#sorry i don't make the rules they're just Like That

[spookwriter-xo]

Coppélia

Chapter 3 - The Figure Painter

Chapter Summary - Y/N visits a childhood friend to go over Seonghwa's odd invitation.

Series Masterlist

"And then he gave you a contract... Like from Fifty Shades of Gray?"

"I told you it's not a contract, he said it was an invitation."

"Honey, it literally gives you a place to sign at the bottom."

After Seonghwa had given me the envelope and left, I wasted no time in rushing over to my friend, Mia's, house to tell her everything. Mia and I had known each other since we were seven years old, hanging off of each other like leeches since. Her family was rich too, but unlike mine, they supported her artistic endeavors.

She was a painter, specializing in figure paintings and realism, and was also my voice of reason.

"I seriously don't know what to do," I whine, my head resting on her kitchen countertop.

"Well, what does it say? Like what does he want you to do?" She asks, her fingers twirling a teaspoon around her tea cup.

I glance down at the papers in front of me. So many rules were listed I struggled to even wrap my head around it.

"He wants me to move into their home," I say.

"Their home?" Mia clarifies. "As in other people?"

"I guess so?" I clear my throat as I continue. "I can remain as a dancer for the society as long as I don't practice for any longer than I need to be."

"Well, at least they're offering you some freedom." She mumbles sarcastically, taking a sip of her tea.

"Mia come on!" I cry out rather dramatically.

"I feel like there isn't much up for discussion here? Yes, it's weird and borderline controlling but when was the last time something exciting like this happened in your life?" She argues.

"I don't want to be controlled, Mia. This whole thing, it's just way above my pay grade. I had enough of it living with my parents, I don't need it in a romantic relationship too!" I point out. She lets out a sigh, nodding in understanding.

"You're right, I'm sorry." Mia runs a hand through her hair. "Okay, let's try a different approach. What things in there benefit you?"

"Uhm, I get to live in a big ass mansion free of charge," I say, my finger hovering over the bullet point. It sure would be better than the cheap studio apartment I live in now.

"You can never go wrong with a big ass mansion." She quips before I continue.

"It says... I have to be willing to, share myself?" I tilt my head with furrowed eyebrows.

"Oh, don't tell me they're the type to want a girl to homey hop." She seethes, leaning over the counter to read the paper. "Oh god, they are!" She exclaims.

"Just because you're monogamous doesn't mean you can judge!" I scold.

"I'm not judging, I'm cringing 'cause it's not for me." She says defensively. "If you're into that, I won't judge."

"Sure you won't."

"I might make fun of you a little, but you know I'll get over it!" She laughs. "Besides it's a bonus if they're all cute. I looked up Seonghwa and that Hongjoong guy and woo!" She whistles.

"Poor Mark." I tease, she gasps. "Listen, I don't know if I'm up for that either. I mean I don't even know who the others are, for all I know there could be a serial killer among them."

"Then call him." She states. "Call him and demand him to rewrite it on your terms."

"Would that work?" I ask, placing the papers back into a neat pile.

"He's a businessman, right? Of course, it would! Hell, you might even get to meet the others if you play your cards right." She says confidently. "You like this guy right?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Then fight for your own morals and boundaries, and if he doesn't accept that then move on." She says, moving over slightly to place her mug in the sink. "And if they try something, Mark and I will come over and beat them up for you."

"You and I both know Mark Lee is not going to beat anyone up." I laugh causing her to let out a snort.

"You're right, he could yap their ears off and give us time to escape the country though." She jokes, a wide grin spreading across her face.

I glance back down at the documents, genuinely contemplating for a moment. I hated the idea of being controlled by anyone again, let alone a bunch of men who, aside from 1, I have never had a conversation with in my life. But on top of that, it would be really nice to stay somewhere that didn't charge me almost my entire weekly pay for rent.

Plus Seonghwa was really good-looking, but was I really going to risk my freedom just because a cute guy gave me a second of his time? Mia was right, I needed to call him and set up some kind of meeting and get this document altered to my liking also, not just theirs.

"You're doing that thing again." Mia's voice cuts me out of my thoughts. "You know it's creepy when you stare off into space like that."

"Sorry, was just thinking about everything," I say softly, stuffing the document back into the envelope it came in.

"It's a lot, I know, but once you put your foot down like I know you can it'll all even out. You'll see." Mia was often right about these things, then again she was always the one to come up with the ideas that would get us into trouble growing up. I trusted her with things like this because I knew it would never leave the two of us, but trusting her to convince me to do something that could lead to me signing my life away? I was going to be a little more cautious of that.

"I should probably go, I got another show tonight," I say, hopping off of the seat I was perched on.

"Oh! I'm coming to the show next Monday! Don't mess up for me okay?" She says, skipping around the counter to give me a quick hug before I leave.

"Of course I won't, you're my lucky charm." I joke, pulling away and waving. She waves back, knowing I could find my way out.

I contemplated calling Seonghwa as I walked through the city streets. I let out an annoyed huff at the constant tug-of-war going on in my head. My finger hovered over the call button as I stared down at his contact. He'd probably show up tonight, but did I really want to decline his initial offer in person?

Without thinking I pressed call, holding my phone up to my ear as I chewed on my bottom lip nervously. I felt a sick feeling of nerves in my stomach, the same feeling I felt before I went out on stage.

It rings 4 times before he picks up.

"I thought you'd think about it a while longer." He states, his voice rough. I take a deep breath before I speak.

"I'm declining your 'invitation'," I stated, making sure my voice sounded defiant.

"What?" He asked, sounding genuinely surprised.

"You heard me. This... Contract is far too controlling for my liking and I refuse to subject myself to signing my life away for a man who only graced me with his presence last night." I say, earning some looks from passersby.

"Doll-"

"I'm not done! Look, I like you. But the only way this is happening is if we rewrite this to include my own terms. And I want whoever the hell you expect me to share myself with to be there also. No way in hell am I agreeing to something like that without even knowing what they look like." I say, rather rushed. Silence follows, and I look at my phone screen for a moment to make sure the phone call didn't end. As I placed the phone back to my ear I heard laughter.

"My, I really underestimated you didn't I?" Seonghwa chuckles. "A real firecracker you are, so unassuming up until now." I could feel his grin through the screen, and it made my blood boil.

"If you're going to waste my time-"

"Hold on a second, Doll." He says, his voice still laced with amusement. "I'll organize a dinner, how does that sound? You, me, and the others who helped write the original contract. That way you can meet everyone and get your boundaries heard."

I blinked in surprise at his offer. Was it really that easy? "You're serious?"

"Of course I am! Honestly, it's refreshing to talk to someone as pretty as you about business exchanges." He chuckles. "You have a show tonight, yes? Are you free Saturday night?"

I clear my throat. "Uhm, yeah?"

"Excellent, I'll send you the details tonight with your Gardenias." He says, hanging up before I can get another word in.

I gape at the phone, staring at it as I stand frozen in the middle of the street. I look around for a moment before continuing on my way.

I had a sinking feeling that this dinner was not going to be as easy as he made it seem. The others were most definitely businessmen also, co-owners of ATZ Corp. Me, a broke ballerina versus 8 businessmen on their own turf.

Pray for me.

[night-market-if]

Hey author! I hope things are getting better for you. And I'm incredibly sorry for all the shit some people put you (and apparently all IFs authors) through. I just love the way you write, and how tou write, and the way the story is going (it's not how I imagined it, but for me it's what makes it better. I love Milo, I think the way you write him is just so raw, it makes me anxious it makes me hate him and love him, and kiss him better, just... Don't stop). And I'm even more sorry for you not having fun writing it anymore. That is what truly irritates me. Someone just taking away your joy. Author.. just, please tell those people to fuck off, it's your wip, your characters your goddamn story!!! You're the fucking god of this world! You're the one that rules! They don't like it? Well .. get the hell out of here them, make their own fucking stories, they're not fans.. they are just whiny lil bitches that are used to having their way by complaining and uselessly hating another's people hard work.

I have been on hiatus from Tumblr for close to a month and this was the first thing I signed on to see. :)

Thank you. I'm starting to love writing again. Focusing on Patreon stories where my audience is a bit smaller, has helped. I'm also in the process of writing a book that is very cozy fantasy. So stepping away for a moment to just kind of feel my world again has been wonderful.

The Night Market will be returning after the first of the year. I'm going to take a minute to refocus my passion. Because I love this story. I love it so damn much. And I never want it to feel like a slog.

[beastenraged]

the nature of the diseased, pt. 4

@hallowed-nebulae

They say, to have a shadow, a light must exist to cast it.

But that's never been the relationship between Ruse and Rook, both of them born from the Dark. Never any light to start with, unless you count Riku (which Rook doesn't). Two shadows twisted around each other.

"Maybe...a mirror?" Rook muses, poking at a puddle in the grass before him. "Reflecting each other. Huh, I think Ruse would like that train of thought. Definitely weird enough for her."

This place is a Dream. That Vanitas' Dream, he thinks. A place he accidentally got tugged into after finding a way for Vanitas to get to his Ven.

Sucked into the hole made, air escaping the pressure of a balloon. It's hard to describe the nature of Dreams, when all you can do is metaphors for the closest comparisons.

He hums, leaning back against the tree that has just dreamt itself into existence behind him. Not a problem, if you don't think about it too much.

"What are you doing here?"

Oh. His current host, host in a "we're having a party at my house' sense, not a "sharing the body" sense. He has a feeling Vanitas would never stand for that, for anyone outside of Ven.

"Equal and opposite reaction, I think?" Rook shrugs, placing his hands flat on his thighs. "To find Ven, I got to be lost."

"...that's stupid," it says flatly.

"I guess?" Rook's used to switching out with people, it's kinda his thing at this point. His Keyblade War body for Namine, his past for Ruse to fix everything...

Trading himself in to get something better is how he works.

"I don't do sacrifices. Ven...tried. I won't let them."

Oh right. This is a Dream, so they can catch each others' thoughts if they think too loudly. Which Rook is doing.

"Sorry, I don't..." Rook heaves out a breath. "It's not really a sacrifice between me and Ruse either."

Mostly because Ruse won't let it. She refuses to let go, leaving clawmarks in everyone and everything that crosses her path. Rook's closer to losing a leg to her than being released, if you want to talk metaphors again.

It's not a bad thing. It's nice, to be so wanted.

(When everyone was more than willing to let him die before.)

Something in Vanitas' shoulders relax. "You understand."

"Understand what?"

"What it means to be needed and wanted." He taps at his chest. "Because without Ven...who would I be?"

"Without Ruse," Rook thinks out loud, verbally, not in a Dream out loud. "I..."

I wanted to be Riku.

But now...well. I don't want to be her.

But I want to be with her.

[mewtwoandme]

I was hoping this would all blow over, but since it's continuing to happen, now with people attacking other artists of the commewnity. I'm putting out my two fucking cents! Cause this whole art/character theft and pointing fingers, who stole what from who bullshit it driving me up the fucking wall!!

Long story short, it started with me and one other blog whose name I won't mention publicly. Despite the horrible light they tried to paint me in, I don't want anyone going to this person and ganging up on them. This person had some serious bitterness towards more "popular" artists and claimed that I've made characters similar to theirs and once used a pose they apparently used before (which was a very common pose, considering it was a reference from the game version of mega Y). Since then, they had desperately tried to conjure up evidence, narrowing down to the most miniscule detail how I've been stealing from them when I hadn't even known their blog existed until I was forcefully thrown into that unnecessary drama with the unhinged call-out posts they've made. With this being said, I'd like to point out that they never came to me or addressed this concern with me in the first place. They had every opportunity to privately DM me if they had suspected I was "stealing," but no, simply because they already made up their mind that I was a thief, that was a good enough reason to lack common fucking sense and decency, making what should have been a private issue public, going on to villainize and dehumanize me. And apparently, it hasn't stopped with me either, cause recently I've been seeing other artists in the community having to deal with this where people are being white knights on high horses, pointing fingers on how one artist's mewtwo looks "the same" if not "totally identical" as another artist's mewtwo. I refuse to believe it's a coincidence. But what makes me disgusted is that since TC's post, apparently it's had the opposite effect on some people and they're hopping on this blame bandwagon like it's some damn media trend!!!

This is NOT okay! Nothing about this kind of behavior is funny! It's upsetting to all of us. We dont need you causing problems where there isn't any, thinking you're doing us a favor! The majority of us are adults for gods sake! We are old enough where we don't need other people coming to us being tattle tails saying this person did this and that. That's what little children do! If you suspect any form of theft, I think I speak for ALL creators in this commewnity that we'd prefer you DM us privately saying something like "Hey, I think this person is copying you, might wanna look into it." And if possible, provide a link to the art in question, for which we would kindly thank you for making us aware and we'll handle it ourselves from there. Just a brief, yet SIMPLE interaction...that's all we ask!!! Don't even come at me with "Well, it's scary attempting to talk to an artist that's well known." Or dare I say ~pOpUlAr~ If you claim that taking the first step to send me a quick DM makes you nervous, yet you have no problem making public call outs in posts or asks, belittling and degrading what could actually be innocent artists doing nothing wrong, literally leaving yourself open to all kinds of comments and opinions from all kinds of people....I'm sorry but your anxiety isn't as bad as you say it is then, if being rude and ignorant in a public post/ask is easier for you. If you come to us, shaming someone else who 9/10 probably isn't doing anything wrong, thinking you'll be in our good graces for doing so, sorry, you're not going to be told, "Good job!" with a pat on the back and given a lollipop! You're just being an asshole.

Quick reality check for everyone who's made it this far before I end this train wreck of a rant:

People can have similar ideas that coincide with one another! There's only so much you can do when a whole community is focused around drawing the same character! We mainly draw mewtwos and mews, you're bound to find a plethora of similar colors, patterns, and designs because of it! Creativity only goes so far when trying to stay true to a character and not stray too far. It's not a crime to take inspiration from other artists' characters, we actually encourage this! It makes us feel good that you liked something we've done and you want to incorporate it into your own designs! It makes us happy that we inspired you! The line is crossed when someone does a literal copy/paste of a character down to the exact detail, and they call it their own original creation. That my friends is what stealing actually is!

[illdothehotvoice]

Mario had two fucking partners die in PMTOK and I know Paper Mario likes to do that a lot but for some reason these ones hit different for me and I feel like no one gives it nearly as much attention as we should.

[philtatosbuck]

not to descendants post but it's crazy to me people are still looking at the core four like "you should have saved and liberated the entire isle within a month of being in auradon" girl what. how much power do people realistically think they had over auradon for them to do this without being evil about it (which y'all also hate)

[dawnofiight]

Can vamps be seen in mirrors?- nevy

I imagine if Vincent cared about his appearance a lot the mfer should be able to see himself in the damn mirror.

Like where tf did that even originate from I wonder

[isca-rambles]

(see Patrick Keleher's instagram for the full video) Mel being so good to us with these Chenford crumbs! Or her getting ready with popcorn to watch the delulu set in the second this hit the internet 😂

[imminent-danger-came]

was rewatching season 3, and noticed something that definitely doesn't actually mean anything, but made me pause for a second

at the end of the specials when Wukong apologizes to MK for being a bad mentor, MK never actually accepts the apology. he makes a joke about being able to just get another bowl of noodles and when Wukong explains his apology more, says he knows and plays dumb to lighten the mood, but he never actually accepts his actual apology

I'm probably thinking too hard about something that's just a silly joke but still

Oh, I think that moment was intended to highlight MK's traits rather than just be a "silly joke".

MK has a habit of wanting to move on and pretend every thing is fine. He doesn't want to think about the things that are messy and grey and complicated. He doesn't want to think about Wukong's flaws or any of the ways Wukong has hurt him, he just wants to go back to things being simple and easy, without working through anything. (Think like, 4x01 and 4x02 where MK keeps insisting he's alright, 4x05 where he says "Monkey king will explain how he's definitely not my dad and that everything is fine", or even 4x12 with "Kick this can down the ol' half marathon"/"So they can never make us live our nightmares again!")

MK during s2 feels so abandoned by Wukong, then brushing past his emotions the moment he realizes Wukong "had a good reason" for leaving. Which, Wukong did have a good reason, but his methods were less than ideal, and there are undoubtedly complicated feelings that came from that. Those two just like, fucking SUCK at communicating with each other.

And, it's definitely not all on Wukong, not by a long shot. But the thing is, MK can't acknowledge or talk about his feelings with Wukong, because that would require him to admit that Wukong hurt him in the first place. So I interpret the 3x14 Apology scene as MK not wanting to accept an apology, because what is Monkey King apologizing for? Nothing happened! Everything's fine! When that's just not true.

[tylerrnol]

Brandon likes festivals.

The UK? Not so much. It’s not that playing Reading and Leeds isn’t an honor. It should be. For a little band from Arizona, playing a festival overseas should feel good, like an accomplishment. And it does. But–

Well, Brandon’s bored. Very bored, and the weather isn’t helping. He’s used to the sunshine that even the worst places in the US can offer. Over here, Brandon’s pretty sure he hasn’t seen the sun at all. Endless clouds, endless fog, endless…

Gloom.

It had taken a major toll on his mood, even if the day itself had been good so far. They’d played their set to an energetic crowd. The fans that had shown up specifically for Blind Faith had come, taking their place at the very front of the crowd. The crowd had been infectiously ecstatic, singing along and moving to each new song. Even the ones who clearly had no idea who they were had seemed to enjoy themselves. And after, the band and some friends had gone back to the bus for their usual post-show party. It was good. It was fun. 

… So why does Brandon feel like this?

He’s restless, antsy. As much as he likes staying in and partying, it doesn’t feel like the move tonight. So Brandon slips out. The rest of the guys don’t seem to notice. Evan’s busy talking to some blonde chick he’d brought back with him. The guys from Significant Other – Kyle, Trent, and the others – are too preoccupied with the bottle of Patrón Brandon had dragged out. So, he’s able to slip out without much of a fuss.

It’s getting late. The sun hasn’t quite set, but it’s sinking lower and lower into the sky. The festival’s still raging on. Maybe this is what he needs. To get out, get out of his own head, and listen to some new music. Then maybe Brandon won’t feel so weird. At the very least, it’ll be an hour or so where he’s distracted. The rest… he can sort that out later.

It takes a bit of walking, but eventually Brandon reaches the nearest stage. Or the crowd for the nearest stage, anyway. The next band is just coming on. Brandon doesn’t recognize them or their logo, a heart wrapped in thorns. He also doesn’t recognize the first song as they start playing, soliciting an uproar of cheers from the crowd. 

The band doesn’t have much in common with Blind Faith. Where Blind Faith is all loud guitars, obnoxious drums and Brandon’s wailing vocals, what this band does is more... refined. The singer, Brandon pinpoints pretty quickly, isn’t American, though he can’t place the accent. What Brandon also pinpoints fairly quickly is that this is a man of craft. Everything he does has purpose. Every note, every lyric... it has meaning. He’s a storyteller who’s mastered his craft, one that believes every word that leaves his own mouth. 

What the bands do have in common is women.

When Brandon is on stage, he’s a beacon of energy. He'd once been called a ping-pong ball, and admittedly, it’s true. Brandon never stops moving. And with each song that passes, and the wilder Brandon gets, the more women scream. By the end of the night, when he lays on his back and belts out the final notes of their closing song, he’ll be covered in whatever bras and panties find their way on stage.

As he watches this singer, Brandon sees him doing the same thing. He's locked eyes with a woman in the front row, singing to her as they finish another song -- some number about eternal love. The woman’s openly weeping, reaching her hand out towards him. It’s… captivating. Personable. And the crowd’s going insane. What it lacks in size, it makes up for in passion. Brandon guesses this man could lure any woman here back to his bed if he wanted to. He looks the part. The sleeveless shirt he’s wearing perfectly shows off his tattoos, and with his long hair…

Brandon turns to the woman next to him in the crowd.

“What band is this?” He asks.

The woman (clearly a fan, judging by the wrist tattoo) replies quickly.

“Rakkaus,” she says. “From Finland.”

Rakkaus.

Brandon has to meet them.

[primowishes]

//Added a rule (more a disclaimer) that I'm somebody who takes on a lot of muses and that my muse list will only get longer. Of course, you never have to interact with any particular muses of mine, and you're free to prioritize only one or two (or a few) if you'd prefer, it's fine. But if you prefer to not follow multimuses with a lot of muses in general, you should know that I am the type of multimuse that picks up new muses frequently.

I'd just really prefer that, if people feel uncomfortable with my blog style, they unfollow. No hard feelings if you do, sometimes it just happens that rp styles don't vibe together.

[anextrapart]

I actually really like that nobody involved with BCS can collectively agree on what happens after the show ends because that means they are all equally correct and incorrect 

so we too are all equally correct and incorrect--there’s no right answer. what happens after the show ends is whatever you want to happen

[spacestationstorybook]

in‏‏‎ ‎games‏‏‎ ‎ponies‏‏‎ ‎play‏‏‎ ‎the (false) games‏‏‎ ‎inspector calls‏‏‎ ‎dash‏‏‎ ‎"speedy" twice which i think is precious and i WILL be stealing it as an affectionate nickname for astral to call her. btw i'm on season 4 already and i'm very tempted to slow down and take my time more but then i'm also worried i'll never finish it. i'm normal <3

[windfighter]

Not only thunder roars

Prompt: ”I’m scared.”

-----

Takeru curled up next to Yamato and Yamato put an arm around him.

”I’m scared”, Takeru whispered.

Lightning flashed across the sky, thunder roared. I’m scared too, Yamato wanted to say. But he couldn’t. He needed to be brave, Takeru’s rock. Needed to be a good brother. Or else mom and dad might start fighting again.

”I know it looks scary, but lots of things that look scary aren’t”, he said. ”Like that bug you found yesterday!”

A bug was far from the same thing as lightning though. Another flash crossed the sky and Yamato supressed the need to flinch. Takeru did instead, pressed harder into Yamato’s side. Yamato lifted him into his lap. Part of him wanted to suggest they hid in the wardrobe. He pushed that part as far away as possible.

”Why is the sky angry?” Takeru asked.

Yamato didn’t know. He raked his brain to find what he had done to wrong the sky, but nothing came up.

”Maybe….” he started and tried to think something up on the spot. ”...maybe there’s just been too much work for it lately. Like how it is for dad sometimes.”

Thunder roared again. Takeru gripped Yamato’s shirt and pressed his face against Yamato’s chest. Yamato watched the rain run down the window.

”He’s not angry at us, just very loud”, Yamato said.

He wished he could believe his own words. Takeru seemed to calm down a bit though, the tight grip around Yamato’s shirt loosened. Yamato lifted a hand to his cheek. The bruise had disappeared, but the pain was still fresh in his memory. He swallowed and hugged Takeru.

”He could never be angry at you”, he whispered.

”Is the sky angry at you?” Takeru asked.

Yamato blinked. Shook his head.

”Maybe it is”, he said. ”Maybe it’s angry I’m holding you in here instead of letting you go out and greet it.”

Takeru looked at him. Yamato did his best to grin and Takeru laughed. Settled more comfortable in Yamato’s lap and looked through the window. Yamato did as well, tried to keep the memories of dad’s hand and the pain away. Takeru leaned his head back and looked at Yamato.

”You’ll always protect me when it’s angry, won’t you?”

Yamato wasn’t sure what they were talking about any longer, but he knew one thing. He ruffled Takeru’s hair and gave him another hug.

”I’ll always protect you.”

[fluffypotatey]

"Merlin's allies are all swordsmen who's lives he's saved and viced versa. While Arthur's allies are women he almost married"

Well yeah, twink attracts himbos, himbo attracts lesbians, they're classic examples of mutual reciprocal altruism in symbiotic species

i like the way you think anon

[tardis--dreams]

I applaud the online shop who managed to completely mess up the vans size system and delivering me a size 39 instead of my 40.5 which i ordered ♡