#or when i press the button i have my eraser set to it will like... skip or not register

[itsnotalemon]

the singular doodle i did on my new drawing tablet i didnt totally hate,,, i hate new things,,,

[jubshead]

𝐌𝐨𝐜𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐬𝐚

Paring: Rio Vidal x Reader

Summary: The only person who could ruin a vacation in Italy was your stepmother, but what if she made it unexpectedly better?

A/N: Okay, so this was inspired by the second season of White Lotus and the title is in italian because I thought the english word was too crude.

I hope this isn’t too OOC, let me know!

This isn’t beta read and english isn’t my mother language, so bear with me.

Warnings: Face slapping, non-consensual spanking, dubious consent, unwanted arousal, degradation kink, face sitting.

I hope I didn’t leave anything behind, but if I did let me know.

Word count: 3.1k

Date: Nov 05, 2024

Comments and constructive criticism are always welcome!

Masterlist

Tag list: @jmkjournalblog @thecavalrywife @yourbasicqueerie @polaris-likethestar @riosslut @maevaofendora @yippie-kai-gay @w1theredroz3 (sorry for tagging you guys again, I’m making a few adjustments)

─────── ⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅ ───────

The sun shines through the blowing white curtains and into the bedroom. The last few days in Sicily were cloudy, and as pleasant as they had been, you’ve been longing for a day at the beach. The weather today was perfect for spending time in a bikini and staying at the hotel, not visiting any tourist spots or museums.

Italy is breathtaking. College was wearing you out, so spending a few weeks away from the student mentality is doing you good, it also helps that your father is paying for everything, even if it doesn’t erase the complicated relationship you two had.

Waking up early is mandatory in every vacation and today was especially easy. As soon as you had taken a peek at the open window of your room, you got out of bed. The constant tiredness you felt from your routine had vanished a few days into the city, and you were excited to make the most of it.

Skin glistening with sunscreen, you head downstairs for breakfast. The buffet was set up on a covered balcony with the chairs outside, where you could enjoy the view of the italian architecture as you ate. Grabbing a few fruits and a spoonful of eggs, you head out to find an empty table, only to catch sight of your father’s raised arm moving left and right to get your attention.

This vacation would be perfect if it weren’t for them. 

“Good morning.” You say, settling on one of the chairs.

Your greeting goes unanswered. Your father is back on his phone and your stepmother gives you a mouth pressed smile, doesn’t bother pretending she likes you. Every time you were in their presence, you felt like throwing up. Besides the fact that your father is 30 years older than her, you still hate both of them for the affair they had while your parents were together. 

You’ve always known your father was an asshole, but adultery was the final straw. The only reason you kept in contact with him was because of your mother. The saint she was, begged you to not distance yourself from him, scared you would be alone when she was gone, and how could you not grant a dying woman’s wish?

Rio was a cunt, but you couldn't deny that she was attractive. Your father wanting to stay with her wasn't a huge surprise. It was pretty clear, though, that the feeling wasn’t reciprocated. She was obviously with him for the money, and you were pretty sure she was cheating on him. Karma is a bitch, after all, and your dad’s time has finally come. 

Eating your meal slowly, you enjoy the light breeze blowing your hair back. Cargo navy blue shorts and an open white button shirt hide away your black bikini and when you stretch your arms up, you feel eyes on you. Turning towards your stepmother, you’re greeted with sunglasses covered eyes and a similar blouse to yours, her brown hair is down. 

“I have to get some work done, so I won’t be able to spend the day with you.” Your father tells you, finally looking up from the phone.

“That’s fine.” You reply, shoving a spoonful of papaya into you mouth 

Oh, thank goodness you wouldn't have to stay with them today. 

“Rio will go to the beach with you, though.” 

Your eye twitch at that. Glancing in her direction, you see her tongue poking into her cheek and a side smile, clearly enjoying your suffering. 

“I’m sure she would like to do something else. “ You try. 

“No, no. I want you to spend time together, get to know each other.” Your father and his need to make you two close, this whole trip was all about that and yet you still avoid her like you have done all these years. You’ve never wanted any kind of relationship with her and that wasn’t about to change. 

“Whatever.” You breathe out. 

“Come up to our room. Rio needs to change and I can give you girls some cash to go out and buy a few clothes.” Yeah, that wasn't going to happen. Spending as much time away from her as possible was one of your goals in this vacation.

He leaves his uneaten breakfast on the table and gets up. 

“Fine.” You concede. 

In the hallway, they walk ahead of you and you take a moment to watch them. Your father moves with the confidence of a rich white man with a plastic filled face. He’s in his 70's and doesn’t have the worst body, but if Rio was putting up with him because of money, it must be torture. She was clearly above his level, with black hair, slim body and defined arms. Anyone could see that. She had a powerful aura and walked with a sway to her hips. 

You look up when you realize you’re staring at her ass. 

The white door opens up with your dad's key card. Their bedroom is huge. The entrance leads to a living room with two couches and a coffee table. At the parallel wall to the entry, a large door opens to a balcony with a beautiful view of the mountains, the water constantly crashing against the rocks. Their bed is on the left side and is separated by a bow shaped wall, the other side of the room is the bathroom. It has a big counter with multiple beauty products. 

“I’m off. There’s a computer room downstairs, if anyone needs me, I’ll be there.” He hands you three hundred dollars and goes to kiss Rio. 

He holds her waist firmly and she turns her head before his lips contact with hers. She pushes him slightly back and pat his shoulders, you hold in your laugh. 

“Okay then.” He mutters embarrassed, ruffling your hair on his way out.

It doesn’t take 10 seconds after he leaves for you to turn to her and say. “Look, we don’t have to do this. I don’t want to spend time with you and I’m sure the sentiment is mutual.” 

She fake gasps at you, eyebrows raised and smirks. “You’re gonna hurt my feelings.” 

Rolling your eyes, you head to the bathroom to wash your hands, they feel sticky after eating the fruits from breakfast. You hear some movement in the bedroom and assume Rio is grabbing her bikini. The wardrobe door closes shut and you glance up in the mirror to watch your stepmother's figure walking behind you. You’re one step away from moving out of the restroom when she slips her blouse and shorts off. 

Time seems to stop as you watch her with her back to you, her ass is completely bare and you stare as she first ties the top knots of the two-piece. She bends to pull up the bottoms and you look down to your hands, your breath comes out shallowly, the image buried into your mind.

“Boo.” A voice says, her breath ghosts your ear and you try to hide your startlement. 

Looking up, you purse your lips. She’s standing a foot behind you and smiles smugly in your direction. When you turn around, her face is closer than you expected.

“What do you want?” You ask sharply.

“What do I want?” She repeats slowly, her fingers running through your hair ends. “You tell me.” She stares into your eyes and you squint, grabbing her shoulder and pushing her back.

“Fuck off.” You let out an incredulous laugh. “I always knew you were a whore, but this is beyond anything I’d have expected.” 

“Why? Are you still mad at me because of mommy?” She teases with a fake pout. 

Your entire face closes off and you take a step towards her. 

“Don’t talk about my mother. You could never be half of the woman she was.” 

“Oh, yeah? Your father would disagree.” 

The reaction is instantaneous. Your palm stings from the contact and you gape at her, surprised at your own slap. With your hand frozen in midair, you observe as her head turns back in your direction, her cheek is stained by red fingers and she lets out a breathy laugh, running her digits through it. 

“You are gonna regret that.” 

The apology that was about to come out of your mouth is cut off by the yank on your scalp, your body is forcefully rotated towards the sink and you hold the impact with your palms. The tug in your hair makes your back bend in an uncomfortable way and your neck aches as it’s pulled back. Rio pressed firmly against your arched ass and rested her chin on your shoulder, looking at your startled face through the reflection. Her nails sink in your flesh.

“What are you doing?” You breathe out, partially scared and slightly aroused. 

“Has anyones ever told you that you’re a brat?” She avoids your question with one with her own, you feel fingers running down your waist. 

“Has anyone ever told you?” You return. 

She scoffs as her mouth breaks into a grin, shaking her head left and right. The digits you felt moving through your covered skin grip you with full force and move to the front of your shorts, unbuttoning it. Panic flashes in your eyes as she pushes it down. You struggle against her hold and she pulls your hair harder. 

“Don’t fight it, sweetheart.” 

Breath catches in your throat when her fingers grab a handful of your bare ass. 

“Do you know how I tame a brat?” She whispers in your ear and answers her own question. “I teach her a lesson.” 

The sound of her palm colliding with your backside echoes off the white walls and your surprised yelp follows it. The slap doesn’t hurt, you could bet Rio didn’t put all her strength into it, the worst part, for sure, is that it felt good. The sting brings a delicious burn to your skin and you prevent yourself from asking for more.

The second time it happens, you grab harder into the counter. Words seem to fail you and you stand still, this whole thing feels like a fever dream. You look up at the mirror and see Rio’s eyes completely fixated on your ass, she smoothes her hands through it and you shudder. 

The one that follows is firmer and you groan, unable to contain yourself. Goosebumps mark your skin and your body reacts to the pain, shifting uncomfortably against your bikini.

“What? Cat got your tongue?” She asks, raising her brows and giving you a maniac grin.

“Fuck you.” 

She ‘tsks’ behind you and hums, slapping you three times in a row. The reaction is instantaneous and you hate yourself for pushing your ass back against her. 

“Who’s the whore now?” She asks in your ear and laughs. 

The taunting worsens your condition. Slick gathers in your underwear and you bite your lips, stressed by the way your body is reacting to your step mother. She doesn’t give you any type of relief and smacks you two more times. This torture seems to be going on forever, but you’ve only counted seven slaps. You had no idea how long it would last.

You’re about to speak when she strikes you one more time, with an open mouth, you aren’t able to contain the moan that escapes you and your face lights up like a christmas tree.

“You are so cute when you blush, sweetheart.” She tells you and licks your ear, her palm massages your sore butt and she adds. “Everytime we meet, I just want to have you all to myself.” She pulls back and looks at your pitiful position. Arched back, red ass and shorts bunched up mid-thigh, she runs tongue over her teeth. “When I saw the opportunity today, I just knew I had to take it. It’s so easy to rile you up and the fact that you hate me only makes it all the more delicious.” You shudder at her words. 

She is fucking mental. 

She surprises you for a second time with a spank. Tears well up in your eyes, the sting is worse than before and your arousal is burning you up from inside. The whole situation is making you dizzy, you feel like you’d fall down if Rio wasn’t holding you so tightly. Your neck hurts and you almost beg her to stop, but you couldn’t handle the humiliation, so you face it like a big girl. 

She delivers two more and you screw your eyes shut. One tear runs down your face and you feel Rio releasing the grip on your hair, turning you around to face her. 

“Ten slaps, that’s all. No need to cry.” She runs her thumb over your wet cheek. 

The sink presses against your backside and the cold of it helps with the burn, with your eyes still closed, you take a deep breath. You’re still in shock. 

“Did you learn your lesson?” She asks, her palms holding your wrist against your breasts. 

You stare at her for a second. Laughing at her smirk, you spit right in her face. She closes her eyes, whipping the dripping saliva with her fingers. Her entire face closes off, her patience seems to have run thin. 

She doesn’t say anything else, turns around and pulls you by the forearm. You struggle against her hold, but she’s stronger than you expected. Losing your balance when she throws you on the mattress, you don’t have time to get up before she’s upon you, holding your wrist above your head and kissing you roughly.

You hate yourself for it, but it doesn’t take 5 seconds for you to kiss her back. She’s in full control of the kiss and you writhe beneath her, failing to release your arms. Her tongue runs against yours and you can barely breathe from the intensity, your head spinning. 

One of her hands runs down your side to the bikini bottom. 

You suck in a breath when she separates. 

“I could eat you alive in this, couldn’t take my eyes off you at breakfast.” She tells you, licking your cheek. 

Her hand brushes the black fabric before pushing it aside, you are embarrassed by your state. Her fingers run through your wet folds, circling your entrance as you whine, desperate to be fucked.

“You are pathetic.” She says close to your face. 

Fuck your body for reacting the way it shouldn’t. The degradation turns you on even more and you feel your resolve crumbling. Rio chuckles at the intern battle she sees in your eyes. 

“Don’t worry, you won’t have to use that pretty little head of yours for long.” 

She rolls off of you. The opportunity to escape presents itself and you don’t move an inch, with your wetness sticking to your thighs, you just want Rio to have her way with you. She smirks at you and crawls up your body until she’s stradling your ribs. 

She doesn't put her full weight on you as she squeezes your cheeks and says. “Let’s see if this mouth is good for anything other than being disrespectful.”

You barely have time to understand the implication before her cunt completely shadows your vision. Her bikini is set aside and she pushes her hips down, making you grip her thighs in an attempt to control her pace. Giving up on your moral high ground, you lick a stripe up her lower lips. She hums on top of you and grinds down, her juices smear on your chin and you’ve only just begun. Apparently you weren’t the only one affected by the spanking.

Focusing your attention elsewhere, you leave a hard bite on her inner thigh, taking your hatred on her skin. She moans and sits completely on your face, making it impossible to breathe. 

“You better get to work, sweetheart.” She mocks you and amends. “Before you pass out.”

You fully believe she’d let that happen so with renewed energy, you grab into her butt and grind her center against your face. Your tongue circles her entrance before going in. Hearing her hand grab the headboard, you begin to move in and out. Your pace is rapid and she seems to enjoy it as she starts to ride your face. Sucking her lower lips makes her groan on top of you, so you repeat the motion and squeeze a handful of her ass, making her moan. 

With little breath, you stick your tongue out and let her chase her own orgasm. She slowly moves in circular motion and spreads her juices around your face. Her movement picks up speed and within seconds she’s bouncing against your mouth. You grip her ass tightly and feel your nose bumping against her clit. 

She becomes a moaning mess on top of you. 

For someone who can’t breathe, however, eternity seems to pass as you struggle to keep up with her. She is clearly on the edge and trying to reach her peak, so, in a last attempt to get her off of you, you run your tongue all the way up before sucking her clit as hard as you can. 

Her movement comes to a halt and you feel her body tensing up, her thighs tighten around your head and your ears ring from the pressure. Her orgasm finally hits and she shudders on top of you, breathing heavily and letting out unrestrained moans. 

She collapses beside you and you take the biggest gulp of air you can manage. Your breathing is as ragged as hers and you curse yourself for having a weakness for older women, this shouldn't have happened. 

Silence befalls you for about a minute as Rio gathers herself and you contemplate your life choices. As soon as her breathing is slower, she gets up on her knees in the bed. All your previous worries leave your mind as soon as she’s back upon you, straddling your waist and biting her lips.

She kisses you and grasps the wrists that hold her face, you press your center against hers and let out a whine when she pulls back and gets out of the bed. With a puzzled face, you sit up and ask.

“Where are you going?” 

“To the beach.” She simply says, grabbing a sun hat and putting it on. 

“What?” You rapidly blink.

“You heard me.” Her face breaks into the biggest grin you’ve ever seen in her sulking face. 

“Rio.” You whine like a petulant child. 

She comes towards you and gives you a long peck. Your mouth follows hers  as she pulls away.

“Brats don’t get rewards.” She states and heads for the door, exiting the room with a witchy cackle as you throw yourself back onto the bed. 

[hannahssimblr]

Photoshop Tutorial #1 - Change Background & Add Reflections

Before & After

You will need

Photoshop

Internet Access

I was inspired to make this tutorial after facing a dilemma in my game. I wanted my sims to swim in Brindleton Bay, but, shock horror, the water there is not swimmable. Luckily, I know how to change the background of my screenshots to make it appear as though it is - and I'm going to bring you through the process of how!

Starting off, in game, I brought my sims to Tartosa and got my desired shot. Then, heading over to Brindleton Bay, I got some shots of the horizon that I wanted as a backdrop.

Here's a picture I took:

Okay! Let's open up Photoshop!

For reference, I have Photoshop 2024, but most if not all of the features I've used should be included in older versions too.

Here's our image! Now I'm selecting the Background layer in the layers panel and press CTRL J twice to create two duplicates.

I'll turn off the bottom two layers for now, (by clicking the eye button, for newbies) and go to the properties panel. this should be on the right hand side, above the layers panel, but if it isn't, simply go into window > properties to switch it on.

With the layer selected, I click remove background and voila! Photoshop has... er... done her best to remove the background (she sometimes gets it wrong, but at least it's a help)

You'll see that a layer mask has been created. (circled in image).

If you haven't used layer masks before, the only important thing to know is that black will erase and white will add.

So with my brush tool (shortcut B) selected and set to black, I can go around the image and erase all of the parts I don't want.

If you have a steady hand and a tablet/cintiq you can do the same job a little quicker with the lasso tool (shortcut L) by selecting any unwanted area and simply pressing delete

Once I've removed all that needs to be removed, I see that there's a little slice of her hair that needs to be added. I can change the brush colour to white and paint it in.

Done! Easy!

Okay, let's switch off this layer for now, and switch on the one beneath it.

This is the layer I want to make look like the Brindleton Bay sea. So I'll make sure to pull an image of the water up as reference for colour.

This time I'm going to create a layer mask using the polygonal lasso tool

It's easy.

Find the lasso tool in the tool panel on the left of screen (the third icon from the top - or by pressing L on your keyboard)

Left click & hold, and a menu will pop up. Select the polygonal lasso tool.

Click around the area you'd like to mask, in my case, the sea. Tip: if you hold down the shift key while clicking, you will be able to create perfectly straight lines.

Click on the layer mask button at the bottom of the layers panel (pictured)

Everything except the selected area should disappear!

A small thing here, but I don't want the reflection of the rock in the water in my picture. I'll select the layer (not mask), take the eyedropper tool (shortcut i) with the sample set to all layers, and use a soft brush (B) to paint it away.

Next I'm using adjustment layers to edit the colour of the water, to try and make the blue turquoise paradise look more like the horrible green bog water of the bay.

You'll find these next to the mask button in the layers panel.

For my picture, I'm using hue/saturation for the colour and levels for the light. you can fiddle around with any of the adjustment layers to find what works for you.

I've shown the adjustments I've made for my specific scene below, just for reference.

When I'm happy with the colours/lighting, I select all adjustment layers (shift + L click to select multiple), then right click and choose create clipping mask. This is to ensure that the adj layers don't affect any other parts of the image, just the area I want it to.

And there! My water is looking sludgy, just like I wanted.

Okay! I've decided that I'd like some texture in the water. It always annoys me that sims water looks so flat. So here's where Pinterest enters the story.

I like Pinterest because unlike Google, the majority of the images are not watermarked. You're also slightly less likely to find AI slop.

I wanted some water ripples, so I searched for something like Water Texture, found one I liked, and dragged and dropped it into my photoshop file.

From here, I transformed it (CTRL + T) by resizing & rotating the bounding box, then grabbing the corners while holding CTRL to create some kind of perspective that works for the image.

I didn't bother bringing it all the way to the horizon, because I intend to fade that out with a gradient anyway. I had to sacrifice the bottom of the image for the sake of correct perspective, but that's fine. I will crop that out later.

With the texture layer selected, set the blending mode to soft light. It blends nicely!

Now! Another layer mask! These are our friends

With the texture layer still selected, I create a layer mask.

This time, because I had nothing in the image selected first, the layer mask will appear white. That just means nothing has been masked yet.

With it selected, I find the gradient tool (shortcut G) if you press G and the paint bucket tool is activated, simply navigate to the tool panel on the left of the file, hold the paint bucket tool down and select gradient.

I'll change the colour to black, and make sure I have the foreground to transparent gradient selected.

Other settings are pictured.

I'll drag the gradient over the area I want to mask. In this case, the top of the water texture to make it appear as though it's fading away towards the horizon.

(Doubly make sure you've selected the mask, not the layer while performing this action.)

Looking good!

Time to drag the layer above your adjustment layers and create a clipping mask again.

Alright! Let's do the background.

I'll drag that image of Brindleton Bay that I took earlier into the file.

I want to place it below my sea layer, and above that original background layer (I am going to leave that untouched for insurance reasons)

Then, using the move tool (shortcut V) I'm simply going to move it to the correct place. Basically I just want the horizon lines to match up.

Tip: hold the shift key to drag an image in a straight line.

Enter to confirm.

You can see that the sky is now unfinished, but it's such an easy fix. I'll just select the sky colour with the eyedropper tool, then use the paint bucket tool & brush tool to fill in the sky.

Done!

Now - note that the sea doesn't quite blend in with the background. To fix this, I'm going to take my eyedropper tool (shortcut i) and select some of that dark green colour beneath the mountains.

I will create a layer (+ button on the base of the layer panel) and drag it above that sea texture layer I created earlier.

Then I'll create a layer mask to clip it to the sea.

I'm grabbing that gradient tool again (G) and creating a nice gradient on the horizon.

The horizon line is a little sharp, in my opinion, I want it more faded. So, using a soft brush (B) and that same green colour, I'm going to create a new layer & place it above that green gradient, this time I'm not clipping it.

Holding down the shift key, I'm going to draw a straight line right across the horizon. This helps to blend it all together a bit better.

Now! for Reflections!

Firstly, I'm going back to that sky layer with the Brindleton Bay mountains, and I'm going to duplicated by pressing CTRL + J

I'm dragging it above the sea layer, but below all of the other clipping masks. This will automatically create a clipping mask for the new layer.

Next, I'm going to edit > transform > flip vertical

With the move tool (V) I'm moving the image upwards so that the horizon lines meet and it looks like the lighthouse and mountains are reflecting in the sea.

Note: make sure auto select is off while using the move tool on a layer that lies beneath several others.

This leaves a little bit of a mess on the bottom on the canvas, which can be fixed by creating a layer mask & the gradient tool set to black, and dragging a gradient over the bottom of the image until it blends nicely into the sea.

With the mountains reflection done, I'm going to move onto the people.

I'll turn that top layer that I worked on earlier back on.

Then I'll duplicate it (CTRL + J)

Right click on the layer mask of the duplicate and select Apply Layer Mask from the dropdown. This simply bakes the layer mask into the image. Usually I try to edit non-destructively as much as possible, but in this case it's fine to destroy.

I'm going to rename this layer Reflection

With that new, reflection layer selected, I'll go to Edit > Transform > Flip Vertical, just like before.

I want to add a little water/shimmer effect to their faces, so I'm going to Filter > Distort > ZigZag

I'll just mess around with the settings here until I find something I like.

This is optional, obviously, I've done reflections in edits without doing any of this, but it just adds something a little extra to water scenes, I think.

Here's a time I didn't do that.

anyway, my sims are looking a bit crazy now, but it's fine, because I'm going to, you guessed it, add a layer mask and gradient.

But first, using the lasso tool (L) I'm going to draw around one of the characters and drag her into place. I can move the bounding box around a bit to make her shoulders meet in the right place.

Then I'll do the same for the other character.

Tip: Hold CTRL while moving, warping or resizing something for a smoother, more precise experience.

Now, I'm doing what I said I would, and I'm creating that layer mask. We know how to do it by now, right?

Make sure everything is deselected first by pressing CTRL + D

Create layer mask

Select Gradient (G) set to black

Drag gradient over bottom of reflection (If you ever need more precise gradients, you can select the round gradient at the top of the file. I needed it to blend the reflection on the right more, because the characters are not at an even height.)

In the Layer panel, change opacity to 20% (or whatever you like) and hit Enter to confirm

Using Crop (shortcut C) I'm going to crop my image, cut off that pesky strip at the bottom and just basically make the framing of the picture a little bit nicer.

And viola!

I could edit this image more, throw in bounced light, splashes etc etc but I'll leave it like this.

The only thing I will add in is a little lens flare to indicate sun, so again, I'm taking to Pinterest and searching for one that works.

Tip: make sure the background of a lens flare image is completely black. Otherwise it will be harder to use.

Below is the one I have chosen.

I'm simply changing the blending mode to screen, moving it and resizing it with the transform tool (T), and fiddling with the opacity until I'm happy.

That's it!

I made a video running through this whole process, with all of my shortcuts in the bottom right hand corner so that you can see exactly what is happening.

If there are other tutorials you'd like to see in future, please let me know!

And I'm more than happy to answer any questions!

Good luck <3

[auras-moonstone]

hiii, I really really love all your job so much !!and I have a little request (you can obviously say no), can you do something with Ethan and "bad idea right?", I have this song on repeat and I need to see it with Ethan please

I hope you have a great day and I really love all that you do 💗💗💗

hi!! of course you can send song requests! i love olivia🥺

bad idea, right? — ethan landry

word count: 700

pairing: ethan landry x fem!reader

based on: bad idea, right? by olivia rodrigo

Y/N AND ETHAN’S RELATIONSHIP LASTED FOR AROUND SIX MONTHS. With Ethan so focused on college and Y/N having to work to afford her studies and also having to do exams and assignments, their little bubble just bursted and they decided to end it after those short but unforgettable months. They loved each other very much, which is why they knew it was for the best, because holding onto a relationship they couldn’t afford to be invested in 100% was very selfish.

And as much as they wanted to, they knew they could never go back to being just friends. It would be too painful. So, they stopped talking to each other… until that night at the dive bar.

Y/N was sitting on a table, beer on her hand as she listened with very little attention to the conversation her friends were having. She was so exhausted from work that she swore she could pass out at any moment, and the dimly lit setting didn’t help at all.

But then, she received a text that made her be fully awake. She stared at his name with eyes wide open, and traced the notification bubble with her fingertip, not bearing to read the text, she just stared at his contact name.

eth🤓💖

hey…

i know this random but i’m alone rn and i can’t seem to get you off my mind

would you like to come over? if you’re not busy

my new address is xxx xxx :)

it’s okay if you don’t want to, i understand… anyways, let me know ❤️

I’m alone. Can’t get you off my mind. Come over. Well, he certainly wasn’t inviting her to play a game—at least not one that didn’t involve her being on her knees as he grabbed her hair from behind, and make her roll her eyes in pleasure so hard it hurt.

Ethan’s face crossed her mind, and she thought about what she should do. She should probably not go. She shouldn’t meet him that night, it’s a bad idea, right? But her mind didn’t function well when it came to Ethan Landry. She knew she was his ex, but couldn’t people reconnect? Only one night and then she would erase him from her mind—god, she knew that was the biggest lie she’d ever said.

She grabbed her car keys, her purse and stood up, gaining the attention of her friends. “I’m tired, I want to sleep” In Ethan’s bed. Without further explanation, Y/N got into her car, wrecking all the plans she’d made with her friends.

y/n/n 👼🏻🫶🏻

be there in ten.

eth🤓💖

second floor

waiting for you

And he was. Y/N pulled up in his apartment and got into the elevator, pressing the button to the second floor. When she got out, she saw Ethan waiting for her by the door, boyish grin on his face—the one that always made Y/N want to drop onto her knees and make him scream her name until his voice broke.

She stood in front of Ethan, he was even taller than before, and he was towering over her. The boy looked so fucking hot that her brain could even mutter the word ‘hi’. So, instead of talking, Y/N grabbed him by the collar and smashed her lips against his with such ferocity and need that Ethan almost collapsed to the floor.

“So hot when you go straight to the point” he said in between kisses. They were moving, but Y/N didn’t know where to and she honestly didn’t care. He could fuck her in any corner of the apartment and it’d be fine. But then she tripped and felt the soft mattress under her.

“Upgraded your bed, I see” she panted as her hands traveled his hard chest, fire in her eyes.

Ethan nodded “Just got it, was wondering if you could give me a review of it.” he pressed sweet kisses to the valley of her breasts.

“Let’s get to work, then. Lay down.” Y/N ordered, and he obeyed in no time.

He watched her get rid of her shirt and bra, and he was so glad she accepted the invitation. “I missed you.”

“Me too, but let’s talk later. Right now, I want to feel you again. It’s been way too long.”

[stormsbourne]

<presses your mad about modern journalism button again> may I request a rant

Happily though I'm going to try and avoid talking about what happened last night/this election cycle specifically because it's still too raw.

So I graduated with a journalism degree in the late aughts. My specialization/emphasis is in print, the dyingest of all journalism, but to any journalist who gives half a fuck about the concept of the industry, it's clear that a lot of things are fucked. And it was obvious then, too!

Here's the big ones:

24 hour news fucking sucks. It's resulted in a world where even minor issues can get significant coverage and the journalists involved are always scrambling for something to keep people watching. Facts become tenuous in a setting like this and corrections to shit you got wrong become extremely easy to miss, so it turns out you're often just spreading misinformation and the people swallowing it will regularly miss you saying it wasn't true. There was an incident when I was in college of a hobby pilot accidentally crashing a plane into an apartment building in NYC and this got turned into a multi hour story about whether it was another 9/11. This problem has only been exacerbated by things like the advent of social media and the integration of the internet into absolutely fucking everything.

The concept of objectivity is broken. In an ideal world objectivity means that you report the facts without bias or prejudice. Modern journalism has scrubbed the first part of that out with an eraser and highlighted the second part. Climate change, vaccine effectiveness and safety, how COVID functions, it doesn't matter what issue you pick, if you look at how modern journalism covers it, it's all about remaining impartial, not about telling the truth. And this gets turned into representing both sides. Well we've got a climate scientist on. We've also got to have a climate skeptic, right, to remain objective? No, you fuckers, your job is not to get two people on the air to argue about whether it's raining, your job is to look out the fucking window and tell people if it's fucking raining!

Obviously, capitalism. Big money folks have their fingers in the pockets of newspapers and news networks and are using them as hand puppets accordingly. Wapo can't endorse Harris because Bezos wants Trump to be niceys to him. Sinclair sends its networks objectively false stories and requires them to put them on the air or get sanctioned and punished.

The media isn't innocent in any this; they aren't merely a victim of what's been done to the industry. They often go to bat for the upper crust, for the military, for cops. Donald Trump won 2016 (and maybe this year too) off the back of all the free airtime he got because the media could not stop paying attention to the circus, putting the circus on the air, yelling about the circus being in town, talking about how many people like the circus. They repeat false information and hype up studies that don't actually say anything. They often hide corrections or retractions out of embarrassment. Newsrooms have private secret rules about how to cover international politics and what side should be depicted as sympathetic. They post cop pr statements unedited and do shit like go to diners in Ohio to interview racist white guys about their "economic anxiety." Everything that's destroying journalism, they are complicit in, and often happily.

The media in its best form should be a way to examine and dismantle oppressive machines, like how much journalism was involved in helping tear down McCarthyism. But nowadays the media is gleefully complicit in all of it. The revolution will not be televised, or maybe it will be but with a headline of LOCALS CONCERNED ABOUT RASH OF CRIMES.

fuck, man, it blows!

[shroomlet]

I got a lil samsung tablet so i can sit on da couch and draw more conveniently :D

Me rambling abt it below because idk i like talking abt lil tablets like these

It's galaxy tab s9 fe, wasnt sure about the 10 inch size since i usually use 13 inch huion but its actually pretty good screen ratio! I can have all my toolbars >:3!!

the s pen is a bit thin for my taste so i'm getting a lil silicone sleeve for it later, but its a great pen, tilt controls are very important to me since my fave brushes rely on it, also the button seems to be configured to turn into an eraser on clip studio which is great, i wish it was a toggle instead of having to hold down the button

The main thing tho to make it feel nice to me personally though, i had to get a matte textured screen protector, cause i hate slippery screens even if the original pen tip has a rubbery tip to make it easy to draw on, i tried getting those paperlike screen protectors for the first time for this and DEAR GOD its so textured, as in it can actually sand down hard plastic pen nibs like within a minute of scribbling. I knew this though from reviews so i got a set of nibs that had a metal one, and as much as i was apprehensive about metal on screen it feels GREAT!! Like ballpoint pen on paper. I just don't press hard when I draw so its not a huge problem I suppose. Don't use metal nibs without a screen protector btw

The main thing though.... is drawing apps. I love clip studio paint, it works wonderfully on this tablet, but.

Subscription cost. Lmao

I've also tried a few different apps available, ibis paint, infinity painter, hipaint, medibang, etc. I'm sure those are great for different people but I think i'm too clip studio pilled LOL i'll only switch if I find another app that can use .ABR style brush files since then i can import brushes i like, but clip studios file syncing also calls to me cause i hoard data on like 2 laptops so having artwork synced up is way easier esp if im not home

But yeah all in all this things perfect for my needs but also i'm stingy and don't wanna pay subscriptions but also I want clip studio to continue being good cause I'm afraid of software obsolescence hfhjfsjjfjd anyways this thing better fix all of my problems like immediately (plays cookie run on it until i decompose)

[fandomfluffandfuck]

(before i get into the meat of this ask i wanna say that i loved the first chapter of your fic so much xx)

okay. you know how it's like really fucking hot right now?? in the uk it is, anyway-

well.

think modern steve and bucky, a little younger (around 17-18-ish) - childhood best friends who go everywhere together and have virtually no secrets. So basically canon stucky but they haven't been fucking since they were old enough to know how to use their dicks...

it's the hottest day of the year so far and theyre sitting on steve's bed. Bucky's there because his fan broke (again) and has got a bowl of ice sitting on his chest, sucking on the cubes as Steve works away on this sketch he has to finish. They're both shirtless because even clothes are becoming too much to wear.

They're talking about stupid things, like if summer or winter is better (bucky says winter because no matter how cold it is you can always layer up - and he's right, by the way), what they would do if they were suddenly trapped in their favourite videogame (there's no way steve isn't getting ripped apart by a clicker from the last of us - his little artist hands would be no good with a gun), when Bucky asks,

"Do you have any gum?"

Steve, barely looking up from this one corner of his sketch that he's been erasing and redrawing to get the shape right, nods towards his bedside drawer.

"There should be some in there, I think," he says, and Bucky leans over to open it.

"Uh... steve?" Bucky asks, and Steve's eyes widen as he looks over at his friend and sees what he has in his hand.

"What the fuck- Bucky, put that back!" Steve puts his sketchbook beside him and tries to grab at Bucky's hand, missing it and flopping pathetically down onto the bed.

"Hey-! No, you can't- look, there's nothing embarrassing about having this... well- what even is it?"

"That's none of your business," Steve huffs, trying again to grab at his hand again, "Put it back. Please."

"What- oh-!"

Bucky's found the little button at the bottom of the vibrator and has decided to turn it on.

"Wait, does this go on your..."

"Yes, Bucky, it goes on my dick, now- give it back." Steve tries, holding out his hand. Bucky doesn't give it back - he keeps playing with the settings until he finds the highest one and presses it to his forearm.

"Holy shit," he murmurs, forgetting Steve is watching him for a moment, "You're not fucking around with this thing, huh?"

"Bucky..."

"How long?"

"What?"

Steve stares at Bucky, gaze flitting quickly from his chest to his eyes. Bucky raises his eyebrows, turning off the toy and facing Steve.

"How long do you usually last?" he asks, like it's as normal a thing than if he was asking the weather. How long do you usually last?

"It's getting a bit warmer in here, I'll turn the fan up-" Steve tries changing the subject, reaching for the fan's remote by stretching his arm across Bucky's laid out body. Bucky grabs his hand before he can reach, though, and their position is conflicting in so many ways.

"Tell me," Bucky says again, looking at Steve with dark eyes an watching the blond's stomach tremble with the effort of holding himself up, "How long can you last before you can't take it anymore?"

Steve's skin is burning from both the general heat and how Bucky's holding onto his wrist, tight enough so he can't go anywhere yet loose enough that if Steve pulls hard enough, he could free himself.

"I.. I don't know."

Bucky grins at that, and flips them over so he's on top of Steve, hovering, because their skin is sticky due to how hot it is in the room.

"You don't know?" Bucky asks, picking up the vibrator again and holding it in his hand, "Well - how about we find out?"

and thennnn.....

then steve comes within the first five minutes of being teased on the lowest setting because Bucky's chest and lips and eyes are right there and they set him off (along with the words he whispers in his ear in a totally platonic, non-sexual way because having a vibrator between your hand and another man's dick is totally not classed as a handjob - right?????)

*insert unintelligeble screaming noises*

bucky and steve's brains rn: imnotgayimnotgayimnotgayimnotgay-

enjoy my word vomit

"Sit" my new fic, part one of a new series 👀

(Thank you so much! I'm so glad people seem to be enjoying it, and I loved your response, especially, haha)

I will enjoy this 👀

I love, love, love the idea of Bucky picking up the vibrator, getting it to the highest setting and having his eyes widen as he feels it because, holy shit, that's fucking intense! Even on his arm! Bucky's opinion of Steve's sexual preferences (that he certainly has NOT thought about before, no, they're close buds, but not that close. Nope.) is rapidly forming, and it's... he's impressed. He can withstand this? Wrapped around his dick! How!?

But then--

Then, Bucky learns the truth.

And the truth is that Steve is sensitive; he's never even tried the highest setting. He struggles, on the lowest setting, to keep quiet--whimpering and biting back moans as it slides up and down his shaft, buzzing. He doesn't need more. The lowest is enough.

The lowest is enough to have him cumming embarrassingly quickly. When he orgasms with the assistance of the vibator, as Bucky quickly learns, he quivers. He shakes. He can't stop squirming, even after his cock is done cumming, painting his concave belly. The vibrations just... they crawl inside him, freying his nerves and setting a fire inside him that takes a while to burn down to coals.

It's fucking incredible to watch.

He looks so hot, squirming and panting and turning pink, hands balled into fists, mouth open, eyebrows drawn together.

Bucky needs a repeat performance. He needs several. For science. With and without the vibrator. All different levels of the vibrator. All different intensities of hand jobs and--

Yeah.

This has to happen again. A damn has been broken, they can't stop doing this now. They've only just started! Besides, Bucky hasn't gotten to try it yet 👀

Thank 👏🏻 you 👏🏻 for 👏🏻 this 👏🏻

I love this idea. It's incredibly delicious. I'm always here for first times 👀 I'm always here for poor, sensitive, squirming boys. I'm always, always here for sex toys.

[antirepurp]

i got through sheer mountain range last night in psmd before ending the session and it still has me thinking about what i assume to be quality of life changes that kind of changed things for worse imo? mainly that so many moves now have added range they didn't use to have and how it fucks with the balance imo

the older games kept ranged moves to a much smaller amount because they can be infuriating to fight against, let alone room-wide ones. the ranged stuff you see in the early game tend to be types that have resistances or are neutral to several types too, and there are rocks and thorns to give the player effectively a 5th move with range as an alternative that wild pokemon don't utilize until later in the game. early ranged moves tend to be weaker, too - stuff like flamethrower and earth power are late/post-game features that are intended to be a challenge to face or a tool to utilize carefully as they have limited PP

psmd gives every starter a ranged move from the start im pretty sure, because now things like vine whip and water gun have range they didn't use to have. im fairly certain that the wild pokemon in this game also have generally more HP too, and most have at least one move with range, so not only will you be burning through the PP of your one ranged move at an alarming rate trying to fend them off, the "press A to get them closer" strategy is highly situational or useless against some foes - you'll be better off walking closer and taking one hit than trying to lure them closer and take several hits. your partner will run out of their STAB option halfway through the dungeon, because it's their only ranged move most of the time and they'll prefer to use it if at all possible. i have yet to find a case where the basic A attack can be useful whatsoever, even as a finisher move, because the damage it does is not functional when everyone has so much HP

then there's the wands, im pretty sure they were added to address the high HP issue since some of them can effectively erase an opponent from being a problem, but they are nowhere near as convenient to use as rocks and thorns since you need to open your bag to use them as opposed to having a button combination for it (that's now for alliances). at least for me that interrupts the flow of the gameplay harshly, and thus i forget that they are an option half the time because i don't open my bag unless i need to use a restoration item or address a monster house. then in turn i get my ass handed to me by pokemon that Refuse To Die to my super effective moves because every one of them is so ungodly bulky very early on, or has ranged attacks i don't have the PP to respond to. skill issue i know, but maybe it'd be less of a one if i could just set my wand stack to a button combination so i don't have to interrupt my gameplay flow just to utilize them

i don't know, maybe it's just me but these things that must have been "quality of life" ideas just don't mesh well in practice, especially when the dungeon layouts are so much more massive with tons of long corridors that lead nowhere. that's a whole other topic though

[twoidiotwriters1]

Daughter of Olympus (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: Three chapters left! We take a break from sad and I give you fluffy instead -Danny Words: 2,187 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter / Next Chapter Listen to: 'Hardwired' -by Hailey Knox

XL: Teenage Boy Experiences Worst Nightmare (Meeting His Girlfriend's Dad)

Leo doesn't see Ara as much as he would want to. He's working nonstop, and Ara's responsibilities go beyond just overseeing the Argo II's progress.

She handles disputes, trains the campers, holds meetings... That's why, when she asks a second time if he'd like to visit her on Valentine's Day, Leo doesn't think twice before giving her an answer.

He's scared shitless, though. Annabeth says Ara's parents are the best, but Lily says Ara's dad is protective of her, and he's only half-sure she's trying to scare him. Leo is on the verge of having a heart attack now, as he's dropped outside Ara's building.

"Thanks, man," he dryly says to Argus, not even able to crack a joke. "Wish me luck." 

Argus winks and half of his body looks normal for a moment, then he encourages Leo to press the coms so Ara knows he's there.

The visit cost Leo a lot of pledges to Chiron, the centaur only agreed after he held a conversation over the phone with Sally Jackson, who somehow convinced him Leo is old enough to behave on his own.

It's kind of annoying to be treated like a child, but at the same time, it's nice to be looked after for a change, and it's almost like having a parent. Leo looks for the family's name on the coms, and when he presses the right button, Ara answers right away. 

"Going!"

Leo gives Argus a thumbs up, he's only moved an inch when the front door of the building opens and he jumps, Ara saves him from tripping down the steps.

"Hi," she smiles at the driver and waves. "Thanks, Argus!"

The man turns on the engine and waves back before driving away. Ara pulls Leo inside the building and closes the door. "H—" The girl doesn't give him even a second to speak before she kisses him. 

It's short but intense, enough to erase all the thoughts from Leo's mind, which is a remarkable achievement. "I baked you cupcakes," she says giddily. "Come on!"

Leo gets dragged up the stairs, and by the time they reach her floor, he's having trouble breathing, not necessarily because of the amount of stairs they just ran through. 

She's about to enter her apartment when Leo pulls her back. "Wait! Are both your parents inside?"

"Yeah, they'll drop us off at the movie theater. We're having dinner first, though."

Leo clears his throat. "Okay. Cool."

"Are you nervous?" Ara grins. "They'll love you, just be yourself!"

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" He teases her.

She opens the door. "Leo's here!"

He's half-expecting Ara's apartment to look like a fancy castle, but this is just a regular New York flat, cozy and simple. Her parents are in the living room, and they're the nicest-looking adults Leo's ever seen, which only increases his anxiety. He does not get along with sane people.

"This is my mom and dad," Ara holds Leo's hand and guides him in, he suspects she's also using her empath touch, cause his heart slows down instantly. "Mom and Dad, this is Leo Valdez, my boyfriend."

"Nice to meet you, Leo! Are you thirsty?" Ara's mom shakes his free hand, he likes her instantly. 

"Er... no, Mrs. Jackson, but thanks," his eyes move to Ara's dad, who's not smiling, but it's not giving him the stink eye either, which is a relief.

"Leo," Paul Blofis shakes his hand firmly. "Our daughter talks a lot about you."

"Every day!" Ara adds happily.

Paul nods and pats his shoulder. Leo wishes he had empath touch. "You're not hungry?"

"Uhm..." he hesitates, unsure of what to answer. 

Ara's dad shows the smallest hint of a smile. He pats Leo's shoulder again and guides him to the kitchen. "You'll be once you smell what Sally and I cooked today. C'mon, help me set the table."

Leo gives Ara one last pleading look before Paul takes him away, Ara grins and gives him a thumbs up. 

When they reach the kitchen, Paul looks around with both hands on his hips, he takes a deep breath as if pondering. The boy braces himself, Paul looks like a good guy, but if Leo had a daughter like Ara, and she brought home a guy like him, he would lose his mind a little.

"I have a question for you," Paul turns around smiling. "¿Te gusta el picante?"

Leo blinks. "¿Qué?"

"Picante," the man continues with a thick accent. "A Sally le gusta, pero no mucho. Ara no come, pero ella dijo que si te gusta... hicimos salsa."

Leo stares at the man blankly. Is he having a stroke, or is Ara's dad talking to him in Spanish? The man interprets his silence as a bad sign and he gets a little mortified.

"Did I say something wrong? I'm sorry, Ara said you—"

"No, no!" Leo stops him. "Sorry, I just... I wasn't expecting that."

"But you understood me?" The man smiles again. "I've been learning on my own for two years, but I'm too shy to practice with strangers. Sally practices with me—she's as lost as I am, frankly. But you can't make fun of me if I mess up, 'cause I'm your girlfriend's dad!"

Leo tries to hold back, but he ends up bursting into chortles. Annabeth was right, Ara's parents are amazing.

"Wow," he continues, still laughing. "Smart move. But there was no need, your Spanish is good! Pretty good, actually. I appreciate the salsa-making too."

Paul beams, patting Leo's shoulder in a fatherly way. "Come try it! Maybe you can tell us if it's missing something!"

"Okay," Leo agrees, feeling much better now. "But I'll give you my notes in Spanish, so get ready."

Ara doesn't know what happened when Paul and Leo were left alone, but the boy has turned into her father's best friend in less than an hour, and he has him doubling over the table with laughter.

Her mother looks at her with a knowing smile, and Ara feels her cheeks warming up. She's got a mix of emotions, something like embarrassment but also lots of pride, and tons of happiness. This is the first time her parents look happy since Percy's went missing.

"Look at the time!" Paul glances at the watch around his wrist when Leo's gone to the bathroom. "Gotta go now if the kids want to catch that movie, Sally."

"Yes, I think Ara would like to have her boyfriend back as well," the woman muses.

Paul clears his throat. "Right. Sorry, sweetheart," he looks at Ara with an embarrassed grin. "I got carried away."

"It's alright," she smiles. "I'm glad you like him."

"Hey, Mr. Blofis?" Leo walks back into the room. "Hope you don't mind, I fixed the water pressure in your sink. And the toilet was leaking so I fixed that too."

"Oh, Leo, you didn't have to," Sally replies bashfully.

"It wasn't a problem," he insists, standing behind Ara's chair. "Took me less than a minute."

"Did I mention he's a son of Hephaestus?" Ara grins.

"Just about ten thousand times," her mother replies in the same tone.

"Leo, next time you visit, I'll get those hinges you told me about—we can install them on the kitchen cabinets!"

"Dad," Ara intervenes. "You can't use my boyfriend as a handyman, he comes here to spend time with me! I can fix the kitchen cabinets—"

"No, it's fine," Leo replies. He looks slightly flustered, but happy. "I'll help. Doesn't take that long."

Paul's smile widens. "Good catch, Ara."

She blushes. "Let's go, it's getting late for our movie."

It's weird seeing Ara like this. Here she acts relaxed and like an actual teenager. She's not wearing a camp shirt or her cloak. Next to her, for the first time ever, Leo feels perfectly normal and like a decent match. It makes his heart flutter with joy.

"Why didn't you tell me your dad speaks Spanish? He's hilarious—"

"Leo, do you want to go out with my dad instead? I'm fine on my own, been a while since I had time for myself..."

He laughs, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "I'm just happy it went well! I was so stressed..."

"I know," she kisses his cheek. "But now that's out of the way. All that's left is to introduce you to my..."

Her voice dies out as she thinks of Percy. He'd missed so many milestones already, all the blessings she'd gained, and he'd always looked forward to seeing her date a guy she actually liked... not to mention he didn't get to throw her into the lake as she'd done to him.

Leo nudges her shoulder, sensing the shift in her mood. "Thank you for inviting me over."

"You're thanking me for forcing you to meet my parents?" Ara muses. "Maybe you really are insane."

"Hey, I mean it!" He frowns. "I'm over the moon! I met my girlfriend's parents and they love me," he lowers his voice, eyes turning playful. "And I'm definitely making out with you for the next hour."

Ara pushes him away, giving him a look. Leo gives her a shit-eating grin, raising his hands in surrender. "Anyway," the girl sighs. "Let's buy nachos!"

Leo steps in her way again, holding her by the waist. "Being real, sunshine, I'm down bad. I'm so happy that it makes me stupid."

"Oh, I thought you were born stupid."

He frowns. "Jerk."

"Go splash your face with cold water," Ara looks away, blushing. "I'll buy our food."

He holds her face. "You look so cute when you're flustered," he laughs, stopping Ara from going away. "Don't get mad, I just... I can't believe this is happening. My girlfriend is an Aphrodite, I've won in life."

Ara groans, burying her face on his shoulder. "Stooop!"

"Aw, you're adorable," he pulls her face up, kissing it all over. "You're a squishy, flustered, super pretty doll..."

The more she blushes, the more Leo teases her; right now he's nothing but a teen in love. It had been so long since he'd felt like maybe life didn't suck so much... Probably since he was eight years old.

Even the nightmares had stopped since he'd gotten together with Ara, perhaps she was like a shield to him, somehow she was keeping all the bad stuff away.

Ara leans against Leo's shoulder and yawns. 

Leo glances at her and grins. "Sleepy already? You're old."

"Shut up," she yawns again, sinking further on the couch. "Couldn't sleep... I prayed to my mother the whole time so we could have a nice day... I'm glad she listened."

He doesn't deserve to be loved like she loves him, he didn't do anything to get Ara, and yet she always goes beyond his expectations.

You don't get the things you deserve, you get the things you ask for, and then do what you can to keep them.

But he didn't ask for Ara in the first place! She just showed up and turned his world upside down.  Leo had a vague idea of what love was before meeting Ara, he thought it was meant to be confusing, upsetting, and most of all unfair. Now...

"I don't know why..." She mumbles after a moment. "But I feel that we won't get to do this in the future. I can't shake it off since we started dating."

"Geez, I wonder why," he replies. "Can't be PTSD, right? That's too obvious, there's gotta be bad juju involved."

"What are you talking about? You're my first boyfriend ever," Ara frowns.

"Your first and last," he adds casually. "But I didn't mean it like that. I meant all the people you lost in less than a year, you didn't get to have more time with them."

"I don't have PTSD. I'm alright."

"Didn't look like it when you told me about Michael..."

"Don't," Ara scowls. "You're sounding like Lily."

"That's because we both care about you," Leo tilts her chin up. "Ara, I promise—"

"Don't promise things!" She covers his mouth, awake and annoyed. "How many times do I have to tell you?"

He moves her hand away. "Fine! Look... I'm not great with words, but it's... like your fear of maths. You don't use them because you kept exploding things when you tried to, right? But you can do math, you do it every day at school, yet you still go to camp and refuse to use it. It's the same."

Ara looks at him, kind of understanding what he's saying. "Maybe we are like math a little bit, in my head," she admits. "I can't help it!"

"Keep telling me your story," he suggests. "You need to talk it out, and I want to hear it."

"It's going to ruin our night."

"If you cry I'll cuddle and comfort you. Maybe it'll ruin your night, but it would make mine ten times better," he jokes.

"Leónidas!" Ara scolds him. "That's not funny!"

The boy freezes and looks at her with shock. "What did you call me?"

She stares at him. "What?" Ara frowns. "Oh, gods, did I guess your name right?"

Leo looks at her annoyed. "How?"

She eyes him intently. "Leónidas like the Spartan guy... Yeah, that one feels right."

Ara places the accent exactly where his mother used to, and suddenly he gets transported to better times. "Wait—feels right? What does that mean?"

She laughs and kisses him briefly. "Nothing, I just like how it sounds."

Leo stares at her intently. "I like how Arae sounds."

She grins. "We both have weird and ancient names. We were clearly meant to be together."

"Yeah," he replies quietly. "I'm starting to believe that."

Next Chapter ->

Taglist.

@siriuslysirius1107 @ask-giggles1303 @ash-the-hoarder @im-planning-something-look @bandshirts-andbooks @coolninjapaper @thewaterlily @whenisthefall @1randomcomic @you-bloody-shank @sunflowergraves @owlalex44 @taylordaughter @typicalsolangelolover @writingmia @espressopatronum454 @slytherinnqueen @orbitingpolaris @obxstiles

[fangirlfrom-hell]

The Fragile Bonds Part 2 || Jay and Will Halstead x Halstead Sister

*re-posting this because I'm stupid and accidentaly erased my blog 🫠

Summary: After their father's death, Becca moved in with Jay. This is the first time the detective brother has to go undercover since his sister has been under his full care, creating a challenging situation for both. Reluctantly, Becca will have to live with Will and his family during those days, even though she doesn't feel very welcome in that household.

Tuesday morning passed by slowly, but Becca preferred it that way. Despite all the things going around her, she was able to concentrate in her classes. Anyway, as the time for school to end approached, a knot was forming in her stomach. She didn’t want to go back to Will’s house, it made her anxious. The exit bell rang and she sat on the entrance stairs until she was left alone.

“I call your brother, but he’s not answering”, one of her teachers said as he invited her to pass to the office.

“I can walk myself”, Becca argued, but Jay had given specific orders on not letting her go alone. If he couldn’t pick her up, the other ones on the list were Will, Hailey and also Sgt. Platt, but she wished they wouldn’t bother anybody from the district.

“I’m so, so sorry!” Will came running into the building, “I totally forgot, I got no excuse”. The principal’s gaze was all over the Halstead brother, observing him with a not so friendly look. “I had to pick Owen from daycare, and this is out of my routine, sorry”, he kept apologizing, which for the girl made it even worse.

“It’s alright, Will. Just let’s get out of here, please”.

Even when she couldn’t admit it, Becca was affected by what had happened earlier. So, as soon as they arrived home, she took a cellphone out of the nightstand. Jay didn’t allow his sister to own a phone, but he had lent her one just as a way of precaution, it had his number saved, but also Hailey’s, Trudy and even Voight, just in case of an emergency. After all, he was an overprotective and paranoic brother. He said he would communicate with her through it, whenever he had time to do so.

But there were no traces of Jay. The girl opened his contact and decided to write a text,

I hope you’re doing well, I miss u

She hesitated to press the send button, but as soon as she did, a message appeared on the screen: not delivered. Becca sighed and threw the phone on the bed. 

She started to feel hopeless, as if she didn't belong anywhere. She held Mr. Snuggles while thinking about her detective brother, she wondered where he was and what he was doing at the moment, if he was alright or if he was hurt. Then, she imagined herself at the bullpen, waiting for him to finish his paperwork, as it had happened a few times; it was a warm feeling to be surrounded by Jay’s friends even when it was only in her mind. She continued figuring a normal day in her life, her brother by her side, going home, sleeping in her own bed, and just like that she fell deep asleep.

“Hey! Hey, kiddo!” A voice was heard in the distance, some babbling accompanied it. “Becc, wake up” a touch on her shoulder made her slowly open her eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to scare you", Will was bending right next to the bed carrying Owen in his arms. 

She took a quick look around, it was already dark and a chill ran through her body, it was also getting cold. For a few seconds, she felt very confused for not waking up in her room, then she suddenly remembered everything and reality weighed on her chest, she felt like crying, but was able to hold her tears. 

"Dinner is ready, come on. I just realized you didn't eat anything when we arrived home", he invited. 

"I'm not really hungry, but I'm so tired, I'd rather sleep", the girl went back to the same position. 

"Becc", her brother scoffed. 

“Ok, I’ll try.”

The table was already set when Becca came into the kitchen, but there were only three plates on it. Will had his back turned to her, working on the stove.

"Where's Natalie?"

"At The Med," Will answered simply, without even looking at her. "She'll be back soon."

"How is it that you're not at the hospital? Actually, how is it that you haven't been at the hospital these days?"

"Well, when Jay told me he was going undercover..." He turned to the table, carrying a pan to serve the food on Becca's plate. "...I asked to change my schedule with some of my partners so I could stay here with you."

"Oh."

"Yeah, we talked about it, and we didn't— I didn't want you to be here all by yourself. I know we are not as close as you and Jay are, but... I'm still your big brother, and you're still my little sister, so I also thought it could be a great opportunity for the two of us to spend some time together, but it seems that I have screwed it all up."

"No—" Becca couldn't find any argument against what he had said.

"It's fine. I know these two days haven't been precisely comfortable for you, and I'm sorry for that." Will sat right in front of his sister, Owen on his side, so he could help him eat.

Becca was pensive, moving her food around with the fork. "I'm sorry if this caused you any problems." She didn't mean at work, but at home, and Will knew it.

"No... not at all." He sighed. "Now, let's eat before this gets cold," he said hurriedly, not wanting to get into the matter.

"I-I don't want to be rude, but I can't eat this, Will."

"Why?" He asked, surprised.

"My throat would close if I did... I'm allergic to fish?"

"Oh, fuu–, I totally forgot!" The red-haired man took his hands to his face. "I'm an idiot, I'm so sorry! I'll prepare something else for you!" He said while standing up.

At the same time, the front door opened, and a voice calling out was heard, "I'm home!"

Becca's heart began to race, a surge of anxiety washing over her when she heard Natalie's voice at the door, "No, it's okay, Will. Really, I'm not hungry."

"Don't be silly, sit down!"

"What's going on?" Natalie came into the scene.

"Nothing," the girl interrupted before her brother could talk. "I was about to go to bed. Good night."

With an empty and growling stomach, she prepared herself for bed. Before attempting to sleep, she picked up her phone, only to discover 8 missed calls from Detective Upton. 'Shit,' she muttered. She immediately called her back. When he answered, a cacophony of background noises filled the line.

“Hey, Beccs” She was close enough to the girl to call her by nicknames, “I called you earlier, but you didn’t answer”.

“Yeah, I didn’t have the phone close to me, sorry”.

“It’s ok. I was with your brother earlier. I met him at a secret spot, and he wanted to talk to you and check how you're doing..."

Becca's heart sank, a wave of regret and sadness washing over her. The urge to cry reappeared, her voice quivering as she replied, "Oh, crap, and I wasn't here..."

“Don’t worry, hunny, there wasn’t enough time, anyway. He ask me to tell you he’s doing fine, and algo wanted me to make sure how you’re doing at Will’s”.

The uncomfortable silence worried Hailey, “Becca?”

“Honestly, I feel like an intruder,” she regretted her words as soon as they came out of her mind, “Oh, but don’t tell that to Jay. I don’t know, I’m fine, I’ll just be better when I go back home”:

“This might end sooner than we thought”. A raspy voice was heard in the background before Hailey had to say goodbye, “Gotta go, girl, but hey, call me whenever you need it, even if it’s just to talk. Anything”.

“Thanks, Hails.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too”. Becca stared at the ceiling.

So many changes were swirling through her life in such a brief span of time. The absence of Jay, the first time they had been apart since it had been just the two of them, was tearing at her heart far more intensely than she had ever anticipated. She had barely begun to acclimate to her new routine, her altered existence, when the clandestine situation had thrust itself upon her.

The weight of missing the chance to talk to Jay pressed heavily on her heart, and it felt like a crushing burden. It made her feel incredibly sensitive, and this time, the tears flowed freely, unable to be contained. She clutched Mr. Snuggles tightly, seeking solace in the familiar stuffed bear's embrace, her stomach rumbling audibly from the gnawing hunger that consumed her.

In this moment of vulnerability, she longed for the comforting embrace of home, a warmth that she found sorely absent here. Hearing Hailey's voice had momentarily rekindled that sense of homecoming. With a deep sigh, she closed her eyes tightly, yearning not to be in her current circumstances, wishing fervently for a return to the normality of the past.

Her mind drifted back in time, to the familiarity of their old house, the echoes of childhood laughter, and even the presence of her once-gruff father, who had passed away just a few months ago. The wave of nostalgia mingled with the ache of longing, and tears welled up in her eyes, as the weight of change and the pangs of homesickness bore down upon her.

The harmful impulses she had experienced in the past surged through her body like a relentless wave. But she wasn't going to succumb, she thought of Jay and Hailey to find strength within herself.

Tomorrow, she would have her dance class, and that would help her forget everything. Besides, it meant spending less time in that house.

The morning flew by quickly, leaving Becca feeling both desperate and excited for her dance lessons. She was practicing extra hours after class with her teacher, who had recognized her potential. Dancing was her sanctuary, the place where she could unshackle the stress that had been building, release the pent-up tension, and untangle the knots in her mind. It was where she felt truly free, blissfully happy, and capable of doing something right. That's why Jay had always made it a point to ensure she never missed a lesson, and he had also made sure to discuss it with Will before leaving his sister under his care.

Things took a slight detour when, at the end of the school day, Becca noticed Natalie's car outside the building. "Where's Will?" she asked after greeting, still standing outside the car.

"He couldn't change his shift today, sorry. I'm taking you home. Come on," Natalie replied with a tender smile. Even though the atmosphere was calm, Owen's babbling was the only thing preventing total silence.

"I have my dance class today," Becca mentioned as they hit the road.

"I know, Will told me. I'm taking you, don't worry." Natalie assured her.

Becca got ready an hour ahead of their scheduled departure time. She dressed in her black leotard, pink tights, and black leggings layered on top. Her ballet slippers and jazz shoes were neatly packed inside her bag. After preparing, she stepped out of her room and waited in the living room.

Natalie noticed her early readiness and asked in a motherly tone that Becca didn't particularly like, "Did you finish your homework?"

"Uh, yes," Becca replied with a small white lie.

Natalie glanced at the clock and said, "It's still early; we can leave in half an hour, and you'll make it in time."

"Yeah, I know. I was just getting everything ready," Becca replied, pretending to check her bag. She then paused and looked at Natalie sincerely. "Thank you, Nat. For letting me stay and driving me today. I'm not your responsibility..."

Natalie shook her head gently and said, "Nonsense. Don't worry about any of that. Oh, by the way, at what time do I pick you up? Will didn't say."

"I have to stay after class; I finish at 9, but usually, I'm free a bit later," Becca explained.

"Uh, Becca, that's too late, I—"

"No, no, no," Becca rushed to respond. "I can talk to my teacher. I'll tell her that I can't stay beyond 9, and she'll be understanding about it."

Natalie's expression revealed pity as she said, "I can't pick you up that late,  it's past Owen's bedtime."

"But I can't miss this! Jay told Will how important it is!" Becca's voice quivered with desperation, her eyes welling up with tears as she tried to plead her case.

The girl couldn't find any comfort, as Natalie's tone grew increasingly stern. "I'm sorry, Becca. It's too late, I wouldn't have agreed to this if Will had told me all the information."

Becca's desperation deepened, a sinking feeling in her chest erasing any sense of well-being. She felt trapped, as if her dreams were slipping through her fingers.

"I can take an Uber back home," Becca suggested, her voice trembling with the fear of Jay's reaction.

"Jay would kill me," Natalie scoffed.

"I won't tell Will or Jay; I'll say you drove me back!" Becca's words came out rushed, almost pleading.

"Nothing bad will happen if you miss one of your lessons," Natalie responded, her tone firm.

"I never miss my lessons," Becca protested, tears now freely streaming down her cheeks as she fought to hold back her emotions.

"You see? One time won't hurt anybody. Stop with your tantrums, you are old enough for this." Natalie's words felt like accusations, making Becca feel even worse. She wasn't throwing a tantrum, she was trying desperately to hold on to something that meant everything to her.

"You don't understand. You're minimizing the facts! I need to go! I'm rehearsing a solo, and if I miss a rehearsal..." Becca's voice cracked as she tried to explain the gravity of the situation.

"Becca, please stop yelling!" Natalie's voice grew firmer, and the girl could sense the frustration building in her.

By this point, Becca couldn't avoid showing her anger. "I'm not yelling!"

"You are raising your voice, and you're scaring Owen! I'm sorry. I just can't pick you up."

"But—"

"I said 'no,' Becca. End of discussion!" Natalie's final words cut through the air, leaving Becca feeling defeated and alone. 

The feeling of not belonging weighed on her like an unbearable burden, intensifying her sense of hopelessness to the point where it felt suffocating. The unsettling urges clawed at her emotions, making her feel even more isolated and desperate. 

With a frustrated groan, she dashed to her room, overwhelmed by the urge to slam the door, but there was no lock on the room she was stayinging. She grabbed her phone and started searching for Hailey's contact, but was this really an emergency? Hailey had offered to be there whenever she needed to talk, but wasn't this too much to burden her with?

Her heart raced, and each breath felt labored. As panic took hold, she heard Natalie's footsteps getting closer, the sound of her voice on the phone speaking to Will adding to her anxiety. Becca sprinted to the bathroom in the hallway, desperation pushing her to lock herself inside. Natalie made a futile attempt to stop her, but she couldn't reach Becca in time, leaving her alone in the confined space with her tumultuous emotions.

She could hear the conversation happening in the hallway outside, “She just locked herself in the bathroom…I couldn’t stop her, what do you want me to do?”

Becca sat on the bathroom floor, her eyes scanning the objects around her, whispering to herself, "...there's a white sink, a small soap..." as she diligently practiced the calming techniques that Jay had taught her to combat the encroaching anxiety. Each item she named grounded her in the present, helping her regain control over her racing thoughts and emotions.

Some knocks on the door were distracting her, “Becca, hunny, please open up. What are you doing there?”

"...there's a green plant in a brown pot, and blue tiles: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5..." Becca continued, meticulously focusing on each detail around her. As she managed to block out the noise from outside, she picked up her phone with her shaky hands once more and composed a text: "I wish you were here." However, when she pressed the send button, the dreaded 'not delivered' message appeared once more, deepening her sense of isolation and despair.

After a few minutes, Becca's breathing gradually returned to normal, and she stood up, washing her face to clear her mind. She felt utterly drained and just wanted to crawl into bed and sleep until the next day. Yet, fear and shame held her back, a sense of embarrassment over her emotional outburst.

As she hesitated, lost in her conflicted thoughts, a familiar voice broke through the silence. Beyond the bathroom door, she could hear two distinct mutterings, piquing her curiosity and momentarily drawing her attention away from her inner turmoil.

"How long has she been there?"

"About half an hour, maybe?"

"Half an hour?" The new voice sounded furious. "And you just let her be all by herself in there!? Is she responding?"

"We took the dangerous objects out of this bathroom before she arrived. I can hear her moving around."

"Ugh, get off, I'm handling this!" The anger in the voice was palpable, and it seemed like someone was taking charge of the situation.

A soft knock on the door was accompanied by a gentle plea, filled with genuine concern.

"Becca, sweetie, would you please open the door for me?"

[lovenpeace-pkmn]

offscreen post

//(note: set a few days ago, shortly before this post. mostly under the cut because this got kinda long)

[Concordia knocks on the door to an apartment in Nimbasa. “Be good, Cartwright," she says softly. The phone in her hand beeps in response.

The door is opened by a man with warm brown skin, blue hair, and a cane. He gives a sunny smile. “Connie! Hello! You brought the Porygon?” She holds up the phone and he says, “Good, good. Come inside!”

Connie follows him into a warmly-lit apartment. A Tynamo and a Bronzor watch her curiously. “Sit down for a moment, okay?” Tam says. “I just need to finish cleaning this up.” He gestures to a table where some kind of mechanical device sits, partially disassembled.

Connie sits on the couch, goes to open her texts, then thinks the better of it and sets her phone down.

“Any luck finding manufacturers?” Tam asks.

“No, I am afraid not. I have been somewhat busy these past few days.”

“Huh. You heard what’s been going on in Castelia?”

Unexpectedly to both of them, Concordia bursts into tears.

“Oh, dear Palkia, are you alright?”

“I’m—sorry, sorry, I should not be crying…”

“No, I…think that’s reasonable to be upset about, actually. Can I…” Connie nods, and Tam sits down on the couch next to her.

“I’m sorry,” Connie says again. “I just…everyone I know is terribly upset about this, I have spent two days answering phone calls and trying to comfort people and talking them down from arson—most of my friends are former Plasma members, we are not exactly known for making rational decisions when it comes to Pokémon welfare—my siblings are furious, and I have to keep reminding them to eat and sleep—” Connie puts her head in her hands. “I am so tired, Tam. Everyone needs me to be strong, but I am so tired. And it seems that every time I look away Minskt escalates things to new heights of corruption, and I have to start all over again…”

“Do you, um…do you need a hug?”

Connie nods miserably and lets him wrap his arms around her.

After a moment they break apart. Connie stands up, face a little red.

“We, um. We should get to work on the Porygon thing…”

“Right…right.” Tam stands up as well, rubbing the back of his head. “The scanner’s right back through here… You said you don’t have her Pokéball, right?”

“Yeah, N couldn’t find it…”

A stream of electric light comes out of Connie’s phone and congeals into the form of Cartwright the Porygon. She chirps curiously as Tam leads them into a room lined with worktables and machinery. A 3d printer hums away in one corner.

Tam goes to one of the machines and starts flipping switches. “Arright. My machine’s not connected to the PC network, so we can check her registration data, but if we alter it, it’ll glitch out next time she links to the network. It’s a whole mess and I spend a lot of time sorting out reg data corruption for clients who thought they could change their traded ‘mon’s nickname at home…”

“You can release her, though, right?”

“Oh, yeah, that’ll be no trouble if that’s what you want. Sort of in a legal gray area, but—her trainer’s dead, yeah? And she doesn’t want to go back to the company he worked for?”

“Yeah.”

“Alright, Porygon, come sit here,” Tam says, pressing some buttons on one of his machines. Cartwright hovers down to sit on the table next to it. Tam presses another button, and a beam of light flashes out to scan her. A few seconds later, the machine’s screen lights up with the scanned information. “…Um.”

Connie leans over curiously to see the screen. “Um what?”

“Connie, this Pokémon is legally owned by the company, not by the trainer. I’m all for Pokémon autonomy, but—”

“We cannot send her back," Connie says quickly. "She says they are going to erase her memory if she goes back.”

“I know, I wasn’t going to say we should—” Tam stops. “Erase her memory? That’s awful!”

“Exactly.”

“I—yeah, okay, this is very justified, I just…you understand this is super illegal, right? Are you sure you want to do this, like, right after Castelia’s law enforcement pulls that?”

“We already have the Porygon,” Connie points out. “Might as well be in for an Ampharos as for a Mareep, no? And they will be distracted. This new change will cause more chaos in their ranks than anything.”

“Okay. Yeah, okay.” Tam takes a deep breath and pushes his glasses up. “Pory, you got anything you want to save from your reg data before we delete it?”

Cartwright shakes her head, then vanishes into the machine for a moment. She types across the screen, “Status: ready rready ready! Begin procedure,” and then rematerializes onto the table.

“Okay. Here goes nothing… Wiping registration data now.”]

[persephones-journey]

Writing Pattern Tag Game

Thanks to @itbmojojoejo for the tag and for forcing me to revisit my writing so I can cringe and binge drink later.... okay so I am lying... I won't be cringing lol *wink wink*

Rules: Share the first line of your last ten published works, or as many as you are able, and see if there are any patterns!

Nut November: Rhaenyra moaned and grabbed Daemon's hair pulling on it. He sucked harder on her little pearl causing pleasure to flood her body all over again.

The Irishman and the Ruthless Dove: The sun was setting and Tate knew she should head back to the house but she did not want to. Being out in the woods after dark may not be safe, but neither was her house. Not when her father and brother could come home at any moment drunk.

The Tales of the Complete Non-Legend of Yesterday: Carwyn Connelly had very few pet peeves in life.

My House of Stone, Your Ivy Grows, and Now I'm Covered in You: Loki walked into the hall smirking. He saw Freyja standing by her fountain looking into the waters. She must have heard him enter but she did not turn to acknowledge him.

Two Sides of the Same Coin: Aethelflaed stood and felt Eadith tighten the ties on her dress. She closed her eyes and hated the amount of strength it took for her to stand. She was so tired and her whole body hurt. She was fading and quickly.

Here You Are, Next to Me: Finan opened his eyes and smiled as he heard the little footsteps of his daughters as they tried to sneak into the room. He turned and saw Aisling sleeping on her side away from him. He hated that now when they went to bed, there was space between them.

What Could've Been, What Should've Been, What Would've Been You: Ripley was going to throw her cell phone right out the window of her studio. She dropped her paint brush and finally pressed the button for speaker.

This Love is Ours: Rhaenyra laid on the couch with the satin gold sheet with the bright red rubies on it, sewed in the shape of a dragon, her family's crest, caressing her naked body. The sheet was low enough to show off the beginning of the valley between her breasts and the promise of an ample bosom she would have but not her nipples.

Ocean Apart: Benedict looked around the garden party and wanted to be anywhere other than there. He sighed and sipped his punch. He smiled as he watched his mother, Violet, push Anthony to ask a lady to dance while his sister, Daphne suffered what looked like the most boring conversation Benedict had ever seen from a potential suitor.

Fire, Blood, and A Strong Seed: Harwin Strong was very aware of his parentage. His father, Lyonel had worked very hard to erase the stain the name Strong had left behind by some of Harwin's not so distant ancestors. Lyonel had gone to the Citadel and studied law and made sure that everyone associated the current Lord of Harrenhal with intelligence, loyalty, and respect.

Patterns: Well, not as much smut as I thought lol. And I do seem to like to name the characters in the opening lines so, there's that. I do have a pattern of using Taylor Swift lyrics as titles though... my bad lol

My Ao3 if anyone would like to read the rest of these stories... and the others that I did not add here.

Bonus from a fave story that I wrote....

The One in Vegas: Osferth woke up naked.

Tagging: @emilyhufflepufftlk @medievalfangirl @butternutbran @morosemagick @solinarimoon @cibs and anyone else who would like to do this

[wouldntyou-liketoknow]

If you’re up for it, can we see Azalea breaking Caliban out of that interrogation room? That one where his cravings are really bad and Aza poisons the guard and gets him out?

Oh, I'm definitely up for it! (By the way, are you the one who sent that original ask?) I hope you didn't mind the wait, but here it is! Enjoy!

(Trigger Warnings: implications of illegal business, murder/death, poisoning, descriptions of cravings/hunger pangs, blood, implied cannibalism, mentions of unconsciousness, mentions of drinking, strong language. Please let me know if I missed anything.) 

___

“Drink it. . .” Azalea’s voice was soft, just barely an octave above a whisper, and yet her words still came out in an impatient, acidic growl. “C’mon, c’mon, c’mon. Drink it already, you son of a bitch!”

It was a well-known fact that mobsters tended to avoid police departments like the plague. Another well-known fact about mobsters was that they often worked in the dark. And as of right now, the local station was very dark, save for a few lights here and there.

That was why she, Murdock, and The Newcomer had snuck in just ten minutes ago. It’d been pure luck that they’d gotten here before the officers had returned to drag Caliban into one of the interrogation rooms.

Even if things had taken a turn for the worse, at least it’d been long after sunset. The station’s doors officially locked at five o’clock or so, but that didn’t always mean officers weren’t at work here. It did mean that there were far less of them to deal with—three in this case—so that was something. 

She’d already taken care of the security cameras. . .

(Erasing video footage was pretty damn easy, so long as you knew which buttons to press.)

. . .Except for one. 

She was fully prepared to knock off that camera’s evidence, mind you. That particular camera would be as good as belonging to an amateur vlogger soon. 

Right now, however, it had to stay on. 

It wasn’t like Azalea wanted to watch three pigs try to intimidate her brother, but last-minute plans like this had to be handled carefully. 

“Has he taken a sip?” A hushed, familiar baritone voice called.

Azalea glanced over her shoulder to see Murdock slither into the office, having left his car’s trunk a bit heavier than before. It felt like only seconds had passed since he’d crept up behind the security guard, since he’d jerked that guard’s neck on a violent right-angle.

“Not yet.” Azalea chewed her lip, shaking her head. “I can accept someone deciding that they need coffee at this hour, but taking this long with it once you’ve got it? Ridiculous!” 

The very second those officers had entered the building, Azalea had easily overheard the ringleader ordering one of his cronies to put a pot of coffee on. 

Sure, coffee-makers always took time to prepare that addictive battery acid. And sure, policemen were always way, way too unobservant to be as revered as they were.

Still, it’d felt a little miraculous that Azalea had been able to sneak over to the station’s canteen, slip a cyanide pill into that pressed-bean-juice, let that pill fully dissolve, and stir it in before slinking back to the security office.

“. . .I mean, when was the last time you heard of a cop doing things efficiently?” Murdock inquired as he came to stand beside the chair Azalea had claimed. The remaining camera’s blue-glow light reflected off of his shades.

“Fair point,” Azalea admitted, sighing. “I just—I need him to die already.”

“So do I, so do I. One way or another, we’ll get Cal out of here,” Murdock promised. “It doesn’t matter if that asshole is one of those weirdos who likes his brew lukewarm. What matters is how long your little secret ingredient will need to take effect.”

“It should knock him out in less than a minute,” Azalea mused, “but depending on his weight, it’ll take two or four minutes for him to actually keel over.”

“Not too shabby,” Murdock hummed. “Newbie’s on the far corner of the building. They’re gonna set off a distraction on my signal. I’ll help them with an ambush when those two try to investigate.”

Azalea nodded. “Sounds good.” 

A brief silence settled over the office as the two of them stared at the camera monitors.

They watched as Caliban slowly but surely began to shudder, making an effort not to squirm in his chair.

They watched as Caliban’s eyes grew to the size of dinner plates, as he immediately tried not to look at the photographs of blood-spattered crime scenes that the interviewing officer placed on the table. 

They watched as Caliban grappled with not being able to reach up and wipe at the thin strands of saliva now rolling past his lips. 

“Today was supposed to be a feeding day,” Murdock murmured, sounding equal parts frustrated and guilty while kneading at his forehead.

“You think I don’t know that?” Azalea replied in a somewhat pointed voice. She could already tell that Murdock knew just how furious she was right now, knew that she couldn’t be blamed for her anger-fear cocktail. “You’re gonna be making up for this for weeks.” 

“I know I am,” Murdock answered, side-eyeing her right back. Unlike the majority of the time he spoke, there wasn’t a trace of sarcasm in his tone. 

This wasn’t the first time a problem had come up during a job, and it wouldn’t be the last, either. Underground business was always risky, always dangerous. What happened earlier wasn’t exactly Murdock’s fault. . .but tonight’s little rendezvous had still been his idea. 

But Murdock’s new debt had to be put on the back burner right now becAUSE OH GOD THE RINGLEADER-COP FINALLY DRANK SOME OF HIS FUCKING COFFEE HOLY SHIT THIS IS HAPPENING NOW!

“There! That’s it!” Azalea hissed, sitting up so violently that it was a wonder she didn't punch a hole in the monitor screen. “The others can’t see the side-effects! Go! Signal the distraction! Hurry!”

Murdock was out the office door and down the hall before his accomplice had even finished her sentence. The fact that he still managed to be mostly silent was as impressive as it would’ve been unsettling to outsiders. 

Azalea’s hands were a blur now that she was finally able to clean out that last damn camera. The image on the monitor paused, flickering and blurring before clicking to blackness. With that, she ducked behind a nearby filing cabinet. The seconds jeered at her as they dragged by. And yet, just as she was about to start colorfully muttering to the void, she narrowly avoided jumping out of her skin as some kind of alarm came shrieking through the air. 

Yelps of shock followed the distress call, as though the officers down the hall thought they could outdo whatever Murdock and The Newcomer had triggered. Azalea held her breath as muffled footsteps thundered past the security office’s closed door. She could’ve sworn that her heart skipped multiple beats as she was forced to wait for the right moment. Violent shudders wracked her body as she crept up to the threshold and peered through the gap.

As soon as the sound of a stampede faded, as soon as Azalea was sure that the officers had moved far enough away, most of her stealth was kicked to the curb (a few stubborn strands held on, but only because of instinct).

She bolted down the corridor, not caring one bit how there didn’t seem to be any air in her lungs. Through the alarm, through her own thundering pulse, she could still hear the dull thump of a hundred-odd pounds of something hitting linoleum. 

She turned a corner, discovering two doors. One hung open; it probably would’ve drifted shut by now, but the heap of man lying in its path had other ideas. At first, the ringleader-cop could’ve just been mistaken for being sloppy-drunk, what with the way he twitched and gurgled. Foamy, blood-tinged drool leaked out of his mouth to form a puddle where his face met the floor.

It would’ve been impossible to enter the room without tripping over him, but Azalea kept her footing via stomping down on his neck. The choked, pathetic sputter she elicited sounded as though it’d come from somewhere much farther away.

Time seemed to slow down as Azalea raced over to the interview table, as she snatched up the paperclip that was keeping all those crime scene photos together. It was only after she’d picked the handcuffs open, when her brother’s arms limply fell to his sides, that she realized Caliban was slumped over the table, eyes closed. 

He’d only fainted. Azalea knew he’d only fainted, and yet her eyes still stung as she shook his shoulder. Caliban’s breathing wasn’t weak, but it was shaky, labored. She’d seen all the stress and fear he’d had to go through, and she still couldn’t understand how an unconscious person could look so tense.

Azalea had to bare her teeth to avoid sobbing as she tried to coax him awake, as she struggled to lift him, because the people who tried to hurt him were dead and he wasn’t in danger anymore and she needed her brother—

She startled badly at the sound of rustling plastic. A scream caught in her throat as The Newcomer materialized before her. They mimicked Azalea, grabbing hold of Caliban’s other arm and draping it over their shoulders.

“Murdock’s handling the other two bodies,” they announced as they helped Azalea half-carry half-drag Caliban over the ringleader-cop (who was now wrapped up in a fresh body bag) and out of the interrogation room. “He said he’d take care of the one in here! We just need to focus on Cal!”

Azalea didn’t answer. Her head practically swam. She kept moving forward, but she wasn’t actually seeing whatever was in front of her. Old, awful memories were trapped in her vision, and if she wasn’t busy clinging to Caliban, she would’ve tried clawing at her eyes to force those memories out. The noise all around her made it so much worse.

Somehow, after Azalea eventually managed to blink, she briefly felt cool nighttime air against her skin. The blaring alarm hadn’t disappeared, but it was muffled enough that the telltale sound of a seat belt being buckled rang in her ears. She didn’t remember The Newcomer calling shotgun, but their gray eyes peered at her as they turned around in the passenger seat of Murdock’s car. 

“I wiped down the security office,” they coughed. “On my way to you, I mean. Got rid of the handcuffs, too.”

“. . .Oh,” Azalea replied. “Well, good work. Thank you.” On one hand, she hadn’t even thought about fingerprints, and was impressed at The Newcomer’s thoroughness. On the other hand, she didn’t have the heart to remind The Newcomer that she’d been wearing her work gloves all night.

A small smile appeared on The Newcomer’s face. That smile died a quick death when a low, rolling, organic sound broke the awkward silence. Azalea didn’t flinch as she glanced over at Caliban, who had been sat down on the other side of the backseat. 

Azalea felt her shoulders slump. She peered back and forth between Caliban and The Newcomer, who was trying (but failing) not to wince. Not that Azalea could really blame them. She’d had plenty of experience helping her brother with his hunger. 

But The Newcomer. . .well, even if they’d adjusted to working with a cannibal, and even if Azalea only knew so much about their past, she still had her doubts that they’d ever heard a person’s stomach growl so loudly. 

Azalea’s worry came back at breakneck speed. Thankfully, out of the corner of her eye, she spied something shiny and red lying in a heap on the car’s floor. 

Her brother’s favorite jacket.

The same one that had interior pockets for days. . .

She snatched the threads up, quickly rummaging through aforementioned pockets until she fished out a small, rectangular bottle. It was shiny, having been designed with a marble-esque pattern that complimented the damascus material of Caliban’s favorite meat cleaver. 

Azalea twisted the little cap off, allowing a strong, metallic, infamous smell to seep into the air. She moved closer to Caliban, reaching up to gently take hold of his lower jaw and tilt his head back. Then, she raised the vial to his lips—her hand was still shaking, so it was a wonder how none of the processed blood dripped onto his face.

She heard The Newcomer declare that Murdock was finally leaving the station, heard them get out of the car with the same speed as a cat with a violent case of the zoomies. And while it would’ve been very funny to watch Murdock struggle to carry three full bodybags in a manner similar to a dad refusing to take more than one unloading trip, she wouldn’t take her focus off of Caliban.

Though Caliban’s eyes remained closed, instinct still kicked in (with a little help from gravity, of course). One massive twitch shuddered through his whole body. His brow furrowed as a cough forced its way out of his throat. 

“Shh. . .deep breaths, Cal. Deep breaths,” Azalea coached. “Drink.”

A few seconds passed the siblings by.

Then, as the car began to tremble in response to a frustrated hitman bodyslamming its trunk, Caliban’s eyes fluttered open.

“. . .Aza. . ?” he muttered. 

And just like that, Azalea grinned at him. All the dread she’d felt up until now. . .something else came along and ate it up. “You owe me big time.”

Caliban squinted at her, obviously still attempting to convince his body to work again, but it took no time at all for him to grin right back. 

It didn’t last, as he and his sister yelped in tandem when the car suddenly lurched forward, the tires underneath squealing in excitement. 

“Well, that can count as our cardio for the week,” Murdock pronounced, reaching over to clap The Newcomer on the shoulder. He then glanced over his shoulder to peer at his other two accomplices. “How’s it going, Cal?”

“I don't know. How the hell do you think it's going?" Caliban snarked as he leaned back in his seat.

Seeing that her brother was probably coherent enough to do things for himself, Azalea slipped the vial into his hand. Her prediction was confirmed when he immediately took a swig of blood. 

Murdock smirked. “That’s a weird way of saying ‘thank you,’ but I’ll take it.”

“Listen, do you know what it feels like to be hungry right now?” Caliban asked, raising an incredulous eyebrow. “It hurts. Not as much as last month’s target, but it hurts. So I’ll thank you when I’m not so damn hungry, okay?”

“Okay,” Murdock agreed after a second of consideration.

“I mean, there are four dead people crammed in the back. . .” The Newcomer mentioned

Caliban’s eyes lit up at that.

“Ah, you can’t eat any of them, though,” Azalea interjected, offering an apologetic cringe as her brother automatically pouted. “Hey, look, I’m sorry, but you know the drill when it comes to cops. We’ve gotta go the old-fashioned route for disposal—”

“Because the DNA of important public figures can’t be traced anywhere near us. I know, I know,” Caliban finished, sighing. However, his disappointment still didn’t stop him from pulling Azalea into a side hug, which she was quick to reciprocate.

[professormingisglasses]

QUESTIONS...

FFwriter X idolseonghwa (kinda)

TW: talks of anxiety and mental illnesses, starts of like smutty(?)… but trust it's not like that. (let me know if I miss anything)

A/N: This is me getting used to writing for Hwa, I hope it isn’t too cringey but this concept came to me while daydreaming haha. Also I feel like it would funny if this ever happened to an atiny IRL. Anyways enjoy, and for the most part I think it’s gn! but once again let me know and give feedback :)

XO your fave shinestar ;)

(I’m Ot8 for the most part, I CANNOT CHOOSE and I don’t want to hehe. You’ll see further down what I mean)

He pried me away from the crowd and sat me down one of the velvety couches in the hallway. “Why did you bring me here?” I ask Seonghwa hazed and dizzy from the dance floor. “I called three times and you didn’t answer, do you have any clue how worried I was,” he gritted out while roughly brushing his hands through his obsidian locks. Finally coming to my senses, “But why, after all the things I said about yo-” he cuts me off, crashing his plump lips into mine and he carefully press my back into the velvet. I groan against his lips as he grabs a fist of my hair to allow access to my neck. “Tell me if you want to stop sweetheart,” he mutters in between the nibbles and nips at my neck. I’m so heady all I can offer him is whiney hum, I never want him to shit.

“Why did I write that,” I aggressively erase my mistake while frantically peaking at the time on the top of my computer, 3:25 AM. My readers will just have to wait for the next part, I tell myself as I quickly finish up the loose ends to make a cliffhanger. “Sorry for the ending guys,” I sound out while typing my authors note, “Please be patient and ready for a part two, XO your fav shinestar ;).” I press post, setting my laptop on my haphazardly organised desk and crawl into bed. Catching a glimpse of my alarm clock; 3:36 AM. Groaning into my pillow*,* I punch my clock giving myself three hours of sleep before I have to run down to the station for work. I dream about meeting Seonghwa and riding away into the sunset with him on a horse, Picture perfect, I smile to myself.

The clock has been going off for the past ten minutes, I grab the stupid thing and ram the off button. WHY DID I DECIDE TO PICK THIS JOB OUT OF ALL THE OTHER OFFERS I GOT UGHHH. I drag myself out my bed and head to the bathroom to look half decent while taking interviews with out-touch-with-reality celebrities. My current job at a gossip magazine was to make ends meet, heavens know I despise this job and all I want to do is work with artists. My true passion was to become a music journalist, diving deeper with the artists on their albums and understanding who they are behind the mic was all I want to do but alas I have to survive. Plus this is closest I can get to meeting some of my role models, for now that is.

“Eventually we will get there, but first let’s get through today,” I slap my face in my car mirror to psyche myself up before entering the office. Even before I can properly enter the office lobby, I spot a rougue human hurtling towards me. “Girl- woahhh,” my office bestie nearly crashes into me, so I her shoulders and face towards me. “YOU HAVE TO GET TO THE MAKE-UP DEPARTMENT NOWWW,” she pushes me hastily along the office floor and I try my best not to fall flat on my face and acknowledge my coworkers. “First of all, WHY?!” I question as soon as we stop. “Second of all, why the fuck are our co-workers looking at me like I stole their paychecks ?” her face goes ghost-white. “Hello, are you ok?” What is up with this girl…

That’s when I hear him chuckle,

my heart dropped

I send an SOS and he’s-behind-me-isn’t-he? sharply to my friend, and in return receiving an encouraging yeah-hahahhahaha-but-you-got-this. I carefully turn myself to face Seonghwa, “Excuse me, are you who is supposed to interview me today? Sorry for any last minute trouble,” I feel the Earth shift beneath me and feel a shock that could send me into my grave along with my ancestors. “Yup yup,” my friend covers up for my shaken state. “Just give us a few moments to prep,” she leads me away. “HWAT !?” our make-up team promptly gets to work after not-so-gently placing my into a chair. “You got this, alright,” my friend shoves the interview questions I’ve worked on in my free-time, turning over in my head, thinking of that What if I ever got to meet him. I look over the questions, the words and letter slide around the page and my heart begins to pound with a strong presence. But they aren’t perfect, I am not ready. My thoughts are left as scattered as my questions.

I sit opposite Seonghwa, lit by the studio lights looking like the angel he is and fitted into a simple sweater and grey trousers that fit the homelness of the set. I cannot bring myself to look up at him as the make-up touch up his face and he glances towards me, my hands grip my clipboard with ferocity. “We can start whenever you are ready,” the director shouts out. “Ok, thank you,” Seonghwa replies politely. “Like he said whever you are ready,” I feel a gentle touch on my finger tips. I meet his face as he pulls back, he’s contorted with concern, but with a firmness that is comforting. I can’t help to think to myself of the times where his lives and content helped with my anxiety, and more importantly helped me to feel like I deserve to exist.

Thank you Seonghwa, let me prove to you and myself it was worth it.

With a deep breathe I signal to the staff that I am ready, “So you will be releasing a solo album soon..”

The interview had gone by somewhat smoothly, but minimal stuttering and edits which is a win for me. “Thank you for your time, anyways that’s all from me, your fav shinestar,” I finish cheekily.

I head to the roof after grabbing a muffin to munch on and clear my thoughts. I hear a door open but muffled as I stare into the baby blue scenery the sky displays. The knots that wind up during an anxiety attack slowly unfurl as I create shapes out of the fluffy clouds. “Good job by the way, you did amazing,” Seonghwa begins gently. I swiftly face him watching as the wind picks up his dark hair that the stylists, graciously, had left loose and soft. His eyes meet mine when the wind settles down after dancing around him in joy, leaving him with his signature smile. Absolutely mesmerised, I’ve forgotten to reply back, “Sorry, thank you” I shake myself awake. “Don’t be,” he tilts his head as though offended by my apology. “Also,” he jumps up, “your fics are just as good too. I love the way you portray me in each character, makes me feel like a shapeshifter,” he chuckles. I chock on my muffin,

HE’S READ MY FICS ?!

“Thank you ?” I force out settling myself. After he assures I’m ok, he continues his attack on my wellbeing. “I thought they would be more you know…” he fades off with smirk, I chock once more on my poor muffin, “I know what Atiny like…” he turns away. “HAHAHAHAhAHAHHA, yeah” I laugh obnoxiously. Sensing my obviously convincing casualness, “thank you again.” He shifts the conversation to something I don’t pick up right away because all I can think about what he was saying.

THANK THE HEAVENS THAT MY SMUT IS ON A WHOLE OTHER ACOUNT

Sending my thanks to anyone looking out for me, I tune into the conversation with Seonghwa, today was perfect and sweet like him. What more could I ask for, right?

This is what I sent to my poor best friend in the late hours of the night:

(i’m too tired to continue but basically, last minute she finds out she’s interviewing Seonghwa as he’s releasing his own album soon and after some nearly embarrassing moments, he realises that is the author of some of his most favourite ff of himself, and confesses this to her. She gets flustered but appreciates his words, he jokes about how he thought that the fics would be more raunchy since he knows what atiny like, and she brushes it off casually by laughing but thanks all the forces of the universe that her smut is on another more hidden account.)

(Sorry and love you lots !!!!)

[sparkofthetelling]

Motor disability cross-sectional issues ?

The one thing I wish I was more able to explain to people about any of my disability issues is the very subtle ways PKD affects me, because I tricked myself into thinking essentially all of the symptoms of it are the result of my autism for a good 4-5 years, and that's just infeasible. Like, I have to go on a 10-15 minute walk any time I get an email from a couple of specific people because the sheer excitement in relation to my hopes, dreams, and special interests acts as a conflagration of nervous activation to the point where I can't focus on anything because said fire presents as the aura, so I know if I move, it'll trigger an episode, and when I'm excited I can end up flagellating (physical motion, not with any particular context attached) as a stim, which I don't want to 'set' as the input for an episode (not always how it works but sometimes) because that hurts! obviously And so like, I just have to go on a silly little walk to let all of that out in manners so that I can do literally anything again, because, in the only way I can think to describe it, my nervous system decided it wanted to press the send command button 50 extra times In a different bent, usually I find that episodes switch sides of my body if I'm doing something with the part afflicted by the aura, which is useful because it made doing chem labs slightly safer (s/o to the chem major who partnered with me because she saw my name and offered to do all the physical lab work, that was perfect), but if I do not conceive this object or action as "important", the episode will trigger on whatever I'm doing anyways, which leads to me just flinging markers and erasers around the room when I'm writing on the board for a class either that I'm taking or teaching, and depending on the circumstances that can be very offputting. It's good to know that I need to ask for accommodations at conferences in the future not just for POTS though, because back at the start of uni I took a public speech class where for the first presentation, I just stood there for a full like eighth of the presentation shaking on my legs trying desperately not to fall over because I don't know how to fall over safely, and couldn't speak because of how much focus I had to put into it. Thankfully that professor was sitting where she could see what was happening with my legs and I think that's why I still got a good grade but still, yeouch. I was hoping I wouldn't have issues with the talk I gave back in April, but because of just raw nerves rather than explicit nervousness, it triggered in my feet again and thankfully I was able to rest on the podium. I have no intention of trying to medicate this because afaik there's no harm in it and it should get better with age (and taking the rest of my meds is already hard enough), but oof is that a lot

[hunty627]

Here’s the script for Annie loses her voice!

Once upon a time, Ellie Craft was just waking up & it was early in the morning. She had gotten up before the sun. Then, she heard Annie warming up her singing. Ellie knew Annie had gotten up early too, so she decided to go and say good morning. When Ellie walked outside, she saw Annie, standing in the morning garden, and she was wearing her pajamas. The birds have also gotten up early so they can sing a good morning song with Annie. Everyone had woken up early to hear it. Annie and the songbirds sang and the sun began to wake up. It was a beautiful sound. Everyone loved hearing Annie sing. All that is, except one. And that was Big Jet. He flew in with a new machine called the sonic stealer. It allows him to take anything that was most important to someone. And he used it to steal Annie’s voice, kinda like when Ursula took Ariel’s voice! Annie tried to sing or talk, but she couldn’t when her voice was stolen. Her lips moved, but no words came out her mouth. Annie was sad. Leo comforted his little sister. He told her that we were going to stop Big Jet and get her voice back. So, we climbed aboard Rocket and blasted off on our mission. They chased Big Jet all the way to Los Angeles, where they saw him taking billboards. Annie needed something to communicate with us. So, I gave her a dry erase board and a dry erase marker for her to write what she wants to say to us. They saw Big Jet was heading towards Darrell Cartrip. He was gonna take all four of his tires! But Annie knew what to do. She took a deep breath and screamed as loudly as she could! Her voice, which was in Big Jet’s Sonic stealer made the blue airplane shake! Big Jet didn’t like it and he flew away as we gave chase after Darrell thanked us. We chased Big Jet all the way to Manhattan in New York City! He used his sonic stealer to take the flags from the United Nations. The butterfly world leaders were very dismayed. Then Big Jet took Quincy’s hat, Leo’s baton, and even my Nintendo Switch! I was so upset that I ran outside to tell Big Jet off. I told him that his brain was smaller than a peanut, he got the lowest grades in flying school, and was a naughty, lily livered bully boy who leaked oil on the bed until he was 7. Big Jet was so angry, he blew steam out of his nose like a work whistle from the 1930s! He set his sonic stealer to full power and then Ellie pushed me out of the way and Big Jet took Ellie’s voice and her spirit! She was now laying on the floor, motionless. The Little Einsteins couldn’t believe their eyes! Big Jet began flying around happily because he had won, or so he thought, because Annie made Rocket put out his blazer laser and fired it at the sonic stealer, blowing it off of Big Jet! Then, Annie pressed the green button on it and all the items that Big Jet had taken were sent back to where they were. The billboards were back in LA, the flags were back in the United Nations, Leo got his baton back, I got my Nintendo Switch back, Quincy got his hat back, Annie got her voice back, and Ellie got both her voice and her spirit back. Everyone was very happy. But not Big Jet. He flew back home to sulk. Annie gave Ellie a hug. She asked if what I said about Big Jet was true, and I said yes. And we all laughed at the thought of Big Jet leaking oil on his bed. Then together, we all listened to both Annie & Ellie sing with the butterfly world leaders. And Leo said “Mission completion!” The end.