#like he has fish and not bugs but it's still very similar

[mothwingedmyths]

Thinking about this guy again

[thezombieprostitute]

The Arrangement - Part 7

Summary: Jake's done a lot of things to keep his sister, and then his niece, safe from his parent's influence and manipulation. If he wants to keep them safe, he has to marry you.

Warnings: Bad parents, Implied physical abuse. Let me know if I missed any!

Part 6 -- Part 8

Series Masterlist

Breakfast is a quiet affair. You're still trying to get your head around your strange husband. He feels like a walking contradiction. Angry, but apologetic and seemingly caring. You weren't too hurt to notice how strong his arms are as he moved you to the sink. He looked so stern and serious that, combined with the unexpected touch, you were certain he was going to lose his temper at you. Instead, he apologized.

"This food is so good," Jake comments. You realize he's already eaten most of his plate! "You're such a good cook. Where'd you learn how?"

You flinch a little at the question. "You're going to think I'm a horrible person," you preface. "The kitchen was one of the few rooms in the house my family never went to so I asked some of the staff to teach me cooking so I'd have an excuse to stay in there." You stop eating, waiting for him to tell you how horribly ungrateful you are to your family.

"That's smart," Jake nods. You look up at him, but he seems sincere. "What? You needed to get away from time to time and, while you could have just said you were managing the kitchen, you instead take the opportunity to learn a skill. Plus, that way you never have to rely on someone else to cook for you. Very smart."

"Oh, um...thank you," you sputter as you get back to eating.

"I'm guessing that's why you went to college? Like me in the military it was a good reason to get away?"

You nod and gather your courage before answering, "I even specialized in shark conservation so I'd have an excuse to be out in the middle of the ocean. Away from anything and everything resembling wi-fi or phone networks."

He chuckles, "I had similar scenarios, but in the middle of jungles. All I'd have is a sat phone or something that would only occasionally work." He pauses to take a few more bites. "Honestly, I think one of the reasons I went into Coms and Tech is so I could learn to detect if my phone was bugged by my parents."

Both of you go quiet again for a bit, alternating between bites of food and sips of coffee.

"Um," you start, "would, can I ask..."

"Feel free to ask me anything," Jake assures.

"Do you have any food preferences I should know about? Things to avoid? Things you're allergic to?"

Jake smiles, "no allergies, as far as I know. And I am, by no means, a picky eater. You cook, I eat, simple as that."

"Okay, um, what's, what's your favorite food?"

He thinks for a minute. "Honestly, I'm a sucker for a good cheeseburger. I know, I'm pretty basic like that."

"It's a comfort food?"

He takes a breath, "maybe. Growing up, my parents had almost complete control over my diet. In high school, me and a couple friends would sneak out for lunch and hit up the burger place down the street. It was the closest I had to rebellion."

Your eyes go wide. "That's...I never could!"

"It was definitely stupid," Jake agrees. "I'm not sure what would've happened if we got caught, but we needed some way to act out. I didn't want to become a bully, I didn't have sports as an outlet, so I needed something else."

Silence falls over the two of you again for a bit.

"I hope you don't mind me asking," Jake starts. "Why sharks?"

"They have such a horribly undeserved reputation," you begin. "So much so that they're over-fished and almost no one cares. They get mutilated for a delicacy and they did nothing wrong! They're incredibly important to the ocean's ecosystem but because of some stupid movie series no one bats an eye when they get hunted to extinction. It's just...not fair!" Your emotions start catching up with you so you so talking for fear of being taunted and sneered at for being "too sensitive".

"You're really sweet," Jake says, his voice barely above a whisper. "Have you been able to do any conservation things since graduating? Like a fundraiser or something?"

You hang your head in embarrassment. "Mother and Father would never allow it. Said they didn't want the family name associated with cold blooded creatures for fear of the comparisons the press would make."

"That's bullshit," Jake softly exclaims. "You can't even make an anonymous donation or something?"

You bite your lip, trying to gauge how much you can trust him.

Jake sees your reaction, "have you already been? Going behind your parents' back?" You stay silent. "If so, I seriously congratulate you! That's dedication to your cause and a sign of how strong you really are."

You're glad you're keeping your head down so he can't see the shock on your face. You really do hope he's sincere. That he can be trusted.

After a bit more silence Jake starts grabbing up the plates. "Guess I should keep my end of the deal and get to work on the dishes. Thanks, again for the delicious breakfast."

"It's not a problem," you whisper, fighting the urge to clean up for yourself.

At that moment you hear the door to the penthouse open and Jake's father loudly proclaiming, "we're here!"

Part 6 -- Part 8

Series Masterlis

Tagging: @alicedopey; @ashdoctor; @delicatebarness; @ellethespaceunicorn;

@icefrozendeadlyqueen; @lokislady82; @ronearoundblindly

[espighty]

Alright Espighty,

Tell me of the anatomy of bugs in your au.

I need to know

Ok, SO. In my COTL canon, most creatures actually still have their species-specific breathing systems. Bugs still have spiracles, fish still have gills, etc. They have all evolved to have a psuedo-lung system so they can talk like mammals can, but that's the only function the pseudo-lungs have. The species-specific respiratory systems are what actually get oxygen into the blood.

For instance, Leshy.

I like to think he has spiracles on his sides like a caterpillar. They're just behind his short extra arms. It's part of why he prefers to wear just a cloak instead of a full outfit. He doesn't really like having to breathe through fabric. (It's just a personal taste thing. Some bugs are ok with it, some aren't.)

This also ties in to why Leshy does the little 'raptor hands' pose all the time. Whenever he's standing still, he will unconsciously hold his arms out of the way of his spiracles. It's a worm mannerism. Most other worms do it too.

Shamura is a bit of a special case, but I ultimately decided to just give them a similar system placement to Leshy.

They are one of the aforementioned "bugs who do not mind wearing regular clothes".

And then for the fish side of things, Kallamar.

Aquatic creatures can breathe underwater and on land. However, they do still need some level of moisture. If the gills get too dry, breathing becomes extremely uncomfortable, even painful, and it gets significantly harder to get enough oxygen. It's not necessarily enough to suffocate, but it's very unpleasant and best avoided. Anchordeep had enough dew in the air that aquatic creatures could breathe very easily, but for those that live elsewhere, it's common practice to wrap damp cloth around the gills. Which is why I always draw Kallamar with the scarf. It helps him breathe.

[luminiscented]

Ninjago x Fem! Master of nature! reader

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Summary: you are the elemental master of nature <3, you are not related to Bolobo and he does not exist for the sake of this

Type: headcanons

Warnings: pure cloud made fluff <3333

Note: istfg everytime i write something i lose the time im mostly using 🫡 THIS SHIT DOESN'T HAPPEN IN GERMAN OR BULGARIAN WHAT IS GOING ON W ME!?!?!!!!!11

LLOYD

♡ Ever since he came to live with the ninja on the bounty you were immediate best friends <33 You are just so freeing and fun to be around!!

♡ He had a silly little crush on you as a kid,, he is plain head over heels as a grown up now though,,,,,,,,

♡ While the others just pushed him to train more and more until he was mentally exhausted, you would take him on little meditation forest picnics to clear his head and have fun after you're done with the (serious) meditations

♡Lloyd is amazed by your ability to always show him a part of a familiar place that is absolutely new and virgin to him,,

♡he loves how you find the beauty in every little being,, seeing you so in touch with your element gives him more motivation to explore his own and improve everyday

♡ you two would be rolling around in the grass and catching frogs and he would be the happiest he has been in weeks <3

♡ you are this boy's heaven and he thinks you are literally amazing,,

♡ you dislike forcefully growing your plants out so you play the guitar and sing to them to help them grow,,, he really likes singing along with you <3

♡Lloyd is a sucker for greek mythology and he loves pointing the similarities between you and the gods that rule over the wildlife. You adore listening to him ramble about it and its so interesting to you,,,,,,,

♡ Lloyd takes notice of how you're just as wild as the forest - gentle, beautiful, but still mystic and untamed,, he is in love

♡ He caught you catching a fish for an injured mama bear with your bare teeth. Just like that. UH-

Kai

♡ At first when you and the ninja begin to train under Wu together, Kai is so jealous of you,, you make the mastering of an element look so easy, while he was struggling so much,, of course he wouldn't let you notice, pfft yeah and give you an ego boost-

♡He is actually scared of embarrassing himself in front of you, since you look really nice and he wants you to think he is cool,,,,,,,,,,,

♡ Kai is about to lose his lunch when he sees someone cutting one of your limbs off during a battle,, he almost faints from worry while you just shrug it off and start growing a new one while the others take care of the villain and the half conscious Kai.

♡ When he comes to his senses, you're almost done shaping your new fingers into their original shape and he is blown away

♡ HOW THE HELL@@@????@

♡He is so impressed!! Kai actually realizes your body works just like a plant and is very curious on what else you can do, but doesn't want to annoy you so he keeps his questions to himself and sensei Wu

♡ Kai is proudly showing you off at dinner time that night!! He tells everyone how you were so brave and amazing and how your power is incredible!!!!!!!! He is also impressed with your pain tolerance

♡ At one point he notices your weakness to the cold and he is gladly there to warm you up he is dying on the inside he is so flustered

♡ Kai only buys you chocolates and never flowers, because he thinks you would be mad that he gives you your dead babies??????? Once he switched the chocolates with poppies in a pot (with a ribbon on!!) and it was adorable,,

♡ he is scared of bugs and when he makes you mad you put beetles in his hair

♡ you love sleeping in his room since it is so warm and toasty,, you bring your water bottle along every time and he finds it adorable, because you act just like a plant <33

♡He loves it when you change your hands into different objects/weapons,, you started chasing a screaming jay with your gigant axe hand and he kept hyping you up,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Zane

♡ you're weird, he's weird - soulmates1!!!

♡ Zane is absolutely in love with your connection with nature and wants to see the world through your eyes,,

♡ sometimes he gets a little insecure about how you can love him - a nindroid, knowing what you see, feel, your deep connection with life, but you are quick to comfort him that he is a living being that deserves just as much love as anything else that breathes the same air and walks the same earth as you all <33

♡ Zane spends a lot of time trying to understand how using your elemental power can come so easy to you and not the rest of them, but when he starts to join you in your free time more frequently he starts to understand - you just have fun with it. You let every new ability come to you naturally and you practice it little by little until you perfect it. You completely understand your power and do not pressure it. While Wu, purposely or not, guides you all to use your powers to fight, you use yours to create, to give, to help, to observe and to drown yourself in every sensation that no one else really can - your unique ability to understand every living being,,

♡ The titanium ninja is able to see the beauty that comes with your mastery and you both start learning from each other.

♡ You are in love,,

♡ Zane is quick to notice how your habits resemble ones of a plant and takes great care that you feel okay with the urban life of himself and his brothers <3 the most gentle boy ever,, reminds you of a daisy,,,,,

♡ The ice ninja is surprised to find out that you can survive on water and sunlight for long periods of time. Of course you never refuse to enjoy Zane's five star meals, but when food is scarce, you prefer your 5 liters of water and two hour long sunbaths,,

♡ HE IS VERY CAREFUL THAT YOU DON'T GET COLD,, Zane knows the cold is extremely harmful to you and you're more sensitive to it than his brothers so he gets really worried sometimes and tells you to get a coat in the 30 degrees Celsius summer weather,,,

Morro

♡ Morro sees you as so powerful,,, and very stunning <33

♡ When he first gets redeemed, he is struggling to make contact with the ninja and the butterflies in his stomach whenever he sees you approaching are not helping!!!1!

♡ At first you are very shy around him, because you find him very cool,, one day you come to him and quietly ask if he could use his wind to bring some rain clouds, because of the hot and dry weather and that is your first conversation,,,,,,, you are so shy,, he is in love

♡ You thank him for his help and invite him to spend some time with you outside

♡ PLEASE TIE HIS HAIR UP AND PUT SOME FLOWERS IN IT HE WILL ACT LIKE HE HATES IT, BUT HE IS ACTUALLY IN LOVE WITH IT,,,,,,,

♡ You make these meetings very regular and you enjoy each other's company so much <3

♡ Morro is very surprised to find out that you are aware/can hear what is happening around every compound plant - flowers, trees, etc.

♡ This ablity of yours is mostly very fun to use,, you regularly get a listen to some drama, heartfelt conversations, people complaining about their day and many others. You sometimes can't help it, but burst out laughing on the dinner table, because of a funny conversation that you could hear,,,,,,

♡ Morro loves hearing about them, but mostly loves listening to your laughter <333 He loves it when you are laying close to each other and you tell him about the people that share their love - a man writing a poem for his wife, a boy confessing his love to his crush, an old lonely lady wondering if she'll meet her dead lover in the afterlife,,,, it makes you both very emotional and you love sharing those with him because you both find them beautiful,,,,, it also helps you two to keep your relationship healthy and always know what is actually important <3

♡ Most of the time you are able to tone down almost completely all the noise, but some times it gets unbearable and overstimulating to the point you're breaking down,,, </3

♡ Morro is always there for you, holding you in his arms and keeping you away from any noises you could avoid. There is not much he is able to do to help and it breaks his heart </3 he gets so worried,, he goes to sensei Wu for advice.

♡ When it goes away you would be SPOILED,,,, mans is not letting you out of his sight for atleast the end of the day,,, <33333 HE LOVES YOU AND CARES ABOUT YOU SM !!!

Nya

♡ Water and plants?? Girlfriends.

♡ Nya absolutely adores you,,,,, she is just so in love,,,

♡ You help her understand her element more and she helps you with it so much,,,,,,

♡ You help her study different species and different cures for poison and she is always able to find a new spot for you two to explore

♡ She is absolutely in love when you put red flowers in her hair,, ITS HER FAVORITE COLOR!!!

♡ In her early training she wasn't really able to control much - only moving and creating water and she was so sad every time there was a flood somewhere, seeing your sad face,,, when you notice her looking at the ground guilty you pepper your girlfriend with kisses and reassure her that she has absolutely no fault <33

♡ She is very curious when you experiment with your powers!!!!!

♡ You could clearly see that Nya was needing an extra pair of hands when working on her Samurai X armor and she was very surprised to see 3 faceless girls made from lianas and vines coming up to her

♡ you appeared behind the 3 semi-sentient beings and told her that the 4 of you would help her out so it doesn't take as much time <33

♡ Nya is amazed, but she is mostly surprised that these 'plant copies' of you are able to understand and process information to a certain level,,, HOW!?!?

♡ You end up finishing the work on her armor in an hour and from then on she spends the entire day asking you questions about them!!!!!!! She is very interested in this!!!

♡ You explain to Nya the entire process which took around 4 months to perfect - starting from a little flower, then a tall fig, morphing and changing the forms to make your 'copies' look more soft and human,,, when you quietly mention you wanted to impress her she is RED!! YOU TAUGHT YOURSELF ALL OF THIS FOR HER???? dying on the inside,, system overload,,,,,,,,,,, <333333

Cole

♡ Everyone is jealous of how well you two work together as a team, especially when you fight!!

♡Your elements combine with great harmony so do your personalities <33

♡Cole adores your little forest dates and especially when you two talk about bugs and beetles <33 HE LOVES BEETLES!!!!1!11

♡ Since Cole is kind of the muscle of the team he ends up with little bruises and cuts littered all over his body after every battle and is delightfully surprised to find out that you can not only regenerate super fast, but you can also heal others with your herbs within minutes!!

♡ The way to Cole's heart is through his stomach so its definitely a win-win!! He is absolutely shocked the first time the bruises disappear within minutes and when he figures out you can heal with your food he is absolutely stunned,,, he is very curious and asks about your recipes and if you could help him be as good as you,,,,,,,

♡ You would all be coming home and the first thing to do is stuff your boyfriend's mouth with your lavender biscuits,,,,

♡ Zane may be in charge of the cooking, but you're in charge of the desserts <33

♡ Cole was in tears one time when you made him his mom's broth when he was sad,,,,,,

♡ When you're feeling overwhelmed he tries to recreate your treats with your healing herbs to cheer you up,,,, they are very ugly and lumpy, but they are tasty and made with a lot of love, so you two cuddle and eat sweets all night until you feel better <33

♡ He finds your love for wild animals very adorable,,,, a bear tried to attack the boys, but you just went up and hugged it as if it wasn't just trying to kill you all,,,,,,, YOU STARTED DANCING A WATZ WITH IT AFTERWARDS HOW ARE YOU SO PURE??!1!

Jay

♡ its a weird combination - nature and lightning, but you two make it sound so natural!! <3

♡ Jay is the ray of sunshine to your flower <33 His parents absolutely adore you and you love them a lot too!

♡ He is very impressed by all of your abilities! He is very vocal for his amazement and praises you all the time <33

♡ As a person who got sick every other week as a kid he is very jealous by your immunity to all bacterial, fungal and almost all virus infections. YOU NEVER HAD A SINGLE DAY OFF FROM SCHOOL AS A KID WHAT,,,,,

♡ He is a sucker for fruits and he loves it when you grow him fresh blueberries on the spot,,,,

♡ He sees you eating flowers out of the blue outside and when you tell him they are actually edible he is hesitant, but tries one for you,,, now he can't stop,, HE IS OBSESSED,,

♡ Your powers are somewhat connected to your feelings so it is not rare for you to accidentally grow something when someone gets a reaction out of you,,, JAY LOVES THAT,,,,,,, it shows how you are an actual person with feelings and he finds it so precious,,

♡ When he gets you all flustered, flowers start popping on top of your head,, he really succeeded if you got some blue ones among the others,,,,

♡ Sometimes cactuses pop out of nowhere when you get annoyed or angry

♡ All flowers in the room bloom when you're feeling happy and new ones come to life when you laugh <333

♡ Your power is so beautiful,,, he is ready for marriage,,

♡ Jay is very scared of your semi-sentient carnivorous plants,,, they don't like him very much </3

♡ You can literally make a whole army of those, but you just teach them how to dance<33 you are so pure,,,,

[oicuperp]

PETS THE SAW CHARACTERS WOULD HAVE !!!!

ADAM

he would definitely bring home a lot of stray cats ,, he used to have ferrets and rats and he loved carrying them around in whatever hoodie he was wearing !!!!

LAWRENCE

allergic to cats . has only had fishes but hes usually not home or very busy so they always die but he cant stop getting them bc he loves watching them swim and he tries REALLY hard to keep them alive

AMANDA

she would have a crow ,, or a raccoon army . she loves grabbing pigeons on the streets and chasing adam with them (theyre the siblings ever okay idc about canon) . she also has A LOT of bugs, worms, moths, tarantulas etc

JOHN

he wouldnt have a pet himself but would take care of whatever pet anyone brings home !!!! animals definitely love him and follow him to his workshop and sometimes to bed when he wants to take a nap

LYNN

shes a hamster girlie ,, also used to have a turtle teehee . LOVES to put the hamster in a ball so it can follow her around the house . phone gallery FULL of videos of it !!!! usually sends them to amanda but stops sending her that many videos bc she always replies with videos of her bugs

HOFFMAN

100% a dog person ,, probably a saint bernard or a german shepherd . uses the dog as a blanket when hes laying on the couch watching a movie or smth . people always point out how the dog literally looks like him but he says he doesnt see it

STRAHM

never thought he was a cat person ,, didnt think he would have pets at all . hes THE chosen one istg cats see him and immediatly start following him . adopts a cat with a similar scar and calls it "cat" but everyone calls it "peter jr" bc it's silly ... he would DIE before moving when the cat in sleeping on him . he also carries it around the house with one of these

LINDSEY

the kinda girl who had 30 animals in her house when she was young ,, from dogs and cats and birds to horses and cows !!!! definitely enjoys hanging out with all kinds of animals and is probably one of the few ppl who would willingly ask amanda about her pets

JILL

has a dog !!!! also never got out of her horse phase ,, she probably has a friend who has horses and visits every weekend just to see the horses . kinda indifferent about the rest of animals but she still takes care of them

WILL

this man ONLY has piranhas ,, theyre cool AND he doesnt want animal hair everywhere so teehee . hes the kinda guy who always has a lint remover in his pocket

[i-rate-horse-games]

rating Star Stable Online

Star Stable Online is a MMORPG! its plot seems to get pretty wild!

upon discovering that Fish was an option in the drop down name creators, i cackled with joy. this is Rusty Fishfish and Futurefish

our goal in this world was to become Fish. one glorious leap into the ocean showed us that it would be harder than anticipated, due to having taken a ‘dangerous’ fall. luckily it doesn’t seem like horses can be injured, even though the screen flashes red if you trip while jumping. 

i joined right after the new character models became available. i think they’re pretty neat! some of the body types looked androgynous to me, but the game calls you a girl regardless. but you can still buy facial hair in the shop!

the world is a nice size! it’s scaled small enough that you feel like you’re going places even when your horse is physically moving a little slow, and the world is big enough that there’s plenty to explore while still being small enough that you see other players going about their lives pretty frequently. 

speaking of other players! shout out to @ro-sso for warning me to never open the global chat. i did! i asked how to get hay after very rapidly forgetting what i had just learned. three people told me it grew on a farm. i said Ok. when i did find the hay (in a shop) i told the chat i had been betrayed and bamboozled and they said “BAHAHAHAHAHA”. later i used the Say chat to ask for help finding a championship that was starting soon, and everyone nearby was very helpful. you win some you lose some

quests seem to be the biggest part of the game! they’re how you get player and horse exp and level up and get better stats for competing. a lot of the quests i did felt very tedious. lots of riding back and forth and delivering messages and so forth. the worst ones involved herding horses that kept splitting into smaller groups and running around a mall doing errands for a sketchy guy. my favorite quests were the ones where i got to open my backpack and drag a tool onto something, which felt like playing Nancy Drew. there was also one where we got to follow the visible smell of pumpkin pie on a trail to a little cottage, and it was nighttime so there were cricket sounds as well!

there’s so much love and soul packed into this world! there’s a pony who was elected mayor! there’s a pirate themed race that has music just similar enough to the Pirates of the Carribean music to remind you of it while also remaining distinct! there’s a riding club that “wears pink and not only on wednesdays.”! there’s a girl with a pet owl named Toby who says “Even though he blathers about it, Toby loves bugs.” there’s vague sounds of people talking in areas with lots of NPCs! there’s a kid with a hot air balloon who takes you up to the cloud kingdom! he has a pet frog who can ride on your head! there’s an emo electric violinist who was really funny! you can get a kitten for your saddlebag! the music is pretty decent!

the clothes very strongly remind me of being 12. something about the slightly awkward way the clothes fit is nostalgic. there were also lots of flower crowns for the summer solstice!

a huge point for this game is that it has its own pride festival!

there’s just something about going to a new place and seeing rainbow flags everywhere, especially after the horrors of horse isle 3. i hear this game also has canon lesbian characters! this does make it even funnier that all players are assigned Cowgirl at login

the one thing that really surprised me is that if you play without a membership, you are apparently trapped in a demo version, and the rest of the game is locked behind a paywall. this sprang up on me after i started running out of quests. the game told me to level up to unlock more main quests, but the only way to get player exp was to do quests, and i pretty much ran out. this concept is really foreign to me, since every game like this that i’ve played before, the membership made your life much easier and more posh, but free players could still get a lot out of the game. games like club penguin, pixie hollow, animal jam, etc. it’s only about $5 a month, though, with a permanent membership option for over 50 dollars. i have not purchased it, but if I ever do, i will update my rating. :)

while googling the above problem to figure out what was going on, i learned that there's no level cap and there's seasonal events that give EXP, so even if you've finished the whole game, there can still be players more powerful than you with better stats dominating the competition. that seems ! a little rough! they also said that after you beat the game, there's not much left to do. hopefully the fun part is the journey and not the destination!

all in all, though, we did it. we became Fish.

and that makes it all worth it.

i’m rating Star Stable Online 4.5 out of 5 stars!

★★★★✬

please feel free to submit horse games or ask me to reevaluate! next up is Alicia Online!

[tiny-flickers]

i actually wrote down all my thoughts as i listened to the sounds of nightmares and i thought they would be funny to share so here (instagram followers have already seen this but.)

all under cut bc i’m just gonna post it all at once (brackets are things i added later)

—————

ch 1: the workers in the walls

“patient number 1220… referring to children by numbers…….” is SOOOO CRAZY LMFAOO 😭 they know what they did there

imagine being named “no one” (noone) bro that is crazy. that’s even sadder than “mono” because at least he is SOMEBODY. like ik that’s not her actual name but the fact that that’s what she chose as her alias…

“otto” sounds a bit similar to “mono” idk [no it does not?? idk what i was going on about here]

i wonder if noone’s nightmare of being trapped inside a giant relates at all to the giant baby that’s going to appear in ln3

i wonder if she’s talking about the wax bellman (who was removed from the games but still has a portrait in the maw) when she describes the guy who appears in that room in her nightmare [she wasn’t btw]

the shadow children???? or glitched remains perhaps

the music & audio is very maw-like

gears?? making a song???? the giant is totally some sort of living music box or whatever. & she keeps describing the area as being made of stone and it’s sort of implied in the ln3 trailer that the giant baby turns people into stone so…

noone distinctly smelling this chained up guy and saying that he smells of sausages gone badly is sooo guestcore

perhaps the world of little nightmares is an alternate dimension which one can access through dreams

the lady??? noone describes her as being the keeper of the stone giant and the world beyond the walls

AND describes her face as being equally old and young

or perhaps the “stone giant” IS the maw [it’s not]

“the ceiling was a white clock face, but all the numbers were wrong” time loop reference fr

oh yeah this is a prison

so it’s gotta be the maw or something similar at least (but it doesn’t seem to be a boat so)

ok when the mysterious lady appears and gets noone’s dream friend the lady attack music from the first game plays which definitely makes me think she is the actual lady. and she’s covered in chains because she herself is a prisoner if you think about it (especially considering the six/lady connection)

and noone describes her mouth as having “blackened teeth inside; hungry for something” which further emphasizes the connection

^^“…something that swelled inside me” she wanted her SOUL fr!!!!!

noone saying that she feels like she doesn’t exist sometimes :( probably why she chose the name

also “water sickness”???? silo??? [silo trilogy reference]

she thinks she’s possessed by bugs or whatever and idk if that will connect to ln3 or what [more like parasites but.]

mutual dreaming bro what if that’s what happened with six and mono

see cuz “cece” kinda sounds like “six” too (i mean i’ve already seen theories about this but)

ch 2: a penance at the bathhouse

“the candleman” has GOTTA be the wax guy [except he’s not…. the name really threw me off here]

noone says she likes moths. there are big moths that can be seen in cages in ln2

noone’s nightmare!!! maw reference!!! she saw an ocean and saw a bunch of boats coming out?? “and from their mouths, plump men and women emerged. faces hidden behind wooden masks” ITS THE GUESTSSSS!!!! are all these “fish-like contraptions” part of the maw then?

also she mentions that they’re going to a “lantern-lit market” which might be what we saw in the ln3 trailer???

“a voice whispered ‘hey!’” LN2 REFERENCE

“gazing into its spiral always gave me relief” no man you are going to be hypnotized!!!! hypnotherapy is a bad idea in the little nightmares world!!!!!!!!!!

noone saying that the candleman wants her to open herself to this world and that he’s been with her all along…… i feel like that sort of connects to the wax bellman’s profession LMAO [HELP]

makes sense that these guests would be obsessed with cleansing and purification considering the masks and the fact that they were likely warped by the signal tower

“i was quite happy surrounded by the dark” six energy

ch 3: the theater of the mind

yippee!! [I FORGOT TO DELETE THIS ONE LMAO]

“in the dark, a hand let go of mine” SIX & MONO REFERENCE

noone being trapped in this big shopping mall is kinda giving fnaf security breach tbh

mannequins…. no……… not again….

the projector shaped like a giant eye??? like in the maw??

THEY CALLED HER NO ONE :(( NOOOOO THATS WHAT HER BULLIES CALLED HER NOO

no wonder she chose that name

“this place had been warped by pain” “even the walls began throbbing” definitely related to the signal tower

“don’t take her. not this one, too” ok but what if that’s like. mono or something trying to get someone to stay with him in his nightmare [it’s not but that would be cool]

ok so noone was on tv probably because of her sickness thing but the fact that tvs are such a prominent thing in the ln world also makes it suspicious….

ok so otto’s professor was like what if there’s other realities beyond our perception guys lol [ln multiverse]

ch 4: two of a kind

oh ok so he kinda does believe that noone is traveling to another reality/world at night not only because of her nightmares but because her body keeps disappearing before his eyes….

guys this would be so crazy for my ln/dracula au [LMAOOO]

she’s going into the upside down fr

guys they’re going on a ferris wheel

is this like the carnival place that’s gonna be in ln3

“it’s nowhere” that’s the world the games are set in!!!

not sure if this means that six & the other characters are just dreaming or if noone is just in a world parallel to theirs

perhaps cece is a previous version of the lady

wait he just said “the ferryman” ????? not the candleman?? like the ferryman from little nightmares???!!! the guy who took six to the maw??!?!?!1!?! [guys no way it’s the ferryman from little nightmares]

ok yes i’m thinking now that the nowhere is a parallel universe

ch 5: a deluge of the inevitable

i guess it would make sense that the candleman/ferryman is the guardian between worlds since he’s sort of like. someone who delivers people between places (like six to the maw) plus the two characters do look similar… the ferryman could totally be the candleman but just wearing a mask [i was too fixated on the wax bellman thing]

noone has a tumor???? wtf!!?? :( is this because of the water sickness or whatever

nome???? ITS A NOME!!!!! THERES A NOME IN THE SEWERS!!!!!

“little mushroom fairy” awww

“the first non-hostile being you’ve met that wasn’t another child” oh buddy do i have something to tell you

“you believe this place transformed him?” YES THE SIGNAL TOWER DID IT!!!!

BRO IS GETTING POSSESSED BY THE SIGNAL TOWER LMFAOOOO

ok so otto created this contraption that allows noone’s dreams to be projected onto a screen

but the screen was all blinding and static-y and showed a creepy eye looking at him….

the signal tower’s transmissions are gonna leak into your world bro do you have any idea what you’ve done [it didn’t really but. this would have been an interesting way the story could have gone]

ch 6: the lonely way

she reappeared somewhere that was not her bed?? weird

nawww he’s just using her now

i was wondering why otto was calling the candleman the ferryman but it’s because that’s what cece called him… and that’s what we know him by because of six…

“a doctor’s coat, a pink tutu and shoes, and a yellow raincoat”

THE RAINCOAT BROOO (and ik otto reacted strangely to the fact that it was yellow which is why ppl think cece is six but i’m not sure yet)

“tan trenchcoat” that is SO mono

“a shape in the distance. an outline of a door,” DONT OPEN IT DONT OPEN ITTT!!!!!

“it’s a liquid” it’s the signal tower goop! do not open the door bff!!!!

I KNEW THE DOOR WAS GOIJG TO HAVE AN EYE ON IT GOD DAMN IT DONT OPEN IT!!! THE THJN MAN IS IN THERE!!!

ahh shit the door is creaking open

wait the candleman is behind the door? not the thin man?? maybe this specific door is the bridge between the worlds then (bc noone said it didn’t have a doorknob on it which i’m pretty sure it did in the game)

“where is my sister” wait is cece his sister :00

ohh that’s why noone asked if the picture otto had was of his daughter because she looked so young…. but he just lost her at a really young age

the stairs are going every direction at once?? this HAS to be the signal tower. or some dream-like manifestation of it at least

all the stars noone sees in this place are EYES i KNEW it!!! the facade is crumbling!! it’s the signal tower!!!!!!

the door merging into faces of children… probably the children that were taken to feed the signal tower….

nawww he’s going to start experimenting on another kid now 😭

wait so did the candleman just… take noone away????? I NEED MORE EXPLANATION HELLO??????

wait if it was the lady that was the weird mannequin it would make sense for her to have the raincoat in her chest wouldn’t it because of the pictures in her chambers of (possibly) rcg???

so if rcg IS her daughter then she probably would’ve gotten the raincoat from her

or maybe CECE is rcg….

idk i’m going to have to look up more theories now

[spewing my ‘rcg=flashlight girl and the lady’s daughter’ nonsense]

[felixstudios]

if the managers got magically turned into toons, how do you think theyd react, what kind of toons would they be, and how would they navigate their new bodies (and possibly new lives)?

I'm not Felix, but I hope I can answer this about as well as she can.

DUCK SHUFFLER:

-He becomes a red duck with green legs after a slot machine accident.

-He doesn't find it particularly surprising or alarming and simply rolls with it.

-It wouldn't surprise me if he'd quit his job to officially join the ranks of the Toons.

PRETHINKER:

-Brian either becomes a raccoon, or he becomes some kind of bug Toon not available in-game. He'd be a pale pink.

-He's in complete disbelief about this change and refuses to leave his room for several months. He loses track of time and eventually becomes so bored and lonely that he ventures out.

DERRICK MAN:

-He becomes a bronze colored bear.

-Raine is accused of using magic of some kind, but she seems genuinely confused about what happened. Unable to locate the cause, he's forced to mingle with the Toons as a Toon.

DEEP DIVER:

-If only in-game species are available, she'd likely become a non-domesticated species. If it can be anything, she'd become a fish. She'd be a deep blue color.

-He wouldn't have much commentary about his situation. Additionally, he'd almost exclusively keep to himself.

RAINMAKER:

-The species situation would be the same as Mary, except I could see her either becoming a dog or a fish. She would be light blue.

-She'd be happy to explore the Toon world from the inside and play several Toony games. Most likely, she would resign from her job.

LAND ACQUISITION ARCHITECT:

-He becomes an orange fox.

-At first he's shocked and in complete disbelief, but after a while he learns to cope and fit in with the other Toons.

GATEKEEPER:

-She becomes an alligator. Her color scheme would likely include greys and incredibly desaturated blues.

-She refuses to show herself for a very, very long time out of embarrassment for what has happened to her.

WITCH HUNTER:

-He becomes a dark purple bear.

-A very similar situation to Holly's reaction occurs.

PUBLIC RELATIONS REPRESENTATIVE:

-He becomes a light pink cat.

-At first, he hates his new situation. But then, he finds a great sales pitch to use on Toons along with an idea to escape and becomes incredibly grateful he magically changed.

BELLRINGER:

-He becomes a yellow kangaroo.

-He's quite shocked at the turn of events, but he elegantly navigates the situation and keeps a level head. Eventually, he learns how to act like a Toon and blend in.

MULTISLACKER:

-He becomes a cat with a mix of greys and purples.

-Doesn't say or do much about it, but his dad is incredibly horrified and keeps trying to make him into a Cog again.

MOUTHPIECE:

-She becomes a blue dog with yellow ears and yellow legs.

-Although she quits her job and starts cooking with Toon ingredients, nothing really does change about her.

MAJOR PLAYER:

-He becomes an orange and yellow bat.

-He flaunts his new change proudly and uses it as a selling point for more tickets to his shows.

FIRESTARTER:

-He becomes a red kiwi.

-He tries to hide what happened to him out of fear of what COGS, Inc. will think, but eventually the truth comes out.

PLUTOCRAT:

-He becomes an ice blue alligator.

-He attempts to run his operation like nothing has changed, but his Satellite Investors aren't so keen on working with a Toon since it's a risky investment. He's forced to close his pizzeria.

TREEKILLER:

-He becomes a green bear.

-He tries to convince himself he's only having a nightmare, but after his denial is over he's left feeling depressed and empty.

CHAINSAW CONSULTANT:

-He becomes a dark red deer.

-He's still trying to figure out what to do.

FEATHERBEDDER:

-They become a kiwi, and their color scheme is desaturated purples.

-They still sleep a lot and don't really change much.

PACESETTER:

-He becomes a pink and black dog.

-He makes a huge public scene about his transformation and tries to go back to being a Cog, citing his reasoning as him being more beautiful as a Cog.

[probablyaparadox]

Midnight Headcannons for Hiveswap/Friendsim Characters (Part 1)

These may be very well liked, or very controversial idk. If you write a fic (unlikely but who knows) based on any of these then PLEASE lmk. Part 1 because some I may feel uninspired + I don't wanna do all of them in one post. Xefros Tritoh: THE BOY HIMSELF.

He is a semi closeted midwest emo (I mean look at him) and a fully closeted stereotypical emo aesthetic enjoyer.

Ever since he started the Grubbels with Dammek, he's actually gotten quite good at singing, and rapping. (this is based on the line that Dammek passive aggressively hinted that Xefros needed vocals practice, and If I were Xefros my insecure ass would start practicing REGULARLY.)

If he were not plagued by constant anxiety he would sleep a lot, and be a very sleepy person (Sloth lusus). Or rather he requires more sleep than the average troll, and when he gets it he's very energetic. Because of his training with Dammek to "sleep anywhere" this would result in him frequently falling alseep while standing if he didn't get his proper sleep.

I want him to kill Trizza with a baseball bat. Off with their heads and hit a home run. Preferably with a baseball bat covered in nails.

He's trans. That one's not from me I've heard it tho and it's cute as hell imo headcannon immediately accepted.

His crush is a tealblood "reporter" (hobbyist photographer and blogger) who wears rollerskates (manic pixie dream boy.) I say this purely because Idk what traits Idarat and Tegiri have over Tagora besides being more masc and having glasses. And they are both not rat men unlike Tagora (/aff). Anyway because of lack of information I say what I want.

Last one because I genuinely feel like this was in the game but I'm not. Certain. Anyway Xefros looks so generic that so long as he isn't wearing his sign it would be genuinely impossible for any drone to find him based on his face. Dammek:

He got most of the parts for the weapon off of trolls craiglist

he will either instantly obliterate Jude's sense of self and self worth and have to work up from there to realize he needs to be nicer or he'll lose his moirail (he already has) or he will be shockingly ok to Jude and just be closed off and he will have to work up to expressing affection normally instead of survivalist training.

he's a little robotics geek he will get his hands on a cell phone and fucking destroy it when he gets to earth./joking to early. He MAY destroy a tv. I think based on his building skills he would be fascinated by earth technology.

the cameras installed in Xefros' hive have lasers. Xefros does not know this.

He gets his fancy normal disks from mallek (I've also heard this from another person- I would credit but I can't find it at the moment) Mallek:

Has 13 piercings. (IF YOU KNOW YOU KNOW)

he's either a part of the rebellion already, or will be soon enough

He actually knows a mutant which makes him being "cool with mutants" an even weirder more awkward thing to say

he bullies people on 4chan. The homestuck earth equivalent of 4chan. But still earth. he finds it informative and he likes giving their computers the types of bugs that will make them only play slitherio.

His strife specibus is a serrated curved dagger (snake fang like almost)

He has a snake tattoo on his right thigh.

He intends to get sleeve tattoos, he just hasn't perfected the design yet, or found someone he trusts to do it.

Hey you know that character who we've gotten like 1 concept art of. Yea Jerann him. They're boyfriends. Sorry I don't make the rules but he gets a fish nerd boyfriend.

He keeps oblong meat products in his house in case Diemen ever wants to crash.

He's going to give Xefros a piercing when Xefros becomes an emo boy /hj Joey: (I know she should've come first but she's not one of my favouritesss-)

Joey would lose her shit if she saw the barbie movie or Murdoch Mysteries

On a similar note, she would do barbenheimer for/with jude

She has a slight fear of clowns now (reasonable)

when she gets scared while on alternia, she looks up at the sky, and the stars, and thinks of her mom

I think that Joey and Marsti have an excellent opportunity to get along. A vet is just a doctor for a different species after all, and I'm sure just as Joey would be eager to learn Marsti would be eager to teach and get a bit flattered and someone respecting her aspirations and knowledge. Marsti:

Has the nickname Mars

If Marsti could dress up more she would go for a steampunk streamlined vibe.

In the route where Marsti ditches the player at Gahlek's house, she steals a book on her way out

Marsti survives the train crash floating in her bucket.

Marsti wanted to go to Jeevik week because she liked the challenge cleaning up after it might bring.

[sirhyst]

Call of Duty OC: Reghan Satrinava-Idrissu

Physical features Questions

ALL CREDITS GO TO @escapetoluna FOR THE QUESTIONS LIST

Note: more Sergeant Satrinava 🤓 I didn’t answer all the questions since some of the info is already in the ‘dossier’ I posted earlier. ♡☆°・

————————————————————————-

What colour is their hair?

Black, but he has natural strands of white

How long is their hair?

In its natural state, it rests at his waist, but if flat ironed, it’s down to her ankles. Yes, she has been asked to cut it, and no, she will not.

Does it cooperate? Is it frizzy? Does it stay in place?

It cooperates for the most part. He doesn’t spend too much styling it (he doesn’t know how).

Reghan is very particular about his hair though and knows what products to use when washing it and as a daily moisturiser.

How do they usually wear their hair?

When on missions, he either has it braided or in a bun. When he’s at home/base, he lets that shit roam free.

Do they play with their hair? What about when they’re upset or nervous?

Reghan is always fiddling with her hair even when she isn’t nervous. That being said, Captain Price knows when she’s getting restless if she’s moving her hair around a lot.

What is their eye colour?

Gold. it is literally the gold equivalent to the blue eyed stare, especially since his skin is much darker in contrast.

Him and Johnny purposely stare at everyone intensely. (Reghan taps out as soon as the person makes eye contact though)

How would you describe what their features look like?

He has surprisingly soft facial features, but nobody notices until they get a proper look at him, but her muscles and height make her seem rougher.

Do they have any piercings?

Reghan has a few ear piercings and has a fake septum ring that he wears some days.

Do they have any tattoos?

Both his arms and legs are COVERED in tattoos. What most people don’t know is that he brings his sibling Basil with him to numb the area getting tattoos because he will cry otherwise.

Left arm:

Stylised version of the welsh dragon swirling onto his chest

Stars

Plants

Bugs

Cultural designs

Abstract designs

Eyes

Planets

Other small designs (everytime you look at his arms, you get the urge to find Waldo…Captain Price actually found him)

Right arm

Similar to left arm

Dandelions

Crows

Fish

Legs

Sword

More cultural designs

Snakes

sun/moon

Ass

Small Moon jellyfish (right asscheek)

Back

not even gonna bother listing all of ‘em.

Do they often paint their nails?

As often as he can since he’s in the military, but he only likes black

Are their hands worn / rough?

His hands are pretty rough and have a few scars from being in the military

Do they pick / bite their fingernails?

Yes, but he tries to tone it down if he’s just gotten his nails done.

Do they pick at their skin or at scabs?

She picks at her skin. She used to pick at her scabs, but Price started spraying her with water every time to break the habit since Reghan would bleed depending on how bad it was.

Are they very tall?

Yes. Reghan is still holding onto that title as the tallest in the army.

She’s very strong as well, more than she is aware. She has playfully pushed someone and sent them flying. Since then he has been extra careful with how he is with his teammates.

Even though she towers over everyone, she’s very cuddly. He usually lays down on top of Soap when they’re cuddling, but only rests the upper half of her body on him so she doesn’t accidentally crush him to death.

————————————————————————-

[bl4z33467]

I am Blaze.

I do art commission for discord nitro. Pm for more info. (Closed)

Woah learn more about me \/ \/ \/

Facts about me:

Im 17 years old. Im a senior in highschool. Im from Pennsylvania, EST.

Im Agender and use she/they/it. He if im comfortable with you. I present androgynous. Your welcome to guess what i was assigned at birth lol.

Im Asexual (double A battery). I like men. And non binary masc tbh- Im not here to date though. If you want me, befriend me first smh. Even though ik you dont lol. Also if you couldn't tell i like fat guys a lot- but I think everyone is beautiful the way they are ^^

I am diagnosed with PTSD. Please do not talk to me about car crashed or vehicle accident, or make fun of my vehicle.

I do not have any other diagnosis but im frequently legitimately asked if i have autism irl, so you can make inferences. I do not like self diagnosis. I also struggle with extreme emotions, like outbursts or anger. I probably do not mean to harm you but can just lose it.

Im very happy to make friends with you, but please be patient as sometimes i can be standoffish in fear of you.

My fursona is Blazeus. She is a Gar-Pheasant Monster. I use her to express myself. Here is their reference sheet:

Things I like:

Birds. I would consider them my "special interest." I have been obsessed with them for years and years. I have chickens, muscovies, and pigeons. I show pigeons. My favorite birds are large ground birds like peacocks and pheasants, also pigeons. Also i like birds with cool feet, like coots and sula nebouxii.

Art. I love drawing, painting, making perlers, writing, sewing, and crafting. I do not like crotchet and knitting is okay. I use my art to express my emotions and tell about who I am.

Fallout. Its a cool game, it has music I like and gameplay is fun. I love writing stories, drawing and making ocs with my friends about the fandom.

OSC. I love object shows. I like most of the "popular" ones, besides one. I did not really like one mostly cuz it was scary.

Furry Fandom. Despite my parents saying I cant use the term "furry" I still consider myself s staunch one. I love drawing and making anthropomorphic characters. I also make fur suits and love wearing paws, tails, and ears.

Cosplay. Along with fur suits, i make non-furry costumes. I love going to cons dressed up and hanging out with nerds and being silly. I mostly have made fallout cosplays, like my secuitron and t-60 helmet.

Planes. I love plane spotting, and going to plane museums. I also am a fan of the logistics of planes. My favorites are the Concorde and 747. I like commercial aircraft a lot more than military.

Barcodes. I am fascinated by barcode symbology. The science behind creating these 1d and 2d data structures is incredible fascinating to me. My favorite symbology is the PDF417

Animals. I love all animals, not just birds. I especially like bugs and fish. Some of my favorite non-avian animals include gar, trout, crickets, millipedes, hyenas, snow leopards, snakes, isopods, catfish, flounder and halibut, gharials, sharks, and eels. I also like prehistoric animals. My favorite is marrella splendens

Geography and Cultures. I love maps and flags. I also collect flags and can stare at maps forever. I memorized all the country flags. I also love countryballs. I also love learning about different cultures. If you want something to talk to me about, tell me a food unique to your culture! Im from amish country so I have some pretty cool ones. Also learning about different religions is cool too! Personally, im a christian (the nice kind who actually loves thy neighbor) but I find the differences and similarities in religions fascinating.

My friends. My best friend is @irenecatz. We met back in like 2022 in December. We have been friends ever since. We got to meet each other irl in the summer of 2024. That was the best day of my life. She means so much to me, and without her I may not even be around anymore.

Shows: Fallout, Spongebob, The Patrick Star Show, Earth Odyssey, Meltdown: Three Mile Island, Xavier Renegade Angel, Prehistoric Planet, Nasa's Unexplained Files.

Movies: The Truman Show, Chicken run 1&2, Rio, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, 2001: A Space Odessy, Interstellar, Nacho Libere, Wall-e, Home on the range (with the cows by Disney) and Bicentennial Man.

Books/short stories: Fahrenheit 451, a sound of thunder, the veldt, the city, (can you tell i like Ray Bradbury?) Do androids dream of electric sheep?, repent harlequin, said the ticktockman, harrison bergeron, one flew over the cuckoo's nest, a lesson before dying, and dogman (ik in stark contrast).

Games: Fallout (ive played 1,4,NV,shelter) Pokemon, Minecraft, spore, SSB i main game and watch, Bang on balls, Mario Odessey, Gmod, and Roblox.

Activities: Tennis, Biking, Kayaking, walks, bird watching, photography, animal husbandry, fishing from time to time.

Music: I like 1950's rock and roll, ragtime, nerd core, pop, and "white boys singing about shit" genres. Artists include Tally Hall, They might be giants, Sabrina Carpenter, Englebert Humperdink, Gene McDaniels, and Duncan Lawrence. My favorite song is Holiday Road.

Collecting. Thing i collect: flags, bones, rocks, shells, feathers, Japanese chicken figurines, pokemon cards, bottlecaps, pokemon figurines, random bird figurines

Other cool things about me

Im part of the National Pigeon Association, Trout Unlimited, and my local pigeon club.

I have won awards in photography and in pigeon shows

Ive been to many different US states and 5 Counties

Im going to school for Wildlife Technology, Wildlife and Fisheries science, and Poultry and Avian Science

Im good at public speaking but not a speaking face to face

Side blogs and other contacts

Yt channel: https://youtube.com/@sardiniastan?si=I9D2_u3ocoQRtU89

Art website: https://sites.google.com/view/six-foot-goose-art/home-page

@vulpesaltilis one of my fallout au oc

@vulpesnovos another fallout au oc

@genral-sir-blaze-s-hale my fallout 4 sole survivor

@evil-bl4z33467 my account is post fat art on cuz it can make ppl uncomfortable

Discord: bl4z33467

[panfishonthefly]

The Perfect Fly Rod for Panfish

Hands down, the most frequent question I am asked is what is the ideal rod for chasing panfish. Before I answer that question, we need to consider our quarry. Panfish is a term that covers a broad range of fish, including members of the sunfish family, including crappie, rock bass, and warmouth, as well non-sunfish like white and yellow perch, white bass, yellow bass, Rio Grande Cichlids, and several other smaller freshwater fish. While these fish may be on the small side, they are hard fighters that live in a wide range of habitats and eat a wide variety of flies, from tiny midges to big air-resistant poppers and foam or hair bugs.

The perfect panfish fly rod must perform well on a small farm pond or sprawling reservoirs, as well as tiny creeks and big rivers. It should be able to delicately cast a tiny dry fly, as well as handle a sizeable hard-bodied popper. I should be able to handle streamers and nymphs fished on floating and sinking fly lines. That's a tall order for any fly rod, but the ideal panfish rod must be light enough to allow you to appreciate the fight of these diminutive fish.

While I love the fight of scrappy bluegill on an ultralight two or three-weight fly rod, these rods are often too light to handle some of the larger, less aerodynamic flies I enjoy fishing. Casting double fly rigs, something I do quite often, on these light rods can be difficult, especially in windy conditions. As a result, I have settled on four-weight fly rods as my daily driver, although I still fish lighter rods when conditions are right for it.

A fly rod around seven and a half feet in length is ideal for me. It is long enough to make long casts on open water but compact enough to use on small streams or areas with a lot of overhead cover. While the current trend is to make rods stiffer and faster, I prefer slower, softer rods as they fit my casting style. I also like how mid or full-flex rods allow you to appreciate the fight of these smaller fish. A good bluegill will bend this type of rod down to the cork!

Fiberglass, especially modern S-glass rods, fit this bill perfectly. The only downside to these rods has been their ability to cast some of the larger flies I fish or deal with very windy conditions. I have often wished some of my favorite glass rods had a little more backbone in the butt section to deal with wind, big flies and the occasional big bass grabs a fly intended for panfish,

Building The Perfect Panfish Fly Rod

This past January, while attending the Fly Fishing Show as a featured fly tier in Marlborough, Massachusetts, I struck up a conversation with Jordan Ross, the owner of JP Ross Fly Rods. I was introduced to Jordon by good friend and fellow fly tier Fritz Miller, who owned a few JP Ross fly rods. He knew Jordon had a soft spot for panfish and thought we should meet.

During a slow spell at the show, I wandered over to the JP Ross booth to check out some of their fly rods. While speaking with Jordon, it became clear that we had similar tastes in fly rods. I cast a few of his rods and frankly loved them all, but they were similar to other glass rods I already owned. When I mentioned my desire to have a modern, lightweight, s-glass rod that could handle big flies (as well the occasional bass), cast in windy conditions yet still allow me to appreciate the fight of a smaller fish, his eyes lit up. He had a project he was working on that might solve my problems. He developed a fiberglass fly rod called the Toad. What set this rod apart from other glass four and five-weight glass rods on the market today was the fact that this rod was built with a stiffer butt section but retained a traditional feel in the top three sections. Jordon modified the butt section of this rod to make it more stiff and stronger for applications that need a little more backbone in the butt. While doing so, he kept the ferrule design the same; that means the TOAD butt section is interchangeable with their normal S-Glass fly rods.

Jordon handed me a 7 1/2 foot four weight with a Toad butt section, and I headed back to the casting pond. On my first cast, I could immediately feel the difference. That stiffer butt section allowed me to put as much power as I wanted into the cast, and the fly rod responded perfectly, laying out long, accurate casts as well as handling a short line with ease. I was sold.

We discussed collaborating on a rod project during the show, and I agreed without hesitation. Jordon brought in the incredibly talented artist Jeff Kimball to make the rod something special. Jeff Kimball's artwork appears on several of JP Ross's fly rods, and I was very excited to see what he could come up with regarding a panfish-themed rod. The results are breathtakingly beautiful.

In a few months, I had a JP Ross Panfish On The Fly edition fly rod in my hands. While I wanted to start spreading the word about this collaboration immediately, I wanted to put the rod through its paces first to ensure it performed as well as I thought it would. I have tested the fly rod in various fishing situations this past year and I am thoroughly pleased with the results.

Of course, my main objective was to use the rod for panfish. I used the rod at the start of the season, casting delicate midge patterns to early-season panfish. As the season progressed, the rod passed its second test delivering streamers and multiple wet fly rigs to pre-spawn sunfish and crappies. This past summer, the rod flawlessly handled bulky foam bugs, hair bugs, and popper/dropper rigs. Throughout the season, I fished in various conditions ranging from blustery late winter days to windless, sultry summer evenings. The rod cast flies of all sizes and still allowed me to appreciate the fight of smaller fish. As is usually the case, several larger predators were encountered, including a largemouth bass that topped the scales over five pounds. The stiffer butt section on this fly rod allowed me to handle this big fish with confidence.

In addition to my panfishing endeavors, I brought the rod along with me on several trips around the country. I used it to fish for smallmouth bass and landlocked salmon in Maine. While I typically would not use a four-weight in these situations, I wanted to put the new rod to the test, and it performed wonderfully. The fly rod also traveled with me to the mountain west where it felt at home on the small backcountry streams where I fished. I even put it through what I would call a torture test by fishing it on the Madison River, where it successfully landed several rainbow and brown trout over twenty inches. If you have ever fished a big river like the Madison, you know how strong these big trout can be.

After an entire fishing season, the rod has lost that "new" look. The fine cork grip has been darkened with the slime of hundreds of fish, but the artwork on the reel seat and blank still shines as bright as the first time I took the rod out of the tube. I have caught many species of sunfish, crappie, rock bass, large and smallmouth bass, rainbow, brook, and brown trout, landlocked salmon, and even arctic grayling on this rod over the last few months. It has cast everything from delicate spinners to big poppers, and I am happy to say that the rod has exceeded my expectations. I am ready to share it with the world!

If you are interested in a rod for yourself…

The purchaser can customize JP Ross fly rods in several ways. If the artwork I selected does not resonate with you, let Jordan know, and he can discuss other options with you. In addition to the standard reel seat artwork, you can add custom artwork to the blank, the butt cap of the reel seat, and the rod tube. This customization also applies to the grip. If you do not like the tapered half-wells cork grip I selected, you can customize the grip to your liking.

I want to be brutally honest here. Do you need a custom-built fly rod to enjoy fly fishing for panfish? Absolutely not! The motto of JP Ross Fly Rods is "Simply Fish," and that certainly applies here. I often tell folks to fish the rods that you already own. Don't sweat if it is a little too light or a bit too heavy. Just get out, enjoy the great outdoors, and fish. However, if you have been searching for the perfect panfish fly rod, I have one for you to consider. Check out the JP Ross "Panfish on the Fly" edition TOAD 7'6" 4 weight four pc fly rod. If you decide to pick one up, you will not be disappointed!

The rods are available now and can be ordered directly through JP Ross Fly Rods. If you decide to purchase a Panfish On The Fly edition JP Ross Fly Rod, you will support both JP Ross and Panfish On The Fly, as a portion of these sales will go to Panfish On The Fly. Click the button below for more information or purchase a rod.

If you have any questions about this build, don't hesitate to contact me (the button below will take you to my email). I am happy to share my impressions and answer any questions. You can also reach out to Jordan at JP Ross Fly Rods. He can fill you in on the design aspects of the fly rod and discuss any customizations you may be interested in. In addition, Jordan can set you up with a complete outfit, including a rod, reel, and line if desired.

If you decide to pick up a JP Ross Panfish On The Fly edition, please share your thoughts with me! I would love to hear from you.

[blimbo-buddy]

I finally woke up and oof Tumblr :(

Thanks for answering my ask!

Storm becomes the baker of the two twins. He really likes making foods and Feather is his number one taste tester for his experiments.

Has she ever gotten sick from this? On occasion lol but Storm is improving. He made a lot of good snacks and gives each of his family specialized stuffed buns.

Spicy fish for his spicy mama, Juicy meat buns for his pops, and sweet as can be lightly honey glazed buns.

I looked up Mojarra Frita and it looks similar to my countries Haitian Fish Fritay. Absolutely delicious taste.

Silver would love both and yeah, she heard about Crayfish and couldn't believe it at first. It was described as little underwater bugs and unappetizing but when a cat purchased a bag of them and boiled it and showed it's beautiful red color and how to properly peel and eat. (Based on my real life reaction to trying Crawfish/Crawdaddy and I was so goood!)

Safe to say, Silver gets very excited when the traveling caravans come for trades and brings exotic fish and assortments. Sometimes they don't and that's okay.

Silver still eats raw fish and while she's out fishing with her co-workers she's seen diving into the water and catching a fish when it's time for lunch and eats it then and there. We love her.

I'm just thinking about Feather laying in her little cat bed sick from taste testing Storm's last batch and Storm goes "I.. Don't think I cooked those long enough" while Feather's laying there and bluntly but also playfully retorts back "ya think?". I imagine Storm would make a specific batch that is catered to his family and only his family. SilverStream loves spicy fish but has her preferences in ingredients/preparation which Storm happily adheres to it, same goes for the rest of his family

I wonder if SilverStream's fascination with fish and just fishing in general leads her down a path that broadens her horizons and also allows her to gain new skills (such as butchering techniques, fish scaling, etc. I think you might have gone over this before and my brain is just overrun with mold). Feels like SilverStream 100% got her nose pinched by a Crawfish the first time she saw one, she got too close to it.

On a side note I headcanon that Riverclan has a niche interest with fish and marine life, but SilverStream's fascination is taken to the extreme, she could ramble for hours about marine life

[megabuild]

always sucks when you ask ppl to send in ask about aoyuer and I sit there staring bc im aoyuer’s proud #2 fan and yet I cant come up with anything because all I do is think about cscott its embarassing. what does he even do in aoyuer be a sad bug? oh no the prophecy? pix is literally dying in the desert

HELP its ok. frankly im always like wah i wish i could talk about aoyuer but then its like. people dont send me questions BECAUSE im not talking about aoyuer so they dont have any info to go off. vicious cycle. Anyway here's your Scott ramble

Much of Scott’s character right now comes from his home and the worldbuilding around it. Rìbhinne Deil is effectively a closed settlement theocracy, with Fèidhism (corruption of “god deer”, worship of the Twin Stags) being the religion almost all its citizens follow. I wouldn't call them a cult because that's a heavy word with a lot of contrasting definitions, and while certain practices they undertake would be considered bad by modern standards both IRL and in canon, Arc 1 is set in the equivalent of the 1400s and most characters view the area as “a bit creepy and weird but not really our business”. Having said that, their worship of Aeor is certainly Not very healthy. 

As a theocracy it's largely controlled by a council of priests who aren't all that relevant, but also on occasion the fèidh fuil (corruption of “blood of the deer”), a ‘chosen’ one who is believed to be a reincarnation of Alinar. (Functions about the same to the canon “champions”.) The fèidh fuil is a difficult role- outwardly, they are the unquestioned leader of Rìbhinne Deil, but often they are groomed for the position from a young age and serve more as a puppet that allows the council to remain in control. The fèidh fuil’s word, however, is still final.

Scott (birth name Sgàid, which he still uses within RD) is about eight when he is chosen as fèidh fuil, a result of a tragic event where his parents and twin brother Seornaidh are killed in an avalanche. His body is the only one recovered from the snow and he almost dies to frostbite but makes a miraculous recovery, something the priests seize as proof of his chosen status. In canon Scott’s relationship with Xornoth is very glossed over and we never really get any hints he even had a brother until it’s randomly dropped in that oh yeah, that guy's my twin… so here it’s more a parallel of the original Twin Stags myth, where Alinar was so heartbroken over Cohnal that Aeor removed his memories to make him a “perfect soldier”. Scott’s memories aren't literally removed, but he is encouraged to repress his grief and focus more on his duties, with his family barely being mentioned and the avalanche being turned into something beautiful that “awoke” his godlike status instead of a tragedy. 

He becomes a controversial fèidh fuil. As I said above RD is a very closed off settlement- prior to the Empires Project it is one of the only major settlements in the area and they have little to no contact with the others. By the time Scott was about eighteen he wanted to change that- hence the change of his name to a more anglicised one, which he used when communicating with others. It's about this time he gets in contact with fWhip, who has just left military service and been appointed Royal Alchemist. While the Empires Project is fWhip’s baby, Scott certainly plays a part in helping it come to fruition. By the time the main story begins, he's just turned 21, making him the second youngest ruler above Jimmy (20, with some leeway since aging as a fish hybrid works differently).

In terms of his relationship with Pix, it’s a difficult one- in canon they only interact once and very briefly. In AOYUER Scott is definitely not a huge focus- my original intent was for his story to play out in the background, functionally very similar to canon, as a sort of reminder that Pix is the main character of this story but not the overall story. However I just.. really love worldbuilding and RD in particular has been so fun that he’s probably ended up having a bigger part than I intended LOL. In a lot of ways I would consider him a sort of “broken mirror” to Pix- he’s everything Pix should be as a leader to his people but Pix is also deeply aware of how Scott's situation is equally, if not moreso stifling than his own. Their interactions are pretty brief- they have an argument about religion at one point, and I’d like for them to have a more candid discussion towards the end. But outside of that, unfortunately he doesn't show up that much. (Or he isn't planned to, anyway. Knowing him he’ll sneak his way in to being a major character somehow.)

[quirrel]

STARHUNTERS INFO POST

I wanted to talk more in depth about my OCs of the Fake DLC idea I had for Hollow Knight but I think it would take a long time if I went one by one on different posts so I'm trying to summarize as much info of them as I can here (their Google doc is even bigger HAKDHSK)

I talked about them on this post post! Check it out for more context about my sillies

The info is under the cut, otherwise this would be a very long post VAKDBSJ

Veni:

- Oldest of the team

- Uses any pronouns

- Went through a lot of of Events™, one of them included The Grimm Troupe ritual when their kingdom fell

- Old but will kick ur ass

- They are one of The Nightbringer's Favorites, a title that doesn't make really happy nowadays, mostly endures it for the sake of their team

- Loves Arts and crafts

- Is a terrible cook

Cymo:

- Also old as balls

- He/him

- Used to live in the ocean till the day the fish he was friends with died

- Cranky old man, but he cares about his teammates a lot

- Loves painting :)

Dusa:

- Also old but not as old as Veni or Cymo

- She/they

- Doesn't remember her past before meeting Veni and joining the team

- Is very dry when she speaks and sometimes can't read the mood in a room

- She's very intuitive when it comes to Soul and stuff like that

Minos:

- A *lot* younger than the previous 3, but was the fourth to join them (after a really long time of them travelling alone)

- He/they

- Medic of the group, he's actually a physical therapist but due to the team getting stupid sick or injured most of the time he had to learn a bunch of different things to keep them alive

- Dusa helps him

- His species (Treehopper) are usually very small but his mamma was a big beetle, that's why he looks like that

Tigo:

- Around Minos' age

- They/them

- Used to be more of a beastly bug before they found a corpse of a mask maker and stole one of their masks, gained Focus

- Still very much silly and dangerous

- They lost their wings after they miscalculated something on one of their hunts, was very close to dying untill Veni found them

Vris:

- A tad younger than Tigo

- He/him

- Used to be part of a mercenary group till they kicked him out for a false acussation, captured by Laki's team till both of them got out and rescued by Veni's group

- Makes terrible first impressions on other people, but he's actually a genuine sweet guy

Laki:

- Around Vris' age

- She/him

- Also used to be a part of a mercenary group, though hers used to be enemies with Vris', wanted to leave the group after a long time and Vris' kidnapping was her last straw

- Used to be part of a royal family as well, though he was the child of a duke with a lower position, the material of her whip is similar to the pale ore

- She/her

Tari:

- As old as Cymo

- Lived in Hallownest up to its fall, escaped with the other stags but separated when she noticed her brother (Old Stag) wasn't there

- All of them travelled very far so she got lost when she tried to return back to Hallownest

- Found Ruk as a baby one day when she was wandering, then later met Veni and stayed with them

Ruk:

- Baby.... he's a little teen guy

- He/him

- Pretty much was raised by the whole group

- His family was killed before Tari found him, being the only survivor of what happened

Ignis:

- Young adult, a tad younger than Laki and Vris

- She/her

- Joined Veni and their team because she wanted to meet other places outside her tribe

- Has nicknames for everyone

- Is Hachi's girlfriend :3

Hachi:

- A tad older than Ignis

- She/her

- Blind from birth, but uses pretty much all of her other senses to move around and also fight

- Can be very strict at times, but she's very kind and cares about her teammates

- Is Ignis' girlfriend :3

Kram:

- Liddol guy, also a teen (around Ruk's age)

- He/him

- Scared of a lot of things, but tries his best

- Vris teaches him how to fight (totally not his father figure)

Sheepi:

- Youngest of the adults

- She/they

- She's a blacksmith! A genuine weapons geek

- Can use the leaves growing on her back as a food source

- Can move faster in water than in land

---

And that's pretty much it :3 if you're reading this thanks a lot! If anyone got questions feel free to ask stuff

[wreywrites]

Tiger Shark

Part 4: The Anchor

Chapter 22

We spend what has become a normal day for us. Last week, Finnick found an old book of fairy tales and his new favorite activity is reading them with verve. He does voices, sound effects, the whole hook and sinker, and I draw. We eat last night’s noodles, then Finnick dozes off on the couch while I read about a man who spends his whole life hunting one whale.

Beck calls midafternoon to invite everyone for supper and marbles. I leave Finnick sleeping on the couch to answer the phone, drink a glass of water, write Dad a note telling him to wake us up if we aren’t awake when he gets home, and grab a blanket. I curl up on the half of the couch Finnick isn’t using.

It isn’t long before I wake up again. I’ve never been much of a napper, so I go back to where I left off in the book. I read the same paragraph four times before deciding it isn’t working. I can hear them again. I am so tired of hearing them. I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping for the best, but like so many times before, I am disappointed, surrounded by screams and slices, wide-eyed faces staring through me, the soft thump of a body-less head hitting the ground.

~~~                               ~~~                               ~~~

Finnick is holding my hands and saying something.

I blink, slowly, making myself focus, willing myself to snap out of it. It works a little.

“Annie.”

“Hi,” I say.

He doesn’t say anything back, just looks at me. I can’t read him.

“I told Beck we’d be there for supper.” The words are sluggish. They almost sound like a question, but I can’t drag myself back to reality quite enough to behave like a normal human.

“Okay. Are you sure…?”

I nod. “I have to keep doing normal things. I have to keep moving forward. Otherwise… otherwise I’ll drown, and I refuse to drown.”

He gives me the tiniest of smiles. “Are you wearing that?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Just wondering if we were changing before supper, or if you wanted to go now and see if Beck made any appetizers.”

“Ooh, he does make good crab cakes. And I’m comfortable enough with you all to show up in this.”

~~~                               ~~~                               ~~~

Supper and games with friends always helps. At least, it helps while it’s happening, but the boisterous laughter only serves as a stark contrast to the silence that comes when we call it a night and I go home and go to bed. Faces swim in front of me. Sounds that aren’t there echo down the hall. I get up. I can’t live like this.

Finnick rolls over when I open the door. Relief floods his face. “I would kill to sleep through the night again.”

I crawl into bed. “No need for that. Just tell me a story.” I curl up against him and close my eyes. I don’t even hear him start to talk.

~~~                               ~~~                               ~~~

We snuck up on each other, all right. But now that we’re here, I don’t know what to do. Part of me still feels guilty, but I can’t dwell on that. I can’t drown in that pit again. Part of me is happy. This is great. I have the undivided attention of a man who is, in fairness, flighty and shallow, but who I know cares very deeply about the people he loves. And part of me is terrified. I have never forgotten President Snow’s threat about all the people in Four who must care about me. And I’d have to be stupid to think he doesn’t have a similar threat hanging over Finnick. The Capitol killed his parents, after all, which must make the list of people left to threaten him with substantially shorter. I’ve got a whole list—Dad, Coral and Jade, Mako’s parents, my fishing crew, Beck, Mags, Finnick—but who is on Finnick’s list? Mags, probably Beck as well, and now me. Because there’s no way these nice houses aren’t bugged. We aren’t even doing anything, but even if all the Capitol has to go off of is the sheer amount of time we spend together, I’m on the list of people whose deaths will be quietly arranged to keep Finnick Odair in line.

Logically, I care, but most of the time, the thought is far from my mind because, at least superficially, on sunny afternoons, I am happy. We lobster dive with Mags and Beck. We read, we lay on the beach, we weave, we tie knots, Finnick bakes and I draw. At night, he talks until I fall asleep, and in the morning, I hold him until he wakes up.

And I think I am getting better, until the phone rings one day and it is Casca saying he and Marius will be visiting next week in preparation for this year’s Hunger Games. Marius needs to make sure we all have clothes we can wear in the Capitol for our perfunctory appearances, or if we have the “honor” of being mentors, and Casca probably just wants to say hi to Mags in person. I was not prepared for this. Somehow, I had forgotten that you never finish the Hunger Games, you just start playing by different rules. I don’t know how long I can play. The idea of going back to the Capitol, of being in the place that caused me so much pain… I can’t help but think about how much worse I will get while there. But saying no isn’t an option.

So Marius comes, digs around in my closet, organizes outfits, leaves several new dresses, and says he’ll tell the Preps hello. I thank him, then sit on the floor of the closet. How am I supposed to go back?

~~~                               ~~~                               ~~~

The reaping creeps closer. I have been informed that I will not be a mentor this year because of my “unreliable mental health.” Which seems like a fair assessment. Finnick is quite sure that he will, once again, be a mentor. I don’t argue.

When the day arrives, Casca comes from the Capitol bearing gifts: a new shirt for Finnick (oh the irony), a shawl for Mags, a dress for me. The Capitol certainly keeps us looking better than everyone else in the district.

I have to sit on the stage with the other victors. It’s weird, being up here, looking at everyone else, when, for a significant chunk of my life, I was down there looking up, hoping it wasn’t my name. Now it’s already been my name, and I am sitting here waiting to see who will try to follow in my footsteps. Except I drift right before they call the names, and it’s a good thing Finnick and I said our goodbyes this morning, because the next thing I remember is Beck helping me sit down at my kitchen table and pouring me a glass of lemonade.

“I know you don’t remember a thing, but you were marvelous.”

I stare at him. “How…?”

He shrugs. “You kinda slumped a little bit and stared out over everyone, and when we all stood to leave the stage, you followed along, but you weren’t there. We could see it in your eyes. So I brought you home.”

“Thanks.”

Beck nods. “You’re welcome. Our train leaves tomorrow morning.”

When I don’t respond, he clarifies. “All the victors have to go to the Capitol for the Games. No exceptions.”

“Oh.”

“We tried to get you out of it, but… well, it didn’t work. But I have appointed myself your caretaker, and none of the victors whose opinions mean anything will hold it against you if you can’t handle it. Every single one of us came out… different. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

~~~                               ~~~                               ~~~

I have a full-blown meltdown on the train. At least, that’s what Beck tells me later, when I wake up in the Victor Center, where the non-mentor victors live.

“It was one of the few times in my life I’ve actually been glad to have Manta around. You were on the fight,” he smiles, drumming his fingers on the table. Keep this up and they might let you stay home.

I don’t have the energy to respond. I just want to go home and never set foot in the Capitol again.

~~~                               ~~~                               ~~~

We go to the Parade of Tributes that evening, then a banquet afterwards for all the victors. It is a loud affair, with lots of laughing, but I can see through the guise. Everyone, or at least almost everyone, feels the way I do. We are all tired and disgusted and on our best behavior to protect those we love.

I remember something Finnick said the day before the reaping. We were eating breakfast and, without preamble, he said, “Before I leave… Don’t judge me too harshly. They killed my parents, and I’m not going to let that happen to anyone else I care about.”

I wonder how many of these people have had family members killed, how many pushed back one too many times, how many said no the first time the Capitol sold them to the highest bidder. How many have blood on their hands that isn’t from inside the arena? Most importantly, how long will it be until I do as well? How long will the Capitol give me to get over what they’re still calling victor’s remorse?

Beck and I stay until a handful of other victors have left, then make our exit.

“You never want to be the first one to leave at your age. When you get to be old like me, it’s more excusable, but they expect you younger ones to enjoy the parties.”

“I’m not sure how to do that.”

“Believe it or not, it gets easier. You make friends. And it’s better to be there than…” he trails off. There is a strange look in his eyes. It occurs to me that I don’t know Beck that well, just that he won the Twenty-Second Hunger Games, Finnick and Mags both like him, and he’s always been nothing but good to me. He has no family that I know of, which makes me wonder how many times he said no.

“You know they have to, right?” Beck says. “I just… don’t want it changing how you look at Finnick. He needs you as much as you need him.”

I nod. Knowing about it doesn’t make me feel any better.

“You only narrowly avoided it yourself.”

Good for me. But in the back of my mind I’m wondering… how many times would I have said no?

~~~                               ~~~                               ~~~

The days pass in a haze of Capitol citizens wanting to meet me, take pictures with me, tell me how much they loved my interview shoes or victory dress. Our building is apparently a money-making tool for the Capitol. Something like “Your victors are right in here, and you can meet them, but you have to pay to open the door.” Most of them I don’t care about, but on the fourth day of this miserable, zoo-like existence, I am sitting with Beck and Beau from District Ten, who won the first Quarter Quell. I am starting to see what Beck means about making friends. The victors who don’t have adoring fans with them are sitting in little groups, generally of similarly-aged people, chatting and eating. It’s a surprisingly friendly environment. I am looking for the people closest to my age, trying to decide if I should go make friends, when I hear a shout across the atrium.

“Annie!”

I don’t immediately recognize the voice, but the following call of “Cassia, slow down!�� clues me in. I look toward the shouts and see Megary Fallon practically leaping out of the way of a small child who looks to be the very definition of an unstoppable force. I can’t help but smile as Cassia dodges around a man from Seven who Beck introduced me to and whose name I’ve forgotten, who is talking to a pair of older victors from Two. And then she reaches me.

Cassia wears the biggest smile I’ve ever seen and a beautiful recreation of the dress I wore for my Victory Banquet. She hugs me without hesitation.

Beau chuckles and he and Beck move a few seating areas over as Titus Vickers catches up to Cassia.

“Sweetheart, you can’t just run off like that.”

“But we’re not on the street! We’re inside, and I know Annie, and Megary, and Augustus, and-”

“Cassia, we’ll have this talk later.”

She has the good sense to hang her head a little before returning her attention to me. “I’m sorry you were sick. I wanted to see you on your tour.”

I’m not sorry I was sick. I almost wish I was still sick, but I’m not about to tell her that. “Oh me too! I was looking forward to eating more carrot cake with you. But I had some very good doctors and I’m better now.” Lies. Well, not about the carrot cake. I could go for some of that.

“I’m glad,” Cassia says. “And I’m glad I get to see you today.”

“I’m glad I get to see you too. And I love your dress!”

Cassia beams. “Thanks. It was my birthday present, and I wanted to wear it today to show you. Do you have a new dress for the party this year?”

I nod. “It’s the same color as the old one though.”

“That’s okay, you look very pretty in that color. And this way we’ll still match!” She is bouncing up and down, barely containing her excitement.

“So you’ll be at the party to eat carrot cake with me?”

“Of course! Won’t we Dad?”

Titus nods. “We wouldn’t miss it for the world. Though I’m not feeling good about my odds for picking the winner this year. I’ve done four in a row and my luck’s got to run out eventually.”

“Well you can’t win them all.” I want to tell him how shallow and uncaring this is. He gambles with lives, but never his own. I doubt I could even explain it to him though. There is too much of a divide between the Capitol and the districts, too much about being a tribute and a victor that I could never explain because it has to be experienced. Titus Vickers and the rest of the sponsors and gamblers are the only people who ever actually win the Hunger Games. It must be nice to not have to face any consequences, to sleep through the night without thinking of the lives you’ve taken.

“Any guesses? I don’t suppose you know Four’s tributes this year?”

I shake my head. “Sorry. I used to live on the same street as the girl, but we didn’t really know each other. Her parents are both fishmongers, so she’s probably pretty handy with a knife. I couldn’t really tell you though.”

We chat about fish markets for a while; apparently Titus is investing in the shrimp trade and wants the inside details, which I am happy to give. This is something I can talk about all day, confidently, fearlessly. But all too soon, Titus says he must get Cassia home for her piano lessons. He shakes my hand, thanks me for the advice. Cassia gives me another hug and makes me promise to save room to eat carrot cake with her at the Victory Banquet.

They are barely out the door when I find myself with more company.

“So Cassia likes you too?” Megary Fallon drops onto the couch opposite me. “She sent me my little toy to knock down the ruins. I owe her so much.”

Next to me, Augustus Braun sits with a smile. “I don’t think she had any part in getting Titus to sponsor me, but it’s so nice to see a real fan every year.”

Megary laughs. “A much-needed break from all the people trying to sleep with you, I’m sure. What was it last year, ten? A dozen?”

“An even thirteen.”

I am staring, first at one, then the other, as they go back and forth. Did they mean to sit here?

Augustus answers the question for me. “So Annie, I hear you’re drawing now. And I regret to inform you that it’s only a matter of time before people are begging you for nude portraits.”

I stare at him.

“Though, you’ve got Finnick. I imagine he’s already asked. Wait!” Megary’s eyes light up. “You haven’t already drawn him, have you?”

That snaps me into action. “What? No! No, I’m terrible at people. I just do animals.”

“What is man but a featherless chicken?” Augustus says, staring philosophically into the distance.

Megary rolls her eyes. “I think you mean hairless monkey, but okay, oh cavalier one.”

“Where is your mentor? I need to have words with her about your attitude.”

“Probably trying to train the poor kids we got this year. Not a chance, either of them. How about yours?”

“Oh, you know Gloss, always the heartbreaker. I’m sure he’s on a date.”

“I meant your tributes, not your mentor. It’s a good thing you’re pretty—you don’t have much else going for you.”

“Rest assured, the next time I see Raela, I am telling her how rude you have been today.” Augustus looks back at me with a friendly smile. “But enough about us, tell us about yourself.”

My confusion must show, because Megary speaks before I have the chance. “When you’re a new victor, everyone else already has friends. So this idiot and I keep each other company and we’re willing to adopt you.”

“Oh.”

“Unless you don’t want us, which is understandable, given my delightful colleague’s aggression,” Augustus says cheerfully.

“No, I… I could use some friends. Unfortunately, I had to leave mine at home.”

They both grow sober and Megary says, “I wouldn’t complain about that. It’s nice to have normal friends. People who haven’t killed other people. As much as I like my victor friends, I like my regular friends at home too.”

Augustus nods. “They keep me going.”

“Isn’t it hard to talk to them?” I ask. I hope it isn’t just me with this problem.

“Very,” Augustus says. “Almost impossible sometimes. But… I can’t have a normal life. I’m a victor, and the Capitol loves me. My friends, on the other hand, can. They can get married, have kids, have a normal job, walk down the street without people staring. It’s nice to know that that still exists, even if I can’t have it.”

I feel like a weight has been lifted from my chest. “I thought it was just me.”

Megary laughs. “Which part?”

“All of it. Not that Four really goes crazy about seeing our victors in the fish market or anything-”

Augustus chuckles. “Odair he is.”

Megary giggles in response.

“-but people still look at me differently. And I remember enough other Games to know if I have kids they’re going to get reaped. And getting married just feels like asking for trouble…”

They nod.

Megary says quietly, “Even if I wasn’t worried about my hypothetical kids, I wouldn’t get married. They’re holding enough over me already, I don’t need a husband in the mix. And I can’t imagine what it would be like for my husband while I’m doing a stint in the Capitol and…” she trails off.

Augustus nods. “They told me I can’t get married until they decide I’m old enough.”

“What does that even mean?” Megary raises an eyebrow.

“The same way Gloss can’t get married until they give him permission. It would ruin his reputation, and even in the Capitol there are a few people with qualms about sleeping with a married man.”

“Have you had this talk with him?”

“Yeah,” Augustus nods. “It was the first talk we had when we got back home after I won. He sat me down and told me what to expect, and he may not be a genius, but he’s been right so far.”

My silence must be starting to be suspicious, because Megary turns to me. “Did you get this talk? Was I the only one who didn’t?”

I shake my head. “I did not.”

“So Finnick, who knows the system better than anyone, didn’t think to warn you about what you’d get to do for the next five or ten years? I know he’s a little… Guess I’m not sure what the word is, but I didn’t think he-” Megary stops. “Why are you here?”

“Because I won last year?”

“Yeah, I know, but you’re here, not in the Tribute Center. You’re not a mentor. And everyone gets to be a mentor their first year.”

I don’t answer right away. Augustus is looking at me, puzzling it out, but he doesn’t reach a conclusion quickly enough for Megary.

“Who’s Finnick sleeping with to keep you tucked out of the way?”

I blink. That was… abrupt.

Before I can respond though, Augustus comes to the rescue. “Whoever Finnick is sleeping with, it’s a him problem. You weren’t sick, were you? Whatever happened in your interview, it’s still happening.”

I nod.

“Even they draw the line somewhere. ‘Mentally unstable’ is your ‘get out of prostitution’ pass. And they can’t have you being a mentor because it could go very, very badly.” Augustus is looking closely at me. “You’ve got a pass.”

Half a smile crosses Megary’s face. “I wish I’d thought of going crazy.”

“You think I enjoy living like this?” I hiss. “I can’t sleep at night, and if it’s too quiet I have flashbacks to the arena to the point where I’m dead to the world, sometimes for hours, and-”

“I know,” Megary says. “I’m not saying I envy your mental state, I just wouldn’t mind having a good excuse to not get sold and passed around every year until they decide I’m too old and ugly.”

“Oh don’t worry about it, you’ll never be too ugly for me,” Augustus winks at her.

She snorts. “Don’t say that too loud or they’ll add you to my list.”

“And threaten you with what? The Capitol’s not gonna kill me. I’m too pretty for that.”

“They won’t, but I might.” Augustus and I both jump at the voice behind us.

Megary laughs. “How was your day?”

I don’t know what emotion I feel when Gloss sits down next to me, but it isn’t entirely good.

“Fine, fine. Got a sponsor, if nothing else.” He begins inspecting his fingernails.

“Is that allowed?” Augustus seems genuinely curious. At first I’m disgusted by his cavalier attitude, but then I realize that if he has to sleep with these people anyway, he might as well get something out of it.

“It’s not not allowed.”

“Never took you for a loop-holer,” Augustus says. “You, on the other hand,” he turns to Megary.

She is smiling a wily grin already. “My dear Augustus, how do you think I got that medicine?”

“It seems like cheating. No, not like cheating, like betting on your own tribute.”

“I’m not a mentor this year,” Gloss digs out whatever was underneath his fingernail and flicks it away, “So it’s fine. I’m sure she’ll just present it as her idea, and we’ll all move on none the wiser.”

Augustus raises an eyebrow. “Awfully confident of you.”

“You that good?” Megary gives Gloss a once over.

Gloss rolls his eyes. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

“You’ve never offered.”

“Took a bit of a confidence blow last year.” Gloss leans back, stretches, and puts an arm over the back of the couch and around my shoulders. “Turns out there are some who can resist my charm.”

I give him a sideways glance, eyebrows raised.

He winks back. “Offer stands.”

“I can’t believe you’re still hung up on me. What if I’ve moved on?”

“There is a recorded interview in which you said that I am, and I quote, ‘the most beautiful man alive.’”

“Actually if you play the interview back you will find that I did not say that—it was Mako.” It takes a great deal of concentration not to get hung up on this. “But he may have been quoting me…”

Megary laughs. “I think I need to find me a victor to marry. I like the banter. And really, what are they gonna do? Kill him?”

“Don’t ask. There’s always something. Besides,” Augustus looks pointedly around the atrium, “your options are me, a bunch of old men, and some drunks.”

“Finnick Odair.”

Gloss is wheezing with laughter. “Good luck with that! He’s not one to settle down any time ever, and if he did, she’d have to be something else. Or maybe Mags’s granddaughter who he promised Mags on her deathbed he would take care of.”

I snort. “If Mags had grandkids, I could see that happening.”

“He’d probably take her name too. Finnick Flanagan,” Gloss laughs again. “Now that’s all I want out of life. Everything else that happens will always be a disappointment.”

****

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