#my mom first discovered this and i went to look and got hooked!

[ryoun]

south korean dramas that gave me feels ↪ Familiar Wife [2018]

[creativehomicide]

Oh look a tnmn doorman OC Anyway meet Vernon Santanna, the resident doppelganger doorman. (Uses he/him) He gained his identity after the original Vernon went missing. He waited a few years to be certain that the original wasn't coming back before taking his form and approaching the Santanna family for the hopes of a better life. He pretended to have amnesia as an explanation for why he didn't know things the real Vernon would know. The doppelganger epidemic hadn't hit its peak yet so they were less suspicious of him being a doppel. He cannibalizes other doppelgangers instead of humans to keep the DDD off his back, plus he holds some resentment towards his own kind. He's also adept at transformation, being able to shapeshift very quickly and accurately, as well as weaponizing his body. However his biggest weak point is that he struggles with mimicking voices. It took him a whole year to nail the Vernon voice. He kept his true nature a secret but eventually the other neighbors found out. Since he's never hostile towards them and protects them from doppelgangers though, they never reported him and it's more of an open secret. The first neighbor to discover this was Nacha. She's basically the mom friend and brings him meat from her job sometimes. He also views Anastacha like a little sister.

He also doesn't understand why everyone is thirsting after the milkman. When he got the job, he was explicitly warned not to be swayed by Francis doppelgangers bc previous doormen died from hooking up with them. When he first meets Francis, he just squints at him and says, "Yeah, I don't get it." Picrew links: https://picrew.me/en/image_maker/111486 https://picrew.me/en/image_maker/2212965 https://picrew.me/en/image_maker/1469769 Blank vers. of relationship chart: https://thats-not-my-neighbor.fandom.com/f/p/4400000000000065565

[happi-tree]

i hate accidents (except when we went from friends to this)

“Oh, god, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you, I don’t know what came over me, you’re just so hurt and I was so scared and I didn’t know what to do and -”

Link cuts himself off as he glances up from Taylor’s still-glazed expression to his forehead. Before his eyes, the gash stitches itself closed, the open wound fading to a pink scar that pales to white before disappearing entirely.

Lincoln remembers hearing the words “kiss it better” throughout his entire childhood. He remembers the way his dads would patch up his scraped knees with ointment and a bandage and top it all off with a tiny kiss before treating him to a hard candy from their first aid kit for being such a good boy.

Never once had Link thought that the phrase could be literal. Or that his newfound powers could make it literal.

Or: Link discovers a rather unorthodox way of using Lay On Hands thanks to one Taylor Swift, and for some reason, he can’t seem to stop finding excuses to perfect his new skills. Fortunately, Taylor is more than happy to help.

once / twice / thrice, pt. 1 / thrice, pt. 2

twice (‘cause it’s gonna be alright)

The second time it happens, it’s not an accident. 

Taylor invited Link to his house on the pretense of doing homework together (who knew saving the world meant having so many late assignments?) and maybe watching some anime later. 

It had taken Link some convincing at first, but Taylor thinks he’s finally got him hooked on Blue Lock: Keyed Up!!! (which is good, considering it’s the only soccer anime that Taylor’s watched). 

Unfortunately, though, homework comes first. Which sucks, because there are about a million and one better things that a protagonist like him could be doing, but he doesn’t want to worry his mom about his grades slipping any further.

Plus, Taylor missed an additional afternoon’s worth of classes yesterday for a long-overdue orthodontist appointment (his jaw aches at the reminder), so he has extra extra make-up work. Ugh. 

At least Link’s passable at science. Normally, Scary could make up some pretty good answers for all of them for their English work, but she’s out recording some stuff for Erica’s podcast. Normal has cheer practice, so Taylor doesn’t really have much hope for his pile of Spanish worksheets, but at the very least, he and Link are making progress. 

Very slow progress. 

Taylor accidentally clenches his jaw a little too hard, and the ache in his teeth intensifies from there-but-tolerable to fucking-hell-it-feels-like-someone-is-wrenching-my-upper-jaw-in-two-holy-shit.

He makes a quiet, whimpering sort of noise, and Link looks up from his work immediately, eyebrows all scrunched together and lips downturned in concern. It would be cute if Taylor could focus on anything other than the agony plaguing his mouth.

“You okay, dude?” he asks, shifting closer on Taylor’s king-size mattress.

“Nnnnnnn,” Taylor moans, shaking his head ever so slightly and flopping back against the pillows dramatically (but carefully, so as not to accidentally make the pain worse somehow). “Teeth hurt.”

“Oh, right, you got your braces adjusted yesterday,” Link gently moves their notebooks and laptops to the side, where they won’t get crushed. 

Taylor’s eyes squeeze shut as he tries to do anything but focus on the ache. “Mmm,” he confirms. “And I think maybe my fangs might be growing in? Hard to tell, but I keep accidentally cutting my tongue on my canines, so I think they’re getting sharper.”

“That’s pretty cool,” Link says, and the sincerity in his voice brings a smile to Taylor’s face, which he cuts off with a wince because fuck, ow, that hurt.

“Would be cooler if my entire mouth didn’t hurt like hell, though,” Taylor grumbles. 

He opens his eyes to find Link hovering over him, looking worried and… hesitant?

“Jeez, Link, I’m not dying or anything. The torment is endless and the agony neverending, but I will persevere! Ah, fuck,” Taylor mutters, pressing a hand to his cheek, which only seems to make matters worse.

Link’s still looking at him like that, though, so he makes grabby hands to beckon him closer.

“Cuddles would maybe help, though, if you’re just gonna sit there,” he offers.

“I can work with that,” Link says, laughing a little under his breath and leaning back on the pillows beside him. 

He opens up his arms and Taylor wedges himself between them, tucking his head under Link’s chin and burying the top portion of his face into his chest, right below his collarbones. He inhales, trying to focus on the smell of laundry detergent and fresh-cut grass and sports deodorant and sweat and something uniquely Link rather than the pain in his jaw, and it works a little.

Link’s arms come around to encircle him, and while Taylor can feel stifled by skin-to-skin contact (he already has enough trouble regulating his own body heat without throwing someone else’s into the mix), the way Link holds him feels… nice. Protective. Link begins to trace tiny, meaningless circles into his back with his thumbs through the fabric of Taylor’s shirt, and the sensation grounds him. 

Taylor quietly realizes that he hasn’t felt this safe in a long time. 

His mouth still hurts like a bitch, though.

As if on cue, another pulse of pain floods his mouth, and Taylor instinctively clenches his jaw against the feeling, which in hindsight was pretty stupid because it makes the ache intensify tenfold. Taylor lets out a whine into Link’s chest, clutching helplessly at his best friend’s shirt. 

He fantasizes somewhat deliriously about taking his teeth and chucking them out of his face where they can’t hurt him.

“That seems like it must be pretty painful,” Link says sadly.

“Nnnnnnnngh,” Taylor replies because yeah, no shit, Sherlock-kun.

“You know,” Link starts out, tone still soft but much more considering, more nervous. Taylor can feel the vibration of Link’s voice against the top of his head, right where it’s pressed against his taller friend’s throat. “I think I can fix that, if you want.”

Taylor pulls away a bit, and Link loosens his hold to allow for some space.

“Well, why didn’t you say so earlier?” Taylor asks. “I know I look totally awesome and composed on the outside, but I am fucking perishing inside. Yes, please, whatever your idea is, I will literally do anything. What were you thinking of, though?”

“Well,” Link says, voice pitching high, “I was thinking, I could, uh. Kiss it better? Like I did last week, if you remember that?” He looks briefly down at Taylor, as he says this, scanning his face for… something. “Oh my god, it would be so embarrassing if you didn’t remember that. Never mind, this is so stupid, sorry, forget I said anything.”

Except Taylor doesn’t really hear that last part because he’s too busy reliving the feeling of Link’s chapped lips pressed against his temple, callused hands cradling the back of his head, big brown eyes that look like black holes in the darkness of sun-off threatening to swallow Taylor completely. 

Does Taylor remember last week? That’s like asking someone if they remember that the sky is red. Taylor remembers last week annoyingly well, and he keeps remembering it, and the scene plays and replays as the hellfire within his ribcage flares and the heat rises and he looks up at Link who’s still working himself into some anxiety-ridden ramble and -

Cool it, cool it, part of his mind whispers to him. 

Link offered to kiss me, an irritatingly large amount of his brain shrieks back at him, uncool and uncharacteristically nervous and taking up more mental real estate by the second. Boy hugging me boy touching me boy kissing me?

You just need to calm down, the more rational part of his brain assuages. You’re Taylor Swift, you’ve got this.

I’m Taylor Swift, I’ve got this. Taylor mentally chants, strongarming the fire in his chest and turning the flame down to something a bit more bearable. I’ve got this. I’m popular, I’m icy cool, and anyone would be lucky to kiss me. I’ve got this.

Brain successfully rebooted, Taylor nudges at Link’s shoulder, stopping his friend’s mutterings in their tracks.

“As long as you haven’t talked yourself out of it, I’m, like, totally down if you’re still offering. You severely underestimate how desperate I am for pain relief.”

“Oh,” Link says, eyebrows drawn up in surprise. Then, “Really?”

“Yeah, oh,” Taylor echoes back. “Really. The only thing is… don’t you usually have to touch whatever’s hurt for it to work? And like, it’s my teeth, so…”

“Yeah, and?” Link prompts, like he isn’t quite seeing any problem with that and.

Oh.

Oh, Link means kissing kissing. Like, on the mouth. And to get at Taylor’s teeth… that’s like making-out-kissing. Oh, god. Oh my god, okay. This is fine. Sure! Great.

“Oh,” Taylor says aloud. Then, “Okay!”

“Are you sure? About this?” Link questions, searching Taylor’s expression even as he places a slightly-clammy hand to Taylor’s cheek, even as Taylor’s face feels like it lights on fire in response. The clear concern in the upturn of his brows and the gleam in his dark eyes has Taylor humming in assent before he realizes what he’s doing and placing his hand atop Link’s larger one, holding him there as Taylor’s gaze is drawn to his slightly parted lips.

“For the love of god, Link, just kiss me already.”

“Okay,” Lincoln says, quiet and slightly unsteady. And he closes the gap.

It’s clear that this is Link’s first kiss, and Taylor’s pretty sure Link can tell that it’s the first time he’s kissed someone, too (well, someone that isn’t his body pillows).

Link’s lips feel softer against Taylor’s than they had against his forehead. He’s tentative and shy and exceedingly gentle, and Taylor’s unsure if that’s out of the fear of causing him undue pain or if it’s just who Link is, but he appreciates it either way.

 Link’s thumb strokes delicately across Taylor’s cheek, almost reverently, like he’s afraid that Taylor will break apart in his arms if he doesn’t treat him with care. Link’s other hand comes to rest at the side of his neck, threading through the hair that’s escaped Taylor’s topknot, and the feeling of it paired with the light press of Link’s lips against his own draws another humming sound from his throat.

Taylor tries his best to reciprocate, mouth pliant against Link’s, free hand fisting in the soft, slippery fabric of his best friend’s shirt and tugging gently as if to bring him in even closer. His other hand moves from atop Link’s to cradle the back of his head and run his fingers through his close-cropped hair.

Link makes a low, soft sort of noise that will no doubt be replaying for weeks on end in Taylor’s head. God, he needs to hear that sound again.

Sadly, though, they’ve run out of air, and Lincoln pulls away only to lean back in and carefully rest his forehead against Taylor’s.

Taylor’s eyelids blink open (oh, he had closed them, when had that happened?) and he comes face-to-face with Link, brown eyes deep and dark, half-lidded and half-dazed, staring directly at him with open affection. His hand still rests on Taylor’s cheek, and Taylor can feel the stark temperature difference there, anxiety-chilled and demonically-overheated, as something flutters hard in his chest.

“Uh, wow,” Link says, quiet and very breathless, and God, who gave him the right to be so beautiful and so adorable at the same time?

Taylor draws his lip in between his teeth and is greeted with a sharp stab of pain.

“Ow, fuck, shit,” Taylor hisses, scooching back to put more distance between the two of them. “Guess that didn’t work, but thanks for trying, Link. You out of spell slots or something?”

With Link’s complexion, it can be difficult to tell when his friend is flushed or flustered, but his wide eyes and cringing expression definitely come across as embarrassed.

“No,” he replies, voice a few octaves higher than normal. “I, uh, forgot? To do the spell.”

At Taylor’s quirked eyebrow, Link elaborates, “I just wanted to make sure I didn’t accidentally hurt you more, and then I got so wrapped up in that that I guess I forgot, and then you did that thing with your hand in my hair, and -” he cuts himself off with a whine, covering his eyes with a hand and dramatically rolling over, the picture of mortification. “Kill me now.”

Taylor laughs, loud and sudden and sharp despite the pain, and Lincoln curls a little further into himself. 

“I can just, uh - I made it weird, I can just go, I guess?” Link says in that reedy, nervous way of his, voice cracking toward the end as he sits up, moves to stand -

“Dude,” Taylor clambers across the mattress after him, grabs his wrist. “Where the hell do you think you’re going?”

“I-“ Link gestures with his thumb toward the door. “Home? I mean, I screwed up, and you laughed, and now you probably think I’m so stupid and-“

“Hold up, handsome,” where did that pet name come from - “I wasn’t laughing at you- I mean! I was,” Taylor watches as Link’s expression droops further “- but not to make fun of you! It’s just…” Come on, just say it, you’ve never had trouble speaking your mind before - “endearing.”

Link looks more confused and anxious than anything, but that’s better than sad and anxious, so Taylor takes that as a win. 

“Plus, you’re not getting away from me that easy, Li-Wilson,” He adds, tugging his friend a little closer. Link doesn’t resist it.

Taylor allows a smile to pull at his lips, only flinching a little bit at the pain he now expects. “You can try again, you know,” he offers, looking up at Link through his lashes. 

“I can?” His friend asks, skin flushed darker across his cheeks. “I didn’t make it too awkward?”

“Nope!” Taylor responds, popping the “p.” 

“Nothing awkward about a good old-fashioned makeout session with your best friend!”

“Best friend,” Link echoes, “Right…”

“C’mon,” Taylor goads, crooking a finger toward him as he smirks. “I don’t bite.”

Taylor’s gaze lowers from Link’s face and rests at the side of his friend’s neck, taking note of the sparse freckles there. His teeth feel a little heavier in his mouth.

“Not unless you want me to,” he murmurs. 

“What?” Link asks, sounding strangled. 

“Don’t worry about it,” Taylor evades.

“If you’re really sure -“

“I am,” Taylor confirms, moving to sit half-gracelessly in his friend’s lap, hands steadying his weight on Link’s strong shoulders. “Now, less tally-talky, more smoochy-smoochy!”

“So demanding,” Link teases, even as he threads his fingers through his hair again. Taylor can hear the smile in his voice without having to look - which is good, because if he did, he’s pretty sure he’d give into the impulse to kiss the curve of his lips without preamble.

“You bet.” Taylor’s voice comes out much breathier than he expects as he meets Link’s eyes. “Don’t forget the spell this time!”

“I won’t! Probably.” 

Just like before, Link leans in again, and a slight smile pulls at Taylor’s lips as he meets him halfway. 

The sensation of Link’s lips against his own is a little less foreign now, a little less startling. Taylor lets himself melt into it, and just before he closes his eyes he can see the adorable little furrow of concentration between Link’s brows that he gets whenever he’s casting something. 

Kissing his best friend tastes like vanilla chapstick and Taylor’s favorite soda. Link had snagged a bottle of lychee Ramune out of his hands earlier, saying something about how carbonation was bad for braces and offering his homemade sports drink instead (which hadn’t tasted too great but wasn’t quite as bad as Taylor had expected). Taylor finds that he doesn’t really mind, now - not when the flavor is even more addictive this way.

Link’s hands come up to cradle the sides of Taylor’s face like some sort of fairytale prince, firm and gentle and insistent all at once. The soft pressure of his friend’s fingertips ghosts along the jut of his jawline, and it’s almost worshipful, like Link sees Taylor as someone to be adored. 

The tenderness of it all sends a thrill down Taylor’s spine, and then the chill spreads, unfurling itself through every nerve. 

Taylor has been on the receiving end of Link’s magic before, but he’s rarely lucid enough to appreciate it, to bask in the comforting coolness his friend’s Lay On Hands brings. It’s less like running an open cut under cold water and more like a fresh breeze in the middle of a stagnant summer afternoon, he thinks, something blissful and relieving that reminds him of safety, just like the boy he’s kissing. He falls forward into the embrace - both the spell and Link’s affection - as his hands tangle themselves in the back of Link’s athletic shirt, chasing the feeling. Link’s magic is a deeply soothing sensation, a balm to Taylor’s flushed cheeks and fire-bright nerves and burning heart, and he can feel himself melt in Link’s hold, his thoughts reducing to little more than a warm haze against his lips.

Link pulls away after what probably amounted to only a few moments, and Taylor leans after him on instinct. His eyes flutter open just in time to see Link gazing down at him fondly through his lashes, the last dregs of his magic sparking across his irises in anvil-sharp flashes of bronze before fizzling out entirely. His lips are slightly kiss-bruised, and it sends a jolt of satisfaction through Taylor’s stomach as he realizes that he did that.

“Did it work this time?” Link asks him, still cradling Taylor’s face in his hands, thumbs still grazing lightly across his cheeks.

It takes a few seconds for Taylor to register the question, then a few more as he prods at the back of his teeth with his tongue, clenches his jaw experimentally.

“Looks like it!” He confirms happily, though his joy sours a bit as Link’s hands leave his face to lean back on his arms, mourning the loss of contact.

“You’re a genius, Link,” Taylor praises, smiling and then smiling wider when he realizes that he feels no pain whatsoever. “Think you could do that again whenever my joints are acting up?”

He doesn’t really mean it - of course, a bigger part of him than he’d like to admit does, but his tone was supposed to come off as teasing - but Link’s eyes go wide and his cheeks darken further, and maybe Taylor wouldn’t mind at all if his friend takes that one hundred percent seriously.

“I- I mean, if you want t- If it’d help?” He fumbles, face flushing further as he stutters. It’s pretty commonplace to see Link a bit flustered, but it’s different when Taylor knows that he’s the reason for it. It’s pretty cute, in his opinion. 

“It’d do more than help. Chronic pain sucks ass, but you’d be, like, my personal angel,” Taylor says, looking up at Link. 

You already are, his mind adds for him. 

“Sure, then. Anytime. Uh, that’s what friends are for, right?” Link asks, those big brown eyes of his searching Taylor’s face for something.

He said “anytime”, is Taylor’s only coherent thought, one that runs giddy circles in his brain. I kissed Lincoln Li-Wilson. Twice. I just kissed my best friend twice. He said he’d kiss me again. God, I want to kiss him again. 

“Mm,” Taylor half-responds, still reeling from the way Link’s hands carded through his hair and smoothed over his cheeks and the way their lips slotted together. 

“Oh,” Taylor hears Link say distantly. “Okay, that’s, um. Okay.”

“Mm,” Taylor hums again, still in the process of rebooting what’s left of his brain.

A hand waves in front of Taylor’s face. “Taylor? You okay there, buddy? Did I do the spell wrong somehow? Please tell me I didn’t break you.”

You can break me anytime, Taylor thinks, mind conjuring images he definitely should not be having this close to the subject of his fantasies.

Taylor shakes his head in attempt to clear them. “All good, my man! Just, uh, thinking.” He desperately hopes his face isn’t as red as it feels.

“Wanna get back to homework, then?” Link says, gesturing to the pile of notebooks. “I think one of our make-up quizzes is due tonight.”

“Oh, shit, I forgot about that. We should probably get back to studying, huh.” He scoots away from Link to grab a notebook and his laptop, and for once in his life he misses the body heat of having a person next to him.

“Okay,” Link says, patting the empty space next to him and propping himself up against Taylor’s headboard.Taylor complies, settling himself into place at his side and handing him a pen (ballpoint, blue ink, Link’s favorite kind). He finds his own (a click pen, black gel ink) after a few moments of feeling around on the comforter.

“We’re still on chapter seven, right?” He asks, chewing on the end of his pen as he attempts to decipher the chicken scratch that is his own handwriting. 

“Unfortunately,” Link sighs, slinging his left arm around Taylor’s shoulders. 

As Taylor leans into Link’s side, he thinks that even though make-up work is bound to be hell, there are much less fortunate things than this. He smiles to himself, and it doesn’t hurt one bit.

[resha04]

The 5+1 games I play to get cozy

When the world feels too much and the days feel too fast and tiring, cozy games are (one of) the balm for the soul.

I personally love cozy games with medium-long length, and that have an underlying plot going on, even though it's just traveling the world to take photos. Here, I'll share 5 + 1 of such games, which are my favorite as of April 2024:

TOEM

You grew up listening to your Nana tell you about the legendary TOEM. Now, armed with a camera, a backpack, and your beloved old pocket radio, you go out into the world to find TOEM and take a picture of it (as well as snapping as many photos as possible along the way).

Cute, charming, and very, very cozy, I deliberately took my time playing it because I wanted the experience to last. (Also, when I couldn't progress past a certain point, the dev team was very kind to fix the issue – even though they've moved on to making another game.) It has quirky, adorable characters with quirky, adorable problems you got to help solve, and a variety of animals you can pet (my favorite is the monkey).

Night in the Woods

College dropout Mae Borrowski went home to find her dying hometown still as lovely in autumn as it's always been, but with something sinister lurking in the shadow.

Despite how I made it sound, this game is still very cozy. As Mae, you spend your days visiting your old friends, listening in to the townspeople's convo, stargazing with your old teacher, and visiting your mom at church, among a few, with the stunning background of Possum Spring in autumn. And don't forget the soundtrack!

Wytchwood

"Once upon a time, there lived an odd witch in an odd little house, at an odd little swamp."

You woke up, found a goat have munched through your grimoire, and discovered that you've made a deal with the aforementioned goat – a deal that you can't remember. Go out into the world, craft potions and items, and vanquish 12 great evils while being snarky about it.

As you can see in the picture, Wytchwood has amazing visual. The writing is witty and funny, it has an entertaining cast of characters and fun gameplay, and the music just immerses you more in its world.

Walking on A Star Unknown

(Screenshot by vgperson)

A pair of siblings, Fukurou and Eddie, were traveling the galaxy to fulfill their late mother's wish when they crash-landed on a foreign planet. The planet happened to be hosting a cooking festival, and the winner will get one wish granted by the Goddess. So what else is there to be done except participating and aiming for the win? If you happen to make friends and learn the planet's dark history along the way, it can't be helped, can it?

This is an old game but it has such a special place in my heart even after years. It's wholesome, relaxed, has a ton of fun side-quests and lovable npcs, funny writing, and a touch of dark – a perfect mix of my favorite things. Segawa (the creator) never failed to immerse me in their small but charming world. And I'm usually not fond of too much side-quests, but Segawa's is an exception: the side-quests involve the npcs, and I love the npcs.

You can find it here. Vgperson did an amazing job translating it and its pun-ny writing.

Farethere City

(Screenshot by vgperson)

Pigula, a little boy(?) with one eye, has always dreamed to open a general store. So when he moved to Farethere City, the first thing he did was looking for a vacant building to open his shop. And it just happened that there was one, in the downtown, which happened to be on sale at such bargain price! Nothing is suspicious whatsoever!

Again, despite my description, this is a relaxed, low-tension game. Another of Segawa's game, and also one that has a special spot in my heart. The dark tone is more prominent than Star Unknown, and it's arguably more horror than cozy game, but I still find it very comforting. It's wholesome – sometimes bittersweet, it has a cast of lovable characters, and it has enough mystery to hook you and keep you playing.

You can find it here. My enormous gratitude to vgperson for translating these games, and translating it with apparent love.

(+1) Melon Journey

(Screenshot from the game page)

You woke up after a stormy night, and couldn't find your friend. So you embarked on a journey to find him/her.

It's been a while since I played this game, and I haven't replayed it again, but I remember how much fun I had playing it and how I was a little disappointed that it ended so soon. Melon Journey is shorter than the other five, but it's very charming and very deserving of a place in the cozy games list. The visual is pleasant to look at, and I love the characters and their little – sometimes lovingly silly – problems, which we have to solve if we want them to give us info.

You can find the free ver here. There's a longer, paid version in Steam titled Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories :)

[eriquin]

The Trolley Problem, Part 10

Plot twist!

(master post)

Part 10

Steve went through the rest of the story as best he could. He got a couple of interruptions from Eddie at points, like “So, the girl’s psychic?” and “How did the cop get involved?” and “Is there just the one monster?” and “But the missing kid is still alive, right? You can’t kill a kid in a story, Harrington. You just can’t.” 

He stopped the story right before the last day, leaving out the big rescue efforts. Eddie was obviously hooked. “Okay, but then what happens?” he asked. 

“I’m still coming up with it,” Steve said. “But what do you think? Does it sound okay so far?” 

Eddie furrowed his brow and shrugged. “I mean, you’ve got a lot of shit going on there,” he said. “The part with the cop and the boy’s mom discovering a government conspiracy is a bit weak. Feels like you’re leaving out a lot of the mystery there.”

Steve frowned. That was a part he’d never been clear on. “Yeah, that’s a good point,” he said. He patted his jacket, looking for a pencil and paper, but didn’t have anything on him. He’d left all his school stuff in his car before coming out here. “I wanted it to explain where the psychic girl came from in the first place.” 

“Yeah, I get it, it’s just a little weak,” Eddie said. “How’d she get out of the lab, anyway?”

Steve raised his eyebrows. “Jeez, I don’t know. They were so preoccupied with the monster that they lost track of her?”

“Eh,” Eddie said, waggling his hand back and forth. “Maybe she had already planned to escape. Or someone helped her get out.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Steve scratched his chin. “Man, I just wanted to ask you about some D&D references so I could make it sound authentic. And maybe about the kids’ motivations, because you probably know kids like them.”

“I’m sure you know kids like them, Harrington,” Eddie said with a grin. “I mean, aren’t you basing this off of people in town? Wheeler’s little brother and the like?”

Steve groaned. “I mean, yeah, but it’s not like I can go talk to them about it.”

Eddie snickered. “And I don’t think Wheeler would appreciate you killing off her best friend while your self-insert character seduces her.” He tutted and shook his finger at Steve, who went pale at the suggestion. “I appreciate that you made yourself an asshole in this story though. That’s very self aware of you.” 

“Jesus, was it that obvious?” Steve asked. “I need to make sure it’s set somewhere else. Maybe somewhere out east, or in Maine like Stephen King does for all his shit.”

Eddie laughed. “Or switch it up a little bit,” he said. “Have your dickhead rich boy invite the charming local drug dealer to his party and have him be eaten by the monster instead. You have my permission.”

“Oh, Jesus,” Steve said, rubbing his forehead. “No, I’m not going to write you into this just so you get eaten by a demogorgon.”

“Demogorgon?!” Eddie shrieked with glee. “Is that what you’re calling the monster?”

“I mean, that’s what I’ve been calling it in my head,” Steve said, cringing that he’d let the information slip so easily. “That’s a D&D monster, right?”

“It sure is,” Eddie steepled his fingers together. “How did you know that, Harrington?”

Steve felt a little flabbergasted. “I... I don’t know, okay? I just heard it somewhere and it sounded cool.” 

“Oh, indubitably.” Eddie nodded and looked smug. “But Demogorgon is the name of a singular creature. A demon lord, considered the prince of demons, and having an immense and unending rivalry with Orcus, the prince of the undead.” He steepled his fingers. “Not a name for just any random interdimensional monster.”

Steve rolled his eyes, but he was secretly a little impressed that Eddie just knew that information off the top of his head. Dustin had let him read through his monster manual once upon a time, in a past life, and he didn’t remember any of those details. “Okay, but if the kids were fighting the demogorgon in their game, and then one of them got taken by a tall, creepy monster, then that’d be what they’d name it, right? It’d be at the top of their minds.”

Eddie appeared to think about this for a moment, then nodded. “All right, your logic stands. Proceed.”

“Anyway, I just...” He sighed. “I didn’t mean to base it off of so many people I know. It’s just...”

“Write what you know. I get it,” Eddie said. “You need to kill off the best friend so that your action hero girl can have a reason to get involved. I get it. I just think your girlfriend is going to be pissed at you about it.”

Steve rolled his eyes. “We’re not... Nancy’s not my girlfriend. We’re just... We were just flirting. It’s not going anywhere.” 

“That’s not what the rumor mill says,” Eddie said in a singsong voice. “But okay. I don’t get a cameo in your story. That’s fine. No one would give a shit if I got dragged off by a monster, anyway. They’d just go find their fix somewhere else.” 

That just made Steve stare at his hands. He didn’t have a good response for it. “Yeah,” he said. “That’s kind of fucked up, though.”

“Oh, relax, Harrington,” Eddie said, ducking down to try to meet his eyes. “It’s just a story. I’m not going anywhere. Don’t you worry your pretty little head over it.” 

Steve looked up and smiled, feeling a bit dumb. This wasn’t precisely how he wanted the conversation to go, but he wasn’t sure how to steer it back into a possible rewrite for the story. 

Eddie cleared his throat and fiddled with the handle of his lunchbox. “You need an ending, though,” he said. “Like, how do they get the boy back? Also you need to tie all the different parts together in the end. Might be tough.”

Steve nodded. “They need to figure out how to fight the monster and get into the hell dimension to rescue the kid. Probably break up into groups.” He shivered a little. It was getting dark out, and the temperature had dropped. They’d been out here longer than he thought. “So, would you be willing to work on this with me?” 

“What, like an editor?” Eddie looked surprised. “I’m not really qualified for that. I barely edit my own papers, dude.”

“No, but you could, like, help me come up with monster fighting strategies that would be believable. And figure out the cop part, maybe?” Steve leaned on his elbows and gave Eddie a pleading look.

Eddie sighed. “I dunno... Like, it’s a cool story, but why are you asking me? 

Steve flailed a little bit in his own head while looking for a reason. He thought he had planned this really well, but now he couldn’t remember what his excuse was. He grimaced a little. “I mean, you know I can’t talk to my friends about this. They’d think I was going crazy.”

“Even though it’s just a story?” 

“Yeah, well.” Steve shrugged. “Writing stuff like this is, like, deeply uncool.”

Eddie grinned. “So you thought of me.”

Steve rolled his eyes. “I thought you might think it was interesting and not be weirded out by the fact that it was me coming up with it.” Eddie looked like he didn’t believe him, or maybe he wanted to be flattered a little more and convinced. Steve knew how to massage an ego if that was what would get him what he wanted, but this was the wrong situation for that. He needed Eddie to want to be involved. “Look, if it’s not your kind of thing, that’s fine. I’ve barely got anything written yet, anyway. I’ll just work on it on my own.” 

Eddie crossed his arms and stared at him from across the table. “Yeaaah,” he said slowly. “It’s kind of not.” 

Steve’s heart skipped a beat but he kept his face steady, maybe letting himself look a little bit disappointed. He waited to see if Eddie was joking or not, but the other boy just shrugged apologetically. “Right. Okay, then,” he said, getting up. “I’d, uh, tell you not to tell anyone about this, but it’s not like it matters, right?” 

“Not like they’d believe me,” Eddie said. He got out his pack of cigarettes as Steve turned around and started walking away. “What, was that it?” 

“Sorry to waste your time,” Steve called over his shoulder. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and started walking back to his car. He went a little slow at first, wondering if Eddie was going to follow him, but he sped up once it was clear that he wasn’t. 

Instead of driving home right away, he pulled his backpack into his lap and pulled the notebook with his plan out to read it again. He was stuck, and running out of time. He would have to figure out how to fight the damn thing on his own. There was a terrible pressure behind his eyes, and he shut them and pressed his finger down on his sinuses, trying to relieve it. 

“Fuck,” he hissed. He felt like he’d wasted a week and a half trying to figure everything out and failing at every turn. His only option now was to stock up on weapons and hope that no one tried to stop him from keeping Will Byers from getting kidnapped by a monster.

[marimosalad]

8 TV shows can say a lot about a person!

Certainly for me, I think! I’m listing here many of my personal recs which (as this is a Haladriel blog) I will be talking about them in relation to Haladriel, if applicable.

Thanks for the tag @pursuitseternal 🌟

Without further ado:

———

1. Needless to say, The Rings of Power.

I’m a total sucker for Hot Bad Men™️ so I never stood a chance against Saubrand.

Blorbo aside, my attachment to this show far preceded my Saurondriel obsession — I was completely enamored with it since Episode 1, the first big scenic shot of Valinor; the Two Trees; the epic soundtrack; stunning costumes. I had tears in my eyes during the boat sailing into the light of Valinor. The scale of storytelling far exceeded my admittedly meager expectations.

Let me be clear: I did not want to like this show and was set on dismissing it as an inferior fan service following The Hobbit franchise. Next thing I knew my inner child had been awakened and my love for Tolkien universe rekindled. Add to this concoction my weakness for complex villains and the epic reveal of Hot Sauron — boom, I was done. I’ll never recover from this.

2. FRINGE.

This show has such a special place in my heart. It’s sci-fi, mystery, time travel, alternate timelines, quantum physics mumbo jumbo, love story, and a father/son story all rolled into one amazing series that ended abruptly and went under the radar for so long.

In this universe, Denethor II has reincarnated into a much more gentle, sweeter Dr. Walter Bishop who actually loves his son and will put his life at risk for his son over, and over, and over again.

I also have an undying admiration for Anna Torv’s Olivia Dunham (I’m planning a separate post of all my fictional female crushes over the years). I was so giddy to see her in The Last of Us — she’s an underrated actress who deserves to be in the spotlight.

3. LOST.

Probably the first TV show that I actually got seriously invested in as a young adult and since then I’ve watched it so many times in every phase of my life. I’ve named our new puppy after Penelope Widmore. My computer name is Not-Pennys-Boat. I’ve been thirsting after stranded-at-sea disheveled ruffians since Sawyer, who is my favorite character who was the antagonist at the beginning (I’ve been saying that Halbrand is the perfect mix of Sawyer and Aragorn).

Sawyer/Juliet is my absolute favorite onscreen couple, pre-Haladriel. Their chemistry is fire. They just work. (Hated him with Kate.) Just tell me this doesn’t scream Haladriel (aesthetically):

Bonus: scene look familiar? Desmond did it first 🔥

4. Outlander.

Ok, believe it or not, I wasn’t quite watching this for the copious amount of steamy sex just because I was watching with my husband AND my mom over the pandemic when we lived together, and needless to say it was quite awkward 😂 I have a particular inexplicable love for Scotland (despite having only gone there twice), so when I discovered the series I went head over heels in love with the landscape, costumes, historic details, music (Bear McCreary), mythology, etc. Oh, and the hot Scotsman too 🫠

Jamie and Claire are the epitome of cosmically connected soulmates, their love transcending across lifetimes. Their early sex scenes are 🔥🔥🔥.

Bonus fact: Sam Heughan was named after Samwise Gamgee by his Tolkien hippie parents. He’s been casually broadcasting that he wants a role in TROP. Could we help him? If enough of us use the tag #SamHeughanForCeleborn, will they give Galadriel the husband she deserves?

5. DARK.

Did I mention I’m a big fan of quantum physics, philosophy, time travel, and parallel universes? No? Well, this brooding German show just about represents everything I love. The perfectly planned 3-season show is everything you could ever hope for in a good TV series. It’s moody, intelligent, mind-bending, and heart-wrenching. Watch the first episode, and by the end of it, you’ll be hooked, I promise you. Oh and for the love of god, do not watch it dubbed.

6. Norsemen.

Ok, I don’t typically watch too much comedy. But I do like The Office. I also like medieval movies/shows. What if I said Norsemen was basically a medieval version of The Office? Oh, it’s so dumb. It’s so dumb I almost didn’t finish the first episode. But once you get in the groove, it’s hilarious as fuck. On Netflix.

7. True Detective.

I don’t know how many times I’ve rewatched this show — it’s my comfort show I watch by myself on my laptop on rainy evenings. I don’t know what that says about me, and I don’t want to know 😂

Aside from the intrigue of the creepy Southern Gothic and unsettling cult themes, I mainly attribute my obsession with the show to Matthew McConaughey’s brooding Rust Cohle. He’s tall and lanky, a total weirdo, a lone wolf, has commitment issues, single-minded about his job, and (a bit more than) slightly unhinged. Also known as my kind of dude.

8. Better Call Saul.

Greatest of all spin-offs, who knew that the show about the sleazy lawyer who represented the world’s greatest meth kingpin was actually a love story in disguise?

Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn as Jimmy and Kim are the perfect embodiment of a modern couple who are equals and opposites, bring out each other’s best and worst, and have an undying respect for one another which serves as the backbone for their relationship. They even take turns towing on opposite sides of the law, pushing and pulling each other’s inclinations towards Good & Bad, only to find each other drowning in the dense grey area that is all too real. They are the *could have beens* for Galadriel and Sauron in the best case scenario (I could go on with the similarities but I don’t want to spoil the show).

Bonus fact: Gennifer Hutchison was the writer for both BCS and TROP. This fact should speak volumes about the kinds of discussions that would have occurred in the writer’s room regarding the nature of Galadriel and Sauron’s relationship. Watch the show and you’ll understand.

I’ve got many more recommended shows, but I think these 8 have been my primary emotional support shows over the past few years. I debated including Raised By Wolves, but as it was prematurely canceled there isn’t a whole lot I could say about it, despite having a fantastic premise (and which I still recommend people watch).

No pressure tags (but also curious to know): @starlady66 @maironiiel @demonscantgothere @scriberated @wyrd-syster @formerlyir @nenyabusiness @thegreatzombieartisan and any others who want to join.

[oldwebmlp]

From: http://web.archive.org/web/20090806065859/http://geocities.com/baby_blumen/firstpony.html

Text from page below the cut:

My First Pony

...a memory

It was the summer of 1983 and I was pony crazy.  I remember the day my friend brought over her ponies: Cotton Candy and Bubbles.  As soon as I saw them I was hooked.  What were they? Where did she get them from? How could I get my own? We played with the ponies all day, then when my friend had to go home I took her Bubbles and hid it in my Barbie McDonalds -- I wanted a pony so bad I would steal one!

Well of course I gave Bubbles back and my mom told me that I would get my own pony soon enough, but this was when My Little Ponies were still fairly new and not an easy find at the local toy store.  It wasn't until a few months later that I got my first pony...

I had lost another one of my baby teeth and put it under my pillow at night before I went to sleep.  The next morning I reached under the pillow for the usual dollar, but it wasn't there. The Toothfairy had taken my tooth and left me nothing -- what a rip off!  I got out of bed, ready to go express my disappointment to my parents when something caught my eye.  There at the foot of my bed was a My Little Pony! Yes, there were some new little hair clips too, but who cares about barrettes when you have a brand spankin' new pony?!! The pony was Firefly and it was love at first sight.

I remember freeing Firefly from her package and breathing in deep that new plastic pony aroma.  I was 5 and getting high in my kitten decorated bedroom! I was addicted! I don't think Firefly was out of my sight for at least a month, she went everywhere I went and I even slept with her! I think I read the backcard like a thousand times, fantasizing about more ponies.  As much as I loved Firefly I realized that she wasn't enough -- I needed to get my pony fix! I needed more!!!

My parents could see that their precious daughter was going through MLP withdrawl so nearly all of my Christmas presents that year were MLP related.  Firefly finally had some friends to play with and I was able to shoot up on pony love again! I received Medley, Sprinkles with the Waterfall playset, and Peachy with the Beauty Parlor.  I was in pony heaven!  

More ponies would come, but you never forget your first ;)  And Baby Firefly was my first baby pony -- which makes perfect sense.  In 1989 my family moved and all the ponies  moved to the basement.  I decided I was "too old" to play with toys anymore -- I was too busy being a little Guns N' Roses skank! It wasn't until almost 10 years later that met up with my ponies again.  In late 1998 when I was looking for a desktop theme for my computer I found pictures of My Little Ponies on the net.  My face lit up as I remembered all my fond pony times.  In a matter of days I discovered eBay and the rest is history! Firefly and all of her friends have been rescued from the basement and now have their own place in my room.  I love collecting ponies again because it takes me back to my childhood when magic and imagination ruled!

Thank you Firefly! I love you!

[mirambles]

Crash Course in Romance - First Impressions

I started Crash Course in Romance purely for Jung Kyung Ho only to discover it is directed by HomeCha director and has all of my favourites in the supporting cast. And now I am firmly sucked in to it cause of Jeon Do Yeon. It’s my first time watching her and she is such an amazing natural performer - it’s like acting is in her blood. She just has to show up and she will make sure your eyes are fixated on her.

There maybe many actresses who are more beautiful than her , but I’m dead sure there are very few who can surpass her acting skills. I didn’t even know what a big star she is, until I saw this series and went and looked up her acting resume!

I adored Jung Kyung Ho in Prison PlayBook and Hospital Playlist ( a drama that didn’t hook me but his charcater did) and was dying to see him as a main lead and I’m absolutely loving him in every scene. He has to be one of the best actors out there who has picture perfect comic timing.

All his outbursts and expressions when he is startled by JDY’s character are downright hilarious. But he is also delivering on the emotional scenes, the scene where he cried eating her food for the first time - it hit home hard. It reminded me of the scene in Chocolate when the younger Ha Ji Won cried after eating the younger Yoon Kye Sang’s mom’s food at their restaurant. The connection she holds dear for the rest of her life in that drama. Food is so integral to KDramas and Korean culture and to see it form the foundation of the leads’ relationship, her food healing him - could it get better than this?

KDramas do found families the best - take Reply 1988, Prison Playbook, Hospital Playlist, Be Melodramatic, Hometown Cha Cha Cha - people bound by love, friendship and hearts. JDY looking after her autistic brother and her niece as her own kids, running a food store with her best friend is all kinds of heartwarming to me. She who had to give up on her handball dream, she who carries no grievance, no regrets, no sadness in her heart for having to bear the burden of raising a family at a young age. She who hasn’t had a chance to live her own life selfishly , but is selfless, pure hearted, free spirited, never once cynical, loving and a kind hearted soul. Her positivity is contagious.

Even when her autistic brother is misunderstood, she is polite and apologetic even though they are not at fault. Even when her daughter NaHee bears the brunt of unfairness from the academy and manipulation by the evil moms, she fights for fairness but doesn’t grudge the people.

JDY and Lee Bong Ryun’s friendship will hit the top 10 female friendships in KDramas if they keep going strong. I crave for the scenes between these two - pulling each other’s legs, egging each other on, encouraging and complimenting each other and most important reminding each other how valuable they are. Here’s to more women friendships! KDramas have often got this part right!

I don’t usually care for teenage romance or love triangles, but there is something endearing about the budding love triangle between Na Hee, Sun Jae and Geon Hu. Na Hee is married to her studies and completely oblivious to these two guys crushing on her and I love that! Also the scene in the park where Sun Jae and Na Hee tell each other their secrets - just a glimpse of how at the bottom of it all their friendship is pure and I hope that doesn’t change.

The moms don’t impact me after having seen Sky Castle, they are the toned down version of those monster moms from Sky Castle. Plus if you cast Kim Sun Young (love her in freaking every role and drama) and Jang Young Nam ( my favourite coach in BokJoo) - how am I supposed to hate them! I mean I want to whack the shit out of them for the nastiness they bring to the screen, but I love how well they are doing it. Do you get my conflict?

Crash Course in Romance has complete HomeCha vibes, Ms Sunshine meets Mr Grumpy trope, with backdrop of the competitive Korean education system pressure on kids and parents alike, which was dealt brilliantly in Sky Castle.

In summary, Crash Course in Romance is 100% Hometown Cha Cha Cha meets Sky Castle. I loved both dramas and it’s no surprise am enjoying this fine mix too right now.

What about you lot?

[tetsunabouquet]

Basic Instinct Chapter 24

Masterpost Whilst Rima was working hard on finding Yukimaru a suitable nearby stable, you were sitting down in her garden with Akashi. There was a comfortable bench there, were you had a nice view of the entire garden. You and Akashi sat comfortable and went over the plans Akashi had. "My grandmother did think of having a small, indoor cinema to be built when my mom was young. She kept it in a good state, and she actually continued to use it for herself. We should browse her movie collection to see if she has something that we'd like." Your eyes widened at Akashi mentioning the mini cinema. To this day, you still felt like you couldn't comprehend how rich he really was. But a movie date with Akashi sounded pretty nice. You could imagine the two of you curling up together as you watched a movie and the thought made your cheeks turn red ever so slightly. Akashi saw it, and pressed a kiss on your left cheek, making your face turn an even brighter shade of red. "Stop it." You said, feeling embarrassed, which only made Akashi wrap his arms around you and launch an attack of kisses all over your face. You giggled in his arms. The two of you were so happy, the dreadful memories about your parents earlier already drowned out by each other's laughter and sweet kisses. Sure, there was a sense of vulnerability still tangible in the air, but it only drove you further in Akashi's arms as you longed to feel safe. You knew Akashi felt the same, which made you happy. Being his escape and peace was a very flattering achievement. So the two of you enjoyed each other, took in those adorable little flaws people could when they started living together. Like morning breath, tangled hair that betrayed how the other slept and the drowsy expression of someone who was still in the process of waking up. Could there be happiness that was grander then these intimate little moments the two of you were sharing? Those little secrets of Akashi, that you were the first girl to discover. You knew that the girls at school who envied you were furious if they knew you'd be the first to many of Akashi's precious little moments. You hadn't given it much thought, how often you were to first person to try something with Akashi. It made you think of how important you must be, how there might be a chance that you were as important to him as he was to you. You had spent so much time giving love to people who didn't loved you back with nearly as much devotion, so the idea Akashi was genuinely as devoted to you and as in need of your love as it was the other way around, made your heart do little loops of joy. "Alright, we're going to watch a movie later, but what kind of genre do you like?" You asked him, curiously. You felt like you couldn't know enough of him. "Well, I'm a big fan of the Godfather trilogy, even though the third kind of sucks." You giggled at that. "I know!" He looked at you in surprise. "What? My mom is a huge fan of maffia movies. I know all the classics. Same goes for detectives." He chuckled, just marvelling once more at how perfect you were for him. "I take it you like exciting crime stories?" "Yeah, but true crime often rubs me off the wrong way with the numerous fangirls glamorizing awful monsters and maffia movies generally contain too much violence and guns. I prefer detectives myself, and just think over and over about the mystery at hand. My favorite is the movie adaptation of The 13th Tale. That was a more recent detective coming from the BBC and it got me so hooked I even read the book by Diane Setterfield." "I haven't watched that many detectives, but the BBC seems to be doing the best job at creating them." "Absolutely! Even some of their foreign projects, like the ones at BBC America are awesome. Though I'm not that fond of like, the Sherlock show with Benedict Cumberbatch. That one literally defies the rules Edgar Allen Poe made out when he wrote the first modern detective as we know it!" Akashi thought your nerdy outburst was absolutely adorable, and it certainly had hyped him for the movie date. He couldn't wait.

[tfpshatteredglasswriter]

Okay, I don't have pictures but a lot has gone through my head after watching the two final episodes of season 5.

The first being I thought Gabriel went insane with power. My friend, included, thought he went insane due to the power of the miraculous.

The second is the illusion that Kagami's mom and Gabriel did to fool everyone to think Ladybug and Cat Noir kidnapped Adrien and Kagami.

Third, Gabriel discovering who Ladybug truly is and BUG NOIR DESIGN IS OFF THE HOOK! I LOVE HOW SHE LOOKS!

Fourth, the fight between Monarch and Bug Noir was intense and Lila using a disguise.

Fifth, every heroes from New York to Lady Dragon fighting to protect those that weren't akumatized.

Sixth, Gabriel finally realizing his mistake but he used venom on Marinette to get the two very important miraculous but at a good cause.

Seventh, DANG! TIKKI AND PLAGG IN THEIR TRUE FORMS ARE BREATHTAKINGLY SURPRISING!

Eighth, Gimmi is the fusion of Tikki and Plagg known as the Kwami of reality.

Ninth, that each wish the person who got both miraculous always has a price to be paid.

Tenth, oh man... I have no words how devastated I am when Gabriel gave up his own life for Emilie to come back so Adrien will be happy.

Eleventh, Adrien and Marinette finally having their happy ending. And yes the ship has sailed, people. And Ms Bustier as the new mayor and her little baby, Harmonie, is so adorable!

Twelfth, I knew Lila would get the butterfly miraculous! I already knew it since the beginning!

Thirteenth, last but not least the cliffhanger and foreshadowing of that Miraculous Episode special. It's gonna be a battle between two worlds. One is the prime reality and the other is alternate reality.

Feel free to tell me how you all react to the two new episodes cause it made me cry like crazy out of so many emotions right now.

[arendaes]

All right now that the afternoon eepies have been cured, I want to tell you a bit about her!

Saskia is technically my second Warden. The first time I played DAO I played as a Human Warrior because I was brainwashed by reading fandom posts into believing that was the Best One. I really hated it, and it culminated in Alistair sacrificing himself to defeat the Archdemon sooo...yeah, we don't talk about it. The character got scrapped and for my second playthrough I drew up an elven mage instead, like I originally wanted to before the fandom got its hooks in me. Also, just the record, I think Aeducan is the best origin, story-wise.

Background-wise, Saskia is originally from the Denerim alienage. Before she was born her mother worked as a maid in a noble's home, but was let go when they discovered she was pregnant. Saskia never knew her father; her mother had been engaged to a sailor, who promised he would marry her after his ship returned from its latest voyage. He never did, and Saskia's mom thoroughly believed he had abandoned her (he didn't - the ship was ransacked and sunk by pirates.) Her mother tried her best but struggled to raise her without a steady source of income, and often worked herself to the bone to be able to provide for them. This unfortunately led to her falling gravely ill, and one day a six-year-old Saskia came home from playing outside to find her mother's corpse on the floor of their cramped apartment. This was when her magic manifested itself - Saskia remembers her mother's lifeless eyes and burst of icy cold, and nothing else.

As I often refer to her (in my head), Saskia is the cocky little shit that predates Ariadne. I lean hard into a mage warden's established competence and confidence. Saskia is 18 years old when she undergoes her Harrowing, which looking around seems to be rather par the course for when it typically happens. She was very eager to get it over and done with, so she could start her studies in earnest. See, Saskia had a plan - she wanted to be Knight-Enchanter, and possibly even earn the right to live separate from the Circle. She excelled in all her lessons, and Irving himself was her mentor because of the promise she showed. The thing is…all that praise absolutely went to her head a little bit. Saskia has a very inflated opinion of herself and her abilities, and if she didn't enter the Fade for her Harrowing knowing what was happening, she might have been much easier for the Pride demon to fool.

Hi Saskia hiii

[wheredidhiseyebrowsgo]

Can we please get ace/aro!stiles

Hi anon. @midnightwinterhawk found some.

maybe hold my hand by Cancer

(1/1 I 2,487 I General I Sterek)

"By the time he turned twenty-three, he had a seriously extended knowledge of all things sexual. He just didn't want the sex part of it. Sex, he decided, was for reading. He wasn't disgusted by it, or tired of it, or strongly against it; it just didn't seem worth the effort. It wasn't that he didn't want to have sex ever again, it was just that it may not bother him that much if he never had to do it again; that maybe it would be okay to not."

the one where Stiles' sexual orientation is pretty much "meh" then realizes he may be in love, proceeds to maybe panic, and Derek is just too invested to care about anything else

Waiting for Pack by DiscontentedWinter, hisaribi

(8/8 I 14,927 I Teen I Steter)

This isn't the first time Stiles has woken up in a different world. This isn't the first time that Peter has been caught in a place where time doesn't exist. Except this time they have each other.

Hook, Yarn, Sinker by pprfaith

(23/23 I 65,676 I Not Rated I Steter)

Stiles is happy with his store, his hobbies, his friends. Peter's just trying to figure out how to raise his nieces and nephew without fucking them up too badly.

Paths cross.

AND

@kevaaronday found more!

They Don’t Do That At Walmart by luulapants (1,969 | 1/1 | Teen | Stackson) “When’s the last time you went clothes shopping?”

“I don’t know!” Stiles whined. He gestured vaguely in the air. “I don’t clothes shop so much as clothes appear to me from the ether and then I keep them until the gods of decay reclaim them.”

Jackson paced. He stopped. “We’re going shopping,” he decided.

This Or That, But Always Mine by clotpolesonly (2,312 | 1/1 | Gen | Sterek) He and Derek were not a thing.

Or, okay, maybe they were kind of a thing, in a way.

But they were definitely not that kind of thing.

Stiles just wished everyone else could understand that.

We Pick Ourselves Undone by scilessweetheart (3,090 | 1/1 | Teen | Stydia) For Asexual Awareness Week!!

Between the ADHD, the anxiety, and the dead mom, Stiles was used to being an outsider. Then, there were werewolves and nogitsunes. Discovering his asexuality was just another thing to add to his list of "weird things about Stiles". Luckily, his friends are there to remind him that he isn't broken like he thinks he is.

On a Spectrum by alikatastic

(3,694 | 1/1 | Teen | Steter) Stiles goes through life thinking something is wrong with him. Every relationship he has had ended because he thought he was broken. He had gone years without having loved or had sex with another person. So, when Peter started hitting on him, he only flirted back because it was fun. He was having fun interacting with another human being in a risque way. He didn't think it would ever lead to a relationship or sex; he just wanted to have fun. Too bad he fell in love, or could it be a good thing in the end? Because being Ace does not equal being broken.

V-cards for V-day? By Drapetomania

(4,485 | 1/1 | Gen | Sterek) Stiles thinks about how they could be showering together right now if being naked together was a thing they do. Hell, they don't even have those crazy desperate make out moments where they're seconds away from tearing off each other's clothes. Stiles expected things to change when he got into a relationship. Then he expected things to progress as the relationship did. But here he is, finding himself completely indifferent to having sex with Derek Hale - or, even more so, he kind of doesn't want to have sex with Derek Hale.

aka ace!Stiles

Life Is What You Bake It by neglectedtuesday

(1/1 I 12,503 I General I Sterek)

“You’re not broken Mr. Stilinski, nor are you a freak,” Deaton says, reaching into a drawer and searching for something, “You are simply asexual.”

“Asexual?” The word tastes heavy in Stiles mouth but it doesn’t feel wrong.

“Asexuality is not uncommon in society,” Deaton continues, finding what he was looking for. Unsurprisingly it’s a pamphlet. “There are lots of omegas, betas and alphas that are asexual or a form of asexuality. There are many chat forums and websites that cater specifically to asexuality. Obviously you will not be required to go to play-mating classes anymore and if you so wish you can remain off the suppressants.”

Stiles clutches the pamphlet in his hands. Asexual. Not broken, just asexual. It’s a word that Stiles can definitely get used to.

It's gonna take a tender touch by justonemoremiracle

(16/16 I 39,607 I Mature I Sterek)

“So, what can I do for you? What are you looking for, exactly? I’m assuming you checked the website to get an idea of what services we provide.” “Yeah, I— it said you did a bit of everything. Like, you don’t just focus on sexual encounters.” “That is what most people request, but yes, we offer a variety of things. Some people come looking for sex, some just want a piece of arm candy to show off, and some want a mixture of both. I’m assuming you’re on the second group?” “Not… exactly.” Stiles bit his lip, unsure whether to continue, but when Derek raised a questioning eyebrow, he soldiered on. “I’m looking for a… companion. Kinda.” “… A companion.” “Yeah, like,” he blushed. “Someone to talk to. Share some meals with. Um, with some touching thrown in, but nothing, like, sexual or anything. Stuff like that.”

[metalandmagi]

Winter 2021 Anime Worth Watching!

Since 2020 basically sacrificed itself to give us the most stacked anime season of all time, I’m currently buried under the weight of almost 20 shows airing per week. So for anyone who’s looking for some anime to watch this winter, here’s some first impressions! I’m speed running my list this time by only talking about the new shows...because otherwise this would be my great American novel. 

If anyone’s interested, I have master lists for both 2020 anime and 2019 anime, because there’s no shortage of fun things to find. 

New Shows!

And before anyone asks, So I’m A Spider, So What? isn’t on here, because CG spiders freak me out.

Cells At Work Code Black: This...less comedic spin off of Cells At Work (made by a different studio) takes the wholesome concept of Osmosis Jones meets cute anime girls and turns it on its head. In this much more depressing version, we follow a rookie red blood cell who works in the body of an overly stressed, alcoholic smoker who puts every strain on the body imaginable. I love Red Blood Cell AA2153 and his co-workers, but man am I glad we get the regular Cells At Work airing this season too, because I need something fun and uplifting after seeing my sweet son go through hell every episode. 

*Heaven’s Design Team: Have you ever wondered how God came up with some of the weird ass animals that live on this planet? Like, what’s the deal with giraffes? And why can’t we have dragons and flying horses? Well this is a comedy about the engineers and designers in heaven creating the new animals that are going to inhabit the Earth. That’s it, that’s the show. It’s kind of in the same vein as Cells At Work, having comedy blend with a surprising amount of educational information. If you want something light and funny, this is the show for you (though I don’t think it needs to have full length episodes). I’m just hoping there’s an episode about how the hell the platypus was created. Also it’s the only new one available on Crunchyroll.

Horimiya: A romantic comedy about a girl named Hori who fits the image of a perfect queen bee and a quiet bespectacled boy named Miyamura who never makes an impression at school. When the two meet by chance outside of the classroom, we see that Hori is practically raising a younger brother by herself, and Miyamura is actually a sweet guy who happens to be covered in tattoos and piercings. This show is an exercise in breaking down the images people have of others in their minds, and it’s a concept that really hits home in a fun and meaningful way. Honestly, this has become one of my immediate favorites. The characters have great chemistry, and I can’t wait to see more of them!

Monster Incidents (Kemono Jihen): When big shot Tokyo detective Inugami is called to a rural town to investigate a series of strange animal deaths, he finds a mysterious boy with the nickname Dorotabo who has been shunned by the other children in town. As the detective gets closer to Dorotabo, he discovers that there may be more...inhuman secrets to the boy than he realizes...and Dorotabo discovers that Inugami has some secrets of his own. This is a hard show to sell without spoiling the first episode, but it had twists and turns that kept me engaged from start to finish. I’m really interested to see where the plot goes, because I thought this was going to be something totally different just from the PV and series summary. If it plays its cards right, this could be a great paranormal detective show!

Wonder Egg Priority: A psychological drama about a girl named Ai who starts having dreams about a mysterious egg that promises to give her what she wants most in the world...a true friend. Before long, she begins to see how the dream world and reality are tied together, and trippy antics ensue. It’s hard to say more without spoiling anything, but I had to go back and add this one in because I made the mistake of thinking it was an OVA when it’s actually a full series. And what a series it’s starting out to be. This anime has all the psychological discomfort of a Satoshi Kon product with the beauty and style of something from Kyoani (even though it’s made by Clover Works). It’s really one of those anime you just have to see to understand.

Sk8-∞ (Skate the infinity): An original skateboarding anime from Bones, featuring a typical sports anime protagonist who takes a new transfer student who has never skateboarded in his life under his wing. Together they compete in dangerous races and take the skating community by storm. The character designs rival Appare Ranman’s in outlandish creativity, and I can smell the main characters’ ship dynamic a mile away (considering they’re exactly the same as the protagonists from Robihachi). If you’re looking for some wild and crazy fun with top notch skateboarding animation, don’t skip this!

2.43: Seiin Koukou Danshi Volley-bu (Seiin High School Boys Volleyball Club): Yes, it’s another volleyball anime. And no, it’s not just a clone of Haikyu. This story follows Yuni Kuroba, a physically built but emotionally weak teenager who finds out his childhood friend Hajime is moving back to their hometown for high school. Yuni discovers Hajime has become an exceptional volleyball player and they join their school’s volleyball club hoping to turn the unknown team into a rising star. If anything, this anime is much more like Stars Align or Free, where the sport is a backdrop for letting the characters explore their personal problems. Or at least it seems that way after the first episode. I went into this show ready to throw it in the trash because how could anything compete against my beloved Haikyu, but I found myself really enjoying the dynamics of the main duo and I’m curious to see what the rest of the team is like.

And speaking of sports anime rip-offs…..I can’t believe I’m including this but…

Skate Leading Stars: The show where the animators clearly wanted to design another throw away idol anime but saw how popular Yuri On Ice was so they decided to make whatever the hell this show is instead. It revolves around a fictional team sport called skate leading, and we follow the world’s most insufferable main character, a former figure skater named Kensei who wants to return to the ice and join his school’s skate leading team after he finds out his childhood rival is going to compete in the sport. Look, this show is just trashy enough to get a certain type of audience hooked, and it mainly has to do with the best boy of the winter season, Hayato Sasugai, the aspiring team “coach” who pulled most of us into watching this show with his punk appearance, snide comments and smug personality. He’s basically the lovechild of Izaya Orihara and Shizuo Heiwajima in a high school sports anime setting. The show treats itself with the perfect amount of sincerity to get away with being absolutely ridiculous most of the time without making you feel like you’re watching it from a dumpster...like Try Knights. You will know after one episode whether this show is for you. All I can say is, Hayato is worth the watch, and I haven’t seen any 3D animation used for the skating scenes (yet) so that’s a win for me. 

Honorable mention:

Jobless Reincarnation ( Mushoku Tensei): Yet another isekai where the main character is hit by a car (big surprise) and gets reincarnated into a fantasy world...but he happens to remember his previous life and narrates himself growing up as a jaded adult. I’m only including this because it looked amazing animation wise, and I love the opening where getting hit by a car and dying is actually traumatic. And I love the protagonist’s parents (who are retired adventurers who just want to bang all the time). But honestly...the main character is the fucking worst, and I don’t know if I want to keep watching it because of how creepy and weird he is. Like...he’s the hit on your fantasy mom as a baby kind of creepy and weird. But for anyone who wants a cool looking isekai that had an amazing PV, it’s worth checking out. 

Continuing Series!

Because the real gold of the season is in all the established anime getting their next seasons, I’m just going to list some of the things that are also amazing and definitely worth checking out if you haven’t already (because I’ve already talked about most of them at some point and don’t know what else to say).

Attack On Titan season 4

The Promised Neverland season 2

Beastars season 2

Log Horizon season 3

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime season 2

Re: Zero season 2 (second cour)

Dr. Stone season 2

Cells at Work season 2

Osomatsu-san season 3 (second cour)

Higurashi New (second cour)

Jujutsu Kaisen (second cour) 

Not to mention all the shows I don’t watch that everyone else loves...like World Trigger (which I have seen quite a bit of, but long shounen shows are too much for me now) Quintessential Quintuplets, and Non Non Biyori. 

So there’s just some of all the anime airing this season. Hopefully, someone can find something they like. Here’s to a great year...well, of anime at least...

[faghubby]

Love of satin

As long as I could remember it was slips that turned me on. That flash of satin and lace. My mom always used to wear one, but it was also my teachers, random woman at the grocery store. Or even the old ladies at church. Some thing about the shimer knowing how soft they where and the hint of delicate lace. My mother worn satin night gowns. And that was my first step. I slipped one on one day and was hooked. Later I found satin panties. And would dress up and rub myself thru the slips and nighties. As I got older I put these things out of my mind. I focused on girls. Now girls my age rarely wore slips anymore. And although that was disappointing I discovered their soft skin and the touch of a woman more then enough.

I met Kate and we got married. Everything was great for a while. Till one day we went to a wedding. I noticed she was wearing a slip. The soft pink lace showed from the bottom of her dress when she crossed her legs. I couldn't keep my hands off her. When we got home I practically tore her clothes from her.

"No leave the slip on" I told her. I came almost as soon as I felt it. Kate didn't say a word but she knew. After that she started wearing slips alot. And satin nighties.

"I thought you like this" She would tease. One night she had worn a pink satin nightie with matching panties. After we made love she got up to change.

"Why don't you wear them to sleep?" I asked

"They ride up and I find them uncomfortable" She told me.

"Uncomfortable really I can't imagine" I told her.

"Well here you try them" She laughed throwing her satin panties at me. I got up and slipped them on I was hard immediately. Kate started to laugh then saw how turned on I was right after we had just had sex.

"Paul I knew you liked them but I never" She cooed and rubbed me thru her panties.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh" is all I could say. She grabbed the nightie and slid it over my head. She rubbed my nipples my penos was leaking into her panties.

She pushed me on the bed.

"You like wearing my lingerie?" She giggled.

"Yesssss, oh I missed this" I moaned.

"Missed? Do you wear panties often?" She asked. I realized I had said it out loud.

"Well when I was a kid I would try on my mom's and Kathy's ( my sister) I confessed.

"You look so cute" She scooted up. "Be my lesbian lover and eat my pussy" She told me. As she lowered herself I licked only then thinking I had just cum inside her.

"Its OK baby all girls taste cum eventually" She lowered herself down to my tounge and as she rubbed me thru her panties I didn't think about it just licked her dirty pussy. She kept me on edge until I, are her cum with my tounge then made me cum in her panties. She let me take off the soiled panties. But leave on the nightie. I fell asleep with 8n minutes.

I woke late Kate was already dressed

"I am going shopping with Amanda today" Kate informed me.

"Alright, I have alot of yard work to do anyway" I told her. I kissed her goodbye and went to start my day. It was a hot day I lost track of time it was after 4pm when Kate came home and called me inside.

"You stink go take a bath" She told me. I went into the bathroom and started the shower. Kate followed me in.

"No, I said a bath your going to need to soak out that stench" She told me and started to fill the tub. She added sweet smelling oils to the hot water.

"Now soak until I come to get you" She told me. Leaving me alone. I didn't like baths but thought why not. I slid into the hot water. The aroma was relaxing and my worn muscles started to relax. I kept adding hot water I must have been in there for an hour before Kate came in.

"Out" She said holding up a robe. I slipped it on and followed her to the bedroom. There where several small piles of clothes on the bed.

"I got you a few things" She told me. Picking up a pair of satin panties and handing them to me. They were a light purple.

"You liked them so much last night" She slid it against my chest letting the robe fall open. I looked at the other piles there seemed to be all satin. She bent and had me step into the panties. They fit better not as tight as hers last night. She then picked up a matching bra and wrapped it around me. I went to stop her but she just pushed my hands down.

"You don't like the way it feels?" She asked

"It feels wonderful" I moaned. She continued next a nightie slide over my head. She teased me and stroked me. Keeping me just from coming.

"Do you want to cum?" She asked. "Or do you want more?"

"Mooooorrrrreee" I pledded. Her hand slid inside the back of my panties she rubbed and massaged my ass. Her other hand was added and she kept pulling my cheeks apart. Her fingers teased my asshole.

"You want to be my girl?" She cooed in my ear.

"Noo" I whispered. She stopped and went back to the clothes.

"We got you all different girlie things for you to wear" She told me. Showing me a dozen pairs of panties, bras, nighties, slips and chimsoles all satin in pastel colors with lace trims.

"I want you to wear whatever makes you happy baby" She told me pushing back on the bed. She stripped off her clothes in a flash. Kate pulled my dick from my panties and lowered herself onto it. I lasted only moments before I filled her up with my seed. She lifted off me and scooted up sitting on my face. Cum dripped from her as my tounge was forced to clean it from her.

"Yes baby clean up all that warm yummy cum" She told me.

"You like it don't you?" She asked. I just kept pleasing her. Kate slid off my face and held me. She spooned me. My penis back in satin her hands caressed me. Her finger slid between my cheeks again. This time it applied a cool lotion. Her finger slid inside me.

"I want to fuck you like a woman" She told me. She moved her finger in and out.

"Would you like to experience what it's like to be a woman?" She continued

"Kate please stop" I begged.

"Are you not enjoying it?" She asked. She added a second finger and I came for a second time in under thirty minutes. This time inside my new panties. Kate picked out a new pair for me to wear.

"You have to hand wash, these and the pair from last night." She told me. I spent the rest of the night in the satin bra and panties and the nightie that didn't even cover my ass. We made dinner together then cuddled on the couch. Kate was in sweats. When we went to bed I realized she wore simple cotton white panties. I was dressed much more femine then her.

"Do you need to cum again" She asked as she spooned me taking the big spoon spot.

"No" I told her. I felt very small and submissive to her.

"Are you sure" her finger once again probed my ass.

"Kate, please no" I begged. She pushed in a second finger.

"Do you really want me to stop?" She bit my ear. She picked up the pace.

"Do you want a third" She whispered. I moaned and knodded. A third finger was pushed in. It hurt alittle as she worked it in and out. As she did I was rubbing against the bed. I cried out as I came in my panties.

"Go get cleaned up" She smacked my ass. I went to the bathroom when I returned she was working a vibrator in and out of her pussy. I had never seen this one before it was life like, but much bigger then me.

"Want to help" She replaced her hand with mine. She rubbed her nipples as I worked her toy.

"Faster baby" She moaned. I fucked her sinking the whole toy in over and over.

"Yes fuck me deep make me cum" She cried out. I was sure the neighbors would here. She slammed my hand down driving the toy all the way in as her body convosed and she screamed

"Yessssss" She laid there looking up at me as I held her toy.

"Put your panties on and come to bed" She closed her eyes and fell asleep. Over the next few weeks Kate kept me in satin panties. Had me wear slips around the house and nighties to bed. She also never took no for an answer to finger or just rub my ass. One night even sliding her hand down the back of my pants at an outdoor concert. I came in my pants as she fingered me. I was totally embarrassed but when I tried to talk to her about it later she pushed me on the bed and had me lick her to orgasm.

[ravennm84]

Of Moldy Bread and Cockroaches

I’ve seen a few fics where Lila reports the bakery to the health department and then plants bad pastries and pests just as the inspector arrives and gets the bakery shut down. I started wondering, what would happen if she got caught doing that? Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!!

Lila kept watch as she waited for the health inspector to finally arrive. She had made multiple fake reports about the bakery over the past week to get someone to come out, but no one had come yet. And she had found the perfect spot to make sure she saw the man arrive, too! She was in disguise in the park, on a bench that had a clear view of the bakery entrance, the side entrance that went to the Dupain-Cheng home, and still let her stay hidden. She didn’t have to worry about school at the moment since her stupid class and teacher thought she was visiting the royal family in Spain, and her gullible mother thought school was out for another akuma attack. Both of which gave her an alibi so no one would suspect her when Maribrat and her goody-goody parents were humiliated and lose everything.

She was almost too distracted by her daydream of Marinette crying and homeless to see a very professional looking man step out of a taxi in front of the bakery. He looked at the display with a very critical eye before writing some things down on his tablet. That had to be the health inspector she had been waiting for. Once she saw him entering the front, Lila hot footed it to the side entrance to sneak in. 

The door was locked, but she had come prepared with a lockpick set she had gotten a couple years ago. It was really too easy to get inside. In fact, it had been much harder to get the fake evidence she would need to shut the place down. She discovered while going through the dumpster for old pastries that the bakery didn’t throw away much of anything. They sold out most of the time, and the things that didn’t were donated to a local homeless shelter. It took three days of dumpster diving to find anything, which ended up being a single batch of croissants that had burned in the oven. Heck, collecting some cockroaches from a restaurant dumpster down the street had been easier; albet, a lot more disgusting.

Once inside, Lila crept towards the door as she heard Mme. Cheng speaking to the man. He was, in fact, the health inspector. A malicious grin stretched across her face as she put the first moldy croissant on the counter next to the-

“What are you doing here?” A deep voice growled behind her.

Lila froze for a moment, suddenly realizing that she had heard Mme. Cheng speaking with the inspector, but not M. Dupain. She couldn’t let herself get caught! She was facing away from him and he hadn’t seen her face yet, so there was still a chance. Grabbing the first thing she could, she didn’t even look to see what it was, she swung it around at the towering man before trying to run past him. 

Despite hearing him curse in pain, Lila didn’t make it two steps before the man grabbed her by the collar of her jacket and lifted her off of the ground. She swung her object at him again, only for the enraged man to grab her wrist and twist, forcing her to drop it with a shout as it clanged to the floor. 

The noise drew Sabine and the inspector to the back where they say Tom holding Lila off the ground. Furious and still trying to escape, she tried kicking at him only for him to release her wrist, grab her ankle, and then release her jacket so she was hanging upside down. More items hit the floor as her hat fell off, a couple of croissants and the tupperware container of cockroaches fell from her pockets, and landed next to a bloody knife…

Uh-oh.

Looking up, she saw that his right arm was bleeding from where she had slashed him with the knife, which had her fingerprints all over it. She was going to be in so much trouble unless she could think of a way out of this!

“What happened, Tom?” Sabine asked, worried when she saw her husband’s bleeding arm and was slightly confused by the girl hanging upside-down in their kitchen. It took a moment before she seemed to recognize Lila as the girl that had gotten her daughter expelled a few weeks before.

“I was coming down to meet Inspector LaStare with you and caught this girl putting bad pastries with the others.” 

“That’s not it!” Lila yelled in a panic and she wiggled in his grip, resembling a fish on a hook. “I-I-I was- I was getting rid of them! I was taking them off the counter to throw them away!”

“And your container of cockroaches?” Asked Sabine, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring dubiously at the girl.

“Those aren’t mine! I swear! If you would just let me explain-”

“I’ve already heard enough to recognize your voice, young lady,” the inspector snapped as he stepped closer to glare at Lila. “I bet you weren’t paying attention when you called the health department all those times and the recording told you that your call would be monitored and recorded. And when a single business gets over twenty complaints in less than a week, it gets some attention. But when we listen to the recordings and hear the same voice for every message, we figure it’s someone with a vendetta against the establishment. Still, we do our do-diligence and inspect the establishment, but I had no idea how stupid a person would be to attempt to plant fake evidence while I was here, in full view of the security cameras.”

She couldn’t help her surprised gasp as she, while still hanging upside down in the hulking baker’s grip, looked around the kitchen ceiling until her eyes landed on the cameras. One pointed at the side door she had picked open and the other pointed at the counter where she had put the moldy pastry.

Sabine leaned in close, glaring straight into Lila’s upside-down eyes. “Young lady, what is your mother’s phone number?” It was clear that it was more of a demand than a question, but she was still trying to think of a way out of trouble before Sabine grabbed her face and forced Lila to look at her. “You can either tell me her number now, or you can tell the police so she can go pick you up at the station while they tell her all the crimes you’re being charged with.”

Angry at being caught and forced to call her mother, Lila thought of what she could do as she tried to look and sound pitiful as she recited her mother’s number. Not difficult since she was red-faced from hanging upside-down for so long. She might not be able to get out of trouble, but she’d be damned if they didn’t pay for humiliating her.

After Sabine stepped into the front of the bakery to make the call, Lila tearfully looked up at Tom. “Can you please put me down? I’m getting really dizzy.”

She could tell that the man was tempted to drop her on her head, but he was too much of a goody-goody like his daughter and he eased her gently to the floor. As soon as he let go of her ankle, Lila’s uninjured hand snapped out and grabbed the tupperware of cockroaches, ripped off the lid, and flung the insects across the floor. 

Tom and Inspector LaStare yelled in surprise and disgust as Lila attempted to escape, this time running for the front of the bakery. She actually made it out of the kitchen, but ended up face to face with Sabine. Without a word, the woman grabbed Lila’s by the arm, flipped her over her shoulder to the floor, and twisted her arm to where she couldn’t move.

“Are you okay, Tom?” Sabine called, her voice eerily calm to Lila’s ears.

“She flung those cockroaches across the kitchen! They’re everywhere!” Tom yelled as he and the inspector scrambled to try and kill or capture the insects.

“I’ve already called her mother and the police, they’ll be here any minute.”

Lila’s struggles doubled when she heard that. “You said you wouldn’t call the police if I gave you my mom’s number!”

Sabine merely twisted the girl’s arm a little more, halting her struggles rather than letting her arm break. “I said no such thing. I only said you could choose whether to talk to your mother here or at the police station. And I promise you, young lady, your mother is going to hear everything you’ve been up to. Including what you’ve been doing Marinette.”

~oOo~

The fallout had been epic after the police and Lila’s mother arrived at the bakery. 

Greta Rossi had been in denial at first, not wanting to think that her daughter was capable of such terrible behavior. But it was hard to argue with the video evidence and eyewitness accounts of Lila attempting to plant moldy pastries, vindictively releasing the cockroaches in the kitchen, or attacking Tom Dupain with a knife, which would require stitches. 

It got even worse when school let out for lunch and the majority of Lila’s classmates came rushing over when they saw the police and ambulance at the bakery. Mme. Rossi had asked them why they were all out when there was an akuma on the loose. The class asked her why they were back in Paris since she was supposed to be in a meeting with the royal family of Spain. It became apparent after a few more minutes of back and forth that Lila had been lying for the entire time they’d been in France and Greta would have to meet with M. Damocles and Mme. Bustier soon about her daughter’s absences and failure to contact her.

When the police were placing handcuffs on Lila, she started shrieking. “You can’t do this to me! I have diplomatic immunity! Let me go or I’ll get you fired and Italy will invade France for what you’re doing to me!”

“Wrong!” Greta spoke over Lila as she approached her daughter. “I’m a secretary at the embassy, not a diplomat. Only I have immunity, you don’t. I was lucky to even be able to bring you on assignment rather than leave you with your Zio and Zia in Italy. But I see that was a mistake, and now both of us will have to pay for that mistake!”

Lila continued to shriek and curse as she was forced into the back of the police cruiser and taken to the police station. 

In the end; Lila was charged with corporate sabotage, breaking and entering, assault with a deadly weapon, and slander by Tom and Sabine. She was also charged for truancy, forgery, bullying, slander, and cyber bullying for what she’d done to Marinette at school. Lila’s mother was forced to pay for an exterminator to take care of the cockroaches, as well as all of the supplies and pastries that had been at the bakery and had to be thrown out due to the infestation that Lila had attempted to cause. But the worst was having to pay restitution for the time the bakery was closed. Turns out, Tom and Sabine’s bakery really was the top bakery in Paris and had the receipts to prove it.

There had been some worry that the temporary shutdown would hurt the bakery’s reputation, but Inspector LaStare, with the help of Nadja Chamack, had seen to it that none of the problems would blow back on the Dupain-Chengs. Inspector LaStare had gone on record stating that it was a rare occasion where an establishment was completely innocent of the accusations brought against it, but this was one of those times. He then showed footage of Lila planting the moldy pastry, assaulting Tom with the knife, and flinging the bugs into the kitchen before attempting to escape. He also stated that he was personally working with the Dupain-Chengs to make sure that the bakery was up to code and open as soon as possible so all of Paris could get back to enjoying their favorite pastries.

Viewers all over Paris were appalled at the actions of the teenage girl,discovering her vendetta was against Marinette since she knew about Lila’s lies. While laughing at her as they watched Tom hold her upside-down by her leg and Sabine flip the fleeing girl over her shoulder via security footage. The footage ended up being shared by people all over YouTube and gained millions of views, showing their support for the Dupain-Chengs and humiliating Lila on a now global level.

There was also sympathy towards Marinette and outrage towards the Francois Dupont administration when Nadja reported how Lila had also been bullying Marinette without receiving any help from the school. This would result in both Damocles and Bustier being suspended from their jobs until they completed training in regards to handling bullies.

With all the publicity against Lila Rossi, Gabriel Agreste had been left in a difficult position since Lila had only recently been named a new spokesmodel for his brand. Adrien, however, offered a solution to save face and help the brand in the future. So, when Nadja was doing a followup on the story the following week, Gabriel did a video interview where he very publicly announced Lila’s termination from the company for her actions and announced that he had offered Marinette an internship and a scholarship to the fashion university of her choice, so long as she was accepted. This caused a slew of universities to scout Marinette themselves, as it wasn’t every day a fashion mogul does a public shout out to a girl in college. And just like that, sales and public opinion of the Agreste brand went up.

Lila watched all of this unfold from her prison cell outside of Paris. She had been tried as an adult and was caught committing perjury during her trial, which prompted the judge to give her the maximum sentence for her crimes. She couldn’t even enjoy the pleasure of being akumatized anymore since she was so far out of the city. All she could do was sit in her cell eating moldy bread with cockroaches as her only friends as she sulked on the fact that she had failed, and the entire world was laughing at her.

Taglist:

@2confused-2doanything @7-sage-7 @aadnrsstar @abrx2002 @awkwardromances @bayball @babylovebug18 @botanicalfoxx @back-cats-and-broken-mirrors @caffeinetheory @cheshire5210 @chocolateherringtacofan @city-of-all-tunas @classycollectorreviewworld  @corabeth11 @chocolatechipcookiesandcamembert @darkened-flame @delightfulcookiesrecipespizza @fandom-trapped-03 @ghostmaster @iamblinkmarvelarmy @interobanginyourmom @izang @jesussavedevenme @kazedancer @kitten12113 @lady-phoenix-of-tardis @lilypotter2018 @lunataravler @ladylupuscrow @maskedpainter @miraculouslydumb @nerd-nowandforever @ola-is-dead @pandacatxd @plushbookworm @plz-excuse-my-inner-ravenclaw @pheonix-biach @pandora-fucking-box @raiderofthelostbooks @ramos123 @rowanrouge @rowanyx @ren121 @seesea22 @seraphichana @sashakoi @shypeacekitten @tazer6787 @that-girl-sakea @thecrazyfantrollshasmoved @the-smallest-kittenz @tishwinchesterannabethjackson @t1dwarrior-of-earth @ulmban @with-forward-motion @wonderbat91939 @zoiechance

[tbmaybank]

Blondes

Warnings: none really. Drinking I guess, LGBTQ reader, coming out to friends.

Summary: reader is JJs little sister, and he discovered her one secret from him.

A/N: this is just a short little thing that popped in my head last night.

Requests Are Open!

——————————————————————————

Being the little sister of JJ Maybank had its ups and downs. He was by far the best big brother anyone could ask for. He was protective of you, he was always able to make you feel better if you were crying either by making you laugh or giving you little pep talks. Growing up without a mom, and having the dad you guy did, he was pretty much your parent. He’s the one who made sure you were ready for school every day, the one who made sure you ate every night (even if he didn’t), and the one who accepted and loved you no matter what.

The downside is he could be a little too protective at times. Once you got into high school it got worse. He would threaten any guy that looked at you. “I’m not gonna let one of these assholes make you a teen mom.” He would say when you called him out on it.

“J, I can promise you that’s not gonna happen.” You would tell him. Truth be told, you weren’t interested in the guys. You had figured it out in middle school when all your girl friends were crushing on the boys in class, and you found yourself looking at girls instead. You didn’t tell anyone back then, still trying to understand it for yourself, so you just faked crushes on boys like your friends. Being 16 now, you knew for sure though, you were a lesbian. And you weren’t ashamed about that, you just hadn’t gotten around to telling anyone yet. You didn’t have anyone you were specifically interested in, just a few hook ups here and there, so what was the point of an awkward conversation.

You did feel bad for not telling JJ yet, maybe it would save him some stress from fighting every guy that looked at you. You knew you should tell him soon. But right now, you decided to just enjoy the last few days of summer. The annual bonfire was tonight, and this was the first time JJ didn’t fight you on going.

You piled into the van with the Pogues to head to the boneyard.

“You can’t get drunk, and don’t even think about going back with some dude.” JJ lectures you as John B starts driving.

“Let her live a little, JJ.” Kie says, rolling her eyes.

“J, I keep telling you that you don’t have to worry about that.”

“Well I’m going to worry.” He says, clearly not understanding why he doesn’t need too.

“Let’s just enjoy the night.” John B says as he parks the van, and everyone climbs out and heads to the beach.

Later that night, the party is in full swing. The Pogues were all pretty drunk, everyone broken off in conversations with other people when JJ suddenly realized he didn’t see you. He stumbles over to Kie.

“Where’s y/n? I don’t see her at all.”

“She went that way.” She says, smirking, pointing to the wooded area. You didn’t know this, but she had seen you sneak off with a cute blonde girl, confirming a suspicion she had about you. “But I would just let her be, J.”

“Why? Is she okay?” He sounds worried, scared something happened, instantly guilty that he didn’t stop whatever it was from happening.

“I’m guessing she’s more than okay right now.” She laughs.

JJ instantly gets mad, thinking you must have snuck off with a guy. He starts charging towards the area Kie pointed out. When he gets to the edge of the trees, he can see you, leaning against a tree, with your lips attached to the blonde girl.

“Y/n?” He says, making you pull from the girl, wide eyed. You and your brother just stare at each other for a minute. The girl, who’s name you can’t remember, feels the tension and walks away.

“I-I didn’t know,” JJ starts, “I didn’t know you were into..” he trails off.

“Blondes?” You say, trying to break the tension.

He starts laughing, hard. “Yeah, blondes.” He says through the laughter. “Come here.” He says and pulls you into a hug. “Why didn’t you tell me? You know I love you no matter what, right?”

“I know, I love you too. I don’t know why I didn’t tell you. It just felt like an awkward conversation to start.”

You guys start heading back to the party, his arm around your shoulder. “Don’t hide things from me, you can tell me literally anything. Plus, you could have saved a lot of fights from happening if you told me this before”

“Well, to be fair I did tell you many times that you didn’t have to worry about guys.”

“Okay, fair.”

You guys make it back to the group, John B asking if JJ had to fight off any guys, causing your brother to give you a look.

“No he didn’t. There’s something I should probably tell you guys, though.” John B and Pope look nervous, while Kie is just smirking while drinking out her cup, knowing exactly what you’re about to say. “So it turns out I’m actually not into guys. Like.. I like girls.” You look down as you say this, getting really nervous. Even though you know they won’t care, and it won’t change anything, you can’t help the fear of not being accepted.

Immediately you feel yourself being pulled into a hug by all of them though, and you can’t help the tears from falling. With JJ, it’s easy to hide the emotions with humor, it’s what you two have always done. But with everyone else, it came flooding out.

“We all love you, y/n. Thank you for telling us.” Kie says as everyone pulls away and you wipe your tears away, smiling.

You felt a new sort of freedom, the people you loved most knew about you now, and they loved and accepted you completely. In a sense, it felt like your life was just beginning, and you couldn’t be happier.

——————————————————————————