#non directionally-challenged people

[gl1tch3doracle]

can we get a yoru x f/non-binary reader which doesn't end with the reader getting turned into a weapon (also with a little asa sprinkled in)

Love Yoru and Asa, but I dunno how much romance is actually in this thing. It's pretty long compared to my usual word count, so I don't know how spread out it could be or if things are rushed.

Anyway...

⊹ ࣪ ˖ Conflict of Interests ˖ ࣪⊹

Love Asa and Yoru and imo both need more love, but specifically Yoru.

➸ Yoru + !Neutral!Reader, Asa + !Neutral!Reader

➸ Word count; 3849 words,

➸ Warnings for gore, because this is CSM and it's Yoru. No spoilers (that I know of)

➸ Aside from the gore, I don't believe there are any other content warnings either. Don't know how well this flows because none of my work is beta read and I was also losing motivation by the end of this because I cranked this out in about two or three hours.

All things considered, you were adapting to your new life in Japan pretty well. At least, it felt like it.

Communication wasn't an issue, which was a relief - Neither was money, but your biggest problem so far was being directionally challenged. It complicated your routine to the utmost degree, and what was supposed to be a simple shopping trip had taken more than three hours because somewhere along the way you'd taken a wrong turn. Which was why, in your current moment, you were wandering aimlessly around the backstreets of Kyoto, meandering closely to the nearby high school. Silent as it was at the current hour, it still felt weird knowing that if you never left home, you'd probably be stuck in a building like that for hours on end.

You weren't though, and you were also lost. Which seriously wasn't fun, especially when you had a younger brother at home left unsupervised.

What was even less fun, though, (besides the thought of a rouge twelve-year-old boy) was the lack of people around you. Sure it was late, school was finished and the teenagers had cleared the food stalls and vendors and had already gone home, but it wasn't late enough that people would be tucking up in their homes already. The sun was still peaked beyond the horizon, casting pale light amok the city - The streetlights weren't even on yet, and yet the roads were emptier than a bucket with a hole in the bottom.

You weren't sure if that should make you feel relieved, or even more anxious than you already were.

Your first thought was a devil attack. They were common enough, and although the living embodiments of fear preferred more public areas (more fear to feed on, you assumed?) that didn't mean the weaker devils didn't slink around alleys like shifty cats when the darkness fell. And it was that thought exactly that kept you from calling out for help.

It was certainly a nerve-wracking thought, that was for sure, and a part of your new life that you weren't ever sure you were going to get used to. At least back home, devil attacks weren't nearly as common as they were 'round the streets of Kyoto. Sure, you'd go through attack drills like any other school, but luckily for you, you'd never had the misfortune of meeting one face-to-face on the streets. You couldn't even imagine the pure terror you might feel in that scenario - The pungent fear, the visceral pounding of your heart in your ears, the fight-or-flight instinct failing to kick in, maybe even the sickening, cloying stench of iron blood swarming your nose-

Huh. That wasn't good.

That sickly sweet, cloying iron scent of blood was swarming your nose.

You froze, rounding the corner, feet rooted to the ground. You almost flinched at the wet squelch that met your shoe instead of the steady tap against worn, greening concrete. Didn't have to look down to know that pools of blood were lapping seamlessly on your brand-new shoes. You didn't know what made you wince more, the price of the now ruined shoes, or the feeling of pungent fear that struck you at the unsightly view of bulging intestines flung around the wider street in front of you.

Gross - Disgusting. There was no immediate threat, you deduced after a second or two of not being attacked. No, the devil that made this mess (inadvertently or otherwise) was sprawled in the middle of the street, gangly, twisted, fuzzy and bulbous body blocking the road like the world's most horrific barricade. It wasn't moving, fur clogged with blood and flesh and guts only wavered with the faint breeze, but its sides didn't heave like it was breathing, although you weren't entirely certain that devils had to breathe. 'It could still be a trap' Was the thought that bullied its way to the forefront of your mind, and yet you still couldn't find it in yourself to move.

For the first time in what had to be a good long while since you'd left the store, you saw someone else. At first, your heart froze as the bee-like body of the devil shuddered and shook - It rolled onto its side, spilling more of its entrails onto the path. They slithered up to you sluggishly, like a trash heap toppling over, but the insectile face filled with jagged and snaggled teeth was blank as ever. There was no life behind those eyes, but you were more focused on the girl who'd effortlessly posed herself atop the body of the beast.

She wore a school uniform, you noticed, paired with an otherworldly cutlass held firmly in her right hand. The world around the two of you was eerily silent, ear-splitting and ringing in your mind. You clutched your bags a little tighter, the plastic crinkling, rustling ever so slightly in your fist.

The hunter whipped around to face you - She couldn't have been much older than you, but her darker hair framed her face fiercely, fire-ringed eyes glaring you down with such hostility that it almost gave you whiplash. She didn't budge from her spot, but her shoulders drew up tightly as she held her weapon in front of her defensively.

You just blinked - The smell of blood wasn't as pungent as when it first hit you, settling over you like a blanket. You just lifted your shirt, covering your nose as you waved the brooding, mysterious and most likely murderous stranger over to you. From where you stood, you could see the way she froze, face twisting from a scowl into confusion, before the crisscrossing scars on her face literally melted into her own skin, leaving her in perfect condition.

The sword clattered mutely against what looked like a misshapen lung, and the girl set her foot down firmly against the joint of a broken leg. It gave out immediately, and you could only watch as she yelped and tumbled haphazardly from the corpse into a pool of blood. The aura she'd been carrying up until that moment disappeared the second she looked up at you again. Her eyes no longer glowed like red-hot embers, mellow brown eyes looking nothing but defeated.

She shook herself once and heaved herself to her feet, shuffling over to your relatively clear patch on the fringe of carnage.

"Hello?" Her voice cracked awkwardly. You couldn't help but purse your lips sympathetically.

"Hey," You began, reaching into your pocket. Just your luck that you had a clean packet of tissues packed. "I was just wondering how to get back to the main road. I'm new to the area, and I'm kinda lost."

You offered her the tissues, and it looked like she was about ready to cry at the gesture.

"Oh, uh, sure. I could walk you," She froze, dabbing the blood from her cheek, "-only cause I also need to walk that way," Her face pulled into a grimace, and she subtly flinched as if someone was poking fun at her. She opened her mouth a few times, gaping like a fish before her face flushed red. Without another word, she hurried around the corner you'd just rounded, and you just followed without another word.

She didn't talk, never glanced in your direction to see if you were following her. You didn't mind, though, because you were just happy to see life slowly returning around you - Moreso the sounds of traffic and chatter and city ambience that you'd slowly lost over the past few hours. The joy of finally returning to a place you could somewhat navigate diverged your attention, so by the time you turned to at least thank your guide, she was already long gone.

It wasn't really your problem if she didn't want to stick around. What was your problem was the little brother you'd left at home by himself. You hoped that the apartment was still in one piece by the time you'd made it back.

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You finally visited the school. It certainly looked different teeming with student pushing and shoving their way to freedom. It also felt a lot different, seeing people your age running around in uniforms, talking to friends and passing by you without a second look. The uniforms, in particular, gave you a pause - They itched your brain in the most peculiar way until you remembered why. The same girl you'd met about a week ago, the one who'd slain the bee-like devil, had worn the very same uniform. Albeit, hers was doused in blood and cuts, it was no doubt the very same one.

That was a thought for later. You tapped your foot impatiently against the ground, waiting for your brother to finally make an appearance. You supposed his tardiness was payback for the time you got lost and spent hours wandering the backstreets of Kyoto, but you couldn't help but feel impatient.

He appeared a second later, thankfully, surrounded by a group of kids his age. It was nice to see him fitting in, especially after he'd only been going to his new school for about a week, although you had to admit it was funny seeing him freeze as soon as he saw you waiting at the front gate.

"Why are you here?" He scampered away from his group, looking more nervous than annoyed. You fixed him with a perpetually bored look.

"I came here to walk you home, idiot, why else? For shits and grins?" You quirked an eyebrow. He sighed and sagged his shoulders.

"But… I was gonna hang out with my new friends…" You gasped dramatically.

"And you were gonna make me walk home all by myself?" Your brother cringed. You felt nothing but satisfaction. With a sigh, you pat him on the shoulder.

"Just be back in time for dinner," You paused and set him with a stern expression. "And steer clear of devils, alright? I want you back in one piece."

He only gave you a big smile and a rushed thanks before running off, quickly rejoining his group. You shook your head and stretched your arms, noticing how quickly the crowds around you had thinned out around you.

"Oh, it's you again," You turned on your heel, coming face to face with the same, sharp-eyed dark-haired girl you'd briefly met a few weeks ago. Her face was riddled with scars again, clean cut, rough against her pale skin. You furrowed your brow, wondering if your memory was playing tricks on you.

"It's me? You were the girl who killed the devil, right?" You just had to make sure. She puffed up, eyes practically glowing orange and she fixed you with a pompous look.

"That's me. I'm an expert with any sort've melee weapon," She waved her hand as if shooing away an annoying insect from her ear. "But that's not why I came over here," Her eyes gleamed, "I was just wondering if you wanted to go shopping with me, y'know, have a walk around?"

You did a double-take.

The idea sounded nice, making a new friend, and there was a regular food vendor that you'd been meaning to try recently. But the idea of going with a stranger you'd really only just met set of alarms in your brain.

'However…' She was admittedly pretty. Those bright eyes that seemed to peer into your soul, a sharp, clean smile with long dark hair. 'Plus, it'll be in public, right? Plenty of other students and people around.'

"Yeah, sure, I have time," You missed the way her smile grew ever so slightly, stretching just further than a human could naturally.

However odd the situation was, you couldn't deny it was nice to finally have someone other than your brother to talk to. Admittedly, it was also odd how her bravado slipped the minute you turned to walk into the city, but you also found the marine life facts she sputtered out like she'd rehearsed were entertaining. She just seemed happy that you didn't seem bored out of your mind.

Asa Mitaka, you learned her name was. Wasn't usually one to talk to people, and she said it was a miracle she was able to muster up the courage to talk to you in the first place. She pointedly refused to make eye contact most of the time, which was fine in your opinion since at least the conversation was kept in a lively ebb and flow you weren't entirely used to.

She talked with an edge to her voice, not an annoyed one, but rather a nervous one. You didn't really want to ask about it, seeing as you used to do something similar when you were younger, however, Asa beat you to the punch.

"I don't have many friends - I had one before, but, well, she died in a devil attack not too long ago," She peered through a window store, just looking at the array of shoes that were for sale. "I mean, I haven't had many friends at all. Just the one." You stepped up next to her, but she just peered sadly beyond the glass.

Brown eyes. You squinted. Perhaps the light turned them orange. You once knew someone whose hazel eyes turned yellow under the light. Orange wasn't too far from brown.

"Maybe we can be friends," You asked, almost absentmindedly. Asa whipped around to stare at you, her mouth hanging open. Her eyes flickered back and forth - From your face, to behind you, maybe. She worried her bottom lip between her teeth nervously and didn't say anything.

That made your heart twist a little. Ouch.

Taking a break from the sun, the two of you were stopped at a vending machine under shade, grabbing a few drinks. It was mostly quiet aside from the sound of the machine working, clanging softly as coins were inserted. You were leaning against a wall when a little thing approached you out of the corner of your eye.

"Aw, cute. Kitty cat," You kneeled and reached out your hand, letting the feline sniff your fingers before it rubbed its head along your palm. Asa made a noise halfway between a choke and a squeak before shuffling a few paces backwards.

"Yeah, cute," She seemed preoccupied, whispering something urgently under her breath. Which was odd - You were going to ask if she was okay, but Asa was suddenly in your face before you could react, those same, orange-ringed eyes staring into your very being.

Orange. Not brown.

Preoccupied, a hot flush covered your face.

"Come with me. I wanna show you something cool," The bravado was back, oddly enough. No trace of the nervous high-schooler, but rather, the cool, confident and dangerous devil hunter you'd seen the first time you'd met eyes.

The change made you nervous, but also, you couldn't really say no to a pretty and confident girl asking you to come with her, especially when she'd been so heartening throughout your entire afternoon. She sealed the deal by taking your hand in hers, wrapping her lithe fingers confidently around your own in a way that made your heart thud errantly in your ribcage. Starved for human touch, you followed her as she tugged you along with enthusiasm.

It made butterflies tumble around in your chest, a sense of happiness and friendship you hadn't known in a while. It made you feel like a normal teen, running through the city with their friend, laughing happily together. You didn't have to care about making dinner, or phoning your parents in another country, or worrying about bills - You got to just run around without care plaguing your brain. You didn't care about the people you ran past, didn't even care as the streets thinned and people slowly appeared less and less around you. You didn't even realise that Asa had dragged you into something that was nothing less than an alley.

You only realised when she'd stopped laughing and was instead standing stock still between you and your freedom.

You also stopped laughing. Your heart dropped deep into your stomach.

"Ah, shit," You puffed, still catching your breath. "Well, I guess it was a dumb mistake to follow a stranger through the city." You tried to laugh away the atmosphere - You wanted to believe that you'd make it back home to see your family again, but somehow, seeing Asa's burning orange eyes made you doubt the chance that that would ever happen.

"Not surprised. Humans aren't the smartest," She offhandedly remarked, watching you like a dingo would watch a human baby. Although, no, that wasn't entirely right. There was a cold, analytical feeling behind it, not a sensation of hunger. But that word, the little indication - 'human.'

"You're a devil."

It was less a question and more of a statement. Asa smiled and cocked her head.

"A devil you couldn't even begin to fathom," Those same ringed eyes burned, pinning you to the wall. You furrowed your brow, gut-twisting and your neurotically swayed, judging how far you could possibly make it before she could close the distance.

"Lay it on me. I'm pretty smart," Were the dying words you chose to go with. However scary a devil she could be, Asa was also still in the body of a high-school girl. The sight wasn't particularly scary compared to the devils you'd seen in the past.

"You're bravado won't save. It certainly didn't save my host," Asa reached out her hand toward you, pinprick eyes staring you down with such complexity. The visage reminded you of an owl.

"I am not Asa," Asa began - "Asa is a part of me, and I am a part of her, yet, in the end, we are two different beings." You tilted your head.

"Then, who are you?" You shimmied against the wall, trying to perhaps slide your way to freedom.

Asa closed the distance instantly, digging her fingers into your scalp with such ferocity that you could feel it digging into bone with enough force to pin you to the spot, but not enough to shatter your skull instantly.

"I don't have a name, but I go by Yoru - The devil of war."

.

"(Name). Spinal cord sword."

You held your breath.

Nothing happened.

Yoru furrowed her brow.

"(Name). Spinal cord sword."

Her face morphed into a scowl, and then a snarl.

You gave her a look, one that asked 'what the hell are you doing' and you knew she knew exactly what you were thinking.

"What the fuck - Why isn't it working?" She let you go, shoving you painfully into the wall. You were dazed, now had a sore head and probably a minor concussion, but you were alive and your limbs weren't twisted into a gorey weapon. Your eyes focussed just in time to see Asa, or Yoru? Punch a hole in the nearby brick wall.

"It's because of you!" Yoru shouted at a patch of empty air. "You and your stupid human feelings and your pathetic nature to fall in love with someone who shows you a smidge of kindness and your stupid nature infecting my mind! Sharing a body with you has done nothing but hinder me!"

Yoru howled and whined like a toddler, bashing her fists against the same wall she'd punched a hole through, clutched her hair with her face screwed up into a childish scowl. She whipped around to stare in the vague direction she'd done so before, her scowl deepening with her teeth bared in a snarl.

"I AM NOT STUPID!" And with that, the anger was gone. The scars were gone, too. Her eyes were a rich shade of brown, deep, with flecks of gold and faint rings that seemed reminiscent of the war devil's own eyes. You had no idea if it was the influence of the devil herself, or if Asa's (?) eyes naturally looked like that.

An ear-splitting silence settled over the scene. Asa slumped against the wall, curled into the pit of carnage Yoru had carved with her bare fists. She just sat there, staring blankly ahead, eyes hooded and squinted as if someone was yelling at her. You were in a similar boat, head pounding, trickling of blood dribbling from your hairline, down your face and dripping onto the concrete below.

"So," You hummed. Asa flinched, but she didn't stop staring into the empty air ahead of her. "What the fuck was that all about?"

"That, uh, was Yoru." She didn't say anything else.

"And Yoru is the war devil?" Asa nodded.

…

"Mind explaining what's going on?" Asa finally pulled herself together, physically.

"It's a long story," She offered, trying to pull her hair into a pair of twintails.

"Well, I have to make dinner. Fancy staying over?" The words were out of your mouth before you could even think about them. Why you were inviting the war devil over for dinner, or at least the host of the war devil, you had no idea. But you just had one question you really, really had to ask.

"Hey, do you know why she's such a baby?"

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"I'm heading out, be back soon!" Your brother yelled into the apartment, shrugging on a jacket.

"Don't fill up on junk food and don't talk to any weird devils, 'kay?" You yelled back. Your brother paused and looked at you before nudging his head in the direction of the other room. You scoffed.

"You know damn well what I mean!" Your brother laughed and locked the door behind him as he left.

Yoru appeared in the doorway as he left, a loaf of bread tucked under one arm with a slice hanging from her mouth.

"Where's he going?" The devil sat next to you at the kotatsu, absentmindedly watching whatever was playing on the tv set.

"To hang out with friends. He probably won't be back later so don't eat all the goddamn soba this time," You pointed your pen in her direction. The devil didn't seem particularly threatened, so you made a mental note to put aside a bowl for your brother.

"Hey, Yoru? Quick question," The devil grunted. "When will I see Asa again? Not that I don't appreciate your…" You paused and looked her up and down "Wonderful companionship, it feels weird to only see one of my girlfriends on a near daily basis."

Yoru scoffed and shrugged.

"When Mitaka can take control of this body, she's more than welcome to hang out with you," Yoru took the piece of bread she'd been eating and pressed it against your lips. You quirked an eyebrow but took a bite of the offered piece of bread. You decidedly didn't comment on her eating it plain, as last time resulted in a forty-minute tantrum including someone called 'Fami'.

After a moment of silence, Yoru stopped and grinned sharply. The same smile she gave you back in that alley all those months ago.

"Are you bullying Asa-" Yoru reached forward and grabbed you by both your wrists "-again?"

…

"Yoru?" The war devil smirked like a bitch.

"Yeah?"

"You're doing this to tease Asa, aren't you?" Yoru only cackled.

"Perhaps."

Asa is crying and shaking at the end. She can't believe Yoru would do something like that in front of her.

[joseimukeaddict]

Haikyuu and Public Transportation Headcanons: Karasuno 2012-2013 Team

I’m going to get these so wrong bc I only just got into Haikyuu and have just started watching season 3. I tried avoiding spoilers but Haikyuu-Bu was too funny… (got scared and ran away when the post-timeskip happened)

I’m also doing this on no research and just vibes 👍 (don’t kill me pls) (I know like nothing about non-regular 2nd years 😭 except Ennoshita is voiced by Toshiki Masuda who also voices Rei from EnStars!?)

Testing if I wanna make this a series:

——

Okay so these kids live basically on the outskirts so most of them don’t got any public transportation experience before high school. School-paid buses do NOT count.

Third Years:

Daichi Sawamura - Probably has ridden a bus or train to the city maybe once or twice; I heard he’s directionally challenged but he can probably get to places if he memorizes the path and sticks to it; his experiences on public transportation are fine, nothing that interesting happens but he likes the sights; people have gone up to him to ask for directions when it’s his first time ever at a stop

Kōshi Sugawara - Has never ridden public transportation before high school, doesn’t like the bus air smell but can tolerate it, reads or plays on his phone for long rides

Asahi Azumane - Probably has ridden once when he was younger for sth like a specialist doctor visit (so he can’t get out of it), came up with the worst possible scenarios the night before, if he were any younger than he was then his mom would escort him there (sadly she has work today), his fears were completely unfounded but he basically collapsed at his door from mental exhaustion when he got home; he’s probably the type to suffer from motion sickness too and needs to remember to take his meds; 80% will fumble when he taps or swipes his card

Kiyoko Shimizu - Absolute mystery if she’s ever taken it but she’s Shimizu so every experience is perfect for her; the type to like to ride with a buddy to chat with but will pull out a book otherwise (mostly to deter any men trying to hit on her, so she can just ignore)

Second years:

Yū Nishinoya - Never so he’s so pumped to try it out; bus is okay but the train? IT’S SO COOL this idiot will be standing up while the train is moving when there are available seats, will want to swing from pole to pole like Dancing in the Rain (has not seen the original); he gets stopped by a train worker one day when he’s bouncing from pole to pole to ask where his parents are; one of those people who want to ride to the end of a train or bus line only for this dumbass to realize his stop is the last stop

Ryūnosuke Tanaka - Has never had the need to ride on public transportation and is proud of it; 1000% willing to act as some sort of protector on the train for Kiyoko (Kiyoko has to keep track of the stations bc he’s going to forget); thinks the trains are cool too (and honestly much prefers it over Saeko’s driving but he would like to live thank you much); also one of those last stop dumbasses

Chikara Ennoshita - idk but I feel like this guy has rode buses more often and he honestly prefers it to trains; old ladies at the bus stops chat with him about stuff and he eventually becomes a regular with them; tries to read on the bus but he gets motion sickness and instead watches the window or the old ladies chat him up some more

Hisashi Kinoshita - probably never had an experience before high school; also the type to like to ride with a buddy; he honestly gives me mobile gamer vibes idk, it’s either really short bus rides or really long train rides; his mom probably worries about if he has enough money every time (he probably does)

Kazuhito Narita - Doesn’t like public transport and he doesn’t know exactly why but there’s always something off whenever he rides whether the seats are too dirty or the air is too smelly; he probably has the most experience riding public transport (relatives in the city or sth); sights watcher

First years:

Tobio Kageyama - once or twice for family; he likes the train more (bro gives off such his family gifted him model trains instead of Hot Wheels); yea he will sleep on the train even in that super uncomfortable position with his head back; HE WILL MISS HIS STOP WHEN HE SLEEPS and once he misses his stop he is now lost and requires someone to give him directions via call

Shōyō Hinata - no experience either and honestly it’s okay, he prefers his bike; the sights are cool tho, one of those who will put his face against that dirty glass to “get a closer look”; has been scolded before to seat properly on the seat instead of on his knees facing the window; holds his little sister’s hand when with her; always running to catch his ride

Kei Tsukishima - has past experience; prefers going alone or with Yamaguchi; listens to music via his headphones regardless; doesn’t like it when the trains get crowded and he’s squished between two people; does not give up his train seat to the elderly; never runs to catch a bus or train, if he misses it he misses it

Tadashi Yamaguchi - has past experience too; likes going with Tsukki although Tsukishima makes like no conversation and Yamaguchi talks for a bit and then it’s just silence (the comfortable kind dw); he’s the GPS and maps person when he’s with Tsukki; sights watcher too

Hitoka Yachi - def rides public transport to school and back; her mom has her card always filled to max; if my girl didn’t ride so often she would have debilitating thoughts about worst case scenarios like Asahi; she’s probably the person Kageyama calls when he gets lost and she will try to explain the best she can but the poor boy may still get lost and they will panic together; she’s rode public transport so many times it’s just a thing to her now but she enjoys when the rest of the team rides with her since they usually aren’t used to it and have the most excited outlooks on it

—

Bonus:

Keishin Ukai is always missing his rides and Ittetsu Takeda finds the vibrations of train rides relaxing

——

Was gonna do stuff if about the trains and buses being late but then I remembered this is Japan… yeah I originally made it bc I’m always pissed about when my rides are late and we need more silly shitpost headcanons for Haikyuu

If any of my headcanons just straight up contradict canon, just pretend they don’t exist 👍 thanks

[isekai-crow]

Mr. Villain's Day Off / Kyuujitsu no Warumono San Episode 1

Overall Rating So Far: 9/10 (i WILL buy merch for this)

MR. VILLAIN IS TOO MUCH CROW BAIT.

I have a thing for curly bowl cuts. I like goth-coded characters, and this demon does a decent job. I love Yakuza/Gangster/Evil coded villains that have gap-moe (a side to them that seems completely counter to the personality they present). Most of all I LOVE SHINTAROU ASANUMA'S VOICE.

He's probably most famous for being Samatoki, the gangster rapper and leader of the Mad Trigger Crew, from Hypnosis Mic, and I've seen him perform at multiple live viewings and his character has a rabid following. His other famous roles are Saiki Kusuo, Ugetsu from Given, and he's in Ensemble Stars, A!3, and Tokenranbu (can you tell this dude can sing).

He has a lovely deep voice and is an absolute sweetheart, despite being able to growl like a rabid dog. It's the perfect match for the character.

The show itself looks like it will be a cute and fluffy show that is low-risk and chill. Most importantly, it's teaching us the importance of Work-Life balance!

It seems to be based on Sentei/Ranger style shows, but set as if the show is the real world, and the characters are NOT actors. Who knows WHY Mr. Villain and his fellow demons are here to destroy humans, but the Ranger's are here to protect us!

Spoilers and screenshots for episode 1!

Holy shit, Mr. Villain is /adorable/ in both work mode and relax mode.

This almost feels like it's trying to be sexy in the same way the Uramichi Oniisan was, just for the hell of it in a show with almost zero fan service apart from Soft Boys.

The show is basically three little shorts strung together, but gives us a great glimpse of the world.

We get to meet Red Ranger who.... I killed myself laughing over this, but is just as directionally challenged as my Capybara is. We go anywhere together and he starts walking in a direction, and its a 90% chance that it's the exact opposite direction he wants to go in.

Mr. Villain leads him to the train station he was ACTUALLY trying to get to, and as Red Ranger skipped happily through the ticket gate, Capybara said "See, now I'd just get lost and not know what platform to go to."

....only for Red Ranger to have this immediate problem, lmfao. I'm so excidted for more non-existant-sense-of-direction shinanigens, if only to tease the Capybara.

So, Quick Japanese Cultural Lesson -> This is called a Showa Yankee lmao. It's a street gangster / troublemaker with a soft spot for animals. This comes from a brand with cute dogs on it that was popular among the rough and tumble street gangs oh the 1980s and earlier. But you will see this trope across various anime and manga, and I LOVE IT. Gap-Moe at it's finest.

Along with the animal loving, Mr. Villain can't eat spicy curry (Is he British? lololol) and despite getting ready to murder any human at hand because they're sold out of Mild Curry Roux, the panda special immediately calms him down and settles in to watch.

MR. VILLAIN HAS A SPECIAL INTEREST AND I VIBE.

I may not care that much for pandas (Would saying that get my killed by Mr. Villain? Probably, but I'm one of the few people who don't go "awww" when they see a panda, and instead can only remember the baby panda sneeze video lmao) but I hope to keep enjoying all this fluff, especially as I try to push through the last few episodes of Jujutsu Kaisen from last season.

Mr. Villain has his priorities straight, and I'd be happy to hand over the world to his control as long as I don't die :D

Let's hope his faith in humanity continues to grow even as he uncovers more atrocities like the incarceration of predatory beasts for human viewing pleasure.

ep2 ep3 ep4 ep5 ep6 <- these will eventually become links, I hope.

[youcouldmakealife]

SOTM: ScratchnMoney, Julius&Jared; the buddy system

For the prompt:  Scouts POV of the Jared and Julius show after the trade. Are they in awe or terrified of their combined bitchiness? Or does Julius surprisingly show his softer side?

The moment they land in Vancouver, Little Caesar disappears. And Joey means disappears. He also means the ‘moment’ part: dude is first off the plane and by the time they reach the terminal there’s no Halla to be found.

“Buddy system!” Coach says. He’s been so strict since they lost Keebler for 16 hours. He was fine. Eventually. “Buddy system, Scouts! No man left behind!”

Joey reaches out blindly, and Scratch squeezes his hand.

“Buddy,�� Joey says.

“Husbuddy,” Scratch agrees. “Don’t pout, Willy.”

“I don’t want to be your buddy anyway,” Willy blatantly lies. “Where’s Caesar?”

Joey looks around for his platinum blond head. He doesn’t find it. Not right away, and not after the Scouts have all obediently found their partners, and he goes to grab Coach before he can do his headcount in the bus and get disappointed in them again. Disappointing Coach is bad for team morale.

“We lost somebody,” Joey says.

Coach pinches his nose. “We literally just touched down. Is it Keebler? He really needs to pay attention to where he’s walking.”

“Little Caesar,” Joey says. Which is very unlike him! Maybe he got kidnapped.

“He hasn’t been kidnapped,” Coach says, waving Joey off. “He’s getting picked up by a family member. He got my okay.”

“But—“ Joey says. “The buddy system!”

“You not have a buddy, Money?” Coach asks. “There a marital spat I need to hear about? You guys need non-adjourning rooms?”

“No spitting here,” Joey says. “All buddied up, Coach.”

“Buddies for life, Coach!” Scratch pipes up beside him.

“Good men,” Coach says. “Off you go.”

“He cleared it with Coach,” Joey reports to Willy, who’s still craning his head around, muttering something no doubt uncomplimentary under his breath.

“Well,” Willy huffs. “Apparently I don’t have a buddy.”

“Would you like to be our triple buddy, Willy?” Scratch asks.

“No!” Willy says. “That’s not a thing!”

They start on their way.

“Wait for me!” Willy says, and trots to follow them.

“Triple buddies?” Joey says, holding his hand out.

“I’m not holding your hand,” Willy mutters, but he sticks close enough that he doesn’t need to.

*

Team breakfast, and Little Caesar isn’t there. Not against curfew or anything, apparently he told Coach. Lunch? Not a single Caesar to be found, except on the menu. And when they get on the bus to the arena, he’s sill missing.

Considering their next game is in Edmonton, AKA Little Caesar’s former territory, followed by a game in Calgary, which is where his in-laws are — and, if Joey remembers correctly, Erin was planning to fly in — Joey figures he’ll turn up eventually, but still.

The buddy system lasted all of one trip. One trip! Joey is disappointed but not surprised. At least he doesn’t have to worry about Little Caesar’s safety. He can fend for himself in the Canadian wilds.

*

Little Caesar pops up for the first time deep, deep in enemy territory. Like, so deep that Scratch and Joey shouldn’t actually be here, but they got confused looking for the hall that’s extra good for kicking around a soccer ball and went the wrong way, and then took directions from a Rogers Arena employee who was either also directionally challenged, or thought that fucking with them would be fun. The point is, they should not be here, and neither should Little Caesar. Erin’s brother is allowed, though. He’s the enemy after all. This is his territory. You can’t just tell people they can’t be on their own territory, that’s rude.

“Little Caesar, you live!” Joey says.

“I live,” Little Caesar says, so flat he may as well be dead. “Why are you here.”

“And Erin’s brother!” Joey says.

Erin’s brother gets all puffed up. “I have a name.”

Joey would assume so, and also assumes he’s been told it before, but if so, he does not remember it. Wait, he does! “Matheson!”

Which is really just ‘Erin’s brother’ all over again, considering that is also her name, but maybe he’ll take it less poorly.

Matheson tilts his head, and Joey swears it’s like looking at Erin. Without the expression you could still pretty easily tell they were related, but with it? Full on ‘I bet this makes Little Caesar extremely uncomfortable whenever he thinks about it too hard’ resemblance, like Scratch gets when Casey and Joey laugh the same.

“Has anyone told you—“ Joey starts, and Little Caesar sends him a look that’s half cutting and half desperate plea to shut up.

“—you look uncannily like your sister?” Joey finishes, because never let it be said that he can take a hint.

Matheson suddenly looks extremely pissy.

“Hey, that’s the face Erin made when I beat her at darts!” Scratch says. “Right before she said things that hurt my feelings.”

He gives Joey a look, and this one Joey listens to.

They flee before another Matheson can hurt them.

*

“Why are they running,” Jared says.

Julius shrugs.

“Why do your married teammates have to be the weird ones?” Jared asks. It’s not exactly like he was going to go ‘hey, you guys also married a dude, let’s be friends’, because he is full up in the friend department, but still.

“They’re all weird,” Julius says.

“Has Erin been terrorizing your teammates?” Jared asks.

Julius’ mouth tips up. “She does not like to lose,” he says.

“Well, obviously,” Jared says. That’s a universal Matheson trait, and the reason they’ve never believed in family game night. Dad’s the worst, but he has a lot of competition. “Are they still running?”

Julius squints down the hall. “Yes,” he says.

“So weird,” Jared says under his breath, and Julius gives him a look of silent suffering in response.

“Are they going in the right direction?” Julius asks.

“Nope,” Jared says.

Julius mutters something under his breath. All Jared catches is ‘coach’ and ‘furious’.

*

“You know,” Coach says, when it’s seven minutes until they have to take the ice for warmups, and ScratchnMoney are nowhere to be found. “I really thought the buddy system was going to prevent these situations. Does that make me naive? Am I naive, boys?”

“You may have been slightly optimistic,” Tate says. “But it’s not bad to be an optimist.”

Coach sighs. “Isn’t it, Willy?” he asks. “Isn’t it?”

“We got lost!” Money says, bursting into the room with five minutes to go. “We got so lost, and we never got found, and there is no reception! No reception in the tunnels! Which is a crime.”

“A crime!” Scratch chimes in as he trots in after Money. “Definitely psychological warfare! And the staff colluded! We should report them!”

Coach looks at Tate. Tate looks back.

“You deal with them,” Coach says tiredly, then retreats back to the glorified closet that’s designated as the office for visiting team coaches.

“And you!” Money says, pointing at Little Caesar. “How did you get here!”

“I followed the signs,” Little Caesar says blandly.

“You followed the enemy, that’s what you followed!” Scratch says.

“Multitask getting dressed and assigning blame,” Tate says. He knows better than to ban assigning blame entirely. They’ll just say he let down his triple buddies or something.

“And who was supposed to be our triple buddy, huh?” Money says, turning on him as expected, but he’s yanking at his shirt and kicking his shoes off as he does so, so Tate decides to consider himself lucky. Not too lucky, but lucky enough.

[hello-ello-ello]

hen u get this u have to answer with 5 things u like about yourself, publicly. then, send this ask to 10 of your favorite mutuals (non-negotiable, positivity is cool!)

AAAAA THANK YOU FOR ASKING ILY

1. That I can still hold so much love, despite the horrors

2. I take care of the ones I love

3. I'm a mishmash of the people I loved (some of whom I lost), and I have to love those stolen bits, right?

4. I love the little thingies I write sometimes; I think they have a lot of heart and whimsy (my two favourite things)

5. my brainsss, even tho they're all over the place most days

@patoslover tagging you because I can't find your ask box. I don't know if it's because you disabled asks or because I'm directionally challenged, but you're now contractually obliged to share 5 things you like about yourself

[kinkymagnus]

Any favorite headcanons about Malec (as a couple or the individual people) (kinky or non-kinky) I like thinking that a good part of the reason Magnus invented the portal, is because he has an atrocious sense of direction, and he used to get lost a lot, before he could just teleport to where he needed to be. (I know they say in the show that he invented the portal together with Lydia's ancestor, but I personally think that Henry Branwell just helped him to make an anchored portal version for shadowhunter institutes to use, and that Magnus made portals for magic users that could be summoned without anchoring them in place way before then.)

For Alec, I don't actually have that many hcs. I do like to think that he has a secret sweet tooth, that he hides away out of some mistaken belief that it would make him come across as immature. (which Magnus cures him of over time, and that may involve eating chocolate sauce off his body.)

hmmm i mean that's a really broad question 🤔 for one i'm in the "they're neurodivergent kings" camp. autism/adhd solidarity. and we all know magnus is trans 😌

also i will see literally any character i relate to and go "oh is anyone gonna make that touch-starved?" and not wait for an answer so uhhhh Touch Starved Magnus. like. especially just like. god. i feel like for a long time magnus is used to mainly two types of touch: violent (aggressive, often painful, whether it's someone actively trying to kill him or just getting between people fighting or whatever) and sexual (not inherently bad, but there's a certain dynamic of wanting something from him, and the only positive touch he really gets outside of certain situations is like. through a certain lens, when he's being a certain way, especially because i feel like he's a big people-pleaser in bed, and can be a selfless lover to the point of like, it not being as good for him, you know?) that's not to say his friends never touch him, ever, but for one, being immortal, it's not like they meet up as often as mortal friends might, and two, several of them just aren't particularly touchy people and he never wanted to cross any boundaries with them . anyway what im saying is he needs hugs real bad :(

(alec provides said hugs, but also like. as he starts healing from all this past trauma and stuff he gets better at expressing these things to non-alec people as well so like!!! also with his friends!!! who may not have even known this was a problem because he's so good at hiding his own issues!!!)

also good call on the portal thing. both for henry and magnus being, ah, directionally challenged. he's insanely competent at like 99 percent of the things he does but bless him he's so bad at finding his way around. adhd king, i repeat

(and yes, henry helping out but getting all the credit. naturally. shadowhunters, amiright? not henry necessarily, but the people who gave him all the credit.)

oh alec would be more than happy to lick sweet things off of magnus 👀

[floraliaison]

[ melodrama ] ― track i | homemade dynamite

political au. ushijima wakatoshi x fem! reader.

3.1 k 

masterlist. next.

If there’s any one word you would prefer people to describe you as, it would have to be unquestionably loyal.

After all, it’s just past seven, and you haven’t yet drunk enough whiskey as you would like to, but when Oikawa tells you about a new guy you must hate, you don’t even think twice before agreeing.

He shifts the drink in his hand, ice cubes clinking together while he side-eyes the group of men from across the veranda, no doubt burning holes into the back of his intended target’s head as he mutters, “And there he is.”

You whip your head to the right, not caring enough about subtlety because this is your house and you can and will look at whoever you damn please.

His directions don’t really help much, you soon realize, because there are a hundred and one of Eita’s friends huddled around the end of the buffet table where the drinks are located.

“There are a bunch of ‘he’s over there, Oiks. Which one?” you hiss under your breath, craning your neck to see if you can pick anyone out from the crowd.

There’s Leon, Kenjiro, Hayato, and a handful of other people you recognize but can’t recall the names of. All that matters is that they’re all annoying, and they’re all here.

You’d think Oikawa’s taste in men has improved in the six years you’ve been gone, but if he actually says it’s one of them then you’ve apparently thought wrong.

“The tall one, Y/N,” Oikawa says as though this is the most obvious thing in the world. His rings glint in the dim light as he discreetly points at one in the far back. “The one with the white jacket.”

Finally, you spot whoever it is he’s referring to, and the next thing out of your mouth is a crisp “What the fuck?”

Oikawa snorts in derision – why he would when he’s the laughingstock in this particular situation, you’ll never know, but that still doesn’t stop you from echoing the sound back.

“I leave my best friend alone for a few years, and when I come back you’re suddenly all broken-hearted about Ushijima Wakatoshi?” You say, equal parts incredulous and disappointed. Said best friend only shrugs in response, chugging the rest of his rum before slamming the empty glass down on the table.

“Save it, princess. Iwa’s already lectured me about the whole ‘you have terrible taste’ and ‘you should stop going after guys who you know are only going to break your heart’ thing,” he shoots back, his use of air quotes telling you that no, he didn’t – and probably still doesn’t – follow Iwaizumi’s advice. You roll your eyes, comeback already on the tip of your tongue, when —

“Hold on,” the boy next to you suddenly sits up straight, eyes wide open and staring at you. “How come you know him?”

“Well who doesn’t know him?”

Although you deliver it in a way that comes off as mildly sarcastic, all of his prominent social, athletic, and political embellishments have served to establish Ushijima Wakatoshi as a household name; both in Tokyo and throughout the rest of Japan.

But while that’s true, you for one can’t say that you know the man in the way that Oikawa is implying. Despite belonging in the same political circle, what with both your fathers’ professions, you have yet to properly interact outside of the social niceties required for the few parties and fundraisers you’ve seen him at.

From what you are able to discern the first few times you have been able to talk to him though, you are one hundred percent certain that you disliked the man to an almost frightening degree. His stoicism, apparent indifference and boundless pride rub off of you the wrong way, and you’ve been actively ignoring him at every meeting afterwards.

Your friend lets out another snort – you’ve half a mind to change his contact name to horse at this point – while you raise an eyebrow at his accusatory finger-wagging, almost daring him to say what’s so clearly on his mind.

Because despite wearing a short white number to stave off the summer heat that dominated the venue just hours prior, you have absolutely zero qualms about giving Tooru a thorough beat-down if necessary.

“There you guys are.”

Someone plops down into the vacant seat to your left, and when you turn to see a familiar, non-douchey face, you break into a smile.

“Hey, Haji,” you greet Iwaizumi as you lean against his side.

The faint blush that spreads across Oikawa’s face doesn’t escape you when you sneak a glance at him. Despite having his mind preoccupied by Ushijima, it looks like the brunette still hasn’t let go of his little crush on the final member of your trio. “Iwa-chaan, we waited forever. What took you so long?”

“Got lost, your house is fucking huge Y/N,” Iwaizumi explains, setting down his glass of his newest alcoholic concoction as he rolls up the sleeves of his dress shirt. “Good thing I ran into your brother, few more minutes and I would’ve lost my mind in there.”

You snicker at him, a low mumble of “and you claim Tooru’s the stupid one” escaping you because honestly, your house isn’t that big. He might just not admit it but it’s common knowledge that Hajime’s a bit... directionally challenged, to say the least.

Ignoring the glare he sends your way, you nonchalantly pick up his drink and take a sip. “Ah, very nice. You really should consider bartending, Haji, you’ve got the talent for it,” you remark, handing Oikawa the glass for him to taste. 

Iwaizumi’s skill in mixing spirits was one the three of you discovered during one of your first parties, when you and Tooru had complained about how shitty the drinks were. Hajime, in a true gentlemanly fashion, had grabbed a couple of bottles off the counter and kept the two of you well-provided for for the remainder of the event. (and for every other event that came after it.)

The spiky-haired lawyer only rolls his eyes at your words, plucking the crystalware out of Oikawa’s hands before he could finish it off amidst the latter’s ungodliest of whines. “What were you doing anyway? Looked like you were discussing some deep stuff when I came in.”

You separate from him, putting your hands on your hips and adopting a haughty tone, “We are slandering Ushijima Wakatoshi, and his ways of ill-repute. You, by declaration of the Mistress, which is me, and by Friendship Code 70040, is hereby required to join as well.”

“I’ll pass, Wakatoshi’s cool,” Hajime comments around a sip of alcohol, and the casual use of Ushijima’s first name is enough to give you pause.

“Okay, first of all how are you on a first name basis with him and second, you’re a guy.” you exclaim, throwing your hands up for emphasis. “Of course you’d think that!”

“First question: I worked with him for a bit two years ago, not gonna say anything more because company rules, but we talked and he’s really nice,” Iwaizumi holds up two fingers. “Second, sure I am, but even your brother thinks so, too.”

“The world doesn’t just consist of Eita.”

“Alright, you both better shut it because the topic of your very heated conversation is heading right here,” Oikawa interrupts, poking you in the side and sending a look at Iwaizumi.

You groan in response and shake your head. Even during your time abroad, you’ve been unable to escape his presence; from the posters promoting his team for the 2014 World League to the numerous brand advertisements three years later, Wakatoshi was everywhere.

But - and you’ll never admit to this out loud, not ever - even though all you’ve seen of him was in print, on the television, and in the occasional social media update, you could never deny the fact that the man was handsome.

Tooru is attractive, as evidenced by the sheer number of his admirers in high school, Hajime has received his own fair share of confessions and Valentine’s Day chocolates, and you have to admit that your brother is objectively good-looking as well.

And while it’s a confession you have to make under duress, Wakatoshi is a completely different case altogether. You’d thought you were stunned when Miya Atsumu came to your offices to help promote the newly rolled-out banking app, but even he can’t really compare.

Nothing can really do with perfectly gelled olive hair, pristine three-piece suit slightly strained against a muscular build, and the undeniable aura that exuded power and demanded respect.

One would have to be practically blind not to feel attracted to Ushijima (but even then, you think that the timbre of his voice can still make anyone weak in the knees), but because you have no shame and are definitely not above pettiness, you maintain a disgusted-looking sneer as you watch him make his way to your table.

“Hey Toshi,” Oikawa says, the red from before making a reappearance as he takes in the newcomer with eager eyes.

“Good evening, Oikawa,” Ushijima replies, but it’s clear that his attention is focused elsewhere; namely, on you.

Your skin crawls at the weight of the stare he’s pinning on you, but you veto the urge to flip him off right then and there because that would be against proper decorum. Your patience is running thin though, and he needs something else to stare at immediately or so help him God you will do it.

“Wakatoshi,” Iwaizumi intervenes, bless him, and offers a hand towards the taller. “It’s been a long time.”

“Hajime,” Ushijima grasps the appendage and gives it a firm shake, but his gaze still hasn’t left you. ”It’s good to see you.” 

“Yo Ushiwaka! Get back over here!” One of the miscreants across the veranda calls out, standing beside what seems to be a set-up for a round of beer pong. You can’t help but make a face when you catch sight of it because what did they think this was, some messy Saturday night college party? These guys really had no taste.

Ushijima finally turns around to head back to his friends, but not without shooting you one last cursory glance over his shoulder; a glance that you dutifully avoid despite every single cell in your body pushing you to return it and have him catch sight of the hellfire burning in your gaze for doing whatever it is that he did to Tooru.

Because damn it, no one hurts your friends or family and gets away with it. Not even over your dead body, because God knows you will rise from the dead just to get retribution on their behalf.

The minute Wakatoshi’s out of earshot, you scoff into your glass of whiskey, hastily downing it in one go because you’d need more of it in your system if you wanted to survive tonight with him around.

In the entirety of your 26 years, never have you once thought yourself as unlucky. Horribly ill-timed, sure, but unlucky? Nope.

Or at least, not until tonight.

“If it isn’t Miss Semi,” a smooth baritone sounds from behind you, nearly causing you to drop the container you’re holding in surprise. “Good evening.”

You seethe, ready to give the person a piece of your mind for almost being the (however indirect) culprit to the destruction of a 20-year old piece of china, and you have the gall to be so confrontational because you actually know who it is. Only one person in this entire house can be in possession of a voice that deep.

True enough, when you turn, it is Ushijima Wakatoshi who stands at the entrance to your kitchen in all of his six-foot-three glory, eyebrow cocked in a perfect arch as he regards you. He’s holding an empty wineglass in his left hand, and it looks like he’s come in here to have it refilled.

You aren’t sure what exactly about the situation brings all the blood rushing to your face; be it the anger you feel at seeing him so callously walk into your kitchen like he owns it instead of going to the refreshments table outside, or the feeling of something else at the sight of him in only his deep purple dress shirt; sleeves rolled up and top two buttons undone.

That, along with the fact that his hair is now slightly tousled, leaves you thinking that he looks positively sinful, if not for the smirk that’s painted on his stupid face. That one tiny detail pushes you to choose the first, and safer, option.

You roll your eyes.

“Yes, hello Ushijima,” you respond drily, slamming the cabinet shut to punctuate your tone. “Is there anything I can help you with?”

He simply raises the glass in his hand in response, and you are unable to get a biting comment in about how he should instead look for a refill outside instead of in here like some privileged dick when he speaks.

“Congratulations on the announcement,” he begins, stepping beyond the threshold and into the kitchen, thick carpet muffling the sounds of his polished Italian leather shoes as he makes his way towards you.

When he gets dangerously close to the boundary of the minimum three-feet you need to have between you and him at all times, you briefly consider getting violent and chucking the bowl at him just to be done with it, but he seems to have other plans when he stops by the marble island, a full one inch away from your protective perimeter.

Looks like your grandmother’s favorite crucible will live to see another day.

You see him eye you expectantly from his position, and realize that you’ve yet to respond to his statement. “Thank you. I understand that the same is in order for you as well, what with your succession of Madame Junko’s position.”

He nods, less confirmatory and more ‘I’ve found your answer satisfactory,’ and you cannot suppress the white-hot lance of annoyance that shoots through you at the memory that comes barrelling along with the simple gesture.

Suddenly, you’re both no longer OS Post Holdings or The Ushijima Telegraph and Telephone Corporation’s newly appointed presidents and CEOs, but mere fifteen year olds attending middle school at the same time.

Ushijima has always been the star student, and while your father has pushed you to make friends with the quiet boy, you’ve never found it in yourself to brush aside the vast difference present in the way he looks at Wakatoshi, with eyes and gestures full of a soft sense of pride, and then at you, all strict words and interactions that feel more business related than anything else.

You’re not stupid, never was and never will; you know that your father wanted a son to follow in his footsteps. And although he had twins - a girl and a boy - he saw Eita as more of a disappointment because of his unwillingness to live the life the patriarch of the family wanted him to.

So while your brother pursued his dreams in the music industry, you were left to shoulder the responsibility that came with the Semi family name. You studied rigorously, honed your talents, and polished your social skills until you shined, determined to be the brightest gem in the industry and the daughter your father would be proud of.

But even though you were not stupid, you were definitely naive. Naive to have thought that he would be satisfied with what he had, naive to have thought that he wouldn’t look somewhere else to fulfill his own personal dreams.

And that’s how you first met Ushijima, the son of Governor Utsui and your father’s new protegee, as he so proudly told you over dinner with him one Thursday night.

The only thing that kept you from breaking down then were the years spent at etiquette lessons, so you settled instead on gripping your silverware until your knuckles turned white. You could feel Eita’s eyes on you from across the table, and you didn’t have to look to know that they were apologizing for something that he didn’t even do.

The other two males in the room seemed oblivious to your imminent spiral, happily talking with each other and discussing whatever it is that they deemed important, and the fire in your heart that burned for the olive-haired boy grew into a full-fledged inferno.

That day marked the beginning of your lifelong grudge against Wakatoshi, and you still haven’t given it up to this day.

“Attention! I would just like to thank everyone for coming tonight -”

Your dad’s booming voice is what breaks you out of your reverie, and you realize that you have been staring - glowering, really - at the object of your ire for far too long than what can be deemed normal.

An open bottle of Romanée-Conti rests on the countertop by his elbow, and his previously empty wineglass is now half-full, the deep red liquid catching the fluorescent lights as he idly swirls it around.

Much like his wine, there is also something swirling in his sharp eyes, but you neither need to or wish to know what it is. You let out a disgruntled huff before heading out to the living room, shooting him one final glare as you round the corner and disappear.

Wakatoshi sighs to the empty room before he too, decides to head on out and meet with Representative Semi - your and Eita’s father - to offer him his congratulations.

He finishes the drink in his hand, wine tasting oddly bittersweet as it goes down his throat, and as he exits the kitchen, he wonders for the nth time that night how come you seemed to hate him with such a passion.

He’s not stupid, not like the way everyone seems to think he is just because he’s blunt, but if it’s taken him this long to realize that your feelings towards him go much deeper than a simple dislike, then he thinks that he may never find out the real reason as to why.

The thought doesn’t deter him though, and when he catches sight of the back of your head while you talk animatedly to Oikawa Tooru, laughing your heart out as though you weren’t staring daggers at him just minutes ago, he thinks that he will gladly spend a lifetime figuring you out.

You are a mystery to him, and one that he will stop at nothing to crack.

[ note ]  ― and there we have it! first time we’re meeting the cast, and if the overly zealous descriptions about ushi isn’t enough to display how whipped i am for him then probably nothing ever will. hope you all like this one as much as i loved writing it <3

also this is dedicated to @cafemiya​ for giving me the push i needed to make this entire series. hi issy i love you bae 🥺💖

[lessdepressy]

it’s 3:41 am. another sleepless night, and i know how this will end: with the afternoon sunlight glaring past my eyelids. another endless cycle of late sleep and late waking times. i thought i had gotten over this during quarantine, but apparently the 6:00 am school routine i had dreaded was the only structure keeping me sane. with so much time but so little of it at the same time, days blending into hours blending into whole weeks slipping past me like minnows in river currents, counting down to the day i will leave home and never return the same way. dread and the horrors a overactive imagination keep me awake again. instead of finishing up a drawing, i am typing up this post. i am procrastinating a chemistry placement exam i was given two months to complete. it is due the day after tomorrow. i need to compile a list of the classes i wish to take but i do not want to face the tutorials i need to watch in order to get a semblance of how to piece my future together. i do not want to face the inevitable independence that comes with the passing of time but if i do not learn how to drive and get my overdue permit and get another new job and call my roommate for the first time and memorize a map of my college so i do not get lost like my directionally-challenged ass will do and swallow down the urge to pee in anxiety or stop my hands from shaking and tearing apart the hairtie in my hands, the reality is that the future will still catch up to me and life will grasp me in its arms and swing me around with no pattern and the earth will keep spinning and i am spiralling i know i am. plug my earbuds in and blast music to drown out my thoughts but if there was a soundtrack to my life it would probably be silent, because i do the best when i have a melody but the worst when there are no distractions, the optimal sound for non-procrastinators and people who have their lives together like i totally do, right?

right?

[animaniachan]

ᴛʀᴀɴꜱʟᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ ᴘʀᴏꜰɪʟᴇꜱ ꜰᴏʀ ʀɪʀᴜʜᴀᴘɪ, ᴏɴᴇ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀ ᴄᴀᴘᴘᴇʟʟᴀ ɢʀᴏᴜᴘꜱ ꜰᴏʀ ᴀᴏᴘᴘᴇʟʟᴀ!

ꜰʏᴀ’ᴍ’ ᴘᴏꜱᴛ ʜᴇʀᴇ

ᴘʟᴇᴀꜱᴇ ᴅᴏ ɴᴏᴛ ʀᴇᴘᴏꜱᴛ ᴍʏ ᴛʀᴀɴꜱʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱ! ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪꜱ ᴀ ꜰᴏʀᴍ ᴏꜰ ᴘʟᴀɢɪᴀʀɪꜱᴍ! ᴛʜᴇꜱᴇ ᴛʀᴀɴꜱʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱ ᴛᴏᴏᴋ Qᴜɪᴛᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛɪᴍᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴇꜰꜰᴏʀᴛ ᴛᴏ ᴍᴀᴋᴇ ꜱᴏ ᴘʟᴇᴀꜱᴇ ᴅᴏɴ’ᴛ ꜱᴛᴇᴀʟ ᴍʏ ᴡᴏʀᴋ! ʙᴇʟɪᴇᴠᴇ ɪᴛ ᴏʀ ɴᴏᴛ, ɪ’ᴠᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ᴘᴇᴏᴘʟᴇ ᴅᴏ ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴛᴏ ᴍᴇ ʙᴇꜰᴏʀᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ɪᴛ ᴡᴀꜱ ɴᴏᴛ ᴀ ɢᴏᴏᴅ ꜰᴇᴇʟɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ ꜱᴀʏ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴇᴀꜱᴛ.

ʟᴀꜱᴛʟʏ, ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ ᴀʀᴇ ᴛʀᴀɴꜱʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ɴᴏᴛᴇꜱ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴜᴛ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜᴏꜱᴇ ᴡʜᴏ ᴀʀᴇ ɪɴᴛᴇʀᴇꜱᴛᴇᴅ! ᴀʟꜱᴏ ɪɴᴄʟᴜᴅᴇꜱ ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ᴀᴅᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴᴀʟ ɪɴꜰᴏʀᴍᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏʏꜱ!

ᴇᴅɪᴛ: ʏ’ᴀʟʟ ɪᴅᴋ ᴡʜᴀᴛ’ꜱ ʜᴀᴘᴘᴇɴɪɴɢ ʙᴜᴛ ᴛᴜᴍʙʟʀ ɪꜱ ᴇᴀᴛɪɴɢ ᴜᴘ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴇɴᴇʀᴀʟ ɴᴏᴛᴇꜱ ꜱᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ɪᴍᴍᴇᴅɪᴀᴛᴇʟʏ ᴀꜰᴛᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴜᴛ ᴀɴᴅ ᴍᴀᴋɪɴɢ ᴠᴇʀʏ ᴡᴇɪʀᴅ ᴇᴅɪᴛꜱ. ꜱᴏ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ꜱᴇᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ, ᴊᴜꜱᴛ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ’ꜱ ɴᴏᴛʜɪɴɢ ɪ ᴄᴀɴ ᴅᴏ. ɪ’ᴠᴇ ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴛʀʏɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ ꜰɪx ᴛʜɪꜱ ꜰᴏʀ ʟɪᴋᴇ 30 ᴍɪɴꜱ ɴᴏᴡ ᴛᴛ

•

riruhapi’s name can also be translated into lil’ happy. but since idk if the devs meant this translation i’m just gonna leave it as the original katakana pronunciation.

otowa high is a metropolitan high school meaning that it is directly governed by the state. metropolitan in japanese is “toritsu” this is also where the name team toritsu or toritsu-gumi comes from when referring to riruhapi and “shiritsu” on the other hand, means “private school” and that’s why team shiritsu or shiritsu-gumi is used to refer to fya’m’

otowa high is a metropolitan high school meaning that it is directly governed by the state. metropolitan in japanese is “toritsu” this is also where the name team toritsu or toritsu-gumi comes from when referring to riruhapi and “shiritsu” on the other hand, means “private school” and that’s why team shiritsu or shiritsu-gumi is used to refer to fya’m’

edit: from now on, otowa will be referred to as a public high school based on the english official translation! just to clarify, the reason i didn’t initially translate it to “public” is because public is usually referred as “kouritsu” 公立 in japanese instead of “toritsu” 都立 so it was semi-confusing TT

the two emblems/logos you see at the top left of riruhapi’s image is of their school emblem and group logo respectively. top one is school logo, bottom is group logo.

Suzumiya Hajime:

“my-pace” is essentially a term used to describe people who does things at their own pace without being considerate of others around them. in hajime’s case, he often causes some trouble to others by being so my-paced.

his name is hajime (means “the beginning” in japanese) because his birthday is 1/1

he’s in class 2-D

his favourite food is miso

his hobby is watching game livestreams and he’s a big fan of a streamer named “zou” (the name also means “elephant” in japanese)

what he likes about a cappella: all of it

others introduce him as the following:

he’s unbelievably directionally challenged

he’s super duper good at singing

and he looks at his smartphone way too much

a word to his group members: “from now on, let’s do our best together!”

Tanba Rin:

his name is actually a pun—can’t figure it out? repeat it a few times in your head and you’ll see :))

the third section of his translations which includes the “clown” and his “comebacks” refers to the typical japanese comedy style of “boke” and “tsukkomi.” you see a lot of it in japanese comedians and manzai where one person intentionally acts dumb and air headed so the other can reprimand them as a joke.

he’s in class 2-D

his favourite foods are ramen, beef bowls, fast food, and basically food that he can gobble down a lot at once

his hobby is bike touring

what he likes about a cappella: it feels good to be able to sing loudly and it’s fun to do things like this with everyone

others introduce him as the following:

he works the same part-time with maito

he’s the most fashionable in his group

his tsukkomi’s are smooth af

a word to his group members: “i’ll never get bored when i’m around you guys!”

Kariyazono Michitaka:

he’s in class 1-C

his favourite foods are milk, dairy products, and all dishes that use milk in them

his hobby is randonneuring (but by himself)

what he like about a cappella: we can make people smile with our singing

others introduce him as the following:

he helps at his dad’s shop and cares about his family a lot

he wants to drink latte art someday

you would want an older brother like him

a word to his group members: “it’ll be great if we can keep singing forever and ever with these members...!”

Shihou Luka:

luka’s last line in his character dialogue is translated to “i’ll always be watching over you” but the original japanese phrases means more like “i’ll always be watching you” if translated directly. even if it’s not meant to sound creepy, it kind of does when directly translated over so therefore i added the “over.” but basically think of it like he’ll always have his eyes on you (non-creepy ofc :p)

he’s in class 1-A

his favourite food is the vegetable-filled blt that his father makes

his hobby is going to the gym

what he likes about a cappella: he can come closer to being his ideal self through the support from everyone

others introduce him as the following:

the smiling prince

he’s kind of an airhead

he worries about calories way too much

a word to his group members: “singing in front of other people, this was something my past self could’ve never imagined...it’s thanks to all to you, thank you.”

Soenji Sayo:

when referring to sayo’s “overwhelming behaviours due to his wealthy family background,” i’m pretty sure it doesn’t mean that he acts like a spoiled brat. in this context, it’s more so referring to how he does unthinkable actions (like calling a helicopter to help search for a missing cat or smtg idk) for everyday trivial problems.

sayo refers to his twin brother as “asaharu-niisan” because due to japanese culture, even if they are twins, there are instances where the younger one refers to the older one as “older brother/sister.” and sayo respects the hell out of asaharu hence “niisan” with the “san” honorific

sayo’s name means “rainy night” in japanese where asaharu’s name means “sunny morning”

he’s in class 2-D

his favourite food is french cuisine (the specific dish name is too long)

his hobbies are visiting airfields (to fly planes I assume???) and reading

what he likes about a cappella: he can make the audience happy by giving form to his emotions with the people he likes

others introduce him as the following:

knowledgeable

occasionally air-headed

he can actually do kado (japanese flower arrangement)

a word to his group members: “the high school life that i’ve experienced with everyone is one of the most precious treasures in my life.”

[acontrapositive]

Market share of beer brands in the United States are dominated by a few key players, indicating a winner takes most market. Imported beers started to benefit from tailwinds in the 1990s driven by the popularity of microbreweries; Modelo's timing to export their brands in the US converged with this secular trend of locals' willingness to try foreign beers as well as the growth of the Hisapnic population. The novelty of a 'Made in Mexico' beer also appealed to non-Hispanics in the US, which further drove market penetration of Modelo's brands, making it the 2nd ranked imported beer brand behind Heineken, a brand with many more decades of presence in the country. Modelo's long term growth in the US was directionally upward, but did not come without facing some pretty daunting challenges to its brand. Modelo could use data to steer itself into the #1 position in every market and sell more through intelligent marketing.

  Modelo learned a lot of hard lessons when it came to competitors trying to tarnish its brand by spreading rumors. It would also serve the company well to dissect and understand the challenges Heineken faced and use those learnings to grow their market share; never miss an opportunity to strike while the iron is hot, which in this case comes from weaknesses from the category leader, Heineken. Another trend Modelo should take advantage of is the growth in off-premise sales. If people are consuming their purchases elsewhere, how can they tweak their marketing to cater more to these cohorts of consumers. The company could find adjacencies that helped them out of their previous brand crisis that are similar to POS programs and marketing strategies tailored to wholesalers and retailers. After experimenting across specific types of marketing messages (how can they pinpoint what resonates with their personas -- is it still the fun, sun, beach theme or has it shifted due to changing trends?) they want to go after that cater to new trends and identifying the locations where these new ads perform best, Modelo should significantly increase their marketing spend to take market share away from companies like Heineken in the US. Once they find a process that works in the US, they should replicate this model in similar markets around the world they already have a presence in to be the category leader.

[ill-be-istj-if-no-one-else-is]

(1) Hello! I know you’ve answered a lot of these already, but I wanted to see if you had any insight for what my type would be. I’m also a 9 but I’m not sure of my wing. I’m 18 and i love to garden, bake, and do calming activities like listen to video game music that gives me nostalgia and calmness. i love to write romance and fantasy because I’ve always loved romance and ever since i was little i loved mythical creatures like fairies angels etc.

(2) in my school and work environment i tend to need lots of practice with a concept before i feel comfortable doing it. especially in school, I won’t understand a lesson unless I can see the teacher doing it and I get a chance to do it myself a few times. this is why math has been a subject that always takes me longer to learn. I also find that I’m pretty directionally challenged; I usually need to walk around the place myself a few times before being able to navigate it on my own.

(3) I’ve had past experiences with walking into the wrong classrooms before and I make sure to not put myself in that kind of situation again. especially in my workplace, I get very anxious when I am requested to do something I’ve never done before. I feel like this is normal for all humans, but I get exceptionally anxious. there was a time I was asked to find a trash bag in our kitchen area, but I had never been in the kitchen before.

(4) After discovering where the trash bag was, I felt more confident the next day to carry out the same task. I often struggle standing up for myself and being assertive. Even with little things like suggesting what I want to do when I’m with my friends is hard. I expressing my opinion as creating conflict or drama. I have a large comfort zone, so when my friends or doing something I’m not used to are comfortable with it especially hard to pretend I’m having a good time.

(5) Often I find myself agreeing to go to a restaurant that I know doesn’t have any food I like or seeing a movie I’ve never watched. i’ve always been very sensitive for both others and myself. It’s very easy to hurt my feelings. (I don’t outwardly confront people in response to criticism but on the inside I’ll feel horrible) I feel I can be very protective of my friends and family. I’m always sure to be kind to everyone including strangers.

(6) I really can’t stand it when I see someone being disrespectful or rude. I’m more inclined to be unorganized and sometimes lazy, but I do take my work seriously. I have a problem with procrastination, but I sense that’s mostly due to my 9 enneagram. When I am focused on work, I can be meticulous to the point where it’s ridiculous (that rhymes). When I took my SATs, I spent so much time on questions 1-20 that soon there was only 15 minutes left to finish the whole thing w/ 50 questions left!

(7) i’m very tenderhearted and I like to think that I’m a good listener. I’m receptive and I’m the kind of person that will listen to you rant when you need it but can also give you advice if that’s what you need. and pretty adaptive and can you change my presentation for whoever it is i’m speaking with. I do this mainly in a way to make sure the other person is comfortable. my family says I can be chameleon like in that sense.

-------

Hi anon,

To be honest have you like...been screened for clinical anxiety? I can't tell if you're just young and very sheltered and don't have more high-stakes experiences (this is very understandable fyi and not a judgement just an observation) or if you genuinely are extremely anxious about walking into the wrong classroom or not being able to find something in a strange kitchen, because if it's the latter I would talk to someone about that and try to type later. And for that matter if it's the former I'd also just wait until you've had a little more time out in the world and try to type then.

There's a few other things that also make me wonder if there's something else going on, like the time management on the SATs and very high sensitivity to criticism/pretty narrow comfort zone - please, please do not feel like you need to divulge any information to me or anyone online, but this is a gentle suggestion that you may have anxiety or some other non-neurotypical stuff going on and I think it would be great, if you have support from a parent or teacher or similar, to see if that's the case.

As such it's kind of hard to type but I do think 9 is a reasonable ennegram and you're probably a feeler but there are cases to be made for either Fi or Fe. High Fi users are much better at adapting their approach for different people, but are also usually a little better at speaking up for themselves (even 9s) and expanding their comfort zone whereas high Fe users are much more routine-based but also often better with procrastination (by dint of Ni or Si) and less good at customizing messages for different people.

[theprofessionalpromptmaker]

Worldbuilding Questions (Ask Meme)

(IMPORTANT NOTE: These questions are either taken directly, paraphrased, or added to the questions provided in the book ‘HARP Folkways’ by Johnathon Cassie, which goes into way more detailed explanations and has even more questions to consider and is a great read for anyone doing heavy duty worldbuilding.)

These are some questions to ask when developing fictional cultures. They are broken into 20 categories with a couple questions in each.

As an ask meme: Send a category and a number (or numbers) in to be answered.

Questions Below the Cut!

Environment: Topography | Water | Ecosystem | Weather

How do your cultures respond to, shape, get shaped by, understand, anthropomorphize, and live in their physical environment?

What are their water sources, fauna/flora, landscape, altitude, weather patterns, etc. like?

Do they have seasons and what do those season entail?

Urban: Permanence | Configuration | Aesthetic | Stratification

How does your culture build villages, towns, and cities?

What does the built environment look like?

How do people move through it?

How permanent are structures (settled vs. nomadic)?

How are things placed and spaced?

How do different socioeconomic status people’s homes differ?

Family: Reach | Relationship | Authority | Idealization

How does your culture structure and support families and households?

And what is the difference between the reality and the ideal?

How are power dynamics distributed in the family?

How far does the connection of family reach (to sibling or first cousins or distant cousins, etc.)?

What are family obligations for different members?

What is the most common family structure?

Marriage: Authority | Inheritance | Legitimacy | Love

How does your culture define and understand the courtship ritual, the marriage-bond and divorce?

Who inherits what when someone dies?

Who are you allowed to marry?

How many spouses are acceptable and/or common?

Under what circumstances are you allowed to terminate a marriage?

What is the relationship between marriage and family?

Lifespan: Infancy & Childhood | Adolescence | Elderhood | Transitions

How does your culture treat children, adolescents, adults, and the aged?

What does it say about birth, dying, death, and the dead?

What education is given at each stage?

Does it differ between groups?

When does a child become a productive member of society?

Are there ritual practices in transitioning between stages?

What are birthdays and funerals like?

How does the culture mark the transition from living to not?

What are the obligations of those close to the deceased to perform if any?

What behaviors are allowed or restricted in different stages of life?

What celebrations or experiences are required/common for a person to have they move through their life?

How do these transitions shape the next phase of life?

What is the age of majority in your culture?

Gender & Sexuality: Definitions | Norms | Non-normative Patterns | Relations

How many sexes does your culture/species have? How any genders?

How is gendered defined in comparison to biological sex and separate from biological sex

What aspects of biological sex and gender and sexuality are acceptable in the culture?

How do people outside those norms interact with the culture?

Are they suppressed, eliminated, exiled, or punished?

How well does the society tolerate and treat them?

How do the different genders, sexes, and sexualities interact with one another? Is there norms for this? Are their social rules and expectations? Gender roles and obligations?

How is the difference between biological sex, gender, and sexuality defined in my culture?

What will it enthusiastically embrace as a norm, what will it tolerate as an emerging norm, and what will it suppress?

Association: Distance | Fraternity | Guild | Obligation

How does your culture govern patterns of friendship, kinship, clan, fraternal organization, affiliation, and settlement?

How tightly does your society bind those in association together?

What do people who become friends do together? What makes them friends?

And once they are friends, do they develop special subcultural behaviors that make them obviously different from others? Do they acquire a tendency to wear particular jewelry or clothes or speak in a particular way?

When part of a group, what does that mean? What does their membership obligate you to do? Is your association public or private? Do you wear insignia that identifies you as a member of your group?

About what do members of the society gather together for purposes of fellowship, friendship, safety, and collective action?

What is the line between friendship and family?

What makes an association legitimate? What makes it criminal?

Rank: Nobility | Mobility | Exclusivity | Coercion

How does your culture assign rank between members of the society?

What do the different roles entitle or obligate the holder to and what are the relationships between ranks?

How does one raise their standing?

What privileges are given to the different ranks?

What are the mechanisms that compel the holders of specific ranks to act in a certain way?

Do these elements coincide with family or marriage?

Order: Sphere | Joining | Tenacity | Presence

How does your culture define orderly and disorderly behaviors?

How does it maintain orderliness and punish disorderliness?

What are the ordering institutions within that society?

How does the culture exert social control or legal control?

What are the social or legal laws of the culture?

Who decides the rules?

Who has the power to enforce and assign orders?

What organizations are in place that do the day-to-day business of enforcing the rules?

Where do they draw their authority?

What are the police and militia equivalents of this culture?

What parts of your culture are so important, so integral, that your culture would kill to ensure they aren’t violated?

What cultural practices does your culture’s most powerful forces ignore or miss? What can powerful people get away with?

What venues are available for disorder or protest?

Who has the power to give an ordering institution authority to enforce its will?

What happens when ordering institutions within one society are at cross purposes?

Authority: Legitimacy | Power | Authority | Participation

How does your culture define power, authority, and political participation?

What marks someone as having legitimate and real power?

How are they allowed to wield it/where might they wield it?

Who has authority in smaller groups? What’s the descending order of authority?

What gives someone authority? And how do people gain authority?

Who wields power in the culture and where does the person’s mandate derive?

Who exists in my culture that challenges the most powerful?

What are the competing forces at work?

About what do the members of the culture care about when it comes to power and authority and where do they feel compelled to use their own authority?

Freedom: Freedom | Liberty | Binding | Directionality

How does your culture define liberty, freedom, restraint, and libertarian customs and institutions?

What is the relationship between individualism and collectivism in the society?

About what is the individual both entitled and encouraged to act on?

Where do expectations about the broader society impinge on the rights of the individual?

What are the correctives that society uses against people that do not behave themselves?

What are the correctives that your culture uses to limit the power of the collectives to act?

Wealth: Objectification | Status | Gift-Giving | Reciprocity

How does your society feel about wealth, wealthiness, the wealthy themselves, and the impoverished?

How does your society distribute wealth?

What is rare in your culture and what is recognized, by its scarcity, to have value?

What does having a lot of money confer a particular status?

Does having wealth make you powerful or not?

Does it give someone access to the levers of power?

Does wealth shape order, authority, or rank?

Does your culture have private property?

What does it mean to have anything in your culture?

Does having or not having wealth cause people to have certain obligations to others and their society?

Work: Subsistence | Feudality | Ethic | Slavery

What does your culture value about work?

What is its work ethic?

Is there slavery?

Why do people work? Is it due to needing to stave off starvation or for other reasons?

Do people commonly enjoy their work?

What value do people assign to their work?

What value is assigned to different jobs?

Leisure: Leisureliness | Competitiveness | Athletics | Diversions

How does your culture design leisure? Does it value it?

What do people do to kick back, provided they have the means to?

Do they like individual sports? Team sports? Learned pursuits?

What do members of the culture feel competitive about? How do they manage these feelings?

Is your culture vigorous or languid?

What does a typical member of the culture prefer to do to relax?

Are different ranks/groups allowed to engage in leisure together or the same leisure activities?

What sports and games are played?

What do people do to pass the time other than sports and games?

Dress: Practicality | Status | Jewelry | Body Modification

How do members of your culture dress and adorn themselves?

How practical are their clothes?

What do different ranks wear?

What is considered jewelry? What is precious in your society that isn’t money?

How does clothes express different ranks or groups or ages?

How is social status marked via dress?

What are the materials that your culture uses to make clothes?

What about accessories like hats, shoes, gloves, and such? How are they used?

How does your culture engage in body modification of any kind? Are branding and scarring and tattoos common and used? What about piercings?

Food & Drink: Locavore | Status | Embellishment | Technique

What do members of your culture eat and drink?

What animals and plants and potential food materials readily available in the culture’s landscape? What are their local ingredients?

What foods and ingredients are reserved for people of certain statuses?

What do the poor eat vs what do the rich eat?

How do they cook? What preparation techniques are used in cooking? What are common cooking techniques?

How do people embellish their food with tastes and textures and visually?

How are kitchens commonly laid out? What are common items found in a kitchen?

Language: Dialect | Majority | Pidgins | Naming

How does your culture use language and naming?

Are there mannerisms of speech, terms, phrases, accents, etc. that are reserved for/commonly spoken by different groups/ranks? What’s a snooty way of speaking? What’s a low class way of speaking?

How is naming done? How is it important?

What are the linguistic/ethnic minorities and how is their cultures and languages treated?

How many names does a person have? Does this change based on rank?

Are named sacred and if so, how?

How do they use slang and what makes something slang?

What are terms used by different groups that aren’t commonplace in the majority language? What are code words in different groups?

What words or expressions mark someone as being of a certain rank?

What are the naming conventions of the culture?

Do the characters conform to these conventions?

What is common and what is considered completely weird when it comes to naming?

Magic: Value | Occasion | Constraint | Instruction

How does your culture understand, shape, control, teach, and use magic?

Does it have a positive or negative relationship with magic?

How do non-mages view magic?

When is magical commonly practiced, what occasions call for magic to be used?

What personal limits would an individual impose on themself and their magic? What magic is off limits/taboo?

How are mages trained formally? Is it passed down and taught by parent to child or is their public institutions for it?

Who is allowed to use magic?

How does magic impact one’s rank and status?

How hostile or friendly is the majority of the population to users of magic?

Is magic viewed as supernatural or natural?

Would magic frighten a child or delight them?

Does the practice of magic have any influence on other sections of the culture?

Supernatural: Reason | Reflection | Ritual | Soul

How does your culture understand the relationship between that which cannot be seen and that which can?

Does the culture engage in religious practices? If so, how and what are they?

How much do people trust religion and the intangible vs science and the tangible?

What are the big questions that shape the culture and it’s religion or religions?

What is the right relationship to have with the supernatural?

What kinds of relationships can people have with it?

Are their rituals or buildings or people who wield religious authority and power?

Do the religions generate a rich interior life?

How does it help the mind and soul?

Is it more internally or externally practiced? Is it personal or public?

How are people without a religion treated?

What are the religious minorities of the culture?

Self-Reflection:

What lies does your culture tell?

What does it refuse to be honest with itself about?

What are secrets and tension and cause for shame?

[natsunoomoi]

Chinese Romance Novels in English

So by chance and obviously successful marketing, I’ve had a lot of web novel apps being advertised to me and out of boredom I downloaded one and got hooked real bad.

The first app I got I think I might delete because most of it seems like trash and was clearly like American wannabe writers. I kind of just read the first few chapters of one story that they happened to put into an advertised Facebook post and I just wanted to continue the story 1 or 2 chapters just to get off the cliffhanger, but the story itself actually isn’t that good and the character motivations seem kind of stupid. The main character also seems kind of like a Mary Sue where like she is just special by some huge coincidence of fate and it’s kind of annoying. Like the beginning part was alright, and then it took a sharp turn when the first guy she was into that rejected her decided for some stupid reason to challenge her new guy who accepted her and then when he claimed to not concede a fight to the death, he went absolutely apeshit and somehow it traveled into dark magic. Idek. Plus like...almost all the stories on that app for some reason have to do with wolf people and packs? Like it’s obviously some kind of trend inspired from Jacob and Twilight and I don’t even like that series. And in addition to that, it’s like on par with the famously former Twilight fanfiction 50 Shades where it has some really uncomfortable unhealthy depictions of BDSM relationships. Like it’s just kind of thrown in there for no reason...? Like whatever floats your boat, but you can totally write it in there in a more sensible way and not just like throw it in randomly. In that sense, maybe it’s actually worse than 50 Shades. Seriously a lot of the stories on there read like horribly written fanfiction by a 12 year old. I was 12 once and my stories then were no better because I had too many ideas and wanted them all in. That’s how much of a mess those stories are. This one I just mentioned is the better one. There’s another one I started reading that’s much worse that’s like a high school drama that I barely remember the story too, but I remember the person putting in a whole ton of One Direction lyrics, which I think is going to get the person and the app sued because lyrics are copyrighted and the writer shamelessly pointed out they are a Directioner and to unlock new chapters you need certain items that you can earn or buy and basically they’re definitely making money off of it.

But then similar to how I found this app, I found another app that had Chinese romance novels translated into English in the same way I found the previously mentioned app through a Facebook ad, which is cool cuz I don’t often get to read literally anything with main characters that are Chinese let alone Asian. Most of the Asian protagonist media I consume is from Japan and I just gave up on looking up anything in Chinese cuz I honestly didn’t know I could find any in English.

But damn, the quality of writing is rather good. The translations could use some work and consistency where sometimes the translator doesn’t know common English expressions or there’s grammatical mistakes in newer chapters or sometimes I think they’re speed translating too fast and accidentally mix up characters. But the story itself is top notch and suspenseful. I’ve been reading non-stop for the last week and a half and caught up and am awaiting new chapters. Sometimes there’s bits where character decisions are a little frustrating or like some of the plot twists are like again or like how come this person can’t catch a break, but I got invested in the story so quick.

There’s two in particular I’m enjoying right now. One is Irresistible Romance and the other is Thorny First Marriage on Bravonovel. It’s actually a bit pricey to charge for diamonds and pearls to continue the story, but I felt like it was worth it because I did want to read more and didn’t regret it. I actually started a third today just because I ran out of chapters in those two. Both are similar in that the male lead that the female protagonist is with or trying to get with is like a rich Chinese business man that is so well-known for their business acumen and power via their company that they can strike fear into the hearts of other people and companies. So there’s like some intrigue and like really fascinating maneuvers and media manipulation.

In Irresistible Romance, the main character is an actress that had a really shitty relationship with the loser President of her management company who was cheating on her with another actress and he had convinced his fiancee (the main character) to basically give up her life for him and help him to push the actress that he was ultimately having an affair with. The main character, Yan Wen, gives up the final straw when like he ditches her at the Marriage Registration Office for some lame excuse where he’s with his mistress and by chance the rich guy in this story shows up at the Registration Office and gets stood up by his own prospective fiancee although for him it was a random girl he picked from a pile just to satisfy his family getting on his case about not finding a wife. So basically because the main character grows a spine and decides fuck her fiance she’s not going to just take his bullshit, she asks the rich guy, Jiang Sui-an, if he’d mind marrying her. He totally accepts though and they get married on the spot. He seems at first to be kind of a cold-hearted jerk, but he’s actually super cool. Like he marries Yan Wen just to get his family off his back, but then after he does some research into his wife and finds her super interesting and as she begins her journey of trying to take back her life from her ex-fiancee and his stuck up bitch mistress, he like finds out and helps from the shadows and like realizes she’s actually super cool too. And then like through the whole process they actually fall for each other and are super sweet and have each other’s backs. They have a really beautiful and healthy relationship where they can each have their own separate lives and do their thing, but they get supported and help when needed.

It was so refreshing cuz like the rich CEO thing was like a huge fetish for sure especially after 50 Shades, but like a lot of people noted, that relationship was hella unhealthy. This story though, Sui-an lets Wen take her time fixing her career and life in her own way and like postpones announcing their marriage so she can set things right herself. He totally supports her space and her own decisions, but if he ever sees that she needs an extra boost or gets backed into a corner by some unexpected thing, he steps up and lends a hand. But ultimately he leaves everything up to her decision. And like on her end too, she’s totally a really good supportive wife and tries to make sure she doesn’t worry him too much and that he gets plenty of sleep and eats regularly, and she even tries to help him where she can with his work. They are so cute together. Along the way a lot of other people try to defame Wen or pull some shady entertainment world tactics, but she stays poised and lets the truth come out on its own or even does some defensive research and stuff. It’s so good.

Plus, writing-wise it’s really fascinating how they intertwine the online commentary tabloid headlines into the story so you can see different angles. And then when they write the antagonists’ sides they give you their internal dialog POV so you can understand the situation the best. The actual story and plot development is so good.

Then Thorny First Marriage, holy shit the intrigue. Plus for the most part, the main character is most like my personality only I’m not a former journalist. It’s just a lot of her reactions and sassy thoughts to things are really similar to me and how I feel like I would react if I was in her position. There’s a few times where she does things that I don’t think I would necessarily do or I would do things a bit more drastically, but so good and I identify with her. Writing-wise I don’t think it’s as good as Irresistible Romance because there’s been two times where they kind of forgot about something that they mentioned in an earlier chapter, so they have some issues keeping track of their plot twists, and there’s a few times where I’m reading like, “Why don’t you just tell them what happened and then they’d STFU?”

But yeah, this story starts out with the main character, Xia Zhi, waking up in the presidential suite of a hotel and not knowing how she got there and distinctly feeling like she was raped and finding some...remnants on the bed next to her. As the plot develops you find out that her asshole husband, who had never touched her himself for some reason and has the spine of jellyfish, sold her to some rich guy for 2 million bucks (she finds out later). What the actual hell? What kind of husband pimps his wife to another man?! And like she gets a pregnancy test later and somehow someone blabs to her mother-in-law and her mother-in-law totally doesn’t believe her and she knows that her son and her were never intimate, so she throws her out of the house. Then some dude that’s like some kind of secretary or assistant just comes by all stalker-like that appears to be from some rich guy that knows her and basically coerces her into going with them and going to some mystery safe house mansion. She’ll be cared for there by two staff, but she also tries to escape and find out who tf this guy is and if he’s the Dad. She still has a job and goes to work as a journalist, but gets assigned to interview some rich VP of a famous company. All the while she’s trying to get a hold of her asshole husband to find out what the hell happened to her that night she didn’t remember where she got super frickin’ drunk at his company party. This dick has been in hiding and trying to avoid her for some reason since that night and he finally calls back in the middle of her interview and because she’s freaking out about her unexplained pregnancy she unprofessionally takes the call. The rich VP, Sang Qi, ends up calling her boss and getting her fired, which I mean, obviously. That’s a thing where I probably wouldn’t have taken the call. One of the differentiating things between her and me. But how she reacts to being fired, yeah, that’s totally me. She runs into Sang Qi later at a rich people shopping mall shop and somehow manages to steal his phone and starts a plotline where she tries to use it as leverage to like get back at him and make a living for herself that also involves him being crafty and like kind of tricking her into some situations like confronting her ex-husband. And then like at some point she remembers a custom cufflink she remembered finding in the room she woke up in that one time and starts to wonder and suspect if maybe Sang Qi was the guy cuz he does have those kinds of things. And she like looks at the cufflink she has that she took from the room as evidence, but she has to do a direct comparison. He like uses GPS to find her mansion prison and tries to take back his phone and Zhi gets like even more suspicious that he is the guy cuz for some reason he knows how the balcony door at the place works even though it has a weird af lock, and they have witty banter and somehow he ends up staying over and she tries to sneak in his room at night to check out his cufflink but he catches her. And like hot damn, so much intrigue. After like a ton of frustration with trying to interrogate everyone around her about who the baby Daddy is she’s just like f it, I’m not going to be your baby incubator and tries to go get an abortion (I would’ve gone way sooner) and before they can start the procedure Sang Qi shows up and claims to be the Dad, and then afterward also takes care of her because she’s allergic to anesthetic. Since she knows who now they like stay together and stuff and she tries to question him about that night, but he actually has no memory of it either cuz he was super frickin’ drunk too. It’s just a lot of unanswered questions. And like since he’s supposedly the Dad, he tries to get closer to her, but she won’t let him really. There’s a lot of witty banter between them and like he even helps her out with her loser husband by getting him demoted. Over time they actually become fond of each other and like used to each other, and it’s really sweet. He actually is there for her and helps her on a number of occasions even though she doesn’t really trust him cuz of course he bought her right? But then little by little you see them really start to like each other and it seems like he might be more interested whereas Zhi is like more reserved because he’s her captor as far as she knows. But then just when you think that maybe they’ll get together, Qi disappears and then the process of him showing up you find out who the actual Dad is and a whole lot of family drama, and other drama where like you actually don’t know where Qi stands, and it like isn’t until like where I am that you find out he was actually upright the whole time. It’s so stressful but it’s so good.

There was a couple of times earlier one where there’s misunderstandings with other people, where I was like, dude, just tell the people your asshole husband sold you for money. I think they’d be more understanding of your situation if they knew.

And then like...for me, I like Qi and I came around to him after awhile, but like I suspected him and didn’t like him toward the beginning especially because he didn’t do or say anything that made him seem trustworthy. He never really lies except for one thing (about being the father), but also he like isn’t that truthful either, or rather, he doesn’t stop to actually explain himself properly which would have made Zhi not like freak out or mistrust him and would have made me not mistrust him. Like I shared a lot of Zhi’s fears because she was in an unfamiliar situation and being manipulated like a puppet by someone with money, and this guy claims to be the one that bought her like an object to be a baby incubator. I and the main character can’t respect that no matter how nice he is. If he admit he didn’t do it at the beginning it would have made all the difference. It’s a trek to find out who though. And at first even that guy sounds disgusting, but like where I am in the story maybe not? Like almost sympathetic.

The only one that I like really hate and disgusts me is her original husband. Like eww. He’s such a greedy asshole. And like later on you find out that actually he lied to her about how much he sold her for and it was actually more. What the actual fuck?! It wasn’t bad enough that you sold your wife for money, but you had to lie to her too about how much it was so you can hide the money from her? And for such a long frickin’ time he tried to coax her to come back and to not divorce him. What the actual hell? What kind of delusion is he living in?! But like also her original husband reminds me of someone I knew in real life when I was in uni. He was a friend of mine initially, but at some point he started making really uncomfortable jokes and it seemed like he liked me or something. I never viewed him that way, but we just hung out. And then at my uni because there was a huge rush to like try to figure out 2nd year housing, we arranged to do a co-ed roommate situation where like me and another girl and him and his friend would stay in apartment from our second year. To me that seemed normal cuz other friends of mine did that too because there’s only so many people you know and you have to try to snatch up and apply for apartments as soon as possible. There were long wait lines and I actually hadn’t thought about it until the last minute, so I didn’t see it as having much of a choice. But he started making cracks and fantasizing about neighbors and people misunderstanding and thinking we were married, which I didn’t find funny and how and why when there were other people we were living with too? It made me super uncomfortable and during the summer he was kind of like a stalker and tracking where I went so I just started avoiding him every chance I could. After awhile thinking about him made me feel physically ill. The next year after that my roommate decided to move out with two other girls into a different apartment (after unsuccessfully trying to make him leave). But the whole thing with how Zhi’s first husband was written totally reminded me of that guy. Especially with the lame excuses when confronted and stuff and not thinking and his unhealthy tie to his parents’ way of living.

That said, finding these stories are kind of like an unexpected comfort. I wish I could find someone as supportive as Sui-an or Qi. Especially when the men I’ve met in my life were just as bad as some of the other male characters or arguably worse. I’ve been bullied by the guys I fell for, I’ve liked some guys that were way too moody, I’ve had guys that liked me that were not creepy too, but I just wasn’t interested in them or the timing was just wrong, I’ve given up someone I really cared for because a mutual friend of ours crossed a line and then posthumously went kind of crazy from the grief, and I’ve met guys that were really fucking stupid and didn’t know how to act appropriately in a professional situation and actually sexually harassed and retaliated against me. I’m so tired and almost 4 years into living in Japan, I’m starting to realize that because of that last one, I think I gave up on my life because of trauma. Just hurt too many times, so don’t even think about love anymore cuz why bother? It took awhile for me to even be able to become a functioning human being again after the PTSD of harassment. I was really bad and freaking out because the guy that did it was so frickin’ stupid that he like wasn’t actually responsible enough to know the things he shouldn’t do and it was freaking me the hell out that he just didn’t know when he crossed a line. So I ran away to another country and tried to rebuild some semblance of a life for myself. Now my home country is a goddamn mess and I’d be in a worse position to go home, but at the same time, although my heart has healed enough to the point that I can function as a human. I am not at all motivated to look for anyone or let myself care for someone ever again. When I was younger I had so many dreams and really wanted a family. But now I am sad to say I have resigned myself to believing that that will probably never happen because I am apparently plagued by horrible people. I haven’t met horrible people since I’ve been in Japan, but I also don’t go out and talk to anyone other than co-workers and students because I’m busy and in my free time I want to introvert. It’d be kind of nice if I was lucky and had a kind of random chance like Yan Wen cuz like, I just can’t and don’t want to put up with low quality people.

That said, I was talking with my boss and co-worker the other day and we were discussing how China’s population problem with the bachelor society so there’s a lot of men but less available women to be their wife, so I was kind of wondering if that was also kind of how come so many modern day Chinese romance novels seem to involve a rich CEO. I suppose in China right now the chance that you could marry one is greater than anywhere else in the world because of the population problem, so maybe they’re trying to promote moving there and marrying them. LOL I’d be kind of suspicious of whether or not they’d be able to be like actually good husbands for real, but I suppose there probably is some sense of desperation.

And then because I ran out of chapters to read for today because I have to wait for them to translate more, I started another one about a Bossy Ghost Husband? It’s kind of creepy at the beginning, but the ghost husband thing has been something I was kind of curious about because you can marry the dead in China. But like for real I also wondered if youkai really are real or not and if you could unknowingly marry a youkai or something too, so basically it’s right up my alley too. And then also because my life is garbage I was like seriously thinking and wondering if it would actually be so bad to be single to the people who know you around you, but married actually to a ghost and have a ghost husband to go home to? Like would that actually be bad? I suppose in that same vein, it’s not much different from WoL having a secret relationship with Emet-Selch, but yeah.

Anyway, all of this gave me a lot to think about.

[thinkaboutnetwork-blog]

The 12 Real Struggles Of Being Directionally Challenged

The 12 Real Struggles Of Being Directionally Challenged

Have you ever been stuck in a situation where you had to look for directions to your own house? Welcome to the gang of people who are forever lost. Despite visiting a place a thousand times (no kidding), you still lose your way every single time! There is something so distracting about roads, and new places that you can never concentrate on the route. There are a million things to look out for,…

[dimpled-gukkie]

Namjoon partial drabble

@rose--thorn I know I owe you a roommate namjoon fic but I lost inspiration for the plot of the one I currently have. I promise I’ll start a new one for you but for now here’s the draft of the original non-traditional roommate au 

warnings: oc has a panic attack, mentions of anxiety and drinking, possibly slight cursing

pairing: namjoon x reader, platonic hobi x reader 

also sorry tumblr won’t let me tag you but i’m hoping you’ll see this 

It’s the night before your first day of college and you’re sitting alone in your dorm, staring out your window at the courtyard that lies below. You can hear people milling about in the hallway, their voices carrying through the thin walls and you lean back to catch snippets of their conversation. Something about the crappy dining hall. Movement catches your attention and you lean forward to see who else is alone at this hour. A boy stands down there, a journal pressed into his hand as he lays down on one of the benches and looks to the sky. His outfit is rather plain: black cargo pants, a white shirt paired with a black button down jacket, but his orange shoes make you smile. He must look at the sky for ten minutes, you turn to your phone to feel less creepy about spying on this boy, and only when he sits up do you look back down at him. The journal is opened and he writes frantically on the page, trying to catch all his thoughts like a sponge absorbing water before it overflows. When the pen finally drops from his hand he looks up like he could feel your eyes on him and you make eye contact before you can look away. You smile sheepishly at him, raising your hand to wave and he does the same, his cheeks dimpling. 

You go to bed that night alone, your roommate still with your next door neighbors to drink away the first day jitters. You feel a little less lonely though with the memory of the boy with the dimpled smile to keep you company. 

The next time you see dimples, what you nicknamed him to your best friend, was the next day on campus while you were walking to your first class. You and your roommates had walked your classes together a few days prior, and yet despite this you left earlier than necessary in case you got lost. As you glanced down to the map on your phone for the nth time that morning, you bumped into a broad chest, stumbling back a few steps but managing to catch yourself. You notice the orange shoes first, and panic takes over you as you begin to process who this could be. You hope to anyone listening that it is not the boy whose smile you replayed in your head all night, the one who you dressed up for this morning in case you saw him in passing. But all you wanted to do was see him in passing, especially if he actually did think you were some creepy stalker last night. You can’t face rejection from such a handsome stranger. When you finally do bring yourself to face him, you deflate a little despite your thoughts when you’re met with a heart smile rather than a dimpled one. “Sorry about that.” You say quickly, tucking hair behind your ear nervously. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.” You say weakly, trying to mask your disappointment behind being shy. 

“Oh are you lost? Need help?” The boy asks and you nod, cheeks coloring in embarrassment. You hand the phone over to him which was attempting to direct you to your building but you’re unfortunately rather directionally challenged. “Oh! I’m going there too, we can go together.” He says warmly, already beginning to walk off in the opposite direction of what you were going in. 

“Thanks for helping me.” You say and he just shrugs it off with a grin. 

“Of course. Don’t feel bad about it either, everyone needs help sometimes.” 

“Yeah I know but I feel like that stereotypical freshman getting lost on the first day.” You whine which only makes the boy grin. He pokes your cheek playfully, giggling when you swat it away. 

“You’re so cute.” He coos the same way you do to a baby. “I’m Hoseok by the way.” 

“Y/n.” 

“Nice to meet you new best friend.” Hoseok says. 

“Wow we’re progressing rather quickly don’t you think?” You tease which only makes Hoseok’s smile widen. You weren’t even sure that was physically possible. 

“I can just feel it. Besides I’m getting tired of Yoongi anyways.” 

“Wow, you’re using me as a replacement. I’m hurt Hoseok. I’m crying on the inside. Sobbing.” Hoseok rolls his eyes at your dramatics. 

“Are you sure you’re not a drama student? I know this junior named Jin who would gladly show you the ropes to the department.” Hoseok says.

“I should be in the drama department. I certainly have the face for it.” 

“Oh god, I found another version of Jin.” 

“I don’t know who Jin is but I like him already.” You laugh.

“He’s like you but on steroids. Everything that comes out of his mouth sounds like a fake text.” 

“Sounds like my kind of dude.” You say.

“Hoseok! Hey, hobi!” You hear a voice yell, and turn to see a boy run frantically towards the both of you. Both his hands are waving in the air as he approaches even though you both have turned, like it hasn’t clicked that he’s gathered your attention. When his eyes fall to you, his arms drop and he smiles sheepishly. Only then does it click that this is the boy from yesterday with the dreamy smile. You had thought maybe you caught a break when it was Hoseok you ran into but the odds are really never in your favor. 

“Oh hi, Joonie!” Hoseok says and you smile a little. Joonie is a cute name. “What’s up?” 

“I lost the key to our dorm again.” Joonie says exasperatedly. 

“You’re insufferable. Why did I agree to be roommates with you again?” Hoseok teases and you enjoy the slight blush on Namjoon’s cheeks. You wonder if you would like it more if you were the cause of it. Hoseok pulls a set of keys out of his pocket and hands them over to a gracious Joonie. 

“Thanks man, you’re a real life saver. The best roommate a guy could ask for.” The boy smiles, before nodding to you. “Hi I’m Namjoon.” He sticks his hand out towards you and you hastily take it in your grasp. His hand engulfs your own comfortingly, a lazy warmth taking over you. 

“Y/n.” You say softly and he gives a nod. 

“I wish we could’ve met under better circumstances.” You’re not sure if he means yesterday or because he lost his keys so you just nod back. “Well I’m going back to the dorm, I’m starving.” He says decidedly, turning around. “It was nice to meet you again Y/n.” He throws over his shoulder. 

“Don’t use all my dining points for the day!” Hoseok screams at Namjoon’s departing figure. 

The next time you see Namjoon is a week later when you’ve just had a panic attack. Your roommates had decided to drink in their dorm again and you went in to sit and hang out with them, not wanting to feel like a fourth wheel to their rapidly-forming trio. You weren’t expecting it to creep up on you, your anxiety manifesting and reducing you to hyperventilating while tears stream down your cheeks. As calm as you could you ducked back into your room before phoning Hoseok, who had given you his number the same day you met. You hate to bother him at midnight on a school night but you didn’t want to be alone and with your roommates still giggling next door it seemed like you were going to be spending another night by yourself. 

“Hello?” Hoseok answered, voice slipping into a yawn. 

“Oh sorry Hobi, were you gonna go to sleep?” You say quietly, trying to keep your voice from cracking. Despite this, you could hear it waver as your mind replayed the incident causing your breath to hitch and another attack to rapidly approach. 

“What’s wrong?” Hoseok asks and you start to sniffle. 

“Can I come over? I don’t want to be alone right now.” 

“Of course! Wait no, stay there and I’ll come get you okay?” You hum in response, slumping back against the wall by the door. “I’ll be right there!” 

In two minutes a slightly sweaty and panting Hoseok arrives at your door, knocking frantically until you answer it. As soon as the door is opened he pulls you into his arms, shushing you quietly while you silently cry again, your shoulders shaking slightly. “It’s alright. You’re okay.” When you finally quiet down, Hoseok urges you to grab your keys before taking you to his dorm. 

His hands slide up and down your arms comfortingly as you sit on his bed, Namjoon making you a cup of hot tea while Hoseok wraps you in all the blankets he has. You can’t help the small smile pulling at your lips as he dotes on you. He smiles back softly at you in response. “Wanna talk about it?” Hoseok asks once he’s deemed you comfortable enough. 

“I-I had a panic attack earlier when I was with my roommates.” 

“And they just left you?” Hoseok asks, his voice rising slightly which makes you flinch. 

“Hoseok.” Namjoon scolds, placing a warm hand on your covered knee. “Do you have any idea why this happened?” 

“When I get really anxious I usually have them and drinking is one of my triggers.” You say softly, gratefully using the cup of tea Namjoon gives you as a distraction. You watch it swirl around as you wait for their reaction. 

“But they did it in front of you anyways?” He asks softly, rubbing his thumb over your kneecap. You can barely feel the movements through the mound of blankets Hoseok has wrapped you up in but the gesture alone is enough to solace you. 

“They didn’t know and I thought I would be okay.” 

“Well next time they decide to drink you can come over here okay?” Hoseok interjects and you startle a little, forgetting he was sitting beside you. 

“I don’t want to be an inconvenience. I’m already keeping you awake tonight when you were about to go to sleep.” 

“You’re not- and will never be- an inconvenience.” Hoseok says matter-of-factly. 

“Besides, college students are supposed to be sleep deprived.” Namjoon jokes, managing to pull a laugh from you. 

The three of you sit and talk for two hours until you’re all blinking tiredly, swaying slightly in an effort to stay awake. “I should go back to my room.” You say, pausing mid-sentence to yawn. 

“You can just stay here.” Hoseok says, already moving to climb under his sheets. 

“I don’t want-“ 

“If you’re going to say 'be an inconvenience’ I’m going to fight you.” Hoseok grumbles and you giggle slightly. 

“Alright, alright. If you insist.” Hopping off of Hoseok’s bed you spread one of your blankets on the floor between the boys’ beds. 

“What are you doing?” Namjoon asks and you blink sleepily at him while you cover yourself with the rest of the blankets. 

“Laying down?” 

“No shit sherlock. You’re not sleeping on the floor though. Get up, go in my bed.” Namjoon says and you shake your head, turning onto your side. 

“I’m fine really, the floor is comfortable. Besides it’s your room.” 

“Exactly. You’re a guest and guests sleep in beds.” 

“Goodnight Joonie.” You say, turning over so your back is facing him. You expect the conversation to end there as you close your eyes but yelp when Namjoon picks you up from your bundle of blankets and places you onto his bed. 

“Goodnight Y/n.” He smirks. 

“I’m just going to get down again.” You say and Hoseok groans loudly from the other side of the room before throwing a ball at the light to turn it off. 

“Just sleep in the same bed or come sleep in mine. I don’t really care, I just want to go to sleep.” You and Namjoon look at each other with wide eyes at Hoseok’s outburst before you quickly shuffle closer to the wall and Namjoon climbs in next to you. 

“He’s grumpy when he’s tired.” You giggle making Namjoon chuckle. 

“Yeah he’s not a night-time person.” You both stare at each other while laying on his pillow before Namjoon clears his throat and turns away. You couldn’t really make out his expression but he almost looked flustered.

You wake up the next morning pinned against the wall as strong arms wrap around your waist and settle on your rib cage, palm spread wide as fingers faintly graze along the skin covered by your t-shirt. A thick thigh is placed between your own and you stare at it for several moments as your brain pieces together what happened last night. Your cheeks are warm like Namjoon’s breath that brushes against the back of your neck, his soft snores filling the space of the quiet room. You’re frozen in place, unsure of whether you should try moving or wait for Namjoon to disentangle his legs from yours and to just bask in the feeling of being encased by his body. Hoseok ruins the moment for you though, yawning rather loudly and causing Namjoon to stir. Half asleep he rolls over, pulling you with him so now your thigh is resting between his, your frantic movements to separate from him awakening something between you. Your eyes widen frantically and you press your hands against his chest in a frenzy to get as far away from the impending compromising position as quickly as possible. Namjoon groans as you catapult off of him, rushing out a hurried “gotta pee” as you duck into the bathroom and look at your disheveled state in the mirror. Your eyes are puffy from your previous tears, a slight red tint to them that does nothing to dull the color of your face that’s seeping in secondhand embarrassment. Leaning back against the wall you let out a sigh, trying to avoid any thoughts of what it feels like to have Namjoon against you. 

“Bro you didn’t.” Hoseok says suddenly, causing you to jump at the sudden noise. It seemed like he was next to you he was so loud. 

“Hmmph?” You assume to be Namjoon sleepily hums. 

“You got something to take care of Pinocchio.” Hoseok whispers, although he more so shouts it. 

“Oh.” Namjoon mumbles before a loud thump sounds from the bedroom. 

“My laptop! Break your own stuff Joonie, not mine!” 

“Do you think that’s why she went to the bathroom so suddenly?” Namjoon whispers worriedly. 

“I don’t know, she drank a lot of tea last night. But I’m sure waking up to a semi is probably awkward.” Hoseok says. 

“Shh! What if she heard?” 

“You worry too much. She probably won’t even say anything about it.” 

“That’s worse.” Namjoon groans and you move away from the door to give them privacy. You had already heard the part you knew about. After going to the bathroom you emerge to a quiet room, Namjoon planted at his desk as he checks twitter on his laptop and Hoseok putting a sheet mask on his face. The silence is suffocating and you quickly try to kill it. 

“What was that loud thump?” You ask, faking a yawn to make it seem like you aren’t wide awake at the moment. 

“Namjoon fell out of his bed. Again.” 

“Again?” You ask and Namjoon’s shoulders slump down into his chair a little more. 

“I move a lot in my sleep.” He grumbles. 

“How’d you sleep by the way?” Namjoon turns towards you and you struggle to not shy away from his gaze. 

“Good. Thanks for letting me sleep in your bed.” 

“You’re welcome.” Hoseok interjects and you both turn to look at him with raised brows. “If it wasn’t for me you’d both have slept on the floor just to be stubborn.” You hate that he’s probably right. 

“Well I should probably get going. I have a 9 am class. I’ll buy you food at the dining hall today though as thanks for letting me stay over and umm..helping me through that.” You say already heading towards their door. 

“You don’t have to.” Namjoon starts only to be interrupted by Hoseok. 

“Shut up Joonie. We’ll meet you there at 1. Love you bestie, have a good day!” Hoseok shouts as you head out. 

The dining hall is relatively empty when you, Namjoon, and Hoseok enter and you’re a little relieved. Normally you have to wait fifteen minutes just to get to the front of the sandwich line and today there’s no one there. Namjoon and Hoseok follow you chattering about their psychology class behind you. “Y/n our teacher played aerosmith again. There’s only so long I can listen to Steven Tyler screaming through a loud speaker.” 

“Yeah that sucks.” 

“It’s not so bad sitting next to our TA Seokjin though. He tries matching the notes.” 

“You need to record that and send it to me.” You tell Namjoon and he smiles. 

“Sure thing.” After ordering your sandwiches, which ended up taking fifteen minutes because Hoseok couldn’t decide what he wanted, you finally sit down at a table to eat. 

“So I’ve been thinking, what if you move out? Can’t you switch into another dorm?” Hoseok says before biting at least half of his sandwich off. 

“What if there’s nowhere to go and my roommates find out? That’d only make it worse.” 

“Hmm… yeah that would suck. Are you sure there’s nothing else you could do?” 

“I think I’m just going to have to stick it out.” You sigh, pursing your lips into a pout in disdain. 

[consecrated2christ]

Back there again...

Hello friends!

I sincerely hope you had a restful Christmas and were able to celebrate the New Year with close friends & family.

I happened to get quite sick over the holiday break but perhaps it was much needed with all that went on this year.

I was literally home for about 2 weeks...hadn't gone out but for a few important occassions like my brother's engagement party.

Part of me believes I've been slowly becoming an introvert (gain energy from being alone) after dealing with burnt out and my diagnosis with generalized anxiety. (Since 2016) However I still do get bursts of energy from being with people...maybe the difference is the type. Ie. healthy vs. unhealthy.

Personally, I know we're all broken people but find it's a deal breaker in relationships (romantic and non) to not want to deal with your issues. But I totally understand the initial "putting off" of painful experiences and emotions. I do it too... I just mean being a person who doesn't want to change at all -- the whole "I am who I am" mentality.

Anyway this past Monday, my mom and I wanted to have an outing together. She has a chronic illness and this prevents her from working outside the home and doing normal errands. It's like when your phone battery stops charging completely and you only end up with 30% after a normal charging period. Or in humans terms, sleep. To give some context, my mom started showing symptoms when I was 11. So we've dealt with this as a family for about 15 years now.

Regardless of her illness, I have come to love my special time with mom. I say "come" because my teen years would have said otherwise. Not to say though that I don't love my mom unconditionally...it's more that my raging hormones complicated things. So while my mom had good intentions of wanting to have time alone...it would all depend on my mood.

I will say though that experiencing my mom's illness with her has been a journey to say the least and used to really blame Jesus for it. Anyway another story within itself...

Back to this story. My mom ended up not being well enough to do the errands that we were planning on doing together. This is what I mean by our special dates. Sometimes it may just be as simple as returning an article of clothing and looking for some fabric. My dad ended up going with me after work and was just honestly thankful to get out of the house for my own sanity.

We first drove to Old Navy to return a coat from Christmas for my brother. The sales clerk said she couldn't process the order at the store because it was an online purchase. Back on the road again. Next we headed to a pretty low key mall to look at some fabric that my mom needed for our dining room chairs. As it turns out, the place she had in mind was close by but not where she initially thought. Next we then purchased some Pad Thai for dinner that night at the mall and then headed to our last stop for the day.

So we get there and my mind was overwhelmed with all the fabric inside. I am an artsy person in other ways (makeup, music, etc) but find any kind of crafy store to not be my cup of tea. However I appreciate those blessed with this type of creative mind and skillful hands. My fine motor skills are terrible to say the least. ;)

After we take a couple of pictures of potential colours and specific fabrics for my mom to see. (They didn't offer swatches)

As we head out and continue driving down this street...part of my brain recognizes this area. Now I recalled how I'd been here once or twice with my family for this Polish supermarket and one of my mom's favourtie restaurants. Still...something peaked my interest.

Then it hit me after seeing some specific land markers. I say land markers because I am directionally challenged without my GPS, so had previously defined a place by what it sold.

This is the place where I tried to commit suicide.

I remember like it was yesterday: hopped on the closest bus to my house and just headed south. Then got off at a random stop and went to go pick my poision. Then I drank it with another sugary beverage and walked into these woods. I didn't take any IDs or my cell phone. ((NEVER DO THIS)) All I had what was on my back. I then proceeded to drink the poision and walk into the woods. It wasn't super dark yet but remember how cold it was on my hands.

Kept walking but nothing happened. I drank some more.

Being in one of the darkest places of my mind is where I then headed down the street where this fabric store was on. It was one of those roads that had lots of industrial places and kept going for miles. It was in this moment that I was so angry why this plan hadn't worked. Stubbornly I kept walking. My stomach was growling to the point of no return and felt a bit light headed from not eating for a few hours.

I then came across this coffee shop. I caved and ordered some food.

Looking back, no one on the bus or in the coffee shop knew what had happened. Only God Himself.

Afterwards I saw a familar bus that I knew which headed back into my old neighbourhood. I ended up at a local plaza and called my mom on the pay phone. She then sent my dad to pick me up.

A question that close friends ask me is, did you go back to our childhood neighbourhood because it was a safe place for you? Maybe but it was ultimately God who provided a familar route in the midst of a destructive night.

Now I know what you might be thinking...why are you writing this on the internet? Shouldn't you first talk to a counselor and/or a parent? Yes I've done both and am on medication. (See previous post for more of that story)

Some say it isn't wise to disclose your deepest thoughts on the internet or in the workplace. They might unfairly judge you. Maybe...probably...

But part of me needed to get this off my chest and properly process it outloud. (Where my extrovert habits come in)

I say this with my deepest love and care for you my Tumblr community. Looking back, 10 year old Lizzy had no idea what her thoughts and actions were capable of.

Part of it is genetics. My grandpa who passed away last year deals with depression. So does my mom and brother. Thank the Lord for my mentally sane father!! And of course Heavenly Father.

I was reminded when watching a movie where this kid experiences a messed up childhood that we can't always control the negative things that happen to us. Ultimately it's deeply rooted in our sinful nature and our pride that insits that we have to be in control.

As a Jesus follower, I'm not promised that my life won't be without deep and painful moments. But I am and can hold God to His promises that He is faithful and is putting together those broken pieces of my life. Slowly and in His timing.

So this post is for the doubting Christian and the unbeliever too. We all wrestle with from time to time on if we're truly alone in this world. I can tell you with full assurance that you're never alone. Just like I was when I attempted suicide.

Maybe you have noticed that certain things fall together for your benefit. Like a chaotic day at work or school had moments where it all made a small ounce of sense. That was probably God.

So while there are lots of people who doubt His existence I can reassure you of His work in my life.

Even the demons believe there is a God!

So let me end with that Tumblr. God is not dead.

By Christ's grace, ~Lizzy xoxo