#i want to put shanes coop with the rest of the coops :(

[buglaur]

the very rough plan for my ranch so far 🫡

[farmerstarter]

The Bachelors and How They Sleep

hello lovelies! Have some more of my headcanons. These HCs are for a gn! reader. If you have any requests then feel free to send me an ask! Reblogs and likes are greatly appreciated 🌷🤍

Alex:

🏈 Moves a lot during his sleep. But he doesn't outright punch you by accident. You always seem to end up being under him.

🏈 Mumbles a lot too. One time, you woke up to him counting to himself, just like how he counts his bicep curls.

🏈 Wakes up early, just a few moments before you. He says it's because he needs to exercise the first thing in the morning. But it's actually because he felt you move out of the bed and he doesn't like to be alone.

🏈 Gives you all the pillows to make you comfortable. He says it's important for your muscles to get a good night's rest. He ends up hogging the blankets.

Elliott:

🪶 Sleeps like a dead man. He doesn't move at all, save for the occasional turning to the side to snuggle against you.

🪶 It takes him a while to finally succumb to slumber. He says it's because he's used to listening to the waves of the beach to fall asleep.

🪶 Silk pajamas, the man has sets of them. He keeps his hair down while sleeping so you sometimes wake up to your whole face being covered by his locks.

🪶 He's a late riser, mostly because he sleeps late too. He tells you that he writes better at night and he doesn't allow himself to rest until he's finished writing one chapter at least.

Harvey:

🛩️ Sometimes, Harvey forgets to take off his glasses before he goes to bed. Which is why he has so many broken ones that he tries to hide from you by kicking them under the bed.

🛩️ Professional cuddler. He always makes sure you're in his arms or vice versa. He needs to touch you in order to get a good night's rest. Doesn't matter if you two are spooning or if it's just his hand on top of your arm.

🛩️ Snores a lot. Goes "hoooonk mimimimimi hoooonk mimimimi"

🛩️ I like to imagine him wearing those pajamas that's like just a long night gown and those floppy pointy hats. You know the one.

Sam:

🎸 Alex mumbles in his sleep, Sam straight up sings. Usually it's outbursts of the choruses of his songs, sometimes he'd hum the tune out. You have a video of him playing air drums while sleeping. You sent the video to Abigail and Sebastian, and they never let Sam hear the end of it.

🎸 He wakes up super late most of the time. But on the rare occasion where he doesn't, he cooks breakfast and serves it to you in bed. Complete with a flower in a vase and everything.

🎸 Always kisses you before he falls asleep. Straight up drags you to his side of the bed to peck your lips.

🎸 Would take off his shirt to put it on you. He says he doesn't want you getting cold at night and waves you off when you refuse, worried about his wellbeing. "I don'T gEt sicK eaSiLy, Babe," ends up in the clinic to get meds the next day.

Sebastian:

👾 It's my headcanons and I say he moves a LOT during his sleep. So much so that you end up on the floor when you wake up. He refuses to believe that he does that.

👾 His sleep schedule depends on you. He refuses to sleep unless you're already in the house. He doesn't like the feeling of sleeping when he doesn't know you're safe. You'll find him waiting for you on the porch.

👾 Prefers to sleep on the side of the bed where the sun doesn't shine.

👾 Immediately feels it when you get out of the bed. And he wakes up immediately, groggy and needing a few minutes to register where he is. Even if you're just going to get a glass of water, Sebastian would wake up and ask where you're going.

Shane:

🐣 This man says good night to all the chickens in your coop before he goes to bed, I decided.

🐣 He used to get little to no hours of sleep but after moving in with you, he tries to get enough sleep as possible.

🐣 Hugs you in his sleep, all the time.

🐣 He wakes up the same moment you do, sometimes earlier. He gave himself the job to take care of your farm animals so you don't have to work too hard. So he wakes early to get the job done as soon as possible to spend breakfast with you.

🐣 My brother in Yoba, he would wake up in the middle of the night to get a snack. You would sometimes catch him in the middle of drinking cows milk straight out of the bottle in front of the open fridge.

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

pleeeeaaaasee do more shane x reader (preferably gender neutral). Your writing is so good and the "After everything we've been through, you still don't think that I love you?" one broke me. You're a hurt/comfort master

HAH you've given me another idea from this ask alone (insp by my farmer getting alex's 8 heart event while married to shane)

Sorry gang I swear fluffier stuff with Shane is coming

.....

It was just a few days into summer, and Shane already had plans to change up his usual routine once again.

Ever since moving onto your farmland, he found himself getting more motivated to take longer walks. This morning, he planned on doing so after ensuring the crops were watered and the animals were well-fed.

He greeted the cows, rabbit, pigs, and chickens as they filed out of the coop and barn one-by-one, not letting any of them miss their daily pets. Seeing the ostrich and little green dinosaur emerge didn't faze him as much as it did the first time he saw them--he still had no clue how you acquired their eggs (especially one from the skull caverns), but you didn't treat them any differently.

They were both lovable creatures. Just like the blue chickens he introduced you to several months ago.

Knowing you raised some and kept them on the farm made him beam with pride, glad he got to stay here and help run things in your steed.

He wouldn't trade it for the world.

You set off for the beach earlier than usual today, having left a note on the table, and Shane opted to just hang back and repair some of the fences that were looking a bit worn out.

According to the TV, it was a "good luck day", and you hoped to find fortune in the form of a rainbow shell washed up on the coast. You certainly loved foraging them, but even if there weren't any around, you figured you'd go fishing.

Your husband wasn't the best at either skill, although a few hours after you left, he felt a little bored and decided to go visit the beach. Maybe you could use his moral support since other people--mainly Willy and Elliot-mentioned hearing you curse like a sailor when you were wrestling with a fish...or when said fish escaped your line.

He could be there to cheer you up, or teasingly bet on how many joja cola cans you'll fish out of the ocean.

That would be pretty funny, he thought.

So he headed off on his usual walking route, but instead of going to Cindersap Forest or stopping by Pelican Town's river, he ventured towards the beach, greeting whoever said "hello" to him.

Upon arrival, however, Shane stopped in his tracks as he noticed you weren't entirely alone on the beach.

It wasn't Willy, Elliot, Leah, nor that parrot kid you rescued from Ginger Island, but Alex.

He wouldn't have minded that so much....if not for the fact that you two were sitting awfully close together on the coast, overlooking the foamy waves. You were totally oblivious to his presence, so he hung back with suspicion.

Of course, he knew you were growing more sociable with the rest of the villagers, and he didn't want your marriage to be the reason you stopped talking to people.

Even so..something didn't feel right about this, especially as he watched you move closer to Alex, putting an arm around him. And when the younger male put his head on your shoulder, Shane's heart dropped.

You were talking, but obviously he couldn't make out what you were saying thanks to the noisy waves and annoying seagulls.

At this point, however, it became clear what was going on.

And it made him feel utterly sick to his stomach, his mind constantly circling back to one conclusion. Only one explanation as to why you'd ever be that close to Alex, and perhaps why you've been frequently leaving the farm earlier than normal:

You were seeing him behind his back, thinking he'd never find out.

He didn't know how else to interpret that. How else could he?

But of everybody in this town, why did it have to be the guy who reminded him of his youthful days in gridball?

The guy who radiated positivity and was always in high spirits?

The guy who wasn't old and weak and depressed...like him?

'I knew it..they finally got bored of me. But why would they do this?' Scowling, he felt like storming over and saying something, but he couldn't will himself to freak out here and now.

No.

Why bother?

Instead he decided to turn on his heel and storm back to the farm, nearly tripping over a rainbow shell as he did so. The saloon was closed, so he couldn't escape there...but he'll settle for rotting in bed until you come home.

You'll be back, and he'll confront you then.

.......

Coming back to the farmland around noon, you frowned a bit as you didn't see Shane anywhere outside. He wasn't at the mini coop like he normally was, and poor Charlie was looking for him.

"Where did he go, Charles? Hm?" With a soft coo, you kneeled down to pet the chicken. She clucked, her beak pointing towards the cabin, and you thanked her with a small handful of corn before continuing inside.

However, as soon as you stepped into a rather quiet house, all the excitement sapped out of you. You'd normally hear him playing video games or watching a Tunneler's game, but as you entered your shared bedroom...you found him just laying down, his back turned to you.

"Hey, honey." You sighed, relieved as you sat down on the mattress. "All that farmwork got tiring, huh? I understand. Thank you for doing it."

"........."

"..Shane? You still asleep?"

There was a long silence, only for it to be broken by a quiet sniffle, and your heart sunk, wondering what happened. "Hey, what's wrong-?"

As you put a hand on his shoulder, Shane flinched and rolled over to face you, his eyes red and watery, and his expression full of disgust...as though you did something wrong.

You've never seen him get this angry at you. Not since your first meeting with him. "Baby-?"

"No. Enough petnames, [y/n]." He huffed, sitting up and staring at you with contempt. "You don't get to act like everything's fine. Like I don't know what's really going on."

"...what?"

"Why were you with Alex today? Did he convince you I wasn't good enough for you anymore? That I'm past my prime?"

You blinked in bewilderment, wondering how on earth he knew that and why he was getting so upset. "Wha..you were at the beach? Why didn't you tell me?"

"That's..not important." He grumbled. "If you love him more, fine. Just tell me. I was ready for the day you'd finally get sick of me. But..to do that behind my back...I just..." Fresh tears brimmed his eyes as he clutched the mermaid pendant with a shaky hand. "I thought you were different..but I was wrong."

Now you were totally lost, heart racing as you tried to wrack your brain for any reason he'd assume that you were cheating on him with Alex. You knew he had some major jealousy issues, and he's been actively working through them with his therapist, but it was never this bad.

"Listen, I promise that what you saw isn't what it-"

"You don't have to lie. I get it. He's young, better looking...he's everything I used to be. So why don't I just go and you can have him live on this farm with you? At least he won't be a burden. At least he won't-"

"Shane just stop. Stop." You raised your voice, growing infuriated. "What in the hell made you think I wanna be with Alex when we're married?! When I've been nothing but there for you since I moved to town?! If you let me finish, I'll explain everyth-"

"Oh I'm sure you have a "perfect" explanation already lined up." He rolled his eyes. "Unless you can tell me why you were that close to him, I don't see why I'm even-"

"Today's the anniversary of his mom's death."

Shane blinked once.

Then twice.

Then three times.

"Wha..?"

"She passed away 12 years ago." Frowning slightly, you watched his expression shift wildly. "Alex was sitting there, crying his eyes out, and I just...wanted to comfort him. Like any friend would do. That's all."

At this moment, Shane felt like the biggest piece of shit in the valley, and his shoulders sagged. He didn't know what to say.

"We just hugged, and he told me about the good memories they had," you continued, moving closer to put a hand over his own. "Cross my heart, absolutely nothing was going on between us, honey. You really think I'd do that to you? To the man I love?"

"....I....I didn't know he lost his mom.." He mumbled, still at a loss for words.

"Well it's not exactly something he'd share with the whole town. And I was gonna keep it between us, but you wouldn't let me explain myself." You reminded him with a small huff, and he looked down in guilt.

As quickly as your anger rose, however, it was quick to disappear as you watched him. He seemed very torn up and ashamed for accusing you of cheating, but you could understand his perspective and why he saw it in that light.

You would've been suspicious, too.

"Look..I know it did look like something else was going on. And I'm really sorry-"

"No, no..I should be sorry for acting like a total dickhead." Shane gazed back up at you, and his face tore your heart to shreds. "I didn't mean to freak and accuse you of anything. You were just comforting a kid who lost his mom and...I got angry for no reason. Without hearing your side. I shouldn't be like this..yet I feel like some bitter old man.."

"Hey, you're not old." You shook your head, cupping both sides of his cheeks and giving him a gentle kiss. "You're barely 30."

"Still..my body feels that way." He lightly chuckled, enveloping you in a tight hug. "And again, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, [y/n]...I promise I'm working on these stupid jealousy issues."

"I know you are, and I forgive you." Smiling, you squeezed him tight. "We're gonna be okay."

"Mhm..also..um..I found something for you." He let you go and dug into his jacket pocket for an unknown item, and when he presented it to you, the grin on your face was infectious.

"Oh my god..you found one for me?!!" Your eyes lit up, as you now held a beautiful rainbow shell in your hands.

Shane nodded. "Iridium quality."

"You're the best. I love you." Laughing, you brought him back into a hug, giving him a few more kisses. "And you said you sucked at foraging, huh?"

"Ah, well..just the "chopping trees" part. Picking stuff off the ground is easy." He shrugged, his smile bashful. "Glad you like it, sweetheart. Take it as my apology for that..um..misunderstanding."

"I forgive you a thousand times over. Now..I think I'll display this beauty in our aquarium. What do you think, Shane?"

"I think I'll go with and see."

You both hopped out of bed and headed over to where you kept the aquarium tanks, with Shane in better spirits than he was before.

He still felt guilty for acting that way towards you, but your everlasting patience and persistence with him prevails.

He's glad he picked up that rainbow shell for you.

[hailtothepumpkinqueen]

(Wanted to write something based on Shane's 2 heart event, hence the cheesy ass title lmao

So warnings for alcohol, talks about depression, brief mention of a suicidal thought by Farmer.

EDIT: Now with Shane's POV)

Heart 2 Heart(s)❤❤

Her first summer in Pelican Town had been...rough, to put it lightly.

Whole fields of crops that had been growing just fine withering seemingly overnight. Weeds overtaking huge swaths of land to a mindboggling degree. And, in her haste to clear out dead plants, the chicks she had bought from Marnie (lovingly named Camilla and Henrietta) had accidentally gone neglected to the point of near starvation in their coop. They recovered of course, but she still hadn't forgiven herself for it. Not to mention how many requests going unanswered because she still couldn't get the hang of fishing, no matter how hard she tried. No doubt disappointing everyone along with herself.

Spring had been so full of promise, full of hope that she could do this whole farming thing and thrive on her own terms for once. But all these stupid mistakes, these failures, compounded with near constant exhaustion and pain for what felt like very little gain was proving to be almost too much to bear.

One warm night, when she couldn't stand to look at the farm because even the old house seemed disappointed in her, she went for a walk. Ending up at the lake in the woods not too far from Marnie's place. It was quiet, fireflies lazily dancing across the water and unseen crickets chirping adding to the sense of calm. The perfect place to have a little cry in peace before collapsing in bed for the night.

Empty beer cans scattered along the dock indicated that Shane had had a similar idea some time earlier, but, thankfully, he wasn't anywhere to be seen now. It was pretty late, and the house behind her looked dark. Hopefully that meant everyone inside was asleep and wouldn't catch her there. She didn't think she had the energy to fake a smile right now, and Yoba knows she couldn't handle Shane's seemingly permanent scowl boring holes into her forehead.

She sat her tired, sore body down with a groan, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her chin on her knees. Tears almost immediately welling up as all the negative thoughts she had tried to bury washed over her in waves. Quickly turning into sobs she tried to muffle by burying her face in her arms.

What the hell was she even doing? Did she really think she would be good at this, at anything? Idiot. Leaving a perfectly good job for uncertainty just because she couldn't handle a little stress? Weak. She could barely take care of herself, it was stupid to think she could take care of anyone or anything else. Silly little girl playing pretend and throwing a tantrum when it doesn't go her way. Maybe her mother was right...

"Miller?" A voice cut through the quiet and practically made her jump out of her skin. Knocking cans into the water as she scrambled to her feet to face the owner of the voice. Fuck. Of course it was him.

"Shane!" She gasped, quickly wiping at her eyes and trying to force a smile. He was standing just a foot behind her, scowl surprisingly absent and a six pack of what she assumed was beer in one hand. He looked almost...concerned? But she could be imagining it.

"H-hey! Sorry, were you still sitting here? I can...I can go. Sorry."

"You're already here, might as well stay." He sighed, waving a dismissive hand to her anxious apologies. "Sit. Relax."

She stood there for a few seconds longer, waiting for him to change his mind, before slowly sitting down again. Occupying herself by picking up the cans she had knocked into the lake while he sat next to her. It was a small dock, so his shoulder was almost touching hers, but neither of them flinched away from the other.

"You're out late." He said casually after a moment, holding out a beer to her, much to her surprise. She took it gratefully, the chill of the metal strangely comforting. As was his choice to not comment on the fact she clearly had been crying before. "Can't sleep either, huh?"

"Yeah...contemplating life and all that, y'know?" She gave a humorless chuckle an shrug, staring out into the darkness beyond the lake.

"Buh...life." His voice filled with contempt for the very idea of it, taking a huge swig from his beer. That trademarked frown of his returning in full force and his nose scrunched up in disdain. A long beat of silence passing between them before he spoke again. "...You ever feel like...no matter what you do, you're gonna fail? Like you're stuck in some miserable abyss, and you're so deep you can't even see the light of day?"

She turned to look at him in startled bewilderment, afraid he had somehow read her mind or she had spoken her thoughts out loud without realizing. Meeting his eyes for a brief moment--oh wow he was a little taller than her when they were sitting down--before looking away again.

"Yeah, actually..." she admitted, tapping on the now lukewarm beer can in her hands nervously. Feeling tears prick at the corners of her eyes again. "I thought I was doing better, getting closer to the surface, only to get dragged back down into the void again. It was stupid to get my hopes up, I'm so out of my depth here I feel like I'm drowning.."

It was a shock to hear the words leaving her own mouth, she normally wasn't so candid about her inner turmoil with, well, anyone. But something about Shane's demeanor and his own willingness to talk about dark things made it easy to be open.

"Me too..." He nodded, a softness in his voice she'd never heard from him before. At least not directed at her. Almost like vulnerability. "I just feel like no matter how hard I try...I'm not strong enough to climb out of that hole.."

"Me too..." she echoed back in a whisper, afraid her voice would crack if she spoke any louder. "Maybe it was a mistake to come here.." He gave a small hum in response.

"What possessed you to even try farming in the first place? You don't seem the outdoorsy type. No offense." She cringed at his question, valid as it was. It was just not one she really wanted to answer. But he was being honest with her, she at least owed him something.

"Burnout. Work was draining the soul out of me, I had no life outside work and my mental health was really suffering because of it. Needed a way out, so it was either this or..."

"Or throw myself off the top of the Joja Co™ building" was the rest of that sentence, but that's not something you say in polite company. Not right off the bat, at least.

"...something more drastic." Was how she actually finished the sentence, and even that earned an eyebrow raise from Shane. But, again, if he was concerned he didn't directly comment on it.

"Here's to not doing anything drastic then." He said, holding his beer up to her in a mock toast. The barest hint of a smile on his face.

She chuckled softly, finally cracking open her own can and holding it up to him in return.

"To not doing anything drastic."

Downing the entire can in one go, gulping it back so fast she barely even tasted it and had to gasp for air afterwards. Shuddering at the head rush the alcohol immediately brought on. Shotgunning a beer on a near empty stomach probably wasn't the best idea she had today, but the buzz was better than the anxiety chewing on her brain.

To her surprise, she heard Shane laugh. An actual laugh, not simply blowing air out of his nose or a sarcastic sound. A nice laugh.

"Fast drinker, huh? Woman after my own heart." He smirked, bumping his shoulder against hers and giving a wink. She felt her cheeks immediately flush bright red, hoping it was too dark for him to notice even with the close proximity. Her heart beating just a little faster than before.

Was...was that flirting? Was he flirting with her?? Or just being friendly and she was reading too much into it? Surely he was just joking around. But that smirk...

Before she could even say anything, though, he was rising to his feet again with a grimace and rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand. Looking a little embarrassed now, like he had said something he shouldn't have.

"Just don't make it a habit... you got a future ahead of you still." He mumbled sheepishly, making her giggle at how different this was from his normal gruff demeanor.

"So do you." She answered softly and with complete sincerity.

"Doubt that." He scoffed and shifted weight from one foot to the other, deep frown returning.

"Shane..."

"Welp! My liver's beggin' me to stop. Better call it a night." Clearly not wanting to talk about this any further. Emotional walls going back up and vulnerable moment over. "I'll, uh, I'll see you around, yeah? G'night, Katherine."

Her expression faltered a little, shoulders slumping. He still wouldn't call her "Kat", even after this little heart to heart of theirs. But maybe things could be friendlier between them now, so that was something...right?

"Y-yeah... Good night, Shane." She lifted her hand in a small wave, watching him walk away until he disappeared into the dark. Sitting on the dock alone for a little while longer before picking up all the cans she could see and starting the treck back to her own farm. A small sense of hope blooming in her chest as she passed a few healthy looking hot pepper plants she'd been growing.

Shane liked hot peppers, Marnie had told her so before. Maybe she would bring him some tomorrow. Repay him for the beer and the chat.

Maybe the summer would be okay.

[r0-boat]

Stardew Valley Submas

They live and run the train station near the mountain for travelers coming in and out of Pelican town from places like Zuzu City. ( though they haven't gotten many visitors)

Although they spend most of their time at the train station you do see them walk around Pelican town.

Their birthdays are the 18th of autumn .

They may look similar but their likes and dislikes are verrrry different.

One of the twins tell you, with the help with Clint they're the ones that actually built the Minecarts. And they broke down not too long ago they're disappointed to see them in this state but haven't had time to fix them.

After you fix the Minecarts they expressed their thankfulness.

Emmet

Best gifts: Coffee, Battery packs, Oranges, Pizza

Likes: all Universal likes, coffee beans, and iron bars

Dislikes: mayonnaise, Algae soup, green tea, jade

Needs the battery packs for his Joltik he asked you to visit next time and maybe you could meet her.

He likes the snack on the orange slices while he works, and coffee for obvious reasons, lol.

Emmet likes to walk around town on his break he doesn't like staying cooped up inside. He especially spends most of his time at the ocean. Adores pelican town for its quiet, peaceful atmosphere.

Similar to Shane most of his conversations when you first meet him will be very short (tho not mean)

Although disappointed for the lack of train appreciation.

In his two heart event, you find is missing Joltik and he expresses his appreciation.

After hitting four hearts, Ingo expresses his Delight at how close his brother is with you, telling you that Emmet isn't too fond of strangers, even though Emmet does stay cordial and professional, his brother does wish he would interact with the community more.

Emmet does in fact, want to have friends in Pelican town. Ingo was all he had when he grew up; Emmet expresses worry bc he doesn't do well in conversations. Maybe you can bring him out of his shell?

In the end Sebastian expresses that he wants to get to know Emmet more, bc they seem similar, and enjoys Emmet's more competitive nature.

The villagers especially the mothers of the town's opinion of Emmet is that they wish they could get to know him more but I meant usually is so distant.

Emmet tells you that Clint gives him bad vibes, and he doesn't like him, he'll work with him, but that doesn't mean he likes him... even if he does like trains.

Ingo

Best gifts: green tea, Jade, Pancakes, truffle oil, blackberry cobbler

Likes: all Universal likes and sweets, and iron bars

Dislikes: Coffee, Oranges, Pickles, triple shot espresso,

He uses oil to maintain the tracks cook, and for his little litwick friend. Ingo usually is buried in work. He enjoys his job, but sometimes he deserves a break; he usually hangs around the mountain, sometimes going to town.

When you greet him his eyes light up expressing joy that they rarely get visitors.

Emmet expresses worry of how much his brother works. He's very grateful of how helpful his brother is and how important he is to him.

Ingo expresses how important self-care is yet he doesn't do it himself. Harvey as the doctor has seen eye bags under his eyes he expresses that sleep is essential, and he is worried if Ingo gets enough sleep.

Emmet in one of his lines tells you that, Ingo has a sweet tooth put something sweet in front of him and he can't say no. Though he hasn't had the luxury of having it every often.

Emily and Abigail adore Ingo's more out going nature and louder voice yet gentle and polite mannerisms. (Usually drag him into their antics)

Morris says that he wants to hire Ingo because he has heard from the grape vine that Ingo rarely takes breaks and works diligently night an day. If only he had him for an employee lol( obviously an unpopular opinion)

Ingo after a couple of hearts ends up getting extremely ill from overworking practically collapsing on the ground. You put your foot down telling him he has to rest for at least a week and he agrees Emmet promises him to take good care of the station while he rests.

After that he expresses that is incredibly thank you and promises you he'll be more careful going forward telling you that even though he loves his job he understands that he has to take a step back and rest sometimes.

---

Possibly maybe a special event that allows you to marry both of them?

Where you have to be already dating the both of them and then you get a special cutscene where your character is shaking when they both enter a room but then Express their happiness on your acceptance to your confusion.

[stardewstardropthoughts]

(I don't know if you've done this before) but how would the bachelors react if you caught a cold?

I have not done this before but I shall do it now 😌 someone’s gotta look after the farmer because god knows they aren’t doing it themselves if they get sick lol

How the bachelors react when you catch a cold

Harvey:

I say this in like every prompt but like, he’s the doctor so your gonna be golden here

The moment you start to feel under the weather it’s doctor mode activated

He’s checking your temperature, giving you fever reducers, making you rest, making sure your drinking plenty of water and electrolytes

Won’t let you over exert yourself on the farm

He’s running you a hot bath so you can relax

He’s making you healthy meals through the day to keep your energy up

He definitely wears a face mask and gloves while doing this, he can’t afford to get sick he has a lotta patients

He definitely deep cleans the whole place at the end of each day

Will have you feeling better in no time

Sam:

He makes sure your taking meds, drinking water

Brings you nausea meds if you need them

Wraps you up in bed like a little burrito so you can take a nap to replenish your energy

Puts a cold cloth on your head

He’s so sad that your sick so he will absolutely snuggle up with you while you nap

Holds your hair back for you while you puke

He definitely gets sick after you get better

Elliott:

He’s bringing a care basket of meds and snacks and warm blankets for you

Tucks you into bed and puts a cold cloth on your head after checking your temperature

Makes you a nice bowl of soup

Cleans up around your house dispite how much you tell him not to

Also wears a face mask and gloves to avoid getting sick

Makes sure you always have a nice hot cup of lemon honey tea on the bedside table to sooth your throat

Washes your hair for you if you don’t have the energy to do it yourself

Will give your sore muscles massages

Shane:

Also brings a care package of snacks and meds to your house

Once he gets there he finds you looking miserable and feverish in the chicken coop feeding the chickens

He’ll finish the task for you, ushering you inside after where he promptly runs you a hot shower

He’ll get in with you and wash your hair, gently massaging your scalp while he does so

Let’s you lean your weight on him in the shower while he uses your body scrub on you

Once out of the shower he puts your pjs on you, wraps you up in his sweater and plops you into bed before making you take cold meds and a hot cup of tea

Once he’s sure your asleep he’ll put a cold cloth on your head and grab some cold water bottles out of your fridge to put on the bedside table for you

Stays with you the whole time, somehow doesn’t get sick, your very jealous

Sebastian:

He gets sick super easy so when he learns your sick he’s probably a bit hesitant at first to come over but ultimately his love for you wins out

But he’s suited up with a face mask and gloves

And so much hand sanitizer

Makes sure your taking cold meds on time, brushes your hair for you

Brings you food from the stardrop saloon to eat

Also stops by harvy’s to pick up whatever cold meds he has, literally one of each kind

Forces you to take a break because you were determined to not let a cold stop you but you were almost asleep in the corn field

Good luck living that down

Alex:

His immune system is fantastic so he’s concerned when you get sick

Stays beside you like glue, almost overbearing

Doesn’t want you to lift a finger, wants you to just lay down and rest and get better

Makes sure you take your meds on a strict schedule

Absolutely makes you healthy meals to help you get better

Makes sure you have plenty of fluids to drink

Wraps you up in endless amounts of blankets

Will snuggle you to keep you laying down

Puts on movies for you so you don’t get bored

[boygiwrites]

Harley D. Dixon 33

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📖Chapter List.

Author's Note.

TW: CHARACTER DEATH. OFF-SCREEN SUICIDE.

This chapter is heavy with a bittersweet/happy ending. As for the intensity level of the death, think back to the chapter where Shane died. If you want to know more, look at the first tag of this post. Please be wary of this before you read!

Through the wire circle, down at the bottom of the hill, the tiny prisoners are being kicked out.

Curling my fingers tighter around the fence, I squint against the sun, watching as the gate is closed in their faces. They're left to stand there, without direction or purpose, in a sort of purgatory. They can either stay there and eat gravel until they starve, or they can face the outside world. If Dale can hear me, I'm sorry for thinking this, but, good riddance. There certainly ain't no phones out there no more, or even any food, and I know they'll die, but, good riddance. We'on know them. If we let them into our cell block, we'd be downright fools.

You don't put foxes in a chicken coop. It's just common sense, and we don't have much, but we have that.

As our group walk off to continue their chores, content with the death sentence, T-Dog lingers by the gate, digging into his pocket.

Surprisingly, he passes them what looks like a granola bar.

"They're gonna need more than that," Carl muses from beside me. "They need weapons. Ammo. Water."

The two prisoners are less than enthusiastic to receive the snack, but pocket it with a nod anyway. Rick went back into their cell block and packed up their half of the food for 'em, because a deal's a deal, but every crumb counts. A snack can save yer life same way a gun can. 

As they turn into the field beyond the prison, I shrug. "Rick'll prolly let them back into their cell block if they come back."

"You think they will?"

If they don't die out there first, then the answer is obvious. "S'like when ya put'cher dog outside when they's naughty!"

He giggles, "They always wanna come back in."

"Them two fellers ain't no wild dogs," I agree. "They's a pair of chihuahuas."

Before Carl and I can watch the two prisoners for any longer, the door to our cell block opens behind us.

Turning around, a smile makes its way onto my face as Herschel shakily plods down the steps, a crutch wedged underneath each of his armpits. Beth and Lori are dutifully fussing over him, ready to catch him if he falls, but he's managing just fine on his own.

"Whoo-hoo, Herschel!" Carl whoops as we walk over, earning a grin from his Momma. "You ready to race me, yet?"

"Give me another day. I'll take you on," He chuckles breathlessly as he breaches the last step, noticing Mouse. "Hey, boy."

I ask him hopefully, "Will ya race me, too?"

"Oh, no," He exclaims as he rests against the rusty railing, the white sunlight curving over his face. "Now, you're a different story."

"You're being silly," Lori smiles to him.

"I hope so."

"Don't worry, Herschel," I knock my elbow into his. "I'll go easy on ya!"

"How generous. Perhaps Carl and I will just have to verse you as a team?"

"Then it'll just be twice as embarrassing when she beats us both," Carl snickers.

Everybody down in the field can be heard shouting cheers up to us, as Herschel lifts his hand off the crutch to give them a wave.

"Come on," Lori says, eyeing his free hand until he grips the crutch again. "What do you say we go rest at that table over there?"

"Well, I'd say I've got no choice."

"You're right about that," Beth says as we guide him across the courtyard. "Carl, what do you think of his new pants? Stylish, huh?"

The boy glances down, only just noticing the change. "Hell yeah."

"Beth was telling us she tailored them herself," Lori says, sounding impressed.

"Well, I didn't do it alone," The girl smiles as we reach the picnic table, carefully sitting Herschel down. "Harley helped me."

"I just held the string," I say shyly.

"No job too small," Herschel muses to me with a smile, before gazing out at the scenery around us, sighing contentedly.

As grey and bleak as this place may be, with its dead walkers and concrete walls, it's a nice day out, which is always a consolation no matter where we are in the world. The sky hangs bright and blue like a polished dome over our heads, painted with smeared, fluffy clouds. If I really wanted to, I could pretend it's just another summer's day back on the farm, but I'on think I do. I don't need peaches and cows to be happy.

"Good to see you up and at 'em again, Greene," My Dad smirks as he comes through the gate, taking the man's shoulder.

As he squeezes and pulls away, Herschel exclaims, "It's good to be up. I couldn't stand to be in that bed a moment longer."

"I bet. You could come help me clear the fence if ya wanted," He jokes as he walks off. "My students are on break."

"We're just leaving the grunt work to the grunt," Carl calls after him.

"Sure you are," Dad says over his shoulder, before drawing his knife and downing one of the many walkers at the fence.

As he gets back to work, Mouse runs up to us with his tennis ball between his slobbery teeth, dropping it at my feet.

Picking it up, I hold it out to Herschel. "Wanna throw it for 'im?"

"Absolutely," He says, taking it.

He throws the ball across the courtyard, sending Mouse scrambling after it like it's a little animal he's gotta catch. It's nice watching Herschel play fetch with Mouse like this, spending the morning chatting with each other about useless things like the weather and seasonal crops. 

After about ten minutes, when he gives me the ball to throw, it skips like a stone into a pile of trash near the dumpsters. Whoops!

"Ohhh," Carl exclaims dramatically, watching Mouse nose through the junk. "Foul ball."

Giving him a bit of a shove on the shoulder, I laugh, "Shut up, Carl!"

"She never claimed to be a pitcher," Beth giggles. "She's more of a kicker."

"Yeah, I'm a kicker," I agree, with twinkle-toes Carl dodging me as I try landing a kick to his ankle, "Lemme show ya!"

"She's attacking me!"

"I'm a biter, too!"

"Kids will be kids," Herschel chuckles heartily to the girls, shaking his head. After a short pause, I hear him utter, "What—...?"

It takes me and Carl a moment to settle down, pushing at each other and swallowing down our giggles, before we look in the direction of the dumpsters, where everyone has pinned their attention. The laughter dies in my throat just as quickly as it had come alive. Mouse has completely abandoned his search for the ball — My first clue something's wrong —, staring unflinchingly around the corner.

He starts growling lowly, making my Dad turn around just before a rotten foot steps out into the open.

A face peeks out, melted and dripping.

A walker?

Out here?

Then there's a second, and a third, and a suddenly obvious cacophony of groans that could only come from a mob.

As another walker appears on the opposite side of the courtyard, sandwiching us in, Lori gasps.

I exclaim, "What the Hell?"

Where'd they come from?

"Get inside!" My Dad shouts at us, drawing his crossbow, shooting, killing the closest corpse. "Get inside, quick!"

"Come on," Lori grunts as she and Beth haul Herschel onto his crutches. "Come on, we have to go. We have to go!"

The rest of the group are running up the road, screaming our names and fumbling with keys and guns, ripping the gate to the courtyard open, but it's total and sudden chaos, walkers scattered everywhere. Rick rears his axe back, slamming it into a rotting forehead. The blood spurts. The body falls. We can't take this many on, not like this. Dad was right. We have to run. I unsheathe my knife as Herschel and the girls hobble across the courtyard, my eyes darting from face to face, from yellowed mouth to cloudy eyes to melted skin.

"Mouse?" I call out, feeling almost guilty for wanting to run off and save him. "Oh, my God!"

A body breaks apart from all the others. It reaches out for us, its fingers curved like scythes.

Beth squeals, terrified. "Get away from us!"

There's a disgusting SQUELCH as I drive my knife into its knee, the cold blood splattering my cheek. Twist. Pop. Its knee buckles.

Herschel and Beth scurry up the steps as I pull my knife out — I don't have to kill it. It'll only waste time — shouting coming from all directions as I watch another walker lunge for Herschel and Beth. He raises his crutch, bracing the rubber stub on its chest.

I stand up, ready to help.

As soon as I'm back on my feet, a loud alarm rings out, freezing me to the spot. Who turned those on?

"Harley!" My Dad's voice roars from across the courtyard. "Come here!"

"Let's go, girl!"

T-Dog takes my arm. I'm being dragged toward Dad, tryna spot everybody else. Rick, he's with Lori, Maggie, Carol, and Carl, shoving them all into a big, red cage, closing the door, and fending off more walkers with Glenn. Maggie shoots the lock. They huddle through the door to the prison. They're out. They're safe. Herschel and Beth, they're gone. I think — I hope — they managed to escape, too.

Where did all these walkers come from? We blocked the courtyard off, didn't we?

We reach the back of the courtyard. There's my Dad. He lowers his crossbow, a walker collapsing to the ground in front of him.

"Daddy!"

"Get over here!" He shouts, using his bow to bludgeon walker about to bite into his arm. "We gotta go! Gimme 'er!"

T-Dog shoves me forward.

Dad grabs my hand, his grip turning my skin a pure white, and we're running past walkers again, approaching a big, metal door.

He unholsters his gun and — BANG — shoots the lock off.

"Come on!"

"We can't close this behind us, man!" T worries as we run into the dark corridor, walkers following after us. "What we gonna do?"

Without answering, my Dad leads around a corner, cussing under his breath as he frantically looks around for another door.

After he takes us down what feels like a hundred more corridors, he finds one. "In 'ere! Quick!"

We slip inside. He slams the door shut, taking a step back, staring at it for a moment before it starts to shudder under the weight of the walkers pawing at it on the other side. No more running. God. We've trapped ourselves in here, but at least we're safe, at least we're alive. I wasn't so sure at first, but I can feel the blood pulsing through my muscles now, my breath leaving me in short, panicked bursts.

"Shit," My Dad pants hotly, his sweaty brow glistening even in the dark. "We okay? Baby, you okay?"

"I—I'm fine," I nod shakily, the blaring alarms suddenly cutting out. "W-What happened to everyone else?"

I think I managed to help Herschel and Beth get out safe, but we got separated before I could catch up to them. 

"I'on know," He admits, "I'on know. Seemed like we all scattered, but they'll look after each other. Least we're together."

The walker's shadows twitch and warp in black shapes against the grey of the floor, their fingers curling up underneath the bottom of the door like rotten little shrimps, tickling the metal with their chipped nails. They're wild dogs clawing at a rabbits' burrow, thirsting for blood.

When T-Dog doesn't respond, the only noise in this small, dusty room the snarls from outside, Dad asks, "T, man? You okay?"

I turn to look at him, the lack of sunlight making my eyes hurt.

T-Dog is staring at his feet like there's an interesting bug crawling on his ankle, wordless, looking up at us with wide eyes.

"Oh, my God," I breathe, watching the blood pour out.

There ain't no bug on his ankle.

There's a gaping bite.

"My sister used to babysit our neighbour's dog from time to time," T-Dog chuckles to himself, sat up against the wall opposite us. His legs are kicked out lazily in front of him, his smile plump and warm, like he's relaxing on his porch. The only thing missing is a cigarette between his fingers. I'on think he realizes that me and Dad ain't fully listening, or maybe he doesn't care. "Man, he was an ugly thing."

Already, this room smells like death, and there's nothing we can do except stew in it.

The door shudders violently in the background. 

"A lil' Scottish breed, or sum. One of them dogs with the big moustache and the angry eyes. Anyway," He sighs. It's difficult to look at him, in a way that makes me feel an aching sense of guilt for averting my eyes like this, but I just have to. I can't look at his smile anymore, or at the puddle of blood, or at the bite, or even at the walls, my gaze stuck unwaveringly on my boots. "There was this one weekend. She'd just got done takin' the lil' guy for a walk, and she was on the phone with her friend, talkin' about a party. 'Course, I was eavesdroppin'."

He wheezes a laugh to himself as my Dad continues to stare emptily at him, not entertained in the slightest.

"I thought to myself, 'Girl. Our parents are gonna kill you if they find out.' She was never the bookworm type, or anythin' like that. She was a bit of a bully, mind. Used to invite me to get ice-cream with her and her friends and make fun of me the whole time-type stuff."

Shut up, I wish I could shout in his face without angering the walkers outside, It doesn't matter now. You're bit!

When I thought I'd gotten scratched back at the quarry, I spent all night thinking of things that didn't matter, so maybe I can't blame him.

"I just got so jealous," He whispers, his smile fading, a sad look in his eyes. "I'on even know what pushed me to do it, but I went into the backyard and I opened the gate. Let the dog out. I knew I'd done the wrong thing when I saw the look on 'er face. I even went with her when she was puttin' up missin' posters all over our neighbourhood, shoutin' his name. Pepper, pepper. We ain't never found him."

"Don't you just sound like a pair'a angels," My Dad dares to joke.

He laughs. "That's what Grimes said."

That was back on the farm, when T was tryna make me feel better 'bout my fight with Carl by telling me a story 'bout his sisters stealing from him. He's always had the most ridiculous stories that make us all laugh, and he would let us, even if it was at his expense.

If I were to think about useless things, too, I'd think of him nicknaming me and Carl, little nerds, him sharing his pretzels with me while I was unwell, how he went with Rick and Dad to save me from Shane, those stupid shirts we got him and Glenn for Christmas.

"Well, ya know what they say about great minds," Dad mutters non-committedly, before there's another thud on the door.

"Daddy?"

"Hm?" He grunts, leaning toward me.

Into the shell of his ear, I shyly whisper, knowing he can't do nothin' about it, "I'on wanna be in here, no more. I wanna leave. Please."

"I know, chicken. I know," He soothes, putting his arm around my shoulders, cradling my head against his side. "M'sorry."

T-Dog asks, "What'd she say?"

"She don't like it in 'ere."

"Well, I'm sorry, too. I'm gonna die," He chuckles incredulously, his belly shuddering. "And all I can think about is that damn dog."

"How you feelin', man?"

"Like ten pounds of shit in a five-pound sack," T-Dog slurs, his head lolled onto his shoulder. "Thanks for askin'."

It's been hours since we trapped ourselves in this room. I can tell, not only because of the way my stomach has begun to roil with hunger and my mouth has gone dry like two pieces of sandpaper rubbing against each other, but because of poor T-Dog. His bald head is slathered in sweat, the droplets sliding down his face as if he's sitting under a showerhead, but I know it's the work of the germs inside his body.

Dad, Merle, and I saw this hitch-hiker get bitten back in the beginning, while we were staying with this group of people whose supplies we ended up stealing. They was the types to pick up needy travellers on the side of the road, even if they'd just been bitten.

Merle wanted to kill the guy when he found out, but it only took half a day for the bite on the man's leg to do it for him.

"I think we gotta start thinkin' about—," My Dad cuts himself off, before muttering, "What we gon' do."

"We wait here until somebody finds us," T-Dog insists, repeating the plan they had came up with hours ago. The walkers won't leave us alone with him bleeding all over the floor the way he is, and to go out there would be suicide. "It can't be much longer, now."

"I'm—," Dad sighs. "I ain't talkin' about the walkers, T. You know I ain't."

He nods his head in jerky movements.

"I-I know," He says.

"I'on think they're gonna find us before it matters." His way of saying, Before you turn. "I— I can't have you in here with Harley."

When T-Dog doesn't have anything to say in reply, Dad forces himself to continue. "So... I got a bullet or a bolt. That's where we're at."

"No." He adjusts himself against the wall, lifting his head to look him in the eye. "I don't want you to."

"I know," He placates. "I'm sor—"

"I'mma do it myself," He says matter-of-factly. "I'm a man of God. It might be a sin to take myself out, but I'll be damned if I fought this hard and got this far, only to let another man kill me. Even if he's my brother. So, I'm doin' this on my own terms. It has to be me."

Stomaching his words, my Dad slowly nods to himself, before he sends me a sympathetic look.

T-Dog bides his time for a couple more hours by telling us what must be every story he has, but it's after he throws up into the corner of the room that it becomes obvious to us that we just can't afford to wait any longer for the group to find us.

"We ain't gonna be sappy about this," T-Dog warns us as he sits back down, wiping his mouth.

"C'mon. You're one'a the sappiest bastards I know," Dad deadpans. "And I know a lotta sappy bastards."

"I guess I just always wanted to go out in a blaze of glory, if I had to."

"You don't want yer last moments to be with us?"

Coughing up a laugh, T-Dog jokes, "I didn't say that."

I almost want to ask him to wait just one more minute — That's not a long time. He could do it — and after that minute passes, I'd ask him again. I know it wouldn't save his life if the group found us right now, but I wouldn't be asking for them, or even for him. I'd be asking for myself. Selfishly, I want just one more minute with him. What if—? What if he didn't get any sicker? What if he turns out fine?

It's a question only a fool would ask, and I know all I can do now is appreciate all the thousands of minutes he had before this.

"Okay," He sighs, reaching behind him, pulling out his gun and resting it in his lap, staring down at it. "This is it."

It ain't how my Momma did it, but it's just as awful.

"We could still wait," My Dad suggests, giving him an out I know he won't take. "If they find us, they find us. If they don't—..."

"You heard me, man. Blaze of glory." He looks up at us, his sweaty fingers gently curled around the gun. For the first time since the door closed, he meets my gaze, but he just looks tired, like he could use a long, peaceful sleep. "This is gonna be hard. I'm sorry."

I watched Shane die in front of me, watched him bleed much the same way. At least this time, I'll get the chance to close my eyes.

"You're a tough girl," He gulps. "You been through more shit than most."

"Thought'chu said we wasn't gonna be sappy," I complain, just to get him to stop.

"The first time I saw you, I just knew you were gonna be a lil' terror." He continues, anyway. "Dale, too. Said he knew you'd make it."

Dale always did say the darndest things. The only reason I've made it this far is because of other people. I ain't no clueless airhead can't skin no animal or kill no walker, but my beatin' heart can be accredited to a small group of people, one that includes T-Dog. There's been countless times where I should'a died and didn't, and this is one of them times that somebody else shouldn't be dying, but is.

I ain't special. Just because I ain't died yet don't mean everybody else can't still be alive, too. My Dad says, Ain't no such thing as good or bad luck. Just strong people, but T-Dog ain't weak and there is such a thing as bad luck.

"I thought you would, too," I tell him, hoping it's some sorta comfort.

"C'mere," Dad mumbles, helping me climb into his lap and rubbing his big hand between my shoulder blades as I press my brow to his neck, squeezing my eyes shut. He takes out my hearing aids, and after that, I don't open my eyes for the next few hours.

Like this, I can pretend it didn't happen.

But I can still smell the gunpowder in the air.

"Hush little baby, don't say a word," My Dad's voice rasps quietly in my ear, "Daddy's gonna buy you a mockingbird."

I've never wanted to leave a room more than I want to leave this one in my entire life. If I could, I think I'd claw my way out.

"And if that mockingbird don't sing, Daddy's gonna buy you a diamond ring."

The singing helps. It don't make the smell any more bearable, but it helps.

"And if that diamond ring turns brass, Daddy's gonna buy you a looking glass."

One more minute, I tell myself just like I wanted to tell T-Dog, one more minute, and then another after that. The others have an entire prison to search for us in, with twists and turns every few feet, dust in the air and walkers lining the corridors, and I can't even guarantee they ain't already dealing with the deaths of any of our other people, but I know they'll refuse to stop until they find us.

I keep replaying the scene of the courtyard in my head, remembering everyone who I saw made it out.

"And if that looking glass gets broke," He sings, "Daddy's gonna buy you a billy goat."

Sometime later, I realize I've managed to block out the sound of the incessant groaning because there's suddenly another noise amongst it all — A grunt too pronounced to come from a walker, then a squelch and a dull thud, like a sack of flour dropping to the floor.

Lifting my head from Dad's shoulder, I look at the door as the groaning becomes lesser and lesser until it disappears.

"They're here. They're here," I say in shock, climbing off Dad's lap just as the door is opened.

"Holy shit," Glenn exclaims as Maggie wraps her arms around me, returning my brutal hug. "You're here."

"We drew them away," She says, pressing a kiss to my cheek. "Oh, I can't believe it. We searched everywhere for y'all."

It's when she pulls away that I make the mistake of following her and Glenn's gazes into the corner of the room, where T lay exactly where I last saw him, the only difference being that his brains are now plastered against the wall in the shape of a flower.

"Don't look," Dad gently scolds me, turning me back around so I'm facing the door.

She stares at the carnage, her lips slightly parted without knowing what to say, before she has to look away, too. "What happened?"

"He got bit," Dad mutters. It's impossible to recount what we just went through in any poetic way, and the rest, they can guess.

"Horrible," She croaks.

"We can come back for him later," Glenn struggles to say, urging all of us outta the room. "Let's get you two back to the cell block."

"Is everyone okay?" I ask him desperately.

As the door closes on T-Dog, Glenn gazes down at me, his face just as exhausted-looking as Dad's, but with a slight glint in his eyes.

"Everyone's okay," He manages to smile, glancing at Maggie before he adds, "Even the new baby."

I look up at my Dad, his shock mirroring mine. "Lori had her baby?"

And that right there is good luck.

Glenn steps over a body. "Come on."

Author's Note.

In exchange for T-Dog's especially intense death, Lori lives.

I went over SO many iterations for this chapter after receiving a comment suggesting I consider letting Lori and T-Dog live, and honestly, this version was the most suitable one. I decided the other versions were either just too indulgent or didn't fit with the story, but I liked them, too 😭

Thank you to ermynee, because without them/you, Lori would also be dead right now!

I hated doing that to T-Dog, but I thought it would make for an interesting non-canon scene and wanted to balance out the fact that Lori lives. You'll see also that Carol doesn't get lost, so the whole 'getting stuck and being found' situation was given to these guys instead. RIP T-Dog.

Thank you for reading. Always appreciate you! 💙

@poetoflawed

[sdvbraindump]

Soooo... before I started Meteorite, I had another fanfic called Head Over Heels that I was working on. It was more canon to the Stardew Valley game with minor changes (I actually made Clint likable and less creepy haha). I call this fic more suitable for Wattpad because of how fluffy it gets.

Meteorite started as an idea off of Head Over Heels when I thought of it as what if the farmer and Shane knew each other but it didn't make sense to the story. So here we are!

Inspired by @maylilithreign tag earlier I want to share some of that story. Below is an excerpt from that fic (1285 words). Head Over Heels is set in a different AU than Meteorite with completely different characters.

This scene takes place after Shane visits the farmer Laney after his 6-heart event when he says he's going to see a therapist. Laney invites Shane for coffee and they talk.

I'll come back to this one day. It's also a long fic but Meteorite is really fun for me now. Once that's complete I'll probably go back and finish this. And yes there's also angst and smut in it too.

CW: panic attacks, anxiety, discussion of mental health

The two sat together on Laney’s porch, looking out over the farm, as they spoke. Shane did his best to make small talk as he asked her how the farm was. In reality, he was feeling anxious. He listened as she spoke while the feeling of dread was taken over his mind. But at the same time, he was also enjoying her company. He smiled a little as he listened to Laney’s progress with her coop and chickens.

“They seem to be happy,” she said, looking into her mug. “I was able to pick up one yesterday. They used to run from me.”

“It sounds like you’re doing well with the chickens,” Shane said before taking a sip. “If you keep this up they should be able to give you large eggs soon.”

“Well thank you for the tips. I know I can look it up online or read from a book. But think it’s better to get this info directly from an expert.”

“I’m not an expert. I learned from trial and error as well as research.”

“Yes, but you still need to be able to do everything right. Marnie says you’re the Chicken Whisperer.”

“Buh,” he said. “It’s easier to deal with chickens than people at times.” He stared out into the farm. “They don’t judge or make things difficult.” Shane looked down on the ground. “You must think I’m weird to think like that.”

“No, I get it. It’s like crops in a way.”

Shane continued to look at the ground. “You must think I’m pathetic after you found me in the woods.” He quietly said. “I’m nothing compared to you and what you got here.”

Laney shook her head in his direction, even though he didn’t see. “I don’t think anything like that at all.”

He ignored her comment. “You know, the name 'Shane' means 'Gift from Yoba.’ What a joke.” He snorted and finished the rest of his coffee in one gulp. “Sorry for dumping on you. I don’t expect you to understand.”

Laney slowly placed her mug on the step below her and stared out into the field. She took a deep breath before she spoke. “A month before I moved here, I had a severe panic attack at work. It was so bad that I had to go to the ER. I’ve had minor anxiety attacks in the past but this was my first full-blown panic attack. It was like I couldn’t breathe and my heart wouldn’t stop racing.”

Shane looked over at Laney when she said panic attack. She didn’t turn to him as she continued.

“And to be honest with you, I don’t even know what brought it on. Maybe I was overthinking something for work or stressing about my life. I don’t remember what happened. It’s like I blacked out.” She sighed to herself. “How pathetic does that sound?”

“That’s not pathetic at all,” he insisted.

She put her head to the ground as she continued. “I’ve had anxiety since I was in middle school, and it’s increased as I got older. Luckily I had my older brother to help me deal with it when we were in school, but I can’t continue to rely on him to be there for me as an adult. He has his own life to deal with. A little after my panic attack, my dad got an offer from Joja to buy this land but he refused since my grandfather left the property to me and my brother. So we decided that I should move here for a year to see if we should keep this farm. Kind of like I ran away from my problems in the city.”

Laney kept her attention on the ground. “I don’t know exactly the pain you’re dealing with Shane, and to be honest I don’t think I ever will. I bet you think I’m some overly confident person who has everything figured out. It’s all an act. I know what it feels like to be in a hole so deep and dark that you feel you’ll never get out of it. You feel that the darkness surrounding you is so much that even if you take one step forward to get yourself out you’d fall 5 steps behind. You feel like no matter what happens it’s going to end up bad so you don’t want to try.”

Shane looked at her, taken back at her statement. “You remember our talk that night?”

Laney nodded before continuing. “But since I came here I’ve seen a little bit of light coming through that darkness. And I like to think that every day I’m here the light gets bigger and stronger. Still have a long way to go but know I will get there someday. And maybe one day I won’t need to fake it.”

She turned her attention to him. “I know it is easier said than done, but I know you can pull yourself out of that abyss.”

He snorted. “Nice to see you have such high hopes for me.”

“And why shouldn’t I?”

He hesitated. “Do you really think I can do it?”

Laney stared right at him, her violet eyes sparkling. “If you didn’t you wouldn’t have asked me to take you to the hospital. You would have told me to leave you.”

Shane’s eyes grew big. “Maybe I was just too drunk.”

She shook her head. “You need to give yourself more credit.” She leaned closer. “Shane, I know you have the strength to do it. Marnie and Jas do as well. And I know you don’t think of me as a friend, but I believe in you.”

Shane felt something inside him as she said that. He didn’t know if it was surprise or relief, but it was the first time in a while that he felt that someone wasn’t judging him. She sounded like she was genuinely understanding. The look in her eyes wasn’t pity or disgust but encouragement.  He leaned over, not taking his eyes off her.

Laney felt herself getting nervous as she was close enough to get a good look at him. She saw that his eyes were actually green instead of the dark brown she always assumed. He looked calm as he stared at her. He’s actually kind of cute despite everything, she thought as she studied his face.

The two didn’t say anything as they stared at each other. Shane leaned closer to her until they were interrupted by a ringtone.

“Oh!” Laney leaned back and immediately stood up. She turned away from him to hide her blushing face. “I forgot, I have a call this morning!”

Shane also turned away from her and covered his face with his fist to hide he was also blushing. “You should take it. I need to head out anyway.” He quickly stood up and put his mug on the porch step, still covering his face. 

“Are you sure? You can stay! It shouldn’t take that long.”

“No it’s fine!” Shane started walking away from the house. “I’ll see you around.” He didn’t turn around as he waved goodbye, still covering his face.

Laney watched him walk away, feeling guilty all of a sudden. Her thoughts were interrupted again by her ringtone and she reluctantly pulled her phone out of her back pocket. She answered the call while she did her best to calm down.

Shane rushed to the bus stop once he was off the farm. He tried to calm himself down but Laney’s words kept replaying in his head. He put his hands to face as he tried to compose himself. 

“Did I really just try to kiss her?” Shane asked out loud to no one. 

[garbagefarm]

Garbage Farm (#1–#4)

Okay, I’ve started doing some archaeology to reconstruct session numbers for Garbage Farm!

Cast:

me (@mothmute)

E.B. (@salamand3rin​)

Kimi (@2kimi2furious​)

Session #1 for Garbage Farm took place on 2020-01-03, before I started taking notes for each session. All I’ve got on-hand is the following, from a few days later:

I realized something important!

George’s horrifying Cola Casserole … is made with baking soda. 👈👈

He will forever be Mr. Cola Casserole in my mind. Whatever else I might learn about him, I will always be thinking, “this is the guy who publicly announced that he wanted somebody to bring him a cola for his casserole. (a casserola, if you will.)”

why?

is he honest-to-god so incompetent in the kitchen that he would just … do that? did he mean that he wanted to have cola with his casserole? is this just some kind of power move, clowning on the rest of the town?

This will forever haunt me.

George put out a “help wanted” quest for some Joja Cola to use in a casserole, and I still have not forgotten this.

E.B. commented, “George’s Famous Cola Casserole is 1000% a power move. Nobody fucks with George.”

Session #2 took place on 2020-01-15, notes starting to materialize:

Good progress on garbage!

Bunch of progress on bundles, 2/3 backpacks, defeated Eggs, hit level 20 in the mines. Built a bridge.

everything is coming up Garbage.

[edit: future goals?]

third backpack, start upgrading tools, acquire Bird? Consider starting additional industries?  I can make tappers, now.

(defeat the ocean.)

Session #3 on 2020-01-20:

Upgraded a couple tools, built a silo, made it deeper into the mines, survived the flower dance, made it to summer

we don’t talk about the cauliflower

Followed by “Goals for Garbage Farm IV,” the first proper list:

soup

coop

(and associated birds)

plant for summer. I’m thinking we mostly lean hard on melons, peppers, and blueberries, with a side of corn

Melons can be big!

The Spirits demand quality melons!

Also, they’re apparently a loved gift for Penny

(seems worth befriending, at least)

Peppers are a bundle item

They’re also a loved gift for Shane

(who somebody has intentions towards)

Blueberrie$$$

Corn is a bundle item for fall as well?? since it overlaps seasons, may as well start it early to get the most $$$ out of it

The Spirits demand quality corn!

The Spirits demand a single tomato. sigh. fine.

(they also want a poppy. sigh, fine.)

(and a sunflower! but that can wait ‘til fall.)

(wheat can wait ‘til fall, too)

Lake and Ocean fish bundles should be doable

incidentally, looks like high-quality Sturgeon are among the best possible contributions to The Soup? after we get things planted, let’s coordinate an assault on the mountain lake.

(we might also want to catch a couple sturgeon for caviar production later on? that’s a thing now)

(Since I have an upgraded watering can, I am Designated Water-er)

continue checking the beach for mussels in order to cheese the crabpot bundle

I’ve been hitting some low-level caves in search of crab to help that, too

somebody should befriend Caroline in search of Tea

more tool upgrades?

begin plotting for upgraded house?

tapping trees maybe? we’ll see how they grow.

check the cart every. single. time. in hopes of redemption.

And we finally get an actual post-game writeup for Session #4, on 2020-01-26:

couple minor Melon Mishaps, but nothing on the scale of the C********* Catastrophe.

I defeated the requisite (rude) fish for Perfect Soup

We have two chicks; one name is cute, the other is dumb. you be the judge.

Sir Cluck

Eggbutt

The Garbage Hat has made an appearance! Truly we are blessed.

romance in the air

That’s all for this record of Garbage Farm History— ‘til next time!!

[acepalindrome]

I’ve spent much of 2021 thus far playing Stardew Valley in the hopes of distracting myself from the horrors of reality, and I keep meaning to make a list of mods I recommend! Because I am running a truly embarrassing number of mods and there are some really great ones that really improve the gameplay or add fun content or just make everything look really pretty! So without further ado, here are some of my favorite mods:

- Lookup Anything: This is probably my favorite mod. It basically eliminates the need to have to keep consulting the Stardew Valley wiki while you play. The title says it all: this mod lets you look up anything. Need to know what’s a good present for Shane? You can pull up a list of all his loved and liked gifts, with items you have on hand highlighted for ease, plus his birthday, how many hearts he has with you and how many points you need to get to the next heart. Need to know if you should hoard that pine sap or sell it? You can pull up all the uses for it, items that can be crafted with it, anyone who might like it, community center bundles it’s used for, and how much you make by selling. How many days until your melons are ready to harvest? What items can drop from that stone in the mines? What are all the items you can make with the furnace? It’s such a fantastically handy mod and I refuse to play without it!

- NPC Map Locations: One of the most frustrating things in the game is trying to remember everyone’s schedule and then not being able to find someone to give them a birthday present or turn in a quest item. This mod shows exactly where everyone is on your map and solves that problem for good!

- Automate: This mod automatically pulls items from nearby chests into machines, so you don’t have to keep running back and forth to your furnace to pick up the finished metal bars and toss more ore in there...it just spits the finished item back into the nearby chest, pulls in whatever available items you’ve got in the chest and starts running again without you having to do a thing! Just be careful of where you place your chests and machines or you might end up processing items you didn’t want to. Luckily, you can set individual chests to not have items pulled from them.

- Fishing Made Easy Suite: I suck at fishing. I almost never bother with fishing if I don’t have a mod to make it bearable. I like this one because it has different levels of easy-ness, so you can make fishing just 25% easier, or 50%, or 75%, or 99%! And there are some other fun perks too. You want to catch all fish regardless of weather or season? Want to catch legendary fish multiple times? Want to catch prismatic shards? Go nuts.

- Stardew Valley Expanded: This mod is absurdly huge and adds SO MUCH CONTENT. New areas! New characters! New events! I was a little hesitant to start it just because I knew there was so much to the mod and was a little concerned of how well it would mesh with the rest of the game, but the characters and story and style fit in perfectly with the vanilla content. I could almost forget Andy and Sophia weren’t there all along! The purpose of the mod was to make the game feel fresh and new for people who had already played the game and that’s exactly what it does. I love it.

- Artisan Valley/Project Populate JsonAssets/Starbrew Valley: I’m lumping these together but this is a collection of mods that add a TON of new items, crops, trees, flowers, machines and recipes to the game. You don’t have to download them all! You can pick and choose the ones you want, or download the PPJA content pack to get the bulk of these mods all in one go! I personally really love Artisan Valley because it lets me make floral candles and soaps. And an espresso machine so I can make fancy coffee. And Starbrew Valley so there’s actually a fun variety of alcohol in the game.

I’m putting the rest under a cut because this is getting too long.

- Chests Anywhere: Lets you access all of your chests from the menu! You can add some limitations, like only being able to access chests in the same location you’re in, but I’m dumb and constantly forget that I was supposed to bring a present for a villager with me today, or that I wanted to upgrade one of my tools but left all my metal bars at home. So instead of having to run all the way back to my farm, I can just open my menu and switch through the chests until I find the item I need! Labeling the chests also makes this a lot easier for organization.

- Seasonal Villager Outfits: Finally, the villagers have more than one set of clothes! This mod gives them different outfits in different seasons, different weather and special outfits for holidays! It’s cute and really improves the immersion to see the villagers wearing tshirts in the summer and bundling up in the winter, and dressing up for special events! Some characters will change their hairstyle too, which I love.

- Canon-Friendly Dialogue Expansion: Gives all characters more stuff to say so they won’t just repeat the same lines over and over! Also gives them varied dialogue for festivals starting in year 2, so they don’t say the same thing every year at the Egg Festival or Spirit’s Eve.

- Immersive Elliott: Add more dialogue! Lots more dialogue! I downloaded the Elliott version of this mod because that’s who I plan to marry but I recommend looking up dialogue mods for whoever your favorite characters are (I think there’s one for almost all the marriageable candidates.) You’ll probably be chatting a lot with whoever you’re trying to woo and it’s nice to get lots of new lines!

- Stardew Foliage Redone: There are tons of mods that change the colors and style of trees and buildings and stuff but this one is my favorite. It’s very soft and earthy and pretty without being overkill.

- The Love of Cooking: Actually makes cooking fun in Stardew Valley! It adds a cooking skill, an upgradable cooking tool that lets you cook with more ingredients (at the start you can only make one ingredient dishes), a cooking community center bundle, star levels to cooked items, an animation when you cook...cooking was very bland in the base game, and this mod really spruces the whole system up.

- Medieval Buildings/Medieval craftables: Again, there are so many mods that change up the look of your farm buildings and stuff but these are really pretty and cool and absolutely my style. There’s a mod to make all the town buildings have this style too, but I kind of like keeping the town normal and just living on my mysterious and beautiful farm apart from the rest of the world. My sprinklers are magic moss covered rocks now!

- Elle’s Dog/Cat/Horse/Barn/Coop/etc animals: Super cute animal skins. They look so huggable and soft. Also one of the dog options looks like my real life dog and that’s very important to me.

- Adopt ‘n’ Skin: Pairs well with the mods above, this mod lets you have multiple dogs/cats/horses and lets you use as many different skins as you like. I’ve got four cows and they’ve all got different patterns and colors. I love it. Also Marnie starts taking in stray animals and you can adopt them from her, which is a really cute way of letting you have more pets.

- Seasonal Garden Farmhouse: Its a pinch overkill especially in the early game, but I really like this farmhouse layout. It gives you a small kitchen from the start, a bathroom you can use to restore stamina, big open windows that change with the seasons and time of day...it’s a luxury house and it’s very nice to live in!

- Industrial Kitchen and Interior/Industrial Furniture/Rustic Country Town Interiors: These mods give the interiors and furniture a more rustic style, and the last one changes the town interiors to match. There are many furniture/interior mods, so if this style doesn’t do it for you, check out some of the others! There are lots of very pretty mods!

And I’m going to stop there but that’s only the tip of the iceberg and I highly recommend looking around NexusMods or ModDrop and seeing what kind of stuff is available!

[sdv-mostly-shane]

My favorite thing about Shane is that he is canonically the shortest bachelor.

Honestly I love it, It just fits his vibe-especially because my HC is that he’s built like a brick. My favorite depictions of him are when the artist adds some fluff and pudge to him.

I can just picture him being the perfect height to squeeze into Charli’s coop to lay down and nap with him.

Shane is the grumpy little chicken man

Don’t rest your elbow on his shoulder or he’ll clock you

Can you just picture him calling Sam over to help stock the top shelves that he can’t reach in the Joja Mart

And Sam never minds because he is the personification of a golden retriever and just wants to be friends with this small angry man

Also Jas asking Shane to pick the flower blossom from the big tree in Cindersnap Forest

And Shane-knowing he can’t reach-picks her up onto his shoulders for her to pick instead

And she giggles and brushes her little fingers through his hair and bends down to give him a kiss on his forehead

He doesn’t put her down for a solid half hour and they take a tour around the lake like that

My heart

[itslikethesizeofmy]

Yes I’m bipolar and yes I will insert it into everything as a way to accept and cope. TW for depressive episodes and a little shouting.

Blackberry Jam

Shane x Male Farmer. Angsty. 539 words. Read on AO3.

I hear knocking on my door, but don’t move to answer it. When the knocking doesn’t stop, I yell to whoever it is, telling them the door is open.

“Hey, uh…”

Shane sees me sat in front of the TV, a bag of chips haphazardly ripped open next to me. His eyes drift to the kitchen, and I know he can see the pile of dirty dishes and food wrappers. I know he can also see the grease in my hair when he looks back to me.

“Marnie said you hadn’t stopped by in a while, and nobody has seen you around town, so…” he tells me, rubbing the back of his neck. “Um… you good?”

“I’m having an episode,” I mumble, trying to be nonchalant about the situation.

“An episode of what, Frankie? ‘Livin’ off the Land’ reruns?” he asks, gesturing to the TV. I grumble and make myself move, brushing him aside to go outside, leaving my shoes on the mat. “Hey, I’m just—”

“I know, okay?” I snap at him. “I know you’re just checking on me. It’s fine, I’ll be fine, it’ll all pass.”

“You can’t just sit there all day,” Shane replies, following me outside. “Have you been taking care of yourself?”

“I’m fine, the farm is fine, the chickens are fine,” I gesture to my patch of crops and my chickens pecking at the dirt. “You’re not the only one with problems, Shane.”

“Fine,” he shouts before going back inside my home.

I grimace as he slams the door before growling to myself. The chickens follow me into the coop, clucking at me as I rearrange and clean for the second time today, being careful with my bare feet.

“What a way to fuck up, huh girls?” I sigh after letting myself cool down, and quietly make my way back inside the house.

I see Shane standing in my kitchen, silently finishing washing my pile of dishes, drying them with a clean cloth he must have pulled out of a drawer. I swallow before meeting him in the kitchen, guiltily wiping my feet on the mat. He glances at me before turning back to the dishes, and relaxes when I rest my forehead on his shoulder as he puts the silverware back in their drawer.

“I’m sorry,” I tell him. “I’m having a hard time right now.”

“Clearly,” he states, wiping down the countertop.

“I can’t… I’m on medication, but that doesn’t stop it. You can’t get rid of bipolar,” I explain to him. “No medication, no amount of therapy, no homeopathic bullshit, will ever make me better. I just have to ride the waves sometimes.”

“You could have called,” he says quietly, leaning over the sink.

“What would I say? I can’t do the dishes right now? I can’t cook or get enough energy to shower? All I want to eat are potatoes and toast? It’s not that easy…”

“I know,” he sighs. “I know it’s not.”

“I wasn’t ready to tell you,” I mumble into his hoodie. “I didn’t think I would have to tell you, or that you would have to see me like this.”

“Well, I guess we’re even now,” he smirks.

“Yeah, I guess we are.”

[stardew-saloon]

Weird headcannon request: what would your favorite villagers do in an apocalypse

Listen listen listen. I fucking love anything to do with the apocalypse, especially when zombies are involved. So I’ll write about that !!

This one took a while, sorry ! I wanted to include at least all of the bachelors, and then bachelorettes in another post maybe if I’m not lazy.

Also I follow someone on my other account and I really liked how they like, used different colors to highlight names, so I think I’m gonna do that ! It’s just cute okay :)

Bachelors in the Apocalypse

Alex

Alex thinks of himself as the most ready for the apocalypse. He’s got what he and his family need to survive for months. Food, weapons (Mostly just old baseball bats), clothes, and the Will to Survive.

The zombies probably come from Zuzu city. City people are dumb and get infected right when the virus hits. Everyone in SDV is safe. For now, at least.

Alex, unlike the other villagers, refuses to interact with anyone but his grandparents. He keeps contact extremely limited with people. The only time he ever interacts is when he goes to drop off cookies at Haley’s house, per Evelyn’s request.

He does miss his best friend, though. He misses everyone. He misses that time where he didn’t hear zombies going around the town, banging on doors and smacking their heads against windows. It sucks!

Alex takes a number of zombies down. He’s easily one of the toughest bachelors, plus he’s super strong. He wants to eventually take out all of them, make the valley a safe haven like it used to be. There’s still a long ways to go, but he’s slowly making progress.

His grandparents, especially Evelyn, help out by cooking for him and others. Alex helps out other villagers by dropping off little care-packages. It’s cute! It’s also his way of keeping in contact with everyone and making sure they’re okay.

Alex is the one in a zombie apocalypse movie to survive until the end. He makes the smartest choices and keeps his family safe. He can’t afford to lose anyone else.

Harvey

As a doctor, Harvey’s first thought when he hears about the zombie apocalypse is that he needs to find a cure.

And so he tries to. For about a week. Maru is in the office with him for a while, going back and forth from her house to the doctor’s office. It’s tough experimenting on zombies and it feels.. wrong.

Even though they’re a zombie, Harvey knows that there’s a person in there. Was a person. So he gives up on the cure and instead focuses on keeping the citizens healthy.

Harvey is a goddamn tank. Were he to be partnered with Alex, the zombies would be gone within two days. However, they have different concerns. Alex keeps the zombies away from the valley, and Harvey keeps them away from houses.

They have a good system. Harvey goes around the houses to do checkups, trying to keep some form of order in the new world. He makes sure the oldies stay healthy, despite being cooped up, and that the people that are out fighting stay un-zombieified.

I think Harvey would almost last to the end, but makes a careless mistake and gets bit. Fortunately, a cure comes around! He still did research on the zombies during the apocalypse, and his notes came in handy.

Elliott

You’d think by now that Elliott would be used to being cooped up in his house. He’s practically a hermit! The only time he used to go out was to sit by the ocean or see Leah at the bar.

Now that he has to stay in, he doesn’t like it. It’s the same as all of us with quarantine. Elliott never went out much before, but now that he can’t, he wants to.

He feels like dying of boredom within a week. Fortunately, the sense of impending doom creates a good writing atmosphere. He finishes at least three books during the span of the apocalypse.

However, Elliott isn’t very smart about his survival. He either forgets to eat the food that Alex drops off, or eats it before the week is up. It’s tough.

Eventually, Elliott decides he can’t survive on his own like this. He feels like he’s going mad. It makes for nice poetry, but for now, he needs to prioritize his health.

So he makes his way to Leah’s! He figures it’s probably a good idea. Nobody ever said that you couldn’t hang out with friends, or stay with them.

While going to Leah’s, he’s not very careful with avoiding any zombies. He’s not attacked, but he is followed. Leah let’s him in of course, and then end up holed up in her house. She’s lucky enough to have the forest near her house, so she can rely on that.

Elliott probably trips up somewhere and ends up dying first, joining the rest of the zombies. He’s not very good at being a zombie, though. Which might be for the best! He doesn’t run around very much and usually just hangs back by himself.

Sam

Sam thinks he’s going to be good at the whole apocalypse thing. He’s like “I’ve played enough first-person shooter zombie games to know how to fight them off.” Then the second he’s put into combat, he falters and doesn’t know what to do.

Lucky for him, Jodi is good at fighting. Kent knows how to defend the house. Vincent knows how to ask dozens of questions about what’s going on.

And Sebastian knows how to sneak into Sam’s window at night when they haven’t seen each other in a while. They still try and keep close, but most of their conversations are over the phone. It gets lonely, sometimes.

Sam isn’t necessarily smart about the apocalypse because he doesn’t need to be. He feels bad about relying on his parents, but you would too if you had his kickass parents.

He knows how to keep Vincent safe! Vincent is taken out at least once a week, mostly to see Jas. He misses her a lot. Sam likes to see Shane, too! He misses working with his buddy, even if his body was a grouchy alcoholic that waved him off whenever Sam got within ten feet of him. Good times.

Sam really wants things to be normal again, so he tries to stick with Alex whenever he sees him out. They’re good at fighting, but Sam is very chatty and often gets distracted by other things.

Other things are usually Abigail waving out of her window and whisper-shouting for Sam. Sometimes she’ll whip out the Samson!!! just to get his attention. It usually works. Alex will take a minute just to tease him.

Sam either survives until the end of the apocalypse, or dies about halfway through while on his many night trips to see Sebastian and Abigail.

Sebastian

Apocalypse? He doesn’t even know her.

Sebastian’s life is literally the exact same. Aside from hearing less people upstairs, nothing has changed about his life. Demetrius is upstairs working on a cure or something (Seb tuned out the second he started talking) and Maru goes off with Harvey sometimes.

He heard Robin say something about building a wall or something to keep the zombies out. He wasn’t planning to help very much, seeing as the others mom and some other villagers wanted to help out. Really, the only place the zombies are coming in is through the tunnel for the bus, so if they block that off, they’ll be fine.

Sebastian is more focused on other things. Like staying in contact with Sam and Abigail to make sure that they’re still kicking. Demetrius doesn’t let anyone outside of the house, so Sebastian sneaks everywhere, whether it’s outside to go smoke or to see his friends.

He’s pretty good at fighting, though. He can defend himself a whole lot better than Sam, who he thoughts would have more experience. They both thought his video game theory was true because they’re both dummies.

Those few times where Seb does get out of the house, he’s like a zombie killing machine. It’s too bad he’s doesn’t do it very often. He’s good at sneaking around, too. Those years of tiptoeing around the house to avoid his stepdad yelling at him are really paying off.

Honestly, the whole apocalypse could end and the zombies could dissapear, and Sebastian would have no idea. He'd still be down in the basement, messaging his friends and working on his coding.

Or, for a worse ending, zombies could storm his house, saving him for last, and he wouldn’t know until it was too late and he was surrounded by a horde.

I think Seb would end up surviving, though. He’s not necessarily good at the apocalypse, he’s just good at avoiding it.

Shane

When Shane thought about sobering up, he never imagined he’d have to do it like this. The apocalypse is pain in the ass for him.

He stays with Marnie and Jas, rarely leaving the property. He doesn’t like being holed up inside for so long because then he’s just alone with his thoughts, so Jas keeps him going most of the time.

As much as he hates to admit it, he misses his old life. He hated being employed at Joja, but it gave him something to do. And yeah, he misses his annoying coworker. Lucky for him, he gets to see him one a week when Sam and Vincent pop in.

Shane can act like he’s annoyed all he wants, but now? It’s he apocalypse. Why should he be so bitter?

I’m not going to say that the apocalypse changes Shane’s attitude, but he definitely has some revelations about himself that he wouldn’t have had under different circumstances.

Shane doesn’t like fighting zombies. Not as much as Alex does, anyways. But he still helps him out if it’s ever necessary. Shane is infinitely better at defending than he is attacking. He makes sure to keep the zombies away from their house, and the town in general.

Sometimes, Marnie will ask him to deliver stuff to Leah’s house, or Sam’s since they’re awfully close. It feels like a job to him, so he actually enjoys it. He’s surprised to see Elliott at Leah’s and immediately assumes they’re banging. He doesn’t ask any questions, though. He doesn’t care.

Shane probably ends up dying after a tiny mistake that could’ve easily been avoided. He doesn’t see it as that bad, since Jas is still safe. That was all that mattered to him, really. He either dies after a few months, or an entire year into the apocalypse. Either way he does not go down easily.

I would like everyone to know that I wrote these thinking that Lewis holes himself up in his house and does not help anyone out, so they kick him out and elect Alex as mayor. It was a silly thought I had, but then I just went with it.

Alex for Mayor 2020.

It’s not necessarily like, an official position, but they all kinda trust Alex to protect them, so he just assumes the position. He’s not the smartest, which is why Penny was elected to be Vice-Mayor (Alex’s words). They do a good job running the place.

Anyways that’s all! Hope you enjoyed! Sorry this took so long, it was a lot to write hah.

[lovelyblogtime]

The ginger challenge

so as I was driving home, my friend messaged me about a fb post about a thicc and sexy shane, which somehow got me thinking about speedrunning stardew, which got me thinking about this challenge. So it goes as follows:

The farm looks amazing just the way it is, overrun and full of nature. So you decide to keep it that way. You don't care what happens in the cave and you decide to leave any ruins where they are. And eventually you know you're going to upgrade your cabin so you can live in luxury while viewing nature from the outside world.

So how do you make money? Thus the challenge.

1. You can't do anything with your farm besides choosing what goes inside the cave and upgrading your cabin. So no cutting down trees, no planting crops, no cutting down the grass, and no coops/barns. If you choose the beach farm, then you can only keep one package, then rest have to be thrown away.

2. Anything outside the farm is free game. No cheating though. So you can plant crops anywhere that's possible in town or around the mountains. You can put anything anywhere as long as it doesn't disturb any npc (because they'll end up destroying it anyways). You can use the merchant near Marnie to your fullest desire.

3. You can't decorate the house except for a tv and a calender. Any chests you want to put down can only go into the cellar or outside the farm area. Your spouse is allowed to decorate the house any way they like and you can't change it.

The main goal is to 1) open Ginger Island and then 2) Either finish the community center or go the joja way

Ginger Island has to be opened first (cuz that's the name of the challenge), since it's the only land you're allowed to farm on until you finish the main story of the game. Only then can you use your original farm.

So its basically a minimalistic game of stardew done in reverse since we usually finish up the town and stuff before opening ginger island.

Anytime you accidently break the rules, you have to buy the most expensive thing at the traveling merchant and then throw it away.

Anyone can try this challenge and if you do, pls tag me on here or on twitter as @sjluver and use the tags #sdvgingerchallenge

[mxvladdy]

Little Stardew somethin’ somethin’

*Barges into your house with fluff nobody asked for* In this house we LOVE and RESPECT our sad boi and wish him well. 

Hopeful Fluff of Shane getting better. Idk what to call it but I wrote it soooo-

TW: Mentions of alcoholism and withdrawals symptoms 

Mornings were your favorite. The crisp mountain air coming in from your open windows. Helping erase the slight bitter tinge of mead and wine fermenting in your basement before the next festival. Pouring another cup of coffee you watch the sunrise from your kitchen window. It’s golden rays bounce off the river water flowing lazily outside your garden wall. A few fat salmon jumped out teasingly, scales shining in the cool fall air. 

“Whatca think Salem?” You pat your shepherd's head. “Fishing after herding the sheep? Or a horse ride into town? I think Gus has got some new treats for ya.” Salem woofs, wagging his tail once before trotting to his dog bowl. He eats quickly then eyes the back door expectantly. “All right, herding it is.” Checking the breakfast casserole in the oven and peeking in on your boyfriend’s sleeping form you tiptoe out the house to get your morning started before breakfast. 

Watering and harvesting took longer than usual. The fruit trees hung low and groaned under the weight of their labor. The peaches looked exceptional this harvest too. You pick them, making a mental note to preserve some for Evelyn and Abigail then sell the rest to Pierre. After the harvesting and several trips to the storage shed you go to check on all your babies. 

Several new chickens had hatched overnight too. Three brown, a white, and another void. You tuck the little black chick into your hoodie and give it a smooch. As useless as their eggs were for eating you always had a soft spot for these tiny goth chickens. Taking it to the coop you had specially built for your void-born feathered friends you deposit the little one amongst its brethren. It peeps in thanks before waddling off to peck at the fresh feed.

Morning chores done, you jog back to your house hoping your casserole hasn't burned. The house smelled of spiced ham and fresh garlic when you reentered. The rest of the windows open to let in the river breeze and faint scent of your flower patches. The fireplace roared in its corner, chasing away the frosty nip that clung to your cheeks. “Shane?” You follow the noise from the mudroom to the kitchen entrance. 

“Ye?” He poked his head around the corner. Warm brown eyes blink at you blearily. The corners of which were still crusted over with sleep. He must have just rolled out of bed. “Morin’.” He yawns widely scratching at his rumpled old gridball hoodie. Exchanging a brief morning breath laden kiss you smooth down a few of his more wild strands of bed head. 

“Thought you were taking the day off?” Your lips touch again, pulling a happy little hum from him. 

“I am. Just thought I would finish making breakfast so you could put your feet up faster. Plus, I think I finally figured out your ham recipes.” He drags you to your favorite spot at the breakfast nook before going back to the oven. “It’s the clove to cinnamon ratio ain’t it? Too much of either distract from the flavor of the fat.” 

You nod in approval at his deduction. He pours you another cup of coffee, his hand shakes on the carafe handle. He was jittery today. Whether it was his anxiety spiking or just the jitter after a decent night of sleep you don’t know. But he’ll tell you when ready. He catches you staring when he turns back with two steaming plates of your eggs and veggie casserole and a thick slice of ham. “Tell me what you think.” 

“I’m sure it's fabulous. Gus better watch out or there will be a new chef in town.” Shane practically glows at your praise watching you like a hawk as you eat. You inhale it, the morning exercises catching up with you. He lets you eat in silence, his previous twitchiness evaporating into a nervous silence. “Everything good?” You ask in between bites. You hated to pry or push but sometimes he needed a little nudge to get talking. 

Shane stares into empty space above your head worrying his low lip. His fluffy brows dipping low. “Shit-ye- I got something to talk to you about.” He rose then, shuffling off to your shared bedroom. You exchange a worried look with Salem. He whined low in his throat then followed Shane. Since Shane had moved in Salem had stuck to him like glue. It tickled you, as he was not the friendliest dog to people that took your attention away from him. But, with Shane, he found a couch companion and a late-night walking pal. It worked out great for Shane’s mood and recovery. 

Your boyfriend reappeared with a black binder and several stacks of paper. He places them in front of you. “I’ve been thinking over what you’ve said.” He stuffs his hands in his hoodie pockets burrowing himself deeper into the thinning fabric. “Between you and Harvey I-I want to have a go at it.” His eyes are downcast in shame. You riffle through the brochures. 

Brentforest Care Facilities 

“It’s a three-month inpatient care program. Harvey helped me set up the initial psych evaluation and has vetted for it. He’s got some friends that work there too. He-we think it would be good to work on a few hold-ups I’m having.” His stomach turns sour at the downward tug of your lips when you see the zero’s on the page. “Marnie is helping me cover the cost, an’ after the first few weeks I’m even allowed guests.” He pitters out, the overwhelming need to fill the dead air as you read disappeared as quickly as it had come. 

“You got it all sorted out huh?” You look up from the documents. Shane nods. You look back at the books, then him. He forces himself to breathe through his nose. This is it. This was the last straw, it had to be. He couldn’t blame you though- he wasn’t worth the effort. 

No-nope. Not starting this again. He fought with himself shaking the thoughts right out of his head. He trusted you. Dr. Martina trusted you. You were there during the worst of his withdrawal symptoms. The fevers, and shakes; you never flinched from his unwarranted shouting and irritability either. How many sleepless nights had you spent comforting him as he wept over things he wasn’t ready to talk about. You had gone through a lot with him and still was. You wanted to see him healthy. This was just another step. 

“Dr. Martina- my therapist- and I have been working on this for a bit. I just need a few more signatures and to make the initial payment. Then- then I’m good.” He raises his eyes to meet yours, pushing the fear he felt further down in his chest. 

His arms were suddenly filled with you. Your warm body flush with his. Soft skin and fresh windswept hair flooding his senses with your hug. “I’m so proud of you.” You mutter into his jacket. Farm callus fingers grip him close inviting him to hug you back. Shane let out a shaky breath he hadn’t even known he was hiding and reciprocated. He held you close and rocked you both side to side. “What do you need me to do?”

“Mmm?” He pulled you away from his neck. You loved burrowing your face there for some reason. Months ago he had hated when you did that. He always thought he smelt of stale sweat and the recycled air of the JoJo Mart. It had clung to every part of him for years. Hardly attractive by anyone's standards. But now, working out in the coops and fields alongside volunteering at the Community Center, it had all but disappeared. Now you swore he smelled like earth and like the pine trees that grew around your house. You had even admitted his sweat smells better too. Perhaps his alcohol sweats were finally lifting. Or maybe it was the better diet you made him eat. 

“What do you need of me?” You kiss his scruffy cheek. Eyes alight with determination and affection. 

He returns your kiss with a light peck of his own. “A few signatures- to show you can visit. An’ if there was an emergency you would be a contact. If-if that’s ok with you?” He asks.

“As if you had to ask.” You beam putting your forehead to his. “I’ll miss you.” You whisper between feather light kisses.  

Shane sighs in utter relief around your coffee scented lips. “Promise to write?” He asks cupping your cheeks to rub his thumbs over the sun kissed skin. “And feed Charlie too?” You laugh, nose scrunching up in delight at his joke.

You seal the deal with a kiss. 

[stardew-imagines-me]

Could we get some Seb taking care of the void chick fluffy hcs/ficlet pretty please?? ⊂(・﹏・⊂)

"I promise, it'll only be a few weeks. I'm so sorry again, Sebastian, I would've gotten Shane to take care of him but he doesn't get along with the other chicks, and he had his hands full already with the animals in general," You slumped to the side, deflating as you peered at the small black fluff that quietly looked up angrily, bright red eyes glaring daggers at you as much as a little chick could.

"I'll be back as soon as possible. I know it's a lot to ask," You ignored the small huff Void let out in Sebastian's palm, hiding himself in his baby feathers as if to say 'just leave if you're going to give me away'. "But I uh, I really do appreciate it."

The tiny chick had always had a temper since he was young, so you were used to it, as much as it broke your heart.

"I'm sorry little buddy," You tried to coo softly, but Void only shuffled to the edge of Sebastian's palm, as far from you as possible. Don't take it to heart, he's moody. Sebastian looked down, confused at the strange interaction happening right in front of him, but he guessed it was a farmer thing. Whatever, it would be two weeks. Willy takes care of worms in a cup for less, it's nothing.

"Don't.. worry about it, after everything you've done for me, it's the least I could do."

Goodbyes were exchanged uneventfully, embarrassed that the local emo had to see you get rejected by a baby chicken - watching you look back multiple times at the ruffled fluff that stared after you. Okay.. well, it might be a bit more than easy but that's okay.

At least... that's what it should've been.

It took only two days for Sebastian to end up frantically chasing Void around his cluttered room, tripping and falling as he desperately tried to snatch a keyboard key from the fluffy black demon. He seemed to taunt the human as he snuck into the space behind Seb's bed, holding it's prized possession up with pride, buzzing happily as Sebastian gathered himself at the foot of the bed, head in hands and frowning.

It took three hours to get Void to come out from his hideout, the promise of large, juicy earthworms in exchange for the key left both of them somewhat satisfied; sitting on the floor watching the baby munch away as he held the contraband close to his chest. He couldn't begin to imagine what this demon put you through back at the farm.

The next episode happened when Sebastian was laying in bed, wallowing in self doubt and fear of the future as per usual when he felt a tiny nudge at his finger, hand resting on top of his pillow. Irritated, Sebastian lifted his head up to blow air at the chick, wanting to rest and rather not play, but the chick stayed, fluffing itself out as it nudged again at Sebastian's hand. Annoyed, Sebastian lifted his hand up and let it fall over the chicken. Not enough to hurt it of course, but enough to trap it between a cage of fingers.

What he hadn't expected was the the chick didn't fight to escape as it usually did, in fact it did the exact opposite, cuddling into the warmth of Seb's palm and letting out a happy noise. So... Void was cold. It made since, it was still spring and it got cold at nights, it wouldn't be fair to let the chick sleep by itself Sebastian concluded.

Gently, Sebastian brought the chick up and dropped it in the hood of his jacket, letting him make himself at him in the warmth that radiated off of his body and the fabric that encased it all.

"The farmer comes back in a few days, don't you think you're getting a little too attached to that thing, Sebastian?" Demetrius with his morning coffee in hand, raising an eyebrow as the chick chirped and snatched a soggy corn flake from Sebastian's bowl of cereal, they had been doing that for the past 15 minutes.

Sebastian looked up with an unamused expression, "This 'thing' is named Void, and we're just bonding," he bite out, rolling his eyes and passing his baby another corn flake as Demetrius shook his head and walked away.

In a few days, Void would be back with the farmer, resting in his coop with some hay and a heater. No corn flakes, no bed cuddles.. Sebastian felt himself sour again, glancing at the chicken ruffling it's feathers beside him.

He would miss void, even if it was only two weeks of chasing, screaming and stolen items. During the two weeks, the two had taken walks outside, shared an interest in sappy romcoms and jammed out to alternative cyber rock when everyone else was asleep.

His baby would be leaving him, growing up an becoming an adult soon. If he wasn't mad at the universe before, he absolutely was now when they were going to strip him of his only joy in life.

"Sebastian,"

...

"Sebastian?"

"Oh yeah, sorry," The tall male muttered, glancing at you with an uneasy expression, only to watch your own features soften. His emotions weren't worn on his sleeve, they were tattooed to his forehead by the way he cracked a smile and the screaming little bird in his hand, chirping loud and shrill as if scorning you for leaving for so long.

"Yes, I know little one," You agree, offering your hands in surrender as the bird shook it's ruffled feathers and hopped into your own palm. You didn't miss the way Sebastian's smile dropped, sorrow written all over his face.

"I guess it's time for you two to go back to the farm," Seb mumbled again, tucking his hands into his pockets and looking down at the path beneath your feet.

"Ah well..." You begin, placing void on top of your shoulder, accepting the expected hair tug of punishment before it settled down. "I was actually hoping you'd come with me for the afternoon. I got cushions for the chickens and I need to install them into the coops, and this troublemaker can't make it 10 minutes without breaking something."

Sebastian's head shot up, smile blatant and bright. Cute. His hair was messy and the bags under his eyes were darker than you'd ever seen, but he seemed genuinely unbothered by all of it.

"Really?"

"Yeah, you should even stay for dinner. Again, I need to repay you and Shane for the help."

"Let me get shoes," You could help the laugh that fell from your lips as Sebastian bolted away, hearing the happy cluck Void let out in response as well when his other favorite person appeared again, walking along side you two on your way back home.