#love coming up with little stories to go along with illustrations

[j-tee]

Nobody wants to guard the civilian sea-gate.

It’s not that it’s a difficult job- hell, it’s barely a job at all. Nobody wants to swim in the water, it’s bad luck- so nobody ever comes to the gate. It’s a grueling 48 hours spent standing watch, watching nothing, bored out of your skull.

But still, two knights must stand at the ready just in case some poor idiot shows up- lost and confused, and always panicky to find themselves so close to the shore.

You make friends fast though, you and the other knight you’re stationed with. Often folks will bring cards, dice, or some other manner of distraction- or you’ll get talking, gossiping, it’s almost fun.

And yet, nobody wants to guard the civilian sea-gate. Nobody ever wants to be that close to the water.

[the-main-daine]

Life Series Character Renders:

Featuring Martyn, Mumbo and Pearl

(I actually have quite a lot to say about two of these this time.)

Martyn:

Human.... ish. Hear me out on this one:

So Martyn has this fascinating background lore to the Life Series called Watcher/Eyes and Ears Lore. I'm quietly obsessed with this.

I love watching his lore streams after every series, and have come up with a few theories on my own: His thumbnails are always fully illustrated, so his character has a canon 'look' for every season, which I think is just, deeply cool.

But in his lore, there's also this space between SMPs, where the Watchers kind of... hold people until they can be used again. And since Martyn is the protagonist of the very cool story he's writing, I got it in my head that in this space between, Martyn isn't QUITE human. Maybe he was at one point.

Maybe he never was, I don't know.

But alongside all the cracks and stuff that have started to show up on his body; there's seams along the joints, and light shining within, as he starts to become more befitting as a vessel.

A vessel for what? No idea. I probably won't be drawing all those seams in any fanart comics of the series themselves - I imagine they get covered up when he's sent out into the world to interact with others in various SMPs - but I thought the idea was too cool not to draw at least once.

As a past winner, he gets his crown, and the burning eye of Mars by his name.

Mumbo:

Vampire Mumbo!

I know he doesn't have the grey streak in his life series skin but I love it too much I'm keeping it forever.

It makes him look so much more threatening and serious than he is.

Poor Mumbo. I was really rooting for you buddy. Better luck next series!

At least he still does damage with those End Crystals.

Pearl:

A lunar moth

As a winner, she gets her crown, and she gets her moon.

I'm not going to lie I want that lunar moth hoodie more than anything.

I had a lot of fun with Pearl: Her skin design is so simple (Well, maybe not this season, but usually) that it leaves so much room to interpret it. She's always going around with dogs, making her wolfish would've been really easy, but I think Moth suits her more.

There's a lot of mythology with moths being a little off kilter, mad, or leading people to madness that I think fits with Pearl's tendency to be a little bit of a loose canon, wild and unpredictable. Like a moth's flight patterns.

Red Hood Pearl had to put in an appearance here, especially with how it's sort of creeping to overtake her in Wild Life this season, and she just gets so earnestly threatening when she's on a red life despite still being all smiles and all laughs.

Unlike Gem or Cleo, I think there's an edge to Pearlie Pop on red that just reminds me of a horror monster, in the best, best, best way.

I haven't figured out heights but she's also the tallest.

[fishfingersandscarves]

I don't even bother scrolling the ao3 armandaniel tag anymore, I just wait for your glorious art and then read whatever you illustrate...

That being said if you had any recommendations I'd happily take the o' knowledgeable one

ah nonnie i am happy to pull some from my meticulously vetted list

remember to read and mind all the tags

a haunting just for company by valkyrisms

"I know what a breakup looks like," Daniel says. "The better question is, why are you coming to me about it? I'm the one who broke up your little sham." "This is what humans do, don't they?" Armand asks, letting his voice drop. "Crashing on their friends' couches when there's a blip in their romances?" "Except we're not friends. We're actually very much not friends." Daniel shrugs, as if it's all the same to him. "And I can't imagine the great vampire Armand deigning himself to sleep on my fucked-up sofa. That thing's been here since the nineties." "Well," Armand only says. "I saw you have a guest bedroom."

Lie Back and Let Me Unlock You by Thunder_Puss

Independently wealthy man, early 30's, seeks arrangement with young male aged 18-25, not too muscular and no more than 200lbs (anything more would be most unmanageable) to share my apartment and affection with for 1 year until slaughter. All needs up to that point will be met -surpassingly so, I must admit, as I can be rather doting. There will be no need to consider expenses as they will be covered entirely by myself- "-There will be a rigorous interview process consisting of correspondence by email..." Daniel shook his head, laughing. "Of course, buddy. I'm sure I'll have a lot of competition." He raised his whiskey glass to his lips and wet them. "If this sounds like an amenable blah blah... Christ, this guy is verbose. I'll have to bring along a thesaurus to keep up." Daniel Molloy was 24, not too muscular, and no more than 200lbs. He was also steadfast and enterprising -when he could keep his nose clean- and had nothing more interesting to do than chase a story about an independently wealthy man with the screen name Botticelli_Angel who seemed to have the world's most taboo kink. Daniel could play the part, see where the story took him for a while. If shit got too weird, he'd dip. (Spoiler: He doesn’t dip.)

the sin and this mess we're in by ringfinger

He’s sitting on a beach he hates, trading shitty jokes with a centuries-old monster whose body count would put Ed Gein to shame and who is almost certainly also plotting to turn him into a flesh lampshade. “Don’t be dramatic,” Armand says, picking up on that thread, “I do wish you’d stop returning to that.”

how memory makes monsters into myth by blueskiddoo

“I said I’m fine, Alice,” Daniel snaps, and time itself grinds to a halt. Not literally. Ha. The things you have to specify with vampires. Daniel wishes he could laugh, but the sound is stuck somewhere in his throat, along with his heart. Now, of course, his hand chooses to be perfectly still. Why the fuck did he say that? * daniel keeps slipping up and mistaking armand for his ex-wife and the more he looks back on his memories, the less reliable they get. he's pretty sure he married alice molloy, but how do you marry a woman who apparently never existed? armand is armand about it.

chase away my heart and heartache by sahwen

With nowhere to go and an eternity ahead of him, Armand decided to work his way backwards. Or: Armand's Tour de Divorce in six acts.

to stretch the night, to fill it fuller with dreams by typefortydeductions

Armand and Daniel return to Venice to confront some of Armand's oldest demons. Louis comes with them, trailing ghosts of his own.

I am the least difficult of men. All I want is boundless love. by cannibalenthusiast

“Did we call each other boyfriend? Surely not. Sounds weird even saying out loud.” “You were my beloved,” Armand says. “My lover. My boy.” “Your human pet. Your mortal fool. I get it,” Daniel says, not neglecting to notice his use of the past tense. “You want to go see a movie?”

such a pretty box (all fancy wrappings, and a bow on top) by snuffreel

“That is a fascinating shade of scarlet. In the dark, now, it almost matches the color of her blood.” Or: Armand, Daniel, and the age-old question of what's really inside a girl.

flash the camera (you're a star) by exastris_scientia

Daniel is starting to think he should put a little more thought into the promises he makes in the heat of the moment. He’d qualified it a little, sure, so technically he doesn’t have to do it. And it’s not like he needs the money, not after Louis and Armand had thrown his that’s my whore number comment back in his face by actually paying him ten million fucking dollars. But a promise is a promise, even if it’s one literally no one would expect him to follow through on. Whatever. He said he would, so he will. It might be fun. So he starts an OnlyFans.

bang it up inside by leavethebes

"Come on," Daniel goads. "Come the fuck on."

she will be your living end by kanxie

Daniel reaches his hand out for Armand to take. They wait a few moments in silence as the world stops moving around them. The animals hush. The air stills. A faint smell of smoky dust drops from the sky and lifts from the ground. Rural Armenia has always been too quiet for Armand, but this is to a level where noise itself seems to atrophy into a cold, nightmare-like state. Armand takes his hand, and the usual dampened sounds of movement are stark in this nothingness. “It's okay to admit you're scared,” says Daniel. His deep and rumbling voice. Armand keens for it in the lamplight.

Armand and Daniel are at home when the bell tolls.

Backroads to Sonoma by burntcrimson

Where the hell have you been, Daniel wonders, and why me? A bloody American summer in the belly of the AIDS crisis.

open eyes and behind your teeth by tisiphones

It wasn't fascinating, the way the boy didn't know whether to lean into the touch or away from it, confused by the comfort and the pain it offered in equal measures. It wasn't. Armand could do the same thing — did do the same thing, whenever Louis deigned to touch him at all — and Louis still thought he was boring. It couldn't be this that had captivated him. But that didn't mean it wasn't fun. --- Armand weighs the pros and cons of dog ownership.

[curio-queries]

Are You Sure?!

Episodes 5 & 6 Notes

It was very fortuitous that I've been so busy over the last couple of weeks as I really needed both of these episodes together to make sense of my thoughts. This post is definitely far more conceptual than my last ones so if you're up for it, click on though the cut!

AYS's Main Character?

I would like to propose that AYS has a main character OTHER than the individual humans we're following along on screen. (I warned you, this post was going to be conceptual.) And the main character is the relationship itself, how each of the members relate to one another.

Here's Google's AI overview on what this concept means:

A story can center on the relationship between characters as the primary protagonist, with the dynamic and evolution of that connection acting as the main driving force of the narrative, rather than the individual characters themselves.

Key points to consider:

Relationship-centric stories: Many genres, particularly romance, often focus heavily on the relationship between the main characters, exploring its complexities, challenges, and growth throughout the story.

No single protagonist: In such cases, the "character" is the bond between the individuals, not just one person's perspective or journey.

Exploring the dynamic: The narrative would then focus on how the relationship changes, adapts, and reacts to external situations or internal conflicts.

Examples:

"Before Sunrise": The entire plot revolves around the single night encounter between two strangers, with the developing connection being the central focus.

"Brokeback Mountain": The story primarily explores the forbidden love between two cowboys, highlighting the complexities of their relationship in a restrictive environment.

"Steel Magnolias ": A group of girls in a small town in Louisiana experience grief together, including weddings, fatal illnesses, and the loss of loved ones.

Now before anyone comes for me saying I'm just pitching an argument for xyz fanwar, please note that I included the above just to illustrate the concept of a non-person main character rather than stating any of the above are comparisons to the individual member's relationships. We're talking about a show that was produced and distributed for entertainment, nothing further.

Episode 5

My main feeling after finally being able to watch episode 5 was overall unsettled. There was something sticking with me about that episode and I could NOT figure out what it was.

I knew I was feeling like the entire episode was stretched well beyond what the footage wanted for a complete episode. I'm all for getting to spend more time with our fellas but the Jeju trip would have benefited from being cut down to 2 episodes rather than 3, in my opinion.

There was just a whole lotta nothing happening. The guys eat, travel around a little bit, and eat some more. I had some vague thoughts about how I could quantify some data for y'all to explain this point but then it was time for the next episode...

vs. Episode 6

And what an absolutely lovely breath of fresh air this episode was. I know there have been some Run eps that I review with a smile on my face throughout the whole episode but AYS6?? That was 73 minutes of pure bliss.

So I started thinking about what must be different between the two eps. The guys eat, travel around a little bit, and eat some more...wait, that's exactly what I said about ep 5! Lol

But I think the main difference between the two is episode 6's plot points continually focus on the relationships between the members, while 5 falls a little stagnant.

Some examples:

JM/cat & JK/dog. I'm ALWAYS down for more footage of BTS with pets but this is frankly too much time spent on these scenes. It's honestly footage I would have expected in the bonus content instead of the main product. It's not just an establishing beat or a setup for a callback, this is supposed to be a scene but since it doesn't contribute to the journey of the main character aka the relationships. It could maaaybe work if they'd cut it to highlight the juxtaposition of how JM is calm with the cat vs JKs energy with the dog but that would have shortened the time it occupied and they were clearly trying to keep absolutely everything in that would lengthen the episode.

JKs stew. The ONLY thing that ties this plot point into the narrative of this show (other than it happening while he's in Jeju and Jimin is nearby) is the offhand comment he made that Jimin would like it while he was in NY. I'm going to talk more about this footage below but this was absolutely crucial for this whole beat making it into the episode. This is also why the footage of JM eating it and randomly taking off his shirt was kept in. The cut they chose is actually pretty bad story-wise but they used it anyway. We hear JM saying how much he loves it and how glad he is that JK is a good cook. It ties all of this time we spent watching JK do something alone back into the real main character of the show (the members' relationships between eachother in different circumstances).

Anyway, I won't belabour the point any further. With Tae constantly disappearing from scenes and the slightly diminished lack of focus on the member's relationships, episode 5 left me on an odd note.

A Little Production Note

I was completely thrown by the footage of JK in NY that we got this episode. But not for the reasons you may be thinking. (I do wonder if the anon that was sending in asks about the financing behind the documentaries is still around because we're getting into some of tidbits finally.)

So, all along we've been trying to sus out as much as we can, just a few details about how AYS came to be. We've had some hints but the inclusion of this footage may be another indicator.

The facts as we know them:

AYS is distributed by Disney.

Jungkook's documentary is being distributed by Trafalgar Releasing NOT Disney (at least not now, maybe it'll make it onto streaming after cinematic release but who knows?)

Questions due to the footage of JK in NY:

Was this footage captured as part of JKs documentary?

If so, when was it pulled to be utilized for AYS? Did the editors find it or were the writers involved?

We know that HYBE gathers behind-the-scene content without always having a full plan of how it will be used. But there are times where it did seem intentional for a specific purpose. Where did JKs Golden footage fall in?

Once upon a time, production houses would make deals with distributors about quantities of projects that would be delivered. Was that the case with the Disney deal or has every single project been negotiated separately and we only heard about it once there was a confirmed quantity. Somewhere in the middle perhaps?

And that's all I've got to say for now. I do have some more thoughts about things I've gleaned during these last couple of episodes but it'll likely keep until the end.

Anyway, this footage bumped me because it broke the rules of cross-project production. They got away with it for JKs SEVEN footage in ep 1 because they likely were using the same production crew since it was literally the same day so it doesnt feel like they're'breaking the wall'. But the NY-Jeju crews could have been completely different.

Editing to add further clarification to this point in this ask.

On a sidenote, do y'all remember the last time we got footage of jikook in a hotspring?? I'll jog your memory if not, it was in BV:4 and they 'washed each other's faces'. I can't even imagine what we're about to see in episode 7.

Link to my AYS MasterList

[damianbugs]

Batman: Universe (2020) written by Bendis and illustrated by Nick Derington was one of the most charming and lovely batman comic i have read in a really long time. it's a silly time travel story!!! and only six issues long!

SPOILERS AHEAD, here are some out of context panels that just really amused me;

i really enjoyed how casual batman is with the people in gotham. like yeah, bruce regularly spooks residents when he grapples up the side of their building, and stops for a quick chat. the young new cops aren't exactly sure how to handle batman while others are too used to him to care anymore.

then the whole interaction with green arrow (issue 2) was SO fun! i am so fond of them and they're rarely in enjoyable comics together anymore. i particularly loved this little detail:

at first bruce calls him oliver, but as the situation becomes increasingly more dangerous, he switches to calling him ollie! i am very normal about this.

THE BATLANTERN MOMENT. this whole part of the story (issue 3 & 4) was just, very sweet. it was a perfect balance of them being prickly to each other, while also sticking close and working really well.

this part of the story also features cowboy bruce and hal (sort of)!

...and then bruce was really worried about hal when he lost control and vanished from the past (he's fine), so much so that later in the story when he's dying, he mentions that he hopes green lantern is okay (in the present, hal leaves bruce a voice message to say he is okay, and hopes bruce is safe too).

oh right yeah so bruce dies (for like, a page, thank you confusing time travel mechanics) and THIS IS WHAT HE SAYS TO ALFRED:

I AM SORRY YOU CAN'T HEAR ME.. TELL YOU.. HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU.. I REALLY DO........ bruce wayne when i get you (issue 4).

AND THEN!!!! DICK ARRIVES (issue 5)!!!!!! i was hoping we'd get to see damian when bruce returned to the present, or that robin would come along on the time travel shenanigans, but this moment happened and i didn't even mind. it was so lovely. the duo of all time always.

a lot happens after this moment (issue 6), but these little panels really spoke to me. look at him. sitting criss cross apple sauce in the face of absolute doom. the pastel coloured eternal hell was also very funny to me, as was bruce then literally jumping between different periods of time during the final fight — but i have run out of space to share those. you need to go look at them for yourself.

so idk, READ IT !!!!!!

[what-eats-owls]

I’m trying to explain the world of Little Thieves to my friend, and I realized I don’t really know the time period. Because the Blessed Era doesn’t really translate to our Common Era/Before Christ thing, I was wondering what period in time Little Thieves is closest to.

This is a really fun question to answer, because the answer is "approximately yes."

One of my favorite things about fairy tale collections is that the time period is all over the place. You'll see illustrations with outfits that doesn't belong in the same century, and other mismatches in names, technology, locations, etc. and it's really a lovely reflection of how these stories have traveled through time and space to reach us, and picked up souvenirs along the way. Fairy tales don't take place in the now; we hold a separate world of Once Upon A Time for them, which is full of potential in its timelessness.

When I set out to write Little Thieves, I wanted one thing to come across above all, and that was the sense of what I lovingly call "fairytale bullshit." Of course there's a talking horse, why not. Of course there's power in rhymes and herbs and the right metal at the right time. And grounding it in any one time period would have clashed with the sense of timelessness. I also feel strongly that any magic system is going to have a tangible impact on the technical progression of a society, and of course, the Blessed Empire has a fairly robust international trade economy to bring in influences from beyond its borders.

So there's an approximate period of 1400-1699 AD that I mostly try to stick to, but I'll cheerfully own to pulling from the 1200s, and I think a few things from the 1700s/1800s? (And one notable transgression from the Suez Canal in 2021. Time is a construct anyway! Might as well have fun with it.)

[blainehasregrets]

Red and Blue in Glee

Of course red and blue is the Most obvious symbolism in the world, but this is something I think gives a lot of insight to the character’s motivations in Glee that not a lot of people point out!

Glee often used these two colors to show opposing forces, or when used together, a character being conflicted/in the middle of something. This concept is introduced in the Pilot, with Vocal Adrenaline performing in all blue during Rehab, while the New Directions are dressed in red during Don’t Stop Believing (and okay yes that’s a picture of Vocal Adrenaline from Theatricality, it was impossible to get a good screenshot of Rehab. Same thing.). And though I’m not sure it was always the case, I feel like blue was occasionally used to symbolize a sense of teamwork and “sameness” (as Vocal Adrenaline were a well oiled, well choreographed show choir machine in matching competition outfits) while red was meant to convey a sense of individuality (a small group of outcasts/underdogs coming together in different outfits that reflect each of their personalities).

And of course this isn’t like…a constant rule throughout the show either, because blue and red are just a striking combination in general, so of course sometimes its just used because it looks good together! Like they all pretty much wear red during Valentine's episodes just because it's Valentine's day lol and after all, red is just a part of McKinley’s school colors, and the football team and Cheerios aren’t exactly shining examples of individuality.

I explained a little here how blue and red could be used in cases whether the characters understand each other and if the character’s are on the same page or not, for example, here with Quinn and Rachel during I Feel Pretty/Unpretty.

An episode that uses this to aide the story visually is The Rhodes Not Taken. During Maybe This time, Rachel, in an outfit completely opposite of April’s to highlight the differences between them, performs the song against red and blue lights/curtains. While she initially believes Sandy's play is her chance to shine after being denied a solo in the New Directions, it's a decision she quickly regrets because of how miserable and isolating it is. Her conflicting thoughts continue to be illustrated both in the bowling scene with Finn where she wears a blue and red sailor collar t-shirt as Finn tries to convince her to come back to the club, and in the bathroom scene with April, where she is again their differences are highlighted.

Eventually, Rachel does end up going back to the New Directions, because she does value the group (and I think, despite popular opinion that Rachel is "the most selfish person in the show", she spends all of season 1 proving how much she cares about and wants the group to succeed) and she wants to find a place where she belongs. It's not even that Sandy was just an asshole director, she felt incredibly lonely. In Mattress, Rachel tries to comfort herself by telling herself it's lonely at the top and she has to expect to be disappointed, but it's obviously not something she actually wants for herself and it comes from a naive place that she still needs to unlearn. Rachel, along with the fact that she is incredibly ambitious, is also a person who needs people, and the end of this episode is her taking one more step towards realizing that as she joins the New Directions, dressed in blue during Somebody To Love. Both to contrast the pink of April's outfit with the New Directions dressed in black as her glorified backup dancers, and to show them coming together as a group of people who want the same thing.

In Preggers, Kurt wears a red sweater with a blue tank top and sweatband to tryout for the football team. It’s not that Kurt is necessarily conflicted about who he is, but in this episode he blends who he is (the Single Ladies dance), and who he thinks his dad wants him to be (Football player).

The most obvious example of the red and blue being used as a halfway point is in the Dalton uniform. Even though I could explain the reasons why Blaine (and Kurt) leaving Dalton was inevitable, but! -> 👔 Their ties tell you everything you need to know! “It makes no sense Blaine left his rich private school for his high school boyfriend” but the symbolism spells it out for you! Dalton, with its red and blue tie, is a temporary place for Kurt and Blaine.

In Duets, as Kurt makes the final decision of whether or not he should duet with Sam, he’s wearing a blue sweater since he ultimately decides to put the team’s needs above his own wants. Sam, on the other hand, after telling Finn he’s going through with the duet with Kurt, wears a blue shirt with a blue and red target on it. When he’s splattered with a red slushie that Quinn helps him clean up immediately after, it represents his new choice for a duet partner. So, besides the obvious meaning behind the target on Sam's shirt being used to show he'll be harassed if he duets with Kurt, the print takes on a new meaning as his character is now inbetween Kurt and Quinn. (Even their outfits! Kurt’s sweater is blue and Quinn’s cheerio uniform is red.)

Though I’m sure he would have gone through with the duet with Kurt had Kurt not “set him free” since Sam said himself he had no intention to back out, the slushie itself shows this is something beyond his control. Both because of interference from Finn and because of the societal pressures that are going to put a stop to this duet between him and Kurt. (also I just made that up right now)

He continues to wear red and blue plaid when he tries to convince Quinn to duet with him, and for most of their relationship, Sam wears blue because 1) it just looks nice next to Quinn’s red uniform 2) I personally felt they were never really on the same page in their relationship as early as Duets. This is evident when Sam points to a planet and says it’s Venus, the planet of love, which Quinn corrects to tell him it's Mars, planet of war.

In The Purple Piano Project, Blaine comes to school in bright red pants, and his first solo at McKinley as a student is backed up by the Cheerios in their bright red uniform. Blaine’s now officially a member of the New Directions, his red pants representing that new sense of individuality as he’s finally becoming a character of his own, rather than an almost representation of Dalton from season 2. (I also think his striped bow tie’s a nod to the Dalton tie, but obviously more “him”.)

Anyways, what's the point of this post? Though glee is not the most thought provoking show in the world for most people (unless you’re insane like me), I do think some level of effort was put into it, and maybe something like this could help give a better understanding to a character's thought process when it's conveyed visually through the color of their clothes. For instance, related to the above paragraph, I think there’s a misconception that Blaine’s character solely revolved around Kurt, as if that was a writing mistake. While it isn’t totally untrue that Blaine had many plots with Kurt (after all every character serves its purpose, and Blaine’s was to be Kurt’s boyfriend), I also believe that line of thinking misses the times Blaine is so obviously shown to be a character of his own, making decisions of his own. For instance, transferring to McKinley is something he chose to do and was set up in the very episode we met him when he tells Kurt he felt as if he ran away from his problems (and that itself is a consistent trait of Blaine's, he tends to run away from his problems) Similarly to how he says he's “100% gay” in Blame It On The Alcohol, that is something he alone decided, given he ends his previous conversation with Kurt earnestly telling him that Kurt can't control him (something that was also consistent with Kurt’s character) and that whatever happens (which in the end, it's him confidently declaring he's gay when Rachel kisses him sober), it's because he came to that conclusion solely on his own.

These things are reflected in the writing, the framing, and even sometimes the wardrobe. And so, when Blaine chooses to change schools to be with Kurt, when he’s wearing pants that symbolize his independence as a character of his own, I think the fact that his first choice of song to sing towards Kurt, It's Not Unusual whose lyrics are basically “if I see you with anyone else, I’ll DIE :)” tells us something about who his character is. Whether you want to take it at face value that Blaine is someone who’s incredibly driven by love, to the point of possessiveness (which we see in Dance With Somebody or New New York) and willing to transfer from a prestigious private school to a shitty public one, or to show he can be oblivious and often times picks a song with lyrics that are hilariously over the top or inappropriate for the situation (like When I Get You Alone. I love both interpretations and think both apply to his character) maybe it just means…that stuff is a part of his character and personality! Blaine being obsessed with Kurt and love to the point of changing schools for him (along with the fact that it’s something he had already stated he wanted to do) isn't a writing flaw, it's apart of his personality!

Finally, a couple more examples that I feel like don’t need explanations. Though you can always argue that all of these are simply because red and blue are just a visually pleasing color combination (I especially think the Born This Way screenshot was done more out of cohesion than anything, though Rachel is in between trying to figure out if she should have plastic surgery or not), I think you can still make the case that these are ways to show the character’s thoughts and emotions.

[tonyspank]

CHAPTER ONE | THE PARTY & THE AFTER PARTY

Warnings; Uhhhh idk?

A/N: I never had to actually make coffee at my job, I kinda jus put the filter then dump out the coffee bag so… my apologies if it sounds crazy. (For all my professional coffee makers.)

Jenna Ortega x G!P Reader

series masterlist | main masterlist | previous chapter | next chapter

"I have a medium lavender ice latte with oat milk for, Ana?" You call out to half full coffee shop. A blonde in about her twenties walks up to the counter, you smile before handing her her drink.

"Have a wonderful day," She grins, "Thank you so much, you too!" Your co-worker speaks up from behind you, "I still don't understand why you're not somewhere strumming your guitar."

You've been working at Hughes Coffee since you can remember, you just happened to be walking by the place and noticed the Now Hiring signs on the door, of course, you had to go through an interview process but you landed the job and became close with the owner and his daughter.

Once she had officially turned eighteen he changed the shop name in honour of her, and she absolutely loved it.

You playfully roll your eyes before turning around to fully face her, "Alora," You begin causing her to hum in response. "I literally have to stay here to keep you in check. Ever since Mr. Hughes changed the name to Alora's Coffee you've been acting a little bit stuck up." You joke, illustrating how much with your thumb and pointer finger.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," She points behind you, "Take care of that customer. I have to use the bathroom," You jump up in the straightest position ever, saluting to her. "Yes! General!"

She laughs, walking to the back. Turning around you're met with a familiar face, "Jack."

He smiles raising his arms, "Bestie!" You chuckle, smiling at your indeed best friend. "Hey, Jack. What's up?"

He smiles, shrugging his shoulders. "Oh, nothing. Just checking in on you—" Suddenly he slams his hands on the counter, you jump and eye the shop as some customers as staring at the two of you.

"YOU REALLY THOUGHT YOU WOULD GET AWAY WITH LEAVING WITHOUT SAYING GOODBYE?" He practically yells, leaning into your face. You bite down on your lip, furrowing your eyebrows as you try and hold in your laugh.

"Uh? I thought I gave my goodbyes to my best messenger, did you not receive it?" Jack leans back, hands still on the counter. "Oh! You mean Jenna?" You nod your head, waving your pointer finger at him. "Yes, yes! Jenna, yup."

"And the same Jenna that couldn't stop talking about you." Your ears perk up at this, and your heart drops, but in a good way.

"Really?" You question, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

"Oh, yeah!" He continues. "She was like, she has the cutest laugh ever. She's so funny where'd you meet her at? Y/N this, Y/N that! Oh, Y/N! Blah, bleh, blah." He mocks with a high-pitched voice.

"Really?" This time you can't hide it, and you're smiling like an absolute idiot. "Really. I was going to give her your Instagram but you know, you left early. So insteadddd," He drags out, and you listen in.

"I told her that you're already dating someone, but don't worry! I didn't be specific and tell her that it was me." You blink, and when Jack doesn't say anything else, you blink again.

"You're lying, right?"

He thins out his lips, shaking his head. "No, why?" You go back to being nonchalant, not wanting Jack to have this over you.

One time you had liked this girl freshman year and Jack would not stop talking about it. And every time he'd see her he'd tell her why won't she go out with you, or how she should give you her number. The girl would always laugh and shrug her shoulders.

Or Jack would come up with these fake stories about how you saved an entire family from a burning building, or how you had found the cure to cancer, the girl surprisingly played along, and would say stuff along the lines of, "Oh, I remember that." Or, "Oh yeah! I was there too."

"No reason," You say shrugging your shoulders, Jack nods staring at you a bit longer to see if he broke your shell of nonchalantness, if that was a thing.

Accepting defeat, but not fully he sighs out. "Welp, I have to go now. I promised Mason I'd stop by his place to try out his new sugar cookie recipe."

You send him a thumbs up, "Alright! Have fun!" You shout out, as he walks out the double glass doors.

You turned around grabbed a rag, and wiped down counters. It was rather late in the morning so it wasn't so busy, well, it wasn't as busy as it was earlier this morning, you were dead-ass sweating.

It comes back to you that Alora never came back out, so you decide to head to the back and go inside the employee break room. You're met with Alora laying across two chairs eating a bag of chips.

"Is this what you do every time you say you're going to the bathroom?" She jumps in surprise, sitting up she removes her left airpod. "Hello, friend." She grins cheekily. You send her a wave.

"Don't you think you should go back to the front?" She starts shooing you off with her hand, you back up, but remain looking at her.  "What about you?" She shushes, continuing her shooing motions."

You sigh out, leaning against the counter as you watch the customers in the store talk to their friends or type away on their computers.

You're so into the view you didn't hear the door open nor see the customer walk up towards the counter. Until you hear a ding noise come from the bell sitting on top of the counter.

"Shit," You mutter to yourself, you reach behind you, tying your apron tighter before walking over to the woman. "Fucking Jack," You slightly hear from her and it finally hits you once she takes off her glasses.

"That fucking sneaky bastard." You mumble to yourself.

"Hey, Jenna." You smile, Jenna smiles back placing her glasses in her purse. "Hey," She looks into your eyes, hating to admit she missed them, and so suddenly.

"Now I see why Jack told me to come here." You scratch your head, nodding. "He is a sneaky little bastard." She laughs at your words, "He actually called you the same thing when you left without saying goodbye, well technically you did, but.. I don't know." She catches herself rambling, making you smile.

"Did you want anything to drink?" You ask, drumming your fingers on the countertop. "It's on the house."

"Oh! Sure," Her eyes scan the menu, then you, specifically your name tag. You don't miss the smirk that slightly appears on her lips.

"Surprise me." Just as you're about to respond, Alora walks back out. "Good morning, how are you today?"

Jenna sends her a slight smile, "I'm great, thank you." She gives you one last look before going to sit down. Once it's clear that Jenna is no longer focused on you, Alora grabs your arm, her jaw-dropping. "Was that fucking Wednesday Addams?" You roll your eyes, moving to make Jenna's coffee."

You prepare one shot of Espresso Roast, and as you wait you pull out your phone, opening your messages with Jack.

i hate you

BESTIE

BESTIE DON'T SAY THAT?

i'm not the one who left w/o saying goodbye

I ASKED JENNA TO SAY GOODBYE?

whatever

don't you have to go like

impress her w your barista skills?

you're welcome by the way

goodbye jack

OH NOW U WANNA

SAY GOODBYE

You laugh before putting away your phone. And pouring your Espresso Roast into the mug.

"Her name is Jenna. But yes, she has played Wednesday Addams." Alora watches you, and her smile increases. "You know... I'm very happy that you work here."

You chuckle, preparing your froth milk. Using the Nespresso Aeroccino, you put the milk on the medium froth setting. And add in a bit of vanilla syrup, stirring it in the coffee. "You're only saying that because every now and then Jack will recommend your shop to one of his famous friends,"

She throws her hands up excitedly, "One of his very attractive famous friends!" You lean against the counter waiting for your milk. "Could you watch the counter while I talk to her?" Your voice is lower than usual.

"I fucking got you!" You can't help but laugh, taking your milk and gently pouring it inside the cup until it's almost full. Alora packages up a cookie before softly handing it to you.

"Go get her tiger," Rolling your eye playfully, you make your way toward Jenna, cookie and drink in hand. She sets down her phone and her face lights up seeing you make your way over to her booth.

"A blonde vanilla latte and a chocolate chip cookie for the one and only," You place her order in front of her, sitting down across the table.

She eyes you as she takes a sip, humming in joy. "Wow, this is good." She licks her lips, placing down the cup.

"So... Y/N," She begins. You fight back a smile, looking down at your name tag. "How long have you been addicted to cigarettes."

If you had something in your mouth you definitely would've spit it out. But instead, you're taken aback, "Uh? I don't know? A while,"

She hums, taking another sip of the drink you made her. "Not a lot of people know it but, I actually specialize in helping people with addictions."

You chuckle, "Really?"

"Of course, I'm a professional." You tap your fingers on the table. "So how do your services work exactly?"

"Usually I charge a hefty amount of money, but since we're such good friends. Money is not a problem, instead.." You raise your eyebrows in anticipation.

"Let's make a deal." You nod, telling her to go on. "You let me take you out on seven dates, if I don't manage to at least help you fight your addiction then you don't have to worry about seeing my face ever again. But if I do, then I get to take you out on more."

A huge smile has appeared on your face, "You're going to take me out? To help fight my addiction?" She nods, again sipping on her drink.

"Do we have a deal?" You hold out your hand, and she quickly shakes it.

"It's a deal Ortega," She smirks but doesn't hide it this time.

[getdestroyed-staydestroyed]

'Day by Day by Day' or: The Great Five-Year Hiatus

So it's been quite a little while hasn't it?

Five whole years to be exact.

A stretch of time that anyone would rightfully call more than "a little while" if we're being honest. And for that I don't really have anyone to blame but myself. For the longest time I have struggled with maintaining active presences across multiple websites and platforms, at least in an organic way that doesn't involve services like Postybirb. I want to get better at that, and right now there's no better motivation for that than the start of this year, considering what I've got in store!

While the past five years have seen me doing everything from commissions, to adopts, ask answers, and illustrations on platforms like Tumblr, then Twitter, and now Twitter + Bluesky, I've pivoted to making the push I should have done a while ago: full length comics. What does this mean? Well quite a number of things!

As I stated in the first post on here I've uploaded since 2021, I've been working on constructing a website for the second half of last year and save for a few final finishing touches, I'm slated to go live with it during the first quarter of this year! This site is mainly going to be a hub for hosting all the comics I'm going to have going forward! From one-shots, to long-form narratives, it's all gonna be at this easy to find domain instead of trying to hunt me down across infinite platforms. I'm still going to be doing my best to maintain a renewed presence here and other sites, but that's going to be the "headquarters" so to speak!

And we won't be starting out things empty handed on a barren site mind you, oh no. To kick things off the first comic to be uploaded in full on there is going to be: Step-Monster! And not just the first volume that started it all folks, the long awaited Volume II is going to drop to wrap things up. 5 full new chapters to conclude the story of Matilda, the Millers, Roy, and their tale of circumstance, parenthood, trust, and love. Hard dates for these chapter's release will be coming soon, and teasers will drop as well so keep your ears to the ground! As the deviation that went up was titled: "Big Things" are indeed coming! I can't wait to finally bring you folks along for the ride on the stories and ideas I've been sharing pictures of online for so long. The time is here! It's time for comics! Time for stories!

I want to extend a massive thank you to everyone who has continued to follow, support, and encourage me during this loose "hiatus" of sorts. To hear through other folks that people are constantly bringing up and talking about Step-Monster even in this period of abesnce has done nothing but inspire me to get serious. Because if this is you folks when I'm not making comics I can't imagine what things are gonna be like when we get the ball rolling! Stay tuned everyone!

[klikandtuna]

2024 FIC ROUNDUP

Oooookay I barely know what I’m doing here but I’ll give it a shot. 😁

What fandoms do you write in?

It’s allllll Good Omens. After S2 broke my brain, I started sending tiny snippets of fic ideas to a couple of friends, which over the course of a few months really snowballed beyond any pretense of control. I’m gone, y’all. This is my life now.

How many words have you published in 2024?

WELL this number is about to jump with the posting of Find Every Sky next week, but at this moment I’m sitting at

✨758,377✨

Which is pretty cool! To be fair, a good chunk of that was written before I had joined AO3 (it took those couple of friends about six months to convince me to join up), so it wasn’t all written this year, though certainly most of it was.

What is your greatest achievement this year?

Aside from actually joining the fandom at all, this award definitely goes to the TWENTY-TWO CONSECUTIVE WEEKS, May-October, in which I posted TWO CHAPTERS PER WEEK without missing a single update. Find the Light and Sky Clear Blue were written back-to-back without any break inbetween, and while the schedule for SCB got a little dicey for a while, my beta-reader and I managed to keep that Tuesday/Friday ride going allllll the way to the end. Pretty proud of that.

What are your top three favorite fics you wrote this year?

This is so unfair because they’re all my babies 😭😭 I pour so much of myself into everything I write that I really hate choosing favorites, buuuuut I’ll try.

When You Go (101k Reverse Omens, complete but there’s a sequel coming, rated E)

My human AUs receive by far the most attention (and I’m not complaining!), but I want to give some love to my Reverse-Omens fic because I’m pretty darn proud of it. Each chapter bounces back and forth between an ongoing present-day storyline and anecdotes from their past, and it was my first attempt at switching tenses for effect (which I really got the hang of in Sky Clear Blue, haha). I feel like I really nailed the characterizations here, and it was a joy to a) flesh out the Starmaker as the Seraph Baraqiel and let him be his full glorious self, and b) experiment with what the Fall might do to someone as sweet as Aziraphale; while I did give him the demon name Azazel, I did NOT make him a goat demon because frankly that’s all wrong for him. I went a different direction and it’s FRIGGIN COOL, Y’ALL ☺️

Sky Clear Blue (289k human AU, complete, rated E)

Obviously 💛 Time travel, coming out, the beautiful transformative power of love. My biggest piece to date, started as a tiny seed and germinated into something really beautiful. Also at some point I started illustrating every chapter which was a real game-changer, and makes me feel a weird obligation to KEEP DOING THAT for all of my fics.

Naked and Afraid: Jingle Hell (24k human AU, complete, rated T but only for, like, mildly suggestive themes)

Okay my new favorite thing EVER is to take an extremely silly premise and make you FEEL THINGS 🥰 "Aziraphale and Crowley are participants on Naked and Afraid" is not a thing I would have expected to be received with joy and tears, but here we are, and I'm very very happy with how this one turned out.

What was your biggest Pit of Despair moment?

...That's awfully dramatic, but I guess when the SCB posting schedule was really catching up to me and writing was more of a HAVE TO thing instead of a just-for-fun thing. But that didn't last long, and it never got to the point where I wasn't enjoying myself. Writing is a real passion of mine and I'm having the time of my life with these fics.

What have you learned?

Honestly...I've learned that I can do this. I really can. I can take an idea, just the tiniest glimmer of silver in the aether, and follow it and draw it out and spin it into something magnificent. I can write things that make people Feel (including myself!). When I reach, the story is there, and I can trust that I'll find it as I go along.

I've also learned that a good beta-reader is worth their weight in gold, rubies, mithril, any incredibly valuable thing, and that it's okay to open myself up to criticism, and that accepting suggestions from someone smart and articulate and caring makes my writing soooo much better.

What fic did you want to do, but never made it off the ground?

The Naked and Afraid piece would have been my answer here, except I found a way to make it happen 😁 I have a bunch of half-formed, nebulous ideas floating around, but really I've just been going for the stories that I want to tell. I guess we could count the When You Go sequel here, haha. As soon as I've had some time to absorb and process Season 3, the sequel is ON

Did you beta any fics? Any faves you want to give shout out?

I kiiiiinda did one soft beta-type-thing just last week, but that was my very first time! I'm usually soooo busy with my own projects that I barely have time to read anything anyone else writes, much less offer thoughtful feedback. Maybe one day...

What three fics have you read this year that you love?

See just above — I don't have the tiiiiiiime. I did read For Loving One by @thescholarlystrumpet and it was gorgeous (she even embedded a piece of fan art I did in one of the chapters, which was very exciting for me), and I read Love, Uh, Finds a Way by @heretic1103 which was a delight, annnnnd oh! oh! I stumbled upon Lay Thee Sinner, 'Neath the Cross and Pole by @thenerdalert and have been enjoying the updates!

What ideas are percolating for next year?

Okay NOW I'm excited, because as I mentioned above, I've got a brand-spankin'-new BIG multichapter human AU on the waaaaay and the first chapter is going to drop on December 31! The title is In His Hand a Burning Coal and it has officially consumed my entire heart. Can't WAIT to start sharing this one. It's tapped into some deeeeep, lifelong reservoirs of love and nerdy passion for me, and I think that comes through in the writing.

ALSO, in late February we're going to do something REALLY FUN. What do y'all think about a Choose Your Own Adventure FANFIC?? Like, I post a poll with options for the next chapter, you vote, and I write in the direction of the winning option? I'm super excited to give this a try. I do dearly love a good prompt, and if we can get a bunch of people in on the voting action I think it'll be an absolute blast. Soft and sweet? Hysterical crack? Enemies-to-lovers or a tooth-rotting meet-cute? ALL OF THE ABOVE??? YOU choose! 😃

Is there anyone you'd like to thank?

First and foremost, always, I thank @suzypfonne. A random comment on one of my fics has become a friendship I treasure dearly. She's smart, she's funny, she's deeply kind and caring and generous, and she's the best friggin' beta-reader I could imagine. She has made me a better writer, and I'm always excited to turn over a doc to her. 💛💛

Huge thanks as well to @sparklyshinymagpie, who messaged me out of the blue one day to say "hey I could help code the social-media stuff in your fic, if that's something you'd be interested in." HOLY SHIT YES. She has put a huge amount of time and work into making my stories so much prettier, and our next project will be compiling the PDFs for my big stories so I can finally make print copies available for purchase! She is VERY talented and patient and I APPRECIATE HER VERY MUCH

I'm also tremendously grateful to @e-rated-beardo for the unspeakably gorgeous gift that is this incredible recording of the titular song from Sky Clear Blue. One of the lovliest gifts I've EVER been given!

And a final thank-you to @lolalu16 for her tireless cheerleading. They sometimes get early access to chapters, just because I like them 😁

OKAY this was fun but also took forever, haha. I'd love to read others' posts on this subject, so feel free to go for it!

[anystalker707]

Tea at 9pm

Pairing: Vinsmoke Sanji x [gender neutral] Reader Words: ~ 4 100 Summary: You're not aware the cook had feelings for you. Tags: babygirl sanji / wholesome relationship / reader is a writer who keeps a journal with the crew's adventures / extremely fluffy ending

a/n: comfort fic once again lmao i had an existential crisis

MASTERLIST

          If anyone asked what you did, it would feel like you were just a minor part of the crew, presumptuous, even, but things were different when they saw you actually get in action. In the first place, you wrote. You were a writer, author of some great novels that spreaded across the Grand Line, and secondly, you now were a Strawhat who kept a log of the crew’s adventures and fought when needed. The day Luffy recruited you was still fresh in your mind.

"So you’re a writer? You wrote all of this?" Luffy had asked thoughtfully with a hand on his chin as he eyed the piles of books. "Riiight... I need someone to write it down when I become the King of the Pirates! The news’ people always tell things wrong! Come with us!"

A smile traced your lips as you shook your head, now working on the illustration of the last island you'd been to, adding details and a little color. Sure wasn't the best drawing, but you still wanted to keep some sort of reminder from the lovely place.

The soft knock on the door came as it usually did, religiously, and there wasn't even the need for an answer before the door swung open. The click of shoes against the ground resonated through the small office-bedroom as he approached you and finally set the tray on the free space of the desk. Your and his cups were filled with hot tea as they were every night, the flavor declared by the strong smell that came along with the steam escaping from the drink.

"A lot of work today?" Sanji asked you as he took a seat on the armchair, crossing his legs.

"Not really." You shook your head. "We've been in the open sea for a couple of days already, so I'm just updating some old stuff." The drawing you showed him had been finished earlier, already properly inked and depicting part of the crew interacting at the island.

Sanji raised his eyebrows and slowly nodded, a smile decorating his face. "Does it still give you time to work on your personal stuff, though?" He took the unlit cigarette off between his lips and slipped it back into its case that belonged to the pocket on the inside of his blazer, which he ended up taking off and folding to leave it across the armchair’s arm.

“Sort of.” You shrugged a little. “I use a lot of my free time to work on it. It only gets difficult to manage when we’re down to things like when in Spypiea, Sabaody or Marineford. Even afterwards, I still need a couple of weeks to organize everything, interview you guys and stuff. We genuinely go through a lot of stuff, and you only realize it’s that much when you need to register it all down!” You chuckled a little, throwing your arms above yourself to stretch with a soft sigh. “My priority is to keep the crew’s log, though!”

“Oh? Not your career?”

“Of course not!” You shook your head. “You guys are wonderful people who once saved me and now we take care of each other. I can’t let you die—all of this die—without the story being properly told. It’s a great responsibility to keep a record of the adventures...” The words trailed off until you were lost in your thoughts instead, but you just shook your head and closed the few books you had opened after you marked all the pages, leaving untouched only the one that had the drying watercolor. Carefully, you took the still warm cup in hand, inhaling the sweet and rich smell of the tea. “Fruit?”

“Something from that island, but a fruit, indeed,” he justified, momentarily standing up so he could also get his tea. “I haven’t tried it yet, thought it would be best for the both of us to have it together. It’s important to me.”

“What if it’s bad?” You joked,  turning your chair so you could face him.

“Then we throw it out the window and you write down how terrible it was so we never try it again!” He clicks his tongue in a feigned annoyance that has both of you laughing until forced to fall quiet to finally try the drink. “Well, I actually like it! You?”

You took a sip of the tea, giving yourself a moment to analyze the taste. “Good! Still not better than my favorite, but it’s still something!” The comment brought a grin to Sanji’s face as both of you shared a look.

Silence filled the room again quite comfortably, allowing you to hear the waves crashing outside. You took a look out the window and then at the clock on the table. “Who’s on the night watch today?” It’d been a while since you last left your room, probably only having done so for dinner during the last hours because Sanji wouldn’t leave you alone otherwise.

“That’s me!” His voice didn’t carry the same excitement as his face did as he looked into the cup.

“Want some company?” You offered. “I’m always up until late messing with my things, either—”

“Don’t think about it!” Sanji shook his free hand as he took a sip of the tea. “You had to wake up early today and take care of your writing this whole time, so you better have a good night of sleep! I know how those can be tiring! Mentally tiring!”

“Sanji!” You furrowed your eyebrows with a pout, but ended up just rolling your eyes once he shot you a glare, compelling him to snicker. A sigh escaped your lips as you leaned back on the chair. “I just wanted to keep you company. I want to show you some story ideas along with some drawings! Your night watch wouldn’t be so boring.”

“As much as I like your company, your rest comes first. I promise I’ll come check out all of that stuff tomorrow, okay? Besides, keep that night energy for when it’s your turn for the night watch!” Sanji lectured you despite the unfazed look you shot him before rolling your eyes—it was almost as if you weren’t the one who would take care of him during the night, either telling him to go to bed already when he cooked until too late or throwing a blanket over his shoulders because he fell asleep in the galley.

You were the first one to finish the drink, putting your empty cup away and wetting the watercolor again until Sanji stood up and placed his cup back on the tray as well.

“Don’t forget to go to sleep,” Sanji said, his face a few inches away from yours as he bent down with a hand on the back of the chair. “I’ll come here and put you to sleep if I notice you’re awake!”

“It’s not happening,” you promised him with a smile.

“Great!” Sanji wrapped an arm around your shoulders in a hug you awkwardly returned as you could, with a hand on his shoulder whilst leaning into his touch. He took the tray in hand so he could leave, wishing you a good night. His blazer was still on the armchair; you shook your head with a chuckle.

The next day, Sanji was still awake when you had breakfast. You quietly observed him swooning over Robin and Nami despite how tired he was, but your attention was on catching up with Luffy, Chopper, Franky, Brook and Usopp. Most of the day, you were locked in your office, reading in the library or drawing one of the tables on the desk, so they wouldn’t lose the opportunity of talking with you during the meals to know what you’d done so far. They loved to see the drawings of themselves, no matter how they were, always bugging you to take a look at something even on days you took off to yourself, so it was easy to spent the morning with them and later talk with Robin and Nami as well, not forgetting to go up to the Crow’s Nest for at least a few minutes to spot Zoro on a rep or two while chatting.

A little after lunch, Sanji knocked on your room’s door. “Hell, I’m really tired!”

You glanced away from your papers to see him kick off his shoes before collapsing on your bed face-first, grabbing one of the pillows to rest his head on, sort of hugging it. “Did you take a nap? You left your blazer here last night, by the way!”

“Oh, so that’s where it was this whole time, thank you! And no! I ended up preparing breakfast during the night then prepared lunch after breakfast was served,” he explained, muffled by the pillow until he turned his head to face you.

“Should’ve tried to get some sleep.” You sighed, dipping your pen in ink again.

“It’s not like that,” he groaned. “I left some food ready just in case, though, just so I can rest now. I thought I’d come talk to you first since I promised.”

You furrowed your eyebrows as you looked at the cook, pausing so you could ruffle his hair, which made him close his eyes for a moment. “Nonsense. You could’ve just gone to sleep, I’d understand it! You don’t need to sacrifice yourself.”

“Shhh, I promised.” Sanji narrowed his eyes a little. “Tell me, what did you want to show me?”

“Right... First of all, I had some retouches on the drawings I’d made for Sabaody, so I wanted you to take a look at them to make sure I’m not forgetting anything,” you mumbled while you flipped to the pages where the drawings were and handed the book to him. Through time, your chat grew slower, with sporadic and distant answers coming from Sanji until you looked at him and noticed he was actually asleep. The sight made a small smile stretch your lips before you went back to working quietly as always.

A knock on the door pulled you away from your thoughts and you looked back to see Nami’s head peeking him from the slightly-open door. “Hey, (y/n), have you seen—” She looked around for a little and fell silent.

“Seen what?”

“Actually, nevermind!” She shot you a smile. “Sorry for interrupting!”

“No worries!” You smiled, waving as she quietly closed the door once again.

          The new island was filled with casinos, clubs, markets and stores with the most peculiar things that had a great part of the crew voting to stay for longer than a day since there weren’t any worries that tied you down to dates or time. Usopp, Sanji, Nami and Robin seemed excited about a particular club after you took a look at it while getting to know the city, so they invited you and Brook and it was almost impossible to refuse; you easily found yourself getting ready in front of the mirror before you left to go wait for the others with Nami and Usopp. Sanji was the last to show up, covering Nami and Robin with compliments that they already learned not to give much attention to, instead already moving to leave the ship.

“You’re looking extra good today, (y/n)!” Nami smiled, hooking her arm with yours and discreetly distancing from the rest of the group with you. “Trying to catch someone’s attention?”

“Maybe?” You chuckled. “It’s been a while since we last stopped at such a nice island, so I thought a one-night thing isn’t gonna hurt!”

Nami blinked a couple of times. “One-night thing?”

“No new crewmates!” You shook your head, contributing more to Nami’s confused look, which you also didn’t quite understand.

She hummed, looking away for a long moment. “Um, and Sanji?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well...” She breathed and shrugged a little, about to say something when she was hit on the back of the head by something and it was enough for her mood to change completely. Her teeth were gritted and eyes practically white while a vein popped on her temple as she slowly looked back to see the three men stand there quietly, pale, ready for the shouting that promptly came from her along with hits. Robin brought a hand to her mouth as she chuckled, and you sweatdropped, continuing to walk.

The night was long. You’d drunk, not a lot to do things you regretted, but enough to rather easily accept hanging out with people you’d just met, exploring the city and talking bullshit.

“Just a little longer,” the girl said as she waved at you and the two other people that trailed behind, carefully walking through the woods until you made it to a rock on top of a mountain. “It’s gonna be there.” She pointed to a spot behind the mountains of another island in the distance, where it was already lighter and it did seem like the sun would start rising in a few minutes, just as she had promised.

Even with little to help, the four of you made yourselves comfortable on the cold rock; you used one of the guys’ sweatshirt as a makeshift pillow, observing the sky quietly while they talked with each other. Despite the alcohol still in your system, what made you groggy was mostly the lack of sleep.

“Hey,” the girl said as she lay down next to you, on her side, holding herself up with an elbow. “Do you... Okay, I won’t waste time. Can I kiss you?”

You almost choked on your spit, your cheeks immediately growing warm at the question that sent your thoughts racing. At first, all you could do was sputter half words, unable to connect thoughts, until she chuckled and you decided to take a deep breath. “Okay, so, um... I’m... Well, not right now. Actually, I like someone else, a lot. I can’t picture myself kissing another person.”

“Oh. That sucks,” she sighed. “You look really nice, but I don’t think you’re staying around for long, anyways. Say more, though. Tell me about who you like.”

The time your cheeks heated up again was for another reason, with a softer feeling stirring in your chest. “He’s... I think he doesn’t like me, y’know? He’s a real flirt, but not with me. I feel like we are just great friends and it ends there. We are really close, but not the sort of close I wish it were.”

“Did you even tell him you like him?” She raised an eyebrow and you shook your head. “You should!”

“I don’t want it to hurt.” You smiled a little, but without humor.

She furrowed her eyebrows a little as if she understood your situation. “Well, maybe hurting is not a bad thing. It makes you stronger, and it would make you free to kiss other people!” She started to chuckle at the same time you did so, shaking your head a little.

          You had a hand over your brow line to keep a shadow over your eyes while your shoes hung from your other hand when you returned to the ship later that same day, already tired and feeling like you’d never get back to Sunny, feeling as if you’d been run over a thousand times. All you could do once you arrived back to the ship was to sleep, only waking up again when it was already late in the afternoon, mumbling something about something being different in your bedroom before you could go for a shower.

“Whoa, look at who’s alive!” Usopp announced once you walked out to the deck, attracting a lot of pairs of eyes to you.

“Good night?” Zoro teased with a chuckle. “Even forgot you had a home!”

You rolled your eyes, shaking your head as you took a seat at a table with Robin. “Shut up, Zoro, you don’t even know how to get home by yourself!”

Given how you’d practically slept all day long, you decided to change turns with Robin and take the night watch for the day. It was a nice, warm night, so you didn’t bother staying outside with your books, illustrating the island during the night. It felt like something was missing, still. You furrowed your eyebrows and looked at the galley’s direction. There was no tea that night.

Brook took over the nightwatch halfway through the night, allowing you to sleep and wake up at a reasonable hour in the morning. Nami was the first person you ran into once you left your room, happy for finally feeling well after partying all night a day before. “Nami!”

“Oi, (y/n)!” She smiled as she approached you. “Good morning!”

“Morning!” You smiled in return. “Have you seen Sanji? He didn’t bring me tea yesterday. Actually, I didn’t see him at all, now that I think about it.”

Nami’s face fell in a way you didn’t really like, almost taking a step back as you watched her. “Hm, you see...” She sighed, with a hand on her hip. “You didn’t come back to the ship that night, so he was worried. He even tidied up your room so you didn’t need to do anything when you arrived.”

“Right...? Explains a lot.”

“And he thought you were with someone else. Like, hooking up.”

“I wasn’t but...” You shrugged. “What’s up with that?”

The expression across Nami’s face was the same as when she had seen Luffy let himself fall for Usopp’s lies for the first time. “That made him feel bad.”

“Sanji and I aren’t something, Nami.” You furrowed your eyebrows, reminded of the talk you had with the island’s residents that night.

Nami seemed as if she would explode. “Well, maybe he wishes there were?”

“I—”

“(Y/n), Sanji likes you!” She just gave up with a sigh, taking a quick look around before she continued. “He adores you! He doesn’t flirt with people anymore, he just compliments and does things for them because he’s always believed he needed to, mainly to women! Still, he doesn’t make tea for everyone, every night! He doesn’t stay up until late for anyone or makes them company during the night! I’ve never seen Sanji leave his clothes anywhere else rather than in the male quarters! Besides, he keeps one of your novels and a picture with you under his pillow! I saw it!”

That was a lot to take in. You didn’t know Sanji treated you differently in that sense, in the first place, let alone know that he liked you. It made sense now that you thought about it, of course, because he wouldn’t be spending the same amount of time with the others as well if he was there making you company for most of the day. Some nights, he would be there asleep on your bed while you worked on your books.

“Sorry,” Nami exhaled. “I really didn’t want it all to fall upon you suddenly like this, but you needed to know it already! Sanji doesn’t deserve this! Either reject him already or take care of him. He deserves someone to love him.”

You quickly nodded. “I know.”

Not a lot needed to be said. There wasn’t a lot to be said. You looked at Nami a last time before you walked right back into your room, taking a deep sigh as her words still echoed through your mind, each of them connected to a memory you held and you couldn’t help but to feel a weight in your chest—Sanji must’ve felt terrible when he noticed you disappeared at the club after you refused to dance with him so you could leave with your new friends. It would be easy to fix, at least theoretically, because your stomach churned at the thought of facing Sanji right now.

Your morning wasn’t a lot different from the others, locked in your room and staring at a white page, but the purpose of your writing was different this time. Your feelings were going to be spilled, bleeded all over a page without any filter or restriction because they needed to be understood so no one would be hurt anymore. In the end, it was beautifully folded and with Sanji written in your gold ink while sealed with wax.

Sanji was serving breakfast and chatting around, out on the deck—you double checked—when you sneaked into the galley and left the paper in a safe place, where you knew he’d find it. Hell, it was pathetic. You needed to declare your feelings through a little letter because you didn’t have the guts to face the guy yourself after unintentionally hurting his feelings. In your defense, writing was the best thing you could do.

At the same time it was relieving, you could feel anxiety bubbling under your skin. The situation would slip away from your mind at times, but at others, you felt like Sanji would show up out of sudden saying that you were going crazy. Hopefully not.

When it was night, however, the knock finally came, as it always had done before, without missing a single day, for months straight. You tensed up this time, letting him walk in and watching the tray be placed on the free space of your desk—you didn’t even know when it became instinctive to leave that side clear for the tray. Aside from the mugs, this time, there was a bite-sized sweet as well, your favorite.

“I read it.” Sanji’s voice was small, practically vulnerable. His hand was shaking when it retreated from the tray.

“Sanji—”

“I’m sorry I just concluded things!” He cut in quickly.

You furrowed your eyebrows, turning on your chair, but he didn’t meet your eyes, instead looking at the ground. “No, you did nothing wrong! I should’ve paid more attention, I just... I wasn’t communicative enough as well...” You couldn’t find the right words, express the right things, so you took a pause, standing up. He didn’t take a step back when you approached. “I’m sorry, Sanji. Don’t leave me, please. Nami helped me realize things. Sorry for the time we lost.”

Sanji was almost in the same state, with thoughts roaming around his mind without order, but lacking the courage to be voiced, though he knew he couldn’t lose the opportunity—he couldn’t lose you. “(Y/n).”

“I love you, Sanji. I know I’ve told you this before, but now I mean it in another way.”

Sanji’s face was impossibly red. His hand twitched as he reached out to you; it was as if you two were sparkles searching for each other, looking for the right time to go off, which happened exactly when you took his hand in his and let him pull you closer in a tight hug.

“I love you,” he mumbled in response, and it almost felt as if you’d explode, with your heart skipping beats and fluttering in your chest, not even knowing what it does.

It was a relief, really. A relief and a sea of happiness simultaneously because your doubts and anguishes were extinguished at the same time you were finally able to do what you’ve longed for for so long. You let your nose brush against his before your lips met. The taste and smell of tobacco was undeniable, but it still didn’t erase the fact his lips were soft, returning the care and want that you felt for him.

Sanji seemed giddy, blushing and flustered, but also excited to the point he almost didn’t know what to do with himself. He pulled you with him to sit down on the bed and took a look at you, grinning wide before taking your hands in his; he left kisses all over your knuckles then did the same over your face, needing to pause to smile because of how you giggled, and your lips were pressed together again.

You had to place a hand on his chest so you were able to pull away, climbing on the bed properly to push him down and straddle his hips, taking a moment to observe him look at you with wide eyes. “You’re beautiful,” you whispered, still feeling your heart beat strongly in your chest. Sanji’s cheeks felt warm against your palms when you cupped his face, caressing his cheeks and carefully brushing his bangs away from his face; he swallowed dryly, but never stopped you, hands placed over yours softly. “I love you, Sanji!”

Sanji’s mouth opened and closed a couple of times without saying anything until he finally said it once again. “I love you.” There wasn’t a ‘too’ because his love was independent of yours, he loved you and would do it even if you didn’t love him back. He grinned as the excitement bubbled up in his chest, making him feel all giddy again, in a way it was even hard to contain himself when you leaned in for a kiss once more.

.𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟.

[fourmula1]

thinking about a maxiel take on good luck, babe! by chappell roan where daniel is scared to commit to max despite the fact that they’ve been sleeping together for like, a couple years at this point, and that includes actual sleeping. spending the night. ordering food. laying on the couch together. 

but it’s not SERIOUS, right. it’s convenient. they travel the world for work and it’s just easier this way to have someone always there to take care of each other’s needs. it’s just blowing off steam and getting a primal need met. that’s all. right? a person needs to be touched and they’re such good friends as it is and it’s just easy to translate that to the bedroom. the hotel room. the private jet. 

and max has kind of tried to broach the topic a couple of times now. putting a label in this. exclusivity. they have such incredible chemistry in and out of the bedroom and max is ready to make this more serious than it’s been.

and Daniel’s like ‘ahh maxy you’re so young don’t settle down this is all good fun yeah?’

and max has heard daniel say something along those lines so many times and each time he just brushes it aside and carries on because it’s really nice to fall into bed with daniel and forget it all when they’re sweaty and spent and basking in the afterglow.

but it gets to be too much at one point, doesn’t it? max doesn’t want to break up (can he even call it that if they were never together to begin with?) but like. they have been. label or not. so he tells daniel that he doesn’t want to keep sleeping together if that’s all it is (and he knows that isnt all it is but daniel is scared and ashamed of himself and it used to be sad but now max is over it). 

so he cuts daniel loose. but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t see and hear things. they run in all the same circles and he’s heard stories about daniel sleeping around and driving to Nice to hit up gay bars and kiss and fuck all kinds of pretty boys and it fucking hurts every time max hears another anecdote but that’s life, isn’t it?

and max minds his own business and eventually he meets a really nice guy in monaco who isn't involved in racing at all. he’s just normal and nice and into max and going on dates and cooking dinner for him and happy to welcome max home during time between races and it’s good! it’s good. max is happy (as he can be. he’s pretty sure daniel is always going to be the one who got away but that’s just it, isn’t it? daniel wanted to get away and max had to let him).

so it’s two years later and daniel retired a year ago and fucked off to australia and max hasn’t seen him since and he hasn’t really thought of him in months either because: he’s getting married to his nice normal boyfriend who tells max he loves him openly and happily (something he never got from daniel). max is retiring the end of this season and though his boyfriend has been an open secret he’s officially come out for real in the sports illustrated story about his retirement and what he’s planning to do (“lots of eating good food and wedding planning!” and the journalist asks how that’s going and max says “always he asks me about this flower or that colour palette and I anyhow don’t care so much but it’s nice to look forward to the day”). 

and daniel of course hears about the one little pronoun, the “he” heard ‘round the world and he gets obliteratedly wine drunk on the farm and he calls max at whatever ungodly hour it is in australia and it’s he first time they’ve spoken in over a year and max didn’t expect to hear from daniel ever again really but now he’s suddenly stuck trying to talk him off a ledge basically and max, bitterly, tells daniel “there was a time i wanted to be doing all of this with you and you always with the excuses ruined it" and daniel chokes on a sob and max reels back a bit when daniel says “I know” because daniel admitting that was never on his bingo card ever.

but max knows, too. daniel did this to himself. to them. 

and max is getting married next month on summer break and daniel’s going to see pictures on instagram and throw his phone against a wall and be alone and hating himself for hating himself so much that he lost the only man he ever loved and no amount of regret is going to change the way max’s beautiful fucking face was lit up in a brighter, happier way than daniel’s ever seen in those fucking photos of his wedding day, kissing his husband in front of their friends and family and the fucking world.

and daniel is a world away in australia. drunk. and crying. and alone. staring at the dusty dirt road and into the horizon - vast and empty. just like him, now.  

[nadvs]

Bestie idk if you’re interested in sharing a little about this but I would love to hear about your writing process, especially when it comes to smut because (as I’ve said before) I find good smut incredibly difficult to write and you do it so well, especially when it comes to story-driven, intimate smut. Like I was thinking about the scenes in WAL where they get progressively more intimate and emotional and complicated with each chapter and how you were able to build it slowly to match where the characters are in the story. Also in OOB when the first time is actually so kind of innocent and giddy, the second time is passionate and but still sweet and the third time is fueled by heated emotion (and even just a little bit dirty in the best way). Like all 3 scenes are the same two characters in the same room and yet somehow so distinct and critical to the story development. Like how do you decide what they’re gonna do and say and how do you approach actually writing and editing it? No pressure I know I’m asking a lot haha but if you wanted to share a little about your process I personally would be here with a pen and paper soaking up any advice or insight you have 📝 🤓

aaa YES bestie i’m always happy to talk about writing!! i could go on forever 🙂‍↕️ thank you so much for asking ugh you’re fr such an amazing writer so any compliment from you is like WAIT, ME?? 😭💘

regarding process, i’m not ready to write until i feel like i know my characters inside and out. i start every story noting their qualities, flaws, fears, and motivations. i reference these notes as i outline and write. when i know the characters well, it helps me feel like there’s direction in the story and i don’t get stuck wondering what should happen next.

knowing who the characters are helps me so much with determining how a smut scene would go. i think every scene in a story should reveal something about the characters, whether it be their personality or their feelings or their history, and intimacy, to me, is such a vulnerable and telling way to do it. even a single line of dialogue during a smut scene can say a lot about a person and how they view their partner.

along with characterization, for a smut scene to feel ‘complete’ to me, it needs to have these elements:

• a sense of what the characters feel for each other and how much emotion is involved. i write these details between action paragraphs, so there’s a balance of what’s happening and the emotional undercurrent. i think it makes the scene feel more real when you’re showing both what’s happening and what the characters are thinking and feeling during it.

• an idea of where the relationship is going. i try to make every smut scene story-driven (so you saying that MEANS THE WORLD) by knowing exactly how and why their connection is growing. between the smut scenes, i try to illustrate how their bond is strengthening through conversations and the things they do for each other, and then the smut scene is sort of the ‘result’ of those conversations and actions. they know each other better, their feelings for each other are stronger, and every time they’re intimate, they’re more vulnerable and loving with each other. i like to mix up smut scenes to stay interesting so they’re not doing the same thing every time, but i also decide what they say/do based on what i think would line up with their current level of intimacy, regarding where they are in their relationship.

• sensory descriptions, even down to what they can hear happening outside of the room they’re in. in my opinion, it makes the scene feel more realistic and easier to imagine when you write more than just what’s happening in the bed (or wherever they’re getting freaky 🤪).

OK I YAPPED A LOT but that’s me 🙂‍↕️ ily nat!!

[writerswhy]

hi, previous anon here! i wanted to ask if my question offended you since it's been a while. if it did im sorry, i didn't mean to come off aggressive or anything lol

If you’re the anon who asked me why I believe Hinamori would try to push forward and “over” her anger and hurt towards Aizen and turn it into something along the lines of transformative justice:

Then no, I’m sorry!! Life has really picked up and I find that I don’t have much time to do most of what I enjoy. I’m not going to lie, the more times passes, the more unhappy I am with that post. I feel like I didn’t get my point across, and that’s in part because I’m really self-conscious about my place in any fandom, and if it’s something I enjoy or something I should finally let go. 

But that’s not what you’re asking. Onto Hinamori:

When thinking about her, I get the feeling that she’s someone who’s always wondering:

“am I feeling this right?” 

Because I know she’s often characterized as very, very naive - sheltered even - and I mean, sure, everyone has been naive at least once in their life, but I think it’s more about how earnest and empathetic she is coupled with this sense of justice that drives her. (Interestingly, I think the lieutenant with whom she has the most in common is Hisagi.)

I think her course of action doesn’t necessarily align with the Seireitei’s tools - and as a result her peers, and that’s such a specific brand of loneliness. I always go back to these panels:

They just scream disillusionment to me. Like she knows not all is as it seems.

(I mean, I think Hinamori wanted to join the gotei because she thought maybe it’s a way to continue her story and oh look, it just so happens that it’s now the only way to continue her story; look at how the stars aligned. Until she learned it was all by design.)

I feel like Hinamori is someone whose entire moral code, the principles that guide her, are constantly being invalidated by their very existence.

She’s seen how that very attitude is used to hurt others, and most importantly, her participation in upholding the status quo, are what weighs on her the most. What about her Rukongai ghost friends? What about the students who are going to be fed to the machine? (I know it would break Hinamori’s heart if she ever found out about the guy from the 12th who joined to get closer to her only to get blown up by his own captain.) What about her subordinates? What about her friends? I feel like Hinamori bears a sense of responsibility to all of this and so much more. As a shinigami, she participates in othering ghosts like her friends (like herself at one point), and perpetuates the inequality. As someone who illustrates for the academy (and whose own subordinate is now an instructor at the academy), does she feel like she’s legitimizing their teaching? And Hitsugaya! I think she feels like she is in one way responsible for him joining the academy and how everything that came from it takes more from him than it gives. 

Grappling with what to do with all this, I think, is an important part of her story. The after. What to do with all you know (the memories that haunt you, memories that have been used to hurt you), all you’ll never know (haunted by memories that will never be and could never have been), and proceeding in a responsible way. Maybe Hinamori could learn to distance herself a little more, to stop believing just a bit, but Hinamori also knows what that could do to others (as it has done to Aizen and Hitsugaya), and while it may not look the same for her, I think, she’ll lose more than what she’ll gain. For herself and for a better tomorrow. 

Hinamori is not just a dreamer. She dreams big and works twice as hard. If she wants to follow a captain she believes embodied all that she was looking for outside Seireitei’s framework (because remember, it was emphasized that Aizen treated everyone equally, that his students loved him, and that’s something I feel Hinamori was losing hope in ever seeing within Seireitei’s walls), she is going to train until her hands bleed and study until she passes out.

(Top 👏 of 👏 her class 👏. Ki-👏-do ma-👏-ster.)

I know the translations vary, but I remember Unohana saying something like “Hinamori is waiting for someone to call her”, and maybe Hinamori is someone who needs to believe there are parts worth fighting for…and maybe those parts start with the people. She can grow bitter and follow in the Seireitei’s footsteps, like Aizen; she can rage until she hurts parts of herself more than it’s hurts her enemies, like Hitsugaya; she can bury her head in the sand and ignore the creating of another enemy; or she can trust her ideal and learn to work in and outside the Seireitei for the sake of Soul Society. She’s not a pacifist - she has and will continue to disrupt. That could mean being the one dissenting voice. That could mean planting trees that will grow beyond her time.

(That could mean reflecting off of all you hold close.) 

[aziraphale-s-secret-shelf]

Rec of the day : Ineffable Romans

Hello !

Today I wanted to talk about a story (and more broadly, an AU) I like very much !

This story is Ineffable Romans by @angellilou-art.

In this story, Aziraphale is the current Emperor of Rome and Crowley is a gladiator that was captured a long tome ago in one of the many of rome's raid to expand its teritorry.

The story revolves around a lot of court shenanigans (if you allow me the expression) but also around how both of them slowly learn to trust each other.

I have a really sweet spot for human AU, and this one is just amazing. Aziraphale and Crowley still feel like themself, but have also new facets due to the circustomsis they grew up in. I loved exploring the ancient rome with these versions of them. I also really liked all the little footnotes explaning here and there informations about this ancient civilizations.

This story also come with a great deal of amazing illustrations ! There is so many artworks in this book along the story, it's a delight to read.

It's not available to read for free, but you can find more of this AU on @angellilou-art blog (go in the #ineffable romans tag to see al the really nice atworks~)

And if you want to get it for yourself it's available on their kofi in both physical and digital version !

Thank you for reading and see you next time ✨

[skeletonmob]

Catharsis - Chapter 1

Merry Christmas! This is an original story for my fantasy world, Ouranos. At the advice of my friends and some kind internet strangers, I'll be cross posting it here and on AO3. Illustrations will also be added as they are finished. I hope you enjoy!

Masterpost

Chap 2

Word count ~ 2470

Reading time ~ 12 min.

Apr 16

We were watching over Rye's daughter for the weekend while he and his husband celebrated their anniversary.

"Thanks for doing this, Cloak."

"No worries."

He transitioned after Megan was born. He hasn't officially decided on a name yet, but he initially wanted to be called Tyler or Tyrone. Something along those lines. So we gave him the nickname 'Rye' and it's stuck ever since.

He gave Megan a big hug and a goodbye kiss on her forehead.

"Now you be good, okay?"

"Okay! I love you daddy!"

"I love you too, sweetie pie."

After we saw Rye off, Megan immediately ran to the guest room, excited for all the adventures to come. The only plan we had today was to go to the grocery store. So after we got her settled in, we pulled out the wagon and headed on over.

It was a beautiful spring day. Big, fluffy clouds drifted lazily across the sky while birdsong zipped through the air. As you passed by specific houses, the air would briefly be filled with an intense lilac perfume, or the delicate scent of apple blossoms. Everyone was out and about either doing laundry, getting their gardens ready, or taking their own kids somewhere. I was also a bit surprised at how many tulips were still in bloom. They usually only last a week before the petals start to fall off.

illustration by Misiwasy

“Orange!”

I looked over to see a toddler enthusiastically pointing at me. Their grandma was taking them out for a walk.

“Yes, they’re very colorful aren’t they?”

“Hi, orange!”

I smiled and waved back and continued walking. Both me and my husband are daemons, which are about as common as Beastfolk. So nobody really takes notice. It’s mainly little kids that love to point out that your skin is their favorite color or that your horns are all fun and wiggly. For and Dagger specifically, kids love to point out our big fancy hats and that we look like an orange and a lemon respectively. Both of us cut off our horns back in high school since they were kind of a hassle to deal with.

After a good ten minute walk, we finally arrived at the store. This block of the neighborhood is where all the food's located. Overlooking the parking lot were trees and shrubs, and beyond that was a food court. A large, horseshoe shaped building that contained a Waffle House, a coffee shop, a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, a Century Stationary, a local kitchenware store, and a vegetarian cafe. In front of it was a carousel, which Megan immediately noticed.

"It's a – it's a – it's a spinny horse!"

"Yeah, you wanna go on the spinny horse?"

"Yes!"

I turned to my husband, Dagger.

"So, who gets the honor?"

"I don't mind either. We only need, like, a dozen things, right?"

"I'm . . . actually in the mood to walk around for a bit, so you take her."

"Okay! Horse time it is!"

"Horse time!"

Dagger lifted Megan out of the wagon and she immediately bolted for the carousel. He kept up with a brisk walk and after making sure they were okay, I locked up the wagon by the bicycle rack and headed inside.

---

The gyros we made for dinner were a big hit with Megan. Though like most kids, I think she'd enjoy basically anything you'd give her. I'd also made some falafel and extra tzatziki for it. The news kept us company as we ate.

"Well, it finally happened! After over a decade of setbacks, the National Recycling Company of Colombia has finally been created. Plans for the company go back as far as 2005, but these were put on the back burner from 2007 to 2015 – during the Bullion War. When the war ended, the plans were brought back out as a way for the country to recover economically and as a point of national pride. Colombia is know worldwide for its coffee beans, and has been trying to become more environmentally friendly to help protect this industry."

"Like many other recycling facilities, the National Recycling Company will recycle people's trash by transmuting it into various metals. To start out, the company will focus on gold, lithium, and cobalt, all of which are of immense importance to the tech industry. Economists are expecting the prices of these metals to stabilize and the price of -"

"Are they bad guys?" Megan pointed at the screen, "When daddy plays games, there's always lots of bad guys.

As the news segment finished up, it was showing a clip of politicians and economists in black business suits clapping their hands. It took me a moment to figure out what she was saying.

"Oh, they're not secret agents. They're just grown ups wearing fancy clothes."

"But they look like bad guys!"

"It's just a uniform they're wearing. It's like when your daddy has to wear special clothes to go to work."

"You have to play dress up to go work?"

"Yeah, lots of people have to do that, like your dad, and nurses, and firefighters. All those guys on TV were doing the same thing, so they're not bad guys."

"I like playing dress up!"

Megan went back to munching on the falafel she had. I wasn't sure if she understood what I was trying to say, but I suppose she guessed that if someone like to play dress up, then they couldn't be a bad guy.

Apr 17

Cornflower Park is a three mile long park built on the coast of Cornflower Lake. It was built back in the fifties, after the Great War, to prevent the lake from being filled with mansions and vacation homes. Many neighborhoods and towns along the coast followed suit over the years. Since there were so many stretches of park, people eventually decided to connect them all. So now, the name 'Cornflower Park' refers to the long, winding, unbroken stretch of grass that covers nearly the entirety of the eastern coastline.

We got off the train at University and were greeted by a seeming endless expanse of green, dotted with trees, apartments, and the occasional ice cream shop.

"Park!"

"Yeah, the playground we're going to is this way!"

"Is it a – a super fun playground?"

"Yeah, there's lots of fun animals!"

"My daddy – when my daddy goes to work, he gets to play with lots of doggies!"

"That's why were taking you there!"

We walked along the boardwalk for a while, Megan's excitement letting her keep up with us. Me and Dagger had passed by this playground a few times and thought it'd be the perfect place for her. It was a large, square wooden fort that enclosed a large, tree shaped jungle gym. All the slides were designed to look like snakes, and there were wood cutouts of monkeys and alligators and other animals spread all over. There were even water misters to help set the scene, but they weren't on. They're probably mainly used in the summer.

Both me and Dagger kept watch over Megan and took turns playing with her. Dusty – Rye's husband – is a zookeeper and also a werewolf. So Megan really loves animals, especially dogs. As we played, she told us fun animal facts and stories about the zoo.

"There's – there's this one kitty at the zoo, where my daddy works, her name is Rose. She's really big! She's yellow with lots of black spots - "

"She's a cheetah." I said.

"Yes! And all the other nice people at the zoo say that she's really nervous. So even though they're all really nice, Rose doesn't like to play with them."

"Oh, that sounds really sad! I bet all the people there would love to play with her."

"When – when Rose doesn't want to play with nobody, the nice people at the zoo, where my daddy works, bring in a doggy! Her name is Goldie, like the Amimal Crossing character! She's yellow and also really big! So – so when she comes to visit, I get to play with a doggy and a kitty!"

We finished off our playground date by going down as many slides as many times as we could. Then we started walking along the promenade, looking for something to eat.

"Hey, can we find like, a fancy sports car or something?" Dagger asked.

"Why?"

He pointed to his horn ornaments. He was using magic to store all the static electricity from the slides.

"I need to discharge these guys."

"Is it that bad?"

"Well, the average static shock that you can feel is 20,000 volts. Multiply that by . . . a dozen, there's theoretically 240,000 volts in these."

"But it's resistance that actually kills you, right?"

"I'd rather not use a live test subject to find out."

Dagger's breathing became more labored as we continued walking. It's hard to explain since I'm so used to it, but using magic requires focus and concentration. Some types more than others. Like, if you want to use Moon magic to divine the future, you have to clear and calm your mind. You have to focus on the tarot cards, or pendulum, or whatever tool you're using. But if you want to use Mars magic, all you have to do is visualize fire, and then you can start throwing fireballs until the sun goes down. On this spectrum, Jupiter magic is on the higher end. Trying to control something as chaotic and unpredictable as electricity requires a lot of focus and concentration.

As we passed by a small parking lot, we found the perfect target: the Future Car. It was a 'car' advertised as 'the car of the future'. Aside from having a stupid tagline, it also looked really dumb. It was basically a trapezoid on wheels.

"Oh, thank fuck!" Dagger muttered under his breath.

He hobbled over to the 'car' as fast as he could, still trying to not preemptively discharge any electricity. He took a deep breath and steeled his nerves, then gently tapped his horns on the car. All the car doors swung open and the car alarm started blaring. I picked up Megan and started running as fast as I could, Dagger bolting in from behind. We rounded the corner of an apartment building, and with the parking lot out of view, we slowed down and caught our breath.

"Was that a bad guy car?" Megan wasn't entirely sure of what was going on.

"Uh . . ."

"Yes!" Dagger exclaimed, "You shouldn't trust anybody in a funny car like that, okay?"

"Okay." Megan was still unsure.

I put her down and we continued walking as casually as we could.

"I didn't expect it to be that flimsy." Dagger said after a minute.

"It's the first car that Fu – that Deader than Disco has ever designed. Honestly, it's probably the first thought he's ever had in his head."

Apr 18

Rye and Dusty were coming back this evening, just before dinner. There was plenty of time to visit the museum or the botanical gardens, but neither of us really had the energy for something like that. We decided to go out to lunch and spend some time walking around downtown Denver.

There's loads of restaurants, mostly concentrated in the area between 16th Street Mall and the University of Colorado. But neither of us really knew what we wanted to eat. We had gyros on Friday. Yesterday, we had Chinese for lunch and spaghetti for dinner. That mostly left us with pizza, hamburgers, and sandwiches, which felt really boring in that moment.

As we kept trying to find a restaurant we were in the mood for, we meandered across the Gateway building.

"Still a bit surprising that we let Fu – Deader than Disco headquarter here." Dagger said.

"I don't think anyone's taking him seriously after his divorce and all the other shit he's been up to. Plus, the company's been shifting towards home electronics, so the city probably thought it'd be fine."

"Didn't he basically cause the Bullion War?"

"Well . . . I think everyone just views him as some dumbass with too much money. Which is a dangerous combination, but still pretty manageable."

"I still think this is a Trojan horse situation."

"Well, it's not like you can't stop magic by flashing dollar bills at it."

As if on cue, a voice shouted from behind us.

"Hey!"

We turned to see a bearded man in a business suit stomping toward us. Dagger grabbed Megan and stepped off to the side.

"Did you fuckers mess with my car yesterday?"

As he closed in, I immediately noticed the fresh rose he had on his lapel. He was probably going to a bachelor's party or a business meeting, but that didn't matter right now.

"Yes." I said flatly, not taking my eyes off the rose.

"What the fuck!"

He was about grab me, but I quickly waved a burst of fire between us. He stepped back, frustrated.

"I paid 120 grand for that car!"

"For a metal box on wheels?"

"Goddammit! You better not touch my car again or else I'll make you pay for everything you did to it!"

"For setting of the car alarm?" Dagger interjected, "Also, if you can drop 120 grand on a car, I'd assume you could pay for the repairs."

The man looked at Dagger in disbelief, then continued his tirade.

"The fuck is wrong with you? You think that, just because you have all your hoity toity magic, that you can just walk over everyon - hrg ACK!"

The man had a hard, phlegmy coughing fit as the smell of burnt potpourri suddenly filled the air. Dagger tried to Mercury the rest of the smell away from me, though I still had to stifle a few coughs. As the man recovered, he grabbed me by the shoulders.

"The fuck was that?"

"Pyrolysis, the thermal decomposition of matter."

The man patted down his suit to search for any burn marks before noticing that his rose has vanished into thin air. He looked at me with a combination of frustration, anxiety, and bewilderment.

"You – you can do that?"

"I can demonstrate again if you want," I smiled, "I think your beard could use a bit of a trim."

There was a long pause. The man's face became more filled with anxiety as the extent of my magic became clear to him.

"Just don't touch my car again, please." He said in a low, desperate voice.

He quickly walked past us, towards whatever function he was supposed to be at.

"Do you just wanna get a pizza, since we can share it?" Dagger said after a moment.

"Sure."

We started walking back towards 16th Street Mall.

"Was he a bad guy?" Megan asked.

"He was a bad guy."

"But you defeated him! Just like my daddy!" Megan smiled.

"Yeah! Just like your dad!"