#probably going to rewrite and add to

[ghostsprobably]

the summary for my season 1 rewrite episodes is currently 26 pages long and counting

and ive realized i should probably give it a proper name...

[oh-meow-swirls]

how does the raft not capsize.

[acircusfullofdemons]

Having a paracosm for 7ish years has spoiled me. Trying to not only start but keep a new paracosm going is just. insanely difficult. who are you people what is going on why am I here. all boring answers till everything gets some real development i hate it so much.

[kekaki-cupcakes]

PJO RANT FOR THE ONE PERSON WHO ASKED :D

@seeking-further-illumination here you go, lol.

I think that the expectations of the show were for exactly what everyone wanted, because of Rick's involvement and the budget, but everyone imagined the books differently, so not everyone could ever be happy with it.

There's that, and it is marketed towards a younger audience and I'm not making any assumptions but most of the fans who aren't happy [from what I can see] are a bit older then the target audience [not that there's anything wrong with that, obviously, don't come at me], and if you re read the first book it's literally written for children.

There's literally backlash for everything ever made because for some reason people just can't chill [???] but I think the reason the Percy Jackson show had such a large amount of people unhappy with it is because we haven't had anything like it before. I don't know how to explain it but we've all created our own little versions of the show and made our own content for the fandom cause we were left to our devices for so long, so now that we have something, viewers already have these empires in their heads that they want to see on screen.

I'll just put it like this, if the show came out, like, a few years after the og book series, there would be less people unhappy with it.

[chatterbox-juice]

Juno is important. according to AJHQ on their insta, Juno is NOT an alpha but an ancient hero, which is interesting, because if Juno isn't an alpha, then canonically the arctic wolves has no alpha. for my AU, i've been considering reviving Juno, not because of author's bias, but because narratively, Juno is THE protector of Balloosh, the newest land added to the game. and I don't want to create an Arctic wolf alpha bc

A: shamans can't create anymore shamans after the phantoms (which i'm changing a bit)

B: that's boring

C: the implications of bringing someone from the past back to the present is somewhat horrifying

but yeah, Juno is OLDER than the shamans, and in my au I said "nuh-uh" because I couldn't think of a way of Juno being older that fits the timeline. correction, I just didn't like it.

in the game, they have two major connections to presumably (100%) dead alphas; Star and Fang, the direwolf and sabertooth alphas respectively. Fang is unimportant, and Star is mildly more important than Fang.

Now, while Balloosh really shines in the Juno Era to the Hexagram Era, it existed as far back as the Culture Era, if we're talking about it being established. the land Balloosh was established on most likely existed in the early history eras.

but anyway, to make sense of Peck, Greely, Gilbert, Liza, Graham, and Cosmo being the original six shamans, Star and Fang will no longer be shamans. they'll be important figures, like pack leaders (did sabertooths and direwolves form packs??), but not shamans. Juno doesn't exist here.

Star and Fang are older than the six in terms of age, just to establish that. Juno is younger in age. So how does Juno come to exist?

they're a gift from Mira. prior to this, Star and Fang joined their packs together and wandered just like that, a massive culmination of canine and feline. this most likely takes place in the Dominion Era, so collaboration between different species was unheard of. Star, Fang, and their pack was shunned, pushed to the far marshlands, but Mira had a sort of respect for it. so she gifted them Juno in the form of a feather.

this is also why Juno is nonbinary. they weren't created with a gender. (also they didn't feel entirely comfortable with gendered pronouns later in life)

these marshlands would also later become Balloosh, founded by Star, Fang, and Juno.

but anyway, Star carries around the feather with a piece of twine, treating it as the second coming of God, whilst Fang leads the pack with one of the leaders fixated on a feather. Fang found it redundant, and he always scolded Star for it, but Star herself did not care about what he had to say. Mira respected them. Respected them! if it wasn't obvious, this is from Star's point of view. to Fang, he acknowledged the feather as a gift, but felt that Mira's attention was fleeting. ultimately, in some way, shape, or form, he wasn't entirely wrong.

one day, during the Settlement Era, the feather glowed as bright as the sun, and soon it grew legs, and fur, and ears, and oh god it's a pup now. this pup was baby Juno, the arctic wolf born from a feather. Star and Fang became parents, almost. they were both a bit feral for Juno more tame demeanor, but they loved Star and Fang nonetheless.

[tarraxahum]

Really want to strangle a co-worker right about now, and not in a good way

[sethdomain]

why did they make chloe sound so boring in all the newer season, erm boo

[andromeda3116]

fighting the powerful urge to just like. go ahead and post the next chapter. because i am so happy about a scene i've added and like. i know that this fic has a tiny readership but i really love this scene.

[paganinpurple]

AO3 Etiquette -UPDATED

Based on both decent and not so decent replies, I have made some changes to my original post below.

It would seem a whole new kind of AO3 reader/writer is emerging and it is becoming clear not everyone quite understands how the website community works. Here is some basic guidance on how most people expect you to go about using AO3 to keep this a fun community archive that funtions correctly:

As well as likes, kudos is for when the story was interesting enough to make you finish reading. If it sucked or was badly written, you probably left. If you finished it, you liked it - so kudos.

If you really liked it, you should try to comment. It can be long and detailed or a literal keysmash. Writers don't care, we just love comments.

No critisism unless the author has specifically asked or agreed to hear it (so use your notes to say if you want some constructive feedback). Even constructive critisism is a no-no unless an author note tells you it's okay. No, posting it online is not an open invitation for that. Many people write as a fun hobby or a way to cope with, among other things, insecurity and just want to share. Don't ruin that for them. I've seen so many authors just stop writing coz they can't handle the negative emotions the critism brings, and it's only meant to be a fun thing shared for free (pointing out tagging errors is not included in this).

Do not comment to ask the author to write/update something else. It's tacky and off-putting and will probably have the opposite effect than the one you want.

There is no algorithm, it's an archive. Use the search and filter function to add/remove the pairings/characters/tropes etc. you want to read about and it will find you the fics that fit the bill.

For this to work, writers must tag and rate stories. This avoids readers finding the wrong things and missing the stuff they want. I don't care how cringy that trope is in your eyes - it gets tagged.

The tag exception is if you don't want to tag a million things or spoil your story, you can rate it as "chose not to use warnings," and maybe tag the bare minimum.

Don't censor tags. How can someone exclude a tag if the word isn't typed out correctly? There are no content bans for terms so don't censor them.

If the tags are mostly content/trigger warnings, especially if they are things considered very fucked up or graphic, you might want to use "dead dove - do not eat" to ensure people know that you're not messing around with tags and what they get is exactly what you've warned them about.

Character A/Character B means a ROMANTIC or SEXUAL relationship of some kind. Character A&Character B is PLATONIC, like friendship or family.

Nothing is banned. This is an rule because banning one thing is a slipperly slope to banning another and another, until nothing is allowed anymore. Do not expect anyone to censor for you. Because of the tags system, you are responsible for your own reading experience.

People can create new chapters and sequels/fic series any time after they "complete" a story. So it's considered perfectly normal to subscribe, even to a finished story. You can even subscribe to the author instead just to cover your bases.

Do not repost stories or change the publishing date without an extremely good reason (like a complete top to bottom rewrite or an exchange youve written for going public). It's an archive, not social media. No one cares what's the most recent, only what fits their tag needs.

Instead of deleting a story you wrote if you hate it - consider making it anonymous or orphaning it so others can still enjoy it, without it being connected to your name anymore. If you still want to delete it, fair enough.

It's come to my attention that metaworks ARE allowed on AO3, which is something I wasn't aware of. So if you do post an essay or theory, please tag it as such so others can choose to search for it or exclude it. Art is also allowed.

The only reason this archive works is because NON ONE PROFITS. Do not link to your ko-fi or patreon or mention monetary gain in any way or you violate the terms and risk having your account removed. If anyone does link, it leaves the archive open to people claiming it's for profit and having the whole thing removed.

I KNOW there's plenty more I missed but I'm trying to cover most of the basics that people seem to be struggling with.

I invite anyone to add to this, but please explain, don't berate.

[theother-victoria]

Mr reca word vomit bc the brain worms won’t leave my brain!!! I promise I’m Very Sane abt this man

TAGS: not proofread, written before his release so potentially ooc and I’m too lazy to rewrite it post-release, secret relationship trope, reader wears lipstick, making out eheheheheh, reader is smaller/shorter than him, this is my propaganda and sign for u to become a reca kisser too

TAGLIST: @akutasoda, @https-sourlimes, @tragedy-of-commons, @mitsvriii (putting you on the reca kisser agenda >:3), @harque, @hazyue, @gabile18, @khoncore, @moineauz

Ok so imagine being in a secret relationship with the man himself…

Like the two of you HATE each other’s guts in public. As a rival film producer, the public loves to pit your films against each other, and the two of you as well apparently. There have been so many instances of you making small digs and sly remarks toward each other during interviews that it’s become somewhat expected by now. You have a gripe with the pacing of his films and his fame. He has a bone to pick with your cinematography.

“That manic director’s most recent film? I would give my thoughts, but unfortunately I fell asleep not even halfway through.”

“That uninspired, dreadfully dull and artistically lacking director? All their films look the same. I couldn’t differentiate them even if I wanted to.”

No matter how critically acclaimed your work is, he always has something to say about it.

Even if it was in the back of an alley with his hands gripping your hips tightly and teeth nipping at your neck.

"It took until a quarter of the way through the movie before- hah- your cinematography finally showed some signs of thought put into the shots. I know you can do better than this. So why- mmph- did it take you so long?"

You angrily nip on his bottom lip. A flash of satisfaction runs through you when you hear him hiss and taste blood on the tip of your tongue.

“Like you’re one to talk with the horrendous pacing of your newest film! Tell me, what was the plot of it again? Because I- mmm!?- already forgot the direction it was supposed to be taking twenty minutes in!”

"Well, you just simply lack reading comprehension. Not my fault, of course.”

“Oh, you little piece of-!”

He shuts you up with a rough and messy kiss. Your legs immediately go jelly and were it not for his leg slotted between yours and pushing you up against the wall, you think you would’ve collapsed right there and then.

When he pulls away, your lips are glossy and swollen. There’s a dazed look in your eyes that makes him smirk in satisfaction and without any hesitation, he pulls out his camera to take a few shots.

“Yes, yes, wonderful! That expression really suits you!”

Anger looks good on you, but he much rather prefers this expression.

He leans in for another kiss and because you can’t say no to him, you indulge him- until you hear footsteps nearby. You hurriedly clamp your hand over his mouth and wait until they’re gone before glaring at him.

“Stop running your mouth so much in public! You’ll give us away at this point!”

“Then stop being so loud,” he hisses back, though he’s in no better state than you, his-already-disheveled hair an absolute mess now from you gripping it. His flushed face is littered with lipstick marks and you can’t resist the temptation to add a few more.

“Cheeky, aren’t you?” he huffs out as you place a lingering kiss to the corner of his mouth. A soft kiss to his eyelid makes his eyes flutter shut and an affectionate sigh escape him. He smells of the chemicals used to develop film and strong coffee…

Then there’s a gasp and the undeniable sound of a camera shutter going off. Caught red handed.

You pull apart from him with a surprised gasp and expression. Strangely, he doesn’t look fazed at all. Still as smug as ever.

You whirl around to see an equally-shocked photographer standing there. Paparazzi, from the looks of it. He was probably going around and looking for some potential shots before accidentally stumbling upon something that would make front-page headlines. When you look back at him, then at the photographer, there’s even more people now snapping away at the two of you in a compromising position.

With the damage already done, you try to leave before he stops you. His jacket resting on your shoulders dwarfs your smaller frame and he yanks on the film strip belt to reel you back in. The crowd of photographers has doubled now, murmuring excitedly to themselves.

“Wh- let go! The paparazzi are having a field day-!”

He silences you with a swift kiss and a pinch to the inner thigh. The cameras flash even more rapidly now.

“Let them see for all I care.”

enjoyed this? my taglist is open!

@ theother-victoria, do not copy, repost, modify, translate, or feed to ai

[two-person-job]

hey guys i've added to this playlist so. time for part two!

@lexisism @milk-violet @floraldresvi AND OUR NEW ADDITIONS @camvrin and @ilyuu-archive <3

have fun! :)

nahoko (i miss you) - joe hisaishi

you KNOW I have to put kavexis. it's from the wind rises!! aka the most kavexis core movie I've ever watched!!!!! ugh I love this song and its title so much. there are a bunch of songs on the soundtrack that start with "nahoko" and they all have different things in parentheses. the encounter, her destiny, a rainbow, the proposal, I miss you, an unexpected meeting, and together are all of the songs that start with nahoko. (btw. alexis = nahoko for this) I'm such a sucker for symbolism, and I ADORE what you can say about these song titles. they are about nahoko to their core. everything about them is nahoko, but each one is a different part of the feelings attached to her. and this song in particular isn't just "wistfully gazing out of a window" it is stressed because jiro (kaveh) is stressed. he's trying to get to his lover, to his fiance, because she is sick. because he wants her to be well. because he misses her. nahoko, I miss you.

transparency - small crush

with great joy, I say zagreis!! transparency is one of my favorite songs. and with the enough I know of hades lore, let me ramble: (also!! spoilers for the supergiant game Hades ahead!!)

"I never knew how hard it could be / to stop talking with your tongue between your teeth / to feel real you must say what you mean / if you wanna go somewhere" though zagreus has made it to see his mother many times before, he has been untruthful about all of his reasons to go back to the surface. whenever asked why he seems to be fighting with a renewed vigor, he simply says that he wishes to visit persephone again. and he knows that there is a chance the unfamiliar feeling he has found may simply disappear, he still decided to find out the long way. a fitting decision for a boy as stubborn as him. "quit acting so upset / it's all just in your head / that you'll end up in an empty bed / with even colder sheets" meanwhile, aléxios has not been well. they miss the mysterious man they met recently, and wonder when they shall see him again. they worry if he was hurt. if he doesn't want to see them anymore. if something else possibly happened to stop him from seeing them. and though he has never gone further into their house than the kitchen, their bed has a cold spot where another body would have been. "you are here with me / we got the whole world pinned to the sleeves of our jackets / that we wear in the fall" once more, they reunite. once more, they learn so little but so much about each other. once more, aléxios and zagreus converse at her kitchen table. and every time afterwards, they grow closer, and they grow together. they have every memory they've shared sewn into the fabric of their being. both of their lives have changed, and neither zagreus nor aléxios could be happier about that. "if life's full of feelings, then why not feel them all? / if life's full of beauty, then why not see it all? / if life's full of change, why be scared?" if they are to be together, why should they not make the most of it? zagreus only has a bit of time with his mother, and even less with aléxios; the food they prepare for him almost always being left half-eaten on his plate. but he doesn't mind, and neither do they, for time spent together is time spent together. and the moments they have are filled with beauty. they are made of love, and care, and the feeling of holding someone dear to you closely. and though zagreus changes, and though aléxios changes, they change together. and it is beautiful. "and open up your eyes / see your visions impaired by the dark / claim back your sight / see all of your thoughts come to life" when aléxios is with zagreus, they feel like she can finally be loved without any chance of consequence. they do the same for zagreus, who can't believe how much adoration was waiting for him on the surface. yes, he had all who had grown to care for him in the house of hades, but nothing like this. like the motherly care from persephone, and the unconditional love from aléxios. he is stunned. and he is happy. (sidenote: he 100% calls aléxios "my love")

sweet talk - saint motel

OLIJAX!! OLIJAX MY BELOVED!! specifically, childe pining after oliver and trying his very best for their attention. "you're probably not aware / that I'm even here / well you might not know I exist / but I don't even care!" he doesn't mind that oliver doesn't look at him, he can look at them!!! how amazing is that!!! "sweet talk / everything you say / it sounds like / sweet talk to my ears / oh you could yell / "piss off! won't you stay away?" / it'd still be / sweet talk to my ears" and then. seeing oliver isn't even the best part (it's tied for #1 tho). he gets to HEAR Oliver SPEAK. SOMETIMES TO HIM!!! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT??? WOOWOWOOWOOWOW. simply thinking about Oliver makes him feel all fuzzy inside. like wowowow. they're so. wow. !!!! maybe one day he'll go on a date with them! how spectacular would that be?

good luck, babe - chappell roan

CHAPPELL ROAN!! anyways. shroomiya :}

i think yoimiya wouldn't be that exposed to non-heterosexual relationships, so she wouldn't really realize that you could date people of the same gender. and because i'm too afraid of ruining a relationship to confess to her, she doesn't realize that what she feels for me is romantic. she assumes that we're just!! really good friends!! for so long!! and so eventually, she finds a nice man to fall in love with, but it doesn't feel right. but that's ok, you can't have a perfect life, right? and eventually, that boyfriend becomes her husband, and I, her maid of honor. the months after her marriage become years, and we're still very close, and one day, yoimiya comes to me with a problem. it's nothing her husband did, no, but more what she is doing. she doesn't know what she is doing. but she does know that she doesn't feel right in her relationship, for some reason hidden to her. she still follows her passions, he is kind to her. he loves her, she helps take care of him. and nothing was wrong with it. that's why she came to me, to ask why. and I would tell her something like "love can be uncooperative, and that's not anyone's fault. if he doesn't feel right, then it's better to do something about that then to let those feelings simmer. and remember, yoi, I will always love and be here for you." those words wander about in yoimiya's mind for months afterwards, and once more, those months turn into years. and throughout those years, we drift apart. through no fault of ours, however, simply by us both being more busy. then it all gets to her when she wakes up next to her husband, in the middle of the night, with her head in her hands, and realizes that she is no more than his wife. not to him, but to her. she doesn't feel the same amount of love for him as he does for her. and she thinks about me, all of those years ago, and she hates to say it, but i told her so.

HOT TO GO! - chappell roan

im obsessed with a couple versions of this. 1. olijax where oliver is playing music and this comes on, and ajax does the dance without even thinking (oliver didn't know he knew who chappell roan is) (there was a long conversation afterwards). 2. mizuha with mirei teaching kazuha the dance :} "like this?" "nono, your arms go straight up. yeah, like that!!" it took 7 minutes but he finally found out how to do the h. wish him luck when he realizes that he has to make a g with his arms. (he tries to make the letters by himself before following mirei's instruction) 3. me and yoimiya doing the dance BUT trying to do it while we're holding hands (it failed but it was fun). 4. scarayui where yui is like "hey scara do you want to learn the hot to go dance-" "no" (he learned it later by himself in case yui asked again)

the ENTIRE waitress musical soundtrack

PLEASEEEE I NEED KAVEH AND ALEXIS TO WATCH WAITRESS TOGETHER!! kaveh will be sobbing by the end. he will say "I love you like a table" to Alexis SO MANY TIMES. they learn to make pies together.

also!! baivi!! watching waitress together!! ougghogugh!! vi you would cry watching it. I think that baizhu would make you a pie the next day and give it a strange name and your reaction made him ever more sure he married the right woman.

but HIGH SCHOOL BAIVI?? "it only takes a taste"! ugh I love the idea of baizhu being really awkward in adolescence. he knows what to say ("if pies were books / yours would be shakespeare's letters!"), but is often too nervous to say it and often messes up. (the intro when dr. pomatter is comparing jenna to a kind waitress he used to know and jenna's like "thank you?? ig???" because he basically said "yeah she's old and a nice waitress just like you" BUT HE ONLY MEANT THE NICE WAITRESS PART and it's so odufosdhgdg) I love the thought of baizhu first reaching out to vi, and it's endearing how awkward he is. but vi loves it, because it's him trying to talk to her. "she was sweet to me, reminds me of you." / "you remind me of her, but, better." also it's DOCTOR pomatter and DOCTOR baizhu so. it's perfect.

also. honestly? I feel like baizhu has an INTENSE appreciation for musicians. he finds musical actors especially impressive, being able to move around so much and have such intense vocal requirements for each song? this makes it so instead of watching musicals he more studies them SKHFKHDF. vi asks how he's liking the musical and he goes "the vocal ranges of the actors are incredible"

scarayui "when he sees me" but it's not yui as dawn, it's scara. "I stick with real things / usually facts and figures / when information's in its place I minimize the guessing games / guess what? / "what?!" / I don't like guessing games or when I feel things / before I know the feeling" idk!! it just reminds me of scarayui!! but also, when dawn lists off things that would scare her off, it's instead scara listing off the endearing things he's found yui doing. the entire song, instead of dawn trying to convince becky + jenna why she's scared to try dating, it's scaramouche trying to convince someone that he does not, in fact, care too much about yui (lies!!).

STOP I LOVE THE SHROOMSYM WITH NEVER EVER GETTING RID OF ME OK HEAR ME OUT!! so. the character singing this. oklahoma/ogie for short. he was never really taught how to love someone as a child, seen well in the lines "my only friend was a stray kitty / called sardine!" ogie does not know how to love like most people, but he tries his best for dawn!! which brings me to sym!! who is both alien and artificial intelligence. naturally, he does not know most of how the people he interacts with work, besides from what he's learned from our media. this could cause him to be both good with words and terrible at talking. just like how curtis from the studio ghibli movie "porco rosso" was exaggerated, because he was based off of hollywood films, I believe, sym would be. uh. slightly off at times. he'd definitely try his best to interact with people, he'd try his best. (canonly he is quite skilled with words, but I think it is also canon that he learned most about people from media so. this is what I've taken from that.) I adore the thought of sym saying something really out of pocket and me going "sym. what do you mean by that." and him responding with something like "I've seen that phrase frequently used by humans in movies, is it not as popular outside of them?" UGH I love him.

but to elaborate. sym is like "it's ok, i'll never leave you! you'll never be able to escape me, don't worry" and he means to be reassuring but some media that has a "i'll never leave you" scene/line is similar to never ever getting rid of me. in the sense of ogie is being strange in this song. like you can't deny that he is being kinda wacky. but he has good intentions!! "gonna do this right / show you that i'm not lettin go / i love you means you're never ever gettin rid of me / "when you say never?" / ohhh, you could try / ohh but i / i love you means you're never ever ever gettin rid of me!" that's strange but he's trying his best and his best is not that great sometimes. but that's ok because i love sym he's so everything to me :) <3

(unrelated but "you will still be mine" makes me sob my eyes out every time. ough. he had his six string and i had my own thing though he can't remember what it is. he wrote me love songs yeah i liked that sad one so he sang it all the time. what was that one line somethin bout sunshine he sang it every nightt. SJHFJKHD IM GONNA CRY)

a guy that i'd kinda be into - stephanie hsu + 'be more chill' ensemble + be more chill

KAVEXIS PANTALOVI OLIJAX HIGHSCHOOL AU DONT EVEN TALK T OMEEE ODUODGUUGOGUGHG

so!! SOO!!! soooooo!! here are the different things i've thought of.

kavexis: kaveh is very smart, but how I view him in high school aus is that he's trying his best, but not doing too great socially. he's just not good with talking to people yet ok!! and Alexis, a more popular/well known student has known him since 7th grade, and they are at the very least friendly with each other. every time that kaveh sees Alexis pass by, he's filled with.. desire. desire to be close to her, desire to be more than just a friendly acquaintance, desire to be more to her. and so he tries his best to be just that. he makes an effort to become her friend, much to some jealous others disdain, and it works! meanwhile, Alexis starts to find herself seeing kaveh as more than just the guy she's known since middle school. more than someone she's friendly with. more than just kaveh. but most importantly, she finds that kaveh has become, or maybe always was, just the kind of guy she'd be into.

mehrak as the squip (I know nothing about be more chill but this sounds right BAHAHAH)

pantalovi: OGUOSDGUDIGHDG. pantalone, stuck-up and self-adsorbed. vi doesn't care much for him, and this seems to be exactly why he started to care about her. vi tried to ignore his attempts at talking to her, but eventually, she decides to humor him. and then something changes. vi was sure that nothing would come of her finally responding to him, but she was wrong. she thought that she already figured him out, but soon realized she never really knew him that well. he's gone from a guy that she'd never possibly think about, to the one constantly on her mind.

olijax: no this is The guy that i'd kinda be into selfship. like.. yeah oli has known ajax for a while blah blah they're nothing special together. partners on a few projects (he's mesmerized every time they talk to him), passing each other in a few hallways (he takes the long route to see them), but nothing more (he wants everything more). but one school year ends, another starts. everything is the same, everything is the same, except for ajax. he's definitely changed. oliver can't tell if only they noticed, or if there even was anything to notice, but they still do. but there is one thing that oliver is certain of: the change, whatever it is, is not unwelcome.

all I need - small crush

"how could i ever stray away / from your kiss / and at the end of the day / you're the one i really do miss" ough.. this fits everyone tbh i really like small crush. but the ones this makes me think of the most is zagreis, baivi, and kind of olijax (not those lines in particular but more the rest of the song).

meet the plastics - I'm not listing off all of these names so. mean girls musical.

"myy name is regiiiina georgeee...... and i am a massivveeee dealllllll" i love you meet the plastics. also idk i think it'd be fun as like alexis as regina with her smart loser boyfriend kaveh. and then mirei as karen but not because of like the ditsy girl thing but because karen's actor needs a powerful voice and honestly her songs are a lot of fun to listen to. and and uh can i be gretchen :} and oli you are. you are. janice. mirei you're also cady btw. you're both karen and cady. yui if you want you can be karen when cady is also in the scene. and vi. you're that one scene between cady and aaron where he asks what the date is and it becomes cady's new favorite day. grool.

if only / if only (reprise) - stray gods soundtrack

:( UGH shroomsym where I become a gardener (sym is a gardener but not in the. he has a garden sense. but in exocolonist, they are a group that i believe are immortal? and are more connected with vertumna, the planet exo takes place on :) but it's NOT what I expected in the slightest and feel as if I ruined my life. all of my friends, all of my memories, would eventually be replaced by only sym + the other gardeners and only vertumna. which, I suppose, is ok for a bit, but what about afterwards? what about when i've seen all of the wonders of vertumna and done everything there is to do? that's scary. "within me there will always be / something left behind in shadow / I'm tethered to you, I'm free / I've known i've loved you / before we were grown / never alone" but that's ok. everything changes, and things will forever get more interesting. what's the harm of a bit more time with my favorite gardener while we wait?

also.. baivi stray gods au could be a lot of fun.. maybe angsty tho i'll have to decide which romance route baizhu would be like.

the rest of the mean girls soundtrack

mirei going "hey kazuha let's watch mean girls together!" and kazuha agreeing and then getting his life CHANGED (he really likes musicals now).

mirei I ADORE all of karen's songs. "sexy" is so much fun it's so <3 !! ough. "if I could change the world I'd make it Halloween! every single day! and also have world peace!" mirei as a ditsy girl who's actually really in control of herself just likes the role. my beloved.

mirei as cady is also a lot of fun. going back to what I said for the mean girls roles, i wasn't joking, mirei you COULD be cady.

i love the idea of Alexis having the same amount of power as Regina George and then having Kaveh as her boyfriend. he's some nerd who's constantly singing her praises, and she loves him. if Alexis wants to watch the world burn, kaveh will bring her the gasoline :)

percy jackson musical soundtrack

um the obvious answer is modern au zagrius of zag + aléxios watching it together because. greek mythos yk. zagreus would be VERY upset at how it's not actually greek mythos, it's simply using the figures to create a new story set in a modern era. but aléxios probably doesn't mind as much and so he calms down :)

idk why but I just. really like the idea of mirei and kazuha watching musicals together. kazuha: "I don't care for musicals" mirei: "let's test that theory" (if this feels wrong then just swap the names hdkfsdkj)

("'I was walking in the strawberry fields with charlie beckendorf! / and we were holding hands! / and then i kissed him and he started growing sunflowers everywhere' / look, kid! / i hate to be the one to tell ya! / but i think that charlie beckendorf was also holding hands with a NYMPH! / that doesn't wanna wish you well / to tell you the truth? / the best thign is to BREAK UP WITH THE GUY / 'but he loves me!' / HE LOVES YOU NOT! NEXT!" idk how accurate that is but i dont want to look up the lyrics. ugh i love that stupid song. another terrible day.. stuck with these runts in the muck and mud.. george salazar you are perfect)

mayonaka no door / stay with me - miki matsubara

i finally looked up the lyrics to this, it's about finding familiarity with someone and never forgetting the important things they do for you. you know what I have to say to that. baivi. just that statement in itself, I feel, is very representative of baivi. loving each other, and keeping it that way.

songs from the "boo, bitch" tv show soundtrack (paraphernalia by temples, medicine by dayglow, dead girl! (shake my head) by au/ra, AMERICAN GURL by kilo kish)

im going to sob. my favorite tv show. my beloved. I NEED to watch this with yoimiya. :(( ugh ok maybe it's really predictable maybe it's not good. but MAYBE it changed my life. maybe i've watched it five times. maybe it took me until my 4th time to realize that one of the characters put his friends faces over the actors on a fast and furious poster. ugh i love you boo bitch </3

sweetest - small crush

putting this as shroomsym because me adding this song to this playlist was a very personal choice. "you are the sweetest thing / you make my phone ring" i almost always have do not disturb on, and the settings make it so only a few people can actually make my phone vibrate when they text me. the line you make my phone ring means a lot to me in the sense of if you make my phone ring, it means i really love you. "every time i talk to you / feels like i am falling / more and more each day" every time i talk to him he finds a new way for me to fall in love. a new thing about him that makes him even more endearing. some things repeat every time i see him, some things are consistent, but he is ever-changing. "walking down the street / I saw you and you saw me / something just feels right / an unbreakable light / is shining on my face" sym only appears if you look for him. sym only appears if you want him to. i want him to. and so he does. i saw him after he saw me. "didn't know i could feel this way / didn't know i could feel this way / didn't know i could feel this way" didn't know i could feel this way.

assigning songs from my latest romance playlist to mine and my friends' selfships :}

@lexisism @milk-violet @floraldresvi

it got a lot longer than I thought. so. have fun! <3

best friend - laufey

kavexis or verali. definitely an alexis selfship. the parts that are more about how you're best friends reminds me of kavexis, but the parts that are lovingly insulting feels more reminiscent of verali

magnolia - laufey

this song is about yoimiya. or it's mizuha and it's kazuha thinking about mirei. a lot of this song feels more like poetry than lyrics?? which leads me to say that kazuha would hear it whenever he sees mirei.

death, thrice drawn - the scary jokes

baivi? verali? I can't really place this one. but. when I think selfships with lots of pining, baivi and verali come to mind!!

jeanine - the scary jokes

kavexis angst where both alexis and kaveh are feeling overwhelmed and end up kinda neglecting each other. with the line "love is just a name for you to call me by", this song talks about how though they are still acting in love, the feelings are starting to fade. it also goes into someone being emotionally absent, and not being vulnerable enough for the other. both people are stuck in a space between "I can't find time to talk to them" and "they can't find time to talk to them", and lots of conflicting "it's my fault/I shouldn't be to blame here" thoughts. one of the last lines is "just like the smote cedars in the yard, I have fallen so hard for you" which shows that yes, they are in love. yes, they adore their s/o. but. it's not a love that is gentle anymore, it's hard to live with and difficult to manage. very "I love you, but at what cost?"

starstruck - the scary jokes

this song has a permanent spot in my shroomsym playlist for a myriad of reasons!!!! firstly. sylvia is being depicted as a figure who shows enough to be admired, but never enough to be known. that's sym for a while!! and the entire song is just someone gushing and wondering about her.

no leverage / no pleasure - the scary jokes

scarayui because of the "I just can't have a normal heart" line and all that's added onto that. with all the scaramouche lore I know very little about, I believe this fits his character? loving, despite it being against his nature? but since yui isn't on tumblr anymore. this is actually really hard wait. this could lead off of the kavexis angst from "jeanine"?? i'll go with that dfjdjdfk

crushed out on soda beach - the scary jokes

shroomiya angst because. the first lines "I tried just burning the whole thing down today / but decisiveness is such a foreign tenant to my psyche" represents someone trying to break up with their partner, but being too indecisive to do so. later on in the song, it goes "you called my bluff / I love you too much / would you please stay with me? / cause after all is said and done / I want you here, stay with me!" this song is representative of wanting the end of the bad parts of a relationship, but not the good parts. it's about wanting the relationship you used to have, wanting to go back to when everything was normal and better than normal because it was beautiful. "I could hardly stand under the weight of my little crush on you" shows how much yearning can take a toll on someone.

bets against the void - the scary jokes

baivi angst this time. "these days your light beam penetrate / the sorrowed skin that i've been living in". baizhu's condition is getting worse, but vi and everyone else's love and care for him motivates him to try to be everything he could be. "but still I wait for piercing pain / i'll feel when your feelings fade / I feel so good today" he knows that all of the good he feels now is temporary. when vi's gone, or busy, or tired, or sick herself, he feels worse. but how is he supposed to push that onto her? when they both feel so good today, isn't that all that can really matter? "the sun is just a copper coin / I flip in bets against the void / imitating choice / 'til I feel good again / i'll keep them in a tin can / then i'll have copper coins to spend" baizhu's trying to find optimism in vi, in qiqi, in everyone who comes to bubu pharmacy, and he is, he really is, but it's getting difficult to find much more meaning in that optimism. he has all of the little memories from people he's known and loved and cared for, but he doesn't have much to do with them. "will you remember me / when our spirits scatter off?" will you remember him, when he can't remember you? when he isn't there? when he can't be everything you deserve? when he loses all he was? "I know I'm an artist / 'cause I just can't stand the thought / that a love as beautiful as ours / could be forgotten" he knows you'll never forget. and that's just why he wants you too. he wants you to be able to move on a live a life as amazing as it always was. but he also knows that you won't be able to do that. so he will make sure you remember your love as beautiful, and make sure to pass it on to everyone you continue to meet.

anata no koibito ni naritai - choo kyuu mei

MIZUHA!!!!! "koi ni ochite iru" THAT DAY I FELL IN LOVE! "kocchi wo mite yo!" LOOK THIS WAY! "choco yori amai! ondo de tokeru!" SWEETER THAN CHOCOLATE, YOUR WARMTH MAKES ME MELT! ik the translation is rough but!!!! KOI NI OCHITE IRU!!!! THAT DAY I FELL IN LOVE!!! KOIBITO NI NARITAI! I WANT TO BE YOUR PARTNER! I want to make a mizuha animatic of you two falling in love.. and being in love.. and that day you fell in love!

also dreszhu. though I know little about it, I like the idea of baizhu seeing dresvi and going "OMG SHES SO BEAUTIFUL" before regaining his composure lol

what will you leave behind (end titles) - max LL and maude plante-husaruk

spiritfarer is everything to me. BUT this song feels like shroomsym and baivi!! for shroomsym, sym is immortal. there is a way to become immortal with him! this song is about loss, about moving on, about grief, and about getting over it and learning how to lovingly remember instead of feeling constant grief. immortality comes with watching the death of all your favorite people, but the last line "but it's ok, we'll be together my friend" would be how sym would be there through it all.

with baivi though!!! baivi is the sort of couple that goes through and sees everything. they grow old together, watch friends come and go, watch relationships blossom and deteriorate, see the landscape around them shift and change, and learn every little thing they can, and more. they guide each other through every difficulty, every problem they may ever have. and they make their own world, out of love and beauty and patches of everyone and everything in their lives. baivi is a couple that grows old together.

hikouki gumo - yumi arai

kavexis. alexis gets to see all of kaveh's dreams up close, everything he wants and everything he does to reach those wants. hikouki gumo is the ending song of "the wind rises", about an aeronautical engineer (I think?) who falls in love with a woman with tuberculosis. though he stays with her as much as possible, she doesn't survive. however, they get to love in the most beautiful ways possible. they love in paper airplanes, they love in carefully-chosen gifts, they love in dropping everything to see each other, they love in spite of everything that encourages them not to. they love no matter what may happen. that's kavexis to me, passion and dreams and unconditional love. kaveh would do anything for alexis, and all she wants is for him to love her. "i've loved you since the wind brought you to me" is my favorite quote from that movie, and I think it suits kavexis :}

itsudemo dare ka ga - shang shang typhoon

sunvi? this is the ending song of "pom poko", and is playing during a lot of friends reuniting. I feel like sunvi is about never truly being apart, only in different places. this song talks about never forgetting the name of the people who loved you. sunvi is about remembering. remembering favorites and dislikes, anniversaries and birthdays, names and relations. everything that matters, and everything that doesn't. because if it's connected to someone you love, is anything really insignificant?

le temps des cerises - cora vaucaire

this is a song that plays in "porco rosso"! the woman that sings it in in love with the main character, though he feels as if he will never be good enough for anything. he has too much guilt about his past mistakes, and doesn't want anything bad to befall someone he cares about, so he stops caring. but she persists, and I think that's very reminiscent of a possible mizuha or pantalovi au. for mizuha, kazuha feels as if he isn't stable enough for relationships. also everything that happened with tomo, he doesn't want that to happen to mirei. but she doesn't care. all she cares for is kazuha, and that's what matters to her. slowly, she teaches kazuha that she loves him with all the risks he may see in being close to someone. as long as they get to be together, she'll be happy, and so will he. pantalovi has something similar, with how pantalone is in the fatui and all. how could that end up in safety for vi? how could he make sure she'd be ok? by not involving himself with her, is his first thought. but similar to mirei, vi is persistent! she will love freely! and he will have to learn to accept that. and he does, because he loves her. pantalone will make sure NOTHING bad ever happens to vi, who appreciates the sentiment, but once again similar to mirei, won't mind what happens as long as she is with him.

socks - out of luck

MY FAVORITE SONG FOR SHROOMIYA!!!! "what's up? how you been? / I wanna be so much more than friends!" lots of realizing you're in love and wanting to confess and not being good at telling someone you love them but trying anyways!! wanting to be with someone forever and never being forgotten and sharing things that only you and them know! yoimiya reminds me of giggling into pillows at a sleepover, and that's what this song also feels like!! failed confessions and flustered glances!!

i do adore - mindy gledhill

baivi. vi is so deeply in love with baizhu that him just asking her about her day makes her a blushing mess!!! they're different in so many ways, but not in a way that sparks argument, in a way of someone who's always cold has someone who's always warm!! they compliment each other in such a personal way, it feels as if they were made for each other!! no matter how many times vi fails at telling baizhu how she feels, or how much he means to her, he understands. he is able to tell by the absolute adoration radiating off of her, that all her words are laced with love.

sakura kiss - chieko kawabe

i put the ohshc intro on here because of who this playlist is about jhsdjh. but also mizuha kavexis and shroomiya are all couples who would shout these lyrics at a sleepover turned karaoke night. KISS KISS FALL IN LOVE!

pretty girl - clairo

high school au baivi, kavexis, and shroomiya. helpless girls + kaveh who'd do anything for their favorite person.

for baivi, vi would see him in the halls, and it'd start off as just a little hallway crush. but she'd find herself constantly looking for him, trying to find out what he likes, what he doesn't, who he's close with, who he isn't. she's writing him little love notes to stick in his locker, and though she's been found doing this by a multitude of people, none have told baizhu!! she thinks. one day, one day, she'll find the courage to tell him how she feels. (and one day, one day, baizhu will find the courage to strike up a conversation with you) this could also work with sunvi + pantalovi but I think it's cuter with baivi <3

for kavexis this song fills my brain with the image of kaveh in fluffy pajamas and looking at his phone, which has a message from alexis that says something like "thank you!!" and he's blushing because SHE saw worth in HIM and thinks that HE was worth not one, but TWO. WHOLE. EXCLAMATION POINTS!!! they might as well have gotten married already!!! kaveh is so hopeless and in love with Alexis, and thinks that she's so out of his league!! but she thinks the same about him. so they're both stuck in the pining stage with a VERY annoyed alhaitham.

for shroomiya. I would do anything for her!! I'll make her snacks!! this is affection in the form of simple acts of love that are filled with adoration, mistakes made to make someone laugh, and endearing habits belonging to someone you love. I could be her pretty girl!!!

kool - meet me @ the altar

honestly? kavexis. both of them think that the other is so cool! that the other should look in the mirror and think about how beautiful they are! both are such daydreamers, and could spend the entire day just thinking about the other. but they'd much prefer being with them, thinking about them is a good temporary substitute. pining and doesn't know the other feels just like them!!

cat serenade - beetlebug

MIZUHA MIZUHA MIZUHA MIZUHA!!!!! "I've never been the kind to fall in love / it's just me and a couple of fleas and that's all I want" HE NEVER WANTED TO STAY IN JUST ONE PLACE BUT IF IT MEANS ANOTHER DAY WITH YOU HED STAY A CENTURY! kazuha slowly realizes again what it's like to find a home not in a place but in a person, and finds himself imagining all the places he'll go with mirei. he'd go fishing with mirei. go to liyue with beidou and mirei. search for flowers for mirei. everything has mirei added on, and honestly? he doesn't mind. he could use a couple more years of his life, if it means those years will be with you.

honey jet coaster - nasuo and route BLUE - yuki nakashima and kawaii dake ja nai - nasuo

shikimori intro and outro. and the shikimori-themed song. that means baivi. highschool au baivi again where everything with vi or baizhu apart of it is beautiful! everything has to be about the other, and if it's not, then they'll find a way to make it!! every single thing baizhu does is endearing. every bite of food vi takes baizhu finds himself smiling at. ik I compare you to shikimori a lot vi but I think it would be reversed? like. yes ur like shikimori. but for the Cool Person/sweetie who's madly in love with the Cool Person dynamic of shikimori and izumi, baizhu would be the shikimori. while baizhu is always making sure that vi is ok, that she doesn't accidentally hurt herself, that she isn't overworking herself, she's making sure that he doesn't have to worry!! vi's doing everything she can to take care of herself so baizhu doesn't have to constantly worry himself over her, but he still does. and whenever vi tries to bring up possibly being a nuisance to him, he shuts it down before she can get the full sentence out. he worries because he loves her. he worries because she matters to him. he couldn't imagine a world without her, and doesn't want to.

every little thing - cybergirlfriend

shroomiya and mizuha. mirei would GUSH about everything kazuha does!! his handwriting, the way his voice gets softer when he talks directly to her, the way he looks at her with a warm smile after grabbing her hand.. anything and everything she can think of!! and I'm never going to have an empty mind when yoimiya's around. it's always full of thoughts of her!!! <33

biri-biri - yoasobi

i can't say yoasobi without also saying mirei. which is why this is another mizuha song. she's waiting!! she's hoping!! she's anticipating what kazuha will say, do, and everything else about him!!! when will she see him again? what will he say next? where is he right now? when will he hold her hand again? she's always wondering!! and he always has the answer, and it's always "whenever and whatever you want".

shake & shake - sumia

this is the intro to a really weird anime that me and someone else are watching together so I put it on the playlist. anyways this is shroomiya. we'd watch the anime together and laugh at how weird and i'd teach her the choreography in the intro <3

chicken noodle - small crush

kavexis? verali? for kavexis, kaveh is the mess. nothing goes right for him, except for alexis. she's the right in his world of wrongs. when he falls in the mud, she picks him back up and cleans him up. when he loses something, she spends hours helping him find it. he's a mess, but you're the best.

for verali it's swapped. I love you alexis but from what I know of verali you'd be the mess <3 she struggles with falling asleep on time, and he texts her at exactly 10:30pm to go to bed without being prompted to do so. he brushes her hair when she forgets to. he always makes sure that her working space is clean. whenever alexis asks him why, he tells her that he's just doing the bare minimum.

signal dreams - small crush

shroomsym!! "i would rather be living in a dream / if that's the only way I could get close to you" anything for you! everything for you! dedicating your days to someone who doesn't know that you think of them the amount that you do! doing things for someone that they'll never know of! picturing yourself with someone you think will never look your way again!!! he's a dream, and i'm doing fine asleep.

freshman year - small crush

sunvi. vi getting her view on everything skewed. she's having to get used to a new life, a new place, new people and nothing she can do to make the scenario more comfortable. but sunday can do something. so he does, and makes her feel as welcome as he can. he makes sure that she is loved properly, and cared for in the way she needs to be. "but I wish I knew then what I know now" if only she always knew how much sunday would do for her. (he'd do anything)

rumblin tummy - small crush

i swear I didn't plan for it to end like this but. tbh. this fits with everyone.

shroomiya: similar feelings to socks!! i'd never waste a day if it's spent with you! <3 no emotions are useless, no words are meaningless, because they're for her. everything is about her. everything is for her.

baivi: days upon days upon weeks months years and lifetimes spent with each other. spent sighing and dreaming and falling in love too many times to count, and then falling in love again!!! finding new ways to say I love you every day, and new ways to reciprocate.

kavexis: kavexis actually really feels like a couple who has a lot of accidental synchronization!! complimenting outfits, texting each other at the same time, confessions piling over each other because you were both so adamant that the other spoke first.

mizuha: making sure that the other is always cared for. during any absence, any reason for not being together, they are both always secure and excited to see each other again. and they always do, they always, always reunite.

shroomsym: I'm never ever going to be free from him, and honestly, I don't mind. I'd waste all my time finding him, talking to him, and thinking about him while I'm not with him.

sunvi: making space for each other, making time for each other, anything to accommodate to your beloved. because that's what you are to each other. everything you do, is in honor of them. sunvi feels like the type of couple to always be intertwined with each other, when you see sunday, vi is not too far behind. when you see vi, sunday was just making his way over with a bag of food and a kiss for the crown of vi's head.

verali: though he may deny it at times, veritas lives for all of alexis' mannerisms. everything she does fills him with love. everything she says makes him so, so happy. he'd really love it if he were able to just be with her for the rest of his life.

pantalovi: he always makes sure that vi is taken care of, because that is always the top priority. vi is everything to him, and he's everything to her. how could either of them be any less? when all of their spare time is spent on the other, how could there ever be any doubts that their love is less than unconditional and absolute?

[thydungeongal]

That encounter joke Anon is wrong. Every 5e GM I've ever met went the route of "one fight per day oh my boss is already dead accutally he has 50 more hitpoints and now here's 2 more minions now the fight is properly exciting and dramatic" and the lack of a poker face meant we all knew.

How do you feel about that kind of rewriting, anyway?

For context, none of the GMs ever admitted to this on the LFG posts, or the pitches, etc.

I'm not opposed to it on principle. Ultimately I do think it's a bit like "oh so you're shifting the goalposts when it seems like the party is winning the encounter more easily than you think they should have," but ultimately that's just a maladaptive response to a different issue. Which is, once again, people trying to run D&D as a game it very much is not.

D&D isn't a game of epic bossfights where characters snatch victory from the jaws of defeat after an extended combat encounter. It can produce such encounters but they will usually emerge incidentally, not naturally. D&D is ultimately a game of attrition, of managing character resources through the course of an extended period, and even though D&D 5e's actual expectations of what an adventuring day is supposed to look like are whack D&D 5e does support a type of gameplay that relies on managing resources over an adventuring day much better than it does "a single epic setpiece encounter per day."

Because ultimately D&D is at its best when it's about weaponized player agency and system mastery, and in modern D&D this sometimes manifests as "the party knew they were going up against a lich so utilizing everything they know about liches they kicked that guy's ass in two turns." Now that would be really anticlimactic if the GM had set that encounter up as narrative culmination of a campaign that had been leading up to this moment for two years. But if you take it as "just one more encounter in the story of a bunch of assholes trying to grow stronger and more epic" then it's just a moment of those characters getting to flex for a moment.

Now of course adjusting the stats of a monster on the fly is sort of a problem in that it goes against the game and thus undermines player expression within the game. When the group pulls off a cool trick that immediately deals a million points of damage to the dragon's dick and you say "oh actually the dragon had two million hit points" then you're ultimately undermining player expression. I don't think this makes someone a bad GM because the motivation behind it is usually to provide a more entertaining experience for the group, but it is a sign of a GM fighting against the system and not knowing what it does, and they and their group would probably be better served by another game. And given that players won't necessarily know that happened it maintains the illusion that the game does produce that type of encounter.

My advice? As a GM, be honest: "hey, I didn't think you all would one-shot that boss. Are you okay if we add a bit more HP to that thang?" And if this is a consistent issue of the game not producing the type of experience the group wants they should ultimately look for a different game.

[mpchev]

Update on fanbinding dissertation: binding the dissertation itself!

After many days and nights of writing and wrangling footnotes and proofreading (where I couldn't convince my laptop that yes, I meant textualisation, not sexualisation), 'twas time to bind the beasts! In three copies, no less! Which I approached with way too much confidence from my one fanbind experience, and came with many fun little surprises due to the format guidelines I had to follow 🤡

This is going to be a long one, so here's my happy unfocused mug to confirm that it all ends well:

First pickle: The typesetting. I absolutely loved typesetting fanfic, but the dissertation had to be A4 (way less fun, boo-hoo), one-sided, with every page numbered. Did you know that LibreOffice won't let you add blank pages and only number the non-blank ones, without skipping numbers? In order to print signatures I could fold into one-sided pages, only numbered on the right-hand pages, I ended up switching to landscape orientation and including the equivalent of a blank page in the left margin.

Second pickle: The imposing, which I couldn't figure out using the amazing bookbinder with my weird landscape 2-page layout. I finally gave in and rearranged all the pages manually, which looked like p. 1 on the recto / p. 10 on the verso, then p2/p9, p3/p8, p4/p7, p5/p8, p6/p7. And because there was no way I was paying print-in-colour prices for all of this, I further split the manually imposed pages into two files, one for the greyscale printer (cheaper) and one for the colour printer (highway robbery). Still came up to ~£70, just for printing.

Very glad I went in chunks of 10 for the signatures, it made both the math and the folding using sheets from two different piles much easier, highly recommend (if for some absurd reason you also want to bind one-sided numbered pages in folded signatures).

Third pickle: Linear time. Had planned on having so much time to print and bind this thing, but kept writing and rewriting and proofing and oops! It was due in less than 24 hours and it was still not out of the laptop. So.

22/09/24, 6pm: Got to the library, started printing.

6.45pm: Found another printer where all the paper was the same shade of white, started printing again 🤦‍♂️ (kept the the misprints to use as scrap paper when glueing)

7.30pm: Started folding the 150 sheets of paper (3 x 100-page dissertation, 2 pages per sheet). Went from the last episode of The Magnus Protocol, to an episode of Welcome to Night Vale, to deciding restart The Magnus Archive, which felt almost poetic.

9pm: Headed back home, trimmed the edges (with a borrowed guillotine), folded the endpapers, stabbed everything. Lack of pictures to be blamed on my inability to mess with linear time, and the eventual sleep deprivation.

10.30pm, I think? Started sewing the signatures together, again with Supernatural (which I started rewatching when I submitted my first dissertation assignment in mid-May, and finished 2 days after submitting the dissertation itself, again, such poetry).

2am, probably? Tipped the endpapers and glued cheesecloth over the spines. Somehow figured out where to set the three textblocks to dry (I don't have a press). Sadly gave up on sewing on (or glueing) headbands, because time.

3am-ish: Cut the missing cover pieces out of millboard (had already cut 4 of 6 covers, since I knew it had to be A4), measured the spines of the three textblocks and cut those as well.

???am: Did some math, because sure, that's the right time for that. Cut the bookcloth to size, glued the cover pieces on the bookcloth. Remarkably only messed up the measurements on one of them! That means one of the copies has a millimetre of millboard showing in the inside corners of the back cover, but not enough time/bookcloth/millboard to redo it, onward we go!

Way past dawn: Took a break for food while the covers somewhat dried. Cased the three textblocks in the three covers, with the endpapers bubbling, which took me by surprise since it was the same paper and same glue I had used for the fanbind without any problem. I'm now thinking that bigger book = more time needed to apply the glue = endpapers getting warped, but I was so exhausted by this point that who knows. Again, no time to redo it!

9.30am: Stacked the dissertations under the heavy reference books I used to write the dissertation. Toute est dans toute hein. Went to bed while they (mostly) dried.

2.30pm: Woken up by my neighbour's dj set. Eventually put all that hard work in a tote and walked to school to hand it in at 4.30pm.

Fourth and last pickle: The titling. Couldn't find paper long enough to do a half-dust jacket like I did last time. Had big cutout plans, ran out of time and couldn't finish testing those. Also had some thicker textured paper I thought of cutting and glueing to the cover as a title card, but it turned out too thin and was warping. Finally resigned myself to submitting it with a blank cover, but one of my teachers asked if I would mind adding the title on with metallic markers to make it easier to identify (one copy will eventually be on the shelf at the Institute), and I'm SO HAPPY with how it turned out. Metallic markers. Why didn't I think of that. (I did, however, think about dressing appropriately for the occasion.)

So, is it possible to print and bind 3 books in less than 24 hours? Yes! Am I glad I did it? Also yes, very satisfying, love being extra! Would I do it again? God no, I've been sleeping for two weeks and I still haven't recovered. Can't wait to start binding something else though, so I guess it wasn't that bad.

That's it! That's over! Aaaaaah! Now waiting for the grade and comments, and hopefully soon I'll be able to share the content as well.

I'll also try to post some more about the research/writing process itself, somewhere between the late nights reading international treaties on income tax and the early mornings spent figuring out how to apply for a phd next.

Thank you so much to everyone who followed along, this was way more fun than I ever could have hoped!

[sweetestcaptainhughes]

“Don’t touch me. We’re fighting.”

Quinn pleaseeee 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

I'm gonna put a warning on this because I like it so I don't feel like rewriting it. Warning: shitty relationship with father.

Drabble Masterlist

"Don't touch me. We're fighting."

Quinn didn't seem to care that you were pissed. But pissed didn't even describe the soreness in your jaw from clenching it so tight or the fact that your body temperature was elevated or that all you wanted to do was scream. Glancing over as he stood on the other side of the kitchen island, his face was as it always was calm, his thoughts were probably collected while your brain was firing off things to add to the fire if needed, he looked like he was in control of his body while yours was being controlled by the rage inside you. Looking at Quinn only pissed you off more so you just looked away.

After a minute, you decided it was best to walk away and cool off before you said something you'd regret. Quinn on the other hand, wasn't done fighting he wanted you to understand his point of view and he didn't wanna wait till morning. As you made your way down the hall you could hear Quinn's footsteps behind you.

"Wait Y/N, Let me explain." He went to gently touch your arm in hopes that you would stop walking away from him.

He got his wish, you turned around talking through your teeth you grunted. "Don't touch me. We're fighting."

Quinn has never pulled away from you so quickly before. Even with how angry you were at him it still hurt you how fast he pulled away. Quinn was looking at the floor, for the first time showing emotion since your fight started. "I was just trying to help."

All you could do is sigh. "By telling my father off?" you question defeat clear in your voice. "Quinn I've been over this with you, my family isn't like your family. You can't just voice your opinions to my dad, especially if it's you disagreeing with him or his choices."

Quinn looked up at you finally, he frowned his eyebrows in annoyance but you knew it wasn't at you. "Well I am mad at him. He shouldn't be allowed to talk down to you and blame you for not getting along with your stepmom when all she does is talk down to you. I couldn't sit there and let her talk down to you at dinner. Okay. And I guess I'm sorry for how it came up, but I am not sorry for standing up for you."

"Quinn I know you were trying to stand up for me. But I don't need you or anyone to stand up for me, especially against my family. Okay?" you ask waiting for him to acknowledge you.

"No. I'm sorry because how can you let them tell you that you aren't as far in your career as you should be as if they helped at all with the cost of college. Or the fact that all they did all dinner was telling you everything you were doing wrong with your life?" His tone was accusing and you found yourself taking a step back, your body was exhausted and all you wanted to was get out of this ichy dress and go to bed.

"I don't wanna have this conversation tonight." you begged.

"I just don't understand why do you even keep him around Y/N!"

"Okay since you seem to not be able to understand why I let them talk that way to you let me explain it to you so we never have to talk about this again got it?" you ask waiting for Quinn to nod his head before you continue. "Look my dad might be a piece of shit, but guess what he's my piece of shit father not anyone else's. Everyone always ask me for years 'Y/N if I were you, I'd cut him off why don't you.' For a long time I didn't have an answer for them but as I got older I do and it's this. Because he might be a piece of shit but without him I wouldn't be standing here physically because he is physically half of me. And I know you have lovely parents Quinn and brothers. But not everyone does and I am terrifed that if I do cut him out all the way vs seeing him three times a year like I do now. That one day I will get a call and he will be dead and I will have regret for not at least having him in some capactiy in my life. So because of that fear of regret because I know many people who have it now since their parents passed. I keep him around and if you can't understand that fine, not everyone does."

Taking a step closer to Quinn you add, "but whether you agree or not, you don't get to judge me for the choices I've made when it comes to the relationship between my father and I. Because that is exactly what it is." Pointing to yourself. "It's MY relationship not yours and you also don't get to make it more shaky then it already is by yelling at him in the middle of the steakhouse."

Quinn and you aren't sure how long you stood in your apartment hallway, it could of been seconds it could of been minutes. At some point Quinn looked at you and said "agree to disagree." All you did was nod and you both said true to your word you never talked about your father and your relationship ever again.

[lucysarah-c]

Criminal Record

A young cadet from the survey corps began dating one of the higher-ups. What others did in their personal lives was none of Levi’s business, but in the comfort of your shared room, as each of you focused on your respective piles of paperwork, the brand new hot topic of the regiment felt like fair game.

“Did you hear that John and Grace are dating? I heard it from Erwin this morning,” you broke the silence, attempting to start a conversation with your long-time boyfriend.

“How could I not? Everybody is talking about that shit,” he replied, not even looking up from the opposite side of the desk, as he filled out forms.

“I think they look cute together, but I hope they can handle the attention during meals,” you said, taking a sip of your hot tea and leaning back in your chair.

“She's too young for him, just a damn brat,” your grumpy boyfriend replied, leaving you torn between laughter and concern.

You continued sipping your tea, reclining in your chair with your eyes fixed on your boyfriend's raven head as he wrote. A mischievous smile crept onto your face.

“Levi.”

“What?”

“Levi~”

“What do you want?” This time, he raised his bullet-gray eyes from his work to see why you were being so annoying. “What’s so damn funny for you to have that stupid smile on your face? Go back to work; we're not even halfway through.”

“I was younger than her when we first slept together.”

Your words filled the room like a sermon about sins.

You were having the time of your life, while your boyfriend… well, he seemed to be having a mental breakdown.

Later, the next day.

“Erwin, do you think Grace is too young for John?” You asked him directly, already sensing Levi's discomfort.

“Huh? Well, she is young for him. But who am I to tell them who they should spend their time with? Even if I think it’s a little inappropriate,” Erwin replied, continuing to read one of the many reports he had.

It was just another morning for the six of you (Mike, Erwin, Hange, Moblit, Levi, and you), making sure all the assignments were in check.

You could hardly contain your laughter at his response.

“Did you know that I was younger than her when Levi and I started dating?” You omitted the sexual reference for the sake of your embarrassed boyfriend.

Hange spat out some of her tea and burst into laughter, while Mike simply chuckled.

Levi, on the other hand, kept his eyes fixed on the paper in his hands.

“Oh really? What do you have to say in your defense, Levi?” Erwin was, of course, poking the bear, a smirk playing on his lips as he raised his blue eyes from the paper to look at his friend.

“Oh my god! You even said the other day that she was too young!” Hange said, almost screaming between laughs. They were probably going to tease him about this for a while.

“Shut up, four eyes,” he replied before, probably, considering his next reply. “In my defense?” He echoed, confirming Erwin’s question. “In my damn defense, I used to kill people for money and be involved in drug deals as a thug in the underground. Sleeping with someone underage is the least of my sins; just add it to my long list of criminal records.”

This was my first one-shot ever. It's such a shame that somehow Tumblr erased some of my old posts out of nowhere, and I couldn't find it. It holds a special place in my heart because of that. But, well, I decided to rewrite it and post it again because I really want to keep it in my masterlist. Here is the link to part 2, but be careful, it was written a WHILE ago. Link to my masterlist and my other works if you feel like checking them out.

Tags!: @nube55 @justkon @notgoodforlife @nmlkys @humanitys-strongest-bamf @quillinhand @thoreeo @darkstarlight82 @i-literally-cant-with-this @angelofthorr @aomi04 @levisbrat25 @l3visthighs @hum4n-wr3ckag3 @hannieslovebot @starrylevi @rithty @mariaace @ackrmntea @emilyyyy-08 @levisfavoriteteashop @katestrophes @levistealeaf @an-ever-angry-bi @youre-ackermine @fxnnyackerman @secretmoneybearvoid @trashblackrainbow @@feelingsandemotionsnotexplored @flxrartsstuff @katharinasdiaryy @@kikarouflames Wanna join my tag list? Here!

[kaiyunsim]

valentine —

pairing : best friend!woonhak x gn!reader

summary : woonhak wants to ask the reader to be his valentine but doesn't know how to. when he tries to form an idea, his hyungs decide to tease him.

warnings : fluff, reader is lowkey dumb, none !

a/n : i love woonhak. i want him to be my valentine. ALSO CAN WE TALK ABOUT THESE PHOTOS?!?!? boba eyes are my weakness

queueing : valentine - laufey

— wc : 5.5k — not proof read —

woonhak stares at his phone, his fingers hovering over the keyboard. he’s already typed and deleted his message at least five times, each attempt making him more frustrated than the last. inviting the reader over shouldn’t be this hard. he does it all the time... so why does it feel like he’s about to do something life-changing?

he sighs, shaking out his hands before typing again.

hey, wanna come over to my dorm later? just to hang out. nothing weird. just normal. totally normal.

he reads it back, groans, and immediately deletes the last part. why does he sound so suspicious?

before he can rewrite it, jaehyun suddenly plops down next to him on the couch, his presence almost making woonhak drop his phone.

“why do you look like you just got caught doing something illegal?” jaehyun asks, peering over at his screen.

woonhak quickly turns his phone away. “i don’t.”

“you do,” riwoo chimes in from the other side of the room, lounging against the armrest of the couch. “and judging by how you’re acting, i’m guessing it has something to do with them.”

woonhak freezes. “who’s ‘them’?”

riwoo raises an eyebrow. “you know exactly who.”

jaehyun grins, leaning closer. “are you finally confessing?”

woonhak chokes on air. “what—no! i’m just inviting them over. to hang out.”

“sure,” jaehyun says, dragging out the word like he doesn’t believe him at all. “just to hang out.”

woonhak glares at him. “it is just to hang out.”

riwoo hums, clearly unconvinced. “so why do you look like you’re about to throw up?”

before woonhak can defend himself, sungho walks into the room, pausing when he notices the way everyone is staring at woonhak. “what’s going on?”

“woonhak’s texting y/n,” jaehyun announces.

“and freaking out about it,” riwoo adds.

woonhak groans, covering his face with his hands. “i hate you guys.”

sungho laughs as he takes a seat. “why are you so nervous? it’s not like they’re gonna say no.”

“that’s not the point,” woonhak mutters.

“then what is the point?” riwoo asks.

woonhak opens his mouth, then closes it again. he doesn’t really have an answer... at least, not one he’s willing to admit out loud.

the thing is, he does want to confess. has wanted to for a while now. but the thought of actually doing it? terrifying. so instead, he’s been sitting on his feelings, convincing himself that just being around the reader is enough.

except it’s not. not really.

so, after much internal debate (and several sleepless nights), he decided to do something about it. valentine’s day is coming up, and if he doesn’t confess now, he doesn’t think he ever will.

but none of that matters if he can’t even send a simple text.

he squares his shoulders, determined to ignore the way his friends are watching him like he’s a reality show about to reach its peak drama moment. he quickly types out a new message. something short and to the point.

hey, wanna come over later?

before he can second-guess himself, he hits send.

there. done.

“so,” jaehyun says, leaning in again. “what did you say?”

woonhak ignores him, pretending to be very interested in the pattern of the couch cushion.

sungho smirks. “you know, you talk about them all the time.”

woonhak snaps his head up, eyes wide. “i do not.”

“you do,” riwoo confirms. “it’s honestly impressive how much you find ways to bring them up.”

“the other day,” sungho starts, leaning back with a smug grin, “we were eating dinner, and out of nowhere, you just went, ‘y/n would probably love this.’”

woonhak groans. “so what? i just think they have good taste!”

“and yesterday,” jaehyun adds, clearly enjoying this, “we were picking out outfits, and you said, ‘y/n would look really good in this color.’”

woonhak throws his head back against the couch, wanting to disappear. “shut up.”

riwoo snickers. “it’s cute, honestly. kinda pathetic, but mostly cute.”

woonhak doesn’t even have the energy to fight back. he just prays the reader texts back soon so he has an excuse to leave the conversation.

as if on cue, his phone buzzes. he scrambles to grab it, his heart hammering in his chest as he reads the reply.

sure! what time?

woonhak barely gets the chance to process his relief before jaehyun snatches his phone.

“they said yes,” jaehyun announces, showing the screen to the others.

woonhak lunges for his phone. “give it back!”

jaehyun easily dodges him, grinning as he holds the phone out of reach. “so what’s the plan? are you finally gonna tell them how you feel?”

woonhak hesitates for half a second, and unfortunately, that’s enough time for his friends to pick up on it.

riwoo gasps dramatically. “wait. wait. you are confessing.”

woonhak shakes his head, but his face betrays him, heat creeping up his neck.

jaehyun’s eyes widen. “holy—he is.”

sungho claps his hands together. “this is a big moment. we should prepare a speech.”

woonhak finally manages to snatch his phone back, glaring at all of them. “no one is preparing anything. i just—i just wanna ask them to be my valentine, okay? that’s it. no big deal.”

riwoo grins. “oh, it’s a huge deal.”

woonhak groans, burying his face in his hands. he should’ve known telling them anything was a mistake.

“so,” leehan says, walking into the room for the first time, looking only mildly interested. “when are we holding up the poster boards?”

woonhak lifts his head in horror. “who told you?!”

taesan walks in behind leehan, shrugging. “everyone knows.”

woonhak stares at all of them, betrayal written all over his face.

jaehyun pats his shoulder. “don’t worry. we fully support this.”

sungho grins. “but we will be making fun of you the entire time.”

woonhak sighs, knowing there’s no winning. but despite all the teasing, despite how embarrassing this all is, he can’t help but smile. because later today, the reader is coming over. and hopefully, by the end of the night, they’ll officially be his valentine.

and honestly? he thinks that’s worth a little humiliation.

when you arrive at woonhak’s dorm, you barely get the chance to knock before the door swings open. woonhak stands there, looking slightly out of breath like he ran to the door. for a second, he just stares at you, blinking, before quickly stepping aside.

“hey! uh—come in,” he says, voice a little too enthusiastic.

you smile as you step inside, slipping off your shoes. “why do you sound so nervous?”

“i don’t,” he says way too fast.

before you can question him further, you hear a chorus of voices from the living room.

“they’re here,” jaehyun announces, his tone dripping with amusement.

when you look over, you see woonhak’s hyungs lounging on the couches, all looking way too entertained. woonhak stiffens beside you, but you don’t think much of it—at least, not until jaehyun speaks again.

“wow,” he muses, leaning back. “woonhak really went all out. he even cleaned for this.”

woonhak immediately spins toward him, eyes wide. “hyung!”

jaehyun grins. “what? i’m just pointing out how spotless the dorm is. not a single sock on the floor. it’s almost too clean.”

you raise an eyebrow at woonhak, who is suddenly refusing to make eye contact. “you cleaned just for me?”

woonhak shakes his head aggressively. “no! i mean—i clean all the time! i just—i didn’t want the dorm to look messy, that’s all.”

jaehyun hums like he doesn’t believe him, and you can’t help but smile at woonhak’s flustered state.

before you can say anything else, taesan, who has been silently observing, tilts his head. “by the way,” he says, looking at you. “did you know woonhak practiced inviting you over?”

woonhak makes a noise that can only be described as a dying cat. “what are you talking about? i did not.”

taesan shrugs, completely unbothered. “you totally did. at least five different versions. you even rehearsed it in the mirror.”

you blink. “really?”

woonhak turns to you, looking like he wants to melt into the floor. “no! i did not rehearse anything.”

taesan just smirks. “sure.”

you bite back a laugh. “so you were nervous to invite me over.”

“i wasn’t,” woonhak insists, but his ears are turning red.

sungho leans forward, resting his chin on his hand. “you know, it’s funny,” he says, voice teasing. “woonhak has been acting really different today.”

“yeah,” jaehyun agrees. “super flustered. almost like he’s hiding something.”

“or someone,” riwoo adds, smirking.

you frown, confused. “what do you mean?”

woonhak stiffens beside you. “nothing! they mean nothing.”

his hyungs just exchange knowing looks, clearly enjoying themselves.

“i just think it’s interesting,” jaehyun continues, “how woonhak has been extra… obvious today.”

“right?” riwoo nods. “he keeps acting all shy and jumpy. like he’s got something to confe-.”

woonhak groans, covering riwoo's mouth. “oh my god.”

you tilt your head at him. are you being obvious about something?”

he snaps his head up. “no!”

his hyungs all laugh, and you’re even more confused now, but woonhak is already grabbing your wrist, gently pulling you toward the hallway.

“okay, we’re leaving now,” he says quickly.

you glance back at the others. “but—”

“nope! not listening! goodbye!” woonhak drags you toward his room, muttering under his breath.

once you’re inside, he shuts the door behind him, leaning against it with a sigh.

you cross your arms. “are you gonna tell me what that was about?”

he groans. “they’re just being annoying.”

you raise an eyebrow. “they seemed pretty convinced you were hiding something.”

woonhak stiffens, but then quickly shakes his head. “they just like messing with me.”

you squint at him. “so you didn’t practice inviting me over?”

he hesitates for half a second.

“i didn’t,” he says, but it’s not very convincing.

you grin. “you totally did.”

woonhak groans, flopping onto his bed. “i hate them.”

you sit down beside him, nudging his shoulder. “i think it’s cute.”

he peeks at you through his fingers. “you do?”

you nod, smiling. “yeah. it means you really wanted me to come.”

woonhak’s face turns red again, but this time, he doesn’t deny it. he just clears his throat and looks away. “whatever.”

you laugh, nudging him again. “thanks for inviting me.”

he glances at you, his expression softening. “yeah,” he murmurs. “of course.”

for a moment, it’s quiet. the teasing from earlier fades away, and all that’s left is the two of you sitting together, the space between you warm and comfortable.

woonhak seems like he wants to say something else, but before he can, there’s a knock at the door.

“hey,” sungho calls from the other side. “we made popcorn if you guys wanna join us.”

woonhak groans. “go away.”

you laugh. “we should go.”

woonhak pouts. “but then they’re just gonna keep messing with me.”

you pat his knee. “i think you’ll survive.”

he sighs dramatically, but when you stand up, he follows.

“fine,” he grumbles, opening the door.

sungho is standing there, looking way too smug.

“have fun?” he asks.

woonhak shoves past him, dragging you along. “i seriously hate you all.”

sungho just chuckles. “love you too, buddy.”

as you settle onto the couch beside woonhak, you can’t help but smile. whatever his hyungs were teasing him about, you still don’t fully understand. but one thing is clear. woonhak really, really wanted you to be here.

and honestly? you’re really, really glad you came.

the rest of the evening is surprisingly normal. well... almost normal, if you ignore the occasional smirks from woonhak’s hyungs and the way woonhak keeps glancing at you like he’s got something on his mind.

you’re all gathered in the living room, a movie playing on the tv. you and woonhak are sitting on the couch, a bowl of popcorn between you, while the others lounge around. riwoo is sitting on the floor, leaning back against the couch, and jaehyun is half-sprawled on one of the armchairs like he owns the place.

taesan is on his phone, not even pretending to watch the movie, while sungho and leehan are quietly making jokes under their breath, barely paying attention.

woonhak, however, is suspiciously silent.

you glance at him. “you okay?”

he blinks like he wasn’t expecting you to ask. “huh? yeah! totally. i’m fine.”

you narrow your eyes at him. “you sure? you’re acting kinda weird.”

he quickly shakes his head. “nope. not weird. totally normal.”

jaehyun snorts. “yeah, he’s so normal right now.”

woonhak shoots him a glare but doesn’t say anything.

you let it slide, deciding not to push him. instead, you focus back on the movie, though every so often, you feel woonhak shifting beside you, like he can’t sit still.

after a while, riwoo stretches his arms above his head, groaning. “okay, i’m bored.”

“same,” taesan mutters, putting his phone down.

sungho glances at woonhak, raising an eyebrow. “should we do it now?”

woonhak’s eyes widen, and for a second, he looks like a deer caught in headlights. then he quickly clears his throat. “uh—yeah. let’s—let’s do that thing.”

you frown. “what thing?”

woonhak stands up way too fast. “nothing! just—me and the hyungs have to go do something real quick.”

you blink, looking around as the rest of the group suddenly gets up as well. “all of you?”

jaehyun nods. “yep. very important. super urgent.”

“but we’ll be back,” sungho adds. “so don’t go anywhere.”

you stare at them, completely confused. “...okay?”

woonhak nods firmly, like he’s trying to convince himself. “great. we’ll be right back.”

before you can question it any further, they all disappear down the hallway, leaving you alone in the living room.

you sit there for a moment, staring at the now-empty space around you. something is definitely going on. woonhak has been acting weird all night, and now all of them are in on something?

you sigh, sinking back into the couch. whatever it is, you’ll find out soon enough.

minutes pass. the movie continues playing in the background, but you barely pay attention.

then, just as you’re about to go looking for them, woonhak suddenly appears in the doorway.

he looks nervous.

“come with me,” he says.

you sit up. “what? why?”

“just... trust me.”

you hesitate but eventually stand. “okay?”

woonhak doesn’t say anything else. he just leads you down the hallway, back toward the living room.

when you step inside, you freeze.

standing in a row in front of the couch are sungho, riwoo, jaehyun, taesan, and leehan. and in each of their hands is a giant poster board with a single word written on it.

“will” “you” “be” “my” “valentine?”

woonhak steps forward, standing in front of them, shifting on his feet.

“uh,” he starts, rubbing the back of his neck. “so… surprise?”

you stare.

woonhak looks like he’s about to pass out. “okay, i know this is kinda dramatic, but i—I really wanted to ask you in a special way, and the hyungs wouldn’t stop teasing me, so they made me do it like this, and now—”

“yes.”

woonhak freezes. “...what?”

you smile, feeling your face heat up. “yes. i’ll be your valentine.”

there’s a beat of silence. then—

“LET’S GOOO!”

jaehyun and riwoo start cheering, holding up their signs like they just won a championship game. sungho claps, nodding approvingly, while leehan and taesan just grin.

woonhak, meanwhile, looks like he short-circuited. “wait... really?”

you laugh, stepping closer. “yeah. really.”

he blinks, processing, before breaking into the biggest smile you’ve ever seen.

the next thing you know, he’s pulling you into a hug, arms wrapping tightly around you.

his hyungs erupt into whistles and teasing comments.

“aww, look at them!” jaehyun coos.

“this is so cute,” riwoo adds. “i think i might cry.”

taesan smirks. “we should make them wear matching outfits now.”

woonhak groans, burying his face in your shoulder. “i hate you guys.”

you just laugh, hugging him back.

honestly? you wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

woonhak is beaming.

after you say yes, he doesn’t stop smiling. not even for a second. it’s like his whole face is stuck that way, and honestly, it’s kind of adorable. you can feel how happy he is just by looking at him, and it makes warmth bloom in your chest.

but of course, the moment is far from over, because his hyungs are still in the room.

“our baby,” sungho suddenly sniffs, clutching his chest dramatically.

riwoo nods, pretending to wipe a tear. “he’s all grown up now.”

woonhak groans, pulling away from you just enough to shoot them a glare. “oh my god, stop.”

“no, no, it’s true,” sungho insists, shaking his head. “i remember when you were just a clueless little kid, crushing on them from afar.”

“and now look at you,” riwoo sighs. “making big moves. we’re so proud.”

woonhak turns bright red. “i hate you guys.”

jaehyun smirks, casually crossing his arms. “so, when’s the wedding?”

woonhak chokes on air.

you barely hold back a laugh as he smacks his chest, trying to recover. “wh—what?!”

jaehyun shrugs. “i mean, you pulled off this big, dramatic confession. it’s only natural that the next step is a proposal, right?”

woonhak’s face is burning. “you guys are the worst.”

“i mean, it’s a fair question,” taesan adds, smirking. “do you have a timeline? should we start planning now?”

woonhak lets out a strangled noise. “shut up.”

but before he can suffer any further, leehan suddenly steps forward, holding a piece of paper.

“here,” he says, handing it to you.

you blink, taking it. “what is this?”

taesan leans in. “a contract.”

you look down, reading the words written in messy handwriting:

"by accepting, you agree to endure woonhak’s clinginess forever.”

you burst out laughing.

woonhak, on the other hand, groans, snatching the paper out of your hands. “oh my god, seriously?”

“yep,” leehan nods. “it’s legally binding.”

“where did you even get this?!” woonhak exclaims, waving the paper around.

taesan smirks. “we prepared it ahead of time. just in case.”

“just in case?!”

you’re still laughing as you reach out, gently tugging the contract back. “i mean… i don’t mind.”

woonhak freezes, turning to look at you. “...you don’t?”

you shake your head, smiling. “nope.”

woonhak blinks. for a second, it looks like his brain completely short-circuits.

then, slowly, his lips curve into the softest smile.

his hyungs erupt.

“oh my god,” sungho gasps, clutching his chest. “they really like him.”

riwoo fake wipes his eyes again. “this is too much. i’m getting emotional.”

jaehyun just grins. “guess we really do need to start planning a wedding, huh?”

woonhak whips around, pointing at all of them. “if you guys don’t leave right now—”

they all laugh, clearly having the time of their lives.

you watch the chaos unfold, still smiling. despite all the teasing, woonhak is so happy. you can see it in the way his eyes shine, the way he keeps glancing at you like he can’t believe this is real.

and honestly? you feel the same way.

maybe the teasing will never stop. maybe his hyungs will never let him live this down.

but if it means being with woonhak?

you don’t mind at all

- ty pookies for reading :) -

~ bnd taglist - @bxnedo

~ perm taglist - @s0shroe