#i dont feel well enough about this to actually put proper tags
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todayisafridaynight · 3 months ago
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I largely keep to myself in fandoms, only picking up the odd friend here-and-there or joining a group chat if I'm feeling brave enough. But all of this Twitter talk is making me want to try engage with folks on the platform too! My only gripe isn't even surrounding the community, since you can curate your space like you said, it's the lack of organisation and the dreaded infinite scroll on pages. I adore Tumblr for how easy you can come back to a particular post you reblogged a long time ago, or venture through the tags on somebody's page... but it feels as though that's not possible on Twitter with how it operates. Are there any ways to get around this? 🤔
tl;dr - if you're trying to find a specific topic on someone's page, type 'topic (from:@Username)'
example: minedai (from:@Snapperoni)
if you're trying to save a post to look at later, you can either use twitter's own bookmark feature, or you can use your browser's bookmark feature
long ass unnecessary winded edition below the cut
twitter's less organized than tumblr since tumblr's meant for proper organizational blogging instead of status-update-type posts like twitter (even if its blog tag search system only decides to work depending on the phase of the moon on tumblr), so fundamentally its going to be a little more awkward with organization. there's some things you can do though, and it's not impossible: it's just a little extra work
in my experience it's a lot easier to just 'run into' new accounts and posts once your algorithm knows what you like and i prefer to use twitter that way for finding art or discussions im interested in. trusting the wind and all and the wind's done me well to show me excellent art.
you can help curate your algorithm by going into your Settings -> Privacy And Safety -> Content You See. you cant manually type in topics to add (you CAN save searches though if that's anything: it just means you dont have to type in the thing you want to search when you go to the search bar), but again once you start liking posts it'll start to recommend topics like 'Yakuza' that you can add. you can also remove topics you dont like once they show up in the list under Content You See -> Interests
another way around is to just search your interest (i.e. 'baseball') and just start liking/retweeting a bunch of posts and the algorithm will do the rest for your For You page. following accounts posting the topic you like also helps (obviouslylol)); searching terms on twitter is a fine way to see people post about a thing you like. its like tumblr in that it'll only show you posts that have the tagged word (i.e. 'minedai) in the actual post (i.e. 'if i think about minedai for more than three seconds im going to eat gravel')
at most for coming back to a post you like, you can use the bookmark feature: ive used it. A Lot. and True it gets harder to find older bookmarks as time goes on but for what it is it's been nifty for me. i dont exactly look at bookmarks any older than maybe a month at this point, so it doees its job fine for my needs. if you're on desktop and you really want to save a post without using twitter's bookmark feature, then you can always use your browser's own bookmark feature (i do that with tumblr posts sometimes. it's definitely easier to organize things that way but i also can see how it might appear cumbersome)
trying to find a specific post or type of post from someone's 50/50 though, like tumblr (because i repeat its tagging system is only so reliable sometimes). unless they use tags or you remember a particular phrase they put in the post (you can search specific terms, that including tags) then you just have to scroll i fear. other than that, if you search the term you want and the account youre trying to look through (i.e. minedai (from:@Snapperoni) then it should show up: if anything, twitter's more reliable in actually showing you the post you're looking for so long as you have the term typed correctly
and ermmmm yeah i think thats all i got LOL. best of luck to using twitter
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toodrasticallydumb · 1 year ago
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20 questions for fic writers
Oh! Hello! I was tagged by @pinkytoothlesso11 ! Thanks for thinking of me pinky! I’m kinda new to the whole fanfic scene so i really appreciate it! This was already a long list of questions to begin with but i fear i may have made it worse…
OH WELL HAVE FUN SPORT :}>
1. How many works do you have on AO3?
Unfortunately just 2, though I do plan to add a few more in the future as ideas flow. Might take me a minute ‘cause my schedule is just a little bit kinda sorta really swamped down with my main child which requires let me you, A LOT OF CARE DONT SIGN UP TO ADOPT KIDS PEOPLE IT’S NOT��
2. What’s your total AO3 word count?
Phew. ummmm it changes very rapidly (because i’m a girl w suspected adhd and can NEVER be told to shut up) with every chapter but as of this moment is 228,665! wow! i don’t really know how great of a number that is but i’m sure it’s a lot! I told you I can never shut up! (-whispers- Hey kid, u want some dRuGs? i mean- an update? That itty bitty word count is about to take another not regularly scheduled mini-skyrocket so get ready for it ehehe ;})
3. What fandoms do you write for?
For now, just Trollhunters/Tales of Arcadia, mainly Trollhunters despite the fact that the first of the Tales of Arcadia shows that i watched and really enjoyed was actually 3-Below, but oh well my man is in Trollhunters sooooo oopsie but i DO have some random snippets of fics for Miraculous (rewrite), the Star Wars sequels (rewrite), Batman, some for the Dream SMP, and weirdly enough also Raya and the Last Dragon (rewrite). All of which i prolly wont ever post because i wrote them a while ago and yeaaaahhh not my best writing but if i get enough people other than my best friend wanting me to post them, i might…
4. What are your top five fics by kudos?
uhhhh i dont actually HAVE five fics to my name, so i’ll just…put em in order (w their long-ahh title names):
Trollhunter!Strickler: Destiny's Ill-fitted Chosen
'A MiStAkE' because I haven't updated in ages--A Stricklake month 2023 prompt collection
but i am so happy for the people who have left so many kudos on my work it really warms mah little heart ❤️
5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?
Yes. At first, I sorta struggled with it (who the heck am i kidding i STILL do) but since my fic USED to be two times a week updates i would feel like i couldn’t respond to a comment left after i posted a new chapter so i might’ve left some comments in the earlier days unanswered, super sorry. Nowadays i make it a point to reply back to everyone in the order that they commented in because (anxiety makes me think if i don’t respond they won’t comment anymore and know that i love reading their comments and that they’re so amazing for actually taking the time to write something back AND I DO LOVE IT I PROMISE IT JUST TAKES ME A WHILE TO RESPOND—) …because it’s pretty chill to geek out w em and see they liked stuff that i loved to write! I do have a backlog of comments to get to i just end up overthinking everything to match the person’s energy to be sure they know i love em.
6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
Unfortunately, i haven’t actually finished a fully-fledged fic to say it has the angstiest ending bUt definitely a contender would be chapter 1 of my 2023 Stricklake prompt collection because i just leave it on the sad note and don’t do anything about it because angst and because spoilers for my actual story fic that will eventually make it to that point.
7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
Happiest ending, huh? I like to say that most of the things i will/have chosen to write end happy/hopeful because i hate when books/tv shows end bittersweetly it’s like i have enough with life itself being bittersweet most of the time let me be happy LET THEM BE HAPPY. But that doesn’t exclude me from providing the proper banquet of angst that ends in caretaking, my absolute favorite trope.
8. Do you get hate on fics?
Oh heck no. I would be devastated honestly, but thankfully everyone who comments is always the sweetest and kindest people ever and really encourage me to keep going, for that i am only thankful.
9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?
No. Just no. I love romance but i am a minor, so i’ve never consumed smut nor intend to ever write it. Give me a soft romance and loving gestures, I can allude to greater happenings but not details.
10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?
I don’t, sorry. I don’t know something in me just doesn’t sit well with crossovers, for the life of me I don’t know why. Like genuinely i wish i could get into them but maybe it’s like food on a plate? i don’t like the foods touching each other so maybe the same rules apply??? yeah i’m drasticallydumb
11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?
Not that i know of, no.
12. Have you ever had a fic translated?
I don’t believe so, and if someone did they’re in for a heck of a lot of work there…
13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?
Nope! I’d like to sometime but i have no idea how one even goes about making a co-written fic, on top of which i am a very sporadic person in terms of motivation and random ideas produced by a song i’m listening to while writing.
14. What's your all-time favourite ship?
Stricklake obviously is a really big contender if not the winner, the ship that brought me to AO3, writing fanfics, and tumblr. But, if i had to pick other options i’d say Eugene and Repunzel from Tangled would be one of my ogs, another might be uhhh Chris and Aviva from Wild Kratts the og of the ogs.
15. What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?
Chapter 3 of my stricklake 2023 prompt collection, it just has a lot of moving parts and me and my best friend are chronic procrastinators and with the month pretty far gone it might just end up sittin’ there for the foreseeable future 😞 but who knows
16. What are your writing strengths?
Phew, that’s a dozy mainly because i’m not super sure. I’d like to think one of my main strengths is descriptions and really putting you in the mind of the character, i don’t really like spelling things out and i like a little investigating to get you where u end up, u know? I like to think my writing FEELS a little more like a show on a page rather than a true book, most to blame would be my maladaptive daydreaming taking up a lot of time in my planning for my writing.
17. What are your writing weaknesses?
Ah. How the turn tables. I would say that my weaknesses in writing mostly consist of me going a little *too* far into detail on meaningless things or making it too convoluted for people to understand, sometimes spelling it out is better in certain scenarios and i just really need to get myself past that. Another one i would say is that i go REALLY into detail not only in a sentence/chapter sense but also a complete STORYLINE sense, i hate time skips and i shoot myself in the foot wanting to completely document every moment of everyday w a character and hence it seems like a lot of time in universe hasn’t gone by. Trying to improve and grow tho 💪
18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?
Can’t wait to do more of it! Especially with Claire and her family (including NotEnrique) speaking spanglish w each other automatically mainly because i am hispanic and completely fluent in Spanish and live in a similar household so i just love to add a little ✨personalization✨ to my dialogue and interactions in that way. Other languages………….yeaaaahhh i’m not super good will prolly use google translate and hope.
19. First fandom you wrote for?
Trollhunters, my gateway into AO3. HOWEVER. if you promise not to tell, the very first fandom i read/wanted to write a fanfic for was actually, as far as i can tell, Wordgirl. don’t ask why. don’t ask me how. it just kinda happened. But, officially, it’s Trollhunters. (maybe with a side of Warrior Cats).
20. Favorite fic you’ve ever written?
Not hard at all! My pride and joy, my youngest baby in the grand scheme of my writing journey, Trollhunter!Strickler: Destiny's Ill-fitted Chosen! A surprise to absolutely NO ONE. It’s honestly so amazing to both write and see people read and enjoy as much as I do, he’s my little man ❤️ And doing so much rewriting and character growth and having so much written and planned for the future, it’s just my absolute fav
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deliveryclan · 4 months ago
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If the 'issue' is lack of attention: As someone who's been reading every post on the clangen tag for months, the times you post are fine, you just. Only ever seem to post short text posts about a clan no random person scrolling by has any context on and that doesn't seem to have started yet. and 'there will be something here eventually, here's a few shreds of info about it' definitely puts you on people's radar(you're certainly on mine!) but doesn't necessarily spark conversation with you.
oh, i do know that! i am planning on putting most crucial information in one post for once, however i feel like i need to show them first in proper context of a moon page and THEN make a coherent post. me saying 'hey there are monsters in there' sounds meaningless if i wont show them.. in actual comic first. i think people want visuals first and wall of text second.
"oh but you could draw for the post too' problem is im a slow worker, and if i could draw then i could just draw the moon itself, also this isnt the only thing im drawing. also im not unemployed, so that another x hours taken from my day.
alas i feel like it's. awkward. to put some major information about groups or plots that won't show up until like later moons (we wont see inside of the major non-sharing-border-with-one until like.. moon *39*). could it build up anticipation to see them in action? maybe?? i dont know??? i suppose???? it does for me personally, but i might be a Spoilers Georg, an outlier and shouldnt be counted. it could work bc reader knows stuff but the characters dont and it makes sense in most context. but also doesnt that make people discouraged bc 'well i know about the x now, so why keep reading' type of thing. like with spoilers for shows and books and games. i seen enough webcomics with people going 'wow the character is so fucking stupid for not figuring out the killer. like we readers saw who killed, why the character doesnt know that already'. 'wow the clangen cats are fucking dumb for not knowing about the other group's deal, like. we all saw the introduction post, didn't they also??? how they dont know all this crucial information, are they stupid' (< please read What Lurks Beneath and The Exiled, some of the comments are just like that and it's making my head hurt soooo badly)
also i feel like making random posts every now and then is a good way of showing that hey. im still here. im working. its absolutely incoherent to anyone but me. you know how some blogs dont update for x weeks or months and you wonder if you should still follow them, until they post a random post out of blue and then disappear for another month. i dont unfollow blogs for that, but i know others probably do 'clear' their follow lists if they see someone not post for few weeks, so.
so i do appreciate the message!! unfortunately we all know that people will learn something and then acts like the characters should know that too and act disinterested. or something doesnt get cleared for several pages and act like it's a plot hole. obviously its not going to stop me from working and all, attention or not. world is my oyster. but it's still good to hear people are interested, even if it is barebone?? damn.
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cecils-dragons · 5 years ago
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Lore stuff is finally coming in a way that I can doodle some of it down. It hard to parse but I am trying.
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4townlove · 3 years ago
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Headcanons for the 4town boys if their s/o wants to break up with them (in the end they actually break up lol)
it's once again time for a bit of angst, 4Townies. here we go. now presenting...
4⭐Town Headcanons: You Want To Break Up
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⭐Robaire 
given how romantic he is, he is very optimistic about your relationship. his love language is acts of service and giving gifts, and since he does both at such a grand scale and you seem so overwhelmingly surprised every time, he doesnt feel the need to question where you stand
you however, have been feeling too overwhelmed by everything. the more Robaire does, the more it all feels like a performance. he is charming and caring and romantic yes, but all the surprises and flash mobs and seranades in public... soon it becomes too much, so much that even being around him makes you nervous about what he might do. you never wanted it to end this way but you cant deny that you need some time away from him, even if it hurts to do so
when you call Robaire to a small quiet corner of the company building to talk, he is a little nervous but not in a bad way. his heart skips and his clears his throat to prepare for to sing out of nowhere, as usual, but when he arrives and he sees you, he knows something is wrong. 
you dont hesitate to be honest with him about how you feel, maybe talking too fast as to not give him a chance to cut you off with anything, but when you're done and you say you need some time away, he is silent for once. both of you are, you with relief but Robaire with complete heartbreak. you wish him well and quietly leave him as he stares into nothing, second guessing everything he ever did with you and questionning where he went wrong.
⭐Jesse
he is a considerate and doting boyfriend for sure, always including you in everything he does and especially in his kids' life and they are just as excited as he is to have you there. being with you is a joy for all three of them (i like to think he has twins) but the more you are with them, the more pressure you seem to feel from Jesse to keep the relationship moving forward, to make it more serious, to become a proper family together
he brings you to his kids' sports events, to their school plays, to help him when they have birthday parties, to days out at the beach or amusement parks, and at first it was fun but when you started appearing in pictures with them that he'd frame and put around the house, and he invites you to tag along when they have a parents consultation at their school, you realise everything is going too fast. its suffocating to be rushed and it saddens you to even have to consider ending things but you have to.
you pull him aside as soon as you are able, which unfortunately happens when he again invites you over to dinner at his place. you lead him out onto the front porch for some privacy, and when he realises youre upset and takes your hand as he asks what's wrong, it all spills out. you tell him that you think things are moving too quickly, that you truly care for him and the kids but you feel like youre being pushed to make things more serious when you're not ready. Jesse blushes with embarassment, apologising profusely but when you say you need some time away, his heart breaks. he looks away, kicking himself for not realising how uncomfortable you were but respects your decision. as you leave he looks on after you, taking a little while to breathe in the cool air before returning inside to his kids
⭐Taeyoung
excitable, enthusiastic and full of adoration for you, Taeyoung is prone to shower you with love and affection as much as he is able, wanting be to with you always, to talk to you and eat lunch with you and spend every waking moment with you. its no doubt that he's fallen hard for you and makes a point to show you with all his kisses and holding your hand and hanging off your arm whenever he can. if he cant, he always makes sure you're close enough to be able to see him doing whatever he's doing, and he gushes when youre eyes are on him. he wants you to be with him always , 24/7, 365 if possible but you...
you do like him alot, you didnt start dating him for no reason, but you cant help feeling so claustrophobic when you're with him. he never lets you go, never is out of sight or lets you out of his. you have no breathing room, no time just to yourself because he is always within your reach, no time to catch your breath because he is there at your side, his hand tightly clutching yours. you know it would break him if you ended things, but you dont feel like you can breathe being with him anymore, so stealing yourself internally, you decide to make it clear
on an afternoon similar to every afternoon for the past few months, you're sat with him on the couch in his dressing room, snuggled under a blanket, arms linked while he rests against you, gushing about the doves you're both going to see after practice. you hesitate over and over until you squeeze your eyes shut and blurt it out that you need a break. of course, he sits up and stares at you, tears filling his wide auburn eyes but you ignore them and explain how youre feeling. he apologies quickly, begging you for another chance, promising he'll let up, pleading for you not to leave him but you insist. 
of course he starts to cry, and as he does you give him one last kiss to the forehead before hugging him and getting up, quietly leaving the dressing room and at last, taking a breath
⭐Aaron T
everyone and their mother, their cat, their 16th cousin four times removed and their gods know about you and Aaron T's relationship thanks to Aaron T's enthusiastic declarations of it everywhere he goes. he is determined to show you off and make it known that he will do anything to make you happy. it was charming at first, and always brought some light into your day when he'd start pranking you specifically and laugh when you did, but over time, the more he continuously teased and joked and made fun of (lovingly) and pranked you, the less funny it became for you
T didnt know that your smiles were pained, that your laughter was forced and when you teasingly begged him to promise for this prank to be the last were all serious requests. he took them as challenges, that next time he'd get you so good that you would be even more shocked than before.
the more he persisted, the less you could hold up the facade, snapping a little more every time and being afraid to go anywhere knowing he'd likely try and prank you, especially in public. you didnt like the feeling of dreading his company but it was becoming egregious. but on the day he spooked you before him and the other members took to the practice stage to prepare for an upcoming show, you couldnt take it anymore
plainly you stated that you wanted to break up and Aaron T, thinking this was you pranking him in turn, laughed it off and tried to hug you but when you persisted, your tone firm, he blinked in surprise. you explained how tired you were, how it hurt for him to make your relationship feel like a joke all the time, to never take things seriously. everyone was watching you, the members, the managers, the stage hands but you didnt care. again, you said this was enough, that you needed time away from him, and finally Aaron T seemed to realise. you walked away from him, out of the studio and the building, leaving him frozen on the stage, confused and more deeply, feeling like he'd just lost something he wasnt sure he'd ever get back. 
⭐ Aaron Z
when he is with you, Aaron Z seems to come out of his shell. he talks more, laughs more and opens up to you about nearly everything he's worrying about, thinking about and planning towards. being so close to him is nice, knowing that he trusts you enough to be so honest is encouraging and when he tells you he loves you, you believe him without a doubt. the guys are surprised to see him so... alive (for lack of a better term) thanks to you and Z doesn't want to lose the joy you bring into his life. 
it isnt long before he invites you home to meet his grandmother and immediately you hesitate. he promises it's nothing serious so you agree, but after the dinner with his grandmother (and she is just the best btw), he takes you on a grand dinner date at a fancy restaurant. never had he ever seemed to be the kind to like this kind of thing, if anything you'd expect it from Robaire, but when he comes to pick you up, he's dressed a suit. he looks great but you cant shake the ball of nerves in your gut.
the restaurant is definitely something you know Robaire suggested to Z. its so much, so fancy, the menu is so unbelievably expensive you nearly lose your appetite and when he finishes the date, he presents you with something that rocks you to your core: a promise ring. 
it's then that your whole being locks up with fright and you stare at him, asking why he's acting so out of character. when he just replies that it's because he loves you so much, the anxiety inside you trembles through your skin and you shake your head, telling him that he needs to stop, that this is all too much, the meeting his grandmother, super extravagant dates and now the ring... you tell him that it hurts to say but you just need things to slow down, and maybe stop for a while.
Z is quiet, seeming to blink out of his daze and realise how he'd made you feel. he puts the ring away, clears his throat and you finish your meal in silence before he drives you home. when he pulls up at your house, he apologises for hurting you. you accept his apology but get out of the car alone, heading inside while he, after a moment to scold himself quietly, drives away in a deeper silence than he'd ever been in before.
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fandom-monium · 4 years ago
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I JUST READ KITCHEN CATASTROPHES OMG ITS SOOO CUTE UGH MY HEART SO SOFT CAN YOU PLSSS DO A PART 2? THANK YOU KEEP DOING WHAT YOU DO
AN: thank you, anon! i dont plan to make a sequel to KC. But if i did:
For Valentine’s Day
Summary: In which you throw a wrench in Spencer’s plans: you don’t like Valentine’s Day. “If it’s with you, I guess it’s not so bad.”
WC: 2.9k (whoops)
Tags/Warnings: Spencer Reid x GN!Reader, fluff, cussing, semi anti-valentines day, Spencer tears up but dont worry were there to fix that, established relationships (blegh), Garvez if you squint, post-For the Holidays
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Fuck cooking, Spencer thinks one day.
It's an irrational thought. The kind that strikes through his mind in a flash of irritation like a scrape of the knee as he is perusing the internet. Yes, he is using a computer willingly. He has to because he's desperate.
Cooking is stupid. Who really needs it, right?
He needs it. God, he needs it so bad.
His need to learn cooking wasn't as incessant until recently. Until you came along.
Spencer is a meticulous person and a romantic if you'd ever met one. Makes sense considering how he grew up, reading the classics and all that. He's read all the gooey literary shit old people write and while he never understood those meanings it all dawned on him one day. Quotes written like 'the stars in their eyes' and 'sunshine glowing off them like a halo', suddenly makes sense once he meets you. Or at least, after coming to know you, months into your newfound friendship.
It's because of this he plans accordingly the weeks leading up to Valentine's day! Because again he's meticulous and a romantic and a genius so he plans every step and makes a back up plan in case A, B, and C fall through.
Is he going overboard? 
… Nah. No way. Not when it comes to you.
But fuck with a capital F, man.
It's your third date. Or what is supposed to be your third date if you would just stop being you for a second.
Then again, he loves you a lot and he wouldn't love you if you weren't, well, you.
Although—pardon his french—what the fuck. 
Spencer knows he needs to learn to cook. You've tried plenty of times to teach him and he loves learning and he especially loves it when you are the teacher (wait, does he have a teacher/student fantasy? Maybe. That’s something he'll look into later. Preferably with you). 
Unfortunately, he's terrible at it.
He's made progress and he knows it's true because you said so but the miniscule progress he's made is. Not. Enough. And it's all your fault! Because he gets so distracted by you during your lessons, like when you put your hands over his to show him proper slicing techniques—holy fuck, he wanted to combust right there—or just watching your deft hands at work, lips and brow scrunched in concentration in that adorable way. And you smell like cooking oil or whatever you're making and you're hot.
He's so into you it physically hurts. Ugh. How is he so lucky? 
You're also the first person he's been this into since Maeve. And everyone knows how well that turned out.
So he tries to dial it down for Valentine’s Day. Morgan told him once he tends to throw himself into everything he does, including love. And when you two got together, he promised the universe he will not fuck this up. He ends up combining Morgan’s advice with Luke’s, trying to be casual like Luke says because apparently you're just as into him as he is of you. 
The thought makes him grin uncontrollably. Luke says it makes him look like a clown but a lovesick clown. A lovefool, Luke hehs.
Spencer doesn’t get the joke, but it does nothing to deter him.
As Luke advised, Spencer does “not” make a dozen back up plans and does “not" plan weeks in advance. Because that wouldn't be casual, would it?
But now the day’s come and as Valentine’s Day turns to Valentine’s Night, Spencer wants to pull his hair, rub his frustratedly stinging eyes but he can't because he's in the middle of work, in the middle of the bullpen, in the middle of his desk and he refuses to be that guy. Not again.
Why does he feel like sobbing? Like a loser? 
Because you don't like Valentine’s Day. No, you abhor it.
It happens in the middle of the work day. It's like he tried to open a door only for a bucket of ice water to be dumped on him and now he looks like a drowned rat. He definitely feels like one.
You're talking with Garcia about her Valentine’s Day plans as you multitask, switching between putting together packets and stacking them aside. Then taking them under the hole-puncher and stapling them together because the BAU isn't all kicking down doors and catching freaks. 
It makes sense that you’re chatting with Garcia during your break. The two of you have become two peas in a pod after you came out of your shell. Now you're inseparable. Only you make Garcia leave her batcave as much as she does now.
Out of sight, he catches tidbits of your conversation when he hears distinctively: Fuck Valentine’s Day.
Okay, you didn't say that verbatim but you might as well have, grimacing as you three hole-punch a packet and his heart. Then a nail on his coffin only it’s with a stapler. 
Thump. Chick.
Spencer winces; there goes your his Valentine’s Day plans. 
It shouldn't sting as much as it does. You've been dating for over a month and Valentine’s Day is definitely not his favorite holiday either. It's not even top 3. And as you rant he can’t help but silently nod in agreement, all the facts straight: yes, it's an eyesore. Yes, it's a capitalistic holiday. Yes, people should do nice things for their significant others no matter the time and not because it's expected on a specific day. Yes, it doesn't compare to Halloween—
The thing is, you two aren't that “couple-y”, at least in a traditional sense. Not like Will and JJ who got a babysitter so they could go out or like Luke and Garcia as they plan to go to a special Valentine’s Day event she wants to check out (she vehemently denies anything going on between them but he doesn't need to be a genius to see the affection they have for one another. Just kiss already, damn).
So yeah, Spencer hoped to spend the romantic holiday with you. For once, he'd have Valentine’s Day plans, aside from exchanging cards with the team and his mother.
But apparently you hate Valentine’s Day! So there goes plan A, B, C, and D!
Spencer feels the tears spring at the corner of his eyes. He sniffs as subtly as he can, raising an open case file to his face. Of all the plans he hadn't thought through this was not one of them. IQ 187, his ass.
He should've known. Or at least ask your thoughts on Valentine’s Day. That was inconsiderate on his part. He blinks back tears, withdrawing into himself despite his hurt because he is a lovefool and only for you. He just wants to impress you, make you happy even if that means canceling your first Valentine’s Day together.
Now if you'll excuse him, he has to call off a few reservations and make some returns. Several actually.
Can you return a dozen donuts in the shape of hearts?
… Yeah, he better ask Emily for the rest of the day off.
"Hey Newb, have you seen Spencer? I haven't seen him since his break," You ask, resting your chin in your hand as you squint at another form. Your eyes are beginning to tire. 
Spencer asked you several times over the course of the last week, checking to see if you were free today. You are, so you planned to hang with him after work, but he hasn't returned from his break and he wasn't answering your calls or texts. Not unusual but still odd for your boyfriend (you still can’t believe you get to say that).
Luke sighs, his smooth voice reaching over your shared divider, "You know at some point I'm just not going to respond. You guys can’t call me Newbie forever."
"Keep telling yourself that," You snort without looking up.
Another sigh and you smirk: you win.
"For your information," Luke grumbles, words punctuated with sass, "Doc went home."
You pause. "Home?" He didn't tell you.
"Yeah, probably to get ready for your date."
"Our date?" You frown and stand up, leaning over the divider to see if Luke’s fucking with you.
He isn't. Luke shrugs, humming wistfully as he rests his cheek in his hand, "You should've seen how excited he was, being it your first Valentine's Day and all. I told him to chill out because you'll love whatever it is no matter what but I'm sure he ignored that and planned something spectacular for you guys." Sitting back, he twirls around in his chair.
You grimace, recalling your earlier conversation with Garcia. 
Shit.
"Meanwhile, I have to spend Galentine's Day with Garcia because all the ladies of the BAU are taken and I have nothing better to do—" Luke comes to a full 720, catching the tail end of your coat as you whip it on and make for the door. "—um, excuse you?"
"If Emily asks, I had an emergency!" You manage to call back, throwing open the glass door.
"Okay?"
"Thanks, Newb!"
As the elevator door dings shut with you inside, leg jumping because you have a sneaking suspicion you fucked up, Luke slouches in his chair and grumbles.
He's not a newb. Or a newbie.
You rush over to Spencer's, catching your breath as you stumble to his front door. There's shuffling from inside, the faint sound of clanking and crashing and your heart swells because this is the man you’ve fallen for, the first one you've ever felt this way for. Here he is, being all considerate and romantic. And here you are, fucking it up when your relationship’s barely even started.
God, you're an asshole, you berate yourself as you turn the doorknob and push open the door. You're an asshole you're an asshole you’re an asshole—
Then your eyes widen and your jaw goes slack. 
Immediately, you slap a hand over your mouth and nose as your favorite scented candles hit you like someone shoved a bouquet in your face. The description isn't too far off considering there's a lovely bouquet of your favorite flowers still in its wrapping, haphazardly set next to a dozen donuts on the coffee table like no one's business. Its petals are strewn across the floor, a few in tiny piles like they were hastily swept to the side. Red and pink and dark green fill your vision.
Who gutted Cupid and tossed his organs around, holy fu-
"(Your name)?"
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Startled, you crane your head to find Spencer, beautiful hair askew and his tie hanging loosely around his neck. His sleeves are pushed up to his elbows as he clutches flowers to his chest. In his other hand, he grips the colored strings of several shiny red and pink balloons in the shape of hearts and—fuck—your heart might actually float up from your chest and into your eyes.
This is your man. Your partner. Your boyfriend.
Your boyfriend panics, fumbling for a second before stuffing the balloons and trimmed flowers back into the room behind him and slamming the door shut. He turns back to you, eyes wide.
"What-what are you doing here?" Spencer stammers, wringing his hands together.
You blink at him, dumbly holding up your phone. "You-uh-you left early and didn't return my calls."
"I'm sorry. I think I left my phone at work," Probably because he left in such a rush, Spencer groans, looking anywhere but you. The petals scattered over his floor are quite pretty in this light. "And I was a bit busy."
"I'm sure you were," You gawk openly at the strings of fairy lights hung around his living room. It's a clash of aesthetics. Spencer always rocked dark academia, but despite how ugly the combination of red and pink decorations with his nature green walls and dark wood is, it leaves his apartment a little brighter, a little cozier, and you love it.
You love everything about this.
But as you take in the ugly beauty of it all, Spencer fidgets at the doorway, mistaking your awe as shock and disgust. Wiping sweaty palms on his trousers, his eyes dart around, trying to focus on something, but every place he lays his eyes on makes him cringe. He catches all the things he couldn't clean up or put away in time. No doubt you do too. All the leftover flower petals, the donuts he can’t return, candles that haven’t blown out because he has the lungs of an 8-year old asthmatic. 
Spencer can't imagine how appalled you are.
And the longer your silence stretches on, the more nervous he gets so he blurts out, "I'm so sorry, (Your Name)!"
Your brow shoots up as he begins to ramble.
"You must hate this. I'll put everything away."
"You really don't have to—" You stop him, and your heart nearly crumbles as Spencer's does when he finally meets your worried gaze. 
His eyes gleam with unshed tears. He swallows, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have—"
"Doc—"
"At least not without asking you—"
"Doctor—"
"I understand if you want to break up—" His voice cracks, as if the idea itself will destroy him (it definitely will). 
"Spencer—" His voice, wobbly and dripping with unnecessary guilt, draws you to him.
"But I want you to know that I—"
With an exasperated sigh, you grab his hand as yours finds the nape of his neck, pulling him into a soft kiss. 
For a second, Spencer doesn't respond because who kisses the person they're about to break up with? Strange, really. But then he kisses you back. His hands remain frozen, unsure of where he stands, but he tilts his head to deepen the kiss. He figures this is a new social cue he has yet to learn. And if this is the last time you kiss him, he'll treasure every second of it, take whatever you'll give him because again he's a lovefool for you. 
And when you pull back, he's too dazed he nearly misses the look you give him. Suddenly, he can’t breathe.
You look at him like he hung the stars instead of cheap fairy lights around his apartment. 
Spencer’s confused. "I-I... Wha—"
"I'm not breaking up with you," You chuckle, and you nearly burst out laughing as genuine puzzlement takes over his face. You tug him behind you, plopping yourselves on his couch. You smile, appreciating the way he organized the cushions and throw-pillows; there's now space for two people to lay down.
You take a breath. "You wanna know why I don't like Valentine’s Day?"
Spencer slouches, though his body is angled towards you so you suppose that's good. He sighs, "Because it's a capitalistic holiday that reinforces the idea of doing the bare minimum…"
He begins listing your reasons, and your eyes soften. Of course he listened and remembered even if you mentioned it offhandedly.
You nod once he finishes. "Yes but before that—and I can't believe I'm telling you this—back when I was a little kid, I didn’t get any Valentines."
Spencer's brow furrows at the newfound information. You continue, "I'd get some from my friends and stuff but that's not what Valentine's Day is about. At least not when you're a kid. When you’re a dumb kid, it’s about couples and romantic shit, and I didn't really have any of that growing up." You purse your lips and glance away, face flushed with embarrassment. It's really not that big a deal, but putting it into words makes the idea seem more intimate and personal.
It takes a moment for your words to sink in as Spencer can't believe his ears. How could you not have been showered with love and affection and presents on Valentines Day? It's like water doesn't make things wet or fire doesn't produce heat; it just doesn't make sense. Because you deserve that much and more.
"So every Valentine's Day, I lowered my expectations and eventually I stopped caring. I'd tell myself those things and I started to believe them," You bite your lip, eyes crinkling as you give Spencer a sheepish smile. "But now I have you."
At that, Spencer returns your smile, letting you take his hand. Any tears he had seem to evaporate instantly.
“So, I'm sorry that I hurt you. I stand by what I said before, Valentine’s Day sucks. But if it’s with you,” Blushing deeply, you play with Spencer's hand, large and veins defined compared to yours, shrugging, “I guess it’s not so bad.”
Spencer’s smile broadens, and he intertwines your fingers together. "So what you’re saying is, you don’t hate this?” He looks around his living room.
You shake your head, unable to stop the grin crossing your lips. “No. In fact, very much the opposite. Honestly, thank you for this, it’s beautiful. I have no words.” You breathe it all in; the candles, the flowers, the— Your nose wrinkles and you snort, “Did you burn something?”
Bashfully looking down, he scratches his chin. “I-uh-tried to make your favorite dishes. Though, I was hoping the candles and flowers would mask it.”
You giggle and pull him into you, snuggling into his side. “That’s okay. I’d much rather have you anyway.”
With Spencer a blushing, stuttering mess in your arms, head resting on your chest, you press a kiss to his hair and conclude; yeah, you don’t like Valentine’s Day. 
But you sure as hell love Spencer more.
AN:  FtH status: finished - 7/5. yes 7.
I realize this was not what anon requested but oh well i wrote this at 2 am 
I’m not that anti v day but i stand by the capitalistic aspect.
yes this takes place after For the Holidays.
also included luke bc hes my bro and i honestly think he deserves so much more than what the show gave also garvez ftw
happy post valentine’s day!!
Song: Lovefool by The Cardigans
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miyaniacs · 4 years ago
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this will be so much fun!!!
OKAY SOOO I’LL DO SOME OF MY FAVES FOR THIS ONE OKAY?
(repost bc it took too much time to write this to not show up in the tags numbers of failed attempts: 2 )
warnings: I guess slight nsfw and me being tipsy while writing this , all characters are 18+
characters: Kurro, Akaashi, Kenma, Oikawa, Bokuto, Ushijima, Iwaizumi, Osamu, Atsumu, Sakusa
masterlist
HC The boys find out their crush is a cam girl / has an onlyfans account
Kuroo
AYT NOW LISTEN
it was late at night and he couldn’t sleep so ... there is one thing he hasn't tried yet...
now he’s on some popular cam girl website and scrolling through the different cams
then he stops
this one girl seems familiar
he clicks on it and
JACKPOT ?! its YOU ??? HIS CRUSH ???!
but OMG. he had the best night of his life sweety
but still.. he will now definitely ask you out on a date tomorrow.
after seeing your beautiful body and the way you moan and move
HONEY NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO SEE THIS AGAIN
other than that he probably thinks it’s hot af that you are a cam girl
I mean Kuroo aka pornstar
he loves the fact that you the sweetheart for anyone else but could be the pornstar just for him
smug af the next day he sees you from afar
shy af the second you come over
Akaashi
HE DID NOT OPEN THIS TAB OKAY
he did tho but HE DID NOT OKAY?
OKAY!
so anyway - his browser magically opened his one website
and he just hear someone talk
he recognised the voice but - NO... this can’t be you right?
yeah jokes on him
he chocked on his on salvia when you walk in the view of the camera wearing nothing but some sexy black lingerie
GURL. BITCH THOUGHT YOU WERE A BABY?!
but now he knows you aren't
you definitely aren't
but he now wants you to be his babygirl
and he wants to look away.. but he can’t
soooooo ..... yeah. he had some fun that night
wasn’t sure how to look into your eyes the next time he saw you tho
Kenma
he did not find you
Kuroo did
and yes he immediately sent him the link with a voice memo of him basically just screaming
the said link lent to an onlyfans account
despite the fake user name, he instantly recognises the birth mark on your arm
yes the many times he watched you when you all were out with friends made him recognise this stuff
so did he pay to see the rest of the pictures and videos?
yes.
was he embarrassed?
oh hell yes.
was he still enjoying it?
yes.
is he now able to look into your eyes?
no.
Kuroo has to do all the magic to make him speak to you now - because you are, despite the account you got, still a shy bean who can’t talk to her crush
Oikawa
screams in the middle of the goddamn night
you - you just brought him chocolate a few hours ago?
and now your stripping in front of him? I mean you don't know that he's watching since you just do it in front of the cam
his little oik-oik is growing
he thought you were innocent?
will sent the link to IWA-CHAN
with a “LOOK AT MY CRUSH OMG”
after your lingerie is off and you took out a toy he sent another message
“WAIT NO DONT LOOK AT HER”
he will be all cocky tho when he sees you the next time
you walk up to him, saying a cute and shy “hello” and he’s just
“you haven’t been this shy last night”
you panic and run away which results in him panicking running after you screaming apologises
Bokuto
He is hyped
OMG
Poor Akaashi will probably know about all of this too
he has so much fun watching you online - imagining that you are here with him at this moment doing all of this just for him
which you secretly do since you’re also imagine him watching this
will open this website more often the following days then he would admit
i’m not sinning that much to actually write down the stuff that’s going on in his head
the next time he sees you
he does question if it was really you who he saw online
you are nothing like the girl he saw there
SOOOOOOO he straight up ask you
“hey y/n !!! are you (your username)” he smiles and tilts his head
you just black out
Ushijima
again poor baby
Tendou and Semi told him to visit this site - hot farmers advice
this baby thought he’d actually learn something he could tell you - his crush - since you recently TOLD HIM that you try to grow some tomatoes
but when the site finished loading
HE WAS NOT EXPECTING TO SEE YOU ON THERE
with nothing less than lingerie, an oversized plaid shirt AND a straw hat
you’re on all fours and the way you move and moan and talk to the camera
he wasn't really taking note of where his hand is wandering rn
soon after, you are now without a bra, he finds himself rock hard
the next day you tell him about your tomatoes WHICH ARE GROWING (!!!) he gets red af and just leaves
you look confused at a laughing Semi and Tendou rolling on the floor
Iwaizumi
he usually doesn’t do this stuff... but... it was some time until he got some
and he just wants you - so he doesn't want to hook up with some random girl
you’re pure and innocent and he accepts this and will wait for you too feel comfy enough so he can ask you out on a date
anyways he’s at this random website
and switches trough the channels to find someone he likes
and he chocks.
THIS CANT BE
YOU
he actually was about to text Oikawa but then stopped because Oikawa
he starred at the screen not even blinking
his hand is moving so fast
and all the things you say and the way you tease your viewers
omg
hny
he really wants to fuck some manners in you okay?!
awkward af the next day he sees you tho
yes talking about blushing IWA-CHAN
Osamu
his Laptop was broken
so he used Atsumu’s
WHO left this tab open
he let out a small scream, his normally stoic face falling
WHY ARE YOU NAKED ON HIS BROTHERS LAPTOP
now he sees that it’s an only fans
WHY IS HIS BROTHER PAYING TO SEE HIS CRUSH NAKED
but hey.. Atsumu’s not home... and he told him it’s okay to use his laptop..
a few minutes later he’s already worked up watching your beautiful body, his eyes following every movement of yours
he can’t really comprehend that you are the same girl that always comes to his shop, always stuttering and nervous while talking to him?
BUT HELL WAS HE ENJOYING IT
and those pictures of you in this maid uniform.
OH AND IS THIS CHOCOLATE ON YOUR BOOBIES
his imagination went wild
“OY i see you’re enjoying my present?” - Atsumu came back home
Atsumu
I mean it’s canon that he watches porn and is paying for some cam girls right?
so he’s looking for some now that look more like you - his crush.
someone cute and innocent
Gosh he loves it how easily you get flustered when he flirts with you
this one looks promising he thinks
and hell was it promising
it was you
surprise surprise
he was blushing for a whole minute baby
THAT ASS ?!
how tf have you hid that all the time?
SO many dirty thoughts
SOOOO MANY
will def call Osamu to his room
after he finished this lil problem down there obviously
Osamu is grossed out - he thought you are cool  and now he can’t look at you the same way
Atsumu tho - wont get that much sleep that night, your body and all the thing’s he’d do to you circling in his head keeping him up
is Atsumu enjoying this way too much the next day he sees you? Obviously YES
he will walk up to you, flirting, and when he’s about to leave he adds
“How about you skip todays stream and put on a show just for me?”
Sakusa
IT. WAS. NOT. HIS. IDEA.
Ratsumu sent him a link
our poor boy thought it was about volleyball and not something so dirty
he was CLEANING HIS ROOM WHEN HE OPEND IT
with the cleaning product you suggested to him
and now he sees you on his phone also cleaning
but with - with NOTHING ON ?!
he dopes the products and sits down on his bed - he knew you are beautiful but damn.. this hits different.
you with some MR. PROPER and WINDEX
PUHHH his fantasy is running wild WILD now that he sees you.. move .. and cleaning some of your toys and well
.... he needs to change the sheets and cleans again afterwards
ok so the next day... Atsumu already told you that he knows about your dirty little secret and that he sent it Sakusa to “help you two ”
Sakusa came and looked at you disgusted “You're dirty even tho you’re cleaning? that wasn't the way you’re supposed to uses those items.” he adds
“Then make me pure again?” you return ( @tendouthighs​​ about Sakusa) “- and show me how to properly use them”
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sunsinrinn · 4 years ago
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Secrets Part 4.
Bakugo x reader, Bakugo x Uraraka, Kirishima x Reader
Fluff, language, very little angst
Word Count: 1,266
Idea: Y/n has a secret to share with bakugo not expecting a secret from him. She leaves heart broken and attempts to move on. But how will she move on if her secret can no longer be hidden? She fakes a relationship hoping its enough to not expose the true origin of the secret. (This is a terrible summary but I cant say much without spoiling future parts. 🙃)
(Y/n is roughly about 4 months pregnant going on 5 months )
“Mina- Y/n is not huge-“
Mina ignores kirishima and looks at you, she grabs your belly, “Oh my god you and bakugo finally got pregnant!”
You stiffen when you hear that and out of the corner of your eye you see kirishima does too.
“Actually mina... Me and bakugo are not together anymore...”
“WHAT?! WHY?! WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME SOONER?!”
“Mina dont be so loud... Let’s talk about this at that cafe over there”
Mina looks over to where you are pointing and nods, “Fine” she grabs your arm and practically drags you there so you can hurry and tell her the tea. Kirishima rushes after you not wanting you to be alone.
As you sit down Mina speaks up again, “Alright tell me already!”
You look at her and sigh, “We are not together anymore because he cheated on me...”
She looks at you in disbelief, “Why the hell would he do that bullshit? And with who??”
“Ochaco” She widens her eyes. “NO FUCKING WAY- YOU’RE TELLING ME THAT BITCH HAS BEEN ACTING INNOCENT EVERY TIME I SEE HER?”
Kirishima looks around and apologizes your the pink haired girl’s outburst.
You hush mina and she glares at you but lowers her voice, “Okay so he cheated on you but why are you pregnant?” She gasps and speaks again, “Don’t fucking tell me he left you alone pregnant? I will kill that son of a bitch”
“NO-no Mina the child isn’t his.”
She looks at you confused, “Then who’s is it?” She looks over at kirishima who suddenly becomes interested on that slightly off colored tile on the floor. “ITS KIRISHIMA’S?” You shush her again so she says it lower, “its kirishima’s??!”
You and him nod at the same time. You feel a bit guilty lying about the real identity of the baby daddy but its better if no one knew. “Well at least you now have someone who cares and will stay loyal no matter what pussy ass skank bitch throws herself at him.” You sense the shade thrown at Ochaco but stay quiet.
You look at kirishima and see he’s looking at you smiling. You smile back and look back over to mina who is deep in thought. After a moment of silence she speaks up, “When will the others know about you’re baby?”
“We actually don’t know how we will tell the others...”
She gives you a sly smile and responds, “I know the perfect way”
You are filled with dread knowing she likes to go overboard, you look at kirishima and you see the same reaction. “What are you thinking of?”
“A BABY SHOWER!”
Your face brightens up, “Oh that’s a great idea! Right Kiri?”
He looks at your face and nods, “Yeah mina that is a great idea”
“Then its settled. I will plan it all out!”
“Are you sure Mina? I can help? I am literally home all day now.”
“No, no, I can do this myself. Are you home now because of the pregnancy?”
You nodd, “Yeah I’m not gonna do any hero work until after the baby is born”
“Well okay, you can help with some stuff..”
“Thank you!”
“Wait- does the public know you’re on a leave? Or that your no longer with Bakugo?”
You shake your head, “They don’t which is a good thing because then no one will really know I am pregnant.”
Kirishima reaches for your hand and says, “We should go continue shopping before it gets late baby”
You blush at his name he gave you but nod, “Its been great catching up with you Mina! I’ll talk to you soon about the baby shower!”
Mina waves and shouts as you leave, “Congratulations again on your baby, y/n! I’ll see you soon!”
You walk with Kirishima back to the stores and end up buying a couple of things for yourself to wear and for the baby. Kirishima almost bought everything they sold in the baby section but you stopped him from going overboard. “Kiri, this baby will be spoiled rotten if you continue to buy so many things for them!” You laugh at his small blush and hear him say, “I just want the little angel to know just how much I love them!” You nod, “I understand, darling but lets tone it down a bit, how will we carry all of this home?” He looks at the pie of bags you both have got and sheepishly smiles, “You’re right lets go home now”
You give him a small kiss on the cheek and head home.
After putting away all the things you guys bought Kirishima puts on the news as background noise while you both start dinner.
After finishing dinner, You begin to serve but stop when you hear your name on the news,
“Now for todays news, Pro Hero (hero name) is no longer doing hero work until the foreseeable future. We have gathered intel and found out that they are leaving hero work for now because they are pregnant!” You scoff and laugh because damn. They’re late to figure that out.
“An anonymous tip says she cheated on Pro Hero Ground Zero with his best friend Red Riot.They are seen multiple times together holding hands out in public. Ground Zero has refused to comment and we have yet to hear confirmation from (hero name)
Or Red Riot”
With that you become angry because first of all how dare they assume your a cheater. If anyone is the cheater its Bakugo. Kirishima walks to you when he hears the news and wraps his arms around you. “Don’t fucking listen to them, babe. Tomorrow, you and I will give out an official statement together.” He pulls away and looks at you before giving you a soft kiss. “Come on lets eat, babe.” You nod and finish serving dinner.
Midway through dinner you hear frantic knocking on the door. Before you get up Kirishima gets up and rushes to open the door to find Izuku looking at you both with wide eyes and Shoto behind him. “Is it true?!” Izuku walks in followed by Shoto.
“Nice to see you too Izuku” Kirishima says sarcastically.
Izuku glares at him but asks you again, “Y/N! Is it true you’re pregnant?”
“Izuku for being my neighbor and seeing me everyday you sure are blinder than a fucking bat”
He blushes but continues, “I didn’t know! I am shocked you didn’t tell me! You’re best friend!”
Kirishima who fakes being hurt from Izuku’s words, “I thought I was her best friend!”
“No, you’re the boyfriend” both you and Izuku say
Kirishima acts hurt, “oH wow- Shoto help me out here- wait why are you here?”
Shoto and Izuku blush at the same time.
“Kiri, baby, isn’t it obvious? They’re boning each other”
At your words both boys turn even redder and begin stuttering before finally izuku manages to get out a proper answer, “We did not come here to talk about me and shoto boning-“
You and kirishima burst out laughing as Shoto and Izuku look embarrassed even more.
“Okay okay lets stop being mean kiri baby” he stops but continues to smirk at the couple in front.
“Izuku will it make you feel better and forgive us for not telling you we are expecting, if I say I want you and Shoto to be the god parents?”
“Hell yeah, shoto you hear that? We are future god parents!” Shoto smiles and nods at Izuku as you shake you’re head.
Shoto speaks up after a while,
“So Kirishima, how does it feel to be a dad?”
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SERIES MASTERLIST — Part 5
A/N- Another chapter! Yay! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter <3 If you’d like to be tagged in future parts or future works dont hesitate to dm, ask, or comment! I hope you guys had a lovely day today! Also if you asked to be tagged and I didnt tag you send me a dm so I can fix it :)
Secrets taglist: @hero-ink-pillar , @silentw-lkr , @ushiwakatrash , @purple-rabanito
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sweater-daddiesdumbdork · 4 years ago
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“I’ve Got The Perfect Name”
Summary- 2.9k Sam Wilson x You. Your in training with the Avenger Team and have a slight mishap. No one else is bothered by it, but you can’t seem to get over it. Sam takes you out to early morning breakfast to his favorite place to take your mind off it. Its fluffy fluff. No warnings. Unless you count Bucky stealing food off someones plate a warning. Written for @jtargaryen18​ 4k challenge. Congrats babes! Much love always. 
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The day Tony Stark came out as Ironman, things changed. The world changed. Suddenly superheroes were no longer something from comic books and movies, but real actual people, and you wanted nothing more than to become one.
This whole new world opened up, and you were quick to join in, putting in your schooling to join SHIELD. Specifically Nichols Fury. Your time working with Nicholas Fury really opened your eyes to possibilities you never could have fathomed. Being a Shield Agent trained you in all manners of fight styles and technology. So years down the road you had to move on from Shield when Captain, Black Widow and newly recruited Falcon proved it was compromised. Yet you followed Fury, your work had become everything for you.  
Life happened, the snap happened, and you continued on through it as best you could. The losses, there was no way to properly mourn. You tried, once in a while to deal with it, attending Steve Rogers support groups, the two of you would talk one on one. You told him about your history with Shield and Fury, he told you more and more about the Avengers, those people he considered family. You could see the pain it caused him. 
“You don't have to Steve, it's okay.” 
“No I got to, it's how we keep their memory alive.” He would simply say. You left it at that, maybe you were helping him as much as he was helping you. Over time, he became more then someone you once worked with, he became a friend. 
The day came when the snap was reversed, and Steve Rogers called you the next day with urgency. “We have to talk, meet me at that cafe by your apartment.” 
When you two happened to meet an hour later, he slid a folder across the table at you. “I have an offer for you.” 
**************************
You landed on the tarmac designed specifically for War Machine and for the new Captain America. Sam, he really wasn't about to give up his wings, not for the new title. You let out a frustrated exhale as you stepped away from the bullseye target and Sam landed down as you were walking away. 
“Y/N! Come back here, it wasn't your fault.” His red wings folded behind him, and he jogged over to where you were opening the door and going back into the compound, undoing clasps and the harness holding your own wings and sliding them off. 
“I spiraled out of control. If that had been a mission Sam, I could have hurt someone!” You snapped out as you pushed your own set of wings into the lock up. “I need to do better than this.” 
Sam shrugged off his own and put it next to yours. “You are just learning still. It's only been a few months. When I first got the wings with Riley, we were crashing all over the damn place. It takes time. I'm ready to have you join the team now actually, if you weren't so damn stubborn.” trying to reassure you, you shrugged him off, closing the lockers door. You still felt like you were failing the team, and Rogers. He had believed in you when he gave you this opportunity, and still you were making mistakes. Sam might brush it off as small, but for you they were huge, significant. 
“Well I say I'm not.” your arms folding over your chest and sighing. “I have to be perfect, you guys can't afford to have someone making basic mistakes.” 
“Y/N, you know you can’t be perfect, no one is.” He started, but you already were walking away from Sam to go back down to the lounge, when he stopped you, frowning a bit. “You do know that right?” eyes studying yours and you gave a sharp nod, and forced a smile. 
“Sure Wilson, don't worry. Tomorrows a new day.” Extracting yourself from his grasp, you continued to the lounge area, leaving Wilson frustrated with being unable to get you to calm down.  
Inside the lounge area, you went immediately to the kitchen, searching for something. Anything that can take your mind off your mistake today, pulling open the fridge door, and slamming it shut again with an aggravated sigh, then onto the cupboards and drawers. Yanking open one, you saw a half crumpled bag of Mint Milanos, and snatched the bag, unrolling it. Taking out a cookie you munched on it, when a deep voice from behind you made you jump and spin around, catching sight of Bucky sitting at the table, a ripe purple plum rolling between his metal fingers. “Bad day Y/N?” He sunk his teeth into the fruit and chewed it. 
“Disappointed in myself.” You dug for another cookie and crammed it in your mouth. 
Bucky used his foot to push out a chair, and you went to sit in it, snapping your next cookie in half and offering him half of it, which he shook his head at. 
“Sounds kinda like you're beating yourself up, I haven't heard of anyone being hurt. So what happened?”
You picked at the cookie a bit before taking a bite, chewing it slowly and setting the rest aside. “Clint be mad if I eat all his cookies.” Bucky snorted with laughter and took another bite of his plum. 
“He aint gonna care. Probably won't be back for another few months now that he's back home with Laura and the kids. So? Wilson getting on your nerves, cause I could give you a few payback tips.” 
“No no… Sam was helpful. He’s been trying his hardest training me with the wings. Sam told me to be careful of those updrafts, and one caught me unaware, I turned when I should have tilted.” you continued on, Bucky listening and when you tapered off, Bucky had finished his plum, the pit left behind that he made a toss, which it kerplunked into the nearby garbage can. 
“So you made a mistake today. You learn from it and dont do it tomorrow.” 
“And what happens when I make a mistake in a mission Buck?” 
He wiped his hands against his thighs, and moved to a stand, grabbing two beers from the fridge and handing you one. “You make it right, your human Y/N, just like the rest of us. You wouldn't fault any of us on a minor thing, would you? I hope not, cause then I would be fucked.” Tipping his bottle to yours with a clink, he left it at that. 
****************************************************
You still couldn't shake the feeling, wandering the compound early in the morning hours, you wanted to test the wings again, prove to yourself that Rogers wasn't wrong in picking you to take the Falcons place. You were just about to go up the stairs back to the tamarac when Sam came out of nowhere and grasped your arm. 
“No way Y/N, you know you can't go flying along in the middle of the damn night. At least not yet.” 
“I wasn't- Okay okay, I hear you. I just can't sleep.” You gave in, and let go of the handle, stepping away to show Sam that you weren't serious about actually doing it. 
He seemed to study you, and then in the dark his grin flashed bright. “I got something better in mind.” Tugging you away, you followed him down, heading towards the garage. 
“Well what's that Wilson?” 
“Oh you will see, get in the car.” He opened the passenger side door, and you folded your arms in defiance. 
“You know it is only fair to tell a person where they are going. What if sweat pants and a hoodie isn't proper attire.” 
Giving you a nudge, in which you complied, he shut the door and went behind the wheel. “I assure you, you will be fancy enough there. Promise.” The drive was quick being 4 in the morning and no traffic. You leaned forward to read the sign above where he stopped. 
“The Wayside? You took me to an all night diner?” 
“Sure did, best place to get breakfast this early in the morning. Plus you were driving me nuts at the compound. Up all night, pacing around, beating yourself up over nothing” Sam insisted, and got out of the car, you followed suit, wrapping your arms around yourself as his own went over your shoulder, leading you inside. You scowled at him and rolled your eyes. 
“I was doing no such thing.” 
“Sure you weren’t Y/N. Morning Sal!” Sam called cheerfully to the cook just in sight in the kitchen, he gave a wave of his spatula in salute to Sam and turned back to his stove, where you could see he was preparing to start cooking. Sam scanned the room, and then pointed at a booth near the entrance, situating you on a specific side. “Perfect, exactly where we need to be.” 
“Need to be?” You questioned as you sat down, glancing out the window to a sky starting to lighten up, another car pulling into the parking lot. 
“Yup, take your mind off yesterday, get a damn good breakfast and just chill.” Sam explained what he wanted, and you listened closely, laughed with a light shake of the head, arching a brow with a grin on your face. Just what Sam was looking for. 
“You actually do this often?” you say as a waitress grabs a couple menus, making her way over, dropping them off. 
“Sam, two mornings in a row? I say you must be growing sweet on me, cause Sal’s cooking isn't that amazing.” 
“Awww you know I'm always sweet on you.” Sam flirted back while you took the menu, and flicked it open. Nearby you could hear Sal cursing in the kitchen, the waitress rolling her eyes. “Don't mind him, he does that every morning. Get you two something to drink? Coffee, tea, juice, milk, water?” 
You snapped your menu closed with a smile to your waitress, even if you were still bleary eyed and half asleep. Your eyes darted to her name tag before answering. “Coffee please Sara.” She jotted down before waving off Sam's request. 
“Orange Juice and coffee, black?” She quirked a brow and Sam confirmed with a wink, and nodded. “Be right back you two.” Her flats clicked on the linoleum floor while she went around the counter, and grabbed mugs. You settled in your booth seat, your back leaning against the wall as your legs stretched out on the seat, glancing at Sam. 
“So… you actually sweet on Sara?” You grinned at him, and he nodded. 
“I've been thinking about asking her out. She's a sweetheart and I would love to get to know her better. I just haven't yet.” 
“And, what's stopping you Wilson? You wait too long, and someone else is going to beat you to it.” 
Sam glanced out the window a minute, shrugging a bit. “Eh, seems like we’re always heading out doing something, and do I really want to drag someone into a life where she's worried? How is that fair?” 
“Well…” You drifted off, Sam wasn't wrong. The thought had crossed your mind before. It would be alot to ask anyone to wait around, not knowing. As Avengers, they could be called on day or night, plus couldn't talk about their mission. Your partner wouldn't have any idea. “... Ask her. She should be able to make that decision for herself, right? You don't know, she might be okay with it, ya know? Besides, its just a date. Get out and have fun.” 
“I could say the same for you Y/N.” He snorted, and caught Sara heading back over, flashing his bright grin and thanking her as she set down your coffees and his orange juice. “Can I set you two up?” She untucked her pen from her ear and grasped a pad from her apron. You were prompt in ordering your blueberry pancakes with sausage, Sam with hashbrowns, bacon and two fried eggs. Your foot nudged him under the table, and he flashed you a look. Since he wasn't ready, you didn't push any further for now. Left alone again, you picked up your conversation where it was left off. 
“Same for me? Just cause I haven't dated in several months.” 
“Ha, you haven't gone for a night out since you took the wings.” He sipped from his coffee cup while you were prompt grasping sugar and cream, dumping it in. 
“Well I'm in training, I don't have time.” 
“You're done with training Y/N, the wings are yours anytime you want.” His eyes lifted to catch yours, and you could feel unease as to how he turned this right around on you. Back to what was keeping you awake, the reason you and Sam were even out at 4 AM. “I even got a kickass name for you Y/N, since you can't have Falcon.” 
You picked up his straw that Martha left for his orange juice, twiddling it between your fingers. “Wait, why not? You're not the Falcon anymore, since you took the shield.” 
“Falcons mine, I still got the wings, Red Wing. I'm not giving that up. But, now hear me out.” He sounded so excited that you made a go on motion while prying off the top of the straws paper, listening. “We can call you, The Kestrel.” 
That made you snort, bust out into a laugh, looking at him with amusement. “The Kestrel? Oh damn, where did you come up with that?” 
“Come on, it's cool. You're smaller than me, and your wings do that hover in place thing. Know what Kestrels do when hunting? They hover over a spot till their prey bolts in fear. Then BAM! strike. Its badass name, you should consider it.” 
“When did you go all Nat Geo on me Sam?” You purse your lips at the end of the straw and blew, shooting the paper at him, which he swatted away. Grabbing the straw from you, he stuck it in his orange juice and drank. 
“Since forever, You should try it sometime. Expand the brain.” Tapping his forehead, Sara was heading back over with two steaming plates, setting your stack of blueberry pancakes in front of you, and Sam's full breakfast in front of him. “Thanks Sara.” Sam smiled warmly at her this time, which was returned. 
“Enjoy you two, let me know if I can get anything else.” she looked at both of them, and then retreated back to help newly arriving customers settling at the counter. More regulars as she engaged in conversations with them. You couldn't help but watch Sam's lingering gaze follow her before he went back to his plate. You poured syrup on, and cut off your first piece. 
“How about this Sam, You go ask Sara on a date, and I will consider taking up the wings officially. Name and all, no more training. You and Buck both seem to think I'm ready.” compromising with him, you saw a flash of accomplishment in Sam’s eyes and an outreach of his hand. 
“Deal, shake on it, or it doesn't count.” 
Your hand reached across and gave a firm shake. Once your hands separated, you made a motion for him to go, in which he took a deep breath and slid himself from the booth. When approaching the counter, Sam caught Saras attention, and you went back to cutting pancakes, trying to not be obvious watching from the corner of your eye. You could see Sam putting on some of his charm, a warm smile, leaning in closer. 
Bucky suddenly fell into Sam's seat in the booth, grabbing a piece of bacon off his plate and crunching it. “Can't believe you two didnt invite me.” 
“Shut up Barnes, i'm trying to listen.” you scolded him, taking a glance to see both Sara and Sam had their phones out, and appearing to be setting up a time, exchanging numbers. 
“Oh! Is he finally doing it? About damn time. He's crushed on her forever now.” Now a piece of Sam's toast was gone. 
“We made a deal. I decided to officially step out of training if he asked her out.” 
Bucky looked at you in surprise, the triangle of toast hanging from his fingertips. “Well damn, the one time I sleep in, all this exciting stuff happens. What changed your mind?” 
“You and Sam.” Shrugging a bit. “Maybe you two were right, plus it was the incentive Sam apparently needed.” 
“Bucky, get your own breakfast!” Sam shoved back in the booth next to Bucky and grabbed his plate back from his friend. Bucky resettling in against the window, finishing off the piece of toast he had snagged earlier. 
“Why? I got yours.” he snickered and glanced back over your way. “Sam tell you his name yet?” 
“Mmhm, The Kestrel.” you chuckled and Sam shook a fork at you with a piece of egg at the end. 
“It's a cool name, and I stand by it.” 
“I will give it some thought. You get that date?” You change the subject, Bucky and You looking at him expectedly. 
“Matter of fact I did, tomorrow night I'm taking her out.” 
Bucky grinned, clapping Sam's shoulder. “Hell yea man, good for you.” Swiping another piece of bacon off his plate, the three of you continued on, the sun finally coming up to start the day, filling the cafe with easy laughter and the clinking of forks on plates.
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morizoras-cave · 4 years ago
Text
Manners (Request)
Sherlock x gn!child!reader, John x gn!child!reader
Genre: fluff
Request Description: Thank you for saying you’ll write for Sherlock, I appreciate it :) Could you do one where all the peeps are round for dinner (Sherly, Mycroft, Greg, John ect) and John invites his cousin round (like age 9) and she’s just like REALLY polite and even when Sherlock says something really mean from one of his deductions she just brush’s it off and forgives him for it and even Mycroft likes her (PURELY PLATONIC PEOPLE) and she asks to see the brains in the fringe and Sherlock is ECSTATIC
Warnings: none really
(A/N): the only warning here is really that i dont remember the sherlock characters THAT well. and ive totally forgotten who sherly is, so this fic must live without her hahaha
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“Fuck,” John mumbled, looking at you at the entrance to 221B Baker Street. He had to take care of you today, and while he usually loved taking care of you, his niece, today was not the day he had expected. 
You were the most delightful and polite girl, your mannerisms just made everyone around you smile. But John did not want you to meet the careless, brutally honest, and genius Sherlock. But today, the one damned day where he had to take care of you, there was a dinner with Sherlock, Greg, Molly, Mrs. Hudson, and Mycroft (the latter had with pleasure paid for it all).
“Language,” you said, giving him a warning glare. The action was enough to make him smile. His heart melted.
“Let’s go inside then,” he said reluctantly, deciding that there was nothing he could do about it. 
You entered the home, eyes glittering as you saw all the weird and unconventional items stacked on the shelves and furniture. You held your admiration, and politely brushed your shoes off on the mat, before taking them off. You then placed them in order, even taking the time to lightly push the others’ strewn-about shoes in a straight line.
John watched you with a smile. He had no idea how his aunt had produced such a person as you, but he was thankful for it. 
From the kitchen loud clattering and sizzling sounds came. Sherlock popped his head out, gaze first on John, then lowering to you. John took a deep breath, knowing he had to introduce you now. 
“This is Y/n. They’ve just turned-”
“9 years old..” Sherlock mumbled, looking a you with narrowed eyes. John sighed. You gave the sociopath a toothless smile.
“I’m sorry, sir, but I’m actually 9 and a half,” you walked up with him and then reached your tiny hand up for him to shake it. Sherlock looked at you, and you had no idea what he was thinking, but you hoped it was about shaking your hand. 
“Lower your hand, Y/n,” Sherlock said and disappeared behind the doorway to the kitchen. You lowered your hand slowly. John was already regretting bringing you over. “A nine year old’s hands? That’s an enormous number of bacteria I could gladly live without.”
“Nine and a half year old!” you called after him, but remained positive. It was his decision to not shake your hand, and it was your duty to respect that. 
You stepped further into the living room - or what was normally the living room, now just a room stuffed with a dining table that was too big for it. 
“I told you all we should’ve done this at a restaurant. Or my house. Or anywhere else, really,” Mycroft, you guessed, said from his place at the table. He had a very cat-like voice, you thought.
“Yes, well, now we’re here,” Mrs. Hudson (whom you’d met several times before, and who was always delighted to give you homemade cookies) argued. Just as she finished, you made your way up on your chair, greeting the guests with a smile. 
Currently seated was you, Mycroft, Mrs. Hudson, Greg (the police officer John had told you about), and John who was settling down beside you. Sherlock and Molly were in the kitchen, and by the sound of it, they were making soup. 
“Aw, who’s this?” Greg asked, pointing at you. 
“Y/n. Y/n Watson reporting for duty!” you said proudly. The people around the table aww’ed. 
“They’re a charmer, huh?” Mycroft commented. John nodded at this.
“Soup’s coming in! Soup’s coming in!” Molly warned, carrying a rather heavy looking pot into the living room, holding it with some cloth. She placed it down with a ‘plunk’, and then sighed in relief. “Gosh, I thought I was gonna drop it all.” 
“You were statistically very likely to drop it, you’re very lucky,” Sherlock said as he entered, sitting down on his chair at the end of the table. Molly flushed and sat down as well. 
“Dig in!” she said and everyone did, hoisting some of the boiling-hot pea soup into their bowls. You made sure to compliment Molly on the soup, to which she smiled with a smile that mostly said wait-why-is-there-a-nine-year-old-here.
You kept a proper conversation with everyone at all times, making sure to bring in the quieter ones. Meanwhile, John was staring at you in adoration because you were simply overbearingly cute, but also because in his head it was very unlikely that you came from the same gene pool, yet here you were.
“She’s quite polite, this one. Children these days usually have no discipline, no manners,” Mycroft said at one point, and from what you had gathered throughout the evening, that was the closest thing to a compliment you would get from him. 
“Thank you, Mr. Holmes, but I think that kids my age can be very polite. Maybe you just don’t know the right kids!” you said, sipping your soup. Mycroft smiled and shook his head. Sherlock, who was sitting at the end of the table, soup untouched, seemed unamused. 
“Kids are dumb. Nine year olds are dumb. Gosh, people are dumb too, and you kids are just dumber versions of already dumb people,” he said finally.
Everyone at the table turned their heads towards you, wondering if you would snap and start yelling or crying. Instead, you snickered, putting your spoon down. 
“That’s a very bold statement, Mr. Holmes,” was all you said, and although you wanted to say more, you couldn’t stop snickering. Sherlock watched you, and you saw his face change. You couldn’t quite tell what it meant, but he didn’t retort. 
Slowly, people fell back into conversation, and so did you. The dinner was very pleasant, and you were happy to see that you had made a good impression. 
“So, Sherlock, you started cooking soup these days?” Greg pointed with his spoon to the pot, now only a quarter or so full. The noise of his spoon against the metal let out a hollow ‘clunk’. 
“No, no, I was in there supervising. Making sure Ms. Molly didn’t mess with my refrigerated brain.” 
At this, you gasped. 
“You have a brain?” you asked breathlessly, mouth wide open, and your hands on your cheeks in shock. Sherlock’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Yes, I do.”
“Can I see the brain, Mr. Holmes? Please, can I see your refrigerated brain, pretty please?” you begged, curiosity and adventurousness getting the better of you. 
John opened his mouth to protest, but Sherlock came first, with a small smile, that he didn’t seem aware was on his face: “Yes, of course!”
You tried to control yourself and not run into the kitchen, but your excitement was still very visceral. You were bouncing about, unable to stand still, and doing a little victory dance every once in a while. 
Sherlock opened the refrigerator theatrically, the light turning on and shining on you, as your eyes landed on the human brain. 
“Wooooooooow,” you squealed, “that’s so cool- I mean, that’s very impressive..” you could hardly contain your excitement, but Sherlock couldn’t either. No one was every excited about his brain (the one in the fridge, of course, the other was often a topic of interest). 
Sherlock then proceeded to give a full anatomical tour of the brain, taking it out and showing it to you up close, letting you hold it, and telling you all the facts. Meanwhile, John was having a mental breakdown, trying not to look. He knew very well that he would get in trouble with his aunt for this. 
“This is the frontal lobe. If you damage it, you become like me,” Sherlock said morbidly, showing the front part of the pink nerve. 
“That doesn’t sound all too bad, Mr. Holmes. You seem pretty cool,” you said passively, still fully entranced by the brain. Sherlock, however, took full note of this, eyes snapping to you immediately. He smiled. 
“Alright, I think it’s about time me and Y/n head home!” John said when he’d finally had enough. You were too polite to protest, so you just quite literally bowed to everyone and then left with John. 
When John came home later that night, after dropping you off back at his aunt’s place, Sherlock was still awake, brain in hand. 
“Uh, doesn’t that go back in the fridge?” John asked. 
“In a moment,” Sherlock responded. Then, “Why don’t they come over more? The kid.”
John looked at him in confusion. “Y/n? Why would I bring them over more?” 
Sherlock sighed, turning his attention from the brain. “I feel like I could give them good anatomical knowledge. Perhaps, teach them a bit about science and such.” 
There was a moment of silence and then John scoffed. 
“You really just want me to bring Y/n over, because they think you’re cool?” 
“That’s not at all what I said, John!” Sherlock protested, moving to put the brain back in the freezer. John sauntered off into his bedroom. 
“Whatever!” he said, and then the conversation was over.
But then, slowly, he started bringing you over more, each time letting Sherlock and you have your own weird conversations on life, people, biology and everything else. You become very rich in knowledge of science and anatomy, and in return Sherlock’s ego went through the roof. 
It was a fair trade, you decided, and you loved every moment of it. 
___________________________
Tag List:
@hera-the-writer @marvel-madness @40srogcrs @whatthefuckimbisexual @snarky–starky @garbage-potato @lozzypoz321 @rororo06 @shady80smusicsingercolor @ireadfanficforfun​ @deephideoutmilkshake​ @rae-is-typing​ @sophs-library​ @herecomesthewriterwitch​ @alicedanganh​ 
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Note
Hey mod. Not sure if you remember, but I'm actually the one and the first person who asked you long ago about possibly banning and/or moderating pro triggering confessions and discourse on this blog. Basically, the one who sent you this ask long ago post/651983072577880064/hi-i-dont-know-if-its-possible-but-is-it
The reason I asked was because back then, people were allowed to go back and forth behind anon replies, and using this blog as a messenger to direct a reply to a confession or someone else, etc. And as someone who was a victim of CSA and came here just to read people's opinions on plain shipping stuff, it was indeed hard to read the pro confessions about triggering ships and topics. But they were tagged properly– because you always make sure of that – so I didn't have much problem, because I got them all filtered and blocked. But the real issue was the back and forth anon replies. It was really difficult to scroll through or look past them because they weren't tagged at all. That's why I humbly asked you if there was a possible way to have them under control to an extent.
I'd actually stopped going to this blog after sending you that ask because it was affecting me a little bit too much. But it was only recently that I came back and I was really pleasantly suprised to see that you have actually implemented changes and rules after I sent my ask regarding the issue. I just want to take this opportunity to say that I really, truly, and wholeheartedly appreciate all that you've done to ensure this blog can be a safe space for everyone. You really went to great lengths to make sure everyone has a comfortable experience scrolling and reading your blog, so really, thank you. It mustn't have been easy to sort through everything and to put the proper trigger warnings for all of it when needed. It must've been extra work for you and I really appreciate your compassion and understanding in this.
Although, I really didn't expect that your doing this could have brought so much negative feedback from some people. I did find out about you being called out a few times on a naruto blog callout for doing trigger warnings on the confessions. And also I saw some asks you received related to this too. And to an extent, I feel guilty. I was the one who sent the ask to you. The ask that consequently caused this blog to have the proper tws and you having to do the extra work. And now you seem to be taking all the blame, when really, you're just trying your best to be considerate to others who may share the same experiences as I have.
This is a very long ask, but if I may suggest – as long as anon replies are no longer permitted (since anon replies are not tagged so there's no way to filter them), I think it's okay to not put the tw confessions under "read more", as long as they are tagged properly. The recent anon talked about experiencing bandwith problems due to the read more, so I feel like it's not fair for them (or others that may experience the same thing as them as well), to have to face such problem.
However, this is just my suggestion. I hope this won't be too much of a work for you if you were to implement it one day, because you truly have done so much already, and I have no idea how you are able to manage it so far. Once again, I can't thank you enough for all the effort and hard work you've put in. Thank you for being very thoughtful to your followers and people visiting this blog. And I apologize for the very long ask. I wish you nothing but tons of blessings, mod. Thank you.
I do remember. Not in detail, but I do remember.
It never occurred to me about tagging anon replies for those who had triggers. I can be a bit dense sometimes. Observant other times. My apologies. I did end up ridding them, but if they come back, I know to tag those too. (Well, I have the read more and trigger tag at least for now).
Thank you. My followers and viewers comfort (and entertainment) is my top priority. "It mustn't have been easy to sort through everything and to put the proper trigger warnings for all of it when needed." To be honest, I left the old ones and was slowly working on changing them. Only the new ones got tagged. Since I've been told it would be better to tag the offending ship, it ended up being best to leave them tagged. I should add a trigger tag for those while I think of it. (as not everyone has the ship name blacklisted)
Some people have a problem with censorship. Other's because a certain ship shouldn't/should have gotten a trigger tag. Even though I explained the tw reasoning, many took issue. Don't feel guilty about asking for tw posts or for my doing extra work. It was really no problem at all and it wasn't as time consuming as it seems. The only hard part was deciding if a certain ship was triggering or not. But I made it work but tagging them "just in case". And people helped with suggestions. I just wish I had thought about tagging anon replies in the first place.
Yeah, other's pointed out the same thing after the bandwidth problem. Had no idea that was such an issue. I'll slowly, but surely work on getting rid of them and ship tagging them. (Some people may have the trigger blocked, just the ship or I may not know the right trigger tag to use)
As for anon replies. They've been gone a while, with future consideration to bring them back with changes. I have added a few to "test the waters". The were on "read more", but rather than being a separate post on their own, they were replied/reblogged from the original confession. Which was trigger tagged anyway and the post itself hidden.
Shouldn't be much work. I'll have to keep the old ones and the new ones I have done (on drafts) on the text format, though. (As oppose to the picture format the non trigger ones are in). Which will lighten my work load considerably, As it means I only have to edit out the read more part. Rather than deleting and redoing the post.
Thank you again for your apprication. And never mind the long ask. It was well thought out and lovely. I enjoyed reading it.
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shhh-no-ones-home · 4 years ago
Text
light pollution jack daniels x reader
+++++++++
so this was originally supposed to be a two part story but i didnt like what i had for part two so i had been putting off writing and editing it. but i finally decided that this first part is decent enough to post without part two so it is just gonna be this stand alone oneshot instead and i hope you guys like it (cause honestly im not too sure i do lol)
Age gap/college student
He asks you on a proper picnic date after you tell him party/nightlife/bars aren't your scene. He takes you out in the middle of a beautiful wild flower field for dinner as the sun is setting.
Song: into your arms by the maine
tag list: @cynic-spirit +++++++++
i sipped my drink awkwardly as i looked around the bar again. my friends had dragged me here and so far i hated every minute of it. not only that, but i was tasked with being the DD, again. i sighed and set my drink down onto the lacquered table, looking up as i saw a handsome looking man in a cowboy hat approaching me.
"evening."
he said smoothly, tilting his hat to me as he leaned over the chair opposite me. i nodded back.
"evening."
i said softly and he smiled.
"forgive me miss, but i couldnt help seeing how sad you looked from across the bar and figured id come offer my company, if you want it."
he said a little bashfully and part of me felt a little flutter in my stomach.
"actually i wouldnt mind that."
i said, pulling the chair out beside me.
"my friends kind of ditched me."
i said and he nodded as he sat down.
"well im sorry to hear that. im whiskey."
he said offering his hand and i laughed a little bit, shaking it.
"thats an unusual name, im y/n."
i said and he flashed me a wicked smile.
"well i think yours is  beautiful, just as beautiful as you."
he said and i couldnt help the giggle escape my body, feeling my cheeks burn under the neon bar signs.
"youre too kind."
i said, looking to my drink and spinning it between my hands.
"so, whats the real reason youre sitting here by yourself?"
he asked and i laughed a little bit. i looked to him.
"im that obvious huh?"
i asked and he sent me an endearing smile.
"yeah, who am i kidding? this isnt really my scene. i mean, dont get me wrong i love drinking, i am a college student after all."
i said with a laugh, looking to him as he studied me.
"i dont think i wouldve gotten through my second year without a little something here and there, but uh, yeah, i dont really do the bar scene. id prefer to drink over like a game night or on a picnic, or something like that."
i said and he sent me a reassuring smile. i shook my head and moved to take a drink.
"that probably sounds ridiculous."
i said and he shook his head.
"no, no i dont think so. i know crowds arent for everybody, and neither are parties. i think it reflects greatly on your character; like you know what  matters."
he said and i sent him a bashful smile in return.
"wish more people could see that."
i said, looking back to the table. i sighed deeply before he moved closer, tilting my chin up gently with his finger.
"how would you feel about going on a date with me?"
he asked and my eyes went wide.
"i know this great place by the distillery i work for, remote, away from the city lights, wild flowers that go on for miles."
he said and i held my breath.
"we could, i dont know, picnic, watch the sun go down?"
he asked and i nodded quickly.
"yeah, whiskey, i think id love that."
°°°°°°°°°
I rubbed my hands down my thighs a few times as we made it further out into the wilderness. The conversation had gone pretty good so far but I was still a little nervous. I did really like whiskey though, and I was glad he'd asked me out. And as a bonus we'd been texting back and forth the entire week between the time we met and right now, which made me feel much more comfortable. I smiled at the thought, looking to him for a second as be turned down another back road.
"I'm sorry again this is taking so long, buy hopefully you think it's worth it."
He said, looking to me for a second and I let out a short laugh.
"What's a little wait compared to a date with a gentleman."
I said and I could see him smirk as he kept his focus forward.
"Manners maketh man."
He said nonchalantly and I side nodded, a little impressed. He did have a point. When I looked back ahead my mouth dropped. Just behind the tree line was white and yellow wild flowers that went on forever.
"It's beautiful."
I whispered as he parked the truck, reaching over and taking my hand in his. I looked to him quickly before leaning over and kissing his cheek.
"It's perfect."
I beamed and he just stared at me for a second, rubbing his thumb over the back of my hand.
"It's jack."
He said and I raised a brow.
"Jack?"
I asked and he nodded.
"Whiskey is just a nickname. My real name is Jack."
I squeezed his hand before letting go and getting out of the truck. He looked a little lost for a second as I looked back at him.
"Well jack, I suggest we get to it, we've only got so much daylight left."
I said he laughed, shaking his head.
°°°°°°°°° As the sun went down I could feel the warm breeze begin to float around us. It made the flowers and soft lush grass bustle about, lifting the corners of the blanket we were sat on. Everything about it felt right though, the atmosphere of it all, jack and I both sipping wine and chatting about ourselves, and then there was the fireflies. I hadn't noticed them before but they made me smile. Then one landed on the blanket beside me. I scooped it up and held it in front of me.
"I haven't seen these guys in a long time."
I lamented, watching crawl over my hand, blinking every once in a while.
"Careful, I hear that light is how they attract a mate, I wouldn't want to loose you to a bug."
He said and I laughed, watching it flitter away and back to the flowers. I looked to him and he smiled.
"I may like most bugs but I don't think you have anything to worry about."
"Well that's good to hear, cause I really enjoy your company darlin."
I felt my heart quicken in my chest at his words.
"I've been having a really good time too jack."
He smiled widely at me, rubbing his hands nervously across his jeans.
"Say, would you maybe wanna go on another date? With me?"
He asked and I nodded quickly.
"I'd love that Jack."
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lumilasi · 4 years ago
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Hey battle of bands au anon here! Thank you sooo much for the advice , I've decided to choose all might because I dont want my fic to be too angsty or plot heavy. I also realised afo can be a very complex character to write and I dont think I can pull that off in my first fic. Also I love the approach you're taking on AFO in stringmaster , it is currently one of my favs!
I haven't read all your fics (yet) but as far as I have read I dont think endeavor has had a major role in any of your fics but if you have any advice on his characterisation then I'd love that. I want this fic to be more fluffy with just a little angst so I dont want to make endeavor as horrible as canon. He's still obsessed with his children (shoto and dabi) being number 1 but I guess not as horrible to his family. Basically I'm stuck at a scene where endeavor has to react to dabi being ranked 2nd in a pleasantly surprising way but not completely out of character. Idk if that made any sense or not I feel like I'm having trouble putting things into words.
Anyways thanks for the advice and if you have any regarding this scene pls help a girl out lol
Ha ha, glad to hear it helped out! And yeah, he can be, hell I’d say Tomura can also be very tricky to write given his complexity. But def. AFO is up there as well.
Stringmaster AFO is fun (and challenging) to write, because it’s this...weird contradiction, where he does understand emotions and how humans work in theory, but lacks the ability to sort instinctively realize these things himself. Basically meaning he both gets and doesn’t get it.
Almost everything needs to be conscious choices to him for the most part, rather than just knowing how to react in situations where empathy is needed. 
But enough about that! 
Yeah, I don’t use Endeavor a whole lot in my fics other than being the bad father he is in canon, because...tbh I find his character pretty boring? Like his most interesting parts are basically plot device stuff to have an impact/act as motivation for more important/interesting characters. (I.E Dabi and Shoto) Without those he’s just...kinda generic prideful grumpy guy? He just doesn’t really stand out to me from any other hero outside the bad parenting. 
It probably bothers me more/is more noticeable than it would with other mangas I’ve read, because he gets contrasted against well-written and complex characters like many of the villains, or if I have to pick a hero example, Aizawa and Toshinori. 
 (To be fair, I have this issue with a lot of the hero side characters, they feel really underdeveloped/one-dimensional to me a lot of times. I get you can’t flesh out every single one of your hundreds of characters properly, but sometimes even more central focused hero characters feel underdeveloped to me, IDK) 
....I better cut this rant short and get back on topic about the actual question haha
I feel like I’d probably need more context of what is going on to give proper useful tips, but the first thing that comes to mind would probably be him doing kind of a backhanded compliment or so, where he expresses that Dabi did good job but also still make him feel like it’s not enough? IDK how to demonstrate that exactly tho. 
I think the best example I can offer is Stringmaster AFO, now that he was brought up? Like the birth of Mon-chan comic I made, (here in case you dunno what I’m talking about) where he compliments Tomura about his achievement, but then casually tells him he could scrap it and try again because it wasn’t perfect. In his mind he was stating a fact, but it comes off pretty cold, especially to a kid who’s looking for his approval. 
Something along those lines could work with Endeavor too, though obviously his delivery would have to be more exaggerated and aggressive, because he’s not suave/well-mannered (or lessay pretentious) like AFO lmao
Also I think to make it feel in character someone would probably have to point out to him that he needs to be more encouraging and supportive, because a prideful dude like him’s gonna struggle being able to figure it out himself. So it’d be like “good comment, bad comment, gets scolded and tags on another good comment clumsily” or something. 
IDK if any of that helps, but I tried at least. Either way I’m looking forward to reading your fic someday if you manage to write it. Who knows, maybe you’ll get some fanart for it too C; 
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savnofilter · 4 years ago
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ive been getting a lot of hate asks and stuff about my dabi fic posted yesterday and i'd post about it now rather than leave for it later. *here is the comment that was in my fic that made some people upset. it's from the original doc and has now been edited out from the story itself.
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when i had written it, it was ONLY in reference to the kink (chikan) itself since it is a popular genre in hentai's/pornos and an actual issue in Japan. "sick obsession" was in reference to the perversion of groping, not the people themselves. just like if i were to write something for ex; america, it would be something like, "america had a sick obsession for teacher and student relationships". the part itself just was not the best way to describe it since i directly am not from Japan. it wasnt meant to say that "japan people are xyz". i do not believe that Japanese people are rapists, and although it came across as that anyways, i do feel sorry about it because it wasnt my intention at all. if you know me, im one of the people who hate any type of stereotypes/jokes about asian people. in me explaining the quote, i am in no way excusing what was written, just explaining what i was thinking when i wrote it. i do now understand that it was insensitive, and it was my fault for even thinking it was a good idea to put in the story in the first place.
it didnt cross my mind that to any reader that it would be offensive and it's ironic considering it placed in anime fic of all places. the line wasnt removed to cover it up, it was deleted because i realized i had fucked up and didnt want anyone else to feel like that reading my story. for that anon and anyone else who took offense to it i am very sorry because i really didnt think it through and there isnt an excuse for it. just poor judgement and writing.
the second issue is that people were saying i condone/support rape now because they think the reader gets assualted in the fic. i do not write rape nor do i condone it. never in the story does reader get raped and i even state that Dabi wouldnt do that to someone (because i believe he wouldnt), especially to someone he does/nt know. in my fics i always make sure to add in that either character x reader know each other and have discussed such kink, and or character gets a definite answer to reader that they (reader) wants it. even if i were to write it, it would be for something plot wise and not just "yes good assualt" and the whole story wouldnt sexualize it. yes it was poor timing, and yes i still believe in everything ive said before and even now.
since we're on the topic of consent fics anyways, i had also freshly started receiving hate about writing dub-con only after i had made a callout post (back in july) and all that jazz. from then, i have even stepped up from my earlier works to put in the tags to make sure that it does not come across someone's dash who doesnt want it. in addition to this, i have used better warnings on my works as well. since i think it's important to discuss it now, i will talk about what i write. 45/55 of the time when i do write dub-con, it isnt for the ✨ kink ✨ or to sexualize the moment. i am embarrassed and ashamed to admit it since i have never talked about my personal life ever on my blog so to open up about this is hard and i dont want people to perceive this as an excuse, just the p.o.v of where i produce my works.
please do not make fun of or mock me, it's hard enough talking about this as is. many events in my life have led to shaping me into thinking/believing that intercourse has to be reluctant at first to really enjoy it. since i also have enough trust issues on my own to physically cope with it, i use writing for it instead. and no, this has nothing to do with aforementioned callout post either. of course i know now from proper treatment and working on myself that sex isnt supposed to be like that but it's just my outlet with getting it out. my issue with people who write non-con/rape have not experienced it or focus it mainly on being assualted just because it makes the story "hot", which doesnt sit right with me. not only this, they do not tag/warn properly either, which i do (explanation in blue).
as a reader i do think you can send me asks like, "hey, i dont like that you did this" because i can always keep that criticism in mind for my later stories. had it been an ask (or asks) that had been genuine concern would have been fine, but the fact that people are sending around a screenshot and jumping to make posts so they can get a chance to bully me again is the same toxicity i was talking about. if you were actual supporters of mine (whether you didnt like what i wrote or not), why was the thought of sending it to people who hate me the first thought to do? were you expecting me to say i didnt do it? unlike most people i can admit to my own wrongdoings.
its the fact that REAL people were offended and you guys are using it for your sad agenda to have everyone hate me. you guys are OBSESSED with stalking me even though you cant stand me. bringing up old callout posts and then trying to shove words into my mouth that arent there show very clearly what yalls true motives are. capitalizing on my mistakes and waiting for moments where i say something you dislike is NOT you playing hero, youre just toxic people waiting for an outlet to abuse someone. stop pretending to care about issues when you dont. any asks/etc related to this that are just straight up hate will not be answered.
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popculturebuffet · 4 years ago
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Close Enough Season 2 Review! or Josh Murders About 10 People
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It's been hard to put into words just how wonderful a surprise this season getting released this month was. For starters before JG Quintel announced it last year shortly after season 1, I honestly was convinced season 2 wasn't happened. Do NOT get me wrong, Season 1 of Close Enough was one of the best parts of last year: It was funny, had a lot of heart, a great voice cast, and a great cast of characters that was throughly likeable and broke sitcom stereotypes, having a doofy husband and more straight laced wife with layers who clearly love and respect each other and BOTH can be prone to taking things too far instead of JUST Josh screwing up. Add in two great fellow leads Bridgette and Alex played by two of my faviorite va's, Kimiko Glen and Jason Mantzokus, whose name I finally learned how to spell, an adorable daughter and neat but out of focus neighbors and supors pearle and randy, and the show was just damn near perfect and felt like an improvement on regular show, taking the same humor and animation style but to an older cast and audience with more nuanced and likeable characters, and far more character development per episode. I wanted to see where the show would go.. but I was convinced given the show was leftover inventory from an animation block that never happened held over to give HBO Max some content it'd be canceled after one season, because I can't have nice things. But....
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And very happily so: JG Quintel revealed the show had been picked up for season 2 not long after season 1 dropped, having listned to fans. As it turns out though they hadn't.. they just had a ton of faith in the show as I got ANOTHER bombshell earlier this month. While the show had showed up on the schedule for this month late in January, with no release date on said schedule, I wasn't 100% sure the show was coming back this month or that it wasn't just an error. But once again, I was wrong, it was earth all along, and they merely saved it for the press release for their adult animation lineup: alongside the huge and welcome bombshell they were the ones picking up the Clone High reboot and for two seasons, Close enough not only got two more seasons publicly announced, but fimrly revealed season 2 launched February 25th. LIke they likely had with infinity train the show was quitely picked up for another season, and they simply waited to announce it till the right time. Though unlike infinity train, they had faith in it to become a big hit and while they SHOULD HAVE with infinity train and should've accepted it was already a big hit simply not with the target demographic, it's still nice to see that after all it went through Close Enough not only got renewed but is now the network's flagship adult animated show, closely tied with harley quinn, and will likely go on as long as it wants to.
So naturally given I reviewed all of season 1 in the hopes i'td get renewed, I was happy to make room for season 2 and continue covering it and over the moon it was happening so soon. However I'm doing things diffrently this time: instead of flooding the tag with individual longform reviews, i'm reviewing the season all one go, to see if this format could work for me as I have tons of other shows i'd love to cover in this format that are either heavily comedic like say the Great North, regular show or the simpsons and thus dont' lend themselves to riffing as much and leave me less to do per episode, or more seralized shows like she ra or ones that are entirely complete like Steven Universe or Gravity falls that I could cover alone but this format could help expidite covering. Gravity Falls is also one of my patreon stretch goals if your instrested as is a whole lot of ducktales stuff, link on my blog. It also works with my much larger workload with a much tighter schedule, 6 reviews a week with a flex day in case I get behind so everything comes out as good as it posisbly can be, versus my original method of...
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TLDR: One big post with smaller reviews each episode and an overall coverage of what changed this season and how good it is as a whole. We good? Good, then join me under the cut for some delightful sentient presents, couch ghosts, and jim fucking crunch as we get close enough to the heart.
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I will never get tired of that image. I want it blown up and put on a banner at my funeral. But death plans aside let's get into the season
Slight Tweaks to a Great Formula: Given it's slice of life format based largely around likeable multi layered characters in comedic absurdity, not a lot has changed nor did it need to. What has are just simple tweaks to make things even better. For starters a natural result of getting to the episodes now produced directly for the 11 minute format means the pacing is much focused, subbing in full subplots for the occasional runner instead, and often only using what characters the episode needs. It will use the main five often, but the lack of subplots for the most part allows stronger focus on one or two characters to give the stories added weight and nuance and often laughs. While i'll always love season 1, this allows for much tighter stories and allows for everyone to get some major screen time instead of mostly Josh and Emily in season 1. It does mean we sadly get less of my boy Alex per episode but it's a sacrifice i'm willing to make if it means the show can grow and take more risks and evolve naturally. Though the former probably wasn't help by two of his three episodes being kinda weak, but i'll get to that.
The other noticeable change is Pearle and Randy. While they were promoted as main characters, even getting profiles along with the rest, they were in practice recurring characters in season 1, showing up pretty frequently but with only one starring episode for Randy and none for Pearle. And givne Pearle has an interesting backstory as a cop who likely had to put up with a LOT being a black woman officer, as well as raising a white redneck, while also being hilarious and having a fun energy to her, I felt they kinda wasted her in season 1.
Here though? Both have been bumped up to main cast proper, getting two focus episodes a piece (compared to the other main adults each getting three, some of those shared, and Candace getting one, hopefully more in the future as it was really good, along with, to my delight, mr.cambell also getting one), appearing far more in supporting roles and generally showing up with the main group a lot more. They still don't hang out with our loveable family all the time, but it makes sense as they have their own apartment and stuff to deal with, but it feels far more like their part of the main group. The show always treated them like this mine, but showing up more makes their friendships with their tenants feel more genuine, as it feels like their part of their lives more, whlie having their own to deal with we get to see now.
So while the series didn't change much, as I said it didn't need to and all of this is stuff is the kind of thing I wanted, especially Pearle getting a larger role and Randy being fleshed out from a dollar store version of muscle man into his own similar but difference character, and i'm happy to have it. So now i've talked about how the seasons' changed, let's talk about the episodes themselves. Grab a snack this is going to take a bit.
The Episodes!:
Josh Gets Shredded: 
Our premier and honestly it's a solid one with a singular premise on poking fun at gym culture, though in a nice twist Jim Crunch, the guy who runs the Gym Josh ends up going to to strengthen his core to play with Candace and whose voiced wonderfully by Kevin Michael Richardson is a genuinely good guy and there's no horrifying twist with him. He just wants Josh to get ripped and dosen't know his training is keeping josh from candace. IT's a simple setup of a father doing something for his daughter but getting distracted by it and while not new it works well here and we get plenty of fun gym jokes, including an exchange from Jim and Josh when Josh wants to become an "absolute unit", which in this case ends up meaning turning into the hulk but with the glowing firey eyes of an angry god, feels like it came straight out of the hockey bros from letterkenny, which is a good feeling to have. There's also a nice setup with Candace wanting to play king kong with Josh due to seeing it in class (Specially the Peter Jackson remake, also Candace knows who jack black is which I buy because of who her daddy is. I wouldn’t be surprised if Josh had Saving Silverman on a loop for several days until emily threw it out the window like a frisbee. ), which kicks off the whole thing.. and ends with ultra instinct hulk josh taking her to the top of a building and swatting away helicopters. It’s more of an average episode for the series and the runner about Emily being REALLY hot for buff josh comes off as a weaker version of the plot from family guy where Lois likes a thinner peter, apart from one inspired bit where in order to talk to him about candace without getting distracted, Emily pours an entire bag of ice down her pants.. and subtly after Josh talks about becoming an absolute unit, it’s gone nad rather than animation I like to believe it melted. Still a decent start to a great season. 
Meet the Frackers: A Randy Spotlight episode and unlike his season one episode rather than be a subplot in another episode it’s a full episode about him. And the starting incident is great as the gang gets their ancestry results back from costco, with Emily and Bridgette having ancestors in Guadalajara and Kiyoto.. and Josh being white (”Can you believe it?”). Alex coming from a long line of creeps is also pretty funny, those are his actual results by the way. 
But what the episodes truly about is Randy finding out his parents are alive in Malibu after Pearle claimed they were dead when he was a kid. She had a very good reason though: Randy’s parents were serial gas thieves, and Pearle nearly caught them one night with the two chucking him at her to escape. And to her credit Pearle TRIED to reach out to them once they ended up in jail for their crimes.. but they again chucked him at her which is hilarious. She simply didn’t want him to feel abandoned. He instead feels betrayed. 
His parents are hilariously white trash and played by two faviorite va’s of mine, David Kochner and Wendy Malick, who i’m happy is finally playing a lead roll on Owl House. They drink redneck maragretihas and eat mcribs (As Randy puts it “God’s favorite sandwich!”) every day and still steal gas, just legally now as frackers. Naturally though the two are still assholes and soon use a carnival as a cover to illegally frack and it’s up to Randy an dhis real mom to stop them> It’s a touching story with Randy genuinely wanting to hlep his mom, though I feel it would’ve been more interesting if Randy’s parents hadn’t been scum an dhe had to genuinely deal with having three parents now. Still it was worth it for some great lines from Malick and Kochner , so it works. Decent ep. 
Sauceface: Now we come to both one of the best eps of the season, and the series so far, and one of it’s most unique as it stars Candace and dosen’t feature the other main cast hardly at all, only Emily who kicks things off by, in a great bit, breaking Candace’s illusion their rich as “they live in a castle with alex and bridgette”, with her slowly realizing “Were poor”. Which is just a very kid thing to think that your parents are rich when they very much aren’t. 
But the episode really is a crime boss parody story, as the title would imply as Candace and her best friend start selling hot sauce, which is banned from the school due to it’s political correctness having gone mad and it being offensive to “sensitive palates” (They’ve also banned general tso’s chicken for mitlarialism and everything bagels for being “too much”). This leads where you’d expect: Candace getting drunk with power and forgetting why theys tarted, wet willies, and an art room brawl, all leading to candace’s friend getting pinched and candace having to use the money to buy Mr. Cambell a pelaton to get him off their backs, which leads to this lovely exchange “YOur letting them off just because they bought you a present?” “This is a 2000 dollar bike”. We also get the subtle reveal Mr. Cambell is gay which given how straight the main cast is, is nice.  But this was a great one with too many good gags to mention, a great setup, a great rolling stones song played during the montage I do not know the name of, and I hope we get other candace advnetures at her school in the future, because this was a real delight. Again one of the best episodes of the season. 
The House Guest From Hell: Speaking of best episodes, this is probably the best pairing of episodes yet, as both are standouts of the season. 
Emily’s old friend Becca drops back into her life, to everyone’s annoyance as Becca is an utter leech who constantly take advantage of Emily’s lack of boundaries with her to constantly talk about whatever drama she’s wrapped herself in and mooch off her. Josh and Bridgette want her to set firm boundaries, but Emily fails to and instead only gets Becca to set boundaries with her boyfriend.. which leads to her moving into the apartment temporarily, and annoying the hell out of everyone. Becca is a great character, being that asshole in the most over the top and annoying way possible, to the point she takes alex’s room, watches tv on a loop and doesn’t seem to realize Emily is married (Despite being part of her bridal party), or that candace is Emily’s daughter and not a tiny butler (Which Candace assumes is a game. )
Naturally for this show things escalate hilariously as Emily finds out she’s pregnant when she tries to throw her out and the pregnancy is escalated.. and we soon find out it’s because the pregnancy is demonic: She has Hecate as her dula (And Alex naturally asks if she’s single, get it guy get it), needs goats hoves, locusts and the blood of the innocent (Which is the only item that trips josh up who hopes they can get it at costco, which made me have to pause as I could not stop laughing). This would be funny enough. .but what takes it into making this episode a classic is when Emily tricks her boyfriend Luke over he’s unsurprisingly a devil.. but also a hilariously over the top douchebag dudebro played by Beck  Bennet, who it’s not only nice to see outside of ducktales, but is also just totally game. Luke is so odious it wraps around to being funny, to the point he unsurprisingly hits on Bridgette while his girlfriend is in labor, messily makes out with her and they try to move in, though thankfully Emily cathartically screams Becca out midbirth. Also they end up going to hell, with Luke getting there by doing donuts. Yes really. This episode is a treasure and does the series schitck of taking a relatable problem and escalating it to perfection. 
Joint Break:
Another unsurprisingly good one, as Pearle deals with the fact that despite her decades of service, the force’s health plan doesn’t cover her needed hip surgery after she slides over a car wrong (Which also leads to a great riff on the old csi Miami parody). She then finds herself between her oath as an officer and her needs for help as she befriends a gang of saucy old women at water aerobics who are also bank robbers and want to cut her in. And they provide a tempting offer, getting what their owed and ti feels like a genuine dilemma, even if Pearle ends up siding with the police, not that she should. It’s also full of great bits of the old lady gang weaponizing stereotypes about old people, with the three of them dawning classic old lady getups to fool an officer, and having one of them i a walker slowly cross the street to stop an armored truck. Fun stuff helped by their leader being voiced by Jane Lynch, continuing this season’s red hot guest star streak, not that the series has ever been light on them (They got David Hasselhoff and weird al in season 1, so yeah), but this season ramps up the good guest voices to the point there’s one per episode almost. 
Cyber Matrix: This one’s okay though the setup is good. Unsurprisingly given both his dale gribble-esque penchant for conspiracies and his hipster holier than thou ways, Alex has never had a smart phone, and has a very old flip hone that’s horrifc to look at and naturally gets destroyed, leading to him getting addicted to the thing.. and this being the show it is fusing with it. What makes this one is the climax, as the rest of the main group scramble to take out the cell tower so Alex’s phone doesn’t upload him to the cloud while Josha nd Alex open everything they can to slow her down. The result is the phone hacking Emily’s and ordering packages, task rabbits to punch her inthe face (With randy taking it so they can go) and outright hijacking a car in a clever chase. The ending though does sink this as suddenly their in veirutal reality again and it just feels weird given the series, while not really using continuity much so far, dosne’t have negavite continuity punch out endings outside of this one ep and I hope this dosen’t happen again. Otheriwse a decent one if sadly not one of Alex’s best and he equally sadly onlyg ets one truly great episode this season, compared to having a good chunk of the best plots last season. Still you can’t win em all and i’m sure my boy will return to form and said great episode, which we’ll get to soon, certainly shows they didn’t loose their touch. They just fumbled a bit and that’s okay. 
Haunted Couch: Balancing that out is the fact that Bridgette, who didn’t get nearly as many good eps as Alex or as much focus as the rest, gets some great episodes this season with this one being my out and out favorite as it fleshes her out more and has some really great gags. Josh brings in a street couch (And he and Emily’s argument over it is great including him using the fact she forced them to get a savings account as leverage somehow), just as Bridgette is in emotional turmoil over her latest boyfriend suddenly ghosting her. 
Naturally she ends up falling for a REAL ghost, a french couch designer who had a habit of cheating on his lovers, died for it by one of their hands, and his soul ended up bound to the couch. Naturally hea nd Bridgette hit it off and we get a LOT of good stuff in a montage as the two take the couch everywhere, and her friends, minus Alex who surprisingly rather than being jealous, simply dosen’t like the fact there’s a ghost in the house technically haunting them which surprisingly goes nowhere, are happy for her and like him after the initial shock wears off, though Josh still wants to sit on the couch. He and Bridgette even have really good sex using Randy’s body, with him being a willing vesel for Marcus. And i’d just like to point out that an intensely weird comedy show that also has a sentient present, bob vila with saw hands, and dude bro satan in this very season, 2/3 of those to come.. STILL did this better than wonder woman 87, as they actually asked someone to let the ghost of the couple use his body so they could fuck, and he gave full consent to it. And no I sitll haven’t let that go, it was a very bad plotline with nightmarish implications and the fact close enough did it better in a joke, they also have the song from ghost in the background by the by, than a big budget movie from the same company, is a really large bilboard saying:
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But while the episode was thoroughly interesting and funny.. it’s what happens next that makes it one of the series best. While the series is amazing at comedy, it’s the character growth slid in between it that makes it so awesome and this episode is a great example. Bridgette turns cold towards Marcus as it’s clear he’s serious, and he’s even moved a tooth brush in. She gets more and more hostile until eventually Marcus calls her on it, and prevents her from leaving with a vortex of furniture.. which could’ve gone bad very quick but instead just means she has to face him.. and is hit with a rather painful relization when he asks “Do you what me to, how you say, ghost you?” (She explained the concept earlier). She says no.. but quickly a series of flashbacks puts the previous breakup in context as the guy she was seeing asked to leave a toothbrush, a  simple escalation and she got real nasty real quick without saying what the problem was. We see more of this with a previous boyfriend and hilaroiusly one before that guy who not only had a toothbrush in a ringbox but was also in a hot air ballon she casually cuts the anchors too and has float away. Which does mean Bridgette probably killed a man but that’s one compared to josh’s 10 this season. Yes, 10. We’ll get to that. 
Point is she realizes “oh shit i’m the dick”, and has a genuine talk with Marcus, realizing why: “You know how women feign being submissive because society’s taught them to so they don’t get raped or murdered or kidnapped?” “Oui”, best bit of the episode and damn if it ain’t horribly true. But due to tha Bridgette simply got terrible quick to scare guys off when she really just wanted to break it off instead of take things further and breaks it off with marcus.. and is surprised and relieved when he doesn’t want a big fight and takes it acceptably, Marcus having grown from his past of being a women using cad and genuinely wanting to treat them better. For once Bridget gets to have an emotionally mature breakup with someone, and while you could say her relationship with alex is like that, it’s very clear from an upcoming episode it wasn’t a very clean break at first and while their amicable now their marriage was a hot volcano of arguments. This allos Marcus to pass.. if also destroying the couch to Josh’s misery. An instant classic and one of the season’s highlights and one that really fleshes Bridgette out a bit by giving another reason for her relationships not working besides alex that fits the character perfectly and has her grow from it. 
Also just a quick sidenote, this episode vaguely reminded me of the Nightmare Time, theater troupe team starkid’s zoomcast I highly recommend set in their hatchetfield multiverse, episode “Jane’s a Car” , which is about a man’s wife possessing his car and also involves an object. Both are very diffrent mind you, Jane’s a Car ends up way more depressing, but its’ stil la story involving ghost fucking though Bridgette found a vesel instead of straight up fucking a couch the way tom went to town on that car. It also involves the lead’s perosnal issues, if far more severe in Jane’s a Car’s case, reflected by their relationship with a ghost. I mean it is a stretch but these are the weird connectoins my brain makes and I mostly bring it up because an  upcoming episode in the season goes from kind of similar but only to me to very similar, and a very fun concidence that these two episodes existed in the same year, especially since this happened last year with this show and Ducktales. But first josh doing a murder on some people. 
Man Up:
Okay for starters the title man up reminds me of this short lived abc sitcom I never saw but given it was about three guys tapping into their “inner man” it sounds like aresnic somehow took the sentient form of a tv show. This actual poster for it not only proves the point but why it lasted one season if not why the hell I remembered this existed at all despite never seeing it, not recognizing anyone in it and not wanting anything to do with it. 
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Given I have 8 more episodes to go after this one, I do not have time to disect all the way that poster is a waking nightmare, though i’d love to, and instead i’m going to talk abotu the episode itself. The intro is funny enough, with the Ramierz-Singletons going to a bank for Candace’s first bank account, the Bank of Hollywood. An alien seemingly attacks, it turns out to be a promotional stunt with high budget effects a great gag in of itself, but Josh runs out on his family.  Naturally he’s horribly rattled by this, and wants to be a better dad, a John McClane type. So two things: I now want a crossover with this show and brooklyn nine nine along with the hatchefield one in my head and the regular show one most fans want. And the second is that John wasn’t the best dad or husband, and both the original film, the sequel josh saw, and the fourth film all spell this out. The fifth does too but I feel if I wish hard enough a good day to die hard will just spontaneously cease to exist and we’ll all be happier that way. 
So Pearle agrees to help him, and we get a fun training montage, with Josh protecting a candace made of eggs Alex made, because of course he did, and an emily made of the same because of course he did, and get punched in the junk by randy in a dog costume, as you do. He actually feels tough and is ready for phase 2, pearle hitting him with something unexpectdly.
Instead what he thinks is Phase 2 is actually a die hard style hyjacking of Emily’s company christmas party, which josh misses due to being in the bathroom after panickily running into corn. As a result.. we get josh killing about 8-10 people not realizing it’s not a simulation but not really caring about that part when it’s revealed. Which granted it is in self defense but he still kills a LOT of people this episode, and I will be forever haunted by the fact that stringbean can REALLY do some murders. Seriously who knew JOSH had it in him. That is terrifying to comprehend. Naturally after he john mclanes his way up, he finds out it wasn’t a simulation panics but instead of running away runs the hans gruber knockoff, whose sadly not very entertaining out of the building and onto some exploding corn, saving the day, earning his family’s respect and cemnting himself as a badass. The reveal of what the text actually was is just.. perfect as it’s just a bat on a string with Alex saying “he’s totally going to shit”. The perfect capper to good ep only hampred by hans being really weak.. seriously he just has a weird sentence sturcture tha’ts hte joke. They can do better. Otherwise a good die hard parody. John would be proud. 
Handy:
Another decent one not a standout but it has a truly astounding bit. Randy finds out, after going to Guy Fieri’s flavor diaster for Pearle, that she hired another handyman and he’s not good at his job as as he puts it “I’m going to do what troubled young men have done for years : i’m going to sea!”. Which is funny enough but leads to him stranded on a desert island, hallucinating and then meeting his idols in handy manning who may or may not be hallucinations: Bob Vila, The Ikea Mascot (Who speaks only in pictures and is a fun gag despite never having seen him before this episode) and my favorite tim the tool man taylor, whose tie is constantly pointed up for some reason and who amazingly only speaks in grunts. I didn’t know I needed this so thank you close enough. We also get the three helping with bob turning his hands into buzzsaws, ikea man creating nails and screws and Tim using his head as a tool. All accurate to their original shows and in ikea man’s case brocures. Really good adaptation. But through this he discovers the clog the guy is trying to fix at the house is loadbearing and rushes home to save the house, leading to a fun actoin scene and a weird version of the celebration from the end of return of the jedi, complete with force ghosts. So we also get a tim taylor force ghost which I did not know I needed and as much as that show makes my stomach churn I badly hope shows up in the finale of last man standing. A decent one and givne how I keep sayin ga decent episode over and over you can kinda see why I didn’t review all these. LIke season 1 I simply don’t have a full review in me for every single one of these episodes. We’re now at the halfway mark, only 8 more to go, I envy the dead, let’s do this. 
Birthdaze: This was the episode most heavily promoted in the trailer and for good reason as it’s the best of the season. Also relatable as while not having kids I do get how Kids Birthday parties feel and how they often end up weirdly close together. In this case both coalse as Josh and Emily have three birthdays in one weekend, their friends Emily’s friend Trish from “Cool Moms”, who is so far some of the only continuity the series has, but a nice sign it has it, and that we could see Jim Crunch (who rose from the grave after an utterly wonderful funeral) or Dog Boy again. Or this episode’s standout gifty. But we’ll get to that in a second.  So Josh and Emily well intentiondly decide to throw a party for the parents at the same time as Candace’s.. but end up neglecting Candace. While their idea is good, to reward the other parents for having to sit through so many parties, putting it at the same time was a horrible idea as giving a bunch of pent up people with low alcohol tolerance booze ends up resulting in drunken antics and them heckling the magicain... and given the world we’re in, that’s a horrible mistake as he makes the children disappear to a world of perptual brithday parties and forces JOsh and Emily to follow him if they want their child back.  What results is an utter delightly as we meet the wonderful and incomprable Gifty, a giant living present who works iwth the magician, named sardini, and is voiced by Kate Miccuci, heart eyes> Just.. evey bit with gifty is great, from her genuinely being animated and looking like a muppet, to her casually going demonic to explain if the kids stay too long they forget parents, to as seen up top playing a pipe organ that is apparently made of gold plated clown bones, and her best bit, which I posted on this very blog, where she assures the trapped kids if JOsh and Emily fail their final test, they’ll get to live of nutricious necco wafers before vomiting a giant cloud of them at the poor children. Those things are gross and we now knwo it’s because they come from a giant present’s stomach. 
We get a great montage before most of that of our heroes treking through a weird and awesome birthday landscape with too many good parts to mentoin, before finding Sardini who puts them through tests before they can get candace back.. and one of those are you human image tests via the ball from phantasm. As gifty puts it “We have to make sure your not a bot”. But the tests, about candaces faviorite things, help the two realize she liked them because they did it together, and a final talk with candace, as the final test has her ask why theyd idn’t want to spend time with her, with the two warmly apologizing and explaning why they did it but that they went too far. Candace reconclies with her parent,s the kids and our heroes go home, and Sardini finds himself sad no one stayed.. but at least he has gifty... and then start making love to her “Unwrap me!” which is far and away the best gag in the season’s best episode by a mile. 
Time Hooch:
Now to talk about two things I hinted at earlier: The only good Alex episode this season and the one that vaugely resembles one of the Nightmare Time episodes. And while their two very diffrent stories with very diffrent outcomes and only one of them involves this guy
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And suprisingly it’s NOT close enough that has the eldtrich horrifying goat monster with a goofy cartoon voice who says things like “I’m coming for your ass Teddy Bear!” But both are stories about a sketchy (mildly for alex, entirely for Ted) middle aged man who feels one moment is where his life went wrong then accidently time travels after drinking 80 tons of liquor and decides to use said time travel to save a relationship, and fails at it in some fashion.  There’s even a jaunt to a distopian future with robots and cyborgs. So while it’s not 1:1, alex is far more sympathetic than Ted, Time Bastard is dark horror comedy, and it again dosen’t involve a horrifying goat man suprisingly enough, it’s till way too many happy coincidences for me to outright ignore. Also check out nightmare time and especially the musicals it spun off from The Guy Who Didn’t LIke Musicals and Black Friday. It’s good stuff. But I couldn’t help but make the comparison, or now imagine Alex, Ted and Professor Hidgens as some weird diasterious power trio. This is how my brain works now. 
But to the episode itself it’s just great from start to finish: Bridgette finds out while rumaging for an old photo in an old box of their stuff that Alex never signed the divorce papers. Turns out he was hoping they’d get back together.. and while not doing it and not telling her was a VERY selfish and horrible action.. you still sympathize with him. He hoped things would work out and they’d get back together, and given they had some close calls with that in season 1, to the point I shipped them, you can see where his sprig of hope came from. But with this he’s realized there probably isn’t any hope and drinks some old moonshine he and Josh made in college.  Said moonshine was from a recipie in an old blues record, the titular time hooch that true to form, allows them to travel back in time. And since he was thinking of when he thought the relationship truly hit it’s breakig point, when Bridgette at a sandwitch of his and he’d said in the heat of it he wished he’d never met her, they end up there and Alex tries to use it to help. Also Jason’s delivery of Alex saying what the recipie was “rye, barely, a dead man’s pocket watch, mixed under a full moon (Laughs) okay we probably should’ve seen this coming.  
Naturally here’s where it really gets intresting. As you’d probably guess, our heroes are the ones who made the sandwitch disappear and in desperation, alex kidnaps his past self before he can say the fatal words> We also get another spectacular bit where all past alex needs from alex to know he’s really him from the future is what year he was born (1982), meaning he’s defintely older than the rest of the cast. Though I wouldn’t be suprised if he was held back.. like at all. Look i’m not thinking too hard into it this is also a story about whiskey based time travel. 
But with that said intresting part takes hold as Josh’s past self reminds him of another fight that made things tense for a while.. and you can see where this goes. Alex keeps going back, and back, and back and back and back and back and back... and back, to try and stop the one fight, only to find a bigger one, leading to a montage.. to the point he ends up at the start of the relationship, the day they met at a college bar. The younger Alex’s have decided screw it it was always wrong, let’s end the relationship. 
We also get more of Alex’s backstory as it turns out he’s at a community college rather than UCLA, where he used to teach because of his own dumb actions: He met bridgette, let her enroll in his class and didn’t try to convince her to take another one. Don’t get me wrong the decade age gap and power dynamics are iffy.. but it’s not as bad as it could be. They met before the class, and it comes off more as both being too stupid or too horny to realize how her being in his class came off before it was too late. She got with him entirely on his merits, and yes he has some trust me.  Case in point.. Alex realizes a few things. The first is that no amount of time travel can save his relationship. They fought all the time clearly, and there were inherent problems. It’s also clear just from the series itself that while they have chemistry their just not that compatible as people. Bridgette is obessed with image, social media, and herself while Alex just two episodes ago called phones the downfall of society and likes feeling superior to the exact kind of person bridgette is. They have chemistry but sometimes it’s jut not enough. You have to have some common ground or your going to fall in a big hole. It’s honestly feels like a much more tolerable and realistic version of Leonard and Penny from the Big Bang Theory. And yes I know that show’s not the most popular with my core audience, nerds, and I bring it up because mom’s been watching it a lately, and any time I see Leonard and Penny on screen it annoys me into a tizzy as the two just have NO REASON to be together other than boning, and even then he’s apparently not a good partner so why then. They have nothing in common and she mocks and belittles him all the fucking time, mocking his hobbies, finding his job boring, and mocking him as a person. And not sharing hobbies or finding his job intresting would be fine, and still work but it’s the constant teasing about it that comes off far more vitrolic than probably intended that just makes me hope for a divorce. Here it’s not only much milder but they did actually get a divorce because their just diffrnet people and i’m not mad the ship was sunk. It was done in a poetic way. 
And part of that poetry is Alex realizing that as doomed as things ended up being, via a very sweet montage of their time together.. he realizes he can’t loose this all together. That sure he’d gain a lot and porbably woudlnt’ be living in a closet, but he’d loose all the good times, and he’d loose a friend. His marriage wasn’t so bad he wants to erase it it just ended and that happens. Naturally the other alex’s don’t feel that way but Alex stops them.. Josh is too drunk at this point to help, and ends up creating a time vortex. The vortex sends our heroes home, where Alex realizes his mistake and apologizes for it to bridgette and signs the papers in front of her.  As for the Alexs we get a horrifying and hilarous gag as, given they’ve all commented each other is handsome.. start having an orgy, and are later found in amber and their dna is used to create our alex apparently. How does that work?
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Point is this episode.. is a masterwork. It’s emotoinal, hilarious, and really good character work, with Alex having a really stellar arc that shades him in and putts a final button in his and bridgettes relationship. And having seen many ships I like end horribly, it’s nice to have one end in a satsifying way like this. Also we see Alex in his borat thong, and i’d just like to point out how funny I find it that the same year they made a borat joke, specifically on it being from a decade or two ago, we ended up getting a second Borat movie. Very niceeee. 
World’s Greatest Teacher: This one was alright. On the bright side we got a Mr.Cambell episode! I”ve loved the guy since first meeting him in 100% no stress day, it was the first episode and that hasn’t changed and he’s always a bright spot when he shows up. So an episode about him dealing with a rival teacher, MS. Lake a twice a week music teacher gunning for his job and his students love sounded made for me. In practice he gets a bit too petty to be symapthetic which takes things down a peg, even if it turns out  Ms. Lake really is coming for his ass Teddy Bear, but it has enough good gags to help it still be a fun episode.
The biggest one and the biggest reason I sitll like the episode is Timothy’s coffe mug for world’s greatest teacher.. which naturally comes to life, possibly as a psychotic break possibly for real because of the show this is, and starts speaking in the dulcet tones of keith david. ANd i’ve made no secret I love and am thirsty for Keith David on this blog and never will, and having him voice an abusive fowl mouthed coffee mug  is something I dind’t know I need but boy did I always need it my entire life. Yes even as a baby. It’s just glorious every time he shows up. The climax is also great as the two teachers end up bonding over the greatest love of all and george micheal after Candace invites River to a part sh’esd having for her tooth coming out, and end up becoming frinemies, a nice solution i was glad to see. Even if i’ll miss evil keith david coffee mug. Rest in power my dude. 
Where’d You Go, Bridgette? The second major Bridgette episode of the season and like “Haunted Couch” this one’s an instant classic. After realizing Bridgtte’s already out of control addition to her phone has gotten even worse, Pearle confinscates it and takes her to detox. This leads to two great plots; Bridgette going into withdrawl, complete with an inspired nightmare sequence about her aps and missing her friends death because she was on her phone and the rest of the cast thinking sh’es been kidnapped because she’s not on social media, which while stupid is DELIGHTFULLY stupid and makes some sense given how glued to her phone she is. They end up calling a true crime podcast over, two egosticial college girls who quickly blame them for it despite it making no sense and their fans torm the apartment, and don’t belivie it when bridgette actually shows up.. It takes an inspired speech from Bridgette, whose developed as a person and after actually tasting a late for the first time sees how good they are, and Pearle posting that speech online to dismiss them and our heroes are saved. It’s an utterly amazing plot from josh being excited about the mob attacking them, to Pearle revealing part of the reason she’s so dedicated to helping bridgette is due to her own weird addiction to six flags, which is just so oddly specific I love it. 
The Erotic Awakening of A.P. Lapearle This one STARTED well, with Alex reading his viking erotic to everyone, and not getting that Candace maybe shouldn’t be there, only for Pearle to be the only one to actually enjoy it and be inspired by her enjoyment of his work to submit it to a publisher. The publisher ends up making a valid point that women want erotic fantasy from someone they can feel safe by and alex is well.. alex, so he suggests using pearle as a front. it goes how you’d expect: he wants actual credit, the publisher slowly pushes him out, she regrets it, they fight an army of fans and make them vomit with alex reading the book.. standard stuff. It’s just not very funny or a great insight into either characters, and is easily the weakest episode of the season.. though the next one gave it close compettition. 
Men Rock!
This one was a chore to sit through, and is only ahead of the last one because it has some really good josh bits and musical numbers which is more than the last one gave me so hey. In a nutshell Emily is on the verge of quitting her and Bridgette’s music careers as she feels they’ll never be famous only for their latest song Men Rock!, an ironic title for a sarcastic song poking fun at a bunch of toxic masculinty bs that is a good song, has hit it HUGE in a fictonal foreign dicatroship and get invited to go, reclutantly agreeing. If you haven’t seen the ep, you can still guess how this goes: say it with me THEY TOOK IT AT FACE VALUE. So our heroines have to help inspire the repressed women and inspire a bloody cou, helped by josh finding some improisoned femisinists in a bathroom. They also gain a fan. it has a few good gags, mostly Candace trying to remind her dad to help her find a place to pee after he keeps getting sidetracked by being taken back by Emily’s sucess. I’ts just a very bad, very predictable episode with very obvious misogyn is bad jokes. And misgoyny IS bad but other shows, paticuarlly tuca and bertie with one early episode, have tackeld this topic better. This episode did not. Last one. 
Secret Horse:
This one in stark contrast is one of the series best and an utter joy to watch. On a bad day for the whole apartment with some santa anna winds, an adorable, poofy mained utterly precious horse gets free and ends up at the apartment. Thus we get a vingettte episode, as the horse has a delightful adventure with each of our main 7, and each up tot he last try and hide the horse badly only for the horse to suddenly sprout up and help their mood.
I do love a good vinegtte episode, with two of my faviorite simpsons episodes being 22 short films about springfiled (Minus kirk dragging MIlhouse away from the bathroom, fuck you you balding asshat, it makes the episode hard to watch) ,and trilogy of error, and this is a classic example of it as we get some fun adventures fro each of the housemates: Candace plays with the horse, adorably so, Josh finds it in the garage as his car breaks down and takes them on an install with him, even stuffing them into a suit and we get a great bit of the horse getting fed sugarcubes and josh money. Brigette gets help living in the now instead of posting about it all the time.
My faviorite comes next as Alex needs new patches for his suit but obviouslyc n’t afford them so he takes the ponyt ot he track.. to help him pick which horses to bet on. It’s just such an inherntly funny idea, especially since it works, and really the horse is just hilarious wherever it ends up. It next helps randy win a skating contest, we get a touching story as Pearle misses her old tragically dead horse partner and uses our boy as a subtitute and finlaly we get emily who needs help relaxing and while she naturally calls animal control she hangs up as she falls for hte horse. The group all fight over the horse in the end, the horse leaves and they let it go home, wonder if it was a hallucination and it whizes on thier car. Overall a really great finale and a wonderful note to go out on. 
Overall Ranking I’ve decided eveyr time I do one of these, or a post season wrapup of a show i’ve covered every episode of the season to rank them from best to worst sooo
Birthdaze Time Hooch Haunted Couch Secret Horse Where’d You Go Bridgette? Sauce face Houseguest  From Hell Joint Break Josh Gets Shredded World’s Greatest Teacher Meet the Frackers Handy Man Up Cyber Matrix Men Rock!  The Erotic Awakening of A.P. Lapearle
And i’d like to note that outside of the bottom two hear.. I enjoyed ALL of these. WHich leads to
Final Thoughts; This season was excellent. It had everything the first season had the heart, the character and the utterly great sense of humor, and fine tuned it to be a well oiled machine I could hardly stop laughing at and with tons of great character stuff. Before it had the potetial to surpass regular show but now it has as despite having a few dud episodes itself, as is intievitble in any show, now, they still aren’t as bad as a lot of RS’s early misteps. And Regular SHow as a FANTASTIC show and really stuck the landing, so i’m only saying this is even better and can only go up from here. And even if it stays about the same quality wise, that won’t be a bad place to be. This season was near damn perfect, i’ll probably watch it again and again, and I can’t wait to devour more and given the current tragectory probably will this year. And I couldn’t be more excited.
If you like this blog follow for more reviews, become a patreon to help reach stretch goals or comission a review outright, details for the latter two on my blog. And i’ll see you at the next rainbow. 
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thekidultlife · 4 years ago
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The Most Convenient Escape | Jihoon Soulmate!AU (5)
⍟ Pairing: Jihoon x fem!reader
⍟ AU: Fantasy/ Soulmate AU
⍟ Genre: ANGST, SLOW BURN, fluff
⍟ Warnings: mentions of abuse, drinking, and sex
⍟ Word Count: 8.5k
⍟ Synopsis: For all your life, you have a deep disdain towards Soulmate Bonds, so much so that you are able to write opinions about it in a local newspaper. However, as life would have it, you wake up one day bonded to a person you hardly knew. Throwing in an investigation, annoying roommates, and a revolution looming just beneath the surface, you had to seek for the most convenient escape.
⍟ A/N: So on to the next chapter! This is probably the longest I’ve written for this series! Anyway, please excuse my tarot reading skills, my knowledge is only limited to watching pick a car readings in youtube and google. Now that’s out of the way, please enjoy! -Hyeri
⍟ Taglist: @shoshishua, @woozisnoots (I also want to thank @minkwans and @oprandomfeels for leaving such a nice messages on the tags in the previous chapter!! I dont want to sound creepy but i do comeback to them if i needed motivation to write! so thank you!!)
CHAP 1 | CHAP 2 | CHAP 3 | CHAP 4 | CHAP 5 |  CHAP 6 |
CILVEKAN ESPIONAGE TURNS PARLIAMENT INTO A BATTLEFIELD by Jeon Wonwoo and Kwon Soonyoung
The Porta Persa Edition, October 12th
Words that break like cannon shots, arguments that burn like incendiaries, bulwarks of statements that are hardly impenetrable—such is a terrifying and impressive sight to behold upon the ancient halls of the Parliament in these last few weeks. The fate of the two Cilvekan agents who were previously caught in Lower Efendel had been a divisive force upon the venerated legislative body of our nation; rendering them into a heated stalemate. 
Armed with wit and sound proofs, Conservatives led by Atlen County Representative Kang Jinho campaigned for stringent travel restrictions, as well as a thorough examination of all Cilvekan nationals entering and leaving Porta Persa. He contends that the security of this powerful nation must not be compromised for simple material gains. 
Pointing an accusing finger at the trading and tourism industry which has seen immense growth in profits due to the inflow of foreign immigrants and visitors into the country, Conservatives have been critical of lax travel regulations over the years in which they view, as in Rep. Kang’s words, as a means for ‘alien entities’ to ‘wreak havoc in this peaceful land’ and ‘further their covert operations to diminish and weaken the stability of Porta Persa’. According to Rep. Kang, it is rightfully so that sacrifices are to be made to ensure that no foreign powers would dare to assert their influence over this country. 
On the other side of the argument lie Santaragossa Assembly Representative Lee Jihoon, the flagship of both Libertarians and Moderates on this matter, who, with his rapid fire responses, have advocated for softer regulations and an extensive counterintelligence program instead. 
In his speech to Congress today, Rep. Lee disputes that economic factors are hardly simple, and should not be diminished into mere ‘increase of gains’. In his words ‘There are people who, if harsher travel restrictions are thus placed, will be left for wild dogs to eat, for the weather to beat and rattle their bones on the cold earth. With no means of a livelihood to provide for themselves, what will become of them? For us who have a roof to sleep in, and food on the table to eat, it is easy for us to say that travel restrictions are a minor inconvenience. Yet for these people, harsher travel restrictions are equivalent to a death sentence.’
He further advocates for a better counterintelligence program wherein proper and stronger defenses are to be implemented only at the appropriate areas, as this is not only cost effective, but also ensures that the livelihood and the human rights of all people in Porta Persa, whether be citizen, immigrant, tourist and whatnots are protected and venerated…
“Lee Jihoon was truly frightening during that session. I swear to god, sitting there feels like he’s attacking me personally.”
Unlike the usual, the three of you were not relaxing comfortably outside the lush courtyards of the Royal Academy, eating carefully prepared lunches and enjoying the view. Instead, late morning sunlight poured from the open windows, illuminating the wooden desk and chair you were sitting on, silently listening to your friends.
To your right, sat said friends: Wonwoo and Soonyoung who were fresh from the printers, the rancid smell of ink sticking to their regal school uniform. On Soonyoung’s hands was the freshly printed draft of your newspaper, which was to be released the next day. 
He folded the newspaper and tossed it beside you on the desk. 
“He’s been like that for what? A week now, I reckon?” 
“Two, in my opinion.” Wonwoo answered, adjusting his glasses. He was the calmer kind of fellow. Soonyoung was more theatrical. 
“Oh good god, it’s been two weeks already?” Soonyoung exclaimed, his lips ajar. “No wonder Y/N is here all the time!”
Wonwoo glanced at you, who simply turned away and faced the open window. “Why are you here exactly?”
You continued to grind Alizarin berries on your portable mortar and pestle with a nonchalant look on your face. “I’m making your allergy medicine.”
“Not yesterday and in the last few weeks,” Wonwoo retorted back, giving you an inquisitive look. “Now tell me, is it because of Lee Jihoon?” 
Groaning, you continued to pour all of your irritation at the poor powdered berries in your mortar. “Must the reason always be Lee Jihoon?” 
“Well, why are you here then?” Soonyoung shrugged, glancing at you with raised brows. 
Exasperated, you sighed and left the mortar and pestle alone for once. In all honesty, the reason was indeed Lee Jihoon. After he saw your breakdown two weeks ago, you were avoiding him at all cost because you knew he was going to ask you about it and you were not one to divulge such sensitive topics. 
Of course, you wouldn’t let them know. “The way my room looks is just nauseating.” 
Soonyoung made an incredulous frown while Wonwoo snorted. 
“Right.” They both said.
Having childhood friends has its own disadvantages: you couldn’t really hide anything from them. Yet you wouldn’t tell them anything for that matter. Your room was indeed nauseating, spinning around and around as your vision blur if you just stay in one position for far too long.The way your stomach churns and your legs buckle because of the amount of suppressants you were taking to block your soulmate connection was something you simply cannot express into words. 
You stare at the red powder inside the mortar. The smell was making you lurch, reminding you of the suppressant, yet you expertly concealed it with a cough and a broad change of subject. 
“Aren’t we supposed to go somewhere today?” you asked, adding more berries to the mortar. 
“No, it’s on Friday, 3pm,” Wonwoo replied, checking his travel sized planner. “For some time, Soonyoung and I have been tracing documents from Luce Trading to see if they could give us some clues. But most of them inexplicably got lost or destroyed from last year’s flooding, but thankfully, Soonyoung found some in a novelty shop.” 
Upon hearing, you quirked a brow at them. “That is quite interesting. It is possible that something important is in those documents, especially when they had deemed it necessary to destroy them. It seems like fortune is on our side today.”
Wonwoo nodded. “Exactly my thoughts.”
“I reckon, those documents can finally settle the question of who their actual victims are,” the other male remarked with a considerate nod. “We can actually take a step forward in this investigation!”
You forced a smile. Truly, you were elated but the way your heart was palpitating wasn't feeling that great to you. Wonwoo adjusted his glasses once more, a habit he has acquired whenever he was thinking of something.
"Quite frankly, I still haven't forgotten what Jihoon had told me a few months ago," he started, fidgeting with his hands. "And god knows if he's telling me the truth or throwing us off the scent." 
"Oh that one..." Soonyoung exclaimed, nodding. You glanced at the two of them, looking betrayed. 
"Why have I no knowledge of this?" You asked, eyes shooting daggers. 
The two boys quickly exchanged glances and panicked.
"You haven't told Y/N?" Wonwoo asked the other male, who was beginning to pout. 
"What…I thought you told Y/N!" He replied, pointing at you. 
What seemed like a little misunderstanding was going to become a lot of bickering later on, so as you rolled your eyes, you put yourself between the two of them. 
"Alright, enough. Just tell me what Lee Jihoon said," you spoke sternly, hands on your hips.
“It’s not as straightforward as you think,” Wonwoo recounted. “Jihoon kept going in circles about our newspaper, Alex Fireflower—”
“Me?” you exclaimed, furrowing your brow.
“Yes, you. And the Gestalt case,” Wonwoo continued, acknowledging you. “At first, I was under the impression that he was simply inquiring what my thoughts were with regards to the Gestalt case as a fellow classmate, yet as it turned out, he appears to be hinting that it was a suicide case.”
A bewildered look was what you gave him, not understanding how a blatantly homicide case could possibly be a suicide. “I need you to expound further than that.”
Your friend shrugged. “That’s where the problem lies. We know that the Gestalts might be involved in the sex trafficking ring due to the judicial records we’ve discovered before, yet to what extent is a matter we have no knowledge of.”
“Oh, yes, that tax evasion case filed against Luce Trading that was suddenly dismissed by court with no apparent reason…it seems malicious, yet I still doubt that it should be considered a connection to the syndicate” Soonyoung remarked. 
“Those things usually happen yet everything involved in this case should be accounted for. Even including the possibility of it being a suicide,” Wonwoo continued. 
“Yet logistically speaking, how can it possibly be a suicide?” You asked, clearly unconvinced. “Lee Jihoon is merely giving us chaff.”
“That is the reason why I cannot just stop thinking about it. It’s perplexing.” 
“You’re just doing mental exercises, Wonwoo,” you dismissed him. “Trusting Lee Jihoon is definitely not advisable. He’s a politician. We might be unaware that he is in fact a part of that syndicate, and is simply playing cat and mouse with us.”
Wonwoo heaved a long sigh, leaning against the bedpost. “That, I won’t deny.”
“Rather than running on conjectures, we should proceed with the investigation instead,” Soonyoung interrupted solemnly. “We simply do not have the entire narrative.”
"I completely agree," you replied, leaning against the table as you go through another wave of stomach cramps with much composure. "Let's…lay out what we know first." 
The two of them nodded at you, which you considered a signal to begin.
"So, we know that some government officials are involved in a sex trafficking scheme. Why do we know that?" 
Soonyoung answered. "Because Wonwoo unintentionally eavesdropped a conversation between his father and a parliament member, who was trying to ask him to vote against the amendment of the Soulmate bond." 
"He offered my father membership to the syndicate among other things…" Wonwoo quietly continued, perusing his thoughts. 
"Right. We know that the Gestalt case is somewhat related to the syndicate. Why?" 
"For one, that parliament member who had attempted to lobby for my father's vote was asking him to vote against the amendment which has stemmed from the Gestalt case. It could possibly be a stretch but we should not deny it." 
Nodding, you continued. "And the fact that we had found out that Rene Gestalt had already died right after the High Court suspension. And had died under a different name and under a mysterious circumstance."
"If Rene Gestalt was a simple nobody, he wouldn’t have died in that manner," Soonyoung added. "And that tax evasion case shouldn't have been dismissed so easily."
"Luce Trading is more profitable than Kwon International, isn't it?" You asked, but Soonyoung immediately replied.
"Hey now! We had better sales for the past decade!" 
You giggled, "Alright, my apologies." 
"I still find it hard to fit the pieces though," Wonwoo interrupted. "Why Luce Trading? Why did Himi Gestalt die but not Rene? What exactly happened?"
The three of you exchanged glances.
"We need more information."
You leaned back, sighing as you felt the heaviness of the possible truth you have in your hands. Wonwoo and Soonyoung were pretty much the same. That’s why, more than anything, you didn’t want any sort of distraction, especially those that involve soulmate bonds.
“In the meantime, Y/N,” Wonwoo began, giving Soonyoung a look and then the two gazed at you with concerned expressions. “Are you truly, definitely, a hundred percent, alright?” 
You knitted your brows, and immediately replied. “I’ve never been better.”
“No…! No, what we meant is…” Soonyoung was the one who responded. “You…you fought with your father, didn’t you?”
It was a sudden inquiry, you can admit that, but you were not at least surprised they had asked. Your father must’ve gone to Soonyoung’s father and then they informed him of the matter. 
“A few weeks ago, yes,” you told them, nonchalant as you added more berries to the mortar. “I have decided to cut ties with him once and for all. He’s nothing to me now.”
You noticed that they were taken aback, but it was an expected reaction. The decision was indeed done in the heat of the moment, yet you didn’t feel anymore remorseful. 
“You do not have to worry about me. I have you two, and our newspaper is doing quite well in sales,” you reassured them. “Cutting him off is simply removing dead weight off my shoulders.”
Without any warning, Soonyoung pulled you to a tight embrace and Wonwoo followed soon after. You simply stayed still in surprise, as they continued to console you silently, knowing that you didn’t need any words to make you feel better. 
“Y/N, please know that we will always be here for you,” Wonwoo began. “We’ve been together since we were children, and we’ll always will be.”
“If you wish to get something off your chest, we are always here to listen. You don’t have to carry everything by yourself.”
You grimaced at this, but hid it easily by burying yourself underneath their embrace. You’ll tell them everything someday, but now, you simply wish to brave the storm by yourself.
“I will.”
"Jihoon!"
Heavy footfalls echo across the marbled hallways of the Parliament. Rows of white columns line up on the curve, the view of Porta Persa easily seen with just one turn of a head.
"Jihoon, please wait for a moment!"
Harsh steps that march through with controlled frustration, and another set which was running after them. Nobody was on sight other than two men who were adorned by their heavy purple robes, billowing with the wind.
"Lee Jihoon!" 
"What is it ?!" The other snapped, his eyes piercing and intense.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs sighed, his demeanor tinged with concern. The whole Parliament hearing was tense and unnerving, and Lee Jihoon seemed to be in the middle of the swirling storm. 
"I simply wanted to see if you are doing well," Joshua offered, his voice calm, yet the other simply scoffed.
"What do you suppose?" he replied, his tone filled with frustration and sarcasm. "If we lose next week's vote, it'll be all over!" 
Joshua reached out for Jihoon's shoulder, trying to help the other through his temper. 
"Alright Jihoon, listen to me. We still have time. We can still convince the others to vote against the bill." 
"But we need fifty more votes! Where in heaven's name are we going to find those?" He exclaimed and then groaned, resounding through the deserted hall.
"You need to calm down, Jihoon!" Joshua reminded, shaking some sense into him. "You're making a mountain out of a mole hill!"
The dark haired male blinked, stunned by the sudden loudness of his friend's voice. The high had finally subsided in his veins as he huffed and removed himself from Joshua's grasps. 
"Jihoon…"
"I apologize. I'm simply exhausted," he replied, sighing as he turned his back to the other. "While this issue has been particularly draining, my soulmate bond is eating my energy away as well." 
Joshua blinked, wondering what was the matter this time. They had left Jihoon in his dorm room that day as instructed, yet for some reason after that, he seemed to have become more snappish and gloomy. 
Jihoon sighed once more, probably the nth time for today. 
"She…she was crying when she arrived, you know. I have no inkling as to why but it did hurt me…seeing her like that," he continued, now more to himself than to Joshua. "I wanted to comfort her or do something, anything…but she pushed me away, both physically and mentally. It's been weighing on me since then."
Without a word, Joshua walked towards him and placed an understanding tap on his shoulder. "I wish I can offer you some help."
At this point, Jihoon simply shook his head with a downcast smile. "There is nothing we can do about it if she doesn't want me." 
Those words, as he said it, felt more painful than he had anticipated. Yet that was the truth—she had blocked him, in more ways than one. Jihoon wished he knew why yet he had already spent enough sleepless nights on it that he didn't need more.
"In the meantime, it would be nice if we had those fifty votes before the weekend."
Oct. 14th 
Desmere District, Porta Persa
"So, it's here?" You asked, standing in front of a decrepit shop, flanked by two of your friends. "Are you sure it's here?" 
You weren’t really one to judge but the way the roof shingles were about to fall, the dull green paint peeling off the door, and the dusty shop window filled by various junk accumulated over the years, was telling a rather clear story. 
You could even  hardly read the name of the shop. 
“52nd Oppleton street, Esmond Novelty Shop….Yes, without a doubt this is the one!” Soonyoung replied cheerfully, grinning ear to ear, “Come on now! No time to waste!” 
Wonwoo glanced at you with a knowing look as he followed after Soonyoung through the door. Today seemed to be one of those days where Wonwoo was in a rather irritatingly playful mood. “You heard him. No time to waste now, Y/N.”
It wasn’t new for you to be the victim of their teasing, but you didn’t appreciate it either when it comes. Thus, as you rolled your eyes and pursed your lips, you threw your hesitation out of the window. Following closely behind, you heard the charming bell chime above you as soon as you entered, yet the dust which wafted through the air was not as charming as you had feared.
“Welcome to our shop! Feel free to look around and see if anything suits your fancy!” A male voice greeted you three, though you cannot make out a clear image of him as he seemed to be covered by the centuries old dust. 
“Ah, we’re actually looking for someone…” Soonyoung replied, fishing a piece of parchment inside the pocket of his vest. “Um…a Madame Adora?” 
While the three of you seemed to be unsure, the tall burly man, which you have now seen after the dust has settled, nodded in understanding. 
“Yes, yes. Please follow me. Her shop is at the back,” he replied and turned around, not waiting for you to respond. 
Exchanging curious glances, you followed close behind—carefully studying your surroundings as you did. There were a lot of books for one. Stacks upon stacks of leather tomes piled on top of another which was rather deadly if one wrong move was made. The shopkeeper, seemingly used to this dangerous environment, easily navigated his way through the path provided. 
There were a lot of miscellaneous items as well: old shoes, typewriters, some ornate desks which were long forgotten. Dirty porcelain dolls, dull grey candelabras, and even a baby grand piano covered with various knickknacks—essentially, this was a shop of extras: once loved, tossed away and buried under the sands of time. Their fate seemed to have given you a melancholic mood, yet there is little you can do to change it. 
“Where do you find all of these?” Wonwoo asked, curious as he perused over an old book about outdated potions. 
“There are numerous ways,” the man shrugged, dodging a stray pole which was protruding from a pile of junk. “Sometimes we buy them from people who move houses, sometimes they just give it to us, and some just find their way here.”
His words immediately reminded you of the thought that objects do have souls in them. They used to be someone’s important thing; they were once given meaning and context by the people who used to own them. This place had become their new home now, amidst the sea of other objects that were no different.
A light knock on wood snatched you from your thoughts as you averted your attention back to the matter at hand. The shopkeeper had stopped in front of a slightly ajar door, peeking carefully at the space. 
“Madame, these people wish to speak to you,” he called out, yet he was met by silence and a rather loud creaking of a chair being moved. A grainy “let them in” soon followed, though you were not as sure since it was just above a murmur.
Nodding, the shopkeeper moved and allowed you space to walk inside the room. With rather modest postures, the three of you silently entered in file, easily spotting a worn out loveseat, which was probably a bright emerald in its youth, to sit on. It was a rather small space, enough to be a breakfast room, with second hand furniture and astrology-related objects littered around to give a sense of mystique. 
“Robert, fetch those documents for me please,” the old woman ordered, who you hardly noticed with how she was almost covered by the wooden desk before her. The shopkeeper, who was apparently named Robert hummed and disappeared, closing the door shut. 
As soon as he was gone, you scooted on your seat to take a closer look of the old woman. Just as you had anticipated, Madame Adora was petit, but was made to look larger by her bulky dress adorned by stars and moons embroidered in metallic thread. It had the same fabric as her headpiece which was wrapped around her head like a towel. The one which caught most of your attention however, was the large dangling sun and moon earrings which were as big as her head. You wondered if they were as heavy as they looked. 
“Um…we’re—” Wonwoo began but was instantly halted by the Madame with just one hand. 
“I know what you seek, my dear children,” she began, her voice croaky. Probably from smoking a bit too much; you thought as you noticed the ashtray on her table next to the burning sage. 
The three of you raised your eyebrows, wondering what Madame Adora could’ve meant by her words. She seemed to be the eccentric type, and you wouldn’t be surprised if she busted out tarot cards and a crystal ball any minute. 
“You are on your path to fulfill a great purpose for humanity. It is a fate neither you nor this country can avoid,” she continued, making you glance at Wonwoo and Soonyoung. You wanted to ask them if she was sane, but out of courtesy, you decided to keep your mouth shut. 
“O-Of course…that—that’s what we’re trying to do,” Soonyoung replied awkwardly as he shifted on his seat. “But we do need to—”
“Yet be cautioned. This path does not offer refuge nor solace for the tired and weary. You will be accompanied by danger, deceit and the deep dark evils of this world. You will face adversaries stronger and larger than you had anticipated. Poke the bear, and its claws shall appear. Be strong and always seek for the truth.”
“Uh…yes, of course,” you replied, ending with uncertainty. “So the documents—”
“Ah, yes. Robert will be here soon,” she interrupted yet again. “While we wait, would any of you like a tarot reading?” 
“T-tarot reading?” Soonyoung exclaimed, as he leaned forward, not sure if he had heard it right. 
What a surprise. You simply smiled.
Interrupting your gloating, Soonyoung suddenly nudged you with his elbow, making you look at him. 
“What?” you asked, your voice a whisper. 
“Y-you do it, Y/N!” He replied, his expression not betraying the fact that he was a bit afraid. 
“What? Me? Of course not! Do you suppose I believe in such buffoonery?”
“Now, now. It’s just tarot cards, what harm could it possibly do to you? Attack you with a paper cut?” Soonyoung immediately replied, even though he was the one who got frightened first.
“Soonyoung is right, Y/N,” Wonwoo joined in, though you knew he was trying to gang up on you. “Besides, you wouldn’t be so cruel to deny this poor woman an income, would you?”
You closed your eyes, and breathed in—incredibly irritated by this game Wonwoo was playing today. However, you just didn’t have the energy to pick up a fight with how your stomach was beginning to churn once again; the suppressants returning with a vengeance after the pain relievers had worn off.
“Fine then! I’ll do it,” you seethed through gritted teeth as you stood up and walked towards the old woman. “I’ll do it.”
Now much closer, you saw Madame Adora smile warmly at you, which made you feel a bit guilty for getting angry. Sighing, you turn your gaze down to the wooden desk, unable to look into her eyes. 
“Boys,” the Madame suddenly called in her raspy voice. “Robert is waiting for you in the other room to look at the documents. Your friend will join you shortly.”
At this development, both Wonwoo and Soonyoung glanced at you, asking if it was alright for them to leave you. You smiled at them encouragingly. You’ll be fine. It’s just a tarot reading.
“Please don’t start without me,” you turned to them as they left the room. “I’m looking at you Kwon Soonyoung.”
Your friend simply grinned and gave you a salute. “Aye, aye!”
When the door was finally shut and you were left alone with the old woman, you glanced at her, wondering what was about to happen, or if she was going to do something.
“What’s your name, my dear?” she asked, something you hadn’t expected.
“Uh…I’m Y/N,” you soon replied, fiddling with a stray lock. You tried to deduce what the Madame was thinking, but nothing came to mind. She was eccentric and unpredictable; there was no use trying to predict the next set of events.
“Well then, please take a seat, Y/N,” she offered the armchair beside you which you quickly sat on. “Is this your first time getting a reading?”
“Yes, I…” you tried to evaluate your next words. “I’ve never been to a shop like this before.” 
She simply chuckled at you, pulling out a deck of cards from a drawer. “I understand, dear. We readers are few in number, yet believe it or not, just like magical practitioners, it is necessary for us to have proper licenses.” 
With the new information, you raised your brows and nodded, wondering why you haven’t known of this field before. As you continue to swim in your thoughts, Madame Adora began waving the smoking sage around the area. 
Knowing your curious look, she gave a small smile. “To cleanse the space, my dear. Sometimes we carry residual energy from people, objects or situations. It is necessary to cleanse before we begin the reading, so we can only pick up your own energy.”
Nodding once more, you didn’t really know what she was talking about. You were no magi, and your knowledge of magic was limited to alchemy and potions, which was grounded more into the material world than the metaphysical. 
“Alright then. What kind of reading do you wish to do?” She asked and you only gave her a blank look—completely innocent to the kind of readings a reader could perform. 
Without you needing to say a word, the Madame nodded in understanding and explained it to you. 
“A reading, in its base form, is a medium to provide some clarity. The Universe itself provides the answers. So if there is a question, a situation which you wish to seek clarity on, then we could begin with that.” 
Even before the old woman had finished talking, your head was already turning gears and cogwheels. You wanted to ask about the syndicate and the investigative reporting you were doing, yet for some reason, a niggling feeling inside of you was telling you it wasn’t the right question to ask. 
So you searched for it, concentrating on the feeling that you knew you could trust. However, at the end,  you were surprised to where it had led you. You didn’t want to ask about it. It was done, it was there. It didn’t matter anymore. But you felt it. It was so strong that it made shivers creep under your skin. You know you needed to hear it. 
You sighed. It’s just a tarot reading. No harm done. 
“I…uh…” you gazed downwards, finding your wrist wrapped in ribbon to be quite fascinating; deciding for one last time if this was indeed the decision you were making.
“My…uh, soulmate bond.”
You were not sure if she had heard you with how small your voice sounded, but there was no way you would repeat yourself. The way you finally said those words out loud felt like some sort of acceptance; an acknowledgement that a soulmate bond existed between you and that person. Before, it felt like it was simply a figment of your imagination.
To your surprise, the Madame nodded at you, smiling proudly. “Then it shall be. Let us begin.”
You nodded back, watching as she began to expertly shuffle the cards. 
“I will be doing a simple spread for you. A first card or cards would explain your energy, and then his energy. Afterwards, your strengths and weaknesses, then the state of this connection. Finally, we will be asking for the future of your soulmate connection.”
Unaware of how specific tarot can be, you only stared at her quite agile hands, not fully understanding everything. 
“Please be reminded, dear that energies do change. What is shown here is simply the current energy of the soulmate bond. You and your soulmate still do have the agency to change your future, yet for now, this is what it is.”
You definitely liked the sound of that. If tarot had been in any way fatalistic, you would’ve soured on it in an instant. You always believed that you had some semblance of control over your life, or at least you wanted to. 
Quietly, the Madame began drawing out cards, mostly cards which jumped out while she was shuffling. As she began to neatly arrange the cards into a grid-like form, you watched out for any reaction or expression from her. As it turned out, the most you could get was a slight raise of a brow. 
When it was all done, she flipped the deck over and placed it beside the spread. Peering overing, you saw that there were a lot of cards, some were upright and the others upside down. You wondered what these all meant.
“Well then, my dear,” she spoke to you, glancing all over the spread and then nodded in understanding. “Let us begin with your energy—Eight of Swords, Queen of Swords reversed and the Hermit reversed.”
“Are those good or bad?” you asked, curious, yet the old woman simply tightened her lips.
“What I could say is that, you may seem to be trapped in your situation right now, whatever your situation may be. Look at this woman in the Eight of Swords,” she replied, holding out the card to you. “ She is blindfolded and surrounded by these swords. She seems to be trapped and imprisoned. It could be your thoughts or what you are telling yourself, as swords symbolizes our mind and how we communicate. You could be suffering from self-doubt.”
Taking in her words, you could feel a lump forming in your chest, knowing that she was indeed right. 
“And then we have the Queen of Swords, which is you. When she is upright, she is a force to be reckoned with: intelligent, independent and the speaker of truth, however dear, we have her in reverse, which only shows the shadow side of this energy. The Hermit in reverse is telling me the same thing. My dear, I must apologize, yet this is what I see. As you continue to trap yourself with negative thoughts, you are slowly closing off your heart, becoming coldhearted and bitter, leading you into more loneliness and isolation. Whatever has caused you to become like this was incredibly painful that you have been pushed into fear, creating these defensive walls which then became the swords blindsiding you at this moment.”
You were silent, knowing full well what the old woman was talking about. You wanted to be angry at her for speaking a truth you were trying to avoid all this time, yet there was only sadness in your heart. 
“I’m so sorry dear, but this is what the cards say, but please rest assured that your energy could still change. Considering the strengths of this connection, I have high hopes that this soulmate bond will succeed,” Madame Adora consoled you, seeing the deep hurt in your eyes. 
“It’s fine,” you replied, swallowing the bile forming in your throat. “Please continue.”
Hesitantly, the Madame moved to the two cards beside the first ones she had read. “For your soulmate’s energy: the Two of Pentacles in reverse and the Hierophant.”
“As for now, your soulmate is in an imbalance. Look at how this person is trying to juggle the two pentacles in the card. He could hardly balance them at all. It could possibly be that your soulmate finds it difficult to manage their career and this connection with you, as this is a pentacles card which usually pertains to finances and the material world. Or, it could possibly be that they cannot find the balance between their traditional values and the constantly changing world with the Hierophant. Their views are definitely being challenged by you and your connection. Nevertheless, they seem to have felt your withdrawal and decided to focus on their career instead, which has now become two burdens on their shoulders.”
Making a downcast look, you felt guilty for making him feel that way. If he had indeed felt your pain through the bond, then he was no better than you. He was hurt too and the thought of you unintentionally inflicting pain on someone was something you were not keen on. 
“Now then, let’s  move to the strengths of this connection with the Chariot and Strength cards, which are incredibly powerful cards to have. Even this whole spread is powerful, considering how much Major Arcana you have.”
You leaned your head to the side. “Oh, is…is that so?”
“Yes. The Major Arcana holds more significance than the Minor Arcana, that is why having numerous cards from this suit could mean that this connection could be life changing for the both of you. With that said, having the Chariot and Strength implies that the both of you have a tremendous amount of strength and willpower. You and your soulmate are influential people who will stop at nothing to achieve your goals. That is why, even through all the pain and difficulties this bond will bring, this connection will survive.”
Not knowing what to make of that, you simply nodded. You were unsure if you do want this connection to survive. You hardly know your soulmate and you had no interest in doing so. You had long abandoned the idea that you will find love in a soulmate bond.
“Well now, look here, Y/N. I have been called upon to draw three cards for the weaknesses of this connection. We have the Five of Swords, the Nine of Swords in reverse and the High Priestess in reverse,” she continued, showing you the three cards.
“At this moment, there is conflict and disagreement in this connection. It could possibly be that the both of you have fought and that was the reason for your stagnant energy and his withdrawal, and with the Nine of Swords in reverse, usually this card means your anxieties and fears, and in reverse, it could be a release of those negative energies. However, in this reading, it seems like the both of you are hiding this inner turmoil in your hearts. Look at the image here,” the Madame pointed at the Nine of Swords.
“The woman is crying on her bed at night while these swords loom above her—she is crying alone, only the night is her companion, when everyone else is asleep and oblivious to her pain. In a way, you both are mirroring each other. You try to keep this conflict in your heart, making you feel disenchanted with this connection. You had lost hope of finding this love you seek. They on the other hand, try to bury themselves in their career or material possessions. They want stability and a sense of normalcy, yet cannot find it. The Universe has been providing divine guidance, yet with the High Priestess in reverse, the both of you cannot hear or perceive the signs.”
“This is further clarified with the Hanged Man and the Tower, both in reverse. These two cards represent the state of this connection, which further confirms the stagnation and fear of change in this connection. I felt this in the beginning when I was tapping to your energy, but dear, have you been blocking your soulmate bond?”
For some reason, you could only look at her and speak no words. There was fear in your eyes and guilt in your gut. It felt like you had done something unforgivable. You cast a glare to your arm, unable to utter any words of admittance. 
“Dear, may I see your wrist?” Madame Adora asked softly. You were hesitant at first but eventually gave in, pulling the ribbon that was wrapped around your wrist and placed it on the table. 
Gently, she examined the dull black bars on your skin as you watched curiously. You would ask what she was doing if she hadn’t begun speaking once again. 
“You are in pain, dear. Deep, deep pain you need to heal from. It’s not a fresh wound, but scars inflicted from so long ago yet continuously being pried open over the years. You keep on ignoring, burying these scars, hoping that time would help it heal someday,” she said, her fingers on the marks. 
“Yet when this soulmate bond came, it had forced you to face them even if you have no wish to, even if you were not ready to. This bond is making your fears rise to the surface—the fear of heartbreak and of disappointment. Thus, instead of waiting for someone else to do this to you, you decided to nip it in the bud. You try to convince yourself that you wish to be alone, that you are comfortable alone, yet deep inside you, you long for someone to share the heaviness which weighs down your heart.” 
Without even realizing, you had furrowed your brows and was glaring at the offending soulmate mark on your skin. There was a feeling deep inside you which refuses to accept the old woman's words. It was too painful to acknowledge the yearning that was deeply-rooted in your heart. It was too embarrassing to say that you had made a mistake.
You were simply protecting yourself. Those scars had long healed itself. You had already cut ties with your father and that was the end of the story. There is nothing more to talk about. There was no need to face any more of this. There is no need to reconcile with your soulmate. 
Gritting your teeth, you could sense anger rise deep inside of you. 
“But dear let me reassure you that despite everything, you will come together in the end. For the future of this connection, you have the Two of Cups which signifies a union. It is my soulmate card because as you can see, these two people are sharing, exchanging cups—”
—!!
You slammed your fist on the table abruptly, the cards jumping in disarray. Madame Adora looked at you sadly as you snatched your wrist away, holding it close to your chest. Your eyes were burning with rage, yet the old woman knew that that anger was rooted from deep longing and sadness.
“I don’t want it,” you muttered in a low voice, and then, after a short pause, began shouting as if it would relieve the guilt in your chest. “I don’t want it! I don’t want this! Could you please leave me alone!”
Without waiting for a reply, you ran out from the room, from the shop. You were in no capacity to continue the investigation with your friends when you are in this state of instability. You just want to leave and disappear for a while. 
Just for a while.
Back inside the room, Madame Adora was greeted by Soonyoung and Wonwoo, who were surprised to know that you had left running out of the shop. 
“Ah, did Y/N lose her temper again?” Wonwoo asked as he had heard you shouting earlier. “We must apologize, Madame.”
“No, it is I who wishes for your pardon. I must have hurt your friend,” she replied. “Please give this to her as an apology.” 
The two men watched as the Madame pulled out a small box from one of the desk’s drawers and placed it on the table. They wondered what the Madame had said in the reading that made you lose composure. 
“We will deliver this to her immediately,” Soonyoung replied as he took the box and dropped it inside his pocket. “And thank you for the documents.”
“It is meant for you. I had been called upon to buy the desk which it was stored in, and when you came to this shop in search for such an item, I knew it was meant for this purpose,” Madame Adora replied, intertwining her fingers together. “But more than that, please watch over Y/N.”
Both Wonwoo and Soonyoung exchanged glances. “W-we will.”
“Simply watch over her and give her support. She is going through something which only she can resolve.”
As the Madame said those words, her gaze was caught by the single card by her side. It was the card at the back of the deck—usually meant to summarize the energy of the whole reading. 
It was the Lovers.
It was already dreadfully dark when you had decided to return to your dorm room.
The wisteria trees were already a midnight grey, the unlit path, a dark purple. Only a few streetlamps offered illumination through the pitch-black night as you waded through the campus in silence.
You took your time alone—wandering on random alleyways, sitting on deserted park benches, watching people pass by as they live their own lives, with their own problems. Nothing seemed real during those hours of isolation in the midst of the crowd. It was like the pain was too far away for you to reach; the events from that afternoon too far away to be reality.
Yet you knew you needed to return somehow. Thus, with eyes exhausted from crying tears unshed, and the ribbon you used to conceal your soulmate bond in your hands, you opened the door to your dorm room and saw its gauche splendor in shameless display.
With a sigh, you wrapped the ribbon on your wrist haphazardly, not caring if not seemed sloppy as long as the black bars were far from your sight.
Walking to the common room, you scanned the area for your roommate, wondering if he was asleep or still at his office on a Friday night. It would be better if you didn’t see him, you thought. There would be less explaining to do.
Yet the common room was depressingly empty. It had occurred to you that you never even spent much time in there as much as you would’ve liked. Was it simply because you were avoiding him or you were just not interested in sharing the same space with him, you didn’t know.
As you move past the wooden dining table and towards the kitchenette for a glass of water, you bumped into something fleshy and soft which definitely made you shriek and fall onto the floor in a painful thud.
“What…on earth?” you muttered, gradually coming down from your sudden adrenaline rush, your sight refocusing.
To your astonishment, you found one Lee Jihoon lying on the floor, obviously drunk by the whisky which was once inside the bottle he was clinging on to for dear life. Apprehensively, you crawled towards him, to check if he was still breathing. Yet before you could touch him, his dark brown eyes were on to you, still cold and jaded as the nights of December.
“Jihoon—“
You were about to reprimand him for bringing in prohibited alcohol inside the dorms and for sleeping on the floor during a cold autumn day, when you realized that his skin was red. Bright red.
Concern immediately shoots up to your brain as you reach out to him.
“Jihoon!” You exclaimed, shaking him to sobriety. “Jihoon! Are you intolerant to alcohol?”
Despite your concern, he could only hum groggily. “It’s…fine.”
“What do you mean ‘it’s fine’? How many bottles have you drunk?!” You asked, looking around and saw several bottles of the same whisky he was holding. “Oh god, you even chose one with high alcohol content! You shouldn’t be drinking this.”
“It’s…fine, Y/N. I only had a few… just a few…”
He simply groaned in reply, lying comfortably on the floor without a care in the world. You only stared at him in exasperation, brushing your hair as you sighed.
You felt an urge to just leave him like that on the floor until dawn breaks. He can take care of himself, and being drunk probably isn’t something new to him. Yet you knew you can’t just do that. Whether or not he was Lee Jihoon, you had the obligation to not leave him to die of alcohol poisoning or of hypothermia.
The last one was a stretch, you admit but still, there was no way you could leave him like that as someone who tries to be compassionate at every point of day. At least, the sofa was a lot better than the cold floor.
Reaching for his arm and placing it around your shoulders, you tried to carry Jihoon to the sofa just a few steps away. Yet you hadn’t anticipated how heavy he actually was as you barely dragged him across the room, huffing and panting. You were not one with the best fitness
“Come on, Jihoon. Hold yourself up!  You’re simply too heavy for me to carry!” You exclaimed as you tried not to stumble on the way.
“Mmn…I’m sorry...I’m trying…” he drawled, his eyes half-lidded and unfocused—obvious indications that he has drunk too much for his own good.
Just a little bit…
Taking that one step remaining, you immediately tossed Jihoon to the soft sofa with a long and exhausted sigh. He only groaned, his hair in a disarray. You had only noticed now that he still had his work clothes on: a grey suit piece sans the tie which he must’ve tossed somewhere in the immediate past.
He had his eyes closed as you sat closely to him, watching his chest rise and fall with every breath. Jihoon seemed to be in peace this way, far from the constant creases in his brow or on his lips. Brushing away a stray lock of hair from his face, you noticed the angles on his face, the fullness of his cheeks, the rosiness of his lips. Was he always this familiar to you? It was a question you had no immediate answers to. Yet you had never anticipated to end your exhausting day with a drunk Lee Jihoon, yet that’s where you are now.
“I should give him some medicine to ease the redness,” you muttered to yourself as you stood up, your mind already listing the ingredients you needed to make one tablet, but before you did, a hand had stopped you in your tracks.
“Please…don’t leave me,” his voice, still lethargic, echoed behind you and you were forced to turn, your eyes captured by his unrelenting gaze.
“Jihoon…” you spoke softly, returning to your seat beside him as you helped him sit up clumsily. “But you’re still flushing.”
“Doesn’t matter…” he replied back, leaning unsteadily until you caught him in your arms. Now he was peacefully resting his head on your shoulder, burying himself into your embrace.
“J-Jihoon…?”
To say that you were wholly surprised was an understatement. You were floundering and unable to make anything out of this situation. This was something incredibly out of character for the Lee Jihoon you thought you knew.
“Y/N…I must….must apologize,” he began, which definitely made you furrow your brows in bewilderment. “I’m so sorry… I—I failed you…”
You stared into the air incredulously, not understanding what page Jihoon was in.
“You didn’t fail me,” you replied back. “You didn’t fail anyone, Jihoon…”
However, it seemed like your words fell into deaf ears as he snuggled up to you, wrapping his arms around you tightly.
“I’m so sorry…Y/N…please…please forgive me…”
Concluding that this was probably one drunk confession, you allowed him to find comfort in your presence, placing a consoling hand on his back as he continued to apologize to you.
This was a side to him you hadn’t expected to see. It was vulnerable, raw and unapologetically real—words you never thought you’d associate with Lee Jihoon. Yet there you were, as you hugged him back, finding solace in his arms as well when there was no one in the world you could share your burdens with.
“It’s okay, Jihoon…” you replied to him as you closed your eyes. “At least you tried, and it’s good enough for me.”
“Yet…yet…why can’t I feel you…?” he cried out, his voice clearly in pain. “Why can’t I reach you…? I…I always…alwaysss wanted to know you…to hold you like this…”
“Jihoon…”
You wished there was something you could say or do, yet you didn’t even know what he was talking about. It felt like the two of you were talking in a circle of riddles; finding yourselves in different pages.
“Y/N…please don’t be angry…please….please….don’t reject me,” he continued on as if in a trance. “I’m so sorry….so sorryyy….”
There was something in his words, or the way his voice shook that had pierced right through you. You wondered what you had done to him to plead to you like this. Yes, you did push him away a few weeks ago, yet that was the farthest you had gone to hurt him. You couldn’t understand what was happening, nevertheless, you still felt called upon to take action.
Moving your hand, you brushed his soft locks gently.
“I won’t reject you, Jihoon. I won’t push you away. I promise you.”
PARLIAMENT PASSES BILL CRACKING DOWN ON CILVEKAN NATIONALS by Jeon Wonwoo
The Porta Persa Edition, October 27th
 In a historic vote, the Parliament has passed a bill on harsher travel restrictions for Cilvekan nationals as well as an extensive program which allows for the investigation of all Cilvekans in Porta Persa. This bill marks a tantamount win on Rep. Kang Jinho and his Conservative party—warranting a speculation of a bid on the Prime Minister seat.
This soon-to-be law highlights restrictions set on the amount of Cilvekan nationals leaving and entering Porta Persa wherein local governments can monitor their actions inside the country. It is also in the prerogative of the local government to deny entry to any Cilvekan wishing to enter.  According to Rep. Kang, it is necessary to be able to detect any sort of preemptive strike against Porta Persa to avoid endangering the security of the people.
This bill also boasts a program which, in conjunction with the restrictions, shall implement a vast inspection of all Cilvekan nationals present in the country. They are to undergo a thorough investigation conducted by the police and shall be warranted to arrests if ill-intentions against Porta Persa is proven.
With this bill, according to the Parliament, the government shall be able to ensure that the national security of Porta Persa shall not be threatened by any means, even if it meant sacrificing privacy and material gains. Sacrifice is and always will be inevitable on the road to peace…
In the pitch black darkness of the night, echoes of footfalls resounded across the streets of Porta Persa. There was breaking of glass, breaking of wood, and shouts of women. 
Fear was high in the scent of the night. The streets of Porta Pera enshrined by men and women—rounded up in handcuffs and tied by accusations. Half the town was awake and afraid, half the town asleep and aloof. 
The night had just began.
CHAP 1 | CHAP 2 | CHAP 3 | CHAP 4 | CHAP 5 |  CHAP 6 |
-Hyeri
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