#that them and i would make a great couple

[montrealhomo]

This post actually makes me want to rip my hair out. Seriously, it takes a couple of statistics, demonstrates no causation, and claims that men not wanting to do post-secondary education is a sexist thing. So then the sycophants in the notes can just dismiss this problem as the fault of men and move on.

I highly encourage everyone to read "Of Boys and Men" by Richard Reeves. He is a longtime poverty scholar based in the UK who wrote this book about men's underperformance in education and the economy.

The bottom line was clear: Men are systemically, across the board, performing worse in primary education, which poisons the rest of their life outcomes. Boys struggle for several reasons, but one of the big ones is that, in general, they develop the skills required to succeed in a formal education environment noticeably later than girls do: girls' brains develop faster. I'm talking about discipline and self-control, the skills necessary to complete the assignments and stay focused in class. By the time these skills develop, they've already fallen behind girls, and many see little point in putting work into school when they feel like school basically abandoned them.

Ask some of the younger men in your life how they felt in school, even those who pursued post-secondary education. Many of them will likely have some variant on the following story: they reached a point where they struggled to stay focused on school work, which they often failed to see the value of in the first place. Many can sometimes feel redundant: summarize the story you just read and answer many questions with obvious answers, complete this seemingly endless number of multiplication problems etc.

Personally, I suffered from undiagnosed dysgraphia, which I only realized as a 26-year-old. Writing is hard. It hurts my hand to do it for too long, and my penmanship is atrocious, but writing neatly was impossible. Despite consistently performing highly in reading and being interested in learning, I struggled with the work.

Throughout the entire time, my teachers, almost all of them women, accused me of laziness and indifference. They consistently asked me why I could not be more organized and disciplined and why I was not performing like the girls. That is incredibly demoralizing, and if it had not been for the fact that typing replaced handwriting, I likely would not have felt compelled to finish my studies.

My experience is not universal, obviously, but lots of men will likely say that at some point, they just weren't performing to the level clearly expected of them, and they didn't know why or what to do about it. Even worse, it was clear to them that the people in the school didn't even know how to help them. So they just disengaged, especially if they are in a context of poverty (and racialized), or just in a family where education was not prioritized.

I know it's à la mode to talk about how trash men as a group, but it would be great if the people who do this could actually talk to men sometimes about their experiences rather than just assume some stat is due to misogyny.

Why aren't we talking about the real reason male college enrollment is dropping? (Celeste Davis, Oct 6 2024)

"White flight is a term that describes how white people move out of neighborhoods when more people of color move in.

White flight is especially common when minority populations become the majority. That neighborhood then declines in value.

Male flight describes a similar phenomenon when large numbers of females enter a profession, group, hobby or industry—the men leave. That industry is then devalued.

Take veterinary school for example:

In 1969 almost all veterinary students were male at 89%.

By 1987, male enrollment was equal to female at 50%.

By 2009, male enrollment in veterinary schools had plummeted to 22.4%

A sociologist studying gender in veterinary schools, Dr. Anne Lincoln says that in an attempt to describe this drastic drop in male enrollment, many keep pointing to financial reasons like the debt-to-income ratio or the high cost of schooling.

But Lincoln’s research found that “men and women are equally affected by tuition and salaries.”

Her research shows that the reason fewer men are enrolling in veterinary school boils down to one factor: the number of women in the classroom.

For every 1% increase in the proportion of women in the student body, 1.7 fewer men applied.

One more woman applying was a greater deterrent than $1000 in extra tuition! (…)

Since males had dominated these professions for centuries, you would think they would leave slowly, hesitantly or maybe linger at 40%, 35%, 30%, but that’s not what happens.

Once the tipping point reaches majority female- the men flee. And boy do they flee!

It’s a slippery slope. When the number of women hits 60% the men who are there make a swift exit and other men stop joining.

Morty Schapiro, economist and former president of Northwestern University has noticed this trend when studying college enrollment numbers across universities:

“There’s a cliff you fall off once you become 60/40 female/male. It then becomes exponentially more difficult to recruit men.”

Now we’ve reached that 60% point of no return for colleges.

As we’ve seen with teachers, nurses and interior design, once an institution is majority female, the public perception of its value plummets.

Scanning through Reddit and Quora threads, many men seem to be in agreement - college is stupid and unnecessary.

A waste of time and money. You’re much better off going into the trades, a tech boot camp or becoming an entrepreneur. No need for college. (…)

When mostly men went to college? Prestigious. Aspirational. Important.

Now that mostly women go to college? Unnecessary. De-valued. A bad choice. (…)

School is now feminine. College is feminine. And rule #1 if you want to safely navigate this world as a man? Avoid the feminine.

But we don’t seem to want to talk about that."

[bitter-me]

Flustered Biker Boy

Lighter | M. Reader

----------

Based on one of his Trust Events, where he got flustered/shy from being called handsome. So I took it and multiplied it by three.

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"The Red Scarf," "the Undefeated Champion," "the Champion of the Sons of Calydon."

So many titles just for one man. He must be a legend if people speak of him in such a way. Someone that could be considered as a myth. So surreal that there's no way someone like him truly exists. It's impossible to think one person has the ability fight at least 50 men. Alone. All at once. And emerge victorious.

Yet it's all true. That man does exist and that man...

Is currently trying to hide his face with his scarf.

[Name] laughs at Lighter's reaction. He had just called him handsome and he's already so flustered? Is this the same Champion they talk about in the Outer Ring? But hey, he's not complaining. It's cute~

"Is something wrong? Your face is red." To see Lighter's face slowly rivaling the red of his scarf is a sight to behold. A sight.. only for him to see. Oh what privilege.

Lighter didn't respond. Instead he just cleared his throat. "Anyways.." He tries to act all cool and suave. As if being called handsome earlier didn't affect him in such a way which only earned him another laugh from [Name].

----------

Hanging out with Lighter had always been a joy. Despite his appearance and the whispers about him. He's quite the character. A man of power who sometimes has a childish streak. Someone who can play along and have fun but act all serious when the situation demands it. Who wouldn't love someone like that? Someone from the Outer Ring?

"Oh, they have a couple discount on the milk tea." [Name] thought out loud the moment he read the sign in front of the store. With a cheeky grin he glances over at Lighter and instantly links his arms around the other, making a B-line to the store.

Lighter was about to ask what's wrong only to be cut off by [Name]'s next words. "Excuse me, we like to take the couple discount, please."

Heat instantly makes its way onto Lighter's face. He originally thought that they were in some kind of danger. That someone was stalking them and planning to strike, which is why [Name] linked their arms like that. Trying to lead both of them to safety or something, but no. He was wrong. There wasn't some bad guy for him to fight. No, this is a different fight. A battle against..

..Economy.

Oh the things they do for a discount.

Meanwhile [Name] is extremely happy with himself. They've gotten milk tea for half the price and saw Lighter trying to hide his flustered face by drinking his milk tea.

What a great day to be alive.

----------

In this quality time of theirs. The two decided to go to the Outer Ring. So far [Name] had always suggested something in New Eridu, making excuses that Lighter should learn a few things about the city. But this time it was his turn to learn about the Outer Ring with Lighter as his guide.

But of course, time flies by fast when you're having fun.

Getting off of the bike [Name] stretched out his limbs with a groan. He had nearly forgotten how long the ride was from the Outer Ring to New Eridu. However it was more than worth it.

"You know, I had fun today." He began slowly before planting a small kiss on Lighter's cheek and pulls away with a cheeky grin. "See you later, biker boy." And with that he went straight towards the front door. Leaving an obviously red Lighter alone on his bike.

The red scarf had always suited him. Making him quite the eye candy. But a red face would definitely make him ten times more handsome.

[shysuccubusstuff]

Boyfriend! Caleb:

Content: SFW headcanons; jealousy

Note: Thanks for this one fanart of Caleb falling for MC's tactics just cause he loves her too much. Have you all noticed that I'm now turning to more SFW content? I feel as if I'm turning from a crow into a dove--. Btw, thanks for all those who like, comment and reblog my content, it makes me feel very happy!! Hope everyone is having a great week.

Caleb, who suddenly returns after his apparent death, face just as handsome as the one you saw every night in your dreams. He returns to you just as suddenly as you both met, and as you go rushing to hug him, you notice something strange in his demeanor. His face is smiling, yet it is apparent that there is something else in his gaze... some kind of hunger, something primal that he had been trying to lock away.

Caleb, who starts to act cold towards you, trying to run away from every little physical contact you tried to do, his mind still conflicted as he was now aware of what had truly brought the two of you together. It wasn't Josephine's love for the two, but something much more obscure... something that he was trying to keep hidden from you as long as he could try, at least.

Caleb, who starts to warm up to you. He starts to allow your touches, even if these are just minimal, but what starts with light brushes between each other's fingertips, soon turns into the both of you holding hands, with you creating excuses such as: "being afraid of getting separated in the middle of the Glint Photoboot" or "needing some comfort as you have grown scared of the darkness". Despite Caleb's head moves in disagreement, he does as you ask him, taking your hand and enveloping your whole hand with his as he lets a whisper escape his lips: "You never change...".

Caleb, who starts to go back to his old ways. Caleb's hands are always there for you, reaching out in case you trip while walking. Other times, his hands are held out for you while the two of you share a little treat together, his hands playing with yours as he listens to you speak about how today's work was much more difficult than usual, or how you really wanted to check that new place that had recently opened in the city center.

Caleb, who almost falls to his knees the moment he hears your confession. The two of you were drinking some tea at your place while watching some corny old soap opera, when you suddenly spoke those words: "I wouldn't mind us becoming a couple." He looks at you for a few seconds, his shock being apparent as his hands start to shake a bit, he moves closer to you, just enough for him to see your full face. "...What... what do you mean by that?" Caleb's purple orbes lock with yours, face slightly flushed as he tries his best not to burn his hand with the recently boiled water that he was carring inside the teacups. "I love you, Caleb, wasn't I clear enough during all these months?" Caleb's face becomes even redder, his hands start to shake even more, quickly leaving the cups in case he would actually spill them. "I... I just thought you were still thinking about our childhood--- I never imagined that you would actually--..." Caleb's words start to blend with each other, his mind rushing as he tried to understand everything that was going on at that moment. Irritated, you suddenly approached him, your hands locking behind his neck just so you could pull him closer, your lips crashing against his in a fast kiss.

B! Caleb, who finally surrenders to your approaches, allowing himself to become more and more starved. His hands start to move from your hands to your hips, his thumbs making small circles over it as he waited for you to stop talking with that grey haired man that lived nextdoor. Caleb standing behind you as he keeps glaring at him with an unamused look, his arms wrapping around your waist as a less threatening way of showing his closer position as not only your childhood friend, but your boyfriend.

B! Caleb who loves posting things with you. He is the kind of guy who loves having a private yet public relationship, the one that loves posting photos of the two of you, always avoiding showing your face in case someone of his work tried to get a bit too close to you. he just can't help it you know? Having a pretty girlfriend is so hard when he has to keep restraining himself from trying to get you as attached to him as possible.

B! Caleb who loves sharing the bed with you, his hands wrapping around you as he nuzzles against the crook of your neck, his hair tickling you as he starts to doze off, his breath slowly steading as he is finally able to rest. After twisting and turning for over ten minutes, you were about to get up, but just as you were about to do so, Caleb started to grunt, his nose scrunching as he started to hug you with more strength as you kept trying to get him to release you. "...Don't go... I love you." Caleb's grip only tightens, one of his legs suddenly wrapping around yours as if he was some kind of trap. "Just sleep... shhh." In the end, you have to surrender, moving a bit just so you could hide your face on the curve of his neck, his comforting scent making you feel at ease and slowly making you drift to sleep.

[ice-man-goes-bwoah]

Match maker||Franco colapinto x fem!norris!reader

Summary — Lando takes Franco under his wing and sets him up with his sister

Word count— 2826

A/n another one form my old account

“You did what?!” You asked your brother Lando who stood on the other side of the kitchen bar scratching the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Invited Franco over for dinner,” Lando repeated.

“I get that but why? And why to my apartment?” You asked, looking at him.

“Because I want the guy to know that he has a friend. F1 is lonely sometimes and your apartment is more homey than mine” Lando said as a matter of fact.

“Lando my apartment is a mess, look at the state of the place,” you said gesturing around the apartment.

Lando looked around your apartment looking for the so-called mess. The only thing he saw was the cat toys striding all over the floor and a couple of yellow dying leaves on one of your plants. Raising an eyebrow he looked at you skeptically holding up a finger as if he was saying one second.

You watched as he picked up the cat toys and tossed them into the basket before turning his attention to prune your plant gently taking off the yellow leaves.

“They're all clean,” Lando said, smiling proud of himself.

You couldn't help but smile and roll your eyes, "you didn't have to do that, you know?" you say, crossing your arms as he returned the gardening scissors to their place in the kitchen drawer.

"I know but now Franco won't see any mess, problem solved," he said with a grin, clearly proud of his work.

You shook your head gently, "you're a mess sometimes, you know that?" you teased, sticking your tongue out at him, gently swatting his arm.

Lando laughed good-naturedly, "hey, I'm just trying to help," he said, holding up his hands in mock surrender. He leaned against the kitchen counter and looked at you with a smile.

"But, thanks for letting me have Franco over," he said, his tone suddenly more serious, "I just want to make sure he feels less lonely around here, you know?

“F1 life can be pretty isolating at times," he said, running a hand through his messy hair. You felt a wave of empathy towards Lando, knowing that the F1 life wasn’t exactly a walk in the park. The constant traveling, media scrutiny, and being surrounded by people yet often feeling alone wasn't a piece of cake.

“I completely understand,” you said gently, moving to lean next to him against the kitchen counter. "I'm happy to have you guys over, just maybe a bit more notice next time?" you teased, nudging him playfully with your elbow.

Lando chuckled, "I promise to give you a heads-up in the future," he said, holding up a hand as if he was swearing.

A silence fell for a moment before Lando glanced at you, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"So tell me, you're single right? Do you mind if I play matchmaker for you tonight?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

You felt a mixture of surprise and amusement wash over you.

"Lando, are you serious?" you asked, trying to hold back a smile.

Lando just shrugged, "What can I say? I love playing matchmaker. Besides, I think you and Franco would get along great," he said, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

“Also what should I make for dinner?” You asked Lando.

“Ooh Make your Chicken Parmesan and my life is yours,” Lando says dramatically falling on the floor. Lando scrambled off the floor, a wide grin on his face.

"You're a goddess" he declared, exaggeratingly bowing down to you.

"Now if only Franco is as easily pleased as me" he teased, wagging his eyebrows. You shook your head, trying to hide a smile. "Lando, will you shut up and help me cook?"

He laughed and saluted you. "Aye, aye captain," he said, pushing himself off the floor.

As you both moved to the kitchen and started prepping the ingredients, Lando couldn't help but keep bringing up the thought of you and Franco together.

"You know, Franco is a nice guy," Lando said, chopping away at a pile of garlic "I think you two would get along great," he said, his eyes never leaving the chopping board.

You hummed in response, stirring the marinara sauce.

Lando glanced up at you with a smirk. "He's single too, you know" he teased, clearly enjoying this a little too much. You shot Lando a stern look, trying to suppress a smile. "Lando, I know you like to play matchmaker but slow down a bit, will you?"

Lando feigned surprise, a hand coming to his mouth in mock shock. "I have no idea what you're talking about," he said innocently, going back to chopping the garlic.

You rolled your eyes at his act. "You're the worst," you said, shaking your head.

Lando chuckled, "But you love me"

You couldn't deny that. You did love him, as annoying as he could be at times. But you weren't about to give him that satisfaction.

"Sometimes," you said with a grin, shaking your head.

Just then, the buzzer for the front door rang throughout the apartment - signaling that Franco was there. Lando's face lit up, like a kid on Christmas morning. "I'll get the door," Lando said quickly, jumping up from the counter before you had the chance to respond.

"Lando, wait-" you called out, but he was already rushing out of the kitchen.

Sighing, you tried to refocus on the marinara sauce. But the thought of meeting Franco for the first time started to make your nerves flutter.

Lando quickly crossed the living room and opened the front door. Franco stood there with a smile, holding a bottle of red wine in his hand.

"Hey mate, glad you could make it," Lando said, stepping aside to let him in.

Franco stepped through the door, his eyes immediately taking in your apartment. "Wow, this is a nice place, thanks for having me," he said, handing Lando the bottle of wine.

"Ah, thanks for bringing the wine," Lando said, taking the bottle in his hands and studying the label.

"And no problem, my friend," he said, giving his shoulder a firm pat.

You picked that moment to stroll into the living room, curiosity getting the better of you. At the sight of you, Franco gave a charming smile.

"Hello there," he said, his deep voice sending a shiver down your spine for some reason. You offered him a warm smile in return, trying to ignore the way your heart skipped a beat at his words.

"Hi, I'm (Y/N)" you said, holding out a hand.

Franco took your hand in his own, giving it a gentle shake. His hand was warm and firm against your own, and you found yourself blushing a bit at the contact.

"Franco," he said, his smile still in place. Lando watched the interaction, his smirk growing wider. Lando cleared his throat, breaking the moment.

"Come on, let's head into the kitchen, (Y/N) just about finished preparing dinner," he said, gesturing to the kitchen.

Franco gave you one more smile before following Lando into the kitchen. You stayed a step behind them, taking a deep breath to calm your nerves.

As you entered the kitchen, you went back to stirring the marinara sauce. Lando started to pour some of the wine into three glasses, handing one to you and one to Franco.

As the three of you drank and joked around with casual small talk, you found yourself getting more comfortable in Franco's presence. He was polite, witty, and had a smile that could melt even the iciest of hearts.

When it came time to eat, the three of you sat around your kitchen table, laughing and enjoying the delicious chicken parmesan.

As you all talked, you realized that Lando was suspiciously quiet - watching you and Franco intently, the ghost of a smirk on his lips.

Lando continued to silently observe you and Franco, occasionally chuckling to himself. You noticed this and shot him a few pointed looks, trying to signal for him to behave.

But Lando just smiled innocently, sipping his wine.

Meanwhile, you and Franco continued chatting, discovering mutual interests, and sharing stories. The conversation was easy and natural, and you found yourself genuinely enjoying his company.

As the meal came to a close, the conversation started to die down. Lando set down his fork and leaned back in his chair, a satisfied smile on his face.

"Well, that was bloody fantastic," he said, patting his stomach.

Franco nodded in agreement, also leaning back in his chair. "Yeah, best chicken parmesan I’ve ever had," he said, looking over at you with a grateful smile.

You felt a blush rise in your cheeks at the compliment. "Oh, it's nothing really" you said, waving a dismissive hand.

Lando smirked into his wine glass, watching you two interact. He was enjoying this far too much.

"Nonsense, it was absolutely fantastic" Franco said, his eyes never leaving yours.

Suddenly, Lando cleared his throat, interrupting the moment.

"You know, (Y/N). Franco here is single" he said, feigning innocence. You tensed up at Lando's words. Here we go.

Franco coughed awkwardly, his cheeks tinged a light pink.

You sent Lando a sharp glare, warning him to back off. Which also resulted in you kicking Lando in the shin underneath the table. Lando winced in pain, "Ow!" he exclaimed, rubbing his shin as he shot you a betrayed look.

Franco chuckled beside you, clearly enjoying your playful banter. "Sorry," you said to Lando, not sounding at all sorry. Lando just grumbled something under his breath as he continued to rub his shin.

Glancing at Franco, you found he was looking right back at you, an amused smile playing on his lips. "Hey, I’m just trying to help you guys out" Lando said, holding up his hands in mock surrender.

Franco shook his head, "It's alright, I think it's quite funny actually" he said, glancing between you and Lando. You chuckled, mentally cursing Lando for his attempts at match-making.

“You’ll have to forgive him, he’s a bit of a meddler” you said, giving Lando a pointed look. Lando let out a huff of protest, "I’m not a meddler, I prefer the term matchmaker".

You rolled your eyes at his comment, shaking your head. "More like a pain in the ass" you muttered. Franco chuckled beside you, clearly amused by your banter.

Lando clutched his chest in mock offense, "I'm hurt. Really hurt." You just rolled your eyes again, used to Lando's melodrama. “Well would you look at the time I should be going” Lando said looking at his bare wrist as he got up sprinting to the door.

“You’re not even wearing your watch!” You called out to him. Lando ignored your comment and quickly made his way to the door in a few long strides.

"Bye guys, have fun!" he called out over his shoulder before exiting the apartment. The door slid shut behind him, leaving you alone with Franco.

You let out a sigh, shaking your head. "That boy, I swear he never knows when to stop" you said, rolling your eyes.

Franco chuckled, looking over at you. "He seems like a fun guy" he said.

You shook your head, "Yeah, fun and a massive pain in the ass" you replied, a smile tugging at your lips. The two of you stood silently for a moment, the weight of Lando's words hanging in the air.

Trying to break the tension, you cleared your throat. "Well, would you like some more wine?" you asked, gesturing to the bottle on the table.

Franco smiled warmly and nodded. "Yeah, why not" he said, holding out his glass for you to refill it. You poured the red liquid into his glass, your hands slightly shaking with nerves.

As you refilled your own glass, you snuck a glance at Franco, taking in his sharp jaw and kind eyes.

God, he really was handsome. You quickly averted your gaze, mentally scolding yourself for ogling him like that.

As you set down the bottle, you decided to break the silence.

"So, Lando mentioned you’re single?" you asked, trying to sound casual but failing miserably. As soon as the words left your mouth, you mentally smacked yourself. Of course you would ask that.

Franco let out a chuckle, his eyes flashing with amusement.

"Yeah, I'm single" he said simply, swirling the wine in his glass.

A silence fell over the two of you for a moment, the only sound being the ticking of the clock on the wall.

You fidgeted with the hem of your shirt, not knowing what to say next.

Franco glanced up at you, his gaze suddenly intense. "And you? Are you single?" he asked, his voice low. You felt your breath hitch in your throat as you met his gaze.

"Y-yeah, I’m single" you manage to squeak out, your voice betraying your nerves.

Franco nodded in response, his eyes studying your face intently. The tension in the air was suddenly thick enough to cut with a knife.

Despite your nerves, there was something about the way he was looking at you that made your stomach flutter.

The air was charged with a tension you couldn’t fully understand, and it made it hard to focus on anything except his gaze.

After a few moments of silence, Franco cleared his throat. “Can I…ask you something?”

Franco took a sip of his wine before continuing, his eyes never leaving you.

"Did Lando set us up?" he asked bluntly.

You were taken aback by his bluntness, but after a moment of surprise wore off, you chuckled.

"Yes, he did" you admitted sheepishly. Franco chuckled as well, his eyes sparkling with amusement.

“I had a feeling he was up to something” he said, his voice low. “But I wasn’t expecting him to be quite so…forward”

You nodded, a smile on your face. “Lando can be a little reckless at times” you said, shaking your head fondly. “Clearly” Franco said, his tone amused.

He stared at you for a few moments, his eyes boring into you. You fidgeted nervously, unsure of what to say or do next.

Finally, he spoke again, his voice quieter than before. “Can I tell you something?”

Your heart rate picked up speed as you swallowed heavily. "Yeah, sure. Go ahead" you said, bracing yourself. Franco took a deep breath, his eyes never leaving yours.

"I actually..." he trailed off, suddenly looking nervous.

Your heart was pounding in your chest as you waited for him to continue, holding your breath. "I...I actually find you very attractive" he said in a rush, his cheeks turning a light tint of pink.

Your heart skipped a beat at his words, your mind suddenly going blank. Did he just say what you thought he said?

"I, uh..." you mumbled, your mind scrambling to come up with a response.

Franco chuckled, sensing your surprise. He ran a hand through his hair, looking suddenly sheepish.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to blurt that out like that” he said, a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

You shook your head, still trying to process what he had just said.

"No, no, it's alright" you finally managed to say, your voice shaky. "I, uh...I find you attractive too" you admitted quietly, feeling your cheeks flush.

“Would you like to go out sometime soon with me?” Franco asked nervously.

Your heart thumped in your chest as Franco's words hung in the air. He wanted to go out with you.

"Yes" you said, without hesitation. "I'd love to"

A smile slowly spread across Franco's face. "Really?" he asked, looking pleasantly surprised.

"Yes, really" you laughed, the nerves finally gone.

Franco's smile widened, his eyes sparkling. "Great" he replied, the relief evident in his voice. "How about this Friday? I'll pick you up at 8?"

Your heart fluttered at his suggestion. "That sounds perfect" you said, a smile on your face.

Franco let out a sigh of relief. "Great, it's a date" he said, looking genuinely excited. The two of you continued talking for a while longer, the previous tension replaced by a lighthearted chatter.

Eventually, Franco looked down at his watch and winced. "It's almost midnight, I should probably head home" he said, reluctantly standing up from his chair.

You stood up as well, feeling a pang of disappointment at the thought of him leaving. But you knew he was right - it was getting late.

“Yeah, I guess it is pretty late” you said, glancing down at your own watch.

Franco gathered his jacket and slung it over his shoulder. You walked him to the front door.

As you opened the door, Franco turned to face you. He looked like he wanted to say something, but he was hesitating.

Finally, he spoke up. "Tonight was really nice" he said, his voice softer than before.

You smiled, feeling your heart flutter. "Yeah, it was" you agreed, holding his gaze.

[sillymommy6969]

.𖥔 ݁ ˖ 𝕲UESS ᝰ! CHAPTER SIX

synopsis: katseye lucked out when their team managed to score a-list award-winning actress, y/n l/n to be featured in their upcoming music video for ‘touch’. when the cameras turn off and the doors close, lara feels a little more than just onscreen chemistry with her music video love interest.

On the drive to the café, you assured your manager you would make sure you all show up to the studio on time. In the black corvette you got from your parents as a gift for your 18th after winning a Golden Globe. Dressed in a grey sweater, a navy MLB cap on backwards, some camo sweats, and some ice, you were definitely dressed more on the comfort-casual side. You knew you were going to be thrown in so many different styles and getups for the day, you needed some relief.

You hadn’t even noticed your heart drumming against your chest until you turned into the last corner the café was on. You usually concealed emotions well, especially when it came to meeting different kinds of people. It was your job to be able to put up a front, but the sound of your heart racing against in your ear was drowning out the sound of the radio.

The café you wanted to go to was frequented by Californian stars, you knew their security personnel was good enough for you to have a private first meeting.

When you parked, you checked yourself in the mirror, yanking your phone out of its holder. You texted your manager a quick message informing him of your arrival before getting out the car. Sophia had texted you they had arrived a couple minutes ago, so you’d assumed they had gotten a seat for themselves. When you entered the coffee shop, you were greeted by the barista you had the pleasure of befriending after many trips here for a snack early before a flight or late after a shoot.

“Hey, y/n, good to see you.” Yeonjun called. He grabbed a paper cup, flipping it in-air before holding a pen to its “I got your usual coming up. Want a bite today?”

You hummed, “Yeah, an eclair would be great. I’m actually here to meet a couple new friends, YJ. Did you happen to see a group of pretty women walking in here?”

He nodded, gesturing towards the back. “Around the cut, I got them a table out of view. Figured it was important.”

You shot him a smile. “Thanks. $30 in the jar for you.”

You stuffed a couple notes in the tip jar, giving him a wink. He chuckled, shaking his head. “You spoil me.”

When you circled around back to the VIP section of this café, it was criminal how fast your eyes scouted the group out of the few people sitting. When they spotted you, Sophia was first to stand, meeting you in the middle for a brief hug.

“Oh my God, y/n! It’s so nice to finally meet you.”

You smiled at her, “Yeah, likewise. Damn, you guys are crazy tall.” You joked, glancing between all six of them. They were a good couple inches taller than you, but their bright smiles and vibrant clothing gave them a softer, friendlier edge. “And more beautiful than your pictures, which I didn’t think was possible.”

They’re all stunning in their own way—each with a presence that demands attention—but one of them catches your eye almost immediately. Her tall, dark and mysterious aura seemed to intrigue you—just like she had when you saw her pictures.

She’s standing just a few feet away, her posture confident but not overbearing. There's an easy grace to her movements as she adjusts something on her wrist, her attention momentarily focused on fixing the crooked bracelet as Manon and Sophia bombarded you with words. Yet, as soon as her gaze shifted to meet yours, it broke through your professional exterior, you glanced down, swallowing thickly to regather your composure. You looked up, feeling Daniela push herself forward between the two eldest members of the group.

“Honey, we are absolutely obsessed with you.” she grinned, tilting her head. She was rather affectionate, loud when she was excited. You could see why your friends recommended texting her to break the ice. “When we found out we would be working with you, I almost broke my phone.”

“Spoiler alert, she did break her phone.” Megan snorted, earning an exaggerated glare from Daniela.

As they bickered about, you found your nerves easing at the chaotic energy these girls brought. Without the supervision of their manager, they were rather unfiltered, and that made you a lot more comfortable. Still, your attention split between the narrative and a certain red-headed Scorpio, who had yet to say anything despite being the one you’ve talked to most online.

You found yourself drawn to her. There's something about the way she carried herself—effortless, cool, but with a quiet intensity that felt magnetic. The other members chattered around you, making small talk, but your attention kept slipping back to Lara, who seemed to sense your curious gaze. She offered you a subtle, knowing smile, the kind that makes your heart skip a beat. And that had only ever happened around one other person in your life, a person who loved playing games with you.

"Do y’know anything about the music video?" When she finally spoke, her voice was smooth, velvety, almost teasing, as if she already knew more about you than she let on. It didn’t seem intentional, like that was who she was, who she presented herself to be. It was so attractive, so electrifying.

"No," you managed, your words feeling a little more breathless than you'd like. "My manager didn’t tell me anything.”

Her smile widened just a fraction, her eyes flicking down your outfit before returning to your face. "I think it’s gonna be fun. But you’ll be in and out the changing room a lot today."

Both of you didn’t seem to notice the knowing glances shared among the other five members, before Sophia cleared her throat, changing the topic. “We gotta head to the studio, have you gotten anything to eat yet?”

You nod, the energy between the two of you palpable now, thick with unspoken curiosity. As the others continue talking, you can’t shake the feeling that there’s something more here—a connection, an unspoken understanding—that might make this experience with Katseye something… memorable. And it’s definitely not just the music video you’re thinking about now.

You can’t help but wonder how deep this connection could go.

You just could not stop thinking about Lara. You wanted nothing more than to get to know her better, get to know what was behind those sharp eyes and gated lips. Her confidence was intoxicating, the way her eyes raked you up and down, despite showing no interest over text and obviously having a lot of people she’s talking to on the side.

You had been welcomed by so many respectful staff, given so many gifts and invited into comfortable spaces. Even when you were finally stripped out of your last outfit and lead to a room to wait while Roy and Katseye’s team made a couple arrangements, you couldn’t stop thinking about her.

It was obvious to you there were more eager members of the band who wished for some time alone, but you just wanted to figure her out. As insane as that sounded, you reminded yourself you only began texting this woman for one weekend, and this morning was the first time you’d laid eyes on her.

“Okay, thank you for waiting, y/n.” Grayson, the director of the music video announced when he walked through the door. “It’s an honour to be able to work with you.”

“Likewise,” you replied with a smile, eyeing Sophia behind him.

“So I’ve explained your parts in this music video. You’re the woman these girls have been thinking about, they’re sad, they’re mad, they’re frustrated with you toying with their feelings.” You nodded along to his explanation, “You’ll be filmed rolling your eyes when they call, ignoring them, flirting with other people and stuff but those are standalone scenes. For another part of the video we’re gonna film last, we need you posing in a photo booth with one of the girls like a cute couple, before walking down the street chasing after another woman you saw through the shop window.”

So you were playing the toxic partner in a relationship; that’s a first, you’ve always been on the receiving end.

“So right now, we have the girls lined up and we’ll do a really quick chemistry screening. Sophia’s up first.”

The two of you shared a quick smile, before you were guided towards a table with two cups in front of a camera. You were then told to act like the two of you were on a date. And though Sophia’s bright expression softened the awkward tension at first, it was obvious when the two of you would accidentally move your hands at the same time and apologize quickly.

The director shook his head, “Okay, the two of you look cuter as a friendship, the romance feels forced on screen.”

Sophia nodded, the two of you sharing a couple words making a joke about breaking up before the leader was invited to leave. Then came Manon, and you knew it was going to be a while.

next. 𝜗𝜚⋆₊˚ masterlist.

taglist: @vivilvr @1luvkarina @meiphobic @yeetaberry127 @lafortezalover @lararajjj @kristalag @meizinisnumberone @vrtualstar @artrizzler19 @arihiu @cassiespoiler @nyssalvr @hazel-tanthamore22 @kathleenmikaelson @taikabui @wtfisthisnoclueman @onlyyou-metanoia @yjiminswallet @firstclassjaylee @xochitlisbest @saysirhc @sunshinez4 @fruityg0rl @urmom2314 @cceanvvaves @bowforgodjihyo @blushmimi (taglist open!)

[spiderb00]

ever since i sent that ask a couple weeks ago about sophia being a great kisser i haven’t stopped thinking abt it.. pls can we get something similar like a first kiss between sophia and yn (famout or not) 🙏

Hi anon! I understand you, I think we all think a lot about Sophia.

Well, I decided to do this like in the Fam Out universe, 'cause I think I'll spend a while without writing new things for them both (And also bc I love them both in the Dream Academy timeline), so I'm here dropping some crumbs to try to make up for the missing time.

Sophia and Yn kissed on the second date, they were both so nervous it was a bit messy.

Yn and Sophia spent the whole night trying to find a good time to get closer and finally do what they wanted so much.

But it was only when Yn left Sophia at home that the two relaxed and finally created the perfect mood.

Yn had taken Sophia for a picnic, they watched the sunset, laughing all afternoon until the sun finally disappeared and gave way to the moon. When Yn parked the car just before where the Dream Academy girls' dorm room was, they exchanged glances, Yn's desire consumed her inside, while Sophia didn't know what to do to stop the feeling that was inside her.

"I had fun tonight." Sophia was the first to speak, the Filipina's eyes wandering between Yn's eyes and lips.

"Me too. Everywhere is fun when I'm with you." Yn spoke tilting her head back on the bench, noticing the look Sophia was giving her.

"Don't look at me like that." Yn spoke, cutting the silence that had settled in the car.

"Why?" Sophia asked, getting closer to Yn.

Their eyes were full of desire, they both longed for that moment, the moment when their lips would touch and they would feel love flow from within them.

"Because it reminds me how much I want to kiss you." Yn said, lifting her head slightly from the back of the seat.

Seeing Yn's head tilted slightly to the right side, Sophia approached, getting close almost as if asking permission, making Yn finally close the space between the girls' mouths.

Tilting her head to the left, Sophia deepened the kiss, the two feeling a cloud of peace around them, the love grated in their chests seemed about to explode, showing the amount of beautiful feelings stored inside. If that were a cartoon, flowers and hearts would be scattered all over the car, filling the air and making everything colorful and full of life, because that was how the two girls felt.

Even with the shortness of breath beginning to be present in the kiss, the two girls wanted to stay together, giving each other kisses on each other's lips as they tried to catch their breath. As she walked away, Sophia was panting and her nose was red, she looked beautiful and Yn could tell that she had just come out of a freezer if she didn't know why the Filipino girl was so red.

Yn on the other hand, looked like a mess. The girl's hair was slightly messed up by Sophia's hands, and her lips were totally stained with Sophia's lip gloss.

Laughing a little at the visual mess that Yn was, Sophia gave the girl one more peck before sitting properly in the car seat.

"What's wrong?" Yn asked.

"Nothing, it's just that you look very disturbed." Sophia said, a passionate smile on her face. Anyone who saw them inside the car could see the love exuding from inside the vehicle.

"Don't blame me, I just kissed the most beautiful woman in the world." Yn said, making Sophia laugh and pat her.

"Are you going to call me tomorrow?" Sophia asked, her lower lip between her teeth as she waited for Yn's answer.

"Anything you want, Miss Laforteza." Yn said, making Sophia roll her eyes and open the car door.

"It's better to be." Sophia said, getting out of the car taking one last look at the street, before putting her head in again, grabbing you by the collar of your shirt and giving you one more kiss on your lips, before finally heading towards the Dream Academy building.

"I'm going to marry her." You said, leaning back on the bench as you waited for the Filipina to enter the dormitory safe and sound.

[futureperfectchanges]

The Leather Jackets

"How about this one?" Finn asked as he held up a leather jacket to show to his friend Greg. "Seems a bit smaller than the others."

"Maybe, although perhaps we should try somewhere else?" Greg replied, he was getting a bit nervous now that they were actually in a store looking at jackets. A couple of nights ago they had gone to Infernos, their local club, and seen a flyer for an upcoming leather night. One thing had led to another and Greg had admitted that he had always had a bit of a thing for guys in leather. Greg had definitely not expected Finn to then suggest going to the leather night, but was excited when he did as he would never have had the courage to go on his own.

The only problem was that the flyer had said wearing something leather was mandatory, and neither of them owned anything suitable. They had joked about getting some harnesses, but had decided to play safe and go for leather jackets. Finn had already found a jacket he thought was good, but everything had been a bit too large for Greg. "Let's just try these on, and if they don't fit we'll try somewhere else."

So the friends made their way to the changing room where Finn was the first to try on his jacket. Finn was the more outgoing of the two, and had always enjoyed going out in fancy dress which was why he'd suggested attending the leather night, but even he was now worrying they might not be able to pull these costumes off. Finn had a bit of a baby face, so once he slipped his jacket on and saw himself in the mirror his first thought was that he looked like a child wearing adult clothes trying to look tough.

Finn had expected the leather to feel cool, which it was to start with, but once the jacket was on he was surprised to get a bit flushed. He was worried he might start sweating into the leather, but the warmth quickly faded away at which point he noticed just how comfortable the jacket felt.

Finn smirked a little as he looked at himself in the mirror. He straightened his back and pushed out his chest to show off his chiselled body. He started thinking of the other leather jackets he had but couldn't remember any fitting as well as this one.

"See Greg, nothing like a leather jacket to help make you look like a man. I'm glad you've finally agreed to join me at a leather night, and if you are anything like me you're going to love it." Finn said confidently as he checked himself out in the mirror.

"That's fine for you to say, you've worn stuff like this for years and have the body to suit it. I just don't think I can pull it off, especially not with something that is too large for me. I think we should go somewhere else." Greg said starting to lose whatever confidence he had.

"Well we are here now so you might as well try that jacket on. You'll at least know if you like the feel of it." Finn replied. He knew his friends at the leather night would love Greg regardless of what he looked like in the jacket.

Greg reluctantly started to put on the jacket. What he had not told Finn is that his interest in leather was not about looking cool. Instead it was about domination. He had always been small, weak and mostly submissive, but when he thought of leather he thought of heavily built intimidating men and everything he wasn't.

So Greg knew that even if the jacket had been his size it would never be right to him, something which was confirmed to him as he looked at himself in the mirror. Greg thought he looked ridiculous and knew that the idea of going to a leather night had been a huge mistake. Greg started to feel anxious as he thought about how he should never have said anything to Finn. The jacket started to feel suffocating around Greg's body, but before he could take it off he felt the ball of anxiety in his chest burst out across his whole body.

"Wow, that looks great on you Greg" Finn said as Greg admired himself in the mirror.

"What did you call me Boy?" Greg barked back whilst staying focused on the mirror.

"Sorry, I meant the jacket looks great on you Sir."

"Another slip up like that and i'll be forced to punish you." Greg firmly replied as he turned to face Finn, with both of them getting turned on by the thought of what might come later.

[tnc-n3cl]

Cool analysis!

Given what happens at the end of Wind Waker, the illusory Great Sea may have become a real ocean at the end. At the very least there's an air pocket of some sorts at the bottom where Hyrule Castle etc. is nice and dry. (Which raises the questions of sea level changes when the bubble bursts and Hyrule floods for real. So the sea being not quite real and becoming real at the end could come into effect here.)

I think at one point I either saw a video by Zeltik or read something that suggested that that since the Zora require clean, still water for their eggs, and that the conditions of the early Great Sea would have necessitated their changing. But Gloom in the Great Sea or Gloom in the waters of Zora's Domain as Ganon was returning is a reasonable enough explanation as well.

Although, Nintendo has updated the timeline and now BotW and TotK are off to the side, seemingly in their own little world since there's no connection to the others. (Or perhaps this is a way of suggesting that there's been so much time that you can't really tell which branch they're connected to but maybe it's either the Child Era or Adult Era since the image puts them closer to those two branches than the Downfall Timeline?)

Of course, even if BotW and TotK are in their own timeline, that doesn't necessarily mean that Ganondorf wasn't able to make something like Gloom in the other timelines. (I mean he can cast eternal night and storms and blow up a whole island so he can probably do whatever he wants...)

(I've always thought the disrupted terrain around the Lake Tower in BotW resembled the ruins of Greatfish Isle, which was supposed to be around Lake Hylia before the Great Flood IIRC.)

(The Great Sea not having fish does raise the question as to what the people there are eating. What are the seagulls eating? Kelp? I know we see a few pigs but...)

I decided to weigh in on the Zora-Rito connection in my fic, and came up with my own reasons for the change but I think I'll go into detail about that in my own post unless OP wants the input here.

EDIT: Oh there are a couple spots in the Depths that have Glowing Cave Fish, I think one is under a well (that leads to the Depths) and another is where the Gerudo Tower was in BotW. But it is odd that the larger lakes don't have any fish. The fish in the well spot might have fallen from the well when the chasm was made?

Why doesn't the Great Sea have fish? Why did the Zora have to evolve into Rito, despite being aquatic?

There's gloom in the water.

[darkwitchoferie]

Train Ride - Chapter 3, Felix

A/N: Just a quick thing – the picker wheel thing, that is legitimately how I decided the order in the original oneshot, after I.N and with the exception of Seungmin, and of course the end being all of them.

Cw/tw for this chapter: unprotected vaginal and anal sex, oral (m & f receiving), member x member sex, subby Felix (sorta), threesome, vaginal fingering, nipple play, reader’s called a slut a couple times, but is totally into it, cum sharing

wc: 3172

Chapter One Two Four

It's two days later and you still hadn’t decided who should be next. You told Chan it almost felt like trying to pick favorites and you just can’t do that. Jeongin, who’d slipped into Chan’s bed behind you for an early morning quickie, chuckled, tightening his arm around your waist. They both reminded you that they would be leaving for a pair of shows over the coming weekend, so you’d better decide soon or you’d have to wait until they came back.

Because you just can’t decide who should be next, Chan ends up suggesting one of those picker wheels you can find online. At first, you’d laughed and thought it was a silly way to decide which of your boyfriend’s friends you were going to seduce next. Then Jeongin pointed out that it was probably the fairest way since it was completely random. The first spin landed on Felix.

Hours later, giggling to yourself at the prospect of the night’s activities, you pulled out your planned outfit about an hour before Chan was due at your apartment. You’d told him it didn’t really matter what pretext he used to invite Felix over for dinner, but you both knew he’d have to say something about why it was just him and not more or all of the members that were coming over. The skirt you were wearing was one you’d never had the courage to wear outside of your apartment, being that it just barely covered your ass while you were standing, let alone if you tried to sit in it. But Chan loved the way it fit you. Said he loved the easy access, particularly because you never wore panties with it. The shirt was a plain, blue button up that you left untucked and with the top few buttons undone on, exposing a fair amount of cleavage. Otherwise, you did nothing unusual or different with your hair or makeup, choosing to do both as if it were a totally normal day and you were just planning to have dinner with your boyfriend and one of his best friends.

Thanks to constant texts with Chan you timed dinner perfectly, shutting the heat off under the kimchi stew just as he swung open the door. “Hey babe! I brought Felix for dinner.”

“Hi boys,” you grinned at them as the pair of them joined you in your eat-in kitchen. “Great timing, I just finished.” Your grin widened as you watched Felix nearly swallow his tongue when he took in your outfit.

“Smells great, Y/nnie,” Felix shook himself, hoping neither of you noticed the way his eyes had been glued to your cleavage. Of course you noticed, that being the whole point of the shirt you’re wearing.

Chan came up to you, wrapping his arms around you for a quick kiss and to squeeze your ass. You chuckled as he released you, then turned to dish up the stew. Sitting at your kitchen table, the three of you made conversation as if it were any other day. You asked about their days, they listened to you complain about business calls you’d had to make to absolute idiots. No one mentioned your outfit or how Felix’s gaze flickered between the high hem of your skirt and exposed cleavage, then checked both your faces to be sure you didn’t notice.

You did your best not to squirm too much in your seat, already turned on from the upcoming possibilities and knowing there’d be a wet spot on the chair upholstery. Not that you cared.

You were clearing the table, still sharing stories about your day, when you ‘dropped’ a spoon as you reached the sink.

“Here, I got it,” Chan stood and took a couple steps toward you.

 “It’s fine, babe,” you waved him off as you bent over, flashing both of them your bare ass and pussy as you did so.

“Naughty girl,” Chan commented, landing a quick smack to your bare lips. You gasped, rocking forward a little and grabbing onto the sink edge to help balance yourself. He nudged one of your feet, forcing your legs apart just enough so that they had a better view. He ran a finger down your folds, pressing briefly against your clit and causing you to moan. “Little slut, not wearing any panties when we have company.” He pushed two fingers into you. “Already so wet, aren’t you? No one’s even touched you.” He thrust his fingers in and out of you roughly enough that you had to twist your upper body to get a better grip on the counter top. “Such a pretty little slut, wearing such a short skirt with no panties just to tease us.”

Behind you, still at the kitchen table, Felix was riveted to the display in front of him. You couldn’t see him, but you could hear his breathy pants as Chan kept going. Chan, on the other hand, had a perfect view of Felix. He could see the way his eyes had dilated, the flush high on his cheeks, his mouth hanging slightly open to let out those breathy sounds, and the bulge steadily growing in his pants.

Chan kept to the side so Felix still had a clear view, but twisted his hand so he was able to curl his fingers and reach that spongy part of your walls that had you moaning and clenching around his fingers. “Ah, baby girl’s getting close, aren’t you?” He commented when he felt your walls start to flutter around his fingers.

“Yes. Please Channie.”

“I dunno. What do you think, Felix? Does she deserve to cum?”

“Yes. Yes, please.” By Felix’s voice, you’d think he’d been the one being touched, not just watching.

“Alright,” Chan pulled his fingers out of you, causing both you and Felix to whine. He pulled you to stand upright and very quickly stripped you of your tiny skirt, shirt, and bra. “If you think she deserves to get off,” he lifted you up and set you on the table in front of Felix, “you get her off.”

Felix looked between the two of you, gauging the situation. But when you reached out and threaded your fingers in his long black hair, he snapped. He dove face first into your cunt, licking and sucking at you like he was starving and your cunt was the only thing that could keep him alive. You dropped back onto the table as Felix shifted so your legs were draped over his shoulders and his arms were wrapped around your thighs.

Chan sat back down where he’d been, across from Felix and therefore now right by your head. He smiled down at you, stroking your hair and pressing soft kisses to your lips, cheeks, and neck, but letting Felix do all of the work to make you cum.

Having already been so close, it didn’t take long for Felix to have you coming undone on his tongue. Tightening your grip on his hair, you pushed him into you as you arched up and clamped your thighs around his head, moaning out a mix of his and Chan’s names.

But he didn’t stop, hell, he didn’t even slow down. You didn’t even have a chance to truly come down from your orgasm as Felix kept licking at and tongue fucking you, building you up to another one. He did leave off your clit, for a little while, when you whined from the overstimulation, but otherwise, he kept his mouth and tongue on your pussy. You looked down at him and saw him staring up at you looking – somehow – more fucked out than you.

Chan moved from his chair to yours at the table. Almost like he couldn’t help himself, he reached out and started running his fingers through Felix’s hair and, if you had to guess by the motions, gently squeezing the nape of his neck. When he did, Felix whined again, a high pitched sound that vibrated against your lips and caused you to moan in response. Chan smiled at both your reactions, then leaned down and swiped his tongue over your nipple. You gasped, tightening your hold on Felix’s hair that had just started to loosen.

Chan’s tongue circled around your nipple, causing it to pebble. Meanwhile Felix seemed to have decided to copy him, as he circled his tongue around your clit, then sucked it into his mouth when Chan did the same to your nipple. Chan reached across your chest, gently tugging and rolling your other nipple between his two fingers.

Between the two of them, your second orgasm was building quickly. You were a writhing mess on the table, knuckles turning white with how hard you were gripping the edge of the table, near constant moans slipping through your lips. But it was when Felix pushed two fingers into you and crooked them, rubbing in a ‘come here’ motion, that you arched up, the coil in your belly finally snapping again.

Felix didn’t want to let up as he let you ride out your orgasm on his fingers and tongue then didn’t pull back even when you started to whine from the overstimulation. Chan tugged at Felix’s hair, forcing him to move away from your pussy with a whine. “I know, she tastes good enough to suffocate yourself in her,” he gently stroked his thumb along the side of Felix’s face when he rested his head on your thigh, both of you breathing heavily. “Do you want to fuck her, Lix?”

Felix, eyes glassy and the lower half of his face soaked in your arousal and cum, responded with a breathy, “Both.”

“Hm?”

“Both. Wanna – God – wanna fuck her while you fuck me.”

Chan groaned, gripped the back of Felix’s head, and leaned in to claim his lips. You couldn’t see it, but you could tell by Felix’s reaction when Chan pushed his tongue past the younger man’s lips. “That,” he said, pulling away. “Can absolutely be arranged. Babygirl, can you walk?”

“Probably. Gimme a minute.” It took more than a minute, and a glass of water for you and Felix each, but before too long, the three of you were headed to your room.

You turned to Felix, who was behind you, and pulled at his shirt as you walked backwards down the hallway. He got the hint, tugging the shirt off and just letting it drop to the ground, before gripping your hips and pulling you to him to claim your mouth. Despite the water, a faint taste of your own juices still lingered on his lips and tongue. Eyes closed, you felt instead of saw Felix jolt and then felt Chan’s hands come to rest just above Felix’s on your waist so you assumed Chan was now plastering himself against Felix’s back.

“Come on, keep moving,” he encouraged you both. You all moved slowly down the hall, hampered by you and the two men stripping the both of them as you all walked instead of just waiting to get to your room.

You groaned when Felix’s boxers came off, wrapping your hand around his cock. “God,” you dropped to your knees, immediately taking his weeping cock into your mouth.

“So impatient,” Chan chuckled above you, letting Felix lean into him and grip his arms to keep himself upright as you quickly took him as deep as you could. Felix flushed a deep red when it only took a few bobs of your head before he was coming down your throat. You pulled off his still hard cock, and stood up. Pressing yourself against Felix, you leaned over his shoulder to kiss your boyfriend, pushing your tongue with the last of Felix’s orgasm into Chan’s mouth. “Mm, you taste good, Lix,” Chan muttered, lips against his neck, after you pulled away from him.

Felix groaned. “I can…. I can last longer. Swear.”

“Oh baby,” you cooed, leaning in to kiss him again. “First, you’re still hard, so who cares. Second, I’d be more surprised if you had lasted much longer than that. You’ve been hard and on the edge for a while. I could see it in the kitchen.” You reassured him. “No one’s upset, disappointed, judging you, or anything else you might think. So there’s no reason to be be embarrassed. Okay?”

He nodded, tucking his face into your neck for a moment before you all continued down the hallway to your room. In your room, you pulled Felix onto your bed, spreading your legs wide enough for him to comfortably rest between them.

“Lix, I know what you said, but I need to know – have you ever had sex with another guy?” Chan asked, sitting on the side of the bed.

Felix turned to look at him and nodded. “Not since I was a teenager, but I, um…. I have… toys, so I’ve, uh….” He flushed with embarrassment again.

Chan groaned, leaning in to press a quick kiss to Felix’s shoulder. Then he exchanged a quick look with you, which you interpreted to mean ‘keep him distracted while I prep him’. Aiming to do just that, you cupped his cheek and turned his face so you could kiss him. You fell easily into a rhythm together, neither of you really trying to control or lead the kiss, just sharing it. After a minute, you felt Felix twitch and soothed a hand over his shoulder and down his arm, while bringing your knees up to bracket either side of his hips.

You couldn’t see exactly what Chan was doing, but you had a pretty good guess from the way Felix’s hips moved against you, his cock just barely brushing against your folds. When he broke from your kiss with a mewl, you assumed Chan had added a second finger.

“That’s it, breathe through it.” Chan leaned down and pressed a series of open mouthed kisses along Felix’s neck and shoulder. Chan was thorough, not wanting to hurt his friend. Which was something of a problem for Felix, who had his face cradled against your neck, panting, whining, and begging while he did his best to thrust his hips back against Chan’s fingers. Though, it was a deep groan that he let out when Chan finally pulled his fingers out of him.

Together, the three of you arranged yourselves so that Felix was lined up with your cunt and easily pushed into you. Once he was fully in you, he took a few deep breaths, then turned to Chan. “I’m ready.” The groan he let out as Chan slid into him, vibrated in your own chest.

It took a couple tries before they settled into a rhythm that had Chan doing most of the work but left Felix free to pay more attention to you. And pay attention to you he did. You felt as if his hands and lips never lingered in one place for long; his mouth traveling from open mouthed kisses, licks, or nips along your neck to leaning down to lick and suck at your nipples. One moment his hands would be gripping your hips or thigh, the next he’d have his thumb in your mouth, pressing down on your tongue while his other hand squeezed your boob or teased your nipple.

You could feel Chan’s thrusts through Felix, feeling as though your boyfriend were fucking you through the man between you. And because you could, you didn’t need to see Chan’s face to be able to tell when he was getting close.

“Oh God,” Felix choked out as Chan sped up and you started clenching around him. He buried his face in your neck again, sucking a mark when your neck and shoulder met, as he brought his thumb down to rub your clit.

You came first, nails digging into Felix’s shoulder as you threw your head back. You clenching around his cock sent Felix over the edge, whose orgasm and ass clenching pushed Chan over the edge too.

As you all came down from your highs, Chan flopped onto the bed beside you but Felix dropped to lay on top of you. He closed his eyes, burrowing against you and wrapping his arms under you as if trying to hold you to him like you were going to get up and leave.

You pressed a kiss to his sweaty forehead and softly commented, mostly to Chan, “I don’t think I can stand for long in a shower today.” He nodded in response.

“What was this?” Felix asked quietly after a minute.

“Depends on what you want it to be,” you answered. “It was either some fun between friends that can or can not be repeated another time. Or it can be more than that.”

“More how?”

“More as in a relationship. With just Y/N, with both of us, whatever you want,” Chan answered, rolling onto his side and softly running his fingers up and down Felix’s spine.

“What do you guys want?”

“We’ll be happy with whatever you decide.”

“And if it factors into your decision, Iyen-ah’s leaning toward a relationship with Y/N, unsure about me, and we haven’t… gotten with the others yet but that is the plan.”

“Trying to collect us all?” he joked, looking up at you.

“Can you blame me?” you countered.

He laughed then fell quiet for a minute. “And this relationship, would it involve dates with both of you?”

“Of course.”

“Absolutely. And kisses, cuddles, and plenty of sex,” you added.

“That sounds perfect.”

A short while later, before you could fall asleep, Chan made you both get up so you could get cleaned up.

“I love your bath,” Felix said with a sigh as soon as he saw it. You considered your bath to be the best thing about your apartment. It was a Jacuzzi tub that was roomy when it was just you and Chan in it, so you were sure you’d be able to comfortably add Felix too.

Chan chuckled, “Pretty sure that tub’s the whole reason she moved here.”

You arched an eyebrow at him. “You’ve never had any complaints when we’ve had sex in that tub.”

“And if I ever do, get me to a doctor immediately,” he responded. While the bathtub filled up, you quickly rinsed off in the shower, leaning against the wall as you were cleaning yourself of the sweat and cum so you could actually relax in the bath. Felix and Chan followed your example.

“I’ll be honest, Y/nnie, I didn’t think you’d be into anal,” Felix commented with a little yawn. The three of you were comfortably arranged in the tub, you and Felix resting on Chan’s chest.

“Oh, I’m not. Tried it, decided it wasn’t for me. The lube is for when he gets home late, after I’ve already gone to sleep, and I told him that it’s a night he can fuck me while I sleep.”

“She’s always so pliant when she’s asleep,” Chan commented with a grin.

“Oh god,” Felix groaned, dropping his head where it rested on Chan’s chest.

~~~~~

Taglist: @skzficpriv @strayk1ds143 @vegetablesarefuntables  @imagine-all-the-imagines  @yeetmylifeu

[dykecubes]

I was a hardcore dream fan up until the point the initial grooming accusations (the stuff in from the “The Truth” video).

I think a lot of people call Dream fans a cult kind of like,,,,, either insultingly or hyperbolically. Like they aren’t really thinking that the group is cult-like, and are saying it just because of the extreme devotion to dream through controversies. As a former fan tho, my experience genuinely does feel somewhat cult-like to me (I don’t want to downplay real cults, but I don’t have another word).

Cults often target people who are lonely and vulnerable and offer them community in return for not questioning things. I joined the dream fan community a couple months into the pandemic. I was very lonely. I had depression that I had just started getting treatment for (literally one session and I was still unmedicated) at my college, before getting ripped away from my hope things were going to get better. I wasn’t out to my parents, so living at home again meant getting constantly misgendered.

in short, I wasn’t feeling great. And Dream- you have to understand how much of his fan community (at least on tumblr) is into the idea that he loves his fans, and he loves his friends. And getting to watch those friendships felt like living vicariously. And having someone tell me they loved me, even if I knew I was just another fan helped. For a long time during the pandemic, the dream team were the literal highlight of my day. They were often the reason I got out of bed. I knew even then that that wasn’t healthy, but I was having trouble figuring out how else to get through things.

even after going back to college after the first vaccine had come out, Dream (watching and re-watching videos, interacting with the community) remained a pillar of my mental health. Less so, but if I needed to calm down, I watched a dream video. A lot of my free time was spent in fan spaces. I really, really put him on a pedestal.

I cannot describe to you how anxious I was when the grooming allegations came out. I genuinely started feeling nauseous all the time. I was checking my phone obsessively. I’m not going back to look at these, but I remember that dream had some initial responses (long Reddit post and whatnot). There wasn’t enough there to really make anything clear/disproven and the girls looked like they had a lot of evidence, so I was still anxious and sick and feeling like I was waiting in limbo to find out what was really going on. Trying to prep myself to accept that things might not be what I hoped, as much as I didn’t want to believe it.

when I logged on, the vibe in my tumblr circle was… very different. A lot of people (except for a few that ended up leaving with me) were acting like everything was disproven and it was all good and we could go back to normal times, with a few posts about how disgusting it was that someone would fake something like that. My first response was, honestly, confusion. I thought that I must have been being stupid and missed something or not understood something. So I politely sent an ask to a big name in the community that I trusted to be smart and explain things well, saying that I wasn’t sure we had enough evidence to really dismiss the accusations and asking why she thought that everything was disproven. She gave me exactly the same information that I already knew, while calling me stupid and saying that if I didn’t believe dream that I should just get the fuck out.

I felt suddenly, unpleasantly woken up. I wasn’t being stupid or missing evidence that would fully exonerate dream (maybe there was evidence like that in “the truth”. I never watched it, couldn’t). They just wanted to believe Dream wasn’t guilty, so they did, and twisted things until that made sense. Because they wanted to feel excited and loved again, instead of the crushing anxiety and dread I was in. And I thought about my own reactions, and I knew that I had been so fucking anxious over someone I didn’t even know because secretly I also wanted Dream to be exonerated. I wanted to bury my head in the sand and pretend that it simply wasn’t true because of what being a dream fan gave to me: bits of happiness and community.

And I was really scared of myself. Because I wanted to not believe those girls, not because I thought I had evidence otherwise, but because it would make me feel better. And I knew that was really, really shitty, and that that was something I had to stop in its tracks. And that I NEEDED to not be as obsessive or put anyone on a pedestal as much again. Because I would do the same thing- wanting to make excuses to keep my own happiness. And that’s not ok.

I stopped following almost everyone overnight and stopped watching anything Dream-related cold turkey (<—I realize this probably sounds stupid but I genuinely watched so much dream stuff it was an actual change in my life). I’m still in the mcyt space, mostly hermitcraft, but I make sure that I never put anyone on a pedestal like that again, and I have a way healthier internet to real life ratio.

Coming out of that space genuinely felt like something I was grieving. The intensity of my emotions, both in it and coming out, wasn’t healthy, and I’m really glad I left. if I wasn’t faced with a situation where someone was potentially materially being hurt, I don’t know if it could have happened, I was so embroiled. For obvious reasons tho, that crossed a line and luckily on the other side I had people that were kind to me when I was still kinda reeling.

anyway, tldr, my hot take with this situation is that more dream fans wake up and realize he’s a piece of shit, and get grace and kindness while doing so. Sorry for how long this is- hopefully I get my point across that I genuinely believe that at least some dream fan spaces are intensely unhealthy, more than some people outside of them might consciously think

anon if I’m being honest with you this whole situation has me thinking a lot about this post from a while ago and at the moment, yes, it is frustrating seeing his fans deny the evidence right in front of them but I really can’t help but hold a level of sympathy for them

I was never really a hardcore dream stan but I was very adjacent to that community back when I still had Twitter and TikTok and spent a lot of time defending dream and his community whenever criticisms of him came up, I very much disliked the idea of calling dream stans a cult because I spent probably about 5 years or so of my life in stan communities on Twitter and I’m very much of the opinion that they get a bad rap, but it was around the time of his grooming allegations that I stopped defending him as well and came to understand what people meant when they called his community a cult

while I still don’t fully like using that word to describe his community because I know people who are survivors of cults and don’t want to downplay their severity, I will also say it’s alarming how easy it is to apply the BITE method to dream’s fanbase, especially information and thought control

that being said, even if it technically is not a cult it’s still a very intense community and it’s still difficult to get out of (speaking specifically on the way former dream stans are often bullied for leaving) and obviously the connection you’d have to such an intense community like that is going to be a serious emotional one so I understand why a lot of them might still be holding on

so I agree, I hope if fans of dream choose to leave his community they’re treated with grace and kindness

thank you for sharing, anon, I hope you’re doing well <3

[arcane-ish]

Embracing the Monster: Why CaitVi kind of felt left out compared to Zaundads/Timebomb/JayVik

Let me start with some disclaimers: I have have wrestled with the way CaitVi was written in season 2 and tried to make sense of it in this post. And I have wrestled with myself and my tastes and why I actually feel very ill equipped to really say whether CaitVi is shippishly having issues or just being written for a different taste/target audience.

I have my very subjective often very oddball tastes of what I consider a good ship that often goes aggressively what either the general public or the popular fandom public considers good. In the end I can only report on what I saw.

IMO: looking at Arcane season 2 act 3 specifically there is just a really natural thematic flow.

Have you seen the meme: "Arcane was about love? Always has been"?

To me the overall message of Act 3 in particular (but that you can go back to and see traces of it in plenty of other act) is about Embracing the Monster.

And to me, despite the choppiness of much of Act 3, there's just a certain grace to how this is done.

It starts with Silco and Vander formulating the concept. They tease the promise, whether you see Silco or Vander as "the bad one" in this constellation, if you embrace, if you forgive, something great can come out of it.

This flows directly to Ekko who actively listens to it and tries applies it to himself

And it ends with JayVik symbolizing the concept. and ending the cosmic threat with it. Viktor expecting bad treatment due to his actions, Jayce embracing him anyway.

A lot can be said about the pros and cons of that theme (and I will do that), but there's just to me pure power in repetition and thematic congruency that just gives power and makes it hit more even for couples I don't actually like or ship all that much.

The problem is that even though CaitVi is the primary romantic couple of the show, they don't feel like they are part of this thematic trifecta of s2Act3.

CaitVi is too different to fit in, but not different enough to act as a counterpoint

From a story point of view, CaitVi could have been part of this general theme of big hearted understanding and forgiveness. I've seen a lot of discussion about has Cait apologized, has she apologized enough. I think that's besides the point.

We don't see whether Vander apologized to Silco. Jinx probably didn't apologize to Ekko and Viktor didn't in so many words apologize to Jayce. The point of this theme isn't about apologizing.

Considering the bad or misguided things Caitlyn did, she could have been part of that theme. But it would have required Vi to be a lot more horrified by her. To gulf between them would have to have been much larger so it can feel like a big deal for Vi to jump that gulf and embrace Caitlyn despite everything that has happened.

The show plays a little bit with "could Caitlyn become a monster", but in the end it doesn't go there in the way people react to her and how she carries herself. Because the show is hesitant to portray her as monster, for Vi to see Caitlyn as monster, they do not fit into the "embracing the monster*" theme that the other stories have going on. Again I speculate that that might have been intentional and that it might be their way of portraying CaitVi ultimately as a more functional couple.

There's catharsis in CaitVi's big payoff scene. But it's a different catharsis than what the other stories have going on.

Again, the theme of the other pairs is embracing the monster.

The theme of CaitVi is choosing happiness/being liberated from responsibility.

Picture a world where the themes of the other couples had echoed CaitVi? If let's say Ekko had actually felt burdened by his responsibility as a Firelight when he really wants to be with Jinx and him choosing her is about throwing away the shackles of that responsibility? If JayVik had been about Jayce's responsibility on the council and to Mel. If Vander's letter to Silco had been about "I thought I needed to expel you because people told me to, because of my responsibility to the Lanes, but I was wrong and I hate myself for it".

Can you see how if all stories, all relationships had been about choosing love over responsibility (whether it's Vi's responsibility to take care of Jinx or Caitlyn's feeling like she's supposed to live like her mother would have wanted her too), how that would have strengthened CaitVi's story. If the other stories had established a baseline how different characters deal with love and responsibility and set the baseline that this is an important topic that many people struggle with?

Or imagine the reverse, if rather than everybody joining CaitVi's theme, what if let's say rather than the relatively breezy/jokey/flirty/soft mood of the CaitVi scene pre sex had been about Cait having a full on ugly crying scene to the tune of "I'm a monster, I treated you badly, I went the wrong path, I don't deserve you" and Vi had embraced her anyway. If CaitVi had actually spelled out the implied confrontation that maybe went down or should went down between Zaundads, Timebomb, JayVik?

I'm not saying that it would have made a better show or made CaitVi a better couple. What I'm trying to explain what would have been required for CaitVi to feel like "part of the gang". And why right now they feel like the odd ones out, because the theme of three other storylines roughly match each other and CaitVi has a different theme compared to everybody else.

(MelJay is a different case for a couple of reasons)

In the end, it's not a crime that CaitVi doesn't follow everybody else's theme. I have speculated that it might have been intentional, that their theme is in the end maybe healthier/less dysfunctional from a future relationship perspective. Or maybe it's supposed to make them more special that their have their own unique theme.

IMO there's potential logic to going against the grain. But imo for my personal tastes, CaitVi not sharing the same theme would have worked better if they had actively contrasted the other stories by being completely different.

That's the problem of CaitVi being different, but not different enough. Because Cait does physically hurt Vi just not as aggressively as Vander hurting Silco or Timebomb trying to kill each other. And Cait did go down a dark path and lost herself in darkness the way Jinx or Viktor likely did. But it is not treated the same way.

The potential is there, but because the involved people react so differently to the situation it doesn't feel like it's the same theme, not "part of the gang". But it shares too many elements to feel like counterprogramming.

Again imagine a show where CaitVi are the one couple who feel full on differently. Who manage to stay sane and loving and supportive all the way through. If rather than Cait going all "Zaunites are animals!!!" and hitting Vi with the butt of a gun they had a sane and supportive breakup where Cait just tells her "I'm sorry, I can feel like I'm losing myself and I know I cannot be in a relationship now. Just go away, you probably have your own issues to handle first", And the rough corners of the plot had stayed the same of CaitVi being apart in Act 2, Vi doing her Jinx and Vanderwick arc and Cait losing herself in police work and responsibilities, but they always stay respectful and communicative with each other while all the other people around them are way more dysfunctional and hurt by poor communication.

IMO, for my taste (again as somebody who if firmly not a wlw shippers, just an occasional shipper of wlw couples), CaitVi would have resonated more powerfully if the show had gone for either option: join the same theme as the other characters (at the risk of making them more dysfunctional as a couple) or be a more aggressive contrast/the haven of difference and sanity and health in a chaotic world (at the risk of making them more boring/less melodramatic/less meatily shippy).

ETA: I hope it's okay that I tag CaitVi rather than anti. Because this is written from a place of affection, of "what could the show have done differently to make them pop more" (with the stipulation of "for a general audience" with the understanding that that might never have been the goal in the first place)

*I should probably add the "monster" here is naturally metaphorical most of the time and it's not about portraying Jinx, Viktor, Vander&Silco as monsters and more about whether you are missing out by seeing them as monsters, whether monsters like Vanderwick are actually a lot less monstrous than they might seem, that you can come back from anything etc

[violetvixen10]

First of all, great poem! This au gives me such brainworms. I need to spread good work around and dump my thoughts before I'm consumed. I'm having so many thoughts about the end and after of the mecha au!

Humans having a much shorter lifespan frightens the bots so much, but they just have to deal and cherish their time.

Until Jazz dies and his soul is transferred to a cybertronian body.

Until despite how traumatic the situation started, others realize they now have millions of years ahead of them to be together instead of only a couple of decades.

How do the other couples feel and react to this?! Can the other humans choose to have their souls just transferred over to Cybertronian bodies, and would they?!

Blurr might see a great opportunity. He loved being a mecha pilot and racer, but he can't do these anymore, and it hurts. A whole new chance, a new start, and they even have their own kind of racing! Swerve loves Blurr and doesn't want Blurr to do something so monumental just to feel like he has worth when Swerve loves him just as he is. Swerve feels so human, and he fell in love with Blurr the human, Blurr is amazing no matter what. (Oh, but those years together would be so magical, but Swerve would refuse to say anything that made him feel like he was making Blurr make a choice he'd regret. He doesn't want to be like Shockwave.)

Ratchet doesn't know how to feel or react. The poor man has seen a lot and has surely gone through a mid-life crisis at this point. So many have died, and a chance for the kids he has looked over from that cursed Mecha program getting more life almost feels like a miracle. (He just never expected more life for himself) He came to grips with the short time he would have with Drift, and he's content with his life. A chance for more is overwhelming, and he would probably struggle to make that choice much less comprehend that the choice exists at all. Drift wants him to say yes so badly. He borders and almost flips flops on all but begging Ratchet to say yes and stay with him. (There is so much respect and love though that he knows no matter what choice Ratchet makes Drift will accept it. Drift needs Ratchet, but does Ratchet need him...he's not so sure. He accepted the idea of a short life with Ratchet once he can do it again if he has to. Though by Primus, he hopes beyond hope he doesn't have to.)

First Aid barely stops himself from saying yes immediately. So much to learn and study with so much time! He's only held back because he needs to know what Vortex will do. (Vortex can be transferred too surprisingly. It makes First Aid ecstatic, but Vortex doesn't answer immediately. So, he's waiting. If Vortex decides to stay in a mech that won't withstand aging nearly as well as Cybertronians then First Aid will stay as he is. He won't take the long way back to Vortex and leave him. Ever.) Vortex isn't used to having a choice, and he's gotten used to his mecha. However, he's realized how much he wants to keep First Aid by this point. (He nearly lost him to Shockwave and that was unbearable.) It doesn't take that long to say yes. Vortex got used to being a mecha when he used to be human in just few years. Surely having millions to get use to just a different robot body is easier. (So much time with his First Aid~. Besides he has feeling the little medic would look so good in metal.) These two are such little freaks and so obsessed with each other that if the option was given for the humans (or lingering human souls) to become alien robot beings that live for millions of years I feel like these two would sign on to that pretty quick as long as they stayed together (and Primus help anyone who tries to separate them.)

I'm not sure exactly what choice Ratchet or Blurr would make in the end. Would they be Cybertronians or not? Idk. Would love to hear others' thoughts, though.

Yall. I can’t even with the new mecha pilot au Jazz lore,, it has driven me insane.

I have been so thoroughly shocked by this revelation that I have decided just art is not enough. I made the CONSCIOUS decision to use human WORDS today. Ohmigosh.

Hope yall enjoy this lil disaster poem I’ve crafted from disbelief and adrenaline alone 💀🫶✨

———————-——[under cut]—————————--

Cold, cold, cold,

Was it always this cold?

The battle is over with, yellows and greens and purples and guts galore

Stain the battle field red red red

Just like me,

Sinking and swimming rich red, red, grey?

Busy celebration, wild relief.

But my colors stop moving. Frozen in place

Where is my heart?

Where is my brain?

My fingers, my hands.

They move.

But not the right ones.

My hands are not made of metal, iron, or steel.

Back to the core, my s-sp-s-heart.

Down, down, down.

Wires strangle me as I move.

Around my mind, tendons, spi-sp-[error]

Where is my helmet?

Down, down, down.

I could shake it o-of- out

Push past, back to the red red grey

I feel something soft, outside the wire

Soft but cold.

What is this?

This is where I was, but this is not me.

Where did I go?

This is-i-was n-n-me

[Error]

Panic seeps into this metal frame.

But I it-its-am still

It’s not me

red grey grey

I push against the wire, iron hot around my rre- grey face and run around my metal coffin,

Wrapped slowly around and around, choking me-m-it gone.

Screaming my name, but n-ot-n- [error] in my voice.

I am not talking.

The world begins to rock, nice and slow.

Not down, out.

Air

I open the-th-my vents

And feel nothing.

Squeeze my-m-their hand

grey grey grey

It’s so cold in here.

Was it always so cold in-i-[error] here?

It’s not cold.

I need my face. Air.

It’s cold but I feel hot.

[error]

It is not cold.

I can feel it, something rushing from its-it-i-my head to i-my fin-fi-digits.

Away from this cold. It’s not cold anymore.

[error]

It was never cold.

Over the grey grey grey, around the wires, past the pipes, up the steam, through the metal.

grey grey blue?

Up further and further.

Past the wires, past the soft grey cold,

And around where my sp-s-heart is-is-i-i-i-was.

Back to it-my face, face?

Everything is blue.

But its n-notn-ot- [error] supposed to be

Make it red.

I lift i-my hands

Wrap them around -my face

Slide my digits under the blue, blue, blue

And pull.

Creak, crack, splinter, scream

It falls to the ground

Happy faces look my way

Not anymore.

One worried,

Hey, worried.

I’m not feeling too hot.

The world begins to rock, nice and slow.

blue, blue,, white

————————————————————————

[sporeclan]

Hellooooo! I’m working on a clangen blog of my own, so I’m going around asking my favorite clangen blogs some questions. I’m happy to get answers to whichever you feel like answering (or none at all if you don’t feel like it!)

What program and file size do you use?

If you use a font, what font is it?

How far ahead do you recommend playing?

Do you have any advice for layouts?

Do you have any tips for lighting/drawing fur?

Do you have any tips for making cats look more unique?

If you do backgrounds, do you have any advice for creating them?

If you use them, where do you recommend finding reference images?

Hi!! :D

1) I use Clip Studio Paint! Unfortunately not a free program, but I'm very very fond of it. Definitely recommend it to anyone who has the money! My file size is about 1680px wide, I believe? With varying heights. I definitely wouldn't recommend doing it that way, but it's what works for me so :')

2) I made the font myself, actually! Highly recommend doing that tbh, it's a happy medium between getting something handwritten looking without having to spend a thousand years writing haha :D There are probably a hundred websites out there that let you make you own font, but I used Calligraphr

3) It depends! For me playing to about 12-15 moons ahead with a minimum of 6 moons works really well with my style and workflow. Makes me able to cobble together these small interpersonal plotlines while also letting me occasionally play and get new drama to get invested in these characters all over again about. But if I were going for something with a major overarching plot, I would probably go a lot further ahead, if not straight up take the playthrough as far as I'd want it/until a game over just to not risk rng screwing with my plans

4) I would suggest looking up comic panelling tips in general for a better explaination than what I can offer, but I'll try to explain my basic process :'D I mostly go by heart, but I do like to sometimes follow this rule of thumb I like to call the 'Z'

When we read text, we learn to go from left to right, then back to left at a slight diagonal to get to the next line. By following that simple shape when placing characters and especially text, it makes it flow much more naturally to us. And when your pages flow well, you get to break that flow when you want a scene to feel more tense! I tried doing that with the last two panels of the page above and I really liked how that came out :D

Another couple of tips is 1) try not to make the panels too uniform 2) if you want to use two panels for one scene, slanting the side of a panel can make it feel like they flow into each other better, like matching two puzzle pieces if that makes sense 3) small overlapping panels are great for reaction shots and so fun to do!

And lastly, don't be afraid to break the panel border!

It can add a lot of momentum and impact if used right! Plus it's so fun to do <3

5) No sorry, I don't do lighting/shading in my comics at all :'D

6) I have a couple posts here and here describing my own process a bit! But otherwise I'd like to refer to whisper-cats' response to this same prompt, it's pretty in depth and I think they give some really solid advice here!

7) Not particularly, just find a style that works for you the best. I don't do a lot of backgrounding, but when I do, it's in this lineless limited palette style because that's just my favourite kind of background to make

I do highly recommend trying to limit how much time you spend on a background. Don't burn yourself out on one panel because then you'll never wanna finish the whole page!

And for 8), I dont use references so sadly I can't give you any good recommendations there either :')

I hope any of this made sense, lol! Good luck with your blog!

[slippinmickeys]

A couple of months ago on Discord, several people were super kind and supportive when I threw out a couple of questions about releasing fic. They encouraged me to post the fics set in the Funfetti Universe (SO GLAD I named it that, womp womp) as its own story on AO3 and @calimanc asked for a prompt: Thanksgiving play at school with Mulder complaining about history being whitewashed while Scully is recording and being like "shut up and watch your son." Something happens with Addams Family Values vibes.

I knew I'd have a minute to write today, so I loaded the old prompts onto AO3 last night, and sat down today and cranked this one out.

Thanksgiving Pageant

It was cute. He had to admit it was cute. The little black outfit with an old white handkerchief looped over his son’s little shoulders. 

Scully had sat at their kitchen table with Elmer’s glue and construction paper, doing her best not to swear as she held together two gummy pieces of black paper that would serve as the headband of William’s Pilgrim hat in the school’s Fall Show. William, oblivious to his mother’s consternation, rehearsed his lines with halting earnestness. 

“We were so thankful to learn how to grow food in this land,” the boy said. 

“In this new land,” Scully corrected him. “‘We were so thankful to learn how to grow food in this new land.’”

“Can you do the part before mine, mama?”

“Sure,” Scully agreed, flitting her eyes to Mulder, who was very much trying to keep his mouth shut. Her look communicated quite clearly that he’d fucking better.  

“‘The Wampanoag showed us how to take care of the land and plant crops like corn and beans,’” Scully recited, part of her glad that it was another kid who had to pronounce ‘Wampanoag.’ 

“We were so thankful to learn how to grow food in this new land,” William finished, beaming at his success. 

“Good job, bud,” Mulder said, turning to his son, his hands dripping dishwater everywhere. “Gonna end the show with a bang.”

“Can I be done?” William asked. 

“You may,” Scully said, and William darted up the stairs without another word, no doubt to the LEGO table Mulder had set up for him. His bedroom door closed with a resounding snick. 

“I can’t believe they’re still doing Thanksgiving pageants,” Mulder said, shaking his head. “It’s such whitewashing bullshit.”

“We can address Colonial violence with him when he’s older, Mulder,” Scully sighed, clearly not in the mood to be having this conversation. “In the meantime, can you grab me a binder clip off of your desk before this capotain becomes a permanent part of my thumb?”

Mulder put the last pan in the rack by the sink and dried off his hands, then swung into his office for the requested binder clip, a piece of equipment he was pretty sure he’d liberated from the FBI supply cabinet when he’d moved from the basement to the fourth floor. 

He set it on the tabletop next to her and leaned down to drop a kiss onto the end of her nose. 

She attached the clip to the hat she was making and looked at her sticky fingers with distaste.

“It’s a kindergarten play, Mulder,” she said, leaning back in the chair. “What would you have them say?” 

Mulder lowered himself across from her and leaned forward, elbows on the table. Upstairs they could hear the distant, muted sounds of William humming happily to himself. 

“He goes last, right?” Mulder said. 

Scully nodded. 

“How about something like ‘What you just watched was a sanitized and oversimplified whitewashing of history. While this story is comforting and well-intentioned, it obscures the colonial violence, cultural erasure, and exploitation Indigenous people endured as European settlers expanded their presence in North America.’”

His wife stood up and gave him a deadpan look. “It’s perfect. Age-appropriate. He definitely wouldn’t stumble over any of those words. No notes.”

She moved to the sink and began washing the gunk off of her fingers. 

“I think so too,” Mulder agreed breezily. He thought but didn’t say that it would be a great touch if William pointed at his classmates dressed as the Wompanoag and highlighted the fact that they’d all be dead of smallpox within five years. That would teach ‘em.  

XxX

Scully held up a small digital camera trying to get the entire stage to show up in the viewfinder. Satisfied by her framing, she lowered the little device into her lap. 

“By filming this, you’re perpetuating-” Mulder started.

“Stop,” Scully interrupted. “What I’m perpetuating is my mother’s tolerance of what she considers our weird choices. She will watch it 33 times and show it to all her neighbors. It is what it is, Mulder.”

The elementary auditorium was chocked full of parents and bored older siblings, coats strung across a line of seats to save them. It was very warm. 

“It smells like feet in here,” Mulder said. 

“It kind of does, yeah,” Scully agreed. 

“We should have sat on the edge. We could have snuck out right after William’s class did its thing.”

“His teacher already hates us, we’re going to be conspicuously present and smiling,” Scully said without looking at him. “Before, during and after the show.”

The school was K-5, which meant they’d have to endure five more Thanksgiving-themed song-and-dance routines. Mulder couldn’t help but twist around in his seat and locate the nearest exit.

“Relax, Mulder,” Scully said, noticing his nudgyness. “There’ll be lemonade and cookies after. You can have as many as you want.”

“I don’t think elevating my blood sugar is going to make up for losing 45 minutes of my life to this-”

“Shhh,” she shushed him quiet. The lights of the auditorium had begun to lower. 

Shortly thereafter, the kindergarten class shuffled out on stage, stumbling into each other and missing their marks. Several waved to their parents in the audience, loudly, and one little Pilgrim began to wail and had to be escorted off the stage. 

After a song in which the music teacher was the only one who knew and sang all the words, William and several classmates took a big step forward and held hands. William was on the far right and would be the last to speak. He waved at Mulder, who couldn’t help but laugh as he waved back. 

The Indian on the far left had to be prompted to speak, but it flowed fairly well after that. 

“We didn’t know much about this land, but the native people taught us.”

“We learned new ways to live and we tried to work together.”

“We wanted to say thank you for all the help we received.”

“So we invited the Wamp. The–how does it go again, Ms. Wendy?”

Beside him, arm holding the camera as steadily as she could, Scully quietly chuckled. It was almost William’s turn. 

He stepped forward with a big smile and Mulder, having heard the phrase maybe fifty times, was ready for We were so thankful to learn how to grow food in this new land. So it was something of a surprise when William said: 

“What you just watched was a sanitized and oversimplified whitewashing of history.” 

The auditorium went deadly silent. 

“Oh my God,” Scully hissed. 

William, unphased, continued, “While this story is comforting and well-intentioned, it obscures the colonial violence, cultural erasure, and exploitation Indigenous people endured as European settlers expanded their presence in North America.”

Mulder was both astonished and impressed. His son had not only gone full Wednesday Addams, but he’d repeated–word for word–the exact words Mulder knew for a fact the boy couldn’t have overheard. 

William then turned toward the stage and pointed at the cluster of his classmates who’d been dressed as the Wampanoag.

“Oh no,” Mulder said, reaching out to grab Scully’s arm. 

“What-” she began.

“In five years,” William announced loudly, somewhat gleefully. “You will all be dead of smallpox!”

Several audience members gasped, even more laughed, and two little Wampanoag started crying. The stage descended into chaos. 

Beside him, Scully slowly lowered her camera and turned to Mulder with a horrified look on her face. 

“Tell me you got all that on tape,” Mulder said. 

“Oh my God, Mulder.”

“You still want to stay for cookies and lemonade?”

[sojumica]

The evil king and his gardener.

Sukuna x f!reader

contains; mild angst,lwk devoted sukuna, fluff, weird acts of love, arson, curse au but no real mention of it, heina era, true form. word count: 1197

“ You burnt my house down.” you say as you watch your house more so your small hut burn down in flames.

“I did.” He spoke after 5 minutes breaking the silence

All that could be heard was the sound of wood cracking and the burnt smell of it lingering through your nostrils. Knowing that the scent of soot will be stuck on your clothes and hair.

“Why?” you calmly say, still staring at the blazing fire not daring to look at him. Not because you're scared, no. You don’t want to react without knowing how or why someone would do this, So you wait for a response.

There was yet again a small silence from the man. He just stood there with you watching the fire finish burning whatever memories you had left in that house.

“I did nothing to you. I never angered you. I never disrespected you. I never ratted you out. I never shunned you. So why did you do it?” You spoke very clearly and with no sign of emotion in your voice and a straight face to go along with it.

There was another silence that followed it. This time you waited for him to say something. If he didn’t in the next 10 minutes you were going to leave. You didn’t care for this, you would rather walk off and deal with stuff on your own.

You never understood why you ended serving someone as cruel as him. It just happened that way.

You had just came into one of the many fearful villages that Ryomen Sukuna had been ruling over, You didn’t really care who ran it. If they people talked about you or not. You just wanted to escape the torment and pain from your parents a couple towns over.

They wanted to marry you off to an old man who had two dead wives for reasons unknown. You knew though everyone knew that he had killed them once he found them unattractive but he was “rich” back then men were the ones in control and could do no wrong in the public eye.

So you fled the town a week before you were about to be wed off to the man. A small amount of money, a few items of clothing and one comfortable pair of shoes is all you took with you. You made it to the town that you now live in.

It was very rural. Not too too many people but enough to call it a village. You needed a job, all the ones in the village were taken, until an old lady mentioned that the great and evil sukuna was looking for someone to tend his gardens.

You had heard about Ryomen Sukuna from the fearful people who saw you walk into this town, they had let you know a few rules before you decided to proceed into the village. You said “That’s fine, I don't mind.” shrugging

You didn’t care, you just wanted out of where you came from. The next day you found yourself in front of the “evil king” Sukuna’s estate.

You walked into the long hall being escorted by one of his guards. As you stand there waiting for him to appear in the throne room you look around to admire all the paintings of him and art on the ceiling. It was beautiful. The man did have taste which you respected.

You felt his presence immediately as he opened the door. He stared you down the whole way till he got to his throne, you did a bow out of respect and maybe fear.

He stood there looking at you not saying anything for a while. I guess he’s always been like that. “What do you come here for today, newcomer.” he spoke his voice booming throughout the mostly empty room.

“The villagers told me you were looking for a new person to tend the gardens, and i need a job so i came to ask you if you were still looking for one sir.” you say looking down at the floor not wanting to make eye contact.

“Make eye contact with your new king now.” He said sternly

You quickly look up to meet dark red crimson eyes, all 4 of them Staring back at you observing every inch of your face and body. He nods, you weren’t exactly sure why but you hope it meant he said yes.

“Uraume fetch that old gardener for me now.” he yells Looking at you still.

“Yes my lord.” a short white haired person whom you didn’t even notice because of how quiet they were. Spoke walking out to fetch the gardener.

“Oh you still had a gardener, I wasn't aware sir.” you spoke feeling bad like you just took someone’s job who needed it.

“Yes. They aren’t good at their job so they will be executed now.” he spoke so nonchalantly without a care in the world as if this was a daily reoccurrence, but judging him this probably was.

That’s how you became his gardener, for almost 2 years now. You were able to get to the house that was now burning down before your eyes, and get acquainted with sukuna himself. Yes he was rude and vile but he respected you once you told him everything and why you left your old town.

He admired the strength and courage within you. Maybe that’s why he was so interested in what was going on in your head, and possibly it's also why he went to the garden more often than before.

So now here you are still watching the house burning down to the ground. You were almost about to leave when you heard him speak.

“I did it because I overheard that some of my concubines wanted to kill you out of jealousy and spite. So I burnt the house down myself and killed them before this.” He finished saying.

“Oh. Thanks I guess, but why did you need to burn down my house?” you asked, finally looking at him to be met with his perfect side profile.

“So you can come live in the estate with me so I can watch over you. You take very good care of my gardens. I wouldn't want you to get killed by someone that wasn’t me I guess.” he said finally looking back at you

To be met with your face full of flustered ness and confusion. Which made him smirk.

“But all my things…what about them? I needed some of my stuff, you know.” you say trying to avoid all your thoughts going a million miles per hour on why he cared so much about your safety.

“Do not fret, I will get you new things. Let’s get going, I'm starving, those women aren't super good and uraumen should be preparing dinner right now for me, you shall join me as well.” He said walking off to head back to the estate.

“Very well, lord sukuna.” you say looking down

“Just Sukuna is fine” he said quietly, “Don’t take advantage of it though.” he said.

“I Won’t, promise.” you said, smiling lightly.

“Let us make haste then.” he said.

[carasspice]

Blast, when you get tomato juice all over your top and the stuff drops down to your new shorts the best thing to do is get both into the wash straightaway. My sister's washer was similar to mine and I knew she was out for the day hence me being there to look after her two new puppies as they hadn't been left alone as yet.

I'd stripped down to basics as you can see and set about continuing to make a simple cheese and tomato sandwich for my lunch. I had some R.E.M. music playing rather loudly and as I was on my own did it matter?

I never heard him walk down the stairs and only realised he was even in the house when two cold hands took my hips and slid inside the back of my panties. I almost wet myself and came even closer to chopping him into as many slices as the tomatoes as I spun round with a scream.

"What the fuck?" I yelled and all he did was look at me, hold his hands out wide and grin like the fucking Cheshire Cat.

"You look gorgeous Anna, never seen you in knickers before."

'Fuck off Will, I almost stabbed you and stop gawping at my tits."

"I apologise on all counts Anna but what are you doing?"

"Making my bloody lunch, what does it look like?" Oh boy I was steaming, hadn't been so angry for years.

"Naked? Do you always make your lunch wearing ... "

"Panties, yes I know as everything else is in the wash. Happy now?"

"Very," he said as he took a seat. "do I get one?"

"One what?" I asked as my brain was in total turmoil.

"Sandwich, what else would I ask for? I'd rather have your body but ..."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go fuck yourself and make your own sandwich."

"I did apologise Anna and fucking myself is not an option. I'm working from home today, didn't Marie tell you?"

"Obviously not, what would you like? For lunch of course, my body is not on your menu."

"Same as you would be great, am I allowed to stay here?"

"Pervert Will but as you've been staring at me for ten minutes I guess it makes little difference now."

"So, if I told you that you had tomato on your panties, would they go in the wash as well?

"No and they haven't, I checked already."

The weird conversation continued for a while until I placed his sandwich on the table and he made another grab for my hips and pulled me forward resulting in my boobs being almost in his face.

"I like this kitchen lark, do I get a kiss now?"

"What? After all this you put me through?"

He wasn't letting go of me and I confess that I was in no hurry to move away, his thumbs were rubbing up and down my hips as his fingers slid back inside my panties and I was gone. My resistance had disappeared faster than my panties and I was wet as soon as he released my left nipple from his mouth.

"No Will, please." I said where I really meant "take me to bed and screw me," and obviously he knew what I wanted. I also knew that my sister would kill us both if she discovered my legs being wrapped around him while he did whatever he wanted and that was plenty.

It was gone six that evening when she called me to thank me but wondered why I'd had no lunch.

"I wasn't hungry, Will had a sandwich though and the boys were such fun."

"They're lovely aren't they?" she asked but I could hardly confess to them bouncing on my ass when Will turned us over and she's asked me back again in a couple of weeks.

Will says I can wear nothing but panties any time but then he would say that, but not in front of Marie. xxx