#i might only like them as nostalgia but w/e

[bermudianabroad]

So after talking with @amreekiyakasuula about accents, I figured I do a little summin summin about Bermudian accents and phrases. Also because Cup Match is coming up (click for cultural context: tldl version it’s a cricket match between east and west ends of the island in celebration of Emancipation. Four day weekend, people camp*1, you can gamble*2 and much swizzle*3 is drunk). It’s been yuuurs (years) since I went and I guess I’ve just been bit by the nostalgia bug (go St Georges btw; I’m a east end girl, true blue on blue). And one more video for a range of different voices. It is 8 mins long and about local cricket so don’t feel you have to watch any of it the whole thing lol. 

 Anyway. Here we go.

First of all you can’t get by without ya acebye/acegirl. Nothing to do with sexuality, your acebye/acegirl is your main man (genderneutral), your best gal pal, platonically speaking. The person that will alway have your back. Term of affection, also scathing and derogatory when speaking of a stranger whose behaviour you do not condone: for instance,‘What you doing, acegirl?’ you might say to someone driving erratically, you voice dripping with condescension. ‘Acebye is getting on my last drop of nerve,’ you’ll say when the electrician fails to turn up when he said he would for the fifth time in a row. Not to be confused with ‘bye’ which is a kind of Bermudian filler for ‘man’, ‘dude’ etc. ‘Those guys over there,’ would become ‘Them byes over there.’ (or ‘dem’ and ‘dur’, since “th” becomes d or f but let’s not go into that right now.)

Onliest. More than only, profoundly only. ‘I was the onliest one at acebye’s comedy show.’ For a completely random example, not at all based in reality. (A lie: this happened to me at the Edinburgh Fringe one time. It was awkward. Being the onliest one there, I couldn’t leave lol).

Well, (but said drawn out like vooow). Gooder than good. Usually in the context of delicious food. ‘Bye, she tastes well,’ you say, monching down on your fish sandwich. Delicious food, like a ship, is always female.

Mug. So shit it’s beneath your contempt. Not worth the time or effort to even explain why it’s shit. Also anything that’s a hassle or a minor inconvenience.

The Other Day. A period of time that could span 24 hours or 70 years. ‘Oh I went to the supermarket the other day (day before yesterday)’; ‘Oh, I was in New York the other day (27 years ago)’.

To mice. To daydream, to lack situational awareness. Micing or Myscing. Take your pick of the spelling.

Full hot (and fullish); to be inebriated (and foolish). See also half hot, for when you still retain some semblance of sober propriety. See also three sheets to de wind.

[A brief note on letters when speaking:  sometimes ‘e’ becomes ‘a’; ‘w’ is swapped out for ‘v’; ‘th’ can be ‘d’ or ‘f’ (Vans-dee for Wednesday; Furs-dee for Thursday; ‘de’ instead of ‘the’). ]

Vexed. Not best pleased. Grumpy as fuck. (thickest accents would say it like ‘waxt’ lol.)

Fack. For when you’re in polite company and can’t say fuck. Also chingas/cheekumburgers for when children are present.

Ax. the process of inquiring to ascertain an answer. As in, you axt me about Bermudianisms and I answered. :) 

*1. camping = put a tent up by the side of the road and drive back home to shower and use the toilet, get in a little sneaky AC use when it gets too hot.

*2. gambling is illegal, but during cup match you can play Crown and Anchor which is a dice game based solely on luck. No skill required which is great considering everyone is full hot on...

*3. a truly leathal rum based fruit punch. It goes down easy, and bye she tastes well. I’ve linked you lot a recipe here. Not responsible for any decisions you make make whilst three sheets.

[notmoreflippingelves]

A, E, M?

A - Ships that you currently like a lot. (They don’t have to be OTPs because not everyone has OTPs.) Friendships, pairings, threesomes, etc. are allowed.

*whispers* Elena/Esteban (EoA S3 era or afterward). Either just the two of them or an OT3 w/ a third character( that I won't spoil b/c my friend is still catching up w/ the show and there are specific plot reasons why specifically these 3 together give me every feeling). But like, platonic is good too. I guess. Even if my feral little gremlin brain is like "yes, my precious..."the whole time. To be fair though, pretty much anyone with Esteban will probably make my brain spin happily as though on a hamster wheel. Also from EoA, Princess Valentina deserves to smooch *everyone* and it makes me sad that there isn't more content of her with anyone other than Alonso or occasionally Elena. (Esp. feeling the lack of Val/Naomi, Val/Chloe, and Val/Esteban content.)

I mean Phoenix/Kristoph from Ace Attorney will always have huge chunk of my heart and they still do even if Kris is no longer my main blorbo. Also from Ace Attorney, Gumshoe/Lang/Edgeworth are still THE OT3 (and Kay & Gumshoe & Edgeworth are THE BROT3) and Apollo/Klavier/Ema are the 2nd fave OT3 (tho I can literally only conceive of them as a poly ship. I can't ship any other permutations of them.) I've also as of late been having a lot of Cykesquill feelings which I imagine will only intensify when the AA 4-6 port comes out and I can revisit Dual Destinies.

I haven't really been doing much except thinking, reblogging and admiring from a distance, but "Rebel Captain" (Jyn Erso/Cassian Andor from Star Wars) have also been hitting all my buttons lately. Just the inherent eroticism of being narratively coded as soulmates AND also literally doomed by the narrative at what should've been the beginning of their story. It's just so good.

I've also been missing Malcolm/Nicola from The Thick of It and Jane/Michael from Jane the Virgin a lot lately. Just nostalgia for old OTPs coming back and hitting me unexpectedly in the feels.

I also had an unexpected craving for Gwydion/Achren from The Chronicles of Prydain recently. And was dismayed to learn that it barely exists. Not that I should've been surprised. The fandom itself is pretty tiny and I am queen of the rare pairs after all. But the potential is just exquisite and it's depressing that barely anyone else sees the vision.

E - Have you added anything cracky/hilarious to your fandom? If so, what?

"Adding to your fandom" makes it sound so serious and powerful. I don't think I have that kind of sway. Maybe in the Father Brown fandom a few years ago but like probably not any more. Though people did seem to like the Barbie Selfie Generator post I made for the characters. I think I was one of the first people using/popularizing "malcola" as ship name for Malcolm/Nicola and I did make a (not very funny) joke (that Nicola might have appreciated) that they are the "bad soda" ship because "mal" as in the root for "bad" and "cola" as in "coca-cola."

I've also made some pretty outrageous things for AA that almost no one knows about since I didn't widely share them and I have no wider influence on the fandom as a whole. The most notable and hilarious of which is an absolute absurd batshit AU that my friend and I came up that just exploded to the most ridiculous and entertaining (imo) nonsense imaginable. (Ask me about the "larryan and the klavengers" I dare you. You will almost certainly regret it. But I probably won't :P)

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

It's tricky to say, since a lot of the characters that I am drawn to aren't necessarily the same characters I would want to hang w/ irl. In part because there's usually a lot of projection going on and because I'm awkward/shy/sensitive and I just sort of assume that my faves wouldn't want to be around me even if I wanted to be around them.

However, I feel somewhat safe in saying that I would probably get along well w/ (and feel really cherished and validated by/happy around) Athena Cykes from Ace Attorney and the title character of Father Brown. (I mean probably the whole squad tbh but Fr. B is an especial case. He's so kind and he would look out for me even if I felt intimidated/shy/overwhelmed by the rest of the squad's utter fabulousness.)

Link to Questions

[mythgirlimagines]

o7s for my sister’s SoulSilver save file

Here’s the story for those of you I haven’t told before:

SoulSilver was my first main series Pokemon game. And for the time that I had and played it religiously, I could not for the life of me defeat it. Namely, I couldn’t get to Lugia because I was a stupid child and didn’t want to add Flash to one of my pokemon to get through the cave puzzle bc it does jack-all in battle, nor did I know that was how to get through the cave until like. Last year. But w/e

By the time I got Black, I rage-quit SoulSilver and gave it to my sister (two years younger than me) to play. I definitely gave it to her in 2015, since that’s when it reads that she met her starter (Tooties the Feraligatr), so there was a grace period where I just wasn’t playing it

Her save file currently has 26 hours of play on it. She has 12 badges and only 24 pokemon registered to her pokedex

The last time she touched this game was 2016, a full year after she started the game. So not only did she beat the game and get well into the postgame, she also did it with the following team:

Lugia (lv 61)

Feraligatr (lv 56)

Ursaring (lvl 34)

Gyarados (the shiny one, lv 32)

Togepi (lv 21)

Pidgey (lv 9)

Which makes me more disappointed in my younger self’s gameplay than anything else. But that’s beside the point.

The POINT is that the game was originally mine. And she hadn’t touched it in years. It would’ve been another thing if I wanted her copy of Moon, which was her copy while I had Sun (and the only 3DS in the family-), but this was a game that I was really close to when I was younger and I kid you not I fought with her for YEARS to get her permission to get it back. AND I FINALLY GOT THAT PERMISSION TO ERASE HER SAVE FILE AND START MY OWN LIKE TWO YEARS AGO though I’m just doing stuff about it now

Just for her nostalgia and my personal piece of mind since I don’t have any of my original teams except for Gen 6-on (or even remember any of them), I wanted to do something nice and transfer her team to my copy of Black, which I wasn’t deleting since I had for the second time ever beaten the game at the same time I beat a nuzlocke

But the Poke Transfer system is SO GARBAGE bc it won’t let you transfer pokemon that know hidden moves so uh. I can’t transfer any of her original team members to my game,,,,,,

So let’s pay some respect to her team and the literally 16 other pokemon (three of which being in the Beedrill line) she caught in those 26 hours over a year

I will forever be mad that it seemed like she beat the main game in a week when it took me FOREVER and I to this day have never beaten it but I think it might be time for me to let it go lmao

[queenapple]

Confession: I really like Tayor Swift’s first three albums

[avelera]

Whenever I see those posts that say your ancestors would be so amazed at you for having easy access to spices, and food, and all the technological wonders of our day, and so proud of you for your education, I always appreciate them for how they remind people to not only appreciate the wonders of our time but also to see them as the result of so much work by our ancestors to get us here. Even the societal woes we deal with today are often the unintended consequences of the goals of our ancestors to make the world better for their descendants, or are consequences that were impossible to predict back when the goal was to solve problems like starvation, exposure, or scarcity.

H O W E V E R, because I'm also the ultimate anti-nostalgia history pedant, I always get stuck on these anecdotes thinking, "Ok, but what would they be HORRIFIED about? What would they denounce us for? What would they look at and simply not understand how it's gone so very wrong? What would be dystopian for our ancestors?"

In my opinion? The precipitous decline of religion as central to daily life.

(By the way, I don't just mean the things we think of as dystopian in our society. Ancestors who lived in a world with child labor and slavery aren't going to be horrified by the woes of modern capitalism the way young online people today hope they would be, or if they are, it might be for reasons you'd never think of, like how few people are self-employed, though of course, everything is subjective based on the demographic of the historical person we're imagining. Honestly, one of the things they might find horrifying is the speed of our communication, and how we're always at the beck and call of others because of the cell phone in our pocket pounding us with messages and notifications all day without rest, but I digress.)

Now, I only speak to my own experience here, and I live in a part of the US with the highest level of atheism, and consider myself an atheist by any standard that matters and so I mostly see this as a good thing even as I try to see through my ancestor's eyes as to why it wouldn't be to them, but I have to say the one thing that I never see these rapturous posts about how we are the envy of our ancestors mention is religion.

Even relatively devout Christians today (Anglosphere, Western, etc, I don't speak for the world) who go to church every Sundays are practically heathens by Medieval standards, where society was built around attending church multiple times per day, including at midnight. Where being pious and devout was considered a desirable virtues in a marriageable woman. Where the church was the center of the town and the center of public life. Where the Pope could excommunicate a king and cause a revolt from that king's people with that leverage, because excommunicating the king meant excommunicating the whole country and the people went ballistic at the fact they were doomed to Hell (supposedly) because of their ruler's choices. A society where men traveled to the Holy Land because their souls were guaranteed salvation if they did and because they devoutly believed in that cause, and who would walk on their knees an equal number of steps to that journey if they could not make it for real.

I can't help but think these ancestors would look at secular life, even with all its technological wonders and marvels of health and convenience and think, "Was it worth it? If they're all bound for Hell as a result?" and for many the answer might actually be no!

Anyway, it's just a thought exercise. One I engage with whenever I hear a sweeping argument that seems to have no counter to it, that of course things are always getting better with time. There are no doubt many, many things our ancestors took for granted that we'd find amazing too, or that they'd look at with us and see as a huge step down compared to their life. On the other hand, one also can't understate how huge it is that we've basically eliminated child mortality, at least in the US, compared to only a century ago, or that huge societal famines are basically nonexistent (even if nutrition is another matter). There's plenty to recommend us, but there are also values I think that get lost in this discussion that as we travel further from them, become almost alien to us.

[ichayalovesyou]

Hello! I saw that you were taking requests for Captain Pike, and was wondering if you could make one for me? The scenario could be where the reader and Pike have a father/child type relationship (the reader views Pike as a father figure), and he protects the reader from some people that corner them in the mess hall? The reason why is up to you! If you can't do this for whatever reason, I totally understand.

Oh don’t worry I got your back! I took the getting cornered relatively literally and as being bullied I hope that scratches the itch!

Especially When It’s You (Platonic Pike x Reader)

Rating: E for Everyone

Word Count: 793

Content: Non-descript verbal bullying (to avoid triggers but you’ll get the idea), implied alien and/or neurodivergent!Reader, Cadet!Reader, GN!Reader, established friendship, non-violent Protective!Pike, Paternal!Pike, hurt/comfort, paternal advice.

P.S. Just watched Balance of Terror and decided to cope by giving Stiles (the a**hole who’s racist at Spock) a hard time in this one! Hope you like it! >:)

Teaser: You hoped that a semester aboard the Enterprise would help you avoid your Academy bullies, you thought wrong. Luckily for you the Captain is a family friend, and he’s not about to allow anybody to get away with hurting you.

It wasn’t the first time you’d been harassed by your classmates, particularly these two. You had hoped that they’d be too distracted by their duties. That the pressure and prestige of spending a whole semester aboard the Enterprise would keep them away from you.

It seems you were wrong. Starfleet was supposed to be different, but it seems prejudice could worm its way even into the most noble of institutions. You covered your ears to block out their childish jabs at you, unwilling to provoke them further.

“Stiles! Andova!”

Both Cadets froze in their tracks at the sound of the Captain’s voice. He was tall for a Human, he towered over them both despite the two cadets being (supposedly) adults, save for their behavior.

“Is there a problem?”

Pike glared at them both with a look of irritation and disappointment usually reserved for only the most asinine and incorrigible of Federation diplomats.

“It’s nothing sir-“

“We were just talking to Y/N-“

“Didn’t sound like it. In my ready room, eighteen hundred hours, not a second later, no excuses. Back to your stations now. Or I’ll have you assigned to Lieutenant Noonien-Singh for patrol drills until the end of the semester.”

The two young men fled the mess hall like cockroaches from a lamplight. The Captain pulled up a chair and sat across from you. Sympathetically waiting for you to recover from the overstimulating and humiliating interaction.

“You alright Y/N?”

“Yes sir, I will be sir.”

“You don’t have to ‘sir’ me Cadet, you’re off duty, and I should be too, but, you know how it is. And, not to pull the nostalgia card, I’ve known you since before you could walk.”

“Hahah, sorry Chris.”

The icebreaker melted and Chris’s frown returned, he subtly reached his hand toward the middle of the table, sensing you might want to take it but not pressuring you to do so.

“I enjoy checking up on you, you know I do, but I don’t have a lot of time. So, I need you to tell me exactly what happened before I showed up so I can recommend them both for disciplinary action and psych eval.”

“It’s okay sir, they were just-“

“No. It’s not okay.” Pike said, gravely.

“Hazing is one thing, bullying is another. This is the Enterprise, on my ship we don’t put up with willful ignorance from anyone. And I do mean anyone, Cadet, Admiral, doesn’t matter, I will not have it on my ship. This is Starfleet, they should know better, we should know better. Maybe the Klingon War made the Federation a little lax on prejudice, but I won’t be. Especially when it’s you. Nobody messes with my crew, not even my crew.” Chris laughed at his own joke, but there was a tinge of frustration to it.

You still weren’t used to seeing Chris angry, it’s always strange seeing a family friend in a new context like work or school. But even when you were on the Bridge during tense situations he almost never raised his voice at a crew member, it was impressive considering the pressure. You hoped that maybe you could emulate it if, no, when you made Captain and had your own ship one day.

“Thank you s- Chris. Thanks, Chris.” you took the hand he’d quietly offered and squeezed it, but only for a moment.

You took a deep breath, and told him everything, not just from today in the mess hall, but everything that the two of them had done before that. Everything you had kept bottled up, because at least with Chris, it felt safe.

He leaned back in his chair, steely eyed, chewing on his jaw slightly, processing what you said.

“Y/N” he started, clearly swallowing his knee-jerk anger over what had been allowed to happen to you.

“If you need anything, go to Dr. M’Benga, or Nurse Chapel, tell them I sent you, take care of yourself, I’ll handle everything else. If I can pull some strings, you won’t be sharing a shift, or a classroom, with either of those Cadets anytime soon. Alright?”

“Yes sir.”

Chris got up and left, letting you finish your meal and get back to work in comforting silence. The last time you ever saw Stiles and Andova again they were running laps near the port nacelles with Noonien-Singh looking on, and if you didn’t know any better, you could have sworn you saw her wink when she noticed you’d seen them.

Turns out you were right after all, Starfleet was different, and if nobody had your back, the Enterprise certainly did.

Chris had your back, and you knew wherever duty took you, part of him always would.

[pooklet]

1. Hey anon! So, the genetic scale for TS2 is really long, but only part of it is utilized by maxis defaults. The exact placement of the defaults on the genetic scale is 0.1, 0.3, 0.6 and 0.9, but the scale itself goes from 0.001 up to 9.0 at least. I decided for the sake of my game’s Lore that I wanted alien skins to pop up alongside human ones, just to reflect how crazily interbred humans and aliens are. But what I used to do was geneticize my alien skins waaay at the other end of the spectrum, between 8.0 and 8.99, in rainbow order (but you could also just do it from light to dark like human skins or w/e works for you). So that might be a good way to keep your alien skins separate if that’s what you want to do. :) You would just need to regeneticize any skins that you use (mine included) to fall where you want on the scale!

2. Hi anon! That sim is wearing these face stars and lipstick by me, and this rainbow highlighter by @furbyq​.  :)

3. Hey anon, I’m not totally sure what you mean by custom. They aren’t default skins. Do you mean, like, non-geneticized/townified? If so, I didn’t do a version of that, no, but all you would need to do is use the tutorial I linked for anon 1 and work backwards. In the XML, change the flags value to 0x00000008, and change the genetics value to 0. That will make them behave like any custom skin (but be warned that a genetic value of a flat 0 makes them super dominant over other skins, and it takes a very long time for the skin to “breed out” of a family. (Even though skins starting at 0.001 behave completely normally. Go figure.)

4. Hey there anon! Short answer, no. :(

Long answer, there were two revival projects, Children of Ur (where you can still play a super scaled back, but abandoned version of the game) and Eleven Giants. A while back it was announced that CoU and Eleven Giants had merged under the banner of Eleven Giants, but according to an update from March 2022, the team has dwindled down to just two people after flash bit the dust and they had to rebuild everything from the ground up, and most of the team wandered off to other projects. Apparently people still come around to offer help but then wander off again. It sounds really frustrating and I commend the remaining team of Eleven Giants for still trying at this point.

I truly hope we do get to see Eleven Giants reach release, and I hope the team gets more reliable help to take some of the burden off their hands. So if there’s anyone with nostalgia for Glitch who knows much about programming, and is in it for the long haul, you should maybe shoot them an email, see if they are open to taking on new team members. :)

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Hi! Whenever you are free, could you rec me some post divorce (with mary ) john living alone and slowly coming home to sherlock fics? Thanks so much in advance!

Hey Nonny!

Hmm... you know what? I can't GENUINELY recall any. I feel dumb because I'm sure I've read some. Best I can currently do is my Infidelity fic list, and maybe my Evil / Not-Nice / Villain Mary list too... OOOOOF I'm so sorry.

Anyone have some they want to suggest? I know I'm missing some, because I know I've read some.

EDIT: OH!! DERP did a quick search of my offline list:

Second Chance by SilentAuror (E, 15,816 w., 1 Ch. || Post-HLV, Post-Divorce, Friends to Lovers, UST, Romance) – Now that John's divorce has gone through and the dust is settling, Sherlock thinks that he would very much like to see if there is any possibility of moving their friendship in another direction. The only thing is, he has no idea how to go about doing that...

Best of Three by SilentAuror (E, 17,473 w., 1 Ch. || POV John, John is Shot, Porn with Feels, Post HLV, Rimming, Denial, Anal) – “You want to have sex with me,” Sherlock announces one evening about a year after John's divorce. John's vigorous denial sparks a three-day wager wherein Sherlock is determined to prove his point, and John is determined to hold onto his heterosexuality. Set well after HLV. (Canon-compliant). PORN. With feels.

Inscrutable to the Last by DiscordantWords (M, 48,842 w., 6 Ch. || Post-TRF, Alternate S3, John’s Blog/S3 is a Story By John, Divorce, Marital Difficulties, John is a Mess, Emotional Reunion, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Grief / Mourning, Pining John, First Kiss, Adorably Clueless Sherlock, Nostalgia, Love Confessions, Eventual Happy Ending) – He wasn't Sherlock, he couldn't work miracles. All he'd ever been able to do was write about them.

Gold Rush by ShirleyCarlton (E, 71,783 w., 17 Ch. || Post S3 / No Mary, Friends to Lovers, Mentions of Past Sexual Abuse, First Kiss, Case Fic, Slow Burn, Alternating POV, Switchlock, Angst with Happy Ending, Marriage Proposal, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Abduction, Anxious/Insecure Sherlock, Miscommunication, Emotional Lovemaking) – John has divorced Mary and pops round to 221B one evening to find Sherlock in the middle of a case. As Sherlock tries to find the identity of a young woman’s stalker, John realises he can no longer deny his feelings for Sherlock – which then, to their befuddlement, turn out to be mutual. Shy kisses and tentative embraces ensue. But will Sherlock be able to cast off a shadow from his past that he thinks might prevent John from wanting to stay?

-----

OKAY... NOW feel free to add your own, friends <3

[prince-of-scenarios]

Hiiii it's me again, I hope you don't mind ma asking twice... but I simply L O V E D 💕✨ your headcanons on their married life, so if you don't mind I'd like to request:

T H E I R. W E D D I N G. 🌼❤️

Like, the type of wedding, the decoration, who gives the speech, who cries the most between the two... That sort of thing XD

For Atobe, Sanada, Tezuka and Yukimura, please 😍

Atobe

Surprisingly modest, but also over the top simultaneously because he’s Atobe. But his s/o forbade him from going too overboard because it would be a pain for the staff to clean. Atobe made them promise that they can’t complain for what he has planned for their honeymoon because if he can’t go all out for the wedding then he’ll find other ways to make it up. 

Atobe doesn’t cry. He prides himself on handling his emotions well, but damn, if he didn’t get a little misty-eyed watching his s/o walk down the aisle and then hearing them say their vows. It takes him by surprise how emotional he gets, probably, and even though a single tear isn’t shed from him, he’s quieter than usual. A lot of soft touches from him on this day. 

Lots of elegant decorations, silk and white ribbons and pale gold and white and clear balloons. A literal red carpet. The best food anyone has ever eaten and of course the festivities go on for hours while people dance and sing and cry and eat and drink their fill. Slow songs, fast songs, songs that make people sing together. 

Obviously he gives the speech, and it’s so elegant and heartfelt his s/o probably begins crying halfway through. Atobe mostly lets other people talk though, because he wants the celebration to be about him and his s/o, not about him talking. 

Sanada

Has a modest wedding (god forbid he try to emulate anything that might be Atobe’s taste...) Neutral colors, pale colors, soft colors. Soothing music, a spread of food that evokes nostalgia and the future all at once because he and his s/o reminisce about their time before getting married as well as anticipate their future together. 

Sanada refuses to cry, but watching his s/o walk down the aisle makes his vision blurry and he can’t stop staring at them the entire night. While all of the planning of this wedding made him the tensest he’s ever been, the actual event makes him so soft and loving. Careful touches and stroking his s/o’s knuckles with his thumb. 

Voice wavers once through his vows, and he kisses his s/o like it’s their last kiss on earth. Impresses and disgusts a good portion of his old tennis team, but they still cheer and throw confetti and congratulate him because he looks so happy. 

Likely set outdoors during a perfect summer day. The kind of day that’s in the transition of spring and summer, clear skies and birds and trees blossoming flowers with petals that rain down on the guests when a breeze drifts through. 

Tezuka

A wedding full of friends and family, even acquaintances that he might not have thought to invite initially because he wants to share his happiness with other people. 

Smiles so much and unabashedly because his s/o looks so good and his heart has never felt lighter. Also sheds a few tears when he thinks no one is looking because he’s not made of stone even though he’s stone-faced a lot, and dances freely with his s/o. A lot of his emotion probably comes out unintentionally, but he doesn’t really feel the need to hide it because he sees how outwardly happy his s/o is. 

Hand kisses, cheek kisses, forehead kisses. Always holding his s/o’s hand when he can because he doesn’t want to be apart from them for even a second, even if he denies being super clingy. Surprisingly fastidious about taking photos because he wants to remember this night. 

The wedding goes on for the near perfect amount of time, because he wants to lay with his s/o in their bed after everything’s said and done and just be with them. Looks forward to the days after the wedding too, organizing pictures, putting aside mementos, rewatching the video of their wedding, and even listening to his friend’s commentary. 

Yukimura

A reasonably sized wedding with lots of close friends and family. He doesn’t want to put on a show for the sake of putting on a show, so the reception and the wedding will be sweet and sincere. Many colorful flower arrangements. 

Surprisingly large cake, but only because he knows Marui will have more than one or two or even three pieces. The food is all familiar and warm, aims for comfort over fancy because he doesn’t need much to be happy. Isn’t super big on alcohol but will pop a bottle of champagne or two for tradition’s sake. Gives the speech and doesn’t take up people’s time with filler. Concise and sincere and heartfelt. 

A good amount of decorations, also likely outdoors. Decorations that invite people to smile and let loose, soft colors and custom balloons and hanging lights that illuminate the venue with a perfect warm glow. Likely hires a live band and requests songs that are special to him and his s/o. 

Accepts any and all photos, the more candid, the better. To him, the best pictures aren’t the ones that are staged, but the ones where people don’t realize they’re being captured; the raw emotion on people’s faces and how they naturally look when surrounded by friends and family. 

[cobaltusami]

Tropical Vacation pt. 5

Hey hi hello! I'm back at it again with another chapter! I'm scheduling this one to post so I don't forget. I really really liked this one, I put two of my favorite ships In here because of course I did. Kuzuhina and Komanami honestly make my gay heart happy. <3

Characters In this part: Lee!Hajime, Ler!Fuyuhiko, Chiaki, Nagito, Chihiro

Word count: 2,177

Part 1: [Click or tap here!] Part 2: [Click or tap here!] Part 3: [Click or tap here!] Part 4: [Click or tap here!] Part 5: You are here.

After the sun went down, Chihiro found that they couldn’t sleep, so they decided to sneak out of their room to go get something to drink. They took a detour down the stairs after they heard some soft murmuring coming from the lobby.

Upon investigating they found Chiaki playing video games while Nagito watched, chatting to her all the while. As they stepped closer to see what the game was, the floorboards creaked, Nagito and Chiaki’s attention snapped over to The Programmer who blushed in embarrassment for having interrupted them.

“I-I’m sorry! I was just on my way to get something to drink and… I was just curious what you were playing.” they sheepishly explained, looking down at the floor.

Chiaki smiled. “It’s okay,” she said softly, glancing back at the arcade machine. “I’m not sure what the game Is called, The letters are too faded for me to make out. You can come look If you want.”

“Ah! N-No I’ve distracted you enough, I don’t want to be In your way or anything.”

“Really, It’s okay.” She reassured them. “Come join us, Nagito doesn’t bite. If he says something that weirds you out, I’ll handle him.”

Nagito glanced at her nervously before looking at Chihiro. “Chiaki doesn’t bite either… She just tickles.” He smiled in exasperation.

Chihiro hesitated for a moment longer before approaching the two sitting on the bench.

It was a custom bench that Kazuichi made for her and Nagito. He made it after constantly seeing Chiaki sitting playing the game while Nagito either stood next to her or sat on the edge of the machine out of her way and watched. The two had become nearly inseparable over the last month, No one understood why. Chiaki never gave a straight answer when asked, always coming up with a joking answer to their question.

She scooted over, her leg pressing up against Nagito’s as she patted the seat next to her. He put his arm behind her back, his hand resting against the edge of the bench on the other side of her.

Chihiro sat down, studying the machine curiously. “What Is it like?”

“There’s a couple of games programmed into it, But this one is like Pac-man, with Monokuma’s head instead of Pacman. And the ghosts are different colored Usami’s.” Chiaki explained, hitting the start button on it.

The blue lights lit up the dim room and soft 8 bit sounds filled the quiet space, Chihiro smiled as they watched the game enthusiastically. It’s been so long since they’ve seen a video game.

After a few minutes Chiaki paused and turned to Chihiro. “Do you want to play?”

“Wh-What? No, I couldn’t. You’re playing, I don’t want to take over.”

“It’s no problem, It might be nice to watch someone else play for once.” she smiled, to get out of Chihiro’s way, she crawled up into Nagito’s lap, startling him. Apparently he had been zoning out.

“Are you sure…?”

“Mhm. Just hit that button to start.” She replied, pointing to the bright blue button.

Chihiro scooted over so that they were directly in front of the screen now, and hit the button to start. Instantly they were flooded with nostalgia as they remembered all those times they went to the arcade with friends.

They were pretty decent at the game too, once they figured out the A.I’s algorithm they were even able to get a high score.

“Wow, You beat one of my scores.” Chiaki remarked, surprised. Albeit pleasantly so.

“Ah! I-I’m sorry! You probably spent really long trying to fill up the leaderboard!”

“No, No, you’re okay. Really. It’s only a couple of numbers.” She reassured with a gentle smile. “I’m just glad you’re having fun… You really do apologize a lot, Don’t you?”

“I-I’m sorry.” Chihiro blushed. “W-Wait, No. I just… I guess I do apologize a lot… I’m sorr--”

Chiaki poked their side, causing them to squeak and stop mid apology. “That’s exactly my point. You don’t have to apologize so much… You’re okay.”

“Still, It’s impressive how quickly you were able to catch on to the A.I’s patterns and use It against It.” Nagito commented with a smile. “I guess that’s why you’re the Ultimate Programmer! You’re able to spot those things pretty easily I would imagine.”

Chihiro smiled sheepishly at the praise. “Yeah, I’m used to analyzing any kind of coding I can find. I like to deconstruct the coding and see how It works.”

“Kind of like Kazuichi when he finds something well built.” Chiaki replied, nodding In understanding.

“I’m glad there’s someone else here that understands these video games and how they work, I’m pretty useless when It comes to them.”

Chiaki narrowed her eyes as she turned to look at Nagito. “You aren’t useless.”

“Ah! Nonono- I didn’t mean It like that! I just meant I’m not good at games!” He quickly put his hands up in defense.

“I’ve got my eyes on you…” Chiaki mumbled, slowly looking away from him.

Chihiro giggled at the two, blushing and squeaking when they realized that they had giggled out loud and Chiaki and Nagito were now looking at them. “I-I’m sorry! I just-- eep!”

They yelped as Chiaki squeezed their side. “Stop apologizing, I mean It. If you apologize one more time, I’ll give you the same treatment I give him when he talks badly about himself.” She warned playfully.

“O-Okay, S-Sor…” They stopped themselves.

Chiaki climbed out of Nagito’s lap as he went to stand up and stretch. “Hey, You wanna try a multiplayer game?” She asked, Chihiro nodded eagerly and the two began to play a new game.

Nagito curled up on the couch, watching his girlfriend happily playing with her new friend. He smiled to himself as he whispered. “It’s moments like these that give me the most hope, watching you be happy Is the best hope of all.”

“Huh? Did you hear something?” Chihiro asked.

Chiaki shrugged. “Must’ve been the game…” though she glanced over her shoulder at Nagito and smiled at him, seemingly she heard him.

Later on In the night Fuyuhiko jolted awake as he heard his doorbell ring, that uneasy feeling was returning to him as he slowly approached the door. Upon checking his e-handbook he discovered It was two In the morning. He jumped when whoever was at his door knocked.

“You’re a yakuza for fucks sake.” He muttered to himself. “Stop being such a little bitch.”

He swung the door open quickly, immediately relaxing upon seeing It was just Hajime. “Oh… It’s just you…” He sighed softly, stepping aside to let him in.

“Sorry Hiko, I know It’s really late… But I couldn’t get to sleep.” Hajime apologized as he came Inside and shut and locked the door behind him.

“Yeah, I can’t really sleep either. I just dozed off for a couple of minutes.” He replied, setting down on the foot of his bed.

Hajime came over and sat down next to him. “You still worried about the students too?” He asked quietly, Fuyuhiko nodded silently.

Hajime smiled a little, putting his hand on top of his. “Yeah me too.” He said. “But for what it’s worth, I won’t let anything happen to you.”

Hiko blushed, though he would vehemently deny such a thing. “H-Hey, I’m not a damn kid! I don’t need to be protected!”

The depressed student put his arm around the Yakuza’s shoulders and pulled him into his side in an affectionate half hug. “Fuyu, There Is nothing you can do that’ll convince me not to protect you.”

Fuyuhiko smirked slyly as he rested his head on the taller man’s shoulder. “Nothing, huh?”

“Nope, Sorry.”

Hajime closed his eyes, finally feeling himself relax a bit now that he was with Hiko. He'd had some horrible dreams of Fuyuhiko getting hurt or… worse.

However as usual, his relaxed state didn’t last long before It was ruined. The feeling of fingers ghosting against his sides under his shirt made him jolt back to reality with a string of tired giggles. “Hehehehiko Ehehehehehe… w-what ahahare you doing?”

“What’s It look like, Dumbass? I’m tickling you.” He retorted, amused.

Hajime continued to giggle as he squirmed, gently pushing at the Yakuza. “I cahahahan seehehehehe that, but whyhyhy?”

Fuyuhiko began to tickle Hajime’s belly, causing his giggling to quickly turn into laughter. “I’m showing you I can protect myself.”

“Byhyhyhy tickling mehehehe?! Ahahahaha!” He laughed, doubling over to try to block his stomach.

“If I can take you down, Imagine what I could do to someone else.” He grinned cheekily, tweaking his hips.

“GAHA! Ahahahahahahaha! Thahahahahat doesn’t prohohove anything! Ihihihi’m eheheheasy to tahahake down!” Hajime complained, falling backwards on the bed.

Fuyu was quick to settle himself on the brunette’s hips, his fingers nimbly dancing all across his sides. “Then how are you gonna protect me?? You should just let me protect you.”

“FUHUHUHUYU! NAHAHAT THE SIHIHIHIDES!” He yelped as he switched tactics to squeeze at the sensitive spot. “AHAHAHAHAHAA! STAHAHAAP!”

“Then stop all that crap about protecting me,” Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes.

“NOHOHOHO!”

Well, mistakes were made.

“No?? No!?” Hiko repeated as he leaned down, blowing a raspberry against his side. “What do you mean, No!?”

Hajime screamed, his laughter going up an octave as he arched his back from the sensation. “GAHAHAHAHAHAHA! NAHAHAT THAHAHAAT! PLEHEHEHEASE!”

“I’m a Yakuza, I can protect my damn self!” He reminded him with another raspberry to his side. “Just cut that crap out, It bothers me.”

“WHYHYHYHYHY DOES IT BOHOHOHOTHER YOU??”

“Because when you say that It makes me think that--” Fuyuhiko stopped, his fingers resting on Hajime’s side as he suddenly grew silent.

Hajime giggled tiredly as he recovered from the tickle attack, he looked up at Hiko with a questioning look. “I-It makes you think what?”

He shook his head slightly, looking away from the taller man’s gaze.

The trapped Ultimate reached his hands up, gently cupping the Yakuza’s face as he turned his face back to look at him. “What does It make you think?” he repeated softly.

“It makes me think that something Is going to happen… to you…” He said quietly, reaching his hands up to rest against his.

Hajime frowned as Fuyu pulled out of his gentle hold and got off of him, opting to sit next to him instead. “Hiko, nothing Is gonna happen.”

“Then why would you say that?” The blond asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Because… I had horrible nightmares about something happening to you, and It makes me feel better to say that. It makes me feel like I have some kind of control over this.” He explained, sitting up.

Fuyuhiko’s face softened as he looked Into Hajime’s eyes. “Is that why you came over…?”

“Yeah.” He sighed, pulling him into his lap. “I had to see with my own eyes that you were okay.”

Hiko frowned as he wrapped his arms around Hajime, resting his head against his chest. “I couldn’t sleep because I was scared as soon as I did I would be woken up to the body discovery announcement…”

Hajime pecked a kiss to the top of his head, silent. He wasn’t sure how to make this situation better for either of them, the fact of the matter is that they’re never safe. Monokuma is always throwing out motives to try to tempt the students into killing, and there’s always that fear in the back of his mind that someone might fall for it one day.

“Hajime? Can you…” He trailed off, stopping his train of thought.

“What?”

“N-Nothing. Nevermind.”

“Hiko…? What Is It?”

“Forget I said anything.”

Hajime frowned, reaching his hand up the Yakuza’s sleeping shirt and brushing his fingers against his side. “Tell me, Or I’ll tickle you.” He gave an ultimatum.

Fuyu flinched at the gentle touch, his body shivering. “Fucking hell,” He muttered under his breath. “F-Fine! I was going to ask you If you’d stay with me tonight.”

Fuyuhiko blushed bright pink as he buried his face in Hajime’s chest without waiting for a response.

“Fuyu…”

“That’s why I told you to forget I said anything. Because It’s stupid.” He mumbled.

Hajime smiled warmly as he soothingly ran his fingers up and down the smaller man’s back. “It’s not stupid.” He said softly. “Yeah, I’ll stay the night with you.”

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to…”

“Hey, Look at me.” Hajime gently pulled the blond back to look in his eyes. “There’s no place I’d rather be than with you. Besides, I might actually get some sleep If I know you’re safe.”

Fuyuhiko blushed even more as he smiled. “Yeah, Me too.”

Hajime leaned in and planted a soft kiss to his forehead, stroking his cheekbone with his thumb. “You’re so cute, especially when you smile.” he teased lightly.

The blond narrowed his eyes as his neck turned pink from embarrassment.

“Hiko? H-Hey… Wait! DOHOHON’T! AHAHAHAHA!”

Welp, It was worth It to harass his boyfriend. At least Hajime didn’t mind being tickled, At least not by Fuyuhiko.

[inked-out-trees]

⭐ for The Keep Going Song? Thanks! :)

(anh i would die for you)

Thank you for asking! I am going to be talking about the whole thing because it's fun, and because there's not really many ~secrets~ within the text to ramble about, just little fun snippets!

I'll do it under a cut because I will definitely ramble. Woohoo!

I came across The Keep Going Song (the song) after my Lookout 3 Companion Playlist (& my spotify discovery) introduced me to the Bengsons. The effect was almost instantaneous - it's the kind of warmth I try to encompass in everything I do, and for the next few days I had it on repeat as I worked. This was around the time I was finishing my Lookout script, and I had been toying with the idea of writing a Cornleyverse fic after absolutely devouring all 10 fics in the tag. What I knew was that I wanted it to be sweet, I wanted it to pull them all together, and I wanted it to be a progression. Despite only having seen the Goes Wrong Show, jumping into the fandom made me want to dimensionalize these characters and give them a story beyond everything that had already occured.

I also watched Christmas Carol before / during the writing process, but to date I have not watched Peter Pan or the full-length TPTGW. My prior knowledge comes from Wikipedia, the delightul amateur TPTGW production on YouTube, a friend's excellent transcription of the Haversham Manor script, and tumblr meta analysis. I think I did a reasonable enough job pretending I knew what I was doing.

Let's get going!

I knew off the top that it was going to be vignettes - they would give me room to spread the story over the long period of time it takes for a group of people to grow into something resembling a family. Like I said in the original author's note, there was supposed to be more of the early, snippy days - but I got so focused on making them kinder that I found I couldn't properly write a fight. In hindsight, it probably would have been easier if I tried writing that first, but, well. Once I realized that it was too late. The alphabet idea came later, once I had them all finished: I wanted to organize them somehow, but numbers felt too open, too infinite - closing the story on an organizational endpoint was just really satisfying.

a - Every good story needs a good beginning.

c - Starting with the end of Peter Pan is my sneaky way of slipping past the fact that I haven't seen the earlier shows! The Max and Sandra storyline is just so sweet, and I wanted to let it exist a little bit in between our jump from Peter Pan to Christmas Carol. This vignette came so easily when I wrote it and I love love love the feelings and the tentativity about the whole thing.

f - This was actually the last vignette I wrote. I realized I needed some front-end padding because otherwise my angst plot came rather abruptly, and what better way? At this point, too, I was trying to bring in POVs from each one of our characters, and when deciding on Trevor's POV I thought the exasperation-excitement combination would be an excellent choice. It turns out Trevor is my favourite to write, mostly because I can find his voice a lot easier than some of the others - and probably also because I hold a lot of fondness and nostalgia for stage crew work. Also, I wrote most of this one on a long evening walk in the notes app on my phone. Fun fact.

h - I did my original idea slam in a draft tumblr post, and this one just says "birthday party but one without all the drama of christmas carol". And what do you know, that's exactly what it is! I definitely took the birthday party (in CCGW as well as in this fic) as a kind of proof that they really do like each other, if they're doing things like this and if they want to do things like this - and that theme of okay, they want to be here formed the basis for this part. I think it's exceptionally sweet that Dennis came looking for friends and ended up finding, well, something. And I popped in a little MMNI reference with "one of the Janines" - Backwards Janine? Frontwards Janine? Original Janine? Who knows! It's one of them!

l - The thing about this plot is that it's actually one of the first ideas I had when dreaming up this fic, and I couldn't quite let it go. The point was, what if I somehow split them up? How can they get on when half the society is out of commission? And the most reasonable way I could find to actually get half of them out of commission was the car accident. To be honest, this one is mostly filler - it's also the second vignette I wrote, and it found its birth in the email drafts of my work laptop.

m - Trying to map out this little plotline without overdoing it might have been the most difficult part of this fic, and I'm still not 100% sure I succeeded. This is our explanation for the unease from the vignette above, and it took me 3 rewrites before I finally found something that settled in my brain. "Dennis gets chased by a goose" might be one of my favourite lines in the fic though.

Also, putting these letters right next to each other made me feel really clever for no reason.

n - My Jonathan perspective also took a few stutter-steps in its beginning, but this one ultimately came from the promo video's reveal that Robert and Dennis live together, and me playing with the continual idea of the remaining cast members being rather unmoored in their injured castmates' absence. Robert in particular because I love his character and I love making him Feel Things(TM) (fun hint: this will also be a small theme in the new cpds fic I have in the works!) and I want to see so much from this odd relationship between him and Dennis. Obviously they have to tolerate each other if they are willingly roommates - how far can I go with that? I love how this one turned out.

o - All I have to say about this one is that I still really love the sweetness between these two, and they deserve the world. Also, at some point during writing this I was really caught up with how striking Dave's face silhouette is (don't ask) so that ended up making it in somehow.

q - Girls' Night is SO important to me. After all the work they've done to make these gals friends I needed to capture it, and a pleasant night in just made a lot of sense. This one is the home of a few of my headcanons - Annie has a chef roommate and Max does a lot of the cooking, thus the "neither of us are the usual household cooks" comments, and I also think they're at the point where they can joke about their previous failures (especially with these three together) so the nod to A Trial To Watch (my favourite gws episode) was so fun. Also, Waking Ned really is a silly pick-me-up of a movie - would recommend. Special thanks to CBC for giving us Canadians quality British TV alongside our occasionally questionable homegrown programming.

r - It wouldn't be a fic about progress and growth with this crew without a disheartening moment turned into gold. I wrote this one while barbecuing, another fun fact, and no joke the hardest part was figuring out what to name the play they were doing. I kept pace with the whole "Jonathan can't get onscreen" gag, which was personally hilarious and made me cackle as I wrote it, and the rest of it just felt good. I will always have a soft spot for comfort and reassurance in a story and getting to write it has just been an absolute delight.

t - This was one of my other unplanned vignettes. It was originally to fill out Robert's POV, but also to express a bit of how things have changed in Chris's attitude towards his cast - if there's one thing I would change from Mischief's characerisation thus far, it's this brand of almost-kindness that I consistently need to write him with. It takes the aftermath of the car accident and uses it to kind of make him understand - this is a valuable group of people and I don't want to lose it. But of course he's not the type of person to actually express that in any way, so I thought the frenetic hovering was a good way to get the point across. As well, the kind-of-bonding between Chris and Robert - the two of them are such powerhouses of insistent personality that conflict so easily but they've also got a more secret kind of friendship that deserves to be explored a little more. I really like this vignette and how it ended up portraying how they are around each other, how they really do know each other, especially when they're not fighting. Makes me soft.

w - This is the first vignette I wrote! I honestly didn't realize until writing this just how much I identify with Annie - best of both worlds re. crew and cast, a bit of tenacity regarding getting through things, overall personality - I just love her so so much. She also seems like the most sensible of the cast, so the collective "why are we really here?" moment with Trevor really spoke to me. I love their friendship, I love the kind of quiet vibe this vignette gives off - this is one of the ones I can feel most strongly, the one I can step into and exist inside. I also spent most of my old drama rehearsals and classes without shoes, so that had to make it in just by virtue of the sock brigade (me).

z - One thing I knew for sure since the inception of the fic was that it needed to end on a victory. I took the images I had of this victorious adrenaline, everyone together having a good time, kind of getting smashed, and karaoke (I really wanted the karaoke, for some reason) and went the obvious route: the wedding. Ending on Chris POV also felt so right - possibly because he's the one with the most growth in this fic - and getting to finally feel this triumph with him after all these other trials and tribulations was an absolute joy. The wedding hall, in my head, looks like the one my cousin used (it was at a zoo... my sister and I went on a night walk and heard a lot of screaming peacocks) and I definitely threw all my wistfulness, all my love for the characters I'd developed, and all my love for this fantastic fandom into this part. The incorrect lyrics that Annie sings are exactly what I think every time I hear that song, because I've never looked up the lyrics before and my brain likes to play Mad Libs with my super-questionable auditory processing. And the image of the ballroom staff getting really exasperated with them and shutting all the lights off came to me at night and is hastily scribbled on a sticky note (it's a wonder it's legible) but I still strongly believe that it's the perfect, perfect way to end. I still get the warm feelings when I reread this part, even now, after so many reads.

And, finally - our end quote is exactly what started this whole thing. What is this drama society if not a rough beginning? But the concept that we'll make it through, that we can just take a step and then another and it'll be okay because we're together... it's hard to describe just how much it means to me, to my place in the world, to the world itself. I think one of my rather consistent aims in writing, no matter what it is, is to be able to have this collective - characters that become family, people that are important to each other, this constellation to lean on - because it's all I can say for the human experience. It's probably quite a bit of wishful thinking (as I said to another friend, "I am apparently letting loose on all my repressed social feelings of the past year and shoving them into fics") and a sort of subconscious confirmation that if I write it, I can be it. So this force of understanding and kindness and ultimately good people helping each other through the world is something I can't help but include, something that means the absolute world to me.

I'm so glad to have been able to share this fic with everyone, and extra glad that it's been able to touch some people along the way. I've found such an incredible community in Mischief and coincidentally I think The Keep Going Song represents that warmth, too - the community I've been so lucky to exist inside, how we're helping each other along, step by step. What a beautiful thing to be a part of! Thank you for reading and allowing me to give you a bit of my heart. 💖💖

[archesa]

Hey! For the OC/Author asks <3

OC: 4, 7, 14, 37

Author: B, E

Thanks for the ask!! It’s always a pleasure to talk about Eliana, even if I don’t really write for her at the time...  Let’s go then! ^^

For Eliana

4 - How easy is it to earn their trust? It may be a little counter-intuitive, especially considering who her rank and status in the rebellion and the dangers that come with it, but she remains utterly convinced humanity is good at heart and that there are more kind people than wicked ones. Skyrim is a dangerous place and Eliana has learned the hard way to keep her blades sharp and her mind sharper, so she's quick to trust in people's goodwill, but quicker to react if said trust should be betrayed.

As for complete, blind trust... That would take more time.

7 - What triggers nostalgia for them, most often? Do they enjoy that feeling? It's quite sad actually that she has very little to be nostalgic about... Or perhaps it simply means that she's were she belongs for the first time in her life. If anything, it is the honeyed light of sunset and the wind coming from the west that make her heart clench with a pang of bitter regret -- she misses Whiterun and to this day is still bitterly disatisfied with how the conflict festered with Balgruuf.

14 - What animal do they fear most? She’s a disciple of Kynareth. She respects animals and their power, but does not fear them... The Kyne’s Peace shout might have something to do with that, though.

37 - Do they have a system for remembering names, long lists of numbers, things that need to go in a certain order (like anagrams, putting things to melodies, etc)? Unlike Galmar, she does not have eidetic memory, so she has to use a few tricks. Mentally repeating the list over and over works. If she has to retain the information for longer, though, she might slap it on the tune of a song she knows by heart.

For me...

B - What inspired you to create them?

More under the cut,

For the post is long and full of spoilers...

Difficult question. After my first fiasco playthrough Skyrim, I took a step back, a notebook and started scribbling the ideas I had for a new character. Halfway through the third page of pros and cons, ideas and inspirations I had noted (it was a small notebook) I realised I wanted to write something, so I scratched things that wouldn’t work well together and started gathering the pieces of what would become Eliana. The first name I had from a previous story. The last name I found by playing with the name Everdeen, of which I liked the sound, and twisting it to fit my age-old Lord of the Rings obcession pulling me to call my character Greenleaf... Greenleaf + Everdeen, it worked, Evergreen!

From Evergreen I figured her backstory - an ancient name, from Falkreath. I also wanted her to be half-elven - once again my LotR obcession, but not solely, because it also fitted the underlying theme I wanted to follow for the story. So, half-elven Dragonborn.

Alright, now, what kind of character should I make? An archer with an elvish ancestry, especially bosmer, would be too obvious. Plus, I suck at playing with a bow. Ohhh!!! What if I made her half-Altmer! Ohhh! The drama with Ulfric! A disgrace to the Thalmor! Alright, so Altmer have a natural talent for destruction magic, well... that’s convenient, she’ll fit my obcession for fire and ice (as in pyromancy and cryomancy, not Game of Thrones). Let’s also make her ginger! (roll to kinkshame yourself? writershame yourself?) Also, Altmer and Nords are the tallest race in TES, so she should be hella tall ! And since she’s from Falkreath, she should have knowledge in herbology and alchemy. Yup! She’s the local herbalist / witch and got a bad name because of her elven ancestry! Alright, now, how did she end up in Helgen... Why? Well... Thalmor! Okay but why in custody of the Empire? Becauuuuse sheeee... got captured by the Thalmor, killed her gaoler and escaped, only to stumble “into that Imperial Ambush, same as us and that thief over there” Well, that needs some refining but it should make for a good enough backstory for starters.

I also had this weeeeeee lil idea that wouldn’t stop pestering me : what if the Dragonborn was descended from Martin Septim? Yup, been there done that, or rather been there read that, so I thought I would leave it there, just as a possibility, something never to be confirmed, drawing parallels on their fates with no further connection between them (for those who’ve read my skyrim fic to the current chapters, you know how that went ^^’).

Okay, now lets go to character creation and see how this goes! ^^

E - Are they someone you would get along with? Would they get along with you?

I should expect so ^^ Though I probably put her through too much for her to like me at all ^^’ I wouldn’t want to end up like the author in Inkheart (if you know you know) and have to explain why the angst was necessary to earn her happy ending ^^’

[somethingusefulfromflorida]

1960: John F. Kennedy/Lyndon B. Johnson vs Richard Nixon/Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.

1964: Lyndon B. Johnson/Hubert Humphrey vs Barry Goldwater/William E. Miller

1968: Richard Nixon/Spiro Agnew vs Hubert Humphrey/Edmund Muskie vs George Wallace/Curtis Lemay

1972: Richard Nixon/Spiro Agnew vs George McGovern/Sargent Shriver

1976: Jimmy Carter/Walter Mondale vs Gerald Ford/Bob Dole

1980: Ronald Reagan/George H.W. Bush vs Jimmy Carter/Walter Mondale

1984: Ronald Reagan/George H.W. Bush vs Walter Mondale/Geraldine Ferraro

1988: George H.W. Bush/Dan Quayle vs Michael Dukakis/Lloyd Bentsen

1992: Bill Clinton/Al Gore vs George H.W. Bush/Dan Quayle vs Ross Perot/James Stockdale

1996: Bill Clinton/Al Gore vs Bob Dole/Jack Kemp vs Ross Perot/Pat Choate

2000: George W. Bush/Dick Cheney vs Al Gore/Joe Lieberman

2004: George W. Bush/Dick Cheney vs John Kerry/John Edwards

2008: Barack Obama/Joe Biden vs John McCain/Sarah Palin

2012: Barack Obama/Joe Biden vs Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan

2016: Donald Trump/Mike Pence vs Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine

2020: Joe Biden/Kamala Harris vs Donald Trump/Mike Pence

The same candidates tend to show up year after year. Not just President running for re-election, but Vice Presidents running for the top slot themselves, incumbents or candidates, successful or not; Richard Nixon (1952, 1956, 1960, 1968), Hubert Humphrey (1964, 1968), Walter Mondale (1976, 1980), Bob Dole (1976, 1996), Al Gore (1992, 1996, 2000)

I would expect John Edwards (D-2004) to try and make a comeback, though he was only a one term senator from North Carolina, so that’s looking increasingly unlikely. The state swung for Obama in 2008, but hasn’t voted blue since (except for governor, but he has no power because the Republicans control the state legislature)

Paul Ryan (R-2012) will be back for sure; he retired from the House in part over of disagreements with Trump, but one doesn’t just give up being Speaker and slink away into obscurity (just look at Newt Gingrich, he refuses to shut up or die), so I think Ryan is just biding his time and hoping the whole Trump thing blows over in the next decade. If the party shifts away from Trump, he might offer himself as a slightly more moderate (“moderate*”) alternative.

Or maybe Sarah Palin (R-2008) will try and reclaim the presidency for herself; she’s a hardcore right wing nutjob, she was a Bush supporter AND a Trump supporter, and she’s still relatively young, so I could see her stepping back into the spotlight to try and “being the country back” to the traditionalism of the early 2000s. Nostalgia is cyclical, so I figure around 2028 or 2032 people will start looking back fondly on the Clinton and Bush years (Clinton more so than Bush, what with 9/11 and the wars and such)

Tim Kaine isn’t even one of the famous senators; there are some senators that everybody knows, even if they’re not from your state, like Chuck Schumer, Joe Manchin, Lindsey Graham, Bitch McConnell, big names with big reputations. Tim Kaine is a nobody, just a bland and inoffensive white dude Clinton picked to be as uncontroversial as possible (she couldn’t pick a woman or a black person because then the ticket would have been “too diverse”). He’s not the future of the Democratic party, but I could see him trying to become part of the Senate leadership. Maybe the whip (vice leader), I don’t think he has what it takes to be leader outright.

I don’t think Mitt Romney (R-2012) will run for president again; that ship has sailed. Moderate Republicans are critically endangered, extinct in the wild, with single specimens in captivity (in Vermont, Massachusetts, and Maryland). After back-to-back losses in 2008 and 2012, I don’t think Republicans will run a moderate candidate ever again. Romney could maybe just maybe become the whip if he so desired, he’s a big enough name with support enough to become their presidential nominee, though he’ll never be the leader; McConnell was their golden goose, he gave hem exactly what they wanted and changed the game to give them an advantage even in minority. They will only ever elect hardliners like him from now on. Romney is too soft; he cares too much about the other side (he’s not liberal by any stretch of the imagination, he’s a Mormon for Brigham’s sake, but he voted to impeach Trump twice which means he may as well be a liberal in the eyes of the public)

Mike Pence has committed political suicide. Democrats hate him for his homophobia, sexism, racism, classism, and weird relationship with his wife who he calls “mother.” Republicans hate him because he didn’t break the law to re-elect Trump. Damned if he does, damned if he doesn’t. He’s ultraconservative and super religious, so under normal circumstances he’d be a shoo-in for the nomination, but after breaking with Trump in January he’s dead in the water (he didn’t even really break away, there was literally nothing legal he could do; if he had tried anything it would have been struck down by the courts). And besides that, Pence is boring as hell. He’s milquetoast, he’s a saltine cracker without the salt because it’s too spicy, he orders plain hamburgers with ketchup on the side, all his steaks are cooked well done, he gets a boner when he sees a woman’s ankle and has to self-flagellate for penance, he sends back water if it has too much ice because it makes his teeth hurt. He’s the sacrificial lamb they’d nominate specifically to lose so they can save a stronger candidate for later when there’s no incumbent.

Kamala Harris is basically president-in-waiting (or rather nominee-in-waiting; who knows if she can actually win?) Biden ran on the unspoken promise that he would step down in 2024, making her the front runner, but he has recently walked this back and says he plans on running for a second term himself, pushing Kamala back until 2028 at least. She has good PR and has convinced half the country that she’s a progressive instead of a cop, so if she runs she’ll definitely have an edge over Democratic challengers. The media picks the nominee, and in 24 or 28 they’ll pick her for sure.

It’s becoming increasingly harder for people to stay relevant over multiple decades. I can’t imagine any 2004 candidates running in 2024, but Bob Dole managed to get on as Ford’s #2 and come back as #1 himself twenty years later (he lost both times, but still). Richard Nixon beat the odds and actually got elected in 68 after losing the presidency in 60 and the governorship in 62; he was pretty much coasting on Eisenhower’s legacy, selling himself as the anti-Goldwater, who lost in 64 to LBJ in a landslide.

Trump is acting like he’s going to run again, but whether or not he’ll fully commit is up in the air. On the one hand, his least insane niece says that he doesn’t want to put himself in a position where he could lose again, his ego couldn’t take it, he’s so embarrassed he can’t even admit it happened the first time. On the other hand, he’s too proud to accept defeat and just let some other candidate take his spot as leader of the Republican Party; the Republicans haven’t had a leader since Eisenhower, every other president has disappeared after leaving office.

Nixon resigned in disgrace

Ford was elected out

Reagan disappeared in the 90s because he didn’t want the country to see him deteriorate from Alzheimer’s

Bush Sr was elected out

Bush Jr was despised with approval in the 20s (record low), and could potentially have been tried at The Hague if Obama had balls

Now Trump wants to stick around, even though he’s older than Reagan and FAR less healthy. He’ll probably be dead in 15 years anyway; no way he reaches 90. His mind may already be going, but unlike Reagan he isn’t self aware enough to know it, so he might try to stay in the spotlight even after the dementia sets in. Wo knows?

What his niece says, and what I think is most likely to happen, is that he will pretend like he’s running in order to scam donors out of millions of dollars to pay his exorbitant legal fees, but then bow out of the race before the primaries. Whichever candidate he personally endorses will become the nominee and go up against Biden. Biden will win the popular vote, but I don’t know if he’ll win the electoral college; if this happens for the third time in a quarter century, I expect nothing less than chaos in the streets, perhaps even civil war (well, I expected civil war after 2020, and we’re still standing, so again, who knows?). All I know is that congressional Democrats will throw a hissy fit but do nothing to stop the Republicans from sneaking their way into office without a mandate AGAIN.

The last Republican to legitimately win the presidency was George Bush Sr in 1988. Jr lost to Gore, and only got re-elected in 2004 because he invaded Iraq the year prior. Democrats have won 7 of the last 8 elections, including the last 4 in a row. There are more Democrats and left-leaning independents than Republicans and right-leaners. If the Republicans lose-but-win AGAIN, I don’t think the county could take it; there would be phony calls for secession on TV and legitimate whispers behind the scenes, there would be lawsuits, there would be an even bigger assault on the Capitol than January 6, people would riot, the National Guard would attack brown people with impunity while peacefully corralling the white ones with shields and loudspeakers.

There hasn’t been an assassination since 1963, and no assassination attempt resulting in injury since 1981. Someone threw a grenade at Bush Jr in 2005, but they wrapped a handkerchief around it so the lever didn’t release. I think multiple politicians on both sides of the aisle might be targeted in the event of another electoral college screw up.

Trump could face jail time for his tax crimes, though given his high profile I think he’d get off with a slap on the wrist. He has never faced consequences before, so why would they start now?

[sanniee]

Kdramas to know me better

I’ve wanted to do this for a very long time and as you all might know (or not) I am a sucker for movies and tv series and stuff so here we are: SOME KOREAN DRAMAS TO KNOW ME BETTER 

Strangers from hell 10/10

We will start with the last kdrama I finished. I couldn’t find anything even closer to this in quality or, at least, themes. It is one of the best I’ve ever saw. The story is fascinating, the acting was... I don’t even know how to describe it in words. I got very attached to it as the first work I’ve read from Kafka was The metamorphosis. I was immersed in the MC’s transformation. I loved the fact that there are no bad nor good characters, but all of them are gray, I loved how not the psycho’s made him go crazy, but his closest frieds. An amazing drama. I could rand about it for hours

One Spring Night 9.7/10

I want to start by saying that I DO NOT WATCH ROMANCE and I hate slowburnt ones when they happen, but this made my heart beat.It is perhaps the most realistic romance out there, it is about two humans, selfish, spiteful, rebel, but jolly, loving, with such pretty souls, just like humans actually are. It is not only a great story about how harsh we judge other people without thinking much, but also a beautiful way of showing that there is someone good for each and every one of us. It is incredbly filmed and every frame is sooo aesthetically pleasing. The dialogue is also great, one of my favorite quotes is from here: 

her: I don't like taking pills

him: I don't like reading either.

her: You must lack in culture

him: You must ne nutrient deficient. (i will always remeber this)

also, ji ho is like the only man i will ever trust. 

My mister 9.5/10 

this, right here, sir, is what made me feel stuff i havent felt in a very long time. Nostalgia, compassion, pity, a way too deep love for a fictional character. I realised that some people’s lives are just like that. And I pass by them on the streets, I may look up to them because they seem so put together, I might look down on them because they look so petty, but you can never know. I love this kdrama from the bottom of my heart, I made me feel so lucky thinking about the life I have. It made me love humans more.The cast was amazing but I dont think I can rewatch it after that one scene in Parasite. Dong Hoonnie hands have been places. (its a joke, take it with a grain of salt) Another one of my favorite quotes is from here:” Live a happy life, that’s how you can repay the people in your life.”

SKY Castle 9.5/10 

Honestly, a masterpiece. Such a mindblowing show. I wanted to write a full review about this but I procrastinated so much, I’d have to rewatch it for me to write it properly because I don’t want to miss a thing. It is very long, longer than most kdramas, but I understood how it broke the ratings. If you loved Bong Joon Ho’s political satires, you should watch this. I couldn’t pick a favorite character, all of them were so amazingly built. I loved how they made it clear that power comes from education AND I COULDNT AGREE TO SOMETHING MORE. They showed how parents mentally abuse their children in order to make them study and loved that they all had different methods. Again, a drama without good or bad characters. All of them are just gray. OH, AND THE OST!! MY GOSH WE ALL LIE IS A GEM!! 

The guest 9.3/10 

My gulty pleasure, hot exorcist priests. Kidding. This is one I’ve finished quite a long time ago and it stuck to me. I used to hate that trope where some kids go through something traumatising and they meet again as adult to overcome it together. But for some reason, I really loved every second of this drama and I’ve been looking for something similar ever since. I think I wrote something about this kdrama before, but I cant say much about it now. It is great if you love a good horror with an actual plot and ZERO ROMANCE. 

ALSO ANOTHER KDRAMA WITH AN OST THATS A W O N D E R. 

Honourable mentions:

Mad Dog 6/10

 School 2013 7/10

 Criminal Minds 7.4/10

[madlymiho]

Hello!! ahhh i love your writings and im happy to request somethingg ahjdw anyways. Can i request letters E,F,R and W from the spooky alphabet for nico robin? thanks and have a fantastic day ^^!!!

Hellooooooooo! Omg Robin!! Yes!! 🥺❤️ I'm happy to have this queen for spooky season, she fits the mood so well! 🥺

I hope it will suit you! ❤️❤️

Spookyvent #12

Robin

Eye balls: What kind of movie do they enjoy to watch? Do they prefer bloody stories, ghost ones, mystical?

When it comes to creepy stories, Robin is definitely bulletproof to any kind of horrible details. She’s not easily scared (if almost never) and she’s able to watch any kind of movie without even a blink! Though, she has a certain preference for historical ghost stories most of the time! Something mysterious, with a ghost hunting down people in an abandoned mansion, only because it comes from the past and has to avenge themselves for some good reasons. The various elements in those stories are definitely fitting her general mood to know more about what happened in the past, hence the fact she’s quite intrigued and passionate with them!

Of course, if they ever watch it, you better be sure that she has to be there to reassure Usopp and Nami, even if she can’t help throwing some dark comments regarding the movie like “I wonder how it feels to drown in your own blood”, and watching her two friends becoming even more afraid!

Frankenstein:  Favorite literature to read during this spooky period? Comics? Novels?

She highly prefers novels, most of the time giant and complicated books, with a classic style, following the standards of a good reading. A plot, a hero, some anti-heros, a villain who lived various trauma, a war, horses and other political issues... She’s definitely the kind of person to love reading “War and Peace” book! Big yes if the hero is a woman getting rid of her conditions to accomplish fantastic missions.

She’s not really fond of comics, most of the time she leaves them to her crewmates, however she also appreciates to read some old spooky tales for their night of celebrations. It’s always so entertaining for her to see how the feeling of fear evolved through the years, even if she might traumatized a good amount of the Straw Hat with the various horrible stories she’s able to find!

Requiem: What would be their favorite music to listen for halloween? Do they have specific tastes?

Robin doesn’t have a specific taste in music, everything comes and goes, it’s only attached to her mood in general and what she wishes to listen. She particular adores those pirate songs Brook is often singing and playing, remembering her good old days seeking for books, before her island disappeared from the map of the world. She has a soft spot for violin in general, and loves to have very slow and beautiful serenades, but doesn’t mind either if the tone of the song is a bit more frightening!

Something she appreciates music which can swallow her under a wave of nostalgia, a floating smile appearing on her lips, as it soothes her soul. For sure, she appreciates when Franky suddenly comes with something more energic, followed by Luffy, Usopp and Chopper, but most of the time, she appreciates the quietness of something more classical.

Witchcraft: Would they be interested in black magic and would they want to try to some unnatural acts of witchcraft? From books or from their mind? With a pact with the devil or not?

Honestly, big yes here! Robin is a curious soul, she loves to explore the different paths of the past, and has no fear to explore uncommon ones to discover the truth about old cultures and their beliefs. Witchcraft and black magic could definitely appeal her, until a certain point. For sure, she’d love to study some magical books, perhaps even try a ritual or two, but she wouldn’t do something which might put her crewmates at risk. For sure, she doesn’t want to summon something dangerous for them, so she will be utterly cautious if she ever digs in that study. And she’s definitely discreet about it, since she also knows that Luffy could easily steal her book and do something quite stupid with it...

Robin, though, really finds it interesting, and could be interested in knowing everything about the dark area of witchcraft and black magic... she’s easily picturable as a witch after all!

[whocalledhimannux]

I’m about to start Thick as Thieves (yeah I timed my reread poorly w/e) and I just reread the summary on the inner flap and had this... wave of nostalgia for the first time I read this book. I missed its initial publication--I found it in Barnes & Noble on my first trip to a bookstore after finishing grad school, thrilled at being able to read fiction again, thrilled to find this book. And my first reaction was surprise. I remember clearly thinking “Wait--Kamet is the main character? That guy?” I would not have expected a minor character to be the focal point of the book, or for it to be such a minor character who had been gone for so long and whose appearance had not been ~super memorable, or for the book to leave the Little Peninsula entirely. (also, as I mentioned in an earlier post, ACoK had been kiiiiiind of a letdown for me--honestly, mostly in comparison to KoA which was my favorite of the previous three. I liked it more on rereads!) So I was excited, but I wasn’t immediately sold.

I wish I remembered more about my first experience of actually reading. My clearest memory is reading the description of “the Attolian” and going OH MY GOD IT’S COSTIS. Is it Costis? Please let it be Costis. (For some reason the sandy hair detail convinced me it was him? I even stopped reading to go look through KoA for a physical description of him and couldn’t find one. No idea why I had been so convinced he was a dark blond before then.) But beyond that, the first read just sort of blends into the second, third, etc.

I just... I really love this book. I don’t know if I could actually rank the series, and if I could pick KoA over TaT as my favorite or vice versa. But I think the thing is that... reading Thick as Thieves makes me love the other books more. You know? It enriches them. Not only are Kamet’s scenes in QoA more interesting to me, but it makes me reconsider Eugenides’s whole approach to Attolia (the place) and the palace knowing how long he spent there and how early he was thinking about getting involved in Nahuseresh’s household. It puts Costis as a person in a different context and makes KoA more enjoyable, a thing I had not previously thought was possible. I posted a whole long meta yesterday about how the contrast between Sophos/his brief enslavement and Kamet/his longer enslavement makes both books more poignant when considered in tandem.

And the whole structure of the book is a throwback to The Thief, where politics are important but almost more important is adventure, stories, and the relationship between a small group of people, even just two, and where we spend the entire book in the intimacy of a first person narration.

It’s like--each book builds on the one before it, and with each new book the circle of characters expands, the stakes get higher, the tension builds, and we’re ramping up to this final book where everything is going to explode. But before that, TaT asks us to pause. To reflect back on all the people and themes and places we’ve read about these past years. To reconsider how those things might be seen from a different point of view, and what our definition of ‘the right side’ really is. To think about the underclasses that have come in and out of focus as our core characters became kings and queens and their inner circle.

The Thief introduces us to this world. Queen of Attolia, King of Attolia, and A Conspiracy of Kings draw us in deeper and deeper and prepare us because something big is coming. Return of the Thief will be the culmination of everything that’s come before that. But first, Thick as Thieves says okay--are you ready?