#it is SO EASY to build a website from scratch

[bf-rally]

Progress on the interaction page!

[agentromanoffsir]

building community on the indie web - neocities guide part 2

neocities is a free hosting website that lets you build your own html website from scratch, with total creative control. neocities is part of the indie web, but certainly not all of it!

If you're looking to get started with the nitty gritty of neocities, i recommend checking out my neocities guide part 1 :) part 2 is focused on forming a community & making connections.

why join neocities/the indie web?

by building your own site, you have the freedom to make whatever cool shit you want. no limits, no censors, no masters. just you and your website. connect with people or just tend to your own virtual garden, the choice is completely yours.

okay. you have a site. now what?

do you want to build & foster a free web community? here's some things you can do or add to your site to start making connections

create a button for your page

making a button for your site is a great way to connect with other indie web users! site buttons are usually 88x31 pixels and should be easily located on your site.

many users create collections of site buttons, or web neighborhoods. this is an easy way for you to remember & share your favorite sites! remember, we're not working with an algorithm here.

hekate button maker

sadgrl button maker

lynn button maker

join a web ring (or clique)!

web rings were created in the 90s, before google, as a way for websites to link to one and other. web rings are often themed so you can find like-minded people with ease, but they don't need to be!

once you join a web ring, you add a snippet of code to your site so when people "hop along" the web ring they'll discover your page.

brisray's webring list has an enormous list of mostly active web rings you can check out. here are some examples!

melonland surf club

hotline webring

wiiring

no ai webring

journalring

west of weird: gravity falls webring

ficring

join a pixel club!

starting in the 2000s, pixel clubs are a great way for people to create & share art with each other. pixel clubs tend to follow a theme & provide base art for each user to customize however they want. for example, in the afternoon tea pixel club each user creates a unique tea cup.

fizzy vendor

charm bracelets

teeny towers

sticker sheet club

kitty friends

lava lounge

participate in one of 32-bit cafe's web events!

32-bit cafe is a community of web-hobbyists enthusiast about making the web fun again. they periodic events challenging participants to create a site page following a certain a theme or guidelines, like their new years eve event or 2024 halloween.

more past events

create adoptables, pixels & a toy box

one popular thing that people will do is create adoptable pixel art that others can add to their page! people will often put all of the adoptables that they've collected into a "toy box."

(protip: etiquette requires you to hyperlink back to the original source site whenever you add new graphics to your toybox. it's just polite!)

hillhouse pixels

inkcaps toybox

appledust adoptables

blanket fort adoptables

whimsical graphics

create web graphics (and a "for you" graphics page)

when browsing personal sites, you'll often see "graphics for you" pages! these pages are full of graphics/fun stuff that you can add to your own site for free. yes, free baby! just link back to the og or give credit when requested.

making a page for graphics is cool! making graphics is cool!! indulge your creativity! share fun stuff! some things you can create:

make blinkies

dive into geocities and rescue old graphics

create stamps

make gifs

make pixel art

other interactive stuff

create a poll

create a chat box

create a guestbook

last thing to remember kids... always avoid hotlinking! (hotlinking is when you add images to your site using a link instead of downloading it and uploading to your own website)

as always, say hi to me on neocities!! :)

[oc-ology]

How to OC post without being an artist (or spending money)!

As much as I yelled about OC-posting, some people said that they struggled to know what exactly they should be posting. Obviously the answer is whatever you feel like but if you’re already aimless, that answer isn’t very helpful. Additionally, not everyone knows how to draw (which I think is an obvious method of OC-posting) so I wanted to give some ideas for what people could post for their OC! This will be split up into different sections.

Creating visual representations of your OC

Disclaimer: I will not suggest nor support the usage of generative AI. OCs are about creating something yourself, not allowing a computer to do it for you.

Outside of commissioning someone else for art, it can be disappointing and frustrating to not have any visual representation for your character. An easy way to get a representation of your character is to use Picrew, Meiker and other similar sites. There’s a large number of art styles, types of fashion, species, that can all be used to make your OC and that amount only grows by the day. Many of these websites can be accessed on PC and mobile and take very little processing power.

However, this can be limiting at times since you might not find exactly what you’re looking for, especially if your OC has a unique combination of features. For something with more customisation, you can use video games with character creation to make a version of your character. I personally would recommend games like The Sims or Skyrim as both have very active modding communities. This way, if a certain type of clothing or facial feature isn’t present in the base game then you can often find someone who has created a mod that adds it in instead. This does require you to have access to a computer that can run not only the game but the mods as well.

Another option would be using a program like Vroid Studio to make your character from a base model. This has both a mobile and PC version, although I will primarily be speaking from a PC perspective. The mobile app, while able to create a character from scratch, is a lot more limited than the PC version. The great thing about Vroid is that there’s a lot of user-made content that you can often get for free through websites like Booth, as well as many tutorials for beginners to follow along with. Again, this requires a computer that is able to run it. I would recommend against using Vroid on a laptop as it will likely be too intensive for it.

My final suggestion for character visuals is to take a character from anime or cartoons and simply edit them. This was actually how I first got into making original characters! You can recolour their hair or outfits with an editing program (with some free examples being FireAlpaca, Krita or GIMP) and even edit different images together to create something more unique. Please only do this with characters from existing media and avoid using fanart for this.

Other OC visuals

Other than just what your OC looks like, there are other ways to visually put together your OC. Moodboards are the most obvious example of this, but you can also edit other things such as putting together outfits for them or finding pictures of items they would keep in their bag.

If you have multiple OCs, you can create fake text conversations between them using a number of websites. These can be as silly or as serious as you like!

Finally, you can always build them a pinterest board. I am a massive pinterest enjoyer and not only can you use pins that others have posted to pinterest, you can add your own from off the site. 

Writing

Beyond writing out your characters’ story, there are numerous other things you can write. Keeping in line with what you’ve already written, you can re-write scenes from alternative perspectives. These can add context to what is seen in the main story, as well as flesh out background or side characters and their relationship to your other OCs.

Another fun thing to write is non-canon scenes. Write a beach episode! Write about a character getting sick and someone else having to take care of them! There are countless ways to draw your OCs interacting with their world or other characters that wouldn’t necessarily ever fit into the “main” story.

Next is genre changes. If you had to categorise the genre of your OCs’ current story, what would it be? Now image what if the genre was something completely different? Romance to mystery… Slice of life to horror… Part of the challenge is figuring out what story beats remain the same and what gets changed, including character dynamics! And of course… Alternate Universes. There are too many types of AUs to list but some of my favourites are superpowers, mafia, zombies, time loops and time-travel-fix-its. These are similar to genre-changes but often include a number of AU specific tropes. If you’re struggling to figure out the staples of a certain AU or what kind of AUs exist, there’s a really good page about alternate universes on Fanlore.org!

Other ideas

These are ideas that didn’t quite fit into the other categories.

First is music playlists! There are two types of these. The first is a playlist of songs that describe a character and their story while the second is a playlist of songs that the character would listen to. Some people like to combine the two as well! There are no rules to this, simply have fun listening to music and picking out songs that remind you of your OCs.

Second is incorrect quotes. I remember these used to be beloved by fandom and now they can be beloved by you and your OCs! The concept of incorrect quotes is that well-known and funny quotes from pop culture (such as memes or movies) get written out and your characters are assigned a line of dialogue. While there’s a website that’ll generate these incorrect quotes for you, I personally find more fun in coming across quotes organically while scrolling social media and realising that they fit my OCs almost perfectly.

Finally, ask games. These typically take the form of lists of questions or prompts with emojis or numbers next to them. People can send in the relevant emoji or number and you then answer the corresponding prompt. There used to be a kind of “ask game etiquette” where if you reblogged an ask game from someone, you sent an ask from the list to them as well. This way, it allows the game to continue circulating and you can spread the joy of OC-posting with others! It can also lead you to making friends within the community.

And that’s it for my post! If you have other suggestions for kinds of OC-posting then I would love to see them!

[that-tom-allen]

Hello, Tom Allen!

I am keeping my husband locked in a CB6000s for some days in the last year.

He and I are trying to make him cum in his cage without sucess.

Is it really possible to acchieve this goal?

May you provide some suggestions? With and without pegging?

Thank you!!!

🔐 First, I think that it is great to see a wife who has found enjoyment with this, and one who also tries to push some limits on her husband.

That said, remember that cages are meant to prevent men from having orgasms through direct stimulation of their penis. For most men, direct stimulation is the only path to orgasm that they have ever known, so being able to develop new pathways may not be easy, or even successful.

However, since the idea of not needing direct stimulation is so exciting, not to mention that it's fun to make one's partner have an orgasm, most couples that practice locking their man will make an effort to have him orgasm in his cage.

There are a few ways to approach this. The first one on most people's list is pegging. Since @mrs--edge does not indulge (her philosophy is that I am locked up for her pleasure, and not to indulge my own), I will point you to a website on the topic. Note that prostate orgasms take a lot of practice

The next thing to try is using a vibrator on (and around!) the cage. We have a Hitachi Magic Wand which neither of us cares for; while it is powerful and will lead to an orgasm, I found that generally even the slow speed is too buzzy for me, and an orgasm does not feel very good. However, that's me. A lot of guys really enjoy it, and the orgasm in the cage will certainly "take the edge off" his horniness.

For a lot of guys, though, the default method involves shaking and manipulating the cage. This works for some men because, even though it is not direct stimulation, the pressure and movements stimulate enough nerves inside their bodies. This may not work consistently, and you may need to try it for several weeks before it will work, but it would probably be fun trying.

And that leads me to where my wife and I are on the list.

My wife and I have sex frequently, although as I am always locked, I wear a strapon harness and a Vixskin Ranger for her (the practice of called #foxing). Because our sex is kind of hot, and we tend to make each other more excited with some dirty talk, a lot of moaning, and some scratching and biting, I become very close to having an orgasm just from the mental and emotional connection we make. However, sometimes the pressure of my cage pushing against her ass is very rhythmic, and triggers something inside me, and an orgasm will start to build. I have to let her know that I'm getting close, and ask permission to come. When she decides that I should have one, I find that I'm pushing against her pretty hard, which must be moving things around inside me. A man's erection extends several inches inside his body, and I'm sure that the muscles and connective tissue being moved around is what triggers an orgasm for me.

Note that when we were first doing this, those orgasms barely counted. They felt ruined, and often left me feeling incomplete. It took several years of not having any other type of release until they became powerful, pleasurable, and very intense. You may not get to this stage, but I often joke that my brain has been "rewired" to enjoy coming this way, because they are definitely as good as how I remember orgasms in the old days. Of course, I am only allowed to have them very infrequently, so...

[captdedeyes]

Friendly reminder that Wix.com is an Israeli-based company (& some website builders to look into instead)

I know the BDS movement is not targeting Wix.com specifically (see here for the companies they're currently boycotting) but since Wix originated in Israel as early as 2006, it would be best to drop them as soon as you can.

And while you're at it, you should leave DeviantArt too, since that company is owned by Wix. I deleted my DA account about a year ago not just because of their generative AI debacle but also because of their affiliation with their parent company. And just last month, DA has since shown their SUPPORT for Israel in the middle of Israel actively genociding the Palestinian people 😬

Anyway, I used to use Wix and I stopped using it around the same time that I left DA, but I never closed my Wix account until now. What WAS nice about Wix was how easy it was to build a site with nothing but a drag-and-drop system without any need to code.

So if you're using Wix for your portfolio, your school projects, or for anything else, then where can you go?

Here are some recommendations that you can look into for website builders that you can start for FREE and are NOT tied to a big, corporate entity (below the cut) 👇👇

Carrd.co

This is what I used to build my link hub and my portfolio, so I have the most experience with this platform.

It's highly customizable with a drag-and-drop arrangement system, but it's not as open-ended as Wix. Still though, it's easy to grasp & set up without requiring any coding knowledge. The most "coding" you may ever have to deal with is markdown formatting (carrd provides an on-screen cheatsheet whenever you're editing text!) and section breaks (which is used to define headers, footers, individual pages, sections of a page, etc.) which are EXTREMELY useful.

There's limits to using this site builder for free (max of 2 websites & a max of 100 elements per site), but even then you can get a lot of mileage out of carrd.

mmm.page

This is a VERY funny & charming website builder. The drag-and-drop system is just as open-ended as Wix, but it encourages you to get messy. Hell, you can make it just as messy as the early internet days, except the way you can arrange elements & images allows for more room for creativity.

Straw.page

This is an extremely simple website builder that you can start from scratch, except it's made to be accessible from your phone. As such, the controls are limited and intentionally simple, but I can see this being a decent website builder to start with if all you have is your phone. The other options above are also accessible from your phone, but this one is by far one of the the simplest website builders available.

Hotglue.me

This is also a very simple & rudimentary website builder that allows you to make a webpage from scratch, except it's not as easy to use on a mobile phone.

At a glance, its features are not as robust or easy to pick up like the previous options, but you can still create objects with a simple double click and drag them around, add text, and insert images or embeds.

Mind you, this launched in the 2010s and has likely stayed that way ever since, which means that it may not have support for mobile phone displays, so whether or not you wanna try your hand at building something on there is completely up to you!

Sadgrl's Layout Editor

sadgrl.online is where I gathered most of these no-code site builders! I highly recommend looking through the webmaster links for more website-building info.

This simple site builder is for use on Neocities, which is a website hosting service that you can start using for free. This is the closest thing to building a site that resembles the early internet days, but the sites you can make are also responsive to mobile devices! This can be a good place to start if this kind of thing is your jam and you have little to no coding experience.

Although I will say, even if it sounds daunting at first, learning how to code in HTML and CSS is one of the most liberating experiences that anyone can have, even if you don't come from a website scripting background. It's like cooking a meal for yourself. So if you want to take that route, then I encourage to you at least try it!

Most of these website builders I reviewed were largely done at a glance, so I'm certainly missing out on how deep they can go.

Oh, and of course as always, Free Palestine 🇵🇸

[pompadourpink]

It's a new beginning!

Hello children,

September is coming, school too for some of you - often a great moment for a bit of decluttering and a few new good resolutions. Here am I, offering myself as one of them!

As you hopefully know, I started this blog in 2016 and have been a private tutor since the beginning of the pandemic. I have room at the moment for several new students, so here is what I offer:

Classes, obviously - the typical schedule is one hour a week, sometimes one and a half, or one every two weeks, or two every two weeks; typically same day same time (I'm always happy to make adjustments if you work shifts)

Homework, if you can make the time for it. I typically prefer it to be finished by the middle of the week so that I have time to take a look and correct it, giving you the opportunity to give it a second try before class!

Depending on your preferences, either just a few activities so we can take our time, especially if you are a beginner, or something a bit more dynamic consisting in five to ten minute long activities to keep you motivated and alert (which seems to be a crowd's favourite as most of my students are neurodivergent).

Talking activities are typically answering series of questions I share from my Notion, talking about your week, summarising a book or a movie, making me guess a word or a person, or a concept I call "alien talk" where you explain something (like a vaccine or insurance) from scratch to a little red man.

Writing activities are often fictional (I have students create a little character on a website and we write an update about their life regularly), they can also be an overview of your month, a letter to quit your horrible job or convince Snoop Dog to marry you because you are a gold digger.

Transcribing activities, especially at the beginning, are either me reading very easy sentences so you can write them down and memorise the way things sound, then it's episodes from young children's shows, extracts from very famous movies, then we hit harder and turn to gameshows or podcasts.

Translating activities, from one language to another, are a written translation of the first page of a novel (I did the Secret History recently), or a newspapers article (we are working on this one at the moment); or an oral translation of songs lyrics, fairytales, children's books, muted captioned playthroughs of your favourite games on Youtube, etc.

Finally, a few games: silly quizzes, crosswords, Wordle and even Quordle, hangman, and sometimes we even sing if you're comfortable with that.

Here is the link of my website where you will find reviews and a list of what to send me to get the process started. A few things to know:

I try to make the activities fit your preferences: get me a list of what you like and that is what we will work on. If your first language is not English, I am happy to include it, I'm always eager to learn (I've been reviewing my Spanish this way!)

I work without cameras. I don't need to see your face, I just need a voice and a good Internet connection. All students are welcome, no matter if you have an accent, a stutter, or disabilities. Do not be afraid of being judged, there is none of that here.

I ask for your contact information to be able to do my billing, no one else sees it and no one will know if you give me the address of a building in your area if you feel more comfortable this way. If you prefer to have a lesson first and decide that you want to continue before sending me your info, that's also an option.

I have a student and a regular rate, depending on what you can afford, and we can make different arrangements if your country's rate makes it too difficult, I've done it before.

Please comment if you have a question!

Much love,

Rose

[alicesmindpalace]

I've decided that I'm gonna take the excuse of Anthony's birthday 🎂 as a chance to make a quick post to explain why I love and respect this guy so much.

For context, I have been a Smosh fan since 2013 and as you can imagine, it's been a real rollercoaster 😆, but I am glad I stuck around because in the end it was really worth it.

I think the main reason why I am still around and I'm still here in my late 20's (yeah, I'm old lol) is that Ian and Anthony as people more than as creators, always kinda hit a little different for me.

Ian and Anthony are so precious to me, and I will never shut up about how Anthony deserve a lot more praise and understanding.

Because sure, being good looking in our society is a big advantage but being known as "the hot one" in a comedy duo isn't that easy. Anthony's contributions get overlooked often because of this dumb old mindset and I think it's really unfair tbh.

Anthony has a great sense of humor, even if he doesn't make jokes 24/7 he can immediately recognize what makes something funny, hone in on it and use it to make the situation funnier. He built a media empire doing that if you really think about it! He really found a golden goose and immediately knew what to make of it. Anthony and Ian BOTH (that's right both) have a great sense of humor and it's very compatible, which is why Smosh became a thing imo.

Of course, the best part of this is that you can't have a sense of humor and be stupid, it's impossible, you can be funny and be an idiot yeah, but having a sense of humor needs quick thinking, an ability to recognize subtle patterns, the contradictions, making unexpected connections all of that good stuff, which means that these two guys are also really intelligent.

Which makes sense because Anthony was already building websites when most of the people his age were clicking around on Newgrounds. He created two successful buissness form scratch, the boy is smart! 🙌

He came from nothing and got to where is now which is very impressive.

That's also why another thing that I respect about him, is that he almost never mentions how hard it's been for him during his childhood or uses it to gain sympathy even though it would be really easy to do it. He only mentioned the difficult situation at home and his mother's problems a few times in all these years on camera. He still is mentally struggling these days because he didn’t have an easy life but he doesn't use it to get pity or attention, like a lot of people on the internet do.

He really is one of the only remaining unproblematic internet creators that there are left and he managed to be one of them for decades.

There is no dirt on him. He is a nice person and that's probably the most important thing for me tbh and the reason why I could never just forget of Ian and Anthony or get over them or just swap them for some else. Finding Smosh to me felt as mind blowing as finding two four leaves clovers right next to each other.

Even when things went south and they separated, they were never spiteful or malicious, like (a lot of) other people are in these situations, and both handled it with so much respect. They could have made up stuff and thrown shade or dirt to make themselves appear in the right but they didn't. We maybe not know all the details but even just the way they still love and think of each other now after the worst went down tells you who they really were and are behind close doors.

I have so much more to say but it would get too long, so, yeah, this is (part lol) of the reason I love and respect Anthony Padilla so much.

These are only my thoughts of course, I'm talking for me, but I hope you enjoyed (will probably do one for Ian's birthday as well and talk about more of the reason Ianthony are my all time favorites 🤞).

[sterekfests]

Welcome to our Fall round of Sterek Fests! Sterek Fall Fest will run from September 3rd - October 7th in celebration of Fall, whether you enjoy drinking every kind of pumpkin spice drink or visiting a pumpkin patch every year. There’s a little something for everyone!

Check out our Rules and FAQs. 

We also have a Discord you can join that has events running such as @sterekbingo and @sterekweekly along with @sterekfests.

How to Participate:

Participating in Sterek Fall Fests is easy and stress-free! This is a no-commitment fest where you can participate as little or as much as you want. Participate in one week and none of the others if you so fancy, or participate in all of them! We have an AO3 Collection for you to post all of your creations in!   This fest is open to both Fic and Art, so create to your heart's content!

How to post:

You can post your creations to any website that you want, as long as they are viewable to the public, whether that’s Tumblr, LiveJournal, DreamWidth, or our AO3 Collection. @sterekfests so we see your creations to reblog them. Use the tags #sterekfestsfall2023, and #sterekfests for generic tags. For weekly tags: #sterekfestssweater, #sterekfestsbaking, #sterekfestsbonfire, #sterekfestspumpkin, #sterekfestshaunted,

Late Posting:

Late posting is always welcomed! The collection will stay open for late submissions.

If you have any questions, feel free to send us an ask!

- Liam (@sterekbros) & Dori (@evanesdust) 

Keep reading to see all the awesome theme weeks ahead!

September 3-9: Sweater Weather

As the leaves change to a beautiful rainbow of colors, it’s time for Stiles and Derek to break out the sweaters and savor some cozy autumn days. Do they explore harvest farms and drink seasonal cups of pumpkin spice latte? Or maybe they take a hike through the woods or visit a corn maze? The possibilities are endless as they embrace the season and all the flavors of fall.

September 10-16:  Baking

It’s that time of year when cool weather brings out everyone’s love for baking! Tarts, pies, pumpkin butter, cookies, cheesecake bars, and cobblers are on the menu. Is Stiles in a baking mood with the change of the weather, getting ready for the upcoming holidays? Is Derek making his mother’s from-scratch apple pie? Maybe there’s a local bake-off for a harvest festival, where Stiles or Derek is the undefeated champion, and the other has come to challenge them to an on-the-spot bake-off. May the best baker win!

September 17-23: Bonfire

The air is crisp and autumn’s arrival is the absolute perfect time of the year to take advantage of the cool nights and starry skies and to make memories around the fire pit with friends, pack, and family. Roasting marshmallows for s'mores and getting cozy with your mate is one of the many things Sterek can enjoy this Fall around the bonfire.  Are they having a pack get-together at the rebuilt Hale house where Derek is hosting a bonfire party for the pack? Or perhaps they’re at the beach building up a bonfire to fight off the salty chilly air? Wherever you take Sterek this Fall, they’ll be snuggly and warm, enjoying the starry night together.

September 24-30: Pumpkin Patch

It’s that time of the year when everyone loves to visit a pumpkin patch! It’s one of the most Fall things you can do. Are Derek and Stiles getting ready for October, which is just around the corner? Are they picking out pumpkins so they can roast the seeds and use the rest for tasty recipes? Or maybe they’re taking their family to visit the games, including hayrides at their local pumpkin patch to support local farms and their seasonal farmers market? Perhaps the pack shows up for family photo ops for Eli’s first pumpkin patch visit! The possibilities are abundant, along with those cute adorable pumpkins we can only enjoy during the Fall season.

October 1-7: Haunted House

Phantoms and demons and ghosts, oh my! With Halloween around the corner, Stiles and Derek would certainly be brave enough to visit a haunted house or two, racing each other to see who would make it out first. Or maybe they work in one, chasing screaming patrons through the attraction. Either way, their wild energy and fearlessness would make for some thrilling entertainment.

@teenwolffandomevents @thebigbangblogproject @sterekevents

[roseamongroses]

with strange tenderness ch: 5/7

Alternate Universe - Modern Setting /Alternate Universe - Small Town /Artist Mel Medarda/ Muse! Sevika /Court Mandated Found Family/ Sevika Does Not Get Paid Enough (Arcane: League of Legends)/ Retired! Sevika/ Parental Death/ Past Traumatic Events/ Past Violence & Stalking/ Mild Sexual Content/ Dog/Cat Dynamic/ Canon-Typical Exploitation of the Working Class/ no beta we die like Silco/ Vitiligo! Mel/ repeated silco slander/ Hurt/Comfort/ Past Child Abuse/ Past Neglect/ Domestic Fluff

-

[1]/[2][3][4]/[5]

ao3

-

Sevika’s arm itched.

That sensation--that ache, the skin-crawling pressure she could never quite scratch. After her arm was amputated, she took shit care of it. Too busy, too skittish, life was already too much. She didn't want to deal with smart-ass doctors. The pain persisted the same-way she did--with an uncompromising vengeance. The intensity came and went without warning, some days kinder than others, but it was always there.

Slow seeping, clogging her life in ways she never expected. Back pain, shoulder pain, joint pain--rashes. Some of it would’ve come naturally with age, but she surely sped up the process.

And today, it hurt like a bitch and it was that damn school’s fault.

“--Ma’am,” That scratchy voice drawled, “I’m afraid he’s on leave at the moment. Would you like me to transfer you to his line so you can leave a voice-mail? He’ll respond at his earliest convenience.”

“No, I would not,” Sevika curtly replied.

She’s played this game before.

The local Health Department was nothing more than a pretty building and an out of date website. Zaun Public School Administrators were notorious shit-heads-- some didn’t even live in the district. They commuted from nearby cities because the labor shortage was that fuckin’ bad. And it was well known that anybody who could send an email and smile could get past the interviews. The idiots multiplied and nested in their easy checks and incompetence.

And every time some bullshit happened, those rats scrambled for cover.

The bed creaked as Sevika adjusted herself, settling her weight against the wall, “When is he gonna be back?” she asked, preemptively exhausted by the answer.

“Ma’am, I’m afraid I cannot disclose that information at this time.”

Sevika rolled her eyes, typical, “Can I schedule an appointment?”

“Appointments can be scheduled once he returns from leave-”

“-And when will that be?”

A lengthy pause--then the phone clicked, a droning beep signalling the end of the call.

Sevika inhaled sharp, gripping her phone tight.

She shouldn’t be surprised, they’ve been dodging everyone’s calls lately.

Meetings canceled, emails ignored, office scarce aside from those steely-eyed secretaries. Someone had posted in the parent group this morning--another kid violently ill. A few parents were starting to set up drives to fund alternatives to the free/reduced meals most people in the area relied on, which was good for the short term, but it didn’t solve the issue.

The bed creaked, the pile of blankets slow stirring, “...What did they say this time?” Mel asked, voice thick with sleep, muffled.

Sevika glanced back.

Curtains drawn, that early morning light was muted. Diffused shadows caressing the smooth expanse of rich, speckled skin peeking from under the covers and mountains of pillows.

Mel snuggled into the blankets, exposed legs rubbing together as she exhaled indulgently. Eyes still closed, her brow wrinkled at the silence, “That bad, huh?” she murmured, her foot eased against Sevika’s back, light as it brushed against the scarred skin, “Anything I can do?”

Sevika considered this--then she considered that trailing pressure along her spine, that voice floating pleasantly in her ear, and how her arm ached from only thinking about this mess. She sighed, rolling her shoulder, wondering where her shrinker went, “I don’t take handouts on the first date.”

“...Sevika,” Mel said her name like a sigh, rolling it on her tongue fondly as her eyes blearily opened,“I’m serious.”

“I am too,” Sevika reassured, “I know you--Mel,” An artist, a perfectionist, a woman who couldn’t help but try to please. Who held her laugh close to her chest, but didn’t hesitate to smile. Who picked bouquets to match her nails and matched outfits with her dog. Who breathes charisma as easily as air, but falters when faced with a crowded room. Who attended to her friend’s family home like it was her own, not a trinket misplaced, nor a corner undusted. Someone who persists, contradictions and all.

Sevika hasn’t known her for long, but those hands dug into her deep-- fingerprints smearing, painting her life bright--gold. And yet, “--I don’t know a lot about Mel Medarda.”

Medarda.

A family well known in the media, yet not known at all. The name was blazed across hospitals, schools, and skyscrapers. They weren’t wealthy--they were wealth personified. It carried weight, connections, and a lot of eyes--for better or for worse. People who’d lend a hand as long as you lent three of your own.

Zaun has seen a fair amount of philanthropic attempts--all good intentions, no practical ground work. Leveraging notoriety could be useful, could shake things up, but if they weren’t careful they could easily end up in media induced rubble.

As much as she hated this town--it was her home. The only shit-hole she could always crawl back to when everything else fell apart. She wouldn’t compromise it for anything.

She’d send the fundraiser over, but anything else was up to the discretion of the other parents and organizers--she told Mel just as much.

“...You’re right “ Mel begrudgingly accepted, blowing air softly from her lips.

“-I’m always right.”

Mel squinted at them, unamused. Her eyes shut as she buried herself under the covers.

Sevika chuckled, rolling over and sinking back into the bed, between her thighs. Their head rested on her stomach, breathing in that scent deep, feeling her hands cart through their hair, gentle and lulling.

Arm looping around Mel’s waist, they squeezed her tight. Sevika savoured that quiet moment, lingering at her side a little while longer.

-

Sevika’s nostrils flared--a burning stench hitting as soon as she stepped through the door.

Briefly she considered turning around and waiting another hour before coming back. But considering she gave Jinx the whole spiel about responsibility last night, she decided to get it over with.

Taking off her coat, she assessed the damage.

T.V intact--couch intact--walls intact. Little Miss Scrappy Doo was passed out on the couch, snoring away. Isha waved from the kitchen table. She swayed in her seat as she blinked away sleep, a chunk of her bangs cut in the middle.

“Mornin’ Lefty,” Jinx called out from the kitchen, whistling a tune as she tilted the pan. A bubbling, burnt mass slid onto a paper plate.

Sevika’s stomach turned at the sight, wondering if she should open a window before the fire-alarm set off.

“What? You want some? ” Jinx asked, lifting the monstrosity in their direction.

“Fuck no,” Sevika said, flinching away, “Didn’t I teach you how to cook properly?”

Those first few weeks living together were rough.

The girl could handle a rifle like no-tomorrow, but nearly blew the microwave up several times trying to make ramen. Sevika thought it was intentional, but eventually realized she was genuinely clueless about shit like that.

“Yep,” Jinx nodded, dumping the hot pan onto the mountain of dishes in the sink, “This one's for sister dearest,” she said, tone unnervingly chipper. She then nodded her head towards the counter, two plates with perfectly cooked omelets cooling, “Those are ours--” she explained.

“...Are you okay?”

Jinx wiped her hands on her shirt, picking up all the plates in one flourish, “Nope,” she said, red-rimmed eyes distant, “I’m skipping tomorrow, don’t give me shit about it,” she set down two plates at the table--one burnt, one not. She ruffled Isha’s hair as she passed, disappearing down the hallway without another word--door slamming, shortly followed by her speakers blasting.

At the noise, Vi startled awake with a choking, snort. She fell from the couch with a thud, groaning as she stumbled up.

Sevika and Isha grimaced as she immediately hit her head on the coffee-table falling back down.

-

“I’m going back to school--” Vi explained between mouthfuls, swallowing the thick sludge unphased and noisily licking her fingers. Isha stared at her, disgusted, before she picked up her own plate and retreated to the living room. Vi picked up her coffee mug, chasing the slime, “I planned to tell Jinx after the concert, but the dickhead,” Milo, naturally, “Let it slip.”

Sevika’s coffee mug stilled at her lips, she sat it down, “Shit--really?”

Vi scowled, tensing, “The fuck you mean by that?”

“Nothing,” Sevika honestly replied, “I didn’t know you were interested, that’s all.”

Thinking back to when she was that age-- certifications, classes, and higher education never came up. Her grades were fine, but no one asked if she was interested in anything else. No one expected much from her honestly.

And she didn’t care at the time--she only wanted out.

Vi relaxed, wiping her mouth, “I like school,” she explained with a shrug,“It was the only shit that felt normal in juvie. And when I got out I took some online classes, but I didn’t really have a plan,” she slumped back in the chair, “Life’s been shit lately, so I wanted to try again.”

Shit--was an understatement if the rumours were anything to believe.

Vi was fairly reliable when it came to her sister, but she had been undergoing what could only be described as an 'early-life crash out' these past few months.

She’d been swinging between various jobs of questionable levels of legality, which came to fruition after she knocked out her supervisor and got kicked out of the Enforcer Academy. She only dodged the charges because someone snitched about the freaky-ass hazing going on behind the scenes.

“I leave in the spring,” Vi continues, picking at the bandages on her forearm, “I know it's sudden, but I’ve been thinking a lot about it. About everything. Jinx graduates next year, she’s gonna leave and do great things and I’ll still be here doin’ fuck-all and--” she frowned, muttering, “I can’t pretend like I’m happy like this. I want to try something different, something that makes me feel good and does good. I plan on coming back. I’m not leaving forever--so I thought…” her face deflated a bit, “…I thought she’d understand.”

“...She does,” Sevika says with an odd certainty. Thinking back to Jinx’s odd behavior earlier--she was angry, but it was clear she was trying not to lash out again, “She doesn’t like it, but she gets it.”

Vi looked skeptical, “Then how do I make it--” she ran a hand over her face, struggling for a moment, “Less shit for us then?”

In moments like these--Sevika remembered how young they were, she sighed, “Make sure she knows she’ll still have a place in your life,” she says, fingers drumming against the table, “Schedule visits, holidays, phone calls--whatever y’all decide, just be consistent.”

She made a mental note to bring this up to Jinx’s therapist next week. She knew Vi was averse to therapy, but they could at least work out a plan. Sudden changes like this tended to bring up bad memories for them both.

“...Right,” Vi nodded, mulling it over as she picked over the remaining crumbs on her plate.

Then, Sevika asked, curious, “What’s the program?”

“Uh--” Vi blinked a bit surprised, “It's an Emergency Medical Service program. Someone… close to me recommended I look into EMT training certification and the idea stuck with me,” she admits, looking off, “The closest one was in Piltover, but the cheaper programs were further away, so I had to apply to those.”

Sevika raised her eyebrow, “Who recommended it?

Vi sucked in her teeth, pointedly avoiding her gaze, “...Ex-girlfriend.”

Sevika snorted.

Vi abruptly stood, leaving the table in a huff.

-

Mel’s eyebrow twitched ever so slightly, “What are you doing?” she said, looking up from her toolbox.

Sevika’s thumb hooked on the waistline of her briefs, “Changing,” she answered, smoothly tugging them down and stepping out.

Another twitch--Mel’s lips pursed, “I can see that,” she said slowly, eyes following the movement, “Why are you changing in here and-- where’s your robe?”

Clothes neatly folded and tucked away, Sevika reached for the straps attaching her prosthetic, letting them slacken, “I know you like watching,” she said, setting the prosthetic down with a heavy clunk, rolling her shoulder as she adjusted her weight.

Mel neither confirmed nor denied that, “And the robe?”

“Does it matter?” Sevika asked, falling back onto the love-seat with a groan and getting comfortable. She eyed the plate of fruit set out, considering her options.

“Yes, I need to set up without being…”

Blackened, split lips, dragging hot along the column of her throat, breath ragged. A twice-broken nose nudging between her thighs. Dark eyes, dark circles, dark nipples glinting with silver-- cold as she rolled her thumbs over them. Broad shoulders and a strong arm pinning her to the leather seats with their weight. Thick hair trailing down a firm stomach, a black leather harness snug around their hips and thighs.

“--distracted.” Mel finished, blinking away the memories, throat dry.

“We should do something about that,” Sevika agreed, picking a peeled orange slice and popping it into her mouth— tongue catching the trailing juice, “I wouldn’t want to interrupt your work.”

“Mhm…” Mel leaned back on the stool, lost in thought, “So, you’ll… put on the robe.”

“I will,” Sevika said, scooping up a few berries, idly feeding them to herself while she searched the plate, “Any other requests?” She had noticed something recently. Despite how naturally bossy the woman was, she always seemed to-

Mel hesitated, “...Yes,” she admits, looking off, “Our relationship is different now-”

Peaches drizzled in honey.

“It is.”

Caramel dipped apples, sliced to look like little bunnies.

“-And we both have…desires.”

Crushed berries staining her fingers, her lips, her tongue--

“We do.”

Sweet.

“So if I wanted to try something with you—”

“I’m all yours,” Sevika confirmed, licking her fingers clean.

“...I can do whatever I want?” Mel softly asked, scrutinizing her with a far more attentive gaze.

Sevika recognized the look--it's the same one Mel wore when she painted. A narrowed intensity--picking a part every detail and putting them back together. Her vision, her hands, everything just so.

Normally, Sevika was fine with going along with whatever whim Mel had, but that look gave her pause, hairs raising, “...Within reason,” she gruffly added.

Mel nodded with a small smile, “Of course,” she said, turning back to continue rifling through her toolbox, “We can discuss it further after our session today,” she said before meeting their eyes evenly, voice stern, “Go put on your robe.”

This time she wasn’t asking.

Sevika stood without thinking. She left to search for the damn thing--honestly she misplaced it last session and didn’t care to look for it.

Distantly she wondered what she’d gotten herself into.

-

Juice dripped down Sevika’s chin, fruit sweet, tangy on her tongue as she thickly swallowed.

Mel wiped the mess with her thumb, pressing another piece between their lips. She cupped Sevika’s face, tilting her chin up firmly as she kissed them, tongue chasing the taste.

Sevika groaned into her mouth, thick thighs straddling their lap, pressure rocking against her core as that wet mouth dragged down her neck, sucking, nipping, lapping, eager to clean her up. Sevika’s hand twitched to steady her then--her pulse jumped as nails curled around her neck, squeezing a warning.

Sevika’s hand stilled, gripping the cushion instead--remembering.

If Sevika touches her without permission--Mel will stop.

Mel hummed pleased, pulling back. Her thumb stroked Sevika’s lips, saliva gathering. Neither looked away---a desperate fondness holding them tight, breaths intertwined.

Mel reached for her pony-tail, pulling her locs loose, gentle waves framing her face as she moved from Sevika’s lap, settling on the floor between her strong legs.

Still fully clothed, those bright, wild eyes looked up at her, gleaming with poorly disguised humor as she reached for Sevika’s hand. Intertwining their fingers, she guided them to her hair, gathering the locs gently in their hold and out of her face once more.

Sevika watched, grip relaxed.

“No pulling,” Mel says, breath warm as her face disappeared between Sevika’s thighs.

A warning? No, a challenge.

"--Fuck."

-

Mel Medarda.

Stifled moans, gasping breaths. Her body jerked, an unrelentless fever. Hand shaking as she was desperate to keep her hold steady and gentle this time--

No matter how many times Sevika picked her apart--

Almond nails, neatly trimmed. Long enough that they sunk into her thighs, biting. Keeping her legs spread, not by force, but because--

“You’re so good for me… Can you do one more?” That treacherous mouth asked, but she knew the answer. She coaxed another moan from Sevika, wet heat fluttering everywhere, teasing, cruel as it set off every nerve, but didn’t quite land home. Not yet.

Burning— coiling tighter and tighter--that diligent mouth worked hard.

Sevika could never—

“ —lift your leg like this—Oh. Oh that's—perfect—“ Mel whispered, hips rolling as her head fell back, eyes closed. Little gasps, melodic. Her chest bouncing, a sheen of sweat making her skin glow. A lovely sight. Sweet oils and the earthen smoke, a heady mix making Sevika’s head spin as she surrendered again--and again.

—she could never understand that woman.

Bright eyes squinting up, a softly accented voice drifting over the quiet buzz, capturing her attention thoroughly even as she--

Sevika exhaled heavily, a pleasant haze settling over her body. Their nerves twitching and painfully sensitive, edging right into serenity. Mind blissfully blank as if she was floating.

Mel’s touch withdrew, a damp cloth wiping Sevika down light and quick. The love-seat shifted as she curled next to Sevika, gentle words bringing them slowly back to earth.

Sevika’s head flopped back against the cushion, worn, “...Mel?”

“Hm?”

“...You’re too far.”

As requested, a hand slid into her hair, soothing. Sevika leaned into the touch, weight settling into her side as she drifted off and--

Mel’s stomach grumbled, loud, cutting through the quiet.

Sevika snorted, eyes opening right in time to catch her face--eyes wide, embarrassed. Adorable, considering everything else she was decidedly not embarrassed about.

“Hungry?” Sevika asked with a toothy grin.

“...Shut up,” Mel muttered, hiding her face in their neck.

-

A hot pan sizzled, curling smoke filling the kitchen.

Sevika’s spatula stirred the vegetables in the pan, adding in more herbs, and glancing every-so-often to the rice cooking on the stove. The fact that Mel had a towel warmer, but not a rice cooker was criminal.

Mel poked her head into the kitchen, confused then concerned, “I could’ve ordered food,” she said, frowning a bit. She had showered and changed, hair tucked away in her bonnet while she wore one of Sevika’s shirts like a dress. The collar was stretched, sleeve sliding down her shoulder while the hem was tight around the tops of her thighs.

Sevika scoffed at the thought.

She was not letting Mel eat take out after that.

Feet padded into the kitchen, slender arms wrapping around Sevika’s waist. Mel’s face rubbed into her back, mumbling to herself as they cooked.

“So, Dr. Medarda,” Sevika started, turning the heat low on the stove.

“Is it later already--?” Mel let out a muffled groan as she resigned herself to the interrogation.

“Yes,” Sevika said with amusement, “What did you study?”

“Political Science with a minor in International Relations,” Mel rattled off easily, then added, “I attended Law School for a while before I dropped out--couldn’t stand it. I applied to Art History programs instead.”

“...And your Mother took that well?”

“As well as she always does,” Mel mumbled, weary at the thought, “She cut me off. My brother tried to send me money when he could to help me pay for school, but I mostly relied on grants and tutoring gigs to graduate.”

Sevika stirred the vegetables, “Does he still support you?”

“No, I make enough now and…” Mel squeezed tight, words rushing out, “She never took me out of the will.”

Sevika stilled for a moment, before she continued stirring, albeit slower now.

Mel let out a quiet breath, “It…helped cover the loans. I’m using the rest to pay for the house’s renovations and…and…”

Sevika set aside the spatula, turning off the stove. Their hand-covered hers, letting her take a moment. Quiet sniffling muffled into her back,

“...Aren’t you going to ask? Everyone always does…” Mel muttered, bitterly, “It was all over the news at the time, you don’t have to pretend.”

The news…

Sevika frowned, racking her brain. “When did it happen?”

“--Uh, two years ago?”

Oh.

Two years ago Sevika was--

Swimming in paperwork, fending off reporters, dealing with ‘loose ends’, and wiping bloody noses. She doesn’t think she even slept, much less followed the news at the time. It didn’t help that the shit always set Jinx off--hearing Silco’s name on every channel.

“I was--” Sevika struggled with the words.She was so used to everyone knowing about her past, that the idea of revealing that uginess to--her--made them uneasy, “Busy--in court.” she settled on.

“Silco v. L.O.L, right?”

“Right--” Sevika blanched, then sighed. Of course she already knew, “...Are you okay with that?”

“...Do you want me to be okay with it?” Mel asked instead.

And--Sevika realized, she didn’t.

She’s had partners who loved it.

Who sought her out solely because of her history, gawking at it like it was some sordid form of entertainment. Who thought it was silly that she was caught up on the past when she ‘got away with it all’. That there was no point in carrying it so close, no point in staring it in the eye and asking--why.

Mel hummed, guessing as much, “I’m not fond of most violence, “ she admitted, “I’m not sure I would’ve liked you much back then, but it's a part of you. I can’t….resent you for the life you lived. I’m sure it's hard enough living with it everyday, surely you don’t need my judgement. I didn’t know you then, but I know you now and…” she inhaled her deep, lips pressed against her spine, “I’m okay with this--with you.”

And--Sevika didn’t know what to do with that.

A deep ache pressed against her chest, sapping at her lungs. It didn’t make sense, yet it was a truth she easily accepted. That strange tenderness-- she didn’t deserve it, but didn’t want to let it go.

-

A little while later, when the two were a little less hungry, Mel reluctantly asked, “…Do you really not know what happened to me?”

“I don’t,” Sevika confirms, “And you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

At that, Mel sighed, “It’s…a part of me. And…other then therapy I haven’t gotten to—“ she swallowed, eyes closing, “I’d rather you not find out from a news article. I want to tell you—”

- “I don’t know when it started.” -

Mel Medarda peeked around her Mother’s legs.

Eyes wide and wary, she looked up at the strange woman. Her Mother’s hand pushed her forward to say hello. The woman was tall, smelling like the flowers in her Mother’s garden, a curling rose embroidered on her suit lapels.

'She' stooped down to Mel’s height with a warm smile.

- “'She' was a family friend. For as long as I could remember she was always there.”

- “Brilliant,” 'She' said, smoothing Mel’s head, “My sister was just like you at your age—“ 'She' cooed.

-

“I didn’t see her often once I started school, but 'She' always tried to be there for me—even when my Mother couldn’t. Birthdays, graduations. 'She' helped pick out my first apartment—tutored me for the LSAT. 'She' wanted my life to be—perfect.“

-

“Your Mothers right, you know,” 'She' gently said.

Mel’s eyes raised, looking at the woman, appalled.

The woman chuckled, pinching her cheeks, “You can't get so distracted by silly boys—think about your future.”

“But it's not a—“ Mel’s mouth closed, she glanced away nervously, biting her lip, before she admitted, “It’s not a guy. You’ve met her before—Lest?”

The woman stiffened, “Your...roommate?” 'She' asked, brows furrowing, “How long has this been... This really isn’t like you Mel and you’ve never liked girls before.”

“Yes, I have,” Mel explained, shaking her head, “I just haven’t…”

“So you don’t trust me…?”

“No, no, that’s not the case at all--”

- “She was…” -

“You have to stay calm, dear,” 'She' chided, wiping her tears, “You can’t cause a fit every time a man makes you uncomfortable.”

Forever patient, forever calm, forever there.

“Right, but Mother says I shouldn’t let them walk over m--,”

“Ambessa is a different woman then us, dear,” She gently says, “When she speaks--men listen. We have to take a different approach.”

And--she was right.

Mel wasn’t like her Mother. She'd never be.

Clarity--a sickening feeling churned in her remembering that meeting--their comments, but she couldn’t afford to burn bridges.

“—What should I do?” Mel murmured, blinking away her lingering tears.

- “She was always there.” -

Heels clicked-- a door slamming.

Mel left her Mom’s office, a bitter storm that scorched the halls, employees jerking out of her way.

It wasn’t about the money.

She didn’t give a damn about the money. It was everything--every award, every grade, every connection she painstakingly made and delivered on a silver platter was never enough.

And quite frankly, she wasn’t sure if it was worth it.

Was it worth every missed date--every lost friendship? Was it worth the years she spent shunted off at some boarding school, spending breaks studying while everyone else got to go home--while everyone else got to see their family?

Would it all be worth it when she graduates? When she’s employed? When she dies?

Was she enough?

Did she do any good?

She had been meandering through life, led by her nose, with nothing to show for it but her name.

Mel was sick of it all.

-

“It got worse after I dropped out. My Mother and I weren’t on speaking terms for awhile and I didn’t want any part of her life at the time. I stopped attending events, answering phone calls. I wanted to get away from it all and…'She' took it personally.

-

Calls.

Day in--day out, the phone rang. Friends, relatives, classmates--but it was mostly 'Her'.

Mel eventually dragged herself from Elora's couch. She scrubbed her skin raw, massaging oils into her scalp. She tied her hair back and picked up the phone. She decided to listen to the voicemails--hoping to start picking up the pieces of her life.

“Dear, I know you get overwhelmed, but you should recons-”

And she listened--

“A lot of people have invested in you, please-”

And listened.

“Do you not trust me--”

Until, even the shrill ring of the phone made her sick.

“Do you not love me?”

Mel changed her number--again and again. Then it was messages, emails, packages, mail.

“You’re a sweet girl, it isn’t like you to be so… selfish-”

-

“She thought I was running away from her. I wish I did--“

-

Mel unlocked her office, flipping the light-switch.

Her heart dropped.

A neat bouquet of dark roses sat on her desk with a note.

'For my brilliant and beautiful girl. Do give me a call.'

Mel tore up the note. Hands shaking, cracked, and bleeding. She numbly stared at the broken pieces and scattered petals.

- “She was always there.” - It was another one.

Mel could pick them out easily.

Students who weren’t students. They were paid to keep an eye on her, take pictures, and videos. She’s dealt with her fair share of undergraduates with crushes, but she could always tell the difference.

She knew 'Her' well at this point.

- “She was always there--sticking her fingers into my life. Every event—every milestone. And everytime my life didn’t suit her fancy--she had to interfere. ” -

“Welcoming our guest speaker—“

Mel abruptly stood--smile like ice, heels clicking as she left. Her fiance followed, confused by her sudden mood swing.

-

“My Mother didn’t know how bad it was—no one did. I didn’t think…It had been going on for so long, I didn’t think anyone would care. I had gotten used to it all. Then--my wedding happened. It was a public affair. My family was becoming a major investor of my fiance’s rising start-up. Investors, celebrities, and the press were invited and-- my fiancé was running late.”

-

Mel pinched her nose, resigning herself to the resounding ache setting in as the seconds--minutes--hours past. He didn’t pick up the phone, didn’t send her a text.

She had sent her bridesmaids out to look for him. At this point she was too tired to deal with people--their prying eyes, their pointed words-- and retreated to her dressing room.

She didn't want to see anyone. She only wanted to see him.

She should’ve been angry--she wasn’t. A part of her was still clinging to hope that there had to be a reason why, but.

She wondered if it would matter--if there was a reason. If it was good, if it was bad. She wonders if that closure would stop this dreadful feeling. Yet, she knew the truth. This wasn’t the first time something like his had happened.

She knows she’d never be able to sleep at his side without feeling that all consuming dread. That fear that even in a marriage of her own choosing, she’d never be enough.

A knock at the door--and despite it all, Mel rushed to answer, nearly tripping on her train. That hope--fretful, fleeting, gone once she opened the door.

-

…

- “My Mom found me first.” -

…

-

“I— lost consciousness and--the enforcers were called because of the noise. My Mother didn’t—there was so much…It became a media circus for a long time. Two influential women died and I was the only person who knew why. My brother tried to cover it up, but the incident was too public. I couldn't go anywhere without cameras following me. Some people wanted to make a quick buck off the situation. They’d follow me and riffle through my trash to sell items. Then someone leaked my phone number-- then my address. Even after the all of that nonsense died down, I didn’t trust security anymore —I couldn't trust anyone. Lest reached out and offered let me stay at her old family home. She thought a change of scenery would help my nerves--”

-

Sevika bounced her leg, flipping through the T.V channels, eyes unseeing.

Shug slept at her feet, drooling. Behind her, Mel was snug between the couch and their back. Long legs hooked around Sevika’s waist, head resting on their shoulder as she enjoyed the pressure.

“It's getting late,” Mel murmured, hands tracing scant circles into their back, “If you need to leave…”

Sevika leaned back, squishing her further into the couch in response. She continued flipping through the channels, a thoughtless fidgeting that quieted her head as she sorted through her thoughts. She then asked, “Why did you offer to help with the situation at the schools?”

Soft breath brushed against the shell of Sevika’s ear, “Why wouldn’t I?”

“Someone could’ve easily leaked your location. ”

“I…” Mel sighed, “It’s nothing that hasn’t happened before.”

Sevika glanced back, sharp, “It doesn’t have to happen. If you want to be involved--it doesn’t have to be public. I’m not compromising the safety of anyone in Zaun--that includes you.”

“But I’m…”

“You're stuck with me, remember?” Sevika said, “And I don’t date tourists—so you better get used to this shithole.”

Mel buried her face into Sevika’s back, holding on tight.

-

Ambessa Medarda crossed her legs, red silk dress slipping over her knee, red-bottomed heel pointed. She glanced away from the window, silencing her ear piece for a moment, “Mel.” she called, sharply.

“Yes ma’am?” Mel asked, wiping her mouth, eyes wide and guilty looking.

Her daughter sat on the other side of the spacious car, her frilly, red dress fluffed, a matching bow tying her locs in a high, neat bun. Her legs kicked, dangling from the car seat, part of her shoe falling off and one of her socks missing. Next to her Kino was slumped against the window sill, drooling. His suit jacket missing, a red tie loosely hanging around his neck.

Ambessa decided to choose her battles wisely for today, “Where’d you get those from?” she asked, squinting at the cookies clutched in her daughter's little hand--crumbs falling everywhere. She’d have to call the cleaners again.

“Uh…” Mel frowned, hands fidgeting--more crumbs-- looking at the ceiling, “…Kino found them?”

Ambessa raised an eyebrow, “Try again.”

Mel deflated—caught, “The Rose lady gave it to me.”

Ambessa racked her brain—her daughter always had odd little nick-names for everything. Eventually she relaxed, realizing what she meant, “You’ve met her before, shouldn’t you know her name by now?”

“I forgot…?”

Ambessa sighed . “She’s an important friend of the family. Try harder to remember next time and…” her brows furrowed, eyes straying to the cookies, “If you can't remember their name--if you don't know them, don’t accept anything from them. Not everyone who’s nice to you can be trusted. Understand? ” Her eyes softened as those bright eyes blinked back, confused. She sighed, shaking her head weary, “Do you understand me?” she restated, firmly.

Mel's cheeks puffed, she looked out the window a little annoyed, “...Yes Ma’am.”

[derinthescarletpescatarian]

Apologies if you’ve answered this sort of question before but may I ask how you made your website? As a writer who’s looking into publishing stuff online I’ve done some (admittedly rather minimal) research on making websites but I really like the way yours is set up and haven’t so far seen a good way to accomplish a straightforward navigation system like you have. Did you just purchase a domain and start from scratch or was there some sort of template you were able to build off of? I am still in the process of figuring out how websites work to begin with - feel free to discard I just really like your set up and was wondering how you put it together

I made a free Wordpress website and just poked around their templates until I found something I could live with. It's not set up exactly how I want but that's because I don't know anything about programming. I upgraded to a paid site when my patreon income made that viable.

But yeah it's a free Wordpress template. I just designed it to make it as easy as possible for people to find the pages they wanted (which should be the #1 priority in all website design, so many websites are full of bullshit).

[kuai-kuai]

webdev log 2

implemented a gallery. I originally wanted it to be more grid-like but I decided I didn't want to mess too much with that, and I like the simple look anyways. forces you to really take in every shitty drawing.

it features a search function that only works for tags. its purpose is mostly just to search multiple tags, because I couldn't be fucked to add a feature where you could click on multiple tags there at the tags list at the top. it lists out all used tags in the table that stores art so you have an idea of what there all is.

at the bottom there's pagination. it's INSANELY easy to do with this framework I'm using. I was gushing about it to my partner on call!! they made fun of me but that's okay!!!!

anyways, clicking on the date underneath the drawing takes you to a view with the image itself (a kind of "post", if I can call it that) here you can view comments and leave one yourself if you so desire. guests are NOT allowed to reply to existing comments because I'd rather things not get too clogged up. I can't stop anyone if they did an "@{name} {message}" type comment, but I don't think anyone is gonna be chatting it up on my site, so idc. I just want it very minimal, and no nesting beyond one single reply.

of course, you can comment on story chapters too so here's what it looks like for a user (me). of course, if a user (me) posts then it gets automatically approved.

the table that stores comments differentiates story comments and art comments with foreign keys to the primary keys of the the chapter and art tables. it's a little convoluted and I kind of wish I didn't do it this way but it's too damn late isn't it. but honestly it might've been the only way to do it. the problem is just repeating code for both chapter and art views.. making a change to one means I gotta manually make the same change to the other. huge pain..

added user authentication and a really shitty bare bones dashboard for myself to approve/reject comments directly on the site in case someone comes along and wants to be mean to me :( rejecting a comment deletes it OFF my site forever. though I kind of want to be able to keep hate mail so I dunno.. oh, and also a big fat logout button because I have nowhere else to put it.

I'll spare everyone the more technical ramblings.

anyways, I'm hoping to add more things later. these are my plans:

allow users (me) to post stories/art through the site itself instead of doing it manually in the vscode terminal for every. single. story. and drawing. (probably took me 6+ hours total just doing this. I don't know why I did it.) (btw this consists of writing commands to store information via the terminal. also, sql and similar databases don't store things like markup or even line breaks. I had to alter all my stories and put \n every time there was a line break... and you have to escape apostrophes (or quotes, depending on which you use) so every "it's" had to be made into "it\'s" HUGE. PAIN. I didn't do this manually obviously but sifting and plugging my stories into character replacers was so time consuming)

delete comments button.... For my eyes and fingers only

make an About page. I've been avoiding all the fun things and doing just the scary stff

figure out SSH stuff...

clean up the shitty css. I refuse to use tailwind even tho it's trying to force me.. I don't want some sleek polished site I want it look like it's in shambles, because it is

but yeah thanks for reading about my webdev and coding journey. even though using the laravel framework made things a thousand times easier it's still a crazy amount of work. let's say building a site completely from scratch means buying every material and designing the house yourself, and using a website builder like wix is just like buying a pre built home and you're just decorating it. using this framework is like putting together a build-your-own-house kit. you're still building a fucking house.

I feel crazy. it felt like the site was close to breaking several times. been sleep deprived for several days working on this nonstop I think I'm getting a little sick 😵‍💫

going to bed now. it's 9 am.

[fujowebdev]

New Streaming Schedule (and New Update)

We're back with a Kickstarter update and a new streaming schedule! This December, we're going to git serious: we'll be streaming every week, twice a week (Monday and Thursday) for 2 hours at 3PM PST!

About the Streams

In addition to two new hangout editions of our “Let’s Build our Website” series where we'll finish all that we have pending and add more content to the website, we’ve added a couple new types of stream:

A tutorial write-along, where our project lead will explain how to use PayPal/Stripe links to easily add a tip jar on your Astro website (and compile that information in a blog post).

A learn-together session (possibly more than one), where you can follow an experienced software developer as she tries to learn the intricacies of accepting payments on the web, using the actual Stripe and PayPal APIs.

In addition to these, we’ll look at adding more characters into RobinBoob by scraping AO3 with AO3.js, and we’ll start a new series where we’ll rebuild the RobinBoob's functionality from scratch! After all, like many of our “April 1st projects”, RobinBoob was built in a feverish last-minute rush, and we cannot add some of the requested features without a serious rewrite!

Where to Find Them

We’ll see you this Monday, December 4th at 3PM (see converted time on the schedule) on Twitch, and all throughout December!

First Beta Feedback

And since Tumblr generously allows us to write as much as we want, here's a small sample of the feedback to the first draft of our first issue! You can read more about it under the cut, or get the full details on Kickstarter.

“Unlike other code guides, it's engaging and not dry. [I] wish some of the coding books i read in the past were like the fujoguide cause like. i would have been more into it”

“The guide was really easy to use for the most part, with cute examples and just... really fun!”

“I'm enjoying this, it's approachable and I really like the various ways information is presented; it looks like a legit textbook, like it seems like I could've picked this up from a shelf in Barnes & Noble.”

“I'm really happy at how many cool things are packed here. I have so many friends I will throw this guide at once complete!”

Looking forward to sharing our guide with you all!

[quietmarie]

Anyone can program (yes, even you)

"Programming is easy"

I saw some variations of this statement shared around the site recently, always in good intentions of course, but it got me thinking.

Is that really true?

Well it certainly isn't hard in the way some developers would want to make you believe. A great skill bestowed only upon the greatest of minds, they're the ones making the world work. You better be thankful.

That is just elitist gibberish. If anyone ever tells you that programmers are "special people" in that way, or tries to sell you on the idea of "real" programmers that are somehow better than the rest, you can safely walk in the other direction. They have nothing of value to tell you.

But I think the answer is more complicated than a simple "Yes, programming is easy" too. In all honesty, I don't think it's an easy thing to "just pick up" at all. It can be very unintuitive at first to wrap your head around just how to tell a computer to solve certain problems.

One person in the codeblr Discord server likened it to cooking. That's a skill that can be very hard, but it's also something that everyone can learn. Anyone can cook. And anyone can program.

I really mean that. No need to be good at maths, to know what a bit is or whatever it is people told you you need. You're not too old to learn it either, or too young for that matter. If you want to start programming (and you can read this post), you already have everything you need. You can write your first little programs today!

One of the cool things about programming is that you can just fuck around and try lots of stuff, and it's fine. Realistically, the worst thing that can happen is that it doesn't work the way you imagined. But you'll never accidentally trigger the fire alarm or burn your house down, so feel free to just try a bunch of stuff.

"Okay I want to learn programming now, what do I do?"

That's awesome, I love the enthusiasm! As much as I'd love to just give you a resource and tell you to build a thing, you still have to make a choice what you want to learn first. The options I'd recommend are:

Scratch: A visual education tool. The main advantage is that you don't have to worry about the exact words you need to write down, you can just think about the structure of your program. The way it works is that you drag and drop program elements to be executed when they should be. You can relatively quickly learn to make cute little games in it. The downside is that this isn't really a "professional" programming language, so, while learning from Scratch will give you the basics that apply to most languages and will make switching to another language easier, you're still gonna have to switch sooner or later. Start here: https://scratch.mit.edu/

Python: The classic choice. Python is a very widely used, flexible programming language that is suited for beginners. It is what I would recommend if you want to skip right to or move on from Scratch to a more flexible language. https://automatetheboringstuff.com/ is your starting point, but there's also a longer list of resources here if you want to check that out at some point.

HTML/CSS/JavaScript: The web path. HTML and CSS are for creating the look of websites, and JavaScript is for the interactive elements. For example, if you ever played a game in your browser, that was probably written in JS. Since HTML and CSS are just for defining how the website should look, they're different from traditional programming languages, and you won't be able to write programs in them, that's what JS is for. You have to know HTML before you learn CSS, but otherwise the order in which you learn these is up to you. Your JavaScript resource is https://javascript.info/, and for HTML and CSS you can check out https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web.

I put some starting out resources here, but they're really just that - they're for starting out. You don't have to stick to them. If you find another path that suits you better, or if you want to get sidetracked with another resource or project, go for it! Your path doesn't have to be linear at all, and there's no "correct" way to learn things.

One of the most important things you'll want to do is talk to developers when you struggle. The journey is going to be frustrating at times, so search out beginner-friendly coding communities on Discord or wherever you're comfortable. The codeblr community certainly tends to be beginner-friendly and kind. My DMs and asks are also open on here.

[mountmortar]

so something i came across recently was straw.page, which seems to be a website hosting service similar to neocities except it makes website-building easy, so if you don't know anything about html/css, it may function as a good alternative. it lets you select from templates or just start from scratch and drag-and-drop different elements to your site until it looks the way you want it. it seems to be pretty new, so some features are marked as "coming soon" and there are some spots where it's a bit rough around the edges, but all the functionality required to build a (simple!!!) website is definitely there. i haven't tested it extensively, so i can't reliably list out all the details of it, but i can definitely say that it isn't lying when it says you can make a whole website on mobile. so if that's something that interests you (if you're interested in making a website but can't get your mind wrapped around html/css or the idea seems cool but you're too busy to learn) this may be worth a shot?

[prof-peach]

Hello! I love the website for your electus comic it’s so clean and easy to follow! I was wondering if you host it on a website or make it from scratch? A lot of webcomic sites don’t have any information on how they were made and I certainly don’t want to copy anyones design, I would like to start posting a webcomic online one day though. Are there any tips you could give to someone new to website creation. Right direction to start in for example?

Ah im glad its easy to navigate, but I will be honest with you, I date a graphic designer who handled the whole build for me, because I so much as look at a computer wrong and it freezes up on me :')

The good news however is I watched them make it, it seemed very intuative and simple, and they were able to teach even me the back end, so adding pages is super simple. It is hosted on SquareSpace, and it comes with templates, easy to use tools, and because its so widely known and paid for, theres SO many tutorials! It's very easy to do with a small amount of effort to wacth some videos.

You can pay varying ammounts per year (and month I believe) to host, which I do, to make it available to all who want to view it without costs to them. Its not for everyone, and is from what I recall, roughly £160/$200 a year for the domain I use, though there are varying packages and prices. Many creators choose to use comic sites like tapastic or the likes, as its a free version, but due to legalities, artists have been veering away from that to protect their creations.

Honestly, I think theres a lot to be said for youtube tutorials, people have been swearing by squarepsace for yeaaaars now, and the interface is very simple and easy compared to other web building options (wordpress im looking at you, youre terrible)

While we did not use templates or preset fonts (partner made it all custom to make it unique) the site offers SO many good options that can be edited to suit your needs, so no need for complex processes if its an option you choose to go for.

Sorry I couldnt be more help, im a huge technophobe, anything electrical seems to hate me haha

At least you have some names for things and can dig further from here, good luck bud! you got this.

[izicodes]

Hey! I saw your personal project rec post but I was wondering if you had any suggestions for projects that can’t use libraries? I am applying for an opportunity where we have to code something from scratch so I imagine it can be something small would you have any ideas? Thank you!

Hiya! 💕

Since I don't know what languages you will be using, I'm just going to give you some quick and easy projects that are either webpage-building and console application ideas!

Webpage Project Ideas

Personal Portfolio: Create a simple personal portfolio website showcasing your skills, projects, and contact information. Use pure HTML, CSS, and JavaScript for responsive design and interactivity.

Simple Blog: Develop a basic blog where you can post articles and visitors can read and leave comments. Implement features such as user authentication, a comment system, and article categorization using only vanilla JavaScript, HTML, and CSS.

To-Do List: Build a to-do list web application that allows users to create, edit, and delete tasks. Add the ability to mark tasks as complete and filter tasks based on their completion status. Implement this project using only HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

Console Application Ideas

Text-based Adventure Game: Create a text-based adventure game where users can navigate through different rooms, pick up items, and interact with characters. Design the game with an interesting storyline and various challenges to engage the player.

File Organizer: Write a console application that organizes files in a directory based on their file types (e.g., images, documents, videos). The app should create folders for each file type and move the corresponding files into their respective folders.

Basic Calculator: Develop a console-based calculator that can perform basic arithmetic operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Enhance the functionality by adding support for parentheses and differentiating between integer and floating-point arithmetic.

These projects your coding skills for your opportunity without relying on any external libraries. I think it's kind of good that they want to see people code from scratch, just to see where their abilities are at!

I made another post about projects before that you can check out if you don't like the ones I listed: Beginner JavaScript Projects Hope this helps! Good luck with your opportunity! 🥰👍🏾💗