#octo annual

[merakiui]

i believe you’ve wrote for stepson!tweels before but what about thoughts for stepson tako? 🥺

Stepson tako....... 👁 👁 tako's master chef card has taught me that he does not know how to cook. T_T he was too spoiled and too busy tasting the yummy food to master the craft....... so naturally, after learning this information, I must discuss a very spoiled stepson Zuzu hehe. <3

Azul who knows he's spoiled and uses that to get whatever he wants from you. It worked when he was little because all it took was a few sniffles and some teary eyes, and you were gathering him in your arms to cheer him up, willing to do everything and anything to get him to smile. Just like his mother, you also adore cooking for Azul and spoiling him rotten with affection. And of course Azul eats it up, loving the way he's doted on so sincerely.

Now that he's older, he can't get away with acting like a baby because it will look very immature and unmannerly. >_< but he can get away with other things. Maybe you're not an octo-mer like him, so Azul gets to slyly wrap a tentacle around your tail fin or waist when he visits home, discreetly feeling you up. This sort of closeness between mers isn't unheard of in the sea, and you're used to this type of hug. Of course it's not so innocent anymore, but you don't need to know that.

Or maybe you're a human... in which case, it's even better because Azul can get away with lots of things. You think it's strange his tentacles seem to slither closer than necessary to certain spots on your body? Don't worry too much. An octo-mer's tentacles have minds of their own. He's just happy to see you! Or when he tricks you into helping him through his breeding season by telling you it's just an annual illness he gets as a mer. >:D

Omg and if you were cooking for him...... no matter how old he gets, you will always be willing to cook a meal for him. But Azul wants you more than the food, and so you'll have to forgive him for being a little spoiled when he takes you against the counter. <3

[autistic-writer-angel]

Psst, hey, Angel ask time

Emergency 🚑 (how often do they end up in the medbay)

Land 🏜 (where were they in your favorite a&b episode)

Special 🥳 (where were they in your favorite special episode)

What is YOUR personal favorite octo agent? (You don't have to answer this one if you don't want)

-Nova☆

Thank you so much for the ask!

🚑 Not too often. Angel is fairly healthy and, despite being accident prone, she doesn't have too many serious injuries. She probably ends up there two or three times a year. Even then, it's normally something trivial. Peso's just being overprotective. In between, she may have other trivial problems and talk to Peso outside the sickbay and he'd just give her so medicine or advice.

I should point out that Angel has a slight fear of the sickbay. Not because she's scared of being treated, but because it brings back bad memories of having a panic attack when she first woke up there and lying on the bed in the sickbay, staring at the walls until they became blurred behind her tears as she cried so hard she couldn't breathe.

Peso knows this and doesn't make her stay in the sickbay longer than she has to. He even does her semi-annual checkups somewhere else to make her feel more comfortable.

🏜️ I have three favourite Above and Beyond episodes.

One, I don't think Angel would appear in at all: 'Red Fox.'

Another, she doesn't play a very big role: 'Bamboo Rescue.' She's helping Peso, Shellington and Professor Inkling with the seahorses.

The third, 'Twelve Year Bloom', she tags along with Shellington and the Vegimals to search for honey and a present for the Captain. She never knows what to get people for their birthdays, so she's helping the Vegimals with the cake and getting the Captain a card. (I saw a birthday card recently that made me think of Captain Barnacles, so I like to imagine Angel saw it too and got it for him months in advance!)

So, yeah. Angel was one of the first to meet Selva. She was a little shy, but knew with Shellington and the Vegimals there, she'd be safe.

🥳 I actually have two favourite specials, but I only know where Angel would be for one of them.

In ‘A Very Vegimal Christmas’, it’s Angel’s twelfth birthday. She’s excited about the Christmas feast, Christmas in general and her birthday, but she also feels a little sad, missing her family. She tags along with Shellington, Dashi and Professor Inkling to check out the brine lake, so, of course, she gets stuck in the snot blob too. Nothing says merry Christmas and happy birthday like getting stuck in a big blob of snot!

(Just in case you care, my other favourite special is ‘The Great Arctic Adventure’, but I’m not entirely sure where Angel would be for that one.)

My favourite Octo-Agent... I think I'd have to say Natquik. I just like him. Angel does too, but she doesn't know him that well, so she's still shy around him. Still, she has to make an effort with him, considering he has saved her life.

[altavantconsulting]

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[potomacdebateacademy]

March Tournament Recap

Recently, our students competed at the TOC Digital Speech and Debate Series #2, TOC Digital Speech and Debate Series #3, and the March Potomac Debate Academy Intramural Tournament, highlighting even more growth, fun, and success! See the results below! A special congratulations to Angela G. & Abigail H. as well as Ruth D. and Aaron T. for qualifying for the National Speech and Debate Association annual National Tournament. They will represent the Chesapeake region at the national competition this June!

TOC Digital Speech and Debate Series #2 Public Forum—High School Varsity Division: Finalists: Abigail H. & Angela G. (Gold Bid) Double Octo-finalists: James C. & Emi M. and Digonto C. & Dhira V. Triple Octo-finalists: Cooper L. & Christopher T. Public Forum—Middle School Division: Co-champions: Jessica G. & Leah M. and Daniela A. & Mira K. Partial Quarterfinals: Kathryn L. & Mabelle L. and Arav B. & Jaylen D.

TOC Digital Speech and Debate Series #3 Public Forum—High School Varsity Division: Double octo-finals: Zack L. & Ryan X. Public Forum—Middle School Division: Quarterfinals: Aahana G. & Cady W. Speaker Awards: 7th: Cady W.

March Intramural: Congress - Elementary, Middle, and High School Open:  Novice, 1st: Miles G. Junior Varsity, 1st: Rainger Y. Varsity, 1st: Emma L. Public Forum—Elementary School Novice: Co-champions: Thomas Y. & Anoop G., Remy S. & Daksh S., Belinda Z. & Shreya R., and Maimoona N. & Jerry J.

Speaker Awards: 1st: Thomas Y. 2nd: Remy S. 3rd: Daksh S. Public Forum—Elementary School Open: Co-champions: Kavya S. & Kalvin L., Iris A. & Sanah R., Churchill K. & Vidhu R., and Ayman I. & Adithya V.

Speaker Awards: 1st: Iris A. 2nd: Sanah R. 3rd: Kavya S. Public Forum—Middle School Novice: Co-champions: Ronav G. & Rishi M., Stephanie L. & Anna N., Harshiv S. & Aru-Ai K., and Siddharth S. & Saanvi S. Speaker Awards: 1st: Sneha S. 2nd: Ronav G. 3rd: Nellie F. Public Forum—Middle School JV: Champions: Akshan R. & Aarush M. Finalists: Aaryan S. & Isha G., Nikhil N. & Raina D., and Rishaan G. & Rena G. Speaker Awards: 1st: Akshan R. 2nd: Mithra V. 3rd: Nina N. Public Forum—Middle School Open: Co-champions: Nathaniel D. & Ava Y., Andrew L. & Michelle P., Zaliah K. & Ellie W., and Veer P. & Anthony L.

Speaker Awards: 1st: Anthony L. 2nd: Nathaniel D. 3rd: Veer P. Public Forum—High School: Co-champions: Aarav B. & Amiti G., Ana G. & Saket S., Barkha B. & Josie K., and Daniel G. & Arya R. Speaker Awards: 1st: Ana G. 2nd: Barkha B. 3rd: Yulania W. Congratulations! Public Speaking - Elementary School: 1st: Varun R. 2nd: Riana B. 3rd: Aria C. Public Speaking - Level 2: 1st: Dhruv J. 2nd: Shreyas M. 3rd: Jay T. Public Speaking - Level 3/4: 1st: Ronan P. 2nd: Shreya D. 3rd: Akhil P.

[cinquecolonnemagazine]

Mobilità sostenibile: la storia del progetto "Move In"

La mobilità sostenibile è importante perché contribuisce a ridurre l'inquinamento dell'aria e del suolo, a migliorare la qualità della vita delle persone e a ridurre la dipendenza dai combustibili fossili. Inoltre, promuove lo sviluppo di città più vivibili e aiuta a ridurre le emissioni di gas serra, contribuendo così a mitigare i cambiamenti climatici. Protagonista della storia di oggi è OCTO, partner del progetto "Move In". Mobilità sostenibile, cosa intendiamo? La mobilità sostenibile si riferisce all'uso dei mezzi di trasporto che limitano l'impatto ambientale e che contribuiscono alla riduzione delle emissioni di gas serra e dell'inquinamento atmosferico. Questo tipo di mobilità è parte integrante di una visione globale di sostenibilità, che cerca di trovare un equilibrio tra le esigenze di trasporto delle persone e le necessità di proteggere l'ambiente e la salute pubblica. In pratica, la mobilità sostenibile si traduce in una serie di azioni volte a promuovere l'uso dei mezzi di trasporto a basso impatto ambientale, come la bicicletta, il trasporto pubblico, i veicoli elettrici o ibridi e l'utilizzo condiviso di auto e moto. Inoltre, la mobilità sostenibile implica anche l'adozione di comportamenti virtuosi da parte degli utenti dei mezzi di trasporto, come la scelta di percorsi più brevi, l'uso razionale dell'energia e la condivisione dei veicoli. Intervista a Tina Martino, responsabile del marketing di OCTO Andiamo alla scoperta di questo interessante progetto andando a sentire le parole di Tina Martino ovvero la responsabile del marketing di OCTO: Mobilità sostenibile: cos'è il progetto "Move In"? Aderendo al servizio Move-In - grazie al semplice montaggio di una scatola nera sulla propria automobile – gli automobilisti avranno la possibilità di usufruire di un tetto massimo di percorrenza chilometrica annuale calcolata sulla base del proprio veicolo, da poter utilizzare sull’intero territorio dei Comuni interessati dalle limitazioni alla circolazione previste dal Piano Aria Integrato Regionale (Pair). Quali sono gli obiettivi del progetto di mobilità sostenibile? L’obiettivo è ridurre le emissioni e promuovere un utilizzo responsabile dei veicoli più inquinanti. E così da gennaio anche in Emilia-Romagna è partito Move-In (MOnitoraggio dei VEicoli Inquinanti), un’iniziativa avviata dalla Regione Lombardia, e già attiva nella Regione Piemonte, che promuove modalità innovative basate sulla connettività per mitigare l’impatto della mobilità sulle emissioni in ambito urbano e garantire l’accesso sostenibile nelle aree interessate dalla limitazione della circolazione. In cosa consiste il supporto tecnologico di OCTO? A fornire il supporto tecnologico necessario per la mappature dei veicoli c’è anche OCTO Telematics, primo provider globale di servizi telematici per il settore delle assicurazioni auto, delle flotte e della mobilità smart, recentemente premiato come Global Company of the Year per il 2022 da Frost & Sullivan per la capacità di innovare, dimostrata in oltre vent’anni di sviluppo e perfezionamento di soluzioni di telematica. Grazie all’innovativa app OCTO, inoltre, sarà  possibile monitorare h24 i km realizzati e i bonus “ecodrive” accumulati evitando così i blocchi orari e giornalieri normalmente in vigore. Read the full article

[opinionatedoctopus]

FIC YEAR IN REVIEW 2021

Tagged by: @bi-demon-ium​

Total Number of Completed Stories: Six! Which is such a small number, but a really big deal for me. I have over 30 WIPs and I get really nitpicky at my storytelling and discourage msyelf from writing more, so I’m really proud of myself for posting this year! :D

Total Word Count: 32,379 words on AO3 from this year on both my accounts. (the spicy one and the non-spicy account XD). Including my WIPs: 87,190. A lot of them aren’t even at 1000 words because I just don’t write down what’s in my head.

Fandoms Written In: The Mysterious Benedict Society, Naruto, Miraculous Ladybug, Spiderman, Doctor Who, Assassination Classroom, My Hero Academia, Harry Potter, Ted Lasso. (:

Looking back did you expect to write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d expect: So much more than I expected. I had hoped to write more of my own story, but that bitch is collecting dust XD I’ve recently been allowing myself to write poorly so that I can eventually write well and it’s helped my creativity and self talk so much!

What’s your own favorite story of the year, personally?: I will not be linking it because it is spicy, but it’s a Naruto fic. All of my favorite fics I’ve written are Naruto fics because Rock Lee is my comfort character right now and I adore all the senseis in that show XP To be clear: the spicy fic is not my Rock Lee fics, but I do ship him and Gaara lol 

For TMBS tho: A Single Thread

Did you take any writing risks this year?: Yeah, for me, I started posting one-shots and short little ideas. I’ve never allowed myself to post stories that weren’t full feature length plots before so I just...never posted because my other condition was I couldn’t post until I’d finished the story. But this year I’ve tried posting a couple first chapters to see if feedback helps my motivation and I’ve tried posting little one-shots and it’s just been wonderful!

Do you have any fanfic goals for the New Year?: I want to finish writing a multi-chapter story. Just one would be exciting, but I have so many as WIPs that it’s hard to keep going. I’m also writing a Naruto fix-it fic with my sister and that’d be really cool to get a few chapters out there!

Best story of the year?: Watermelon Sugar :3 I’m having SO much fun writing this! It’s a spicy Lee/Gaara Naruto fic.

Most popular story of the year?: 

By kudos: “spicy fic” I keep mentioning with 749 kudos

By subscriptions: The Scientist with 29 (a Miraculous Ladybug fic)

By comment threads: “spicy fic” with 24

By bookmarks: “spicy” wins again with 220

By hits: “spicy” by 9,100??????!!!!!

Clearly that spicy fic is the winner and it should not be that hard to find if you use the info from this whole post to find my other account lol. If you do find it, shhhhh. Don’t mention it here. I wasn’t even planning on tying my ao3 accounts to Tumblr in the first place lol.

Most personal story of the year: Definitely Scars on my other account. It’s about something very personal to me and writing about it has helped with all the pain I have surrounding the subject. I have a part two drafted even though the first one is complete because I have a lot of thoughts.

Funniest story of the year: Watermelon Sugar. Hands down. Lee is a total bumbling crackhead in this.

Story of mine most under-appreciated by the universe, in my opinion: Still Watermelon Sugar lol

Most fun story to write: Again, Watermelon Sugar, but a close second is a WIP of mine that I’ll be cursing you all with very soon. Paaaaaaain.

Story with the sexiest moment: Obviously the spicy fic.

Sweetest story of the year: I would saymy TMBS fic Rest Easy  but it’s angst, so Watermelon Sugar. They go to a fair together and *gasp* hold hands!

“Holy crap that’s wrong even for you!” story: I’m going to interpret this as angst for the sake of not repeating myself, but it is called Canary and I’ll see if I can finish it before the New Year :)

Hardest story to write: It’s called Solid Ground and I just updated it with chapter two. It’s a spinoff of a story I’d read last year and it has some heavy themes in it that I’m trying to balance without making it too depressing, but I don’t think it’s working.

Biggest disappointment: I can’t finish hardly anything. I just can’t crank through stories like I see some of you do and it’s really discouraging sometimes, but I’m trying to be kinder to myself about it.

Biggest surprise: That spicy fic really came outta NOWHERE with its popularity. I am Thriving.

Anyway I have failed at keeping my accounts separate and if my personal friends try hard enough they can find my really spicy fics through internet sleuthing and tie it to me irl. Should I just give up and merge all my accounts and different usernames and accept my spicy nature?

Maybe I’ll decide next year...

I Tag: Anyone else who just wants an excuse to do this tag game because, once again, bi-demon-ium has tagged all my mutuals XD

[sophs-style]

sophs-style:

Mary Leest (wearing Nova Octo) at the The Daily Front Row 8th Annual Fashion Media Awards on Thursday (9th September 2021) in New York City.

[octoagentmiles]

Okay SO im gonna preface this with thisbis in no way an actual theory but i think the idea is funny and I fully intend on sounding like a stereotypical conspiracy theorist. As with all conspiracy theorya this one starts with ☆aliens☆. Something something dna gets integrated into the aliens dna giving them different traits that give them main character syndrome. The reason why they can talk to every animal ever? A trait that's useful to ensure safety! The vegenals? Vegetable dna plus the bipedalism! This theory? Cooked up at two am when I was considering the best way to sound rediculous using my words for the sake of comedy

On a more serious note do you think the octonauts who'd be more social (like peso) would hold shipwide sleepovers

- Mortum

you joke but I actually have a real and mostly serious Conspiracy Theory™ about the Vegimals being aliens or some kind of alien experiment that got left behind on Earth either by mistake, or intentionally placed there on the Octopod's leg to be found by Shellington.

As for the sleepovers I feel like Barnacles would absolutely find out about Dashi and Peso's situation and start hosting monthly/annual Crew Sleepovers in the library or HQ, which everyone attends and looks forward to. They make a day out of it, it's great 👍

It is, however, very chaotic,, because Shellington and Inking both snore louder than a blue whale's sonar, Kwazii talks in his sleep, Dashi's headphone cord unplugs a few times and her music wakes everyone up, and Tweak is the insomniac who never fell asleep in the first place so she just watches them awkwardly and draws on Kwazii's face with sharpie. Barnacles sleeps through all of it without a single toss or turn, but one time he DID wake up and instinctively yawn-growled so loud that Peso shot up and sounded the octo-alert on reflex.

Fun times.

[aaaxaauyuyyuhh]

Random Headcanons That No One Asked For

Please don't come for my head, this is just for fun

When Riddle trusts someone to a astronomical level he calls them "Love"

Riddle has a british accent (Not that original I know)

When Cater rode his skateboard for the first time he sat on it instead of standing

When Ace and Deuce graduate they'll live together and have a baby chick son 🥺

Trey overbakes when he's stressed, so there's a high chance you'll see millions of tarts covering the kitchen

Leona takes walks around the Botanical Garden to calm himself

Ruggie listens to Lo-Fi when he falls asleep or studies

When Jack graduates he'll live alone and have an entire room dedicated to cacti and plants

Azul screams into his pillow when he's stressed

The Octo-Trio live together

Floyd gets sent to the hospital/ER weekly due to doing risky parkour stunts

When Kalim is in his room he is literally "The Class Clown When He Gets Home" and only Jamil knows

Jamil listens to alternative rock

Epel used to cry himself to sleep alot before he met Yuu, he still does but rarely

Rook cares about wild animals dearly, one time he healed a bear cub's leg when it was injured 🥺

Vil occasionally puts flowers in his hair for the ✨aesthetic✨

Idia has trust issues

Ortho has medical information and mental health information (He's literally just Baymax from Big Hero 6 without the marshmallow)

Lilia makes miniature sculptures and dioramas in his free time

Silver eats instant food due to not wanting to eat Lilia's food

Malleus has a weird interest in clocks and bugs- he's just so interested on how clocks work and how bugs move

Sebek loves frogs

Diasomnia annually plays Dungeons and Dragons together

[garnet-xx-rose]

Secret Santa

HO-HO-HO! @supericebeam I’m your secret Santa! So sorry for the delay, but I’m very happy with how it turned out. I was even able to hit all you’re prompts. Enjoy! Also thank you to @niuniente for hosting

"This is stupid." Catra proclaimed

It was the holidays, the few days each year when the Princess Alliance would not be active. Too many different holidays celebrated by the kingdoms individually. A perfect time to make an attack.

But instead, the Horde’s second in command found herself in the corner of Hordak’s throne room with a cup of gin in her hand and wearing what she considered the fugliest sweater she’s ever seen. Instead of conquering Etheria at its most vulnerable, the Horde was partaking in its first annual holiday party. This year’s theme: ugly sweaters.

“Oh come on Wildcat, don’t be so down,” Scorpia exclaimed as she walked over, a plate of finger foods being held by a pincer. Her sweater had holes suited for her spikes but unable to fit her muscular upper frame, making the piece look instead like a crop top. 

“Isn’t this great! We’re all here together, celebrating. Not just the holidays, but a great year. All the progress the Horde’s made.” Scorpia said excitedly while munching on her food. She gulped and looked down at Catra, blushing.

“Everything we’ve accomplished. Together.”

Catra scoffed. “Yeah, well we would be able to accomplish more if we weren’t just sitting around doing nothing. The princesses are busy with their dumb traditions, it’s an easy target!”

“Well hold on now Catra you know the rules, the Horde never invades during this time, some type of deal made during the first rebellion.” The scorpion princess stuffed a few more pigs in a blanket into her mouth, “Besides, now’s a great time to relax, take a load off. We’ve earned it!”

Catra was not made aware of that (damn, she really should’ve gone to orientation) but she didn’t really care. And now, she was getting annoyed by Scorpia’s chewing and patronizing.

“Whatever,” Catra called out before walking away to another empty space. Scorpia frowned as her friend wandered off, unsure if she should follow her, but decided against in fear of making her more agitated, “Let’s see what else is on the menu”

Catra found a spot against the wall facing the center of the party, a perfect place to people watch. 

Out on the floor were soldiers, force captains, and generals dressed in different colored sweaters, with the Horde symbol crudely stitched in the middle. They were conversing like regular townsfolk, making jokes, having heated debates, some even dancing. She could see Kyle refereeing an eating contest between Lonnie and Rogelio by the food table and on the other side Grizzlor and Octavia grooving on the dance floor, with the octo-woman taking control every now and then. But what was most bizarre of all was Lord Hordak himself, sitting high on his throne, dressed in a green sweater, sharing a plate of tiny sandwiches between himself and his little alien baby. And on his right sat the princess prisoner now turned chief scientist, Entrapta, chugging a fizzy drink with the help of a tendril while she wrote in her journal and spoke into her recorder as she oversaw the party below. 

Just like the rest of the guests, she was dressed in a sweater, but her’s was yellow with an image of Emily placed in the center. What was more noticeable to Catra was her hair put up into a mid-high ponytail, instead of pigtails, with a large ribbon bow wrapped into her hair on top. Catra had to admit the get-up did a number on her, but it was clear that Hordak was the most entranced victim to Entrapta. Every few moments Hordak would look over at his lab partner as if to reassure himself that she was there. And whenever Entrapta spoke to him or wanted to share her notes, he looked at her like she was the only thing in the world. He was leaning into her, mesmerized, and when Catra squinted she was sure she saw his hand on her thigh. Man, she wanted to be sick.

Catra groaned. This stupid party had to be Entrapta’s idea-though odd given her lack of interaction during social events like Princess Prom-just like all the other changes made to the Horde in recent memory.  It was ludicrous. In a matter of months, the strange Princess of Dryll had gone from her chained prisoner to Hordak’s most trusted member, something that not even long-time force captains could achieve. 

Entrapta had Hordak wrapped around her finger or hair for that matter. It made Catra confused, betrayed, angry. But, the more she thought about it, a vulnerable Hordak could be used to her advantage.

In the meantime, there was free food and booze just out in the open and it’s not like Catra wasn’t going to indulge herself. She made her way over to the food table, where now Scorpia had joined the eating contest.

“Hey!” Catra shouted, grabbing the attention of the young soldiers. Kyle looked nervous as usual while Lonnie was intrigued, waiting for the cat girl to explain her sudden interruption.

Catra sighed, maybe just for one day she didn’t have to play the Big bad.

“Room for one more?” 

Kyle, Lonnie, and Rogelio looked at each other in disbelief that Catra could be so respectful, but that disbelief was forgotten in moments as Scorpia rushed in and scooped Catra in a bone-crushing hug. 

“Oh, that’s my Wildcat, wanting to celebrate with her best friends!”

The woman put her down and starting making bowls for a new round. “Now let’s really get this party started!”

“Whatever,” Catra mumbled, stuffing a handful of pigs in a blanket in her mouth. 

————————-

The day of festivities was now at its final moments. The party had ended an hour ago and now the clean-up crew was making its final touches. On top of the staircase, party host Entrapta was dancing around the throne, gigging and squealing as her hair frizzled out in excitement.

“This is without question one of my most successful experiments to date!” 

Hordak, still seated, watched his partner jump around the room, a small smile exposed on his face. Entrapta hopped over and plopped herself on top of Hordak, her chest squished against his and her legs over tucked over his thighs. Hordak wheezed from the sudden impact. 

“According to my data, my hypothesis was correct: By hosting a social gathering with more palatable food than ration bars and activities for the Horde to partake in, morale and teamwork have increased, 32 percent might I add. And because the guests were already familiar with one another, social awkwardness was down 70 percent!” 

“Yes.” Hordak hissed, “Impressive indeed.”

He looked out to the center of the room, where only hours ago hundreds of Horde soldiers were partying and laughing. It was as if they forgot they were in the midst of decades-old war. A small part of Hordak felt envious. Seeing his captains and generals converse and laugh like old friends made him realize how little he knew about his people. It was as if the Horde had created a culture of its own, unbeknownst to Hordak, behind his back that only now was being unveiled because of such a light-hearted event. Even Catra, as anti-social as the girl was, seemed to have a good time with Force Captain Scorpia and the trio of horde soldiers Hordak always saw together. 

A gloved hand placed on his own snapped him out of his thoughts. He faced Entrapta who looked into him with the doest eyes and softest smile he’s ever seen on her face.

“I-uhh wanted to thank you for letting me conduct my experiment. I know it was a lot, convincing everyone to join and getting everything organized. It was also very nice of you to host in the throne room”

Now that she thought about, was that the first Horde party?

“I know that I can be a lot sometimes but know that I appreciate your consistent support in my endeavors, no matter how seemingly ridiculous.” Entrapta chuckled at the end of her statement, trying not to sound too sappy. Hordak’s biology betrayed him as his cheeks blushed a hard crimson. He began to stammer.

‘Well,” Hordak cleared his throat, “It has become clear that your work has exponentially improved not only the Horde’s infrastructure but my personal projections as well. I...thank you for your continuing assistance...and letting me work with a brilliant mind such as yourself.”

Now it was Entrapta’s turn to blush. With no mask to cover her face, she looked down but gave a small sigh, reassuring Hordak that she heard his flattering remark. Hordak looked back out, not wanting to make Entrapta feel any more discomfort. But only seconds later, he was staring at her again as she softly pressed herself against his chest and placed her head in the crook of his neck. Instead of freaking out and pushing her away-something that he would have done only weeks ago- Hordak rolled with it, intertwining his hand into Entrapta’s and placing his other on her backside, slowly petting her ponytail. 

These acts of intimacy were still new to them, only starting at the beginning of the month, but both have quickly come accustomed to the familiar sense of tenderness. The couple stayed embraced on the throne, quiet except for the occasional hum from Entrapta or grunt from Hordak. Time stood still as each took in the other’s presence fully. When Entrapta nuzzled herself into his neck, Hordak lost his control and gave himself to her, flaws and all. It was moments like this that Hordak could describe as nearly perfect, when everything- his defect, the war, Prime- washes away from his mind, letting his body be at peace. The calmness of it all was so intense. Hordak soon felt himself dozing off, happily wrapped in the arms of his partner.

“Wait!” Entrapta shouted, bouncing off of Hordak’s chest. Hordak’s eyes shot open at the sudden commotion. 

“I forgot about the gift exchange.” A tendril slithered behind the throne and came back around, dropping a mid-size box into Entrapta’s hands, amateurishly wrapped in blue paper. The princess than gave it to Hordak, “I would’ve given it earlier, but I didn’t want to make a scene during the party. I know how you still are with privacy.”

During the party, a secret gift exchange was held amongst the guests, but the hosts decided it would be best that they got gifts for each other. 

Hordak ran a talon across the paper, cutting it open with the edge of his nail. Neatly unwrapping the package, Hordak was left with a pink box that read in pretty cursive, “Salineas Serums”. Intrigued, the man lifted up the top of the box and moved it to the side. When he looked back into the box contents, Lord Hordak released a small gasp. Inside were two bottles of hair dye with color that matched Hordak’s hair, black eye shadow pallets, and a few other cosmetic accessories.

“You once briefly mentioned that you were running low on dye  while we working on the portal” Entrapta spoke, twiddling her finger around her ponytail, “I thought that along with some other supplies would be a sufficient present.” 

Hordak picked up the bottle and turned it in his hand, amazed at how well it matched his own. He never told Entrapta his shade, nor brand for that matter. “Oh!” Entrapta squeaked “It’s also the newest edition, so it lasts much longer and doesn’t run off as often. It’s not even set for release until next summer! And before you ask, I have a few connections with the company. They owe me a few favors after I solved their Jellyfish problem. I hope you like it!” 

Hordak stared at the bottle in disbelief. One off-handed remark about his personal care led her to this? So much time and attention put into her present. He hoped his gift to her could create at least half of the joy hers brought him. Hordak put the bottle back in the box and took a nearby pink tendril into his hand, the other grasping his partner’s. “Entrapta, this is perfect. I could not have asked for anything better.” He finished his confession by kissing the held strand of hair.

Entrapta giggled, happy at another success. Hordak was so entranced he almost forgot to present his own. He called out to Imp who was plopped on top of Emily, falling out after eating too many cookies. The infant-sized creature rubbed his eyes and sluggishly flew around the throne and came around to Entrapta, dropping another mid-size box into her lap before yawning and flying back over to Emily. 

Entrapta didn’t even take the time to appreciate the delicate wrapping, going straight in and ripping apart the paper. She was left with a brown box with a note on top that read, “A sneak peek of what’s to come,” signed “-H”. The princess took off the note, placed it to her side, and then opened the box. Inside was a stack of brown journals, she took out one and began to flip the pages. Entrapta gasped, louder than Hordak’s, almost loud enough to be a scream.

The pages were decorated in detailed drawings of planets, stars, and galaxies. Each page had not only had drawings but writings on the topic’s features and history. It would take Entrpata months, maybe even years to thoroughly get in-depth with these journals.

Life outside of Despondos, a mystery to Etherians for centuries. The answers were right here. 

Entrapta had the universe in her hands. 

“With all the progress we’ve made with the portal, I felt a little nostalgic and did some snooping around my old ship.” Entrapta looked up at Hordak, who spoke with a grin. “I found these and…I couldn’t think of a more brilliant, beautiful person to give them to.”

Entrapta could feel the rims of her eye getting wet. Before she could stop her self, her cheeks became wet too. The princess threw her arms around her partner’s, stuffing her face into his neck once more and mumbling incoherent words. Hordak continued to smile, pleased with Entrapta’s reaction, but wished to hear her words. 

“Care to repeat that?” the clone joked, rubbing his partner’s back.

Entrapta lifted herself and faced Hordak, her face still damp with small tears still streaming down her cheeks. 

“Oh, Hordak!” She cried, sniffling and then wiping her face with the sleeve of her sweater, “This is the best gift I’ve ever gotten! I really don’t know what to say. It’s...it’s..”

“Out of this world?”

Entrapta’s hair frizzled in excitement. “Exactly!” She grabbed Hordak’s cheeks and snuggled his face into her own. 

“You’re amazing.” She stated, nuzzling their noses. Hordak could only respond with a small moan of reassurance.

This day was perfect, nothing could make them feel any better than they did right now.

Well…

Chirping was heard above them. Entrapta and Hordak separated from their headlock and looked up to find Imp, holding up a mistletoe, with the most devilish smirk on his face. Hordak immediately blushed. He was aware of the Etherian tradition, but it was not like he ever had a willing partner. And it was not like Entrapta was going to-

His thoughts were suppressed as soft, plump lips smashed into his own. On cue, Hordak wrapped his arms around her curvy waist as she cupped his cheeks. The kiss grew deeper and once again Hordak and Entrapta became lost into each other, Hordak caressing her back and Entrapta running a hand through his hair. Hordak melted into her arms.

Before things got too heated, Entrapta lifted her lips off of Hordak. He looked at her so dazed and out it. She giggled, happy to see the influence she had on him.

“We should do this every year.” Hordak declared, though a little slurred.

Entrapta smiled, suggestively leaning back down to meet Hordak’s face.

“The party..or the kissing?”

Hordak raised his lips only an inch away from her and smirked.

“Both.”

[merakiui]

OH MY GOD THE ORIGINAL CONCEPT IS SO SO GOOD BUT ALSO HELLO THE TAGS?? IM HEARING YOU LOUD N CLEAR [c,, can we please hear some more about incel azul pretty please 🛐🛐]

Yes, allow me to share some thoughts!!! >:)

(cw: yandere, nsfw, unhealthy behaviors/relationship, lots of self-loathing from azul, female reader, misogyny, incel behaviors, mention of implied non-con, stalking, obsession, for the sake of this pretend nrc isn't an all-boys university orz)

Incel!Azul is really, really hateful. Not only does he hate himself and his inability to effortlessly charm other mers like some of his peers, he hates their confidence, their attractive qualities, their slim bodies, their flashy tails, their pretty smiles. He hates all of it. But what he hates most of all is you, that sweet, pretty octo-mer who was so perfect in every way. If Azul is meant to be the monster and the moon, then you are the hero and the sun, a polar opposite in comparison to him. You're the one with a lot of friends. You're the one with the nice voice. You're the one who can swim fast and skillfully. You're the one who doesn't cry or ink uncontrollably like he does. You're so bright and happy and pretty.

Back when the two of you were attending the same school, everyone seemed to like you while they all turned their dislike on him. You'd get your fair share of confessions and gifts, and Azul witnessed all of it from the sidelines, silently loathing you and your popularity. How could anyone like you when you were just as ugly as him! The two of you are the same species, and yet it was he who was treated like the monstrosity. It was never fair. He hates it.

Despite the fact that you'd always publicly turn these confessions down, Azul thinks you might have accepted them in private. Sure, he doesn't have any solid proof to back up that theory, but he just knows you let those mers fuck you silly after classes had ended and you'd drag them off to all the places that became known for lewd activities. Places Azul has never been to, but he's overheard plenty of stories. That haunted shipwreck that's seen more sexual activity than paranormal activity. The coral reefs or the rocks or the sea trenches, dark, cramped spaces perfect for curling into one another. He's certain you've left your mark on every area.

When the school had its annual dance and you chose to go with a group of friends instead of the few mers who attempted to ask you out, he was filled with so much anger. How dare you have the luxury of that choice when he's always so alone. How dare you get to pick through various suitors while he's never even held hands with anyone before. How dare you get to exist happily as the same species while he's forever stuck in misery, constantly bullied solely for being alive. How dare you.

Spring is a very important time for merfolk. Lots of them set off in search of mates, some of them depart with their lifelong partner, and others prepare themselves to lay eggs, to be filled with eggs, to kiss and touch and hold their true love. Azul always thought he'd find his true love like in the storybooks, but after being told countless times that he's too ugly, too fat, too gross, too weird, too much of a crybaby he's begun to doubt his dreams. Every spring, Azul would pay close attention to you. Somehow you always seemed far more prettier in the spring, but that could just be because he was looking at you in less-than-innocent ways. Someone as perfect as you would never want to mate with him. His classmates were right when they said all of his young would probably be eaten before any of them could even brave the cruel waters of the Coral Sea because they all came from the weak, gross, squishy, clumsy Azul. Still, he'd watch you as you interacted with the many friends who surround you, wondering if a miracle might bless him and make him more attractive so that you'd finally, finally look his way. And maybe then, in the far-off future, he might spend spring with you.

You tried to approach Azul once. When you'd first transferred in and had learned there was another octo-mer just like you attending classes, you'd been eager to befriend him. But the Leech twins had gotten in your way every time, preventing you from even speaking to Azul directly. For that reason, you gave up on your pursuit, coming to the conclusion that the elusive Azul Ashengrotto was simply shy and socially awkward. You'd heard the rumors and the cruel remarks from classmates, and maybe you should've said something to stand up for him. But you were anxious back then. They talked about him so cruelly. If you tried to defend him, wouldn't they just turn their disgust on you? Wouldn't you be bullied next? It was a relief most of your class had accepted you and you'd wanted it to stay that way. So, while Azul was bettering his magical capabilities in order to prove his bullies wrong, you held your tongue and turned a blind eye.

Azul had thought that NRC would be his big break. He'd leave his past under the sea and live on land as a human. He'd expected and looked forward to new beginnings alongside the twins when that mystical carriage had come to pick them up, but what he hadn't expected was that you'd be there with them, a transformation potion already in your grasp. And another thing he hadn't been expecting was how pretty your human form turned out to be. He'd spent a lot of time at that human boot camp with you and the twins, making it his mission to do better than you. He never could surpass you.

Azul tries not to hate you most days, but that becomes impossible once you're enrolled in NRC and you start to make lots of friends. While you blossom, Azul spreads his poisonous roots into every relationship he fosters at school. Your relationships are genuine; his are built upon fear, contracts, shady deals, and deceit. Most days he really can't stand you and your carefree nature. But then most days Azul doesn't really know you. He's never really been your friend. He only knows the image you project and the image he projects onto you: the one where you're a little mer-slut who sleeps around with half the school in order to stay popular and loved.

He's cordial to you when the two of you cross paths, when you join him at lunch, when you visit the lounge, but when your back is turned he's gritting his teeth and silently detesting you. Even on land you're accepted. Even as a human you're praised and trusted. Even when he starts anew, you flourish. And he really despises that.

So when he reverts back to his old self, succumbing to the horrors of Overblot, and you're the first one he sees amidst the many students, all cowering or unconscious, he can't stop himself from wrapping a tentacle around your fragile human legs to bring you to him. How dare your friends try to save you. How dare you surround yourself with so much love and goodness. How dare you exist in his world. How dare you, an octo-mer just like him, be treated so kindly. It's not fair. It's never been fair. He hates you and everything that you are.

It isn't in the warm shallows of the sea during spring, but rather the frigid, inky depths of the realm that houses Octavinelle when he decides to permanently mark you as his.

[thequietmanno1]

Thelreads, MHA 205, Replies Part 2

1) “The Eldritch students are trying to get away from the flames of death, but it seems like their legs won’t be able to save them for much longer”- Actually, pony’s improvised herself a land speeder out of three of her available horns to aid in her mobility and keep one step ahead of shoji, who’s not gonna be slowed down by her firing one measly horn off at him, and can end the fight just by grabbing her, so she needs some means of keeping herself mobile enough to evade the octo-arms. Actually, if pony increases the number of horns she can move, that would be an effective means of transporting injured civilians out of danger should the need arise, just by having 8 or so horns make the corners of a rectangular tarp the injured could line in and get ‘towed’ behind pony’s land speeder- I bet she’d dub it ‘the Pony Wagon’

2)“My Little Murder of here is going to take you to push you back to the fires of hell that both of you are trying to escape. “- I understand that some of the hero move names need to be dramatic and punchy, in order to psych up the user for maximum effectiveness, but since pony doesn’t have any electrical capabilities I feel that’s a waste of a badass name for what is effectively just ‘4-horn shove’- at least attach it to something like a combo move with kaminari to justify the ‘thunder’ part.

3)“Quite convenient, be able to see behind you, you’ll never be ambushed by people claiming its nothing personal.”-Thinking about it, shoji’s the one student in the school best suited to pulling of the ‘batman backhand’-multiple times even.

4)“Goddammit, even when Ojiro gets something right, he still gets obliterated out of orbit. Those words hurt more than Shoto’s little candle fires could ever hope to do.”- ‘boring, but practical’ may be ojiro’s entire gimmick, but that still doesn’t stop the words cutting him deeper than the drill-shaped wounds he’s still sporting when his more ‘interesting’ classmates criticise his blandness in spite of his effectiveness. On the other hand, it means that he’s a solid cornerstone they can rely on in a pinch when one of the others is in trouble, such as ambushing pony here to overcome her long-range advantage over him and shoji.

5) “piss off, you’re currently the creepiest bastard in the room.”- You are now hearing the jaws theme playing in the middle of a solid stone court, as you turn around trying to catch a glimpse of the hunting mudshark, only seeing the slowly solidifying ripples left behind from his passing, slowly circling nearer and nearer to you…

6)“Oh nice cut there, from the annual meeting of eldritch abominations ft. ojiro to satan and jesus having a fistfight on the depths of hell.” - So, what do you think will be the backing soundtrack once the anime gets to this fight? I’m thinking something like “disco inferno, the burning ring of fire, burn baby burn” or my favourite “hellfire”

7)“oh my god, I can’t believe I’m happy to see you, creppyass McMask, but the fact that you’re here to save your friend must mean that both ojiro and shoji are done for. “-another advantage of Juzo’s quirk is that it provides him a layer of insulation form hazardous effects that can make navigating an area life-threatening for somebody else- if he wasn’t swimming under the heat he’d have been baked alive, and as it stands he would’ve been only able to keep himself above ground for a few seconds at max if he hadn’t knocked shoto out with that pipe.

8)“No Todoroki, that wasn’t the heat, that was that huge-ass piece of metal that fell right into your fucking head. THAT is what’s making you lose conscious.”-Little of column A, little of column B- Shoto might have been able to shrug off that pipe hit if he was in better condition, but the toll using his fire half at that level took on him was too much, and he ended up succumbing to the arms of Morpheus- it’s not just the kids with defensive quirks that can take a hit and keep going in MHA- everybody’s built a little sturdier than normal.

9) “You shut up tetsu, you’re literally a light rain away from dying, just let him go and take care of the poor bastard with a massive skull fracture. “-Adding to what I said about everybody being a level or two tougher than usual, rather succumbing to death or the sweet oblivion of unconsciousness, Juzo manages to hang on long enough to set things up for their duel KO moment despite getting blindsided by getting a sledgehammer with a swing boosted by jet rockets straight to his head- he should have a major concussion at least, yet, he still manages to keep enough marbles together to think of a plan to counterattack even as he’s collapsing.

10)“This guy is losing his cool, quite funny considering the average room temperature at this place, and he decided that he won’t die without at least taking some bastards with him.”-It’s also a nice nod to what Tetsu said about putting his life on the line in training to be able to do it in the real world, showing how he’s not willing to go down without doing everything he can to let the ‘heroes’ he’s supporting win, showing how they’re not so dissimilar.

11) “That’s debatable to be honest. Ida certainly has a lot of broken bones, and maybe even a broken spine, since that thing being doesn’t mean it isn’t still absurdly heavy”- It looks more like iida got caught by the very lip of the tower as it fell and slashed out on top of him, so the full weight of the thing’s not on top of him, just a few pounds of melted rubble and steel that he can’t break free off because it’s harder and more dense to push through than solid earth, and also because his legs are facing the wrong way this time. It would have been a different story if it had actually fell on him at the midway point up it, but by then it’d be a coin flip between getting crushed or suffocated first, once the tower hardened.

12) “There was also something about the other members of the team, but it matters not, since they weren’t trying to actively kill each other. No wait, scratch that, ponygirl tried to backstab Shoji.”-Technically, pony’s entire fighting style comes down to stabbing her opponents into submission with a large number of pointy sticks she can create and control at will freely, so fighting her is only really a step down in comparison to drillboy, who can shred you wherever he touches you.

@thelreads

[spicy-beats]

“MY DEAR RESIDENTS OF THE VALLEY.”

“First, I am glad that you have come here in such big numbers; it warm this old DJ’s hearts, GYAH HA HA. It’s an honor to watch all over your well-being and to rule over you, as your king. It has been over one hundred years so far, and I would be more than pleased to guide the people of Octo Valley for another century!”

“We’re here today to discuss several things, but first, I...uh, OW. FUCK.”

Awkward silence.

“Ahem. Sorry, diligent subjects, your king had a sudden bit of neck pain, was just a wasp or something....so, is it me, or is it hot in here? No seriously, can anyone turn the air conditioning on, it’s...well, I’ve just been informed that we have no air conditioning.”

“Oh well, I’m just gonna remove my shirt...well, I’ve just been informed that I also have no shirt on SERIOUSLY WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON AREN’T YOU BOILING IN YOUR OWN JUICES?”

“Let’s just disregard the fact I feel like we’re in the motherfucking damp jungle and go back to our annual economic report, GYAH HA HA. I’m just...gonna...”

THUD

MIC DROP.

[gyllenhvvl]

hi everyone! joo here!! so I wanted to throw up a quick request for mila moon (kim chungha)! she works as a web developer for DESiGNLUX (name is a wip) who are a small-ish independent company in london, the team she works in is quite small but I’d like for all of them to be pretty close? I'm thinking there's around 12-20 of them, so it rlly is quite small and the company offers for the team to go on annual trips to the french alps etc, I have more ideas on colleague plots that I could go on about but I’ll save it! so I thought, why not put up a request?! if you’d like to know more pls message me on discord (chgkn#2070) or msg me on tumblr (either here or my main @chgkn ) this is open to everyone so don't be shy! I’ll put a list below for a reference of the different types of job roles under the cut! <3

first last as project manager – alias

first last as requirement analyst – alias

first last as technical lead – alias

first last as ui designer – alias

first last as ux designer – alias

mila moon (23) as front-end web developer 1 – joo

first last as front-end web developer 2 – alias

tomas leitner (28) as back-end web developer 1 – octo

first last as back-end web developer 2 – alias

first last as content writer – alias

first last as marketing strategist – alias

first last as intern 1 – alias

first last as intern 2 – alias

first last as intern 3 – alias

+more later??? idk all the roles fgdgkfdg

[mister-lucky-bunny]

Scooby Doo: Monster Menagerie Chpt. 10

Description:  Shaggy and the gang meet up with Colonel Calloway to schedule the volleyball tournament.

Dusk was coming to a close, which would soon welcome the dark night sky, the moon barely visible beyond a thick sea of clouds above. During this time, any occupants of either school that sat next to each other would be inside, keeping to themselves with dinner, studies, or any other interests. In the military school, Colonel Calloway would be studying over his calender. Unsurprisingly, each day would be completely filled with his neat, yet tiny, writing. Black, red, and blue ink would be used for reasons only he knew, for different situations.

Currently, he was searching ahead a month, looking for any open positions that he may schedule the annual volleyball tournament between the two schools. In his opinion, volleyball was a little bit... dated. Especially since the students who took part in it were now much older, and probably didn't have as keen of a liking to the sport. However, it was also tradition, and he himself didn't like to stray too far from the usual. After all, as a headmaster of a military school, it was his job to keep everything as orderly as possible.

His finger carefully moved from day to day, thinking to himself about which day could work best. After a couple of minutes, he reached towards a pen, resting on his desk, and began to write neatly into the box. Exactly one month from today, the day before Halloween. It would work perfectly. After placing his pen down and stepping back from his desk, he moved over to his door, lifting his hat and jacket off of the rack before him and putting them on. The Colonel began his walk towards the old mansion of a private school.

The man kept an even, brisk pace, standing up straight and looking professional. Despite having a plain, thoughtful look on his face, his brain kept going, as it often was. Calloway knew that it wouldn't exactly be enjoyable to visit the school, though not because of the school itself. He was quite used to the odd exterior (and interior, for that matter). Instead, he knew that the monster students inside would not be happy to see him. He was thankful that he did not have to teach physical education to them anymore, but that just lead to another question that he began to ask himself. Who was teaching them? That question never left his head, though due to the fact that he was already quite a busy man, he never bothered to look for himself.

Now that he had a perfect opportunity, though, he would finally get his answer. As the Colonel crossed the border between his school and Miss Grimwood's, his movement slowed to a halt, an eyebrow perking at the vehicle parked nearby. He remembered that the only other coach he could remember seeing there drove a red van. The van parked here, however, was a strange clash of bright green, robin's egg blue, and orange. A very... retro hippie feel to it. The name on the side of it was also brought to his attention, his eyes thoroughly scanning over it. 'Mystery Machine'? For some reason, the name was somewhat familiar. Where had he heard it before? Radio or newspaper, most likely.

The Colonel shrugged to himself and sighed gently, turning his attention back to the school. If it was the same guy, maybe he touched up his van with a new coat of paint? Or maybe it was a new van altogether. Maybe, he secretly hoped, it was a new coach as well.

After moving across the drawbridge, he reached the front door, rapping his knuckles against the door before waiting patiently. Eventually, the door would open, revealing the strange octopus butler. If it were anyone else, they probably would have been weirded out by such a sight. However, Colonel Calloway was used to the cephalopod butler, and merely greeted with him with a tip of his cap. Soon enough, the octo-butler gave a small bow of it's own, stepping to the side and allowing the Colonel in. Time to get down to business...

___________________________________

Despite Shaggy ultimately being okay after the odd incident with him fainting for no apparent reason, the news would still come as a shock to the others once they finally returned from the crime scene. The fact that Phanty seemed so nonchalant when she brought up the fact to them didn't do anything to soften the blow. It wouldn't take long before the rest of the gang swamped around the lanky man, regardless of how many times he told them he was fine.

After the fifth examination from Velma, Shaggy waved them off, beginning to feel a bit overwhelmed. "Like, c'mon guys! I've already been looked over plenty of times! Nothing is wrong!" He insisted, sitting at the dining table with everyone else, Velma having just stepped away from checking his head.

"There aren't any injuries, that's for sure," Velma said, sitting beside of him, looking over him in a thoughtful manner. "Still, it's awfully strange how you just fell over so suddenly like that."

"Maybe you're just a little overworked, Shag," Freddie suggested. "I don't imagine being a coach is all that easy."

"That's probably it," Elsa interjected. "If it's been awhile since you've done any actual teaching, Coach, it's safe to say that your body is trying to get used to it again."

The lanky man scratched his head, thinking a little bit. He didn't feel worse for wear when that happened, but he also didn't want to worry his friends any more than he already had. With a small grin and a weary laugh, he nodded. "Like, that's probably it. Having a class before dinner probably distracted me or something."

Despite a small wave of laughter among everyone, there were still a couple of people who were worried, though kept it secret. If Shaggy looked and felt okay, then there was no reason to worry right? It was still concerning because no one knew why. Googie, with a raised eyebrow, turned to the detective, who sat across from her, eyeing the other man over some. "What do you think, detective?" She asked in a quiet, worried tone.

He remained quiet for a bit, not looking at her. After a few seconds, his grin flashed and he merely shrugged, turning to her. "It might just be exhaustion, like they said. I'm not a doctor, so unless he's dead, I wouldn't have a clue," He chuckled. That statement did little to make her feel better. With an uneasy glance back towards Shaggy, she sighed and fixed her hair idly with one hand. Nothing to fret about for now, at least.

During their dinner of some sort of quiche, Sibella had decided to speak up about a topic that Shaggy had not elaborated on. "So, Coach, if it's no trouble, could you please tell us how you, Scooby, and Googie met my Father?" Shaggy glanced upwards in the middle of his bite, first looking to the imploring vampire and then to Googie, who was looking at him back. Scooby was also looking to her for affirmation, which she gave with a small nod, mixed with a shrug. The rest of Mystery Incorporated had already heard the story, but they tensed up, wondering how she'd react. The detective looked their way, an eyebrow raised. It was obvious he was interested in hearing the story as well.

The other ghouls were very intrigued by this development too. Phantasma, not wanting to turn down a free opportunity for a free story, perked right up, eyes glued to her coach as she rested her chin in her hands, waiting eagerly. Winnie also perked up, becoming curious. "Hey, yeah! What happened between you and Bella's dad?" She'd ask, her words slightly muffled due to the fact she was eating with her mouth full.

Everyone was soon watching him, silently urging for the story. Even Miss Grimwood looked expectantly to the coach, a small, knowing smirk forming on her face. 'Like, does she know? Or does she just like watching me react under pressure or something?' Shaggy found himself asking to himself. After setting down his fork, Shaggy cleared his throat. "Well, uh... like, here's how Scooby, Scrappy, Googie, and I met the Count..."

The next few minutes would be Shaggy retelling the story of how he became a werewolf, with Googie adding in some points from her perspective, with Scooby concurring. Just like before, reactions were somewhat mixed, though from the ghouls' side, the most palpable emotion would be anger. Especially from Sibella, who's facial expression barely changed. While she did listen with interest, her somewhat curious look became more unreadable and stone-faced. With how badly her hand was shaking, though, it was clear to say that she was not pleased. She made sure to put her dining utensils down, hiding her growing fury. The anger from a vampire was so feasible, you could cut it with a knife. Winnie, who was much less subtle, looked less than pleased by this. On one hand, Shaggy had been a werewolf. On the other, it was against his will. And for what? A dumb road race for monsters? If she'd have known that this was going on, she would have immediately gone to her Papa and told him.

Tanis listened to the story with her eyes wide, rapt with attention. She was clearly shocked and horrified that Sibella's dad would do such a thing. After all, she had met the Count many times before, and he had always seemed so nice and pleasant! Why would he do such a thing to their coach? She was thankful that it didn't seem to leave any lasting effects on him, at the very least. Still... being turned into a werewolf against one's will didn't sound fun.

Elsa, Phanty, and the detective seemed to share the general emotion of vast intrigue. In Elsa's case, she was mostly wondering how (and why) the full moon could possess such powers to randomly decide when someone would become a werewolf under it. Was it even random? This was something she'd have to study about, surely. The detective's train of thought was more or less the same, minus the fact that his face was split into an expression of what could best be described as maniacal glee. To him, nothing was more fascinating to him currently than learning about gaining a werewolf curse without actually being cursed. As for Phantasma, her thought process didn't have as much depth as the other two. She was merely captivated by the amazing story the two were telling!

After a bit of time, Shaggy awkwardly ended his story with, "So like... that's it, I guess. All in all, a very weird story."

"I'm just glad that we don't have to see Dracula again..." Googie gulped, quickly turning her gaze to Sibella. "Um, n-no offense of course!"

Sibella didn't turn her gaze to the blond, looking as if she was doing everything to keep herself from flying off the edge, so to speak. "Oh, none taken, I assure you," She replied, her voice sounding quite cold. "I sincerely apologize about my Father. If I'd have known sooner..." The vampire quickly stood up, quickly turning away and moving out of the dining area. "If you all will excuse me, I have a letter to send to Father," She continued, almost sounding as if she was suppressing a growl. No one dared to try and stop her, not even Miss Grimwood. The aura she was emitting was frightening enough as it was.

It wasn't until the room was one vampire short did anyone speak up anymore. "...well I know someone who won't be getting any Christmas cards this year," Daphne muttered, grinning a little at her own joke.

"Well, that was an awesome story, regardless, Shaggy!" Phantasma giggled. "It does suck that you all got kidnapped like that, plus having to go through with that awful race? My dad's very lucky he doesn't have to partake in that. Glad you all made it out okay and taught him a lesson or two!"

"If he did do something, though, I wouldn't have hesitated to teach him a lesson myself," Winnie huffed, growling some. She did flash Shaggy an apologetic look, though.

"All I know is, I have a very stern letter to send to my parents," Elsa lamented, deciding to keep her interests to herself. After all, it was clear that they had been through a lot, and being reminded of it or showing any levity towards it probably wasn't very polite.

"Same here!" Tanis interjected. "I can't believe Mummy-Daddy would act so mean for a race! He was no better than those Calloway boys!" She huffed, crossing her arms.

"Like, girls, relax! This all happened years ago," Shaggy commented, moving his eyes from one girl to the next. "I'm just thankful we don't have to go through with that again."

"I'm not willing to forgive Dracula just yet, but as long as he doesn't butt into our lives again, I'll be thankful," Googie sighed, turning her attention towards where Sibella walked out from. "Is she gonna be okay..?" She asked cautiously.

"Oh don't worry about her," Miss Grimwood said, waving her hand. "I don't assume she's going to do much more than send a very strongly worded letter to her Father." She took a sip of her drink, thinking a couple of seconds before continuing. "...however, if she remains in her room, I'd be cautious about checking up on her. A brooding vampire is one that is filled with emotions. Sibella will be ready to talk about her emotions when she feels like she can. Until then, we'll just have to wait."

Dinner soon ended afterwards, since everyone had finished eating. Just as the detective was about to question Shaggy about the whole race, he was saved when someone had knocked on the door, gaining everyone's attention. As the octopus butler walked himself to the door to answer, Freddie spoke up. "Who could be stopping by this late?"

"That's probably the Colonel," Miss Grimwood answered, a snort of disdain coming from a certain red-haired werewolf, who soon got up and began to head to her room. After a glare towards Winnie, she continued. "He's probably here to schedule the volleyball tournament, and meet up with his replacement."

"Like, I remember him. Is he still as stuck up as usual?" Shaggy joked, sharing a laugh with the headmistress.

"I doubt he's ever going to loosen up, Coach."

The rest of the Mystery gang decided to stick with Shaggy, curious as to who this Colonel was. The detective was going to join them, but was soon flanked by Phantasma, who eagerly suggested that he tell her about the crime scene they had investigated earlier. More specifically, the dead body. At first, Velma wasn't too keen on the fact that he quickly agreed to do so, beginning to head up the stairs after Phanty flew into the ceiling, laughing in her usual giddy manner.

"They wanted to help us out, right? Might as well share the details with those who are willing," He answered simply before heading out. Velma's intuition told her that the ghost girl asking about the crime scene would not lead to her helping with the mystery, but she decided against bringing that point up to him. Phanty was nice and all, but she was a loose cannon. The only thing more dangerous than one of them is two of them in the same room.

Miss Grimwood, Shaggy, and the rest of the humans seated themselves in the living room, watching as the octopus butler walked in with the Colonel, still dressed in his navy blue suit, medals His mustache was still long and stringy underneath his long hooked nose, although it was clear that age was starting to take it's toll on the man. Despite that, he still carried himself with immense dignity and pride.

The look of pride soon wore off as his eyes fell upon the group of humans, recognizing two specific ones out of the whole group. Mainly, the tallest one and his dog. The look on his face was comparable to one who had just stuck his nose in a garbage can. This look quickly went away as the man cleared his throat. "Coach Rogers. I see we meet once again," He began, offering a hand. Shaggy quickly shook it, smiling politely.

"Like, good to see you again too, Colonel," He answered. Afterwards, Scooby took the hand with his paw, confusing the Colonel, but returning it.

"Er, likewise." His attention looked around to everyone else. "Are these fellow staff members?" He asked, sounding quite perplexed, soon taking a seat that was offered by the butler.

"Oh no, Colonel," Miss Grimwood replied. "They're all here to assist the local town with a few... attacks that have been occurring there, lately. I'm merely allowing them a place to stay and work until they solve it."

"A pleasure to meet you, Colonel," Freddie began, pointing between everyone in the group. "My name is Freddie, and that's Velma, Daphne, and Googie." Everyone gave a small wave to the man, who saluted them back briefly as a greeting.

The Colonel would then look a bit apprehensive about the headmistress's comment. "I see... well, good luck with that, in any case. That's one good thing about being in the middle of nowhere. I do have to protect my students, as I'm sure you understand Miss Grimwood." After a bit, he cleared his throat and straightened up. "However, right now I am here to discuss our upcoming game, if that's no problem."

With a nod, Shaggy leaned forward a bit. "Like, what do ya wanna discuss?"

________________________________________

It took every ounce of self control for Sibella not to slam her door shut and let out a loud exasperated scream. Rather, she gripped her fists tightly and let out an exasperated groan. She absolutely could not believe the nerve of him! Hadn't he sunken low enough without having to resort to kidnapping people for his dumb hobby? The vampire stormed over to her desk, digging out a spare sheet of paper and reaching for a pen, starting to write a letter. Her scrawl was a bit messy, due to rage, but she didn't seem to care about that.

At least, she wouldn't care about it until she heard something clatter against her floor. Her hand froze in place as her eyes widened, her face turning from anger to fear. Another small clatter got her to turn around towards her coffin, seeing a suitcase tremble around some. Sibella slowly set down her pen and made her way over to the suitcase. It was still closed tightly from the day she first arrived.

As the vampire reached her hand out towards the twitching suitcase, it seemed to pause, as if expecting her. She hesitated, as if it was going to suddenly attack her. She quickly moved her hands to the clasps and undid them, slowly opening the case up. Her large eyes seemed to widen some more upon what she saw. She had almost forgotten she had packed this, or rather, she wanted to forget she packed this.

Without waiting a second longer, she grabbed the item in her bag before it could move around some more, clinging it tightly to her chest. This had to be the reason for all of her nightmares, right? Had to be. Sibella moved towards her door and quickly opened it, peeking her head out. No one was in the hall, and she could hear talking. One conversation was coming from Phantasma's room, though music would play out in between every few sentences. Good. That would keep her distracted.

It was better to be safe than sorry, however, so she decided to levitate, though just barely. It was best to make as little noise as possible. As she carefully floated herself down the stairwell into the foyer, she peered her head just barely into the living room. Miss Grimwood and the others were having a conversation with Colonel Calloway. A perfect distraction, though she knew he wouldn't be sticking around for long. She had to hurry and hide this... particular item.

Thinking quickly, she hurried off towards the laboratory. Despite the door creaking open some, it didn't attract anyone closer to her, so she hurried down further into it. She was greeted with the dark room, barely lit by small candles that never seemed to burn out. Sibella began to look around, trying to find the best spot to hide it. The first thing she did was look towards her desk. That wouldn't do, there wasn't anywhere to hide it with her desk. Sibella's eyes then darted towards the cauldrons. Nearby shelves and boxes kept ingredients for potion work, but all that would do was make a big mess. Besides, with how often everyone went over there, it wouldn't be long before someone found it.

She then turned to the bookshelves. Debatable, since no one's really looked through a book there in awhile. With the layer of dust masked onto the shelves, it would be easy to hide her item. It would still stand out, though, if she put it there. Moving her gaze to the side, she figured it out. Rather than hiding it in the shelf, she would just have to hide it behind the shelf. Thankfully, the shelves weren't pushed up too close to the wall, but it would still take a bit of effort in hiding it in such a place.

Sibella got to her knees and started to shove the item inwards. It was much tighter than it looked, but thankfully managed to hide it away, almost out of sight. If anyone bothered to get really close to the back of the shelf, they might be able to see it, but other than that, it was a pretty good spot.

A thought occurred to the girl as she began to levitate once more, starting to move back to her room. She could easily destroy it, as she had the capabilities. She shook her head upon thinking that, though, knowing better. First of all, it was her Father's, and despite the fact that she was still rather angry with him, this was a very important item for him to protect, and he didn't even know that she had taken it from him in the first place. Incurring the wrath of her father wouldn't do her any favors, especially since this item was incredibly important. And also very dangerous. The vampire quickly closed the door behind her and sighed, moving back to her desk.

'Hopefully the bad dreams will stop, at least,' Sibella thought to herself, continuing her letter.

____________________________________________

"Burns and scratch marks?! Oh how gruesome!" Phantasma giggled madly, floating at least a couple of feet off of the floor, making the detective have to look up at her.

"Oh it was. Any hair remaining on him was smoking and singed so badly, I'm surprised he even had any hair," The man replied, grinning in an excitable manner. He did so love to share details of his investigations, even to a ghost that was just as crazy as he was. The man was leaning against the nearby wall, hands remaining in his hoodie pockets.

"How much blood was there?" The ghost asked curiously, her voice just as eager for more details.

"There definitely wasn't a shortage, though most of it was around the body, as to be expected," The detective mused, almost disappointed that there wasn't more.

This didn't stop the phantom from giggling crazily. "Eww, gross! I bet that whole place just reeked!" She floated closely, face to face with the other man, both of them sharing wide smiles. "Tell me, was he missing any limbs? Fingers? Maybe something spilling out of him?!"

"Busted nose, though it was kinda hard to tell due to the fact that he had no face on him." The detective's grin seemed to widen in amusement as Phanty reacted in shock.

"Woooah! No face, really? I can't imagine being without a face!" Phanty spoke aloud, crossing her legs as she 'sat' in midair. "Whatever's out there, it must be mad as hell!"

"That was the case with the other one we found. No face, scratch marks, burns, all that jazz." He put his hand on his chin, looking marginally more thoughtful. "I'm not sure if that's a motive or not. All it proves to me is that this thing is persistent, whatever it is."

"Well, let's hope you and the others figure out what it is before it finds us! I mean, I'm pretty sure I'm safe, since I'm incorporeal and all that, but it still wouldn't be pleasant to have that face burner come around here," Phantasma rambled, shrugging and grinning.

"I'm sure we will. I believe we're getting closer." With that, he stood straight and turned his attention to the large organ in the room. "On a different note, I take it that's your organ?"

Phantasma brightened up, giggling madly as she floated to the organ, sitting herself down at the seat. "Yup yup! Well, sorta, anyways. Technically it's the school's and Miss Grimwood's, but she lets me play it! This is technically the music room, but I stay around here so much, it's practically my bedroom at this point!" After saying that, she began to play a small, haunting refrain on her organ. The man listened to it, smiling and enjoying the music. After a minute, she stopped and turned around, returning to laughing. "Do you play anything?"

The man merely shrugged, eyeing over the old, yet very intricate, detail of the organ. "Well, sort of. Not an organ though. Used to want to play in a band, so I learned guitar." At this point, he moved a hand out of his hoodie pocket, showing his fingers, which were very calloused and scarred. "I decided towards a different career choice when that didn't work out."

Phantasma eyed over his hands a bit before getting an idea. "Oh really? One second!" She soon got up and floated over to a large walk in closet, rummaging around. The man raised an eyebrow and watched her, curious as to what she was searching for. In a few seconds time, she came back, holding a dusty old acoustic guitar, which she quickly handed over to the detective. While it looked old, it was still in perfect condition.

After giving it a quick glance, he turned to look at the ghost girl, who was now eagerly watching him. It was clear she was expecting him to play. With a small shrug, he grinned and pulled the strap on, straightening out the guitar. He'd strum the strings a couple of times, using his other hand to tune. Once that was done, he began to play, shutting his large, owl like eyes. The song he decided to play was also a bit of a haunting refrain, with almost a Spanish feel to it. He wouldn't keep the song to simple strums and chords. He wanted to play.

He kept going for about a minute as well, stopping and looking up at the Phantasma, who soon began to giggle and applaud for him. "Wow, that was... awesome!" She fixed herself on the seat, her body facing the organ once more, but turning her head to look back towards him. "Say, wanna try and see if we can work out a duet together? Or I guess in my case, a 'boo-et?'" She laughed at her own pun, which the man followed with a wide smile.

"Sounds like a scream," He answered, giving a few idle strums to the old guitar.

__________________________________________________

"The 30th of October will work just fine, correct?"

"Like, sounds good to me. What do you think, Miss Grimwood?"

"Works perfectly for us."

The meeting was moving to a conclusion as the Colonel confirmed the date. For the most part, no one else really had anything to add, and merely observed. Thankfully, the meeting wasn't too long or boring, lasting about five minutes.

"Excellent. I will be expecting you," He concluded, standing up and offering another handshake to Shaggy, which he took.

"Sounds cool, man. Like, may the best school win!"

With a somewhat smug grin, the Colonel replied. "Don't you worry, Coach Rogers. We intend to." With a small tip of his cap, he bid the others good day and left the building, heading back to his own school. Scooby and Shaggy scratched their heads as Miss Grimwood spoke up. "Well, I'll be expecting you to whip those girls into good shape, Coach! After all, you did such a good job last time, I assume it'll be no problem."

"Yeah, Shaggy! It shouldn't a problem. They're already really talented, and with you helping, they're bound to beat that military school," Daphne concurred enthusiastically.

"I have to admit, I didn't believe it at first when you said you used to be a coach. But now that I've observed how you do it, I think it's safe to say that we all have a lot of confidence in you two and the rest of the girls," Velma added, smiling at gently at him.

"Reah, Raggy! Re got this!" Scooby said, wagging his tail as he beamed up at his best friend, who returned the smile.

"Wow, like, thanks everyone! I know we'll all do the best we can. The girls are already showing lots of improvement. Like, we'll win for sure!" He added, chuckling some.

"That's the spirit!' Freddie beamed, adding in a thumbs up for good measure.

_____________________________________________

...

I see now.

The skinny one.

He has the most experience out of everyone else.

I am quite lucky to have gazed inside of his mind.

...

But this is only the beginning for me.

I know more than before, but not enough.

Never enough.

If I want more, I must delve deeper.

But who?

...

Oh.

Perfect.

They won't suspect a thing.

I will have to wait.

It will be torturous.

I do not like waiting.

No no no no.

But it must be done.

Until then, I must wait.

...

_________________________________________________

Author's Notes: To be honest, I don't like how short I made this chapter. It took me forever to figure out any sort of direction, and even then I don't think I added in enough. Writer's block sucks, so sorry if I made you all wait for a short chapter that probably isn't written well. Regardless, I hope you all enjoy it! Leave a review on what you think of the story so far and what I could be doing better. Until then, thanks for reading my works!

[linddzz]

Highlights of the conference:

-The networking app has an entire thread for people to show off their animal tattoos, further proving my idea of "Newt Geiszler is the best marine biologist representation"

-Aquarists are all introverted weird fish people and the organizers know how to fix this for networking: Big name tags with your location/job, and so. much. alcohol.

-No you dont understand every night has involved endless free supplies of local craftbrew beer and wines.

-One lady who is a damn lead supervisor at her facility meandered up to me to tell me she liked my bowtie, then she formally stuck her hand out and went "hi Im -name- Im an aquarist" I got to see her freeze, hand still out, eyes widening in horror at realizing we're all fucking aquarists. You could see her deep soul shaking wish to be consumed by the ocean that she so loved in that moment. I responded with "oh my god IM AN AQUARIST TOO!!!!" We are all so awkward.

-Had a very alcohol-influenced in depth discussion with a lady from Monterey about nudibranch penis fencing and the two of us basically kidnapped this poor random bypasser to teach her about all the ways fish change their sex. I dont know if the woman was legit interested or was too scared to try and escape these two petite fish weirdos who were very passionate about Weird Freaky Ocean Sex

-Had another beer influenced conversation with one of the industries lead coral scientists on the long term effects of being raised Catholic and what being taken to confession at age 8 fucking does to a kid. "Thats why we're all so damn anxious"

-I used to volunteer at the National Aquarium in Baltimore (long time blog followers may remember). The damn curator recognized me and came up to ask how Ive been (he was my main reference that got me this job) and it was the weirdest damn moment because I kept remembering how much I SHAMELESSLY SUCKED UP TO HIM for them good reference points and here he was with crooked sunglasses absolutely HAMMERED.

-My boss is notorious. He does have a dry, sarcastic sense of humor and has declared himself "the coral god" of the industry but I had no idea the breadth of what I can only call a Fond Infamy he holds in the industry. I just say where I work and people KNOW. Reactions range from a knowing grin of "how's that going for you" to "oh you work for -name-??? Yeah Ive heard of him he's a crazy man!"

Apparently my boss got banned from MACNA, the annual hobby-based aquarium conference. When I asked him he shouted "BECAUSE I TOLD A FUCKING JOKE" and would say no more. I can only get whispered bits of it. His banning is legendary. It is the thing of fables. All I know is his presentation was called "How to be an Aquarist" and was, and I quote: "12 solid minutes of crude, filthy humor presented at a family conference."

His status of legend was solidified when, in what one curator called "the ballsiest move Ive seen" the next year he came to RAW (this conference im at) and went "you may have heard MACNA banned me. They did. Here's why" and gave THE EXACT SAME PRESENTATION

-Remember the octopus button up I had in that selfie a few days ago? I wore it to a networking event (aka the conference bought out a brewery for the night and let us loose on endless beer). Two dudes also wore the same shirt. Of course we're all GPO keepers. You could find the octo keepers by all the octopus themed clothes and jewelry.

-A poor animal handler designer from Denmark fucking dying and slowly melting in the florida heat. Last seen rapidly fanning himself and going "oh yeah this is the latest in Dutch air conditioning"

-overheard "nonono shhh you're with friends you can say it. We all know, it's safe. Sea turtles are all fucKING ASSHOLES"