#i was having fun up until the end of e4

[unamused-kookaburra]

Watching the trailer for totally completely fine: oh fun! a cool little aussie dark comedy!

Finishing the final episode:

[justa-moth]

fun charles rowland fact!

So I was going back through the show and trying to get some gifs of Charles, and I found out something interesting!

I was going back to get a silly funny clip of that ghost guy's head blowing up in E3, and I realized something that I have no idea how I didn't pick up before.

Charles is left handed!

Which I was like, wow! Cool! I don't know how I didn't pick up on that the first time around because I usually get excited over small character details like that, but whatever, right?

(putting the rest of my revelation under a cut lol)

And then on my continuation of said gif quest, I was getting a clip of Charles pulling his cricket bat out at Esther's in E1.

He pulls out his cricket bat and attacks with it with his right hand.

Then I was like, oh cool! He writes with his left, but attacks with his right, that's sick.

But then I wanted to go back to moments I remembered Charles using his cricket bat/other weapons, just to see, and I found out something even more interesting (at least to me).

During both instances in E1 where they have to fight someone, both the WWI ghost and Esther (the gif earlier), Charles uses his right hand for weapons, while drawing the demon sigil with his left (though he does use his right to set the paint brush down at the very end).

(When he cuts the mask off the ghost in their office he does use his left hand, but I'm not counting that because he was physically incapable of grabbing the knife with his right hand at that moment.)

However, despite the two instances of him using his right hand for combat purposes in E1, he seems to use his left in every other instance I can find.

Here's some examples (mainly bc I wanna show off my collection):

(From left to right: Facing the Cat King in E2, Bludgeoning the Night Nurse in E4, Fighting David in E6, and Fighting Esther's Snake in E8) (I didn't mean for these all to be even numbers, I swear 😭😭)

Anyway, when I first was making this post I thought I was gonna find a cute fact out about Charles being ambidextrous fighting wise, but the fact that the only instances I can find of him using his right hand are in E1 is throwing me off.

Did the show originally plan to just have it be "Charles writes with his left and fights with his right" and that be it, but then realize it would be better if he just only ever used his left?

I don't know if that's the case, but I choose to run off with my original "he just uses whichever hand he feels like" theory and running away with it as a headcanon until someone proves me otherwise.

Anyway though, I hope you all found this ramble of a post informative in some kind of way hsdfhkld

[cryingatwindermerepeaks]

i love your yj fics so much😭😭 would you be willing to write one about a very small regressed lottie dealing with some big big feelings (maybe delusions/hallucinations as well) with a cg nat maybe? it would probably make me cry. /pos

Little!Lottie x Cg!Nat - hold me, console me

Regressuary day 27 … thank you for this request it was insanely fun to write!! Sorry I haven’t edited it at all, I’ll do it when I have more energy.

Set at the end of s2 e4 after Nat and Lottie go hunting

cw: violent stimming, unintentional self harm, blood, distress, panic attack, visions, bad thoughts, let me know if there’s something I’ve forgotten !!

Word count: 1199

��————————

Except for Lottie’s heavy and ragged breaths, and the sound of the water lapping against the edges of the tub, the room was silent - still. Almost too silent. Nat watched over Lottie’s shivering body. How had she been so stupid? There had been nothing safe about sending Lottie out into the wilderness by herself. “Is the water getting too cold, Lottie?” Nat asked gently, unsure if the shivering was being caused by the cold or the shock. Lottie only blinked in response, seeming to have barely comprehended Nat speaking at all. “Lottie?” She prodded, worry quickly setting in.

Nat shook Lottie’s shoulder lightly, trying to bring the girl back. “Hey, Lottie,” she called out. Still, nothing. Lottie’s eyes were trained on the murky water which encapsulated her body, Nat’s eyes fell to it too. She watched in horror as red blood slowly began to leech into the dirty grey water. Lottie jolted, sloshing water over the floor and Nat.

“Get it off,” she whined desperately, splashing the water away from her. “Get it off.” Nat watched in shock, unsure why Lottie was so upset by a bit of blood from the cut on her hand.

“Lottie, it’s fine. It’s just coming from your hand - see?” Nat yanked Lottie’s hand out of the water, desperately showing her where the blood was coming from. Lottie shook her head, her eyes clenching shut tightly.

“No, no, no,” She stammered, ripping her hand back. She tried to rip off the cloth Nat had wrapped around her hand but when she was unable to get it off she smashed it down against the side of the tub angrily. “No,” it came out as more of a cry now, both her hands rising out of the tub before desperately smashing back down with a thud.

“Stop it,” Nat hissed in panic, grabbing both of Lottie’s hands and holding them out of the water. Lottie dissolved into violent sobs, squirming and shaking against Natalie’s grip. When she couldn’t physically overpower the blonde she pushed herself down into the tub, her head dropping under the water until all that could be seen of her were the tips of her brown curls. A sharp gasp escaped Nat’s lips as on instinct she pulled Lottie up by the arms and all the way out of the tub. Lottie held no further resistance, tumbling out of the water ungracefully.

She splattered and coughed for a few seconds before the sobs returned - loud and soul crushing as before. “I’ve got you, I’ve got you, it’s ok,” Nat whispered desperately, pulling Lottie into her arms and wrapping a towel around her trembling body. Lottie groaned sadly, pounding her head weakly against Nat’s chest. A few of the other girls, having heard the commotion, through the door open to make sure everyone was ok. At the intrusion Lottie whimpered, burying her face into Nat’s soft but damp jumper. “She’s fine.” Nat hissed before anyone even had the chance to ask. “Someone go get her pyjamas.” Sensing the protective and almost threatening tone in Nat’s voice no one dared argue, leaving the girls alone. “It’s ok little bird, I’ve got you.” Lottie sniffled quietly, her hands wrapping tightly around Lottie’s top to ground herself. “Are you feeling small, doe?” She asked gently, combing her bony fingers through Lottie’s damp curls. Lottie hummed with a soft and teary nod but didn’t speak. “Can you tell me what happened?” Lottie’s face scrunched up sadly before she tapped one of her fingers against the side of her head. “Thoughts? Did you have bad thoughts?” Nat asked patiently. Lottie nodded again before tracing her hand over her eyes. “You saw something too?” Lottie nodded, tightening her fist back around Nat’s sweater. “Ok, well you’re safe here with me, alright? Nothings going to bother you here.” On one hand Nat desperately wished she could see and hear what Lottie did during these episodes but on the other hand a part of her dreaded the thought of ever knowing. Whatever it was without fail always left Lottie silent and small, it scared Nat to no end. At least she wasn’t crying anymore.

There was a knock on the door and Nat invited them in, looking up to see Mari holding out a pair of pink striped pajamas. Lottie looked up too, her body tensing at the sight of the items. She let out a visceral screech, hiding herself against Nat. “For fucks sake Mari, you know she doesn’t wear those anymore!” Nat snapped, instantly recognising the pajamas. “Go get one of Laura’s dresses.” Mari, confused and slightly irritated, turned on her heel. “You’re alright Lottie,” Nat cooed. Lottie had worked herself up again, rocking violently back and forth in Nat’s arms as hot tears dripped down her cheeks.

Patiently Nat brought her back down, pressing Lottie’s head against her chest until their breaths aligned perfectly. Shauna brought the pyjamas back in, one of Laura Lee’s old nightgowns. Lottie quickly snatched it up to her chest, clutching the fabric tightly. “Better?” Nat questioned, Lottie nodded. “Say thank you to Shauna, hm?” Lottie looked up, her face crumbling at the struggle to use her words in her regressed state. Instead, she made an arch-like symbol with her hand - neither Nat or Shauna entirely understood but they got the idea.

“It’s no problem Lot,” Shauna hummed softly, stroking the girl's damp curls before leaving.

Nat gently helped Lottie dry off before gently manoeuvring her arms through the dress. “There you go, you’re doing so well,” Nat praised gently. Noticing Lottie’s face was still frown riddled and teary, she decided it was time to cheer the girl up. “Why don't we go see if Van has a story for tonight?” Lottie’s face perked up quickly, she nodded. “Ok baby bear.”

Lottie grabbed on tightly to Nat’s hand as they shakily walked back into the main room. Most of the girls had split off to occupy themselves but Van was in her seat in front of the fire and Taissa was on the floor by her side. “Lottie was wondering if Van had a story tonight,” Nat asked gently, nudging Lottie’s side. Lottie nodded shyly.

“Of course I have a story,” Van smiled warmly, opening her arms up for Lottie. She dropped onto Van’s lap, curling her legs up and resting her head on Van’s shoulder - though she still kept her hand in Nat’s.

“I’ll be back soon, bear. Ma is just gonna go get some dry clothes on ok?” Nat whispered gently, prying her fingers free from Lottie’s grip. Her sweater had grown damp and cold from the struggles of bathing Lottie.

By the time she returned Lottie was slowly drifting off to sleep in Van’s arms while listening to what seemed to be Alice in wonderland. “I’ve got your blankie,” Nat hummed quietly, gently placing Lottie’s blanket - barely more than a worn slither of pale pink fabric now - into her hands. Lottie quickly tucked her blankie up to her chest before reaching back out, making sure Nat held onto her hand until she eventually drifted off to sleep in front of the warm fire.

[dipplinduo]

Have you ever scrapped ideas for Sweet & Sour?

Yep!

My process has luckily been more of "transform an idea that doesn't fit" situation for most things, but I'm happy to talk about some of the things that didn't make the cut. Whipping out the notes page...

Lacey was actually meant to be the spotlighted E4 member that gets close to Juliana, not Drayton (hence the focus on her in Chapter 1 & 2). She was actually my favorite at first, and I envisioned her as being a positive, grounding guide for Juliana, and also somewhat of a middle ground influence for Kieran. But then I wrote my spin on the cafeteria scene, and I was like "oh my god wait, Drayton's character is so enticing and flexible, and he's especially fun to insert as an influence in the Kieran/Juliana dynamic". SOOOOOO I quickly decided to pivot and make him the spotlighted one, and have him do more of this brotherly figurer role who was very cunning and comedic. Before I even realized I got overtaken by the iconicism, and now he's just part of my brand in general. Whoops. The "Drayton Being Iconic" tag existed on this blog before this happened so I honestly should've seen it coming LMAO. I do have very important plans for the rest of the E4 and what role they're playing, though :

Don't laugh at this one - it was also early development LOL. I was going to have a party scene where Drayton convinces Juliana to pretend she got drunk (I know) as part of a roundabout and wild way to find evidence that Kieran had a soft spot for her (I KNOW). Kieran was essentially gonna waltz in (to a social event he otherwise never would make an appearance in) and he'd get all flustered as Juliana latches onto him. He would've decided to sweep her away from the party and take him back to his dorm. I ended up scrapping this entirely because while teens do party and all that...yeah, and also we pretty much got the dynamic moments I wanted to portray much better through the chapters where Juliana got sick.

Kieran/Juliana dynamic was also gonna have a moment where Kieran gets it in his head to start flirting with Juliana because he thinks that she’s flirting to get him to put his guard down. And that's where they both kinda were gonna secretly realize their feelings LOL. In hindsight lowkey fire still, but yeah, kinda just didn't have the space for it. We do have flirty Kieran era though, and that's still based.

This one is kinda known already, but originally the Applins were the only stars of the show (hence the name of the fic). I added Ribombee in early on after enough people wanted it and gave it lore/a connection to Kieran and his mother. Before Ribombee was conceptualized, I had different plans for what happened to Kieran's parents (he would still be an orphan regardless).

Briar was originally going to make a "deal" with Clavell regarding getting Juliana to come to Blueberry early, although it wouldn't be revealed until Juliana discovers this later. I scrapped this in favor of something much better because I didn't like the implications it had on Clavell's character, and honestly, only Blueberry is supposed to have the sketchy admin/systematic stuff going on anyways lol.

Kieran was meant to show more obvious signs of sleep deprivation (e.g. falling suspect to illness more frequently, slowed reactions). This idea is still good and realistic, but yeah, ended up leaning more into other symptomology that went well with the toxic chain curse (e.g. irritability, obsessive fixations, self-criticism, overworking himself, fatigue, etc.)

Ribombee was going to sleep powder both Kieran & Juliana in the cave scene of Ch 5. I decided to make it a bit more organic by having Kieran up and reflecting on everything + having Ribombee appearance in a more mystical way. Plus, I thought it would mean more if Kieran & Juliana opted to cuddle up themselves rather than being knocked out. There was a part of me that was worried the dynamic was progressing too fast this way with this change, but it seemed to have landed well! :)

This doesn't really count as a scrapped idea, but related: I 1000% retconned something with the Drayton POV chapters (if ykyk, LOL). But YEP. It's CANON. And frankly it's a decision I personally love that has implications, but also won't screw up the storytelling for where we're at now, either.

There's actually a lot more, too, but like I said: most of my ideas tend to upgrade. And lolololol OMG this is especially true for some major lore stuff. I just don't want to reveal it because I don't want to give y'all hints on where we're going!! LOL.

And also...there are cuter moments I haven't used in S&S and probably won't be able to because I account for what makes sense with the given dynamic. BUT what I do end up doing is taking those unused ideas and putting them into What-Ifs or other stories. There's one I'm particularly thinking of that I was dying to put in S&S D, but I don't think it would trip up the current Kieran as much as it would've in earlier chapters, lol. SO. It's going in The Dichotomy in Our Hearts instead! xD

This was super fun to write, hope it was enough substance for the question! <3

[lavaridge-gym-official]

do you have any tips for becoming a gym leader? what did you do to become one?

So, here in my Hoenn, the League isn't a sports thing, and you can't actually do the gym challenge until you're 17 or older. Gym leaders function as community leaders. Like Lavaridge still has a mayor and whatnot, but there are certain things--especially involving pokémon or any supernatural occurences (which are often pokémon-related)--that I'm in charge of handling. Like, a salamence setting up a lair in the southern reaches of the Lady's Spine, where they are definitely not supposed to be? Call a gym leader to relocate them. Spooky tower of sand spotted in the desert? A gym leader should investigate; it's probably a ghost or something. Stuff like that.

I'm also in charge of making sure my gym trainers are, well, trained to help people who are on or just starting their journeys. We make sure people learn how to handle their pokémon in a way that's safe for everyone involved. Pokémon are smarter than animals but still need to be taught things, y'know? The partnering instinct does a lot to help them listen, but that's not the end-all-be-all. And ultimately the gym challenge is a test of how well you've bonded with and trained your pokémon. As a gym leader it's my job to evaluate whether the people challenging me have done so, or if they still have things to work on. I sometimes hand out badges even if they lose--if they proved they were working well with their partner the whole time. Being a good team isn't always about winning every time!

We're also in charge of getting people their first pokémon. Not everyone can purchase, adopt, or wander the wilderness on their own to catch a new friend, and in those cases a gym employee accompanies the prospective trainer to make sure they're safe while they catch a pokémon. We also work with shelters to adopt out pokémon in need of loving homes.

As for how I got the position: in order to be in the running for gym leader, you have to beat the E4 and champion, and even then you're not guaranteed a leadership spot. After I beat the gym challenge myself, I apprenticed under the last Lavaridge gym leader, Deirdre, for years before she retired and passed the position along to me. I did a lot of training and helped train a lot of people.

And tips... huh. My best advice is that you should stay true to yourself no matter what. It's no use trying to be somebody else--be the best you that you can be. Work hard, but take care of yourself too, and don't burn out or stop having fun. And remember that everybody loses sometimes--and that's okay! Losing or failing is how we learn to do better next time. So roll with it! Pick yourself back up and go again with more experience. We can always improve as people, and always learn more about the world and the folks around us.

That got kind of longwinded, haha! I'm just really passionate about this sort of thing. Thanks for the ask, sweetheart ❤️

[snowy-bones]

Okay! (I'm sorry to your followers who are playing the DLC, I'm spoiling it all)

Part one; The Teal Mask

You go to this new place Kitakami, meet Carmine (she's rude) and her little brother Kieran (he's a sweetheart and shy)

You learn about the 'Loyal Three' who laid down their lives to protect the village from this evil ogre.

You keep defeating Kieran in battle because Nintendo likes to bully the shy guys.

You meet the ogre, an adorable pokemon named Ogerpon, she (100% female) is precious and hides her face with a few masks, including the Teal Mask

You learn that Ogerpon is not a bad pokemon, the loyal three killed her human friend, stole three of her four masks (she had the Teal Mask while she was wherever she was) and fled to the village. She flew into a rage and chased them down, killing them

Meanwhile Carmine's becoming friendlier and after you are forced (by Nintendo and Carmine) to lie to Kieran about meeting Ogerpon whom he likes very much, he starts becoming more antgonistic towards you, ends up punching this monument to the 'Loyal Three' which somehow caused said three to come to life, get hold of the three masks once again (they had been held in Kitakami Hall) and generally make nuisances of themselves (towards you, Carmine and Ogerpon, Kieran just kinda goes somewhere for a while)

Long story short, you send them packing, get the masks back, Ogerpon wants to travel with you and Kieran doesn't like that so he challenges you and loses (and starts going a bit off the deep end)

Part Two: The Indigo Disk (this just came out on the 13th)

A post game DLC (The Teal Mask is like the Isle of Armor for SwSh, you can either play it at the beginning or end of the main game and the levels will adjust accordingly) that takes you to Blueberry Academy, where Carmine and Kieran are studying.

Kieran's become the academy champion and is obsessed with beating you, still loses after you take on the BB League E4 but whatever

The main meat of the DLC is returning to Area Zero to find the hidden treasure

Which turns out to be another adorable pokemon, this one named Terapagos, which was in a sealed crystal state. Kieran frees him (I think this one is 50/50, but mine's male) and he reforms, sees you and starts walking towards you.

And the boy immediately master balls the poor thing because he was infuriated that he chose you over him (honestly, I think he just saw you first and was like 'You freed me!') and then challenges you again with Terapagos, loses again and his (Terapagos) energy starts going haywire.

Kieran tries to return him, but he breaks the Master Ball (you had him for five minutes, Kieran, how did you eff up this badly) and you have to battle him and catch him.

Energy stops, Kieran starts his redemption arc and we all live happily ever after.

Until the Epilogue, a free 3rd part of the DLC, comes out in January, this time bringing back the og Area Zero Crew (Arven, Penny, Nemona) and revealing a mysterious pokemon in Kitakami.

So yeah, fun!

OH MY GOD!! I seriously need to see this now excuse meeeee! hhhhh ALSO I AM SO SORRY FOR SPOILERS GUYS IF YOU ARE PLAYING!!

[alfredstvthoughts]

Duncanville - Pilot (Season 1 Episode 1; 16 February 2020)

On this day 5 years ago, Duncanville, one of my favorite adult animated series made it's debut in the US. I remember discovering it via the official UK broadcast on Channel 4 that began in spring that year and quickly becoming fond of it. Sadly, while Channel 4 showed the first season before moving to sister channel E4 for the second season, the show's 3rd and final season was to the best of my knowledge never broadcast in the UK (please correct me if I am wrong).

The show was co-created by Amy Poehler who also voices both Duncan Harris and his mother Annie. She is perhaps best known for having being part of the cast of long running US comedy Saturday Night Live and for creating and starring in the sitcom Parks and Recreation as well as film appearances, perhaps the best known for me is as the voice of Joy in the Inside Out movies. This is actually Amy's second animated series she created, having previously created the more family-friendly Nickelodeon series The Mighty B! where she also voiced main character Bessie Higgenbottom.

This first episode does a good job of introducing the main characters and shows the potential of just how much fun the show is. Duncan is rather typical teenage boy who is lazy and frequently grumbling at his parents. His parents want him to learn how to drive, but he is initially reluctant until the girl he has a crush on, Mia tells him how useful it would be for him to drive her, leading him to change his mind.

He then wants to drive his friends to a music festival but when his parents refuse, he has to find another adult to accompany him in the car so he can legally drive his friends while keeping it all secret from his parents, but when he knocks down a famous old oak tree and this makes the news, it will be hard to keep what he did hidden much longer...

Right from the beginning, it is clear why I ended up loving this show, mainly because the characters are a lot of fun. Duncan is always my favorite, he is always so funny and yet relatable enough for me to really care about while his mother Annie is always hilarious. Jing, the youngest daughter of the Harris family is also a sweet character whose naivety also makes her funny.

The plot is fairly simple stuff, but the characters and humor make this compelling and highly enjoyable to watch. While better episodes were yet to come, this pilot episode gets the show off to a great start and even 5 years later, I still find myself enjoying this a lot. The show still remains available from some outlets including Hulu and Youtube and I would recommend seeing it soon if you can.

[crazedcollie]

A Pokemon Pseudolocke Challenge

So I've sorta been doing a different kind of pokemon challenge run. Enjoying occasionally hard pokemon playthroughs but not really a fan of Nuzlocking, I came up with a variant of my own. Documenting it here cause it's fun.

My intent is playing through every main series pokemon game in release order, with the exception of Sword/Shield/Shining Diamond/Brilliant Pearl cause I don't have them and don't really want to buy them just for this. (And really, they're apparently not all that great games anyway...)

Catch my team on Nuzlocke rules (first encounter in each route, if I can't catch it, too bad), except I can't use repeats. That is, if I use a pokemon in a team, it's off-limits for the rest of this entire run! I can try to catch the second encounter of the route if the first one was a 'mon I already had somewhere, and so on. It's up to me if I stay on a route until I get a catch (or fail one), or move on. I have to use the first six pokemon gotten this way. Can't use Repels until I have a full team. (HM whores don't count. *glares vaguely towards Sinnoh*)

Can't use legendaries, can't trade to evolve, and if an evolution method is not available until postgame, too bad. Gift pokemon are to be used if I still have a team spot.

As a corollary to this, I am not allowed to do any kind of checking of what pokemon appears where, only base things on what I already know of the games (which, admittedly, is a fair bit). Once a pokemon is in a team, all branches of its' evolutionary line are also "used". Regional forms are separate, though, since almost all of them are in fact their own evolution lines.

End of the run in a given game is whatever is the highest leveled trainer fight in the game that's of a preset level and is not, say, a frontier/battle tower fight. Champion in a lot of games, Red in GSC, upgraded E4 in Fire Red/Leaf Green etc.

Difficulty:

No consumable items in fights, or between E4 members. I have to beat E4 + Champion in one go, without healing. Yes this is as insane as it sounds in some games. Battle style set, meaning I don't get free switches.

No grinding unless absolutely necessary to the point where I can gain xp from a losing fight (Johto level curve, looking at you). I allow myself to check on NPC and item locations for the sake of my sanity mostly.

Tally my amount of blackouts(complete team losses where I end up back in pokemon center), and the levels and names of my teams. And then make a post of each journey here largely for my own amusement.

Stay tuned if this sort of thing interests you besides my art~

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2005): Scythe 2

You just have finished your second playthrough.

...

yyyyyyyyyyyYEP!!!

That’s another hard WAD to check out of the list!

You cross out the word “Scythe 2” on the list.

Now... if you excuse me...

You pass out.

Two days later

Hey kids! Ya want some more WAD-related trauma?!

G2: Scythe 2

Main author(s): Eric Alm

Release date: June 7th, 2005 (original release)/July 10th, 2009 (full version release)

Version played: Version 2

Required port compatibility: Limit-removing

Levels: 32 (standard 30 + 2)

The original Scythe WAD (my review to that WAD here ==>) was pretty good in my opinion, to the point that I consider it a spiritual successor to another MegaWAD titled Demonfear. From what I’ve heard about the sequel, Scythe 2, from many sources, it all can be summarized as better in everything.

Is it true though?

Well, this WAD has a section of it with an Ancient Egypt theme so it’s already better than the original without even playing-

Okay, seriously, it can’t be just that biome that makes Scythe 2 better.

From what I’ve gathered, this WAD’s creation started somewhere around late 2003; so basically not so long after the release of the first Scythe. Scythe 2 actually came out unfinished, without three last maps. It was like this until 2009 when Eric Alm released the full version of this MegaWAD alongside some changes and bug fixes to the previous maps.

But the lacking last maps didn’t stop this WAD from getting one of the Cacowards from 2005 from what I’ve seen. Hell, after Alien Vendetta, Scythe 2 was declared the most influential WAD of all time!

Now, with all of that out of the way, let’s take a look at Scythe 2, and see what makes this MegaWAD so great.

This WAD looks really good. Compared to the first Scythe, it offers more interesting landmarks, not to mention how many themes it has.

Scythe 2 is split between six different biomes. The Gothic castles,

ancient Egyptian temples (my favorite, of course),

chucklefucks’ mining facility,

various, demonic fortresses,

Mesoamerican cities,

and, of course, Hell itself (with castles sprinkled here and there).

The text file to this WAD gives an actual connection between these themes; stating that you are dimension-hopping between them.

The music tracks are also great. Featuring stuff from franchises like Mega Man, Metroid, and, of course, Blood among others.

If I could choose the best track per episode, it would definitely be Great Pyramid from E2, Sigma Fortress 1 from E3, Oldtown Station Remastered from E4, and MIDIfied Wanderlust from E6.

As for the first and the fifth episode, can’t choose which song is the best. The first episode is like 5/5 absolute bangers; with Spy in the Cab probably being the best track. And as for the Jungle episode, I can’t exactly choose between Phendrana Drifts, Heretic’s Atlas, or Intolerance as the best track. Maybe it’s the last one, I don’t know.

Fun fact: Most of the tracks were chosen by stx-Vile. The rest was by Erik Alm himself.

Scythe 2, like Scythe 1, is easy to understand. There will be curveballs here and there but I don’t think you will get stuck for more than a minute.

The first difference you will notice about the maps between this MegaWAD and its predecessor is that they tend to be much bigger. Sure, there are still small maps that you will finish without even noticing but there are now maps that will make you will like you just ran a marathon. Especially from the second half onward.

I also really like how organically you move from one level to another that doesn’t end with a portal at the end.

As I just mentioned, the WAD is split into six episodes; twice as much as the previous installment. And like the first Scythe, each episode ends with you dying to begin another one with only Pistol in your hand; mostly you die by blowing up, but once you end up crushed, and the other time you use Rocket Launcher to slide your carcass to the exit portal.

There are, however, design choices that are questionable at best. Particularly how to get to secret levels. To get to the first secret map, you have to grab the yellow key from End of the Line from a different angle, by straferunning to the pile of boxes nearby, then grabbing the key from these boxes. Normally, if you grab that key the regular way, the switch that opens up the passage to the secret level will lower to the ground. By doing the bonkers way, the switch will stay in place.

Although, you can still press the switch if it’s lowered.

The second secret level has an even more unhinged way of accessing in my opinion. In the first secret level, you have to grab all of the keys, and open up the secret exit in around 12 seconds; otherwise, the door leading to the secret exit will jam. Without enemies enabled, it might be possible to do that for a semi-competent Doom WAD player, but considering what enemies you are fighting on this map, you have to be Zero Master-level of Doom God to actually do that legitimately.

For non-masochistic people, just warp there or noclip through the door that leads to the secret exit. The second secret map is worth playing. It’s like Warrens from Doom I mixed with Get Going from the first Scythe. And thankfully, exiting from any secret map will let you carry your weapons to the fourth episode.

But there are more things to talk about than just bizarre routes to secret levels. For instance, Graverobbers has a set of secrets that leads to getting the red key and eventually a hidden BFG.

Gaia’s Temple shows you in separate areas that the yellow and red keys were lowered in the hub section of the map.

Haunting Dreams, the last map of the WAD, tasks you to go into five portals that lead to some of the locations from the previous episodes.

There is also Mr. X but I’ll discuss this map in a moment.

Scythe 2 is harder than Scythe 1. Even Eric Alm claims that this WAD on Hurt Me Plenty is for people who enjoyed the previous installment on Ultra-Violence. Remember how the first 25 maps (plus secret ones) of Scythe 1 were rather fast to complete until you reached Fear? It happens again with Scythe 2 but earlier.

It all comes down to splitting the MegaWAD into two parts: Pre-Whispering Winds and post-Whispering Winds.

Before you reach this map, maps up to The Garden Base II are usually pretty straightforward. It’s like you were slowly going from E2 to E3 level of challenge of the original Scythe on UV. There are challenging moments, but nothing close to being a herculean task to do.

When you finally reach MAP23, well... How do I put it? Shit goes to Hell and you are bombarded with slaughter maps; starting with 502 enemies on MAP23, and ending with over 700 monsters on Haunting Dreams.  Not all of the maps are like that, but all of them are at least tough; especially when you don’t know where the secrets are.

Is one of these later maps harder than Scythe 1’s Fire and Ice? Honestly, I have no idea. I think some of the maps are at least as hard as that one. This WAD might have unlocked something in my brain to be more comfortable fist-fighting two boneheads and one-two BFG-punching siege cows.

Now here is a question: Which one of the two last episodes is harder? It’s actually hard to answer, since the Jungle episode has a hat trick of slaughter maps, while the Hell episode has harder maps but throws you some easier ones in between the ball busters. I can at least safely say that these two episodes are, at best case, equally hard.

One of the biggest reasons why Scythe 2 is harder than its predecessor is due to the two new enemies added to the roster; really tough sons’a’bitches that will ruin your day. And it so happens that I have encountered these types of enemies in the previous WADs I reviewed.

The first one you will encounter in the fourth episode - Evil Marine. A red-colored coke addict that fires a series of plasma shots. Completely unhinged; probably as fast as you. Now you know why getting into the second secret map in nearly impossible with enemies enabled.

Remember how I mentioned Mr. X? This is possibly the best way to introduce him. With hearing dying Imps, and that bastard popping out from time to time to terrorize you. Kill him on sight with your own Plasma Gun (probably the best weapon to deal with one of them if you have it).

Also, remember Afrit from the first ZDoom Community Map Project? He’s back, and he’s no longer a pushover. 2500 health points, plus a volley of Mancubus’ fireballs and Revenant’s missiles. I saw one of these guys kill a Cyberdemon of all enemies! Luckily, they only appear in the last episode, so they won’t bother you that much. But still, if you saw one, blow them up with BFG.

I haven’t encountered any bugs, although the text file mentions some unintentionally misaligned textures here and there. I didn’t notice them.

Without counting the bizarre ways of entering the secret levels, Scythe 2 is an amazing sequel in every way possible. It’s beautiful, it has some quirks for the lack of better words and it is a step up in challenge for people who finished Scythe 1. I fully recommend it. And as for people who are not really into slaughter maps, there is nothing wrong with playing up to MAP22. You will just skip Afrit encounters.

And now, some videos related to Scythe 2:

See you next time.

Bye!

[ieatmorecrispsthanyou]

Hi again! Hope it's ok to keep this discussion going at great length, feel free to ignore this, but it does gives me a chance to ramble about JFSP et al and that's something I love doing. I haven't ever got the chance to ramble with someone who also enjoys his work so I'm going to give it my best shot...

I can definitely see where you're coming from about sketch comedy in general being hit or miss, and in this case some JFSP sketches throwing you off having a good time - I actively dislike some of his sketches but I tend to find that the ones I find least funny are conveniently grouped together in a 'mid' episode for me to skip, and even in those mid episodes there are gems (likewise even in 'good episodes' there are less funny sketches as you mentioned). So I can understand why Cabin Pressure and JFDA are more consistently fun listens for you, since you know you're going to enjoy *all* of it.

Also there's that element of a more coherent character driven plot in Cabin Pressure and JFDA, as the audience gets to spend more than 5 minutes with each character unlike in the sketches. I like the short-term characters as well though, because I don't get so invested in them that I feel awful when something embarrassing or bad happens to them (as prevents me from listening to a couple of episodes of Cabin Pressure). I also think it really showcases JF's skill in that he can write a 5 minute sketch about two people in some situation and yet the audience can understand all about these people's characters, motivations and shortcomings and that this is the situation which exposes all of them, and it's so damn funny.

I agree about picking off a menu of sketches - I wish I was internet proficient enough to clip all his sketches and arrange them in a website for people to peruse at their leisure... currently what I do is go on the comedy central episode guide to each series (written by JF I think) and at this point I know each episode so well I can tell by the basic description exactly how much of a fun time I'm going to have listening to each episode.

I think JFSP is at its best when there's some sort of coherent narrative or link between the sketches, mostly found at the 'since you ask me' ending, or repeating 'bits' - like the time travelling episode (s4.e6), your favourite heist episode (s7.e6), The Adventures of Mr Floofywhiskers (s5.e1, s7.e4), the animals and kings episode (s7.e5), or in terms of repeating bits, the reluctant underappreciated holiday singer (s4.e6 and the christmas episode), the archers bit from series 2-6, the train driver and train manager bit (fun fact: there's fanfiction of them on AO3!), Mr Frint the curmudgeonly pedant (and too many more to mention). I also like when he includes fictionalised versions of the cast complaining about the sketches - I enjoy the meta aspect of it, although as he points out there's an element of being so self aware and self deprecating about your own comedy that it ruins the joke.

This is probably why I enjoy series 9 (perhaps) most of all - the interwoven short character moments building up into a bigger patchwork covering generations, but so gradually that you don't notice until you're hooked in. Since you first meet the characters when they're at the end of their stories, you have this sense that you won't hear anything really bad happen to them, which makes for some very comforting listening. (fun fact - I met Carrie and she said that her favourite series was s9 as well!)

And now to address your point in the tags about John Finnemore and how he handles race and religion...

...which is basically that I agree with everything you've said and more people should take notice of it as you have done. It's a conversation we should be having, and it helps us fully understand his works in their complete context.

For me I can understand why JF is the way he is about this topic, definitely not to excuse him or me though (as you'll see later in this post). We both come from deep in rural England, where, at least in my experience, you don't really encounter anyone outside your white, culturally-Christian 'bubble' until you've internalised all the messages people inside your bubble have been explicitly and implicitly telling you, and that makes it harder to unlearn them (although the unlearning is necessary). And then leaving that bubble as an adult is challenging, so you make friends who are just like you and that reinforces the attitudes you know are wrong. So while I love the casts of JFSP and JFDA and Cabin Pressure so very very much, it is rather telling that a lot of them do share certain characteristics (in terms of race at least). Some of the radio 4 audience also share those characteristics as well, so it makes sense why in those bits about race and religion he seems to imagine himself as talking to a crowd just like him, inside his 'bubble', not realising (or caring?) how uncomfortable a listen it is for people outside that 'bubble'. (I've stretched the bubble metaphor too thin, methinks)

I don't want it to come across as if I'm excusing him for his more mean-spirited comedy, the 'we all know as white people not to make fun of different races and religions, because it's wrong, but I'm going to toe the line because I think I'm catering to an audience like me' comedy, because I don't agree with this attitude and he definitely could and should have made more of an effort to be more aware of his privilege. Being in a position of power like that means you are contributing to the status quo and sort-of-making-fun-of minorities just reinforces the idea that people like him are 'above' those minorities, an idea which I think is dangerous to be spreading to your audience.

Like you, I've also met him and he was so kind - he was everything I imagined he was from listening to his stuff. So I feel there is hope that he can unlearn his harmful attitudes and make comedy everyone can enjoy. (But this may be putting him on a pedestal, and I definitely don't want to do that.)

Anyway, thanks for reading! I would love to discuss any aspect of this in more detail with you (or anyone reading this!) so please do add on to this ramble if you feel like it!

Hi! I hope you're doing well and having a lovely holiday season :)

Sorry if you've already talked about this before, I haven't been following you for a long time - but what do you think of the other series of JFSP apart from series 9?

Personally I love them to bits, I have listened to every episode more than 30 times and they're probably one of my favourite things in the whole world. I just love the humour, the characters, the situations - it feels very safe, no mean spirited jokes, very comforting. The sketches feels very autistic-coded to me as an autistic person, much like Martin from Cabin Pressure - some of the sketches are things I doubt a neurotypical person would notice or comment on from the angle he chooses. Like the geek sketch and the 'friend I'm in the mood for' sketch from series 5.

What are your thoughts on these series?

Thank you for asking, that’s an awesome question!

The basic answer is that I am, of course, a big fan. That said, I’d say that as much as I overall enjoy sketch comedy, I do tend to find it hit or miss; and while JFSP has a higher hit rate than most, and plenty of sketches are fantastic*, it definitely doesn’t get there ALL the time.

*Notable faves- Spooktacular, seashells, reincarnation/past lives, “Stop Saying G’nus,” tricyclist… there are loads and loads more, just off the top of my head! Not to mention the excellent ones you already cited…

The functional difference for me ends up being that while I don’t think there’s a 100% hit rate on Cabin Pressure or Double Acts either, I know that if I pick one episode that I like I will enjoy myself for a full half hour. Because I’m less familiar with a given episode of JFSP given how many there have been and how many sketches are in an episode, I don’t have that same sense of instant “ahhh” from turning on an episode of JFSP* as I would from the other two shows, where a lot of my emotions about it come from knowing it like the back of my hand.

*Major exception- S7E6. A perfect episode of sketch comedy that I can listen to literally whenever. No notes.

This isn’t to say that I don’t really enjoy JFSP! I just wish I could pick off a menu of sketches, not simply because I like some better than others but because I like the feeling of “oooh this” on demand that I get from turning on a favorite half hour episode. I will say- I find JFSP to be PERFECT for things like dental procedures and car trips, where I might be in the chair for anywhere from five minutes to two hours and can just turn on a bunch of sequential episodes for as long as I need. But it doesn’t necessarily have the same immediate impact for me as the episodes I love of the other shows.

That said- some of the best things JF ever wrote are Since You Asked Me sketches. I want them pumped into my veins.

[queenangst]

imagine if lou failed that charisma saving throw… in a different game, a helpless pinocchio could do nothing but watch the stepmother devour his father.

the fact that, until the reveal, he saw her as his mom?? his complicated, weird mom with a past (“all moms have pasts”)??? hurts. what gets me is that, between looking at the monster that ruined his happy ending and the entity holding his father hostage, he turned to the latter “in the childlike way that Pinocchio is young” because she was his maternal figure.

HE’S JUST A LITTLE BOY I CAN’T

i did have this thought during the episode though, what i'm worried is going to happen is now that pinocchio is presumably free from stepmother's control that she'll just devour or kill geppetto... since pinocchio is no longer useful to her, geppetto isn't useful to her either - since he's always been a tool to keep pinocchio compliant. and since someone brought it up to me, i think geppetto is still alive up to this point, considering it was his blood that boosted pinocchio's powers in episode 4, and she's had no reason to kill him... but now she may not have a reason to keep him alive.

and yeah every episode as we see more and more of pinocchio interacting with stepmother or talking about her my heart really breaks. imo i've been interpreting pinocchio as accepting of his situation because he knows he has to, bc stepmother is 'taking care' of geppetto. some people have said pinocchio is a bit naive or trusting towards stepmother, but i dont think so... i think he just knows his own position with her. you can really see it in e4 when they're talking post-death that... in my opinion, pinocchio is acutely aware of his position and how little power and agency he had at that point. and this episode, when he was talking to miss muffet - he described how it was all or nothing. all responsibility. that how he sees his own story is that he needed to (and was forced to) grow up and that he can't be a little kid and have fun. combined with the times of shadow and how it was so important that pinocchio needed to be able to lie, that he would break off his own nose... is just really awful and telling. and when stepmother gave him pinocchi-crow, partly as a familiar and partly so she could watch him, he admittedly hated it.

but also, he's never had a maternal figure before. he called her mom. he consistently downplayed and left out information about her to his friends (partly, i think, to protect them/to keep his business to himself with geppetto, and partly for her sake, too). i don't think pinocchio loves her, not the way he loves his father. but as he said, she's helped him and given him gifts. she has looked after him to an extent. obviously from the outside this is abuse and manipulation, and pinocchio is aware of some of that, but i think he does care for her in some way.

and ultimately he is a kid. he's just a boy. a boy on strings.

[randomkposts]

Headcanons about Hau, and diffrences between his character in SM and USM

---

Hau, wants battle to be more fun, rather than serious. I think this ties into his issues with his father, who resented living in the shadow of a Kahuna, and possibly took battle very seriously, moving to Kanto to try to make his own name, away from the legacy of his father. His mother still lives in Alola, and its unknown if she and Hau's father are divorced, or simply separated. I wouldn't say he becomes depressed in the original, but he is behind, and is more of an equal rival in USM.

I think Hau is looking to strike a balance between trying to make his grandfather proud, and trying not to become the kind of person his father was. Battles are fun, and he wants to keep them that way, and isn't in a rush to do everything. 

I think, that first shifts in USM in mallie garden after you defeat Guzma, on some optional dialogue. 

Both games have him taking things more seriously, after Lillie's abduction, particularity after we invade Aether as a group. 

Both games have him cheerful. But the ultra versions have him a lot more confident. Or perhaps confident isn't the best describer, as he is pretty confidant in both, but USM has him a lot more active in pursuing his dream of becoming a Kahuna, like his grandfather before him.

He is a more effective rival in USM. In sun I had considered him more of a Brendon/May character, to who battling isn't the main reason for the journey they are on. I know that they are not the only example of that kind of rival, but they are the one that came to mind. 

What changes his drive? Is it starting with you on the journey, in USM, and feeling pushed by you to put wishes into action? m

Or maybe it's Guzma. Hau seems to have a stronger link to Guzma then in the original game. Perhaps Guzma is making a difference on his willingness to put his ideals into action. 

Personally, I liked the focus Sun and Moon had on Lillie and her family, and didn't mind having my PC step back a bit in plot importance. I understand that storytelling style is not for everyone, particularly for people who don't like Lillies character much, or who want to make their own mark in the story. Myself, I liked the character arc, and felt it strengthened the story. 

USM focused more on the other characters and diversified things a bit. Though it also placed central characters in more plot important roles. Such as Hau taking Hala's role in the battle against ultra beasts. 

It made the trial captains more involved in the main story, rather than relying only on  the optional battles you could do in SM, which offered some interesting insight, and some build up for the elite 4. 

I do appreciate the homage to the original E4 at the end, though I would argue that his character arc isn't quite done, until we see him accomplishing his objectives, though for game purposes I suppose it is done. 

[kalosstarters]

Yesterday I went through some of my old headcanons re: Alain and Mairin (there were way more than I thought) and thought that I could make a compilation post just for fun. Also, some of my hc:s have definitely changed since then. But here we go:

My old future career hc for Alain was that he’d become a Pokémon doctor, like Brock. But while I did have certain reasons for that hc, after seeing the newest JN episode I decided to change things up a bit. We found out that Alain is still assisting Sycamore in his research (good) while he’s still pretty serious about battling at the same time (say what you want about that battle but he has to have been training to make it all the way to M8). So, maybe the most logical conclusion is that eventually the battling part becomes less important to him (after all, he doesn’t /need/ to become the strongest anymore) with time while he becomes more invested in doing research on mega evolution. There’s still much they don’t know about it yet so it keeps him curious. Eventually he becomes a professor who works alongside Sycamore (and once Sycamore retires, he takes over, but that won’t happen in a long while).

When it comes to battling, Alain does get an offer to challenge the E4 and Diantha after the dust from the TF incident starts finally settling down, but he declines. He thinks it’s still too soon, the guilt is still pressing him a bit (even though Sycamore has made him go to therapy so he is doing much better already), and he feels he is not ready for the responsibility that comes with being a regional champion yet. However, maybe a year or two after the Kalos league victory he hears about the Pokémon world championships while on a work trip to Alola (I may be writing a fic about this :P). After some encouraging from various people and hearing that the current champion also has a Charizard, he starts feeling the old spark for battling return. By that time he has also found new mega and keystones for him and Charizard and he wants to see if they are still as powerful as they used to be. After the M8 tournament he does still keep training (he never really gives up on the dream to beat Leon) but as years go by winning does become less important to him as he understands that there are more important things in life.

As for Mairin, remember how she says in TSME that she wants to learn to mega evolve? Well, she will totally stick to her word. For a couple of years she will travel with Alain, assisting Sycamore in his research, but eventually she decides it’s time for her to go on a journey on her own. Not because she doesn’t want to travel with Alain (or the other way around) but because she feels Alain will forever be her crutch if she doesn’t do it and she won’t learn to be an independent trainer. 

So, for several years she travels on her own (making new friends and catching new mons) through different regions, taking on the gym challenges, and succeeding in varying results. Her first league tournament goes pretty much like Ash’s, she gets into top 16 but becomes a little too confident and loses her final battle quite badly. But she does develop and by the time she’s back in Kalos she has gotten ‘famous’ for being a grass type user who seems kinda clumsy and scatterbrained but is a force to be reckoned with in a battle. She even made it to top 4 in Sinnoh, losing to the person who then won the tournament. Back in Kalos (at this point she’s maybe around 16) she gets asked if she’d like to take over as the gym leader in Coumarine City, which coincidentally is where her grandfather Ramos used to lead. She accepts.

She’s a gym leader for a couple of years until she hears that Bonnie (who has had about a million different projects meanwhile) is about to set off for her gym challenge. Since Mairin has yet to participate in the Kalos league, she joins her and they become rivals. The two face each other in the Kalos league finals and Bonnie ends up winning, using her Puni-chan. At this point Mairin has also learned to mega evolve (she has a mega Venusaur. There’s a chance that Alain and Mairin have also gotten a hint about mega Chesnaught’s existence but… that’s a thought I still need to develop) so her Venusaur does put up a good fight but the Zygarde is just too strong. After the tournament Mairin returns to her gym (earning a reputation as one of the toughest gym leaders in the region) while doing what she can to help Alain and Sycamore with their research.

Some years later, when Mairin is already well into her twenties and Bonnie is now the Kalos region champion (I don’t make these rules), she gets an opportunity to battle the E4 because they are searching for a new member as Wikstrom is retiring. She succeeds well enough (beating at least 2/3 of them) and so she becomes an E4 member.

Mairin does also have a talent for art and flower tending and those are some of her favorite things to do in her free time. As a matter of fact, I HC that Alain and Mairin make a book about mega evolution together, with Mairin illustrating the book, and it becomes very successful. Alain’s way of describing things is very ‘matter-of-fact’ but Mairin’s fun additions and stories about their trips makes the book interesting even for those who are not interested in science (important note: Mairin doesn’t write her commentary alone, she makes Sycamore&Alain double check everything because of her dyslexia).

Um, I do have plenty of other hc:s about these two as well, f. ex. about their pasts and the non career things but... I’m gonna leave that for another time. I hope someone managed to read through this unnecessarily long post tho 😂

[spencessmile]

Scholar’s Mate

Pairing - Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader 

Summary - In a game of chess both you and Spencer make unexpected moves. 

Warnings - None 

Word Count - 1k

And all imagines/fanfics/blurbs are written solely by me so please don't steal my work and/or post it without my consent. 

Feedback and Comments are welcome. Happy reading! 

Requests are CLOSED!

Scholar's Mate is the checkmate achieved by the following moves, or similar: 1. e4 e5. 2. Bc4 Nc6

** 

The team and you wrapped up a case in New York and made your way onto the jet where everyone got comfortable for the flight back home. 

Morgan and Emily were chatting away, Rossi was preparing himself a drink, JJ was indulging herself by doing crossword puzzles, Hotch was doing paperwork and Spencer was seated at the far end of the jet.

You wrapped a blanket around your shoulders and headed towards Spencer, as you looked over Spencer’s shoulder you noticed he was setting up a small chessboard. 

“Mind if I sit?” You ask and Spencer shakes his head. You continue to watch as Spencer sets up the board and puts the chess pieces in their place. “Are you going to play alone?” 

“I do most of the time.” 

“How does one play chess by themselves?” 

“Actually, you can play with yourself using only knowledge of how the chess pieces move.” 

“I don’t think a game of solo chess would be as fun to play, so I’ll play with you,” Spencer looks up at you. 

“You k-know how to play chess?” 

“Not really but it can’t be that hard to learn while watching a genius play,” A small smirk tugging at your lips. 

“What’s going on here?” Morgan sits on the long couch as the rest of the team gathers around. 

“I’m joining Spencer in a game of chess,” You point to the board. 

“What? Reid, I’ve asked to play you several times and you never play with me,” Emily says. 

“It’s hard to play with people who don’t how to play chess,” Spencer replies, and Emily gaps. 

“I’ve asked you to teach me, and it’s not like Y/n knows how to play either.” 

Spencer looks back over at you, and you’re lightly smiling at him. You joined this team two years ago and you got along with pretty much everyone except for Spencer. You couldn’t speak for Spencer but you often found it hard to keep up with him. 

Chess may just the thing to help you become closer to Spencer. 

“Should we play?” You ask and Spencer nods. 

As Spencer went to pick up his piece, he stopped and looked up at you. “I’ll probably beat in less than 7 moves.” 

You lean forward in your seat, “Don’t hold your breath brown eyes.” 

“Damn,” You hear Morgan say as everyone laughs.  

“Oh wait,” You stopped Spencer again and flipped the board, the white chess pieces facing you as the black pieces faced Spencer. Spencer immediately started nervously playing with his hands. 

“Why did you do that?” 

“What’s wrong? Will you lose the game if you aren’t playing with white pieces?” 

Spencer was going to respond but he stopped, “No, I’ll be fine either way.” 

“Great, then make your first move,” You eye the board as Spencer moves his first chess piece.  

You wait a couple of seconds before making your first play; moving your King to E6. 

You could hear JJ whispering to Emily and Morgan “Who do you think going’s to win?” 

“I want someone to beat this kid’s ass in this game, I’m so sick of not knowing how to play but watching people who do know lose to the kid,” Morgan looks over at Rossi.

“Watch it,” Rossi pointed and Morgan chuckles. 

 “My bet’s on Y/n,” Hotch said watching you and Spencer carefully watching each other’s moves. 

Spencer made his second play, and you made your second play; moving your King’s Bishop to C5. 

Spencer made his third play, and you made your third play; moving your Queen to F6. 

Spencer made his fourth play and you decided it was time to show him how it’s really done so you took your Queen and moved it to F2. 

“Checkmate,” You say, putting your pieces down. “I beat you in four moves.” 

“Oh my god! No way!” Morgan says flipping out. “Haha, what just happened?!” 

“What?” You hear Spencer whisper. 

“JJ,” Emily spoke up. “Pinch me because I might be asleep,” JJ laughs. 

“Em, your very much awake and Y/n just beat Spencer,” She smiles. 

“Atta girl,” Morgan says high fiving you.   

“Well played Y/n,” Hotch smiled at you. 

“How di-” Spencer looks up at you and then back down at the board. “I never lose,” Spencer pulled the small board away from you and looked at the pieces. You could see the gears in Spencer’s brain were really turning trying to figure out how you beat him. 

 You look up at Rossi who has a smirk on his face as he knows the trick you just pulled. He raised his glass up and you ever so slightly nod, watching him take a sip. 

Everyone got up and went back to doing their own stuff as you sat there for a while watching Spencer figure out your moves. 

“Well that was fun maybe we should play again sometimes,” You say getting up but Spencer didn’t acknowledge you at all. You shake your head as you walk over to where JJ and Emily were and took a seat. 

** 

Morgan puts down a cup of tea for Spencer and he looks up from his book.

“So is there anything you want to tell me?” Spencer looks over at Morgan with a confused look. 

“No.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yeah, why are you asking?” 

“Because it’s obvious Reid.” 

“What is?” 

“That you like Y/n,” Spencer almost chokes on his tea. 

Spencer shakes his head. “You don’t know what your talking about.”  

“Oh come on kid, we all saw how you were looking at her. I mean, she is pret-” Morgan leaned over to his right and noticed you laughing with your head back at something Rossi was saying. “She’s perfect for you.” 

Spencer turned his head and instantly felt himself wanting to exposed seeing you smiling, as you were wrapped in a cozy blanket. As Spencer turns back to face Morgan he couldn’t help but smile a little. 

“I mean she beat you in chess, if I were you that’s not a woman I would want to lose. Just imagine all the other things she’s good at,” Spencer rolled his eyes at Morgan’s stupid comment. “Go for it kid, before it’s too late.” 

** 

After you made it back to the BAU, the team finished up their paperwork and headed out for the night. You grabbed your stuff and made your way to the elevator. 

As you were about to step inside you heard someone yell your name.  You turn around to see Spencer, walking up to you. 

“You lied to me earlier,” Spencer breathed, wrapping his bag around himself as you looked at him, confused. 

“About what?” 

“That you didn’t know how to play chess.” 

You smile at him “Well I guess you learned something new about me today,” You made your way inside the elevator but Spencer stops you again. 

“Who taught you to play like that?”

“It’s kind of hard for me not to learn when I was around my father who was a professional chess player.” 

“Your father played professional chess?” 

“For 36 years.” 

“No wonder,” Spencer says, nodding. 

“Why are you surprised, Spencer?” You ask. 

“What do you mean?”

“The day I joined the team, Garcia was asking me all these questions and I had mentioned that my father was a professional chess player and that I play too. I thought you would have caught my lie earlier.” 

From the moment you walked through the BAU doors all of Spencer’s knowledge and common sense flew out the window. He hadn’t seen anyone nearly as nerdy as him and he was fascinated at how much random stuff you knew about. 

Spencer’s liked you for months but he always pushed his feelings aside because he knew that he worked with you and that telling you how he feels would make things messy between you two. He never thought he would have a chance with you or that you would ever be interested in him. 

You snap your fingers to get Spencer’s attention; “You started staring off into space.” 

“Um, so sorry, I ju-” Spencer clears his throat.

Go for it kid, before it’s too late. 

Morgan’s words were ringing in Spencer’s ear. If Spencer didn’t tell you how he really felt about you, then he’ll never be able to tell you. 

“Would yo-you lik-like to go-” Spencer stopped mid-sentence and turned his back to you but you quickly grabbed onto his arm. 

“Wait,” You stood in front of Spencer.  “Don’t walk away before hearing my answer,” Spencer was confused. “Yes, yes I will go on a date with you.” 

“How did you know that’s what I was going to ask you?” 

“Well,” You move closer to Spencer. “I never told anyone on the team but I’m actually psychic,” Spencer looks down at you and pulls back a little. 

“No your not.” 

“I am,” You nod your head. 

“There’s no way.” 

“Do you want me to tell you what you’re thinking about at this very moment?” 

Spencer folds in arms. “Sure.” 

“You feel bad that you started to ask me out and then you got nervous and turned your back on me. But you’ve also figured out where you’re taking me for our first date.” 

“Oh yeah, where?” 

“The museum.” 

Spencer looked at you in shock. “Do you believe me now?” 

“I don-” 

“Do you ever why I always finish the rest of everyone’s sentences all the time? It’s because I literally know what their thinking and I can’t help myself,” The look on Spencer’s face was absolutely priceless. “See! This is exactly why I don’t tell people, they get all quiet and creeped out. Just like what your doing right now.” 

You and Spencer just looked at each other for a while until you couldn’t hold in your laughter. You placed your right hand over your chest and grabbed onto Spencer’s arm, trying to control your laughter. 

“You should have seen your face, Spencer! Oh my god,” You say trying to catch your breath. “I didn’t actually think you were going to go fall for that. I’ve tried to do that on so many other people and they’ve nev-” You were cut off when you felt Spencer’s soft lips on yours. 

Spencer pushed you against the wall, as you felt your elbow hit the elevator button, the doors opened and Spencer pushed you inside, pushing the stop button where you both felt the elevator jolt. 

Spencer pulled back for air, as you both just looked at each other.

The lust in Spencer’s eyes made you want him even more than before. 

You leaned in and kissed Spencer again and felt like the world fell apart. It was slow, soft, and comforting in ways you could never describe. Spencer’s hand rested just below your ear, his thumb caressing your cheek as both of yours breathes mingled. You ran your hand down his back, pulling him closer until there was no space left between you two, you could feel the beating of his heart against your chest. 

You pulled back for air as your hands now tightly gripped at his jacket. 

“Who knew you were such a good kisser.”

“I have secrets of my own,” Spencer whispers sending chills down your back. 

“I’m sure you do,” You say kissing Spencer’s cheek. “So when are going on our first date?” 

“I don’t know yet.” 

“I like surprises.” 

“Then it’ll be a surprise.” 

“I’m looking forward to it then,” You smile. 

“You beat me by using the Scholar’s Mate trick.” 

“I did,” You said proudly. 

“Well played.” 

“My father taught me well,” Spencer smiles. 

“I still need a rematch,” You look smirk at him. 

“Fine,” You sigh. “But like I said earlier don’t hold your breath.” 

** 

The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in - Morrie Schwartz

[sad-boy-mono]

Rewatching 9-1-1 so here are some of my favorite quotes that I missed the first time cuz I was like 12 when the show first came out part 4

Ayyy we on season 2 now pooog. We got my boy Eddie now which mean I will now be silently analyzing the relationship between him and Buck 😌

Also got Maddie and Josh (my beloveds UwU)

S2 E1

Maddie: DAMNIT EVAN! DON'T YOU KNOCK?

Buck: Wha- ME? WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING HERE?

Maddie: Well I was in town and I wanted to see my little brother!

Buck *looks down*: Well, you did

.

Buck: How did you get in here?

Maddie: I told the building manager I was your sister

Buck: And her just... believe you?

Maddie: Well, having boobs doesn't hurt

.

Bobby: Buck, you don't have to do this

Buck: You think I'm gonna let the new guy have all the fun? Besides, you said you wanted us to bond. We might end up real close

.

Eddie: You're a badass under pressure, brother

Buck: Me?

Eddie: Hell yeah. You can have my back and day.

Buck: Yeah, or you know, you could... You could have mine

Eddie: *laughs* deal

(My little buddie heart TwT)

Bobby: Nice work fellas. I'm glad you both made it out of there

Buck: This guy's a professional, cap. I was never really worried

Ambulance: *fucking exploads*

Bomb squad dude: Cancel the robot

Eddie: You guys hungry?

.

Bobby and Athena: *kiss*

Bobby: What are you all looking at? There's no more announcements.

Hen: Pay up

.

S2 E2

Christopher: Do dogs know they're dogs?

.

Chimney: Alright Buckaroo, if you were not a member of the LAFD what would you be doing?

Buck: Uh, I don't know. I'm not getting fired am I?

.

Just, the entirety of Josh's introduction. Just *chefs kiss*

.

Russ: Hen, you married?

Hen: Yes

Russ: I hope you can make it back to your husband

Hen: Wife, actually

Russ: Hey, I had one of those

.

S2 E4

Maddie: So does this boy crush on Eddie mean you're ready to move in from Abby?

.

Doctor: It's extraordinary to think that 10 months ago you had that stuck through your skull

Chimney: As always your bedside manner totally sucks, doc

.

Chimney: I should be happy for [Tatiana] right? She apologized, not just for how it ended but before too. She said she felt like maybe she had been a bitch.

Hen: She's not lying, she was a bitch. What? You're my best friend. She's your ex. You get to forgive and move on, I get to hold a grudge until I die

.

Carla: Now let's go sit down and see what you're working with. Besides that perfect bone structure

[doubleddenden]

So while I can't say I really enjoyed the majority of BDSP, this was a rather interesting team to run with.

Emperor the Empoleon just kinda got way too attached to me way too quick. He was the strongest too and his affection rose way too quickly, leading me to believe he is very clingy. Best moment I think was how he soloed Bertha, it and Flint's Infernape went toe to toe, and how it stood against Cynthia's Murder Milotic until I could come up with a plan.

Zeppelin the Drifblim was a pain and a half to get and involved having to work with the game's stupid 24 hour time change lock (I know it was there originally, didn't need to come back), but I eventually caught it. For a bit it was the strongest, then the weakest, and I almost boxed it. But it's Aftermath ability actually came in handy when the League decided to get fun and interesting. It's responsible for taking down Flint's Lopunny that was hopped up on an Evasion boost Baton Passed from his Drifblim, and also responsible for ending the Swords Danced menace of Cynthia's Garchomp.

Bussee the Lickilicky is next, named after one of my friends since I caught it as a female Lickitung in the Grand Underground. I did not want it at first, but it chased me down and a buddy of mine dared me to catch it, so I did, and it immediately evolved before the 2nd gym. I honestly did not think a goddamn Lickilicky would ever find it's way within my ranks, let alone be named BUSSEE (pronounced Bussy but every time it's sung like that one YouTube poop), let alone be USEFUL. She wasn't much for winning but as a wall and all around coverage, she was great. Bussee took down Cynthia's murderous Milotic after it wiped half my team and kept recovering, and worked in tandem with Zeppelin to take out Lopunny. Like holy shit, underdog moment.

Skorpio the Drapion was also a Grand Underground find. It's one I really wanted to test since I remembered Paul's being a beast in the anime. He was the baby, the last to evolve, but he did his fair share of fighting and even worked wonders helping me catch the Lake Trio. It's sad that I had to box him for the League, but he's alright.

Vespa the Vespiquen was a complete accident as I was trying to get to another wall to pilfer for a Skull fossil. I never had a female Combee before and it evolved fast, like before gym 2. I was actually tempted to box her, but she's just too good, and I got attached. In the league she helped with the bug guy, Flint, Will, and even Cynthia, where it Destiny Bonded her Gastrodon.

Skull the Rampardos was one I REALLY wanted and influenced me to get BD. I hunted for 5 god forsaken hours to find this thing, and I eventually did after finding several shiny statues. It was surprisingly useful in a few gyms, and especially against Will and the bug guy. His power was incredible, maybe too much so. It grew like a weed and hit like freight train, especially against Team Galactic.

Lastly but certainly not least, Himpo Potato the Hippowdon, male despite what the team maker would say. I'd say I spent way too much time with him considering he was always lagging behind, but he was useful for pretty much every battle he went in. He solo'd a few gyms, fought a few e4 members, and bought time against Cynthia's murder squad after stopping her Lucario.

Anyway, I may not like the game, but I always like my teams I put together.