#that's fine though we're just chillin'

[yeow-sammythunder]

ay wait, can cows talk? i know that little dude with the fess man could talk to them. is talkin' to cows infectious?

ay homegirls said her name's moocifer, is that, like, jennifer but cow themed or somethin? sick

[fountainpenguin]

Riddle watches New Wish - Post #10

Some speculation and feelings now that I've slept after a binge up to "Trial or Hair-or" and took a break, before I start anything else.

I'm not sure when I can next watch episodes, so please don't reply with spoilers.

Background Characters

I was really worried about Whispers Fred. I only read a small glimpse of the story bible / concept art page a year+ ago- I was pretty sure I remembered Winn and Whispers Fred, though I would not have been able to recite their names.

After recognizing them, I was expecting them to be glued to Hazel's hip. I thought I'd find Whispers Fred and his ASMR shtick really annoying, but he's actually totally fine and doesn't bother me at all.

I'm relieved, because "Writers trying to be cool and they think kids want ASMR, and also I'm pretty sure a kid trying to look this stuff up could easily go down an online route they probably shouldn't be going down at their age" has been my mental vision for the direction this show is going for the past, like, 15 months and I thought I'd have issues with him.

I really like him now because you can tell Hazel's classmates all have their own depth and running gags, which is a great improvement on most of Timmy's classmates.

I can definitely look back and name the shticks for Chester, A.J., Trixie, Chloe, Kevin, Elmer, Sanjay, and Francis. We knew them- You could write a 'fic with them in it and no one would question the lack of other characters, because that's a great cast.

-> But yeah, we didn't really know much about personalities or what they do, and many of those characters I listed faded away in later seasons. I like how we're starting off strong. It makes it feel very planned. We know Whispers Fred has a podcast, even. Impressive.

Throwing this out here because it's still hilarious, but there are at least two kids in Timmy's class who are confirmed godkids - He sees them at Cupid's party - but they were both mysteriously absent when Doombringer came in as a sub to start fairy hunting and it cracks me up.

And that was all the depth we got to them, because it was never played up (and let's be real, they were thrown into Cupid's party from the character stockpile folder).

I like how Hazel is befriending people in her class. Some of them aren't fully fleshed out yet, but they don't need to be. We're getting enough that if I wanted to write a 'fic, I could way more easily play with the personalities of Hazel's classmates than Timmy's, and I love that.

[cnt'd below cut - Very long post, including things I wouldn't truly call negativity, but my vibe is discussing the things I like and the things that aren't working for me personally.

This post leans into things that aren't working since previous posts have been about what is working. Heads up for discussions of child abuse and nostalgic comparisons to the OG show. Proceed at own discretion

Reminder, I'm only up to "Trial or Hair-or" at time of posting this]

Would I Be Watching This If It Wasn't Claiming to be FOP?

The show is very enjoyable; let's start with that. I like Hazel. I like Cosmo and Wanda. I like the set-ups and the kids.

I like watching the show, but... It doesn't feel like FOP, in the sense that I'm not seeing the things that draw me to the original show (Like... the child abuse? Or Crocker? Or the risk of losing your fairies? Or Timmy's struggle to keep his secrets from Vicky, his parents, and his friends?)

Hazel's made a vague mention that she has to keep fairies a secret, but we have no proof Cosmo and Wanda would leave her. No memory wipes either.

Maybe it's just me, but FOP without child abuse is... a WILD concept to me. lol. Dev seems to have issues and I suspect he's being set up for a future plot that delves into them, but it's still funny that our main character is, like... chillin'. No self-hatred? No dissociative issues or anxiety attacks? No sneaking around? Are you sure you're in the right show?

Okay, I guess Dev is bullying her, but he's not been nearly as bad as Francis, who caused physical harm. Heck, Tootie caused Timmy more stress than Dev's causing Hazel. Trixie literally treated Timmy worse than Dev is treating Hazel- she was launching him across the room when he spoke to her.

I'm liking the show, and I see potential in this world where I could set a 'fic... but what would that 'fic even be about? This place is fluffy; Hazel's not struggling much and there's not a lot of meat here for me to dig into.

I'm not seeing stakes, and I'm kinda "hm" about it.

And I'm kinda worried I'm watching a watered-down show that's been made more palpable to an audience looking for found family fluff. Which is fine! ... It's just that I'm here for Fairly OddParents vibes. Where's my child abuse?

I'm nostalgic. I miss my boy who kept a scrapbook with pictures of him in therapy. I miss the jokes that the court once got involved and appointed the family a child psychologist. I miss how he broke down in front of Trixie, wailing that he'll always love her no matter what his therapist says. He had a lot going on that we never saw onscreen, only the implications, and I love him <3

This was the boy who literally froze time for 50 years and told no one; he was messed up and they were not afraid to paint him that way.

I'm the target audience for "people who like seeing tiny details from the OG show brought back," but I'm not the target audience for fluff or sweet and innocent characters, so if that's what we get, I don't think I'll get giddy about it.

And I'll be 100% okay with that because I enjoy watching the show anyway even if it's different, and I'm just super grateful we've got something nice for the series after so many years of a difficult slide.

I write my 'fics and I've made worldbuilding posts for 8 and a half years, but I rarely main-tag anything, and I have unique blog tags for each character so they're harder for people to stumble on, because I was trying to lie low and avoid fandom negativity I kept seeing when I ventured into the tags. So... as much as I'm nostalgic and as much as I have my fingers crossed for the things I want to see, I'm super grateful this show is very enjoyable and seems to be bringing a wave of positivity and new viewers into the fandom.

Let's be clear- I'm REALLY enjoying watching this show, but I'm waiting to see if it adds stuff that fits my interests, that's what this post is.

Threats to Cosmo and Wanda's safety?

I want to start by saying I appreciate how Crocker isn't Hazel's teacher and her dad is not obsessively trying to catch her fairies. Danny's parents trying to catch ghosts worked perfectly fine in his show, but I'm glad this one is a different direction. It's nice to mix things up and not fall into a previous formula.

It's hilarious that her dad is like, seriously doing his paranormal job and it doesn't even affect Hazel, Cosmo, or Wanda yet (where I've watched up to). That's hilarious.

I'm hoping that it's going to come back, because I haven't seen a strong sense that it will. Hazel's dad has speculated there's a ghost in his house a little, but he's not investigated at all and we've not seen any tension regarding this. I hope we're setting up a big plot with confrontation, but there's not enough there yet to make me believe we are, so I hesitate to trust the pay-off is there.

Unclear how Cosmo and Wanda meet Hazel in the morning. Do they stroll over? I assume not- Her parents would think that's weird. They're not in animal form because they're neighbors, so are they poofing over? Do they wake her up like they used to wake Timmy?

Thus far, we've not seen signs that Cosmo and Wanda could be in danger. Jorgen's made an attempt to take them away, which was their fault for claiming a godkid they had no right to take tbh. I don't mind taking a break from Crocker's obsessions, but I do miss the tension he brought us. I miss the danger. I miss the angst implications- This show is pretty fluffy so far, and I can appreciate it, but that's not "FOP vibes" for me.

Jorgen implied Cosmo would get hurt when he fell off a tower, but otherwise we've not seen signs that Fairies can be hurt or killed. And I don't know if that's even a thing that carried over in this universe, so I have to treat it as 0 risk of death.

It would be 100% reasonable for Hazel's dad to shake C and W's hands and ask to interview them, which is fine - It's a new vibe than Crocker, Doombringer, and Leadly and we could probably use that - but I think I'd be disappointed if that was the payoff for emotional investment of implied danger.

C and W haven't expressed any fear in Hazel's dad since Episode 1. I really liked Episode 1 - a lot of thought went into it - but the rest of the episodes seem like they're using Episode 1 as a diving board, but not circling back to what we established there. Which is actually super frustrating right now.

You hooked me! ... So, where's the stuff you hooked me with?

We're no longer getting C and W fumbling around the human world, we're no longer getting miserable Hazel, we haven't had any awkward neighbor interactions between C and W and the parents, and we're no longer getting the threats to C and W's safety. I feel a little cheated and I hope we see more threats later.

Please give me an awkward dinner party with the neighbors. Give me one of the parents coming over to borrow sugar and C and W have to poof away from Hazel and rush back home to maintain their facade.

Give me neighbors wanting to come to a party at C and W's and they have to protect everyone from accidentally wandering into Fairy World or using dangerous Fairy equipment. Give me C and W getting put in charge of a neighborhood event they don't know anything about. Give me Hazel's parents asking if C and W can babysit and they're so paranoid that they call constantly to check in while C and W try to act like everything is normal and they're not running around doing magical things.

I feel like we've given personality to the schoolkids, which is fine... but I'd love to see personality for the neighbors. To me, living in the same building as fairies who don't know how to be human is a fantastic plot set-up, and they're doing nothing with it.

In other words, I'm glad Hazel is delved-into as a character, but I feel like we've not seen anything about what's going on with Cosmo and Wanda.

-> Hazel's in her school arc right now, but maybe we'll have a summer break arc?

Here's my thought on that. Bluey does a really good job of balancing what's going on with the kids and what's going on with the adults. Yes, the show focuses more on the kids, but it's always clear what the adults are doing, like Bandit trying to talk to his friends while Bluey complains about him taking too long, and Bandit feeling sad when his friends leave so he can take care of Bluey.

Early in the series, we see the kids playing in the park ("Shadowlands") while Chilli and her friends talk about TV shows they like in the background. There's a constant sense in that series that Bandit and Chilli have interactions with other people- Heck, we even get an episode of Bandit struggling to make a new friend (and struggling with Bingo getting in the way of that).

I'm not getting that here. C and W do have personality, but do they have friends? Or coworkers? Or stakes? I didn't see a lot of depth to their brief interaction with Jorgen, nor does Cookie seem to be someone they know in any way.

For this show to win me over, I need them to interact with their neighbors and environment in a way they're not currently doing. Right now, they're just giving Hazel magic... but I'm starting to think they could be sexy magic lamps. I don't remember struggling with these feelings in the OG show, although back then I binged like 4 seasons before making any posts.

- It is not to their favor that they can easily spend an episode in object form and just chill. We used to have Crocker trying to sniff them out even in object form, and I kind of miss that. And yeah, they're retired, but I hope we get to see more character depth and relationship involvement in the future. - In the early season, we had background conversations like Wanda trying to lure Cosmo to the doctor, Wanda explaining to Cosmo that their "special alone time" wasn't meeting her needs and she wants more snuggles, or Cosmo being a pushover when Wanda's dad came around, or Cosmo sneaking his mom into their guest room, or Wanda blatantly telling Cosmo that she still thinks Juandissimo is intriguing. I miss the up and down of that dynamic. It's nice to see them fluffy, but... they're kind of flat. I liked the mail scene and how Wanda hugged Cosmo after he rescued Hazel in Episode 1, but again... it feels like most of their characterization happened in Episode 1. I have my fingers crossed we'll get some of that in the future, like Cosmo and Wanda cheering each other on when they learn things about the human world, or Cosmo sacrificing himself to save her from the Pixie takeover, or showing that when he stands up for his family, he's extremely powerful. tl;dr - I hope we get Cosmo standing up for Wanda. I'm glad they love each other, but I'm not seeing a lot to interest me in their ship. I'm more interested in Hazel's parents, tbh. They've got stuff going on in their "breadwinner therapist vs. paranormal investigator" vibe. And they play with Hazel and hold hands in the background. They're cute, and I want more of that for C and W. - Actually, Timmy used to get called out by his classmates for being "That weird kid who talks to inanimate objects." There don't seem to be any risks for Hazel yet. - If you were to ask me what the biggest threats are to this godparent relationship, I'd say it's either Cosmo and Wanda overstepping past Jorgen and upsetting him, or Hazel's dad finding out. But I'm not sure we're going to push those plots further, which saddens me. Holding out hope, though. - That is actually hilarious I don't see Dev as a threat to her right now, since that was Remy's whole thing. Good for him? Like, he's mildly annoying her in the background, but he's not a true danger at this time. - Jasmine has implied she's sus about Hazel, but it's been brushed off twice without her investigating. I don't think we're delving into it more, which is a shame. I want Jasmine to be weirded out.

Episode 1? Absolutely not lamps- Cosmo and Wanda were involved, they had depth, and there was tension. And the other episodes are fun, but their personalities have taken a backseat.

You can tell there was a ton of thought put into how Cosmo and Wanda interact with the human world in Episode 1. That seems to have gone away now, and they're even in reboots of their old outfits instead of their human disguises, so... it's nostalgic, but I kind of wanted to see how they'd changed over time. If you're going to give them new outfits, why not use them?

If C and W were, presumably, aging while on their time travel vacation that lasted 10k years and they look the same, what on earth was Jorgen doing that makes him look so aged after just a handful of years? I'm unclear where we are in the timeline.

We've had some nice Cosmo-Wanda-Hazel moments (like the seahorse and princess game where they were playing together), but I'm thinking the "Cosmo and Wanda nitpicking at each other" problem has been solved by taking away their conversations with each other- they're really just here to talk to Hazel.

That's fine, I guess. I just want to see more of them interacting with each other. Because I miss them.

It reminds me of when I critiqued Sparky vs. Chloe, because I felt Chloe fit really well in the dynamic while Sparky was interacting with Timmy, but not really Cosmo or Wanda. Chloe was a great balance of changing the entire dynamic (so was Poof).

I feel like this will probably change in the future when we're not pushing the "Gotta show Hazel is a well-rounded character and focus on her above everyone" direction, but since I'm liveblogging, I need to cite where I am and what I'm looking forward to.

I'm not seeing enough fairy biology going on. I like what Cosmo gave us regarding stretchy skin, but... what is life like for these people? Do they have to avoid touching humans?

Do Cosmo and Wanda pay rent? Do they pay taxes? Do they know their neighbors? Do they see other kids and get nostalgic for their past godkids? (I have to assume yes, since they took in Hazel).

-> I like the implication in "A Dinosaur in Dimmsdale" that Cosmo and Wanda have been around long enough to be familiar with the special event held at that time. I'd like more of that, but also deeper. And maybe that's asking a little much since the show is for kids and of course it's focusing on the kid... Idk, maybe I'm reading into this too much.

I like how Cosmo has twice struggled to hide his crown. That's a step in the right direction, but unfortunately I can't remember if his second time was also in the first episode.

That first episode was beautiful- everything I wanted. But the others don't meet the expectations and story hooks that lured me in.

I think what I'm trying to say is that my vision of Cosmo and Wanda in New Wish relies heavily on what I got from the OG series. I don't think I've seen much in New Wish to give them enough personality to stand their own.

I'd really like to see Juandissimo or Mama Cosma shake things up. I think by this point in the OG series(?), we'd seen them split in "Dog Day Afternoon" and "Apartnership." We knew Wanda wanted to be an author, we knew Wanda had friends in town, we knew Cosmo was a mama's boy, and we knew they were goofballs who were rarely apart and would totally crash into things when they were looking at the other.

We also knew Cosmo and Wanda had issues with being mistreated ("A Wish Too Far"). They were also goofballs who struggled to pass as human ("Transparents") and joke around ("Tiny Timmy"), and they'd make their own assumptions even if they weren't what Timmy expected (Stealing an alien prince in "Spaced Out" instead of making their own monster). Cosmo even pretended he was about to explode in "Same Game" to joke with Wanda, so she didn't believe him when he was actually close to exploding.

AGAIN... I am not far into New Wish. On one hand, it's great that Hazel's not mistreating Cosmo and Wanda, so we don't need an episode like "A Wish Too Far." I think we'll be getting more depth later in the series, but I'm liveblogging my thoughts so we can see if my opinions change.

-> I don't feel like we've learned enough about Da Rules. They were a big deal in the OG series and I'm very unclear on what Hazel does or doesn't know. I'm unclear which of the Big Rules are still in play. In the OG Season 1, Cosmo and Wanda had to grant wishes when Timmy talked in his sleep. I'd like a bit more of those rules showing up here.

-> Unclear to me if Cosmo and Wanda stay in Hazel's room at night.

I just still think they're a little "sexy lamp" for me and I want this to change. As annoying as they were (affectionate), I'd love to see Mama Cosma, Big Daddy, Blonda, Schnozmo, or Juandissimo mix things up. Because Cosmo and Wanda both have drastically different reactions to each of those people.

Maybe that's what's missing for me, because I've been writing 'fics where they ARE interacting with these people, so I'm used to seeing them have to juggle other people? In which case, that's unfair for me to judge, lol.

Blonda only had 2 episodes I think, and one of them was a cameo where she wasn't interacting with Wanda. It'd be super interesting to see her return and play a role as large as Mama Cosma's or something. I miss her too.

I am REALLY looking forward to seeing more of how Antony plays into Hazel's life. It's incredibly obvious that she cares for him (even sleeping in a bunk bed and wearing his hand-me-down shirts), so that's fantastic.

tl;dr - Cosmo and Wanda are just kind of there (imo). I'm pretty sure the episodes after the first would be basically the same if Hazel had no fairies, but was a witch who could use magic on herself.

I'm not seeing anything that makes me say "Yes, this definitely needed to be a show about godparents and not just any show about kids with magic." Give me a reason why we couldn't have a show about Hazel being a witch, having spy gadgets or tech, or having a genie. I want Fairy World! I want misery!!

Fairy World and Jorgen

I'm putting my faith in the idea that we'll return to Fairy World. I can't imagine that we wouldn't, but I have to say, our first glimpse of it didn't look too magical or dramatic.

I like how the OG series sets Timmy up as believing Fairy World is glittery and magical, so Cosmo and Wanda must goof off all day. In reality, Fairy World is big on rules and discipline. I think we take Jorgen for granted as a character since he's been around for 20+ years. It's easy to forget how funny it is that we have a big, buff, military-attitude fairy bossing people around a glittery magical world. That's hilarious!

Think of how "Old Black Magic" gives us a street made of playing cards or how "Odd Squad" gives us purple grass and cars without wheels. Some of their streets float and twist around each other. Their world should look "exciting and unfathomable to the human mind." We haven't seen the Rainbow Bridge either, really.

I have no drive to revisit Fairy World after "Department of Magical Violations," which was the 2nd episode. It didn't look magical or fun. You can tell Jorgen still has his characterization (Being strict but also liking to party), but... he wasn't contrasted against the magic of fluffy Fairy World. Without the contrast, he's just a guy.

I hope we see him again and he gets another chance to show his depth, because even though I went in knowing full-well who he is, I felt like we weren't given enough. I don't even remember seeing his giant staff.

-> He debuted in short episodes in the OG series, so it's not an issue of not being double length. I just think he wasn't utilized as well in such little time.

Give me the guy who used to turn Cosmo into a monkey during drills. Give me the guy who uses a jet pack because he cut his wings off. You don't even get to see his back in his debut, so it's totally possible new viewers might think he still has wings 😔

-> That might seem like a silly thing to be disappointed in, but after the effort that went into showing us details like Hazel's house number or how Cosmo and Wanda crawl across the floor, I feel like Jorgen didn't get the same fully in-depth treatment. He should be someone we're totally hyped to see, but he's... there.

-> Even in Season 0, we were introduced to Jorgen in a way that subverted expectations: the big, scary fairy who was such a contrast with the idea of a friendly godparent was intimidating his godkid (making him wish to live)... AND he's dating the Tooth Fairy. I just haven't had expectations subverted yet in this show and it makes me kind of sad, because that's Jorgen's biggest "selling point." He's funny in contrasting environments.

Maybe he just needs the right person to bounce off, like Binky.

I will say, I think there's nothing wrong with Jorgen not playing all his goofy cards in front of a stranger. He has a job to do and he's good at his job. But I miss him. I miss the doofus who cried for weeks when the Tooth Fairy broke up with him because she didn't like how he tried to forcibly remove Timmy's buck teeth for a wedding present.

I miss the guy who cried when he lost his job, and tried so hard at the other jobs Timmy set up for him, but he was bad at them because all he knew was to set expectations so he kept spoiling movies while selling tickets... and putting people in the hospital with his muscles.

I miss the guy who found out he was standing "in the same room as his cousin," looked at Cosmo, and then went full steam ahead into "Please let it be my invisible cousin Leonard!"

I miss the guy who used to throw pixies at his dartboard or chase them out of their own building because "He's the only one allowed to cause pain to fairies." I miss the guy who put grenades and barbed wire on pizza and gave it to a child. I miss the guy who works in his nana's cafe and covers his niece's shifts at the pet store. I wonder if he still does game nights with Mama Cosma.

I miss the guy whose idea of a good house pet disguise was a rhino in a fishbowl. I miss Jorgen. I love him, and I really hope we get to see more of his funky, goofy side, because he's such a great character.

I've only seen one episode with him, so I'm probably judging too harshly. I just think he has one of the strongest characterizations that's easy to work with because he's hilarious against a glittery Fairy World backdrop, so I miss him and I don't think the DMV was the best showcase episode for him. I'm nostalgic :(

The abuse & trauma?

I really like how the OG show plays with abuse. Yes, Timmy is an abused kid. We know this. It's made very, very clear without it being too scary for a little kid. The OG show is full of things that appeal to me as a kid (slapstick humor) and as an adult (Watching what Timmy's going through and the clever ways the show plays with the abuse angle without being too scary).

- I'm not seeing why Hazel is miserable? Which is okay, because as I said in a previous post, Cosmo and Wanda came out of retirement and befriended her of their own choice (defying instruction), so they're in a gray area with the usual gameplay rules. - I'm just unable to detect if the "godparents lose their fairies when they're no longer classified as miserable" rule is still a thing in this universe. Or "Hazel will lose her fairies when she grows up or reveals them." It's okay if those rules are gone- I'd just like to know so I can adjust my perception of what the stakes are. - Hazel avoided revealing magic to Jasmine in "Fearless," but it wasn't explicitly stated if she was told the rules or if she's just trying not to scare Jasmine with magic.

I'm a little confused that the writers for this show seem to have toned down the abuse and trauma, yet upped some present-day horror. Like, I legit would not suggest a friend watch "Fearless" or "28 Puddings Later" without a warning.

- Those were some VERY scary spiders for a kids' cartoon, especially compared with the goofy spiders from the OG canon. We had onscreen trypophobia (I think? - Not sure if there were enough holes in the cheese, but there were holes) and I used to have a friend who would've struggled with that part of the episode. And I get that swiss cheese is going to have holes- I'm just a little surprised we didn't go the route of making Jasmine a relatable character for someone with trypophobia and instead she faced all her fears as if they were nothing...? Or is that relatable- I'm not sure. I mean, it's a cartoon, so... idk what I expected. I know I wouldn't love being forced into a bloody environment, and a friend violating that after I told them no would possibly be a deal-breaker (and has been, actually, since I've had ex-friends ever since I was a kid stop caring about my boundaries and try to show me blood and/or purposely try to upset me with blood when they lost interest in me as a friend). But also, Jasmine is 10 and if she wants to try facing her fears, she can. I don't have issues with that. - "28 Puddings Later" had red lighting on the bodies and faces in a way that was a little much for my hemophobia, and I think I'm not going to be watching that episode again unless I do some prep. I was trying not to look for most of it.

It's... weird? Usually the Hartman shows go fine for me, although "T.U.F.F. Puppy" has like 2 episodes that jump my hemophobia, but they were... not drawn-out like this. Those were legitimately spooky things to watch (Saying this as an adult who wasn't genuinely scared, but was analyzing the execution and comparing it to other cartoons I watch). I think that's a great thing that sets the tone of the show... but that's not the tone I really want?

It's totally fine for New Wish to be its own thing, but it's not the FOP that drew me in years ago.

- I want more psychology- and trauma-themed underlying jokes, like Cosmo panicking when Timmy's parents babysat Poof because "Those two have no idea how to raise a child!" followed by panning over to Timmy. - I want more bits like Timmy standing up to Imaginary Gary and saying "When I was 8, I learned what a real monster was like" and introducing Gary to Vicky. I want to be asking "Kid, are you okay? Hey, what was that??" and gushing over implications. -> I've seen the tiniest taste with Dev so far, but not enough to catch my interest this early on. I'm hoping that goes somewhere, but if I'm struggling to see the depth in Cosmo and Wanda, I don't have the highest hopes. Like, childhood trauma was a huge thing in the old show (I would argue it's the main theme), and every time those glimpses of Timmy's genuine struggles came up, I lost my mind. I'm not seeing that with Hazel. I like this show for the magic, sure, but I really liked this show for the underlying trauma themes that made you want to explore character backstories with a 'fic. And I'm sure there are plenty of people who want to explore Hazel's relationship with her brother with a 'fic, and Dev seems to have stuff going on, but Hazel doesn't do for me what Timmy and Chloe did. I discussed Timmy above, so let's talk about Chloe. Chloe had serious mental health struggles. She had multiple dissociative spirals. She committed fraud. She broke into Timmy's house to steal from his dad's toy collection because she was jealous. She lied to authority figures for literally no reason except to make herself look better (Not even to cover up magic- She just straight-up lied). When she was upset, she would pull all-nighters and plot revenge (And that was like, her 3rd episode). She lived in denial even when things went wrong. She also wouldn't stand up for herself sometimes, so Catman pushed her around. She also stole from Kevin Crocker while he was passed out (lol), went on power trips, bribed people (including Crocker) to like her, sold out her friends for extra credit, backstabbed Timmy by turning him into a monster who couldn't speak so he couldn't unwish the wish, and it was very clear why she needed godparents. This child mostly raised herself on Fair Bears cartoons for 50 years of the frozen timestream. She has parents who are rarely home, and when they are, they completely violate her boundaries. Timmy literally has to stand up to them for her at one point because she's spiraling into her second dissociative episode since her parents came back to Dimmsdale- she was strugglin'. Chloe's canon is that without Cosmo and Wanda, she would've led a gang (giving us one of my favorite lines in the series, "I can't believe you found 6 kids with eyepatches"). She couldn't handle watching kids for 1 day without screaming at them, calling them "monster children with evil in their hearts," and making them so miserable, all 3 kids got assigned godparents. At the end of the series, she nails Crocker's bed to the ceiling. She's... a lot. On some level, I enjoy that Hazel is not suffering abuse right now. Hazel is very likable, but I feel like the show is going for a different vibe than what I'm looking for in an FOP show. I miss the trauma undertones. That's why I like this show and why it's deeper for me than many cartoons. This is a show that's been a massive part of my life for 8.5 years, so... I miss those hooks that draw me in. I hope we get something like that for Hazel (or Dev?), but I'm not seeing anything that would draw me into this show if it weren't advertised as a continuation of a show I already really liked. It reads like a show I would put down and walk away from. Well, things did draw me in, but... I don't see them being carried through.

And going back to "Fearless" and "28 Puddings Later," I get it, about the spook factor. It IS pudding. I get the joke we're making here, with how funny it is to think of it as a zombie apocalypse. I'm totally onboard- It's not them, it's me. You just can't make my brain settle down, because it sees what it sees and I have to deal with that.

This feels like FOP without all the things I like about FOP.

I'm just... Where's the kids' show I liked to fawn over because it was fluffy and slapstick on the surface, but secretly playing with trauma underneath? I enjoy the ride New Wish is taking me on, but I think I'm only watching this show because of its FOP connection. If this were some non-reboot (just a brand new Nick show about a kid with some kind of magic), it would be kind of "meh" to me so far. I don't think new viewers or kids would be bothered at all, but I miss the OG.

New Wish kind of gives me Star vs. The Forces of Evil vibes. I enjoyed that show's first season, so I don't say that as a bad thing- I just mean "Star had her own wand and didn't need godparents." Except Star got to explore the responsibility and danger of having a wand and Hazel's not giving me that either.

I like how we've gotten callbacks to the OG series. I get excited by the references and I'm very grateful we finally have a reboot that's taking the show seriously and with love. I hope we can lay it to rest when New Wish is over so it ends with a pleasant memory for people.

I like it, but it's not one of those hidden gems I've stumbled on in the past that I've gotten hooked on (Ex: I randomly stumbled across the Carmen Sandiego 2019 reboot, All Hail King Julien, and Kick Buttowski, and every single one of those blew me out of the water as a hidden gem I fell in love with). But... I feel like I'm watching New Wish more to avoid the risk of someone spoiling it for me (and because I want to see allusions to past episodes) than because I'm truly captivated by it, which is a shame.

I love it as a reboot, but I don't think I'd watch it as some standalone show that just dropped. And that's probably fine, because it's not trying to be a standalone- it's trying to be a nostalgic reboot with a fresher take, and that's totally okay.

- But consider... Send the toddlers back to Lightning Walrus Hell while Foop begs to be spared and frantically tries to claw his way out of the vortex after Poof's been vaporized, then rewrite time so they never existed. THOSE were stakes, and THAT was the messed-up stuff I love. lol. - (Do not actually do this- new things are good and if Poof and Foop had to relieve their own childhood trauma regarding the Hocus Poconos, I would die. Also, that was the Season 8 finale and New Wish is only in its first season with chill episodes, so it would be wild to expect that much drama straight out of the gates. Also, it takes time to establish things before we can have that kind of drama. I'm willing to be patient.)

I will say, I do think we're matching some early-series vibes. We had episodes in the early days where Timmy bonded with his friends, and I really like that Hazel's taking her time to meet new friends (something we didn't get to see with him until Mark Chang's Season 2, 3, and 4 appearances). I think that's going 100% fine. I like what I like, but I'm getting increasingly anxious about the things I miss.

I do feel nostalgic for Remy. I miss Juandissimo and Mama Cosma and Vicky and Mark. Nothing wrong with not pushing them in if Cosmo and Wanda have moved past that life drama, but I still want someone or something to cause tension. Shake things up.

-> They don't have to appear personally, but I miss The Vibes.

I will say, I love that Hazel hasn't had a love plot yet. We have no clingy fans like Tootie (or that newspaper girl from "Fairly Odder"), and Hazel's not in love with someone who hates her. I won't be mad if we get a romance plot, but I hope it's something fresh (and not one person pining after the other despite being told that person's not into them, which I find uncomfortable especially in a kids' show if said show plays it as cute or "kids will be kids" without going into how frustrating it is to be the person who wants to set boundaries).

-> Please let me live vicariously through a main character who's not dealing with "Just give them a chance!! :) They really like you! They may seem creepy, but they're probably nice!" vibes.

It's also really nice that no one's immediately attracted to the new kid when she's only been here a few weeks or months. It's nice that she's building friendships. If a relationship blossoms over time, that's fine, but I'm glad no one is currently in love with her and pining for dates (as in, straight out of the gates).

-> I genuinely cannot figure out who they're setting Dev up to be, so if he's a future love interest, I hope he does some serious work on himself. He's got issues and he's mean, and Hazel also seems to think he's mean, so based on my current understanding of his character vibes, it'd be weird if she conveniently forgot how mean he is and developed a crush on him. I need to see more facets of him.

But it's very funny that he follows people and tries to make bigger and better things. That's exactly what a bratty 10-year-old Dimmadome would do. And honestly... I think I can see him developing a crush on her over time. Like... I genuinely do think that would make sense for his character based on what little I know about him right now.

I think Dev is super jealous of how Hazel just arrived and is gathering friends- which I really like, because we're seeing how it takes Hazel some time to make each new friend, and Dev has the same amount of time and opportunity, and is choosing to be a jerk.

It really showcases this idea that Hazel is making an effort to learn to be nice (and even needs to learn not to try changing people to be what her brother was to her). She's working hard on herself and she's trying to make friends. She didn't show up and have people fawn over her immediately. She's here, she's nice, and she's working to understand friendship and boundaries.

And Dev, who is used to things coming easy to him or just buying what he wants, HATES that.

I think jealousy is fueling Dev right now, but Hazel IS a nice person. I can totally envision him growing more fond of her someday and letting down walls. I can tell he's important to the writers, but I'm wary he's being set up as a future love interest and I don't currently know anything about him that would justify Hazel being attracted to him because all I've seen so far is him being grumpy and her glaring at him.

-> Also, I'm getting the feeling that Dev doesn't have a healthy understanding of relationships, family life, or boundaries, and I would be afraid for Hazel.

I think I forgot to say it, but everyone's phones had a D logo implying they're a Dimmadome product, which I like.

I feel like Dev needs some healthy relationship modeling from Cosmo and Wanda (or Hazel's parents). I'll be curious to see if we go in that direction.

Where are we in the timeline?

I love that this is a show about Hazel. I'm really enjoying this- I think I'm glad we're not getting a "children of the main cast" cliche (and we didn't get a total reboot where we redo Timmy's childhood and pretend the OG series didn't happen). This is very funny for me.

Since Dale was older than Timmy, I'm getting the vibe that we're a few years before Tommy and Tammy get their godparents. So... are they gonna show up, or is Timmy gonna be single with no kids if he ever appears, which I'm betting he will eventually. Or do I have my timeline wrong?

"Channel Chasers" future is canon in my Cloudlands AU, and this is generally the accepted future for the series. Keep in mind that's the angle I'm talking from here.

Assuming CC is canon, it's confirmed Timmy has his kids really young (20 years after he buries the time capsule at age 10, his kids dig it up and they seem to be close to his age, so somewhere between, like... 7 and 10), so Timmy would've been 20 to 23.

It's not unreasonable for Dale to have his kids at a much older age, so I will totally accept Hazel being either older or younger than Tammy and Tommy; it doesn't matter to me (although if they're retconned out of existence by having Timmy show up as a childless man combined with clearer timeframe confirmation, I'll be surprised).

I also want to be clear upfront that my canon for Timmy's future in Cloudlands AU is that he has his kids with Molly ("Wishing Well"). They later split, leaving him open to marry either Trixie or Timmy (but it's ambiguous in my 'fics so the reader can decide). That way, I get to enjoy Molly, Tommy and Tammy get to be in a rough patch when Cosmo and Wanda show up, Timmy's struggling emotionally but he's not a terrible dad long-term, and fans of Trixie or Tootie can have the endgame because I don't mind. tl;dr - Timmy has been shipped with Tootie in some other spin-off media, like the "Fairly Odd Summer" trilogy. I don't treat that trilogy as canon in my 'fics, but we know from "Channel Chasers" that it's implied Timmy has Tommy with a black-haired person or Tommy's adopted, and the latter seems unlikely since both kids look so much like him. So if New Wish has Timmy show up and heavily implies he's with either Trixie or Tootie, that's totally fine within Cloudlands AU canon. But he does flirt with Molly in my 'fics and they are so cute and making her Kevin's step-sister was one of the best ideas I've ever had because it makes family vacations fantastic, so get wrecked <3

But I feel like they're really baiting us with Timmy stuff (Showing several adults that look like Timmy, but confirming behind the scenes "That's not Timmy," putting him on posters, using him as a school mascot, etc.) It's very in-character for this universe since even in the OG series, Timmy's likeness was sometimes used by other characters, but... I'm a little nervous.

Cosmo and Wanda didn't seem to look back on their time with Timmy as fondly as I would've expected. I'm glad we're getting a fun cartoon with a new person, but I hope we're not going a "nudge, nudge, Timmy was a horrible person and fans are dumb for looking at him fondly or wanting him around" angle.

-> That kid was 10, working through childhood trauma, and struggled a lot in life. That's literally the point, and expecting him to be as well-adjusted as Hazel would be asking a lot of him- Their backstories and home lives are very, very different.

I'm getting the sense that we're making allusions to the old show (even obscure ones that surprised me, like a Flappy Bob cameo, super specific Fairy interior design details, or "Terrible Twosome" throwback). The writers have done a good job of picking out the parts they liked and using them as their canon, but I get the feeling we're not going to have references to Sparky, Chloe, Roy, or Viv.

Which is fine, because I understand they were late in the series and a lot of people didn't receive them well (Me included). I just hope they're not treated like they're dumb or something to be erased from history, y'know?

I have absolutely no issues with them not showing up. I do expect a Timmy cameo someday, but it would not bother me at all if we didn't see Chloe. But like, I don't want them written out of the canon IF we specifically look back at the canon. If for some reason we recapped every godkid Timmy had interacted with and we were mysteriously missing Chloe, I'd give you a really weird look, slkfdj.

-> If our canon is that Roy and Viv didn't happen, I'm fine with that because it's a spin-off. But Chloe was mainline canon and this show has already made clear it's grabbing canon from across the whole series (including seasons as late as 9) and not just focusing on the early seasons, so... I'll just have some questions if we write her out of existence, lol.

New personalities? Anti-Fairies?

Where I'm at in my binge, there have been no Anti-Fairies. I'm expecting them to show up because it seems likely we'd get a Friday the 13th episode. I feel like the Anti-Fairies have regularly been the most popular characters of the series in the fandom and they played a big role in later seasons, so I'm sure that writers who have done so much research that they've found details I consider obscure to the average viewer are gonna give us Anti-Fairies. I can't imagine they wouldn't.

And I'm NERVOUS, lol.

So, one thing that I've always thought is that Anti-Fairies were planned to be one-off characters. After their Season 2 debut, they don't appear until Season 5. My personal thought is that Anti-Wanda got slapped with a "cheap and easy" personality without a lot of thought behind it; compare her recolored design with Anti-Cosmo's fully detailed fleshed-out design. I'm super curious to see if she'll get rebooted to be a better parallel of Wanda.

I've played her in my 'fics as being grubby to parallel Wanda's mob upbringing. I still write her with what from the outside may seem like lower intelligence, though in my 'fics I specifically have her being raised in an Anti-Fairy zoo enclosure until her young adulthood, and grew up fluent in her people's native language. It's not that she's stupid, really... She just grew up with limited contact with the outside world, so converting her thoughts for a bustling society is a struggle. I try not to make her a statement of intelligence, though she can be self-deprecating when she compares herself to others.

Like, I can literally see this going either way. I would be totally in favor of giving Anti-Wanda a reboot, because I love her very dearly and tbh I kind of prefer her over Anti-Cosmo... but I will always support taking a second look at the "idiot Southerner with a drawl" stereotype. If she gets freshened up so she's not played as so dumb, or still dumb but less Southern, I'd be fine with that. It's... not a great trope.

Nerd alert incoming - Yes, it's mostly me rambling about how much I love the Pixies & Gary and Betty because I want my feelings written down before any chance of them showing up.

-> Once upon a time, I would not have dreamed my faves might show up, but now that we've gotten a Flappy Bob cameo, I have to prepare for anything.

Okay... so. It's Anti-Cosmo whose potential reboot personality concerns me most, and for purely selfish reasons 😂. In my personal opinion, fanon Anti-Cosmo is surprisingly different from canon Anti-Cosmo. I'm pretty sure they're going to reboot him as a sexy evil villain, because that's what the majority of people think he is. Even though he's a total dork and rebooting him as a suave, confident smooth-talker feels incorrect to me.

Riddle's unpopular opinion: The personality I've seen many people portray Anti-Cosmo with in fan content feels closer to the personality the Head Pixie has than it feels to Anti-Cosmo. If H.P. were younger with the exact same personality he has in the OG show, people would give him the "sexy bad boy" treatment they give Anti-Cosmo. They just don't because he's old </3

Yes, H.P. is ALSO a goofball. He likes cosplay, breakdancing, and he's often either at a rave or bemoaning that he's not at a rave. He only has a few episodes and his love for raves and clubbing comes up in at least 3 of them. But he's the one doing the classic "evil villain" stuff like signing contracts, pulling puppet strings, torturing people with shock collars, and finding loopholes.

H.P. sets up long-term plans. He's calculating, meticulous, and he's one of the sassiest and most confident characters in the entire series. Happy Peppy Gary and Betty literally have a direct phone line to Sanderson, presumably under H.P.'s influence since he's the boss.

Like, that is explicitly canon and it's my favorite background detail in the show. The Pixies thought ahead and gave them a phone. Gary and Betty were in on the plan and knew about magic. At bare minimum they knew they were working for people called Pixies.

Sidebar: Even in their episodes before the Musical, it's implied Gary and Betty know more about magic than the average human. They had laser-eyed unicorn mobiles that formed cages. They somehow got from Florida (implied by Gary's use of the word "gator" and confirmed by this episode's script) to California (Dimmsdale's confirmed state) before end of workday, implying they returned through non-human means. -> Also in their debut episode, they literally went to outer space with Mark, were chill about it, and offered him snacks; idk what to tell you. They're my everything. H.P. seems to have meticulously set up a lot of things and it's so funny to me. -> Also this is very non-canon in the finalized series, but in the OG script of the Musical, it's implied Gary and Betty took the Pixies hostage, and also they seem to be friends with Imaginary Gary. They're heavily implied to sing his villain song with him (where he blatantly reveals he's Imaginary Gary), and it's HILARIOUS. Can you even imagine? He was their boss in that version of the script. I can't deal. That's so funny; he's like 5. Was he even paying them or did they just think he was fun? I just need all the lovely new followers I've gained since I started posting about New Wish to understand how not normal I am about the Learnatorium crew. If you've ever wondered why I write about them so much... I just think they're neat! <3 -> Btw for anyone wondering, you can find some early-season scripts on Fred Seigbert's Scribd. It's painfully difficult to navigate, so I suggest Scribd's search bar instead of his profile. For easier reading, I keep screenshots of the things I find most interesting on my blog, tagged #original script. I figure if you've read this far, you might be into quirky FOP lore, so run... be free. I think I've read them all, so all the funny moments are on my blog. There are some lovely gems in there... There's a deleted scene from "Totally Spaced Out" where Gary and Betty tried to ditch their jobs and flee to Mexico, a deleted scene of Mark and Vicky lovingly holding hands in the nursing home while he's in squid form, and a deleted scene from "Oddlympics" of Jorgen, Anti-Cosmo, and H.P. dressing up as cowboys and in dresses. Juandissimo has early lore about his fear of Cosmo. There's a storyboard for "Anti-Poof" in there somewhere.

Anyway, the point is, I enjoy H.P. a lot. Listen, I've been a huge fan of this guy for 8 years; I love him to death. He's very sassy. He purposely messes with Jorgen's head and Jorgen loses his temper over it. He jumps through hoops to do things right, he wields loopholes to do things wrong, and he tortures people because, in his own words, "It's hilarious."

-> In my mind, HE is the manipulative schemer that Anti-Cosmo often gets remembered as. Where's my sexy bad boy H.P. fanart? Surely it was someone's job to show me that /jk

And there is nothing wrong with portraying A.C. as a sexy bad boy. They can both be sexy bad boys. I'm explaining how I read him in my incredibly specific take, but others might not read him this way. A.C. does a good job of pretending to be a sexy bad boy, but I personally enjoy when he's also portrayed as a dork and I want to talk about that because it's my post.

So, honestly... I think Anti-Cosmo is scared of Jorgen. He never challenges people directly, instead using disguises or hiding behind social events like the "Oddlympics." He lets H.P. take charge in his own castle. He can barely discipline his own son (and when he does, Foop ignores him). A.C. throws temper tantrums on the ground, kicking and shrieking and breaking stuff when things don't go his way. And I LOVE him for it.

But he's not a suave bad boy in my mind, lol. I mean, he tries, and sometimes he pulls it off, but he's definitely not sweet or charming. He's a tantrum-throwing baby who yells at his wife <3 and only holds her hand during "When Nerds Collide" if you pause in time to catch it.

You know how I said Jorgen is a twist on expectations? Anti-Cosmo's whole thing is that people think he's cool and smart, but it's a façade. In his debut episode, Timmy outsmarted him very easily. It doesn't surprise me at all that Anti-Cosmo took a step back in later seasons and Foop became our main Anti-Fairy. Because it's totally in-character for Foop to go looking for trouble, and it's totally in-character for A.C. to... not do that.

A.C. is an introvert who needs a reason to leave the house. Foop likes running around, causing trouble. It's great. You can see so much of Anti-Wanda in Foop and it's funny to me.

I like how A.C. sometimes wanders off and forgets what he's doing. I mean, that's how Timmy defeated him in "When Nerds Collide"- His friends coaxed him into meandering off on his own. He charges headfirst into things despite consequences. He throws things, including his wand. He runs away from confrontation. He jumps on tables. He makes paper airplanes. His wife mocks him for having dorky X-ray goggles he bought from the back of a comic book. He's a goofball.

Again, they are both goofballs- A.C. and H.P. Every villain is a goofball: Norm spends his time out of his lamp eating ice cream and getting his dry cleaning handled, H.P. likes to party, A.C. can't sit still, Sanderson prioritizes music above villainy, Crocker is more silly than spooky, Foop is a baby who needs naps and playtime, and Kevin ping-pongs between self-deprecation and giddy overconfidence.

Anti-Cosmo does come across as a bad boy sometimes. I'll be very surprised if we don't see Anti-Cosmo's return since he's a popular character and I think people are into his British bad boy vibe, but like...

Since it's my speculation post, I just really need to say that if they change his personality so he's now super charming and sassy with no signs of the temper, dorkiness, or cowardice that's always lurked in him, I'll be sad... because I like my tantrum-throwing baby who shakes his wife up and down when he's stressed. And this man was not the sharpest tack when it came to sass, sdfklj.

I totally suspect New Wish will reboot him as a total sexy, suave villain because honestly, that's probably the way he's remembered. Which is okay, but if he does return, I will miss my silly comics-loving geek who can't stand up to a newborn, writes notes with brightly colored pens he changes every sentence, and jumps on tables during fancy dinners. He's so goofy. I hate him (/affectionate).

-> And if we bring back Anti-Fairies, but throw the Pixies aside because "Eh, they're boring," it will be a crying shame. I will accept it, but you will find me standing with a confused look on my face as I swing my hands to gesture between Anti-Cosmo and H.P.

-> There's nothing wrong with bringing back A.C. and not H.P.! The Anti-Fairies are beloved and stick in people's memories well, I'm sure. But also, H.P. is my favorite in the whole series. He's incredibly sassy, manipulative, meticulous, and hilarious.

Where else can I find an old man who drops the line "The only thing you'll be eating is my dust!" before jumping on a scooter and blasting off with a shout of "Later, dude!" Or the old man who gets distracted because he'd rather be at a rave. Or elbows Timmy in the side with a smug smile and asks if his pizza tasted better than "Jorgen's slice of pure rabbit droppings."

This is the man who danced and sang "Go me, go me, it's my birthday." It's heavily implied the main reason he's a villain is because he's too obsessive compulsive to watch the world fall apart around him. That's hilarious. He literally took over the world and the first thing he did was go home and get drunk. He's a fantastic character and I should say it.

-> I'm not gonna be mad if we get an Anti-Cosmo reboot and kick the Pixies into the sun. I'll just be /pensive emoji about it. Also, I rambled about this mainly because I've gained a surprising amount of new followers recently, and if you're new here... I just think you deserve a warning about what you're getting into with my blog. I love him so much.

In conclusion... IF we get the Pixies and H.P.'s been reduced to a dull and boring stereotype who lost his snark and love for parties, I'll be devastated and I'd rather have them not show up :')

... Also if H.P. is dead and Sanderson is now in charge because it's "the future," my head will be in my hands. If that happens, you can unfollow me right then because it's all I'll talk about /lh. I want my super sassy bossman, please and thank you.

I would miss the old H.P., but I would also be grateful for any Pixie scraps I'm given because they're my favorites. I cannot believe we got a Flappy Bob cameo in New Wish. Definitely not on my bingo board.

Well... There we go! My thoughts so far. I'm looking forward to seeing where the show goes, and I hope we get to see more of the things I want. These are very early thoughts!

Again, please don't spoil anything since I'm only up to "Trial or Hair-or," and please no grumpiness in my replies or inbox.

These are personal liveblog opinions from a long-time fan who's been avoiding spoilers since New Wish was hinted over a year ago. My opinions may change later if the show goes a new direction. I AM enjoying the show, but I also wanted to share what I like about the OG and what I'd like to see in New Wish's future.

Thanks!

[wecandoit]

hey guys. currently in a bit of a crisis (but its chill, it's fine, we're chillin) so a rant under the cut

it's the first time i've ever left an assignment to be done so last minute. technically this submission is only due 3pm tomorrow (it's currently 10:28pm) but i have to wake up at 5am to go to work and don't get home til around 4.30pm, so really, i have until 5am to finish this assignment. and it's for a unit that i really want to improve my grades on (i've got a structure down, and my sources ready, just gotta write up the five pages, do the referencing and proofing)

but really i'm just a bit terrified because i had weeks, literally weeks, to get this done but i just... didn't? and i did similar things for my last two assignments too and i just--i can't afford to do this, you know? this is my dream, and i can't believe i'm sabotaging myself like this.

i was looking into scholarships for next year bc i could really use it, and i'm just 3% away from being eligible for our uni's merit-based one. and the worst part is, i feel like i could have really easily gotten it if i had put in a tiny bit more effort last year. and yet even knowing this, i can't bring myself to get on top of my game for this semester.

i've just been wanting to sleep all the time, even though i'm constantly napping. i don't even think it's a depressive episode though, because emotionally i'm not really struggling. maybe i'm mentally exhausted? but again, i feel like i've been doing nothing all semester so idk what i'm even exhausted from.

this is my final assignment submission for the year so i'm really hoping that once the stress of deadlines is over, i can actually be productive and study for exams properly (and catch up on like half a semester of missed lectures and exams for half my units)

i'm going to take a 20 minute nap, and hopefully i'll be able to get my head in the game and finish writing this up and do the referencing. i'll try do the proofing and submission at work tomorrow.

thanks to whoever read this and i'm sorry if i got you down. sending you all my best wishes with your work/study/other endeavours<333

xx dilli

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for eating a guy?

oki so me (???NB) (she/him) and my girlfriend (???NB) (he/they) where like, literally just chillin at the park right. so this fucking guy was with his girlfriend also and they started feedin the ducks, so my wonderful very helpful girlfriend (we're dating btw isnt that cool) told him that he shouldnt be doing so! bread is very bad for ducks! they also told him to keep away from elevators, although it wasnt very likely that he could avoid death in the following weeks. this VERY HELPFUL advice was apparently "rude" and "fucked up" and "who just says that to people" and "is that a threat??", and the guy started INSULTING and (verbally) ATTACKING my wonderful amazing girlfriend. i (as his girlfriend) could NOT just let that happen, so obviously i "attacked back". past the heat of the argument, i can admit that eating his lung in front of his girlfriend was maybe a little overboard. but he has two anyways so he'll be fine. kinda greedy if you think about it

but the enforcers yall have around apparently agree w/ the guy because i gave him "life altering injury and trauma" or something like that. medical lingo. my girlfriend said that i should be nicer to the people i eat though, like that the blood flow was like painfool n stuff, so now im kinda worried about it. AITA?

[spiderman-adorer]

how is wasptholomew doin?? im hoping she has many fine and friendly children for you to observe (if you feel safe enough to stand below the nest and look up into it, you should see a couple of white wasp larvae!!)

so far i think she's still all alone - but if i were to check (which would take all of five minutes i'm just lazy since we're going to a function soonish) i wouldn't need to stand under it unless i was crouching, the fence she's on only comes up to my ribs??? like mid ribs?? and she's basically on the top rung of that fence

BUT I REALLY HOPE SHE HAS KIDS SOON augh

i don't want my mum to kill them all though, cus she's still VERY scared of wasps and hasn't been chatting to wasptholomew (mostly cause she doesn't know wasptholomew exists)

the nest is still like 5-6.... thingies, i think they're the doghouse shapes like honeycomb, and she's usually sitting on one of them just chillin - it's been raining more so i think she's a bit miserable :(

ON ANOTHER NOTE do paper wasps do the fly-around-collecting-male-wasps-and-stealing-their-sperm-then-killing-them-and-having-eggs-from-like-five-different-wasps thing or was that something bees do? and, if wasps DO do that, do they do it after they build a nest or before or in the middle of building a nest?

[prozac-shaped-urn]

iiiiiii had a midday nap and this is what happened inside my brain during that time so maybe sit down and have a stiff drink at the ready cuz this shit is wild

AIGHT *clap* SO

when i dream it's usually not super vivid and i usually don't remember them but if it's a midday nap dream, IT'S BOTH

people: myself, j smith cameron (as herself), jean smart (as herself), and @marlboro-cowgirl (also as herself lmao and hereafter abbreviated as MC)

setting: what i'm assuming is jsc or jean's house i have no fucking idea but it's a really super nice house somewhere in cali, a bowling alley (this shit is wild i'm telling you), and a liquor store

dream starts out with me hanging out with jsc and jean in a very nice house. we're chillin out, doing nothing, listening to music and reading books. it's bright outside and i walk to a window to look at the ocean. jean asks me if i want something to drink and i'm like "nah i'm good, but i'm kinda hungry" (great manners katy) and jean's like "okay yeah! i can heat something up" and then jsc pipes up "i could use a drink though" and i giggle like roman roy for whatever fucking reason and jean goes "all i have is diet coke and water" and jsc shrugs "either is fine, just mix it with vodka"

ALKDSLKDFJSLKDF AJDL WHAT

so jean mixes jsc a vodka diet coke (ew) and hands it over while i'm staring at them like i'm watching some kind of live-action disney film. like my eyes are full of wonder and curiosity. oh, they're also in sunbathing attire. like floppy hats and sunglasses and sarong wraps n shit (idfk stay with me) so naturally i'm looking at all the places i shouldn't be bc ~in my dreams i can do what i fucking want~ fuck off.

jsc takes a sip of the vodka diet coke and winces like it's disgusting bc guess what IT IS jsc you fuckin weirdo. and then jean's like "you said mix it with vodka" and jsc's like "yeah but i didn't realize it would be this gross" and jean's like "we can go to the store but i have a bowling competition in an hour" and jsc is like "okay just get something else on your way back" and jean's like "alright fine whatever"

(side note: jean is an avid bowler so this part makes sense to me now that i'm thinking about it.)

that part of the dream ends and we do a DISSOLVE TO: transition like a goddamn film to the bowling alley and i'm there with jean and @marlboro-cowgirl (i have no idea babes my brain is fucked up as you are FULLY aware of) and jean is bowling her ass off and MC is smoking her vape while i'm eating a burger and fries and dr pepper. jean gets done with her streak--bowls a turkey--and sits down to join us. MC is like "great streak! you're super skilled at that." and jean's like "thanks :) you shouldnt be smoking." and MC goes "yeah… but it's better than other shit i could be doing. like heroin. or growing a baby." and jean doesnt know how to respond so she just nods her head with raised eyebrows like *yep these kids are fucked upppp* and then she's like "should we go get j something to drink? it's getting late." and i nod and MC is like "yeah let's fucken roll" LKDALDKJFAL DKFJADL so we leave and go to a liquor store

the three of us peruse the aisles and grab whatever the hell alcohol we want. i get smirnoff green apple and goldschläger, MC gets tennessee whiskey and cranberry juice and some high quality brand of rum i cannot remember the name of, and jean grabs a bottle of chinaco tequila a six pack of regular coke and a six pack of sprite. we go to the checkout stand and pay for our drinks and head out to the car (we're in MC's challenger for some reason--probably the turbo orgasm on wheels engine. also no idea how we got to your car since jean and i supposedly left in hers DREAMS ARE WEIRD OKAY) and head back to the nice house

we get to the nice house and unload our shit on the kitchen counter and jsc smiles and nods her head in approval at the selection before her and pours a hefty shot of goldschläger and downs that bitch like a P R O no grimace to be seen anywhere on her face and jean stares at her like she's just eaten a cockroach. jsc shrugs like *what?! it's good!* and jean just shakes her head in bewilderment. i'm grinning like the village idiot at this whole thing and MC is gnawing on her vape and looking at me looking at them with the most exasperatedly amused expression.

so MC takes her booze and juice and leaves the three of us to our own devices (thanks a lot babes lmao) and i'm in this house with jsc and jean and they're trying to outdo each other by taking shots of tequila, vodka and goldschläger and not making faces. like…… a LOT of shots. jsc gets giggly drunk and jean has to sit down on the kitchen floor bc she's spinning so much. i take a few shots in the there too (vodka or goldschläger only bitch) so i'm also kinda giggly drunk and i go to put the vodka in the freezer to keep it cold and jsc stops me with a hand on my arm and chastises me like my fucking mother "NEVER put alcohol in the freezer." and i'm like "uhhhh why? it's where i store my vodka." and she goes "it worsens the taste. keep it room temperature or in a wine cooler." and i'm like *mkay so #1 that was hot. #2 yes ma'am i will keep my vodka on my counter. #3 i'm too drunk to try and hide any smirks or wandering gaze* so i just straight up stare at her cleavage and nod like a mute idiot.

i go sit back down in the chair i was in earlier and start listening to music and jsc and jean do whatever in the kitchen and then i woke up.

moral of the dream: this grit fic has permeated my subconscious, jsc posting that "party at gerri's!" tweet yesterday evidently did something to my brain, and i should never put alcohol in the freezer.

[beigetiger]

I’m bored and procrastinating, so have some incorrect quotes of my Sky OCs based off random stuff I found while searching.

Mykell: I hope no one lowkey hates me.

Mykell: Highkey hate me. Hate me with every fiber of your being.

Mykell: Go big or go home.

Ray, making coffee: This is going to fix everything.

Kylo: I’m fine. It’s just that life is pointless and nothing matters and I’m always tired.

Cadro: The waiter at Olive Garden has been grating my cheese for 6 hours now, waiting for me to say when. Customers are screaming. Three people have died.

Cadro: I will not yield.

Mykell: The only thing keeping me from running away and hiding from society for the rest of my life is spite. I could disappear forever, but there are some bitches whose downfalls I have yet to witness, and I wanna be around when that happens.

Morgan: It's not like I try to blow things up, exactly. It just sort of happens. You've got to admit though, fire is fascinating.

Kylo: I am free of all prejudice. I hate everyone equally.

Oz, to Natalie: I'd make fun of your height but there isn't enough to make fun of.

Mykell to everyone: I just wanted to say that over the years, I have come to regard you as… people I met.

Aishika: I'm against crime, and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

Ray: Say no to drugs.

Oz: Say yes to drugs.

Shiela: It doesn't matter if you say yes or no to drugs, cause if you're talking to drugs... then you're on drugs.

Natalie: Yeah, well I've never died so how do I know that god is real.

Sparrow: Two brooooos!

Cadro: Chillin' in a hot tub!

Sparrow: Five feet apart 'cause we're not gay

Oz: This bloodline ends with me.

Arturo: That's the fanciest way I've ever heard someone say "I'm gay".

Leon: Everyone thinks I'm this soft cute person but I'm not!

Mykell: Leon, you cried for an hour after stepping on a bug yesterday.

Leon: It had feelings! It was probably going home to dinner and I killed it!

Shiela: ...It was a bug.

Leon: It was a BEETLE, and its wife is definitely worried sick, wondering where it is, and I really don't get why you all think I'm so sentimental because I'm not!

Mykell: ...

Sheila: ...

Leon: Stop looking at me like that!

Aishika: What's the most efficient way to burn calories?

Morgan: Exercise more!

Kylo: Set yourself on fire.

Ghander: There are two kinds of people.

Sparrow: What's worse than a heartbreak?

Cadro: Waking up in the morning and your phone wasn't charging.

Dee: Waking up in the morning.

Ray: Waking up.

Ray: We call that a traumatic experience.

Ray, turning to Natalie: Not a "bruh moment".

Ray, turning to Shiela: Not "sadge".

Ray, turning to Oz: And DEFINITELY not an "oof LMAO".

Aishika, setting down a card: Ace of spades.

Oz, pulling out an Uno card: +4.

Shiela, pulling out a Pokémon card: Jolteon, I choose you!

Ray, trembling: What are we playing?!

Aishika: Is stabbing someone immoral?

Dee: Not if they consent to it.

Arturo: Depends on who your stabbing.

Shiela: YES??!!?

Aishika: What do you do when someone offers you drugs?

Oz: Take them!

Sparrow: Punch them in the neck!

Ghander: Say thank you!

Cadro: Offer them more drugs to assert dominance!

Aishika: …

Aishika: No.

Ray: What makes you all smile?

Shiela: Friends and Family.

Natalie: Snacks.

Arturo: Victory and success.

Mykell: Face muscles.

Mykell: Stay foxy.

Arturo: Die lonely.

I’ll probably do more of these in the future, but that’s what I’ve got for now! Thank you all!

[after-nine-at-the-oasis]

Asher I know you're a professionally to the patients these days but it scares me for you to say anything regarding their personal lives whatsoever xD

ASHER

Jerome's face DLFJDHS

Aww cute good for them :))

Yeah Jerome :)

SO LET'S LEAVE AT THAT ASHER

SIR

WIPE THAT LOOK OFF YOUR FACE

I LOVE YOU BUT CALM DOWN

Jerome leave it there 😭

Ohh wait o.o she's the one with curly hair o.o

I'm not okay

Hmmm stomach thing

Ahh converting, chillin :)

Oope? Ah from his name

AUHGOPE

O.O Glad he's saying what's right for him but oof the drama o.o

Love me the angst though 👀

Okay good Asher lol

ASHER NO

Stop being angry honeyy 😭😭

Yess he's chosing it

I mean he may genuinely be converting??

Sure or that Park slfjd lol

Eh fair Jerome

SLFJFHDSK SIR

Okay Asher and what are you so invested xD

Park like "I don't wanna be here :')" XDD

Yeeeah pretty cynical Asher

Oop?

Oh gosh 😬

Idk what it is but that doesn't look good lol

Sorry Shaun lol

You will live xD

Oop fair Lea 👀

I mean she's kind of a baby in the medical field

Yeah not much xD

I mean you can do both though lol

Awww bb :')))

He's so sweet <33

AWWWW love them :'))

Okay maybe don't fully ignore her xd

Oh no D:

That's awful :(((

Oh gosh that too D: that sucks girly I'm so sorry 😭😭💔

That's awful :'((

It would be wild, and heartbreaking for that poor guy, if he died before her D:

STOP

What you're doing

Oof poor Lim xd

Don't drag the into this 😭😭 girl doesn't deserve this xdd

Glassmannnn leave her alone xdd

Okay at least he's being chill

"My dad did it for years. We got a long just fine" SLFKGHDS LOL that's great XDD

Oop "short of not going out with her?" "you asked"

Ohh no Morgan knows doesn't she xD

Yeeepp lol

Poor Lim XDD

Okay honey chill they're not fully enemies lol

Naurr xdd poor Lim lol

Oof :( poor girl that sucks

Hopefully it'll help though? Idk

Okay okay Shaun doing good

And still responding a bit nice xd

Aww :(( yeah poor girly

Aww honeyy 😭😭💔 that just sucks

Awww <33

Just their relationship

Okay cool we're doing it

I know it's tgd but I hope it goes well xdd

Aww Charlie :)

Oof LOL "start a robot rebellion" xD

Ahh yeeah trading

OPE can't take her out to dinner o.o

Oh gosh Lim 😭😭 why couldn't you pretend to be oblivious xdd

Ohh nooo this isn't going to go well xdd

Yeeep she's not gonna reassure them that they're not common xd

"It's not" 💀💀 SLFGHSKDLS XD GIRL

Ohh no xd

Charlieee 😭

GIRL SHE'S 14

Oof xd

[scribblestatic]

I haven't talked about my sick Sonic AU in a bit.

I don't really have a set story in mind for it, not quite. Like, I kinda do, but kinda don't. Mostly just Sonic trying to enjoy his life as much as possible, for as long as he'll last. All the while, despite his disability, events eventually occur that show him to be a glass cannon.

So, I thought about Robotnik directing Maxim (Metal Sonic) to check out Angel Island cause there's a mystical energy there he wants to use. And since Sonic's currently got a few spoons on hand, he wants to go, too. It takes a lot of convincing and melodramatics, but eventually, Robotnik agrees to let him go to Angel Island as well, but he has to follow all of Maxim's orders.

So they touch down on Angel Island in a small ship, with Sonic excitedly following Maxim out of it. Though, he stops when the bot swiftly turns around, giving his orders.

"Listen. You will stay around here. I will be back."

"Ehh, but it's not much ov'a field trip if I'm just stuck standin' in one place."

"You promised the Doctor to listen. Now, you need to listen. Or I'll take you right back."

"Ugh, fine, Mum."

But he does honestly listen to the perimeter he's told he can at least slightly explore around. However, if someone approaches, he needs to retreat into the ship, especially if they could be dangerous.

So Sonic's chillin' near the ship. A few wandering Chao come over, and since he works with them back at home base, his friendly demeanor almost immediately gains their trust. It helps that they aren't all dark Chao, that's for sure.

"Is this where you guys come from? I mean, the kiddos back home seem to like the base, though."

But then, he starts hearing explosions and fighting, and, being worried about Maxim, he decides to race after him after all. He sets the little Chao down and runs after the noises--faster than most, but slower than top speed.

Sure enough, he eventually finds Maxim duking it out with some echidna guy, and, unlike what Sonic's used to, it looks like Maxim's being driven into a corner. The guy is seriously strong, throwing rocks and meeting fist-to-fist with metal without a problem.

The guy uppercut's Maxim, and his face screen briefly glitches, just as his other fist heads right toward his face, fist spikes aimed at him.

"WAIT!!!"

Sonic runs between them, his arms out and waving.

He shuts his eyes right as the fist stops in front of his face... Then cautiously peeks them open as the slightly bruised-up stranger grumbles at him.

"Who the heck are you? You with him?"

"Uhh, if I said I was, then..."

"S-on--ic--" Maxim's voice glitches, his voice box recalibrating.

"I mean, sure. I am. But! Not punching me would be great!" he wheezes, holding his hands up placatingly as the echidna stomps closer to him. He's just an inch or three taller than Sonic, and definitely stockier. But not so tall that Sonic has to look up too much, so they're mostly eye-to-eye.

"Get off. My island," he growls.

"Easy, easy...uh... Name please?"

The guy stares at him for a moment before answering, eyes narrowing.

"Knuckles."

"Knuckles." Sonic looks at his knuckles, spikes and claws standing out through the wraps around his hands. "...Makes sense. Uh, like you might've heard, I'm Sonic. That's my bro, Maxim. And, uh, we're really just here on a tour--"

"You're after the Master Emerald," he interrupts, standing taller. "And it's my sworn duty to stop it from falling into the wrong hands."

"Master Em...errr...nah. Not really what we're looking for. I'm guessing that's the big glowy green diamond-looking thing? Yeah, nah, not on our radar."

"Then how do you know what it looks like, thief?"

Sonic blinks slowly, then he puts his fists on his hips, frowning.

"Hey, we haven't stolen a daggom thing. Ain't it rude to accuse someone of something they haven't done? What are you, a cop?"

"Sonic, get back--" Maxim tries to say, standing up.

"No, no. You let me handle this." Sonic doesn't even turn around, staring up at the echidna. "Look, we're here looking for an emerald, but it's not your master whatever. From what I saw, the thing's way too big for what the Doc wants to do. We're actually looking for a thing called a Chaos Emerald. Unless that's somehow illegal for ya?"

Knuckles squints. "...It's not something I can completely--"

"Right, too many than the master, right? So, it's fair game?"

"It shouldn't be used for evil--"

"And who's to say we're evil, huh? Who died and made you judge, jury, and executioner? Did you even try to talk it out with Maxim to see what's up?"

"Why should I listen to a bunch of invaders on my land?"

"...Touché. But hey, we're not after the Master Emerald, and sure, we're 'trespassing', but only to look for something you're not tasked with guarding. So, as long as your Master Emerald's safe and sound, it should be fine, right?"

Knuckles seems to consider this, glaring between Sonic and the now recovered robot behind him.

"How do I know you won't try to blindside me? How many others of you are there?"

"For now, just us. And I get it...you want some leverage, right? Well, I can't go very far--"

"Sonic, don't."

Sonic turns around, knowing Maxim has an idea of what he's going to say. He shrugs, confused.

"What's the fuss? You want me to stay in one place, right? Well, if I play hostage with this guy, then you don't have to worry about me moving around much."

"You don't know what he could do to you," Maxim's mechanical voice growls. "Don't make such a ridiculous decision."

"Eh, you're right. But for some reason, this guy doesn't seem like the kind to try to hurt someone without a purpose, y'know?" Sonic gives Knuckles a lazy grin. "So, you can let him babysit me while you look for the emerald so I'm outta your bolts and he's back to work, right? Win-win-win."

"...How is this a win for you, exactly?"

"I've never been a hostage before. Fun new experience."

Maxim rolls his eyes as much as a robot can before smacking a hand to his face.

Sonic wiggles his eyebrows at Knuckles, who just cringes with irritation and glares at him.

---

"That was a dumb decision."

Near the Master Emerald's place with Knuckles, the guardian stands firm with his arms crossed. Meanwhile, Sonic's crouched near him, a few wild Chao playing around with him as he takes pictures with a specialized Egg-phone. He can look at the pictures in greater detail on his tablet once he's back home.

"Huh?"

Knuckles stares down at him. "Putting yourself into a vulnerable position. That was dumb."

"Eh, it got you to make a deal with us though, right? So, not dumb, just pragmatic," Sonic shrugs.

Knuckles was starting to understand why the robot grumbled about his hedgehog companion so much. The easy-going, almost lazy nature of the stranger was off-putting to someone like him. He'd called himself a 'hostage,' but he didn't seem intimidated at all. Moreover, if Knuckles hadn't pulled his punch back then...

Looking at the hedgehog in better lighting, it was clear something wasn't right with his health. He looked a tad on the sallow side, with stress lines pulling at his under eyelids. The hedgehog also moved rather sluggishly at times, though he was clearly wearing running boots and compression socks. In fact, he'd gotten to where he and the bot were quite quickly despite the distance from the ship and their place of combat.

He seemed a bit juxtaposed against himself, of all things.

"...A warrior shouldn't willingly give themselves up for anything."

"One, not a warrior, just a dude," Sonic says, looking up as he takes a picture of some floating structures around the island. "And two, sure they do. Warriors sacrifice themselves for what they think is the greater good all the time. I mean, look at you."

"What about me."

"How long have you been up here?"

"That's of no concern to you," Knuckles grumbles.

"But it's been a while, right? I mean, you didn't know what a phone was and thought I was gonna do something with it."

He had, actually, almost smashed his phone, thinking it a weapon. But after showing Knuckles the pictures on it, he realized it wasn't for combat and left him be to snap away.

"And?"

"Aaaand, that means you've likely not been off this place for years, especially if you didn't know what a phone was. So, you've willingly given up your ability to learn about the world for the ability to guard your Master Emerald. Isn't that a sacrifice?"

"It's not one taken in the midst of battle. One giving my enemy an advantage."

"But you're not an enemy."

"I was beating up your robot."

"He's not mine. He's basically my big bro. And beating up on him cause neither of you knuckleheads know how to have a conversation doesn't automatically make you an enemy," Sonic snickers. "Just a guy who thinks fist-first. So, I figured, it's not so bad making you feel more comfortable. 'Specially if all I have to do is be my fantastic self and lounge around in this cool place."

Knuckles stares at the hedgehog, who was now laying on his back as he takes photos of the sky. The Chao, curious and comfortable, climb on him. One even naps on his stomach.

The Chao are comfortable around him, too, sometimes relying on him for little things. But he's never seen them interact with others quite the same way, not until now. Especially not to sleep on someone who is otherwise a complete stranger.

...Knuckles learned some of his past from reading the inscriptions on the inside of the temple ruins. Some had been written after the incident that eventually led to the ruin of his clan, leaving him as the final clansman on the island, raised by the energy of the Master Emerald and the knowledge of creatures much older than himself that have since gone into slumber in places he could not reach for now. He knew how the Chao would only gravitate toward those they felt they could trust.

Sonic pockets his phone and lays his hand on the sleeping Chao's head, rubbing it. The little one coos, stretching before going slack again, a little bit of drool running from the corner of its mouth.

"...Hmmh."

[megbonney]

✃ 07/01/23

don't you drift away / no, i won't mind

i haven't sat down and properly written on here, mainly because i've been logged into my other tumblr and doing it through my phone is a pain. but, hi anyways. in terms of events, my life has been essentially the same; i got a job (finally, thank god), picked my classes for next year. finally got some work done & my shit together. i'm fine, i guess. i've come to terms with the fact that not many people like me. and that's okay, i mean, who am i to make you? i'm not entitled to anyone's kindness, nor is anyone mine. i think i've been a lot better since i properly took that in. i feel like it's easier to exist without fear of judgement. i've become better at speaking my mind (at times), taking my space when i need it. all of this work without a therapist, go figure. i don't really hate anyone. i'm just existing in my life, not begging to be in anyone else's. however, i did kind of realise something; i've always had to be the person to initiate any romantic step in a relationship. it makes me wonder if the other person has, and i just didn't notice, or if people simply don't have feelings for me until i mention that i do. either or is okay, i mean, i'm sure i've missed out on some opportunities because a hint or a move made has gone fully over my head. i suppose i'd just like that fairytale moment. where the guy asks me out on a date, asks me to be his partner, or something. it sucks when it's always the other way around, when i'm always chasing. i'm sure with the right person, it'll happen, but right now it's just kinda blehh. we're moving sometime this year or early next year. mum keeps promising a fulfilling romance, but i think she's trying to make me feel better about leaving my life here. it feels like no one in my family is recognising that i'll be finishing my last years in highschool elsewhere, starting all over, alone. it feels like it doesn't matter to them, despite the pressure on me to be the only one in my house who graduates. at this point i know it's inevitable though, and maybe He will be there? in qld? i doubt it. it sucks but i just need something to keep me hopeful. i've noticed that the people who aren't in my life anymore couldn't handle me putting myself first; that despite them telling me to defend myself, the minute i did against them, it was suddenly wrong. humans are hypocritical that way, i s'pose. i can be hypocritical, but nothing's grosser than someone who can't admit it. i'm chillin. still staying away from substance and in school like a smart fella (smart fella or fart smella?) steam sale rahh. money money money, kaching. toodles

[static-void]

Found it

so uh. Starts off. myself, a kid named derrin, and some other folks are doing Something, we're down near the docks (which doubles as a train station (this doesn't take place anywhere I've ever been)) and we're just fucking around. Derrin starts panicking about some sort of Thing and starts saying something about a "shatter" that's gonna happen, we start running, we get to where this "shatter" is going to happen just as it does.

Derrin *vanishes*, so does everyone else, I'm left (almost) alone except! There's Some Fucking Thing with me.

we decide "ehhh we're here together may as well stick together" and start meandering around.

nothing is really. Right? Buildings have gone all weird, there's corridors in the middle of the street but that's a very good thing bc there's monsters wandering around that look very suspiciously like my companion but. it's fine.

we keep wandering around until we hear Someone Else Talking, and then realize whoever this is also has a Friend ("friend") but instead of this "friend" defending them, it's threatening them into helping it capture anyone who comes by. And they've Noticed Us

so my guy fucks off somewhere, I go hide under a table, the kid (bc the human in this "weird void goop thing & human" equation is a kid) fucking. Comes over and starts pointing at me even though I had a Very Good hiding spot

anyway so the void fucker (idk if that's what they actually are but. yknow) comes over and drags me out by the arm, I'm fucking Thrashing, and it "detects" something and drops me. probably figured out that I Already had a void fucker & that threatening/killing me would have been a Bad Idea.

so now we get worldbuilding! The basics are:

-The initial zone near the Shatter (<- that's the name) is the safest place to be. Not completely safe, but safest. It's colored yellow.

-The white zone just below that (on the map. It would've been across the street) However, it's the safest to most people - most people can't get to the yellow zone. There's a barrier. We suspect the reason that my void fucker & I can get through is bc I was right up against the Shatter when it happened

-The gray zone: Second most dangerous (you really did not want to leave the white/yellow zones - there's no safety outside of them), and the largest zone on the map. From what I understand this is mostly what it looks like on the map. It's a gray zone, everything is gray and bad.

-Red zone: this is the most dangerous place and it's on the very edges of the map. I wasn't given an explanation as to what it was like, but I can guess.

My void fucker came back at some point during the explanation. Derrin's fate remains unknown, nobody here can help, so we head back to the white zone

& it's surprisingly fairly normal? If you get into a good section. I helped a lady get her dog back in her yard.

The sky was dark, like nighttime, but for the most part the lighting was like during the day

Iirc the void fucker & I were just chillin out & taking a break for a little while before we started looking for Derrin

The void fucker could carry me, but most of the time if I was moving around it was sort of...I was "wearing" it, iirc mostly as a long (we're talking up to my shoulder) glove

this is a basic idea of how the map looks, pardon the patchy marker I didn't want to use up all my ink

there were little cracks of the gray zone all across the map, & on the map they didn't look too big but they were generally around the width of a street (for example, that gray line in between the yellow & white zones was the width of The Average City Street)

i believe my main goal was to find derrin but i had a Sneaking Suspicion he was somewhere in the red zone

the main threat was just the void fuckers, but the further out you went from the shatter, the nastier they got (both in terms of personality & in terms of "How Much Can They Kill You?")

miscellaneous Things:

-I don't know why the void fucker that was with me was actually helping me out. by all accounts it should have been trying to kill me. i didn't do anything to prompt this change either, it was just like "so...hi?" & i, not yet knowing that this void fucker was supposed to kill me, responded with "hi?"

-the void fuckers i ran into did not know where derrin was. they were also very confused as to why my void fucker was not trying to kill me, so i'm suspecting Whatever caused the weird behavior was not universal. bc they were trying to kill me, too. or at the very least tried to, they generally stopped once they figured out that i Already Had One

-we had been running toward the shatter bc Derrin was trying to stop it, but he failed. I was right up there with him, so it's not the proximity that made him vanish. it was also not a new thing to me - I knew about the node that caused it, he had told me about it, it's just that neither of us were expecting it to do. That

-the lady's dog did bite me i just remembered, but nothing happened to me. 99% odds that was the void fucker's doing

-aside from the void fucker that was With Me, pretty much all of them were being "nice" (see: not trying to kill me) to me begrudgingly. some of them even said they were betting on me dying. i did not care.

[artasylum]

•••••

on the brink of your lips,

on the cusp of your kiss I miss the way we kick it,

when I'm with you it's like every line is just right,

we spit flows to one another without noticing,

we got floetry,

like Floetry,

kissing you,

those plush lips against mine,

man,

that second set against mine,

damn,

I'm digging you like a gold mine,

and I ain't just saying that cause you fine or because you remind me of a good wine,

you just make it easy to let the time go by,

whether we're exchanging words,

laughs,

good jokes or your moaning and getting choked,

I just enjoy the time spent with you,

chillin and groovin' with you,

you lack the bullshit of these regular bitches and you don't just be saying shit so I can get in it,

your mind works beautifully in seconds,

and I find your intelligence a blessing,

just like you,

I feel like Chance,

blessings keep falling in my lap,

and I'm taking that chance,

I'm taking this one because we just be vibin' no cap,

we don't even have to match no shit to get our conversations lit,

as soon as we kick it, we get wit' it,

opposites attract, but our similarities don't lack,

like magnets when put together this pulling force has us not holding back,

they want us to be down on our luck,

but it looks like we lucked up,

feels like we lucked up,

not fucked up,

but knucked up and bucked up because when we together it's more than time spent with my boo,

we crew too, but damn

I love when I'm kissing you

it's more than just physical.

I hope that you get it though,

you flow with me like Wayne on his mixtapes,

like water,

like the song you've played twelve times in three days,

like Sunday morning relaxations,

listening to your late night sensations or my rants about the way the world's changing,

we have poetry in between the lines,

you can see the signs,

you flow with me,

you go with me,

and when we're kissing it's like we're both on the edge of our seats waiting for more,

but not patiently,

goddamn,

to me you're a fucking sight to see,

like i'm the island and you're the sea,

when you meet my shores it's a sight,

we get excited,

we get ignited and we're both delighted in satisfaction,

both flowing light and right because this is not just a jump for the stars,

but we're jumping for a cause,

not getting lost in the sauce,

but getting found in each other so when word spreads all they gone see is that we as smooth as butta - ✨

[ersatzangel]

January and February 2022 Fic Recs

Last year, I wanted to do monthly round ups of fics I enjoyed reading during that month then talked myself out of it. This year, I forgot and now we're more than a week into March and maybe this is a bit late but here are some fics I enjoyed reading in January and February this year!

one and the same by vaudelin | rated T | 6k

Dean can handle how his knee creaks whenever the weather changes. He can handle the dull throb that builds as the day goes on, his thigh begging him to rest after he’s been up on it for an hour or two.

He’s fine with it all.

Cas has always given up more than his fair share for Dean anyways.

Dean’s not about to beg him for what’s left.

Funny Bone by PallasPerilous | M | 4.9k

It wasn’t even a particularly creepy skeleton; it was in kind of a “just chillin’” pose on the floor. One ankle was still locked up in a heavy iron cuff, at the end of a short chain leading back to the wall. Snoresville, as dead stuff goes; Dean’s seen worse at Disneyland.

It was the skeleton’s comment about Dean’s ass that really livened things up.

Carve Your Name Into My Arm by Misachan | T | 7k

When a fast talking witch hexes Dean to get rid of all his scars, he's surprised to find that includes the handprint, too. It's not until Castiel shows up that he realizes just how much trouble they're actually in.

That Black Dog Ache by SaltyWords | E | 28k

A simple case turns Dean upside down as he attempts to deal with the effects of a particularly strange love spell.

Don't Your Cry No More by FagurFiskur | T | 5k

It’s been three weeks since Chuck’s defeat and life has settled into a routine. Or maybe not a routine so much as a holding-pattern because Dean will be fucked if this becomes his new status quo.

*

A rewrite of the Supernatural finale. Takes elements from the episode but shapes them into a different story.

The face of heaven. by orange_crushed | T | 9.7k

“This is the best day of my life,” Castiel tells him, when he comes back. “You’ve been so kind to me.” His cheeks are glowing a little from the cold, or maybe just because he’s an otherworldly being full of light. Dean doesn’t know. “If I burn another million years, I won’t forget it.”

“Oh,” says Dean. “Good.”

(In which Castiel is a fallen star.)

Love Languages by tiamatv | T | 9.1k

Castiel has always known that there are things that Dean can’t say.

So when he says "I love you," he never expects he'll hear it back.

Closer by SaltyWords | E | 2.8k

Dean knows there’s a whole lot right with a little experimentation, he just needs a little extra convincing for this.

Mutually Beneficial by ourlastnonsense | E | 2k

So the sex is fine. Good. Mind-blowing, honestly. And it's not complicated, at least while they're in it.

It was supposed to be a one-time thing, and then they just... didn't stop. Two warm bodies and two cold hearts. Mutually beneficial fucking, and their chemistry has always been something freaky, so. Dean's been getting his money's worth.

Except. Except they share a bed at night, even though Cas doesn't sleep. They don't cuddle, really, just rest in the same space. Dean's not under any delusion that this is love, or that it ever will be. Neither of them are human enough for that. But it is something.

keep my love close to yours by lookforanewangle | T | 2.2k

“I made a deal,” Cas says again, “when Jack was dying. A deal with the Empty. When I– when I finally felt happiness, true happiness, it would take me, in exchange for Jack’s life. I had to do it, Dean, and I won’t let you tell me otherwise.”

“And...and your happiness...is–”

Cas looks up at him sharply and Dean stutters to a halt, stomach fluttering anxiously. “Oh,” Dean says dumbly.

Oh.

or: Dean tries to confess to Cas in Purgatory, and Cas tells him about his deal, plus everything after

[beelovesnct]

𝟖𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞: 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧’ 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 [𝐞𝐩. 𝟑]

— snippets of Aiko in episode 3 of 8lace: Chillin in the Dream

The episode starts with Jisung lounging near the pool, with Jaemin patiently taking a picture of him.

Jaemin eventually leaves Jisung alone though and proceeds to take pictures of other people—this time, his victims were Renjun and Aiko.

The frame shifts to Aiko and Renjun, the duo seen in the same position they were in the closing scenes of episode two.

"Wah. Too much backlight." Jaemin complains, crouching low enough to take a picture of a reading Aiko and a slightly smiling Renjun.

"It doesn't work." Jaemin clicks his tongue in annoyance after finding the photos he's taken, too dark.

"Turn on the flash." Jaemin brightened and followed Aiko's instructions.

"Alright, look here please!"

Aiko then offered a small peace gesture of her own before going back to her book.

Jaemin squealed in delight, pinching her cheek and running away to bother the other members.

"Tsk." Aiko rubbed her slightly sore cheek, while Renjun chuckles at her reaction.

"AIK-AH!" Haechan's voice resounded through the whole area.

"Ah, it's too noisy," Aiko complained, closing her book with a snap before burying herself in the pillows around them.

"AIK-AH, LET'S SWIM!" Haechan persisted despite not being able to see the girl anywhere.

"Aish. Haechan's too loud." She braced the pillows over her ears more aggressively.

Renjun let out a snort before patting her head that was still under the pillow.

"You know he's not gonna stop, right?"

Aiko groaned—a sign of defeat, before letting Renjun drag her to the pool area.

“AIKO! RENJUN! COME SWIM!” Surprisingly, it was Mark was welcomed the duo with a loud cheer.

Turns out Haechan was too busy messing with Chenle to notice the two new presence in the vicinity.

Jeno approached the two with a smile, "The water's fine! So come swim with us."

Aiko narrowed her eyes, "You're shaking, which means you're lying."

Jeno let out a loud laugh, which eventually caught Haechan's attention as the boy swam across the small pool to where Renjun and Aiko were standing.

"AIKO, RENJUN!"

The way that he swam sent warning signals in the girl's head as she quickly hid behind Renjun, letting the splash of water hit him instead.

"YAH!" Renjun complained—directed at both the boy in the pool and the girl clutching his shirt.

Aiko let out a small, "Sorry, Junnie." before abruptly turning her heel and proceeding to climb up the stairs to where Jaemin and Jisung were hanging out.

"Well I'm wet anyway, might as well swim." Renjun let out a small sigh as he watched the girl's back disappear, before proceeding to the changing room to swim with the other members.

"Scootch over." Aiko eventually made her way to the top, poking Jaemin's leg as she opt to sit beside him.

Jaemin raised an eyebrow, before sliding a bit to his left, "You're not gonna swim?"

Aiko plopped down, plucking out her phone before shaking her head, "It was too cold."

Jaemin nodded before silently placing an arm around her shoulder—cuddling her figure and going back to his phone.

"Is that Jisung's voice?" Aiko softly asked, eyes never leaving the game she was currently playing.

"Yes." Jaemin simply answered.

"Are you recording?" The girl asked again.

"Yes."

Aiko hummed, "Send it to me later."

After some time, the other members finished their swim.

This means that it was also time for the quartet—namely: Haechan, Renjun, Jaemin, and Aiko to buy some groceries.

Aiko kept close to Jaemin the whole time, helping him pick out meats and other necessities for their dinner later that night.

"Should we still get Sirloin, if we have pork belly already?"

Aiko silently nodded, looking over the other meat choices in front of them.

"Should we?" Jaemin asked again, unsure if Aiko heard him the first time.

Aiko plucked some marinated beef before nodding once more, but this time facing the visual.

"We're eight people, I think adding more would be better, just in case."

"That's true, plus we have Haechan."

"I heard that!"

Jaemin and Aiko were later joined by Renjun and Haechan by the cashier—the former duo attaining everything they needed for the dinner while the latter two shopped for their breakfast the next morning.

"Aiko." Haechan called her attention, maneuvering his way to stand beside her.

The called idol silently raised her eyebrows.

Haechan leaned in, whispering, "We got you strawberry ice cream."

Aiko stiffed, yet visibly brightened, "They have it?"

Haechan nodded with a smile, his hand finding its way on the small of her back, "Of course."

Aiko faced the counter back, but not before uttering a small but heartfelt thanks.

Haechan simply ruffled her hair in response.

The episode ended with the members—that were in charge of grocery shopping, heading home, with Aiko waving at the camera that was in Renjun's hand.

[yami-kada]

Mission 2

Recently I read a fanfic on AO3 called Interlude - Class 1-A by @itslivybear and was inspired a bit to write a fic based on that! Well really I got inspiration for a single line (you'll know it when you see it) and then had to write a whole thing to be able to share that one line, but oh well. This is my first time writing a chatfic or even any BNHA content at all, so I hope it doesn't suck! Thanks to @shadesofflame for being an awesome beta!

(Quick FYI in this AU M*neta and Bakugou are replaced with Shinsou and Monoma, sorry for any confusion. Also a name guide can be found at the bottom.)

RockSolid: Um, so.

RockSolid: Remember the missions during the Sports Festival?

PurpleGrape: Oh hell yeah.

PurpleGrape: Still cherish the look on that bastard's face.

Spoderman: jehxgjc Kiri I got it on video!!!

JazzHands: You've had video of the capture of the bounty this whole time and never showed us???

LSD: I thought we were friends Sero!

Spoderman: omg no not that I totally would have shared earlier if i did

Spoderman: im talking about That.

RockSolid: no Sero don't tell them!

RockSolid: it's embarrassing!

PikaCHU: Tell us, tell us!

NYOOM: Kaminari-kun! If Kirishima-kun wishes to keep his privacy, then it is our duty as his classmates to respect that!

Spoderman: ok but consider: he already gave them a major hint and they are about to POUNCE

BreadIsPain: As a witness as well, I must say that Kirishima was si attirant que j'ai failli m'évanouir~*

RockSolid: thanks, I think?

MOMo: To paraphrase Aoyama, he is essentially saying you were very manly, Kirishima!

RockSolid: aw thanks bro!! Don't believe you but thanks!

Spoderman: you take that lack of confidence back I have evidence right here that says you are super fucking manly!

LSD: ok please now we have to know so that we can show Kiri how great he is!!!

MOMo: I must admit that the commentary seen thus far has me rather curious as well.

RockSolid: You guys…

RockSolid: alright then, I'll tell you!

Spoderman: sweet ill pull it up!

RockSolid: bro don't you dare! my story, I get to tell it!

Spoderman: oh yeah of course bro!!

Spoderman: but if after you wanna show it then i am READY.

JazzHands: This is very sweet and all but I am very thirsty for this TEA.

RockSolid: on it!

Kirby: Kiri you've been typing for so long that I'm getting Izuku vibes here.

GreenGrape: Hey!

RockSolid: sorry! this is harder than I thought!

Spoderman: want me to start it off?

RockSolid: you know what, sure.

Spoderman: aight so,

Spoderman: Council, what qualifies as capturing the bounty?

GreenGrape: Guys no the bounty is over please no more bounty-hunting Kacchan.

MOMo: Your objection is noted and overruled, Izuku.

MOMo: For your question, Sero, I do not believe we ever set specific limitations on what qualified, but I was under the impression that it was limited to the Sports Festival. Why do you ask?

Spoderman: just double checking

Spoderman: because my bro here just totally shot both missions out of the park!!!

LSD: gaSP!!!

JazzHands: bOTH?!

RockSolid: no not both!! we have no confirmation for either, technically!

Kirby: Technically? What do you mean by that?

RockSolid: ahhhh ok so Sero and I were eating lunch in the courtyard because it was nice out, right?!

RockSolid: and we were chillin, being bros, birds were singing, all was good.

RockSolid: and then we heard a small explosion before the bounty walked in at the other end of the courtyard and started kicking at the wall.

PikaCHU: omg so angy.

RockSolid: and like fine, we can tune him out, just try to act like he's not there, you know?

RockSolid: But then he started yelling at random people in the courtyard, just acting pissed as hell.

PikaCHU: oMG so ANGY.

RockSolid: and that's just not manly at all, you know? going off on people like that just because you're in a bad mood.

GreenGrape: Yeah… that's Kacchan for you.

RockSolid: so he's making his way around the courtyard now, like everyone needs their daily dose of asshole for him to be happy, and the closer he got the more annoyed I got.

Spoderman: here it comes!

RockSolid: and eventually I get up, because I have had just about enough, and walk right up to him.

RockSolid: he doesn't see me coming, because he was too busy yelling at some girl, and I get right up behind him.

RockSolid: and then I just called out to get his attention, and spun him to face me while making sure I end up between him and the girl.

RockSolid: and well I told him off a little bit and got him to back off then left in a hurry.

RockSolid: and that's it!

Spoderman: oh no you don't

BreadIsPain: Oui! Monsieur Kirishima, you must tell the climax with just as much zest as the build-up!

Spoderman: what he said! no skipping out on the best part!

RockSolid: but!!!

Jacked: No buts, mister. We're all way too invested now for you to back down.

RockSolid: :(

RockSolid: fine! you win!

RockSolid: so uh when I got his attention, I also got my hand onto his shoulder, and used his surprise to knock his feet a bit off balance and pulled him back, but then I ended up with him in my arms and could tell he was about to start yelling so I just…

RockSolid: you know…

RockSolid: flirted?

LSD: oh my GoD this is great!!!

PikaCHU: Hell yeah Kiri! Go get yourself a manz!

RockSolid: I'm not getting a man! He's probably going to kill me the next time he sees me!

Spoderman: i dunno, it took him a good long while to reboot after what you said there

Spoderman: you might have a shot

PurpleGrape: Well if you're not going to get a man out of this, mind telling us what you said so I can bait him next time he tries to be an ass?

RockSolid: uhhh…

RockSolid: I'm nervous.

BreadIsPain: If you will allow me, I shall finish your tale off dazzlingly!

RockSolid: Thanks Aoyama.

BreadIsPain: Bien entendu!

BreadIsPain: While holding him in his arms tightly in a dip, faces inches apart, Monsieur Kirishima leaned impossibly closer to emphasize his point.

RockSolid: oh god I regret everything.

LSD: Hush, it's getting good!

BreadIsPain: With a growl to his voice and his eyes burning above a smirk, he said "You know, you're damn cute when you're angry, but you'd be downright sexy if you shut the fuck up." Then he straightened up to fling the lost soul to the side, and saunter off like the devil was guarding his back, leaving the bounty terribly confused in his wake.

PurpleGrape: Whoa.

PikaCHU: Holy shit?!

RockSolid: what is that description?!?!?!

JazzHands: Kiri that was PERFECT oh my god?!

LSD: It's ART is what it is!

Spoderman: don't forget how red the guy was! Kiri was cool as a cucumber but the other guy couldn't stop blushing after seeing his face!!!

MOMo pinned a message

RockSolid: Yaomomo!!!

MOMo: My apologies, Kirishima, but I felt it only right to ensure easy access to your most manly moment.

LSD: Yeah Kiri! Then one day we can all look back on this and celebrate how everything started!!

RockSolid: How what started???

LSD: E v e r y t h i n g

RockSolid: @Spoderman bro hide me I’m scared.

Spoderman: hey guys, wanna see a GREAT video?

Spoderman: the stars are our main man, Kiri, and the bounty!

PikaCHU: hell yeah!!!

Jacked: Lay it on me.

PurpleGrape: Sure.

JazzHands: Do you really have to ask????

RockSolid: but I already told you what happened!

RockSolid: why do you want to see me being so embarrassing?

PikaCHU: bro we all appreciate you so much of course we want to see you being manly!

LSD: Just from what you all said there is no way you don’t look great in that vid, Kiri!

PikaCHU: gotta give support where support is due!!

PurpleGrape: They’ll all bully Sero into showing them one way or another anyways, might as well give in now.

RockSolid: but...

BreadIsPain: Nous devons vous montrer à quel point vous brillez et dissiper ces pensées douteuses!**

MOMo: I could not have said it better myself, Aoyama!

RockSolid: I don’t even know what he said though?!?!?!?!?!?!

Spoderman: Kiri.

Spoderman: Bro.

Jacked: Well shoot he’s using proper grammar and everything.

Spoderman: Rude.

Spoderman: Anyways Bro.

RockSolid: yeah?

Spoderman: You are epic. This video shows you being epic. And putting an asshole in their place.

Spoderman: You have nothing to be ashamed of, and every reason to be proud. So please let me show the video so that everyone can appreciate you like you deserve bro.

RockSolid: bro…

Spoderman: Bro.

RockSolid: bro -

Spoderman: Bro?

RockSolid: bro!

Spoderman: aight everyone down to the common room its up on the big screen

Spoderman: i have popcorn too

Jacked: Not even gonna question that.

LSD: Finally!!!

JazzHands: Yuss!!!

BreadIsPain: Je vais regarder avec enthousiasme!***

MOMo: As will all of us I’m sure, Aoyama!

RockSolid: Thanks guys!

RockSolid: Now get down here and watch me maybe get a man!

Translations:

*so attractive that I almost swooned.

**We must show you how much you shine, and dispel those self-doubting thoughts!

***I shall excitedly watch!

Guide to names:

GreenGrape - Izuku

PurpleGrape - Hitoshi

CopyCat - Monoma Neito

MOMo - Yaoyorozu Momo

datBoi - Asui Tsuyu

JazzHands - Hagakure Toru

NYOOM - Iida Tenya

SnowWhite - Kouda Kouji

LifeIsPain - Tokoyami Fumikage

BreadIsPain - Aoyama Yuga

Kirby - Uraraka Ochaco

LSD - Ashido Mina

PikaCHU - Kaminari Denki

RockSolid - Kirishima Eijiro

RipHarambe - Ojiro Mashirao

IcyHot - Todoroki Shoto

MuffinMan - Sato Rikido

Octodad - Shouji Mezou

Jacked - Jirou Kyoka

Spoderman - Sero Hanta

[freetheworms]

3 and 9 for the writer asks! ~d-andilion

thanks so much lexi !!!

3. What is your writing ritual and why is it cursed?

oh boy. well, i guess if i had to call something a "writing ritual" it would be making myself insane amounts of coffee, and then putting on a show to watch while i write, which. you guessed it, doesn't work at all, so i end up intermittently pausing the show AND my writing every 5 minutes. do i even need to explain why this is cursed?

9. Do you believe in ghosts? This isn’t about writing I just wanna know

OKAY LISTEN. i didn't used to, okay? like, i wanted to but i was like hmmm probably not. and then. and THEN. let me paint you a picture of the events of 6 years ago, and apologies because this is going to get a bit long:

i was staying at my friend's house, which was built by her dead dad, right? right. so, there's 5 of us there, having a campfire out back: me, my friend, our two other guy friends, and my friend's ex boyfriend from before her dad died. i need you to know that he's a funny guy, but he was NOT a good boyfriend back in high school, and her dad knew this. he was not a fan of ex-bf.

anyway, so it's late, and it's time to come inside from the campfire. i come in first because i'm cold and they're taking forever and i don't want to help them fold up all the chairs. i was an asshole like that i guess, what can i say?

right, okay, so i'm sitting on the couch that lives in her kitchen for reasons i still don't quite understand. the couch has a clear view of the kitchen island AND the back door area though, which is blocked off from the kitchen on the right by a wall that creates a little open mudroom type situation. this is important because you have to understand that the setup means that my friends, who are filing in the back door, can't see the kitchen island past the wall. it also means that wind does not make it around the corner of the mudroom wall and into the kitchen.

well. all my friends make it inside, except ex bf. they're chatting amongst themselves in the mudroom area or whatever, when ex bf finally opens the door. AS he steps inside and before he closes the door, i watch a large pile of mail FLY off the end of the kitchen island furthest from the mudroom, and slam against the cupboards in front of it with an audible "thunk," before falling to the floor.

i'm the only one who's seen this though right, because my friends are useless and are still dilly-dallying in the mudroom. and so i'm just sat there like. okay. OKAY??? but i don't believe in ghosts at this point so i'm thinking naaaaah, nah. physics just broke for a sec and the non-existent wind did a thing. it's so fine. i forget about it.

cut to later, ex-bf is getting picked up by his older sister to go home. she takes a pic of the house to send to him to say "i'm here!"

he looks at the pic. "hahaha wow, there's a weird orb going on outside the house that my sister's freaking out about," he says, jokingly. i'm fine. i'm chillin. orbs happen, its cool. coincidence is super real and is what's happening here.

ex-bf leaves.

eventually, it's time for bed. friend and i are sharing her double bed, guy friends are sleeping haphazardly on her floor, no one is dead, it's fine. we sleep.

then 3:30 am comes around. i wake up for literally no discernible reason, which, whatever. that happens sometimes. i'm about to roll over and go back to sleep when my friend whispers something to me. oh, weird, okay. she's awake too. funny coincidence.

and then guy friends say something from down on the floor. okay.... so we're all awake at the same time for no reason. less normal, but fine. whatever. that could happen.

and then friend's bedroom door, previously all-the-way closed, creaks open. we have no windows open in the house, her cat isn't anywhere to be seen, and y'know. the door had been FULLY CLOSED???

we all look over. no one says anything.

then, just as quickly as it had opened, the door SLAMS itself shut, as if someone had opened it to check on us, seen who was in the room, and then closed it in a huff.

we did not sleep much the rest of the night.

anyway, i'm not saying my friend's ghost dad threw a little tantrum about her shitty ex-bf coming over to the house that he built, but i'm not NOT saying that.

so yeah, i guess i believe in ghosts now.