk to me. Did you need anything in particular?” You tilted your head at him and Eddie was still frowning and then started taking steps towards you, the tip of your sneakers touching with one another as his eyes looked up at yours. He was just a few inches shorter than you, you had a perfect view of his fringe.

“Well uh… You intimidate me yes… but not exactly because of your height darling.” You frowned as confusion plastered all over your features, looking at the metalhead that was still looking at you as if waiting for you to put a puzzle together in your head.

“Um… my incredible skills in Spanish intimidate you?” And Eddie smiled, and that honestly made your heart jump slightly because after all, Eddie Munson is not a bad-looking guy. He is the complete opposite of that, his own beauty to be described. Maybe it was his personality that also helped him become more charming. Either way, he was making your cheeks burn from how handsome he looked at this very moment as he stuttered with dimpled cheeks.

“No um… You intimidate me because– I think you are extremely, absolutely, and incredibly… beautiful.” 

You blinked a few times, not really sure if you heard the guy right. Did he say you’re beautiful? That you intimidate him because of… beauty and not your height? And there’s also the fact that Eddie Munson is the one saying all of this when you can hardly count the times you spoke with the guy.

“Is this��� a prank Munson?” You softly ask and he just groans, shaking his head like crazy.

“No, no. I promise it’s not– I–” He took a deep breath in as he scratched the back of his head, grabbing your hands and guiding you to sit down on one of the benches. You were confused but also, you were feeling your heartbeat beating like crazy against your chest, and you waited for him to start talking but he just kept pacing.

“Eddie–”

“Okay! So, the reason why my friends were behind me today and did the whole misunderstanding thing happen, which I get it, I can see how it–”

“Munson!” You were getting a little impatient now because you could now see he was nervous, but your own nervousness was making you a little bit cranky.

“Right! Sorry! My friends were fed up with me… Um–” You noticed a twinge of blush on his cheeks as he sighed, looking up at the sky. “I am not good with this, I normally like– have a casual conversation at the hideout, and then it happens it’s just–”

“The Hideout?” You don’t know where he is going anymore but he looks down at you and shakes his head once more.

“Nevermind. Like I was saying… my friends were fed up with me just– talking about you, all the time.” Okay, what? The shock must have been evident on your face because Eddie rounded the table, sitting on the bench in front of you now, putting his hands on the table, and rubbing his fingers together. “Say something? I am a nervous wreck over here, sweets.” 

Something? What can you possibly say? You were never in this position at all. You aren’t the kind of person to get confessions like they do in movies. You don’t even know what to say, or do, your inexperience showing off in big amounts as you, yourself, start to become flustered. 

“Um– I… I don’t– Why? Or what exactly do you say about me?” And he grabs a chunk of his hair in order to hide his face as he sways a little from side to side.

“Well… apart from how beautiful you look everyday… Everytime you put Jason or one of those guys in their place I just– I just boast about you… So I guess that when I heard the insult you threw at Jason today, I may have fangirled a bit and Gareth got fed up…” He winced a bit at the explanation but you felt your whole chest melt away at his words.

Your fingertips were sweaty, as you looked at him, and… fuck he turned from a guy to a man in just one instant. He was one year older than you and the fact he is stuttering so much despite his age in order to talk to you… was endearing. Cupid definitely passed by and shot an arrow through your chest just now.

“Um… can I ask um… why did you never talk to me? I mean… I think we talked like– what, six times in total?” You gave him a nervous giggle and he straightened up and cleared his throat as he looked at you.

“Didn’t you hear the part where… you intimidate me, sweetheart?” You frown at his words so he sighs and continues. “I don’t normally approach people with– my feelings. But um… we are graduating, and since we don’t talk I don’t know what your plans are later on, and– I just know that if I miss this chance I’m going to regret it my whole life.”

You couldn’t help but giggle at him, and it helped a small smile form on his own lips as he looked at you.

“Your whole life? That’s a bit drastic, isn’t it?” You smiled at him, biting onto your bottom lip now, feeling your belly turning slowly and nervously. He licked his lips and played with one of his rings as he talked to you.

“Not at all drastic, you are a catch, and I should be held back another year if I don’t shoot my shot with you right now.” 

And he sounded so certain. So honest. There was not a single ounce of joke in his tone or playfulness. There was obvious flirtiness and endearment. But you still had to ask, because you don’t want to dive into something that he might not have thought of before.

“Um… You know I am a little bit taller than you… right Eds?” You ask and he tilts his head, a smirk forming on his lips as his cheeks tint red.

“You know, I am extremely good at standing on my tiptoes, it’s like my third talent.” You couldn’t help but laugh at his joke, yet you knew you were completely flushed by it. He cleared his throat and you looked back up at him. “So?”

“So?” You tilted your head as he leaned forward on the table, towards you, resting on his forearms and elbows.

“Do I get to shoot my shot here?” 

Yeah… cupid definitely shot an arrow through your chest just now.

“Seriously, if you ditch me one more time–” 

“I didn’t ditch you Robs, you decided to not come with us.” You were putting your books back into your locker as Robin leaned against the other lockers while looking at you.

“Well yeah! I don’t want to third wheel!” You roll your eyes at your best friend, catching a wild mop of curls walking through the crowd in the hallway. You smile widely as Eddie approaches you, his arms coming to wrap around your waist.

“Hey beautiful.” You giggle at how energetic he is today and you raise your hands to cradle his face and lean down, tilting his head a bit to place a kiss on his lips.

“Hi Eds.” He smiles and you feel him growing taller, coming almost eye-to-eye level with you, almost, and receiving another soft kiss on the lips before he returns to his original height.

“Tiptoes growing stronger each day.” He smiles at you only for him to be shoved into you and before you can hit the lockers, the hand on your lower back pulls you into him, while the other slams into the lockers, forbidding you from colliding against them.

“HEY!” Robin yelled and you looked up to see Jason laughing behind Eddie with a horrified look on his face.

“Oops, sorry. Didn’t see you there Munson.” Your eye twitched as you looked at him, only to then tilt your head.

“You know Jason, if you want a threesome that badly you just have to ask. No need to act so interesting and shit.” At your words, he stops laughing, anger plastered on his features now as he stares at you while Eddie turns around.

“Excuse me?” You rolled your eyes at him and pointed at Eddie.

“You messed with him, you messed with me, and now you want to butt into our relationship. Sorry though, we don’t do poly.” You smile at him as you look at him, up and down and scrunch up your nose. “Not that you’re even our type.”

People that were walking by snickered at your words and Jason only squinted at you and looked at Eddie who was holding a snort in, his hand covering his mouth.

“Freaks do belong together.” And you roll your eyes at that and wave Jason away.

“And assholes son of bitches do too, that’s the reason Chrissy dumped you. Scram.” You could see Jason taking a step towards you and Eddie’s playful mood immediately soured, stepping in front of you with a menacing smile towards the Jock.

“Wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Jason scoffed at Eddie’s threat and shook his head.

“What you gonna do, curse me?” Eddie gave him a fake smile and leaned close so that he could hear, his smile falling.

“I’ve been playing good all year Carver so that I could graduate, and honestly, I would throw that opportunity away for her. Don’t fucking test me.” And you could see Jason deliberating the words Eddie spoke. He took a step back and gave you one last look before huffing and walking away.

“Holy shit, never seen Carver back away that easily in my life.” Robin smiled and you were biting your lip as your heart thumped in your chest like crazy. Eddie turned around with a huge dimpled smile and then you could see the playful glint in his eyes.

“Have I ever told you how much it turns me on how you call those assholes out?” And Robin groaned in disgust and quickly rushed away. You laughed at him, as he came closer to you again, letting you wrap your arms around his shoulders.

“Yeah, you did.” You bit your lip as you looked down at him, feeling your heart beat loudly for your boyfriend who was looking at you as if hung the stars in the sky. “What you said…”

“Meant every word.”

“I was going to say that it turned me on but–” You were taken by surprise when he immediately nibbled your neck which he had easy access to, and a giggle escaped your lips.

“Don’t tempt me sweetheart.”

end

[hihhasotherfixations]

Truth or Dare - Price x reader | Part 1

CW: no gender - reader is a blank slate. Love as a pet name. Suggestive talk, though nothing truly explicit. You’re both drunk, you’re playing truth or dare - whaddya expect 🥴

Part 1 | Part 2

Word Count: 1249

It had always been a one-sided attraction. A silly crush you had to deal with while balancing your work with the team. It would fade in time.

It wasn’t your fault when it had been a couple of years and it still hadn’t.

Captain Price was nothing if not professional. He loved his team and he treated everyone equally. You included. Well… maybe he did treat you a little more fondly than others. But that was only logical, given you’d been his lieutenant, working by his side for so long.

Despite the slight favouritism, he’d always been professional.

So, when after another successful mission, he’d invited you all to go to the bar, you didn’t expect the night would end up here. With you, alone together in your room on base, playing truth or dare.

Just moments prior, he’d pulled you onto his lap, your face darkening in a blush while his face remained flushed from the alcohol - your own doing no better of course.

“Gonna accept the dare and stay put?” His gruff voice pulled you out of your musings regarding his face and you briefly glanced to the side, thinking it over.

Neither of you had any alcohol to be able to take a shot instead of playing the round, but you’d kept a tally marking. One kept suspiciously empty, with neither of you refusing just yet.

Turning back to look into his eyes, you smiled ever so slightly, nodding and Price hummed in approval, his hands on your waist twitching slightly. “Good. Your turn now, go on.”

“Truth or dare.” You questioned, already having a guess for what he was gonna pick.

“Truth.”

Right on the money you were. Mulling it over for a second, the man chose right that moment to shift his hands from your waist down to your hips, pulling you just that tiny bit closer that made your breath subtly hitch. Looking at him, there was a mischievous glint in his eyes, an expression not even his beard could hide and you squinted.

If he wanted to play it like that- fine. “What’s the most inappropriate thing you’ve done on base?” You asked the first thing that came to mind, intent to perhaps embarrass him a little like he was clearly doing with you.

Instead of any embarrassment over his days as a rookie however, you were first witness to his pupils expanding as he stared dead into your eyes, nearly looking hungry.

“You sure you wanna know that?” He questioned, his voice sounding a little more gravelly than normal due to the alcohol and you swallowed.

“If you wanna tap out, there’s the board.” You spoke, breaking eye contact to reach for the pen and clipboard but before you could, your wrist was grabbed.

Snapping your head back to him, his gaze had never left you as his eyes drilled into yours. “I’m asking if you want to tap out.” He clarified.

“I asked the question, so no.” You whispered back, feeling suddenly small even while sitting on top of him. A fact you were becoming painfully aware of.

“Then the most inappropriate thing I’ve done was two years ago, when seeing you during that heatwave.”

“Me?” You questioned, unable to look away from his increasingly hungry gaze.

“You didn’t leave much to the imagination, love. Especially after PT.” He growled, almost as if he could see your sweaty form in front of him now. “Had to dip into the nearest broom closet.”

Blushing darker and darker, you swallowed softly, seeing Price’s eyes dart down to follow the movement of your throat bobbing before he glanced back up.

Unable to say anything, the man noticed and smirked, sliding his hand from your wrist to your hand, bringing it up to his mouth where he pressed a kiss to it. “My turn. Truth or dare?”

“T-Truth.” You managed to get out, though even in your inebriated state, you were beginning to think tapping out might be the safer option, given how your captain was looking at you.

Price however, was unforgiving, having had his question ready before you could even finish saying the word. “Do you stare at me when you think I’m not watching?” He questioned, his lips quirking up into a smirk when you stiffened on his lap.

“Yes…” Your voice was barely over a whisper as you admitted it, not willing to be the first to place a tally on the board.

Price however, placed both hands back on your hips and squeezed appreciatively, humming. “Thought as much, I just needed a confirmation.”

Pressing your lips together, you narrowed your eyes at his smugness, deciding enough was enough.

Despite your raging blush, you put your hands on his shoulders, shifting your hips closer to his which made him choke on a groan, his eyes finding yours as he raised a brow. “Truth or dare, captain?”

“Truth.” He rumbled out, moving his arms to hug around your hips, keeping you pinned to his chest as he looked at your face, completely entranced.

“What are you thinking of right now?”

For a second, Price was silent, scanning your face as he slightly wetted his lips before landing back on your eyes. “I’m thinking of how much I want to kiss you right now.” His voice was quiet, near a whisper as he answered honestly.

A flutter shot straight down your spine at his words and you couldn’t help but glance down at his lips, partially hidden by his beard.

Unable to stop yourself, you bit down on the tip of your thumb to try and stop yourself from smiling, glancing back up at his eyes which were focused on your mouth before he realised you were looking at him, making him look up as well. “Alright, your turn to ask me.”

Steeling himself only a little, Price squeezed at your hip where his hand sat. “Truth or dare, love?”

“Dare.” You smiled.

“I dare you to kiss me.”

Though his words were plain and almost dry, there was a hint of desperation that made your heart beat just that bit faster, your smile growing into a grin. “I knew you would.” With that, you wrapped your arms tightly around his shoulders as you leaned in and kissed him.

The moment your lips connected to his, Price shot his right hand up, cradling the back of your head as he pushed you further into himself, a little groan leaving the back of his throat.

He wasted no time, moving his mouth against yours as he deepened the kiss, pulling your pelvis into his in a greedy pull that made you sharply inhale before a little noise left you.

Almost instantly, you felt Price smirk into the kiss, his palm searing hot where it touched your skin.

Shifting your hips, you fluttered your eyes closed; fully letting him overtake you as you parted your lips to which he instantly took advantage of.

For years you’d thought of this moment, of kissing him. And yet you could barely believe it, now that you were here. Feeling his beard, coarse yet gentle with how it pushed into your skin. His lips, hungry and inviting. His tongue, eager and overpowering from how it moved against yours.

The kiss was messy and hungry, small grunts and noises sounding in the room as Price refused to pull away, keeping your head still, not willing to end the dare just yet.

But then again, the game didn’t end there.

-

I might make a p2 continuation of this ;3

Part 1 | Part 2

[dr-spectre]

You mentioned something about Splatoon 4 thoughts earlier today, and I really wanna hear you ramble about that. But I also really wanna listen to you ramble about a Hypno Callie rewrite lmao. So if you haven't already, since there's a good chance I missed it lol, what would a Spectre Hypno Callie rewrite look like?

OH DUDE NOW YOU'RE GETTING ME ALL PUMPED UP TEHEHEHEHE! ITS TIME FOR ME TO RAMBLE!!! Imma go ultra autism on you!!! It's gonna border on fanfiction territory! (Not the creepy or romantic kind...) Don't say that I didn't warn you...

Splatoon 4 Ideas.

Now here's the thing right. I only have a few ideas on a Splatoon 4 so I don't think I can do a giant ramble about it yet. But so far I got the idea of Splatoon 4 taking place in a giant futuristic city near the beach. So you get this cool plaza area near the beach and I got that idea from the AMAZING Project Splatoon 3. Seriously go check that out, it is amazing!!!!!!!

But you can also go into the city and explore some of it. And you can ride a bike to different shops and have your own apartment!!! I know people want apartments for the next game and yeah I agree. We NEED an apartment maker, it's the next logical step from lockers!

Also for weapons... I would LOVE to have a flamethrower weapon but instead of fire it's mist. A crank operated shooter made out of bike gears where you gotta keep spamming the ZR button, kind of like the Octoshower's weapon. A Wii Zapper charger!!! PLEASE NINTENDO! A saw blade Splatana. Maybe a pool noodle Inkbrush? That would be funny. Maybe a Painbrush that has a fan on it? Man... I'm starting to sound like Sheldon HAHAHA!

For the new Idols, it would be a duo instead of a 3 Idol group because oh my god 3 team Splatfests are so unbalanced sometimes. They would have the colors red and cyan. I don't have much on what they would look like, but I imagine one of them is a female Inkling with a cyan color and the other is a male octoling with a red color. It's time we have a proper God damn male Idol that isn't a giant manta ray!!! Now since I cannot draw for shit and I don't have the desire to draw (drawing has made me so angry so multiple times so I stick to writing and rambling) so I'll just show some pics to show you what kind of vibe I'm going for.

(Yes I'm not fucking joking. I've gotten inspiration from Silver the Hedgehog and Spider-Punk...)

I think it would be an interesting dynamic to have a fancy, highly teched out character paired up with a grungy and punk character who's loud and funny. I can imagine their music to be futuristic and techno while including segments of rock. Basically techno rock with romantic elements in it.

I would like some quality of life improvements and just general improvements as well, like being able to customize EVERY part of your look without having to go through that annoying character creation menu in the crater. Faster levelling up for abilities, ability drinks and food actually giving you which ability you want instead of a chance at it. Way more pants and a pants shop. WAY MORE hairstyles, eye colors with an option to select from a color wheel, eyebrows, scar and tattoo options too with a new tattoo vendor. (the tattoos are explained in game to be temporary ones even though they secretly aren't, to make sure parents don't get the wrong idea lmao)

Maybe some gameplay tweaks too? like including very slight momentum when going downhill? It has to be very slight though for balance. I would like to add a dolphin dive like mechanic where if you press the jump button in the air in your swimming form, you'll quickly stomp to the ground, and that speed will be carried over when swimming in ink for a little while. Maybe faster horizontal wall swimming too? Basically make the gameplay a little bit faster is all I'm trying to say, Splatoon doesn't need a giant gameplay overhaul, just small tweaks to make the last game seem worse to play lmao.

And of course, BETTER SERVERS! WE NEED DEDICATED SERVERS! NOW!!!!!!!!!!! EVEN IF ITS JUST A FEW IT'LL BE SOOOOOO HELPFUL! STOP BEING STUPID NINTENDO! GOD!

Um... anyways!

Now, in terms of story.... I would have 3 parts, one is the main campaign while the other two are DLC. The main campaign is focused on the Salmonids. You play as a new agent (Agent X or something, i think that's a cool name) as you explore these islands Super Mario 64 style where you do missions and try and stop the Salmonids from getting out of control as they gone on a rampage from an unknown cause. You have to complete enough missions on an island to go to the next.

Basically, think of Salmon Run maps and areas found in Mario games but they are WAY LARGER and more complex areas to go through with NPCs to talk to. I really want Splatoon 4 to expand on the concepts found in the hub worlds in Alterna and go fully into a 3D Mario sandbox style game.

You also have to team up with Frye, Big Man, Neo Agent 3 and Marie who join up with a new cast of characters who are in charge of guiding you to new islands (haven't thought much about what these characters are) to figure out what's going on. Callie doesn't appear in the story as it's explained in a Sunken Scroll that Callie is helping Octavio figure out what to do with the Fuzzy Octarians that are still trapped in Alterna. And yes Octavio has now fully joined the New Squidbeak Splatoon which Callie is very ecstatic about.

Cuttlefish is fully retired and doesn't appear, and Captain is taking a break from captain duties, leaving Marie to watch over Frye and Big Man as she is their boss anyways. Now, where is Shiver in all this? Well... here me out... she's the villain. And no she doesn't have any sort of bullshit evil headgear on. She's a villain due to being corrupted by greed and wanting more power. She has become addicted to the high she gets from winning and feeling powerful and has teamed up with the Salmonids to gain even more power and cash. She's been fully consumed by power and cash and Frye and Big Man are not on board with her plans as Shiver doesn't wanna give back to the people in Splatsville anymore. So Shiver leaves the group and gathers up the Salmonids and commands them.

However it's revealed that Shiver is doing these things because she had a bad family upbringing in her clan and was always talked down to and treated as weak. So all that trauma and resentment is finally on the surface and Shiver is lashing out at everyone because her pain is so much for her. There could be some themes about found families and healing trauma with the people that you love and stuff like that. Haven't thought too deeply about it. But I would really love to see Deep Cut forgive Shiver and just hug and cry it out. I'll cry alongside them lol.

Now, the second story is focused on the Squid Sisters and takes place before the events of the main campaign. You play as Agent 4 and Callie finds you lying on the floor and tells you that Inkopolis Plaza has been covered in a strange fog and a weird green substance that looks like gooey moss. The buildings have changed and there's all this weird plant life and dust everywhere. Callie escorts you to the tower found in Inkopolis Plaza to figure out where Marie went and that's where you meet Octavio who got shot down in his mech from a laser.

The three go inside and the building looks very similar to the aesthetics of Side Order but with a hospital liminal space edge to it. It looks like a twisted dream hospital environment with a giant lobby in the middle.

This kind of vibe but more open and less hallway like. It should invoke the feeling of going to a hospital as a kid.

However, instead of an elevator to go higher, it's a giant spiraling staircase that grows after each floor Agent 4 completes. Basically the gameplay is the same as the rogue like gameplay found in Side Order but its heavily expanded upon with new enemies, objectives, color chips, etc. However... during the first 12 floors you hear these weird whispers and voices that sound very similar to Marie's voice.... Callie says she's getting major Deja Vu, and then Marie's voice is fully clear and echoes throughout the building, telling Callie in specific to leave her alone and to get out of here. They don't listen and continue forward.

When you reach the 12th floor, you go inside a giant white chamber and you see Marie in a new outfit that's similar to this outfit found in the Splatoon 2 artbook. Basically this but with a cool cloak and squid tentacle patterns on it and a gas mask instead of shades.

She's standing on some kind of green gooey moss and looks angry. Marie attacks Agent 4 with her charger and its a stealth boss where you gotta sneak around and get up to Marie and knock her down from the moss pile. Evil Marie has always been a beloved fan concept in the community, like Hypno Marie has so many cool fan designs out there and i think that could work honestly.

Callie manages to knock the mask off of Marie with a splat bomb but she's still angry. Callie grabs onto Marie and Marie calms down and cries. Agent 4 looks at the gas mask and its just filled with regular oxygen, nothing special about it. No hypnosis gas or anything. Just regular oxygen... Marie says she's sorry and explains that stuff from her past is catching up to her and making her unwell (you can guess on what I'm referring to wink wink.) She was unable to sleep for several days and was being manipulated by someone...

The thing behind Marie's manipulation appears from the ceiling and it's this giant white metallic squid that has transparent glass on some of it's body and arms, which shows this bright green goo flowing inside it. (think of Overlorder but he's a squid). I don't have a lot of information for this guy but this villain was created to cure Fuzzy Octarians, but due to unknown circumstances it went out of control and its coding was changed to "heal" people's pain by covering the planet in a modified and twisted version of Marie's low tide ink which now has evolved to be very similar to plant life. This goo/ink neutralizes certain parts of the brain, leaving the victim completely unfeeling and depressed, unable to feel anything, even physical touch or sensation. The villain manipulated Marie by going inside her head, analyzing her memories and telling her that all she has to is to get rid of "the intruders" and he will "heal her pain."

After the Marie boss fight, you have to travel up to 40 floors instead of 30 and during the downtime you get to learn about the Squid Sisters. Stuff like Callie and Marie before they blew up, who came up with their outfits, more info about their parents and managers, Marie talking about how she has trauma and nightmares from the events of Splatoon 2 and is terrified that one day Callie may leave and never come back again, Callie diving into her time in the Octo Canyon and finally clearing up what happened to her, Octavio showing remorse and sorrow for the actions he has done over the past 100 years. Basically Side Order but with the Squid Sisters, Octavio and Agent 4. I know it's a lot like Side Order but Side Order is so damn good so why not do it again but improve upon the gameplay you know?

That's all I got for this story and it's probably gonna change and be tweaked over time.

Now for the third story of Splatoon 4. I barely have anything for this but it will star the new Idol duo of the game, Off the Hook, Eight and Captain. I think it'll be like Octo Expansion in terms of gameplay and difficulty, but also expanded and longer to complete.

OKAY! NO MORE SPLATOON 4! TIME TO TALK ABOUT HYPNO CALLIE!

Hypno Callie Rewrite.

Honestly, the way I would go about rewriting Hypno Callie is very simple... Remove the Hypnoshades. That's it. She can still have them as an aesthetic part of her outfit, but i would make it so Callie is no longer hypnotized and it's WAY MORE clear to the audience that Callie is suffering from mental illness and that she left with the Octarians, not "kidnapped, overpowered and brainwashed into being a mind controlled slave." Splatoon 2 was always about the separation of the Squid Sisters and their eventual healing and reunion, it was always gonna be about that but due to time constraints probably, they rushed it and introduced bullshit shades to make it easier and simpler, they then tried to fix it later with an obscure post with a relationship chart that no one even fucking talks about, even timeline explainers fail to fucking mention it... ugh...

Making Callie an actual antagonist that has been manipulated by Octavio, whispering to her and playing into her insecurities and pain is way more compelling and makes more sense for Octavio to do as a character. Like how the fuck did he come up with the Hypnoshades and why did he only use it on Callie? He can just make hypnosis tech out of nowhere? Huh? It makes way more sense for Octavio to just manipulate her as he is a master of words and propaganda.

So what I would do is introduce a new mandatory collectable in the Splatoon 2 Hero Mode called "Callie's diary." At certain moments in the campaign Agent 4 and Marie find pages from Callie's diary as she explains her feelings and pain from being overworked and feeling some resentment as Marie has stopped calling or texting her. Marie looks so ashamed and disappointed and starts blaming herself for Callie's disappearance. Some of the diary entries include the photos found in Sunken Scrolls 21 and 22. The last diary entry found in Sector 4 is an emotional rant from Callie the day she went missing. She rants about how she can't take working anymore and how she's so lonely. Her last line is "if no one truly cares for me up here... Then... Maybe..." And there's a small tear stain at the bottom of the page.

Now for the final boss, the main plot points would occur sorta the same way, you fight Octavio and Callie, after a bit Marie comes in and shoots her in the eye, Callie calms down, blah blah blah. I actually really do like the idea of the "low tide ink" that the English translation team introduced. I think it's a neat idea that Marie has this special ink that calms someone down so I'll keep that for the rewrite.

However, during the final boss, i would make it to where Marie is really trying to reach to Callie and trying to convince her that she is loved and she matters, she tries to apologize for her actions and explains that Octavio is just manipulating her for the Octarians' goals. Callie fights back and doesn't wanna listen to her, constantly trying to shut her down. Marie even reminds Callie of their childhood and it almost gets to Callie, but she becomes more emotional and angry, she's so confused because deep down she knows Marie is right, but she's so scared to listen to her because she doesn't want to get abandoned again.

However what really gets to Callie is Marie collapsing on her knees and crying, just begging her badly to come back to her. And Marie says "I love you...." Callie is in shock and starts getting flashes of good memories with her and Marie. She holds the shades in her hands and destroys them. Callie leaps into the air and collides into Marie's arms, and they cry their eyes out and say sorry to each other.

The battle plays out the same but i would like to add another cutscene after Octavio gets his shit kicked in, Callie and Marie are on Sheldon's van and they look at the sunset together. I think that would be really sweet and connect beautifully with the credits and Fresh Start.

I took a lot of inspiration from the game Marvel's Spider-Man 2 and two boss fights in particular. The Miles vs. Peter fight, and the Spider-Man vs. Scream/MJ fight. In those boss fights, it's sort of like a therapy session for the characters in that the people under the symbiote are venting about their issues and expressing their anger they have kept hidden for so long, and the person on the other side is trying desperately to reach for them and save them from themselves. It's really powerful shit honestly and it made me feel emotional seeing Peter go "ALL I WANTED WAS TO SAVE EVERYONE! MJ! MAY! NOW THE CITY THINKS I'M THE PROBLEM! you think I'm the problem." Like i know it's kind of crazy to take inspiration from a game made for adults and take some of it into Splatoon but... I really don't give a shit. Children's media can show powerful scenes of characters struggling with their inner demons. They can do it and have proven to be successful. Children can handle it, they can.

Now... i have worked on a Splatoon 2 finale rewrite and I'm pretty much almost done with it, i need to finish the last bit of it and then go over it again so I'm fully happy with it. However i don't know how to present it as it's in the form of a script and idk how that's gonna work on tumblr, i mean i could put it on AO3 but idk if i wanna make an account just to post one thing on there and idk how many scripts get posted onto AO3 anyways...

It's like I'm a chef and I'm cooking something, but there's no waiter to deliver the food lmao.

ANYWAYS! Thank you for reading my autistic ass ramblings! I got so much free time that i just so much of it just writing down fan concepts for things on different games and stuff (I have a 42 page and counting document on a potential Sonic Frontiers 2.) Yeah... I got THAT kind of autism, not the maths and science one... Again, thank you for reading!

[tf2thoughtdump]

TF2 Thought of the Day

Headcanon? Yes.

Character(s)? All the mercs, team not specified but for simplicity’s sake, the red team

Long or Short? Long. This may take a while.

You're free to use any thoughts of mine in any form of media you make.

Thought

This one is real simple, it’s how I think the mercs would handle being given a baby. Enjoy!

Scout

Literally going crazy

Like, about to explode levels of crazy.

Gushing over every inch of this baby from her big eyes to her tiny nose and down to her chubby little hands and feet

Luckily, the little munchkin doesn’t seem to mind his intense energy so it works out

He does his best, but admittedly he is a bit… rusty

The first time he tried holding her, he wasn’t properly securing her head

The second him, he was just holding her upside down

He’s not the WORST merc to leave a baby with, but you have better options.

Soldier

Not really sure what to do with this….

Recruit.

He held her FAR from his body before opting to just tuck her under his arm like a loaf of bread

This didn’t last long though because he eventually found a way to keep her strapped to him with his belt

Uncomfortable, sure, but the baby could care less

She was more concerned with who gave her to this man in the first place

Soldier is your last resort

Pyro

Is most likely to set the baby’s diaper on fire when it gets full

He’s not BAD with a baby, it’s just…

There are so many better options!

They can hold the baby right, that’s not the problem, the problem is the outfit

The rubber, the material in general

Babies need skin-on-skin contact and Pyro.. doesn’t exactly fit the bill with that one

She’s definitely gonna make the baby uncomfortable but it’s nothing a good tickle won’t fix!

Demoman

Why?

Just….

Why?

Did you run out of options again?

Was Soldier too busy so you had to wake up Tavish?

What on Earth could be running through your mind to think leaving a baby with a drunk is a good thing?

He might rock it to sleep, but that’s about all you’re getting

Heavy

Your number 1 go to if you need a babysitter

He’s got three younger sisters! How hard can taking care of a baby be?

You’ll soon come to find out that with Heavy? Taking care of a baby is a piece of cake.

No complications, no fusses, no unchanged diapers

Just Heavy asleep on a couch too small for him, and a baby resting in his giant hands.

Engineer

Also another good one!

Doesn’t have much experience with REAL babies, just his mechanical babies, but he’s sure he can watch her for ya!

Don’t worry about a thing, buttercup, he’s got everything under control

Turns out, he kinda did?

In the time you were gone, he built her a rocking crib

Plus an automatic diaper changer

He’s just a little to busy with machines to be worrying about diapers

Relax though! If the baby cries, he’s putting down everything to figure out what’s wrong and how to solve the problem

Minus the guns in the equation

Medic

Well, uhm..

He’s not a bad baby-watcher!

He will keep that little rascal in his sights at all times! No doubt about it!

He could stare at that baby all day!

Best babywatcher in the world!

But…

This is Medic we’re talking about…

There’s no way this baby is coming back the same baby..

Sniper

Not.. sure what to do?

He’s a bit of a recluse, so he doesn’t hang around people that much

That also translates to him not really being able to understand what to do when given a baby and told to watch her

You know that TikTok audio?

“Your mom told me to watch you, but.. you don’t do anything.”

That’s him.

He takes “watch her” seriously

Now granted, Mick will let her play with his fingers occasionally but is really just staring at a baby in his lap for 2 hours straight and freaking out every time she cries or soils a diaper

Spy

Spy is a neglectful dad

We see that with Scout, so it’s no big surprise there

However, he’s not horrible with kids

He can take care of a baby just fine, change her diapers, feed her, burp her, lull her to sleep and the like

He just won’t be very enthusiastic about it!

If you want your baby to have a good time, pick Scout or Engineer

But if you want someone who actually has some idea what they’re doing, get Heavy or Spy for the job, okay?

[babydollmarauders]

SNOW ON THE BEACH — LUKE HUGHES

luke hughes x fem!reader

part of the Midnights Fic List.

summary: in which shy, introverted y/n meets extroverted frat boy Luke and he takes a liking to her, even though everyone thinks they’re an odd match.

specific lyrics: “it’s like snow on the beach, weird but fuckin’ beautiful.”

notes: i really wanted frat boy Luke in order to really have them contrast each other, but i also didn’t wanna take away the hockey element or split up the UMich boys, so… Hockey House is a frat now. also, i don’t think i like this one, i feel like i could’ve done so much better but like halfway through writing this, my brain short-circuited and i couldn’t think of anything.

the library is packed. i should’ve expected it, with it being so close to finals week and all, but it still disappointed me nonetheless.

this was my favorite place to escape and read when my obnoxious dorm-mate had her friends over. it was quiet and usually pretty empty. so i could usually sit and read for a few hours until i was sure none of Alex’s friends were still there. none of them knew how to use an inside voice, and with our dorm just being one big room, they constantly thought that meant i would want to join in on their conversations. which were mainly gossip about the hockey team. so, coming in and finding every space in the library full, ruined my plans. i don’t want to go back to my dorm and be subjected to them debating which UMich hockey player has the cutest smile, so i guess that leaves me with one option; find a seat.

i let loose a sigh and scan the room for who seems to be the quietest. i hate small talk. i find a table with only one person sat at it, a guy with one airpod in and a textbook laid out in front of him, and decide that’s the one. i walk over, fully planning on just motioning to ask if i can sit, but when i come to a stop in front of the table and he doesn’t even look up, i know i’ll have to speak up. i take a deep breath before i let out the quietest ‘excuse me’ known to man. the boy still doesn’t look up from the textbook, and i don’t blame him, he probably didn’t even hear me.

“excuse me.” i say slightly louder. this time the boy finally looks up, but i’m struck on what to say. suddenly, all the mentally rehearsed words have left my mind. this may be the cutest boy i have ever seen.

“can i help you?” his voice is soft. not judgmental or rude like what i would’ve expected from him after i came over and interrupted his studying just to end up staring at him. i shake myself out of my thoughts and give a light nod.

“do you mind if i sit here?” i motion towards a chair diagonal from his. “everywhere else is full.”

the boy nods.

“oh, yeah, go ahead.” i give him a small and grateful smile before depositing myself in the chair. pulling my book and a few highlighters out from my tote bag before hanging it up on the back of my chair. i open my book to where i left off, setting the bookmark on the table. but before i can start reading, the boy speaks up again.

“sorry to interrupt but, you’re reading that for a class?” he asks. for some reason, i take a look at the front cover of my romance novel before talking.

“oh. no. i’m reading this for fun.” i tell him. my voice is quite, my tone soft.

“oh okay. i guess i just assumed you were here to study since everyone else is.” he lets out a breathy chuckle as he shrugs.

“no.” i shake my head before explaining- “i’m here to get away from my dorm-mate and her friends. they’re too loud for me to focus and they keep trying to get me to weigh in on their debates.”

“what are they debating?” he asks.

“well, when i left it was which Wolverines hockey player has the cutest smile.” i tell him, rolling my eyes.

“and who did you say?” he seems curious, and almost amused.

“no one.” i shrug. “i don’t know what any of them look like.”

he lets out a quiet laugh.

“well you know what one of them looks like now.” he says. my brows form a v and i’m about to ask him to clarify but then it hits me. oh. he’s a hockey player.

“oh.” is my awkward response.

“i’m Luke Hughes.” he smiles at me. well, i have my answer for the next debate now.

“i’m y/n.” i tell him. “nice to meet you.”

“you too.” he finally looks back down at his textbook, and i’m relieved to be free of any more small talk.

the next hour or so passes by silently, and i manage to finish the last 75 pages of my book without any interruptions. i close my book, and put my stuff back in my tote bag, at the same time that an alarm goes off on Luke’s phone. he turns it off and starts packing his stuff up as well. we stand simultaneously, and he sends me a quick amused expression. my steps to the exit are slow, and Luke falls in line with me, slowing his steps to match mine.

“my frat is having a party on Friday, you should come. collect some more data for the next debate.” he smirks, and i rack my brain for a nice way to say that i don’t do parties.

“i’m not really a party person.” i say.

“then what kind of person are you?” he asks. his eyes fall down my body before he looks back up to my face.

“um, the reading type, i guess? i don’t really like doing the whole people thing.” i confess. he nods in understanding.

“well, if you change your mind, come. and if you need to escape your dorm again, i’ll be here tomorrow, same time.” he winks before splitting off, walking the opposite direction as me.

my entire walk to my dorm, i rethink every word we shared, wondering if i sounded stupid. i mean, i would assume not because he didn’t seem put off by me, but who knows, maybe he’s just a good actor. he was really cute though, gosh i hope i didn’t unknowingly embarrass myself.

opening the door to my dorm, i’m disappointed to see that Alex and her friends are still here. they don’t usually hang out this long on a wednesday evening. and i have to hold back an eye roll when i realize that it doesn’t sound they’ve changed their topic of conversation at all since i’ve left. logically, i’m sure it has and they just circled back onto this topic, but i honestly wouldn’t be surprised if it was all they were talking about the past couple hours.

“y/n! you didn’t answer before you left, so please, settle this for us!” one of them, Jess, says as she spots me. “which UMich hockey player has the best smile? i say Ethan Edwards, Alex says Rutger McGroarty, and Becca says Mark Estapa!”

my mind wanders back to the boy i was conversing with not too long ago and before i can think twice, i blurt out- “Luke Hughes.”

“you think so?” Becca asks “i feel like he rarely ever smiles. it’s so hard to get one out of him.”

“really?” i ask. they must be exaggerating, he smiled at me earlier. although, i think he was just being friendly.

“yeah! i have a class with him this semester and i swear he frowned at me when i tried to introduce myself. i mean, he’s still hot, but still.” Becca replies, shrugging.

“oh.” i say. what does that mean? if he wasn’t friendly to her when they met, then why would he smile and be friendly with me?

“oooh y/n is blushing! i think she likes him!” Alex coos.

“i don’t like him.” i turn away, letting my hair fall in front of me to hide my apparently pink cheeks. i set my tote bag on my desk chair and slip my shoes off before taking a seat on my bed.

“i think she does!” Jess joins in on the teasing, and now i’m regretting having left the solitude of the library. “a bit of an odd match, you two.”

i’m not sure whether i should be offended by her statement or not, but for some reason i am. i don’t plan on dating him, but hearing her say we wouldn’t match together makes me feel insulted.

“what is that supposed to mean?” i retort.

“she didn’t mean anything by it.” Alex defends her friend. “she’s just saying, Luke is an extrovert, he likes to party and let loose, he has a lot of friends. and you’re… the opposite. i don’t think i’ve seen you go out once in the entire school year that we’ve shared a room. you keep to yourself. like, we’ve been trying to include you so that you’re not lonely, but you always say you’re going to the library. you and Luke just don’t seem like you’d fit together.”

“i didn’t ask you to include me. i like being alone. people are draining.” i say. i don’t like their pity on me. it’s not like i don’t have friends. i do. we’re just all introverted and our hangouts between classes is enough social interaction for us. we don’t care for going out partying on weekends or anything. if we do want to hang out on the weekend, we’ll usually do a movie night at Casey and Ellie’s apartment. but the way Alex explains it makes my life sound pitiful, and it makes me defensive, so before i can stop myself, i speak again. “and for your information, i’m going to a party on friday.”

the trio gasps, as though this information is scandalous.

“oh my god, are you going the party at Hockey House?” Becca asks. ‘hockey house’, the nickname for the frat house in which most of the UMich hockey players live. the frat is comprised solely of hockey players, so i guess the nickname makes sense. “for Luke?”

“yes, i’m going to the party. but no, not for Luke.” i tell them. why did i say i was going to that party? i hate parties. i even already told Luke so.

**

friday evening has come, and i can’t even back out of going to the party because Alex, Becca, and Jess have decided we should carpool together. so now i’m stuck in this commitment.

when Becca and Jess arrive to pick Alex and i up, i become aware that i’m the only one not wearing a dress or skirt of some kind. instead i’m dressed casual, in jeans and a tank top, paired with an oversized cardigan to keep me protected from the evening breeze. but it’s too late to change now.

arriving to the party is a hassle on its own, with the girls fussing over whether they look good enough to bag a hockey player, and having a hard time finding a parking spot. and when we finally walk into the party, i immediately want to leave. music is blasting from multiple speakers, everyone is holding a stereotypical red solo cup, and the house is packed. i’m quickly forgotten about by the other girls, them walking off to get drinks and stop to have conversations with a few of the hockey guys. i still don’t actually know any of the players names, besides Luke.

i scan the room, but i’m not entirely sure what i’m looking for. or who. all my friends are probably laying in bed right now. before i can even figure out who i’m looking for, i hear my name being called.

“y/n!” i turn my head towards the voice and find a guy from my ‘intro to business’ class coming towards me. i think his name is Dylan, but it seems like everyone just calls him Duke. “never seen you at a party before!”

“yeah, it’s not usually my scene.” i tell him with an awkward smile.

“i figured. you give me more of the ‘reading in my room’ vibes.” he laughs.

“am i that obvious?” i joke. he laughs again and nods.

“you look pretty out of place. let me introduce you to some of my friends.” he takes ahold of my wrist and pulls me towards a group of guys in the kitchen. i’m immediately uncomfortable, they all seem intimidating, and i’m not great around boys. we get closer to the group and Duke begins to introduce me. “guys, this is-”

“y/n! you came!” i look over to see Luke, and i can’t help the smile that breaks out on my face when i see his wide grin. he slings an arm around my shoulders, and Duke’s jaw drops.

“THIS is the y/n you’ve been talking about? the one from the library?” Duke asks. i can feel my face heating up. he’s been talking about me? i hope he’s not saying anything bad about me.

“yup. this is my future girlfriend.” Luke exclaims, and i choke on my own spit.

what?! we barely know anything about each other! all i know is his name is Luke, he has the prettiest smile i’ve ever seen, and he plays hockey. pretty sure all he knows about me is my name and that i have an annoying roommate.

“hm. an odd match.” Duke ponders. there’s that phrase again! but now seeing Luke in his natural habitat, partying and joking with friends, and even just him being so confident, i can’t help but wonder if Duke and the girls are right. Luke and i do seem to contrast each other.

“what’s that supposed to mean?” Luke asks defensively.

“hey, i’m not saying that’s a bad thing!” Duke rebuts. “you guys are just kinda… opposites of each other.”

“opposites attract.” Luke shrugs. i’m kind of confused. does my opinion matter? Luke seems pretty confident that i like him back.

“uh, Luke.” i speak up. he looks down at me where i’m still tucked into his side. “we don’t really know anything about each other.”

“when you know, you know.” he shrugs.

**5 YEARS LATER**

i stare up at my now husband from my seat beside him with watery eyes and a soft smile.

“and i told her, ‘when you know, you know.’” he looks back down at me from his standing position. “and i knew. from the first time we met, i knew this would be the girl i spend the rest of my life with.”

everyone in the reception hall claps as Luke ends his speech. he gives me a soft kiss on the cheek before whispering in my ear.

“you got this, baby.” his hand clasps my shaky one and gives it a quick tight squeeze. i take one big deep breath and stand up, i hate public speaking, but i wrote my speech and i will read it.

“i didn’t know. well, at least not as quick as Luke.” a few people chuckle at that. “but what i do know, is that i went to my first party for him. which spoke volumes for me. and i thought he had the most amazing smile to ever exist.”

i look down at Luke and see the grin spread across his face.

“look, there it is!” i point to him as i look back at the reception hall full of our friends and family and everyone laughs. “i still think it’s the best smile, but i might be biased now. when we started dating, we had people calling us an odd match, i even had a friend compare us to ‘snow on the beach.’ she said we were ‘weird but beautiful.’”

“i used to think it was an insult, but now i look back and realize, our friends were right, we are an odd match.” i look back at Luke and now it’s my turn to smile. he takes ahold of my hand, squeezing it as a few tears roll down my cheeks. i finish my speech while maintaining eye contact with him. “but i like our differences, we balance each other out, and i can’t imagine what my life would be like if i hadn’t liked your confidence so much that night. i’m so grateful that i get to spend the rest of my life calling myself your wife.”

Luke stands, winding his arms around my waist and pulling me in for a sweet, slow kiss. i can hear everyone clapping, and someone lets out a loud “WOOO!”

i can distinctly tell that was Jack, and it makes me interrupt the kiss with a giggle. Luke just takes that chance to pull back and pepper my face in pecks. blood rushes to my face at the thought of our family and friends watching him do this, but he doesn’t care. his confidence is a constant, no room for embarrassment.

yeah, maybe my friend was right; Luke and i are like snow on the beach. at first glance, we’re an unlikely duo, different in a lot of ways, but we make a great couple and our love is beautiful.

[claireelle18]

She’s a Gem - Vince Dunn

Shoutout to @cellythefloshie for gushing about this man, and encouraging this write. Hope everyone enjoys it!

Vince bought her some sort of sparkly gem for every major occasion that happened between the two. The tradition started after he won Lord Stanley, because she deserved something shiny. Paper rings were what he made her on every date leading up to the first gem. The St. Louis 2018-2019 team won the Stanley cup. He got his Stanley Cup and the ring to go along with it. He bought her Sapphires. This was the first major gift he ever gave her. The two only had been dating a little under a year when he did this. He said it was because she needed to rock something blue to go along with his gear. She wore the set every game, even during the bubble series. It made her feel closer to him, even though he was in Toronto, and FaceTimes were the only form of face to face either got of each other. Her shadow box with the paper rings he made her sitting next to the new box containing her first gem.

When news broke he was going to Seattle during the expansion, she was the first one to cheer on the new opportunity, even if that turned them long distance again. In the bubble, she moved home to Florida to be around her family. Due to the world turning back to some weird level of normal, the couple was allowed to see each other again. He wasn’t in the bubble anymore. He presented her with Aquamarines to match his new team’s jersey color. “You need to be able to coordinate correctly, loves,” he explained. A small promise to her that she had his heart. Her box of paper rings, more added to the collection of both because again he continued the original tradition for every date. She took the move to Seattle right before the fall season, right before the hockey season started up. She had been out of the Florida heat for a while, but her wardrobe was bright, cheery, Key West colorations. What did he get her? Pink Ethiopian opals. They reminded him of her so much, matching her personality (and her clothes). October 23, 2021 - Vince Dunn scores his first goal as a defensemen for the Seattle Kraken. The following day, he took her out and bought her black pearls. “What? I can’t celebrate my first goal with a new team by spoiling my hunny with some new jewelry?” “I’m not saying you can’t, but Vince this is about you!” “And it wouldn’t be for me without my number one cheering me on from the sidelines.” A paper ring adorning her ring finger at that time. “Vince Dunn! You better not tell your mother you just said I’m your number one! She’ll be heartbroken!” ‘Ha,’ he thought. His mother would be estatic, knowing that there was good reason behind that statement.

She landed a new job in Seattle, finally, after being out there for a couple of months. Peruvian blue opals for her new job, and because it was another reason for him to gift her with something to reminder her of him. “What? Can’t spoil my girl?” “Vin, it’s your birthday celebration!”

“So? My beautiful girlfriend will now have something to wear and think about me while she rocks the new job!” She rolled her eyes, and thanked him again. The opals came in back to back sets, along with the pearls, due to the fact that their birthdays were days apart from each other. That paper ring collection larger than imagined when the tradition started. He couldn’t resist giving her options and reminders of him, every major chance he could. Whenever she wore them, it made his heart swell with pride. She loved it because he took the time to choose each item, each one holding so much meaning to their relationship. Maybe one day these would be passed down to their children, and then their children, and so on. The two had talked multiple times, at length, for the future, what it held for the couple - marriage, children, a real house. Over the off season break, he put his next plan of what celebration the two would have. The biggest decision for him. That ring. Not her paper rings, not the other rings that matched the sets of jewelry previously gifted. He had been giving it thoughts for a year now. First season completed in Seattle, he was ready for that next step with her. She donned his name multiple times for years, stitched into all the jerseys. She had stuck through it all with him. Every twist, turn, bump, and loop-de-loop life threw at them. Glued to his side. The ups and downs, highs and lows, every moment. That old box of paper rings proving every day their commitment. He knew she kept them all. He finally settled on the perfect ring for her. A 3.5 karat diamond with a titanium band. Classic, with minor flare. A little more flashy than the others in her now decent size collection, but she deserves the attention. The most important piece she’d own.

He found it by accident while out with the boys back in Toronto. Home for him is with her, no matter where they are. The group had popped into an antique based shop, and as she was more of a timeless, classic girl, he took a peek at what the case held. Nestled in red velvet, sat the ring. Then and there he saw her with that particular one adorning her finger. A little more shiny and sparkling, definitely a conversation starter. Similar to her grandmother’s ring that she said she adored growing up. The marquise cut, flower set diamond ring. Immediately he rang his mother, followed by her mother. Both were in agreeance. That ring was meant to be hers. Without a second thought, he bought it.

He had the girl of his dreams. He now had the perfect ring. All he needed was the perfect place to ask her that all so important question. She wasn’t the type to care for the general cheesy proposals. He needed something more meaningful, more unique.

He held onto that ring until their trip to the Bahamas with some of the other teammates that weren’t selected for the All Stars series. Sunset on the balcony of their hotel room with drinks, and a hidden bottle of champagne to celebrate with further after he asked. His phone hidden and recording to keep this moment forever.

Her back facing the camera, she was admiring the fire painted sky. He came up, hugging her from behind. The box in his pocket feeling heavier than before. “Hey hunny…you know that I love you, right?” He asked her.

“Yeah, of course I do loves. Why do you ask?”

He was already nervous, a little giddy even. He never thought he’d be there, ready to ask her to be by his side forever. He took her hand making her face him. “I say that because…be…because…I want to spend the until the end of time with you.” He drops down to one knee, his ocean tumbled curls falling into his eyes. “For years already you’ve worn my last name proudly across your back, but now I want you to share that last name. Our last name across your back. I want those future moments we’ve talked about time and time again. Will you marry me?” He pulled out the velvet box, that ring glinting, reflecting the scorching colors.

Her eyes sparkled with tears that threatened to tumble down her cheeks. “Of course I’ll marry you Vince!” He slipped the ring on, she pulled him in for a kiss.

After dinner and celebrations, back in the hotel room. “You picked a wonderful ring. Knowing me so well for this shiny one,” she commented to him. “But you know I’d marry you with paper rings if it came down to it. You’re the one I want.”

[blueberry-lemon]

The Sites Behind Us

Cohost, the indie blogging + social media platform, is shutting down.

It’s sad, because I really liked using it.

While my two years of using it were brief, they also happened to land at the moment where I needed it most. These two years have kind of been the crossroads of two different impulses pulling at me:

The impulse to post, scroll, and be seen online

The desire to want to pull back and retreat from social media, metrics, timelines, and algorithms

Not only do these two things contradict each other, like a terminally-online tug-of-war, but they were also both complicated for me personally over these two years.

I think it would be fair to call Cohost “one of my favorite online platforms”, especially if we’re considering the design and feature set. It fit really nicely into my routine.

On the other hand, I can’t say much about the community, personally. I don’t know anything about the staff, and I almost never surfed around the tags. I stuck mostly to my own little bubble, and only browsed the “gamedev” tag and “indie game” tag to find posts to signal-boost on my alt account, Indie Games of Cohost.

I’ve heard stories of arguments, targeted harassment, defensiveness, toxicity, racial bias, and white privilege expressed across the platform. I believe all of those things 100%. And while I have nearly endless sympathy for small development teams, it’s still frustrating to see failures in properly preventing people from being exposed to that on the site.

It sadly doesn’t surprise me. Not in the sense that “we should accept these things as inevitable when people talk online” but rather that it seems that nearly every attempt to make a social media platform has failed to build in the proper level of diversity of staffing, precaution, and moderation that would be necessary to prevent things like that from festering.

The next time someone attempts to make an online space like this, I hope that they’ll take note of those failures and do better. I wish everyone could have had the same positive experience that I had, even though that clearly didn’t come to pass for a lot of people.

As I said, the feature set and general design was very much up my alley. Cohost was pitched by many as “social media with less metrics”, and thus with more space to be yourself, act like yourself, and breathe. There are subtle differences that have a lot of impact: no “Likes” metric on posts, no “Followers” metric at all, no “Follows you” badge to know whether people were your mutuals or not.

It wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it was definitely mine. It had a lot of the convenience of a social media platform (optional comment sections, optional reblogs/shares, the ability to see everything displayed in a handy timeline you can scroll down) without a lot of the aspects that I’ve found detrimental to my focus, confidence, and mental health.

As a bonus, Cohost let you use CSS within your posts. This led to people (with better coding knowledge and patience than me) making some really creative posts that “broke the mold” of what you’d expect to see. It was refreshing because most online platforms have a pretty firm grip on what your “piece of content” is allowed to look like, aesthetically and structurally. There’s been a big drive to try to iron out what posts look like and make them consistent, such as having everything on a platform use the same font or be the same size. It was nice to have a place that didn’t play by those rules.

It was essentially more like a blogging platform, before LiveJournal and Tumblr became bloated with a bunch of more grabby features. It was a place for experimental and long-form posting, as opposed to the machine gun fire of sites like Twitter, TikTok, etc.

It also felt like, at least on my own personal timeline, that it was more about posting stuff than about reblogging an endless stream of stuff. Which is huge for me. There is something about the concept of the retweet/reblog/share that kind of opens the flood gates on most people, letting out an endless stream of “content” that is impossible to ever fully digest. I’ll admit, I’m not a huge fan. I like hearing from people individually, rather than always seeing posts passed along from strangers.

I think a large part of why these things appealed to me specifically is because of my shifting relationship with using the internet.

My impulse to post, scroll, and be seen online

I started posting on the internet when I was around 10 years old.

I went to message boards, webcomic hosting sites, and browser-based online RPGs.

After a few years of that, I found my way onto deviantArt. A few years after…Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. A few years after…Discord.

For better or worse, “posting” and “scrolling” became central to my identity. I word it that way not out of pride but mostly just to be blunt. If you’re a very indoor internet kind of person, you can probably relate.

When it comes to the question of “Why do I spend time online?”, there’s always been two strands of my DNA. One was built on socializing, being myself, and meeting new people to talk to. The other was built on creative hobbies like drawing, animating, and writing.

So, in a sense, posting and scrolling had always felt foundational to how I lived my life. It felt like a necessary part of connecting with others and discovering who I want to be. Likewise, it felt like a necessary part of expressing myself, learning to draw, learning to animate, learning to make games.

From a purely skill + career standpoint…posting and scrolling are directly responsible for me learning to draw, learning different image/video software, getting commission work, and getting jobs and opportunities.

So in that way, that impulse has been beneficial to me. That’s…probably true? Mostly.

But I have more reservations about it now than ever before.

I’m particularly unsure about the 10-year span stretching from 2010 to 2020, where I was most immersed in Twitter and Tumblr.

On one hand, I’m proud of what I did, directly as a result of my impulse to post and be seen.

I created a webcomic, Soul Symphony, that ran for 5 years and 450 pages, telling a story from beginning to end

From around 2015-2017 I was posting 4 or 5 new drawings to Tumblr per month, usually in full-color. My skills, confidence, and follower numbers were quickly climbing as a result of that consistency.

I ran a charity fanart zine that helped me connect with a bunch of really cool artists and helped raise money for clean water

Posting stuff to Twitter and Tumblr was kind of my creative outlet even outside of college (where I majored in Illustration and Animation) where I could truly do what I wanted to do without worrying about what professors would think

I made new friends and mutuals with different people who clicked with me

All of this was born out of a desire to get attention on the internet. It was driven by an engine of posting and scrolling. It was, for better or worse, driven by the fuel of social media metrics.

As proud as I am of those things, and as much as I know they made me who I am…there is a voice in the back of my head.

“What would life had been like if you’d logged off more?”

That’s probably dramatic, but it’s something I wonder. Would things had been any different if I had played outside with the neighbors more? Or stayed after school more? Or joined clubs in college?

Maybe I could’ve made different connections, or learned different things. Maybe I’d be better at making friends and keeping them. Or maybe my motivation to be creative simply for creativity’s sake, as opposed to getting obsessed with online metrics, would’ve lasted a few years longer.

Maybe I wouldn’t have burnt out.

Even as I get older and think more about “hanging out with people IRL” as the solution for all of these thoughts…the pandemic came along and made that complicated. It’s hard to feel confident and safe going to a local board game shop to learn a TCG, or throw a bunch of get-togethers, when COVID hangs over it all as a potential outcome.

It’s sad, almost funny, to see my pattern of art-posting since the pandemic started. Every time I’d sign up for a new platform (restarting on deviantart, or Misskey, artfol, Bluesky, other platforms I’m probably forgetting, even Cohost itself) I’d do the same thing. I’d start posting some of my favorite drawings, to help get myself set up and see if people would start following. Inevitably, these favorite drawings would be from like 2016-2019, what felt like my “heyday” of constantly growing and experimenting. I’d throw them out into the void, get a few Likes, get a few followers, and then…I’d just feel empty.

For lack of a better phrase, my mind had become too poisoned by the metrics over time. I had slacked off on actually drawing, for its own fun and for improving. I kept hoping that by porting my archive of old art over, it would bring in a flood of followers and reignite my passion for drawing.

It hasn’t really worked.

I’ve been burnt out on drawing, and short dopamine boosts from online strangers has barely put a dent in bringing me back. If anything, the experience of just sending my PNGs to a couple of personal friends and them responding with “cool!” has been more motivating.

If you’ve ever had interest or experience in being a freelancer artist online, you’ve probably internalized a lot of rules for posting.

Post consistently and often

Re-post and bump your post a few times so that people see it in different timezones

Write good captions on your pieces that capture your persona or encourage people to share or comment below

Be smart about tagging

Jump on trends, draw fanart of popular franchises, do memes

Build up your follower count, and then try to see if you convert any of those followers into commissions, merch sales, or Patreon subs

There’s nothing inherently wrong with doing any of those things. But they definitely don’t have any correlation with “getting better at the craft” or “enjoying yourself and fulfilling yourself.” They’re a necessary social-media strategy. It’s tips on running a business.

Though if I’m being honest…there WAS something fun about being in the thick of it.

There was something energizing and electric about pumping out fanart and shotgun-blasting my work onto social media. There was something satisfying about getting commission requests. I think a big part of it was also that I ENJOYED using Tumblr and Twitter at this time. Yeah it was annoying sometimes, and yeah there was weird people on there sometimes, and yeah you had to kind of dodge through “weird discourse” and “overwhelming re-iteration of US politics” and all sorts of stuff, but the thrill on being on there and being a part of it all was fun and intoxicating.

I kind of miss those days.

But I don’t know whether I have the stomach or interest for all of that anymore.

The desire to retreat from social media

As I get older, social media is starting to taste a little weird.

It just doesn’t taste right anymore.

It doesn’t feel “fun” and “exciting.” If anything, it’s like getting a jolt of energy and attention. It’s like hooking myself up to a validation machine, or a convenient way to scroll through endless distraction.

I don’t know if it’s because social media changed, or if it’s because I’ve changed. Maybe this was the reality all along, and the people who stayed off social media from 2010 onwards were the smart ones. Maybe it’s all fine and I’m just too grumpy and sensitive now. Who knows.

Regardless of the reason, there’s a flashing light in my brain that goes off every time I find myself scrolling one of the major platforms. It’s telling me “get out of here, get out of here, this isn’t a good use of your time and energy, this might be bad for you.”

By losing my interest in major platforms like Twitter and Tumblr, it has also changed my style of posting. And by changing my style of posting, I’ve also changed what I get out of the internet and what I use it for.

Which has meant a sharp decline in me sharing art and a sharp decline in me drawing, period.

During my time on Cohost (and starting this blog), I’ve made a pivot towards writing as my outlet. It’s been a nice change of pace compared to drawing, animating, or making comics. Because of the souring taste of Twitter, I’ve also gravitated more towards long-form writing instead of little thoughts shot into the timeline.

That’s been fun, though it also comes hand-in-hand with an expectation that “less people are going to take the time to read this.” It provides less boosts to my ego and motivation, which is hard to adjust to. But on the flip-side, there are benefits. By being longer and slightly less convenient to stumble on, it kind of guarantees that anyone who took the time to read the whole post really digested and gave you benefit of the doubt.

I think that difference is worth keeping in mind, when putting stuff online. There’s a big trade-off between “This is easy for people to discover, comment on, and share” and “This is more off the beaten path, but the people who do look at it will maybe appreciate it or give it more thought.”

I’m at the risk of repeating myself, as I’ve already written my thoughts on the importance of solitude, minimizing distracting technology in my day-to-day, and being mindful of my time and decisions. I want to reform my habits, and go touch grass, so that my time online feels more enriching and interesting rather than the sludge between every idle minute.

All of that to say is that Cohost was a fitting transition period for me, as I’ve been more mindful of online platforms and how they affect me. Cohost gave me something between my previous 10-year phase (hooked straight into Twitter and Tumblr on a daily basis) and wherever I go next (reading blogs via RSS feed, browsing Neocities and Nekoweb, and continuing this blog site.)

I always feel like I’m rambling and sounding crazy, because I’m way too online for the offline normal folks, and I’m way too anti-social media for the folks who are super online. That said, I’ve noticed something surprising after it was announced that Cohost was being shut down. While some people on my timeline are linking to places where you can follow them next (like Bluesky or Mastodon), I’ve also seen a number of people who are like…“I’m not sure if there’s going to be a place where you can follow me going forward. I’m not sure if I’m interested in trying ANY social media again. I may make a blog or a personal site, but if I don’t…I just won’t be online in the same way anymore.”

Never before, when I’ve seen posts of people saying they’re leaving an online platform, have I seen so many people say that there might not be a fitting place to jump to anymore. This might just be the end of the road for posting and scrolling for them.

It goes without saying that the sites and apps we use help shape our habits.

I used to dutifully check message boards each day after school at a desktop computer. Eventually I got into a habit of posting drawings onto deviantArt, and checking for new drawings from the people I liked following one-by-one. The web was something to sort of dive into, a place to explore and express myself and discover something interesting.

After Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr came along…a lot of our habits changed. That doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing. It changed our capacity to find and connect with other people, at the cost of encouraging constant scrolling and constant posting. As much as I hate the companies that create those platforms, it’s also on us to reflect on these changes and talk about them, and be responsible for our own behavior.

Every site and app has the potential to shape our behavior and our expectations. Sometimes for good, sometimes for bad.

For me, my impulse to want to scroll and post over and over is something within me. It’s not tied to any particular site or platform, it was there all along. It’s something I have to get over, or find a way to control so that it doesn’t control me.

The idea of not posting, not scrolling, not being seen online constantly…it feels like oblivion to me. It feels like a loss of identity and purpose and…existence? It’s like a tree falling in the middle of the woods with no one around to hear it. Does it matter if I’m an “artist” if nobody sees it and acknowledges it? Posting is a desperate way to reaffirm that I exist, you exist, we see each other.

That doesn’t need to be a fact of life, it’s just a quirk of my own perception. Something that I need to reflect on, and pick apart.

I hope on whatever sites we end up on next…I’ll feel seen, and you’ll feel seen too. Even if our metrics stop being in the “hundreds”, and drop down to being in the “severals.”

[h31p-im-10st]

His body ached as though he had just been dropped off a cliff. Had he fallen from his hammock? Surely not. He had fallen out of it enough this week.

No this couldn’t be the floor of the tortuga, too fuzzy and dry. Unless one of the team put one out in their sleep, then it couldn’t be. Maybe it was? He could see Chris doing it as some part of a prank, or Aviva and Koki maybe as a change of pace. He hoped it was a blue carpet.

Opening his eyes, he was not greeted with blue, but Green. Awe, he wanted a blue carpet.

Wait, this wasn’t a carpet, it was grass. Martin didn’t remember sleeping out last night.

He raised his head to better look around, a roaring pain erupting in his neck. No sign on his brother in green, no sign of camping equipment, not even a sign of any camp being set. So they definitely didn’t camp under the stars last night. How did he get here then?

The last thing he recalls is trying to convince the team to visit Asia… then….

Zach!

He attacked the Tortuga, nocked Chris, Koki and Jimmy out and he recalls diving after them. Then he washed up somewhere… and not much more….

His head was whining at the over exertion, causing the man to rub it with his fluffy paw…

Wait what?

Paw? Did he sleep with his suit activated again? Oh Aviva will have his head if she finds out. What suit was he in anyways?

The man looked at himself the best he could, and he would’ve mistaken himself for a tiger, with the signature stripes, clawed paws, and fuzzy fur. But then he saw the wings, large bat like wings folded comfortably to his sides. Then there was the tail, a row of scales running down it, that seemed to continue up his body, that ended with a fold of skin, reminiscent of a small sail, only doubled and skinny. His suit had definitely malfunctioned…

So Martin was on his own, no idea where he was, no way to contact the team, and in a malfunctioning creature power suit that he had no idea the extent of the malfunction of.

Cool…

He needed to find his team first, find them, find Aviva so she can fix this, find the Tortuga which Zach probably has, find Chris, find….

Too much to find, focus on one thing at a time…

He was sure the others could manage for a while on their own, or they would find each other, that’s how it tended to be, somehow they always found each other. Maybe he should try and find the Tortuga? No what if his team was in danger? Yes find the team.

Find his team!

How would he do that?

No scent of any of them near by, couldn’t hear them, no form of communication.

Wait

He had wings! He could fly around, maybe get an idea of where he was, and if he was lucky, find his crew!

Martin stretched the folds of skin on his back, and flapped them with familiarity yet uncertainty. Slowly, he managed to raise from the ground and take steady flight, yes it was not easy, his tiger body was not built for wings, but still, he flew.

And promptly crashed into a tree. Needed to try again.

So he did, and again, and again.

It wasn’t till the seventh time that it nearly cost him.

That time Martin had decided to fly over some water, his tiger form should be able to swim well. So when he crashed, he didn’t expect the struggle the heavy scales or the large wings would cause. It weighed him down. It brought him under. He had to crawl on the river bed to reach the surface. He was lucky to be close-ish to shore.

Waster was no longer an option for the blue Kratt.

He needed out of this suit soon.

————————

Part 2 of my last post! Bet you didn’t expect that!

Thought I’d give him a two part since he hasn’t received much love.

Hope you enjoyed it.

Bye everyone!

[chungledown-bimothy]

You know what I believe with all my heart?

The perfect pokemon for gilear is Psyduck. Just the most round Psyduck you've ever seen. With very little breaks in between headaches.

Ideas for at least one pokemon that matches each bad kid personality? You can do other fantasy high characters too if you want ...

Oh my god you are so fucking correct.

The problem is that you've activated my pokemon special interest. What I really want to do now is build a whole team for each bad kid. And maybe other parties as well.

For now, though, just a quick and not super thorough answer (i say, having taken 45 minutes to do this):

(I need you to know that it took so much self restraint to not make sure that all of the pokemon i choose have similar BSTs)

Fig- Skeledirge. That's a fire type bard right there.

Gorgug- Aegislash. Steel type seems kinda mandatory, but also there's something to Gorgug having these seemingly contradictory qualities of being anxious and withdrawn vs his barbarian rage, and the shield and blade form fit with that nicely, I think.

Adaine- Medicham. Mostly for the typing, tbh- psychic/fighting just makes sense for her. Honestly I'm not super happy with this one, but I've already put way more time into this question than I intended lol

Riz- Alolan Raticate. Very round, very small, very bitey. Specifically Alolan bc to me, rogue = dark type.

Kristen- Eevee. It feels really bad putting such a weak pokemon here, but with her whole arc being, like, she left her religion and she's got so many options as to who and what she can be. Like Adaine, there's probably a better answer I'm just not seeing right now.

Fabian- Quaquaval- fighting type and he dances now!

[febrilepenguin]

This was the first year I played demos in the Steam Next Fest (I didnt even know it existed before), and I will be doing it again, cuz it was pretty fun. I played a lot of games, and I thought maybe I could talk about each of them a little, so that more people know about them, and also to keep a little record of my thoughts and feelings about them for myself.

I'll list them in the order I played them cuz why not.

1. Mech Builder: I've never had any of those cool mech model kits that you have to cut out of the frames with pliers and then assemble yourself, but they've always looked really cool to me and I've always wanted to try assembling one. Well, this is that, but in video game form, and it was pretty fun! It was satisfying to snip the parts out of the frame and then snap them into place according to the manuals. There was also decals, coloring options and more. I just wish there was a way to pose the models a bit after they're done, or maybe see them from behind and the sides? Though I understand that it'd take a lot more work to make all the art for that and it might make it unfeasible but i think it'd be fun to play around with the models a bit after they're done. (Can you even pose the real mech model kits? I cant remember.)

Anyway, good game for relaxing and futzing around with cool mechs.

2. WHAT THE CAR?: This one was just delightful. It's just such a joy to play, being this silly little car with legs going through increasingly ridiculous iterations of movement with their accompanied puns and jokes. I was smiling and laughing the whole time i was playing, even in the harder skull stages, and i tried and got all the gold crowns for all the levels. (Also I still have that "What the caaaar" jingle stuck in my head, and Im not even mad about it). Just about anywhere you looked was a wordplay joke, or a visual gag, and I love it for that, and can't wait for the release. I will also be getting the other games from the devs, Triband. I also checked their website and they seem like really cool people too. (There was also a secret puzzle hidden in the game, that I was too late to solve for the rewards, but i had fun doing it nonetheless)

3. Mind Over Magnet: I've been a longtime fan of Gamemaker's Toolkit, and I've also been watching Mark's Developing series of devlogs, so I was hyped to actually play a demo of Mind Over Magnet, and it was cool to see how polished it had become. Cant wait for the full game!

4. SCHiM: Adorable little game that emulates that feeling of childhood playfulness you had when you used to walk through the sidewalk only stepping on shadows or you'd "lose". Loved the art style and the environments for this, though it was a bit hard to tell where you were meant to go sometimes.

5. Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus: I've been waiting for this game for a long time, since a game that combines hollow knight with japanese folklore is a must play for me. The movement felt really fun, and its focus on staying midair and air control was a cool feature of it, because you basically get a double jump every time you hit something mid-air, and can hover around and over enemies while you hit them. It's basically floor is lava the metroidvania. And when you get the dash it gets even better, cuz you can chain the dash with the blue midair jump, and the momentum from the dash will carry over, (which i think was intentional, cuz whenever you do it there's a small glint of light happening) Kinda like a celeste super dash. The demo made me look forward to it so much more.

6. Tactical Breach Wizards: So, recently I've gotten into tactics games despite myself, (it's all Into the Breach's fault, maybe I'll talk about that too another time) and wow did I love this one! The gameplay was really fun and the abilities were varied, the concept and world were cool (imagine wizards as military strike teams, and a world where magic is pretty common so there are P.I. Storm Witches and Traffic Warlocks) but my favorite thing about this game was the characters and the dialogues and humor. My favorite bit was:

"You can't throw all of life's problems through windows, Jen."

"Maybe not, but we owe it to ourselves to try."

Look me in the eyes and tell me that's not hilarious.

It's like god dropped this game in front of me as soon as he heard I've gotten into tactics games.

So so excited for this one!

7. Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo: really stylish game with fun mechanics and gameplay, a good light-hearted adventure for whenever I get tired of dark and grim stories and games. Also did not expect I'd be able to jump in this lol. Kinda reminds me of Mina the Hollower, another game Im excited for.

8. Demonschool: first off, I gotta say i didnt finish this one, not because I didnt like it, but because I left the game and when i came back it wouldnt open from where I had already progressed, (it kept crashing when i clicked "continue") and I didnt wanna do it all over again, so I gave up. But! I really really liked it. Another cool tactics game, with a beautiful artstyle weird occult world and fun characters. And even though i havent played persona, I could tell that it was inspired by it, what with the school life sections and whatnot. Cant wait to be able to continue on with it when the full game comes out.

9. Cato: i'd played the older demo before and liked it, so it was nice seeing the game had progressed further and gotten more polished. Pretty enjoyable puzzle game, if a bit simple. Also the cat liquiding through tubes never stops being funny.

10. Metal Slug Tactics: I loved the old Metal Slug games as a kid, and we used to play them a lot with cousins at sleepovers, and I have fond memories of it. So im really excited for this game, with all the nostalgic characters and sounds, and now with a (again, someone must be stalking me) tactics coat of paint. The shield and cover mechanic and also the sync mechanic are pretty clever and fun to play around with. Im sure I'll enjoy this one a lot when it comes out.

11. Tiny Glade: A relaxing and lovely little game that made me feel creative and like a kid playing in a fantasy sandbox. I've been waiting for this one impatiently ever since watching the trailer ages ago, and it's so wonderful. I didnt get to play around with it as much as I wanted to, but im definitely going to make a whole bunch of different little towns and castles when I get my hands on the full version. The camera mode was also so detailed and nice. Best I can describe this game is Vibe.

12. One Btn Bosses: Clever idea, and cool minimalist artstyle, but it wasnt really for me

13. Tavern Talk: This feels like being a bartender in a D&D world, and I enjoyed it a lot. The art is lovely, and the characters are all interesting (Fable's anxieties were too relatable, man.) (And Caer...Lin was so cool) (i cant wait to meet the whole cast who's on the posters) the mixing part was also pretty fun and Im sure it's gonna have more drinks and variety to it in the full game, all in all a nice and cozy fantasy visual novel type game for when I wanna chill.

14. Caravan SandWitch: kinda solarpunk/hopeful sci-fi game, with a cool van. Seems like it's gonna be a wholesome cozy time. Roadtrips through gently postapocalyptic-looking places? Im not sure what the correct vibe is for this game, because I dont know a whole lot about the setting or the story, but it was pretty cool. Also watch the trailer, the french song is stuck in my head, it's so good.

15. Mira and the Legend of the Djinns: Im gonna start this one with things I liked and then things i disliked about it. I love the art style, and I think the game as a whole looks gorgeous. I like that it's inspired by moroccan culture and how it infuses every aspect of it. I loved the instrument playing, even though there was only one song to learn in the demo and it didnt get a lot of time to shine. (I havent played ocarina of time, but im pretty sure I'll enjoy it for the same reason of it having the ocarina playing, among other reasons) i liked the pickaxe too, and how it allowed you to climb and mine.

Now for the dislikes. I did NOT like the combat. The fact that all of your momentum just dead stops when you swing your sword was pretty jarring to deal with, and it made those floaty eye pricks so annoying to deal with. Especially because of the way they space themselves and distance themselves from you so fast, and also the fact that there's no upwards slash (not in midair anyway, there's one you can buy that only works from the ground) which means you have to jump in very close and level with the enemy, so it doesnt have much time to fly away, during which time there's a high probability of it shooting you and making you fall, also if you're a little below it, the third attack which is very horizontal misses, so you have to do it again. The final boss of the demo was also pretty much a slog, due to the one-pattern attacks and the huge health pool. And you had to first break away the shield to be able to damage him, (and it would not register multiple attacks on it at once, if you hit the shield it became intangible until the boss changed position again) so it just became a repetition of: dodge through projectile, *ding* hit the shield. Dodge, ding. Dodge, ding. Dodge, ding. Dodge, ding. Dodge, ding. Shield broke. Stab stab stab stab stab. Dodge big attack, and start over. Rinse and repeat for like, seven more times. It became a chore almost. There was a general stiffness in the combat that made it hard to enjoy.

Also a minor nitpick about the UI is that it was a bit hard to tell how much mana it took to heal how much. If there was a small line or indication in the mana bar to show if you have enough for a heal, it would be really helpful in combat to know at a glance if you can heal in the moment or not.

All in all, this is not to say i disliked the game itself, I actually really liked it, and think it has a lot of potential, given a bit of fixes and improvements.

Anyway, these are some of my thoughts on all the demos I played during Steam Next Fest. I hope you'll check out some of the games in here and wishlist them to help out the games you like!

[unitedbydevils]

Match Review: Manchester United 1-0 Fulham

A late Zirkzee finish in front of the Stretford End gives United an opening three points against a tough Fulham side.

I had written a lovely, long review about the game. Then my postcode had two powercuts and my motivation took a beating. We go again.

United looked a lot better than last season. We lack that cutting edge at present, but you can hone a team with time. United have an injured Hojlund and a slightly unfit Zirkzee. Playing a false 9 for most of the game saw United miss chance after chance without a focal point. Future games will be better - with or without the striker options.

The biggest positive was United at the back: Mazraoui looks GOOD. Like, Dalot should be worried about his spot good AND with only a few days to train with the squad and attempt to gel.

The upside is LB is fucked with Shaw/Malacia, so Dalot as an inverted playmaker LB could work... but I don't like him there as much as RB. Still, solid from him today. Great from Martinez, Maguire and Maz.

United as a whole were better defensively too; pressing was as a team unit, ala Klopp's Liverpool last season. The effort didn't feel wasted or disjointed. Fulham managed just 10 shots, and only 2 on target - figures we could only DREAM of last season.

That said, Fulham weren't shoddy either. Smith Rowe seems to have settled in immediately, Muniz played the target man role well, and Antonee Robinson looked really nice at LB. Potential summer '25 signing levels of nice (though he does turn 28 next August).

There are three issues remaining for me at present:

Casemiro lacks positional discipline to be a 6. We need Ugarte or similar.

Rashford lacks confidence. He should have been greedy and finished that chance at the end, not offload it to Garnacho. It wasn't selfless, it was scared.

We're way better with actual strikers than doing the false 9 schtick.

That said, given the wonky season last year, this was markedly better. Non-United fans were calling it boring, but it's not an easy game agaisnt Marco Silva's sides. He's a good coach, drills teams well, and Fulham will be firmly mid-table this year, if not maybe higher. Rashford with confidence finishes that late chance. That's 2-0. Bruno and Casemiro each came close, there's 3 or 4 nil. Maybe with confidence Rashford forces something else to happen, opens a gap for other players... these things matter.

A winning start to the season is a good start, and it quietens the doubters. We have to of course keep winning and keep performing, but form and fitness both come with time, and if today's performance is anything to go by we're only a few little improvements off being a genuine force and back to Top 4 levels.

Shoutout to Mazraoui, Maguire, Licha, and Bruno today. Four big shifts that kept United in control of the match. Keep it up.

To finish, enjoy this little post-match interview from Lissandro (ft. Jamie 'He's too small' Carragher)🔥

[larandia011]

RESISTING FIRE / JOEL MILLER X READER

PART 1

Plot: Freya is the most intimidating woman in every room she walks into, but when she starts working for Joel, who is desperate to protect her at any cost, she is forced to come to terms with her own submission to him.

Notes: This is an intro to a sexual dom/sub love story, but I just wanted the beginning of my story out there to test the waters. It is meant for the reader to imagine themselves as Freya. I hope you enjoy it!

--

Boston was unusually gloomy on that Monday. A thick layer of fog had layered itself over the quarantine zone. The fog, combined with the frequent gusts of wind hurling sand around the air, made it hard to breath. I had a rag wrapped around my face to not inhale too much of the ash that the six-foot fire spit out, yet the heat painfully stung my skin, broiling my insides for each inhale I took. The glares from the fire spit out on the asphalt, singeing my feet anytime I managed to walk where a part of my shoe had ripped from its sole.

It was the morning of my third shift assigned to infected-burning duty, which I would have never been considered for if not for Tess, who had called it an early birthday gift by calling in a favor and got me «promoted» from the humble gigs as a trash-picker. A better workout, she had argued when she told me. As a mid-twenties woman with no prior skills from before the outbreak, my options in the quarantine were strictly limited to low-paid gigs or spending the days standing at the fabrics-stall alongside my mother. Compared to the latter, scorching heat and dead bodies sounded like a picnic.

I was lucky to meet Tess in my early teens, who raised me as her little sister. She had found me in the tunnels trying to swing at a FEDRA-soldier at the ripe age of 14, saving me just in time to not get shot. I had a hugely rebellious and dominating nature, not fitting in the shapes of my mothers cautious and victim-like behavior. So she took me under her wing and trained me to be as strong as her. We still sparred every single morning in the abandoned tunnels, with the promise that one day I would one day join her and Joels smuggling business when I was ready. I would still argue every week that I was, and though reluctant, she eventually agreed. Joel however, would shut down the subject before it ever started. He joined the occasional training, but rarely said a word or picked up a weapon.

I felt an uneasiness around him, along with most people in the qz. Hid frame broad and tall, his body a hardened shell. His face rarely conveyed any expression, yet his eyes were flooded of emotion. If, by a rare occasion, his eyes met mine, they pierced into my soul, analyzing me, making me flushed with color and feeling small in his intimidating figure.As determined as I was to not let anyone make me feel that way, I almost backed out when Tess informed me he would be the leader on the burn-gig for the next couple of weeks. Yet, I quickly viewed it as an opportunity to show him I had become a valuable asset for them in their smuggling-business. Unconsciously, i had never felt more motivated to finally get any form of approval by him.

«Freya, pick up the pace kid,» he barked at me as he walked by. Unphased by his comment, as they were equally distributed to everyone, I continued in the same pace. I was in better shape then anyone on the team, my arms carrying a lot more muscle then they showed off on my slender physique. My face was plump and young, not taking too much distain from the darkness of our surroundings. I almost looked too bright and alive to fit the picture, something I disproved by not being in the least a pleasant nor bright and witty girl.

Inattentively having my thoughts occupied by Joels comment, i threw the 170lb corpse over my shoulder and into the pit, causing glares of ash to burst at me. As one of the glares hit the an exposed part of my feet, I lost control and stumbled towards the fire, my hand touching the flames. The sudden pain throbbed through my arm, making me fall to my knees instinctively. «Fuck.. Fuck me!» I cried out and grabbed onto the railing of the truck behind me for support. The rest of the team had turned immune to screams and agony and did not even flinch, with the exception of one of the younger men who yelled out to the others «princess is down everyone! Only took 3 days too. You owe me a ration card Bill». The others laughed out in union. I was in no state to acknowledge the comment, but lowered my head in a small defeat. I had proved their prejudices towards me, and there was no turning back from it.

Joel was the only one who came over to help, yet he too looked highly bothered and unconcerned with the situation. His gestures did not match his face, as he delicately placed my hand in his and traced it softly with his rough, dirt-stained fingers. Knowing he would not care to look at me, I stared at him in confusion and sympathy. This was the first time he had touched me, sending waves of energy through my pain-ridden body. I tensed, not knowing what to make of my unexpected reaction. How could a man you would be afraid to even get caught looking at, have a touch that felt so tender, with hands so soft you feel yourself caving at his caress? A vision of who he was before the outbreak immediately caught my mind. Someone gentle, kind, happy.¨

«Freya?» I snapped back to the present to see that he had caught me staring at him longer than I should have, looking at me. My cheeks flushed to a bright pink color, my words at a loss. I was never intimidated or awkward around men. He was the only one who had that effect on me. He kept his gaze fixed on my face for a quick second, and looked back down at the red and blistering burn on the palm of my hand. «Shit, it doesn't look good. I'll have to bandage it, and then you need to go home.You won't be of use to me with one functioning hand.» His deep, rusty voice made the words sound like humming.

I wiped all softness off my face. «Try me,» i snarked back at him. «I will have to be six feet under before I give up todays ration cards.» He looked at me with an amused expression, his features almost forming a smirk, before he stopped himself and let his face fall again. I almost broke through the mask, I proudly thought to myself, trying to refrain from smiling so he would understand that I was not joking around. I was not about to be the weak link of the crew. It couldn't be too hard lifting with one hand.

«Calm down, tough guy. I get you're trying to show off your strength here, but I'm not killing off my crew member on the first week.». I closed in on the space between us, looking him dead in the eye with the last shred of confidence I had left for this argument. «I'm not going fucking home, you piece o..» He roughly jerked my arm before I let out my last words, dragging me so close to him that i felt his quick breathing on my neck, his eyes fixated directly at mine. He startled me in the change of manner, causing me to let out a groan. «I am not fucking asking. Now I will get you the rations, and if you say one more word you'll be out of a job.» Our eyes locked on each others for a moment of silent understanding, before I looked down in defeat by his dominating nature, and let myself be weak in front of the only man I knew would not take advantage of it. I felt his breath tingling on my neck once more, before I slowly stood up and turned away from him. «And get some new shoes before you kill yourself, kid.» He remarked, watching me walk away. Exhausted from the heat, I barely got in the door before I fell asleep.

I woke from my nap only a couple hours later, fully disoriented and in more pain then earlier. The bedroom was damp from the fog, and with the windows open the sound of military tanks and bustling market outside filled the room. I rolled slowly out of bed and glared at the clock hanging crooked by the doorway, my brain not fully conscious yet. I was supposed to had met Tess at the bar 10 minutes prior, and the worry of annoying her woke me up instantly. I walked in front of the cracked mirror in the corner of the room, and released my deep brown curls so they swept down my chest. I put on a pair of black tight-fitting jeans and a low-cut singlet, and quickly ran out the door.

At the bar, there was a lot more people than expected for a Monday night, barely any seats were available. The coarse air smelled of cigarettes and dirt, and there was a tenseness surrounding the overworked crowd, drinking and talking in a self-medicating matter. I scoured the large outdoor patio for Tess, looking profoundly confused as I stood there alone. «Hey princess! Are you lost, little girl?» I heard from the middle of the area, quickly recognizing the men from the burn-crew, along with a couple others I didn't know. At the backend of the table, Joel sat nursing his drink, ignoring the other men's reaction to my presence.

After the long day of inconveniences, there was not enough life in me to even throw a glance at the table of sad fuckbags. Not without turning hurting anyone, at least. I walked by the table, continuing my search for Tess, without success. I turned to the person who knew her every step as they lived together, and sent him a puzzled look, slowly walking in his direction to get an answer of her whereabouts. «She had to go on a mission, she asked me to tell you that she can't make it tonight» he utters without ever lifting his gaze. His face was softer than usual, as to signal some sort of apology for his behavior earlier. You didn't want to tell me that before I walked around here like an idiot? I remarked to myself, not bothering to say the words out loud. I was already defeated for the day, and it only remained to get home in one piece.

I was about to turn around as the man closest to me slammed his glass of beer on the table, and stood up facing me with only a couple inches of space between us. «So, is the fucking princess feeling any better? It sure as hell looks like it, strutting around here with your tits out trying to fuck your way to a free beer.» He said, smirking as he looked back at the table, all the others in approving laughter, except from Joel, who seemed to try to tune out the conversation by focusing hard enough on drinking. The man who i didn't know the name of, quickly grasped my injured hand and raised it up to show the others. «Here we struggle for 20 years, fucking killing ourselves out there for a days ration, and this little bitch gets a blister and throws in the towel!» He was yelling by now, causing a scene in the bar. Multiple tables quieted to listen in. I froze completely, hopelessly waiting for Joel to disclose that he had forced the decision on me, but now he looked up at me, just as frozen as I was. Had it been a better day the man wouldn't have been standing upright as this point, but with my good hand being in astonishing pain, combined with the fact that I was way too sober for this bullshit, made the brawl pointless to join in on. If I broke my other hand, I would be out of work for another week.

I quietly waited for him to release my hand, but his drunken ego was agitated by my silence, and he gripped it harder trying to get any reaction out of me. He pushed my palm onto his torso, still laughing in union with the rest as he traced it downwards his chest. I looked back at Joel again, this time he was staring directly at me with an expression I had never seen on him before. He looked genuinely concerned at this point, contemplating whether or not to stand up. «Now you didn't have to do all that to get my attention, sweetheart. But I'll get you that beer if you're so desperate,» he said, barely finishing the sentence before I shoved him with full force using my free hand, and with the sound of glass breaking he crashed backwards on the table. He quickly gained control of his feet again and was immediately filled with rage, ready to grab onto me, but I had already walked away and closed in on the exit. Not trying to look behind me, I was trying to make sense of the situation by listening in on them. I heard the man cursing uncontrollably as he started pacing towards me, but swiftly came to an halt by hearing Joels voice. «You take one more fucking step now, and your hand will have a lot worse fate than hers.» He did not have to raise his voice to make the man understand the genuine promise to that threat, and sat down as the table quieted down again.

As i turned the corner to my block, merely a two minute walk away, I spotted Joel In the corner of my eye, pacing to catch up on me. Having absolutely no patience for the coward, I hastily walked towards my doorway and grabbed onto the key before he stood in front of me. His walk was determined, but as he stood in front of me, he seemed to be at a loss for words. We stood there, looking at each other, letting the tension between us say more than any words could. He didn't owe me anything. To him I was only Tess's little sister and already the weakest link in his team, yet I could sense in him that he had the unexplainable feeling toward me that I had reciprocated for months. He felt the urge to protect me, to make sure I was safe. And in his presence, I had always felt this way, safe and guarded. Which was why I kept looking at him tonight, and he had failed miserably at being the guardian he sought to be. «I.. i didn't want there to be any issues If the guys would think I favor you. They're just drunk fucking idiots. But I had to make sure you got home safe,» his eyes fell to the ground, not being able to deal with his own vulnerability. My rage for him involuntarily vanished for a moment, as I listened to his words, looking into his deep sunken eyes, then up to his salt and pepper-hair and tracing his face down to his coarse and full lips, frowning as he stood in front of me in defeat of his own words. I gathered myself to not ruin my careless persona completely, and wiped my face of any emotion for him that filled it a second ago. «Don't fucking distinct yourself from those drunk fucking idiots, cause thats exactly what you are. But I didn't take you for a fucking coward as well, Joel» I ended, not letting him say another word before I turned the doorknob and ran up the stairs, slamming the door behind me.

I woke up the next day, my head spinning with thoughts of anger and anxiety. I felt rage for Joel where I should have felt indifference, as he was just one of 8 men at the table. I made a promise to myself to never be a victim, to never let my guard down. He was the only man who could fuel such an instinctive desire to be weak for anyone. Yet, my submission to him had merely been a part of my imagination, and I was determined to quit believing this narrative instantly. Falsely confident that I was over this girlish behavior, I took an ice-cold shower to wash off yesterdays horrible events. My hand had not gotten much better since yesterday, but I knew Joel would never deny me working after what had happened. After breakfast, a double shot of whiskey and some stolen pain-pills, I opened the front door and stopped up in the doorway, looking down to my utter suprise, a new pair of boots stood at the front of my doorstep. I stared at them for a second, my body not sure how to react, before I kicked them to the side and walked down the stairs.

[namine-rae]

crack Lu au idea (from a very tired rae)

a Tokyo mew mew au

So like, basic premise:

the chain (who are at least mostly unrelated to/don’t know each other) becomes a Magical Girl team to fight the aliens/the monsters attacking the city (castle town?)

each of them gets animal dna from a creature from their respective games

the cafe is run by the goddesses time is a baker/manager while the boys switch between kitchen and server jobs (eight servers for one small cafe is a bit much I think)

The bois themselves are mostly in high school, with wind in middle and time being a Married Adult and is still Dad Age compared to the rest

Most direct character role swaps off the top of my head: - wind takes Bu-ling/pudding’s place looking after gran and Aryll - warriors takes zakuro’s place -hyrule takes retasu’s place and I’m not sure who would take ichigo and minto’s places

Everything would need to be adjusted to better fit the chain and their personalities. I don’t picture any romance aspected being involved since it would be a focus on team-as-family, and I don’t know if there would be any one “main character” since they would all deserve to have some spotlight (but wind is my favorite so knowing me it’d probably end up wind-centric)

it’s probably be demise/ganon behind the attacks, with the shadow in place of quiche. But it could also be fun to swap in other villain characters like griahim or Vaati. Maybe get spicy and do a villain redemption for some of them

Marsha’s character would be swapped for a fairy companion like Navi, Proxi, or Ciela. Like either a rotation/team of the fairy companions or a fully new one.

I’m not sure if the chain would have gone on their respective adventures before any of this, but I think it would be cool. No idea how to blend them all together without them knowing each other though. Maybe instead of different eras it’s different neighboring kingdoms/countries? Idk.

now for the animals for the bois: - twilight has his wolf form or ordon goat - legend has his rabbit form, but it would be fun to explore other options for him - sky would totally get remlit. While loftwing could be really cool, I think sky fits remlit much better. (Plus the loftwings can still exist in this au. I like them too much to just remove them) - wind’s games don’t have that many animals that aren’t sentient races, so that leaves pigs and kargarok. Kargarok I think would be best. For the angst potential and air connection - four would get minish. I know they’re a race and not an animal, but a sorta minish form is too good of an opportunity to pass up. Could add multiple tails to represent the colors like my in progress minish form design - similarly hyrule could get fairy, but if the Masha equivalent is a fairy that wouldn’t make much sense. I don’t know much about his games so I’m not sure what other options there are. - warriors is a similar issue. I don’t know what animals are in his games, though something like a horse might be interesting? A lion or peacock could be fun, but I really want to stick with in-game animals. - wild has a lot of animals to pick from. Though I’m leaning towards bear or deer. a bug or lizard might be cool too if there are any that fit with Wild’s personality. (I’m not including totk here because I haven’t played it yet and want as little spoiled as possible before I do) - time is giving me some trouble too. I haven’t played any of his games. Maybe something based on his masks? Like a great fairy or deku scrub? (Again with the sentient species vs regular animal problem that hyrule and four have) definitely should be something forest-related to tie back to the kokiri/growing up in a magic forest thing.

all of their weapons with either be their respective swords, or a unique one from each of their games

and that’s about it for now