#he don't know the world no more getting too old for it

[apomaro-mellow]

Corroded Coffin ransoms Steve Part 1/?

From this post

Steve couldn't really see who was attacking him. But that didn't matter.

"Grab him! GRAB HIM!"

"Shit! AH! Fuck!"

He wasn't gonna let a bunch of random guys get the best of him. Who cared that it was four on one? They had the element of surprise, sure. Steve hadn't expected to get jumped in the space between the Hawkins gym and his car. Serves him right for trying to get extra basketball practice, he supposed.

Steve felt pretty good about holding his own. Two of them were holding themselves where he'd landed a good blow. He could finish this. There was only one guy left (the other must've bolted) and his car was in sight. Steve threw one more punch and booked it, reaching for his keys in his jacket pocket when pain bloomed on his entire left side. Then his right decided to match it when he hit the ground.

'Did I just get hit by a fucking car?'

There was screaming coming from above him but it was cut off as Steve's world went black.

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

Eddie took a deep drag, holding it in before releasing his breath.

"You don't like it", Gareth said, half finished beer in hand.

"Didn't say I didn't like it", Eddie said.

"Dude, we can tell when you approve and when you don't", Jeff pushed up from the crate of whatever Doug's dad kept in the garage.

Doug was nursing a beer too. His second one. "What don't you like about a battle of the bands? We've got the sound."

"And the personality!", Gareth added.

Eddie nodded. "All solid points. But we're missing the money."

"Entry fee's only fifty bucks, man", Jeff said. "I know you got that much."

"$50 to get it", Eddie began to list off his fingers. "Gas money to get us all the way to Chicago-"

"It's like three hours away, Eds", Doug griped.

"Not done! Plus food, plus hotels, plus fixing up our equipment. Jeff and I both need new strings if we're gonna have any chance of winning."

"Well fuck me, I guess", Doug rolled his eyes.

"Dude, the bass guy always gets the most puss at these things. You don't need new strings", Gareth said. "If anything, my drums-"

"If I don't need new strings, why should you get new drums?", Doug argued.

"Ladies, ladies, you're both beautiful", Jeff came between them. "And need I remind you, we're trying to get Eddie on board? Not double our expenses?"

"We're already over budget", Eddie said. "'Sides, we'd be taking my van to get there and old Bessie needs some work done too. 'Specially if she's gonna be hauling our stuff."

It wasn't that Eddie didn't want to go. He just wasn't particularly keen on following pipe dreams. Chicago wasn't far-far. But what were the odds of them going all the way there and hitting it big? It wasn't strictly a metal competition. There'd be rock and probably pop, maybe even country too, who knew. The point was, metal wasn't much of a crowd-pleaser unless the crowd was already primed for it.

He snuffed the joint in his hand and then lit up another one that they all passed around while coming up with get rich quick schemes. It started innocent enough with the suggestions. Blood donations (Doug hated needles, Eddie hated hospitals), garage sale ("Nobody wants our shit."), and even if they all somehow got like three part time jobs by tomorrow, they wouldn't earn enough to get Eddie on board with this whole idea.

The more they talked about it, the more Eddie got riled up. Why should they be left out of something just because they didn't have the money for it? That was bullshit! There were people out there drowning in money and between the four of them they couldn't scrounge up enough just to get them over the state line?

"Blame whoever you want, but the fact is, money's been in the wrong hands for too damn long!", Eddie said, jumping to his feet. "They tell us all the goddamn time that kids are starvin' in Africa but are they doing anything about it?"

"Not a damn thing", Gareth shook his head.

"Meanwhile, there's kids over here that are starving! And they're still not liftin' a finger to help", Eddie gestured with the joint in his hand, half finished between him and Jeff. "No, the rich fucks of the world don't give, they only take. So we've gotta take it back somehow."

"What? Rob a bank?", Jeff snickered.

The others snickered in return at the absurdity of the idea but Eddie was thinking. Of course not a bank heist. But there were people in Hawkins with money...yeah...for sure there was.

"Not a bank", Eddie said, starting to pace around. But there's a couple of rich bastards in town who could stand to part with their cash."

"You wanna rob the mayor's house or something?", Doug offered. He was on his third beer.

"Eddie's got the stealth of a newborn deer", Gareth said.

"Bad analogy, Gare-bear. Prey animals are notoriously stealthy, even from birth", Eddie grinned.

"Still though. If it's really valuable, we wouldn't be able to pawn it without painting a target on our backs", Gareth sighed.

"Wait, what if we did a ransom?", Doug said.

"Yeah, yeah", Jeff nodded. "We get somethin' valuable and basically sell it back to 'em."

Eddie grinned. "A ransom, huh? Now, stay with me boys, but what if-what IF we took someone. Someone important enough that his folks would go through hell or high water to get him back?"

The other three were silent as the realization dawned on them. Eddie could only be talking about one person.

"You're crazy man...", Jeff said, taking the joint from his hand to use it for himself.

"Like a fox", Eddie smirked.

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

When they talked about it after sobering up, it still sounded like a good idea. The target: Steve Harrington. Rich enough to have a big house, a nice car, and always have the newest things. Dumb enough that he should be easy to get. Sure, he probably had some muscle, being a jock and all, but Harrington notoriously didn't get into fights. Which probably meant he couldn't. But Eddie and his friends had been in scraps before. The perks of being an outcast, he supposed.

Getting him alone was probably going to be the hardest part of all of this. But Eddie happened to know that sometimes Harrington would come to the school's gym early to practice. It was the perfect opportunity.

It meant they had to wake up early on break and take Bessie and sit in the lot without the heat on, freezing their tits while they waited on Harrington to come out of the gym.

"Why are we w-waiting?", Gareth asked, shivering.

"Need him fatigued and all that", Eddie said. Despite the layers, his teeth were clacking. But if the motor was on, Harrington would hear and they'd lose the element of surprise. He reminded himself that this had to be the hardest part - waiting in the cold, especially when they left the van to be closer to the door of the gym. The masks they were provided only minimal warmth.

But after grabbing and bagging Harrington, they'd leave the note, his parents would get it and they'd have their money and return their hostage by Christmas. Easy peasy.

They didn't count on Steve actually being able to hold his own against all four of them. Maybe it was the fact that they'd been out in the cold, maybe it was the lack of muscle mass between them or general lack of coordination. Whatever it was, somehow, Harrington was wrecking their shit single handedly.

Eddie wasn't the best thinker when he panicked. But right now Gareth was holding his nose and Jeff and Doug wouldn't be far behind. So he ran. To his van.

He saw Harrington making a break for it and stomped down on the gas.

Eddie didn't really register what he'd done until he heard Gareth screaming.

"Shut up! Shut up man!", Jeff shouted back.

"Get him in the van!", Doug screamed.

"The note! Shit, the note! Put it in his windshield!", Eddie reminded him.

It was chaos until they were a good distance away from the school. Nothing could be heard but their panting. Steve Harrington was limp and unconscious in the back of his van. Eddie didn't stop until they were at Gareth's.

"How long are your parents gone for?", he asked as they tied Steve down to a chair in the basement.

"They won't be back until New Year's. My aunt just had a new baby." He was holding his nose again now that Steve was secure.

"How long until he wakes up, do you think?", Doug asked.

Steve's gasp as he suddenly sat up straight and struggled against his ropes answered that question. Thankfully, they all still had their masks on.

"Munson?"

"Well, fuck, these things don't work for shit", Gareth said as he pulled his mask off.

"Who the hell are you?", Steve raised a brow.

Eddie just barely held back the bark of laughter. This was stupid, this was so stupid! But they were in it now. And apparently Steve Harrington knew him by...by some defining characteristic.

"How'd you know it was me?", he asked as he took the mask off.

"Your hair's pretty distinct", Steve said. "What the hell is this? What's going on?"

Eddie grinned and bent over, getting into Steve's face. "Well, Stevie dearest, all you need to know is that you're going to make us very rich."

Part 2

[glittter-vamp]

One Size Fits…Most

Joe Burrow x Plus Size Latina OC.

Warnings: Angsty. Mention of characters size. Body image issues. Mention of alcohol. Mention of cheating. If this sucked, my bad it’s been a minute since I’ve written & I decided to do something different than my usual work. (Proof read…kinda)

Looking in the mirror one last time Marisol made her way out of the hotel room and to the elevator. Her heels clicking as she walked through the lobby, feeling the eyes of strangers on her. "There she is, woah you look great." Mandy her old college roommate smiled as she waited in the southern heat for the car taking them to the wedding venue. "Thank you, you look great too. Green has always been your color." Marisol smiles as she hugs her old roommate hello. "And silk has always been amazing on you!" She smiles looking at her silk colorful dress. "I almost wore black but this Louisiana sun is not for that." Marisol chuckled. "Hell no it's not." Mandy agrees.

The car taking them both to the venue arrives and they get into the cool vehicle, immediately relieved of the hot humid air from outside. Greeting the nice female driver, the two of them mostly sit in silence on the way over there until Mandy speaks up again. "You think we're going to be the only ones without dates?" Mandy asks looking out of the window making you chuckle. "Nah, Jade told me Natasha called off her engagement."

"What!? Her and Andrew were together since freshman year of college? What happened there?" Mandy asks in shock. "She caught him on Grindr..." Marisol mutters and Mandy gasps. "Oh poor Tasha..." She pouts.

Arriving at the venue a few minutes later, you two already see a few familiar faces. "This going to be like a LSU college reunion isn't it?" Mandy sighs as we pick up a glass of champagne. "Unfortunately." Marisol lets out a sigh of annoyance. "Is...you know who invited?" Mandy asks. "Don't have a clue, Jade didn't mention him at all so I don't think so." She responds as her eyes skim the crowd of people, feeling more and more at ease as the person she's looking for never comes into her view. The wedding is starting in about 5 minutes so, she was sure everyone that was coming to the wedding, was simply already there.

********************************************

Cheers erupted as the couple kissed and walked down the aisle hand in hand. Everyone around was sweating in this heat and were probably happy for the couple as much as they were happy to get out of the direct sunlight. While the happy couple made their way to family to take pictures we all walked over to the big white tents to cool off and grab some waters or fruity little drink. I'm going to run to the bathroom really quick, would you get me that dragon berry drink on the menu?" Mandy asks Marisol and she nods. Heading over to the open bar, Marisol asks the bartender for the drink Mandy wanted and ordered herself a spiked lemonade to help with the heat a little.

"Marisol?" She hears a familiar voice behind her, she turns to see none other than Ja'Marr Chase. "Oh, hey! Wow long time no see!" Marisol gives him a friendly hug. "How you doing? I see you traveling all over the world on instagram." Ja'Marr smiles. "I've been good and just working and traveling." Marisol nods. The bartender hands her over both drinks and she thanks him setting them in front of her. "I thought your days of crazy drinking would be over after LSU." Ja'Marr jokes seeing both drinks. Marisol chuckles shaking her head. "They are, one of them is for Mandy." She informs him. "Mandy's here? And to think Justin almost came." Ja'Marr mutters. "He didn't because of her, Jade told me." Marisol responds and Ja'Marr nods understanding.

"Well I gotta say, I'm surprised you're here then." Ja'Marr says and Marisol gives him confused look before she notices exactly who he was talking about. The man that broke her heart all those years ago, the big shot quarterback of LSU and the Bengals...Joe Burrow. "Ja'Marr!? Hey!" Mandy approaches us, greeting Ja'Marr as Marisol tries her best to remain calm. She practically chugged down the lemonade she ordered.

Marisol didn't think she would see Joe here. She thought he would be too busy with his lavish lifestyle or felt too important to be here at an old college friends wedding in New Orleans. But, there he was. In a expensive pastel blue tux that brought out his eyes in a breath taking way.

Ja'Marr excuses himself before going over to Joe. Marisol immediately turns around and orders another drink, something stronger. "I saw him leaving the bathroom, I tried getting to you before you saw him but then you were talking to Ja'Marr." Mandy grimaces as she sips her drink and looks at Marisol. "Do you know where we're siting?" She asks Mandy. "The table chart is over there, you think Jade would sit us all together?" Mandy asks. "I mean, it would make sense to sit people who know each other together." Marisol responds as she watches the bartender make her drink.

After getting her drink, she makes her way to the table chart written in script and in chalk. Looking at all the table numbers and names. Marisol finds her name under table eleven, she see's Mandy's name, a few familiar names, Ja'Marr and there it was...Joe's. "Damn it." Marisol mutters. The last thing she wanted to do was to be seated at the same table for the next 5 or 6 hours as Joe. "You're going to need a lot more liquor huh?" Mandy sighs looking at what Marisol was looking at. "Just don't let me get too drunk." Marisol looks over at her.

********************************************

The DJ they had at the reception made the announcement for everyone to take their seats for the grand entrance of the newlyweds. It just so happened that Marisol and Joe were seated directly in front of each other. As if this night couldn't get any worse for Marisol. "You think anyone would notice if I just...left?" Marisol asked Mandy, making her roll her eyes. "Yes! You'll be fine just focus on everyone else here. Plus...that guy over there keeps looking at you." Mandy looks over to a handsome guy in a tux, one of the groomsmen. "He looks very young."

"So? He's at least over 21 because he's drinking. Have some fun and don't worry about someone from your past." Mandy says to Marisol. Maybe she was right Marisol thought. Just as she grabbed her champagne glass, Joe sat in front of her again. Making stomach turn a bit. She hated the way he made her feel, almost sick.

Joe made eye contact with her, Marisol making sure she was giving him the stink eye. Joe clearly understanding the message and giving her a look full of sorrow. The DJ announce's the newlyweds and everyone's attention flips to them, clapping and smiling.

Dinner begins to get served, Marisol looking everywhere else but right in front of her. The first course of her dinner was good, they brought out the salad she had picked but the second plate wasn't correct. They brought our salmon but she was allergic to it. Before she speak up another voice does.

 

"Excuse me, but she can't eat that. She allergic." Joe says from across the table to the man serving the food. Mandy and Ja'Marr looking over at the both of them, Marisol sitting there in a sort of shock before she clears her throat and tells the server herself.

The server looks at them oddly with a bit of confusion but takes back the plate and apologizes. Marisol looks over at Joe but doesn't say anything. She was surprised he even remembered that about her. The time she ate salmon at some football banquet he invited her too and she broke out in hives right after. They spent the rest of the night in the E.R while she got treated for it.

Her thoughts were interrupted when the server came back with the chicken she had requested instead on the invitation. "My apologies Miss, it seems that I got confused with the seating. I can assure you there's no cross contamination with the food" The man says to her. Marisol just thanks him and begins to eat her food, which she barely finished because she didn't even have appetite to begin with. She still couldn't get over the fact she had to endure a night of Joe. 

The speeches start to begin from the parents of the newlyweds to their siblings to the maid of honor and best man. After the speeches, the first dance began and then the partying started to happen. Marisol quickly made her way over to get another drink. As she ordered herself an old fashion, from the corner of her eye she saw Joe stand next to her. Rolling her eyes and clenching her jaw she did her best to ignore him. 

"You shouldn't be mixing different types of liquor like that." Joe says to Marisol, the sound of his voice almost causing her to step on his foot with her stiletto heel. Instead, she just ignores him. "You're just going to ignore me all night?" He scoffs; Marisol still doesn't say a word back as she waits for her drink. "You need to let what happened go." Joe shakes his head in disbelief that she would still hold this grudge against him. "And you need to stop talking to me, guess we're both not getting what we want." Marisol rolls her eyes as her blood was starting to boil with anger. The audacity Joe had right now was mind boggling to her. The way he dared to even speak to her right now and then proceed to tell her that she needs to let things go. 

"Mare-" Joe starts. "No! Don't you dare call me that." Marisol snaps at him before the bartender comes back with the drink where she thanks him and walks away from Joe. Only for him to follow her. "Look, let's just talk this out." Joe says stopping her in her tracks as the lights dim and the music somehow grows louder. "I have nothing to talk to you about Joe. You made it very clear 4 years ago that a girl like me didn't fit your little superstar quarterback life." Marisol snapped at him, Joe rolled his eyes. "It was more complicated than that Marisol, you know that." He snapped back. "Joe, you brought up the idea to me to have a fake girlfriend that better fit your public lifestyle." Marisol said back to him, anger boiling in her. 

"It wasn't me, it was my publicist and some people from the team at the time." Joe tries to defend himself. "I don't care who it was Joe...you were the one all for it.” Marisol rolls her eyes. “It was a tough time okay, I was still figuring things out.”

“You seemed pretty damn happy after we ended things. Right off the bat you were with a Victoria secret model.” Marisol scoffs. “She was never a Victoria Secret model” Joe scoffs back which annoyed Marisol even more that he chose to focus on that part of things.

“Look, you need to grow up & get over what happened. We had a stupid fling in college and that was it. You seriously thought we were going to have a happy ending? We’re from two different worlds.” Joe said thinking that was going help, Marisol’s heart feeling like it was breaking once again. She loved Joe back then, she was there for him during the tough times at LSU. When the other players weren’t taking him seriously. When he was having a hard time balancing school work and football. When he ran out of money to eat, she would even share proper meals with him so he didn’t have to rely on ramen until his parents gave him his monthly allowance and he could go grocery shopping again.

“You don’t need to remind me that you just used me. I know that’s exactly what you did. Used me for your benefit, emotionally and physically…but I will never act like that was okay. You lead me on. I won’t apologize for not being this thin and perfect girl that the beloved quarterback gets.” Marisol tells Joe trying her very hardest not to get emotional over a guy she swore she left in the past.

“We wouldn’t have worked.” Joe responds, mostly seeming like he was trying to convince himself. “You can tell yourself that, it won’t change what happened and how I feel now. If having a woman that the world deems physically conventionally attractive is more important than what we had, that’s on you. But don’t act like you weren’t at my door almost every night trying to get a piece of me. Or begging me to come over to do that thing you liked. At the end of the day you will always be the coward that couldn’t handle the “fat girl” & the star quarterback who still can’t get a ring.” Marisol smirks leaving Joe standing there with his jaw clenched and nose flaring.

Marisol stands tall as she walked away from Joe. Hips swaying because she knows no matter her size she’s beautiful & deserves the best. She walks over to Mandy in the crowd of people dancing. “Where were you?!” She yells over the loud music. “Getting a drink, now where’s that cute guy that was staring at me earlier?” Marisol asks and Mandy gives her a smirk.

—————————————————————-

Part Two? 👀

[evie-lyn]

Dp x Spiderman x DC prompt

"Danny Phantom and Peter Parker Aka Spiderman are sent to the DC universe and they will make that everyone's problem."

For whatever reason, whether to protect him, because he loves chaos, or just because he was bored, Clockwork sends Danny to another universe even if Danny doesn't agree with it. Anyway, now Danny is stuck in the DC universe, and he's drawn to a city dripping with ectoplasm and crime, and looking for a way to get home or whatever Clockwork wants him to do, Danny heads to Gotham City.

At the same time in another universe, as a last resort and to protect his universe and his loved ones, Spider-Man, Peter Parker is erased from everyone's minds and his world, so he is sent as a last act of kindness and gratitud from Doctor Strange to another universe so he can start over. So Peter awakes in another universe and new world, one where super heroes exist but no person he knows has ever existed and where there are no records of his own existence, and to make matters worse, he's 14 now and he's in a city infested with criminals, villains and pollution. Seriously, not even New York is this bad.

Looking around for how to survive, a place to stay and how to get home, Peter's spider sense alerts him of a powerful presence approaching, and Danny flying through the city while invisible is paralyzed in mid-air when a boy wearing a suit under an oversized coat looks directly at him, as if he could really know he's there, and after hesitating for a couple of seconds he becomes tangible and the other boy's eyes widen comically in surprise, and they both take a defensive stance. They have a staring standoff for a couple of minutes in which they determine whether or not the other is a threat, and when that is resolved, Danny and Peter meet. Quickly after an exchange of information, they discover that they have a lot in common, they're both young heroes, with more responsibilities and power than they could ever expect, underestimated and misunderstood teenagers, geeks, with a similar humor, show true interest in each other's tastes, and are stuck in another universe with no way to return home, oh and they share the same principles and morals, so naturally they become best friends and decide to survive together.

Danny really likes Peter Aka Spiderman, it's the first time he's met someone in his age range who really understands what he's going through. But that's not just why he likes him, Peter is funny, smart, kind, sweet and genuinely a good person, and a kid, one who in his short years of life has already been through too much, (they did trauma dump on each other) and Danny and his ever-evolving ghost core who is now obsessed with protecting children, wants Peter safe and happy, and by their side, so considering that Peter's universe and the people in it no longer existe for him, they both emerge with a plan, they are going to stay together in this universe for now and then find a way to leave together to Danny's universe, and for that they come up with the idea of ​​building a portal. They trust that they can do it, they're smart and have enough knowledge to maybe and by putting both brains together, they can decipher travel between universes, or at least to the ghost zone. But for that they need equipment, tools, materials and a safe place to stay and be able to start working, and with an established plan, their journey begins.

They find an old building, house, warehouse (it doesn't really matter) and they take it as their new home, and it's perfect, it's in fairly good shape, it's safe and secluded enough that no one will bother them while they work, it's away from most of the criminal gangs, gang territories, and off the territory and radar of the local vigilantes, vigilantes that Danny and Peter were quickly aware of dominate the streets of Gotham, and don't accept people with superhuman abilities on them. They still have to go out into the streets to get supplies and materials to build the portal, and because being two young superheroes they can't help but fight crime for a long time, and in fact they make a good team. Who would think their skills would work so well combined? (I did. I actually thought about it quite a bit, and I could have a whole conversation on this topic alone.)

There are two new vigilantes in Gotham and they are metas, that's what everyone talks about in the streets, and it's what the bats and birds have seen, and they are concern. These meta vigilantes don't seem remotely affected by Batman's rule of no metas in Gotham, but that's not what's relevant to the Bat and the Bat Kids, it's how young they are, not much older than Damian or Tim, with flashy uniforms and even flashier powers, if not dangerous, they're reckless, and their origins and reasons for being in Gotham are unknown. They know that they must approach this situation delicately, if they don't want it to get out of hand. And since they are in the streets and seem friendly, the bats try to get closer and get information, they try on different occasions and with different methods, but they don't obtain great results from any of the encounters. If the new young vigilantes don't escape and disappear completely just by noticing the presence of the bats or birds (they always know where they are no matter who or how stealthy they are), they respond with jokes or sarcastic comments to any question, sometimes insults if they are not in the mood for an interrogation, they never fight or attack but they refuse to have a relationship with the local Gotham vigilantes, and after two months of this all they know is that the one in red and blue is Spiderman and the one in black and white is Phantom, and that's driving them all crazy, especially when in the few times they've faced them (they tried to capture one of them, it doesn't matter who, it's not a good idea) they have shown that they know how to defend themselves and that their abilities should not be underestimated, and if you try to go after one of them, the other will go against you with everything he has (I like to think that Peter and Danny would be overprotective of each other since they are the only thing the other one have in that universe and they are not going to lose their best friend if they can help it). The bats learned this the hard way and now know what to expect from each one of them. At the moment, the one who has shown that he could have the best chance of being a real threat in the future is Phantom, who managed to give a good scare to Nighwing and Red Hood and everyone who was around to witness it when the vigilantes were very close to capturing Spiderman, but as long as you don't touch his friend he's harmless (although there are suspicions that Phantom fell into the Lazarus pit, a classic), but Batman learned that if you try to hurt or capture Phantom, Spiderman will have no problem crushing you and breaking your ribs, again (first time was an accident, Peter felt really bad about it), he just didn't do it a second time because Robin was present and stopped himself so the little kid vigilante wouldn't be scared of him, so Batman knew from experience, although less scary and calm than Phantom, Spiderman is a time bomb and it's better not to give him reasons to explode.

So the bats keep their distance, as long as the new vigilantes don't hurt anyone or commit any crimes they decide that they can coexist in Gotham peacefully, and maybe collaborate if the opportunity arises and they need extra help. But then things start disappearing from Wayne Enterprises and some hospitals, and blackouts are reported, and strong shocks of static energy shake the city (Danny and Peter have begun their research and experimenting with the new technology they have in this universe, they're doing their best). None of Gotham's villains or criminals are responsible, so the main suspects soon become the new and enigmatic vigilantes. Now the real game begins, imagine the efforts the Batfamily would go to to obtain information and slowly gain the trust of Danny and Peter, all the interesting situations and interactions we could get out of this, I don't know, I think we could get at least 6 different stories out of this idea with all the juicy stuff a crossover likes this can offer.

[itsclydebitches]

Something I don't think we talk enough about in discussions surrounding AI is the loss of perseverance.

I have a friend who works in education and he told me about how he was working with a small group of HS students to develop a new school sports chant. This was a very daunting task for the group, in large part because many had learning disabilities related to reading and writing, so coming up with a catchy, hard-hitting, probably rhyming, poetry-esque piece of collaborative writing felt like something outside of their skill range. But it wasn't! I knew that, he knew that, and he worked damn hard to convince the kids of that too. Even if the end result was terrible (by someone else's standards), we knew they had it in them to complete the piece and feel super proud of their creation.

Fast-forward a few days and he reports back that yes they have a chant now... but it's 99% AI. It was made by Chat-GPT. Once the kids realized they could just ask the bot to do the hard thing for them - and do it "better" than they (supposedly) ever could - that's the only route they were willing to take. It was either use Chat-GPT or don't do it at all. And I was just so devastated to hear this because Jesus Christ, struggling is important. Of course most 14-18 year olds aren't going to see the merit of that, let alone understand why that process (attempting something new and challenging) is more valuable than the end result (a "good" chant), but as adults we all have a responsibility to coach them through that messy process. Except that's become damn near impossible with an Instantly Do The Thing app in everyone's pocket. Yes, AI is fucking awful because of plagiarism and misinformation and the environmental impact, but it's also keeping people - particularly young people - from developing perseverance. It's not just important that you learn to write your own stuff because of intellectual agency, but because writing is hard and it's crucial that you learn how to persevere through doing hard things.

Write a shitty poem. Write an essay where half the textual 'evidence' doesn't track. Write an awkward as fuck email with an equally embarrassing typo. Every time you do you're not just developing that particular skill, you're also learning that you did something badly and the world didn't end. You can get through things! You can get through challenging things! Not everything in life has to be perfect but you know what? You'll only improve at the challenging stuff if you do a whole lot of it badly first. The ability to say, "I didn't think I could do that but I did it anyway. It's not great, but I did it," is SO IMPORTANT for developing confidence across the board, not just in these specific tasks.

Idk I'm just really worried about kids having to grow up in a world where (for a variety of reasons beyond just AI) they're not given the chance to struggle through new and challenging things like we used to.

[bwobgames]

Aha! Ángel spotted!

“I’m here! I have all my belongings! And did not get stabbed! You got the food?”

“What, Am I not enough of a snack?”

He looks relieved. As he tends to when they’re separated in places like these.

Dangerous places. Or so he says.

“Vivi messaged, she’s inside already. And! She says the train part of the station is pretty empty!”

“I accept the challenge.”

Hand in hand, they skilfully evade the incoming traffic. People traffic.

He can’t help but have a little fun.

He always ends up having fun when Ángel is around.

“Here!”

Ángel hugs her and they twirl around, as they usually do when they don't see eachother for more than a week.

“Vivi! You evil creature, why did it take you so long to confirm the invitation!”

“Hehe, I was busy! I had work! But! I no longer have work. I killed the guy who asked me to do it”

“What”

“Awesome!”

“Hey, no. What”

“Just kidding! The guys I was freelancing for suddenly decided to drop the whole thing. Probably some legal issue or something, but hey! Got paid!”

“Oh, thank god”

“Have you been okay, though? Being an essential worker and all”

“I am the masked vigilante this city needed. I left no crime unseen and no hand unwashed”

A sudden thought enters everyone’s mind

“Hm? Oliver. Why is your phone there. You do know where we are, right?”

“Huh? It’s just in my-

wh- My phone-!”

“In your back pocket? Of your jeans? The easiest place to steal in the world?”

“Give me that! Idiot thief.”

“If the capital is so great then why can’t I walk with my phone in my pockets. That’s what they were made for!”

“Ooh, Someone’s a grumpy bunny”

“He said he could take on the summer. He has been doing nothing other than sitting by the AC”

“Humans aren’t supposed to thrive in temperatures over 28°C!”

“Your max is 28? Oh poor thang”

“Don’t worry, even though it’s supposed to be a recreation of a fancy old train, it comes with AC”

“Thank god”

“Also Also! The more we travel, the colder it’s gonna get! I heard it will be raining when we get there”

Trains are awesome.

“Is everyone else coming soon? What time is it. Did we stall for too long?”

“We are still a bit early, Marigold and Nina must’ve gotten overwhelmed with all the things they need to bring”

“Speaking of belongings!”

“Oliver. Oliver twist. Twisted Oliver. Beebocious”

“That’s me”

“What is that. What mystery are you carrying with you. Is it 72 copies of Murder on the Orient Express. Both book and Movie?”

“Well, now that you say it, I’m regretting not bringing them with me”

“But no, this is…”

<-PREV - NEXT->

[kioflerkira]

“ BLUE FANTA ”

warnings: kissing, alcohol pairings: p.jackson x reader summary: sneaking out past curfew to sit on the roof of cabin three. percy brought a bottle of blue fanta, or was it ? a/n: this is my first fanfic, might be buns. don’t attack me if you don’t like it 💔

⊱⋆ ━━━━ ⋮ ୨୧ ⋮ ━━━━ ⋆ ⊰

“alright, I got the drinks ! now, c'mon—before we get caught by anyone," percy urged, grabbing your hand as he eyed the cabin roof.

you looked up at it and raised an eyebrow. "you really think you can get up there ?"

he shot you a smile. "of course ! I'm percy jackson, son of poseidon—I can do anything." he chuckled, though his gaze lingered on the cabin a little longer than confident percy would normally need. "..okay, maybe this'll be harder than I thought."

spotting a nearby tree, he made a beeline for it, grabbed a low-hanging branch, and jumped up. "see ? It's a piece of blue cak—" His victory was short-lived as he slipped and hit the ground, the bottle of blue fanta hitting his face in the process. he blushed, embarrassed. why in front of you, of all people ? he must look like an absolute idiot.

after a few failed attempts, you both finally made it onto the roof. percy ran his fingers through his hair, trying to untangle the leaves out of his hair. the camp lay quiet below, it's was past curfew. and I mean way past curfew. it's was around 1 am or so.

he popped open the bottle and took a sip, though he immediately looked a little off. this drink tastes funny. he thought but brushed it off. "you want some ?" he offered, holding it out to you.

"nah, I'm alright."

percy took another swig, both of you assuming it was just blue fanta—though the warmth subtly rising in his cheeks and the slight wobble in his voice suggested otherwise. seriously what up with this drink ?

you kept talking, time slipping by. the longer you sat there, the more his gaze softened, and his voice grew gentler. the "blue fanta" started to take It’s place. "this.. this fanta tastes kinda weird," he slurred, looking puzzled.

“percy, you okay ?" you asked, watching his expression closely.

he nodded, giving you a thumbs-up, though you weren't convinced. slowly, he turned to face you, his eyes filled with an unfocused warmth that made your heart flutter. suddenly he woke up, "hey," he murmured, smiling in that lopsided way that always got to you. "you know.. I.. I think I wanna marry you," he chuckled, the words slipping out as if they were the most natural thing in the world.

did he even realize what he'd just said ? and if he did.. did he care ?

he reached out, his fingers slipping into yours. you blinked, barely processing his words as he looked at you—like he meant every single one of them. his thumb brushed across your knuckles, like he'd imagined this a thousand times and was finally realizing he could actually do it.

you laughed softly, trying to brush it off, though you felt your face heat up. "oh, yeah ? you wanna marry me, hm ?" you nudged him, hoping to keep it light.

he grinned, that boyish, lopsided smile you've seen, I don't know, about a million times. but it never grew old, instead, it made your heart flutter even more the more you saw it. he nodded and shrugged "yeah ! I- yeah, I do. just.. makes sense, doesn't it ?"

your gaze dropped to your hands, intertwined, his thumb tracing gentle patterns over your skin. for a moment, you let yourself imagine it, too—being his in every possible way. percy's smile grew as he gave your hand a gentle squeeze, looking at you as if he were trying to memorize every feature.

he scooted closer and rested his head on your shoulder, his hair tickling your neck. "Im.. I'm serious," he whispered, squeezing your hand. slowly, he brought it up to his lips, planting a chaste kiss on your palm.

"I love you," he finally muttered. you felt your heart racing but you— Gods, he reeked of.. alcohol. your thoughts were interrupted but you quickly refocused again. you watched as he leaned forward towards your face.

"may.. I ?" he asked. you blushed with a nod.

percy ended the conversation by placing a kiss on your lips.

⊱⋆ ━━━━ ⋮ ୨୧ ⋮ ━━━━ ⋆ ⊰

a/n: lmao can u tell I have no idea what I’m doing. Srry if it seemed rushed 💔💔

[hollowed-theory-hall]

Hi there

What's your take on Harry's relationship with fame?

Hi 👋

The books are pretty explicit about it, so I don't feel like I have much to add. Harry is, in general, very uncomfortable with his fame and with people paying attention to him, but he's also polite, so you get these interactions:

“Bless my soul,” whispered the old bartender, “Harry Potter…what an honor.” He hurried out from behind the bar, rushed toward Harry and seized his hand, tears in his eyes. “Welcome back, Mr. Potter, welcome back.” Harry didn’t know what to say. Everyone was looking at him. The old woman with the pipe was puffing on it without realizing it had gone out. Hagrid was beaming. Then there was a great scraping of chairs and the next moment, Harry found himself shaking hands with everyone in the Leaky Cauldron. “Doris Crockford, Mr. Potter, can’t believe I’m meeting you at last.” “So proud, Mr. Potter, I’m just so proud.” “Always wanted to shake your hand — I’m all of a flutter.” “Delighted, Mr. Potter, just can’t tell you, Diggle’s the name, Dedalus Diggle.” “I’ve seen you before!” said Harry, as Dedalus Diggle’s top hat fell off in his excitement. “You bowed to me once in a shop.” “He remembers!” cried Dedalus Diggle, looking around at everyone. “Did you hear that? He remembers me!” Harry shook hands again and again — Doris Crockford kept coming back for more.

(PS)

“Did you see his scar?” Whispers followed Harry from the moment he left his dormitory the next day. People lining up outside classrooms stood on tiptoe to get a look at him, or doubled back to pass him in the corridors again, staring. Harry wished they wouldn’t, because he was trying to concentrate on finding his way to classes.

(PS)

Looking up, he saw the very small, mousy-haired boy he’d seen trying on the Sorting Hat last night staring at Harry as though transfixed. He was clutching what looked like an ordinary Muggle camera, and the moment Harry looked at him, he went bright red. “All right, Harry? I’m — I’m Colin Creevey,” he said breathlessly, taking a tentative step forward. “I’m in Gryffindor, too. D’you think — would it be all right if — can I have a picture?” he said, raising the camera hopefully. “A picture?” Harry repeated blankly.

(CoS)

He wishes to not have people stare at him all the time. It's the main reason he wished to become a Metamorphmagus:

“Can you learn how to be a Metamorphmagus?” Harry asked her, straightening up, completely forgetting about packing. Tonks chuckled. “Bet you wouldn’t mind hiding that scar sometimes, eh?” Her eyes found the lightning-shaped scar on Harry’s forehead. “No, I wouldn’t mind,” Harry mumbled, turning away. He did not like people staring at his scar.

(OotP)

But by book 4, he's more or less used to it:

It had been enough of a shock for Harry to discover, on his eleventh birthday, that he was a wizard; it had been even more disconcerting to find out that everyone in the hidden wizarding world knew his name. Harry had arrived at Hogwarts to find that heads turned and whispers followed him wherever he went. But he was used to it now: At the end of this summer, he would be starting his fourth year at Hogwarts, and Harry was already counting the days until he would be back at the castle again.

(GoF)

Though, he's still embarrassed and uncomfortable by the attention:

“ ‘Harry Potter’s Secret Heartache . . . dear, dear, Potter, what’s ailing you now? ���A boy like no other, perhaps . . .’ ” Harry could feel his face burning. Snape was pausing at the end of every sentence to allow the Slytherins a hearty laugh. The article sounded ten times worse when read by Snape. Even Hermione was blushing scarlet now.

(GoF)

Harry inclined his head awkwardly at each of them as they were introduced. He wished they would look at something other than him; it was as though he had suddenly been ushered onstage. He also wondered why so many of them were there. “A surprising number of people volunteered to come and get you,” said Lupin, as though he had read Harry’s mind; the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.

(OotP)

Dinner in the Great Hall that night was not a pleasant experience for Harry. The news about his shouting match with Umbridge seemed to have traveled exceptionally fast even by Hogwarts standards. He heard whispers all around him as he sat eating between Ron and Hermione. The funny thing was that none of the whisperers seemed to mind him overhearing what they were saying about him — on the contrary, it was as though they were hoping he would get angry and start shouting again, so that they could hear his story firsthand.

(OotP)

I wanted to add this final quote, though, since while Harry hates the attention and various people, both close to him (Ron, Hermione, Sirius) and ones who don't know him that well (Tonks, Susan Bones) are aware he does not like his fame, many (such as Snape, Draco, Fudge, Scrimgour, Lockhart, and even Colin Creevy to a degree) think he doesn't mind it or even likes it:

“Remembered you’re not at school, have you?” said Scrimgeour, breathing hard into Harry’s face. “Remembered that I am not Dumbledore, who forgave your insolence and insubordination? You may wear that scar like a crown, Potter, but it is not up to a seventeen-year-old boy to tell me how to do my job! It’s time you learned some respect!” “It’s time you earned it.” said Harry

(DH)

I think this has to do again with how Harry presents himself to others, but also because many of them are projecting hard. Lockhart loves his fame, Colin idolizes the fictitious boy-who-lived and wants to be just like that non-existent person, Fudge likes to feel important, Draco wishes he got half of the amount of attention Harry's getting, etc.

So, Harry never really liked the fame or attention, but he learned to ignore it for the most part by year 4. Even before that, his responses to people gushing over him and staring at his scar is to be embarrassed or angry internally but polite for the most part externally. A lot of times he chooses to just not say anything about the stares and whispers. Even when he blows up at people in OotP, it's not for the stares and attention, but for calling him a liar. He's really good at ignoring how uncomfortable he is when stared at to appear polite and not shout at anyone. Then again, he has years of practice in being polite to people he hates because he has to be (Dursleys).

The fame is something he just accepted. He's resigned to it even if he wishes people would mind their own damn business.

[hyperions-light]

How Do You Write a Long/In Depth Fic Comment?

First of all, let me say-- there's no 'wrong' way to write a fic comment (unless you are being rude or offering unsolicited concrit). Short comments are good, emojis are good-- all of it's good! Don't take me making this explainer to mean you have to write long, analytical comments. Express yourself however you want! Authors love hearing about how much you liked their work no matter how you choose to tell them.

This is meant to be a guide for people who want to do this, but don't really know how, because they find it difficult to express themselves, or don't know what authors like to hear. If that's you, let's continue below the cut!

EDIT: Also, here's a post by bourbon-ontherocks about how to add a floating comment box to AO3, in case you want to grab quotations you like as you go! Thank you @flowersforthemachines for finding it <3

Why should you do this?

because it's fun!

because you really like someone's work!

because it's motivating for an author, and can sometimes inspire them to post more, or re-post old stuff!

because it's usually a great conversation starter! Some of my best fandom friends have been made in comment threads on AO3!

What do authors want to hear about in long comments?

Many things, but primarily:

What you liked about their work

Why you liked it

You can show them what you liked by quoting their work back at them (I find it useful to put quoted text in an indented section; the html code for this is <blockquote>text</blockquote>), talking generally about which events or characters you enjoyed most, or, if you have thoughts about it, what you liked about the structural parts of their work-- i.e. plot, pacing, sentence structure, etc.

As for telling them why you liked something, getting into emotional reactions is great for this-- you can tell them where you laughed, or cried, or where you felt moved by something they said. If you found the way they had the characters talk or think realistic or relatable, tell them that! If you want to, authors love hearing that people noticed them foreshadowing events, or planting clues within the text.

You can also tell them where you were when you read it, or your overall experience -- did you read at 3 am? Do you have school or work tomorrow, but you just had to finish reading? Did you read their fic in the club? Tell them! And if you're feeling especially brave or you want to share, feel free to tell authors how or why you related to the text. If it makes you uncomfortable, don't worry about it, but those are some of my favorite comments to reread.

How do I comment on specific parts/lines of a fic?

Okay, a demonstration! I am going to pretend to analyze my own work here, for convenience:

He dreams of it, ceaselessly. It seems to echo throughout his days; he cannot let his mind drift too far, lest he fall back into it. He has to cling to this world, like a drowning man to a raft, though it rarely feels worth the effort.

Okay, so let's pretend I read this section and I really liked it. If you want to talk about that, stop and consider what about it was special, for you. Maybe I thought that the third sentence really captured what it felt like to be depressed, or the second reminded me of something that happened in my own life. I might say:

"I really loved this part! I found the way you wrote about [the character's] feelings in this paragraph so relatable; I think you captured exactly what it feels like to feel consistently hopeless."

You can also take a look at the way the author has written the sentences-- try reading them out loud. If I think the last line has a nice sound, I might say something like:

"I liked how you chose to structure the last sentence! The grammar you used gave it a really nice combination of phrases and stops. I loved how it sounded, and the rhythm the punctuation created."

Another thing you could talk about was how the sentence or paragraph made you feel about the character. If that section made me feel particularly sorry for them, or if this was the point in the story where I connected strongly with them, I might say:

I think this part worked really well to demonstrate how [character] felt! You communicated the pain they were in really effectively, and I was very connected to them, during this part.

You can also just express your excitement! I love great writing, and sometimes I just keysmash, or put a million exclamation points, or say AHHHHHHH!!!

Okay, that's all the advice I have for writing long comments, for now! If you have any questions, or would like to talk about similar things with me, please feel free to ask or DM me at any time! Thanks for reading, and happy commenting!

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 146 (Rafa Confronts His Sister)

Conrad made his way to Brindleton Prison after work, smiling when he found Rafa waiting in one of the interrogation rooms. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you look great for someone who's spent the last few months in prison."

"Thanks for being here while I face her." Rafa forced a smile. "I know I asked for this meeting, but I've been dreading it. Can't call Mel because we still don't have a phone. Other than you and my lawyer, there's not many people I want to talk to, especially in prison."

"Speaking of Felix, he'll be down soon. Lilith called to say she finally found a copy of Theoretical Electronics by Nikolai Volt, or something. It's about time travel."

"They're really going to do it? Jump through time just like Marco."

"That's their plan, but I don't think their plan includes trying to get themselves killed."

Rafa frowned. "I don't regret what I had to do, but I knew Marco, you know? I never thought I'd end up killing him."

"You didn't get him killed. He was working for Ximena, doing what she wanted him to do."

He nodded slowly. "But we changed things, right? Now she'll be in prison for forty years and won't get out to chase time travellers?"

"Chase who?"

Their stomachs dropped as the door to the interrogation room opened. Ximena had always moved quietly, which helped her get away with so much for so long. Conrad pushed his shoulders back. "No one. It's a joke. You've probably watched the news since you've been in here."

Ximena shrugged. "Why watch what's going on in a world I'm locked away from?"

"You deserve to be in here just as much as I deserve to be behind bars in San Myshuno," said Rafa sternly.

Ximena glanced at the brother she raised from the time he was small, but a coldness burned from her amber eyes unlike any look she'd ever given him. "Aren't you looking for a plea deal?"

Rafa turned to Conrad with a frown. "Could you leave us? I know the room is recording us, but what I want to say, I need to focus on her."

"On me?" Ximena scoffed. "You betrayed me!"

"You betrayed him, Ximena."

With the last word, Conrad left them in the room, greeting Felix next door in the observation room. They watched as Rafa and Ximena took seats across from one another at the small table, listening to the speakers pouring their conversation through the walls.

"Why did you have Jimmy killed?"

"That's not even what I'm in here for. You told them about the BriteU job that got those freshmen killed. And the cartel won't be happy when they learn you gave up half their weapons stockpile in San Myshuno."

"They can get more guns. And what do you know about the cartel these days? They dropped you, Ximena. They left you in here with no one to rescue you this time. Because you killed Jimmy."

"He was no one. He only meant something to me, and I got what I needed before he talked to the cops. He was a liability. I did what the cartel does with liabilities."

"I followed you for years even as you got more and more erratic. I was too young to say no to you and you knew it. You took advantage of me."

"I was protecting you," she insisted. "If you weren't in with the cartel, as close as you were to me? They would have killed you."

"I just wanted to live a normal life and be a normal kid."

Her stare bared no obvious emotion. "We both wanted that, Rafa."

"I'm sorry I kept you in here, but I'm not sorry. I hope you understand that."

Her eyes narrowed into slits and she glared at him with vengeance. "I'll never understand you, Rafa. I'd curse you myself, if I ever believed any of that old witch magic from Selva."

Inside the observation room, Felix and Conrad were growing uncomfortable as the Bonillas confrontation escalated, interrupted when the San Myshuno detective who'd escorted Rafa to Brindleton Prison walked in with his phone out.

"I just got off the phone with the judge," he announced. "She accepted Rafa's plea and he'll be released as soon as next week."

Rafa scoffed in the next room. "Fine. Curse me. But you lost me, Ximena. Remember that."

Ximena jumped up and raised her hands to her face in anger. "I didn't lose you, Rafa. I know exactly where you stand. You chose to stand against your own flesh and blood, who raised you when the world would have let you die, and as long as I live I'll make you regret it."

"I only regret everything I did because you encouraged me."

"I regret saving you from Selva. I should have left you there and run away on my own."

Conrad walked back inside the room followed by Felix, breaking up Ximena and Rafa once and for all. "I think you've both said more than enough."

Guards took Ximena back to her cell, leaving Rafa to cool down with his attorney and Conrad, the man who cared for him like a brother. "Are you alright?"

"I'll be fine." Rafa pushed back his shoulders. "Tell the detective I want to go back now."

"No problem," said Conrad. "But Felix and I want to talk to you first."

"The judge called while Ximena was in here," said Felix. "She accepted your plea. It'll take the paperwork less than a week to be processed because I'm the one who's going to do it, but once the county rubberstamps everything, you'll be a free man!"

"Are you serious?"

"As serious as death from a laughing fit!"

Rafa glanced between them in disbelief as weight lifted from Conrad's shoulders. He looked away, composing himself. Ximena was behind bars and Rafa was a free man; the saga of the Bonillas was supposed to end this way. Ximena was out of his life for decades, at least, but he wouldn't let reconnecting with Rafa go to waste.

"Promise me you and Melissa will move into a real place and get out of the abandoned ship. You don't need to hide anymore."

"Ximena's right that the cartel might still try to find me," admitted Rafa. "But I can take care of myself. Melissa, too."

Felix nodded plainly. "I'm quite sure that's true. But let's hope you'll never get the chance to show how good you are. For their sake."

The attorney sensed Rafa wanted a minute alone with Conrad, excusing himself with a smile. "I think I'll get started on that paperwork now!"

When the men were alone, Rafa looked ominously at Conrad. "Can you turn the mics off?"

Conrad nodded, flipping a switch on the desk lamp as he waited for Rafa to speak.

"I didn't tell you everything Marco told me before he died. I didn't know how to say this in front of everyone, but he told me Ash... In the future, people feared and followed him. He said, 'You don't know what he's capable of.'"

"Ash will barely be twenty in a little over a decade," shot back Conrad. "You met him. He loves homework and his sisters - how dangerous could he be?"

Rafa shrugged. "He didn't say how before we got back to the shack. But we can hope we changed enough that he won't be dangerous now. Right?"

Conrad nodded, refusing to believe anything different about the boy he loved as a son. But he went home that night wondering how to tell Heather, while Rafa was soon released from prison in San Myshuno.

With his newfound freedom, he returned to Melissa in Sulani. Elated and in love they made up for time apart, finally free to build a life together. ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 2.1 Summary

Gen 1 Start | Gen 1 Summary

WCIF Poses: Ximena and Rafa posed in conversation at the table using @herecirmsims' Desk Conversations. Dimensions not quite right but I'm pretending Ximena sat backwards in her chair because I wanted the positioning and expressions, and Rafa fit! Rafa and Melissa are posed on the beach with @simmerberlin's The Kiss posepack, looking adorably carefree before their waterfall romp!

[flyinguraniumrod]

A thing that I have never seen anyone bring attention to: the lines under Cyberverse Astrotrain's eyes

In 3d it really looks like dimples under the eyes, yes

(the pic is better without the zoom buuttt at least the thing is more visible, also, I don't feel like looking for screenies in the show rn)

I've been feeling the need to mention this for quite a long time and I got reminded of that today rkjxwkktkgnrnt

Let's take these two elements of his face's design into consideration: the lines that go under his eyes and the lines that go from the sides of his mouth. One knows what those are when translated to human standards.

On one hand, they can indicate greater age, being tired. And on the other one, they could additionally be tied to severe and long lasting stress, even trauma, which could have come from his experiences in the universe he originates from.

I shall also add another thing that I have just noticed: his eyes seem to be rotated outwards quite a bit? Unless, it's just a matter of perspective in this one scene... oh wait it did turn out that it's just the perspective but I will keep this part here anyways, lol

That's the thing which makes me one of the people who wish we knew more about that alternate reality, in which Megatron wins the Great War and creates a master race of Decepticons, additionally getting rid of those who he deemed unecessary. Honestly, if there were a few or so episodes set in it, exploring the world, showing the processes that had happened among the Decepticon ranks, the fates of those who resisted, I would have watched them with excitement (well, I'd probably even want 2 whole seasons of that, lol).

Coming back to the topic of Astrotrain, saying that he looks tired is an understatement. He was kept close and abused for milions of years, even tortured. He has a fear of coming back to his original universe, his old master (therefore, the original Cyberberse Megatron has means of threatening him). Addtionally, it is extremely possible that he lost a few 'cons who were close or even very close to him during his universe's Megatron's purges and executions. Astrotrain is a triple-changer whose massive size combined with the shuttle alt mode make him a very valuable asset, as it is obvious that transporting troops is a crucial element. (Well, transporting the high-command could also be an important thing to such a tyrant as "the other" Megatron, hoh)

And yes, all that while keeping in mind the way he acts, the sadism in his personality, the way how he likes to joke.

All of that makes Cyberverse Astrotrain (and maybe even Astrotrain as a character in general, not just the one from this show) yet another triple-changer with a considerable amount of character and character depth building potential. I shall repeat this: I am of the opinion that the triple-changers are really underused in this franchise, even though I know that the reason why they don't appear so often could be how difficult it is to make decent toys of them, lol. Oh and I am not going to forget about the potential they have in fights (especially Blitzwing tbh)

Oh, I will also come back to the very first line of this yapping session: I haven't been on tumblr for too long so I shall ask: if there is some truly splendid annalysis of Astrotrain then I would really appreciate a link to it if that's possible! (Could also be that of any other triple-changer)

Man, would be noice to see a post with Cyberverse Astrotrain that isn't just about shipping him with Dead End, hahah /hj

However, lastly, I would like to mention @/elili0000's quite-old artwork regarding the story about Cyberverse Astrotrain and their own version of Cyberverse Blitzwing that they had made. It's been a while but I remember that I found it amazing, lol

[adriberry]

Thinkin' About Blot Monsters

So I’m gonna dive in without a lot of pretense here since I've already talked about how in the Twst canon, Yuu is twisted from Mickey Mouse. And I've been stuck in the hellscape that is the battle maps of Lilia's dream in Book 7 for like a year now because, surprise surprise, I'm actually awful at this game, so I've gotten plenty of time to think about these guys:

I've had a suspicion that the blot discussed in game is a reference to one particular character from the Mickey Mouse comics canon for a while now and these guys confirmed it. The blot, the in world magical buildup and manifestation of a mage's bad feelings, when personified is twisted from The Phantom Blot.

And The Phantom Blot is the first real villain (not antagonist like Pete or Mortimer) to beef with Michael Mouse.

More Blot talk under the cut.

The Phantom Blot was introduced in the Mickey Mouse comics as a villainous thief with a camera smashing problem. He's sort of like a serial killer but instead of murder, he breaks the crap out of cameras and the police are trying to stop him. Mickey is also involved in stopping him for some reason (he was an adventurer in he og comics and also his best friend was Horace Horsecollar, not Donald or Goofy but that's a story for a different time). Now I don't know the details because I haven't read it, but I do know that from this comic on, if the Phantom Blot appears in a story with Mickey, he's getting his plans foiled by that mouse.

He increasingly gets more evil with every appearance, eventually seeking world domination and hoping to murder Mickey. He shows up in other comics too where his vibes are matched more like in Ducktales and Darkwing Duck where supervillains are more common.

He's also made appearances in a few cartoons with the most prolific being the Mouse Works short, "Mickey Foils the Phantom Blot" which sounds like it takes a few story beats from the original comic. It was also my first exposure to the Phantom Blot when it was the main cartoon shown in the House of Mouse episode "House of Crime" where he causes chaos at the club and kidnaps patroms. Since then he's been a cameo in the Mickey Mouse Shorts and a supporting character in DuckTales (2017).

As a side note, it's hilarious to me that a supervillain is targeting such a little guy because in something like Fantasmic where all the villains are going after Mickey, he's basically a powerful god of the Disney Parks. Like, imagineers originally wanted Mickey to walk on water during the show but the CEO at the time, Michael Eisner, said no mostly because the mouse would look too much like Jesus. In most of the other cases the Blot encounters Mickey, he's just a guy. He's a regular guy with really good or really bad luck, depending on how you look at it.

Anyway, if you saw these guys in Twisted Wonderland and thought "Woah, like in Epic Mickey!" you're actually right!! Because the Shadow Blot from Epic Mickey, the big monster that appears after Mickey accidently destroys Wasteland, is based on the Phantom Blot. Epic Mickey takes a lot from the old Mickey comics- including treating Horace Horsecollar and Peg Leg Pete as "forgotten characters" even though they've still hung around- because of its emphasis on forgotten and old concepts in Disney and Mickey Mouse history. Their original parts for their old series were mostly undiscussed by the Disney Company until after the game's release.

I am glad that the Phantom Blot is getting another cameo even though it's as a fucked up ink monster in another game. This would be the second ink monster appearance out of three through because apparently ink is an important part of Lorcana?? Just learned that while looking up the recent Lorcana card for him that inspired me to write this. Is he part of their ink lore too???

No real ending here, so have this picture of the Phantom Brat, the Phantom Blot's daughter. She has a Blot Doll. It's darling.

[madebysoupy]

SO.......... I've been thinking about an original Zelda story lately

I haven't talked about it at all yet, but these yhree have been on my mind consistently enough for me to have to draw them

More info under the cut!!

The (hypothetical) game takes place in the downfall timeline, some time after Adventure of Link. Enough time has passed for villages to have expanded and new ones to be built!

But one day the ground shakes, parts of the earth disappear, new parts taking their place - like someone mixed together three different jigsaw puzzles and is forcing them together into one picture.

Now it's up to Link to find the source of the sudden merge of worlds and realities and restore order to Hyrule - with the help of his fairy companion and Zelda's guidance.

Some more about the characters!

Link

18 years old

Has a cleft lip!

Loser from Old Saria Town - a fisher village, yet he can't fish

His boss tried to find some use for him, but all he's seemingly good for is catching crawfish - and colds

The towns people look down on him

He lives with his aunt, the only person who supports him

His parents died on sea, he's afraid of the sea because of it

He ties flies! Not to use as bait though, just for fun and for the pretty art!

Very shy, still has to find his courage

Scared of Zelda tbh

Honorary lad name is Kalimba

Zelda

In her 60s probably?? Maybe older

She knows a lot more than she's telling anyone

The whole story may or may not be all calculated by her already

Very hard to impress

Direct descendant of Zelda I! Either daughter or granddaughter, couldn't decide yet

She takes her role very seriously

Doesn't dress too fancy - people respect her so much she could probably be in her pajamas and they'd still listen to her

She's mastered the art of communication through looks and glares

Intimidating aura

Doubts Link heavily at first

Puzzle

Little fairy companion!!! What? The name sounds familiar?? Must be a coincidence...

He's been working together with Zelda for a little while before teaming up with Link

Gets half of his knowledge from Zelda

In the (hypothetical) game his sound effects would be flute or recorder notes

Cheerful little thing - thoroughly enjoys zipping around

As is tradition for fairy companions, he nests in Link's hair or hat

Not a shred of doubt in his desision to pick Link - he has full faith in him

May or may not be the spirit of a previous hero........

That's all I'll share today!! I'm open to questions if y'all have any :]

I don't have a title for this yet, so I'm open to suggestions as well 👉👈

Thanks for reading this far!! I hope you enjoyed! :]]]

[radioactive-earthshine]

Just curious about if you don't like Absolute Flash being Wally who would you have preferred?

Jesse Chambers honestly. I think with her long history and relevance to the speedster family it is high time for her to obtain a significant solo where she can shine as The Flash. I also would LOVE to see her and Jo interact to fulfill that flashgreenade bond in an uncertain universe. I have a feeling she might show up regardless, just not as a speedster, but still I think ultimately it should have been her. Themes of her run as The Flash could be academic bias and sexism in STEM fields as well which is something that could be interesting to explore, not to mention her own relationship to her father. There's just a lot of angles someone could explore with Jesse, and even come up with something truly new and unique that no one has really thought of for Jesse. Maybe she gets her speed powers as a 30 something year old mom in the middle of a divorce while juggling her father's company and who knows what else <- just made this up randomly.

Failing her, then I would have loved to see Jay or Max, although Jay just had a mini (but it sucked imo and just pissed me off). They are older heroes too so I feel having them amidst the younger 20 something heroes would have been a great contrast. Or they could have de-aged them to suit this world's purposes.

It honestly would have been a great opportunity to also rework Max's history and take him out of a white savior narrative and make him indigenous, which makes more sense for his origins.

But we have Wally, again, as the main character and everything that I have read about Lemire's vision does interest me. I also love Lemire's writing so I know whatever it is he puts out is going to be at least enjoyable, and you will never guess where he is going.

[lastoneout]

Sorry to put this screed on people's dashes again but also the thing that gets me is the whole "I believe it’s selfish to knowingly bring a child into the world who will suffer" thing 'cuz like...no one gets through life without suffering at some point?? Life isn't all sunshine and rainbows for anyone, even abled people. We all go through loss and grief and rejection, we all feel pain, we get bullied or embarrass ourselves, some of us will be abused and most of us will have relationships end in messy ways, we all have to come to terms with our own mortality no matter how scary it is, we get sick(and not just in disabled ways like broken arms and UTIs and the flu all SUCK), we all have to deal with not getting something we desperately want be it a job or acceptance into a college or an award or book deal, at some point we will simply not be enough and we just have to keep going, and like...maybe it's just me but I don't think all of that pain and discomfort negates all of the joy being alive can bring.

Like, I can't think too hard about knowing my partner will outlive me OR that I might outlive him because the thought of being without him or him being without me is absolutely devastating. I had a cancer scare in 2023 and I spent the week waiting for the test results sobbing because I felt so horrible for possibly leaving the man I love behind. But you know what I didn't do? Decide that pain meant I shouldn't be in a relationship. All of the joy completely outweighs the pain I know one of us will have to feel one day. And my fiance didn't leave me either, and I know he wouldn't give me up to avoid the pain of losing me either.

As another example, I lost my closest friend to leukemia in 2018. I have never felt pain like that before, I'd never lost anyone. And if I could go back to the day we met in High School I would never even consider deciding not to befriend him because I knew I would lose him and it would kill me. Or my dogs, they're both gone now, of cancer and old age, and I would adopt them again without a second thought, all of the joy they brought me was worth the unimaginable pain of losing them. I know my cat will die one day and I would adopt her all over again too, and one day I will adopt new pets, knowing they will die, and not caring because the time we will have together is more than enough.

There is not a single person or pet that I've lost that would make me second guess welcoming them into my life again. Hell I have NIGHTMARES about getting sent back to relive the last 15 years of my life because I would be scared to fuck up and miss out on my friends and adopting my pets and meeting the love of my life. The pain of missing those connections and having to live without ever having met them 100% outweighs the pain I will feel or have felt from losing them.

I know there are probably disabled people who are miserable enough they wish the had never been born, but overall disabled people love life more than any other group of people I've ever encountered. My illness has taken a lot from me. I can't go hiking anymore, and thus I can't fulfill my dream of doing the Rim to Rim hike at the Grand Canyon or to the peak of any of the mountains I live near. I had to quit my movie theater job even though I would have happily worked there for the rest of my life. I also can't be an ASL interpreter like I wanted because I can't stand for very long and I have dyslexia bad enough that finger spelling is basically impossible for me. I can't do yoga anymore even though I really enjoyed it. I would love to be a singer, but I was abused in ways that have given me debilitating stage freight and I truly don't know if I can ever get over it. I can't run through a field, I can't have a job, I can't drink anymore, I might never get to visit countless places on earth I'd love to go...and if I had the choice between never experiencing all of this pain and never being born I would pick the pain every single time.

Life is suffering, but it's also love, and joy, and fun, and so many other things. Even for disabled people, life is never just suffering. So who the fuck are these people to decide that we don't deserve to experience the happiness life has to offer us all because we might suffer at some point in a way an abled person wouldn't?? I don't think these people would agree that knowing neither you nor your partner will live forever means you shouldn't get married. They probably don't think knowing your pets will die one day means you shouldn't adopt them. I don't think they would not have kids because those kids will experience a breakup or losing a pet or getting sick or any of the little moments of pain we all go through.

I saw so many people in the comments insist that a disabled loved one clearly suffered constantly and never felt any joy, or if they did it "wasn't enough for it to be worth it" and so that means they should have never been born, and again I have to ask, who the fuck are you to decide that that person's life wasn't worth living? Did you ask them? Or did you just assume because you can't imagine living like that? It's not your fucking life. You don't get to decide that for someone else, and the fact that you're trying to means you do not view disabled people as people. You see them as mistakes. And I'm sorry, but I have absolutely no interest in being around someone who looks at me and people like me and sees a tragedy instead of a person.

Neanderthals and early humans cared for their disabled, they knew our lives were worth it and put in the work to make us happy and comfortable because they loved us. I won't lie and say caring for us is always easy or that modern society doesn't make it so much harder than it needs to be(I s2g the people who were like "well money tho" and I'm like that's a capitalism problem not a fucking disabled person problem), but if people who didn't even have agriculture believed our lives were worth saving I don't know why the fuck modern humans can't at the very least do the same.

(Also ngl the whole "raising a kid like that is selfish" thing kinda makes it sound like she's in favor of "mercy" killing disabled babies so like. Hope that was a fucking poor choice of words and not something she actually believes!)

the internet is fun sometimes but other times you see an AITA where someone is saying they think it's wrong for people with inheritable genetic conditions to have kids because it's cruel and selfish to bring a child into the world if you know they could suffer and while I typically would not wish harm on another person I start thinking that maybe Dorothy Golden Girls was right about some people needing to become very sick and very scared at least once in their lives so they can realize exactly what it's like to live in a world where people think you should have been killed as a baby to spare you and the people in your life the burden of having to deal with a disabled person existing near them and needing their help and also that you're a selfish monster for having kids

[ackerink]

diverse levi headcanons! (kinda lol)

levi ✗ warrior!reader ﹒ betrayal. making up.

"if only marley could see their once great warrior like this," levi said, his tone sarcastic. "sulking in front of a dirt-blooded devil." he scoffed, hands in his lap as the fire in between you two crackles.

- levi has never forgiven you for your betrayal, not only did you abandon your comrades but you abandoned him.

- every time he hears your reason for turning your back on everyone he can't help but shiver. bring a warrior didn't seem easy in the slightest; it sounded horrible if he was honest, but it was no excuse.

- so many had died because of reiner, bertholdt and annie. though you didn't take any lives due to the functions of your titan; mainly being for support he still couldn't look past it.

- but seeing the regret on your face, the sincere apology slip from your lips—he melts. reminded of all the time he spent with you.

- levi had always loved you, he trusted you, more than he would erwin some would say. but now, as you two sit in the presence of one another, paradis against marley—the raid already passed. he finds himself faced with his emotions.

"are you forgetting that i'm a devil too, levi?" you ask, feeling your stomach stir with guilt. "no," he said bluntly. "I didn't forget. As much as I wanted to; I couldn't forget you, damnit. . ."

stalker!levi ✗ detective!reader ﹒ stalking. suggestive.

"i know that you know, it's what makes this all the more addicting, detective. . .what're you planning now, huh?" levi sighed, sat in front of his computer in the dark splice of his bedroom. he had been stalking you for months now, infatuated with the experienced detective next door to him.

- it started with just watching you through your window and checking his messages every few minutes to see if you sent him a message.

- levi couldn't help it, you were intelligent, gorgeous, talented and so good at your craft.

- he admired you if anything, maybe more than he should've.

- you had a bad habit of keeping your curtains open at night, your bedroom open for all to see. for levi to see. slipping your shirt from your body, revealing your breast—no bra, huh?

- it was like you were teasing him, torturing him.

"anyone could see you, don't you know that. . .?" levi bristled, his face growing hot, warmth pooling into his gut; fueling his sickening rapture. you wouldn't be too mad if he took a picture, right? just one quick snap with his old camera form the early 2000s, it still worked well. he made sure of it.

- though your suspicions grew, everywhere you went, levi followed. even at work he would show up.

- now, you were investigating levi like you would a murder case as his obsession grew.

levi ✗ military police officer!reader ﹒ no cw.

"this place is corrupt, i know but it was what i chose." you laugh, your eyes examining levi, his clean uniform. not yet stained by the blood of your oversized enemies. "bring your skills to the survey corps." levi's words didn't necessarily seem like a suggestion.

- the military police were just a bunch of pompous soldiers, who think themselves as high heroes of sorts. it's why levi hated them so.

- he hated seeing you with them, in their presence, wearing their insignia. their uniform dawned on your back. you were smart, highly intelligent and the mp's didn't deserve you in the slightest.

- not to mention their blatant abuse of power.

- you knew what you were getting into, you knew that the regiment had it's cracks but you joined anyway, convinced that you weren't meant for combat.

- though levi thought differently he wouldn't express it outright.

"join the survey corps, get away from these filthy assholes." convinced levi, watching you sign your signature on a piece of paperwork. most likely dumped onto you by your superiors, levi grit his teeth. "i'll think about it, levi. truly, i promise." you assured the scowling soldier.

underground!levi ✗ underground!reader ﹒ no cw.

"i'll leave this world," levi bled from his lip, the pain spread throughout his face. "and i'll take you with me." he promised, dusting the dry, foul dirt from your clothes. "levi-" you choked. "i don't want to burden you, we can spit on this world together. . ."

- living in the underground was hell, tunnels begrimed and muddy. criminals lurked at every corner and food was so scarce people killed each other for just a crumb or two.

- levi kept you by his side, it was where you were safest he thought.

- your mother was dead, like his own and your father hated the dark-haired thug you spent your time with. even as he grew older.

- but that didn't stop you, did you? levi was the only light in all this darkness. your father's hate boiled from underneath the surface, he didn't complain of levi in your presence like he used to.

- it made you grow suspicious, and over time as your father's health declined he laid in his bed, weak and more fragile than he had ever been in his entire life he confessed something to you.

"i sent a letter to your sister, she managed to join the military police-" he breathed only to become breathless once more. "she freed herself from this place. she'll come to get you once i'm long gone." he said. "i want you out of here, away from that boy and his-" a cough eruptted from your father's chest, loud and painful with a tender throat.

you couldn't stay to hear another word, you didn't want to leave levi, or furlan, not even isabel though it seemed you had no choice in the matter.

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

https://www.tumblr.com/burst-of-iridescent/686372912825040896/i-hope-you-dont-mind-me-adding-onto-your-post-op?source=share

"if zutara had followed through as their dynamic happened in canon, katara would have entered the partnership as an equal, marrying into a country that solely needs to make reparations. they would be getting together after the war, to the benefit of both nations. "

"none of us will marry the teenage rulers of countries that were formerly at war with ours, but many of us do know men like book 3 aang - men who take from us without giving in return, who feel entitled to our affection, who call us “their” girl, make us feel uncomfortable, and force advances on us. "

I really curious what do you think about it?

"She would enter the relationship as an equal, marrying into a country that raided her home for decades, kidnapping and killing people, and that is being FORCED to stop because ONE guy is feeling sorry about it, everyone else would have gladly kept at it" Zutarians once again trying to sweep "The Fire Nation thinks Katara is not a human being and should be killed" under the rug to pretend it is the "feminist nation" just because they wanted to genocide her too instead of just Aang.

"None of us will marry the teenage rulers of the countries that were formerly GENOCIDING US"

1 - Sexual tourism/trafficking is still a thing, dipshit, and most of the LITTLE GIRLS that end up falling victim to it are usually even younger than 14-year-old Katara. And, you guessed it, war and imperialism played a key role in what countries have more victims, and even entire systems dedicated to making money off of that kind of exploitation because surprise surprise, people who live in a country that regularly gets torn apart by a foreign power tend to be in super vulnerable situations. As someone from a country in which that is sadly still common, hearing someone literally go "NO ONE goes through anything remotely like that" made me see red.

2 - Historically, that kind of marriage (or a "marriage" that was just a kidnaping that involved a ceremony) has happened. A lot. And again, depending on where in the world you look, it still fucking happens.

3 - Every day you can find horror stories of people realizing their partner or spouse is actually a racist that either fetished them, or was ashamed of them for their race, or slowly started treating them like garbage and disrespecting their culture because they thought they could get away with it if.

And even if none of that stuff ever existed - Katara would still be in that situation if zutarians got what they wanted. She'd be a young girl marrying into a nation that hates her and would, at best, expect her to forsake her culture and family and be just the pretty, exotic, non-threatening wife, or at worst want her and Zuko dead for the crime of an interracial relationship. That's not a small obstacle to face and would very much mean Katara is NOT his equal because the natural power imballance of "My nation has been genociding yours for a hundred years" is a bit difficult to break, and this aversion to acknowledging that is what makes so many zutara fics be accidentally racist. Either make an AU to remove that entire thing, or embrace that as an obstacle that you OTP would have to fight to overcome so the fic has high stakes, but stop telling everyone to ignore the elephant in the room for the love of God.

And I won't even get into the gross mischaracterization of Aang. Katara was simping for that boy for three seasons. We repeatedly saw her get jealous when other girls were giving him attention, and her innitiating kisses with him, and her being FURIOUS when he said "I don't wanna kiss you." If you think he's a creepy stalker that forced himself on her, you're delusional. He was the best friend that had a MUTUAL crush on her and eventually became her boyfriend, you're just mad he's not Zuko (who was never into Katara, and whom she never had feelings for either)

This person desperately needs to read a book, watch the news, watch a documentary, go outside, talk to people, and touch some fucking grass because HOLY SHIT the delusion. The zutara corner really has some of the most racist motherfuckers in the entire ATLA fandom - which is saying a lot considering how racist the other corners can get.