#not to mention the lag while adding people

[sesamenom]

Family Tree Version 3, now featuring dwarves, hobbits, and the intricacies of however ainur are related!

Double lines on each side of a line break are used where lines overlap (---ll | ll---). Dashed lines indicate unknown numbers of generations, and dotted lines are for adoption. Grey text is used for alternative/old draft versions and assumed relationships (such as sticking oropher in with the sons of galadhon, or putting one of the dunedain as the tooks' fairy ancestor).

Version 2 here

[flamingpudding]

Substitute City Ghost

Clockwork had a plan. Their young king needed to learn how to take care of people without the kind of hero like fighting he did in Amity Park. There was a lot to learn for the young halfa and his king classes could only cover so much. Thus he had found a plan that would give his king the perfect learning expirence while also helping out his recently new friend. Well not that new since his friend was quite an old ghost of their own. But he had only recently made direct contact with her.

Lady Gotham was an old and powerful ghost. Born from the beliefs of her city and strengthened by the once living and protecting it. But she was stretching herself thin. Managing her city, helping the dead find their way, looking out for the shades, and protecting the weaker entities, was already a lot of responsibilities for a city ghost. But Lady Gotham has added more to her plate, supporting those that protect her city. Mortals that she called her knights. Aiding them by controlling the shadows, guiding those that need help toward them, or the other way around, guiding her knights to those that needed help. She was strong, but even a ghost like her could grow exhausted. His friend needed rest and recharge. Surely Lady Gotham wouldn't say no if he invited her to a vacation to the Realms, and in that same invitation, he would direct his king to his new hands on training.

The bats and birds knew something was different about Gotham lately. It was strange and slightly unsettling. The change felt like it had just happened overnight. They were suspicious, wondering if they were sensing one of their rogues planning something big. Jason and Duke appeared to sense it the most.

At first, it didn't appear to be too big of a problem, but then strange things started to happen. Their rogues started tripping over, seemingly nothing. And if that wasn't enough it appeared like their rogues were a whole lot more inattentive to their surroundings. Now the Bats and birds were good at sneaking, but they had human limits. Yet there were times they snuck up on them like they weren't even seen.

Dick swore that one of the goons had stared at him and didn't see him, even though he had tried to pull the tap their shoulder and greet them before punching them act. The guy had turned around and stared at him before looking around like no one was even there until he punched the guy anyway.

And that wasn't even the weirdest part. Bullets, throwing knives or anything aimed and thrown at them never hit their marks. Not for the lag of them dodging but for the things they were sure they shouldn't have been able to react in time for. Tim espacially had pointed out that a bullet should have hit him once but it never even graced him. Yet when he checked the place after the arrest. There had been a clear bullet hole in the wall where he had been.

They weren't sure if it was a blessing or a curse. They had even tried to get a member of the Justice League Dark to look into it. But strangely enough Constantine had refused to even set foot into Gotham for once, and even insisted that the other do not either.

To say that Batman was not amused would have been a very big understatement. The man was brooding. And of course Dick had to jinx them too. The eldest bat kid had to mention that it at least wasn't getting worse.

And don't you know it. It got worse. Like weirdly alarming strangely worse.

Because, how else would you define it when you're in the middle of a briefing with your patrol partner for the night when suddenly a Lazarus Pit look alike portal opens below your feed swallowed you up and the freaking drops you into the middle of a crime scene or mugging.

It was only thanks to their training that they were able to react quickly enough after a bound of disorientation. But fuck did that gave them all a good damn heart attacks when that happened the first time to Damian of all people.

Something was definitely wrong with their city. Thankfully they had some sort of hint, because the first time the Pit portal happened to Duke, he claimed that he saw a white haired figure right before it had swallowed him hole and spit him out at a bank robbery.

Danny was honestly believing he was doing a good job as substitute city spirit while Lady Gotham was enjoying her vacation. Sure , he still had trouble with some things, but he was sure he was getting the hang of the whole supporting the cities vigilantes gig Lady Gotham had going on. The whole managing the shades and the dead spirits was still up in the air, though. But at least he had figured out a way easier way to guide the vigilantes towards the once that needed help.

Now he just needed to figure out what was wrong with that one guy in the red helmet and he was sure that both Clockwork and Lady Gotham would be proud of him and how he had managed her city during her vacation.

[updatingranboo]

tips and tricks for ranboo fans to make chat (and the community) a better place!

hello! since the rebrand is coming up i decided i wanted to make a list of certain things ranboo fans should be discouraged from saying/doing, to keep chat/the community fun and keep from pushing ranboo back into the box of a streamer they no longer are. i personally don’t believe in cringe culture, i think everyone should be able to have fun, but at this point certain jokes and comments restrict ranboo from growing as a person and do reflect on the community. this got a lot longer than i was expecting, apologies! lets begin.

gender jokes (“genderman”, you stole my gender etc)

a super obvious one. getting gender envy from ranboo is normal and super awesome! nothing wrong with that. but the jokes have been overused. the genderman one specifically has ties to minecraft which, while ranboo doesn’t care about being associated with minecraft, it’s still a tie to their past content they would prefer to leave behind. this is the same level as calling them an “mcyt”, while there’s no harm in it and ranboo really doesn’t care, it’s also just.. not really true anymore and hasn’t been for years. let them grow!

2. *blank*boo/general spam

*blank*boo is nothing but spammy. all it does is fill up chats and replies and brings no substance to anything. spamming “tiredboo” when they yawn, “madboo” when they yell etc. is not contributing anything meaningful to a chat. it’s annoying and drowns out actually fun and interesting comments. as for general spam, you can use a few emotes here and there! but when all you do is spam emotes it again just floods the chat. when ranboo tells chat to stop spamming, you stop. don’t take it as a challenge, you will just get banned. yes there is delay, but you can see what other people in chat are saying too. spamming lag, telling them they missed a dono, anything where you find yourself repeating what other people are saying to either get their attention or just because (except for using bttv emotes) just don’t. i know most people are used to speaking in a fast chat, but the truth is chat doesn’t have to be fast! if you don’t have anything to say, you can just stay quiet. even spamming the PETTHEMODS emote defeats the purpose !!

3. telling off chat

slightly related, you don’t have to tell off chat either. going “chat stop” “oh my god chat” just adds to the spam. change the subject! ignore the spam and let the mods take care of it. focus on reacting to the stream and being silly, not being backseat mods.

4. the swearing obsession

ranboo is almost 20. they make so many innuendos every stream. they are heavily considering adding a mature warning to most streams from here on out, and as we have seen they no longer are the “family friendly” kid who they used to be. he can say shit and fuck and people can be normal about it. you don’t have to say LANGUAGE or go THEY SWORE ?????? he’s an adult and can swear. all of his friends swear and a huge portion of us in the community do too. it is not a big deal

5. telling ranboo what to do

back seating in video games, as well as in other situations when it’s NOT ASKED FOR is not fun. let ranboo do what they want. this applies to just general things too- you don’t need to tell ranboo to go to sleep. they can make that decision themself. again, he’s almost 20.

6. assuming ranboo is uncomfortable with something

it’s always good to be careful about respecting boundaries! but don’t confuse your own boundaries for theirs. ranboo has said many times that if something bothers him, he’ll talk about it! it’s safe to say they are more uncomfortable with you harassing an artist for drawing something you personally don’t like, over the actual art itself.

7. the chat hopping/mentioning ranboo unnecessarily

we all love ranboo. that is very obvious. their friends love them too! but when you go into one of ranboos friends chats or comment sections and start either asking about ranboo, telling his friends to play with them, or making unnecessary references to their content, it makes their friends want to do things with them less! streamers are their own people. there’s nothing wrong with watching one of ranboo’s friends streams because ranboo is there, i do it all the time. a lot of us do. the biggest thing is to be RESPECTFUL to the person who’s stream you are watching. if you chat, chat to the streamer! you don’t have to mention ranboo. or, just stay out of chat if you don’t think you’ll be able to stay on topic. you don’t have to speak in chat! there is the flip side of this, don’t bring up other streamers in ranboos chat unnecessarily either! no one cares if you saw two colors and it made you think of something unrelated. it’s so disrespectful to the streamer to do this.

8a. unnecessary negativity

the internet can be a very negative, reactionary place. seeking out negativity just for the sake of an argument is unhealthy and can also expose others to arguments that they wouldn’t have had to see. bait, obvious unchanging bigots, and also people who just don’t like ranboo (which is valid!) don’t need to be engaged. in the case of trolls, bait and bigots, they only bring negativity and are there to cause arguments. don’t give them the attention they want. As for people who just don’t like ranboo, you can leave them be too! Not everyone has to like ranboo. he can handle it, you don’t need to defend him or try and change someone’s mind. now, unnecessary negativity does not equal call outs/criticism!

8b. please criticize !

if something happens in the community, or from ranboo directly that hurts you or makes you uncomfortable, don’t be afraid to say something and help make us all better people! ranboo wants criticism. if it’s purely in the community, try reaching out to the other person first! often things can be settled privately so as to not hurt others by dragging them into the conversation or making things heated and causing people to attack each other. on the other side of this, if you see criticism from someone and feel the need to defend ranboo: don’t. if you are affected by something (ie. you are a person of color and the topic is racism) feel free to add to the conversation! if you do not have an opinion on something (ie lesbians call out lesbiphobia, and you are straight) keep it to yourself. let the people actually affected by something talk and have an opinion, and support them. it may feel like people are “attacking” ranboo (or you!) but they are not. they are real people with real, valid feelings, who want to feel safe in a community when in real life, they may be constantly victims of horrible things. listen first. if you still have your own opinions, reflect on them and why you feel the way you do, and dissect any implicit bias you may have. these are all important things that keep a community safe, happy, and mutually respectful!

ranboo encourages everyone to be good people and use common sense. remember when you say something, people other than ranboo see it too! every account has a person behind it, so treat each other with respect and help make the community a more fun and safe place for everyone to be in. ranboo has no tolerance for bigotry, racism, misogyny, antisemitism, ableism, and so on. remember to be aware of the things you are saying, and if you don’t know why something is wrong, look it up or try asking someone politely!

thank you for taking the time to read all of this! this list is non exhaustive. there are plenty of other things you can do in the community to make this a better place, from uplifting the minorities in the community more, to supporting artists by reblogging/sharing and commenting on their art, and more. at the end of the day though we are here because we love ranboo, so by following guidelines like these and putting in the effort, you show ranboo and the other people in the community you care and make everyone proud.

that’s all for now! keep boobing!

[etoilesbienne]

Okay on the reset, there's multiple things going on here.

I think it's fair for the heavily active CC to be frustrated their personal stuff was sidelined and interrupted with the reset, I get it. All that progress stopped. I also have full faith in all of the active CC to be able to bounce back and be capable of return in their own way. I trust this of BadBoyHalo and Tubbo. Pierre might have different concerns, but he's been doing content for a decade, I think he'll be fine.

On the other hand, I think this server reset was kinda necessary. Especially from the perspective of more new players being added soon. Like, even Tubbo when added was struggling to find things to do at first because he'd suggest something, and then people would point out someone else already did that like two months prior. To quote a friend, if Tubbo was struggling to find things to do, what's left for players like Lenay?

Keep in mind, the last time the admins tried something to level the playing field between active players and inactive players was Lucky Ducks. Which killed a lot of motivation for members who did like grinding hard to obtain materials. Lucky Ducks was just giving them that stuff without any work. This reset is the last resort in my opinion.

The other thing that interests me is that Etoiles mentioned that he knew about this reset coming (or something similar) for at least three months now. This is odd with the perspective of Pierre and BBH both reacting so badly, like they didn't know this would be happening. Because of both of these scenarios, I think there are two things that could have happened: 1. Etoiles vouching for a reset meant he talked to the admins more one-on-one over this. 2. The admins mentioned a server reset, and never detailed what that would revolve around. I personally think the second is more likely, as QStudios are somewhat... notorious? For being a little nebulous and not the best at communication for all streamers at once.

Ultimately I do think the server reset was a good decision, it encourages playing for people who were never able to get their foot in the door, and hopefully will make the server more active in the future. I also think the incentivizing for players to be farther apart ala Karmaland while create is off for the first few days is a good idea too, we don't need another Roier chunk that lags the hell out of the server being so close to spawn.

I think there's other parts that are less than desirable because they work poorly in practice (disabling all backpacks above iron unless purchased via... the new money system. The new money system in general. Punishing players for doing a bunch of backpacks as a storage system as if that isn't a fair playstyle because it's literally just a bunch of blocks on hand, it makes things more convenient I truly do not get the weird punishing behavior about backpacks. Not telling the players the list of nerfs/changes beforehand. Come on, I would love a Tubbo changelog reading stream. He'd have so much fun doing that.), however overall I am willing to wait another week or two to see how the admin team responds and fixes changes as they see them be interacted with. It's been three days, and there were a hell of a lot of changes.

[zerothejackal]

this may contain written spoilers for the murder of sonic the hedgehog

This is outdated and getting a rewrite

okay, this is gonna be one of those crazy theories full of headcanons i make on discord, except this time I'M POSTING IT!

Hypothesis: Barry is a chaos user

Now, I know what you're thinking

"there's no proof of that what are you on"

AND I'D SAY "its just my little headcanon with no evidence :3c" however maybe there's some evidence, what if the THINK minigames are...

somewhat more real than just "think of what sonic would do"

what if Barry's chaos power is a very weakened (due of not knowing of it) form of ESP, so hear me out, here's my proof

During every interrogation this happens

0) have Barry collect clues before the interrogation

1) Tails says he and Barry have formed hypothesis or Tails makes an accusation/unfounded argument

(to which Barry progressively wonders why Tails and people keep mentioning them before an interrogation)

2) we have to select the correct type of evidence, from Barry's inventory, to form an argument

3) play the THINK minigame so that Barry can order their thoughts

4) Tails explains the argument flawlessly and barry sometimes lags behind

"but that isn't proof of anything"

SILENCE!

Hear me out: Barry's power is not only some sort of ESP, but some sort of inspiration or enlightenment kind of telepathy!

The game doesn't show Barry telling Tails anything, yet Tails forms almost always a very strong argument from a piece of trash Barry found laying around

Sure, he comments on them beforehand giving the player insight on how to use the clues during the interrogation

And Tails is a really smart kid, [and while we know IQ tests are dumb, he might have an IQ equal to eggman's, if not higher] however; Tails is... still a kid, he's prone to making mistakes

proof of this is in the very game in Espio's accusation! where all his arguments are weak and we have to help him out several times

[and several other times in different canon where being an 8 year old has overcame his high intelligence] [see: Forces]

and let's also remember Tails' intelligence comes in the form of excelling at engineering, robotics, coding, and mechanics; but there's different types of Intelligence, and just because one is super intelligent means they'll be great at everything

Eggman excels at the same things as Tails, however he took more time to make functional replicas of the phantom ruby, whereas Tails was able to make a functional replica of a chaos emerald in way less time.

The point is, Tails somehow always has something to say about things during the interrogations, and somehow always involves Barry even though they're not often adding anything

what if Barry is constantly giving Tails the information, and Tails being surrounded by chaos users always doesn't think much of it

plus this game has a lot of dialogue detail, wouldn't it be more correct to have them at least be shown to discuss something before presenting the argument?

but nope, Tails always jumps right into action the moment Barry shows a piece of evidence and does the THINK minigame

sure, it could be the discussion is done DURING the THINK minigame, but the dialogue doesn't inherently imply that, Tails often just tells us to think how the evidence links to the unfounded arguments from the interrogation

but if you aren't yet convinced: there's also...

Barry was always able to find clues, while Tails ... didn't really, even though they were working as a team, Barry always found the clues; even if for them they didn't seem as clues sometimes

sure, Barry is the avatar for us, and the game being a point-&-click needs to present us with minimal things to be able to interact with

but what if in Barry's mind it was somewhat the same, what if the same things we were presented with as interactable objects...

were also somewhat highlighted in Barry's mind

I'm not gonna use the trashbin thing as proof since theres a reason Barry did it through the game, they even tell Tails about it

but they do find every piece of evidence that could support any argument Tails bould be beginning to cook...

"but maybe Tails just made an argument with the things Barry collected and just wanted to include Barry on the interrogations"

there's truth to that; however, my argument can coexist with that one, Barry could've "inspired" tails with some sort of ESP during their THINK Sequences, and Tails could've formed a stronger argument through that!

in fact it sorta makes sense

Barry organizes the thoughts Tails presents them with AND shares the information with Tails to form the argument

all during a mind link while we are playing the THINK minigames!

LASTLY, and the weak part of the argument that I'm presenting; but still a part I wanted to include,

why was the final fight a THINK minigame? because Barry was helping!

do you think, after being inspired by Sonic the hedgehog he would stand in the background and do nothing?

it's implied the other friends of Sonic were also attacking the train during that whole thing

what if Barry was doing something

what if, specifically, Barry was giving information to Sonic of the train's next moves and where to go in the rail tracks

so that Sonic could spindash right into the train's carcass for amy to deliver the final hit with her piko piko hammer

is there any actual proof to this one?

unlike the other two arguments? not really

but it kiiinda makes sense?

yes.

Conclusion: Barry is a chaos user, specifically has a weakened/dormant ESP ability!

[eddiesguitarskills]

When We Were Young

Part 3

Ex Eddie Munson X reader

Other parts 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Intro: 5 years have past since you packed up and left behind Hawkins. Well not all of it, as the people you met there are still a huge part of your life. But it's been 5 years since you had set a foot in the small town, 5 years since you left him. And now after all that time you were back.

Warning: angst, language, mentions of suicide, miscarriages, self harm, mental health. Use of y/n. Slow burn. Arguments. Mentions of break ups. Female identity reader.

Bold parts are flashbacks

Word count: 2.2k

A/n: please only read if you are in a good place, I wouldn't want this story to trigger or hurt anyone. I'm sorry this part it short but I didn't want to add loads in when it felt like a good place to end this part. Also there will be happy moments coming soon, it's just super slow burn. Let me know if you wanna be tagged in the next part, thank you for reading

Not prove read.

Despite the panic attack you had after Eddie left, you still went downstairs and pretended to be fine. Everyone was so excited to see you, you didn’t want to ruin that. You couldn't let them see how broken you felt. You had to be okay. You couldn't make them worry about you again, especially Steve. So you smiled and laughed, pretending your hands weren’t hurting from your nails digging into the palms.

After a long night, you went to your new house, you couldn’t make it to the bedroom with how emotionally exhausted you felt. So tired, that you couldn’t even make sounds as you silently sobbed on the sofa until you eventually fell asleep.

You woke up with the promise today would be a better day, last night you just slipped into your old self. You were better now. No stupid ex could ruin your progress. You needed to get some groceries for the house so at least you had something to distract your mind for a little while.

As you drove in your new red Ford (well it was a used ford from a couple of years) to the grocery store you expected everything to look different, but to your surprise, it was the same. The florist with the pink lettering on the window spelling out its name Haley’s, the paint had slightly started to peel but it was still there. The 50% off at the clothing boutique. Even the graffiti that was on the side of the market was still there, from four years ago. The town was stuck in a time warp, maybe it wouldn’t take as much time to adjust.

Grabbing a shopping cart you slowly walk down the isles not sticking to the list you wrote at home. Picking up all sorts of snacks. You had missed American cuisine. Your cart was getting full. I guess it’s true what they said about how you shouldn't come shopping on an empty stomach. The cart was old and rusty, meaning the fuller the cart got the harder to steer it was. The wheels screeched and lagged every time a new item was added. You turned the corner to enter another aisle when the left wheel furthest away from you decided to jam, ramming you into a customer's cart.

“I am so sorry” you look up at the old man wearing a cap. Maybe it wasn’t your ex you were a magnet too, maybe it was just the Munson’s. He frowned at you. Okay so maybe not everything was the same. Wayne was known for being grumpy to others but you only knew him as a sweetheart he was never anything but kind to you. You had never seen him look at you like this. There was a disappointment hidden beneath his eyes, that you, unfortunately, didn’t miss. “For what? Bumping into my cart or breaking my son’s heart?” You don’t know what you expected him to say. But maybe silence would have been better. The words stung you.

His son was the one to break your heart, not the other way around. Sure it might have hurt him when you left, but how were you supposed to feel when he didn’t give you a choice? And the only way of having part of him was taken away from you.

“Do you want me to be your little housewife and have food on the table ready for when you get back from your big successful job?". You stared in disbelief despite the thoughts building like a storm in your head. “Is that what you think?” He hated when you used that voice. The one where it sounded like you were about to break.

It made him hate himself more than he already did. Maybe this is why he was treating you this way. Seeing if you take his bait, to see if you thought he was as worthless as he felt. He didn’t want to hear that voice in his head, he didn’t want to see the disappointment on your face right now, he just needed something to numb it all. So he turned away from you in search of a blunt, a pill, powder, anything.

His turning away from you, caused the storm to break loose, this was the end and he wasn’t even kind enough to break up with you in words. “Fuck you” you whispered and left. You got in your car. Driving as far as you could from him. You could see just enough to get as far as the Family Video which wasn’t a long way from the trailer park before your tears completely cover your eyes sight. You pulled up not wanting to risk anyone’s life. breathing heavily, panic intensifying. In comprehensive words being screamed from your mouth. Cursing out to the universe, Eddie and apologising to the life in your stomach.

God how you wanted to curse his nephew out and tell Wayne the whole truth. But as Eddie said you were nothing so why did it matter anymore? You did hate how you had never said goodbye to the man who took you into his family so easily. Making sure you were always welcome. Making sure your favourite snacks were in his home despite not having the money and living paycheck to paycheck. So you just said “I’m sorry Wayne” he didn’t need to know that it was an apology to him, not his nephew.

His face didn’t change, you guess this was the Wayne Munson everyone talked about, the cold-hearted, scary guy. You had never been on the receiving end of this version of him but it was frightening. So you looked down, scared if you look up for a second more you would cry. “That kid already had a hard enough life, he didn’t need you promising him a better one and then being like the rest of them. You messed him up so bad that he’s only now just starting to smile again. So if you plan on staying don’t you dare hurt him again”. With that threat he left. You wanted to leave the store than to wallow, but you stood in fear not wanting to cross paths with a Munson again. “Are you okay ma’am?” a shop clerk addresses you. You nod “I’m fine thank you.”

Thankfully you wouldn’t cross paths with another Munson today as Wayne had gone to work and the younger Munson was still in bed hungover. Deciding not to come into work today, he might as well have gone in with how many times Sarah had called, asking how to do things, that she should know how to do. Hearing the constant rings and her voice was giving the boy a headache. Eddie didn’t realise she was only doing this to make sure he was okay, it wasn’t like him to call in sick. After plumping his pillow and changing positions back and forth, he found a comfortable spot and started to close his eyes.

The phone rang again, and he groaned. Picking it up now pissed. “Come on Sarah you called 10 minutes ago, you’re a floor manager you should be better than this. Use some instinct, I shouldn’t have to hold your hand through this”. A male’s chuckle made him realise that it wasn’t his employee on the phone. He knew that laugh anywhere and right now he would have preferred to hear from Sarah 20 more times if it meant not talking to Harrington. “You seem like such a lovely boss” Steve joked, hoping to gauge Eddie’s mood. When he didn’t laugh back or make a snide remark, when he was met with silence. He realise how pissed Eddie was, he was never the quiet type.

Steve sighed “look I know I should have given you a heads up, trust me I was going to. I just got so excited about having her back that I didn’t think-“. Eddie rolled his eyes cutting in “yeah you didn’t think”. Steve ignore the rise Eddie was trying to cause and continued. “I was going to tell you, I just didn’t expect you there, not that I didn’t want to see you. I just didn’t know Dustin invited you. I hoped the first time you met again would go better, I didn't plan for it to go like that”. If the men were in the same room, Eddie might have hit the boy, even if he didn’t mean it. With the rage he was feeling. “Better? Do you really think we could ever get along, After what she did?”.

"shut it Munson" Oh, it was definitely a good job they weren't in the same room. Steve didn’t snap anymore. He tried not to raise his voice because he hated how it made him feel like his father. But he would not have Eddie speak about you like that. Especially with what he did. He had come so far with Eddie, after the first couple of months of the incident he couldn't even look at him. But after time he forgave and tried to understand the boy. But he never forgot. How could he forget?

Steve was blinded by the headlight pouring into the shop window. After a long 12-hour shift he was super tired and didn’t need this. He left the shop storming over to the car, about to tell the jerk off. Until he came closer and realised it was your car. He walked over quicker, wondering what you were up to. Were you trying to be funny, by annoying him? He supposed this is what best friends did. He grabbed open your door, trying to scare you. To get his own back. However, as soon as the door opened, he saw you hysterically crying, clutching your stomach. He got down to his knees in front of you, rubbing your arms. “It hurts so much”.

He wanted to cry looking at you like this, you were always the strong one. The anchor in his life. No matter how scared or how much of a dick he was, you brought him back to earth. You were never like this. You squeezed your eyes in pain, holding your stomach tighter. This was worse than the pain he felt when Nancy left, worse than anything with the upside down. This was the most heartbreaking thing he had ever seen. But he had to be as strong for you as you had been for him. So he sniffed back up the tears. “What hurts y/n?”. You pull his hand from your arm to your stomach. “It hurts Steve”. He couldn't be sure, he hoped it was just stomach pain and not... God, he hoped it wasn't that. All he knew is that he needed to take you to the hospital. “Can you move?”

Eddie wasn't used to this version of Steve, even when they weren't friends Steve hadn't spoken to him like this. At that moment he realised that if there was a choice Steve would always pick you, and maybe all his friends would always pick you. Why was he the only that hated you? At that moment he felt more alone than he had in years. It made him scared, he couldn't be abandoned again. He felt like a child scared of his dad, feeling like he disappointed him. With how quickly Steve was to turn his back on him he wondered if everyone else felt the same. Was he just a place holder until you came back?

You had left, he had stuck around. Sat with his friends while they cried. Make them laugh on bad days. Trained Dustin to be a Dm. Went to hospital appointments with friends. Stayed awake talking them down from nightmares. All while suffering from his own traumas. He never complained because that's what friends do. Especially when they had gone through what they had. You left everyone, and now you could just come back, and everyone would love you. What do you know about hard?

“She got to leave, it couldn't have been that bad.” Steve growled through the phone “you don’t know shit Munson” he slammed the phone down. Eddie was all alone, well not completely, he had his thoughts. He was now wishing for Sarah to call. He felt like he was being smothered by thoughts, what did Steve mean? Eddie might have been mean that night to you, but surely it wasn't enough to qualify this sort of response. How had you had a hard life? Had something happened? Was he missing something? He shook his head. No, he hated you, he needs to keep it this way. He picked up the phone and rang Sarah, as soon as he heard her voice he spoke. “Come over after work”. He slammed the phone down. He needed to forget, Sarah could help with that even if it was only a couple of hours.

A couple of hours before the thoughts would come back and he was swarmed by curiosity, pain and loneliness.

Tag list

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[starshine-hockey-girl]

What Happens in Vegas- Never Ever Have I- Chapter Twenty One

Summary- Evie and Sidney spend a few days in Las Vegas to attend the 2019 NHL Awards

Author's Note- It got a little long. Sorry, not sorry.

Warnings- SMUT(all consensual), alcohol use, gambling

@pattiemac1 @penstxgal1968 @equallyshaw @pensfan5871 @heatherloves87

June 17th- Sidney and Evie’s hotel suite- Mandalay Bay hotel- Las Vegas 

“Evie,” Sidney called from the hotel suite bathroom as he unpacked their toiletries, “What do you want to do tonight?”

Evie hung Sidney’s suits and her dresses in the closet. “I don’t know,” she called back, “Besides the obvious gambling, what is fun to do in Vegas? I have never been here.”

“Wait, you have never been to Vegas? Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked as he walked into the room. She shrugged her shoulders. “Well, there are outstanding restaurants, shows, strip clubs, people watching…..” he added. Evie raised a single eyebrow at the mention of strip clubs. He noticed and pivoted the subject. “Nate is flying in a couple of hours. We could have dinner with him,” he suggested. 

“You pick the place, Beso,” she smiled, “It must have gluten and dairy, okay?” He nodded his head. “How early is your tee time tomorrow? Can we go out and explore after dinner?” 

"It's a ten AM tee time so I can do a late night out. We are in Vegas after all," he walked over and wrapped his arms around her waist. He began walking her to the bed. "Get naked while I make plans," he instructed as he walked back in the restroom to call the concierge for dinner and show reservations. 

"Beso, why am I getting naked? Is it nap time?" she called out coyly, "I thought we weren't sleeping yet to fight the jet lag.

He poked his head out of the bathroom, "I didn't say anything about sleeping.  It's time for my afternoon snack. Get it ready for me."

"And what is your favorite snack, Beso?" she teased.

"You know what it is. It's between your legs," he answered back.

June 18th- Sidney and Evie’s hotel suite

"You're kidding me, right?" Sidney whined, "Seggy, please tell me that you're kidding me." Evie looked up from the couch in their suite. "Our tee time is in forty five minutes, buddy. If you want to weasel out of the bet, just let me know. No hard feelings," he said in frustration. "Where am I going to find another person to play?" he said as he observed Evie. "Hold on," he said to Tyler Seguin. "Evie, have you ever golfed? Do you want to come with us?" he asked.

She looked over, "Yes, I have played golf before, but I don't have anything packed to wear." Sidney shot her a pleading look. “I expect to be rewarded for this, but yes I will play,” she finally agreed. 

"Okay Seggy, we have our fourth," Sidney sighed. Seggy questioned him and he responded, "Yeah, It's Evie. Try to take it easy on her." Sidney hung up the phone, walked over and enveloped her in a hug. “You’re the best, Evie,” he kissed her cheek.

"By the way, what is the bet?" she asked, "Is it a team or an individual bet?" 

"Team," he answered, “Winning team wins $10,000”

“What are the teams?” she questioned.

“Nate and me, Seguin and …….” his voice trailed off and her eyebrows raised before he continued, “I mean I guess we can switch it so that you are on my team.”

“You don’t sound thrilled about the idea, Beso” she said softly. 

“I didn’t say that,” he countered weakly. 

“Do you not want to play with me? Think I will bring your score down?” she argued. 

“You thinking will bring my score down instead of up is the problem. You don’t even know the difference,” he laughed. 

“You knew what I meant, Beso,” she sighed heavily, “I will play with Tyler. I don’t want to play with a teammate who doesn’t believe in me.”

Sidney stammered, “I believe in you, Evie.”

“Yeah, just not in my golf skills. It’s okay. I know winning is important to you,” she smiled, “However don’t get too cocky. I may get lucky out there.”

Sidney smiled, “You are not mad?’”

“Nope, not at all. Just don’t come crying to me when Team Texas kicks your Novia Scotia asses,” she smiled, "Okay, I am sure that there is a pro shop at the club. Let's head over now and I will get some clothes."

Sidney and Evie got to the golf club fifteen minutes later. Sidney went to check in and get their golf cart and clubs. Evie ran to the pro shop and went on a mini shopping spree courtesy of Sidney's black AMEX. She dressed quickly and put her hair back in a ponytail before putting on her visor. When she emerged from the locker room, Sidney blinked and stared at her outfit. "The skirt is a little short, Evie," he said.

"It's a skort. It was either this or dress like a grandma. If I am going to golf, I refuse to look bad doing it," she teased. She packed her bag with sunscreen and lipstick. "Let's go Crosby," she teased.

When they arrived back at the golf carts, Seguin and Mackinnon waited. Seguin gulped as he watched Evie examine her rental golf clubs. Her golf skort barely covered her ass. The sleeveless shirt stretched tight over her breasts. The neckline went down into a deep V that exposed her cleavage. The 87 charm dangled on her clavicle.

When she got her clubs onto the back of the cart, she went over to give Nate a hug. "Long time no see," she laughed even though they just had dinner together the previous night. She extended her hand to Seguin, "Tyler, right? Good to see you again. I'm Evie. We met in Dallas.”

"I remembered," he smiled, "Thanks for saving my ass." He gave her a wink. Sidney cleared his throat and Evie took her seat in the golf cart. She flashed a smile at Sidney, "Ready to kick ass, Beso?" She leaned over and kissed him passionately. 

As she did, Seguin watched from the cart behind. "Damn," he said to himself, "She's fucking hot." Nate smiled to himself and shook his head. Seggy shot him a look and shrugged, "Where's the lie?" 

Nate smiled, "Just don't let Sid hear you. He might tear your head off." 

FIRST TEE

"So tell me about the bet," Evie asked as the group stood at the tee box on their first hole. Nate laughed and walked away. 

"It is a match play style. The team with the best score per hole wins the hole. The team that wins the most holes wins the bet," Tyler explained. "What's the prize?" She asked.

Evie looked from man to man before Seggy admitted, "It's five grand buy-in. If we win, we split ten grand. If they win, they split five grand ."

"Why five for them ?" Evie asked, "Are you not counting me in the bet? 

Sidney smiled, "Evie, it's a ten grand team bet. Do you have five grand to bet?" She shot him a look. "Do you want to be in on the bet?" 

Seggy, "If we win, we’ll split the ten grand. If you lose, I will pay the entire ten grand and you won't owe anything. After all, you are saving from forfeiting altogether. Any objections?" He looked to other men who nodded in agreement.

“This is going to be the easiest money I’ve ever earned,” Nate laughed. Evie gave him a side eye. “Come on, Evie. You guys have no shot at beating us. Just give us the money, right now. I mean he may be a badass with the ladies but he isn’t good enough to carry both of you.” 

“You think he needs to carry me, Nate?” Evie smiled and went to select a club, “Talk to me in eighteen holes. You’ll be signing a different tune then.”  Sidney pointed out the driver and she gingerly selected it.The men insisted that Evie tee off first. She put her ball on the ladies tee. Sidney walked over and pointed to where she should try to hit the ball. He went back to watch her. Evie took the driver in her hand. "Oh God, Sid you gotta help her," Seggy giggled. 

Sidney approached Evie with a smile, "Let me show you." He stood behind her and placed his hands over hers. She felt his breath on her neck as he showed her how to swing. She looked back at him sweetly and he gave her a quick kiss. "Try now," he whispered and walked back to his original spot. She swung and made contact with the ball. It landed on the fairway, barely avoiding the sand trap. "Good girl," he praised. She smiled shyly and picked up her tee. Seguin raised his eyebrows at Sidney's praise. Sidney kissed her on the temple before he walked to tee off. He hit his shot and landed on the fairway. Evie cheered for him and rewarded him with a kiss when he went to select his next club. Nate shook his head and took his shot. 

Seggy approached the tee and looked back at Evie. She stood in front of Sidney who wrapped his arm and her waist and pulled her tight against his body. She gasped right as Seggy hit the ball as Sidney kissed her neck. His ball hooked left and went into the rough. "Tough break," Sidney commented. 

Evie caught the look of envy in Seguin's eyes as he glanced back. She smiled inwardly and walked to her ball. She looked back to see both Sidney and Seggy watching her ass. "Come on gentleman," she called as they stood and stared. 

“Hey,” Tyler called out, “We should switch up golf carts. It’s bad enough that Evie is sleeping with my enemy for the day, but does she have to ride in the same cart too?” She looked at Sidney and then back at Seguin. “Come on, Evie- we’re a team, remember?” he whined. 

Sidney grimaced and looked at Evie who smiled as she picked up her golf bag and moved it to the back of the second golf cart. Nate smirked as he placed his bag in Sidney’s golf cart. “Beso, what are you staring at?” she teased, “You could have had me on your team, but you were more concerned about your score. Enjoy your time with Nate.”

Tyler smiled as Evie slid into the seat next to him. “Welcome to Team Tyler,” he chuckled as he started the cart to take them up to their balls.

 "Team Texas," Evie corrected. "Listen, if I am going to ride with you, I need to control the music," she stated as she plugged her phone into the aux plug.

"Fair enough," he winked, “So Sid didn’t want you on his team?” Tyler leaned over and whispered in her ear, “If you were my girl, I would always have you on my team. I wouldn't let another man get close to you.” 

Evie smiled and looked the other way, "but I am not your girl and never will be."

"Come on Evie, let a guy dream," Tyler teased.

"Dream on, Tyler, dream on,"

They pulled up to their balls. Evie studied her ball thoughtfully. She looked back at Sidney who smiled smugly. "Ask your teammate," he said with a barely perceptible hint of annoyance in his tone. Evie raised an eyebrow and turned to that tattooed brunette. Tyler smiled and walked over to Evie. They spoke in hushed tones as Tyler explained how he would play the ball. She nodded in understanding as Tyler handed her the correct club to use. He moved back as Sidney studied Evie's form. It killed him internally to let her stand incorrectly but the desire to win prevented him from providing assistance. 

"You got this, Evie," Tyler encouraged as she approached the ball. She hit the ball and the foursome watched it sail through the air. Tyler smiled as the ball landed on the edge of the green. "EVIE!" Tyler screamed as she beamed. 

"Was that right, Tyler?' She smiled coyly. He nodded enthusiastically as she stood next to him. Together they watched Sidney and Nate take their turns before Tyler approached his ball and hit it with force. It landed within eight feet of the hole. Sidney and Nate groaned as Evie cheered loudly. By the time it was her turn on the green, the outcome of the hole had solidly decided. Tyler secured the win with an eagle. Still she focused and surprised the trio by finishing with par score. Evie and Tyler celebrated with an excited hug. Sidney raised an eyebrow and shook his head. 

The two teams traded victories with each hole for the first nine holes. Team Texas had the one hole advantage. The group decided to flag down the drink cart. While drinking her cocktail, Evie turned up the music on her phone and did a little cumbia dance to Selena’s “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom”. https://youtu.be/snlEdcHf7js

Sidney watched in bemusement as Evie grabbed Tyler’s hand to dance. The Canadian mimicked her footsteps and hip movements. They were breathless when the song ended and Sidney barked “Break time is over, Evie Rose.” 

“Don’t be grumpy because you are losing, Beso,” Evie shouted as she got into the cart with Tyler. 

“It’s just one hole, Evita,” he shouted back. 

“For now,” she yelled, “Let’s go, Seggy!” He started the cart and took off, cutting off Nate and Sid’s cart in the process. Evie leaned over and whispered in Tyler’s ear, “Want to know a secret?” 

“Absolutely, but why are you whispering?” Tyler responded. 

“Oh right,” she said in her normal voice “I may or may not have been playing to the best of my abilities for the first nine holes.” 

“Say what?” Tyler choked. 

“I told Sidney that I have golfed before, but I neglected to tell him just how much golf I’ve played,” she looked back at Sidney’s cart and returned her gaze to Tyler. His eyes widened in question. “I used to golf with my dad once a week. I was state champ my senior year of high school and went to Tech on a golf scholarship.”

“No fucking way,” he screamed before he lowered his voice, “You’re like a golf shark?”

“Try to keep up, okay?” she taunted, “But Team Nova Scotia is going down.”

Sidney’s eyes narrowed as he observed the interaction. There was something entirely too chummy about Seguin’s behavior towards Evie. However, what gnawed at him more was the fact that they were down a hole. “We’ll get it back on the back nine,” he thought to himself, “Evie can’t sustain this beginner’s luck.” Sidney watched as Evie danced in her seat next to Tyler. “Nah, let her distract him,” he chuckled, “I’ll use it to my advantage.”

Tyler insisted that Sidney and Nate tee off first for the last nine holes. Before Sidney walked up to the tee, Evie approached him with a sly smile. “Beso, I just wanted to wish you good luck,” she purred in his ear before giving him a soft kiss on the cheek, “but you are going down.” 

“Care to make a side bet?” he chuckled. 

“After I beat you, I get to plan the evening activities and nothing is off the table,” she teased.

“Same for me when I win?” he retorted. She nodded her head yes. “Oh, and it’s individual scores against each other?” he questioned. 

“Yes, but starting now. The first nine holes don’t count.” she countered. 

Tyler looked at the ground and pretended not to listen, but inwardly he grinned. “He’s getting played. Well done, Evie, well done!” he laughed to himself. 

When Evie teed off the tenth hole and landed perfectly on the fairway, Sidney’s jaw dropped. She flashed a quick smile before hopping into the cart for the next shot. She and Tyler were laughing as he approached his ball. “Hey,” he whined, “Can you keep it down?” Evie made an exaggerated movement to zip her lips while Tyler suppressed giggles. The giggle fest continued after Sidney needed multiple attempts on the putting green. The scenario replayed itself multiple times with Evie besting him at each hole. 

“Hole fourteen goes to Team Texas,” Tyler gleefully announced, “For those playing along, that would put Team Texas at ten holes to Team Nova Scotia’s four holes. Do you want to concede defeat and head to the clubhouse?”

“Fuck no,” Sidney hissed, “Evie and I still have our side bet. I am not giving up yet.”

Evie tilted her head and walked over to Sidney, “Beso, are we going to have a repeat of Philadelphia and the face-off challenge?” He frowned at the memory and how childish he had behaved. He shook his head no and forced a smile. “Good, now let’s finish this,” she said as she ran her finger down his chest, “I have plans for tonight.” She turned and sashayed back to where Tyler stood. 

“Evie Rose,” Sidney called out to her, “You’re going to be the death of me.” 

“Oh, but a good way to die.” Tyler chimed in as Sidney rolled his eyes. “Hey Evie, how do you say little rose in Spanish?”

“Rosita,” she answered. 

“Come on, mi rosita,” he laughed, “Let’s finish him off.”

“Fuck this,” Nate whined, “I am hot and tired. I am going back in.”

“Oh no you are not, Nate,” Evie protested, “You are going to stay around and suffer the consequences for shit talking that you did. You should really apologize to Sid for having to carry your ass. Too bad he wasn’t good enough to carry you both.” 

Sidney rolled his eyes, “Don’t get too cocky, Evie. You are only two strokes ahead of me.”

Sidney made up ground on the next two holes, pulling himself into a tie with Evie. Tyler found himself invested in Evie’s victory and coached her through the next hole. She smiled and politely sent him back with a smack on the ass. He pulled ahead on hole seventeen when he score an eagle (Two strokes under par) to her birdie(one stroke under par). 

“Don’t panic, Rosita,” Tyler called as he flagged down the beverage cart. He bought two shots of tequila and handed one to Evie. “I have faith in you. Cheers to Team Texas forever!” They slammed the shots as Sidney hit a perfect shot onto the fairway. Evie followed suit. Sidney’s next shot hit cleanly from the fairway onto the green, ending up about eight feet from the hole. He finished with a respectable birdie. 

Evie lined up her shot from the fairway. She would need an eagle to tie and force sudden death. She crossed herself and said a silent prayer, “Come on Papa- help me out here.” She swung the club and watched as the ball landed on the green. It took a lucky bounce and started rolling towards the hole. “Go, go, go” she and Tyler shouted as the ball continued on its path. Sidney watched in horror as the ball made a beeline and bounced into the hole. “Double Eagle, double eagle!!!” she shouted, “Holy shit, I made a double eagle.” Tyler scooped her up and spun her around as Sidney watched in disbelief. 

“Rosita,” Tyler exclaimed, “You beat us all!” 

He put her down onto her feet and she looked tentatively at Sidney. She saw his jaw tense momentarily before he smiled at her. She tilted her head in question before he held out his arms. She ran into them and wrapped her arms around his waist. He too, spun her around before playfully smacking her ass. “You hustled me, Evie,” he laughed, “You hustled me.”

She smiled before kissing him hard, “Yes, I did.” 

“That’s my fault for not choosing you for my teammate,” he sighed, “I’ll never make that mistake again, Mon Etoile.” 

“No, not you won’t” she laughed, “Oh, the plans I have for you tonight.” 

“Can I come?” Tyler shouted, “I’ll be really quiet and just watch.”

“In your dreams, Seggy,” Evie shouted back, “In your dreams.”

Tyler pouted, “One day you’ll come to your senses, Rosita, and you’ll realize that you blew your shot.” 

Evie turned around and stuck her tongue out at Tyler, “You enjoy that fantasy tonight…. In your hotel room…..alone with your hand.”

Tyler shot back, "Oh Rosita, I won't be alone."

Evie smiled smugly, "Try not to scream my name, kay!" Tyler's jaw dropped as he was rendered speechless.

Sidney whispered as he put her down, “That’s enough, Princess.” 

Evie smiled and walked away from the group to the golf cart. Sidney followed and slid into the seat next to her. "Are you upset, Evie? he said softly. She looked at him. With a deft hand, she slipped his hat backwards on his head so she could look into his eyes. 

"Before I answer, tell me if you are upset with me," she replied. He tilted his head in question. "You know, for beating you or not shutting Seguin down," she said.

"You beat me fair and square- just like you beat in Philadelphia. I am not going to be a sore loser again and steal your joy. Enjoy your victory," he kissed her cheek.

"And Seggy?" She questioned.

"No, I am not upset about Seggy. It is just some playful flirting. He is not an actual threat," he smiled.

"You think?" She bopped his nose.

"He couldn't handle you, Evie. He has no idea how naughty you can be. No way he can treat you like the insatiable princess that you are," he grabbed her face and planted a firm kiss on her lips.

She licked her lips, “Okay, Mr. Crosby but I am warning you. Mr. Crosby will not be playing with his Princess tonight. I have other plans.”

Sidney burst out laughing, “I am not sure if I should be scared or turned on.” 

LATER THAT EVENING 

Sidney walked into the room with a towel wrapped around his waist. He looked at the bed where Evie had carefully laid out his outfit for the evening- suit pants, dress shirt and coat. He smirked and poked his head back into the spacious bathroom. "You picked out my clothes too?" he joked. He had been pestering Evie for clues about their plans since they had returned from the golf club. She had sent him on a mission to find coffee and snacks so she could speak to the VIP concierge in peace. 

She looked up from where she was carefully applying her make-up. "Yes, I did, Beso," she answered, "Otherwise you would still try to pry information out of me." 

He walked behind her and pressed himself into her bottom as she bent over to apply her mascara. She let out a squeal. "I would rather try to pry something INTO you," he teased as she stared at his reflection. 

"Usually you don't have to pry it in, Beso. It slides in quite easily if I recall," she teased back, "You need to accept that I am in control tonight. Can you do that? For one night?"

"You know I like to be in control," he nipped at her shoulder, "You are such a good girl for me." 

"Trust me," she whispered, "Now let me finish. I will give you a hint- meat and potatoes"

"Steak? I get steak?" he smiled, "Fine, be in control for the night." He playfully smacked her ass and walked away to get dressed.

When she emerged in her silver metallic dress, Sidney did a double take. The plunging neckline dipped down to her navel and her cleavage was on full display. The tulip hem was cut scandalously high. "I don't remember buying that dress, Evie," he stammered.

"You didn't. It came in stock after you left for Europe. Kelly thought it would be good for Vegas so I bought it." she explained, "It's sexy, right?"

"Very" Sidney deadpanned. He resisted the urge to add further comment. The dress left little to the imagination but he was surprisingly at peace with it. He studied her expression as she looked for his approval. It struck him that she chose this dress for no other purpose than to appear sexy for him. "Do a turn," he said softly, "I want to see it." She did a slow turn and looked over her shoulder with a smile. She added a butt wiggle which he met with a smile. "It's perfect. You look like the sexiest woman on earth," he complimented. 

She ran to him, "You really like it, Beso?" Evie had expected a more negative reaction. "It's only for you. Your opinion is the only one that matters."

"I do like it," he kissed her cheek, "I will have to beat off the men and women with a stick."

"Men and women?" She questioned.

"You have universal appeal, Evie. You would have to blind not to be attracted to you," he praised.

"Flattery will get you everywhere, Sir," she teased, "but it will not get you any more clues. Time to go."

Evie led Sidney downstairs and into the waiting limo. Evie sat close to Sidney and put her legs across his lap. "I wonder what Buddy is doing right now?" she giggled as they headed down the strip. He trailed his fingers up and down her thigh. "That was a good night. I hope tonight is just as memorable," she purred.

"Do we have time for a re-enactment?" He pondered aloud. He groaned as the limousine pulled to Caesars Palace. 

Soon his curiosity overtook his disappointment as Evie led them through the lobby and toward the Palm steakhouse. He noticed the lascivious stares and double-takes as she held his hand at first before she wrapped her arm around his. He grinned as she approached the maître d with a sweet smile. She spoke softly, "Yes, we have a reservation for Cole Harbour." She deftly slipped a one hundred dollar bill across into his palm. "We would like the most romantic and private booth possible," she stated. The gentleman nodded and led them to a table in the back of the restaurant. 

They sat next to each other in the circular booth. "I've always wanted to try this place, but haven't had the chance," he grinned, "How did you know?"

She nudged his shoulder with hers, "I did my research today." 

"What other things did you research?" He nudged back.

"Listen, Papi Chulo, you need to stop fishing for information or there will be consequences. Got it?" she warned.

"Ummm, what did you just call me?" He laughed.

"Cute daddy," she turned and caressed his thigh. His eyes shot up in surprise. "Even when I am the boss, you'll always be my Daddy," she playfully pouted, "But tonight Baby Girl is in control."

"You're hot when you're bossy," he smiled, "no more fishing, promise."

They ate their meal in a playful mood. Evie laughed as Sidney devoured his steak. He joked about needing the energy for the rest of the night. Sidney rolled his eyes as she moaned with each bite of creme Brule.

When they got back into the limousine, Sidney pulled her into his lap so she straddled him. His hands pushed her dress up and squeezed her ass. "Control yourself, Papi. Our next stop is soon" she scolded.

"Evie," Sidney said in disbelief as they pulled up to the VIP entrance to the large strip club, "Are we at a strip club?" The limousine drive opened and the VIP host greeted them, "Ms. Montgomery?"  

Evie nodded and answered "That's me."

"Follow me," he stated as he escorted them into the club. After a quick scan of their IDs, they were take upstairs to a private sky box. Evie gripped Sidney’s hand tight as he walked in front of her through the club. Once again, Evie drew the stares of men as they walked by despite the presence of dozens of top less dancers. 

It was only once they safely inside the Sky box did they relax. The room was relatively small and cozy with a leather couch next to an open window overlooking the main stage. Evie walked nervously around the room to get her bearings. The confidence that she had exuded in the restaurant and limo seemed to be dissipating. She looked at Sidney nervously, "I have never been to a strip club before, Papi. I assume you have." He nodded his head. "How many times have you been to strip clubs? Will you teach me how to do it?" She asked with a hesitancy in her voice.

"Let's just say that I have been inside numerous strip clubs. I will admit that it's my first time with a date." Sidney smiled, "It looks like you pre-ordered bottle service. The Grey Goose is a good selection." She smiled timidly as he opened the bottle and made a vodka soda for himself. Then he opened the Malibu and made a drink for her. "Why did you bring me here, Evie?"

"You mentioned strip clubs yesterday. I thought it be a fun idea to pop my strip club 'cherry' with you." She offered. He eyed her suspiciously and she blushed. "Don't look at me like that, Papi," she pouted.

"What are you not telling me?" He asked gently.

She bit her lip and looked out the window. "Remember on the night we met and the subject of threesomes came up during the Never Have I game?" she questioned.

"Yes," he answered, "You took a drink and I didn't."

"And then later, you asked how you earned a threesome. I told you that you could have a threesome where you watched if you scored a hat trick and participate if you won the cup?" She asked.

"I remember," he said as he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

"Do you also remember what happened when you played against the Avalanche in Colorado?" She continued.

"Yes, I got a natural hat trick," he said as he realized where Evie might possibly headed with this conversation.

"You haven't gotten your reward yet Papi," she reached for his hand and slipped it into her dress, "Do you want your reward, Papi?" 

Sidney blinked slowly. His mind raced with the idea that she was proposing to him. She was suggesting a threesome with a stripper. The visuals began immediately and his cock twitched. "Are you sure?" He questioned. He gently squeezed her breast as she wiggled her ass against him.

"Yes Papi," she moaned, "I want you to watch me play with one of these lovelies. Do you want to watch me play? Would that please you?"

"Fuck yes," he growled into her ear, "You have no idea."

"Help me choose," she purred, "Help me pick a beautiful one to fuck."

"Evie," he grunted, "let's look together."

"Do you have a type?" Sidney asked as he scanned the room below, "What hair color do you prefer?"

"No redheads," she spit out, "Not to malign all redheads but my failed threesome was with a redhead." He looked over at her with a questioning look. "She was an uninterested in me, but just wanted to fuck the guy I was with. He wanted to fuck her without "cheating". Her performance was pretty lackluster."

Sidney kissed her neck, "No redheads." His eyes scanned the room as Evie danced to the music. "What about her?" he pointed to a short brunette. Evie watched her on the side stage and shook her head no.

Their heads turned to the main stage as the DJ announced a new performer, Roxie. When the blonde stepped into the spotlight, Evie sucked in her breath. Her large bosom bounced lightly as she walked. Her hands slid over hips as she shook her ass. Evie's eyes lit up and she followed her sensual moves. Sidney picked up the room phone and arranged a private dance in the sky box. Evie watched intently as Roxie danced. Her hips mimicked Roxie's dance moves. Sidney whispered in her ear, "You like her, do you?" She nodded her head and kept her eyes on the dancer. "Tell me why," he nibbled her ear.

"I like her confidence when she walks and dances. She commands attention," Evie started, "I like her curves. She is softer than the rest of them."

Sidney grabbed her hips and brought her into him. "What do you want her to do during your dance?" He questioned. The visions were already driving Sidney crazy with desire, but listening to Evie speak added another level.

"I want her to grind her ass into my lap. I want her shake her tits into my face," she confessed, "Can I touch her? Is that allowed? I want to squeeze them."

Sidney laughed, "I think for the right price she will." 

Roxy's set ended and she was approached by the VIP host. The private dance request was made and the host pointed up the Sky Box. Roxy's blue eyes looked up and locked with Evie's eyes. Evie smiled and gave a shy wave. The dancer smiled broadly and made her way through the crowd. 

Evie turned to Sidney who paced the room on the phone. "Right, please go ahead and have the bottles and food delivered to the room. We will check in within the hour." He stopped and smiled at his love. "Taking care of details," he said softly as Evie crossed over to him. They clung to each other and he whispered, "I will take care of the logistics. You just give the sign if she is the one you really want."

They both turned when the door open. Roxie walked in with confidence. She politely declined a drink from Sidney as she grabbed Evie's hand. The blonde pulled her into her body and began a sexy roll maneuver. "Am I dancing for him or you,?" She purred. Evie pointed to herself and Roxie grinned. "Oh, that's even better," she laughed as she guided Evie to the couch. She pushed Evie down and stood in front of her. The robe slid off her shoulders and Evie crossed her legs together and squeezed them. 

Sidney took a seat in the chair perpendicular to the couch. He leaned forward on his elbows and watched. Roxie danced sensually in front of Evie for a minute before backing into her and grinding her ass into Evie's lap. "AM I allowed to touch you?" She spoke hesitantly. Roxie took Evie's hand and placed it on her breast. Sidney adjusted himself as Evie made eye contact with him. She mouthed the word yes and Sidney nodded. A second hand came to Roxie's breasts and squeezed lightly. Evie whispered to her, "You're so hot. You turned me on so much."

Sidney's eyebrows raised at Evie as Roxie stood up and squatted in front of her. She pushed Evie's dress up so that her panties were exposed. Roxie blew softly through the thin fabric of the panties. She looked up as Evie threw her head back and moaned softly. Roxie looked back at Sidney who waved her off and pointed her attention back to Evie.

Roxie stood up and straddled Evie's thighs. Evie's hands slid onto Roxie's ass and pulled her closer. Roxie moaned softly before pressing her knee into Evie's crotch. "Mmmmm, you like what you see? I'm sorry- what is your name?"

Evie rocked her hips and squeezed Roxie's ass, "Evie and that is my Papi Chulo." 

Roxie turned to Sidney, "Papi, you like watching your girl getting dry humped? Do you like watching her get herself off on me?"

Sidney licked his lips, "Very much so." He glanced at Evie and mouthed, "Are you sure?" She continued press herself against Roxie's knee and nodded vigorously. "I think Evie would like to continue this in a more private location. Would you be willing to provide that additional service at our hotel room across the street?" Evie's eyes flashed at that bit of information. Sidney smiled sweetly at Evie in an unspoken message of "Trust me." 

"Two person or three person play?" Roxie asked.

"Just the two of you with an observer," Sidney answered 

"Vanilla or Kinky?" Roxie prodded. 

Sidney looked at Evie and shrugged, "Your choice Mamacita." 

Evie whispered, "Vanilla."

Roxie studied Sidney. She noted his tailored suit jacket, his expensive wristwatch and shoes. She observed the way he stared at Evie in a mixture of complete adoration and willingness to do whatever it took to please her. He was not your typical big spender looking to get off. No, this was solely for her. 

Roxie then studied Evie who still had her increasingly damp panties pressed against her knee. She pushed Evie's hair back from her face and then rubbed her thumb across Evie's bottom lip. Evie's mouth opened and she sucked on Roxie's thumb softly. 

"Five grand," Roxie offered, "Off the books and the rest of your entertainment credit."  Evie blinked. She had no idea what her fantasy fulfillment would cost so much. 

Sidney got up and walked to the women. "May I have a moment with Evie?" he asked genteelly. Roxie got up and walked to the window that overlooked the main floor. Sidney leaned down and kissed Evie's cheek, "Tell me what you want."

Evie whispered, "It's so much money." 

Sidney shook his head, "It's a once in a lifetime experience. The money is not a factor." She stared into his eyes. "The only thing I care about is you and if you want to do this. Not because you think you need to reward me because of a flippant comment you made months ago. Do you want to fulfill this fantasy for both of us?

"Yes,please," she whispered.

Sidney got up and handed his phone to Roxie, "Enter your contact number and I will contact you with the room number." Evie stood and adjusted her dress back down. "Give us thirty minutes," Sidney instructed.

"It will take me at least that long," Roxie responded. 

Sidney nodded his understanding. He grabbed Evie's hand and guided her down the stairs to the main level. They were passing the VIP area when Evie felt a hand grab her arm. She twisted around and stared straight into the eyes of Tyler Seguin. "Rosita" he said in a joyful but slurred voice, "Funny running into you here."

Evie gave him a warm smile before flashing Sidney a worried look. "I thought you weren't going to spend the night alone, Tyler." 

"I am not alone," he teased, "My new friend, Destiny, is going to keep me company." Evie looked over and saw the brunette dancer that bore a striking semblance to herself."

"I see you are keeping that dream alive," Evie teased, "See you tomorrow." Sidney tugged at her hand and she went to move.

"See, I told you that I am going to wear you down, Rosita" he laughed. 

"Back off, Seggy, back off," Sidney warned. He turned and tugged at Evie's hand. They made a beeline out of the club and made the quick walk to hotel across the street.

 Within minutes, they were checked into the one bedroom suite with the view of the Strip. Evie paced nervously as Sidney poured more drinks. He looked at Evie and smiled. "I am nervous, Sidney," she whispered, " What if I don't know what to do?" Sidney laughed out loud. He doubled over in a fit of giggles and looked to find Evie studying his face. 

He stood up, "I am sorry, Evie, but that is the most ridiculous statement I have ever heard. Are you really concerned about whether you are going please her? Make her cum?" She stared before looking down. Sidney crossed to her and wrapped his arms around her, "Of course you are. Oh, Evie, there is nothing to worry about. Your tongue game is strong. Just remember how you like to be touched and licked then do the same."

Sidney sensed her apprehension and squeezed her tight "Say the word and I will shut it down. No questions asked. I will shut it down and get her out."

He reached down and lifted her chin, "You are about to rock her world. Go get undressed. She will be here soon."

Evie walked back into the room dressed in the hotel robe just as Roxie knocked on the door. Sidney kissed her gently before he answered. Roxie entered the suite. Sidney offered her a drink while Evie watched shyly. Roxie walked around the suite, "Nice room. You really pulled out all the stops. You know that you don't have to seduce me." 

Evie smiled and walked over to the curvy blonde and kissed her cheek, "My Papi Chulo always spoils me. It is what he does." 

Roxie looked over at Sidney who shrugged his shoulders. She smiled as she dropped her trench coat to reveal her nude body. "Ready to play?" Evie asked and dropped her robe as well. 

ONE HOUR LATER

Sidney shut the door after paying Roxie. He turned to walk back into the bedroom of the suite. She rolled over onto her side and hummed softly. They had not spoken after Evie gave Sidney the signal that she was done. She had lost count of orgasms she had both given and received. She sat up as Sidney walked to the bed. 

"Evie," He moaned as took off his shirt. Her fingers worked feverishly to free his throbbing cock from his pants. "I need you," he panted, "I need to be inside of you." She got on her hands and knees.. "Damn," He groaned as he slid into her.

"Papi, give it to me. I need you to give it to me," she moaned as he grabbed he hips roughly. His strokes were fast and frantic. He had spent two hours watching Evie fuck and get fucked in almost every imaginable way. The mental images flooded his mind as he pounded her hard and heavy. "Please," she pleaded, "Cum for me. Show me how much you liked watching it."

Sidney's usual chatty talk had been replaced by animalistic grunts and groans. His orgasm came quickly with overwhelmed him with the intensity. He whimpered as he collapsed onto her. Aftet a minute, he slid out and she rolled over. Sidney placed hjs head on her chest and her fingers instinctively went to his hair and stroked softly.

They clung to each other in stunned silence. Evie whispered finally, "Beso?' He looked up at her with a soft grin.

"Yes?" He answered.

"Are you still my Beso?" She questioned.

His eyes searched her face. She desperately tried to make it appear neutral but he could detect the anxiety hidden beneath the surface. He twisted his torso and pushed up on his elbows.

"I will always be YOUR Beso," he replied, "Nothing you did tonight changed that."

"Can i ask you something?" She spook meekly.

"Anything," he answered sweetly.

"Did you like it? Was it what you You imagined?' She probed.

"It was better than I imagined. You were in complete control. I liked watching you come undone from the spectator position. I saw new things I had never noticed before," he commented, "And you?

"It was different than I imagined. I liked it but it wasn't as good as playing with you." she blushed. He tilted his head and she added, "No love like with you." He kissed her softly. "The hottest part was watching you watch me. You were so turned on. I am surprised you weren't stroking yourself." She said.

"Are you really surprised, Mon Etoile?" He asked, "You know why though." She raised an eyebrow. "You're the only woman that sees that now. It is only for you," he smiled.

Evie ran her fingers down his belly, "Only for me?"

He took her hand and placed it lower, "You and only you. I don’t want anyone else."

"Show me, Beso" she purred, "I want you to show me again and again."

June 19th-NHL awards- Mandalay Bay Events Center

"Mr. Crosby, right this way" the public relations assistant instructed. Sidney let go of Evie's hand and took a step toward the red carpet before he turned back. 

"I will go as quickly as possible," he spoke softly.

"Take your time" she smiled, "I will be right here." 

He turned and looked down the red carpet. It was filled with couples posing for photos and players doing interviews. He spun around and marched back to Evie. He grabbed her head and pulled her towards the red carpet. "Come with me, Evie," he called back to her. 

She stumbled slightly before righting herself before stammering, "Beso, are you sure? Don't you need to run it by someone? How do I look?"

Sidney led them to the first photo mark. He grabbed and spoke confidently, "Yes, I am sure I want to show off my future wife. Why do I need to run it by anyone? You are the most beautiful woman on earth. It is impossible for you to look anything but gorgeous. Now breathe and smile."

They turned together and faced the cameras. A wave of "Sid, Sid, Sid" hit them followed by "this way, this way." He led them to the second photo mark and they repeated the routine. "Sid, who is the girl?" Sidney smiled and ignored the question one time. "Come on Sid, who's the girl?" the photographers repeated.

Sid turned to Evie. She turned when she felt his gaze. They shared a smile before he turned back. "This is Evie, my girlfriend," he beamed. 

They walked the remainder of the photography portion before pausing to wait there. The assistant asked quickly, "Evie, I need your last name. I am sure that I will get questions about it."

Evie gulped, "Montgomery. Evelyn Montgomery."

"Great. Now Mr. Crosby, you know the drill. I will be guiding you through each media station. Will Ms. Montgomery join you for the interviews?" The assistant quizzed.

Sidney smiled and squeezed her hand, "Yes- yes, she will."

 Evie's head swiveled to him, "What? What am I supposed to say?"

Sidney caressed her cheek, "Stand, smile and look gorgeous. If they ask you a question, answer it. You are more articulate and witty than ninety five percent of the people attending."

For a moment, Evie forgot where they were and she leaned into his caress. The assistant cleared her throat. "Okay, first one up."

Through five interviews, Evie stood and listened to Sidney being interviewed as the consummate professional. He spoke about the early playoff exit, his thoughts of the season and hopes for the next season.

During the sixth interview, the subject of Sidney's European trip was broached. He spoke of his time with Mike, but absolutely beamed when he mentioned Evie joining him to travel through Bavaria and Switzerland. The reporter turned to Evie and asked, "What is it like to travel with road warrior like Sidney?"

"Well, this was certainly different than his typical travels so he was much more relaxed than normal. I think the fact there was zero chance of being checked into the boards helped," she joked.

"It was definitely the company- much prettier than my teammates," he laughed.

"I don't know. Letang is pretty damn pretty," Evie countered.

"True, true- sorry Tanger," Sidney smiled and pulled closer into his body.

The assistant interrupted and ushered them into their final interview. The male reporter peppered Sidney with the usual questions. The reporter then turned to Evie. "Tyler Seguin was bragging about beating Sid and Nate at golf yesterday. He did admit that your double eagle sealed the deal. Sidney is notorious for his competitive streak..How did he handle the loss?" He asked.

Evie paused and looked at Sidney before answering, "First, Tyler is being far too kind to me. Tyler secured the team win. My double-eagle sealed my win over Sidney." He playfully rolled his eyes. "In regards to Sidney’s passionate approach to any competition, he is working on limiting it to the ice. He handled his loss with much grace and humility," she continued. 

"I won't let her play against me in the future," Sidney smiled.

The reporter asked, "You didn't choose her to be on your team,? Big mistake!"

"I know!" Sidney laughed.

"In his defense, he wasn't aware of my golf experience, particularly my state championship and scholarship to Tech," she interjected.

"You hustled ME!" Sidney exclaimed.

"There that's competitive spirit we all know and love," the reporter joked. Sidney blushed and the assistant ushered them away. 

"That was great. You complement each other very well," the assistant gushed. "You'll head in now. I will come get for your part on stage," she instructed.

After their exit, the media turned to each other in a state of shock. Did the notoriously private Sidney Crosby not only walk the red carpet but also laugh and joke during interviews? 

AFTER THE AWARDS

"Come on Evie" Sidney yelled from the bar, "We are doing shots!" She walked over and took the shot from his hand. Sidney raised his shot, "To my Star- Evie- I love you!!!" 

Evie blushed and downed the shot. Sidney was uncharacteristically jovial thanks to 4 rounds of shots and 5 beers. So far, he had kept his horniness under control. The group had migrated from the events center to the casino.

Sidney picked up Evie and spun her around. "Evie, I have had the best time tonight," he said excitedly.

"Beso, I am so glad," she kissed his cheek.

"I love you, Mon étoile," he whispered into her ear, "I can't wait until you're my wife. I want you to be my wife."

"I know, Beso. I can't wait to be your wife either," she whispered as he squeezed her tighter. 

Sidney looked around and his eyes lit up. "Wait,' he exclaimed, "We don't have to wait! We are in Vegas. We can get married right now."

Evie laughed, "Get married now? Are you serious?"

Sidney sat her feet back on the ground and squatted to look into her eyes, "Yes, let's do it. There is no reason to wait. I love you and you love me. Let's get married."

Evie looked around frantically. Her mind raced with a million different thoughts going in a million different directions. She turned and stared into Sidney's eyes. "I don't know, Beso," she said softly.

Sidney grabbed her hand and pulled her to the roulette table. "Let's bet. If we win, it's a sign to get married. If we don't win, we take another shot and go upstairs and fuck until the sun comes up," he proposed.

"What number and color?" She asked. She was half-convinced that this was the rantings of a drunk and horny man.

"29- it is my dad and Taylor's number. Red for Canada," he said matter-of-factly.

"Holy shit, Beso" she gasped, "Let's bet." Evie smiled at the impulsivity of the idea.

Sidney reached into his pocket and took a red, five dollar chip out. He placed it on the square as croupier called for bets. He spun the wheel and then spun the ball. It bounced around the wheel.

Sidney grabbed Evie's hand as they both watched the ball several more times before landing in the red 29 slot.

The croupier announced "29, red, odd'. Evie and Sidney both stared in disbelief before jumping up and down, "We won! We won!" Sidney yelled, "We're getting married!"

Evie yelled back, "What do we do now?"

He grabbed her hand and they raced to the VIP concierge desk, leaving the group in the dust. Evie paced excitedly as Sidney explained the situation. Within minutes, they were in a town car headed to the Clark County marriage bureau. 

Together they snuggled and giggled in the back seat of the car. Evie hummed "Going to the Chapel" while Sidney googled twenty four wedding chapels. "Mon Etoile, do you want Elvis to marry us or we can do the mob wedding?" He asked.

She looked over at his phone, "Those are the only options?" 

"They have traditional ceremonies too," 

"What do you prefer?" She asked.

"Elvis," He smiled.

"Sounds good," she answered as they pulled up to the marriage bureau. 

Despite the late hour, there was a lobby full of couples waiting to apply for their marriage licenses. One of the perks of Nevada was the ability to obtain a marriage license the day of your ceremony. Sidney took a number. It was 87. They smiled to each other and they found a spot to wait. 

Sidney looked around the room and observed the others waiting. Attire ranged from shorts and flip-flops to formal dresses. He looked at Evie in her green sequined dress with the split to her thigh. It wasn't exactly the wedding dress he had been envisioning since Valentine’s Day. 

He remembered the ballroom at the Fairmont and how beautifully Adriana had decorated it. The memory of their dance to "At Last" made him smile. He looked over at Evie.

She was looking around the room as well. Evie watched the people. There some couples huddled together, ready to begin their new lives. Other couples were surrounded by a few friends. A few, though, were surrounded by large groups of families and friends. Evie's mind drifted to Adriana and Mateo. She had assumed that they would accompany her to pick out her dress. 

Then she thought of Trina and Troy. What would they think about missing their son's wedding? She knew that, obviously, her parents would not be there but she looked forward to Troy's reassuring presence to ease her nerves. He was, after all, the closest thing she had to a father. 

She felt the tightness in her chest and the lump form in her throat. Tears formed quickly. "Number 87" the clerk called. Sidney squeezed her hand and she looked up.

"Evie?" Sidney whispered.

She opened her mouth to speak and closed it. She looked around again and spoke quietly, "I don't want to get married tonight."

He blinked and squeezed her hand. She spoke again, "I don't want to get married here. I am sorry, Beso. I know we won the bet, and then got your number and those were signs."

He kissed her, "Me either."

"Why?" She questioned.

"I want the big wedding. You deserve the princess dress. I want to watch you walk down the aisle," he asserted.

"Oh" she said.

"And you?" He asked.

"I want our family there- your mom, dad and sister. I want to dance with Adriana and Mateo. I want your team there and Nate," she explained.

"Number 87" the clerk called again.

They turned and looked. Sidney stood up and held out his hand. She placed her hand in his hand. Together they walked out of the lobby to the sidewalk. Sidney suddenly stopped and pulled her to him.

"I love you, Evie," he spoke softly before he kissed her. "I DO want to marry you, just not tonight."

"I know, Beso," she returned his kiss.

"What should we do now?" He asked.

"There is always plan B," she laughed.

"Which was?" He asked.

"Go back to the suite and fuck all night," she reminded him.

"Oh yeah," he laughed, "Plan.B works."

THE NEXT MORNING-June 20th- Sidney and Evie's hotel suite

Sidney woke up and immediately reached for Evie. Her spot in the bed was cold to the touch. He raised up on his elbows and searched the room for her. "Mon Etoile?" He called without an answer. Slowly he got out of bed and walked into other room. He found her curled up on the gray velvet couch. 

"Hey," He said as he walked to the couch, "What time it it?

She quickly wiped her tears and turned to him, "It's a little after eight."

He sat next to her, "Evie, why are you crying?" He placed his hands on her cheeks, "Are you upset about last night?"

She shook her head, "The almost wedding?" He nodded yes. She leaned her cheek into his right hand, "No, it was a fun little adventure but we made the right decision."

"Then what is it?" He asked gently.

"I just got sad when I remembered that it's our last day together," she sighed.

They were set to leave that afternoon on a flight back to Pittsburgh. Sidney would leave early tomorrow morning to head to Nova Scotia. They would be apart for two weeks before Evie flew up for the weekend. After ten full days together, the separation would be especially painful.

"I understand. Can I make a comment?" He whispered. 

"Of course," she whispered back.

"Tomorrow is going to bad, but today doesn't have to be," he looked into her eyes. "We had bad day before left each other last month," he smiled, "I don't want to repeat that. I have you for another twenty hours. Let's make the most of it."

"Okay, Beso," she returned his smile, "Twenty four more hours together. No more tears."

"That's my good girl," he teased.

"Mmmmm, Beso," she laid back and pulled him on top of her.

"Yes, Evie?" He kissed her neck.

"You know what that does to me," she moaned, "Oh God, what you do to me."

"What do you want me to do to you?" He panted as he spread her legs with his massive thigh. 

"Anything you want, Beso," she whimpered as her hips rocked against his thigh. 

"I am going to fuck you again and then treat you like my princess all day," he whispered into her ear, "That's what I want to do to you."

"Yes,please," she replied as he slid into her wetness.

"I love you my princess," he reminded her as he fucked her deeply but slowly. 

"Not as much as I love you," she kissed,  "Not as much as I love you."

Later, after a leisurely bath, Sidney and Evie dressed casually for a stroll down the strip. They held hands as they walked through the Luxor Casino. They went out and made their way down Las Vegas Blvd. 

At a souvenir shop on the Strip, Evie picked out three Christmas ornaments for their trees in Pittsburgh and Nova Scotia. Sidney selected a picture frame for Evie’s office. 

At lunch time, Sidney surprised Evie by taking to the Eiffel Tower restaurant for a late brunch. Over their waffles and bellinis, Sidney described Paris to her. He excitedly explained all of the placed he wanted to take her. 

She grinned, "Did you think of me the entire time?"

He kissed her hand, "Evie, with the exception of when I am on the ice during a game, I am ALWAYS thinking of you."

"Evie……" he whispered, "Do  you want me to take you there next summer? On our honeymoon?"

She smiled and shrugged. He paid the check and they left the restaurant. Sidney tried to entice her into a shopping spree at Caesars Palace forum shops, but she politely declined. Sidney raised an eyebrow, "Princess….."

"Mr. Crosby, do I need to remind you of the five thousand dollars that you spent in addition to the club tab?" She reminded him.

"Princess, you will let me spoil you," he playfully grabbed her hand and smacked her ass.

She grinned, "If you insist."

One hour later, they had significant damage on his black card at Agent Provocateur and Christian Louboutin. On the way back out to the Strip, they passed the Jimmy Choo store. Evie walked passed without pausing. She was nearly a full store away when Sidney called her name. She turned around and saw him staring at the shoe display. 

She walked back slowly, "Beso, do you see some shoes you like?"

He pointed a pair of evening pumps

. 

They were a modified Mary Jane style covered in crystals and small pearls. The strap across the top of the foot was covered in larger pearls. He looked up at Evie and smiled. "They're stunning. Don't you think Evie?" He questioned.

 She stepped closer, "They are gorgeous, Beso." Delicately, she picked up the shoe and examined it carefully. The craftsmanship was impeccable. She glanced at the almost three thousand dollar price tag and put it down swiftly. She turned to walk away.

"You don't want them, Evie?" He asked.

"No, I don't," she stated.

"Why not?" He quizzed.

"They are three thousand dollar shoes. I don't need three thousand dollar shoes, especially those shoes," she answered tersely.

"Why especially these shoes?" He asked with confusion in his voice.

She stepped close to him and whispered, "Those are bridal shoes. I don't need bridal shoes- much less, three thousand dollar bridal shoes."

"I think you should try them on," he suggested.

"Beso, are you listening to me?" She pleaded. He tilted his head and looked legitimately confused. "There are limits to how much spoiling I can take. It gives me anxiety to spend money like this," she explained, "You love to do it. I get that, but there is only so much I can accept before I start feeling like a gold digger."

"Evie," he interjected, "You are not a gold digger."

"I said FEEL like a gold digger," she explained, "It has been a lot over the past couple of months- the shopping spree, the trip to Europe, the trip here, etc."

"Okay, I understand," he bent down and kissed her gently, "I have no limits and you do. I respect your limits."

"The shoes are amazing though" she whispered.

"So when does the spoiling limit reset? A day? week? Inquiring minds want to know," he teased.

"I am walking away now," she smiled "but it's longer than a day, shorter than a year." She turned and walked away, leaving Sidney literally holding the shopping bags.

"It's okay, Princess. I've got these," he called to her as she sashayed away from him. 

"I have faith you in Mr. Crosby," she called back.

Fifteen minutes later, they stood on the Strip debating what to do next. Sidney lobbied for the leisurely gondola ride while Evie lobbied in favor of the Rollercoaster at New York, New York hotel. In the end, the cuddle possibilities won out.

As the gondola pushed off from the indoor "dock" Evie leaned back against Sidney’s chest. Both stretched their legs out in front of them. Sidney’s hand found Evie's hand and caressed it with his thumb. They hummed as they enjoyed the leisurely ride.

"So who is a better ride partner, Beso? Mike or me?" She joked.

"Definitively you, but Venice had better views," he laughed. "Maybe we can go back next summer," he added.

Evie didn't respond at first. He felt a distinct chill come over her, but she kept a steady and calm surface demeanor.

"Or not," he said quietly. She sighed deeply. "What's going on Evie? I thought we were going to have no tears today," he spoke softly.

"I am not sad, Beso. I am frustrated," she said meekly.

"Why?" He asked, "What did I do?"

"It's not something that you did intentionally," she sighed again. 'Let's just talk about it another time."

"No, tell me," he insisted.

She sat up and twisted around to face him. "Are we engaged or not?" She blurted out quickly. 

Sidney blinked and paused before speaking, "You know we aren't, Evie."

"Then why do you act like we are? Between the "almost wedding" last night, all the honeymoon talk and you trying to buy me bridal shoes, it is confusing as hell." She spoke quickly, "I get it. You want me to know your intentions. You want to make sure that I know that you aren't going to dump me like Thad. But it makes me feel confused and disappointed."

"Confused? Disappointed?" He questioned.

"Do we need to book a venue? I mean, you keep talking about next summer but things have to be planned, Beso," she rambled, "Should I start looking at dresses? I don't want to be the girl at the bridal soon with no ring. It makes me feel desperate and pushy" 

"Look, you want me to marry you, ask me to marry you" she stated, "Until then, I don't want to talk about it anymore." Sidney grabbed her hand and squeezed. "You want to talk about our future life- great, but no more wedding talk until we are officially engaged."

"I didn't mean to confuse you. I hate that you feel that way," he said as he pulled him to his chest.

"It wasn't intentional, Beso. I know it wasn't," she nuzzled her face into his chest, "I feel better now that I said something."

The gondola pulled back to the dock and Evie groaned lightly. Sidney reached into his wallet and pulled out some cash. "One more time around, please," Then he pulled her onto his chest. She smiled and snuggled into him. 

"So tell me what there is to do in Nova Scotia when I get there," she asked. 

Sidney smiled and started telling about summer in his hometown.

June 21st- Pittsburgh International Airport

Evie stood to the side of the check-in desk at the Pittsburgh International as Sidney checked his luggage for his flight to Halifax. He turned and walked to her. He wrapped his arms around her petite frame and lifted her into a tight hug. 

"Beso? How much longer?" She whispered.

"I need to get through security in the next five minutes," he replied calmly.

"Okay," she replied softly.

"Baby Girl, no tears, remember," he reminded her.

"Yes, Daddy" she smiled and kissed his cheek, "Will you hold me until it's time?"

"Yes, Baby Girl," he squeezed her tight, "Tell me what was your favorite part of our adventure? What will you remember it forever?"

"I'll remember all of it forever, but my favorite part was you. You will always be my favorite part of life," she kissed him softly.

"You stole my answer, Evie. You stole my answer," He kissed her deeply until it was time to go. "Evie, it's time," he said in a hushed tone.

"Okay, have a safe flight. Text me when you get home. Give lots of hugs to your family until I get there," she hugged him tight. 

He walked through the security gate and turned to wave to her. She waved back and blew a kiss. He dramatically caught it and drew his hands to his heart.

She turned to go. "Two weeks," she thought to herself, "I can do two weeks."

[officialclangen]

Hi!! I just wanted to ask for some clarification on some things you mentioned about your coding- Im learning python (sorta) and id like to know the reasonings?

For history, cant you just make a text file while working on the main history feature? After some fiddling around i got the game to create a text file and put event text that wasn't interactions in said file. I think it'd help since if things get bloated the player can just copy the text to a google doc and delete all previous text- the code i whipped up works fine this way. Pasting it below, idk if tumblr will fuck it up tho.

def print_all_events_test(self, event_list):

with open("my_file.txt", "a") as f:

f.write("\nMoon "+ str(game.clan.age)+"\n\n")

for event in event_list:

if not "interaction" in event.types:

try:

f.write(event.text + "\n")

except:

print("Error, no Event Text found.\n")

Put the declaration on line 233 (before loaded events were cleared), with game.cur_events_list as the event_list. I know theres apparently security concerns with using files or calling them but I know WAY too little to know if a txt file will send my computer into chaos. "my_file" should also be named after the clan name, and in its own folder for neatness. Using this also means history (ingame) can be deleted after x moons to prevent bloating overall? If the player still wants the deleted history, they just need to go to the text file. Should help with people who want to copy text too, since no longer will screenshots be needed!

As for prophecies, cant you make a hidden illness for a prophecy that gets added to 1-3 cats, that gets cured after x days (aka when the prophecy is fulfilled, from what I've seen in the code illnesses get cured after x days so if multiple cats get the prophecy illness they should all be 'cured' on the same day)? It'll be work to add stuff like multiple cats in a single prophecy and adding personality into the mix but it shouldn't be outright impossible, right? Grieving seems to work similarly so the template seems to be there.

Me coming into ur asks (yes theres better places for this im just anxious @ the discord channels lmao) is 100% a sign of love for the game. I also would like to know if the ideas would work or not, i am genuinely curious about if they've been considered and (if so) the reasons why they weren't implemented! Love yall :)

Yes, we could implement a history txt file but it would become very large very quickly. And while we could try and count on the player to get rid of the file if it's causing lag, there would end up being a lot of players who don't understand how to navigate files and wouldn't know how to delete the txt file. Once the file gets big enough it'll make timeskips begin to lag out as the file is opened and changed by the game, and then held open until the game is saved once again (since the file can't be saved and closed before the player saves the game, in case the player closes without saving). It'll also take up memory during this process.

Basically, it would use resources that we feel would be better allocated to handling other areas of the game.

The problem with prophecies is that there's a million different things that a prophecy could be predicting. Is it predicting a new special cat (like firestar), is it predicting something far in that cat's future (bluestar), perhaps it's predicting an illness or a disaster, maybe it predicts a lost cat returning. There's so many options and the moment that the game starts dictating the meaning of the prophecy is the moment that those options become significantly fewer.

If we do decide to dictate the 'meaning' of a prophecy, then there's the added trouble of ensuring that any cats integral to the prophecy don't get killed or permanently changed in a way that makes the prophecy stop making sense. We have begun working on an "ongoing event" system that would control events spanning over multiple moons. This will eventually be used for things like natural disasters and wars, and if we wanted to we could potentially use it for prophecies. But, as said, that poses a lot of difficulties with having to "soft lock" any cats included in that prophecy so that they only change in specific ways that make sense. This would require a ton of work to code in.

It's never impossible but sometimes it can be unreasonable, and this is a case where we feel that "real" prophecies would be unreasonable.

I hope that reasoning makes sense! Thanks for asking <3

[daz4i]

listen. sometimes idm ads. i do want sites i use or youtubers i watch frequently to earn money so i can keep using/watching them, and i won't spend money myself, so this is a good compromise.

the problem is!!!!! ads make these sites lag, sometimes cover pages and make them unusable, or they clog videos and pop up so often and are so long they're practically as long as the video itself, to the point i just stop watching youtubers who have too many ad breaks even if i do like their content

and i gotta say, i don't get it? like being annoyed with an ad won't make me want to get the product - and i know that's not the point, the point is to put it at the front of your mind for when you or someone you know need the product this company provides - and i do end up clicking ads for things i find interesting sometimes

and the thing is. with video ads especially. i think smaller is better for everyone. one 5 seconds ad is so much less annoying than a 20 seconds one or even just two 5 seconds ads, even if it appears multiple times per video, bc psychologically it feels more bearable, yknow? the product is still gonna be in my subconscious or w/e but now i won't associate it with being painfully annoyed, so this is better for the advertisers too. so why not go for that!

also, sometimes ads are taken straight from tv directly to youtube (probably why some are very long), and the problem with that is their volume. like. if i'm watching smth in the middle of the night and your car insurance ad is twice as loud as the video i'm watching, i'm gonna hate it even more (a friend who learned copywriting told me they make ads louder on tv bc if you lower your volume during an ad break and tune out or just change channels quickly, it's more likely to catch your attention this way. i get that but why not just do this very minor adjustment when you sell that ad to youtube. please)

as for websites, some of these ads are so fucking evil 😭 i ranted abt this before but oh my god weight loss and especially fasting apps ads should be illegal i am not even slightly exaggerating. ads literally being malware??? not even getting into how scary algorithms can get.

and as i mentioned about lags, so many ads running at the same time, or the same ad space changing rapidly make things so slow that i once again have to wonder who's benefitting from this. i can't even see what some of the ads are bro, and i don't want to, but like, you're just losing money here, and if i know a site doesn't work well with ads enabled i will either switch to a browser with adblock (tbc, talking abt mobile here. firefox's app is shitty but necessary) or, if i can't use adblock, won't use that site anymore. so again. who's benefitting from this.

idk what the point of this rant is. ads today literally exist for the sake of existing i swear. i don't think they help sell things more at this point, which is the whole point of ads in the first place. and for smaller or newer businesses, they sometimes have to raise prices to make up for paying for their advertising campaign (drew gooden's videos about buying random items he gets ads for showcase this phenomenon well i think) which makes people less likely to buy them, and i can't help but wonder if some products would be better if their companies spent less money on just advertising them and instead actually invest in quality (see also: any shady company that targets youtubers for sponsorships constantly while having an extremely bad product, or barely paying their employees a living wage, etc)

anyway yeah these are my probably not too uncommon thoughts on the matter. have a nice rest of the day

[mundagenta]

Knock knock, KaiOS.

The ephemeral taste of innovating nearly obsolete bricks might be reaching its inevitable demise.

Nokia 8110 4G displayed in a kiosk at Mobile World Congress 2018. Image courtesy of Kārlis Dambrāns.

Despite the recent boom of feature phone sales over digital minimalism and dopamine detox trends, the future for KaiOS remains bleak as they fail to be consistent with their promises, thus miserably lagging against established giants in the market.

The good start

KaiOS is a partially open-source operating system developed by the Hong Kong-based company, KaiOS Technologies Inc. It was initially released in October 2017 and was forked from Boot 2 Gecko. Their name is from the Chinese for open – 开 (kāi) which “captures the idea of being inclusive.”

In just one year, they have overtaken Apple’s iOS as the second most popular operating system in India, with Android remaining on top, despite losing their 9% market share. In that same timeframe as well, they managed to sell around 450 million devices worldwide. Furthermore, their platform is compatible to WhatsApp, Twitter, YouTube, Google Maps, and Google Assistant.

To oversimplify things, KaiOS took the Boot 2 Gecko code (based from FirefoxOS) and modified it to run on hardware similar to that of feature phones and added the KaiOS Store. Other than that, they also implemented recent innovations that are becoming today’s standard, like 4G LTE and 5G, GPS, and Wi-Fi. By doing so, they effectively just created a separate phone segment, which some people call as the quasi-smartphones or smart feature phones.

KaiOS specifically chose the hardware present in their devices for an appealing approach to developing markets, like India and Pakistan, to bridge the digital divide and bring cheaper internet access. They removed the touch screen which they consider as the most costly part of the device, and replaced it with a cheaper T9 keypad input. Additionally, their devices only need 256MB to work and are also compatible with cost-efficient Spreadtrum chipsets.

What went wrong

By doing so, they effectively avoided the mistakes that Mozilla made. They chose a target audience first and offered them a product. They made an operating system out of the web but used that as a tool rather than the end goal, the latter being their approach to the digital divide. But not all products are perfect on their own, as their approach is a double-edged sword.

The T9 keypad meant that the apps had to be optimized to work on such inputs. Likewise, dissimilar to FirefoxOS, not all webpages can run on KaiOS devices due to hardware restraints. Such disadvantages make it an appealing short-term solution while their users save up for better entry-level Android devices.

Platform immaturity

The platform is still quite immature, despite five years since its initial launch. Some users claimed that their devices sometimes cannot receive calls, and crashes on related functions constantly. The battery also does not live up to its expectations and provides a ‘disappointing’ performance. Additionally, the calendar’s sync and date functionality is unstable, the alarm clock doesn’t ring from time to time, and the lack of note-taking, file browsing, multitasking, and wide audio format support. Besides, the platform lacked proper app quality control, bug reports, and feedback system, along with a slew of advertisements. Perhaps, the most lambasted functionality of the platform is the T9 input. Users characterized the input as slow and unreliable, thus ineffective for efficient user interface navigation. The predictive text input, which might sound good, is something they’d rather have disabled due to its restraints such as inaccurate suggestions and buggy input.

Some have mentioned that users may be over-estimating KaiOS and pitching it against smartphone platforms. Then on, we can’t deny that a platform still has to be stable and reliable, albeit hardware-restricted. Some went on to compare the system to its older counterparts such as Nokia’s Series 40, Microsoft’s Lumia, Vodafone’s MobiWire, and Blackberry’s Blackberry 10, which the users characterized as more ‘stable.’

Unfortunately, version 2.5.4 onwards faced a downward trend as certain apps were no longer maintained and supported, due to the decrease of development activity. For instance, the optimized Google and YouTube apps have been pulled out from the app store, around the same time as the update. In version 3, WhatsApp support has already been dropped and new app submissions to the store also plummeted. Google Assistant, the primary tool for users to voice type and issue commands (albeit stripped-down in comparison to Android), also dropped KaiOS support last June 30, 2021. Some users reached out to the company regarding this matter, to which they replied that they are developing an in-house voice assistant alternative. Until now, it is nowhere near worldwide coverage, given the limited devices it was shipped upon.

The company and its partners

Even more worse, the problem rests beyond that. The project development of has been consistent enough until the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the company’s blog statement “the growth was still not like how we achieved in the pre-COVID times, but these numbers and new partnerships are going up and in the right direction in this second year of the pandemic.”

In 2022, the project updates has since then plummeted. There weren’t any major announcements across all their social media platforms, even from the company website. Their Github repositories are no exception as well, as they still haven’t received any commits until now. Their only active repo is the gecko-b2g, which serves as the operating system base.

It is not implicit that their users are complaining about the bugs and speculating on the project’s downfall but it seems that they have no proper public relations and customer support as the company fails to actively respond to these messages.

Nokia

Nokia, or should we say, HMD Global has been a primary partner of KaiOS Technologies over the years. They manufactured the higher-end devices of the platform that were considerably the most popular in KaiOS’ lineup, such as the Nokia 6300 4G, Nokia 2780 Flip, and the Nokia 8110 4G.

Regardless, their approach is somehow vague as enthusiasts are confused over what their target audience is supposed to be, and what were they trying in the first place. Their approach started with the reboot of their classic devices, so it’s safe to assume that their target consumers are the ones who are nostalgic over their retro bricks. HMD, for a matter of fact, might have just been the worst example of a KaiOS partner.

Their devices are the most expensive ones of the platform, almost close to the entry-level Android Go smartphones. HMD Global has also been long criticized over the failure to deliver software updates from KaiOS to their devices, as they provide only about a year of support for these. The users also cannot help to complain over the significant bloatware present in such a limited hardware they provide.

Just recently, HMD Global took a step back from this approach and cherished their barebones Series 30 and Series 30+ platforms once again. Their last KaiOS device is the 2780 Flip from November 2022 and was then on followed by a series of Android Go and dumbphones from their C and 1xx series. In a reply to a user inquiry, they reportedly blamed KaiOS as the Google Assistant support for the platform was dropped.

Alcatel and TCL

Alcatel and TCL are also major partners of KaiOS. In fact, TCL Corporation is the largest shareholder of KaiOS Technologies. Both of them are popular for their Go Flip line. Despite the successes of Go Flip 1, 2, 3, and V, they didn’t get to experience the luxury of getting updated to the latest version of the OS, unlike the Go Flip 4. A user reached out to the company, to which they replied that they are still planning to serve these said updates to such devices, although there is still no update to talk of until now. 

Unfortunately, similar to HMD Global, they seem to be diverging away from the platform as recent releases from both manufacturers are focused on midrange to high-end Android devices, as well as the Tab series of TCL.

Jio

The Indian telecommunications company, Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited is the catalyst of KaiOS’ takeover against Apple in the country, all thanks to their aggressive marketing approach. They offered the competitively priced JioPhone for free to their users who are subscribed to their data plans.

Unluckily, even Jio is also straying away from KaiOS. There have been rumors that the JioPhone and the JioPhone 2 have been discontinued, as they are no longer sold. They last received the version 0258 update back on May 22, 2021, and clearly missed version 3.0 by a long shot. On June 24, 2021, Reliance Jio announced the JioPhone Next, a budget Android Go smartphone made in collaboration with Google. Recently this year, they partnered with Karbonn to release the Jio Bharat K1 Karbonn and V2 to provide access to UPI payments, Jio ecosystem, and cheaper 4G to the rural areas of India that remain untapped by recent advancements in technology.

What happened?

Fast forward to August 2023, users speculate that the project has already died out due to lack of activity and stagnation since the release of 3.0. Their company's social media platforms are inactive, except for the usual, seemingly AI-generated content every national holiday across countries. On the other hand, KaiOS Technologies partnered with the cybersecurity firm Trustonic to expand their device affordability efforts in Africa. There have also been infrequent new device releases for the platform, such as the AT&T Cingular Flex in February, Cricket Debut Flex in June, and Logan Technology’s Panita this August. Truth be told, I find this section rather short and lacking. Unfortunately, I could say the same for the company’s recent efforts. Nonetheless, I hope that things eventually get better. As users worldwide expected a reliable feature phone platform, all these issues contributed to a downward trend of interest for KaiOS. It seems that they might end up like FirefoxOS, failing to keep up and desolate in the past. Whether they wake up to innovate again, or continue dormant and inevitably die out is up for them to decide.

For now, one thing’s for sure, if they fail to address these issues, they’ll be no better than the obsolete bricks of the bygone era.

[bumblebeerror]

I want to talk about how Techno fights I’ve decided.

So everyone who’s ever watched the guy knows he’s great at PVP, but they don’t seem to necessarily understand why. And Techno’s fighting style is actually really interesting compared to others, especially compared to what I’ve seen from other top PVPrs, like Dream.

So first, let’s talk about Dream, because Dream is well known for being a great pvper and I love remembering my boy beat him. Dream is smart and straightforward. He stays mobile but has mastered axe crits and the shield mechanics. Dream fights like a classic tank, steamrolling through hits. It’s simple, it’s effective, and it’s overwhelming - he just rolls through you like you aren’t there. Add on pearls and crossbows and you’re able to tank from a distance as well.

It’s a really popular tactic! Combined with enchanted netherite, using this tactic you become both the unrelenting force and the immovable object. Even I use this tactic to some extent. It’s easy, it’s effective, it utilizes a lot of the game’s mechanics, it’s arguably what most people expect from Minecraft PVP now, post 1.16.

Now let’s talk Techno - playing Minecraft and specifically PVP games starting with 1.8 pvp! I have actually been playing that long too, so I recognize a lot of tactics he uses from my own experience on faction servers. 1.8 focused heavily on attention, accuracy, click speed, and not getting hit in the first place because armour was way less enchantable, way less protective, and way easier to break. Obviously skywars’ games don’t require you to care about armour durability, but it’s just to keep it in mind.

But anyway, 1.8 pvp necessitates movement. You HAVE to be mobile, you have to get out the way because as soon as you stand still in front of someone, you’ve been spam-clicked by someone with a diamond sword and you’re dead, bro. You’re dead as dicks. You're deader than dead. You died before your ping even caught up to you dyin, man. 1.8 pvp is all offense and movement.

And especially in Factions PVP, something Techno mentions doing a lot on his own, the other biggest way to win a fight in 1.8 is to lag the other person out and/or make it even harder for someone to touch you with mobs. When I played factions I had a decent laptop, and the main way I defended myself was chickens. They move a lot, they update a lot, and its Really easy to get a lot of them. Similarly, you can use just about any other mob, but chickens are easiest to put wherever you want them to be. Coincidentally, you can also do this with wolves, if you've got a good enough computer to keep them all stood up around you, with the added benefit that if someone decides to fight you, you now have a swarm of mobs between you and them.

So, to break it down for you bc thats a lot of info! I'm gonna split this into two categories: Hypixel PVP and SMP PVP.

In Hypixel PVP, Techno's main strengths were experience, general skill at the game, speed, good ping, and focus. Simply put, the guy's just really fuckin Built to do 1.8 PVP and he exploits a lot of classic mistakes that players make post 1.9 - they stand still, they dont spam click, they expect armour to do more. Techno is fuckin SPEEDY, both in game and when it comes to accessing what's going on around him and sorting thru items. Its a strong combo, and hes a strong opponent.

in SMP PVP, theres a LOT more factors to think about and also to exploit. The players are there, in call with him, to be taunted. Almost everyone he plays with isn't skilled at 1.8 pvp, as well - and that leads to a few key advantages. The main one is that unlike players used to 1.16 pvp, Techno has evolved a style that keeps the spirit of 1.8’s necessary movement while compounding how much damage he’s able to do by using things like fireworks, crossbows, slowness and harming arrows, fully enchanted netherite with full prot4 and thorns3. Thorns3 is a stacking enchantment; if you have ONE item that is thorns3, there is a chance when you are hit it will do 1/2 heart of damage per hit. If you have all four pieces enchanted, you can do up to 2 hearts per time someone hits you. That’s huge, especially because Techno doesn’t use a shield regularly, hence why he never really takes his armour off.

Techno’s mixed style is something that comes as a surprise - a lot of people keep up with versions and change their fighting style as the versions change - but Techno only adapted his. He didn’t need to relearn things, just add to them. His movement is unpredictable and he uses pots like it’s second nature. Those sorts of things are what makes Techno fucking DEVASTATING as an opponent. 1.16 is a lot of standing still and holding your shield up but that shit doesn’t work when your opponent runs around like a hyperactive toddler the whole time. And technos ability to negate the usefulness of a shield - something that is absolutely OP in game - is one of his biggest strengths.

Techno’s style is a unique mix of 1.8 and all the versions following it, focused on building on skills he already had and bolstering the things he was weak with like sheildwork or axe crits. It’s absolutely fantastic and fucking genius.

[youreallyshouldtalkmore]

Rousing Cry

A.N: My TWST OC Mia during Book 6, when the Prefect the had give a rallying cry before the group is split into three teams.

Twisted Wonderland Masterlist  

——————————————————

Mia stood off to the side quietly as she watched the boys pick who was going to be what team. She absently rocked on her feet; she really hoped that she wouldn’t slow them down. Without magic, Mia was aware that she was a liability. Part of her regretted coming along, but she was sick of not being able to do anything, and she was worried about Grim.  

And it wasn’t even about her half a student status being up in the air. Who was even thinking of that? 

Although, he annoyed her most of the time, she didn’t want anything bad to happen to him.  

But right now, listening to them figure out how to break up into groups made her want to sigh. She really, REALLY hoped they could set aside their differences for the 2.5 seconds needed to, you know, save the world. 

She shuddered once. 

That wasn’t even a dramatic saying right now. 

They really were going to save the world. 

She was snapped out of her thoughts when she suddenly heard Rook mention her name as he gave her his usual sunny grin.

Blinking, she managed to catch up with the conversation. She was surprised that he wanted her to be part of the team huddle as well, “What, me too?” 

Rook only laughed as he beckoned her over,  “Of course you too!! You are part of this team and I daresay the very heart of this group!” 

Mia ducked her gaze as she stepped between Rook and Epel, “Please stop embarrassing me.”

Epel grinned, “I think Rook is right, for once!” 

A quiet awkwardness descended the group. 

“Okay, we are huddled, now what?” Jamil asked finally.  

After a few more words from the others that were going nowhere fast, Rook finally spoke, “Mia, would you do the honors of giving us a rallying cry?” 

Mia started, “What the…?”

Rook laughed, “This is the time when the heart is needed, don’t you think?” 

Vil gave a small smile, “Good idea. Otherwise, this group is going to start bickering about who says what.” 

“And make sure to put some spirit into it!” Epel added almost crowing the process. 

Mia sighed. He was waaayyyy too into this. She might have argued, but given that they were on a time sensitive mission, she pushed that to the side as she quickly thought of what to say. 

“Alright fine!” She cleared her throat and held out her hand. 

“Really?” Leona deadpanned. 

She glared and tsked silently at him. 

Must he make this even more difficult? 

Epel fairly slapped his hand on top of her with a grin of determination, “Come on guys!! It’s for the team spirit!!” 

The others followed suit amidst the grumbling. Leona gave a heavy sigh out of this nose as he was the last to put his hand on top of the pile. 

“Wonderful! Now we are gonna make it back to school together and don’t you forget it!! HA!” 

“HAA!” Rook and Epel showed the most spirit.

“Ha!” Jamil and Vil went along with it while still maintaining their dignity. 

“H-ha…”  Riddle lagged behind a second, a light blush painting his cheeks. Azul also managed to catch up as well. 

“.....”  Leona didn’t even bother trying. 

Mia turned away from the boys, embarrassment permeating her being as she tried to push it aside. Rook saw her lone hair dip, ever so slightly, as it shuddered.  

When she finally got herself back together and was turning around, Rook took that time to speak, “A rousing cry, mademoiselle! I feel I shall carry this as we march into the unknown!” 

“Glad you’re happy….meanwhile, please, please try to get along for the sake of this mission.” she spoke, her eyes trailing over the group of boys. 

“Why do you look at me that longest?” Leona groused. 

“No one is singling you out. Don’t take it so personally!” Vil spoke. 

Mia gave a wearied sigh, “This is exactly what I’m saying. I’m begging you. I know you people by now. Half of you can’t stand the other half, but this is our future we are talking about. You can get it together for three hours.” 

Azul spoke with a careful grin, “I am ready and willing to do my part to help the fiasco. My financial future depends on it.” 

Mia's lips were flattened, “Exactly, think of whatever it takes to get through this. Even if it’s selfish ambition.” She sighed again. “Who am I kidding? If this wasn’t affecting you guys, I know for a fact half of you would not lift a finger.” 

Leona smirked, “I’m glad you learned something over the months you’ve been here.” 

“Be nice.” 

Leona sniffed as began to walk away, “I’m never nice.”

“Be nice.” This time she mouthed it this time. 

Jamil only inclined his head before following after Leona. 

As the group split up, Mia only gazed sweetly up at Rook, “And Rook, when you are done saving the world, and we get back to school. See me, we gotta talk about you putting me on blast like that.” 

Rook only smiled as he opened the door, allowing Vil, Epel and Mia to entered first. 

As he shut the door behind him, his smile never wavered, “Of course. When things die down, I shall avail myself to your rebuke.” 

Mia’s lips couldn’t help but to twitch. 

[writtenfoxscreams]

Been procrastinating on posting this for so friken long now for no reason, but I finally got my ass in gear, so hear are some things I wanted to say a while ago, but never did cause my brain is bad:

So. I did not expect this to blow up as fast as it did (or really at all), but since it did, I thought might reblog to explain some stuff.

First thing, this chart is a joke. I posted it as a joke. Please do not take it as this great guide for Jewish holidays. It is silly and goofy, and should be treated as such.

Second thing—cause I saw some people taking and asking about it—the new years. So, in Judaism there are four new years that are talked about in the Mishnah. They are:

- Aleph B’Nissan: the first of Nissan is the New Year for Kings and Festivals (also, the first day of the year according to the Torah).

- Aleph B’Elul: the first of Elul is the New Year for Animals, specifically Animal Tithes.

- Aleph B’Tishrei: the first of Tishrei a.k.a Rosh HaShanah, the New Year of New Years.

- Tet Vav B’Shvat: the fifteenth of Shvat a.k.a Tu B’Shvat, the New Year for Trees.

Aside from Tu B’Shvat, I’m not really sure what they have to do with trees, and I mean, we don’t actually celebrate the New Years for Kings and Animals anymore cause we don’t have the Beit HaMikdash, but anyways, now you (and me too actually) know.

Oh also, the Yes? for Lag B’Omer in the ‘they tried to kill us’ row is probably cause Hashem was doing the killing there, not people.

Also, also, no one asked about this, but I thought I should mention it anyway: the fast day of Tisha B’Av is not a holiday, but the only other major fast day (Yom Kippur), so, cause it wouldn’t make sense for it to just be by itself, it go grouped with the major holidays.

And last thing, the amount of holidays here that relate to trees (or rather, nature and plants in general) is actually a little misleading.

The holidays, Hoshana Raba, Shmeni Atzeret, Simchat Torah are all actually under/grouped withthe holiday, Sukkot. Sukkot is the Jewish Harvest holiday where we build a hut of sorts called a Sukkah (Sukkot is the plural), and eat, or even sleep, in it for the duration of the holiday (a week).

Hoshana Raba is day number seven. We have specific traditions that we do on that day which is why it has its own, separate name.

It’s a little different with Shmeni Atzeret (literally, ‘the eighth day’) though, cause it is actually a different holiday, but still connected to Sukkot, while Simchat Torah is a much newer concept that’s not biblical.

Basically, the rabbis decided that it would be easier to separate the traditions for Shmeni Atzeret into two days (only outside of Israel though), so they added Simchat Torah on, and that’s how we do it today.

Okay, I think that’s everything. Wow, that’s a lot. I tried to break it into smaller pieces, so it would be easier to read, but I don’t know how much it helped. I hope it did at least a little though.

I’ve also been recently informed that this chart was created by @jewish-kulindadromeus. So, all credit goes to them of course.

But yeah. Hope that explained some things, and an early Pesach Semeach to my fellow Jews, as well as a Happy Easter and a Ramadan Mubarak to any Christians or Muslims who see this. Love you all!! <3333

So, I know that quite a few people know the Jewish joke: “they tried to killed us, we survived, let’s eat”, and a friend found this chart years ago explaining all the Jewish holidays and fast days through that joke, with one very important addition: TREES.

And since today was Tu B’Shvat, I found myself thinking that this would be a great day to share it.

Enjoy :)) and hag sameach!! <333

[puddlesl1me]

MMO Minecraft

First, I’d like to say that I am not referring to MCMMO, the plugin that like half of all survival servers have. That’s a very boring plugin, everyone uses it, and it doesn’t serve much of a purpose. I’m talking about a potential actual MMO Minecraft server that I would like to see, but I understand would not realistically work.

I like the idea of an MMO Minecraft experience. I like multiplayer Minecraft, especially survival multiplayer, and having a large number of players able to play on it means more potential interactions between random players, which is something I enjoy seeing/being part of. I also understand, however, that this would be very hard to do well. There’s a few inherent problems within Minecraft itself that would make this harder, and they’d need to be fixed.

The first issue would be a gap in wealth between players. Minecraft doesn’t have much in the way of vertical progression (we’ll get to that problem later), but it’s still worth pointing out that there will be a huge gap in wealth between the top players and the newer players. I’m not actually certain this is an issue, but I imagine it could be. The wealthiest people completely stomping newer players isn’t something I’m particularly interested in seeing, as it would decrease the draw for newer players to the server. There’s a few different ways I can see to fix this, and they could all be used in conjunction or separately, depending on how they’re done.

First, limiting automatic farms. This might end up happening because of lag anyways, but automatic farms are a huge part in what makes players so powerful. To have access to unlimited resources with very little work is a huge boon, and means that you have all the power to do whatever you want to. Limiting farms would mean that the wealthier players have to spend some time actually getting the materials they want, which would decrease the power gap a little. This idea would also include either getting rid of villagers, or heavily nerfing them. I understand that villagers are powerful, and some find them necessary as the only reasonable way to get mending, but mending could very easily be added to the enchanting table. I made a post talking about this specifically. In my opinion, villagers should not be seen as a necessity, and the way to fix villagers is to nerf them while buffing other things to compensate. 

The second idea comes from a book series I used to read, and might read more in the future, Steve the Noob (link is to the first book). This section will have minor spoilers for the second saga, so if you plan on reading the series and care about that, move on to the next section I guess. This idea is to split up the world into regions that are for specific power levels. Regions might be decided based on experience levels (although you might need to rework the experience system for that to work), money (in-game currency system, although I’m not a huge fan of this idea), or some other means. There would be downsides to moving to a region that is lower than your current region, to keep wealthy players from stomping newer players. If we took the experience system as an example, maybe level 30 is the cutoff point for going from Region 1 to Region 2. If you’re above level 30 and in Region 1, your experience points would go down at a speed based on your current level, until you’re at level 30 again. Going to a region above your own isn’t penalized, however it isn’t encouraged since higher level players will be there. 

Finally, the available wealth could be limited. This is inspired by another book series I read a while ago, and mentioned in a previous post, Herobrine: The Complete Collection. In that series, the world is a sort of MMO experience of Minecraft. However, there isn’t a huge gap in power, seemingly because no one has many diamonds?? (from what I remember at least). So, to limit power, it might be worth considering turning down the spawn rates for diamonds, and increasing spawn rates for iron and gold ore. To make this more complex, and more interesting, you could also have randomly generated areas where ore spawns are shifted more. For example, there could be a section where diamonds generate at a normal amount, rather than their nerfed amount. Or maybe there’s even less diamonds in an area, but there’s a huge amount of coal or iron. Ancient debris/netherite might also be limited, but that’s not a guarantee, since it’s already so rare. These changes are dependent on the other changes made to deal with the power gap, as if there’s regions for specific power levels, this all might not be necessary, and might actually hinder the experience.

While the power gap in Minecraft can be large, it also tapers off at a surprisingly low point. Most MMOs (as far as I understand it) have a lot of vertical progression, which Minecraft doesn’t really have. You get wooden tools, then you get stone tools, then iron, then diamond, then netherite (if available), and that’s all there is. 5 different basic stages, not including enchantments, isn’t a whole lot. For an MMO experience, it would be a good idea to add some more vertical progression into the game. More materials, or better armor/tools, or different modifiers that can be added to stuff. Artifacts or magic items or stuff like that. However, this isn’t the only way to expand the content in the game, nor is it the only way that content should be expanded in this case.

Vertical progression is good, but adding horizontal expansion would be prudent. It’d be boring if every player had the exact same gear with the exact same enchantments, because there wouldn’t be any room for creativity. Adding materials or armor that gives benefits other than more armor would be useful (for example, armor that has less armor than netherite or diamond, but grants an effect such as speed or jump boost). Alternatively, more and better enchantments that are mutually exclusive (such as fire protection/blast protection/projectile protection/protection, and sharpness/smite/bane of arthropods) would mean for more creativity - it means players have to choose between what good enchantments they want. This would add much needed variety to Minecraft PvP - everyone chooses the same thing, because it’s almost always the best thing to choose. With this MMO, I imagine there would be a fair amount of PvP, so it’d be nice to fix up the combat system a little bit.

Another point of problem is the End dimension. This is an issue for most large multiplayer survival servers - the first people to get to the end get the nearest elytras, then the next people have to travel further to get elytras, and it takes more and more time to get one before people just give up. I propose two potential solutions for this. First, just removing the End, or at least the elytra. With this MMO, I anticipate that elytras will be a bit too powerful for the wealthiest players. Unless they’re nerfed somehow, I feel like it might be a bad idea to include them. There can be other ways of fast travel that are either added to the game, or are created by the players, so elytras are not essential. Removing the End itself also has the added benefit of one less biome to interact with, especially a biome that’s so hard to access. The second solution would be to include elytras as a drop from the Ender Dragon. Elytras are supposedly made of Ender Dragon wings; it would make sense if they dropped from the Ender Dragon. This would provide a renewable way to get elytras, which would solve the issue of players eventually not being able to get them.

One final issue I’d like to cover is spawning in, and how players populate the world. While it makes sense that players will make their own societies and such (hopefully), the world being too crowded could be an issue, especially at spawn. My proposed solution is to change the spawn area as more players join the server. For example, the first 100 players could spawn between 0 and 1000 blocks away from 0,0. Then the next 250 spawn 1000 to 2000 blocks away from spawn. Then the next 500 spawn 2000 to 3000 blocks away from spawn, and so on. These numbers aren’t perfect by any means, and there’s probably some math that can be done to determine what the best spawning radius is for a number of players spawning in, but the exact numbers aren’t important right now. The idea is to spread out players, so that they have room to build their own bases and mine for materials and such, while also allowing them to interact on occasion. 0,0 will obviously become a large city most likely, as people will probably gravitate towards it, but other significant coordinates such as 1000,0 and such might become cities as well. 

There’s probably a huge amount more issues with an MMO Minecraft experience. Actually moderating it, making sure it’s relatively safe, stuff like that. And adding all these features would take a lot of work; not only implementing them into the game but playtesting them before the release of the server so there don’t need to be as many nerfs later on would take a lot of time. Adding more content might also be a good idea - actual dungeons rather than just mob spawners, places that require better gear but give out better rewards, stuff like that. That’s why I mentioned that this isn’t a realistic idea. It’s something I would love to see, sure, but I don’t think it’ll happen.

Nonetheless, I have shared my ideas on this. I have shared my vision with the world. If someone ever tries to create something like this, or if I ever decide to, this is here. Feel free to add onto these ideas - I’d love to see further ideas to adjust the game so it’d work better as an MMO. Alternatively, feel free to tell me I’m wrong. It’s not uncommon for me to be wrong, so it’s very possible.

TL;DR I would like to see an MMO Minecraft experience, but because of wealth gaps between players, the lack of vertical or horizontal progression in Minecraft combat, and the overall idea of the End dimension and elytras, it probably will not happen.

thanks for reading bye see you next time i write a minecraft manifesto

[the-firebird69]

I think I would be open to listening to him talk about missing social security payments I remember the time in Oxford I thought they gave him a good size check but that didn't do anything and I don't remember him getting a good size check he just reinstated it and he was waiting for a check and he kept saying I want relation send a check to and they didn't send one and his mom and dad were upset I know about several periods like that and he knew about it one of them was in between O'Connor and Otis he was at Framingham but there was a period where he didn't get anything about because he was housed by this respite place and he wouldn't have been able to I didn't tell you that you are sitting there without it but how can I get money for food and this is what I know this is exactly remember the finances but at that place he had the income already but they had to get it for him so there was a lag and he was getting food and stuff from his money and he had a car so he was eating away at his savings and they finally got the social security and they paid the rent and they didn't mention that it wasn't paid no they did they said that they pay for that and that's part of the service the only stayed there for a few more months and he got a job while he was there and he said he answered the ad while he was in the hospital I remember him doing something like that and it started to work a little and they pulled them out cuz I was helping to do it so I know all these details and they're going to go after me and bother me about it and I need them out of the way it's very huge eyesore really we need to have them to a job and he says they should probably do it automatically and I figured out something this is going to be horrible you said the secret is right down there and monument valley and the Grand canyon and we're going to have to try and get them to do that and I do thank you for the effort

Mac Daddy

Black Daddy was one of the major proponents of helping JC and Mary and he has good reason to and it makes sense and he's helped our son a lot this is a good idea it's just to mention it and to say is a whole bunch of time they missed but and he doesn't want to get a lawyer and it's because social security acts badly and he heard it the other day they're a bunch of whiners like all of them not just John Riva learn and he knows about that. He also knows that the city is holding you hostage and it looks like for you to talk about what you are talking about and for them to try and capture us and defeat us into go down using us as hostages cuz they can't get by the max they say but really they want to grab us and use this as hostages and have the max fitted out and stuff and that might not be what's going on so they're in a panic they thought that's what they were doing and a lot of them say we're going to use these top side so they have to get to the leaders and they have and have them saying there's something down there we don't know what it is and we hear noises and doesn't sound like him they said no yelling at his wife in the saying no it does not. They hear some of it but they are really hearing noises and they're horrible noises they're causing small earthquakes so they understand it's something and they know kind of what sounded it is and these people are going nuts they're under control right now. They say the ships would be invincible and he's been trying to mention why and stuff and they're missing it and it's horrible they're so damn dumb and mean.

Thor Freya

They are figuring out something it's the house and apartment they're in and Max want them out and there might be a huge reason

Dave AKA Dan

Oh no

Trump

Haha and my grandson says oh yeah you hose bag LOL

Grandpa biden

Olympus

[erigold13261]

Just realized how the Project Mermaid group could be the ones who stop the Revolution in that particular AU

They are more desperate. Instead of just four loyal teens, it's a dozen of them. (Some people moved to another continent just for this, and/or cannot/don't want to go home.)

Advantage in numbers. It's FIVE mermaids now, and more backup for things like editing and art. (You have to destroy more of those connection points.)

We have Miles on the team, who can get everyone else to focus, strategize, and make sure B2J are done for. (Miles himself knows that B2J have a point, but does not want Gwen to go back home.) (Side note, but Miles is gonna be a bit pissed if they lose, and Mayday tells his crew that they are kids meddling in politics)

...Oh no it's another FRAU

You actually make a lot of good points! This is absolutely something that could happen and would make it another FRAU! However, it would not nearly be as dark as my OG FRAU where 1010 are the ones to stop the revolution.

The main reason for this is because, in order for 1010 to stop the revolution, a lot of stuff regarding Neon J, his past with Martha and his kids, and the war all have to line up in order for 1010 (mainly Blue) to have the push needed to actually end the Revolution.

In that specific scenario, Project Mermaid would not have been able to form. It would only ever stay with the main Sayu Crew.

So instead of the change in the past happening with Neon J and 1010, the change(s) are now applied later in life with the Sayu Crew and Arachnikids. I can't think of any major change, but all kinds of smaller changes are needed to make Project Mermaid form.

Most likely it is just the kids finding out about Sayu earlier into the development process. So instead of like Gwen and Margo finding out about Sayu a year away from mer joining NSR (or after ze joined), some ad or someone sharing Remi's (and Tila's) art/work allowed the Arachnikids to find the mermaid fandom earlier and actually have time to join the project.

There's also the possibility that Project Mermaid FRAU's major change is that the mermaids joining either swap with DJSS joining point (so DJSS is there a year longer while the mermaids are there a year shorter than their OG counterparts) or that the mermaids joining are just pushed a year or two later (meaning they had to outrank the previous charter quickly).

Either way, both of these scenarios are going to make the Project Mermaid members work extremely hard to prove that they are worthy of their position in NSR. They aren't going to be as complacent and easy going as the OG Crew was.

Not to mention, like you said, there are now 5 mermaids to fight instead of just 1. Though I do think there would be some drawbacks to having 5 mermaids present at one time instead of just 1.

One of the main drawbacks would be that the 5 mermaids would not be nearly as big as OG Sayu (but not as small as a normal citizen). Mainly because of processing power and render distance now having to account for all 5 models instead of just 1.

So the stage/environment would probably be smaller or just 1 or 2 mermaids are on at a time. Honestly I can see it going like this. 1 mermaid tries to take on B2J, then once that one is defeated 2 go to take on B2J while the others try to fix the one that got broken. Once one of the 2 out there is broken then the last 2 go out and fight B2J as a 3v2.

As that fight is going on the other 2 are brought back online and now it's a 5v2 against B2J. I'm pretty sure B2J could win, but it would turn out kinds like Eve's fight with them having to split up and cause a lot of lag to the mermaids in order to put an end to the fight.

There is also a thing to not that with just how many people are behind Project Mermaid, that means different opinions and fighting styles would come up. Arguments and infighting could start to pop up which, along with the lag, are the main factors that would allow B2J to beat this version of Sayu (and friends).

However, it is also very easy to see that, if the mermaids stick together, all come out at once, and/or don't start fighting with each other, Project Mermaid would definitely be able to beat out B2J and stop the Revolution from continuing.

Not entirely sure if defeating B2J would wind up in B2J being permanently hurt like in my OG FRAU. I honestly don't see a lot of the members wanting to actively hurt B2J, at least not without the push from other factors (like Gwen wouldn't want to hurt them, but damn she knows she has to stop them to stay away from her father and so is willing to hurt them).

Also the fact that like, B2J are in a digital world but can still somehow get hurt. Like they aren't playing avatars like the members are. Instead May and Zuke are literally in the digital space and getting their asses kicked by Sayu. So that means they could actually get very hurt having to fight off 5 mermaids who all have different levels of what they deem as "too far."

So maybe some kind of weird glitch effect happens to B2J that haunts them forever after the revolution ends. Something like Vanellope Von Schweetz's glitch/pixlexia from Wreck-it-Ralph except that it kinda hurts or at the very least feels uncomfortable, idk.

Either way, they can't continue the Revolution from here on out, which, depending on where the mermaids are might not even make this action worthy of being called a revolution. (Like if the mermaids and DJSS switch joining times, then Sayu is first and is the one to stop B2J immediately, making this hard to justify as a revolution and not just an attack on NSR or Project Mermaid. If Sayu is still second and had recently outranked the previous charter, then it would be known as stopping a revolution in its tracks).

The aftermath of the failed revolution is also going to be VERY different from the aftermath of the OG FRAU. Mainly because a lot of the Megastars aren't already bitter (like Neon J and 1010 being more like their OG selves instead of their FRAU selves), so there isn't going to be a hostile and toxic work environment that spawns up from the end of the Revolution.

If anything, the mermaid members are all praised for accomplishing this whole thing as there was not enough time for B2J to actually get their point across to everyone meaning that they have a lot less sympathy going for them (plus, people would start thinking about what-ifs and many would come to the conclusion that B2J would have had to hurt Yinu if they weren't stopped which makes them seen a lot more in a negative light).

I just feel like a lot of the turning point in people's opinions about B2J happen after defeating Sayu, so being stopped by the mermaids first or 1 boss in really makes it hard for this to be seen as a true revolution that was going to help the people instead of just two bitter idiots wanting to hurt the system that is graciously providing power.

So yeah, Project Mermaid failed revolution is a much happier overall AU that isn't as heartbreaking and painful as the OG FRAU. B2J still have to deal with their consequences (like pixilation or something like that), but nothing truly changes with the system meaning there are still lots of blackouts and other problems that no one is truly addressing except for some people who did agree with B2J.

Honestly, I don't even see a second revolution coming from this because the people who agree with B2J are so small and still aren't truly convinced that a revolution would work in the end. So the revolution just stops at Project Mermaid and the members are probably given a lot of praise and benefits for proving how loyal they are to NSR as well as how powerful they are at such a young age.