#no in all seriousness it's an AMAZING horror podcast!!!

[coach-ukai-keishin]

soooo uhmmm I just think more people should give The White Vault a try because 👉👈 well. some people would love Graham Casner merch okay. And there isn't any. NONE!!!!! please.

[captain-mj]

I JUST READ THE BOY FIC AND OMG YOU SHOULD TOTALLY MAKE LIKE A HORROR CAMP RELATED ONE. like a rlly sweet one like they could be camp counselors yk?? <333 or just like camp counselors?

Hell yeah! I'd love to! So there's this webcomic where Jason Voorhees becomes a camp counselor made by Janie Lee and I took a little inspiration with the general vibe. 10/10 recommend that series because it's amazing. Mentions of trauma for several characters but it's not taking seriously

So it's hopefully clear but I know I can be a little subtle with subtext, so each of the characters are loosely based on a horror villain. It'll be fun to see if you guys can figure it out!

Ghost pulled the third kid out of the lake that day, silently patting their back to help them get all of the water.

"You alright?"

They nodded and coughed up a little more water before settling down. "Thank you so much, Ghost sir!"

Ghost patted their head and watched them run off to their friends. He looked around and saw Alejandro and Rudy talking. They were talking to each and clearly not watching the damn kids.

He waved and they waved back and he flipped them off.

Alejandro grinned. His perfect hair and perfect teeth.

He got on Ghost's nerves.

Especially because Alejandro was the person to wake them up every morning.

They shared a cabin with Alex and by all accounts, they were all early risers, but Alejandro was different.

This morning, and every morning, he woke them up at 4:30 in the morning as he took a shower, iced (what even is that? Is it like an ice bath? Icing a cake?) his face, and then used tons of product in his hair to define each curl.

Ghost and Alex made a deal to kill him every morning after being dragged out of their private rooms. 

Alejandro had laughed and pulled them out of bed to fucking exercise. They'd do fucking pushups and planks and Alex would always use his missing leg as an excuse to get out of squats. Ghost would glare at him and grumpily continue to do whatever he had been challenged to do. He almost always beat Alejandro which surprisingly never made the man angry. Alejandro would just smile and say he’d beat him next time. 

Once he made breakfast, Alex and Ghost would change their mind about killing him. Alex was the only one that drank coffee, Ghost preferred tea, but the smell was nice and inviting enough. It reminded him of being home, but in a good way. 

Then they’d get everyone up at 8 am sharp and they’d handle the kiddos. 

Ghost liked kids just fine. Honestly they were a bit annoying but he didn’t want anyone to get hurt and other people didn’t really seem interested in watching them so he did it. He put on his mask every morning and acted like a human being for a few hours until the kiddos went to bed and the other counselors would buddy up and talk to each other like friends. 

Being friends with your coworkers? That was loser behavior. 

Ghost ignored that his only friend was his little brother. 

Gaz talked about the podcast he was listening to with Ghost. Well. More talked at Ghost as he didn’t really contribute. 

“Doesn’t it feel… manipulative? Listening to these people talk about these murders.”

Gaz shrugged. “Maybe. But it’s… interesting.”

“In a ‘you want to do something similar’ or ‘gets you off’ way?”

Gaz laughed. “No. Just… how they are you know? How they get caught. The small mistakes. The way they could so cruelly kill those people. It’s just… Don’t know. It’s horrific but addicting.”

Ghost didn’t understand but nodded all the same. 

Sometimes, he thought it would be nice to sit with them. The fire looked nice at least. 

Alex knew exactly how to toast marshmallows. He had this secret technique to get them just right to be smushed but not enough for it to taste burnt. It was how he lured Ghost to them, using s’mores as a form of bait. 

Ghost ate one, perched on a log, prepared to sprint. 

“Riley, we’re going to be working together all summer, man. You can relax around us.” Gaz said with a smile. “You might even like us!”

Ghost grimaced and pulled his mask back down. “Doubtful. I don’t do friends. And I prefer Ghost.”

Soap smiled and lightly tapped his foot against the log Ghost was perched on. “I see. Well, Ghost. What’s with the mask?”

Ghost shrugged. “I just… like wearing it.”

“That’s an understatement. You came out of your room wearing it. Is it like Roach? Got scars under there?” Alejandro asked, arm around Rodolfo who looked less than amused by the whole situation. 

Roach hit Alejandro and checked that his mask was on properly. According to what Ghost had heard, he had some rather severe burns. Poor guy. He had some gorgeous brown eyes and tons of fluffy blond hair that could be seen over the mask. Alejandro clearly didn’t strike a nerve, which was good, but he didn’t look very happy. 

Ghost slowly waved before signing. “What’s another name for a sleeping bag?”

Roach tilted his head questioningly. No one else seemed to know what Ghost was signing, though they watched his hands. 

“A nap sack.” 

Roach laughed. And so did Soap. 

Ghost glanced at him, watching him cover his mouth. Soap looked away. 

He then stretched and took another s’more from Alex. He had undone part of his shirt that exposed his chest a little. It made Ghost’s stomach feel funny. 

Gaz smiled. “Let’s play truth or dare. No gross stuff though. Keep it PG-13.”

Ghost reluctantly relaxed. “Okay. Sure.” He’d pick all dares. Easy.

They started up.

He learned quickly that picking dares was not a good idea when Alejandro had Alex slip his shirt off. They all looked at him. There was some scarring along his stomach from a fire that had raged. 

Weird how many slashers had brushes with fire. 

But he was fit and rather hot. Ghost glanced away and realized there was no universe where he could so easily strip himself of his clothing. His body had scars, but it was nothing like Alex who had lost his brother to one or Roach whose school had burned down with almost everyone in it. 

No. No one died in the events that scarred Ghost. And he knew if they looked at him, they’d immediately realize they were purposefully inflicted by both Ghost and others. It wasn’t something he wanted anybody to know about. So he had to make a decision. 

“Ghost.” Soap smiled. “Truth or Dare?”

“Truth.” 

“What’s the farthest you’ve ever gone with someone?” 

Ghost froze, staring. “That’s not PG-13.”

“Oh, so you’ve had sex?” Gaz pointed out, the pretense of being clean gone. 

Ghost hesitated just long enough for them to pounce. 

“You’re a virgin??” Alejandro asked, almost scandalized at the thought. “You’re 6’4, built and mysterious as hell. How are you fucking that up?”

“Uh…”

Alex defended him. “Maybe he’s just shy!”

Soap translated for Roach. “Or saving himself for marriage. Gary, personally I don’t think that’s it.”

Ghost stood up. “I’ll be leaving now.”

Rodolfo hummed. “Is it religious? Or just never found the opportunity?”

“I’ve already answered my question.”

Soap tsked. “Actually, you haven’t. You just said it’s not PG-13. So… until you answer the question, we can ask whatever we want.”

Gaz nodded. “Those are the rules.”

Ghost squirmed. “We counting nonconsensually?”

That ruined the vibe really fast.

“Oh!” Soap covered his mouth, looking horrified. “I’m so sorry.” 

Ghost shrugged. “If it’s just consensual, I held hands. Once.” 

Roach planted his head in his hands, shaking his head. 

Somehow, Alejandro and Gaz got the game going again. Ghost picked dares after that and they all had the politeness to not make him or Roach do anything salacious. Sometimes, they’d ask Roach or dare him to do something dirty and he’d grab his cross and freeze. He always did it, letting Soap translate for him so everyone could understand him. 

As the night started to wind down, Roach ended up next to Ghost, both of them on the same log. Soap was doing something with the other guys and they both noticed the other person glancing at him. They quickly looked away again. 

Ghost had never felt uncomfortable with his sexuality. He liked men. Simple as that. But attraction was not something he liked acknowledging. Some people were attractive and it made Ghost nervous and sometimes he did find himself wishing for easy camaraderie and beautiful blues eyes to be…

Oh yikes. 

He was imagining Soap. 

Ghost was glad it was one of the single guys so he didn’t feel like an ass but it had to be that one?? 

Roach glanced at him and looked flustered. “I don’t really get the big deal either.”

Ghost nodded and tried to look stoic. He felt flustered and anxious though. His mask luckily kept him looking fine. “I just think there’s better things we can be doing. Like our jobs.”

Roach smiled. Ghost could tell by the way his eyes crinkled. “Yeah. Exactly.” 

They started to talk and Ghost found he was easy conversation. Before long, it reached midnight and as much as everyone would’ve loved staying up, they did have work in the morning. 

Alejandro and Alex walked on either side of Ghost. 

“By non-consensual…”

“Alex, I’ll rip your head from your fucking body.”

“Nevermind.”

[all-seeing-ifer]

Hey what's the silt verses? Should I watch/read it? It looks really cool and I could ask Google but you seem very excited about it and I wanted to give you an opportunity to talk about it if you wanna!

aaaaa ok ok ok!!!! i am SO glad you decided to come ask me about it - the silt verses is like. probably one of my favourite pieces of media ever and I am always excited to have a chance to just Scream about it! and since I'm currently on 48 hour tsv lockdown with the first episode of season 3 dropping it's the perfect time for me to get this ask.

so the silt verses is a horror audio drama podcast set in a fantasy world where everything is controlled by different gods. so there's gods of industry, gods of agriculture, gods of natural phenomena, even down to incredibly specific gods like the call centre god we meet in one episode. some are seemingly harmless or benign, some are seemingly malicious, but all of them are capable of acting in the world through miracles or the creation of saints (ordinary people who are transformed into.... something else by the gods' power) and most of them have their own religions following them and offering sacrifices to feed their power.

the twist in all of this is that in the world of the silt verses the gods have become completely controlled by the government and corporations, who decide which religions and gods are legitimate and should be condoned and which should be banned. the two main characters (at least in the first season, the main cast expands a fair bit in season two) are sister carpenter and brother faulkner, two worshippers of an outlawed river god on a sacred pilgrimage searching for revelations from their deity. along the way they encounter other religions and gods of the region, witness miracles that test their faith, and try to stay on the run from law enforcement.

tsv has SO much going for it and i do think anyone with even a passing interest in horror as a genre should check it out! fair warning it can get really disturbing (seriously season 1 episode 4 has some of the freakiest body horror i've ever heard in an audio drama, and that's just the tip of the iceberg) but if you check out the content warnings and think you can handle it, then please PLEASE do!!! the characters are so complex and rich and compelling, the relationships between them are also really compelling and evolve in unexpected ways, the voice cast are all incredible, the worldbuilding is super interesting and well thought out, it has that amazing balance of both serialised narrative and some really amazing out there "monster of the week" style episodes that i think a lot of people miss from modern tv, the soundscaping.... well, it does start off a bit wonky, but by the time you get up to the most recent episode it sounds honestly gorgeous, it has this really wonderful poetic-at-times writing style that feels both fitting with its eerie surreal tone and will also just hit you with some of the most incredible lines ever written that will get stuck in your brain and not leave for months!! it's about religious trauma and capitalism and living and dying in a broken system and burning that system to the ground and devotion and sacrifice and monstrousness and getting to choose the thing that eats you. with one season left to go it's perhaps slightly too early to call it a masterpiece, but.... yeah TO ME it's a masterpiece <3

so yeah this got a lot longer than i meant it to but tl;dr if you're into horror or even if you just don't mind horror please please listen to the silt verses. it's weird and gross and freaky and funny and rough around the edges at first and it's worth every second of your time

[g3othermal3scapism]

My first movie reviewing type post because i have so many opinions on movies and i can ignore speaking on them no longer.

GHOSTBUSTERS: FROZEN EMPIRE

review under the cut

Okay, so this might not be the neatest post in the world. Whatever im yapping here. Figure it out yourself.

Let me start off by saying Ghostbusters is one of my favorite franchises in the whole world, if not my favorite. I love all of the movies, yes even the third one everyone hates, which I have a million other points to make on, but that’s another post. I personally adored Afterlife, I thought it was a great continuation that didn’t rely too heavily on nostalgia but was very much a respectful sort of love-letter to the originals, as well as a good beginning to a new era. Other than it lacking in the comedy department a little, (especially for a comedy movie fanchise) I thought it did most everything right, or at least well. I was in love with Pheobe and Podcast as well as Gary, and the story with Egon was a really lovely homage to the old ghostbusters and of course, the late great Harold Ramis. I was beyond excited for Frozen Empire. So don’t think this is coming from a place of bias, because I really hate to say it but I didn’t like Frozen Empire much at all. I’m going to try to break down my reasoning as organized as possible.

- It was not funny. I touched on this earlier, but one of the biggest issue with this new era is that they are severely lacking in the comedy department. Ghostbusters has always been a comedy movie, more than a horror and much more than a drama. These movies are trying too hard to be a serious action movie, and Frozen Empire was not really funny at all. It had that whole intro with the firefighters in 1904 that had not one comedic moment, and the rest of the offhanded jokes they tried to make felt forced and more akin to the writing of an old disney channel sitcom. This is especially troubling because they hired amazing comedians like Patton Oswald, Kumail Nanjiani, and James Acaster, as well as the old amazing Paul Rudd, Bill Murray, and honestly all of the og ghostbusters, yet all of them barely had a funny line through the whole thing. Really baffling and the attempts at seriousness and angst really did a disservice to the enjoyability of the movie IMO.

- It was insanely rushed and there was too much going on. This is probably the main, over-arcing problem that really ruined the movie. There’s so much build up to a main conflict that lasts five minutes and solved immediately. I was baffled, convinced it was a joke and there was still half a movie we had yet to see. They tried to hard to make so many (already not well writtwn) plots fit without having a good way to conclude them. This, as well as the story being far too overbloated with characters. They tried so hard to keep the original Ghostbusters and make like 47 main characters work, that our real main characters were shoved to the side. Pheobe was barely in it, and when she was, we never really got to see her being Pheobe. Callie should’ve been a much smaller character, and while in my heart Pheobe, Podcast, Lucky, and Trevor should have been the new Ghostbusters, I think this movie should have focused more on Pheobe, Gary, and Ray. I have a vague plot in my head but that’s not the point. The movie was just trying to do too much and managed to do absolutely nothing.

- Callie. This might be a hot take, but I don’t care about Callie at all. She should not have been a Ghostbuster in this movie. It doesn’t make any sense. In Afterlife, Callie showed no signs of being interested in ghostbusting or that world at all, she just loved her dad. She’s not a scientist whatsoever. Pheobe was right, she absolutely should have just been the receptionist. On top of it not making sense, Callie just isn’t interesting enough to be a main Ghostbuster. She’s already not a scientist, but she offers no special skills or anything unique to herself, she doesn’t have an interesting personality and her arc is so boring. She was not needed in this movie. Again, Trevor, Pheobe, Lucky, and Podcast should be the main Ghostbusters. I don’t give a fuck about this family business thing and it was a bad choice IMO. In all honesty Trevor doesn’t need to be super major either.

- Jumping off of that…. Trevor. Oh my god. They murdered him in this movie. Trevor was never my favorite, but I liked his character a lot in Afterlife. I thought he could have been more interesting, but compared to Empire Trevor, in Afterlife he’s like Tarantino-level entertaining. Trevor sucked in this movie. The words “I’m 18 now” should have never left his mouth. It’s such a tired, overdone bit, and they didn’t put any spin on it at all. And it was literally. His entire personality. It was so obnoxious. Give him something, especially since Finn Wolfhard is a funny actor. The idea of him having a running gag with Slimer wasn’t bad, and payoff was one of the funniest moments in the whole movie. (A three second scene of Finn Wolfhard seeing Slimer and going “Hey! I know him!” being the funniest bit in a Ghostbusters movie. Yikes.) Jesus fuck was he annoying in this movie, and him and Pheobe barely had any scenes together.

- Okay. Melody. Big fucking yikes. Pheobe being fruity? We been knew but I adored it. Exploring the ideas of inter-dimensional plane romance and relationships? Super interesting and a fun risk to take. Execution? Oh. my god. I loved Melody when we first met her at the park, I was super excited, but she just became.. nothing. We barely learned anything about her past or her life or her at all, and they totally missed the chance to make her from an old era, make her wear funny clothes and talk funny, and be an interesting character. She was just kind of this mysterious dead girl. Not learning about her past at all in turn made it hard to care about her story, if we don’t know her family or her life, why should we care that she wants to get back to them? Why is it justified that she would betray Pheobe to get to heaven or whatever? It doesn’t make sense. We see her at the diner, and the diner is called Melody and it’s never brought up again? If she were like a ‘50s themed ghost this would have been a fun little piece, but in the movie it doesn’t make sense, because we already know her place of death was her house that she burnt down. What does the diner have to do with anything? And the scene where she just stands in the road and has the goofiest corniest conversation with idk the voices in her head or whatever. God, pack it the fuck up. Then at the end, it’s so obvious she’s going to come back to save them, so the scene really holds no impact, even though it doesn’t make any sense for her to come back. She made her choice, she betrayed Pheobe to see her family (for whatever fucking reason), and she went through the barrier. We never see that the barrier didn’t work, or that something changed and made her change her decision. If her family is so fucking important, why on earth would she just go back to save people she hardly, or didn’t know? It doesn’t make any sense. Plus, if they wanted to give Pheobe a ghost girl romance (which I’m a fan of) they should have given her and Melody any semblance of chemistry. The actors didn’t have any chemistry and their dialogue was just sort of lame. Seeing Pheobe discover crushes and see how she would behave under those circumstances could have been very interesting, but it was just overall boring. Melody did not matter and nothing she ever did made sense. She wasn’t a character, she was a plot device to move the story along.

- This brings me to my next point.. none of the writing really made all that much sense? I mean they put all this work into the lore of the monster, even though really Ghostbusters shouldn’t be about lore, it should be about cool ghost designs and funny likeable characters, and then none of the lore mattered. I mean I barely remember anything about the big villain because it was all intensely boring and I just did not gaf at all. On top of this, the way the characters behave.. makes no sense. Pheobe’s family was so insensitive to her after she had to stop doing the thing she loved, despite it quite literally being her thing. In my opinion, if Pheobe wasn’t a ghostbuster, the whole thing would shut down. Trevor and Callie would be clueless, even with a little help with Gary, it just wouldn’t work. On top of this, when Pheobe destroyed the lion, and all the ghostbusters were mad at her??? What on earth was that about. The lion was quite literally going to kill Ray, and they’re ghostbusters. It is quite literally in the job description that you’re gonna destroy some shit and cause some problems. She had to, and Winston was all up her ass about it? It just didn’t make sense. He would’ve been on her side completely, and really all of the ghotsbusters involved shouldve been fighting for Pheobe. They’re supposed to be a team?? And I mean after everyone spend the movie getting mad at Pheobe literally anytime she breathed, the only time she actually messed up, almost killing herself and causing the end of the world for a cute girl, everyone’s all “Oh we’re just glad you’re okay!! everybody makes mistakes!!!” It’s so clownish actually. There are a million other things that just don’t make sense, but I’d have to rewatch it to make any real coherent analysis of them.

- The villain was so fucking goofy?? It was just this big cartoonish stereotype villain that wasn’t ironic at all. It was so unserious and not scary at all. That design sucked shit and there was nothing interesting about him. What’s the point of Ghostbusters if the big villain doesn’t talk and doesn’t have any funny scenes? Plus, like, oh wow big evil world ending dead god. I’ve never seen anything like this before. My mind is blown, Ghostbusters, you’ve done it again. (sarcasm 😊)

- Podcast and Pheobe were barely in the movie. They carried the last movie and they’re my favorite, so this is slightly biased, but them not being in it at all was insane. Especially, since, you know, pheobe is the main character. Even on the poster, it’s way too filled with characters, and Pheobe is no where near the focal point of the poster. It’s fucking Paul Rudd for some reason. Besides this, Podcast was no where near as funny as he should’ve been. Both Pheobe and Podcast lost that young awkward charm that made them so loveable, and you cannot convince me Podcast stopped being so dorky so easily. I also believe he would be super interesting in working in Ray’s shop, but I don’t believe he would let everyone be ghostbusting without him?? Pheobe ghostbusting without podcast? Absolutely not on his watch. Their characters were a little butchered.

- Ah. The ending. This fuckass ending. You saw it from a million miles away and so did I, and so did everyone fucking else. It was the most expected ending I’ve ever seen. No twists, nothing goes wrong, and when it does, it does not matter. None of it matters. Oh they all get suited up and team up? Doesn’t matter. you’re all frozen and will do nothing for the ending. Oh no, they all got frozen and can’t stop the bad guy? Doesn’t matter. Unrelated side character comes out of nowhere and saves the day in five seconds with no problem. No one lift a finger. Not even to mention how ridiculous the ice spikes were. They did all this set up with Kumail Nanjiani, jist for the payoff to be that. None of the conflicts they ran into in the movie had really any impact on the story later. They were just things that happened.

Overall, I thought the movie was a mess that was trying too hard at everything and succeeding very little. Now I’ll talk about some things I did like! Keeping the old ghostbusters, especially Ray, I thought was a good choice. The idea of Winston being the rich one who’s really running ghostbusters behind the scenes is perfect, especially considering Ernie Husdson really being the one to keep Ghostbusters alive, and having ghostbusters tech where he works with ghosts and makes containment units and new traps and what not was great. Pheobe and Gary trying go navigate their new relationship was an interesting and heartwarming idea, even if I thought it wasn’t executed amazingly. Pheobe tinkering with her proton pack and coating it with copper to blast the monster was a really fun, great idea. I love when they do little things like that, putting little spins on things, and I wish we could’ve seen more of that. Venkman had some of the best scenes in the movie. Him throwing the pens at Kumail Nanjiana was a very fun scene, and did keep the spirit of Peter Venkman very much. More than that, the scene where he shows up at the firehouse and immediately goes to wear he has a hidden thing of Whisky was gold. A perfect Venkman scene, a perfect “i lived here for years” moment, and very funny.

This is my analysis of ghostbusters frozen empire 😊😊🙏💖 sorry ghostbusters fandom i am one of you i love you please dont cancel me or whatever

[vestaclinicpod]

Audio Drama Sunday - 3rd September ✨

I think it’s criminal to have to work on a Sunday instead of going on a little walk and listening to little podcasts, but here we are 🫠 It’s been a frankly ridiculous week of listening and there’s still so much more I haven’t had time to catch yet! 

🌲@hellofromthehallowoods (131) Percy! Going to get Diggory! I think it makes it so bittersweet that he was about to apologise off the bat because you just KNOW that when they meet for real it won’t happen that easily. My god, I could listen to.a whole show just about this hastily assembled Friends of Zelda team. It’s so lovely to have Alice back in the narrative and I care for Tattery Stabs so much!! ‘How much do you like your brother?’ Really cracked me up. I love how hfth takes horror tropes (e.g. creepy doll) and they’re immediately someone new to love.  Speaking of someone to love!! Hector is putting in a really good bid for the award of ‘most traumatised man in the Hallowoods’, though the competition remains tough. This experience will no doubt have changed him, I can’t wait to find out how!

🦀 @thesiltverses (31) So many new and familiar voices in this new season and all of them are delightful! The writing and delivery of Val’s monologue in particular was so powerful and I was left cringing in my skin at the callous assertions that she is controllable… did we just hear the same thing? I have no idea what is going to happen this season and it’s thrilling and terrifying in equal measure! 

🦮 @malevolentcast (35) This episode is such a rollercoaster oh my god!! There are so many layers of horror here! Not just the fear of the ‘other’ and of what other humans can do, but also the intrinsic fear of losing the self.  What’s happening with John is so very unsettling, it’s been so long that we’ve almost taken for granted the way that John guides Arthur . . . what will he do when he can’t trust John’s assessment of the situation? 

📻 @monstrousagonies (110) penultimate?! Excuse me??!! Penultimate!!! How am I going to cope without having fictional night folk problems solving my actual real life problems every week?? Panic aside, I really loved this episode. I was so glad to hear the presenter telling the author of the first letter that it actually wouldn’t be unreasonable to kick off just a little. I’ve often thought about just bringing a cat home and seeing what my wife would do . . . (I know this is bad, it’s not going to happen 👀) BUT a CHILD? And aw, yay, what a satisfying end to an unsatisfactory CEO. It was a pleasure to meet station and the MA community was in fine voice! 

🌒 @monkeymanproductions Moonbase Theta Out FINALE!! I’m not going to share too many thoughts today because it may not even be out at the time of posting but IT’S AMAZING GO LISTEN!!!! Seriously, I cried so much at the thought of this show being over. I’ve loved it for such a long time and it’s been amazing to listen to it grow and see all the team’s hard work pay off spectacularly! 

🧛‍♂️ @re-dracula what a busy, busy week for the Dracula characters! Marriages, millions of kisses, casual medical abuse, VAN HELSING. What a week. 

🧬 Regina Prime (7) Damn, Epsilon has both the fire and the fight! Veeerrryyy interesting that Omega needs an assistant with a physical body… what have you got, Omega? I’m imagining a clone that is 1000s of years old, more mush than human. And the slip up with the number of clones . . .  Omega . . . ? Something you want to share with the rest of the class?? 

 💫 Wolf 359 (49 - 50) I am usually not the biggest fan of time loop stories but, of course, if W359 makes it, you know it’s gonna be great. The whole set up of the aliens being unable to communicate clearly because Doug chats absolute shit all the time is just so endearing to me. I can’t believe I’m getting so close to the end! 

🏴‍☠️ Yes, I did listen to the @levianpod pilot again. What of it? Please, please support this show if you can! It must be made. I need it. 

🎧 So lovely to hear from @thestoragepapers in last week’s episode of The First Episode Of! I feel like it’s so brave to ask for people to join in on the writing of your show but we love to see a collaboration thriving!! I need to bump this up my to-listen list! 

🐬 @patterspod (3) Fiona Caruso, the woman, the myth, the legend. Someone needs to check in on the thriller writers because they’re just not okay… Also, Ryan, you idiot. I don’t even know if we can blame the influence of some eldritch force on these bad publishing attempts, but I feel like he’s going to snap like one of twig man’s branches at the slightest supernatural pressure. Which will be fun for us, at least! 

All these amazing episodes, but my ears are bigger than my schedule and I still need to listen to new KILL FM. I’ve been really, really meaning to catch up on Additional Postage Required as well! Here’s hoping for a more chilled week next week! 🤞

[whumpy-wyrms]

are u in any fandoms? what are ur interests besides whump? u don’t have to answer i’m just curious!!

someone’s asking me about my interests i can’t NOT answer

this got a bit long tho so i’m putting it under the read more for people who don’t care/are only here for the whump

OKOK. so i’m kinda in the starkid/nerdy prudes must die fandom rn but i know for a fact if i finished adventure time and started watching fiona and cake, that would quite literally become my entire personality for the next 3 months because simon and prismo (and marceline and princess bubblegum and all my other favorite characters) make me insane. but i haven’t done that because well. i’ve gotta write tllr yknow..

anyway, my absolute most favorite pieces of media of all time are undertale and deltarune guys. i cant put in words how much those games mean to me holy shit. as i’m writing this i’m sitting next to my jevil and sans and spamton plushie and they are saying hi. anywayyy yeah i was in the deltarune fandom for a bit it was fun. spamton is silly fucked up creature. jevil is my all time favorite tho

AND THE MAGNUS ARCHIVES… my favorite thing ever fr. y’all. LISTEN TO TMA SERIOUSLY YOU’LL PROBABLY LIKE IT!! it’s a horror podcast and it’s seriously the best fuckinf thing ever it’s so amazing seriously. it’s a bit hard to get into at first because season 1 is less story driven BUT HOLY SHIT. AHHHH ITS SO FUCKING GOOD. jon is one of my favorite blorbos ever and so is michael because he’s a silly distortion guy. just trust me and listen to TMA it will actually change your life.

also i love the amazing world of gumball so fucking much. i wasn’t allowed to watch cartoon network as a kid (idk why??) so i first watched tawog last year and holy shit holy shit it’s my favorite thing ever. rob. ROB!!!! ROB IS MY ALL TIME FAVORITE CHARACTER. SO IS MR SMALL. AHHHH!!!! anyway i love tawog i’ve drawn a lot of fanart and even wrote a 60k word fanfiction (about what happens after The Inquisition because that ending fucked me up) that i’ve Never and will probably never show anyone because it’s probably Not that good. but it was sooo Important to me back then. tawog just means so much to me it :))) it changed me as a person. nobody’s a nobody and everybody is weird like you and me.

i also really like hollow knight! i haven’t played it in a while but i was at 111% completion on one of my playthroughs (CURSE YOU PANTHEON 4). i’m also super fucking excited for silksong obviously and i will say this now: WHEN SILKSONG FINALLY RELEASES… i will probably go on hiatus here LMAO. sorry but guys. SILKSONG…. honestly same for new deltarune chapters. the second chapters 3, 4, and 5 release it is sooo over for me. i probably won’t post much here for a few months during that. but that’s fine!! i’ll never abandon tllr but sometimes some things are more important to my silly little brain :3

gravity falls quite literally changed my life in 2018. like i can’t even explain it, but it’s how i was introduced to online fandoms and fanart in general. dipper LITERALLY made me trans (not literally but pretty much). it’s how i started watching other amazing cartoons and series i love, it’s literally what made me get into drawing art and writing and stuff. it’s what made me start making ocs. it literally made me an artist guys. which is how i started writing. without gravity falls and it’s effect it had on me, this account might have never existed?? i’m being super dramatic but wowww. i was so autistic about that silly cartoon

minecraft i love. i’ve been playing minecraft for over a decade and won’t stop because it’s like, probably a special interest of mine? i’ve watch minecraft youtubers forever too, hermitcraft and the life series are my favorite. i’m a huge grian fan too, been watching him since the evo days. anyway if u play minecraft and wanna play with me sometime, feel free to ask!!! :D i love making new friends and playing video games with people!!! let’s make a world together!!!

also i like terraria and stardew valley, and animal crossing new horizons but i haven’t played that in a few years. hmm other games i like are oneshot game, NITW, omori, celeste, cuphead, fnaf (although i’ve only played the first 5 games and am super super behind on the lore), ori, dead cells, untitled goose game (this is for u anon), and probably more i’m forgetting! feel free to recommend me some video games and we can even play together :3

other series i love are the umbrella academy. soooo autistic about this show it’s fucking AMAZING!!!!!! klaus is my favorite character. anyway i also like what we do in the shadows. it made me super autistic about vampires (before i watched this show i kinda thought vampires were cringe IDK WHY I’M SORRYY). the netflix show lucifer made me insane a few years ago and is what probably indirectly inspired me to give Dew wings. i also like our flag means death, breaking bad, moon knight, and camp here in there (another podcast i HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend, will wood made the soundtrack!)

i LOVEEE FINAL SPACE!! avocato has been my pfp on this account forever and now i feel like i can’t ever change it (i don’t want to). final space is seriously amazing!!! but it was cancelled and basically got fucked over by the networks- infinity train style. idk, stuff happened and it was removed from hbo max so there’s not really anywhere to watch it (legally) except for netflix international iirc? but it’s getting removed from that too i think. super fucking sad :( it ended on a huge cliffhanger too BUT there is a graphic novel being made!!!! super excited about that!

other cartoons i like are over the garden wall (dressed up as wirt for halloween last year), the owl house, adventure time, regular show, steven universe, infinity train, bojack horseman, rick and morty, mlp, the midnight gospel, and so much more i’m forgetting. OH anime i like are death note, demon slayer (haven’t caught up yet on the latest seasons tho), and MOB PSYCHO 100!! vampire in the garden on netflix is really amazing as well.

this is sooo long but now i gotta talk about my favorite music artists. WILL WOOD (AND THE TAPEWORMS) IS MY FAVORITEEE. I ALSO LOVEEE JHARIAH!!! AND HARLEY POE!!!!! top three of all time. i also like toby fox obviously, and glass beach (LITERALLY GOING TO SEE THEM IN MARCH AND I AM SOOO EXCITED!!!), mcr, shayfer james, weezer, mitski, lemon demon, set it off, tally hall, gerard way, and probably more i’m forgetting. i also like musicals!! (i was in the spongebob musical earlier this year for school! i was larry the lobster :))

so guys. GUYSSS. IF YOU LIKE MUSICALS, GO WATCH NERDY PRUDES MUST DIE!!!! OR JUST WATCH THE ENTIRE HATCHETFEILD TRILOGY!!! WHILE UR AT IT, WATCH ALL THE STARKID MUSICALS ACTUALLY!!! this is my current hyperfixation. the lords in black are amazing, npmd is amazing. i love everything about it. go watch it seriously, it’s fucking awesome and the soundtrack is AMAZING!!!

i think this is it. this got super long but i’m super passionate about my interests so yeah. this is pretty much everything. one very important thing (literally my special interest) that i didn’t mention are my other ocs. i have wayyy more ocs that are completely separate from the tllr ones. i don’t wanna post about them here though, cuz they’re not whump related and i want to keep my main account separate from this account. but they’re my favorite blorbos in existence so…

if u WANT to know about my other ocs, u can feel free to dm me for the username of my other fandom/oc account. that’s where i post other stuff that i don’t post here, like my fanart and my other oc stuff. i don’t post writing or anything like that there, so ur not missing out on that.

anyway those are most of my main interests! things i didn’t mention that im also really interested in are reptiles (snakes specifically), and animals in general. i have two leopard geckos named Lars and Alphys and i reallyyyy want a pet snake but my family hates snakes :(( anyway i’m rambling

thanks for the ask!!

[hedge-rambles]

Ok so I finished Wolf 359 and I have thoughts

First off: It is very good, quality podcast, 10/10. And then, in no particular order:

Ok so obviously I love Hera, she's my best special girl. I love many of the characters but Hera is a darling. I love how she goes from pushing the limits and loopholes of her code to see if she can just, y'know, murder the crew to genuinely bonding with them and loving them as they love her back. I want to rip Miranda Pryce limb from limb for what she did with the sneaky subvocal restraint.

I adore the thematic naming of the AIs in the show. Hera - Greek goddess of protection for mothers and marriage but known for her jealous and vindictive streak which is just, so Hera.

Her precursor on the Hephaestus was Rhea, the older Greek goddess of motherhood, the mother of the gods (inc. Hera) fitting with her role as mother program and an earlier iteration of the line.

The testing AI being called Eris, as in, the goddess of discord, both the horrible and the testing kind - not a goddess worshipped with temples (stations as temples, is that a thing?) but more a personification of Shit Going Wrong.

The airplane AI being called Enlil, Sumerian god of wind, air, earth and storms, what could be more fitting for a plane's autopilot?

Other characters though are also great, everyone loves Jacobi, even if he's a total bitch at times. Maxwell, forever in our hearts you wee monster. Cutter is amazing, I love how unnecessarily creepy his Chirpy Chipper Attitude is at all times.

Rachel Young is the scariest motherfucker in the entire show tbh. She just strolled in and near enough out-Cuttered Cutter and walked away with a job.

I love how Hilbert is an amoral nutbag except we get these little snippets of his backstory and the way he says things that make it clear he's...well ethically horrendous and unforgivable but he actually does care. He really is doing all that for the greater good (and if it worked it would be good), he really is trying to stop people dying, he just thinks that the net good means that, while he tries to avoid it, some deaths are a worthy price. His "greater good" isn't the "it's good if we get to control everyone like puppets" of Cutter and Pryce, it's legit a world where people can be cured of illnesses and radiation sickness, and live longer, healthier lives. It's fucked up but the man genuinely was trying to improve human health and wellbeing because of the trauma he experienced as a child.

I love how so many things were left hanging and then eventually tied up, like Minkowski's time skips, and Doug's Mystery Box, but at the same time we never really do get any real closure on like, what was in the walls of the original Hephaestus? Or why Hilbert started referring to the plant monster like he was being enthralled by it???

As an aside, one thing that I do find feels odd is Minkowski's name. She is Polish, she moved to the US when she was 11 years old, and she's Very Fucking Clear about her surname being said in the Polish way because fuck she's still Polish even if she hid her accent and Americanised herself. Which means her surname should be Minkowska, because Polish surnames are usually gendered. Her dad would have been Minkowski but her mother and her would take the surname Minkowska. But maybe the whole thing about the importance of her surname was a later addition to the character and long after it was established that she was called Minkowski.

As an aside, I loved Minkowski laying into Hilbert and just dropping a wee сука in there, like, yeah you tell him Renée!

And just so many moments through the whole thing are amazing. Jacobi dropping that he likes men, crashing Lovelace's train of thought "-wait, seriously?", and the later possible implication that he's having to deal with horror of seeing people who've been turned into techno-zombies and also one is possibly an ex-boyfriend. Also Jacobi being like "I have an idea!", and the idea is always explosions.

There's so much more I could say but it's just, so much.

[always-a-joyful-note]

All right. Time to ramble about a new thing that grabbed me by the neck and didn't let me go until I finished all available episodes.

That new thing, my friends, would be the Mistholme Museum of Mystery, Morbidity, and Mortality. And despite being terrible at writing proper reviews and hardly ever doing it, I'm gonna do my best to give a semi-coherent review of why you should listen to this funky little Australian podcast.

So! I see a lot of people comparing Mistholme to Magnus Archives. ..and while that definitely works, I also want to both compare it to Welcome to Night Vale and Wolf 359 for its at times very cavalier attitude towards the unexplained and its exploration on personhood and humanity.

Seriously, though. What I LOVE about this podcast, asides from the philosophical and discoursey tidbits that make the nerd in me go absolutely bonkers, is the way that while it is very much horror and mystery, it's just not that.

Like...it's a museum about supernatural occurrences and terrors, and while a lot of stories do end in creepy, bone-chilling ways, there's also stories that end ambiguously or happily. It's just people living in a world that happens to have alternatural items in it, and while many of the times things go horribly wrong, a lot of times things also can go right...or leave something good to think about. It's just...the best part about this podcast for me is how it's almost slice of life, but a slice of life that happens in a world of magic through the lens of a museum (literally ;)).

Moving on, though, I also seriously love how sometimes it gives off the feel of those educational shows where the characters talk to the audience. There's definitely some great meta moments (and y'all know how much I am wild over those), some stuff I DEARLY want to say about the second person voice but won't for coherence/spoilers. It blends genres - from sci-fi to horror to fantasy, etc. - and has an amazing meta mystery plot thread that just gets better and better as the show progresses.

More than that, though, I seriously just love the focus on worldbuilding. Ironically, this podcast is a MASTER at the show don't tell rule (with reasonable and very seamlessly woven ways of telling, too), and we gradually get to know of this world similar to our own but noooot quite right as the show progresses in a very organic way. And I'm also gonna seriously express the joy I feel in the ambiguity of the year in which the show is unraveling, as well as the ambiguity of how much the common public is aware of the alternatural and so many other things like that. Enough that you're not toooo curious about it but it still adds just another amazing element of story and FUN to this world.

The characters in this podcast - STARS THE CHARACTERS IN THIS PODCAST!! ATG (what I call the Audio Tour Guide)....well, other people have said it better than me but you WILL want to die for it and treasure it and protect it. The other characters that appear? Phenomenal, complex, just...people. And the VOICE ACTING IN THIS. I am....not a good judge of VAs, I'll admit, but just the voice acting in here. The subtle emotion and RANGE they give to their characters. How I'm able to almost SEE them all just from the way they speak. And the way they all develop, both silent AND speaking characters - I don't know how but Dom somehow made me love the mute or nonspeaking characters...or...just feel certain things for them ;)).

Just....plotwise, characterwise WORLDBUILDINGWISE (I am very much a fan of excellent, incredible worlds), performancewise, the themes and discourse on humanity and nature it invites, everything - solid 1000/10. It's really and seriously ranking up there with W359 as one of my favorite podcasts so far....

Now, of course, there will be some stuff that you may personally not find to taste like I did (what with the diverse stories and so on) but I don't think they belong in this review as they're more subjective opinions those up there were all objectively true despite my gushing I don't take arguments so we don't need that. I think the show really does its best in being respectful to all mythologies, religion, sociopitical issues, etc. that may crop up, and it keeps such an...objective? more hopeful? stance on almost every person narrated about (despite in-show opinions) that's kind of...well, refreshing I suppose? to hear? (Maybe the best way to explain it is that its neutral tone allows people, evil and good, to be people without betraying its show's own ethical code.)

Anyway, yeah....I love Mistholme. I love ATG and co. I love the VA and their voice and all other voices once again I ask why are podcaster voices so nice to hear? I love LOVE the individual stories and their unique way of just...revealing the world of Mistholme. And yes, again, I really love all its themes and the Thoughts(tm) they invite or that invade your brain space.

Anyway, with that, I'm still not forgiving the creator for s4 despite being on s5, how DARE -

And secondly, if I had a nickel for everytime an Aussie creator made an urban fantasy world with some of the best worldbuilding and character arcing and plot twisting I've seen, I'd have 2 nickels which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice...

Comparisons and jokes asides, though, you really WILL love this world on its own. And maybe scream a little in wounded agony. But that's just the fun of visiting a museum of mystery, morbidoty, and mortality right?

[pastabadguy]

reccomend us :

- 3 movies

- 2 games

- 1 show

- 3 random other things of ur choosing

Movies:

- Riders of Justice: very cool take on/deconstruction of vengence/revenge narratives. Plus Mads Mikkelsen if that's your type of guy.

- Excision: blended horror/coming-of-age story with some of my favorite visuals in any movie. Love this fucking movie. It's got John Waters in a minor role.

- The Devil's Rejects: one of my all time favorite movies and probably my favorite example of villain protagonists. It's probably good to look up the content warnings if that's something you do.

Games:

- XOXO Blood Droplets Beta Build: I'm sorry I gotta bring this up whenever I can, it's a reward for giving $15 (I think) to the patreon, it's got way more routes than the free game (at least one for each boy, Everett's second route is by far my favorite), it's my baby my love my favorite

- the first 4 episodes of Sally Face: the style, the hidden bonus content, and the building of the story itself is just very cool and engaging to me. And Sal is such a good protagonist imo. The last episode of the game kinda sucks ass and doesn't even give a satisfying ending, so maybe just play through 4 and let it have a tragic (but great) ending.

Show:

- Venture Bros: adult swim cartoon that grows a dramatic plot. I'd definitely recommend it on a "get through the first 2 seasons" basis. S2 is actually pretty fun also but it starts getting really good around 3. It's very early 2000s in its humor tho

Misc.:

- Sad Sack: (comic/webcomic) oh my god read the warnings and description but it's seriously good, the art is amazing, it's funny and disturbing and thought-provoking and that ending my god

- Japanese Breakfast: specifically their music videos. I'm not sure what it is about them but they have inspired my style (art and just visual/fashion) a lot. Road Head and Machinist especially. Something about the strong themes/filming style?

- Wolf 359: my favorite podcast and one of my formative pieces of media. It starts kinda silly but grows into such a good serial drama/tragedy/thriller? Not sure what to call the genre (other than science fiction). I am so attatched to these characters. Everyone is flawed and forced into tough decisions and desperate times and it's great. The music is gorgeous as well. Fuckable villains. Human experimentation. Really strong, interesting, not-clearly-defined emotional bonds between characters. What more could you want

[cinemapsychosshow]

The Crazies (1973) with Monster Mark Kosobucki of The Eerie Horror Fest! - Episode 280

This week, we are joined by The Art Director for The upcoming Eerie Horror Fest, Monster Mark Kosobucki as we review one of George A. Romero's early classics, The Crazies.  A movie that seriously has a totally different meaning in light of the past few years with the Covid-19 Pandemic, The Crazies is a tale of a small town in Western Pennsylvania that becomes infected by a bio weapon from the US Government and said government's attempt to quite it down to keep order.  

This movie takes jabs at a government that at the time was in the midst of a crisis of credibility due to the Vietnam War, the fight for Civil Rights, and the growing news of corruption within the Nixon White House.  

But does this movie hold up as a cautionary tale and a gem within Romero's Filmography?  We'll find out today!  

MONSTER MARK & THE EERIE HORROR FEST

Check out our special guest, Monster Mark Kosobucki and his amazing artwork! 

Monster Mark on Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/monstermark138/?hl=en

Get your tickets now for Eerie Horror Fest- Oct 4-7 at The Warner Theater in Erie, PA! 

https://eeriehorrorfest.com/

DISCORD!!! 

Take the conversation further!  Come check out our Discord channel where we you can interact face to face (digitally) with us.  Like our opinion or hate it, now you can tell us directly! 

https://discord.gg/QWPUCGCuVC

SUPPORT THE PODCAST!

Do you love the show and want to show your appreciation?  Consider a one time or monthly tip in our virtual tip jar.  Our show will ALWAYS be free, but unfortunately creating the podcast is not free.  Your support will go directly to our production costs.  

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JDUBS VIDEO NASTIES AND NEWSLETTER

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Gotta a movie or question you want to throw our way?  Or did we trash one of your favorite films and you want to know where to send a dead horse.  Either way, drop us a line!  We welcome your questions and dead horses.  

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Theme Music:

TITLE: “Red Alert”

AUTHOR: Jack Waldenmaier PUBLISHER: Music Bakery Publishing (BMI)

WARNING: UNAUTHORIZED USE OF THE MUSIC CONTAINED IN THIS PRODUCTION IS SUBJECT TO CRIMINAL PROSECUTION.

All copyrights, licensing, duplication and distribution rights are held exclusively by Music Bakery Publishing (BMI).

214-636-5887 musicbakery.com

    Check out this episode!

[theshortstoriesofamadman-blog]

How Faun: Age of Darkness came to be.

Faun has been four, maybe five years in the making. How did it take you so long, I hear you ask? Was it self doubt? Was it lack of resources? Was it a psychotic breakdown? Well, my friend. I'll tell you, it was a bit of everything. All of the above, if you will.

One day I was in lockdown when a friend of mine started brainstorming with me over Facebook about creating a strong female character, one who didn't just become great because the writer needs her to be. Mary Sues get on my nerves. As if women have to be amazing at all times, as if being weak is in itself, a weakness, and not a point for potential growth.

I wanted to create a badass character who was still relatable, one who had compassion and was naive and above all, queer. I wanted a high fantasy woman who had a girlfriend, and didn't die or marry a man. I wanted a woman who earned her place at the top of her character arc. I wanted real queer representation, not just storyboard cutouts.

Then came my psychotic breakdown.

I won't say a lot about my psychotic breakdown, only that my mind was returned to me the worse for wear.

After that, I worked in childcare for one summer. Then I decided I never wanted to work in childcare again, and looked for a project to keep me occupied. I started writing short horror scripts for a man who said he was going to produce me, but was really just stringing me along for no reason.

Finally I looked at what I had left: The old script I had worked on throughout my sickness. Throughout turmoil and adversity and a kid being sick in his own hands, there it was. A five episode script. The one my supposed "producer" (let's call him BG) said he would produce, with little effect and no talk of financial contracts or onset photos, nothing to show that he was actually taking any of my work seriously.

I decided then and there, I would get Faun made. Whether it was through a producer or using my own limited capital, I would make my own dream of putting Faun out there a reality.

But how to get it out there? As a film script it was good, but I had no access to people who knew about filming and angles and cuts and so on. I could have learned it all myself in the lockdown but for my depression and the fact that I am a terrible learner. There was also the problem of the settings. A rustic pub? Where would I find one that didn't look modern, locally? This is why many of the first episodes take place in settings such as a field or a tent or a church.

I could submit it to a contest, but free ones are few and far between and finding one you don't have to pay for, thereby lining the pockets of the contest throwers, is a hard thing to do. Then it came to me: Any arsehole with a microphone and an idea can create a podcast.

So I took to instagram and declared: I have finally finished the script for Faun (I hadn't, it took about a year of drafting and redrafting to get it to a place I was happy with it ), either it now gets produced as a radio play or I turn it into a podcast.

Then came the fateful message from a friend of an old project, it went something like: "I have about 10 people I know personally in need of voice reel footage who would love to be in Faun." And so, with nothing else to do besides looking at all my old successful uni friends on Facebook and going on dates with women out of my league and British Asian men looking for a practice girl before settling down in a nice arranged marriage, I decided to give it a go.

And indeed, here we are dear reader. I hope you will follow me on this journey, on my blog and on my podcast. All 8 of you, I value each and every one of you as though you were my own friends.

Enjoy listening, and remember, follow your dreams even if they're fucking stupid.

[celestial-robots]

Finding Equinox

A Sun & Moon X Reader Story

Chapter One: Dawn of a New Day

Next

Word Count: 6363

Summary: You have a new job at the famous Fazbear Mega Pizzaplex! Surely this will be a normal retail job. Unfortunately, that notion is quickly disproved, as you find yourself severely underqualified for the position Fazbear put you in. But on the bright side, the sun-themed animatronic in the Daycare is nice.

Author’s Note: I’ve been talking about this fic for a while, now’s the time to post it. I’ve never written an X Reader fic before—heck, I’ve only used self-inserts a handful of times before. But I’ve been inspired by a lot of good fics I’ve seen centered around Sun and Moon, and I wanted to throw my had in the ring ^-^ This is going to be a longer series with a bit of a slow burn on the romance part. I mean, you gotta get to know the guys before you date them, right? I hope you all enjoy it, I’ve had a lot of fun writing this :D

------------------------------------------

Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex. It sounded like something out of a children’s show. Some place where the characters would hang out in between going to school classes and fighting supervillains...or something. But no. It was a real place, a massive building that was a cross between a mall, a theme park, and a robotics lab.

It was also the site of your new job.

Honestly, you hadn’t expected them to actually look at your online application. Fazbear was notorious for using robots whenever possible, and you’d heard all about the Mega Pizzaplex’s STAFF bots. You weren’t really sure why they were hiring in the first place if the STAFF was oh-so amazing. But you needed a job to pay rent on your brand-new apartment, and your current one sucked. At least the Pizzaplex was willing to pay more than minimum wage. Surprisingly.

So, when they emailed you back with congratulations on getting the job, you snatched it up. Sure, it would mean commuting to the Pizzaplex outside of the city five days a week, but you liked driving. And you would be lying if you said you weren’t fascinated by working for the Fazbear Entertainment. The company that spawned a million ghost stories—not to mention multiple genuinely scary horror games. The legend appealed to you, as terrible as the rumors were.

Your first shift was on Monday, starting at 3pm. A decent enough time. It took a solid forty minutes to drive out to the Pizzaplex, though, and you weren’t sure if there’d be trouble getting in, so you left at 1:40. Luckily, the massive building—seriously, this was probably bigger than your college campus had been—had an employee parking lot nearby. You found a decent spot, then gathered your items for the day.

The email you’d gotten from Fazbear Entertainment said you were allowed to bring or wear whatever you wanted, as long as you acknowledged that Fazbear Entertainment wasn’t responsible for lost or damaged items. And you’d done your research on the Mega Pizzaplex shortly after getting the job. In accordance with your research, you put together a little Survival Pack:

Work uniform. It was really just a T-shirt with a logo on the front and back that read “Fazbear Entertainment Mega Pizzaplex Employee.”

Company-issued FazWatch. It had been sent to you in the mail along with the shirt, and looked a lot like some of the novelty toys that Fazbear sold. That wasn’t going to be confusing at all. But apparently it gave you security clearance.

Headphones. Connected to your phone via Bluetooth, so you could listen to music or a podcast while you worked, and hopefully drown out the sound of the large crowds that went in and out of the Pizzaplex each day.

Charger and portable battery. Headphones wouldn’t be much good if your phone died.

Sunglasses. Looking at the promotional pictures on the website, you knew that there would be bright light galore inside the building. And you would prefer to not have to stare at those for your entire shift. The pair you brought today were especially big, with round lenses that covered almost the entire upper half of your face.

Face mask. Just in case you needed to dull some strong smells or avoid breathing in any sort of particles.

Zip-up hoodie. Allowed the logo on the T-shirt to be seen. You hadn’t been sure if the Pizzaplex would be too warm or too cold, so you brought this just in case of the latter.

Backpack with packed lunch. Sure, the email said that food would be provided for you, but you’d been screwed over by messages like that before, so you brought something just in case.

With these powers combined, you gained the Ultimate Ability: Getting Customers to Leave You Alone Unless You Approached Them First.

Walking in through the front entrance was easy. The logo on your T-shirt allowed you to skip the massive lines. You strolled right in through the glass doors...and stopped short. Wow. This place was...really, really cool. And funnily enough, looked a lot like the pictures on the website. You’d been half-expecting some Expectations Vs. Reality shit, but no. On the surface at least, this place was incredible.

Also very, very loud, and very, very bright. You mentally patted yourself on the back for thinking of your Survival Pack. You glanced around, unsure where to go, before calling one of the elevators. The email said to go to the atrium when you arrived. So, one short elevator ride later, you stepped out onto the center balcony, overlooking the massive neon-lit expanse of the Pizzaplex.

“Hello New Employee.”

You jumped at the sound of a robotic voice behind you. Spinning around, you saw one of those patented STAFF bots: simple robots with painted-on facial features and wheels for feet. “We are glad to have you here as part of the Fazbear family,” the voice continued. “Take a map.” The bot held out a folded sheet of paper in one of its clamp-like hands.

“Uh...suuuure.” You took the offered map. Surprisingly, your FazWatch beeped. You glanced at it and saw a notification, telling you that a map of the Mega Pizzaplex had been added. “Huh.” You looked back at the map in your hands. Yep, it was paper, alright. How did it connect with the watch? Or did the bot do that?

“Your company-issued Freddy FazWatch will alert you to any tasks you have to complete on your shift,” the STAFF bot said. “All tasks must be completed before ending your workday. New tasks can and will be assigned at any point during your shift. These tasks may include janitorial services, transport of goods from storage using the utility tunnels, animatronic maintenance and repair—”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“—and upkeep of devices such as arcade cabinets, musical equipment, and any internal systems of the Mega Pizzaplex. Remember to smile, you are the face of Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex.”

“Wait a minute, what was that second-to-last one?” you asked. But it was too late. The STAFF bot had already rolled away, and was hounding the incoming customers to “take a map.” You almost pursued it, but decided against it. The bot probably wasn’t programmed to do anything more than give you that introduction and map.

Still...was that really it? You weren’t going to have any training or anything? Were you even going to meet your supervisor? Did you have a supervisor? You stand there, confused, for a good few minutes, looking down at the atrium and getting in the way of incoming families. Well...guess you would have to make do.

You shuffle off to the side, pass through a few doors, and somehow end up in a gift shop full of kids asking their parents for plushies. Another STAFF bot behind the counter seemed to be handling the transactions, thank god. You’d manned the register before in other jobs, and it always made you feel awkward. Well, nobody was looking for you, so you take a moment to pull out your phone and put on your most energetic music, cranking up the volume until only the loudest of children’s screams pierced the barrier of sound. Then, you decided to check out this FazWatch.

The interface was easy enough to figure out. You had a tab for tasks, a tab for the map, and a tab to remind you of your schedule. It seemed you had a fifteen-minute break scheduled for six o’clock. You could also clock in and out from this tab. Right now, it was 2:50, so you tapped the “Clock In” button. Nothing wrong with being early, right? There was also a gear icon in the bottom left for settings, and a lock icon in the bottom right that told you your security level. It was Level Four...which seemed a little high for what the job description was, but you weren’t going to complain.

Now. Onto the tasks. Cleaning the glass in Rockstar Row...fixing a STAFF bot that some kids messed with...restocking the ice cream parlor in Bonnie Bowl with new ingredients...and a few other things. Most of it didn’t sound too hard, but you were a little worried about that STAFF bot. Sure, Fazbear liked to brag about how their animatronics were extremely advanced yet simple to use, but you didn’t think you were qualified to work on anything robotic-related. You hadn’t even taken any math classes in college.

Well. Better get to it. If that STAFF bot from before was right, new tasks could show up at any moment. You shouldn’t let them pile up.

Sure enough, all the tasks you’d been assigned were simple to figure out. The biggest obstacle in your way was navigating the damn Pizzaplex. The Faz-map on the FazWatch was Faz-awful. Terribly low resolution. This company was worth billions of dollars, but it couldn’t spare ten bucks for the map. And the paper map you’d been handed only showed areas customers were allowed to be in, it was no help for the employee-only parts. But once you figured out where you were going, it was just a bunch of manual labor. Even the broken STAFF bot only had its wheels jammed. Jabbing about with a screwdriver fixed it right away.

Sooner than you thought, six o’clock approached, and with it, your fifteen-minute break. You were pleasantly surprised to see that you’d already completed all your assigned tasks. Maybe you could take a longer-than-mandated break. If you were really lucky, you might even be able to just chill for the rest of your shift.

You looked around. Your last task had been fixing a machine in customer service. Apparently a teenager stuck a magnet on it and completely broke it. Honestly, you hadn’t been sure what to do, so you just turned the machine off and on again. Surprisingly, it worked. Hopefully. You’d hate to make some other human worker—of which you had seen none the whole day—fix it. Now, you were standing near the elevators in the lobby, staring up at the massive golden Freddy statue. Customers were standing around, waiting for the elevators to arrive. A few little kids were looking at you, probably wondering why this strange person was wearing sunglasses indoors.

Alright. Logically, you should take your break in the break room. That would be great...if you knew where one was. In the three hours you’d been wandering around the Pizzaplex doing menial tasks, you hadn’t seen anything even like a break room in any of the employee-only areas. So...that left you at a loss.

A loud noise pierced the sound barrier you’d set up with your headphones. You jumped and glanced around. One of the kids waiting for the elevator was screaming and pulling against his mom, apparently scared of getting in the moving metal box. A few other customers were watching the scene. Some of them noticed you staring and stared right back. You quickly looked away, feeling irrationally guilty.

Ah, screw the break room. You just needed a place that was quiet and empty of customers so you could eat your lunch (dinner?) without any unexpected noises or staring families.

You looked around for an area without any people. Obviously, the lobby and main atrium were a no-go. What else was there? Gift shop, lost and found, daycare—daycare?

Partly out of curiosity, partly out of noticing nobody was heading that direction, you walked over to the big garage door. It opened on its own, doing that thing where the doors recognize your security level and let you in accordingly. You ducked under before it fully opened.

You found yourself in a long, wide hallway. The floor was a pattern of purple colors, while the ceiling resembled a night sky full of stars. There was a series of planters with palm trees—probably fake—and various decals on the brick walls. One was a rainbow logo with an arrow pointing further down the hall, reading “Superstar Daycare Pick-Up.”

While you could have sat on one of the planters to eat your lunch, you headed further down the long, wide hallway, wanting to see if there’s a better place at the end. You glanced around at the wall decals. They seemed to be advertisements for some sort of...candy? Sunnydrop Energizing Candy and Moondrop Sleepy-Time Candy, each featuring cartoon mascots styled after the sun and moon respectively. It was pretty cute, actually, but you couldn’t help but wonder what made this candy “energizing” and “sleepy.”

Drugs?

No, probably not.

But honestly given the rumors surrounding Fazbear Entertainment and child endangerment, you wouldn’t be surprised to hear they were putting something weird in the candies. Maybe too much of something that’s regulated for good reason.

The hallway ended in another one of those garage doors, decorated with a sun and moon motif. This also opened automatically, and you were immediately greeted by a pair of golden statues. Kind of like the one in the lobby, but much smaller. And instead of depicting any of the headlining Glamrock animatronics, these are replicas of some sort of...sun and moon...things. With puffy pants. Oh, wait. They were probably the same characters on the candy advertisements. Duh.

You stepped further into the room. There were a few tables and chairs here, and you took off your backpack in anticipation of sitting down for what must have been the first time in three hours. But before you did, you looked around some more. The area overlooked a larger playplace, walled in and with netting covering the top. You stared down at it. Looked pretty nice, honestly. You would have loved something like this as a little kid. But where was the entrance? There was a slide up here that leads down into the playplace (labelled “Slide Into Fun!”) but that doesn’t help with getting out.

Still holding your backpack, you pushed through the turnstiles and walk down the stairs to what must be the ground floor. More tables down here, sweet. And an oversized pair of wooden double doors. Good. That solved that mystery. With your curiosity satisfied, you sat down at one of the tables and pulled out your lunch.

You ate peacefully, unbothered by any customers or tasks, completely content to sit here and avoid the possibility of being stared at. Your music blared in your ears, so you turned it down a bit, since it didn’t need to be as loud in this quieter area.

While you sat there, you wondered if you’d ever get to meet any of those famous animatronics Fazbear was known for. They’d been completely absent so far; you hadn’t even seen them in their rooms when you cleaned the glass on Rockstar Row. Strange. You knew the Pizzaplex had closed for a while about a month ago—something that was heavily complained about on social media. The official excuse was “maintenance” and “upgrading systems,” but it had all been very vague. Even the email you got upon hiring hadn’t said much. It was very mysterious. Maybe something happened during that time it was closed, something that put the animatronics out of commission, but Fazbear decided to reopen without the animatronics anyway. You wouldn’t be surprised.

Once you were finished, you checked the time on your phone—surprisingly, the FazWatch didn’t have a space for the time. 6:08. Huh. Speed-eating, hell yeah. Now, with some time to kill before your break ended, you put your lunch bag away and stood up.

Movement flickered in the corner of your eyes.

Your head whipped towards it. Where did that come from? Was it...inside the playplace?

You approached the wall cautiously, peering through the glass at the play area. At some point during your break, someone had shown up inside there. Or...maybe it would be more accurate to say something. Your wondering about the animatronics must have called to the universe, because now there was one only twenty feet away from you.

The animatronic had its back turned to you, but you recognized the design immediately. It was the same as the golden statue on the floor above. Tall, with long limbs and a circular disc of a head, triangular metal bits jotting out from the side to imitate sunrays. Puffy striped pants and frills around the waist and neck made it look like a clown or jester. Currently, the animatronic was fussing with a stack of toy barrels, bent over and carefully nudging them. Which was a little strange. The barrels were already perfectly stacked.

For a moment, you just watched, intrigued. This wasn’t like any other Fazbear animatronics you’d seen pictures of. It was much thinner and lacked an animal theme, but also...well, its colors were a bit duller than you were expecting. Especially for something themed around the sun. You would have expected bright colors, like the candy advertisements, but instead it was all pale yellows and grays, with darker reds and oranges in the pants and frills. Maybe all the animatronics weren’t quite as colorful as their ads depicted.

As you continued to stare, the animatronic stood up straight, putting its hands on its hips and nodding. It spun around...and immediately stopped when it caught sight of you through the glass wall.

“Oh. Uh...” You were once again surprised by the inaccuracy of the decals on the walls. Yes, the animatronic had a sun for a face, divided in half with one half looking like a crescent moon. But unlike the ads, the animatronic’s eyes were just blank white. No pupils to be seen. It was a little unsettling, but you got over it. Slowly, you raised a hand and waved. “Hi,” you say, feeling awkward.

To your surprise, the sun animatronic immediately jumped into the air and began waving back enthusiastically. It followed this up with several excited gestures, even doing a little dance where it hopped back and forth on its feet. You couldn’t help but smile; something about this was endearing. But as the animatronic continued to gesture, you realized it was probably talking to you.

“Oh! Hang on.” You dug into your pocket, pausing your music on your phone and taking off your headphones. Now you could hear ambient music playing from overhead speakers: a catchy, bouncy tune that was fitting for a daycare. “What were you saying?” you asked.

The animatronic had paused for a bit while you rooted around in your pockets, but once it had your attention again it instantly resumed its excitement, waving its hands back and forth and rotating its face—rotating its face?! Yep, surprisingly, that circular plate of a head could rotate all the way around. That was kind of cool. You wondered how it worked. But, sadly, you still couldn’t hear anything. Was this glass soundproof?

You glanced at the big wooden double doors, but then hesitated. Pulling out your phone again, you watched the time change from 6:11 to 6:12. Then you checked the FazWatch on your wrist. No new tasks had shown up...You wouldn’t have any work to do until one appeared. And that might be a while. You considered it...and then muttered “Why not?” under your breath and walked over to the doors.

Unlike the garage doors leading to the daycare area, these wooden ones didn’t open automatically upon your approach. For a moment, you worried that your security level wasn’t high enough. But then you grab the handle of one of the doors and pull, and it opened without resistance. Well...without much resistance, at least. It was still a very big door, and you grunted with exertion as you gradually pulled it open.

The moment there was enough space, you slipped through, letting the door slowly shut behind you. You coughed, waving your hand in front of your face as dust floated through the air, and then pulled on your emergency face mask. Good thing you’d thought to bring that. The overhead music was even louder inside the playplace, looping along, echoing through the completely empty area.

Well. Almost completely empty.

“Hello new friend!” The sun animatronic from earlier appeared in front of you, grabbing your upper arms and lifting you off your feet. “It’s so good to meet you!”

“Holy shit!” you yelped.

“Sorry!” The animatronic instantly let go, and you fell to the floor, jolting at the one-foot drop. It backed up a bit. “It’s just so exciting to see someone new!” Even as it continued to talk, it couldn’t stay still, bouncing on its feet and fidgeting with its hands. “We can color, play hide and seek, order pizza and eat until we can’t anymore! It’ll be so much fun!”

“I—okay, uh, yeah.” You reached up and massaged the spot on your arm where the animatronic grabbed you. Its grip hadn’t been too tight, but the metal hands made it feel much worse. “Uh...Who are you, by the way?”

“My name is Sun!” The animatronic said cheerfully. “But you can call me Sunny or Sunshine or whatever else you want! And what’s your name, new friend?”

You gave it—him?—you’re going to go with him—your name, and then moved on. “Yeah, I, uh...I’m glad to meet you, too, dude. I-I just started working here. I, uh...haven’t seen any other animatronics yet.”

“Oh, it’s your first day?” Sun gasped, despite not having the breath to do it properly. “And I’m the first one you’ve met? I’m so honored! A-are you here to help reopen the daycare?!”

“Um...nnno.” Sun instantly deflated. Guilt curled around your stomach. "S-sorry. I didn’t even know we had a daycare until now. I just kinda wandered in ‘cause I didn’t see anyone else heading over here. Uh...but! It’s really cool that we have one!” You put a happy spin in your voice, trying to cheer Sun up. Though you weren’t sure if it’ll work on an animatronic...

It worked. Sun perked up. “It is really cool! The Superstar Daycare is the bestest place for all the little ones to play and have fun!”

“Yeah, it looks nice.” Though, now that you were actually in the daycare...you noticed just how empty it is. There was quite a bit of dust in the air, and a visible layer of it over on a nearby desk. And besides the occasional stack of toy barrels, there was nothing on the ground. You gave Sun another look. Close up, you realized that his colors aren’t naturally dull. Instead, the paint on his body was chipped and faded, covered in a layer of grime. What did he say? ‘Are you here to help reopen the daycare’? How long has this place been closed?

“Of course it looks nice! I keep everything nice and orderly!” Sun stood to the side, holding his arms out in a ‘Look at this!’ gesture, indicating the entire playplace. “See?”

“Yeah, I saw you messing with some of these barrels through the glass,” you said.

“Yep! It’s important that everything’s just right! Very important, ho ho ho!” Sun laughed. “Oh, but where are my manners? What would you like to do, new friend? I-I have puppets, and paints, and all sorts of supplies!”

“Well...” You checked your FazWatch. No new tasks had shown up, but... “Um. Sun. You know I’m...on the clock right now, right? That means I might have to leave to do something at any moment, and eventually I need to clock out and go home...”

“Oh.” Again, Sun’s posture slumped a little. “No, I...I know, new friend. I-I just thought I’d offer.” He tapped his fingertips together, looking down at the ground. “You don’t have to stay, but if you want to, we can do anything you want! I-I promise it’ll be fun! But it’s up to you.”

Even though his expression didn’t change from a smile the whole time he talked, he looked and sounded so dejected that you immediately felt bad. Could an animatronic feel sadness or was it just a programmed response? Well, either way, your heart was too soft to just ignore him. “Hey, I didn’t say I was going to go right now,” you said, giving him a smile. “I have some free time to hang out.”

“Really?!” Sun looked up. “Oh wow! That’s great news, friend!” He jumped into the air, arms outstretched towards the sky in excitement, and landed with a solid thump! “We’re going to have so much fun! What do you want to do? I can go get some toys—oh, you’re probably a little old for them, though. I also have arts and crafts supplies, like fingerpaint and glitter glue! Or we can play games! I know a lot of different ones!”

“Um...yeah, sure, I’m down for some arts and crafts,” you said. “But nothing too messy. Do you have, like, markers or colored pencils or something?”

“Hmm, I don’t know. I’ll go check!” With that, Sun spun around—quite literally, his torso and head rotating 180 degrees before his legs caught up with the spin—and skipped off. He was gone before you could even say anything.

You blinked in surprise. What? Where did he even go? “Uhh...okay, then. I guess that’s how superheroes do it.”

With nothing to do but wait, you give the playplace another look, walking around some of the play structures. There was a ball pit. Sweet. Part of you was tempted to jump right in, but there could be anything hidden in there, bugs or worse. If you were a kid, though, you wouldn’t have hesitated. The play structures themselves were pretty sturdy, despite the daycare being closed for god knows how long. It would probably be a bit cramped for an adult like you, but again, as a kid you would be all over them. Stacks of toy barrels were all over, which you avoided touching due to how concerned Sun was over keeping things orderly.

Other than all that, the only thing of note in the daycare was the big desk by the wooden door. You wandered back over, stepping behind it. The dust on the surface looked even thicker up close, though there were areas that weren’t as dusty. Most notably around a small Freddy Fazbear head that looked like it was supposed to hold something. That was a little weird...why that specifically? And not something like the computers or drawers?

“Oh, new friend? I-I don’t think you’re supposed to be behind there.”

You looked up. Sun had returned, carrying a big plastic box and a stack of plain white paper in his arms. He was standing some distance away from the desk, bouncing in a more...anxious way than before. “I’m not? Why not?” you asked. “I’m staff.” You pointed at your shirt for emphasis.

“W-well, um...” Sun paused. “It’s...just for security! And I don’t think you’re security, you would have a different uniform if you were.” He laughed, but it sounded a bit strained.

You raised an eyebrow. “For security? Really?”

“Yep.” Sun’s bouncing grew faster, his mechanical joints making a clacking—and jingling?—sound. “And we don’t really need the desk, anyway! We can just sit on the floor and draw!”

“The floor’s soft,” you pointed out, glancing down at the mats that covered every surface.

“We can use the box!” He shook the box he was holding. Something inside clattered against the plastic sides. “If we just...stay out here.”

You stepped out from behind the desk, noticing the way Sun stopped bouncing the moment you did. Something behind there was making him nervous. There was no doubt about it. “Are...you okay?” you ask slowly.

“What do you mean, friend?”

“I mean, like, do you have deskophobia or something?” You raised your hands. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not gonna go back there if you don’t want. I just want to...be sure. That everything’s good here.”

“Oh!” Sun sounded pleasantly surprised. “Thank you for your concern, friend! No, I’m not afraid of the desk. I’m just...not allowed to go back there. A-and we can’t spend time together if you’re hiding behind the desk!”

“Huh. Okay, then.” You nodded, but there was clearly something more going on. Sun was scared of you being behind the desk. Was there something back there that he didn’t like? Well...this wasn’t the time to bring it up. You didn’t want to give a robot a panic attack. “Alright, we’ll just sit down here then.” You lowered yourself to the floor, sitting on the soft mats.

“Alrighty!” Sun sat down across from you, folding his long legs and setting the plastic box and paper in between the two of you. He took the lid off the box, revealing its contents: a mismatched assortment of markers, pencils, and crayons, colors and brands all mixed together.

“We’ll have to dump these out if we’re going to use the box as a table,” you said.

“That’s okay, as long as we clean it all up after!” Sun didn’t hesitate to tip the box over, spilling coloring supplies all over the floor. “Here, you can use this! I’ll use the lid.”

“Okay, if you insist.” You laughed a little, doing your best to keep the various supplies from rolling too far away.

Silence fell for a while as you’re quickly sucked into drawing. It had been a while since you’d drawn for fun, outside of an art class. It was nice to doodle whatever you wanted. Sun was quiet as well, except for a slight jingling sound that you soon realized came from bells tied on ribbons around his wrists. He went through a lot more paper than you did, only spending five or ten minutes on each page.

Eventually, you noticed he wasn’t coloring anymore. You looked up and saw his face leaning over you, looking at your own drawing. “Oh fuck!” you gasped, surprised. “When did you get here?!”

“Um, friend, I-I was nice about it before but language like that really shouldn’t be used in the daycare,” Sun said.

“Even when there’s nobody else here?” you muttered under your breath.

“Even then!”

“Oh. I-I didn’t realize you could hear that.” Great, now you’re embarrassed about sassing the daycare animatronic. “Anyway, uh. Sorry. You just surprised me, leaning so close.”

Sun immediately leaned back, quick enough that you were mildly surprised he didn’t fall over backwards. “Oh I’m so sorry! I should have realized. I just wanted to get a better look at your art. You’re a very good artist, friend! That’s a wonderful drawing!”

“Haha. Thanks, dude.” Your face grew a little warm. That sounded like the sort of compliment someone would give a little kid during crafts time in school. But hey, Sun was probably programmed for interacting with small children, so you didn’t pay it much mind. It sounded genuine coming from him, not condescending like it might coming from another adult. “It’s just doodling.”

“If that’s just doodling than your other art must be amazing!” Sun leaned a bit forward again. “I really like this one.” He pointed at a drawing of a flower you’d done in one corner of the paper. “And this one!” Now he pointed at a sketch of a person, smiling and waving in another corner.

“Daw, stop it, Sun. You’re so sweet.” You laughed a little bit. “I’m just practicing poses and colors and stuff.”

Before Sun could say anything else, an intercom overhead crackled to life. “It is now seven o’clock. The Superstar Daycare is officially closed,” said the familiar voice of the announcer. “The Daycare lights will be turning off in five hours. Have a wonderful day here at the Freddy Fazbear Mega Pizzaplex.”

“Seven o’clock? Really?” Surprised, you checked the time. Seven o’clock indeed. You’d been sitting here for forty-five minutes. It hadn’t felt like that long at all. More importantly... “Wait, isn’t the daycare already closed? I mean, hadn’t it been closed for a while? What’s up with the announcer?”

“Oh, don’t worry about that, friend,” Sun said. “That always happens at this time! It’s just a scheduled thing! Yes, the daycare has been...closed for a while...but it might open again soon! You have to be prepared. A-and don’t worry about the lights going off! They don’t turn off anymore.”

“I...wasn’t really all that worried about the lights turning off, but thanks,” you said slowly. “My shift ends in two hours, anyway, so I wouldn’t be here long enough even if they did.”

“Good!” Sun sounded oddly...relieved? “The lights have to stay on.” His peppy voice suddenly became very serious. “On. On.”

“Okay, okay. You’re really serious about that, aren’t you?”

“It’s very important,” Sun added, still in that grim tone.

You blinked, confused. You’re about to ask him why it was important when you’re interrupted by a quiet ping! sound, followed by a voice coming from your wrist that said, “New task added!”

“Huh?” You lifted up your arm, looking at the FazWatch. Indeed, a new task had just appeared. A few machines in the East Arcade had run out of tickets and needed refilling. “Oh shi—shoot.” You stand up, only now realizing the pins and needles in your legs. “I have to go.”

“Already?” Sun stood up as well, much more fluidly than you did. “But you haven’t been here that long!”

“I know, I know. I’m sorry.” You bent over and started putting the coloring supplies back into their box. “But you know what they day. Duty calls, and all that. Call of duty. Call of Duty Shooter Man.”

Sun’s face rotates a bit to the side, perhaps confused by your last remark. “Well, do you have to go right now? We can keep coloring! Or if you want, we can do something else!”

“It’s tempting, but I really shouldn’t.” You sighed.

Suddenly, Sun reached forward and grabbed your arm. “A-are you sure? I have more crafts supplies! I-I can go find them!”

“Jeez, dude, be careful with the grabbing!” You pulled your arm away, discreetly looking down at the spot where he grabbed you to check if it left a mark. Luckily, it didn’t.

“I’m sorry!” Sun retracted his arm, stepping backwards. “I-I’m really sorry.” He put his hands behind his back, as if to show that he wasn’t going to try again. “Heh. O-of course, you probably have...very important technician things to do. Go ahead. Sorry.”

“...wait, what?” You weren’t sure if you heard him right. “What do you mean ‘technician things’?”

“Well...because you’re an animatronic technician,” Sun said.

“I’m a what?!”

Your shout echoed in the empty daycare, but you didn’t care much about your volume at the moment. You weren’t supposed to be a technician! You weren’t remotely qualified for that! That wasn’t even the job you’d applied for! How in the Fazfuck were you a technician?!

“Did you...not know that, friend?” Sun asked hesitantly. “I-I mean, it’s possible that you were incorrectly entered as one in the database! Or that my scan was wrong!”

“Your scan?” you asked absentmindedly, more concerned with the whole technician thing.

“We automatically scan any face we see!” Sun said proudly. “That way we can identify a child’s registered guardian and also any staff members with their information in the company database!”

“Right. Okay, that makes sense.” You looked down at the FazWatch again. “Oh my god, is that why my security level is so high? Because it thinks I’m supposed to work on the animatronics? Ffffffrick. Frick, man.”

“Friend, are you...alright?” Sun asked. “Is there anything I can do?”

“No. Thanks for offering, though.” You rubbed your eyes, suddenly feeling tired, and pulled off your face mask. “I’m just...going to go.”

Sun said nothing. When you looked up again, he was staring at you, perfectly still with his shoulders hunched. He seemed tense.

“I’ll come back,” you reassured him. “If not after I take care of this, then tomorrow. I have another shift at the same time, I can stop by to visit.”

“Promise?” Sun asked.

“Promise,” you said, smiling.

“Oh that’s great, friend!” Sun clapped his hands together, the motion accompanied by jingling bells and metallic clanking sounds. “I’ll be prepared next time! Oh! Do you want to take your drawings with you?” He bent over, carefully picking up your arts projects from the floor and holding them out for you.

“Sure.” You took the offered pieces of paper. “Thanks, Sun.” After a moment’s pause, you turn around and head back to the big wooden doors. “Well. I’ll see you later, then.”

“See you later, friend!” Sun waved cheerfully as you pushed the door open and headed out.

Unfortunately, you were not able to return to the daycare before the end of your shift. After you’d refilled the arcade machines with tickets, two more tasks had appeared, instructing you to fix the lights in El Chip’s and clean a whole crowd of STAFF bots that had been attacked with cake at a kid’s birthday party. And after that, the tasks kept coming. You barely managed to finish them all before it was time to clock out at nine o’clock.

You wanted to stop by the daycare before heading home—which surprised you. Sun had really made a strong impression, for you to already be attached. But it was going to be a long drive back, and to be honest, walking around late at night made you pretty anxious. Even if it was just a short way from your car to your apartment. You didn’t want it to be any later than it already was.

Still, you felt bad just leaving. So you quickly ran back to the daycare area, stopping by just long enough to peer through the glass walls into the playplace. Sure enough, Sun was there, fussing with the stack of toy barrels again. He quickly caught sight of you and waved. You waved back, then pointed to the side, indicating you were leaving. It was hard to tell from this height, up by the “Slide Into Fun!” slide, but it almost looked like Sun’s shoulders slumped. Was he disappointed? Well shit, now you just felt worse. You waved harder, then slowly backed away and disappeared.

You’d make it up to him tomorrow.

[ggukkieland]

📕BTS Fic Reads - 2021 March pt. 1

I appreciate all these fics as they’ve provided me comfort, distraction, etc during these times. So thank you dear authors. Sending you love 💖

If you end up checking the fics in this list, please don’t forget to show appreciation by reblogging or giving positive feedback to these authors 🥰.

Note: if link doesn’t work, click on author and go to their masterlist

🥕 Ongoing - most recent chapter [as of date this list was posted] 🥕 Completed - completed one shots | series 🥕 S - smut | F - fluff | A - angst 🌷 with commentary on completed fics (if reading these help)

--- Some are new, some re-reads, while some are past reads that haven’t been reblogged yet. Mostly mature.

🥕[Ongoing Series] - Social Media AUs (SMAUs)

Catching Feelings @na-na-na-nanna​ - MYG | smau | Goblin!Yoongi, Fantasy, must kiss humans to gain human emotions | Crack, F, A, S [12/?]

Cursed @bloomsuga​ - KTH | smau with written parts | Supernatural AU, Witch!Taehyung, Cursed!Reader | Crack, F, S, slight A ! [3/?]

Just Facts @yoongiiverse​ - JJK | smau | Rich Idol!jungkook, Model Dancer!Reader, Enemies to Lovers | Crack, F [5/?]

Kinda Hot @kimnjss​ - KTH | smau with written parts  | Campus Flirt!taehyung, Bestfriend!Reader, Bestfriend AU, College AU | S, F, A [15/?]

Made of Honor @suhdays​ - KTH | smau with written parts| best friend AU, made of honor!au (like the film) | F, A [18/?]

Best Man @yoontaethings​ - KTH | smau | enemies to lovers, player taehyung? | F, A, S (written) [6/?]

🥕[Ongoing Series]

🌹 Jungkook

Almost Home [reposted/revised] @angelguk​​ - JJK | 27k+ | Single Dad AU, Nanny, slight Fake Dating | A, F [2/?]

Bands @xpeachesncream​​ - JJK | 55.9K+ | Idol AU, Stripper AU | A, F, S [14/?]

Confident @h0neypjm​​​ - JJK | 13.1k | Fuckboy AU, Virgin!Reader | S, F, A ~ [2/?]

It’s a Heartbeat @inkofyoongi​​ - JJK | 23k+ | Enemies to Lovers, College AU, their parents are dating, Jungkook is the South Korean Patrick Swayze and this will turn into a Dirty Dancing!AU nobody asked for 🤭 | A, F, S [1/?]

No Harm List @crazy4myself​​ - JJK | 93.5k+ | Mafia AU, Gang AU, Slow Burn | A, F [10/?]

Normal Kind of Love @/yoontaethings - JJK | 2.5k+ | Actor AU, Exes AU, Enemies to Lovers | A (so far) [1/?]

Open When @iluv-hobi​​ - JJK | drabble series, 2.6k | idol au, established relationship, epistolary | F ~ [2/?]

Picture Perfect @cosmoguk​​ - JJK | 5k+ | parents AU, exes AU (divorced) | A, F | [1/?]

Sleepyhead series @jkstompers​​ - JJK  | 18.2k+ | College AU, Seatmates AU, Crush AU (lol is there such a thing) | F, S

Sleepyhead - “you fall asleep during class next to the uni heart throb jeon jungkook, will you fall in love as well?” 1.8wc

Just to Study - “your seat partner asks if you’re free after class, just to study.” 7.4wc

Passing Notes - “a year of crushing and jungkook’s finally asked you out on a proper date.” 9k wc

Supermodel @koogalore​​ - JJK | 10K+ | Exes AU, infidelity AU, Jungkook is a jerk, Curvy!Reader, talks of body image | S, A [3/?]

The Realm @nottodayjjk​​ - JJK | 3.5k+ | Mystery, Fantasy, OC wakes up in a dark place not knowing where she is, afterlife feels | A [3/?]

The Weeping @themfchase​​ - JJK | 6k+ | Medieval, Dystopian, War, Fantasy AU, Romance, angels/demons | A [1/?]

Wasteland @iridescentjin​ - JJK | 4.5k+ | Sci-Fi AU, Post-Apocalyptic AU, isolation | A (so far) [1/?]

Your Love’s the Only Hoax I Believe In @sparklingchim​​ - JJK | 12.7k+ | College AU, Fuckboy AU, FWB AU, Tutor AU, Unrequited Love | A, S [2/3]

🌹 Yoongi

Birthday Girl @btsarmy9593​​ - MYG | 22K+ | one night stand AU, Noona AU, Professor!Reader, Post Grad AU | F, S [5/?]

Daechwita @/jinings (temp deact) - MYG | 20k+ | servant!yoongi - king!yoongi, princess!reader, period drama, Historical AU | All that Yoongi knows is that King Park must be killed- he just didn’t plan falling in love with his daughter along the way. | A, F, eventual S [2/?]

Silent Dreams @starlightauroras-writes​​ - MYG | 5.7k+ | Best Friend AU, sleeptalking OC while dreaming dirty thoughts about her best friend | S, F [1/?]

🌹 Multi/OT7

Holy Trinity @koyalov​​ - JJK x KTH x PJM | 9k+ | FWB AU, infidelity AU (other woman), Rockstar AU, Band AU, Bestfriend!Jungkook, FWB with other maknaes (yes it’s complicated) | A, S  [1/?]

Playmates @scribblemetae​ - OT7 | 22.6k+ | Idol AU, Sex Worker AU, Strangers to Lovers | S [2/?]

Roses @heejinnien​ - OT7 | 12.7k+ | Crime AU, Mystery, Horror, OC becomes target of the unsub | A [4/?]

by Author

Foxymoxy [AO3] - (JJK)  been following this author since last year (A Sea of Indigo, Hybrid AU) and her fics are amazing. Currently subscribed to these three (out of four) fics which get updated weekly:  🌷

Meadow (Wolf, Shifter AU, Arranged Marriage)

Amended (Arranged Marriage, Fake Marriage, Police Office AU, Childhood Friends, Enemies to Lovers)

Lowlander (Fantasy AU, Enemies to Lovers, Fighter Jungkook)

@jimlingss​ Drabbles 2021

Three Peas in a Pod || Fluff || Namjoon || Single Dad!AU 🌷

Suspended, Seduced, Surprised! || Fluff || Jungkook || E2L

Lotus Blooms in Mud || Angst || Jimin || Historical!AU

Buttering Up || Fluff || Yoongi || Chef!AU

The Office Trip to Pound Town || Smut, Fluff || Taehyung 🌷

Snow White and the Park Ranger || Fluff || Seokjin 🌷

Humdrum Amore || Fluff || Hoseok 🌷

Awaken Again || Angst, Fluff || Namjoon || Sci-Fi!AU 🌷

The Soulmate Gift || Angst, Fluff || Yoongi || Soulmate!AU

Floof’s Tail || Fluff || Jimin || Hybrid!AU 🌷

Take What Isn’t Mine || Smut, Angst || Jungkook

Crocodile Tears || Fluff || Hoseok || Pirate!AU 🌷

🥕[Completed Fics/Series]

Namjoon

Little Red @/bloomsuga - one shot | 22.5k | Werewolf AU, got lost in the woods, inspired by Little Red Riding Hood | S, F, A

Pheromones @rmnamjoons​​ - one shot | 17.5k | Spaceship Captain!Namjoon, Botanist!Reader, Sci Fi AU, Pining | S, F, A 🌷

Stuttering @moonlightchildz​​ - one shot | 11.6k | Tutor AU, Underground Rapper, College AU, Secret Identity | F, S  🌷

There’s a Fly in My Soup @sahmfanficbts​​ - drabble | 1.8k | Cafe Owner x Customer!Namjoon, Cafe AU, Strangers to Lovers, Crack  | F, A (in form of one very stressed OC) 🌷

You’ve Got a Friend in Me @wwilloww​​ - one shot | 3k | Bestfriend AU, Roommate AU, interesting idea to reduce stress levels | S 🌷

Seokjin

All I Ever Wanted @hayjeon​ - one shot | 10k | Teacher AU, Enemies to Lovers AU | F, S 🌷

Voicemail @joonary​​ - one shot | 7k | College Podcast AU, Friends to Lovers, Pining, Bestfriend AU | F (💕fluffy day reblog)  🌷

What Made Us Feel Human @joonsgalaxy​​ - drabble | 2.3k | Neighbor AU, thought neighbor’s noise is due to sex but it’s something else, Crack | F 🌷

Yoongi

Accidents @jungxk​​ - drabble 2.4k | Dad AU, Comedy | F (💕fluffy day reblog)🌷

Are You Still With Him @/joonsgalaxy - drabble | 1.7k | Roommate AU, Producer AU, Friends to Lovers, secret pining, use of song lyrics in the fic | F (I really love how it made use of different song lyrics in the story) 🌷

Avec Mes Souvenirs @palpitate-hyperventilate - one shot | 3.5k | Nikita!AU, Assassin AU, Trainer Yoongi | A

Dad Yoongi + Pawful Experience by obiwrites (through reblogs of her old posts) - drabble | 2.1k | Husband AU, Dad AU, presence of Holly and one resistant Yoongi | F (ugh this is the cutest) 🌷

Earn It @sugasbabiie​​ - one shot | 5k | College AU, Professor AU, PWP,  PLOT TWIST! | S, A 🌷

Hidden Stars @jungblue - series [5/5] | 37.3k | Idol AU, Love Triangle, some reference to infidelity | A, F, S  (a reblog of old faves) 🌷

In Character @kookingtae​​ - one shot | 5.7k | Pornstar AU, “actor au where yoongi plays a burglar who breaks into your house and has his way with you.” | S 🌷

Listen Closely @avveh​​ - one shot | 12.2k | Office AU, Coworker AU, accidently received a recording of Yoongi 🌶🥵💦 | S (reblog) 🌷

Love Language @gukslut​​ - one shot | 5.3k | Established Relationship, use of the Love Language concept | A, S, F (reblog) 🌷

Overstayed Welcome @kaep-jjjang - one shot | 7k | secret crush on yoongi, yoongi to the rescue when a one night stand won’t leave, friends to lovers | S

Selfish @write-this-way-please - two shot [2/2, sort of discontinued] | 3.8k | Coffee Shop AU, kinda hated each other, then a bit of surprise by end of Part 1 | Part 2 feat Namjoon | S, A

Slip @kinglykook​​ - one shot | 5.2k | Roommate AU, Enemies (kinda), OC slipped | S (a rediscovered fic 🤩) 🌷

Tsundere @dovechim​​ - one shot | 11.2k | College AU, Resident Advisor | S, A (a reblog) 🌷

Hoseok

To The Beat of My Heart @jeonggukingdom​​​​ - one shot | 7.2k | Dancer AU, use of mirror 🥵💦| S, pwp 🌷

Written on Our Veins @army-author​​​ - two shot [2/2] | 33.2k | Soulmate AU (💕heart day reblog) 🌷

This is Not a Love Story @sincerelyourfangirl - one shot | 8.7k | breakup au, infidelity, but happy ending for OC | A 🌷

Jimin

Cordially Jimin @kpopfanfictrash​ - one shot | 6.1k | Office AU, Epistolary (through correspondence), Humor | F (💕fluffy day reblog) 🌷

Saturday Mornings @craztextae​ ​ - drabble | 2.2k | Pining AU, Strangers to Lovers(?), Plot Twist! | S 🌷

Girls Like You [Don’t] Run Around with Guys Like Me @ktheist​ - one shot | 4k | popular!reader x shy!jimin, Rich Kids AU, FWB AU, College AU, ends as CEO (PJM) and Racer (OC) | A, F

Taehyung

A Letter in Roses @artaefact​​  - one shot | 8k | Husband AU, CEO AU, appearance of Yeontan | F, implied S

A Timely Malfunction @/joonsgalaxy - drabble | 2.9k | time travel, friends to lovers, prompt:  “What? No, I never said that.” | F

College FWB Drabble + PDA + Miscomm @yukheii - drabble | FWB AU, College AU | F (seriously this is super cute) 🌷

Handsy @jinned​​​ - one shot | 3.7k | Roommate AU, Bestfriend AU, Childhood Friends AU, Pining | taehyung helps her during time of need | S, F 🌷

Hold Still @/joonsgalaxy - drabble | 2.1k | CEO AU, use of flashlight 🙈 | S, pwp ( I’ll Never look at flashlights 🔦 the same way again)

Not Even Close @lovetrivia​​ - drabble | a powerful 600 wc | enemies to lovers, college au, hookups | S, pwp, A 🌷

Of Mages and Swords @masterninjacow​​ - one shot | 40k | Fantasy AU, King Arthur AU, Royalty AU, Action, Romance | A, F 🌷 #holygrailfic

Potent But Not Real @whatifyoulivelikethat​ - one shot | 5k | Assassin AU, Office Worker Taehyung | S, A

Talk Slow @writtenwhalien​​ - one shot | 6.4k | brother’s best friend, Exes AU, never have I ever game | A, S, F

The Temp @jkeuphoriadreamland​​ - one shot | 8.2k | Enemies to Lover, CEO AU, Taehyung has arranged marriage with someone else (headed for divorce) | S, F 🌷

Jungkook

gets a separate post due to too many fic reblogs 😬 (see link below for PART 2)

I love to read so feel free to recommend a fic posted: 2021 March 24 link to other reading lists  | Mar Part 2

[haitanirindo]

zukka fics that live in my head rent free! 

1. what did you bury before those hands pulled me from the earth (what were you digging) by draco_sollicitus status: complete (18k words) rating: mature pairing(s): sokka/zuko  summary: Sokka is immortal; it's been tested, he knows that he can't die. He's immortal, but he's not quite a god like his sister, Katara. He's immortal, but he's not quite powerful like his friends Aang and Toph. He's just sort of Sokka: good at fixing things, good at playing pranks, good at helping people. When a bet against Toph goes horribly wrong, and an attempt to save him goes even worse, Sokka finds himself the unwilling guest of the Lord of the Underworld. And, strangely enough, every story Sokka's heard about Lord Zuko seems to be ... completely wrong. (Also, he's really handsome. Why does he have to be handsome?)

mythology nerds come get y’all juice. a very good fic. 10/10

2. Where I Want to Be by through-the-stars-to-the-pavement status: WIP (83k words) rating: explicit pairing(s): sokka/zuko summary: "'The fog was where I wanted to be.'" Everything is different. The pitch of his voice, his posture. The auditorium goes silent. No one can take their eyes off of him.… He's amazing.  Zuko had to perfect the art of acting as a child to survive the horrors of his homelife. When he got older, it was only natural to take his talent to the stage for entertainment and escape. Enter Sokka, a craftsman and set designer with a giant heart who is haunted by plenty of ghosts of his own. A tale of trauma, disability, family, creativity, and love. 

this is one of my all time favorite fics. it’s seriously so good and i think about it often

3. Teaching a Heart by @i-write-shakespeare-not-disney status: WIP (114k words) rating: teen and up pairing(s): sokka/zuko summary: Sokka is asked to go to the Fire Nation to teach the crown prince how to sword fight. When he arrives, he's surprised to learn he has to pose as a companion before he can teach the stubborn prince because he rejects every teacher. Far from home and among new customs, Sokka struggles to gain the prince's trust and friendship despite the uncertainties of the customs and dynamics he sees. As he slowly finds answers to his questions, his bond with the prince grows until it becomes something far more ardent than friendship. Doomed as it may be with the prince's approaching wedding ceremony and coronation, Sokka and Zuko find themselves consumed by what they find in each other.

i have no words, i just love this fic and it makes me weep.

4. The Road Between Action and Inaction by @donvex status: complete (17k words) rating: teen and up pairing(s): sokka/zuko summary: Sokka does a shitty k turn in the parking lot across from the bus station, pulls up to the curb where the boy is looking determinedly at his phone, and rolls down the passenger window. “Hey! Which way were you going?” He may die, but at least his conscience will be clear. The guy blinks at him. “Don’t.” Oh, he’s prickly. Or: the hitchhiker au, featuring Sokka and Zuko falling in love without even realizing it.

a classic. roadtrip fics own my ass. 

5. purrfect for eachother by lesmiserablol status: complete (3k words) rating: general audiences pairing(s): sokka/zuko summary: “Let me teach you how to be a cat person,” Zuko says. “Learning from the master himself,” Sokka grins. “Alright, this can’t be too hard. Show me what you got.” (because sometimes, it takes going to a cat café four times to realize you're in love with your best friend)

this whole series is adorable, reading it is self care

6. Ashes Inside When You Finish Your Song by @muncaster status: complete (47k words) rating: teen and up pairing(s): sokka/zuko, aang/katara, mai/ty lee summary: Sokka writes lyrics for his sister’s band. Zuko plays piano and is unnecessarily nice. Fellas, is it gay to write love songs about your friend and his golden eyes? (AKA, a modern band AU featuring The Gaang, crappy software equipment, homoerotic lyrics, and the realization that maybe, if you think about a guy every night before you sleep, you just might be in love with him.)

i think this is the longest one-shot i’ve ever read and it’s so worth it

7. a study in matchmaking by @verdanthoney status: complete (12k words) rating: general audiences pairing(s): sokka/zuko, aang/katara, bato/hakoda summary: Zuko and Sokka try to play matchmaker, but things don't go exactly as planned.

this fic makes me want to scream, in the best way. it’s so cute

8. A Predictable Story by mindbending status: complete (7k words) rating: general audiences pairing(s): sokka/zuko summary: "On this night, you shall share a kiss with a great love of your life!” That lying, scummy Aunt Wu predicts a grand romance for Sokka. To disprove her "fortunetelling" once and for all, Sokka decides to spend the night with least romantic person he knows. Zuko.

again, i have no words. this fic is cute as hell

9. that’s murder, buddy by @bisexual-atla status: WIP (14k words) rating: teen and up pairing(s): sokka/zuko summary: Throughout the streets, on quiet nights, it was rumored the screams of those missing could be heard. Some say the sounds were coming from underground. Where were the young girls? And what was happening to them? Was an evil spirit haunting Gaoling, or something more human? More sinister? My name is Zuko, and you’re tuning into another episode of ‘That’s Murder, Buddy’. Or: Sokka has no idea that his crush is the host of his favorite podcast. (But everyone else knows.)

i love the entire concept of this one, we love oblivious sokka

10. We’ll play hide and seek (to turn this around) by @crosspin status: complete (5k words) rating: general audiences pairing(s): sokka/zuko, bato/hakoda summary: Sokka gave him a sheepish smile. “It’s…well, you see, there’s this boy…” Hakoda sighed and set down the sports section. This was going to take a while. “He works at Barnes & Noble. At the big information desk in the middle. Every Saturday. And I really want to ask him for his number, but it’s super awkward because there’s always this other guy working the information desk at the same time. He’s old, like you. But I have a plan." Sokka’s eyes lit up deviously. “You come with me to Barnes & Noble today when they’re working and distract the old man. And while you have him distracted, I’ll swoop in and get the goods!” Sokka has a plan to ask out the cute boy at the bookstore. Hakoda is a begrudging participant until he meets the boy's beautiful older coworker.

this fic!! this fic! adorable, incredible, magnificent

11. feels like we only go backwards by @oldpotatoe status: WIP (88k words) rating: teen and up pairing(s): sokka/zuko summary: [Time passes oddly. Between one second and the next, Sokka has the Fire Lord pinned to the wall with his hands around the bastard’s throat. Golden eyes (one gold eye, his mind whispers) widen in shock. “Sokka?” he chokes out. And then he smiles. What the fuck? “Sokka, I—” Sokka slams his head against the wall, once, twice, and the smile wipes off his face. Good. “What,” Sokka bites out, “have you done to my sister?”] Or: An injury leaves Sokka with amnesia. His last memory is of the failed invasion, of leaving his father behind in enemy territory on the Day of Black Sun. Of hopelessness. Rage. But then he wakes up, and the war is over. Suddenly, he must come to terms with the fact that years have passed, and that he's somehow the Southern Water Tribe Ambassador to the Fire Nation. He is also supposedly friends with banished-Prince-turned-Fire-Lord Zuko, of all people. Close friends. Yeah, nah.

if you’ve been following me for a while you know this fic fucks me up beyond belief

12. breakable heaven by @fruitysokka status: WIP (43k words) rating: teen and up pairing(s): sokka/zuko summary: With his twenty-first birthday looming just around the corner, the Southern Water Tribe Elders have decided that Sokka, next in line to be Chief, needs to get married. Sokka does not want that, but he does need to get them off his back until he can figure his way out of it. What better way to do that than to pretend to date his best friend (and newly minted Ambassador to the Southern Water Tribe) Zuko? Seriously, this is a foolproof plan. Maybe one of Sokka's best. Absolutely nothing can go wrong.

this just in: sokka and zuko being oblivious makes me want to yell

this turned out a bit longer than i expected but it also doesn’t even cover all my favorites. i had to stop somewhere, or i’d be here forever. maybe i’ll make a part two someday.

anyway, enjoy!

[aerialflight]

Fic Recs (cause it's always nice to give a shout out and get people into things I'm into rn)

[The Magnus Archives] (I recently finished the podcast and I fell into a hole for a while so here you go)

Sing a Song of Sixpence by Kaiel

Ship: Jon/Martin

In which Jonathan Sims is a Siren, and he fails to notice any new abilities granted to him by the position of Archivist. Or really anything about the Entities at all.

Takes place in season 1 featuring Jonah Magnus’s slow decent into madness

(The new mythology interwoven with tma's worldbuilding is so freaking good and I love how all the characters change and develop because of these changes. Also, f you Elias)

Along Came a Spider by Dribbledscribbles

Ship: implied Jon/Martin

Sasha James is the Archivist, as expected. Martin Blackwood is menaced by Jane Prentiss, as expected. Elias Bouchard weaves his web, as expected.

All goes as it should.

At least until something calling itself Jonathan Sims steps in.

(Web!Jon in this makes me want to weep, it's so freaking good. A pretty long, very excellent oneshot on what could've happened if Jon got taken by the web when he was a kid. And Sasha as the Archivist is ALWAYS so cool, we love her in this house.)

A Break in the Clouds by Ash_Rabbit

“I’m eight.” the kid sniffs as if eight was any different from four, maybe not an unspeakable horror then, just a regular horror. “And I heard that the Magnus Institute deals with-” his little nose scrunches, cute. “-spooky things.”

“Do you have a-” he cracks a grin, and then rethinks it as small hands tighten against their burden.”-spooky thing to deliver?” gods he hopes not, it’s bad enough when adults walk in and lay out all of their baggage, but for a child-

“There’s a spider in this book.” the kid says solemnly, raising his textbook sized parcel. “It ate Evan Pritchard.” a bloody fucking Leitner. Of course an eight year old would find a murder spider book. “This seemed like the best place to bring it.”

(I never thought about what the Original Elias could've been like AND NOW I CAN'T STOP THINKING ABOUT IT BECAUSE OF THIS FIC. I LOVE HIM, HE'S COMPLEX AND HE CARES AND JON CARES AND THEY BOTH CARE ABOUT EACH OTHER. THIS IS THE CONTENT I WANT, OMG. Also, Jon being even smaller than usual is adorable, so cute. No wonder Elias wants to hug him, a LOT.)

See the Line where the Sky meets the Sea by The_Floating_World

Ship: Jon/Martin, Jon/Oliver Banks

When Jon is a child he looks into the infinite abyss of space. The Vast looks back into him.

(One of my all time fave fics in this fandom, no questions asked. I have reread this three times and am open to doing it again, god. Vast!Jon, such a concept. It's written so beautifully and the relationships Jon develops, so good. ugh. My heart. Please please read.)

Sweet As Roses by Prim_the_Amazing

Ship: Jon/Martin

“Come in, Martin,” he says, not looking up from his notes.

“Hi, Jon,” he says, and Jon stops writing at the sound of his voice. “We’re out of the green tea, but we’ve got lemon?”

Jon looks at him. Martin smiles at him in his usual tentative way as he sets the mug of tea down on Jon’s desk. Heat spikes so sharply in his gut that he twitches with it.

“Thank you, Martin,” he says, mouth dry, and he stands up.

“Oh,” he says, sounding almost surprised. He smiles again. “No-- no problem-- um, what are you--”

Jon takes Martin by the shoulders, leans up on the tips of his toes, and kisses him.

(You have no idea how much I howled through this fic, my god. *buries face in hands* The number of times I wanted to cry from sheer hilarity and horror reading this good lord.)

Things Could Always Be Worse by theOestofOCs

Ship: Jon/Martin, Georgie/Melanie

Sometimes, the most horrifying thing of all is what might have been.

Somewhere, Jon could swear he heard a crowd laughing.

Or: in which Jonathan Sims is forced to swap places with his alternate self—a tall, chivalrous hero extraordinaire, who knows neither fear nor nuance—and is sent to the aggressively straight alternate universe the Magnus Archives was never meant to be.

“Whatever place this is,” Jon announced, “I just want to be sure it knows I hate it.”

(I will say this once, THIS IS THE MOST CURSED THING IVE EVER READ EVER. Like holy hell. I can't believe this thing exists. please read it oh please please please)

-

[Supernatural]

heard from your mother (she don't recognize you) by Schmuzz

Ship: Dean/Cas, Jessica/Sam

A man named Cas wakes up in 2003 with no memories, but he's able to piece together a few things:

1. Supernatural creatures exist, and most of them will hurt innocent civilians if he doesn't stop them; 2. He has abilities that no human hunter should have, but he knows enough about human hunters to keep that to himself, and finally; 3. He keeps running into another hunter named Dean Winchester, who seems to be about as lonely as he is if he's willing to put up with those former facts long enough to help Cas unravel the mystery of who (or what) he really is.

For his part, Dean's still (not) dealing with Sam's departure to Stanford, and figures distracting himself with a bit of mystery and intrigue is as harmless as it gets, right? Right.

(THE fic I'm most into right now, been following this from the very start and it's AMAZING. Cas has agency and is making friends and S1 Dean is growing out of John's influence and is becoming a Person and the both of them first being friends then more. The slow burn as their relationship develops, SO GOOD. SO SO DAMN GOOD. *screams* Seriously one of the best spn fics I've read in a long, long time.)

anamnesis by cenotaphy

Ships: Castiel/Dean, Sam/Eileen

Chuck is depowered, Jack is the new god, and the world is free. Dean and Sam get into the Impala and chase down the miles on an endless highway, and their story is finally, finally their own to follow. At least, that's what Dean tells himself. But the diners and motels and painted interstate lines are blurring together and the smallest details keep catching at his brain like tiny fishhooks and he can't quite shake the feeling that not everything is exactly as it should be.

* Fix-it/alternate series finale. Canon-compliant through the end of 15.19.

(THIS IS THE FIC THAT GOT ME THROUGH THE FINALE OKAY. WHY COULDN'T THIS HAVE BEEN CANON. It's Disturbing and honestly plot-wise this makes more sense. Why couldn't we have had this. *screams*)

-

[Avatar: The Last Airbender]

where the stars do not take sides by WitchofEndor

Ship: Sokka/Zuko

When Azula is nine, she becomes an only child. She hears the Fire Lord call for Zuko's life, and in the morning, her mother and brother are gone. Azula may be young, but she isn't naive. She knows what happened to them.

Which makes it all the more surprising when Azula tracks the Avatar down and fights his group of peasant friends, only to find herself staring into an eerily familiar face.

(The fact one of the tags in this fic is, "Sibling Dynamic: Fucked Up But Wholesome" should give you an idea what this fic is like. Chaotic as HELL and I just love Azula here, she loves Zuko so much in her messed up way and Zuko loves her back in the exact same way lol. It's batshit and I am Here For This.)

-

[Naruto]

Eclipse by AislingRoisin (JayBird345) for HybrisAnaideia

Ship: Nara Shikaku/OFC

"In life, it's easier to remain stagnant and wallow in your troubles. But life isn't merely about continued existence, nor is it meant to be gone through alone."

(This is a fic that's slept on and I NEED people to read this. A self-insert fic that I find really interesting in its approach and the worldbuilding for the post-third war shinobi world is fantastic. I feel like there's a certain pattern with self-insert fics, not that is a detriment in any way to how much I enjoy them, so this fic feels fresh to me in a way I haven't read in a while. I am waiting eagerly for this to get updated! Please read!)

On Freedom and Other Formalities by iaso

Ship: Kakashi/Genma/OFC

When push comes to shove, Hiwa Inuzuka doesn't go down easy. Reborn into a new, dangerous world? She puts her past life as a spy to work. Thrown into a war? Hiwa does her duty, for Konoha. And when she's forced into an arranged marriage? All there is to do is beat them to the punch and get married first. Thankfully, Genma Shiranui is willing to lend a hand. Literally. SI/OC

(Listen, LISTEN, it's about the slow burn, the longing, the communication (it both has and hasn't and isn't THAT great??), the messy way you fit three very different people together, it's so freaking good! Also, Kakashi is so Chaotic here this is my fave characterization of him, you can't change my mind. And Genma is a Good Boi who is Doing His Best, along with the Self-insert character who I LOVE SO MUCH, SHE'S FANTASTIC FNEIWOPAF. Sped past this fic in the speed of light, I could not stop reading!)(Honestly, read all of the author's fics, they're all really REALLY good!)

Building a Castle by WhisperingDarkness

Without needing anyone to tell her, Sakura knew that talking to someone no-one else could see or hear would make her weird. It would draw the bad kind of attention to her, something people could make fun of her for.

She didn’t like being weird, but she did like the voice. Her inner voice was helpful and it was a part of her that had always been there. The idea of it not being there would have been so much weirder than anything else.

It was during her first year at the Academy that Sakura realised the voice was not in her head at all, but that it came from a cloudy shape floating next to her.

(Basically a short-ish retelling of Hikaru no Go. Only with more Shogi and Nara and Ninja's)

(Sakura can see ghosts (I'm noticing this is a popular trope for her) and it's really cute haha! Her relationship with Tobirama is sweet and I just enjoyed reading this so much.)

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[The Magicians]

So Long (And Thanks For All The Books) by IncompleteSentanc (Erava)

Ships: Quentin/Eliot, James/Julia, Quentin/Margo/Eliot

When Quentin is told Julia wasn't admitted to Brakebills, he realizes he has a drastic decision in front of him. If he tells Julia about magic, he'll have his mind wiped as well as hers. But he can't just leave her behind, either. He can't lose his best friend, and he can't let her life a life with her magical potential stolen away from her.

So he makes a third choice.

(Really, and I mean REALLY well-done canon divergent fic, this is the Quentin & Julia friendship fic I have been looking for forever. It explores so much of what could've happened and I just love Quentin here, I really really do. Characterization done so right. I also recommend the author's other works too. Been a follower of them for a long time, they're great.)

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[Game of Thrones]

The Road to Victory by writing_as_tracey

Too late in preparing for the Night King and the Long Night, the last stand at Winterfell is close to falling. Bran takes desperate measures to ensure victory, and Jon, Sansa, and Arya pay the price for it in a time unfamiliar to them, on the cusp of another war. [GoT, time-travel fix it]

(I swear, this fic made me laugh so many times, all the Stark are BAMF and fantastic, and Rhaegar gets Wrecked lol. It's crack btw, and the plot goes in directions you'll never guess and it's amazing hahaha!)

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[Haikyuu!!] (I am very very late to the fandom but here I am)

Ballare (To Dance) by MidnightSparks

Ship: Iwaizumi Hajime/Kageyama Tobio/Oikawa Tooru, and platonic Kageyama & Kentarou (really love their friendship)

Kageyama’s first love is volleyball. His second, however, is ballet.

In one world, Kageyama Tobio is left behind by his parents. In this world, the existence of soulbonds keeps Kageyama’s parents in Miyagi and leaves Kageyama in the care of his grandma and grandpa.

(In which soulmates exist and that changes everything and nothing at the same time.)

(*buries face in hands* I have fallen for this ship so hard and I can't get out fudge me. I understand now. Their DYNAMICS FIEWONPAF)

Kings of Tomorrow by bokubroya (liarielle)

Ship: Kageyama Tobio/Oikawa Tooru

On the eve of Tobio’s 16th birthday, he counts down the seconds to midnight, and emerges with Oikawa Tooru’s name on his wrist.

It’s been two years since then, and Tobio thought they had an understanding. A silent, never spoken about understanding that this thing between them is nothing, and they’re going to pretend it doesn’t exist.

Of course, it’s just like Oikawa to change the game and leave Tobio wondering what comes next.

(I am WEAK for soulmate fics between these two, I don't even really like soulmate fics half the times what is WRONG WITH ME-)(Please suffer with me, I'm begging you. Its a good fic, thumbs up.)

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[Crossover]

Honey and Magic by JustARatherVerySillyWriter, White_Squirrel for Super Carlin Brothers

Fandoms: Matilda (yeah you read that right), Harry Potter

Everyone knew Matilda was a rather extraordinary child, but even she didn't know she was a witch. Matilda Honey receives her Hogwarts letter in the year of the Triwizard Tournament, and soon, she will leave her unique mark on the magical world.

(Do I even need to explain how amazing it is to have Matilda in the wizarding world? And Matilda is a HUFFLEPUFF AND I WILL DIE ON THIS HILL THIS FIC IS GREAT PLEASE READ!!!)

An Eye for an Eye by DpsMercy

Fandoms: The Magnus Archives, Welcome to Night Vale

In which Jonathan Sims is not from the UK but instead, if you took his origins and turned them sideways twice then flipped them over, he technically would be from the US, the town of Night Vale specifically. Elias can’t do shit about it and gets a headache and slowly creeping madness instead.

(Look, I know probably everyone has read this because if they haven't, what have you been DOING with your lives??? Jon interning at Night Vale is Incredible, nothing phases this man, it's Delightful. I laughed so many times reading this, I'm not even kidding right now. Read or perish.)

The Favour by R_Cookie

Fandoms: Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Ship: Original Percival Graves/Harry Potter

Percival is ten years old when his grandfather tries to tell him that he's ensured the greatness of the Graves legacy for him, that he ought to be eternally grateful - but the explanation is hijacked by a stranger who manages to intimidate Chester Graves with an ease never seen before.

or: Hadrian (Harry) Potter is the Master of Death, who grants Graves a boon. Nobody could have known that the Deathly Hallows didn't turn you so much into the 'Master of Death' as into the anthropomorphic personification of Death. And so, Death becomes Percival's guardian angel, and Percival does not spit out his cereal.

(Look, I don't know how I stumbled back into the FBAWTFT fandom either, it just happened and I'm grateful for that. Otherwise, I wouldn't have found this amazing fic. Their relationship is slow and strange and I just love how Percival is characterized here. Also, one of the tag promises that it deviates from canon so I am really, really excited for that! XD)

baby that's what i do by natanije

Fandoms: Naruto, Katekyou Hitman Reborn!

"Are you telling me," Hidan exclaims, incredulous, "that you collect money all this time to give to orphans?!"

Kakuzu pauses. He blinks a few times.

"Huh. I guess I do."

(Tsuna reincarnates as Kakuzu and it's HILARIOUS. HE'S SUCH A MOM HAHAHA)

[13uswntimagines]

I Should Sleep With You More Often (Sam x Reader)

Sequel to Works Like a Charm  where Sam and Reader finally get together. It’s a very fluffy piece, with a little bit of late night breakfast making and a surprise kiss. 

special thanks to @literaryhedgehog​ cause this wouldn’t have happened without her. 

Hello?”

“Hey, I can’t sleep.” Sam’s voice comes over the phone, getting straight to the point with frustration.

“And you’re calling me about it? At 3 am. I could have been asleep you know.” You huff into the phone, pinning it between your chin and your shoulder. 

“Were you?” She asks, and you can almost see her eyebrow quirking up. 

You look down at the frying pan where you were about to pour your egg-cheese scramble. “No. But still.”

“Don’t worry, I appreciate the irony of the situation,” she says, with an attempt at humor. “can I come over?”

“Sure. You can split my omelet.” You hum, your tongue poking out as you make sure the entire omelet landed on the plate instead of the floor. 

“Omelette?” Sam asked, sounding amused. “I thought you weren’t supposed to --” 

“Eat anything after 9 pm I know, I know. But I woke up and was hungry, and couldn’t just ignore it to fall back asleep for two hours. I had to eat something or I was going to get nauseous.” You interrupted her, waving your hand dismissively. 

“What?” Sam asked entirely confused. 

“You know that feeling, where you’re like, so hungry that you get kind of nauseous?” You tried to explain again. 

“No…” She trailed off. 

“Oh, well it’s the worst. I like to try to eat something before it gets too bad because otherwise, the food won’t do anything. Anyway, I made enough you can have half of it, just let me know when you get here so I can send down the elevator for you.” You said, whipping your hands off and walking towards the door. 

“I’m actually just parking,” Sam’s voice came sheepishly over the phone. In the background, you heard the unmistakable sound of her car being locked. She always insisted on clicking the lock button twice so it would beep, like she didn’t trust it to lock the first time. 

You shook your head and left your apartment to buzz her into the building. “You’re telling me that at 3 am, before even checking to see if I was awake, you just decided to come to my apartment because you couldn’t sleep?”

“Yes?” 

“You’re insane,” you said, hanging up the phone as the elevator door opened to reveal her tall frame. 

She ruffled the hair at the back of her neck, grinning. “I knew you would be awake?”

“Bullshit.” You led the way back to your apartment and grabbed two plates from the cabinet. “You want soy milk?”

“What?” 

“Soy milk. I’ve got vanilla or dark chocolate.” For some reason, soy milk helped reduce the insomnia nausea more than anything else most days. Still, the omelet smelled amazing. 

“Um sure, vanilla please.” She shrugged, and you rolled your eyes. Vanilla was for the weak. 

You pulled out both cartons and two glasses, before cutting the omelet in half and handing her a fork. 

“Don’t I get my own plate?” Sam whined, cutting off a piece of the Omelet and popping it into her mouth. 

“People who come barging into my apartment at 3 AM have to share with the host. Unless you wanna do dishes?” You raised your eyebrow at her, pointing your fork in her direction, smirking when she emphatically shook her head no. 

She quickly changed the subject, avoiding your eyes as she ate. “So how are you liking your apartment, it’s new right?”

“Yeah, I moved in four months ago, you know when I suddenly got traded to North Carolina,” you said, a very bitter edge in your voice. How Mark could let you leave the thorns you would never know, but at least Hinkle was retiring. 

You took another bite “So why couldn’t you sleep? At camp, you’re usually snoring like a freight train by now.” 

Sam paused mid-bite, fork in the air. She looked like she was debating how to answer then, stuffed her last piece of omelet in her mouth. “I donb snowe.”

“You totally do. Rose even sent me the video evidence if you wanna see it,” you smirked, standing to go get your phone. 

“No!” Sam jumped up and you sprinted across the kitchen to get out of her reach, grinning. “You really don’t have to do that, it’s not a big deal.”

“Oh, but I really don’t mind,” you taunted, starting for your phone before Sam tackled you. Well, it wasn’t a tackle so much as a grab, but she had a good foot and a half on you, so same difference really. 

“Put me down. This is highly unnecessary,” you sputtered, laughing from Sam’s shoulder. “I’m not supposed to exercise within an hour of bed. My therapist would be unhappy with so much activity.”

“Yeah cause eating an Omelette at 3 am is totally something she would approve,” Sam rolled her eyes, as she tossed you onto your couch.

“Lies and slander. I won’t get the alleged snoring video, but seriously. Why are you here?”

Sam sighs, and slouches onto the couch next to you, dropping her head into your lap. You smile down at her, liking this new angle. While you certainly didn’t mind being the baby of the team, it was kind of nice to do the petting for once.

“I don’t know,” Sam said, furrowing her eyebrows.

“You were never a good liar. It’s why everyone catches you when you try to pull pranks. I hear it helps if you talk about it,” You murmured, using your thumb to smooth out the crease that formed between her eyes. 

“Fine, I couldn’t sleep because I kept having nightmares. It felt like, I was tossing and turning for hours, and then every time I dozed off, my brain came up with these fucked up images. Like, silence of the lambs shit. I could sell some horror film director the plotlines and make bank, I’m telling you. And since Rose and Wilma moved out, my place has felt so empty. It felt like, the panic attacks I used to have before games. When I had to always bring a bag with me to hyperventilate into before I could get my mind on the game.”

You frowned. “I don’t remember that.”

“Once you became my bus buddy I didn’t have that problem. You got me out of my own head with fun word games and stupid jokes. Remember that time you gave me the sentence ‘The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog?’ You kept grinning telling me to stop stressing out, it would be alright, to just guess a letter.” 

“Because whatever you guessed would be right.” You hum smiling down at her. 

 “You couldn’t take that shit-eating grin off your face, you jerk, but like, it helped me stop second-guessing myself. Sitting on the bus with you, I’ve never felt more calm going into a season. And so I just thought. It’s dumb but I hoped coming here would help.” She shrugged. 

“It’s not dumb Sammy. You help me sleep too. Why do you think all the vets insist I sit with you?” You said softly, leaning down to kiss her forehead. 

“Because you used to fall asleep literally everywhere and they hoped I could get across the aisle and catch you before you hit your head?” She giggled and you snapped her shoulder lightly. 

“Wow. Thanks.” You said in a monotone, “Or maybe it’s ‘cause you’re my favorite teddy bear.”

“If anyone is the teddy it’s you. You’re like half my size,” She giggled. 

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” you muttered, playfully pushing her head off your lap. “Come on you giant.”

“Where are you going?” She asked, allowing you to pull her to her feet. 

“To go grab you a toothbrush and a fresh pillowcase for the bed.” You said, your tugging getting a little more insistent. You really wanted to get to sleep tonight. You had been so good lately (ignoring the random omelet you cooked tonight).

“Oh, um. I was hoping we could just watch television on your couch and I would fall asleep,” Sam rambled, eyes wide. “I mean, not that I mind, but I didn’t want to like, invade on your--”

“Just come up to my room. It’s no big deal, it’s large enough for both of us, and I honestly don’t think that couch is even big enough to fit you. Besides, maybe it will help you sleep to be on a mattress actually purchased in this century.”

“Hey, I like my mattress!” She grumbled indignantly, crossing her arms. 

“You flip it twice a month because it keeps forming an indention where you’ve slept!” You said exasperated. That sleepover had been a terrible idea and you stood by that. At least your bed didn’t spit out feathers when you turned over too fast. 

“Well, I. um. No comment.” you hear her say as you go to take your turn in the bathroom. 

When Sam gets back from brushing her teeth you’ve done everything except turn out the lights. You look up from your side of the bed as she pauses in the doorway. 

“Is this… Welcome to Night Vale?”

“It helps me ignore my thoughts. Can you get the lights please?” 

You had to replay the podcast the next day after Sam left. You couldn’t remember anything after “Wednesday has been canceled due to a scheduling error” because within moments you were asleep.

*****

You thought that sleeping with Sam was only supposed to be a one-night thing, but it wasn’t. One night turned into two, which turned into the two of you usually crashing at each other's places. 

If you were being honest, it was the best sleep you had ever gotten. It was nice to have someone there to hold onto, to protect you from the bad dreams. The problem was that your feelings were edging past the line of friendship, and you had no idea what to do about it. 

It started with a team party you both went to, where Sam offered to be the designated driver. After she dropped everyone else off, you told her she might as well stay the night at your place since it was already so late and she did. And you both slept great. And then you had your usual Saturday spa night the next night, and you were several shots in and it wouldn’t have been responsible to drive home. And you both slept a solid seven hours. 

Not that Sam was a magical cure to your insomnia. You still had nights where your brain was like a train running off the rails, unstoppable no matter how hard you tried. Yet, having her there helped. She made sure blue lights went off when they were supposed to, and your late-night breakfast-making was kept to a minimum. AND after the first few nights, you realized that she was amusingly clingy in her sleep. Which meant that occasionally if you woke up and tried to get out of bed, she would sleepily grab you and hold you in place murmuring about whatever was happening in her dream. Since you couldn’t get up you had to just lay there, which normally might have been boring, but with her was amusing as you listened to her rambling state of consciousness. 

You sighed, staring up at the ceiling. You really needed to get your shit together and just ask her out. But what if she said no, and you lost your cuddle buddy? That would suck royally, and if you lost your bus seat it might completely curse the USWNT. 

“Alright, I can practically feel the steam coming out of your ears, spill,” Sam groaned, rolling over and throwing an arm around your waist. 

“Isn’t it weird?”

“What?”

“Time. Like someone decided that seconds were a thing and a certain number of seconds equaled a minute and there were a certain number of minutes in a day. Like someone just decided it was a thing, and everyone went along with it and now we all have to plan our lives around this arbitrary system. I wonder if that asshole realized that people would use it to put kids in detention and force them to cram so they could regurgitate facts in a specified amount of his made-up system. And like the Romans made a Calendar and the Mayans did one too…” Your rambling was cut off by Sams’s soft lips touching your own in a quick peck before she collapsed back into the pillow. “Just blame capitalism babe.”

You stared at her for a minute, shocked, before she bolted upright. “SHIT. Sorry, I just. I forgot to ask for consent. I just forgot--”

“I consent, yes, more of this please,” you said, leaning over to kiss her again. Your hands cupped her cheeks and her fingers tangled into the baby hairs at the back of your neck. 

After a few minutes, Sam broke off the kiss, both of you breathing heavily. “Um, wow. You know, I’m not sure this is helping you get to sleep, love.”

You smirk, biting your lip and straddling her hips before you lean in to kiss her again, slowly. “You’re the one who said you needed to sleep with me more often.”