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fraybay · 2 years ago

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Rumors P2

A/N: Hello, hello. Here's part two. I hope y'all enjoy!

Link to Part 1 Link to Part 3

Pairing: Jack Harlow x Actress!OC TW: angst, smut

As soon as the line picked up, Shae didn’t wait for him to speak, “Jack, I'm so s-“

“I really don't want to hear an apology from you right now,” Jack gruffly interrupted. “My PR team is going to send over a statement to your team for approval and I'll post it this afternoon. You can reshare it or send over a statement for approval.”

Shae winced at how cold he sounded and took a deep breath to try to keep from crying, “Baby, can you please come home so we can talk about this? Or I can come to you?”

“Now you want to talk?” A bitter laugh spilled out of his mouth, “I practically begged you to talk to me and give me a few days to solve this. Or are you forgetting that you haven't answered one phone call or text from me over the past 5 days?”

She sniffled, “I know. I sh-“

His voice cracked as he asserted, “I told you it wasn't me, and you just…”

Shae felt her chest tighten at how hurt he sounded as he trailed off. She waited a few moments to see if he was going to continue and when it became apparent he wasn’t, she finally spoke.

“I know, Jack. I know. You have every right to be angry at me, but I promise I'm going to do everything I can to make it up to you.”

“You honestly think that's possible?”

“I'd like to try,” came her earnest response.

Jack scoffed, “Are you forgetting that you basically told me that you believed I would cheat on you because I've changed and our relationship, apparently, was terrible?”

“That’s not what I said!” Shae exclaimed before taking a moment to even out her tone, “Jackman, there was so much evidence an-“

“Fuck the evidence, Shaela!” he snarled through the phone. “I didn't ask you to blindly believe me. I asked you to give me time before you ended things. After 3 years, you couldn't give me that so what the fuck are we even doing?”

“Jack, I know I screwed up, okay,” she conceded. “And I know you're going to be angry at me for a while and I deserve that. I know I have no right to ask but can you please give me the chance to make this right?”

Jack bit his tongue and kept silent, knowing that everything he wanted to say in response was just going to cut the actress deeply and make things worse.

She let out a weary sigh before she gently broached, “You leave back out on tour in two days. Can you please come home so we can try to salvage them?”

“I think it'd be best if I didn't. I need some space.” His grip on the phone tightened as he admonished, “And before you start, these last 5 days don't count because I spent them going out of my mind trying to figure out how to prove to you that I was innocent.”

As desperately as she wanted him home, she figured it was in her best interest not to argue.

Instead, she asked, “Do you still want me to come out to join you on tour in two weeks?”

He shook his head ruefully even though she couldn’t see him, “You don't even know how much I want to say yes to that.”

She was afraid to ask and barely choked out, “But?”

He sighed, “But I'm not sure. Can I let you know closer to when you're supposed to fly out?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. I should go. You'll have the statement sent over to you shortly."

“Okay.” She quickly called out before he could hang up, “Wait, Jack.”

Annoyance crept into his voice, “Yeah?”

His tone gave Shae pause but she managed to stammer out, “I...uh...I love you.”

“I'll talk to you later.”

Shae stared down at her phone and let the tears she’d been keeping at bay flow freely.

**********************

Urban rose an eyebrow at his best friend, “Damn dude, I only heard your side and that shit sounded painful.”

“What should she have expected? She didn't hesitate to end things between us! I'm not the bad guy,” he reasoned.

2fo chimed in, “Of course, you're not, but that doesn't mean she is either.”

“Please,” Jack leaned back in his chair, “enlighten me as to how she isn’t?”

“Because if the situation were reversed, you wouldn't have believed her either.” Urban crossed his arms, “A fact that you've admitted to at least 4 times over the past few days.”

“You're glossing over the fact that I also said that if she was as adamant as I was that it wasn't her, I would have at least given her time to prove that it wasn't,” he countered.

“Fair enough,” Schloob spoke up. “But you can't act like you two haven't been having issues. You literally told us last time we were on the road and y'all got into it because she had to push back coming out because of reshoots for her movie that every time one of you had to cancel on the other that it made you doubt whether a future and a family was in the cards for you two. So, acting like she's the only one who'd been doubting the relationship isn't fair.”

“How is it that all of you are on her side?”

“We are on your side,” Quiiso interjected. “We all know how much you love her, and we all know you're going to be miserable without her. You're angry and hurt she didn't give you time, which is understandable. All we're saying is that you both had good reason to act and feel the way you did.”

Urban added in, “We just don't want you making permanent decisions you might regret later because you're reacting to the situation instead of doing what's best for you in the long run.”

Jack ran a hand over his face, “Can we change the topic?”

“Sure,” Urban answered, “Would you like to talk about which one of us is going to stop by the house and pack for tour? Or do you plan on going by yourself?”

**********************

Shae opened the door, slightly surprised that Jack had chosen to knock instead of just using his key.

She stepped to the side as both Jack and Urban entered the house. She was tempted to crack a joke about it but figured it would only increase the tension that was hanging over all of them like a dark cloud.

Urban pulled her into a hug, "Hey, sis."

She hugged him back tightly, "Hey."

She turned toward Jack, shifting her weight from foot to foot as she gently broached, "If you guys haven't had lunch yet, I could make something while you pack."

"We're good. I don't plan on being here long," Jack answered as he turned to head toward their bedroom.

"He just needs some time, Shae, “Urban tossed an arm over her shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. "He wasn't really angry or upset with you the past few days. He was going stir-crazy trying to figure out how to clear his name so you wouldn't hate him. Once the video dropped, he finally got hit with how it felt for you to not believe him--which no one in our circle blames you for. It looked bad and, to be honest, the only reason we believed him is because we were with him."

She reached up and squeezed his hand, "I know. I'm not mad that he's acting this way. I'm just sad because I don't really know how to fix it."

"All of PG and Neelam and Chris are doing our best to get him in a better headspace. Just keep showing up as much as he'll allow you to, and I think it'll work out."

She nodded and then headed to the bedroom. When she entered, she found Jack sitting on their bed with his head in his hands, suitcase at his feet. She cleared her throat and Jack looked up, eyes shiny from unshed tears.

“Are you okay?”

He blinked a few times to bring her into focus, “You packed my suitcase?”

“Oh...um...yeah. Just the one, though.” Shae wrung her hands together and started to ramble, “I know I usually do it because you always forget things, but I left the other one empty in case there were things you wanted that I didn't think of. I just packed the necessities and stuff you always lounge around the house in since you weren't here to tell me which clothes you wanted. Was that overstepping? I'm sorry if it was. I was just trying to be helpful. I can undo it.”

Shae walked over to the bed and reached for the suitcase, but Jack reached out to grab her wrist and pulled her into his lap. She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck as he buried his face into hers. She lightly ran her fingers through his hair, and they sat that way for a few minutes, just breathing each other in.

Jack started to kiss her neck and she pulled away slightly, “Jack, what are y-“

He cut her off by softly grabbing her face and pulling her in for a kiss that she hastily returned. Shae felt her heart begin to race as he slipped his tongue into her mouth, exploring every crevice.

Jack turned them so that Shae was on her back and he was in between her legs. He didn’t break the kiss as he movies to pull off the leggings that she was wearing.

Shea wrenched her lips from his and panted, "We can't. Urban is in the living room.”

"Wouldn’t be the first time he overheard us." He flippantly countered with a shrug before reclaiming her lips which she instantly melted into.

This time, when he moved to take off her leggings, she lifted her hips to help him. He hurriedly pulled his pants down just enough to slip his dick out. Jack quickly lined himself up with her entrance and slid into her with one solid stroke.

Shae groaned into his mouth as she tried to adjust to having him inside of her. Jack set a frenzied pace as he reached down to wrap one of her legs around his waist.

"Fuck," he hissed as she scratched at his back. He angled his head to growl in her ear, "You always feel so good. How could I ever want anyone else?"

Shae whimpered when he pulled back slightly and tugged at her braids so she was looking up at him, “When I know how to make you feel this good, how could you think I’d be this way with anyone else?”

She reached up to cup his face but the softness of her touch and the look in her eyes held far too much emotion for Jack. He gently grabbed her wrist and pinned her arm above her head as he recaptured her lips in a searing kiss.

Jack could feel the signs that he was close to finishing and reached in between them to circle her clit with his fingers, still determined to prioritize Shae getting off before he did.

He swallowed her sob as she came. The feeling of her clenching around him was enough to send him over the edge.

He stayed on top of her, head buried in the crook of her neck as she rubbed her hands up and down his back. Her mouth is right beside his ear and Shae can't help but find herself chanting 'I’m sorry' and 'I love you' over and over again.

He finally rolled over onto his back to blankly stare at the ceiling as he tucked his dick back into his sweats.

Shae waited to see what he was going to say and found herself having to blink back tears when he did.

“We shouldn't have done that.”

She turned on her side, resting her head on her arm as she meekly replied, “Maybe not, but I think we both needed it.”

“I just...” Jack scratched his beard, “I just don't want to give you false hope or mixed signals.”

Shae felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over her, “What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means exactly what you think it means.” He sat up and he let out a ragged breath, "We're not okay right now. And technically, you broke up with me before I left the house, so we aren't even actually together.”

Waves of hurt and anger washed over her, but after the chaos that had surrounded them over the past week, she didn’t feel like she had any real standing to argue.

Shae stood and grabbed her discarded leggings, clumsily pulling them back on as she mumbled, “I'll go wait in the living room with Urban.”

Before she can get too far out of his grasp, he gently grabbed her arm, lightly caressing it with his thumb as he murmured, "I'm not trying to intentionally hurt you, Shae. I swear I'm not.”

“I know.” She leaned down to kiss the top of his head and gave a defeated sigh, “I know.”

Shae quickly walked down the hall and past the living room to grab her keys off the wall. As she pulled a pair of tennis shoes off the shoe rack next to the door and started to put them on, Urban moved to stop her.

“Where are you going?”

Shea wiped away a few tears as she choked out, “I can't be here, Urby. Can you text me and let me know when y'all leave?”

“You don't have to leave, Shae.” He tried to put his arm around her, but she shook him off, “Just come sit on the couch with me.”

She shook her head, “I can’t”

“Shae.”

“No, Urban,” she harshly admonished. “I can't sit with you and let you comfort me because it’s very apparent that the odds are great that Jack isn't going to be able to move past this. So, I'm going to lose him. Sure, maybe PG will keep in touch here and there, but it won’t be the same as it has been. It can’t be. Y’all are his people. I need to start preparing for that so I can't be here with you two. Not right now.”

“Okay, fine,” he conceded. “But you shouldn't be driving. Not with how upset you are. Regardless of what he's feeling right now, he loves you. He'd never forgive himself or me if you stormed out of here and got into an accident. He shouldn't be too much longer. Maybe just go for a walk around the neighborhood?”

“Fine,” she acquiesced.

As soon as she'd shut the door, Urban made a beeline for Jack. He found him sitting on the floor with his back against the foot of the bed, knees were drawn, and his head in his hands.

He didn’t bother to look up as he spoke, “Don't start Urban. I know I just screwed up, okay?”

“I have no comment about what just happened.” Urban sank down to sit beside him and nudged his shoulder, “What I will say is you need to take the next two weeks to really think about what you want the outcome to be. She's obviously just as torn up as you are about this whole thing, but you can only act like this for so long before she has a right to be angry at you for it. Maybe all of this is too much and you two can't come back from it, but you spent 5 whole days on the phone with lawyers and cybersecurity techs trying to prove you were innocent because you didn't want her to end things hating you. Keep this up and that's where it’s going to end up anyway.”

He turned his head to look at his best friend, “I don't know if things will ever be the same.”

Urban nudged his shoulder again, “Bro, why would you want them to?”

“What?”

“You two weren’t in the best place before this and you're an idiot if you don't think that didn't somehow factor into her believing so easily that you would cheat on her.” He crossed his legs as he continued, “You told us she said that the other girls were probably easier to deal with than her. You don't think that statement tells you everything you need to know about where her head was at? Ask yourself, and be honest, if this had happened a year ago when things were still good, do you think she would have had the same reaction? Or do you think she gives you the time you ask for?"

“A year ago?” Jack ruefully shook his head and chuckled, “As soon as I said it wasn't me, she would have been on the phone with her lawyers trying to figure out what my lawyers needed to do.”

“Exactly. Everything about this situation sucks, but maybe this is an opportunity for you two to be even stronger than before.”

“Maybe.”

**********************

Shae walked back toward her house after getting the all-clear from Urban. She stopped short at the driveway when she realized that Jack's car was still there. She started to turn around but Urban quickly came out of the house and stopped her. He jogged over to her and started guiding her to the house.

Confusion marred Shae’s face, “You told me you two had left?”

“Only way I could guarantee that you’d come back,” Urban explained with a shrug. “You need to go inside and talk to him.”

She stopped dead in her tracks, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“We leave tomorrow morning, Shae.” He looked her directly in the eye, “I know you don't want to hear it, but there's no guarantee you'll be joining us in two weeks, so you need to go talk to him now.”

Shae simply nodded and continued the trek to the front door. She tried to steel her heart as she opened the door and found Jack sitting on the couch in the living room. She toed off her shoes before she joined him in the room. She opted to sit in the lounge chair they had in the corner.

Jack cleared his throat and motioned to the opposite end of the couch, “Can you come sit over here?”

She cautiously took a seat on the couch, and he reached out to grasp her hand, engulfing them in his, “I need to apologize for earlier.”

“No, you don't,” the actress assured him.

“No, Shae, I do,” he asserted. “I agree with you that, to a certain extent, I think we were both desperate for it, but I don't know that it was the best thing for us right now.” He gently squeezed her hand, “I also want you to know that I love you. No matter what else I'm feeling right now, that hasn't changed. I should have said it back to you when you called me about the video.”

“I understand why you didn't.”

“I'm going to be honest with you, okay?”

She swallowed the lump in her throat before she spoke, “Of course.”

“I'm really hurt and really angry but part of that is because I know it only got this bad between us because things were already starting to strain,” Jack explained. “Even erasing this past week, we were already having problems. I think both of us really need to take some time and think about what we both want.”

“I don't need to think about it,” Shae exclaimed defensively. “I want you. I want us.”

“Do you really,” Jack questioned. “Or do you feel guilty because you didn't believe me, and you want to make that better?”

A knot instantaneously formed in Shae’s stomach as she realized that she didn’t actually know the answer to his questions. She was unable to fight back the sob that spilled from her lips and Jack quickly pulled her to his chest. She wrapped her arms around his waist, her wails muffled as she cried into his chest. He faintly kissed the top of her head as he rubbed his hands up and down her back to calm her down. Several minutes passed before Shae felt composed enough to pull away from him.

Jack lightly ghosted a hand along the top of her thigh, “Can I let you know within the week if I want you out on tour?”

“Yeah,” she wiped her face with her sleeve. “Yeah, that's fine.”

“Walk me out?”

“Yeah.”

He stood and then helped Shae get up from the couch. Once they reached the front of the door, he pulled her into a tight hug.

Shae pulled back slightly and bit her lip a bit before asking, “Can I kiss you?”

Jack hated that she sounded so hesitant. They’d always been a couple who tried their best to be safe places for open communication. Her uncertainty just reminded him of how badly the prank had screwed them up.

He gently caressed her face with one hand before he tilted it up toward him and he leaned down to meet her lips.

A small part of Shae was afraid that it was the last time she would ever get to kiss him so she tried to keep it going for as long as she could. When they both, eventually, came up for air, she gave him a few quick pecks in rapid succession across his lips which he gladly accepted.

They rested their foreheads against one another’s as they both tried to get their breathing under control.

Jack was the first one to step back.

“I love you, Shae,” he earnestly states.

Her throat feels like sandpaper as she croaks out, “I love you, too.”

With a slight nod, he opened the door and made his exit.

Shae was able to keep her sobs at bay until the car made it safely out of the driveway.

#jack harlow #jack harlow fic #jack harlow fanfic #jack harlow x original black female character #jack harlow x oc #jack harlow x black ofc

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jamieroxxartist · 3 years ago

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✔ Mark Your Calendars: Wednesday Apr 6 on 🎨#JamieRoxx’s Pop Roxx Radio 🎙️#TalkShow and 🎧#Podcast w/ Featured Guests:

Michelle Ehlen, #Director, #Writer, #Actress & Shaela Cook, Actress (Maybe Someday, #Film | #LGBTQ+, #Comedy, #Drama)

☎ Lines will be open (347) 850.8598 Call in with your Questions and Comments Live on the Air.

● Click here to Set a Reminder: http://tobtr.com/12079898

Pop Art Painter Jamie #Roxx (www.JamieRoxx.us) welcomes #MichelleEhlen, Dir, Wri, Act & #ShaelaCook, Act (Maybe Someday, Film | LGBTQ+, Comedy, Drama) to the Show!

● FB: @maybesomedayfilm ● TW: @MaybeSomedayJay ● IG: @maybesomedayfilm

Maybe Someday will have its world premiere at Cinequest's virtual film festival "#Cinejoy" April 1-17. An LGBTQ feature film highlighting different aspects of love and heartbreak, Maybe Someday is a nostalgic and moving journey written and directed by Michelle Ehlen. The film is Ehlen's fifth feature and first dramedy, her prior films most notably being the first lesbian comedy trilogy - Butch Jamie, Heterosexual Jill, and S&M Sally. Maybe Someday stars Ehlen along with Shaela Cook from Heterosexual Jill and S&M Sally, and Charlie Steers.

The story follows the character of Jay (Ehlen), a non-binary photographer in her 40s, battling a mixture of denial and depression as she attempts to move across the country in the midst of separating from her wife (Jeneen Robinson). Along the way, she takes a detour to stay with her high school best friend (Cook) who Jay used to be secretly in love with before she came out as a lesbian, and befriends a charismatic but complicated gay man (Steers) who has long given up on love. Struggling to move forward with the next chapter of her life, memories of the past resurface as Jay grapples with the inevitable cycles of love, loss, and letting go.

● Media Inquiries: October Coast www.octobercoastpr.com

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jicklet · 4 years ago

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I like Korriban because usually the bad guys of the Star Wars universe we’re shown are all so technologically advanced, building new and horrifying things. But anything new here feels obvious and strangely out of place. This planet feels old.

There are all the tombs of literal buried history. We talk to a spirit who regrets turning to the dark side, and can encourage him to return to the light and become one with the force at last. We find the remains of Duron Qel-Droma and Shaela Nurr, and fight the Terentateks that killed them, following in their steps.

It’s like what Jolee says about how what’s happening right now feels like it’s the most monumental thing to ever happen. But the problems of today didn’t come out of nowhere, they are shaped by the past. Bad things have happened before, and if we’re not careful, they’ll happen all over again.

#kotor #knights of the old republic #star wars #v plays #v plays kotor #korriban #sith

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theokotrain · 4 years ago

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Vestige - Interlude: The Party

Wattpad Version

As the night fills the sky

All my fears are dissipating

'Cause I feel reassured

That I might make it through

And if all my luck should burn

Then I guess it burned for you

---

April 13th, 2012

I was sitting on my bed, back against the bed frame with my knees raised in front of me, holding up my laptop. I had been spending the last few hours writing an essay for my English class, specifically answering the topic question my teacher had given everybody: "How do our past experiences influence our decisions?". The question was simple enough, it's a pretty universally recognized idea that stuff that happens to us has an effect on our decision making. I mean, that's what it means to grow, right? You gain more knowledge as you live through life and form new memories, and that helps you make more informed decisions in the future.

I've never really been too good at writing anything analytical, especially non-fiction. Essays and research papers that required informed arguments that helped to prove your point? Those were an entirely unknown game to me, one which I had never managed to breeze through. Of course, we were supposed to use some of the books we've read this year as evidence for our arguments, so that at least made it a bit easier, even if most of the books were ones from nearly five decades ago and definitely out of touch at this point. The sound of my laptop's keys clicking as I typed away were the only sounds I could pick up in the room. I had my earphones in for a bit, but those always hurt my ears after a while, so I had taken them out.

Looking at the time in the corner of my laptop screen, it was 4:43 PM. I started writing as soon as I got home from class, so I've only been going for about an hour. Unfortunately, this essay is a non-insignificant amount of my course grade, so I needed to finish this as soon as possible.

God, it's a Friday! I could be out doing something actually fun with Shae and the other guys. Isn't that the whole point of high school? That's what it always seemed like in movies, at least, but I guess I've been a victim of false advertising.

After a bit more time passes, the sound of my phone ringing from my desk brings me out of my writing trance. I sigh, setting my laptop next to me on the bed, not wanting to get out of bed, but eventually forcing myself into maneuvering over to the desk, I grab the phone and flip it open, looking to see the Caller ID.

Shaela.

I instantly accept the call, it's almost second nature at this point. She calls me at least once a day so she can tell me about whatever person is pissing her off that day, or whatever drama she's heard from her other friends. I was never really one for gossip, or whatever, but I did appreciate talking to her.

I put the phone up to my ear, "What's up?" I say, a tinge of fatigue in my voice.

"Hey! Just warning you that I'm like five minutes from your place and you don't have a say in the matter." She replied bluntly. I can hear the sound of cars driving by on the other side of the phone, so she's obviously outside, confirming her words.

I take a deep breath before speaking, "...Why?" I said with exasperated sarcasm.

"Because! I have something to tell you, and if I say it over the phone then I seriously doubt it'll work out in the way I'm hoping it does."

"That clears up nothing, actually, and now I regret picking up."

"Even if you didn't answer, that doesn't stop your parents from letting their son's lovely goody-two-shoes of a friend stop by for a visit!" She exclaimed, a mischievous tone subtly layered in her voice.

She's not wrong.

"Wow, you make this sound like you're sneaking into a high-security building or something." I say, utterly confused at her motives. "Obviously you can come over, but I'm not exactly filled with confidence at whatever you're planning."

"Like I said, I can't tell you yet, but it's gonna be awesome!" She said. There was an unusual perkiness to her that made itself pretty clear over the phone.

Before I can say anything, I'm met with the dial tone, signalling that she had hung up. The only thing I can do at this point is wait for her to get here, I guess. She always lets herself in when she comes over, so I don't make the effort to meet her downstairs. A sudden ping sound fills the quiet room, seeming to come from my laptop. I get back into bed, looking to see where the notification came from.

It's a message from Tyler.

He's definitely the newest member of our little group, if even that. I'm the only person in the group that he's actually friends with so far, despite my efforts to bring him along on any plans we all make. I only met the Grey Wolf back in February, at the beginning of the second semester, in the school's photography class. Nobody I knew signed up for it, and due to our prestigious high school's advanced budget for technology, we were forced to be paired up for shared computer use in the Photography Room. I suppose Tyler was also fortunate enough to not know anybody in the class, as we ended up being paired together by the teacher. He was definitely someone I could only describe as uninterested, as the first week or two I spent with him in that class consisted of him either giving me one word answers or answering in the most blunt, bored tone he could manage. Though, it seemed that it took a bit of persistence on my part to push him to be more open, and since then he's grown to be a pretty great friend.

Tyler: u goin to that party tonight ive been hearin about?

Party? I wasn't made aware of anything like that, at least... not yet. Something in the back of my brain was telling me that Shae had ulterior motives about coming to my place so suddenly, but I'm still hoping that I'm wrong. I hate parties.

Jake: party? havent heard anything, are u going?

Tyler: thinkin about it

think its gonna be over at chris's place, guess his parents r gone for the weekend or somethin

Jake: chrisssss? ughh that guy is such an asshole

Tyler: yeah u dont havee to go, but itd prob be more fun to have someone u actually know there

The way he worded that was directed at me, but I could tell he didn't want to go on his own.

Jake: i guess ill think about it

Tyler: sickk, call me if u make up ur mind

Before I can type my farewells over IM, Shaela energetically bursts through the door.

"Jesus! You scared the shit outta me, don't you knock?" I said, mildly exasperated.

"Oh come on, I literally called you a few minutes ago, you had plenty of time to not make a situation where it'd be a bad idea for me to barge in," She replies, laughing, before setting her bag on the ground and dramatically falling into my bed. "Today was garbage."

"What happened?"

"Ugh, Claire decided to just not show up, I guess, on the day we're supposed to present that stupid History project? And, obviously, she didn't give me her part of the project or anything, so I had tell Mr Thomas about the situation, which was fucking embarrassing." She paused for a moment, taking a deep breath. "Luckily, he said he wouldn't reduce my grade for handing it in late, since I actually had my part finished. God, what a bitch- I must've called her like thirty times before class to get her to email me her part, and every time it went straight to voicemail - and she told me last night that she'd have it ready for today!"

"Have you gotten a hold of her yet?" I asked, closing my laptop and setting it beside me.

Shae turns her head to me, shaking her head, "Nope, she's been ghosting me all day."

"Sounds like typical Claire."

"Yeah, I shouldn't have partnered with her, but apparently I can't say no to anyone, so..." I chuckle lightly in response. "Anyways! I didn't just come here to complain to you!" She says, sitting up on the bed, now facing towards me.

"Right... So what was so important that you just had to tell me in person?" I say, sarcastically.

"Like I said, if I asked you over the phone you would've definitely said no, and my ability to pressure you into doing things isn't as effective unless it's in person!" She responded.

I subtly rolled my eyes, but it's clear she noticed from the stare-down she gave me, "Okay, so what is it?"

"Soooooo..." She says, trying to find the rest of the words, "There's a party."

Wow.

"Wh- did everybody know about that party except for me?!?" I exclaimed.

Shaela's face quickly turns to an expression of shock, "Who told you?"

"Tyler did, like, not even five minutes ago." I say, bluntly.

"What? How does he know Chris?"

"Friend-of-a-friend, I'm guessing?"

"Hmm..." She hummed, thinking about something, "So, did you tell him you were going?"

"I specifically said I'd think about it, nothing definite." I made it clear in my tone that I wasn't particularly interested.

"Oh, come on, dude! It'll be fun!"

I didn't really have an interest in going, but I know it'd make Shae happy, plus it'd be nice to hang out with Tyler again even if we've only known each other for a couple months.

"...Fine. But, if Chris or any of his buddies start shit, I'm leaving."

"Awesome!"

"Lemme just call Tyler and let him know," I said as I grabbed my phone and flipped it open, finding Tyler in my contact list and dialling.

"You gonna bring him with-" The phone rings a few times before he picks up and I extend my hand out towards Shae in a shushing motion. She rolls her eyes, smirking.

"Hey? So are ya gonna go?" He said eagerly.

"Well, Shae showed up at my door literally right after you messaged me, asking the same thing!" I exclaimed in a fake-preppy voice. "So, I guess I have no choice since she'll probably just drag me there if I say no," I joked. She nods her head toward me in response.

"Oh, is she going too?" He inquired.

"Yeah, I guess so! Your place is kinda on the way to Chris', so we could probably meet you at your place and go from there."

"Yeah! Sounds good!" He quickly responded.

I laughed, "Okay, we'll call you when we get there?"

"Sure thing!"

We exchanged our farewells, and hung up. The party wasn't for at least another hour or two, so Shae and I had some time to burn, of which I was entirely out of ideas. I figured I could at least spend this time actually being productive, so I grabbed my laptop and continued on writing my English essay as Shae resumed her previous conversation topic of stuff at school that was pissing her off. It was pretty entertaining, to be fair. She was telling me about how Chris had gotten in a fight with this other kid in our grade yesterday after class, which I wasn't lucky enough to witness, but it was obviously all anyone would talk about for basically the entire day today so word spread around fast. The part I hadn't heard about was that both Chris and the other guy, Nathan, got suspended for a week because of it. Chris was generally an asshole to everybody, including myself, so I didn't feel too bad about that. Although, I didn't know Nathan all that well. Other than having a few classes together, I don't think I've ever held an actual conversation with the guy. I think it was safe to assume that Chris was the one who started it, and Shae seemed to agree with me, even though she hadn't seen the fight either.

"But, apparently Nathan's gonna show up tonight!" She exclaimed coyly.

"...Remind me again why you want me to go to this specific party?"

"You'll have a great time! It's not like we'll be involved in the drama anyway so think of it more as entertainment!"

"I think you and I have different definitions of the word 'entertainment'," I joked.

"I'm sure you can go run off somewhere with Tyler if you're not having fun," She said, her tone reminding me of my mom.

"Oh yeah? What about you?"

"I can't just leave Alex at a party with Chris, those two start shit between each other so much and I'd rather not deal with the aftermath of that today."

"I'm guessing it's safe to assume that Elliot's going too, then?"

"He's not big on parties, but he'll usually go if everyone else is, unlike somebody," She says, gesturing towards me.

"Good one," I reply, unmoving as I keep typing away at my assignment.

"Well, we should probably leave soon since we're stopping at Tyler's place on the way.

I saved the document I had been working on, closing my laptop. "Sounds good to me!"

---

"I can't believe you actually agreed to go." Tyler joked as we walked towards the road from his house.

"Yeah, me either." I replied. I definitely didn't put in any effort in dressing up for the party, opting for a snug space-themed graphic tee, along with black jeans and a white zip-up hoodie. Shae and Tyler both stand on opposite sides of me as we walk down the sidewalk.

"Luckily I learned the subtle techniques in convincing you to do things against your better judgement, so now you get to have fun for once!" Shae exclaimed.

"It's not my fault that going to a party is literally the last thing on earth I'd do for fun in any normal situation." I retorted, putting my hands in the pockets of my jacket.

"Oh yeah? And what do you consider a 'normal situation'?" Shae asks.

"Any situation where you guys aren't the ones trying to get me to go! I'm only doing this for you two, y'know." I said, looking over at both of them.

"What about Elliot and Alex?" Tyler chimed in.

"They aren't the ones asking me to go to this party." I sarcastically remarked, trying to keep the conversation light-hearted. "Speaking of the party- this is Chris we're talking about, there's gonna be beer, right?"

"Uh, duh?" Shae replied.

"Yeah, that's a definite no for me, I'm already enough of a disappointment to my parents,"

"No one's making you drink, Jake. At least you'd be safe if some old hag called the cops about the noise." Shae said.

"I think at that point we're guilty by association, so we'd just make a run for it if that happens," Tyler joked.

"Dude, the chance of me outrunning a police officer successfully is about as likely as me not wanting to punch Chris tonight."

"And the chance of you winning that fight is just as low!" Shae retorted, Tyler laughing in response.

"I specifically said 'want' because of that very reason!"

"Wow, I'd pay money to see you fight that guy." Tyler said, nudging his elbow into my side.

It isn't a secret that I'm not exactly athletic. I mean, I'm definitely not weak, but fighting basically any animal of a similar size to mine was not a situation that favoured my victory.

"That sounds more like just getting the shit kicked outta me for your entertainment." I remarked, lightly punching Tyler's shoulder in return.

"Absolutely worth every penny!" Shae exclaimed. Luckily, the place wasn't any more than ten minutes away from Tyler's place, so I didn't have to endure listening to these two talk about me getting beat up for much longer.

We finally make it to Chris' house, and I'm suddenly filled with an impending sense of regret. Obviously, my parents would never in a million years agree to me going to a party like this. As far as they know, I'm just spending the evening hanging out with Shae at Tyler's house. So yeah, this entire night had a lot of potential for disaster.

Shae can clearly see my hesitation, because she grabs my hand, leading me up the walkway, Tyler following closely behind.

"I wonder if Elliot and Alex beat us here?" She says, knocking on the front door.

"I doubt they had anything to do earlier, hell they probably came straight here after school, knowing Alex." I said, laughing.

Our conversation is cut short by the opening door, revealing the familiar black cat.

"Oh, look, the Stephenson kid brought his girlfriend!" Chris exclaimed mockingly, looking back into the house, before peering around my shoulder, "And... Tyler?" He said, inquisitively.

I lean over, blocking Tyler from his line of sight, "Yeah, hey, not dating by the way!" I said. I've known Shae since I first moved to Vestige, around the time I turned five years old, so it wasn't uncommon for rumours to go around that we were dating. I've always thought of her more as a sister, if anything.

"I asked them to come!" Tyler said. That was only partly true, but according to Tyler, they've been 'somewhat-friends' for quite a while now, so saying that would at least mean less mild-harassment from Chris for tonight.

"Oh, uh, okay... come on in! But you're on the hook for any shit they pull, Tyler!" He said, opening the door wider.

---

The party had been going on for a few hours at this point. I could recognize most of the animals here from school, but not enough to actually hold a conversation with any of them, so most of my time here had just been spent with Shae and Tyler. The place hasn't been incredibly crowded luckily, but there were easily about forty others in this part of the house alone. I'm assuming only high school grades were invited, but there were a considerable number of students to meet that requirement. The issue at hand for me, other than how crowded this place is, is that both Shae and Tyler ditched me to go... somewhere? I think Shae saw some of her friends and went somewhere with them, but Tyler was pretty secretive about where he was going, only telling me that he'd be back in a bit. So I've been standing here in this random corner of the house with a drink in hand, trying to make myself look busy and not awkward, which is exactly why I didn't want to go to this party in the first place!

"Jake!" A voice shouted from a ways away.

I turn my head in confusion, revealing Alex, walking towards me from across the room.

"Oh, Alex! Hey! What's up dude!" I finish the last bit of my soda, waving at him. Because this was Chris' party, there was obviously beer too, but I didn't feel like coming home drunk and my parents finding out.

"I didn't think you'd wanna come to something like this! Feeling the regret yet?"

"I like parties! It's the times like these when I'm standing in a corner by myself with nothing to do that I hate, which seems to happen every time I go to a party!" I exclaimed, pausing for a moment. "Okay, maybe I do hate parties- I've had to explain this so many times today I'm about ready to jump into Lake Ambuscade."

' "Wow, sounds like somebody needs to socialize instead of stewing in a corner for the rest of the night!"

"Socialize? Really? I know just about everybody here and just about none of them are worth talking-"

"Hang with me and Elliot, then? Justin set up some racing games in the other room, we were gonna join, but we could use a fourth... You in?" He said, his tone obviously trying to sound coercing.

"God, please, anything to get me out of this corner for the next three hours." I said, Alex returning my words with a laugh.

"Well, come on then! We'll have to hurry if we want to get one of the good controllers!" He exclaimed, motioning to follow him.

As we move through the various cliques, I recognize a few faces here and there, though not enough to actually want to talk to them. There's been music playing since we got here, and I have yet to recognize a single song, they all seem to be some form of drone-y bass-heavy music that I can't say I've heard in any normal situations. I'm doing my best to follow Alex, although he keeps weaving between the other animals faster than I can keep up, resulting in me having to shove past everyone near me in an effort to speed myself up. Luckily, it seems that no one notices me anyway.

When we arrive in the other room, it seems to just be another living room, but decorated with a galore of punk band posters, shelves holding more DVD cases than I would ever care to count, and even a mini-fridge. Maybe Chris is the type to have a 'man cave' or something? Just hearing that phrase almost makes me want to vomit, but there aren't any more accurate words that come to mind. The room isn't massive or anything, but the TV resting upon the wall across the room seems to challenge that idea, looking almost eighty inches in size. Luckily no randoms from the party were in here, sitting about ten feet away from the TV is Elliot, leaning back in a purple bean bag chair that seems almost three times bigger than him, and Justin, the cougar I'd only known slightly through Alex, laying down sideways on the couch directly in front of the gigantic screen.

"Whatttt! You took the bean bag chair? Lameee..." Alex whined.

"You're the one who wanted to go get Jake, you snooze you lose!" Elliot retorted, looking oddly proud of himself.

"Damn, wish I had a room like this at my house..." I mumbled, looking around the room.

"Are we gonna play or what?" Justin said, cutting through the momentary silence.

"Duh!" Alex claimed.

Justin sits up, taking the spot on the couch closest to Elliot. I opt for the leftmost seat, and Alex sits in-between the both of us. Elliot grabs the other three controllers and tosses them over at us, one by one. Luckily, there weren't any garbage third-party controllers, so at least none of us would have to deal with that. I will admit, it did feel kinda weird going to someone's party just to play games away from everybody, but I would be lying if I said I didn't prefer that, even though I rarely play games, if ever.

After Justin turns the console on, he goes through the menus, launching the game. I can't say I recognize the title, but it seems to be a pretty standard racing game. He goes into the custom mode, opting for a four-player split-screen match, choosing 'R1' as the category of cars to race in. As everyone chooses their cars, I scroll through the list, not really knowing what to pick. I've never been good with car stuff, so I pick an 'Aston Martin Lola' just based on the number-rating system the game ranks the cars with.

"You guys ready?" Justin asks.

"Oh yeah, get ready to eat my dust you guys!" Elliot exclaims, challengingly.

"Oddly prideful words for someone about to lose!" Alex replies, laughing.

The countdown begins, as the cameras slowly show the view of each car as it moves to the rear. When it starts, I somehow manage the fuckup of spinning my tires out, leaving me a few seconds behind the others as the car swerves back and forth. I curse under my breath as I try to regain control of the car, and swiftly pick up speed. The track seems like nothing I haven't seen before, a typical professional track, with rows and rows of audience seating to the side. Unfortunately, I'm now in last place. The next few moments of the track are a few quick corners, allowing me the chance to catch up, at least a little.

Unexpectedly, the track turns off of the main road, going into a forested area. The road is considerably more narrow at this point, so it takes a conscious effort to not drive into the trees by the asphalt. It looks like the road stretches on forever, as I still can't make out any upcoming turns. I guess the car I chose for the race had a better top speed than Justin's, as I'm quickly catching up to him, moving into third place. I'm gripping my controller to an uncomfortable degree, but I can't seem to relax the tension as I try to make my way into second place. I don't think I can pick up any more speed in this car, so me moving up is reliant on the road staying straight for just a bit longer. After what feels like a lifetime, the front of my car finally starts making it past Elliot's, then the midsection, and finally, I'm in second. The sound of all four car engines is drowning out any remnants of the video game music, and I feel the sudden urge to curse out whoever turned the TV volume up this high. My eyes are focused entirely on Alex's car as I make my final push into first place. If I were actually driving this fast in the real world, I'd be scared out of my fucking mind. Out of nowhere, Alex, and the others, begins to slow down considerably.

Oh fuck.

It's at that point I notice that there is a sharp right turn rapidly approaching. I've been pushing the top-speed of this car since the beginning of this stretch of road, and now I'm going too quickly to stop in time. What's the button to use the handbrake, again? I figure that the only way for me to not fuck up this race for myself is to try to drift around the corner. Considering I've never played this game before, it's going to prove to be a challenge. But, it's either that, or just ending up in dead-last again.

I hold down the A button, and pull the joystick as far to the right as possible. Suddenly, all I can hear from the game is the loud skidding sounds of my tires against the asphalt. To my surprise, I cut the corner a bit early, now going over the grass. I try to do a bit of directional-corrections and start heading back onto the track. Going over the grass definitely slowed me down a fair bit, but it definitely was a significantly better outcome over just crashing into the wall. And, to my surprise, the corner of my screen reads... first?!?

"How the fuck...?" Alex questions, seemingly in disbelief.

"I wish I could tell you." I replied, eyes wide at whatever the fuck just happened.

The distance I managed to gain on Alex isn't by a whole lot, but there's only about a quarter of the track left before we reach the finish line, so I have a chance at winning this. The track hurriedly changes from the forest as it reenters the main track. The long, straight roads seem to end as the road becomes a slow series of sharp turns, never giving me the opportunity to get back up to speed. It seems like the high top speed was my only advantage, because at every corner we take, I turn my camera around, revealing the other cars inching closer and closer to me.

I can see the finish line on the mini-map, just a few more turns away. I know that I'm not gonna be able to distance myself from Alex and the others at this point, so my only feasible strategy is to keep moving, cutting the corners as fast as I can, and getting to the finish line before they can pass me. Unfortunately, Alex's car seems to be getting too close for comfort now, meaning I might have to take some risks to ensure I can stay in first. As we approach the final turn, leading into the finish line, I realise I'm gonna have to try to drift this corner. I can feel my pointer finger practically cracking the plastic on the controller from the amount of pressure I'm putting on the right trigger. In a final plea to win, I push down on the A button, pulling the handbrake. The car starts to smoothly skid around the corner. Luckily, there are barriers on the sides of the road this time, preventing me from sliding onto the grass. To my surprise, the drift seems to work better than expected. That is, until, like the fucking idiot I am, make a slight overcorrection towards the left barriers as I exit the drift. I managed to avoid driving directly into the wall, but it did slow me down a bit.

Alex is immediately behind me, and I put all of my strength into accelerating towards the finish line. I'd be fucked if I broke the controller, cause I can't really afford the fifty dollars to buy a new one, but winning this race is more important to me at the moment. The finish line is only about five-hundred metres away, and Alex is slowly beginning to pass. All I can do at this point is push the gas as much as I can, and pray that I can cross the finish line before he can get back into first place. The finish line gets closer and closer, and it seems like it's gonna be too close for me to accurately tell the winner. I can feel my heart pounding in my chest from how stressful this fucking game has been, and now, we're about to find out whose efforts paid off. As each car makes its way over the finish line, each of our dedicated sections of the screen turns to slow motion. When it's finally over, the text fades in on each screen, revealing our place...

...

...Second?!?

"FUCK!" I shouted, realising I had been holding my breath since the final stretch of the race.

"HA! Dude, you suck!" Alex exclaimed, playfully shoving me.

"I think that was the most effort I've put into anything in my life." I said, setting my controller on the coffee table in front of me.

"Wow, that's dramatic," Justin remarked.

"Yeah, that's the usual for Jake," Elliot replied, laughing.

"You probably woulda won if you picked a better car, dude. That track was way too close-quarters so you should've gone with a car with better acceleration." Alex said.

"Wha- do you own this game?" I questioned, looking accusatory.

"...Yeah? It came out a few months ago, pretty popular right now." He replied.

"Ugh, this is what I get for playing with a bunch of gamers." I exclaimed, applying a disgusted tone to the last word.

"Not my fault you only play like one game a month!" Alex joked.

"Even then, I was like this close to beating you anyway!" I said, gesturing a minuscule distance between my thumb and pointer finger.

A voice interrupts our argument, coming from right outside the room, "Uh huh...

...

Really? That's bullshit! Come on...

...

Dude, give me a couple of days, I'll make it right!

...

Yeah, I swear."

It seems that we all stopped talking to listen in at the same time. "That sounds like Tyler... who's he arguing with?" Elliot asked. I can't make out the voice of whoever he's talking to, it just sounds like mumbling.

They seem to pause for a moment, and the sound of a single set of footsteps can be heard.

"Fuck..." Tyler says to himself, still out of view.

"...I should probably see what's up, you guys can keep playing without me." I say, getting up from my spot on the couch.

"Yeah, you do that! Less competition for me," Alex exclaims, laughing to himself.

"Hey, I can still beat your ass at this game, I know exactly which car to pick this time!" Elliot argued.

"Yeah, right! Guess we'll find out!"

I leave as the three start up another game, kind of glad I don't have to have another near-heart attack from playing again. When I get back into the dimly-lit hallway, Tyler is nowhere to be seen.

I look around, heading into the main room of the house to see if I can spot him. It's pretty difficult to see anything, because of how dim it is here, plus the sheer amount of animals crowding up the place. Despite that, I manage to spot the Grey Wolf a ways away, hurrying quickly into the bathroom.

As I shove my way through a few groups of teens, I almost fall over a few times, gaining confused stares from a few in the room. I lightly knock on the bathroom door, waiting for a response, "Hey, you okay Tyler?" After a few moments, I'm returned with no answer, "...Tyler-" Before I can finish my sentence, Tyler swiftly pulls open the bathroom door, pulling me in and shutting the door behind me, before sitting down on the side of the bathtub. As I'm about to say something, I hear the sound of him sniffling.

...Is he crying?

He's looking towards the floor, so I can't confirm it visually, but the sound definitely gives it away.

"Whoa, what's wrong? Did something happen?" I asked worriedly, not yet choosing to bring up the argument we overheard.

There's a few seconds of silence as he tries to bring himself together, not very successfully. "I- I... I don't- I don't think I can-"

"It's fine, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to," I tried to reassure him. He raises his head for a moment to look at me, trying to find words to say, instead opting to go back to crying, head in his hands. I've never been good with situations like this, so I sit down next to him, putting my hand on his upper back, softly patting.

"I'm sorry- I'm a fucking idiot. I shouldn't have asked you to come."

"Hey! I've been having fun! Don't worry about me, it seems like you're the one who shouldn't have come." I joke, in some effort to lighten the mood.

Shit, was that inconsiderate of me to say?

To my surprise, he manages to let out a light laugh, "Yeah, I'm starting to realise that."

"...Do you wanna leave, then? They know I didn't want to go here in the first place, so you could just say you're being nice and walking me home." I didn't know if he would actually take up that offer, but I know some guys have a weird thing about not wanting to seem 'uncool' and leaving a party early was definitely considered that.

He thinks for a moment, still sniffling pretty noticeably. "...okay, just- give me a minute, I don't want to go out there looking like this." He mumbles, looking towards the door.

"Yeah, that's fine." I said, continuing to rub around his neck area.

This definitely wasn't how I expected the night to go. But it was a sort of 'two-birds-with-one-stone' kind of situation. I get to help out Tyler, which is usually the other way around, I get to leave early, and hopefully Shae stops bugging me about going to parties, at least for a while.

Now that I think about it, that analogy is pretty messed up.

A few silent minutes go by as I sit next to the still-crying Tyler, waiting for him to recollect himself. Even though he hasn't actually said anything here, in the two months I've known him, this is probably the most vulnerable I've ever seen him. When I first met him, it was pretty accurate to describe him as the kind of guy who acts like he never feels emotion. Hell, even I refuse to be open about my feelings, but most of my friends see through that nowadays. Even now, I don't really understand why I do that. I guess it's just easier to not talk about shit like that? Is that why Tyler does it?

"I think I'm good now," He said, shaking his hands as he stood up.

"Okay, let's get out of this dumpster fire." I sarcastically remarked. Tyler shot me a confused look in return. "Whatever, let's just go."

I open the bathroom door, grabbing his arm as I lead him out into the main room. Almost immediately the voice of a certain black cat perks up behind us.

"Oh? And what did you two get up to in there?" Chris remarked, laughing, "I didn't know you guys were THAT kind of friends!"

God damnit. This stupid fucking feline.

"Yeah, it's too loud out here for me, I needed a break, he came with." I explained, Tyler standing closely behind me with a confused look on his face. Just roll with it, dude, I think to myself, knowing I probably shouldn't say that out loud.

"You know, I would believe that, but normal guys actually just go outside when they need a break." He replied.

"Well, hey! That's where we're going right now, so it all checks out!" I say in the bitchiest voice I can muster.

"Heh, sure thing, Jake." He said, sounding weirdly satisfied with himself. I didn't want to spend any more time in this fucking house than I needed to, especially while talking to Chris, so I continue on, pulling Tyler by the hand towards the exit. After a few moments, we make it to the front door. I promptly open it and we both head outside.

We're immediately greeted by the light of the moon and the starry sky as we head down the walkway toward the street. One of the few benefits of living in such a backwater town was the absence of any significant light pollution. I've been to Portland a few times for school field trips and such, and seeing the sheer difference in visible stars was absolutely staggering. I could only imagine what it would be like to go stargazing in the middle of nowhere.

"At least it's a nice night out." I said.

"Yeah..." Tyler replied, his mind clearly in a completely different place.

"I should probably tell Shae where we went, so she doesn't freak out trying to find us back there." I joked, pulling out my cell phone. Texting on my flip phone was an arduous task, but I didn't want to call her, so I had not much of a choice.

I send the text, and close my phone, returning it to my pocket. As we walk down the road, we stew in the silence, the only auditory sounds coming from the party still close by, and the local crickets chirping.

I won't lie, as much as I usually appreciate quiet, this is the loudest silence I've ever been stuck in. It goes on for more than five minutes. I could tell he wanted to say something, and I was eager to find out whatever was going on that started this in the first place. But, like the coward I am, I try to lighten the mood.

"Hopefully that satisfied your quota of me going to parties with you for a while, cause I do not plan on having the energy for something like that again for at least a few months." I said, awkwardly laughing. He doesn't respond, at least for a while, as he raises his hand, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "...Uhh, are you sure you don't wanna talk about it? I mean-"

"Can I tell you something?" He interrupted, his voice still cracking like it was in the bathroom.

"...Sure?" I replied, slightly confused.

"It's just that- I don't really know- like what-"

"-to say? Just think for a minute. No rush." That's what my dad always says whenever my mind spirals. I used to be really anxious, although I've been getting better at controlling my thoughts in the past few years.

When I went to text Shae a few minutes ago, my phone's clock read 9:48 PM. I'm supposed to be home at ten and we're still at least twenty minutes away, not even including the detour we'll take to get to Tyler's place. Which brings me to the realisation that, when we get to his house, I'm gonna have to walk the rest of the way home by myself, in the dark. If I get murdered by some serial killer this late at night I'm gonna fucking haunt Shae from the afterlife-

"I think I'm gay," He quickly says, his voice holding a noticeable increase in energy compared to what I've been used to tonight.

Well... can't say that's exactly what I was expecting. Was I expecting anything in particular? I honestly don't know anymore. His words took me by surprise, my brain is kind of scrambled right now. I look over at him - he's looking back at me, probably trying to gauge my reaction. I did my best to conceal any facial reaction, but it's pretty clear that my lack of a response is starting to become noticeable.

"...You... think?"

"Well, like- I don't know. I guess I've just been thinking for a while, and it makes sense... all things considered." He replied anxiously.

"That- That's great! Does anyone else know?"

"I only really realised a few weeks ago, so... no. But compared to anyone else, I probably trust you the most to not like- tell anyone?" He said, looking over at me again.

"Well, I appreciate the completely undeserved confidence you have in me," I joked, realising too late that now probably isn't the time for that, "Yeah, I promise I won't tell anyone."

"Thank you," He replies, a genuine smile strewn across his face.

A few minutes go by as we walk down the road, absorbing the positive energy we created. Having only known Tyler for a little over two months, it definitely surprised me knowing that he trusted me more than anyone else to keep a secret like that... I mean, despite the short amount of time since I met him, I'm as close to him as I've been to Shaela for the past eight years. Maybe even closer? I barely even tell Shae about my actual problems, at least the non-surface level stuff. So yeah, I guess it makes sense that he would trust me with something so important, I know I would absolutely trust him if it were me in that situation.

"...So, do you think you're gonna tell your dad?"

He didn't say anything for a moment as he stared down at the ground beneath him, "I'll probably have to tell him soon, if he has to find out from some asshole that isn't me it'd make it ten times more difficult than if I just said it myself."

I agreed, and we let the conversation cut itself off as we finally approached Tyler's house. I followed him up the walkway and stood on the patio, making sure he actually got inside. He tries the doorknob eagerly, to no avail. Realising that it was locked, he reaches into his pocket for his key - again, to no avail.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," Tyler mumbled under his breath, clearly done with tonight. All of the lights were off in the house, signalling that his dad was not awake.

"Maybe you'll wake him up if you knock? Then he can let you in."

"Nonono, he thinks I'm staying at your place! If he finds out I went to a party I'm in deep shit," He whispered.

Of course. If I had to lie to my parents, why would I expect anything different from anyone else?

"Okay, uhh... maybe we can make that lie... not a lie?" I said, sounding weirder than I'd like.

Tyler looked at me, confused for a moment, eyes widening as he realised what I meant, "I can't let you do that, I've already forced you through too much shit tonight."

"Oh, come on, of course you can sleep at my place for the night! My parents think I'm at your house right now, so I can just tell them that we both went over there early in the morning. They love you anyway, so it won't be a problem!"

He didn't move at all, still looking reluctant, "Are you sure it won't be... weird? I don't want to put you in an awkward situation cause of w- what I told you."

"Dude, that couch in my room has a hide-a-bed if you don't want to share mine. Either way, we're friends, aren't we? I trust you."

After a few moments of silence, he speaks up, "...I guess so-"

"Great, then it's settled!" I said, putting my arm around his shoulder as I led him back down the walkway.

---

Once we make it to my place, walk up the creaky wooden steps of my patio as I fish the house key out of my pocket. Tyler's standing closely behind me, looking awkward as ever, clearly not knowing what to do with his hands as he switches between putting them in his pockets and clasping them together.

I turn the key on the lock and try the door, noticing that It's completely pitch black inside the house. My parents usually go to bed at 10 PM, and it was well past that at this point. I lock the door behind us as I reach for my pocket, grabbing my phone and flipping it open to use as a barely-useful flashlight. I take Tyler's wrist as I lead him through the furniture of my living room and up the stairs. The only sounds in the house come from the soft ticking of a clock in the kitchen, the sound of which has always freaked me out whenever I'd come downstairs at three in the morning. Despite my best efforts to be as quiet as possible, the old wooden boards of the stairs prove my effort to be futile as they creak with every step. I can only hope that both of my parents have fallen asleep by now, or else they'd definitely have heard us. As I take Tyler down the hallway, walls strung with various family photos and art fit for a motel, I hear no sounds coming from the master bedroom, relaxing some of my tension.

Once we make it to my room, I breathe a sigh of relief as I turn on the overhead light, hoping my mom doesn't find out and try to lecture me in the morning, "Okay, hide-a-bed or mine, your choice!"

"Hide-a-bed." He replies.

"Sure thing, lemme show you how to set it up," I say as I remove each couch cushion one by one. The couch is sitting directly under my massive bedroom window, illuminated by the glow of the moon. Under the cushions is a black folded-up contraption, bearing a metal handle. I grab the handle and start pulling the bed out from the couch. As the first section of the bed comes out, Tyler stands next to me and helps unfold the second section, and finally the third.

I move over to open the closet door, "I have some spare pillows and blankets in here."

"So, why do you have a spare bed... thingy... in your room anyway?" He asked.

"My cousins' family came to visit from the other side of the country a few years back, so my parents made the cousins stay in my room and gave me our old couch that used to be in the living room. They were here for like two weeks, it was fucking awful," I remarked, pulling a comforter out of the closet and unfolding it out on the mattress.

"That sounds miserable," Tyler sympathized.

"It was, but hey, now I got a sick as fuck couch in my room! And it works as a great place for certain friends to sleep when they wanna spend the night," I said sarcastically, looking over at Tyler as I grabbed the pillows from the closet, tossing them to one end of the bed.

He turned his head, baffled, "Was that a dig on me?" He questioned.

"Depends on how you took it I suppose," I replied, smiling cunningly.

"You're the one who offered, dude- are you sure you didn't drink at the party? You've at least doubled your usual level of sarcasm." He retorted.

"Nope, unless somebody spiked my soda!" I joked, but the realisation slowly set in, "Oh shit- maybe someone spiked my soda?!?"

"Don't freak out, I seriously doubt someone would spike your drink,"

"God, I hope so, if my parents found out I went to that party, that'd be one thing, but if I got drunk? I doubt I'd see the outside world for months," I sighed.

"Even if you were drunk, it's not like you would still be drunk in the morning for them to find out, anyway."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," I said, letting out a yawn shortly thereafter. "Fuck, I didn't realise how tired I am." Looking at my alarm clock, it was 10:37 PM. That wasn't terribly late, I've definitely stayed up later when there was an assignment due the next day that I forgot about, but even before I met up with Alex and Elliot, that party was just wearing me down. "At least I can sleep in 'till like noon tomorrow. You sure you don't need anything before I pass out from exhaustion?"

"No, I'm okay, I think. And, thank you... Jake." He replied, smiling at me.

"No problem, dude!" I quietly exclaimed as I turned off the bedroom lights and hopped into bed. I can practically feel my muscles dissolve as I lean into the mattress, pulling the heavy blankets over me as I close my eyes.

I can't help but feel something itching in the back of my brain. I never did find out why Tyler was even crying back at the party. Was it related to what he told me after? He sounded pretty upset when he was talking to whoever it was in the hallway, too, so maybe that was why? We've already talked about so much shit tonight, though, and I definitely did not have the energy to have another huge conversation about something like that. It could definitely wait until tomorrow.

Soon, I feel my consciousness drift away, the only sound I can make out being the slow breathing of Tyler, across the room.

---

As I wake up, I'm blinded by the bright sun shining in through my windows, directly into my eyes. I glance over at my alarm clock, feeling incredibly groggy and sore, noticing that it's 11:13 AM. Usually, the latest I'd sleep in on weekends was only around ten, but I guess it took a lot of my energy yesterday to try to tune the party out. At least it's over.

I slowly sit up, yawning as I lean back against the bed frame. I glanced around the room, noticing that the hide-a-bed had been folded back into the couch, Tyler nowhere to be seen. I reach over to my bedside table to check my phone, finding an unread text from him, sent a few hours ago.

Tyler: hey

woke up early, figured youd want 2 sleep in.

will call u later, might have somthin big i wanna share, will see

A pair of oddly cryptic messages. Guess that confirms he isn't here anymore.

At least it was a Saturday, meaning that I had full permission to be a slob. I get out of bed, deciding to skip my usual shower until after breakfast. Other than the snacks that were out at the party, I ate practically nothing last night. I could almost feel my stomach turning itself inside out, so I hurried out of my room and downstairs to the kitchen to have some breakfast.

The first thing I notice when I get downstairs is my mom, sitting on the couch with a book. I head straight to the kitchen, trying not to make myself stand out.

"Jake! Finally woken up, I see." She remarked, still looking at her book.

"Hey, mom!" There's a moment of silence as I grab a bowl out of the cupboard, as well as a box of cereal, and begin to pour.

She speaks up, "Your friend, Tyler, seemed to be in a hurry to leave this morning, anything I should know about?"

"...Not that I know of? Like what?" I questioned as I poured some milk from the fridge, grabbed a spoon, and sat at the kitchen counter.

"Well, it's not like we didn't notice that you weren't home by ten like your father asked you to be, so obviously you must have a good excuse for why you didn't at least call to let us know you'd be late?" She replied. I could tell when she started talking all responsible-parent-like, it meant that she was gonna lecture me about something.

I sighed, thinking of the right thing to say. "...Well, Tyler was going through some things... so I was trying to help him with that, I guess. Time just kinda flew by and I wasn't able to get home 'till later."

"So he spent the night here? Weren't you at his house?" She asked as I ate a spoonful of cereal.

"Yeah... we went out for a bit and once I noticed how late it was I offered to let him spend the night at our house since it was closer," I said. Almost entirely a lie, but definitely preferable to the truth.

"Jake..." She said, setting her book down on the coffee table in front of the couch, walking over to me, and resting a hand on my shoulder. "You're sixteen now, obviously we don't expect you to tell us everything you're up to nowadays. But we worry about you! I worry about you. Just for future reference, please let us know if you're gonna be home late or anything like that."

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind," I said, looking up at her.

"Great! Now, I have to go meet a friend for lunch, please try not to burn the house down while I'm out!" She said as she grabbed her purse and keys off of the counter, hurring out the door.

"No promises, love you!" I said as she closed the door behind her.

Well, I guess that went... better than expected? I doubt she believed that story I made up, but I guess as long as I don't break curfew without telling them, I should be fine.

Having the house to myself wasn't totally uncommon. Considering my dad was gone during the day five days a week, and my mom would head out to go meet friends or run errands pretty often, I got some much needed alone time often enough to not go mad.

As I finish my bowl of cereal, I realise that I probably should go shower as soon as possible, considering the night I had. I put my bowl and spoon in the dishwasher and head back upstairs. I grab a towel from my room and head into the bathroom, grabbing my various fur care products out of the cabinet for after the shower. As I turn the shower on, I hear the sound of my ringtone going off in the pocket of my pants on the floor. I sigh annoyedly, walking over and trying to figure out which pocket my phone was in. When I flip open the phone, the Caller ID reads out Tyler's name.

"Tyler! What's up?" I ask eagerly, hoping to find out what the news he cryptically texted about was.

"Jake- fuck, I messed up, I shouldn't have- what am I gonna do?" He said anxiously, sounding almost out of breath.

"Hey! Slow down, what's wrong?" I questioned.

"I'm such a fucking idiot! Why did I think this would be a good idea? Jake, I'm so sorry-"

"Tyler! Calm. Down. Just take a few deep breaths," I said. After a few moments, I can hear his breathing steadying on the other side of the call. "Okay, good. Now, what's wrong?"

There's a short pause as he tries to find the right words to say. It sounds like he's been crying. What even the fuck has been the past twenty-four hours?

"Can- do you think I could crash at y- your place for a few more nights? I don't know what to do."

#story #novel #interlude #writing #novel writing #vestige #town #coming of age #lgbtq #gay #furry #wattpad

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happyhollow-mellowmarsh · 4 years ago

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History of a Spirit

There’d been rumors among a few magical conspiracy theory and research forums... of an odd blog that popped up out of nowhere one night. Upon first look, it seemed like any old ordinary jokes and oddities blog, but after a notable figure did some data mining on a whim... something else entirely appeared to viewers were they to enter the right combination of keys.

Then, and only then, would one find the research notes of one Shaela Allaway in her adventures as a recent member of the fey. Videos and text posts detailing new information on magic, or simply experiences she had encountered. You clicked the latest video.

“Ah, there we go.” A somewhat posh Edinburgh accent came along with the view of a woman with messy red hair and a very large brown coat. Oh yes, and she was also an elf with the green of her eyes swimming in a black where the white of normal eyes would be. She was excited. Smiling and also a bit hectic. Her face was weirdly close to the camera as she messed about with what sounded like writing utensils behind the camera which seemed to be resting on a desk of some sort. It was a bit hard to tell the quality due to the angle. Just that it looked vaguely wooden. That was if you were a person weird enough to try and discern that sort of thing as Shaela Allaway’s charming face filled the screen.

Eventually she pulled back, putting her hands together with a notepad between them. “Alright! Let’s get this video under way! Hello!” She waved, her smile bright and wide. “As you likely know I am Shaela Allaway. Leading researcher of fey culture, history, and mythos. Now that I am a fey myself, and magic, I have been researching other things within my time of adventure among the magical plains. Those who have been watching my videos and reading my adventure blog would well know. But today, we are at my home, as I wanted to talk about something curious that I don’t think many people have really looked into. Even the Great Witches.” As she said this she lifted one hand to her side as if she was showing something off that should be sitting in the palm of her hand. This was something most viewers from earth would not know of or even be able to see. “Minor Elemental Spirits, being one of the many names they have. I for one prefer to call them Sprites and will do so for the remainder of this video for personal ease. In any case, Sprites are a curious thing. See, in the past upon discovery they were designated as a fey entity. They actually do look vaguely fey like when they choose to take a corporeal, non elemental form. Of course more recently we have come to know that they are in fact not fey, and are instead a form of elemental. Each Sprite is being made of a single coalesced magical element, with a faint soul, and rudimentary personality. Now unlike other elementals, they seem to operate in a slightly different manner. The reason for which I can get to shortly, but my hypothesis on that reason existing I think, would be a good segway.” Moving her platformed hand back down, Shaela moved through her notes before settling on a specific page. “Alright.” She looked back at the camera and the carefree look she had at the beginning was nearly melted away at this point. At this moment she was a highly learned individual on various related subjects, speaking on theories and information with a near zealous interest. “Now I must point out this is all personal theory that I am about to go into. As currently there is no known reason for why Sprites exist or why they exist the way they do. There are several working ideas but nothing is concrete. As for my hypothesis, it relates to their weak soul and basic personality. Essentially my working theory is that when a soul has lost its tether to reality and dissipates, there is a chance that at that time there will be an existing high concentration of a specific elemental energy in the area. If there is such a high concentration and there is a strong enough fragment of a soul yet to dissipate as the soul ceases to be, that the magical energies will bond to said soul fragment. Creating a being made of said element with a weak soul and a personality based on whatever fragment of that soul was clung to. Of course, and I must say this again, it is only a hypothesis at this moment. But, that leads us into why I am curious over how they are made, and why they are different.”.

Flipping through her notes a little more, eventually Shaela takes a breath, and continues her little lesson. “So the properties of elementals are well known. They are a being composed of one or more elements in a raw state given a strange elemental based soul. Their use in magic is also well documented. Elementals have for ages been known to be good for allowing humans unaligned with or unable to use a specific element to use said element if they have one of the beings at their disposal. They are also known to enhance the magical capabilities of magic users already skilled in whatever the correlated element is. This is the beginning and end of their functions in magic. Outside of more grimm matters. Sprites are different. Sprites have highly specific abilities available to them in correspondence with their personality and aligned element. For example.”. Shaela looks around and then motions her hand to an empty space to her left near her head. “One of the Sprites who I have around me is associated with death magic, and has a relatively sinister personality. So I have found whenever I wish harm to something or potentially death to it, this Sprite uses it’s magic to bend reality to increase the potency or probability of such results. It is a very specific effect but not without potent magical power to do so. Sprites seem to concentrate all of their magical will into said single result. Though there are some oddities within it. For example.”.

Shaela again moves her hand, now motioning to her other side. “These two sprites are technically one in the same entity despite being two. If you divide them, neither has nay magical power aside from their base existence as an elemental life form. But together, they have the power to give whatever they wish good fortune. They bend the very will of reality so that whoever has their favor, has unquestionably better luck. I have tested it time and time again. You can only win coin tosses so many times in a row before the evidence is conclusive. But they also have another curious point!” Shaela smiles and raises a finger as if she is speaking to a class of buzzing students. “They can change the targeting of their magic to give somebody terrible horrible luck! In this way, I actually think that it is possible all Sprites possess this trait! Their powers are highly specific, but can be used for weal or woe! It is all very fascinating! Along with that it seems they can affect humans without them even knowing! I can not speak of who due to not wanting to ruin their situation, but I have known of normal humans who were given benefits in their daily lives that were just assumed to be natural talent that actually came from such Sprites who had taken a liking to them! It is all very fascinating!” Taking a deep breath, Shaela closed her notebook and snapped it down onto the desk by the camera. “Unfortunately that is all I know as of now but I will say if I have any further breakthroughs. The next time you all see or read from me, it will be from within the depths of the magical realm for devils and demons. I have a soul to look into trading for something I am not at allowance to discuss. Until my next update, Shaela Allaway, signing out!” Without an actual physical fanfare, Shaela simply leaned forward into the camera lens and then- click. Darkness came with the end of the video.

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happy-hollow-rpg · 4 years ago

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Time And Space || Chika ft. ??? || Epilogue: One Year Later

The weeks after Trick’s passing lent themselves to both healing and ironing out the new boundaries and agreements within the class. Given the need to confront or otherwise confront certain members and their individual contributions towards making the last month as stressful as it ended up being, there was an understandably uneasy atmosphere shrouding the sixteen. Some wounds cut too deep to ever heal, while others tried to make up to each other the best they could.

Throughout it all, Chika Sonozaki stayed a grounded presence, at least, as best as she could muster. Even if it had turned out for the better in the end, unleashing those repressed emotions had taken a toll on the songstress, not helped by what had happened in the direct aftermath. That death was not permanent for any of her classmates did not lessen the impact that Shaela’s last death had on Chika, and it had taken time for her to come to terms with both that and a new wave of intrusive thoughts.

But she had persevered. When Shaela had come to apologize to her, she had done the same in return for subjecting the redhead to emotional whiplash. She had sought out both Akira and Taichi herself, and hoped to keep in touch with them as best as she could. All of her friends who were revived were welcomed with hugs and bunny kisses, and even Santiago got a curt nod (though Bubblegum wasn’t allowed anywhere near him, for reasons she wasn’t comfortable with sharing out loud).

Slowly but surely, things returned to a semblance of normalcy. There were both offers from other Grand Witches and personal requests to return home and leave everything behind: Chika had not received the former and had no plans for the latter, instead choosing to continue her apprenticeship under the tutelage of Trouble. The transition period was peaceful, and thankfully bereft of the same tension that prevailed through October. and it certainly helped ease the idol into a stable mindscape.

Eventually, things had settled down enough that people could return to their everyday lives outside of the mansion, and having kept in contact with her sisters - with much repeated reassurance that she was doing quite alright for herself - Chika returned to the bustling streets of Tokyo once more. Aside from having to hug AKATSUKI for a good long while (she refused to explain why), it was like TASOGARE had never left, slotting back into dance and vocal practices like the professional she was.

The new year brought with it change and opportunity. Chika had worked out an agreement with her new mentor: as she needed both practice and performance time to continue her career whilst also studying magic, Trouble would give her the necessary periods of time off to do so, which would be made up for with remedial lessons. Time bubbles were efficient for both that and having quick naps in-between journeys to and from the mansion, and in addition, she had pledged part of her salary towards the local grassroots campaign in Tokyo, in an effort to conserve nature in the larger Japan.

All in all, it was a win for everyone involved, even if her newfound status as both apprentice and idol meant it was significantly harder to go out in public without someone or another recognizing her. Sponsorships really liked to plaster her face all over their advertising, which at least had the benefit of upping the mileage TEMPUS received as well. They were being tapped to play for larger venues, open for larger concerts, and their gigs continued to get more mainstream attention over the year.

Chika was now nineteen, a veteran in the industry after three years of performing, and she was still considered to be in the prime of her career. Might as well make the most of it.

“And now, for the performance I know you’ve all been waiting for! Everyone, get up, get rocking and let’s give TEMPUS a warm welcome with their brand-new hit single, Happy Hollow!”

In hindsight, Chika couldn’t quite remember what had inspired her to suggest that particular name for their song, but it certainly seemed fitting enough for the occasion. Halloween was one of the few holidays in Tokyo where the themed cosplays of Akihabara extended outwards to the rest of the city, and here in the middle of downtown Shibuya, it was the perfect time for everyone to dress up however they’d like without too much scrutiny, to celebrate the spookiest time of the year.

It was also where TEMPUS found themselves performing, on the rooftops of Tower Records Shibuya for an overwhelmingly enthusiastic audience. They had also dressed to celebrate the anniversary of her witch’s apprenticeship: while her sisters had gone as Beatrice, Nine the Phantom and Bayonetta (SHINYA really wanted to hook up with someone tonight, huh?), TASOGARE had predictably but no less adorably slipped into a copy of Akko’s magic tunic and pointed hat.

Mature outfits and adulthood be damned, it was her last year as a cute teenager, and she was going to milk it all for what it was worth!

As the second chorus drew to a close, Chika stepped into the spotlight. The bridge and its solo verse was hers to dominate as it always had been, though she’d cheated a little this time and amplified it with the subtle use of Music magic to add echoes to her voice. She wouldn’t have had the confidence to do this before, but this was a new year for a new TASOGARE - everything at her fingertips was a new step in the right direction, or at least another subtle tool to get their audience pumped up.

The melody ended to massive cheers, and it was only just the first of four in their performance set. TEMPUS ended the night strong, and as the final staged dance-off between choreographer MAHIRU and main rapper SHINYA concluded, it was Chika who scooped her sisters together in a group hug. Sure, it had been another routine performance, but there was always reason to be proud of how far they had come since they’d first started. As they did, AKATSUKI nudged her gently and smiled.

“Go on, you know you want to leave, Kachi~” She whispered, patting her shoulder in the way only a mother-sister figure knew how. “We’ve stolen you away for most of the night already, I think we can handle the after-party just fine. Don’t forget to say hi to him from us too, and give him that loving reminder that we’ll have to meet him sooner or later, so he might want to sleep with one eye open.”

“Neesan!” Despite the playful threat, she couldn’t help but laugh. AKATSUKI was so attuned to Chika and her emotional state that she had caught on only mere hours after she had privately updated her relationship status, and having confided in the blonde for so long, she had spilled the tea too easily. Still, the reassurance that she could go was all she needed, and turning to face their adoring fans, Chika dug into her pouches for the glittery handfuls of paper she had stored within them.

“That’s all the time I have for you all, but you’ve been amazing! On behalf of us all, I wish everyone a happy, happy Halloween!” With a shower of confetti, and the quick use of a perfect time bubble spell to mask her disappearance, the four idols on stage became three as their youngest simply vanished.

Of course, given the witchy-themed performance, this was considered to be perfectly in-character, and was met by the roaring applause of the crowd as the remaining trio exited stage right.

---

Seconds later in real time, Chika fell onto one of the couches of the mansion, the Location spell card greying out in her hands. Even though she had already begun studying how to use Location magic, she was far from confident with her current skill level, so a card would have to suffice. She fired off a quick text message to her sisters, and dropped another one in the apprentice chat group to indicate that she had returned to the mansion, before getting up and heading to the kitchen for some water.

Picking up a bowl of peach slices and romaine lettuce from the fridge, she summoned her rabbit: even though it was past midnight, Bubblegum was still awake and wasted no time peppering Chika with kisses all over her face. “Hello, mama!! I hope you had an awesome day!! Also, munchies!!!”

Then she wasted no time squirming around in Chika’s arms to get to her supper as soon as possible. The idol couldn’t help but giggle; she knew she shouldn’t be spoiling Bubby so much, but it was just so hard to say no. Heading back to her room, she opened the door to find her roommate still awake, and set down both bowl and bun to allow Bubblegum to continue her meal in peace.

“Hello, Niro-kun.” Crossing the distance between them, she gave the blonde a kiss on the cheek and was rewarded by both of their faces blushing beet-red.

The development had been a fairly recent one, all things considered. During the two weeks, she had found solace in Shinji’s memory construct, confiding in him whenever the stressors of the mansion had overwhelmed her by too much. Real or otherwise, this was still the first man she had ever loved, and possessed all of the gentle wisdom and reassuring confidence that made her fall for the original. It was him, however, who had sat her down to talk one evening.

By then, she had finally let go of the regrets she had with his death in her ongoing effort to regulate her emotions, but whether it was because of her subconscious or because it was what the real Shinji would have done, he had encouraged Chika not to pursue him any further. It wouldn’t change that he loved her and she loved him dearly, but Shinji wanted her to find happiness with someone who could and would grow old with her. That, on an intrinsic level that both of them understood deeply, she had to move on from him for good.

Hearing it said out loud didn’t make it hurt any less, but she accepted it with a tearful smile. Besides, it wasn’t like Shinji was going anywhere, and he would always be around if she needed him to be.

Time passed, and after a few months in the mansion spent in the company of the other apprentices, Chika made up her mind. Valentine’s Day wasn’t exactly a holiday by any measure of the word, but it didn’t stop her from setting aside some time to bake chocolates with some of the others. She knew where Sully’s was going and had a hunch where Erika K. would be sending hers, but as for her own...

“I just… want you to know that I’ve put a lot of thought into this, and I think I like you, Niro-kun. A lot. You don’t have to return my feelings though and you’re still one of my best friends. Nothing can change that about us, but I just… I want to stop bottling my emotions up and pretending that they don’t exist. You know what you’re getting into either way so… if you’d still have me after knowing all of that…”

She made it clear that Niro didn’t have to respond that night. Or at all, if that was what he preferred. There had to be millions of other people out there that he could love, millions of other people who had gone through less and thus needed less out of him. She loved him either way, and Chika had made her confession with the full expectation that she was going to be shot down eventually.

One could only imagine the look on her face when he eventually told her that he was willing to give it a shot.

After a warm shower and a change of pajamas later, Chika found herself sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Niro on his bed. As she watched Bubblegum settle into her own nest of pillows, she closed her eyes, sliding her hand into his and nestling her head in the crook of his neck. Bold as it would have been to go for their first actual kiss, she hadn’t. They were always going to take this one slow.

“Thank you for just continuing to be you, Niro-kun.” She allowed herself to savour the moment for all it was worth, and sighed happily. “Do you want to just spend time tomorrow doing… whatever?”

"I could say the same to you," Niro said, with a small but clearly genuine smile. It had taken him a while to get more accustomed to expressing himself, but bit by bit he was getting there. "I do have the day off tomorrow though, so... I think 'whatever' sounds nice, especially with you, Chika."

“Yeah…” As she drifted off, leaving the long day behind them, she whispered. “I love you, Raniero.”

With moments like these, tomorrow could afford to wait a little longer.

#endgame #ic #Niro #TASOGARE #submission

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npc-says · 5 years ago

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Shaela (2/?)

“I don’t trust her.”

“You don’t trust anyone, Arcturus.”

“Yeah, well, especially not her.”

You rolled your eyes at the man you consider to be your best friend. As the stableman’s son, he had grown up at your side and his loyalty to you had never once faltered. He could have been a highly-decorated soldier in one of the nobles’ armies if not for his dragonborn blood. It was a shame, you thought, the prejudice that ran rampant in this country. Then again, perhaps it was a blessing in disguise, to have him close and so willing to help when you needed him. But that was selfish, you knew. You knew that if this world were kinder, he could be so much more.

“Are you sure it’s not for other reasons?” you asked. The question was half-joking, half-earnest. You have not been friends since childhood without getting a glimpse of his feelings. But you cannot say you return the sentiment, and knowing that, he has always kept a respectful distance.

Still, the directness of the question was a jab that seemed to make Arcturus wince. It was not an unfamiliar wound, and he must have known that you had every right to question his motives. He sat silent for a moment, perhaps to search his own feelings and judgment.

“No, that’s not it,” he said with a shake of his head. “I just...I don’t know. She just doesn’t seem all here. With you. I have no doubt that she cares for you,” he clarified hurriedly. “But it’s as if something else calls to her. And it could call her away from you, if it calls loudly and urgently enough.”

“Another woman?”

”No, that’s not it.” He absentmindedly brushed his hand across his bald head in thought. “I can’t place it. Just trust me on this.”

“Uh huh, sure.”

“I mean...what’s her trade? Her occupation?”

“I never took you to be the type to judge people by their station,” you said pointedly with raised eyebrows. But you were careful about the answer. “A historian. A scholar. She was an underclerk for the Magistrate in Broadison for many years, which I’m sure you know is very prestigious.”

“Uh huh.” Arcturus’s eyes narrowed. He has known you long enough to know when you are hedging on an answer and giving less than a whole-truth. He did not hide his skepticism.

“Okay, she just needs to re-commit to her studies,” you admitted. “She’s had a rough past few years. But I have all of the books and resources she needs to get back on track.”

Arcturus sighed. “That’s not your job, you know. Why are you so determined to fix her?”

“Who said there’s anything that needs to be fixed?” You could feel the defensiveness rising in your voice and took a moment to regather yourself before sighing. “I just...I like her, alright? And I believe in her. She’s smart and her writing reaches people. There’s good in her but she’s just frustrated and doesn’t know how to channel that.”

He didn’t have much to say in response, almost as if his mind was already made up. He turned away from you, and you could not deny the small ache of knowing that two of the people most important to you could not coexist without some discomfort.

“A lot has changed here while we were gone, it seems,” he said with his back to you as he gazed out the open window. The sky was fading into a warm orange as the sun was setting. “She’s learned a lot, you know.” He nodded pointedly at the directly room across the hall. Even through closed doors, you could hear the familiar, sweet laughter that you had missed for months.

“Thank you for keeping her safe,” you said. “You know I don’t want to send her away, but…”

“I know. I understand.” Arcturus understood better than anyone else your responsibilities to the family business. That meant making some sacrifices to...reduce distractions. “But she has done very well and her powers grow. You’ll be very proud when she shows you.”

“I’m sure I will.” You smiled at the thought.

Arcturus paused before turning around to face you.

“Has she met Lex yet?”

Having left Arcturus in the library, you retreated to your bedchambers in the adjacent room. You could not help but smile as you watched the half-elf re-dress herself, pulling her arms into the sleeves of a clean shirt and fastening the buttons. The haircut you arranged for her to get had done some good in revealing her face and grey-green eyes.

“Does this look alright?” she asked, readjusting the shirt collar in the mirror.

With a smile, you stood in front of her at the mirror, realigning her collar to cover a few fresh scars across her clavicle and other stray marks on her neck. “You clean up very nicely,” you laughed. “Being out of the shadows suits you.”

When you took a step back to study her more fully, she managed a shy and somewhat awkward smile.

“Haven’t had to shine up like this since Broadison,” she admitted, wincing almost. “It’s been a while.” She looked at the closed door to your bedchambers and frowned. “Your friend doesn’t like me,” she said.

“Arcturus? He is just...not a friendly person. But he means well and would do anything for me and my family.”

“I know, I just…” She sat back on your bed and ran her hands through her hair. “I’m just a little out of my depth here, you know?” She sighed and took your hands in hers as you stood above her. “I love you. And I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. But I don’t belong in this world anymore, and everyone — your father, your mother, and now your friend — they all know I don’t belong.”

At such a confession, of such a showing of vulnerability she had not dared to show before, you sat next to her on the bed, holding her hand still. Here before you was not the assassin who crouched at your window, ready to take your life, determined to steal whatever she could get her hands on. No, here was the woman who would rather give you a book recommendation than kill you, who fell asleep in an armchair next to the fireplace while reading, who held you at night and ensured a safety you hadn’t known before. She was not what anyone around you would have expected or approved of. But she was yours and they would just have to make do with that.

I have already given so much of myself to them, you thought painfully, your eyes drifting to the room across the hall. They must let me have this.

“They are all protective of me,” you admitted, squeezing her hand. “And my family is wrapped up in its name and its honor and our work. I can’t change that about them. Just know that I think you belong here.”

She nodded along at your words, perhaps managed even a small smile, but still said nothing. Her doubts remained.

“But I know whose judgment I trust,” you continued, “and I know she’ll love you as much as I do. Just promise to be on your best behavior, hm?”

“I...you’re going to introduce us?”

“You’ve become an important person to me, and I plan to keep you around as long as you don’t run off.”

“Hah. Fair enough.” Lex paused, considering this for a moment. She kept her eyes trained on the ground, both intently focused and gazing at nothing, and you wished you could pinpoint what she was searching for.

“I know this is...big,” she said, finally meeting your eyes. “Thank you for trusting me with this.”

Almost as if on cue, there was a knock at your bedchamber doors. It was not Arcturus’s heavy knuckles against the wood, but smaller, more delicate hands.

Unable to wait any longer, you threw the door open as small arms reached up to wrap around your middle. It had been many months too long without her, and she had grown taller than you thought. The ruefulness of your separation and her absence reverberated even now, but the ache receded substantially when you were able to pick her up and gather her in your arms.

The tears brimmed and you shut your eyes tightly as you pressed your face into her hair and held your daughter for the first time in months.

“I missed you,” you murmured into her soft hair, a red so deep it was nearly purple.

“Missed you more, Mom,” she giggled, her arms wrapped around your neck.

“Enid, there’s somebody I’d like you to meet.”

#BoE #shaela

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ahyesreapersblog · 6 years ago

Text

Small Info

(No about the characters. So people know a little thing about each of them without having to go through so many bio’s. They can after that anyway if they like the character. I will exclude canon characters because people usually know who they are. This means Councilor Sparatus, Lorik Qui’in, SAM, Macen Barro and Urdnot Wreav are not included.)

(I will try and keep it short but I want people on mobile also to be able to see it)

Karnesh

Karnesh is a krogan, born and raised on Korlus, his father is Okeer. He doesn’t have a clan name since he never went to Tuchanka in the first place. He is also aware that the Rite of Passage would likely kill him. He is highly afraid of asari and will avoid them whenever possible. He works for the Shadow Broker as some sort of agent and officially as a debt collector. He carries a Black Widow sniper rifle and loves desserts.

Availability: High

Clavius Tarxis/Irelius Draxas/Invictus

These three are all the same, Irelius is Clavius real name and he was born on Aephus the turian colony. He is a biotic actually and trained with the cabals but due to his genetic disorder he cannot feel any pain or anything that is nerve related. Resolting in him killing one of the instructors by accident. He fled to omega and met an asari woman who helped him. Irelius was 19 at the time or even younger.After a few years the whole cabal debackle resulted in him getting a mental disorder called Dissociative identity disorder. He changed to Clavius as a meaning of protecting himself. Clavius is a very stoic character and is with the Blue Suns for a long time. Until he gets tired of it for some reason (unknown at this point), and heads to the Citadel and becomes the councilor’s bodyguard.

Availability: High

Renius Sparatus

Renius is Irius father and a general in the Blackwatch, some people even say he leads it but that was never proven right. He is a so called Ghost Infiltrator and uses a sniper rifle. Being able to sit and or lie and wait for hours, he has trained his body to do certain things only when he wants to. Renius hates humans. He will never be nice to them unless they are military personal and high ranking one, then he will be at least respectful to them. But there is no worrier he will avoid humans like the plague anyway. His whole family died during the First Contact war and his wife died at the hands of the collectors one year before the Reapers arrive. After the Reaper War he loses his left arm.

Availability: Medium

Torana Sparatus

She is Irius sister and C-Sec officer. She works for C-Sec for a long time and is in the investigation sector together the likes of Chellic. During a walk home, she got attacked and stabbed, making her lose her baby during that time and unable to get pregnant or it is very hard for her to stay pregnant. Her body seems to reject that idea almost immediately. She is terms of characteristic like her father Renius minus the human hating part. She loves them and would even date them.

Availability: High

Jurdon Madadh

He is a very old krogan battlemaster. He is a bit against Wrex but he ísn’t a stupid krogan and helps him keep the clans who are against him in check. He kind of rules them but not in the way that Wrex rules Tuchanka after Saren was defeated. Madadh (pronounced Madack’) is a also a very tall krogan, standing over 8 feet tall. He has a lot of a tattoos on his body and a preference for lingerie on woman. He is also the grandpa of my other krogan Raik Cagar.

Availability: High

Ganar Drealav

He has a chainsaw and his mouth sewn shut. He is considered my more well evil krogan, although he can be kind of nice towards babies and children. Having a soft spot for them. But he will not change his views just because some child is making a fuss. He has a drone that talks for him. He is the leader of the Blood Pack on Omega after Garm dies.

Availability: Low

Raik Cagar

She is a female krogan medic, working in Huerta and the granddaughter of Jurdon Madadh and the adopted daughter of Karnesh. She is a so called defect in her body, resulting in too much melanin. This means she is a very dark krogan and even her crest is dark red. She is totally into women and nothing else. Making it harder for her to breed with male krogan. Which she did in the past for a couple of times.

Availability: Medium

Haral Nyras

He is a turian in the Blackwatch and also a general. He is the XO of Renius ship and his navigator. He and Renius are actually very close friends and Haral sometimes functions as some kind of uncle to Torana and Irius (especially when they were children). He has a rare genetic disease called Corpalis Syndrom in his family. One of his sisters died because of it, way before the whole Reaper War. Even before the First Contact War. He is a generally nice and friendly turian, charming his way most likely to bed with them. However he will kill in an instant should someone threaten the safety of Palaven. After the Reaper War he ends up in a wheelchair which does not diminish his character at all. He also has Corpalis Syndrom.

Availability: High

Maron Hinom alias Sur'Kesh Ilano Talat Hinom Maron

He or she is a salarian formerly working for STG. Having a bit of a fallout resulting in one of the labs being exploded Maron flees STG and hides disguised as a man with the krogan Karnesh on his ship. He is a very cynic person and trusts few people especially newcomers get a very harsh treatment. If Maron trusts someone she is more comfortable being around them even in her true identity.

Availability: Low

Shaela’Riel Vas Tonbay Nar Tonbay

A quarian engineer and navigator of the flotilla. She stayed on her birthship after her pilgramage due to complication. Which resulted in her suit being almost torn to shreds. Shaela is constantly sick and cannot leave her suit without falling into a coma for a few weeks. Her immune system is compramised so much that it is hard for to even get healthy inside her own suit, which was made new after her pligramage. After the Reaper War she is hooked up with a geth prime making her a bit healthier than in the past.

Availability: Medium

Marius Nyras

He is Haral’s younger brother, well young he is 74 already. He was supposed to be dead past Reaper War but he survives. He is arranged married to someone but secretly a gay turian. After the Reaper War, he is almost half machine, his inner organs are replaced by machine and his right arm and left leg as well. Resulting in him havign constant pain due to the parts sometimes getting stiff and unmovable.

Availability: Medium

Tayus Draxas

He is Irelius younger brother and a mercenary collecting his money and killing people if they don’t pay him. He is not the most social guy in the world which makes the Draxas family very weird regardless. There is not much about him right now.

Availability: Low

Tachyus Nyras

He is the son of Haral and also someone who was Corpalis Syndrom. However his form is very aggressive resulting in him having this disease at the age of 19. He is unable to walk long distances, having to rely on a wheel chair. His speech pattern is also kind of screwed because of that. However he is not as many people would asume deeply depressed. He was at times but he is generally like Haral a very happy turian. Due to his speech pattern being so screwed he is actually good at singing.

Availability: High

Yaora V’Loar

An asari who works for the consort. Not much known about her right now. She comes from an asari and a turian, she lived on Omega for a time with her mum and her dad. Her died, being shot by a rival and her mother died during a raid on Cora’s Den. She is very facinated by art in any form, even sexual art.

Availbility: Medium

Yandra Nyras

Yandra and Tachyus are twins, she doesn’t have however his disease. She is a very well mannered turian. She works in the turian embassy. Yandra has a soft spot for bad boys, but not like the ones trying to do criminal stuff. More like the ones who are a bit rebellious against society. She is very close to her twin brother and helps him out in the day to day life.

Availabilty: Medium

#relevant #muses #sorry for the length

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thebloodychampion · 3 years ago

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ONE LITTLE FACTS ABOUT THE MASS EFFECT MUSES

Irius is really bad with firearms. He shot his instructor while he was standing beside him. So he heavily relies on his bodyguard to keep him save.

Karnesh can bake cakes but is too lazy to do it.

Clavius has no idea what bullet wounds feel like and will probably go into shock should he ever experience them. Just a reminder he cannot feel pain at all.

Renius is despite his dominearing appearance and character, a rather soft boy towards his wife.

Torana is extremely like her father minus the hate for humans.

Madah has never been with anyone else but Nyx, well at least not in Nyx life span. Even when they were seperated due to her mother he never has been with anyone.

Drealav is fond of children in the non creepy way. He literally will protect any child that comes to his territory. But it is a big kept secret. He has a reputation.

Cagar is often far too busy with her job to think about having children.

Haral has the reputation of sleeping with half the citadel and that is not even a lie.

Oswin can speak russian but cannot read or write it.

Noah trains up to five hours a day.

Maron is highly intelligent but has a low emotional and social skill.

Lorik likes to drink in the late hours.

Shaela lives in a literaly hospital room, her whole appartment is very clean and people have to be thoroughly tested before they can get in.

Andrew is very close with his twin sister Salla and is glad that she is the Pathfinder.

Marius is rather fond of his husband and glad that he could finally marry the gender he actually loves.

Tayus doesn’t really like to deal with people.

Tachyus is despite his rather sad future, a very open and enthusiastic guy once you can go past a certain barrier.

Macen has never hidden his sexuality and makes it an effort to tell especially female admirers first time he meets them. So there won’t be any confusion.

SAM is rather fond of any new culture he can learn, he has also no concept of nudity and often would walk around naked.

Yaora is fond of turians on a very deep level due to her father being one and him being a big part of her life.

Yandra has a high fashion sense for a turian and would never walk around outside in less than a dress and fitting shoes.

Wreav isn’t actually jealous of Wrex because he is leading the krogan, he is envious that Wrex went outside of Tuchanka, while he had to stay behind and take care of any issues.

Adrien has absolutely no sense of direction when it comes ot actually finding places on his own. Military wise he can see the things on a holo map, but sending him to a place and telling him he should go to a specific location. He gets lost.

Quentius thinks sex is overrated.

Ahnas has a huge crush on Evfra but plays it down by being totally sarcastic to him.

Septimus likes to flirt a lot.

Steven Hackett likes to read old classical novels whenever he can get them. It helps him unwind.

Sidoria is very similiar to her father Desolas and it sometimes scares people.

#muse things #mass effect muses

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echodarkly · 3 years ago

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1. We’re a system of walk-in afterlifers! We don’t have like, portals or anything, but people just show up / leave in one way or another rather than splitting / combining. We don’t care about why our system formed in the slightest!

2. That got a little tricky to answer recently, haha. At base we have about 11 or so permanent residents, but then a bunch of “temps” who come and go. Some temps front daily, others only show up internally every couple months. Where it gets particularly difficult is the ShLA SubSys, which due to some semantics either only counts as one headmate or counts as theoretically infinite due to its nature of being an entire dimension. We usually put the count at about 18 total.

3. Nearly two years now (Anniversary is in February), though we had suspicions a while longer

5. We thought that DID was the only way to be plural for a while so went “hmm if headmate=DID and Us=Headmate, then DID=Us” which was Not Fun for the whole thinking we’re faking thing lemme tell ya

6. Yes, half of us all it headspace half of us call it mindscape. Its based on a minecraft world Its a large mansion and a lake in the middle of a clearing surrounded by forrest then mountains. A while ago the headspace decided it wanted to be evil and introjected(??) the Darkwood (yk from the game) to replace 3/4 of the forest, which was also Not Fun for a while.

7. Headmates, people (with context), others, friend (usually referring to a newbie), just calling them by name

8. We do use the word system but have an insatiable need to have multiple names for everything so we also use “house” and “collective”

9. Elemental resistance (Only slightly a joke, some of us (shaela) just dont get cold the way the rest of us do), hugs (/int), company, all the basic stuff like always having someone with you

10. Accidentally cutting yourself off from the system :( the first couple months were rough bc of the whole “faking” thing

11. We largely dont use a psychological view of it anymore, but i wouldnt really call it spiritual either. The closest we’d get is the fact that our headspace is technically the afterlife, but usually we justa say it like it is (to us).

12. We usually say switching. At first we didnt really notice when we did, but as we get more stressed its gotten consistently more noticeable rather than just having the odd jarring switch. We dont usually have much control, but going through doorways/transitions usually causes one. Recently we’ve been better at getting specific people

13. The majority of us are one big polycule, itself containing several types of relationships. Mae is all of our child, Tick has some kind of romantic relationship with nearly everyone applicable (ie right age, allo, not - yk - related), darkly and tick are twins, cal and tick are brothers, shaela and lausey have a qpr (as do several others), and thats not even mentioning our partner system

14. We were out to exactly one(1) person IRL and they turned out to be plural as well, so they went from our partner to our partner system

15. We dont take intentional forms, but the majority of us are humanoid. Our System Admin does age slide a little (from young adult to teen), and Lausey is uhhhh amorphous

16. We all share hyperfixations, so minecraft mainly, but we have a wide variety of individual interests that we share to some degree, like analogue horror, the occult, crochet, Doom, biology, etc

17. Pretty good!

18. Just everything. All. Every genre of music. We have a few collective favourites though, like our favourite animal is the hyena and colour is garnet red. Rowans favourite song is PYRO, Tick’s is Internet Ruined Me, Shaela’s is Oak and Ash and Thorn (or Ship in a Bottle, which is a Very System song)

19. We no longer have an original, and we don’t like the term host. We have a “most frequent fronter” which is usually Tick but is more based on who fronted for the longest time the past week so can change for a short while.

20. Our partner system!!!! We have several members who mirror each others archetypes, so Tick and Bones get along really well.

21. Its so much better now. Before we’d get the idea that somethings up but’d brush it off for next year every time. Now we can also get people who like what we’re doing to front rather than relying on it happening automatically.

22. We didnt, but we did accidentally-on-purpose make Miette (no we didnt choose the name) who really really helps by being completely immune to executive dysfunction, even if getting her to front takes continuous conscious effort

23. a lot of things dont really matter. why we formed doesnt affect the fact that we’re here now. how many fictives we do or dont have doesnt affect the fact we exist.

24. Man, if youre confused just ask. like. systems are people, and a lot of them would rather you ask them if youre confused rather than avoid interacting with them.

Sysmeds should not get to write the narrative about us on this platform!

Scrolling through the tags, it seems like a great deal of what's said about us on tumblr is either sysmeds trying to make us look bad or all-encompassing plural blogs that just say everyone is valid (which is great! and these blogs should keep doing what they're doing! but it would be nice to have some more frequent endo (and other) representation on here too!)

Either my tumblr algorithm just sucks major balls, or most endos, tulpas, spiritual systems and other non-sysmed-approved systems get scared off of this platform because of how many loud hateful voices there are compared to how few people there are who we can relate to. (like most of the cool-looking accounts i can relate to that i find are dead and so is my blog for the same reason lol).

SO! Let's do a thing. If you are endogenic, parogenic, a tulpamancy system, a spiritual system, a daemien, or any other kind of system that sysmeds try to silence, reblog this post with answers to these questions to tell tumblr what our lived experiences as plurals are REALLY like!

(Feel free to pick and choose which questions you want to answer, or just come up with your own and tag them under #endovoices or substitute endo for whatever kind of system you are! Also, feel free to just reblog with one answer at a time, or to just answer the questions in a standalone post; no need to credit me, I just want more systems sharing their experiences!)

1. What kind of system are you? (Describe this in any way you like. No need to use -genic or popular terms if you don't want to)

2. How many of you are there?

3. How long have you known about your plurality?

4. What kind of spaces/communities do you/did you hang out in? (Both plural-relevant and non-plural-relevant spaces are valid answers, past and present)

5. Had you heard of DID/OSDD/DDNOS before you became plural/discovered your plurality?

6. Do you have a wonderland/innerworld? If so, what do you call it, and what are some things that you and your system members do there?

7. What do you call your system members?

8. If you're plural but don't use the word "system" to describe you&, what word do you use?

9. What are some of the best things about being plural?

10. What are some of the not-so-great things about being plural? (Any answer is valid- nothing is too minor or too major to be an answer to this question.)

11. Do you have a spiritual or psychological view of your plurality?

12. Do you ever experience "switching" or "posession" or any sort of change in who controls the body? If so, what do you call it, how easy/difficult is it, and what is it like? Were you always able to do this, or did you have to learn how over time?

13. How do you and your system mates relate to each other? (Are you friends, family, romantically involved, caretakers, etc.)

14. Have you come out to anybody in real life/in a singlet space about your plurality? How did it go?

15. What kinds of forms and appearances do your system members take on?

16. What are you and your system members interested in?

17. What is your life like in the meatworld?

18. What are your music tastes? Movies? Favorite colors? Animals? List any other favorites as well

19. Does your system have a host/original? If so, what do you call them? Explain what role they play in your system

20. Do any system members have notable relationships outside of the system? Explain them!

21. If you haven't been plural for your entire life/haven't known about your plurality until later in life: what was life like before plurality compared to life now?

22. If you chose to become plural: why? What has changed since then?

23. Is there anything you'd like to say to the plural community at large?

24. Is there anything you'd like to say to any singlets reading this post?

That is all I've got for now, but feel free to add any more you want to share! Please remember to be respectful to all system types if you post, I do not support bashing or invalidating of any system types. I will also reblog with my own answers soon.

(Note: these questions are not in order of priority or importance, I just wrote them down as I came up with them. Feel free to answer out of order and skip or add whatever you want!)

Also this should go without saying but making any rude sysmeddy responses to this will just result in being blocked and totally ignored, so don't even start, there's no point. The block button is right there.

Have fun everyone!

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stainyourhands · 7 years ago

Note

(Longestformcensus) hey hey hey, Ot3 and either met on a reality TV show or worming the same terrible minimum wage job AU

@longestformcensus Ot3 and either met on a reality TV show or worming the same terrible minimum wage job AU

On the first night, Tommy gets a rose. He’s assuming that’s good, as they don’t ship him out on the next flight leaving for Boston, but he’s never actually watched the Bachelorette, so he can’t be sure. This whole thing was his mother’s idea - “you’re over 30 and still unmarried, you owe it to your grandmother” - and Tommy’s never had the heart to argue with his mother about the unimportant things. Like embarrassing himself on TV for the few short nights he’s sure it’ll take to get himself kicked out on his ass.

So, he goes on TV and makes nice with Cheryl - Shaela? Fuck, Tommy needs to pull himself together, he won’t get a rose every week based on looks and trust fund alone - and pretends to get his hackles up around the other contestants. Which would be a lot more believable if he could even remember what Shaela - is it actually Cheryl? he should really look that up - looks like, beyond ‘generic blonde.’

It’s difficult to sleep in the paradise hotel-turned-production studio, so he rolls out of bed past midnight and goes in search of a vending machine. He feeds it his last crumpled dollar, and it’s just his luck that his Sun Chips get stuck. In retrospect, it wasn’t entirely fair, or rational, to take his frustration out on the vending machine, but his mother is a lot, his grandmother is a whole lot more, and Shaela/Cheryl is a whole lot of nothing, so he bangs his fist against the glass.

“Amateur.”

Tommy spins on his heel, freezing when he sees one of the producers he met earlier, the one with the mess of unruly curls under his headphones and the Luigi for President t-shirt. Lovett. Tommy’s almost certain his name was Lovett.

“You have to angle your fist like this.” Lovett demonstrates, striking the glass expertly. Tommy’s chips fall easily, and Lovett bends to grab them. “It’s just basic math. If you calculate the trajectory from the- Sun Chips? Sun Chips are the worst kind of chips. They’re chips for people who care more about saving 10 calories than eating sawdust. I fucking hate contestants. You guys are the worst.”

He holds the bag out, though, and Tommy takes it, their fingers brushing. “Ahh, thanks. I think.”

Lovett huffs. “If you want something that tastes like actual food, Favs has the entire writers’ room stash in our room.” He points to the open door next to the vending machine and Tommy falters - his mother’s voice saying ‘don’t be daft, you’re here to find a wife’ in his mind - but Lovett is already introducing him, “Favs, this is Tommy. He likes Sun Chips and knows nothing about math. Tommy, this is Favs. He’s the head writer. Of this ‘reality TV show,’ so, make your own judgements about that.”

Favs - who, Tommy can’t help noticing, has sharp cheekbones even when he grins and a gap tooth - kicks out with his socked foot, catching the back of Lovett’s knee. “This head writer made your career, oh mighty producer, so, settle down.”

Lovett laughs, catching Favs’ ankle and squeezing gently, before nodding at the pile of junk food on top of the dresser. “The good stuff is over there. Help yourself. Favs doesn’t mind.”

“You’re a monster.”

Lovett hums, sitting, cross-legged, on the carpet by Favs’ head. He rests his head back and, with the hand not scribbling on tomorrow’s script, Favs wraps his fingers in Lovett’s curls. “How are you at killing zombies?”

Tommy grabs a bag of Doritos and a container of sour worms and sits on the floor next to Lovett. “I’m alright.”

Lovett wrinkles his nose. “The sour kind? You are really the worst.” He reaches out, though, and steals a handful.

Tommy raises an eyebrow and, when Favs catches his eye, they share an eye roll.

“I like this one,” Favs murmurs, tightening his fingers in Lovett’s curls. Lovett hums and starts the game.

Tommy’s stomach turns.

When he’s kicked off two nights later, he thanks Shaela/Cheryl - he never did get around to asking which one it was - and heads straight for Lovett and Favs’ room. “I’m really not a Sun Chips kinda guy.”

Lovett laughs, wrapping his fingers in Tommy’s shirt and pulling him inside.

Fuck, Tommy’s going to have to tell his mother and his grandmother that they were right to force him onto this show after all.

Send me a ship and two AUs and I’ll tell you which AU I’d write for that ship.

#jontommyjon #ot3 #podsa #my fic #my first writing meme

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ahyesreaperscouncilor · 8 years ago

Text

Little Facts About Each Muse

sorry for length, well read more maybe.

Haral Nyras

He was called pretty turian in his past, due to the fact that he was for turian standards extremely good looking. And also tall with 6′9″. However it made applying to jobs harder since people thought he was stupid.

He has Corpalis Syndrome.

He is currently 78 years old.

He was in the Black Watch as a navigator but retired after the Reaper War (in Andromeda AU he retired before going to Andromeda)

He had three siblings but they all died.

He has a daughter called Silia. And is also kind of a caretaker to Camilea Octatus.

He has a huge daddy kink (He is the daddy btw xD)

Out of all my muses Haral and Clavius are the kinkiest.

He sits in a wheel chair because his legs got crushed during the Reaper War.

Karnesh

He is the son of Okeer and some unknown female.

He is sterile and the genophage cure is totally useless to him.

He has a weird psychologic behaviour to the point of being unable to feel strong emotions.

He was raised on Korlus and never went to Tuchanka hence no clan name.

He is scared to death by Asari.

He uses sniper rifles (especially a black widow).

He likes all kinds of deserts.

Clavius Tarxis / Irelius Draxas

Irelius is Clavius real name.

Clavius has CIPA Syndrome the inability to feel any pain, cold, heat and other nerve related things.

He has severe PTSD due to his time in the Cabals, leaving especially Irelius paranoid and scared when he comes out.

He has a daughter with Camilea Octatus despite beng gay (He tends to make out with women when he gets drunk)

He has an implant but never uses his biotics.

He likes men that are way younger than him (meaning between 20 and 30)

He is very dominant but always for the pleasure of his partners.

Renius Sparatus

He is racist against humans and doesn’t hide it (although he respects military personal such as Anderson, Hackett and maybe even Shepard)

His whole family died around the Relay314 Incident.

After the Reaper War he is basically half robot.

He has to work all the time, even worse than Irius sometimes.

He is not somone to commit easily especially in the main verse.

He comes from the turian colony Invictus.

Torana Sparatus

C-Sec wasn’t actually her first choice in work.

She has big troubles getting pregnant which she doesn’t see as a problem.

She is the sister of the councilor and daughter of Renius.

She comes more after her father.

She has dated a krogan once and said it was kind of interesting.

Sometimes people want her to dominate them which she actually does (sometimes)

She was once trained to become a spectre but stopped because she didn’t want to be under her brother (in a sense that he had control over her)

Jurdon Madadh

He is nearly 1400 years old.

He is a Battlemaster.

He likes lingerie on women (especially asari,humans and sometimes even turians if it is made right)

Unless you are an obvious asshole, he will like you.

He is quiet literally a grandpa.

He is currently the tallest muse I have with 8′3″

His name is pronounced Madack. It is scottish-gaelic meaning Dog.

Ganar Drealav

He is the leader of the Blood Pack after the Reaper because seriously Vorcha?

He is the believed brother of Garm (younger or older is unknown also it is not known if they are brood brothers like Wreav and Wrex)

He has a chainsaw which he never parted with.

Before being forced off Omega he had a VI which would speak for him.

He also had his mouth stitched together but can remove them and can talk.

He is evil plain and simple but is not likely to harm children.

Raik Cagar

She is gay but has children due to krogan and such stuff. But it is only business for her.

She is one the few krogan medics.

She is the granddaughter of Madadh. She is also the adoptive daughter of Karnesh.

She has melanism which makes her skin appear dark and also her crest is darker.

She is usally very calm but when you ignore her medical advice she can get nasty (not in the sense of hurting people)

Maron Hinom

He is actually a she and under disguise.

Maron was part of the STG before she blew up a research station.

She dies after the Reaper War (but is alive before and also during the war)

She is the bondmate of Karnesh.

Most of the time Maron is wearing a tactical cloak.

If she doesn’t know someone she is very distant to the point of being extremely rude.

Shaela’Riel vas Tonbay

Her suit was severly punctured and shredded during pilgramage which forced her to return to her birthship which is why Shaela is called vas Tonbay nar Tonbay.

She can never get naked without getting almost into a coma.

After the Reaper War she has a Geth Prime linked into her suit which makes it possible for her to at least get out into the street.

#relevant #haral things #renius things #clavius things #torana things #madadh thngs #cagar things #drealav things #shaela things #maron things #karnesh things

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jamieroxxartist · 3 years ago

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Today's Episode #1220 of 🎨#JamieRoxx’s Pop Roxx Radio 🎙️#TalkShow and 🎧#Podcast w/ Featured Guests:

● Michelle Ehlen, #Director, #Writer, #Actress & #ShaelaCook @shaelacook, Actress ( Maybe Someday, #Film | #LGBTQ+, #Comedy, #Drama)

has now been converted to a PODCAST and is now archived (for #FREE) at: ✔ www.PopRoxxRadio.com also on wherever you Stream or Download Podcasts at, Including:

✔ BlogTalkRadio: http://tobtr.com/12080219 ✔ Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/yynbdbky ✔ Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/hjdpqb6 ✔ iHeartRadio: https://tinyurl.com/yylvjl65 ✔ TuneIn: https://tinyurl.com/y34agloq ✔ Pandora: https://tinyurl.com/yygddano ✔ Google Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/yazcmb88 ✔ VIP Ad FREE on Jamie Roxx's Patreon: www.patreon.com/JamieRoxx

Pop Art Painter Jamie #Roxx (www.JamieRoxx.us) welcomes #MichelleEhlen, Dir, Wri, Act & #ShaelaCook, Act (Maybe Someday, Film | LGBTQ+, Comedy, Drama) to the Show!

● FB: @maybesomedayfilm ● TW: @MaybeSomedayJay ● IG: @maybesomedayfilm Watch the Film Here: https://creatics.org/cinejoy/moviepage/189777/Maybe-Someday

Maybe Someday will have its world premiere at Cinequest’s virtual film festival “#Cinejoy” April 1-17. An LGBTQ feature film highlighting different aspects of love and heartbreak, Maybe Someday is a nostalgic and moving journey written and directed by Michelle Ehlen. The film is Ehlen’s fifth feature and first dramedy, her prior films most notably being the first lesbian comedy trilogy - Butch Jamie, Heterosexual Jill, and S&M Sally. Maybe Someday stars Ehlen along with Shaela Cook from Heterosexual Jill and S&M Sally, and Charlie Steers.

● Media Inquiries: October Coast www.octobercoastpr.com

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withlovingregards · 6 years ago

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AU Yeah AUgust Day 11

Day 11: Mermaid

Fandom: Dragon Age: Inquisition

Iclyn dug her feet into the warm sand, sighing as she watched the blue waves roll up onto the shore. She hated the beach. It was too hot, with no shade for miles along the coast line to hide from the sun. The water that most splashed and played in always got into her eye, burning it, and you just... never knew what was out there in the water. Every brush of seaweed was like a monster’s hand twisting around your ankle.

And yet, here she was, at the beach. Not of her own volition, though. Her friends had decided that a nice beach day was something they should do to get their minds off of work while they had the chance. The elf had told them how much she hated the beach, but she’d been shot down when she tried to offer a different idea. Even Viv had vetoed her idea of a spa!

“Are you just going to sit there and pout all day, or are you actually going to come swim with us?”

“Was I not clear when I told you I hate the beach?”

“How can you hate the beach?!” Shaela questioned, looking positively bewildered. Iclyn narrowed her light blue eyes at the tattooed elf.

“Do you really want me to go through that whole list?”

“Well, if you’re not going to get in the water, at least try to get a tan while you’re here.”

“I like being pale, thank you very much!” Iclyn shouted to the retreating back of her friend, who was running into the arms of her boyfriend. Cullen scooped her up with a laugh before he immediately threw her farther into the water. The dark-haired woman came to the surface, hair already tangled as she sputtered out some water from her mouth.

Ugh, gag her right here. Iclyn wasn’t going to be able to watch everyone having a good time while she was absolutely miserable. Sometimes, she really missed her home in the Emerald Graves, running barefoot through the tall grass and trees.

All she had at her disposal now was hot sand and sharp shells. Neither of which sounded very appealing.

Well, she did have another option.

Looking a little bit further down the beach, the white haired elf eyes the large rocks that littered the shore, ranging in size, though a lot of them seemed large enough to be their own cliffs. Rocks were rocks, right? Surely, they had to be just as rocky as the ones she had back home.

“It’s either climb those rocks or stay here and be miserable,” Iclyn said, standing up and doing the best she could to dust off the sand that was sticking to her body. Grabbing her beach cover and Cole’s silly sun hat, she made her way slowly towards the rocks, casting the occasional glance over to her frolicking friends. She probably should have told them where she was going, but she was a grown adult. She could wander if she pleased.

It didn’t take long for her to reach a nice little expanse of rocks and boulders, which were a lot bigger than she had thought them to be. Running her hands along one of the medium sized ones, her theory was confirmed. They were exactly like the rocks back in her homeland, and every other place she had ever touched a rock. Well, they were wet, but that was to be expected when you came to the beach. Iclyn wondered how far the water came up during high tide.

The woman searched for the largest boulder, which actually went into the water several yards, while also being a couple feet above the waves that crashed against its underside. Best spot if any for a climb.

Even though it had been years since she’d indulged in her childish past time on climbing literally everything she could, Iclyn could still do just that. She hadn’t lost the talent, and it was almost like her feet and hands knew exactly where they needed to go and how to angle themselves to give her the best grip. Every inch that she climbed higher seemed to loosen a weight she had on her shoulders, and when she finally made her way to the top, she felt all the annoyance of the day just melt away, and she could actually admit that the beach was actually very pretty.

Carefully making her way towards the pointed edge of the cliff like overhang, Iclyn dangled her feet over, holding in a giggle when the back splash of the breaking waves soaked the bottom of her feet. See, why would you need to go swimming when you had something like this? Looking over, her friends were spots in the distance, and she could see that Cole seemed to be back to the shore, looking for the hat she had stolen. At this, Iclyn did laugh, and pulled it farther down her head.

“Maybe having a day of relaxation was something I needed. We have been working pretty hard lately.”

Letting out a sigh, Iclyn leaned back until she was laying down against the hard rock, after all this time still used to the feeling of it on her back. Thankfully, it wasn’t too bright outside, with the sun hidden mostly by the clouds, some thick with rain to come later in the day. And as she listened to the world around her, listened to the waves roll up to the shore, fizzing with bubbles as it pulled grains of sand back into its depth, Iclyn felt sleep in the back of her mind. Surely, a nap here on the rocks would do her no harm. Shaela had told her to get a tan while she could.

Except, what had just been the waves before, soothing white noise to tuck her in, there was now something else. Something more... musical. But it was not something beautiful, but rather something sharp, demanding. And Iclyn found herself listening to that demand.

She rose from her position, standing up quicker and straighter than she ever had in her life. Her eyes felt unfocused, blurry, as if there was something blocking her from seeing what truly out there on the horizon. Pleased, the sound grew softer, a tad more gentle, but even more commanding. Iclyn could hear actual words in her ears now.

Jump, it whispered to her. So she did.

As soon as she hit the cold water, the voice in her head was gone, leaving her in a panic as she swam to the surface of the water, gulping for air she was lacking. It didn’t last long as the waves moved her, and Iclyn realized what kind of danger she was in. While the sea wasn’t so deep here, at only seven or eight feet, the waves beat hard here. Straight against the rock that she’d been perched on before.

Try all she might, she couldn’t swim away from her impending doom as the wave brought her closer and closer to the blunt edges of the rock. The moment she slammed into it, her back and head as a whole, there was only pain.

Before the world started to swim before her, Iclyn heard a deep voice yell “No!” But she went under, and hoped that this would not be her final resting place.

----

Thankfully, she came to sputtering, her head hurting like an absolute bitch, but after she coughed up all the water in her lungs, she was able to breathe with only the slightest bit of difficulty. The elf gulped down the air as deep as she could, turning on her side to cough out the water easier. A large hand on her back switched between patting her and rubbing gentle circles on the aching skin. With how much pain she was in right now, that was the best thing she had felt all day.

When everything seemed right in Iclyn’s world, she struggled to sit up, aided by the large hands, which ended up doing most of the work, she was so tiny in their hold. Brushing her hair out of her face, the woman finally turned to thank her rescuer from an untimely death, though the words got stuck in her sore throat.

Not that she would ever admit it to anyone other than herself, but the first thing Iclyn noticed was that the man was the most attractive person she had ever seen besides Dorian, but he didn’t count since he was on the same team as her. Iclyn had never seen such a large Qunari before, though she had met very few in her life. He was looking at her with genuine concern in his eyes, well single eye, since the other was covered in a leather eye patch, but that single look alone was enough to cause color to rise to her cheeks. So she looked down, embarrassed to be caught in such a situation.

Only to find that the man didn’t have legs to speak of. No, his body ended just below his hips, before flaring off into a tail. A scaled and muscles tail, perfect for swimming through the water at fast speeds. If Iclyn had been in the right mind, she would have told the Qunari that the pink scales fit his tone perfectly. However, she wasn’t in the right mind, because her brain was making it seem like this man was a mermaid. Merman? Was there a difference?

“I’m going to have to ask two things of you,” he said to her slowly in the voice she had heard right before she’d been knocked unconscious, “One, don’t scream, because that’s going to cause a lot of unwanted attention. Two, please don’t pass out, because I really don’t want to leave you alone here while I look for help, and I don’t have time to dry out to find your friends-”

“You’re... an actual mermaid? Those exist?” Her words sounded slurred, but she tried to keep herself as straight as possible, since the man had asked her so kindly not to pass out.

His worried looked changed as he let out a laugh, nodding his head to answer her question.

“We do, though we’re not really supposed to let anyone know that. But I couldn’t let that Siren spell you like that and have you for dinner.”

“Wait, you’re the one who saved me? From a Siren? There’s a difference-”

“Maybe you should slow down until your head isn’t pounding any more. I was able to stop the bleeding, but that doesn’t mean you’re out of the woods yet. But yes, I did save you.”

Iclyn blinked, trying her best to process all the information coming to her at once. She knew what the first words out of her mouth had to be though.

“Thank you,” she blurted, leaning in closer to the man so he could hear her better over the waves, “You didn’t have to do that. I’m sure it’s something you see every day, yet you just happened to be there to save me.”

“I couldn’t let a pretty elf like you just die. You seem to unhappy with the world to go so soon. Maybe it's time you find something that makes you happy to keep you in it.”

“Why was that the sweetest but also the saddest thing someone’s ever said to me?” Iclyn tried to mumble to herself, but had been loud enough for the mermaid to hear. The man chuckled again, which was when the elf realized that she didn’t even know the name of her savior.

“I’m incredibly rude. I’m Iclyn, the ungrateful lf you saved from drowning and also becoming food.”

“I’m Iron Bull, the mermaid that’s very surprised you’re not freaking out about this whole situation.”

“It’s probably the head injury,” the white haired woman summarized, shrugging even though it hurt to do so.

“Well, there is going to be one more surprise which I hope doesn’t freak you out too much.”

Iclyn cocked her head to the side in her confusion, looking over the man as he moved away from her just a little bit. Her eyed grew to the size of dinner plates as she watched the quick transformation she saw before her. The pink scales seemed to fade away to the same grey as Iron Bull’s skin, also separating in the middle to form two large, muscular legs. Along with, uh, something else.

“Oh my god, you’re naked,” the elf said quickly, turning away from the Qunari with a completely red face.

“Well, I’ve got this hat I can use to cover myself up.”

#AU Yeah AUgust #auyeahaugust #Dragon Age #dragon age: inquisition #DA:I #Iron Bull #my writing

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