#like the chimp tray…

[nitronine]

I found the socpens inspired ceramic plate I made like 3 years ago… I didn’t have any chips to demonstrate that it’s a plate so enjoy campbells chunky chicken noodle.

(Text reads: Feed your baben, watch it grow!)

[throes-of-warm-tornadoes]

the 2001 planet of the apes is so good to me. like, the 1968 version will always have a special place in my heart because the makeup magic was... dare i say... very magical, but i liked how the 2001 one leaned into a more biologically accurate angle. like, those are straight up apes. no wonder humans aren’t speaking as a survival tactic, those things could hurt you without even trying. again, the 1968 one was so good and impressive but the fact that taylor could overpower the actors that were playing gorillas was a little jarring lol. which makes sense, cos so much of his escape plan relied on him being strong enough to push people out of the way.

this isn't a complaint btw! they're just people in costumes---they are still very much giving ape, but there wasn't much they could do about that on a physical level. so, when the 2001 had these big hulking gorillas and more accurate looking chimpanzee faces on the screen, i appreciated that detail about the humans exploiting their fear of the water. it leveled the playing field without making the fight against the apes look like a losing battle

[dr-futbol-blog]

Sanctuary, Pt. 14

While Sheppard's picnic with Chaya is interesting in and of itself, it becomes really significant in a later context.

In The Shrine (S05E06) we learn that Rodney McKay doesn't really know what dating is. He has referred to girls he's dated a few times previously but his idea of what dating is and other people's idea of what dating is are not necessarily the same. We first see this with him and Katie Brown, as it seems like they don't really spend that much time together (and never even got to second base, far as we're told) but he still goes around telling people that they are dating because she's a beard. There's also the girl McKay claims to have dated (twice!, as in, two dates) in college and Sheppard says he stalked, the truth probably being somewhere in between. But it's made explicit in relation to Keller.

Keller starts falling for McKay when he's suffering from brain damage that alters his personality (which is disturbing in and of itself, but we'll circle back to that), preferring the "kinder, gentler Rodney McKay" that is the result of a parasite eating away at his brain. While he's in the hospital under her care, they have the following exchange:

Keller: Eating from the patient's tray is kind of frowned upon. McKay: Jennifer, we've practically dated. Keller: You bought me one drink. That's hardly "dating."

Rodney McKay thinks that buying someone one drink is dating. We also know from Trio (S04E16) that this drink was a beer (and that this happened a while ago). At the end of the episode, they have the following exchange:

Keller: You owe me a beer from the bar trick thing earlier. You couldn't figure it out, so… McKay: Well, there was no time! I would have figured it out! Keller: Yeah, well, eventually chimps would have been able to figure it out, but the thing is, you didn't, so I win, and you owe me a beer. McKay: I don't remember ever agreeing to the beer! Keller: McKay. McKay: What? Keller: D'you wanna have a drink with me or not? McKay: What – you wanna have a drink? Keller: You're not very good at this, are you? McKay: Uh, no. No, I'm not.

He's really, really not.

So, one beer = date.

Never mind that we've seen Sheppard offer to buy McKay a beer earlier in Quarantine (S0413):

Sheppard: Well, I'll... I'll buy you a beer later. We can celebrate. McKay: Yeah – or drown my sorrows should she say no. Sheppard: No, no, none of that. McKay: Right. Sheppard: Well, go get the girl!

At the end of the episode, McKay himself decides not to propose to her and they break up. He had sorrows to drown. Sheppard offered to buy him a beer. So far, Sheppard and Keller are one for one.

But then, in the very same episode as where McKay's idea of one drink equaling a date is laid out, we get this:

Sheppard: All right, look. It's a nice night out. Let's go have some beer on the pier, okay? McKay: I drink beer? Sheppard: A lot. Take this [six-pack of beer]. Come on, buddy. Let's go.

McKay, afraid that he is losing his mind, has waken up in the middle of the night to not find Sheppard with him where he was sleeping. Even though he is losing his memories to the point of not remembering the meaning of words, his feet have carried him to Sheppard's quarters through the corridors and hallways. Sheppard asks him out for a beer. He tells us that Rodney has had lots of beers with him.

Once outside on the pier, McKay has finished his beer and Sheppard offers him another.

McKay: I don't know. Should I have another? Sheppard: What could happen?

McKay takes the second beer. Again, in an episode in which we were explicitly told that to McKay one beer = date, where we're told that he's had one drink with Keller, he has two beers with Sheppard. Outside on the pier at night, wearing Sheppard's jacket. Outside on the pier at night like Sheppard and Chaya. So, according to his own definition, McKay was out on a date. But Sheppard was also out on a date, he explicitly calls it a "romantic situation" the first time. It is both of their idea of a date.

We are invited to make this connection. In this episode, Sheppard and Chaya have the following exchange:

Chaya: You said it yourself—we're both human. Sheppard: Yes. We are. And I'm really glad you didn't say "family," otherwise I'd have to leave. Chaya: Don't. Sheppard: I'm not going anywhere.

They are both lying. She is not human and he never had any intention of staying with her. He's saying it to her because it's something he himself longs to hear. More than anything he yearns for a friend that is with you always, a friend that never leaves your side. So he tells her this, because it's the one thing that would make him want to do anything for the person who said that. And while he's influenced by Chaya, there's something they desperately need from her. He's going all out on trying to get that sanctuary for his people.

And in The Shrine, he and Rodney have the following exchange:

McKay: John… John, I've never been so scared. I'm slipping away. I'm slipping away, and I don't know how to stop myself! Sheppard: Look, you're still here. All right? You're still here. McKay: Yeah. I am. Sheppard: And… I'm not going anywhere.

This is why this episode is so important. It gives context to this seminal scene in The Shrine (and 'shrine' is synonymous with 'sanctuary', they rhyme). We are not only told that Jennifer Keller pales in comparison to John Sheppard when it comes to loving (and yes, even dating) Rodney McKay, we are shown that what Sheppard was first pretending to be for Chaya, doing his damnedest to charm the socks off of her to protect his people and then did under some form of mind-control, he is genuinely this for Rodney. Rodney is stuck with him. He's not going anywhere.

And again, this is the thing that John Sheppard himself most desperately wants to hear. He wants someone to tell him this (McKay is more of a show don't tell acts of service kind of a person, but he'll get there eventually; Sheppard has to travel 40,000 years into the future to understand what Rodney has been trying to show him all along; he's not going anywhere). Losing McKay is literally Sheppard's worst nightmare, we see it multiple times over the seasons so here he tells McKay the most comforting thing he knows because he is just as scared as the other man is of him slipping away--if not more so.

We can also compare the way Sheppard acts in these scenes. When Chaya mentions loneliness, Sheppard nopes out of the situation immediately. He stands up, puts distance between them, refuses to even think about the concept let alone discuss it. Here, McKay is dying. While he's trying to be supportive, Sheppard knows this. He's leaving permanently. But regardless of this being his literal worst nightmare, Sheppard stays put. He stays there with McKay and tries to have the difficult conversation about good-byes. It's not easy for him but he does the work. If anything, by the end of the scene, they are even closer--both physically and emotionally.

However, while for Sheppard it's important to hear that someone is there for him through thick and thin, for McKay the thing he most desperately wants to hear--or better yet, be demonstrated--is that he's accepted for all that he is without him having to do things to earn this acceptance. That it's freely given and it includes him at his absolute worst. And while it's not something Sheppard has consciously figured out about him, he just does. McKay doesn't get it here, lamenting that he can't be his genius friend anymore. Sheppard accepts him when he's the smartest man in two galaxies and he accepts him when he does shit so dumb that his niece would feel ashamed to know him. He accepts him when he's kind and gentle and funny but he also accepts him when he's arrogant, abrasive, petty and jealous. Because all of that is McKay. All of that is the person he loves. And that's something that can only be demonstrated consistently over time.

But the point is, both McKay and Sheppard thought they were on a date on the pier. It is both of their idea of a romantic situation. And their date, the raw and honest human connection between them, is so much more important and significant than what they shared with these women. Their whole purpose is to exist as foils meant to make us recognize the real thing.

We don't get see Sheppard and McKay kiss on the pier, the scene fading out as Sheppard leans back real close to McKay. He does kiss Chaya. It's possible they would have wound up there even if she didn't have him under some sort of influence. She's attractive and he feels responsible for the lives of untold thousands, maybe millions of people that he thinks she has in her power to save. And yes, even if he wasn't under some form of mind-control, the kiss would still have been meant but to game her. Like Leeloo, the perfect being of The Fifth Element, Sheppard had hoped that if he could only come up with a reason for her to want to save mankind, they could all be saved.

It's not only the fact that Chaya is perfectly beautiful with perfect tissues that connects her to Leeloo. It's also later the fact that after she's done going through Weir's historical database, she's particularly disturbed by human propensity for war.

Chaya: But I've also been reading about your history. Even now, somewhere on your planet, you are at war. Sheppard: Well, yeah, that's true. Weir: I made no attempt to hide that fact from you. Chaya, we are definitely not perfect. Chaya: There's a lot about you as a people that I find disturbing. Teyla: Can that not be said of any people? Chaya: No. Every soul in Proculus is free from the hatred and the anger the people from Earth seem to feel for each other.

Earlier, she called Sheppard a warrior. He is a soldier that has participated in war. He's fighting a war right now. If we're later shown what the real thing looks like for John Sheppard, it appears that despite her attraction, Sheppard is also much too human for her to ever truly love. They are a different species, after all.

She dislikes war and conflict, and she's about to get a display of just how human John Sheppard is.

Continued in Pt. 15

[tdoong15]

hello kai, loved the last fic, I feel like middle SMC would do that 100 procent irl with yeri, shuhua too if she didnt need to go home. the chaos would of been real for 2yeon

with a new request here, about baby momo wanting to have a play date with dubs and being really clingy to her and not wanting to be held or cuddly with anyone else and just being such a cutie while mommy 2yeon trying to get baby momo to nap in her crib but she doesn't want to because she wants to stay with dubs

Hello Chimp, I'm glad you enjoyed the last fic, I imagine that it would be peak chaos for 2yeon if it was SMC, Yeri, Mina and Shuhua all playing. Also this request is really nice.

Little!Momo. Cg!2yeon. Bigsis!Dahyun (basically.)

Warnings: none

Dubs and Momoring

Dahyun was sitting at the table eating kimbap when she felt a tug at her shirt, when she looked down she saw Momo holding onto her shirt. “Oh, hello Momo. How are you?” Dahyun questions, when Dahyun spoke Momo looks up at her, she grins widely and reaches her arms out to Dahyun. “P'ay?” Momo opens and closes her hands at Dahyun, to indicate that she wanted to be picked up.

“Yeah I'll play with you Momo.” Dahyun smiles and she picks up Momo, which makes the little squeal in happiness and kick her legs. Dahyun walked over to Momo's room so they could play together, she tried to place Momo on the floor but she refused to let go of Dahyun. “Okay, I guess you can sit on my lap whilst we play.”

Momo smiled widely and she stayed in Dahyun's arms whilst she sat down. Momo reached over to grab two toys and she handed one to Dahyun. Dahyun happily takes the toy and she plays with Momo, the regressed girl leans in closer and she hugs Dahyun whilst she continues to play. “Sissy, p'ay somethin’ else pwease?” Momo said whilst she pointed at her makeup bag. Dahyun nods her head and she grabs the bag and she passes it to Momo.

Momo shuffled in Dahyun's lap so she was facing her. “Are you going to do my makeup, Momoring?” Dahyun asks which Momo responded by giggling and nodding her head. Dahyun stays still whilst Momo gives her a new makeup look by giving her bright pink cheeks because of the amount of blush Momo placed on her finger as well as a lot of lipstick. When she finished, Momo smiled and she clapped a lot. “Woah dubu wook vewy pwetty!”

Dahyun grabbed her phone, turning on her camera to look at her new look. “Wow, that's amazing, Momo. Maybe you should do my makeup more often.” Dahyun responds, which makes Momo quickly wrap her arms around Dahyun and bury her head in the crook of Dahyun's neck. After a few minutes of the duo just hugging each other, they both heard Nayeon and Jeongyeon call out for lunch. “Well let's get going, Momoring.” Dahyun stands up, making sure that Momo stays in her arms since that's where the little wanted to be. When they reached the kitchen, Dahyun was able to make Momo sit next to her, in fact their chairs were basically together because of how close they were, the only thing that was different was that Momo was placed into a highchair instead due to the fact that she had regressed to a young age.

Lunchtime wasn't too bad, mainly because Momo loved eating her food, the only challenge was that she repeatedly leans over to Dahyun to smile at her and so she could get her attention, it didn't annoy Dahyun at all, she actually gave Momo the attention she wanted by doing things such as holding her hand or pulling funny faces which made Momo laugh loudly and hit the tray on the highchair. A few moments later, Momo and Dahyun were in the lounge, Dahyun had Momo sat in her lap once again whilst they watched Barbie despite it being time for Momo to have her nap.

Nayeon checked the time and she saw that Momo needed to have her nap so she wouldn't be cranky later. “Jeong, we need to get Momo now” Nayeon whispers, Jeongyeon nodded and she walked over to where Momo sat with Dahyun and she gently touched Momo's shoulder. “It's nap time, little one.” Jeongyeon says with a soft tone, in response, Momo shakes her head and she clings to Dahyun more.

“Come on bub, we know that you want to spend more time with Dahyun but you need to have your nap or else you'll have a temper tantrum.” Nayeon tries to reason with Momo whilst she rubs Momo's back, but it wasn't successful, Momo still clung onto Dahyun and she whined softly through her pacifier, it was clear that she wanted to stay awake and be with Dahyun more, she didn't care about her nap.

Dahyun grins sheepishly because she thought that she couldn't do anything in this situation, she wasn't upset with it or anything but she knew that Momo should probably listen to her mommies and go to sleep. Nayeon and Jeongyeon didn't attempt to pull Momo away from Dahyun because they were 100% sure that it would result in Momo freaking out and crying. Nayeon and Jeongyeon stood there in the middle of the room, wondering what they should do until an idea popped into Jeonyeon's head, so she quickly whispered it to Nayeon.

“What if Dahyun takes Momo instead of us since she's the only person that Momo is clinging onto today?” Nayeon instantly agreed with Jeongyeon and she went over to Dahyun and she whispered the idea to her. Dahyun nods her head and she stands up, keeping Momo in her arms. “Let's go Momoring, I'll even make sure that your mommy and mama reads you a story or sings a song to you before your nap. And I'll be right by your side while you sleep.” Dahyun promises to Momo who seemed to look up at her with the biggest pair of puppy eyes and reluctantly agree to the idea.

So with that in mind, Dahyun walks to Momo's room with Nayeon and Jeongyeon walking behind them. Despite the initial resistance Momo eventually laid down in her crib, Dahyun then sat on the floor next to the crib and she held Momo's hand to comfort her. Dahyun also made sure to make sure that every part of her deal was met by making Nayeon and Jeongyeon read a story to Momo, which they normally do anyway. This time they let Momo pick out the story called ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’ as they both took turns reading the story to Momo, the regressed girl began to relax but she never let go of Dahyun's finger even when she fell asleep halfway through the story.

Hiiii, I hope everyone's day/evening/night is amazing. Also what do guys think about Twice's new album, based on the snippets?

[dsumpsbluey]

Unofficial Bluey Timeline: Part III

Welcome back to another installment in the UBT! In this week's post, we'll be discussing Episodes 11-15 of Bluey season 1. Can we get 10 notes?!?!?

Bike - Episode 11

Bluey learns to ride a bike.

Debuts and Details:

Episode introduces Bentley, one of Bingo's classmates, as well as Chloe briefly.

This episode focuses on Bluey's journey of riding a bike, to which she is still learning.

Episode takes place in a park, but not the same space as "Shadowlands". Could be a different park or different area in park.

Enjoyable episode that teaches us to not easily give up on ourselves, even when it feels hopeless. I like how the ending is open-ended, cuz it doesn't really matter that Bluey can ride her bike, but that she could.

Favorite Part: Muffin's meltdown

Bob Bilby - Episode 12

Bingo invites Bob Bilby for the weekend (🤯OMG A REFERENCE!!!).

Debuts and Details:

Obviously the titular "Bob Bilby" makes its debut, as well as.......... (in list of appearance)

Four unnamed parents that are assumed to be parents of Harley, Jasper G, Juniper, and Bentley (left to right).

Mrs. Retriever and her whole class (Buddy, Jasper W., Jasper J., Missy, Sadie, Harley, Juniper, Bingo, and Bentley).

Mrs. Terrier is mentioned to have taken Bob Bilby to Scotland. (This may be the same character as the Terriers' mum, but she won't be seen until season 3).

Frank, Chloe's dad, shows up near the shop (at least his head).

There is a mention of a Steve-O, one of Bandit's friends.

Bingo is seen incorrectly fastened onto her booster seat; this wouldn't change until season 2 after complaints.

Bluey is revealed to be a former student of Mrs. Retriever's, as evident by the fact she knew Bob Bilby from a previous visit.

Trixie is first seen alongside a red-tinted Stripe at the mall; this is later corrected during the firework scene.

Bluey is seen riding her bike a considerable distance, meaning she has learned successfully to bike, and the episode "Bike" has to happen before this episode. This may seem like a no-brainer, but in terms of the timeline, we must consider that certain eps HAVE to take place before others.

This episode spans the most amount of in-universe days so far, with a length of at minimum 4 days (accounting for a 2-day weekend)

One of the first episodes to contain plenty of information for the timeline. And what a fun episode it is. I love the bilby that is named "Bob", easily top 1 characters of all time.

Favorite Part: "Are you ready, Bob?" - Chilli (Why was she rizzing Bob like that?)

Spy Game - Episode 13

Bluey and friends struggle to maintain the game during a BBQ (OMG ANOTHER REFERENCE!!!🤯🤯🤯).

Debuts and Details:

Debut of Honey, her parents (Daisy & Marcus), and Mackenzie's mum.

There's an error during the "Honey's mum dancing" scene, where Bandit is at the grill when he's supposed to be at the restroom with Bingo. What's also interesting is that Frank is supposed to take his place from a previous shot, only to be replaced by Bandit in the aforementioned shot.

Bingo plays as "Sparkle Shot", yet Bluey doesn't use that name for her until the end (unusual🤔).

The first instance of Bingo busting (or bursting, I think it's the former)

I like how the episode attempts to teach the lesson the more traditional way with Bandit's demonstration, but even with it not working, the problem with Bluey and Bingo get resolved in its own way that still works.

Favorite Part: Anything with the guards, specifically when they block Frank from the sausage tray.

Takeaway - Episode 14

Bandit orders Chinese food.

Debuts and Details:

Debut of the "Takeaway Lady", the only other side character that shows up in this ep.

It's also the first mention of "Chutney Chimp", although there's an argument that the first sighting of the chimp was with Muffin's backpack in "Bike"

Bluey somewhat knows how to turn the water knob on, but doesn't know how to turn it off.

Bingo plays as "Tap Girl" when Bluey serves her food.

The second consecutive instance of Bingo busting; AND the first instance of a "Bush wee"

Bandit really likes his spring rolls

There's a possible scenario between this episode and "Daddy Robot" in terms of the timeline.

The takeaway they get in this episode is the same that Bandit is seen eating in the begginning of "Daddy Robot"

Or the takeaway that Bandit eats in "Daddy Robot" leads to them buying more in this ep.

Personally, I'd like to go with the former scenario, since there's not much that changes in terms of the timeline, and it helps keep things interesting in terms of placement. Theoretically, this ep could happen at any time, but its these connections that make the timeline interesting. Other than that, this is the "Trying to break Bandit's limits" episode, and I'm all for it.

Favorite Part: "If grown-ups grow from babies, and only grown-ups have babies, who had the first baby?" - Bingo

Butterflies - Episode 15

Bluey plays butterflies with other next door neighbor.

Debuts and Details:

This marks the debut of everyone's absolute favorite, Judo

Judo mentions a "Casper" during her phone call with Bluey, though no idea if this is pretend or real

Judo apparently has a thing against small children, which included Bingo until the episode's conclusion. This is strange given that Judo is seemingly an only child (although with the later season's tendency of introducing new siblings, it might not be the case).(It's probably from experience)

Bluey's school has a swing.

The backyard sandpit is missing throughout the episode [should be near the tree]

Great episode, but never understood the hate for Judo. Yeah she's rude here, but remember most of these characters are like 5-6-7 y/olds. And it's not like she doesn't like Bingo by the end. Honestly, this is why D+ needs to release "Dirt".

And with that ends another installment on the Unofficial Bluey Timeline. This batch has certainly brought up many details and scenarios for the season 1 timeline. Hopefully we get as much progress on next week's batch, as we cover more of Bluey's friends, a claw and a ball. As always, leave any comments about things I may have missed, and I'll see you next week.

[4mulaone]

I see us talking about messed up fingers and idk if this counts but when i was 10 this one kid dropped a metal tray fresh out of the oven on both my hands and now i cant feel anything in any of my fingertips

u got burnt by the hot oven tray but next time u went to touch the hot oven tray u were indestructable to its damage. in this way our scars make us beautiful 💖 hope this helps

[avengerslittleone]

One day at Sparrow academy sloane runs to your room and says hay sweetheart you ready to fight and you have to be big for mama ok and you say otay mama and then you use your super speed and and you stand next to your mama and then you jump down and say who the hello are you and stand in front and your eyes start glowing and you say leave now or die at the hands of 014 and then sloan stands behind you and rubs your back and then ben say stop that and then your father says and this is y/n know as 8 and ben says more like the big baby and your father says well they are very powerful and then a fight started and you got thrown through a window by Victor and then when the fight stoped sloane ran up to you and helped you get patches up by grace and then you slipped and you made grabby hands and said upie and sloane carried you to her room and you pulled at her top and she says baby are you sure you want mama’s milkie and then when you drank sloane kept telling you that you did so good and mama is so proud of you and then later on you sat in your onesie and you were sucking on your pacifier and you were playing with your toys when ben and Marcus came in and sloane say please don’t tell the others and and ben says hay everyone come here look the freak turned into baby freak and then you throw ben and Marcus out and sloane says hay baby look at mama its ok and she rubs your back to calm down and then you say mom can I erase there memory and then sloane says baby you can’t come in mama’s bed room tonight ok and you say milkie waiter and tory and sloane says ok baby yes let’s see what they want and you all went to dinner and you did not see your chair at the table and you say where is my chair and ben says oh a baby can’t sit on there own they need high chairs and then you say nope and Marcus says or you can sit on your mommy’s lap and then you say how about I erase your memory of that and then they say we have all pictures of you and then you sit on sloane’s lap and she starts feeding you and then after dinner you take a shower and later on you hear a knock at the door and you see a big gorilla like man and sloane says baby you know your not suppose to open the door and she stares at luther and she picks you up and Luther says are they a little and you say how did you know and luther say’s well in am a daddy and sloane say’s well I am there mama and you say nos I hab mama and dada and sloane say’s would you like to luther and he say’s I would love to and then sloane says baby it’s night night time and then luther says ok come on and then luther puts you on your bed and he says I see you like books and comics and then sloane starts unbuttoning her top and luther says so you are a really little one ha and sloane says ok power baby dada is going to read you tonights story and luther says how about I tell you a story and once you were asleep sloane put your pacifier in your mouth and luther kisses your forehead and put your stuffy chimp in your arms and tucks you in and sloane turns on the baby Monitor and kisses you on the forehead and then they left your room and then the next morning Sloane changed you and put together your diaper bag and she picked you up and told you to wake up dada and luther woke up to a happy little y/n jumping on the bed and he picks you up and puts you in the portable crib and you whine and babble and then luther says I know little one but dada does not want you to get hurt and then sloane walks in holding a tray of food and then luther picks you up and feeds you food and then you spent the hold day playing with dada and then you went with him and mama and you hid behind him and then the others came and and you were thrown again and luther and sloane ran over to you and luther says victor why I was going to introduce you all to my child and five says you mean little one and then you woke up and you heard dada say something about getting married to mama and then later you were the flower person and you were now there legal child and then you got thrown with dada after you were stuck with him with out

Mama and you both looked high and low for her and eventualy found her and you all lived your life’s.

[is-the-primate-vid-cute]

Was wondering what your thoughts were on Koko the gorilla? Especially in regards to her husbandry? I’ve done enough research to pretty confidently say the answer is NOT CUTE, but I’m also not a specialist and there is a lot of conflicting information about her. I’d also be interested in hearing your thoughts on the sign language controversy if you wanted to discuss it? (I definitely have my own suspicions but again, have no actual experience with primates.) Absolutely no pressure though!

Regardless, thank you for what you are doing and have a nice day!

Very little is researchable in regards to the husbandry because the Gorilla Foundation she was housed in for most of her life had employees sign NDAs; this is pretty standard in big-name facilities so it's not a red flag.

Here is a source on the lesser-known sexual harassment controversy due to Koko's interest in nipples.

Here is an episode about Koko on a podcast I personally love, You're Wrong About- highly recommend!

I've yet to see an unedited video of her signing a complete complex phrase. She undoubtedly knew an impressive vocabulary, but lacked syntax and grammar and was most likely prompted or otherwise encouraged (even unintentionally Clever-Hans-style). Penny Patterson raised Koko and took her, with permission, from the San Francisco Zoo to be taught how to communicate. Patterson had some troubling views about their relationship. She referred to Koko as her daughter and when the San Francisco Zoo wanted to integrate Koko back into the troupe and get her into the breeding program, Patterson refused and enlisted social media to speak out and the zoo stepped down. I believe as someone who cared about Western Lowland Gorillas (currently critically endangered), she would see the value Koko could bring to the Species Survival Plan. But she is not a zoologist or a biologist. She's a psychologist.

There's something really special about Koko though because before her fame, gorillas were seen as primitive, smelly, small brained, less impressive apes. When we were finding out chimps and orangutans used tools in the 60s scientists at the time quickly dismissed gorillas as too dumb to even attempt experimenting on. Koko's fame in the 70s sparked public imagination and curiosity about apes and gorillas and people saw animals as capable of feeling and expressing emotion. Even after death her name is a household name in America and I think that's so special that she's remembered for enjoying rhymes and cats and being scared of ice cube trays and being able to communicate that she felt grief during a time when it was highly contested if animals had emotions.

Rest in peace, Koko and may her memory be a blessing.

[blog-of-a-multitude-of-fandoms]

Arcade- Nathan Young

Pairing: Nathan Young x Reader

Characters: Nathan Young, Simon Bellamy

Warnings: N/A

Request: N/A

Word Count: 479

Author: Aaron

“What do you mean no? You cheap fuckin’ bastard. Give me the money or watch what happens!” It was hard to hear Nathan over the whirring of the machines and the cries of you from the children that darted in an out of the arcade. “Give me that juicy pot of 2p coins or watch what happens.”

“Nathan. You knew we were all going to the seaside today, why didn’t you bring any money?” Simon asked as he fed dull 2p coins into the machine.” Nathan swung his arms around and groaned moodily. “It’s like bringing a child, actually, forget that, the children here are actually kind of behaving themselves and I wouldn’t want to insult them.” Nathan lunged at Simon, you pushed Nathan back and gave him a stern finger point.

“Why are we even in the arcade anyway? Isn’t there better things we could be doing with our day off?”

“We all agreed on going to the beach.” Simon smiled as a small tower of coins fell into his tray. “Actually Nathan, It was your idea to go to the beach.”

“Yes you absolute chimp, I wanted to go to the beach. The keyword being beach not the fucking arcade. I thought we were going to lie on the sand, check out some babes, you know? I was actually thinking me and y/n could leave you mugs behind and find a nice little cove to erect a sandcastle, you know?” Nathan gave you a cheeky wink but was met with a harsh glare.

“I will funnel sand into your penis Nathan.”

“Oh.” He smiled devilishly. “A kinky one, are we? Look if I must be here then at least give me something to do, I’m bored out of my head here, even I’m not desperate to hit on the biddies working here. I’m good for it, I’ll give it back to you when we get back, I promise.” He slumped his shoulders forward and leant against the sticky wall.

“No, you won’t.” Simon stood from the dirty stool and held his small cup of winnings; the fifteen minutes of play had netted him a total of about of about four pence of winnings, but it was still better than nothing. “You still owe me a can of coke from about four months ago.”

“I keep forgetting, not my fault.” Nathan shrugged as he sadly watched a pair of children play air hockey across the arcade.

“I remind you every time we go to the shop, and all that happens is you ask me to buy you another can.”

“Nathan if I give you some money will you shut up and leave us alone and do you promise not to spend it on drugs?” You reached into your pocket and held a ten pound note in the air.

“I can’t promise that.” He snatched the note and ran.

[lyrazehedgieboiii]

Sonic catches Amy reading / writing sonadow fan fiction?

LMAO YES, THANK YOU FOR REQUESTING THIS ONE, I WANTED TO DO THIS SOOOOO BAD. ALSO SORRY THIS WAS LATE.

Sonic was over at Amy’s house, enjoying some cookies and tea, because goddamnit, her double chocolate-chip cookies were to die for.

  “Thanks for inviting me over, Ames. These cookies are sooo good!” Sonic moaned in delight. Amy giggled.

   “You’re welcome, Sonic. I made some for Tails, but the poor little guy was up all night working on an invention, so I put some cookies on the counter for him, and wrote a note, so he knows I made them.” Amy said, as she put the tray down on the coffee table. “Anyways, I’m going to change, you can turn on the T.V. Okay?” Sonic nodded. She went to her room, and Sonic watched as her sway her hips. He got a little excited, but controlled it. He turned his head back and turned on the T.V. Please be Comedy Chimp, please be Comedy Chimp-

And it’s a drama. Wait no. It’s a play. It’s Hamilton. Wait, wasn’t it supposed to be on Disney Plus on July 3rd? Oh welp, might as well watch this. Sonic remembered the time he and the gang found Amy’s script, and they acted to it. He looked in the drawer that it was originally in, only to find a book labeled ‘Sonadow.’ Curious to what it was, he opened it, and skimmed to a random chapter. It said ‘Pregnancy Test.’ He started reading until he realized that Shadow and himself were the protagonists of the story. Shadow was the pregnant one. This book was in Amy’s house. In. Her. Drawer.

   “Okay I’m back-” Amy stopped in her tracks when she saw Sonic holding the book. She immediately thought of excuses and stories to why she had that book. She wrote it, but was glad that she hadn’t written her name down in the book, otherwise it would get very weird between them. “That’s n-not mine...” Sonic appeared quite flustered.

    “Then who does it belong to?” Sonic asked, his eyes twitching in what seemed to be anger.

    “...Would you believe me if I said it belonged to Lyra?” Amy replied, hoping Sonic would actually fall for that.

   “Makes sense, I guess. I mean, I thought she shipped...well...us?” Sonic blushed deeper while saying.

   “S-she has many ships, so don’t expect her to have just one...” She knew that Lyra had OCD’s when even thinking about Sonadow, but it was the only reasonable excuse she had, she didn’t want it to become awkward between them.

  “O-Oh...y-you haven’t read this, have you?” He asked her.

  “I saw the title and understood immediately...” She said cautiously. She knew Sonic very well, but at a time like this, she was very confused as to what his reaction would be.

  “That girl is going to publicly humiliate me one day.” Sonic nervously chuckled. Amy repeated his actions, not sure of what to do now.

  “I-I’ll give it back to her later, why don’t you just eat the cookies and pretend you never saw that?” Amy said in a rushed expression. Sonic noticed and decided not to think too much of it.

  “...Okay...” He hesitated before saying.

- TIME SKIP!!!! -

Amy was sitting in her room, doing something on her laptop that had her complete focus, Sonic observed. He made some sounds on purpose to see how Amy would react, but she didn’t even seem to notice.

   “What is she doing? She’s never this distracted.” Sonic thought out loud, only to hear Amy giggle while typing something in. She looked like she was about to swoon. She started cracking up, and put the laptop on the edge of the bed, which was on the other side, and she got on her back and tried to take deep breaths. Sonic snuck in through her windows, which have no glass and are covered by tapestries. He started reading whatever she was typing and saw Shadow’s name.

  “Ah~ I just love Sonadow~ It has a better chance of being canon than SonAmy will ever have.” She said, completely unaware of the second person in her room. Sonic got up and cleared his throat. Amy’s eyes immediately widened, her eyesight never leaving the ceiling. “IS SOMETHING LYRA WOULD SAY HEHEHEHEH...” Amy nervously continued saying, before taking the computer.

   “Then how come you were writing it?” Sonic asked in a disapproving tone.

    “Uh...Lyra was asking me to edit it, so I was helping?” Sonic still looked unconvinced. he yanked the laptop out of her hands.

   “Why the fuck do you think that SonAmy has a less chance of being canon compared to Sonadow?” He questioned, waving the laptop in the air.

   “Well, you would never like me, and you’re always arguing with Shadow and you just seem like you enjoy his company more than when you’re with me.” Amy replied sadly, her ears drooping.

  “Ames, I enjoy your company! I just tease him that he’s slow, that’s all. No romantic feelings for him. Just rivalry and friendship!” Sonic exclaimed. Amy giggled.

 “But wouldn’t you like to be more with him?” Amy asked, scooting closer.

  “Eww, no. He’s too emo. I prefer girls.” Sonic said, dropping the laptop on the bed, and putting his hands behind his head.

   “Yeah, I know. I see how you always flirt with them...” Amy responded with a melancholy tone. Sonic noticed this and got an idea.

   “Welp, I gotta go...run, and stuff like that.” And with that, Sonic zips off to who-knows-where. Amy quickly grabs her laptop and clicks the publish button.

- MEANWHILE WITH SONIKKU -

Sonic went to Lyra’s house to get something, and he went back to his hut in less than two seconds.

  “Okay, Sonamy. What are lemons...” Sonic zoned out, wondering what on Mobius citrus had to do with Sonic and Amy. Sonic wasn’t a huge fan of having anything with lemons in it, and he knew that Amy doesn’t really make sour or bitter foods. He clicked on what said Sonamy boom lemons, and saw that there were a lot of chapters. He went to the first one, and started reading. “Oh. OH. OHHHHH MY CHAOS, HOLY SHIT! THAT’S A LEMON?! AND WHY THE FUCK IS MY DICK ONLY FOUR INCHES IN THIS STORY?! IT’S MORE THAN THAT-” Sonic stopped himself when he realized that he was upset over his member size and not the fact that Amy was taking control of him in this story.

   “I need something...AH! Here! This is perfect.” Sonic smirked at his idea, and then ran to Amy’s house to bring his idea to action.

  “Sonic?” Amy answered the door, and her face was showing shock. Sonic walked towards her, until she was leaning against the back of her couch.

  “My beautiful Ames, my gorgeous Rose, how would you like to go on a date with me?

   “I-I-I-I...what?” Amy asked flustered at the sudden and definitely unexpected question.

   “Did I stutter? If anything, you were the one stuttering. I know, I’d be stuttering too, if I were to ask me out on a date~” Sonic repeated himself, adding a witty comment in that.

  “Are you Sonic?” Amy cautiously questioned, hoping this wasn’t another prank by Morpho.

  “I am, Amy. Sonic the Hedgehog, Fastest Thing Alive.” Sonic proudly stated. Amy giggled.

  “So you are. Why are you asking me out on a date? Is this to prove that you’re not into Shadow?”

  “No. I’m asking you out because I want to, and you better say ‘yes’ or I’m just going to nag you until you do.”

  “Okay, okay. Yes. I’ll go on a date with you, but what’s up with your sudden flirtiness? You never act like this, let alone with me.” Amy inquired. That made Sonic smirk.

   “Why not? I have to be your dream hedgehog, otherwise you’d ship Silver with Shadow.” Sonic responded. Amy shook. Sonic got worried by her weird uncharacteristic actions. “Amy! Why are you shaking? Are you okay?” He saw that her eyes were glossed with tears. “Amy! Are you crying?” He honestly didn’t know what to do, hug her? That’s what Amy does whenever someone’s crying. He wrapped his arms around her, genuine worry crawling over his features. Amy flinched as soon as his hands touched her, and she backed away after taking in everything.

-----------STOP HERE------------------- There are two endings for this story. Right under this is the humorous one, and below that is the one for hopeless romantics.

      “Okay Sonic, game’s over. What do you want?” Amy asked after attempting to ignore the weird twitch and tingles in her body.

     “Whatever do you mean, Amelia?” Sonic responded in a dreamy tone. Amy rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips.

    “Do you even like me? You only flirt with every other girl, apparently not me...unless you’re trying to get or prove something...” Amy hesitatingly tells him, puzzled as to why he was acting charming to her. Sonic’s cheeks and ears turned a deep shade of red.

   “...Maybe, but I only flirt for a reason-”

   “Don’t give me that shitty excuse, Sonic the Hedgehog. You’re a terrible liar, and I don’t want to hear it.” Amy sassed out, which wasn’t surprising to Sonic, because ever since they all moved to Hedgehog Village, her attitude changed, as so her habits.

   “But it’s not...I actually like you! And if I have to chase you for the rest of my life to prove it, so be it! I’ll run everywhere just to look for you! I want you~!” Sonic whispered in her ear, after giving it a nip and kiss.

   “Please don’t. I don’t want our reputations tarnished because you decide to run after me like some kind of weirdo. Honestly, I should’ve written that you were the pregnant one,” (anyone noticed the fanfiction reference? :D) Amy stated bluntly. Sonic took two steps towards her. He leaned his face in her’s.

  “Say that again, Pinky.” Sonic warned as her arms went around his neck. He heard a ‘POOF,’ and sweatdropped.

   “What did you call me, Blue Boy?” She queried. Sonic started to sweat and blushed once again at the sudden closeness. His confidence then returned out of nowhere.

   “I called you, Pinky. What’s the matter? Don’t like it?”  Sonic smugly replied. Amy glared at him.

   “It’s not that, it’s just that I’m getting turned on by the second~.” Amy lustfully said, biting her bottom lip. Sonic widened her eyes.

  “W-WHAT?!” Sonic shrieked out, not knowing whether to pounce or to run away.

   “Why are you acting all jumpy? You literally just bit my ear in a seducing tone!” Amy yelled out at him, her sexy act forgotten. Sonic looked heavily disturbed at Amy’s choice of words.

   “Seducing?!” Sonic squeaked. Amy was trying her best not to swoon at how adorable she found that squeak to be.

    “Yes! Don’t you want me?!” Amy hollered, her own cheeks burning up.

    “Okay, fine! Yes! Now can we get to the part where we say how we feel and kiss?” Sonic uttered out.

     “I love you!” Amy exclaimed. You shouldn’t be shocked by her boldness, as she’s been like that all her life.

    “I-I l-lo-love you too!” He responded. There was practically steam coming out of their ears by the amount of blushing that was happening.

    “Let’s kiss!” Before Sonic could respond, Amy pounced on him and tackled his lips. They both felt fireworks soar through their body, shivering at the new sensation that they gave each other.

   “Give me a strip show, baby~” Sonic inaudibly murmured in her ear.

   “Only if you use protection.”

   “What’s the fun in that?!”

HOPELESS ROMANTIC ending----------

   “I-I’m sorry.” She breathed out in a troubled voice. She slammed the door shut, and ran to her room sobbing. Sonic was confused. What did he do wrong? He knocked on the door, before remembering that this was Amy Rose. She never opened the door when she was upset, she just wants to be alone.

  ‘Well, not today!’ Sonic thought, as he broke down Amy’s door. He was going to have hell to pay, but it would be worth it. He went to her bedroom door and heard her crying. He did the same thing that he had did with Amy’s front door, and saw her face-first on the bed. He tip-toed towards her, and crawled on top of her. She looked so fragile in this state, that he just wanted to hug her sadness away.

  “Ames, if you’re ready to talk, why are you crying?” Sonic gently raised her chin up and asked.

  “Haven’t you wondered why I even like Sonadow fanfiction?” Amy asked her love interest. Sonic thought for a moment, and realized that not even he knew why she liked it. It was probably the most random thing she’d be into, and the ship itself was very random.

  “Never really thought about it during the thirty minutes in which everything happened. It actually makes me think about it now.” Sonic told her. She wrapped her arms around his torso, which caused Sonic to stiffen. After a few moments, he began to rock her side-to-side to calm her down.

  “I thought you’d never love me, so I tried to keep my mind out of reality...” She said, sniffling in between. “At first, I started reading fanfiction. I saw SonAmy fanfiction, and it broke my heart seeing it. I read Sonadow, and it still hurt, but I just couldn’t get enough of it, next thing I know, I’m writing a popular story on Fanfiction platforms and the compliments and comments I get makes me feel happy. Even though it injures my heart too much...” Amy sobbed. Sonic lowered his eyelids.

  “Amy, if it’s giving you a heart-ache, then why do you still do any of that?” Sonic queried. Amy gave an emotionless chuckle.

  “People say that I make them happy writing the fanfiction. They smile, and I’m happy that I make them happy. Even if it pains me to do it.” Amy smiled. (Lmao don’t worry, it doesn’t happen to me) Sonic couldn’t tell whether it was because she was happy genuinely, or her clouded, closed mind was telling her that she was happy. She clearly wouldn’t be happy if it gives her pain.

  “Then stop it. It hurts you, so you should stop. You’re basically telling yourself to feel the pain.” Sonic told her while stroking her quills gently. He kissed her forehead and continued. “Start connecting with your friends and soon-to-be-boyfriend, please.” Sonic said, trying to keep a straight face as he felt her jolt up.

  “When you say soon-to-be-boyfriend, do you mean, you?” Amy asked, trying her hardest not to wag her tail in excitement.

   “Who else? Plus, don’t hide your tail, I wanna see it~.” Sonic lustfully whispers in her ear. She took her hands off her of her tail, letting it sway in happiness. Sonic, being a perverted, hormonal 19 year old, got an idea.

...

...

...

  “SONIC! WHAT THE FUCK-” Amy squealed as Sonic actually had the nerve to pull her tail.

   “I wanna see more~”

   “You wanna see more?” She mused. She raised up her dress a little more...

    “YOU’RE GONNA HAVE TO MARRY ME IF YOU WANT TO TOUCH ME!” Amy exclaimed, taking Sonic off guard.

   “I JUST BECAME YOUR BOYFRIEND! ONE STEP AT A TIME, AMES!” Sonic yelled back.

   “SO?! IF YOU WANT THIS BODY, THEN YOU’LL HAVE TO VOW TO IT!” Amy continued. Sonic made a face.

   “WELL I LOVE YOU, MY BEAUTIFUL ROSE!” Sonic unexpected shouted.

   “ISN’T SCREAM THERAPY WONDERFUL?! IT MAKES YOU REVEAL YOUR THOUGHTS MUCH EASIER THAN JUST SAYING THEM! ALSO, I LOVE YOU TOO, YOU LITTLE SHIT!” Amy screamed.

   “WILL YOU BE MY GIRLFRIEND?!”

   “ONLY IF YOU BE MY BOYFRIEND!”

    “GOOD!”

    “FANTASTIC!”

And they all lived happily ever after, (Eggman is in his lair fangirling with me) THE END.

[majordomo-zazu]

@jabbers-wild-world​ liked x

 Zazu was woken up as always by the sound of his keeper opening the gate. He ruffled his feathers and hopped out of his nest-box to watch the woman fill the trays where he and the other animals in his aviary got their food and water, and scoop up his leavings from the previous night. The human smiled and said something to him that Zazu could not understand, but he tilted his head and chirped and it made her laugh like it always did. When she had left the aviary and closed the gate behind her, Zazu had his breakfast, flapped his wings to remove the stiffness, then flew to the top of his enclosure.

 There was a branch at the very top of the fake tree from which he could practically see the whole zoo and most of the city beyond. The lions were immediately across the visitor from him, his closest neighbours, but the back wall of his aviary touched the back wall of the crocodile pool, beyond which lay the elephant habitat. The mixed hoofstock paddock and the chimpanzee troop were too his left and right, and his view of them was mostly obstructed unless a giraffe stood in the right spot, or a chimp climbed up the right frame. None of these animals were out yet, so Zazu ruffled his feathers, threw his back, and screeched out his daily spiel.

 “Good morning zoo residents! This is Zazu with your morning announcements.” Though little, his voice was large enough to carry across the whole zoo. Even if his fellow animals didn’t really listen to what he said, it at least woke them up. 

“Today is field-trip day, so do be sure to put in that extra effort to make a show of yourself, but remember to be educational! As we are dealing with large groups of children your daily reminder to not be aggressive is especially important, as is the reminder to absolutely not eat anything that may be thrown into your exhibit, no matter how tantalising the smell! The gates open in half an hour: rise and shine everyone!”

[irwintry]

How to Attract a Sea Bear

Warnings: swearing, alcohol

Author’s Note: 1. Play the clarinet badly 2. Wave a flashlight back and forth really fast (flashlights are their natural prey) 3. Stomp on the ground (they take it as a challenge) 4. Eat cubed cheese – sliced is safe 5. Wear a sombrero in a goofy fashion 6. Wear clown shoes 7. Wear a hoop skirt 8. Screech like a chimpanzee 9. Run (makes them attack again) 10. Limp (worse than running) 11. Crawl (worse than limping)

Word Count: 6k

But now I am Six, I'm as clever as clever, So I think I'll be six now forever and ever.”

― A.A. Milne, Now We Are Six

-

Up until Luke, there were two types of people in the world. Those who were family (the ones who had to love you unconditionally no matter how many walls you scribbled Patrick Star on) and those who were your classmates. Close friends weren’t in the picture yet. Though public school had been going on for nearly two years now, you were perfectly content with keeping to yourself in the back of the classroom. A sheet of paper and a crayon were enough to keep you happy.

And then, Luke Hemmings had to come and ruin it all.

It was his first day of school after moving to town, and he decided to waltz right up to you and compliment your drawing of the Krusty Krab. If you had kept your mouth shut, you weren’t sure what would have happened. Maybe he would have kept bothering you. But instead, you said “thank you”, and he sat down right at your table while you went on about his funny accent. The other kids stared, of course. You never talked to anyone! Not even the teacher.

When you asked your parents if you could have Luke over for a playdate, they nearly cried. You took the time to introduce him to all of your toys, and he listened. And he was willing to play with them! No one could believe it. Of all of the people on the earth to become your first best friend, they were thrilled to know that it was the nicest one possible.

Slumber parties were common, mostly so the two of you could watch cartoons together the next morning with Eggo waffles or Lucky Charms. Couches became forts while your parents tried their best not to think of the future potential the friendship could have. It was hard not to hope for their child to love someone as wonderful as Luke was to you.

First years became second years, then third to fourth, and nothing changed between the two of you. You couldn’t imagine it ever changing. Not at all.

-

“He was thirteen that year, the age when children splinter off and abandon the old loves.” ― Mark Costello

-

“If you don’t change the channel, I’ll sit on your face and suffocate you.”

“Thank god you said you’d kill me, otherwise that doesn’t sound like much of a threat.”

Luke had been in this situation with you a million times. Your place or his– he was used to constant back-and-forth banter. If there was no banter, then the two of you were most likely not together. The friendship of crude humor and gross farts had only just entered teendom, though Luke couldn’t imagine a thing would change. He knew you didn’t have cooties, and vice versa (he hoped). It didn’t matter. The seven-years-in-the-making friendship meant more than the jokes of scrawny preteens.

“I give you four seconds,” he said.

“Why four?”

“Three... two...”

“That’s a dumb– “

“One!” Luke pounced on you, his arms darting to taser your sides as you screamed and squirmed. Meanwhile, the two capri-suns had fallen to the hardwood with a small splat. “Stop screeching like a damn chimp,” he hissed, but he couldn’t hold in his laughter. “Sea bears don’t like that.”

“Don’t– “ You gasped for air, and finally, you were able to kick him off of you. The remote had dropped down to the floor beside the leaking drink pouches. “Don’t care. I’ll screech like a damn chimp if I wanna.”

“Your mum’s gonna hate that you swore.”

“Your mum is gonna hate that you swore.” You glanced down to the fallen heroes beside you. “You owe me a new Roarin’ Waters.”

“Only if you put on Spongebob.”

“Fine.”

Things were as simple as that. Luke never had to worry about upsetting you, nor you with him, and it all narrowed down to the similar personalities that had developed throughout the past three years. If Luke didn’t have you, he wouldn’t know who he would be.

He had a premonition– a hopeful tug at his heart when he thought what was to come between the two of you. Maybe it had been this way all along. Every side glance or puckered expression made sense in his mind. The humor the two of you shared was unlike any other, and he simply couldn’t fathom the possibility that someone else out there would one day share it with you as well. Luke had never considered himself a jealous person until the few times at your locker or during lunch when he wasn’t the only one in your world.

How could he have let himself get this attached to someone? It would take him years to know.

-

“Did I think he was “the one?” I’ll never know. At sixteen, everyone is “the one.”

― K.A. Tucker, Ten Tiny Breaths

-

It was a rare occurrence for you to keep a secret from Luke. You told him about your celebrity crushes and your desire to write fanfiction (there were minor judgments on his part). You told him about the darker sides to your parents’ divorce, and you always opened up to him about whatever insecurity was going through your mind. However, when your friend Hailey asked you who you though the hottest guy in school was, you knew you would never be able to let him know that you had said his name.

It was the age of formals and sappy first dates, though you still felt too young to understand the complexity of relationships. While everyone else was exploring new ways to make-out, you were too busy trying to get comfortable with yourself. Tight jeans, flannel shirts, and skater shoes were the keys to unlocking the ultimate prize when it came to high school. And Luke, well, the ultimate prize had won him.

You became the way to his heart. In order to get to him, everyone had to get through you. At first, being the gatekeeper didn’t seem all that bad. You controlled who was worthy. If they had done a few sketchy things within the past year, then Luke – through your words – just so happened to not have feelings for them.

As the year went on, more people were turned away, and things became, well, weird. Truth be told, every single person who went to you to seek out Luke was told he, unfortunately, was not interested in them, even if it wasn’t true. You were speaking through jealousy, not facts, and you never figured he would catch on.

So, when he did, naturally, it blew up in your face.

“Did you actually tell Marissa McKee that I didn’t like her?”

The walk home had been silent for quite some time. You could tell his outburst had been building ever since school let out.

“Like, what the actual fuck, Y/N?”

You huffed, stuffing your hands into the pockets of your fluffy sweatshirt. “H-how was I supposed t’know that you liked her?”

Luke chuckled dryly. “Jesus. I told you two weeks ago! You’re supposed to know because we’re best friends. Best friends know that shit. Best friends don’t tell the person their friend likes that they don’t like them back.”

“’m sorry.”

“How could you not know?” he continued. “Like– Jesus.”

You couldn’t figure out what else to say, and neither could Luke. The two of you parted ways a moment later once you turned on his block, and then it was only another neighborhood over in order to get to your place.

It wasn’t rocket science, but you couldn’t figure it out at the time. All you knew was that it possibly had something to do with calling him the hottest guy in school, but you left it at that.

-

“I wish," he said, "I had known at eighteen what I know now - that there are some things on which one does not compromise.”

― Mary Balogh, Simply Perfect

-

“Don’t eat that,” Luke said, voice rushed as his hand jumped to grasp yours. He had a point about his itchy sweater; the red, wool material scratched your skin, albeit barely grazing it. “Do you want to attract a sea bear? ‘m not a big fan of having to clean up blood from my mum’s carpets.”

You tried to keep a straight face as you lifted the cubed cheese off of the tray despite Luke’s request. “The final touch,” you mumbled and set a bland cracker just under the Swiss cube.

His eyes widened. “You’re a dumbass. A real, lactose-intolerant dumbass.”

“Shut up,” you replied with a smirk. But the cubed cheese wasn’t as good as you were hoping it would be.

The Hemmings Christmas parties carved the path for your favorite time of year. Somehow, the snow knew when to fall as ugly sweaters gathered in the living room you used to watch Teen Titans in. Cocktails and hors-d'oeuvres were served on platters, and children danced around legs longer than their own height. And the decorations... sometimes, you had no words. Everything had a place, and everything had a purpose.

This year, your nerves were on high alert. In years past, you and Luke would spend the majority of the night by each other’s side, making snide comments or talking “grown up” with other adults. His girlfriend came into the picture months ago. Nevertheless, she was invited, and she was late. You didn’t know what to do once she got here.

Luke’s nerves were also on high alert. It was the first time Lara was meeting his family, and her lack of punctuality was already not making a great impression. The funny part of it all was the fact that cared more about your impression overall. He needed your approval, whether he wanted to believe it or not. You were the only person who knew him better than he did.

The air stiffened when Lara walked in. Luke didn’t know why he noticed it, but he had, and maybe it was because he knew you better than you knew yourself as well. He could sense every dropped composure or change in expression. He convinced himself it was the twelve years of friendship that caused him to read you so intently. But he couldn’t let all of this bother him.

He hardly saw you throughout the next few hours of the night. And then, it was charades time.

“Ready to have your ass kicked for the fifth year in a row, Lukey?” you said with a smile so sweet it could melt anyone with eyes into a sugary puddle.

Luke shrugged, and his shoulders itched with the movement of his sweater. “Can you even reach my ass?”

“I have my secrets.” You plopped down into the chair across from him and began scribbling down ideas onto tiny slips of paper.

“A secret to reaching my ass? That sounds– “

“Hey, shut it,” said Liz, but she had cracked a smile. “Let’s get on with the game.”

You prided yourself in being the ultimate charades actor. Luke, on the other hand, could hardly figure out how to act out Ghostbusters. But, like you had a secret to reaching his ass, he had a secret to stumping you and your team. It was a miracle it even worked.

“Shit,” you muttered, reading the slip of paper in between your small fingers. Your eyes met his and immediately hardened into a glare. “Die.”

Luke burst into a small fit of laughter, and he hardly felt Lara’s grip on his hand loosen as he focused all of his attention onto you. With a sigh, you held up six fingers.

“Six words,” said his uncle. “Shit, really?”

You rolled your eyes before bringing your hands in front of you to begin acting. You tried your best to look as though you were playing clarinet, though a few other instruments had been shouted out as you kept going. A moment later, you were stomping and holding up the tray of cubed cheese while pounding on your chest like a damn chimp. Luke made sure he took a mental picture of this. He could never forget this moment.

“Time’s up,” Liz yelled through the loud chatter. “What the actual hell was that?”

You narrowed your eyes at your blond best friend and spat, “how to attract a fucking sea bear,” before running over to his spot on the couch to tackle him. His chest hurt from the laughter booming from his lungs, and he could hardly feel his face aside from the occasional burning of his cheeks.

Someone mumbled “that’s seven words”, but neither of you could hear as he attempted to push you off of him. Luke’s senses were overwhelmed. The loud laughing and shouting of the small yet crowded room, plus you being practically on top of his lap at the same time, were sending his brain into some euphoric state.

And somehow, he knew it would all come crashing down.

Lara took him aside moments later. “If you want to keep me around– “

Luke didn’t like where this was going.

“–you will keep your hands off of Y/N.”

Luke didn’t know how to say no.

-

“Everyone, at nineteen, is dumb and beautiful in equal parts...”

― Raphael Kadushin

-

need iced coffee rn

wanna come?

Luke had his comforter pushed up to his nose. Being home for the holidays meant feet dangling off of childhood beds, his mother’s infamous casseroles, and best of all, plenty of time to spend with you. He rubbed his tired eyes before slowly sitting up to answer your text.

You buying?

He replied and sighed, rubbing his neck and pushing his weight out of the twin-sized bed. The small murmur of chatter from the kitchen filled his ears, and if he was honest, he didn’t want to join the conversation. All Luke wanted was a long drive with you.

like hell

i’m drivin bitch

gimme gas $$

Luke chuckled at your response as he dug through his bottom drawer for a thin sweatshirt.

Fine I’m in

The next few minutes were filled with wandering around the small (and quite dirty) confines of his carpeted bedroom and humming along to whatever song popped into his sleepy brain. Your car was in the driveway before he realized, and soon, the familiar obnoxious honking bounced around the four walls.

“Luke, tell Y/N to shut the hell up!” shouted Liz from the kitchen, but it was all fun.

He let out another laugh before rushing into the living room and out of the house with a squeaky “g’bye”. You continued honking even when he clambered into the passenger seat, and a part of him wanted to let you keep going. You were smiling so damn big.

“Shut the fuck up,” he said, hitting your hand away from the steering wheel. “Liz was seconds away from beating you up.”

“Tell her I want that,” you replied before pressing resume on whatever song had been playing on your phone. “If Liz can take me in a fight, then I don’t need goals. Like, I’m set for life after that.”

“Oh, but fighting me is just second nature?”

You shrugged as you began backing out of the driveway. “Yeah, I mean, you’re weak, so...”

“Fuck you.”

“Bet ya wish ya could.”

“I– “ Luke didn’t have a comeback, so he cut himself off.

You gasped. “Does that mean you actually want to fuck me?”

“No!” he exclaimed, his voice jumping up to a much higher octave (which usually occurred whenever he had to defend himself... it was either that, or he was lying).

You giggled, like you usually did when pressing his buttons, and then turned the music up.

Luke hadn’t thought much about sex without anyone else since breaking things off with Lara many months ago. It was tragic but true. No one consumed his mind; he hardly had the time to focus on fancying anyone. He knew how to satisfy himself enough, though Luke couldn’t help but wonder if he was broken. The thought only overwhelmed his mind for a split moment– your poor dancing to the Jonas Brothers distracted him meanwhile.

And then, he was thinking about you.

No, he hadn’t thought about fucking you. For the majority of his life, you felt like family. Hell, you were treated exactly like family. Somehow, along those lines, he still recognized the fact that you were special to him and only him. Years ago, he would have thought it weird to think about you in bed. He still thought it weird, but the more it washed over him, the less acidic the idea tasted on his tongue.

Luke could force the feelings away if he truly wanted to. He could forget he ever spent a moment thinking about you in this way. But instead, he grabbed your dainty hand, wedging his own fingers in between yours before slipping back into the new future his brain was conjuring up for him.

Most of all, you would have no idea that his skin flushed at the thought of spending an evening with you.

-

“He was twenty. I remembered twenty. I'd known everything at twenty. It took me another year to realize I knew nothing.”

― Laurell K. Hamilton, Circus of the Damned

-

His hands held the desire to crush the two plastic cups in his drunken grip. If he focused hard enough, he would trample the toes of ditzy dancers, their hips knocking hard into his path. Instead, his eyes were trained on you. You, with the curve of your neck aimed towards a taller man, were too busy to notice your best friend.

The contents of the one red cup spilled over his angry knuckles. Luke hardly noticed the sharp sensation of plastic digging into his skin until the alcohol hit the feet of innocent bystanders. There were loud yelps and threats, but he didn’t hear a single one. He envisioned the smoke streaming from his ears the moment you leaned into the man whose hand traced circles onto your waist.

Luke locked himself in the bathroom. The white-tiled room proved itself to be more interesting than the crowded college party he originally invited you to. There were pictures of city skylines and prints of surrealist paintings, but he couldn’t stay concentrated on one thing long enough before he lost himself in the thought of that man’s hands on you. Luke could have stopped it if he had the mental strength. But truth be told, he preferred feeling pathetic over disappointing you.

He had managed to get comfortable on the small fuzzy rug in front of the sink. His black t-shirt was covered in some alcoholic drink, and he assumed it had been yours before his fingers did the deed of crushing the solo cup to death. This jealousy had sprung up out of nowhere. If he hadn’t invited you over in the first place, he would have never experienced someone captivating your attention like he was so used to doing himself.

An hour of “occupied” and “someone’s in here” passed by slowly, and Luke spent the entire time checking his phone for texts from you. The same wallpaper of your face photoshopped onto Squidward greeted him every time. It reminded him of when a friend or stranger would ask who you were, and he would spend close to ten minutes trying to convince them that, no, he was not dating you. By that point, he’d rather say yes. He had enough knowledge of you to convince them.

someone said some blond has b een pukig his guts out in trhe bathrom for lik an hour now????

is that u??

are u ok

canm i c ome pee

Luke sighed. At least you had texted him.

Yeah, but I’m not puking

Pls join me

He sighed, resting his head against the wooden cabinet behind him as the sounds of the party echoed in his aching head.

hm ok ;;)

“Knock, knock!” you shouted from outside of the door. “You better be naked.” A few giggles left your lips, and if Luke had been any drunker, his entire body would have burst into flames.

“Comin’,” he mumbled as he lifted himself up gradually. His knees cracked as they bent, and it took most of his energy to not keel over into the porcelain bathtub before him.

You were grinning as he opened the door, your body immediately falling into his chest before closing the door behind you. “Comin’, huh?” you questioned, gripping tightly onto his waist. “Thinkin’ ‘bout me as you came?”

Luke peeled you off of him. His eyes were wide as he asked, “how many drinks have ya had?”

You held up four fingers, or maybe it was five. Or maybe three. Luke couldn’t tell– he didn’t care. You dragged down your pants a moment later.

“W-wh– what are you doing?”

“Goin’ pee,” you replied before sitting yourself down onto the toilet.

Luke sighed again as he turned away from you. This whole night was a terrible decision.

“What are you doin’?” you asked him. Your voice was still light and slurred, but you sounded happy. It was hard for Luke to comprehend the emotions surrounding him at the moment.

“Givin’ you privacy.”

You snorted. “Okay. Fourteen years of like, no privacy at all, and now you decide to give me privacy?”

He tried to focus on the sounds of the party as you spoke. “Mhm.”

There was a loud flush. “So, what’s up your butt t’night baby boo? Why’d ya lock yourself in here?” The sound of rushing water filled the small space, so he turned to face you once more.

Luke shrugged. He had no way of telling you about the jealousy that coursed through his veins at the sight of you pressed against another man. He had no way of communicating the fact that this jealousy ran deeper than just friendship.

“Lukey, I can read ya like a book,” you said, plopping down onto the rug he had just spent a whole hour sitting on and waiting for you to text him.

He shook his head. “Jus’, no reason,” he replied, another shrug following.

You quirked an eyebrow up at him in suspicion. You weren’t going to let him off the hook that easily. “You locked yourself in the bathroom when you received your first college rejection letter.”

“I promise, I’m fine.”

“You say that, but– “

“Are you having a good time?”

“What?” you asked.

Luke leaned back against the door the moment someone knocked their knuckles against it. “Occupied. I said, are you having a good time?”

“Well, yes, but– “

“Then, that’s all that fucking matters.” Luke wanted nothing more to be in bed with you at the foot as you went off about some dramatic contestant on that evening’s episode of Jeopardy. He didn’t want to be in this position with you.

You stood up, your arms folded tightly across your chest. Your eyebrows were knotted, and your lips were pulled into a frown. “What’s your deal?”

“Nothing,” he mumbled out so low he could hardly hear.

“Lu, what is your deal?”

“That fucking guy!” he shouted. “That guy who had you wrapped around his fucking finger is my deal. Okay? Happy? I’m fuckin’ jealous for some fucking reason. I wanted to punch his fuckin’ smirk off of his fuckin’ face because his fuckin’ hands were– “

“You’re jealous of a guy touching me?” you whispered.

Luke wanted to pay a random buff guy to punch him in the face so he could forget this conversation ever happened. That wouldn’t cause you to forget it, but he could at least convince you that you were going crazy.

He let out a long, shaky exhale before bringing his hands up to his temples. “I fucking guess.”

Your lips were pulled into a deep frown. It was the kind of frown that you wore whenever someone disappointed you, no matter how small the issue. If they couldn’t pick up a candy bar from the store, cue the frown.

“Can– can we go?”

Luke nodded. Both of you had accepted defeat.

-

“When you are in your twenties, even if you're confused and uncertain about your aims and purposes, you have a strong sense of what life itself is, and of what you in life are, and might become.”

― Julian Barnes, The Sense of an Ending

-

Luke had, once again, pulled out the old red sweater for the annual Hemmings Christmas party. However, this year, no girlfriends were attending alongside him. It was relieving to know he could catch up with you whilst surrounded by the primitive atmosphere of his immediate family. Plus, he already down one beer before the afternoon began. Despite his (very) minor intoxication, he still convinced himself he was seeing things as the sight of hanging greens and white berries tied with a bright red bow caught his eye.

“Mum, what’s this?”

Liz ambled over and grinned. “Mistletoe! Figured we’d start a new tradition.”

“Wh-what?” He would definitely need another beer within the next hour, and the party hadn’t even started. “Why?”

His mother shrugged as she continued going through her decoration checklist. Wreaths were hung, platters were stacked with all sorts of foods, and champagne flutes were delicately placed beside the many bottles of alcohol. The Hemmings family took their Christmas parties seriously. The large fir in the living room had gifts below the lowest boughs for weeks.

“Jus’ need more excuses to kiss Andy,” she replied smugly.

Luke rolled his eyes, and he almost accepted that as her final answer before she continued.

“The whole family decided that it’s about time you and Y/N get together anyway,” she said, and nonchalantly at that. She was stacking the brownies without bothering to look back to see her son’s gaped expression.

“What?”

She hummed.

“Ya can’t be serious, mum!”

“Of course ‘m serious,” she chuckled. “We swore ya’d be together by now.”

Luke sighed. The past few years had changed your relationship, both distance and different feelings combined, but he tried to ignore it as best as he could. He assumed you were doing the same. By this point, there was no way he could deny the nerves that built in his stomach at the thought of being in the same room as you. Something tugged in his heart when it came to you, and it only ever pulled him closer.

The evening came, and it only took about thirty minutes for the aunts, uncles, and cousins to get absolutely smashed. Luke, on the other hand, cradled his second beer until the glass no longer held a touch of cold. You had willingly joined a few of his cousins for a conversation on the couch, while in the dining room, his uncles were yelling political statements that had no reason to be shouted. Luke was left in the kitchen to analyze the foods.

“Okay, I get that like, marriage is a thing, but I don’t wanna talk about that with your cousins,” you said on your way into the kitchen. You had done something new with your hair, and Luke couldn’t stop thinking about how soft it looked against your dark green sweater. “Don’t eat all of the little smokies!” you wailed, crossing your arms. “Ya fuckin’ animal.”

Luke chuckled and tossed his used toothpick into the trash under the sink. Meanwhile, his eyes caught a glimpse of– “your shoes. What are those? Fuckin’ clown shoes.”

Your mouth fell open. “Meanie. I bought these on sale. ‘m sorry they’re too ugly for your Christmas party.”

“Oh, no, I’m not worried about that,” he said with a grin. “’m worried about the... the sea bear.”

You rolled your eyes and started towards the living room. “Fuck you.”

“Bet ya wish you could,” he replied, following suit.

“Literally, I never– “

“Stop right there!” Liz shouted from across the living room. A little over a dozen heads snapped in the direction of you and Luke, and their smiles only widened. For a moment, Luke couldn’t figure it out.

But then, he looked up.

“Shit,” he mumbled, eyeing the mistletoe that hung above the two of you.

Your eyebrows furrowed as your eyes followed his gaze, and once again your mouth fell open slightly.

“If ya don’t kiss, I’ll beat you up,” threatened someone, and their statement was followed by a bunch of kiss chants that sent Luke’s blood boiling.

He wasn’t angry, nor was he upset. He was nervous. Your eyes were still locked on the dainty branches hanging just above his forehead, and Luke didn’t know what to do. Your lips, the lips that he had thought about kissing for years, were pulled into a small pout.

“We don’t have to,” he mumbled, trying his best to smile through the pain of the situation. But he knew it wasn’t a bad pain. The ache was crawling up his chest and into his throat, preventing his voice from tossing out words that didn’t need to be said.

You shrugged, neck twisting to face the family that had practically become your own after all of these years. If this had occurred years ago, would he feel your hesitance the same? “Let’s just please ‘em,” you sighed with a chuckle. “They won’t let us live it down otherwise.”

“Ya sure?”

You nodded, the small smiling growing ever so slightly as your shoulders rose and fell with grace. “No harm in it.”

Luke nodded, too. You were wrong, however, because if nothing changed after this, the harm would come to him.

“So, we just– “

He took a small step forward, touching the tip of his boots to the tip of your clown shoes. Sure, he had been this close to you hundreds of times before, if not closer, but the proximity meant nothing then. It meant nothing when he crawled on top of you to retrieve the remote. It meant nothing when you attacked him after a game of charades. It meant nothing until he finally realized it always meant something.

Luke inhaled sharply, resting his hands on your waist as you gave him another reassuring smile. He truly loved your smile. “S’okay?” he whispered while leaning in and resisting the urge to back away.

You hummed. Your hands had found their way up to his neck, and his skin burned from the touch. Even without the pads of your fingers dancing along the muscles along his throat, his skin would still burn.

He felt as though years had passed by the time you closed the distance, your bottom lip gently nestling in between his. You put an ample amount of pressure into the kiss, careful not to overstep your boundaries, but Luke’s mind took control after that. His fingers dug into your waist as he took the chance to press his lips a little harder against yours. The skin on his cheeks would melt off if either of you took this a bit further. Every nerve in his body had ignited.

And then you let go, and suddenly everything felt cool again. He didn’t like the sensation of your lips leaving his, but he did like the timid smile that stretched across your blushing cheeks. There were cheers from his parents, hoots and hollers from his uncles and aunts, but he could hardly hear a single thing. Luke needed you to know how that kiss made him feel.

“Um,” he mumbled, letting out a cough as he reached for his beer to take a quick swig. Luke glanced over at the clock on the stove before looking back to you. “Grab your coat and meet me outside.” He took off towards his bedroom a moment later.

The shaking in his hands hadn’t subsided by the time he met you outside. Your teeth were chattering, but you looked too damn adorable in your knit hat. He couldn’t believe that he had kissed you. He couldn’t believe that he had kissed you.

“W-what’s up buttercup?” you stuttered with a great big smile. Maybe you hadn’t minded the kiss at all. Nevertheless, it didn’t make the upcoming conversation any easier.

Luke kicked a chunk of snow onto the sidewalk. “Uh.” He winced, brushing his curls back before adjusting the beanie on his head. “Shit, I don’ really know where to start.” He let out a defeated laugh. His hands were already raw despite the fur-lined pockets of his coat. If only he had brought gloves.

You didn’t say anything as the two of you rounded the corner onto the next street over. The street lamps and porch lights lit the path well with the help of the snow as a reflector. Luke believed that, throughout his sixteen years of knowing you, he had shared secrets much deeper than his fondness towards you. None of them proved to be as nerve-wracking as this moment right here.

“Y’know when we were like, sixteen, and you told the girl I liked that I didn’t like her?” he asked, a hot puff of air hitting his cheeks as he exhaled rapidly. Luke gazed over at you and watched your confused expression tighten.

“I-I think so?”

“I wasn’t really that mad.” Luke wanted to reach out for your hand, similar to the times he would do it just to hold onto something.

“Oh, okay.”

“And the time Lara asked me to stop– “

You snorted. “Fucking hated that bitch.”

Luke smirked in response. “Yeah, that really pissed me off. It destroyed me. I dunno why I didn’t realize that I’d pick you over her any day. Fuck, I’d pick you over anyone.”

“Really?”

Despite the conflict arising in his brain, Luke reached out for your hand, and he was relieved when you gladly complied. “Mhm.” He blinked and breathed out a few times to hopefully steady his heart rate. “’nd when I got mad ‘bout that guy at the party a few years ago.”

“Oh, Lu, I told you I hardly remember– “

“But I do,” he said, frowning. “I was so jealous. Like, so fuckin’ jealous. Didn’t know why. Couldn’t even figure it out. And then, it clicked, and suddenly– “

“What clicked?” You stopped walking, your eyes widening, but just barely.

Luke swallowed thickly. “I jus’– I guess I– “ He sighed. “I don’t even know when I noticed but– “

“Luke,” you chuckled, tugging on his hand, “it’s just me.”

He stared at you, noticing how relaxed you seemed in his presence. You were right, it was just you. He nodded and took one more deep breath. “I’m in love with you.”

Your smile faltered, and in that moment, Luke could feel his heart fall to his feet, but the smile soon grew once again. “Y’are?” You bit your lip.

He could feel his lips twitch into a grin as well as he nodded again, his grip on your hand slackened gently. “Yeah,” he whispered.

In one swift movement, you had your arms wrapped around his neck as you pressed your cold lips to his. Noses bumped, and teeth clashed, but neither of you seemed to care as your embrace tightened. Luke could feel your smile against his chapped cheeks, and he didn’t mind one bit that your toes were on his. He hardly had enough strength to balance the two of you, but if you were to collapse into the snow bank beside the shoveled path, he wouldn’t care one bit.

“Is this– um,” Luke pulled away to look at you. “Does this mean– “

“If you don’t get too bummed over losing charades again for the ninth year in a row, I might just be in love with you, too.”

[writeyouin]

aaahh, thank you so much!! you're definitely cooler, tho òwó since the thighs of thunder comment has inspired me so, how bout a pre-game scenario in which best friends Jack, Will, and reader are hanging out at an ice cream shop or something and during their convo reader "casually" comments that Jack is hella fine, in so many words? maybe she drops the thighs of thunder comment verbatim, LMAO. their reactions are up to you. female preferred, neutral's fine too! (I hope this isn't too vague ;v;)

Jack Joyce X Reader – A Hypothesis

A/N – Ahh, my first fic in awhile, I hope you enjoy it Quantum Anon.

Warnings – Mild language.

Rating – T

The sun cast a warm glow over Riverport, reminding the small town that summer was coming and it was going to be a hot one. You, Will and Jack were seated on a small metal table under the awning of Gabrielle’s, Riverport’s favourite long-time Ice Cream Parlour. Sixties music played lazily from the building’s speakers, setting up the perfect atmosphere for friendly conversations. The general mood from the staff and families inside the building were generally happy since the Ice Cream parlour had recently been saved from bankruptcy by a new company, though you couldn’t remember the name of it; Monty Solutions, or something similar.

All in all, it should have been a marvellous day, and it would have been, if it wasn’t for the on-going tensions between the Joyce brothers. Unless things got better between Will and Jack quickly, you knew Jack would leave Riverport. That was why you’d suggested the outing in the first place; evidently it was a mistake to do so.

“Unbelievable, Will!” Jack exploded from your left, making you flinch. “Seriously, I cannot believe you.”

“As is the definition of unbelievable,” Will countered snarkily from your right.

“Asking me to give up my inheritance for you over some half-baked scheme is crazy. You won’t even tell me what it is!”

“How many times? It’s not a scheme, it’s a scientific endeavour.”

“Call it what you want. It doesn’t change the fact that you’re insane.”

“And you’re insufferable.”

Jack threw up his arms frustratedly, “Why are you even here? (Y/N), why is he here?”

Will rolled his eyes, “I could ask the same thing if it wasn’t so painfully obvious.”

Both men fell silent, turning their hard gazes to you, though Jack softened marginally. You gave an awkward half-smile, having hoped neither of the brothers would have commented on the fact you’d invited them out under false pretences. Both originally thought that it would only be you and them individually; you knew if you’d have told them the truth they wouldn’t have come.

“C’mon guys, it’s not that bad, is it?” You asked helplessly.

“Yes,” They answered simultaneously.

Will’s chair scraped against the sidewalk as he got up, “That’s it. I’m done.”

Irritated by the quick turn of events, you slammed your fist against the table, “Sit down this instant.”

Will eyed you carefully, lowering himself back into his seat. He doubted he would have done the same for anyone else, but he cared about you greatly, even if he didn’t often show it. When the Joyce brothers’ parents passed away and Jack assumed responsibility for Will, you and Paul were the only ones from Jack’s original friend group to stick around through the bad times. As such, Will had grown a sort of detached fondness for you, like you were another sibling there to settle the arguments between him and Jack when they hit a stalemate.

“I invited you both out so we could have a nice day, just like the old times. Remember when we used to come here after school and talk about whatever was bothering us? Jack, when it was your finals, Will helped you study algebra here, and Will, when those idiots in class started bullying you, Jack taught you how to throw a punch here. Now it’s your turn to sit down and stop arguing for one day for me, because this may very well be the last day we get together like this. Can you do that?”

Jack looked away sullenly, mumbling a rushed, “Yeah.”

You glanced at Will who nodded curtly, embarrassed at being reprimanded by you.

“Good. I’m going inside to order now and when I get back, I expect to find the two of you talking nicely.”

Once you’d left Jack spoke again, “Jeez, looks like we made mom mad.”

Will wrinkled his nose disgustedly, “Gross. Don’t tell me you see (Y/N) in a parental light. That is hardly appropriate.”

“What are you talking about? You’re always saying stuff like that.”

“Exactly.”

“What? Wait, you’ve lost me.”

Will sighed, hating that he had to explain the paths his mind took, as usual; he might not have been as agitated about it if he and Jack hadn’t been arguing only minutes before. All the same, he tried to explain his thought-process to Jack, “Okay, think of (Y/N)’s relationship with you like… like an egg.”

“An egg?” Jack echoed.

Will could see from Jack’s confused expression that it wasn’t the time for metaphors. “Okay, forget the egg. Long story short, (Y/N) has a crush on you, so you can’t ever make a parent joke again.”

Jack leaned back in his chair, chuckling to himself, any previous anger towards Will forgotten. “You think (Y/N) has a crush on me?”

“No. I know (Y/N) has a crush on you.”

“No offense Will, but you’re hardly good at reading people.”

“Once again, you’ve proved my point. I,” Will pointed to himself, “Can’t read social cues. It’s rare that I’m ever sure what people think or feel, so when I say I know-”

“-You know,” Jack finished thoughtfully. “Alright, I’m game. How do we prove your crazy hypothesis?”

Will looked through the parlour window to make sure you weren’t coming out any time soon. There were a few people in front of you, so he figured he had some time if he spoke as fast as his mind went. He leaned closer to Jack, “Okay. You’re basically a male chimp.”

Jack raised an eyebrow, “A chimp…”

“Yes, keep up. In the wild, male chimps show their interest in mates by displaying their genetalia-”

Jack pointed warningly at Will, “If you’re suggesting for even a second that I send a dick pick-”

Will slapped Jack over the head, “Don’t be disgusting. I was going to say if we translate that behaviour to a socially acceptable equivalent, all you need to do is show you’re a worthy partner through a feat of skill or strength that highlights your muscles. See that guy behind the counter about to serve (Y/N)?”

Rubbing his sore head, Jack turned to examine a gangly forty-something man with an unflattering porn-stache. “Yeah.”

“You have to assert your dominance by punching him.”

Jack stared at Will disbelievingly, “I’m not punching some random guy.”

“He’s not random. I picked him because he short-changed me the last time I was here.”

“Fine, then I’m not punching some guy because you don’t like him.”

“Well then what do you propose?”

“Gee, I don’t know,” Jack replied sarcastically, “how about I just ask (Y/N) how (s)he feels about me?”

“We’ll call that plan B.”

“I’m not punching-”

“Quiet, (Y/N)’s coming.”

You took your seat between the pair, “Ice cream will be here soon. Did you two find something nice to talk about while I was away?”

“Sort of,” Jack smiled playfully.

“’Kay, then hit me with it.”

“The guy behind the counter is a menace to society,” Will jumped in.

You nodded agreeably, “Tell me about it. He tried to short-change me. I should have decked him for it.”

“See,” Will said to Jack. “I told you my plan would have worked.”

“Plan?”

Jack was practically grinning from ear to ear, “Yeah, Will had a pretty fun hypothesis.”

“Do tell,” You said eagerly, awaiting yet another one of Will’s crazy theories that you had grown accustomed to over the years.

Will looked away awkwardly. You turned your attention to Jack, wondering exactly what you had accidently stumbled upon.

“(Y/N), do you have a crush on me?” Jack said, waiting eagerly for you to get flustered.

Instead, you answered coolly, “Sure I do. Who could resist those thunder-thighs you got?”

Just then, a server came out with a tray of ice-cream sundaes. Before she could pass them out, Will got up and grabbed his off the tray. “I don’t want to be here for this,” He said, heading for a table inside.

The server didn’t even bat an eyelid at the unusual scene. She placed a sundae in front of you and another in front of Jack who was laughing into the palm of his hand, practically convulsing, and without a word went back inside.

“THUNDER THIGHS!” Jack sputtered in hysterics.

You smiled. “I didn’t hear you deny it.”

Once his laughter had subsided somewhat, Jack looked at you quizzically. “Seriously, what does that even mean?”

You grabbed your spoon, tucking into your ice cream before gracing Jack with an answer. “Remember in high school when you decided to join the football team?”

“Yeah.”

“Back then I only went to those dumb games to watch you play.”

“And here was me thinking it was for the love of the sport,” Jack quipped.

“Alright, I get it, you knew that already. What you don’t know is that I led you to believe I was there to support you, but really I just went to watch you in those cute gym shorts. When you tackled, you looked great, or rather, your thighs did.”

“I think you’ll find all of me looks amazing; if you weren’t so focused on my thighs, you’d have noticed that by now.”

“Oh God, don’t tell me I inflated your ego further,” You groaned.

“While it was obviously indecent of you to stare so brazenly at me, especially without an escort, I find myself flattered that you think I’m the most beautiful creature you’ve ever laid your eyes on.”

“Careful or I’ll find someone else to stare at.”

“It’s far too late for that. At your age, it’s time to settle down with someone, before you’re put out to pasture. That’s why I’m going to make a one of a kind offer to you. If you go out with me tonight, I promise you won’t die alone… My thighs will be there too.”

You rested your hand over his, smiling the entire time, “Well, when you put it that way, I’d say you have yourself a date Mr Joyce… Should we call Will back now?”

Jack glanced through the shop window where Will was sat at the back, eyeing the two of you cautiously. “Give it a few more minutes. I think if we both stare at him for a while, the paranoia might break him.”

“What an interesting hypothesis.”

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[p-artsypants]

Rage Awakened (4)

Ten years ago, Terra, Aqua, and Ventus lost their fellow apprentice, Sora, in Deep Jungle. Now, they are to return with two new students, Riku and Kairi, to lock the heart of the world. All the while, something watches from the trees. Feral!Sora AU

FF.net | Ao3

@chachacharlieco2 @violetstar-writes

—

They had been in Deep Jungle for days now. Nothing to see but plants and heartless. Even the gorillas had disappeared from the first time they saw them. They were no closer to finding the keyhole than they were on the first day when they hadn’t even started looking.

The sightings of the wild boy continued, though no one was ever able to get a clear look at him.

One morning, while breakfast was being prepared, everyone sat around in various degrees of wakefulness. Then, without warning, a wicker basket filled with fruit fell from the ceiling and landed next to Kairi with a ‘wham!’

Everyone jumped at the gift, startled, before Ventus called out, “thank you sentient tree house!”

Then, three days into the voyage, with no end in sight, they finally made some headway.

It came mid afternoon, on a day that was hot and humid, as most days were in the jungle. The bugs were out, and everyone was cranky from sleeping on the floor for so many nights.

Riku was heading the pack, his job was keeping everyone going in the same direction, north by northwest. All the while, Kairi brought up the rear, her eyes wandering the canopy, just as she had on the first day.

“Look!” She cried, seeing something through the trees. “A treehouse!”

“Ugh, we’re back at camp? We walked all the way around the world?” Asked Ventus with a groan.

Kairi was already pushing plants aside to make her way over. “No! It’s a different treehouse!”

And indeed it was. Smaller than the first one, but newer. A second even smaller treehouse sat in the adjacent tree, connected with a bridge. There was a rope ladder hanging down, and smoke coming from a little chimney.

“Hello!” Called Kairi. “Is someone there?”

Terra and the rest caught up with her. “Wait! What if they’re dangerous?”

Riku interjected. “This is the first lead we’ve had! We should take it!”

A brunette woman poked her head out the window of the treehouse. “My goodness! I’m not hearing things!” She called, with an English accent. “There’s people! I’ll be down in just a moment!”

“She looks nice,” Ventus commented.

The woman descended using a vine, sliding down and landing right in front of them. “Hello! My, it has been some time since I’ve seen other people! You must be from another world! Are you here to study the gorillas?” Then she grew less friendly, “or are you here to hurt them? Because if you are, I’ll—I’ll...well, I’m not sure what I’ll do, but I can assure you it won’t be pleasant!”

Ventus whispered to Riku. “I like her.”

“We’re not here to hurt the gorillas,” Terra said, raising his hands peacefully. “In fact, we’re here to help them, in a way, Miss uh...”

“Oh, where are my manners? My name is Jane, Jane Porter. It’s a pleasure.” She held her hand out.

He shook it. “I’m Terra, these are my friends, Aqua, Ventus, Riku, and Kairi.”

“So, what does bring you folks to our Jungle?”

“Well,” Terra explained, hesitating. “We’re looking for a keyhole.”

“And a wild man!” Ventus added.

“Preferably both,” said Aqua.

Jane smiled, “well, I know of no keyhole, but the wild man you’re looking for is probably my husband. He should be along here sometime. Won’t you all come up and have some tea?”

Kairi’s heart sank into her shoes. That boy had been someone’s husband? And he had kissed her? Oh this was not good.

“Tea sounds lovely, thank you.” Aqua agreed.

Jane led the way up to the treehouse, gesturing them inside. “Come in! Come in! Make yourselves at home. I know it must be exhausting hiking through the jungle. Sit wherever you’d like.”

Immediately Ventus and Riku plopped down on a couch that, despite its Victorian appearance, was quite comfortable.

Jane set on the kettle and then called out to the neighboring treehouse, “Daddy! Daddy wake up, we have company!” Then she looked at her guests. “My apologies, it’s been so long since we had visitors that spoke English! You see, we’re researchers. About three years ago, Daddy and I came here from a neighboring world called London to study the gorillas.”

“Oh!” Cried Ventus. “We’ve been to London!”

Riku nudged him, “hush.”

“You have?” Said Jane happily. “Sometimes I really miss those streets, but other times I remember all the smoke and noise, and I’m glad I stayed here.”

“Why did you stay?” Asked Terra politely. “Your husband?”

“Yes, precisely. Daddy and I came here with another man, Clayton, on a grant to stay for about a month. Nearly the first day we arrived, I met him. He saved me from an angry fleet of baboons. A flying man in a loin cloth…”

“What’s his name?” Asked Riku.

“Oh, it’s...it’s a little odd, it’s Tarzan.”

The group collectively deflated, now knowing that the wild man was not who they wanted him to be.

“He didn’t speak any English,” Jane continued. “So, we taught him. We taught him reading and writing, math and science, about all the other worlds and galaxies out there. When the ship came to take us back, we tried to get Tarzan to come along with us...but our guide Clayton betrayed us, caged all the gorillas, and killed the alpha.”

The group stayed quiet, letting her speak, since it seemed so long since she had had any company.  “Tarzan and Clayton fought, and in the end, Tarzan won. But the alpha, in his dying moments, chose Tarzan to be the next leader of the pack. So he couldn’t return with us.” A small smile came to her face. “So I decided to stay too, and so did daddy.”

At that moment, a small old man came in the door, “I say, we do have company! A mighty gay crew of young adventurers at that! How wonderful! Archimedes Q. Porter, at your service! Jane, you’ve got the kettle on?”

“Of course, Daddy. They’re here in search of a keyhole, and they were looking for Tarzan!”

“A keyhole? In the jungle? You might as well be looking for a needle in a haystack!”

Jane took pause. “Come to think of it, for what reason are you looking for Tarzan?”

Aqua answered. “Well, at first we wondered if he was someone we once knew. But, we also wondered if he would have any hints to finding the keyhole...”

“And what does this keyhole lock, or unlock, as the case may be?”

“Well...” Terra and Aqua shared a look, trying to decide what was appropriate to say.

Riku took the decision away from them. “Have you seen the strange creatures that look like monkeys, but definitely aren’t?”

“Oh! You mean those blue menaces?! Of course! They’re the reason we had to leave the old treehouse!” The professor exclaimed.

“You mean the two-story one? A bit south of here?”

“That’s the one!”

“That’s where we set up camp! The heartless were a big problem there?”

“Is that what they’re called?” Asked Jane. “And why yes, but...they’ve been a problem everywhere in the Jungle. Tarzan is nearly at his wits end trying to kill them all! But they just keep coming back! They breed like rabbits!”

“They don’t actually breed…” Terra began. “The heartless are born of the darkness in people’s hearts. They’ve been getting worse everywhere. The locking the keyhole will stop them from swallowing this world completely, and get them to stop re-spawning.”

Jane sighed in relief. “If that’s the case, I’m sure Tarzan will do what he can to help you.”

Then, the kettle screamed, and Jane began to serve the tea. “You know, you say those heartless are made from the darkness in people’s hearts. It makes quite a bit of sense then, really, since they came around the same time we did. Clayton, the man I spoke of before, was terribly evil. We hired him to keep us safe in the jungle, but he ended up being the biggest threat.” She put the tea on the tray and brought over for everyone to take a cup. “I still feel awful about it. This world would have been so much better off if we hadn’t come.”

“Would Tarzan?” Asked Aqua.

And just like that, a figure dropped into the room with a ‘whomp’, poised on the balls of his feet.

Jane collected herself quickly. “There you are, darling! We have guests!”

The man was already halfway across the room, giving each of the wielders a studious look. “Guests…”

“They said they’ve been looking for you.”

“For me?” He took a special interest in Terra, Aqua, and Ven. “Been to see my mother. Said she and others were rescued from the not-chimps by people. One that looked like me,” he pointed at Terra, “one with hair like water,” he pointed at Aqua, “and one with hair like bananas.” He pointed at Ventus.

“Hey!”

“Oh yes!” Said Aqua, “we saved some gorillas from the heartless. Are they your family?”

“Yes, my family. Thank you.”

Ven grinned. “No sweat, it’s our job.”

“Kairi, is this the man you saw?” Riku spoke up.

It was almost with relief that she said, “no, he’s not.”

“Not Tarzan? My, then I feel sorry for wasting your time while I just rambled…hold on, you mean to say you saw another wild man out in the Jungle?”

“Yes, a few days ago.”

“Other,” said Tarzan. “One other.”

“Other? Oh!” Jane gasped. “Goodness gracious, I had completely forgotten about him! There is another wild man out there, but I only saw him once…and he was not very friendly. He almost got violent actually, Tarzan had to wrestle him away.”

“Not like Tarzan,” Tarzan said, “not part of pack. Comes and goes.”

No one got their hopes up. That didn’t sound like Sora at all.

Still, Riku asked, “does he have a name?”

After a moment, Tarzan answered:

“Sora.”

Aqua’s teacup shattered on the floor, as she stared at the man in horror. “I...I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to...”

“Oh, it’s alright,” Jane pacified. “Not much use for china in the Jungle, right? Are...are you alright?”

Aqua rubbed the heel of her hand into her eye. “I...I’m fine...” though as she said it, more tears came until she was weeping openly.

Terra quickly rushed over, and embraced her, where she buried her head in his shoulder to cry.

“Said something wrong?” Asked Tarzan.

“No,” said Terra, his voice choked up. “You said the right thing.”

“You’re...his family, aren’t you?” Jane surmised.

“Yeah...we...we came here about ten years ago, for a training exercise. He was only six then, and we left him and Ven at camp. When we returned, the camp was destroyed, Ven was unconscious and bloody, and Sora was nowhere to be found.”

“We searched for days!” Aqua sobbed. “But all we found was his bloody clothes. We didn’t think he could have—we thought he was dead! But all this time, he’s been here. Alone...”

“There there, don’t blame yourself.” Jane consoled, getting her a fresh cup of tea. “Given the evidence you found, it was a very natural conclusion you arrived at. You searched for days. And...he’s alive. You’ll be reunited!”

“But, I can’t help but be afraid, what if he thinks we abandoned him here?”

“If you explain it, he’ll understand.”

Terra asked Tarzan, “what can you tell us about him?”

The man scratched his head, trying to recall old memories. “Found him when he was small. Hurt. Scratched. Naked. Brought him home to family, for help. Kerchak didn’t want him to stay. Said he was marked as prey, being hunted. Mom begged him to stay until he was healed. Kerchak agreed. Thought he would die, but didn’t. He healed, and stayed with us for a while, and then left. Found him later, hurt again, brought him back again. Over and over, same thing. Kerchak was right, marked as prey, but predator doesn’t kill. Still hunting him.”

That was troubling. “He’s being hunted? By what?” Asked Aqua.

“Strange creature. Black, blue, and red.”

“That sounds like a heartless,” said Riku with mounting concern.

Tarzan further explained, “when first met Sora, he made weird sounds. I now know it was English. Then each time we found him, made less of those noises, more animal noises. More animal behavior. Now, he is  like something different. Not like Jane, not like Tarzan’s family. Not like Tarzan.”

“What kind of animal is he acting like?”

“One I have never seen before.”

Kairi still didn’t mention her other encounter with him at the treehouse, but she thought about it. He had parroted what she had said, and if this truly was Sora, shouldn’t he be able to recall at least a little bit? Had he lost himself that much?

Everyone else was considering Tarzan’s news of a heartless hunting Sora. What sort of Heartless plays with its victim for over ten years? It sounded like the intentional work of Maleficent.  

Jane broke the silence, “Tarzan, have you ever heard of a keyhole? Our friends are looking for one.”

He thought a moment. “I know of lots of holes. Explain more?”

Jane went over to her dresser, grabbed her jewelry box, and brought it over for him to see. “This little hole right here is a keyhole, if I put the key in it, it unlocks the box, and I can open the lid. In London, all the houses have keyholes on them so you can get inside.”

“And there’s one in the Jungle?” He asked the guests.

“There should be. We just…have no idea where to start,” Said Aqua. “Is there somewhere or something significant in the jungle? Something important?”

“There’s the waterfalls,” Jane mused. “It’s the main freshwater source, at the heart of the Jungle.”

“The heart of the Jungle!” The five exclaimed.

“We have to go to the waterfalls! Can you take us there, Tarzan?”

The man wandered over to the door, looking outside, thinking.

“He’s a very quiet man.” Jane whispered to her guests. “He’s basically the king of the Jungle, so he must consider the animal’s safety.”

He came back and declared, “not yet, but I will come for you soon. Where is your camp?”

“At the old treehouse, to the South.”

He nodded in understanding. “I will try to find Sora, tell him his family looks for him. Thank you for helping us.”

—

Later that night, Aqua boarded the gummi ship, as she had every night of their trip, and called Master Eraqus.

“It’s late, Aqua. Busy day?”

“Yes, Master. We finally found a lead. There were some researchers from another world here to study the gorillas, and the woman married a man raised by the apes.”

“A man raised by the apes? He was there last time too?”

“I guess? He looked about Riku’s age. They said the waterfalls are at the ‘heart’ of the world, and once the timing is right, he’s going to take us there.”

“The timing?”

“Yes…I’m not exactly sure what that means, but Tarzan has to protect the other animals, he’s like their king. So we have to abide by his rules.”

“Thus preserving the order of things, of course. Well, I hope it doesn’t take too long, for everyone’s sake. How are the rest? Is everyone alright?”

Aqua didn’t answer immediately, her glance away from the screen. “Master, we…I think we found him.”

“…you don’t mean…?”

“Kairi said she saw a wild man in the Jungle, who saved her from the heartless. When we met the researchers, they confirmed there was wild man, another besides the one we met today. They said his name is Sora.”

“Oh god…”

“Master, what are we going to do? We can’t just leave him here!”

“I know, I know…but we mustn’t be hasty. We need to treat him with care, find out what he would like to do. We can’t force him to do anything.”

“One other thing…Tarzan said he was marked as prey. Said he was being hunted by a strange black creature.”

Eraqus frowned hard. “That’s not good. The boy’s heart is strong, and doubtless a very powerful heartless has its eyes on him. No matter what Sora decides in the end, you will need to stop that heartless. We owe that much to him at least.”

Aqua nodded in agreement. “Yes master.”  

“And Aqua?”

“…yes?”

“It’ll all work out in the end.”

[tdoong15]

hello i am indeed back, its been stressful (it still is) with all types of hand ins and internship stuff but am alive, and I come with a little SMC request, little SMC waking up on Christmas Day and running to there parents room (2yeon) and waking them up demanding to open there presents and then after that having a Nice breakfast as a family with pancakes and hot chocolate and jeong lets them watch TV for longer then usual, and in the end they get to open there presents and end up falling asleep in the living room next to the fire place

Hiii Chimp, I hope you feel better and hopefully everything will pay out in the long run.

Little!SMC. Cg!2yeon

Warnings: none

Christmas

It was 5am and Dahyun, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu were all very excited since it was Christmas Day and who doesn't love Christmas. So they were very excited to tell their mommy and mama about today and how they want it to be like. The three of them ran all the way to their parents room.

They slowly opened the door, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu went to either side of the bed, they waited for Dahyun's words so they could start their plan. Dahyun smiled widely and started talking, well more like yelling, "Mommy, Mama wake up it is Christmas!!!" Her voice echoed around the room while Chaeyoung and Tzuyu started to shake the bed to ensure that Nayeon and Jeongyeon woke up. Their method was very successful in waking up their parents, Nayeon woke up first out of shock due to the new alarm (Dahyun) being extremely loud, Jeongyeon woke up a few seconds after Nayeon and she was just about to speak before Chaeyoung immediately interrupts her.

"Open presents now!" The little tiger demanded in a cheery voice and obviously Tzuyu and Dahyun agreed with her. "Alright alright we'll open presents soon but let mommy get ready first" Nayeon told them because her hair resembled a birds nest. "No! Open now!" Tzuyu retaliated and all three of them began to pull Nayeon and Jeongyeon out of their bed. After a few minutes of pulling, 2yeon decided to just get out of bed instead of risking injured arms.

"Okay you can open them later but first you need to have your breakfast." Jeongyeon says, her words made SMC huddle up and think about the idea. Thankfully, in the end they decided to agree with what Jeongyeon said. "As leader of our super duper club I think dat we have a deal!" Dahyun declared despite it not being a yes or no situation but as long as it distracted them from the presents then Nayeon and Jeongyeon were happy about it.

Dahyun decided that she was a big girl and that she could walk by herself and she didn't need to be carried to the kitchen. Chaeyoung and Tzuyu on the other hand, let themselves be carried mainly because they couldn't be bothered to walk and they wanted to save their energy for opening presents. They all sat down at the table, except for Jeongyeon who was preparing breakfast .

Nayeon was keeping Dahyun, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu entertained since she was not exactly the best at cooking to put it simply. After some time Jeongyeon finished making pancakes for them all. "Hey Nay could you help me out with bringing some plates to the table?" Jeongyeon asked and Nayeon was about to make a snarky comment until Tzuyu decided to respond for her. "Mommy will help Mama" She had a big grin on her face out of pride and happiness.

Nayeon couldn't simply say no now especially when she saw Tzuyu smiling like that, so she did walk to where Jeongyeon was and helped her out with taking the plates with pancakes on them and placing it on the table. Jeongyeon had also brought in a tray that was filled with a variety of toppings which ranged from the classic butter and syrup to fruits. "You know what would be great with this? Some hot chocolate." Nayeon exclaims, although she couldn't cook at all she could make a killer hot chocolate so it was obvious that everyone else nodded their heads since they also wanted hot chocolate.

A little while later, Nayeon comes back with two glass mugs for her and Jeongyeon to begin with and then she brought three cups for Dahyun, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu, all filled with hot chocolate. So with everything prepared they all started to decorate their pancakes and hot chocolate, Dahyun squirted some whipped cream into her mouth to "make sure it wasn't poisoned" which obviously wasn't she just wanted to find an excuse to have some whipped cream by itself. They all peacefully ate together which was filled with laughter.

"Can we watch a movie now, please?" Chaeyoung asks in a soft voice because she wanted her suggestion to be accepted. "Of course we can watch a movie. What should we watch?" Jeongyeon replied. Dahyun, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu thought together about what they should watch until they came to an equal consensus. "The Muppets Christmas movie!" They all shouted at the same time.

"The Muppets it is then" Nayeon quickly ran over to the living room and got the movie ready before anyone could change their mind. The others followed slowly since they were carrying the hot chocolate. "Alright let's get this movie started" Jeongyeon said which got three loud cheers from SMC.

After the Muppets Christmas movie Jeongyeon let them watch The Polar Express despite it running through their nap time. It was about half way through the movie when Dahyun remembered something. "We need to open presents!" She says loudly which made Nayeon jump since she was invested with the movie.

Dahyun, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu immediately ran over to the Christmas tree and began tearing through their presents, they were very grateful for each gift that they had. "Wow Santa got me everythin'" Tzuyu said through a yawn, Nayeon and Jeongyeon noticed all three of the girls getting tired after opening a few presents.

As they opened more presents the more tired they got and once they had finished they all curled up and laid on top of the piles of presents that they were given thanks to Santa. Nayeon and Jeongyeon let them stay asleep by the fireplace since it was the warmest and most relaxing place which was perfect for a nap, and whilst Dahyun, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu slept Nayeon and Jeongyeon placed all of the wrapping paper into the trash. Today was a very successful Christmas Day plus there were plenty more activities planned for when they woke up again.

I hope you guys are all doing well and if anything is stressing you out then please find a way to have some sort of a break. But on a lighter note Christmas is in 8 days (when I'm writing this) so that's fun

[symbiotic-science]

A team of researchers affiliated with the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Yale University and the University of Göttingen, has found that older children are more likely to make seemingly irrational decisions when social comparison is at play. In their paper published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, the group describes experiments they carried out with chimps and children of various ages and what they found.

To better understand how social comparison works in humans, the researchers designed an experiment to test the differences between chimpanzees, young children and older children.

The experiment involved 96 children between the ages of five and ten, and 15 adult chimpanzees. The subjects chose between two trays of treats as they sat opposite one of their peers. But the trays all came with a set of conditions—treats had to be shared in a certain way. One type of tray would have three treats, the other tray nine. If the child chose the tray with three treats, he or she would get to keep two, while their peer got one. If, on the other hand, they chose the tray with nine treats, they would get three of them, while their peer would get six.

The researchers report that the vast majority of the chimpanzees and children under six chose the tray with more treats on it. Those children over six tended to choose the tray with fewer treats on it.

The researchers suggest their results show an example of irrational thinking by older children due to social comparison. All of the children (and the chimps too), regardless of age, knew that they would get more treats (three instead of one) if they chose the tray with nine treats on it. Thus, the logical choice was to pick that one. But the older children were more concerned about fair play. They did not like the idea of their peer getting more than them, even if they themselves got less than they could have if they had only chosen the tray with more treats on it.