#if this game were a sandwich it would be all meat and bread

[claraweems]

There hasn't been any filler. No fluff. Nothing to give the characters deeper personality or even just the usual amount of flavor text for the world around us. I was never able to run up to my LI and just... Chat. They never react when you approach unless there's in a conversation with someone else. It feels very disconnected, disjointed.

A specific example for me was the Neve x Lucanis thing. I knew it was going to happen from spoilers, but it just... Happened. In one scene he's talking about making a pie because she likes it and then in his next personal scene he's lamenting that she specifically is one of the few people he has left.

Huh?

When did all that happen? If I hadn't seen the spoilers I would be monumentally confused. There was no flirting! Was it because I never took him with me on quests? I never saw love letters left out, they were never hanging out together. I took Neve with me nearly the entire game and she never said a thing! No one else is talking about it, like the crew chatting or gossip queen Harding.

Another example was Hardings personal quest line. We're told there are some missing dwarves and we need to go look. Next thing we know she's possessed by her own rage? Or a Titan's rage or something? Did I miss something? I really liked the visuals in that quest and the scene itself but... Again. It went from 0 to 100 real fast. I don't need to be spoonfed details, I promise, but this one felt like I blacked out the lead up. Did I completely miss a middle quest somewhere? Did I just not pay attention to some dialogue? And then afterwards she's just chilling in her room like it didn't happen.

This feels like exactly the same stuff that's happened to TV and movies in recent years. I haven't watched enough to see it myself but by all accounts we're losing the filler and the fleshing out and the exploration and just getting exposition and climax. I've been scouring every corner of every map. I'm at nearly 60 hours, midway through Act 2. How have I found so much, but yet witnessed so little?

I think I've finally distilled down the main why I feel so disappointed in Veilguard (despite enjoying the gameplay and the visuals tremendously)

In all the other games, in every encounter with each faction, you're given enough space and information to ask questions. "Why are you like this?" "What the FUCK?" Every single group you encounter in Dragon Age. The Dalish. The Orzammar Dwarves. The Qunari. The Chantry. The Templars. The apostates. The Orlesians. The Fereldan nobility. Circle Mages. And on and on and on... Nobody is sacred. Everyone has something to question and chew on for good or ill. In this one I just don't feel it. There isn't enough space or information to ask questions. The writers are capable. We know they are. But for some reason they have essentially said "we do not trust players not to misunderstand us anymore".

[makeitmingi]

The Cat and Dog Game [Chapter 8]

Genre: Romance, Fluff, Comedy

Pairing: Yunho x Reader (y/n)

Characters: Chef!Reader, RestaurantOwner!Yunho, MaitreD!Hongjoong, Waiter!Yeosang, Waiter!San, Waiter!Mingi, SousChef!Seonghwa, SousChef!Wooyoung, PrepChef!Jongho

Summary: Yunho's dream was to open and run his own restaurant. But he doesn't know anything when it comes to cooking. Until you came along and accepted the job, bringing with you a small crew. How will the black cat tame the energetic golden retriever?

Word count: 3.3K

Yunho had a pep in his step as he came back to the restaurant on Friday morning. He was excited to come back to work so he arrived earlier. Yesterday felt weird to not go into the restaurant to work.

"(y/n)?" He poked his head in. You were alone and had your AirPods on, listening to music as you worked on whatever was in front of you. You hadn't heard him come in. Yunho blinked and stepped forward, tapping your shoulder lightly.

"Who-" You jumped back in fear, as if you were afraid of getting attacked. Yunho flinched also, surprised by your fearful reaction.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you!" Yunho fully bowed in apology.

"It's fine. I didn't hear you come in with my music playing." You frowned slightly, removing your AirPods and tucking them away. Yunho cleared his throat.

"Where are the others?" Yunho asked as he went to put his bag and coat in the locker room.

"I told them to sleep in a little. Sometimes, working in peace and quiet is what I need." You replied, mixing the pie batter in the bowl.

"I understand." Yunho nodded. You couldn't help but involuntarily snort at that, did he really understand what you meant? He seemed like someone who likes to surround himself with noise and other people, someone who doesn't like to be alone or for the environment to be too quiet.

"Hang on, let me make a coffee." Yunho said and went out to make himself a macchiato. At the same time, he made you an iced americano, bringing the cups into the kitchen.

"Thank you. Are you hungry?" You asked as you wiped your hands on your apron towel and took a sip before you went into the walk in.

"I guess?" Yunho blinked in confusion.

"I'll make you a sandwich." You came back out with a prep tray of items. You unwrapped the paper and there was a chunk of what looked like beef in the middle.

"What's that?" He came next to you, leaning to see as you used your knife to shave off slices of the meat.

"It's salt beef. Or corned beef. I made it yesterday for Seonghwa and got it ready this morning to give out." You explained.

"Here." You handed him a slice to try.

"Mmm! It's good." Yunho's eyes widened as he ate it. When he thought corned beef, his brain could only think of that chunk of meat that comes in a can. He didn't think that it was the processed version of this piece of meat in front of him.

"This is rye bread, Russian dressing, swiss cheese and sauerkraut. It's like a fermented, pickled cabbage." You showed him each component as you stacked the sandwich.

"Then we grill it to make a sandwich, a reuben sandwich." You pressed the sandwich onto a hot pan until the cheese melted and the bread toasted.

"It looks so good!" Yunho clapped his hands excitedly. When you took it off the pan, you sliced it down the middle.

"There you go, a reuben sandwich." You slid it to him. Yunho took his phone out to take a picture first.

He picked up the sandwich and took a big bite. The crunch of the bread with all the components, the sauerkraut cutting the creamy dressing and cheese, it was amazing.

"This is amazing." Yunho melted, leaning his elbows on the table as he savoured the taste.

As he enjoyed the sandwich, you went back to preparing the pastries and cakes for the day. You would occasionally glance over at Yunho eating his sandwich. Honestly, you had no idea why you felt so much anticipation making the sandwich for him. Maybe because you've been quite amused by his reactions to food so far.

"I'm glad you like it." You said, turning around to mix the muffin batter. Yunho smiled softly as he looked at the back of your head. It warmed his heart that this was you starting to open up to him.

"This thing... sauerkraut? How do you make it?" Yunho asked.

"It's actually really easy. You shred the cabbage and massage it with salt until the water comes out then you let it pickle with it's own natural bacteria and enzymes." You informed.

"So I'm guessing you made this?" He held up a strand of the pickled cabbage. You nodded your head.

"Well, I'm sad that this is my last bite." He pouted, staring at the small piece of sandwich that was left in his hands.

"You can always learn to make it yourself then make more." You replied.

"Speaking of, is there anything I can help you with? Since you're doing this on your own." Yunho straightened up, going to the sink to wash his hands and the plate the he used.

"The boys are coming in 30 minutes. But you can still help." You shrugged. He nodded, going to the locker room to retrieve a spare apron. After tying the string around his waist, he pulled his sleeves up and washed his hands again.

"Okay, chef! What do I do?" Yunho saluted with a big smile as he jogged over to where you were.

"We're going to make the coffee crumb cake. Measure all this into here while I make the crumb that goes in the middle and on top." You pointed on the recipe sheet and all the ingredients he needed.

"I can do that." He grinned and started measuring each component. You had taken out the ingredients earlier so he didn't need to retrieve them.

"Where is the coffee in the coffee cake?"

"There is actually no coffee in coffee cake. It's just meant to go well with a cup of coffee." You replied, mixing the crumb ingredients together with your fingers.

"That's... confusing..." He laughed. You hummed in agreement. You looked over to see how he was managing.

There was a small frown on his face as he checked the weighing scale for each ingredient, he chewed on his bottom lip, focussed on trying to get the exact weight of everything. You could tell he was frustrated when he was even 0.1g over what was needed. He would carefully add and remove each minute amount.

"Done!" He showed you the bowl. You told him which ingredients to put together, standing with him at the mixer to let him add the ingredients in.

"Once the sour cream, butter and sugar are whipped together and it looks fluffy and airy. Slowly add the eggs." You instructed. Yunho tried his best to follow your instructions. He didn't want to mess up.

"No shell." He said proudly, cracking the eggs into the small bowl and adding them in.

"Should I do the flour little by little?"

"Yes, maybe in batches of 3. Lower the speed of the mixer or it will go everywhere." You advised him. He did exactly as told, watching in amazement as he made the cake batter.

"I've never done this before. Or rather, my mum always said I made a mess so I wasn't alloewd to do much." He sighed.

"You've been keeping your area neat so far." You shrugged, continuing to mix with crumb with your hands to ensure you got the right consistency. You tasted it to make sure that the taste and texture wa right before going to wash your hands.

"That's good." You said. You took the bowl from the mixer and scraped down the sides. Then you grabbed the cake tin and layered the two components.

"Let me help." Yunho held the bowl of batter for you to guide it into the pan. After smoothing it, you put a layer of crumb.

"Ooh, like a filling?" He asked, watching you crumble the crumb evenly over the batter.

"Yes, so we cover this with the remaining batter and more crumb." You said, putting more batter on top of the middle layer of crumb. Then you put a final layer of crumb over the top.

You repeated the step for the other cake tin and put the cakes into the oven to bake.

"Morning, (y/n)." Seonghwa, Wooyoung and Jongho came in.

"Hey." You greeted, putting the used dishes together. The 3 were surprised to see Yunho already there with an apron, standing beside you, ready to take on whatever task you assigned. From the flour stains on his apron, they guessed that you had let him help with with whatever you were doing.

"Look at you being so hardworking." Wooyoung wrapped his arms around you to squish you into a hug. You scrunched your nose lightly, body stiff but you didn't push him away.

"Did you sleep?" Seonghwa asked softly, a hand on your head. He didn't ask if you slept well, he asked if you slept at all.

"I did, Hwa. Don't worry. Your salt beef is in the fridge." You informed. Seonghwa's eyes widened in excitement.

"You didn't..."

"I did." You nodded. Seonghwa left you and immediately headed for the walk in. He came back out with the piece of salt beef that you had used earlier.

"See? You should get a meat slicer so we don't have to manually slice it anymore." Jongho chuckled.

"If you can find anymore space in my kitchen to put an industrial meat slicer, go ahead, Jong." You rolled your eyes. Wooyoung was still glued to your side, his arms around your waist as he leaned his head on your shoulder tiredly.

Yunho watched this exchange quietly. You were really so different when you were around familiar people. Not only were you more relaxed, there was a little bit more playfulness in the way you spoke.

"Okay, get to work." You said, patting Wooyoung on the hip. He went to get his apron.

"What has been done?" He asked.

"Muffins and coffee crumb cake are in the oven. Chicken & leek pie filling is done, pastry has not been rolled out and blind baked. I was getting Yunho started on the financier batter."

"Are you getting more comfortable around the kitchen?" Seonghwa asked Yunho, chewing on a slice of salt beef.

"Thanks for (y/n)!" He replied enthusiastically. You raised your eyebrows at his reply.

"Hwa, stop eating and get to work. You can make your sandwich later." You scolded. Seonghwa laughed and covered the meat back up with the paper wrapping, putting it back into the walk in. He washed his hands and was by your side immediately, assisting you with what you were doing.

"Maybe I should move out of the way." Yunho said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"No, it's fine. Just finishing weighing all this according to this. Woo, take over the mixing later?" You turned to the male. Wooyoung gave you a thumbs up.

"I'm making the brown butter now." He informed, swirling the pan on the stove. The brown butter gives financiers a nutty flavour.

"It smells nice in here!" San came through the door.

"Boss man is working in the kitchen?" Yeosang tilted his head, seeing Yunho working with Jongho by the mixer. Wooyoung nodded his head with a playful giggle.

"Told you guys I can bake." Yunho scoffed.

"Are you sure you didn't just eat the scraps?" Mingi scoffed, coming back into the kitchen with an iced coffee in hand.

"No, that's not true! I'm not like all of you who just samples and eats everything. I actually helped make the coffee crumb cake. Didn't I, (y/n)?" Yunho frowned with a small pout. You nodded in confirmation, stirring the icing for said cake in your bowl.

"Ice and slice." You slid the bowl of icing to Jongho. Jongho picked it up immediately, drizzling the icing over the cooled cake in a zig-zag pattern. Yunho looked on, proud that he helped make that.

"Financiers going in the oven." Wooyoung announced.

"I'll do the bacon and egg danishes." Seonghwa said. You went over to help him with that.

"We should go get the store front ready for opening. Stock the coffee bar with what we need." Yunho said to his 4 friends. The 5 of them went out, leaving the kitchen.

"Hongjoong, I moved the box of milk cartons into the walk in. They were delivered this morning." You informed.

"Okay, thanks (y/n)." Hongjoong smiled and went to the walk in with Yeosang to help him move the boxes of milk cartons out to the front.

"Can I make all of you a drink?" Mingi offered. You still had the coffee Yunho made you so only Seonghwa, Wooyoung and Jongho gave their drink orders.

The 4 of you worked well, like usual, all falling into your own tasks and jobs without having to give too much detailed instructions. Jongho did the prep and final touches, Wooyoung was working on one pastry while Seonghwa did another. You floated between them, helping them or pulling stuff out of the oven.

"You made sure a pretty crimp, Jongho." You chuckled as you pulled out the chicken and leek pies. Yunho liked the idea of a mix of savoury and sweet baked goods to sell.

"I'm going to slice the banana cake." You said, cutting the loaves of banana cake into slices for serving.

"Ready for the counter." Seonghwa told the boys outside. They came in to help carry the completed sweets out to the front.

"Can I try a slice of the coffee cake?" Yunho asked. Jongho cut him a slice and served it on a plate for him. Yunho took a bite and you swore his eyes sparkled.

"I helped make this?!" He asked in disbelief. You nodded slowly, eyebrows raised in slight amusement.

"Oh my gosh! Guys, eat this! I helped make it!" Yunho ran out to let his friends try it. And to possibly rub in their faces that he was able to make something so delicious in the kitchen without blowing something up, unlike them.

"Did Yunho really make help make that? Cause it's actually edible." Mingi pointed to the plate. Yunho slapped the back of his head with an offended frown.

"He did. He measured out everything and did the cake mixing." You replied, wiping down the counter.

You heard Yunho open up the shop and the chatter of customers come in. The boys outside went to work at once, serving customers.

"Lunch will be reuben sandwiches." You said.

"Another of those amazing sandwiches?" Yunho beamed as he overheard your words while he walked in to retrieve more cocoa powder from the pantry.

"Mhmm." You nodded. Yunho grinned and nodded before leaving the kitchen.

"Another? You mean, you made him a reuben already?" Wooyoung asked. You nodded again.

"This morning when he came in early. I let him try the salt beef and made him a reuben. Although, I think he might like the sauerkraut a little more than the actual meat. He's never had a reuben before and was quite amazed by it." You explained with a small smile on your face, remembering his reaction to the sandwich.

"Wow. Look at you having cute moments with our boss." Jongho teased with his arms crossed. You shot him a flat look, rolling your eyes and continuing what you were doing.

"There was no moment. I made him a sandwich. I have been making all of you sandwiches for so long." You said.

"The first sandwich she made me was kimchi and peanut butter." Seonghwa remembered.

"I was 5!" You hissed.

"And so cute. You looked at me and asked me if it was delicious, I had to tell you it was the best thing I've ever eaten." He laughed, patting your head and pinching your cheek.

"You know what, make your own salt beef next time. I'm not going to be nice to you anymore." You frowned.

"Sure, you know you can't help but be nice to me." Seonghwa wrapped his arms around you, hugging you. You and Seonghwa have been taking care of each other for a long time. While you never verbally expressed yourself, you did it through acts of service.

After all the cakes and pastries were done, you all did the clean up. Wooyoung and Seonghwa did the dishes while you and Jongho made sandwiches for everyone.

"I'll start toasting the sandwiches." You stood at the stove. Jongho helped you put the sandwiches on the pan.

"Whew, it's busy out there!" San huffed as he entered, leaning against the wall tiredly.

"Want a sandwich?" Wooyoung offered. San brightened up, coming over to see what the 4 of you were eating. You gave him one of the sandwiches and he ate it.

"What? This is so good!" San chewed and looked at the sandwich that he had just taken a bit out of.

"It's called a reuben sandwich. There's beef, cheese, pickled cabbage and a dressing. And then it is toasted." Jongho said, munching on the dill pickle that he usually had alongside his reuben. It was homemade, made by Jongho himself. Wooyoung and Seonghwa preferred just crisps.

"The beef is nice. The spices is good and it's really smokey." San nodded as he took another bite.

"It tastes better when you use an actual smoker." You chuckled. There was no space in a Korean apartment for a full size smoker so you relied on a makeshift one, using wood chips in your oven.

"Hey! What are you eating without me?" Mingi came in, tired from the Friday crowd. He came over to see what San was eating.

"Woah, that looks bomb." Mingi commented, looking at the sandwich. Seonghwa slid one over to him.

"That's for you." He informed. Mingi beamed excitedly and went to wash his hands before digging into the sandwich hungrily. San looked at Mingi with a smirk.

"Isn't it one of the best things you've ever had?" San laughed.

"It's amazing! What? How can a sandwich be so good?" Mingi said in disbelief, taking another bite to convince himself. You, Seonghwa, Wooyoung and Jongho shot each other looks. This was such a genuinely amazed reaction, it was amusing.

"Yunho reacted the same way as all of you." You stated.

"Wait, Yunho's already had one? When?" Mingi and San turned to you in confusion.

"This morning when he came in. I made him one for breakfast." You blinked, taking a bite of your own sandwich.

"And he didn't think to leave any for us? Or tell us about it? See, I told you he was selfish over food." Mingi scoffed at his best friend. San laughed but nodded in agreement.

"Someone is talking about me in here?" Yunho poked his head in. His eyes narrowed in on the sandwich Mingi was eating.

"Is he eating my sandwich?!" Yunho screeched.

"Relax. Yours, Yeosang's and Hongjoong's are here." You pointed to the plates on the back counter. Yunho let out a sigh of relief, no way was he going to share his sandwich, even with his best friend.

"San, if you're done. We need help." Hongjoong popped in briefly. San went to wash his hands and went back out to help manage the crowd and orders. Yunho came in, closing the kitchen door behind him. Mingi looked at him with a raised eyebrow, making Yunho frown in confusion as to why he was being stared at.

"What?"

"You had one sandwich all to yourself this morning for breakfast. Didn't think to leave any of it for us to try?" Mingi asked.

"You're having one now, aren't you? Leave me and my sandwich alone." Yunho scoffed with a pout. They all were like children, fighting over food.

"I share everything with you! You're being selfish." Mingi exclaimed.

"Sorry, Mingi ah. We're best friends but when it comes to delicious food like this, it's every man for himself." Yunho shrugged.

~

Series masterlist

[reedrfeedr]

story - pavlov

(Giving into indulgence has lasting consequences. weight gain, food play, second person.)

You should have known you were fucked the first time it happened.

It was so innocuous, you almost didn’t notice it - staring at another spreadsheet at work, rubbing your eyes to keep from passing out, the morning coffee wearing off too early to carry you to lunch…lunch. There’s that new wing place across the street…you glance at the menu flyer they left in the lobby. You haven’t had any in a while, but still you could almost taste the way the vinegar bite of the hot sauce cuts through the savory fat of the fried skin, the addictive mix of crispy on the edges, tender on the interior, greasy fat giving way to juicy meat…maybe if you ate quick enough you could get a bit more than a dozen, maybe some fries too…and you felt a tent in your tight work pants.

Your brain scrambled to rationalize the errant reaction. You’re tired, maybe you had an involuntary dick flex, almost like you were sleeping. You rubbed your eyes again and blinked enough to try and focus on the screen again. 20 minutes, then you could get lunch. 19 minutes….

That day, you came back from lunch 15 minutes late with a sauce stain on your collar.

The second time (that you noticed, anyway) felt more like a pattern of behavior.

You were glancing at your fridge, as you’ve made a habit of recently, trying to find something to eat. You were eating out more often at work, and you had to stop burning money on takeout, but you felt like your groceries weren’t quite stretching as far as you’d like anymore.

You opened the fridge door and saw the last two frozen pizzas. A thought entered your mind, one that felt unfamiliar. Could always just eat two pizzas. Gotta go shopping tomorrow anyway. Not giving yourself a moment to reconsider, you slid them out and plopped them on the counter.

That wasn’t what took you over the edge, though. That wasn’t what made you this way.

Waiting for the oven to preheat, you fell back on your fridge gazing habit. A second thought entered, much like the first. If I’m going shopping, might as well use the rest of the lunch meat too. Before you realized, you already had the sandwich made and half eaten. You just licked your lips clean when the pizzas finished up, and you were suddenly hit with the smell of them - cheap, greasy cheese, fatty pepperoni…you could imagine the way the soft, lightly browned crust would collapse like a pillow in your mouth, the almost saccharine pizza sauce tempering the salty cheese and meat…and your dick chubbed up at the idea. Something about the sight of those two pizzas, all for you…it excited you.

You ate those pizzas so fast they nearly burned the roof of your mouth.

From then on, things were different. You weren’t focused at work, but you reveled in the opportunity to try new food in the city. Your work clothes were barely fitting, and you even had to size up once or twice already, but you thrived in those lunch breaks…you stopped coming back from lunch late not from eating any less, but eating faster. It became like a game to you. How much food could you experience in 30 minutes? You’d order an appetizer, a couple entrees, maybe a dessert for the walk back, and got there immediately to savor every bite. And in between, you’d fantasize about it. The rich, creamy sauces, the crispy, crunchy bread, the salty, savory meat, the sweet, rich cakes. You stopped caring so much that it was strange that it excited you like it did.

Forget a hobby, eating was your real full time job, the one you spent your time planning and day-dreaming about.

It stretched into your free time, too - you’d find places to get food on the way home, and spend the commute imagining how those flavors would play together. It didn’t even matter if it was particularly masterful - every meal was delicious, filling, exciting to you.

Of course, it was only a matter of time before you mixed your pleasure with your passion.

You were pent up. Sure, you had your profile on the dating apps, but you’d already updated your profile picture once, showing your fuller, flabbier face, and the connections already began to dry up. And with your new interest, you had an even fatter face to meet them with now, not to mention the bloated, overstuffed body you had along with it.

You were jerking off to some amateur porn when something flashed in your mind…melty, gooey cheese. Then, the rich whipped cream of a tiramisu. You never thought to actually do it yet, like…you could enjoy yourself, but the moment you actually tried to mix the two, it was real and you couldn’t turn back. Still, that night you were feeling particularly indulgent, and you had made a habit of acting on indulgence already.

You sat back up, walked to the kitchen, rummaging through your mostly empty fridge again, and found a mostly full bottle of whipped cream you had knocked over in the back. Simple, sugary, one handed. You plopped your thickened ass onto the couch and started stroking, with the other hand working the nozzle of the can.

Stroke. Spray. Stroke. Spray. You got caught in the rhythm of it, and in moments all the sensations blended together, like a well balanced dish. Mouth full. Sated. Cloying sweet cream. Fat coating your mouth. Stroke. Sticky fingers. Rolling your tongue, feeling the cream deflate in your mouth. Stroke. Sugar. Fat. Sweet. Decadent.

Shot.

Your relationship with food had finished changing, and left you with a gluttonous, decadent body to show for it.

You knew it was irreversible when you had finally gotten a message from one of the apps, a simple ‘hey’ flourishing into a spirited conversation about your (former) interests and hobbies.

Then, he asked the question. “Wanna go out tonight?”

You had already begun the daily ritual, scrolling through the pickup spots and settling on your favorite Thai place for pickup on the way home - you could get some pad Thai, their chicken satay, maybe a couple orders of dumplings and some sticky rice. The tang of the sauce, the silky noodles, the crunchy spring of the bean sprouts.

“Sorry, busy tonight.”

[galebrainrot2024]

Ok ok ok, this is so specific and niche BUT in post game professor Gale timeline. what kind of lunches do you think Tav would bring Gale on his lunch breaks...

I have this idea that my Tav shows up sometimes when Gale forgets his lunch and brings him a little packed lunch.

oh what a fun question! hehe I imagine a few options and all of them include a little note or something from you (sometimes sweet sometimes raunchy… lol)

1. I see Gale as a big sandwich guy, a sandwich connoisseur if you will - both homemade and purchased, if done right. He takes a strange amount of pride in his ability to make them so it’s a fun opportunity for you to practice your own skills. When he was isolated, sandwiches were one of the things he would make himself, both because they’re ease and versatility. Different breads, cheeses, meats, veggies, hummus, you name it. If waterdeep has bodegas, Gale has a favorite where he insists they make the *best* sandwiches. Tara spends a lot of her days hanging out there. He strikes me as a rye guy.

2. He also enjoys exploration and our favorite rizzard is willing to try almost anything once. on occasion, reader will take him out for lunch to try both old and new spaces or will bring takeout right to his office and eat with him if they have time. Bonus points if there’s desert included. If there are tacos and horchata in Waterdeep, spanakopita, samosas, bim-bap, bao, gyro the list goes on. You know him best and his tastes are mood dependent. Often he cannot make the decision where you’ll eat, and you’re happy to do it. Enjoys spicy food and struggles with it simultaneously, it’s an endearing quality.

3. In the fall and winter, soups. Any type of soup. Good soup.

4. This is niche and specific because of the clip of him munching on them, some type of mushroom dish - stuffed mushrooms, portobello burger, our man is a big fungus guy and will absolutely make a pun about being a “fun-gi(guy)”

5. A specialty dish that comes from either his mother and his family or yours, this type of surprised packed lunch always makes Gale beam a little extra, and makes him want to show you off to colleagues and your exquisite thoughtfulness (even if you’re a bad cook, like me haha)

:) this was fun thank you for asking hehe

[takaraphoenix]

Camping & Bonding (Part 4)

Tags: m/m, Erica Lives, Boyd Lives, Jackson Doesn't Leave, Pack Mom Stiles, Pack Feels, True Mates, fluff, hurt/comfort, camping, mutual pining, m/f

Main Pairing: Derek/Stiles

Side Pairings: Scott/Allison, Boyd/Erica, Jackson/Lydia

Teen Wolf Characters: Mieczysław 'Stiles' Stilinski, Derek Hale, Erica Reyes, Vernon Boyd III, Isaac Lahey, Jackson Whittemore, Lydia Martin, Cora Hale, Scott McCall, Allison Argent

@writersmonth Prompts Part 4: season + school

Summary: Stiles thinks the pack should go camping, as a bonding exercise. Much to his surprise, Derek agrees with his plan. So the pack goes off into the mountains to camp together.

This Fic on AO3 | This Fic on FFNet

Stiles Summer Stories 2024

--

Part 4: The Confession

They brought enough eggs to make twenty omelets. While the wolves went on their morning run to also hunt a little meat on the side of those eggs, Stiles went to forage for mushrooms and herbs with Lydia and Allison. A little walk of their own. It was nice. Chilly, but beautiful. The orange and red and yellow leafs. And every now and again, they saw the pack running by in the distance.

When the three of them returned to their camp side, they started prepping everything for breakfast before the wolves returned from their hunt. Once again, Derek dropped a dead animal in front of Stiles, which was going to keep freaking Stiles out. Just because he knew how to take them apart didn't exactly mean he enjoyed the sight of dead animals, especially not when they were unceremoniously dropped metaphorically in his lap.

"Good hunt," Stiles offered when the Alpha kept staring at him. "Now go wash up. Seriously."

And since when did Derek need this much affirmation? Still, it was kind of cute to see that preening Derek did at the praise before once again rounding up the pups to herd them to the creek for a quick wash. Shaking his head, Stiles waved Allison over to help him take apart the catch of the day.

"We could save some cuts for lunch, we brought enough bread to make sandwiches," Stiles suggested. "I was thinking we could go on a hike, so take them with us. Yes, we. All of us. Stop groaning, Lydia. It will not kill you, I promise you that."

Not that Stiles himself was the biggest fan of hiking. But he knew the pups needed the exercise and he knew this would be a great way of bonding. Plus, he'd heard the view was breathtaking.

"You do know what Derek is doing though, right?" Lydia asked, while stirring the omelet.

Stiles looked confused at her. "Uhm, currently? Taking a bath, I guess?"

"No, Stiles," Lydia heaved an exasperated sigh. "You look so confused every time Derek drops the hunt in front of you. I thought it was weird yesterday."

"Yeah, it really was weird, right?!" Stiles threw up his hands. "Thank you, Ly-"

"No, your reaction was weird," Lydia furrowed her brows. "Like you didn't know what he was doing. And now again. You don't know what he's doing, do you?"

Stiles paused, looking at her. "What… What do you mean? What is he doing?"

"How do you not know that, I thought you researched werewolves to the smallest detail."

"Don't sound so accusatory," Stiles glared. "How am I supposed to know everything. There might be things even I missed. Or didn't deem important at the time due to the massive volume of research to be done. Also school. Like. There are more things than the supernatural that I have to do too, studying and helping Scott study, and take care of my dad, and the household, and the pack-"

"He's courting you, Stiles," Lydia blurted out to interrupt him. "He's bringing you the game he caught himself, and don't think the wolves haven't noticed how much you two smelt like each other this morning. Jackson froze up and told me. You two weren't just sharing a tent."

"We shared some body-heat," Stiles defended with a blush. "But that's not-"

"Stiles," Allison offered him a small, nearly pitiful smile. "You're the only one who can sway Derek. Don't get me wrong, he listens to everyone's opinion, he learned to do that. But… but you are the one who can convince Derek of any of our ideas and who always has his ear and trust. You're his second, Stiles."

At that, Stiles huffed out a laugh. "No, I'm not. Peter is Derek's left hand."

"Not his left hand," Lydia heaved an exasperated sigh. "His second. His second half. The co-leader of this pack. The only one to outrank the left hand. How do you not see it."

Stiles froze and stared at the girls a little dumbly. He wasn't Derek's mate. He would know if he was Derek's mate. They'd known each other for well over a year now and they had been… close, for months. And Stiles was the one who figured these things out! Erica and Boyd. Jackson and Lydia. Allison and Scott. Heck, Allison and Scott were how Stiles had figured out that mates were a real thing, he had put that together. He would know if he was someone's mate.

/break\

Something had happened while the wolves bathed. When they returned, Stiles was… jittery. Even by Stiles standards. Derek frowned as he watched his mate cautiously.

"Training," Derek growled after breakfast. "Pair up. Erica and Jackson. Cora and Isaac. Boyd and Scott. Don't groan at me. You have predictable patterns that your usual go-to sparring partners know. Switch it up. Now go."

"Sourwolf," Stiles huffed annoyed as soon as the betas got up. "Don't growl at the pups."

He had his arms crossed and he was glaring at Derek, making the Alpha falter a little. Damn it, he needed to have better control. But when Stiles was upset – and especially when Stiles seemed upset with him – it still messed with Derek. Perhaps because Stiles was his anchor, Stiles calmed him, so when Stiles was upset, his anchor was the reason for Derek's own upset feelings.

"You flinched away when I touched you earlier."

How much Derek hated admitting these things. He crossed his own arms, trying to brace himself, glaring at a point behind Stiles – where the betas were training with each other and decidedly pretending they couldn't hear Stiles and Derek's conversation. Allison and Lydia were pretending to be busy with the clean-up. Stiles stared at him in bafflement.

"I didn't…" Stiles trailed off and then sighed. "I didn't mean to. I was just really in my head and you startled me. But, Der, c'mon. Even if I flinched, that should not make you lash out at the pups! They didn't do anything."

"They didn't," Derek agreed, with a heavy sigh. "I'm… sorry. I just… It messes with me when you… When something is wrong with you."

"Why," Stiles frowned at him.

Derek remained stubbornly silent. He couldn't tell Stiles. He shouldn't tell Stiles.

"Why," Stiles asked again, more pointed, his eyes narrowed. "I need you to tell me, Derek."

"Why do you need to know," Derek growled. "It doesn't matter."

"It does!" Stiles threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. "If it affects our pack, then I need to know, so I can figure out what to do to avoid it!"

"I don't like when you're upset, or hurt, or – or when anything is wrong with you."

Stiles stared at him like the air got knocked out of him. "They're right."

Derek tensed at that, hunching over a little like he was bracing himself. "Who was right."

"The…" Stiles motioned over to Lydia and Allison. "The girls! They said that I'm your mate. That's what kept me so distracted during breakfast. Because surely that can't be, right. 'Surely, Derek would have told me at literally any point during the past months that we've been friends, that I've been in his pack. There's no way he would have kept something like that from me. Even if he doesn't want me, he knows how important the trust between us is to me, he would have told me the truth,' while I replayed pretty much every single interaction between us since I joined the pack, I kept thinking that. And I guess I'm fucking wrong, huh."

The more he talked, the more bitter and louder his voice grew. He turned away from Derek, a sneer on his face. The cold autumn breeze carried over a scent of misery and Derek's inner wolf whimpered because he knew they were the cause of it.

"I could have been okay with you not wanting me, Derek," Stiles turned to look at him with a devastating look on his face. "You know I can handle rejection. But this… this is about more than you and me. If I'm your mate, I'm the Alpha mate. That… That's really fucking important information regarding our entire pack and I should have known that. You should have told me."

Derek didn't know what to say, or how to say it, not that he got a chance to, because Stiles barreled on. "I deserved to know. You know how weird the past months were for me? I kept cuddling up with my classmates, I fucking nuzzled Jackson at school the other week. I genuinely started to think I was losing it but no. No, I'm the Alpha mate, of course have I been more in tune with the betas. Which also, explains why I keep thinking about them as the betas! Part of me has gotten really fucking worried that I kept mentally excluding myself from them, like, what, was I not seeing myself as pack, what was my problem? But no. No, my problem was that I'm not a beta. I just didn't know it. Because nobody fucking told me."

Stiles was radiating frustration and anger and hurt and all Derek could do was watch and listen quietly, knowing his mate needed to vent. He always talked a lot, especially when he was being emotional. Maybe it'd help him to get it out of his system.

"I would have been fine, Derek," Stiles whispered, and the whispering scared Derek much more than the yelling. "I was in love with Lydia for years and I was fine when she rejected me and got back together with Jackson and we're friends now. I would have been fine if you just told me that you don't love me. We could have led this pack together. As friends. Even if you don't want me."

Suddenly, it felt much colder than it had any right to, and it had nothing to do with the season. The blood in Derek's veins froze as Stiles' words – all of his words – finally fully sank in and context was webbed between them. Stiles was angry because Derek hadn't told him. Stiles… expected rejection. Because of Derek's actions, or rather his inaction, Stiles thought he wasn't wanted.

"Can I… talk now?" Derek asked softly. "Can I explain why I didn't tell you?"

With a sarcastic smile, Stiles made a gesture that indicated 'the floor is all yours'. Derek took a deep breath, trying to mentally prepare himself to talk about his feelings. The feelings he hadn't shared for good reason so far. But that had hurt Stiles, the last person he wanted to hurt, and now he had to fix this somehow, he had to make Stiles stop hurting.

"I want you, Stiles," Derek looked his mate directly in the eyes, wanting for Stiles to see how serious and sincere he was. "I want you more than I ever wanted anything, I want you so much that it scares me, because if I… if I had you, I could lose you again. I would lose you again."

Stiles stared at him in confusion. "That doesn't even make sense. If you don't have me, you can't lose me. Well, great, but you're also not having me, so what's the big difference."

"The difference," Derek growled and ground his teeth together hard. "The difference is that every good thing I ever dare hope to have dies or is otherwise forcibly taken from me, Stiles. P… Paige died. My family died. Laura died. Boyd and Erica were taken and tortured because they were part of my pack. Everyone I love gets hurt because of me. And the thought that someone hurts you, takes you away from me – from the pack, from your dad – all because of me? I can't… I would much rather not have you than lose you for good, Stiles."

In front of him, Stiles crumbled. The anger and hurt melted away to make room for the most heartbroken look Derek had ever seen. Stiles walked up to him, with careful and slow steps, as though he was approaching a cornered animal. Once he stood close enough, he reached both hands out for Derek's face, gently cupping it and leaning closer.

"You big, dumb idiot," Stiles heaved a sigh. "Look at me. Look at me. I'm the human who runs with wolves. I got hunted by a less than sane Alpha. I got tortured by an evil hunter. I regularly get attacked and nearly killed by whatever evil lurks in Beacon Hills. And I'm still standing. You are not getting rid of me that easily. You are not going to lose me that easily. I love you. You and me, we save each other. That's what we do, Derek, and that's what we'll continue doing."

He leaned in, more and more, until Derek could feel the ghost of Stiles' breath against his lips and for once, he didn't hold back. He wrapped his arms around his mate and pulled Stiles into a kiss filled with all the emotions he'd tried to reign in these past months. Stiles practically melted against him, warm and firm and there. Right there, in Derek's arms.

[stusbunker]

Spotless: Cuivré

Chapter Ten

Featuring: Dean Winchester/Reader, Dean/Bela

Other characters: Sam, faceless paparazzi

Word Count: 1873

Warnings, etc: Mutual pining, family stuff, Dean and Bela go out, I ran out of time for more smut, I'm sorry! unbeta'd

Series Masterlist

Dean chewed his cheesesteak and waited for Sam to spill what they were really doing out to lunch in this out-of-the-way place ten minutes from the studio where he and Ash had been wrapping up production. Sam had grown more stoic over the past year or so, walking on eggshells around Dean’s temper would do that to anyone, even if they’d had the experience of growing up with John’s.

Not to say Dean hadn’t appreciated Sam keeping most of his opinions to himself as Dean figured out just who he wanted to be, to become. Because Sam was a bit of a whiner and Dean really couldn’t argue with himself and Sam and still feel like he was gaining ground. The kid had always been too smart. Adam too, if he was being honest, but he wasn’t there. Adam hadn’t gotten to see first hand the destructive spiral Dean had thrown himself into and thank God for that, because he still thought Dean was someone worth emulating.

“What’s up?” Dean broke the stalemate between Sam and his salad.

Sam took a bite and Dean had to stop himself from rolling his eyes at the clear procrastination. He huffed and shoved his sandwich into his mouth letting the melding of meat, cheese, and juice-soaked-bread nearly make up for his brother being a shit.

Sam stretched out his neck and swallowed thickly, taking a sip of his water before he finally spit it out. “Kate called, she needs to know when we’ll be home and how long we’ll be back.”

Dean sighed. “What did you say?”

Sam leaned over his bowl. “That’d I’d talk to you and let her know.”

Dean nodded and set his sandwich down to pull out his phone. His calendar was a mess, uncompleted reminders and bright colors of things he didn’t really have a say in most days. The blue of the date with Bela the following night was something he’d been looking forward to, though. He scrolled out to see the whole month.

“I’ve got nothing after the eighteenth. Bela’s going home for the holidays so won’t have to worry about her until New Years. What’s Madison doing?”

Sam huffed. “Dude, don’t lump them together like they’re equals.”

Dean raised his eyebrows and pinched his lips shut. He could wait out Sam’s brattiness better than most.

“Dude, come on. My actual girlfriend will be flying home to Ohio for like the three days the shelter’s closed to the public, otherwise she still has to work.”

“Was that so hard?”

“Fuck off, Dean. When do you want to leave?”

“I really don’t want to go at all, but I miss the kid,” Dean said honestly, taking another obnoxious bite. Two could play at that game.

“Yeah, but it’s been awhile since we did the whole home-for-the-holidays thing. Plus, we can stop and see Ellen, meet up with Garth or somebody.”

Dean nodded as he chewed, gesturing to his phone. “When do you think we should leave? Thinking what, three days out, two back?”

“We could do two and two, weather permitting,” Sam offered.

Dean looked at his fries when he added, “we’re going through Flagstaff. I’m not driving through Utah if I don’t have to.”

Sam leered at him. “I doubt that will be any better, but I don’t really care as long as you don’t bitch about my car the whole way.”

“Nah, I’ll be fine. You’re the bitch anyhow,” Dean grinned sarcastically before stuffing his face with the last third of his sandwich in one go.

“Jerk,” Sam muttered and continued to stab at his salad. Neither of them stated the obvious, that Dean’s route avoided Vegas, Utah really had nothing to do with it.

Bela’s townhouse was only a fifteen minute drive from Dean and Sam’s house once she finally gave in and gave him her address. He pulled up to the curb with the freshly waxed Impala and his oldest leather jacket. He slid out of the driver’s seat and clocked the corners, seeing if he had any nibblers as he popped his collar and locked the door.

They were going to go big this time, an entire night out on the town. Dean had been too busy recording and they didn’t want to lose any momentum with them both traveling for the holidays. At least, that’s how you sold it. And Bela was more than willing to set the itinerary. Dean, surprisingly, went along with it, as long as he got to drive, which ensured he wouldn’t be imbibing too heavily and could make the call to escape whenever he saw fit.

Dean felt every inch a rockstar as he strolled up to Bela’s door, knocking instead of texting to announce his arrival. She left him out there for almost five minutes before buzzing him in, but he took it in stride.

Bela’s place was nice in an untouched kind of way, it was all huge white walls and seamless floorboards and regular maid visits. Sure, Dean and Sam used a cleaning lady, but it was more due to the size of their place than appearances. Dean still washed his own damn dishes.

He was stunned when she rounded the corner, bare shoulders and lean neck, her natural beauty more accessible than the last time he saw her. He whistled quietly, taking in her pristine white pants and silver slip of a camisole. 

“You cut your hair,” Dean said, surprised.

“Yes?” Bela’s face scrunched up as if she was afraid for his mental capacity.

“It looks nice, fresh,” Dean added, stepping into her space and leaving a peck on her cheek. “Almost ready?”

She swayed a little and rested her temple against his jaw, his hands automatically found her hips. “Anybody out there?”

“Not that I noticed, but trust me, the car will turn some heads,” Dean reassured, palms hugging the little meat on her.

Bela groaned. “Fine! Let’s go.”

Dean smirked when she eyed the car, holding the door open for her as she sank on to the vinyl. She would die before admitting he was right, so he revved the engine a little before pulling into traffic.

The restaurant was down the street from a new club Dean had heard about and he knew a guy so he was able to get Baby properly valeted for the interim. Walking would get them more coverage, even if it was only two blocks. But until then he had to stand and wait at the coat check, Bela’s coat that perfectly matched her pants was draped over his arm while she checked her makeup or whatever it was that girls did in the bathroom. He had asked Charlie before, for insider information, but she just shook her head at him. And, well, you really didn’t seem like the type to go in packs.

“Alright then?” Bela asked, bringing Dean back to the present.

“Right as rain,” Dean said smugly, holding open Bela’s coat for her to slip into. “Hey, I was meaning to ask you, uh, does Trouble know about us? About the limo?”

Bela turned sharply, bright eyes cutting as she searched his face for something, maybe to see if he was joking, maybe to see if she’d heard him right. “Is she supposed to?”

Dean shrugged, holding out his elbow for her to take as they headed outside.

“I thought that was something girls talked about with their best friends, all the gory details,” Dean emphasized the last two words.

Bela leaned in to speak quieter, “I don’t know if you’re fishing for compliments or if you’re being intentionally obtuse.”

Dean chuckled self-deprecatingly. “Both, it’s always good to assume both.” 

“Right. Well, I don’t think you’d like to hear about Sam’s abilities and conquests in detail, would you?”

Dean spotted the camera before the photographer, but he smirked and leaned tighter into Bela’s side. “What’s Sammy got to do with this?”

Bela laughed, loud and bright, it didn’t even feel like she was acting, but Dean felt the flinch as the flashes started. The sidewalk erupted as people spotted them, most moving out of their way, some still shoving past, annoyed. He had thought about bringing Benny along, just in case, but it shouldn’t be that much of an issue, it wasn’t a concert-sized crowd. 

Dean prayed he wasn’t wrong.

He took Bela’s elbow in his other hand and wrapped his right arm around her waist instead, keeping her close, safe. But outwardly, he remained cool, easy smiles and murmuring to her as if in secret. The conversation dropped as they slipped past the VIP line and into the side entrance of the club. Again, because Dean knew a guy, not because either of them were that famous. They wouldn’t have to do this song and dance if they were.

“You good?” Dean asked as soon as they were alone.

“Peachy,” Bela replied, excitement dancing in her eyes as she darted past him towards the nearest bar, calling over her shoulder, “drink?”

Dean rolled his eyes and fought to catch up. They talked, and danced and made painful small talk with the other people in VIP. Dean ignored the knowing glances from a gaggle of twenty-somethings in the corner. Hell, it was LA, they were probably older than him anyway.

Bela came back with another drink for herself and a tonic with lime for Dean, keeping up the front. She draped herself against his side after setting their drinks down. “You’re brooding again,” she warned him.

Dean couldn’t help but smile. “Am I now? Couldn’t be from you being cryptic on the way in here, huh?”

She tipped her chin and looked at him with the full force of her eyes. “Dean? Don’t be an idiot. I didn’t tell Y/N about fooling around with you because I didn’t think she’d want to hear it, especially the details. She says you think of her as a little sister, I wouldn’t want to scar her beyond belief.”

Dean licked his lips, his stomach was somewhere on the dancefloor below. “She said that? That she thinks of me as her brother?”

Bela pulled back and patted his chest. “I think it’s what she thinks you do. Why? Is there something else going on I should know about?”

Dean tensed, sure they were more or less alone up there in their little corner of the VIP, but this wasn’t the place for this kind of conversation. “You’ve been friends with her for a while, has she ever told you about Jo?”

“You mean the best friend from high school who she lost in the accident?” Bela matched his solemness.

“Yeah— I guess you know, but, uh, she was my girlfriend when she—,” Dean always had trouble talking about this, it’s why Missouri still didn’t know it all.

“And Y/N just went and set you up with another best friend, like she was playing dolls?” Bela asked, trying to suss out what had Dean so on edge.

Damn.

Dean hadn’t thought about it that way. Maybe you had different intentions than just business. Maybe Dean had been reading the tension pouring off of you all wrong. Maybe he was just some hapless big brother to you after all.

Bela's look

Tagging:

@deans-spinster-witch

@mrswhozeewhatsis

@cosicas-cuquis

@fics-pics-andotherthings-i-like

@suckitands33

@ladysparkles78

@deans-baby-momma

@stoneyggirl2

@sassy-pelican

@leigh70

@globetrotter28

@winharry

@lastactiontricia

@rockhoochie

Chapter Eleven: Eco

[fairytalewonders]

Cat Guessing Game

This is just something I wanted to do for fun - cat’s have been assigned different stereotypes about their coats of fur and what personality traits they have as such, so I want to see if people can guess the color of my cat’s fur based off of the descriptions I give of their personality or unique quirks. And there’s one secret lizard thrown in for the fun of it.

I’ll reply and if they get any right, but I won’t say how many. In a week’s time I’ll reboot with all of the correct answers. Let’s see how many correct guesses people get.

First up:

Apple Pie (Male)

Called Apple for short

A huge talker

Stubborn

Passive Aggressive

One of the smartest animals I’ve ever seen (We had to change all of the door handle to door knobs because he learned how to open the doors. He still knows how to open the door knobs but can’t because he doesn’t have thumbs.)

When he wants to sit on you, he will sit on you, you have no choice

Half-a-tail (The vet thinks the mother licked it off when cleaning him. No obvious signs of wounds. But I remember him having a full tail when he was born?)

Quote from mom - “I saw him leading a crusade into your room.”

Binx (Male)

A sweet himbo

Very vain (I can’t express to you how vain he is)

Likes to go for car rides

likes to eat bread, doesn’t want the meat with any sandwiches though. Just the bread.

Equal opportunist.

Gets sad if you don’t at least say hi when you walk past him.

Quote from mom - “He’s…. Special.”

Cheshire (Male)

Super sweet

The chilliest animal ever (will just let you pick him up and tote him around everywhere, but my mom says I get special privileges.)

A secret sadist (has tormented the Binx.)

Has the biggest eyes I have ever seen. (My brother says he looks like a crack addict.)

Causes mischief as a fun past time when bored

Chirps?

Quote from mom - “he can’t be the one tormenting Binx, look at his face.”

Mushu (Male - probably)

I have never gotten more attitude from an animal in my entire life. Which is saying something.

Lots of side-eye

Very chill

Doesn’t like loud noises

Lazy

Quote from mom - “I have more pictures of him than I do of my own kids.” (We haven’t even had him for a full year.)

Batsy (Female)

Runt of the litter, super tiny

Will launch herself at you without a second thought

Doesn’t like big cats

Super affectionate

Quote from mom - “She’s like a flying squirrel.”

Peaches (Male)

Super sweet

Quiet

Chill

Super affectionate

(Don’t know much about him yet, I kidnapped him from outside. He’s still recovering, super skinny, can count his ribs. But we’re working on it!)

Quote from mom - “No, I haven’t seen the stray cat recently.”

Now for this next section, this section is sadly for my babies that have already passed on, but I can’t do this and in good conscious leave them out

Crookshanks (Female)

Had asthma (Did not stop her from stealing other cats kittens [as far as she was concerned they were also her children, no matter what they looked like] and occasionally picking fights and somehow winning?)

Super sweet

Also the chilliest animal ever (It may be a competition between her and Cheshire)

Passive aggressive - (Whenever she was mad at me she would put her butt in my face because she knew I didn’t like it.)

Quote from mom - “Sarah, come get your cat! She’s still the other cats kittens again!”

Tiger (Male)

Blind

Super long for a cat

Skittish

Demanding when it comes to food (he stole my fries)

Vocal when it comes to asking for attention

Would always seek me out and follow me around even though he couldn’t really see me

Gypsy (Female) (My mom named her after our Romanian heritage. I wanted something Halloween based, but after she started called her that, she responded to it.)

Also a runt

Super quiet - loved her personal space

Follower me around everywhere

Didn’t like being held

(Didn’t live very long due to health issues)

Quote from mom - “Well, she lets you hold her longer than anyone else, even if it is just for three seconds.”

Anyways, this is just for fun. I’m curious to see as to what people will answer. By the way, here’s a hint, none of these cats are purebreds.

[greatbigbellies]

2023 PREGNANCY KINK ADVENT CALENDAR (DAY 11)

McPreggo Mukbang Pt 2.

Already pregnant with one, and caught in the throws of her cravings, Penelope licked her lips. The food somehow smelled even better now. The chickens trips, a basket of three, were calling to her. Something about the scent of the breading and tantalizing smell of white meat made her mouth water. She scooted it over to her and started eating.

After the first strip, her tummy looked noticeably bigger, then the second, undeniably, then after the third, unignorably. She looked down at her belly, now filling most of her lap. She furrowed her brow and placed her hands on her tummy, feeling it over. “Those strips were amazing and all but… why am I so huge?” she felt it over longer. Another donation rolled in.

“If you check their website, they have a menu that explains what everything does. It would probably make more sense if your read it over. But a blind tasting is fun too!” she read. She wordlessly opened a new tab and dove in, looking for the online menu. Pictures of satisfied customers, all in various but noticeable stages of pregnancy, adorned the website. It was flashy and well built, but not the most easy to navigate. Finally, she found the menu page, and started reading.

Her jaw dropped. “Wait I have TRIPLETS IN ME NOW?” she grabbed her belly on each side, squeezing it firmly in disbelief. Her blouse rode up, and a crescent of bare skin just below the belly button was visible. She read the menu out loud “Each strip takes you up one trimester with twins… and I had one form the burger before, so I’m triplet heavy now?” She shifted in her chair, and it hit her how hard it was to move at this size. She rolled her blouse up again. Her belly button was now an outie, and she had some light but visible stretchmarks forming at the end of her tummy. “This top isn’t long for this world at this rate…”

She pulled it down as far as she could and looked at her facecam. “I’m not going to lie, those were the best chicken strips I’ve ever had… but like… twins are a lot, and I went further… ugh” she patted her belly. “I hope this doesn’t last all day.”

She tried to snap back into streamer mode, “So the last thing on the main menu we’re trying today is the fish filet sandwich. Which is weird right? Aren’t you not supposed to have fish when you’re pregnant? I feel like this sends a confusing message but… whatever, I guess.” she took a bite. She didn’t ever particularly like fish, but… this was well prepared. She took a few more bites as her viewership went up, seemingly spiking with each added baby to her belly. Her bites grew larger until they were full on chomps taken out of the sandwich. It didn’t take long to disappear.

She placed her hands on ether side of her tummy, bracing for growth. It came quickly, and hit hard. She felt her hands fill with pregnant womb as she filled out even more, her blouse riding up to become a tank top. Her navel popped, and she felt herself grow extremely tight. She paused before pressing her fingers into her belly, feeling its firmness. She wordlessly turned her attention to her computer, where she still had the menu pulled up.

“What’s ‘polyhydramnios’?” she asked. Her chat was eager to tell her.

“Extra womb water”

“Too much amniotic fluid”

“High blood pressure”

“High fluid content in the womb”

She read each response out loud, pressing on her bare tummy left and right. “God, no wonder everything feels so bloated and tight… I’m carrying quadruplets with extra fluid in me.” She moved to stand up to show off her bump, but found getting out of her gaming chair very difficult. “N-never mind… I’ll do a standing side shot later…” she said.

Penelope was growing somewhat nervous, her belly was massive, sticking out so far it nearly reached her knees, and the sides bowing out so far it felt like shifting too far left or right would brush it against the arms of her gaming chair. She took a deep breath, centering herself as her chat continued to pepper her with comments.

“Are you feeling okay, Penelope?”

“Please tilt your facecam down a little asking for a friend” “At least it tastes good! I haven’t seen you complain yet!”

“How heavy is it?”

She sighed. “It’s very heavy… like… I’m not the best at guessing weight but I’d say it’s at least a good 30 lbs…” she tried again to get up, but quickly found herself overwhelmed by the weight. “...maybe more like 40…” She looked at the remaining food, some tots, and two kinds of nuggets, which she had to admit, looked amazing, even now… “Still more to get through,” she sighed, grabbing the tots. 

Before digging in, she paused to check the menu, opting to read up before showing down. She squinted, “So… these won’t give me another baby but they will make my belly wider… how does that work?” she asked, more to herself than her audience. Finally, she shrugged. Compared to the other items, Penelope didn’t start slow. She opened with three tots at once and downed more soon after. The large carton disappeared quickly, and she looked down to watch the results settle in.

Her belly once again grew, but much less dramatically this time. While the front remained at its current distance, the sides bowed out considerably. She gently brushed her fingers across the sides as they seemed to fill out with even for fluid. Once it was done, the space between the swollen walls of her belly and the arms of her gaming chair had been considerably reduced. She grunted as she tried to shift but found it increasingly difficult. At this point, she had to test something, so gravity be damned, she would stand up… 

[rosesradio]

i’m posting a thing that’s not fanfic for the first time, i guess it’s an original work. it’s just my commentary on things i guess, it reads like a black mirror episode lol

tw: thought inspection, suicide mention, bigotry mention

word count: 1.3k

All this trouble, you think. All this screen time on the news, covering up every other issue...

You wished their time would come to an end. That it would all come to an end.

Your phone vibrated in your pocket, and you took a look at the screen:

Hey, said the little notification from TIC. That wasn't very nice. You should demonstrate more empathy for others! 🙂

A cold chill ran down your spine as your fingers came up to lightly touch the back of your neck. There was a chip there, small and unassuming, like Doc Ock's in Spider-Man. Like that chip, you knew full well that it would not serve you.

Want a quieter TIC experience? Upgrade to TIC Plus starting at $14.99.

You remembered going on a forum, one of the last places that was not asking for your government ID, and looking through the discussions. Someone was discussing a hate group gathering in a nearby city; they'd been hurling racial slurs at children.

I don't get it, one of the forum members started, isn't the TIC giving you notifications to cut that shit out? Show more empathy or smth.

Idk, another member replied, his hand proudly raised in his profile picture. Got TIC plus, I'm not dealing with that shit. Freedom of speech.

It probably doesn't matter, a third forum member replied. They pay, they get to stay—that's the TIC way.

The dig was subtle, though you had seen the comment live for a whole two minutes before a large This comment has been deleted by TIC for the safety of minors viewing text took its place.

Strangely enough, you never saw this kind of message for the hate speech on the forum. Perks of TIC plus, you supposed.

Swallowing, you ignored your own notification in favor of rummaging through your fridge for sliced meat and cheese. There was a nostalgia for the days in which you could afford more ingredients for your favorite foods, but—well, the stores didn't sell much of anything anymore. No one can afford anything, but you were lucky you could still make a good sandwich.

As for the TIC, you tried not to think about it when you could help it. Then again, you knew about the white bear experiment—the more you tried to push something out of your mind, the more it popped up.

Repetition helped. It drove you up the wall, but you found the TIC wouldn't harass you with more than one notification if you only thought one prompting thought repeatedly.

The TIC, or the Thought Impediment Center, was still new. It was all anyone could talk about for a year. There was excuse after excuse to explain its existence:

Our handy notifications reach out to tell you that you are not alone during a mental health crisis. Try BetterHelp and get matched with a five-star therapist today!

With this recording of data, we will be able to ensure criminals face charges during the planning period. Crime will go down in droves!

They were right about that. Everything went down in droves. Hollywood had to shut down because of the sheer amount of attention one studio got during their work on a heist movie.

When you thought about it, you were one of the lucky ones, getting one so late in the game. It came in layers—if you don't get one, you can't get food stamps. If you don't get one, you can't get medical care. As if those things weren’t hard enough to access already. College is what got you. You thought about dropping out, but you had to keep going—you couldn't just drop out and give up your dream job.

You didn't dream of work, of course. However, being a librarian seemed like a perfect fit for you.

After that interview last week, though...

You sighed, buttering up your bread and assembling your sandwich on the pan.

You had interviewed for a librarian assistant position last week, though you were rejected for two key reasons.

One was because you had a master's degree, and not your doctorate. Not to mention you only had five years of experience instead of seven. It made sense now that you thought about it—why would you be qualified for that position, with its thirty-two thousand dollar salary? No, you were much better off at the donut shop. It wasn't a bad place at all, though it wasn't where you wanted to remain forever.

The other reason you didn't get hired...

To be fair, the TIC-checking was new. How were you supposed to be prepared for it?

The lady at the interview, a kind, grandmotherly looking woman named Janine, voiced that she was also not a fan of the new TIC checking.

"The TIC in general is a bit of nonsense to me," she said. Her phone vibrated. "Sorry...I had to get one. Otherwise they were going to cut funding for the library, and..." her phone vibrated again, and she huffed. "I wouldn't feel quite so bad if they didn't take my family's chocolate chip cookie recipe. I'm sure you've heard of the Miller's chocolate chip cookie recipe by now?"

You had. You'd used the damn recipe, and the cookies were great. You shook your head for Janine’s sake. That seemed to help her feel better.

Ignoring the barrage of notifications, you had thought about how the TIC had come to the rescue of companies as they had lost money due to online censorship. People logged off social media sites, so they lost money in advertising. They had to have a revenue to make up for that.

It wasn’t just TIC Plus, or it’s advertising. It was the selling of data to third parties. That was nothing new, though this time, it was selling your thoughts. That was how Janine Miller’s family cookie recipe was sold to allrecipes.

At least it was just a cookie recipe. You had heard of Kaitlyn Johnson on the news, the twenty-one year old who had taken her own life after her pornographic thoughts had been sold to ChatGPT 7.2. They’d recreated them and sold the videos featuring her without her consent to sites across the internet.

That was why you had tried to suppress your thoughts as much as possible, though you knew that one day, you would slip up.

It didn’t matter, because as Janine Miller searched through the TIC-provided record of your thoughts over the past couple days, she found the exact sort of information she needed.

It was everything she couldn’t have in an employee. You thought about how much you loathed TIC, how much you loathed the job market and the housing market and the government and the advertising. The censorship, the restriction, the hate in the world. There was even a fleeting sexual fantasy or two, as you could no longer access smut without presenting your government ID. God forbid if you wanted to get off for the first time in weeks, right?

Your thoughts, restricted as they may be, held a fraction of the vitriol and imperfection of humanity you held in your heart.

With your thoughts laid out loud and clear, the only thing Janine Miller could do was look at you. Her gentle eyes were pitiful—perhaps a little disgusted, as if you were a writhing bug on the sidewalk.

She said sorry.

Eyes stinging, you nodded.

And you went home.

You’d cried for an hour or more, no longer caring if your four roommates could hear.

You wanted it all to end.

You had a migraine.

Your phone vibrated. Your mind rang as you heard that familiar feminine voice read your notification:

Suffering from headaches and migraines? Try Excedrin Migraine Pain relief! Guaranteed results in less than 30 minutes!

Swallowing, hands shaking where they rested against the countertop, you nodded.

Added to cart.

[atherix]

What sort of traditional foods are made in the fae realm?

Hello! I have been thinking about this for... SO long. And I still don't know how to answer it in a way that satisfies even me.

So we've established already that the Fae realm was designed as basically an idealistic copy of the Natural world, created from the Fae god's memories. Unsurprisingly, this means some of the dishes in the Fae realm resemble, to some degree, Natural realm food.

We're not interested in those, though.

So! As per the story Scar is telling Grian, the creatures, animals and beasts of the Fae realm were given life and soul by the fourth fairy light and were declared by their god as being divine, and the Elves were tasked with their care. This means that animals and beasts from the Fae realm cannot be eaten as food. Remember, the five fairy lights considered themselves all sisters, so Fae animals and beasts and creatures are considered the sisters of the Elves. Animals from the Natural world are fair game, but have to be prepared in a very specific way to honor their life. (There probably are Natural animals being kept in the Fae realm specifically for this reason, btw, so they don't have to go, uh, hunting, but they're primarily there for the humans/changed children who live there. When was meat introduced to the Fae realm? Probably around the first time an adult human wandered through a Fairy ring, honestly.)

Now, of course, all food in the Fae realm is prepared and cooked in... magic. Of course. Everything in the Fae realm is made of magic in the first place, so their food is magic. They have some incredibly unique fruit and vegetable dishes that don't exist in the Natural world, as they're from magic trees and fields tended through magic. Everything has a sort of... glow to it, a shimmer you could say. It will oftentimes be the best thing that any non-Fae will ever taste, depending on what magic the Fae who prepared it pushed into it; everyone experiences it differently. For the Fae it's just food, but to humans and the like... well. It's magic. If the cook intends for the person eating it to stay, all other food will taste like ash in their mouth and they will never know joy until they are eating Fae food again; if the cook intends for their mind to be consumed, nothing will ever feel right again and they will slowly lose their minds. It's all based on what magic is used and what intent. This is why, and this will be important in a few stories from now, it is advised that a non-Fae never accepts Fae food except from a Fae they would trust with their life.

Now as for the food itself- you have the fruits and vegetables, of course, but you also have soups and meat dishes (always made from Natural animals, no Fae animals at all, respectfully prepared and washed in mild ambrosia) and funny colored drinks and herbs humans have never even seen before, and something akin to honey that is the sweetest thing you will ever taste. The Fae even have some sort of bread, though their bread is more akin to cake bread than sandwich bread. A lot of their foods are sweet and savoury, not much in the way of sour or bitter or brittle or salty. For Fae (and the changed children) whose tastes don't run sweet, though, there are certain herbs and spices which can dampen or even completely rid the sweet.

Of course, as I said before, the way Fae cook it is also important too- after all, if you intend to trap a human in your realm and hand them sweet honey tea, all they're going to taste is the magic intent. And if they like bitter, that sweet honey might not taste so sweet :) This doesn't work on other Fae or even child-claimed humans, but for anyone else...

Bottom line is, regardless of what they're serving- whether it's a sandwich that you can vaguely identify a Natural-world version of or some weird semi-solid sauce on a sliced bit of Natural-world ham- if you're human and not claimed by a Fae, it will likely taste like whatever you want it to be.

... Unless you're impervious to Fae magic :) At which point- well, if you're not affected by Fae Magic... I wonder what it tastes like, when it's all magic. Hm.

[corsairoriginal]

@thedietelf

Linora was getting away with it. Considering Chace kept away from the tower for months at a time these days, staying only a few days each visit, the only person who regularly cared what she did couldn’t bother her. No one else paid attention to what Linora did. For all Grandfather’s bluster, he never went out of his way to seek Linora out. Father spent most of his emotional energy on pretending he could perform his duties exactly like he did before the diagnosis. 

Mother never even asked Linora if any of Bennie’s accusations about the crushed plant or his cuts were true. 

To add insult to Linora’s injuries, Father replaced the plant. Then proceeded to give Bennie more. Very quickly, Bennie’s room was overrun, and his toys stopped moving from the shelves or chests. It left a foul taste in Linora’s mouth to watch Bennie engaging in small talk with flowers. Or that Linora never once saw Bennie turn on the UV lights given to him to care for them, yet they still thrived. Or that Linora could sense Bennie’s new “friends” did, in fact, talk back to him.

Linora only got gifts on holidays. Jaeger never got anything extra either. What made Bennie special? Why did Father ask the Putzkammers for help in making Bennie happy? Why not her? Why never her?

To top it all off, the nightmares were getting worse. 

Well, at least for a while. That was…until the night Linora snuck into Bennie’s room while he slept. She couldn’t slice him again, she couldn’t do anything that would leave a noticeable wound or bruise. But her deep dives into anatomy and biology gave her a well of knowledge to draw from. 

After her fun, Linora warned Bennie that absolutely no one could know. Or she would make the next time worse. In the morning, Linora snuck out of the estate and got one of the employee canteens to give her a bunch of ice creams on a stick in Bennie’s favorite flavor. During the afternoon, Linora read Bennie stories and kept him in her lap as he silently licked at a pop. The whiplash between the night before and that day kept Bennie’s mouth shut.

Linora had another “session” with Bennie the next night anyway.

The morning after, Linora played board games with him. 

Pain, affection, resentment, love. To and fro, over and over. 

But Linora knew better. She had to know better. She was going to get caught. She lived among telepaths. Would Father really never scan Bennie or Linora? While Linora trusted herself not to draw Grandfather’s suspicion, did she actually expect Bennie to not? The months of keeping herself and Bennie at arm’s length from prying eyes couldn’t last forever. After all… 

…There was the worst one. The one who read anyone, all the time, only because he could. When Jaeger got back from school and Koffman Industries business, Linora was done for. Who knew what would happen to her? 

Despite this, Linora just couldn’t stop. There was something wrong with her, she understood that. She couldn’t imagine how she would settle her mind at night without Bennie anymore.

She also couldn’t imagine how her fun could possibly end in any other way than the worst kind of consequences for her.

A warm coffee milk in hand, Linora leaned against the doorframe that led from the kitchen into the dining room. Dinner was hours ago, but the dining room’s current occupant didn’t arrive until half an hour before. Jaeger sat at the table in his chair (custom made to match the original set), sipping at a glass of wine as he ate. 

Watching Jaeger eat simultaneously fascinated and unsettled Linora. He never ate with his hands for any reason, everything required cutlery or chopsticks. Sandwiches, flatbreads, hors d’oeuvres, slices of bread, it didn’t matter. Linora saw him using caviar forks and seafood picks on grapes before. 

Many times, he also let his telekinesis do most of any work for him. The fine manipulation Jaeger had was both impressive and terrifying. Linora watched Jaeger telekinetically separate squab meat on his plate. The flesh cleanly peeled and set aside, ready to cut into bite-sized chunks—and leaving perfectly spotless bones behind  

It was not hard to imagine Jaeger being able to separate more than just food. And he was very good at it.

Swallowing a bite, Jaeger’s eyes met Linora’s. “Thank you.”

Oh. Of course. And so it began. 

“What’s so strange about not wanting to touch food, by the way?” Jaeger asked, leaning back in his seat.

“Napkins exist,” Linora informed him as she sat across from him.

“And prevention is preferable to cleaning afterwards,” he disagreed. He picked up his glass and sipped. “So, what is beginning?”

Linora frowned at him, and then stared into her coffee without answering. Several minutes passed in silence as she drank and he ate. Only the gentle tapping of cutlery made any sound.

“Father is getting worse quickly,” Jaeger said, unprovoked, his deep voice soft. 

Linora shrugged. “We knew he would.”

“But he can still call Chace in an instant.”

Mid-sip, Linora hesitated. Gradually, she lowered her cup and stared back at Jaeger with an arched eyebrow.

“Father told me before that no matter where Chace goes, they’re always connected. Or at least, it doesn’t take him any effort to reach Chace.”

“…Even when…Chace isn’t in the tower?” Linora asked, a sinking feeling in her stomach.

“That’s what I meant,” Jaeger affirmed. He took a bite of caramelized sickle root, chewing agonizingly slowly, and allowing his words to hang in the air before he continued. “I’ve seen it before. No matter where Chace is, Father can project to him. It’s not just that they’re biological siblings. Though, that’s part of it. He says it has something to do with how many shared experiences they have. Similar memories, similar…lots of things. 

“So, it really doesn’t matter where Chace goes. There’s no such thing as too far. Unless something actively blocks the connection, Father can reach him.”

Through this, Linora finished her coffee. She stared at the bottom of the cup, watching the residue of beige liquid pool to one side or the other as she tipped it back and forth anxiously. As Jaeger finished, Linora swallowed hard. It wasn’t difficult to catch his meaning, and she didn’t know how to respond.

Tapping his fork on the side of his plate idly, Jaeger grinned at Linora. “Just curious, have you ever watched television?”

Blindsided by the drastic shift, Linora curled a lip in confusion. “Wh…Of course I’ve seen TV shows.”

“No, no, not just shows. No collections,” Jaeger said. “I mean an actual broadcast, the way it’s originally intended to be.”

Her face twisted in greater confusion. “No, of course not. Nothing is broadcast here. Why would I…?”

“It’s rubbish,” Jaeger said sourly, shaking his head. “It’s absolutely rubbish. Some worlds I spend time in, the screens are low definition, tube-filled scrap—loaded with pops and scratches. Muddy, awful-looking and sounding stuff. And there’s barely five minutes of showtime in-between a bombardment of insipid advertising.”

While still lost as to why the conversation took this turn, Linora smirked in amusement. “So, television really is as bad as television shows say it is?”

“Completely intolerable,” Jaeger said, adding a genuine laugh. “And people eat it up. They cannot wait to spend hours doing nothing but watching vomit-quality drivel and repetitive prattling about junk food, medication, and faulty products.”

Linora didn’t hate hearing Jaeger talk about something other than philosophy or himself. She propped her elbows on the table, and distantly wondered why she could still smell her milk coffee so clearly with her cup empty.

“Once you’ve had a better experience,” Jaeger continued, finishing his wine. “Then it’s simply not the same any other way.”

Her eyes thinning, Linora leaned her jaw in her palm. Wracking her brain hadn’t given her any ideas as to where Jaeger’s thought process led them. 

Jaeger’s posture shifted, he also leaned his head against his hand. “I like very…dark fiction. If I ever read or watch it.”

“…Me too,” Linora said.

“I doubt quite like my taste,” Jaeger said with a subtle shake of his head. “The kinds of things where…I’ve ‘asked’ servants to get it for me, then made them forget they did.”

Linora raised an eyebrow at this. “So, a sex thing?”

Jaeger’s brow hardened, and his eyes went cold. “No.”

She smirked at him, doubtful.

Frowning, Jaeger glanced off. “…Still. It’s not enough. The only thing that really, really scratched that itch…” His icy eyes shifted back to her, then a smile began to reform. “When I was twelve. One of the maids, she mistook a collection of mine for trash, and threw it out.”

In surprise, Linora sat straighter. She glanced at the doors to the dining room. There was no one in sight.

“And it made me…so…angry,” Jaeger continued, his lips tightening. “I just…saw red, and…I made her regret it.”

Linora’s brow tightened in surprise. “You…did what?”

“The brain processes everything,” Jaeger said, his voice lowering to a rumble. “Even pain that doesn’t exist feels like it does if the brain says so.”

Jaeger could do much more than anyone told Linora he could. His smile took on a distressing, new color in her mind. 

“That scream…” Jaeger whispered. “Was so primal. So…” 

Linora was apprehensive that she understood exactly how good it must have sounded.

Her brother’s face twisted fiendishly. “I try to read, or to fantasize, or write…Anything else is just…broadcast television.” 

Now things started to fit together. The entire conversation came into focus, and the picture it painted of Jaeger was something so much more vile than maybe anyone else had ever seen of him. 

Linora murmured, “You know. You’ve known the whole time. And you’re not going to stop me.”

Jaeger chuckled. “No. No, I’m not. I have no reason to stop you. No matter where I am, I can get pieces of the rush you get.” Gradually, Jaeger leaned forward, grinning. “Such as…when you grabbed little Bennie’s throat. And squeezed…but wouldn’t let him pass out. Over. And over. Again.” His smile widened in excitement. “You, Linora, are an artist. And I can’t wait to see what you do next.”

 When Jaeger described her actions out loud, Linora’s cheeks flushed and she swiveled her eyes away from his gaze. Shame at the ugliness of what activities delighted her wrestled with pride in Jaeger actually complimenting her. He rarely complimented anyone. “…Something’s wrong with you. You’re broken.”

“Me? You’re the one doing it.”

“You like to watch.”

“Well. You’re convinced you care about him.”

“I do,” Linora snarled. “I-I make it up to him. I don’t do anything permanent. You don’t care about anything.”

“I care about plenty, just not how you choose to torture Benjamin. I could change my mind, if you want me to.”

Linora tensed, recoiling at word “torture.” That wasn’t the right word, she didn’t torture anyone. It was just roughhousing, nothing serious. Lots of siblings roughhoused. She didn’t appreciate Jaeger’s language.

Linora then forced herself to grin in the face of Jaeger’s threats, and pushed herself to her feet. “You could. But what would you do if you had to go back to broadcast only?” She stretched across the table and reached over Jaeger’s plate. She plucked an uneaten cherry tomato, and popped it into her mouth, smirking in satisfaction as the juice filled her mouth. “I don’t know. I don’t get not wanting to use your hands.”

Jaeger’s smile faded, and he ran his tongue along his gum line. “Cute. That would’ve been an appropriate metaphor…if you were using your hands just then.”

As though a button reset reality, Linora was suddenly back in her seat. Clattering of plates caused her head to snap up, and she briefly met eyes with Jaeger as hopped out of his chair. From seemingly nowhere, one of the staff stood next to his seat, gathering his empty plate and dirty utensils onto a tray. The smell of milk coffee lingered in her nose, and Linora looked down to see her cup still half-full.

“Good to see you, Linora,” Jaeger called over his shoulder as he walked out of the dining room. “Have fun.”

As he disappeared through the door, Linora brought her cup back to her lips in a daze. An unconscious smile came to her as she drank. She would have fun. Lots of fun. Like the kind of things her nightmares kept showing her. It was now a challenge. Just how far could Linora go while Jaeger stayed only an observer? How many doses of sedative could she sneak out of R&D before anyone noticed? How often could she fit her hobby in a week? 

No, no, moderation. Moderation. She needed to focus on her studies, too. Her studies, and continuing to improve herself in the fortieth floors.

A swell of anticipation filled Linora. She thought about the one moment in her and her older brother’s “conversation” when he genuinely faltered. 

Would Jaeger react if it actually became a sex thing?

[yanisdoingstuff]

I saw this reblogged by @uiolot and got inspired. Since I'm not posting much, I decided I'd answer some questions for main characters, C and Joy. WARNING VERY LONG

✨ — For Joy, I wanted it to express his upbeat demeanor, so I just googled synonyms for happiness, went through some, and it popped up in my head. Though I recently found out it's commonly used as a female name lol. It also became his mother's trait to give her children weird names with special meanings. As for C, I scrolled some male names to find one that sounded like him and shortened to one letter for ✨mystery✨.

🌼 — Joy is 16 and C is 17! Could never tell you what happened the day

🌺 — They have each other! Aside from that, C had his first “relationship” a few years ago with a toxic guy (though can you realistically not be toxic as a ~12-13 boy?), a blond cocky bastard. It kinda grew as a reference to me choosing between several looks for C. At first I wanted him to be blond, with curly hair; his ex got the 1st, Joy's human design got the 2nd. Joy also had a few crushes, even including Haru, but it never went anywhere (and thanks god, I never intended to, this man is way too old for him xd).

🍕 — Joy is probably burger with fries typa guy. Anything flavorful and colorful would be to his taste, but he's not too picky since his mom's cooking was always awful. C definitely likes meat and bread of any kind. They share love for sandwiches, soda, hard candy and pastry, especially buns from Snowdin when C tries them.

💼 — They're both high-schoolers, so nothing yet. C used to work in his father's butchery shop before the Underground, but it was less of "making a living" and more of a "one day you'll inherit my business dear son so I'm training you instead of letting you enjoy weekends properly".

🎹 — Joy travels around the Underground and draws a map of it. He sometimes watches Haru's family anime collection, reads adventure novels, listens to pop music, dances, and plays mortal combat-ish games. He also just... likes to yap. A lot. Anything to tire himself out really. C never had any hobbies because of being busy, so he just sticks around. Adventuring and exploring in general is interesting to him. They'd probably like DnD if they knew about it.

🎯 — Joy yaps and dances like a pro, hehe. C has the MC ability to solve any problem on the way. He's mostly collected, sharp, and is able to get out of most situations if time's given.

🥊 — Joy loves chatting, finding time to meet friends, seeing his elder brother a lot! His hobbies name it all. He only hates household chores, especially doing dishes, anything related to water (he can't swim) and being Haru's target during his training sessions. C likes working with people, reading books, but feels uneasy spending time with monsters except Joy. As to why... We'll see. I can't really come up with anything he'd purely hate... Like, cleaning toilets, not that's what everyone hates. Following other's orders and tasks maybe?

❤️ — Joy's best memories before the main story are related to his elder brother, Piper. They barely meet each other these days, which makes it double special. They're close since childhood, talk about everything that bothers them, watch silly movies... They can even just sleep in the same room and be happy. C's happiest memories are probably about the family farm, when he was little, played with piggies (under guidance, we all know how scary pigs can be) and didn't know where meat comes from. Since meeting Joy, the cutest moments they had were definitely added to both's lists.

✂️ — This topic is secret until the episodes come out, but let's just say they're also related to the couple's relationships. Besides, both struggle with parents a lot. Joy has arguments with mom, C hates dad, perfect match.

🧊 — Joy's is, though at first I pictured him wearing glasses on the forehead for more adventurous look, but it doesn't make sense when you're half-blind lol. His jeans were slightly different in fit. C, aside from early choices I mentioned, had changes in boots (before they were just generic boots) and pants (same... I have troubles with pants) and was gifted a lil garter belt cover for his weapons. I also got inspired by Hunter from TOH and Vaggie from HH — strong protective characters with trauma 😊 — and gave him a hooked nose.

🍀 — Joy was at least 70% self-insert. So I can say he's inspired by my own awkwardness? Also my desire to yap and the idea of comforting teen relationship. A tiny bit of any sunshine character I've seen in media (Charlie in HH, Tails in Sonic franchise, Luz in TOH, etc etc...). C is pretty generic, I admit. Insert him in any 1st person/unnamed protagonist game. Frisk heritage right here. But in looks he's heavily inspired by Manlybadasshero 'cause he's the true protagonist of every story.

🌂 — Joy is Disney channel series or teen dramedy. C is rpgmaker yandere game or PS1 horror with a sprinkle of slice of life when he's on the pacifist route.

💚 — They're both cisgender boys and gay! (Probably would be trans-inclusive, but not familiar with the concept enough to identify as such).

🙌🏻 — C is the only child. Joy has seven!

🍎 — As I mentioned, Joy quarrels with his mother a lot. He doesn't feel needed, and in his eyes, mom suddenly stopped loving him when he was little and only needs him for doing dishes from time to time. His dad is simply absent. Still technically in the family, but always stuck in his workplace, also since Joy's childhood, barely seeing his kids a few times a year. No conflict with him, but not much love either, it's neutral. C's in very bad relationship with father due to the amount of work and it's violent nature. And he's just old in general. «These damn kids» guy. As for his mommy, I'm sure they're fine. I imagine a very patient, warm woman he was sorry to leave like that.

🧠 — I love Joy's cheerful, yet awkward personality. He helps me cope, especially with my situations at home, school stuff and sexuality topics. He doesn't know anything, he's a baby!! 🥺 (he's actually a nice smart guy, as mature as an introverted 16 yo can be). As for C, he's just my ancient Undertale protagonist idea I still cherish. Also a secret for later, but... He's the “I fucked up — I fucked up more trying to improve the last fuck up — I learned and did it better from scratch” trope. He has a lot of skeletons in his closet he still thinks about and grieves over. He may turn VERY flawed at some point. And I love bad people who are truly sorry in the end.

✏️ — Not too often, but I like sketching them and writing the detailed script for episodes when I have time. Also the whole project! It will come out eventually, we all say in unison.

💎 — Definitely not Joy, he's staying. C... Who knows. He's also important, probably not. But I swear I wouldn't about every OC I've ever had before one day deciding they're not fit for my grown brain anymore and getting rid of them. So we'll see.

💀 — Not phobias, but fears in general. Joy is very much afraid of death. It's a taboo topic for most people, and in his family it's not spoken about along with many other things. Seeing someone dying or hearing about it (only including fresh cases) might be straight up traumatizing for him. They're both afraid of being left alone, for C it also means losing Joy as the story progresses.

🍩 — Lora! The new queen of the Underground. She's the main antagonist in the whole AU. There are temporary enemies too, especially for C. You'll learn more on the process.

🎓 — For a year and few months. Such a long journey, hehe.

🍥 — I was 16! It always feels weird to outgrow your characters. I'm almost afraid of losing touch, heheh.

Maybe I'll participate again with other characters I have. That's fun to ponder certain things about you children, especially while they're in development.

Ask Game for someone’s OC(s)

✨- How did you come up with the OC’s name?

🌼 - How old are they? (Or approximate age range)

🌺- Do they have any love interest(s)?

🍕 - What is their favorite food?

💼 - What do they do for a living?

🎹 - Do they have any hobbies?

🎯 -What do they do best?

🥊 -What do they love to do? What do they hate to do?

❤️ - What is one of your OC’s best memories?

✂️ - What is one of your OC’s worst memories?

🧊 - Is their current design the first one?

🍀 - What originally inspired the OC?

🌂 - What genre do they belong in?

💚 - What is your OC’s gender identity and sexuality?

🙌 - How many sibling does your OC have?

🍎 - What is the OC’s relationship w/their parents like?

🧠 - What do you like most about the OC?

✏️ - How often do you draw/write about the OC?

💎 - Do you ever see yourself killing off the OC?

💀 - Does your OC have any phobias?

🍩 -Who is your OC’s arch-nemesis or rival?

🎓 - How long have you had the OC?

🍥 - What age were you when you created the OC?

[rabbitcruiser]

National Sandwich Day

Never underestimate the power of a good sandwich. There is certainly something special about the best of the world’s toppings piled high between two slices of delicious bread.

Pastrami on rye? Yes, please. Mayonnaise as a sandwich dressing? You betcha! Slices of pickles? Bacon on just about anything? Of course! French Fries or Potato Chips? Don’t look so suspicious– french fry and potato chip sandwiches are delicious!

The argument that all Jews have a heartfelt investment in the state of Israel is untrue. Some have a heartfelt investment in corned beef sandwiches.

The fact of the matter is that if something is enjoyable on its own, it’s almost certainly going to be enjoyed when dressed up for the ball in bread and toppings.

National Sandwich Day celebrates them all!

History of National Sandwich Day

There is a commonly known story about the history of the word sandwich, and it’s attributed to John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich. One piece of that history that has been tossed about is the meaning of the word Sandwich and the town it comes from.

Sandwich is a city in the shire of Kent in England, in the United Kingdom, Originally the word was spelled ‘Sondwic’, and then ‘Sandwic’ and, eventually in the year 1086 as ‘Sandwice’. The name of the town came from its purpose and its claim to fame because it was a market town. So what does Sandwich actually mean? The exact definition is “Market Town on Sandy Soil”.

John Montagu was the fourth Earl of this particular little English town. An earl was a royal title that essentially means ‘chieftain’, which placed the person in charge of a territory in the King’s stead. As it happens, John was a well-known lover of card games. It is said that he originally ordered his meat to be delivered to him between two slices of bread so that he would not get his grease-laden fingers on the card, nor require a fork to eat. Genius!

As people heard of this, they started ordering their food “The Same as Sandwich”, and eventually just “a sandwich”. From such things, legendary culinary delights are born.

Even though some historians claim that the first mention of a “sandwich” in records was from the journal of Edward Gibbon, an English Member of Parliament in the 18th century, it’s likely that the existence of the sandwich goes back much further. Practically speaking, the sandwich has been around since humans have been eating bread.

In fact, some historians take it back as far as the first century BC, when Jewish Rabbi Hillel the Elder was known to put lamb, herbs and nuts between two pieces of bread! But, today, it isn’t called a “Hillel” after the rabbi. It’s called a “sandwich”, after the earl who came around several hundred years later.

And so, National Sandwich Day celebrates both the Earl himself, after whom this food was named, as well as the wonder he brought to the world in the form of what we now know as the sandwich.

National Sandwich Day Timeline

1st Century BC Jewish Rabbi makes sandwiches

Ancient records indicate that Hillel the Elder, a Jewish Rabbi predating the birth of Christ, suggests that the elements of the sacred Seder meal (herbs, nuts and apples) could be placed between two pieces of matzah and eaten as a sandwich.

25 BC-475 AD Ancient Romans make sandwiches

Although thought to be a modern invention, some Ancient Roman texts indicate that people have been putting cheese on bread and heating it up for as long as 2000 years.

16th Century Italian panini recipe is published

Some records indicate that the Italians were making Panini sandwiches long before the sandwich was ‘created’ in England.

1762 The sandwich gets its name

Legend has it that John Montagu, the 18th century Fourth Earl of Sandwich, was a gambler. In fact, he never wanted to leave the table, so he requested that some food be prepared that could be eaten without needing to get up from the table. So the cook brought him meat surrounded by two pieces of bread. And the name “Sandwich” was born. 

1884 Boston cookbook publishes sandwich recipes

Included in the original Boston Cooking School Cookbook are recipes for various types of sandwiches. This included varieties such as corned beef, chicken salad, cooked ham, lobster and even raw beef.

1894 The club sandwich is introduced

Rumored to be first served at the upstate New York Saratoga Club-House, the club sandwich contained chicken, bacon, lettuce and tomato between two (or even three!) slices of toasted bread. 

1903 First club sandwich recipe is published

Just a decade after it is introduced, the club sandwich is put in print by Isabel Gordon Curtis in the Good Housekeeping Everyday Cookbook.

1904 Club Sandwich is featured at the World’s Fair

This memorable event held in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, helped to popularize the Club Sandwich all throughout the United States.

1923 The grilled cheese sandwich is invented

While various versions of the hot cheese sandwich have been claimed by different cultures, the American version of the Grilled Cheese Sandwich came about when both processed cheese and sliced bread became readily available.

1930 Dagwood sandwich is created

In keeping with the famous character from the “Blondie” comic strip, Dagwood Bumstead’s penchant for sandwiches is honored with the invention of this impossibly tall sandwich that contains basically everything but the kitchen sink.

1965 First Subway sandwich shop opens

Perhaps the most commonly known sandwich chain worldwide, Subways’ first restaurant made its debut in Bridgeport, Connecticut in the United States. 

How to Celebrate National Sandwich Day

Celebrating National Sandwich Day is a wondrous delight! It can be done in a variety of ways, most of which should, of course, include at least the eating of (if not the making of) a sandwich. Try out these ideas for inspiration:

Make and Enjoy a Sandwich (or Several!)

All you need to do is get into the kitchen and make yourself every kind of sandwich that can be imagined. Breakfast would certainly get a good start with bacon,. egg and cheese on a bagel (a Bagel Sandwich).

Then, for lunch, make it a Whopper from Burger King (Hamburger Sandwich) and move on to dinner by enjoying a Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato with Mayo on Sourdough (BLT Sandwich). It’s really as simple as that, though if you’re feeling experimental, National Sandwich Day is the best time to create something new!

Try Out a New Type of Sandwich

Perhaps, when thinking of sandwiches, the mind automatically goes to things like peanut butter and jelly, or a basic ham sandwich. And maybe that sounds just a little bit boring. But sandwiches can also be fun and exciting! They can be an adventurous foray into the world of food.

Consider these ideas for sandwich recipes that will help to make the sandwich menu more exciting. Just reading these names is a mouth-watering experience:

Chipotle Pulled Pork Sandwich with Feta Cilantro Topping

Toasted Pan Bagnat with Tomatoes, Mozzarella and Arugula

California Rainbow Veggie with BBQ Kale Chips

Corn Beef Brisket with Irish Cheddar French Toast and Kale Pesto Slaw

Enjoy National Sandwich Day at Work

National Sandwich Day can inspire all sorts of fun activities in the workplace. And lunch is the perfect time to do so. A simple idea would be to have a sub-sandwich restaurant cater in for lunch. Other ideas might include holding a contest to see who can make the tallest sandwich (everyone pitches in to bring ingredients). Or host a sandwich-making competition for the best-tasting sandwich, which can be judged by the boss. This makes the workday go by a little bit smoother on National Sandwich Day.

Take Part in a Sandwich Eating Competition

Sandwich eating can be fun–but it’s also serious business! Different types of these contests take part all over the world, and it takes quite a bit of skill. One winner of these types of competitions is Joey Chestnut, who has been considered to be the number one ranked competitive eater in the world! He has accomplished feats such as eating 72 hot dogs in ten minutes.

Source

[fantasyinvader]

@gascon-en-exil

I know we've talked about this before, about how Cajun food is more well known than the food of Quebecois. I've actually been watching a bunch of videos by a youtuber named Tyler Bucket where he learns about Canada, from our snacks to our fast food places and even history stuff like Terry Fox. And watching this just made me curious about why Quebec's food culture.

As I've said before, Quebec really has a thing for sweets. Like, you do not have Vachon many varieties of snack cakes. Turns out that's because Vachon was bought out by a foreign company and doesn't want to expand into the US due to competition with Hostess, and that's kind of a reoccuring thing. You're also not as big on maple syrup whereas in Canada you can go to events where they serve warm maple syrup on snow. I am not making that up.

Anyway, Quebecois food traces itself back to 17th century French cuisine, adapted to suit Canada with influence from native Americans, British traders and even some parts of American cuisine because of Quebec's history with the fur trade. The poverty of Quebec's past, alongside harsh winters and the condition of the soil all play a role in it, leading to more traditional meals using game meat.

Beans slow cooked with bacon and maple syrup, or a thick pea soup that may have chunks of ham added, that's some traditional Quebec food you can find in your grocery stores. Back when I ran my parent's restaurant, I once had to explain the concept of a “hot chicken” sandwich, as in chicken between two pieces of bread covered in gravy. We have the Pâté chinois, or Shepard's Pie, with ground beef on the bottom, corn in the middle and mashed potatoes on the top all baked together (it's actually one of my favorite meals, especially if there is gravy to top it off with in the event it's a little dry). If I was to head out more towards Eastern Quebec, there's more of a focus on fish and lobster such as serving lobster on a hot dog bun.

That's actually a thing you used to be able to get at McDonald's in the Atlantic provinces, the McLobster, but to my understanding it's one of McDonald's failed menu items like the McPizza (which everyone I've ever heard mention it misses greatly)

(looking at list) I had never heard of Pizza-ghetti before, where it's either a half-pizza served with spaghetti on the side, or spaghetti served on top of a pizza with melted cheese on top... I want to try that now.

I guess that's the thing about Quebec food. We have great sweets and baked goods, but a lot of our food prioritizes practicality and a lot of it is variations to what people were eating in France a few hundred years ago before it became modern French cuisine. I guess with the contacts I have on here that are from France, you come to Quebec you're going to be eating food that would be out of your history books... well, that and poutine. Maybe pizza-ghetti.

[uxbridgeenglishdictionary]

My period for food is late Elizabethan, but I think I might be able to shed some light on "10 August" and the "severe tea" due to a keen interest in historical English menus. If you just want my recommendation for what to eat, here you go:

"white bread finger sandwiches filled with water-cress and radish with whipped butter"

But if you want to go down the rabbit hole with me and learn about severe teas, or to see a full menu - click that read more button babeyy.

A disclaimer: Some generalisations will inevitably be made; I'm not working this up for publication. If in doubt as to sources, I'm working off Erika Rappaport's published works or Mrs Beeton.

Severe here does serve as an intensifier of quantity, not quality. To put the taking of afternoon tea into some kind of context, it was a relatively new meal. You said something about yourself by taking afternoon tea: it was daring and fashionable, but also a strong statement of support for the Empire! and at the same time a Temperance movement reaction to all that booze ppl were necking.

Tea as a meal isn't just the light and fussy finger-sandwiches and cream scones that most 21st century people would imagine. Tea could be taken at-home (less formal! even eaten standing up!), as a high tea (extremely formal! high quality tea leaves! maybe even some wine!), as a meal to tide you over between lunch and dinner (not supper though, we can't get into that right now), etc etc. There are entire books written about the competing tea cultures between classes and localities... Mina and Lucy have a class difference, so I'm going to default to higher-class/higher-society options.

ANYWAY:

If you're ever in doubt as to what would be eaten at a particular meal during the Victorian era, I recommend checking out Mrs Beeton. She was writing for the edification of middle-classes rather than the truly posh toffs, but it can serve as a corner-cutting exercise if you're looking to cosplay (cos-eat?) a Victorian meal rather than Historic-England-approved reenactment.

Beeton states that, if the hostess was providing said afternoon tea at home, she should ensure:

"fresh supplies of it, with thin bread-and-butter, fancy sandwiches, sweets, cakes, etc., being forthcoming as fresh guests arrive."

SO - SANDWICHES:

For Mina and Lucy, the fancy sandwiches should be:

"left perfectly plain on the outside, but when they may be eaten with a fork, some pretty effects may be produced by decorating them with variously-coloured chaud-froid sauces. Or they may be decorated with cold aspic jelly, and garnished with lobster coral, Krona pepper, parsley, hard-boiled egg, etc."

Fillings-wise, Beeton recommends water-cress and radish with whipped butter. Hence my recommendation at the top of the post. Remember the top of the post? Good times.

Now if you're REALLY hungry or want to have a severe tea a la Dracula, Mrs Beeton says:

At the usual high tea there are probably to be found one or two small hot dishes, cold chickens, or game, tongue or ham, salad, cakes of various kinds, sometimes cold fruit tarts, with cream or custard, and fresh fruit. Any supper dish, however, can be introduced, and much more elaborate meals be served, while sometimes the tea and coffee are relegated to the sideboard, and wine only, in the way of drink, put upon the table. In summer it is not unusual to have everything cold at a high tea.

I can hear you say "Uxbridge, just get to the full menu please".

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I live to serve (tea):

Menu (easily accessible and can be made at home without cracking out the aspic and the jelly molds):

Food:

Watercress and radish sandwiches

Cold ham

Strawberry and cream tart

Pears

Thinly sliced white bread

Whipped butter

Jams (if you can get marmalade even better)

Victoria sponge cake

Potted meat/sardines

Hardboiled eggs

Cold chicken, parsley, and apple salad

Drinks:

Indian/black tea - ideally loose leaf, served with cream or milk, and white sugar

Coffee - also served with cream or milk, brown sugar

A red wine, ideally French

Thanks for reading this long-ass post.

As to the great quote found by @thethirdromana in the Churchman's shilling magazine:

a severe tea... "implies coffee, tea, and muffins, with substantials".

Victorian muffins were made with potatoes - which was mildly unnerving to learn today. Substitute with scones or American style biscuits. Substantials basically means that the dishes should be plentiful and filling!

Mem., get recipe for Mina: a food guide to Dracula Daily

Inspired by There and Snack Again (in which you eat along with the LOTR movies), this is your guide to eating and drinking along with Dracula Daily.

All under a cut because there's no way I can do this with extensive spoilers. I strongly recommend not reading this unless you already know what happens in Dracula. Also only if you're comfortable reading about alcoholic drinks - there's a lot of booze in this novel.

Let's eat!

2 May We start with the famous paprika hendl. Google "chicken paprikash" and choose whichever recipe most strikes your fancy.

3 May For breakfast, choose from mamaliga (cornmeal porridge, similar to grits), "impletata" (vânătă umplută - stuffed aubergine) or anything with more paprika in it.

4 May For dinner, Jonathan has robber steak: "bits of bacon, onion, and beef, seasoned with red pepper, and strung on sticks and roasted over the fire".

5 May Slivovitz, if you'd like it (Jonathan declines). Then, for dinner, Dracula serves up roast chicken, with some cheese, a salad and a glass or two of Tokaji wine.

6 May "A cold breakfast" for Jonathan. In Romania a cold breakfast might include boiled eggs, telemea (sheep's cheese), franzela (bread) with assorted spreads, sliced cucumber and tomatoes, and sunculita taraneasca (sliced smoked pork). Jonathan also has "an excellent supper", but doesn't tell us what that includes.

16 May Would it be too bleak if I suggested eating a symbolic Jelly Baby?

26 May A glass of wine as Quincey and Jack congratulate Arthur and drown their sorrows.

18 June There's a kind of Scottish fruit slice called "flies' graveyard". That might make a suitable snack given Renfield's meal today.

24 June I guess a gingerbread woman, for the wolves? IDK, it turns out doing this for a horror novel is a bit grim.

8 July Thankfully the internet has hundreds of ideas for spider-themed cakes so you can eat along with Renfield.

18 July The voyage of the Demeter begins! Celebrate by eating like a sailor: have some salt pork, or make ship's biscuit.

20 July Renfield has just eaten several sparrows. Provide redress by feeding birds near you, bird flu guidance permitting.

24 July Imitate the "feet-folk" from York and Leeds by drinking some tea or eating some cured herring.

10 August Lucy and Mina enjoy a "severe tea". There are lots of severe teas in Victorian literature, but few writers actually describe what's in it - e.g. the Churchman's shilling magazine, 1868, has a story with a severe tea "which implies coffee, tea, and muffins, with substantials". What are substantials? I have no idea, but that's what you should eat today.

11 August Dracula has a little nibble on Lucy. I don't suggest doing this for every vampire bite in the novel, but given this one is particularly significant, how about marking the occasion with some black pudding?

30 August No food details for a while, but in this entry, Lucy notes that she "has an appetite like a cormorant" and "Arthur says I am getting fat". Celebrate with some cake.

3 September Van Helsing has been! And surely he wouldn't have come all the way from the Netherlands empty-handed? Acknowledge his visit with some gouda or a stroopwafel.

4 September Eat some sugar, which Renfield has requested for his flies.

7 September To stay in line with what the characters actually eat and drink, have a glass of port (though ideally not if you've just given blood). But for the real spirit of the day, consider a corn-on-the-cob.

9 September Free space! Jack has "an excellent meal" but doesn't say what it is. Dig into your favourite dinner.

10 September A sip of brandy, with which Van Helsing wets Lucy's lips.

11 September The garlic flowers arrive. There's lots that you can make with wild garlic - personally, I like it in risotto.

17 September A boxful of garlic flowers arrive for Lucy every day. Time to make chicken with 40 cloves of garlic. Other options for today include more black pudding (in honour of Renfield lapping up Jack's blood) or sherry.

18 September The Zookeeper enjoys a teacake, and so shall we.

20 September No food, but the labourers have "a stiff glass of grog". This is rum diluted with water, but you could also add lemon or lime juice, sugar, and/or cinnamon.

25 September Nibble another Jelly Baby for the Bloofer Lady.

29 September A lot happens in this entry, but there's not a lot of food. There are thirsty labourers, however. Maybe have a beer?

30 September Mina makes everyone a pot of tea. Also, we don't know what they have for dinner, but they eat it at 7pm, if you'd like to time your evening meal accordingly.

1 October More tea! Since this is being gulped down by a working man, make it builder's style - strong, sweet, lots of milk.

2 October Jonathan visits the Aërated Bread Company. He only has a cup of tea, but you could have whatever you like best from their menu:

(source)

3 October Dracula forces Mina to drink his blood like "a child forcing a kitten's nose into a saucer of milk". You could either have some more black pudding, or drink a glass of milk in solidarity with Mina.

15 October The Crew of Light aren't focusing much on meals any more, but they have travelled on the Orient Express. Here's the 1887 dining car menu.

(source - I can't vouch for the accuracy of a random person on Twitter but it looks plausible)

29 October No one is thinking of food in this bit of the novel (though Mina makes yet more tea), but as they're heading to Romania, have some sarmale. These stuffed cabbage rolls are the Romanian national dish.

31 October Mina and Van Helsing have "a huge basket of provisions". Have a picnic in their honour, if it's warm enough where you are.

1 November Mina and Van Helsing have "hot soup" into which the local cooks have put an extra amount of garlic. Consider having a truly extra amount of garlic with this 44-garlic-clove soup.

7 November The Crew of Light return to Transylvania. No details of food, but in honour of their journey, I would suggest a final round of chicken paprikash, to bring us back to where it all began.

[casspurrjoybell-33]

Wreckless - Double Date

*Warning Adult Content*

The next morning at work, Emmett Locke couldn't help but let his thoughts drift to Finnegan Walker. He almost called but worried he would just be interrupting and causing more stress. He considered a text but wasn't sure what to say. When he stood back up after picking up the wrench he had dropped yet again, he saw Tristan walking across the parking lot.

"Hey, Tristan."

"Hiya, Emmett. How are you?" he asked, handing him a hoagie which was thankfully really well wrapped.

Immediately wondered if anyone had brought Finnegan lunch.

"Thank you Tristan, this is very nice."

"No worries. If I was going to run around like a rent boy and pick up my man some lunch, I figured I might as well grab you something too. Is that a hunger gaze or is something going on with you? Oooh, is it the boyfriend? Let me deliver this and I'll be right back."

Emmett knew he wasn't going to get out of this conversation so he just nodded.

"Gotta wash."

On the way back he grabbed a bottle of water out of the vending machine. It was beautiful outside and he decided to go around to the side of the garage and sit on the bench. Not only would he get some fresh air but if you got really lucky, Tristan might forget about coming out here and questioning him. He didn't mind talking to Tristan, he actually really liked him but he just wasn't sure there were any answers yet. It took Tristan less than two minutes to find Emmett... that man was always outside if at all possible and the fact of the matter was that the garage wasn't all that big.

"Hey, how is it?"

He could only hope and pray that this sandwich shop would pass muster, Peter had been looking for a replacement for his favorite place back in Detroit for months now.

"Really good. Good bread and plenty of meat."

Tristan just wiggled his eyebrows and then smiled.

"Peter told me there's a boyfriend. What's his name?"

"Finnegan and I'm not sure we're exactly boyfriends, we're just... I don't know, dating a bit."

"Fine, no labels necessary. So tell me about Finnegan, is he cute and did you really wreck his car?"

Emmett couldn't help the look on his face.

"Actually, he wrecked his car and mine too. But yes, he's very cute."

"So what's with the sour face? When I got here you were staring out the window like your dog ran away."

Emmett wiped his mouth, wondering what to say.

"He's just having a rough time at work, Plus I need to plan a date for this weekend and I have no idea what to do with him. It's great when it's just the two of us, hanging out in our houses is fine but I tried to take him to the art museum last weekend and he didn't have a good time."

Emmett ran Finnegan's words through his head, remembering that he'd said he liked fun. But what did that mean exactly? Everyone's definition was different.

"Peter mentioned a double date at the bowling alley or is it too soon for that? Maybe you're still in the 'get to know you' phase and you don't want to share your time, which I totally get."

Tristan was more than curious to see the guy that had caught Emmett's eye but wouldn't blame him for keeping their dates private for now. The bowling alley certainly counted as fun to Emmett but was it something Finnegan would like? How was he supposed to know? Could he just text him the idea and see what he thought about it? It seemed easiest but it also felt a little bit like cheating. And if they did go, should it be a double date? On the one hand it took some of the pressure off of him and bowling and gaming was always more fun with more people but again, he just wasn't sure how Finnegan would feel about it.

"I'm going to text him and see what he thinks... I just don't know."

"I will leave you to it. We don't have Angie this weekend so any night works for us as far as I know."

He had school work to do but it wasn't hard to work around a date night.

"Oh, I looked at yelp and it says they have really good food?"

"Yeah, restaurant-worthy dinners and pub food too. Nice tables at the lanes and you get a waiter to bring you whatever you want, it's nice."

"Sounds good to me. See ya later, Emmett."

The wind picked up as he walked towards his car and he had to push a lock of hair behind his ear to keep it out of his face. It was down to his shoulders now and he loved it but he envied Emmett being able to pull his back into a ponytail. His sort of went into one but looked ridiculous, he needed a cut or a few more inches. Emmett glanced at his phone and decided he had enough time left on his lunch break to text Finnegan.

Emmett Locke: Hey Finnegan. I hope your day is going better and that you're getting some lunch today.

Would offering to order him something be crossing a line? He probably would have done it anyway if he'd known where to send it.

Emmett Locke: I wondered if you want to go bowling this weekend? Does that sound like fun? Some friends of mine want to meet you if you're up for a double date.

Emmett Locke: But I know work is crazy and if you want to just veg out or if you don't have time at all... that's okay too.

Emmett had to wait almost forty-five minutes for a reply but doing two oil changes helped pass the time.

Finnegan Walker: Hey Emmett. I'm busy but progress is happening, I think. I want to see you, definitely.

Finnegan Walker: Catered lunch for the staff today so there was plenty of food.

Finnegan Walker: A double date is tricky. I guess if they're cool it's fine. I've never been bowling as an adult and only once when I was a kid but it sounds like fun.

As soon as Finnegan sent the messages, he wondered what the hell had come over him. Maybe the solder fumes were getting to him. A double date? Him? He had to assume that Emmett's friends weren't crazy homophobes but he couldn't imagine it being anything other than awkward. And bowling? Well, he would just have to trust Emmett a little bit. He'd had more than a bit of a dry spell but if this is what one blowjob did to him, he was worried what he'd agree to after sex. At least it wasn't the opera.