#guess it's because up until now i haven't been used to anything else in life LMAO

[umemiyan]

me when i start off fucking hating a character but they eventually take root in my brain because i like pain and suffering apparently

[jellybeanium124]

if you'll allow me to flaunt my psych minor for a second, I'd like to talk about epigenetics. there's studies that show that if you shock a rat when you let them taste a certain flavor, they will immediately become averse to that flavor. not surprising. what is surprising is that the rat's grandchildren, who have never been shocked when given that flavor, will also be averse to it and afraid of it and avoid it. there's also correlational evidence to suggest that the descendants of people who suffered through famine are more likely to put on weight and keep it on easier, even if they have never been through a famine themself.

trauma gets passed down. the kinds of trauma your parents, grandparents, and so-on lived through is still living in you. even if your parents were the most well-off, loving, best parents in the world, their trauma is still in you.

now if you'll allow me to take a slight turn here: there's a wild rabbit inside every jew.

my dad grew up being called "jew-boy." my mother had a coworker throw pennies at her at her job in the 2010s. and that's just two examples. they both grew up being harassed for being jewish. I wasn't. I'm incredibly lucky. the amount of antisemitism I've experienced in real life has been incredibly minimal. I didn't even hear anyone make an antisemitic joke in front of me until college.

and none of us were seriously persecuted. none of my grandparents were seriously persecuted. but even though nobody's broken my windows, nobody's beaten me in the streets, and I haven't been at any of those horrible protests in person, the fear is there. this deep seated, blood-pumping fear of the ancient jewish rabbit in me telling me to run. to run for dear life, to run as far as my legs can get me, as long as my heart keeps pumping and my lungs keep breathing.

we all feel this.

everyone feels this.

I called my mother yesterday. when I brought up this feeling she paused, and the silence said everything. she told me I wasn't alone. she feels it. my dad feels it. my brother feels it. my nana and grampa feel it. every jew you know, online, in real life, hell, even the famous ones, they feel it. the rabbit is inside us all, and the rabbit knows, because its brothers who didn't flee in the past were slaughtered.

the rabbit is leaping around my chest, all of our chests, chanting run run run run run run run.

I don't know if I can explain it to gentiles. I don't know if this makes sense to you. I don't know how to get across how crystal clear and deep and primal this fear is, and how much all of us are feeling the exact same fear, despite our different lives and different histories and the fact we're different people.

part of me wishes it didn't matter. that I didn't feel like I needed to get goyim to understand my specific cultural and ethnic experiences. because I don't feel like I need to deeply understand everyone else's. I am a white passing ashkenazi american jew, and I will never fully understand what it is like to be anything else. that doesn't dissolve my responsibility to educate myself and practice empathy, but it's ok. idk, maybe other people do desperately wish they could get people not in their specific group to deeply understand what it's like to be them. I imagine that feeling is universal. I guess, it's just like, the left is unified that everyone is a person, everyone is equal, everyone is human, except the jews. nobody is left out but the jews. everyone's word is believed, but the jews. and it makes me feel like I have to beg and plead with people to understand what being jewish means, because we're not included with everyone else. we're the enemy. and I want people to see we're not the enemy.

epigenetics.

[tossawary]

I've been toying with a "third transmigrator" AU for SVSSS in which the third transmigrator is a teenage girl who ends up in Luo Binghe. This teenage girl tried to read PIDW because someone else liked it, but didn't get far because she didn't like it.

Disinclined to follow the plot, the teenage girl decides to transition, because fuck it (crying breakdown), she doesn't want to be a guy. Ning Yingying is initially the only one in on it (and then some Qian Cao Peak people). This new Luo Binghe knows JUST enough about the plot of PIDW to avoid Shen Qingqiu's attention as much as possible and so swears Ning Yingying to secrecy regarding the transition. She intends to hide it until the Transmigration System lets up on the missions and restrictions a little.

Meanwhile, Shen Yuan is like, "How am I supposed to improve my relationship with the protagonist if i never see him? Did he just jump out a window to avoid me?! Also, hmph, the bullies are all calling him 'Luo-Shimei' now? Just because he's pretty??? I had better go tell them off for it!"

(Shen Qingqiu, please, your students are getting the impression that you're transphobic!!!)

If Luo Binghe's transition comes out before the Immortal Alliance Conference, Shen Yuan is going to 1) think it's his own fault somehow and 2) be more than a little weird (and a little transphobic) about it.

Shen Yuan (internally): "Oh, shit, NOT abusing the protagonist turned him into a girl??? How does that work???"

The endgame relationship here is a messy love triangle between Luo Binghe, Ning Yingying, and Ming Fan. Ming Fan is like, "What do you do when the shidi you hate falls down the stairs and nearly dies, and then apparently can't remember you used to bully him and expects you to be a good shixiong, and becomes best friends with the girl you like but also starts turning into a cute girl too??? But you can't tell Shizun any of this otherwise the girl you like will kill you???" Ning Yingying is like, "I was so caught up in the thrill of makeovers and having a new sister that I forgot to examine why, when she's approached by guys, I want to tear their throats out with my teeth. Ming-Shixiong is not good enough for A-Luo!!!" And Luo Binghe is like, "Wow, Ning Yingying is such a good friend. And so pretty. I could stare into her eyes for hours. Ming Fan is kind of a jerk sometimes, but he's cute, I guess. He needs to shape up if he wants to win Ning Yingying's heart someday! She married a guy, so she's definitely into guys."

This third transmigrator isn't paying too much attention to their own love life partially because they're too busy 1) trying to survive, 2) trying to do right by their friends, and 3) trying to figure out if Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge are in a "toxic yaoi relationship" and, if so, which one of them tops more frequently and where Yue Qingyuan fits into things.

If you haven't guessed yet, this third transmigrator is actually Shen Yuan's younger sister, who transmigrated at like 16 years old at the oldest. This identity reveal comes out at the Immortal Alliance Conference, seconds before disaster (the push into the Endless Abyss), and no earlier. It does not go well. The Transmigration System is mostly to blame.

Live Shang Qinghua Reaction: "Oh, fucking yikes, bro."

This Luo Binghe hands a lot of control over to Meng Mo to get out of the Endless Abyss. An inadvisable amount of control, really, even if Meng Mo is soft on the girl. Afterwards, they sort of stumble into the arms of Huan Hua Palace. Shen Yuan's sister did not read far enough to know pretty much anything about this sect, especially not that it's a terrible idea to be here while being both a Heavenly Demon and (post-transition) looking like even MORE of an identical clone of Su Xiyan.

(Tianlang-Jun and Zhuzhi-Lang ARE both going to be kind of awful and weird about it, yes, at least initially.)

Gongyi Xiao, after showing basic kindness to this poor young woman: "Hey, why are those two Qing Jing Peak disciples glaring at me like they want me dead?"

[heavysighing-dreamyeyes]

"im not trying to fix you."

~1k words

Jason Todd is broken, but he’s not shattered. He’s picked up the pieces of himself and stitched them back together in a patchwork pattern that seems to mock who he used to be.

Jason Todd is splintered, but he’s making it work, he’s helping, he’s trying to be something greater than himself. (Even if ‘greater’ includes killing and hurting and a million other things he’d never thought he’d do)

Jason Todd is built of fragments of twisted morals and poisoned pits, so why, why do you keep showing up in his life? He doesn’t get it. He’s worked through all the scenarios, all the possibilities, and he still doesn’t have an answer.

You haven’t tried placing any bugs or cameras in his safehouse, haven't gone to the bat to try and take him down. (At least not that he knows of) You haven’t tried talking him out of taking over Gotham, and you haven’t even mentioned all the bodies piling up in his crusade against Black Mask.

He should have confronted you weeks ago. But you keep doing nice things for him. He still hasn’t figured out how you found his safehouse, but you showed up with takeout from his favorite restaurant and just kind of walked in. Really, he had been too stunned to stop you, and you kept showing up.

You always seemed to have a reason to be there, too. Blankets because his safehouse looked bare, food so you could cook dinner for the two of you, random knick knacks to bring color to his dull living room.

He wonders if you're doing it to make him feel guilty, to keep him from kicking you out of his space. As if he would ever.

It’s not until you’re telling him he should get his oven fixed so the next time you make brownies they'll cook better, that he realizes exactly what you’re trying to do.

You’re trying to make him better. He sees it now, he’s your pet project, no, your pity project that you think you can save. He doesn’t know how he could have missed it. Why else would you so freely offer your smiles? Your time? Your energy?

“You can’t fix me,” he grits out, crossing his arms as you set the brownies on the counter.

You look surprised, disbelieving even, as you pull off the oven mitts. (The ones he didn’t have before you started coming over) “What,” you question, meeting his gaze like he hasn’t found you out.

“You can’t fix me,” he repeats, harder and just as mean, “I’m not something you need to try and save.”

“I’m not trying to fix you,” you snap, and the tone of your voice makes him lose his confidence.

He opens his mouth, then closes it again. Oh. It sounds like you really mean that. He didn’t expect the hurt and anger to flicker over your face. And he certainly didn’t expect to see your face wobble.

“Is that why you think I’m here, Jason? Because you think I want to save you,” you ask, venom creeping into your voice.

“Well, yeah,” he mumbles, almost ashamed, but he doesn’t drop his gaze from yours, “There’s no other reason you’d keep coming back.”

That seems to break you, and he nearly regrets bringing up the topic at all. “Is that what you’ve thought of me this whole time,” you breathe out, anger fading.

He shakes his head, “No, I mean– I thought you were working for Batman,” he admits, and winces at how devastated you look.

“Then why did you let me come back,” you demand, and he hates the way your voice chokes at the end.

“I don’t know,” he tells you, voice going quiet, “I guess I just got used to it.” It’s a lie.He knows exactly why he keeps opening his door for you. You're a weakness he’s never outgrown, and one he never will.

You step back, eyes darting to the cooling brownies, “I just missed you,” you mumble, clearly self-conscious, “It wasn’t anything more than that.”

“Oh,” he says dumbly. There really isn’t anything else to say. He’s hurt you, thrown accusations with no basis.

He doesn’t know how to make it better, but a part of him doesn’t think he should. If you never came back, then at least you would be away from his sharp edges and his fractured parts.

The silence stretches between you like a chasm, and suddenly he does want to mend whatever he broke. He can’t help it, not when you look like you don’t know if you want to cry or run or curl into yourself and just fall apart.

He doesn’t have a plan, and maybe he should, because all he manages to do is gesture weakly to the brownies you’ve made, “Think they’re ready to eat?”

You eye him strangely, but he thinks he does succeed in fixing something. At least he hopes he did, because you sat on his lumpy couch and ate the brownies out of the pan at his side. So that has to count for something, right?

He finds it in himself to tell you they’re good, which is harder than it should be for a crime lord, and you offer him a small, unsure smile and ask if he wants to watch a movie. Your smile isn’t as bright as it usually is, but he figures he wouldn’t deserve it if it was.

The rest of the night is quiet, and you fall asleep on his couch just before the credits start to roll. He’s grateful for it. (He thinks if you had walked out after the movie, you wouldn’t have come back)

Jason carefully pulls a blanket over your shoulders, one of the ones you brought him, to shield you from the cold. He makes a note to get a better couch, even if he knows it would be better to not encourage you to come back.

After all, he’s only going to find another way to break your heart. Even when it’s the last thing he wants to do.

[swarovskiseraph]

SOME* OF YA'LL ARE NEVER GOING TO GET YOUR DESIRES, AND YOU'LL HAVE NO ONE TO BLAME BUT YOURSELVES

*WARNING: TOUGH LOVE RANT. also, like everything in life, take what resonates with you and leave the rest. if you're not doing anything i mention in this post, then this post doesn't apply to you.

before anyone comes for me, MOST of us are going through (or have gone through) hard circumstances. many of us have come from abusive households, abusive relationships, poverty, homelessness, & just overall bad circumstances.

but you know why the bloggers & anons who succeed in manifesting their desires/desired lives ACTUALLY SUCCEED?

because they took accountability for their current state and their limiting patterns.

because they were disciplined & determined enough to claim their desire(s), apply the law, & persist regardless of EVERYTHING.

because they knew that this practice would actually change their lives forever and allowed NOTHING to stand in their way.

AND GUESS WHAT? NOW THEY HAVE THEIR DESIRES/DESIRED LIFE!

if you were to be 100% honest and tell me why after months/years of being in this community you STILL haven't manifested your desires/desired life yet, what would be the answer?

overconsumption? procrastination? laziness? lack of persistence?

whatever the case may be, what i do know for a FACT is that it has been no one's fault but YOURS.

many of you guys come running on this platform; asking the same repetitive questions, complaining about not seeing results, whining about how sad your life is and how hard your circumstances are, or just straight up hating on some of these bloggers that are helping you FOR FREE, when they could be using that time to enjoy their desires/the life that they manifested for themselves.

LIKE...DO YOU REALIZE HOW PATHETIC & ENTITLED SOME OF YOU GUYS ARE?

"can you pleaseee manifest/tap into the void for me?" 🥺

"im so lazyyy, i can't be bothered to persist..." 🥱

"loa is FAKE! you guys are a bunch of lying b***hes..." 🤬

"my life is sooo hard, i have such a horrible life...*continues to trauma dump*" 😭

OHHH MYYY F*CKINGGG GODDD!

there are MILLIONS of people in the world who are in unfavorable/horrible circumstances that have NO IDEA what the law of assumption is, and have NO WAY to access this type of information!

you guys literally have the knowledge and awareness to make the most beautiful life possible for yourselves with JUST YOUR IMAGINATION, and yet, A LOT of you guys are the most ungrateful, lazy, irresolute, undisciplined whiners, who don't want to do even the BARE MINIMUM to change your entire lives!!

TRUST ME, everyone on this platform (including myself) understands that there will be setbacks. we all know that they are going to be bad days. we all understand that everyone has their own personal/mental issues. we get that life has obstacles and that not every day will be a win.

BUT, you guys NEED to put in the effort & not give up! you guys NEED to STOP letting your ego win! you guys NEED to get tf off of social media and stop overconsuming information. you guys NEED to claim your desires/desired life, stay consistent & persist until your desires/desired life has materialized.

because guess what, a day turns into a year pretty quickly, and you'll have gone another year of NOT having your desires/desired life, and it's going to be no one's fault but yourself...

do you REALLY want another year of watching everyone else get what they want besides you? do you REALLY want another year of not having your desired appearance, your sp, or financial freedom?

REALLY?

i hope the answer is no...because that's a HUGE waste of time that could be used to actually have the things & life you want.

everyone deserves to live the life they want...but at the end of the day, no one & nothing has the power to manifest the life you want but YOU.

[gallusrostromegalus]

I haven't seen any dog stories in a while. How are Charleston and The Hanukkah Goblin doing?

Dog updates!

The first one is a little sad, but also how life should go. Arwen is 14 now and while she's still moving, eating, pooping and generally enjoying life, she also has canine dementia and sundown syndrome where she gets extremely nervous and her dementia gets worse after dark. She'll be with us for a while yet, but it's something we have to manage now.

One person who is very much helping her manage is Herschel. My parents are traveling a lot while they still have the knees for it so I spend a lot of time up at their house, and Charleston and Herschel come up too. Being a Corgi, Herschel likes to manage things, and Arwen would like someone to manage things for her so he's become her self-appointed guide dog.

When I call the dogs for food or outside, he goes and finds her deaf ass and herds her to the location. Normally she doesn't go outside after dark but when the boys are there she's willing to wait for Charlie to chase away anything that might be lurking out there, and then follow Herschel's ass around the yard at night.

Very literally.

She's also got cataracts forming and I think his bright white backside is easy for her to see in the dark, so she follows it around.

During daytime walks she sees well enough but neither she nor Charlie are fans of strange off-leash dogs running up to them (a regrettably common problem out here. I don't care if your dog is friendly MINE ARE NOT!), so both of them prefer to walk half a pace behind Herschel so his more socially adept and knife-filled face is out front to intercept any unwanted solicitors. This does tend to give people the opposite impression though- because he is so much shorter, Herschel gives the impression of a tiny, charming mafioso flanked by his two large and surly bodyguards.

Like, they absolutely would kill a bear for him.

But Charlie and Arwen would also try to kill a bear on general principle.

At night, when Arwen barks at shadows, Herschel runs up and stand between her and the alleged menace, and does his best to look large and intimidating and for as silly as he looks, he does have a very good growl. After a moment, when the alleged bear or congressman or other horror fails to appear, he will stick his nose into the offending shadow, and finding nothing, be satisfied that their joint effort has successfully chased the problem off, and report back to her. This, more than anything else, seems to alleviate Arwen 's fears.

I guess we all just need someone to take us seriously when we're frightened.

Charleston, meanwhile, has gotten into giving safari tours of the front range's small vertebrates.

After eight years of managing his exceptionally high prey drive, something clicked earlier this summer and instead of immediately lunging his whole face at any approximately bite-sized animal in an attempt to expedite it's journey into his stomach, Charlie has started *pointing* at things until I come look at them and tell him he's a good boy. This started with a mole, something he'd never seen before and that moves above ground in a strange way, so he wasn't sure about eating it, so he only alerted at it. "GOOD BOY!" I shouted, giving him all the cuddles. "GOOD SPOT! GOOD JOB NOT EATING IT!"

It's important to reward behavior you want to see.

Since then, he's been trying out pointing at small creatures in the grass and then making very pointed eye contact with me until I come look at them. This is a little tricky when walking both dogs because Herschel is still very much in his "inhale wildlife" phase, but usually I can lock the little gremlin's leash and go look at whatever Charlie has cornered while Herschel attempts to develop telekinesis to will the critter into his mouth.

So far, Charleston has found: a baby rabbit, several baby rabbits in a cluster, an adult rabbit with Jackalope virus, several voles, several moles, a fledgling owl, only the two mice, several mouse-sized grasshoppers and cicada, someone's pet rat (the person was searching within earshot and 'Socks' was collected forthwith), a beanie baby that had me fooled for a hit minute too, a marmot which I didn't know lived down here, a groundhog which I didn't know lived up here, a mink, so many toads, a wild turkey chick, so many more garter snakes and last night, an aquatic shrew.

I don't know if there's an Audubon Society for small things that scuttle around in the undergrowth, but I am inclined to join solely to get Charleston recognition for his service in surveying them.

[sanyu-thewitch05]

Just thought of this idea just now.

Can you do a smut with a yandere greek god of war x water nymph reader, with the nymph being chased by the god until he caught up with her and takes her to his bedroom, and the whole love making thing is more consensual?

Sure!

A/N: Also, sorry I'm answering this late again. Hurricane Helene came over my state so I was literally(and still am) preparing for the worst.

You were a water nymph. A lonely one at that. Also, a confused one, because you grew up alone with only water and the sealife to keep you company. You didn't even know what type of water nymph you were, all you knew was that both of your parents didn't want you. And so, here you are, living your life on the shore of some tourist beach.

"Do you always sit there?" A man with brown skin, red hair, and purplish-blue eyes asks, sitting next to you.

"Yeah, pretty much. I don't exactly have anywhere else to go," You respond, enjoying the feeling of the waves touching your feet. "What about you? Do you have anywhere to go?"

"Of course, I do. I go to lots of places," The man answers, blushing a little. "Say, what's your name, cutie?"

"Aqua...Aquata. Or at least that's the name others have given me But I prefer Y/N." You answer, getting up.

"Y/N, where are you going?" The man asks, seeing you walk into the ocean. "Y/N? Y/N!"

And with that, you're in the sea filled with inspiration. If he could travel everywhere, then you can too. Your first stop was the island that the sailors call Sirenum Scopuli. It was flowery and pretty, and the women were welcoming. For some reason, they said you smelled familiar to them.

Your next stop was the island of Thrinacia, where you found a crying cyclops.

"Excuse me, if I may ask, why are you crying?" You ask, standing in front of the cyclops.

"He took stabbed me in the eye! I'm blinded! I'm blinded! I can never see my beloved sheep again!" The cyclops cried, making you feel pity for the poor creature.

"Oh, I can fix it if you want. I've healed many eye injuries before," You say, getting an idea.

"Really, you'll fix my eye? I'm in your debt for eternity," The cyclops exclaims, a smile on his face.

"Yep!" You say, diving back into the water, and returning with the eye of a giant sea squid. "I've performed this plenty of times on animals. Hold on, I need to get the eye out."

You pull the cyclop's eye out and put the squid's eye in its place. You work your magic on the eye and use the liquid inside it to weave your magic through his nervous system.

"Ok, try blinking. Do you see anything?" You ask, standing back.

"YAY! I CAN SEE AGAIN!" The cyclops yells, jumping around and clapping. "THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!"

"Don't mention it, big guy," You exclaim, kissing his cheek.

"Here, take sheep's wool. It can be used to warm you up during the cold," The cyclops replies, giving you a cloak.

You accept the gift and continue on your way. As you travel through the ocean, an arrow strikes your arm. You scream in pain, your blood dying the water around you red. You hear men screaming above and force yourself to see the same red-haired man from the beach.

"YOU FOOLS! HOW DARE YOU HURT MY GODDESS?!" The man screams, letting his wrath decimate the soldiers above him. "My goddess, are you ok?"

"You? What are you doing here?" You ask, gripping the wool cloak.

"My dove, are you ok?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Good."

He kisses your lips, and a wave of memories comes flooding back. You haven't been back on that beach in years. You've been living with him, your dear husband, Ares. One day you got into a fight with him, ran away, and had been aimlessly wandering through the human world until you eventually pushed everything concerning Ares and your life with him to the back of your mind.

"Ares?" You gasp, feeling his hands cupping your cheeks.

"The third. Ares the third," Ares says, looking into your eyes. "I had been looking for you for five long years. Do you know how much it hurt me to see you not recognize me on that beach?"

"Ares, listen, I...what were we even fighting about?" You ask, straddling your husband.

"I...we were arguing about your family-our family-both. Your family wanted to reach out to you, I was talking about wanting a baby, it all piled up and we had a really bad fight, and no words could describe how sorry I am. I should've let you reach out to your family, and I shouldn't have tried making a family of our own as if it was an acceptable replacement for your family."

"Oh...Ares. I-Is my family ok?"

"Yes. They've been living at my castle since you disappeared. They'd love to meet you."

"I'd love to meet them too."

~~~~~~~~~

"Welcome home, my goddess," Ares says, removing his hands from your eyes.

"Mom? Dad?" You say, seeing a siren and Triton.

"Hi, sweetie. We've got a lot to explain, but I think your husband really wants to talk to you. We'll be waiting at the dinner table," Your mom says, nudging your dad to say hi.

"Don't worry, I will return your daughter to you in a walkable manner," Ares says, guiding you to his bedroom.

The door shuts, and Ares is already kissing your body.

"Do you know how long I've missed you, missed your body?" Ares murmurs, kissing your neck as he slips his dress off your shoulders. "Please tell me you remember my touch?"

"I'm sorry..." You say, guiltily looking at Ares.

"Don't worry about it. I'll make you remember again," Ares whispers, feeling you up.

"A-Ares!" You moan as your husband kisses your breasts.

Ares sucks on your breasts as he pushes your dress off your ass. The two of you fall on the bed, and Ares grasps your hands. You see his toned chest peak through his white v-neck blouse and stare at it.

"Oh, you want my clothes off too?" Ares asks, holding back a smirk as he looks at your cute face.

"Yes, please. Take it off. Take it all off," You plead, rubbing your leg against his crotch.

Ares does as you say and you gawk at his glorious body and skin.

"What? Never seen a god before?" Ares mocks, stroking his 7 1/2-inch cock.

"Wow..." You gasp, closing your legs as Ares crawls towards you in all his glory.

"Don't worry, babe. I won't make a mess out of you," Ares responds, kissing your pussy and lining himself up at your entrance. "I'm going in."

"Mm!" You moan, your husband not moving to let you adjust.

"You're ok, you're doing good. I know it's been a while since you've had me inside you," Ares moans, resisting the urge to thrust. "Are you ready, my goddess?"

You nod your head and he begins to thrust. You gasp as a wave of pleasure washes over you, your hands gripping the sheets. Ares grabs your hands, guiding them so they're gently around his waist.

"You look so amazing!" Ares moans, speeding up. "I love you. I love you so much! I love you so much, I'll be with you even after the mortals move on to the next set of gods. I love you so much I'd kill the entire world and the pantheon for you."

"I love you too, Ares!" You moan, making your husband tear up.

He orgasms inside of you and kisses your sweet lips. His tears fall on your cheeks, and you look at your husband with pity. The genuine love for you flowing through his tears, send you over the edge, and you cum on his cock.

"Aw, honey, don't cry. I'm sorry I forgot about you," You apologize, kissing your husband's head.

"I've seen the bloodiest of slaughter and entire people wiped out from genocide, but you're the one thing I could never forget," Ares cries, laying his head onto your boobs. "Please don't leave me like that again."

You start to cry and wipe your husband's tears away. You kiss him, feeling his heartbeat calm down.

"It's ok, I won't leave you again," You say, touching your forehead with his.

[livesworthlivingau]

Behind the Vale Chapters 2-4

Decided to combine these 3 chapters because they'd be especially short from Loop's perspective, and I REALLY wanna get to some stuff shortly after this. Be sure to read the other 3 chapters first! (or maybe bounce between them if you want?) Spoilers for ISAT below! CW: Spiraling mental state

"You had me worried there Sif, but I guess it makes sense you'd be in such a rush. Glad to see you again Loop!"

"Yes! We never got to tell you thanks for helping us out yesterday!" [Pity... It's all just pity... You failed them, the original them... The real them.]

[All you can do now is put on your silly little mask and continue your performance, the show must go on after all.]

"... Well then splendid~! If you're all so eager to have me along, how could I refuse~?"

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[It was so easy, so blinding easy to fit in, to fill the little gaps of Stardust's perfect little family, to follow along with this whole mockery of your life, this spin off, this cheap imitation... You've gotten so good at pretending you hardly know how to do anything else at this point. That damned Fighter though... So kind, so sweet. he almost feels real, unlike the rest of them. So much so you stop feeling the need to pretend around him... until Stardust finally notices.]

(Oh... OH!... Oooooooooooooh.....)

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"Do you get it now Stardust?! Do you see why this was a bad idea?!"[You've gotten too close now. Stardust just had to invite you into his little life to make himself feel better. He just couldn't take the thought of you feeling sad all by yourself. You're just a sad, kicked puppy to them, too weak and pathetic to be left alone... He'd even give up his own love just so won't have to stomach that endless pity!]

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"Where's Loop? They shouldn't miss dinner!... Wait... Can Loop actually eat food?" [You just watch through your little connection with Stardust. You couldn't control yourself around them at the moment, not after your discussion. You need some time away to recover your role, sitting up in a large tree. It was an off comfort, a small bit of familiarity in this whole changing play. You shake off the vision for a moment, keeping your eyes closed and gripping your knife, shearing it across a piece of wood to whittle away at it. You mumble that familiar little mantra under your breath as you do. Your mind races with memories now, so faint and distant, lost to countless loops, but they try to return none the less. Visions of your Fighter, Researcher, Housemaiden, Fighter, Kid, Figh-... Isabeau... He wanted to tell you something... that's the last thing you can remember about him, the real him. You never got to hear it, and now you never will... You hear a snap, opening your eyes and looking at the figure in your hands... It's the Fighter... The head having snapped off from the pressure you exerted, laying in the grass below.]

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

"So how many has it been?" [You watch Stardust and Odile playing their little drinking game. You don't know why you're listening in, you don't want to know what his life was like before getting stuck back with you... So why do you keep watching?]

"-You know you haven't told me about the original loops yet." [You perk up, finally the topic changing to something else, something... oddly nostalgic. You listen more intently, as if curious on how Stardust would regale the events of it all... of what he'd say about you.]

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

[... Why is he speaking so fondly of you?... Does he know you're watching? Can he feel it somehow? No, he knows you can check in on him. He must act like that all the time just in case you're watching...]

"... So what IS Loop anyhow? You HAVE to know more about them, right?" [Your heart suddenly stops... He promised you. He told you he wouldn't tell anyone. He knows you might be watching! He wouldn't if that were the ca-]

"Okay, I'll tell you..."

[buckleyx]

hi, babes! i was wondering if you could possibly write a Buck imagine where the reader has awful parents, and is just comforting ? sorry if not! i’m also sorry if you’ve already gotten this request, my asks don’t send a lot - 🪐

FIX THE FAMILY E.B

the gif i used is not mine! all credit goes to the owner!

Author’s note: Hiya love! Sorry it took a while but here u go :)) I hope it's a bit what you had in mind. I love soft buck :(

Evan Buckley x gender!neutral reader

Summary: Your sister started a project to 'fix the family' and you're not sure how to feel about it.

Warnings: mentions of bad parenting + bad upbringing and toxic family relationships but comforting buck <33

masterlist

"Not again." You sighed, cursing under your breath as you saw your screen lid up. A blue text message covered the happy lock screen picture of you and Buck. You didn't even have to guess to know who it was from. Your sister had been bugging you all night about a family dinner. You had already politely declined 3 times but she kept pushing. You didn't blame her, your upbringing was a complete different story then hers.

She still had contact with your parents, even visits them every few weeks and she made an unofficial promise to 'try and fix the family.' As much how you despised the idea you couldn't fully blame her for trying. She was the youngest and the most successful and very clear the favorite.

You love LA, your life is here now and you don't feel the need to fix anything. You are happy where you are. You build something here, something personal and safe and your not ready to see it all fall apart again.

"Everything alright?" Buck asked, his head peaking through the door. You sighed, gently throwing your phone on the countertop. Buck's brows knitted together as he slowly made his way over to you. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

Without saying a word, you tiredly leaned your head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around your waist, giving a soft kiss against your temple. "I don't know." You sighed. "It's my parents."

Buck knew you didn't have a fantastic relationship with them but the topic didn't come out often. Just like his parents. You had talked about your shared struggles but you both didn't like unnecessary mentioning it since it was such a heavy subject to touch for the both of you. You both just didn't wanna push anything. But when it did, when the topic came up in conversation, you both were as supportive as ever. Buck especially, you couldn't ask for anyone better in your life then him.

"I'm sorry to hear that." He comforted, brushing his fingers against your cheek. "It's fine." You brushed off. "My sister just thinks she can magically fix the family. I'm surprised they even let her try."

"Maybe they don't know."

"Yeah probably. I haven't seen them in so long. Why now? Why suddenly does she wants to change things now?"

"Have you asked her?"

"No not yet." You admitted, playing with his hair. "Last time I talked to them was Christmas eve."

Buck thought back at the memory and gave you a kind sympathetic smile as he recalled how the evening ended. It was a messy day full of nasty remarks and bitchy comments. First they didn't approve of your job, then of your boyfriend and then they felt the need to break everything else in your life apart. The list could go on forever. It was just horrible. Your brows knitted together as you tried your best to block out the memory. A sigh left buck's lips, he hated seeing you like this. He hated that he couldn't do more to help you. "They treated you afwul, y/n. It's okay not to forgive them."

"I know."

"I didn't forgive my parents." He admitted. "And I honestly don't think I ever will."

"If you want to contact them again, wait until your ready and when you truly want it for yourself. Not because someone forced you to. The same happend to me, I wasn't ready and it turned out into a big big mess." You fell quiet for a second, Buck was right but you had to take a moment to let the thoughts in your mind process everything. You went over every scenario about how that reunion could go before confirming that it wasn't time yet. You weren't ready. And that's okay. Maybe you'll never be ready and that's okay too.

You brushed away some of Buck's hair that had fallen in his face, your hand rested on his cheek before you leaned in and gave him a soft kiss. "Thank you." You said softly before giving him another kiss. The buckley gave you kind smile. "Come on. I'll make you some dinner. It It will help you clear your head."

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[lock-my-feelings-in-a-jar]

Have you always been the way you are now about Russ? I don’t know his music but I see all your posts.

a good question!!

prepare for lots of probably unnecessary words.

i haven't always been like this about russ specifically, but i've always been like this in the way of like.. i get attached to one thing for a while and can't get enough of it until i get burned out(i always love them all though even after i get burned out and maybe drift away from them a bit but they always live in my mind and are part of me forever and i always love seeing things about them)

or sometimes until i feel i've learned enough about them i guess? or until i feel i have what i needed from them, if that makes sense and doesn't sound weird? because i always feel like i'm just searching for something in these bands and i don't really know what it is exactly.

but just in learning about their music, that's part of why i made this blog, so i could learn about bands and musicians and have somewhere to post about them as i go through different ones.

ever since i can remember, i've been like that(billy joel was actually one of the musicians for a little while many years ago(before i had this blog) but i didn't actually learn that much about him at the time, i just couldn't stop listening to a lot of his songs and i still love his songs)

HOWEVER it feels like it's intensified times a billion now with russ.

i didn't know he existed until last year.

story time, everybody gather around and zone out while i talk forever about this:

i think my first memory of seeing his name was when i was making gifs of "new york groove" by hello, because i posted a link around that time to their site that had some information about them and it talked about him helping them out. while i was reading it i was just like "oh neat, i have no clue who this russ ballard guy is, but these are interesting words about this band"

that was innnnnn [me checking my archive] june of last year. THEN. fast forward toooo i think it was november, @burn-on-the-flame changes my life by sending me an argent video, which i am forever grateful for. 💜💜💜💜💜

i was posting and learning about badfinger still at the time, one of my other favorite bands, so i was still fully stuck on them and nothing else.

but as soon as i watched that argent video for the first time, i already knew what it was going to turn into. maybe not the extent of it, but while watching, i was thinking "omg who is this guy in the sunglasses with this beautiful voice and stage presence and who is very visibly in love with music? he intrigues me, i need to know him"

i looked him up a LITTLE BIT(i didn't recognize his name at the time from the information on hello) but i had to stop myself because i was like "no i can't yet, i need to let the badfinger thing fade off naturally first" because i felt it was going to soon enough anyway since i didn't have much left to post or to gif of them and i felt i learned enough(still wanted them with me though because i love them and that's why my url and blog title is of some of their lyrics).

so then fast forward to the end of january. i had already rewatched that one argent video a few times by then, loving it more and more each time. russ just silently living in my head for that whole time. he was kind of just some mystery guy to me that i couldn't stop thinking about because there was just some sort of comfort kind of vibe about him.

i didn't really know anything about anyone in the band yet, but i started making gifs of that video and in the tags on my first gifset of them even, i was like "get used to them because they're staying for a while". (because usually in between my obsessions, i'll gif some videos of various bands/artists until i get attached to one, so i felt i should warn everybody)

i knew they were gonna be special to me even though i hadn't really listened to their albums yet, just the songs in that live video, although i already knew "hold your head up" because it's been played a lot on the radio. i've always known it but never really thought about it. i THINK i knew "liar" too, but probably the three dog night cover of it, since that one was the hit(i also knew the three dog night version of "chained" but i FORGOT I LISTENED TO IT until i saw that they covered it and it's on the three dog night vinyl that i have. i had no idea until i was looking at the giant list of written songs on russ's wikipedia page).

ANYWAY. knowing they'd be special to me, i listened to most of argent's albums in order, but it went like

starting with the first album, i listened to it when i was supposed to sleep, but i stayed up a little bit late just so i could lie there in bed in pure darkness with headphones on and have NOTHING around me to distract me from the music.

i did this for their firstttt three? albums? or four maybe. i can't remember. i think it was the first three. and i can say that this is my favorite way to listen to any music for the first time even though i haven't done it with anything since then. i kind of wish i did the same with the other ones and with russ's solo albums, but it's fine. so i'd listen to one album for a few days and then move on to the next one in the same way until i get used to the songs enough in small amounts at a time.

so then fast forward to me actually learning more about russ. i almost don't even have words. literally every single thing about him is just. beautiful is the only word i can ever think of to describe him, really.

from the way he got through his childhood accident, his fears, his depression and the way he talks about it in interviews and always points out to everybody that it won't last forever, one foot in front of the other, etc. that kind of stuff, the way he went all out on reading books about like psychology kind of stuff and mental wellness and started putting a lot of that into his songs to help others, the way he's always so encouraging and uplifting, the way he'll do things like keep the bus waiting because he's not done spending time with the fans yet, the way he chose to stay home with his kids to see them grow up instead of touring even though he really missed touring(and he took a big hit in doing that in terms of people knowing his music exists but he knew what was more important), the way he helps other people with their music, the way he cares about animals and has been vegetarian since like the late 70's/early 80's and became vegan around the 2000's, the way he's always so quick to tell his friends he loves them all the time, hugs everybody always, just wants more love in the world and for everybody to be happy and live the life they want to live and find a passion. his small little inspirational speeches he does for song introductions sometimes. LIKE. it's impossible not to love him, anybody that knows him would agree. he's literally just a happy, loving ball of sunshine, just living his life and doing his best all the time.

and then his MUSIC. i cannot stop listening to him. he's done quite a bit of different things over the years, AND chances are, most people know at LEAST one of his songs(but probably more than one), but from other bands/artists probably. whether it's them doing a song he just wrote or if it's a cover of one of his. i mean, there's so many.

but most of his hits were through others, and then almost nobody knows who wrote it/originally did it. he's never had the recognition or appreciation he should have for the amount of things he's done. in fact, you get stuff like the video on youtube of him doing 'since you been gone' on supersonic where the description of it is just somebody totally trashing him for no reason. like????? why. (just about all of the comments were defending him though and that made me happy)

so many other musicians out there know him and have nothing but praise and respect for him, which makes it even more sad to me that hardly anybody outside of that knows him. but his constant passion and love for writing and making music is amazing to me, and his level of discipline along with that.

he's just VERY INSPIRING TO MEEEEE for so many reasons. he's been actually changing my life this year in very big ways.

and because he's very similar to me in some ways, the way his brain works feels like it aligns with mine so often. i've never come across somebody like that before in my life. i love the way he makes me feel less alone in the world just from him existing. like, he really gets it. he understands. i don't know how to explain that better.

so IN CONCLUSION, although i do get obsessive about bands and musicians in similar ways, i have never experienced it quite like this before with this much positive impact on my life in just one year. i hope it never stops. he took me right out of depression for a while there and, although it keeps coming back again now, i feel like i can handle it a little better than before.

i've never been able to REALLY choose a favorite, like #1 FAVORITE musician above all before, i always considered all of my favorites as equal favorites, but now i've found him. russ ballard. the light of my life.

[me snapping my fingers as everybody is 100% zoned out] okay i'm done rambling now

(if you ever want to know any of his music, i would be glad to share some)

[ahgasegotarmy116]

Thinking about Us... | Jeon Jungkook

Summary: Thinking about You part two <3 Pairing: f!reader x Jungkook Word Count: 2.1k~ Author’s note: The proposal requested by @jeonsrv hope you like it! Read Thinking about You for more context~

'Finally' I say to myself dragging out the last syllable feeling so thankful to be home. I pull out my phone to see how far the ride that I had scheduled is from the airport and before I can even open the app I receive a text from you. 

'Hey handsome I hope you're not working too hard. I'm going out for a girls day with some of my friends so I'll probably be busy until later on tonight but I just wanted you to know that I miss you and I love you and I can't wait for you to come home x'

I can't help but smile at how adorable you are and I send a quick response telling you to be safe and have fun.

'I'll be home before you know it love! I love you and miss you too' I finish and see the notification pop up that my ride is here. 

Opening the door to our home I'm greeted by the feeling of Bam almost tackling me to the floor. "Hi buddy hi! Yes I know I missed you too? Mommy isn't home right?" I question him like I expect him to give me an answer. "Good, because you've gotta help me game plan so we can figure out how to ask mommy to marry me" I say smiling at the thought of being able to truly call you mine. "Mr. and Mrs. Jeon Jungkook, has a nice ring to it doesn't it?" I say to him as I start to walk over to our bedroom. 

"Okay Bam" I say sitting down on the edge of the bed. "You got any ideas" to which he just responds with a tilt of his head. "Yeah me too" I say feeling a bit nervous at the fact that I don't have anything planned yet. "I want to do it tonight because if I have to hold onto this ring any longer she might end up seeing it you know?" he watches and listens even though I know he has absolutely no idea what I'm saying.

"You know you're a really good listener right?" I say getting up and walking over to get the ring. "You wanna see the ring Bam?" I say and pull it out to show him. He sniffs it a few times and looks up at me with clear confusion as to what he's supposed to do with it. "Do you think mommy is gonna like the ring? Huh? What do you think?" I say starting to baby him and get down on the floor to wrestle around with him knowing that he loves it. 

After playing with Bam for a bit I decide to sit down and really plan this out. You would think I would've thought of this a long time ago but I guess I've been so focused on trying to figure out how to get the ring home that I couldn't think of anything else. I flop back down onto the bed, wracking my brain for things that you might like. 'Maybe a trip to the coast? Nah, too far. A walk in the park? No, too simple. An expensive meal? Too extravagant' I say to myself.

I know you, I know that you prefer life being more simple and that you're not a huge fan of the glitz and the glamor. I want to do this right though, you deserve to have a beautiful, well thought out proposal. I close my eyes for a second to think and before I'm even able to take a deep breath I hear my phone start to ring.

"Hello?" I answer curious to see who this unknown number might be. 

"Hey, JK!"

"Oh it's you, who's phone are you calling from?" I question my best friend Jimin.

"What kind of greeting is that? To answer your question I'm calling from my work phone, my other one... well that's not important now. What is important is the fact that you still haven't told me what you're doing for the proposal. Did you get the ring already?" he questions like the nosy and inquisitive person that he is. 

"Yes hyung I got the ring but now that I have it I feel like I'm drawing a blank. I have been so focused on just getting the ring that I didn't give myself time to think about how to propose" I admit. "You got any ideas?" I question cringing at the fact that I'm asking him for help. 

"Well how about a family get together or something? Or like a picnic, or maybe a nature walk! You know, take her up to the mountains to see a beautiful view and then ask her there" he says listing off some new ideas. 

"No I don't think she would like anything like that, she hates hiking and we would be all sweaty, gross and tired. I don't think that's how she would like to remember our proposal" I say laughing at his creative but not so fun ideas.

"Well what does she like? What did you guys do on your first date? That might give you an idea, like what made her want to say yes to a second date?" he offers up and I have to take a second to pause and reflect back on that time when we were so young. 

3 years ago...

"I'm telling you man I think she's super into you! She saw us hanging out at my parent's house last weekend and the next time she saw me she came straight up to ask me about you. I told her that I could set you two up and you should've seen the way her eyes lit up like I promise she's into you. Plus she and Jina have been friends for ages and she's a really cool girl. I think you guys would be really good together" he finishes and I can hear the muffled sounds of another voice and then someone else comes to the phone. 

"Jungkook hey it's Jina, she really really likes you and I know you're a good guy and I wouldn't trust her with anyone else. That being said if you hurt her I swea-" she gets cut off by what I can assume is Jimin ripping the phone out of her hand.

"Yeah yeah we know Jina just go tell he to get ready for their date tomorrow" he says brushing her off and I can hear her run out of his room after what I can assume is her slapping Jimin upside the head. "Aish this girl" he mumbles before coming back to me.

"I never said I would take her out" I say with an amused tone knowing that I am in fact taking her out since I had planned to ask her a while ago anyways. 

"Whatever just pick her up from her house tomorrow at 6 okay? I'll text you her address" I agree and we end the phone call there and I can't help but smile not only at their sibling antics but also at the fact that I'll be able to see you again. 

Flashback over 

Coming back to my current conversation with Jimin I tell him all the details that I can remember from our first date and he helps me plan everything out.

"You really think this is gonna work? Do you think she'll say yes?" I question since I can't help but start to doubt myself as the time gets closer. 

"She loves you Jungkook, more than you know. I'm sure she'll say yes" he says hoping to reassure me. 

"Okay well I guess here goes nothing. Thanks for your help hyung" I say bidding him adieu.

"Anytime, let me know how things go alright?" I agree and we end the call there. 

After making a few calls and also asking Jina to help me convince you to come home early, I make my way to Lotte World. I set up some clues and instructions all through out the apartment so I hope you'll take the bait. Ones that said things such as 'Come and find me at the place that started the first day to our forever' as well as a outfit that I labeled with 'Wear me' that is similar to the outfit you wore when we first met on that summer night. You looked so gorgeous and so kind that something in me knew I needed to get to know you. Call me a hopeless romantic but I think I knew deep down that you would be the woman I would marry someday. I just hope that you feel the same way about me. 

I sent a quick text to Jina to tell you to talk to the people at the front gates and to give them your name so they can give you your ticket along with the note reading 'Where I first held your hand in mine is where you will seek and soon my love you will find...'

I wait around near the ice skating rink and soon feel butterflies in my stomach as I see you start to walk my way, still not having seen me. You look just as beautiful as you did 3 years ago, I don't know how I got so lucky finding a woman like you that understands me and listens to me and helps me become a better man. I just hope that I can continue to be that man that always betters himself so I can be worthy of your love and trust. 

Walking up from behind I place my hands over your eyes and whisper "Guess who?" You play into it and list off a few of your favorite actors and idols until I finally get sick of making you guess and place my hands on your hips and spin you around towards me and press a chaste kiss on your lips. 

"God I missed you" I say just loud enough for you to hear. "Me too, so so much. Why didn't you tell me you were coming home when we were on the phone last night?" you say with a slight tilt of your head. "Because I wanted to surprise you! Did it work?" I say giving you my best bunny smile. "Yes of course you did! I thought I was going to have to wait a few more days but I'm thankful you're home, safe and sound" you say cupping one of my cheeks and I lean into your touch and place a kiss on your wrist. "So what's all of this for?" you say laughing at the whole charade I put you though. "I told you I had a surprise for you didn't I?" I say laughing at your slightly confused face. Why do you have to look so adorable all the time? I swear you'll be the death of me some day. 

"Your surprise was to recreate our first date?" you say blushing a bit at the thought. "I know I haven't been able to spend a lot of time with you lately and I feel terrible about it, so I wanted to take us back to the night we truly met and spent time with each other. Growing up hasn't been easy for us and juggling my career has been a struggle in itself but I just want to remind you that you are so so loved by me. You are the closest person to my heart and I couldn't imagine anyone else that I would want to spend my life with. It's you, it's always been you and it always will be you. So..." I start and get down on one knee. I see both of your hands go to cover your mouth, surprised and I hope excited for this moment. "will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" I say and pull out the ring while my eyes start to gloss over with tears. I see you nod your head up and down a few times before responding "Yes, oh my God yes! Yes Jungkook a thousand times yes!" You say and come down to my level and kiss me with all that you've got while tears stream down your cheeks. 

We break apart for a moment and stand up so I can place the ring on your finger and we're soon startled as the crowd of people around us starts to cheer. "Does this mean I get to call you Mrs. Jeon now?" I say with a smile, "Slow down tiger we've gotta wait until the I do's for that" you say and give me a sweet but short lived kiss. "Well I do, Do you?" I say lighting up at the smile on your face. "I do".

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[fanboyzuko]

Helloooo!

In LTF, we never really saw Kavi telling stories about Lu Ten, especially about the nature of their relationship. Does Zuko ever suspect anything? Are there any cute moments about this? Thank youuuuu <333

Oh anon. This got away from me haha. I didn't end up sharing any new Lu Ten and Kavi stories, but I hope this satisfies you <3

(realized once i finished that this is set after the next three chapters that haven't been posted yet haha. It's fine ;P)

Filling LTF prompts for the New Year!

.

For a while now, Zuko had been working off the idea that Lu Ten was to Kavi as Akari was to Yangchen. They had been childhood friends and shared a deep bond that developed into romantic love. The way Kavi spoke about Lu Ten, well, it was exactly how Zuko heard Yangchen’s voice in his head when he read her words. But here’s the thing, Kavi had never said anything on the matter. 

So when the usual gang bombarded Zuko with questions about the nature of Kavi and Jae’s relationship when he sat down for dinner, he was completely blind sided and stupidly signed, “I thought Kavi was with my cousin.”

Awkward silence and stillness followed his dumb statement.

It was Amphon who broke the silence with a whine as she dragged her hands down her face, “Oh my god, I cannot believe I completely missed that.”

Yan slammed his hands on the table, then quickly raised them to sign with his spoken words, “No, no, it’s fine! There’s still a chance he and Jae sparked something recently!”

“The bet is still on!” Souta said in support.

“I think it’s cheating to ask Zuko,” Raju signed, much less reticent since becoming proficient in sign language. “He knows them on a more personal level, case in point.”

Chanda nodded. “Kavi rarely shares really personal stories here, most of them are in private with Zuko. So it makes sense you all wouldn’t have noticed. Not that it’s any of our damned business.”

“I’m sorry, am I the only one doubting that Zuko picked up on a romance no one else did?” Ye-jun interjected in disbelief.

That had everyone pausing in contemplation, a long enough pause for Zuko to decide he was offended by their reaction. 

“What is that supposed to mean? I knew Akari and Yangchen were a thing even before Yangchen wrote about their first kiss! I don’t like love stories, but that doesn’t mean I’m stupid!” With a huff, he finally sat down and glared down everyone at the table. “Regardless, we shouldn’t be gossiping about his private life, let alone making bets. This better be the last I hear of this.”

While Chanda nodded in agreement and the rest of them looked properly chastised, Ye-jun leaned forward with his chin in his hands, fluttering his eyelashes in an obnoxious way he claimed was cute. “But you’re going to ask for confirmation and let us know, right?”

“Absolutely not!” Zuko said like a liar.

Because after dinner, he and Kavi met on the deck for a light spar. They usually cooled off by chatting in the relative privacy of the bow of the deck as they maintained their swords. Rather than letting the conversation flow naturally, Zuko fixed Kavi with a focused stare, sword maintenance kit untouched. 

“Were you and Lu Ten together romantically?” He paused as a horrid realization hit him. “Wait, was it a secret?!”

Kavi was only momentarily surprised, then shook his head with a soft laugh. “Yes, we were. Sorry, I guess I never really explicitly said so, huh? It wasn’t a secret per se, at least not until we joined the siege. Even then, it was an open secret among our units. No, your uncle never knew, but it’s fine if you’ve said something. It doesn’t change anything now.”

Trust Kavi to not only answer Zuko’s questions, but predict and resolve his follow up questions in one fell swoop. There was just one more thing Zuko had thought he was secure in assuming, and now was better than ever to find out if he was being delusional or not…

“Uh, so, even if you guys never got married or anything. I don’t even know if you wanted to some day. But- um.” Zuko fidgeted with the binding of his sword handle, a bad habit that Kavi and Master Piandao tried and failed to get him to stop. “Since Lu Ten was more a big brother than a cousin, I’ve been- well, thinking of you as a brother-in-law of sorts. I can stop, of course, if that makes you uncomfortable or-”

A tight hug cut off Zuko’s nervous word vomit. For all their closeness the past year, Zuko didn’t think Kavi ever hugged him before. His arms were warm and solid, not a trace of lingering weakness from his recovery. Zuko couldn’t remember the last time he was hugged. Maybe when Bun Ma left…

It was nice, but he hesitated too long to return it, so Kavi pulled away sooner than Zuko would have liked. But his hands remained on Zuko’s shoulders as he smiled a blinding smile.

“Of course you’re my little brother, no matter how long it's been, no matter we never could formally merge families. You’re my butterbee as much as his.”

Zuko matched his smile, heart full. “I usually don’t care about love stories, but, I’d like to hear about yours, if you’d like to share.”

Kavi laughed as he leaned back, taking his warmth with him. “Honestly, that’s why I didn’t talk more about us. I’ve heard your tirades against Yangchen’s sappy anecdotes.”

“W-well that’s because there’s only so many words and there’s more exciting things to read than how cute or pretty or funny Akari was! It’s not that I hate hearing about love stories or anything!”

After allowing more teasing he usually would, in honor of their solidified brotherhood, Zuko huffed and demanded a story before they turned in for the night. Kavi easily agreed and almost started when Zuko remembered what started this whole thing to begin with.

“Hey! Did you know the crew is betting whether or not you and Jae are romantically involved? Are you?”

“No, we aren’t.” Kavi smirked and winked. “And don’t tell your friends. We’ve been messing with the crew since the betting pool started.”

Zuko snorted and shook his head. “Alright, good. I mean, uh, not that there’s anything wrong with that, of course, you don’t have to be married to Lu Ten’s memory or anything. But I was going to be upset if you two were a thing and were hiding it from me.”

Laughing, Kavi threw his arm over Zuko’s shoulder and pulled him into a half embrace. “I wouldn’t dare keep such a secret from my little brother!”

As he started his story about him and Lu Ten getting together, Kavi kept his arm around Zuko. Ever so slowly, Zuko relaxed against him. It was nice having a big brother again.

[estellemusings]

HSR-Scenarios

Dan Heng x Reader

Summary : after 6 years you broke up with him

Notes : Break up, angst, mostly dan heng POV

Inspired by : Day 6 - Congratulations

Dan Heng stares at you from across the table. Tension filled the air, it wasn't your usual date in fact this is your last one

After six years you decide to end it all, not because you have another but you fall out of love with him.

You know it's absurd but that's the truth.

"Are you sure?" Dan Heng asks again

You look over and give him a faint smile

"I am, we both knew this relationship was going nowhere" You forced a smile while looking at him

"Did you have someone else" Dan Heng wanted to disagree but you cut him off

"Dan Heng I wouldn't cheat on you. We tried, we did everything to make this relationship last. But every story has an ending and this is ours"

Dan Heng was about to reach out for your hand but retract it in the end. He looked at you and for a moment he realized your eyes didn't show the way it used to.

"Guess this the end" he forced a smile

You smiled back and place the ring on the table

"I'm just here to return it, you'll find someone better to give it to"

"But there's no one better" he mumbled under his breath

That night as you left the restaurant, is also the day you left into his life.

<hr>

Dan Heng felt his heart have been ripped out of his chest. Every time he breathes it hurts.

He wanted to make it work, he tried to make it work but still he lost you.

Some days he sometimes sees you in the corner of his eyes. Smiling and looking at him full of love and not the dull gaze he saw the last time he saw you.

3 months passed by , since that they. He tried to avoid looking at your social media but on some days he failed.

He just misses you

How could he just move on easily when you're part of his life for more than 6 years

But you haven't updated anything since your break up

Until now.

Dan Heng sitting alone in his room, scrolling through his phone when a notification pops out.

Seeing you have a brand new post, he hurriedly clicked it soon after he regretted it.

He could feel his chest tightens looking at the photo.

You were holding a bouquet of flowers with a bright smile plastered on your lips. Your eyes shining brightly at whoever your looking at

It was the same look that you gave him, it was also the same gaze that kills him inside.

He knew at that moment while he was trying so hard to forget you. You already fall someone else

© telle's musings

12-11-23

[oliversrarebooks]

The Rare Bookseller Part 28: Fitz's Capture

Masterlist

June 1905

TW: mind control, captivity, restraints

"And wake." Snap.

Fitz's eyes popped open, as though he'd just closed them for a second -- but that clearly wasn't the case, because he was no longer backstage. Nor was he in his bedroom, on his couch, in someone else's bedroom, on someone else's couch, or in prison, which covered all the places he was likely to wake up unexpectedly.

No, instead he was in a sterile looking room, almost like a doctor or dentist office, perched on top of a table. His arms were restrained behind his back, a pair of handcuffs that he was sure he could easily get himself out of. Lily was standing in front of him, serene and confident.

He'd been a bad judge of character many, many times in his life, but he had a sinking feeling that this would turn out to be one of his more spectacular mistakes. He crushed down the little voice telling him about how he'd been stupid, so stupid, and tried to plaster an unflappable smile on his face.

"Did you have a nice rest? It seemed like you could use it," said Lily.

Fitz's eyebrow twitched with the amount of questions flooding his brain. He hadn't really even believed in mesmerism, and yet somehow she'd put him to sleep and taken him to a location that was clearly not anywhere in the theater. It didn't seem possible, and yet, here he was, trying to remain calm, act like he belonged here and that he knew exactly what he was doing.

"It seems I lost the bet," he said. "Good trick. Mind telling me where we are now?"

"Care to guess?"

He frowned, looking around the room. There wasn't much to go on, just a few chairs and tables. There was an odd post in the center of the room, and the table nearest him had what looked like medical tools on it. He hoped those were just decorative.

"Oh, it's beyond obvious that you've kidnapped me for ransom," he said, picking the most likely option and bluffing his way with the rest. He just needed to keep her talking while he worked his hands free of the cuffs, quietly so she would not hear. "A terrible decision on your part, really. I realize that it's hard to believe, but my family has no appreciation for my talents. They're not going to part with a single dime on my behalf. If anything, they'd pay you to keep me. Not that I expect you to listen to my sage wisdom, but you'd really be better off releasing me before this business gets any uglier."

"Don't worry, I know that your family has left you for dead. I wouldn't have taken you if I thought anyone was going to look."

Now that was actually worrying. "What exactly do you mean by that?" he asked, mostly to stall for time since he didn't think he'd get a real answer from her. 

The door was right there, slightly ajar. Lily was smaller than him and didn't look particularly strong. He could overpower her if needed, especially if he caught her by surprise. And the sooner he got out of here, the better, before he found out firsthand why she didn't want anyone to come looking for him. One of his hands twisted free.

"I mean that I'm not interested in ransom. I'm going to make money from you in a much more surefire way." She grinned, and Fitz was sure he saw fangs there. That couldn't be right -- he had to be imagining things.

Still, she had somehow mesmerized him entirely. And she was very, very pale...

"And how do you intend to make this money?"

"I'll be selling you in an auction. An auction where you're going to be in very high demand. You see, your family's blood is extremely high quality, but it's too risky for us to take anyone whose disappearance might be investigated. That is, until you did the courtesy of divesting yourself of your pesky family. Really, I should thank you."

Fitz's mouth was going dry. "Did you say my blood? You mean my lineage? Because that --"

"No, I mean your literal blood." She was way too close to him now, and when she grinned, her fangs were very sharp and very obvious. How had he not noticed? "Haven't you figured out that I'm a vampire, yet? I thought you might be sharper than that."

"A vampire?" A chill gripped his heart. The evidence -- but no, there was no way. He forced himself to arrogantly laugh in her face. "You do realize I spend most of my time in the company of performers, magicians, occultists, fortunetellers, carnival freaks, and circus acts, don't you? I've rapped on the table during seances. I've been to a dozen rituals to trick rubes. Your vampire act is good, no doubt, but it falls a little short of believable."

She leaned back, and Fitz could see the door again. He slipped his other hand just free of the cuff. "You don't have to believe if you don't want," she said. "What you think hardly matters, especially when I'll be changing your mind. Now let's --"

He took his chance, leaping off the table, pushing her aside and bolting for the door. Fake vampire or no, he wasn't about to let himself be sold at any sort of auction. Thankfully, she clearly wasn't expecting him to slip the cuffs, so his escape should be --

His blood rushed to his ears as he was grabbed and slammed into a wall, with enough force to hurt but not enough to seriously injure him. Lily, the mousey woman a head shorter than him, with arms like fragile twigs, was effortlessly pinning him.

"You get one free attempt," she said. "Mostly because I like you, and you're far too valuable to harm."

Fitz kicked his legs uselessly, his struggles not even seeming to register with her. His panic was growing as he tried to think of an angle behind her apparently supernatural strength and reflexes and came up short. He'd never seen anything like this.

An actual vampire.

Yes, this was one of the worst of his mistakes.

With how effortlessly she'd stopped his dash for the door, escape probably wasn't an option as long as she had him in her sights. That meant his efforts had to go towards survival. Bluff and charm and stall and hope a better opportunity presented itself.

"Can you truly blame me?" he said, hoping his terror wasn't too obvious. Could a vampire smell fear? "I'm a magician. It's my instinct to try and escape. But I've learned my lesson, now."

"Have you?" she said, cocking her head. "You don't strike me as the type of man to learn his lessons easily."

"Perhaps not, but I am the type of man who would rather not be thrown into the wall again."

"That, I can believe," she said, releasing her grip. She walked over to a nearby cupboard, keeping her eye on him all the while. She pulled out a white linen shirt and slacks, tossing them at him. "Now, little magician, be nice and obedient and put these on without a fuss, and your body and mind can remain intact for now. How about it?"

"You want me to change in front of you?" Fitz asked, earning him an impatient glare. "Yes, yes, no fuss, lesson learned. I hope you enjoy what you see." He began unbuttoning his shirt, never breaking eye contact with Lily. He didn't like the sound of "intact for now." Nor did he like the implication that his mind would be harmed. She had him completely over a barrel, and all because he thought he could easily outwit a mesmerist. Stupid, stupid, he'd been so stupid.

He tried in vain to crush down his thoughts by making a great, dramatic show of whipping off his shirt, which gained no reaction whatsoever from Lily. "You know, you were quite good at being part of my magic show," he said as he stripped off the rest of his clothing. "And you have impressive talent as a mesmerist, not to mention your surprising strength. You could make a lot of money in vaudeville."

"I can make a lot of money selling humans."

"Vaudeville's a much easier paycheck, I would think."

"I wouldn't say that. It was awfully easy capturing you, wasn't it?"

Fitz couldn't help but scowl. There had to be some angle here. "Don't you feel a twinge of remorse, doing this? Kidnapping innocent people? Not me, of course, I'm hardly innocent, but surely others..."

"Oh, I do, at times. But my remorse pales compared to the size of my paycheck, not to mention my hunger for blood like yours."

"So that's it, then? Some vampire is going to drain me dry and leave me for dead?"

"Oh, not at all. With how valuable your blood is, it'd be extremely irresponsible to leave you for dead," she said. "No, more likely they'll leave you in a half-lucid state for years while they feed from you whenever the mood strikes them. If you're lucky, you'll get to keep enough of your mind to be a servant."

Stupid. Stupid. He'd been so stupid. "Well, doesn't that sound..." His composure broke, unable to think of a retort. Trapped by vampires, having his mind taken, being forced into servitude -- he always knew his life would lead him to some kind of bad end, but he didn't expect this sort of fate worse than death to be waiting for him. "Doesn't that just sound charming," he finished pathetically. 

The uniform was uncomfortably itchy and ill-made, and he was glad he had no mirror. "Well? Do I look the part of your prisoner?" he said, striking a pose before Lily.

"It'll do. You'll get a more thorough physical examination later," she said. "But it's almost sunrise, so for now I'll get you to your cell. Any funny business and I'll put you back to sleep."

"I think I've had enough charmed sleep for one night," he said, offering no resistance as Lily gripped his wrist and pulled him out of the room. They walked down a sterile corridor and through a set of metal double doors, the guard glaring at him as he passed through. The doors opened to a long row of prison cells, most filled with people in various states of misery. Some curled up, some sat on cots and stared vacantly at the wall, one woman was pacing and muttering to herself.

The reality of it all began to sink in. This wasn't a nightmare, or a trick, or a joke. He was actually a prisoner here, and he had no way out. It was all he could do to keep from fruitlessly struggling against Lily's grasp, knowing it could only make his situation worse.

She led him to an empty cell and motioned him inside, and he took a long look at the doors before reluctantly entering, the door closing behind him with a definitive clang.

"Meals are three times a night. The faucet water is for drinking and bathing. Use the bell if you need the chamber pot cleaned or if there is an emergency. Lights out means quiet. Noise during lights out, abusing the bell, or harming yourself will all be punished."

"What's the punishment?"

"Anything we like, so I wouldn't recommend testing it," she said. "Oh, and you should know that I am planning to keep your mind intact. I have an old friend who I think would appreciate your antics. But if you attempt to escape, that plan will change. Is that clear?"

Perhaps he had indeed learned a lesson, because he didn't doubt that she could do that. He had to do whatever it took to stay alive here. "Crystal clear."

"Good, I'm glad we can understand each other. I can tell we're going to get along well, Phantom Fitz."

"Like a house on fire," he said bitterly.

"Anyway, I'll leave you to stew in your many regrets. See you next evening."

As Lily walked away, Fitz flopped down on the meager cot with the rough mattress. Even his bed in the tiny room he'd rented was better than this. He couldn't help but think of his old family home -- the luxurious bed, the sumptuous food, the gorgeous clothing. He'd run away from it all to pursue his freedom, to live a life away from constant criticism and expectation. He'd been broke, slept in the nastiest of flophouses, gone hungry, begged, bartered, and stole. 

It had all been worth it when he was up on the stage, in his element. It was all going to be worth it when he made it big, when he basked in the applause of adoring crowds and rolled in riches every night. Approval he didn't need to wring out of his parents like blood from a stone, money that wasn't doled out with withering glares.

And now, that dream could all go up in smoke. A servant to a vampire. So much for freedom, fortune, and fame. If he had known...

He was stupid. So stupid.

Part 27 >> Masterlist >> Part 29

Thanks for reading this story of a down on his luck stage magician. Back to Oliver next.

@d-cs @latenightcupsofcoffee @thecyrulik @dismemberment-on-a-tuesday-night @wanderinggoblin @whumpyourdamnpears @only-shadows-dwell-where-we-are @pressedpenn @pigeonwhumps @amusedmuralist @snakebites-and-ink @xx-adam-xx @ivycloak @irregular-book @whumpsoda @mj-or-say10 @pokemaniacgemini @whumpshaped @whumpsday @morning-star-whump @shinyotachi @silly-scroimblo-skrunkl @steh-lar-uh-nuhs @pirefyrelight @theauthorintraining-blog @whump-me-all-night-long @anonfromcanada @typewrittenfangs

[spectrechosts]

Untitled Centaur Story

I want to be done reuploading and all I have left is shorter stories I haven't touched in forever which means shit is getting CONDENSED into single posts so I can have all this done by Halloween.

This one is about a centaur who likes puzzles and dislikes everything else about adventuring. I've been unable to come up with a title for it basically forever. Three chapters in this post.

"Now, far be it from me to tell you your business-"

"Hm?"

"And I'm happy to rest my legs."

"Oh, well it's no problem-"

"But you don't really seem cut out for the dungeon-crawling life."

"Oh. Sorry."

Elora carefully lowered herself down the passage in a harness of magical vines, the rope ladder the others had descended entirely ill-suited for a centaur to use.

"Nah, it's fine, you're doing fine. I mean, you get a little scared- It's not important. You just don't seem like you're having a great time, is all. With the fighting, and the tight spaces, and the ladders."

"Oh! Yeah, no, I'm not."

"Okay. Do you wanna stop? Because I have a portal scroll, for emergencies."

The assassin on her back, Devaedra, was really nice even though she murdered people.

"No, I can keep going. Thank you though!"

"Okay, just tell me if you change your mind."

She trotted down the ancient hall until the two of them rejoined the rest of the party, stalled at a massive door carved out of the stone.

"You know, we'd be making better progress if our door opener didn't want to bring up the rear."

"Not my fault that you're as comforting as a battleaxe. Elora needed me, didn't she."

"Y-Yeah, sorry."

"And besides," Devaedra continued, "if I went ahead and it wasn't a locked door you'd be mad at me for killing everything before you could join the fun."

The stout barbarian grunted. "But there ain't fun. There's a locked door."

"Yes, yes, I'll open it, calm yourself." Devaedra hopped off her back, giving her a gentle pat. "Ugh, that's a long combination lock." She held her long ear to the door, spinning one of the reels. "And I don't hear anything. This could take a while-"

"Feldspar." Elora said.

"Huh?"

"It's a riddle lock, the riddle is inscribed around the door. It's an old dwarven dialect, but I think- Well, it doesn't really translate. But the answer is Feldspar. Just, um, let me-"

She carefully rotated the reels into position, and the door scraped open.

"…Huh. Guess you were waiting for the door opener either way." Devaedra said, shrugging and hopping back onto Elora's back.

~

"For fucks sake just carry the chest and I'll open it later-"

"Um, can I..?"

Elora sat in front of the chest, sliding panels around swiftly until they formed a complete insignia. The lock popped open.

"Oh. Always been bad at those." Devaedra said.

~

"This one, uh, it's like a pun kinda. You have to- Here, let me."

~

"This one is actually just feldspar again."

~

Devaedra picked at a regular, iron lock.

"I'm sorry." Elora said.

"Why?"

"I'm doing your thing. You're carrying me through this dungeon and-"

"Elora you've literally been carrying me through the dungeon."

"You know what I mean!"

"Elora." She said, popping the lock open. "Heh, still got it. Elora, you're good at puzzles! It's not a bad thing, you're helping a lot."

"Oh! Okay, I'm glad you think so. It's really the only part I'm good at, so a lot of people don't like bringing me along."

"I like having you around. Tell you what, we can be a package deal, people want me to open regular locks, they gotta bring you to do the puzzles. Partners?" She said, offering Elora her hand.

"Partners."

~~~

"Eloooraaaaaaaaaa!"

Elora perked her head up, interrupted in her gardening by the intrusion.

"Yeah?" She called out, unsure where Devaedra was.

The assassin dropped onto her back, and she let out a tiny shriek of surprise.

"We have a job!" The elf said, patting her on the side to calm her down.

"Oh, I'll get my gear ready and-"

"We're going to a ball!"

The centaur blinked.

"…A ball?"

"Yeah, I have to go kill a lady and my invitation comes with a plus one."

"Wh- I can't-" Elora stammered.

"Relax, only I have a job. You don't have to help kill her." Devaedra said. "You just get to enjoy the ball!"

"What am I going to do at a ball?"

The elf shrugged.

"Dance? Mingle? Ball things. It's fun, it's like the second-best kind of assassin gig."

"I can't dance, Devaedra!" Elora whined, pulling the sides over her sun hat down over her ears in embarrassment.

"Sure you can! I'll dance with you."

"I am a horse, Devaedra!"

"Centaurs don't dance?"

"Not really!"

"Well then who am I supposed to dance with?" Devaedra moped, hugging the centaur and making her heart race.

Elora wasn't really sure where she stood with Devaedra. She was nice to her, but she was nice to everyone, and a lot of the time that was just to get you to let your guard down so she could kill you.

She… didn't think Devaedra planned to kill her. That would be silly, and also she could have done it already.

She just didn't know what she did think Devaedra had planned for her. She was a middling druid who didn't particularly enjoy adventure, she wasn't half as interesting as any of the assassin's other friends.

Devaedra yawned.

"Whatever, we can just raid the buffet. Maybe get drunk on fancy wine." She said lazily. "You mind if I conk out for a while here? I was busy all night, and your garden is always so relaxing."

"Oh, no problem!"

She had expected the elf to… move? Rest in the shade of a tree, or something.

Instead she started gently snoring, arms still wrapped around Elora's torso.

The centaur fidgeted nervously, not wanting to risk Devaedra falling off if she moved. Slowly, carefully, she lowered herself to the ground and decided to just wait for her to wake up from her nap.

Maybe by the time she did she'd think of something to wear.

~~~

Elora loitered by the banquet table, thoroughly stressed out by the ball.

Partially because it just, it really wasn't her type of event. Bunch of aristocrats flaunting their wealth as loudly and obnoxiously as possible, not at all her idea of a good time.

Mostly because Devaedra had noticed someone a little while ago and beelined for her, dancing and drinking and whispering sweet nothings into her ear until she whisked the girl away, giggling, to her presumed demise.

That had been about 15 minutes ago, and if Elora wasn't having fun before she certainly wasn't now, worried sick that their night's trajectory was about to take a stark turn to the gallows.

Why did she agree to this? She didn't have the stomach for it. Being friends with an assassin was one thing, when the job was just an abstraction, when she could pretend that assassin was just a descriptor of her role in an adventuring party, when she didn't have to keep calm under pressure.

"Are you not going to dance?" Slurred some noblewoman in a gaudy dress.

"Centaurs don't dance. Not like this." Elora responded, still fidgeting and scanning the room. "More prancing in meadows than all this twirling and precise movement."

The woman nodded in understanding. "You know, I do dressage, you know." She said, letting the statement sit in the air for a moment before continuing in a lowered voice. "I bet I could get you to dance."

"Wouldn't that be something." Devaedra said icily, appearing out of nowhere.

"Oh! Devaedra!" Elora squeaked, looking around to try and figure out where she could possibly have come from.

"Unfortunately, we really must be going." The elf continued, gently stroking Elora's side. "Had just about too much fun for one night, haven't we sweetness?"

Ah. Right.

"Yyyyyyes, yes, we're going now." Elora said as the assassin hopped on her back, the two quickly leaving the noblewoman and her bizarre assertions behind.

They left the ball in silence, and were far away by the time Elora worked up the nerve to speak.

"So um, that girl..?"

"Dead." Devaedra stated plainly.

"Ah."

Elora knew this of course, but it was still…

"The two of you seemed to be having fun, before you… y'know."

Devaedra shrugged. "Oh, sure. Need to get her alone somehow."

Elora knew she shouldn't ask more questions, it wouldn't make her feel better about it, but-

"Was she nice?"

"I didn't really get a read on her, Elora."

"Did she… deserve it, do you think?"

"Elora."

"I mean, was she like a crooked baroness, or-"

"I don't ask."

Elora frowned. "You don't get curious?"

"Nope. Believe me, knowing doesn't help."

She didn't really know what to say to that. She supposed that was why she was a gardener and not an assassin.

"Do you do that a lot?"

"Assassinate people?" Devaedra said, crooking an eyebrow.

"No! The dancing, and whispering, and such."

"Depends, I suppose. It doesn't work in every situation, but it's a pretty decent low-risk move at parties."

"Oh…" Elora mumbled.

"Oh?"

"Well, doesn't that seem so sad? They're probably really happy, and then you kill them."

Devaedra leaned into her back.

"The people I use it on probably aren't thinking of living a happy life with me, Elora." She hummed.

"Still-"

"And I think it's a rather kind way to do it, make their last thoughts happy ones, hm? No big thing."

"I guess."

"Elora."

"Mm?"

"Elora."

Elora turned her head.

"Wha-"

And it was then that Devaedra kissed her, and she stopped in her tracks. The elf was forceful, but soft, and Elora let her eyes flutter shut as Devaedra cupped her cheek and-

Jabbed a finger into the side of her neck!

"Wh-"

"That's where I would kill you. Well, not you you, but- usually."

Elora was mortified.

"Wh- But- You-"

Devaedra released her and leaned back, a blush creeping across her grey skin.

"Heh, I actually feel kinda weird now, I don't think I've ever kissed somebody without killing them before."

"What." Elora squeaked.

"It's not a bad weird. Just weird." The assassin elaborated, shrugging. "I'm glad it was you, I think."

"What."

"Oh, am I a bad kisser? I don't really get feedback ever, so-"

"It was fine Devaedra why did you kiss me?"

"I don't know! You were asking questions, and I figured I wouldn't mind kissing you and having you live, and I thought you probably wouldn't mind?" She explained, her voice heightening. "It's- It's not a bad way to kill people, is what I'm demonstrating! You would have felt pretty happy before dying, right?"

Elora pondered, putting her fingers to her lips and feeling her face turn red.

"Y-Yeah, I think so."

"See?"

[vixthefantheorist]

Looking through the recent IRIS posts

Guess what time it is, my fellow theorists! That's right! It's theory crafting time! (Or brain rotting because I have no social life)

But as we all know IRIS on Twitter have been pretty active for the last few days. Posting on 10/24/2024 - 10/25/2024 and 10/26/2024

Yes it's all in order... I hope. (Nothing on the 27th, my birthday, I see how it is IRIS -squint-). And I know I haven't covered the 25th and 26th posts, I was getting ready for my birthday and then struck with a terrible migraine all day the 26th.

I'm better now, don't worry. But I had been looking at the posts when I could and figured to post some things together while I can remember them. I already covered the post on the 24th, I just have it here for convivence and in case I remember anything else for it.

The post for 10/25 is a little odd, more obviously the fact the word 'Strangely' is spelled as 'Strangeley'. Honestly not sure if its an intentional misspelling or an actual one that no one caught until too late, either way kinda gives the notice a bit of charm. Or the employee was typing too fast and misspelled it and couldn't be arsed to type onto another paper to correct it. I wouldn't blame him for that.

But it does speak about a deadzone in an area between a certain bathroom and cafeteria. Only battery powered devices seem to be affected within that zone as the lights and ventilation systems were still operational as normal. Hmm, interesting.

Where have seen a cafeteria in IRIS before? That's right the "commercial" for IRIS in 'this is my 5,000th video' shows a cafeteria like area where employees were enjoying their break.

Not the most glamorous cafeteria (IRIS seems pretty cheap on it. Though we know its because budget for AF:CB), but it is still a cafeteria. If that's the case, then the only deadzone I can think of is the red hallway that Chase was terrified of and dragged through against his will.

The bathroom could be that door next to one of the guards.

Or this one which is right outside Chase's cell.

Not sure, but it is just a guess. Literally its just a guess, as there is no evidence to back up the claim like anyone making mention of anything battery powered being sapped dry while in the area in the stream. But the employee in the post did make mention that it may be nothing dangerous and just annoyance from a certain department up to no good and just advising others to use a different bathroom on the east aside to avoid their devices being drained of power.

Why does that matter?

Well, it's an electrical interference that isn't causing damage to the facilities systems, just personal devices carried by employees, phones, watches, that sort of thing. So it never warranted further investigation I believe. And there's at least two instances in which that could cause that deadzone.

One of which is Anti's attack on Chase (where we see the shadows move towards Chase, indicating Anti reaching for him)

As Arin points out that Chase was exposed to dangerous levels of energy. (Though I wouldn't put it past IRIS to also have replicated the energy Anti uses to use on Chase to see his reaction to it. Fucking cruel if that's the case. Which then only prompted Anti to find out where he is and zero in on his location)

The second time this deadzone could happen was when Echo appears to speak to Chase.

Shit goes a little funky for the camera but the lights are fine.

It could be that the hallways between Chase's cell and the cafeteria is the deadzone. We don't know when that post the employee wrote was written, either during Chase's week long stay... or even before that. If it is indeed the same building and universe the employee speaks of. (Goddamn timey whimey shit)

But if it is at least prior to Chase's capture, could mean Echo's energy is causing it, as Echo reveals to Chase that they too have been stuck here. Just don't know if its before or after... will not be surprised if it was before to wait for Chase to appear to talk to him. Again, timey whimey shit.

Again, it's all theory, not the best kind but still fun to think on. I think there's more to this post but I... don't know what else to look for in it, aside hey, no IRIS stamp on it, so likely a private message from one employee to another to avoid that place altogether. And then what Department could the Employee be talking about?

Onwards to the post from 10/26, where obviously things for an experiment have not gone as planned. Nope, someone died in the vacuum room. There is another word, 'vacuum' is misspelled to be 'vaccum' (...I will refrain from making a joke here, it's too easy), and again, I don't know if its an intentional misspelling or someone didn't catch it when it was approved and posted online. (And if it was an accident, don't be ashamed or embarrassed, I misspell a lot of words too quite often. The fun of having your brain go faster than your fingers and autocorrect in your mind to not catch the misspelling too.)

Either case, an experiment was taking place in a vacuum room and someone died in the hands of an ALTR. Why an ALTR? Well, the clues were something in there was dangerous and the term 'designations' was used. Designations being something to identify different things quickly for a variety of reasons. Mostly to determine if one thing is dangerous or passive. Much like SCP uses designations to determine each SCP's threat level easily to prepare to encounter them more effectively.

Plus Designations are alternatives to names. Why? Because if you name something, you or the other forms an attachment to the name.

No attachment, no emotional scuff.

No emotional scuff, means easier times to conduct rather... unethical and cruel experiments without the hassle of morality.

It's SCIENCE after all, science has no time or room for morality. At least in IRIS's thought process I guess.

That thought is hammered in with the person (I'm guessing head researcher for that experiment) making a comment of having to remind everyone the reasons why they do what they do and to think of the great rewards at the end of the day!

As if the dead would have to worry about it. But it's interesting to think about what the experiment could be in a Sound Vacuum room. Is it really a vacuum of no sound entering or leaving the room? Or merely a name because they couldn't think of anything else that relates to sound and blast high decibel noises in the room but does not escape those walls.

Which obviously means they used sound to see if the ATLR is rendered helpless to it or unaffected by it. We don't know the results of that but it did cost them a researcher. And if it was to see if sounds could render an ALTR's powers useless, that failed if it was immune to such a thing, or made it useless because it doesn't need sound to burrow into your head and commit unalive.

If not that, probably understood the researcher was probably using safety gear and the ALTR removed it from the scientist to let them suffer... whatever is going on in chamber.

As for the line 'Please update [blank] to [blank] status' I can think of two things at least.

Either its "Please update [ALTR] to [Keter] status" (I think its Keter for most dangerous class of SCPs. I'm not familiar with SCP, I apologize if I got it wrong)

Or

"Please update [Mr. Daly] to [deceased] status"... I'm just using Mr.Daly since that is the only name we ever got from these posts and someone died so, might as well update their file to dead since well, they're dead.

I'm not quite sure which one, both fit in pretty well in context but I am kinda leaning towards the ALTR's status being updated to a higher tier of danger class.

Either way, the leader of this team is rather much an ass with how dismissive he was for the death of one of his own. But again, science waits for no one and mortality has no bearings in the fields of unknown discoveries.

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I think that's about it for my current thoughts on these posts. There's probably a lot more to them that we're missing. But that's the fun of theory crafting, finding out all the little things you missed before when armed with new information.

What do you guys think? What could be hidden in these posts? And who is leaking them to the public. And if its being leaked, why on the official twitter and why hasn't IRIS removed them?

(...Be quick to screenshot and save the posts in case they do remove them in the future! We need files to look back to in the future!)