#the 'all/whole' thing is a play on my real name. I did something similar with my nord

[thirsty-4-ghouls]

Stuff taking up space on my phone when trying to name my khajiit

Blorbo from my mind:

Just my cat 🐈‍⬛

[ant0nsfirstluv]

Riize Romantic Headcanons (2)

A/N: part twooo of my last posts + expanding on certain headcanons ♾️

Warnings: None

More under the cut

Shotaro:

lovesss to hype you, if you ever posted on insta he’d comment so much, repost it on his personal story, text you about how pretty you looked

he’d shamelessly compliment you so often, literally he’d see you for the first time in the day and would just shower you in so much praise and affection

always. taking. photos of you just for him to look at while he’s away or just because you look so goodt

Sends you video clips of him dancing and gets all smiley when you compliment him even though he knowsss he did good

holds you on his back especially if you two have been walking for a while and want to take a break

aggressively supportive !!! literally cheers you on no matter what interest or hobby you decide to take on

Thanks you allll the time and gives you a small kiss each time he does, you could literally just hand him a tissue and he’d be “thank youu 😙”

The least conflicts could ever happen with him tbsh, even if there was a disagreement between you two he’s level headed enough to where you two will somehow someway find a solution

Eunseok:

doesn’t have a specific nickname for you because he’ll just call you his “little [insert random thing]” or “my [insert random thing]

I like to think he’d call you his flower but that’s just me 🌚 leave it up to your imagination

messes with your hair often, sometimes he’ll literally just wordlessly play with it until you snap him back into reality

verrry sudden compliments, out of nowhere he’ll drop the most sweet blush inducing compliment ever and then go back to being stone or messing with you 😭

randomly appears at your house without saying anything, you’d literally be walking around your home and he would just walk in like “hey 🙋”

you two will be in the same place and he’ll still text/facetime you instead of just walking to where you are to tell/show you what he needs to say

he loves staying in with you even if you two do practically nothing he’d be fine with you on his lap while watching tv and snacking

protective but in a very calm sense. helps you avoid things he knows you’re particularly uncomfy with or just borderline keeps you out of harms way by being right by you

Sungchan:

has soft launched you two like 5 million times everybody knows you two are together atp he is NOT slick bro 😭

as I said in the last post he loves kissing your face and I feel like he’d wake you up by giving you some kisses on your cheek while whispering your name

eating together is a must he will literally just text and ask to eat together at your fave restaurant just because and let’s you order wtv you want

has his hands on you in someee type of way literally he finds a way or reason to touch you no matter what he just can’t keep his hands to himself ☹️

would buy matching or similar gym wear for you two if you ever do or want to come to the gym with him, ugh the matching sets would be SO CUTE

will literally have you sit on his back while he does push-ups or see how many times he can squat while holding you

alwaysss reminiscing about moments between you two throughout the relationship the amount of cute convos that happened because of him starting with “babe do you remember when…”

loves being praised by you like your compliments literally make his whole entire day PLEASE DO ! send him sweet motivational goodmorning texts

Wonbin:

let’s keep it real for a moment…he would most definitely call you his pretty girl

has his moments of just staring/adoring you, whether you two are on opposite sides of the room or if he’s right by you while you’re doing something

if you guys don’t know, wonbin has mentioned that he has a habit of doing things 7 times in a row, so ofc in my mind,, he probably kisses you 7 times before you leave his place :( or before you gts

there’s been so many times where he’d be hanging out with the members and will just DISAPPEAR as soon as you ask to hang out, the members will ask where he went and he’s already at your house 😭

if someone made you even slightly visibly uncomfortable or upset he would glare at them until they went/looked away

if a girl tried getting his number or something he’d probably blankly look at them for a good…3 seconds and then just “no 🫤”

no matter where you’re laying down he’ll curl up right next to you or on top of you and he lovesss taking a nap with you

absolutely geeks when you two accidentally match or wear similar outfits he will find out what you’re gonna wear just so he can secretly wear the same thing 🌚

would paint a nail with your initial 🌚 but would get sooo shy when anybody outside of the members asked what the letter meant LOL

Seunghan:

you could be wearing… a plastic bag…and he’ll still be like “you’re so beautiful” like man hello

touching your face is a habit of his, he’ll literally be smiling down at you while stroking your cheek and jawline with his thumb and pointer

whenever you sit on his lap while he’s gaming whenever he has a free hand he’ll take advantage of it to stroke your back or squish your face for a kiss

loves to hear your voice..will call you literally just to hear it you don’t even have to be directly talking to him as long as he can hear you

you’ll be sitting down with the members and he’ll get a tiny bit jealous once you laugh at eunseoks joke a little too hard and he’ll run by, pick you up and run off with you

helps you with your hair whenever you’re struggling with it, as long as you guide him and give him instructions he’ll try his best !!!

I’m sorry but if you ever were irritated or grumpy and accidentally let it slip while with him he’d grab your face and kiss you to shush you 😭

he eats up whenever you’re shy he relishes in it so much he can’t help but want to watch you look away because you can’t keep eye contact

wouldn’t let you be insecure in the slightest you could literally have just woken up lips dry face puffy and he’ll still make you feel so pretty

Sohee:

likes to cuddle with him laying back and you on top of him resting your head in the crook of his neck while he draws patters into your back :(

whenever he tells you goodmorning he always gives you a hug with a good squeeeeze and a quick kiss on your nose or cheek

trust he likes to be babied and spoiled but sometimes he wants to be the gentleman for you too like let him take care of you and nurture you okayyy 💔

sohee’s cute demeanor can make him seem like he’d be shy which could be the case but I can see him being bold or more straightforward when it comes to his affections towards you

like he’ll ask YOU out, he’ll ask if he could kiss you for the first time, he’ll hug you, hold your hand, and ask you on a date first

gloats about you to everyone, the members included, as soon as you post yourself on your story he’s quick to say “ugh my gf is so pretty guys look look look” while mushing his phone in their faces

he is soooo sweet and truly so lovely..but sometimes…you will be a victim of the sassy man apocalypse while you’re with him I’m sorry LMFAOO

like if you forgot to text him before you got back home or if you fell asleep forgetting to call him before you did he’d be so quick to text you “I see how it is 🙄”

or he’d avoid kissing you but as soon as you give up trying to kiss him he’d be SO quick to switch up wanting a kiss IMMEDIATELY begging you for one

Anton:

he would most definitely see cute pics of two animals like some ducks or rabbits snuggling together and will text it to you and be like “us”

hugs from behinddd allll the timeeee even if you two are just standing there he’ll hold onto you from behind and rest his head on your shoulder

pretends to bite you, especially on your shoulder but if he ever did accidentally actually bite you he’d make it up by putting a small peck wherever he did it

kisses your hand and down your forearm because he just likes to tbsh

has you do the most foolish tiktoks with him and yes you guys will have like 300 drafts and yes he makes you two do like 12 takes 😭😭

particular compliments, will call you gorgeous overall but has moments where he tells you a certain color makes you look radiant or when your hair looks extra good

spoils you to oblivion, you have a wishlist frm your fave clothing brand you say 🤔 BOUGHT, he sees some cute matching couple necklaces..SOLD ! you lost your favorite makeup brushes ? HERES SOME NEW ONES !

whenever he flirts and starts getting bold he’ll fold so quick like he’ll build up his courage to be super straight forward but will literally crumble and be a tad bit embarrassed later especially if you repeat what he said LMFAOO

[stevesbipanic]

To my most lovely @undreaming-fanfiction Happy Valentine's Day love youuuu 💕💕💕 I hope I managed to do all three of your prompts justice (small routines, learning new things about each other, and ghosts of your past) ENJOY!!!!! And Ty @artbean for putting this together 💕💕💕

After five years together there's not a lot of things Eddie doesn't know about Steve.

He knows that Steve likes to colour co-ordinate the calendar on their fridge and that his favourite day of the month is the first since he gets to write out everything on a clean slate.

He also knows that Steve has a particular way he does his hair, and that it was a big deal just seeing it done let alone being taught how to do it, it helps he now knows Steve loves a good head scratch.

He knows that Steve is an early riser and always goes on a run, but will shower and curl back in bed with him if Eddie is still asleep.

He knows that there's an order to how and when he checks on their family. The Sinclairs are first, making sure he's waited until Lucas should be back from training and Erica back from Tracey's, calling there too if there's a sleepover. Next is the Wheelers, Nancy promising him they're all ok if they're visiting and Mike letting him know if she's available that night if she's at college. Then the Hendersons, Claudia inviting him to dinner in the background as Dustin regales his day. Max is next, letting Steve know if she wants to stay over that night. The Byers are the end of the kids, El and Will promising him it's really over. Wayne is near the end, back from his shift safe and sound. Before they dated Eddie was during this time too, helping him to sleep just hearing Steve's voice. Robin is last and she'll be on the line until they're both safely in dreamland.

Eddie loves learning new things about Steve, especially when now they're further and far between. It comes as a suprise when it's something as simple as tea that teaches him something new about his sweetheart.

They're visiting Steve's grandma, who was a lot cooler about the whole boyfriend thing than Steve's parents were.

"Your grandpa, Otis, had a friend, Freddie, who kept a picture of his boy in his pocket, would've gotten him in a lot of trouble back then but love like that was worth dying for."

She had been I'll lately so him and Steve had taken a drive up to visit her, now living in a retirement home in Indy. She was a riot in Eddie's opinion, and made a mental note to make sure they visited her more, he was happy to drive them, anything for Steve.

They were halfway through a game of Scrabble, where Eddie had successfully convinced Steve that Megadeth should be allowed (it shouldn't), when the question was raised.

Edith, yes Eddie also got a delight out of the fact that they shared a name, buzzed her nurse who popped her head in knowing there were visitors.

"Everything good, Eds?" Eddie's eyes twinkled in mischief, he was teasing Steve about the name similarities when they got home.

"A spot of tea, darling? I'm parched and I'm sure these lovely boys are too. Steve, sweetheart?"

"Oh yes, milk and two sugars please, but cubes on the side instead of scoops of it's not trouble."

Eddie's heart skipped a beat at his answer, "Eddie, you want a tea?"

"Oh um, yes, same as him, please ma'am."

"Such polite boys, we need more grandsons like you visiting," she laughed leaving to make the tea. It was surely just a coincidence that Steve took his tea like that, he's sure plenty of people do.

The real suprise came when the tea was set down, cubes on the side, and Steve picked one up and mixed it in, leaving the other alone. The game continued, Eddie eyeing that lone cube, a similar one on his own saucer. When Steve took his last sip of tea he picked up the cube and popped it into his mouth, crunching it. Eddie did the same.

"Done that since you were a kid, always a sweet tooth."

Steve laughed, "It's how my nanny did it when we played tea party with Carol."

Edith smiled, "She was a lovely woman, shamed they moved outta town."

Something settled deep in Eddie's heart. The rest of the afternoon it sat there, and through the goodbyes and hugs, all through the drive home too.

Eddie didn't mention it as they made dinner, Steve doing the chopping and as always Eddie dutifully stirring. The feeling sat there through the night as they watched tv, curled up in a blanket built for one not two. Nothing was brought up as they cleaned up, Steve washing, Eddie drying. It wasn't until bed, in the safety and quiet of their room that Eddie asked.

"Your nanny? What was she like?"

Steve's eyes lit up, "Oh she was the best, noone as good before her and no-one as good after. She loved taking me to the park, sometimes if his dad said it was ok her son would come too, he was fun, built the best sandcastles. She always baked me cookies too, especially if Carol was coming over for a tea party. And she would tell me the little extra sugar was a treat and that I should always have something a little sweet in life."

Eddie's eyes were tearing up by the time Steve finished, "Eds, baby are you ok?"

"What was her name?"

Steve's eyebrows crinkled, "Sarah, why? Oh." He said, remembering the dark curls that surrounded her face, the ones on her son, the boy laying across from him.

"Your mum, oh Eds, so when the tea? I'm sorry." Steve knew about his mum and how when she died it left Eddie all alone.

"Can't believe in five years, we've never had tea," a wet chuckle followed Eddie's words.

A sad smile graced Steve's face, "We should have more, need a bit more sweetness in my life."

Eddie smiled at him, "Knew there was a reason I called you sweetheart, and I clearly won you over with my awesome sandcastles."

A laugh burst out of Steve and that sound was sweeter than any sugar Eddie could eat.

[cowpokeomens]

The Bolter

Pairing: Joakim “Jolly” Karlsson x Reader

Word Count: 3.4k

Warnings: None, tooth rottingly sweet

A/N: *taps mic* is this thing on? based on The Bolter by ts duh. Thank you to @throughwoodsanddirt for beta-ing half of this before I went off the rails and finished it in one sitting with zero edits. I’m a lost cause!

Jolly remembers clearly the first time he saw you. It would be hard to forget, given the gargantuan white gown you were wearing when you walked into the bar, veil askew in a crown of braids and curls.

He just wanted a beer. Touring is difficult, being in the studio with an uninspired Noah is resolutely more difficult. Seeing you walk into a pub wearing a wedding gown at 6 in the evening just confirms his suspicion that it was a rough day for everyone.

Lifting your skirts in a way that is far from becoming, you manage to plop yourself onto a barstool with a huff. The layers of fabric pool around you in a way that necessitates additional barstools on either side of you, leaving a seat between the both of you.

He’s staring, which would be rude if not for the fact that you clearly must be lost.

You catch his look, sighing in anticipation; it seems like you were hoping you wouldn’t have to explain why you are wearing a cupcake of a gown in a place that replaces the peanuts on the counter every three years.

Too bad, Jolly doesn’t say.

“Runaway bride.” You offer flatly, ordering something with whiskey in it.

He nods, as if that explains everything. It doesn’t.

Giving the bartender a grateful smile, you take a long drink from your glass, setting it down slowly. He didn’t notice before, but your hands are shaking.

“It’s like-“ You begin, hesitating. “You’re walking down this pristine, white aisle to a death march on a church organ, right? And everyone you have ever known is there. And you get to the end and - And you can see your entire fucking life ahead of you, only it’s awful, it’s not what you want at all.” Your brows slant down with dread, eyes misting over as you shake your head, playing with the condensation on your glass.

Jolly nods, getting a clearer picture of your circumstances. “It seems like you made the right call, then.” He offers.

You sigh again, sounding exhausted. “My mother is going to kill me. His mother is going to kill me.” Your eyes are wide, and Jolly can practically see you spiraling in your head.

Jolly never did the whole “marriage” thing, but he can understand what it feels like to confront your life and realize you hate it. He had a similar confrontation years ago, wherein he realized he hated his relationship, hated his job, hated the circumstances that landed him there. It was almost too easy for him to set off with nothing but a visitor visa and a suitcase to his name to play rockstar in a foreign land.

So, yeah, he supports running away a little every now and again.

He clicks his tongue in his cheek. “That sounds like a real risk. But-” He slides his empty beer mug back towards the bartender, nodding for another. “If you go back and marry whoever it is you so clearly don’t want to marry, I’ll have to kill you.”

It makes you crack a smile, and for a second he can see what you were aiming for: despite the haphazard position of your veil, the hair that escaped its ornate, bobby pinned prison, and the dingy stains to the hem of your puritanically white dress, you make a beautiful bride.

He tells you so, too. It makes your cheeks flush visibly, as you turn away to finish off your drink in one gulp. You take a deep breath, squaring your shoulders, nodding once.

“Okay. I’m going to tell him I don’t want to get married.” You say, sounding like it is mostly directed at yourself.

Jolly nods anyway. Running out on the day of the wedding probably clued him in, He doesn’t voice aloud, knowing it wouldn’t help.

“I’ll cover your drink, go get ‘em, tiger.” He says instead.

You smile at him again, a sweet thing despite the doubt that fills your eyes. “Thank you.” Is your response, though he feels it’s not just for the drink.

He returns the grin, shooing you away with his hands. You dismount the barstool with a truly pathetic amount of grace, and he catches a glimpse of your ratty sneakers through the layers of tulle and silk. The image makes him smile as you march out of the bar, chin high in the air.

The bartender returns with a newly filled mug. “Been a while since we had a bolter.” He remarks with a grin at Jolly.

Jolly hums, lifting the glass to his lips, but says nothing.

__________________________

Echo Park is decidedly too hip and too crowded for Jolly’s taste. He likes kids, but that doesn’t mean he wants to hear about three hundred of them screaming and running around off-leash while their parents drone on about GMO’s and HOA’s and micro-dosing kale.

He manages to find a quieter patch of grass near the lake to settle on while the guys buy fourteen dollar coffee from some hipster place Nicholas was raving about last week. His coffee tastes like ass, and he can’t even really admire the view with all the stupid swan boats on the water.

He appreciates a gimmick, but the manufactured romance of a boat shaped like a swan is a bit much for anyone.

Eyes roaming across the cluster of obnoxiously white faux birds, his gaze lands on someone standing precariously on a boat. It sways dangerously as their arms flounder to stay balanced on the precipice of one broad, white wing. His eyebrows knit together in confusion, but he almost chokes on his coffee when the figure jumps into the water.

Is this lake even safe to swim in? He wonders, swearing he saw signs advising against it. A quick glance around confirms him that no one else was swimming, despite the warmth of the afternoon.

The figure in the water appears to be swimming away from their boat, though - their rowing partner yelling after them, too far away for Jolly to make out what’s being said. He realizes suddenly that the diver is growing closer to him, swimming towards land.

Narrowing his eyes, he tries to discern if this is a man or a woman, if they need help, if something terrible happened to them, if -

Oh.

He remembers that panicked expression.

You’re closer to the shore now, close enough that he stands up to walk to the water’s edge to help drag you out of the water.

You smell awful, whatever flesh-eating bacteria that lives in the water left a greasy, iridescent film on your skin that he can see in the direct sunlight. Your sopping wet clothes cling to your frame stiffly, restricting your movements as you clamber up onto the grass, gasping for air.

Jolly has no words for the absurdity of the situation. When he speaks, it’s the first thing that his mind can arrange into a sentence.

“What are you running from this time?”

Your chest is still heaving from the exertion of swimming all the way to the shore as you look over at him. Recognition flashes in your eyes, and you grin up at him. “First date.”

He must look lost, because you’re cackling now. You gather your breath as you tug at your shirt, as if stretching it would somehow dry it. “He asked me about my expectations of him as a husband.” You elaborate as you pick algae out from under your nails. “Said something about my duties as a wife, and I just-”

“Bolted.” He finishes for you. The impish grin you sport doesn’t reach your eyes as you shrug in response.

He understands. That sounds like a catastrophic first date: stuck on a boat shaped like a bird with some trad-dude who probably says things like “Alpha Male” unironically. Jolly commends you for being brave enough to jump to get away - flesh-eating bacteria and all.

You huff a breath, looking around with your hands on your hips. “I should get going. Those stupid boats are fast, and if he gets to the parking lot before I do, he might try to wear my face or something.”

Jolly can’t fight the snort that escapes him. “The boats are stupid.” He pauses, hesitating, but continues, “Do you need a lift?”

You wave him off, though. “Nah, I’ll be alright. Besides,” You raise an eyebrow at him playfully. “Maybe you want to wear my face, too.”

His laugh is a puff of air out of his nose, grin widening. “You caught me. Better get going, then.”

Your returning smile is blinding, especially given the contrast of being covered in… whatever all that shit is. “Catch ‘ya later!” Is your good-bye as you turn and half-jog towards what Jolly assumes is the parking lot.

Noah appears at his side then, staring after you. “What’s up with ‘The Creature From the Black Lagoon?’”

Jolly shakes his head, not sure where to begin.

________________________

Jolly doesn’t fully understand the appeal of dimly lit restaurants, and he’s beginning to fear it has something to do with his age. How is he supposed to see the menu with three tea lights to illuminate the entire table?

He orders something he thinks is fish with rice, but who knows? It could have been the filet mignon, with how goddamn dark it is in here.

Noah is swishing his wine around in his glass like that’ll make it taste better; he refuses to admit he doesn’t actually like Cabernet Sauvignon, and the subtle scrunching of his nose gives him away every time.

It makes Jolly chuckle quietly as he sips from his own glass. The wine is dry, but not awful. Certainly better than their Yellowtail days.

He’s unsure how, exactly, the next few moments transpire. He vaguely registers Nicholas reaching for the bottle at the same time as Noah, but he pays it no mind until the dark red liquid has escaped its vessel in favor of staining the white tablecloth and cascading onto his trousers.

His only response is a long-suffering sigh, eyes directed at the ceiling. Nicholas is chastising Noah, who’s insisting he didn’t do anything.

“It’s fine, guys, shit happens. It’s not like it was good anyway.” Jolly brushes them off as he stands, setting his napkin on an unsoiled section of the table as he looks around for the restroom.

The door swings shut just as he spots it, the tacky gold of the plaque reading “Monsieur” glinting at him with the movement.

Making his way over quickly, he resists the urge to wipe at his stained pants until he gets inside the restroom. He’s reaching for the paper towels when a flash of something catches his attention.

Legs.

Legs?

Yep, legs, dangling out of the window.

“Motherfuck-“ A voice hisses from the other side of the glass.

“Um.” Jolly starts brilliantly. “Do you need help?”

He hears a sigh, then the aforementioned legs drop down to the tiled floor, still turned away from him.

“Look, I’m not some weirdo, okay-“ You begin explaining yourself, freezing as you turn around. “Oh. You.”

Jolly can’t even try to fight back his grin. “We really must stop meeting like this.”

You smile back, giggling despite yourself. It goes beyond coincidence - it’s absurd.

Jolly leans against the counter, long since forgetting why he even walked into the restroom to begin with. “So, what’s the crime now?”

Your brow furrows as you share a knowing look with him. “Trust fund guy. Said he didn’t mind that I went to a state school.” Rolling your eyes, your hands smooth down your dress in a motion that could almost be called self-conscious. “Like, sorry my parents didn’t pay for an Ivy League and I had to settle on plebian state school, you fucking twat.”

Catching your reflection in the mirror, you idly pull a stray leaf out of your hair before turning back to Jolly. “ And yourself?” You prod lightly.

He gestures behind him, past the faux-wood door. “Buddy spilled wine on me. Here I am.”

Frowning sympathetically, you nod. “Hopefully something better than the Cab. I’ve had vinegar better than that shit.”

It makes Jolly laugh, how candidly you speak. Your expression is open, not hiding anything. He gets the feeling you couldn’t lie even if you tried.

“So, the window?” He looks around you. The window is easily 4 feet off the ground, a steep climb for anyone, much less someone in cocktail attire.

You look sheepish. “Well I couldn’t walk out the front door. He might tell the maître d’ that I stole his pocket watch or letter opener or whatever it is rich people bring to restaurants.”

Jolly huffs a laugh, nodding in agreement. “Understood. C’mon then.”

You blink at him, confused. “Where?”

“The window?” He states like it’s obvious. It’s not, apparently. “Thought you were trying to get out of here? I’m assuming you have a getaway car.”

You flash him a smile that’s becoming familiarly dazzling. “This will make you an accessory, y’know. Much different from an innocent bystander.”

Jolly nods somberly. “Oh, I know. But,” He pauses, walking over to the window, “There’s escape in escaping. Up you go.”

He bends his knee, giving you a step to climb on to better reach the freedom awaiting you on the other side of the window.

Your eyes are brimming with mirth, clearly pleased with his offer. Stepping up gingerly, you grab his shoulder for stability, his hand resting on your back to help steady you.

Getting through the window looks infinitely easier this time as you shimmy through the opening. Though, Jolly reckons, the ease of your escape is definitely hindered by the fact that you have to army crawl underneath a bush directly outside the aforementioned window.

When you burst through the foliage, Jolly can only see your death trap heels and the torn hem of your dress. You squat down to wave at him, whisper-shouting “Thank you!” before taking off in the opposite direction.

Turning to the mirror to his left, Jolly takes in his own reflection. He looks a little flushed, though he supposes that’s from the exertion of getting you through the window. The stain on his pants, long since dried by now, stares back at him accusingly from the mirror. No way is it coming out now.

Whatever. He owns other pants.

__________________________

The late autumn air bites at Jolly’s cheeks as he hurries through the glass door of the coffee shop. It’s the closest to the studio, which could be convenient enough for him without the fact that their espresso is also the best in the tri-state area.

It’s warm in the shop, a fact only further emphasized by the light drizzle that picks up outside as Jolly walks to the register. He orders an Americano, paying quickly before scouting out a good spot for him to sit and doom scroll for a few minutes before he’s needed back in the studio.

His eyes are snagged by a familiar figure reading a book, nestled deeply into the couch that sags against the wall opposite him. Saying he tries to fight the smile that spreads across his face would be a lie, so he settles on grabbing his coffee and walking over to you.

“You know, you’re pretty cute when you’re not frantically running away from something.” He doesn’t know what makes him bold enough to say it, but he hopes the gusto of his words hides the way his hands are trembling around his paper cup.

Your eyes dart up quickly from your book, first slightly alarmed, then softening into a smile. Jolly doesn’t linger on the way it makes him melt a little.

“I always look cute, actually - especially when I’m on the run.” You inform him matter-of-factly, shifting over on the couch so he has room to sit. Despite your efforts, his leg still ends up pressed against yours when he settles into the couch.

“What did you order?” You inquire, nodding at his cup.

He follows your line of sight to the unassuming vessel. “This,” He begins grandly, “Is actually the best Americano you’ll find in town. Or state. Maybe even country.”

Your face morphs into a grimace. “Actually, I just remembered someone is sitting there and I need you to get the hell away from me.”

Jolly’s laugh takes him by surprise, coming out as a snort that gets muffled by the sleeve of his hoodie. “Actually, I can’t tolerate Americano slander, so you’ll need to move.”

_________________________

Your laughter chimes in his ear for a second before you remember where you are, shoulders shaking from the effort of silencing yourself. “Dude, seriously? Americano’s are for babies who can’t handle their espresso.”

Jolly’s eyes roll exaggeratedly as he takes a pointed sip from his coffee. “What did you get then? Something respectable I’m sure.”

Nodding haughtily, you show him your cup with nearly the entire alphabet on it. “This here is an iced white chocolate pumpkin mocha macchiato with oat milk, sweet cream cold foam, and a sprinkle of cinnamon.” It’s your turn to take a long swig from your cup, blinking at him slowly.

A look of revulsion passes overJolly’s face. “I don’t know what half of that means. Was that middle part even English?”

Snorting, it’s your turn to roll your eyes at him. “Better than your nasty watery mess.”

Jolly is thinking of a comeback when his mouth involuntarily blurts, “Let me take you on a date.”

You look as shocked hearing the words as Jolly is to have said them. “A date?”

“Yes, a date.” Jolly confirms, then realizes you’re waiting on him to elaborate.”Whatever you want. Dinner, movie - hell, I’ll drink one of those awful ‘respectable’ coffees you like so much.”

A shy smile sneaks across your lips. Jolly finds himself entranced by the movement. “Yeah, alright, you can take me on a date.” You pause. “On one condition.”

Jolly can’t stop himself from leaning closer to hear you. “Anything.”

Your grin turns impish, mischief dancing in your eyes. “No swan boats.”

_________________________

Jolly is thankful for the few moments that make up this window of opportunity wherein no one is looking for him - or you, more importantly.

The venue is a labyrinth, and he’s suddenly grateful that you’ve both walked it so many times, finalizing seating charts and decorations and where the millions of extra tables would go for the food and the DJ and whoever else wanted a table, apparently.

Everyone is too busy hanging lights and flowers to notice him slip down the west hallway, speed-walking to the bridal suite. He finds it in record time, cracking the wooden door open just slightly.

“Psst. Is the coast clear?” He whispers.

“Well, it’s just me, so I guess so?” Comes your confused response.

Jolly grins as he quickly passes through the doorway, shutting the door behind him.

You’re seated in a plush chair, wearing a short silk robe that Jolly decidedly does not let his eyes rest on. Your hair has been ensnared by giant rollers, carefully arranged and pinned in place. Two half-moon masks rest underneath your eyes, which are now directed at the pair of shoes in Jolly’s hand.

“Baby, why do you have my sneakers-” You’re cut off by his finger against your lips.

“You have a history, y’know.” He begins seriously. “And I saw the shoes you picked out for today. You can’t make a run for it in those things, so I brought you something with a bit more arch support, should you decide to bolt.”

Your wide smile mirrors his own as you gently guide his hand away from your lips. “You think I’ll run, huh?”

“I don’t think anything. I’m just prepared for everything.” He counters, raising his eyebrows at you.

You huff a laugh as you take the shoes from him, setting them in your lap. “Have any dinner plans tonight?” You ask casually.

He shrugs, sitting in the chair opposite you. “My wife and I have plans, actually. Some big wedding she’s been talking about for months now. You?”

You shrug, mimicking him. “Oh, the same. My husband and I are going to a wedding as well. I hear the bride is a real bitch.”

His smirk is infectious, as if you can see the laugh he’s containing. “Well, maybe we’ll run into each other there.”

“Maybe we will.” You flutter your eyelashes at him, sock-clad foot coming up to rub alongside his calf through his sweats.

“I’ll bring the getaway car.” He’s leaning towards you now, staring at your lips.

You close the distance between the two of you, meeting him in a kiss. Pulling away just enough to murmur against his mouth, you say, “I’ll be the one in white.”

[door-insurance]

So I played Life is Strange 2 for the first time ever

I didn’t wanna play it for a long time not cause it didn’t have Chloe or max (tbh I got sick of their asses around BtS they’re not even my faves)

By that point I was in college and had lost interest in the whole franchise but also I was very apprehensive of white creatives writing racism with no input from the group they’re portraying, they don’t usually do a good job

Sometimes they make it cartoony, sometimes they trivialize it, sometimes they romanticize it

So years later adulthood kicked my ass and I came back crawling to this franchise for some comfort, I finished True colors annnnd I finally started 2 after hesitating annnnd

^sketched this while playing

SPOILERS

I actually liked it

I liked Sean, the drawing segment he does- he was such a likable main guy, deserved better honestly.

I also liked Daniel, he was very adorable and I never got it when people called him annoying like no shit the 9 year old is gonna act like a 9 year old- just don’t be a jerk to him, I know he can be frustrating but that’s what taking care of a kid is like

And lis had always been about realistic complex characters, y’all can’t handle a traumatized nine year?

I have two younger siblings and two nieces plus I’ve been a bratty younger sibling to two older sisters

Maybe I’m just used to it?? But honestly Daniel wasn’t that bad

The racism portrayal in the first few episodes was not all that cartoony and it actually felt real at times, like I can check for American news rn and find stories similar to what you see in episodes 1-3 (minus the telekinesis)

Although the gas station racist hick spouting trump slogans was a bit on the nose, it’s more of dialogue thing

Some people thought the gas station detainment was egregious but it can happen unfortunately, especially to vulnerable people in rural areas and by someone of a higher systematic advantage

One other thing I did not like was the love interests, I thought Finn and Cassidy were alright characters on their own but why do we need romance in this game where the protagonists are always on the run?

I don’t like to compare lis 1 to 2 but when it comes to the romance the former did a better job as it spent more time establishing it, plus max stayed in the same place for the majority of the game- but you know what? Sean doesn’t have to be in a relationship right? It can be a one off thing, that’s fine

Which brings me to my next point

How old are Cassidy and Finn?

Cause Sean is still 16 and no, being on the road didn’t mentally age him- he’s not “mature” for his age

He is still a kid

So for some reason Dontnod never really specified their ages but some articles described them as teens (they look 30 to me) and they can be around 18 right? Their lives are hard stress ages you- it happens, we can with live that, it’s just a two years difference

But teens or not

why did they animate a whole knocking the boots scene???

Of all the games in the series, the only one that gets a sex scene is the one with the much younger protagonist and his ambiguously aged older looking love interest and I think it’s only with Cassidy you get to do it in the tent

Alex Chen was robbed of a on screen booty call from a beanie wearing lesbian with a sexy radio voice or a buff ass Adonis of a man who was Smokey the bear’s regional manager or something

Anyways I’m gonna move on I’m uncomfortable lmao

*im not hating on people who ship Sean with either Finn or Cassidy, I’m not even tagging your ship names- im just stating my personal preferences on my blog

One last thing I did not like about LiS 2 and it was the one thing that kept me from playing it for years

That one scene from episode 4

So at this point Sean Diaz went through the following:

-lost his father, had to abandoned his loved ones, education and home

-was accused of killing a cop

-had to take care of his little brother on his own while on the run, the same brother with telekinesis and none of them know how to control it

-was harassed, beaten then detained by a racist white man

-had to take refuge in an abandoned cabin with little resources

-the dog that they adopted at the gas station eventually gets mauled

-the one time they found solace at their grandparents house they had to leave abruptly cause the police was hot on their trail

-on their way out they can potentially witness the neighbors kid that they befriended get hit by the police car that’s chasing them

-they find shelter at a nomad campground but oh no they get involved with drug trafficking cause they barely have any other options to make money (unfortunately this happens a lot IRL this isnt egregious)

-Sean now has to deal with the trafficking, making sure that Daniel doesn’t get into any trouble with his powers while fake ass giancarlo esposito is breathing down his neck

-and guess what happens next… Daniel gets robbed into pulling a heist on temu gus fring and it goes badly, Sean can potentially lose a love interest/friend in Finn

-Sean gets hurt, Daniel goes so mad that he blows the whole place up; a shard glass flies into Sean’s eye and he ends up losing it

- Sean wakes up from a coma and learns that his brother is missing and he’s about to be taken to jail

- the one thing that consistently brought him joy during this trip was his art and because of the missing eye he can’t even do it the same anymore cause it hurts now

- Sean has to escape the hospital with a hot wired car, little money and has to drive across two states just to get to his brother

-on the way he dreams of his father, he wants him back he wants his old life back but that’s not gonna happen so he has to move forward

Im not listing all this as examples of bad story telling, a lot of these are real life experiences of homeless people. im just painting a picture of the shit that Sean had went through so far

Cause right after the dream sequence, Dontnod didn’t think all that was enough no you had to see Sean get hate crimed by two lifetime movie, sitcom special of the week racists- be made to either sing or suffer a brutal beating

It added nothing to the plot, it didn’t need a choice system either- it’s a hate crime, you’re not asking Joyce for fucking pancakes or eggs n bacon at the whales diner or hosing down Lisa the fckin plant.

This to me went straight to trauma p*rn category, it’s wheelchair Chloe all over again

I hated it then in LiS 1 and I hated now in LiS 2, this is why I don’t dick ride Dontnod that often

They always had this tendency right before the end they single out a particular character and mentally whip them, they become the writing teams punching bag- they think we didn’t get it the first time that this character is going through it, they just hammer it in with the subtlety of a heart attack and I hate it

“Yeah but it’s there to show Sean’s resolve to find Daniel-“

HE ESCAPED FROM THE HOSPITAL AND THE FEDS, HE HOT WIRED A CAR TO DRIVE ACROSS TWO STATES

He’s starving, dehydrated, suffering from chronic pain

That’s enough

Let the character breathe

You ask why not a lot of people wanna play this game and I’m gonna tell you, as much I enjoyed it myself it’s not an easy game to play- it gets brutal, especially right around the end

I’m not against bleakness or extreme conflict, I’m into that but sometimes that doesn’t translate well to any gaming format- especially a choices matter game that’s meant to be replayed

Some people have asinine reasons not to play LiS 2 like it dealing with racism and those people suck, lis had always dealt with progressive themes like calling out objectification, cyberbullying and sl*tshaming

Racism shouldn’t be the exemption

but misuse of racial trauma and not knowing when it’s appropriate to invoke it is a huge turn off and hella triggering to a lot of non white players and I remember when LiS 2 dropped I’ve seen (mostly white) lis fans at the time proclaiming that not wanting to play it meant that you were racist

Like I said there were probably racists who didn’t wanna touch the games cause of the main characters skin but there were people like me who were apprehensive of the “Let’s go to the mosh pit Shaka brah” people handling racism

This is the same studio that had Ms Grant (one of the few black characters from LiS 1) claim that the white settlers peacefully shared the stolen land with the native Americans

I find that shit harder to believe than the time traveling powers

And they were doing alright in the first episodes they covered stuff like unconscious biases slipping through, dog whistles, polite racism from the grandparents segment, police brutality, racial profiling and being targeted/othered- some of these things I went through when I visited western countries

Then they did the bullshit I feared theyd do…

I really don’t blame myself for being hyper vigilant at the time and honestly I was going through a lot then, even if I wanted to I wouldn’t have touched LiS 2 cause it’s a very heavy tasking game to play

I know I kinda made it seem like I didn’t like this game but I did, its the best one in terms of the choice system

It had more weight to it, seeing Daniel internalizing what you say to him or how you act around him was so cool

Also what the second game has over the first one aside from the choices system is the ending selection- I never liked picking the endings for max, I wanted her to pick the ending or her coding/script to do that

Its definitely more fleshed out technically even though LiS 1 has a special place in my heart it’s always gonna be no. 1- but im also glad that I got to experience the 2nd game for the first time, I liked it

Personal lis ranking

1: Lis 1

2: Lis 2

3: True colors

Discount bin: BtS

My personal fave moments from LiS 2:

- beating up the racist bully and giving him a concussion

-mushroom (rip icon)

- victorias letter

-winning that that bear from that claw machine

-gorillaz song that was not feel good inc

-Brody pointing at a fucked up looking arcadia bay yelling “that’s the past!”- that was hilarious

-Sean paying tribute to Arcadia bay in his sketchbook (this fucking kid man, he’s so sweet he deserves the world- what did he do to make DONTNOD mad at him)

- the wolf animation and the story that plays before every chapter

-this was the worst hate crime in the whole game

[zahri-melitor]

So I've read the opening story of Tim Drake: Robin.

The opening issue is solid, highlighting a lot of Meghan Fitzmartin's skills as a writer. She picked up threads neatly from her earlier stories, showed her hand to the audience, and did do a fair amount of subtle character work. If I'd picked it up with no background knowledge of the fandom conversation about the title, I'd have been very excited for where it was going.

I liked the links back to how part of what prompted Tim to move out was Bruce being fussy over Tim having been shot in the throat in Batman #125. That felt realistic and a nice little link between titles.

As far as a story goes: I didn't mind it. Parts of it were very obvious, especially when you clued into the themes - if I'd actually been reading it as it came out and had a month between issues for things to soak in, I probably would have been tapping my toes over the reveal of who Moriarty was disguised as.

I would like to specifically dunk on both Meghan Fitzmartin and Moriarty for the detective novel writer selections, because...hmm. Kinda misogynistic there. Fitzmartin uses 6 writers for this, and 6 specific stories/franchises:-

Edgar Allen Poe – Murders in the Rue Morgue

Mark Twain – The Stolen White Elephant

Arthur Conan Doyle – Sherlock Holmes

Raymond Chandler - Goldfish

James Gelsey – Scooby Doo

Wilkie Collins – The Moonstone

What do you notice about this list, that I immediately noticed? They're all men. Who is an immediate name that comes to mind, who even had public domain stories as of 2022, who probably should be on a list like that and who also has incredible influence over the direction of the genre? Oh, I don't know, maybe Agatha Christie? (Also Dorothy L. Sayers is also right there and available, but skipping Christie?)

And once she'd built up this "it's all the detective stories" premise, Fitzmartin then went for a book code (cool!) from non-existent books (not cool). If you've just spent all this time glorying in how this is all related to Specific Classic Detective Stories, why not...use a real book code and refer to their actual stories? You've already done it for the plots! Commit to the bit!

Also I spent a good chunk of issue #4 staring at the page going "Carol Donovan? You mean Deb Donovan's judge daughter who recently appeared in Mariko Tamaki's 'Tec run? Tim, how are you missing something this straightforward? Also she's dead?" and then it never came to anything. Maybe do a quick check if anyone else has been using the name you just invented for the story.

"I even tried making a new costume for myself. It doesn't fit." - I did find it interesting that Fitzmartin was once again playing with the "is it time to move on" themes for Tim that were popping up around here in various conversations. Especially given she had Tim and Dick relitigate their conversation from Urban Legends #10 and similar themes in DC:YJ. It does suggest to me that she was working her way around to getting Tim into a new identity, but cancellation has once again left that in the 'not happening' basket.

In terms of the art: Riley Rossmo was the wrong pick for the title, but I do see the thought process that led into him getting the nod for the opening story, given the whole claymation villain set. It was very 2D animation style. I don't mind Rossmo (and interestingly he's developing a whole line up of detective stories he's done art for, given he's also had a Martian Manhunter book and got Wesley Dodds, he did one of the Batman/The Shadow crossovers...) but his highly malleable art style loses a lot of background detail or makes what is there harder to parse.

I did very much appreciate the way Rossmo drew Tim's detective work, though. I liked the technique for highlighting details and clues, and it actually very much reminded me of how some computer games present clues (including how it's done in Gotham Knights, in fact).

I know everyone has said this, but Bernard needs to develop a personality AND to commit to whether or not he knows Tim is Robin. Because sort of hinting that he knows, while Tim worries about hiding things from him, but not actually confirming either way is only really acceptable if you actually do build up to a big reveal moment where the whole drama has been paid off.

I did appreciate that MegFitz had clearly taken feedback and returned one of Bernard's two pre-existing personality traits (conspiracy theorist who thinks the Bats are urban legend cryptids), because one of the weaknesses of using Bernard, a side character with 6 preboot appearances, is that at lot of his existing personality was sketched in. He was a conspiracy theorist, and he desperately wanted to be popular but wasn't, so he presented himself as having a Cool Guy's Personality (see: 'your step-mom is hot'). Now, Meghan Fitzmartin wants us to read into that second trait as a facade that Bernard was putting up to deal with the fact he was gay and hiding it, probably even from himself, at the time. Which, fine, it's a perfectly reasonable reading of Bernard (and to her credit, MegFitz has Bernard spell it out a little on page in TD:R), but the problem is...you've just lost one of the two identifiable traits of 'Bernard' and it hasn't been replaced with anything else. And while 2004 in comics was still trying to hold onto the Urban Legends reading for the Bats to an extent (though it was failing), 2022 comics has so long since abandoned it that Bernard having kooky theories about Batman's connection to Mothman or whatever is very...why?

And because both of these pre-existing personality traits are under strain from the context, it really is sort of necessary to give Bernard something else about him for people to latch onto for his personality. And it doesn't really seem to be there yet (as of #6). It's the same complaint that people have about Jon/Jay and a whole host of other partners for recently out superheros: they're generically pleasant, supportive and bland, with about the depth of a mirror. Give me some of the toxic drama the 30 year old lesbians are allowed. Where is my breakup over custody fights with an ex and one of the two getting seduced by a vampire.

[ladykailitha]

Never Hold Back Your Step... Part 5

Hey guys, back with this one! Again, I have a backlog to share with all so this should come out more regularly.

Just a reminder there isn't a set schedule anymore, just vibes. But if there is a story you want to see more often, let me know.

In this we have Steve's good luck charm, Gethin coming to Steve for help with the journalism schism, and Nancy and Steve finally having the talk they should have had from the beginning (she's not there 100% yet but it's better).

Pt 1 Pt 2 Pt 3 Pt 4

****

They went to nationals and lost. When Steve got back he joked that Eddie was his good luck charm.

“Get off, Stevie,” Eddie scoffed during lunch. “I am not.”

Gareth chuckled. “I don’t know, man. Steve’s luck has shot up since you guys became friends. He hasn’t been hit once!”

Steve glared at him. “Thanks, Gary.”

Gareth stuttered. “What the fuck is Gary?”

Everyone laughed.

“Don’t ever call me that again,” Gareth growled. “My name is Gareth.”

Steve tilted his head to the side. “But isn’t that where Gary comes from? A shortening of Gareth?”

“I don’t give a fuck, man,” he hissed. “If Gethin hears it, he’ll never let it go.”

Steve’s mouth formed an ‘O’ in understanding. It was like Dusty Buns. “That’s fair.”

“What’s fair?” Gethin asked from behind Eddie.

Jeff opened his mouth to answer but Gareth kicked him under the table.

“That my taking hits to the face have gone down since I started hanging out with Eddie,” Steve said with a smile.

Eddie rolled his eyes. “Stevie here seems to think that I’m his good luck charm.”

Gethin rubbed his chin. “I think Steve’s got something going with that.”

Eddie threw his arms in the air. “Not you too!”

Gethin started ticking off reasons on his fingers. “Billy has left him alone, he got a pretty major part in the school play, made it to nationals for swimming...need I go on?”

Eddie’s jaw dropped and he looked over at Steve in shock. “Holy shit. Maybe I am your good luck charm.”

Steve grinned. “Told you so.”

“Why are you here, Geth?” Gareth growled at his sibling. “Don’t you usually hang with the journalism crowd?”

Gethin grimaced. “There’s been a divide among us.”

Steve’s lip curled. “Let me guess, half you sided with Nancy over the swim team making it nationals and the other half thought she went too far?”

Gethin nodded. “Jonathan’s for too much, too far, but most of them think that jocks should be prosecuted more, not less.”

Eddie winced. He had espoused similar thoughts before befriending Steve.

But Steve just snorted. “Like she didn’t enjoy the benefits of dating one last year.”

The whole table erupted in stomping and pounding on the table.

“Ooh...” Jeff said. “Burn!”

Gethin grinned. “I’ll be sure to remind her of that fact. That last year she was all for sports when it pleased her. Thanks, Steve!”

Steve just shook his head.

Gethin skipped away from their table better armed against a furious Nancy.

Steve looked around to make sure that Jonathan and Nancy weren’t within hearing distance. Then he leaned forward.

“Who would be interested in a sequel comic to ‘The Boy With a Bat’?” he whispered conspiratorially.

Everyone else leaned in excitedly.

“What would this one be about?” Brian asked, his voice barely loud enough to be heard in the crowed cafeteria.

“Our hero helping out a bunch of kids in a junkyard fighting off dire wolves,” Steve whispered back in conspiratorial tone.

Steve had learned the term from Eddie. Apparently they were very big wolves. And that sounded to him like the right amount of ‘what the fuck’ the demodogs gave off.

“How did our hero get into that mess?” Eddie asked, his voice on the verge of cracking. He knew that these were things that Steve had gone through for real and that terrified him.

Steve let out a sigh. “By realizing that the kid with the high intelligence and the low wisdom would have gotten himself eaten if our hero hadn’t went along to protect him.”

Eddie’s mouth formed a silent ‘Oh.’ Yeah, there was no doubt that was Dustin. In the few times he had met the kid, he was always struck by how dumb he was despite being a literal fucking genius.

“That sounds so cool,” Gareth breathed. “I would love to read that, man.”

Jeff nodded. “Like you should serialize the whole thing and sell it, dude. You could make bank.”

Steve thought about the NDA that was sitting in a lockbox at the back of his closet and snorted. Those bastards would be on him faster than lightning.

“It’s just something fun to do while Mrs Click drones on and on about the Ottoman Empire,” he said with a shrug.

Eddie pointed at him and clapped. “Yes! Like how could one person take something so interesting and make it duller than dishwater.”

Steve smiled at him gratefully as the conversation shifted to horrible teachers. Eddie was still the only one outside of the “Party” that knew about the Upside Down.

He looked over at Nancy and found that she was glaring at him. He didn’t want to anger her further, so he got up and threw away his garbage. He stacked his tray up and bid the others goodbye.

If she wanted to speak to him, she would have to come to him.

****

Steve had to wait a couple of days, but Nancy did come to him.

It was one of those rare days where Steve didn’t have anything going on but the rest of the Hellfire Club crew did. So he was at his locker making sure that he had all his homework that he needed for the weekend after school.

He was alone for all intents and purposes.

“Steve,” Nancy said, “we need to talk.”

He slammed his locker shut and she winced. “Are you actually here to talk or are you here to excuse your bad behavior and get me to apologize even though I haven’t done anything wrong?”

She frowned at him. “I don’t do that.”

“Whatever, Nance,” Steve said, rolling his eyes and shouldering his backpack. “I don’t want to get into a screaming match right now.”

Nancy held out her hand to stop him. “Would you just wait?”

“Come on,” Steve said with a sigh. “We talk on the way out to my car.” At least if he needed to make a quick getaway, he’d be able to drive off.

He started walking toward the doors and she scrambled to catch up.

“I can’t believe you told Gethin to throw it back in my face that I used to date a jock,” she hissed.

Steve smiled at her smug. “Well you did, Nance. And as I recall, you flirted with me first.”

“Yeah, I did,” Nancy said, ducking her head. She let out deep sigh. “I just want to be a journalist. A real one. But the advisor for the newspaper only sees me as a girl so all I get are the fluff pieces like Homecoming Queen and King and sports like boys’ swimming because all the guys are uncomfortable with all the Speedos.”

Steve snorted. “Only you didn’t go after Ezra, or any of the other members of the team, you went after me. And you did it so hard that Jonathan who I’m pretty sure would hate my guts if I hadn’t saved his life, thought that you were being harsh.”

Nancy pursed her lips. She didn’t know why she went after Steve as hard as she did. She needed a target and Steve was right...there.

It had been so easy to lash out at him for Barb, the monsters, the frustration of not being taken seriously, for all of her problems. But she knew he didn’t deserve it.

“He told me that unless I fixed it,” she said softly, “that he would eat lunch and go home by himself.”

Steve laughed bitterly. “So you’re not even here because you think you need to apologize. You’re here because your boyfriend won’t put out until you do. Jesus Christ, Nancy. What even is this?”

He stopped in front of the doors. “I’m not your punching bag anymore. I’ve got friends now. Friends that really care about me, for me.”

Nancy sighed. “I’m not trying to start a fight.”

“Not this time,” Steve scoffed.

She winced, but nodded. “Yeah okay, I deserved that.” She lowered her voice and hissed, “It’s just really hard to fathom you liking men all of a sudden. We had sex, you got off. And now you’re with Eddie and gay and I just don’t know what to think anymore.”

Steve squeezed his eyes shut. He heaved a sigh and hauled her out to the parking lot where they were less likely to be heard.

“Fucking hell, Nance,” he huffed as they walked to his car. “You think I don’t realize how fucking messed up that is. I thought for a bit that maybe I liked both, because of what I felt for you. Because I did love you. I still do, for Christ’s sake.” He threw his arms in the air in frustration.

He tugged on his hair. “But the more I thought about us. Our relationship, I realized that I was just trying so hard to be what everyone wanted me to be.” He started waving his hands around as he tried to get his point across. “The perfect boy next door. But that isn’t me. I love theater and boys and not having to worry about who was fucking who and why. Because all that ‘King’ shit was exhausting as fuck.”

Nancy let out a low shuddering breath. “Okay. I’m sorry.” Steve scoffed. “No, I am. I mean it. You deserve to be happy and I don’t know why I’m still hung up on this.”

Steve raised an eyebrow. “Because you want me as your fall back in case shit goes down with Jonathan.”

“What?!” she squawked.

Suddenly everyone was staring at her because of her outburst. “That’s not true!” she whispered harshly, leaning forward.

“I’ve said it before and we both know it is, Nance,” Steve said, his face twisted in that same pained expression from when she couldn’t tell him she ever loved him. “You broke up with me right after our first go round with the monsters and then not even a full month later you were back with me. What happened, huh? Did Jonathan turn you down the first time and that’s why you came running back?”

Nancy crossed her arms and looked away.

Steve huffed out a bitter laugh. “That’s it, isn’t it? You couldn’t even tell me you loved me at all after our fight at Tina’s Halloween party. You’re standing there getting mad it me for not loving you, but you’re the same. You’re exactly the same.”

She let out a shuddering sigh. “You’re right, Steve. You’re right about all of it. I’m sorry.”

“That’s all I wanted from you,” he said, “an actual honest apology. Thank you.” Steve let out his own breath that he had been holding.

Nancy bit her bottom lip and looked up at him through her lashes. “Can we still be friends?” Her voice wobbled and her eyes were glassy with unshed tears.

Steve pulled her into a hug and she wrapped her arms around him tightly.

“Yeah,” he breathed. “Of course we can.”

Steve looked up and saw Jonathan watching them. He let go of Nancy and held her at arms length. “You are a great person, Nancy Wheeler, but you’ve got think past your own needs, okay?”

She nodded. “I’ll try.”

“Good,” he said gently. “Now go. Jonathan is waiting for you.”

She looked over her shoulder and nodded. “Thanks, Steve.”

“Yeah, of course.”

Steve watched as she walked away, he could feel a part of his wounded heart heal, just a little.

It wasn’t enough. It might not ever be enough. But it was a start. He just wished it didn’t feel like a fucking Chutes and Ladders game.

****

Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16

In order for Nancy to be a better person, she has to fight against her nature. Something that won't come easy.

Tag List:

@mira-jadeamethyst @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @emly03

@spectrum-spectre @estrellami-1 @zerokrox-blog @gregre369 ​@a-little-unsteddie

@chaosgremlinmunson @messrs-weasley @chaoticlovingdreamer @maya-custodios-dionach @danili666

@goodolefashionedloverboi @val-from-lawrence @i-must-potato @carlyv @wonderland-girl143-blog

@justforthedead89 @vecnuthy @irregular-child @bookbinderbitch @bookworm0690

@anne-bennett-cosplayer @yikes-a-bee @awkwardgravity1 @littlewildflowerkitten @genderless-spoon

@cinnamon-mushroomabomination @dragonmama76 @scheodingers-muppet @ellietheasexylibrarian

@thedragonsaunt @useless-nb-bisexual @angels-of-hades @mugloversonly @y4r3luv

@greeniebean911 @birbsauce @acingthecounts @cryptid-system @counting-dollars-counting-stars

[crunchycrystals]

still thinking about That Scene in chris grace as scarlett johansson and i want as many people to watch this as possible so under the cut it goes. watch this if you've ever been interested in representation in media and how it affects the way you perceive yourself

anyways so ive talked briefly about how i love a good full utilization of a format (link here) but now i wanna go more in depth on it bc i love it a lot

make some noise

jesus christ the first time i saw this i paused and started jumping up and down on my couch. let me start with basics !!! i love that the video of the show appears on the make some noise tv. its so unnerving to see something completely detached from make some noise now on the tv after watching dozens of episodes. and sam just saying the normal spiel he does every time leaves you wondering for a few extremely disorienting seconds if they just edited the video onto a normal episode until he starts to introduce chris and you see his nameplate is erased. another extremely disorienting thing because we NEVER see the nameplates empty and it ties in so well with the identity crisis currently happening in the show. he has no idea who he is as a performer like is the performer part of him the real part?? how much has been played up for entertainment??? and then after the horror has been slammed into you by the prompt and seeing chris as confused by all of this as we are, he runs off which leads to the thing that kept me standing on my couch for the next 10 minutes

very important people

first off. i absolutely love the coincidence (or intentional detail???? who knows but either way) of chris's first line on the make some noise set being "my name is..." because that's the thing that started vip !!!!!!! and throughout the rest of the existential crisis dropout trip he constantly says "hello my name is" too ough i love that so much thats why i started writing this whole post. very important people is the perfect show to add to this segment it makes me feel a little feral thinking about it. coming out on stage without any alterations to his appearance, again back to the idea of is the chris grace on stage the real chris grace?? can he ever be??? and again his name is gone like in the scene before. vic says "you can be anything you want" like the thing scarjo said to justify playing an asian character and he still can't come up with anything. then the card transition oh my godddddddd

dirty laundry

(side note i did say before that the cards on the vip set were dirty laundry cards. i was wrong they are vip card the designs just look very similar esp compared to s1 of vip)

this is gonna be way shorter than the two rambles above i just think it's really cool to use the dirty laundry question format for some identity crisis stuff. i don't know how to properly express how cool i think it is i don't think i can do it justice. the "who..." format for the cards is a great way of expressing how he is losing grip of his identity

this section of the post is also to point out that i am only noticing now that the "dropout presents" version of chris is seen on the couch at some point also heckling stage chris which is a nice detail especially since part of the card was "who is generally a hypocrite"

gastronauts

gastronauts hasn't come out yet so i can't analyze this as much as i'd like but to me it just seems like an extension of the thing started in dirty laundry of everyone confusing him for scarlett johansson. i initially see this as a reference to the fact that throughout the whole show it's been going deeper than him playing scarlett as she plays him and then her playing him plays her again, etc, but thinking about it more for this post makes me think it's like the line between the real person and character they play blurring. i think everyone in the dropout audience is pretty familiar with this like we know brennan pissed on game changer isn't actually how he is in real life, but it's extremely easy to fall into that parasocial trap. when you put so much of your actual self in a character or performance it's hard to find the line between, even for the performer. chris keeps saying that he's not scarlett but everyone insists it's who he is

[childlikegoblinqueen]

SCOM FINALE writing notes (Probably the first of MANY!)

THE IMPORTANCE OF NAMES.

Hey! I am so excited to have brought Sweet Child O' Mine full circle. One thing I kept REALLY close to the chest was the name of the baby.

I DID share it with a few artists I worked with though. Thank you in particular to @lovemoroporo @findmeinthefallair @smallpapers for holding onto that! You are AMAZING!

Thanks also to @the-omori-archives who made AMAZING fanart of her!

Quick note below. I think I accidentally shared an ask with her name yesterday, but I want to pretend to keep it under wraps for a little longer.

Names are super important in folklore! I think the whole TOH fandom began really SEEING Hunter in Hunting Palisman. Obviously, we saw him unmasked for the first time, but we also saw his quirks and vulnerabilities. Also, we saw that the Golden Guard is a child.

So for me, the first real heart breaking moment was when Hunter lowered his staff. His eyes softened and he gave Luz his name.

Shortly after is our real first visual proof that Hunter's relationship with Belos is both emotionally and physically abusive. We see him accept Flapjack and loosen his grip and apologize for holding him so hard.

THE FORESHADOWING!

But we all know this! What I wanted to work with in SCOM was that it seemed that NO ONE other than Belos (and later Luz) actually knew Hunter's name. Maybe this was just my conclusion. Others have analyzed this as well. But it seemed like just another thing used to exert control and ownership over Hunter.

Hunter's feeling about his name comes up A LOT in SCOM. At one point he explicitly asks Willow not to name the baby "Hunter", because his name is his burden to bear.

Funnily enough, Steve and Katya are naming their son Orion. Something that genuinely shocks Hunter. Steve tells him he and Katya wanted to name their son after him because they (Steve especially) admires Hunter. I also realize this means that one of Artemis' close family friends will have a name that's a similar variation to her own.

Do you all think they'd be close?

Of course, Steve's reveal about the name he has chosen for his son is followed by a flashback where Steve and Hunter meet for the first time and Steve is hazed by the Scouts who tell him he has to beat Hunter up (I think Hunter was 8 at the time? I have to look back.) I imagine Steve in SCOM universe to be 8 years older than Hunter. I'm working on an AU where that gap is SLIGHTLY LESS, but here, it seemed to make more sense.

Steve himself in SCOM only became "Steve Tholomule" after realizing his birth father was a bad person, and accepting his stepdad as a parent -- and taking his name.

As I mentioned in my notes at the last chapter, Artemis was ALWAYS going to be the baby's name, for many reasons that readers have already picked up on.

But on top of everything, what I REALLY wanted to play with Hunter's feelings about his name and with Artemis coming into his life, allowing Hunter to change what he saw as a burden to a blessing.

Any questions about this or anything else? Feel free to ask.

[velvetcloxds]

Looking for somebody =

+ could you pls make the reader chubby cus am chubby girl and it would be a comfort for me after today 😅❤ but only if you want to ofc anyways i hope you had a good day ♡♡<3

A FEW CENTURIES | C.C.

word count: 0.7k

warnings: chubby!reader, not specified anywhere but it's chubby-reader-friendly as always, I also have not read the vampire diaries books, just watched the show

summary: carlisle and edward find your obsession with the vampire diaries books a little ridiculous, especially when you've got your own house of vampires right there in the real world

It was a dangerous thing, reading around Edward, whatever you were reading was bound to count as entertainment for him as well, even if he was busing himself with his own thing which he always was. Lately, you'd been getting into a silly little series of books you'd been gifted as a joke at first, the writing wasn't really something to rave about but the characters had stolen your interest and you were deadset on finishing the whole series despite the mind reader's distain.

"Edward, I can't focus with all that ruckus," you noted with an overly dramatic sigh, expecting that very look to rest on his face as he caught you telling him off for doing something in his own home. He lifted his hands from the ivory keys of the piano with a sigh of his own. "Must you play while I'm reading?" you huffed and stuffed the faded receipt into your book to hold your place.

"Must you read while I'm playing?" he demanded in return and you heard the softest scoff from the kitchen where Carlisle was making you dinner, his favorite pastime as of late, making the most of his fancy kitchen on your behalf.

"Carlisle, your son is being insufferable," you noted with a delicate smirk, tilting your head back to see a similar look on his face as he met your gaze. "His irritation with my book has turned to actual sabotage."

"You truly think I spend my days planning ways to disrupt your reading?" Edward played a few notes, it wasn't half as bad as you'd expect from your words but it was untimely. How were you to focus on the current villain taking his shot to kill Elena if you were distracted by Edward's rendition of Mozart? "Burning those books of yours would take up much less of my time, this-" he pushed down onto a lower key, humming at the sound and chuckling lightly at your frown. "This is merely to help me endure it."

"You know, you may look like a teenager, Edward, but you can't hide the fact that you're really just a bitter old man," you informed him, and when he chuckled you did too, wanting to get back to your book. Still, you weren't all that bothered that you couldn't when Carlisle sat down on the couch next to you, giving the two of you a familiar look before taking the book from your hands and scanning the page.

"Bitter old men, she says," he mused, very perfectly landed on a page where Elena was stuck right in the middle of some vampire crisis having to be saved by a vampire named Damon who by the looks of it seemed more popular for his appearance than his actions based on Elena's reaction which didn't at all match her description of him. "Seems you have a type," he concluded and was sure to take note of the page you were on before closing the book and chucking it onto the coffee table.

"You jealous, my love?" you teased and he was happy to play along if it meant you'd draw closer to him, leaning onto his chest and brushing a hand around his neck.

"Should I be?" he furrowed his brows in mock concern, shamelessly dragging a hand to cup your waist, the other lifting your palm to steal a kiss, at the ever-disgusted expense of Edward who had gone back to playing as loud as he could.

"Never," you replied earnestly, kissing the tip of his nose before brushing against it with your own. "You're the only dead man I have eyes for," he pinched your waist at that, leaning in for a kiss of his own satisfaction only pleased when you smiled against his lips to end it. "Plus," you hummed, tugging lightly at the hair settled in the nape of his neck to keep his focus. "He's far too young for my liking, you got a good two or three centuries on him."

"Watch it, trouble," he laughed, smacking lightly at your behind when you jumped off him to taste whatever he'd concocted for your dinner.

[epickiya722]

Now that the manga is over, I thought over my previous feelings about the little interaction Kenjaku and Yuji had and...

Nothing changed.

Especially when it was already too late.

I don't mean too late as in "Gege now can't have them interact" I mean as in "exactly, what good is it going to do for either of them after Kenjaku clearly is a terrible parent".

Yuji being told Kenjaku was his mother would only make things worse for him.

I'm all for a good tragedy and whatnot, don't get me wrong and I would have liked more interactions.

But in this story, I know nothing good would come of it.

And it ties into how parents... they're not the greatest in this story. Name a character in this story who actively had a present parent in this story that they actually had a good relationship with.

Junpei. That's it, Junpei.

And maybe Panda, if you count Yaga as his dad.

But guess what they have in common?

Parents are dead.

Let's be real here, parents in this story are either terrible, dead or absent. Sometimes even a mix of two or all three.

Kenjaku and Yuji would not have been the expectation. It was clear that Kenjaku saw Yuji as another experiment, another tool in their plans.

The relationship between Kenjaku and Yuji is slightly different from Kenjaku and Choso because Kenjaku is Yuji's mother and Choso's father.

Mothers would sometimes have a different relationship with children than fathers would.

Kenjaku carried Yuji while using Kaori's body. Kenjaku didn't carry Choso, who loves his mother.

But here's the thing!

Given just how tragic and heartbreaking as a story JJK was... the absent bond there between Kenjaku and Yuji is one of the most heartbreaking things yet somehow crafted well enough that it makes sense when you sit and think about it. To me though, I don't know about anyone else but whatever.

Mothers are expected to love and nurture a child more than fathers. Yet, when they don't, it's like "how could a mother not love the child she birthed"? It happens.

Maybe, just maybe that's what Akutami was aiming for. Maybe the mangaka wants us as an audience to feel frustrated they never got to talk as a mother and son. Maybe we were supposed to feel saddened Yuji didn't get to know what it felt like to have a mother. Maybe we were supposed to be angry that Kenjaku never told Yuji directly that "Hey, I used to possess the body of a woman to birth you. Yes, I am your mother!"

Stories are written for the audience to feel, after all.

Hell, thinking about it, maybe Kenjaku wanted Yuji to figure that out like how Choso did. Otherwise, why didn't they ever say anything to Yuji but could say something to a normal person who had little connection to him (Sasaki)?

Had Yuji been told, it would have just been extra information for him. He probably wouldn't want anything to do with Kenjaku even with the knowledge of they're his mother. He didn't when Wasuke tried to tell him about his parents.

Choso didn't know Yuji was his brother and once he did, he did everything he could to be the best big brother he could be.

Kenjaku? Knew this whole time who they were to Yuji and yet did nothing, but play games and abandon him.

The mangaka may have wanted to indulge more with what could have been when it came to Kenjaku and Yuji, but at the same time... I doubted he would have portrayed them forging a bond or even Kenjaku getting away with being a terrible parent.

But something else that I do love is that despite the lack of a bond, Yuji is like Kenjaku in some ways.

His interests, his charm, his aura, the way he gets excited and talks about something, how they even fight is a little similar!

I can think of four instances where I pointed out their similarities.

Here

Here

Here

Here

[brynnmclean]

saw a post questioning shipping Senua and Thórgestr and started to reblog it with a tag novel-- felt weird about doing that since this is lengthy and potentially derailing, so making my own post instead. Spitballing under the cut:

First off, any time someone is like, "the real reason people ship this is because they find the dude attractive," this is SO funny to me as someone who doesn't find men attractive IRL and has fiercely loved Senua since I played the first game, like-- actually I find the dynamic between those two characters to be compelling and interesting precisely because of all the baggage between them re: their backgrounds, the rough (put mildly!) beginning of their relationship, all the things they don't talk about, and them finding a common enemy/common ground to work with. The explicit parallels between them stated in-game scratched an itch in my brain. The minute they pointed out the dark rot on his arm, it was like, "oh! hello there! NOW I'm interested in whatever your whole deal is" for me. Also, idk man, I too would follow Senua around after she knocked me into the dirt and then showed me a way to fight the giants that I very much wanted to fight instead of appease.

The idea that Thórgestr was part of the Orkney Raid that killed and mutilated Dillion is VERY interesting food for thought, even if I don't personally have that headcanon (surely there are more viking raiding groups than just the Bjorg). I think the Furies or the Shadow said something similar about Fargrimr (his kin murdered yours, you shouldn't save him, etc.) so I completely get that line of thought, but I think the game left it ambiguous enough that it's up for interpretation. Would I read fic with that premise? Yeah, I'd check that out. Could Senua forgive Thorgestr if his people were involved? Sounds fun to explore.

If (ha, when?) I write fic, I'd have to think more about it especially wrt timelines, like when did the Bjorg start specifically raiding for slaves for giant food sacrifices vs. killing people for resources and wealth? How far off are we from the old gods "dying" and the volcano erupting? Was it indeed a different group of raiders who made a deal with Zynbel, attacked Senua's home, and made the sacrifice at that time to Hela?

At the very least, I think there's a time jump between the end of Hellblade I and the beginning of Hellblade II since Senua wasn't alone on that slave ship and at least one of the (brief) survivors knew her by name. I wouldn't mind exploring that gap of time, too.

In any case I do agree that it would take a VERY long time for Senua to consciously catch feelings for anyone let alone Thorgestr with all their collective baggage. The idea of them having a relationship beyond friendship in the far off future of an AU where he survives is the only one that can make sense in my brain, personally. It would take time! Time they didn't get in the game! But I think there are a lot of different roads that could take, and some of them might be healthier than others. Shipping them certainly isn't forgetting or excusing what happened to Dillion-- or even mutually exclusive from still shipping Senua and Dillion. Or, frankly, also shipping Senua and Astridr, because I can see that ship too.

One of the nice things about all the details Ninja Theory didn't expand upon and that they left that ending so open is that the sky's the limit. I'm VERY interested in seeing fandom tackle this game as we get farther from the initial release.

[nightcolorz]

more on dissociative armand- some songs that i feel fit him & this headcanon very well because i cant not relate him to songs (my armand playlist is something like 17 hours long at this point, not including 3 separate ones that are also for him)

- Christine by Siouxsie and The Banshees

“she tries not to shatter, kaleidoscope style, personality changes behind her red smile, every new problem brings a stranger inside, helplessly forcing one more new disguise”

Now, this song is actually about a woman named Christine with DID, but with this headcanon the songs, and particularly these opening lyrics match up with Armand very well, both with his disconnect between Armand, Amadeo and Arun and with his intense masking to hide his abnormalities and discomforts.

- Valley of the Dolls by Marina (and the Diamonds)

“Born with a void, hard to destroy with love or hope, built with a heart, broken from the start”

&

“Living with identities that do not belong to me”

&

“Pick a personality for free, when you feel like nobody”

This song has a whole lot of thing that feel very Armand so i’ll go in order of the lyrics.

The first set of these lyrics definitely reminds me of Armand thinking and talking about his own past and what little he remembers of it. When he is talking to Daniel in 1973 he uses the metaphor of a black hole to talk about the absence of a meaningful self or life, which he projects onto Daniel even as it relates to himself a lot more. Armand is always a character that is sort of “doomed from the start”, his narrative of horrors and dehumanisation beginning at such a young age (even with things like “not made from human hands”) that he doesn’t really know anything else. He doesn’t have any sense of self than a void, and his heart really is broken from the start, never really being able to love someone or understand love at all. (“would he recognise love, if he were to experience it?”)

The second set of lyrics add onto this and the HC of dissociative disorders/ his identities really being separate. The identities of Amadeo and Armand never did belong to him, they were given to him, assigned to him by Marius and Allessandra respectively. Then there is Arun, who he doesn’t remember. He doesn’t know if that was his true name at all and all he does remember is when that life and identity was taken from him. It doesn’t come back up until his relationship with Louis, and when it starts to be used in their unhealthy Dom/Sub relationship, it again doesn’t belong to him, but to Louis.

The third set of lyrics really is an add on to the second, Armand doesn’t really feel like anyone, he has no fixed identity, so he keeps choosing different parts to play to please or serve whoever he’s around and what they want, be it Lestat, the theatre coven, Louis or Daniel. These come so easily and freely because it’s all he knows, it’s not putting a mask over a real person, its becoming another phantom of a person that he has always been.

- Another Marina song, Fear and Loathing

“I’ve lived a lot of different lives, been different people many times, I lived my life in bitterness, and fill my heart with emptiness”

&

“Got different people inside my head, I wonder which one that they like best, I’m done with trying to have it all, and ending up with not much at all”

I don’t really have anything to say here that wouldn’t be repeating what I said for Valley of the Dolls as it’s very much the same thing, but these lyrics are too fitting not to also mention, and this song is So Very Armand both in lyrics and sonically, it has that perfect dreamy-gentle yet heartbreaking tone.

Last but not least Identity by X-Ray Spex gives me a very similar vibe even if the tone is very different (a classic punk song). I can’t really say much about the lyrics as they are quite repetitive (“Identity is the crisis can’t you see”) but it’s very Armand nonetheless and gives me the impression of Old man no nonsense Daniel confronting him about his lack of self

YESSSS UR SO RIGHT THESE R PERFECT!!!! Every time I get sent Armand songs I get ten more years on my life

[gatheredfates]

ELANDERVIER AUCLAIR

Nicknames: El. Age: Mid-to-late forties. I tend to play fast and loose with character ages unless specifics in the story necessitate it. Nameday: First Sun of the First Astral Moon (once again, you can see I care a lot™ about the birthdays of my characters). Race: Duskwight Elezen. Gender: Cis female. Orientation: You're implying El cares enough to think about it. She's probably somewhere in the sex-positive grey ace/demisexual camp, but let her own lack of consideration speak volumes as to its authenticity. Profession: Bog-Witch of the Northern Wilds, heretic and retainer to Firelight Trading Company. I imagine there's some kind of mythos around her as being a daemon that eats babies, but I'm hesitant to subscribe any real-world language to it.

PHYSICAL ASPECTS

Hair: Long, wavy and jet black. Eyes: Amaranthine, though her consort with the void has warped the iris. it is possible to make out some kind of sigil when standing close enough. Skin: Silvery with pale undertones. Tattoos/Scars: Ink-dark tattoos permeate every inch of skin aside from her face, though it's hard to know if they were done by a needle or magic. Gothic in nature, their elegance hides a number of symbols that imbue her with power.

FAMILY

Parents: Lord and Lady Auclair were of middling importance and their deaths did not leave an imprint upon Ishgardian society. Elandervier rarely, if ever, speaks of them. She considers her father a spineless coward and her mother a reprobate and a narcissist. Knowing they were left destitute after her actions brought her a macabre sense of glee considering they were willing to forsake her for their own comforts. Siblings: Her mother claimed she cursed her womb. El replied the insinuation gave her comfort and walked away clawed at the cheek. Grandparents: Unimportant. The only connection she has to her lineage is down the line to old Gelmorra where she believes her family had prestige. Others: Elandervier used to be in control of a cabal of voidsent accumulated from her various bargains, deals and trades. One of the few pacts kept after her assimilation to Firelight Trading Company was a voidsent by the name of Gobnip. Gobnip presents himself as an opinionated baby Ahriman who is 'contractually obligated to say all the things Elandervier won't'. Do not be fooled, however. With the right amount of aether, he can reveal his true nature.

While the witch is on retainer to Firelight Trading Company, she holds no allegiance to them proper. The only person she actively obeys is its patriarch, Rexonus; one of the first people she met on her defection from The Holy See, and one of the first people willingly abandoned when her confliction emotions around him and her birth-city came to a head. They kept in touch via occasional letters as she set up shop in the Forelands, and he rushed to her side when the blasphemy's rampage through Etheirys put her life and soul at risk. She made a pact with him, the closest language to love she understands, and uses her pragmatics and knowledge of dark magic whenever it is called upon.

She's not ignorant to the fact he has multiple lovers, she simply does not care. El holds all of them at arms reach, respectable and cooperative when she has to work collaboratively, but otherwise holds no great desire to get to know them. She's friendliest with @riftdancing's Blink due to their similar traits, but even so wouldn't necessarily call her a friend.

The person she has the most complicated feelings towards is Alaice. I won't go too in-depth into why, because it could be a whole post on its own, but it's something about being a mirror and an antithesis for her; of being so similar and diverting so extremely. Alaice is everything El abhorrers and wishes she could be, she hates her and loves her in turn, she finds her futilely weak and unfathomably strong — and she doesn't know where to put those emotions. I always write the two with an undertone of homoeroticism because I can, but also because 'love is consumption' underpins a lot of El's characterisation and it's TASTY to explore. Aka, cannibalism as a metaphor for sapphic love, vampiric 'penetration' being inherently queer, so on and so forth.

SKILLS

Abilities: Mastery over dark magic including thaumaturgy, summoning (voidsent), communion, possession, warding, etc. Midwifery. El's mother trained her as part of their family traditions and the hope her skills would elevate her as a trusted member of Ishgard high society. Even when defected, desperate women would make the long trek to Anyx Trine for fear of retribution from the Church/High Houses, and she would perform these services despite her hatred of Ishgard/Ishgardians. This is where a lot of the 'baby eater' rumours/myths originate from, as El would also perform abortions where suitable. Mostly this entailed the transference of aether from a non-viable foetus to a viable one — something the men of the gentry did not complain about when it benefited their sons (how odd)! However, El would always defer to what the women wanted over the demands of their husbands, even if this was done in secret. Hobbies: Studying the history of Gelmorra and it's traditions; foraging for herbs, mushrooms, moss and other things for potions and spells; simmering in pools of water and occasionally turning into slime.

TRAITS

Most positive trait: Elandervier is pragmatic. Above all else, she will contemplate and weigh her choices against any and all outcomes and select the most advantageous result. This may not be the easiest path, either. She is not afraid of tough decisions and hard work. Worst negative trait: She's spiteful. She's petty. She wants to make people suffer as she has suffered. Her moral compass is misaligned at best, deadly at worst, and she doesn't care for consequence. She's not a good person despite doing a few good things and she doesn't want to be.

LIKES

Colours: Black, green, purple and red. Smells: Anything earthy. Peat moss, freshy-turned earth and the scent of rain. The rust of blood. That smell you get when you get too close to a fire and you swear it's singeing your nose hairs. Textures: El is at home with anything that other people find revolting; slimy, spiny, soggy, etc. Drinks: Though partial to a red, El will drink anything. She can't afford to be picky when out in the middle of nowhere.

OTHER DETAILS

Smokes: When in Firelight Trading Company, yes. Tobacco is hard to come by otherwise, so she ends up quitting by proxy. Drinks: When she can. Guests often elected to bring her 'offerings' when in need of their services. She wasn't one to complain. Drugs: This one is tricky. I feel like things like hallucinogenic mushrooms and the like were probably an occasional indulgence, and she's a potions/medicine master of some renown. However, drugs as this sheet implies? No. Mount Issuance: If Gobnip is big enough she will ride him. :) Been Arrested: Good luck! Many have tried and failed!

Tagged by: @lilbittymonster — at least for this one! I'm going to try and do one character per tag. Tagging: @humblemooncat, @chainsofaether, @blackestnight, @mmorpg-escapism, @cadrenebula, @ascendedhypothesis, @ishgard & @allyennah! If you'd like a chance of being tagged, you can like my permanent interaction call here!

[kalinara]

I’ve thought about this a lot, and it occurs to me that I don’t think Ted’s problem is that he doesn’t get angry or needs to learn that not everyone has to be forgiven.

Because we already HAVE someone that Ted is angry at, someone that Ted doesn’t forgive:

His father.

Ted Lasso has never forgiven his father.  And we can see that in so many ways:

1) His refusal to go to the funeral.  That was a child’s decision, of course, but we can hear it in the way he talks about it now.  The rapid speech, the sharp note in his voice.  “Because he quit.”

2) The whole thing about quitting.  Ted Lasso doesn’t quit.  It’s a big motif.  For the most part, it’s a positive one (see: Sharon using it to motivate him), but it can get him trapped in a hopeless spiral (see: Michelle).

3) The darts monologue with Rupert.  Curiosity vs. judgment.   Per Ted, a truly curious man would have asked “Have you played a lot of darts, Ted?”

Thing is, and I can’t believe I’m defending Rupert.  But he DID ask Ted a SIMILAR question.  He asked, “Do you like darts?”

But that was the wrong question.  Because Ted’s answer is a very ambivalent “eh, they’re okay.”

When you think about it, does that emotional reaction fit with everything that comes after?  The folksy anecdote?  The softly fond reveal of playing darts every Sunday from age 10 to 16 in a Sports Bar with his father?

Unless the darts aren’t exactly a happy memory, not anymore.

5) Henry’s name.  This is something that’s haunted me for some time.  That bit in Goodbye Earl when Ted tells us about the dog that bit him.  About the dog he kept, until it died.  That dog is Hank.

Hank is a diminutive of Henry.  

If we take Ted’s anecdote at face value then, Ted had a parent die in his adolescence.  One he clearly did love.  And he named his son after the dead dog instead.  

So yeah, I think Ted has absolutely never forgiven his father.  And that’s the crux of his problem now.

Folks have said that the series really should have made Henry 19.  It would easily fit in Ted’s timeline, and wouldn’t read as much like Ted’s abandoning his son...

Except think about it for a second.  When do kids usually read Johnny Tremain?  Fourth grade?  Fifth?  When they’re about ten years old?

How old was Ted when his dad started (from his perspective) prioritizing his friends over his son?

When did Ted’s father START playing darts with him every Sunday?  

Is Ted really abandoning his son?  I don’t really think so.  But Ted thinks so.  And why does Ted think so?  Because young Ted thought so.  Ted has never forgiven his father, so he can’t forgive himself either.

And that’s what makes it particularly ironic that these fans who say Ted shouldn’t have to “forgive everyone”, and by “everyone”, they mean Nate.  Not Rebecca, not Trent.  Nate.

And the thing about Nate is that Nate is Ted’s son too.  Not literally, but everything in the first and second season built that symbolic relationship.  From Ted noticing him and uplifting him.  Buying him his first suit.  Taking him as his plus one for the Gala.  Including him in the Diamond Dogs.  All of it.

Hell, even Nate’s name.  “Nate”.  “Nate the Great”.  Nate’s real father only ever calls him Nathan.  (Oh, and isn’t there a fascinating comparison between “Wonder Kid” and “Nate the Great”?  Ted has NEVER to my recollection EVER called him the “Wonder Kid”.)

Nate’s anger at Ted is real.  He feels that Ted abandoned him, and he has some justification in that.  Ted was so wrapped up in his own issues that he missed that Nate needed help.  He did (accidently) insult and undermine Nate a few times, in ways that I’d like to think the more alert Ted of Season One would have caught and avoided/mitigated.

But at least SOME of Nate’s anger at Ted is really misdirected anger at his actual father.  This is what causes Nate to believe the worst of Ted, without really any basis.  Is Ted really dismissing Nate’s contributions?  No, of course not.  He’s very quick to credit him.  But Nate hears his father’s cold dismissal deeper in his heart.  The absence of Nate’s picture has nothing to do with dislike, that picture is on his mantle next to Henry’s picture!  That’s how IMPORTANT Nate is to Ted!  But Nate doesn’t know that, and he has no reason to expect that.  And it’s really really sad.

If Ted and Nate never reconcile than what does this mean for Ted?  It means he’s failed a son.  It means he’s failed a son just like he’d been failed.  It means that he’s failing TWO sons.  He needs this reconciliation with Nate as much, if not more, than Nate himself does.  Is Nate’s deed unforgiveable?  Maybe, it’d be to a stranger.  Maybe even to a friend.  But is it unforgiveable to a FATHER?

No.  A parent’s love is (supposed to be) unconditional.  Of course, he will forgive Nate.  Nate’s already BEEN forgiven.  But if they can reconcile...in a way that Ted cannot and will never be able to be reconciled with his father?

I think that would do more good for Ted than any “learning it’s okay not to forgive” lesson ever would.

[narratingvoice]

My sincerest apologies for the radio silence from this blog recently. I know, it's very out of character for me. The thing is, I've been in a bit of a pickle over the past few months. The fiscal year for 2023 didn't end nearly as profitably as I projected, not even with the hype and celebration surrounding

THE TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE STANLEY PARABLE (2013)!

Server maintenance isn't free, you know, and neither are infinite holes. And with Unity changing its pricing structure on top of it, well, I really needed to put the old noggin to work finding a way to squeeze every last dime out of my fans provide new and valuable pieces of entertainment that will be worth your money. And that's why I'm thrilled to announce my partnership with the fine folks at I Am 8bit to bring you: The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe: Collector's Edition!

It's true! Yes, I know I did a fake announcement for something similar last year, but this one is for real! A physical product that you can purchase and have delivered to your home, and play on your Nintendo Switch or Playstation 5. And this package involves absolutely no changes to the game itself, which really takes a load off my back. Since I have no presence in the physical world, I have to trust that my collaborators will deliver the finest quality items. And trust them I do. Shall we take a look at all the wonderful bonuses you'll receive?

Stickers!

Just like the ones I slapped onto Stanley's bucket, now you too can slap these stickers on your own bucket. Or anything else that currently lacks stickers on it. You will not receive a bucket to stick them on. We floated that idea, but Mr. 8bit told me he'd rather not have to lug dozens of buckets down to the post office every day. You'd look like a right idiot doing that, I agree. So get your own bucket and enjoy the thrill of sticking!

Oh, and do be aware that whatever object you affix the "Property of Stanley" sticker to, does legally become Stanley's property, and he will demand you send it to him.

More surprises under the cut!

An instructional manual!

"But Narrator," I hear you saying, "didn't you just say you're not giving me a bucket? What do I need this for?" First of all, do not interrupt me when I'm giving a presentation. Second of all, this manual is for the bucket that's in the game. I've noticed many players do not seem to know how to operate the bucket, and treat it like it's a person rather than an inanimate container. With this instructional manual, I will give you a comprehensive guide as to what a bucket can do (such as: prevent water from spilling all over your trousers) and what it cannot do (such as: love you back). I have had some harrowing experiences in the field of instructional manual writing, but I think this one is some of my finest work yet.

A figurine!

Yes, our most requested piece of merchandise is finally here! The OFFICIAL Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe Stanigurine stands 5 inches tall and is made of durable PVC. And as with the virtual Figustans, that's all there is to it. There's no articulation or any type of toy action. You don't get anything but the feeling of deep satisfaction at owning this collectible. The package only comes with one, so why not buy six copies if you really want to recreate the game in your home?

But wait, that's not all!

If you are an absolute Stanley Parable fanatic, you'll want to supplement your Collector's Edition with even more plastic tat commemorating your favourite game. And you definitely want to support me as much as possible, right? So you can also buy:

The button that says the name of the person playing the game!

For just $10, you too can have a button that says your name, presuming your name is Jim. The button will only say the name Jim and will never say any other name, no matter how often you press it. I found that a lot of players really got into the immersive experience of being Jim, so I decided to keep it that way instead of programming it to say a whole lot of names. Sorry, but there are too many different names in the world. You're Jim and you'll like it.

Vinyl albums!

When you buy the Collector's Edition, you'll get a free code to download the Official Soundtrack in MP3 format. But what if you don't like MP3? What if you're a bit more old-fashioned in your audiophile taste? Well, I've got you covered! With this 2-record set, you can listen to all the office ambience on your gramophone or turntable. Why, you could even DJ a set with it! If you do, please send me your mixtape and I'll give it an honest review. My music taste is impeccable.

An instructional audio cassette!

Yes, this is just a cassette telling you how to install and run a copy machine. Listen, I took some odd voiceover jobs here and there to pay the bills. And I figured, you lot are so ravenous to hear my voice that you'd even pay good money to hear me deliver some boring instructions. At least, that's the impression I get from the more saucy side of the fandom. So that's what you get. Do I do anything funny? You'll have to buy it and find out!

Hold on, Stanley is trying to tell me something. What do you mean, nobody has a cassette player any more? Why wouldn't they? It's the perfect compact audio format! It's got two sides, which is more than you can say for a CD, and it's a lot more portable than vinyl. Well I'm not shipping out cassette players. You can take it or leave it. No refunds.