#it's just like. a general hang out spot. since I'm trying to. get out of my comfort zone and interact w/ ppl more

[capricioussun]

I made a discord server!

It's been a weird week and I'm pretty sleep deprived right now but! I figured if I didn't go ahead and link it today I might put it off another many months and I don't want to do that, so!

This server is 18+ only. No unsafe 4w stuff but. Yk. Peace of mind and all that.

Anyways hey! Come hang out and talk abt stuff or smth. <3

[runninriot]

Caramel

for @vecnuthy 💜

also written as fill for the @steddiebingo prompt: alternate first meeting

rated: T | wc: 1.903 | tags: best friends eddie & jeff, pre steddie, (chaotic) flirting, Eddie Munson has a crush, confident Steve Harrington, sexual innuendo, Scoops Ahoy, no upside down au | also on ao3

Eddie is going to kill Jeff.

He'll make it slow and painful and even that won't rectify the betrayal.

   “Oh, come on! I've been listening to you whine about your stupid crush forever now, and I'm sick of it. So, do something about it while we're here.”

He does not whine, just to be clear. If anything, he's simply stating the tragic facts of hopeless love and never-to-be requited feelings.

Excuse him for thinking his best friend would actually support him and offer some consolation in these trying times. But no, Jeff's being a dick. Using Eddie's misery for his own amusement by dragging him in here.

They were about to grab lunch, but then Jeff pulled him through the doors of Scoops Ahoy without so much as a warning, under the pretence of a sudden craving for ice cream.

Eddie would've much rather stepped through the gates of hell than set foot in here but he couldn't fight it, not without catching other people's attention. And that's the least of what he wanted, having eyes on him. Especially those hazel ones, dark bright and warm, with green and gold speckles whenever the light hits them right.

   “I'm so going to murder you,” Eddie grits through his teeth, trying his best not to alert the group of girls standing in front of them. He feels hot from- anger, but Jeff has the audacity to laugh.

   “I mean it, man. You can't force me to-”

   “Welcome to Scoops, what can I get ya?”

    Fuck.

He hadn’t even noticed they were next in line but it’s definitely too late now to run and hide. Eddie's heart stops for a moment but contrary to the silent prayer he sends to no one in particular, he doesn't drop dead.

Instead, he's tripping all over his own tongue, swallowing nothing because his mouth's suddenly so fucking dry.

   “I, uh, we, uh-”

    Jesus H. Christ.

He's never been known for being very cool. Or a smooth talker for that matter. Especially when it comes to- well. Doesn't matter. He's obviously not going to try to flirt with the guy that's been haunting his every waking hour and his dreams ever since he started working in the record store across from Scoops. But making a fool of himself wasn't really the plan either.

   “I'll have the triple choc. Oh, and add one scoop of strawberry cheesecake, please." Jeff's palm comes down on his shoulder, patting him appreciatively. "My friend Eddie here is being generous today."

If he turned to look at him, he could see the shit-eating grin on his friend’s face, but all Eddie can do is stare at the pretty-smiling guy in front of him.

Steve, the name tag says.

Steve, wearing his stupid hat and his stupid uniform with the stupid red neckerchief hanging from the far too revealing collar that offers a dangerously delicious glimpse at the brush of dark hair peaking out from the low-cut neckline.

And speaking of neck- fuck!

In all the times Eddie stole secret glances at the man in question, he’s never been this close to him, always just yearning from a distance. But now that they’re standing merely a few inches away from each other, there’s no chance of missing the beauty spots scattered across his neck and face. So close, Eddie can count them individually, wants to remember each of their placements so he can dream about mapping them out with his fingertips, and maybe name them like stars.

   “So, Eddie,” someone says and it's then he realises he’s been caught staring. “Now that your friend's all set, what can I do to make you happy?”

Eddie’s heart does a weird little flip at his words, feels blood rushing into his face, hot-red bashfulness creeping into his cheeks and ears. He could swear he saw the other man wink at him. Could swear the way he said his name had a special kind of tone to it. But that doesn’t mean shit, right? He's probably just charming to all the customers, perfectly selling his happy little sailor act. And it's working, is the worst part. Makes Eddie blush even more than he already had, standing there absently twirling a strand of hair around his finger like an idiot, god.

    Brain to Eddie! Asking permission to reboot.

   “I, uh, I’m not sure.”

Heaven help him. This is embarrassing.

   “Want me to help you decide?”

Eddie is sure Jeff will tease him later for swallowing his tongue, but making up words is hard with your brain on overdrive. So he nods dumbly, eyes wide like those of a deer staring into the headlights of a truck – surely looking as stupid as he feels.

   “Hmm, let's see.”

Steve places both hands on top of the counter and leans forward, deliberately letting his eyes rake over Eddie in a way that makes him break out in cold sweat, giving him the horny-shivers. Making him feel like he's caught in a suffocating heatwave, all heavy-breathing and sweating just from having Steve's eyes on him.

   "You don't seem like the vanilla kind of guy. Maybe something a little more... fruity?"

Eddie's pretty sure he's stopped breathing, feels dizzy and disoriented, can focus on nothing but Steve's lips forming words he must be imagining.

He nods again, doesn’t really know what he’s agreeing to because his brain is on complete shutdown now, incapable of processing any of the words he’s heard.

   “What about this?”

Before he realises what’s happening, he feels the smooth surface of a plastic spoon pushing against his bottom lip. Gently, almost as if asking for permission – not going further than that, just waiting for him to take what he’s being offered.

Eddie’s eyes fall shut when he wraps his lips around the spoonful of ice cream, savouring the tangy-fresh flavour of lemon or lime, he’s not sure.

When he opens his eyes again, he catches Steve looking at his lips, licking his own like he is the one that’s been offered a taste. Like maybe he’d want a taste. Of ice cream. Of Eddie’s lips?

   “Did you like that?”

Like?

    Huh.

What a weird way to describe this earth-shattering experience.

Like doesn’t even come close to what Eddie feels right now. It’s overwhelming, heart stopping, mind-blowing.

It’s-

    Oh, wait.

Steve’s not talking about-

    Oh, God.

   “Yeah, I- I like it. The, uh, the ice cream,” Eddie stutters, feels hot all over from the embarrassment of letting himself get lost in an illusion of Steve flirting with him. Of Steve asking if Eddie liked being spoon-fed by the man of his dreams.

    Fuck!

How he is able to come back from whatever insane idea had possessed him, will forever remain a mystery to him, but he finds his voice despite everything, straightens himself to bring some much needed distance between him and the other man.

    “A little too sour for my taste, though.”

Steve scrunches his nose, and it’s as dorky as it is adorable, which- doesn’t help at all to stop Eddie’s heart from drumming a happy-sappy beat at the sight, makes his stomach swoop the way it does on a roller coaster drop.

   “Should’ve guessed a guy like you likes it sweet.”

Sweet like Steve’s smile.

Sweet like Eddie imagines Steve’s lips must taste like.

Sweet like the kisses he’d place onto every inch of Steve’s caramel skin, if ever given the chance.

   “Caramel!” Steve exclaims like he’s just heard Eddie’s thoughts aloud, “That’s your flavour.”

Without asking if he’s right, Steve takes his scooper out from the pouch hanging from his hip, twirls it around in his hand – show-off! – and drags it through the tub of creamy goodness to his left.

Eddie doesn’t protest, can’t take his eyes off the large, veiny hand wrapped around the metal spoon. The hand he’d give everything to see wrapped around something else. It's not his fault; he’s not in control of his thoughts. Can’t stop his dirty mind from filing every single movement of Steve’s working hands for later use because if that is all he’ll ever get, he might as well enjoy it to the fullest.

   “Try it. I know you’ll love it.”

Steve offers him the cone topped with a giant scoop of the toffee treat, looking at him expectantly with his brows raised high and a teasing glint in his eyes.

And you see, Eddie would never claim he’s the smartest person he knows. He’s definitely a dreamer and bad at reading social cues sometimes, but despite all that, there is just no way he’s imagining this.

Steve is flirting with him.

Has been flirting with him all this time.

Maybe it’s time to give something back.

Eddie brings the ice cream closer to his mouth and starts to lick. Draws it out by turning the cone in his hand, twirls his tongue around once, twice, in a way he hopes doesn’t make him look like a lapping dog, but comes off as seductive as it feels.

Rich caramel bursts on his taste buds and Eddie moans a little louder than necessary around the melting mouthful of flavour. It must sound obscene to the ears of any innocent bystander but he doesn’t care. Puts on a show for Steve who hasn’t taken his eyes off him the entire time.

  “Mmm, fuck! That’s so good,” Eddie groans, watching Steve’s Adam’s apple bob when he swallows roughly at his words. “You really know how to satisfy your customers.”

Eddie isn't the best at flirting, he can admit that. But somehow Steve doesn't seem to mind, smiles even wider now that Eddie gave him something to work with.

   “Yeah?” Steve asks as he leans closer, elbows propped up on the counter that separates them, chin resting on his hands. Looking up at him through his long lashes, his hazel eyes suddenly darker than Eddie remembers them. “Love to hear that. Wanna know what else I know?”

His question throws Eddie off, because it’s not quite how he expected the other man to continue their little game. But it’s too late to turn back from what he started, and he’s curious, so he nods and waits for Steve to continue.

   “I know that you’ve been looking me up and down every day for the past three weeks from your little music store over there.” He points over Eddie’s shoulder to the glass front revealing an open view to the other side of the passage way between Scoops and the equally visible interior of the store.

Eddie gulps, feels caught, but Steve doesn’t give him a chance to come up with an excuse.

   “I know that you take your lunch break every day at the same time and I know that it lasts for another-“ he turns to look at the clock on the wall before locking eyes with Eddie again, “25 minutes. Mine starts in 5.”

Eddie will kiss Jeff on the mouth. Or, you know, maybe not – depending on whether this goes the way he thinks, hopes, Steve’s very unsubtle invitation might imply.

But he’ll thank him one way or another, for dragging him in here.

For being the best friend a stupid man with a stupid crush can have.

And if the caramel ice cream goes to waste, melting away in a soggy cone, forgotten on top of the staff’s bathroom sink- it doesn’t really matter.

Because Steve’s lips taste even sweeter.

[warcats-cat]

Seven Minutes

Summary: Someone was knocking on your window. ..... On your second story window.

A/N: Alright, another fluffy one, this time short and sweet! Once again a big sparkly thank you to @lickoutyourbrains for cheering me on and helping me write these!!!

Read on Ao3 here!

-----

In the little area of your apartment that you called the living room, you kept the furniture carefully arranged. You were lucky enough to have a decent TV and DVD player, and you had a low table that usually sat in front of the couch (but could be moved to make room for an air mattress, if needed.) The couch was decently comfortable, although lately you wondered if it would be worth the money to invest in a pull-out model, since guests were becoming such a regular occurrence. 

There was an overhead light, although Apollo had twice now teased you and Hermes over a lack of lamps to provide “mood lighting”. You also had an abundance of blankets, thanks to your tendency to be cold easily, and tendency to just enjoy buying blankets in general when you could. Fun patterns and fuzzy textures were your weakness. 

Everything within the space was fairly standard, except for one recent addition - a sturdy, carefully waterproofed shelving unit that was fitted flush under the window. Designed for moments like right now.

Someone was knocking on the window. The second story window. 

You jumped from the couch and ran over to see your godly partner, Hermes himself, floating outside your window, absolutely drenched and looking at you with a pout that made him look well and truly like a wet cat. You quickly moved the little stopper you had left blocking the window from opening so he could come in, and went to the bathroom to grab some towels. 

“Why was it stuck?” he whined, sounding far too sarcastic and far too cute at the same time. 

“I'm sorry!” You called from the bathroom, “one of those fluffy creatures that followed you here last weekend stuck around and kept trying to get in!” 

Back in the living room, you saw Hermes floating in a sitting position above the shelving unit, pulling off his helmet. As you went to hand him the towel, the bastard shook his head like a dog and flapped the wings behind his ears, splattering water right in your face. 

“Hey!!” You yelled, jumping back and just barely stopping yourself from falling over. You heard him start to laugh, and flung the towel at him in retaliation. Your attack was caught easily, of course, and he merely stuck his tongue out at you. 

“Bastard.” You called him, but there was a smile on your face and no bite in your voice. He laughed again as he began trying to dry off, starting with his sandals for whatever reason.

“Why yes, I fit several definitions of that word.” he replied with a chuckle. You huffed, grabbing the soaking wet cloak and taking it back into the bathroom to try and squeeze out before hanging in the curtain rail of the shower.

“Why are you wet?” you asked, emphasizing the question. You dug around a moment in your bottom dresser drawer and found a pair of soft sweatpants he had left in your apartment a long time ago, and an old shirt, taking the bundle back out to him. 

“I hit a rain storm on the way back here.” he replied, as if the answer was that simple. He ruffled the towel around his hair (how did he not pull on his wings?) and seemed satisfied with the achieved level of dryness, trading the now wet towel for the dry clothes in your hands. 

“Uh huh…” you paused a moment, and when he didn't elaborate you prompted, “and why did you fly through the rain storm when you could have gone around?” You could see the tiniest blush appear on his face, his mischievous grin going soft. 

“It was a huge storm system! If I went around, it would have taken seven extra minutes.” he said softly, almost mumbling the answer. Suddenly your heart felt a little fuller, and your face a lot warmer. You tucked the wet bundle of towels under your arm and picked up his sandals and helmet to hang in their usual spot on a hook by your front door. 

“Oh, that long? Seven whole minutes?” You teased. As you carefully hung the precious items, you felt him wrap his (cold!) arms around you, and jumped, just a little, dropping the towels. 

“Yeah. Eternity, really,” he said softly in your ear, and your stomach fluttered again. 

He nuzzled against the back of your neck, his nose colder than ice and his arms trapping you like steel. You squeaked, wriggling in a vain attempt to escape the trickster; which only prompted his laughter as he began to poke at your sides with freezing hands. 

You pulled away, laughing as well, as he chased you around the apartment, attacking your more ticklish spots with his icy touch. You managed to evade the god for a few minutes, before he suddenly rounded the coffee table in less than the blink of an eye and lifted you up to his shoulder.

Both of you were breathless, your faces flushed with laughter and a little bit of exertion on your part. You patted his arms, an unspoken request to be put back down.

“You never play fair!” You whined, but with a wide grin on your face. He was equally grinning, the silvery undertone of his eyes sparkling in the evening light. 

“I do too play fair! It's not my fault I was born with more speed than you!” 

“That doesn't even make sense!” You cried, beginning another escape. You made it about four steps towards the kitchen before you were captured once more; at least he was starting to warm up from the chasing. He hooked his head over your shoulder this time, and said something, but you didn't hear it.

He was too excited, and suddenly you had a face full of feathers as one of the wings on his head flapped open. 

You made some kind of exasperated, confused, and high-pitched sound that alerted him to having swatted a wing at you, and he pulled away completely. This only served to throw both of you off balance, and you landed on top of him in a heap on the floor. 

He started saying something in Greek, probably an apology or a swear, and tried to help you up, but you were laughing too hard. His face was flushed so red that he was turning almost gold, the ichor from his core (or soul or whatever it was) leaking into his mortal “disguise” as he called it. He offered you a hand up, which you took, and with a spark of mischief you pulled both him and yourself over the back of the couch, ending up upside down. 

He yelped, and flapped some more as if he could right himself with those little wings alone. And the both of you were laughing again, sliding down the couch to lay in a messy and slightly uncomfortable tangle of hands and knees and elbows. You lay there a while, roughly on top of his chest, on top of the couch cushions. There was comfortable silence between you, although every few minutes it was broken with another set of giggles. He traced his hands over your back in lazy little swirls, enjoying the warmth and the quiet after a long day of swirling around the globe. You listened to his ever-steady heartbeat through his soft shirt, enjoying the feeling of someone close to you after a few days apart. 

In the distance, low rumbles of thunder signaled the rain that had followed Hermes to your apartment. You hoped it was his father signaling approval, like an exasperated parent telling the kids to ‘have fun, but try to keep it down.’

[monalaniussboyfriend]

Mona domestic relationship headcannons? Make them as realistic as possible

YES OMG YES OMSSSLSPLS

MONA LANIUS RELATIONSHIP HEADCANONS AHH

warning; organ mention, kidnapping, stalking, violence, general Mona creepiness

Definitely stalked you for a while before kidnapping you. (Watches you through your windows, breaks into your house while you're not home.

Memorized your schedule. She follows you around unknowingly, whether it be climbing in trees or watching through the bushes, she's always watching.)

Occasionally wore normal clothes and a scarf and hat to cover her face, and she purposefully bumped into you to get your attention, even if it's not positive. She just needs your attention. She thrives off of it

She kept a journal writing about how absolutely obsessed she is. She writes about the many ways she could kidnap you, along with your whole schedule to see when and where your vulnerable spots are.

When she eventually does kidnap you, she tries to contain herself from killing you out of pure excitement.

Keeps you in a cage and calls you sweet little petnames (No, literally.)

Almost never lets you out of the cage. She occasionally leaves it unlocked while you're under her supervision and she WILL attack you if you try to escape. (She loves you too much to kill you.)

Calls you her "pretty bird" because she's defo a crazy bird woman <3

She barely sleeps, but when she does, she sleeps during the day. (She does most of her killing at night)

If she senses you're awake while she's home, she'll coo at you like a child at the zoo. She’s always telling you how pretty you are in her captivity.

Sometimes (Always) watches you while you sleep. She thinks its adorable seeing how helpless and vulnerable you are.

Whenever she's out doing her thing, she almost always brings you a gift. She brings you anything she herself sees as romantic, that being human organs or dead animals. (Her favorite is the organ to bring is the heart as it symbolizes her love for you<3)

She paints portraits of you, not in a "I'm gonna murder you" way, but more of an admiration/obsession. She did this before kidnapping you as well, which is what sorta shocked you when you seen the huge canvas with your face on it above her mattress.

She painted a portrait of your body ripped open, using the blood that you lost during your kidnapping.

When she's on the prowl, she's actively finding small things to give you. She occasionally gives you the jewelry she finds while breaking and entering and makes you wear it. (You have no choice.) (+10 love points if you willingly wear them<3)

Can and WILL carve her name into you in a very very visible spot. She always goes on about how she wants everyone to know that you're hers. (Even though she never lets you go out whatsoever)

Keeps your blood in a vial and hangs it from a necklace, she feels homesick without it.

If you're lost in your delusions enough, she'll let you out of the cage while she's not home because she knows you wont leave. She knows you're bound together.

She'll let you sleep next to her and she'll absolutely smother you. She’s scared you’ll leave her or someone or something will take you away from her.

She practically forced you to become a cannibal, mainly because she doesn’t really eat real food. She makes you eat human remains as she does, but she cooks them as you like it.

Teaches you how to paint, as you often help her paint her victims.

She hums random made up tunes when she cuddles you to sleep, along with when she takes care of you.

Loves brushing your hair and giving you sponge baths. She loves cleaning you and keeping you close to her.

Loves any sort of attention you give her. She thrives off of your attention.

Her #1 favorite compliment of yours is beautiful. She loves being called beautiful, especially since she grew up being called ugly and disgusting.

OK I NEED TO SHUT UP OR I WONT STOP AUGH 😓

[shinesurge]

Webcomic rings run by people within the community are cool and you should support them

I've been loudly struggling a little bit with corporate webcomic Stuff lately so I want to mention something positive to balance it out: webrings run by small groups of creators earnestly trying to support each other are slowly making a comeback and I for one am delighted.

If you weren't around for them in the before times, webrings were just some folks who hang out a lot who feature each other on their websites. That's literally it lmao. There's generally no money involved and it only really functions the way it's supposed to if people have control over their own websites AND genuinely want to participate and get excited about other folks' work, which means the practice has pretty well fallen by the wayside over the years in webcomic culture given. Everything. In the rare event someone decides to do something like this it's usually in the form of a link list somewhere on their website; this doesn't usually indicate any sort of mutual support, it's just a list of what the creator is reading themselves.

A webring, though, is an official banner or hub that people gather under intentionally where each member is more or less on equal footing. It's essentially the concept of "a rising tide lifts all boats" put into practice, each creator brings their own audience to the table in a passive, opt-in sort of way that's different from working for a publisher since there isn't necessarily a Top Spot or a paycheck everyone's vying for, and individuals retain autonomy over both their own work and how (if) they promote each other. You're all at your own tables in an artist alley rather than fighting over the table in the front of the book store, essentially.

I have two rings and one collective for you today!

Webcomic Ring was brought to my attention AGES ago by Holly, one of the artists featured there, and I might have brought it up at some point but I'm doing it again lmao. This is exactly the kind of thing you ought to be looking for; a small group of enthusiastic folks having a good time making their weird little comics. You probably haven't heard of much in the catalog, that's PERFECT in the context of webcomics that's where the GOOD SHIT is. Finding something like this is A Gift go dig around in the longboxes for a while.

Then a few people have pointed me in the direction of the KNIFEBEETLE collective and that's neat too! Most of the comics there are already fairly well-known, but the vibes are excellent and I haven't seen a lot of talk about the collective /itself/ outside folks already in the know. I think it's important for this sort of thing to be more visible to folks who aren't terminally steeped in webcomic culture already so here I am telling you about it. You were probably reading several of these before I suggested it, but that's how a webring works! For it to do its job you should take those bigger creators' tacit recommendation of the less popular titles as a sign to go read something new and strange. Wild, I know these are practices held over from the old internet, but I think we should try and bring them back.

Lastly, I want to mention Spiderforest, which is a collective (slightly different from a webring) BUT still a very cool project readers starved for new stuff should pay attention to.

You've probably seen Spiderforest kicking around for a long time already; they're wonderful and have always been an overall positive force in the community in my experience. They really focus on building up a community, and especially welcoming newcomers and helping them get their feet under them. Full disclosure, I've been asked to apply by a few different folks over the years and the only reason I never did is I don't have the ability to participate in their forums and such as frequently as they want their creators to; it's a very good system (from my outside perspective) that might contribute to the community staying mostly healthy in ways that art communities usually don't and I appreciate it a lot!

ANYWAYS that's all I got for now, just trying to balance out some bad feelings I've been having by talking about some good stuff. Please go binge an archive this week.

[the-s1lly-corner]

DANDYS WORLD SPOTTED

ONE OF US ONE OF US ONE OF US ONE OF

Ehem

Anyway

May I pretty please ask for platonic cosmo x reader who is his taste tester? Thank you!

Ps who do you main :)?

Cosmo x taste tester!reader

I mostly main rudie and toodles! As well as rodger if I'm playing with a group!! Woo! Saving up for razzle n dazzle though since I wanna give them a spin

Notes: gn reader, toon reader, platonic post, "this is before everything got messed up", short post due to admin trying to find his footing in how he wants to write the characters

CWs: general canon typical violence mentions

He tries to ask you to come taste test his baking as often as possible, it's his own little way of asking you to hang out without asking you to hang out... thats... you don't think he's weird for that, right?

Even if you're not much of a baker yourself and just his taste tester, it's still a fun time... and sometimes just trying something without that lense of knowledge makes things fun...!

And... easier...

Not that he thinks you have poor taste of course...!

Always keeps in mind what flavors you gravitate towards as well as what treats you like- if you like cookies he makes them more often. Cakes? You're gonna get some cake..! So on and so forth!

He does watch you intently (tries and fails to be not obvious about it) to catch your reaction... even if he's not the best as reading you and seeing if you're lying to be nice, he's pleased to hear you like the product..!

Not that he'd ever think you'd lie

[slashire]

you and me? maybe.

Rodrick heffley x reader

Summary: During a late-night hangout, Rodrick is finally able to do something he's been wanting to do ever since you became friends.

wc: 3277

an: first time writing again so i made it kind of first person. hope you enjoy, I'm open to tips of writing better!

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

I should've just gone through the front door, only if it wasn't one in the morning. Remembering my promise to Rodrick one day to surprise him by spontaneously hanging out somewhere random in the middle of the night, so i thought why not tonight? 

I was bored and awake and my parents were asleep so I went quietly out my window cracking it slightly so I could get back in and make my way down. It wasn't that hard, considering I've been doing it for a long time, although i have no clue how i will make it up the side of the Heffley house but I'll figure it out as i get there. 

—

I overestimated how hard it was.

Why did he have to live in the attic?

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

I really didn't think he would answer but to my surprise I heard frantic movement in his room and then he slowly opened his curtains, watched as his body relaxed as he saw who it was. I managed my way up onto the roof through sheer force of will. In the future I will plan better than going into it with no idea how to get up or down. 

“What are you doing?! Get in here before you fall off.” grabbing my shoulders and yanking me inside. It's a surprise the way I fell in the window was so loud that no one woke up.

“No wait-” he didn't even let me speak, he was more concerned to see me so high up on the roof i guess.

“Are you possessed, or just crazy in general.” 

“Crazy part. Anyway, I've kept my promise. I'm here to sneak you out where we can hang out like I said , remember?” he really had to process what i said cause he looked so dumbfounded sitting down across from me. Then his face lit up when he recalled what I said before.

“Right!” shooting up to cover his mouth cause he just had to slightly yell that and to be honest i didn't want his parents waking up because how would i tell them i just climbed up the side of their house all the way to the attic just to hang out with their son? 

“Sorry, sorry..” I shake my head but then gesture to follow me out the window.

“Be careful when getting up here it's slippery, also crack the window.” 

As we made our way down the way I came up I made sure he got down first so he wouldn't mess with me and just make us both fall off the roof for fun. I unfortunately miscalculated how far the ground was but noticed when he just made the jump, I however had to figure out where the spots I used to climb up were to safely climb down without slipping. All I heard in the background of me trying to figure this out was him trying not to laugh at me cause we both know that his laugh would wake up everyone in the house.

“You're not helping shut up!” I whisper shout at him as I get my foot on one of the ledges again and make my way halfway down the side.

“Just jump it's not that high you know?” mocking him under my breath but ended up jumping the rest of the way down cause it was indeed not that high from where i was halfway down, i just didn't want to give the satisfaction but i just wanted to get off the wall. 

“Told ya.”

“Shut up.”

+—-+

We finally made it to the spot I found a few months ago for this very reason. I wanted a spot where me and him could hang out away from everything and everyone else. It's a secluded place near a group of trees but a large field with a giant flat rock that I thought was perfect to sit on. On the way here I found where I hid the bag of things i was bringing for the night cause i knew if i had brought them on the way to his house all the snacks i bought us would have already gone, so it's a good thing that no one knows about this spot. 

Rodrick being so excited to hang out like this was so cute.

I know his parents would be so furious if they knew he was out this late and that he snuck out but hopefully they won't find out. I've told Rodrick so many times that I come here all the time. It's like my sacred spot at this point so now I'm just showing it to him, I have to we’re best friends. 

I keep thinking I'm going insane with how many times I think he keeps stealing glances to look at me, sometimes out of the corner of my eye but that's just normal.thats been happening for as long as i can remember but i know it wouldn't be that type of just looking at me since he's head over heels in love with Heather Hills, everyone knows it to.

He talks about her all the time and is borderline obsessed with her and takes almost every chance he gets to be near her, i help him most of the time anyways. But I can't help but think of him more as a friend sometimes with the things we talk about or when we hang out all the time, we are basically conjoined at the hip. I could never admit to anyone that I thought about him in more ways than one, I would rather die than to lose him.

“Is this it?” snapped me out of my thoughts when I realized we stopped at the rock.

“Yes, isn't it just a cool place to hangout? It's even pretty during the day.” 

“You're even prettier during the day…Anyway let's get up there!” 

“I didn't catch that first part?” he didn't answer instead he kept walking up the rock to where i was standing. I grabbed a blanket from the bag I brought and laid it out in the time it took him to get up the rock. Setting the other things out, most of our favorite things in between us where we can grab them.

“This is the coolest thing ever.” 

“If only we had music, that's the one thing i dont have here.” 

It didn't seem like that matters anyway to him; he just sat down next to me and started picking at the snacks as predicted. 

I laid back on the rock staring at the stars like I always do,it's just the most peaceful thing you can do. This time i can share this peace with him instead of by myself cause sometimes it gets lonely out here, but i can stay here for hours at a time just laying here. 

Him being here makes this a bit better though.

He eventually joined me in laying down next to me and silently watched the stars. I glanced over at him and he just looked so content at this moment. Normally he's all over the place but right now he's just silent, not that it's bad I love every side of him but this one is...adorable. 

The way his hair was sitting, the way his eyes danced around looking at every possible thing he could see before closing them for a brief moment before looking over at me causing me to quickly look away.

What was I thinking?

I need to clear my mind of these thoughts.

But how can I when he's right next to me and all I can think about is him? Then i remember he wouldn't feel the same all because of Heather, i still don't know what he sees in her but I cheer him on nonetheless. 

Testing my luck I looked back over at him but I shouldn't have because he was already looking at me.

“Why are you staring? Is there something on my face?” brushing at whatever it is that is there but he just grabs my hands to make me stop, and just looks at me. 

I take this chance to scan his face once again even though I know every one of his features by heart, and I still find him so beautiful. It was all interrupted by the wind picking up and blowing my hair everywhere.

“Oh come on, really.” i sat up abruptly searching if i bought a jacket but just as i grabbed my bag he put his jacket around my shoulders. 

“I swear I grabbed my jacket from my room this morning,and plus you are going to be cold in a second.” I ate my words as my bag did not have the jacket I swore I grabbed off my desk as I left for school.  “You did but you put it in your locker,” adjusting it as he helped move my arms into the holes as I stubbornly remember I did do that and scoffed as he knew that. “And no, I won't, I'm perfectly warm.”

“Whatever.” His jacket was slightly bigger on me but still warm, zipping it up and hopefully he didn't notice when I held it up to my nose to smell it. 

I sit with my knees pressed to my chest as I rest my chin on top, but I can still feel him staring.

I don't look at him because I feel like I would say something I shouldn't and I don't want to ruin anything over him just looking at me like that. But I take my chances and turn my head to the side still leaning on my knees to look at him.

“What are you cold now?” 

“W-what no. just thinking.” 

“About?” He looks like he has a lot on his mind even though i took him to a completely secluded peaceful place but he's always like this, mind going through millions of different thoughts a second. Finally he says something, “Something I probably shouldn't.” 

“What do you mean?” 

That's when he reached out and brushed some hair that fell into my face, wishing deep down he would just lean in and kiss me already but were both too scared to do so. I take another chance and look down at his lips and then back up just to give him a subtle hint that I'm okay with it, knowing he doesn't take hints. I can't quite read his expression on his face. It's different from his normal ones I see, this one is..softer it seems. His eyes stared back into my one just not saying a word while caressing my cheek. 

I can feel the air shift.

And next thing I know his lips are on mine.

It feels like this is right, the way his hand on the back of my head pulls me closer, gently like he doesn't want to let me go. I don't hesitate and I reach for his shirt, curling my fingers into the fabric to pull him closer. This feels like everything that's been building up between us, and it all comes out as this and I couldn't be happier. It wasn't planned just in the moment, his other hand glides up to cup the other side of my face as mine goes higher, over the top of his shoulders tangling in his black hair like you've done a thousand times.

I gasp into his mouth but it gets drowned out by the wind picking up.

He slows down a bit, just slightly. Enough to breathe as he rests his forehead against mine, no words uttered as we bask in the moment. I don't open my eyes just yet in case this isn't real but I know deep down this is happening right now at this moment and not a figment of my imagination. 

He leans back up to kiss me again but this time just slower than before to relish in the moment, it was slow, unhurried, each movement intoxicating. Our surroundings blurred into the background as it was no longer real as this was happening it was like this was dreamlike. Every touch and every breath we both share feels so right but my mind takes over, sliding my hand to rest just over his heartbeat.

“we sh-”

“no, please. just - just let me have this. just for a minute.”

His breath warm against my cheek, and every inch of my body aware of the closeness between us, the way his hand rested on my shoulder just holding the peace a little longer. I could feel his  heartbeat quickening under my palm, caught in the stillness of the quiet understanding and that unspoken chemistry. 

“I messed up, didn't i..?” he leaned back almost instantly, removing every once of closeness we just had. “No, no it's just..i'm going to hate myself for bringing this up but, don't you like heather?” 

“you're so oblivious aren't you. Do you know how long I've been waiting for this?”

“you've been waiting to kiss me?” 

“yes.” 

All the times I recall me helping him try and get with the girl he would never shut up about just to find out he just secretly wanted me all along. All the lingering stares, the whispers between him and his friends while I came around are all starting to make sense. The way he shushes Greg sometimes whenever he says something weird,which I didn't mind. 

To ruin the moment, it started raining, of course. We both looked up as it gradually started pouring and laughed but then it started getting worse. 

“I just have bad luck today huh?” 

We gather up everything we got out and just shove it back into the bag, forgetting to grab the blanket as we try not to slip off the rock going down it, that's when we start running through the field. There is no shelter until we get out of the grass. I remember there's a little house that's abandoned. Maybe we can stand on the porch of it where we can catch our breath.

“Over there!”

The porch roof had a few leaks but apart from that it was fine to stand there for the moment while we caught up with our minds. I looked over at him and realized that I still had his jacket. I felt so bad but it's already so filled with water to take it off, so I'll just keep it on. 

“I didn't know it was going to rain tonight.” trying to lighten the mood back up after everything even though it wasn't bad just it starting with the rain and interrupted everything. Im kicking myself with that heather comment but it did let me figure out that he liked me, i will consider that a win. 

“Are you ready to make a run for it?” he laughed like this was a funny situation to be in, and it was but that's besides the point. 

We both take a deep breath and start booking it back to town.

There's not a single stop along the way so far, but we are so close to his neighborhood. We got  to the back of his van as he yanked the doors open that apparently he didn't lock earlier today and we got in. 

“I am so glad I'm forgetful.” he started laughing but stopped alot to just catch his breath, i never want to repeat that run.

 Ever.

A nice silence fell over the van, except for the occasional intake of air and the continuous rain pattering on the roof of the van, it was peaceful. 

He has his eyes closed and i'm just looking at every part of him i can, for one he is soaked head to toe but therefore so am i so im not judging. Against my better judgment i can't stop looking at his face every time he wipes his hair out of the way when the water is falling and it just makes me look at his hands..what am i saying, i need to go home where i can sleep cause i'm thinking way to much.

“How are we making it back in?” 

“We? I have to run back home and figure that out too.” 

“I know. But like couldn't you stay?” for a second i consider it but then i think about how his parents would react to me being there in the morning, and what my parents would think about me disappearing in the middle of the night and reappearing at their doorstep with wet clothes.

“What about your parents? Better yet mine?” 

“We can come up with something tomorrow.” 

knowing his excuses never go well, preparing for the worse my parents give me tomorrow.

“Fine, but we have to be careful getting back up there.” 

—-

The rain slowed down alot and my shoes are now full of water. I got to where I climbed up before and helped him up first. This is going to be challenging. I'm just hoping we both don't start sliding and fall off the roof. 

“Give me your hand.” everytime i look up i get rain in my eyes so i had to put on the already wet hood to cover my eyes as i reached blindly grabbing his hand as he struggled to lift me up a little but i helped as i had a hand on the gutter and lifted a little to help in his favour. I held his hand so tightly when I stood upright, thank god it's not as slippery up here as I thought it was.

The window part was easy as we just climbed in, having to be quiet? Not my problem, his though? He slammed the window shut.

“Rodrick!” 

“Sorry sorry, forgot” 

I finally got to take the wet jacket off but I realized I had no clothes to change into.

“You got anything I can wear?”

He looks like a loss for words as he walks towards the closet and picks though at least a couple of outfits before he lands for one I could actually wear. Motioning for him to turn around where I can change, he does and I'm so glad that I can get out of these clothes into something warm. He handed me some sweatpants and one of his band tees, which I love and he knows that I tell him that anytime he would wear it. Throwing the wet clothes into a pile behind the door I turned around and he was already changed so I guess he took that time and changed himself.

“So what now?”

“I'm so tired.” 

I sit on the edge of his bed as the pain in my legs creeps up on me from all the running while he arranges pillows. “I'll sleep on the floor while you get the bed, okay?”

That completely caught me off guard.

“No sleep up here with me, weirdo.”  The blankets feel so warm I might not be able to stay awake that long once I get fully comfortable. 

He's standing there awkwardly as if he didn't just kiss me like an hour ago. He sits down and I grab his hand to signal that he should lay closer. I decided to be bold like he was and lay my head directly on his chest that made him put his arm around me as he got comfortable. 

“I had fun, sorry for the rain.” he ran his hand through my hair.

“Love to be rained on with you.”

“Go to sleep, rodrick.” 

 I leaned up to kiss his cheek before falling asleep.

[cherryblossomcowgirl]

my tears ricochet

Inspired by Taylor Swift “my tears ricochet”

MASTERLIST PINNED

WC: 1.4k

Warnings: cheating; breakup; fighting; angst; swearing

.

.

We gather here, we line up, weepin' in a sunlit room

And if I'm on fire, you'll be made of ashes too

Even on my worst day, did I deserve, babe

All the hell you gave me?

'Cause I loved you, I swear I loved you

'Til my dying day

.

.

It took him 4 minutes to walk away from the last 2 years. 240 seconds to say goodbye. He didn’t even come inside. He stood on the front porch, like a coward. I followed him as he walked to his truck. I screamed his name between sobs. He started the engine and drove away.

.

.

I didn't have it in myself to go with grace

And you're the hero flying around, saving face

.

.

*2 months later*

I take a deep breath and call Bradley. He is outside 10 minutes later, ready to drive me to the bar. “Thanks, B. I didn’t want to walk in alone, but I really miss everyone.” He smiles, “I told you I am always here for you. I mean it. They all miss you too.” I mentally prepare myself to see Jake for this first time since that night. We haven’t spoken. He hasn’t even come to pickup his things. Bradley parks the Bronco and we walk into the Hard Deck. The team immediately spots us and waves us over to the pool table. Phoenix wraps me in a hug, “Y/n! It’s been too long!” “Hey Phe.” I smile and Bradley brings me a drink. The evening is nice. Everyone is chatting and shooting pool. I see Bradley’s posture stiffen and I turn to see Jake walking towards the group. He puts on his big old smile and greets everyone. His eyes meet mine and he just smiles. I roll my eyes and watch him put on his show. Darts, pool, his general asshole demeanor. Bob comes over and pats my back, “Happy you’re here, Y/n. I was so sad when Jake told us you left. Thought I wouldn’t see you around anymore.” I laugh, “So that’s his story, funny.” Bob raises his eyebrow and I notice the rest of the group getting quiet, trying to listen. I speak a little louder, not caring who hears, “I’m saying it’s funny because he just stood outside the door one night and said he ‘couldn’t do this anymore’. Then he drove away. Like a coward.” The group is silent and I see Jake’s cheeks go red. I raise my glass towards him and take a sip of my drink.

.

.

And if I'm dead to you, why are you at the wake?

Cursing my name, wishing I stayed

Look at how my tears ricochet

.

.

*4 months later*

Phoenix decides to throw a party for me officially finishing my residency. We end up at the Hard Deck, like always. Bradley and I spend most of the night dancing. I’m not sure what is growing between us, but I like it. He is sweet. He is thoughtful. He is gentle. He is the exact opposite of what I am used to. We finish our dance and head back to the group only to see Jake playing pool. His eyes meet mine and I see something in them I haven’t before, heartache.

.

.

We gather stones, never knowing what they'll mean

Some to throw, some to make a diamond ring

You know I didn't want to have to haunt you

But what a ghostly scene

You wear the same jewels that I gave you

As you bury me

.

.

*6 months later*

Things with Bradley moved fast. He officially asked me out right after Phoenix’s party and we have been inseparable since. He had always been such a good friend to me that it just felt natural. It felt safe. And now here we are, celebrating our engagement at the Hard Deck. I came home after doing my first major surgery without my mentor and he was there waiting for me. “B, you didn’t have to! I know you wanted to go see everyone.” He kisses me, “I wanted to wait for you! How did it go?” I tell him about the surgery in great detail. He stands in the bathroom as I shower to listen to my story. He hangs on every word. I start to get ready and realize my lucky scrub cap isn’t on its hook. He watches as I look for it, seeing it on the foot of the bed. I pick it up, “Can’t lose this.” He smiles. I feel something cold and metallic. I turn it around to see a ring. Bradley gets down on one knee, “Y/n, it’s you. You’re everything I want. Everything I need. I need you by my side until my dying day. Will you marry me?” I nod my head yes and get down with him, wrapping my arms around his neck. He kisses me, “I’m really happy you said yes, it would’ve been so awkward going to celebrate with our friends if you said no.” I laugh and follow him to the Bronco, glancing at the beautiful ring on my left hand. We walk into the Hard Deck to see that Penny has put up banners and balloons to celebrate. I hug her tight, “You are the sweetest. Thank you.” She kisses my cheek, “You deserve this.” I walk over to our friends and they is a chorus of congratulations. Bradley heads to the bathroom and Jake walks over from the dart board. He is wearing the St. Michael necklace I got him for his birthday. The patron saint of the military and doctors. The saint of protection. Of courage. Of leadership. He clears his throat, “Congratulations, Y/n. I am happy for you.” He smiles but his eyes look dreary. He isn’t clean shaven and his hair is disheveled. I put my hand on his shoulder, “Thanks, Jake.”

.

.

And I can go anywhere I want

Anywhere I want, just not home

And you can aim for my heart, go for blood

But you would still miss me in your bones

And I still talk to you (when I'm screaming at the sky)

And when you can't sleep at night (you hear my stolen lullabies)

.

.

I notice Jake distancing himself from the group slowly. When he is around, he keeps to himself. Part of me feels bad for him, but then I remember what he did. How he threw us away. I remember the messages I got from a random instagram account. A woman who apologized. She didn’t know he had a girlfriend. He hadn’t told her. My heart feels heavy remembering the pain. Then there’s B. B who writes me letters every day he is deployed. B who puts little post it notes of encouragement in my lucky scrub cap. B who loves me with everything he has.

.

.

I didn't have it in myself to go with grace

And so the battleships will sink beneath the waves

You had to kill me, but it killed you just the same

Cursing my name, wishing I stayed

You turned into your worst fears

.

.

Bradley is deployed and I miss him so much. I start drifting off to sleep on the couch when the doorbell rings. I turn on the porch light and open the door. Jake is standing there, looking at his feet. I step out onto the porch so that Bradley can see whatever this is on the Ring camera. “Jake? What are you doing here?” “I wanted to tell you that I am PCSing. Norfolk. Next week.” “Oh. Okay. Well, take care of yourself Jake.” He sighs, “I am sorry. For everything.” I cut him off, “Jake you don’t have to-“ “No, please. I need to say this. Y/n, I became the guy I never wanted to be. I could barely face you after what I did. And then Bradshaw, I saw how he looked at you. How he treated you. I had that. I threw that away. Y/n, I am going to regret what happened between us for the rest of my life.” My eyes water and he continues, “I wish you nothing but the best, okay?” He hugs me and I sniffle, “You too, Jake. Be safe up there.” He starts walking towards his truck and looks back, “I spent so long competing with Bradshaw and I thought we were just alike. Now I can see he is so many things that I will never be.”

[pitufitaispunk]

Velvet Ring

Chapter Two: Florería

Pairing: Riff x Latina! Reader (West Side Story 2021)

Velvet Ring Masterlist

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I hurriedly make my way from the apartment to the florería just a few blocks away on Mulberry Street, hoping I wouldn't be late. Señora Rivera, albeit kind and generous, was a very strict woman. Especially when it came to punctuality. I sigh in relief as I check my watch just before entering the shop — 8:58am, three minutes early. I push open the door and rush inside.

"Buenos días, Señora Rivera." I say cheerily, the little bell above the door jingling as I walk in. I look around curiously as I'm met with silence, then laugh as I spot her snoring in her rocking chair behind the counter. I tiptoe to the back room and find my coworkers, Marisol and Lupita sat at the tiny circular table set up in one corner, gossiping away. They look up at me with wide eyes as if they were children who had been caught eating sweets before dinner.

"Buenos días, muchachas." I greet them, a slight smirk on my face as they giggle vivaciously.

"Buenos días, Y/N, ¿cómo están Anita y Bernardo?" Marisol asks, standing from her seat to tie her apron around her waist.

I hang up my purse on the coat rack next to the door and grab my own apron out of my cubby, "Eh, están bien. Nardo has been at the gym a lot lately, he's been coming home with more bruises and cuts. Me preocupa por el." Marisol and Lupita hum in understanding. I smile meekly and tie my apron tightly around my waist, "Pero Anita esta muy bien, she's been getting a lot of work at the dress shop. I ask her if she's tired of it, but you know Anita, she's a hard worker. Dice que está feliz de tener más trabajo."

Lupita tosses her graying curls up into a bun and laughs, "Esa Anita, I admire her really. I work with flowers for a few hours a day and then I go home, complaining to Berto that my back aches. No sé cómo me aguanta ese hombre." Marisol and I laugh. Lupita and her husband, Roberto, have been together since they were about my age and they've been married for 40 years now. Lupita always joked that Berto was probably tired of her and that one day he'd leave her for a less irritating woman, but every time he looks at her, all I see is love in his eyes.

Speaking of eyes, I still hadn't been able to stop thinking about that Jet I saw at the market today. His face kept popping up in my head, even though I have absolutely no interest in a boy like that. How could I? The Jets torment Puerto Ricans constantly, I even got a live demonstration of that today. But that didn't stop my wandering mind.

I snap out of my thoughts as Marisol pinches my arm teasingly, "¿Y tú, jovencita? Has Bernardo still been trying to find your future husband?" Lupita cackles at this, making me frown.

I sigh in exhaustion and nod, "He won't give it a rest. He's tried setting me up with at least 5 of his friends these past few months! They're all nice boys, pero... Bernardo me trata como una bebé."

Lupita pats my back, "No te preocupes, nena. He'll come around and see that he doesn't need to be so protective of you anymore." I give her a small smile and nod. I hope she's right.

Just then, the break room slams open. Señora Rivera stands there in the doorway, rubbing her tired eyes, "Muchachitas, ¿están aquí para trabajar o para hablar todo el día?" We all laugh and hurry out of the break room to get to work.

I take my usual place behind the counter, so that Señora Rivera can continue napping. Lupita begins putting the freshly delivered flowers into beautiful arrangements, while Marisol grabs her watering can and starts pouring into the pots of the flowers in the windows. It's this kind of perfect harmony everyday and although it can be a bit mundane at times, I wouldn't trade it for anything else.

✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼

After a busy day, at 3:00, Señora Rivera sends us home, half an hour earlier than we usually get off. I guess she was feeling generous today. Lupita, Marisol, and I hurry to put our aprons away and grab our purses before walking out the back door into the alley behind the shop.

"¡Hasta mañana, Y/N!" They call to me as they walk towards the opposite end of the alley. Lupita and Marisol live a bit further away from the florería than I do, so they take the subway to and from work together.

"Hasta mañana." I call back before turning to walk away.

I then bump into a hard chest.

My heart drops. I feel too terrified to even look up at whoever I just bumped into, but then, I notice the familiar tattoos on their arms. I slowly lift my gaze and am met with those same blue eyes from earlier today. I don't say anything, I just stare up at the Jet. His face was curious as he looked down at me, it frightened me a little. I've heard that the Jets were unpredictable and in this moment, I couldn't tell if this boy was about to kiss me or kill me. At this point, I don't know which would be worse. His face breaks into a soft grin and he finally speaks to me.

"I saw you earlier today, didn't I?" He asks, his expression turning smug now. I quickly shake my head, not daring to speak. He laughs and it sounds strangely warm, "No, I did. I'd remember those big eyes of yours anywhere. You're like a deer in headlights. You usually like that?" He cranes his neck, trying to lower himself to my height. I shake my head again and he straightens up, smirking softly, "Well, I'll see you around, chica." He says those words with such confidence that it makes my brows pinch. How was he so sure he'd see me again? And what gave him the right to talk to me at all?

I huff softly and begin walking past him, clutching my purse tightly, just in case he tries something. I hear him chuckle behind me and I just know he's watching me walk away. The thought makes my cheeks flush furiously.

As I turn out of the alley, I bump into yet another hard chest. I huff a laugh, feeling a bit stupid now, before looking up. Luckily, it was a familiar face this time.

"Hola, Manuel. ¿Cómo estás?" I greet Bernardo's friend politely with a smile, softening my grip on my purse.

He smiles sweetly down at me, rocking on his heels, "Hola, Y/N. Estoy bien, what about you? You look a little startled." He quirks a brow at me, taking in my still pinched brows.

I relax my face and laugh awkwardly, quickly thinking of some absurd story in my head. "I'm fine, I just had a... uh, little scare with a stray cat in the alley. Pobrecito, deberías haberlo visto. He was all bones, chewing on an old shoe, but being skinny didn't stop him from nearly clawing my face off." I laugh again, Manuel laughs along with me, but I can tell he's just doing it to be polite.

He clears his throat and tucks his hands into his pockets nervously, "Y/N, quería preguntarte algo..." My lips quirk into a thin line. I had a feeling Bernardo would try and get another one of his friends to ask me out again, it had been too quiet lately. With the dance coming up in just a few weeks, I figured that's what Manuel would ask me about.

I quickly pretend to check my watch and suck in a breath of air through my teeth, "Ay, Manuel, perdón. I really have to go, Anita needs help with cleaning the apartment today and I promised I'd help her. ¡Adiós!" I wave to him and quickly run down the block. Sure, it was immature and rude, but I just couldn't deal with another one of Bernardo's insane matchmaking attempts today.

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I rush into the apartment and close the door behind me, slumping against it tiredly. At this time of day, Nardo was at the gym and Anita was at the dress shop. It was a small window of time in the apartment that was just for me.

I kick off my flats and hang my purse up on the key rack next to the door before waltzing into my bedroom. I kick my door shut and flop face down onto my bed, snuggling into my blanket. Thankfully, the heat had gone down just a bit and the yarn in my blanket didn't feel nearly as uncomfortable as it did this morning. I turn over onto my back and sigh contentedly, staring up at the ceiling. My moment of peace is then interrupted by a flash of the Jet's face in my mind. My smile drops. I turn onto my stomach again, bury my face in my pillow and groan in frustration. Why couldn't I get him out of my head? Maybe there's something wrong with me.

I climb out of my bed and walk over to my bedroom window, opening up the lace curtains to soak in the sunshine. I open up the window and climb onto the fire escape, hoping the fresh air would help me ease my mind. I sit on the steps and close my eyes, basking in the fresh air and sun rays. Then, I remember what that Jet said to me and it makes everything worse!

"I'd remember those big eyes of yours anywhere..."

I scoff to myself, my cheeks flushed. What did that even mean?! Was he trying to flirt with me? Did I like it? No. This is not happening. I don't even know his name! But I do know one very important thing. He is a Jet. That should be enough reason for me to drop this silly idea... but it isn't. That Jet was flirting with me and some sick part of me liked it. There is no denying it, no matter how hard I try. Just then, an idea strikes my mind. A way to get the Jet out of my head for good. A solution that's been staring me in the face, presenting itself to me time and time again. Well, now I will finally give in. Now, I will let it happen. I am going to let Nardo set me up with one of his friends.

This is sure to work! Most of Nardo's friends are handsome and fun. How could I possibly think of the Jet when I'm with a Shark? It's a foolproof plan. When Bernardo and Anita come home, I will surrender. After three long months of dodging dates left and right, I will tell Nardo that I've been considering his words and I've decided to go to the dance with one of his friends. Nardo will most likely choose Manuel. I wouldn’t be upset about it being Manuel. He's a good looking boy with his tan skin, curly brown hair, and perfect teeth. Yes, this is a good plan. A solid plan.

I smile triumphantly to myself before climbing through the window back into my bedroom. I sigh softly and begin tidying up a bit. I need to busy myself, I can't think about this too long or I'll regret it before it even happens.

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When Anita and Bernardo get home at around 5:00, I usher them to sit with me at the dining table. I smile at them, they both give me a look like I'm crazy, then I clear my throat, "I've decided on something. I think this will satisfy you both."

Bernardo quirks a brow at me, "Well, spit it out, pollita."

I laugh softly and nod, "Okay... I am going to let you choose my date for the dance."

Anita's eyes widen in surprise and Bernardo grins broadly, "¡Finalmente! I've been waiting for you to say this, it's a miracle!"

Anita rolls her eyes at him as he continues going on his rant of triumph. Nardo then stands from the table, "I'm going to tell Manuel!" He runs out of the apartment in excitement, shutting the door behind him.

Anita quirks a brow at me in suspicion, "So... why have you suddenly given up? What's going on with you?"

I pinch my brows, "¿De que estás hablando?"

She stands from her seat and circles the table until she stands before me, "You know what I'm talking about. Just today you were whining to me, saying that you didn't want to go to the dance because your brother would try to get you to go with one of his friends. What made you change your mind?"

I laugh, shaking my head, "Nada, I'm just trying to be a good sister and make life easier for my brother."

Anita gives me a look like she doesn't believe me, but backs off anyway, "Okay... if you say so, Y/N."

I give her a soft smile, "Don't worry about me, Anita."

She laughs, gently pulling me into a hug, "I always worry."

✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼

Next Chapter

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 40 (Spending the Night)

cw: mid-level spice? 🌶️🌶️ (I'd call it low but I don't know people's thresholds. If there's an official simblr threshold for this kind of cw I don't know it, sorry! No actual nudity.)

Conrad's apartment in the Arts Quarter wasn't far from the festival grounds, and when they arrived, Gord greeted the flirty pair at the door with a friendly tail wag.

They took him downstairs and let him run around, ensuring he did his business before returning to the outdated suite Conrad called home. Gord raced to his spot on the small sofa in the open kitchen and living space and Conrad flashed a nervous smile.

He set his keys on a shelf laden with knick-knacks someone might have had in the last century. It looked a bit like a dingy motel room, like the ones Heather and her family stayed in on the way to their vacations in Granite Falls.

"I know the place isn't much," he said. "When he retired, my dad got it furnished from some old lady who used to frequent flea markets every Sunday. Rent's cheap, location's great, but I wasn't a very good son when he was alive. I was back and forth from college, still dealing with my mom's death, hanging out with the wrong people."

"Conrad, I'm sorry. I didn't know both your parents were gone."

He shrugged, masking grief he'd buried well all these years. "It's not easy, but I was looking for any way I could to feel closer to him, so I took over the lease here after he died. But he didn't change anything, and I'm usually too busy with work to spend much time here, as it is. Gord likes the sofa. I do have an old Unix I play around with for fun, but I've never really had to think about impressing company with the place. Until now."

"I don't care what it looks like," Heather said. "I came up to spend time with you tonight, not your apartment."

Still buzzing from the effects of the Sakura tea, she leaned in to kiss him. Her lips travelled softly down his neck. He grinned from her touch, but pulled back. "Wait, wait. This is fast. Just let me catch my breath a minute."

"Sorry." She buried her swooning head in her hands. "I'm usually the one slowing things down. It's just...the tea, and...and you."

His breathing grew heavier. "I want you," he said. "But I also like you. I haven't stopped thinking about you since the day I knocked on your door. I don't want you to think I brought you back here just to do this."

"I don't think that. I like you, too. So much it scares me a little."

"I scare you?"

"No, I'm afraid of myself. I'm the one who makes rash decisions and gets tangled up with the Landgraabs - who despise me."

"The Landgraabs have no taste," he laughed. "Which is all the better for me."

He leaned in for another kiss, dragging her to the sofa while Gord made himself scarce.

A hunger took them over, perhaps drenched in too much Sakura tea, but they gave in to the passion bleeding through their skin. Twice.

They slept soundly for a few hours until sunlight poured over the Myshuno Hills, breaking through Conrad's small bedroom window. As they stirred, he pulled back the covers to admire her in the daylight. She blushed, pulling him in for a kiss before she stood to get dressed.

"I want to see you again soon," he said. "I'll bring Gord to the coast later this week, hang out with you and Ash."

She smiled. "I'd love that."

Before she made it down the elevator, her phone vibrated from an incoming text. Would it be too soon to call you my girlfriend? She grinned.

Not too soon. I like the way that sounds. She took screenshots and sent the texts to Holly, and her sister sent back enthusiastic support with a half dozen heart emojis.

Heather felt like a lovestruck teenager again. But this time the boy on the other end of the phone didn't make her question anything about their connection.

Yet when she picked up her son from Malcolm’s penthouse, she didn’t mention Conrad. They were trying to make peace, consciously, for the sake of their son, but she still didn't trust him. He and Conrad had a history, and Heather didn't want his opinion. Not yet.

For now, at least, she was happy to have something in her life that Malcolm and the Landgraabs didn't know anything about. ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 1 Summary | Gen 1 Start

NOTE: Me, tossing Conrad into the cheapest apartment in the city so he'd have more money when he eventually (hopefully) moves in, without considering the aesthetics of this eventual moment? Typical.

WCIF Poses Used: 2 poses from The Kiss by Simmerberlin (as you can tell I used the wrong-sized sofa but I'm not too bothered, I still like how the pose looks even in Conrad's tragic apartment); Confiding in You by StarrySimsie

[deadlysoupy]

Soo I see you as a fellow mikey and bee fan (me too I love these little creatures that have some ıdentity problems ;>) . I have a little crossover thing in my head. When bee has some problems with cybertron and politics with a quick anger he takes a niiice vacation on earth. He absolutely has a little mental breakdown in some bar thinking and waiting to strascream to arrive he sees a little boy chased by some strange man. Now he has to save the boy from some strange man (ofc rubble trauma). While poor mikey is separated from his brothers and now try to run away from some strange man.

I just want them to explore emotional traumas and being sassy little shits while making everybodys problem

(Im sorry for this long thing I just have been thinking about them over a 2 weeks now)

⚘️

okay okay there's a lot to unpack here so it will get long, i didn't write anything but i have some thoughts

first of all thank you so much for this bc when i first got into transformers i saw bumblebee and, me being a life-long tmnt fan, spotted the mikey parallels right away, since my first tf show was tfa. it is disturbingly scary how many similarities these franchises have and its kinda sad no one considered a crossover yet, especially with the same publishing house at one point (idw). its a tragedy we never got anything with both of them, they're even both sci-fi genre with some environmental messaging - that said i don't want tmnt to be involved in a war so. uh. maybe not a great idea lmao

on the topic of mikey and bee - yes, they're absolutely very much similar! even when taking into consideration their different interpretations (like rise mikey being different from 2012 mikey, and tfa bee being different from tfone bee etc) i still think they both carry the same kind of attitude across their franchises. both are the "kid-friendly" appeal, their characteristics more upbeat and cheery to be a contrast to other more serious characters. BUT ALSO they get the LEAST amount of character growth out of any central characters (at least it's very prominent in mikey which i've always stated, you can quote me on that, he gets such "background character" energy it drives me up the wall sometimes; for bee its different with each iteration since he does get the central role more often than not), and they usually have to keep up an aloof persona everyone expects them to have (i drift to these characters all the time unfortunately) (AND THEY'RE BOTH THE YELLOW COLOUR TONE KINDA A LITTLE BIT)

so how would they interact with each other? it really really depends on the continuity and the timeline, but i'm gonna keep it brief and general enough as to not overthink it

i still think bumblebee would act like a sort of older brother figure no matter the situation - even if he fails at it bc he secretly just wants to have fun - and mikey is having none of it, he has enough brothers already. everyone knows michelangelo is a hazard to society and he's not gonna let anyone forget that, so he ropes bee into some weird shenanigans when he "could use the help of a cool giant alien robot". they break into a government facility or a decepticon base and try to get important info, and while bee feels bad about going in unsupervised ("goody-two-hoes over here"), mikey is having the time of his life, and seeing that uncontrollable chaos just sparks something in bee, too, so he starts enjoying it too a little bit

they both get scolded for sneaking out and doing dangerous stunts even if they got the intel, but ultimately get out scot-free with the power of ✨puppy eyes✨ and hang out for a while

i think bee would be very sad to see someone so young already experience so much hardship and still keep up a brave face... like sure he's been through war already but he's hundreds of thousands of years old, and this kid is fifteen and he's been trying to survive his whole life

mikey in turn being the sentimental and empathetic guy would try to help bee around his ptsd, reminding him a little bit of leo that way, and he'd try to share his love of humans and culture with him, maybe get them both out on a little nature walk, dance to music, teach bee how to skateboard (it does not go well lmao)

anyway bee gets a little stinky friend and he shows mikey off to every autobot in sight just holding him like "this is my best friend michelangelo :)"

made this just for fun as a reward for you guys having to bear my incoherent yapping (chose tfe bee bc hes the default to me) (AND THANK YOU ANON FOR SENDING THIS i actually had a lot of fun and got way too indulgent lmao)

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Could I get Drayton, Kieran, Carmine, and Lacey reacting to a reader that raises mostly female Pokemon, gives a lot of them human-sounding names, and affectionately calls their team The Girls? Like, "Yeah, me and the girls are gonna chill out in my dorm later, if you'd wanna come over!" Or maybe, "I just got back from a picnic with the girls, and I swear Claire was gonna bite Maggie's arm earlier! Turns out she was just hungry though, and so I gave her some of my breakfast sandwich to chill her out. Yeah, ham, egg, and cheese with butter and pepper, maybe some hot sauce if you're into it - that recipe really does the trick!" After a confused look and some funny questions, it comes to light that Claire is a devious little Gliscor that was mere seconds from using Fire Fang, and Maggie is a shiny Meowscarada that's prone to getting the zoomies after a nice bath. "That's just how I name my Pokemon? Did you think I was talking about people earlier??? Oohhh now I get why you were looking at me weird! Yeah, you wanna meet them? I think they'd like you." And the girls, all six of them in the party (more names and species can be inserted) turn out to like the other person - even with their eccentric personalities at play. After all, "A friend of (y/n) is a friend of mine."

Hghshf I see this and all I think of is Reader leading a team of fem pokemon shouting "let's go lesbians lets go!!!"

Also along with Claire and Maggie, I'll include these 'mons (some inspired by my main team):

Evelyn: Comfey, spends less time in her pokeball and more time hanging around Reader's neck

Trish: Ceruledge, cleaves through tera dens but is picky about which spots on her armor get cleaned

Clover: Shiny Scrafty, likes finding trouble and defends her gal pals with her life

Queen: Bisharp who girlbossed her way into becoming a Kingambit. She likes wearing flowers in her hair.

..........

Drayton

You were turning into quite the social Beautifly at BB Academy, making a lot of friends in the League Club--including the Drayster himself.

Apparently you have your own little "circle" now, too, only ever referring to them as "The Girls" in conversation.

One day you ask Drayton if they could visit the clubroom, which confuses him a little considering you didn't need to ask for his permission.

But he doesn't think about it too deeply.

"Sure. I don't mind meeting them." He smiles.

"Sweet! You're gonna love Claire and Maggie. They're the best."

"Oh will I?" He raises an eyebrow, now fully intrigued. "Well..I'm looking forward to it."

When you show up to the clubroom the next morning he looked very confused as he didn't see your girl friends accompanying you, asking if they suddenly bailed.

It takes you a few seconds for you to finally understand...

"Wait--oh my gosh, you thought...oh no, no. They're my Pokémon. Lemme show you." You toss out two pokeballs, and Drayton is surprised to see that you have a Shiny Meowscarada and a Gliscor.

As he quickly finds out, while you do have a competitive team, your casual team consists of all female Pokémon who you call "The Girls", having raised then since they were little.

And you decided to give them all human-sounding names.

"This is Maggie and Claire. I'm SO sorry, Drayster...you must've been super confused.."

He just laughs it ff. "It's all good. It's actually pretty cool that you gave 'em human names."

"How could I not?" You chuckle as you hug Maggie, your grass ace purring was she wraps her arms around you. "Meowscarada's kinda a mouthful, and she responded to "Maggie" so I settled for that."

"Cool, maybe I can start calling Archuladon "Archie" or something...that's kinda a mouthful, too." He jokes.

Although The Girls were initially wary of him flirting with you and trying to snag your attention (then again, they're wary around boys in general), they eventually grow to like him.

After all, any friend of yours was a friend of theirs.

Kieran

Since you two shared a class he was falling behind in, you offered to help him study for an upcoming test.

"Oh! Are you sure it's no problem, [y/n]? I can always borrow your notes and give them back-"

"No, no it's fine! I've actually been meaning to introduce you to The Girls but couldn't since you were on break. They're just chilling in my dorm right now if you wanna meet them!"

Immediately, his brain shortcircuits.

"The Girls? Ah..wowzers....y-you sure they don't mind a boy coming over?" He fidgets with his hair, blushing at the thought of these friends of yours giggling and teasing him.

Surely they've heard all about him...but then again, his name was still pretty well-known at the Academy and his reputation was ever fluctuating.

He's understandably nervous about meeting new people (considering how strongly Nemona approached him back in Kitakami, demanding a battle).

But you reassured him they were cool, recalling a funny story to help him feel less anxious as you both walked to your dorm.

"So we're just having a picnic in the coastal biome, right? And I swear to Arceus, Claire was this close to biting Maggie's arm off. I didn't know what got into her...but, as you might've guessed, she was just hungry and impatient. Such an overdramatic baby. But anyways I split my breakfast sandwich with her. It was an easy recipe: just ham, egg, cheese, some butter, pepper, and hot sauce--which she actually really loved, and.......what's that look for?"

Kieran just has this SUPER confused expression the whole time you're talking, wondering why you're describing your friends as if they were Pokémon..

But after opening the door to your room, he discovers that's because they are your Pokémon. Your casual team, in fact.

He sees Maggie laying across your bed, playing with a yarn ball, Evelyn healing a scrape on Clover's arm, and Claire showing off her Fire Fangs to Trish and Queen.

"I'm back, ladies! We have a guest! So play nice, okay?" You clap your hands, spinning around and seeing the look on your friend's face. "What? You thought I was talking about humans this whole time?"

"...yeah...you got me. And here I was, all nervous for nothin''." Kieran does his signature "slump of defeat", feeling super embarrassed.

Doesn't help that the Girls are snickering and giggling at him, too.

"Hush, Girls. He's shy." You lightly scold them, before reassuring him that you've definitely confused more people than just him.

After that clarification, he absolutely wants to introduce his Gliscor to Claire, thinking the two would get along great (considering his own companion liked to be fussy during picnic breaks, too, maybe he'll use that sandwich recipe you mentioned...).

You wind up doing less studying and more of showing him videos of Maggie getting the "zoomies" after her bath, Trish sparring with Queen, and other things The Girls have been up to lately.

Least to say, he was glued to your rotomphone for a while.

It baffles you how this guy--former BB League Champion Kieran--still didn't have his own.

Carmine

While visiting her and Kieran during their break, she hears you talking about a group called "The Girls" that you've brought along.

And she's confused bc she swears her brother only bought one ticket for you...

So she assumes these "girls" are some filthy rich students back at BB/Uva/Naranja Academy, getting a little jealous as you talk about them and the shenanigans you've been up to before coming to Kitakami.

"Already replacing me, huh?" She teases lightly, although Kieran tries telling her to lighten up a little.

She gets defensive quickly.

Tbh she'd rather do the mochi-mochi dance again than ever admit she's jealous of your new "friends".

You, on the other hand, are clueless and wonder why she's acting so aloof...but then again, the siblings did tell you about the mayhem Pecharunt caused literally the day before you flew in.

Maybe that was it.

When you invite Carmine to a picnic, she's bolting over to your location, ready to square up and see what these "friends" of yours are like...

Yet all she sees are your Shiny Meowscarada, Gliscor, Shiny Scrafty, Comfey, female Kingambit, and Ceruledge playing around or mediating in the grass, and no humans other than you two.

"Where are they?"

"Where's...who?"

"Maggie, Claire, Trish..all these "buddies" of yours." She blinks as the three Pokémon in question turned their heads to her. "....don't tell me I'm looking right at them."

You nod and that's all it takes for her to start fuming, realizing she was jealous over Pokémon (but at the same time, she's relieved they're not humans).

"Why didn't you just say they were Pokémon????!!!" Her hands shake. "Do you have any idea what-?!"

"Woah there." You put your own hands up in defense. "You thought I was talking about people this whole time?"

"Yeah!! I mean--you gave them people names so I just assumed!"

".....ohh, I'm sorry, Carmine." Finally understanding, you awkwardly laugh a little. "Now I know why everyone gives me weird looks when I talk about them.."

"You think????"

The Girls have stopped their current activities, entertained by the squabble between you and her.

But after all of that's cleared up, Carmine gets to know your casual team a little more personally.

And they grow to like her, too, after initially disliking how she yelled at you--even though you told them all that's how she usually is.

Lacey

When you tell her about your casual team, she's under the impression that you have little sisters because of their human names and the fact you only call them "The Girls".

Even more surprising is when you mention having six of them, and she wonders how tf you have so much time to take care of them AND time for BB League activities.

If she gets the feeling you're overworking yourself and you ask if you could organize stuff in the club room, she'll be like "nope 🙅‍♀️ nuh-uh, we'll take care of it, go home and take care of your family they are the most important thing!!!!!"

You're confused as hell, but take the day off anyways.

One day, she asks if she could see them some time, and you're like "????? okay!" and arrange a hangout in the Terarium.

When Lacey arrives, she's perplexed when she only sees Pokémon with you...but can immediately tell they're all girls.

And only then does it click.

"Oh! "The Girls" is what you call this Pokémon team?"

"Yeah! I told you, didn't I?"

"...I thought you were referring to your sisters."

You blink, before chuckling at her confusion, realizing why she might've thought that. "Oh, well..in a way they are my sisters."

When she spots Evelyn hanging around your neck, she just coos at how adorable the Comfey is.

And somehow, Queen (a Pokémon notorious for being a fearsome leader) managed to look cute with all the flowers in her hair--which also impresses her.

As long as she doesn't use any steel attacks on Granbull, Lacey is cool with her.

Now that she fully understands, she loves that "girl power" vibe you have with your casual team, especially since they're pretty strong in battle, too.

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

Lol remember the early days when there was an about-even split between people who thought that Gabriel would be Hawkmoth and people who thought Alim Kubdel would be Hawkmoth? Good times, good times. Speaking of Alix’s dad, how would you have had the show pan out with him being Hawkmoth instead?

I wasn't around to see it in real time, but I browse fanfics in rough chronological order starting from the beginning of a fandom, so I'm aware that this theory was a thing because I've read a good portion of the fics that were written pre Origins. (AO3 has a last update filter if you want to pair down your options for a less overwhelming selection or just enjoy fics from before certain plot points came to be.)

While I'm aware of the theory, I'm a little confused as to where it came from. Alim only has two brief appearances in season one. The first is from the start of The Pharaoh. In it, we see Alim telling Jalil that historical artifacts are not meant for testing crackpot theories:

Mr. Kubdel: Jalil, these types of frescoes are almost always the illustration of a legend. They called it a legend for a reason... Jalil: That's what everyone thinks. But I know it's real. I can prove it! Mr. Kubdel: Really? And exactly how are you going to prove it? Jalil: I just need to get my hands on Tutankhamun's scepter and recite the spell! Mr. Kubdel: Are you serious? Don't even think of touching that scepter. I'd lose my job on the spot. It's a priceless historical object! Not a toy! Jalil: Come on, dad! We have to try out the spell! What if Tutankhamun had found out how to bring people back to life? Mr. Kubdel: Listen, Jalil! That's enough! Get your head out of those papyrus scrolls and focus on the real world! This one! (leaves)

And his other appearance is from the start of Timebreaker. In it, Alim gives Alix the watch that is later revealed to be her miraculous:

Alix: They're Marinette's parents. You know, one of the chicks I hang out with? Mr. Kubdel: Yes, I remember. They make the best bread in the whole of Paris. (he notices one of Alix's sneakers) Couldn't you have made more of an effort to dress nicely? Alix: What do you mean? I took off my cap. (points to her cap) Mr. Kubdel: But this is a special day. Alix: Well, it's only a birthday. Mr. Kubdel: No, this is a special birthday (reaches inside his jacket pocket and brings out a watch) This family heirloom was made by one of our ancestors many, many years ago. It's been passed down from one generation to the next, on their 15th birthday. And today, it's your turn to inherit it. Alix: It's pretty sweet, dad. But I've already got a watch, synced up to my smartphone. Mr. Kubdel: But sometimes there's more to things than meets the eye. Let's just say that our ancestor was… (opens the watch) Ahead of his time. (Alix gasps) Of course, I'd understand if you'd rather me buy you a new pair of rollerblades. Alix: No, Dad! I'm stoked to have it. It's awesome, thank you! (her phone rings) Mr. Kubdel: Are your friends waiting? Alix: Yeah, but I don't wanna bail on you. It's cool. Mr. Kubdel: No, no, go ahead. (Alix stands up and grabs her cap) Now, take good care of it.

Based on these two scenes, Alim doesn't read like a villain to me. He reads like some sort of protector. If I had to pick a role for him, it would be the guardian, not the villain. After all, what better way to find missing miraculous than to go into a field that has you informed about all sorts of interesting archaeological discoveries? The fact that he's handing out a miraculous only elevates that potential, especially since Alim was smart enough to give it to the kid who was suited to be a hero while leaving Jali is be his conspiracy-theory-loving self.

Another variation of that is to have him (or Alix's other parent) be the rabbit holder and Alim is passing on the torch to Alix because it's time to start her training. He did say that the watch is handed down through their family and, if there's one miraculous that would need a lot of training, it's the rabbit. Plus a history related field is a perfect fit for a rabbit!

Of course, a villain might also go into a field like curation in order to find miraculous, but I'm really not getting villain vibes here. Part of the reason Gabriel makes such a good villain is that he has a clear, understandable goal: bringing back his wife. Alim has nothing like that, so to make him into a villain, I'd have to come up with a motivation for him and the only thing that I can think of is wanting to bring back his own seemingly missing spouse. That's not a very interesting route, though, since it's just a copy-paste of Gabriel's plot and I'd want Alim to be something unique unless you wanted to swap Adrien and Alix for some reason and just tell the same story with a focus on different characters.

I mean, you could make Alim have a motivation like protecting historical artifacts, but then why would he want the ladybug and the black cat? What wish would he be trying to make? Rewriting history won't protect it! I could maybe see a goal of rewriting history to stop a bunch of atrocities, but any historian would know that undoing a given set of atrocities means massive changes to history and it would likely just lead to different atrocities. You'd have to change how humans work or something equally messed up to make a world without atrocities, which makes it a pretty poor motivation as it would make Alim too cartoonish to really work. He'd feel like such a massive step down from Gabriel's complexity...

All of this is why I don't think that the show should have continued post Gabriel. I just don't see what motivation you can give a villain that isn't either derivative or a cartoonish downgrade. "I want to resurrect my wife" just hits different from "I want to take over the world."

To make Alim a villain in his own right, you'd have to redesign major elements of the show. I think a character with his background would work well as a master thief who collects historical artifacts for his own collection or to sell them so that he can live in luxury, but I can't picture his character sending out akumas to terrorize Paris. Ladybug and Chat Noir would go from action heroes to something more stealthy. Spies who are trying to track down Alim and stop his network, returning artifacts to their rightful owners. Not a bad concept for a show, but too different from Miraculous for me to pretend it's a good concept for a series reboot.

[gallus-rising]

opening this with the obligatory "AUs are fun" and "you can do whatever you want forever" i'm talking about the canon relationship and characterization vs a very common fanon. so without further ado i present:

Dimple Was A Friend: A Friendship Manifesto

the fanon in question is "Dimple as Mob's Dad/Uncle figure". in general i'm tired of the fandomized “Found Family” but in this particular case it totally fucks over an entire series spanning character arc and removes the interesting nuance from Dimple and Mob's relationship.

one of Dimple's big hang-ups is that he thinks all of his relationships have to be hierarchical in some way, but broccoli arc’s whole thing is that he actually wants someone to respect and acknowledged him as an equal.

normal humans can't see spirits at best and are terrified of them at worst. most other spirits we see have degraded to mindless monsters. espers more or less treat spirits as animals, specifically as pests or pets. spirits are dehumanized to the point that Matsuo doesn't seen any problem treating Human Man Mogami like a particularly unruly pet. so if Dimple can't be treated like an equal then he can at least try putting himself at the top of the food chain. no one respects him as a person, so he'll make them respect him.

Mob is in a very special place re: attitudes towards spirits off the bat. he's grown up with the supernatural as a normal part of life and sees no significant difference between humans and spirits. at first is doesn't seen like he's treating Dimple with any sort of respect, but in retrospect it's exactly the sort of thing Dimple wants. Mob doesn't treat him like a pest, he treats Dimple like an annoying guy that's following him around. even as their friendship develops Mob doesn't treat Dimple as though he's become useful, he trusts Dimple like he would Reigen or Ritsu or any other friend in a dangerous situation.

but despite his newfound Friendship Emotions Dimple still hasn't broken out of his old mindset. there must be an inherit hierarchy to the world, and while he can't afford to lose his spot, maybe he can trust someone to be by his side.

Dimple himself repeatedly states in the broccoli arc he wants them to become co-cult leaders. he doesn't want Mob to join him as a subordinate or apprentice or anything like that, he want's Mob to join him as an equal. father/son and uncle/nephew relationships are inherently hierarchical! that doesn't necessary make them bad, but it's not want Dimple wants.

if we accept that Dimple is a father/uncle figure to Mob then the broccoli arc concludes with Dimple realizing he doesn’t want authority over people in a malicious way, he wants authority in a nurturing way. not only is that still an unequal relationship, nurturing is definitely not a word that comes to mind when discussing Dimple.

it also means we must accept that Mob sees Dimple as some kind of authority figure which is simply not true. Mob never treats him with that elevated level of respect and even gets confused that Dimple thinks their relationship is weighted in one way or the other. all in all the father/uncle interpretation is straight up out of character for both of them and downplays mp100’s emphasis on friendship.

and then it creates a second problem. since Mob & Dimple have been shoved into the Family Box that means by order of elimination Reigen is Dimple’s closest friend (or more commonly romantic partner) compared to Mob for most of the mange Reigen doesn't really treat Dimple with the same human-to-human attitude. he frequently makes jokes about Dimple being a like pet, which to Reigen is just normal snark, but probably hits Dimple harder than he realizes for reasons stated at the start.

hell during the separation arc Dimple took Mob’s side and was perfectly fine ditching Reigen even tho he didn’t really have to. he was even mean about it!

during this short exchange they're both antagonizing each other but i feel like it's notable Dimple only leaves after Reigen starts shit talking Mob. Reigen is right that Mob won't use his powers in normal day to day life and Dimple knows he's right. Dimple's been following Mob around this whole time watching life a perfectly average life. and then Reigen, no psychic defenses, charismatic guy with an established following, offers Dimple join him! oh boy is that an easy situation to take advantage of!! (and also of an example of how Dimple's started to lose sight of his "villainous schemes", but that's a whole other tangent lol)

Dimple only reaccepts Reigen into his social circle after witnessing him and Mob reconcile. by downplaying Mob and Dimple’s friendship Reigen becomes Dimple’s closest connection by default which is just not true for most of the manga, but, and i'm about to have a grouchy aromantic moment here, most people are fine with it because Shipping. now Reigen and Dimple can be Mob’s dads together :]

the power of Reigen being a fan favorite typically causes people to elevate him, sometimes even in scenarios he's not all that involved in, but please allow me to point out how amatonormativity plays into this particular reading 😒 Dimple Is Mob's Dad/Uncle doesn't always go hand in hand with ekurei of course, but i see it happen often enough to be a trend. even though a family-esque relationship should logically still emphasize their personal bond just as much as a platonic one, in this case it still typically comes with shipping, and by extension Reigen, tacked onto it.

mean aro moment over. if it sounded like i'm dissing ekurei i promise i'm not! i like it just as much as the next guy! it's just that, like all ships in every fandom, sometimes it gets pushed to the detriment of other relationships and even characterization.

but anyways. in closing: guys. they literally call each other friends.

that's it! thank you for reading my rant ❤

if you've made it this far i wanna peel back behind the scenes for a sec (because i've been trying to write this thing for so long orz) and let you know the term "Friendship Manifesto" is a play on ye' olde fandom Ship Manifestos, which i think we need to bring back in new and exciting ways. classic shipping manifestos. friendship manifestos. qpp manifestos? enemies manifestos?? should we bring back the term "drift compatible" or perhaps even the quadrant shipping system???? we're not taking proper advantage of this meta format. we need to have fun and go crazy with it.

[whentherewerebicycles]

ok more AI thoughts sorry i'm tagging them if you want to filter. we had a team meeting last week where everyone was raving about this workshop they'd been to where they learned how to use generative AI tools to analyze a spreadsheet, create a slide deck, and generate their very own personalized chatbot. one person on our team was like 'yeah our student workers are already using chatGPT to do all of their assignments for us' and another person on our team (whom i really respect!) was like 'that's not really a problem though right? when i onboard my new student workers next year i'm going to have them do a bunch of tasks with AI to start with to show them how to use it more effectively in their work.' and i was just sitting there like aaaaa aaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaa what are we even doing here.

here are some thoughts:

yes AI can automate mundane tasks that would've otherwise taken students longer to complete. however i think it is important to ask: is there value in learning how to do mundane tasks that require sustained focus and careful attention to detail even if you are not that interested in the subject matter? i can think of many times in my life where i have needed to use my capacity to pay attention even when i'm bored to do something carefully and well. and i honed that capacity to pay attention and do careful work through... you guessed it... practicing the skill of paying attention and doing careful work even when i was bored. like of course you can look at the task itself and say "this task is meaningless/boring for the student, so let's teach them how to automate it." but i think in its best form, working closely with students shares some things with parenting, in that you are not just trying to get them through a set list of tasks, you are trying to give them opportunities to develop decision-making frameworks and diverse skillsets that they can transfer to many different areas of their lives. so I think it is really important for us to pause and think about how we are asking them to work and what we are communicating to them when we immediately direct them to AI.

i also think that rushing to automate a boring task cuts out all the stuff that students learn or absorb or encounter through doing the task that are not directly tied to the task itself! to give an example: my coworker was like let's have them use AI to review a bunch of pages on our website to look for outdated info. we'll just give them the info that needs to be updated and then they can essentially use AI to find and replace each thing without having to look at the individual pages. to which i'm like... ok but let's zoom out a little bit further. first of all, as i said above, i think there is value in learning how to read closely and attentively so that you can spot inaccuracies and replace them with accurate information. second of all, i think the exercise of actually reviewing things closely with my own human eyes & brain can be incredibly valuable. often i will go back to old pages i've created or old workshops i've made, and when i look at them with fresh eyes, i'm like ohh wait i bet i can express this idea more clearly, or hang on, i actually think this example is a little more confusing and i've since thought of a better one to illustrate this concept, or whatever. a student worker reading through a bunch of pages to perform the mundane task of updating deadlines might end up spotting all kinds of things that can be improved or changed. LASTLY i think that students end up absorbing a lot about the organization they work for when they have to read through a bunch of webpages looking for information. the vast majority of students don't have a clear understanding of how different units within a complex organization like a university function/interact with each other or how they communicate their work to different stakeholders (students, faculty, administrators, parents, donors, etc.). reading closely through a bunch of different pages -- even just to perform a simple task like updating application deadlines -- gives the student a chance to absorb more knowledge about their own unit's inner workings and gain a sense of how its work connects to other parts of the university. and i think there is tremendous value in that, since students who have higher levels of navigational capital are likely to be more aware of the resources/opportunities available to them and savvier at navigating the complex organization of the university.

i think what this boils down to is: our culture encourages us to prize efficiency in the workplace over everything else. we want to optimize optimize optimize. but when we focus obsessively on a single task (and on the fastest, most efficient way to complete it), i think we can really lose sight of the web of potential skills to be learned and knowledge or experience to be gained around the task itself, which may seem "inefficient" or unrelated to the task but can actually be hugely important to the person's growth/learning. idk!!! maybe i am old man shouting at cloud!!! i am sure people said this about computers in the workplace too!!! but also WERE THEY WRONG??? I AM NOT SURE THEY WERE!!!!

and i have not even broached the other part of my concern which is that if we tell students it's totally fine to use AI tools in the workplace to automate tasks they find boring, i think we may be ceding the right to tell them they can't use AI tools in the classroom to automate learning tasks they find boring. like how can we tell them that THIS space (the classroom) is a sacred domain of learning where you must do everything yourself even if you find it slow and frustrating and boring. but as soon as you leave your class and head over to your on-campus job, you are encouraged to use AI to speed up everything you find slow, frustrating, and boring. how can we possibly expect students to make sense of those mixed messages!! and if we are already devaluing education so much by telling students that the sole purpose of pursuing an education is to get a well-paying job, then it's like, why NOT cheat your way through college using the exact same tools you'll be rewarded for using in the future job that you're going to college to get? ughhhhhhHHHHHHHHHHh.

[finnlongman]

Hi! I found this* blog post you made really interesting (and your dedication really impressive). Reading about how much care you put into presenting the views of the time makes me really look forward to being able to read The Wolf and His King.

I was just wondering how do you initially flag that a word or concept might be anachronistic? Do you have any specific methods to try and find stuff that might be off or is it just naturally spotted from your research and understanding of the period?

*https://finnlongman.com/word-by-word/

A lot of it relies on my pre-existing understandings of the period, which is of course dangerous -- I'm certain that I have blindspots, and will have missed things that others will notice. I pay more attention to the elements that are thematically relevant to the book or more closely connected to my research (these two facts usually go together), and obviously those are the things that I know more about, so that helps; hopefully, things that have slipped through the cracks are also things that are not particularly load-bearing, because if they were, I would have noticed.

Some of it comes from seeing other people discussing related topics (for example, I had no idea that "silhouette" was named after a specific person from the late 18th century until I saw KJ Charles posting about it) and just gradually accumulating that kind of knowledge over several years.

It also comes as a side-effect of other research. For example, I might spend a bunch of time researching castle layouts and sleeping arrangements and so on, and that'll draw my attention to different attitudes towards privacy and personal space, and I might go through the book and look for ideas relating to that. Or I might be researching clothing, and that'll send me down a rabbithole where I chase up terms relating to that (but also to do with materials and material culture more broadly...).

Then very often it's an accident. I'll be looking up a synonym for a word because I've used it too many times in close succession, and I'll be using the historical thesaurus, and I'll realise that there actually isn't a good alternative and in fact the entire simile was a problem. I'm very picky about the rhythm of sentences, so I often find myself looking up words that I didn't have any gut feeling about, just to see if I could find something that sounded better, and discovering extra reasons to change it. A lot of the time I was trying to replace a cliche with something more creative and realised the cliche was, itself, way too modern and relied on concepts the characters wouldn't understand. Idioms and imagery are a key place where those ideas slip in, so starting with those can be helpful.

In general, there's a strong domino effect to it. Partly, this is because the more you settle into a character's mindset and attitude to emotions and other people and so on, the easier it is to spot that something's out of place -- not because it flags as historically inaccurate, but because it seems wrong for that character. And then also, the more attention you pay, the easier it is to look at a word or phrase and go, "Hang on, that looks like a 19th century metaphor about steam engines, I can't use that," and to look at another and go, "Well, that's clearly from Latin, that's probably okay, but let's just check."

Mostly it's pretty laborious, with a high possibility for error unless you're willing to check every single word -- but since the purpose is about getting into the mindset of the character, there eventually comes a tipping point where you can tell quite quickly if something is right for the character and setting. And if it's anachronistic but it's 'right' in tone and attitude, then unless an obvious alternative suggests itself, I'd leave it, and if it's historically accurate but it's 'wrong', then I'd go for something that gets me closer to the character's worldview.

This is the part that's important, not the date a word is attested. The anachronistic use of rosary in the ARCs isn't the bit that matters: the anachronistic attitude to prayer and penance is, and the word rosary is the symptom, not the problem itself. Swapping out the terminology wasn't enough; I needed to rework that whole paragraph to better reflect the theological context of the characters. (And did, so the final version is slightly different.)