#it is kinda fun knowing (maybe) that its a thing but trying to rule out who it applies to

[nexus-nebulae]

actually making a concerted effort to learn written japanese (since I've learned a small amount of spoken already) and. oh boy did not realise how hard it is for my brain to learn new symbols

[amuyyi]

warm enough .

synopsis; recovering from an expected breakup, you find yourself drunk at a nearby bar, encountering an unfamiliar girl who happens to know your ex.

trope; non idol!ningning x fem!reader, uni au, fluff, a little angst, a little suggestive, strangers to lovers, feat. kep1er members :3

wc; 4.8k

cw; a little suggestive but not really

a/n; fun fact this happened to me irl ! figured i could use my experiences for stories ! everything from the breakup to the bar kiss is based on my personal experience so lol have fun. also its kinda poorly written because i wrote some of it while on the plane + in china while being very tired and i dont feel like proofreading so im sorry ^^'

The breakup was supposed to be a mutual thing. A smooth and easy agreement between you and Jimin. You guys met in a cafe when your soon-to-be-ex girlfriend finally dropped the bomb on you. 

“I still care a lot about you, y/n. But I want to focus on myself and my future… I think you should too.”

You wanted to speak up, say that you didn’t want to let go yet. Just… hold on for a little longer. Maybe it’d get better if you guys just kept it going for another week. Another month. Another day?

 “What I’m trying to say is…”

You always hated this part.

“I think we should break up.”

Despite the older girl being the one to initiate the ending of the relationship, you always knew it was coming. Jimin was sweet, and you definitely did enjoy the little dates you guys had been on through the past year, but there was something missing. Every time she looked at you, it seemed like she was looking through your eyes into her own. Her mind was always elsewhere whenever you two were together, like she was searching for something you couldn’t provide. She never seemed to smile around you, never laughed loudly or hugged you with warmth. 

You really tried to be the person for her, you really did; but it was apparent that she was trying to convince herself you were the one as well.

It was shown in the way she bought you endless gifts with things you said you wanted, but never kissed you, In the way she would allow you to hold her hand, but never reached out herself, how she couldn’t bring herself to say “I love you” out loud. Jimin was cold.

You agreed that this was the best path to take, how you felt the exact same way and that it would be good for the both of you, but the tears that nonconsensually left your eyes said otherwise. You still remember the last words you told her before you got up to leave.

“I really hoped it was you.”

There's a saying or the other. “Your body will know if someone is right for you.” You came across it while aimlessly scrolling on social media once, and you thought it was an interesting but ridiculous concept. Countless people would share stories about how their hair would fall out or how they would break out into horrible acne when they were with their past partners, only being relieved from this when single or with their “match.”

It was funny, and you didn’t believe one bit of it until it actually happened. The tightness in your chest that followed you every time you two went out together, the stress of wondering if she actually enjoyed her company, the way you couldn’t truly relax in her presence– it all went away. It all left when she walked out of your life, and you’ve never felt more at peace with a decision. At least, for a little bit.

The breakup was the easy part. It was the recovery that ruined you.

You were the one to establish a rule of no contact, even after you both expressed wanting to stay in touch. It was your only way to hold on to the last sliver of pride you had left after spending a year chasing after Yu Jimin. The rule was established to allow you some time to heal, and you hoped to return to the girl as friends once you felt ready.

With this in mind, you then proceeded to spend a month barely eating, barely sleeping, and not leaving your apartment unless you needed to for classes. It was difficult to be on your own after dedicating so much time to her, falling behind, hoping that she would see you the way you saw her; but after about a month, you slowly felt yourself regaining your footing.

You started going out again, talking with your roommate, taking time to actually care for yourself. It was nice. Perhaps your progress would have left you comfortable enough to move on if you didn’t decide to go out that day.

There she was. Yu Jimin. After an exact 31 days of no contact with her, you finally cross paths. Quite literally, at that– but she wasn’t alone. There was a girl on her arm. She was pretty. Blonde with bobbed hair and a soft smile that made it impossible to hate her. Jimin was smiling too. This is the first time you’ve seen her smile like that, smiling as if she found what she was looking for after all of this time. She doesn't look past her. She sees her.

Jimin holds the other girl by the small of her waist the way she used to do with you, and she kisses her. She kissed her. Just like how she used to kiss you, but not exactly. There's love in her eyes. A warmth you’ve never seen before. In her eyes, there is certainty.

And that was the day your world came crashing down on top of you.

You tried to act normal as you walked past. You really did. Your eyes remain glued to your phone as your knuckles turn white. Her eyes didn’t even meet yours as you walked by. Why wouldn't she look at you? Maybe she's wondering why you won't look at her. That must be it. You hold your breath. As soon as she passed by, you couldn’t help yourself. You made the mistake of looking back.

…Nothing.

As soon as Jimin was out of sight, you cried. You ran home, scaring half the life out of your poor roommate, Xiaoting, as you collapsed in your bed. Everything hurts. Why did it hurt? You wanted this. You felt better without her— the tightness in your chest was gone. 

Instead, it was replaced by an indescribably painful ache. One that felt so deep within your soul it would never heal. Quietly entering your room, Xiaoting says nothing as she sits next to your limp body on the bed, rubbing your back comfortingly. The gesture only makes you sob even harder. 

She's been with you through it all. From the beginning of your relationship with Jimin till the end, she was there. Xiaoting really was a good friend.

From then on, Xiaoting’s one goal was simple: cheer you up. She would cook at least once for you every day despite not being the best chef, and she would allow you to rant about the same things over and over no matter how overbearing it got. Honestly, you started to feel a little bad. She shouldn’t have to bend over backwards for you just because you’re a little sad.

So when Xiaoting announces that you will be joining her at the bar with her friends tonight, you couldn't say no. Both because she stated it, not asked you, and that it simply was the least you could do for her. Especially after everything she’s done for you. Before you knew it, you were dressed up in your best (slutty) corset top and cargo pants with some hoops and over exaggerated makeup to accent the look. Xiaoting, as your best roommate and friend, matches with you, and you two make a big scene out of getting ready together; blasting music, doing each other's hair, borrowing each other's clothes, and more.

Xiaoting’s girlfriend Yujin had made herself at home for the pregame, and your mutual friend Hikaru soon followed. With Xiaoting as designated bartender, the four of you mingle, laughing and cracking jokes as the warmth of the alcohol and one another’s presence left you with a warming buzz. Xiaoting was an excellent mixer, and in combination with the chasers Hikaru bought and the drinking games Yujin proposed, you were all ready to go. 

Xiaoting and Yujin led the way, hand in hand as you and Hikaru trailed behind, drunkenly singing into the cold night air as you trek to the nearest bar.

Being a Friday night, the establishment had been as packed as expected, and you all squeezed your way past other visitors as you’re guided to a nearby table. Xiaoting starts off strong, ordering shots for the entire group before utilizing her combined charm alongside her girlfriend’s looks to convince guys to purchase drinks for everyone as well. You couldn’t help but laugh at the way the duo would bat their eyelashes innocently at lone men for drinks– but at least it worked.

Lazily, your eyes wander through the crowd, the alcohol in your system making it a struggle to see straight. Despite your inability to see properly, you still manage to catch a glimpse of your friends from the corner of your eye, and easily spot Yujin attempting to very publicly make out with Xiaoting as Hikaru struggles to pull her away. You stifle a laugh at the sight, and decide to leave the three to their antics whilst you look for someone to talk to.

It's been a while since you last struck up a conversation with a stranger. The last time you had put yourself out there was before you met… 

You shake your head. No. You are not letting your stupid ex ruin your night. Knitting your brows in concentration, you scan the bar. There were plenty of pretty girls to talk to, but you were feeling a little intimidated. Almost all of them came with at least one other person, and you didn’t want to intrude on anything…

 Your eyes landed on a lone blonde at the end of the table, scrolling through her phone with alcohol flushed cheeks. She seemed approachable. Worst case scenario, she simply shoos you off. Taking a deep breath, you approach the blonde, deciding to pull out your best conversation starter.

“Are you chinese? You look chinese!!” You exclaim, suddenly switching to mandarin in the middle of your sentence as you ask the question. Smooth.

The blonde girl looks as if she would’ve been extremely offended at the comment if you didn't just speak to her in her native tongue halfway through your sentence, and she quirks a brow at you, an amused smirk on her lips as she leans against the bar. 

“Yeah, I am! What's a cutie like you doing in a place like this alone??” 

You feel your heart begin to race. So far so good. “I'm not alone!!! My friends are just busy making out with each other and the other is trying to stop them!!” You also lean on the bar, though not as alluring as the blonde before you. More like you partially collapsed and partially slid on it.

She chortles at your response, “well that's not fair to you, leaving you here all alone.”

The sweet and somewhat sultry tone of the blonde makes (non alcohol induced) blush appear on your face as you laugh, “it really isn't! But whatever! My name is y/n by the way!! What's yours??” You scream over the music, sticking your hand out. It was an unexpectedly polite gesture considering your circumstances, and perhaps it may have seemed a bit comical as well with how drunk you were.

She giggles at the response, grabbing your hand then pulling you in, her lips dangerously close to your ear as she yells over the music, “Ning Yizhuo. But call me Ningning! It's cuter!”

You grin. Ningning was a cute nickname. You decided at this very moment you could trust this cute stranger with your life story and personal information she didn’t ask for, and begin to slur out.

“My friends dragged me out here because I was sad over my ex who moved on from me a month after the breakup even though we dated for a year and she's a big jerk for that even though I wish only the best for her but also I hope she dies!!!”

None of the words you spoke just now came out clear, and they seemed to trip over one another when leaving your mouth, but it was enough for the other girl to go from extremely relaxed to suddenly very heated. She stands up straight as her eyebrows knit together.

“To be honest I don’t think she ever really liked me in the first place! I don’t know!! Whatever it doesn’t matter!!!” You continue on, sounding absolutely pathetic as you let yourself feel through the anger you didn’t even know you were repressing, “I was stupid to stay with someone who couldn’t even look me in the eye when saying she loved me!! She was stupid to do the same!! Whatever!! I don’t know!!”

Ningning cuts you off with a raised hand before you can continue, “what the hell?! I hate people like that!!  You're wayyyy too hot to be treated that way! Who is she? What's her name?? I might know her!!”

Against your better drunken judgment, you decide to name drop your ex within a university bar. Because that is always a good idea. “Yu Jimin!! She's a engineering major !!!”

Ningning’s jaw drops as she stares at you, almost as if she were trying to find the correct words for what she has to say next.

“Girl, I know her !!!” She screams out after a brief moment of silence,  “we shared a class together once!! Oh my god I'm so sorry I didn't know she was like that!! You deserve BETTER!” 

Before you could even think of what to say in reaction to that heavy load of information, Ningning grabs your face, pulling you into a kiss. It was a very messy one, her lips almost missing your own during the exchange. Seems like she's not entirely sober either. 

Still, even in your drunken state you knew what to do. Your hands immediately find Ningnings hair as you pull her in closer, and you can feel her smiling as she grazes her tongue over the bottom of your lip. 

You open your mouth to let her in and the only thing that you can think of or even feel for that matter is Ningning and her tongue. She… was really good at this. Jimin never kissed you like this before. Her hands trail down your back to your ass before she squeezes it, smirking when you squirm against her touch.

She breaks the kiss, her face inches away from yours as she breathes out, “you deserve so much better…” Ningning gives you a quick peck on the lips before stepping back, taking in her work with a devilish glint in her eyes. You stare at her dumbfounded for a moment before whipping out your phone, fully talking in your appearance. Your hair and makeup were a wreck. How did all of that happen just now?

“Done by yours truly~” Ningning winks at you, quickly slipping your phone out of your hand and typing something in.

“Wh— Wait what are you doing?”

“Giving you my number, obviously. My girls are gonna wonder where I went.” She hands back your phone and looks at you with soft eyes through her drunken daze. 

“Take care of yourself, yeah?” Ningning kisses you one last time, giving your hand a squeeze before letting go. She disappears into the crowd of partygoers, a sly fox-like grin on her face.

“There you are!” 

You feel an arm land on your shoulder as you jump, twirling around and looking down to see a drunk Hikaru with a slightly less drunk Xiaoting and an absolutely hammered Yujin on her side.

“We should probably head back home!” Xiaoting screams into your ear, “Hikaru’s gonna knock out on the couch and Yujin will be with me!”

Her words barely make it through to you, the music and the alcohol and the adrenaline within your system muffling out every word spoken. Regardless, you still nod and trail behind your friends as you leave, not all too sure what just happened.

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚

You lay in bed, eyes practically burning holes into the new contact in your phone. “宁宁<3” is what it said. 

So last night wasn’t just a dream. You really did just get a girl's number by doing nothing but spilling your secrets to a stranger. On top of all of that, your head was absolutely killing you, you swore you could feel your heartbeat within your brain. Still, that wasn’t important. Biting your lip, your fingers hover over the contact name. Should you message her? 

y/n [10:59]  — hey !! its y/n, the girl from the bar

y/n [10:59]  — thanks for keeping me company last night :)

ningning [11:06]  — i was wondering if u were gonna text me back

ningning [11:06] — and of course <3 jimin doesn’t know what she lost

y/n [11:08] — haha im flattered

y/n [11:08]  — but u barely know me??

ningning [11:11]  — that can change xx

Your eyes widen as you reread the text over and over again. Is she implying what you think she's implying? What if she's just being friendly? Can you even platonically make out with someone at the bar?

y/n [11:16] — are u asking me out on a date ning yizhuo ?

You wait. 

Oh god. What if she was just being friendly?

ningning [11:18]  — only if youll have me 

You feel yourself blush at her message, burying your face into your pillow as you squeal like a high school teenager in love. It was embarrassing in hindsight, but.. it felt nice to be wanted. 

y/n [11:19] —  of course

ningning [11:19] — perfect <3 

ningning [11:20] — dinner at my place tonight then? 

ningning [11:20] — If youre not too hungover.. 

ningning [11:20] — i got the best hangover cures ;)

you can't help but arch your eyebrow at the winky face she added at the end but brushed it off, more focused on the fact that your drunk hatred towards your ex landed you a date. 

You scramble to your feet and (metaphorically) kick down Xiaoting’s door, abruptly waking the girl from her nap as she screams out, “WO CAO!” She places a hand over her heart as she bolts up within her bed, immediately letting out a sigh of relief when she realizes it was just you. 

“Girl what the HELL is wrong with you?!” She hisses, laying back down and throwing the blanket over her head.

You, being the ever loving and best roommate ever, respond to this by jumping into bed with (on top of) the redhead and squeezing her as tight as you can while screaming “I HAVE A DATE!!!”

Xiaoting shoots back up, your arms still latched onto her torso as she looks down at you, eyes wide. “Wait, are you serious?”

You hear a low groan and a hand slapping your arm as you roll your eyes, slapping the arm back as the voice of Yujin grumbles out and shuffles deeper within the sheets.

Both you and Xiaoting look at one another and giggle before she quietly slips out of bed, quickly placing a kiss on Yujins head before grabbing your arm and leading you out of her room. Once outside, she firmly grasps your shoulders. 

“Okay, now tell me everything.”

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚

You nervously stand outside of Ningnings apartment, bag clutched in hand as you look back behind you. Xiaoting sat within her car on the side of the road, keeping an eye on you to make sure this girl wasn’t going to kidnap you or the other.

The two of you (and soon enough Yujin and Hikaru) had spent the day giving you pointers on how to go about the date. They had thrown an ungodly amount of clothes your way as well as telling you endless conversation starters and compliments to give another person. By the end of it all your head was overflowing with information that you were going to forget as soon as you head out the door, and all of your closet was sprawled on your bedroom floor and in the living room. Still, the girls seemed quite proud of their work.

All of you had consecutively agreed on an outfit that was nice, but not too nice. You wore a plaid skirt paired with a simple tank top and an off the shoulder cardigan.

Holding your breath, you ring the doorbell. You really hoped this wasn’t a mistake. When was the last time you were actually on a date with someone? You couldn't remember. After a few moments of silence, you hear shuffling followed by the door unlocking and Ningning poking her head out shyly. Her eyes light up at the sight of you before opening the door completely, revealing her outfit.

She wore an oversized plaid button up, unintentionally matching with your skirt alongside baggy jeans and some bunny slippers you thought were incredibly cute. Her hair was tied up in a messy but charming bun, held up by a hair stick with small gemstones dangling from the end.

This Ningning was completely different from the one you had met at the bar last night. Though, you suppose you were a different person now as well.

“You're here! Come in come in!” She grabs your hand and guides you inside. Flustered, you spare a quick glance behind you, and you can spot the silhouette of Xiaoting throwing a thumbs up from her car before Ningning closes the door behind you.

“You look gorgeous today, by the way,” Ningning compliments, her thumb rubbing over your fingers as she walks you through her apartment. The gesture makes your cheeks warm, and you find yourself easing into her touch like putty. It was a touch that was loving. Kind. Intentional. 

Her home was cozy, with white walls paired alongside warm lighting and paintings and other wall art lining the interior. There was an appetizing aroma that wafted through the air, and you had remembered that Ningning had offered to cook for you.

“What have you prepared for us tonight, chef Ningning?” You ask, squeezing her hand as she grins, “Well it's not much, I'm not a really good cook but I decided to make us some dumplings! A little basic, but it's the only dish I feel like I’ve actually perfected.”

“I hope this is the hangover cure you mentioned” you comment lightheartedly, and you sense a playful energy in the way she looks back at you.

“You'll find out soon enough.”

You once again find yourself quirking a brow at her vague answers, but she simply smiles at you innocently and you find yourself smiling back. It was hard to not be amused by her.

Ningning guides you to the kitchen, which was cleaned perfectly for your arrival. On the center of the table were multiple bamboo steamer baskets, as well as a large tea pot and a simple glass bottle with various native wildflowers as a centerpiece. 

The other girl pulls out a chair for you, and you teasing grin at the polite gesture, “how romantic, Ninging~”

She rolls her eyes and giggles before settling down herself, instantaneously pouring you a cup of tea as she gestures at the baskets, “go on, dig in. I’ll be personally offended if you don’t.”

Chuckling, you open up the baskets, releasing clouds of steam before revealing multiple handmade dumplings with various fillings and differing folding styles. Your eyes widen, and you simply comment, “wow,” before taking the first bite of the food.

To say that it tasted amazing was an understatement– you practically felt like you were thrown back to the motherland with a single bite, and it wasn’t long before you were filling your plate with more.

The two of you had spent the rest of the evening getting to know one another more. You had learned she was a computer science major and going onto her third year of uni, as well as the fact she was from Harbing whilst you shared that you were from Shanghai. 

“Big city girl, huh?” Ningning amusedly comments, sipping on her tea as you roll your eyes, “yeah… But I'm not rich or anything before you ask.”

The blonde feigns rejection as she snaps her fingers, “damn. I was gonna ask you to buy drinks next time we head to the bars, I think you owe me. ” She smiles at you, and it's warm.

You liked this. You liked how easy it was to talk to her. It was never this easy before.

Soon enough you had ended up on Ningning’s couch, browsing through movies aimlessly as the hefty meal threatened to send you into a food coma. The blonde lay comfortably in your arms underneath a blanket, her eyes occasionally fluttering shut as you continued to search for something to watch.

“Hmm, what about… Velocipastor?” The name completely throws you off guard, prompting you to click on it, skimming over the description as you feel the vibration of Ninging lazily humming beneath you. 

“Oh that movie is really good, trust me.”

“... Really? Are you sure, Ning?”

“Yeah yeah…” Her eyes were already shut as she spoke, nuzzling in closer to you as you chuckle, putting on the movie as you wrap your arms around her, pulling her in closer. 

Honestly, the movie seemed to be an excuse for the girl to be physically close to you– maybe get a nap in? You weren’t even sure if she was watching the movie at this point. Still, maybe it was for the best. Velocipastor was definitely not well funded within its production, that much could be seen. Plus, you couldn't complain about having a cute girl in your arms.

“Does your head still hurt?”

Ningning’s soft voice rings out, startling you. Honestly, you were getting pretty invested in the film, you had thought she already fell asleep.

“Mmm, a little. I don’t think your hangover cure worked.”

“Oh, the dumplings weren’t the cure.”

Your head cocks to the side as you tear your gaze away from the tv screen, looking down at the girl nestled on your chest as she looks back up at you. There was that all too familiar glint in her eyes again.

“Then what is?”

A mischievous grin curls on her lips before she leans in, connecting her lips with yours. Still a bit sluggish from the night before alongside a hefty meal, her kissing was a bit sloppy, but it was soft. Much softer than before.

You feel yourself almost immediately sigh into the kiss, and you would have found it embarrassing if she didnt guide her hand up your chest, to your neck, and into your hair, soon deepening the kiss. 

Not expecting things to escalate so soon, you couldn’t help but let out a soft whimper as your hands landed on her hips, nails digging into her sides desperately as she laughs against your lips, pulling back. 

“You’re really cute, y’know?” She purrs, using her hand to brush a strand of hair out of your face, and you can see the hint of pink spread across her lips as she smiles, drinking in the sight of you.

Before you even have a chance to respond, Ningning tackles your jawline, trailing kisses down your face and onto your neck. You try to respond, but when she starts to nip the side of your neck, the words you wanted to say somehow managed to melt into complete mush.

“Mmhmmhgh…” 

The sound that escapes your lips allows you the chance to actually feel embarrassed, and you slam a hand over your lips, looking away from Ninging. Your response elicits another laugh from the blonde, and you swear you could listen to the sound forever. 

Her symphony soon quiets though, and Ningning looks you straight in the eye, her gaze softening as she opens her mouth, struggling to find the right words to say.

“Look, I know we just met…” she trails off for a moment, almost a bit shy to continue, “but if you want to give me a chance and see where this goes, I promise I’ll treat you so well.” 

Her eyes are filled with genuine desire for you, and you couldn’t help but feel… Isolated? Targetted? For the first time you feel like you’re seen, and you don’t know what to do about it.

She presses on, “I’d really like to see you again, and I know you’re going through a lot right now but I want to be there with you every step of the way. I want to see where this takes us.”

“I want you, y/n.”

Your face heats up instantaneously, and you swear your eyes were threatening to bulge out of your skull right then and there. You look at her in silence as you struggle to find your words, and after a few seconds you finally croak out,

“I… I want to see where this takes us too, Ningning.”

Her eyes brighten at your response, and she beams, pulling you into a tight hug on the couch before interlocking her lips with yours once again. You giggle into the kiss, and throw the blanket over the two of you as the movie on the tv buzzed on. For the first time, you found someone warm enough for you.

[pomefioredove]

My brain is kinda sluggish plus I'm indecisive but also i did like several of these (also if i need to divide up this post let me know)

I have no clue which i like best so i simply made a list but let me know if i need to chunk it up

For Riddle Rosehearts

"If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun." Or "I'm putting you on my to-do list."

For Vil Schoenheit

"Don't bite your lip, I want to do that."

For Ruggie

"You like me because I'm a scoundrel."

vil done here!

summary: "if you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun." type of post: short fic characters: riddle additional info: romantic, reader is gender neutral, reader is yuu, maybe ooc, post book 1

You think it's a pretty pathetic sight, but you make no mention of it. Their egos are bruised enough as it is.

"How long?" you ask, sitting across from the shackled duo.

Ace knocks against the solid collar around his neck. "Not long... But we can't present like this,"

You were hoping he wouldn't say that.

And just a day after you told them not to do anything stupid this week, too...

Deuce says nothing; he's been sulking at the end of the table like a puppy with its tail between its legs for the entire lunch period.

"Have you tried reasoning?" you ask. "Maybe he can take them off for the presentation, then put them back on?"

Ace scoffs. "Reason? With Riddle?"

"I thought he was trying to be more lenient?"

"He is," Deuce mutters, hanging his head. "But that just means he only dishes out punishments when someone really deserves it..."

"It was just a stupid painting!" Ace says.

"That we set on fire!"

You look between the two as they bicker over the accident, bewildered by their lack of concern about where this puts you.

Ace and Deuce were supposed to perform the magical component of your defense project, while you and Grim presented. Now...?

You stand. "I'll talk to Riddle,"

Your friends share a pitiful look, but do nothing to stop you as you hurry out of the room.

Surely, Riddle will understand. He wouldn't let you suffer from Ace and Deuce's mistake!

"No," he says.

"But-"

Riddle beheads the wilting flower of a rose with a sharp snap of his shears. It tumbles into the underbrush.

"They destroyed a priceless piece of art. It was hundreds of years old!" he snaps, leaving no room for disagreement. "They should be thankful it's only a week."

He moves on to the next browning rose, inspecting its petals before decapitating it, too.

"But I didn't do anything. I told them not to do anything dumb, I tried to reason with them,"

"Reason? With Ace and Deuce?" he scoffs.

"I would recommend asking for an extension on your assignment until they've carried out their sentence,"

It's too late to ask for another week; he must know that. And you're not giving up so easily.

There must be something you can say...

"But it was an accident,"

Riddle scoffs. "Of course it was. And the rules clearly state that accidental arson of a painting more than three hundred years old must be punished by losing their heads,"

Rules. Great. This is quickly becoming a lost cause.

"There has to be some other way they can be punished," you say. "You said you weren't going to lose your head about these things anymore."

He sighs, rolling his eyes as if frustrated with you. "The rules-"

"Come on, Riddle- If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun!"

Riddle stops. For a moment, it's almost like... he's actually considering your offer.

"...What exactly did you have in mind?"

-

"This is what you call a compromise?!"

Ace's head of fiery hair pops up, the color a striking contrast against the green of the hedge maze.

You shrug. Riddle, sitting across from you as you watch the two tend to the shrubbery, almost giggles.

"The Prefect has been more than fair. If anything, you should be thanking them for the opportunity to end your punishment early," he says, pouring you another cup of tea.

Ace grumbles, scratching his neck under his collar.

Deuce nudges him, and the two get back to work on trimming the hedges, a puny pair of shears in each hand.

Riddle smiles. "I must say, I'm rather impressed by your persuasion skills. It's not often that I change the terms of a punishment after it's dealt,"

"Well, I didn't want to fail on their account,"

"I heard that!" Ace yells. Riddle grins again.

"Perhaps your ingenuity will inspire them, then," he hums, cupping his tea in his palms.

"In the meantime, I believe another tea party is in order for tomorrow afternoon- they have a lot of ground to cover. Care to join?"

[bull-shit-suji]

kuro modern au stuff that i word vomited into my notes app

kind of a Vincent summoned sebastian to save ciel so ciel doesnt actually owe sebas anything

amnesia? idk

single dad moment! except theres this other dad whos kinda find.. (cough agni)

i think vincent was like do NOT let ciel know ur a demon so sebastian keeps it a secret but he doesnt have a good handle on like. Humans. so he kinda does a bad job and ciel definitely knows that he's weird but doesnt say anything. will go out of his way to gaslight you when sebastian does weird shit because he thinks its funny

"hey uhh is your dad levitating?"

"no?"

"he's flying above the school rn"

"that's a bird"

u think suddenly being a butler is hard? have fun being a dad bitch

alois is there but thats complicated. claude and hannah are DIVORCED but on decent terms (i think claude is like. toxic alpha male podcast type guy) and claude sees alois on alternating weekends!

are they demons? i dont know

i think ciel and alois can be friends. platonically. alois would probably say yes if ciel wanted to be romantic but i Promise you he does not. they are just pals :)

im saying ciel has a crush on elizabeth because i can (she's not his cousin here). emo boy x sunny church girl. said sunny church girl has to ask the mcdonalds employees for the blue raspberry slushie they forgot to put in ciel's order because emo boy is too scared.

IM 13 EVERYTHING SUCKSSSSS

grelle is actually living her best life transitioned with anne so they are ciel's aunts on his late mom's side. i think grelle likes ciel. mom figure moreso than anne is.

ciel owns four bongs and definitely a vape or two. come on now

he's also probably got celiac and is lactose intolerant he is just a feeble boy i think

he listens to twenty one pilots. sorry! sorry.

ciel is goth alois is punk those r kinda just the rules

ciel is insanely smart top of the class this shit is easy for him.

yells at sebastian daily. figured out what happened with his real parents around the age of uhhhh 12 or 13? has been an absolute terror ever since

"it was really nice of your dad to bring cookies for the field trip!"

"i hope he fucking chokes on one"

"oh!"

sebastian and claude are pta rivals.

"is this lemon bread store bought? my, how... efficient!"

"you made these from scratch? i can tell."

"i've never seen an interesting looking salsa! very exciting."

ciel purposefully invites alois over constantly bcus it pisses sebas off. alois is Terrified of that man.

"go grab the chips from the kitchen"

"but... what if mr michaelis is in there?"

"mr m- you mean my dad? tell him he can shove a faucet up his ass"

"id rather die on the spot"

sebastian will yell at ciel and is maybe a little emotionally unavailable but he's trying!!! it's hard :(

does that Dad thing where he comes into ciels room and is like hey bud......... what r u up to..

ciel and seiglinde r also palls. the smartest people in school

lizzie is a JOCK. she plays softball.

alois is a theater kid come on now

ciel is best at writing and literature analysis, specifically fiction. enjoys history, language, and Some sciences as well.

nerd

au where myspace is still a thing ciel has a myspace account

he definitely writes shitty poetry

wants to major in business

alois is a glee and pitch perfect truther

[imobsessedwiththeatre]

Lets analyze dont lose your head song!! (Historical accuracy)

Grew up in the French Court- kinda?? She was at austrian court too i think. She was lady in waiting. NO SHE WASNT FRENCH just she spended most of her teenagw years here

Oui, oui, bonjour

Life was a chore so (she set sail)- exactly!! Her life in france was a chore!!

1522 came straight to the UK

All the British dudes, lame-the song made it seem she just moved to england, but she did not guys she was borned here :"). And she almost married a guy named William Carey, so its not rlly accurate

Epic fail

Ooh, I wanna dance and sing- yes! There was a show called "Chateu verte" or something i dont remember. And it was exactly in 1522 so its alr+

Politics, not my thing- i cant say if its accurate or not. I think she was quite interested in politics

Ooh, but then I met the King

And soon my daddy said, "You should try and get ahead"- YES

He wanted me, huh, obviously

Messaging me like everyday- it was like a stalk. He even sent her doctors when she got sick, without asking for it!!

Couldn't be better, then he sent me a letter and who am I kidding

I was prêt-à-manger-????

Ooh, sent a reply

Ooh, just saying hi

Ooh, you're a nice guy

I'll think about it maybe, xo baby- UHH?? HENRY STARTED ALL OF THIS FLIRTING?? SHE TRIED TO AVOID HIM??

Here we go

(You sent him kisses)

I didn't know I would move in with his misses- she in fact knew about his wife ane child.

(What?)

Get a life

You're living with his wife?- in 1530 henry wanted anne to movw into the palace, while trying to get catherine out

Like, what was I meant to do?

Sorry, not sorry 'bout what I said

I'm just tryna have some fun

Don't worry, don't worry, don't lose your head

I didn't mean to hurt anyone

LOL, say oh well

Or go to hell

I'm sorry, not sorry 'bout what I said

Don't lose your head

Three in the bed and the little one said- NO

If you wanna be wed, make up your mind

Her or me, chum

Don't wanna be some

Girl in a threesome- there wasnt any threesome?..

Are you blind?

Ooh, don't be bitter

Ooh, 'cause I'm fitter

Ooh, why hasn't it hit her?

He doesn't want to bang you

Somebody hang you- idrk if she would say it. I dont really know anything bout their relationship

Here we go

Your comic went viral

I didn't really mean it but rumours spiral- Yeah, they accused her of witch craft

Wow Anne, way to make the country hate you- FR. they loved catherine sooo...

Mate, what was I meant to do?

Sorry, not sorry 'bout what I said

I'm just tryna have some fun

Don't worry, don't worry, don't lose your head

I didn't mean to hurt anyone

LOL, say oh well

Or go to hell

I'm sorry, not sorry 'bout what I said

Don't lose your head

Tried to elope

But the pope said nope

Our only hope was Henry

He got a promotion

Caused a commotion

Set in motion the C of E

The rules were so outdated

Us two wanted to get x-rated- they already got 'x-rated'..

Soon, ex-communicated-yeah they made small secrwt wedding

Everybody chill, its totes God's will

Henry's out every night on the town-MHM

Just sleeping around, like what the hell?-YEA

If that's how it's gonna be

Maybe I'll flirt with a guy or three- NO. But they accused her of affair with her brother george, some violinist and other guy

Just to make him jell

Henry finds out and he goes mental- YEAH

He screams and shouts- wait he was rather calm i think?..yk he was abt to marry jane

Like so judgemental

You damned witch-Yeah...

Mate, just shut up

I wouldn't be such a b-

If you could get it up- UMMM...

Here we go

(Is that what you said?)- she didnt really argued tho..

And now he's going 'round like off with her head- it was like guards got her and her so called lovers on a talk

(No)

Yeah, I'm pretty sure he means it

(Seems it)

What was I meant to do?

(What was she meant to do?)

Like what was I meant to do?

(What was she meant to do?)

No, but what was I meant to do?

Sorry, not sorry 'bout what I said

I'm just tryna have some fun

Don't worry, don't worry, don't lose your head

I didn't mean to hurt anyone

LOL, say oh well

Or go to hell (she's going to hell)

Sorry, not sorry 'bout what I said

Sorry, not sorry 'bout what she said

Sorry, not sorry 'bout what I said

Don't lose your head

AND FOR THE REST?? ID SAY SHE WAS RATHER CONFIDENT THROUGH THE EXECUTION

[pinazee]

Psy vs. Psy

I genuinely think that if they were going to bring back any psych villian, Lindsay Leikin would pose the biggest threat. She knows Shawn isn’t psychic, she has adequate motivation to target him personally, and has the skills to prove he’s a fraud and do it slyly as she is also highly skilled in deductive reasoning (she did manage to get them to the counterfeiter to begin with so she has legitimate talent). She could even orchestrate it from prison. Maybe her parole was denied again so, like, what else is she going to do? Plus, she’s kind of nuts. Faking being a psychic with the FBI is a whole other level of bold compared to a local precinct, then she met a counterfeiter and was like yes please, more crime, then killed him when he tried to run, slept with Shawn that same night, then tried to take him hostage when she got caught. Its just a shame she wasn’t a bit more charismatic or eccentric. They had her play it as a very normal girl swept into a life of crime because of a guy (probably because she was a “love interest” for Shawn) when the receipts show she was an absolute lunatic (look at her face after they found the guy she killed. This bitch is smiling).

Also, she just kinda gave up when she was caught. I wish she’d have been screaming “he’s a fraud!” as she was taken to the car or even had a heart to heart moment with Lou Diamond Phillips because she did betray him after all. Idk, i just wanted more. (But i think maybe the writers recognized this and thats how we get Declan later??)

Gus is basically siri at this point. Between the archeology, safes, online poker, the law, tennis players, space, comic books, of course pharmaceuticals, and now studies tender from all over the world- its a smaller list of what Gus doesn’t know. Gus clearly likes learning. I’m surprised he never thought of becoming a teacher or college professor, to try to pass that love of learning to the next generation. Though i guess we see he’s not that great with people surprisingly, considering he’s a successful salesman. (OH MY GOD WHAT IF THIS WHOLE TIME GUS ACTUALLY HAD LIVED UP TO HIS POTENTIAL AND BECAME AN INTERNATIONAL SPY. He knows all these things because of his job, psychs only been able to stay open because Gus can fund it from his spy job, joining psych was a good front but he was also lonely from never getting to be himself. I kid, i kid, but its a fun idea for me haha)

No fucking way shawn doesn’t know what a drill is. Henry definitely would have beat that kind of man stuff into him. The military time too. I just felt the need to point this out. its like the show itself is dissing my boy and i have to defend him lol

I love when Gus is proud and smarmy over shawns talent. Look at his face here. My boy about to prove you wrong.

And do you think Shawn is actually afraid of competition or do you think he learned at an early age from his father that he didn’t have value unless he was the best? Huh Henry, huh???(Weekend warriors “you don’t want to be a loser” comes to mind)

Henry trying some reverse psychology here. I can’t tell if its because Henry is actually concerned for Shawns safety like he said he wasn’t in the previous episode, or if he’s still taking it personally that Shawns using the gifts he “gave” him to be psychic. Probably both. We know he was really bothered by his motorcycle accident, so i wonder if he’s been kind of spiraling, and adding up all the crazy situations he’s been in. (Which, i don’t think Shawn tells him about. i think Gus calls him like a weekly report haha) I think the fact that shawns cases are becoming more dangerous he suddenly doesn’t like the idea of him being a detective, well a detective this way at least, because i think in his mind he’d be safer if he was an actual cop where he had a partner with a gun, and back up, and rules, and training. I mean we know he wouldn’t be, (look at what happens to Lassie and Juliet)

I just wanted to gif this because it’s one of my fave jokes in the episode!

Mildred to the rescue! Im not entirely sure how this worked but it did and thats what matters haha

*Appropriate reaction is appropriate*

[cloudysunflowr]

Hello! Sorry if this has already been asked, but for the Deity AU: What's the storyline? Like when do certain things (that you are comfortable with sharing) transpire? I'm kinda new, so I'm just trying to find out what I can to catch up to everyone else who has been here. But besides that, I hope you have a wonderfully lovely day/night! :] (Also, I love your art and au's, there so fun!)

Hi hi!

Their story is mainly left untold— Like— I like to draw them for comfort and fun and dont really plan to write it out? Like— as in fully.

I do have a story with an ending tho and its mainly dealing with Wally and my oc Aiden.

Ill put it here since like I said I dont really plan to write it fully. Also their playlist which is where the story goes chronologically! :oD

The playlist

Ok oof-

Here goes—

This is gonna be me REALLY COMPACTING IT AS MUCH AS I CAN

So like… spoilers ig????

Aiden is the son of a chief/king? He wants to grow up and be as revered as his father. His friend of childhood is from a rival place and his name is Dante.

Aiden is trans and his dad doesnt really have faith but thanks to his mom and Frank (who he meets as a kid) he gets trained up and finally accepted in to the army.

Aiden and Dante find out their homes are at war and are like “nooo dont fight haha” and their parents are like “yea? Political marriage” and theyre like “shit”

So they become engaged, Dante has a small crush on Aiden so hes not that mad, Aiden doesnt want it. Their parents still plan to fight but in a backstab way.

Dad needs a right hand man, doesnt choose Aiden, chooses his rival but soon to be best friend (I dont have a name yet for them).

They go to war, Aidens dad tells him “lol go kill Dante while I kill the dad” Aiden gets told by deity same thing. To kill Dante or blood will be shed from his home. Aiden is about to, cant go through with it. Dante doesnt know.

They still win the battle, marriage is obviously called off. Aidens dad gets help from a witch to head home while Aiden meets Barnaby and gets help handling the witch (her name is Willow).

Dad and Frank get into an argument lmao. Frank is like “I pseudo raised your kid” and dad is like “nuh uh” dad does NOT know hes arguing with a deity. Aiden adult at this point.

Aiden meets Wally. Wally meets his parents and they bond a bit before he leaves after I think a week? Month? Dont remember. Aiden is big sad, bro misses him even tho he almost killed him.

Mom proud of the warrior Aiden became.

Another battle at war. Aiden is finally given the chance to lead a team. Blinds Dantes brother who is a tyrant. Frank and Aiden argue about leaving the guy alive.

Aiden meets Cloud god (lmao)

Dantes dad kills Aidens dad. Best friend saves the remaining crew by getting them tf out of there. They also found out Dantes brother was also killed but Aiden doesnt know if that was his fault.

Aiden meets Mathew after going through Eddies sacred lands or spirits and memory. Finds out mom died too. Aiden says fuck it Im going to be brutal with everyone.

Kills Dantes dad.

Taking care of Camila , his lil sis, and meets Wally again. Lovey lovey again.

Frank is like “bro nah thats a god youre a mortal” Aiden is like “you right” and tries to break up with Wally but Wally is like “Wait no, fuck the rules” and Aiden is like “…touché”

Aiden proposes, they marry

Maybe a kid? Debating.

Dante has a kid.

Dante sends assassins, Aiden kills them. Brutal with his opponents. Sacrifices his men. Goes through mutiny. Howdy like “lol death to your crew”. Best friend dies but also finds out that friend is who killed Dantes blinded brother which led to Aidens dads death.

Aiden tries to break off with Wally again because of everything hes been through he doesnt want that for Wally. Wally is like “Calm down—“

Lovey lovey

Dante has a dream of killing Aiden. Gets his crew for a strike.

Kills Aiden. Aiden says goodbye to his sister as shes taken away to safety as his home burns.

Wally grieving when he finds out

Kills Dante

Camila (adult now) comes back and calms Wally down. Befriends him.

Camila dies of old age.

Wally is learning to deal with grief.

Meets Aiden again as reincarnation.

Continues to love him through reincarnation and reincarnation.

Eventually gives up his divinity to live as mortal with Aiden.

[combatcorgi]

i think the appeal of juri to me is that women do not often get to have the comically edgy, so-far-gone it loops around to being kinda cool again visual designs, like she has a dyed hair streak and a spider tattoo and heterochromia and one eye glows bright purple its really a lot.

but also shes just a really depressed angry person who lashes out at anyone around her, especially people who try to get closer to her. which is kind of an interesting place to take a design like that. its more understated than just “i look evil and i am”

i have a big soft spot for characters who try to compensate for the lack of control and/or security they feel in their lives with anger/violence and thrillseeking. i know i’m talking about fucking street fighter here but i really am just still thinking about how at the end of your master missions with juri, after she’s kind of opened up to you and spoken frankly to you a number of times with a lot less of an emotional wall up, she abruptly pushes you away and tells you to not bother her again. idk.

there’s nothing after that. that’s just the end. you finally take two rounds off her in a fight and she just tells you “I just thought if I could get some meathead to copy my moves… maybe, just maybe, that’d be fun. But I’ve had enough. I’m sick of it.” there’s no resolution here. in her arcade mode there’s also no resolution, even though she acknowledges the fact that she feels awful — she has no idea how to fix it. she resents chun-li for her ability to heal and grow and for encouraging juri to do the same.

idk.

she lies to you about how influential and powerful she is, lies to you about her friendly relations with others, tells you the truth about her family and childhood trauma then tries to pass it off as a lie, candidly expresses her dissatisfaction with life to you. and then that’s that. it’s over.

obviously, speaking in terms of real-world motivation, her visuals were made with horny/rule of cool first and tying in with that characterization second, but in the context of that characterization it feels more like a deliberate attempt to project volatility and unapproachability. it’s kinda interesting to think about.

i will not speak on the feet thing

[smeddiemunson]

While i think Robin being utterly grossed out by everything to do with Steve and a relationship is so funny, i’m kinda obsessed with the idea that they don’t have any boundaries. They’re codependent and don’t know how to function without each other!

When Steve and Eddie start dating, Eddie thinks it could be really funny to make Robin squirm with details of their sex life because sometimes she’s a little mean and he wants payback in a way that won’t add to the levels of trauma they’ve all experienced. 

So Eddie’s teasing her and making it raunchy, laughing as he watches her nose scrunch up at the details, and if he’s embellishing the truth just a little bit, well, it’s only for the fun of revenge. 

But Robin stops him and says, “was this before or after you bust a nut like three seconds after you got inside him?” Laughs at the way Eddie’s face immediately flushes bright red. 

And Eddie whips his head around to stare accusingly at his boyfriend, hissing through his teeth, “You told her about that?” 

Steve just shrugs, shameless, says, “I tell her everything, you know that.” as if it should explain everything. 

Chrissy not even batting an eye when Steve references something that she thought was just between her and Robin. She knew Robin and Steve were close, knew Robin said she told him everything, everything, and Chrissy hadn’t really believed her until that moment. So okay, she just had to learn to be okay with Steve knowing everything about her and it’s really not a hard thing to learn because Steve cares. Steve cares so much and he obviously cares about Robin, and that’s enough for Chrissy.

Eddie grumbling when he finds out that Chrissy handles it better than he does, and maybe they should start telling each other everything about Steve and Robin. But he’s mostly just disappointed he hasn’t been able to get the jump on Robin yet. He can’t hate it though because he sees how happy they make each other. 

Steve and Robin, who try to hang out with other people, only to realise that when they get there, when they’re in the middle of whatever activity they’ve been convinced to take part in, they miss the other one and don’t actually want to be not hanging out with them. 

Steve and Robin needing to recharge their batteries with one another whenever they’ve been apart for longer than a day. Sometimes it’s sleepovers in the same bed, limbs twisted together and sharing each others clothes, but most of the time it’s sitting on opposite sides of the couch, half watching whatever they have on TV and not talking to each other. They just need to be in each others space, breathing the same air. 

They say the same thing at the same time all the time, and always treat it like its new and exciting, clambering over one another to wave their hands about and shout “oh my god! We’re the same person! We share a brain!”. Their friends know now not to say anything because they’ll only be met with glares and assertions that “you just don’t get it.” 

You can’t invite one of them to something and not the other. They just assume they’re both invited, they’re a package deal! And if someone tries to get them to come alone, they’re met with this sort of kicked puppy look and a quiet “but what about Robin?” or “what about Steve?”

The only real exception to the rule are Eddie and Chrissy who absolutely adore their partners other half, but need some alone time in their relationship. But they double date a lot, more than they do single dates. And it actually works out better that way because Eddie and Chrissy are almost as close as Steve and Robin (maybe without as much co-dependency), and they do fun things like play mini golf or go out to the city for a weekend where nobody knows who they are. 

Steve and Robin are bonded for life and if you want to be a part of their life in any capacity you just have to be okay with it.

[starsurface]

Ok I'm in for round 3 to request I need to see regressed Fujin and cg raiden headcanons - @plankydreamingcorner

I've got you!! :D

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

CG Raiden w/ Regressor Fujin Hcs

☁�� Raiden is one of Fujin's go to caregivers

⛈️ Also one of his favorite caregivers <3

☁️ It was actually through Fujin that Raiden found out that he really liked watching regressors (he's such a good cg, fr 🥺)

⛈️ Raiden has this sixth sense that tells him if someone around him is tiny or not

☁️ Although it's also pretty easy to tell if Fujin is little or not

⛈️ Regressed Fujin is either a tiny menace, or the sweetest kid alive

☁️ Like, he'll never do something intentionally naughty

⛈️ But Raiden said no more sweets? It'd be a shame if that cup right there were to slowly make its way to the edge

☁️ Doesn't actually push it off though, he'll grt super close and then giggle and run away when Raiden gets up to stop him

⛈️ However, the cup did fall and break one time and Fujin felt terrible for accidentally hurting it

☁️ He didn't mean to!! Seriously!! He was just trying to have fun, he never meant to break it

⛈️ Luckily Raiden knew it was just an accident and cleaned up the small mess, gently explaining to Fujin that thats why we shouldn't push cups

☁️ Nowadays Fujin only does the cup push with a sippy or bottle, things he knows he can't break

⛈️ Most times Fujin listens to the rules and Raiden doesn't have the biggest bugger on his hands (that's Liu Kang's and Kung Lao's job anyhow-)

☁️ You know that scene in Lilo and Stitch b where Stitch puts on some laundry and pranced around like a superhero until Nani catches him with a disappointed face?

⛈️ ^ That's them, specifically when Fujin's pulling a prank

☁️ Fujin hides behind Raiden a lot while he's small

⛈️ Whether he's actually nervous about being small in front of someone

☁️ Or he's hiding from the grumpy monks after he made their not super important but a bit important papers fly

⛈️ Raiden got mad and lectured for it, because he's a big meanie >:(

☁️ Raiden isn't a strict cg, but he's definitely stern on certain things

⛈️ When he says no, it means no, and no amount of whining or begging can change his mind

☁️ Usually Fujin doesn't fuss much when Raiden says no, a small pout but he quickly gets over it

⛈️ Fujins actually really good at following any rules they've set, and Raiden will get him treats for being good sometimes

☁️ Fujin is a very cuddly, very clingy regressor

⛈️ Cuddles, snuggles, all that jazz

☁️ Raidens a bit more stuff when it comes to giving and receiving physical affection

⛈️ The most he usually gives are shoulder squeezes and maybe a small head pat

☁️ So the first few times Fujin clings to his arm or snuggles up against his side, Raiden doesn't exactly know what to do

⛈️ Don't worry, overtime he gets better and Fujin gets to use him like the 7 ft Teddy bear he is

☁️ Fujin adores playing outside, and Raiden kinda just follows closely behind him

⛈️ He'll let Fujin climb trees, but only lower branches, and he has to be nearby

☁️ One of their favorite activities together is blowing bubbles

⛈️ But that I mean that Raiden will blow bubbles, and Fujin will run around trying to pop them all

☁️ He gets a bit fussy when some bubbles go up a bit too high for him to pop, but will quickly get distracted by new bubbles

⛈️ Fujin is more of a softer regressor, sometimes being depicted as smaller even though he's like, 6, not 3

☁️ Raidens really good at treating Fujin like his age, but also accommodating to what Fujin wants

⛈️ Yes, six year olds can use baby bottles and anyone who says otherwise will get Raiden's wrath (after he comforts the highly upset Fujin)

☁️ Fujin usually likes more healthier options, but one of his favorite things to munch on while small are cookies and milk

⛈️ Raiden makes sure he doesn't eat too much though, mostly because hes a big meanie, mostly because he doesn't want Fujin to get a tummy ache (and he's a big meanie)

☁️ Fujin calls Raiden a big meanie to everything Raiden does that Fujin doesn't like

⛈️ Raiden's okay with the nickname, he'd rather be a big meanie than have a very upset Fujin on his hands

☁️ While Fujin is a very well mannered regressor, he also loves annoying people, specifically his brother

⛈️ He'll ask Raiden what he's going, follow him around, poke him, stand just outside Raiden's workspace so he's technically not in the room

☁️ Little Raiden gets incredibly fussy at Fujin's act, but big Raiden has much more patience

⛈️ Fujin keeps trying to steal Raiden's hat so he can wear it

☁️ He so far has been unsuccessful in all his attempts so far

⛈️ Fujin doesn't throw tantrums or hissy fits often, mostly when he's had a tough day and doesn't know how to properly communicate

☁️ Raiden will gently hold his little brother, rocking him and wiping away his angry tears

⛈️ He'll excuse any yelling or hitting (very rare, has only happened once) Fujin did, mostly because he knows Fujin feels guilty and never really meant to harm him

☁️ Those days are mostly spent cuddling and crying about big feelings

⛈️ Raidens also very good with handling Fujins nonverbal moments (personal hc that Fujin goes nonverbal when he's very angry or upset)

☁️ He'll slowly figure out what's making Fujin that upset, and make it go away

⛈️ He will also firmly hold and rock him (Fujin likes being squeezed)

☁️ That's his baby brother after all, if anyone knows how to make Fujin feel better, it's Raiden

⛈️ Fujin likes uppies, but likes running around more

☁️ Raiden’s strong, he can easily carry Fujin on his hip

⛈️ . . . But Fujin needs to stop tackling him when he was to get picked up >:(

☁ Raiden’s main CG nicknames are Bubba or Rai

⛈️ Other regressors call Raiden Grandpa Rai (because they're mean-) and one time Fujin called Raiden that and Raiden pouted foe three days straight

☁️ Almost nothing could make him feel better, and it was highly entertaining

⛈️ Also he is NOT that old and the other regressors need to start being nicer >:(

☁️ Raiden doesn't often use nicknames towards Fujin, especially when he first started watching Fujin regress, but he gets more in the hang of it as time goes on

⛈️ Sweetheart, Cloudy, Stormy, Sweetie, Fuu Fuu, all those sorts

☁️ Fujin likes coloring, and has made a picture of him and Raiden before prompting passing out because he stayed up past nap time to finish it

⛈️ Raiden totally didn't cry when he saw the words ‘Bestest Big Brudder Ever’ on it (it's hung in Raiden’s room)

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

Ugh, I love the Storm Brothers. 🥺

Also, I got super, super sick recently, so these might not be the best. I can totally do or make more!! :D

[spearxwind]

Oof I'm kinda scared to ask... Why do you not want to be an artist professionally?

Its just like, incredibly miserable in my experience.

Everyone wants their dream job of being paid to draw whatever the hell they want but 99% of the time you are hired and tasked to draw things that you don't have a lot of interest in, professionally speaking, and constantly getting your artistic efforts undermined by the rest of the team (this is esp. true in the videogame industry) artists always try to push for better designs and get their takes watered down for the sake of general public pleasing. Also you don't have a security blanket unless you're under long term contract. Most freelancers live gig to gig with the fear of not being able to support themselves if they don't take a job to take a break. Videogame and movie jobs arent stable because companies never keep the art teams, they are laid off and rehired whenever there is a new project

During my major, I drew nonstop for 4 years for class. Not always things I enjoyed, but also not always things I didnt like. In fact I enjoyed my major immensely! It was so fun. But the burnout is very, very real, and the workload was similar (even inferior to) regular art jobs. What happens if you like to draw in your off time? You spend your days making and pumping out art nonstop for hours, and then on your free time breaks you draw some more? I personally couldn't do it. I just wanted to do other things

And like.... I spent the first three years being told by teachers (people with stable, contract based jobs) how cool of a job it is to do art, and then the last year getting grilled on how insanely hard it is to make it out there. If you don't have connections, money, an audience, a studio, it's actually impossible. You need to be your own lawyer, abide by the very strict self employment rules that take a severe chunk out of your earnings. Do all of your finance/schedule/marketing etc while on top of that constantly producing work (I know there's people who can do it but, personally, I cannot) I really admire the people who were able to build themselves up as artists from the ground like this (because its definitely possible, just insanely hard)

Also, making something you love into your job ends up being miserable too. I experienced this with patreon, which I posted to as like a chill thing and it just got increasingly hard to make content for it or just post in general, even drawing my own ocs and sharing stuff about them started to feel like a chore.

Maybe it's just me though, this has just been my personal experience but yeah in general I realized I am immensely happier just keeping art as a hobby or its gonna suck my soul out (Since I already experienced it)

I don't mean to discourage anyone, I think the world in general needs more artists. But for that we would need to actually be taken seriously and valued, which sadly we are not, at all. And if there's anyone reading that is considering art as a job: it is absolutely grueling. It's not an easy job. Even if you desperately love art it can suck the life out of you and the joy for what you do

(As an extra sidenote. Artists are usually exploited using this mentality as well. That they are supposed to love their job. So they expect you to work your wrists off "For the passion". Dont fall victim to it)

[ask-the-royal-absol]

@Hope & Felix: Hi Hope; Hi Felix, its great to see you again. So, question to you both; Does the Underdark or Terrestria celebrate its own holidays? I'm asking because we just celebrated a couple of them just recently and I wanted to snag some gifts for the both of you and Destino as well, if I can, as I'm the Celebrate Anon.

Hope: How did that happen?

Felix: Destino being royalty means they can choose for things ta happen and their parents allow it.

Hope: That’s not…no. I’m sorry but in my kingdom, I can’t just say my birthday is a holiday and it’ll suddenly become a thing. That’s stupid. And everyone is ok with it?

Felix: It’s pretty harmless so nobody cares. All it means is that Destino is wished a happy birthday on their special day if ya see ‘em. I’m the only one that ends up givin’ ‘em a gift. Well, me, their parents and the bisharps but that’s it.

Hope: Fair enough, if it helps them to feel important.

Felix: Ya were gonna talk about ya holidays?

Hope: Oh yeah. We have a lot. It varies from religion to religion.

Felix: Religion?

Hope: Yeah. Lots of Pokémon worship different legendary Pokémon, believing certain ones are the creators of the world. Pokémon, like the one known as the Relentless Torrent or the Ancestral Guardian, have their own religious movements which means certain holidays are put in place to appease them. For example, the Day of Ash is a day where Pokémon from the movement of the Living Magma will throw ash into the volcano in order, as they believe, give it sustenance so the Living Magma does not leave the volcano.

Hope: Dad tells me to celebrate as many as I can. Not because I believe in them - the guardian informed me of how the world was made - but more as a symbol for the people of my kingdom, or at least that’s what dad says. And a lot of them are so much fun. Some have some incredible traditions too which I love taking part in. I’m kinda glad I have dad making me aware of all of these movements as it means I get to be closer to the Pokémon I’m gonna eventually rule over.

Felix: Damn, sounds like ya really care for ya subjects, considering ya have ta go ta all these celebrations and all.

Hope: I try my best. Though it does mean I can get incredibly busy sometimes.

Hope: Vacation? Ha! That would be a dream. I don’t get much in terms of “free time”. Royal duties and all.

Felix: Surely ya must get some time off. Destino doesn’t really have ta do but they still give ‘emselves a break if it’s too much for ‘em.

Hope: Destino is going to find it incredibly difficult when they take the throne then. Not gonna put it lightly but if they’re not doing something everyday, they’re not gonna last long.

Felix: I never said they were doing nothin’. Just that they like to balance their royal duties with havin’ some free time. It’s important to ‘em. They value their free time. Work life balance, ya know. They sometimes help distribute food, read ta kids, settle things between two Pokémon.

Hope: There’s no way I’d be able to have a break. It’s hilarious Destino has to have breaks when they have nowhere near as many responsibilities as me.

Hope: My days usually start with an hours worth of training, followed by a meet and greet with a group of Pokémon - that usually takes a couple of hours as I have to give a speech about myself and the royal family and how we support the kingdom. Then I visit a couple of the local schools so I can listen to the kid read and help out as best I can - sometimes I’m even allowed to teach Pokémon moves classes. Gotta inspire the young ones, you know? I have a quick 10 minute lunch before meeting other groups of Pokémon for 3 ish more hours, do a couple more hours of training, maybe meet with a few more of my subjects, then I’ll get a quick dinner, or as quick as I possibly can, then back to meeting with other Pokémon and slipping in some training in my free moments. Sometimes the meet and greets don’t last as long so I can have a quick moment to myself.

Felix: …That doesn’t sound healthy.

Hope: What do you mean?

Felix: That’s ya every day? Every single one of those activities?

Hope: Yeah. I don’t see what the-

Felix: Hope, how’s that sustainable for ya? Ya gonna end up burning yaself out.

Hope: Ha, you’re worrying too much. I’m perfectly fine. Besides, it’s all for the good of the kingdom.

Felix: Alright, so how are ya allowed ta do all of this if ya schedule is so jam packed?

Hope: My old man has no idea I’ve gone and done this. He probably thinks I’ve gone to help someone or something. Everything’s fine.

*A brief thought slipped into Hope’s mind. A memory of the King and Queen of the Underdark leaving to go and tell her father of what she had done. Shit. Perhaps he would know. It’s not like she’d get in trouble with him. Maybe she should have told her father before leaving. Too late now. Felix noticed the faintest drop in Hope’s confident expression. Even though he only just met her, hearing about how full her day was with a lack of down time made him slightly worry about her. At least Destino could manage their time well.*

[flamingskull28]

Ok so I may have made an Agent 32 villain AU. Here is a very rough draft of it.

4 and 8 are ruleing over basically everything after the events of side order showed them just what they could accomplish.

They live in a manor over looking Splatsville, thats fairly large. They even installed a throne that looks out a window looking at the city.

They have the "One sits in the throne and the other is strewn on their lap." kinda thing going on (4's mostly the one on the throne)

and they get back at everyone for leaving them to watch the canyon

like 3 is forced to be a servant for them as punishment for mocking 4 and 8 and acting likes she's better than them.

She hates having to watch them being stupidly gay while she just has to stand to the side and wait for orders. Like getting them wine or giving them massages.

Marie is forced to be like a sub cook so she knows what being bossed around is like. She is also in charge of their paperwork (its double checked afterwards to make sure she didn't sabotage it)

Callie I'm not sure but maybe something like having to spend 2 hours everyday fighting full x ranked teams by herself for making 4 have to fight her over and over.

though I think 4 would be a bit more lenient with Callie.

Even so 4 and 8 watch the matchs for fun all the time.

Neo 3 is forced to keep the others in check as some sort of guard (they secretly like getting to boss around 3 and the squid sisters but try not to abuse it)

Neo 3 was left alone at first but tried to free the others and got captured, 4 convinced them that it would be it much for fun for them if they complied and just guarded the others.

I think pearl and Marina would be allowed to be free, by order of 8 but they come by 4 and 8's Mannor every once and a while.

Pearl is kinda supportive and 4 and 8's rule

Marina is less so but doesn't full object (and knows better than to do so)

I think deep cut would be in full support of them and 4 and 8 would leave them be.

4 and 8 would also be in command of the octarien army

that's how they keep their mix of chaos and order

they treat them much better than Octavio did so they stay loyal (and they aren't forced to stay)

they used lines like "we were used as well but now we can be in charge!" to convince the soldiers.

Octavio is probably on public display for people to throw eggs at

a similar thing is probably the case for cuttlefish, or he was just thrown in a retirement home.

the other agents live in like shared prison room in 4 and 8's manor

at this point I think they all have come to terms with their fate and all accept the punishment for their actions

they did try and escape and rebel once before or maybe more times but 4 and 8 beat them easily and they just gave up.

Feel free to ask questions or add ideas. I may do a short fic about this someday. Might make it more angsty as well.

[borisbubbles]

Eurovision 2024: #20

20. LUXEMBOURG Tali - "Fighter" 13th place

Decade Ranking: 73/153 [Above Electric Fields, below Emma Muscat]

For a grand, greatly anticipated return, "Fighter" has always been just there for me. It's summery, upbeat, lightweight and frivolous. Not a shabby, nor a moneymaker. This entry is an FFF (Fun Finale Filler) and it knows it.

How do I know that it knows itself? Well,

BADLY ANIMATED CGI LEOPARDS 😍 😍. You know how I feel about staging tricks like that. They're tacky and ugly and stupid and transparently try to cover up a middling composition.😍 idk, I love Leopards and I love the colour purple, so maybe it was just tacky ENOUGH to be funny, but I stan the decision-making because Tali > Ochman.

It was quite amusing 2 me that Luxembourg made their grand return after 31 years, only to try to throw vast swaths of cash at unnessecary embellishments because they KNEW it wasn't a high flier and needed to throw in SOMETHING, ANYTHING to make it work. Shirtless sexy dancers, badly animated VR, all the pyrotechnics in the world. It feels... very emblematic to them as a country even though this was their first ever modern era contest? "Money fixes everything", no wonder the EBU wanted their opulent arses back.

And it is funny they staged "Fighter" like that because "Fighter" always kind of worked, anyway? It was a plucky power-up song, and a clear qualifier in semi 1 no matter from which position it performed.

It didn't NEED the leopards

it didn't NEED the gratuituous sexual tension lmao

The way to go with a song such as "Fighter" is by finding a balance between tough and cute. The balance swung a bit too heavily in favour of "tough", because "Fighter" just isn't that kind of song, despite the reworks Lux tried to force. It's whimsically French foremost and while "France was historically a militaristic powerhouse,"toughness" suits France historically, nearly everyone associates it with cultural sophostication and romance. (hence why France is always culture focused in Civ, and never the feudal, chivalry-themed warmongering menace it actually was for most of its history ♥)

As ridiculous Fighter's staging got (and how lowkey BAD Tali'Golergant vas Eshkoli's styling was), it still vibed as a fun time. It might just be my latent alcoholic ass imprinting on the tequila sunrise colous scheme, but still. Tali took command of her dancers, showed her inner strength by fistpumping the air and thickened her braids so they no longer resembled antennae.

And she kinda ate those lives, yo.

In semi 1 Lux made for an excellent palate cleanser, a burst of energy after the period of inaneness Rim Tim Tagi Dim left in its wake. I love Raiven dearly and I really like Iolanda, but excitement was not their game. Tali came to the rescue when needed.

In the finale it was less necessary, though it did make Israel stand out as even more miserable to me, so there is that.

Sigh, I have to address the Israeli thing, don't I?

Look, I don't fucking CARE that Tali is proud of her Israeli-Jewish heritage. Nor that she visits the fake country twice a year. Nor that her song was produced by that other israeli Tali. I think her views on the matters are misguided and warped, but I get it. She's going to stick up for her OG country and her people, and we'd be foolish to expect her to do a 180° turn just because we believe she should. She has her stance, I disagree with it, but I can respect it. Civilians aren't responsible for whatever bloodthirsty maniac rules the roost or their actions, regardless of whether they elected them directly or not.

(though I will say that her transparent and overtly cheerful agreement with Joost's DQ all "YAY! HE BROKE THE RULES AFTER ALL ^_^ :claps:" made me ALOL. That DQ is still a grim affair, but lmfao what a scrump cheerleading bitch ♥).

But in a sense I wish Tali had been Israel's entrant himself. The only thing that erases Israel's controversy is their withdrawal, true, and Tali would have beenthe perfect horcrux, but if we WERE to have that country at Eurovision, I'd rather have them with Plucky Apolitical Filler (ft. Three Giant Leopards) rather than Teary Propaganda Ballad (Eurovision Reskin), y'know?

Also note, dear Israeli's, that -by my knowledge- Tali was NOT shunned by the other acts or the fan community, nor by the media and the professional juries, despite being half-Israeli and Jewish and zionistic. The few strays that she did end up catching were by the usual dumbfuck bigots on social media and amounted to nothing. So much for antisemitism, huh?

It's difficult to end the write-up after that rant that had little to do with the performance, so I will just say this: Tali's placement, while a tad high, proved that there's always a place for positivity and acceptance at Eurovision, no matter your background or your political colour.

With retrospection on our side, it makes sense juries would vote for "Fighter" as everyone agreed Nemo should win anyway, allowing them to siphon away twelves like a vacuum on amphetamine. With Croatia, Italy and France picking up the scraps, anyone with a modicum of inoffensiveness would be favoured to do well, (since this finale was HIGHLY jury unfriendly) which also favoured Lux because of the novelty coming with their return.

Ultimately it's our choices in life that define us, and Tali's were to give us a fun time unburdened by shackles of war, and that, in THIS FUCKING YEAR, was worth a lot to me.

THE RANKING:

[nightmareentertainment]

ken's whole story is built in [insecurity and loneliness] that funnels into [anger] which turns into [GRIEF guilt and even more anger] which makes him the prime suspect to be used but also makes him , like , fundamentally mentally weak , leads him down an even LONELIER path, leads him towards cruelty , and the turning point in his story is actually like. he describes it, verbally, as realizing in his moment of healing that his parents loved him. like going through life feeling completely abandoned by a better-than-you brother who was also suffering under their parents' negligence towards their kids' emotional stability, feeling abandoned by your parents, and then that brother dies and you are still left standing in his shadow, its just even bigger now, its full of grief, and youre full of grief, and you dont know what to do other than to just stare empty-eyed at his closed casket

and all you thought before was i hate you, i want you to dissapear and now you want to take it all back, because did i do this? did i wish this into existence? this isnt what i wanted. this isnt what i meant.i was nine years old and angry and sad and alone but i never wanted you to dissapear. not for real.and now your room is just your room, and you get an email, and someone wants to help you :-). except no he fuckign doesnt he just gives you a place to relinquish all that anger, and it builds, and youre still alone but youre convincing yourself now you have control over that. you step into your brothers shoes. youre better than him now. youre finally how tall he was when he died. your parents seem so happy to have their boy back. they dont realize they never got him; they just lost the kid they had left. you are a husk made from guilt and grief and you fill it with anger until its exploding from every part of you. you no longer know who you are, but the news decides youre ken ichijouji, boy genius and soccer star! so you go with that. eventually you find your way to your escape. a new world. and you get to decide who you are in this game; you get to pick your destiny, you get all the control. theres no consequences for not smiling at the camera, here. and youre alone, and the world is weak, and theres something itching in your mind; something telling you what to build and how to build it, and you never know your control isnt actually your own. you never get to know. you play the game how you want to. its your world. its not your parents, its not your brothers, its yours, this is yours and you are going to fucking rule it!!!!!

ken is very much like , hurt-people-hurt-people but the thing is that, in the real world hes trying very very hard to be NORMAL and NICE and GOOD even while hes bubbling with rage and hatred and wants to be left alone, he smiles for all the cameras everyone is putting in his face, taking his anger out in secret and only when nobody is watching, because hes aware of consequences but in the digital world there is no consequences. its a game, after all! then there's other players and at first it's kinda fun, having an enemy in your game, but then theyre not playing fair, then theyre in your way, its getting annoying, and its not fun anymore. and the worse you feel online, the worse you feel offline, and hes pissed, and everyone wants everything from him, and one day he throws it all down and decides fuck this and ken ichijouji runs away. the ichijouji family loses their second and final son. (this is their turning point, too. they realize maybe osamu was never happy, before he died. maybe they pushed ken into the same box. they bury their faces in their hands and just pray they havent completely lost their chance to try)

ken- the kaiser- is having a really Really Bad Fucking Time. hes not even having fun anymore he just wants to be in control of something, he wants the chance to be a winner, and theres other players and theyre in the way. and then. well, shit. and then they win. Doesn't that suck? It’s the first time you’ve failed at something in years. i like him. i like the digimon kaiser. thats just a little kid hes up playing games in this bitch. its shown he actually really, really loved and admired his brother, and i feel like this and his persona as the kaiser are involved. he literally resembles so much of his brother even in his persona as someone who rules the world isnt it crazy how you resemble your prodigy brother no matter where you go or what you do because without him there youre the only one who could possibly fill the space. ken is nobody, but everyone loved osamu. why not be osamu? even if you dont realize it!!!

thats all a big part in why he claims he doesnt know himself after it all goes down this kid has no clue who he is. only wormmon does. quite literally only wormmon knows who he is. who he was before it all went to shit. who he was while it happened. only wormmon was ever there for him. and he treated wormmon like shit, for so long. how do you ever forgive yourself for that? wormmon tells him he's kind. he really is. under all that anger and guilt and never ending sadness, hes kind and hes just lonely. and so ken turns his life around. IT MEANS SO MUCH TO ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOBODYGETS IT NOBODY UNDERSTANDS HIM LIKEI DO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HE HAS NEVER KNOWN ANYTHING BUT THE FACT THAT HE WILL ALWAYS EXIST IN HIS BROTHERS SHADOW SO HE GROWS INTO HIS BROTHERS SHADOW AND ITS ONLY WHEN HES TORN DOWN TO NOTHING, INTO A GUILT-SOAKED MESS , DOES HE STEP OUT OF IT. KINDNESS IS THE ONLY WAY OUT. HE SPENDS HIS TIME TRYING TO MAKE UP FOR WHAT HE DID AND HE ONLY HEALS ONCE HE REALIZES HIS PARENTS AND WORMMON LOVE HIM, ONCE HE HAS FRIENDS ALWAYS READY TO BE THERE, ONCE HE LEARNS TO, AT THE VERY END, BE KIND TO HIMSELF TOO, AND FACE OSAMU AND FORGIVE HIMSELF

[factorialsotherfandoms]

its 6am and I'm complaining myself through the ending of purgatory k? This is just the bitching not a full balanced analysis, bits I genuinely enjoyed are missing so it looks like I have a worse opinion than I did, its below a cut because a lot of people don't want that and that's absolutely good. I'm just processing through.

I think purgatory ending feels bad because we were promised by the way it was advertised and treated the end of the arc, and what we got was another fucking mid point instead. A mid point which after this going on for so long nobody really wanted. Setting up new project cool! But it felt miserable to watch the end. Probably could have been helped if the CCs had more info on a meta level - just the timescales and that this wasn't actually the end of the arc - so they could pace themselves and us better. The eggs missing has gone on for far too long, we've been given far too little to work with, and it's just not fun viewing any more. Which is why my engagement is so dependent on the next little while.

That, plus getting to the boat on foot was impossible without near perfection - something they were never going to all have. I like giving qMaxo his big sendoff with the nuke which solves nothing! But people who were legitimately trying to escape (Cellbit, Tina, off the top of my head - Cellbit just legit got lost in the underground. He said after he decided to stay but like... really? We'll have to wait and see next time he plays qsmp. If nothing else he legit had shit to do planned, and I feel like he would discuss it more with Roier if he was going to perma-kill Cellbit as that's massive to put on someone else's character. Pretty sure ccCellbit was just teasing like he fucking does but we'll see. Also changes what Maxo did if any of them die to it /significantly/. I'll be genuinely worried for ccMaxo if his characters actually pretty neat death arc resulted in a fan favourite character permadying in a game without permadeath) should have had a legit chance to do so. If they were supposed to be able to. I really hope the admins smooth that bit over one way or another, because it just made shit feel extremely bad. Kinda expect the /actual/ ruling to be if one person made it they all did, but dear god they needed to tell the players that immediately after or whatever if so. Failing that you could maybe have the others in the Nether or something, but youd need to coordinate everyone who didn't make it and that'd just suck logistically. The sensible answer is if one person got there they all did because this isn't a high legality sort of game. For players.

Like the other eggs were probably kidnapped by something and reported out? And I'm betting on black concrete plot as that's the plot actually associated with them disappearing in the first place, but for all it's cool moments up until then it just... dropped the ball. Tbh the entire thing with the eggs being involved was a massive ball drop which lead to /one/ cool conversation but otherwise just made everything infinitely less enjoyable.

Poor BBH. Like cc wise. He's one of a whole lot of them who have horrific rp safety practices, but also there's not really anyone to teach them that and that's nothing to punish someone for. Hope it gets hashed out with him. All of them but especially him.

Having players of another project as "advertising" for a new project without them knowing more in advance tastes kinda shitty. Very shitty. We'll see how tied it ends up being but that's just not comfy.

Quackity saying about big stuff planned is absolute ass. Like legitimately and out of character the CCs genuinely need a break for a bit you can't just throw them back into heavy stuff immediately. They need space to breath oc and find their footing ic. Most of them have streamed far more than usual this fortnight, and even for those who do stream daily usually it's been intense. You can say if its hurting them they can just take a break but you cannot convince me they can when their literal irl incomes depend on this. Some more than others, but they do.

Also like the tension just genuinely doesn't hold that long. Most of what I run is combat heavy fantasy events, but I've done horror too. And a big bit of running horror events is studying how pacing and tension works, especially over an extended period (horror events locally tend to be multi-day). You /can/ change the usual layout, but you have to know your fucking shit and be really careful if you do, and the admins and Quackity just don't seem to - as a collective whole, some individuals may - have the experience necessary to fuck with the formula. Like. I'm burnt out, the players are ooc burnt out, the fandom generally seems burnt out - not giving the players a win here was already a mistake, but the tension /has/ snapped. Too many people are too burnt out from playing more than usual and all that, under very high stakes circumstances, for very little reward. There needs to be a break where players who do other stuff can play other stuff and players who don't can take the time to find their footing again. Tension levels are not sustainable and they broke them open. If they hadn't revealed the eggs you could have stretched it another few days, but they did. At which point losing the eggs again is genuinely so fucking unsatisfying. They could have only been shown the winning egg. Like sure fuck with people, that's what's going on IC and OC maybe it was supposed to be reassurance, but it just ended up feeling ghoulish. It was so obviously playing on feelings it just fell flat for me. Not even the fun playing with feelings, just a fuck you.

Also communication has been fucking atrocious. Yes keep twists in the bag, I can see arguments for all plot points, but the players needed to know the timescale, the fact it was a PvP not a lore event, and that this wasn't the end of the eggs missing arc rather an interlude waaaaaaaaaaay earlier. Like they found out as these things became obvious, but given the time commitment it demanded they needed to know like weeks before it started. As soon as it was announced. We can tall all we like about trusting the admins, but the admins have got to fucking trust their players to still make good viewing times even if not everything is a complete surprise. It fucked over Cellbit and Roier and their murder plot planning, it fucked over a lot of people ooc and their streaming schedules and their ability to do actual life things. Forever when given the Judas plot should have been told in advance when it would be activatable. The players - not the characters or the audience, the players - should have known it was 15 days, PvP, only 1 egg was on the cards for now, that the chance to save the others will come later (I have no doubt it will), and that they would need to escape fast at the end. Not the why, not the how, not the plot, but you need to know the fucking stakes.

Like okay let's look at shit I run a sec. Its nor perfect, but we've been building on a 20+ year tradition of larp in the same place and learning from what does and doesnt work. Info players have in advance:

date and time. for things run for and at the university, dates generally are announced start of the year, and which system will be which day is the start of every term. For events for the uni but at an unusual place or time (often an IC dinner party or similar), 3 weeks in advance. For stuff not associated with the university (I help with fewer of these, as far fewer happen and theyte the ones i can still play with my disability)... well, they tend to be multi day in a hired venue and players pay a lot of money to be there, so its usually about a year and a half in advance. The stuff below about pitches are for saturday ones - paid for multi day events all that info is announced at least a year in advance, and for single day non-university ones at least 6 months. But like qsmp is a constantly running thing so the university stuff is a fairer comparison.

Every event has a "pitch". This goes up the Tuesday before for Saturday events - theres a couple of different teams running different genres but same place same time theres a larp every termtime saturday just 9/30 are run by my team. The pitch will contain the information the characters know going into a mission or social or whatever. If theres a twist the twist isn't mentioned, ofc, just the initial setup. Then, there's an out of character section, with stuff like date and time and reminders to weather weather appropriate clothing and sturdy shoes.

If the event is /not/ in the format players expect, in the out of character info including things like the time, we say that. We run combat heavy stuff. If it's purely social, we say so. If it'll be more Freeform than usual, we say so. If the party is getting split we - you guessed it - say so.

Our events have different levels of IC rewards. The basic reward can always be assumed (3 gold, iirc). Theres also 4 and 5 gold days. If its not 3 gold, it says so in the pitch, and players know this is a difficulty rstinf system. 3 is normal, 4 is "this is designed to be challenging for late end high xp characters and is likely to kill lower levels", 5 is "we are actively trying to kill someone". Death is always an option, but the ref team don't usually want it.

Sometimes there are RP rewards too. These are not explicately stated, but are alluded to "you will be paid so long as you eliminate the monster. If you capture it and deliver it to the university, however, the chancellor promises an extra something for you" sort of thing. "The Dowager Duchess is well known for rewarding those in her favour. Impress her, and she may do the same for you".

If there's distressing content that isn't covered by genre and game style, we include a warning. Last time was "this session will include horror elements. A list of content warnings is available from any ref on request", and we DMed players we knew have triggers on that list the same day pitch went out to liase with them. Yes even when the trigger is a plot twist or a spoiler because fuck you player safety will always be most important. One which had content warnings but was not horror "this session contains potentially distressing material. A list of content warnings is available from any ref on request".

And like... call me naive but this is the sort of info the players should have? In advance they should have a summary (yes it's also given IC at the start of the event, but it means they can prep properly), dates and times well in advance (so they can prep their lives and other projects), expected rewards (even if vague), and any particularly common triggers (like say a third party intentionally sewing paranoia and fucking with mental health of characters) should have a "theres triggers here please put a message in your help channel for a list". I'd say also some indicator of where on a plot arc something falls.

We dont give this because our pacing plot arc wise is determined by how we run them. Paid events are all always one offs (I run them with a different group of people but same circle) - except when they aren't in which case this is made clear at the pitching stage- and uni ones its dictated by the university schedule - we run nine main events a year, 3 each term. There's a small climax last linear of every term, and a major one at the end of a year. Yearly arcplots do not always exist but when they do they end with the last linear of term. There are some other plots brewing over longer periods - when those come to a head, they will become the main plot for a year and their climaxes run on yearly arcplot rules. It is never the case that all sessions in a year are arcplot related, to give players not interested in a specific thing something to do.

Other things they could probably do with include a safe word and establishing a way for an admin to indicate a fuck up due to glitch or mistake - probably an "ignore me" emote only admins have access to.

This all being said - the admin team want people to have fun and for it to go well, and the medium is much younger than traditional LARP. Information for their specific media does not exist, and while they maybe should look at rp for ideas they probably look at tabletop and don't even consider LARP - let alone larp styles more common in Europe. I can say things all I want, but I'm just a guy over here. The admins are trying their best and do want the best for their players, and will have a plan. It's just infuriating sometimes.