#mostly enjoyed it as a look into the origins of all the beloved characters and worldbuilding I'm familiar with from later in the series

[adnirod]

Book 2 for 2025 book bingo! For the "Published Before 1950" square (so many options! I love to read older books!) I selected the original "The Adventures of Pinocchio" (1883), translated by Carol Della Chiesa in 1926.

All I knew about this book was that it was different from the Disney movie, and that instead of the wise and friendly Jiminy Cricket as Pinocchio's conscience, there's a talking cricket that tries to advise Pinocchio until Pinocchio smashes him to death with a hammer. (I think Stephen King mentioned this in something of his--maybe "Danse Macabre"?). So I wasn't really at risk of tonal whiplash.

As promised, this is a pretty dark story--Pinocchio is mostly a pure chaos agent, kind of like Curious George except with violence and death, plus always someone looking to trick/prey on/take advantage of you. The narrator delivers morals, but for most of the book they come across (to me, at least, in translation and from my different historical context) as brightly tongue-in-cheek, since once a moral gets set out, Pinocchio generally smashes right through it. He's not malicious per se, but he is entirely impulsive and only does what he wants to do, and then cries about it afterward in self-pity once he has Fucked Around And Found Out. Then he gets rescued somehow, and heads back into the FAFO cycle.

I enjoyed the Fox-and-Cat sections, because of the difference between what Pinocchio knows, how the narrator describes things, and what we as readers (if we can get the hang of unreliable narration) know. They're con artists, they have unacknowledged cover stories and nefarious plans, while Pinocchio (and the narrative) is taking them entirely at their word. I can't remember when I first learned to navigate narrative unreliability in my own childhood reading, but I definitely came to love that feeling.

The last section of the book feels different--the stated morals start feeling more serious, and Pinocchio starts doing kind and positive things without being forced to. That means the sense of humor changes too--it kind of filters away, as does the sharp irony and the layers of unreliability. And a few earlier events get softened--like, the Talking Cricket reappears toward the end of the book without any explanation, scolds Pinocchio for the hammer thing, delivers a sententious moral, and Pinocchio apologizes and agrees with him. Definitely different than the Pinocchio of the earlier sections. (Although interestingly, Pinocchio may have Plot Armor, but even once the book has gentled a bit, other characters still die--like, Lamp-Wick, someone who convinced Pinocchio to misbehave, doesn't get rescued from being turned into a donkey the way Pinocchio was rescued. He's bought and then worked to death, and dies in a sad on-page scene.)

I read more about the book afterward and found out it was originally a magazine serial, so it all makes perfect sense, the episodic nature and the tone change and whatnot. Wikipedia also said that the serial originally ended fairly early on, when Pinocchio is punished by being hanged by the neck from a tree and dies (whereas in the book he's hanged and almost dies but is rescued). (Man, my childhood books were never like this.)

It really benefited Collodi to start up again with a fixit, given how popular the happy-ending book version became all over the world. It's hard to imagine a dead-at-the-end version becoming as beloved in places like the U.S.--at least in my sense of children's literature at that time, it wouldn't have much room for such a pitch-black tone.

@batmanisagatewaydrug

[studiodrydock]

Interview With a Werewolf - A deep dive into the character of Westley Vuk from Wylde Flowers

We've put together an in depth look at Wylde Flower's fuzziest romanceable character, Westley Vuk! 🐺💕

Westley, the romantic werewolf bookseller, is one of our most beloved characters, and we had the privilege of chatting with several members of the team involved with bringing him to life, including Iona Vorster (concept artist), Desiree Cifre (narrative director), Mike Taylor (animator) and Ray Chase (his voiceover artist).

We discussed all things Westley including his inspiration, design, and what makes him so popular (and dreamy)! Enjoy! ✨

Writing a Werewolf

Questions answered by: Desiree Cifre (Narrative Director)

Q: Can you start by telling us a little bit about Westley?

Desiree: Westley is a bookish werewolf originally from Alaska. He became a werewolf due to a case of mistaken identity. His identical twin brother, Lou, was a marksman for a logging company, and shot at a werewolf who then returned and attacked Westley one full moon. Once Westley turned into a werewolf, he vowed to keep his distance from humans to protect them and himself, and found safe harbor in the magical village of Ravenwood Hollow. He hopes to find a cure for his lycanthropy and in the meanwhile, prove that werewolves can be positive contributors to the magical community.

Q: What was your process like, including inspirations and challenges, when creating Westley?

Desiree: Our original scope for the narrative limited the characters to the members of the coven and the other, non-magical villagers, so I was delighted when Amanda and Alex told me we would have the budget for a magical village with four residents. I knew right away that I wanted one of them to be a werewolf and that I wanted him to be a romantic interest for Tara. A bookseller seemed like a natural fit so that he could sell Tara the parchment and incantations she would need for her spellwork, and when Iona drew up some concept art of our nattily dressed Westley we all knew that was the right direction for the character. Once I learned we could support him having both human and wolf forms, that opened up the space to create a little mystery around his first appearance in town, and then we got to dive into his backstory a bit more later in the game.

Q: Do you have a favorite line that you wrote for him?

Desiree: Well, I was expecting players to love Westley, but even I couldn't have anticipated how much of a fan-favorite he would become. I have to say one of my favorite lines is one that only plays if you are partnered with him: "Tara, you're looking ravishing today! Not that I want to, or would, I mean, you know." The actor who plays him, Ray Chase, gave such a hilariously brilliant reading of that line and it makes me giggle every time I hear it! The thirst is real.

Drawing a Werewolf

Questions answered by: Iona Vorster (Concept Artist)

Q: What was the process like for designing Westley? How did you incorporate his personality and backstory into his design? Iona: Initially I started with sketching out ideas for all the Ravenwood Hollow characters in tandem. I wanted to make sure they would sit well together, and since they are all (mostly) fae, I wanted to make sure they felt consistent across their designs while figuring out “what do the fae look like in the world of Wylde Flowers.” Once I had a good idea of what they’d generally look like, I took each character one by one to work out the specifics.

With Westley, the process was a bit more complicated because I also had to figure out what his werewolf anatomy would be like and how far we wanted to push it. Since Westley is a romanceable character, I wanted his werewolf form to still feel personable and able to emote like the rest of the characters, so going very wolf-like with his design didn’t feel like the best option!

As with all the characters, I did have a wonderful character background to reference for Westley, written by narrative lead Desiree! A facet of his personality is that he likes dressing well, so along with him being a bookseller, a suit seemed like the natural choice!

Q: Which did you design first, werewolf Westley or human Westley? Did you have to put any considerations into giving him a (relatively) consistent appearance between the two forms? Iona: I started with his human form, since I knew his werewolf form would need R&D on aspects of his anatomy like his face and legs. However, eventually I moved back and forth between the two, because parts of his werewolf form, like his fangs and his fur, informed design decisions on human Westley. I wanted to hint at his werewolf form when he was in human form, and vice versa/

I also wanted to keep consistency in his outfit, especially since there’s the comical details of his suit not quite fitting his massive werewolf frame, which accentuates the differences between the two!

Q: What is your favorite part of Westley's design? Iona: His fangs! Designing all of him was fun, but I love that he has fangs in human form.

Animating a Werewolf

Questions answered by: Mike Taylor (Animator)

Q: What did the collaboration (if any) look like between you, Desiree and Iona? Mike: I wasn't involved very much in the concept of Westley. As with all characters, I was asked for feedback on each concept, but the concepts are always so good, I have very little to add, and Westley was no exception. Soo-Ling (Wylde Flowers’ 3D Artist) and I would discuss his model more and especially the hair, since we knew that was a big part of his design. We would work together to decide how to structure Westley's hair so we could have the most movement as efficiently as possible.

Q: What types of personality bits or other considerations were you trying to showcase in his animations, and how did you achieve them? Mike: Desiree and Elizabeth put together Casting Notes for all the characters, citing specific actors and/or roles that best exemplified the character. I always started there as the basis. For Westley in particular, I know I felt that he should be a little withdrawn and maybe a little brooding. He's an intellectual who has been cursed with being a werewolf, after all. From that I thought his walk - which is the animation that gets the most personality - should be pretty subdued, compared to the other characters, and he should be looking at the ground rather than straight forward. It's subtle, but hopefully reads just a little.

Q: And for Wolf Westley? Mike: For Wolf Westley, the goal was to make him more feral, without going too far. To do this, I added some exaggerated chest breathing to his idle, arched his fingers and turned his hands inwards, then made his walk very 'stompy' to highlight the extra weight he was carrying around.

Giving a Werewolf a Voice

Questions answered by: Ray Chase (Voiceover Artist)

Q: Can you describe the direction you were given when portraying Westley? What types of personality traits, emotions, etc. did you need to convey? Ray: Westley is a really deep character - and one who I was immediately drawn to. Going back through my auditions for this game, it looks like I only chose to audition for him and the reverend! I love how genteel he is - there's a huge part of me that wants to go run my own bookstore in a small village, so I'm playing out my own fantasies when I'm playing him. :D The voice director, Krizia, was a big help in dialing in just the right amount of werewolf into this character. He shouldn't be frightening, but rather be a warm wolfy snuggle.

Q: Westley's fans have become quite passionate From an acting perspective, what do you think is the secret sauce that makes him so appealing? Ray: I'm definitely using my bedroom voice most of the time for this guy. I have heard that it can be...most enticing....

Q: Are there any lines or beats with Westley that stick out to you? Ray: I'm a vegetarian, so it's always quite alarming when I have to do his butcher shop quotes! I can't believe he eats that much meat... But I guess it's better that he buys from a friend than go roaming the woods at night… And that's a wrap! Thank you for reading! Victoria and the Studio Drydock Team Find out more about Wylde Flowers Here

[makiandcheese]

i wanna share the genshin impact ships i enjoy and why (mostly rarepairs)

Rosaria/Kaeya - undeniable trust and friendship turned romantic interest. though capable of forming a relationship, their occupation and circumstances prevent them from fully pursuing it. Even if all factors could ignite mutual interest, the fear of ruining the friendship they harbored would stand in the way. What's important in a lonesome city is the same stranger who is looking for the same comfort you seek. Frequent liar or not, he's quite the personality to have around.

Jean/Diluc - everyone says they are exes turned lovers however I view them as the failed chance at love. They are friends who knew each other since they were learning to walk type of friendship. The first love you never forget. If they were given the chance, they could say what they want to the other. "You look even better after you became a stranger to me, pretty woman"

Yelan/Ningguang - The what could've beens. similar to jealuc but in ninglan it's focus is more on the one-sided, unrequited type of love. (using Beiguang for this example) watching the one you love fall for someone you know she deserves hurts. It hurts because you know you could've been with her if not for your own issues. thankfully she will never know you love her since that love will die with you

Rosaria/Jean - oh god where do i begin with this. The "outcast" meets the city's beloved individual. For someone who feels they never belong, its confusing to have the city's hope make excuses to see you. Rosaria and Jean's relationship begins with jealousy due to the nun and the idol deaconess' relationship. What makes Barbara look at Rosaria the way Jean always wanted? Filled with concern and trust that only families have for one another. Giving that to a complete stranger is agonizing.

Lisa/Jean - coworkers to lovers <3. A workaholic learning the simplicities of life from the reliable, easygoing, gentle person. When she'd forget to take care of herself mentally, she'd be there. Unknowingly providing comfort with just her presence alone.

Beidou/Ningguang - Two people who rule and have a significant influence on the community. Bickering and arguing over the smallest things yet loving each other for the same reason. What makes these two so wonderful is the fact that they both witnessed each other overcome difficulties in their own manner. They both achieved goals that brought them together in some way. Competing with which one would make the other prouder.

Venti/Zhongli - centuries have gone and past, and yet home always had the same eyes and breeze. When it comes to gods, the only one they could consider as equal are the same immortals who suffer with them. Why does meeting each other again bring so much comfort and pain? How many friends did they watch come and go like sand through the wind? Thankfully, they can overcome these uncertainties together. Until they could no longer control the corrosion within them.

Surcrose/Rosaria - When your curiosity leads to people questioning your character, the person you gravitate towards is someone similar. Sucrose would have a lot on her mind and would desperately need someone to talk to. Rosaria always wanted to learn more about the world but never had the guts to say it out loud. The mutual silence between them could be a conversation. "I have something on my mind, but I have difficulties saying it" and "Take your time. No rush."

Kaeya/Albedo - Understanding your past from the product of the past can be an interesting combo. Kaeya and Albedo are two perspectives of the Khaenri’ahn existence. The truth is never black or white, in fact, the truth is always relative. Messing around with your coworker because of mutual origins grives a sense of comfort in the city where everyone knows everyone.

Ganyu/Keqing - coworker who has false impressions towards each other. A tender and careful love formed from the desire to protect their city. Patience is a virtue especially for Ganyu. However, with all the years she had lived, days with Keqing always felt like love personafied.

Xiao/Traveler - what cannot be may be. One's duties always hinder relationships, but there will always be someone stubborn enough to reach out. Someone once said that unnecessary suffering is not a proof of strength. Relying on others is difficult but if it's with the person they love, one could only hope that they're not a burden. Thankfully, they don't give a damn about your stubbornness and go out of their way to talk and spend time with you. Since you know that these times wouldn't last.

Ayaka/Yoimiya - The different lives we live shouldn't turn us into strangers. In a life where expectations are laid upon you, finding freedom and happiness incarnate is like grasping sunlight. Ayaka knows she has her duties but spending time with Yoimiya makes her forget the time. Grief and loss often isolate us from relationships (including socioeconomic circumstances). Thankfully the eternal shogun's antithesis stays by your side.

Itto/Sara - Our beliefs do not align, but if someone talks shit about the other. Someone will be getting punched or electrocuted. Being a Yokai in human society always leads to discrimination unless you are equipped with power and unimaginable influence. Seeing each other's most vulnerable sides in the most unexpected times always led to curiosity. Curiosity leading to interest. And interest leading to fondness.

Al Haitham/Kaveh - Unconventional ways of saying "i love you" almost always lead to someone's wrinkly forhead. If turning himself into Kaveh's personal screaming outlet would let him relax, Al haitham would gladly do it. What happened in the past has long gone, and what's left is to continue. Is it so difficult to let him love you?

Candace/Dehya - Every neighborhood child's first loves daring each other. Duty is always the priority. Traveling the world will come one day but not today. If that is someone's belief, then someone will bring the world to them. Even if it's small material gifts, its treasured dearly. Just make sure not to come home bruised and covered in wounds. Else a medicated scolding (and some kisses) would be perscribed by the village's resident guardian.

and that's all folks tell me what you think.

[astarion-my-beloved]

got any bg3 mods?

First off: highly recommend downloading the BG3 mod manager if you're not downloading mods directly from the game. I download 90% of my mods from Nexus, plus a few from the in-game mod manager.

Secondly, a few of these will require a script extender, which you can download using the link.

Outfits/Gear

Better starting gear for Lae'zel

Better Raphael outfits

Origin equipment replacer

Citizen outfits as camp clothing

Assassin outfit (one of the hottest outfits imo. I use it all the time)

Astarion's gear - ALSO something I use constantly. Provides you not only with multiple custom made outfits tailored to his strengths, but with two enchanted daggers and two handbows, plus some gorgeous looking camp outfits. Makes him very unlikely to fail at unlocking a chest.

Character creation

17 new heads - Available to tieflings, humans and elves.

Strong femme heads - Adds two new head presets for body 3. Works for Elves, half-elves, drows, humans and tieflings.

Yves hair gallery - Available to every race. One of the more diverse ones out there.

Tepkunset hair collection - Gives you some gorgeous new hairstyles to experiment with. I like that there's a lot of done-up ones, rather than just untied.

Faces and hairstyles compilations - Gives you the faces of many beloved characters from the game.

Tav's hair salon - Pairs mostly with human/elf/half-elf/drow/tiefling, body 1 and 2, plus 2 hairstyles for gith, body 1.

Feywild heads and antlers for elves - Gives you six new heads and three antler options for body 1 and 2. There's also a file that gives you 15 more tattoo options, but that requires the More Tattoos and Makeup mod.

Animation replacers/add-ons

Cozier sleeping times - Changes the positions of characters while they sleep. Recommended for those who are looking for cute photography opportunities.

Better Disguise Self - Allows you to "disguise" yourself into 132 different characters from the game.

Hugs - Allows you to hug most characters in-game.

Kisses - Lets you use each companions' unique kisses with others.

BG3SX - Gives you custom sex animations and framework. Not limited to characters with certain genitalia, so go wild.

Realistic erections - Pairs well with the BG3SX above.

Softer animations and beards - What it says on the tin. Hasn't been updated since June of 2024, so don't expect it to work perfectly.

Appearance Edit Enhanced - Lets you change the appearance of origin characters. MUST have the optional file downloaded (Appearance edit origins) for you to save changes made to said characters.

Mama K's dance - gives you two teddy bears that let the person who's holding it do Karlach's little dance.

Psychotter's goth dye - Dark and light metal versions available (I use them almost solely because it has a proper black colour)

Copper

Gameplay benefits

Already Inspected - Chest remains opened after you inspect it.

Party Limit Begone - Allows up to 16 companions into the group, and 8 multiplayers.

Tutorial Chest Summoning - Use a spell or potion to summon the "tutorial chest", which lets you see all your mod-added items.

Weightless gold - Gold no longer weighs anything. Download it straight from the BG3 mod manager in-game by tying it into the search bar.

Easy Pickpocket and steal - Removes specific crimes from the game, allowing you to easily be a nuisance without getting into trouble.

Waypoints unlocked - Unlocks all waypoints from act I through to act III

Dice

Dark urge (Path Of Nightmares)

Origin Characters - Die based off the origin characters

Prism dice - 5 new die.

Misc

Replayable romance scenes - Allows you to replay romance scenes through a spell.

Tav gets a tent!

No more required sex scenes - uses a script extender to skip the sex scenes without ruining the story, for anyone who doesn't enjoy it.

Hopefully all these work... have fun

[femminger]

Art practice by trying some other artist's styles that I'm a huge fan of!

From Top Left to Bottom Right:

@ghostishere0 - the original reason I started this doodle, as I wanted to draw a "shepherd lovers squad" and their OC (who I don't know the name of F) was the perfect fit for it.

@luminesparkz - the best interpretation of Pom pikmin. If I were Mr. Nitendo, I would make them the official comic creator along with the manga comics.

@marblyso - If I was a little more unhinged and made a shrine to Erma Shepherd, it would be mostly marblyso's art of her, it's my absolute favorite Erma depiction <3

@rexscanonwife - another OC that I don't know the name of, but she makes such a cute pair with Shepherd and has such cute art that why not, let Shepherd have multiple canon wives at this point.

@citruscrisp - I think this is secretly Alph in an alternate universe where he makes comics about himself, because citrus has Alph's character SPOT ON, and also loves to put that boy in a situation (which I am happy for, I enjoy seeing that boy in a situation)

@daisythecomic - oooaaaaaaaaaa they look like little mice people they look so soft and sweet I love them so muuuuuuuuuccchhhhhhhhh

@louie-posting - I can't not include actual Louie Pikmin on this list.

@kiwilittle - the soft, the sweet, the one who makes the best family style art, really making me wish I was an inch tall so I could go to holidays with the olimar family, also their wife design is so cute that if Olimar didn't already get it I would shoot my shot for her m a a m

@pikbugz - really nails the soft aesthetic that makes pikmin such a calming series, and their coloring style is so soft and good that it gives me the ratatouille nostalgia flashback moment.

@splitster - more than just the wraith au guy, they are the one who makes incredible and funny comics; I've seen so many fics with the rescue corps where I can pick up that yes, this trait came from a splitster comic, and that's a GOOD thing. Made me actually LIKE Dingo, the nerve.

@diesaur - I can't do diesaur's incredible, unique art justice, they are amazing at using geometrics and have the best charlie (his little teefs...)

@solluxander - Cars, one of my favorite pikmin Ocs I've ever seen! Collin deserves a slightly unhinged sentient fluffball boyfriend, and I always love seeing the new ways Cars will interact with him.

@sillypikmin - all hail the best pikposter, who I'm still convinced is an actual leafling living on actual pnf-404, literally every time I have a bad day I look at drawings of Moss and feel better.

@eggpathy - thank goodness they came back to give us old man yaoi. I keep their drawing of olimar kissing the pikmin good night on my phone and look at it before I go to sleep and so far I have yet to have a single nightmare.

@the-knife-consumer - the only person I trust with Louittany, toxic yuri my beloved, I just adore their beasty brittany design so so much, I wish I could have a small brittany to live in my house...

anyway they have the best headcanons for our beloved blorbo hamster people

@natibranch - there's a voice line of Louie going "wa-ha!" in this really cute sing-song voice and every time I see any art by natibranch I hear that sound in my head as a little burst of serotonin, they just nail that exact feeling so so well.

@pikked-min - Another of my favorite Pikmin OCs, Yuva! A really interesting and unique character concept with a lot of thought put into the worldbuilding, followed by a strong unusual personality that had me looking at the pikmin world through a new perspective entirely. Please, someone, give them some sunglasses. Read the fic it's so good

@ssserf - artistic and deep while still somehow looking like official nintendo tm art, genuinely the best at the pikmin proportions, how could I resist trying my hand at the classic amazing beautiful Brittany Fruit Sweater moment, literally SO iconic

@kashi-pon - while I was working on the part of this that was just kashi's various highlife dresses there was a part of me that wanted to dedicate the rest of the space to paying homage to the joke comic of Louie lifting his skirt to show Olimar that he's wearing shorts, except this dress....well......

@diamondwerewolf - the reason we got louie in a little bunny outfit anyway, and thus why we got kashi's dress version. you single-handedly turned Louie into a tumblr sexyman, how could you

[blackbatcass]

hii linden! i kinda needed some help

so, i wanna read some comics based on:

donna troy, cass cain and wally west

but i have literally noo idea where to start 😭 ofc ik the basics but i was hoping you could suggest something?? thank you so much if you do and have a wonderful day!

yeah i gotchu!! those are literally my besties lol i can definitely give you some recs. i'm not sure what you'd consider to be the basics so i'll just include all the big stuff to be thorough

donna troy:

first rec is always new teen titans as you probably would have guessed lol. it is a very long and arduous undertaking though so some more specific recs would be vol. 1 #38, #50, vol. 2 #18-21, #50-55.

i've gone into more detail on her appearances in darkstars, green lantern etc but honestly though they are important to understand the status quo & what was going on with her, i don't think they're very good comics to just read for donna. my next rec would probably be wonder woman (1987) #126-136, which is a VERY important arc for her. it goes into more detail on her origin, reconnects her to the amazons & diana, and i believe is where she officially passes on the wonder girl mantle to cassie. and she appears frequently throughout the rest of that wonder woman run after the arc if you want to continue on!

titans (1999) is another big one, beloved beloved comic. lots of good donna content.

titans/young justice: graduation day #1-3 YIKES! unfortunately pivotal to her story lol

dc special: the return of donna troy look. i know I gush about this comic like it's my full time job. but honest to god i adore it to pieces, it's a love letter to donna and her history and it's one of my favorite comics of all time despite only being 4 issues. begging everyone on the planet to read it rn

cass cain:

cass was famously introduced in batman: no man's land! now that event is very very long so it might seem tempting to skip straight to bg 2000 but i'm here to tell you to not do that. if nothing else it is PIVOTAL that you read her introduction issues (mark of cain pts 1 & 2), batman #567 and detective comics #734. probably the coolest most metal introduction of any comics character in history, it's that good. if you're interested in cass's role in nml but not the whole thing, here's a list of her appearances:

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #120

Azrael: Agent of the Bat #56

Azrael: Agent of the Bat #57

Batman Chronicles #18

Batman #569

Detective Comics #738

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #124

Batman: Shadow of the Bat #92

Detective Comics #739

Batman: Shadow of the Bat #93

Azrael: Agent of the Bat #60-61

Detective Comics #741

i think nml is essential reading for cass and it makes me sad that a lot of people skip it.

next is, of course, batgirl (2000). it's her character bible it's god's (kelley puckett's) gift to mankind it's maybe the best comic ever written. what more can i say

she's also a fixture in gotham knights! cass was a part of most batfamily events in the early 2000s, ex. officer down, joker's last laugh, war games, bruce wayne: murderer? and bruce wayne: fugitive. it's pretty easy to find them since they mostly cross over with her batgirl run.

detective comics #790 is only one issue but it's. ough.

aaaaand then we get into the evil cass arc stuff which just sucks and isn't worth it. she's pretty much written out of the story for a while, other than red robin #17 & #25.

she does show up as black bat in gates of gotham! i really enjoy that story, and it's only 5 issues.

that gets us to new52. i would completely disregard her rebirth and batgirls appearances honestly. she is a part of the current birds of prey ongoing! and while i am not kelly thompson's biggest fan i do think she gets a lot of cool moments and for the most part she's done right.

she is also featured sporadically throughout ram v's gotham nocturne storyline (it started way back in detective comics #1062 if you want to read the whole arc, it's VERY good). i have to give a special shoutout to #1084, which has a backup story that's focused on cass and it legitamately blew my mind. like i couldn't believe my eyes when i was reading it, maybe it's because cass has been done so dirty over the years that anything makes me happy but to get a cass-centric story featuring shiva that cares about her as a character in 2024 was crazy 2 me i will rave about it forever. thank you alex paknadel.

wally west:

the good news is my wally reclist is WAY less complicated. as is predictable for me, pretty much the only wally rec I have is flash volume 2 (1987). it is for all intents and purposes The Story of Wally West tm. it's his character bible it follows him throughout nearly a decade of his life. because it's so long my specific rec would be to read waid's run on it, from #62-142. if you want more context to his life at the time you can start earlier in the comic, i think #31 is a good jumping on point if you want to experience some messner-loebs but not too much messner-loebs lmfao.

he's featured in titans (1999) until about issue #20, iirc. wally is just fated to quit titans teams lol. there is some good stuff with him up until that point though!

that is honestly about all i got until you get to more modern flash comics. after rebirth he's reintroduced in flash vol. 5, and #768-800 is the jeremy adams run.

he's also the main focus in si spurrier's flash vol. 6! aka the current flash ongoing. which... as i have often said, i am a big fan of.

AND THAT’S MY LIST!!! i hope it helped you out at least a little lol!

[1000sunnygo]

The Three Captain's Interview (2021) Part 2: Mayumi Tanaka as Luffy & Namikawa Daisuke as Kidd - Translated

The ask I received got deleted, I'm sorry! 😩

I've decided not to half-ass it, here's the remaining part of the interview with Namikawa san and Mayumi san's answers.

👒 : Tanaka Mayumi (Luffy)

🌷 : Namikawa Daisuke (Captain Kidd)

+ Kamiya Hiroshi as Law (already translated, check here)

-

Q. How did you feel when you got the role?

👒: I was mostly indifferent, as the work (the manga) itself was unknown to me back then. In retrospect, I think it was for the best. I mean, if you know it's a deeply beloved work, you'd feel greedy, won't you? That's why I passed the audition without feeling nervous. Looking back now, maybe it matched Luffy's freedom.

🌷: I remember vividly. Among the eleven rookies with more than 100 million bounty, Kidd's was the highest. I had a clear image of the voice that would express Kidd's powerful appearance, but I couldn't imagine myself playing the role of Kidd. So, I didn't know how to do the voice. I kept thinking about it while recording. I still have a hard time doing Kidd's voice, but it was even harder back then than it is now.

-

Q. Did you have any specific thoughts or feelings while playing in One Piece?

👒: In One Piece, there is the unshakable pillar called 'Eiichiro Oda' , but it's not enough to rely on him. I want people to think, "Wow, One Piece really is amazing" when - including myself, all the individual creators' imagination, music, scenarios, and everything else come together! We'd like to continue to create moments in anime that surpass the original manga.

🌷: Many One piece fans would say it's "fire" when expressing their opinions. Thinking about what makes them feel fired up, I can clearly see it in the scripts. The lines of a good scene are spread over several cuts. I feel that the timing; or rather, the process of speech delivery is given a high importance. So, in pursuit of an impact on the audience, when the scripts says "haah?" I myself try to stretch it with "HA~aah??" - to make everyone feel even more fired up.

[T/N: The Japanese word used was "hot", while "fire" expresses a different type of feeling, I think it works as a closer substitute.]

-

Q. Impression of the character you're currently playing?

👒: Someone who accepts his weakness, says "I can't" when he can't do something and then relies on his friends, and never wavers from the freedom of doing so.

🌷: He's surprisingly kind and considerate of his crew mates. He'd often be like "Let's go!" and pull in some of them, but that's not because he's afraid. I interpret it as saying, "I'll protect y'all no matter what, so let's enjoy the thrill of going ahead together!"

-

Q. Thoughts on Mayumi Tanaka's Luffy?

🌷: Unwavering...isn't he? The story moves on, but the same old Luffy is always there. Regardless of the state you're in while watching anime, you can always relax and enjoy One piece. I think this is where Mayumi san's Luffy comes off as an undisputed champion. It's quite difficult to keep things the same for decades, so I have deep respect for it.

-

Q. Thoughts on Daisuke Namikawa's Kidd and Hiroshi Kamiya's Law?

👒: Some voice actors separate their personal lives from work, but those two are as transparent as I am! It doesn't have to do with their roles, but that makes it comfortable to work with them, so I enjoy it a lot.

🌷: Law looks cool, but he has his passionate sides; he has the calm aura, but he also becomes emotional. You need to incorporate a variety of elements to express those subtle ups and down in a Law-like manner, so I think it's an incredibly difficult role. That's why I think Kamiya kun puts a lot of thoughts and efforts in his performance.

That said, I can't help but feel a pang of jealousy regarding their rankings in the worldwide popularity poll (laughs). Law was in top 5, and Kid was 23rd. Even though they don't have the same screentime frequency, they were introduced at the same time, but the difference was so big... Like, I understand Law's charm, but it was frustrating!

-

Q. Do you think it's possible to win against Kaidou?

👒: Of course, it's possible. But the absolute winner has to be Tesshô Genda (Kaido's voice actor). I don't think I can compete with that deep voice.. Well, I'll win though (laughs)

🌷: I want to believe that Kidd wouldn't lose his heart over his defeats. He doesn't intend to be beaten by anyone.

(T/N: Fun fact, Mayumi Tanaka doesn't read the manga. She only learns the manga's events when she reads her script. Sanji's actor Hiroaki Hirata does the same, and he admitted that he doesn't know much of the parts of story where sanji is absent.)

[colourstreakgryffin]

WOAHH YOU'RE TAKING MINI REQUESTS NOW!! NICEE

I have an idea shshaijsiajs :3

Obanai with reader who is absolutely FUCKING OBSESSED with dragons! like the Asian ones that, ya know, the ones that look like snakes and fly without wings! I, myself absolutely adore dragons due to their peculiar portrayed design, but mostly the Asian dragons since they just look like a noodle ahah :3

have some obanai in a maid dress, hmm yes, absolutely scrumpdiddtlylumpcious!

ANYWAYSSS, TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF, DRINK LOTSA WATER, EAT ENOUGH FOOD, SLEEP ENOUGH HOURS AND STAY OBSESSED WITH OBANAI, FELLOW OBANAI ADMIRER!!!!!

-p.s. this can be yandere, modern or the original au, anything you find easier to write since I don't wanna make you write too much, buh-bye!

Oooh… okay, something simple and small! Thank you, dearly, loves. Not much can be actually done with this concept since it wouldn’t impact the relationship too much but I’ll do it anyway! Hmmm, I’ll just make it normal/original-verse

Iguro Obanai

Obanai is quite the patient man. He doesn’t mind his beloved partner having a passionate like towards something. Sure, he is insanely jealous of the fact you’re beyond obsessed with Chinese dragon types of dragons. The ones depicted in ancient Chinese reading material

Obanai wants your attention. He gives you a whole lot and he feels like he doesn’t get a lot back so he wants your eyes on him and your hands trialing over his face for, at least, a few more seconds than usual. He loves you dearly but he is almost desperate for your attention whilst you’re devoted to your passion for the Chinese dragons

Obanai, to satisfy your love for Chinese dragons, buys you every Chinese dragon-like glass figure and Chinese dragon-like crystal ornament, just to enjoy your happiness and also enjoy the affectionate gratitude you pour onto him. You don’t neglect him as he is your beloved boyfriend but you do give a lot of love to your dragon passion

Obanai does find those Chinese dragons you like interesting. Chinese culture is vastly different from his usual Japanese culture and he does understand why you like those dragons, and he can bring himself to bond with you over them. Making cute banners painted with all kinds of Chinese dragon designs to see those gorgeous sparkles of admiration in your eyes

Obanai, at the end of the day, may be jealous of how much you love Chinese dragons but he loves you even more so he continuously feeds it to make you happy. Doing so makes you love him even more since he is so encouraging and supportive where every other man would get sick of your passion

Obanai is the best out there to handle you as his partner and handle your Chinese dragon love, and you know it, that being one of many reasons why you love him so much

(Cries in losing good icon-pics for the characters I write for~!)

[parsheliii]

Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria

"Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza... Err... This is your first night isn't it Great-"

"George, that's the wrong one"

"What?"

"That's the wrong script, you are reading the wrong one!"

"Uh...Oh! I see now, this one?"

"Yup"

"K...

Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria! Where all dreams come true!

Come enjoy a slide of pizza with all your family and friends while listening some fancy music from the Fazbear's Band! Or hearing some curious stories at the Pirate Cove.

Alfred Fazbear, the leader of the band, with Benjamin Babier, our guitarrist, will be the waiters that will assist you when their performance is over, they will be the ones to bring all your wants and needs.

Chanelle Cairo, our sweet vocalist, will also be the chef and cook, the pizza's recipe hasn't changed in decades, the main creator being Alfred's father, Dock Fazbear.

...

I gotta add that Freddy doesn't know how to cook and he is a fucking failure to his family, even his sister was the chef in her own pizzeria back then, how can you be the only one that can't even fry an egg, Fazbear??"

"Keep. Reading. The. F*cking. Script"

"...And last things last, Felix Farley, being our storyteller, is also our delivery, you will get your pizza in a blink of an eye if you use our delivery services!

Being said, the bear here himself, George Kietzman, will be the one taking your phone calls and orders by calling 1-800-083, don't forget delivery services is just for night time!

Afternoon phone orders will have to be taken in the pizzeria's location.

Other things to let you know:

• Fazbear's Band perform every monday to thursday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., so write that down in your schedules and don't miss it!

• Pirate's Cove is exclusive for saturday nights and birthday parties, so don't forget to book your next birthday party at Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria to enjoy some new stories from our beloved pirate fox!

• Friday nights are the perfect nights for YOU to perform! Come over and show all your talent, or just have some fun at the karaoke with your friends while singing the songs of your choice!

• We are closed on sundays, so we will be seeing you on mondays back again!

That's it, how did I do?"

"...Could have been better"

____________________________________

Endless Show At Freddy's is based on the characters and story from Five Nights At Freddy's, owned by Scott Cawthon.

The story and characters are REALLY different. It includes a lot kind of relationships and ideas that aren't canon in game, but they are in this AU, if you aren't happy with them, I'm not going to change them just 'cause of ya', so keep your words.

The same goes with some characters' genders and designs, they might change from the original character, just because! For the fun of it :]

Who is who? Here is a short list:

Freddy Fazbear→ Alfred "Freddy" Fazbear

Bonnie The Bunny→ Benjamin "Ben" Babier

Chica The Chicken → Chanelle Cairo

Foxy The Pirate Fox→ Felix Farley

Golden Freddy→ George Frederick Kietzman

Notes:

• Mr. Cupcake is Chanelle's pet, he is a chihuahua. He doesn't work there, I just wanted to show how Chica's cupcake looks like in my AU

• If you have been here long enough, George still has ear piercings, but in this reff sheet I couldn't add them because they are in his other ear (this is mostly a note for myself, because I will probably forget lol)

• Felix has another outfit when he works as the delivery, I just preferred to show him with his pirate clothes, I don't want anyone confused by 'why doesn't he have pirate clothes???" I'll do an individual reff just for his delivery clothes, including Chanelle, she also has another clothes while cooking, i'm not going to let her cook with that cute dress!

[mothmans-left-buttcheek]

The Bitch, the Witch, and the Star

Jay Mocking x Allie Perea x Nova James

Inspired by @eddiemunson-reader-shame and @floredaqueen FOLLOW THEM OH MY GOD!!

Word Count: 3.4k

Summary- Fresh out of school in the summer of 85. Allie Perea and Jay Mocking are enjoying the cold delights served at Scoops A’hoy until Nova James shakes up their evening.

Warnings: profanity, references to sex, a bisexual disaster, this is basically just fluff with cursing and friendly bullying

Playlist: Rio by Duran Duran, Walk This Way by Aerosmith, Cheri Cheri Lady by Modern Talking

A/N: So I’ve been engaging in fanfics for years but rarely writing my own since I’m mostly inspired by original characters, so this is a scene with two of my favorite Stranger Things oc’s including my own because I am simply self indulgent lol. Basically I thought “what if I threw three girls in love with Eddie Munson in a room” and this was the result. I’ve done my best to interpret the characters with the information I could find while also manipulating some information for the sake of timeframe, I apologize if anything is out of character!

The artwork above is just a sketch I made while letting the fic cook, it's not great, I'm more a writer than an artist, but I hope y'all like it. There’s also songs I’ve associated with certain moments in the fic, feel free to give them a listen.

(Listen to “Rio”, Duran Duran)

There wasn’t anything to do in Hawkins Indiana. Sure there were record stores and vintage diners along the main strip downtown, but those industries were carried on by traditional residents alone. There wasn’t anything charming about Hawkins, it was just your run of the mill middle of nowhere Midwestern town. Until the Starcourt mall.

The newest edition to the smallest town in the Midwest was a hit amongst locals. Normally your selections for an evening out were slim to none, you’d have to drive hours away for the best date nights. But the Starcourt Mall was a shining beacon to the people of Hawkins, a tower of neon lights that sang a song of genuine entertainment. Shaky escalators, iconic chain clothing stores, a food court fumigating with grease, and a cozy movie theater to boot Hawk theater out of business.

It had everything to appeal to anyone from a rambunctious teen to a generous grandparent, the glow of the sun coming in from the glass ceiling more than just a natural light source. It was the light of hope for social lives all across town. Not to mention the impact it had on the economy. Hundreds of new jobs opened up to the ambitious folks in Hawkins with the promise of decent salary. Many people left their jobs at their local mom-and-pop-shops, so the town lost some of its historic charm with the modern mall, but with all the beloved structure had to offer it was difficult to find real fault in Starcourt. There was a Jazzercise studio, a gaming arcade, Sears. With no competition for miles, Starcourt Mall ruled Hawkins Indiana the summer of ’85.

(Listen to “Walk This Way”, Aerosmith)

“Where’d you get that record?” Allie asked.

She lounged casually in the plush seats in Scoops A’hoy, the slightly sticky leather clinging to the dense fabric of her brown carhartt jacket. Select patches adorned the piece, their rough texture matching with the slightly worn out graphic of her Van Halen shirt. Allie’s stare was buffered by square glasses, her round brown eyes flickering across the table with growing judgment. Full cheeks which would look lovely in a smile only adding to her youthful appearance while her full lips pulled into an unamused frown. A hint of pink in her tawny skin accented by the dark birthmarks under her eye. Her brown hair tickled her shoulders with a volume brought on by messy waves.

Allie Perea was rarely seen without a displeased stare, could’ve been caused by her tumultuous family or could’ve been caused by her fresh seeded hatred for Hawkins. She’d moved in less than a year ago, yet within her first day she had marked herself as a basket case amongst her fellow classmates. The bucket of insults she had collected filtered out to one title she did her best to wear proudly, “The Bitch of Hawkins High.” She possessed an off-putting attitude ready for someone to have a problem with her and an unwillingness to be social, which made her seat in a social setting like Starcourt Mall unusual. In truth Allie stared at the girl across the sugar stained table, a shadow looming in the bright colored shop.

Brown hooded eyes stared back at her framed by thick black eye makeup, black hair teased to high heaven like a rain cloud around her head. Her upturned nose sported a septum ring and her tall cheekbones were painted with unnaturally sharp black contour, it washed out her pale skin to a sickly ivory. A Siouxsie and the Banshees shirt cut off her shoulders while fishnet gloves crawled up her arms to meet the short sleeves. She had thin lips painted in a deep red with an oval birthmark dotted just under the left of her lip.

Janice, Jay, Mocking had practically grown up in Hawkins. She memorized every store to street corner, remembered all the awkward stages of the preps and jocks that mocked her, and knew every hypocrite that attended Sunday service in the church her parents pastored. In middle school her odd tendencies were mostly glossed over thanks to the authority her parents had in the community, but she lost her safety when her childhood sketches of graveyards and growing taxidermy collections got out. Her outcast shift was welcomed by her peers with a series of rude and ironic insults, and despite all the bird puns made from her name “The Hawkins Witch” was the name that stuck the most.

So it was appropriate for the bitch and the witch to grow a relationship that benefited the both of them. Allie had someone to help her navigate and Jay could be weird without being alone. Getting to know Starcourt mall had become their pastime, so despite their antisocial tendencies the two enjoyed getting complimented by strangers or berated by their school nemesis in a building with more escape routes.

Jay had let Allie’s question hang in the air, the two giving matching deadpanned stares while Scoops A’hoy bustled around them. After a slow deliberate blink Jay eventually answered, “Sam Goody’s.”

A lick of shame twisted her tongue, and Allie caught it.

“Sam Goody’s? Isn’t that a chain store? Weren’t you bashing chain stores last week?.” Allie accused.

Jay rolled her eyes back and pulled the vinyl into her lap, “look, Tears for Fears came out with a new album and I’ve been dying to-“

“Tears for Fears?” Allie interrupted.

Jay stifled just for a moment, unsure if she misspoke, “yes? Tears for Fears, Songs from the Big Chair?”

The girl across from her adjusted her glasses and brushed her hair back.

“What happened to all the punk ideologies you were preaching last week? Not going to chain stores or feeding the industry and shit?”

“The album came out months ago and Music Mania downtown still doesn’t have any copies, one little Sam Goody’s run isn’t gonna hurt anyone,” Jay defended herself with a near perfect cadence. Like this was an argument she had rehearsed in her head.

“I’m just surprised you’re breaking your ‘goth principles’ over Tears For Fears.”

“Bitch, you listen to Phil Collins.”

“I do, oh I do, proudly in fact. But I’m not busting my balls adhering to rules of my subculture, and then breaking said rules for a pop group.”

“They’re pop-rock! You know what- forget it, I’m not taking shit from a ‘metalhead’ that listens to Prince.”

Allie slowly shook her head while maintaining eye contact, “... says the hypocrite.”

“Yeah?” Jay answered while raising her brows and cocking her head to the side.

“Well you’re a try hard.”

Allie crossed her arms, “you’re a poser-”

“You’re a virgin,” Jay interjected while slightly lunging over the table. The two were locked in a stare down for a long passage of silence.

“… do you wanna split a sundae?” Allie asked suddenly.

Jay’s eyes flickered to the table as she contemplated with a hum before she looked back up at Allie with a shrug, “butterscotch?”

She grimaced and groaned to disagree, “grody.”

Jay sighed in disappointment, turning her head to look back at the menu and consider their options. Just as she did so she was hit with a whiff of sweet perfume and a flash of baby blue in her vision. She felt her stomach drop just for a moment as she recognized the form walking up to the register.

(Listen to “Cheri Cheri Lady”, Modern Talking)

If mermaids were real she would be a siren. Warm skin shining rose gold in the light, plump round lips painted with delicate gloss, and deep doe eyes with lushes lashes fluttering with mischief. Her maple brown hair was long and rich in volume, curled to perfection while her bangs floated gently over her forehead. One birthmark kissed her left side just under her lip and another sat comfortably under her right eyebrow. She was dressed simply but with perfect measure, her blue dress hugging her slim waist and chest tightly while swaying around her wide hips and along her thick thighs.

Aknova James was borderline Hawkins royalty. Her parents were loaded so she was afforded every luxury the average resident of Hawkins would have to go out of their way for. While growing up under the influence of the Hippie movement from the prior decade, Nova grew into an incredibly classy young woman. At least she appeared classy. Just underneath her elegantly trimmed smile was a carefree attitude and an iron resolve, few people’s opinions could deter her predetermined perspective. And should someone cross her, she had a few choice words which would knock the wind out of anyone’s sails. Thankfully the shining star used her power wisely… more or less.

“Ohhh fuck,” Jay muttered as she watched the new customer pass by their table.

Allie’s brows furrowed and she twisted to try to match Jay’s gaze, “What?”

The second she spotted the cheerleader her own jaw became slack, “Ohhh mierda.”

Both the odd balls were familiar with Nova, mostly from the captivating atmosphere she carried through the halls, and long winded rumors of her privileged position. Being on the cheer team also granted her revered social status, and the outcasts clocked her high school social class from miles away. She was in a different league from the two entirely; when she entered a room, things shook. They could only hope things would shake away from them.

“That’s Nova James,” Allie commented with surprise.

“Yeah I know that’s Nova fucking James, her giant ass is ten feet away from my face,” Jay hissed. Curling her fingers together and resting her elbows on the table, her chin sat atop her intertwined gloved hands. Narrowing her eyes at the girl who had approached the desk, she grumbled under her breath just loud enough for her friend to hear.

“Shit, she looks hot. Really hot.”

“Good, she’ll take some of the attention off of you and your rats nest,” Allie teased while pulling at the wispy strands of Jay’s teased hair.

“It’s a bat's nest, god, and you know what, maybe I want a little attention! I’m hot! And when Madonna wannabe’s aren’t walking around like they’re god's greatest gift to the mall, I actually get compliments!”

Allie opened her mouth to reply to her friend’s banter but was left without any silence to fill.

“God she really pisses me off. Every time she comes in here she asks for a sample, dislikes the sample, and orders two scoops of strawberry in a waffle cone. But like three bites into the ice cream she sticks the whole thing into a bowl. You’d think she’d start cutting to the chase and getting strawberry in a bowl, but no, she goes through the whole process every time.”

The brunette stared at the rambling goth across from her with concern. “… are you stalking her?”

Jay looked back at her with a face still perplexed in frustration at the girl currently ordering, “I’m here a lot, and I like to people-watch, okay? Look- just look-“

As she insisted and subtly pointed to Nova, the girl already had a small spoon between her lips. Chewing slightly and nodding in response she tossed the spoon into a small trash bin. She pursed her lips while thinking for a moment, the dirty blonde currently working the desk sighing with an empty stare as Nova contemplated. She finally spoke up and pointed to a flavor sitting deep in the display. Allie and Jay watched intently while the employee leaned to grab a waffle cone, and after digging her scooper into the tub she lifted a perfect scoop of pink and red, followed by a second scoop to raise the height of the treat.

“Yeah, she got strawberry,” Allie nodded absentmindedly at the scene in front of her only to be immediately shushed by Jay who was still watching like a hawk.

Nova received the ice cream with a smile, licking a stripe while rummaging through her purse. She took a second bite while pulling out cash and dropped it casually by the register. Her motions stilled as she waited for her change to be rung up, and only once the receipt was handed to her did she take a third bite of the ice cream. After a brief conversation with the current employee the girl was handed a small bowl, and Nova dumped her ice cream down into the cup quickly while the waffle cone peaked out like a tall tower.

“Boom!” Jay slammed her hands against the table. “Just like I said. She literally has a pattern!”

Allie flinched, startled from the noise but nodded back.

“Yep, yeah, wow,” she began in a sarcastic voice. “She literally did exactly what you said she would do. That was crazy. I’m so- so enraged by her behavior. Good catch Jay.”

“��� can you at least pretend to care?”

“I was pretending.”

“Well then do it better-“

“Hey Jay,” a new voice chimed into their conversation.

The two girls turned their gazes to the opposite side of their table to find a pretty brunette in a blue dress staring at them patiently while chewing on a spoonful of ice cream. A smirk tugged at her lips and she batted her lashes with feigned innocence. The once previously hunched over goth straightened in her seat and smiled politely.

“Hey- hi, Nova. Good to see you.” She slurred in slight panic.

“You know I thought Elvira was sitting here for a second, I was about to ask for an autograph! How are you?” Nova asked as she shifted her weight to one hip, eyes flickering between the two girls sitting side by side in the booth.

Jay let out a breathless laugh while her flattered face grew pink.

“I’m good, uhm, have you met Allie?” Jay asked as she motioned to her friend next to her, Nova’s eyes quickly followed like she had been waiting for the stranger to be brought up.

“No, not formally, I’m Nova James,” she said with an award winning grin. Her hair falling delicately to one shoulder as if it was commanded to.

Allie was struggling to respond, staring wide-eyed while her mouth hung open and a hum rang out, like she was a robot in the middle of saying hi before someone hijacked her programming. Jay gently kicked Allie under the table to silence her droning, their thick boots creating a dull ‘thwack’ against each other.

“Hi! Nice to meet you finally, formally, properly, uhm- I’m Allie Perea, I moved here a few months ago- New Mexico.” Allie came to life and spoke quickly.

“No way,” Nova’s voice peaked with intrigue, “that’s so cool! I went there for a music festival with my parents when I was younger.”

Allie was wide eyed behind her square glasses, “Oh wow, you’ve really traveled- uh, yeah we get really good groups out there. My dad took me to see Van Halen last year.” She said and after a beat tugged on her tour t-shirt.

“Those are the guys that did that one song-” Nova hummed the opening melody to Jump while squinting her eyes to place the group in her mind.

“Yeah! Yeah that’s them!” Allie answered with a grin

“Gnarly, they seem fun to hear live.” She complimented while watching the bundled up girl continue to gawk. Allie’s soft features slowly started to curl into an impressed smile, eyes shining with excitement at the mention of the band. Although the transfer student was a fresh face, the cheerleader couldn’t help but find Allie endearing and sweet.

Allie’s mind on the other hand was a whirlwind, this casual interaction defied everything she knew about the social hierarchy in Hawkins. Cheerleaders didn’t talk to basket cases and when they did they certainly weren’t nice about it. Yet the wealthy girl was currently on equal footing as the outcasts, enjoying the same atmosphere and the same sweet treat. The concept helped to soothe Allie’s rampant anxiety.

Jay looked between the two for a moment as the conversation halted, so she interrupted the awkward silence with as charming a smile as she could muster, “Well what brings you to the mall? Running some errands? Meeting up with a hot date?”

Nova laughed and waved her hand in the air, “not today, I’m just meeting up with a friend.”

Nova glanced between the two girls, her foxy eyes glimmering with cunning as her freehand pressed on the table. Leaning over the table to get closer to them she tilted her head.

“Actually, you guys are friends with Eddie Munson right?”

The question punctuated a pause in the banter, Jay and Allie flickering their eyes to meet as their faces twinned in confusion.

“Yeah? We are.” Jay answered uncertain.

“Does he have a job right now?”

It was then Allie barked a harsh laugh, a mocking smile stretching her lips.

“I think Eddie’s allergic to work! Guys been slacking off all summer, super bummed about being held back… I shouldn’t have said that last part.”

“It’s fine, I suspected as much.” Nova pulled out a small paper from her purse and slid it onto the table.

“My dad’s looking for someone to keep our pool clean for the summer, pay’s pretty good. If you guys could let him know I’d really appreciate it, have him give me a call if he wants the job.”

As the paper rested between the pair they both moved to inspect it, and sure enough it was Nova’s phone number. Written plainly but perfectly nonetheless. Jay ran the paper between her hands for a moment while she glanced back and forth between the paper, her friend, and the cheerleader.

“Uh, yeah, yeah, we will let him know of the opportunity.”

“Great, you guys are the best! I’ve gotta go but I’ll catch you later,” Nova gave them a playful wink and walked off, her hips swaying side to side as she waved to someone beyond Scoops A’hoy. “Isa! Over here!”

Jay scrambled to lean on the table and watch the swaying of her skirt, “hate to see her leave, love to watch her walk away-“

“Holy shit what was that?” Allie exclaimed as she grabbed Jay’s arm and shook her harshly. “How did she know your name?”

“I don’t know!”

“I thought I was gonna die! Pinche madre, she knows my name now!” Allie deflated in her seat and slapped her hand against her chest.

Jay was too busy examining the slip of paper in her hands, bouncing slightly in her seat while relishing over the dark ink, “and we have her phone number! She gave us her number!”

“… yeah, for Eddie…” Allie corrected with a studious cadence.

Jay turned to look at her, both staring deadpanned as they had earlier.

“… and? She handed it to me.”

“I don’t think she wants you as her poolboy.”

“Hey, I could make a great pool boy. I’m fit, I’m handy-“

“Jay, she wants to fuck Eddie.”

“Ew!” Jay’s face scrunched up like she had tasted a fresh lemon and she dropped the number on the table.

“Gag me with a spoon, don’t put that image in my head!”

“It’s obvious! If her family was really just looking for someone to clean their pool they’d get some average Joe off the street, but Nova’s looking for someone specific to take it. I mean she went out of her way to talk to us just to get to Eddie!”

Allie waved her hands in the air for emphasis and finally slapped them back down in her lap, her friend watching with her lips pressed thinly together and a stare that suggested denial. With a groan Jay dropped her head into her hands and rubbed her face harshly.

“Oh god, she’s gonna fuck Eddie…”

Allie nodded back, the thought that they were accidental accomplice’s in an aspiring hookup was awkward enough. But when factoring in that one of the most popular girls in Hawkins High was making a pass at their loser Dungeon Master, a guy so different from her, a whole new cloud of shame hung over their heads in response’.

Considering Eddie’s romantic track record, Nova’s chances with him were shaky; his last relationship ended in a felony and his crush turned out to be a lesbian. Whatever the result, Allie and Jay had to endure bearing witness. The two girls sat in quiet contemplation, imagining what kind of dumpster fire Eddie would make out of Nova’s advances while also reeling that they encountered a wild cheerleader and survived unscathed.

“… do you wanna split a sundae?” Allie asked with disdain still present in her attitude.

Jay raised her head, humming in contemplation, “butterscotch?”

“… fuck it, sure.”

[emin-folly]

Maybe this is a stupid question, but what do you think Eobard does in his free time? Like, does he have a daily schedule? A color-coded calendar with reminders how to fuck with Barry? Is he still a professor? Like, what does he DO when he isn't actively fucking up someone's life? Sry, I just got interested in him very recently, and the comics are chaotic lol

Hello~! I'm very happy to be the first to welcome you to Yellow Rat hell <3 He's such a fascinating, tragic, horrid gremlin of a man, and he definitely deserves more fans aha. As someone who reads comics, I can confirm it's not you, they can be very confusing and all over the place xD

And no, that's not a stupid question, not at all! He is shown not to always be around to bother Barry for months at a time, so it's entirely reasonable to wonder where he goes a lot of the time~ Some ideas of what he could be possibly doing are but not limited to:

Tending to his beloved museum. Aside from Barry, this is one of the very few things he treasures deeply. It's his pride and joy as well as his home. We all know he's established to be the curator of the museum and has provided tours to the public, but it's very unclear if he continued with that after becoming Reverse Flash. While he might've, I feel like there's too many reasons why he wouldn't. One being that the Renegades know his secret identity and I'm pretty sure that would ruin a lot of business for him lol. Plus with Eobard's mentality, I think he would be just too distracted, too frantic with his need to focus on Barry to do his day job

Now this is more of a fun headcanon my friend, Ftl were talking about that I since adopted where Eobard likes to pop back into the past, right before a major event or disaster, whether just as a bystander or a instigator. And of course, he always manages to run into Vandal Savage, so much to the point now that Vandal now associates him as a omen for things to come

He is canonically shown to go and bother/mess with Thomas Wayne a handful of times. This is significant as normally he really doesn't go out of his way for anyone that's not Barry/Flashfam member more than he absolutely has to. He doesn't even go after Hal. The only people he seems to be genuinely interested in and fixated on are those who have (willingly) killed him. Thomas may not rank as high as a priority as Barry, naturally, but he definitely counts as a hobby at least

There was also that time in Flash Age, where Eobard got to play the role of savior of Central City in his own era. He genuinely seemed to enjoy being the hero but, well, if you read to the end, you'll see why that most likely won't be happening again heh

Now this one is a lot more jokey, but in a DC Holiday Special, there's one panel in the last story that shows Eobard enjoying a game of poker with the Anti Monitor along with some other characters, so take from that what you will~

Now, as for your question about him still being a Professor, that's also really not explained in depth. They never really cement exactly what he's a Professor of, but considering him, it's most likely history and/or the Speed Force. In some comics he does have students, in others it works mostly as just a title and then sometimes it's not referenced at all, but it's safe to assume he still is one aha

I also don't really see him having a daily routine. The way I see it, Eobard is so far removed from being human, he doesn't really need to eat, sleep, or do personal hygiene lol But I really love your calendar idea! It would definitely look something like: "Fuck with Barry" "Fuck with Barry" "Fuck with Barry" "Fuck with Barry/Visit Daddy Bat" "Fuck with Barry/Die" "Askdhsgkdbjk" "Poker night" 😂

Also, I know it's not really canon but I really enjoy the idea of him painting. Eobard is a gifted child and a genius, he can master practically anything he sets his mind to. IDK why painting of all things, but it just kinda seems right. Bonus points if he uses it to replace original paintings in the past with his LOL

Overall, sadly, we don't get to see all the mischief he gets up to when not tormenting Barry, only tidbits. But hey, that just gives us some creative freedom to come up with fun ideas ourselves~

[divorcedwife]

What rpgs have u liked/played and how did u like them? :) i saw that your fave is pillars 1 and i love the setting n story so much (i just loooooathe real time with pause combat unfortunately. This also has soured da origins to me a lot. Do action pls or even better turn based but not that) also u have a lot of amazing anders art <3

pillars 1 my beloved!! maybe you already know but i must mention it just in case - did you see that pillars 2 deadfire has turn by turn combat? i don't think it's as good as the first in terms of writing, but when they introduced turn by turn, it became one of my favorites just for that. it made me so violent because combat went from a necessary evil to my favorite part of the game, so i was just going around the world looking for people to fight. and it really has its moments, i loved serafen and the first quest with the pirates, and it is a game where you can actually roleplay and cause real harm without intending to if you just listen to your companions all the time. they're not all good people.......

and bg3 also has combat that i really loved :-) i played it as a bard and as a rogue and i really loved both. i loved playing a support character and not feeling like the main character so much, and as dark urge, i thought rogue combat played with the idea of the urge very beautifully because i was so good at killing that i tended to skip dialogues and just kill.... i just wish i could reverse the clock and talk the devs out of constantly rewriting it ship of theseus style. the companions to me already had an issue of being too friendly and too innocent in their sufferings in a way i didn't find compelling, so making them even more into fandom versions of themselves is just evil

but i think that's all for RPGs where i really like the combat, all my other favorite games have real-time strategy and i just do my best. kotor 1 & 2 have it, although i enjoy it more when i unlock fucked up evil force powers. i still do love dragon age origins & 2, and have some fondness for dai because i really like the characters. and dao was largely improved for me by playing a mage instead of an archer ; if i can say anything nice about datv, it's that they've made archery good for the first time ever in dragon age. being an archer in dai is especially sad, you have a range of like two meters

i also tried the first baldur's gate game but i got too scared and confused with the companions management and the way the story progresses - like i strayed from the main quest and that locked me out of meeting jaheira, so i had to restart and redo all of that and it was painful. i think i could play it if i had some guide to follow or something, i just don't have the 1990s gamer disposition. but i really liked xan, i made him leader of the party so i could hear him complain all the time

& i think that's kind of it...! im not a huge gamer in that i don't try tons of different games, i just mostly obsess and replay the same ones over and over again. there's some others i could mention - like i played outer worlds and i liked it ok, i played fallout new vegas but it wasn't really my style and i didn't finish, and oh wait i just remembered i played all three mass effect games! well, i liked the first game and hated 2 and 3, which may be my most controversial hill to die on but i must be true

[my-makeshift-masquerade]

Springdad AU Headcanons Up For Grabs

Why? Because I can? Credit for the AU to @skeletoninthemelonland as per usual! While trying to figure out how my OC would fit into this universe my love of worldbuilding got in the way… So these headcanons may not even be accurate or confirmed by the AU’s original creator. They are just ideas I’m throwing at the wall.

General Headcanons

For some reason, (cough cough this mysterious hunter character cough cough) I suspect there is a dark history of how humans treated these sapient humanoid animals in the past.

Perhaps hunting them used to be a lot more common? Perhaps they were sold to rich humans or circuses once upon a time? (I am talking like a hundred or so years ago, here…)

I imagine the two groups coexisting or having blended families is relatively new in society at large, only happening in the last century. Maybe some on both sides are still hesitant about it or outright against it.

Not to get too political, but I can see their being a lot of bigotry around it in cities at least. The rural areas were likely founded by the sapient humanoid animals, so they would be more tolerant.

Orphanages end up with a lot more orphans like Evan and Micheal than they do human orphans for this reason. There is still a lot of shady stuff happening underground that these kids end up being rescued from.

On a more positive note, I imagine these blended families are the best sorts of families: bound by love and not blood. The best family is the one you choose after all! They typically seek out rural communities to live in peace.

Staff at these orphanages have a lot of methods to weed out suspicious figures who may want to harm the orphans, and they especially look out for any human only wanting to adopt an animal orphan.

Parents like Henry and William are beloved by the orphanages for giving any child a chance at a good home, regardless of species. Even if they may only adopt one or a few, those kids have a good family now.

Lots of seasonal festivals happen in the rural communities and raise money for any nearby orphanage, as many residents build their blended families through adoption. This is mostly lower level though, and doesn’t reach those like the directors.

Rebecca Backstory Headcanons

She was taken from her biological parents by humans. Perhaps hunters? After they killed her parents, they had planned to sell her off to the highest bidders who could do with her as they wished.

The little rabbit was neglected emotionally. Though all her physical needs were met to keep her alive, she wouldn’t have anyone come comfort her if she cried, or show her actual genuine love.

These humans were soon discovered and charged with kidnapping, leading to Rebecca ending up at the orphanage. This was around the same time Micheal and Evan arrived as well.

The only other orphans she really warmed up to were Evan and Micheal. They were the new arrivals and got lumped together often, especially Evan and Rebecca, who had to share a bed to save space.

During the orphanage fire, Rebecca was one of the few children unaccounted for. Her instincts to hide made her impossible to find until after the fire was completely extinguished.

She did go to the hospital briefly for some minor injuries, then returned to the orphanage to find Evan and Micheal were gone. This led her to feel more afraid even as the other orphans tried to help.

This little bunny is observant and timid, always on alert. She enjoys blankets and stuffed animals/pillows. She cries quietly due to her past teaching her nobody comes if she cries loudly.

Springdad doesn’t know her past just yet, but he could always ask someone who does. Micheal knows the general idea of her past since he helped watch her and Evan at the orphanage.

Rebecca only started to trust William after Evan showed how comfortable he was. From there, the other rabbit instantly became her new guardian. She is slowly bonding with Elizabeth and Alice, too!

[rydiathesummoner]

Why I want a FFV remake more than FFVI

No really, hear me out here! I know VI is beloved, and childhood nostalgia is extremely profitable. I get it. However, I truly believe FFV could be an absolute beast if it were remade into a modern game.

Beware, 32 year old spoilers ahead!

Combat

If you ask anyone who has played V (there are dozens of us!) and you ask what the best part of the game is, probably at least half would say the job system. And I would agree. The job system even in its rinky-dink 1990's form is a blast to play. It can make even trash mobs fun. Now imagine the job system in a modern action game. OMG. I would spend hours just trying different combinations on trash mobs. And if action isn't for you V already has you covered! They can make barehanded really easy to get from the beginning, give it some really fun animations and the non action players can just slap it on everybody and still have a good time.

Glamour

A lot of people claim that customizing the look of your armor is pointless and for girls. Then they play FFXIV and the next thing they know they've been doing a dungeon for two hours because the hat won't drop. FFV is absolutely ripe for a glamour system. Each job has its own flair, and each character has their own style. Imagine a glamour system where you could mix and match, much like XIV's but without the jank. Replay value would skyrocket.

It has better fans

I said what I said. VI has an extremely obnoxious fan base. It's not as bad as VII's, I'll admit that. However, while VII fans are lunatics over shipping wars, VI's fans are obnoxious because they are smug assholes. They shout from their mom's rooftop over and over how it has the absolute best story and characters, and if you don't agree "YOU havE NO mEdia lITeRAcy." Since nobody played V as a kid, they have no nostalgia blinders and we can all spend more time enjoying the game and less time hearing purists bitch and moan about how Terra's hair is all wrong and "tHIS iS not EXacTlY how IT WENt In tHe OrIgInAL." And we will ALL have a better time for it.

Built-in LGBT+ and watching people cry over it will be fun

Faris is non-binary in all but name. The term non-binary didn't exist back in the 1990s, but she does fit the idea. She poses as a man to avoid harassment yes, but then later says she doesn't really care if you call her a he or she. Galuf goes all boomer on her, and Bartz stands up for her saying "Faris is just Faris. She's great no matter a man or woman!" The game does proceed to use she/her pronouns for Faris, but they/them pronouns were not a concept to the general population back then. Just imagine all the anti-woke crowd crying over how Square Enix went super woke, and everyone can just point at the original game like "dude. It's in the original. Lol." It's free extra entertainment. Also you're free to disagree, but even as a straight cis woman I have a hard time believing Bartz is fully straight. Sure he has his moment when he sees Faris asleep, but he doesn't really get upset over being like "wow this dude's hot" and I can't stress enough that this game was made in the 1990s, attitudes on this subject were completely different. Also, some of his job outfits are... look I don't want to stereotype but there's a lot of "he's at least bi, right?" when it comes to Bartz.

It's not so serious

I'm fully in agreement with the "Game of Thrones ruined entertainment" crowd. I'm over dreariness, and the idea that if nobody died, then nothing happened in the plot. It ends up dumbing down stories. It's not my problem if you're so dead inside you need to see something extreme to get an emotional response. I went to therapy for that, I didn't demand everything have a bloodbath so I could feel something. We're not in a great era IRL right now. Times are tough. I want to spend my precious free time actually having fun and laughing at characters. It would probably have a similar feel to Rebirth. The story does have serious moments but it's mostly about having fun.

There are only 5 characters

FFXV had some story problems, but where it worked best was its core characters. By the end of XV it's hard to NOT be attached to the chocobros. FFV has the same situation, you're with your friends the whole game so there's plenty of time to develop the characters. The original did ok with developing Bartz, Lenna, Faris, Galuf and Krile, but a modern remake could really do it right and make the characters really fleshed out. FFVI has too many characters for a modern game. Hell it has too many characters for an older game. Everyone has a VI character they never use and forget they exist, and I don't like that. It would suck up a ton of time and resources to give development for Gogo and Umaro. I don't care about them enough anyway.

Bartz could be a really refreshing main character

For those who haven't played FFV before, the main character is named Bartz, and he's dumb as shit. He has a good heart and loves his friends. But the boy's brains are scrambled eggs. I want Square Enix to take that and run far with it. I want them to zoom past shonen and go full Zoolander with Bartz. I want him to absolutely own the dancer outfit, sashaying around while murdering mobs, then sit down in the sand and hug Faris when Sylva dies. He'll probably cry more than Faris. Then he will go and not understand how many weapons to collect after hearing the Tale of the 12 Legendary Weapons (yes this actually happens in the game.) Typically the non-broody protagonists in the series we see maturity and a better understanding of the world, but I don't want that for Bartz. It's been done. He's my Zoolander. I'd rather he remain dumb as shit at the end, and his character development is about him being a completely directionless idiot into an idiot with an idea of what he wants to do with his life. It's ok if what he wants to do is stupid and unrealistic. Maybe he'll open a school for kids who can't read good.

There's zero romance

Yes I know, romance is extremely profitable. But even in the original Bartz does not end up with any of the girls. They are all extremely close friends by the end, but nothing romantic. That's right, a story with no love triangle, no will-they won't-they drama, no anime harem. It's possible! Who knew? It's refreshing! They would have the entire game to really dive into the theme of friendship without shipping wars destroying everything. I just want to try it in a modern game.

That One Scene would be absolutely epic in an HD remake

If I haven't convinced anyone by now, just imagine this: Galuf's last stand in HD. It would be glorious. It would be heart-pounding excitement. It would easily go into the top 10 of most epic fights. Imagine this fight on the scale of the Titan or Bahamut fights from XVI. I'm drooling over the thought. Please, Square Enix I'm begging.

[vacantgodling]

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

hewwo thank you for asking <3 i'm gonna randomize some wips and give u a nice lil ramble lol

(1) train master chidori

in terms of me redesigning folami, i think i'm also gonna tweak her personality a bit too. i want to give her braids and slicked down baby hairs instead of the initial poofs that i had her with previously--and i think that may change which association creature/thing that i want her to be associated with bc i mostly just associated her with poodles because of her hair LOL. in terms of her personality, i originally made her a bit airheaded but i think i may kinda wanna give her more mature vibes since she's technically gonna be the oldest and most experienced of chidorky's crew. more... zakuro from tmm energy tbh. i think that may be the vibe i wanna go for for her lol.

(2) celestial weddings

beloved extremely wholesome polycule shenanigans lol. i think the one character that i know much less about their romance arc with dag is muu? muu is from denjai, which is the fourth sphere and its a swampland and marshy type of place. muu themself is the youngest of all of dag's lovers and it definitely shows in how upbeat they are and how they very much look up to dag in an almost hero worship kind of way. tbh they probably have the senpai/kouhai romantic relationship arc and ngl its very cute. muu also flaps their hands whenever they get excited about something and they tend to stumble over their words when they get excited, which is a lot lol.

(3) nondisclosure

i used to be sooo back and forth about nyseah and 17's relationship when i made the characters many many moons before; (and actually now that i think about it, most of the characters from that wip, except everything relating to owen and helios's storyline still exists in this version of the story lol. idk if i'll ever go back to those two characters but they did have a sweet relationship, it was just SO thematically different than everything else that was going on, which is how it developed into what i call now nondisclosure LOL) i actually kind of wanted them to get together only because i built up 17 to be a sort of "he's justified for his actions and he actually does care about nyssie.... somehow" back then. but i think i was also biased because he was one of the first "morally grey characters" i really ever made and i suppose back then i was much simpler in what i wanted from those kinds of characters.

when i think about nondisclosure now, 17 barely plays a role in it from what i think. tbh i think 12 plays more of a role than he does and that's because i'm obsessed with 12 and i think everyone should be obsessed with 12 but this isn't about him this is about 17 and nyssie. i think it works better for nyssie to not get with him in the end because like he seriously violated her in a way that younger me didn't really see an issue with (thanks ya and anime for not thinking this kind of relationship was bad or that it could be fixed LMAOOO... not to say that i don't enjoy making those kinds of relationships now, its just the fact that now i'm more likely to lean into the relationship being fucked up LMAO). anyway tho, mama nyssie and her brood of kiddos is the best ending for her because its the one where she's the happiest :D

(4) sixteen candles

ranger being aromantic makes so much of how he acted in all of the old chapters that i wrote many moons ago make so much fucking sense. like seriously, he was soooo noncommittal to the point of it being basically a meme, and even tho the friend i would talk with about these characters at the time helped me make a character for him to be with and i 'enjoyed' it to a certain extent, it always felt kind of off? and i think its because the person ranger will always be the closest with is always gonna be nanette, like they are inseperable and i think them defining a qpr is actually So Fucking Good for them. i'm kinda obsessed with their dynamic ngl, adn i also like the idea that ranger is just like down to fuck all of his besties and at the same time they all have a relationship with each other where that's just a thing that they do.

i really need to work on roger tho because he is so conflicted about a lot of things. not just to get him open to the fucking really, but mostly just because he has the roughest go of it relating to family and it kinda hits home for me personally a bit, so in some ways i feel like idk how i should handle it. but overall, love they. i should think about them more tbh LOL

(5) the liminal space series (overall)

chloe being involved in jenna's story is honest to god still so funny to me. like here's this "average" small town popular girl, who's popular by virtue of being normal enough and outgoing enough that everyone likes her, but having a bit of an alt style so people think she's edgy and unique and then all of a sudden she's hanging out with the town weirdos trying to hunt down a what? what did you say it was jenna? a chupa--WhAT?

and the fact that she's so taken aback with how casually jenna says that she likes her that it just takes her and her sexuality for a wild ride and at the end of it all she has to go to college and pretend that she didn't just have the craziest senior year/summer of her fucking life LMAOOO its just so funny to me.

[okamimami]

Telepatía - Part 2

Read part 1 here.

(Obi-Wan Kenobi/Original Female Character)

Rating: Explicit

Category: F/M

Read this on archiveofourown.org

Summary: Although love is not something that one can control, attachments of any kind are not part of the Jedi way. You can love, but you cannot fear to lose, but how do you not fear losing someone who is the better part of your soul?

Obi-Wan finds himself in a difficult position where he must choose love, the Jedi Order, or perhaps…both, if he can just keep it a secret.

Over the course of the next few weeks, the Master and the Padawan settled into their new intertwined schedule. They trained almost daily unless one of them was called away on assignment, which was usually Obi-Wan since he began serving on the council.

If they weren’t working on her proficiency with her lightsaber, then they were working on her telekinetic abilities or simply on meditation best practices. Some days were easy, some days were hard, but neither of them seemed to falter in their confidence as she continuously improved. Obi-Wan had grown accustomed to a pupil like Anakin whose natural, raw talent made him a quick learner. However, he appreciated how focused and dedicated Verity was. If she didn’t get it the first time, she would try and try again even if it meant she had to do it a hundred times more than Anakin did, she’d reach his level of effortlessness eventually. She reminded Obi-Wan of himself in that way.

The shared many smiles, many laughs, even a few tears as she opened up about some of her struggles. He was slightly more reserved with his own as his guarded heart did not let him open up easily, but he was always a rock for her to do so.

“I feel like I hardly ever see you anymore, Master,” said Anakin. The two were currently in a ship, flying back to the temple from a brief assignment they had in a nearby city. “You’ve been so busy with your new pupil. Have you forgotten already?”

“Aren’t you enjoying all the time you’re getting to spend with your beloved Padmé? At least you don’t have to feel bad for ditching me anymore,” said Obi-Wan, taking his eyes off the course in front of him momentarily to look over at the younger man. Anakin was a better pilot, but his flying made Obi-Wan sick to his stomach, so he preferred to do it himself.

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t,” he said with a smile. “Why don’t you two get together with us? I think Padmé would like having another woman around for once.”

Obi-Wan blinked a couple more times than he normally would as he thought about this proposal. Why did it make him nervous the idea of spending time with her in such a casual, friendly way? They’d be around others, so it’s not like it would only be the two of them. He still found himself tensing up at the idea, mostly because it sounded like it would be a delightful time.

“Are you sure that’s such a good idea? You and Padmé aren’t the best at hiding your affections. She will catch on right away,” said Obi-Wan. It was an excuse, but he wasn’t lying either. Discretion wasn’t part of Anakin’s vocabulary.

Anakin looked at the older man for a moment, trying to read his facial expression and his body language with a raised eyebrow. A smile crept up on his face now.

“That may be true, Master, but I think you’re nervous about bringing her around. Come on, life isn’t all about training. Have a little fun for once,” he said, patting the shorter man on the shoulder a couple times.

Obi-Wan only spared him a momentary glance now. Anakin had a point. Life was about more than just work, he still deserved to have fun every now and again, especially if there were no ongoing missions that demanded his attention. The fun didn’t seem to be the issue this time. She was the thing making him hesitant. If he put anyone else in her place, the anxiety fell severely.

“I will…ask her about it when I see her tomorrow,” he said and for a moment, he questioned the words coming out of his own mouth.

“No, let’s go to her quarters right now. It’s not that late. You have to make grand gestures with these ladies. They like that. Be a little more romantic,” he teased. Anakin was anything if not romantic. Obi-Wan had caught several of the things he’d said to Padmé in the past as he was courting her. As worried as he was about Anakin’s status within the order, he was happy to see the man he considered his own brother to be so happy. He often felt pangs of jealousy at the idea that he would never know that type of happiness in his own life.

“Oh, come on, Anakin. Don’t put that kind of pressure on me. And she’s just my Padawan! Nothing more, nothing less,” he said, and now he wasn’t even believing himself as he spoke. “My Padawan with very beautiful golden brown eyes, the most radiant smile I’ve ever seen, and this gods damn grace about her every movement.”

Obi-Wan smacked the steering wheel of the ship with the base of his palm now. It was like his mouth had a mind of its own. His bond with Anakin tended to bring the truth out of him eventually even when he tried to hide things from him.

“Aha! I knew it. I knew you’d like her and I knew you’d try to run away from it,” he said with an almost proud grin on his face now as if he had just uncovered the truth regarding an ancient mystery. “The Jedi Code is outdated, Master. Things need to change, and your secret will be safe with me like mine is with you until they do.”

Anakin’s words did little to reassure Obi-Wan in any real way. There were no guarantees that Anakin wouldn’t be caught soon and kicked out of the order as there would be no guarantees that things would change. The Jedi were very stuck in their ways, their traditions even if they were sometimes unreasonable or outdated.

“That’s very sweet of you, Anakin, but I still believe that I should keep my feelings to myself. If I nip them in the bud early enough, perhaps I can forget they’re there,” he said, sounding a bit dejected and resigned by the softness of his voice that wasn’t there earlier. “But I will spare you your own whining and I will go invite her now.”

“Then I’ll say nothing else on the matter,” said Anakin, trying not to push his old friend too far. The younger man knew he was far more rebellious and willing to fight for his own way than his former master was. That was okay. That’s what made them a good team. But he hoped Obi-Wan would someday put himself first in this regard. As someone who had allowed himself to experience the delightful experience of being drowned in love by another, he didn’t know how anyone could deprive themselves of it.

———-

What the hell was he doing right now? Did he seriously allow Anakin to influence him to come to Verity’s quarters after hours. He hoped that for whatever reason she was not there yet, so she wouldn’t come to the door and she’d never know he was there either.

His prayers were answered. Sort of. Just as he was about to touch his knuckles to her door to alert her of his presence, she approached him from behind.

“Master? Are you looking for me? Is everything alright?” she asked, speaking softly as she hoped not to startle him, but Jedi were never really surprised. He knew she was there and had already stopped his knuckles from touching the door before he heard her voice.

He turned to face her now. Her hair was different today. It was up in a high bun with several braids coming out from it, her fringe covering her forehead, but there was a split in the middle this time. She looked a bit tired, but still beautiful in every way possible.

“Please forgive me, Verity. You need not worry,” he said, stepping away from her door just in case she wanted to make her way inside. He tucked his hands behind his back as he stood before her. “I was just wondering…Well, Anakin was wondering-“

Verity crossed her arms in front of her body now, looking at the older man with a curious expression on her face, but also somewhat confused as to what was happening. Why was he here? Why was he so nervous? And what did any of this have to do with Anakin?

“I’m sorry. Let me start over. Anakin suggested that I invite you to a dinner party with him, Padmé, and myself tomorrow night after your training session,” he finally said. He kicked himself a bit for mentioning that it was Anakin’s idea, but it was true. He just wanted the credit for it.

“So does Anakin want me there or do you, Master?” she asked him, trying to suppress the small smirk that was threatening to replace her otherwise neutral expression. It was all an act, though. Something she often did to hide her nervousness or excitement was tease the person who caused her to feel that way. The last thing she had expected when she saw Obi-Wan at her door was this.

“I do, of course. You’ve been lovely to have as my Padawan, so I’d like to show my appreciation to your diligence,” he explained. More lies. Half-truths, really. He did appreciate her as his pupil, but that didn’t stop him from seeing her for the woman she was outside of that. “Anakin would also like you to get acquainted with Padmé. Something about her needing more female friends.”

“Well, I can’t say no to either of you. I’d love to join you tomorrow. Could you meet me here an hour after training? I’d like to make myself presentable, maybe not wear these robes for once,” she said, a shy smile replacing her smirk now. She knew she wanted to take the opportunity to impress him in a different way than she’d been given the chance to before. It would be hard as they weren’t allowed many possessions, but she had a dress or two she could make do with.

“That sounds like a plan, Verity. It is late, however, so I will leave you to rest,” he said, placing a hand on his abdomen as he dipped his body downwards in a slight bow in her direction. “Sweet dreams, young one.”

Almost all the Masters called their Padawan or other students “young one”, but it always felt different coming from Obi-Wan’s mouth to Verity’s ears. It never ceased to make a warm feeling crawl up her neck and onto her cheeks where she prayed he couldn’t see it.

“Sweet dreams, Master Obi-Wan…and thank you for the invitation. I’m looking forward to spending time with you- you all, I mean,” she hoped he hadn’t noticed her little slip up, but he was already making his way away from her, presumably back to his own quarters for the night.

Every fiber of her body wanted to ask him to come even just for tea, but she decided to be patient and wait for the next day to spend time with him. She didn’t want to jump the gun, she didn’t want to presume that he had any interest in her in the same way she did in him, and she definitely didn’t know if what she was feeling was even okay or something she should work on meditating away. She didn’t want to do that last one. Not one little bit, especially not until she knew whether her simmering affection was unrequited or not.

They both entered their quarters with much on their minds that night, a confusing mix of elation and anxiety swirling around.

———

Training resumed as it normally would the following day, though, there seemed to be a slight tension in the air. It wasn’t necessarily a bad tension, but as if a spark had ignited between them that was constantly buzzing with energy. It was dull still, but ever present. They each stole a few more glances than they usually would, tripped over more of their words, and were more careful with their touches to one another.

As the afternoon left them, they ended their training for the day. Verity hurriedly made her way back to her quarters when she was out of Obi-Wan sight, trying to give herself as much time as possible to get herself presentable.

She bathed as soon as she got in, dousing her body with her favorite scented perfume which smelled of lavender with a hint of vanilla. She kept her long, dark tresses down, adding some soft curls to the bottom. Her cheeks were given a flush of pinkish rouge and her lips were carefully coated in a matte, dark red lipstick, finishing her makeup by adding a small, wing of black to each and with a coat of mascara to her lashes.

She pulled out her favorite dress for the occasion, but decided it was perhaps too formal. Instead she opted for a pure white silk halter top that left the majority of her back exposed. She paired it with a long black skirt of the same material that tapered down her body. The waistline of it dipped down at the center to reveal her midsection. Verity didn’t have very many options for jewelry so she added a gold cuff to her bicep.

The young woman stood in front of the mirror, turning from side to side to examine her appearance before taking a deep breath. It would have to do regardless of how she felt, so she conjured some confident thoughts about herself.

If she hadn’t already sensed his presence, she would have jumped when she heard the knock at the door. Somehow an hour had already passed. She slipped on her simple black pumps, grabbing a small clutch just so she wasn’t empty-handed, which she placed her lightsaber inside of. You could never be too careful.

Making her way to the door, she gave herself a moment to take another deep breath. She was almost less nervous about him seeing her than about seeing him. She’d never seen him out of his Jedi robes and was almost certain she wouldn’t know what to do when she did.

Pulling the door open, she was greeted by the face of her beloved Master. His reaction to her did not disappoint. His cordial smile dropped a bit as his cerulean eyes fell slowly down her figure before landing back on her face.

“Forgive me, Verity. I forget myself. You look absolutely wonderful,” he finally said. He considered playing off his reaction, but he knew better than to think she was that dense, so he owned up to it instead.

He himself looked absolutely breathtaking just as Verity had expected. He’d chosen a creamy button down with an embroidered high collar that he paired with a dark green jacket, black dress pants, and black boots. His hair was perfectly pushed back, and of course his beard was groomed to perfection.

“This is for you,” he continued, pulling out from behind his back a small bundle of Mysess blossoms that were tied together with a strip of yellow fabric in the shape of a bow. He extended them towards her with the flowers lying across both of his palms.

“Master…that’s so sweet of you. They’re beautiful,” she said, taking them from him and holding them up to her face to give them a smell. She’d never received flowers from a man before, but she couldn’t imagine a more thoughtful gesture if she tried. It painted Obi-Wan in a new light for her. “Could you come inside a moment for me to put them in water?”

She was bold to ask that of him, but he just showed up at her door with flowers in hand. He would be silly to think that was merely a friendly gesture on his part, so she rolled with the idea that it could be more.

“Of course. Take your time. Padmé’s apartments are not too far from here,” he said, waiting for her to step aside before he took a step in. Her room didn’t look that different from his own, but there were small personal touches throughout that let him know exactly who the room belonged to.

There was nothing in the Jedi Code that said he couldn’t be in her quarters, right? What was the difference between this and him visiting Anakin, right?

She closed the door behind him. There was the buzzing again, that feeling in her chest that was slightly tight and unwavering. He felt it as well, but neither of them mentioned it.

“You look wonderful as well, Master. I didn’t know you could clean up so nicely,” she said to him with a smile as she made her way to her small kitchenette area, opening a couple cabinets until she spotted an empty vase up top. Reaching up, she quickly realized she was too short even in her high heels to get it.

Before she could even use The Force to bring it down to herself, she felt Obi-Wan behind her.

“Thank you, and allow me,” he said, his voice noticeably softer than now. His chest was pressed to her back now and he placed a hand on her hip as he extended the other one upwards to grasp the vase in his hand effortlessly.

They’d been chest to back before during training, but this felt different. There was no reason why he couldn’t have let her use The Force or asked her to simply step aside. However, there was some magnetic pull between the two of them that probably didn’t even let him think that far before doing what felt right instead.

Verity stood terribly still, not daring to turn her face to look back at him because her cheeks were probably twice as red now than when he walked in. It felt somewhat different this time, though. It wasn’t just nervousness, but the proximity of his body to hers caused a chill up her spine as if it was satisfying just a small part of a much larger desire.

He placed the vase down in front of her, lingering for a moment behind her before he busied himself with taking it to the sink to pour water into it. He needed some reason to drag himself away from her. Typically, he would apologize for this kind of behavior, but he decided against it this time.

With almost shaky hands, Verity untied the bow from the flowers, dropping them into the vase once he filled it with water for her. She didn’t want to discard the pretty bow, so she wrapped it around the neck of the vase and tied it back into the bow shape.

“I said this already, but thank you. As you can imagine, I’ve never received flowers before. I’ve seldom been given gifts in general, so it means a lot to me,” she said, finally looking up at Obi-Wan from where she stood next to him. There was an overwhelming desire inside of herself to reach up and give him a simple peck on the cheek, so fuck it. That’s exactly what she did, steadying herself by holding onto his forearm as she leaned up and pressed her lips to his face.

The older man tried to contain the expression on his face that would communicate to her just how much he enjoyed that, just how much he wished it were more. He gave her a bashful smile, clearing his throat.

“I’m honored to be the first, but I find it difficult to believe that someone…like you has never even had one admirer who tried to win your affections,” he said. “Tell me about that as we make our way to the senator’s apartment.”

Offering her his arm for her to hook hers into, he lead them out of her quarters, starting their walk towards where Padmé and Anakin were already waiting for them with a spread of food and drinks. She had taken his arm without hesitance, walking alongside him. She figured he had a way to smooth things over with anyone who saw their body language right now, so she went with it without questioning him. Thankfully, the temple was quiet at the moment as it was later in the day and the sun had already gone down.

“Are you calling yourself an admirer now?” she asked him, a cheeky smile on her face as she did, but she continued before he could answer. “To answer your question, I have had a few men try to court me before, some politicians, some civilians, but probably far less than I would’ve experienced had I not been a Jedi who spends most of their time at a temple. Obviously, nothing ever happened with any of them. I had a slightly rebellious phase around nineteen where I snuck off to go clubbing several times, but men can be gross. They buy you drinks and expect you to give it all up just because they want you to. I’m not that type.”

A pang of jealous hit his heart at the thought of her being pursued by men wherever she went. He knew it was the likely story, but it was annoying to hear. That wasn’t his place to say, though.

“I can see how that would leave a sour taste in your mouth, but I can’t blame a man for respectfully trying. You’re a beautiful young woman. Anyone would be blind not to see that,” he said, exiting the temple with her as they made their way into the city. For once, he felt more like a regular inhabitant of Coruscant rather than a Jedi Master with the weight of the world on his shoulders. He wondered if this was what dating felt like for most people when you removed the bindings Jedi Code placed upon them. It felt nice.

“Master, if I didn’t know any better, I would think you were flirting with me,” she said, stopping them both in their tracks as she looked up at him. The night had barely begun, but he had already given her so many more signals than he had the entire time he’d been training her. Was he letting his guard down for good or would tonight be a blip on his radar? She tilted her head to the side. “If you are, just know that it’s very much welcome.”

“Verity, I can honestly say I do not know what in gods name I’m doing right now. I’m just doing what feels right, but not what is morally right. I am doing what makes me feel like I am being honest to myself and what I want,” he said, and he could feel his palms sweating now. It was like some illogical, infatuated spirit had taken over his mind, allowing him no longer to pretend like he didn’t have the regular feelings that all men have in the presence of a stunning, sweet, and powerful woman.

Verity spent a moment in silence, looking up at him as he spoke. She could feel that despite how vague he was being, it was coming from the same place her feelings for him were developing as well, which was a place of utter contradiction. She felt both a guilt for disobeying her vows, but a desire to be free of them in some ways. She felt an internal battle brewing as she tried to fight off fear of the consequences for following this dangerous path.

“Maybe…let’s just have a great time tonight and we can talk about this all after. I think I just want to know what being next to you as a woman and not just your Padawan feels like even if just for this one evening,” she said, trying her best to use any shred of wisdom she had left and apply it to this situation. She would only know what to do about her feelings if she embraced them for the moment and assessed if this was worth the possible consequences.

“You are wiser than I am at times, Verity,” he said, guiding them to start their walk again. Perhaps giving in for just one night would give him the insight he needed.

The pair arrived at Padmé’s building soon after, getting clearance from security before they were able to ascend to the top floor where her penthouse was. When the woman opened the door, Anakin was right behind her. They looked like any other couple right now and it made Obi-Wan smile to see his chosen brother so content.

“Verity! I believe we haven’t had the pleasure of speaking properly yet, but Anakin has told me all about you,” she said, the pair stepping aside in a fluid motion to allow their guests in.

Padmé was as gorgeous as Verity remembered. She was a small, fit woman with shiny brown hair, an immaculate bone structure, and because of her status, she was dressed in a beautifully ornate gown. Verity felt almost intimidated now, but the senator was too kind for her to dwell on that for long.

“I hope it’s only been good things. Master Obi-Wan has told me much about you as well,” she said, the two women shaking hands as Anakin and Obi-Wan shared an embrace as they always did.

“It’s nice to see you out of those Jedi robes, Master. You almost look handsome,” said the younger Jedi male, a smirk on his face as he eyed the other male.

“You’re kind, Anakin. Really,” he responded sarcastically.

“Would either of you like something to drink? We have many wines and ales,” said Padmé, guiding the small party over to the bar where a bartender was waiting to pour them their libations.

“I’ll take wine,” said Verity, though she would typically prefer ale, wine felt better for the occasion. Obi-Wan agreed. The bartender poured four glasses, and they all took one.

“I’ll make a toast, then, to…long-lasting friendships,” said Anakin, looking down at Padmé when he spoke the last word. Verity caught the glance, but they were too busy tapping glasses for her to make any comment on it.

“We might need to work on your speeches if you’re going to remain so politically involved, Anakin,” joked Obi-Wan who also gave Padmé a look as he spoke. Verity wasn’t stupid. It was obvious what was going on.

“Are you two together? If you’re trying to hide it, you’re not succeeding,” she said, chuckling behind her glass as she took another sip.

Padmé almost choked, but Anakin simply wrapped an arm around her.

“If we can trust you, yes. If we can’t, then forget everything you saw after tonight unless you want to duel it out with me,” he said, looking at Verity with a teasing eyebrow.

“You know I’m not the type to go running to the council, Master, your secret is safe with me…unless you cross me,” she joked back to him.

“Seems we have an agreement, then, and before you ask, yes, I’ve known about this for a while now,” said Obi-Wan. Verity had figured as much.

“How about we chat over dinner? We can all share secrets, but let’s have the delicious food my chefs have prepared for us,” said Padmé, leading them into the dining area where Verity was greeted by a spread of more dishes than she could count and way more than the four of them could possibly eat.

“Wow…thank you, Senator. You’re incredibly kind,” said Verity, smiling graciously as Obi-Wan pulled a chair out for her, which she sat down in, allowing him to tuck her in as well. Anakin did the same for Padmé.

“Just call me Padmé, please. Any friend of Anakin and Obi-Wan’s is my friend as well. Plus, it’s nice to have some female company for once,” said the older woman.

Servants came around to begin serving everyone. Verity felt both so normal and so unlike herself in this moment, but it was such a welcome departure from reality.