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jcmarchi · 5 months ago

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As AI improves, what does it mean for user-generated content? - AI News

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/as-ai-improves-what-does-it-mean-for-user-generated-content-ai-news/

As AI improves, what does it mean for user-generated content? - AI News

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The rise of the creator economy was one of the most disruptive forces to emerge from the internet, paving the way for independent writers, artists, musicians, podcasters, YouTubers and social media influencers to connect with audiences directly and earn money from doing so.

Creators have flocked to platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Vimeo, Substack, TikTok and more, where they can not only create but also publish and share their user-generated content. Social media enables individuals to become self-publishers and independent producers of content, disrupting existing business models and enabling an entire generation of creative minds to establish their own path to success.

Until recently, the creativity such individuals express was always thought to be a uniquely human quality and therefore invulnerable to disruption by advancing technology. However, the rise of generative AI, which comes so soon after the emergence of the creator economy, threatens to disrupt this nascent industry and significantly alter the way new content is produced. With generative AI models, anyone can churn out paragraphs of text, lines of software code, high quality images, audio, video and more, using simple prompts.

How does AI aid with user-generated content?

Generative AI burst into the public consciousness with the arrival of ChatGPT in late 2022, taking the internet by storm, and since then tech companies have rushed to create all manner of consumer-friendly applications that can aid in content creation.

For instance there’s ChatGPT itself, which is all about text-generation, capable of writing blog posts, essays, marketing copy, email pitches, documents and more, based on a simple prompt where the user tells it what to write.

More impressive forms of content generation include image generating models such as Midjourney, which can create dramatic pictures based on user’s ideas of what they want to see, and there are now even video generators, such as OpenAI’s Sora, Google DeepMind’s Veo and Runway that can do the same.

Generative AI is also having an impact on video game content generation. Take the novel technology developed by AMGI Studios for its hit Web3 game My Pet Hooligan, which uses proprietary motion capture and AI algorithms to capture the gamer’s facial expressions and replicate them on their in-game avatars. It further uses generative AI to provide each user character (which is a unique NFT) with its own distinctive personality that users can learn about through a chat interface.

Other ways people use generative AI to enhance creativity include Buzzfeed’s personalized content creation tools, which enable users to quickly create customized quizzes tailored to each individual, and its generative AI recipe creator, which can serve up ideas for meals based on whatever the user has in the fridge.

Three ways this can go

In the eyes of some, AI-generated content has emerged as a major threat to user-generated content, but not everyone sees it that way. It’s unclear what kind of impact generative AI will ultimately have on the creator economy, but there are a number of possible scenarios that may unfold.

Scenario 1: AI enhances creativity

In the first scenario, it’s possible to imagine a world in which there’s an explosion of AI-assisted innovation, in which content creators themselves adopt AI to improve their performance and productivity. For instance, designers can use AI to quickly generate basic ideas and outlines, before using their human expertise to fine-tune those creations, be it a logo or a product design or something else. Rather than replace designers entirely, generative AI simply becomes a tool that they use to improve their output and get more work done.

An example of this is GitHub’s coding assistant Copilot, which is a generative AI tool that acts as a kind of programming assistant, helping developers to generate code. It doesn’t replace their role entirely, but simply assists them in generating code snippets – such as the lines of code required to program an app to perform standard actions. But the developer is the one who oversees this and uses his creativity to design all of the intricacies of the app.

AMGI’s in-game content generation tools are another example of how AI augments human creativity, creating unique in-game characters and situations that are ultimately based on the user’s actions.

Such a scenario isn’t a threat to creative workers and user-generated content. Rather than taking people’s jobs, AI will simply support the people who do those jobs and make them better at it. They’ll be able to work faster and more efficiently, getting more work done in shorter time frames, spending more of their time prompting the AI tools they use and editing their outputs. It will enable creative projects to move forward much faster, accelerating innovation.

Scenario 2: AI monopolises creativity

A more dystopian scenario is the one where algorithmic models leverage their unfair advantage to totally dominate the world of content creation. It’s a future where human designers, writers, coders and perhaps even highly skilled professionals like physicists are drowned out by AI models that can not only work faster, but at much lower costs than humans can.

From a business perspective, if they can replace costly human creators with cheap and cheerful AI, that’s great, translating to more profitability. But there are concerns, not only for the humans that lose their livelihoods, but also on the impact of creativity itself.

As impressive as generative AI-created content sometimes is, the outputs of these algorithms are all based on existing content – namely the data they’re trained on. Most AI models have a habit of regurgitating similar content. Take an AI writer that always seems to write prose in the same, instantly recognizable and impersonal way, or AI image generators that constantly churn images with the same aesthetic.

An even more alarming example of this is the AI music generators Suno and Uncharted Labs, whose tools are said to have been trained on millions of music videos posted on YouTube. Musicians represented by the Recording Industry Association of America recently filed lawsuits against those companies, accusing them of copyright infringement. Their evidence? Numerous examples of supposedly original songs that sound awfully familiar to existing ones created by humans.

For instance, the lawsuit describes a song generated using Suno, called “Deep down in Louisiana close to New Orle” which seems to mirror the lyrics and style of Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode.” It also highlights a second track, “Prancing Queen” that seems to be a blatant rip off of the ABBA hit “Dancing Queen.”

These examples raise questions over AI’s ability to create truly original content. If AI were to monopolise creativity, it could result in true innovation and creativity screeching to a halt, leading to a future that’s sterile and bland.

Scenario 3: Human creativity stands out

Given AI’s lack of true authenticity and originality, a third possible way this could play out is that there is a kind of backlash against it. With consumers being overwhelmed by a sea of mundane, synthetic imagery and prose, those with an eye for flair will likely be able to identify true, human creativity and pay a premium for that content. After all, humans have always shown a preference for true originality, and such a scenario could well play into the hands of the most talented content creators.

It’s a future where being human gives creators a competitive edge over their algorithmic rivals, with their unparalleled ability to come up with truly original ideas setting their work apart. Human culture, fashions and trends seem to evolve faster than generative AI models are created, and that means that the most original thinkers will always be one step ahead. It’s a more reassuring future where humans will continue to create and be rewarded for their work, and where machines will only ever be able to copy and iterate on existing ideas.

This is perhaps the most likely scenario and, reassuringly, it means there will always be a need for humans in the mix. Humans, after all, are characterised by their creativity – everything that exists in the modern world today was created by someone, whether it’s the shoes on your feet, the device you’re reading this article with, or the language you speak. They’re all human creations, inspired by original ideas rooted in the human brain, and humans – especially those who find AI can do their jobs for them – will have more time to sit and think and potentially come up with even better ideas than the ones we’ve had so far.

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anishasoniauni · 2 years ago

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Among Us During The Pandemic

Games have evolved from board games to arcade and video games and now everything is digitalised in the industry. We can now play with people all around the world no matter where we are. Now apart from all the games in the current industry, a particular game blew up, especially during the times of the pandemic in Among Us. The game was created by Marcus Bromander the founder of Innersloth Studios in Washington according to www.innersloth.com (n.d.). The game involves a group of people who are known as crewmates to complete tasks on the map before the imposter among them kills them all. The game is available on almost all gaming sites and it can be played on any digital device.

Among Us became a game that anyone can play from any age or interest because it was easy to understand, manual and it was available on any digital device. The game became a trend due to the level of communication and socialization that happens during the game and it wasn't as complex as shooting and killing it involved the drama element of trying to figure out who is the imposter. People started playing in serves from Europe or Asia giving a worldwide reach based on Ottesen (2021). Among Us also had the option to add friends giving players the opportunity to make friends through a game even during a pandemic. The Among Us VR version provides an even more immersive experience to feel the game and connect with the crewmates based on Erhard (2022).

Apart from that, Among Us became a go-to game for streamers. Many gaming YouTubers collaborated to play Among Us with one another and this grabbed the attention of their followers enlarging the game’s market even further. It was an interesting game to get your avatar cute accessories, a pet and many more. Continuous development ensured people had new things to explore in the games such as new maps or additional tasks.

During the pandemic, when we were all stuck at home Among Us was a great way to enjoy time with our friends. It was a pure source of entertainment to experience and a sort of entertainment in the social media world as people often posted memes and quotes related to the game. A fun and interesting concept during tough times was all we needed.

Reference list

Erhard, V. (2022). 12 Fun Online Games To Make Friends. [online] Game Rant. Available at: https://gamerant.com/best-online-games-to-make-friends/#among-us [Accessed 7 Jun. 2023].

Ottesen, K. (2021). ‘Among Us’ proved to be the game we needed during the pandemic. Washington Post. [online] 9 Mar. Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/magazine/the-game-among-us-proved-to-be-the-game-we-needed-during-the-pandemic/2021/03/04/0addd71a-64cf-11eb-8c64-9595888caa15_story.html.

www.innersloth.com. (n.d.). Among Us | Innersloth - Creators of Among Us and The Henry Stickmin Collection! [online] Available at: https://www.innersloth.com/games/among-us/.

#mda20009 #digital community #among us #gaming #videogame #pc games #vr games #play together

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nightcoremoon · 4 years ago

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it's evident people haven't watched enough kids media to adequately understand just what constitutes a kids show as opposed to a show that kids can watch and be entertained by

when I was a kid I watched king of the hill and blues clues (among other things). king of the hill is NOT a kids show by any stretch of the imagination; it is an adult animation, replete with fairly heavy subject matter, sexual themes, political humor, cultural references that kids won't understand, discussion of religion in the modern day, depression and suicidal thoughts, adultery, puberty and sexual awakenings, body image, propane, propane accessories, and ultimately above all else what it means to be family. and blues clues is a show about a man who plays with a shovel & pail, talks to his condiments and mailbox, and sometimes he teleports into the felt dimension, all while playing Sherlock Holmes hercule poirot with his dog, and teaching kids how to count and draw and recognize colors and learn their ABCs. do you see the fucking difference? no? then I'll make it more clear.

dora the explorer & go diego go, mickey mouse clubhouse, handy manny, octonauts, bob the builder, super why, wild kratts, zoboomafoo, jojo's circus, wow wow wubbzy, stanley, doc mcstuffins, max & ruby, wonder pets, bubble guppies, ni hao khai lan, backyardigans, little einsteins, caillou (ugh) and p*w p*trol (double ugh), these are all undeniably kids shows. their audience is children (and the occasional adult by age with severe intellectual disabilities) and maybe the parents whose brains are too fried to care what's on the tv. these shows main purpose is to educate while entertaining on subjects one would encounter in preschool and kindergarten. counting 1-10, ABCs, basic color, basic language, basic intrapersonal skills, basic emotional literacy, problem solving, using your imagination, what sounds do animals make, breaking the fourth wall to ask the audience to answer what's 2+2 or tell them a lesson they learned today like I LEARNED TO NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER or some simple message like that. it's always light, there's no edgelord grimdark "what if they were dead the whole time" bullshit. it's just good clean simple wholesome [except for paw patrol] programs for kids to be distracted for a little bit of time, while also letting them walk away having said they learned something. at least half of the time dedicated to every single one of these shows is devoted to the same shit over and over again. I'm the map I'm the map I'm the map I'm the map I'm the map I'm the map WE FUCKING GET IT YOURE THE MAP! backpack backpack I'm the backpack loaded up with things and knickknacks too, anything that you might need I've got inside for you. we did it we did it we did it HOORAY! come on vamanos everybody let's go, come on let's get to it, I know that we can do it,

WHERE ARE WE GOING

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

THESE SONGS ARE BURNED INTO MY BRAIN AND THEYLL BE STUCK IN MY HEAD UNTIL I DIE

say click take a pic, the hot dog dance, CAN HE FIX IT???, pizza! spaghetti!, THE DOC IS IN AND SHELL FIX YOU UP, max & ruby ruby & max max & ruby ruby & max MAX & RUBY RUBY & MAX MAX & RUBY RUBY & MAX, wonder pets wonder pets we're on our way to help the friend and save the day, we're not too big and we're not too tough but when we work together we've got the right stuff, goooOOO WONDER PETS YAAAAY~, yoooour backyard friends the backyardigans (weve got the whole wide world in our yard to explore, thATS WHY EVERY DAY WEEEEERE BACK FOR MOOOORE), were going on a trip in our little rocket ship SOARING THROOOOOUGH THE SKY!!! little einsteins!

I swear to god I've been forced to watch so much children's television in my life it's no wonder there's no room left for serotonin executive function or the ability to speak to morons

point is I know my way around kids shows. my sisters were born in 98, 02, 05, 06, 10, and 18, I think, I don't even know because they're all a blur, I'm literally closer in age to my parents than to my youngest sibling, I never stopped being exposed to kids shows. I know what is and is not a kids show.

adventure time? not a kids show even though kids watch it. it's a "for everyone" show. it's got a target audience of 100% of the planet. steven universe? not a kids show even though kids watch it. miraculous ladybug? not a kids show even though kids watch it. scooby doo? not a kids show even though kids watch it. I'm not discussing the history of adult acceptance of animation, adult animation, or anime, so don't ask. dexter's laboratory. the grim adventures of billy & mandy. codename kids next door. teen titans. fairly oddparents. kim possible. invader zim. AVATAR THE LAST AIRBENDER. totally spies. courage the cowardly dog. the proud family. SPONGEBOB F*ING SQUAREPANTS. powerpuff girls. foster's home for imaginary friends. oh yeah you know what's coming next. my little goddamn pony friendship is mother fucking magic is not. a. kids. show. even though kids can watch it. it is a cartoon. it is an everyone show. that's why it's disingenuous and fucking stupid to decry any fan over the age of 7 as a pedophile and a weirdo creep; it participates in the infantilization of femininity. why is it ok for 20somethings to keep watching aang and squidward and finn & jake and zim and "return the slab" and everyone's totally fine wth that but when it's twilight sparkle suddenly everyone's like whoa you're a huge fucking loser for watching this girly wussy baby show for girly wussy babies. oh some bronies are sex crazed perverts? I'm sorry have you seen just how much porn there is for spongebob? oh some bronies are cringe? I'm sorry have you met half the steven universe fandom? oh some bronies are fascist rick sanchez kinnies with fedoras and katanas? BREAKING BAD FANS, HELLO!?!?!?

this is such a stupid tiring boring argument. maybe magic talking horses being friends and turning their friendship into magic rainbow nuclear fucking arms and blasting the evil out of a demon and turning her into the coolest fucking half-unicorn biker lesbian in the world is something that brings me, and adult, pure wholesome joy, in between bojack horseman and dark souls and breaking bad and deftones and fallout new vegas and jojo and cannibal corpse and other bleak depressing edgy shit that also brings me comfort. and MAYBE me at 16 starting to watch MLP:FIM becoming finally comfortable with the outward public expression of "traditionally feminine" interests is the main reason why I realized I was a girl when I did, and MAYBE I just like how pretty the colorful ponies look, AND MAYBE I KIN WITH ONE OR TWO OR EIGHT CHARACTERS, WHAT OF IT?

AND MAYBE ITS LITERALLY THE BEST LONG RUNNING FANTASY TV SERIES ON THE MARKET RIGHT NOW* SINCE GAME OF THRONES FUCKING SUCKS

but whatever, kids watch it sometimes so it's illegal for anyone who's not a kid to enjoy it, but only if it's something girly because liking girly things is bad because girliness is inherently bad, and the only things that are good have predominantly male casts*. right? right??? wrong, fucker. g4mlp has so much more in common with adventure time & atla than with blues clues or dora the fucking explora...r.

but keep in mind I'm saying this while hugging a blues clues plushie my grandma gave me for valentine's day because it reminds her of when I was a baby because I may not watch blues clues but it still means a lot to me for nostalgia and is 50% of the reason why I love ray charles. kids media isn't necessarily bad. I still do enjoy watching it with my little sisters. all this is is me being anal about categorization because I'm autistic and I LIVE for categorizing everything.

*besides atla obviously

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entity9silvergen · 4 years ago

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He Is Mild And He Is Meek (ATLA Fanfiction)

Summary:

He is mild and he is meek, he is Momo and he is what I seek.

Suki always wanted three things in life. One was to become a professional soccer player. The second was to live in a cute apartment filled with succulents. The third was to get a cat.

Momo probably wasn’t anyone’s first pick as a pet but Suki was determined to get this cat to love her as much as she loved him. If only he’d accept he had a home now.

Fandom: Avatar The Last Airbender

Characters: Suki, Momo, Sokka, Aang

Relationships: Suki & Momo, Suki & Sokka, Momo & Aang, Mentioned Aang/ Katara, Past Suki/ Toph

Other Tags: AroWriMo, Oneshot, Modern Setting, Modern AU, Transgender Character, Aromantic Character, Trans Suki, Aromantic Suki, Lesbian Suki, Aro Trans Lesbian Suki, Trans Aang, Bi Sokka, Queer Toph, Cat Momo, Dog Appa, Pet Adoption

Warnings: Brief Mentions of Sex, Minor Swearing

Word Count: 6.7K

Chapter Count: 1 (Oneshot)

Author’s Note: I was working on my third AroWriMo story and was about to take a break when this idea hit me. I know it’s kind of out there but I like trying different stuff so here we are.

This is very out of my comfort zone. It’s a Modern/ Real World AU story with a sapphic aromantic transfem Suki adopting a cat. I am an achillean aroace trans man with a dog. I also don’t play soccer or work in tech and I’m writing about that a lot here. I am writing about so many things I don’t know about so feel free to call me out if things aren’t quite accurate. The main focus is on Suki and Momo becoming friends so hopefully it won’t be an issue.

The title comes from the poem The Lamb by William Blake.

This fits with the prompt for Week 4, non-romantic relationships. Because pets count, guys. Originally I was going to write a fic about Lin figuring out she’s aro and coming out but I like this better.

Also read it here on Ao3.

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As long as Suki could remember, she’d always had three goals in life.

Goal number one had always been to play professionally for a women’s soccer team.

Unfortunately, biology was not in her favor and she couldn’t even play on her college soccer team. For either sex. What kind of bull was that? If they were going to misgender her, they could at least do it by letting her play for the men’s team. Not that she would if she was offered. There were some things she wouldn’t compromise on.

It was upsetting but she tried not to let it get her down. She’d come this far and she wasn’t going to let this stop her. She ended up on her school’s girl’s ice hockey team for all four years. It was just because they were short on players and they needed six to compete. Apparently not a lot of girls were interested in ice hockey? Suki actually really enjoyed it, even if the other teams always called her a man when they lost.

Maybe it was for the better because once she’d graduated, one of her teammates introduced her to the Kyoshi Warriors. They weren’t professionals but they competed in organized tournaments. All women's organized tournaments. It wasn’t what Suki had dreamed of but soccer was still a part of her life. Maybe one day the sports industry would be more accepting but for now, this was enough.

Goal number two had always been to live in a cozy apartment with a crapton of succulents.

She was a cottagecore lesbian who couldn’t keep a plant alive for the life of her, okay? And succulents were cute. Don’t judge. This one was a much easier goal to accomplish. She and her buddy Sokka had scored a job in webdev for this big gaming company right after they graduated from college. They were stuck coding for a smaller, newer game but popularity had surged and she and Sokka were making decent coin now. Enough that they no longer had to crash at Toph’s place. Well, Suki didn’t have to. Sokka stuck around for a bit. Suki was pretty sure they tried dating and it didn’t work out. That was probably a good thing because Suki really didn’t want to tell Sokka she’d been hooking up with Toph when they’d moved it. How awkward would that conversation be? Like, hey Sokka. You know you’re dating my ex-fuck buddy? Well now you do. Bleh.

But the point was that Suki had it good now. She wasn’t rolling in dough or anything- she’d painted most of the artwork around the apartment and all her succulents she’d grown herself from cuttings because she still couldn’t really afford to do anything else- but she was doing well. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to stay here forever but she might.

The third and final goal was to get a cat.

Because who needed a girlfriend? Or boyfriend? Or enbyfriend? Wives, husbands, any kind of spouse wasn’t the life for her. No, she wanted to live with a cat in a house filled with plants, damn it. Would the cat try to eat her succulents? Probably. Would that stop her? No. No, it would not.

So that led to right now. With her ideal home secured and a place on a soccer team, Suki decided it was time to get a cat.

She’d spent awhile looking online. Like, years. Years of research. She didn’t have much experience with cats. She had a pair of cats as a kid, sisters actually, but they’d died when she was pretty young. Not because her family was filled with terrible pet owners or anything. No, the cats had just gotten old. Her parents just decided to get a lot of pets as “practice” or whatever before having kids. She’d found out later in life that it’d taken a long time for her mother to get pregnant with her big sister Ty Lee so maybe they’d thought they just weren’t going to have kids or something.

Ty Lee’s friend Mai had a cat growing up, a kitten, so most of Suki’s cat experiences came from that. The cat’s name was Azula and she was a mean thing. Suki had gotten countless scratches on her arms from her but they were worth it to have those brief moments of sheer, unfiltered acceptance only an animal could have before the little jerk unleashed hell on her hands. Azula somewhat grew out of it when she reached adulthood but she never stopped being a terror.

Mai moved away at some point when Suki was around nine or ten and she took Azula with her. Which made sense, Azula was a cat, but Suki still missed having her around. Since then, the only cat she’d interacted with was this tortoiseshell she’d seen on a walk in high school. She’d been having a pretty day- er, week- and she thought a walk to the elementary school down the block would clear her head. She’d spotted the cat across the street and hurriedly crossed in hope she could get a better look. It’d been a pleasant surprise that the cat seemed equally delighted to see her and approached her as well, demanding pets for a good half hour before Suki realized she had to be getting home. She came back the next week, hoping to see the cat again, but she never did. It was too bad, she’d never met a cat who did anything like that.

So the years of research were necessary. She was only experienced with, what, four cats? Wait actually, her extended family members had some cats but they didn’t count. They were assholes. But four to seven, give or take? Not a lot.

Constantly googling stuff about cat care made stuff about cat adoption show up on her brower a lot which was kind of annoying in college since she couldn’t have a cat in her dorm but she let herself indulge once in a while. She had to know what kind of cat she wanted, right? Well, she thought so. Turns out she was a bit off center. Cats weren’t really bred like dogs. With dogs, you had a ton of options. There were labs, german shepherds, huskies, dobermans, dalmatians, sheep dogs, collies, and countless other breeds. With cats, you had orange, white, black, brown and grey. You also had stripes, patches, and plain but that was pretty much it. It was more important where the cat came from than what kind.

It took Suki awhile to realize most of the advertisements she saw were from cat mills. Turns out there are a lot of weirdos out there who bred their cats to pump out kittens to sell. On one hand, gross and she knew she shouldn’t further support those kinds of businesses but on the other, they needed good homes. These people had no morals, who knew where those little kittens were going to go? Not the sellers, that’s for sure.

It was hard to tear herself away from those sites but she was glad she did.

There were a lot of family cats who’d gotten pregnant by accident and the owners needed someone to take the kittens off them. They sold cheap but the cats were usually well taken care of and the sellers made sure the new owners weren’t, like, animal abusers are anything. The bar was kind of low but it was a lot better than kitten mills.

Then there were shelters.

Suki’s family, as much as they loved animals, never got pets from shelters. They had too many issues, they said. It’s easier to train a younger animal, they said. You have no idea where they’re from, they said. Ty Lee always pointed out the animals needed homes. Suki always asked if the animals who were there for too long got euthanized. Neither sister could really remember what their parents’ responses were but neither of them ever tried to buy pets from shelters, even as adults.

Until now.

Looking on the shelters’ websites swayed Suki a bit. A lot of shelters didn’t euthanize but usually pets would go to different shelters if they were at one for too long and sometimes those new shelters did. There was a wide variety in the policies at the different shelters. Some of them really prioritized the animals’ wellbeing but some… really… didn’t.

She decided on visiting a small volunteer-run animal shelter. They were having a… a sale? What’s it called when places with animals just stuck a bunch of animals outside and let people wander around and look at them? A farmer’s market? No, wait, that was food. An open house? Gosh, she should know this. She didn’t though and she was going anyway.

It was a Sunday the day she decided to go. It was the only day on the shelter’s calendar that lined up with her schedule for the next month or so. After throwing on her lucky green blouse, applying some light makeup, and firing off a quick text to Sokka letting her know she wouldn’t be around today, she headed out.

“Hey there!” a bright boy in a blinding orange t-shirt greeted as she approached the shop the kennels were set up. “I love your necklace! Where’d you get it?”

Suki tried her best not to finger the necklace she had on but quickly relaxed when she noticed the dog tags around the boy’s neck. The pronoun dog tags. This guy was trans too. Or an ally at least. He probably recognized her programmer socks from a distance and her white ring up close. It was a massive relief. She hated getting questions about her name when she signed paperwork. And knowing her, there was a pretty good chance she’d be signing some adoption papers today.

“Oh, um, I made it,” Suki said, feeling a bit proud at the way the boy’s eyes bugged out of his head.

“Really? That’s so cool! I’ve looked for pronoun necklaces online but they’re just so chunky. That’s why I like my dog tags! My dog Appa has some too!” the boy rambled excitedly. “Anyway, anything I can help you with? You are here to look at animals, right? If you’re not, I’d totally apologize for just yelling at you out of nowhere but it’s kind of my job.”

Suki laughed and decided she liked the guy. “No, don’t worry. I’m here to look at cats, actually.”

“Oh that’s great! I love cats but I’m allergic,” the boy- Aang, according to his name tag- said. He jangled something in his pocket, presumably allergy pills, and began leading her to the tables where lighter animals’ kennels were placed on. “We’ve got some good ones here today! Who should we visit first? You looking for a boy cat or a girl cat?”

“Gender is a social construct,” Suki responded, amused by Aang’s delight at her response. “Surprise me.”

“Okay, um, let’s see. Oh here’s Haru! He’s a good boy,” Aang said, leading him over to a wire exercise pen with three cats inside. “See, Haru’s the brown one. Teo and Duke are the other brown ones.”

One of the cats meowed loudly at the sound of his name, startling the other two awake. One of them lifted his head with a dazed look in his eye and a long piece of lint stuck to his face. Suki couldn’t help but snort at the sight of it.

“Classic Haru,” Aang chuckled. Suki still wasn’t quite sure which cat he was talking about but he was already moving along. “Um, okay, so over here we’ve got three more. This is Lu Ten and- Jet! Stop trying to eat Kuei’s ear! Wait, no. I’m sorry. Don’t look at me like that! You brought this upon yourself!”

Suki’s attention drifted down the table as Aang bickered with the cats. They were funny but she was too distracted by the lone crate at the end of the table for her to notice. She lifted a finger, drawing Aang’s attention to it. “Is there anyone in there?”

Aang looked up, Jet in one hand and Kuei in the other. “Oh that? Oh yeah, that’s Momo.”

“Can I see him?”

Aang put Jet and Kuei down, looking kind of hesitant. “There’s a reason Momo’s all alone.”

“Is he aggressive?”

“What? No. No, he’s like the total opposite of aggressive. Really shy actually. He’s a rescue. My girlfriend found him on the streets a couple weeks after this hoarder got evicted. The guy had, like, sixty cats who all got sent to shelters around the state but some of them got loose. We think Momo was one of them. He gets kind of scared around other cats,” Aang said, scratching the back of his head with one hand. “I don’t think he’s scared of humans, exactly, but I don’t think he’s going to get adopted anytime soon. I’d take him but, you know, allergies. I thought it might do him some good to get used to being out here though. Took me forever to convince my boss.”

“Can I see him?”

“O-okay. I don’t see why not. Just try to stay quiet. I don’t want to scare him too much.”

Suki nodded and Aang led her down the table. The crate was facing away from the rest of the animals and Aang made sure to move slowly when he moved into sight. “Hey, buddy. It’s me. Aang. You remember me? Yeah, you do. I brought Suki! She’s just going to say hi, alright?”

Aang nodded to Suki and she shifted so she was within view of the wire mesh that was the crate’s door. She crouched down a bit, trying to get into view, and was immediately met with two wide, green eyes.

“Hey, Momo,” she cooed. “Is this alright?”

She slowly put her hand near the door. Momo stared at it for a few moments from his place curled up at the back of his crate before stretching his neck a bit to sniff. She glanced at Aang, trying to see if what she was doing was alright. He looked absolutely mystified. Taking that as a good sign, she put her hand against the door. To her surprise, Momo got up and nuzzled her hand through the wire.

“Wow, he never does that,” Aang commented. “Hopefully that means he’s getting better. Or that you have cat magic!”

“Can I adopt him?” Suki asked before she knew what she was saying.

“I don’t literally mean you have cat magic.”

“Wha- Yes. I know I don’t have cat magic, Aang,” Suki sighed and ducked her head a bit to look into Momo’s cage. He was a cute little guy. Maybe a year old. If he was from a hoarding house like Aang thought he was, he’d probably been born there. Poor boy probably didn’t know what it felt like to have a real home. “I think… I’d like to give him a shot. Give him a home. I know I’d probably have to put more work into it than I would for another cat but I’m willing to do that extra work for him. He deserves it.”

Aang smiled and it wasn’t one of the beaming ones like before. This one was a lot softer. “You have no idea how happy that makes me. You really sound like you’ll be a good pet-owner. We have to do background checks and stuff, obviously, and you can’t, like, take him home right now but if you think you’re ready, I’ll put your name down and we can start the adoption process.”

Suki shot Momo one last glance and nodded. “Nothing would make me happier.”

===========================

She ended up driving to get him at seven am the next Friday.

She’d been planning on getting him in three weeks but on Thursday Aang had called her to tell her Jet was stirring up trouble again and Momo had freaked out and he really wanted to get him out of there. They’d planned on Saturday but Momo freaking out was agitating the other cats and Aang thought it would be best if Suki came sooner so she got herself and Sokka out of work and now they were driving to the Southern Air Animal Shelter.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you’re getting a cat,” Sokka whined as they pulled into the parking lot. “At least tell me he’s black. Then you’d be, like, a sexy lesbian witch with a sexy black cat... famialir… thing.”

“Momo’s white.”

“Aw. That’s too b- Oh wait, that actually fits your aesthetic way better. Blue eyes?”

“Green.”

“Even better! I like him already!”

Suki snorted and flicked him in the side of the head when they pulled into their parking spot and came to a stop. “Just wait here, alright?”

“Sure thing. Try not to take forever. Unlike some people, I need to get back to work this afternoon.”

Suki flipped him off and headed inside.

The woman at the desk was kind enough and Suki didn’t have to wait long before she was redirected to Aang. The man looked a bit frazzled but still looked bright as ever. “Hey Suki! Boy am I glad you’re here. I’m sorry we had to hurry things like this but I really think this is what’s best for Momo.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Suki assured him. “Is he alright?”

“I think so. I’m just glad he had a home lined up and all ready to go,” Aang admitted as he led her to the part of the building reserved for cats. “I mean, he’s well treated here and I’ll miss him but I think he needs his peace.”

The cat corner wasn’t nearly as loud as the dog department must be but there were a few more vocal cats meowing here and there. Suki kind of wanted to stop to play with them but she wasn’t here for them. She was here for Momo.

Once again, Momo was at the farthest end of the wing and as far away as the other cats as possible. She felt a stab of pity for him when she saw him. He was curled up at the back of his kennel, face buried in his tail. When he heard them approach, he looked up with the most terrified look in his eyes and mewed softly.

“I know, buddy,” Aang told him, looking sad, “but Suki’s here. Do you remember her? She’s going to take you to your forever home.”

Aang unlatched the door and Momo tipped his head, looking confused. With Aang’s approval, Suki reached in and pulled him out, holding Momo carefully. “There we go. It’s going to be alright now, Momo.”

“Let’s get him out of this wing,” Aang said. Suki nodded in agreement, feeling Momo quivering in her arms, and the two hurried away from the other cats. Back in the lobby, Momo already seemed a lot calmer. Still nervous but better.

“Normally, all the paperwork would be done by now but due to the circumstances, just sign here,” the woman at the desk said, sliding a form across the table. “We can mail you the rest of the paperwork or you can come by later.”

Suki nodded and jotted down her initials on the form with her free hand. She tried at least skimming the rest of the form like any responsible person should but she was too worried about the cat in her arms to really care. The receptionist glanced it over once before giving Suki the okay.

“Do you have someone to drive you home or do you have a crate in your car?” Aang asked when she was done.

“Both. I came here with my friend and I already bought everything,” Suki told him. She flashed him a smile. “Thanks for everything, Aang.”

“No problem. Just doing my job,” Aang answered, matching her smile. He passed her a slip of paper. “Here’s just some extra info about Momo I had jotted down. I have one for every cat. I dunno, it may help.”

Suki thanked him one more time before saying goodbye and returning to her car where Sokka was waiting. Honestly she’d kind of forgotten he was there, despite mentioning it to Aang, until she saw his face light up at the sight of the cat.

“Is that him? Oh, what a beautiful boy,” Sokka cooed when Suki took shotgun with Momo in her lap.

Momo glanced up at Suki before shooting Sokka a confused look. Suki scratched him behind the ears. “That’s right, Momo. Sokka’s weird.”

“Hey! I’m the weird one?”

“Yup,” Suki said, popping the p. Sokka made a face at her. She laughed. “Just drive, knucklehead.”

“As my queen commands,” Sokka responded extravagantly and hit the gas. Suki held onto Momo securely and soon, they were heading to Momo’s new forever home.

The drive was overall pretty good. It was a nice drive through some countryside. Suki and Sokka had been too tired that morning to really appreciate it but now that they were more awake and in less of a hurry, they could just soak it in. Suki lifted Momo up a bit so he could look outside, smiling at the way his green eyes widened in wonder at the endless stretches of grass around them.

Momo was fairly calm for most of it but he was a cat in an unfamiliar situation so he cried a bit once in a while. Sokka pulled over to let Momo use the bathroom about halfway through. Sokka told Suki that when his family got their puppy when he was a teenager, his dad had been holding the dog in the back seat and the dog peed on him within twenty minutes of getting in the car. Suki laughed but privately she was grateful Sokka remembered. She wasn’t wearing nice clothes or anything but she really didn’t want Momo peeing on her or in Sokka’s car.

They got back to Suki’s apartment within the hour. Sokka punched in the codes for the gate and elevator, Suki’s hands too full to do it herself, and they headed inside.

“We’re home now, Momo,” Suki told the cat softly, putting him down once the door was closed. She didn’t think he’d run but better safe than sorry. Momo was definitely going to be an indoor cat. “Go explore.”

Momo seemed frozen for a moment before disappearing in a flash, scurrying behind the couch to where most of the cat stuff was. Suki would’ve taken that as a good sign if he’d run to the cat tower but no, Momo had ducked under the little table beside the couch and was watching everything warily.

“At least he’s not hiding under the couch or under the bed,” Sokka pointed out when their efforts to coax him out failed.

“I guess,” Suki sighed, sitting down on the rug a few feet away from the cat. “You want to stay?”

“I need to get back to work,” Sokka told her regretfully. “I’ll text you if anything important happens. And I might be by later. Hopefully this little guy comes out by then.”

Suki nodded and bid him farewell before glancing at Momo. He’d stubbornly tucked in his paws and planted himself firmly under that little table. She shook her head. “What am I going to do with you?”

=====================

Suki didn’t have to go back to work that day but she did have a soccer match. She could skip if she wanted- they were just playing the Ba Sing Bears and honestly they weren’t that good- but she figured she’d give Momo the chance to explore his home alone. According to the note Aang had given her, Momo was fine being alone for good stretches of time.

(It also said he was litter trained, good on a leash, practically melted into neck scritches, didn’t like his ears being poked, loved polka music but hated any kind of rap except for French, and his favorite show was the Aquaman cartoon from the 60s but Suki didn’t really know what to think of that.)

The Kyoshi Warriors unsurprisingly won their game but the Ba Sing Bears had put up a good fight. The score came closer than it usually did and Suki got more of a workout than she had in awhile. She got home late, having stopped to grab a bite to eat with her teammates. When she opened the door, Momo looked up and froze mid step from where he was standing on the back of the couch.

They made eye contact for a moment and Suki wanted nothing more than to rush over and cheer that he finally ventured out of his hiding place but, not wanting to scare him, she withheld. Tearing her gaze away, she headed to the bathroom and turned on the shower. She needed it after that game.

She was sweaty and grimy and the hot water was relaxing but she tried to keep the shower quick. As nice as it was to close her eyes, let the heat wash over her, and lose herself in her thoughts, now wasn’t really the time for that. She washed and dried herself quickly before throwing on some lounge clothes and tying her wet hair up in a towel to dry.

When she left the bathroom, Momo was back under the table, eyeing her warily. Suki tried her best to give him his space for a little while, giving the apartment a once over to see if he’d tried to eat any of her beloved plants- he did not- before heading to the kitchen to prepare some cat food.

“I hope you’re hungry, Momo,” Suki said aloud as she plopped down on the rug, cat bowl in her lap. She shook it a bit before plucking a piece out and holding it up like an offering. “You want some?”

Momo just stared at her and didn’t move a muscle. Suki put the piece of kibble down halfway between them and waited. When Momo just looked at it, she went on her phone and tried not to look at him too much.

She was just about to send Sokka a funny meme she found when Momo stepped out, took the piece of kibble, and wandered up to her.

“Hey, buddy,” she cooed. She lifted her hand slowly, waiting for his reaction, before sinking her hand into his soft, white fur. “That’s right. Not so scary, huh? It’s just me. You want some food?”

Momo let out a pathetic mewl and clambered onto her knee to dip his muzzle into the bowl. He took a few neat bites at first before throwing himself into the meal and scarfing it down.

“You were hungry, huh?” Suki said, laughing a bit when Momo slipped and nearly fell in. “I probably should’ve fed you sooner. Don’t worry, tomorrow we’ll get on a schedule.”

Momo swallowed his last bite and mewed again, as if agreeing. Suki set aside the bowl and Momo wandered off but she felt like she’d made some progress. Momo would settle in well.

===================

“He’s not much of a hunter, huh?” Sokka stated as he bounced a feather on a string in front of Momo’s face. Momo just blinked at it and yawned.

It’d been about a week since Momo had moved in with Suki. She thought things were going pretty well. Momo didn’t hide under the table anymore. He seemed to like it down there but he never ran down there in fright and it didn’t take much coaxing to get him to come out. He seemed to prefer the cat tower anyway, though he never climbed very high.

Cats weren’t terribly exciting pets. Momo wasn’t a kitten, she didn’t need to teach him to use a litter box, and he wasn’t much of a scratcher. Still, as timid as he was, he’d proven himself to have some personality.

“He can be spunky when he wants to be,” Suki told him. “Try a ball, he likes batting those around.”

Sokka looked around for a ball and was just about to toss it to Momo when there was a knock at the door.

Momo’s tail shot up but he didn’t run. Suki considered that a good sign. “I can get it.”

Sokka didn’t respond and leaned down to roll Momo the ball. “Go get it. Fetch, boy.”

“He’s not a dog,” Suki called as she opened the door to reveal a familiar face. “Aang?”

“Hey Suki,” Aang greeted with a wild wave. “I just came by to drop off the rest of Momo’s paperwork.”

“I almost forgot about that,” Suki admitted. She accepted the stack of papers from him- ugh, she was really not looking forward to reading through all of those- and stepped aside from the doorway. “Come in. I’m sure Momo would like to see you. I’ve got a friend over but I’m sure he won’t mind.”

“I don’t!” Sokka yelled from the other side of the apartment.

“Sokka?” Aang called as he entered. “Sokka, is that you?”

“Aang?” Sokka looked up from Momo, face flashing with recognition at the sight of the bald figure by the door, and grinned. “Oh hey! I didn’t know you and Suki knew each other!”

“I didn’t know you two knew each other either!” Aang said, slapping hands with Sokka when he approached. “This is way cool!”

“Wait, how do you know each other? Exes?” Suki guessed, glancing between them.

Sokka made a face. “Ew, no. Aang’s Katara’s boyfriend. We all went to high school together.”

Aang laughed a bit and scratched the back of his head nervously. “So how do you two know each other? Exes?”

“Ew, no,” Suki said, mimicking Sokka’s reaction. He stuck his tongue out at her.

“We went to university together,” Sokka explained. “And we were roommates for a bit, during and after college. And we work together. Just best friends in general. Wow, I’m really surprised I haven’t introduced you two yet.”

“Too much trans power in one room,” Aang joked. He and Suki high fived.

“Too much power for any room,” Suki agreed. “Have you met Toph? The three of us would be unstoppable.”

“Oh my god,” Sokka said, rubbing his face with his hands. “Just go look at the damn cat, Aang.”

“Don’t talk about Momo that way,” Aang complained but was already hurrying over to the cat tower. “Momo! You miss me, buddy?”

Suki heard a mew from Momo and a sneeze from Aang and she figured everything was okay.

“You look over this and make sure I’m not signing away my soul or some shit,” Suki said, sliding the paperwork into Sokka’s hands, and joined Aang by the couch with Momo against Sokka’s protests.

“No swearing in front of the baby!” Aang piped up as Momo poked his head out of the cat tower and slunk down to the floor. Aang patted his lap and Momo slowly padded over to him. He didn’t climb into his lap like Aang seemed to want but he was nosing his knees curiously and that seemed to equally excite Aang. “What a good boy!”

With Sokka muttering behind her, Suki sat down and scooted over. Momo largely ignored her in a very catlike manner in favor of getting chin scritches from Aang. “I think he’s been settling in well. He doesn’t really hide anymore and he doesn’t really care when someone’s in the room with him.”

“That’s good,” Aang said, moving to scratch Momo’s ears. “Has he been eating?”

“Yeah. Kind of fast actually. He threw up once. It was pretty early on though so it might’ve been stress.”

Aang nodded thoughtfully. “Poop?”

“In the litterbox. Normal looking.” As far as she could tell at least.

“What about wandering the apartment? Does he go in the other rooms yet?”

“A bit. I’ve found him around once in a while but he seems to like it here the most. Is that something I should be worried about?”

Aang shook his head. “If he’s wandering around, that should be a sign he’s getting comfortable. I think it’s normal if he just hangs around in here most of the time though.”

Suki nodded, a bit relieved. It sounded like she was doing a good job. Suki, responsible cat owner. Then came Aang’s next question.

“Have you been playing Aquaman for him? I have some DVDs if you need them.”

======================

It was about a month and a half since Suki got Momo when she had the chance to get another day off from work.

She loved her job, she really did. Working at Avatar Gaming was truly a dream come true and the project she was working on, The Last Airbender, was actually a lot of fun to work on. Granted, she wasn’t really part of the design or story building parts of the team but it was still satisfying work and could be entertaining. She still got to play around with different characters and attacks regularly. Plus, the work environment was great. She loved going into work. That didn’t mean she didn’t like a day off once in awhile.

Though today, she’d really regret taking the day off.

Momo was a bit antisocial today so Suki was alone in her bed painting her nails. Not the best place to do it, she knew, but she was careful. She missed a phone call, not wanting to pick up her phone with the polish still wet, but it was just Sokka so she didn’t think much of it. He could wait.

It was a good hour later before Suki remembered to call him back. And once she did, she really wished she’d called him sooner. Or not at all.

“Hey,” Sokka said quietly as Suki turned up the volume. His voice cracked, worrying Suki.

“Is everything okay?” Suki asked hurriedly. “Did something happen at work?”

“You could say that.” Sokka laughed but it sounded hollow. “We’re getting laid off.”

“What?” The world seemed to stop around her.

“We’re getting laid off, Suki. The whole team.”

“I heard you,” she croaked in disbelief sitting up a bit straighter. “I- What happened? Why?”

“The Last Airbender is getting popular,” Sokka told her. “They want to- They want another team to work on it. They said they wanted to make it cleaner. More up to standard with their other big games. Make it fancier or whatever. There’s a chance they might hire some of us back but…”

“That’s bullshit,” Suki said almost automatically but it felt like someone else was speaking through her mouth. “No way in hell am I working for them again if they think they can just lay me off.”

Sokka chuckled again. This time there was a bit more life in it but it still sounded as empty as Suki felt. “That’s what I said.”

“Do we have any details yet? How long do we keep working? Are we getting severance pay? Do you have money saved? Are we going to have to-”

“I don’t know yet,” Sokka admitted. “They just announced it, nothing more. They said they’d write everything up soon. I’m… I’m on a walk right now. Just soaking everything in. Trying not to kick over any trash cans. Can I call you back? I just wanted to make sure you knew.”

“I- Yeah. Yeah, Sokka. Take however much time you need.”

“Bye.” Then, almost as an afterthought, he softly added, “Love you, no romo.”

That got a chuckle out of Suki, despite the water beginning to well up in her eyes. “Love you too, Sokka. No romo.”

Suki’s phone beeped as Sokka hung up and the dam broke.

Suki didn’t know why she was crying. Geez, she was a grown woman. Getting laid off wasn’t really a big deal, people got laid off all the time, but it was a big deal for her. She’d been working on that game practically since it’s making. Right out of college. It was the longest job she’d ever held down and she’d grown really attached to it. It was hard to think that she wouldn’t be working on it anymore. That her employers just saw her and her team as… worthless.

And there was the whole financial aspect. She needed that job. She needed income. She needed to pay for her apartment and for food and water and medical expenses and for Momo’s everything and insurance and everything. It was all so much. She was fine now but what if the money she had saved ran out before she found another job? Or if she couldn’t find a good job and she got stuck in some minimum wage shithole?

She wasn’t in college anymore, there were no counselors to help out or career fairs to go to. She’d need to, like, job hunt. With a lay off on her resume. Did layoffs affect things? She knew it wasn’t as bad as getting fired but still. Like a dishonorable discharge. Wait, no, that was probably really disrespectful to say. But it couldn’t look good. Gosh, working for Avatar really was a dream job. She doubted any other big gaming companies were hiring. Any gaming company would be amazing but it was unlikely she’d get another opportunity. Unless they were producing more new games. But then she could just get laid off again when it started getting popular…

She was spiraling. Fuck, where was her phone? If it got tangled in the bed sheets, she’d never find it. She needed to hold something. Something to ground her, something to distract her.

She heard a mew and saw Momo poke his little head through the door.

“Go away, Momo,” she choked out, burying her face in her hands. “It smells like nail polish in here. You’ll hate it. You have such a cute nose and it will hate it.”

Momo ignored her and the smell. He hesitantly padded in before trotting up to the bed and neatly leaping up to where Suki was. Suki momentarily drew her hands away from her face to look at him. He mewled again and butted her knee with his head.

And then Suki couldn’t hold back the waterworks anymore.

Until now, her tears had been silent but now they were gushing out and she couldn’t hold back the sobs. She pulled Momo into her lap and held him close, too caught up in her own whirlwind of emotions to be surprised that he wasn’t struggling. She ran her long fingers through his short, white fur and let herself cry unabashedly.

Momo didn’t judge her. He didn’t say anything. He didn’t make her feel any worse. Momo didn’t even look at her. He just sat with her, lending any comfort he could with his presence until the tears and sobs began dying down.

“Thanks, Momo,” Suki sniffed, playing with Momo’s ears absently. “You’re a good friend, you know that buddy?”

Momo didn’t give any sign he’d heard her and just snuggled down further into her lap and purred softly. And Suki smiled. She didn’t think she could but she did. She didn’t know what was going to happen and she was terrified for her future but at least she had her cat. With Momo here with her, things would be alright.

============