#me when i make up a ship outta nowhere and get obsessed with it

[r3dsp4ce]

verose👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩💯

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

Among Us idea: Because I'm a little bit obsessed with game mechanics and glitches in fic...how about a round where one of the Hermits gets left behind? The game ends, and everyone but them is transported to the lobby, but they're just left on an empty ship flying eternally to some destination it will never reach... All the tasks are done. There's nothing left to do. So why is the game still keeping them there? And how do they escape? (It could also be two people left, if writing just one alone would be boring. Your choice who!)

SKSKSKSKSK HOW DO YOU DO THIS I’VE BEEN PLANNING OUT AN IDEA IN MY HEAD FOR THE LAST FEW DAYS IN WHICH TWO PLAYERS ACCIDENTALLY GET LEFT BEHIND HOW DO YOU KEEP READING MY MIND (/lh)

also i had a kind of idea to expand the concept a little bit and i hope that’s okay :)

also also i too love the ideas that utilise glitches or kinda ignore game mechanics; they're always so interesting to write! :D

…

Having finished his tasks a long time ago and not being teleported to any meetings lately, Skizz wanders around the whole ship, trying to find a friend. A buddy. Or literally anyone. But the ship seems deserted.

Finally, Skizz wanders into admin and checks the special table.

To his shock, he finds only two yellow faces on the screen: one in admin and one in cafeteria. So he rushes into the cafeteria and literally bumps into someone coming the other way.

“Oh my gosh, FINALLY,” Impulse breathes. “Where IS everyone?”

Skizz glances away, unable to meet his best friend’s gaze. “We have a problem.”

Impulse frowns. “What?” he asks warily.

“Um…” Skizz rubs the back of his neck. “So… it seems we’re the only two people on the ship.”

It takes a moment for Impulse’s brain to process what his friend just said. “...what?”

“I looked around the whole ship and then went to the admin table. There were only two yellow dots: me and you. There’s literally nobody else anywhere on the ship, dude.”

“But… I…” Impulse blinks. “How is that possible? Did the game end and leave us behind, somehow?”

“I feel like that’s the only possible explanation, but at the same time, it makes no sense.”

“Well, if this IS what happened, it’s gotta be a glitch, right?” says Impulse.

Skizz nods. “Gotta be. But now the question is… how do we get outta here?”

Impulse gazes around the room. “The game always automatically puts us back in the lobby when we’re done, so… I don’t think there’s a way of manually doing it.”

Skizz stares back at him with wide eyes. “You mean we’re stuck in THIS particular ship forever?!”

“W-Well, hopefully not FOREVER,” Impulse responds nervously. “I’m sure they’ll have realised we’re missing by now and they’ll be trying to get us back.”

“But what if they can’t?!” Skizz yelps. “We’ll be trapped in this purgatory forever!”

“Not helping, Skizz,” snaps Impulse. “We’ll be totally fine. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“Yeah, like I can have ANY faith in your words anymore,” mutters Skizz, turning away.

Impulse glances sharply at him, sensing that his best friend’s words aren’t about Among Us. Not entirely. “What do you mean?”

Skizz just rolls his eyes and walks off.

Impulse watches him go. Looks like Skizz hasn’t been so quick to forgive and forget after all. Now the way Skizz was acting around him earlier makes sense.

After making a quick trip around the ship, Impulse discovers Skizz sitting leaning against the wall in admin, tossing a stack of ID cards at the wall one at a time.

“Still no way off,” Impulse reports. “Looks like we’re stuck here until they rescue us. Flying through space. On a ship heading to nowhere. An endless journey. With nothing except-.”

“Yes, okay, I get it!” Skizz snaps at him.

After a moment, Impulse leans against the admin table. “Skizz, you’ve been acting weird around me all night. I think we need to talk.”

“I don’t wanna talk.”

“C’mon. We’re stuck here on a ship on our own for the foreseeable future. There’s no better time to talk than now.”

“Okay!” snaps Skizz unexpectedly, jumping to his feet. “FINE! You wanna talk?! I don’t care! You did a LOT of talking back there on 3rd Life and not a word of it was true!”

Impulse frowns. “Is that what this is about?”

Skizz’s eyes nearly pop out of his head. “WH- WHAT DO YOU MEAN “is that what this is about”?! You say that like I’m mad at you for stealing my sandwich! Impulse, you LIED to me, BETRAYED me, and then watched Grian KILL me! You told me over and over again that you were on my side and you were loyal to us but you planned to betray us from the start! Y-You planned to betray ME. Do you-” He breaks off with a bitter laugh. “You know what, I was gonna say “do you have any idea how much that hurts?” but you DO, don’t you? Because your own ally turned on you. And murdered you. And you know what? YOU DESERVED IT!”

Impulse can only stare at his best friend with an expression of guilt and sadness.

“I wanted you to go far, dude! I wanted you to win at one point!” Skizz’s voice cracks. “I thought you were the best of us but it turns out you were nothing but a dirty liar and a traitor! I thought “oh, his strategy of playing all sides is pretty smart, actually, but he’s gonna have to pick a side at some point” but I didn’t realise that meant pretending to pick a side and then STABBING THEM IN THE BACK! Of all the- the jerky things to do! You pick the worst one! I-I just don’t understand how you could do that to someone you’ve been a brother to for A QUARTER OF A CENTURY! GOD, you SO deserved to die and the biggest regret of my life is that I didn’t get imposter tonight so I could stab you in the FACE!”

Skizz finally stops talking, breathing heavily. He takes in a deep breath, rubbing his eyes tiredly. “Wow… I did not expect to yell that much…”

“I…” Impulse searches for something to say. But he can’t find anything. “I don’t…”

“You don’t have to say anything, Impulse.” Skizz gives a weak smile. “I-I think I just needed to… to let my feelings out.”

“You just needed to yell at me, huh? I get that.”

“Haha, yeah. Remember that time I snuck onto Hermitcraft and did a bunch of reckless things and then died, and you didn’t know if I was gonna respawn or not?”

Impulse nods, a small smile appearing on his face. “That’s what I was indirectly referring to. I think my throat hurt from yelling at you for, like, two weeks after that.”

“Are we even now, then?” asks Skizz.

“Well, I mean… Probably not. I still have a lot to make up for.”

Skizz shakes his head. “No, it… it’s okay. We all did things in that place that we’re not proud of.”

“Even the great Skizzleman?” teases Impulse weakly.

“Oh heck yeah. I still have nightmares about how I violently murdered two of my friends and how bloodthirsty I felt for so long. It freaks me out that I got to that point, man. Even in Among Us when I murder people, even you, I never got THAT bad.”

“Yeah, 3rd Life was…” Again, Impulse searches for the right word. “...an experience. In more ways than one.”

“It really was,” Skizz murmurs, letting out a long breath. “I’m sorry; I shouldn’t have let it affect Among Us so much.”

“No, it’s okay. And we can-.”

Impulse breaks off Skizz suddenly disappears in front of him. Blinking, he just has time to take a step forward before the admin room vanishes and he finds himself back in the lobby.

With eight people staring at him.

“Oh my gosh, finally!” Tango gasps, grabbing both Impulse and Skizz in a hug. “Are you guys okay?”

“We’re fine, dude,” laughs Skizz quietly. “We just yelled at each other a bit, that’s all.”

Impulse chuckles. “Well, it was mostly Skizz doing the yelling.”

“Yeah, true. How did you guys even manage to get us out?”

“The insane genius that is Etho hacked into the code and managed to force the round to end again,” Tango responds. “Somehow. I dunno how. Took us a while to figure out what’d happened, though.”

“Yeah, I’ve never seen that glitch before,” Etho chimes in. “There was six left, Grian and Ren double-killed me and Pungence to win, and that should’ve been it. The rest of us respawned in the lobby but we realised you two were missing.”

“Whoa, that’s so weird.” Skizz exchanges a look with Impulse. “Cuz for us, it was like the round just hadn’t ended.”

“Yeah, we’d both done all our tasks and we had no idea anything had happened.”

“What did you guys do?”

Impulse and Skizz shoot each other another look, silently making a mutual decision. “Just talked a bit and tried to look for a way out,” Impulse replies. “That’s all.”

Tango frowns, clearly picking up on the slight tension between them, but he doesn’t mention it. “Okay. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen again.”

“Yeah.”

Skizz thinks back to the way he’d exploded at Impulse, and the way Impulse had looked at him with fear in his eyes. All the fury, the despair, the hurt… It had all spilled out at once. Skizz never wants to feel that way again.

“Let’s hope not.”

[luckycheesefoodie321]

Prince of Tennis (2019) meme

I was tagged by @hardworkingprocrastinator aka @rupru-russiaxprussia whom I do believe I ranted with about the Imperial Pair ship, and the unexpected potential of Si Yang x Qi Ying… so thanking you kindly for another excuse to rave about ChinaPuri… sooo uhhh time for some fun times!!

Tagging: I have 0 idea who to tag because we a smaller fandom

Warning: I have not watched or read the original manga/anime soooooo I’m in an even smaller subset of the fandom babeyyyy!!! It has also been a couple months since I watched the show, so there is a strong chance I’ll have forgotten names and situations, and just general thoughts I have... BUT WHATEVER time to rant to the thirteen people who’ve watched ChinaPuri!!!

Questions:

1. Favorite character(s)? 2. Favorite school team(s)? 3. Favorite coach(es)? 4. Favorite supporting cast member(s)? (characters who aren’t regulars, aren’t on tennis teams etc.) 5. Favorite original character(s) in the adaptation? 6. Who do you think enacted their role best? 7. Favorite singles match? 8. Favorite doubles match? 9. Favorite story arc? 10. Most amusing tenipuri scene(s)/moment(s)/running joke(s)? 11. What did you like most about the adaptation? 12. What do you think the adaptation could have improved on? 13. Any other thoughts you want to share?

Answers: THIS ISH GETS LONGGGGG SO CUT OFF NOW

1. Favorite character(s)?

MU SI YANG BABEYYYYY!!! I already love a stoic glasses boi, but Mu Si Yang (again not TeniPuri Tezuka, just ChinaPuri Si Yang) may be one of my favourite takes on the stoic glasses boi… like I don’t often enjoy live action versions of anime, especially because the acting is never the best (and granted this one too, had some okay performances) but the guy who plays Mu Si Yang melted my heart… he was the stony-faced serious captain, who could deliver a subtle joke that left you snickering… but he was also the determined, earnest, crazy talented leader with his own hidden struggles who just wanted to take his team and friends as far as they go into competition… which is an essential part of any good sports drama… and he captured it so perfectly… and I love him.. he’s so beautiful too… I would fall in love with him in a heartbeat, and I don’t often say that about characters (like I love them but never in love ya dig?)

Zhou Zhi was a close favourite…basically I just love the two genius senpais…

2. Favorite school team(s)?

Oh god… Yu Feng maybe? We spend the most time with them, they have the most screen time of all the other teams…we have a whole training arc where they’re continuously winning against the struggling to evolve Yu Qing…very reminiscent of the Karasuno-Nekoma rivalry in that they help each other get better… I would’ve loved to see the rivalry/camaraderie develop even more so that when Si Yang leaves, the relief at having this network of tennis friends would’ve been that much more powerful…

Also I really enjoy Xu Ziping’s hustle… I love the story of Yu Feng…they had a shitty coach and had to make a deal to keep winning in order to even remain an official team… and when Yu Qing faced Yu Feng, I really couldn’t tell who I wanted to root for because I knew there was real weight behind every loss for Yu Feng…

After that, maybe No. 6… they’re so chill, they’re not straining for each win and just enjoying their time on the court…and the Old Coach dude was a great character to introduce...

3. Favorite coach(es)?

Maybe No. 6’s coach… I legit can’t remember his name but he oozes skill and experience without all the stress of younger coaches who bend over backwards for success… and while, again, the circumstances surrounding his appearance was a bit waffle-y in execution (which is about par for live action adaptations), I love that he serves as a sage outsider who can assess in three seconds what kind of player Lu Xia is, and what he needs to do to improve… I love me a good wise character who still knows how to inspire people in a fun way but you never, for a second, doubt that what they’re saying is legit advice, even if their mannerisms are goofy…

4. Favorite supporting cast member(s)? (characters who aren’t regulars, aren’t on tennis teams etc.)

Oh I mean…Stretcher Bros for life amirite? They were great…they were just hanging out, trying out.. Huang Jing is kinda jerk-ish, but he’s the starting antagonist who turns out to have a pure heart and a genuine love of the sport (kinda like Tsukishima Kei from Haikyuu!! or the GoMs from Kuroko no Basuke)… and Xiu Wen is such a soft boi who wants to shower in peace without girls being in the locker room…

Put these two besties together forever…and I just love how cuddly they are with each other…no hesitation to hold hands or hug…it’s gooood

5. Favorite original character(s) in the adaptation?

Um…idk who’s an original character??? Again never watched the original anime/read the manga!

SO IMMA CHANGE THIS TO FAVOURITE SHIP!

5.5. Favourite ship? (Get ready my friendsss issa long one)

Si Yang x Qi Ying my friendssss… a super unexpected pairing that came outta nowhere!!! Because the trailer clearly shows (or maybe it doesn’t and I forgot) that Lu Xia and Qi Ying are gonna be THE THING but then we get hit with the surprise senpai-kouhai/team manager ship and I’m like uhhh were you planning this or am I reading into it too much???

Like y’all they were flirting right in the beginning… that whole bit where she stands outside the change rooms and Si Yang confronts her, and she begs him to add Lu Xia to the team (even tho he already did) and he was weirdly teasing her about the roster when he had no reason to, and she was kinda bantering back with him and she fully called him out later on… i was like, umm this is a vibe

They just kept getting thrown together in weird ways…aside from Lu Xia, she’s probably had the most interactions with Si Yang of all the other team members… she’s the only one he calls Xiao~ like the boys in the tennis club have their nicknames like Dachi, Ah Mu, Ah Yan, but only Qi Ying is Xiao Ying!!  he’s not a nickname guy… and maybe if it were a girl/cheerleader thing, you’d think he’d call Peng Xiang, Xiao Xiang BUT NO… only Qi Ying gets called Xiao Ying!!!

AND ANOTHER THING: other than Lu Xia, he’s the only one concerned for Qi Yang, despite what he says, when she gets caught in the rain and gets sick… he fully visits her in her room, and receives the call about her health after they send her to the hospital… he says everyones worried BUT YO they’re straight up just bored and end up having a pillow fight…sooooo can’t be that worried…

AND ONE MORE THING: Qi Ying, I get she’s this weird mascot/team manager figure on their team (even tho she’s meant to be a cheerleader but they never invite Peng Xiang to any of their team dinners or their training camp) BUT WHEN SI YANG RETURNS HOME, THEY SEND IN QI YING TO GREET HIM and they have this whole charming convo where she teases him...and they were chatting as if they always had this banter going on but they’d only talked like 3 or 4 times on screen before then, so there’s this whole relationship she has with the tennis team (not just Lu Xia) that is implied but we don’t really see it! And when she teasingly calls him Captain Si Yang after he returns to China, he had the softest smileeee!!! HE TOTALLY DOES HAVE A SOFT SPOT FOR HER!! He didn’t want her to think he wasn’t happy to see her... and then she leads him to their surprise party in the club room and he just keeps saying Xiao Ying…  like damn you keep trying to establish the Lu Xia x Qi Ying ship (and it is a decently strong ship) but Si Yang x Qi Ying is soooo good!

After this Rival Pair, and then Golden Pair - our resident married couple

(POST Here: all the gay faves they didn’t even try to hide)

(POST Here: almost confirmed ships by the end)

6. Who do you think enacted their role best?

I…I think this is obvious… NEXT

Jk… other than Si Yang, I really enjoyed the guy who plays Lu Xia - Peng Yu Chang… he played the typical “stoic, super talented/genius sports idiot” type prolific in sports anime (like Furuya from Daiya no A, Kageyama from Haikyuu!!, Midorima from KnB)… but he was never too stuck in his head, and he was never mean… too often there’ll be a moment where this type of character is played too seriously, gets stuck in their own head, and lashes out at anyone they deem getting in their way, especially when they feel they’re stuck in a rut… which Lu Xia is in, for essentially the entirety of the show, in one form or another…

But PYC played Lu Xia as this mildly cocky, but still incredibly enthusiastic young genius who is looking for the next big challenge so as to further himself, but is so obsessed with this one opponent (his dad), that he can’t see the bigger picture and realise his entire way of playing is a mirror of the very opponent he’s trying to overcome… but even at the height of his stagnation, he’s never mean to Qi Ying, who tries her best to support and encourage him… while he does distance himself from the team, it’s not an active dismissal of their assistance or support… he can play a straight faced comic when embarrassed/discombobulated (like Si Yang when faced with Yan Juice), but also always participates in most of the weird antics his team is up to… and it never feels OOC and thats clearly a result of Peng Yu Chang’s subtle acting…

ALSO PENG YU CHANG IS IN OUR SHINING DAYS, A SUPER UNDERRATED CHINESE FILM THAT HAS SO MUCH POTENTIAL TO BE ADAPTED INTO LIKE, A ONE SEASON SHOW AND I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU WATCH IT

7. Favorite singles match?

Oh pfft… please… PLEASE IS THERE EVEN A QUESTION it was arguably the best match of the whole show, it was what we were all waiting for, a super tension filled, super hyped up match because it features my favourite character, who has simultaneously been promoted as THE BEST PLAYER ON THE TEAM but also super injured and avoiding over-exertion… MU SI YANG…against his personal rival, whom had never tasted defeat before, and subsequently trained like crazy, throwing all of the money at professional players, FOR A YEAR, in order to be ready to face him… JI JING WU

That’s right baby, its the Imperial Pair Match (I do hope I’m using all these nicknames correctly..I just tried to pick them up from the anime/manga to save time writing out their names XD)…

This match is everything you ever want in a match…it’s a gritty, no-holds-barred, all-out, clash-of-titans-style face-off between probably the two most talented players in that whole (province? Prefecture? Idk China regional names) BUT YEAH THESE TWO ARE CLEARLY TOP TIER PLAYERS WHO FINALLY GO HEAD TO HEAD… it’s a year in the making, Ji Jing Wu is in peak physical condition, but Si Yang is not…and yet we see Si Yang powering through the literal agony of an arm injury that threatens complete destruction of not only his tennis career, but his general usage of that arm… and for glory and to bring his team to the national stage, Si Yang lays it all on the line… and he still gives Ji Jing Wu a run for his goddamn money… he matches him hit for hit, and at one point he was even WINNING…and had it not been for his arm, I swear up and down that he would’ve beaten Jingwu…

BUT THAT’S NOT EVEN THE BEST PART… i mean, all sports anime and just shounen anime in general have those moments where the characters are down and out and summoning the power of friendship and determination to their side to go above and beyond the physical limitations of their bodies… NO THE ACTUAL BEST PART WAS JI JINGWU’S RESPONSE TO THE WHOLE SITUATION

The goddamn respect he gave Si Yang.. this is his rival, the only person he’s ever viewed as equal and even superior to his own skills (at least as far as people the same age as him go)… Jingwu wants to beat him so bad… and he’s heard the rumours about Si Yang’s injury, and he even sees for himself how bad the injury is… but as a skilled player who recognises skill himself, he does not do Si Yang the disrespect of going easy on him… what kind of arrogant prick has that kind of nerve to give less than their best to someone who is giving them 120% effort… no, Ji Jingwu doesn’t hesitate to hit back full power, even as he’s yelling at Si Yang to stop before his arm is utterly destroyed… because the last thing any person of talent would want, is to see another person lose such an incredible gift… but even worse than that, have that person realise someone was going easy on them... it was so goddamn beautiful… and when Jingwu grips Si Yang’s hand and raises it high because he and everyone there knows who the real winner of that match is…they all know that they just witnessed something incredible, and he wants everyone in the stands to not only acknowledge it… but remember it…

And then he proceeds to fund Si Yang’s surgery, his flight, his meals, his rehabilitation, AS WELL AS take care of his team… and if that isn’t love, idk what is… like they don’t even disguise the hard core DEDICATION AND LOVE... Jingwu has obsessed over Si Yang for a year and it goddamn shows

Honourable Mention: I really enjoyed Zhou Zi versus the demon child whose eyes go red…we finally get to see Zhou Zi stretch his legs and push himself and I LOVED THAT… like he’s actually trying his best and that’s dope… also the match against the captain of the team his little brother his on… he basically led this cocky motherfucker by the nose for 5 games, pretends to be losing, and then destroys him in the following 7…

OH AND I GOTTA SHOUT OUT MY OTHER GLASSES BOI YAN ZHIMING VERSUS HIS BEST GUY FRIEND FROM YOUTH… that was a beautiful evolution of Ah Yan transcending but also evolving his data tennis against his childhood friend and it feels good ya know?

8. Favorite doubles match?

Oh pfft anything with the Rival Pair… they bicker like cat and dog, but then you put them on the court together, and suddenly their chemistry is through the roof… also Baiyang and Qiao Chen are a stronger couple than Qiao Chen and Yu Xing Zi and that’s the damn tea

(Same two posts for why that tea)

9. Favorite story arc?

Oh man… ummm training arc with Yu Feng was fun but it was definitely beaten out by the “village raises a child” arc when Si Yang leaves, so literally all their previous opponents step up to encourage, train, or otherwise intimidate Yu Qing into giving it their all, improving, and ultimately winning the finals… plus this arc gave so much depth to the network of teams who all have the same aspirations, in the end, and want to push forward the people who beat them to not let their loss be in vain…and that’s pure…

10. Most amusing tenipuri scene(s)/moment(s)/running joke(s)?

Yan Juice... especially the first time NEXT

Honourable Mentions: When Lu Xia gets stood up by Xinglong Lu Xia running interference on Qi Ying’s admirer in the final ep When Zhou Bros run into Lu Xia in the dressing rooms Stretcher Bros trying to become Painter Bros

11. What did you like most about the adaptation?

It captured the essence of a good sports anime: power of friendship, ridiculous action sequences of outrageous moves that would never be allowed in real life, determination and guts is all you need to succeed, that all-or-nothing mentality of high schoolers who suddenly have tunnel vision and no future thinking whatsoever, and decide to risk life and limb for one match… plus it kept a charming and comedic beat running throughout, really endeared you to the characters, and their struggles... AND NO ONE WAS MEAN... well I mean Ya Jiuxin was an angry bitter jerk for a hot second, but he ended up being endeared towards the lil fluffball kouhai of his, and we all know he loves Xinglong in his heart of hearts... other characters like Jingwu, or demon child, or Zhou Yu’s captain were cocky or arrogant, but they were never mean to each other, and respected each other’s game play even if they were defeated.. a couple were poor losers, but they didn’t throw a fit or try to get revenge or anything like that... everyone, in general, had some decency to them, and in fact all of Yu Qing was a super nice...sometimes too nice and self-deprecating that you wanted to smack them...

12. What do you think the adaptation could have improved on?

This is mostly just a consequence of live action adaptations of sports anime where they have to condense a whole lot of story that is already condensed from the manga into a palatable show that anyone, not necessarily pre-existing fans of the original source, can enjoy… the story around the characters seemed waffle-y and disjointed… sometimes things would happen but wouldn’t connect smoothly to the next thing that happens… there was this whole implied close relationship between Qi Ying and the team that just was never shown… I would’ve preferred they made her an official manager, so it would make sense that she’d be so close to the team, when for whatever reason, Peng Xiang wasn’t…even tho they’re both cheer captains…

The match sequences were cut down a little too much (tho I get why)… I would have loved that final training arc to be extended, to fully flesh out how discombobulated Yu Qing was when Si Yang had to leave, and how forcefully the other teams picked them up and got them better… so to develop the dynamic between the teams before this would’ve been good, but obviously they can only got the core actors of each team at a time… hence that barbecue scene… but if they’d pulled off something like the Haikyuu!! Tokyo training arc, or even something like in KnB where the teams were thrown together in wacky hijinks or impromptu match situations to develop their camaraderie (and they sorta tried to but nothing really came of the interactions), it would’ve made the final training arc THAT MUCH MORE heartwarming and I would have cried..

13. Any other thoughts you want to share?

I’ve already said enough. The end.

[cutegirlmayra]

Could you make something of a sequel to the prompt where Amy is the heroine and Sonic is the one crushing on her? But something more lighthearted with Sonic effortlessly chasing Amy and hilarity ensues.

Lol, which sequel? (x) (x) (x)

I guess I’ll just do my best and try something? haha XD

Since you said ‘lighthearted’ I think you mean to stay off the Maria Robotnik thing, right? Just some cute shenanigans with Amyic? (Sonamy gender-bend ship name? lololol) Got it. Got it.

Prompt———————–

The wind howled past the rolling hills that littered the Green Valley Zone. It was a zone Amy came to often, a place she felt some peace.

She relaxed by some flowerbeds and stretched, seeing the day was young and the morning finally peeking its glowing eye over the horizon.

She yawned, “Whelp, where to next?” she lifted a knee up and let her arm sit on it, just looking over the beautiful world she had protected since she was a little girl.

And then she noticed something out of the ordinary in the distance.

She squinted her eyes, seeing a faint shade of blue racing through the valley’s ups and downs. The reverse loop-de-loops and jump-pads.

“…Is that..?” She began to grow concerned, “Oh no…” It was like her mouth was being tugged back by two fish hooks, realizing who was coming her way. “Eeee… I’ve got to get out of here!”

She pushed herself off the ground and started running, though she knew she was nowhere near as fast as Sonic The Hedgehog.

Still, he would either tackle her with a snuggly greeting or propose to her again, and she just didn’t want her morning spoiled by such doting admiration.

She looked for anything to hide in, but only found a palm tree and quickly climbed up it.

When Sonic did pass by, it was just a streak of blue.

She sighed, thinking maybe her red dress could blend in with the jump-pad at the top of the tree.

She waited… and heard nothing.

“Phew.” she started to come down the tree but noticed a crabbot looking up at her.

She froze, blinking at it.

It snipped a metallic claw.

She feined a smile, “Nice bot. Good bot… stay back…” she tried to climb down again, but it leaped up and snapped at her dress.

“Ah!” she heard a tear but scaled up the tree. “You naughty little-!” she noticed that a small slit was in her dresses back, a little of her white underpants showing through. “You’ll pay for that!” she jumped to slam down on the little robot, hammering it out but it sprung her back up with the hardness of its shell.

It was one of those robots she had to destroy by flipping it over to its underbelly. The top made a BOOING sound as she was flown back up and into the jump-pad on the tree.

“Nooooo…!!!” she cried out, face-first into a series of pre-determined angles where the jump-pads would launch her into many more jump-pads for an almost infinite chain.

Once the chain was completed she was flying through the air onto a completely separate part of Green Valley Zone, a usual shortcut for getting around but this one was not quite how she wanted to ‘fly in style’ so to speak…

Before hitting the ground, Amy was taken by a swiftly moving bullet, an arrow through the sky of primary blue that held her close and landed safely to the ground.

“Pah! What are you-?” she was slightly dazed by the hits but shook her head and was quickly alright again.

She looked up to see the smiling face of Sonic The Hedgehog, holding her in his arms bridal style. With the sun blocking his face, he actually looked pretty cool. However, when the cloud moved away, his face was revealed to be shining eyes that sparkled dramatically towards her.

Her expression of awe turned suddenly to awkward shyness. A sweat drop appeared on the side of her face as her open-mouth shook at the corner, trying to be polite and smile but didn’t seem to register it quite right.

“I can’t believe it! I found you! Amy Rose!” he was like a fanboy she couldn’t shake off…

She lowered her eyelids, mumbling out her defeated words, “Hello, Sonic… Long time no-OFFPH!”

Sonic crushed her face into his chest, snuggling her with his head reaching deep into her noggin’.

With a smushed face, she grimaced, knowing he wouldn’t see it as she grew more and more agitated by his obsessive loving.

She suddenly felt a skim of his nose pierce through her quilled hair and reach the soft fur below it, sensitive since it never usually was touched.

She flinched and tried to wiggle free, lifting a leg to step down from his hold as he moved his head away from the back of her head and nuzzle up to her cheek to cheek.

“I was so worried about you! Especially when Rouge told me the Master Emerald was stolen by that thieving echidna again!” She leaned away from him, arms crooked as though trying to escape without being so obvious about it.

He blinked and moved away from her then, “Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine, Sonic…” she lightly let out, but it was clear she was desperately attempting to not be rude. He was just concerned for her anyway… she shouldn’t scold people for caring about her so much…

“B-but what are you doing all the way out here?” She rubbed behind her head, squirming a finger down through her quills to itch the place his nose once skimmed.

“Oh! I was looking for you, duh.” He put his hands to his hips, “I thought you might be hungry! I’ll pay!”

“You always pay.” She closed her eyes and gave off a nervous frown, knowing full well that when he pays, he automatically tells the world they went on a date together…

“Aw, come on! Let me treat you again!” He pleaded, but Amy just stuck a hand up and held her ground.

“No thanks. People usually feed me for free anyway.”

“That’s because you’re so popular. Heee~” he chimed back. “But really, I was awfully concerned about ya… Let’s go do something together! Today!” he placed his hands together, leaning towards her with his sparkling eyes of puppy love again…

She had to look away from them, sweating a bit as she’s never had to deal with anyone so enthralled by her before.

“U… Uhmm…” It was hard to resist him. He was so pushy sometimes…

“Hmmm?” he moved closer.

She sighed, blinking a few times to him before giving in, slouching over. “Alright, Sonic. You win.”

“Oh good! We didn’t have to wait for your grumbling stomach this time around!” he gave her a thumbs up and offered his hands again, flexing his fingers as a ‘come to me’ sign.

His smile never faded, at least that was nice.

But beckoning her into his arms like that..?

Amy rubbed the side of her face, “I think I’d like to walk, thanks.” she politely turned him down and started off.

He looked a little confused, but then pouted, “I have speedy feet for a reason… you don’t have to wear yourself out all the time, you know, Amy? You should let a man like me take care of you for a change!” he tried to puff out his bare chest, but then became self-conscious that he didn’t have large fluff like Shadow and Silver and withdrew a little as he looked away.

“I-I mean… I could be a decent boyfriend, you know…” he muttered, but Amy just waved him off and was still walking on.

“You coming or what?” she called, and his ears perked right back up, forgetting his insecurities as he took off to her side.

It took barely a second for him to catch up, holding his hands behind his back and leaning towards her while they walked. “So,… what’cha thinking about?”

“Nothing.” Amy shrugged.

“Were you maybe thinking about me? Cause I think about you all the time.” He looked down with his eyes closed, blushing a bit.

“Not really.”

Sonic twitched and stood straight now, looking at her sorrowfully. “Do you not think about me at all?”

“Only when I need to be.”

His face brightened up, “When’s that?” he said, cheerily picking up the happy mood again.

Amy liked that about Sonic, he was never disappointed or sad for too long. It was hard trying to comfort or make people happy, Amy wasn’t the best social person, but it was easy to talk to Sonic. At least, he made it easy for her.

“Usually when you’re in danger. I think about how I’m gonna get you outta there a lot.” Amy spoke very casually, but Sonic just took it like an arrow to his back.

“Is that so…” He breathed out, white as a ghost.

Embarrassed, but taking courage to prove himself to her, he tightened his fists and bundled them up near his face.

“Grrr..! That does it! I’ll make you respect me, Amy Rose!”

‘Good luck with that.’ Amy smiled, turning to him. “Was it something I said?”

“OoooOOOoohhh!” Sonic did his famous whine, taking her hand and looking dead into her eye. “Come on! We’re going on the most amazing date of your life!”

“H-huh?” Amy was whisked away then, Sonic taking places she usually had to fly in the X-Whirlwind to get too or walk long distances to make.

It was beautiful. A small joy ride she didn’t realize she had wanted.

When Sonic finally put her down, he smiled tried to hold her hand as she was distracted by the scenic nature around her.

She tensed up and her body quaked at the sudden touch, but Sonic just stood there happily. He lowered his eyes and cooed a little to her, “Thinking about me differently now, Amy Rose?”

Amy nervously kept her hand from closing around his own, just staring at him with awkward shyness. “You really don’t mess around about this, do you?”

“Amy! You should know I take our relationship very seriously!” Sonic defended, placing a fist by his hip and nodding in sincerity. “Whenever you’re happy, I’m happy. And whenever you’re in danger, I’ll gladly run into said danger too! I won’t leave you alone to face all the horrors of the world head on. Hehe.” he chuckled at the end with a sly wink to her.

“Anything to make me happy, huh?” Amy then changed her expression, and Sonic immediately blushed at it.

“A-anything!” he nervously nodded.

Amy leaned towards his face, a neutral and carefree smile now. “Annnnything~?”

“A-Any-anything you want! It’s yours! Even my very soul!” his bottom lip was trembling at her willing closeness now.

Amy smirked, “Then could you let go of my hand?” And winked.

“Ah!” he let go instinctively, startled by her abrupt flirt but realized he had been tricked. “D’oh!” he stomped the ground.

“That’s it! I’m not letting you escape this time!”

Amy was laughing as she walked off, thinking that was the end before Sonic tackled to her to the ground.

“Woah-wah-hey!”

They kept rolling till they naturally came to a stop, Sonic holding Amy tightly as she could hear his racing heartbeat.

‘Had… had it always beat this fast?’ she wondered, her hand directly over it as she curiously looked there.

Sonic was twitching in nerves, but took a deep breath to summon some courage, and looked at Amy with a serious expression. “Marry me, Amy Rose.”

“H-huh?” She looked up at him. ‘Again with the proposals?’

“I know you don’t need a man. You’re so strong on your own. But I really meant it. I would do anything to keep you happy, to stay by your side no matter what may come! I… I won’t abandon you, Amy Rose! You can count me in until the very end of time! Always!”

His declaration made her blink in a bit of sympathy. ‘Poor kid. I really have a hold on his heart, don’t I? No matter how much I try and loosen up for him, he still just grabs me back and gives me an even tighter hold on it. He really won’t just let my hand go… Will he?’

Amy looked up at Sonic and smiled, “I believe you, Sonic.”

Sonic suddenly loosened his hold on her, hearing those words. “Y-you do?”

“Em-hmm. And I think you’re a swell guy for saying them.” She nodded and moved a bit out of his grasp. “Tell ya what. If you hang around, I bet we’ll have fun adventures together.”

“And eat chilidogs again?” His eyes sparkled.

“Eh…” She looked a bit taken aback by that one. ‘Where’d that come from?’

“S-sure. Chilidogs it is.” she kept her smile but lightly felt a prick at her heart. He really was trying, and he wasn’t a bad guy either…

Maybe just a little bit hopeless.

Sonic sat up, nodding encouragingly as he watched her get up too. “Okay then, I will,” he smirked, a corner of his mouth showing a somewhat mischievous underlining to his thinking. “And then you’ll want to marry me! No questions asked.”

Amy just sighed and stretched her back, looking to see the sun had risen fully now. “Whatever you say, Sonic.”

The two looked back at one another, a long-held stare but both closed their eyes and smiled to one another.

A lovely couple indeed~

(Might go with (x) for a prequel/part 1?)

[reading-hub]

Dandy And The Jet 🚀 [3] To Boobies, Baby!

- Space Dandy x reader -

[part 2]

- - - - -

The digital transmission hidden underneath your jacket that was made by Bea so it was easy to update on the mission with Admiral Perry. You were explaining the events that were leading up to today, from that one-sided crazy bar fight, being able to escape said bar fight, having the opportunity to escape with Dandy's crew inside the "Aloha Oe" to now.

“So, you’ve already made your way to his inner circle?”

You hid within the hallways, luckily nobody hadn't woken up yet. Although that little wheeled robot named QT had this obsession with cleaning early, so your not exactly in the clearing yet...

"Yes, I have. His crew was surprisingly welcoming despite them being alien hunters.." You responded, remembering your last experience with some alien hunters in the past...

"I don't care about them! What about the target, how's is he taking in your presence? Has he suspected anything about you since your arrival?" Admiral was obviously cautious about you being found out in a short time. You rolled your eyes slightly.

You sighed and answered. "Well, he was questioning my position when I took the wheel, but nothing really about me.” Admiral sighed in relief, guess that's good news?

"Very well, just keep pursuing on the target at all times, don't let him slip through your fingers. We're so close yet so far." The burning skeleton commanded. "I will, sir." You agreed, transmission ended.

"Hello miss [f/n]!" You jumped slightly, turning around to see the little robot QT and his broom. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry! Did I startle you?" QT said in a worried tone. The robot really was the sweetest.

"Don't worry, er, I was just looking around the ship..." You smiled looking at the inter-galactic gears and such.

Now that I mentioned it, this ship is pretty huge, this must've cost a fortune, maybe Dandy is a successful alien hunter after all if he was able to afford such a ship and all...

You shrugged it off and looked at QT. "So uh, you clean up around the ship when everybody's asleep?" You asked, continuing the conversation with the little robot.

"I clean up anyway, even if everyone's awake or not." Saying in their autotuned voice, which is a bit adorable. "I really like cleaning," QT said simply.

"That's one hell of a favorite thing to do. I rarely ever hear someone say that sentence, ever." You chuckled a little. "So anyway, what exactly is the schedule around here?" You asked, changing the subject.

"Schedule?" QT said confused. "Oooh!" The male robots autotune sang in harmony. "To be quite honest, there really isn't one." They shrugged, your eyes quirked a little in surprise and confusion. "The only real mundane place that Dandy likes to go to most of the time is a place called Boobies," QT answered.

"Boobies?" Your whole facade went full-on confusion with what the innocent robot said so casually. "Yeah, it's this restaurant that Dandy really likes going to a lot but the paycheck is more than what we normally have so its tough for Dandy to accept when we don't have enough to go." The robot explained.

Huffing a little in response, "Judging by the name of this restaurant, I can tell why Dandy would like going there." Both QT and You laughed right after.

"Geez, you giggling pre-teens woke me up." Looks like your quality conversation with QT is over thanks to a grumpy pompadour. Speaking of pompadour, Dandy was hiding his hair using his blanket that he dragged along the floor without a care.

"Now if you excuse me, girlies, I gotta take a shower. This hair ain't gonna fix itself!" Dandy boasted proudly as if you were gonna swoon over him right when he gets out.

"We should probably check and see if Meow is awake, though I highly doubt it," QT grumbled as we walked to the main room of the ship. "How long does it usually take for everyone to be awake by?" You asked jokingly. "I'd say around 02:00 in standard time," QT answered quickly, looking at his watch that miraculously appears out of nowhere!

"It's nine-forty." You questioned immediately. “How long does it take for Dandy to finish up in there?" The robot rolled his screen eyes thinking of Dandy's precious timing.

"I'd say two hours, one if today's a lucky day." QT hoped.

"Dang." Was all you could say to that. The guys that you use to know hated when a woman took too long getting ready and didn't really care for their hair products. Needless to say, this Dandy guy was something else and nobody you’ve met before.

-

After talking with QT for two hours or so, you both sat at the dining table, if you call it that. You can easily tell by the crew that they didn't seem the type to eat breakfast together in a table.

QT was nice enough to make you a single cup of coffee. Luckily he was able to find some coffee beans after looking up and down in the cabinets. Wasn't a lot but you could manage either way. You wondered if he was able to have any human-like food?

You both shared a few things, like past stories. QT shared a lot about the past adventures him and Dandy have been through. A booby monster, plant people, and said something about zombies but I kinda lost track since all them were just bat-shit crazy all on their own.

You on the other hand only shared ones that were pretty tame when compared to theirs. Warning the robot that your adventures aren't really exciting to tell compared to what they told.

QT seemed interested with what you told him anyway, but you also didn’t want to overshare too much.

"What are you guys talking about?" The yawning came from Meow who was shuffling his feet, he must be still tired even though he's slept longer than the rest of us combined.

"[F/n] has been telling me about her adventures.” The robot said with glee, you couldn't help but smile in embarrassment when QT showed some exciting interest in your stories. "Whoa really?" Meow was obviously interested. All you could do was shrug in embarrassment.

It has been a while since people actually listen to what I had to say...

Meow just asked upon millions of questions each time you telling more and more details of the time you able to hold your own against the likes of humanoid monsters and crazy ex’s throughout the galaxy.

"Does that mean you know some close combat?" QT asked politely. "Yeah, and a bit of gun firing as well," You replied.

"So are you like some kind of superhero?" Meow smiled and pulled out his phone. “I'm not even close to a superhero."

True, you really weren’t . You were basically the big, bad, villain's accomplice, you know the ones where they trick the good guys into thinking that she's one of them now and then double-crosses them saying how "I am not who you think I am!" And then they laugh evilly.

The sad truth is that I don't think I can laugh evil.

"Is Dandy out of the shower yet? I really need to use the restroom." You said, obviously frustrated. QT grumbled, "Eh, probably putting his hair gel right about now..." You didn’t care, You just stood up and just tell Dandy to step out real quick so that you can go!

Storming off back to the hallway where you had that transmission call with Admiral and then that talk to QT later on.

Stopping your tracks, you noticed that the bathroom door had a small crack open. You could only guess Dandy got out and is probably changing back in his room? You hoped, otherwise he's gonna think you’re peeping on him, which he'll probably find flattering, you however were not intending on that.

Slowly walking towards the steamthat was seeping through the cracked door, Lights full white, You were hoping he forgot to turn off when he left...shit!

Peering through and - goddammit! - he's there! Oh well, at least he has a towel on, even if that towel is low cut and will probably fall off easily...fuck!

He was drying up his hair with another towel. The towel was off from his head, and you got a clear view of his shaggy natural hair!

Your eyes went full surprised. He really wasn't that bad looking without the hair gel, You certainly didn’t understand why he has to hide it...

Oh well.

You felt as though you were peeping a little too long.. you just booked it outta there! Maybe you should hold your bladder until he actually leaves the bathroom next time...

-

Sprinting back to the lounge, you know what you’ll just call it that since you refuse to call it a "dining room" or a "kitchen".

Meow and QT were still hanging around where you last talked to them. "That was quick," Meow said in surprise. You took a few breaths and replied, "Yeah, turns out I didn't really need to go." You said in relief.

A few minutes later, a wild Dandy appears behind you! "You're finally out of the shower?" You said in a bored tone. "You know if you wanted to take a shower with me, you could've asked?" He suggested slyly. Sadly, he had his pompadour back, kinda wishing to see his hair down. QT decided to change the subject.

"Nevermind that, where are we going, Dandy?"

Dandy's attention was at the robot. "To boobies, baby!" He boasted proudly. "Boobies, you mean that ‘breastaurant’ that QT was telling me about?" I jumped in with air quotes.

Dandy's face freaked a little. "QT, YOU TOLD HER ABOUT BOOBIES!?"

"Don't pin it on them, since I agreed to be apart of this crew, I was probably gonna find out anyway, no use of hiding it.." You said in defense. "She's got ya there, man.” Meow commented on the sideline.

All Dandy could do was have his lips curl, pouting like a child because you had a point.

"Alright, just don't take the fun out of Boobies for me, ok?" Dandy whined slightly at me. You shrugged it off, "Don't plan on it."

"Hey QT, how much we got for Boobies?" He called out to the robot. "Hm, probably enough. But Dandy, I thought we were going to spend this money for--" QT was cut from his words by Dandy.

"Nevermind that QT, we could always just hunt for a rare alien and get double the money back!"

Something tells me that this is just gonna be one those days...you know, the ones where shit gets fucked and it could've been avoided by just listening and following the obvious from earlier.

Yeah...those...

The four of you have arrived at Boobies. You really didn’t have an expectation of what this breastrant would look like, but seeing it right in front of your very eyes, it hit the nail on head.

You weren’t one to judge. We all have our guilty pleasures in life. Some like eating a bag of chips on a slow day, some like the smell of a certain candle that keeps them at ease, and some like a ditzy waitress who dresses little to the imagination to take their order while also small talk to on a daily basis.

You took a seat between QT and Meow, Dandy sat across from you. Small tension was between you and Dandy for a full two minutes. Dandy obviously not a fan of you being at Boobies with them. You couldn’t care less what he thought about you at that time, you just wanted to eat something, pay half of the check, possibly tip the waitress, and go back to the ship.

Before it can be anymore silent—

“Hey boys, how are we doing today?” You looked up, only to see a young blonde waitress, eyes looked as if full of innocence. She was quite pretty, you admit to yourself. “Oh my, I’m sorry, and how you today, miss?” Her wide eyes immediately directed towards you. Her tone was that of surprise and joy. Possibly because of how rare it is to have female customers here, you guess.

“I’m okay, thank you though.” You replied, smiling faintly at the blonde. “Yeah, we’re good today, too.” Dandy said after, his palm holding his jaw in boredom. The blonde beamed happily. “Dandy, who is she? Is she a new friend of yours?” She egged him on. Obviously curious about who you were. You’d think that this waitress is close friends with Dandy, given how easily she’s able to hold a conversation with him.

“No Honey, me and crew met her yesterday.” He explained, smirking with confidence. “Although an initiation of the Space crew in the talks.” In talks? You could’ve sworn he agreed to you being apart of the crew the first day you two met. You looked at him sideways, just what is he trying to get at?

“An initiation? That must be so fun! When is it??” Honey looked at him with answers. Dandy slumped on the booth, smug as all hell. He’s gonna get punched so bad when we get back to the ship. “Actually, initiation starts today.” He boasted.

“It is?” Honey asked excited.

“It is?” You reiterated sarcastically, wondering where this was going.

“It is.” Dandy conceded.

Before Dandy could be anymore proud of himself of having you put in a tight situation, hook line and sinker...

“Since when did we propose for an initiation for future crew members?” QT popped up with a sudden question out of nowhere. “We didn’t have one for Meow now that I think about it...” the robot added, while Dandy’s eyes widen, nervously.

“It’s a new thing I made up!” Dandy interjected. “I forgot to tell you and Meow about..” he explained, hoping the damn robot keeps thier mouth shut. “Okaaay, what’s the first stage of initiation then?” QT asked after.

Meow looked up from his phone, seeing what was unfolding right in front of him.

Dandy could only grind his teeth, thinking of one on the top of his head and try not to look stupid. Than, a light switched on his head!

“[f/n], our lovely new recruit here has to pay for the check.” Douche. That was all that popped in your head soon after.

Well, I have space skeleton demi-god and a pimp gorilla looking over me like vultures, I’m being labeled as a last resort plan to capturing Dandy, and being apart of his crew is the only shot I can get to getting closer to finishing my mission. No pressure.

Ok Dandy, I’ll play along.

“Well, if it’s what I have to do, than so be it.” You agreed, getting a little too confident.

“Alright!” Dandy rubbed his hands together in anticipation. This was too fun for him.

The food orders were now final.

Dandy made it easier by just having you pay for the ‘Captain’s Meal’, aka Dandy and yourself. Meow just ordered for soup and a soda, QT just wanted some juice. You wondered if the robot could actually consume foods...

Your order was that of a space meat fillet that you thought looked good on the menu and your choice of two sides.

However, Dandy knew he had you by his finger and went all out. Two large chucks of meat, topped with chili, cheese, a ramen bowl, and a slushee that was most likely child size.

He looked as smug and pampered as they came at that moment. The food came in.

Meow’s and QT ‘s came first since their orders were small and simple. Your’s came second. Dandy’s was last, the meal was so huge that Honey needed another waitress to help her bring it to the table.

You rolled your eyes at how Dandy was making a big deal out of this.

-

Meow and QT were done with thier orders a long time ago. You just finished your own meal. Dandy on the other hand, still had halfway to go. I guess Dandy didn’t think though how big of an order his was compared to everyone else.

“You’re not gonna finish that.” Meow commented as he was scrolling his phone. He pouted his lip in response. “Nope, I’m not gonna give in to the temptation of losing.” Dandy replied, hiding away the worry.

“Losing what? I’m the one paying for your meal.” You said suddenly. “How about we just ask to box it for to-go.” You suggested. You honestly felt a little bad. He looked like a small boy who feels bad for not finishing his dinner. It was honestly kinda cute at this state.

Wait what?

“Fine!” He gave in, crossing his arms in the process. You perked up at the waitress who was walking past your table, and asked if they’re was a to-go box for a meal like Dandy’s.

Honey came in with the check, the total of Dandy’s meal itself was almost 300 yen, your own meal was around 30. Luckily, you secretly tapped Honey’s shoulder and gave the ditzy blonde a coupon for Boobies when Dandy wasn’t looking. You knew holding onto that coupon would benefit you one day.

The crew got their things together before heading out. Dandy begrudgingly holding onto his box that had his meal.

It was already midnight by the time you guys came out of the breastaurant. All of got into ship, one by one. All tired from eating. Seeing how exhausted you looked, Dandy took the liberty of stirring the ship with QT tonight. How nice.

Guess him being nice was just a thank you for putting up with him today at Boobies.

Before you could relax your eyes, Dandy shouted out:

“Whoops, forgot to get gas!” He nervously smiled through his teeth.

“ARGGHHH!!!” You, Meow, and QT loudly responded.

[byunhaarmy]

Bi Wenjun as Your Boyfriend

But trust me he's the biggest dork ever

First of all he's a dork

Like he may look cold hearted and all

Loves his yoyo more than anything

That includes you

This dude never dated in high school due to being obsessed with yoyo and badminton

That says a lot

So you're his first love kinda

This is how you guys met:

You're a mentor in Idol producer

Specifically a vocal one

So you got to spend more time with the vocals

You didn't feel anything at first when you saw him

Cause you're not suppose to fall in love with the trainee's?

You still did lol

Plus Wenjun kinda gave up on appearance half way through the show

Iqiyi is a snake

Just stating facts

Continuing with the story

You weren't attracted to him at first

But then he started to sing

And oh boy

You thought you heard an actual angel

“Hi Y/L/N Laoshi, I'm Bi Wenjun.”

Not gonna lie you had to raise your head in order to even see his face

You were silent for a while after he finished

Admiring his beauty

But he thought he didn't do a good job and was kinda scared

“Um, Y/L/N Laoshi? ”

You realize your misbehavior and apologize right away

“Sorry sorry I was just lost in your voice, it was beautiful Wenjun, you did a nice job!”

The other trainee's clapped for him

He was blushing a little bit

You were his idol

And hearing you approve him just makes him so so so happy

He was literally jumping around in the dorms

Shaking Quanzhe and telling him about what happened today

Cute

Insert Jackson Wang

Jump to ep 12 era

He didn't get in

:,(

DO YOU HEAR THE SOUND OF MY HEART BREAKING????

This boy deserves so much better

And that's what you think too

After the show you came to him

He was all happy and cheering for the ones that got in

Untill he saw you

And then he just frowns

Slowly walks towards you

“I'm sorry I let you down……you must be disappointed……”

10th place wasn't bad

It was good

But still, you were sad

Wenjun was your favorite trainee and you did have a lot of hope for him

If you said you weren't disappointed that would be lying

But you weren't disappointed at him

You were disappointed in yourself for not training him hard enough

He saw your sad face and just started to tear up

You quickly pulled him into a warm hug

That's when he realizes that he doesn't just like you as an idol or as a teacher

He likes you

And so did you

You realized that you no longer see Wenjun as one of your students any more

But as a man

You guys started dating right after Idol producer ended

And also told your fans right away

They've been shipping you guys for the longest time so they were happy

The Yuehua boys all loved you

Zhengting can finally take a break from being mom now that he has you

You come over to see the yuehua boys and Chrngxiao every now and then

Wenjun just has the biggest smile on when he sees you

Is a bit shy in the beginning

But goes full on clingy after a month

Doesn't care if the members are around

Will give you kisses when he wants to

Will hug you when he feels like it

No one can stop him

Once you guys had a make out session in the practice room

A wild Justin appears outta nowhere

“Ewwwwwwww get a room.”

“Stop sucking each other's faces.”

“Couples are disgusting.”

And Wenjun's just like

“Nah you're just jealous cause you don't have a girlfriend.”

Wich is true

Justin crying inside

Brings you to nice restaurants

Even though you guys will probably get noticed by fans

But that's okay

All in all he's a great boyfriend

Takes good care of you and is the sweetest person in the world

He loves you very very much

And you guys will live happily ever after

Have a bunch of kids

And grow old together

The End.

[pixelgrotto]

The horrific Resident Evil playthrough, part six

Resident Evil Zero starts with a bang and a wonderfully tight example of level design, as new STARS member and series cutie pie Rebecca Chambers investigates the Ecliptic Express, an Umbrella-operated train that’s become the testing ground for an early version of the zombie virus. On the train, she meets an escaped convict named Billy Coen, and the two of them have to blast their way through tight cars filled with bio-weapons and a great number of leeches, which play an important role in this game, before finding a way to stop their Orient Express outta hell.

I adored RE Zero’s Ecliptic Express, partly because I have a thing for old locomotives and also because it reminded me of 1997 adventure game The Last Express, but with zombies. The environment also felt wonderfully fresh, since aside from the ruined Raccoon City briefly featured in RE 2 and more prominently in RE 3, the majority of the series has, thus far, been content to fall into a fairly standard cycle of settings - mansions, ruined industrial complexes and underground laboratories. What better way to inject some variety into this mix than with a Gothic train, perhaps the perfect environment for a survival horror game thanks to its many rooms, narrow hallways and plentiful hiding spots for the walking dead? Unfortunately, the Ecliptic Express is more or less the highlight of RE Zero’s environments, and once Rebecca and Billy crash the train and end up in an old Umbrella training facility, the game once again falls back into the trope settings that Capcom was content to recycle. This was a disappointment, but RE Zero injects some unusual, experimental shifts into the gameplay experience that make up for packing its most atmospheric surprises into the first hour, though not all of them are entirely successful. Chief among these is the partner zapping system, which has players controlling two characters at the same time and occasionally separating them to solve puzzles, like when Rebecca has to stand on an elevator to reach a higher area and Billy has to work the controls. It’s good stuff, since if one thing has become clear to me since beginning this RE journey, it’s that the series has always harbored fantasies of being a partner affair but never was quite able to figure out how to do it. Previous games would only feature very brief sections where another character accompanied you, and the rest of the time, they would keep making ridiculous excuses for why they needed to split up, kinda like members of the Scooby-Doo gang. With Becca & Billy, finally this nonsense has been done away with, and while you now have twice the amount of inventory management to wrangle with, it’s great to finally explore these secluded, dangerous environs with some backup. The fact that Becca & Billy are actually good characters with chemistry helps, and while it’s understated, the story gradually forces them to trust each other more and more. It all stays mutually respectful and there’s no forced romance angle (even though I totally ship these two), but when Billy gets into a bit of a tight spot near the end of the game and Rebecca desperately shouts out his name in panic, you can sense how much she’s bonded with him through their shared night of terror.

I mentioned inventory management, and this leads me to RE Zero’s other big surprise - the magical connected item boxes that have been a series save point trademark are completely AWOL in Zero, and players can actually drop their stuff anywhere, a first in the franchise. Apparently, the devs implemented this to take advantage of the nonexistent load times of the cartridge-based Nintendo 64, which was supposed to be the original platform for this game. (Prototype footage of the N64 version exists and looks impressive, though the ROM’s never been leaked, unfortunately.) I’ve also read that they did it to bump up the difficulty level and intentionally go back to the essence of Sweet Home, the grandpappy of the series.

I thought Sweet Home was a fantastic hidden gem, but the limited inventory space and necessity to drop your items was actually my least favorite part of the gameplay, since it led to lots of housekeeping and backtracking where you’d realize you needed a particular tool but had left it on the ground ten screens away. And this problem exists in RE Zero as well, which is probably one of the lead criticisms that the game faces on the internet. In my opinion, Zero’s backtracking is nowhere near as bad as in Code Veronica, but there were definitely large stretches of the game where I was simply picking up all my crap and moving things to save point rooms, which I basically converted into makeshift item storage halls. There are also a lot of items in the game, like the hookshot, which take up two slots in Becca & Billy’s precious inventory space and aren’t used for a long time only for the game to suddenly drop a “hey you need this to progress” moment, which is liable to piss folks off. I can understand the devs wanting to make things harder, but there’s a fine line between challenge and annoyance, and Zero’s inventory wrangling occasionally enters the realm of the latter. It would’ve been best if the team had given players the ability to drop their stuff and included the traditional item boxes, but unfortunately, it seems like they were operating under the mentality of “we’ll give you ONE freedom but take ANOTHER away, muahaha!”

In the end, I was able to forgive most of the item problems thanks to the fact that I liked Rebecca and Billy so much, and I had more fun with RE Zero than most of the fanbase, which tends to view it unfavorably. If I were to rank all the classic Resident Evils, I’d actually put Zero right under REmake, RE 2 and RE 1, and in my eyes, it’s better than RE 3 and Code Veronica, which end up on the bottom of my list for different reasons. (RE 3 is competent fun but kinda by-the-numbers, and Code Veronica remains the only Resident Evil game which really felt like a slog the more I played of it.) 

Why then does Zero end up getting so many apathetic reactions? Well, it’s probably because aside from the inventory management problems, this game feels a little unnecessary, which is an issue that most prequels suffer from. Zero was advertised as revealing the details behind the tragic mission of the Bravo STARS, the team that you learn was slowly massacred over the course of Resident Evil 1. Unfortunately, aside from Rebecca and a few token cameos, the Bravo guys are barely in the game at all, and most of the plot revolves around the background of Umbrella and a case of backstabbing and industrial espionage where one of the original founders, James Marcus, was killed by his colleagues. Marcus, who created the zombie virus via experiments with leech DNA, was resurrected by the very leeches he experimented with, and now he’s out for revenge.

All of this is vaguely interesting, but if I’d been a hardcore RE fan back in the day and was promised a prequel that revealed the fates of the Bravo STARS only to be given a side story about a dude and his leeches, I’d probably go WTF. Capcom dropped the ball on their storytelling by providing something that nobody was really asking for, in other words, and I’ve found out through my meanderings on the Resident Evil Wiki that The Umbrella Chronicles, a spinoff game for the Wii, actually delves deeper into the deaths of Bravo team. That’s the sort of stuff Zero should’ve focused on in order to feel more needed in the grand scope of Resident Evil. Another option might have been to ax the prequel concept entirely, which leads me to another thought that’s only appropriate to bring up now that I’ve finished all of the “old school” Resident Evil games.

If it had been up to me, I probably would have plotted the course of the series differently after RE 2, which contains an interesting nugget of information hinting at an Umbrella Europe base that was never expanded upon to its full potential. The game seems to indicate that Jill, Chris and Barry are going to Europe to investigate and shut down this facility, and just about EVERY strategy guide, article and bit of speculative message board posting I can find from around that time was obsessed with this concept. It seems like everyone thought that Resident Evil 3 was going to be a rollicking European adventure…and it wasn’t, it was instead a game that took place at the same time as RE 2 and explained how Jill escaped Racoon City. Code Veronica never really expounded upon this tidbit of lore either - we get a very brief intro with Claire Redfield investigating an Umbrella headquarters in Paris, but then suddenly she’s captured and the vast majority of that game takes place on an island near South America.  I can’t help but feel like a massive opportunity was missed here, and if I’d been in charge of Capcom’s scenario division for these games in the late 90s, I would’ve changed the plot of Code Veronica and basically made that one Resident Evil 3 (which it was originally going to be if Capcom hadn’t wanted to keep the “main” RE games on a Sony console). I would’ve made it an adventure with Jill, Chris and Barry in Europe, and near the end I would’ve brought Claire in to join them and fight alongside her brother. Then, I would’ve made a spinoff game simply titled “Resident Evil: Nemesis” or something of the sort, and taken the general “escape Racoon City” plot of RE 3…but had it star Rebecca Chambers.  See how nicely that would’ve worked? Fans would’ve gotten their detailed peek at Umbrella Europe and the return of the classic combo of Jill + Chris + Barry. The weird Ashford siblings and Code Veronica doofus Steve could’ve still been incorporated into the story. Meanwhile, Rebecca could’ve starred in a game that felt necessary, since the beginning scenes of destroyed Racoon City were some of the best bits of RE 2, and there’s no reason why she couldn’t have met escaped convict Billy Coen while escaping the city. They could’ve worked together to flee from Nemesis, and I guess the mostly forgettable mercenaries of RE 3 could’ve made an appearance as well. 

Sadly, I don’t work at Capcom, and they planned these games totally differently. We finally would go to Europe proper with Leon Kennedy in the next RE game, but that one would mark a shift in both storytelling and atmosphere, as Resident Evil quickly transitioned away from its horror roots…and into the realm of fast-paced shoot ‘em up action.

Resident Evil 4 is next, and the playthrough continues! 

All screenshots taken by me. For more, check out this Twitter thread showing my step-by-step progress through the game.

[e350tb]

Steven Universe: The Eye of the Storm - Chapter Four

Chapter Four

Sadie picked at her dinner, listening to the clock ticking. The room was silent, and she felt rather uncomfortable. Outside the sun was setting, the sky turning a dark violet colour.

Barb put down her food and looked at her daughter.

"Okay," she said, "What's up?"

"What do you mean 'what's up?'" replied Sadie, "I'm fine, mom."

"You've hardly eaten your food," Barb pointed out, "Is it something Clancy said to you? Because if it is, I'll wring his-"

"Why did you and Dad split up?" asked Sadie.

There was a long silence.

"Because he turned out to be good for nothin'," Barb grunted at last.

"Yeah, but you must've seen something in him once, right?" said Sadie.

Barb nodded soberly.

"When I met Clancy," she said, "He was a little twig of a man with awful social skills and an obsession with the stars. I guess thought he was endearing. It was college, everyone was allowed to be dumb sometimes. We ended up getting hitched too early and everything fell apart from there."

"But what did he do to you?" asked Sadie, "What actually happened?"

Barb furrowed her brow, biting softly on her lip.

"He walked out," she said at last, "Decided some fancy government job was more important than...than his family. Left Beach City and never looked back - heck, he handled the whole divorce through his lawyer. And good riddance, that's what I say."

"So it had nothing to do with...I dunno, aliens?" asked Sadie.

For a split-second, Barb's eyes widened. Then she shook her head and laughed.

"The closest Clancy's ever gonna get to outer space is eating at Planet Kansas," she declared, "I mean, aliens? Where did you get that idea?"

Sadie sighed.

"Nowhere, mom," she said, "Just...thinking out loud."

"That'd be good for your band!" chuckled Barb, "Deadbeat Dads From Outer Space! Think it'll work?"

Sadie didn't answer, going back to picking at her food.

The sun had long gone down and Lion had taken Connie home. Steven had reheated a few slices of pizza he'd found in the fridge and was sitting on the couch playing Mad Libs with Amethyst and Peridot.

"Peridot, I need a name," he said.

"Percy," replied Peridot.

"Great!" nodded Steven, smiling, "Now Amethyst, I need a body part."

Amethyst grinned.

"I'm gonna say a-"

There was a knock at the door.

"Who could that be?" mused Steven, getting up.

"Boo!" grumbled Amethyst, "My word was gonna be great!"

Steven walked to the door and opened it, finding Sadie standing outside.

"Sadie? Is everything okay?" he asked.

"I asked Mom about Dad," replied Sadie.

"Oh," said Steven, "Did...did he do something really bad?"

"I don't know," replied Sadie, "Because she lied to me. Can I come in?"

Steven nodded, letting Sadie enter.

"What's up, ex-Donut Girl," said Amethyst, waving.

"Look," said Sadie, "Sorry to bother you this late, but something really weird is going on."

"It's Beach City," shrugged Amethyst.

"Yeah, but weirder than normal," replied Sadie, "Okay, so Dad left his wallet at the library and the librarian gave it to me to send back to him, and I went through it..."

"Sadie!" exclaimed Steven, scandalised.

"...yeah, I know, not the right thing," said Sadie, "But then I found this."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the picture, showing it to Steven and the two gems.

"Is that a Roaming Eye?" gasped Peridot.

"A roaming what?" asked Sadie.

"It's a ship from the Gem Homeworld," replied Steven.

"We stole one!" added Amethyst, "It was great until they stole it back!"

"That was purely through Navy's mastery of deception," sniffed Peridot, "I was not responsible."

"Homeworld?" mused Sadie, "That's where you and Lars went, right? What's a ship from Homeworld doing on Earth? And what're my parents doing next to it?"

"Beats the heck outta me," replied Amethyst.

"Are you sure?" asked Peridot, "It seems implausible that a Homeworld ship could arrive without the Crystal Gems knowing about it."

"We can ask Garnet and Pearl about it when they get back," suggested Steven, "I'm sure they'll explain everything, right?"

"I hope so," sighed Sadie, "Because I really need answers right now..."

Roughly halfway between Beach City and Ocean Town was a small access road. Once upon a time, it had led to a cannery by the sea - but times had changed and the cannery had been closed and demolished, the road to nowhere its only remaining legacy.

A short distance down the road was a small depression in the landscape. It was about forty square metres across and ten metres deep - the earth had been covered with abundant grass which made this dip easy to miss from a distance. Only a select few knew what it really was - a crater left by a crashed alien ship.

A black car pulled up next to the hole. Agent Clancy Miller stepped out. He looked around, satisfied himself that he was alone, and sat down at the edge of the crater.

He remembered that day well.

It had been a Saturday. He and Barb had been dating for three months, and neither had really decided whether or not they were taking it seriously. The biggest thing on his mind was whether or not he was going to commit to an astronomy major or not. Those had been simpler times.

They had spent the day by the sea in Ocean Town and were driving back to campus when the enormous object crashed to earth. He being the space nut he was, he immediately turned off onto the access road, hoping to find a meteorite at the impact point. Instead, he had found the Roaming Eye.

Barb had been apprehensive about approaching the wrecked ship, but Clancy would not be deterred. He took a photo for posterity first, using the roof of his car as a makeshift tripod. Then he had walked right up to the ship with merry abandon - these days, as an OSS agent, he would have known to check for background radiation and other hazards first, and it made him cringe to remember how unprofessional he had once been.

In the soil around the ship, he had found the shattered remains of a green gem, and had excitedly picked them up to examine them. He would later learn that these were the shards of an unfortunate Peridot that had perished in the crash.

While he was shouting unrealistic and fantastic theories to Barb, the Crystal Gems arrived on the scene.

He remembered his awe upon seeing them. Pearl, graceful and fearless and fiercely protective of her leader; Garnet, stoic, mysterious and powerful; and then there was Rose Quartz herself, perhaps the most remarkable of them all, gentle and compassionate but the greatest warrior of them all. To an amateur Ufologist like himself, it was like walking in the presence of Caesar, Napoleon or the Quarrymen. He had so many questions of them - there was so much he needed, needed to know.

Rose walked past him, instead walking over to Barb. She had picked up a deep red gem - it was cracked but intact. Gently, Rose had taken the gem from her, holding it in her hands. She looked down upon it and wept a single tear.

There was a brilliant glow. Clancy had watched as the light around the gem seemed to shift, morphing into a short, humanoid shape. It fell to the floor, landing on its face - the light dimmed, revealing a red figure with square-shaped hair. He heard the Garnet's whisper - 'a Ruby.'

She began to try to stand out - Barb offered her hand to help, which she took. She began to babble - "What planet is this? What happened to my ship? I need to report to my supervisor!"

Barb put her hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes.

"It's okay," she told her, "You're safe now..."

And there he was, standing off to the side, forgotten by everyone.

"Why did I come here?" Clancy asked himself, staring solemnly into the crater, "Nothing good ever came from this place..."

"Because you couldn't leave without coming back first."

Clancy got up and turned around. Garnet and Pearl were standing next to his car.

"Really, Garnet?" sighed Clancy, "We talked about this earlier. I have my orders."

"You're going to regret taking it, Clancy," said Garnet, "You know that."

"I've regretted everything I've done in this place," replied Clancy, "What's one more thing?"

He shook his head.

"What exactly are you hoping to achieve?" he demanded, "If I don't take it, they'll just send someone else to get it. And they'll be clumsy about it because they won't have my experience and they'll probably get somebody hurt. If I do it, it's done quietly and cleanly."

Garnet shook her head.

"Garnet, why don't we just stop him now?" demanded Pearl, "It's hardly like he deserves a chance!"

"Because they'll send another agent, Pearl," replied Clancy, "Just like I said. And that other agent might start looking into things - your things."

He walked back towards his car. As he passed her, Garnet put a hand on his arm.

"Make up a lie, Clancy," she urged, "You can tell them it wasn't here."

Clancy narrowed his eyes.

"I. Have. My. Orders," he snarled.

He got into his car and drove away.

There was a pillar of light as the warp pad activated. When it disappeared, Garnet and Pearl were standing in front of the temple door - they were immediately approached by Steven and Sadie, with Amethyst and Peridot hanging slightly back.

"Oh! Sadie, right? What are you doing here?" quizzed Pearl.

"What do you know about a ship that crashed twenty years ago?" asked Sadie.

Steven helpfully held up the photograph for them.

"Oh...that," said Pearl, "Uh..."

"It's a Roaming Eye," said Garnet, calmly, "It was probably here to check up on something Homeworld left behind..."

"In hindsight, probably the Cluster," Pearl interrupted quickly.

"Yes," nodded Garnet, "When we found it, it was damaged beyond repair. There were no survivors."

"Why didn't I know about this?" demanded Amethyst.

"There was a Lil' Butler marathon that night," replied Garnet, "You were with Greg."

"Yeah, that makes sense," admitted Amethyst.

"Sure does!" exclaimed Pearl, "And oh my goodness would you look at the time! I'm going back to my room to bed! Goodnight!"

She turned around and walked briskly into the temple.

"So there's nothing weird that could have happened with my parents, right?" asked Sadie.

She looked up at Garnet, trying to catch a glimpse of her eyes through her visor. She failed.

"Nothing," said Garnet, her tone final, "Goodnight, Sadie. Goodnight Steven."

She walked to the temple door.

"Don't I get a goodnight?" demanded Peridot.

"Goodnight, Peridot."

Garnet entered the temple and disappeared.

"Okay, quick question," said Amethyst, "Since when does Pearl have a bed?"

"She doesn't" replied Steven, clenching his fists, "They lied to us."

He turned to Sadie, whose expression was unreadable. There was a long silence.

"Library," she said at last, "Tomorrow. We're gonna ask Dad..."

[deanseths]

HEY i just saw the "rolleings explained" post you reblogged and i found it so cool could you do an ambrollins one? your writing style + ambrollins = most probs win win :D

First of all, I apologise for the time it took me to reply, but there was so much to say i couldn’t just write it in the span of a day. It’s gonna be very long, though, so I guess we’re even :) Also, thank you so much for your kind words about my writing, I don’t feel worthy at all but I’ll try to keep up with your expectations. There are also scattered links to videos, posts and gifs along the text to make it easier to read (hopefully).

One thing I can say for sure is that if you are looking for a perfect, non-dysfunctional, idyllic pairing, this ship ain’t gonna be your cup of tea. Dean and Seth have been orbiting each other since the very first moment they were in the same roster as rivals, brothers, enemies and eventually best friends again in an endless chase that is going on since 2011, when Dean signed with FCW. The following post is my personal recap of their story so far and I hope you will enjoy it.

Okay, so *takes a deep breath*. 

Seth was Dean’s #1 obsession. As soon as he made his appearance on the FCW roster, Dean challenged Seth who was holding the FCW 15 Championship; their feud was so good that it was unanimously appreciated by the critics, and it finally drew some attention on the wwe developmental scene. The tension between the two was palpable since their first promo, despite they just stared at each other for a handful of seconds

and led them to a heated (and very touchy) feud, with Dean being focused on getting a piece of Seth and Seth trying to keep Dean under control, and their iron man matches streak became soon a wrestling classic. 

Despite Seth came out as the winner, it was clear that two young yet experienced athletes like them couldn’t stay far for long from each other. They met again in some other occasions, such as the Super 8 tournament for the Heavyweight Championship, or the triple threat match with Leakee / Roman (where they had some very interesting interactions they will mirror years later in the 2016 Battleground’s main event, by teaming up multiple times to defeat the samoan who was already being booked as the strongest of the three). 

At the beginning of 2012, while they were both busy with different storylines, things take an unexpected gayer twist: during Dean’s feud against William Regal, Seth pops outta nowhere calling him out and telling him he’s not seeing the fire in his eyes anymore, and that he should get back to challenge the best, namely himself, the current FCW Heavyweight champion. 

This might sound slightly weird for an average wrestling fan, as usually it’s the champion to be challenged by opponents and not the other way around, but we know better: from my absolutely unbiased point of view indeed, Seth telling Dean ‘get your eyes back on the prize’ meant ‘stahp ignoring me and get your eyes back ON MY ASS’ (gayness intensifies as he checks on Dean at the end). Dean eventually accepts the challenge which leads them to a match for the main title that Seth will retain, but before that, he cuts another heartfelt promo in which he talks about Dean as one of the worthiest opponents of his career. 

Anyway, these are basically their last relevant interactions in developmentals, until, at the Survivor Series of the same year, they’ll both make their first appearance on the main roster alongside Roman Reigns as the Shield. It’s commonly acknowledged that the Hounds of Justice have been one of the strongest and most cohesive stables for long: in this three-men scenario, Seth often acts as a sort of supportive valet to Dean (who was booked as the single fighter) especially during his US title reign, holding / picking up the belt for him, calming him down when he is mad with face touches, cheering him ringside and even praising him in flattering yet unusual ways lol

At some point of the storyline, though, Dean’s attitude starts being problematic: Roman opposes him while Seth always stays in the back, struggling to keep the team together. As a matter of facts, despite Dean’s unreliable behaviour is damaging the whole team, Seth never fights him directly, and during arguments he avoids taking sides, even if the most logical thing to do for him would be backing Roman. Even during the infamous Shield summit, while Dean hits him multiple times, he only reacts once, and declares he is ready to take the beating for the team and let Dean get out of his system all of his rage. 

As for Dean, despite his unstable attitude, he is still protective of Seth in his own way. At the Rumble in 2014, while he doesn’t hesitate to throw Roman out of the ring as soon as he has an opportunity, he fights to save Seth from several eliminations; he even starts reassuring him by touching his face like Seth used to do with him, which we can definitely consider character growth. It’s worth mentioning that, despite their different roles within the stable, most of the time they were giving legit tag team vibes: during their video promos from unknown locations they were always framed very close to each other and on their own;

they also made their entrance walking down the crowd side by side while Roman used a different staircase, and later in time they will even start doing stereo suicide dives.

And then, it came the day Seth took the steelchair and put an end to the word Shield. The weirdest thing to me is still how his rage was unbalanced between his two brothers, because while he knocked out Roman first with only one chairshot, he went berserk on Dean, hitting him again and again as if he wanted to destroy him completely. We won’t ever know the actual reason behind his actions, but this was the spark that led to one of the most heated and appreciated feuds the wwe universe has ever witnessed, which lasted no less than two years of pure angst.

Through time, several articles referred to their dynamic as a war between ex-lovers, an idea that was kinda corroborated by Seth himself along the years, like here, or in his unforgettable speech where he called Dean his wrestling soulmate featured in the dvd ‘Destruction of the Shield’. 

2014 is surely their most dramatic time arc: while Roman decides to focus his vengeance on the Authority itself, Dean is literally obsessed with Seth. Unlike the Big Dog, who will keep considering Seth his “little brother” until the end, he has taken the betrayal very personally, and all his promos (despite hilarious segments like the soda in the briefcase, the ice bucket challenge or the slimy prank segments) are built around his pain and misery, which he is willing to return to Seth in any way possible; he’ll keep coming out as the weak link, though, since Seth has always someone from the Authority to help him get rid of his opponents. They both join the ladder match for the briefcase at MITB, where Seth defeats Dean at the very end thanks to Kane’s interference: at this point, Dean swears he’s going to hijack every attempt from Seth to cash in the contract, honouring his promise by ambushing him at every opportunity. 

Dean is totally unable to hold back his feelings for the whole feud. They finally have their first 1-on-1 at Summerslam where, right before using the curbstomp against Seth, Dean literally screams “I loved you, brother” and kisses him on his forehead

(see also his handicap match against Seth and Kane a few weeks earlier for further angst & screaming). He often refers to his ex teammate as ‘his’ as if he belonged to him, while Seth keeps lessening him to prove his feelings are only of hatred.

I’ll put here a little footnote, because I think is important to consider one thing many fans never took into account when it comes to heel!Seth: when he inflicted devastating pain to Dean, he didn’t seem to take pleasure in doing it; he didn’t laugh or smile like he did in his promos, a sign in my opinion of how the Authority had succeeded in manipulating him only partially. For the record, there’s no sign of delight in his expression during the betrayal segment, and when he curbstomps Dean on the cinderblock stacks at the Raw episode after Summerslam, his stare looks almost concerned as he checks on Dean, as if he was still conflicted about being the Authority’s golden boy and having feelings for his ex teammmate. 

Anyway, the peak of 2014 storytelling is reached at HIAC after Dean’s return from the (fake) injury, between bitter rants and desperate attempts to tear each other apart in a breathtaking fight that would be remembered in the years to come (like here lol). This is also the breaking point where their rivalry is put on hold, but its potential was so high that wwe brings it up again only six months later.

Seth cashes in successfully his MITB contract at WM31 in 2015, finally becoming WHC champion, but Dean, after winning a chance to join the fatal 4 way at Payback, is still demanding a piece of him and a shot to the title at Elimination Chamber. He gets it and, after being robbed once again at the end of the match, he steals the belt from Seth carrying it with him for the next tv episodes (‘Who am I to judge? I’m every bit of the scumbag that you are’ ). For the record, he also starts wearing a t-shirt with an ‘Ambrose Asylum - D.A. 060214’ logo, where the serial number next to his initials coincides with the day Seth betrayed the Shield and consequently broke his heart, and if this isn’t peak gay I don’t know what it is. Along this painful path, they’ll keep haunting each other’s life up to their ladder match at MITB for the heavyweight championship, which starts with their most iconic stare

and where Seth comes out again as the winner. Unfortunately in November, when they had already taken different routes, Seth severely injures his knee, being consequently forced to stay out of the scene for six months. 

He comes back thicker and meaner in 2016 at the end of Extreme Rules, reclaiming the title he had to vacate which currently belonged to Roman. But in the meantime Dean has a legit shot to get the briefcase at MITB, and during that epic night he walks victorious out of the ladder match and cashes in at the end of the main event, a few seconds after Seth has won the title back, becoming wwe champ by pinning him and opening another unexpected page of their breathtaking rivalry. Nevertheless, this further feud is definitely different from their previous ones. Dean’s attitude has changed a lot towards Seth after his return: we always see him acting chill and playful, as if he has finally coped and put the past behind his back. Seth is 100% mad that he can’t get under his skin anymore, which will bring some fluff into their dynamic, gifting us some of the flirtiest and most hilarious segments they had so far, such as the Ambrose Asylum feat. Seth and Sami, or the very famous and Very Gay™ ass slap, where they kept staring at each other for the whole time, with Dean biting his lips and Seth taking it as if it was part of their normal routine. Okay.

Things start to get heated again, though, when Seth attempts to mock Roman for his suspension, and Dean comes out with what is probably the best promo of his wwe career so far (here and here). They will also sit at the announcement table for each other’s matches where, despite their hostility, they won’t be able to hide their mutual, uh, admiration.

Of course, Dean is far from being softer than in 2014 / 15: he has just managed to tame his impulsive rage towards Seth, but the fierceness in his eyes every time they are in front of each other is a sign that, beneath the ashes, that flame is still burning. As for Seth, during most of their promos he looks more like an exasperated ex-boyfriend than a mortal enemy as their dynamic has definitely taken a less dramatic twist. Unfortunately, they were destined to be separated by the first draft a couple of months later, being respectively the first choices of Raw and Smackdown’s commissioners, but before moving to different rosters they will fight again at the previously mentioned Battleground ppv in a Shield triple threat, where they will eventually join forces again to powerbomb Roman despite their rivalry.

So the brand split leaves them as bitter(sweet) enemies, until Dean moves again to Raw almost a year later in 2017, after facing Seth only once in November at the Survivor Series as a member of the opposite team, and having a little reunion with his ex brothers who help him to powerbomb AJ and get rid of the security guys dragging him out. I apologise in advance because the next part is gonna be way more detailed, as their reconciliation arc is undoubtedly the peak of their whole storyline. 

Despite Dean’s current feud with Miz (drafted back to Raw with him), this new chapter sees Seth briefly involved in an open challenge for Dean’s IC title. That night, Dean interviews his own opponents, and when it’s Seth’s time, although the both of them will be Teasing & Flirty for the whole promo, the segment ends with a punch in the stomach to the audience:

We know Seth has changed a lot during Dean’s absence. He learnt that the Authority was using him as a pawn to destroy the Shield, and got rid of him as soon as they found someone meaner to replace him; we know he publicly admitted his mistakes, that he defeated HHH carrying the feud to WM on his own, we know he helped Roman against JeriKo without asking anything in return and that eventually he reunited with him. But while Roman never really held a grudge against Seth, Dean won’t forgive his betrayal so easily: he will talk for the whole time about his relationship with Seth as something that ‘burnt’ him, a sign that the wound had never actually healed (in other words: we’re not going to ignore that Seth and Roman’s relationship throughout their reunion was treated as a sweet yet brotherly bond, while Dean and Seth’s reconciliation arc followed a not so subtle ex-lovers narrative, and this is a fact of the universe that not only the shippers but the whole wwe fandom has openly acknowledged).

Two months later, indeed, while Dean is still fighting against the Miz over the IC title, Seth runs unexpectedly to his rescue after an unfair 3-on-1 attack; in their backstage segment, though, Dean is pissed off, and asks him to mind his business. Seth claims that he did it because Miz talked shit about him, but Dean doesn’t buy it: he knows Seth wants to impress him, and he replies ‘I know you, I don’t trust you. You screwed that up. Ain’t gonna be no Shield reunion’. Yet, as soon as Seth is in troubles at the end of the night, he runs to his rescue as well and saves him from Miz and the Miztourage. 

Dean himself explained in the new shield documentary the reason that brought them together again: ‘I’m allowed to hate that guy, but you’re not’. I’m going to clear this up before someone starts whining this is glorification of abusive behaviour. First of all, the ‘enemies to friends / lovers’ dynamic is one of the most common tropes in fiction: namely, despite their historic rivalry / hostility, two people develop a twisted ‘protective instinct’ that makes them feel like they are the only ones allowed to beat the shit out of each other. Plus, for two characters like Dean and Seth with such a long history, this is just another layer of their complicated relationship, since this protective instinct is a residual of their lost brotherhood in the Shield and not a feeling they developed later in time. 

So the week after Dean opens Raw calling Miz out, but Seth shows up instead, trying to make him confess he helped him because he still cares. Dean uses Miz as an excuse like Seth did last time, and Seth accidentally happens to call him ‘brother’, which makes Dean outburst and recall what Seth did to him in the past. As a consequence, Seth is emotionally dragged to the point of abruptly apologising to Dean: 

It’s such a pure moment because for one minute they finally open their hearts to each other and to the whole wwe universe like they never did before. Dean literally says Seth has stabbed that chair ‘right through his back and right through his heart’ which goes straight to the top of the All Time Gayest Confession Chart; on the other hand, Seth has never told anyone he was sorry until then, not even to Roman, which in fact leaves Dean speechless. Seth kindly reminds him also that yeah, he betrayed the Shield, but Dean consequently tried to murder him like 876543476352 times, and that he had his revenge when he took the title from him the year before at MITB, so he begs him to leave everything behind his back and move on; Dean doesn’t want to trust Seth’s words, though, and trashes his apology pretending he hasn’t heard anything. At this point, Seth impulsively asks Dean to hit him with the chair he is holding in his hands because he wants to prove his point at all costs; Dean is hesitating at his back, so Seth reaches the peak of his tension and screams to hit him and end it there, but Dean of course is not willing to do it, and tosses the chair out of the ring. Anyway, as we will see in the backstage segment where they are given a match against Miz and the Miztourage (who attack them soon after the promo), they are bickering again, and Dean’s words make perfectly clear that even if he didn’t hit Seth with the chair, he is very far from accepting his apology.

In the meantime, Dean buys a copy of ‘The Daily AntiAmbrollins’ and finds out haters are saying he was verbally abused by Seth and tricked into forgiving him, so next week, when Seth will tell him he’s really excited to fight again at his side, he’ll reply that to him he’s still an enemy to worry about. Eventually, though, during their handicap match, their old chemistry will immediately resurface, and they will defeat their Miz and his goons with a great performance. The magic becomes real in the end when, after their win, Seth can’t help but hug Dean (which wasn’t a scripted thing as we learnt from several wrestling websites) 

and in the heat of the moment he even puts his fist up for a bump in old Shield fashion; Dean walks away, though, as he doesn’t feel like reminiscing about the good old days.

A week later it’s Renee herself in Ambrollins-shipper mode to ask Dean if he and Seth are ‘getting back together’, and he replies that their match was fantastic and it felt like old times, but when Seth pops up all waggy and excited Dean cuts it short, saying the fact they worked so well together doesn’t mean that things between them are fixed: he knows everyone wants them to be together again and maybe a part of him wants it too, but he still doesn’t trust him cause he got burnt once by him and doesn’t want it to happen again. So Dean openly admits he still has feelings for Seth, but he doesn’t want to surrender to them because he’s afraid Seth might not be sincere. Later in the night, Seth is being mocked by Team Sheasaro for still being single so he challenges one of them to a match, after which they both attack Seth; Dean runs to help him again, but when Seth approaches him to say thanks (with the both of them being alone and half naked in the locker room but this is just a detail), he tells him he did it just because Seth put him in a position where if he didn’t do it, he would look like a jerk, and warns him he ain’t going to save his ass anymore next time he’ll be in troubles. But Seth is as stubborn as a mule and next week, when Dean puts into practice what he said by not coming to his aid after another 2-on-1 attack, he is so hurt that he’ll retort it’s true, he is a real jerk, because he’s doing everything to prove he has changed and that all this back and forth between them is pointless. Dean replies for the nth time that he’s afraid of getting burnt and goes out to fight Sheamus, whom of course is joined by Cesaro at the end of the match for the routine ambush; but Seth beats the odds and rescues Dean, and proves him and the columnists of the Daily AntiAmbrollins that he wants everything but a forced forgiveness, walking away when Dean reaches out with his fist.

The gay drama peaks when Dean calls out Seth on his flip-flop the week after: they have the nth argument during which they try to fist each other unsuccessfully, and this brings them to a physical fight until Team Sheasaro bursts into the ring to knock them out. At this point, all I can recall before I started screaming into the void was Dean’s face as he sees the two beating the shit out of Seth (watch this beautiful slowmotion editing, what happens in the end will make u cry!!1!)

which turns him into a murder machine and finally leads them to team up once and for all and bump their fists in one of the most epic moments of wwe’s history. 

The next Sunday at Summerslam they officially fight Team Sheasaro for the title and become tag team champs (which made of Dean the youngest GSC) after an incredible match (for the record, for his entrance Dean wore a black hoodie with his logo in red to match Seth’s gear). About a month later Roman joins them too, reuniting the whole team against Miz and the Miztourage (which is a subject we won’t discuss here to avoid ruining the gleeful mood). Unfortunately their reign as tag team champs won’t be long lasting, but it will put more than once the tag team division under the spotlight with several main events, giving us the opportunity to see them finally working side by side after so many years of angsty rivalry. Meanwhile, their already unsubtle homoerotic dynamic will be every day more explicit as all their segments will be filled with protective moments, hugs, heart eyes and lots of unnecessary touching (for science: one two three four five six seven eight nine ten eleven twelve). They would have probably won the tag team titles again during the Raw Christmas Special, but Dean’s complicated elbow injury will force him to stay out for nine months starting from the previous week.

So, back to our days: it’s August 2018, one long year has almost gone, and Summerslam is knocking at the door again while Seth has been facing alone for months, outnumbered, the odd Team I-sheep-it Ziggintyre. But the week before the ppv the Architect can’t hide his bliss anymore, and he finally introduces us a post-apocalyptic daddy!Dean just returned to society to kick everyone’s ass. The fans are 100% expecting a heel turn against Seth, but he surprises everyone by helping him to get his IC title back at Summerslam and gifting us several other unforgettable gay moments, the most iconic of which is definitely Seth happily wearing Dean’s t-shirt as the supportive (boy)friend he is

and we’re all grateful for this from the bottom of our hearts, as Ambrollins shippers and as Shield fans.

Okay, this wild ride is finally over (for now) and I hope you enjoyed it, but I want to close the post with a line from a beautiful old article about their revived rivalry in 2015, which ended up being an actual prophecy: 

❛ The past tells us that they will deliver excellence in the ring and that this will not be the final chapter. Their story is a novel. Unread pages await.❜

[inexcon]

RSI Comm-Link: Something Every Tuesday: Argo Hero

[ Music ]

Announcer: Good evening, everybody. Get ready for your week to peak because it’s time for Something Every Tuesday with your host, Esen Landari!

[ Applause ]

Thank you! Thank you. Hey, everyone, so glad you could join us. We’ve got such an incredible show for you tonight, you’re not gonna want to miss a moment of it. And while we’re talking about missing out, you hear about this poor guy in Lyre? Did you hear about this?

[ Scattered Laughter ]

Well, last week a Caterpillar crew landed in Lyre for a little R&R and one of the crew members went to the bathroom on the ship and got locked inside. No big deal, right? Well, turns out this guy wasn’t wearing his mobi, so, yeah, all he could do was bang on the door. I guess they make the doors pretty solid because no one heard him. Poor guy spent the entire weekend locked in that cramped bathroom. How crazy is that? I mean, at least he had somewhere to sit, right?

[ Laughter ]

His crewmates only realized what had happened when they got back to the ship and needed what everyone does after vacationing in Lyre; to use the bathroom and take a cold shower.

[ Laughter ]

In the crew’s defense, they thought the guy had ditched them to party on his own. How hard does this guy party if no one was concerned that he vanished the second they landed? There’s really only one word to describe someone known to hit it that hard — ‘Cassian.’

[ Laughter ]

Speaking of Ellroy Cass, everyone’s favorite celebrity shipwreck is in rehab again. Talk about contender for least surprising headline of the year. He’s reportedly battling an addiction to Flow. Sources claim that prior to rehab Cass hadn’t slept in days and was obsessed with landscaping his backyard so it “felt like the beach.” Which is a nice idea, right? Except that his mansion is in the forest. That’s some pure, uncut Cass, right there.

Some of you might recall that Maurice Vano, the man who tried to kill Imperator Costigan, was also addicted to Flow. Supposedly, when Cass’s friends found out he was using the new drug, they began to worry he might be driven to do something similar. Though in Cass’s case, the only thing he was looking to assassinate was his own career.

[ Laughter ]

It’s great that he’s trying to get help, though. Seriously. Addiction is tough no matter who you are. Of course it’s a little less tough when your rehab center looks like this. Here are some pictures we found of the Tresman Gardens Rehabilitation Center.

[ Hoots and Hollers ]

Nice, right? Those sexy, muscled people wearing the skimpy swimsuits? Those are the certified hydromassage healers. Quick show of hands, how many of you are thinking about getting addicted to something now?

[ Laughter ]

Like I said earlier, you do not want to go anywhere. We’ve got a very, very special show tonight because our first guest is the very definition of a hero. His courageous actions saved the lives of 21 fellow Navy crew members on Virgil I. Here to tell us his absolutely incredible story is Lt. Davante Lee.

[ Applause ]

Get comfortable and stay awhile. You deserve it.

Lt. Davante Lee: Thanks. Yeah, wow, it’s kinda overwhelming to be here right now.

The studio lights are bright, aren’t they?

Lt. Davante Lee: ‘Blinding’ is more like it. Feels like I’m in a staring contest with a Bengal.

[ Laughter ]

First off, I just want to say on behalf of everyone here and watching on spectrum, thank you for your service.

[ Applause ]

Your story is absolutely incredible. There’s really no other way to describe it. So let’s set the stage: your fleet came under attack in the Virgil System, right? Near Virgil I.

Lt. Davante Lee: As part of the rearguard, yeah.

And where were you when the ambush happened?

Lt. Davante Lee: Ah, ferrying supplies to the Montgomery. One second this big, beautiful Polaris is sitting before me and the next the ship’s in flames and spiralling down toward Virgil I.

That sector had been quiet for ages, too. Then outta nowhere, they hit us, hard, and the worse thing possible happens. Honestly, when the Vanduul fighters showed up and the Mont went down, I had to take a moment to ask myself if I was in a simpod or not. Nothing felt real.

But you weren’t in a simpod, were you?

Lt. Davante Lee: No, definitely not. I was in an Argo MPUV.

[ Gasps ]

The ideal ship for going toe-to-toe with the Vanduul, right?

Lt. Davante Lee: Well, it doesn’t have a single weapon, but it does have something else going for it — a ton of cargo room. I knew I’d never survive a tussle, but I could shuttle folks to safety. So, the second I saw the Mont break atmo above Virgil I, I decided to follow it.

I had a hell of a time finding them, especially since the ship’s comms were down.

From what I heard Virgil I’s atmo didn’t make that search any easier. Not with that swirling poisonous ash killing all visibility.

Lt. Davante Lee: That’s for sure, but it also probably saved my life.

This interview is brought to you by ‘poisonous ash,’ seriously, it could save your life.

[ Laughter ]

So, you locate the Montgomery somewhere in this crazy ash storm, and then what?

Lt. Davante Lee: Lieutenant Yu was on the sticks at the time. Considering the state of the corvette, she did an incredible job controlling the crash, so it landed in a perfect spot. The ’duul found the crash pretty soon after I showed up. They started strafing the Mont to keep us occupied while landing dropships all around us.

It was … I’m not sure how to describe it. I mean, it was absolute chaos. No one could really see anything, except for their shots zipping through the ash like blurs of light … and you knew the ’duul were getting closer every second. You just didn’t know from where.

Somehow, the Mont’s crew all rallied together and established a perimeter. One of the turrets had survived the crash, so they were doing the best they could with that. Gave me enough cover to touch down. Thinking back now, I actually don’t remember a lot of it. With all the adrenaline and everything, my brain just sorta went on autopilot. Everything I did was more instinct than anything else.

And what did that instinct having you doing?

Lt. Davante Lee: I, ummm, unloaded the Argo as fast as possible and started loading up the Mont’s crew, injured ones first. I took off that first time without even checking the scans. I just lifted her off the ground, picked a direction and got the hell outta there.

And how many times did you do that?

Lt. Davante Lee: It took three more trips to get everyone.

[ Loud, Sustained Applause ]

Lt. Davante Lee: Thank you, but really it was the ash storm and the incredible people on the ground holding back the Vanduul that let me get so many of the crew out of there.

That’s just incredible. Where’d you even take the people you rescued? Another part of the planet?

Lt. Davante Lee: Nah, you don’t really want to hang out in that poisonous atmo if you can help it. Found a safe spot for them on the nearest moon. Dropped them there and then went back for the rest. It’s a miracle they held ’em off that long.

I can’t even imagine what that must have been like. I have to keep reminding myself that it’s a true story. It sounds like something straight out of a movie. Which, if they do end up making a movie out of this, I know the perfect actor to play you as soon as he is back out of rehab.

[ Laughter ]

So, what’s next for you, Lieutenant?

Lt. Davante Lee: Well, I’ve got a few more of these to do.

I believe we were lucky enough to grab you first, right?

Lt. Davante Lee: Yup, first one. It is that obvious?

Seriously, you’ve done a great job, hasn’t he, folks?

[ Loud Applause ]

Lt. Davante Lee: Thanks. I really, truly appreciate the support, but it’s the men and women currently serving on the Vanduul front that are the true heroes. It’s important that the people of the Empire remember to support the cause any way they can.

You sure you haven’t done one of these before?

Lt. Davante Lee: Positive.

Well, I’ve got a feeling there’ll be plenty more in your future. We need to take a quick break. Can you stick around for a bit longer?

Lt. Davante Lee: I think so, yeah.

Well, clear your schedule, ’cause I’ve got like a bazillion more questions for you. Plus, we’d love for you to play a round of our game ‘Spin Cycle.’ You up for it?

Lt. Davante Lee: Sure, let’s do it.

That and more when Something Every Tuesday returns after the break.

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