#i'm going to have to remember what i was getting at lmao

[jollyhunter]

Finally I get to react to this lovely review 🧡

This description of period pain is the best. I gotta say - you know what the one benefit of having a baby is? No period. And sometimes it takes even looonnger after. And okay pain, sure, but you forget that, and yes, bleeding once the birth is done, but you have the excuse to wear nappies and use ice packs for your hoohaa and, and, people give you sympathy lol - sorry, tmi… 😂

ice packs for your hoohaa?? I - I had no idea 😳 never excuse yourself for tmi, this is educational okay 😂

And excuse me miss, spoiled our self with Chuck spoilers did we? I guess it’s hard not to…

Yup, I've read it in so many fics. Just little things like "Oh for Chuck's Sake". And the first time I read it, I was VERY confused for obvious reasons but yeah, I pieced it together quickly 😂

Hahaha - I know you said you like One Piece somewhere, I’m sure we spoke about it once - do they teach kids that in the ahow/manga? I’ve only ever seen it in samurai stuff. Have you ever watched any of the Rurouni Kenshin adaptations! You NEED to see it if you haven’t. The dude in the live action version is hot 🔥

LOL yes we did! And we spoke about Dragon Ball too 😂 No I haven't watched it yet!!! But I know who you're talking about! (Also that Mackenyu, who played in Rurouni Kenshin's live action, plays Zoro in the One Piece live action 😏)

Hahaha - he’s not wrong 😂 benefits all round…

Let's be real. It's the only benefit, Dean.

I mean, she’s surrounded by Dean, wouldn’t she be horny all the time, but truth. I also liked how you word played the nub here at the bottom - look, I did it too - it really liked that. I feel like that fruit gut is called for right about now…

Probably, lol. Aaah yes, that gif... here you go, only took me another 10 minutes to find it (I don't know why I just spent so much time for that. For the future; It's literally the first one for "squishy fruit finger" lmao)

Ahhhh - I love it. Dean totally would, too. They’re surrounded by blood as you said, what’s different. Though I love how clueless he is about the days. Unless this has been going on for a little longer, anyone who has their period for two days, I’m very damn jealous of! Is it even possible?

Aren't most men just clueless about this? Even when they should know. I feel like I'm repeating myself every month that - no - my period is not done after the second day 😂

I’m seeing bean a lot lately! It is cute ❤️

Really?? I feel like I must've picked it up somewhere at some point but I can't remember where

Hahaha - Dean you horny fucker! But yes please? I was kind of hoping he might’ve convinced her 😏 I was enjoying this way too much.

😂 don't worry, I'm pretty damn sure he would find a way to convince her if he tried long enough

Okay. So when I read Nathan Algren, I was scratching my head. Is that his Last Samurai character’s name? I think I’ve seen that move once - shame on me. But it didn’t click till I got here.

Yeah, okay, so, you got me there. I didn't remember his name either, had to google it. I just tossed it in there for Dean's pop-culture reference's sake, thinking that he would've probably liked that movie and the idea of being a Samurai. 😅

This was marvellous! I can’t wait to see what your mind comes up with next. I just love the way you write the inner monologues with the touches of humour - speaks to my soul ❤️

Thank you so so much Beth!! You're one of my inspiring writers for humour 🧡🧡🧡

Shower Reliever

⋆ ˚｡⋆ COUPLE Dean Winchester x f!Reader

⋆ ˚｡⋆ WARNINGS SMUT 18+ MDNI, established relationship, menstruating (evil cramps!!), tooth-rotting sweet fluff, mention of blood (light), Dean being dorky and cute, guided masturbation in the shower? (idk how to tag this sryyy), Dean’s misuse of a shower head as a magic wand, no use of Y/N, English isn’t my native language

⋆ ˚｡⋆ SUMMARY It’s that time of the month; Cramps are tormenting you, but Dean’s there to cheer you up and look after you by giving you some relief. ♡ ⋆ ˚｡⋆ WORDS 4,2k

It’s afternoon. Or maybe it’s evening.

How are you supposed to know when you’re surrounded by the bunker’s concrete and artificial light all day?

A pathetic, writhing-weeping blood sacrifice wrapped up in bed sheets like a burrito. That’s what you are. Ready to be served. Honestly, though? Big Hellhound pupper toying with your guts suddenly seems much more appealing than a day ago. At least the doggo wouldn’t take three damn days to rip your innards out.

But you won’t complain. Because right now? Things seemed oddly… okay? It’s almost suspicious.

A deep sigh of relief falls of your lips and you dare to sprawl out on the mattress. Star-fish formation. Plain ceiling staring back down at you.

You’re maybe 5 seconds into your newfound content - and then the little bitch ruins it by raking her peeler down your walls. A sharp hiss presses past your clenched teeth.

Nevermind. Here she goes again.

Peeling your uterus out from the inside. Like Lilith herself is down there, having a feast on your unborn – and very non-existent – baby.

Muffled by Dean’s pillow, you scream. Fuck that time of the month.

Why’s it always that time of the month? Again and again and again.

Why can’t you just get the period twice a year like a bitch and get on with it? It’s not like you signed up for this. In fact, you’d very much like to file a complaint.

Not that Chuck would care. “That bastard knows why he doesn’t own an uterus...” you grumble.

A hot flush shoots through your body. Wheezing takes over your breathing. The bedsheets go flying along some of the pillows you’d burrowed yourself in.

Burning up. Hot. Your body feels like your ovaries decided to have a meltdown.

You roll around the bed, aimlessly. A ball of messy hair. Entangled in the sweat-drenched pyjama you couldn’t get yourself to change from. Arms clutched around your stomach, fingers clawing at the hot-water bag which so far hasn’t done much more than give you third-degree burns and only add to the feverish heat steaming beneath your skin.

When the door to your and Dean’s bedroom opens, you can’t even bring yourself to lift your head. Instead you’re curled up like a salted snail, squirming, each and every noise escaping from you thick with pain.

“Hey baby, ‘m back…” Dean greets you from across the room, his voice dying down as he spots you on the bed just where he'd left you this morning.

Your face plants into the sheets when you double over from another stab to your uterus.

“It’s trying to kill me, Dean,” you whimper into the mattress. Dean’s face contorts at your strangled sound.

“That bad?” It’s a stupid question, and he realizes it the moment it leaves his mouth. Of course it’s bad. You look like hell.

And worst is, it’s been going like this the entire day already. First time Dean’s witnessing it from the start, too. You’d been together for a couple of months now, but you being you, you’d so far managed to slip away just in time before your period kicked down the door.

Now that you moved in with the boys in the bunker that didn’t seem an option any longer.

You watch Dean’s face harden, the way it always does when he starts to feel helpless.

Indeed, Dean could feel the frustration claw on the inside of his chest. To the point he secretly wished your state would just be the aftermath of a hunt gone wrong.

At least he would know what to do then, y’know? Clean your wounds, stitch you back together if needed – maybe it wouldn’t look as neat as when you did it, but it’d do the job – because that’s what he’s good at.

But this? He didn’t quite know how to work with this.

There’s no injury he could just patch up. No swig of whiskey to dampen the pain. No way for him to help. And watching you writhe like you were being tortured from the inside, was killing him.

He sighs. The shopping bag in his hand gets dropped to the floor and he rounds the bed to your side. A frustrated hand ruffles back his hair. His eyes taking in the battlefield you’ve caused. And they come to rest on your crumpled form, smack in the middle of it all.

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart…” He mutters softly. And he means it. You know he does. The words were simple, yet you know that if he could, he’d take your pain away in a heartbeat. But he can’t. Because for some reason, despite all the supernatural crap you get to deal with on a daily basis, this isn’t an option.

Damn you Chuck.

You make a sound between a whine and a sigh at the grave conclusion, at which Dean’s eyebrows pull together.

The bed dips down beside you and next moment the warmth of his body presses against your side. He slowly runs his hand over your shoulders to rub your back in soothing circles.

“Anything I can do to make you feel better..?” he asks.

“Rip it out. Use it for your next blood sacrifice. Sell it to Crowley. I don’t care- I don’t want it no more.” You wail while crawling into his lap, your face burying into his grey shirt and the blue jacket that’s partially covering it.

“Jesus,”– Dean laughs softly, his deep voice rumbling under your cheeks –“Yeah, not happening.”

His arms wrap around you to pull you closer. The familiar smell of his fills your senses when you nuzzle your nose into the fabric of his clothes. A combination of his musk, fresh lemon and a hint of sweetness of his cologne clouds your mind.

Your muscles relax for a fraction. Melting into his heavy embrace. It’s odd how just a smell can have such a calming effect. As of right now, you wished you could just climb into his shirt, buttoned-up, and pressed flush against his body. All safe, warm and fuzzy.

But Uterus-Lilith had different plans. The sharp wince you try to bite back, doesn’t go unnoticed by Dean.

“My poor baby… C’mere…” He leans down to place a tender kiss onto your crown while he cradles you on his lap like a wounded animal.

His chin comes to rest on top of your head. Lips press against your hair. “It’ll pass… You’ll feel better soon… My brave girl…” He murmurs softly and you sigh.

Another twinge to your abdomen. Your body jolts, then caves in. Dean startles for a moment but then tightens his arms around you, pulling you up against his chest.

While he continues to rub your back, his other hand begins to card through the back of your hair. “Shhh, it’s okay… I got you…”

“It’s like the damn thing is committing sepukku.” You lament with fingers curled into his shirt. Nose buried in his chest. Trying everything to physically ground you until the cramp goes by.

At that comparison, Dean’s eyebrows shoot up and his lips twitch into a pressed smirk. “Damn it, don’t make me laugh.” His stomach contracts and shakes beneath you.

In response, a disgruntled noise gets huffed into his chest. And Dean can’t help a short, surprised snort.

“Sepukku?” He tries so hard to sound serious and to hold in his chuckles, but finally loses his battle. “Seriously?” He shakes his head lightly and his green eyes crinkle slightly when he continues to tease you, “You telling me, you got a wee little Samurai down there?”

A wee little Samurai throwing a tantrum in your uterus? Okay, that image carried a smile to your lips. Sounds a lot cooler than Lilith feeding on your unborn child.

Unfortunately the wee little Samurai was not amused and rammed it’s katana once more into your uterus.

Another jolt goes through your body. Another strangled sound follows. You burrow your face even further into his arms in hopes that his smell will just work like some narcotics.

Perhaps it’ll just knock me out when I dig my face deep enough into his shirt? A weird thought. But you guess that’s just what menstrual hormones mixed with pain does.

“Yes.” you wince, “And it failed to conceive a child,” then groan in agony, “So now it wants to punish me for it.”

Now Dean actually has to bite back a hearty laughter. “Oh, sweetie.”– he taps your head lightly with his finger –“Look on the bright side. At least we know I didn't knock you up. It's like a free monthly pregnancy test.“

That jab would have earned him a deadpan glare of yours if it wasn’t for the next attack on your inner walls and your body jerked into his arms this time.

Dean’s light-hearted expression contorts into a pained one. Jaws clenched with a twinge of guilt.

“Want me to get you some painkillers? Or – uh – maybe some whisky?” he inquires, his head tilted down in an attempt to meet your gaze. But your eyes are scrunched up, face still hidden in his bunched up shirt.

“Baby, can you look at me for a sec?” he pleads, while his hands slip underneath to cradle your chin now, coaxing you out of your den. You lift your head, just enough to meet his concerned eyes.

“None of that helps…” You mutter. Although you did wonder whether whiskey might even do the trick. Get the wee little samurai bitch a little tipsy down there, hm? Maybe it would pass out?

No – no, now you’re thinking like Dean. That’s a terrible idea.

“Imagine you’re getting stabbed in the stomach and the blade gets twisted. Repeatedly. For hours.”

Dean winces inwardly at your description. A hand instinctively clutches his stomach. He doesn’t have to imagine what that pain feels like. He knows.

He shakes his head like he’s trying to snap out of some memories from downstairs, his eyes back on you just when you writhe again with a stifled groan.

“Okay, that‘s enough. I‘m getting you off the rack,” he declares and you don’t even get the chance to react when he’s already scooping your curled up form up into his arms.

“W-what? What are you going to do, Dean?” you ask confused while he pulls you to your feet and starts leading you out the bedroom and down the bunker's hallway.

"I'm going to distract you," he replies, glancing back over his shoulder at you while he leads you to the main bathroom, "I did some digging this morning... to see what I could do to help with your period cramps, and it looks like an orgasm might do the trick."

You stop in your tracks. Quick enough for Dean to almost stumble into the bathrooms doorframe.

"N-no," you squeak, eyes wide.

"No, what? No it won't work or no you don't-"

"No, I'm fine."

"So it does work?"

"Well- uh-" you trip over your words when the heat rushes to your cheeks, "It's - it's different when I... uh..."

"Hey, it's okay. Nothing to be ashamed of," he chuckles softly and brings up his hand to cup your cheek, "Is it 'cuz of the blood? You do know I don't care about it, right? You really think I won't touch you just 'cause you're on your period?"

"No, but... it's awkward... and gross..." you mumble, eyes averted as you can feel the heat going both ways now.

Because, even if you wouldn't admit it, you did feel a bit horny. It's just one of those many fluctuating emotions a period entails. In those blessed days, it feels like your mood is being regulated by a pinball machine. And as of right now, it hit the tingling nub at the very bottom.

"Gross? Honey, I've been covered in guts, sludge, crap and all sorts of other nasty stuff. Do you honestly think a little blood's gonna phase me?" He tilts your head up to make you look at him, his lips twitch in amusement but his words are genuine, "You're not gross, sweetheart. Not to me..."

"But-" the next argument forms on your lips when he dives down to muffle them with a kiss. Your cheeks cradled by his large hands. Tender, soft, but enough to shut you up and make you melt into him.

When he finally pulls back, his plump lips still hovering inches from yours, he speaks softly.

“Why don’t you just let me take care of you?”

His green eyes flick back and forth between yours, intense and yet calming. And really, how could you ever say no to him when he looks at you like you'll break his heart if you don't let him help you.

A sudden twinge in your stomach has you hunch over, and it's enough to finally convince you to let go of your tribulations with a weak nod of yours.

“Okay," you wince under your sharp exhale. The pain in your voice has Dean's hands dart down, one to your contracted stomach and one to the small of your back.

"Alright then, c'mon, sweetheart..." he mutters. Then gently guides you towards the shower after he closed and locked the door behind you.

When he notices how your teeth pull at your lower lip the way they always do when you're overthinking things, he grabs both of your hands. He squeezes them to get you to look at him, just to bestow you with one of his trademark grins. Confident, cheeky and oh so lovable.

“You trust me, right? It won't be awkward, promise. Nothing wrong with giving my girl some relief. Besides... This is purely therapeutic,” he quips and winks at you.

Once both of your clothes are piled up in a corner, you pad over the cold tiles and into the shower. Dean slides in after you, his naked body flush against your skin, his body heat a warm welcome in the cold air of the large bathroom. His arms envelop you from behind, one hand splayed out on your stomach to try and sooth your cramps, the other reaching for the shower head to pull it from its holder.

“Lean back, I got you baby,” he assures you while tugging you gently further back into his chest.

He turns on the shower, tests the temperature until it's the perfect heat and then slowly brings it down to the level of your stomach with the spray of water still pointed to the floor.

“Spread your legs a bit for me, sweetie,” he gently nudges his knee between your thighs, coaxing you into a wider stance while he continues to hum above you, “Mhm, that's it. Now just relax and lemme take care of you...”

Dean rests his chin on top of your head, the stubbles tingling your scalp as he does so. The air around you slowly begins to mix with steam while his body holds you close. Save and protected. The world reduced to just the two of you and the warmth hugging you from head to toe. Your thoughts and worries are drowned out by the rhythmic pattering of the droplets hitting the smooth shower floor as the sound echoes off of the tiled bunker walls all around you.

You feel yourself relax against him, despite the occasional, small jolts of pain which keep reminding you of that fact.

At last, a heavy sigh drops off your lips. The signal Dean has been waiting for.

He tugs at the hose, just enough to guide the water up your legs, then your thighs...

When the first jet of water hits right on your bundle of nerves, you almost buckle over with a gasped, “Oh shit-”

Your fingernails bite into the skin of his forearms, drawing a hiss from him. He moves his free hand to your hip, his grip on your squishy flesh gentle but strong. Steadying and grounding you.

“Feels good?” he asks while playing with the angle of the shower head.

You nod. Jolting whenever one of the water jets grazes your sensitive spot.

“Want me to keep goin‘?”

“Mhm,” you hum.

The hand on your hips slides over the bump on your bones and dips down between your legs. Next moment, calloused fingers slip along your folds to spread them open.

You shiver under the touch of his rough fingertips and at the feeling of him coating them in some of your arousal.

He angles the shower head slightly lower now, until a row of water jets skim your entrance. Your breath hitches. Then comes out in a shaky whimper.

Your legs start to go weak, feeling like jello.

Dean gently tugs you up again and pulls your back flush into his chest to keep you upright, making sure he's your anchor in this tidal wave of pleasure he's drowning you in.

“Just let go... that’s it…” he coos, now his head angled to nuzzle his nose against your temple.

Another shockwave travels through your body and tightens your coil even more, to the point it feels like it’s going to explode soon.

Your head drops back onto Dean‘s shoulder. Neck draped over his collarbone, just where his anti-possession tat lays. Shaky and ragged breaths mingle in the damp air of the shower.

“Just relax,” he places a kiss to your temple, his stubbles tingling the wet skin as he murmurs, “I got you.”

His fingers spread you further while he brings the shower head closer, allowing some of the water to push past your entrance.

“Oh fuck- Dean-” you gasp and whine at the same time.

„Language, young lady,“ he chides playfully, „This is purely therapeutical, remember?“

You choke on a giggle when he moves the shower head a fraction lower and the water jet grazes your sensitive nub just the right way, enough to send an intense jolt of pleasure through your body.

“Ah, so that's the magic angle, huh?” Dean laughs softly, his chest rumbling against your back.

“Uh-huh,” you manage to get out in a weak whimper as Dean's making sure to keep the right angle.

The intensity has your nerves on fire, like your core's being hooked up to electricity with hundreds of little needles tingling your most sensitive spot.

“M-move - p-please,” you beg in a shaky voice that has Dean's smile next to your cheek widen.

“Guide me,” he prompts softly, the hand on the shower head waiting for your instructions. You slip your hand along his strong arm, over the bump of his wrist, until you cover his hand with your tender fingers.

Slowly you begin to guide his hand into small, circular motions. The water jets brush your nub now from all sides, the overwhelming sensation enough to make you whimper weakly and your head loll to the side to bury your nose under his jaw.

“Too much?” he asks, his head tips to the side to look down into your eyes. You shake your head, lips parted, eyes half-lidded as they meet his. Hair’s stuck to your damp, flushed, skin, pupils blown wide, gaze intoxicated from pleasure.

The corner of his lips tugs into a smirk at your blissful expression. It's such a stark contrast to what you'd looked like moments ago when you were doubling over from pain. And if it wasn’t for the special circumstances, he’d make sure to keep you in this state all day and night. The growing pressure of his own arousal heavy against your back is evidence of his thoughts.

But this is about you now. His needs will just have to wait for – for… how long did a period even last? A day? Two? Hm, maybe if you’d feel comfortable enough, he wouldn’t need to wait this long. But one step at a time.

When your legs begin to shake, Dean presses his lips to your ear, murmuring into it, deep and hoarse from his own arousal.

“You’re doing so well for me… Now close your eyes, sweetheart. I want you to just relax and feel…”

You don't have to be told twice. The intensity is enough to make your eyes flutter close, squinting them even as your face contorts from the jolts of pleasure coursing through your body like a firework.

“Now I want you to imagine it's my mouth down there...”

While he keeps you distracted with the images he's painting in his husky voice, the hand on your folds leaves you and he reaches for the tap, increasing the water pressure.

“Y'know... the way I like to wrap my lips around you… and suck on that cute little bean 'til you're sobbing.”

“O-oh my God-” you mewl after the hard jet of water swallows your pulsing nub, causing your legs to buckle. The feeling's like a lightning bolt has just hit you. And it just keeps striking. Your other hand darts to his thigh behind you, fingernails biting into his skin in an attempt to ground you. But the jolts of pleasure set the nerves down your legs on hot white fire now, with everything from your stomach downwards tingling.

“That’s the reaction I was hoping for…” he chuckles and keeps going with his sweet words of praise somewhere outside of your clouded mind.

Images of Dean kneeling between your legs pulse under your eyelids. How his broad shoulders shove your knees apart, keeping your legs spread as they begin to fight him from the intensity of his mouth on your core. How the soft flesh of your thighs is squished under the force of his fingers, how you witness the veins on his arms pop as his muscles work relentlessly to prevent you from squirming away. How he holds your gaze the entire time, pupils blown up wide from hunger and lust as they eat away the deep emerald pools circling them.

Ragged breaths leave your lips. Another row of jolts has your body shaking in his arms. Each one driving you closer to your climax until you’re teetering on the edge. When your body begins to fight him and thrash around, Dean quickly tightens his grip around your hips to hold you in place.

He moves his lips to your temple, planting a tender kiss there, prickling stubbles brush the side of your face while he continues to talk you through it.

“You're doing so well... Let go for me, sweetheart... I've got you, I'll catch you, promise.”

Just when you feel yourself tip over, his free hand leaves your core to the constant onslaught of the circling water jets and moves it to your hand. His fingers slide between yours, intertwining them.

Then the tidal wave crashes down on you.

Dean's hand squeezes yours. The corner of his lips still pressed to your temple.

A guttural sound leaves the back of your throat when waves after waves of ecstasy course through you, enough for your knees to give in as your body goes limp.

“Oh- we goin' down?” he jokes softly as he follows your movement.

As promised, Dean catches you right after you've dropped some inches. Chuckling lightly above you as he pulls you back to your feet. Legs still shaky like a newborn foal’s.

“C'mon, bambi...” - he teases and slides the shower head back into place before he wraps both of his arms around your waist and turns you to face you with a soft smile - “…there you go.” You smile back at him, your hands finding purchase on his hips, gaze still a bit woozy.

He brushes a damp strand of hair out of your face, head tilted down to your eye-level, “Hey there, sweetie. You feeling better?”

“Yes,” you sigh, one of relief at the missing pain. At least for the moment. You melt into his embrace, feeling how your wet and naked bodies lock together like a perfect puzzle piece. “So much better.”

“Good, that’s good…” he murmurs into your hair after your forehead had dropped to his chest.

After a moment of peaceful silence, a mischievous grin creeps onto his face.

He clears his throat.

“You want me to battle that wee little samurai with my sword now?”

It takes your dazed mind a moment to catch up with his rather creative innuendo.

Once it hits you, you sputter an amused chuckle, “Please don’t.”

Dean huffs through his nose, feigning disappointment.

“Aw c’mon… Y'know, I’ve always wanted to fight a samurai… I’d make a pretty good Nathan Algren, don’t ya think?” he quips, then his lips quirk into a boyish, innocent grin as he adds, “...and my sword wouldn't mind getting bloody either.”

Now this has you raise your head to meet his cheeky expression and burst out in laughter.

“You do us both a favour and keep your mighty sword in your pants for now, you hear me? Idiot-” you playfully slap his chest, the wet sound echoing off the bathroom tiles. Dean’s grin doesn’t waver, instead his hands on your back slide down your spine until they reach your ass cheeks.

He clicks his tongue.

“Hey, don’t knock it until you’ve tried it, s’all I’m sayin’,” he jabs softly as he pats both your ass cheeks. His eyes crinkle at the corner, and he's got a secret smile on his face, proud of how he made you not only smile, but laugh, despite the hell trip you’re on. Maybe he’s not as helpless as he thought.

His features suddenly harden, eyes narrowed as they dart down to your stomach, a pointed finger now prodding the spot below your bellybutton.

“Now back to you,” he growls, you giggle, and he has to fight to keep a straight face and his voice especially low and warning as he continues, “You leave my girl alone now. Or else I’ll personally come down there and take care of you, Tom Cruise style. You hear me you evil little bitch?”

⋆ ˚｡⋆ J/NOTES May Dean bring some relief to all of you poor, fellow victims of Uterus Lilith. <3

And thank you, @ambiguous-avery for your help with the correct name for the shower head lol 😌

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[theweirdhybrid]

@where-does-the-heart-lie KICKS OPEN THE DOOR

OKAY I WENT BACK THROUGH AND FOUND ALL THE FORESHADOWING MOMENTS/HINTS I POSSIBLY COULD (i think. i could be reading too much into some of these + might've missed some) OF STELLY AND SALLY'S (AND APPARENTLY MANNY'S!!!!!!) TRUE INTENTIONS IN WITTB HERE WE GO (this was originally an ask but it was too long so I made it into a tumblr post lmao)

(and to anyone seeing this w/o context all art in this post belongs to Whery- the person I mentioned above- and it's from their One Piece fancomic Water is Thicker Than Blood and you should all go read it RIGHT NOW)

First up here we go WAYYY back in chapter 26 (almost two years ago!!! woah!!!!!!) we get the first mention of the letter!!! Stelly tells Sabo to wait until someone comes out, which I know was just him saying that so Sabo wouldn't leave, but imagine if Sabo had Actually waited. Can you imagine how long it could've taken for Sabo to realize Stelly lied?? Definitely would've added to his anger. And Stelly also mentions he wants Sabo to read the letter when he gets home, which means it was meant as an apology for how awful the day would've turned out for him if it had gone according to Stelly's plan, though it still turned out awful for Sabo, just not in the way Stelly intended

And in chapter 27... this moment. When I first saw it I thought Stelly was asking cus he was Afraid, but personally I think this was him hoping Luffy would help Sabo wreck things OR he DIDN'T want him to be there bc he was worried he would help calm Sabo and Stop The Carnage (which he did in fact do at the end. kinda. lmao)

And then again in chapter 28 Stelly says THIS. He might've said this with innocent intentions BUT knowing he was purposefully trying to make Sabo's day Awful it's possible he was just trying to add on to that (especially considering his reaction when Sabo DOESN'T maul him) Idk, this one's up in the air but STILL. EVERYTHING HE SAYS IS SUS NOW. anyways moving on

Next is chapter 39, Manny Does His Thing and psychoanalyzes Ace, thus pissing him off a few moments later. Could this have been innocent on his part, especially considering his embarrassment when Ace shuts him down? Could be, could be... BUT THAT SMIRK.... THAT DAMN SMIRK......... I am CONVINCED this was intentional on some part because if it wasn't, well. Manny needs to learn what boundaries are lmao (i could also just be salty over BJG being a little TRAITOR and dragging his name through the mud but shhhh)

And then here!!! Right here in chapter 42!!!!! The panel that made everyone start to wonder what could've possibly been in the letter that would've made Sabo so mad!!!!!!!! This is one of the more obvious ones but I spent like five hours on this so compiled this for a reason HAHA

Chapter 43! Manny has drawn his Iconic Capricorn!! He acts cagey and hesitant, but I'm onto him [insert suspicious squinting emoji here] I half feel like I'm gaslighting myself here but then I remember That God Damn Smirk Manny makes a few chapters later, and I KNOW he was in on it from the beginning. Why was he riling up Ace??? To make it harder to keep Sabo in check, but JOKES ON MANNY bc Ace has a REMARKABLE level of self control and a WHOLE LOTTA LOVE FOR HIS BROTHERS!!!!!!!! Manny underestimated Ace I fear (or I'm just reading too far into it LOL)

And then, of course, chapter 55, we get This Scene, the evidence that Manny is most DEFINITELY IN ON IT!!!!!!! Sally knows what's coming up, and is giving Manny a heads up. Why? Yet to be seen. Maybe Manny had a hand in how it all went down, but she whispered to him FOR A REASON. And it was about the later scene, where They corner Sabo at dinner!!!!! Ace has a right to be sus, they're tryna make Sabo's day worse!!!!!!!! And they did!!! The fuckers

Next chapter, chapter 56, we see Sally nervous about approaching Sabo with the letter. For good reason! She doesn't give it to him, actually she does something aguably worse but!!! Now we know why she was SO nervous lmao

Lotta hints in a row here. Chapter 57, Sally hides the letter (or at least the name on it) to ask A Super Invasive Question Of Someone She Literally Just Met!!! Girl. I honestly can't tell if Sally was against upsetting Sabo from the start (especially considering this entire chapter) and trying to avoid upsetting him or was just Nervous in general, but either way. She could've said ANYTHING instead of going right for the goddamn THROAT like GEEZ

And chapter 58... That smirk.... that DAMNED smirk.......... he was in on it. There's no way he wasn't. That is an EVIL little smirk he was ABSOLUTELY trying to make things worse, or at least he was looking forward to the chaos. I can just imagine him in the background eating popcorn like "fight fight FIGHT FIGHT FI- oh man he's walking away :( damn"

I really don't think Sally wanted to upset Sabo considering this panel in chapter 59, at least not actually coming face to face with him. Her "this is too far" comment tells me that Stelly hired Jalmack ON PURPOSE (and also that she had NO IDEA. backed up by her initial reaction to learning who the priest was) Like, good grief ANYONE would recognize that as too far, except for Stelly apparently. Rereading I am SHOCKED I didn't put together what was going on considering this one, but it's such a blink and you'll miss it moment because oF WHAT HAPPENS IN THE SAME CHAPTER

That face she makes!!! We all knew she did it on purpose but that face she makes really drives the whole thing home like WOW...... Grim determination with a hint of remorse.. harsh.

Rereading, the panel here in chapter 65 where Stelly and Sally are leaning on each other lowkey reads as them being like "Omg look at him go he's finally going apeshit!! Our hard work has payed off honey :D" but I also know this was likely them leaning on each other for support considering. everything. yeah. But Stelly at least was at LEAST a little relieved Sabo was finally losing it. Sally likely needed the hug. But yeah no this was DEF another hint (also Stelly when did you get here.... we didn't see him sit down I'm just now realizing, but to be fair we were more focused on Sabo than Stelly so it makes sense we didn't see him lol)

Breaking the mold a bit w the format of this post by adding two panels at once here but I feel it's needed to drive the point across. This right here, in chapter 66, was ABSOLUTELY Stelly realizing he went too far. And it was ONLY because he got sent into a flashback too. THIS was Stelly realizing what exactly he was doing to Sabo, because his plan ended up backfiring and hurt him instead of just Sabo. I would LOVE to see what exactly Stelly's reaction was when Sabo ran out. The mix of emotions he was probably feeling here is DELICIOUS to imagine. When I initially saw this I thought he was getting angry on Sabo's behalf, and maybe he was a little but it was mostly him realizing how Badly he fucked up, and also the emotions that come with getting trigged like that. An entire bag worth of emotions and I am so HDAWJDKAJDAHK that I went back after the latest chapter to find moments like this because WOW

This panel here in chapter 67 is a bit of a smaller moment, and I realize this was mostly a reaction to an Angry Man Storming Up To Them, but their combined flinch and Stelly's expression was NOT just because of what just happened. Sally was ABSOLUTELY feeling guiltly and so was Stelly, who didn't appear all that shocked Sabo flipped a table. It feels more like he was startled he went for the table they were sitting at, or like he was startled out of the flashback. But this was def part of it. Or maybe I'm just adding this bc this was the ONE thing Sabo wrecked and I'm proud of him for it LMAO

And then, in one of the recent ones, chapter 82, Sabo is expecting Stelly to snitch on him like Stelly always has and he DOESN'T. And now we know why!! Because THIS was what Stelly wanted!!!! Sabo's finally about to wreck something and Stelly's here for it!!!!!! Even though he's very much still afraid of Sabo as seen in the next panel

Stelly was absolutely returning these because he felt guilty. I thought he'd just felt bad in general, but no, it was guilt. He orchestrated this entire night to make it as Horrible As Possible for Sabo and the ONLY reason he feels bad about it is because IT HURT STELLY TOO. I mean yeah I think his regret is genuine, but he hasn't even APOLOGIZED YET. If he really wants to have Sabo at his REAL WEDDING, because he WANTS TO MAKE AMENDS, he NEEDS to apologize and follow through. THIS ^ IS NOT AN ACTUAL APOLOGY. Fuckin. Little bastard man I love how complicated he is so MUCCHHHHHH but also Stelly. My Man. APOLOGIZE. Urgh I love how you can still see his canon characteristics shine through with this reveal but I also HATE ITTT because WOW. HE'S AN ASSHOLE.

And here's a bonus of Stelly trying to run before Sabo can read the letter and failing LMAO

Anyways yeah that's all I got I'm going to bed now it is. way too late and I am NOT tagging this whatsoever and I apologize for any spelling errors the screen is blurring around the edges hwadhkadja

This is my small love letter to WITTB Whery bc I adore how you wrote everything, from the characters to the pacing to how you draw the faces and convey emotions and just dhwajwjkdak yeah. yeah. I'm not even hyperfixated on One Piece anymore (still keeping up w it tho) but this series STILL holds a special place in my heart and I love it to bits!!! Thank you so much for making this and I personally cannot WAIT to see Sabo's full reaction to Stelly's manipulative little scheme HAHAHAAA okay i'm crashing now goodnight

[ckret2]

I remember you saying a lot of the characters you'd written for had a common theme of loneliness, is there any common theme between the pairings you like or is it just purely "the chemistry is good" ?

there are sooo many pairings with "good chemistry" that totally bore me lmao. no, i've got specific preferences.

Here's one very very specific ship dynamic that I almost always gravitate toward:

Enter a fandom. Find the most powerful villain (or villain-acting character) in this fandom. They must be completely OP, absolutely self-assured in their power and supremacy, all but unbeatable (unless it's by like the plucky hero or whatever). They are smug. They are confident. Their tag is probably filled with reader insert fics with plots like "y/n is dommed by [character] and calls him daddy." This is the Badass.

Find another character. This character is comparatively pathetic. Oftentimes, the fandom joke is that they could never win a fight. If the fandom isn't loudly proclaiming that this second character would get their ass handed to them by, specifically, the Badass, then it's only because the two of them are on SUCH different power levels that the idea of a fight never enters fans' minds. They may or may not actually be a wimp, but what matters is the fandom (and often, the narrative) sees them that way—at least when compared to the Badass, if not universally. This is the Loser.

Then have the Badass get kneecapped with love for the Loser.

They've gotta fall in love in a way that completely destroys them. It makes them fall from grace. It strips away their godhood. It topples their empire. It steals their power, their prestige, their dignity, their confidence, their sanity. It ruins their life.

The Badass would give up everything for a chance to crawl like a worm at the feet of their beloved Loser. They submit themself entirely to the Loser's will. They are but a sword, a toy, a dog, a piece of trash—whatever they need to lower themself to to be allowed to bask in the Loser's light.

The Loser might not even reciprocate.

This is a difficult ship dynamic to be into because even when the fandom DOES ship Badass/Loser, every one of the fics is like "Loser is dommed by Badass and calls him daddy" and I recoil in disgust.

And here's some other ship dynamics I'm into—borrowed from a couple of prior asks I've gotten here and here so if you wanna see me ramble EVEN MORE, I go more in depth in those two links.

the biggest thing that gets me into a ship is unhealthy obsession. Love to the point of self-destruction. Love past the point of all reason. Love like an addiction, love like a poison.

Forms this takes can include:

a worshiper toward their (personal) god. bonus points if the "god" isn't even that great, the divinity just exists in the worshiper's mind and the "god" kinda sucks (billford's a good example; I actually usually prefer the obsession going the other way around, but there's definitely still shades of this in how I write Ford's POV on Bill)

mutual rabidly codependent toxic obsession (example: comics Venom.)

"knight" obsessively in love with their liege. (canon example: Pearl toward Rose Quartz. headcanon example: Zim toward the Tallest. this is gonna be how i write Scaramouche toward Aku.) This can be extended to ships with similar power dynamics like henchman/villain.

your classic yandere. "I love you so much I had to kidnap you," "stay with me and I'll make you sososo happy, leave and I'll kill us both," "I will proactively murder anyone who likes you before you can like them back," "I will rewrite my entire identity to be perfect for you," "I'm so breathlessly euphoric with love for you that I kind of want to slit my own throat" yandere-yandere. (THE yandere: Yuno Gasai. a personal favorite: IDW Tarantulas toward Prowl.)

perpetually unrequited love. it MUST stay unrequited. if it becomes requited it stops being interesting. it must be quietly agonized over for an eternity. Bonus points if the couple once had a chance but the suffering lover sabotaged it. (I've done this with HashiMada, Starscream/Wheeljack, and radiosnake. you could easily do it with Gideon/Mabel or post-betrayal billford.)

"emotionless" characters (like in a "robot programmed without emotions" way, not a "mental illness" way) that somehow gain the capacity to feel love and it becomes their whole identity because they have nothing else. (i don't have an example lmao)

Various tropes I enjoy outside unhealthy obsession (although it can incorporate it):

Anything that lets me write a character romantically waxing poetic over the breathtaking beauty of something that normal people would never consider a potential object of attraction. Like a pteranodon, or a literal triangle with an eyeball, or a pile of black sludge.

The super genius who makes/does incredible things and their personal muse who inspires their work and is in awe of the brilliant things they do/make. they can both be geniuses but don't have to be. (Tarantulas & Prowl; Sir Pentious & Alastor; Ford & Bill)

Toxic exes who still know each other SO well that it's agony to be around each other because they can see everything they used to have.

Characters who make each other Worse. Like their relationship is good, but being together turns them both into terrible people. (Venom.)

[muletia]

ok this is really long, I'm sorry. so I remembered someone had an idea for the reader in the merformer au to be "rescued" so imagine they're taken from Optimus and their guppy. so they escape from people interested in how they changed to being more mer like from the bonding. and now they're like Odysseus spending the next few years fighting to get back to their wife, optimus. the reader runs into other mers and maybe some of them are interested in them? the reader isn't fully aquatic but has some enhanced strength from the bond changing them so they can actually stand a chance against them bc we know they would get demolished as a full human lol. maybe Megatron is like Poseidon, chasing the reader as they try to avoid him. at first he's going after them bc they mention being close with Optimus and he's like "oh I could kill them or kidnap them to use it against him". then seeing the reader's ferocity, is like "oh damn, I'm keeping them for myself". then starscream is circle, he hears about Megan's interest in the reader and wants to keep his trine safe from the human, so he tries to fight the reader but loses so he goes fuck it, I can take them, just not in a fight and tries to rizz the reader up, but like Ody in There Are Other Ways, they just go "no I can't... ugh I miss my wife, it's been so long since I've seen him and I love him so much ❤️❤️" he's like "ew that's disgusting but ig I'll kinda help since it'll piss off Megatron". so he gives u some vague directions for how to find the og mer island since that's where Optimus was at. back there maybe ratchet is trying to encourage Optimus to leave and bring the guppy to a new pod, since it looks like you won't be coming back and the guppy shouldn't be isolated to this island with a depressed sire. Optimus is super against it and he knows you'll come back to him and your baby. cut back to the reader, what are they up to, uh oh looks like they're being held captive by coral snake naga knockout. he's Calypso, a naga that lost his mate and was stranded on an island after being washed too far out to sea in a storm. he's desperate for attention and becomes obsessively attached to the reader. so after months of barely being able to get a moment alone, they secretly make a raft and pull an Appetite and make a run for it. sorry KO. they finally are within sight of the island and boom, Megs pulls up like sike bitch. so they have a big confrontation and maybe the reader beats him some and gets it across to him that they will never be with him. if he took them they'd fight every second of the way. so he maybe has some respect for this warrior and leaves them to go home. when they're home they have a Would You Fall In Love With Me Again moment where they apologize for being gone for like 5 years maybe? definitely not 20 like the Odyssey, but a good amount of time and I don't think optimus would survive a decade or more lmao. Optimus would ofc forgive them and says he'd always loved them. then they're a happy family. I just think we should have a full spectrum of reader: moron to badass

-💕

Average Tuesday in an x reader land

No, but this is genuinely great! It’s hard for me to add much, since I’m not too familiar with the source material, but I really love the concept of Optimus as your waiting wife hehe

Oh, I can totally imagine how, once you finally return to him, he kisses every single inch of your face and refuses to let go of you for the next few weeks. You’re completely grounded trapped between his torso, your little guppy, and Optimus’s arm

[lastofthewardens]

i know hearing the same interview responses over and over is getting annoying, so i don't blame anyone for being upset about hearing it another time because it's discouraging.

but i just wanted to give an alternate take on that answer about foggy that i think is a little unique because of my position.

for context, i personally don't think foggy is coming back. my nuanced feeling is that i'm like 90/10 on the issue because i said i'd stop letting myself get baited if vanessa explicitly wanted foggy dead, and i drew my line in the sand there.

so my interpretation of a lot of different things coming from this team is usually pretty uncharitable and i honestly feel like many things being said are rooted in baiting angry fans into watching s2 hoping he'll be back.

but if you're a foggy is alive truther or just someone who isn't being as cynical about this as me, i don't think this answer today is really anything to worry about.

charlie's been saying this exact same quote about foggy's death for months. i've noticed a pattern almost every time where he seems to talk genuinely about foggy and then segues into what is clearly a coached answer that he's "allowed" to say. because when he talks about his own personal feelings, it changes and varies, and he's made it clear multiple times through words and emotion that he doesn't agree with the decision, sometimes much more openly than i ever would've expected an actor to do.

then after, when he segues into what i believe to be coached PR answers, these quotes about 'starting off with a bang' and 'no one feeling safe' are all worded and phrased exactly the same. i think these are things he's told to say. i remember there was even one interview where someone else cut in because he kept talking about how much they were losing out on by not having foggy, and they interrupted him to be like 'but also we get lots of new stuff!' lmao.

i think if we're going to take anything away from this, it should be the fact that charlie notably said some fans are rightfully angry, and this was before he segued into those PR answers.

if you're like me, that's pretty validating in my opinion. he's made it as clear as he can without getting in trouble that he doesn't agree with the decision, and he's now telling the fans they're valid for being upset. i don't really think he could say more than that even if he wanted to, and he's said more validating things than anyone else involved besides elden. it also means that they're seeing the fans' anger, which surprised me considering how much people try to shout down disappointed fans. they're seeing it, we know for sure now, and this is why it's so important you guys keep talking and keep asking for foggy.

and if you're a foggy is alive truther, this is actually even a good thing. because it's clear to me that nobody is allowed to talk about foggy for whatever reason. even elden hasn't really been able to talk about it much beyond that he felt bad for fans and that he's grateful for the love and that he loves foggy. my take is that the people who make these decisions about what they can and can't talk about are baiting to make angry fans watch s2, and maybe also hoping the less they talk about it the backlash will go away, but in a world where the 10% of the 90/10 comes to pass, it could just as easily be that they can't 'spoil it' like they claimed in that one interview.

but yeah, i mean. this is a nothing answer really. it didn't make me feel better or worse. it just sort of made me feel a little annoyed that they won't talk about it further.

but most importantly, everyone telling you you're not valid for being upset or angry is wrong, and you can point them to charlie's answer next time they try to shout you down.

[scarapanna]

confrontation from jekyll and hyde reminds me so much of your intertwined opposites au

Hell yeahh Jekyll and Hyde mention!!!

I remember I really started to get interested in the concept album's songs way back when I made the AU, listened to the whole two hour thing, amazing album, though I still gotta watch the actual thing lmao (I'm an album devourer, love listening to music it's my lifeline, but I'm terrible at sitting still and watching movies/documentaries for one or two hours straight. I like to do stuff in the meantime sjcnxn)

Def was an inspo for the au in some aspects, I'm not as fixated into this specific AU atm ence the lack of recent content/animatics surrounding it (I now have a cronic avian fixation), but do still occasionally pick it back up!! The whole "possession" bit is only a part of what appealed to me, and there are some things I want to explore more as I go on rewriting a proper timeline.

Rambles aside big fat genuine shout out to my moot @bl0ssom-skies for kickstarting my hyperfix on this clown BEFORE he even dropped, please go give her some love!!! I think with how much this little AU of mine blew up it is more than fair for the catalyst of this whole idea to get equal amounts of appreciation!! Abbie and my other moot @lemonadhe for withnessing my rapid descent into cookie insanity³ normality live. What have you both done to me../silly/pos

Also there is NOO way it's been a year already like whar...

(First image is cropped cause story spoilers I have yet to reveal in the yt animatic pipeline) (Is said animatic series slightly outdated? Yes, but is the info vague/general enough so it doesn't show? Also yes, thus it's still alright in my book/equally silly)

[cherry-leclerc]

hey cherry! its me again, after a LONG time, 🤍 anon. the one who suggested the bonita drabble? i doubt u remember me, but i was scrolling and found your account again and i was like DAAAAAMN GIRL, greed is just one of the best things ive read in my life and i really mean it. 💓

the whole time i was like DO IT DO IT ACCEPT DEFEAT JUST KISS until they finally snapped thank god. i swear i had to close my computer like 3 times because it was too much at times and i was giggling and kicking my feet and all 😭

just saying that its kinda sus that lily and lando came back together and all, i mean the ending should have been a message of oscar to reader saying something like "lily couldn't handle the guilt and told me the truth, she and lando fucked in london. wanna go to north carolina?" IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE THAT 😞😞😞 THEY DESERVE TO BE HAPPY EVER AFTER. osc just go get lando's championship, go get lando's team and GO GET LANDO'S GIRL. btw have you heard "de cora <3" from rauw alejandro and j balvin? if fits greed so muchhhhh

i really missed sending you anons, so prepare for me to be here again 😛 also, i think you speak spanish? i dont remember if u do or i just allucinated it lmao. just wanted to say that if you have a preview in the drafts for pride, don't be shy... u can post it...

anyways, cuidate un montón! sleep well, drink water and eat at your hours! 💓 ily!

-🤍

LILY IS NOT A BAD SEED!! THAT'S JUST OSCAR, READER, AND LANDO!! she would neverrrr do that, and i firmly believe so. but I'M SO HAPPY TO HAVE YOU BACK AND I'M SO GLAD YOU ENJOYED READING MY SILLY LITTLE STORY ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

yes! i do speak spanish! 🍒💋 looking forwards to having you in my inbox from time to time :p

and you know what, yeah, i will give you a tiny tiny tiny glimpse into the world of pride 💜

spoiler! tennis player x formula one driver is how it's going to go down 🤭🤭

pride ☆ cl16 [HOPEFULLY out soon] 🤞

[jennilah]

for the ask game: tinycas. i know the story is done and everything but it will always love on in my heart and you will always remind me of it /pos

wahhh!! I cant BELIIIIEVE how many people from that era have stuck around, through every wacky new interest ive gotten into

but gosh, its been almost 6 years since i wrapped up that blog, which felt like a lifetime ago. and I remember it was not easy to run!!! but I was really proud of what I accomplished with it

it wasnt an official comic per se, but it almost felt like it. like, a sunday "funnies" in the newspaper type deal to try to keep up with, while also kind of somewhat maintaining a coherent plotline with different arcs and developments and stuff.

for YEARS!!

in college lmao!! (for the most part)

storytime...

omg. enough time has passed. some people were outrageously entitled and made running that thing STRESSFULLLLLLL sometimes! Thank god I let most of it roll off my back!

i remember someone once accused me of... idk.. lying? because I announced a small hiatus for finals or something, and I committed the crime of playing Undertale instead of drawing more Tinycas. LMFAO (during a christmas or spring break or something too)

but, the funniest series of anons i ever got that I showed all my friends, was 1 person completely incorrectly assuming the ending of the finale (of the blog) before it was even posted, and got pissed at ME for what they THOUGHT i was going to do.

they thought Cas was gonna stay small forever as some kind of moral lesson. because the ending was queued out in parts to make it a bit of an "event" with cliffhangers, every day, they would send a new paragraph-long Anon being like "I swear to fucking god if you go through with this plotline..."

and I couldnt just respond and be like "fucking chill, thats not the ending I wrote, havent you heard of suspense? just be patient" without vaguely spoiling the ending for everyone.

and the day BEFORE THE GRAND FINALE REVEAL THAT CAS WAS, AS THEY HOPED, RETURNED TO NORMAL SIZE, they were like "Sigh... You really are going to keep him small... I'm so disappointed in you... I'm leaving right now and never coming back"

and they did not, in fact, ever come back to apologize for being a nitwit LMAO

Anyway. I really do consider TinyCas to be a positive impact in my life, but oh my goodness do people get rabid when they feel like theyre owed something. even if its a completely free passion-project by a college kid

[milkoomi]

hii milkoomi, hope you're doing great<33

i was wondering if you would have any inputs on how to get out of a procrastination slump, i feel as though whenever i have college work and need to go consistently i'm in a pretty good cycle. but when i have longer periods of break, it can sometimes be difficult to have that same self discipline and keep myself accountable. i end up submitting things super last minute and i'm starting to piss myself off LMAO. if you would have any advice on the same it would be really helpful<3 thank u!!

omg hi angel!! thank you so much for sending in an ask! i’m doing pretty well and i hope you’re doing amazing!! 🤍

students vs procrastination: the winner is obvious. ᥫ᭡

trust me when i say this, but i’ve been a HUGE procrastinator all throughout my entire academic career up until the start of this current spring semester! so i know what it’s like putting off completing assignments til the last minute! it’s a major struggle and i feel like it can actually be pretty debilitating since it can cause so much crippling stress. it’s one of the students’ toughest battles, but guess what? the student always wins! and i wanna share how i personally won my own battle!

let’s begin …

୨ৎ — “if you have the time to do it now, DO IT!”

my mom always told me this ever since i was a kid, and she was completely right and i wish i had listened to her when i was younger so that i didn’t have to deal with being a procrastinator for majority of my academic career.

seriously, if you have the time right in that moment, start working on and finishing up what needs to get done!

since i only work two days out of the week, i used my days off to work on assignments. most of my homework is online and my professor would open up the modules every sunday at 8am and if i didn’t have anything going on on sundays, i’d get started on my assignments as soon as possible! if not, that following monday was used to get my homework done.

if you have even an hour of down-time, use that hour to get tasks done!

୨ৎ — the pomodoro method

god, i don’t even remember how many times i’ve mentioned/talked about this method, but it seriously changed the game for me when it was time for me to start working on my studies!

if you’re unfamiliar with this method, it’s essentially a time-management method that allows you to work for a set amount of time and take breaks in between the times you work!

i know you said you struggled with taking longer breaks and resuming your work, so incorporate this method into your study routine! you’re still getting the much needed breaks you need while also having the time to focus on your school work!

time examples: 25 minutes of work/5 minute breaks or 50 minutes of work/10 minute breaks

୨ৎ — be firm with yourself

i believe treating yourself with constant kindness and genuine gentle pushes is the way to go, but sometimes we need to be firm with ourselves and really teach ourselves discipline.

i’m not saying you have to punish yourself if you don’t get things done, but provide yourself a solid schedule where you set aside time during your day to get work done or where you have designated days for getting assignments/studying done!

being firm with yourself is also adopting a “i want to get this done now” mindset. a change in the way you think and view your assignments and studies could honestly be all that you might need!

change “i have to” to “i get to”

change “i need to” to “i want to”

i think we all need a reminder sometimes that our education is a privilege; not everyone is as fortunate as us to be able to get an education. so remembering that we’re extremely lucky to be able to receive an education can also be a great motivator to getting your school work done!

final notes —

i will always stress the importance of taking breaks from your studies because you need them! but it’s also important that you figure out the best time management strategy for yourself! learning to do so was the best thing to happen to me academics wise, and i know it’s a pretty cliché piece of advice, but it seriously does make a difference!

incorporate the pomodoro method into your study/school work routine! come up with a study/work schedule for yourself! and, of course, push yourself to get things done! i know we all need an extra nudge, but at the end of the day it’s up to you to give yourself that push of motivation because you’re the one who has to do the work!

with lots of love, faustina 🌷

[lost-inanotherlife]

ACT FOUR.

You gotta buckle up for the two final acts because things get trippy but stay with me.

The act opens with Kate/Monica being all domestic-y with her husband, Kevin, who calls her and asks her "Hey! What's for dinner, gorgeous?". Everything is very fake, it's almost like looking at one of those sitcoms about the perfect wife in the perfect household with the perfect hsuband. We need to pay attention to the background music playing in the supermarket where Kate's buying groceries. It's "Daydream Believer" by The Monkees:

Oh, I could hide 'neath the wings

Of the bluebird as she sings.

The six o'clock alarm would never ring.

But it rings and I rise,

Wipe the sleep out of my eyes.

The shavin' razor's cold and it stings.

Cheer up, sleepy jean.

Oh, what can it mean.

To a daydream believer

And a homecoming queen.

The song is clearly about an idealized reality where everything is perfect, where you can wake up to bluebirds' singing instead of your alarm clock. More specifically, it's about an idealized image of love that's reminiscent of teenage years versus the harsher reality of a couple that needs, apart from love, very practical things in order to have the means to be together in this society. Like your passport, for instance. Or knowing your partner's real name. LOL, lmao, even.

Basically, what's this song and this scene are telling us is that Kate's love for Kevin is not not-real but it's a form of love more akin to escapism than something anchored to reality. Kate is under the illusion that Love with the capital L can "save" her, can magically solve all of her problems and will stop her from her constant running. Of course, Kate's not stupid, she knows this is a total illusion and yet she believes in it, she believes in this make-believe because.... she has to (just like she has to believe the Others when they say that they won't kill Sawyer if Jack do surgery on Ben).

To her credit, she tries very hard to make things work to the point that she calls the marshal and almost begs him to stop chasing her (which is, of course, a pipe dream, she's being here a "daydream believer"):

MARSHAL: Agent Mars. KATE: It's me. [Mars grasps phone receiver mouthpiece and whistles to get someone's attention to start a trace on the phone call.] MARSHAL: Well, I'm glad. I realized this morning that it was the Feast of the Assumption and I was feeling bad. How many holy days have come and gone since you last called? I thought you and I were friends? KATE: I don't want to run anymore. MARSHAL: What's his name? [Kate is silent] Does he know who you are? KATE: Edward, please. I know you don't want to spend the rest of your life chasing me. Please, I love this guy. Just let me go. MARSHAL: I'll tell you what. [He and the agent doing the trace make eye contact] If you can really stay put? Really settle down? Then I'll stop chasing you. [Kate is silent] But you and I both know that's not gonna happen.

This is such an interesting scene! First of all, it establishes that Kate and Edward have a relationship of sorts. She knows his number by heart, she calls him on holy days as if this was a ritual for her, she calls him by his first name to signal intimacy. It's all very weird but compelling. This scene is also the KEY to understanding the episode as I'll explain when I'll write about ACT FIVE so please remember this convo. For now the thing that's important to highlight is that it's Kate who calls the marshal and it's the marshal who "reveals" that the reason why he won't stop chasing her is because... she won't stop running (and, I mean, as much as I hate the man, he's not wrong because chasing fugitives is literally his job, he's very creepy about it and totally unprofessional, sure, still... chasing Kate is, technically speaking, a job he's paid to do). The ball is all in Kate's court. On not-so side note, the marshal's words show that he immediately "gets" Kate with that "what's his name?". He knows her. These two have a fucked-up dynamic that we must pay close attention to.

In the next scene we're back on Hydra island (Kate doesn't know it yet, though): Kate's in her cage, back from the meeting with Jack and Danny pushes Sawyer into his cage. Upon meeting Kate's gaze Saweyer says: "And how was your day, honey?". This echoes Kevin's words in the previous scene ("Hey! What's for dinner, gorgeous?") with the stark difference that Kevin doesn't know he's living a fiction that he thinks it's reality while Sawyer is very much aware of it and uses the contrast for humor effect. This little scene, however, is NOT written like this ONLY for comedic relief but it's confirming us something the show was only hinting at before: Kevin is not a parallel to Jack, he's a parallel to Sawyer (and isn't it interesting that, in the flash-sideways, Sawyer is a cop, lol?). But if Sawyer is Kevin... and Kate's relationship with Kevin is a "daydream"... then... it also means that what we're seeing happening between Sawyer and Kate doesn't mean what we might naturally assume but it means something else.

Kate and Sawyer being in cages is basically paralleled to Kate/Monica and Kevin's domestic life: in both scenarios these people are living, if not in a prison (either real or fictional, also remember ACT ONE and how Kevin is introduced, i.e. via a roleplay where he, a cop, pretends to be... a cop), in an enviroment where they didn't really choose to live. In both cases lies are involved (even though the intent behind these lies is not malicious). But there's more to it and we'll see it in a bit.

Let's move on to the next scene, the famous cage sex scene. The event leading to that moment is Kate and Sawyer arguing over Jack's decision (you have to remember the triangulation of desire in these cases, it will ALWAYS be about Jack): Sawyer thinks "the Doc" is right and he shouldn't operate on Ben, clearly Kate doesn't share the same opinion (it's also noteworthy that, strictly speaking, the person who really saves Ben's life not ONCE but TWICE is Kate but more on this when I'll finally write about Kate and Ben). It's interesting to note that Kate tells Saywyer the following:

KATE: You don't want Jack to save your life? Then you're gonna save your own. We're getting out of here now.

In reality we know that it's actually Kate who's trying to save Sawyer's life. I mean, Jack didn't know anything about Sawyer before Kate arrived at the cage and asked him to operate on Ben. And even now she's saying that Sawyer will have to save his own life while she's actively getting out of her cage as if it's nothing and opening up his cage. I don't know about island's protectorship but this girl knows one thing or two about being a protector in life.

Two things we must pay attention to: 1. the ease with wich Kate leaves her own cage and 2. her determination to save Sawyer. As far as 1 is concerned, it tells us that either that Kate can always find a way to run away or (and) that Kate builds her own cages. Just like the marshal told her, in his own way. There's a not indifferent element of... necessity to escape in Kate's story. And, I mean, it makes total sense because "settling down" and building a home is exactly what might trigger Kate's trauma since she grew up in an abusive household. As it's always the case, the cage is first and foremost mental and in Kate's case, the real cage is Kate's constant running away.

The prison was home but, after she blew it up, the prison became the entire world. It's not an actual place, it's a compulsion: she can literally break free anytime she wants to but the issue is that... she doesn't want to. She wants to believe she can belong, that one day she'll reach "her" destination, a destination that's not tied to her "destiny", to the belief that the only things she's capable of are Bad Things. She wants to believe in her future, a future where she can be, if not happy, at least at peace with herself (but she simultaneously doesn't want to see, doesn't want to look at ther past in the face, to confront it, but that's something for another day because there are serious issues with the writing in this respect, since it's not exactly as if she doesn't want to, it's the narrative that doesn't relly allow her to see).

Let's talk about point n.2: Kate wants to save Sawyer, just like she wants to protect Jack, just like she wants to save young Ben in S5. Just like she wanted to protect her mother. This is because, at her core, Kate IS a protector, Kate cares about people but that doesn't mean she always has the right tools to either show this or downright apply it in a way that's beneficial to her and to the people she wants to protect. This is her fatal flaw.

Okay, so let's see ACT FOUR's finale dialogue because this is getting longer and longer and I hope you're staying with me, lol:

SAWYER: Stop it, dammit, Kate! [Kate ignores him and bangs on lock, eventually opening the lock and then opening the cage door.] KATE: Go! Get out of here, run! SAWYER: You're out of your cage. Why don't you run, Kate?! Because me? I ain't running, 'cause there ain't no place to go. KATE: What are you talking about? SAWYER: [Sigh] We ain't on our island. We're on another island, like Alcatraz, couple miles off shore. So unless you're a mermaid, or you got a boat, there ain't no point. KATE: [Pushing Sawyer in chest] When were you planning on telling me this? SAWYER: [Whispering] Never. KATE: Why not?! Why wouldn't you?! SAWYER: 'Cause I wanted you to believe we had a damn chance. [Kate, crying, kisses Sawyer passionately. They embrace.] SAWYER: What was that for? KATE: I don't know. [She looks up at him] I don't know.

This is a big reveal! So it turns out (for Kate, we the audience already knew about this) that they're not ont THE island, they're on another island. So basically this scene is telling us that what Sawyer is really being paralleled to is... Kate/Monica. The whole Kevin/Monica vs Kate/Jack/Sawyer was all a big make-believe because Sawyer, just like Monica/Kate, was the one who was keeping something very important a secret. And why did he do that? Because he wanted Kate to believe that they had a chance just like Kate wants, or perhaps needs, to believe in what the Other says. And just like Kate/Monica did her best to believe that her marriage with Kevin could be real. In the end, however, she was just a "daydream believer".

In other words this episode, as I said ad the beginning of this whole huge post, confirms the interpretation that, from a character pov, Kate is Sawyer. This is the reason why Sawyer ends up asking Kate why she doesn't run now that she's out of the cage. He doesn't know the answer to that question because he can't know it. Just like Kate doesn't know why she's kissing Sawyer. They both don't know because they both don't know themselves. They need someone to reflect their image back to them, otherwise they both get lost into their own fictions, their own "daydreaming" (let's all remember that Sawyer's "job" is pretending to be someone else to con people and that Sawyer's not even his real name but a whole ass persona he modelled after his trauma, just like Monica is not Kate's real name but another whole ass fake persona too).

Maybe sadly maybe not, the person who really "gets" Kate is Edward, the marshal. Aka, the person who "gets" Kate is someone who's Other than Kate herself. Her shadow "gets" her because he knows her "secret".

So the question is: if "who's Kevin's parallel to" has now become a moot topic, what have we all just watched? Isn't the episode titled "I Do" and isn't Kate married to Kevin? Well... turns out that yes, technically speaking that is true but on a higher level Kate is "married" to the marshal. So we gotta ask the question: who's the marshal paralleled to in this episode?

I think you know by now what the answer is. Alex got it right when, in ACT TWO, she screamed to Kate that they were going to kill her "boyfriend" just like they killed hers. We all thought she was referring to Sawyer because that's the one guy Danny wants to kill for the whole episode. But this episode is a make-believe, you can't trust what you see. Alex wasn't right about the killing part but she was right about the boyfriend part. Whether they both liked it or not, Jack and Kate are about to almost get married. Yes, Jack's being paralleled to the fucking marshal for the whole episode. The writers literally fooled us.

"I Do" or when Kate and Jack almost got (figuratively) married

I've previously stated that I don't find "I Do" particularly excellent when it comes to Kate's flashback story. I still stand by that. From a creative point of view Kate reiventing herself as Monica and getting married to a police officer doesn't exactly scream "genius". Conversely, the idea for her flashback in "Left Behind" is way more compelling and allows us to see sides of Kate that aren't necessarily related to her interior romantic love life (in that episode Kate and Cassidy teams up to "con" Kate's mother in order for Kate to have a moment with her without getting arrested).

Having said that, "I Do" is, overall, a fucking great episode. Everything and I mean EVERYTHING is written and shot to perfection so I thought to write a little meta about it.

Now, before we move on to the analysis, let's please consider that the previous Kate-centric episode is S2E9 "What Kate Did". I wrote an extensive meta about it and you can find it here. For the sake of this meta, though, all you need to know is this: what Kate sees in Sawyer is herself, specifically what she thinks she is in the present moment based on the things she's done in the past, i.e. a "bad" person or a person capable of doing "bad" things; what Kate sees in Jack is her potential self, what she thinks she can become in the present moment and simply be in the future because she intimately thinks she's capable of being "good" and doing "good" things.

In "What Kate Did" she chooses the black horse representing her "dark" self, therefore she chooses Sawyer. In "I Do" she symbolically chooses Sawyer again but things get a litte bit more complicated because this time Jack says his "I do" and Kate finds that she can't quite say "I do" back yet, but she can't say goodbye to her potential either: in other words she can't leave Jack/her potential behind. You'll see what I mean in this meta.

ACT ONE.

The episode opens with the song "Slowly" in the background. We hear the following lyrics:

Tell me you love me again but this time slowly 'Cause you're talkin' too fast, baby, much fast Come on and squeeze me again but this time slowly 'Cause I like your grasp but it's much fast

You said that our love will grow together 'Cause your mine all mine

Foreshadowing: this episode will be about "I love yous" and about something that's growing.

It'll also be about make-believe as we see a 50s-styled Kate opening a box containing a wedding veil. A man knocks on her door and we see the following dialogue:

MAN: Police, open the door. KATE: [Nervously] Um. Everything's alright in here. MAN: Ma'am, we have reason to believe that someone extremely dangerous is in the motel. We're conducting a room-to-room search. KATE: [Starting to smile] I'm alone, officer. MAN: The person could be holding you at gunpoint, forcing you to say that. Please open the door. KATE: I don't think I should. MAN: Then you have three seconds before I break this door down. One... two... [Kate stands by and opens the door right before he says "three", revealing the policeman, Kevin.] KEVIN: Hey. Wanna get it on? dialogue from https://lostpedia.fandom.com

We the audience (who already know about Kate's past) are already tipped off to the fact that this is all fake. Kate is clearly wearing a mask, she's being someone else, someone who perhaps she'd like to be or, at least, she's putting on a new persona-dress to see if it fits. Spoiler alert: it doesn't. However, this is also extraordinarily real because Kate's indeed a fugitive, she might as well be "the dangerous someone in the motel" herself. Ironically, in the scenario where Kate is the dangerous person in the motel, she's also the person who's holding at gunpoint... herself, forcing herself to say stuff. Interesting, right? In other words, the show is telling us to pay close attention because the episode will play with the line between fiction and reality.

In the very second scene there's a defeated Sawyer throwing rocks without purpose. Kate sees something's wrong with him, he's slowly giving up. She tells him to get a fish biscuit for her, implicitly telling him: "Provide for me, be here for me, don't give up". Sawyer's not stupid and immediately retorts with a "Psh. What, you trying to keep me feeling productive?".

In the last scene of Act 1, we're introduced to the final protagonist of this episode, Jack, and we discover what's growing as the song alluded in the very first scene: "JACK: [To Ben] The tumor on your spine is borderline inoperable. And at the rate it's growing, that borderline goes away in about one week".

By the end of Act 1 we have all the info we need to understand this episode: it'll be about love, it's gonna make us believe things that are not true and the thing that's growing on Ben's spine will be the keystone to put all the pieces of the puzzle together.

To be continued!

[wavesoutbeingtossed]

The False God to Guilty As Sin? pipeline because what happens when sex was your default fallback method to reconnect when you weren't communicating otherwise but then you don't even have *that* anymore so you're just... frozen out completely in every sense. 😵‍💫

[peace-hunter]

tfone au where OP is created as the last of the primes but way after them, a sparkling born at what were thought to be the last days of the war against the quintessons, the beginning of a new generation of peace after eons of war. a child meant to be loved and raised knowing nothing of war nor sacrifice.

he's kept mostly out of the spotlight by his siblings, who don't wish to expose him to everyone's optics so young, and want to wait until the war is done and over to properly introduce him to their people.

except of course the primes are betrayed and murdered by sentinel, the war is lost and everyone who knows and cared for the truth is either banished or outright killed in order to suppress it.

and the high guard, the ones the primes trusted the most, the ones that were supposed to protect them, the ones who failed in their most important duty, have to make a choice. to take the last prime, their last hope, with them to the surface, a hostile environment where there's little to no supplies and where they'll be hunted down by both sentinel and the quintessons as the biggest threat to their regimen.

or hide him in plain sight. place him where sentinel won't think to look for him. one more sparkling among many. and hope it will be enough to keep him alive. pray to primus that he'll protect his last child long enough for them to come back for him when it's safer (even if most of them have already lost their faith on him when he allowed the rest of his children to be massacred like that)

they almost lose their resolve when they realize they will have to take the little one's cog away in order to make him blend in with the rest of the newborns (and oh do they burn with murderous intent when they see what sentinel has done to their people but it's not the time yet-) but in the end they decide an impaired little prime is better than a dead one.

and so in the chaos of thirteen dead primes and a sudden energon crisis, a little sparkling who very few mechs really knew about and even fewer had seen completely vanishes. and in the depths of iacon a mech in charge of a new batch of newborns scratches their helm in confusion as they realize they must have miscounted the first time.

optimus prime is quietly erased from any official records by sentinel, written off as dead when they find a sparkling's frame mangled beyond recognition after an attack on the base of those rebels that insist on being a thorn on his side. killing the sparkling hadn't been precisely in his plans, he probably could've found some use for it after all, but he's not particularly upset about it either.

and orion pax grows up with an ache on his spark that tells him he's missing something far more important than a t-cog and dreams of gentle and loving hands, cradling him against the frames of mechs he cannot recall the faces of.

[torchickentacos]

ok it's been long enough since I saw this post floating around that I can comfortably complain about it now lol. RE: 'video games do cause violence'. This is what I mean when i say that some tumblr leftists are ending up back at right-wing talking points and frameworks again through 'save the children'-isms. Well-meaning discussions about glorification and depiction have landed some people back at 'if your son plays grand theft auto then he's going to be a violent criminal'. This is the same kind of thinking that lands people at 'drag storytime at the library is turning the kids queer through sheer exposure', imo.

Also, what 'rejiggering'? If you have to 'rejigger' the basis of your argument for it to work, then it might not be a very good one. Like, yeah, the statement 'all fish are red' can be true if you tweak the definition of 'fish' to mean exclusively red snappers, but that's disingenuous. Idk. It's just annoying because there ARE discussions of merit to be had with this topic and there is nuance, but especially in this political climate, I'm not happy with people leaning into 'what you expose kids to in their entertainment is going to turn them [xyz]'. I feel like we have some pretty clear examples of that line of thinking harming marginalized communities in a very direct way.

[hollowmoon-art]

The Owl House

[cillyscribbles]

here's to many more for mr gruber himself!!!!! >:D

[karleksmumskladdkaka]

Diabolik Lovers Dark Fate Vol. 3 Chapter of the Last Quarter — Short Story Translation

A short, sweet, and comedic tale about the Mukami brothers being supportive siblings… and nearly committing accidental fratricide in the process. Meanwhile, Yui watches with increasing concern as the disaster unfolds.

Please refrain from using or reposting the translation anywhere without my permission.

[Note: The story is written in Yui's POV.]

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅✮⋆⋅

"Uh...something's wrong..."

Kou-kun groaned as he stared down at the pot.

"Should I help after all?"

"Eve, you mustn't get involved...okay? Just quietly watch over us."

Even though he said that, an increasingly terrible smell was spreading throughout the kitchen. Despite being told not to interfere, I was starting to get a bit worried.

"Maybe it needs some sugar-chan!?"

"Ah!!"

Before I could stop him, Yuma-kun dumped several sugar cubes into the pot, filling the room with a foul stench. I felt a sense of despair.

The whole mess had started when Ruki-kun injured his hand.

"Ruki-kun always cooks for us, so let's all pitch in today!"

And so, Kou-kun's plan of making dinner ended up as disastrously as I had feared.

"...This is...?"

"Well... It's supposed to be curry..."

Kou-kun glanced at me as if pleading for help. When I looked at Yuma-kun and Azusa-kun, they averted their eyes. In short, something horrible had been created. Its color was... to put it nicely, pitch black. After tasting it, Yuma-kun commented nonsensically that it was "bittersweetsalty". Dubbed "Mukami Brothers' Style Curry" it had transformed into a mysterious substance resembling anything but curry. Just by looking at it, anyone would instantly recognize it as inedible.

Yet, Ruki-kun was peering at the plates lined up on the table with a happy look on his face.

"Maybe it's better if we don't eat this..."

In spite of Kou-kun's uneasiness, Ruki-kun scooped up the substance with a spoon and brought it to his mouth.

". . ."

"It's disgusting."

We all shared the same fear. That even though he's immortal, Ruki-kun might die from this.

Despite his words, Ruki-kun's expression suddenly relaxed. We stared at him in amazement.

"R-Ruki-kun...!!"

"Ruki..."

"Ruki...! Damn it! Yer such a...!"

The three brothers, seemingly drained, collapsed to their knees on the spot. Ruki-kun simply watched them in silence as he continued to eat.

And then, afterwards—Ruki-kun was bedridden for three days and nights. Even though Vampires aren't supposed to get sick...

Seeing this, his brothers made a firm vow to themselves. They would never try to cook again.

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