#like half the vendor's floor is d&d stuff. like why?

[hirazuki]

Day 1 down!

The weather was gorgeous and we got to enjoy the sunlight for a good bit in the park, and I snagged myself some goodies:

(shoutout to @estramor for spotting the Mordor bag... I tried walking away and I couldn't XD Definitely will be the bag I use whenever I cosplay Mairon). And our kitchen is slowly morphing into having soot sprites everywhere -- soot sprite oven mitts, soot sprite apron, soot sprite bookends for the cook books XDD We've been meaning to get a kitchen towel, and this was just too perfect.

Also, after cosplaying for almost ten years, I have finally figured out a way to make raised hairstyles on non-lace front wigs work for me: BALD CAPS! I can't believe I didn't try this sooner, I would have saved myself so much grief (and money lmao). Still not as good as a lace front, obviously, but when the color you need is impossible to find on a lace front, this is a decent alternative. First time I'm actually happy with raised bangs on a blunt hairline wig!

I didn't take photos of the application process but, just for fun, I'm including photos of the removal process under the cut ^^

[castle-dominion]

castle 6x23 for better or worse

the wedding episode liveblog, or the caskett wedding or the first wedding or the attempted wedding, or the b-ex-ett episode, kind of reminds me of that felony melanie movie...

Ooh rick castle signature

oOH ROOFTOP VENUE! RC: It’s too bad Beckett didn’t want to bungee jump off the side of the building for our big exit. Now that would have been cool. Me: YOU'RE SO RIGHT BESTIE

Gerard <3 *grabs forms* Fwewp! out!

Clipping! *crash to the floor in bloopers* Gates <3 She called she texted AND she emailed. Black shoes XD *PASSES THE FILES TO ESPOSITO AGAIN*

bECKETT WAS MARRIED!? OH IT WASN'T ON PURPOSE? OH... GIRL NO... lmao I remember she said she was 1 & done back in like, episode 2. Hey wait I think I remember episode 2 becks was "you're a dad??? that's weird bc you're so immature" but alexis bailed him out last episode...

the drive thru of love...??? 15 years since she married him first year at standford. timeline stuff. I love henry. You're a detective, detect.

Yep. Love how they literally try to find him thru cop stuff. I mean she did call him a liar & a thief.. *calls him her husband* he's literally ken in the mugshot meme. (so glad I clipped earlier bc their outfits are bomb) Wow I read the info. 1(d)/3(m)/2001(y) Used someone else's expired cridit card, lied to her under a flase name at the motel, 3/3/01 fraud & restaining order,20/2/07 "female body inspector" is literally on his police record when he was the fbi agent... RC: I must say, given his record, I’m really surprised-- Me: that we haven't run into him again sooner? RC: you stayed with him all these years.

Reugan. o'leary. *robotic but also stoned*

KB: I’m going to go to Willow Creek. I’ve got less than three days to find Rogan O’Leary and get a divorce.

Title card

Why doesn't she have any previous messages between her & ryan? (missing an apostrophe, at least ryan knows how to use lol) Trinity Church. Neighbour: He’s got a smile that will make your pants fall off Tell her you're looking for a divorce

WOAH STUFF THROWING AT HIM He's weilding a chair? What the heck is even going on!? Nice punch! She owns this bar & hates him enough to make this scene? Love the angle lmao. Kit kat lol

KB: Do you remember a trip that we took to Vegas Me: I wouldn't expect him to, do you hear how that sounds?

It is hilarious! I just found out, literally sign here goodbye What's a nice hook? lmao this man he is... smile that will make your pants fall off... Yeah she was in law school... WAIT SHE WAS IN STANDFORD LAW SCHOOL.. HOLD ON *haggling* LMAO I LOVE HIM

Clipping <3 xd it really is unus annus remember the kickstarting puberty video? Yeah.

Glitch she says. (Oh btw do you remember crabtree telling murdoch how to tie a bowtie? That was a great scene. love george.)

garage door opener? sus. jher mom's place? What if you DO get caught?

Oh no oh no I forget what happens OH DEAR OH NO. it's a cop lol. Just pretent it's your car girl. Oh no I remember what happens. DON'T HANG UP DON'T HANG UP get in your car & follow!

I'm sure they'll have a very good reason! TELL HER THAT YOU'RE LEGALLY MARRIED & GETTING MARRIED TO SOMEONE ELSE in 3 days

RC: Okay, okay, I hate to ask, but do you think maybe Me: he did it on purpose? RC: we should postpone? Me: oh Girl you may be a detective but did you hear about all the claims involving mr oleary? Yeah alexis has it covered!

Oh no what is it now?

OH NO THE ROOF-- THE ROOF FRICKING BURNED DOWN? a venue in two days? The hamptons? u should have sdone that first! I was going to ask about catering & stuff, glad they're paying vendors relocation costs. MR: Oh, please. I once staged A Chorus Line on a subway platform when our company lost its space

RC: Oh, what’s a fiancé for if not to help find his future wife’s current husband?

Cloris Maguire: Well if you find him you can keep him. Or becks, just be honest Mama just admitting to the homicide det... She's pretty. She mixed? All that turquoise & her looks make her look half native. Hot native trope tho so ew. WAIT. WHAT? Tildy maguire: I love him. I mean, I can overlook the fact that he’s not a regular job kind of guy or that he can’t marry me while his wife’s in a coma SHE'S WHAT? (so he did know!!!) HE EVEN USED HER NAME? ok so... are you going to tell her or?

serious trouble From You

RC: Coma wife. (he laughs) It’s kind of brilliant. Despicable is not mutually exclusive

RC: Their emails to each other are fairly pornographic Me: uh

YOU CAN GET TORY TO DO THAT? KB: I’ve gotta call Lanie. I’m not going to make my spa bachelorette party this afternoon. RC, head popping up: You were going to have naked ladies at your party, too? (should I clip it? I'm going to say probably not. at least not rn.) XD also who planned it? alexis?

Aw newleyweds spa day <3

I love lanie. RC: Besides, it’s not like things can get any crazier. *walks in to: a fricking biker gang in rogan's livingroom*

tell them tell them tell them oh gosh fucking heck

Head Biker: All right, well, that seems fair. No mrs oleary, I want my money now Correct him & say it's detective beckett or would that be a bad idea

lol love how he has $500 of the $5k...ONLY 12 HIURS? RC: No, Mrs. O’Leary, I’m not okay. I happen to like my legs. And yours too. And why is your husband paying bikers over $5 grand for a stripper’s phone?

stole & returned? remember the joey malone episode?

Oh no. bloopers were great for this btw. I think I feel bad for luke reichle, I mean I know they have copies but holy crap poor luke reichle

Give her a hug my man

KB: Castle, I’m married to someone else. And I have no idea where he is, we don’t have any leads, and then to make things worse the venue and now this? I mean, it just feels like all of this is one big sign. RC: Well, maybe it is a sign. (he puts his arm around her shoulders) A sign that ours is a great love story. Because what’s a great love story without obstacles to overcome? Every fairytale has them. Terrible trials that only the worthy can transcend. But you can’t give up. That’s the deal. We want the happy ending, we can’t give up.

THAT'S THE PHONE Why did tory send the one of the dog? oh that's why the bus bench was so noticable!

Oh protestant that's why he's not father ?.. You're not? By the time you're done being blackmailed, everyone has seen the photo & used it to blackmail you!

A few pictures actually!

RC: So your husband is hijacking someone else’s blackmail. It’s kind of ingenious in a degenerate sort of way.

Ooh she's good! Ppole dancing is not just wow sexy, it is an art form & a sport! (her accent xd) Lol castle tipping her

the red tailed hawk sound effect?

I'm with becks on this. Maybe y'all need a monocular too tho. Did she bring her gun with her?

going to be more people here. I swear. Amish horror film lol. Not going to be him. Or going to be a scarecorw. Or dead. Or the scarecrow lol.

KB: Could everyone please stop saying man parts? RC: Well, we just followed the trail of disappointment and deception. Led us right to you.

Smart on beckett. *calls castle man-parts* You know that's a good idea. Say he's either signing the papers or dying, either way it gets you out of marriage.

the ugly brothers? MICKEY BARBOZZA THE MOB HIT MAN?

that's why castle was keeping watch until a moment ago. Becks should have said "castle lets get out of here" & then started to leave w/o rogan & then he'd call them back sign the papers & they'd get out of there. maybe. idk.

ESPARISH JAVI & LANIE JUST SITTING THERE WITH NOBODY ELSE AROUND LOOKING OUT OVER THE INLAND OCEAN OR W/E IT IS SO THAT RICK ISN'T AFRAID OF STORMS... ROMANTIC. Wait, are THEY going to get married here instead!?!? JE: Now all we need is a bride and groom. WAS I RIGHT WAS I RIGHT HOLD ON they are in LOVE (even with their on & off again hot/cold

Ooh nice transition with the hands Love these interactions, they manage to make being held captive by a feared mob hitman funny. *castle can't see anything* *castle turning around* WAIT I THINK I KNOW WHAT HE'S DOING-- I MIGHT BE REMEMBERING. IT'S THE BIKER GANG?

RC: Why do you think? Husband, wife, future husband, your apartment? They find our dead bodies, the story of jealous rage writes itself.

knew it. biker gang. WAIT GANG VS MOB YES YES YES Wonder if the bikers still want rogan to pay em. I mean otherwise they were kind of.. using them.

you CAN thank them lol the contribution of the homicidal bikers is it already the next day? they gettin married today? RoL: You are a lucky man, Man Parts Wait yeah you're already back in her bar! *CONTINUES PLAYING HIS FRICKING ANGLE*

She's running so happy!

Who the heck are these people? will, idk, the el-masri family be here? Is that ryan up at the front? who are these people? I recognize,, none. I'd really really like to see some old characters return. Maybe Powell the jewel thief, or castle's friend in the mob, will from the fbi, agent mccord, kyra blaine (who has the initial kb again)...

OOH LANIE IS SO PRETTY! "called your dad" love those momen..ts... is that her mom's dress? she IS part of the wedding! Oh gpsh! I wore my mom's wedding dress to my grade 9 farewell but she was 113lbs when she got married lol. It also had dirt & rocks in it bc mum went rock climbing in it.

Bro: That's nice Me: *hands him my laptop* Bro: She likes the clear division on the hips- I wonder if it's because of backlash. Fans were like "that dress is sooo ugly" and they had to change it. It's a lot more normie than the last one but it <i>is</i> nice. I like the lace; not sure how I feel about the sheer peep-hope on her upper chest? seems indecisive. I really like the bodice. And again the lace detailing. Ahh it's her mom's dress. Esp since the last dress made her so emotional over her mom not being there. I like the little trails of lace extending down the skirt portion. I like the sleeveless.

Bro is literally watching a wedding tiktok right beside me.

LP: Yeah. For a second there, I wanted to marry you! Me: this fandom needs more femslash Martha got her earrins (that look a lot like the ones castle got gates) but they are generational earrings & so pretty & castle has been married twice & martha didn't give them these earrings

Why is he 20m away? Oh law Love the music Love his tie this is all so cute!

& then this happnes. Call her back CALL HER BACK! (also back in s1 it was established he has bluetooth in his car & yet he's calling her on the road?)

Stomp on the brakes castle so that they are ahead of you

the natives?

she's already called him ofc... "this is she" not "speaking" WAIT SHE'S THE EMERGENCY CONTACT NOT HIS MOM OR ALEXIS? OOH LOVE IT. tho if he was in trouble it would likely be WITH beckett.

Oof their nice wedding car

Oh no the car,

oh no fire,

oh no he dead ig

lol

great episode ig

Love the humour humour & then boom death

Lol mum just got home, perfect timing but now she suddenly asked for the bloopers. I'll def show u the bonus features later.

[nardaviel]

Part 4 / ?, now with pets and vampire stalkers.

Once again this is a long and image-heavy post, but at least this time some of the images are of a cute Sim kitten. I finally bought all the updates for Sims 4 so goodbye to all my spending money for this month, but now I can play it again.

I was super excited about getting Kinatsuen a cat, but I wanted them to have the exact cat I picture when I imagine them having a cat so I couldn't adopt any of the stray kitties or any of the ones on the computer. So I just made her as a kitten in Create A Sim from the Manage Households option, since there was no other way to do it... but we can say, for story purposes, that they went out and adopted her.

Their new gallery portrait. En looks like he's about to pass out. She's too cute for him to handle.

I also changed Atsushi's aspiration to Master Chef and Kinshirou's to Soulmate, because I felt bad having En make progress on his aspiration while they were stuck longing for a family. (Also they weren't getting all the useful satisfaction points you get for doing aspiration things.) Once they've finished these aspirations, I'll give them the original ones back.

I start playing the household and

this is what I find. Don’t abandon Hou-chan like this, she’s just a kitten ;-;

She’s so adorable, though. She is an affectionate, clever, and friendly kitty!

Atsushi admires her cuteness. This seems like a place for a Lion King joke, but I don’t want to detract from the cute.

It's late so they all go to sleep. Hou-chan follows Atsushi into the room to sleep near him even though she has her own bed al;sdkf I'm just... really charmed... I love her...

She's so needy... wow. My other Sims' pets aren't like this at all. The affectionate trait is powerful. (But it's cute!)

Kinshirou fixed a broken sink, and now he's rummaging through the discarded bits for useful parts. I took this screenshot just because it's such a strange sight.

He’s pissed off that he had to do something so disgusting. Poor baby.

There’s a big market for Kinshirou’s thoughts on etiquette.

I wish I'd bothered to come up with custom names for the other two books now because it's funny to see things like this but oh well, I guess. He was still learning! His titles weren't very good yet.

This painting perturbs me. Hou-chan is the only saving grace of this screenshot.

Fuck. I hate chance cards. H a t e. ...All my legacy Sims and my City Living girl would set up in the street (if they were in the painter career), because they're all that type. But I think En just wants to give up... An excuse not to work, what could be better...

En's laziness worked out for the best this time. It's a shame about the money, though. They're a bit broke.

Before work, Atsushi makes a bunch of quick salads so his boyfriends don’t have to cook. (That is to say, I’m working on his new aspiration.)

Kinshirou and En have a date scheduled, but En comes home tense from work (even though he earned his salary, despite what that chance card result said). So he goes to join Kinshirou in meditating the tension away before they leave.

Sadly, Kinshirou gets bored, and the TV bores him even more because the action channel just isn’t cultured enough for him. You can’t make this stuff up, I swear... And by the time he’s over it, En is asleep. So their date is postponed. There are no screenshots because I was hoping they'd get it together and I wouldn't have to go into so much detail lol

But Atsushi gets promoted! So the night isn't a total waste. He's a mixologist now.

Yes, darling, we’re all very proud.

I don't know why he doesn't have glasses in his work outfit, by the way. I didn't design it.

His hours are even worse than before, from 6pm to 2am. But he gets three days off now instead of just two, which is a relief.

Meanwhile, Hou-chan loves her little toy bird so much that she wants to take it with her everywhere, even if that means she has to glitch and walk around stuck in it.

Atsushi, savior of kittens.

Atsushi wants to play with her with the wand, since that seems safer, but she wants to use the litter box. So he follows her into the bathroom... Let her have some privacy, Atsushi...

Meanwhile, En paints a masterpiece-quality painting! Aside from being necessary for his aspiration, that's just really cool!! I'm proud. Not sure whether to keep it because it's pretty or sell it because it'll sell for a lot...

Nothing really to say here. This is where the camera ended up when I exited screenshot mode, and I thought it looked pretty so I took another screenshot.

I put it in Atsushi’s bedroom because his bedroom is a bit bare. It can live with the Enatsu painting.

Gross, Hou-chan.

Okay, well, En is off to work, but Kinshirou and Atsushi can go on a date, at least. They decide on a nice, classy dinner date at a restaurant I built for them. It’s as boringly built as everything else I’ve done before now (I’ve learned how to build cooler things but it came too late for some of the buildings in their save...) which is why I didn’t take a screenshot but it looks okayish on the inside, I suppose.

LMAO... I forgot I gave him that suit... oh my god... he looks so proud. Atsushi is politely keeping his thoughts to himself.

They're shown to the one semi-private table in the establishment. Probably because Kinshirou is from a good family, even if they themselves don’t have much money.

Gosh, they’re cute.

(I am really, really sorry for those little lightbulbs and plus signs and sparkles. They signify that a lot trait is having an effect on a skill that a Sim is building. They’re incredibly annoying in screenshots, but there’s no way to turn them off. It eventually occurred to me to get a mod for it, but only after the end of this post...)

It takes their food some time to arrive, but at least it gets there, which is more than I can say of the last time I tried to go on a restaurant date in TS4. They don’t mind. It gives them lots of time to talk! Something about Kinshirou’s drink puts him in a flirty mood...

En comes home from work while they’re out. He got a promotion, so he’s in that bizarre outfit again. Luckily, I don't have to see it except in his little portrait at the bottom left.

To put the finishing touch on an incredible date, they kiss passionately on the top floor of the restaurant.

Kinshirou makes this face when Atsushi first grabs him, but he gets into it.

Looks like I spoke too soon.

Kinshirou got sick on his date, and now he's itchy. Hm.

Their reward for such a good date! It’s just decor, not actually drinkable. If all goes well, they'll have these littered around the house eventually.

Kinatsuen receive an evening visitor, a friend of Atsushi’s in another save where I recreated demon AU but emphatically not his friend in this one. Fortunately, they're smart! They know not to invite a vampire into the house.

Less fortunately, Kinshirou is outside expanding Atsushi's garden. Maybe, he thinks, if he stays off to the side of the house, his dazzling gold suit won't catch Vlad's eye.

But the medicine has made him energized, and he needs to get all that energy out somehow. Kin-chan, sweetheart, not in your nice suit... although maybe ruining that suit would be for the best.

En and Hou-chan just became friends! She must have been giving him advice on his painting. ...Also I forgot to change him out of his promotion clothes.

Now that the vampire has left, Kinshirou is free to return to his kitten.

She is honestly unbelievably cute.

Atsushi comes home from work, exhausted and reeking from a night behind the bar, only to find that he can't even sleep in his own bed. His boyfriends missed him so much, they went to sleep there themselves.

En's bedroom may be messy, and he may not ever put the condoms and lube away, but it's closer than Kinshirou's.

Must have been a rough night. En still thinks he looks hot, though. Sometimes having a slob for a boyfriend is a plus.

Enatsu and Hou-chan morning domesticity. En is addicted to painting, I swear. Mixologists and bars aren’t as bad as En and his easel.

His second masterpiece is even prettier than his first. They're both impressionist paintings so I suppose Sim En is an impressionist painter. That suits him, I think. Unfortunately, painting a masterpiece means he'll go to work in a confident mood when he'd be better off inspired, but you can't have everything.

Again... Why is it always En who gets in trouble at work...

My headcanon is actually that En wouldn't judge, but, since that's not an option here, he would want to talk about his passion. En is always ready to share his thoughts.

THAT'S RIGHT. Although it's a bit sad because I still think En would defend her, if anything.

Atsushi needs to improve his mixology for work. Instead of making yet another drink for himself or wastefully practicing and then throwing out the results, he makes a pet drink for Hou-chan. :D

The window for Kinshirou to sell his books to a publisher. A screenplay about the magical boys’ revenge will definitely fly off the shelves, I agree.

No story value, just cute.

With Atsushi at work, En and Kinshirou decide to check out a community lot (not as a date). I actually made it for Atsushi, but... he'll get here someday. Basically, one of the expansions introduced all these food stalls and a bunch of recipes (honestly like 20+ in total) that you can learn how to cook only after tasting them. But it's hard to track them all down in the places the game initially put them because they rotate, so I just made a foot stall lot.

Unfortunately you can only have so many stall vendors on a lot at a time, so it'll always look like half of them are closed... But I'm still proud of it? I think it's a cute lot with nice Kinatsuen colors, and it'll help Atsushi to have this one place to go to. I'm proud of all the lots I built for them, actually, even if they’re often not very interesting-looking.

The moment they arrive, Kinshirou goes straight to the Japanese food stall without the least bit of prompting from me. En chooses some spicy Vietnamese food, but by the time he gets to the table, Kinshirou is already halfway done with his dango. I want En to get used to spicy food ASAP because it's out of character for him not to be able to tolerate it. It wasn’t until I started watching them eat that I remembered Sims also have to learn how to use chopsticks... En, I don’t think that’s now they work.

Getting used to spicy food.

En: Kinshirou, help! Help me, it hurts! My mouth is on fire!! Kinshirou: Ahh, that was so good... such delicate, mild flavors... :’D

En is grumpy because he wants a vacation, even though they literally got back from one like a week ago. I think this is one of my all-time favorite screenshots just because it's the opposite of what would be IC for them.

Luckily, I put some bubble blowers on this lot, so he can relax a little. Don't make that face at me, En. This is for your own good.

...En put in the flirty flavor that makes you angry if you choke, and Kinshirou choked on his very first blow. I guess it's not such a surprise, though. The bubble blowers are basically just game stand-ins for drugs, and Kinshirou would be the absolute worst person to get high with.

Kinshirou: Ow ow ow ow ow! That hurts! En: Yeah, how's it feel, asshole?

En: Wait, shit, ow! Kinshirou: You deserve no better for taunting me.

Kinshirou’s face is adorably pinched and angry here. But En is angry now, too, so they go home and go to sleep, after losing some friendship points. That didn’t quite go according to plan. Tomorrow night will be better.

A Hou-chan’s-eye view. Kinshirou was in the middle of eating breakfast, but she was too cute to resist.

En took some pictures of Hou-chan and put them up on Simstagram (lol) and !!! I've never had a pet get so many followers immediately like this. Everyone loves Hou-chan.

I shouldn't have complained about En always getting in trouble. Now it's happening to Atsushi too.

Atsushi is annoyed that his coworker would steal and put him in this position, but he would rather just keep quiet to avoid a confrontation. Maybe someone else will handle it...

Still better than causing a scene.

They're finally out on a date! Making identical pleased expressions. Kinshirou's taken En out to a museum because he's a cutie deep down and he knows En will like it. I didn't build this one orz I meant to make them a museum but I turned it into an arts center instead. En will enjoy that more, but he needs to look at things in a museum right now for his aspiration, so...

Their animations continue to be creepily in sync as they admire the artwork.

It looks for all the world like Kinshirou's just made a dirty joke about the painting they're looking at, but...

...this isn’t the sort of work that would make Kinshirou think naughty thoughts. It would take even En several seconds to make an innuendo out of this.

But then Kinshirou autonomously offers En a public massage... Maybe he's just in a mood.

They spend the rest of the date in that room, mostly on that couch, sitting and talking. So there’s not much to say about it. But it’s awfully cute.

Sadly. they have to go home early, because En has to work the next morning. He would rather just quit his job, but Kinshirou won't let him.

He doesn't want to let on to En, which is why he's walking behind him, but he’s ready for the date to end. He’s exhausted.

The collection grows.

(I know one is more forward on the bar than the other. It's not my fault. I don't understand the rationale behind slot placement in TS4.)

Guys! Guys! stop eating! Pay attention to Hou-chan! She's just a little kitten and she's lonely!

Kinshirou is writing my fanfiction for me so that I don't have to. Although I suppose that means he's writing about an alternate world where he and his boyfriends live in a fantasy setting with some dude named Arima, and this Arima guy gets romantically involved with them all.

(I don't actually intend to have a sequel to Veil named Kidosen. I just wanted him to write a sequel and that's the title that came to mind.)

Their house, the most boring-looking house in the world, but now with two boring stories! I promise, when they move onto a bigger lot, I’ll do better.

The triad decided to spend some of their hard-earned money on a home addition. Their bedrooms are on the second story now and they have a bathroom with an actual bath in it (this was half the purpose of the remodeling; it’s a tragedy for them not to have a bath). Atsushi's kitchen is slightly nicer as well, with a better fridge and some aesthetic improvements. But the household now has exactly §301 to its name. No interior screenshots because the only really new thing is the bathroom and it's not exciting enough to be worth a screenshot. The bedrooms are almost exactly the same and the upstairs landing is completely empty because they ran out of money. The most interesting things here are the sad, neglected plants...

Atsushi, savior of plants (as well as kittens). He still needs to work on his herbalism. He’ll get to that at some point.

This is the problem with the goddamn bar. You tell a Sim to start mixing drinks and suddenly it's all they want to do. As soon as he stops needing to level mixology for his career, that thing is getting sold.

Even Atsushi himself dreams of a day when he can rid himself of the bar. He is trapped.

At least Hou-chan is proud of him. Or maybe she just wants another one of those pet drinks.

Atsushi suffers from a moment of self-doubt. Is he doing the right thing, encouraging Hou-chan to drink? She's only a kitten...

But she looks so happy.

Yeah. He made the right choice.

...no story value, just cute.

She reached 250 Simstagram followers with this very stylish pose. Her charms are irresistible!

But her love is reserved for Kinatsuen, and for this toy. She can’t stand to be parted from it.

LMAO

Not only does Atsushi barely even know his name, but he's also already married?? Nah, dude, if you want to cheat don't drag Atsushi into it.

Atsushi: Eheheh... *nervously ignores phone*

Atsushi doesn't have work for a couple of days, so he has time to relax and chat with Kinshirou while Hou-chan communes with her ball and takes a nap.

Atsushi: (Okay, time to try that pickup line I read...) So, Kin-chan... what underwear are you wearing? Kinshirou: Atchan. Please, spare us both.

Meanwhile, that lady who makes weird art bothers En at work again, and he comes out on top again. Maybe she should give up. Luckily for her, he should get promoted today.

Atsushi is sick. :C He's trying to meet his death with brave stoicism and honestly judging from how he looks I don't blame him for thinking the worst.

But all he has to do is take some medicine! All better. Time to go find Kinshirou and celebrate his return to good health, if Kinshirou has forgiven him for that pickup line.

Why is he making that face in the middle of WooHoo... Dare I even ask... Kinshirou, I would have thought you'd be more experienced by now...

Then again, Atsushi is completely satisfied afterwards. So maybe he liked it.

I feel like I go on about how cute Atsushi's Sim is but honestly they're all adorable. Also, this screenshot made me realize they just WooHooed with a window wide open looking down onto their street.

Like... he doesn't even go to work in those clothes. I don't get it.

But as you can see he got promoted! He's now an Imaginative Imagist, whatever that means. The painter career doesn't have the most informative job titles.

He honestly doesn't even want to be in the official painter career. He can't wait to get given a super nice easel so he can work from home like Kinshirou, who, by the way, is making the most money by far out of the three of them right now. I suppose that's fitting.

...He and Atsushi wanted to have a date tomorrow, but now that he's been promoted, he has to work. :\ Atsushi's due for a promotion too, so I guess they’ll see in a couple of days what his new schedule is like.

On the other hand, En gets off work an hour earlier now, and Atsushi still doesn't work at all tomorrow, so maybe they can have their date anyway. They were just planning to hang out at home anyway, in true Enatsu fashion.

It was at this point that the My First Pet stuff pack was released, and, well, long story short, they have a hedgehog now. Guess what its name is?

Don't do it, Kinshirou. Don't fall for it again...

orz.

But he goes to find Atsushi afterwards, just so that Atsushi knows he still cherishes his friendship more than he does a hedgehog.

Hou-chan has something to say, loudly enough that Kinshirou is startled.

Kinshirou: What's wrong, Hou-chan? What is it? Hm? Hou-chan: *sad meowing ;-;*

She needs attention, it turns out. Kinshirou is happy to oblige her whenever she wants. Unfortunately, En is lost in his art and barely even noticed her meowing.

Atsushi has made his first foray into gourmet cooking! He's pleased with the results, but he wishes his boyfriends were here to enjoy it with him.

Better late than never. Look how happy he is! It's like in episode 11 when he's feeding the defense club his curry.

I didn't quite manage to get a screenshot of Lilith at the door, but why do vampires keep knocking on the front door after dark?? It's scary. Maybe the boys just smell delicious or something? At least there hasn't been a vampire break-in, I suppose.

Hou-chan is suspicious of Zundar...

...and WISELY SO what the fuck??? What did they do to Zundar? What does this mean???? I have literally no idea. It popped up just as I left the home lot, so if he did something to trigger it, I'll never know...

While En is at work (orz), Atsushi is taking a trip to the newly-opened Arima Community Garden. They need some people to help do some preliminary work like planting before anything can be harvested.

(This is my way of explaining away gameplay limitations in terms of storyline. I made this lot so that Atsushi didn't have to run around the world finding things to plant, and also so that I had a place to put my modded insect spawners. You need insects for herbalism, but I didn't want to fill their home lot with bugs. But you have to have your Sims plant things on community lots, even if you put the seeds there with a cheat.)

While Atsushi works on the garden, Kinshirou learns chess from a very red individual named Kengo Fujita who's a member of what is essentially a chess club. Maybe they'll become friends! Atsushi wants to hold a dinner party soon to show off his cooking, so the three of them need friends, or at least people who'll accept an invitation.

Atsushi is working hard, but it’s a big task.

Eventually, Kinshirou resigns himself to getting dirt stains on his clothes and steps in to help.

Gardening boyfriends! Kinshirou looks like he's ready to stab himself with that spade. The light has changed and the shadows are longer. They’ve been here for a while. En is home by now, hopefully having a nice nap.

It’s late by the time they’re done. For dinner, they have hamburgers from a plate some stranger left on the table. That’s not what I would do myself, in their place, but they both survive it.

A solid day’s work! But it’s past midnight now and they just want to go home. Don’t judge me for the terrain paint, I did my best.

En is a sweetheart and waited up for them. In the background, Hou-chan remains vigilant.

That painting right there is a masterpiece worth almost two thousand Simoleons. En has an amazing talent.

These are, hands down, the best screenshots in the post.

At work, Atsushi once again refused to report that the cash in the register was low, and it once again got taken out of everyone's tips. Whoever did it the first time must have learned that they could get away with it.

Wtf he's back

They know they're being hunted.

Kinshirou: Perhaps he'll go away if we pretend that we didn't hear the bell. If he has no hope of getting inside... we need to act as though we think we're alone. En: Sure. But how do we do that?

En: Oh, I get it... I like the way you think.

Vladislaus: *watching through the door* They're completely oblivious to my presence. Amazing.

En: We might as well make it convincing, right? Right? Kinshirou: Is this something that interests you, then? Being watched? En: What if it is? Vladislaus: I can't believe they haven't noticed me. Their front door even has windows.

En: What are you into, then? Boyfriends should talk about stuff like this, right? Kinshirou: Oh, well... there are a few things, I suppose... Vladislaus: This is absurd.

En: Mm. Actually, why don't you tell me later? Kinshirou: Wh— oh... Vladislaus: *peers through the door, trying to get a better view*

Vlad is a pervert. Wow. I never knew. No wonder he and demon AU Atsushi are friends.

It worked!

Kinshirou: Oh, thank goodness. Maybe we should invest in some garlic braids. En: We can talk about it later.

This is such a sweet screenshot. Kinshirou can already tell that En is planning some sort of mischief, but he's so relieved that the vampire left before Atsushi got back that he's just amused and indulgent.

Oh, no... with all the vampire scariness and relieved WooHoo, they forgot to refill Hou-chan's food bowl...

(Don’t worry, Kinshirou came downstairs and did it. I just forgot to take a screenshot.)

Atsushi is a line cook now! Look at his fancy clothes! He must wear contacts at work. (That's my excuse for why he doesn't have glasses in his work outfits, and I'm sticking to it...)

His work days haven't changed, although he starts and leaves work four hours earlier now, so he won't be getting home at 2am anymore. He and En won't have a day off in common for a few more days, assuming En doesn't get promoted again in the meantime and get another schedule change. But they'll get their date. They’re determined, and so am I. If all else fails, Atsushi can take a vacation day and En can call in fake sick, and they can hang out with Kinshirou all disapproving in the background.

With the day's salary and his promotion bonus, they're able to expand their house again!

A boring deck to go with their boring house.This is the real reason for making a second story. More than the bath, I wanted to have room for a deck so that they could have a hot tub. :D They now have a grand total of §10 so it's a good thing they have lots of leftover food.

When will they move into a new, less ugly house? When will En get to quit his job? Will En and Atsushi ever get to go on a date? Will there ever come a day when I don’t end one of these posts with a question about En and Atsushi? What in God’s name did that notification about Zundar mean? I don’t know the answer to any of these questions, but we can find out together next time.

[munchix-home-cooking]

RP Log: Munchix and Rayena continue their journey to Yanxia

(@rayenaray​ :D)

Munchix Bogbelly - After the pirate attack, the rest of the voyage was smooth sailing...though it wasn’t free of the usual woes of ocean travel. Sea sickness, sunburn, and what have you. So when the ship finally pulls into Onokoro, Munchix literally leaps off and lands on the dock, thankful to be on solid ground again. He turns to the ship and waves.

Rayena Corsano exits the ship more gracefully, adjusting her bag a little and looking around. "Alright, should we pick up any supplies here or go straight to looking for your tree?" she smiled.

Munchix Bogbelly shakes his head no. “We’re not close enough to where the tree is, supposedly. So unless you want to try out some of the local faire, I’d say let’s be on our way.” He pauses. “There IS good seafood ‘round here though.”

Rayena Corsano: "Are you hungry? We had sandwiches on the ship and I have a couple more for the trip home as well as a couple snacks for the trip. I am personally not hungry yet but, we can get some around supper." she smiled.

Munchix Bogbelly: “I’m good for now. If anything I hunger....for ADVENTURE!” A wide grin spreads on his face, though he’s quick to correct himself. “The safetysort of adventure though! Don’t want anymore haphazard surprises.”

Rayena Corsano: "I'll make sure to keep my healing on standby." she smiled. "Do you know what direction we should be heading?”

Munchix Bogbelly: “We head easterly, to Yanxia. Which is...uh.” Munchix spins around, glances directly into the sun, and then turns to the right. “That way. Times-a-wastin’, let’s get racin’!”

Munchix Bogbelly hefts ALL the bags onto his back and begins speedwalking. He looks a bit like a snail from a distance. A very large, and hobbling snail.

Rayena Corsano: "You want help with some of those bags?"

Munchix Bogbelly: “No, no! I’m fine. Can never be too prepared.” He says, as a pinwheel and two hammers fall from his cargo. Munchix continues eastward, none the wiser.

Rayena Corsano picks up the pinwheel and two hammers before following him at his back, keeping an ear and eye open to anymore of his cargo falling out.

Munchix Bogbelly - Everything that falls out is like, pretty clearly junk. Or at least questionable in the context of hiking/adventuring? Like, what use does Munchix have for a spray bottle? Anyway, this strange train of things dropping and being retrieved continues into Yanxia...

Rayena Corsano comes into Yanxia, huffing a little as she's carrying various things in her arms, some of it in her bag, which looked like it was stretching it's limits. "Let's pause a moment so, we can put all this back in your sacks." she said gently placing the pile on the floor.

Munchix Bogbelly had, as things were dropping from his pack, been increasing his pace with the lighter load. He turns to Rayena, surprised. “You mean to say, that’s mystuffs, and not yourstuffs?”

Rayena Corsano nodded and started pulling things of out her bag that belonged to him. "Yeah, it's all your stuff. Maybe we need to move at a slower pace so, it doesn't fall out again, or secure your sacks somehow..."

Munchix Bogbelly kneeled down and started examining the recovered objects with great interest. His backpack was relatively secure...given the sheer quantity of stuff he had shoved into it. It really seemed a problem more with overpacking, if anything. The fact that he had even managed to fit so much into so little a space was impressive, and a little frightening. Any uneven hitch in the road would knock the topmost object loose.

Rayena Corsano made a frown. "Granted, you're carrying an awful lot, maybe we should leave some of it behind. The stuff you really don't need anymore."

Munchix Bogbelly gasps, turning to Rayena with a devastated look. In one hand, he’s brandishing what looks to be a fork attached to a drill, and when he turns it on, the fork spins rapidly. “WHA. The stuffs I don’t need anymore? But what if we need the spaghetti-twister 1400, muchly? There’s no telling what challenges await us.”

Rayena Corsano looked towards the spaghetti twister and raised a brow. "I honestly don't see if eating spaghetti here but, if you really want to keep it all..." she said and rummaged through her over-sized leather bag before pulling out a brown sack, about the size of a potato sack. "Suppose you can put all that into this, and then if there is still some left, I can slip it into my leather bag."

Munchix Bogbelly: “Heftyhead thinking, Rayena.” Without even a pinch of care, he shoveled all the scattered objects into his arms and dumped it into the potato sack. After smashing it in a bit, the sack could /just barely/ close. A good job.

Munchix Bogbelly - There’s a soft honking sound, followed by a squish as this happens.

Rayena Corsano smiled softly, blinking a little at the sound coming from the sack before taking in a breath. "Well, that is sorted then, shall we trek on?"

Munchix Bogbelly: “Yes, yes! Onwards we go, my stalwart companion.” Potato bag in front, massive backpack behind, he (carefully) totters forward towards Namai.

Munchix Bogbelly can barely see where he’s going, which isn’t the best when there are ravenous tigers and other territorial critters about.

Rayena Corsano looks around.

Rayena Corsano: "Is this the right way?" she asks, looking around.

Munchix Bogbelly - Drawn in by the smell of dried food, wafting from Munchix’s bag, a tiger stalks the two. For now, it stays in the perimeter, waiting for the right time to strike. Meanwhile, Munchix ambles along. “Hm, it must be. Ground looks the same as the last time I came.”

(Munchix Bogbelly) this is like, every terrible escort mission in videogames )) (Munchix Bogbelly) an I'm the terrible escort xD )) (Rayena Corsano) oh no lol (Munchix Bogbelly) or escortee?? what are words ))

Rayena Corsano nodded. "Alright well, stay close me to. Those tigers can probably smell the food we're carrying though, mines pretty sealed up."

(Munchix Bogbelly) accidentally aggros a tiger and dies )) (Munchix Bogbelly) AHAHA )) (Munchix Bogbelly) this is the most perfect timing )) (Munchix Bogbelly) I'm surprised it didn't 1-shot munchix actually )) (Rayena Corsano) lol i was trying to click it and it took a minute

Munchix Bogbelly - Like a big, slow katamari ball of clutter, Munchix follows Rayena with the best of his ability. It’s precisely at this moment that the tiger strikes, slapping Munchix twice and sending the gobcat rolling down the hill.

Rayena Corsano takes out her chakrams, throwing them rather close to the tiger as an attempt to scare it away before checking on Munchix. "You alright?"

Munchix Bogbelly - A rock in the path has stopped him from snowballing, and miraculously, his belongings remain in his hands. The tiger, having swung at his backpack, did no real damage to Munchix. He looks dizzy though. “Whuhough ouughh hggh huh?”

Rayena Corsano: "I asked if you were alright, you look a little dizzy but, you don't appear to be bleeding."

Munchix Bogbelly: “Hhhh...ohh...” He wobbles back onto his feet, the world still spinning. There’s at least ten afterimages of Rayena, blurred and hazy, and he talks to the one on the far left. “Hearts beating, but that means I’m alive? Think I’m still apiece. Must’ve lost my footing there.”

Rayena Corsano: “You didn’t see the tiger swipe at your pack?" she tilted her head.

Munchix Bogbelly: “A TIGER?! WHERE?” He would jump in shock if he could, but he’s anchored down by his cargo. “N-No! I just felt myself go flying forward!”

Rayena Corsano: "It's gone now, managed to scare it off with my chakram. And yeah, it came out and swiped along your back, you got to be more careful."

Munchix Bogbelly: “Know full well that I’m grateful for your aid.” He sighs, with a shake of his head. Being chased by monsters was a regular occurrence for his outings, and he just didn’t know why...Munchix picked up his conspicuously large bags with a frown. “Right, careful. Let’s make haste to Namai.”

Rayena Corsano nods to you.

Munchix Bogbelly - Munchix’s roll had covered a great deal of ground, and so it wasn’t much further until the two made it to Namai. The first thing he does is rent a room for the two, and dump all his belongings there. With a sigh, he exits the building while rubbing his shoulders. “We’re here! The land of...tree. The land of /the/ tree.”

Rayena Corsano places a few things from her bag into the room they rented before looking around once they exit. "Alright, you want to try looking for the tree now? Or rest for a bit?"

Munchix Bogbelly: “Resting doesn’t sound half bad. Sounds /full good/ actually.” He eyes the display of permissions that a vendor has out. Without any delay, he grabs one of the fruits and leaves a handful of gil in its place. “Not dailyday that I find myself this far east.”

[stardust-lightning]

Starchild: Dream Maker Chapter 4 - A Little Rose

Our destination is what looks like a marketplace or something.

The buildings were old, brick apartment complexes with little trays under the window growing either flowers or weeds and their roofs reminds me of the terracotta roofs of those pretty Spanish Colonial homes. The streets were lined with dust and trash on the sides like broken bottles and loose leaves of paper. The buildings were connected by string banners decorated with colorful, intricate paper designs above our heads. On the ground below, the roads were lined with cramped vendors, most of which have closed up for the night. The vendors may be closed, but that didn’t disturb the restaurants and homes, which have their lights still on and still open for business. The center of the town had one of those elaborate stone fountains, painted with geometric shapes all around it. The ground itself was paved with colorful tiles, creating pretty patterns under the dust and sand that covered most of it. There were even people, some who not even human but actual aliens, who were out this late, I guess, going back home.

“What exactly is this town?”

“I don’t know…D-Does your sketchbook say anything?”

I open my sketchbook and catch several million pages of drawings and things from falling out and getting blown by the wind. I reach the front of the book to find anything relating to this town. After turning a few pages, Zero stops me and points to this drawn-out map that took up every square inch of the two pages we find. My sketchbook must be laced with magic, because a name begins to form on the page next to where Zero is pointing. The inked name take a moment to form before it reads:

PUEBLO TERRACOTTA

That would make sense, giving that all of the buildings are covered with red terracotta roofs.

“Pueblo Terracotta?”

“That’s what it says. It's a town.”

“It’s a little big for a town isn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

I feel a raindrop on my left shoulder. I look up and see the dark-blue sky becoming cloudy. Another drop lands in my hair and another lands on Zero’s nose, making him twitch his nose in a cute way. The rain begins to come down harder by the minute.

“Hold this.” I tell Zero, giving him my sketchbook and I pull my galaxy coat over my head. I motion Zero to come over to me. He makes his way over and he snuggles up against me to ensure room for the two of us under my coat. He clutches my sketchbook tightly as we rush through the town square into what looks like a bar of sorts that is still open. It’s an open place with only a half-circle hole in the wall covered by a shabby curtain. We reach inside the place as the rain continues to fall softly to the ground.

Zero and I find ourselves inside this red-brick, dimly-lit tavern of some sort. The place itself was about the size of a small apartment and the walls were decorated with these beautiful murals of jardíns with tiny tiles depicting the detail of roses, passion flowers, carnations and jasmine. The clay, tiled floor were a burgundy color and it is littered with paper, dust and even small pieces of glass. The sweet aroma of mimosa seems to flood the place with a faint scent. There were people who are drinking, talking, laughing and some dancing in the corner to the three-piece band, which consists of a violin, guitar, and a trumpet, playing something like mariachi. On the wooden tables, a single candle burns on the top of a fat, green-glass bottle. There are even little Christmas lights that are hung on the top of the ceiling. The tavern itself looks like one of those Spanish bars in Spain someplace. The entire atmosphere is kinda nice and comfortable, almost homely even.

“Where are we exactly?” I ask Zero as I take the coat down and put it back on.

He just shrugs, just as confused as I am.

“It’s a nice place though.”

“Y-Yeah…” He says as he gives me back my sketchbook to hold.

Zero looks more at ease now than he was before, even smiling a little, which makes me a little happier. He’s one of those shy and sweet boys you either read in novels or seen in romantic movies. To be honest, he’s just like me:  first time in this brand new world beyond one’s greatest and wildest imaginations and we’re excited, nervous but excited.

God, please watch over Zero. Of all the people here, he’s the last person I want to see hurt.

“Hola!” My thoughts were immediately interrupted by a cheery female voice. I turned my attention to the young woman standing in front of us. She has a sky-blue, shoulderless blouse and a black, ruffled skirt brushed against her ankles as she walked with strappy sandals on her feet. Her short dark hair is curled with a little red flower adornment.

“You two must be new here.”

“Yes.”

“Well, come in and sit down! There are plenty of tables to sit down for a break. There are even some upstairs if you prefer, just up that stairwell.” She tells us before going to another table. I motion to Zero to follow me and we take the stairwell to go upstairs. The stairs, which have these faded, yet beautiful geometric patterns in the steps, spirals into an upstairs room much like the one down below, except it is open-air with white paint over stucco pillars and walls, and an arcade of tall arches several meters tall all around the only person up here is an older gentleman playing a classical guitar sounding as sweet as the mimosa downstairs. The pillars are covered in vines and bushes, covered in ripe, red roses with little drops of rain on the petals. It’s basically a large balcony.

It’s peaceful up here with the rain coming down softly and the noises downstairs are muffled by the thick walls. I gesture to a wooden bench under the covering and we both sit down for a time, him on my right side, watching the rain fall down. My sketchbook lays on my lap. It is night out and the moon is shining fully in the sky surrounded by tiny, shiny stars that look like white dots against a black backdrop. I hear Zero scooting closer to me.

“It’s serene tonight.” I observe.

“Y-Yeah…”

We sit in silence for a few moments.

“Say, I’ve got a big question.”

“O-Okay. What is it?”

“What exactly is this place?”

“S-Sorry?”

“What is this realm?”

Zero took a moment before speaking.

“W-Well, this realm here is called the Dreamscape.”

“The Dreamscape?”

“Y-Yeah. The Dreamscape is basically a plane of existence where dreams, memories and thoughts are created and stored. Within the Dreamscape, the realm is divided by galaxies, like districts and governed by the Dreamlords who reign over their galaxies. Akron-Ren is the Dreamlord that presides over your galaxy.”

“So how is the Dreamscape itself monitored?”

“There is a plane of existence that presides over the Dreamscape called Plasmatio. P-Plasmatio is the center of the Dreamscape realm and is home to the Seven Elders. The Seven Elders are responsible for ensuring that the Dreamscape is f-functioning properly. For as long as I can remember, the Dreamscape has been safe and sound; however, the Dreamscape is not entirely invincible. There have been a few occasions where the Realm of Nightmares invades and wrecks havoc.”

“The Realm of Nightmares?”

“I-It’s basically a smaller version of Hell. In t-that place, t-the Nightmare Spirits roam around like d-demons, preying on unsuspecting p-people. We have to be c-careful, some have actually escaped into the Dreamscape and taken people hostage into the Realm of Nightmares by disguising as ordinary people like you or I. Their method of disguise is the reason the Dreamscape has been attacked because the only true to invade the Dreamscape is to attack it from within and with their well-developed disguises, it's easy to be fooled. The only way to t-tell them from real people is the dark aura around their person and they function like sociopaths. Who knows what horrible t-things t-they do? G-G-Getting scared thinking about it.” He shivers.

“Gotcha. So how exactly did I wind up at your place of all places? Why me?”

“That’s a good question that I don’t know the answer. The forces working here work in odd ways sometimes.”

I take a moment to digest all of this information. It's a lot to take in.

“Do I need to explain anything else?” Zero asks, anxiously, “If it helps any, think of Plasmatio as Heaven, the Dreamscape as the Protectorate and the Realm of Nightmares as Hell.” He explained as he moved his hands around to indicate levels. It makes a little more sense now. It's not everything, but I can imagine it's a little hard trying to explain this place.

“I’ve got one more thing.”

“Okay.”

“Am I the only mortal here?” I felt the need to ask this to know if this happens to everyone at some point in their lives.

“You actually are.”

Wait, what?

“You’re the only mortal being here because you're the only one so that I know who has actually made it to the deepest levels of your Subconscious. You weren't the first, but you won't be the last. There have only been a few mortals who have actually made it here.”

“For somebody who has never been outside the Reverie Cathedral, you know some deep stuff.”

“W-Well, I am the Dreamlord's apprentice. Gotta know this stuff if I’m going to be in charge one day.” He confessed sheepishly.

“Fair enough.”

I want to know more about this place and I have unanswered questions:  Why am I even here? How did I get here? Why the Reverie Cathedral of all places? Am I seriously the only mortal being here? Am I actually alive and in a dream, or am I dead and this is my journey to the afterlife? What am I here? What am I? Who am I? Why me? How? Why?

I decide to put these thoughts on the back-burner for now, seeing as I’ve asked for a lot of information. We sit in awkward silence some more as the rain continues to fall. Zero shifts a little and then he turns to his side away from me to get something.

“C-Can I give you something?” he asks shyly, his face still turned away.

“Sure.”

“O-Okay…C-Close your eyes.”

I do just that. I feel something in my hands, something like a plant stem...

I open my eyes to see what he gave me.

It’s a small rose.

“It’s really pretty.”

“I-I thought you’d look r-really p-pretty with one...c-can I, um, can I p-put it behind your ear?”

“Alright, though, we need to take these thorns off.”

“R-Right.”

I use my nail to try to scrape off the thorns. It takes a few minutes, but I manage to take off the sharp parts and numb it down. I give it to Zero, who snaps the stem in half to shorten it. I scoot closer to him, watching his hands try to put the rose behind my ear. I can feel his hands trembling as he places the flower, adjusts it and smooths my short hair.

“Do I look okay?” I ask, touching lightly on the flower to feel it in place.

“You look beautiful tonight.” Zero tells me with a shy smile on his face and a pink blush tinting his cheeks. He looks like he’s in one of those enraptured trances where the guy is so enamored with a pretty girl that he slips into a little fantasy of romance, completely oblivious to the world.

“Thank you.” I tell him with a smile. I watch as Zero snaps out of whatever love-infested fantasy he had and watch as his face grows a blush as dark as the rose behind my ear.

“I-I-I m-mean, y-you’re really really pretty in g-general, and t-the rose g-gives it a n-nice touch and-O-Oh gosh, this is really embarrassing, I want to crawl under a rock and die!” Zero starts rambling a hundred miles an hour that it takes me a minute to compute everything he rushes to say, and ends his rambling by placing his head in his hands.

His cuteness level just went from 1.0x to 1.5x. I laugh a little and wrap my arms around him. I feel him shrink away and close in on himself. I feel the movement and loosen the hug to look at him worryingly. Does he dislike hugs?

“S-Sorry…” Zero apologizes.

“D-Don’t apologize, you did nothing wrong. Something the matter?”

“N-No, it’s just… um… what were you just d-doing?”

“Um, a hug?”

“A hug?”

“Yeah. Have you never been hugged before?”

Zero shakes his head. Is the idea of affection that foreign to him that it makes him uncomfortable when he is drawn in for a simple hug? Is Akron-Ren that cold-hearted  that he refuses to give Zero even so much as a comforting gesture because he thinks that Zero is beneath him or something? This may sound like jumping to conclusions, but his behavior is starting to really concern me.

The rain continues to fall as though nothing is wrong. I awkwardly lean back with my hands on the bench, looking into the distance. We are quiet again, but then I feel some warmth near my right hand and then two fingers on top of my index and middle fingers. His shaking index finger intertwine with mine. I tighten the bond to let him know that I’m okay with it, which I am. Out of the corner of my eye, I see his mouth curve into a smile.

It’s a little step forward, but still a step forward.

[argocitycosplay]

I’ll say this for Great Lakes Comic Con, I never fail to have a good time there – it’s always been a good show all the way back to that first year that Maddie and I discovered it when we were looking for an alternative to Wizard World Cleveland. I skipped this one last year mostly because there were no guests that I was interested in and as such, it fell prey to the streamlining of my schedule. This time around however, not only were they bringing in the actors from the old Shazam series, but they were also bringing in one of my bucket list writers – Jim Starlin. His run on Batman is transformative, and the combination of him, Mike DeCarlo and Jim Aparo are my definitive creative team for that book.

Nevertheless, I woke up that morning with a distinct lack of enthusiasm. It was an early departure, primarily because Starlin had capped his signing line to 25 people per hour, due to a hand injury. I know from experience that means you better get over to that table and grab a line ticket as soon as the show opens or you may not get to meet the guest – I’ve been burned on Bruce Campbell this way and almost lost my opportunity to get George Perez to sign my stuff. On the other hand, I would’ve preferred to have shown up around Noon and wasn’t sure if I’d have enough to d all day. Still, I have faith in Great Lakes and so I drug myself out of bed and made the long, arduous journey to Deee-troit!

I was pleased to discover that the line wasn’t as long as it had been on my previous trip, and I managed to make it over to Jim’s table just after 10:30. I was able to secure a place in line between 2 o’clock and 3 o’clock – that was going to make things difficult with the costume, I’d probably have to get in and out of it a couple of times but at least I was going to get my books signed! Ticket secured, I made my way over to the Shazam booth where the guys were friendly and happy to see me. Bringing in superheroes from these old 70s shows reminds me a lot of Akron Comicon’s old philosophy and I’ve always enjoyed the selection that Great Lakes brings in. Across the sprawling, massive dealers room floor I found some fun blind boxes of Ghostbuster stuff as well as one dealer unloading a ton of Walking Dead swag for a buck apiece. I grabbed Lucille pens for Amy and Lydia, as well as a pack of Pokémon cards for Maddie. At the door, the freebie station was set up and people were handing out promotional items for the Harley Quinn movie – tiny hammer and bat keychains as well as posters and enamel pins. I’m not proud. I loaded up. Lydia would be delighted with the tiny Harley hammer that I brought her home. Right near the entrance I spied a vendor selling Spider-man Essentials volumes for two dollars apiece and picked up two of the huge trades and headed back to the car. It was time for a swag dump and a change of outfit.

Fortunately for me, Michigan was having a mild winter so it wasn’t too terrible as I lugged the Skeksis costume in, wearing only the sweatpants and shirt that went underneath it. I geared up and took a look at the clock – I’d have to get back into civvies in two hours, but that would allow me plenty of time to make a couple of rounds through the floor.

In the week between Zip Con and Great Lakes, I had completely reworked the left arm so that it now held a staff. The hand, staff, and arm were all one piece, repainted and sculpted out of Great Stuff and PVC but this would be my first time walking around with it. I’d also drilled a hole in the neck connector so that I could drop a nail through the joint, securing the head to keep it from falling off again. There in the front hall, I had people coming up to me for photos before I had even completely suited up. After my experience at Zip Con and with the addition of the staff I was feeling much better about this costume and was happy to see how well received it was at the show. One young man in his twenties came up to me and told me he recognized it – not from the new Netflix series, but because his parents used to play the movie for him all the time on VHS! Another person confided in me that The Dark Crystal was one of the few films that genuinely scared him as a kid and gave him nightmares. I smiled and told him I was glad to have contributed to his psychosis.

As I made my way to the back of the convention floor, the people over at Guy Gilchrist’s table spotted me. Gilchrist is a Henson alumni, and bills himself as Jim Henson’s cartoonist. His assistant jabbed at his arm, drawing his attention up and away from the piece he was working on. His eyes widened in amazement and he exhaled deeply in wonder. He invited me over to get photos and showed me a photo of him with Jim Henson “This was taken right around the time he was creating you!”. It meant a lot to hear how impressed he was with the costume, he insisted on signing a Dark Crystal print for me and told me to come pick it up once I was out of costume.

I checked the time, Tom DeFalco‘s panel was about to start and I figured I’d be able to make it through about half of it at least before I have to shuffle out of the suit. Some of the con staff were nice enough to open the door to the panel room for me and I slipped into the back corner. DeFalco was just beginning his talk and had been handing out notes. He grabbed the moderator and handed a stack f papers to him and then pointed to the back.

“…and let’s get one of these over to the… Creature… In the back.”

I enjoyed DeFalco’s talk about his approach to creating comics. This is another one of those things that great Lakes does really well, and I remember having a similar reaction when they brought Jim Shooter in for a talk much like this. I was disappointed when I had to slip out, but time is ticking away and I wanted to be in normal clothes to meet Jim Starlin.

I carried my bundle out to the car and decided it would be too much trouble to get the lizard feet off (they are the hardest part of the costume, and it always takes me forever to wriggle out of them. I usually don’t take them off until I get home actually) and decided to just put my jeans back on over top of them. It had warmed up enough that I left my leather jacket in the car and just wore my sweater, topping it off with a hat to cover my hair, mussed from the costume.

Starlin himself was warm and congenial.

“Batman was always my hero,” he told me. “ I mean back then, it was either superman Batman or wonder woman – and then maybe a little bit later the fly or the Jaguar, but it was really mostly Superman Batman and Wonder Woman”

He looked at my copy of Death in the Family as he was signing it.

“It was a shame, after we killed off Robin, somebody in merchandising realized it was a problem, and all of a sudden I was kind of persona non grata at DC. Work just dried up. Fortunately, there were some openings over at Marvel and I ended up working on a little thing call the Infinity Gauntlet – so I can’t complain too much!”

Before I got back into the costume, where I would stay for the remainder of the show, I managed to swing through and do a bit more shopping. No quarter bins, but plenty of 50 Cent bins and I managed to score some Punisher and Green Hornet. I was shocked when I discovered a bunch of Hulk and Star Trek issues in one those 50 Cent bins, all signed by writer Peter David. David is one of my favorite writers and I actually go out of my way to meet him at Hall of Fame Comicon a couple of years ago. I can’t for the life of me understand why these are in the discount boxes, but I wasn’t complaining. I grabbed as many as I could find and came home with a stack of new stuff to read.

I spent the last two hours of the show back in the Skeksis outfit. I hadn’t realized how much muscle it would take to carry around the staff. It’s not that it was heavy, just that used muscles in my forearm that I’m not used to flexing all the time! About an hour before the costume contest, I saw a familiar costume style walk in, a cosplayer I’d seen around Michigan a few times – he’d spent most of the day in a diffrent costume, but now was in his new hydra suit which managed to place during the costume contest. Backstage and waiting for the contest to proceed, I had fun fooling around with some of the other contestants – hypnotizing one of them with my staff and joking with some of the others. This time with the other cosplayers is consistently my favorite part about doing costume contests – it’s not about whether you win or lose, it’s about who you get to know!

As the show drew to a close, I slunk out quickly and quietly- exhausted and ready to hit the nearest McDonald’s for some hydration on the way home. Still, despite my fatigue, I had fun and can’t wait to come back.

Great Lakes Comic Con 2020 I’ll say this for Great Lakes Comic Con, I never fail to have a good time there – it’s always been a good show all the way back to…