#like if i didnt have the payments it would be a different situation. i would have to work

[trynafindbarbiee]

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH NOW

I didn't thought I would do it, because it's only gonna waste my time and energy but y'all are getting out of your boundaries now.

None of this matters to me at all. I'm not obligated to prove myself; it's ultimately futile in my opinion. Although I've proven myself two or maybe three times already, I'm living my life peacefully, so why should these miserable people matter to me? I won't even remember after a while nor your pathetic opinions about me 💀!!

No matter what I say, there will always be doubters, and there will always be those who believe. It's not my job to convince people of my experiences or beliefs, and I don't have to prove myself to anyone. I'm living my life peacefully, and I don't need external validation from anyone. I'm grateful for my experiences, and I don't need anyone else's approval to know they're real.

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

Why are you charging money when u have manifested trillions of dollars in the void :

I could manifest endless money into the void, but that's not the case. Even after entering the void, we still have jobs, we eat, we sleep, we live normal lives like ordinary people. There's a renowned blogger on Tumblr (I won't name her) who has also entered the void yet continues to work. Helping people through my abilities is my choice and I like it and so I seek compensation for it.

Even after entering the void and manifesting various things, you will still desire activities that bring you joy. You will starting to want to live a normal life. Eventually, you will become accustomed to manifesting everything instantly from the void, and it will cease to excite you.

If I really wanted to scam, I could have charged $500 or so, but I didnt, and still being called out as a "scammer"? $12 ain't gonna make me rich.

While there have been scammers within the community, it does not follow that every person offering a paid (and reasonably priced) service is a scammer.

You can't manifest for others :

How dumb of you all to say this.

"everything is possible"

Proceeds with "you can't manifest for others, stop lying"

Ultimately, it boils down to one's assumptions. If you believe it's a scam and that it won't work for you, then that will likely be the outcome. Is that not so? Now, do I gotta explain all the fundamentals to you all?

IT IS POSSIBLE TO MANIFEST FOR OTHERS (speaking from my own experience), and if you think otherwise, you simply have a limited mindset.

"It will only happen in your reality, not theirs." Not everyone believes in the existence of infinite realities, and it's okay to have different beliefs. However, if you do believe they exist, then this is what the truth would be, FOR YOU.

You are a male/boy, because your payment account is having a name of a boy :

I'm astounded by the sheer ignorance and absurdity in some individuals questioning someone's gender based on the name on the name of the payment account.

Are you all seriously assuming I'm male just because the account name is masculine? Common sense seems to be lacking here. I'm using my cousin's account. Is there a problem with that? I am merely utilizing my cousin's account. Please refrain from making such baseless assumptions.

She shows you her writings as proof and the photo she says as proof is her necklace and phone photo :

If you choose not to believe them, then so be it. What do you want me to do? To me, they are sufficient as "proof." If they are not for you, then fine, I won't put myself in a situation where my privacy would be breached just for the sake of "PROVING" to you that I really entered the void.

First, you all desperately demand proof, but when someone provides it, you claim it's fake. Nevermind, be stuck in this cycle:)

Why on earth do people persist with these baseless assumptions and relentless demands for validation? It's utterly draining and disheartening. If my evidence isn't enough, there's absolutely nothing I can do. What else do they expect? It's not my responsibility to prove my authenticity to anyone.

Read this ask

Reading that you should have realised that nothing can ever be enough for you all as proof.

And if you don't believe in those then why are you even in this community? What is making you believe those writings of others saying, you can have your dream life in a day, are true?

"trynafindbarbiee you don't have to deal with these manifest things, you can enter the void instantly anyway, why don't you live your life instead of wasting your time here?". - shouldn't it apply to all bloggers now? 💀

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

Anyone who's charging for their services isn't a scammer always. Accusations of such reflect a limited mindset. It is indeed possible to manifest for others, and some individuals in this community have successfully done so.

The community has become more cautious about distinguishing fraudulent offers from authentic ones. I find it absolutely hilarious that you all label such offers as a scam, as if $12 could somehow make a person rich overnight. It's honestly quite amusing!

Now, one bad comment about me = BLOCKED !! I don't have time to waste on limited minded peoples, who not knowing a thing about me, proceeds to call me a scammer.

So, now, stop with your pointless assumption about me. And do better + get a life <3

And THANKYOU to everyone who are still with me and refusing to believe the nonsense going about me on here. I may not reply to your postive asks but know that I love you all !! 🤝🏻💞

[ikebo-simp]

ohhh my goddd i saw ur venti song post and i literally think abt this detail in an isekai situation like at least once a week and i dont even simp for him. just him knowing every song made and to be created in all teyvat, but then y/n shows up and because there are all these earth songs that exist in their memories (and future if they decide to compose anything) now that their IN teyvat that music just gets added to the catalogue, so venti would have to realize somethings different, theres someone here that didnt exist before with a library of songs in their brain.

but i always think abt a scenario in which y/n is super homesick and realizes the immense loss of being thrown into a different world and the grief hits over never being able to experience the mundane things in their life again, and i always think of the catalyst for this spiral being something as simple as them humming a song only to realize they forgot the melody because its been so long.

since that song existed in someones memory at some point in teyvat, venti knows it, and although he cant bring your old life back, he could at least try to comfort you by playing the song for you. i am very normal about this concept.

So true Anon

Ask Venti for any songs in your memory and he's sure to play it, the only payment he demands is an apple

[overwatch]

The way people treat other people with disabilities... I knew it was bad but I hoped people would be kind to me and my situation. So many people have been kind and understanding over what happened to me.

But, when I do have to present my disability certification (= or superior to 60% disability) they look me up and down... Are you trying to see my cancer through me, maybe? And then they ask for my ID like to make sure I'm not lying. I felt like a nuisance asking for a discount that people with disabilities are entitled to, and the bank person literally told me "it's not my fault you have cancer" when I was fumbling, and I'll admit a bit emotional, over them not helping me with my place credit as they have to under the law.

Anyway I'm writing this out of frustration because the bank only cared to help me when I requested to write a formal complaint (very bad for businesses in Portugal plus I had written it to be framed around rights violation which is well bad for the bank) and the manager herself deeply apologized for her coworker and that she would fix this in two weeks. For reference My original request was made 4 months ago.

And I am anticipating it will be the same this time with a different company who gave me the discount after the ticket-lady analysed me thoroughly like she was trying to find any physical disabilities. I thought i forgot my ID for a second and she seemed very pleased to tell me she could not give me a discount without my ID (which thankfully was in my bag after all). She reluctantly gave me the discount but then she charged me 3 times? I don't even know, from a security point of view, how one does that. I only authorized one payment with my card.

She also didnt believe my friend who has breast cancer and forgot her certificate to get the discount. So no discount for my friend. I typed her an email to send to them and she got her money back but still. Does the ticket-lady get a commission for ruining the day for people with disabilities? This just seems so unnecessary cruel...?

Just a little vent.

[pommunist]

I really appreciate coming to your blog, to be honest for me its like a healing balm after even just skimming and scrolling others feelings on all of this. I feel like sometimes people are so unreasonable and it hurts to see people "taking sides" at all with this situation.

All Ive ever cared about with this issue is the facts. The fact that a lot of workers got screwed over and instead of buckling down and talking to people QStudios would rather it all just stop happening, make changes and not acknowledge what they did. Honestly they dont have to say anything that even takes blame for it! All anyone was asking for at first was a goddamn DM man. Like they didnt even care if they got fired they just wanted a message SAYING that. But somehow they "cant talk about it" otherwise they would be "complicate" as if they were expecting people to sue them before anyone was even suggesting that?

Everyone is acting like legality is so important as if the people who first stepped up about all of this were instigating lawsuits when thats only happening NOW because they refused to say anything! Its like...why did they have to be "careful with what they say for legal reasons" when no one was threating to sue them. Almost as if they KNEW what they were doing was considered illegal and DID have grounds for legal recourse. If not then why not make ANY statement? Why be so scared to say anything at the beginning? It just dosnt make any sense. I mean even the Union was like "we dont wanna sue you just talk to your workers" at first!

It just feels a bit like a lot of this is being blown out of proportion and considering in his last stream Q ONLY talked about himself getting doxed (not saying that Q is "over reacting" from getting doxed by the way, of course, but rather the community seems to want to use this as a reason to exempt him from any wrong doing), the Brazilians (which by the way the fact that it took ALL OF THIS SHIT for him to BARLY EVEN mention the xenophobia is just….wild ill say), and that hes not gonna be the CEO anymore and like….okay cool dude not what anyone wanted a stream from you about but like pop off I guess. It just feels like every stream hes done about this situation never clears up anything and gives vague promises that dont seem to be held or at the very least is giving us basically no info and just promises.

Amen to all of that anon ! Like everyone (including myself i’ll admit) is saying how it’s difficult to speak about these things because it could lead to legal consequences but also… You want to avoid a lawsuit ? You truly have a desire to make things right ? Then go talk to your workers. Give them the answers they’ve been waiting for. Listen to their experience, listen to their demands, listen to what they want from you. Release a statement with full excuses on the behalf of the whole company to them, thank them for what they did. Pay them the fair compensation you owe them for the months of labour they did for your project. Demand that your community and everyone else leave them be in peace, and condemn everyone who doesn’t.

Like sure, that may need you to admit that you did wrong which could be used against you in court but lets be for real. Lawsuits are stressful, can cost money and are time consuming, so who, especially young people without a lot of money and ressources to their disposal, is going to want to go through that whole legal process after getting everything they wanted and deserved from you ?

This isn’t talking about the Q vs the higher ups who refused to pay the admins and mistreated them btw thats a whole different legal affairs but still then, wouldn’t ex admins have be able to provide you screenshots of payments and conversations that you could then use in your favour in court ?

Also my blog where all I talk about is workers exploitation is like a healing balm to you anon ? You sure you’re okay ? /j ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

[answersfromzestual]

Expectations

(Writers Opinion Piece- Mine)

I want to just remind people here that at the end of the day, you choose your surgeon, not your current budget, not your insurance company, not your government. Whether the surgeron(s) you want are covered or not. You choose who does what with your body. If you had/have bad results because the doctor was not good or was new(er) at the procedure, you are risking yourself potentially. Go with your gut, and wait for a better surgeon to come along. Just because it's faster/sooner doesn't mean it's going to make you necessarily any happier.

In my personal experience, waiting is a big part of the transitional experience. It took 6 years to finish my entire phalloplasty procedures (the minimum wait between surgeries is 6 to 8 months). From the building to the implants, it took 6 long years. The biggest gap of time was from phalloplasty construction to my urethral lengthening. I was super depressed because things were taking longer than I wanted.

Waiting sucks, but do your homework and find someone who will do and has previously done successful surgeries. I understand expenses, I understand these procedures are expensive, I understand that you've been waiting __ many years to feel complete.

If a better doctor is available, ask to talk to them. They may have payment plans, or they may make things easier for you. Make a gofund me. You don't need to go with whoever your insurance will pay for, or the cheapest surgeron because you dont have any coverage at all. Wait for the right doctor, don't rush into a bad situation and assume the same outcome as more skilled surgeon.

I will tell you, your happiness does not rest purely with just having the body you want. Trust me, I had many bouts of depression after even being completed for years.

In all cases, remember to keep your expectations realistic of how you may look. I will remind you all penises look different, all bodies are different. Don't expect to be looking like someone from porn. Like a model is picked for their looks, a porn star is also picked for the look of their genitals.

So if you've got some time to wait, work on making yourself feel better and more complete, more confident with yourself, before surgery. I put all my happiness into all the procedures, thinking the real problem was my body dysphoria. It wasn't. I had many things hidden away, and only a couple of that many had remotely anything to do with my body. It can be a real painful experience waiting so many years, putting all your eggs in that basket, and then you finish. You expect to feel complete and satisfied with life, and when your life doesn't change like you thought it would, or it didn't make you feel that happiness you planned on it giving you. All of this, it still does improve your mood and life, but trauma and bad things can still be hurting you, and you don't even know it.

I am not suggesting any type of therapy necessarily, just, don't expect being finished to your desired body is going to be a fix-it-all solution.

This was all my personal opinion and experiences being expressed here. None of this information applies to every single person, but patience, self care, and realistic expectations are important.

EDIT: I wanted to also add it does take some time to get used to your new body, and get comfortable and actually love it. You always find something not to like at first. And it's all because of expectations we actually didnt really set ourselves... All we see in media is a certain look and I didn't fit it. I didn't think I was normal... Everyone in the world thinks that, and gets insecure about their body. Today I love my phallis, I love my chest. Yeah, I don't look like a porn star, I look like me, a regular real life person, not a hand picked actor.

Stay golden everyone ✌️💙💜

[p-t-f-s]

forgot it was possible to see sideblog notifs and im. surprised they have followers but then again so does this blog lmaooooooo. i should make vents again. i miss that. no time like the present.

fuck i need to work on my project thats past due and due tonight and if not turned in would drop me to a C but god. i hate this class and dont wanna but im already on my second retake and this time it was genuinely so much fuckin easier. even if the exact same professor bc shes the only one teaching this class did even worse with scheduling and assignment access this semester. and i genuinely have not been this suicidal since fuckin high and middle school. two different points in each. most bc of my middle school insomnia and All That That happened but my high school wasnt much worse considering i was working part time to full time my senior year of high school while also getting my associate's as my mom was kicking me out/to live with my dad in the near the end of the school year bc of me turning 18 and her being "free" of her legal duties to me [she was not bc by our law that SHE AS A FUCKING FEDERAL JUDGE KNEW was till the child of dicerce is 18 and GRADUATED HS DIPLOMA] she was finally free to move to the opposite side of the country/the political problems and backlash of challenging the baked in theosociological power structure of our city. my birthday was march and graduation was june. literal months and she couldnt wait that fuckin long. and so for the months leading up to my birthday and after i had been living out of my car which both my dad bought for me as an agreement between him and my mom as the end of his child support payments to her and so i wouldnt take the public bus after my mom forgot we had to lie to him that i was being driven to school so he would let me get my college degree bc i had to be at community college at 16 in a Large Dangerous City on the Worst Side Of Town. that shit sucked. i was Stressed and goddamn does it suck being an adult living under your own power and money, no matter how feeble, to know that even when situations are technically objectively better you can still be hella fuckin depressed. and fucking obsessive intrusive thoughts do NOT help but fuck do i wish i had the time to call for help to be able to see a fucking doctor for the first time in my life. like an actual full general doctor and getting an actual checkup and not just a walgreens sick note/athletic packet check. only having ever gone after socially pressuring ur dad by asking his gf for advice while hes halfway done in the bathroom so the conversations still going as he exits so SHE can hound on him instead of being brushed off as an anxious teenage girl bc "whats a doctor going to do?" when asked to go to the er. whos insurance ur on bc you asked him months ago while working on moving in and you couldnt go alone without ur guardian but youd been unable to hear from one ear for months after multiple home/self remedy attempts to clear wax blockage assumption. or my mother coming to visit curious as to why i still have acne after turning 18 bc you shouldnt have acne past 18 and making a dermatologist appointment she paid for to help but having previously told me that she didnt believe in getting sick bc she hadnt gotten sick for years.

and now i have about an hour left to work on a partial coding project bc now IT management is apparently the job of accounting now. i get rationally why theyre doing it and why its important but its fucking stupid and i hate it and again its fucking stupid. anyways. heres to hoping that it goes alright ig but fucking kill me and i hate everything but i swear to fuck if i dont get my bachelors next year im going to lose my shit

[bakuraryxu]

oh right so ive been pondering on why my honours year so far seems relatively stress free? like everything is chugging along nicely and i wonder if its because im not working this year i have a couple scholarships and i get student payments. ALL my time is devoted to my coursework and thesis? i keep hearing horror stories about students having meltdowns and how stressful honours is etc etc. im like omg? so far i feel fine??? like am i doing this wrong or am i genuinely ok?

[toutallyahoe]

I must admit that I also enjoy reading male reader and imagine myself as a man with a 20cm cock,¿you imagine it?

hit the abused meaty walls of the guard/soldier who kindly escorted you to the bathroom and immediately got on his knees to beg you to split him in 2 because he is so needy and he has been such a good boy,telling you his achievements of the day to receive a reward

oh let a player sneak into your bed looking for comfort to forget all the hell they are living, a drug to forget even his name,please let him drophis pants and choke on your dick until he cries,he needs to be distracted

¿What about a vip? He will easily hire your services so that you tie and spank him to your liking,just please,hang him harder until he barely breathes

Salesman gets very irritated when you beat him so many times in a row at his own game, but he can't feel that way when you take his body as payment

frontman enjoys cockwarming,feeling full and warm from your piece of meat while watching the players participate in the games is comforting for stress

Male!Reade/you enjoy overstimulating the brains of every horny little bastard until he's stupid and they can't articulate a word

"You look so cute~...but I don't like that you can still think"

oh, i do sometimes like to imagine in different gender identities, im genderfluid after all (im taking all the gender yall) but all these scenarios you wrote are so fucking good!

the guard just immediately dropping to his knees, telling you his accomplishment of the day so you would be proud and fuck him good? he had always been waiting for the time of the end of the games and lights out so you and him could rendezvous at the bathrooms and reward him of such a good boy he was

and aww, poor player. terrified for his life in the games and just want to find some sort of comfort, and you could provide that right? making sure to stuff him good as he desperately tries to keep his moans on a down low since everyone is sleeping. just let him forget about how fucked up his situation was for a moment please

god, a vip having to hire you to fuck him? he could easily ask anyone else since he does have power with his money, but he wants you to fuck as he watches the entertainment provided by the games. he cant even focus when you were filling him to the brink as he gasp and moans out for you to go harder

dont forget the salesman man (sung yoo), aw, baby got so cocky of always winning that he didnt expect to lose ddakji so many times in a row! he is frustrated and hated you for a bit until you fucked him to a wall because oh god, you were splitting him! making sure to remind him you were only fucking him as his payment since you could care less about the money

and when its front man, it will always leads to him cockwarming you. i love it. just him enjoying of you filling him with your cock as he watches and monitors the games. the soft sounds of a woman singing fly me to the moon in the background as the front man would sometimes move and push your cock deeper inside him, making him sigh in content

just, yes to all of this. fucking cute and dumb horny bastards. filling them up and making sure they know how much if a cockslut they are to you 😩😩😩

[sexworktips]

This really bothered me tbh.

Don't allow anyone to tell you that something definitely doesn't exist , if someone seems so sure something doesn't exist it means you've had different life experiences and ideas , and that's okay !

If you can think about something , it exists somewhere !

I'm not going to tell you its always easy to pull off or start up

It does happen and your not wrong for wanting to look for this specific dynamic

Be prepared to protect yourself from many many scammers

I swear I had to of been scammed (without money but fell for the idea of sending content before payment) at least 5 times before stumbling across a real sugar daddy!

And guess what !?

He didnt expect any form of content before any payment , he'd done it before and knew how to work the situation! He payed amazingly and he was respectful!

The downside was mostly how needy he was like Jesus he wanted me up all night to talk on the phone while he was at work and up most of the day to text while he wasn't at work untill his wife got home . I had about 8 hours of freedom and that's not alot at all .

So I know what your thinking -

So he wanted you to do something super weird then right ? He must have been absolutely appalling or something or he was trying to sex traffic me or something crazy right ? And I know for sure your thinking "why did you stop being his sugar baby ?"

Nope !

He wanted an online girlfriend essentially.

He wanted me to edge with him for as long as possible , that was hard at times bc of my work online , I'd get punishments and rewards for edging on stream

He wasn't from the same country as me so our timezones ended up being an issue at some points but nothing we couldn't work out .

The man was very respectful and polite , he wanted me to talk to him throughout his entire work day he'd wear an ear piece and we'd talk on the phone for his 8 hour shift (I know it's alot) and sometimes over an hour would pass and nothing would be said , but that was okay ! When his wife was out 2 times a week was when he wanted to have phone sex , and we'd edge together , he'd recieve content all throughout the week but would only pleasure himself at home when his wife was gone according to her twice weekly schedule.

I think the strangest thing I was asked to do was to moan to him while walking through a Walmart (I was way too shy that was a punishment)

All and all it worked out great!

Then the wife found out .

She called me , she couldn't speak English as well as him , so I hardly know what she said , but she was very unhappy ! After that call I was blocked on everything except PayPal, he reached out to me again to ask if we could "pick up where we left off" but honestly he was one needy son of a bitch lol

[gb-patch]

Ask Answers: January 17th, 2021 (Part 1)

More ask answers! It’s gonna be a lot today, so we’re splitting it into two.

i love Cliff and Kyra's relationship so much ?? even though they had issues they managed to work things out and remain friends through the years! it's so refreshing over the narrative of people resenting each other after they break up.. im kind of curious tho , do they see each other strictly platonic now or is there still something lingering?

Aw, I’m glad to hear you like their relationship. Their feelings are very platonic now. Kyra views him as an ex and co-parent and then a friend as time goes on. Cliff does struggle not to think of her as still his family, even though he’s not romantically attracted anymore. But he’s knows it might be crossing a line to be that attached to a woman who divorced him and so he tries to let her just live her own life.

Can i ask just how tall Cove exactly is in Step 3? And will he be even TALLER in Step 4? My short heart cannot handle this. (Also this game is absolutely flawless and I haven't been able to stop thinking abt it since I played. Planning on getting the dlcs soon, y'all did SO WELL!!!!!!!!!) 

Haha, thank you very much.

Step 1: 4'1 feet Step 2: 5'4 feet Step 3: 6'0 feet Step 4: 6'4 feet 

Hey! So, I know Steam is having its fall sale/boxing day sale or something so i was wondering if you guys were gonna participate in that?? I was thinking of buying XOXO Droplets (the extended version) but i didnt want to do anything before there was a potential sale. May seem like an odd question, but I was genuinely curious. I can't wait to play the full game when i get it tho :D

I’m afraid we have some things we wanna fix in XOXO Droplets before really promoting it/pushing it with sales, so for now it won’t be participating in Steam sales. Hopefully we can update it soon.

Hello I'm still trying to get the CG for Step 2-3 and didn't see or get it when I told Cove of the deal in the Dinner moment like your guide says. I got the achievement but no CG. Is there another choice I'm suppsed to make after telling him?

Make sure you go back to the house with Cove after he leaves and don’t stay in your living room.

* don't be suspicious* *don't be suspicious*  ...Hi, there's another way to pay for the Our Life +18 dlc besides Patreon? Patreon have very limited payment options and I've been struggling with the platform. Anyways, thanks for the amazing game I hope I could support any way ^u^

Haha, right now there isn’t anything specific, but once it’s finished in a few months we’ll look into other hosting sites.

do you think we can get another our life dlc plzzz i would pay so much for it <3 i want to see their life together when they have kids or pets or just live with the two of them and i really want them to adopt kids too since jamie is adopted :)

I’m afraid we likely won’t. As much as we love OL: B&A, we’ve gotta start putting our whole effort into new projects soon. Maybe someday we could come back and do special new content, but it’d be quite awhile after all the planned DLCs have released.

How do you delete a save file? 

On PC or Mac you hover over a slot and hit the delete key, or you can go into the saved data folder and delete the files directly. On Android I’m afraid I don’t know. You can save over them with something else, though.

this is like. totally embarrassing and silly to ask but im dying here; i love cove so much i wanna climb that boy like a tree. so basically what im asking here is like. will the nsfw dlc have explicit stuff or is it more like an implied kinda situation? cuz i want some full on nsfw shit im so thirsty for cove and only this can satisfy me

It’s truly 18+ and explicit with nude art and straightforward descriptions of sexual acts. That’s why we can’t release it as part of the main game, haha. I’m glad you’re into Cove~

Hello! I've really been enjoying Our Life and am noticing some animation changes with the update! I just had a question though. In Step 2 we meet Jeremy but I was wondering if he was only meant to appear in Step 2 as a typical mean kid or is there more we don't know? 

Jeremy is a horrible pill in Our Life, but he is also a beloved romance option as a teenager in our other game XOXO Droplets. His personality is quite different once he grows up more. I imagine Cove and the MC would be pretty surprised.

Hi! i absolutely adore our life so far and I can't wait to continue supporting the game with the upcoming dlc drops! i was just wondering if y'all were planning on uploading any art for steam icons/the steam point shop in general<3 

Thank you! And we might. But we’re first trying to focus on making a new game update since there are still some improvements we have in mind.

I hope this question doesn’t come off weird but would Cove be the type of guy to memorize your period? I imagine he’d be the kind of best friend/boyfriend who would keep track of your cycle to support you during it or something like that 

We’d be shy about it at first and avoid mentioning what he was doing, but he would try to keep track of it based on any insight the MC gave him. The longer you’re with him, the more it could be just a normal thing the two openly talked about.

Hi there, how often do you do auditions? I am a voice actor and would love to be part of a project ?

We usually have auditions two to three times a year. Our next planned casting call will be for side character in Our Life Step 4.

Are the 5 moments included in the Derek and Baxter DLCs different from the normal Step 2 and 3 DLC? And will they focus exclusively on Derek and Baxter respectively? I was a little confused when I read the DLC FAQ. Thanks! 

Mostly they’ll be completely new Moments that star Derek or Baxter. Though, for example, Derek’s DLC will allow you to take him to the Soiree. If you go with Derek that will remove your ability to go with Cove in the Cove Step 2 DLC.

Sorry if you've already said this, but how will your character transfer over to the patreon exclusive NSFW DLC?  Can it access your game memory or will you select traits your character showed and choices you made from a list? 

It’s a standalone event that happens for MCs who are in a relationship with Cove and have been dating him for a while. Other details about the MC/their dynamic with Cove will just be picked in the event itself. It won’t try to take data from a specific save in the actual game.

I love your games, but currently only have an Android. When will you put your other games on android? 

I don’t know. They might not able to be formatted for Android very well, unfortunately. We’ll see how much time we’ve got later this year to try figuring it out.

Thank you so much for all the questions :D

[loveijun]

Can we hear your thoughts on KnT Soulmate? English chapter 7 just got released yesterday.

omg hii 🧞‍♀️ ill probably talk a lot more about it later when i read the new chapter but these are some of my thoughts 💗 1 im so glad kurumi gets her own story because after the whole situation with her and sawako in high school, they had such a weird but delicate balance of friendship and i became curious abt what would happen with kurumi later on but the story moves past it and we have to forget about her sadly... 2 i just think the soulmate chapters are amazing and beautiful and I HAVE TO MENTION that it basically confirmed for me that ms karuho shiina did in fact do the questioning of sexuality type of undertone throughout the manga on purpose.. it didnt start off with the typical kurumi and eiji falling in love but with kurumi and sawako being together + kurumi in this umm head space where she's thinking of sawako from so many different perspectives (romantically 💖‼️, as a rival and a peer to learn from, a monumental figure in her life since sawako basically helped her grow as a person and guided her unknowingly to a much healthier mindset, and a close friend she actually felt comfortable with for the first time since elementary school) and coming to the conclusion they are soulmates regardless of anything else. it's also obviously kurumi's personal redemption story but not as some evil villain becoming good... she was never really evil but just a very misguided teenager who at the time made decisions with consequences. this is her chance to... almost like what happened to ayane when she finally let herself go (not a 1-time complete healing but the beginning of it: she took a step out her shell and stopped devaluing herself for deserving love) and redeemed herself in her own mind - is what im waiting for in this series for kurumi. she's confident and loves herself somewhat but is constantly quesitoning her motives, thinking she didnt deserve to be forgiven, and is full of doubt so she clashes constantly in her mind and ends up numbing her sense of urgency, gentleness, and care when dealing with herself. i really want her to cherish herself as fast as possible but she cant just overcome it on her own (omg that theme keeps coming back - you can't grow [to love yourself] in solitude) and it's lacking for her to just suddenly become better when a guy shows up and at the same time rush a discovery process like that so i really love the bit with sawako in the beginning. alsoo i cannot forget im so happy and proud that sawako matured from her intial earnest but unsettling awkwardness to a hmm not mellowed but a more transparent ease with communication and presenting herself while still retaining her honest character. i love love loveee the fact that shes also a lot more secure with kazehaya and when i saw them joking around with each other i had to pause for a moment bc in the beginning shes such a precious and selfless person and that's great and all but she didn't believe in herself at all.. like when the high school class pulled the dating prank on her the way she handled it is hard to watch and very telling of how she sees herself.. she underestimates gestures of love towards her as mere kindness and at the same time overestimates the effort she needs to put in to repay it while also setting a thick boundary and voluntarily putting herself on a level lower than others. but the way that she's now able to understand favors that ought to be repaid, the difference between that and a gift - defined a thing given willingly to someone without payment, helping others without hurting yourslef, being a healthy amount of selfish and etc ❤️ i cant get enough. she even set up a blind date for kurumi can you imagine how far we've come??? now for when eiji appears i was just observing in the beginnig but i love his personality so much it feels like he was gonna be a classic romance mc just rude and insufferable or a stuffy/overbearing kind of nice but his moments of vulnerability and unpredicatability are GENIUS bc kurumi has never met someone like this before (she gets so flustered and is so cute when shes around him sometimes

i feel like crying aww). oimg and i cant forget how interesting this is just becasue its a college setting and not highschool so its more (i hate reusing words 💢 but mature is the word and theres more oppurtunity for things and various situations i think. 'real' dates and staying over at each other's place... and i want to see them in those^ types of situations so badly but i dont think we'll see much 💔). also their dynamic is everything i love how unique their character is and shes (the author) definitely put a lot of effort into every single one of her characters but i did not expect her to give eiji that much depth (i know hes from one of her other works and i need to read it soon and i want to know what happened before he met her so bad 😭.....) ^like at all. i dont have much more to say but i hope kazehaya shows up and meets them all again bc im want their reactions, and i think kurumi is so adorable and eiji is the hottest guy of the series excluding sanada. the end 💗

[llazyneiph]

I agree with your last reply! many asian creators like to put adf*ly or patreon but that doesnt make them evil or greedy unlike the others. cc making is a niche way of making money esp in asia setting, but they dont know its harmful. ofc that doesnt mean they are free from criticsm. sorry if i didnt explain this well 😅 Just felt like this was needed to be shared

Yeah it’s definitely not a black and white case and I don’t at all think all creators who use adf*y share the same views as the person I talked to yesterday, i think that was somewhat of an outlier case lol. I think the english speaking part of simblr is much more vocal about adf*y, so creators who speak a different language just probably aren’t aware that people dislike it so much.

I guess the more you are earning from it, the more defensive you’re gonna be about using it because no one wants to give up a source of income really. And adf*y is basically passive income that they continue to earn from even a year or two after they’ve made the cc. 

But yeah, it’s defo not a ‘every single creator who uses adf*y is evil and greedy’ kinda situation, I understand there are different factors in everyone's personal choice to use it.

I think for creators who were worried by what I showed in my post, if they wanted to change anything then offering a non-adf*y link alongside the adf*y one is a great start. And for those who wanted to go a bit further then perhaps they could keep it on their old links but switch to Patreon on future links. Like I’m not out here saying like ‘these creators need to completely stop what they’re doing right now or they’re evil!!’, like I understand that it’s just not possible for some people to do that and I would be completely contradicting myself because if I had to close down my Patreon today, I wouldn’t be able to pay my rent very quickly. 

I defo think in the community as a whole there's this all or nothing mentality where people either just don’t care or they are completely against monetizing cc entirely. For the latter people, I do get where they’re coming from but also I think that they think that cc creators just do it out of greed? I can only talk from my personal experience but my Patreon supplements half of my monthly income because I cannot hold a job due to my mental health, and I’m also a full time uni student. The other half of my income is government payments but if I had to survive on that alone, like I literally couldn’t, it’s not even enough to fully cover my monthly rent. 

God this was way more long winded than I meant it to be but there are just so many factors to this whole argument and its not simple at all. I don’t think the community will ever be 100% free of link shorteners but I have seen less and less creators using it over the years which is great!

[wesleyam123]

The traveller merchant

Romania, 16th century As a merchant traveller, my days were walking these lands selling my goods on  villages all around Romania. Pottery, herbs, spices, tapestry, and many Other things. I would travel during the daylight, looking for the next village to spend my night, because pending the nights on the woods is risky, robbers, wild animals, deadly insects, cold, rain...nothing is in favor. When i wasnt able to reach a village i would look for a good and open spot to set up my camp, light a fire and make some tea...despite the risky i loved to set my camp and spend my night in the middle of nowhere, the stars were my companions, my music were the whispering winds and the owls, and i would feed myself of my fear and loneliness. A Merchant life is a mixture of loneliness among crowds...You meet all different kinds of people during your life, you are the celebrity of the village when you arrive. The kids robb you when you turn around, the men intimidates you with their hating lookings, ready to stab your back and rip your head off, the women preys on you, trying to take advantage of our weakness as a man, offering sex as payments or sex for enjoyment with the new man in town... but in the end no one cares about you as a person, They are after the goods or taking advantage of you, in the end you have no one.

I spent my night in the forest and resumed my travel during the morning as usual, and i was thankful that didn’t rain during the night, making my traveling much more easier through these woods. After walking for some hours i spotted a cabin far deep into the woods, making it harder to see it...there were moss and plants all around this cabin, i felt tempted to go there, but i had to continue on the road because i needed to reach the village today before the sunset. I looked back on the cabin and i could see a woman in black by the door, staring to my carriage when i stepped on a branch, lost my balance for a moment, then i looked back the cabin and seen no one in there. This whole situation scared me, but i continued my way to the village.

Almost an hour later i saw i sign on the road, “Geamana”, that is the village’s name. So i turned my way and saw that small and calm place...as soon as i was spotted, people start to tell each other that the merchant was in town, and that news spread fast, the place wasn’t that big. I found a good spot to stop my carriage and set my store while the sun was still up in the sky, wainting to the first customer come, so i could ask where were the hotel that i could spend my night. People start to come as usual, i was the celebrity of the town like always, where they could buy their stuff, hate me, use me, i didnt cared anyways, i was just after their money so i could go to the next place on this infinite looping. There were so many people wanting to buy things that i forgot to ask where were the hotel. I sold pottery for them store their foods, spices for cooking food, oil for their lamps, candles, tapestries, everything you can imagine...i was so tired after selling to that crowd, so this lady came to my carriage looking for herbs. She dressed differently from the villagers, and had a different scent, a woody perfume that invaded my head and went straight to my senses. Her hair was black as the night, and looked like a veil over her head... her lips were red like the warm blood that run into my veins...her dress was a mixture of black and dark maroon, embroided in white next to her breasts. She looked like a piece of art made by a skillful sculptor. She asked for some exotic and unusual herbs, not commom herbs that a regular woman buys, but luckly i had all of those herbs available...after the trade i asked her where was the hotel so i could spend my night. She told me that the hotel wasnt open, because the owners and their families died recently of a sickness, so the villagers burned down the place to the sickness not spread. I vented that i would have to spend my night on a camp again and how i missed a bath, and she offered me a room to spend the night. She said she lived some minutes from the village and offered me a ride on her horse. I couldnt refuse that offering, it was too tempting to refuse having a place to spend the night, and have that beautiful woman as my company, so i told her that i accepted the offer.

The sun was setting down and was starting to get dark, so i put everything back in the carriage and tied with a rope, parking it next to one of the village houses. I asked to the resident to look after for me and the old lady agreed...I thanked and told her that i was going to give her something as a payment when i get back. I looked back and spotted the woman waiting for me, she was already riding her horse and told me to get on the horse behind her. As soon as i got up her scent invaded my head once again, driving me on a tripping...”what is wrong with me?”, “what is wrong with this scent that makes me crazy?”...she was riding fast and i was almost falling from the horse, so she told me to hold on her waist...I didnt think twice and grabbed her by the waist, warm and firm, soft and muscular, a true sculpture.

I was going to a random stranger house, and i didnt even knew her name. The feeling of need, loneliness and turn on was speaking louder than my reason. I asked her name, she told me Cordelia. I could see a cabin and the front garden lit by na oil lamp, and she just told me we arrived. There were many florwers, herbs and plants on her front garden, so i asked why. She told me she was na alchemist and also a healer, helping the villagers with medicines...I spotted the same plants she bought planted on her garden. She just invited me in the cabin.

As soon she opened the door, that scent came to my brain once again, invading all my being and activating so many feeling on my body and mind. She invited me in again, then i “woke up” from my trip and stepped inside. She told me she was going to prepare a tea for us, and that i was probably tired so i could take a bath while she prepares the tea. I couldnt refuse because i was wishing a bath so badly. She told me where was the bathroom and i followed my way there...the bathroom was atached to her room, divided only by a red tapestry, and her room had so many different scents, Every single one atached to a different feeling...floral as the love, woody as the loneliness, Sweet as the passion...i was getting drugged by all those scents. There was an altar in her room before the bathroom, there were many candles, Flowers, herbs, written stuff, and a cerimonial dagger, everything organized on a beautiful way.

I lit up the candles next to the bath, removed all my clothes and closed the curtain of the bathroom...The candle’s perfumes mixed to all those scents made relaxed and trip on that bath, forgeting everything around, i just closed my eyes and relaxed. Suddenly the curtain were opened, and i saw that gorgeous woman in front of me. Her hair was like a waterfall falling over her shoulders, her lips like a perdition, holding our tea and some flower petals on her hand. She dropped the towel she was wearing, revealing her body...it was like a marble sculpture, Every inch carved masterfully, softly and smoth, i was paralyzed in front of her.

She went inside the bath and placed the towel next to her, dropping the flower petals inside. I could feel her body touching my body inside the bath while she stood next to me. She offered me the tea and we both drink, sweetly tasting its flavour while it went down burning my chest. She came and whispered something on my ears...”I own all of you, today and Forever”...she wildly dominated me, kissing me and kissing my neck, while i was in extasy, drugged by the drink, the lust and the scents around. A violent urge came to my body while she was subjugating me, then i wrapped my both arms around her, full of passion and rage...she whispered on my ears again, “I’m not yours, you are mine”, so she touched my private parts and i lost my strenght.

She sat over me, and i felt her hot body becoming as one with me, and i was tripping even more because of everything around...while she rided me, she would scratch me, she would bite me, and it was becoming faster, harder and violent every time. I could feel my skin jointing in her nails, i could feel blood going down every bite she took, but i didnt care, i couldnt feel pain anymore, all i felt was pleasure by being dominated by her. The water was becoming reddish, and the white petals became like red roses, part of me was spilling on that bath...

I couldnt hold myself anymore, reaching an orgasm and ejaculating inside her in a way i never felt before, maybe was the tea, the scents or her that made this to me, i dont know. In a instant  I felt a slit on my throat, and a warm feeling going down my chest, the water becoming a crystaline red, and she gently kissing my neck, tasting every single drop of me...i couldnt feel pain, fear or pleasure anymore...i only feel cold, its getting colder here...and darker........where am ..................

[transrightsjimin]

more ranting abt welfare benefits hell

sorry for whining so much abt income on here, i know it should just be easy nd solveable by applying more for jobs, but the literal issue is that i have no skills or confidence (latter is according to my friend, but the way i cant envision handling any jobs well is jst the truth??) nd still havent gotten any help from the municipality w getting consulted by someone w more knowledge on the job market nd maybe being pushed to take on shitty jobs that at least perhaps pay better than mail delivery. it’s jst so frustrating how i requested welfare benefits over 4 months ago but it only counted since 3 months ago bc they kept fucking up w the requests, promised a payback for the lost month, but didnt, i believe?? now december we got nothing nd probably also january bc our ‘income was too high‘ for the minimum.

uh i side tracked nd forgot where i was going before, but i meant to say tht HALF A YEAR AGO i also requested help w getting help w jobs but bc bureaucratic bullshit it took until DECEMBER to get the help approved. and they would get me a contact person ‘surely before christmas, don’t worry!‘ and then they didn’t and replied they hadn’t forgotten about me and will surely help soon and i’m just. so fucking anxious about this all??

my parents help me financially w cash they gave (nd some of which came from my grandmas) (nd no im not happy w that bc one of them is doing worse financially but still wants to give it away, nd the other is dead nd my uncle gave her left over money to family which feels ironic bc hes a millionaire but only gives a bit from his dead mom??) so that i can buy groceries bc me and my friend’s paychecks + welfare benefits can only cover rent + food and so not also other bills such as for healthcare that i have to make payment plans for. and even w help w groceries i still end up in the negatives, especially last month bc we ‘made too much‘ to receive something. i dont even dare to sell clothing or anything online for money bc that’d only mean ‘income from hobbies’ they could see i have and thus more reason to get stripped from this too.

and that is just the whole issue!! the municipality runs all these checks and forms and calls and appointments and documents you need to hand in, but there is NO calculation determining what you actually need. instead, based on the type of household, we were categorized as fiscal partners without children who receive the benefits together and thus we receive benefits (in the months that we do) to add it up to the ‘living minimum‘ €1500 in total. this amount does not cover our actual expenses, nor does this match inflation or how social housing has been broken down as a system and that real estate owners can increase rent prices as much as they want. there is a monthly grant that tenants could receive for renting a home, but only if it is an apartment AND below 752,33 euros per month (which is when it is considered social housing, above that it’s the ‘free market‘), and that is just virtually impossible?? but we were not once asked if we can actually pay anything and the people meant to help us w benefits just don’t fucking get flex work contracts or how our income over a certain month is received way later in the month after that. like they have a stable job and just dont fucking get that it is not designed well for us.

i think my anxiety over this issue has gotten worse ever since the news came out that a dutch woman on benefits got a €7000 fine because her mom did groceries for her and that’s considered fraud??!! she couldn’t afford food so her mom bought groceries for her but that is also considered financial compensation and thus she got this huge fine, which she probably cannot afford and the fucked up thing w fines from institutions is that they ask interest over it if you don’t pay it in time or enough of it, and give more fines and even charge fees for something like you receiving a letter and they’re just free to pull this shit bc it’s a for-profit business. and that’s how ppl end up w debt and huge loans. it’s just so infuriating nd i really dont want a fine or lose the right to benefits. even though i prob wont get it for a while bc of my friend’s job that tends to make our incomes together reach just the ‘living minimum‘. i have this bill of €250 for adhd diagnosis, then monthly bills for meds that are €76 of which i can receive most back and ‘only’ need to pay €25 from it, then theres an orthodentist bill of around €92 bc i forget this insurance company still counts from back when i was w it the first time nd orthodontist stuff gets insured up to €1000 and that amount was used up like 10 years ago nd they still count like that despite me having had a different insurer in between.

i just need a stupid fcking job nd i hate to whine abt this bc theres so many ppl in much worse situations who ‘take initiative‘ nd start looking for jobs, but AGAIN  i have no ‘basic’ skills like being able to listen and understand words well nd fast or show the right facial expressions or have good memory or dexterity or be able to answer difficult questions or focus on reading etc etc, nor do i i have an idea what job i should or could do.like i fcking need an income, moreover i need a break, im in this fcking burnout since like 2013 and in depression since at least 2004 lmfao but it’s never been recognized as bad enough by specialists bc im not suicidal, but it’s also not good to the point where i ever know if i felt ok. also just. i feel like i did use to have a bit more confidence in myself in high school but it all got sucked out of me in art college (bc horribly bigoted teachers + students and being taught that drawing well is in fact not at all important in the domestic market but rather being INNOVATIVE and NETWORKING and also COPYING is the way to success!! like not kidding, thats what teachers told us) nd by my parents (bc i became older nd didnt spontaneously do all these chores or jobs despite having no fcking clue how bc they never taught stuff). like i just dont know how ppl live comfortably w themselves and know what its like to be themselves nd not feel bad nd anxious abt everything

[sablesides-writing-corner]

Psst.. The Little Mermaid And Romas?

Roman was a singer, he knew that much, but at heart he was an anthropologist, and that took precedence over concerts any day. This particular evening Roman had decided was as good a time as any to explore the abandoned ship wreck east of the kingdom with his brother.

"There might be sharks! Or a giant squid!" Remus said.

"You're a giant squid," Roman said, nudging him to the side.

"I now! That's why I hope we meet one!" Remus said, spinning ina circle and spreading out his tentacles. Roman rolled his eyes and flicked his tail.

"Come on, we've got a ship to explore," Roman said, shooting through a hole that used to be a window. Remus followed, only for his lower half to get stuck. Roman yanked him the rest of the way through and went on his way exploring.

They had amassed a large summary of items before the rude intrusion of a very large and hungry shark, retreating to the surface in their escape.

"That was close," said Roman.

Remus shook his hair out "Yeah! And it was awesome!" he responded enthusiastically.

"We should check with Patton to see what these are," said Roman.

Patton, a stout man with the wings of a bird, was Roman's only ticket to information about the surface. Thought he wasnt exactly very good at it.

"And this one looks like a dinglehopper!" holding up what, to anyone who knew even the most basic details of human culture, was clearly a fork.

"What's it for?" Roman said, leaning his head on his arms.

"The humans use it to brush their hair!" Patton said, demonstrating on his own.

"Woah," Roman said, Remus merely laughed.

"Well we've gotta get going before dad notices we're missing," Roman said.

"Well come back soon!" Patton said, watching the duo disappear beneath the waves.

"The surface! Of all the places to skip out on a concert for! The surface!" King Romulus was fuming, so much in fact that there were bubbles forming near his head.

"It was only to see Patton! We didnt go near any ships!" Roman tried to explain, but the situation only seemed to worsen.

"That's it, I've had enough of you two and this surface-world nonsense. Virgil! Watch them." a short purple-haired merman swam out from behind the throne.

"Of course, sire-" he said, swimming between the twins. The trio left the throne room, Remus annoyed, and Roman angry and dismayed.

They were distracted momentarily by the appearance of brightly colored flashes of light above the water. Before Remus and Virgil could stop him, Roman was charging towards the source of the light. A large, elaborately designed boat.

"Roman you get back here! Dont even think about going near that boat!" Virgil called. But Roman was already climbing up to an opening at the side of the ship.

The ship was completely full of humans, dancing, singing, and causing general amounts of party related ruckus. But what really caught the young merman's eye was a the man at the center of it all, tall, muscular, with brown hair and eyes. What looked to be a labrador was dancing at his heels, until it noticed Roman's face peaking through the ship. Before he could duck, his face was covered in dog slobber.

"Hey! Hey! Easy girl- easy," the man brought away the dog, and seemed to stall a bit as he examined Roman's face. He was about to open his mouth to speak when a voice called for a man named Thomas, at which he promptly retreated. Roman took the opportunity to retreat back into the water.

"Roman that was stupid! You couldve been killed!" said Virgil.

"Oh but you shouldve seen him! He was so tall and handsome and he looked like he could hoist me into the air with one arm!" Roman said, holding his hands to his heart.

"Oh dont tell us you fell in love with a human!" Remus said, grinning cheekily.

Roman was about to defend himself, when lightning stuck behind them. He whipped around only to see the ship which held his beloved going down in flames. He raced under the water and thrashed around looking for him. He finally located his knight in shining armor and dashed to his side, heaving with all the strength he could muster to get to the surface. He stayed by Thomas'side until he noticed the prince's eyes begin to flutter. The song he'd been singing faltered, and he darted back into the water before he could be noticed. He watched as a taller man with a scar across his face approached his prince, draping a cloak over his shoulders and guiding him to a castle. Roman retreated back into the water, where Remus and Virgil awaited him.

"Of all the ignorant stupid boar-headed things you couldvw done! Why in all of Atlantis would you go after him!" Virgil said.

"Hes in love Virgil let him make stupid decisions if he wants," Remus said, cackling. Roman merely glared at him.

He and Remus finally lost the distressed merman in Roman's favorite hideout, the grotto. Within it was a statue of Roman's prince, a prize won after the storm.

"Sooooo- tell me about him- does he look like he'd taste good cooked over a volcano?" Remus laughed.

"Oh be quiet!" Roman snapped. He went on about the love of his life for several hours before the atmosphere seemed to change.

"A human?" Roman's spine seemed to go rigid.

"H-Hello- father-" he said. Remus' eyes widened. Roman hid behind the statue.

"My own son, in love with a human?" King Romulus' voice seemed to echo, causing different trinkets to fall to the bottom of the cove. There was a flash of light, and Roman's treasures were destroyed. All that was left of the rampage was the face of the statue. Roman stared at his father, shock, fear, and sadness evident on his face. Before his own brother could call out for him he'd left the cove, much to far away to hear their pleas.

He'd been crying against the rocks for who knew how long, when he heard voices.

"Poor thing,"

"Broken heart, he must feel horrible,"

Roman looked up, two mereels were circling above him.

"What do you want?" he said, wiping his face off.

"Oh you poor child, we only want to help you!" said the first.

"And we know just what you need, and just who can do it," said the second. The two held their hands out, Roman hesitated, before reaching his own out.

He was taken to what seemed like the rotting carcass of a whale.

"In here, in here, she wont bite," said the eels.

"Who've you brought me now?" said a gentle voice. Roman swam further into the home, to be met with a woman in front of a mirror, blue and purple hair framing her face.

"A prince!"

"Prince Roman!"

The eels chattered on, the woman turned around. She was small, she looked kind.

"Hestia, a pleasure to meet you," she said.

"Now it's my understanding that you're in love with a human yes?" Hestia smiled, the once white lines across her body shifting to an odd shade of pinkish-red.

"Yes but- I havent got any way to pay-" Hestia held a finger to his lips to shut him up.

"Oh the payment wont be much, a token really! All I want from you is. . . your voice," she said, smiling.

"My voice?" Roman replied.

"Only for a little, my brother Remy hasnt one of his own, you'll only have to go three days without it, that is if you get a kiss from your prince before sunset on the third," the lines shifted to a gold color. Roman was barely focussing on that, to busy thinking of the kiss.

"Alright- my voice- I'll do it," Roman said.

Hestia grinned, "Good, Remy! come here darling!" she called. A younger merman with sunglasses and brown hair swam out of the back, twisting a necklace in his hands.

"Now, as for you, sing," Hestia said, pointing at Roman. He did as told, felt something rise in his throat, and then he couldnt breath. He couldn't see or hear, he felt like he was dying. He heard laughter, female laughter. Someone dragged him to the surface, and he let out a sharp inhale.

"Roman! Roman! Stay with me!" Remus said, shaking Roman's head from side to side.

Roman coughed and tried to respond, but nothing came out.

"You signed away your voice you idiot!" Virgil said, as though this wasn't immediately obvious to everyone on the beach. Remus was about to interject when they heard a voice, Thomas' voice. Virgil quickly spun a piece of cloth around Roman's body, and he and Remus fled into the ocean.

"I mean he acts like I'm a child! It's not my fault the ship-" Thomas paused upon noticing Roman, who smiled at him delightedly.

"Well hello there, and who might you be?" Thomas said, helping Roman out of the water. He stumbled a bit and fell forward into Thomas' arms.

He tried to respond, but to no avail, Thomas seemed concerned by this.

"Are you alright? Can you not speak?" Thomas said. Roman nodded, the smile he got in return was enough to make his heart melt.

"Well, let's get you warmed up then, off to the castle we go," Thomas said.

It was a cozy affair his first night at the castle, warm by the fire with Thomas telling him stories. He seemed entranced by how the firelight danced in Roman's eyes.

The next day Thomas took him out into the town, he wished he couldve laughed at all of Thomas' jokes. Late that night they sat in a boat,music playing from all sides, familiar faces popping up every now and again

Roman had barely noticed Thomas' face close to his own until they were thrown out of the boat by a mysterious force.

The third day was by far the worst. Roman had awoken to find Thomas gone, to marry a man he said had saved him from death.Roman had watched as the ship sailed off, until three voices piped up.

"Roman! Roman it's the sea witch's brother! Hes stealing your man!" Remus said. Virgil and Patton nodded along side him. It took a fair bit of planning time before they could reach the boat, but by the time the trick had been realized, Roman felt something in himself change. He felt, again, like he was dying.

"Poor princey, no kisses for you hm?" Hestia's voice came from the water, she rose out of it, a familiar weapon in her hands.

"You like it? It's a birthday present from your father," she said, laughing so loud the ship trembled.

"What do you want from him!" Thomas yelled, dragging Roman closer to himself.

"Dont you talk to me like that! I'm going to rule all seven seas! And the likes of you wont stop me!" Hestia growled, bringing the trident down between the ship, causing it to begin to sink. Lifeboats crashed into the water, Roman fled under as well, attempting to reach the sea witch. He thought he'd snuck past her when he was pinned to the sea floor by the trident, a whirlpool beginning to form.

"Now you get to see what it felt like to be me! Disgraced, a shame to my family! Left for dead in the relentless waves of the ocean!" Hestia snarled. Roman felt static on all sides, and then nothing at all. A large object had fallen in front of him, Hestia, dead. Her brother backing away from the body, holding up what looked to be a broken down shipwreck. Roman popped his head above the water, Thomas was smiling at him.

It took nearly half a day to explain what had happened to King Romulus, and longer still to get him to calm down about Roman and Thomas' idea for marriage. But eventually, he conceded, and Roman was allowed to happily marry his prince charming, and live peacefully with him in their castle by the ocean.

[ask-a-paternal-cryptid]

The Taste of Love (lost part 2)

(I made this blog because I lost my old phone and didnt want to abandon this idea, BUT despite all odds I found my old phone and recovered my old notes! This is NOT CANON to the blog because I had forgotten my prior story idea and the asks diverted it, but I thought it would be interesting for you to see anyway, and it may give you some ideas for what to ask or smthn)

Patton had never seen a human in person before, not so close. Every time he searched stores and streets for extra non-forest-obtainable resources he went at night so nobody would catch him. Not because he would be put in danger but because he didn’t want to be a bother, and he knew that if he was forced to exercise self defense it wouldn’t be pretty, and he’d have to waste potential food as well. He refused to eat fear and pain. He wasn’t incredibly picky, but when it came to negative emotions those were the worst and barely provided any nutrition. Fear tasted bitter, like juicing dandelions onto your tongue, and pain tasted like cold rusty metal.

He narrowed his eyes and sank onto his haunches. The human was smaller than its steps suggested, malnourished and tired. It looked sickly. It looked surprisingly like Patton, save for its absence of fur and its small ears, and hair the color of blackberry juice. There were a few more subtle differences but nothing severe enough that Patton couldn’t replicate. He felt sorry for it. It was so cute, feeble. And at that point not very appetizing. He watched it stumble over to his bait spread. It seemed confused, which was understandable. But it was too hungry to care. It spoke. More shouted than spoke:

"Logan! Grab Princey and get over here! There’s food!”

It must have been signaling its pack. More of them? In a moment another human trudged out of the brush, dragging another unconscious one on a large tarp. Patton ran through a list of the best ways to approach the situation. It may be less suspicious to them if he approached in a friendly manner? They were obviously in no condition to refuse assistance. He nodded to himself.

In a matter of seconds his fur had shed and his ears had morphed into passable human ones. His claws retracted and were replaced with fingernails and his knees popped as they reversed their bend to a forward position like his prey. He pulled his fur clothing around himself and his eyes dimmed their glow, now simply glinting a brilliant blue. He crept out slowly as to not startle them too much.

"Hello?” He felt a bit bad when the two creatures jumped, but he knew however he came out would startle them this deep in the woods. They looked at him in fear and confusion. "Don’t be afraid. Are you lost?” He said it gently and with a warm undertone, calculated by his body into the least threatening voice to this particular species.

"Who are you?!” The first one he’d seen stepped in front of the other two. The action was endearing and very cute, especially considering it would take little more than a gust of wind to topple the feeble creature.

"I live out here. I’m as surprised as you to find someone this deep in the woods. Or rather you found me.” Patton chuckled. “You seem tired and hungry.”

“Um... yeah. We were hiking and one of us-“ he flashed a quick glance at the unconscious body, “decided to go off trail on an adventure. We’ve been lost about a week now. We need food and shelter... if it’s not too much trouble.”

Patton smiled warmly. “Of course not! I was just about to have some of this but you seem to need it more.” He gestured to the spread.

"Thank you!” The blackberry human sat on the picnic blanket and grabbed an orange. The other conscious human stepped forward and extended a hand. Patton took it.

"Thank you for your hospitality. I’m Logan, this is Virgil, and this,” he motioned to the one on the tarp whom he had been dragging, “Is Roman. We’re not sure what’s wrong with him, but I assume it’s it’s dehydration. Do you have any? Is there a river?”

Patton smiled. “One moment!” He ran back to the cave and pulled the makeshift lid off his rainwater barrel. He took a cup and filled it, then made his way back. “Here you are!”

"Thank you.” The human named Logan took the cup and kneeled next to his pack member, patting his face rapidly until the human named Roman groaned and blinked awake.

"What...?” His throat sounded dry and rough and his voice was soft and weak. Logan held the water to his lips.

"Water. Drink.” The weakened creature obeyed almost instantly as his mind cleared, finishing the water in seconds.

"More?” He looked up desperately. Logan looked to Patton.

"May we have another?” Patton nodded and compliantly refilled the cup, bringing as many as the parched man could drink. Once he was finished, he seemed to become more aware of his surroundings.

"Who is this?”

“He lives around here. He has food and shelter. And water.” Logan informed his pack member. Roman looked from his friend to Patton.

“Thanks... do you have a name?”

“Patton!” Patton grinned. He made sure his razor edged teeth were concealed.

"Well thank you Patton.” He looked at Logan. “Does this mean we got to civilization?!”

"No. He lives out here.”

"But there’s food?” Patton nodded and motioned to where Virgil was stuffing his face in response. Romans eyes brightened and he shakily stood, wobbling over to the the spread before collapsing to his knees in front of it. Logan joined them.

"Be carful Virgil! If you eat too much too fast you might puke and waste it all.” Patton blinked down at him with concern. Virgil looked up and sheepishly slowed his eating. Patton smiled and sat criss cross with his three guests.

"So how do you live out here? You must get your resources somewhere.” Logan inquired as he nibbled on some sourdough and blueberries.

"I garden, and hunt, and collect rainwater. It’s a little inconvenient but I love the forest so it’s worth it.” He decided to leave out the fact he’d probably be cast out as a monster and wouldn’t be able to control his animal urges to hunt while in a human civilization. He thought it might spook them.

"I see. Where’s your house? Is it nearby?” Logan continued to interrogate further. Patton pointed to his cave forty feet behind them.

"I live in that cave right there! It’s real cozy you’ll love it!”

Logan’s brows rose, impressed. “Resourceful...”

"I know! You gotta be at least a little bit sharp to get by out here.”

"Cool...” The blackberry haired Virgil mumbled to himself. Patton looked over to find him listening intently, alongside Roman who was doing the same. Patton felt his face warm. He’d never considered his lifestyle to be impressive and this sort of validation was new to him. He enjoyed it. He giggled.

“Are you done eating? I can show you around!”

"Yes! It’s so cool you live in a cave! Are you some sort of dragon?” Roman beamed at the thought, a teasing glint in his eye. Patton’s blood chilled at the accusation.

"Nah. Just a regular old person like you!” His fangs retracted further into his gums as if they were shy, and he felt his knees strain to return to their position. He wasn’t used to changing form this long and with Romans question he felt it all weigh on him at once. His voice hitched, but he felt like he managed to act casual as he continued. "How... how about I pack this all up and you three can come see where you’ll be for the night? You must be super tired.”

"Thanks again.” Virgil stood shakily and Logan helped him. “We shouldn’t be here long, just enough to get back on our feet. Maybe a couple nights at most.”

"Nonsense, stay as long as you want! You seem like lovely company.” Patton smiled. He needed them to stay long enough to lift their spirits.

“Thank you,” Logan spoke up, “But if you could show us toward any sort of civilization, as I’m sure you know where we are, we should be out by tomorrow at noon.” Patton chewed his lip.

“No need to move so fast, you’re too weak to make it all the way out tomorrow. I can make you some of my Patton-Pending Patton Pasta tomorrow night!”

“Really, we’d rather get home as soon as we can if you don’t mind, we have people who are most definitely worried and responsibilities to fulfill.” Logan wasn’t going to budge. Patton groaned internally. He plastered a smile on his face.

"Okay then! I’ll be sure you all enjoy your stay no matter its length!”

"You are our savior, if there’s anything we can do-“ Roman took Patton’s hand.

“No, no, nothing. Your company is payment enough.” Patton had never lied before, which may have been the reason he wasn’t the best at it. Usually he was just hunting, baiting, pouncing, but something about this prey made him feel a little bad deceiving them.

"You’re an angel.” Roman kissed Patton’s hand, to Patton's surprise.

"Roman! Stop being weird!” Virgil shoved his pack member.

“I’m not!”

"You just kissed a stranger!”

"He was being NICE!”

“You can’t just kiss nice people!” They began to shove and prod each other back and forth. Patton began to reach out to stop them. After all, if they got into a fight they’d be angry, and he’d have to start the happiness all over again. But he paused. He didn’t catch the scent of any anger. This was different. Play fighting, like cougar siblings, the batting of little cubs paws. Teasing. Logan interjected, attempting to break them up. Patton chuckled.

"Cut it out you two, I’m flattered.” He gave a lopsided smile, his fall-chilled, rosy cheeks lifting his eyes into glimmering blue crescents. The three stopped, their cheeks tinting a similar pink through their already wind bitten faces. The cold must have been really getting to them. "Cmon, you look like you’re freezing, let’s get you all by a fire.”

Patton gathered the corners of the picnic blanket and slung it over his shoulder, motioning his guests to follow him toward his cave. They complied, trudging through the leaves and pine needles. The air was rich with the sweet aroma of sap and wet leaves. He would have liked to have stayed out a bit longer to enjoy it, but all three of his prey were shivering, pulling their respective hoodies and jackets tight around their shoulders. He quickened his pace.

They approached the mouth of the cave and Patton hurried them in, gathering three blankets and one large quilt from his chest of nesting materials and distributing one of the fleeces to each. He took the quilt and wrapped them all in a heavy second layer before scampering over to the firewood pile. He lit a match to the stone pit and the fire roared to life on a pile of dry grass and the previous night's wood.

"You should take this chance to sleep as long as you need.”

"But the sun’s still up.” Virgil looked out the cave’s opening. He was right, the sun was low in the west but it had yet to brush the horizon.

“Don’t let the sun boss you around, you’re tired all the same aren’t you? Don’t worry, I’ll use the time to hunt and get us all something fresh for breakfast.” Patton smiled with difficulty. His teeth were strained and sore. They couldn’t hold their dull form much longer. He willed his prey to shut their eyes. His poorly bent knees, his tiny useless ears, his bare skin screamed to show their true selves.

"Guess so. Thanks again.” Virgil sighed and pulled the quilt tighter, breathing in its calming scent of bread and baked goods.

"It means the world.” Roman leaned into Virgil, his eyes heavy. Logan joined the pile, mumbling a noise Patton interpreted as gratefulness.

"Really, the pleasure is all mine.” Patton took three cups from his cabinet and filled them with water to place next to the pack. “For if you wake up thirsty.”

"Thanks...” Virgil smiled. His cheeks flushed pink, though Patton was sure he’d warmed them all up adequately. He noticed the same blush plaguing the whole pack. Maybe humans warm slower than Pattons.

"I’ll go hunt as soon as I know you’re sleeping. You’d better.” He teased sternness.

"We won’t have any problems with that.” Logan yawned. “You’d better go before it gets too dark.” Patton nodded. He had night vision, but he wouldn’t need it. He had all he needed right in his cave. Right in front of him. He breathed in the gratefulness and content swirling around him. Their aura was mouthwatering. But he had to wait. They were thin; he needed healthy, plump prey. He wanted these three at their full potential. They would be his last meal before hibernation after all. They needed to be hearty. Pun intended.

He took a seat in his wooden armchair and curled up to watch them drift off. They were so cute. Like baby bunnies, huddled for warmth, twitching and readjusting ever so often, like fragile little blind kits. Finally, they were settled into sleep.

Patton stood, loosening his fall clothing to accommodate his fuller form. He shifted, his ears morphing outward and filling out with fur. His knees reversed with a satisfying pop and his claws burst from his digits. His lithe frame filled out with all sorts of muscles humans didn’t have, ligaments, tendons, even bone, his dull teeth sharpening and extending, the rows further back pulling up into his gums for later use. His eyes were last, pupils lengthening and iris filling its whites, flaring with a brilliant blue glow. He was a Patton again. He sighed with relief before turning to his prey. He sat next to them and studied, them closely, brainstorming his options.

Logan seemed persistent on leaving the next day at noon. That wasn’t nearly enough time to nurse them all back to health and harvest what he needed from them. But if he tried to keep them they’d be suspicious and may leave anyway. He sighed. There was really only one option, and it would really just be harder for everyone. But it was the only way to keep them indefinitely.

Patton scavenged through a box of materials with which he used to set traps for his prey. He pulled out a coil of nylon rope he’d reinforced with natural fibers. For larger prey, deer and the like. He got to work carefully maneuvering around his houseguests, securing the rope to metal hooks used to dry clothes in front of the fireplace. He looped and cut it an a way that he had three ends, and six short spare pieces. He first bound each of their ankles, then their wrists. He surveyed his work. He felt a pang of guilt for securing them in such an uncomfortable way, but he couldn’t risk them escaping. He finished by tying a simple slipknot around each of their necks. That way he wouldn’t have to worry about his materials being weak. They’d tighten at the slightest struggle, far before being pulled tight enough to break.

Once he was finished, he sat cross-legged in front of them, watching. He blinked in curiosity. They were embracing one another, even in their sleep, ever so often shifting to hold one another tighter, the corners of their mouths twitching upward slightly. They were content, comforted, by one another’s presence. A foreign aroma enveloped Patton, something he’d never once smelled before. He’d definitely know if he had before. It was like happiness but... richer. Fuller. His fangs dripped saliva. It was something he never knew he needed until then. His new goal, he needed them healthy, and he needed them feeling that. The goal; that’s what he’d call this new emotion.

Patton awoke the next morning to a shout. He lifted his head from his spot curled on his mattress.

"What’s going on?! Logan!” Virgil was awake. Patton gasped and shifted quickly, hiding his inhuman extremities.

"Hm...?” Logan blinked awake. Patton peered around the thick rock wall between his living and sleeping areas.

“What...? What is this?!” Roman was up now. “Hey! What happened? Why can’t I-“ He yanked at the ropes. “Where are... who...” He looked around. The others yanked at their restraints, panicked. Patton took a breath. They wouldn’t really care to see him at the moment, that he knew, but he couldn’t allow the confusion and panic to continue at the rate it was.

"Shhh, calm down, calm down, everything is fine.” He crept out from his hiding spot. Three heads swiveled to face him, a mixture of fear, panic, and anger. He had to hold back from gagging at the putrid, sour aroma.

"Who are you?! Let us go!” Virgil kicked and snarled.

"Well that’s a funny question... I’m Patton! I could’ve sworn I told you.”

"Who are you really you psychopath?! Why are we tied up?!”

"Oh! Oh. Don’t worry, it’s just because Logan had said you three were leaving at noon and that wasn’t enough time.”

“Enough time for what? You’re insane!” He wouldn’t calm down. Patton could taste his bitter, rotten rage on the back of his tongue.

"Shh, it’s okay, I promise I’m not insane. Just hungry.” Logan blinked, his mouth twisting into an uneasy expression.

“Hungry...?”

"Aren’t you excited?” Patton smiled warmly. “It’s your turn to join the circle!”

"The circle...? You’re making no sense.” Logan squinted. Patton took his guest's glasses off the coffee table and pushed them gingerly onto his nose. Logan blinked in surprise.

"There. You can see.” Patton sat in front off the three cross legged, placing his hands in his lap. “Do humans not know the circle?”

"Humans...? What are you?” Roman raised a brow.

"Or what does his crazy mind THINK he is...” Virgil mumbled, eyeing Patton with a seething hatred.

"I’m a Patton! Not quite human. Actually pretty far from it. But I feel like I think like you do. Which is why I think you may be able to understand. To get where I’m coming from.”

"Bullshit! Cut the jokes! Why do you really want us?” Virgil wasn’t having it. Patton sighed.

"I can show you I’m not lying. If you promise not to be afraid.”

"Yes! Show us!” Roman was interested. Patton liked him.

"Yes, let’s see.” Logan was skeptical, but intrigued. Virgil didn’t speak, but he didn’t have to. Patton could sense his aura of fear, rage, skepticism. He began shifting.

As he did, he felt his guests fear and disbelief curl his tongue and dry his saliva. Screams, shouts, gasps. But this was just another step. Finished, he looked down at the three. He smiled at them with his carnivorous teeth.

"See? I wouldn’t lie to you.” He let the three finish their little freak out.

"What are you?! How?!” Logan looked him up and down.

"Woah...” Roman was staring blankly, unsure of how to react.

"You said you were hungry...?” The softest voice came from Virgil. Where there was once rage, there was now a cold, rigid fear. Patton refused to spit, though he felt like he was chewing batteries.

"Yep. I needed something sustainable before my hibernation and wouldn’t you know it, you three came along at just the right time. I’ve never had human. You seem so emotionally intelligent and mature... I’m so excited! Aren’t you?! You’ll be joining the circle!” Virgil had his face hidden in his hood. Logan was rubbing his back. The latter spoke:

“What is this ‘circle’ you keep mentioning?”

"The circle of life! It’s so so beautiful.” Virgil whimpered and the others gulped.

"So we should be excited to die?” A deep worry line appeared between romans well groomed brows.

“No.” Patton chuckled. “You should be excited to contribute.”

“So you want to eat us?” Logan seemed collected but Patton could sense his fear.

"Not all of you don’t worry! Just your hearts. It won’t hurt even a little bit and you’ll look just fine after, I promise, I’m real good at it.” He gave a toothy smile, but the reassurances didn’t seem to have done much. Virgil was breathing quickly like he’d just finished chasing something though he hadn’t moved in hours. Patton tipped his head as Logan struggled to normalize his pack member’s breathing.

"Are you okay? Do you need water?” Logan looked up. He was afraid but Patton could sense that if his trust had been more developed he would say yes. Patton rose to his seven foot stature, drawing some yelps from his prey, and went to fetch a cup at the rain barrel.

He sighed while collecting his thoughts. He knew he had to lie to build initial trust, but it made him feel lousy when he had to then be honest, and the shock of the reveal shattered a large portion of the already formed trust. This task was proving to be more difficult than he’d initially expected. He’d expected them to have similar values to him. If he’d been selected to feed another creature he’d be accepting and grateful for the opportunity. They’d been raised in the wrong mindset. The wrong environment. He’d have to teach them.

Patton returned to the three with a large glass of water. He held it out to the trembling Virgil. He flinched back, staring in horror at the lengthy claws wrapping the cup. Patton retracted his arm slightly. His claws drew in and his fingers squirmed against the glass until they were harmless human paws. Virgil seemed disgusted, but at least not as fearful, as he took the glass quickly.

Patton sat silently as Logan assisted his friend in calming himself, counting in unusual intervals as he took in breaths. Roman held his friend’s hand and gently petted it with his thumb as his breathing evened. Patton’s ears twitched as he tracked Virgil’s breaths until they slowly became regular. The whole scene was incredibly endearing, like a mother bear caring for her young. And it was there again.

The unknown emotion enveloped Patton, warming him and holding him and coercing drool down his fangs. But he caught himself. The fear was still there. They weren’t enough yet.

"Don’t worry.” He kept his voice empathetic and even. “I’ll prepare you far ahead of time, I won’t take you by any sort of surprise. You have days at least. I’ll make sure you’re happy by the time you go. That’s my mission! To teach you my thoughts about all of this! Of course, of course you’re scared, and I’m very very sorry. I’d be scared too, but the point isn’t that you’re going away, it’s that you’re staying, and you’re staying as something big, and beautiful, and warm, and happy... You’re feeding into something great and something magical. Doesn’t that sound breathtaking?” Patton’s eyes were bright and full of wonder as he scanned his guests faces for any form of realization or excitement. They were looking back at him with fear and confusion.

"We’re in our late twenties. We’re not near old enough to be excited to die.” Logan spoke clearly and objectively. Patton tipped his head curiously.

"How old do you have to be? The best prey is perfect when it’s in its prime. Just like you. Everything is vibrant and strong and exciting.” Virgil chewed his lip and spoke.

“Exactly. And we won’t have time to experience it all.” Patton blinked.

“What do you mean? Emotion isn’t complicated. Most bunnies have felt them all by the time they’re grown up.”

"People emotions are different.”

“Like how?”

“Like how we can learn, and form relationships, and care, and hate, and love... instincts are different from emotions. People have emotions.” Patton was surprised by Virgil’s sudden participation, and with such energy. Though he could hardly understand what he was getting at.

"Animals can be happy and have mates and care about their young an-“

"But did they form those thoughts themselves?” Roman joined. “Or were they born with them? Are they true love and hate and happiness and sadness or are they just for survival?” Patton huffed at the foreign words and concepts.

“I would know. I know what they taste like. Each different emotion. And they’re emotions.” He didn’t like being confused. He wanted so badly to stop talking about it. For some reason the ideas were making him feel nasty, and he wasn’t nasty. He knew that. “What would you like to eat for breakfast?”

"But-“

“No buts! I want to stop talking please.” He smiled, blinking the ickiness away. “I have berries, eggs, veggies of all sorts, I could hunt for you if you want meat... do humans eat meat?”

"I don’t want to die!!!” Virgil pounded his bound feet on the stone floor. “If you cared you’d listen!”

The muscles in Patton’s neck tensed and he felt his hackles rise. He didn’t like that. He didn’t like getting yelled at. At all. He turned to the pack, reflexively pursing his lips at the fearful look they gave him, his hackles, and as he then realized, his now-splayed claws.

He gulped, slowly pulling them back into his fingertips. His hackles laid flat and he felt dampness in his eyes.

"Please don’t stay that... stay with me. Please.”

"We don’t really have a choice do we...?” Virgil mumbled.

"You’re making me feel gross... Please stop...” Patton spoke softly, pleading. He didn’t like the squeezing in his chest.

"Maybe you deserve it then.” It was matter-of-fact. Virgil held Patton’s gaze, strong but apprehensive, as if he were expecting an attack, which only made Patton feel worse.

"I-I.... I don’t... I just need to eat... and I just...” water built in his eyes. Was he sick? His eyes watered sometimes but not nearly this much, and normally from the wind. The air was still.

“Please stop saying those things... please just be happy and understand...it would be easier for everyone if you did.” His breath hitched and he tasted sadness. He looked across his prey. It wasn’t any of them... who was sad? He licked at his lips to get rid of the taste, a salty taste, with a hint of rotting blueberries and raw eggs. The taste of wilted, slimy things. He felt tears roll down his cheeks and onto his lips, making the sadness even saltier. He felt weak. He let himself fall to his knees as he frantically attempted to dry his face with the balls of his palms.

"Please... it’s never been this hard before...” He didn’t dare look up. He knew he’d be met with expressions that would make him feel even worse. His prey was quiet. From what he could tell they had little emotion about the situation. Maybe shock. Or maybe the sadness was drowning them out.

"Shhh...” Patton blinked. He looked up. Roman was watching him, some sort of sympathy in the way he held his expression. “Hush. You’re okay.”

"Roman?” Logan squinted at him. “What are you doing?”

"Helping I think.” He didn’t look away from Patton, continuing to hush him. Virgil watched him with an unreadable expression.

"I’m sorry.” It was quiet, and slightly grudging. Virgil sighed. “Deep breaths. Count it out. I’ll shut up.” Patton filled his lungs and let it out again, continuing the pattern until he could dry his face without more tears wetting it again. The pack watched, unsure of how to react. Patton lifted his head.

“Don’t be sorry... you’re scared. You think a different way. It’s okay.”

“You seem like you have good intentions. You seem nice, just... terrifying.” Virgil grimaced. “You see, where we come from, and as people, we don’t...”

Logan joined in. “In general we don’t romanticize death. It’s overall very negative. As you have survival instincts, we have much more emotion in relation to dying it seems.”

“Its the abrupt end to life, not what life builds to.” Roman nodded as he joined, “it’s the definite rock bottom to any situation.”

Patton furrowed his brows. “But that’s all wrong!”

"Why would it be wrong? Everything you’ve built to ceases and the next step is unknown, and the most scientific situation would be a total and sudden nothingness. It’s terrifying.” Virgil seemed to project his own current emotion into his words, pale and shaking in his delivery.

“That’s not at all what I see in it! We as ourselves aren’t really important. We pass our time growing our minds to emotional maturity until we’re ripe, that’s why life feels so good, but those feelings aren’t for us. They’re for the universe! And when something uses us for energy, some transfers to them and some goes into the bigger picture. That’s why we have to have good lives, so all that good stuff can feed the circle!”

The three seemed confused, but this time they seemed to be trying to understand, which made Patton quite happy.

“Would you be willing to accept...” Roman worked to choose his words carefully. “That we don’t want to be eaten? And leave us be? We’ll work to understand where you’re coming from but as of now, none of us are keen on going just yet.”

Patton gulped slightly. “I suppose... if you’re really so opposed... but I still need something to eat. You three would have been perfect to finish off my haul for hibernation but if I don’t have you, I’ve wasted this time for nothing and I need a whole lot more for my last meal before winter.”

Virgil blinked. “You’d really let us go?”

Patton sighed. “If you really would be so unhappy to be my prey, you won’t do me a lot of good. Besides, I’m starting to like your companionship. Though I’m still not sure if I can afford to let you go.”

"What if,” Logan spoke up, “We helped you? We could help hunt, make ourselves useful. In return you can free us and show us the way to civilization.” Patton smiled.

“Would you really? That would be amazing! Are you sure you can hunt though...? You have no claws or teeth for it...”

"We can learn. And I can use a sword if that’s at all useful.” Romans voice was filled with a sudden determination. Almost excitement.

“A sword?”

"A long sharp stick. For stabbing. A spear would be easier to craft with these resources.” Logan clarified.

“Now... can you let us go? We can’t very well hunt tied up like this.” Virgil quirked an eyebrow. Patton could still taste a dull fear on him. Maybe he was always like that. But he silently expressed his gratitude, considering the bitter aftertaste in his mouth allowed him to curb his temptation to break the deal. He nodded.

"I really am sorry... if Id known it would make you so uncomfortable I wouldn’t have done all this. Please don’t be afraid of me. I won’t eat you, I’m not dangerous, not when I don’t want to be. And I promise I don’t want to be.”

“I don’t know if I can really not be afraid. But I’m not, objectively. Emotionally it’s a bit different.” Virgil raised a brow. “You were planning to eat us a couple minutes ago. But you seem nice. Just different, as a terrifying predator should be. But I can tell you, I’m the least scared of you than I ever thought I'd be being faced with a man eating eldritch beast. So take that as you may.” One corner of his mouth upturned in a way Patton could assume was teasing. He smiled.

"I’ll take it.” He reached for Virgil’s bound wrists with a harmless, sheathed hand and gently untied the rope. He wanted to save it for trap making.

“Can you untie the rest on your own now? It would be faster to help all four then help anyone struggling with a knot.”

"Go ahead.” Virgil rubbed his wrists and hissed. They were a painful red and imprinted with the marks of fibers. Patton grimaced with guilt.

“Here.” He filled a bowl with water and set it by Virgil. “It should help soothe the pain. Nice and cold.” Virgil looked up from the knot on his ankles.

“Thanks.” Patton nodded and proceeded to help the other two pack members.