#she's been my special interest since I was like 12-13

[wearesorcerer]

But as I am not a Brit and do not commit drive-by argument -- or rather, since I started this, I'm going to continue it. Mwahahaha. Cut for length.

That would check out if we didn't roll for stats (you're a kitty cat? then you get Dexterity 16, no variations), or if everyone in the world rolled for stats, PCs and NPCs and monsters (so the +2 to the Dexterity of all kitty cats will result in statistically more dexterous kitty cats in comparison to, say, orcs in the general population of the campaign setting).

Although I do kinda see the appeal of the first one as far as stat generation goes, the second one is spurious: the only reason we don't roll for stats for everyone is because it's too time consuming on a DM's part to stat every single NPC as an individual. It's something that has gradually been phased out: in OD&D, BECMI, and at least AD&D 1e (possibly 2e), you did roll each creature's HD to determine HP -- and in many cases they didn't have ability scores listed, which makes me wonder if those just didn't exist for them (they were only their combat block) or if you rolled for those, as well. (My experience with editions before 3rd is too incomplete for me to know one way or the other, which I find to be a failure on my part.)

For the longest time, rolling stats was presented as an option for minor NPCs (and there was a whole stat array in older DMGs for semi-randomized stats for NPC adventurer-types by class to meet in the middle).

We roll PCs that way because, originally, they weren't guaranteed to be heroic in stature: it gave a way of potentially representing anyone. (This is also no doubt the origin of the Prime Requisite: you had to be this tall [have a stat this high] to enter [take the class] and you got a bonus to XP if you were so much over that threshold because the stats didn't give bonuses and penalties as frequently as they have since 3rd edition.) Or, at least, we did: I've found that dice rolling is the least preferred method of character generation in 5e both in presentation and in play. Mostly, we use the "Standard Array" (Elite Array in 3.x; standard was 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8) or a point buy setup that is meant to generate the same results and utilizes the same caps (8 - 15).

I'ma split things up a bit for your next paragraph.

If you get a +2 to Dexterity from your species, the combination of what you rolled and where you're assigning each roll could still result in a clumsy, Dex 6 kitty cat. (Which should not be impossible! Not all kitty cats are the same! And even if a tiny minority of them are clumsy, people are allowed to be special, and adventurers are expected to be special.) So if the stat adjustment from your species doesn't guarantee you'll end up in the average of your species, what's even its point? It has no point, if you ask me.

That literally is the point.

The best example I saw of this was Baggi the Half-Orc Barbarian, a character a friend of mine played in undergrad. Baggi had an Int of 3. Since I was taking a linguistics course at the time, I had found out that animals like chimps (in 3.x, capped at Int 2) had vocabularies of about 300 words and related this to Baggi's player, which she used as guideline's for Baggi's speech: she knew some words in Common and some in Orc. Even though her Wisdom was decent, she had to be directed a lot and caused problems for the party -- realistic ones, as the player in question had worked with mentally disabled people (especially kids) long enough to pull this off.

And everyone loved it. Baggi was the most memorable of the characters in that particular campaign. The incidents other players got into were memorable, but Baggi was by far the most interesting and memorable purely as a character.

(I'll come back to racial Int penalties, which is where this whole thing started, later.)

Raistlin Majere's notoriously poor Constitution also comes to mind. He managed to work in setting despite his frailty, frequently as a plot point. Hell, my first "Rogue" (it wasn't a Rogue, but it pretended to be one) had a Strength and Con of 3 and 4 (no, I don't remember which was which).

I can't think of an instance where a character has used a racial bonus to offset an extremely low roll, but it's not an outlandish idea. Hell, it's fairly strategic: if you roll well on most stats but have one that's really low, matching it with your racial bonus aids in the extreme. I've done it numerous times with low but not horrible rolls.

I hatehatehate this notion that you have to have high stats to work in the game. Perhaps adventurers need high stats to survive, realistically speaking. Perhaps they don't: people with disabilities have lived and even thrived in communities of humans since there were humans. There's a wheelchair user in the middle of splash art in the new PHB! (Doing nothing but posing in a situation-inappropriate accommodation, I might add: it's clear the character is probably an Artificer, despite that class not appearing in the book, and yet the chair doesn't have mechanical legs or a levitation device or whatever.)

But of course that's how 5e works: there are no racial penalties and the preferred methods of stat generation aren't rolling dice, but choosing an array or point buy, neither of which can give you a stat below 8 (and now nothing higher than 15, so whatever).

I've seen people talk about removing the abilities altogether since at least 3rd and more often now because they're not really used and no one has a low score. I think that's a shame, as having meaningful drawbacks that come up a lot is a great source of characterization. But I've said that already.

That's the logic which gave women a strength penalty in older editions.

The notorious Strength cap for women in 1st edition AD&D isn't the same logic at all. It flat out ignored that the different races didn't necessarily have the same underlying biology, for one, since caps applied to all races, and had nothing to do with stereotype. Which we're getting to.

(Next couple of paragraphs were continuation of the same thoughts I've already discussed. Moving further.)

Benefits: pick a +2 and a +1 stat boost OR or 3 +1 stat boosts, an origin feat, two skill proficiencies, and one tool proficiency, take 50 gold, off you go. Isn't that liberating?

I like that idea in practice, but y'know what that is? The same thing as giving each character a non-class progression with a bonus feat at 1st level and every level divisible by X (3 in 3.x, 4 in 5e) and assigning points or whatnot to skills. Like in 3rd edition. Which the backgrounds wanted to avoid by being packages and giving RP advice.

But more importantly, those bonuses? That's already represented in game by assigning your ability scores to fit your class. You are a Rogue with a high Dex because of backstory reasons, which is why you assigned your high roll to Dex. I'm not against the notion of class (or background) giving you ability boosts also so as to mitigate the problem of insufficiency in the stat generation mechanics, but taking it away from something that also has justification (biology) and has more justification to be static than upbringing doesn't make sense.

I'm not going to belabor the issues of racism in D&D. They are manifold and beside the point. But I will point this out: the logic behind having races give ability score bonuses is the same logic as having races provide racial features. It's biological determinism. And having an elf get +2 Dex fits with how elves work, whereas having your background give you +2 Dex is just "hey, I have more points from my point buy!" But I said that already.

As things currently stand (2024), race accounts for your size (almost always Medium, with being Small not mattering all that much), speed (pretty much 30), aging rate (purely cosmetic), whether or not you have Darkvision or resistance to something (which you can and will get, either outright or an equivalent thereof, via items), and something analogous to an origin feat that doesn't quite match (Elf Lineage vs. Magic Initiate, Halfling Luck vs. Lucky, etc.). Or, to go down to what's left that separates one from the next, a not-quite-feat and cosmetics. That's not just boring, that's irrelevant. And as far as biology goes, it's unrealistic. 5e had already downgraded so many races to a point like this already; now it's an extra step in character creation that exists because LotR had a fandom. It's to the point that the leading game in a genre that works really well for xenofiction cannot actually do xenofiction anymore: approaching racial personality traits gets questionable very quickly and biology seldom matters. At least the racial bonuses (and penalties!) made your choice of race material.

Undecided about D&D 5.5 and the 2024 rules

Pros:

Weapon Mastery

Cunning Strike

stat boosts and skills moving from Species to Backgrounds

the PHB rules glossary and the DMG toolkit (for ease of use)

origin feats, and general feats giving +1 to a stat

easier to homebrew player-facing rules (because feats and subclasses are more streamlined)

some big changes, some minor tweaks

Cons:

power creep (full assessment pending until the MM comes out)

uneven power creep

stealth makes no sense

they fully bailed on the skill system

strains suspension of disbelief even more

less support for homebrewed monsters

some big changes, some minor tweaks

The CR system needs playtesting with the new Monster Manual, so assessment pending. We're probably gonna see much more dangerous monsters: Cure Wounds straight up doubled the hp it heals, and healing in general is a lot more generous. I don't know if that bloat was necessary, or motivated by anything other than "players can do MOAR damage now, buy our new books to be COOLER!", followed by a domino effect.

At this point, I'm torn between incorporating a few 5.5 rules to 5e, or a few 5e rules to 5.5, or whole other subsystems to either (I'm looking at the skill system of Level Up a.k.a. Advanced 5th Edition, it's interesting), or abandoning D&D altogether (because I'm tired, not because it's that bad). But I'm pretty sure I won't adopt 5.5 as is.

Assessment pending.

[ateawithoney]

Try not to hyper fixate on Harley Quinn again, challenge impossible

[lorarri]

★ . . . 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 , 𝐋𝐇𝟒𝟒

summary , after 12 year's Y/N's parents finally divorce leaving Y/N in a tough position when he mothers new boyfriends comes into the picture

pairing , step dad! lewis hamilton x fem! young teen! reader

series masterlist | main masterlist | f1 masterlist | lewis hamilton masterlist | next part

yourinstagram

liked by nanayn leejunho 87,662,787 others

yourinstagram no matter what goes down I know I'm safe with my girls

comments have been disabled

MUM ❤️

hi baby

are you excited about your special day?

Y/NNIE 🐰

hi ma

yeah

I'm so happy I get to spend it with the girls

MUM ❤️

oh

Y/N I thought we agreed that you would spend your birthday with me and Lewis

we booked a reservation at your favourite restaurant

the one that we used to go to all the time with your father

Y/NNIE 🐰

sorry mum me and the girl's have already have everything planned out

and it's to late to cancel

why don't you and him go instead to the reservation

make it a date or whatever

MUM ❤️

he has a name Y/N

and the day isn't about me and Lewis

it's about you

which is why I want you to spend the day with me

with us

you can't avoid him forever

please Y/N Lewis is a lovely man

if you just talk to him

I think the two of you would get along

Y/NNIE 🐰

and what play mom's new boyfriend and daughter?

I'm not interested in playing house with the man who destroyed our family

MUM ❤️

Y/N...

me and your father had been talking about divorce since you were 12 sweetheart

Lewis is not the reason we split

Y/NNIE 🐰

then why does it feel like it

yourinstgaram

liked by hanni danielle 98,787,787 others

yourinstgaram sweet 16 with the people I can trust 🤍

comments have been disabled

yourinstagram . 10min ago

seen by nanaln minji haerin 435 others

Y/NNIE 🐰

dad please come pick me up

mom's boyfriend is staying at the house I don't like him

dad please

I miss you

dad?

lewis just proposed to mom...

I don't know what to do

dad please

did I do something wrong?

do you not love me any more?

please say something anything

I'm sorry read

lewishamilton

liked by nanaln charles_leclerc 89,672,156 others

lewishamilton my one and my wife to be 🤍

comments have been disabled

─ requested by . . .

anon ─ Hi, I was reading your stories and I have a request/idea for your F1 stories that I was wondering if you could do only if you’re comfortable doing it. Basically the readers mom splits from her father for whatever reason you choose and then she marries Lewis making him the readers stepdad who is like 13 or 12 and they just have a hard time connecting and interacting because she misses her biological father but over time they start to bond. And her mom is happy or something idk. (female reader btw) This is it really, if you need to add or change anything then go ahead but yeah that’s it really.

[badbatchsprincess]

Heated ~ pt.10

Pt.1 ~ Pt.2 ~ Pt.3 ~ Pt.4 ~ Pt.5 ~ Pt.6 ~ Pt.7 ~ Pt.8 ~ Pt.9 ~ Pt.10 ~Pt.11 ~ Pt.12 ~ Pt.13 ~ Pt.14 ~ Pt.15 ~ Pt.16 ~ Pt.17 ~ Pt.18 ~ Pt.19 ~ Pt.20 ~ Pt.21 ~ Pt.22 ~ Pt.23 ~ Pt.24 ~ Pt.25

Masterlist

Summary: This is an ABO Bad batch!Poly x Omega Reader smut with a plot. This takes place as an AU before order 66. Y/N previously served under the 501st before being transferred to Special Forces 99. This is her adventure with these rowdy Alphas in a quickly changing universe.

THIS IS AN ABO AU ABOUT THE BAD BATCH (NO CANON OMEGA!) Due to the unfortunate situation of her name being Omega… Omega the child from the canon series is not going to be apart of this fanfic/porn with a plot. I feel obligated to put this warning in because it makes my skin crawl thinking anyone could make that mistake. 

Warnings: tooth rotting cuteness and domestic bliss... no other warnings. Next chapter will have some drama.

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

The glowing candlelight was truly the final touch that set the mood in your small, government-sanctioned living quarters. The holoscreen played the last few episodes of Real Housewives of Upper Coruscant in the background as you pulled out some ingredients for dinner.

A soft knock on the door interrupted your preparations, and you checked the time—it was definitely Layla.

“Come in!” You called from the kitchen.

The door whooshed open, and Layla entered backward, maneuvering a hover cart filled with all the delicious meals Echo and the boys loved so much.

“Ah! Thank you!” You smiled, dropping the kitchen rag to help her settle the items.

“Everyone was looking at me like I was crazy down in the stockroom, but they didn’t give me any trouble luckily,” she said, blowing a loose strand of hair away from her face before taking a seat on one of your barstools.

“Today was interesting,” Layla giggled, grabbing a drink from the stash.

“Tell me about it,” you shook your head. “I literally can’t believe Skywalker sometimes... ever since Ahsoka...”

“He cares. More than a Jedi should, I think, but he has a good heart,” Layla sipped her drink.

You grabbed some Felucian wine and poured yourself a glass. “He needs a pup to fuss over.”

“Is that even allowed?” Layla asked.

“Definitely not,” you sighed.

“Well, you’re the next best thing then, the only omega in his direct vicinity,” Layla replied.

You nodded in agreement, but you knew that wasn’t entirely true. Too many times you had caught the General sneaking off with Rex’s help to go talk to a mystery woman when you were stationed on long tours. You also noticed a few times he had come back smelling like omega when off duty. You never said anything, but Anakin wasn’t like the other Jedi. He felt everything so deeply; you knew it would have been impossible for him to be as pious as the others.

But Anakin was the Chosen One; you trusted him to do the right thing. He was one of the most loyal men you’d ever known, besides Rex and his boys. They were an extremely close group that you were so thankful to have been welcomed into.

You cleared your throat, trying to focus on something else. “I thought he was going to take the speculum himself,” you laughed.

“Nearly did,” Layla chuckled. “Can he really read thoughts?”

“Yup,” you nodded.

“Like... anyone’s thoughts?” She sounded nervous.

“Yes? Why?” You smirked.

She poked her tongue into her cheek. “I may or may not have been thinking about Fox...” she cringed.

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m pretty sure he had to witness all the points of view of me in heat from my entire unit during the briefing with the Chancellor,” you sighed.

The two of you looked at each other for a moment of silence before bursting out into hysterical laughter.

“Oh my gods!” She screamed, wiping away tears from laughing so hard. “Nooooo!”

“Ahhh!” You wheezed, setting down your wine glass. “I’m literally horrified.”

“Is that why he almost burst into the exam room?!” She howled. “You were thinking about... them?”

“You asked me about it! Of course, I was thinking about it!” You screeched.

The laughing only got worse. You two got to the point of begging the other to stop laughing from the pain.

“That’s why he was so deranged!” She huffed, getting her hysterics under control.

You sighed, taking in a deep breath to calm yourself too.

“Ugh,” you wiped your eyes. “I thought the worst of it was that I’d show up in this awful dress. I wish you could have seen it, Layla, oh my god, I was fighting for my life on that tarmac... It was even making the Guard act up. Skywalker was so mad,” you leaned against the counter for support.

“Do you think he’s actually mad?” She asked, taking a bigger sip of her wine.

“Gods, I hope not,” you sighed. “I don’t even know what he thinks. Probably thinks they’re taking advantage of me.”

“Are they?” Layla asked cautiously.

“No! Oh no... if anything, I was taking advantage of them.”

She raised a brow.

“That came out wrong,” you scrambled. “It was more of a pre-discussed arrangement. It was getting so bad I didn’t have another option. They wanted me to choose one... but the horny omega in me wanted all of them,” you chewed your lip.

“How did that even work?” She asked, intrigued. This was like the dirt nasty holonovels she had just finished. “They didn’t try to kill each other?”

“Shockingly no,” you replied, wanting to dish. “I think because they’re so used to sharing everything, it didn’t bother them much... except Crosshair.”

“Is that the sniper?” She leaned forward. “He’s hot... in, like, a dark, tortured kind of way.”

“Yeah,” you chewed your lip. “He’s more possessive than the others, but even he shared with a little strong-arming.”

“And the sergeant?”

“Hunter?” You smiled. “He’s so hot, girl. Oh my god,” you fanned yourself. “He seemed really worried about the whole thing, but then he told me he’s been interested for almost a year now, and I didn’t have any clue. He was on Skako Minor, apparently.”

“Are all their...” She made a motion to her crotch. “The same?” She giggled.

You shook your head, and she gasped.

“The demolition expert, Wrecker, has a massive—” Layla cut you off with a scream.

You laughed, watching her react.

“I couldn’t walk straight.”

“And the smart one with the glasses?” She was so curious.

“He’s secretly super dominant,” you confessed. “Him and Crosshair like to double team.”

She screamed again, and you chuckled, taking a sip from your glass. The TV droned in the background as the two of you caught up, totally forgetting about the dinner you were supposed to be cooking.

“Oh shoot, hold on, I forgot our food!” You skipped around the kitchen, grabbing two of the meals from the crate. When you opened the boxes and started getting to work, Layla interrupted you to change the subject.

“I saw something weird come through earlier,” she pulled her data pad from her purse. “It’s a message from Fives.” She slid the tablet towards you.

You took it while the food was warming in the pan. On the screen was a memo from your friend. It read: "There was an accident with Tup. They’re taking him back to Kamino, but I think something is very wrong. He killed a Jedi. I’ll let you know more when I have an update.”

You looked at her, and she shrugged.

“Why did he send this to you?” You were curious.

“We may have gotten a little closer when you were recovering after Crait,” she blushed a bit.

“You and Fives?” You were surprised, then you narrowed your eyes with a devilish smirk. “Echo’s told me about Fives’ adventurous tastes...”

She flushed red. “He’s definitely like no other I’ve ever had... he did this thing with his tongue—”

A knock at the door cut her off.

“It’s open!” You yelled.

In walked just the man you were thinking about. “Speak of the devil.”

“Huh?” Echo looked perplexed walking into the living room. He closed the door behind him and spun around, standing at attention, noticing Layla lounging at your kitchen island, drink in hand.

“Ma’am,” he was acting stiff and nervous.

You smirked.

“You met my friend Layla, right?” You were suddenly getting ideas of revenge.

“Yes,” he nodded. “On General Skywalker’s Venator.”

“Good to see you, Echo,” she smiled.

“You as well,” he looked to you, a little stunned.

“Layla brought the meals you boys like so much,” you gestured to the crate floating in the corner of the room.

“Oh, thank you,” you saw the excitement in his eyes.

“You want some chow?” You pointed to the stove.

“If you have enough...” he could smell how delicious it was from the living room.

“Just don’t tell the others,” you smiled, motioning him to sit down. “They’re going to start to think I have favorites.”

“Do you have favorites?” Layla waggled her eyebrows.

“Oh no, you don’t get to rag on me too,” you pointed the spatula at her.

Echo took a seat, one stool over from Layla. She poured him a glass of wine and angled her body to face him.

“So you’re an ARC trooper?” She eyed him up and down, taking in his armor.

“Yes, Ma’am,” he turned to face her too.

“What’s that like?” She sipped her drink.

“Same as the others, we’ve just got more training,” he replied.

“He’s being modest. It means he’s a badass,” you shook your head, stirring the vegetables.

Echo huffed a laugh, and Layla scooted closer. “Badass, huh?”

“You could say that.”

“Get into all sorts of trouble, huh?” She didn’t shy away from staring. She locked in on his muscly arms and defined jaw.

“You have no idea,” he gave her a charming smile.

“As much as I love watching whatever this is,” you waved between them, “Echo, did you need something?”

“I came to pick up my civvies,” he eyed Layla, making her preen under his attention.

“Down the hall to the right. There’s a coat closet. Yours is on the top shelf over Tech’s,” you waved in the general direction. He smiled and stood up, walking through the living room down the hall. Following your directions, he picked up a black hoodie and his cybernetic arm. He shed his armor and top, making Layla drool.

You just shook your head, turning back to the food before it burned. Grabbing a few plates, you began dividing the portions and setting them down on the island.

Echo came back, adjusting his cybernetic arm, flexing the fingers, getting used to having a hand instead of the scomp again. He pushed up the hoodie sleeves to sit down and dig into his portion.

“Better?” You asked, and he nodded.

“No one cooks like you, Tiny,” he mumbled between bites.

“Glad you like it,” you took a bite yourself, enjoying the warm meal.

The three of you chatted idly while finishing up your plates. Echo helped you clean up while Layla pulled out the ingredients to make fresh cookies.

“Echo? Do you still talk with Fives?” You asked, drying the plate before putting it away.

“On occasion. I prefer to catch up with him in person on leave,” he helped put the wine glasses up on the higher shelves.

“He sent Layla a scary message.”

Layla brought over her data pad, handing it to him. He took it and read through the message, looking worried.

“He killed a Jedi?” Echo was in disbelief. “That’s literally impossible. We’re programmed not to.”

"Thats what I was thinking," you sighed, crossing your arms.

"Something must be seriously wrong then," Echo shook his head. "I can’t imagine what though."

"Do we tell the others?" you asked.

She shook his head. "I don’t think it’s relevant. Probably just a malfunction in his makeup."

You nodded.

Then there was another knock on your door. "Wow, I’m popular tonight."

You walked over to the door, opening the hatch. There stood the bad batch.

"Hi boys," you waved them in. "Just in time to help make cookies."

Hunter stepped in first, helmet in hand. The others filed in close behind.

"Do you have our civvies, Pip?" Wrecker asked eagerly.

"Yeah, honey, they’re down the hall in the closet!"

Wrecker bounded down the hall excitedly to grab his spare clothes.

"Tech, would you mind helping with this?" You scooted over so he could stand over the big bowl. "I trust you to make proper measurements."

He washed his hands and returned to assist.

"How were your exams?" Layla asked, kicking out a barstool for Hunter to sit on.

"Clean bill of health," the sergeant replied.

"Good. Barely recognize you; last time I saw you, you were trying to pounce my friend," Layla winked at him.

He heard your heart accelerate and your scent change, then turned to face you. "You told her?"

"She figured it out," you held the measuring cup as Tech poured the sugar.

"An experienced doctor would be able to detect such activities from a pelvic exam, which we all witnessed her having earlier today," Tech skillfully leveled out the sugar before letting you pour it into the bowl. "Layla is more than qualified to come to such conclusions."

You just nodded and rested your head on Tech’s shoulder, looking to Hunter.

"I won’t tell anyone about the group activities," Layla teased Hunter. "Had to make sure none of you knocked her up."

Hunter choked and paled.

"It came back negative!" You reassured. Hunter visibly relaxed.

"I’m a little disappointed," Layla poured herself another glass of wine. "I wanted to be an auntie."

Tech reached around you to grab the butter, pressing you into the counter with his waist. You stirred the contents diligently, letting Crosshair swipe a finger into the dough for a taste.

Wrecker came bounding back into the living room in his comfies, thrilled to have found one surviving band tee.

"Who’s an auntie?" He asked.

"No one," you shook your head.

"Had Skywalker all bent out of shape," Layla was stirring the pot. Maybe Echo and Layla would be perfect for each other, you realized.

"General Skywalker?" Hunter tried not to sound worried.

"Yeah," Layla giggled. "He reads minds."

The boys suddenly tensed, thinking back to their interactions with the general earlier… they were cooked. They were definitely thinking about the truth while spinning their falsified accounts of the crash.

"Stop worrying them," you grumbled. "Skywalker won’t say anything."

"Is that why he wanted to read your results?" Tech asked, moving your hair out of the way while you mixed everything together.

"Most likely," you sighed, leaning into the pilot.

"Why would the General care?" Crosshair leaned against the kitchen counter, stealing another lick of batter.

Layla pointed to you. "Anakin lost his padawan, treated her like an adopted pup. Y/N became the next best thing for him to worry about."

"Did the padawan die in action?" Wrecker asked.

"No, Ahsoka didn’t die," you poured out the contents of the bowl to start kneading it on the counter. "She left the order after a friend of hers framed her for a murder she didn’t do. Anakin was the only one who believed her; it broke Anakin’s heart when she left."

"He’s not like the other Jedi, is he?" Tech held you from behind.

"No, he’s different," you agreed.

"He’s hot," Layla coughed.

You just shook your head while the others huffed a laugh.

"Ahsoka was my best friend too. I couldn’t bear to be around the others while also grieving her. That’s why I requested the transfer, and Rex sent me to you," you grabbed the rolling pin to start speeding out the cookie dough.

"I’m sorry to hear that, Pip. But I’m not sorry that you ended up with us," Hunter offered you a smile.

You nodded. "Me too."

"What are you watching?" Crosshair pointed his toothpick at the holoscreen.

"Real Housewives of Upper Coruscant," Layla replied. "Maru just found out her husband was having an affair with a Twi’lek stewardess, and she’s losing it."

"Is this non-fiction?" Tech scrutinized the screen.

"It’s called reality TV," Layla nodded.

"This is how people actually live?" Hunter asked, looking at all of the ball gowns and sparkly jewels around their necks.

"Just the one percent," Layla nodded, admiring the emerald dress Maru was wearing.

"This is fascinating," Tech pushed up his glasses to watch the catfight unfolding on screen.

"That was a horrible right hook," Crosshair criticized.

"Ooh!" The whole room exclaimed, watching the Twi’lek cold-cock Maru. The heiress went flying across the screen. Then the husband and security guards started getting involved.

You started cutting out the cookies to place on the baking sheet while everyone’s eyes were glued to the screen.

"This is crazy," Wrecker shook his head, watching the husband and the security guards now going at it after the husband suspects his wife of sleeping with the guard.

"That’s the freedom you boys are fighting for," Layla laughed, finishing off her wine.

"Is this a popular genre of entertainment?" Tech asked, placing the sheets into the oven.

"Oh yeah. This and social media really have the culture in a chokehold," Layla nodded, pulling out her datapad.

"Show them Maru’s ZsaZsa page!" Echo popped a chip into his mouth.

"How do you know about this?" Hunter asked, taking the datapad and scrolling through the promiscuous photos of the TV heiress in her many vacation locations.

"Tiny and I used to download episodes before missions to watch on our downtime," Echo nodded. Of course he would…

"Is that real?" Wrecker pointed to Maru’s massive ass.

"Oh maker no. Cosmetic enhancements," Layla shook her head. "She’s a NovaStar too."

"What’s NovaStar?" Wrecker pondered, looking at the bikini pictures.

"A porn site," you laughed. "She makes content to sell; that’s how she has so much money."

"And she’s married?" Hunter gaped.

"When you got that kind of money, a lot of people are willing to overlook things," Layla tapped another profile, showing him the silliness the influencers of Coruscant are getting up to.

"Well, apparently she’s screwing the security too," Crosshair looked back at the screen, seeing the massive fight unfolding.

"This is like a nature documentary," Tech nodded.

"Civilians are so strange," Hunter shook his head.

"Fives used to have her pictures downloaded to his datapad," Echo laughed.

"Of course he did," you shook your head, checking the baking timer. "Okay, cookies are almost done; go get into your civvies and get comfy on the couch. I want to watch the rest of this."

They scrambled down the hall, looking for their stashed clothes. Everyone came back in their normal clothes, even Tech used the pair of glasses you had specially ordered him last quarterlies so he didn’t have to wear his goggles everywhere. Crosshair came back with a scowl, wearing Tech’s white t-shirt and grey sweats. Not his usual color palette, you stifled a giggle.

Everyone got comfortable on your large L-shaped couch while you pulled the cookies from the oven, letting them cool a bit before spreading some icing on them.

Tech helped you plate up for everyone and handed them out along with some blue milk for Wrecker.

"Okay! Hit play!" You commanded. Echo followed your orders, and you snuggled in between Wrecker and Tech with cookies in hand.

This is how the night continued, all seven of you snuggled up on the couch, sharing blankets and commenting on the latest few episodes. Wrecker polished off a tray of cookies for himself, rumbling with laughter at a joke someone had made on the screen.

Layla was resting her head on Echo’s shoulder as they stalked through the cast’s profiles online, chatting about their latest exploits.

Hunter leaned his head against your leg while he sat on the floor with Crosshair. You mindlessly played with Hunter’s hair when Tech pressed a small kiss to your forehead, making you gleam.

This was nice…

You didn’t dare move from this spot, terrified it would all disappear in a flash. It wasn’t long before the TV switched to something else while all of you had dozed off into peaceful sleep. The only one awake still was Tech, who looked over the whole scene with a sense of accomplishment. He remembered his jealousy at seeing you so comfortable with the 501st. Now he understands the kind of bonding you had needed to feel like this. 

This level of domestic intimacy was what you craved. It intrigued the pilot. He looked down at your slowly rising breasts, holding you close as you slept on his chest. He too was feeling at ease, something he didn’t think he had felt since he was a youngling. Perhaps it was allowing his alpha instincts to actually have what it was designed to.

Tech was so relaxed he didn’t hear Echo’s com ping. The ARC trooper stirred from his slumber, accidentally waking Layla. She just groaned and curled deeper into his side with a sleepy sigh. Echo rubbed his eyes, realizing one of those late-night reruns was playing on the holoscreen. He tapped the incoming message and tried to open his eyes a bit more to read the message clearly.

"What’s wrong?" Layla whispered.

"I think we’re being summoned," Echo yawned, putting his com away. "To Kamino."

"Why?"

"I dunno," he leaned his back onto the pillow, deciding this was a problem for later.

He’d let the others get some much-needed sleep before having to hop back onto a transport to their homeworld.

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

Taglist: @substantial-exposure

@rains-on-kamino

@minimissmoo

@z-and-the-batboys

@aynavaano

@9902sgirl

@sideofhorny

[rapha-reads]

Things from Interview With The Vampire s02e04 (ep11) I noticed:

[Edit 1: Actually this turned into a live-commenting, sorry]

[Edit 2: Keep in mind, I haven't read the books, so all of these observations are born from the show itself and the few (lots of) spoilers and narrative plot points I've gleaned here and there.]

Both Claudia and Louis are so bored with the coven. Or maybe bored isn't the word, but... Done? Frustrated and annoyed? Restless? Louis because he never intended to join and so cares not all for all their internal affairs. Claudia because she thought she'd finally have the life she wanted and instead is being forced to relive the tragedy of her life day after day.

And Armand rejoices in drawing them further apart, scolding and punishing Claudia while begging scraps from Louis.

And he's soooo jealous. The face he makes when Louis starts explaining what Dreamstat feels like is priceless.

Also, personal theory: either Louis is indeed suffering psychotic breaks after psychotic breaks, or just manifesting his own version of Lestat because he doesn't want to let go. Or Lestat can astral project and has been stalking Louis from the moment they left New Orleans.

The coven is tearing itself apart. And normally I'd add "and Armand isn't even seeing it/taking it seriously yet" but given that the whole of them are unreliable narrators and that Armand is a shady ass bitch whose only agenda is himself, I'd say he's well aware and purposefully making it worse.

I can't make sense of Santiago yet, though. Is he jealous? Ambitious? Is he fond of Claudia? Does he hate her? He definitely hates Louis, but is it just jealousy or real antipathy? Oh, but Louis is still my precious special kitten and that speech about Paris, art and modernity, as a contemporary culture student, made me vibrate a little out of my chair, and Santiago clowning him makes me want to claw his face. We get it, you hate him and you think he's pretentious, now can you shut up and let us talk a bit more about the art scene in Paris post-WW2 and why Louis is absolutely right, Picasso isn't all that impressive in the end? Thanks. Bacon tho, Bacon is interesting. My contemporary art teacher last year was excruciatingly boring, but he had a boner for both Louise Bourgeois and Bacon and we spent several hours on them (and not nearly enough about Mapplethorne, alas). Anyway. I feel ya, Lou. I have been called pretentious too for simply getting excited about art, culture and folkore.

I'm rooting for Louis and Claudia to kill them all off and run away to Italy. I know it won't happen, but one can dream, eh.

Is Armand messing up with both Daniel by getting into his mind and Louis by switching the photos? Interesting. Two people who have a shitton of issues stuck with a sadistic, insecure and bitter control freak who's been pulling the threads since way before anyone realises. And Louis is so lost in his trauma and grief and anger, he trusts Armand and doesn't see what's happening and been happening to him for 70 years, while Daniel is just a sad, sick old man who thinks he knows his life and what his future entails. Armand is definitely having fun.

"Je n'aime pas fenêtre quand fermée" is NOT FRENCH, MY EARS. I will be picky, I don't care for artistic licence. Correct sentence would be "je n'aime pas les fenêtres quand elles sont fermées". Admittedly, if it goes into a song, you'd have to respect the length of the line and all those musical measures. But still. You could shorten the numbers of syllables by dropping the language register: "j'aime pas les f'nêtres quand elles sont fermées" ; from 12 or 13 to 9, the original line being 8 or 9. Depending on whether you say "je-n'ai-me-pas" or "je-n'aim-pas" and "fe-nê-tres" or "fe-nêtres". Anyway. I'm sure the writers had those discussions (I hope; hey, AMC, hire me, I'm a good proofreader and I speak 5 languages).

Me: oh, Louis isn't even bothering now, he's directly talking to... Wait, is Lestat eating that photo? If it's Dreamstat: the hell is going on in your head, Louis? If it's Astral Lestat: that is certainly a choice, my friend.

"Barely Balthasar", LMAO, Lestat I fucking love you. Poor Balthasar always gets forgotten in adaptations. Nope, we're not here to talk R&J, moving on.

Armand: "this is my tragic backstory. Feel pity for me. I'm the good guy." Me: yeaaah, how much of this is actually real? And, uh, no, like Lestat said: ha! You're a storyteller and a conman, Armand. You weave your story to pluck at the heart's threads of your audience, modulating it to their sensibilities to better serve your own interests and your plans. What are those interests, these plans? Hell if I know. But I absolutely do not trust you at all.

HANDS OFF CLAUDIA OR I'LL BITE

"The wilderness that is our daughter" have I said lately how much I love Lestat.

Oh, hello, the Loustat scene on the bench just broke my heart, which is funny if you consider that that's just Louis breaking up with himself. Also, do we consider Louis knew about the initials in the pocket, and Dreamstat is saying what Louis wants him to say, or is it another unreliable narrator Louis, or is it Lestat himself...?

Aw, going from the Loumand scene on the bench to "toxic gay divorce with body count" sure is a tonal shift. Lmao. You're losing your touch, Armand. Louis' awakening. Daniel's awakening... San Francisco next, that will be fun. Excited to see how they've changed that part, knowing it's the red thread of the first book.

...

Oooh, that got long. Apologies. I really need to sit and read those books.

[verai-marcel]

Your Hearth Is My Home (BG3 Fanfic, Astarion x Female Reader, Part 15 of ?)

Summary, Notes, Tags, & Part 1 are here.

Act I - Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12

Act II - Part 13 | Part 14

AO3 Link is here, my dear.

Word Count: 3268

————————————

Act II, Chapter 3 - The Rescue

Being within the soft silver glow of Isobel’s shield, the party felt less of a need to keep watch, but Astarion still stayed awake out of habit, only needing four hours of trancing to feel refreshed. So it was in the pre-dawn hours that you found him in front of his tent, reading a book.

“Awake so early?” he asked as you passed his tent.

“Old habits,” you mused.

He only gave a small “hmm” and continued to read as you walked away.

You were heading towards the cave behind the waterfall, notebook in hand. It had been so long since you had practiced aloud, and you were scared you would forget the songs that your mother had taught you. The old songs, the ones that she said were special, were part of her lineage.

We come from the eladrin, not the ones from Toril, but from the Feywild. Long ago, an eladrin came to this plane and stayed a while, and had a child. So our lineage continues to this day, fey blood in our veins.

You took a deep breath.

And sang.

You weren’t sure how long you sang this song or how many times you repeated it, but when you finally stopped, you still felt the same as before, just with a sore throat.

Mother said this song could bring out the fey in my blood. But nothing ever happens, no matter how many times I sing it. Maybe I don't have enough power in me. 

Sighing heavily, you closed your notebook and left the cave. Your companions were already up and about, getting ready for the day.

And unfortunately, Volo had found them first.

Shit.

“If I could just get a few quotes about your adventures—”

“Not interested,” Lae’zel snarled. “Be gone. We have enemies to kill.”

“Ah, but only a sentence or two—”

You gently took Volo by the elbow and guided him towards the pathway away from camp. “I’ll regale you with some of their adventures back at the inn. I need to help them get ready, and then I’ll join you there.”

He brightened. “Oh, that sounds lovely, I will see you soon!” 

As he jauntily headed away from your camp, you heaved a sigh of relief. Turning to the party, you noticed that they also looked relieved to see him gone.

“We owe you,” Wyll said with a grin.

You gave him a small salute. “Just doing my duty to protect the camp,” you said with mock seriousness, earning you a few chuckles.

You walked with the others to the bridge, and wished them well as they left the safety of the shield. Watching them disappear from sight, you silently wished for their safe return.

Then you turned to the inn.

Sigh. Guess I better face my own battle.

***

An hour felt like an eternity with Volo asking question after question. It felt more like an interrogation rather than an interview. As you finished answering yet another follow-up question, you peeked at his writing. He was clearly embellishing and exaggerating nearly everything you said.

“That’s not what I said,” you finally pointed out.

“I’m punching it up a bit, making it sound more exciting to the average reader,” he explained. “You have to make them cling to your every word!”

You resisted the urge to roll your eyes. Eventually you caught the eye of Alfira, who came up to you and asked for your assistance in the kitchen. Excusing yourself, you followed her until the two of you were safely out of earshot.

“You looked like you needed an escape route,” she said with a knowing smile.

“I did, thank you so much.” You looked around. “I guess I’d better actually do something in here, so it’s not too obvious that I ran away from him.”

She giggled. “Well, we could use your help preparing the midday meal.”

As the two of you chopped ingredients and cooked, she shared some stories of her past.

“I’d love to hear one of your songs,” you said after she mentioned how she had met the others.

Alfira looked at the pile of peeled and chopped potatoes. “Well, I think we’ve prepared enough for now. Let’s go out back, I can sing for you there.”

She grabbed her lute and the two of you went out the back door to the shoreline behind the inn. Strumming the lute a few times to tune it, she began to sing.

It was a beautiful song, and her voice was soft and warm, wrapping around your heart and making you feel every note like a gentle caress. Unable to stop yourself, you began to sing with her.

Without missing a beat, she harmonized with you, and together, the song grew stronger. You created a verse in response to hers, and though she looked a bit surprised, she smiled and let you sing. Before long, your song began to gather an audience.

When the two of you ended the song with the last few notes sung as a complement to the other, applause suddenly burst out around you.

Unused to the attention, you froze up. Beside you, Alfira bowed gracefully and you quickly followed suit, your movements a bit stiff. She turned to you as the crowd dispersed. “I didn’t know you could sing so well.”

You shrugged. “I don’t do it often in front of others,” you replied. At least, not if I can help it.

“Well, could’ve fooled me. You’re a natural. I can’t believe you came up with that verse so quickly.”

“Just felt… inspired, I suppose.” You smiled. “Thank you for sharing your song with me. It was brilliant.”

She smiled back, and together the two of you walked back into the inn to finish preparing lunch.

***

It was very late. You had taken an afternoon nap so you could stay awake to watch for the group, but even so, you were starting to feel sleepy. And yet you continued to stare at the pathway, willing them to come back safe.

They’re on a rescue mission. In enemy territory. There’s a very high chance something has happened.

You shook your head. You didn’t want to think about that. Getting up, you cast the hot water rune under the waterfall, and then decided to distract yourself by practicing your old songs and dances.

A few hours passed in this way until you felt exhaustion sink into your bones and drag you down to your bedroll. And still, you stared at the pathway, laying on your side, unable to sleep, anxiety gnawing at the periphery of your mind.

Finally, amidst the soft rustling of the trees around the campsite, you closed your eyes.

It’ll just be for a moment.

***

Memories this far back were more like impressions, feelings, colors splashed onto a snow white canvas.

Your mother, the color of warmth, of autumn, of the sun.

Your father, the color of the earth, of summer, of the sky.

They were happy together, always smiling at one another. And they always smiled at you, as if you were their shining star. They would always love you. They would always be there for you.

Until they weren’t.

The village was peaceful, quiet, tucked away in the mountains just south of the Spine of the World. Far from the chaos of the cities, where devil-worshiping cultists summoned infernal creatures to take over the continent.

And yet, somehow, these far-reaching plots and conspiracies touched even your miniscule spot in the world.

Somehow, the snow white canvas you loved so much became drenched with red.

But before the crimson stained your life, it was full of songs, of dance, to celebrate the change of the seasons.

You always thought your mother looked the most luminous during the harvest season. Her cheer was infectious, spreading throughout your small village. Everyone knew her. Everyone loved her.

Of all the people that died that day, you missed her most of all.

***

The soft chime of the alarm bells woke you. Pushing yourself up with some effort, you saw your companions returning, looking fatigued and covered in grime and blood. 

“If you’re famished, there’s some snacks near the campfire,” you told them. You had set up a platter of nuts, dried fruit, and meat jerky before you went to sleep, just in case. “I’ll go renew the hot water rune,” you added before heading off to the waterfall.

You could hear someone languidly following you. You expected Gale, who enjoyed observing your magic. Perhaps he wanted to make his umpteenth attempt to guess where it came from.

Instead, you were surprised to glance behind you and see white hair stained with blood.

“Are you alright?” you asked, turning towards Astarion.

“I’m fine, go on,” he said, waving his hand at you dismissively. “I need a shower.”

I would too, with all of that blood. Stepping into the water and casting the rune as quickly as you could, you realized the water was going to be hotter than usual. Shit, I sang the song too fast.

You tentatively stuck your hand into the heated shower to check. You quickly pulled your hand out and stepped back, only for your back to slam into Astarion. You turned and, looking past his bare shoulder, realized all of his clothes were on the shore.

Is he…? Oh. I should not have looked down. Immediately focusing your gaze to his face, you blurted out, “The water is too hot.”

He raised an eyebrow, then walked past you. Before you could stop him, he stepped into the hot water and sighed happily.

“Perfect.”

“R-really?”

He turned his head toward you. “Yes, darling. A few of us think the rune is never quite hot enough.”

You gawked. “Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

Astarion shrugged. “They probably didn’t know it could be changed. And it felt good regardless.”

You made a mental note to tell the others that you could adapt the temperature. You also realized that Astarion was still showering in front of you as if you weren’t there. Quickly turning around, you stiffly marched back to camp.

“Not even a goodbye?”

You waved back to him without turning around. That view is going to haunt me now.

Back at camp, some of them were snacking while others had broken into one of the wine bottles and were drinking casually. You asked what had happened, and quickly you learned that because of the worm in their heads, they could easily pass through the towers. After they were interrogated and then tasked with finding the whereabouts of Bal-something, they were left alone. Unsupervised, they were able to track down the tieflings and gnomes and escaped via an underground dock. 

“Wow,” was all you could say. No wonder it took them so long to get back.

Astarion returned from his shower, which reminded you of the temperature. “Right, so, just in case any of you prefer hotter water, just ask me to adjust the rune next time. It’s a bit hotter this time since I rushed the song, but hopefully it’s still suitable.”

Gale immediately turned towards you, academic interest brightening his expression. “So the speed of your song dictates temperature?”

You shrugged. “To some degree. Pun not intended.” Gesturing towards their tents, you continued. “I adjusted all of your tents to your comfort level as well, after talking to each of you.” You stared at Gale with a grin. “I’m surprised you hadn’t noticed.”

Gale opened his mouth, gave you a look, then scratched his chin. “I thought mine was fine.”

Interesting, I saw you sneak into Shadowheart’s tent. Perhaps you were too distracted to notice that her tent has a higher temperature than yours. But I won’t say anything. You snickered to yourself.

Gale raised an eyebrow at you, but said nothing.

One by one, everyone took their turns in the shower and headed off to their tents, until finally, it was just you and Astarion, sitting side by side, staring into the dying embers of the campfire.

“You aren’t going to trance yet?”

“Not yet. I… I need to process something that happened tonight.”

You recalled that he had just stripped and gotten into the shower while you were still there, as if he was desperate to get clean. Your hackles raised. “Did someone try to hurt you?”

He let out a small huff of laughter. “Someone is always trying to hurt us, darling.”

“I don’t mean in battle.”

He was quiet for a little while before he spoke again. “There… was a blood merchant. She wanted me to bite her in exchange for a potion, but…” He looked sick for a moment. “Her blood smelled foul, rank. And the way she leered at me… I can’t get it out of my head.”

You remained quiet, letting him continue.

“But the others… they didn’t force me. Gale asked me if I wanted to, and when I told him I didn’t, all he said was, ‘then don’t.’ Like it was that simple.”

You nodded. You were glad that everyone was growing closer together, and could trust each other.

“I’m… grateful… that they told me it was my choice,” he said quietly. “It’s been so long since I’ve had to make these decisions for myself. I won’t lie”—he looked away for a moment—“it’s a daunting prospect.” He looked down, his expression darkening slightly. “If they had told me to bite her… I would have just gone along with it. A moment of disgust to force myself through, and then I could have carried on, just like before.”

You frowned. “One potion isn’t worth it.”

“Then what is? Two potions? A moment of unpleasantry doesn’t matter if there’s a fine reward, right?”

“Not if it means giving up something you don’t want to give,” you replied. 

“But we could have used that potion,” he argued. “Perhaps I should have just gritted my teeth as always and let her”—his voice caught, his expression pained—“have me, for a bit.”

“Absolutely not!” You turned your entire body to face him. “You’re not some object to be passed around.”

He looked at you for a moment, his eyes widened with momentary surprise before he looked back at the fire. “You’re right. I’m more than that. More than a thing to be used.” 

You watched him as memories seemed to play across his vision. He let out a huff. “Being forced to lure pretty things back to my master, what I wanted be damned, was my entire existence for two hundred years.” He frowned and took a breath. “I had nothing at all for so long. Not even my body.”

He turned back to you once more. “Today made me realize that I never stopped thinking like I was still his slave, even in freedom.”

You reached out with the intention of hugging him, but you pulled back. You didn’t want to force anything on him, not now. You put your hand back in your lap. “I’m glad you’ve realized that,” you told him. “Whatever happens, whatever is asked of you, you can always say no. I’ll never judge you for it.”

He nodded. “Thank you,” he said, the sincerity in his tone marking your heart. “You can too, you know.”

You looked at him in confusion.

Astarion smiled. “You can say no to me as well. You don’t have to feed me every night.” He gently brushed your cheek with the back of his knuckles. “You’ve looked more tired since we’ve come here.”

Your eyes widened. Ah, so he’s noticed.

“I can go for a while without a meal. I’m not so weak that I can’t hold back until you’ve recovered.”

“And I’m not so weak that I can’t handle a bit of blood loss a few days in a row. I am a woman, after all.”

He chuckled. “Fair point.”

You looked back at the fire, letting the silence simmer over the flames as you digested the conversation. It was… a lot. Quite the catharsis and revelation for your poor vampire spawn.

Wait.

Looking back at Astarion, seeing his contemplative expression as he stared out into the distance, you wondered when your heart had claimed him as one of yours. 

You knew you had been staring at him for too long when he glanced back at you. He gave you a flirty smirk. “Admiring my beauty?”

“Just… just wondering if you wanted a hug,” you mumbled, feeling lame. “But not sure if you were comfortable with that,” you added sheepishly.

He sat up and smiled. “You are such a little sweetheart,” he said as he opened his arms. “Come here, darling.”

As you snuggled into his embrace, you felt something strange when your skin made contact with his.

…guilt…conflicted…

It was faint, but it was there. You honed in on it, even as your body was reveling in physical contact. 

Why does he feel this way? Godsdammit, nothing is ever simple with this man.

You pulled away, unable to get your head out of your own, well, head. “I think I’d better get some sleep now,” you said, stuffing your own thoughts deep down for later.

“Of course.” He stayed where he was for a moment, looking at you with a slightly pained expression before he got up and gave you a slight bow. “Sweet dreams, my dear.”

As he left for his tent, you crawled into your bedroll and tried not to ruminate on the reasons why he would feel guilty.

***

A trance for an elf was more a meditative state, a reverie to refresh the mind and body. So when Astarion went to lay down in his tent, he expected his subconscious to run through his usual mental training exercises.

Instead, his mind decided to replay the scene from this morning.

After seeing his sweet treat walk past him with a mission in her step, he waited a few moments before quietly getting up and following her. It took a moment for him to brave the running creek and peek into the cavern behind the curtain of water.

There, he could hear her sing a song in a language unknown, and yet it felt familiar. It had been decades, over a century even, since he had spoken Elvish with any regularity. And yet… even after so much time, he still understood that the witch was singing something similar, yet different somehow.

She read the lyrics from a worn notebook in her hands, her attention completely on her song and not on anything else. She has zero awareness, dammit. Astarion stayed and watched, keeping one ear out for anyone who may approach.

Not that he was guarding her or anything. He was just… listening.

The song ended, and he started to move away from the cave entrance, but then he heard her sing again from the beginning.

She’s going to sing herself hoarse.

Shrugging, he continued to walk away, but he paused when he heard her cough violently.

She’ll be fine.

Her song continued, her voice cracking in places.

Damn foolish witch. Why should I care?

But he did care. And he wasn’t happy about it.

Shaking his head of the memory, he turned over and tried to go back into reverie, but his thoughts turned to how delightfully sweet she looked when she asked him for a hug, how nice she felt in his arms. The conflicted feelings he had, both wanting her and not wanting her, stemmed from the same reason. A reason that was growing harder and harder to deny.

Godsdammit. This is going to be a long night.

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

Act II, Chapter 3 End notes: Oh dear, Astarion is starting to catch FEELINGS. Whatever will he do? As always, thanks for your continued interest in my little story, please let me know what you enjoyed by leaving a comment!

Tag List: @numblytemporary @xalphafox @avitute

[katsona-the-katsequel]

Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad Activity Report

Part 7

11/10 (Tue) - Reporter: Yukari Takeba

Wh, wh, wh... J, Junpei! What's with the smell of love?! Don't make such random accusations! I'll kick you away! Ah... It's Takeba... Ahahaha.

Ahem. Well, today, Kirijo-senpai finally came back. As expected, she seemed to be more worn out than I expected, and even though she had come home, I could hardly talk to her...

Also, I'm a bit worried about Sanada-senpai. He seemed really calm while Kirijo-senpai was away, so maybe he was pushing himself too hard. Seeing Kirijo-senpai trapped, Sanada-senpai also felt depressed, just like she was...

For now, we think the best we can do is to not cause trouble for our seniors. So, the second-year students of Gekkoukan Academy, Amada-kun representing the elementary school, and Koro-chan representing the animals will be doing their best to support the two of them.

11/16 (Mon) - Reporter: Mitsuru Kirijo

Sanada-senpai and Kirijo-senpai, if there's anything we can do for you, please let us know. Junpei will take full responsibility and fulfill his mission. So, Junpei, please take care of them. This was Takeba.

11/11 (Wed) - Reporter: Fuuka Yamagishi

Good evening, this is Yamagishi.

Yukari-chan, you're overreacting... So it's obvious even if it's not Junpei-kun? But Junpei-kun, do I smell love too? Hmm, that's a no-go. Unfortunately, I don't think I'm connected to anyone like that yet.

Speaking of love, the transfer student Ryoji-kun is somehow interesting, isn't he? Oh, I'm not saying anything about him... but don't you like Aigis' reaction when she first met him? It was the first time I've seen such an intense reaction as "No way!"

He seems to be very popular with girls, but even without that, it's a little strange. Am I overthinking it?

By the way... or rather, this is the main topic, but is Kirijo-senpai okay? We're currently exploring Tartarus again, little by little. With the school trip approaching, the Student Council work must be busy, so please leave it to us and relax for a while.

11/12 (Thu) - Reporter: Aigis

A school trip...a ​​very interesting event. I've learned quite a bit about school life, but sleeping in the same room as my classmates is a rare experience.

Now that I think about it, I would have called it a "special mission" school trip in the past, but now I'm pretty much a high school girl, so a school trip is not a special mission. It's a major event. I'm welcome!

But Ryoji-san, that's a no-no. Field leader, please be careful not to let your emotions get the better of you in an extraordinary environment like a school trip and deepen your relationship with Ryoji-san.

11/13 (Fri) - Reporter: Ken Amada

School trip... In high school, we're going to Kyoto. Yukari-san looked strange when she heard it was Kyoto, so maybe she doesn't like it? In my case, I hardly ever had the chance to travel, so I'm just jealous that you can go out somewhere.

For now, I've requested souvenirs from the field leader, but if you can give me something else, I'll have no complaints.

Oh, Junpei-san. I'll tell you now, wooden swords are a no-no. Also, anything that says "love," "friendship," or "effort" is a no-no.

By the way, speaking of Junpei-san, did you go to the hospital today? I wonder how Chidori-san is doing. Did you get to see her? You see, everyone except Chidori-san from Strega lost the battle during the last operation... She's having a hard time too. It may be strange for me to say this, but please be sure to stay with her.

11/14 (Sat) - Reporter: Mitsuru Kirijo

It's Kirijo.

Phew... It's been a while since I've been in this room.

I'm sorry for causing trouble to everyone. I'm not sure if I can be a valuable fighting force, but I'm finally feeling motivated.

...For now, I still haven't found the purpose of the battle, but there's no doubt that the number of people suffering from Apathy Syndrome due to the shadows' damage is increasing. In that case, we have no choice but to hunt shadows, even if it's only a symptomatic treatment.

It may be a little lonely with a captain like this, but I intend to come up with a plan soon. Please stay like this for a while...I'm counting on you.

Now for the school trip...

11/15 (Sun) - Reporter: Yukari Takeba

Well, it's Takeba.

Kirijo-senpai, you still seem tired... But I think it's understandable considering the situation. You suddenly lost your goal.

I don't know if this will help, but before we joined SEES, when the large Shadows hadn't appeared yet, you had no idea how to make the Dark Hour disappear, right?

But you, Kirijo-senpai, started the squad on your own five years ago and survived the seemingly endless battles with Sanada-senpai and Aragaki-senpai. Is it unreasonable to think that even if you lose sight of your goal, you've just gone back to that time...?

…Hmm, sorry. I may have been a bit pushy without considering the feelings of the senpais. To be honest, I'm also at a loss as to what to do from now on. Anyway, if you need anything, please let me know anytime. This was Takeba...

It's Kirijo.

Takeba, you've been a big help with the other day's activity report and today's work. I've also been a nuisance to everyone else because of my incompetence. I'm really sorry.

To tell the truth, I've been a lot of trouble to the Student Council. Today, because I disappeared without a trace, even the general students were hunted down and searched for. I hope no one in this dorm was involved.

Anyway, both the shadow fighting and the Student Council are scheduled to be fully restored from today. I'll be counting on you.

By the way... should I ask Iori or Takeba? Um, who is this transfer student called Mochizuki? He seems to have transferred while I was away, but is he the son of some company CEO or something?

I was suddenly invited to a meal at a hotel today. I have had meals with clients and business partners in the Kirijo Group before, but this was the first time I had met them face to face, so I was a bit hesitant. Was I being rude?

11/17 (Tue) - Reporter: Ken Amada

Mitsuru-san... If you're serious about that, I think you should learn a bit about your awareness of danger as a woman. I hope you haven't gotten caught up in some weird pick-up scheme in Kyoto. I wonder if you'll be okay...

So, starting today, everyone is on a school trip. Only Koromaru and I are in the dorm. It would be a problem if we lived in a normal dormitory with just one elementary school student and one dog, but we are still members of SEES. At least in terms of crime prevention, it's completely safe. Please feel sorry for the thief.

Well, I'm looking forward to the souvenirs.

11/18 (Wed) - Reporter: Ken Amada

It's the second day since you all left.

I'm not lonely, but... I think the distance between Koromaru and I is starting to get a bit tense when we're alone together. I wish I could understand Koromaru's words like Aigis does.

Today, after school, I took Koromaru for a walk. However, I was a little late with the planning and forgot about Koromaru's walking route. We crossed Moonlight Bridge on foot, went to Port Island, and returned to the dormitory...

I just had dinner and I'm going to bed now. Good night.

11/19 (Thu) - Reporter: Ken Amada

Third day of the school trip.

Where will everyone be today? I'm sure most of you will have visited the standard tourist spots of Kiyomizu-dera Temple and the Kyoto Imperial Palace on the first day of the school trip, but maybe you'll go a little further and visit Kinkaku-ji Temple or Ginkaku-ji Temple?

Maybe you think you know a lot about it even though you've never been there? Hehehe. Actually, I was just using the terminal here to look at some Kyoto tourism websites.

Kyoto seems like a nice place... Oh, I'm not saying that I want to go there. I'm just impressed by the beautiful scenery. Oh, if someone is interested in going again, I might be happy if they invite me too... The open-air baths would be great.

…No, I'm not urging you or anything. If you want to go, you can go by yourself. Please come back early tomorrow. Be careful on the way back.

11/20 (Fri) - Reporter: Akihiko Sanada

It may sound cliché, but to be honest, I feel like I'm the best. Yes, I feel like I've finally found the teleportation device in Tartarus and escaped to the entrance...

Ah, it seems like Amada has been very lonely. Well, I'll invite him on a trip sometime. As for the open-air bath... well, someday...

11/21 (Sat) - Reporter: Junpei Iori

Hi, Junpei here. Amada, it seems like you had a really hard time staying home alone. So why aren't you accepting the souvenir I went to the trouble of buying for you? It was really hard to find, the ornament from Kinkakuji that says "All-out attack." No, I never imagined something like this would be serious either.

I don't want anything with words like "love," "friendship," or "effort" written on it, so I wondered if there were any words that would make Amada happy. I want to be paid for my labor!

Oh, now that I think about work, I remembered. I have a hands-on study session starting the day after tomorrow... This school doesn't allow part-time job.

I've lived my life avoiding work to the point where I'm glad there's a school rule that prohibits part-time jobs, so why do I have to go through the trouble of doing it in class?

What's more, I wish they'd picked a job that looked at least a bit interesting, but from what I've heard from my seniors, it's either unloading, carrying, or shouldering luggage, which are all the same!

Kirijo-senpai, do you have any secret tricks to use the Kirijo group's powers to give everyone in the dorm the easy work?

For now, my hopes are that there will be 20 minute breaks every hour, I won't have to lift anything heavier than a rice bowl, and it would be nice if there were cute girls working with me, would that be okay?

11/22 (Sun) - Reporter: Mitsuru Kirijo

It's Kirijo. Junpei Iori... Don't be so selfish, you idiot!

I thought someone had gone all the way to the head of the Kirijo family's household to talk about work and had returned tired, but to be greeted with such a pointless report is beyond anger; it makes me dumbfounded.

To begin with, the Kirijo Group has nothing to do with experiential learning. If you send students from the school Kirijo runs to Kirijo's company, they'll have an easy time, that's for sure. That would defeat the purpose of off-campus training!

Well... I guess it's not possible this year, but next year I might be able to get you into a company that's a good fit for you. I heard recently that the president of the mail-order company, Tanaka's Amazing Commodities, heard about our off-campus internship and asked me if I would like to have some students attend. That place is famous for its harsh working environment, with 24-hour full-time work. For people like you who have little motivation to work, they make you work even if you don't say anything. What do you think? They make you work really hard, so it's a good place to work, isn't it?

…Yeah, it feels like I'm really getting back to normal. I guess this is how I should be. Iori, your silly story seems to have cheered me up just now. Thank you. Well, I guess I'll rest before the Dark Hour today.

11/23 (Mon) - Reporter: Fuuka Yamagishi

Something sad... happened. It was during the Dark Hour last night...

Uh... uh...

Wait...

I guess I shouldn't push myself after all. Oh, it's nothing.

It looks like it's tough for Fuuka, so I'll start recording from here. Um... where should I start? Yes, it was yesterday's Dark Hour.

Fuuka caught Strega's presence before Tartarus, and it was that Chidori, Junpei's precious one.

Actually, she was supposed to be hospitalized, but I found out today... there was an attack on the hospital, and she went missing at the time. And then, that Chidori suddenly attacked Junpei... she was really in love with Junpei, but she didn't know what her feelings were, and she said it was her fault because Junpei was there... what an idiot, that girl. She was tempted by that perverted Strega guy! Y-Yes. After that, two men from Strega appeared and shot Junpei...

I'm sorry, but I don't remember that part very well. I'll leave out the details, but Junpei was close to death once. But that girl's Persona... I think she was called Medea. With the power of that Persona, she gave Junpei life... Medea's power is the exact opposite of Fuuka's Juno's; it's not the power to sense life, but the power to release one's own life. And so, even though she was weak from fighting us before, she gave all her remaining life to Junpei...

I'm sorry. I'm still confused and can't put it into words well. It's not something that can be said so easily, I want more...more...!

Yukari-chan...

I'm fine now. Let's take over. Right?

This is Yamagishi. I'll take over. Chidori-san has passed away. She gave her life, and Junpei-kun is safe. However, I allowed Takaya and Jin, the two who call themselves Strega, to escape.

As of today, Junpei-kun has gone somewhere and is gone. I'm very worried, but I don't think the worst will happen. Junpei knew very well that Chidori gave him his life. So, I think it will be okay.

Chidori's body has now been moved to Kirijo. They need to identify her... I wonder what they'll do about the funeral.

Anyway, we're waiting for Junpei to return. I'm sure he'll be fine.

11/24 (Tue) - Reporter: Akihiko Sanada

Today, the second-year students came home exhausted from their field trip. I didn't go to their rooms to check, but I think they were so tired that they fell asleep around 10 o'clock. Well, that's what happened. I'm sure they were grateful in a way for being so tired that they didn't have time to think about anything.

However, Junpei still hasn't come back to the dorms, and he hasn't participated in the field trip. I'm sure he'll come back, but... it's too heavy for one person to carry. It's several times heavier than the baggage you carry on a field trip. When I was there, there was Amada, who felt the same way. We shared it between the two of us, and somehow we managed to carry it all.

…Junpei, come back soon.

The only way to rise from sadness is to stand on your own two feet. But when you can't stand on your own, someone will hold your hand. The people in this dorm are all good-natured, so there will be plenty of arms outstretched to help you. You know that, don't you?

I'm sure she's waiting for that too.

11/25 (Wed) - Reporter: Mitsuru Kirijo

It's Kirijo. The second-year students are going on an experiential learning session today. Even to begin with, everyone is quiet.

Furthermore, the number of people has decreased, so the dormitory is so quiet it feels like no one is living there... Iori hasn't returned yet.

Akihiko says he's fine, but when I think of my mental state when I lost my father, I can't fully relax.

Well, I have no choice but to believe him... Regarding the girl named Chidori, I'd like to report what Kirijo's lab has learned. When the results of the tests from when she was hospitalized were revealed, it was a side effect of the suppressor, and even if this incident hadn't happened, she would have had about two years to live.

Nothing about her identity remains a mystery. It's doubtful whether her last name, or even the name Chidori, was real. If we could find out the true identity of the mastermind who turned the Strega into Persona Users, we could investigate, but there is no information on that either. For now, I have instructed them to continue the investigation.

That's all we know. The guys at the lab were interested in the artificial Persona Users, and some even insisted on an autopsy, but I stopped them from doing so. That's all for now.

11/26 (Thu) - Reporter: Aigis

The third day of the experience program has ended. Everyone except for me seems to be exhausted.

Junpei-san has still not returned. Where is he?

Chidori gave her life with a will that went beyond biological instinct. Junpei, who inherited her will, will inevitably return. I'm sure of it.

11/27 (Fri) - Reporter: Yukari Takeba

Well, this is Takeba. I've finally finished my hands-on learning. My arms are sore, my back is sore, my eyes are droopy, and I feel like I've aged all at once. I'm sure the others are feeling the same way. Oh, except for Aigis. She was working silently, saying she was good at this kind of thing.

And then...Junpei finally returned home.

Seriously, that idiot caused me so much worry...

Although he's safe, he looks more depressed and weak than I've ever seen him before... But I'll wait. The guy I know is the kind of guy who always bounces back even when he's down.

I'm watching closely, Junpei.

11/28 (Sat) - Reporter: Junpei Iori

…Hehe, it's Junpei. I'm so sorry for worrying everyone. Well, I just heard about the activities while I was away. I don't know, but I feel sorry, but I'm also grateful... I'm really touched, I guess. Well, I've finally come back, so I'll do a report on my activities to celebrate my return. It's a matter of settling things, a matter of settling things.

...a...matter of...

Oh, no, I'm not going senile, I just realized that I've never really made a proper report in the first place, hahahaha.

Wow, so this is to celebrate my return and my first report? That's pretty fancy, isn't it?

Anyway, there was only one thing that related to SEES today. I'll just give you a quick report.

Well, should I start by saying that Tatsumi Memorial Hospital... has delivered Chidori's belongings to Kirijo-senpai. Well, when I say belongings, it was just one sketchbook.

But I was a little surprised by the contents of that sketchbook...

The pictures of Chidori that I know are kind of unintelligible, like avant-garde art, surreal, rare...Real Madrid...no. They're just messy pictures like that.

But...the drawing on the last page was an amazingly good one, I was amazed that she could draw something like that...

...Well, to be honest, it was a really handsome portrait of Iori Junpei-sama!

However, when the details are made to that extent, it's really embarrassing, or rather, I get a little embarrassed.

…So that’s why I’m here talking to you like this right now.

Okay, the report is over! I'll be back working hard starting tomorrow, so please keep me company!

11/29 (Sun) - Reporter: Fuuka Yamagishi

Good evening, this is Yamagishi.

I'm glad you're feeling better, Junpei...and once again...welcome back.

It feels like it's been a while since we've been able to report on our activities in a normal atmosphere. However, it seems like everyone is still tired from all the hard work that's been going on, so there's nothing special to do today...

Ah, there was! That's right, something special.

Someone other than SEES showed up as a guest at the Iwatodai dormitory.

That person was actually the much talked about transfer student from Class F, Ryoji Mochizuki. Apparently, he became friends with Junpei on the school trip, and they were chatting for quite a long time in the room. Ah, but apparently I just didn't notice, and he'd already been here before, although I'm not sure if it was before or after the field trip.

It's kind of an unexpected combination, isn't it? Ryoji is fashionable, flawless and popular, and Junpei is, um, a bit of a different type. I wonder what they had in common?

11/30 (Mon) - Reporter: Ken Amada

Tonight, the atmosphere was a little different than usual. Well, I know the reason why. Everyone except for me, Aigis, and Koromaru has been holed up in their rooms studying all day. ...And Junpei too!

When I asked Aigis, she said that the final exams are coming up in two weeks, so I think they're studying for those exams. But with a normal exam, Yukari would start to push herself about a week or two before, and then Sanada would start nagging Junpei, who never seems to start studying, and then Mitsuru would motivate everyone. But this time it's different...

I guess it's just a result of you all growing up through a lot of things, right?

Still, it's surprising that Junpei is starting to study at this time of year... And what's more, I've been watching him for over an hour and he hasn't even come out to the break room... People can change all they want. Good luck to everyone.

12/1 (Tue) - Reporter: Akihiko Sanada

It seems like all the members are studying hard on their own for this final term. As a mother-in-law, I feel like there isn't enough for them to do.

…Just kidding.

But Junpei really started studying on his own. I'm not joking, it looks like it's going to rain or snow here. Well, do your best.

…Actually, there's something that's been bothering me today. What on earth happened to Aigis? Has she always shown such a sad expression? Maybe you should be a little more careful and considerate of her. I know this sounds strange, but she just seemed like a normal scared girl. Is she okay...?

<-PREVIOUS ● NEXT->

Tag List: @kerto-p

[c0zmo-writes-archive]

Stuff in my room I think is sort of interesting

Janet (I think that’s her name??? I cycle through a new one every time I refer to her. She’s been through a lot.)

Some FNAF drawings that I replicated from the game. I might have made these in 2022. That feels right.

This random woman’s face that I cut out from a magazine last year (maybe more??). I have no clue who this woman is. I have several more random human faces scattered around my room. It’s like a surprise scavenger hunt but just a bit scarier. And yes, she does in fact watch me sleep.

Kandi shirt!!! I think I might have spent 12 hours on this one. I can’t remember. Maybe it was 13? It’s my magnum opus.

Pumpkin Rabbit mask! I dressed up as Pumpkin Rabbit for Halloween in 2022.

Unusually large amount of space in my closet. I used to curl up in there and cry/sleep/study, but I don’t go in there much anymore. There’s still blankets and pillows inside. It’s surprisingly cozy.

My trinkets and critters!! Also the entirety of A Series of Unfortunate Events. Those books hold a special place in my heart <33

The Beetlejuice shelf!!! This is absolutely not my full collection, it’s just whatever fits.

Bonz, aka Withered Bonniecorn. It has no face, hence the name.

Dusty water bottle that’s been in my room since August of 2021. I wish I was lying.

Fox (??) with a very long tail. My sixth grade English teacher gifted it to me a long time ago. I love that woman. She used to spray kids with water when they misbehaved.

[ghosts-and-blue-sweaters]

5, 12, 13, 21, 28, 42, and 46! :D <3

Do you sleep with a stuffed animal? 

Indeed I do! I’ve had her ever since I was five :) She’s pretty worn down now, but still very special. I honestly struggle to fall asleep when I don’t have her in the bed with me!

Who are five (or more) people you want to hug right now? 

In no particular order:

my dear friend Pinestripe :) I want to hug you and close my eyes and bask in the happiness of being with you okay

Ghostbur!! It actually pains me that I will never be able to hug him. Like. Pains me. I want to hug him so freaking bad

a good irl friend <3 I haven’t seen him in months and I miss him badly

another good irl friend! I’ve known her the longest out of my friendgroup and I just. want to hug her again :’)

yet another friend! Online this time! It’d be so exciting to meet her in-person & hug her tightly oughhh

Fears? 

Two words: automatic toilets. They are DISTURBING. I have been deathly frightened of those things ever since I was six years old, and the fear really hasn’t lessened over time. I cannot explain this fear because it really doesn’t make any sense ajsgajgsjsgsjsg but I Do Not like them and I am Quite afraid of them.

How was your day today? 

Pretty good! I ate so many muffins at church :) And I had chicken nuggets for dinner yay!! I also drove for a bit and that was (surprisingly!) nice :0 Before that, I finished watching a Dream SMP stream that included Ghostbur, and it was so… 😭 Gahhhhhhh ordinarily Ghostbur is so sweet & caring & kind, but in this stream he was honestly pretty selfish :( It was sad to watch!!

But also really interesting! Ghostbur is a very sweet character, but he’s also… human. He still messes up a whole bunch and hurts peoples feelings. It’s super interesting to see all the complexities of his character, even if he isn’t acting in a very honorable way :’0

How are you, really?

Not bad, but… tired. I feel like I’ve been tired for months and I really don’t know why :/ I wish I could feel energized again.

But I have been writing more! Writers block seems to be fading away, and I’m very grateful. I’ve also decided that I want to track down & watch every single Ghostbur stream, which has been quite fun >:D It’s something I look forward to doing!

OH OH episodes of season two of The Wingfeather Saga are releasing every Friday :D That’s fun!

Mentally, I definitely haven’t been in a bad place, but I also haven’t really been in a super good place? Kinda neutral. Not exactly fun, but y’know. Could be worse.

I’m looking forward to seeing all my irl friends soon :) I seriously haven’t seen them in months and I miss them. They’re gonna stop by my house in a few weeks!

Tag 5 of your favorite blogs

:0 :D

@thatfriendlyanon

@rozugold

@ghostbur-archive

@sunflower-chai

@kanerallels

(I know I’m not mutuals with all of you guys, so let me know if you would like me to not tag you here! I just wanted to let y’all know that your blogs are lovely <3)

What do you need when you’re sad? 

Depends on what I’m sad about!

If I’m sad over a fandom/media thing, then I need to be able to sit with my sadness alone. Being able to work through my thoughts by myself is really helpful, and I honestly enjoy it whenever it happens!

If I’m sad over real life stuff, I need to talk to people. Mostly I need to know that I’m not alone—that other people have experienced what I’ve experienced, that I’m human, etc. I tend to self-isolate whenever I’m depressed/anxious, so hearing someone tell me that they can relate to my struggles is really really important.

[prongsfish]

thank you @fandom-trash-goblin for the tag!!

1. Are you named after anyone? nope :)

2. When was the last time you cried? i'm not sure actually, but definitely within the last 24h. i cry very easily

3. Do you have kids? noooo. i'd say i'm too young but actually i'm not all that far off from how old my mum was jeez... i don't exactly plan on following her lead in that though, she was quite young and atm i don't ever plan on having kids. i don't think i'd be a very good parent and i don't think i'll ever be ready to make a commitment that big.

4. Do you use sarcasm a lot? i do sometimes but i'm not a very dry type of sarcastic, i usually over-exaggerate to extremes

5. What sports do you play/have you played? i played netball as a kid but i'm not very sporty... i also played a bit of volleyball in hs

6. What’s the first thing you notice about other people? i'm not sure honestly. just, their appearance i guess? i have a bad habit of judging people very quickly based on their appearance and other similarly shallow factors, so i guess the first thing i "notice" is just whatever category i put them in inside of my head

7. Scary movies or happy endings? these are two entirely seperate things, but in general my favourite movies have ambiguous or bittersweet endings so probably scary movies? i don't watch a lot of horror because i prioritise an impactful story over anything else and i don't like realistic scary stories, but i like general scary atmospheres and some of my favourite pieces of media are horror (donnie darko, the haunting of hill house)

8. Any special talents? not really? idk, there are things i'm good at, but not any interesting talents that come to mind

9. Where were you born? australia. that's the most specific you're getting sorry

10. What are your hobbies? doomscrolling, listening to pretentious music, consuming + talking about media, reading/writing fanfic, drawing, and... not much else really lol. i don't do much, and there are more things i'd like to do but i barely have time to do the hobbies i already have lmao. maybe someday i'll finally learn guitar...

11. Do you have any pets? none of my own but sue me i still think of the family pets as my pets, so two dogs and three cats :)

12. All-time fave piece of media? this is an insane question but okay uhh. i seriously don't know if i can choose... i think i have to say the social network, it's my favourite movie. normal people by sally rooney is close behind (the book, i haven't seen the show yet)

13. Fave subject in school? i pretty much hated everything until i understood what was going on and then i loved it until i didn't again, rinse and repeat. but probably economics or english lit!

14. Dream job? realistically, i'm on track to becoming something in finance, probably a financial advisor or an accountant of some kind. that's kind of my "dream" field because i've been set on it since i was like 13/14, and i enjoy it! but it's definitely a compromise between enjoyment and money. for a real dream job? if i had my way i'd be a uhh professional analytical thought haver. thesis statement writer, perhaps. unfortunately it seems like there is no demand for that kind of career so i will just stick with finance LMAO

15. Eye colour? brown

no pressure tags: @crackeds0b @xeme-starx @sapphos-queer-kid

[that-one-poison-trainer]

50 Fun Facts About Viper!!

"but wait wasn't this going to be 25 fun facts?"

Yes but I wasn't expecting this option to win the poll so I originally lowballed the amount of fun facts

NOW ON TO THE FACTS

1: When I first wanted to participate in Pokemon Roleplay I was originally going to play a different character. She would've been my player character OC from Brilliant Diamond and Legends Arceus. She was the former Sinnoh champion, had a connection with Dialga, was sent to and back from Hisui, and became a Pokemon groomer after experiencing all those horrors and coming back home. I scraped the idea because it felt too "mary sue" and I didn't know if people would be too critical of her or not.

2: Viper was originally an OC before she became a role play character, surprisingly I haven't made too many character changes when deciding to role play as her. Except for her connection with the Subway Bosses, which changed a lot. Originally they were her surrogate uncle figures, but I changed the relationship they had because I wasn't aware if there were any Ingo or Emmet roleplayers. Even after meeting [TAG INGO AND EMMET] I feel like the whole surrogate uncle thing wouldn't work with their current relationship 

3: earlier Viper character designs had a lot of Scene and Scenecore influence. However these were scrapped because they looked bad and I hope they never see the light of day

4: Viper has really sharp teeth, similar looking to Iono's. There's no real reason for why they are so sharp other then I thought it looked cool

5: I have never actually played any Gen 5 games. A lot of my knowledge comes from Bulbipedia, my experience with the Gen 5, anime, and my Submas hyperfixation

6: Viper is autistic, because the mod is also autistic 

7: Viper's current special interest is Poison types. But when she was a kid she had a train and Subway Masters special interest, and after that she had a botany special interest. 

8: Viper currently lives in Virbank, but she was born and raised in Nimbasa and spent some time living in Driftveil 

9: when Viper lived in Ninbasa she befriended a Trubbish who she would eventually reunite with. This Trubbish became Viper's ace Buttercup the Garbodor 

10: Viper's Mom is a Flouriest and her Dad was a mechanic at Gear Station but he has since retired

11: Viper was bullied a lot as a child 

12: Viper's parents divorced when she was in middle school. She chose to move with her mom in Driftveil

13: Viper is a Highschool drop out

14: Viper started her Pokemon Journey because of her Mom insisting that "if you're gonna drop out of school you might as well become a trainer". She even called Professor Juniper to send a Snivy as a starter. This was how she met Oleander the Serperior

15: Viper really likes camping, it makes her nostalgic for her times traveling Unova doing the gym challenge 

16: Viper had two pokemon on her gym challenge team that are she no longer owns, they're Stamp the Swoobat and Dribble the Vaporeon. They were donated to Professor Juniper a little after she started working at the Virbank Gym.

17: Dribble was caught in Castelia as an eevee roaming the streets

18: Stamp was caught as a woobat on Reversal Mountan

19: Viper never grew out of her admiration for the Subway Bosses, she's just better at hiding it now.

20: Viper only caught a Litwik and a Joltik because they're prominent pokemon on Ingo and Emmet's teams. They're even named after them

21: Emmey was caught in charge stone cave

22: Ingrid was caught in the celestial tower

23: Viper absolutely despises any and all evil teams, this stems from an incident during her travels. Viper was walking out of a pokemart late at night with Emmey out of her pokeball, when a team plasma grunt ran by and grabbed her. Viper started physically attacking this grunt out of fear to get Emmey back, which was successful. 

24: Viper was inspired by battling Roxie to become a Poison Type specialist

25: Viper completed the gym challenge and had the chance to fight the Elite Four, but decided against it because she had no desire to become champion 

26: Viper caught her Scolipede Belladonna as a Whirlipede in Lostlorn Forest after she finished the gym challenge bur before applying to work at the Virbank Gym. She remembers this day fondly.

27: Viper works part time at the Battle Subway, she just gets called in to battle trainers on the lines when no one else is available.

28: Viper has made a kid cry before after beating them in a pokemon battle at the Virbank Gym

29: Dripple the Vapoureon was eventually donated to a swimming school to help kids learn to swim. Viper visits her often.

30: Viper has a kitchen cabinet in her room dedicated to Ingo and Emmet merch, both official and unofficial. If you ask her about it she'll deny it's existence.

31: Two Ten the Arbok was found as an ekans in Floccesy Town. It was believed to be released by a trainer and was considered invasive in the area, so Viper decided to investigate it. 

32: Cyanide is Viper's most recent pokemon, they were originally an egg gifted from someone at the gym who acquired it in Galar. 

33: When is comes to @lostlornghost Viper originally started bickering with them as a way to prove her superiority after their altercation in the Subway tunnels. But now she fights with them as a way to show her affection.

34: Outside of team skull business, Viper wants to know @team skull unova better 

35: Viper would've probably participated in the Team Skull raid on the Plasma Castle regardless if she was a team skull member or not

36: Viper recently started to keep her personal life a secret from the people at the Virbank Gym. She doesn't want anyone to know about her wacky, cosmic horror filled RoTumblr adventures.

37: personally I believe that Viper putting on the @liminal-station head and getting possessed by Virus was really out of character her to do. I feel like she would've been more adverse to putting on an inter dimensional severed head. I only did it because of my love for the trope of characters getting possessed and evil shadow selfs, and I think I made it work.

38: from Viper's perspective, she was trapped in a room of static during the Virus arc. Viper still has nightmares of this place 

39: Viper was semi-aware during the Virus arc. She she had the energy for it she could sorta tap into her senses and see what Virus was doing in her body. 

40: despite everything, Virus doesn't blame the Liminal Subway bosses for what happened to her. They had no idea any of this would've happen, she knows it wasn't their fault.

41: Ever since the Virus arc Viper has been suffering from Post Eldritch Madness. That head flooded her 3rd dimensional brain with knowledge from a world without knowledge, indescribable things she does not fully understand. And despite everything she's expecting to return to her life as normal.

42: Viper gained some unintentional side effects after taking off the head. These include being able to understand and speak Binary Code and her voice sounding like it's on a bad discord call when stressed 

43: Viper also developed a fear of the Porygon line after the events of the Virus arc.

44: Viper is so confused about the Garbodor doll with a mohawk given to her by @doll-anon because she has never had a mohawk in her life

45: Viper keeps the Garbodor with a Mohawk plushy in a bin because she's a little convinced it's haunted.

46: if you were to ask Viper what type she would specialize in if she wasn't a poison specialist, she would say grass

47: If Viper was a monster, she would be a Mummy

48: If Viper was a card suite, she would be the club

49: Viper has a cabinet in her house dedicated to Subway boss memorabilia, both official and fan made. 

50: Virus never left（╹◡╹）

[ask-carmenpondiego]

Chapter 12: When the past comes back to haunt

The child, no more than 14, watches Carmen from behind the topiary, still cloaked in a pseudo invisibility. This ability made it look like he was part of the background, not just transparent, as if someone painted him. The effect moved with his body, so he stayed rather successfully undetected by normal folks who were not paying attention. Carmen kept her gaze on him and reached out her hand, “Hey, its ok, I won’t hurt you..” As soon as her hand got too close, the child darted off, easily lost in the crowd with his camouflage. “Blendin! Wait!” She cries out, reaching for him. “I just wanted to see you..”

Tears welled up in her eyes as she sat back down at her cafe table, the letter blowing off the book and onto the cobblestone. She picked up the letter and wiped her eyes, opening the wrinkled envelope. She sat and read the letter, written in teenage chicken-scratch handwriting. It read that he read all her letters that she had sent, and that he still keeps in touch with his sister at Warehouse 13. He does not understand why it is taking so long for her to come get them, and that Adora is having a hard time accepting that Carmen loves her at all. He goes on to write about how he got a job as a junior Librarian and he will be training for his own missions in a few short years. He looks forward to all her letters. He even wrote about Adora’s 16th birthday. She keeps the small obsidian dragon statue Carmen had sent still in the box, half opened and left in a corner in her closet.

Carmen frowned slightly, dismayed at how much her daughter sounds like she hates her. Blendin however still has hope to see his mom again, he writes. And maybe she will be able to answer all their questions. He hopes they can be a family again. Carmen smiles at the letter and folds the letter carefully, keeping it in her book as she closes it and makes her way to the alley with the portal. M met her on the other side with crossed arms, “You went over your time, you’re lucky I fuckin kept it open fer ya.” Carmen looked up at him and had a wide smile he hasn’t seen in years. “I saw Blendin. He came and visited me. He knew where I was and met up with me..” she handed him the letter. “Well, not officially, he was hiding from me but he was bold enough to give me this letter and I saw his eyes! He got his special talent I think!” M looked at the letter with mild interest, “Oh yeah? Horse powers or changeling powers?” She punches his arm, “He was invisible but.. not. He used camouflage like a cuttlefish! I barely saw him in the first place! It was amazing! Oh I don’t know anything about him but I’m so proud!” She swoons over the letter, and goes to one of the storage rooms to find a picture frame for the letter. “I need to save this! Ooh I wish I still had some of their baby drawings!”

Over the course of the next month, she kept with her letter sending schedule, but have not been able to spot her son since. One night, as she lays in bed, she starts venting, “He’s getting older, I’m getting older.. Did he think I was too old to be his mom?! What do you think? Did I screw up my only chance to see him?” The covers rustled and down from below her hips, Lekir’s head popped up, licking her muzzle, “Maybe you’re reading too much into it. Relax, babe, let me take your mind off of things.” Her head disappeared under the covers again, Carmen blushing and squirming a little with soft moans. She lifted her head, “What if he’s in trouble? What if I get so old that I can’t protect him?!” A disgruntled sigh came from the covers and a thin ring of ice grew around Carmen’s muzzle to get her to stop talking, Lekir’s head popped back up, the sheet falling over her shoulders. She placed a finger on Carmen’s hard clit, rolling it around idly. “Carm, if you really are that paranoid about aging, I have a solution that won’t make you younger but it will extend your current youth for at least a few more centuries. That and it could make you stronger and possibly give you elemental abilities if lucky.” She gives the little nub a flick, before slipping two fingers in deep, curling upward to her g-spot, grinning as she hears the thief moan and writhe. “So there you go, problem solved and now… I need you to cum.”

The next day, after some well needed rest… and clean-up, Carmen sits in her office, going over the recent mishaps and redirections from the previous heists with M, since he was the expert in such accidents. “It don’t make sense Red, we went over these top to bottom and fuckin sideways. How are these changes happening as soon as we get there? We don’t give any hints of where we will hit.” Carmen rubs her temples and tries to look at any consistencies. “I doubt we have a mole, we’ve had the same team for years now and I’ve given no reason for anyone to double cross.” M shakes his head, “It aint a mole, everyone is clear from day one. I say it may be something bigger, but what I don’t know. There doesnt seem to have any connections, its all individual targets from what I could tell.”

Ninoga knocked on the doorframe and peeked his head in, “Hey, is it cool if I have a friend crash with me on the couch for the afternoon? He just wanted to rest while he was on this long trip finding his family.” Carmen sighed and shut the book she was looking in. “Yeah, thats fine. Let me start up the oven for whatever snack you two may want. I think a well needed break is in order anyway.” Carmen makes her way to the kitchen and starts preparing a rather large snack tray, knowing Ninoga’s appetite, they may need refills in just under an hour despite the tray size. She was just on the stepladder in the dry pantry, reaching for a dried slab of meat to slice for the meat board, when a voice from behind her made her freeze in her tracks, “Hello? Ninoga said someone was preparing food.. Is there anything I can help out with?”

The mare turned to look over her shoulder, unable to believe her ears… or her eyes. “Are.. you.. Wally?!” She turned too quickly on the ladder and stumbled to the floor. The pale blue stallion had caught her before she had fallen too far. “Its ok, I gotcha!” He looked in her green eyes and grinned, his own blue eyes admiring her from behind his glasses. She gripped his striped sweater and looked back at him, blushing. “Hi, my light. I made it home..” Carmen immediately started sobbing and clutching him tightly, sinking to the floor. They both knelt in the dry pantry what felt like hours, Wally stroking her hair as she held him as if never to let him go ever again. She lifted her head and put her hands by his face, cupping it and caressing out of disbelief. “It really is you… you’re alive! And you’re home! Oh Wally, don’t ever leave me like that again! I was told you were dead!! They took the kids and threw me in this asylum just to get rid of me!!” Wally’s eyes went wide, “Who did that?!” Carmen shook her head, “I don’t know but the kids are at the Warehouse and Library like we planned if something happened to us. After the fire, the police arrested me for it and my past warrants and took the kids away.. and-“ before she could finish, tentacles had grabbed Wally from every limb and thrown against the wall outside the pantry. Wally winced and was immediately punched in the face bare knuckles by M. “You fuckin dirty lying cunt! You were alive all this time and you just now fuckin show yer face?! You fuckin had 15 goddamn years to even call!” M gave a couple more punches before letting him go. Wally staggered and chuckled, wiping some blood from his mouth. “Yeah.. I deserve that. My bad.. I didn’t mean to be away this long. I just need some help and I’ll leave after that if you want me to.”

Carmen rushed past M to Wally’s side, “Here, lets clean you up, and you can tell us everything.” She showed him to the bathroom, giving a glare to M. Ninoga poked his head in, “Heeey so, is everything ok? I didn’t know he knew you guys.” Carmen and M just look at Ninoga, then to the family photos that have been hanging up in the hall that show Wally and the kids, and then look back at Ninoga. “This is a neat place, you have a lot of art replicas here, doncha? I remember you always liked the arts…and Marehem! I didn’t know you knew Carmen! Thats a neat surprise!” Wally chimed in, trying to be cheerful. M groaned and rubbed his face, “Fuck.. theres two of them now.. Moron, you specifically told me to watch over her if something happened to you. And I did, thinking you were fuckin dead!”

Wally laughed and shook his head, “I wasnt dead, silly! I got knocked out in the fire and had amnesia for a little while!” Carmen frowned, “How long is a little while??” Wally thought a moment, “That depends…What year is it?” M growled, “You’ve been gone for 15 fuckin years! Where the hell were you?!” Wally blinked, “Wow, thats a long time.. I was at this cute little commune in the woods with this sheep leader, it was a little weird but they treated me well. They kicked me out when I got infected by something… which is why I need your help.” Wally took of his striped sweater and small clusters of sores littered his back and chest, from the sores, looking like dark green crystals growing out from beneath the flesh. Some looked like they were broken off and others grew around it.

Carmen tapped her glasses frame to magnify what she was looking at. She took some tweezers and plucked a shard out, with slight yelp from Waldo. “This is Vivianite.. it’s the only crystal known to grow on corpses. Wally, did you see what infected you?” He shook his head, “It’s just been growing non stop, and it’s from deep inside too, I can feel it in my muscles. It still lets me move, but it does hurt after a while. I think it’s called Vivian’s Burden or something. I’ve had it for about a year, I think I may have maybe three years until it’s too late to cure.” Carmen sighs and cleans each sore and takes out as much crystal as she could, “M, have you seen anything like this in the changeling cultures?” M just stood on the doorframe, cross-armed, “The fuck I look like? The village medicine man? I ain’t seen shit like that. Not everything black and green fuckin associates with me. I just like this fuckin color scheme.”

Carmen deadpan looks at him, “I wasn’t going by color, dumbass. I was going by the crystal’s natural matrix and place in geology. This crystal pretty much originates near a bunch of ancient changeling hives, does it not? Changelings used to hunt and gather food, sucking the life and emotions from its victims, leaving a nice environment for the crystals to grow.” Ninoga peeks in again, “You know your pretty rocks.. but if they grow on corpses, are you sure he’s not a zombie?” Wally pats himself over and feels for a pulse, “I don’t think I’m a zombie. Should I test it out when we go to the grocery store? Maybe I need to eat a brain?” There was a resounding “NO!” From the three of them towards Wally.

[kitpanthera]

chapters 21-22 🎉

1. since they're not in the shack and Mabel says she went to candy's the previous day, i'm assuming the journals are at candy's house? it's interesting to see the brief, outside perspective of how the canon events are different since candy and grenda are playing a more central events in important stuff happening off screen! with mabel being with them, does that mean soos and wendy aren't as active in the adventures as they were in the show? neither of them give any indication to knowing about bill.

2. is there a reason that bill and dipper want the journals or do they just not want mabel to have them?

3. mabel not even caring that gideon had journal 2 and being more upset about dipper stealing it - girl, your priorities! you just listed all of the bad things in the journal and then shook off GIDEON having it!

4. "find someone who can" 🤨 not sure she'd be able to find anyone in gravity falls he would listen to so,,, was she referring to their parents?

5. the further they move away from humanity, the more they can see the stars,,,, could mean nothing.

6. dipper and bill vs. people believing them... different situations but led them down the same path. and dipper's comment about, "if i'd been gaslit my whole life." i'd argue that he has (even if he doesn't necessarily see it that way)!

7. dipper and bill wanting to be WITH the stars instead of just looking up at them,,, wanting to be with the things they've admired and seen themselves in but doing it together,,, stars that inevitably collapse or explode because they run out of fuel,,, dipper agreeing to join the stars with bill despite not knowing what that actually entails or means (like real stardom!) because he's caught up in bill,,, anyway. (dipper? icarus called, he wants his wings back.)

8. was dipper actually seeing bill's soul or just feeling like he is to make the moment more special?

9. being understood vs. being KNOWN ‼️ for so long they've been around people who understood them, but this is the first time they've had real, outside connection with someone who knows the TRUE them (an important distinction with dipper's relationship with mabel)!

10. bill knowing that dipper wouldn't blame him and understands why he did what he did to his dimension and thus being more willing to emotionally connect with him and spend time with him,,, oh my god.

11. dipper says the stars are "literally a part of the source of his power." is that just him referencing his birthmark, magic's connection with the stars, or like,,, the thing where people say ✨️we're all made of stars✨️ because we're made up of the same elements lol

12. bill got him to be okay with his birthmark when mabel couldn't,,, is she bitter about that? bill was able to make dipper more comfortable in his own skin in one summer than mabel could in 12 years.

13. stan and mabel not even telling dipper that they're going out. not even a note? or was it mentioned while they were at minigolf and dipper was so busy talking to bill that he didn't notice?

14. "i guess we like all the same things." well,,, i guess we'll really find out during weirdmageddon.

15. bill not even treating dipper's body well when he actually LIKES dipper and then getting dipper to condition himself to pain 😐 bill, what if start showing you drawings of your parents huh. is that painful enough for you.

16. dipper still being so confident in mabel and her ability to see that it's not really him... i'm nauseous. did bill set him up for failure with the deal, knowing that mabel was tired, stressed, and wouldn't look to hard at dipper? plus with how much he's already changed his summer, so what if he's acting even more off?

17. stan trying to reconnect with dipper by recommending they go to the arcade again. he's trying so hard!! he loves these kids, even if he's not great at showing it to dipper!! the reveal and weirdmageddon are going to break his heart 😭

18. "i don't think she knows you as well as either of you think she does!" mabel only knowing the version of dipper that their parents conditioned him into being and spending so much time away from him this summer that she doesn't truly know the new version of him 😐😐😐 but dipper still having faith in her only for her to be rude to "him" 😐😐😐 "she's so focused on trying to 'save' you that she's completely lost touch with you." the way my life will be ruined once dippy fresh is finally here...

19. dipper literally says he's never been more sure of the choice he made than he was then... did bill need more reassurance (just be 100% sure) or is that just a positive side effect for him?

20. the emphasis on pain making them feel alive... hm.

1. All shall be revealed in the novella :)

2. They don't want Mabel to have them! Bill doesn't trust what she'll do with them.

3. She's more scared by Dipper than she is of Gideon. :)

4. Well, as far as she knows, who's the only person who could say anything about Bill to Dipper? She's begun her own search for the Author.

5. :)

6. This is the moment when Bill is testing Dipper to see how alike they really are... And he passes. Dipper justifies him.

7. Dipper has finally found his twin flame, as far as he's concerned. His perfect match, a person who cares about him. Nothing else really matters all that much. Becoming a star? Sure! As long as he's with his bestie. If only Icarus could see him now...

8. Hm. A question. A question that has been asked. And shall not be answered. This is currently up for interpretation! :)

9. And even Bill's relationship with Ford! To some extent, he understood Bill, but Bill never actually let him know him. I wonder how Ford will feel when he realizes this...

10. Yes! He's all in now. As I said before, Dipper justified him in his response, that he would've killed if he went through the same thing. Though, you also pointed out... in a different way, he did.

11. When Bill explained his birthmark as a magical focus symbol, the way Dipper understood it was that he was sort of chosen by the stars to have this magical power one day.

12. She's sad and confused by it, definitely. Not necessarily bitter, but upset at the depth of their relationship.

13. Nope! They never mentioned it or left a note. They just went.

14. :)

15. Again, Bill wants Dipper to mirror him, maybe to even do better where he failed. Bill had to learn to endure pain, not to flinch at it. In canon, he says pain is hilarious, slapping himself in Dipper's body. I don't think it's that he can't feel pain in his normal form - he can, his eye is sensitive - but what if he's learned to take it anywhere else without batting an eye (pun intended)? It makes him seem more powerful, and if Dipper is gonna rule with them as equals... then they should appear equal.

16. He knows Dipper has changed so much, and Mabel is so busy, she won't think anything of further changes of behavior.

17. At least he'll have everyone else. :)

18. Oh, hoohoohoo, Dippy Fresh. My man. I have so many ideas. Mabel refuses to try to get to know the new Dipper. She's stuck in the past.

19. Just a positive side effect!

20. :)

[kaisooficpodcast]

Author's Session with rainepaige08

Hello dear kaisoo listener. It’s a special episode because I’m not in my room talking to myself, but rather we have the beautiful opportunity to have with us rainepaige08!

Hello there Raine! 

Before we begin, a bit on rainepaige08, Raine has been in this fandom since 2012, that’s about going 12 years. The pull factor that got her into this fandom was Kai in the Teaser released for EXO, and that happened when she was in college when her roommate introduced her to them. Raine is currently into reading manhwas and watching random live action movies on Netflix. Her works on ao3 amount to 15 fics and counting. Additionally on twitter, she has her SNS AUs as well.

Now because we are very fortunate to have with us rainepaige, we will be doing things slightly differently! I mean we have a guest right here with us, ladies and gays so today will be more questions centric episode. There are three kinds of questions we will be exploring. 

First we start with slightly more personal ones, not too personal, not to worry, just questions that are related to you being a writer, your style and your journey!

Second we will explore the CEO au, Familiar Face. That one fic, Raine’s most defining fic. The one that is completely hers and something that is such a big part of her writer’s journey.

And the third and last type of questions for rainepaige08 will be her personal preferences and things fic related she recommends. 

Personal Questions 

Enough of the introduction, let’s start with the first type of questions: personal questions for a writer.

1.I’ve always been so curious about this: on twitter, we all know you as a writer. But what do you tell the people who know you in real life? Do you tell them that you are a writer? How supportive are they and do you ever feel like you have to hide or be sneaky about it, especially if you are already in the zone of writing? 

My family doesn’t know about me being a writer, since they are more of the traditional kind of family. Friends I met through EXO know I am a writer and I usually disclose it once I click with someone, since not everyone is comfortable with it. I met friends who are writers too and also those who like to read so I still have people close to me who know that I am a writer.

2.Interesting, now what is your background? Are you in the literary arts scene or is your background totally something different?

It’s actually very different since I took up accountancy in college and now I am working in Finance. My workmates only know I’m a fan of EXO but they don’t know that I am a writer so writing really has been a refreshing escape from my routinary life.

Wow, it is quite amazing how you are able to balance different parts of the human mind and create beautiful stories. Like in your professional life you mentioned you work in Finance, so i presume you deal with numbers and statistics, but to escape from all that like you just mentioned, you engage in something that taps on the other part of your brain. The right brain, the creative, emotional, and intuitive part of your brain. And i think that is quite beautiful, using what you have been given, to its fullest. 

3. And how long have you been tapping on your right brain, how long have you been writing? Have you always been writing and how did you come out of the hiccups along the way?

I started writing in my first year of college on Wattpad. That’s in 2011, so around 13 years ago? But since I made them during college, it is not that good so I don’t tend to share them with others. But my account is still live on Wattpad but the stories are a mix of Filipino and English. That’s also when my identity as Raine Paige started. Raine is a pseudonym I made since I want to separate myself from being a writer and my personal life. I stopped writing and also toned down my fangirling from 2015 to 2019 since I became focused with school and work. Then I created my twitter account in 2019 for EXO and started writing since. 

Though there were weeks and even months wherein I haven’t updated my fics since either I’m busy with work or just really don’t feel like writing. It was hard and I also feel bad when I don’t post updates, but at the same time I don’t want to publish a half-baked story. I tend to write prompts or alternate SNS AUs with regular fics so I can get out of my writer’s block but right now I wanted to focus on one story at a time.

4. You mentioned sometimes you would be busy with work and occasionally have writer’s block so my next question is how do you balance between having an active social life, a busy work schedule and still being able to make time to research and write beautiful and captivating stories?  Others after an active social and professional life may just want to catch a breather after, by watching silly videos of kaisoo or read fics, but what keeps you going as a writer? I mean everyone is given 24 hours a day, so again my question to you is how do you delegate time for research and writing amidst everything else?

Since I do work in the morning, I mostly write fics in the evening or at midnight. After work, I tend to spend time with my family first or watch movies/series, or read manhwas  just to let out the stress from work before I start to write. So my writing hours usually start at 9pm and up to midnight. Sometimes when I’m not busy with work, I tend to research and think of scenes for my stories during break time. During the weekends, I try to squeeze in more time if there are no visitors or events to go to.

That is actually a good balance. Enough to have a hand in your social life and your… hobbies, if i may call it so? Is that what you identify writing in your head as, a hobby? The way you structure your time, it makes it look like writing is not necessarily a priority, but i am not saying that it is of lesser importance. The fact is that every free time you have that is not work or socialising, you use that time to actively engage in things that revolve around your aus. And i think that really defines us as a person. What you do in your free time, shows what we actually like to engage in. Free time that we allocate for ourselves, and how we use that time to do what we like.

5. This is a long question, but: What comes first for inspiration? Do you see the kaisoo image first? Or you hear a dialogue? Or do you see a scene and think oh wow it reminds me of kaisoo, and from there how do the pieces come together?

Is it from small ideas first that slowly builds or a big overarching idea first then the task to sieve out the small details?

For me, usually it starts with a prompt. I imagine a certain scene wherein I feel like Kaisoo would look good in that alternate universe. How it progresses though is different per fic.

For CEO AU and Summer AU - I have a start and ending in mind but I changed a lot of scenes halfway.

For the recent one I wrote for the fest, once I got the prompt I did a research first and did a short summary of events, then I wrote the fic based on the outline.

6. I see, so generally prompt first. With that, what does your writing process look like?

Before when I’m doing twitter fics, I would decide on what the update would be, like how the story would progress in the update,  then I write and post simultaneously. Proofreading is very minimal. 

SNS AU is quite hard since I need to figure out how to make it interactive, but the writing process is almost the same with twitter fics.

Ao3 fics take the longest time. I usually have the summary per chapter outlined first. Then I speed type the update, then read it multiple times to edit the grammar as English is not my first language. Then I also tend to add more narrations and check the tone of the dialogues per character if it is still aligned with their role. I tend to be more detailed on my Ao3 fics.

I see, so the different modes of writing you have different ways of doing things. That makes sense because each platform for example twitter and ao3 has its readers have different types of mindset. For example for twitter it is usually live updates and you can see the interactions so readers are on the reactive type of mindset and also i mean it is a social media platform so sometimes it may get buried with other posts. And on ao3 somehow, because it is an actual site we go to and we have this whole routine of scrolling the web and seeing other fics and looking at its tags and word count, it becomes like a whole winding down routine where it makes us feel restful and feel happy reading.

7. My next question is what is your favourite part of being a writer?

There are two fave parts for me. First is being able to create full beautiful stories of simple prompts that I just thought of suddenly. I do feel a sense of pride when I finish a fic. Second fave part is the reader’s reaction. Reading their comments really encourages me to write more.

Aw, do you hear that listeners. Always remember to express your love for fics you have read.

This is the end of the first segment, on the personal questions for Raine. We have gone through understanding the author a bit more. A little bit about who she is outside her writer persona and how she structures her time for writing amidst her professional work and social life. How she writes on different platforms (Twitter/ao3) when inspiration comes and we end off this section with her favourite part of being a writer.

Defining Fic 

The second segment today we are looking at that one fic, Raine’s most defining fic. The one that is completely hers and something that is such a big part of her writer’s journey. We look at the CEO au, Familiar Face. 

8. Dear Raine, could you give us a sense of what the fic is for those who are not familiar?

It’s a story about two people who met unexpectedly, one who tries to forget about his past and one who wants to gain the memories he lost. Jongin is a CEO of a company and Kyungsoo applied as his secretary. In an unusual turn of fate, Kyungsoo looks identical to his late husband. A lot of twists and revelations unravel as the story goes.

9. I’m curious as to what about this fic stands out to you?  Why do you identify it as your most defining fic?

First, it was my first kaisoo fic that I have completed so it has a special place in my heart. Second, I think the way I wrote the plot really shows how I challenge myself to write something new and interesting. 

10. What is your favourite scene? A scene that so beautifully captures the essence of the fic, a scene that you think about when you think back into this fic?

That part where Jongin found Kyungsoo packing his bag and is about to leave, and Jongin’s diary entries. I always tend to re-read that portion as this is the part I took time to decide if i’ll really go that route to the story. But I still think Kyungsoo’s decision was the best choice since he would forever have doubts if he won’t leave. That he needs to regain all his memories for him to start over. Jongin’s diary entries though are heartbreaking to read.

Oh my i know which part you are talking about. And I do agree with Kyungsoo’s decision to find himself, to relive his lost memories. And it is also a lesson to learn as well, that we need to be grounded in ourselves before we have the capacity to love someone else. 

You mentioned the scene where Kyungsoo was about to leave… it would be an absolute honour if you could read an extract from that scene. The part of their parting.

Kyungsoo sat on the floor and held Jongin’s cheeks as he planted a kiss on the man’s forehead. His vision is now clouded with his own tears as he kissed the man’s cheeks before wrapping the man in his arms. Kyungsoo held him silently as he knew no words could heal what he broke.

 “I know this is hard, but I do hope you’ll understand someday why I need to do this…“

 Jongin pulled away from his hug and Kyungsoo was surprised as the man leaned in and kissed his lips softly. It’s that kind of kiss you’ll remember not because of how it felt; but because of the emotions that come with it.

 Jongin kissed him slowly and carefully as if every kiss were unspoken words of love. It’s as if the CEO wanted him to remember everything they have through this kiss. The man pulled away and rested his forehead against Kyungsoo, their lips a few inches apart as Jongin whispered,

"Just promise me one thing…”

Kyungsoo nodded as he waited for Jongin to continue.

 "No matter how long it may take you or how far you’ll go to search for yourself. That you’ll still come back to me. You’ll still return to your home.“ 

Kyungsoo sealed his promise with his lips as they kissed until they bid their farewell. One last kiss until they would be reunited again.

Aw that was wonderful, to have the author herself read from her words. That was just amazing.

I just reread the fic, and my thoughts after was:

It would have been nice to explore Kangwoo and Jongin’s relationship. Especially during the time Kyungsoo took off from Jongin in that one year to regain his memories to learn to love Jongin again. It would have been very interesting to see Kyungsoo’s point of view and to actually see them slowly fall in love. 

I thought about that too if I should create more flashbacks of how they fell in love when they were young. Though I decided not to since it would make the fic very lengthy and I want to focus on the Summer AU after that. Maybe in the future, I’ll decide on a side story? Haha

Oh my kaisoo yes please do! Especially as you are transferring your fics to ao3!

This is the end of the second segment, on the defining fic for Raine, we have gone through identifying why the CEO au, Familiar Face is her most defining fic. For it being the first kaisoo fic completed and an AU that was challenging to write something new and interesting.

Personal Preferences 

We are back, ladies and gays with the third segment is on her personal preferences and things fic related she recommends. 

11. What has been your favourite AU to write, and why? 

I tend to write normal human settings like office AUs since it is more relatable and there are many resources or inspiration you can use, but my favourite AUs to write are actually those with a hint of fantasy or royalty AUs. I haven’t written much of those since it is a bit challenging with the world building but my recent AO3 fics are leaning to those (like Of Crowns and Chains and the recent one I wrote for UltTopKJI)

Ooh i see that’s interesting.

12. Having written human setting AUs and venturing into fantasy and royalty AUs, what’s the most surprising thing you learned while writing fics? Be it about the storytelling, the language used or the life lessons?

What I learned recently when I am writing Under Winter Night Skies was it is really more challenging to write fantasy or historically inspired fics as I spent a lot of  time researching what clothes they should wear or what items they should use as I wanted it to be convincing. Also the dialogues too are different. There are a lot of things to consider if you want the story to be executed well.

13. What kind of writer do you consider yourself as? For example, what is the one thing you hold dear to when writing? Or what is something you would never write?

I think as a writer I tend to want a slow build up on how Kaisoo’s relationship progresses. I also don’t want to make either of them too much of a “red flag”. I don’t want my stories to cause too much anger to the readers. 

14. With your experience, 13 years of writing…what do you think makes a great story?

A great story is a story that the writer has enjoyed creating. For me, writing should bring joy not only to the reader but also the writer. 

15. Is there a must read fic you wanna recommend to listeners? Could be your own fic, or it could be your comfort fic by another author or could be a fic you’re reading now. Anything fic related on your mind!

I’ll recommend my own first! If you want to cry, I’ll recommend Summer AU. But if you want a one-sitting story, then my recent fic Under Winter Night Skies is something I’m proud I have written.

For other fics, I actually don’t read much since I have a bad habit of comparing my fic to others. But one of my faves is The Devil Wears Gucci. I also recently read the famous Anterograde Tomorrow and I fell in love with how the narratives were beautifully written. I’m also looking forward to reading maokun’s ongoing fic too! That’s on my checklist.

The Summer AU was actually the first fic I read from you. I still remember it was my first bookmark on my twitter. And I also recently reread The Devil Wears Gucci by jongnugget. But i think im too scared to reread Anterograde Tomorrow. Oh yea and of course maokun! We are all definitely eagerly waiting for maokun’s update! 

16. Before we end things, dear Raine, do you have any other comments you want to share with us listeners? Any teasers for ongoing AUs or a hint of upcoming AUs you have in your work in progress stage? 

First, thank you for having me here! It’s my first time doing this so I hope I did good. also for the readers, thank you for reading my stories. I am really happy reading the reactions and it motivates me a lot to continue as a writer. 

Among my ongoing AUs, Babypeach SNS AU is my next priority to finish. Summer AU would be transferred in AO3 hopefully around September this year. Then I am planning to release a short fic this February 13.

It is also my time doing this, first time having a recorded session with another human being. And wow, for the AUs? That sounds like a great plan! I am so excited for both the Babypeach AU and the Summer AU! 

Thank you Raine, so much. Thank you for giving us some insight to an author’s mind, i think we learnt a lot today. Thank you for giving us so much content, and even more content to be showered with that is coming soon. And lastly, thank you Raine, so much for being part of this kaisoo fic podcast. 

Closing Ment 

Dear listener, the link to the author’s ao3 and twitter profile will be given below in the notes section. And with that we have come to the end of today’s episode. Do keep a lookout for new episodes every 13th of the month. 

To reach me, i am kaisooficdrunk on twitter and if you want you can drop me questions on my curious cat you can do so with the same username. There will also be another link that brings you to my tumblr blog with the transcription for today’s episode. There you can also find the other scripts for other episodes as well.

Thank you for listening, have a good day, dear kaisooist, and we look forward to next month’s episode. Stay tuned.

[standupcomedyhistorian]

Today (12/16/23) is the 10th anniversary of one of my favorite comedy specials—

what.

Yes, it's been a whole decade since Bo Burnham graced the world with his YouTube special (and now major comics are following his model lol). While people think of what. as a Netflix special, Bo's plan was to distribute it freely via the internet on 12/17/13 (and he took a pay cut to make it happen!).

Here are some other fun facts about Bo's second comedy special:

1. The trailer is filmed in the Ruhm, Bo's guesthouse and studio that makes an appearance again in Make Happy and in a little special called INSIDE 😉

2. This comedy special was Bo's first professional collaboration with Chris Storer (creator of The Bear) after they met on Adventures in the Sin Bin and it marks Bo's first time directing. They would go on to co-direct Make Happy together and Bo's obviously directed MANY items since, including his incredible story about a teenage girl called Eighth Grade!

3. Bo begins the special wearing three pairs of pants—two red ones and one black pair—a white tee, a dark gray hoodie, confetti in one pocket, a pack of playing cards in his OTHER pocket, and his mouth is full of water. Damn, that's a lot of stuff! 🤯

4. But he doesn't have the water IN his mouth for the stool scene! That was spliced together with the live performance footage (and pretty seamlessly, clearly, since folks asked him about it online).

5. The song Repeat Stuff has a brilliant music video that accompanies it. And the girl that Bo murders at the end is none other than the Vice President's stepdaughter! That's right, Ella Emhoff is Kamala Harris's daughter through marriage, and she is a famous model and artist.

6. Speaking of that music video, the exterior of the house Bo breaks into at the beginning is Bo and Lorene's own home at the time. And that house was used in The Nightmare Before Elm Street franchise (a fact the realtors emphasized when selling the place in 2021—I would have focused on Bo's studio personally haha).

7. The music video also has a cameo from one of Bo's friends, Paul Scheer, as the manager! I actually met Paul at a Human Giant event back in the day, and he was very nice (along with Aziz Ansari and Rob Huebel).

8. While Bo released his special entirely for free, he did have two other items that were for sale at the time—the what. CD (recorded in Madison, WI, thus he says "Get on my level, Madison" in Sad) and his book of poems Egghead. I own the poetry book, obviously, but I cannot find the CD for sale anywhere.

If you or someone you know is willing to sell their copy, PLEASE DM me! It's the only item he put out that I don't own in some capacity—and I would love to complete the collection! 🥰

9. Egghead is amazing in both its print and audiobook versions. In fact, the latter is like a whole separate comedy special and well worth the price to hear Bo reading so enthusiastically and with different hilarious voices. Highly recommended...and I have a kid-friendly list of poems here if you're interested.

10. Finally, what. features two of my favorite subversive bits: Andy the Frog and the Fishing song.

I was thinking a fun video idea would be to create a Bo Burnham "Kids Show" with all of his darkest routines that seem like they came out of a demented Sesame Street (so like Wonder Showzen haha).

Here's the potential order:

-Disney Lessons (Words Words Words)

-what. Intro (starting with "melted into childlike wonder" to Lizard)

-How to Make the Perfect PB Sandwich

-A Slow Joke

-Andy the Frog

-The Squares poem

-Fishing in the Park

-How the World Works (can include Outtakes Bo and Socko as well)

-YouTuber Thank You

Anyway, I just think that would be hysterical if any editor wants to take a crack at it. Please give me credit tho! ✌🏼🐔

[jovenshires]

💙Smoshblr December Asks Day 18💛

What are your top 3 fave clothes, that you currently own? (can be faves for any reason, like comfort, smth you love to wear on special occasions, etc. 🤗)

Bonus: What are your top 3 fave accessories? (like jewelry, belts, bags, etc. 👜)

oh my god....... this is so hard bc i am a Fashion Girlie. but i digress. have some gpoys as well to showcase the Fits bc i am Proud of Them

the first is this cropped sweatshirt that says practice safe hex. i love her. SO much. i study witchcraft (one day ill practice. one day.) and i think this shirt is so funny and the and when fall hits? im a menace this is all i wear. (bonus shoutout to the patterned jeans in that pic bc they'd probably be my fourth pick for this list i LOVE those jeans.)

second is this brown corduroy skirt!! this is a more recent addition to my closet (i think i got it like last year?) and i wear it all the time. it is sitting on my bed to be put away from the wash rn. it's so cute and simple and goes with so many different things. ive got this outfit i really like to do with it (but no pics of the full thing unfortch) i call my shaggy fit where i wear this with like a lil green tank top sweater combo and its SUCH a cute winter/fall fit. (also this picture peeps one of my weeb tattoos so enjoy xx)

third and finally i cannot believe this is the best picture i have of this stupid thing (censored the face and an identifying landmark in the background LKNFKNSFLKNR) BUT this lil plaid overshirt? i have had that thing since i was literally... 13. so like 12 years and i STILL wear it ALLLLLL of the time. showing my arms makes me Uncomfy so this thing is a lifesaver. and i also wear a lot of plain black clothing so if smth needs a lil spice? ya just throw this bad boy on. plain black dress? plaid overshirt. lil romper? plaid overshirt. plain t-shirt? plaid overshirt. she's everything to me.

OH BOY OH BOY okay so two of these are like. staples to my wardrobe and the other one is. just for fun!

so the first one - my best friend handmade this for my birthday. this is my very own clown collar!!!!!! katie lore drop incoming - i am obsessed with clowns. i have a clown collection and a clown tattoo. so of course when she went to knit me smth she made me this!! i have not had the occasion to wear it but. im manifesting it soon (i will say she gave me this While i was dressed as a clown)

the second picture is of my class rings. (don't worry they've been heavily censored i'm not doxxing myself <3) the lighting is terrible and they also. don't leave my hands so the gems are grody as hell but the gems are blue zircon (my brother and mother's birthstone) and amethyst. im not even like. very proud of being an alumni from my schools but they remind me how hard i fought and all i learned to be where i am today and honestly. i love a ring! i love a ring moment and i wish i wore more so. class rings stick around.

and FINALLY. oh Boy oh Boy. i can talk about this thing for hours. this is my backpack. it is Covered in pins and keychains (spot all my special interests in there....... so many things....) and i take it Everywhere with me. this is actually the Third iteration of this backpack - i had a black backpack that all these pins were on (it broke tragically), then his white backpack had different pins, and now we've moved the black backpack pins onto the white backpack. im a bag enthusiast and a pin collector (i have so many pins....... so many) so i have multiple bags with pins all over them but. these pins are my faves.

ANYWAY. sorry ab being so extra but i love all these things soooo yeah <3<3<3