#other interesting things that happened so far during stream:

[horse-head-farms]

conversation that definitely happened (hypno is actually streaming today)

[ivorycello]

An Introduction to the Lifesteal SMP - Season 6 Starts on July 6th

The Premise 

Lifesteal is a competitive, PVP based soft-anarchy server, with one core gimmick: In the server, if you kill somebody, you can steal one of their permanent hotbar hearts, with a maximum of twenty hearts. If you drop down to zero hearts, you are banned off of the server, unless another player revives you with an expensive item called a revive beacon.  

One of the biggest draws in the fandom is the incredibly organic improv storytelling that arises from the server, with the competition extending past simple combat. Players clash as they all attempt to enact their own plans, creating moral and emotional conflicts that draw in stream viewers and make the server incredible to follow as events unfold. 

Watching Lifesteal Streams and attempting to have a complete picture of what is going on is very time intensive. Luckily, starting in season five, they do weekly sessions where the most important events usually happen.

How seasons work

Each season runs independently of each other, and the entire world resets when they move to a new season. 

There is no in-universe lore explanation for what happens during a season reset. Some streamers may choose to treat it like they’re playing a different character, but most choose to leave things that happened in previous seasons in the past while still acknowledging it. Knowing what happens in previous seasons may help you understand things more, but is not necessary in the slightest.

Is Lifesteal a roleplay server? Kinda, kinda not. 

Please respect that creators have different levels of interest in rp and are primarily on the server to make youtube videos of a particular niche.

Lifesteal is unscripted, though different players will create and enact elaborate plans with insane amounts of effort, but all of this is with the goal of a genuine, entertaining reaction. 

Most members enter every situation with the primary goal of creating a good video, and their actions often reflect this. Videos are designed to be standalone content. Each video tells a complete story, and doesn't often tie into other videos or arcs. Lifestealers will also twist the narrative in order to create a linear storyline, including changing the order of events, or even just straight up lying. (We’re looking at you, Mapicc.) Due to this, with few exceptions, it is near impossible to gain full context of an arc or event via video alone, as so much context and information will be glanced over or covered up. Streams are a much more reliable way of understanding the full story. 

New and leaving members

The eight new members announced so far for season six are:

Derapchu

Ecorridor

Chiefxd

Kaboodle

Flamefrags

SB737

Hannahxxrose

Manepear

Members who have left over the past season are:

ItzSubz_

Vitalasy

Parrotx2

Rekrap2

Poafa

Midmysticx

Branzycraft

Where to watch Lifesteal

There are a few active streamers and uploaders, who we will introduce below, and there is also a fan-run archive of all Lifestealer vods that you can access here.

The archive runs as far back as 2020, though only becomes mostly reliable around July 2022, when the project started. The archive also has links to every members’ youtube and twitch account, as well as any vod channel they may run themselves!

POV Recommendations Frequent Streamers: If you want a consistent pov to watch, and be able to follow a consistent storyline here are your best choices. PrinceZam: Zam was lifesteal’s most consistent streamer in previous seasons and puts a very large amount of effort into his rp and storytelling. Goes live at random times for long hours. Kaboodle: Kab is a new addition this season, but she consistently puts an incredible amount of effort into rp and storytelling. She streams most days at 7pm EST! ChiefXD: New Member who streams daily at 11am EST. HannahxxRose: New member, frequent streamer, but we don't know how her streaming style will adapt to lifesteal yet. Derapchu: He’s a little bit of a freak. Australian but has a bad sleep schedule so he streams at US friendly times or earlier. Does pretty long streams. Pangi: Has been on hiatus, but usually streams regularly around 2-4 PM EST at an EU friendly time for shorter hours. He typically does sillier, shorter projects. 4CVIT: Frequent streamer when he does stream, but may go inactive for long periods of time. Kinda roleplays, one of the better builders on the server and likes to keep projects secret from chat.

Honorable Mention: Follow these people anyway, they’ll probably go live for big events or random streams. Minutetech: Typically streams large events and sessions Mapicc: Occasionally streams, mostly important events Ashswag: Occasionally streams, mostly important events Jumper: Occasionally streams Bacon: Occasionally streams Woogie: Frequent streamer at the start of the season, but will become less active when college starts again for him Roshambogames: Occasionally Streams, mostly important Events

Youtube: Current Season: Frequent Uploads: Mapicc: Uploads frequently on main and 2nd channel, however he is known for lying a lot in his videos. It’s a little bit funny. Minutetech: Long videos about huge arcs, mostly truthful but may simplify some stuff. Wemmbu: Long videos about huge projects. FlameFrags: Medium length SMP videos. ChiefXD: Has an episodic style, we are not sure how that will change for lifesteal as he is a new member. Jumper: Mix of long form videos and short videos about a variety of topics. Squiddo: Fun, High Effort and Energy videos about a variety of topics. Lots of custom art. SB737: Uploads often but unsure if he will upload Lifesteal.

Do Not Upload as Frequently But Its Good When They Do Planetlord, Roshambogames, Ashswag, Spokeishere, Princezam, Baconnwaffles,     ECorridor, Pentar, Clownpierce

Past Seasons, we linked povs that cover full seasons or large amounts of a season, but other non listed members still have fantastic one off videos about single events or arcs. Link All Videos Playlist (updated infrequently)

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiRXq4v6FXPn8D15UEAY6oZuPF23-NTG8 Mer S4 Summary Document

Lifesteal Season 4 Directory (public access version) Cog S4 Summary Doc

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1E0Mi2s64to6BzoAJuWHw16lnJpdEdYBXfd62tC7O0jY/edit?usp=sharing Minute S5 Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6xtt50MzkHWil_vQbgkll9rZTDyfI5k1 Spoke S4: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYmAm1lW6hlgK3WHPORSYeC80PVNUuUcZ All Parrot Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLu0onnEWPanttCW1zIfh25bQ_b5sBo8_p Clownzy S3 Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCUTLKqDTev0e1y9Paex97_KP-TpF6QIs

Squiddo S5: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlWJegiCG6X_iKkO-CEd6J9GMAhkzYjVn&si=Kx6lLPLZQeexGdio Baconnwaffles1: https://www.youtube.com/@baconnwaffles1/videos

Princezam S3: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmPnYnLs0WLoJTEdRpFBMTS21X631LKtu&si=37bk0Gs1haPYOSEd Mapicc, warning. Unreliable Narrator. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsiSq_WYMOAV7HPEqn8QY_981n19u2qO0 Roshambo: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaa_QQN2V8hZ78ACgXFOGt4tGcfDPTp_B

Stream Etiquette

Do not stream snipe / metagame, which includes sharing or hinting at any info whatsoever, even silly things, about another creators playthrough that the streamer wouldn’t know otherwise, you will get banned in all lifestealers chats. Information revealed via videos is considered fair game.

Do not backseat game or backseat lore Lifesteal Members on Tumblr

Several Lifesteal members have public tumblr accounts they use to varying degrees. Because of this, we use the #Lifesteal Spoilers tag to mark posts they shouldn't see because of metagaming reasons or when we just don’t want them to see it. They’re mostly chill, please just block them if you don’t want to deal with them. hdusa - Princezam lowkeywaffling - Baconnwaffles0 Neverpoor - Ashswag TheRealSquiddo- Squiddo BigPangolinMan - Pangi

Fancontent:

Lifesteal has a big fanartist community and we encourage you to join in!

Duo Name List

Lifesteal Animatics and Edits Wormhole Zine

Minecraft Roleplay Analysis -  Barrier Blocks

[lycheedr3ams]

Death's Angel

Part 3: Taming the Beast

royal!fem!reader x executioner!konig

Summary: It's 1554. You're one of the eight daughters of the Austrian royal family, and your parents do everything they can to ensure their kingdom is prosperous and peaceful. No royal court is complete without their hand-picked executioner, one who stands out against the sea of black, faceless bodies that make up the profession. It just so happens that your family's new executioner, one who has made a name for himself far and wide for his skill with the axe, has caught your eye and ruined you for good.

Warnings: MDNI! Mentions of smut, eventual filthy smut, mutual pining, forbidden love, death (konig is an executioner duh), mean sisters, mentions of medieval-type violence, overbearing parents, konig is brooding and a perv, some predator/prey dynamics, maybe dark themes bc reader likes seeing him kill people and bc he's a perv?

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 4

.......

series inspired by the art below!

You were more than lucky that no one caught you going down to konig's quarters last week on the night of the autumn harvest ball. You made sure to keep your interactions with him the following days very brief, if you even saw him at all. this was all for his sake, so that he wouldn't be thrown out of the castle - or worse - on accusations that he seduced the Austrian royal family's princess. not that it wouldn't be the truth, but you were the one who pursued him first, after all.

you found that you could hardly concentrate during your routine literature or violin courses. your eyes would always wander out the window, scouring the fields or training area for the hooded giant. but just like his living quarters, he must train in secret, for he was rarely seen outside of the castle during daylight hours. some nights, you'd spot him from your bedroom window, washing his clothes in the moonlit stream. you wanted to call out to him, but surely others would hear, and it wasn't safe. you wished you could be like Rapunzel, to just let down your hair for him to climb to your room like a storybook prince. but you were no Rapunzel, and he was certainly no prince.

it was too risky for you to sneak down to his quarters now that things had settled down after the ball. you thought endlessly on how to get more time alone with him, to just even speak to him, even if you would be the one doing most of the speaking.

crime in your country actually seemed to almost stop now that konig was the royal family's executioner. everyone was scared of him, and of his axe. to be killed by konig was a death like no other, even though he made it swift and painless. needless to say, castle life was getting a little boring. you had enough of the routine, enough of the shy, virgin-like smiles you sent his way on the rare occasion you saw him. he was the most interesting person you've ever met.

and konig couldn't get it out of his head how you said that fire just needed to be handled properly. he replayed that night over and over again in his mind, pondering your words with every free moment he got. he couldn't admit to himself that he missed you: from your kindness and smile to your plump hips and squeezable breasts. that cloth you gave him didn't make it three days before it was soiled with his essence as he jerked off to unholy thoughts of you. he pretended to not notice the way you would owlishly stare at him from your bedroom window when he was trying to wash his clothing.

but you couldn't think of a way to see him alone again, until tonight. you watched as konig cleaned his clothes under the light of a crescent moon, but he seemed to forget a piece of clothing as he left. no one else would've been able to see the black cloth if they hadn't already known it was there. you jumped up from your daybed by the window and smiled as a plan formed in your head. much like the night of the banquet the week prior, you slipped on a cloak and some loose boots before sneaking out of the castle. it wasn't uncommon for you to take walks at night, even before konig arrived, so that alone wouldn't arouse any suspicion. the silence of the night and the cold glimmer of the moon were often your only companions.

you pretended to follow the streambank lazily, as if you weren't making a bee line for the cloth, as if it wasn't the only reason you came out tonight. the knights each had their area that they guarded every night, and you had long ago memorized each of their paths and schedules. they were no threat to your plan. when you finally approached the black cloth lying on the ground, you sat down and gently pulled it under your dress with your foot. you carefully folded the garment under your cloak and tucked it under your arm before you sat down and admired the stream for a little while, like you usually did. the easy part was over. now, you had to figure out how to get to konig's quarters without being seen.

there was no way you could march right past the knights like you did last time. there were too many servants about, and your sisters often stayed up later than they should've, just like you. you aimlessly wandered the castle grounds as you thought, and remembered that there were secret passages throughout the castle that were only supposed to be used in times of an emergency. surely returning the executioner's forgotten clothing to him was an emergency?

you walked back to your room, to trick the servants and knights into thinking you were going to bed, before you entered one of the secret passages to the basement. it was hidden behind a painting that rested on the floor rather than hung. only you knew about it, somehow. maybe no one else ever bothered to wonder why one painting wasn't hung out of the thousands that already adorned the castle.

you could risk bringing no torch with you, so you braced the cold darkness of the passages and followed them down. in your younger years, you would often hide in these passages from your sisters, or when someone made you upset and you couldn't get away. but you had never been past the main level. but down you went, until you reached the trapdoor exit and were right in the middle of the basement servant's quarters. they all seemed to be asleep, so you quietly climbed onto the floor and descended down konig's staircase. you were slightly more confident this time since you've visited him before, but it was still like knocking on death's door.

you gently knocked and whispered his name. you heard the bed creak, and he opened the door a moment later. he didn't look all that surprised to see you, like he did last time. he wordlessly looked down at you.

right as you were about to hand his discarded garment to him, you realized that he might find it creepy how you knew he left a piece of black clothing, outside, at night, while you were supposed to be asleep. you blushed, and pursed your lips shut. he tilted his hooded head to show he was confused. but he already knew you watched him, so would it really be that weird? you couldn't think of an easy excuse as to why else you would be down here, knocking on his door in the dead of night. so, you timidly handed him his folded garment that he left by the stream.

"you...left this," you said quietly without meeting his eyes. he gently reached and took the garment from your hands. you lowered your head in shame as you realized you had become a stalker. you were about to turn to leave when his voice pierced the air, even though he spoke very quietly.

"can you handle fire?"

you looked up at him with wide eyes, and you must've looked like a spooked animal. you chewed the inside of your cheek.

"i'd like to think that I can," you responded breathlessly.

his silence gave you the idea that he was satisfied with your answer. but his gaze was so heavy that you could barely control your mouth before you blurted,

"i'm sorry i'm not stalking you i just think you're really interesting."

his eyes widened at that, and you blushed as you realized what you had just said. you turned to run up the stairs, needing to get away from his all-knowing gaze, before his strong hand grabbed your arm and pulled you into his room. he shut the door with his other hand and pushed you somewhat roughly against his hard, wooden door. his body caged you in as he leaned an elbow above your head and curved his back down so that your eyes were level while his other hand hung at his side. giving you an escape if you wanted. but you couldn't will your body to move. you had awoken a beast.

"you should not talk to me," he warned through gritted teeth.

you could barely breathe. "why?"

his eyes went up and down your frame before he gulped and answered.

"bad idea," he rasped.

you were truly a lamb caught within the wolf's jaws. your breath grew labored.

"I don't think so," you whispered.

"i am an executioner. you are a princess," he said, almost angrily.

you looked him in his eyes, and he truly had the look of a predator. his pupils were pinpricks swimming within a sea of grey-blue. "i don't care."

it seemed he tried to restrain himself with some hidden leash, with the way his body trembled as he caged you in. was he aroused? angry? scared? you couldn't tell.

"i will ruin you," he stated.

your body went on autopilot. you smirked.

"i'd like to see you try."

taglist: @kneelingshadowsalome, @plumdreadful

very filthy smut next chapter!!!!!

[snoopyana]

one night.

the sequel.

“can i be with you just one night? i can wear you out inside.”

in which you meet eunseok at a basketball game, after your boyfriend, wonbin, left you alone during a heated argument— and eunseok swoops in to temporarily take his spot.

song eunseok. smut. darkish? eunseok drops his whole “i care for you” facade and blames you for the whole situation in the end.

everyone knew what was going on behind the bleachers. it wasn’t necessarily a private place to argue. definitely not to argue about you eyeing his teammates a bit too long for wonbins liking. you had no ill intention behind your gaze, but he thought otherwise. his voice gradually rising in volume when you denied having any interest in any of the other guys. it was almost as if he wanted to say you had a thing for his members.

“oh my god, what’s your problem??” you cut the man off mid-sentence. the bickering had gone on for so long that his members would peek their heads in to make sure anything was alright. “my problem? my problem is how you were basically glazing them with your eyes.” that was far from the truth, and he knew it. wonbin only said that once he finally saw the other men listening in.

“are you SERIOUS right now? you ASKED me to come and watch you guys practice and that’s what i’m doing. do you expect me to only look you? god forbid i’m not an airhead all the time and actually act interested in what’s happening around me??” wonbin stared at you dumbfounded. his eyes blown, fist clenched. “i’m done.” walking past his teammates, he snatched up his duffel bag before storming out the gym.

rubbing your temple, you finally let go of your emotions. eyes stinging as the argument looped in your mind. “oh my fucking god.” slipped past your lips as you made your way from underneath the bleachers. quickly being were surrounded by the rest of his team and bombarded with “are you okay?” which only tipped you over the edge. going from a small stream running down your cheeks to full crocodile tears.

their words quickly turning into hesitant hugs as you broke down in the middle of the court. eunseok lead you over back to the bleachers, this time to sit down and most importantly — calm down. the others stood in a semicircle around you two. you face falling into the palms of your hands as you continued your small emotional crisis. silence followed as eunseok rubbed your back, the others standing there simply for emotional relief. looking at their phones, sungchan was the first to speak up.

“hey, we gotta get going. but if you ever need anything, i’m pretty sure we’d all be willing to help. right? just call or text.” his sentence was followed by a bunch of “mhms” and head nods. stepping over to your side, sungchan ruffled your hair before walking to pick up his stuff. signaling for the rest to follow. “you coming eunseok?” anton turned back to you two, realizing eunseok was still seated. “no, she still needs a way to get home, wonbin had driven them here and clearly he left already.”

nodding his head, anton waved goodbye to his friend, giving you another glance before letting the door close behind him. the buzz from the overhead lights and your sniffles echoed through the open area. he continued to draw circles on your back until light cries and sniffles turned into light breathing. searching his pockets, eunseok pulled out his phone. ‘8:46PM’ stared back at him. it had been close to an hour since wonbin stormed out, and 20 minutes since the boys left.

as he looked at his screen, he could feel your body shift. finally lifting your head up from your hands — glancing over, eunseok put his phone down to move small pieces of hair that stuck to your face. wiping your cheeks with the back of his hand as well. “you alright now? i can take you home or we can just sit a little longer.” moving his hand from your back to your shoulder. “i don’t wanna,” you spoke in between sniff ,” see him right now.” it had completely slipped his mind, you two lived together. “oh yeah, sorry. i can just drive you around if you want.”

giving him a quick nod, eunseok helped you to your feet — slipping his hand around your waist as he led you out the building and into the parking lot. opening the passenger door for you, he made sure you were situated before going to his respective seat. starting the vehicle, the first part of the drive was filled with silence and eunseok making random turns as you stared out the window.

“so,” he finally decided to break the silence after nearly 10 minutes, “what happened back there?” coming to a stop, the red from the light illuminated your face. “he was being fucking stupid. saying i was ‘checking you guys out’ when i was just watching.” huffing, you let your head fall back onto the seat. “like does he not trust me around other dudes or something? but if i started to act like that when he’s around women i’d be in the wrong!” crossing your arms under your chest as you thought about the whole situation. tears threatening to roll down your face for the second time tonight. “hey its okay, calm down.” reaching over, he rubbed your leg — thinking nothing of it for the time being.

“god. i swear he just wants me to cheat or something.” looking ahead, you took notice to eunseoks’ now still hand. eyes darting over to him, his eyes were glued to the road. “what’s stopping you?” the question caught you by surprise. “because i..”

you wanna say love him. don’t you?

eunseok pulled into a vacant lot. “because you what? you love him?” he was now facing you, waiting for a response. eunseoks hand lingering on your thigh. you sat in silence.

spit it out. you don’t. at least not right now.

“no. i.. i don’t.” humming in response, eunseok leaned over the center console. lips ghosting yours. he stayed like that in silence, his eyes glued to your lips. you were quick to close the distance. lips colliding with his.

when was the last time you felt this way? this desperate. how would wonbin feel if he saw you right now?

eunseoks hands found their way your neck, pushing you closer into him. his lips curling into a smile when you whined. pulling away, a quiet snicker slipped from his lips as you caught your breath. eyes blown and lips already puffy. “get in the back.” opening the car door, eunseok walked to the back while you quickly crawled through the center. once he was seated, he tapped his lap — which you eagerly sat down in. thighs on the sides of his while his arms stretched over your waist.

it’s not too late to stop you know.

pushing the thoughts to the back of your mind, his lips found their way back to yours. feeling a little more relaxed, arms wrapping around his neck. a few minutes passed before the sound of your phone buzzing snapped you out of your trance. reaching for your purse, eunseok started to grind his hips into yours.

it’s him, isn’t it?

guilt started to kick in, this is cheating. “he’s asking where i am..” looking at eunseok, your eyes quickly started to gloss over. “tell him you went to a friends house. he doesn’t need to know you’re with me.” there was hesitation in your eyes, but you did as he said. throwing your phone to the side, his lips found yours again. a slight tremble in your touch while your hands snaked through his hair, and he noticed. his hand slipped under your shirt, massaging the skin — while his other cupped your cheeks.

it felt so intimate. would wonbin do this? did wonbin do this?

that feeling would quickly fade as eunseoks’ once gentle hands roughly pulled at your jeans. helping him, you tugged at the material, pushing it down until they laid on the car seat. pushing you to sit on his knees, the man pulled his sweats down just enough for his dick to spring up. “come on, we gotta make it quick.”

he seemed so much pushier now, what happened?

shuffling up to his lap once more, eunseok spits in his palm. giving his cock a few pumps before tapping onto your thighs — causing your body to automatically hover over his. lining himself up, the male pushed you down onto his hard-on. the stretch being even more intense from the lack of prep.

seems like he doesn’t care anymore.

he was now buried deep inside your cunt, giving you the bare minimum of time to adjust before snapping his hips into yours. eunseoks head resting in the nook of your neck — biting at the skin. “hey, no.. no marks.” but did he listen? of course not. biting harder as his pace increased. he didn’t even bother to talk to you. wasn’t this supposed to be distressing you? why aren’t you enjoying it as much now?

he was quick to finish, pulling out and jerking his way to his own climax. but you hadn’t reached yours. opening your mouth to speak, your words were cut off before they could even come out. “he’s outside, hurry up and get out so you can go home.” pushing your body onto the seat next to him, eunseok was quick to stuff himself back into his pants. opening the car door, wonbin stood just outside. eunseok slipped out, standing next to the other male. a small smile plastered on his lips — your lip gloss coating his face.

“this is your fault by the way. should have gone home.”

note- hii. i wanted to try and venture out of my comfort zone a little with my writing style AND themes. nothing too intense for now. i kinda liked writing this though. i will say it’s not one of my best works but hey, we live and we learn. if you guys enjoyed, please do tell me. i’d love to hear some feedback. also, can we tell i’m a little head-over-heels for car sex? like woah.

note 2- ALSO, took me less than 10 days to write another fic? are we proud of me guys? i feel like thats an accomplishment, im getting more confident in my craft.

[luciusime]

Kr & S1

In the early days of his creation when he was still small and had extra fat clinging to his cheeks, the pains of growing spreading all over his body, Kr was not surrounded by blindingly red walls that looked too much like flayed open flesh and the smell of ozone and formaldehyde. His first lab was plain, and he couldn't name more than half the things in it. Hell, he couldn't even speak or retain consciousness very well. He was like a newborn baby, and like a newborn, he picked up on the things around him.

The walls always crackled with the bright hum of electricity, grating annoyingly at the edge of his hearing in a fuzzy sort of way. The lights always flickered too dimly and at a speed too fast for normal people to see, but it irritated Kr's eyes. Several doors down from him one of the scientists repeated the same mumbled words over and over again every day,

" Our Father, who…"

And a couple of levels into the basement, there was a perpetual screaming. It didn't have a schedule, unlike the scientist. He'd float into the waking world sometimes and it'd be silent, and sometimes the screaming was so loud it made him cry tears of pain.

It was one such time when he was crying- wailing with all his limited lung capacity- when a scientist, not the Our Father one, stormed in and demanded he be silent. When words failed, she simply turned on the components of his first chamber that filled the tank with stasis fluid. As the charmer filled and he was forced to sleep, the scientist mumbled to herself.

" The first clone is a screamer and the second is a crybaby, go figure."

He didn't really have time to think about those words when she said them, but when he woke up after a week and heard the whispers, there was no forgetting them.

The voice in his ears was soft, warm even, but something about the rough and wet sound made Kr squirm.

" And so that's why Orion is named as it is. I'm not sure where we are, so I'm not sure what the sky looks like over us, but I'm fairly sure that if you looked into the endless expanse of the stars from here, you'd be able to catch a glimpse of it."

Kr wanted to ask what a star was, and what expanse meant, and what a sky was. He did nothing as the other boy continued on. Space, aerospace, science, mathematics, English, and various other subjects were all he would talk about during the first few days after Kr was awake. He'd paint pictures with his words, stumbling through descriptions of little lights dancing and fiddling across the sky, the layer above the earth that reflected light and protected the thing on the planet from the sun, a really big star. He'd ramble on about aerodynamics and the requirements for a functional spaceship, giant flying metal constructs meant to take people into the sky and then far beyond it.

Kr hung off his every word, cooing whenever the older boy went over something particularly interesting, like biology or engineering. When the lights went out into the lab and only the soft hum of the low lights and the older boy's words filled his ears, Kr was at peace.

Of course, peace never lasted after the lights came back up. The only upside to the screaming was that Kr learned to control his tears, dampen his hearing with a constant stream of his own noise, and speak. He spoke about nothing, mostly listing off the things in his little lab, listening as the older boy gave him the names of the things he described.

"The walls are grey in here, and there are…"

His voice trailed off as he searched for a word he could not find. The older boy held in a strangled cry and waited patiently for Kr to continue.

" It's shiny, and I can't move my head enough to see it, but it shows me the floor, even though it's on the ceiling."

" Mirror, aus." the other whispered back, barely moving his mouth at all as he strained against his restraints, the reinforced bonds creaking loudly with his every effort. Aus, that had started happening recently too, that word he couldn't define and the older boy hadn't gotten the chance to explain.

He repeated the word, mirror, then told the other about the things he saw there. He trailed into things he could feel as he started to repeat items he'd already listed.

" The pod is still cold as ever, and the metal isn't all that nice to be pressed against."

He kept making noise. When he ran out of words he hummed, cooed in that oh-so-familiar way that always made the other boy's chest rumble when he was pleased with Kr. He did so until the screaming subsided and they moved the older clone back to his own containment unit. Kr let the humming and cooing taper off as he waited for the other to say something.

" When I was little, still a fledgling, only about 2, and I looked it too, I managed to slip away from here. I ended up somewhere far, and a little redhead girl and her parents found me."

Kr wondered what spurred this particular story, but instead of asking, he cooed and settled himself to listen.

" The redhead, Jazz, she became my older sister. A female born before you sharing the same parents. Her parents were my parents, but more than that, she was my whole world for a while. We were close, and I was safe with her. She was the first one to ask me my name, and the first to give me something so precious so freely. She gave me Daniel, Danny."

A soft rumble echoed through the halls of the facility and up through Kr's chamber, shaking nothing but Kr's bones.

" I wish you could have met her aus, she was the smartest person I ever knew, probably still the smartest person I ever met too. Maybe, when I figure out how to get out of here again one day, I'll take you home to meet her, how does that sound?"

Kr cooed, no words coming to him in the intense emotion that swelled up from his chest and clogged his throat.

Of course, getting out again was a pipe dream for Danny, afterall, he couldn't do much with the whole basement level he was kept on bathed in ectoplasm inhibitors, low level kryptonite, and blood blossoms, preventing him from regrowing his arms and legs or breaking his bonds. But his precious star child little brother didn't need to know that. He also didn't need to know about the transfer order to move him to a new facility, the order that would leave Danny trapped in the basement with his precious star none the wiser of his existence.

" Alright star, I'll let you meet Jazz one day, it'll be fun."

[swordfright]

Tell me about how the structure of the medium impacts the story 🔫

My brother in Christ, prepare yourself for the most boring essay you could possibly imagine. I'm going to over-simplify a few things here for the sake of Getting To The Point, so bear with me.

I think a good starting place is that DSMP is an example of New Media. The go-to definition most folks use is this one: that New Media are stories told via "communication technologies that enable or enhance interaction between users as well as interaction between users and content." In other words, NM is basically this category of stories made up of convergent elements, which satisfy a multimedia requirement, and are heavily reliant on both participatory fan culture and recent advances in technology that allow creators/audiences to communicate with one another instantly.

There's a couple ways you can understand DSMP as a New Media, but as far as I'm concerned, one of the most interesting is prosumption. The term "prosumption" describes a creative situation where a piece of art is being produced (at least in part) by the same people that consume it; they're both audience and creator. DSMP is a really great example of this phenomenon, because A) it's serial and therefore the CCs had ample opportunity to respond to and engage with the audience's reception of their story; and B) because the chat feature allows CCs to interact directly with their audience during roleplay rather than after the fact. These features, among others, kinda set the stage for DSMP to function as a highly prosumptive piece of media.

In particular, the stuff that interests me is the stuff to do with storytelling convention (genre, perspective, etc) and how prosumption turns all that on its head. There are a number of altercations in DSMP canon where the course of the story is altered because of real-time interactions between the CCs and their chat - particularly times when a CC's chat warns them about events happening at the same time elsewhere in the server. In this kind of scenario, the CCs are static, they can't really leave their own stream. Their viewers, on the other hand, are able to jump between streams and talk to each other to figure out what's happening in the overarching story. When this happens, viewers have choices to make: are they going to tell a CC what's going down on the other side of the server? If so, how are viewers going to communicate those events? Viewers are biased, they directly inform CCs, and the information they divulge (as well as how they divulge that info) goes on to influence CCs' actions and thus the events of the story, to some degree. In my opinion, this is a pretty new and exciting way to prosumptively construct a narrative! Media has always been interactive to some extent (especially serial works), but the interaction being live and in real-time is pretty significant in my view because it can exert unique pressures on a narrative.

Speaking of audience choice, that brings me to the next thing I want to yap about: ergodic storytelling, a term that refers to stories “negotiated by processes of choice, discernment, and decision-making.” For reference, a good non-MCYT example of this would be hypertext fiction, because it's generally characterized by the ability of the interactant (that's the reader, in this hypothetical example) to explore material provided by someone else, either as a kind of conceptual landscape (think setting in a video game), or as puzzle pieces that must be put together in order to give the interaction the "big picture" of the story. Basically, with hypertext fiction, there is a core text (the main document that forms the skeleton of the story) and there are multiple hypertexts branching off of the core text - and whether the reader ends up reading those branches, and in what order, inevitably shapes that reader's perception of the whole story.

So here's where it gets tricky. In the case of DSMP, where is the core text located? Is there any one identifiable core text at all? Or is it more appropriate to consider each individual stream or VOD as its own singular core text, with the related Twitch channels and Youtube recommended in the sidebar being "branches"? Alternatively, if the streams and recordings distributed on the server members’ official channels are the central text in the grand hypertext fiction that is DSMP, then can adjacent spaces where audiences do the work of creating and archiving lore be considered their own story branches? I don't have answers to these questions. No one does. That's part of what makes DSMP exciting.

To translate the above quote out of Academia Hellspeak: in an ergodic story, the audience has agency, but the agency enabled and allowed by the text varies in its intensity and mode. Yes, stories told ergodically necessitate choice — and therefore enable agency, turning the reader or viewer into interactant — but that element of choice doesn't always look the same. Some hypertexts are more choice-reliant than others, or are choice-reliant in different ways. So, rather than being a choose-your-own-adventure story, DSMP is more closely analogous to a story where the audience chooses the perspective through which they view plot developments, in addition to having some influence over how plot developments unfold.

(☝️From a 2021 Polygon article, if you think I sound crazy☝️)

The web of choices DSMP presents to viewers is very complex, even compared to other forms of choose-your-own-adventure game. Because each CC approaches the task of story-creation from their own angle (bringing their own narrative baggage to the writers’ room, so to speak), those shifts in perspective this Polygon article describes often also constitute shifts in genre. For instance, cc!Wilbur brought his music production experience and interest in musical theater to the server, cited operas and stage musicals as some of his main inspirations; and accordingly, much of c!Wilbur's most crucial arcs observably draw from those sources. When you watch a c!Wilbur stream, you’re watching a story about statecraft, about revolution, about the triumphs and tragedies of ego that play out during the process of nation-building. On the other hand, cc!Quackity has repeatedly identified Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul as his primary influences; accordingly, his RP character’s story is closer to a piece of gritty prestige television in some places (especially LN series). Unlike with c!Wilbur, a lot of c!Quackity's tension does not revolve around a romanticized fantasy of revolution but around more personal conflicts: securing your place in a new regime, navigating exploitation as both exploited and exploiter, etc. In terms of both plot beats and character arcs, Wilbur and Quackity’s respective storylines embody many of the genre conventions the content creators are working within.

Moreover, a shift in genre often entails a shift in style or mode. Because cc!Wilbur was heavily inspired by musical theater, the presentation style of his character’s storyline is correspondingly both theatrical (i.e. only loosely scripted, nearly always televised live, and improv-heavy) and musical (featuring multiple instances of Wilbur singing in-character ballads and anthems.) On the flipside, Quackity’s streams (especially the later ones, since I'm mostly focusing on Las Nevadas era here) demonstrably mimic the prestige TV shows the CC draws his inspiration from, with lore sessions being pre-recorded rather than televised live, featuring distinctive sonic and visual aesthetics popularized by neo-Western thriller dramas. So, where a piece of media like DSMP is concerned, shifts in perspective entail shifts in genre, which in turn entail pronounced shifts in style. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say it's an entirely new story depending on which character the viewer decides to follow. In that regard, what initially appears to be a single choice (whose perspective to watch a plot event through) has the power to determine a wide array of other elements, as viewers’ responses to the options presented to them will decide the overall tone of the section of the story they're about to watch.

While I think the genre-switching is genuinely super cool, lately I'm a lot more interested in perspective-switching and how it's related to viewer empathy. One side-effect of DSMP being televised live is that yes, you can watch a plot event from 30+ different POVs, but you can't watch every POV live. Typically, you either have to switch between multiple streams, or you need to pick one streamer to watch live and maybe later you'll watch other characters' POVs as you see fit. This has an impact on your perception of how that plot point went down because watching something live feels very different from watching something after-the-fact. I haven't done study on this, so what I'm about to say is mostly conjecture, but I wouldn't be surprised if viewers felt greater empathy for (and greater degrees of kinship with) characters whose POVs they watched live.

The choice of which character to follow also has observable impacts on other kinds of narrative conventions (who is the main character of DSMP? the boring answer is c!Dream because the server's named after him, but the real answer is the protagonist is whoever's POV you watched most of the major plot events through) but to be honest, those questions don't interest me as much.

So, going back to perspective and empathy. I think viewers' reactions to Exile are a really solid way of exemplifying the thing I'm trying to say, so this is the part of the yapping where we gotta bring up the dreaded Exile discourse.

Even though the Exile VODs are available and new viewers can go back and watch them, those viewers experience the Exile arc in a way that is fundamentally different from the experience had by viewers who had to wait in between updates as the videos were being streamed serially in real-time. I would argue that viewers who were “present” during the whole arc noticeably felt the brutality of c!Tommy’s treatment to a greater degree, because the audience was effectively forced to sit in exile alongside Tommy’s character - stewing in anxiety, looking forward to the possibility of appearances from other characters, and living in fear of Dream’s next visit, etc etc. Obviously you could also make this point using c!Dream's time in Pandora as an example, but I'm using Exile here because I've actually seen a lot of fans bring this up when discussing the arc: "people who didn't watch live Don't Get It," "the reason newer fans don't see Exile as scary is because they didn't have to watch it live," that sort of thing. And while I have certain qualms with some of the implications here, I do think these are really fascinating responses! These sorts of responses show that viewers consciously perceive their viewing experience as having been fundamentally different from others' based on a temporal element that's unique to serial fiction!

This instance of a divergence in collective fan experience is an example of choice being rendered unavailable to viewers by virtue of the story’s structure and means of distribution; audience members who happen to accidentally miss streams or who begin following the story after major events have occurred will never be able to engage with and witness those events as LIVE viewers, merely as retrospective ones. They don’t get to make that choice, but they do get to make choices about which perspective (and therefore genre) they get to experience the story through. So it follows that each aspect of DSMP, a semi-ergodic story, can be categorized as either ergodic or non-ergodic, and whether a particular storytelling element is ergodic can change depending on WHEN the viewer began tuning in to the story.

I have a lot more shit to say (shocker) but I'm gonna cap it here for now. Though I do want to add that this is kinda why I have a lot of patience for the crazy diversity of interpretation you tend to get in DSMP fandom. If you took a random sample of fans and asked them what they think of various arcs, characters, and plot events, chances are they would all have fairly different things to say. To me, that's a feature, not a bug. Obviously I have my own opinions, and obviously I do think it's possible for a given interpretation to be "bad," i.e. not grounded in the text - but I have a lot more patience for it here, in a fandom where agreeing on what "the text" EVEN IS presents a challenge. We can't all agree on who the main character is, so I don't ever expect us to agree on more nuanced questions of theme and conflict resolution in the narrative. Again, that's a feature, not a bug. I don't think it was ever possible to reach a consensus with a piece of media like DSMP because of how inextricable the audience is from the story.

[the-phantom-author]

Hasan Piker | long-term gf

Yes, these were made at 1am while I was eating rice krispie treats. Reblogs always welcomed, request are open.

You meet Hasan toward the end of him working at The Young Turks in late 2019, when the two of you talked about his streaming and other social media, the both of you agreed that you wouldn’t physically be on them but he's more than allowed to talk about you.

You move in with him during lockdown. It wasn’t really lockdown yet when you first planned on moving, but he needed to move into a new apartment and neither of you really wanted to go through lockdown without the other. So, the two of you decided that it was a good time to move in together anyway.

It was during lockdown that you really got to know his mother, as she did live with the two of you. It was also during this time that chat got their first bits of information and glimpses of you. It was nothing huge or anything, there would be times that they see you leaving the apartment to go to work or get groceries. They could faintly hear you talking/cooing at Fish. They’d see throw blankets around the house, ask about them, and Hasan would respond with “My girlfriend gets cold easily” and move on.

Hasan is very careful with how he navigates your hidden relationship while online. One thing is for sure though, and that he’s so respectful of it. Like, he makes his “I’m fucking your mom” jokes as he does, but as soon as someone makes a joke that just a bit to suggestive he says “I have a girlfriend.” and move the conversation alone, not letting it go there again. The whole “Hasan Positivity Week” thing would be very “Flattered, but no.” He’s not letting any amount of disrespect go your way.

That said, if someone linked him one of your tiktoks, where you’re just like “I would totally drop my long term boyfriend for Hasan Piker, I mean look at him." Coupled with a bunch of photos of him that are from your personal camera roll. He is most definitely just sitting there, looking.

The way that he talks about you on stream though is very 🥰🥰. Like, someone in chat asked how yall met and he just said “She grinned, and everything about her was perfect, and I fell in love instantly". There are several times where he absentmindedly says “we” instead of “I”. Like “We’re going on a trip later this month” or “”We’re going out for dinner, so the stream is ending early.”

During this time you are soft launching, and by this time I mean the whole relationship. It’s vague pictures of him, pinterest like photos of coffee cups that have his hands and ring in them, pictures of furniture with his clothes in the background, you in tiktok wearing his hoodies or necklaces.

It is also after covid where chatter starts getting suspicious. They see the same woman in pictures from Austin, Ludwig, Will, and the lot , often in the background or barely there. Chat asks them all about her/you and they say nothing about it. Ethan mansions Hasan’s “special lady” far too much on leftovers to just be some kind of bit.

This is when chat starts to do some digging, they put the photos from and of you together with the photos of the mystery lady in the pictures from everyone. This prompts a discussion between you and hasan about what to do with introducing you to the internet.

It is decided that Hasan should start to soft launch you and this is what is fully intended to happen, however Hasan doesn’t know the definition of soft launching. He really just post a picture of the two of them together on iInstagram. The very next day the stream is just titled “Partner Reveal” and when the stream opens it’s just you, in his chair.

Chat soon realizes that the two of you are the duo they never knew they needed. Banter off the walls, and undeniable chemistry. There are a few portions of his stream that he automatically goes to get you and ask if you want to join the stream for it. Like if he ever starts to watch something that pertains to an interest of yours, true crimes, jubilee, those conspiracy videos he's watched a few times, or these 2000's reality TV shows,.

He'll even have specific subjects that he knows you know about in a non-political way, that he'll bring you in for. Just so he can have a normies opinion on it. A normie that he trust.

[rouge-fauna]

I was going to share this on my blog, but I figured I could get your opinion directly. (And send you a more positive ask.)

So it came to my attention a few weeks ago that cc!Wilbur confirmed that c!Wilbur is in fact in his 40s (explaining why his son c!Fundy isn’t a toddler), and it got me thinking yesterday…. Who else in the DSMP is older than we think? I think c!Bad is one for sure but it’s kind of assumed he’s older anyways. I don’t count c!Techno or c!Phil as it’s pretty well established that their ages are somewhere between ageless and absolutely ancient.

But I would like to propose that c!Quackity is older because of the questionably canon (?) stream where his son takes over Las Nevadas. I say questionably because this felt like a one off stream, and I can’t remember if it was ever brought up again. But the implications of that are just… oof.

I was also wondering do we have confirmation about anyone else being older than the fandom attributes to them? Because this actually fascinates me, and would explain a lot about the type of character everyone was playing.

Kind of a rambly ask, but this is now plaguing my brain and I must share it.

I thought he was forty after his time in Limbo? Egh, I don’t know, though as an aside it ain’t like the age between him and Fundy has to make sense since a fish is his mom lol. The thing about c!Quackity’s son, which I believe is when cc!Quackity got locked out of his Minecraft account and he made an alt and they goofed around, I think was retconned either by c!Foolish during the stream when c!Dream comes to visit him or in an XD stream I’ve watched recently. As far as Bad and other characters, I’m not sure. From what I can tell it’s not implied that there is much difference in age between cc!s and c!s besides Philza and Techno and c!Sam’s body swapping thing, but we do know some characters’s ages for sure. For instance, c!Tommy’s age is referenced quite a bit in lore so he stays the same, and I’m pretty sure there are others but that’s the only one that comes to mind at the moment.

However, it’s funny that you should mention this because it just so happens that sometime after I made the post about their ages [here] I came across a poster in the casino announcing Quackity’s 28th birthday (marked in turquoise), which is interesting…

So perhaps they have different ages after all, which begs the question though whose ages are different and whose are the same and what does that say about the lore… Was Dream still 21 while being tortured by Quackity?…

[cozzzynook]

Having thoughts of secretly sparked Bumblebee.

He knew something was up when he kept opting out of his favorite energon even giving away his secret stash of his favorite minerals that tasted overly sweet, his favorite secret indulgence.

His tanks couldn’t handle the thought of the stuff and his smell sensor kept malfunctioning every time he smelled the stuff. He snuck from his room late one night, servos nervously fiddling as he tried to work up the nerve to get some fuel into his systems but he simply just couldn’t bring himself to.

His concerns grew as his tank churned almost all hours of the day purging without fail after each transformation. He was thankful his team was none the wiser since he didn’t like being worried over but he knew something was very wrong when he tried to transform into his alt mode and the world went black.

He was thankful it happened after his patrol when he’d already commed the team letting them know he was going on a long lone drive and he was, truthfully he was.

Until he felt so dizzy his processor was faulting on even remembering his name let alone transforming. He doesn’t remember hitting the ground but he woke to pains wracking his frame and joints all over. His hub indicated he’d been asleep for the past seven hours.

He was in so much shock he almost missed the reason his self diagnostic scans provided him as to why he was in such peculiar shape.

Sparked, his hub read.

Sparked.

Him, bumblebee, sparked.

If he wasn’t having a hard time with his air intakes venting before he did now.

Both time and his intakes stopped all together.

The lack of fuel intake, the intolerance to his favorite meal and snack, the tiredness he felt no matter how deep a recharge. The slight raise to his chassis where his spark laid hidden all made so much sense now even if he had half a mind to try and deny it.

He suddenly was overcome with the necessary energy to scramble into a half sitting position and open his spark chamber. Getting a first hand look at the bright glow of not only his own spark but two tiny sparks that were hugged against both sides of his own.

His servos fell and he couldn’t believe it.

He couldn’t believe nor stop staring at his vulnerable and open spark chamber that not only housed his life but two others.

He was sparked.

Bumblebee was sparked and he was going to become a creator in ayear by Earth’s standard time.

‘I’m going to be a creator..I’m..i’m going to be someones carrier,’ his processor drenched in distraught as his faceplates remained in shock. A stream was threatening to leak from his optics when a thought quite literally slammed his spark chamber shut.

Thudding footsteps, heavy peds, glaring red that were once lulling yellow always besides his long time conjuxed. Those four glowing red optics were a sight he was beyond gifted to behold and the little sliver of a smile and two warm fields accompanying it had him melting just the same as he did the day he saw and felt them.

He wasn’t sure why the two felt the need to see him, to touch him, to give caring and wanting touches to him when they were so perfect for each other and far too different from him.

Thoughts like these rang in his processor more often than he would ever care to admit.

He kept his insecurities and lack of assurance along with the rampant fluctuations of his em field close at spark. He never let the another feel the emotions warring inside him no matter how every bot who knew him claimed he wore his spark on his sleeve.

‘I can’t tell them..not..not about this..they’re conjux with each other. I’m..I’m no one. I’m just a momentary interest to spice things up in the berth.’

‘When the war ends, hopefully at a time we’re alive to see it, things will change and they won’t want me anymore…’

‘I’m just a pleasure bot they would use during our time away from our factions…sure they snuck me on board the Nemesis more often than not..but..they’re conjuxed..’

The flashes of the purple tank mech sitting in his large lab, working on a classified project Bee never bothered to ask about. The scientist sliding an optic over at the communications officer who watched the monitors of not only Earth but other territories commanded under Decepticon reign that again Bee pays no real mind to.

He’s not there to gain information just like the tank of a mech and the slim master spy don’t bother asking him for information nor do they try to gather intel from any data pads Bee brings with him.

He knew deep down both would find it illogical under any other circumstance to not take advantage of the opportunity given and yet neither crossed that boundary just as he never crossed theirs.

Only now Bee feels he’s crossed something much worse than a simple boundary.

He’s played with fire and now he’s burning along the frays as he struggles to intake through his vents no matter how much he presses along his chassis.

He slept with two conjuxed mechs.

Two very dangerous mechs known as the SIC and TIC of the decepticon army.

His dark thoughts reared their ugly heads at the front of his processor glimpsing at all the times he turned his optics from the conjuxs loving displays towards each other. The scientist was not a fan of touch or bots in his personal space neither was the communications officer but for each other they made exception.

So Bee avoided initiating any touch between the two along with allowing them to enter his space freely whenever they so pleased even going along with letting them initiate both interfacing and after face care.

The two knew exactly what the other wanted and Bee was happy to take whatever form of affection they would give him. Whether it be simple cleaning him up around his valve and laying comfortably in the berth to getting comfortable in their arms as they both held him on either side or each other.

Deep down he knew he wasn’t special to the two, he was a passing fling that somehow managed to go on for about an Earth years time. He was young and foolish falling for the quiet and mysterious sparks of a conjux couple but he couldn’t help himself. He figured he could keep the feelings close at spark not letting another soul know how he truly felt about the pair. Not even the science officer nor communications spymaster knew he was in love with them.

And seeing as how they were loyal to each other and the cause and not some young foolish bot who managed to get sparked on accident that was on the opposite side of their faction, he knew he needed to keep it that way.

His friends, comrades and family could never know about the sparks he was carrying. Bee would be put in the stockades or worst, they’d rip out his sparklings and send him to be tortured and have his processor torn to bits for information looking through his memory core and hard drives for any intel he may have given or received during his time with the two decepticons.

It wouldn’t matter if he was telling the truth in never giving up intel to the two nor would all his past acts of fighting for the autobot cause be remembered.

He was a traitor.

A sparked traitor who laid in the berths of two highly dangerous mechs who would offline him and their sparks the moment they discovered his condition and status.

He had to get out of there.

He needed to leave Jasper Nevada and with it his connections to both his friends and faction and the two mechs he grew to love.

He couldn’t transformer into his alt mode at the moment out of fear he would purge and momentarily offline again. So he scrapped his comms to his team, hiding his em field and spark signature before taking one last look in the direction of their base before turning and walking off.

If he were lucky he would make it to the cities edge and head out before his team sent any search parties for him.

He was confident the SIC and TIC wouldn’t be troubled once he didn’t show at their usual meeting spot. If he hadn’t passed out and discovered said reasoning for his strange behavior and symptoms he would’ve been on his way to meet with them.

He didn’t think they would be concerned maybe upset at wasting their time and any fuel energon on coming to meet with him but he’s sure after some time away from him they would move on, forgetting him in favor of time with each other.

Flashes of the two having things go back to normal swallowed his processor whole with every step he took away from the city. Images of the purple tank working in his lab as the spymaster cuddled with Ravage who would often curl in Bee’s lap rubbing along his chassis and tank. Bee didn’t think much of it when the feline cassette started doing it he just hoped it meant she was warming up to him.

Though, none of Soundwaves cassettes actually disliked him as far as he knew, they each cuddled up to him one way or another its just more recently they all started to make an engine rumbling noise that had him falling into recharge. He couldn’t for the life of himself fall into recharge in his own berth but every time Frenzy and Ravage laid on his lap and purred with their engines he was able to fall into recharge.

Neither Shockwave nor Soundwave ever disturbed him when this happened even as the habit grew more and more with frequency. Frenzy and Ravage had a habit now of sticking close to him and preferring being by his side whenever he set foot onto their base or met in their secret spot.

Bee should’ve guessed then that something was wrong but he hadn’t, he couldn’t have known it meant he was carrying since he’s never carried before. He was just glad he could recharge in peace after his steadily piling symptoms were leaving him drained.

‘I hope they don’t miss me too much,’ Bee mused to himself with worrying servos, his pedes hurt the farther he walked and he briefly wondered just how difficult his carrying would become since it was his first. Being a carrier meant having to know all there was to it in case of accidental sparking.

Going through his processor he really should have seen all the clear signs that showed he was with sparklings.

‘They won’t miss me..they were just following basic instincts,’ he reasoned with himself, spark and helm hurting at the thought. ‘It’s a good thing,’ he mused with a churning tank, ‘now I won’t have to worry about them telling the two.’

He felt a chill run down his spinal cord making his servos rub at his middle, the soft surface was still flat but the muscle he’d long sculpted there was gone. Another sign of his carrying clear as day that he hoped neither his team nor the two decepticons noticed. If Ravage and Frenzy could sense the sparklings within him from their more primal instincts it was only a matter of time before the two mechs began to notice.

Bee truly hoped neither cassettes told of his being sparked.

‘Just have to make it out of here,’ he thought to himself, rubbing the spot that housed not only his spark but two more he’d already decided to protect with his.

As he walked out of the city limits that nights and headed for a new destination away from the autobots and decepticons, he missed the warp gate opening to his last known spark location. Two large mechs scanning the area as Frenzy took to the skies with Soundwave following in pursuit and Ravage sniffing out the scent of the little autobot. Taking off with Shockwave following closely, both silent mechs held an air of promise with the intent to permanently offline the bot they believed took their future mate.

-

I love this pairing - all three togethe and the pairing shockwave and soundwave.

Gonna write about shockwave/blitzwing/bumblebee next or just shockbee angst next 👀

[bitcell]

can we go back to qsmp and leave qnpcsmp LIKE i trust the admins and i love the server, everything that has been canonically built so far is amazing and it's clear that there's a lot of thought, love and energy put into the world building of the server. i understood the need for a cucurucho stream during purgatory because we had no idea of what was happening in quesadilla island, but i would rather have the twitch.tv/qsmp acc as some kind of lore recap at the end of the week or a place for them to broadcast the full qsmp story videos, instead of being a place for them to develop the plot of the server with no input from the players.

imagine if the book that was found today by elena had been found by fit or foolish, the amount of paranoia that would spread across the island, especially with how many players have been missing since the end of purgatory.

the biggest problem currently on the qsmp is that they're giving more importance to npcs than the players, and do you know who the audience is interested on watching? the players.

the server found their lore apex around the time when the admins would give small pieces of information to the players and let them investigate it on their own, create their theories and watch them fall through, so they would have to keep trying and trying. if they're given everything from the get go, where's the fun?

i fear the main purpose of the qsmp is getting lost by the way they're constantly trying to be innovative and present new things to the audience, when all that we need is to see the characters rping. what even was the point of minimes and cucuruchito? literally none. even purgatory, although i enjoyed it, it was awful for the lore development of a lot of players. all the stories they were telling had to be abruptly stopped and some of them even had to start from scratch. obviously, it also helped other players, but my main point is less is more.

[seeds-and-sins]

Light My Fire - Part Four

Pairing: Ben "Soldier Boy" x F!Reader

Rating: M (Crude Language, mentions of depression and death)

Description: During incarceration, you come across a special boy. Years later, memories are brought to the forefront that you don't recall ever existing.

Tagged: @tonixe, @chernayawidow, @mrsjenniferwinchester, @deans-spinster-witchs-favorites @ophennie, @virgoelf-blog, @my-obsession-spn

Author's Note: I hope this makes up for the lost time. I know it has been a while. More so the fact that I have a lot going on and definitely not the fact that I had this sitting on my laptop for weeks. Please don't hate me. :)

Part Three

You sipped from a cigarette, smoke flowing like a stream from your nostrils. You blankly stared down at the tray in front of you, flicked the excess ashes into the bowl.

"So, would you say you have seen an improvement in your time here?" Your eyes drifted up to the white coat sitting across from you. She had wrinkles all over, beady eyes, cat eye glasses, freshly manicured nails tapping against her clipboard.

You don't even remember why you were here. In this white room, with nothing around you, nothing but a table and two chairs. You had been here for weeks. After each session, they would move you from this room, into another. That other room was also mostly empty; a single bed, an end table with a lamp, a toilet and a sink. Between this room and that one, there was nothing but a hallway of doors. One door after the other, titanium metal doors.

You didn't know where you were, you didn't know why you were here, all you knew was that you weren't thinking about *him* anymore. You didn't want to die anymore. There was a strained calm that blanketed you and it was because of these pills. You were complacent to your situation. And in your eyes, compacency was a better comfort than a struggle. You had been struggling for so long. You wanted to relax. You could relax here. Everything was taken care of for you, everything was what you needed it to be, to clear your mind.

"Sure." You replied in between another drag, smoke wafted in the woman's face, she didn't react. She was used to you. She had been your lab coat since you first arrived here, after Vogelbaum started losing interest at least.

There was one thing to be noted about this room. One thing that you had never realized before, or one thing that had never been there in your previous visits. Your eyes kept darting toward it, fluttering to and fro, like a bug to a flashing lightbulb.

There.

Tucked in the corner, in the far corner of the stark white room...

A tiny red lego.

Through a sea of fog in your mind.

It wouldn't have been noticeable to the average eye from this distance. Not unless the eye was trained. Your eyes weren't average and they didn't need to be trained to see what you saw.

Your immediate explanation:

"Someone didn't do their job." You said outloud, lining a stare directly on the white coat. Her fingers wrapped around her clipboard and her eyebrows furrowed at you.

"I'm sorry?" You rolled your eyes, stamping the cigarette out in the table as you stood. You circled the table and with bare feet, trotted your way over to the miniature piece. You crouched down, pinched it between your fingers and lifted it high. You inspected it with a deepening curiosity, which only grew further when your white coat began to tremble in her red high heels. You focused on her again, extending the lego to her.

"Ya'know, you don't have kids here, do you?" You already knew the answer, so you were definitely patronizing in your tone. Luckily, you had been working on your anger issues these past few weeks; otherwise, you would have blown a fuse.

Kids?!

What the fuck was Vogelbaum thinking?!

What happened to old heroes? Grown adults that worked their asses off to get recognized for a program like this.

In your opinion, heroes shouldn't even be made anymore. The Hero Program should have ended with Soldier Boy. The Hero Program should have ended with Payback.

"My goodness, I have no idea." She feigned a gasp, holding her chest.

That answer didn't suffice.

You flicked the lego piece so hard that it put a dent in the white wall of the room.

"Okay." You looked directly up at the camera. "You want to play it that way?" The calm was gone. So began the rampage. You stormed for the metal door and easily ripped your way through it. The white coat screamed, she began shouting into the collar of her coat.

"HELP! CODE RED!" You made your way down the hallway, starting with the first metal door you came across. You broke through it like butter.

Empty.

You went for the next door, after a few seconds of walking, it was to your right.

Empty.

"Phoenix! Listen closely! Stop this!" Vogelbaum sounded over the intercom.

"Oh yeah?" You broke through the next door.

Empty.

Metal shards were everywhere. You broke through three more doors before Vogelbaum's pleas intensified, you knew you were getting close.

You broke through another door. It was the last one you broke through.

And there...

A child.

You found a blonde haired, blue eyed boy on the other side. He was hunched in the corner, arms held up defensively, but there was no fear in his eyes.

"Phoenix, Go back to your room. Walk away." You ignored Vogelbaum's evenly voiced demands. He sounded completely devoid of the panic he previously expressed. Now there was just stillness. Now there was just calm. Your eyes narrowed on the boy, you stepped forward.

"Hi," You greeted, not certain of what exactly you were looking at. What exactly was happening here? "What's your name, kid?" He was wearing a red, white, and blue stripped shirt and jeans. To any outsider, he appeared to be a normal kid. And despite his living conditions, they weren't terrible living conditions. But no child should be imprisoned, no child should be experimented on.

"John." He said, eyeing you up and down, he stepped from his corner. "What's your name?"

"I don't remember," You replied honestly. "Haven't gone by my real name in decades." You lifted your chin, inspected the room with a quick glance. "People call me Phoenix."

"Why?"

"Because I became something else." You said with confidence, "like fire."

"You're fire?" He squinted at you, "You don't look like fire." You inhaled a deep breath, that was a fair deducation. You crouched down to his level, despite the distance that he stood from you. You lifted your hand in front of you and snapped your fingers, a small flame appeared at the tip where your thumb and pointer convened. The boy's eyes balloned with wonder.

"I'm a special kind of person, kid..." You smiled, dismissing the flame with a swing of your hand and standing up. "I'm betting you're special too."

As you finished your sentence, armed men, dressed in all black, and wearing masks, flooded the hallways on either side of you. You jolted into the room and spun, standing your ground between the boy and the men that soon filled up the entrance. Their guns were trained on you.

"I didn't want it to be like this, Phoenix." Your eyes flashed red, fists balling up at your sides.

"He's just a kid, Vogelbaum."

"He's not yours to worry about."

"I'm not leaving this room without him."

"Maybe he doesn't want to leave." You paused, then glanced over your shoulder at the boy. He seemed unfazed by the events taking place before him, but his wide blue eyes stared up at you expectantly. You cocked your head at him, the red in your eyes faded.

"Where are your parents?" He blinked at you, like he didn't even know what you were talking about. You spun around and crouched in front of him, grabbing his shoulders with your hands. You conpletely ignored the armed men lined up behind you, guns now trained on you and ready to fire. They wouldn't be able to hurt you anyways. "Listen to me, kid, how did you get here?"

"I've always been here." He replied, your eyebrows furrowed, you rubbed his shoulders, not exactly knowing how to react to that response. What you really wanted to do was go find Vogelbaum and shove his head up his ass. A child?! Really? That was some piece of shit scientist bullshit.

Something overwhelmed you in that moment. Something you hadn't felt in years:

Purpose.

This was the reason you were here. This was the reason you had been willingly waiting in that stupid white room, week after week. You were here for this boy.

"Do you want to come with me?" You asked, lips forming a tight lipped smile. John's eyes scanned every inch of your face, you could tell he was trying to figure out if he could trust you.

"Are you my mommy?" You didn't hesitate in your response.

"No." You said firmly, "And I don't know who your mommy is." You sighed, "But I do know that you don't belong in a goddamned box. You're a person, John. You're a very special person-"

"Phoenix-"

"Shut Up, Vogelbaum!" John's head tilted, attention moving between the intercom, the camera in the corner of the room, and then back to you.

"You want to take me with you?"

"Yeah." You stood up, hands still held on his shoulders. "I'll get you out of here. You can see what the real world is like. I'll take care of you." John rushed into you, his arms wravelled around your waist and a gasp escaped you in surprise. You patted him on the back, the strength in the hug increased as he adjusted his arms, but you didn't mind. He was really strong. Strong to the point that if you didn't have powers too, you'd probably be crushed by now. "Vogelbaum..." You cupped the back of John's head and he withdrew enough to look up at you. "I think it's time for me to get back out into the world again." You smiled brightly, and this time it was the first genuine smile you had given in years. "And John is coming too."

...

2022...

"The unexplained explosion at the Chimp Country Sanctuary is now being attributed to a gas leak. At this time, the bodies of countless chimps that were harbored at the sanctuary are being recovered by authorities. Including the body of the beloved hero, Crimson Countess. As you know, she was a member of Payback and Soldier Boy's fiancé. More information-"

"Those goddamned gas leaks..." You muttered under your breath, standing directly in front of the giant flat screen TV with a consterned expression on your face. "You can never trust'em, ya'know. One put me out a while back and I scarcely think I recovered from it." You were talking to no one in particular. You were in a smaller room with a window that spanned one side, giving a quarter view of a city landscape. There was a leather couch behind you, a coffee table in front of you, a bookshelf in the corner. Behind you, an elderly woman with silver hair, who had her back turned to you, was preparing a cup of coffee.

"I'm sorry, dear, what was-" As the elderly woman turned, she gasped and nearly dropped the steaming cup of coffee in her hand. She startled with a jolt, having to cling to the surface of the counter beside her to keep herself steady. "What the fuck, Phoenix..." The woman grumbled through bright red lips. "What happened to your clothes?!"

"I took them off. Helps me think better. Agnes!" You spun around, the woman rolled her eyes and began a slow walk toward you. "I've decided I'm going to be a vegetarian."

"Phoenix, honey..." The woman took her time bending down to put her coffee on the table. She then stepped up to you and placed her hands on your shoulders. "That is wonderful, but you have an interview in ten minutes and you are completely naked."

"Oh, it's no big deal." You waved Agnes away and stepped past her toward the window. "I'll throw my suit on when I'm good and ready."

You had become erratic over the years. Your train of thought was constantly everywhere, thinking everything, all at once. If you weren't keeping yourself busy somehow, you were thinking about things you didn't want to think about and that just wouldn't do. You were thinking about things that never even happened.

Oh no.

Too much thinking.

"Do you think I should be more upset that Countess is dead?" You sighed, Agnes plopped down on the couch in defeat. She had been working with you for the better half of twelve years and she knew you all too well to know that you weren't going to relent. "Like I'm not going to her memorial or anything, but..." You chewed the inside of youf cheek, "I thought I would be more upset."

"I don't know, dear. I really don't know."

Knock. Knock.

An orange head popped into the room, you recognized that it was Ashley, Vought's newest hero executive.

"Hey-" Who entered the room with a chirpy energy about her. "JESUS CHRIST!" There it was. "Why are you naked?!" Ashley cupped the side of her eye and turned her head away, clutching her clipboard like a vice to her chest.

"What's wrong, Ashley? See something you like?" You purred, leaning your shoulder into the window. "Urgh. You guys are so boring." You snapped your fingers at Agnes expectantly, she reached into the pocket of light pink button up and procurred a small packet of white powder. It was tossed haphazardly across the room, you swiftly swiped it from the air. "Is John coming?"

"Just uh-" Ashley was a stuttering at this point. "Will you please put clothes on?"

"Fine. I will. Answer my question." You scooped some cocaine from the packet and shoved it into your nose. White residue covered your nostrils and your finger as you had messily used the subtance. You sniffed heavily, nostrils flaring. You shoveled a second scoop and repeated the motion.

"No. Homelander has other pressing-"

"Fine." You shook your head, lips flapping comically. "Okay." You stood tall, "Get me my suit. It's show time."

Within minutes, the three of them were walking down a hallway. Persons were speeding back and forth with papers in hand and tasks to complete. You were at the head of the trio, weaving between the workers with ease, walking with purposeful and long strides. Your black cape flowed behind you with each step, boots thumping in time. Agnes was off to your right, struggling to keep pace in her old age and her high heels, and Ashley was already a nervous wreck so she was keeping up just fine but building a sheen of sweat.

"Let's go over the rules again." Ashley breathed heavily, the three of them paused at an elevator. Agnes hunched forward and tries to catch her breath. You paused and then sent Ashley the blankest expression. "Tell me. I need to make sure you know them."

"No telling people to fuck off on live TV."

"Yes. Next." Ashley prompted, the elevator dinged and the doors slid open. The three entered, Agnes hobbling behind.

"No mentioning sex on TV."

"Anything sexual, don't mention it." Ashley explained further, nodding to herself. "Next." You crossed your arms and pinched your chin, eyes narrowing in thought.

"Um..." You shook your head, "It has something to do with minorities, doesn't it?"

"Politics." Ashley firmly aided, "No political talk."

"But-"

"No. Please." Ashley was genuinely begging. The last time you were on TV and you made a major messup, it wasn't on Ashley's shoulders. Now, it was on Ashley's shoulders to make sure that this interview went as smoothly as possible. And it only made matters worse in knowing that the person hovering over her was not the normal Vought executive. It was Homelander now.

Stillwell was gone. Stan Edgar was on his way out the door. And Homelander was officially set lose. No one was safe.

The doors dinged open and they walked out, arriving at the floor on Vought tower typically used for the news. The studio was already set up, workers were everywhere. You made a path straight for the empty spot on the couch beside Cameron Coleman: Vought's celebrity news anchor. As soon as you came into view, the usual ruckus of a studio set dissipated into murmurs and quiet. Coleman stood and held his hand out, he was anxious. You had a reputation for being a hastle to keep control of, you didn't blame him. You only made it worse when instead of shaking his hand, you grabbed it, flipped it over and kissed his knuckles.

"Wrong answers only." You winked at him, to your amusement, he became more flustered than he already was. You took your seat, swinging your cape up behind you to keep it from getting caught. Through all the bright lights directed at you, you saw Ashley waving frantically. She pointed at you when you met her gaze and mouthed, *Behave*. You spotted Agnes beside her and stuck your tongue out between two fingers, the obscene gesture made the woman turn red and she turned away.

"Are we ready?" Coleman asked as he buttoned his suit jacket and sat down. Someone behind the camera held up a thumb and then a count down started. Loud music blared in the background, Coleman's face grew stern and he stared at the camera.

"Is our government doing what it needs to protect us from this super-villain threat? Can we trust our leaders to take the proper stand and protect our nation? Here, I invite a former member of Payback and current hero against the super-villain threat overseas, Phoenix, how are you today?"

Everything was going well...

At first.

Ever since heroes were allowed into combat, publicly, Vought had put you in the Middle East. You had been taking down terrorists in caves and capturing enemy territory for almost an entire year before Vought brought you back. Vought didn't tell you why they brought you back, but you could assume it was because of your conduct. You weren't being very merciful over there. Targets that were supposed to be detained, were killed.

And how were you supposed to know the difference? They all acted the same anyways.

The truth was, you had gone way off the rails over there. Bringing you back was Vought's way of trying to maintain the peace. At this point in time, the government liked having heroes overseas. They wouldn't like it much longer if you continued being a problem.

So now, in the months following your return to America, you had become something of a spokesperson. You were labeled an American hero, a soldier, another defense against those 'vile super-villains'-as John so insisted they be called.

But really. Truly. You weren't okay. You hadn't been okay for a long time. Something was off. In your head. Your ventures in the Middle East had only made it worse.

You answered all the questions with conviction and a charming smile. Ashley even gave you the thumbs up, because everything was going great.

Until it wasn't...

"Phoenix, I'd like to touch on one more subject before you leave us today and I'm sure it will be a tough one..." Oh boy, you thought, another curve ball that you hadn't prepared for perhaps? "Crimson Countess..." Dread filled you, Coleman shifted in his seat and sent you a sad smile. You knew it was all an act and you prepped yourself to do the same. "In light of her death, is there anything you'd like to say? Any fond memories you have that you'd like to share?"

"Uh..." You shrugged, feeling a little panicked. You still didn't know how you felt about any of it because, frankly, you felt nothing for her. "Not really. Her and I weren't very close." Coleman's eyebrows furrow, that answer didn't seem to satisfy him.

"Really? But didn't you serve alongside her for four years?" You saw in the corner screen, facing the set, the images they were broadcasting. They were of the past. Crimson and you were clinging to eachother in one photo, laughing about a joke you don't recall. Another photo of the both of you, fighting crime together. Another photo of you standing side by side at a charity gala, dressed to impress, smiling brightly. "Surely, you both used to be great friends. What happened?" You squinted, head cocking to the side, the photos were removed from the screen and the small tv went black. Then it was the mirror image of Coleman and you, sitting on the red leather couch. You stared at yourself, at the consternation in the mirror image. "After Soldier Boy passed, I imagine you both would have gotten closer? Am I wrong? Phoenix?" Coleman insisted, your head began to throb.

Soldier Boy?

What did he have anything to do with this?

You squeezed your eyes shut and shook your head.

"Soldier Boy?" You were trying to catch yourself, but miserably failing. Your eyes shot up to Coleman and he raised a brow at you.

"Phoenix, are you okay? Talk to me." He was just prodding, as any interviewer would, given the circumstances. You gulped, then looked to Ashley who waved aggressively at you to continue talking.

But before you could speak, a rush of memories overcame you. You felt like your brain was being trampled on by a herd of buffallo.

Images of what you knew...

Fading.

The nuclear power plant in Ohio...

Soldier Boy laying on the ground...

It was almost like...

"Please try not to cause trouble out there." That charming smirk encompassed his face and you felt warm at just the sight of it. You were surprised to say that you were glad he stopped by. It wasn't like anyone else on the team had bothered.

"Honey, trouble is my middle name." You laughed at him, but your giggle was cut short with a harsh cough that sent you hunching forward. You felt his hand at your back and when you looked up you saw the deep scowl on his expression.

"Get Vogelbaum in here again. I don't like this."

"It's fine. I'll be okay. When you get back from Nicaragua, I'll be good as new." You attempted a reassuring smile, but it failed you. You looked more uncomfortable and the wince from the sharp inhale in your lunge did not go unnoticed.

"You better be." Soldier Boy cupped under your chin and you both stared at eachother before he withdrew. "I'll be back before you know it, hot stuff." He winked at you before turning away and heading down the hall.

...

It never happened.

The nuclear power plant never happened, but how could that be?! You have memories of escorting people away from danger, putting out fires, and Soldier Boy? You recall him telling you to...

"Go save the civilians. I'll take care of this."

You could hear his voice echo in your head, those exact words.

Before he died.

Before you found him laying in a mess of concrete and he was in your arms and you were crying because even if he was an asshole a part of you always loved him.

And then nothing...

"Phoenix?" Coleman called, snapping you from your trance like state once more. You blinked at him, then you gulped. Your throat had gone dry.

"I don't know." You answered grimly, "Actually, I should be going." You stood up and slowly walked off the stage. The crowd of crew members surrounding the set parted for you and watched in confusion as you walked away. Ashley met your side with furious steps.

"What happened?!" She was panicking. Everything was going good. What happened?! "You need to go back up there!" You had gotten as far as the elevator when Agnes was jogging up behind the both of you.

"Phoenix, honey, what's wrong?" You stared blankly at the seam of the elevator doors.

"Soldier Boy..." Your eyes rose to Ashley and they furrowed at her. "Where is his grave site again?"

"Washington D.C., I think, next to the Lincoln Memorial." Ashley answered in a weak whisper, she was looking at you in horror. "Why?"

Ding!

The elevator doors slid open and you entered them. Neither Agnes or Ashley followed, they gazed at you with questioning looks and you didn't give them any answers.

The doors slid shut behind you.

You were gone.

Return to Master list

[foralternateuniverses]

My sister and I have an au that I like to call "the au where everything is fine and dandy" in which:

- Sora succeded on saving all the boys (12&4 are blondies with at most a couple of colour streaks in their heir), she escapes with the kids but dies on the way, they kids end up briefly separated but reunite when Sanji and Zeff are rescued from the rock and so they all grow up on the Baratie.

- One day a newbie group of pirates arrive to eat, it's the spade pirates who so far consist of Ace (the captain), Uta (the bard) and Deuce (the doctor).

- Because they ate without having money to pay they end up staying a while to work, during that time they get to meet the siblings and Ace grows especially close to Ichiji (who has a special interest in geographical history and dreams of making an universal compound/book recompilation of old vs New maps of places).

- Ace convinces Ichiji to join his crew and so Ichiji leaves as a spade pirate.

- the others follow closely, Niji and Yonji leave to sail and have their own adventures.

- Niji's technological and scientific interests take him to Gecko Moria, whose crew he'll join.

- Yonji winds up with X Drake.

- Reiju waits for Sanji to leave before she embarks on her own adventure.

- Shushu joins the strawhats.

- Niji "fights" Franky in Thriller Bark. Later he'll be sent away by Kuma along by Perona (he saw that Kuma was about to strike her so he ran to her and barely managed to grab her before she was poofed, so they both traveled together.

- He upgraded the monkeys for Zoro to fight, and later accompanied Perona on the "make sure Zoro gets to Sabaody" mission.

- When Ichiji (and everyone else) goes to save Ace, they end up being married then and there by White Beard ( I rather die having been married to you if only for a minute than die without professing my love for you to the world kinda thing, Buggy live streamed the whole deal, Ace fake died but Judge knows he's alive).

- Ace doesn't die.

- All the siblings receive invitations to the wedding-tea party.

- Sanji is the first of the siblings to get to Germa, Judge immediately puts the bracelets on him.

- When the others arrive, Yonji is the first to notice that Sanji has been keeping his hands in his pockets and yanks one out, Niji is the one that recognises the devices and being the tech-maniac and ex cre-member of Gecko Moria and Perona, still, it'll take some days for him to find a way to get rid of them without exploding Sanji's hands

- Later, either Niji or Yonji try to confront Judge on whatever, however, he orders Ichiji to stop them and before anyone can do anything Ichiji's body moves on its own and brings his brother to his knees, turns out that one of the things that did manage to activate was whatever Judge did to them to make them obey him.

- He orders Ichiji to break his relationship with Ace at the first given opportunity.

- the reformed spade pirates had come together but only Ichiji was allowed entry, they stay nearby though.

- when Luffy and Nami confront them on their carriage, after Sanji beats Luffy up, Ichiji takes the opportunity to tell Luffy to let Ace know that their relationship is off, over, Luffy is like "what? But you're madly in love with each other?" So he's even more sure that something's up.

- Nami is the one who finds Ace and takes him to Luffy while explaining what happened, obvs, Ace is like "like hell is our marriage over! Something is up!”

[misshoneyimhome]

Can you write for Trent Frederic? Maybe like telling him your pregnancy or first announcing you two are dating just pure fluff!

Oh babe! I am so so sorry this took forever 🤍✨

But I finally got around to it - Now, I couldn't quite decide on how to go about it... so I just kind off went with it and did both 🙈 Since it's my first time writing for Trent F. I had to do some research ofc; and I know it's a bit short, but hopefully you still enjoy it ❤️🤗

Tropes and warnings; just pure fluff, strangers to lovers, no warnings; pregnancy announcement

Word count: 1.7K

➼｡ﾟ

Next Chapter I Trent Frederic

The morning light streamed through the bathroom window, casting a soft glow over the room, and as you stood there and looked down at the plus sign indicating the result, a small curve slowly crept onto your lips. Your heart raced as you processed the reality of the situation. You knew it was soon in the process, and it had all happened a lot faster than you’d expected—yet, you knew this was a good thing for your next chapter. You felt a mix of exhilaration and nerves, knowing that your life was about to change in the most profound way.

So, over the next few hours, you couldn’t help but contemplate and think back on how everything had unfolded over the past couple of years. The house was quiet, the only sounds being the distant hum of city life and the occasional chirping of birds outside. You made yourself a cup of tea, sitting down at the kitchen table, your mind drifting to the pivotal moments that led you here.

How your life had turned upside down, just like that, in a way you’d never expected.

_

It all started with a friendly pickup hockey game organised by mutual friends back in 2018.

You had always grown up with hockey around you, your father playing all his life and then passing it on to your older brother. Weekends were spent at the local rink, the chill of the ice and the sharp sound of skates cutting through it became a comforting backdrop to your childhood. So, naturally you quickly learnt to lace up your skates and found your way onto the ice, much to the delight of your family.

Of course, your mother first thought you’d be on the ice as a beautiful princess of a figure skater. She had dreams of you twirling gracefully in sparkly dresses, capturing the hearts of audiences with your elegance. However, despite everyone trying to dress you up in tight suits and all that sparkling glitter, you instead always found your way to some sort of hockey gear and a stick to shoot a puck around with. The thrill of the game, the teamwork, and the adrenaline rush drew you in far more than the idea of being a figure skater.

In a way, you were a bit of a tomboy; always hanging out with a solid group of guys as well as other hockey-interested girls. You relished the camaraderie, the sense of belonging that came with being part of a team. And as far back as you could remember, you always preferred to hang out with your brother and his friends. In fact, this bond over hockey brought you closer to your brother, and eventually, to a wider circle of friends who shared the same passion.

Which eventually led you to the group of friends that set up the friendly hockey match during the winter of 2018.

And that’s when you met Trent.

Just another 20-year-old with a passion for hockey, hanging out with his group of friends, who hung out with another group of friends—and so on.

Long story short, you were all a bunch of hockey enthusiasts, joining together on a sunny winter Sunday in Boston, and as a newcomer to the city, Trent had joined his group of friends, which led to you all mingling coincidentally on an outdoor ice rink.

And apparently, your wide smile and vibrant enthusiasm caught Trent’s eyes immediately. So, for hours he thought about how to start up a conversation with you.

Trent wasn’t usually insecure about himself. He knew he was a young, charming lad, with a strong and impressive career. He knew he was a fighter, making his way to the best league in hockey—yet, seeing a girl like you had his stomach turn and he immediately rather wanted to get into a fist fight than trying to flirt with you.

Not that you were intimidating in any way. On the contrary. You were just so open, outgoing, and simply sparkling with joy. You had that captivating aura that just drew people in, and a part of him knew that if he didn’t at least try to talk to you—aware he might get rejected, he knew he’d regret it.

So, naturally, putting on his greatest smile and polishing his confidence, he skated up next to you when you were finally alone, having a sip of your water by the ice rink railing.

"Wow, you're not too bad for a non-pro," he teased, nudging you gently with his shoulder.

"Just trying to keep up with the big leagues, I guess," you shot back, feeling the warmth in your cheeks that had nothing to do with the cold. You were used to holding your own among your brother’s friends, but Trent’s playful banter and genuine smile disarmed you in a way you hadn’t expected.

And when the game then ended, the easy camaraderie lingered. As you both decided to stay back and help clean up, Trent found the courage within and suggested grabbing a hot chocolate to warm up. 

One cup then turned into several, and before long, the two of you were lost in conversation, sharing stories and dreams long into the night. It felt natural, easy, like slipping into a favourite jumper. You found yourself laughing more than you had in ages, the connection between you undeniable. Neither of you knew it then, but that night was the beginning of something special.

_

Months into your blossoming relationship, it was clear that what you had with Trent was something special. Yet, announcing it to the world felt daunting - at least to you. 

Though you were used to the hockey world, being with a professional athlete came with its own set of challenges, and you weren't sure you were ready for the spotlight. The media scrutiny, the fans, the pressure of public perception—all of it weighed on your mind.

However, one evening, after a particularly thrilling game, Trent then pulled you aside in the empty rink. His eyes sparkled with excitement, his energy infectious, and you could see the determination in his expression, the way he had set his mind on something important.

"I want to tell everyone about us," he said, his voice full of determination.

But you hesitated, your mind racing with doubts. "Trent, it's a big step. Are we ready for this?" 

The what-ifs and potential fallout played on a loop in your head, but Trent’s presence grounded you.

Trent just took your hands in his, his grip firm yet gentle. "I love you, Y/N. I've never been more sure of anything in my life. I want the world to know that you're mine, and I'm yours." His confidence was unwavering, and it gave you the strength to face your fears.

His words simply melted away all your fears. So, with a deep breath, you nodded. "Okay, let's do it."

And to your relief, the announcement was met with nothing but an outpouring of support from fans and teammates alike. The love and encouragement bolstered your confidence, and you felt more connected to Trent than ever before. The world now knew about your relationship, and it felt liberating. So, walking hand in hand, you faced the world together, ready for whatever came next.

_

Now, five years later, the playoffs were in full swing, and the Boston Bruins had just advanced to the second round. The excitement was palpable, but so was your anxiety. You had taken a pregnancy test that morning, and the positive result had left you reeling. The implications of this tiny plus sign were enormous, and you couldn’t shake the mix of joy and apprehension.

Though you knew it could happen anytime - aware of how biology works - it happened sooner than you expected. And with Trent's focus on the playoffs, you were unsure how to break the news without distracting him. So, you decided to wait until the right moment, hoping the Bruins would continue their winning streak.

But then when the team lost and their season ended, you suddenly saw an opportunity to lift Trent's spirits. The defeat was a heavy blow, and seeing your fiancé so despondent tugged at your heart. So, that night, as he sat quietly in your living room, his disappointment evident, you took a deep breath and approached him.

"Trent, there's something I need to tell you," you began, your voice trembling slightly. The weight of your news felt immense, though you had a feeling it was something that could bring light into this dark moment.

He simply looked up, concerned about replacing the sadness in his eyes. "What is it, honey?"

Without any words, you just handed him the positive pregnancy test, watching as his expression shifted from confusion to shock - and then finally to pure joy. You could see the moment the reality of it hit him, his eyes widening in surprise.

"We're going to have a baby," you said, tears of welling up in your eyes, as the words felt surreal, yet so right.

And Trent's face just lit up with the biggest smile you'd ever seen. He swiftly stood up, lifting you into his arms and spinning you around. "Oh fucking yes! This is the best news ever!" he exclaimed, his excitement infectious, the room seeming to brighten with his happiness and the earlier gloom dispelled.

He then gently sat you down, his hands carefully resting on your belly. "I can't believe it. We're going to be parents."

You nodded, the weight of the moment sinking in. "Yes, we are."

Trent then pulled you in for a deep kiss, his joy and love overwhelming, as he allowed you both to sink more into the tender moment, before slowly pulling apart. "This is the perfect way to start the off-season, baby," he said, his voice full of promise. "I can't wait to start this next chapter with you."

And as you stood there, wrapped in each other's arms, you knew that whatever the future held, you would face it together, united by love and the new life growing within you. The journey ahead was filled with unknowns, but with Trent by your side, you felt ready for anything.

[mytheoristavenue]

Hot things the Straw Hat men do

Summary: These are things that the Straw Hat men unknowingly do that you think is attractive. (Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji)

Warning: Luffy and Zoro being mean, mentions of Reader being in danger

Money D. Luffy:

Smiling in the face of danger

Luffy rarely takes anything seriously, and when he does, he gives that one thing one hundred present of his focus, but still, very rarely do you get to see him get really angry. This is one of your favorite traits about him. He has an innate ability to laugh during most any situation, even when he knows he can't win.

Making important decisions

Despite his role as captain, it took Luffy a while to come into his own and fill those shoes. Having been through this with him, it's always a pleasant surprise when he an informed, uncontestable decision for the crew. You love to see him command the respect of his ship.

Laughing at you when you get flustered

Luffy can sometimes be pretty cruel with his treatment of you, laughing at your expense when he's done something to make you blush. He'll point out your cherry cheeks to his friends, comment on how cute you look. Little does he know, he's making the problem worse.

Roronoa Zoro:

Ignoring you

Zoro hardly gives you the time of days on most occasions. He doesn't tend to entertain drama or nagging, so if you go to him with an issue, and he doesn't have the energy for it, he'll simply pretend you aren't there, or feign ignorance to get you frustrated.

Telling you to adjust your attitude

If Zoro ever gets the feeling that you're manner of speaking isn't to his liking, he will never hesitate to correct it. Sometimes its as benign as a simple warning, but other times, if you're really annoying him, he'll grab you by either your wrist, your your cheeks and say: "Fix your attitude. Now."

Cleaning his swords

It goes without saying the Zoro takes very good care of his swords, usually filling any downtime that isn't spent napping cleaning them. Sometimes, your watch him from across the deck as he gently strokes the blades with a microfiber cloth. Occasionally, you'll get caught, and be subject to his teasing.

God Usopp:

Being brave

Usopp's impressive movements were few and far between when you first met, but now that two years have passed, you've noticed a lot of personal growth in him. He's more likely to jump into battle now days, and when he does, you think it's so attractive. Especially when he stands in front of you, not caring what happens to him, just as long as you get back to the ship safe.

Caring for his hair

Usopp has a very serious hair regiment, being only one of two Straw Hats to have textured hair. It goes without saying that he takes very good care of his curls. This means sleeping in bonnets, using protective styles, oils, scalp massages, everything! Occasionally, you catch him on the sofa or something, with his hair down and no type of accessory on. Usually, during these times, he'll be reading, or sketching, unconsciously detangling or twisting his coils with his fingers.

Talking about his interests

Without a doubt, Usopp is one of the most passionate people you've met when it comes to things he's interested it. Any time he comes up with some new gadget or star, he'll instantly run to you and talk your ear off over it. You don't understand most of it, and he talks too fast for you to grasp what he's actually saying, but you don't mind. You honestly love how his eyes light up every time.

Vinsmoke Sanji:

Cooking

Obviously, Sanji is an amazing chef, but it's not necessarily his food that you find attractive, but how he cooks it. For him, being a chef isn't just a job, its a passion and he truly takes his time with everything him makes, and pours his heart into every dish. Sometimes, you can sneak in the kitchen and watch him at work, classical music in the background as he delicately lays slices of protein into a pan, before pouring in a stream of white wine, sipping on a glass of some himself.

Flirting with you

Sanji is a notorious flirt, and you were aware of that the first day you met him, but there have been a few occasions when he flirts with just you, in that very special way that only he can. He'll take you by the hand, and look deeply and lovingly into your eyes, cooing the sweetest, most encouraging things. You know that more often then not it's because he wants something, or that you need the strength to do something that will turn the tides of a brawl, but it always makes you feel so one of a kind.

Fighting for you

Other times, when you can't find the strength to get up, and no amount of sweet nothings will help you rise, Sanji takes it upon himself to be your person protector. He'll usually turn to you, tuck a strand of hair behind your ear and whisper something kind, before having someone pull you away, before stepping up to your challenge.

I hope you liked these! I am now taking OP requests as well, if you're interested in dropping one!

[britt-kageryuu]

Not so much a content warning, but fictional politics mentioned.

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

Donnie is working on some programming on stream again. They told the audience that it's for some minor upgrades to a something he was working on. Some of the chat is trying to play a guessing game, on what it's for based off of some peoples programming experience.

Donnie is only seen from the waist up so he's only visibly wearing his oversized purple hoodie, but this one appears to have an effect where everytime they type a sparkle effect happens somewhere on the hoodie, and of course his mask.

As Donnie chats with the audience while typing fast (looking like a disco ball), they ignore a notification sound that kept going off. But since there were no effects or messages appearing on screen the audience knows it's not from the stream, so there are some curious as to what Donnie is ignoring, with how many times it's gone off during the stream so far.

Eventually Donnie let's out a loud spoken, "Groan Of Annoyance. Does this person seriously have nothing better to do with their time! Yes I know it's all the same person, who needs to get an actual life!" They basically yell towards the device that is sounding of multiple notifications, "My dear siblings and I have been getting multiple messages, under different names, from the same person, and if it wasn't for a few loopholes in laws about cyber harassment, I would have sent the authorities after them!"

Donnie grabs the device and quickly takes Screenshots of the messages, before mass deleting them from all his siblings devices. Only for more to pop in shortly after, which likely meant the Annoyance on the other end was using a program to send these, or help 'disguise' their identity. Not that Donnie didn't already know who they were, but they needed to keep things legal, as annoying as that was.

"I know some of you are curious, what is this person sending us with such frequency, is it very important? Well it's not really, depending on your point of view." Donnie says seeming to be tempted to yeet the device, "This person is persistently asking us about our thoughts on politics. If only because we've strictly said to never bother us about topics such all those."

Donnie takes a moment to stretch before continuing, "Before anyone asks, we're not actually registered to vote, and even then one of the candidates, Mr. Jamieson, made our lives a bit difficult in quite an important way. How you may ask?" He holds his hands and leans forward on them, "His policy on obtaining identification when you technically didn't have any, made it hard for us to get our paperwork through."

"What do I mean by that? Well when Papa gained custody of us, there was a bit of an Error that made it near impossible to find our legal papers. Thus made it hard for Papa to be able to get help for us. Since he himself immigrated to America and not very familiar with getting such in the US." Donnie explains this as calmly as possible, trying to not get worked up, "So we couldn't do much, for some likely racist reason we guess, about that until a few years ago, when we found someone in a government position who could help us, though even they had trouble getting blocked by some policy or other by Mr. Jamieson."

"Our wonderful friend was able to help us, and now we have our identification and passports if they don't want to believe those are real." Donnie says with a lighter tone, "But going past that, the other candidates are not very interesting to us, we know some are pushing for better things, but the current debates have not been as clear as we like."

He gets annoyed by the notifications going off again, "If the person who's doing this is watching right now. I do know who you are, well there are a few others in your location, but either way, you will not like what I plan to do if you do not cease and desist!" Donnie says the last part with a growl in his voice coming through loud and clear.

They then clear their throat, take a drink, and get back to programming, not saying anything. The notification sound has not gone off since.

"On a much lighter note, we have some plans to go to a convention, though we haven't been invited at guests, so no meet and greet stuff. Just you might find us in person, if you're lucky." Donnie jokes, "Though we can't say which one just yet. There are a few happening around the same time and we only have time for one right now. Thus you might be lucky to find us."

Donnie continues to talk to the chat while working, giving a broad range of which conventions they're might go to, talking about possibly having a booth in the Artist Alley, but things were not set in stone yet.

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

Masterpost

This idea got stuck in my head, because in universe there would be some questioning about politics, plus I can say that they met a Nice Agent Bishop who helped them get legal identification. It's just the 'Mr. Jamison' is anti immigrant or along those lines, thus tried to stop or slow the process, without actually knowing who the paperwork was for, or caring.

I also don't want to include real world politics in my fictional Turtle world, but I kept being tempted too.

[holyshonks]

Halo World Championship Afterthoughts

Now that I'm home from HWC weekend, I thought I'd share my thoughts on whether its worth it to go.

For starters, I'm definitely a lore person, but the event as a whole is heavily tailored towards the esports component (that is, after all, the main event). I don't follow Halo esports closely, but I do play multiplayer and like watching games, so this was still enjoyable for me.

The event is smaller than it may look if you watched the streams. It was essentially one large room, with the games happening on one side and the community stage on the other. This is why you can clearly hear cheers if you watch the streams.

There were a handful of booths, but again, they are tailored towards the esports teams. You could visit all the booths in less than an hour.

The rest of the space is set up for PvP matches for different Halo games. I didn't participate in any of it so I can't comment on the prizes or experience.

Friday was definitely the best day for lore fans. Most of the discussion of things coming to the Halo universe and events tailored to book readers and nerds were on Friday.

On Saturday the panels continued, but I only ended up attending one because we arrived later and spent time watching the games.

Sunday is completely devoted to the finals and there was no community stage.

The lowlights:

Since the event space is so small, there really isn't a whole lot to do if you're not watching the games. This wasn't a huge problem for us, since you can come and go from the venue, so we filled the time walking around Seattle's downtown (its very close to Pike Place) or starting the day doing something else before making our way over. But if you have no other plans and are just there for panels, I can see this becoming dull fast.

The overall quality of the panels was so-so. You could tell from the set up that the vast majority of the budget is (perhaps rightfully) devoted to the games. The video and sound quality of the main stage was fantastic. The community stage? Not so much. I was also annoyed that the actual schedule of community stage events wasn't released until a few days before the event, so it was impossible to plan a day around them ahead of time.

The highlights:

I thought the community stage panels that I attended were fun and interesting. It's a little grassroots, but that added a quaint quality for me.

There's a ton of opportunities to win prizes, both on the main stage and the community stage. If you are willing to jump and flail to get picked, you could win some really cool shit. The main stage was giving things away between each game to the winners of rock-paper-scissors games, so, seriously, low barrier to entry prizes abound. By the finals, fans were chucking team merch into the crowd.

Speaking of merch, finding new Halo merch in the year of our lord 2024 felt so nice. It brought back feelings of being able to walk into a Game Stop or even a Walmart and finding my friend Master Chief there. There wasn't a ton of selection, but since Halo 2 is having an anniversary this year, there was some nice stuff to celebrate that and I really like what I came home with.

There were also many amazing cosplayers every day of the event. The cosplay contest is a lot of fun, and there were some truly jaw-dropping skills on display.

Overall, I think the biggest highlight for me was spending a weekend in a space where Halo is relevant. Truly, it was a vibes thing. Everyone there liked Halo. Everyone there was ready to cheer about new things coming to Halo. If you bought anything besides lunch, it was a Halo thing. The energy was high and going nuts with people in the crowd during the finals was a lot of fun (especially since I didn't care who won so it was very much a "I just hope both teams have fun" thing for me).

So, is it worth it?

For me, getting there was kind of a pain. Seattle is pretty far-flung, and although the finals aren't always in Seattle, they have been for the past two years, and may continue to be. Notably, I saw some decorations that appeared to be on loan from formally-known-as 343 Studios, and I imagine that's easier to do when you're only bringing them within the same state.

If someone has absolutely zero interest in esports whatsoever, then it might not be worth the $75 price tag. Having the main lore events on a weekday was also annoying, and made flights harder to find. Since everything is streamed, you won't really miss anything if you choose to watch at home except the opportunity for prizes and the vibes.

I would definitely go again if it was closer, but I might not go if travel is a major PITA again. Honestly, I had been insistent on going this year bc (1) based on some things I have planned I don't know if I'll be able to go next year, and (2) there were rumblings that there wouldn't even be a world championship next year (which have since been debunked, as the 2025 event was confirmed).

Overall, I had a lot of fun submerging my brain in 100% pure Halo for a weekend, and if I could swing it, I would go again.