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writing-blog-iguess · 1 year ago

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Online Matchup 4

Summery: Y/N makes a trip back home last minute, ruining Jason's plan for a breakfast date, but that won't stop him from coming up with a different plan.

Warning: swearing, talk of surgery, Jason's being a sweetheart, fluff

A/n: this is becoming one of my comfort fics to write, and I can't be mad about it. I'm glad you guys are enjoying it. Feedbacks always welcome

Words: 3097

Ao3

Series master list

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October 8

Jason (6:40am) Good morning How are you this beautiful morning?

Y/N Why in the everloving fuck are you awake at six in the morning?

Jason Aren’t you a potty mouth in the early mornings Someone should teach you a lesson

Y/N It’s to early for anything right now

Jason’s May I remind you, that you’re awake this early too

Y/N My sister decided it was the perfect time to call me Apparently it couldn’t wait until I was awake enough to call her back And now I can’t sleep

Jason Everything okay?

Y/N Define okay?

Jason It’s your dad isn’t it?

Y/N Yeah I don’t know, I don’t want to talk about it

Jason Fair enough

Y/N Now answer my question

Jason Demanding Wanted to know how you were doing after last night

Y/N Better now that I’ve slept I wish I could sleep longer tho Though my eyes hurt and it feels like I have a hangover

Jason Consequences of crying before bed

Y/N Make it go away

Jason Wanna meet for breakfast? Y/N?

Y/N (8:35am) Oh, sorry I fell asleep

Jason Uh huh It has nothing to do with the fact that I asked if you wanted to go for breakfast

Y/n Mm don’t know what you’re talking about And isn’t there a rule where a guy has to wait a least three days Before you ask the girl out again

Jason Apparently My brother advised me the same thing But since I could care less what he thinks about my relationship I have decided to ignore him and take the plunge and ask you anyways Besides he barely listens to his own advice So to each their own I guess

Y/N Why do I get the feeling that you ignore your brother a lot

Jason Couldn’t tell you So, breakfast?

Y/N Uh, wish I could But I have a train to catch

Jason Where’s it going?

Y/N Metropolis

Jason You're going home? Why so sudden?

Y/n The call with my sister? Apparently my dad is having surgery and my mom wants everyone there until he’s done Don’t know why I have to go, by the time I’m there it’ll probably be over

Jason Yikes What’s the surgery for?

Y/N Dunno, something to do with something? I’m not sure, I was half asleep when she called And she used that to her advantage and got me to agree to go home today

Jason Don’t you have class tomorrow?

Y/N Not until the afternoon

Jason Work?

Y/n Not until Tuesday

Jason Huh

Y/n Yup tbh I rather spend my Sunday with you then go home But it’s family and I can’t say no to my sister

Jason I get that family’s first But I would choose you over my family

Y/n … You can’t just say that!

Jason But flustering you is becoming my favourite past time

Y/n Get a new one!

Jason Nah, don’t think I will Okay, so no breakfast How about I drop you off at the station?

Y/N Tempting But if you do, then I’ll miss the train Because I wanna kiss your stupid face And besides, I’m almost there

Jason My face isn’t stupid … You wanna kiss me? Colour me flattered

Y/n I rescind my statement

Jason Can’t do that, it’s in writing Hold on, when you said you were sleeping You were actually packing, weren’t you?

Y/N Guilty I’m sorry I’ve spent thirty minutes debating on whether or not to ditch my family for you

Jason But in the end you’re ditching me Feels like your running from something I see how it is

Y/N I’m sorry D: I’m not running away or anything

Jason It’s okay, really I’m not mad or anything Okay, maybe a little disappointed But he’s your dad and you don’t know when’s the next time you see him So it’s okay, don’t feel bad I’ll wait around until your back And I know your not, I just took the joke too far and I’m sorry

Y/n I’m still sorry

Jason Can I call you?

Y/N Uhhhhhhh Give me a minute

Jason Take as much time as you need I can wait

Y/n Sweet of you But I needed to find a seat first And then my headphones

Jason So You’re good now?

Y/n Yup

It didn’t take more than a second before your phone rang after you sent the message.

“I thought you wanted to call?” you answered, moving your phone so Jason could see your face. He shrugged, shooting you a smile.

“Wanted to see your pretty face is all,” he said, and you could feel your face heat up at the compliment. Averting your eyes, you sink in your seat, trying to hide your face in your sweater. “Awe, is this what you look like when you get flustered? There’s no way I can't stop flustering you now. If this is what your reaction is going to be every time I do.”

“I’m hanging up now,” you mumbled into your sweater, and wondered if he heard that. Judging by the smile he gave you, he did.

“Nah, I don’t think so. You called my face pretty and you wanted to kiss it,” he said. That made you come out of your sweater and glared at him.

“I think I said stupid face,” you corrected, “you have a stupid face.”

“That you want to kiss,” Jason pointed out with a smile. You stuck out your tongue at him, making him laugh. “How’s the train ride?”

You shrugged, shifting in your seat trying to get comfortable. “A train ride I guess. We just left the station and it’ll be two hours until we get to Metropolis? My butts gonna hurt once I get there.”

“Gotta walk around once in a while,” Jason reminded, “did you bring anything for the ride?”

“Yeah, homework I still need to finish, my sketchbook and some books I’ve been meaning to read.”

“Sounds like a party,” Jason joked. You huffed out a laugh.

“Oh yeah, real life of the party over here.”

Before either of you could continue, you faintly heard a door slamming open and closing before hearing a faint call of Jason! You promised me breakfast! From what you could make out, it was a female voice and you pushed down the bout of jealousy that came from nowhere. You didn’t have the right to be jealous. Jason wasn’t yours, he was his own person and you two weren’t seeing each other officially. He was free to do what he pleased. Still, you couldn’t lie and say that it didn’t hurt.

You watched as Jason scowled, and turned towards the voice. “Yeah, give me a minute I’m on the phone.”

You schooled your features and raised an eyebrow as he turned back to his phone. “You already had breakfast plans, yet you still tried to make them with me? Wow Jason, didn’t know you had that in you.”

“Okay, first of all, I’m not a two timing bitch,” he clarified and you blanched at the statement. Damn, and you thought you hid it well. “And like I said before, I’d ditch my family for you any day of the week without question.”

“Aw Jason, you’d ditch your own sister! I see how it is,” the female voice said. Jason made a face as a blond haired girl came into frame, hanging off of Jason’s shoulders. Her nose pressed into his cheek and she smiled. “Tell me how you really feel, Jason.”

“Okay, I will,” he said, shoving her off, “you’re an annoying little shit.” She laughed and turned towards the phone. She was pretty, you had to admit.

“Oh, Tim’s right. You are cute,” she said, and you pulled your sweater over your mouth, trying to keep a laugh in as Jason looked offended.

“Steph!” he yelled, shoving her face out of frame. “Go away.”

“No, you promised me breakfast last night, and I demand pancakes,” she said, coming back in, shoving Jason out of frame as she did so. She turned to you and smiled. “Hello, I’m Jason’s sister Stephanie. You must be Y/N, it’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard virtually nothing about you.”

“And I’m trying to keep it that way,” he grunted, pushing her away. The two fought until finally they settled with Stephanie leaning on his shoulder. “How’d you even know their name?”

“Tim,” she answered. You raised your eyebrow in question. “He gets bored when he has nothing to do. And he decided to snoop around Jason’s life.”

“Well I’ll try not to be offended,” you said, though you furrowed your brows in concern. “Should I be worried?”

“I don’t think so,” Stephanie hummed, “not unless you have something to hide.”

“Do you have something to hide?” Jason pressed, a teasing smile dancing on his lips. You puffed out your cheeks and looked away.

“Oooh you do,” Stephanie sang, “tell us before we find out from Tim.”

“Tim needs to mind his own fucking business,” you muttered to yourself, causing Jason to laugh. “And no, I have nothing to hide. Lived a pretty boring life.”

“Don’t know, you tried killing your sister once,” Jason mused.

“I didn’t try on purpose! I pushed her off the deck into the lake,” you corrected, “and my dad got to her before anything could happen. Man, he was pissed. I feared for my life that day. I’ve never known fear until I saw the look he gave me.” You shuddered at the memory.

“How old were you?” Stephanie asked, worry laced in her words. You shrugged, staring at the corner of your phone, avoiding their gaze.

“Ten I think? Could be younger, I don’t know. Thought it would be funny, and it was until it wasn’t.”

“Did he hurt you?” Jason asked, you shook your head and moved your gaze to him.

“No. But the way he looked, he wanted to. If we were alone he probably would have. I booked it into the car and hid there until we went home. Then I hid in my room for the rest of the day.”

“Yikes. Why was he so mad? Bruce wouldn’t have been if we did something like that.”

“That’s because we knew how to take care of ourselves and we knew how to swim,” Jason pointed out.

“And he probably doesn’t have favourites,” you chimed in. You hummed in thought, ignoring the worried looks the two siblings were giving you. “But he doesn’t strike me as picking a favourite among his kids, unless he’s really good at hiding it. But no parent is that good at hiding that.”

“Have experience, do you?” Jason asked, you only hummed not wanting to elaborate. You aren’t sure how, but what was supposed to be a lighthearted conversation turned sour. You scrunched up your nose as a thought occurred to you. If it was this easy to talk to both Jason and Stephanie, you were afraid how the rest of his family would be. “Whatcha thinking about?”

“What you guys are having for breakfast,” you said instead of you voicing your thoughts.

“Ooh yes. I did come here for breakfast,” Stephanie said, as if she had forgotten the reason for being here. She turned to him and poked his cheek. “Make me pancakes with bacon and ham and eggs and everything.”

“How can you eat so much and not gain anything,” Jason grumbled as he moved off the couch and towards the kitchen. Stephanie shifted slightly so she was more centered to the camera.

“I work out,” she simply said with a shrug. Jason grumbled something, and since he was too far away you couldn’t hear what he said. “So, how’d you meet Jason anyways? Tim won’t say and Jason doesn’t want to talk about you when asked.”

“That’s because you pester me so much that I don’t want to talk about them,” Jason called, “and you don’t have to answer anything you want too, Y/N. Don’t let Stephanie bully you into answering questions.”

“It’s okay, Jason, I don’t mind. I know what it’s like to have siblings,” you said with a smile. “We met online. Started talking a few weeks back and haven’t stopped since.”

“Ah, you guys are still new,” Stephanie mused, “that means you can still back out before you guys get too serious.” You laughed at the same time Jason yelled hey! “Kidding, I’m kidding. I haven’t seen Jason happy in awhile. Please stick around, he’s more bearable when he’s happy.”

You watched as Jason stalked towards her, and plucked the phone from her. “If all you came here for was to make fun of me, you can go home without your food.”

“Noooo, Jason I’m sorry,” you heard Stephanie whine. And you couldn't be sure, but you saw Stephanie grovel a little bit on the floor. Although Stephanie couldn’t see Jason’s expression, you could and smiled at the little smile he shot you.

“Then go take a shower, you stink,” he said, and she was quick to race to the bathroom. “Your clothes are still here from last time!” he called and set the phone down so watch him as he prepared breakfast. “Sorry about her. I completely forgot she was coming over today.”

“No worries,” you dismissed, watching in awe as Jason cut up some vegetables with ease. “She was fun to talk to.”

“Prefer her over me, huh?”

“Nope. I like you more,” you said. “Where’d you learn how to cook?”

“Alfred taught me when I was young, and I kept going afterwards. Found it helped me when things got too stressed,” he explained. “Stress cooking is a lot healthier than other ways to deal.”

“I get that,” you mused, “I stress clean.”

“Nothing wrong with that,” he grunted. He stopped for a moment and looked towards you; eyes narrowed. “Did you have breakfast this morning?” You bit the top of your lip and avoided looking at him. “Y/N,” Jason said in warning.

“It was too early to eat!” you cracked, “I had a coffee and that was it.” Jason shook his head, going back to his food.

“I hope you eat something soon.”

“I packed some snacks. But they’re nothing compared to what you’re making for breakfast.”

“Well next time actually eat something or else I’ll just have to come over and cook for you.”

“That a threat?”

“No, more like a promise.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” you said with a smile.

“Stop flirting and cook me my food!” Stephanie yelled after the quickest shower you have ever seen someone take.

“So fucking demanding,” Jason grunted as you laughed.

“I should let you go so you can focus on the food instead of getting distracted,” you mused.

“But you’re the only kind of distraction I’d like,” he said, and you heard Stephanie gag. Laughing, you shook your head, trying to keep from blushing. “Okay maybe you’re right. Or otherwise, I’m going to throw Steph out the window.”

“Ha! I would like to see you try!”

Jason rolled his eyes and flicked them towards you. “Let me know when you’re there?”

“I can do that.”

---

Y/N (11:30 am) Ugh, I hate train rides

Jason Could have flown

Y/N Yeah but train tickets are cheaper

Jason True Made it in one piece?

Y/N Yup Now I’m making my way to the hospital

Jason Someone picking you up?

Y/n Nah, I’m taking the bus Need the extra time before I get there

Jason I get that

Y/n How was breakfast?

Jason Good Though it would be better if it was you

Y/n Stoooooooopppppppp

Jason Never I’m sorry about Steph, we can be a handful sometimes

Y/n No worries, I like her Is the rest of your family that energetic?

Jason Some yeah, the rest are just tamed

Y/n Sounds fun

Jason Oh yeah, the best

Y/n I can hear the sincerity from here

Jason Almost to the hospital?

Y/n Yeah I gotta go

Jason Tell me how it goes

Y/N (2:40 pm) I shouldn’t have come Why did I say yes?

Jason Because you were sleep deprived and you can’t say no to your sister Also because your dads in the hospital

Y/n Right He’s fine by they way, now he’s just recovering Doctors say they did what they could and he’ll be out of here in a couple of days

Jason Figured out what the surgery was about?

Y/N Nope and at this point I’m too afraid to ask

Jason Wow Why do you have regrets?

Y/n I don’t know how or why But somehow my sister figured out I was seeing someone Or at least talking to someone and kept pestering me until I told them I’ve been bamboozled

Jason Guess I’m not your dirty little secret anymore huh

Y/n Guess it wasn’t meant to be Oh well can’t be helped

Jason So now that your dads fine, you coming home?

Y/n No Somehow I have been convinced to stay the night and take the morning train in the morning Which sucks, I already bought my ticket for tonight

Jason That’s rough buddy

Y/n Can’t be helped I guess Now I get to play 20 questions

Jason But at least you get to spend time with your family

Y/n True

Jason you know, if you want I can drive up there and take the train with you

Y/N That is very sweet of you and very tempting But you have work and I don’t want to inconvenience you

Jason You’re not an inconvenience If anything, you’d be doing me a favour I have the day off tomorrow and I’ve been meaning to do something I’m not very good at doing nothing

Y/N What about your bike?

Jason When I said drive, I meant the loosely I’d take the train or fly Or I can drive us back I have a car too, you know

Y/N Where would you stay?

Jason I have a friend living there that I’ve been meaning to visit Plus we can go for breakfast tomorrow before making the trip back

Y/N Very tempting But ultimately I’m not going to tell you what to do It’d be your choice

Jason See you in the morning then

#jason todd x reader #jason todd #jason todd gn!reader #batman imagine #online match up #my writing

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s-che · 5 months ago

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The Dream Library: Apocalypse World 2

The Dream Library had our second Apocalypse World one-shot earlier this week, ending out the end of a month of talking about D. Vincent and Meguey Baker’s game of high octane apocalyptica. Next month, we'll be continuing our semester of PBTA one-shots and book-club discussions with two excellent historical games: Night Witches and Sagas of the Icelanders.

If you'd like to get in on the discussion and maybe even sign up for a one-shot, shoot me a message -- we'd love to have you.

As with the last play report, I want to open by making two things absolutely clear:

Apocalypse World is a sicknasty game that deserves to get played way more often than it does, especially by people who are working and playing in a design lineage which has been forever altered by Meg and Vincent’s work.

Apocalypse World is a game done absolutely dirty by short-term play, a fact which came out way harder in this session than it did the first time round. We had a ton of fun, of course — but the fact that our play was capped at the 3-hour mark meant we barely scratched the surface of what this game can do.

This time, I ran the game following Vincent Baker’s advice on running Apocalypse World in a con slot, which helped a lot — and still didn’t scratch the itch I have to play this game and only this game for the next hundred or so years. Most notably, we ended up dividing play into two micro-sessions — meaning we got to turn our bio-break into a narrative breather as well and flex some of the game’s “long-term” rules. I’ve broken my thoughts up here by session, which felt appropriate.

Session 1: A Desert Landscape

I had no idea where the session was going to start when we settled down to play — beyond the fact that I was going to open in media res with someone (the answer ended up being my first volunteer, @tormentedbyvisions) in a very bad spot. Details came quickly when we looked for them — a collapsing office tower and glimpses of a desert landscape out the broken windows, dotted with more towers in the distance. Goldman (The Savvyhead, any pronouns), an elderly survivor who, as it turned out, loved nothing more than telling people lies about the world as it was, is cornered on the second floor as a gang headed by a warlord named Dremmer picked their way through the rubble below. Cut forward a few seconds and we have Goldman leaping from a hole in the wall to land on the dune below as Dremmer’s gang fire wildly at a phantom drawn from the psychic maelstrom.

Meanwhile James (The Driver, he/him) and October (The Skinner, they/them) raced along the desert highway looking for their friend. A bad role lead to an ambush, a flipped car, and a surprisingly civil conversation with a would-be raider named Jackabacka — who James enlisted to get the car unstuck and then left unconscious in a ditch. Meeting back up with Goldman — a little battered from his fall from the building, but mostly fine — the game headed back to their home: the outskirts of an oil-refining city which sprang into existence at the moment we needed it, and never before. We wrapped on our first microsession by developing character Hx and nailing down who all these people were to each other.

What did we learn? For one, Apocalypse World is a great game to make shit up in. I talked at length in my last session write-up about the instruction to “barf forth apocalyptica” and how good getting really in the juice of a genre feels, but there’s more than just that happening here. Apocalypse World has a deeper philosophy of storytelling and play (one related, I think, to what I called “fluid mapmaking” in a recent article) which really relishes in moments of hesitation and consideration. There’s an approach to play which some games and players take where “good improv” is ultimately about maximal flexibility — where the ultimate end is to hide the fact that you’re “making things up” at all, and make the game world seem as fully realized as possible. Improv is just a way to get there — since we cannot possibly have prepped for every occasion, improv fills in the gaps. The hyper-performative role of the GM is never permitted to ask for a second to think or talk through some ideas out loud (in the way a non-GM player might) — their role is a kind of computer-referee (a “stable,” as opposed to fluid, mapmaker) who presents only the truth.

Apocalypse World bucks this trend in several ways: in the way moves prompt big narrative swings, in the suggestion you spend session one just following the characters around and seeing what happens, in the MC philosophy (to “always say what your prep demands,” yes, but also to “barf forth apocalyptica,” to “ask provocative questions and build on the answers,” and to “sometimes, disclaim decision-making), and also (and perhaps most importantly) in the “umms” and “hmms” which permeate the play examples. Apocalypse World is a game which is invested in modeling collaborative — really collaborative — play and which, as a result, never felt like a burden or a trap. It felt like my players and I were all together mapping and remapping a world with the tools and toys the Bakers had given us (and what lovely tools and toys they are) but never restricted by the thing we were trying to make. It felt like we were playing.

On another note about the first session — and this isn’t textual to Apocalypse Worlds, but to Vincent’s con-running method, but — the practice of giving players something to do (in this case, filling out the details of their character sheets) while the narrative spotlight is on others is one of those design ideas that, once you’re exposed to it, you’ll never forget. This is something I’ve seen others to — most recently (and extensively) @jdragsky's Seven Part Pact is a game that does this over and over and over again — but it really hit me in this session what a lifesaver it is. Especially in online games, where losing focus and energy is so easy, giving people something to do which keeps them invested in the game (in the way, in person, just being in a space together might) is the kind of thing I’m going to start putting in all my games.

Session 2: Lord Terry’s Gasland Refinery

Back from a brief break, I introduced the players to the threat map I’d designed while they were away. It was populated, mostly, by people we’d already talked a little bit about — the refinery where they lived, Dremmer’s Gang in the north, the landscape of the desert highway all around them — plus a couple of strange details thrown in for good measure (at the last minute, I decided to add the Red Priory, the setting of the last oneshot I ran, on the map in the far east — a fact which I could talk about for hours. People need to play Apocalypse World with me west marches style PLEASE).

Jumping back into the swing of play wasn’t as easy as I’d hoped — the result, I think, of breaking up the session like we did meant we needed to do the usual beginning of session dipping our toes in the water again, but this time with a much sharper awareness of the ticking clock. Still, we got somewhere — thanks in no small part to the fun of just bopping around with these characters. It’s rare that you get to say “okay, now it’s a week later. What has that week looked like?” especially in the context of a oneshot. The cost of starting a session to the players — okay, what has your life looked like? how much barter are you losing to afford that? — quickly transformed what had been a pretty generic setting into a place that had some teeth. Barfing forth apocalyptica — and some yes-anding with the players — gave us Lord Terry, a feudal tyrant whose authority rests (shakily) on the loyalty of his retained soldiers and the terror of the serfs (including our players).

Truthfully, we didn’t get particularly far in this session: some tinkering in Goldman’s workshop, an argument with Terry, a scouting mission which ended in a tense standoff with Jackabacka, and then a race back home as October washed Jackabacka’s blood off their knife and James bled out in the backseat. I don’t think the “plottiness” of the session got anywhere — but that has also maybe never felt like less of the point. The joy of our second session was absolutely frontloaded — in the moments of thinking about the community to which we (tangentially) belonged and the powers that be, there.

Apocalypse World tells you it is best played in a long campaign — and I think this was the moment it was most clearly right. I would love to tell you what happens next to James, or whether Lord Terry is going to be dethroned, or if Dremmer’s really the threat he seems to be. None of those are questions I thought I’d be asking, going into this session — they’re questions the game gave me over the course of play. We had some hiccups, of course (combat is brutal when you don’t have a medic, and I wish, in retrospect, that I’d pushed players to read people more often), but on the whole Apocalypse World is a marvelous engine for generating a really collaborative story.

Which makes me ask, like I did last time — what the fuck happened? People talk a lot about PBTA as a philosophy and not just a mechanic — but I think at some point in history that philosophy seems to have fallen out and gotten slimmed down to "PBTA is when 2d6+"

This isn't to say there aren't good PBTA games being written now — we'll be playing some of them in this unit — but, GOD. There is shit in this game that, hearing it from downstream, you would never know about. People should know about it! You, right now, should know about it! Go and play Apocalypse World right now! and also forever!!

#ttrpg #rpg #play report #apocalypse world #powered by the apocalypse #indie ttrpg #the dream library #night witches #sagas of the icelanders

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beefslipper · 5 months ago

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Halloween Headcanons (Months early lol)

My last post was such a flop I heard the crickets chirping before I even got on tumblr omg

Since nobody is giving me ideas, I'm just gonna do short n sweet headcanons on one (at least) character from each of the fandoms I'm in... Or at least the ones I can remember. Idk why but I can't wait until spooky month so we're doing Halloween-themed HCs!!!!!! I frickin' love the holidays :D

I won't be using images in my post this time just because I'm like half asleep and I need to yap. (I have no energy and I must yap /ref)

First up, Jason Todd! (Batman)

I think he'd avoid dressing up for trick or treating because his fave is Wonder Woman... Bro's not about to traumatize every child that sees him. However, if he is craving candy hard enough, he'd go in a lazier or goofy costume. You know those unicorn onesies? That's for if he isn't in the mood for ghits and shiggles. An inflatable dinosaur costume is his go-to if he's in a better mood.

I bet he'd have everything planned, too. He knows where all the rich people are and which ones give out the full-sized candy bars or any cool light up toys that make little kids jealous because they have no idea where to find them at.

If he were to go trick or treating with anyone, I think it'd probably be the Batfam as a whole (They don't trust him with not stealing some kid's candy bucket).

Next, Touya Todoroki! (MHA)

This is an AU one where he isn't dying because I don't want him to die (Insert sob emoji).

Since Enji himself is in a wheelchair, he isn't able to push Touya around. He was absolutely devastated by that and begged Natsuo and Fuyumi to take their older brother out to trick or treat since Shoto was with his friends.

Touya would either do a costume to heal his inner child or a lazier one that's comfortable and doesn't irritate his skin. Either way, he's demanding that they go to every house around no matter how long it takes. Any time he gets candy he doesn't like, he asks Natsuo to trade with him LOL

At the end of the night, Enji has to lock away the candy so Touya doesn't scarf it all down and get a stomach ache. He does anyway since it was 'hidden' in the same spot it had always been.

Onto Arlan! (HSR)

My boy doesn't get enough love <3

I think his excitement after hearing about Halloween's existence would be enough to convince the spaceship to set up little stalls for him, Asta, MC, and Peppy to run around to collect candy. He and Asta would probably have matching costumes like ketchup and mustard bottles or pb and j or something cute like that. Or it'd be a three-way deal since Asta would dress Peppy up in some cute little costume.

Arlan would definitely sit on the floor with Asta and MC and trade candies so they each get what they wanted. Asta would have some dog treats for Peppy so they weren't left out :)

At the night's end, Arlan would probably be caught falling asleep, still in costume with a half-eaten candy bar in hand.

Now, Bennett! (Genshin Impact)

He, Razor, Chongyun, and XIngqiu would get together and go out trick or treating. He tried to convince Fischl to go with, but she refused, claiming it was far too childish for someone of her status. That meant "Please bring me back some sweets".

He had a bag specifically for Fischl :)

As the night went on, the boys managed to have good luck. Bennett had never been happier since he was internally horrified of ruining the others' night by only getting raisins, toothbrushes, and apples or having someone's bag rip.

All went well and everyone got a pretty good amount of candy. Even Fischl.

Yap session is done! I kinda wanted to do DMCB stuff or Steven Universe stuff, but my creativity juice ran out. I hope y'all liked this one :D I'll probably do another one when it's actually October. (evaporates I FORGOT JJK oh well)

Have a great day, evening, and/or night everyone :DDDD

#headcanons #cute headcanons #bennett genshin impact #arlan hsr #honkai star rail #genshin impact #batman #jason todd #red hood #touya todoroki #bnha dabi #mha #bnha #multi fandom blog #halloween #halloween blog

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jmdbjk · 2 years ago

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So I'm writing this because of a convo with my bestie who said:

"Ferg, have you considered writing a blog addressing the wrong headed assumption that the members were "forced" to create the Festa content that we got today? How the people pushing that agenda are not looking at what was happening in their lives at the time said content was filmed. They always want us to have pictures and music at Festa. They WANT to create that content. If they were "forced" it wasn't by the company, it was by the calendar and the government. With no (military) exemption, they understood that the only time to come up with OT7 music or pictures was before mid December (2022). And drilling down, the only time was in October. RIGHT when they hit the final acceptance that they would all start enlisting and the foreseeable future was actually not foreseeable at all. Their hearts were extra heavy that within a few weeks they would say goodbye to Jin. Yoongi was dealing with severe writers block and, I think, feeling guilty that he was going to miss his deadline for the first time EVER. RM was working toward the release of Indigo. Kookie was looking at heading to Qatar. Yada yada. So with all that....they had to try and look light hearted. They didn't. The anxious vibes come right off the screen. We all feel it but many are not interpreting it right. You know, the ones who already are quick to blame everything on the company."

Or the ones who only view everything through a shipper or solo lens and say the guys hate each other.

The members, who filmed this video months ago, filmed this with pure sincerity and love for us knowing they would not all be available to do anything for us for their 10th Anniversary Festa in June 2023. How must that have felt to them? To know that their milestone 10th Anniversary would not play out like they had envisioned way back in 2020? They thought they'd start enlisting by the end of 2020 and be finished with MS by now, so they'd be together in 2023. They had to try to come up with something spectacular for us and for themselves so that 3 years after that hot mess, we could celebrate with them. They deserve to celebrate themselves as well, they worked so hard over the past ten years.

Its the end of 2022. They looked a little tired. We know 2022 had some heartbreaking moments for them. By this time they were juggling their own projects AND the Busan concert preparation.

Hobi was ever-present sunshine, yet maybe he had a lot on his mind? Was he already thinking about his next projects and starting to contemplate an earlier than planned enlistment? We know Yoongi was trying to put finishing touches on D-Day. We know Jimin was working on at least one collab as well as his own MV concepts and promotion activities for Face and working out details for his fashion ambassadorships. Tae was busy exploring new things with fashion brands and tv shows. RM was finalizing his Indigo promotions. Jin was about to announce his enlistment plans. JK was prepping for Qatar. And here they were thinking ahead to June 2023.

I think they filmed this Festa video within days of the Busan concert. Either before or after. Remember we had a VHopeKookMin live right after the concert. I would also venture to say they also filmed this the same day as the Festa photoshoot (Love Myself campaign promo released end of November 2022):

Yet they still thoughtfully planned and executed things to be released for Festa. Concepts were conceptualized and the company took it from there and we see they've done a great job procuring deep-pocketed sponsors.

I don't understand the whole "they need to go start their own label" mindset either. I've already said it several times... they already did that, it's called BigHit Music. If BTS don't re-sign a contract its because they are retiring from releasing music. What IS plausible is a member or two starting an independent label for other up-and-coming artists so they can write and/or produce for them... all still under the HYBE umbrella.

During this solo era, I want to say things like "I think we can all agree ... [insert almost anything]" but I can't say that these days because, in my opinion, the fandom (on Twitter and other soc med platforms) has fractured into so many different factions who seem to spend a lot of time pitting themselves against other parts of the fandom for everything and anything they can find to nitpick, criticize, compare and compete with, to be angry about, that no one agrees on anything. This member is better than that member or ... and this one galls me... the company is forcing them to do this or that OR [insert member's name] sabatoged [insert other member's name].

Twitter Army yelling at Weverse Army "YOU'RE NOT DOING IT RIGHT!" Who designated Twitter Army as the dictator of all things BTS?

People berating others for not streaming the music, or trying to humiliate followers into streaming 'CORRECTLY'. The conspiracy theorists–don't get me started on that. The dissatisfaction with how the solo projects have rolled out. The constant comparison and competition of which member has the most streams in a certain time frame, who has the most songs on the chart for the longest, fastest, more countries, more collabs, more awards...whatever... It's all "my way or the highway/[member name] is the best" and it is really disappointing and tiresome to see the enormous waste of energy.

And if you are still reading, I am totally on board with what another blogger said the other day about how the entire Kpop fandom has this Kpop culture mindset deeply rooted in their way of thinking. It colors their view of EVERYTHING: that artists are treated badly by their record labels/entertainment companies to the point of being physically abused, artists are not paid well, artists are forced to do things and play roles... adhere to strict rules, etc.. because that's how the oldest companies started and some are still operating today (looking at you SM Entertainment).

That "business model" may have been "the way" in the beginning of the kpop industry because no one stood up and called them out on it. So people have come to think EVERY entertainment company operates that way when we've been shown and told over and over by many HYBE employees that its a great place to work. MANY people OUTSIDE the company, staff and other people in the music industry including other artists are blown away at the innovation and forward thinking of the company and we've even heard the members themselves say that they love their company.

Of course no company is perfect, there will be mistakes made, bad decisions, wrong projections, etc. but out of all the entertainment companies, BigHit, Bang PD and BTS have strived to change the system from the start and our own "fans" are being brainless shitheads and talking trash.

Also, HYBE can't come over here to the United States and start auditioning young people for new groups if they are operating like SM Entertainment. That shit ain't gonna fly over here. You'll have a lawsuit in a blink of an eye as soon as someone gets a whiff of sexual harassment or physical abuse of a minor. A carefully built and protected reputation would be ruined, not just Hybe's but BTS's and every other artist under Hybe's labels as well.

Yes, some things we've seen make us scratch our heads... the tight back to back release of Jimin and Yoongi's work had us all wondering what happened. Yes, Jimin's very abbreviated promotion period for Face was frustrating and disappointing. But no one knows what went on behind the scenes. If neither Jimin or Yoongi comes out and tells us what happened then I will just move forward like they are. If either of them made a mistake, we might not ever know of it, but they will correct it going forward. If the company was the one who miscalculated, they too will correct that in the future. We can call it out when we see it happening but there is no reason to dwell on it. I don't see anything positive or productive about the continued pointing fingers to blame, holding grudges and continuing to speak negatively when it's plain the members of BTS love us, work hard to show us that and deserve only to see our love reflecting back at them.

Ok so I've ranted long enough.

[Public Service Announcement: if I don't talk enough about your favorite member, or if I don't say things you want to hear about whatever is your hill you chose to die on, there is a block button way up there and also this nifty thing you can do called "scroll" that lets you ... wait for it... scroll! past my blog post so you don't have to expose yourself to my words. Its not that hard. Really. Otherwise, its all on you.]

#bts festa #not a fan of grandpa sweater vests #at least they've moved on from school uniforms and college bf #unlaced black leather pants era was too short #we never had that era yet? oh maybe that was just my dream last night oops TMI heh

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project-sekai-facts · 1 year ago

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hi! first off, wanted to say thank you for all the fun facts - truly makes my day whenever there’s a new post from this blog :D

secondly, not sure if anyone else has asked this, but i was wondering what your thoughts are on whether a cohesive in-universe timeline of events could actually be constructed? (someday, from the depths of despair happening before n25 main story, l/n main story happening in the beginning of the school year, etc.) i’d imagine you’d have to ignore or somehow squish together all the holiday/seasonal events, or is it simply impossible to squeeze about three years of events into one cohesive ‘canon’ year?

anyways, hope you have a good rest of your day/evening :) keep up the good work!

Omg thank you?? I'm honoured haha

This is my pepe silvia moment sorry

Never underestimate my probable neurodivergence. It's a work in progress and I want to try and get it done by September but the horrible amount of anachronisms in the main story is killing me. Like WxS simultaneously has to be the first and last main story because it needs to happen before the MMJ and VBS stories but also after Leo/need but that takes place at the same time as MMJ but also before it and WxS also has to be after VBS because WxS isn't a thing when akitoya divorce but then Leo/need doesn't exist when akitoya divorce either Saki isn't even at school yet which means there's no MMJ either but WxS exists before Kohane cuts her hair and MMJ story is in progress when that happens like what. I'm calling this confirmation that the main stories were written by 5 different teams. That or no one proofread anything. Oh there's also a massive error with Haruka's age where they say she's 16 but based on when the story is set she should be 15 and the game insists she was never pushed back a year. Thanks colopale.

Anyway since only one main story mentions a date as far as I remember (WxS) I've been trying to build it off of that. There are still errors because the date mentioned is "first day of school break", you can work out that they're talking about summer break by process of elimination but then none of the other units go on summer vacation. But like we'll just ignore that because I'm too tired to deal with colopale's bad continuity writing. Also the game takes place in the 2021-2022 school year because the only date ever shown in game was 2021 and it was in an event set in September/October. The Leo/need socmed posts have mentioned other dates but we'll ignore that also.

And because I misread your question yes you can squeeze everything into a canon year...kinda. You have to timeloop it because they straight up mention in secret distance that they're going on spring break (end of school year break) and literally don't even bring up the fact that it's the end of the school year.

So I think based on what I've got right now:

WxS main story is during summer break and a week or so prior.

Which means Saki and Haruka return to school in June or July probably (they start at around the same time and it's not mentioned that Haruka starts at the beginning of the school year)

and then VBS happens once the WxS story is done (we'll call that after summer break. so september)

Miyajou doesn't get a summer break that year to fix anachronisms rip

Then we skip september for every unit except VBS and pretty much follow the events in order until we get to Secret Distance (March 2022) and loop back to April 2021 and keep doing that at every half anniversary event.

I'm assuming when we reach 3rd we'll skip all the way from September 2021 to April 2022, not timeloop and then pretend that May->September 2022 isn't real and do a Halloween event.

All the flashback events fit onto the timeline without me having to change anything somehow so at least I can respect colopale for that

This is fine

Hatsune Miku broke space-time

#fun fact did you know this game takes place in the same place at the same time as Love/Live Superstar. now you do.#anon i'm sorry #colopale is never going to let me have peace #mod talks #asks

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corleonewrites · 6 months ago

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La Vérité

AU: Anatomy of a Fall (2023)

Vincent Renzi x Original Female Character fanfic.

Summary: Two people connected by the same past. Two lawyers. And one tangled case which brought them back together again, giving them the opportunity to sort out their feelings towards each other, no matter how painful memories are to both of them can be.

Chapter 5. Fantasie in F Minor, Op. 103: D. 940

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“I’m celebrating my birthday this Friday and you’re coming, Camille”, Jean-Louis greeted me the other day in October, when the lecture with Vincent was about to begin.

For that moment my interactions with Renzi were longer and more frequent, and of course, Estella and Loise tried couple unsuccessful attempts to find out what happened between me and Vincent, how close we were and those kinds of things but I cooled their interest down: firstly, because it was none of their business, and secondly, those meetings with him outside the university walls were not romantic at all.

They didn’t leave to something more than just discussions about my degree essay, about films, art and books. We visited museums and cinema but never met in bars or somewhere more private. He kept his distance as I was keeping mine, not knowing what he wanted and what I wanted as well.

______________________________________________________________

I was always not into relationships, I didn’t really believe in them in general, besides my parents and grandparents got divorced and for a long period of time it was my evidence that all relationships would crack.

Before I met Vincent and before our affair started, I never had close and deep relationships with anyone. Even when I went on a few dates when I thought to consider the idea of having a boyfriend – everything finished with the simple kiss, nothing more. It didn’t bother me, even when all my friends were talking about how great their sex with their boyfriends was and all this kind of stuff, because at least I knew that I was waiting for someone special, even though it sounded very old-fashioned but I was raised in old-fashioned style and was proud of it.

______________________________________________________________

The first court hearing just finished and all three of us: Sandra, Vincent and I headed back to the woman’s place, discussing what could be done before the next hearing and what could be said during the process. My head was pulsing a little but it was a side effect of my job and I got used to it but with the help of headache pills.

The hearing itself wasn’t in the way of how I thought it would be: just a regular process, without any difficulties. But right when it started, I understood that not only the first one but all the other ones would be harder with every new one. Not only because of the harsh answers and questions from the prosecution, but also because of the evidence which we needed to collect. It would discover all the skeletons in the closet of our defendant.

During the process I pointed out how Renzi was glancing at me from time to time, but these glances were irritating me and I pretended not to see them, concentrating on the process. Even though it was exciting to work with him in the first few minutes – then I pulled myself together and the rest of the hearing ran smoothly. Of course I could still feel his eyes following my actions.

______________________________________________________________

I checked my black knee-length dress and my loose hair in the mirror near the bar’s entrance and entered the dark room with bright colorful lights and disco ball on the ceiling, holding a present for Jean-Louis in my hand.

The table for our birthday company was in the end of the room, near the bar desk: I recognized some students from our class, Estella and Loise included, and then my gaze dropped on monsieur Renzi, who was sitting in the corner of a big sofa, taking a sip from his drink. He also looked at me, his glance was long and followed me, when I reached Jean-Louis to give him a hug and give a present:

“Happy birthday, Jean-Louis”, I said loudly and hugged my friend, but tried to asked him something on his ear, “You decided to invite all of our teaching staff, am I right?”

He just laughed and winked at me, and tried to reach Vincent, “No, only monsieur Renzi, if you don’t mind”

I glanced at him once again, but shook my shoulders and quickly looked at Jean-Louis again:

“No, I don’t mind at all, it’s your birthday. So let’s celebrate it with a glass of whiskey sour”

It didn’t take much time for me to start dancing on the dancefloor to the beat of old music from 70’s and 80’s: it was a thematical night at the bar. When with every second of the music were carrying me away to feeling of nostalgia that I never had, I couldn’t help myself but was glancing at Vincent, who decided not to dance, but to sit on the sofa. At one point, Estella sat near him and accurately placed her hand on his shoulder, whispering something in his ear, which made me angry, but during this interaction my tutor was thoughtfully looking directly at me, without paying attention to Estella and she quickly left him, looking pissed.

Slow and beautiful song Domani è un altro giorno by Ornella Vanoni suddenly started to play on the background and I glanced at Vincent again: this was the song we’ve heard in Indian Summer, it was playing at the bar scene, it was romantic and deep at the same time and it was one of my favourite scenes in the film as well and I caught myself in a thought that both Renzi and I were in the almost exact same scene at that moment, especially when Jean-Louis who was dancing near me before the song started moved to me and asked to slow dance with him. I didn’t say no, and I wanted to make Renzi jealous.

Probably it was a successful move, because during the whole song he didn’t move his thoughtful gaze from me, when I looked directly at him as well, the tension between us was in the air, with every second and every move it was becoming stronger and unbearable.

In one moment, almost before the song finished, Jean-Louis looked at Vincent then at me, smirked and whispered in my ear:

“I think monsieur Renzi caught an eye on you, Camille”

______________________________________________________________

“She’s attractive, right?”, Loise asked Vincent, when he was watching Camille slow-dancing with Jean-Louis on a song from Indian Summer.

He stopped thinking about mademoiselle Cadieux only in terms of student-teacher kind of relationships a couple of days ago, before that evening, when surprisingly Jean-Louis invited him to his birthday. She interested him in everything, but most of all she attracted him as mysterious, attractive young woman with sad thoughtful glance. Renzi tried to take it out of his head at the beginning, but since those brief encounters with Camille outside university began to be more and more frequent – he stopped pretending that he didn’t care.

That evening at the bar must put all the dots on “I”. He was feeling it but he didn’t know how to begin. It was completely opposite than his regular court hearings. It was the matter of love and interest.

“Yes, she is”, Vincent didn’t turn to Loise, continuing following Camille’s moves on the dancefloor.

“But mind you, professor, she’s a tough one. She’s not like any other girl, she has her own secrets and she won’t open to anyone without trusting them completely. And she never did…”, Loise continued, moving closer to him, whispering on his ear, but he just moved forward, keeping distance from her.

“I’m able to figure it out by myself, mademoiselle Bisset.”

______________________________________________________________

The birthday party slowly moved to Jean-Louis’ apartment. Right when everyone was inside, Jean-Lois turned on the music on his record player when girls helped to serve drinks to everyone. Vincent curiously was walking around the apartment, when I sat on the big sofa, slightly drunk and completely tired from bar’s dances.

“How about watching a film?” – Alain, Jean-Louis’ friend, asked, laying on a couch with his drink in hand.

“Oh, yes! Let’s watch something good and old-fashioned”, Estella agreed, when Jean-Louis looked at me and smiled:

“Let Camille Truffaut decide then, I have a big collection of good classics”

Vincent finally returned from his excursion around the apartment and stood behind me, when I thought for some moments, and said:

“Well, since I’m Truffaut tonight we’re watching Truffaut’s Jules and Jim”

“Just how I thought”, laughed Jean-Louis, and pulled out DVD with Jules and Jim out of his impressive collection of cinematography.

The lights went off. When Vincent finally sat beside me on the sofa, and only millimeters separated us from each other – I felt how my heart started to beat faster with every second. I didn’t move. When the film started, after a couple of seconds, I felt Vincent’s hand was slowly moving towards my hand, I didn’t hesitate and finally my hand was in his. It was such a slow move that we didn’t think that someone would notice it. We didn’t actually think that someone would care anyways.

______________________________________________________________

“Camille? Are you asleep?”, I’ve heard Vincent’s voice from somewhere deep. Probably I fell asleep on our way back to town, as at some point I lost track of our quiet talks in his car and I didn’t even notice it.

“Had lack of sleep previous night, it happens to me recently”, I replied, looking at snowy road.

“Never noticed it, you was very active at court”

“Well, the hearing was tense and nervous, I didn’t have the opportunity to close my eye for a second”, I replied dryly, “And it won’t be easy for sure, not until the last one”

“And yet it feels like there’re going to be a lot more of them. I wonder how Sandra will handle this, I know that she’s very strong, but she can break under those circumstances”

Again, Renzi was talking about Sandra, and again I felt that strange feeling of jealousy inside me, I wondered if he ever was thinking or talking about me with anyone else, when we had our affair which I believed at some point, would last.

I didn’t look at him. I didn’t want to look at him or be around him now. All I wanted was to get out of the car and cool my head by visiting hotel’s lobby bar. At the same time, I was thinking about that difficult case almost 24 hours a day with some pauses for bits of sleep, I wanted to be good and professional, it began to be a huge matter of my personal career. I wanted to beat my tutor. I wanted to beat Vincent.

______________________________________________________________

The film and the birthday evening were over. It was half past one and everyone began to leave Jean-Louis apartment. Vincent and I were the last ones, the door closed behind us and now we were standing alone in the hall, waiting for the elevator to arrive. Just as the elevator was slowly going up to us, Vincent’s hand was slowly raising up and when the elevator’s doors opened, his right hand was on my shoulder. I couldn’t resist no more. I turned around and we stormed into the elevator, kissing each other deeply.

For a couple of seconds, when the elevator was slowly going down, we were finally alone and we couldn’t hold ourselves back, the feelings that were circling around inside us were finally coming out.

We exited the building, the cold wind of late autumn night greeted us when we reached Vincent’s car. I got inside, and the door of the passengers’ seat closed. No words were spoken between us, it felt like we understood each other just by the way of how we looked at each other, it felt surreal, I couldn’t believe that it was my real life and I wasn’t in the film. The engines started and the car led us to the night full of opened deep feelings and things that couldn’t be said and done in the daylight before that particular evening.

______________________________________________________________

La Vérité masterlist

#fanfiction #fanfic #fic writing #vincent renzi x ofc #vincent renzi fanfiction #vincent renzi x age gap #vincent renzi x original female character #vincent renzi x strangers to lovers #anatomy of a fall fanfic #anatomy of a fall fic #anatomy of a fall fanfiction #fic writer #fanfic writing #film fanfiction #swann arlaud #swann arlaud fanfic #anatomy of a fall

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starrzies · 8 months ago

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★Meet the Artist 2024★

I might have forgotten to post this </3

Hello there!!

I'm Starrzies, but I also go by Rodimus!! Of these two names I prefer my nicknames (Starrz/Roddy) more than the formality of my full username/chosen name!! I'm 19 and a full time college student! (I want to become a Forensic Pathologist!) My pronouns are He/They ONLY and my chosen gender identity is Demiboy! I'm also Aroace, my specific labels being Cupioromantic/sexual!

I'm just a silly little guy trying to do his best. I am a hobbyist artist and writer and I love to share what I come with in the hopes that other people will enjoy it as much as I do! I tend to post art related to my own characters, art I've done for other people and - more rarely - fandom related art! I also stream on Twitch!!! Usually it's art streams (especially for Art Fight!) or me playing my games - either solo or with other people! I do have a Discord server full of my friends, mutuals and people interested in my stuff and community! Feel free to come join :) I'm on basically on every platform (maybe not active, but I'm there!)

My special interest (been into it for as long as I can remember) is Transformers!! It will almost always show up at some point! I'm also super into Lego Monkie Kid, Overwatch and Genshin Impact!! (The last of the 2 I on and off play!) I tend to reblog content form these 4 fandoms! (They're the main 4 but I may branch out!)

I try and be super friendly! Really, I don't bite, but I do have a very limited social battery! So conversations may not last very long when it comes to talking! I also sometimes just don't have the energy to reply. If I don't reply then it's nothing against you, I promise!! That being said I AM TOTALLY OPEN TO BEING FRIENDS/MUTUALS!! Please note, if you are younger than 18 I will NOT be your close friend, close mutuals at most. This is just due to safety! (Pre-established friends before I became an adult are still a nd will remain my friends.)

Pets! I own,,, a few. Just a small little amount. They're all my babies though and I adore them. I do my beast to take proper care of them and give them long, happy and fulfilling lives! Hiraeth and Ravage both came from litters I've raised! (Hiraeth being an accident and Ravage from a foster litter.) Ember was my sibling's cat but became mine because she just,,, likes me more? My other pets were 100% intended! All of these guys are spoiled rotten,,,

Silly little notes/explanations!!

Cupioromantic/sexual; someone who doesn't feel/feels little romantic/sexual attraction but desires a romantic/sexual relationship

Demiboy; someone whose gender identity partially identifies with masculinity, but is not entirely binary

I've been in relationships before! However, I generally only feel platonic love for people around me. I genuinely love (/p) all of my friends and you'll see me make that very clear! I am NOT interested in relationships, especially after this most recent one. Things have gotten complicated AF and I don't even want to bother entertaining anyone.

I have a Decepticon Insignia Tattoo on my left wrist! My first tattoo ever and I LOVE it so much! I will be going back in October for hopefully, my second tattoo!

I own a 2001 Ford Mustang!! It's a convertible too! I ADORE my car so much and there is so much I have planned for it!!

I own 4 dogtags! They are NOT military related at all though! They just have special meaning to me and I've been wearing them since 2018! I did actually let someone borrow one of them for a decent amount of time but it was returned to me! I don't think I'm ever going to let them go again, they mean too much to me.

Ravage is named after the TF character! :D He was my little gaming buddy back when I was fostering a litter of kittens for my senior project. I ended up keeping him, I got too attached. Now he is best friends with Ember!

Hiraeth was a TOTAL accident. I was supposed to just have her mom but she was pregnant much to our surprise! (Someone was getting rid of her, probably because they knew she was pregnant, and gave her to us without telling us that lol) I was allowed to keep Hiraeth but none of the other cats were allowed :( They all went to loving homes though!

Discord is my main, preferred way of communication!! I always have it open on my second monitor so I tend to respond really quickly on there :) You should totally add me on there! I'm under the same username ;)

Feel free to interact with me!! Just be aware of my boundaries and DNI! (Very basic btw!) I'm always happy to chat and meet new people :)

I want to make a comic!! I have so much more planning before I can work on it though :( One day! You may see little teasers to it being posted on my socials!!

This blog is my SFW blog!! I do have,, other accounts but those will remain unnamed! If you are curious and have your age visible feel free to ask me about it in DMs!

WHEW, I think that's enough personal info that I'm putting on the internet LMFAOOO I'll be sure to redo this next year as well ;))

Quick Reminder!! I DO NOT allow people to reupload, repost, claim, trace, reference or use my art without my Permission! If my art is posted anywhere else other than my accounts it’s not mine! If you like my work, consider following me or commissioning me!! (This does not count if the art was made for you! Please remember to credit me though!!)

Art Trades are Open! Commissions are Open!! Do NOT ask me about Requests!! Do NOT; Reupload, Repost, Claim, Trace, Reference or use my art without my Permission! 💜

You can Dm me Questions or Concerns! Like my work? Check out my Carrd for where else you can find me!

#starrz-art #starrz txt #starrz info #digital art #art #digital artist #meet the artist #meet the artist 2024 #art meme #art challenge #This is a few months late WHOOPS #Use this information as you will lol #Don't get parasocial though #I will block you lmao #all this info is available in my carrd too!!

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sinnabee · 1 year ago

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hey guys! i’ve got a bit of a (big) life update for y’all.

unfortunately, i’m having to figure out a new living situation pretty unexpectedly. my roommate and i talked, and basically he’s wanting to live on his own again. so i’ve got about two months to get moved out of here and find a new place. (i’m working on it! luckily i recently reconnected with a friend who’s a real estate agent, so who knows - maybe i’ll get my own damn house >:D)

for anybody that follows me on ko-fi, you might have seen the update i put there. this is a more detailed version of that.

basically, this means (and i am so so so SO sorry about this) it’s going to be a while before i can get a lot of these charm orders out.

i’m going to try my best to get out what i can in-between packing, but don’t be surprised if your order takes several months to ship. again, i’m so sorry - i know it took me ages to even get them listed.

one of the other things this is going to effect may be sticker orders and new stickers.

sticker orders:

i try to include free doodles with my sticker orders, and i am going to continue to try and do that, but some of you may not receive a doodle, and for that i’m sorry.

if you would rather get your stickers sooner, and don’t mind missing out on the doodle, please message me, either through tumblr or through ko-fi. (ko-fi will help me keep track of who’s who a bit better.)

if you REALLY want a doodle, and don’t mind waiting, then let me know and i’ll move yours to the back of my list. this way, i can prioritize anyone who doesn’t mind going without a doodle and start cutting down on my workload.

if you don’t message me either way, i’ll try and get your doodle done, but there’s a chance i may just go ahead and send it without one. luck of the draw.

some of you have ordered stickers AND charms! (omg, what the heck! y’all are amazing!) despite being in the same order, i may try and at least get you your sticker orders, unless otherwise requested. (i have a few people that have already spoken to me about having their items shipped together, so no worries if we’ve already talked.) for anyone that ordered stickers + charms, i wasn’t going to do a doodle anyway, since the main reason i have those is to do something with the cardstock i use to keep the envelopes flat. this way y’all will at least get something sooner! (again, message me if you’d rather i’d send it all together. don’t worry about shipping if i send them separately, i’m not gonna apply a charge for that, it’s fine.)

new stickers:

i had intended to start printing and eventually list my new halloween dca sticker design by october first at the absolute latest. but with the whole “ideally be moved out within two months at the latest, earlier if possible,” thing, that may not be happening.

i’m still gonna try, though!!!!! i’ll try and save my sticker making things for later in the packing process, and maybe try and get that stuff figured out before the end of this month. we’ll see if i can juggle it with everything else - i really think it’s dependent on me catching up on my other orders, first.

in addition to all of this, i’m still out of work on FMLA for my back problems. on the bright side - my appointment is FINALLY coming up!!! yippee!!! but that also means i have to take a lot of breaks from packing and working on stickers because… back hurty. but it ALSO means i have the time to do all this stuff, breaks included, because i’m not working. so…silver linings, am i right? :D

also just wanna say thank you to everybody again - i have made SO many friends in this fandom, and i’ve had a blast being able to make stickers and finally charms!!!! half the reason i’ve been able to bounce back so quick after getting this news the other day is because i’ve already had some of my pals who saw my kofi post messaging me and wishing me well. and the money from the charm orders is gonna help ease the moving/shopping process a lot, so - thank you all so much!!!!

again, i’m sorry everything is so delayed. but i WILL get it out to you eventually, once things settle down a bit. but y’all are amazing, and i appreciate you lots, k???? don’t forget it!!! <3

#sinna babbles #ok to reblog #idk why u would lmao?? but i don’t mind if you do!#fr fr i love the friends i’ve made in this fandom and all the wonderful people i’ve met #y’all are incredible #im hoping i can speed-run the packing process and be outta here FAST #and then also ideally get back to sending out orders quickly #anyways!!!! that’s what’s going on with me lads #and don’t worry about me!! ;D i’ll figure it out <3

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mirkwoodshewolf · 1 year ago

Text

Hellfire's Mama fox Chap. 7; Halloween campaign

*Author's note*

This was a long time trying to figure out. I had a few ideas of Roxxi's campaign in mind so it was hard to pick just one but I finally stuck with one. Now I apologize to any D&D players out there if I've written this campaign poorly. I've only played like 2min of a D&D campaign in college during a camping trip and never got to do another campaign again. So I just did the campaign based off how we've seen various campaigns that were shown in the show. I hope the next chapter doesn't take as long as this one did but work's gotten me busy lately but I had hoped to at least get this one done before Halloween came around. So I hope you all enjoy this chapter in the end :)

NEXT CHAPTER

Taglist:

@plethora-of-things

@waddles03

@psychosupernatural

@queen-paladin

@jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels

@gay-and-ready-to-cry

@assassinsasha23

@sweetpeapod

_______________________________________________________

September came and went and finally it was my favorite month of all, October. The Halloween decorations, the jack-o-lanterns were being put out on every house, and the cooler weather started to seep in. Not to mention the leaves falling from the trees to create piles large enough to jump in them.

Halloween has always been my favorite time of year, so much so that every weekend before Halloween I always love to dress up in different costumes of my favorite monsters/characters on TV. And when Eddie and I created Hellfire and I started my Halloween campaigns, I made it a rule for all members to dress up in different costumes throughout the time of my campaign, then when it was Halloween night, we dress as our characters to finally end the campaign and go off with a bang.

Now as I have said, I had been working on this campaign for months while I was away in Indianapolis and only until just around after Eddie’s and I’s anniversary did I finally decree that it was complete. The title of my campaign; Don’t Blink.

In this campaign, our heroes were hanging out at the Green Dragon pub after their last venture. But as they sat around drinking ale and eating their food, Jeff’s character soon found a familiar sight. It was Beren. He had told the company that there was trouble brewing in Luthien’s homeland, an old enemy had returned and was planning to harness and feast on the magic of the Elves.

He didn’t know much about the details only that his wife had gone to help the cause but he hadn’t heard anything from her in over seven months. Fearing the worst, Beren decided to go to Luthien’s homeland and see for himself what was going on and what happened to his wife.

Knowing how important Luthien was to Jeff’s, Gareth’s and Grant’s characters, they were willing to join the cause. And being the newbies and wanting to help out a legend that was Beren, Dustin and Mike also joined in along the quest (unfortunately around this time, Lucas had been missing several campaigns and was now on a temporary suspension until Eddie and I decided what to do).

For weeks now I had the guys going on a dangerous quest through Luthien’s forest. To which Beren had told them that it was never this dangerous before in the past. A dark power had infested the forest making it sinister and almost come alive. Soon they came to Luthien’s palace.

“And there you all stand before the grand palace of the Elven king Thingol and Nymeria. But instead of a palace that once shone like the stars, the palace was desolate and hung open like a rotting wound. Vines and tree branches encompassed the palace walls like a blanket.”

“Varda’s stars. The entire kingdom it’s—it’s destroyed.” Eddie replied.

“What in the hell happened here?” replied Jeff.

“Just what could’ve done this? Not trolls or ogres.” Said Dustin. “Or can they?”

“No, this is not ogres nor trolls. The magic of this forest is built to keep them out. Whatever attacked this place, must’ve been already been here.” Said Eddie.

“But why? Why would the elves keep something like this hidden within their own realm?” Mike asked.

“That’s what we’re here to find out. And I’m not leaving here without my wife.”

“And that my friends is where we shall end it tonight.” I said just before the boys all groaned.

“C’mon Roxxi! This is the 3rd cliffhanger this month can we please continue on just a bit longer?” asked Dustin trying to do the puppy dog eyes.

“Sorry Henderson, but I promise you. Next Saturday is Halloween and we shall wrap up this campaign on that night.” I said starting to pack up the stuff. The guys all soon began packing up their things and hitching their rides.

“Normally I never try to question your pace, but this is surprising even for you. You sure you don’t want to add a bit more tonight? At least to allow Beren to use his expert tracking skills to determined what happened to Luthien’s palace?” Eddie asked me as he wrapped an arm around me.

“Nope. I promise babe, next week will be worth it. You’re gonna love it.” I pecked his cheek and after packing everything up, Eddie drove us back home.

After showering and changing out of my Morticia Addam’s costume, I was on the phone with someone and writing some things down.

“Yeah. Yes exactly. It’s an open field just off Route 24. Big field can’t miss it. And everyone’s still on board to come? Awesome. And thanks again for doing this, and it was really good talking to you again Courtney. You too, bye.” I hung up the phone as Eddie said coming in with his toothbrush in his mouth.

“Who was that?”

“A friend from Indianapolis. She’s thinking about coming over next week, so I was just clarifying some information for her.” He hummed before going over to the kitchen sink to spit out the toothpaste from his mouth. “Do you have to spit in the kitchen sink?”

“What’s the difference? It’s all a sink that’s gonna take it to the ocean or wherever water goes.” He said wiping his mouth with a paper towel. I rolled my eyes at him.

“Yes but when there are still dishes in the sink, I think Wayne and I both agree that toothpaste don’t need to be mixed in.”

“A guy forgets to do the dishes and he’s labeled for life. You know we had that English test to study for. Plus all that reading, I swear who has time to read 250 pages a night.”

“But what about—”

“Tolkien is different. Dickens just rambles on and on and on and on never getting to the point. Jesus we get it dude, the streets of London are filthy, no need to drone on 20 pages about it.” I shrugged, not denying that logic.

“Still babe, it was your week to do the dishes and you still haven’t done it yet.”

“I’ll do it first thing in the morning, I’ll even vacuum and dust the place as compensation.” I thought it over.

“Okay, and as a reward I’ll make you my chocolate chip pancakes.”

“With whipped cream on top?”

“What am I a barbarian?”

“Have I told you how much I love you?”

“Only every second of every day.” He pulled me in close and began kissing all over my face making me giggle and squirm in his hold.

“And. Don’t. you. Forget. It. Cara mia.” He said between his kisses.

“Oh mon amor.” Eddie then hoisted me up, holding me up by my thighs and whisked me off to the bedroom for some special nighttime fun as only Gomez and Morticia Addams were known for.

*Halloween night 1985*

Halloween night. When kids dressed up in costumes and went around trick-or-treating. But while that was happening, I was out at Pelennor fields with some friends of mine from rehab getting things set up while Eddie and the guys got ready.

“Yo Roxxi, where do you want me to put the fog machine?” asked Derek.

“Just set it within the hay Aaron brought.”

“Roxxi, did you still want the screen projector for the shadow-puppets?” asked Amy.

“Uhhhh, keep it on standby. Lately our new kits have been keeping me on my toes with their successful rolls.”

“Hey Roxxi, Courtney wants you to take a look at the costumes and makeup for your villains.” Ashley said as she came up with grey and black makeup all over her hands and face.

“Alright be right there.” I looked around to check our setting to see the table was all set, jack-o-lanterns were all carved and ready to be lit later tonight, a prop column was placed but the crystal ball was missing. “Hey has anyone seen the crystal ball we need for Luthien’s scene?”

“I saw Garret with it earlier, I’ll get him to place it back.” Amy said.

“Thanks Amy.” I raced over to the U-Haul truck and saw all my actors getting their makeup ready. They were dressed up as stone-like angels but what was frightening about them was that they had on leather masks that showed their sharp teeth and empty stone-statue mouths. “Looking frightening ladies, ohh man I’ll bet a few of these guys are gonna piss their pants once they see you all.”

“Thanks Roxxi.” They chorused as they were finishing their makeup.

“Took me over 2 months to get the masks all done correctly, the silicon was a bitch to do but I finally got it down.” Courtney said.

“I really appreciate it Courtney.” I told her.

“Hey anything for you kid.” She said ruffling my hair to which I shoved her hand away and redid my hair.

“You know it took me 20 minutes to get this Elvish hairstyle just right.” I looked down at my watch and saw it was nearly time for Eddie to start bringing the guys over. “Okay guys, last looks! We’ve got just under an hour left before Eddie and the guys get here!” I called out to everyone.

Everyone was running around getting things prepped, making sure some of the machines worked properly, costumes and makeup was on everyone, it was a race against the sun until Courtney proclaimed.

“That’s it time’s up!” everyone all cheered and clapped.

“Okay, angels go get into positions. Techies and everyone else, thank you all for your help. Go and get yourselves something to eat and be sure to be back just as nightfall sets.” I told everyone as I got on my elven crown Eddie had made for me years ago. Everyone broke up and I turned to Courtney and asked her. “Got the camera ready?”

“All set. That boyfriend of yours won’t forget this for a long, long time.” I smiled and we high-fived each other. “Well better get into position and start filming.” She then took off for the woods while I sat on the table awaiting the boys to arrive.

*Eddie’s POV*

Roxxi had suggested that this years Halloween campaign should conclude out in our haven of Pelennor fields. Now I’ll admit I was hesitant to bring the guys up there because it was our special spot and the guys didn’t need to know about it. But with some persuasion and the fact that I could have the guys blindfolded so that they wouldn’t know how to get there, that satisfied me enough to drive them all up there.

But first Roxxi told us that we needed to take a specific forest trail which we called ‘Fangorn trail’. All of us were in full costumes but as we walked along the trail, I began to notice something odd. So far I had counted three strange angel statues. Did someone abandon them out here or what? They couldn’t be mannequins but even for as real as they seemed to appear, there’s no way in hell a person could just freeze like that for hours, right?

We soon came to a clearing in the forest and there Roxxi (dressed as my beautiful Luthien) stood with our table, some jack-o-lanterns all lit up and a column with a crystal ball on top standing just a few feet away from the table.

“Welcome Fellowship of Luthien.” She greeted us. “Tonight comes the end of our journey to save the Woodland realm of Arna. Please take your seats.” We all sat down, opened up our folders and took our figurines out. “Where we last left off on our journey…..You all had arrived to the castle of Luthien’s parents, and you all have decided to venture inside of it, but as you walk, you are stopped by a forcefield of powerful magic. What is your next move?”

“I’m the Mage so I’ll use a counter-spell to break through the barrier shield.” Gareth said.

“Roll for the initiative.” Said Roxxi. Gareth took the dice and shook them between his hands before rolling them across the table. “Yes 17!”

“The spell is a success. Proceed Gareth the Great.”

“By the Power of Mordenkainen, I command this shield to be gone! Necronom Hezberek Mortix!”

“A powerful beam of red strikes at the white barrier shield. The shield tries to hold strong but slowly it begins to crack until finally the barrier breaks and the shields come down, allowing you all to enter the castle within. You cross the stone bridge and stand before the large stone doors.”

“Luthien taught me the password to enter within, better leave this to me gentlemen.” I soon spoke up.

“Beren approaches the door, places his hand along the hidden Elvish runes that were engraved in the stone and speaks the password.”

“Annon Edhellen edro hi ammen!”

“The runes glow a bright starlight shine and slowly begin to open. All you can see is darkness inside and dead silence. Do you dare continue onward? Or do you flee and turn back?”

“We’ve come too far to turn back now. I say we go in.” said Dustin.

“For Luthien.” Jeff replied.

“For Luthien.” Agreed Gareth.

“For Luthien.” Mike also said.

“We go forward!” I proclaimed. The corner of her mouth perked upward as she told us.

“You enter inside.”

“I’ll give us some light.” Gareth said as he held up his propped staff.

“A light from Gareth the Great’s staff and shines through the darkened throne room. You can see that there were clear signs of a battle that had occurred. Grand stain-glass windows had been broken in from the outside, the thrones had deep claw-marks that almost appeared animalistic. And the banners had all been torn up.”

“It had to be those werecats we encountered in the forest.” Suggested Mike.

“No, no what purpose do the werecats have for wanting the power of the Elves?” asked Gareth.

“What about those orcs? I mean didn’t Beren once say the Elves drove them away from the mountains when they came here? Could be a revenge story?” asked Dustin.

“If it were orcs, then were are all the bodies and the blood? For as bad of a struggle this looks, there’s not a single trace of blood anywhere.” Said Jeff.

“As everyone is discussing the probably enemies, Beren notices something about the claw-marks on the throne. He walks up to it and looks down at his own fingers before placing them over the claw-marks, to see that they were a perfect match.” Roxxi said. As I took in what my Dungeon Mistress was saying, I then began to realize just what kind of twist she was making.

“By the gods, these aren’t claw-marks of a beast. They’re….. fingernails.” the party all looks at each other in shock. “These were made by fingernails of a person.”

“How is that possible?” asked Gareth.

“That’s what we’re going to find out. We need to head to the library. They keep records of everything from their first colonization in these very woods to every lineage of kings and Queens that ruled here.”

“And so following Beren, you all traveled further into the palace towards the library. But you stop, there hidden within the corner of the hallway was what happened to be a body of an Elven guard. What do you all do?”

“I say we just leave it.” Said Grant.

“I concur.” Agreed Gareth.

“Really guys? This is the only person we’ve come across and you want to abandon them? What if they need help?” asked Dustin.

“Well if you wanna get tricked and eaten again just like with what happened with that man-eating flower monster. Don’t come crying to me!” Gareth whined.

“What say you gentlemen?” Roxxi asked us. I turned to everyone and held up the dice.

“Lowest number goes to investigate the body.” I took the first roll and landed on 13. Next up was Henderson who rolled 15. Gareth rolled 12, Jeff 10, Grant 14 and Wheeler unfortunately rolled a 7.

“Looks like I have no choice.” Mike said exasperatedly.

“Tayr the Paladin slowly goes up to the body. It’s still corpse np moving as he got closer and closer. As he got right up to it, he withdrew his sword and was shocked at what he saw. The body was of Luthien’s mother who looked petrified. Her eyes widened but her body pale and cold to the touch.”

“No, oh Arella.” I spoke solemnly.

“Basilisk. There’s no doubt about it, it has to be a Basilisk.” Dustin said.

“Don’t get a big head Nog, if it were a Basilisk there’d be footprints everywhere. Plus how do you explain those fingernail marks that Beren saw on the throne. They can’t shapeshift.” Gareth stated.

“Doubleganger, or a skin changer, changeling, I don’t know!”

“We have to figure out what the hell is happening here.” Answered Grant.

“He’s right.” I replied. “We’re not gonna get answers by waiting around here. I only hope Luthien isn’t like her mother.” I looked to Roxxi and she looked at me empathetically.

“After Beren covers up the Elven queen’s body with his cloak, you all proceed onward to the library. It stood adjacent to the gardens just behind it but to Beren something was off, there was an odd statue that he hadn’t remember seeing before in the garden. A statue of an angel covering its face.”

“That’s odd.” I said.

“What is it?” asked Jeff.

“That statue.”

“What about it? It’s just a statue.”

“That’s the thing, I’ve never seen it before nor has Luthien.”

“Perhaps they just carved it or something. After all how long has it been since you guys came back to her homeland?” we then heard a rustle and when we all looked up, some of us were startled while others jumped in their seats as we saw the very same angel Roxxi had just described being in the campaign.

“Jesus Christ!” Dustin gasped placing his hand over his heart.

“Don’t break the role Henderson, just—just ignore it.” I assured him taking his head and pointing it downward at the table but I couldn’t help but take one last quick look at the statue.

How the hell did we miss that standing there? Or had it always been there and we just missed it?

“You also take notice of a crystal ball standing at the center of the main table of the library. Do you go forth and investigate it? Or do you move on and do some independent research?”

“I recognize the crystal to be her father’s all-seeing orb. Maybe it can show us what happened.” I spoke up.

“That type of magic is highly advanced Beren, only the strong-willed and mind can withstand it’s power.” Gareth told me.

“Excuse me? Are you calling me weak-minded Gareth the Great?” I challenged as I raised my brow at him.

“No, no, what I meant was that—this is too emotional for you. The power of the orb could take advantage of your weakness and corrupt your mind. Destroying you in the process.”

“He might be onto something Beren. This is your wife’s home after all, you’re too heavily involved in this. Allow Gareth to use it.” Said Jeff. I groaned and crossed my arms over my chest.

“Fine. But just hurry and find out what happened.”

“Gareth the Great goes towards Luthien’s father’s all-seeing orb.” Roxxi then gestures to the actual crystal ball that is standing near us. He stands up and goes over to it whilst Roxxi follows him. He stands on one side and she on the other.

Soon the crystal ball and the column began to light up on their own which had us stunned. As Roxxi says.

“As Gareth touches the orb,” Gareth places his hands on it. “An image starts to appear. It is the shape of a woman in Elven armor, her long black hair floating through the wind within the orb and soon the image becomes clear. It’s Luthien.”

“Luthien!?” I proclaim going over to stand next to Gareth. “Luthien meleth nin where are you? Are you alright? What the hell happened here? Why was your mother petrified? Why haven’t you come home?!”

“‘All will be answered soon my love. But you should not have come. Any of you.’ says Luthien grimly.”

“Why?” Gareth asked. “What happened here?”

“‘Look to your left.’ Luthien says. You all follow her direction and see Gareth shines his staff down the aisle of books and there laying against the bookshelf petrified was Luthien. Her body the same condition as her mother’s.”

“No……” I trailed off. I turned to Roxxi who looked at me sadly. I shook my head thinking this couldn’t be the end of Luthien.

“Wait so….you put your soul into your father’s orb?” asked Gareth.

“Not exactly. In fact this isn’t even my spirit. It’s a message I made before I was attacked.”

“But you’re replying to them. How can you know what they’re going to say before they say it?” Mike asked.

“My sister’s an oracle, I got everything I needed from her Tayr the Paladin.” Wheeler’s eyes bulged in shock for a brief moment.

“Luthien, what happened? Where is everyone else?” I asked.

“As I said my love, you shouldn’t have come here. They’ve destroyed the palace and feasted on everyone’s life energy trying to find what they’re after.”

“Who?” I demanded.

“I’m sorry can we just back up real quick to how we’re actually communicating with a message that was pre-recorded and stored into an orb?” God Henderson I swear I could strangle you at times.

“What matters now Dwarf is that I can communicate with you all!” Roxxi snapped as Luthien. “We’ve got bigger problems now. They’re still there! The angels are still at the palace!”

“Angels? What you mean those statue things?” I asked.

“Demons from the ancient world.” Roxxi explains.

“But they’re just statues.” I said.

“Only when you see them.”

“What does that mean?” asked Gareth.

“The lonely assassins my kin once called them. No one knows exactly how or when they came into being but they’re as old as the world. Or very nearly. And they have survived because they have the most perfect defense mechanism imaginable. They’re quantum locked. They don’t exist when they’re being observed, the moment they are seen by any other living creature they freeze into rock. No choice it’s a fact in their biology, in the sight of any living being they literally turned to stone. And you can’t kill a stone.” Roxxi then shrugged as she continued, “Of course a stone can’t kill you either but then you turn your head away. And you blink…..and oh yes they can.” Her voice dropped into a more menacing, darker tone in narration.

I turned to the statue and began piecing together that this was the additional surprise Roxxi had for this year’s campaign.

“Nobody take your eyes off that thing.” I spoke lowly. Everyone turned to the angel statue as Roxxi continued to speak as Luthien.

“That’s why they cover their eyes, they’re not weeping they can’t risk looking at anyone. Their greatest asset is also their greatest curse, they can never be seen. And I’m sorry, I’m very, very sorry. It’s up to you Beren.”

“What must I do?” I asked.

“My necklace that I gave you, it’s what they’re after. The magic within it is enough for them to feast on for eternity but the damage they could do could switch off the sun and destroy the moon. You mustn’t let them get it.”

“But how do we stop them? How do we save you?” I pleaded. Roxxi looked down then up before she said.

“Oh no, I’m sorry but that’s all my sister was able to see of you finding my father’s orb. I don’t know what’s stopped you all from talking but I can only guess, they’re there. The angels have found you.” Roxxi turned toward the statue quickly in fear and she leaned over till her face was illuminating under the lights from the orb. “Now listen to me, your lives could depend on this. Don’t blink. Don’t even blink! Blink and you’re dead. They are fast, faster than you can believe! Don’t turn your back! Don’t look away! And don’t blink!”

Roxxi’s eyes were full of panic as she got into Luthien’s monologue before ending it as the light from the orb faded into darkness.

“Good luck.” And thanks to the now nighttime sky, all was pitch black.

“No! No! No Luthien!” I cried out.

“I-I’ll try to bring the message back up.” Gareth said.

“What good will that do?”

“Here let me see it!” soon I heard all the guys coming and talking over one another as they took the orb and I began to realize something.

“Stop! Stop! Stop! STOP!!” everyone went silent. “Whose looking at the statue?” everyone remained silent.

Suddenly lights came on through the forest and the angel statue had now changed positions, standing just a few inches away from us but this time we got a good look at it’s face. Hollowed stone eyes, sharp fangs built within the mask and an empty void-like statue mouth. The long, sharp nails on it’s fingers stood about maybe 3-4 inches long and were extended outward to us.

We all jumped back. Jesus Roxxi, you really outdid yourself this time, even more than when you did ‘The Curse on Moonscar isle.’ These were an even scarier makeup and props than the zombies were.

“Nobody take your eyes off that thing. Remember what Luthien said. Don’t blink.”

“No problem, I mean after all it’s just one of them, right? We’ll be okay if we just keep staring at this one.” Mike said.

“Three actually.” I said.

“What?” hissed Dustin.

“I saw three more while we were walking through the trail. And I thought I heard some movement so they might be moving closer to us.”

“With the statue assassin having you all under its mercy, what move do you all plan to take? Remember, no amount of mortal magic nor swords can kill these stone creatures.” Roxxi told us from the table.

“Why can’t we just give them the necklace now and be done with this?” Wheeler said.

“You’re really suggesting that to me?! You heard Luthien the damage they could do with the power within this necklace can switch off both the sun and moon. Absolutely not!” I snapped.

“If no mortal weapons can defeat them, nor any magic then we’re screwed dude! I hate to say it but I agree with Tayr.” Said Jeff.

“I concur.” Said Grant.

“Fuck you guys! My wife sacrificed herself to hold these things off I’m not about to let it be in vain!”

“He’s right. Everything has a weakness, and Luthien gave us the answer. They can’t look at each other. So all we need to do is find a way to get them all together.” Said Henderson.

“And how do we do that exactly?” asked Wheeler.

“Your eyes are straining to not blink but the urge is too strong. All you men can do is continue to stare at this horrifying statue that seems to be mocking you by remaining still.” Roxxi narrates our actions. “What is your move?”

“Nog is right, Luthien did say there is a way to stop them. But it can’t be here. At the very bottom of the palace is a catacomb chamber. It’s tunnels and pathways are like a labyrinth. If we get them down there, they’ll never be able to get out.” I told them.

“Alright, then we get them to the chambers. But how do we get there without taking our eyes off of this thing?” asked Gareth.

“Let’s get back to the table and make our move, two people at a time keep looking at it.” I told them. Taking hold of Dustin’s and Gareth’s arms, we all backed up first Jeff, Grant and I looking back to get us back to the table leaving Wheeler and Henderson to keep their eyes on the demon before us.

“Guys my eyes are getting tired over here. I don’t think I can hold it!” Wheeler exclaimed.

“I’ll switch with you Tayr, we’re almost there. Don’t turn till I look up.” Gareth told him. When Gareth looked at the angel statue, he tapped Mike and allowed him to turn away. Finally we made it back to the table.

“Tyrion and I will take the first watch, you three make the first move.” I volunteered. Grant nodded and we looked at the statue while Henderson said.

“Give me the d20.” I heard the dice clicking between his hands and heard as it rolled across the table.

“16. Most impressive young dwarf. One by one, you each manage to successfully leave the library and head down towards the chambers Beren had talked about earlier. Down the stairs you all go, the further down you go, the darker it becomes. But then something begins to glow around Beren’s neck, it’s Luthien’s necklace shining like a star giving you the light in the dark. Eventually you come before a large set of doors with an Elvish inscription on top. It reads aloud: ‘Secrets in the dark, Secrets in the abyss. All who enter here are lost and sealed. Only the one with the heart of a star can pass through the darkness’.”

“‘The heart of a star?’ That must be Luthien’s necklace, right?” asked Henderson.

“Yes. My wife was known throughout these lands as ‘The she-elf born from the heart of a star’. She came early into this world, so frail and fragile, even the greatest of all the Elven healers feared she wouldn’t last pass the winter. So her parents prayed to their Goddess Varda to save their daughter. Then one night, a star had fallen out of the sky and landed right into their garden. Taking a small piece of that star, they touched it to Luthien’s heart and her hair gave out a starlight glow, her eyes shined silvery-white and she began to cry.”

“That’s why his wife’s also been named ‘Evanstar’ because of her starlight beauty. It was as if she were a star in human form.” Jeff said wistfully.

“So her necklace will help us through the chambers?” asked Wheeler.

“Seems like it.” I clenched the handmade necklace Roxxi made for me to represent Luthien’s gift to her beloved Beren.

“So is there like another password you gotta speak to get the doors opened or….? What?” asked Henderson.

“No, the way to get in is through this.” I showed him Luthien’s necklace and took the die and rolled it and saw it land on 17.

“Beren takes off his wife’s Evenstar necklace and places it against the wall of the door. The runes glow and soon a soft rumble is heard as the doors begin to unlock and open. There you all stand before the Great chamber of the secrets. A dark, dank chamber that extends far and wide. A single pathway lies ahead with various tunnels surrounding the chamber. A small river also surrounds you as the small sounds of dripping water can be heard echoing through the chamber.”

“Now we walk.” I answered.

“But which doorway do you take?” Roxxi asked me.

“There’s over a dozen of them, I say we take the one just straight ahead. When in doubt, gotta go straight right?” said Jeff.

“I disagree, we should take the center door on the left.” Argued Gareth.

“If I may make a suggestion gentlemen,” Roxxi soon spoke up. “Take heed to what the inscription on the door said.” The guys looked confused before Dustin spoke up repeating part of the inscription.

“Only the one with the heart of a star can pass through the darkness’. I think Beren should make the decision.” Everyone turned to me and I looked at all of them. I turned to Roxxi who had her arms crossed and a gleam in her eye.

She wanted this to play out this way, for me to be the deciding factor in this whole campaign. Alright then, if that’s how you want it Roxxi, it’s what you shall get.

“Give me the d20.” She smirked and picked up the d20 die and tossed it over to me. I caught it in my right hand and rolled it between my palms. I then rolled the die between my hands and let it roll across the table. We waited on baited breath until it stopped and landed on 15.

“Beren takes the leadership role.” Said Roxxi with pride.

“Alright gentlemen, we go straight but take the one to the right of the entrance dead ahead.”

“You all follow Beren’s lead. Once you go through your chosen door, Luthien’s pendant begins to glow of pure starlight, giving you all a light in the dark place, when all other lights have gone out.” As she narrated, I noticed how the spotlight that had once shone around us to reveal that real life angel, had now turned into a soft, silvery light. Giving us the real feeling of Luthien’s starlight power. “As you continue on, you soon come to a fork in the trail, do you proceed left or right Beren the Bard?”

“We go left at the fork.” I said to her.

“You go left. The pendant glows brighter in the darkness. You continue straight on until another fork is seen up ahead, this time there are three options. Which way do you take your company now?”

“We take the center pathway.”

“Are you sure?” she asked skeptically with a raised brow.

“Beren, I don’t know maybe we should go left again.” Gareth suggested.

“No, no we should take the path on the right.” Said Henderson.

“No, we take the center path. That is my final answer.” The corner of Roxxi’s lips lifted in a slight grin before she narrated.

“You go down the center path. The pendant starting to flicker until you finally reach the end of the path to see a large chamber before you. There you see you are surrounded by the stone angels.”

“Holy shit!” Mike exclaimed. We all looked up to see more of the real life angel statues had now surrounded our table just standing feet away from us.

“Still think this was a good idea?” muttered Gareth.

“Fear not though gentlemen, for as you look down below you notice a special sigil engraved on the floor. It had great stag-like points coming out from each end and the points crossed each other. In between the antler-like base was a giant star in the same shape as Luthien’s pendant.”

“This is it, we made it. Now all we have to do is get them to look at each other.”

“Without getting killed ourselves.” Mentioned Grant.

“I concur.” Jeff agreed.

“Now gentlemen, this is the final move. What shall you do now to save yourselves and the Elvish kingdom of the stars?”

“I’ll create a barrier around us to protect us from them as they surround us. So one of us has to blink just seconds after my shield is up.” said Gareth.

“Roll for the initiative.” Roxxi said. Gareth took the dice in his hands and rolled it but we all groaned as it landed on a 6. “The shield fails for suddenly appearing is the same angel you all saw near the library that you managed to escape from. It’s right arm extended out pointing at Beren.”

“Uhh Beren, why is it……” Dustin started to ask but then the silver glowing light that surrounded us started to flicker on and off.

“Shit it’s starting to drain the power from Luthien’s necklace!” I exclaimed.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit what do we do?! What do we do?! What do we do!?” Henderson asked in a panic.

With each flicker of the lights, we saw how the angel statues were getting closer, their terrifying faces flickering in and out of the darkness as they kept changing positions with each flicker.

“We gotta use Luthien’s pendant to create a shield, it’s our only hope!” Jeff exclaimed.

“Quick Beren roll the die!” everyone was in a panic as I grabbed the die and I ordered them to shut up as I quickly rolled the dice for my initiative move. Roxxi taking every second of enjoyment at seeing our panicked faces and fear, and knowing she didn’t need to narrate what was happening.

Because we were living it.

Finally I rolled a 17 and proclaimed out.

“Starlight barrier!”

“A beam of white light surrounds you all and protects you from the angels, just seconds away from escaping their touch.” We all panted as we saw that the angels had us now completely surrounded, entrapping us with their bodies and caging us in with their arms.

“Oh shit, oh gods above. That was close.” Henderson panted in relief.

“We’re not done yet.” I said lowly.

“Afraid you are correct Beren the Bard.” Roxxi said solemnly and darkly. “For even with the barrier up, the angels now proceeded to slam their fists against the barrier. Luthien’s necklace now going from a flicker to a dim as the magic within was starting to fade out.”

Once again the guys began speaking over one another frantically asking what we could do but I knew there was nothing that we could do. We were trapped, the magic of Luthien’s pendant was fading fast, and there’s no chance of us getting out of here fast enough. I’ll salute you on this Roxxi, but never did I think you’d get us all killed in the end.

“We do nothing.” I solemnly said.

“What? No Beren we-there must be something. I can help…..”

“Elven magic is extremely delicate Gareth the Great. You of all people should know that. Even if you tried to give some of your power to the pendant, who knows what it’ll do to us in the meantime. Even then, we’d probably be dead before that even happens once the shield is down. My friends, thank you for helping me find the answers I needed.”

The guys all looked at each other confused, shocked and horrified at my immediate surrender. They turned to Roxxi who merely looked at them with her arms crossed.

“It was great seeing you again Beren. And venturing with you these past few weeks felt like the good old times.” Said Gareth.

“Agreed.” Jeff and Grant said together.

“And even though we didn’t get to know you for very long, you’re as brave and courageous as the guys said you have been Beren the Bard.” Said Henderson. Wheeler nodded.

“Then I guess we’re all in agreement.” I turned to Roxxi who had the d20 between her fingers. “We’re ready.” She tossed me the die and I caught it in my hand. If we’re all going out, then at least we should go out in the most grand way possible. I blew into my palm and shook the die between my hands before letting it roll across the table.

Various numbers flashed before us ranging from the lower numbers mainly and I feared it’d be the most quickest, and painfullest death we’d all go through, but then the dice stopped and landed on 20.

“Crit hit.”

“The shield is destroyed, you all huddle together but just as you’re awaiting your end, there’s nothing but silence. You look up and see that the angels aren’t looking at you, but at each other. Their once horrifying faces now still as they stared at one another. With Luthien’s last will of magic, she had managed to force the angels to look at each other once the shield was destroyed.”

“Wait so we—we won?” asked Henderson. A slow wide smile came across Roxxi’s face as she deepened her voice to a more mature female tone (almost how she does Galadriel whenever she reads to me on my bad days).

“‘Indeed you did.’ A voice echoed through the darkness. A flash of light briefly appears and there stands the King and Queen along with Luthien herself. ‘You all managed to outwit the very enemy that’s eluded even our most powerful magic’. Said Luthien’s father. ‘For centuries our magic of starlight had kept these fell creatures under a watchful eye, but when Luthien left us, the magic keeping them sealed away began to fade. That’s why we had called her home, but in their millennia’s of isolation in the dark and light, they became too strong for even our magic to keep them at bay’. Said her mother.”

“So they’re…..never going to move again?” asked Wheeler.

“‘No Tayr. As I told you, their greatest asset is also their greatest curse. We’ve tried to gather them together once we realized our magic wouldn’t work, but one by one my people were picked off until they became too fast for us to handle.’ Luthien said.”

“But you’re alright now? Everything feeling right as rain?” I asked worriedly.

“‘Yes meleth nin. We’re all fine. Once you had sealed the angel’s fate, their curse upon us was reversed. You freed us. All of you. And we the Starlight Elves are eternally in your debt.’ With that decree, a grand festival was held in your honor and with that my friends, our Halloween campaign comes to an end.”

We all applauded and cheered, and that’s when the angels in costume began to move and more applause was heard as people began coming out from the shadows dressed in black tech clothes.

“And I’d also like to thank these fellow NPC’s and techies for bringing the last segment of my campaign back to life.” Roxxi said and that’s when the guys and I cheered for them as they all came together and gave us a bow. “Thanks again guys and I say now calls for a photo, everyone get together!” we all got together around the table as one of the techies set up a camera on a tripod before racing back over to us. “Everyone say scream!”

“SCREAM!!!!” a flash came from the camera. Once the photo was taken, we all packed up our folders, the table, books, game set, and the set props and all began to leave Pelennor fields bidding everyone a goodbye and happy Halloween.

After getting the kids back home, Roxxi and I made it back home and were getting ready for bed. She was taking out the last few pins from her wig she wore and removed it.

“I gotta admit it babe, this was probably better than the Moonscar Isle campaign you did our junior year.”

“You think so?” she asked.

“Absolutely. And those angel costumes you had those guys wearing, babe I think you’ve forever changed my view on statues forever.” The corner of her lips turned up into a smirk. “So how did you get all those people involved?”

“I met Courtney at rehab. Her uncle works at those Halloween haunt fairs over at Chicago every year and sometimes she’s helped out whenever she visits him. She got everything from the lights and costumes from him. Most of them were actual workers at the haunts and were gracious enough to book a flight here to do this little campaign of mine.”

“I swear you’ve got the magic touch when it comes to connections, you sure you can’t do that to speed up the process of the band’s success?”

“Sorry Teddy, my magical touch doesn’t touch the music industry. Just the makeup and hairstyle dept.” she finished wiping away the last of her makeup before coming over to me. I pulled back the covers for her to get in and cuddle up to me.

She buried her face into my neck and I pulled her in close, softly kissing the center of her forehead.

“But I know you’ll make it big. Once we’re done with school you’ll have all the time to focus on just the music, and one day you’ll get your shot.”

“With my lucky charm at my side, I don’t see how we can’t fail.” Her eyes softened as she smiled at me and her lips met with mine. “Now can I say something from one Dungeon Master to another?” she tilted her head in that puppy-like manner (that I always found so adorable).

“I thought you said you liked the campaign?” there was a hint of doubt in her voice.

“Oh sweetheart, you misunderstood. There was absolutely nothing wrong with it, I would just like to, you know…..add a little something extra to the ending.” I said reaching out and stroking her tri-colored strand and tucking it behind her ear. “If you catch my drift.” I raised my brow suggestively.

“And what would you like to add? Dungeon Master.” She asked in her Dungeon Mistress voice, that low, seductive tone that always made me go hard.

“After their reunion and having his wife once again, back in his arms. Beren took Luthien to their bed, his body hovering over hers.” I reached over and grabbed my black and red d20 die, holding it between my index and tall finger as I smirked down at her.

“Make your move Beren the Bard.”

“With pleasure, Luthien the Starlight.” I rolled the die but in the end it didn’t matter what number I landed on. I pulled the sheets over the two of us and we spent a night of pure bliss moaning not only our own names but our characters names as well.

This was definitely a Halloween night to remember.

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gothark · 25 days ago

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Books I've read in October 2024:

And what I thought about them:

(no this isn't almost a month late, you are)

The Games Gods Play - i don't even know what to say, i started this with some friends as a buddy read but my god did i hate this book. i'm kind of anal about greek mythology and for most of the time this book shits all over greek mythology. like i found some passages that were straight up copy and pasted from internet sites! that's not cool?? if i have to read hades being called the god of death one more time I will commit a crime DNF

The Hanged Man - I did like the first one in the series but it didn't become like a hard favorite but with this one I felt that maybe becoming an option, we were warming up to each other!

4.75 Stars

The Hourglass Throne - i'm fucking locked in baby, i'm here for the ride and i don't want to get out. very excited for the rest of the series once it releases (fingers crossed that's soon) but all around i would recommend this if you are looking for a series to get into

5 Stars

Before the Coffee Gets Cold - this was sweet and sad and i sobbed all over my e-book, thank god for no ruined pages. if you're going through any kind of grief or loss I think this book will really hit you, because it hit me and usually i'm not the biggest crier. it's not going to be one of my ride and die books though

4.5 Stars

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - man fuck i loved this book lmao and it also made me cry! i was not doing well after this and the last one back to back... now... i didn't necessarly like any of the characters, which i think is kind of the point, so if you need likeable characters this book is probably not for you but man did i love it. i read this in one night

5 Stars

A Conjuring of Light - i still love this world and barely like any of the characters xD i suppose this one was the best of the trilogy but i mostly read it because i just wanted to be done with the series lmao it's a solid book though, don't let my lukewarm feelings about it deter you

4.25 Stars

Thousand Autumns Vol 1 - this had been on my tbr forever and i always wanted to read it and never did?? what a mistake on my part lmao no surprise though considering i am a danmei fiend, i will consume them all. i didn't 100% love it though

4.5 Stars

A Psalm for the Wild-Built - this is a cozy exestential crisis just waiting to hit you over the head, if you don't think about it too hard you will be fine but if you engage with the text in any kind of meaningful way... be warned, you might start contemplating all your life choices

4.75 Stars

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy - if the first one didn't get you this one is here to finish the job, it didn't resonate as hard with me as the first one but that's just because of my circumstances and not because it's worse in any way, you just have to get it and i got this one a little less

4.5 Stars

The Haunting of Hill House - ... am I just not a horror guy because this one was just.... boring. like i vibed with the first half but the second one?? just lost me. i got what was going on, i saw the vision, i just didn't like it. the ending was so... weak kind of. oh well

2.5 Stars

Thousand Autumns Vol 2 - back to the things I know and love, i'm also trying to actually finish series and not let them rot on my shelves for months. i still really like this series and this one just sucked me more and more in. i kind of hibernated a bit and chomped down on these in a few days

4.75 Stars

The Hunger Games - i read this as a child ages ago but had to reread it because i found out one of my friends never read the series or watched the movies. and i can't be friends with you if you didn't. so we are reading the entire series together and man this just hits. it's just good, i don't have to tell you, everyone knows... but i'm also like 10 years older than the first time and have certainly read some better books since then

4.5 Stars

Thousand Autumns Vol 3 - i got got, this one did it to me, hooked it's teeth into me and dragged me down into hell, see you again never. just lovely (to read, not like content wise)

5 Stars

Thousand Autumns Vol 4 - i love this series, i love the covers, i love these two idiots and i will never recover, thanks for coming to my ted talk

5 Stars

Thousand Autumns Vol 5 - ugh like it's perfect where it ended but i also just want more?? i so hope we can get some more stories in this universe with other characters pls pls pls pls also this would have been a really good end for the month but sadly it wasn't :)

5 Stars

Mortal Skin - i really thought I would like this... and it was fine. until the end. where my most hated trope reared it's head. i could already smell it but i was in denial and then it came anyway and i don't even want to read the rest of the series which hurts because I loved Lily's other series but I just can't do it again. also what is it with all the fae books i've read so far having almost the same major plot hits??? like what? be original i beg maybe then I wouldn't hate all of you

2 Stars

#books #lgbtq books #reading #book blog #book review #books and reading #bookworm #lgbtq #mlm books #positive review #october reads #reading in october #no this is not late #i was so on time #it totally isn't the end of november already

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forabeatofadrum · 7 months ago

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Just Some Guy (8/9)

Notes: Folks, we've made it. We are at the end. It is Matty Chris D.'s final year at Watford and boy OH BOY.

But it is not the end. There is an epilogue. I'll save potential word vomit for that chapter.

AO3

–

Year 8

MATT

The 8th year is optional, but me and my friends all return for it. What else will we do?

Someone who doesn’t return is Baz Pitch.

The rumour mill is insane, but honestly, what is everyone’s deal? I heard Trixie say that Baz’s probably off to Ibiza, and that’s the most plausible one.

I know that maybe I should be worried that he’s hurt, or that the civil war is about to happen, but I am just fucking grateful that I won’t be caught between him and Simon Snow again. It’s my last year. Please, let me get through this in peace.

And I truly believe he is just chilling in Ibiza. All the other rumours are just way too wild. Maybe the dude just wanted a longer vacation. Who can blame him? I hope he has fun in Ibiza and maybe stays there for longer so that it will finally be quiet in class.

This year is already pretty exciting, because the Veil has lifted. My family isn’t expecting anyone, although I admit I hope that one of my grandparents will come back through the Veil to smack either or both of my parents for their divorce.

A guy can dream, eh?

I can’t believe I am doing this. I am skipping class to take Leslie birdwatching around the grounds. John is once again the true MVP here. He’s given me an overview of when there aren’t any teachers around. He needs to know that for his job and I need to know it to take my girl on a date.

This is the most exciting thing I’ve done in my entire time at Watford, and I went to America!

We’re going to look at fertile doves. If you are in their presence, you will be under a light love spell, as in, it will heighten your feelings for the other. It’s going to be so romantic!

These birds only fly around this era of England around October, so it’s now or never. Leslie and I hold hands as we walk around the grounds, and I am so glad I get to share this with her. Why would I go to Magic Words is I can do this?

I hand Leslie my magickal binoculars. She watches the gorgeous fertile doves and I tell her all the facts I know about them. There are five of them and they’re taking a well-deserved break from their trek. They’re sat on some tree branches and it’s perfect. You can perfectly see the colours of their feathers and the plums on their heads.

“This is lovely, Matt,” Leslie has a smile on her face. I cannot see her eyes, since she’s holding the binoculars in front of them, but I imagine that smile reaches her eyes.

The love spell is working. I too am overcome with adoration for Leslie. I do a happy dance while she’s focused on the birds.

“Here,” she hands me the binoculars after a while.

I assume my smile is as big as hers and I look at the birds. I think they’re about to take off. But then, suddenly, out of nowhere, all five of them go stiff and fall off the branches. Their eyes are still open and some have their beaks open as well. It’s as if they just got frozen in time.

I feel a hand on my shoulder. I lower my binoculars and look over my shoulder.

Leslie stares at the five birds in shock. She looks haunted.

“Matt? Are they supposed to do that?” she asks, her voice waivers.

I shake my head. No, that’s definitely not what is supposed to happen. The two of us stare at the unmoving birds for a few minutes before realising something really is wrong. Leslie slowly walks towards the birds and pokes one of them.

“Matt… I think… I think they’re dead.”

She casts a Death doesn’t discriminate to make sure and the birds indeed give off a red aura, indicating they’re capital D Dead. I also walk towards the birds and yes, they truly are lifeless.

What. The. Fuck?

“Leslie, what…” I trail off. What can I say? These beautiful beings just dropped dead right in front of us for no reason.

Leslie walks away from me, but she returns with flowers. The two of them place them around the birds as a sign of respect. That’s all we can do. Soon, someone working on the grounds will find them and hopefully preserve them.

Well.

Our date just got fucked. I hope this isn’t an omen for our future. The birds that symbolise love just dropped dead in front of us. This was not the romantic outing I had hoped for.

By now, the Magic Words class has ended. It’s the last class of the day, so we walk to the Dining Hall, knowing our friends go there to study.

When we see them, they all seem exhausted.

“Hey, how was your date?” John asks.

I shake my head. I can’t talk about it.

“How was Magic Words?” Leslie says, trying to stay calm, “Bet we didn’t miss much.”

“Oh, you did,” Scott bemoans, “The Humdrum attacked.”

“What?” Leslie exclaims.

“That bastard sent flibbertigibbents!” Luis sounds aghast, as if he questions the Humdrum’s audacity, “Fucking pests.”

“The Chosen One saved us all, of course,” Sam sighs, “He cast Dead in the air and it worked like a charm.”

I know I should be grateful that Simon Snow saved my friends. Flibbertigibbents can be dangerous in big numbers. They drive mages mad. But my mind immediately connects the dots. Simon fucking Snow probably killed the fertile doves and ruined my date!

At moments like this, I wish I were fucking Normal.

Baz Pitch comes back somewhere after Halloween. I guess his trip to Ibiza took longer than expected. Both Simon Snow and Agatha Wellbelove make such a show of it. Baz, entering the Dining Hall in grand fashion, and Simon, his nemesis, and Agatha, his… classmate, standing up. It’s an ordeal. I turn back to my scones and tea.

One person who’s also glad to see Baz is Sam of all people.

“What?” Sam says, “I have eyes. Baz Pitch might be an elitist arsehole, but man, he’s fine.”

“Really, Sam?” Ryan asks, surprised.

I scoff.

I’m not gay or anything (or so I think), but I don’t think Baz Pitch is that attractive.

“You could so much better,” Arnold also says, “Baz Pitch has this weird dead looking grey skin.”

“And eyes that stare into your soul,” Scott adds.

“And the slicked back hair makes him look like a posh git,” Luis also says, although Baz Pitch is already a posh git.

“Jeez, alright, guys, I get it. Baz Pitch isn’t hot,” Sam laments.

“Whatever. I hear he’s into Agatha Wellbelove, like every straight guy,” Leslie says, “And Agatha might be into him.”

I jerk my head towards her.

“What?”

I might no longer be into Agatha. After all, why would I when I am happy with Leslie? But why would Agatha be into him?

“Dee overheard Simon and Penelope talk about it. So don’t quote me on it.”

I groan. Really? Does that mean that classes will be even more insufferable than usual? I don’t need Simon Snow and Baz Pitch disrupting every class to fight with each other over a girl.

There apparently was a dragon attack and Simon Snow and Baz Pitch saved the school?

Look, I was in my room, listening to loud music through my headphones and eating ice cream, because Leslie and I had a fight. This time, John didn’t tell me to go outside, so I completely missed it.

But I’m now walking towards the Cloisters in order to make up with my girlfriend, and everyone’s talking about it.

I look around and I don’t see any damage, so I suppose I didn’t miss anything important. Fine. Let me save my relationship in peace and quiet.

Later, John wants to fill me in about the dragon attack but I shoo him away. Leslie and I made up, so I really don’t give a shit.

I sometimes seem to live under a rock. So does my dad. After Christmas Eve at my mum’s, I joined my dad in the countryside, and we just… didn’t learn about the Humdrum’s defeat till five days after it actually happened. In our defence, we decided to do an off-the-grid holiday. No phones. No internet. Just me, my dad and the dog he recently adopted since he’s lonely.

So when I see all the missed calls on the 29th, I wonder who the fuck died.

The Mage, apparently.

The day after, John and Leslie come to visit to tell me and my dad everything. It’s very kind of them, since it’s quite a trip. (I think.) (Where does John actually live? I’ve known him for eight years, but I’ve never been to his house. He always comes to me.)

But, well, the world goes on, even though the leader just got killed by his heir. Some believed that the Mage’s death would change everything, but that didn’t happen. The Coven reconvened and decided that there’s no need for one glorious leader.

Besides, more information about the Mage resurfaces. It isn’t pretty. He apparently killed Natasha Grimm-Pitch and mages are currently trying to mend the relations between the creatures he unfairly targeted.

The Old Families have retreated.

The world just changed in a big way, and I don’t notice a single thing. My life goes on as usual. I go to Watford, I play chess, I kiss Leslie, work for Miss Possibelf and hang out with my friends. It’s as if this war never happened.

It’s all so… normal. Not Normal, just normal.

I mean, it’s a good thing the Humdrum is gone, I guess, but apart from the annoying attacks, I barely noticed anything of the Humdrum in the first place. I’m just some guy.

Simon Snow, Penelope Bunce and Agatha Wellbelove didn’t return after the holidays. Baz Pitch did, but no one really knows what to do with him after everything. Turns out he, Simon and Penny have been working together since he came back from Ibiza. It’s quiet in classes without Baz picking fights, or Penelope’s opinions on everything. Sometimes people ask Baz how Simon’s doing, but he refuses to answer. It looks like he wants to protect Simon.

Maybe that’s the most mind-blowing thing of all of this. Simon Snow and Baz Pitch, cooperating?

But hey, I didn’t keep track of Simon Snow’s Chosen One antics before. I am not starting now. I need to graduate! I have better things to focus on.

I mean, his trial is big news and hard to miss. I decide I am glad that he and Penelope don’t get charged. But the Chosen One’s story is over, and I, for one, am fucking glad.

My last day is woefully uninteresting. My dad comes over to help me pack my stuff. Then my mum joins us for the leaving ceremony. Baz Pitch is on top of our class and he gives a touching speech. I assume. I didn’t hear him over his messy aunt’s blubbering.

We have a somewhat awkward celebration dinner with Leslie’s parents and after that, Leslie and I hurry away to get ready for the leavers ball.

The leavers ball is… fine. The real treasure of Watford is the friends I made along the way. Oh, and my diploma, I suppose. John, Leslie, Scott, Arnold, Luis, Sam and I laugh and reminisce over our time here. We talk about how this is the end.

“Not really,” John says, “There’s the epilogue after this.”

“Sure,” Luis just says.

We talk about all the times Scott flipped the chess board, or how Luis and Leslie got us all into football, or the fact that John always knows everything, and so on. The memories keep coming and they don’t stop coming.

But at one point, I want to have some time with my girlfriend.

“May I have this dance?” I ask and hold out my hand.

Leslie pretends to swoon.

“So romantic,” she says with a smile.

We slow dance and whisper sweet nothings. Her hands are on my upper arms. At one point, she pinches me.

“What?” I ask.

Leslie is staring at something behind me.

“What?” I ask again.

“Baz Pitch… and Simon Snow… are slow dancing.”

She spins us around, so that I can see it for myself and I am glad I did, or otherwise I wouldn’t have believed her. It’s really true. Simon Snow and Baz Pitch are chest to chest. One of Simon’s hands is on Baz’s shoulder. The other is in Baz’s hand. Baz has his other hand against Simon’s back holding… a tail? (I heard rumours of Simon Snow giving himself dragon wings and a tail, but I always dismissed them.) (So, they’re partially true?) (I mean, I don’t see wings.)

“What… are they doing?” I say to Leslie.

“Dancing,” Leslie answers, albeit in a confused tone, “But… why?”

We’re not the only ones that are confused. People are obviously staring. Everyone is as confused as us.

Are they together? No, it can’t be. I know that their rivalry mellowed when Baz came back from Ibiza, but… what? Besides, even though we can’t hear what they’re saying, they both seem upset and frustrated. Damn, did they just find a new covert way to emotionally destroy each other in public? Do they no longer want to pull focus to their fights?

And isn’t Simon still dating Agatha? They are the World of Mages’s most well-known couple!

But then Simon starts kissing Baz sloppily and I am so baffled I forget to move my feet and Leslie slips. I should help her, but I can’t stop looking. It truly is the messiest, sloppiest kiss I have ever seen in public and I am openly gaping.

I’m not the only one. People all around the courtyard are in a state of shock.

“Matt!” Leslie exclaims, making me snap out of it.

Right.

“Sorry,” I help her up.

“That’s enough dancing for now,” she sighs and walks back to our friends. I follow her with my (definitely metaphorical) tail between my legs.

Our friends are talking about Simon and Baz. I assume everyone is.

“Well, Sam, our hearts are broken,” Ryan bemoans.

“We’re all seeing this, right?” Luis asks, eyes wide.

“But… they hate each other,” I say. I can’t believe this. They spent the past 7 years making every class fucking unbearable, and how they’re dating?

Really, what the fuck? Did we all suffer for nothing?

The audacity!

John must notice I am annoyed, and he puts his hand on my shoulder.

“That, Matty Chris D., is what we call a well-executed enemies to lovers,” he raises his glass towards Simon and Baz, “Man, Jack and Bitty can’t even hold a candle to them.”

“Who?” I ask, but John just waves my question away.

I look over to Simon and Baz again. Simon says something to Baz. Baz nods. They stop dancing and walk away, hand-in-hand.

This is real.

What the fuck?

But as confused as I am, I must admit that I feel happy for them. I mean, I am still incredibly confused, but this is a good thing. I watch them leave the ball, which makes sense, considering it’s a bit of a snooze-fest, and I decide that they must’ve worked through a lot of shit to get here.

Before they’re out of my sight, I see that Simon says something to Baz and his face is beaming with happiness.

Yes, I am glad for them. I hope I never see them again after today, but I wish them the best. I mean, now seeing them as this ordinary lovey-dovey couple, I realise they’re not that special.

After all, they’re just some guys.

End notes: The sentence "After all, they're just some guys" is one of the first things I wrote for this fic, back in 2022. And here we are. *happy sigh*

Also, thanks again to @you-remind-me-of-the-babe for brainstorming magickal birds!

#snowbaz #carry on #2024 #2022 #holy fuck I wrote #multichaptered #story: just some guy

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