#in fairness. the fucking long game here would be kind of funny

[tyrannuspitch]

okay let me tell you a few facts about this historical novel i'm reading.

inuit mythology is canonically Real

one of the first inuit myths we're told is one of sibling incest and rape

norse mythology is also canonically Real

the inuit pantheon has apparently been misunderstood in norse culture as the jotnar, and therefore, loki was born among the inuit pantheon

even though it's not in the myths, this writer has taken things a step in the marvel direction to say that loki was actually *raised* among the aesir, *by odin and frigg* (though it is not explicitly called as a father/son relationship)

a point is also made of loki's gender variance and bisexuality

the narrator is a third gender inuk who is compared to loki and is the unknowing subject of loki's favour

this narrator has a complicated family situation involving reincarnation and adoption by an aunt, meaning they were raised alongside a boy they call their brother, cousin, and nephew simultaneously

partly because this narrator's family was so incredibly isolated during their adolescence, there was nowhere to direct their hormones and they had an uncomfortable, unresolved mutual crush situation with their brother/cousin

the apparent endgame love interest for the narrator is a norseman formerly devoted to thor

this norseman is noted to look like thor (constantly talking about his red hair and beard, strength, rage, etc)

the narrator only spend time with and ultimately falls in love with this guy because he is useful in their quest to rescue their missing brother/cousin

the love interest spent the first few months of knowing the narrator calling them a nickname he also used for his dead younger brother

there was a weird sexual tension moment where the narrator thought they were onto something and then the love interest went "oh you remind me so much of my brother"

let me just reiterate that the main couple are loki-aligned and thor-aligned and one of them has overt canon incestous feelings and the writer made mythological thor and loki More Like Brothers On Purpose

so i hope you will understand me when i say that i am GENUINELY worried that at some point this book is going to reinvent incestuous th*rki from square one

[chouxsardine]

Hold Me (1)--- Jake Kiszka x reader

My fic for @seenoversundown 's Valentine's Day Writing Event! I choose the prompt: Play Truth or Dare

Summary: "hold me like you hold your Les Paul, have your way with me the way you play her.” || Your drunk slip-up leads to one of the best Valentine's Day gift you've ever got

Pairing: Jake Kiszka x reader

Word Count: 3547

Warnings (for this part): 18+! Minors DNI, sexual implications, cursing, alcohol, dom Jake/sub reader, guitar kink, bondage, scissors, inappropriate use of guitar strap, pickle slander

Author's note: Remember I said here about a series of improper guitar use fantasy? Well, here's another one! This idea has been circling in my mind for the longest time. Happy Valentine's Day, Enjoy!

🎧: Dirty Little Religion by Warren Zevon

“Come on, y/n, you have to play by the rules. That’s only fair.”

“Oh gosh, please don’t,” you groaned, banging your forehead on the table, regretting every possible decision you have made in the last two hours.

It was a Friday night, Jake and you were throwing your very own drinking party at home. It started out with some innocent cocktails but has somehow soon turned into chugging down straight tequila. To add to the fun, you proposed an impromptu and very informal round Truth or Dare, which, looking back now, was a very bad idea. Yes, your original intention was to fish out some funny anecdotes from Jake, but woe is you—how the tables have turned. Now, you were the one facing the difficult choice between spilling your dirtiest fantasy or drinking a shot of pickle juice.

That dare was definitely devilish, and Jake was setting it up for you to fail. He knew you absolutely can’t stand pickle juice, especially when it’s that bottom-of-the-jar “essence”— evilly green and murky with all the loosened pulp and seeds floating around. Simply one look at it made you sick.

“Pick your poison, darling,” Jake said, making no effort to hide his smirk.

You tentatively reached for the shot glass but immediately gave in as its smell reached your nose. Why trouble yourself? You’d be lying if you said there wasn’t an arousing tingle inside. Simply the way Jake said the word ‘fantasy’ sounds sexy. Talking about the chokehold this man has on you. It was clear that you were fighting a losing battle. To choose something so ghastly over a little spice in the uncharted territory is just straight-up stupid. Plus, you may or may not have had a bit too much to drink. You felt positive that one simple sip of that pickle juice would make you throw up before the alcohol does.

Sensing the silence, Jake’s demeanour changed. He was more than tipsy, yes, but not to the point that it stops him from being attentive to your feelings and reactions. It was a cute, hot little thing he came up with on the spur of the moment that he thought would be fun. It wasn’t meant to put you on the spot. To make you uncomfortable and ruining the moment is the last thing he wanted.

“Hey, it’s okay, you don’t have—”

“I’ve always—”

You opened your mouth simultaneously.

Jake took one look at you and shut up immediately. Your cheeks are flushed, your half-lidded eyes were fixed on him with a familiar look. Your left knee that was previously stretched out was now bent against your chest. Oh.

“Go on.” He whispered.

Fuck it.

“I’ve always felt jealous of your guitar, you know that? Especially when you are away on tour. The way you play it on stage, making all those girls scream for you…And that one time you fucking kissed it to make the vibration like that?” You let out a humourless laugh as your eyes narrowed, “it drives me mad.” The way you accentuate “mad” blurs its meaning, and it makes Jake wonder.

“Mad, huh? Which kind? Mad as in crazy, or mad as in angry?”

The drinking game long forgotten now that it has changed into your worship of Jake. You ignored his question completely as you continue. The words coming out much easier and at a faster pace.

“Or the way you slap it, the way you hold its neck and rock it,” all the images and videos you’ve seen are alive in your mind, overlaying with the sight of Jake right before your eyes, “the way you make her whine and scream.”

Jake’s heart skips a bit at the change of pronoun.

“Did you ever get hard while doing that?” You set down the glass on the table, got down on your hands and knees, crawling towards Jake until you were by his feet. “I bet you did. How can you not?” Jake beckoned and you straddled his lap in one swift motion, holding his face. Your eyes were glassy, your pupils dilated. “That’s when I get so jealous and….and insecure.” Jake frowned at that last word. He never thought of that.

“That’s when I wish I was there, waiting for you backstage. I want to kiss you and tell you how amazing you look up there because you deserve it,” with that, you studied Jake’s face intensely through your droopy eyes before defeatedly dropping your head onto his shoulder, your words muffled and slurred,“hell, you have no idea what I want to do to you.”

“I will if you tell me,” Jake tempted.

You pulled back, staring down at him. You caressed his cheek, your fanned breath tickling the loose strands of hair that frame his face. To Jake, you feel like a warm dessert soaked in bourbon; you looked…delicious. It was the same kind of primal desire that shares the same origin with hunger, the wild biological needs fuming. All your shame and self-consciousness unraveled by the alcohol, coming off like a corset with its ribbons pulled.

“I want you to tie me up with your guitar strap,” your eyes closed at how good it felt finally having those words freed from your mind, “I want you to hold me like you hold your Les Paul, have your way with me the way you play her.”

Jake’s jaw hung open. Damn, alcohol does makes people open up. He was not expecting you to say that and was also not expecting himself finding it so incredibly hot. Practically, whiskey dick, but mentally, he was so hard. Before he could come up with a decent response, your head dropped down again, this time with a heavier thud, and he could feel your breathing change.

“Y/n?”

No response.

He was so glad you finished that last sentence before passing out.

That was some weeks ago and you only had vague memories of the night. You knew that you must have spilled some crazy shit because since then, on several occasions, you have caught Jake staring at you. Well, it’s not like he can keep his eyes off you very often, but you can tell this is different. He would have his thumb and index fingers rubbing his chin, looking deep in thought as if composing a riff, except that his eyes are on you, and there is a predatory smugness that keeps you at your feet.

“For fucks sake, Jake. You’re doing it again! Why are you glaring at me like that?” You have tried fishing it out of him more than once.

“Secret” and a wry smile were the answers you got every time.

Luckily, he didn’t keep you waiting for too long; it was only a few days later when you finally get to find out about it.

Neither Jake nor you are the type of people who would go overboard on Valentine’s Day. In the past, it has always been a cute dinner date followed by a night that is both sweet and spicy. You could tell Jake is up to something this time. He’s been dropping subtle (or so he thought) hints throughout the day.

Evening was fast approaching. You opted for staying in and cooking. Jake made an amazing chicken piccata. (He even used heart-shaped pasta!) Dinner was quick and delicious, Warren Zevon’s record was playing in the background as you did the dishes. A pair of arms wraps around your waist as you turn off the faucet. Jake’s curls tickle your skin. He is humming to the song, and it takes you a second to realize that he was humming along with the record to the lyrics of Dirty Little Religion.

“I have a gift for you, sweetheart.”

You playfully rolled your eyes, as if his intentions couldn’t be clearer. But who says you aren’t equally (or perhaps more) excited?

“Oh love, you’ve been so good to me all day, how could I ask more from you?” You sound innocent, as if completely unaware of the implications.

“M’not asking. I’m offering. My good girl deserves all my loving.” Jake replies slyly.

Jake calling you good girl will always make you knees go weak. You turn around in his embrace and willingly accept his affectionate kiss on the lips before pulling open the dishwasher. ‘Fine. I’ll just finish up here real quick, okay?”

“Of course, and when you do, come downstairs and find me.”

You quirk your eyebrows. “Downstairs, huh?” It looks like he does has some ideas.

“And you better hurry up, sugar.” He gives you a teasing smack on the butt before turning on his heels.

Downstairs means his studio. Your steps are a bit wobbly as you reach the bottom of the stairs and your fingers shiver as they come into contact with the cool metal of the doorknob. Calm down, y/n, you could be getting all riled up over nothing; knowing that couldn’t be further from the truth, your attempt to calm down sounds pathetic. Throughout your relationship with Jake, the last thing this man ever did was disappoint. And if your nose serves you right, you detect a faint smell of magnolia in the air—the scent that was only reserved for certain occasions. God, what has Jake been planning?

On a second thought, you retrieve your hand from the doorknob, choosing to gently knock three times. A gut feeling tells me that the man of the other side of the door would prefer some manners tonight.

“Come in.”

You push the door open. The room is warm and well-lit, looking the same as usual. Jake is sitting in his Corbusier-style leather chair in the corner, fingers steepling together.

“Hmmmm, a girl with courtesy I see. Very well.” Jake commends.

Bingo. You smile coyly. Your praise kink almost made you curtsy to him.

“Already so good, perhaps I have to find something else to reward you with on top of your gift,” Jake says thoughtfully as he approaches you and pulls you in for a kiss, “but first, my princess deserves to live out her fantasy.”

Fantasy? The way Jake says it gives the word a familiar twang that triggers something in your brain. Your mind is racing as it flips through memories from the past few weeks. Looking around you, most of Jake’s guitars are hanging on the wall instead of resting on the stand. A rather odd thing for him to do. And every guitar on the wall has the strap attached, hanging below them and casting snake-like shadows on the wall.

Then it kicks in. Memories of that Truth or Dare night rushes back to you. Your drunken words replay themselves in your mind, clear and loud: “I want you to tie me up with your guitar strap.”

“Oh, Jake, you didn’t—” Your hands fly up to cover your face in embarrassment.

“Oh, but I do,” Jake laughs, taking your hands in his and thumbing them in soothing circles, “no need to be shy, love. There’s nothing shameful about having desires; it’s a very human thing to do.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely. I’m so happy that you feel comfortable enough to share it with me,” Jake smile reassuringly, “and I find it hot beyond words.”

Your eyes shot up at him upon hearing it, and Jake’s gaze tells you that he is being honest. Seeing that you’ve relaxed, Jake leads you to stand right in front of his guitar display, his hands resting steadily on your shoulders.

“I’ll let you take your pick, doll. Whichever one that has the honour to have caught your eyes.”

You take a deep breath, feeling like a child in a candy store. This is not the time to get overwhelmed. Your eyes first travel greedily between the guitars, linger over their smooth curves, then you divert to the straps. Jake’s signature ’61 Les Paul SG is standing tall and proud in the middle, paired with the most often seen thin leather strap in back. Moving further right is his SG Classic with the Pinegrove brown padded strap from earlier days, and there’s the black one with the broader shoulder pad which was once used to hold a double-neck but now used on his Coodercaster. You picture them laying over Jake’s shoulder, the way they strain and slacken with his movement, the umbilical cord between his body and his creation. You also imagine the what they would look and feel when wrapped around your waist. The slightly nervous you is inching towards the brown strap—it looks so comforting with its suede texture and its wrinkled surface, and its also wider, therefore leaning towards a cuff rather than a rope when tied; however, the bolder voice obviously prefers the black one—classy, timeless, direct and succinct like a command. It’s thinner, so it might cut into your skin if you are squirming too much (which you definitely will), but isn’t that what you are after? Isn’t that the gist—pleasure mixed with pain?

Jake is being unexpectedly patient, giving you all the time you need to take it in as he resumes his previous position in the chair, admiring your predicament from afar.

“I want that one.” You blurt out finally, pointing at his black strap.

The look on Jake’s face made you suspect that he has known what you’d choose all along.

“Nice choice.” Jake comments, stepping forward to remove the strap from the guitar. You know it’s most likely in your head, but the strap looks different the second that it was detached from the instrument; now wrapped around Jake’s palm, it looks more powerful, it looks like it is determined to serve its intended purpose well for tonight.

“Now go upstairs.”

This time, the command is brusque.

Oh, so the studio is not the final destination. You feel like being on a scavenger’s hunt, following all the clues and getting more snd more excited and impatient by the second. You can’t tell if you are disappointed or relieved that you are not doing…well, whatever Jake intends to do with you…in his studio.

You hands are already touching the door when you heard him again:

“While you are up there, princess, do yourself a favour and strip down to your bra and panties.”

You gasp, but chose not to turn around.

“Yes,” you murmur just loudly enough for him to hear you, “Sir.”

Upstair in your shared bedroom, you do not know how to position your body. You are naked except for your underwear, but the room still seems too hot. You tried laying in bed in a sultry pose—too pretentious, for fuck’s sake, you’ re not shooting porn. You sat down but you kept hugging your knees to yourself—you don’t want Jake to mistake that as reluctance. You are just a bit jittery. God knows how long you’ve been fantasizing this. You tried sitting on the ottoman, but the leather kept sticking to your bum, and it wouldn’t take long before you start sweating and leaving a shame-filled imprint on the seat. You’ve always wanted this, and it’s Jake, there’s nothing to be nervous about, just do what feels best.

Alright, alright.

Following the voice in your heart, you find yourself dropping down to your knees, kneeling on the plush beige rug by the bed. You have your back against the bedroom door. You know it would be impossible for you not to look at Jake’s reaction the moment he see you in this pose, but you are also not sure if you are ready to take that reaction. To you, for now, kneeling feels the most right. For you and Jake, the dom/sub thing in bed is never explicit. Sure, he enjoys you calling him Daddy from time to time and you definitely have got him all whiny and teary for more than once, but this would be the first time that you will be trying restraints. You guess you have always had this fantasy—there’s just something about Jake and his guitar that makes your knees buckle. You are secretly thankful for your drunk slip-up, because you are not sure if you will have the courage to stare into his eyes and say those words sober, even though you know that Jake would never judge you.

The sound of the door opening interrupts your thought. The room is so quiet that you can hear a pin drop, and you are holding your breath. Therefore, even without looking, you are positive that Jake hitches his breath when he sees you. You regret a little for facing away from him. Now you want to see his expression.

“Don’t move.” As if reading your mind, Jake orders. You straighten your back. Jake approaches until he is standing right behind you.

“What a good girl.”

Something touches you. You quickly realize Jake is using the bended strap to trace random patterns on your back. You feel the looped end of the strap at your cervical spine before it circles around your scapula, from where it travels down along your spine all the way to your hipbone, dipping a little into the elastic band of your panties. Jake watches the involuntary contraction of your muscles as they react to the touch, feeling satisfied as he sees the fine hairs on the back of your neck slightly perk up.

You just breathed a sigh of relief when you feel the smooth leather again, this time reaching in front and tracing your clavicle. It stops at the little indentation between the bones, right beneath your throat and inches upwards to your chin, tilt it upward, then finding leverage on the left side of your jaw, Using it to turn your head back.

You run straightforward into Jake’s eyes, which are now the colour of melted chocolate. The dark, mesmerizing, 80% cocoa type.

Your pouty lips and puppy eyes are silently begging him for a kiss. Jake indulges, catching your bottom lip between his teeth slightly as his pulls away.

“Already tasting so sweet, angel.”

Aside from the praise, the tenderness in his tone is unvarnished. This is the voice he uses whenever he checks up on you. This is a sign that you are about to have the talk—the sweet conversation with a fraction of awkwardness before you two try out anything new that gives consent and sets up rules and boundaries.

“I…I really want this.” You pre-empt.

“That’s good to hear,” Jake chuckles. Now he has came around, sitting face to face with you. What looks like a wash bag laying beside his knees. What? He has gone and got a bag for this? You wonder what the hell he has got in there.

“I know it’s been a minute, but do you still remember our safe word?”

“Yes. It’s ‘soundcheck’.” You answer, peeling your eyes away from the bag. The safe word was something you two has settled early on in your relationship. Neither of you has been in a position that requires the use of it, but the simple fact that such a word exists and you are comfortable using it when the situations calls for is reassurance for both sides.

“Good. Use it if you need to. Since we are trying something new today, I suggest we add on to it a bit more,” Jake holds your gaze steadily as you nod, “we are going with colours. Green means all good and continue; yellow means pause, say it if you feel like it’s too much, we will take a break, check in, work things out, and you decide if you want to keep going; red is the big ‘no-no’, say it and everything, I mean everything, stops immediately, no question asked. Copy?”

“Yes, green to go, yellow to pause, and red to stop.” You repeat it back, knowing Jake always requires a clear response at this point. This is starting to sound like those naughty romance novels, although you have a secret feeling that what you’re about to experience is going to be so much better.

“Clever girl,” Jake unzips the bag and takes out a pair of scissors, showing them to you, “these are safety shears. I feel like they’re necessary if I am tying you up today. They are medical grade and they cut through everything. Whatever the reason you need out of the restraints, they get you the quick release. ”

He places the scissors in your hands. You hold on to it, finding its curved blade and matte handle consoling. “Now listen up, if it comes to that,” Jake speaks slowly, his index finger tapping your naked skin with each accentuated word, “I will cut the strap. I don’t care how long I’ve had it or how much it costs. They are nothing compared to your safety. Do you hear me, love?”

“Yes. Yes, I understand.” You heart melts at how serious he is taking this. You knew he must’ve done his research. The colour system and all. “Thank you, Jake.”

“No need to thank me for keeping you safe, doll,” Jake squeezes your hand gently, “now, are we ready?”

Part 2 out now

Yeah! you made it! Thank you SO MUCH for reading :))

any comments and feedbacks are greatly welcomed and deeply appreciated. I've never done a taglist before....does anyone want to be tagged for part 2?

my other works: Permission to Fall | Mariner's Complex | Ticked (all my boxes) | Love is a four-legged word | The Lucky Ones | Coming back to me | Warm Honey | He Would

[vashsmunch]

I'll be here.

Vash x GN! Reader

Synopsis: you're spiralling, and someone comes to help

Warnings: mentions of self-destructive thoughts, allude to suicidal ideations

A/N: third one i've made of these self-indulgent comfort shit LMAO, but don't judge me.

─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───  

Suffocating. Stifling. Drowning. 

Your hand flexed, fingers curling in on themselves to try and distract from the feeling of your chest concaving. 

In and out. In and out. 

Rhymathtically and almost robotically, in hopes that it would quell the darkness approaching you. Everything it touched withered away like death itself had grazed them with its bony claws. It was terrifying, at least it should've been. You couldn't help but feel like, at this moment, "death" wouldn't be so bad after all. A graceful ending to the turbulent turmoil that was the hell you were living in. Even purgatory would've been more desirable. 

God, it hurt. It was the type of pain that settled deep into the crevices of your soul, the kind that lay in wait for the day you just gave up. It's a quiet predator, one that doesn't care how long it takes. Patient, deadly, and counting the seconds until your eventual demise. You couldn't even find it in yourself to give a single fuck. 

There comes a point where the pain, the agony, just becomes routine. It becomes as regular as waking up to scroll on your phone, as simple as brushing your teeth. It doesn't hurt as badly as it did before, but you can't help but feel that you'll die with it clutching on for dear life. Maybe you deserved this. Things like this only happen to bad people, right? What are you, if not the most horrible person to ever exist, if this is the kind of pain you were experiencing? 

"Hey... Hello?"

Suddenly, you couldn't breathe. The darkness was closing in, and it was draining every single breath of air out of your lungs. Tears started to build up in your eyes and stream down your cheeks as you shook in fear. It wasn't fair. You were just trying your best. Why does this happen? Why does this always happen? Was your best not good enough? How much longer would you be forced to cycle through this barbaric game the universe decided to play with you?

"Look at me... Please look at me."

You shut your eyes and let out quiet sobs as you felt a shadow overtake your body. It was getting tougher for you to tell what was real, and you couldn't even feel the sharp sting of pain from digging your nails into the flesh of your palm. 

Someone... please. Save me. I can't... I can't keep doing this. It hurts. This hurts.

PLEASE. SOMEONE PLEASE.

A calloused hand wraps around yours, squeezing gently. An instant burst of heat radiates throughout your arm, warming every cold crack that had been seared into the skin.

"Hey."

You look up to see cerulean irises boring into yours, accompanied by a tense expression on the person's face. 

Vash.

The two of you stared at each other as the salty streams continued to pour down your face. You couldn't be bothered to wipe them, to hell with your decency. It was funny, though, with him, you never felt the need to be anything more. Maybe that was a bit selfish because, with you, he was nothing short of perfect. A bumbling idiot who always did his best to comfort you even when his own demons were clawing at his back. But who was the idiot now? The one who said nothing as he took you into his arms, or the one who clutched at his jacket, crying until there was nothing left? You felt him rub your back as he whispered into your ear, and you couldn't even decipher the words. It just felt so good. 

There weren't any words exchanged for a while; whether it was minutes or hours, you couldn't tell. Vash silently picked you up to cradle you in his lap, nuzzling his head into your neck. Slowly, the darkness started to fade away and unsink its claws from the flesh of your shaking body. He seemed to get impossibly closer as you melted into his touch, just craving some feeling of stability. How you wished you could have this all the time, just this comfortable silence. 

"I love you."

You didn't flinch, and one would think you hadn't heard him if it weren't for the way you held him tighter. Because with him, it was never too much or too over the top. Everything always felt right, and that's something you'd treasure for as long as you could. It was Vash the Stampede, after all.

"I love you too."

[meanbossart]

Massive ask compilation time OH LORD

YES, her journals are a fun read. I somewhat wish there was more to her and The Dark Urge's interactions, too - she's wonderfully evil and clearly very attached to you if you're playing as that character, but I had hoped there was more of a reason for her obsession besides just "you were fun to cut up", haha. I remember reading her journal over a couple of times looking for something I might have missed.

His reaction was pretty in line with the Narrator's cues, just immediate rage over what she had done to him - DU Drow may be a masochist but that's reserved for people he cares about! So, her and her posse met a swift end. Also, despite the fact that the whole tadpole thing turned out being for the best, I think he's easily overtaken by resentment over his lost glory-days whenever faced with it so directly (he misses living in obliviousness) - not to mention his profound fear of vulnerability, and of feeling... Small. The way Kressa spoke to and of him would have absolutely shook him to his core, especially by doing so in front of the others.

[MORE UNDER CUT]

THANK YOU so much for your kind words first of all! As for the question, it depends a bit on the timeline; his dislike of female drow, especially at the start of his tadpole'd journey is pretty irrational and faith status wouldn't be of too much relevance, he just thinks It's in their nature to want to put him down and be conniving, and wants nothing to do with them.

Later, and especially post-game, he might at least give them a chance to prove they aren't "like other drow", though it would take him a lot to ever let his guard down entirely - UNLESS you seem like a complete fool LOL he's actually easy to trick into dismissing you as long as you don't mind playing the role of a dumb idiot.

But if not, he'd have an extremely short patience for any attempts to exert authority over him or his actions - or jokes at his expense, or any level of smugness or secrecy. Nymea would definitely feel kept at arms length because of the gender+race combo alone and have to put up with a lot of snideness. Basically, she'd have to treat this 6'4" feet tall freak with kids gloves to ever develop a rapport LOL

But also... The vampirism may "help"? He'd consider her a "lesser drow" for it. In that regard her attitudes toward Astarion would probably come to be relevant. I'm not sure about that aspect of it to be honest!

First of all, this is a hysterical scenario because he Would just fucking put the ring on without thinking about it LOL so thank you for the laugh that mental image just provided me with.

Oh he wouldn't care though. I mean, he dislikes drow in general, but he is a drow (up for debate, but you know, generally speaking) and he thinks he's pretty great. As long as he's still huge and strong he could wake up a woman tomorrow and not give a damn. And, frankly, his dick could turn into a pussy at any point in time and it wouldn't change anything about his character save for having to add a recurring UTI problem to his character sheet - he'd probably have fun with it.

TOTALLY FAIR, I'm very sorry it went past the point of enjoyment for you, but I'm glad you knew when to put it down!!! We're in our hand-holding and elf-smooching era now with the occasional visceral description of violence LOL SO YOU'RE WELCOME IN IF YOU'D LIKE. Thank you for dropping by!

Just putting this here because - I actually haven't decided yet, so that's pretty funny you asked LOL I'm leaning eyes closed though, nothing like a smooch to calm the big weirdo down.

HAHAHAH WELCOME BACK, I've been around this whole time! But I was hanging out on twitter for the most part. HOPE YOU'RE INTO THE DND STUFF LOL

DROW DURGES RISE UP I'll be honest with you friend, DU drow's lore has been as accidental as something like that can be, so much of it has felt completely organic in the way it came up - I guess that's what good RPG does to your brain. The rest of it has just been a wonderful opportunity to develop my writing that I decided to take full advantage of this year. Thank you so much for the lovely message!

---

Aaaaand I can barely muster something to say that feels like an appropriate response, but again I wanted to acknowledge all the sweet compliments people take the time to leave in my inbox. Some of you guys' comments about the things I create blow me away, I think I'm pretty confident in my art but... Damn, makes me so happy to know the stuff I create can hold a little special place to some folks. Thank you all so, so much for taking time out of your day to spread a little kindness around, and make mine a little better.

Again, thank you all for humoring me, have a lovely day folks!

[bnhaficsforthesoul]

oh god it has been so freaking long since I did a request here lol but I'll do one because well the requests are open heheheh~ could u pls do sfw and nsfw headcannons for how being in a relationship with the bakusquad (poly ofc cuz i'm a sucker for those babies) would be like??

this relationship started as you had been a part of the bakusquad from the beginning, all of you were very close

but during sleepovers and such you all started to notice just how much cuddling and touching you were all comfortable with

lots of you even sleeping in the same bed together, completely tangled together

a few of you probably even 'platonically' kissed or made out

eventually a couple of you who were brave enough, probably being Kiri, you, and Denki, were able to have a conversation about possibly liking everyone in the group

you decided to bring it up to everyone else, who had no complaints. even bakugou didn't fight it too much

and so suddenly you were all officially dating, spending your last year of high school as a poly group, but you probably kept it lowkey for a while

because you guys didn't know how people would react to ALL OF YOU dating each other, it might seem weird

(even though all your classmates could sense something weird)

from the beginning you guys tried to figure out how to keep this as fair as possible so no one felt left out - talking about making sure everyone had 1 on 1 time with each other, as well as group time together. and doing anything you can to prevent jealousy

it was kind of awkward at first too, because you were all such great friends that it felt weird to try and be coupley, but you all soon found a way to do so

Katsuki gets kind of embarrassed when a part of the group, especially if everyone specifically goes after him to coddle. he does love all of you, and he more so shows this through acts of service or one on one time. Again, he loves you all, but he's better at expressing this 1 on 1

he loves cooking for everyone, or helping you all train, things like that

eijirou is kind of overwhelmed by having all these people who love him so much but he adores it. he's great for when you all hang out together because he's trying to give everyone attention. you'll probably be holding his hand and look over to find him kissing katsuki while also holding minas hand, it's kind of funny

denki and Mina are very excited about everything constantly, they love giving and receiving affection from everyone. they always wanna spend time with everyone. they're both very cute and among the less shy about showing off your relationship

sero also tries to act casual about it and easily gets embarrassed by all the affection from everyone. he tends to prefer one on one time or smaller groups when he's being more romantic

overall it really is just having super caring best friends that you touch inappropriately sometimes

nsfw

you guys definitely waited a good while before becoming fully sexually active with each other

mainly because you all weren't entirely sure how to make it a fair thing for everyone to start off with, and wanted everyone to be equally ready to do it. because honestly you would all most likely be taking each other's virginity

whenever it was clear you guys were ready to, you probably just like had some random chooser or whatever to figure out who would be who's first, that way there was an even amount of none of us know what were doing, and it didn't seem unfair through purposeful choosing

you ended up with denki, eijirou with katsuki, and sero with Mina

it was very comfortable, not super serious and you two probably giggled and joked around as you figured everything out, but it was a good first time. and everyone seemed to agree on their parts

after this, it was kind of free game. Just normal 'fuck when you wanna fuck'. for a while everyone (especially kiri and denki) went kinda on a sex rampage wanting to get to experience everyone fully

for a while it was mainly just duo or maybe threesomes, definitely some like orgy type situations where you're all fucking in the same room just separately, but you guys had to figure out how to approach doing smth with everyone

you probably tried those like train type positions where anyone who has a dick is in someone under them while someone is in their ass, and if you're afab you and Mina would take turns with a strap or maybe both use it sometimes

it takes a lot of experimenting to find comfortable positions and ways to go about it but you're all pretty dedicated to figure it out

but in general, expect TONS of head or like hand action because it's a lot easier to give attention to multiple people that way

[farfaras]

Steddie week. Day 3: First kiss. 1.4k words. Ao3 link.

@steddie-week

~

Yeah, they’re absolutely, 100 percent, morons. Like, who even is this stupid? Steve thinks that ever since facing off an evil wizard with interdimensional powers, they do not have a sense of preservation or survival when it comes to actual normal human beings.

They just wanted to have dinner! Honestly Eddie hasn’t had much trouble with people, the story that was put out made him look like a hero (which Steve is glad for, because he is) and the town believed it like they’ve believed everything since 1983.

But these fucking jocks will not leave Eddie alone. Steve is tired of this, he can’t even imagine the exhaustion that Eddie feels.

When they approached them Steve knew that it was going to be a little bit harder to get out of than the other times. There were 5 of them, and just Steve and Eddie. When it’s just one or two, Steve can usually just scare them off with a glare and a name drop.

And Eddie.

He’s an idiot.

An idiot!

Since the whole thing he pulled in the upside down, they’ve had talks. About how he’s not a coward. He’s brave and he doesn’t need to prove anything. Sometimes running is okay. Sometimes running is the only option.

But he still has trouble believing it sometimes.

Steve is patient and understanding. Robin has said many times how people have a process.

He just wishes Eddie didn’t have to live his process right at moments like these!

He loves Eddie (wait, hold on, what?), but he can be somewhat impulsive and unpredictable. Steve was hoping that while he was defusing and excusing themselves, Eddie would follow his lead. Well, wrong.

He doesn’t even know what happened! One moment he was talking and the next they’re running away from some soda splashed jocks. Oh come on, Eddie.

Robin sometimes jokes about him and Eddie being the kids’ co-parents. The kids find it funny, for some reason. Dustin calls them both dad and Mike likes to call Steve mom as if that would bother him.

But right now, Eddie doesn’t feel like a co-parent as much as he feels like another goddamn kid. Always the babysitter.

So now, they’re running from 5 guys who are pissed. And sticky.

“Why the hell did you do that?!” Steve is almost hysterical.

“I panicked! They’re so many!” Eddie is panting, and he doesn’t know how much more he’s gonna be able to keep running.

“So throwing drinks at them was your solution?!” Steve is talking a big game, but in an alternative universe, he’s probably the one who threw the drinks.

“Better than what you were doing!” Eddie argues.

“I was doing just fine!” He was! Steve was gonna get them out of there. Unscathed. He had to. That’s what he’s for.

“Words weren’t gonna stop ‘em.” True, but at least they could’ve walked out or ran, before they were pissed.

“Well I hardly see anything that could stop them now!” They take a turn so they have some time to think of something while the jocks catch up. But like Steve said there’s nothing that can help them here.

There’s some stores. And an alley in the middle of a clothing and a pet store. Eddie grabs his hand and guides them towards the clothing store. “Come on, follow my lead.”

There’s some mannequins in front of the store, Eddie takes a long dark coat off the mannequin. “What are you doing?” Steve asks.

“Shh.” Eddie just shushes him. He shushes him! What is he on?

“Wha- don’t you shush me!” He whisper yells with not a very convincing anger in his voice.

“Stop asking questions and just do what I say!” Eddie requests. Which is kind of a lot to ask considering he’s the one who worsened the situation. “I got us into this and I’ll get us out.” Huh. Steve thinks that’s fair, but he’s still hesitant.

“But I don’t know what we’re doing.” Steve doesn’t like that.

“Me neither. But it’s better than nothing.” Steve thinks Eddie kinda lives by that philosophy. Does he have that one on that doctrine he came up with?

What’s the difference between philosophy and doctrine? Huh. Wait, no sidetracking. Steve, focus! You’re both in danger.

Eddie puts the coat on, it’s so long it covers most of his legs. He also grabs the beanie and jacket that were on the other mannequin and puts it on Steve. “What’s this even gonna do?”

“I told you to stop asking questions!” Eddie’s eyes look wild.

“Sorry.” Steve’s sure Eddie is scared right now, but he does a good job of hiding it.

Eddie takes his hand and they run to the alley. Who has a dead end. Shit. They hear the voices turning the corner. Fuck, they’re gonna come across the alley anytime now.

Eddie turns to him and backs him into a corner. “Kiss me.”

Well. Steve couldn’t have heard that right. He shakes his head. “What?”

Eddie turns his back on the entrance of the alley. It’s kinda dark and they’re all the way to the back. “Now! They’re coming!” Eddie demands.

Eddie doesn’t give him much time to answer or even come up with something to say. Suddenly there are lips pressed to his. Eddie swallows any sound of surprise he might’ve been about to make. Eddie’s hands are on his chest and Steve finds himself putting his hands on Eddie’s waist and pulling him closer, as if he’s acting on instinct. There’s footsteps, voices, they seem to stop in front of the entrance. Steve doesn’t exactly know what they’re doing because he’s closed his eyes. They mutter something, god knows what, and then they go on their way. Looking for them somewhere else.

However, they don’t stop kissing when they’re gone. In fact, Steve hugs Eddie’s waist now, pulling them chest to chest while Eddie’s hands move to his face. They pull apart just to catch a single breath before going back in. Huh, now they’re just making out. Steve can call it what it is. He doesn’t know what Eddie is doing with his tongue, but he’s not complaining at all.

“I- um.” Eddie tries to step back but his embrace is strong. “My long hair.”

“Your…?” Steve’s brain isn’t computing much right now.

“From their point of view, it-“ Eddie inhales deeply. “It probably looked like a girl and a guy kissing.” Oh. Oh, Steve is so stupid. “Plus this coat almost looks like a dress.”

“Yeah, no, that’s- you-“ God, can he not even form sentences anymore? “Good thinking.” If he could, Steve would facepalm right now.

“They’re gone now.” Eddie nods.

“They sure are.” Steve confirms. Doesn’t really know what else to do.

Eddie looks around, and then directly at his eyes. That’s intense. “You can let me go now.”

He can let him go now. Eddie’s hands have moved to his shoulders, probably not knowing where else to put them.

He could let him go, now. They could go back to their respective places. And move on like this was another normal day for them.

He could do that.

Or.

Or he could confront this. Confront this thing that’s been going on between them for, in Steve’s humble opinion, far too long. He was scared before. He still is, but it doesn’t feel like something he can’t conquer, now. So he makes the decision. He’s not running away from this anymore. Even if sometimes that’s all you can do, that’s not the case here. He could be doing so much more. They could be doing so much more.

“No.” Steve says. And it’s said with finality.

Eddie looks confused. “What? What do you mean?”

“I won’t let you go.” He shrugs. They’re still holding on to each other. “I like you too much for that.”

“What are you saying?”

“Exactly what you heard. I like you.” He leans in. He waits for Eddie to back off, show any type of discomfort or rejection on his face. But there’s nothing like that. “Can I kiss you again?”

A gasp comes out. Eddie nods. “Yes.” It’s whispered and if they weren’t so close he might’ve never heard it.

This one is more gentle. Slow and soft. Almost lazy, like they don’t need to rush because they know they’re gonna get to this again. And again.

“I like you too.” Eddie rests his forehead to his.

Steve smiles at him, and when Eddie smiles back he knows. He knows that he’s gonna fall so hard. He kinda already has.

[tooneys-russo]

You Decided For Us

Plot: Riley and Alessia have a messy history. Now that Alessia is back in the UK can they work out their issues?

Previous Parts: Chapter 1, Chapter 2

Chapter 3

As Christmas got closer Riley and Hayley got closer too, they weren’t official by any stretch of the imagination but they were having fun together. Hayley headed back to Australia over Christmas, promising to come back just after New Years, they were facetiming most days just catching up. Riley loved having someone who cared about her and wanted her to be happy as well as making her feel special. Riley headed down to the local field and saw Alessia there, she stopped and contemplated leaving just to avoid having to speak to the blonde. “I can feel you staring. The field is big enough for both of us I think.” Alessia called out as she lined up another ball in front of goal. “Oh, thanks Alessia.” Riley set up some running drills at the other end of the field. Alessia tried her best not to glance over at the girl, both of them in their team kits, she had to admit Riley looked phenomenal in her Arsenal training kit. Alessia did a few laps so she would be able to get as close to Riley as she could without it being obvious. Riley kept looking at Alessia as she ran laps with the ball at her feet. 

Alessia stopped running close to Riley, their eyes locked as Alessia began to walk over. “You going to kill me if we talk?” Riley shook her head. “No. Wanting to kill you has already cost me a game. I made a voodoo doll instead.” Alessia laughed softly and Riley smiled. “I wondered why my chest hurt so much, you must be putting pins in it.” Riley rolled her eyes. “Usually I just aim for your legs. They piss me off the most.” Alessia looked at her confused. “Alessia you are a striker, unless you are on my team I don’t want those long legs scoring goals.” Alessia nodded in realisation. “That is fair enough then. How have you been? Saw you and Raso are getting close, not really your usual type is she?” Alessia played with the ball at her feet. “Not my type? What is my type Alessia?” The blonde shrugged. “Usually blonde hair, blue eyes, around 5 foot 9 inches and someone your age.” Riley laughed. “You think she’s too old for me? She is kind and funny, she makes me happy, Alessia and that is my type.” Riley sighed. “Alessia, we were having a good conversation.” Alessia clenched her jaw. “I saw you at Winter Wonderland. I saw you with her and I can’t just stand here and pretend I am happy for you. I don’t want anyone else being with you.” Riley grabbed her ball. “Alessia, I can't do this again.” 

She began walking to her car and Alessia followed her, Riley leant up against her car and Alessia stood close to her looking into her eyes. “Tell me. Tell me you don’t want me. That you don’t feel anything for me and I will leave you alone. Tell me that you don’t think about us.” Alessia put her hands on either side of Riley’s head, the brunette looked up at the blonde. “Alessia…I…” Alessia leant in and kissed Riley deeply, Riley kissed back and grabbed onto the front of Alessia’s training shirt. Alessia put her hands on Riley’s hips as she deepened the kiss, Riley moaned against her mouth then pushed her back. “Fuck.” She said breathlessly. “Alessia, I am seeing Hayley.” Alessia clenched her jaw. “But…” Riley had tears in her eyes as she kissed Alessia’s cheek and began to walk away. Alessia grabbed Riley and pressed her against the car again. “You aren’t official yet. I know that for certain.” Riley gripped onto Alessia’s shirt again and sighed. “You asked Lotte.” Alessia nodded and kissed Riley again, the brunette kissed back and wrapped her arms around Alessia’s neck. The striker’s hands slid up the back of Riley’s shirt feeling her hot skin. Riley knew what she was doing was wrong but it felt phenomenal, having Alessia against her body and her hands raking across her skin it was overwhelming. Alessia moved her mouth to Riley’s neck making the shorter girl moan out and press herself more against Alessia. “Oh god Less.” The nickname rolled off Riley’s tongue made Alessia’s knees weak, she hadn’t heard that name from Riley’s mouth since they were together. Riley pushed Alessia away gently. “Did I do something wrong?” Alessia looked so vulnerable at that moment. Riley grabbed Alessia’s hand. “You were good, great. I just can’t do this to Hayley.” Alessia played with Riley’s fingers. “Then dump her.” She mumbled and Riley leant her head back against her car. “Can we just be friends? I want to try this with Hayley.” Alessia dropped Riley’s hand and nodded. “Yeah fine. Have fun with her, I am not backing off though. Also our families are doing Christmas together, which means we have to play happy families. I will be sitting next to you and again I will not be giving up.” Alessia looked at Riley’s lips and the shorter girl drew in a breath making Alessia smirk. “See you in a couple days Riley.” Alessia got close to kissing Riley again, the midfielder swallowing hard waiting for the familiar lips but nothing came. She groaned as Alessia pulled away, she got into her car and tried to catch her breath. 

Riley got to her family’s home on Christmas Eve nice and early to prepare herself. Alessia wore a smirk the whole drive to Riley’s family home, she was meeting her parents there as she wanted to get there a little early. She knocked on the door and Michelle, Riley’s mother, opened the door. “Oh my goodness Alessia Russo! Look at you!” Alessia Michelle tightly and handed her flowers and wine. “Hi Mrs. Griffin it is so good to see you.” She handed the wine and flowers to Michelle. “Please call me Michelle, Riley is upstairs in her old room, you know where it is.” Alessia smiled and headed upstairs to the second door on the right.

She opened the door and saw the brunette laying back on her bed looking through her phone. “You aren’t a very good host, you didn’t seem to welcome your guest.” Riley sat up to the familiar voice and locked eyes with Alessia. “You’re in my room.” She got up quickly and stood by her bed awkwardly. “Great observation Riley. You have a chat with your little girlfriend for Christmas Eve?” Alessia began to step closer to Riley. “She isn’t my girlfriend…yet.” Alessia sighed and put her hands on Riley’s hips. “Why isn’t she locking you down yet? I know if I was her we would be very exclusive, no questions about what we were.” Riley looked up at the blue eyes she missed so much. Alessia dipped her head and kissed Riley, the brunette kissed her back deeply, wrapping her arms around her neck. Alessia lifted Riley up and laid her down on her bed easily, their tongues connecting in a familiar and welcoming kiss. Alessia pressed her body on top of Riley, her mouth attaching to the brunette’s neck making her moan out. “Oh Alessia fuck.” Her hips bucked needing more of the blonde striker, Alessia moved her leg, pressing her thigh against Riley’s covered centre. Riley dug her nails into Alessia’s back making the striker moan and connect their lips again. 

The two pulled away and looked into each other’s eyes, Alessia silently asking for permission to go further. Riley took off her button up shirt and threw it on the floor, Alessia mirrored her actions taking off her leather jacket and tank top. Alessia ran her fingers down Riley’s chest down to her pants, Riley bit her lip and looked up at Alessia. “Can’t get you too naked princess, cause we might get caught.” Riley nodded and pulled Alessia back down on top of her. She felt like she was 17 again with Alessia’s familiar perfume lingering in the air and moans filling her room. The two were so caught up in themselves they didn’t hear the door open. “Hey Riley mum told me-holy fuck!” Riley pushed the blonde off her, Alessia landing on the ground. Riley’s brother Thomas rushed out of the door and slammed the door. Alessia looked up at Riley who covered her face. “Shit.” Alessia stood up and grabbed her shirt. “Well that was certainly not expected.” Riley threw a pillow at Alessia who had a small smirk. “Glad to know that you are strong enough to toss me off you.” She leant over and kissed Riley deeply as she handed her the discarded shirt. 

The two got dressed and headed downstairs, the Russos were downstairs, Giorgio, Luca and Riley’s brother Thomas all had knowing smirks on their lips. “You two have fun catching up?” Giorgio asked and Alessia smirked. “Yeah, just like old times.” Riley was bright red at the comments.

They all sat down and began catching up, Alessia put her hand on Riley’s thigh moving it up and down slowly. Riley struggled to stay engaged with the conversation under Alessia’s touch. The parents went into the living room putting on some carols and catching up. Alessia pulled Riley into the hallway getting looks from their brothers. Alessia kissed Riley deeply and Riley pushed her back. “Less, you are really risking us getting caught.” Alessia grabbed Riley’s hips. “Baby come on, we won’t get caught again. I will be careful.” Riley rolled her eyes and pulled Alessia close and kissed her deeply. “Do you think I could maybe sleep over?” Alessia looked into Riley’s eyes. “You know exactly what will happen if you stay over.” Riley sighed and tugged at Alessia’s shirt. “Yeah I know, I can try to keep my hands to myself. I just want to catch up tonight, show you that I want this.” Alessia put her forehead against Riley’s. “I want you Riley Griffin.” Riley sighed and pecked Alessia’s lips. “I just need to think about it all.” Alessia groaned. “Distance can’t be the issue, Raso plays for fucking Manchester City.” Riley put her hand on Alessia’s chest. “No distance isn’t the issue, it is everything. If I was to give you my heart again and it didn’t work I don’t know if I could handle it.” Alessia kissed Riley’s hand. “I know. I won’t hurt you again.” Alessia and Riley’s lips connected gently. 

During the night as the two families reconnected, Riley and Alessia stayed close to each other throughout the night. As soon as the Russos left Alessia practically dragged Riley upstairs. “What am I wearing to bed?” Alessia went to Riley’s chest of drawers and began looking through her clothes, she grabbed out a white t-shirt and a pair of shorts. Riley grabbed her Christmas pyjamas and Alessia smiled wide. “Well now that is the cutest thing I have ever seen.” Riley rolled her eyes and laid down in her bed and turned on the tv. Alessia laid next to her and immediately kissed her lips gently. They put on a movie and Riley cuddled into Alessia, everything was going well up until Alessia’s curiosity got the best of her. “How many people have you been with since me?” Riley looked up at the blonde. “You want my body count?” Alessia shrugged. “Just curious, I know I can’t be mad but I just want to know. Have you had sex with Hayley?” Riley sat up. “Alessia what the fuck? Are you serious right now?” Alessia sat up staring at Riley. “I am very serious. I hate the idea of someone else touching you.” Riley laid back and covered her face. “Alessia, this jealous girlfriend shit isn’t hot. You have no claim over me! I do not belong to you!” Riley got out of the bed and stood by the window. “Maybe you should just go to your parent’s place.” Alessia got up and changed back into her clothes. “I’m sorry Riley.” Riley turned to Alessia. “How many people did you sleep with at UNC?” Alessia thought for a minute. “A few” Riley scoffed. “A few? What’s that three, five, ten?” Alessia looked down. “Um a few.” Riley clenched her jaw. “I slept with someone six months after we split.” Alessia leant against the wall. “I tried to get over you. Who did you sleep with?” Riley glared at Alessia. “I slept with Jess Carter, Erin Cuthbert, Simone Magill, Alisha -” Alessia stepped closer to Riley. “Alisha Lehmann? What the fuck Riley?! When? What about Hayley?” Riley glared at Alessia. “Get out. You honestly almost had me today. I have fucked Alisha, about six months ago, and yes Hayley and I have slept together. Happy now? Now you can get out I don’t want to fucking see you again. You are a head fuck.” Riley pushed past Alessia and opened her door, Alessia stormed out of Riley’s bedroom and slammed the front door. 

Once football was back Riley spent her time focusing on getting back into the team, the first game of the new year was coming up and she was suspended. The team was playing away to Everton, she went to the hotel with them the day before, which worked out perfectly because she was able to go and watch Hayley play for Manchester City. She was wearing a City shirt with Raso’s name and number on the back. They were playing against Chelsea and it was close the whole time. Hayley was a fantastic player to watch, she was physical in the best kind of way. Alessia saw the broadcast which kept cutting to Riley, and her celebrating when Hayley scored the winning goal in the 80th minute. Alessia turned off her phone and began getting ready for her game. They were playing Aston Villa and Alessia knew that she would be able to take out Alisha during the game. 

Riley met up with Hayley after the game, they shared a kiss and they both posted on Instagram about the game. Hayley was going to go to the Everton and Arsenal game wearing Riley’s shirt even if she wasn’t playing. They sat in a pub with some of the other players from both Manchester City and Arsenal watching the United game. Alessia looked ready for a fight during the game, during a corner she went straight to Alisha and bumped her in the back. “Jesus Russo calm down.” Alisha snapped. “Shut up. Riley told me that you guys slept together.” Alessia bumped her again. “Oh this is about Griffin. Well just so you know Russo she was phenomenal and sounded amazing in bed.” Ella caught onto what was said and stood in between the two. “Less walk away right now. Take back post, I will take her.” She pushed Alessia back ready for the corner to come in. Alessia put in a hard tackle on Alisha, she luckily got the ball first but ensured that Alisha hit the deck from the force of the tackle. In the second half Alessia was able to break away from her defender and scored a gorgeous top corner goal from just outside the box. She made sure she ran up to Alisha and celebrated near her. Alisha bit back at Alessia. “You jealous she doesn’t want you Russo but begged for me?” Ella pushed Alisha back. “Fuck off! She had Riley way before you did! She could have her whenever she wanted!” Ella pulled Alessia back to their half, at the end of the game Alessia avoided Alisha not shaking her hand. 

Alessia got player of the match, she went to the media room for her interview. “Congratulations Alessia on being the player of the match, you had a great game and was able to score that winning goal. We did see that you and Alisha Lehmann had a few words to each other during that game, is that just normal player up against player or is there something else?” Alessia shrugged. “Nah just some in-game stuff, happy to get the win and it is sometimes nice to remind those who play against you that you can take them on. But everything is all good with Alisha, she’s a class player.” She went back to the changerooms and Ella stared at her. “Care to explain what is going on with you and Riley?” Alessia sighed and sat at her locker, she gave her a rundown of everything that happened at the field, then at Christmas. “You asked who she slept with? What the hell Alessia! Are you dumb? I know for a fact that you slept around while you were at college, she did the same which you were both entitled to do! You are an idiot and you are the one who pushed her straight to Hayley.” Ella stood up and went to have a shower. Alessia threw her boots on the ground and groaned in her hands as she thought about how she had Riley back but she screwed it up again. 

The following day Riley and Hayley went to the Everton v Arsenal game, they were sat together in the stands as the game started. They posted pictures together at the game sending the WOSO community into a spin, they sang along to North London Forever and watched the kick off. During the game they would chat tactics and cuddle up with each other, the TV broadcast kept cutting to them cuddled up and Alessia saw them on her big screen. She turned the TV off not wanting to see her ex with her now confirmed girlfriend. Alessia made the stupid decision to make her way to the hotel she knew that the Arsenal girls would be staying in waiting for Riley to get back.

Arsenal won 3-0 with the girls all traveling back to the hotel cheering and singing. Riley got off the bus, having parted ways with Hayley at the ground so she could meet up with the City girls for a dinner they had planned. Riley’s face dropped when she saw Alessia. “Fucking hell what are you doing here Less?” Alessia led Riley to an empty function room. “Riley I needed to talk to you. I want you back, I need to show you that I can be the girlfriend you deserve. I know I fucked up and I ruined it but I want to be better and to take care of you.” Riley sighed and leant against a table. “Alessia, you and I don’t work. We like the idea of each other but as soon as we go to the next step we fumble it.” Alessia was near tears. “Riley please, I love you so much. I am so much better for you than Hayley.” Riley scoffed. “Alessia, we were perfect when we were 17. We are 21 now, maybe it’s time we grew up.” Alessia closed the gap between them and kissed Riley deeply, but before she could process what had happened she had been pushed back and slapped. Riley’s hand stung but not as much as her heart, tears fell as she ran out of the room back to her teammates. Alessia stood in the function room clutching her cheek, alone.

[princesable]

hi welcome to my post. my post of charlie game plot summary. because i realized no such post exists. so like. here we are. charlie game has a plot. you wouldnt know this because i keep forgetting to mention it as i have a horrible habit of just assuming people know. for some reason.

so the story starts as all memorable stories do. someone fucking dying. i could not think of any other way to open this. basically sherwin ends up causing a freak accident that ends with twitch's best friend getting killed badly. he then immediately goes into hiding as you do.

twitch kind of assumes he also died because he just vanished without a trace so like. what else would have happened. one day sherwin makes the brilliant decision to leave his house for the first time in like a year or so (i have not decided on how long ok. its long enough) and twitch almost immediately spots him and is like Oh i need to kill him right fucking now. they start chasing after him but due to his abilities (being relatively fast) he gets away. and twitch is like. ok. what the fuck. i need to go tell the 4 (four) people i know that sherwin isnt actually dead so i can get them to help me track his ass down and kill him. so he will actually be dead.

luckily for twitch they exclusively know people who are Fucking Weird and always open to violence because they have nothing better to do or theyre clyde who is convinced hes a super villain. fox is also there but shes mostly ambivalent on this due to not really. knowing any of them. henry and terrence are also there and theyre not really invested either but they think it sounds fun. so theyre down for whatever. important thing to note is that none of them are really taking this as seriously as twitch. everyone else kind of just views this as a "game". subtle reference to the fact this will be a video game.

so twitch is like ok i have. no idea where the fuck he could have gone. so we're all gonna split up and look for him. feel free to do whatever you want as long as you bring sherwin back to me so i can kill him badly. and everyone hears this as "have fun with it be yourself" so instead of setting up traps like normal people they essentially set up. attractions? meant to lure him in so they can mess with him a bit before grabbing him and taking him home. except for fox shes just watching everyone. plotting or something. she says shes plotting.

sherwin on the other hand runs into sam and ellie who are just completely unrelated. they dont know anyone involved. so the only side theyre getting is "weird dude shows up out of nowhere who is clearly running from something and looks absolutely terrified" so they decide to tag along with him so he doesnt immediately fall down a flight of stair or something. also because it means they get to go on a road trip weeeeeeee (they are actively on the run)

and thats the prologue. basically. every chapter/act/whatever you feel like calling them will focus on one of the "attractions" and which ever guy is assigned to them. and how they are really really bad at their jobs. tldr: sherwin fucked up reaaaaaaaaaaaally bad and now everyone wants him dead. it is up to viewer interpretation if this is fair. personally i think its funny.

^ i think hes funny

[theminecraftbee]

did anything in particular make you decide to study grief through solving counting sheep? very much enjoyed chapter 16 but augh my heart

this one’s under a cut because I ramble a LOT here!

so: SORT OF! it’s a long story!

so scs was ALWAYS gonna be about identity. even from day one, when half my original thought was “doing this from three’s perspective would be funny”, there wasn’t a world where the story wasn’t largely about identity, because this is the kind of story you can’t tell at all without it being about that. like it was maybe day two or three of waffling about this au, at least a month before I would actually commit to writing it, that I went “oh three isn’t actually really grian” (albeit in a different way than I ended up exploring it here).

the part about grief came later.

originally, the theme of grief came about because I was trying to decide WHY martyn was about and stealing watchers. that’s when I remembered a common watcher!grian trope: it’s fairly common (at least on the watcher!grian I’ve read, which to be fair is limited) for grian to have assumed the evo crowd was dead and vis versa. and I was like. aha! martyn can be attacking the watchers in vengeance for grian being dead! then I’ll be able to REALLF play with the dramatic irony if already wanted to use, where no one but the audience knew three was grian, because there’s another angle to work at that on!

cue: oh no wait this is about grief again. (see: tumblr post that I’m pretty sure is still semi-viral.)

the thing is, oftentimes “the evo crew thought grian was dead” is played for grian angst, which makes sense in grian-focused angst fics (this is not shade). but I was like. but that’d fuck up the people involved, right. like having your fun mystery game ended by someone actually getting murdered would tear basically everyone there apart, and that’s not even considering that the evo gang isn’t the WORLD’S most communicative people already. so I went… what if I made the story about that? what if, alongside being about three and identity, it was about the evo crew, grief, and how trauma can fuck up your relationships in unique and messy ways?

plus, like. this is a winter soldier fic. a staple here is “the moment steve realizes the winter soldier is bucky”, and while in three’s arc that bit is almost all about it taking the final step to establish its own independent identity, in the other’s arcs, that’s when they have to come to terms with who three used to be. and like, even in a world where three is uncomplicatedly grian, that’s a pretty big grief to have to unpack all over again. but this is a world where three is not grian, where I realized I’d have to tag mcd despite the character who died sort of also being alive, etc. at least there, grief would have to be explored.

also, for the weight of “grian and am I him” to actually hit three, three has to have an idea of how heavy grian is. like, in the original version I had pearl with the line “oh my god why are you grian” as a joke, and three responding “who is grian”. (oh, the early darlings of this au I killed.) but that doesn’t actually hit the same way, thematically, right? because it works best if once the reveal happens, we all know how much of a shadow grian casts.

in that way it comes back to the theme of identity, because identity here is therefore kind of intrinsically linked to grief. that final hurdle three has to cross to figure itself out of “can I define who I am out from under this shadow” doesn’t work unless everyone is really grieving for that shadow, yeah?

and, well, I’m me. I can’t avoid writing grief that long, it’s a theme I tend to gravitate back towards all the time. it makes sense in a fic that ended up actually being somewhat personal thematically that I’d end up back there.

it’s just one of those things. I realized martyn was there to avenge grian and then realized the story all worked so much better if it was about grief.

anyway this was a REALLY LONG RAMBLE but I hope you liked it! a glimpse into my thoughts I guess.

[delta-orionis]

Tuesday Again No Problem 9/3/24

I missed last week so this Tuesdaypost will cover two weeks! Again! Oops!

Listening

One of the podcasts I listen to did an interview with a social media expert who actually took the time to track down the source of all of those horrible AI slop posts that have completely taken over Facebook. It was very interesting (and kinda bleak about the trajectory of the modern internet, ngl).

On another note.... I'm kind of ashamed to admit it, but I dipped back into some of my old Vocaloid playlists for the first time in literal years and I'm enjoying it a lot. I even discovered some new artists.

Cringe is dead, etc etc.

Watching

This was a big "re-listening to old favorite video essays" week for me. I won't list them all here otherwise these Tuesdayposts would become very repetitive. But it was a lot of Jenny Nicholson.

Playing

I finally got around to downloading the Random Buff mod for Rain World and holy shit this thing is ridiculous. I almost immediately got a bunch of ridiculously overpowered buff cards and have spent several hours zooming around in Survivor's campaign causing chaos.

I recently got cards for infinite underwater breath, as well as swim speed and maneuverability upgrades, so I made a beeline for Submerged Superstructure. I'm enjoying speeding around there. I also got several cards that buff spear damage, and I managed to kill a Leviathan by throwing spears at it. (A lot of spears, to be fair, but I did manage it eventually!)

In addition, this mod is causing my game to crash in new and exciting ways. Some of the debuffs in particular are really pushing my poor laptop to its limits. At least I'm having fun.

Making

TSAC will not leave my brain and I'm making it everyone else's problem.

I posted a new ask blog answer. I also made a random exposition post where I experimented with writing pearl dialogue (paired with some art).

Relatedly, I'm working on a Perchance generator to randomly generate Rain World Ancient names. I'm pretty happy with it so far. I'd like to work out some of the bugs before I make it publicly available, but at least for myself it's making writing about the Ancients much easier.

I'd like to try expanding on my OC's worldbuilding through expository pearl dialogue, primarily in the form of conversations between random Ancients who lived in TSAC's city. I'm trying to think about what opinions people of different social classes/backgrounds would have about their iterator (and also have TSAC make some remarks reacting to those opinions, haha).

I've said it before, but I find it extremely funny that the cure for my years-long artblock/writer's block seems to be becoming hopelessly obsessed with my own OC. (I started a new antidepressant earlier this year and I'm willing to bet that it also has something to do with it, but it's much funnier if I just say that TSAC cured my depression)

----

The summer schedule at work is officially over!! I survived!!! Time will tell if I am going to experience any delayed symptoms of burnout like I have in previous years, but for now I feel mostly fine!!!

In other news also related to OC brainrot, someone made a fucking 3D model of TSAC??? I'm still reeling over this. I'm so honored that people like my OC enough to render them in 3D. I've reblogged the post about it already but I'm using this as an opportunity to make you look at it again.

See you next week, if I remember!! My schedule is all weird now that summer is over!!! It will take me a bit to adjust, I think.

[zombtropolis-central]

Ramble about the lore of the funny plant and zombie game below. Its basically gonna be me going

for like a few paragraphs

I know PvZ's timeline and lore is already weird (its literally a predestination paradox, and they explain nothing ever) but I always think about how the world just handled zombies before there were sentient plants, and the plants themselves and how they became a thing. Now I know there's that 'The Guide to Protecting Your Brains' that has some info, but much like a lot of non-game content for this series, I can't find an actual full scan of it outside of a few low quality pics of some pages on the wiki as well as the transcipts of plant and zombie descriptions from the wiki. So if the book clears up anything, I wouldn't know. (why is it so hard to find supplemental material for this series) I'm mainly going off info from the few scattered iceberg and lore vids on youtube, mainly choopo's video.

First, the zombies. Now we know they've existed for so long because of PvZ2's predestination paradox and Zomboss putting them there. But how did humans deal with them? I assume pre-plant era humans used normal weaponry; and because I doubt Zomboss stayed in the past eras after you beat him in PvZ2's adventure mode, that any zombies left behind in the past kind of just became a non-threat with nobody to command them.

But then we get to the Zombie War of '76. Yeah, Imitater's PvZ almanac entry mentions that there was a zombie war, and its so weirdly specific that I doubt its a joke or not meant to be taken as lore. There's a lot to unpack here.

We know that at least some plants fought in this war, as Imitater was apparently a part of it, and Bloom and Doom Seed Co. was establisted in 1968; but none of the plants we know in PvZ were in that war; because that generation of plants were made by Dave. Now Dave is assumed to be at least thirty six, and NMT has him state that he was a kid in the eighties, so he had to have been born in 1973 (according to my shitty math). So I have to assume Bloom and Doom Seed Co. had plants of their own in the war against the zombies during the '76 Zombie War.

Maybe there were some humans in it too, maybe it was mostly humans and the plants were like some hair-brained back-up plan, given we don't have many plants in the series who could have been in the war aside from Imitater and maybe Colnel Corn. (given his lore in GW2, but I have no evidence for this) I have no idea if this is true, but somebody in the comment section of choopo's PvZ lore vid said that the zombies are immune to bullets, but if that is actual lore then I can imagine why the plants would be there.

Here's another thing about this Zombie War that also fucks with me: Who was in charge of this zombie faction? Because I'm like... 98% sure it was not Zomboss. Now we know that Zomboss and Dave are somewhere in th same age range, because of the science fair incident, and Zomboss does age like a human does from that same science fair (and Bully for You); so he probably came into existence at the same time Dave was born. Now I know the counter could be "Well time travel is canon" but only in PvZ2, and there is not a single world in PvZ2 or PvZ2 China that is even close to being in a 70s war setting, so I can't consider that as a remotely canon-compliant explanation.

And the zombies have been shown to not be able to organize themselves for shit without somebody to command them, there had to be some kind of commander there. I'm sure it probably was Zomboss and Popcap just never bothered expanding on any of this Zombie War, but this random bit of lore compels me so much.

Like where was this war fought? What were the stakes? What was the zombie army like? Did people die? If it wasn't Zomboss leading the zombies in this war, who did? Or was it like a World War Z type 'war' where the zombies just swelled in numbers and overwhelmed whatever location they were in? And most importantly; has anybody made fanfic based on this concept and if so, where can I read it?

[misc-obeyme]

am I the only one who doesn't feel represented when it comes creating female lead in general?? i see rare unique and different female mc or characters compared to the typical female lead of interactive choice-based games.

my mc or me personality is more challenging and rebellious, she has that macho attitude and knows how to push someone's buttons. She is muscular and aggressive with a "what's up bro" and "nah fuck that fuck society" vibe, unlike the soft, pale as snow with "cute elegant clothing, long lustrous hair, slender physique and a quiet pleasant personality" typical female lead. there is nothing wrong with cute gals, they cool, they cool, but they're other gals then the submissive ones.

i do enjoy the game, let's be honest, who can survive simeons charm?? but i don't actually feel myself when i play as mc if you get what i mean. this wasn't only for tomboys tho it was for female mc in general who don't find themselves in mc, not getting represented. i gave my example and my struggling.

I think this is an issue for a lot of otome style games. I find that I don't like playing ones that have an actual image for MC. If they don't use the pronouns too much, I can usually gloss over that stuff, but the MCs are so very different from how I identify as a person that I can't self insert at all. (Not that I would if I could, to be fair.)

In fact, I feel like Obey Me is the only game in this genre that hasn't been as bad. (Well, Arcana was pretty good with this too since they let you choose your pronouns but I haven't played it in a while lol.)

MC is gender neutral by default, so they have that at least, which is more than I can say for most otome games. However, the personality problem still exists in OM and really I'd say it's just as bad as most of the others. Generic OM MC has some funny and unhinged lines, but most of the time everybody talks about how nice and sweet they are. I mean, we all joke about them being the demon therapist, but that's really how it is.

On the one hand, it's kind of annoying because you're right. Different types of MCs just don't exist really. And since the default is often female, it's like the one personality they think anyone female can have.

On the other hand, they're going to have to do this at a certain level. They can't give MC too much of a personality. In the end, they're still going for a target audience and I guess they think most female players are going to want to be portrayed as nice and sweet MCs?

All that rambling aside, your feelings are completely valid. To be honest with you, I don't see this changing in otome style games any time soon. So the best we can do is imagine the story differently for ourselves!

So many times I've been given a set of dialogue options for MC and been like... okay neither Ciaran or I would say any of those things. Here is what Ciaran would say if they were experiencing this moment! Then I choose the dialogue that's closest. Or if it's main story, I choose the ones that I think will raise intimacy lol.

Anyway, I don't think you're the only one. I think this is a pretty common feeling. And maybe one day someone will make an otome or dating sim game where the MC has a more rebellious attitude or is female but muscular. It says a lot about how women are perceived when the "generic" female lead is considered to be a nice and meek type of person. It's an unfortunate circumstance of society.

[angel-inrealtime]

November F1c Prompts Day 21

Day 21 - Scent (Favourite)

Daniel, Scotty, and Jack are piled on the couch like some kind of Australian ex-pat support group when you venture out of your office with a yawn.

“Hello displaced Australians.”

Jack laughs and Scotty leans his head back on the couch with a lazy smile. “Hello platonic life partner.”

It makes you grin as you walk Closer to them. “What’s going on?”

“Daniel’s being bad at games.” Jack supplies

“Oi,” Daniel kicks him from the other side of the couch. “Fuck off.”

“Not his forte, to be fair.” You drop a kiss to the top of his head to take away some of the disgruntled huff. “Is there food?”

He stretches back to look up at you, hands resting gently on your arms. “Yeah I left some for you in the fridge, on the top shelf.”

“Thank you.”

You smell it when you walk closer to the kitchen, nose wrinkled until you see the candle on the countertop. “You lit the candle?”

“Jack didn’t believe there was a candle that smelled like a cart track so I had to.” Daniel reasons. “It’s nearly gone though.” He says wistfully, as if the thing hasn’t made it through two moves and more than a handful of years since Max gave it to him, burned so sparingly in an effort to make it last you’re shocked it has any fragrance left at all.

You make a noise of acknowledgement and lean over the kitchen island, picking at the sandwich they left you. You pull out your phone.

Y/N Ciao – do you remember that candle you got Daniel when he left? Or did you get someone to get it for you?

Max V That is very rude. I buy Daniel’s gifts myself.

Y/N Just nobody else’s right?

Max V Fuck you. What about it??

Y/N It’s finally almost finished, I was going to get a new one. Can you send me the link when you get a chance?

Max responds in less than 5 minutes.

Max V [link] They still do them I think

Y/N Thank you :) Owe you a gin and tonic!!

Max V I will remember that (: (It’s an Australian smiley it’s upside down)

Y/N 😂 very funny

“What are you giggling about?” Daniel calls, suspicious.

“Nothing.” You flash him a wide grin across the apartment. “Just reading.”

-

You’re working at the kitchen island when the doorbell rings, and before you can slide off the stool to head down to the front desk and collect the mail, Daniel puts his hands on your shoulders and presses you back into your seat. “I got it.”

“Molto bene.” You respond, just to make him laugh as he leaves through the front door. You get caught up in an email and only look up again when the door shuts. There’s a strange look on his face, a package open in his hands on top of a couple of letters. “Daniel?” You ask.

He looks up, and the strange look is soft. “Did you order this?”

“What?”

He pulls the candle out of the box and you grin. “It’s the same one as…”

“Oh yay, I was starting to wonder if it would get here before we left!” He doesn’t say anything else and you shut your laptop. “Is it…” You scratch behind your ear, self-conscious now. “I asked Max where he got it from and…”

He barely gets it on the counter before he wraps his arms around your head. “Thank you. It’s my favourite.” Daniel’s quiet for an uncharacteristically long time before he pulls away.

You kiss the strong line of his jaw. “I know.”

[antimonyandthyme]

Sebastian/Mick, Bodyguard AU

1.5k, warnings for descriptions of violence

“All the money the Schumachers stole from me,” Toto said. “And quadruple it.”

Sebastian did the math. He’d have to be Michael at the height of his clout to gather that amount of money on this kind of notice. Oddly, the excessive demand came as a relief. All the money, he could do. All the money times two, he maybe still could do. Someone with a lick of sense would’ve just asked for either option. Four times was impossible, and Sebastian would be forced to think of alternative methods. This was good. Toto was clever enough to get Mick, but he wasn’t being clever beyond that.

Just greedy, like a poker player who didn’t know when to cash out. The rage was creeping up Sebastian’s throat in quiet increments. Toto needed to learn that card games didn’t earn an easy living.

“Put him on the phone,” Sebastian said. A part of him was surprised it came out so calmly. He waited, searching through the muffled sounds coming through the line for anything familiar. There was a long riiip that Sebastian could only assume was duct tape coming off Mick’s mouth.

“Sebastian,” came Mick’s voice. “Don’t—not alone, get help—”

Thunk, like someone had just been hit. Sebastian curled his tongue around his anger, and memorized the burning taste for later.

Toto spoke again. “You’ve never been stupid, Sebastian, so don’t start now. You know better than to involve anybody else.”

“Of course,” Sebastian said, and he heard Mick make a distressed noise. The police were out of the question, and Sebastian didn’t even want company anyway. He’d settle this just between them. Maybe he was a bodyguard and didn’t know any better, but in this moment, Sebastian thought he understood. All that about turf and territory and possession. You don’t go about touching what’s not yours.

“I’m giving you five hours,” Toto said, like it was magnanimous of him. “Five hours, and he’s done for.”

“I’ll have the money,” Sebastian said. He wouldn’t, but Toto didn’t need to hear that now. What Toto needed was some creative suggestion. “Where should we meet?”

The best way for Toto to get out of this would be to specify a dead drop with clear instructions for Sebastian to deposit the money. If he wanted to get cliché about it, an electrical outage box, rubbish can in a deserted park, behind some bush growing along a canal. Once Toto got the money, he’d give Sebastian Mick’s location, and they would go their separate ways. If this was what Toto wanted, then they were fucked.

But Sebastian was hoping Toto would want to gloat.

“My old warehouse, the one your boy closed down.”

Bingo. Just a bit more. He had to ensure that Toto wasn’t thinking and that he had both the pickup and package set in a single location. “And Mick’s there? Unhurt?”

Toto sighed. “Here,” he said dispassionately. “Tell your bodyguard you’re alright.”

Your bodyguard. Sebastian dug his teeth so hard into his lip he tasted metal. How obvious had they been?

“I’m alright,” Mick said through speaker, sounding frantic, but not for himself. “Seb—”

“That’s enough,” Toto said. “I started my watch fifteen minutes ago.”

Sebastian hung up. It was laughable how vindictiveness could turn a man so foolish. It was laughable how Toto thought he would actually be using this time to get the money. No. This time was for thinking, and stewing, and running through all the scenarios which would allow him to screw Toto’s head off the top of his chest.

This time was also for chastising himself. He’d grown careless. If Toto had seen right through them, then who else? How indulgent was he going to allow himself to be before someone took the only thing that mattered to him? Sebastian would give it all up for Mick’s safety.

He decided two hours would be enough. Don’t go at the start, and don’t go at the end. Those were the times Toto would be on guard. Any other window was fair game.

The warehouse looked lonely. It was a funny description, but Mick had had it closed less than a year ago, and it hadn’t had the time to fall into complete disrepair. Sometimes it weighed on him, what they did. Sebastian hadn’t known what business meant before he met Michael. He wasn’t sure if he knew what it meant now. Maybe Toto had reason to be vindictive. Sebastian didn’t care. Was it good business killing a competitor? It didn’t matter. Sebastian would see it done anyway.

He didn’t bother with subtlety. He strode right in, and took it all in like he had a match, and everything else was dried tinder.

Mick was tied to a chair. The duct tape was back on his mouth. One cheek was bruised and swollen. He was listing to one side, possibly to take weight of the other. Behind him Toto stood, distracted, looking around the warehouse as if his gaze alone could bring its sorry existence back to life.

It was like he was gliding on air. In what seemed like a second, Sebastian was before them both, too fast for Toto to even so much as reach for a weapon. A bullet to the head would be the neat, correct solution. But it turned out Sebastian wanted to gloat, too. He aimed the gun at Toto’s leg.

The sound ricocheted through the empty warehouse. Then came the wounded screaming. Sebastian stared at the blood spreading out from Toto in an almost geometric circle, with the animalistic howling providing music in the background, and felt something dormant in him split open. The bottom half of his face drew into a feral grin.  

A shame Toto probably didn’t know where Michael picked him up from. The streets Sebastian used to haunt. He was made of different stuff, compared to the rest of them. He’d gotten good at hiding how violence could incite an awful glee. Sebastian fished around his back pocket for his wallet. There were three fifty-dollar bills, some tens, some fives. A hundred. He emptied it all out into the pool of blood.

“You want your money?” Sebastian asked. He didn’t recognize his own voice. The notes were soaking up the red, turning them into autumn leaves on the ground. Sebastian could appreciate the almost scenic picture. “Here, you can take it back. Whatever you wanted times four.”

Sebastian took his gun up again, and telegraphed the placements of his next shots in an almost detached manner. “I’ve got your knee, and we can do your shoulder, chest, and groin. How about that?”

Toto’s screaming had dissolved into moans. “Please,” he was saying, in between short gulps of air, as if Sebastian cared for his begging. He might have been speaking gibberish for all Sebastian was concerned.  

It took a long while for Mick’s muffled struggling to break through. Sebastian kept one eye on Toto’s weakly flailing limbs, and set his switchblade through Mick’s bonds. There was no gentle way for the duct tape to come off though, and as he tore it from Mick’s face, he decided four shots wasn’t sufficient after all.

But Mick was saying, “Enough. That’s enough, Seb.”

Sebastian tilted his head. Michael used to roll his eyes when Sebastian did that; he recognized that was when Sebastian was about to get defiant. Mick’s hands were cupped around his cheeks. They always did handle things so differently. It was such a strange place to think it, in a dilapidated warehouse with a man swimming in his own blood beside them.

Love, or whatever it was Sebastian felt for them both.

“Enough?” Sebastian said. Maybe acknowledging it was turning him stupid. He genuinely couldn’t wrap his head around how Mick thought it was enough. “I’m not even close to being done with him.”

“I don’t want this,” Mick said desperately, running his thumbs across Sebastian’s cheeks. “You getting blood on your hands like this. That’s my job, not yours. What you do for me—it’s enough. Do you understand?”

Sebastian couldn’t stop himself. He kissed Mick, right there in front of Toto. Tasted the oily, sticky residue from the duct tape, and told himself this would be the last time.  

“I don’t want him running about,” Sebastian said when they pulled apart. Mick’s hands were still on Sebastian’s face. They were talking about Toto as if he wasn’t there. Let him see and hear while he still could. “He’s trouble.”

“He’ll be doing no running anymore,” Mick said. “I’m calling Esteban for clean up. Let’s just go home, alright?”

Sebastian said nothing. In one hand he held his gun, in the other, his switch blade. Nothing in the world had ever seemed simpler to him.

“Sebastian,” Mick said softly. “Please?”

They sat and kept watch. Toto’s whimpers had risen in volume, interspersed with threats and other things Sebastian was too tired to parse through. By rights Sebastian should silence him for good. If it was compassion staying Mick’s hand, or some sort of righteousness, Sebastian didn’t have any of it for anyone outside of his own. But it was what Mick demanded of him. So Sebastian thought about the kiss he shared with Mick, maybe the last kiss he would ever share, and kept heel.

[abundantchewtoys]

BC re: p666.4

Well, I didn't expect to see both these sprites interacting with Vriska! But boy am I glad we did.

Too bad GCATavros still struggles with his self allergy, but at least he's got the god tier sneezes toned down.

Loving Erisol's theme here. Nautical Nightmare is a bop.

It's good to see Vriska interact with him. There was a way that Eridan & Vriska fit, personality wise, that we have only seen a small bit of in Homestuck proper.

I wonder if Erisol wanted to play a video game with Vriska similar to Sollux.

In fact...

Erisol's existence poses a conundrum.

Sollux seems to be able to see. So... Has his eyesight been healed?

Or is he half dead again, and the Sollux ghost in Erisol counts as his?

Because if not, Erisol's actually distinct from Sollux now. ... Well, to be fair, Davepeta & Fefeta are already distinct, so it isn't that shocking, I guess.

Only, until now, there wasn't a pre- and post-retcon version of Sollux, him and Aradia just seemed to exist outside of that context. By virtue of hanging out in the dreambubbles.

Funny how Erisol claims to have a mixed classy & swag outfit :D I wouldn't think Sollux would count his outfit as either, really. It's more like the last thing he picked up from the floor, or at least that's how I picture he chooses his clothes.

He's got a point that Vriska isn't really putting much variation in her outfits yet. Guess fashion really never was much of her thing.

---

Interesting to note that the sprites seem to know which conversations Vriska is to have, in any case.

Guess that's part of the game-related knowledge they're allowed to possess, maybe?

Seeing Doc Scratch again after all this time is really cool!

The fact that it's actually him, not a hybrid with Lord English, or anything else, is actually selling the whole creepiness more.

That Doc Scratch takes over the control of the whole scene is, in hindsight, to be expected.

But that he uses it to push Vriska's buttons so, really wasn't. As was the fact, that apparently this was the "proper" way to have this happen, as the Point counts it as another successful hell tier cleared!!! :(

I thought Doc Scratch would have lorded (heh) it over Vriska, that she wasn't capable of defeating Lord English in the end.

But it went a far more darker route.

Vriska really had the worst authority figures involved with her upbringing & adoloscence, hadn't she?

So, somewhere in the Plot Point there is a timer to show how long she's been in there, according to Doc Scratch. Or, well, it can be used to track how long she's been here. It could also be a timer that counts down, I guess - that's the only kind we've really seen Sburb use in the past, hasn't it?

"You fucked with a 8unch of little kids and 8lew up, then you LOST." Oh man, did he now, Vriska? He achieved everything he set out to do, after all. He summoned LE. Which she may not know about, even if she does know Scratch blew up.

I guess it's interesting to note that this statement could also be interpreted to her conflating Doc Scratch with Lord English. Interpreting it in that light, it makes sense Vriska would like to finish off LE as payback for what Scratch did to her. That she never got to must thus sting a lot.

It might mean that's what the next conversation, implied to be with Davepeta, will be about!

Scratch setting himself up as inescapable and the personification of Vriska's Aspect was quite frankly terrifying.

And it's really interesting to learn that Vriska is in fact so conflicted over her Aspect as cosmological Fate. It might be why she's always been so focused on the Luck/Fortune part of it!

... It's also a good motivator for Vriska to not be AT ALL thrilled to learn what Dirk has been doing. I mean, aside from him putting Terezi under pressure and in duress.

Hmm, but Scratch/Light's talk of Vriska taking his bargains without much resistance is, perhaps, the core of what she must take away. Seeing any outcome as inevitable and not worthy of considering alternatives for is a trap. In the context of Scratch's bargains, it's absolving yourself of blame.

She'll have to learn caution, it's not enough to make progress on interpersonal communication and relating to other people.

Yeah, "Pavlov's dog", the name of her hell tier... You could say she has to watch out for her gut reaction when making choices.

Now, the question is, did Vriska immediately move from the intense conversation with Spidermom, to the next one?

Because oh man, if she did, that was a real doozy and she might have gotten scared out of continuing for a while, here.

[swordsmans]

I neeeeeeed to know about "luffy slips into an alternate timeline/dimension where he "died" instead of sabo and meets an older ace/sabo" I live for stuff like this please

sorry this took me so long! i. didn't realize you had sent an ask rip (that stupid sanji post has annihilated my activity page im in hell)

omg this one is actually one that i'm least likely to actually write because it has the potential to be Long (as you can see with the giant outline), but i wanted to kind of play around with the idea of luffy-less world in the post-timeskip era, because i really like time travel/redo fics where everyone is better/stronger but i think it would be NEAT if the straw hats had to fix things that might have happened if luffy died as a kid. think "doomed timeline" (if that means anything to you). even though the premise is technically ASL i am a straw hat bitch through and through so it's actually more of straw hat fic than the original idea.

here's a copy/paste under the cut (you will see that i write a lot of notes to myself in these things)

takes place post-timeskip era

sabo has no connection to the revolutionary war; he and ace set out as pirates together. because of this, they are not associated with whitebeard (therefore no marineford); instead, they are associated with shanks somehow (maybe; not subordinates tho)

they're no longer two captains one ship, two captains (allied) on two ships (SEE ALT 2)

straw hats have all experienced some form of "bad" ending that leaves them jaded, cynical, or (for some) borderline evil

luffy = strength, joy, freedom optimism; most arcs involve rescues, but i dont think any of the straw hats are "weak" enough to die during their initial crises without luffy, otherwise they wouldnt be straw hats--just win at a massive cost and the next three years would be significantly harder

zoro - frees himself from the courtyard and continues being the demon of the east blue but--

nami - gets the money to free her village, arlong refuses to free cocoyashi; nami seeks out the demon of the east blue in order to take out arlong (in exchange for the money she earned and that arlong has stashed). fight is brutal but they kill arlong; nojiko dies, nami ends up traveling with zoro afterwards bc she has no reason to stay behind with nojiko gone.

they become a well-known, ruthless, and efficient bounty hunting duo on the grand line (bc it earns money and zoro wouldnt make it out of the east blue without her); both are jaded as FUCK bc zoro's dream is stagnant and nami is still wrestling with the guilt of failing her family years later, they're also bloodthirsty because money + power fills the void

usopp - kaya dies in the initial plot to kill her, usopp is blamed and flees the village; gets picked up by the buggy pirates (please this could be so funny please but remember this is supposed to be sad but think of how funny this could be though circus sharpshooter usopp he and buggy would be. so funny in the same room together)

sanji - stays at the baratie until the vinsmokes have a use for him. "wedding"/WCI goes through(?) and/or sanji is a member of the big mom pirates; pudding refuses to kill sanji, big mom is going to kill her but sanji bargains for her life; germa mods are awakened; in order to protect zeff+etc, pretends to be emotionless like his brothers, ends up working as a germa agent instead of staying on WCI because now pudding is as much of a liability as zeff or smth (pudding tho??? pls be nice to her but figure smth out). sanji war crimes

chopper/brook/jinbei remain stagnant

franky - whore do not forget this man was a gang leader who did actual violence; franky family is bigger and badder than ever, babyy

robin - can't stay with crocodile (boring bland unoriginal) put her somewhere she can experience problems; maybe she leaves, ends up on water 7, encounters franky; joins franky family(?) for protection but since she's no longer under a warlord's protection she's fair game for marines/bounty hunters; continues to work as an assassin tho and doesn't stay around much to protect the franky family from the people after her

franky family could potentially work as an alt strawhats "maybe i dont want to die actually" environment for robin; franky helps robin stabilize a little but since they're both kind of Messed Up it's less of a "we're fine actually" and more like "we're fucked up but at least we're fucked up together". they run a Criminal Organization together. they are a gang. robin is an assassin. no one is happy go lucky here even if they have found measure of """"""peace""""""

luffy encounters ace/sabo, it's emotional (obvs; this is self-indulgent)

however his brothers are both fundamentally fine, they are thriving and alive--there's nothing here to fix. you know who isn't fine? his crew.

convinces ace/sabo that they need to find them--whether it's to convince them to join their crew or just to make sure they're okay (whats the motivation here besides luffy wanting them to be happy because they're his family? does he need one? does it even matter?)

ALT 1 are luffy's crew here or did luffy enter the doomed timeline alone. if so--everyone? or just a few

interesting interactions: doomed/real zoro (consider the implications of a zoro who has stagnated/given up on his dream; this guy's got issues but our guy has no self-preservation however maybe they both have no self preservation. interesting convo about worth or value of life without drive)

doomed/real nami (LOTS of grief here babes, but maybe an interesting convo here about strength vs vulnerability)

doomed/real sanji (ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh my god can you imagine. can you imagine how much that would mess him up to see himself become Sanji Vinsmoke)

luffy has fundamentally changed all of their lives for the better but the straw hats are all strong as individuals (physically and emotionally) even before they join the straw hats. that's the point

even if the "doomed" straw hats encounter/join luffy would their lives fundamentally change for the better or are the experiences they accumulate as straw hats what changes them--it's not just luffy going "ur mine now you're happy" it's the development they go through during events/by interacting with each other; maybe some choose to stay where they are but have a shift in perspective of some kind

at least try with asl here

is sabo still kind of unstable? is ace still depressed? how does luffy's absence change them?

ALT 2 consider that they drift apart without luffy to hold them together; luffy makes an effort to reunite them?