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nobodyfamousposts · 4 months ago

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Scarlet Lady Top 10 Favorite Characters: Number 10

For @zoe-oneesama

Number 9 Here

Okay, I realized as I was writing these that there is way way WAY too much to each of these and why to be able to put them all into one post, so I'm breaking them down into individual essays focusing on each one to keep them palatable.

So without further ado....

Number 10: EVERYONE

Yeah, I know it may be cheating but at this point it was the only choice I could make.

I came to regret making this list, specifically because I couldn’t seem to make up my mind as far as who all would be on it. I reread the entire series. I kept switching people in and out as I was reminded of characters or scenes I loved. And I came to a realization that there is no character in the whole of this series I didn’t enjoy to some extent that they didn't deserve some love in this list and I kind of wish I could have added all of them just to give them all some spotlight.

Yes, it is partly because everyone is vastly improved compared to Canon. But as I reread the series, it came to mind that if Canon didn’t exist and I didn’t have the comparison between the characters, I still very much would have loved this series and everyone in it.

Cause and Effect Exist

It's important to have a setting in which the characters and their actions make sense for the world they live in. When the setting is supposed to be modern day earth, we need the people to be able to show that they are capable of surviving in it on a day to day basis without being so massively incompetent that they would do something like accidentally ingesting poison. Or forgetting how to breathe.

I would think it would be obvious, but sometimes Canon makes me wonder. Which is never a good look for a show that is supposed to have some level of seriousness and involve superheroes.

Here’s the thing Canon can’t seem to get: when a majority of the things that go wrong in a plot are because of everyone having to be stupid to make the plot work, you have a problem with the writing. Changing the material in a story so that younger people can enjoy it does NOT mean dumbing down the characters and throwing in arbitrary lessons with no real reason to them. Even if the show itself is geared towards kids, you can’t treat the audience like they’re stupid.

In Scarlet Lady, the people aren’t stupid.

Silly, yes. Wrong, often. Overdramatic, definitely. But while they may make stupid choices sometimes, they aren’t so dumb that anyone should have concerns about their ability to function at a higher level than an overcaffinated 2 year old.

They’re fooled initially the way many of us would be with a biased story that hits the news first. Oblivious to the problems in a situation that they logically wouldn’t have much direct insight into. Prone to making mistakes and incorrect judgement the way that anyone would. That's normal. That's expected.

But they’re not so incapable as to forget things that happen right in front of them between one day and the next. Or even between one scene and the next.

Things carry over. We see cause and effect. We see consequences—bad and good. And those consequences extend not only for the episode or season but for the entire series.

Aurore KNOWs Alec cheated her before and maintains a tight control over him and prevents more of his antics.

Adrien and Alya maintain a cold attitude towards Lila for some time after her reveal as a liar. And it even remains a point against her as used by Chloe as herself and as Scar to discount what she says.

The boys of the class remember Adrien’s “love letter to Marigold” and try to win him her merch because they’re bros like that.

Adrien himself remembers the instances of his dad being a massive prick and instead of being surprised and “sad boi uwuwu” each time it happens like it’s supposed to be a surprise that the massive prick would choose to be a prick, he very clearly moves through the stages of grief to the point of a sort of acceptance that involves planning around and even for him.

Gabriel’s horrible parenting and general lack of concern for Adrien or his wellbeing as he ends up a casualty of various akuma attacks was played off for laughs when such incidents occurred. Then they were brutally called out against him in the Finale as a way to counter his claims of doing everything for Adrien’s sake. And the big reveal of the Birthday Scarf…utilized in the last way anyone would have wanted.

And Chloe is perhaps the biggest example as her antics ARE NOT forgotten or ignored by anyone. The classmates still interact with Chloe and are relatively nice to her, but they don’t just forget that she’s treated them horribly. They don’t act surprised when she does anything horrible. Nor does anyone just laugh it off or excuse it as “just who she is”. We see follow up to her behavior—the class fully expecting her to cause trouble and actively try to plan around it. People calling her out on past behaviors. And even bigger consequences as time goes on. Such as Adrien breaking off the friendship. And a blink and you miss it fridge logic moment in Ikari Gozen when you realize that when they said she was banned from all future Gabriel-involved competitions, they meant it.

The fact that by the time the big reveal happened that Chloe was Scarlet Lady, no one was shocked.

Story-wise, this is showing the passage of time and the effect the events of the story are having. It’s showing that there is lasting impact and that what happens to the characters matters.

Meta-wise, this is Zoe rewarding us for paying attention.

Continuity exists in Scarlet Lady. Time exists. The people exist. When anyone does anything, you get the sense that they aren’t operating in a vacuum. The things they do matter. There are consequences. There is an impact. And if there is an impact in the story, there will be an impact on the audience.

Which leads to…

Character Depth/Character Growth

Usually in TV shows of this nature, if there ARE character arcs for the side characters, they only occur over the course of a single episode devoted to focusing on them before moving on elsewhere.

Canon didn’t give us that much at all in favor of having every episode that should focus on other characters learning and growing instead forcing Marinette to be wrong in some way and learn an arbitrary lesson that often would have better served for someone else.

In Scarlet Lady, the arcs we get are impressive for all that they’re relatively unobtrusive. They aren’t big. They aren’t world-ending. And the thing is, most change in life isn’t. It can just FEEL that way.

Like the way it felt for Kim when he first found out Ondine liked him and then had his confession to her screwed up.

And the way it felt for Kagami when she lost that first match against Adrien.

Then there’s the way it felt for Chloe when she was dismissed by her mother, had her popularity go downhill, and ended up losing her Miraculous.

…or the way it felt for Adrien when he discovered his dad was Hawk Moth.

The reactions we witness are in a great part due to actions outside of the characters’ control, but are ultimately a result of the experiences they have had and the ways they have changed as a result.

The question becomes: are the characters that we meet at the beginning pretty much identical to how they are at the end? Is the world?

The answer in Scarlet Lady is no.

Whether because the characters themselves change or our perception of them does, we can see that they have all undergone some sort of events that create a difference between the start and end points.

Not all of them HAVE to undergo some big emotional arc. Not all of them NEED to. But the characters still mostly go through some sort of growth by the end that I feel make them stronger and healthier people.

You’ve got the big life-altering changes like Lila and Sabrina.

You’ve got the little changes like Nino and Ivan.

You’ve even got the most minuscule, beginning stages of change in Chloe.

You’ve got growth that creates such perfect setup with Mylene when she starts off scared and traumatized by how things went with Stoneheart then is the one who confronts him in the end. And the parallel between the finale and the beginning when she returns him to normal by kissing him just like they did in that first episode to change him back then, too! (Just….GOD, I CANNOT GET OVER THIS!)

You’ve got them reaching out and making friends and relating to people they hadn’t before.

And by the end of it all, we get characters who feel like people rather than props.

They don’t all have to change. They don’t necessarily need to go through an entire emotional arc and back again. They just need to be part of the world they’re in.

Nino doesn’t just pop into existence when Adrien or Alya need someone to interact with. Kagami isn’t just a non-horrible or non-evil love rival for Adrien or a stepping stool for him to “practice“ at being in a relationship before it’s time for him to try the “real thing” with his endgame pairing. Luka isn’t just a decent guy who is the only actual form of support for the female lead and yet only lacking that precious “male lead” title or all around just not “Adrien enough” to fill the role.

Adrien isn’t just a “sad boy” meant to be a main love interest, Villain’s Morality Pet, and the one everyone idolizes and chases after just cuz he’s the male lead and that’s how you show he’s desirable I guess. Marinette isn’t the atlas keeping the story alive because no one else is apparently capable of learning lessons and changing, or even just the bare basics of functioning as individuals. Chloe isn’t just there to be horrible for no reason and get away with it so she can continue to be horrible until the writers suddenly need her to be sympathetic.

And the rest of the classmates aren’t just some Greek chorus there to fill the background.

We see them interact. We see them making jokes or jabs. We see them even…*gasp* having different opinions!

And on something as major and life-controlling as feelings about the “Hero of the City” no less! Why, that’s the sort of thing that would break up friendships and determine who you can sit next to at the cafeteria! The horror! The scandal!

And…oh hey. This puts the characters in different groups. It links them with characters other their Canonically designated pairings and groups. This lets them disagree on things and not need to vilify any of them. This creates implications that add depth to the story and to the people in it.

The characters can disagree without being enemies. They can be wrong without having to be evil. They can make mistakes without having to be stupid. And they can change and grow—both for better and worse.

And we see both and in different ways. SO many different ways.

Adrien goes from excited and impulsive to buckling under the forced responsibility and weight of a partner who hinders more than she helps.

Lila goes from selfishly bad and self-serving to selfish but friendly with better direction of her talents in a less self-serving way.

And Chloe just goes from selfish and bad to selfish and worse..

I mean, it says something that the combination of Lila’s growth and Chloe’s fall from grace resulted in Hawk Moth being unable to use Lila as a tool for his Heroes Day plot like he originally intended.

The key is that whether they necessarily grow or become better people, these characters are still IMPACTED by the events around them and AFFECTED as a natural result of the world they live in.

You can’t help but feel for them in some way as a result. It’s part of why I love them.

The other part of why I love them is a bit more epic though…

Crowning Moments of Awesome

If there’s one thing I love, it’s seeing characters be awesome. I love it when characters get to be awesome. I would love to see more of it. Especially when the ones involved are characters you wouldn’t normally expect or get to see have a chance to shine.

And it’s when you see these characters be awesome that you really get the sense that yes, this character would work as a hero.

Seeing Max help against Robustus. Seeing Kim help against Odine. Alix stepping in during Pharaoh, calling out her brother’s fan fiction, and helping the heroes escape the security system at the Lourve. Alya stepping in during Copycat to clue Chat in to what’s going on and later keeping Anansi distracted to keep her away from Chat while he’s trapped. Rose kicking Nightmare!Chat in the face to defend Marinette even when she’s dealing with her own nightmares in Sandboy. Luka leading groups twice to stepping in and helping the heroes deal with akumas. Nathaniel standing up for Marinette and Sabrina when they’re accused in Rogercop and then helping the heroes in Reverser. Seeing the entire class step up to try and protect Marinette in Befana. Seeing all the friends working together to compete in the Friendship Contest in order to protect Adrien from a less serious but still potentially terrifying outcome.

These little moments of support make such a big different and really make it make sense that the heroes would trust these people with magical jewelry to help them in battle.

And the little moments of characters being petty or strong or smart or turning the tables or just showing off what they’re capable of. Even without superpowers.

Adrien getting petty revenge for Nino and finding a tactic to counter Gabriel in the future.

The Police Force in Rogercop just saying “Nope” to obeying an obvious akuma.

Zoe manipulating akumas twice to help the heroes. Her two Reasons You Suck Speeches to her mom and Bustier.

Every instance of payback that Tikki gets against Chloe.

Everyone in the Finale. Just…EVERYONE in the Finale. The characters who manage to avoid akumatization by either spotting the flaws in the illusion or refusing to give in to fear and even protecting others. Nora smacking any akuma that enters the home. Claudie pulling off Power Mom and ordering Max to stop attacking the city then helping to calm him down. Prince Ali and Juleka freeing Rose by kissing her! Chris, Ella, Etta, and Manon saving Mylene! Mylene saving Ivan with a kiss in a direct callback to how they first got together in Stoneheart! (Yes, I am still stuck on that!) Ondine saving Kim! Lila and Sabrina saving Alix! Luka facing Riposte alone and unarmed and then Kitty Section saving Kagami! ALL of the Heroes making a final comeback to help take down Hawk Moth for good! Just—AAAAAH!

How could Miraculous have peaked with this in Season 2 when this is Grand Finale material? Because there are few things more awesome than getting to see ALL the characters the heroes met and befriended and helped throughout the course of the story stepping up at the final battle to help take the Big Bad down!

Like…can we just take a moment to appreciate how everyone gets a chance to stand out in some way? Not all of them necessarily good, exactly (looking at you Andre). But still stand out and be memorable. Even characters who didn’t originally get much focus. Especially characters who were originally functioning as cardboard cutouts to fill a scene.

Anyone remember Aurore? How for the FIRST akuma in the pilot of the series and one who is quite frankly the most interesting and noteworthy, we don’t really get to see her again except in the background.

In Scarlet Lady, we got to actually look in to the contest and how she lost as well as the aftermath. She wasn’t some arrogant showoff who deserved to lose to the “sweet down to earth rival”, she was a girl who legitimately tried her best and had valid reason to be upset. Seeing her get revenge on Alec for cheating and humiliating her on live TV was well worth it.

Or how about the Photographer? Just there to take photos of Adrien in the park for a photo shoot or be the school photographer, but otherwise has no personality and is only remembered for his weird “spaghetti” line.

In Scarlet Lady, his role is two-fold. He acts as a sort of supporter for Adrien in his crush. Taking really good pictures of him being happy with the girl he likes. Taking more class photos at the behest of this girl for the sake of a friend who missed out on the class picture. And then there’s his OTHER role as a sort of antagonist to Chloe. He becomes one of the only ones in the early seasons willing and capable of dismissing her tantrums.

They’re both given more character. They get moments to stand out and BE awesome. So is everyone.

EVERYONE. From the classmates and big named characters we see regularly to the side characters who only appear once or twice. They all get some good scenes and focus that give them their own identities. All of them are memorable. None of them can really be ignored or forgotten. And part of what made making this list so difficult was that I found myself getting attached to pretty much everyone as I came across each of them that I couldn’t quite make up my mind.

Everyone in this fic has done something to make me happy and warrant my approval. Even the characters I normally wouldn’t like at all had their moments to shine and elicit an “okay, that was cool” from me.

Thus I grant this spot to everyone. To all the characters I don’t get the chance to mention. To all the ones I like albeit somewhat less than others. To all the ones I know are horrible but can’t help but like regardless. To all the ones I fought with myself for THREE MONTHS over which one would get this spot.

I love all of them.

#scarlet lady #scarlet lady top 10 list #it's not cheating if I'm RIGHT #scarlet lady is better than canon #scarlet lady analysis #for zoe

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prettieinpink · 4 months ago

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2024 WRAPPED⋆˚ 𝜗𝜚˚⋆

₊˚⊹♡TOP LESSONS LEARNT

Missing out gives you progress on your goals. So many times this year, I didn’t do things that I usually would’ve loved to do to make and maintain progress on my

goals. Simple things like cancelling plans, buying certain things and any other short-term pleasures. Allowing myself to overcome FOMO, and in return, I saw great progress in my goals.

People hating you has nothing to do with you. I dislike a lot of things because it's my personal preference. Someone who decides to hate you is a matter of their preference. However, if they choose to show that hatred to you, it's a matter of projection. People will project onto you as a way to cope with their own life, cause they can’t deal with their own.

Stop letting everything control you. Truly, you’re held back from nothing in life. Your circumstances, identity, environment and more can only hold you back so far. At one point, you’ve gotta start acting and stop blaming everything around you on why you can’t. This one… is still in progress for me. I do feel like my parents are a major factor in me being held back, but deeper down, I also feel that it's an excuse to not work up to my potential.

Trying to fit in is fruitless. I wear and listen to what I want. I decide what kind of content I want to consume, and what food I want to eat. This generation is notorious for tearing down anyone who doesn’t fit in a cookie cutter. Allowing your authenticity to shine through, will guide those who are meant for you, to you!

All problems are temporary. This one does not apply to everything, but it applies to a lot of things. Your issues will not last forever, so don’t let it leave a permanent mark on you. Don’t let your situation deter you from your goals.

₊˚⊹♡ACHIEVEMENTS

It's small, but I feel like I’ve created my room to be fully intentional for me. While it still can be improved, my room is much better in terms of clutter and decor compared to 2023.

Consistent practicing soft social skills like keeping up small chats, giving compliments and handling disagreements gracefully. I ended the year with all B’s! Last semester was a bit of a flunk for me, but I managed to pull it up for the end of the year.

Saved like 500$ for purchasing things off my wishlist.

Read like 12ish books for 2024. Would’ve loved to read more, but I was in a reading slump and also didn’t have enough time to go out to my local library to borrow any books.

₊˚⊹♡HABITS / RITUALS

In bed by 9 pm, up by 6 am. Sleeping early has made me feel a lot more energised in the mornings, and I find that it's easier to get out of bed and continue with my routine. The later I slept will more I felt sluggish for the next day + waking up earlier hay motivated me to stay on top of my routines.

Daily walks after school. It gets my steps in, but it's a nice way to debrief after school and regather myself before heading straight into studying. I sometimes do walk home, and it's great to plug in my earphones and just not think.

Journaling. I preach it for a reason, as journaling helps plenty. It can help you to shift your mindset beliefs, identify self-sabotaging behaviours, allow us to truly reflect on who we are and see progress each day in our lives.

Lighting candles more frequently. It's such a little habit, but it brings me so much joy. Usually, they’re just collecting dust as decor however when I started to use them, I loved the whole experience. The smell and the small warmth that it brings are just perfect for the ambience.

Curating my social media. I have an absolute maximum of 5 hours per day, but I still want those 5 hours to count for something. I’ve redownloaded TikTok earlier this year, and I think it’s a great platform for looking for advice and inspiration. Creating a feed that works for you instead of the other way around, will definitely change how it influences you.

Having alone time in the morning and at night. I need this time to myself to slow myself down and regather my thoughts and it's just what I look forward to, to get through the day. I usually do whatever I like in this time slot, on the condition that I am completely by myself, free from any tasks or distractions.

Cleaning regularly. When I did a deep clean last year, it would just be vacuuming my room and wiping down all visible surfaces. That is good, but there’s a lot more to clean than you realise. One major thing that we forget to clean (yet is probably the dirtiest) is our devices. Wipe down all screens every single day!

₊˚⊹♡BEAUTY / FASHION TIPS

Turn down the toilet seat when you flush. The amount of times I’ve been in public toilets and flushed with the lid up is outrageous, and I just can’t believe that last year I didn’t even consider the bacteria that would fly up on my clothes or even my face. Not a major skincare tip, however, er I think this would affect it.

Know your undertone. I would only use undertones to know what kind of jewellery fits me, but it goes way beyond that. Before I start, I would like to say, don’t buy any more clothes or makeup just because they don’t fit your undertone. If you like your confidence will override any undertone clash. I used to walk around with really yellow makeup, and the difference when I got a foundation that had more of a golden undertone was like day and night. The same applies to your clothes. Warmer clothes will complement me, becausI’m’m warm-toned. So, I tend to stay away from cooler tones. I don’t use colour seasons, Is anyone wondering?

Stick to a palette that you like. Last year, I wasted so much money trying to experiment with new colours in my clothes and makeup, just to end up hating it. It’s also a bad consumerist habit, to buy things for your fantasy self. So today, I only buy clothes it's the colours I like and I only purchase makeup if its shades fit me. I’m not saying buy anything new, but keep it to a minimum to reduce waste and save your money for the things that you like.

Avoid fashion inspiration with faces. Highly attractive people can pull off anything, quite literally. Their face can influence subconsciously them ly to love the outfit, even if the outfit is ‘bad’. So, when saving pictures from Pinterest, TikTok or magazines, avoid any outfits that show their face. I said avoid it as sometimes you just really like an outfit and you know it's nothing to do with their face, which is okay.

₊˚⊹♡YOUTUBERS

JIlLZ GUERIN - Focuses on feminine energy, lifestyle and intellectual habits. I recommend her as many of her videos are new and fresh perspectives.

SANDY DIANA BANG - Mostly productive vlogs that inspire and motivate, with a sprinkle of wellness, health and beauty content. Her channel and vibes are so aesthetic too!

ROSIE GRAHAM & LIDIA MERA - Both are fitness influencers that focus on pilates. Their workouts are so good that they always leave me sweating and strained (which is good!! lmao). If one of your goals for 2025 was to start working out, I would use their videos.

THANK YOU BUBU - Another fitness channel that is one of my time faves, and they have a variety of exercises that target abs, glutes, legs and arms. Another channel I would recommend if I was starting to exercise again.

MINA LE - She does research and creates video essays on various topics, which many videos I feel are relevant in current times. She’s great if you want to expand and explore new perspectives.

HALIEY GAMBA - She’s for a more matured audience, but she’s such a hidden gem. All of her advice ly new things, not just the same things that have been rinsed and repeated.

KELLY GOOCH - She’s a beauYouTuberber who mainly discusses the beauty industry and its products while recommending some. She’s one of the only beauty influencers who I will listen to, as I feel like her opinions aren’t constantly swayed by sponsorships or promotions. Even then I would still take any beauty opinions and advice with two cents.

ELLE CHU - A smaller, but underrated beauty influencer. She discusses a lot of beauty products whether they’re worth it, overhyped or overpriced. She does sometimes talk about the beauty industry, but those videos are infrequent.

₊˚⊹♡BOOKS

(I have read all of them libby- a reading app).

NJUTA by NIKI BRANTMARK. All about the Swedish art of enjoying the present. If you feel like you have a simple and unexciting life, I recommend you read this.

SPARK JOY by Marie Kondo. A popular decluttering book that uses the KonMari method that emphasises items that you want to keep, instead of focusing on what you want to get rid of.

THE HEALTHY MIND TOOLKIT by Dr Alice Boyes. This is the ultimate guide of mindset shifts to target self-sabotaging or destructive beliefs and gives strategies to overcome them.

MINDFULLNESS ON THE GO by Jan Chozen Bays. A collection of little mindfulness practices you can do almost anywhere, almost anytime.

MY WISHES FOR 2025

To join any club at this point. It's hard for me to do anything outside of the house with my parents' schedules, and I do feel like it has eaten at my social life and the experiences, lessons etc I would gain. At first, I originally wanted to join so it's something I could put on my university application, however, I’m entering year 10 with absolutely no extracurriculars since year 7. (for anyone not down under, I'm talking about high school grades.)

Expanding my social circle. I feel like I don’t have a secondary community outside of school, and it's definitely what can amplify my slumps or depression without having that one person I can talk to freely, without the worry of school. I feel like I’m making no sense here.

Moving anywhere. I want to move schools, cities, countries, or whatever. Being in the same school since year 2 (elementary) has taken a toll on me.

A million dollars. Very unrealistic, but I still want it! I feel like money is the only thing that can actively change my life at this point.

thats it for this post! I encourage anyone else to do their own wrapped and tag me!

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jockbroski34 · 10 months ago

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AlterEgo

The last thing I expected on my 20th birthday was to receive a gift from Cody, my roommate. We were never close, and there was no way in hell he actually knew much about me to know it was my birthday without me telling him. Him and I were basically complete opposites. While I was your typical nerd, smart, introverted, and so on, he was basically your typical jock in all the worst ways. He was boisterous, arrogant, and a total meathead. We mostly agreed to stay out of each others’ way, considering our irreconcilable differences, but that didn’t stop him from being a massive pain in the ass. His room was constantly in a state of disarray, with sweaty clothes scattered all over the place. As such, I often avoided being anywhere near his room if necessary since it smelled like a locker room. He often invited over his “bros” who were just as bad. Whether they were hogging the TV to watch whatever game was on, smuggling alcohol into our dorm to get wasted, or playing catch in the fucking living room, they were always a nuisance. And whenever I brought any of that up to him, he would always end up saying something like “It’s not that serious, dude. We were just having a good time.” Yeah, a good time at my expense. Whoever assigned the two of us to live together must’ve thought this was some twisted joke.

I woke up at 9 AM, still a little tired from last night. I hung out at one of my friends’ dorms to celebrate my birthday. I yawned, and went to the kitchen to make some breakfast. I saw Cody was up as well, his legs spread across the couch, to the point that he was taking up two seats, watching something on the TV that was several volume levels too loud for me.

“Hey bro, today’s your birthday right?” Cody asked, as he tilted his head to face me.

“Uhh, yeah. How did you know?” I responded.

“Oh don’t worry about it, bro. Happy birthday!” I saw him get up and run to his disorganized room, likely to grab something for me. I could see a pair of worn gym shorts on the floor through the crack in the door. He pulled out an old Nike shoe box, since he likely had nothing better to put a gift in. “I’ve been saving this for you. I hope you like it!” Is this his way of trying to get on my good side?

I rolled my eyes since I doubt he got me anything I would enjoy. He probably just got me something that he’d enjoy, like some tight-fitting tank top or protein powder or something. Not that I work out or anything. The only gift I’d want from him is for him to stop being a douche. I opened the box and I was surprised about what I saw. It was a video game. Not any that I’d ever heard of. I looked at the box art and the words AlterEgo were written in a wacky, colorful font.

“Yeah, I knew you like video games, so I found this for you. I heard on the internet that it’s pretty nitch…nichy…what’s the word…”

“Niche?” I responded. I had to admit, him struggling to pronounce the word right was a little amusing. As amusing as being with a simpleton like him could be.

“That’s the word! I got it for myself, but I realized like half an hour in that it wasn’t my thing. I’m happy with what I have right now. I figured you’d probably get more out of it than me.”

“Thanks, I guess.”

“No problem, dude. Anyways, I gotta hit the gym. I’m gonna be out all day so you have the PS5 all to yourself. Hope you enjoy it bro!”

I watch him leave, thankful to have some peace and quiet. As I ate breakfast, I read the back of the cover in order to figure out what this game was about.

“Become a new you! In this life simulation adventure, you can become any kind of person you want and live any way you choose. Control your fictional avatar, your AlterEgo, and level up your stats to become closer to your true self.”

The game seemed something like The Sims or Animal Crossing, but with some stat progression system. It was a game that I had never heard of, but it could be some hidden gem. The rest of the back was filled with screenshots from the game with the cartoony characters doing activities such as cooking, jogging, and riding a motorcycle. I figured I might as well try the game since I did get it for free. Even if it was from Cody, I wasn’t one to refuse someone’s generosity.

I put the game in the disk slot and booted it up. The title screen had that same logo and some bubbly background music. I pressed the start button and I was presented with a save selection screen. I noticed that Cody’s save was on there, which was odd because I was playing on my account. I knew I should’ve put a password on it. I wanted to make my own character, but part of me was curious about the character that he made. Knowing him, I can only guess. His game time was less than an hour, as he was only on Day 1, and he likely spent most of that time on the character creation screen.

I started his save and my character was sitting in his room. At this point, it was very bare, with only a bed and a bunch of cardboard boxes scattered around the room. I guess the character starts by moving into their new home? I went into the menu to find more information about the character. The character was named Cody obviously and his AlterEgo somewhat matched him too. I went into the stats screen and I was greeted by a tutorial.

“Here you can check your AlterEgo’s stats. You have already set your initial growth modifiers and assigned your base stats. If you need a refresher, whatever stats you chose your AlterEgo to excel at are highlighted in red and the ones you chose to trade off are highlighted in blue. This means that your AlterEgo will grow in the stats in red much faster and prioritize activities that increase those stats and avoid activities associated with increasing your stats in blue. As you play, your AlterEgo will naturally develop into one of hundreds of potential archetypes based on the activities that they excel at. Experiment and see who you become!”

I looked at the stat screen and saw a list of stats with a bar indicating percentage level. The stats included Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, Courage, Charisma, and Luck. Not too far off from DnD I guess. It seemed like he chose to have Strength and Constitution as his highest stats as their font was colored red and Intelligence and Wisdom as his weakest stats as they were colored in blue. Gee, why am I not surprised… Cody was anything but a genius. It seemed like he had 20 initial points to allocate wherever he chose with a default limit of 5. And I was equally not surprised to find that my meathead roommate chose to put 5 in Strength and Constitution again like a barbarian. It’s like all he cared about was his looks and perceived masculinity, even in game.

Strength (physical strength): 5

Constitution (physical build and stamina): 5

Dexterity (agility and flexibility): 2

Intelligence (knowledge): 0

Wisdom (intuition and discipline): 0

Courage (risk-taking and bravery): 3

Charisma (social skills): 3

Luck (good or bad fortune): 2

After looking through his stats, I decided enough was enough and I didn’t really want to go around pretending I was Cody the whole game. I quit out of his save and went back to the title screen. I was back on the save select screen when I became confused. There was still one save, except the name of the character wasn’t Cody…it was mine? The play time was set to 0 minutes. I don’t know how that happened, but if it saves me the trouble of building a character and reading more tutorials, I’m happy.

To my relief, the avatar representing Cody wasn’t there. Instead, a very generic, average character stood in its place in the same room. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was some placeholder account with everything set to the default. Whatever, I can probably change stuff about him later. I decided to move my AlterEgo outside and I was greeted by a map of a large city. I chose an area of the map to explore at random and controlled my new avatar. On the busy city street, there was a cafe, restaurant, and a gym. It was too early for the cafe and restaurant to open, so I guess my only option here is the gym. I’ve never stepped foot in a gym before, but this character doesn’t have to represent me as a whole. Plus, I’d like my character to be well-rounded unlike Cody’s who would probably spend the whole time grinding here.

I went into the gym and had to perform a set of quick-time events. First, I had to do some bench presses. Then some squats. Then finally, run on a treadmill. At the end of it, my AlterEgo did a cartoony celebration and flexed his arms. A pop-up showing that my Strength, Constitution, and Dexterity went up by 1, followed up by another one saying that my Strength and Constitution will double every time I do activities like go to the gym. So it looks like Cody’s modifiers carried over after all despite everything seeming to be the default. That should’ve been the first thing I checked. I didn’t want my character to be specced to be some lumbering brute. I suppose that if I wanted to get my character’s Intelligence and Wisdom, it’d probably be like playing on Hard mode. Honestly, I was open to the challenge.

I was disappointed to find out that it’d be harder than it seemed. When my character got home in the evening, I went into one of his boxes and I was presented with an option to read. I was presented with several options, ranging from comics to full-on novels. I chose the novel since I figured it would raise my Intelligence the best. I watched my AlterEgo try to read the book, but I saw a look of confusion on his face. Eventually, he grew frustrated and threw the book back into the empty box as if he were shooting through a basketball hoop. I expected my Intelligence to stay the same, but no, it actually dropped!

“Sometimes when your AlterEgo fails to complete an activity, their stats can decrease! These stats can even go into the negative. Make sure to keep your stats high because it can become very difficult to increase your stats if they fall below a certain point.”

I couldn’t believe that my character struggled to even read. This guy was nothing like me at all! I hoped that it would be easier to raise my AlterEgo’s Intelligence because I didn’t want him to be a moron. I watched my character fall asleep and I could see into his dream. Another tutorial popped up.

“Sometimes your character will have dreams! These dreams are mostly random, but will also depend on your character’s stats. Just like other activities, you have a chance to increase your stats.”

I watched my character fight in a zombie apocalypse, but the zombies didn’t even look remotely threatening. I succeeded in the activity and my Courage went up by 2 and my Luck and Strength went up by 1. My character wiped his head of sweat as the zombies turned to dust.

The next day, I learned that my AlterEgo can go to school. That was expected, considering my character’s age, only I didn’t realize how hard it would be for him. He was sitting in a desk trying to write down notes. Eventually, like an idiot, he slammed his thick head on his desk and started snoring. This was honestly getting embarrassing. My Intelligence and Wisdom dropped yet again, not by 1, but by 2. If I didn’t do something different, my AlterEgo would basically be a clone of Cody instead of myself. After class, instead of being given an option to go and do something, my AlterEgo is approached by a group of buff men.

Quarterback: Hey new guy, you’re looking pretty strong. Judging from your Strength and Constitution, I think you’d make a good fit for the football team. Your Dexterity and Courage also seem pretty good. Wanna join, bro?

You know who else played football? Cody. I had to keep being reminded of him even when he wasn’t even around. This was my character and I didn’t care about sports, so I clicked the no option. To my surprise, my AlterEgo nodded instead. It's like this game is going out of its way to spite me at this point. Two tutorials popped up.

“If your Wisdom is too low, your AlterEgo might act on their own desires rather than your command. This means that they can sometimes act on their own or select activities that they are more interested in rather than those they are not. Raise your Wisdom or else you will have less freedom when developing your AlterEgo.”

“You have decided to join a club or organization. This will grant you a passive growth to certain stats every week.”

I watched as my AlterEgo walked away with the group of jocks. A football uniform magically appeared over his normal clothes. For joining the football team, I was granted a point in Strength, Constitution, Courage, and Charisma every week, with the usual double for Strength and Constitution.

I kept playing the game, getting frustrated at my AlterEgo’s reluctance to even try to act smart or reasonable. He frequently avoided or skipped intellectual pursuits to focus on those that made him look or feel good. It honestly just felt random whether he wanted to obey me or not. By the end of Day 7, the first week my stats were looking like this.

Strength: 30

Constitution: 28

Dexterity: 10

Intelligence: -20

Wisdom: -15

Courage: 21

Charisma: 17

Luck: 16

My Intelligence and Wisdom seemed unfixable. My AlterEgo wouldn’t even bother to try to read or pay attention at school and he consistently started to make random choices that satisfied his needs as the week progressed. I grew incredibly frustrated at this, but out of curiosity, I wanted to see if there was an end to this so I could go back and make my own character. Either way, this game was plagued with questionable design choices. It’s like the AlterEgo was already locked into a specific path. I hoped that I had accidentally skipped a tutorial or something and that I hadn’t softlocked myself out of raising certain stats. Unfortunately, my AlterEgo’s stats continued to grow and drop as I hit Day 30.

Strength: 75

Constitution: 69

Dexterity: 44

Intelligence: -66

Wisdom: -49

Courage: 54

Charisma: 37

Luck: 41

I received another tutorial message on Day 31.

“You look like you are on track to evolve into your archetype very soon! By this point, your AlterEgo’s stats will be locked in place. That will be the end of the main story, but there is still so much to enjoy afterwards!”

I figured I might as well see this through to the end. You know, see how much of an idiot my character can become. Despite my efforts, all my AlterEgo does now is work out, practice and go to games, and go to parties, outside of necessities. His Intelligence is so low that he rarely even goes to school anymore and that has caused his intelligence to plummet to the bottom. I played for even longer, eventually hitting Day 60. Turns out that this is the day I would discover my AlterEgo’s archetype.

“Congratulations on making it this far. I hope you are excited to find out your archetype, because I know I am! Remember that these changes are permanent, so there will no longer be ways to increase or decrease your stats.”

I watched my AlterEgo marched onto the stage and I was able to view my final stats and a rating of each of them. The descriptions seemed to be heavily based on my other stats, and trust me, they were very satirical, and in my case, very scathing.

Strength: 100

I’d give this an A+. I’m not even sure if you are human anymore. I’ve seen you lift things that no normal man could, not because you have to, but because you want to. You spend more time at the gym than you do at your own house and you might give The Hulk a run for his money.

Constitution: 100

You also get an A+. Your months of training at the gym have given you a perfect, chiseled body that looks like it could be made out of iron. You have a seemingly endless supply of testosterone and your stamina (in more ways than one, it seems) cannot be beaten.

Dexterity: 75

This gets a B. You are very athletic and quick on your feet despite your appearance. However, your large size means that you can be pretty clumsy and you’ve probably broken more things than you’d like to admit.

Intelligence: -100

I’ll just go along with your teachers and give you a big fat F. Are you even trying? I worry that there’s not a single thought going around in your thick skull. You care very little for anything intellectual or sophisticated, not that you even know what those words mean.

Wisdom: -90

Likewise, you also get another big fat F. Were you dropped on your head when you were a baby or did you take too many tackles to your cranium? You have incredibly poor judgment and you only make decisions that satisfy your brutish desires. In short, you often act before you think. Your lack of discipline is only matched by your lack of brain cells. As long as you’re having fun, should I really care what you do with your life?

Courage: 90

I’d give this an A, but not an A+. Because your brain moves too slow to process any risk, you often think before you act. You often find yourself in the most dangerous of situations and you often perform incredibly stupid stunts. When you’re on the field, you’re a risk taker, and at least it usually pays off. On the bright side, you always come out unscathed, so I can commend that.

Charisma: 70

I’d give this a B-. Being on the football team and being very attractive is going to place a lot of eyes on you, but they are all focused on your body because everything else you have to offer is very superficial. I wonder if you surround yourself with people who think and act the same as you do or if people keep you around to laugh at every stupid word that comes out of your mouth.

Luck: 80

Lastly, you get a B. Your luck genuinely amazes me sometimes. Despite everything, despite your lack of any intellectual thought or reasoning, you have survived long enough to make it this far in life. This alone proves that life favors some over others. If there is room for the concept of a higher power in your shrunken headspace, then they probably feel a sense of amusement at the state of you bumbling around through life with only your good looks and muscles salvaging you.

“What do you think? Are you happy with your results? Anyhow, it’s time to reveal your archetype. It’s who you are and who you will be from now on! Drumroll please… (As if it wasn’t obvious enough…) You, my friend, are…THE JOCK!”

The Jock

You are likely an athlete or bodybuilder and you likely care little for intellectual thought. You enjoy playing and watching sports and working out above anything else. You are hyper-masculine, aggressive, arrogant, and egotistical. However, you are also very muscular, tall, athletic, popular, and handsome. You feel a deep sense of camaraderie with anyone you consider your bro, which mostly includes other jocks like yourself. Your wardrobe mostly consists of tank tops, jerseys, varsity jackets, shorts, sweatpants, jockstraps, baseball caps, sneakers, and everything in between. Because of your high testosterone and your above average genitals, you are viewed as a desirable partner and often partake in sexual activities with members of the opposite sex, and sometimes even other men depending on the person and situation. Your most likely career path is as an athlete or coach, but as long as it doesn’t require too much deep thinking, you could probably find a job anywhere with your connections and attractiveness. Enjoy your new self!

I watched my AlterEgo vanish within a cloud of smoke and come out a cartoonish representation of your average stereotypical jock with blonde hair and a very lunkish, yet admittedly impressive build. He looked around, clearly disoriented, with a dull, confused look on his face before flexing with a cheesy, confident smirk on his face. The audience cheered and clapped at this ridiculous personification of a walking stereotype as if they were watching a magic show. Honestly, it was almost amusing how the description it gave for “me” couldn’t possibly be more wrong. It sounded like everything Cody was, not me. Although I guess I was playing with his settings, not by choice I will add, but I had little control over how my AlterEgo decided to live its life. I just wish I could get him off my mind for just one day. Either way, I found myself incredibly dissatisfied with my new AlterEgo, but I accidentally found out a way to make things even worse for me. I just wanted to scroll through the remaining text to get to the credits, since I have been playing for 8 hours by now, when I saw a selection that would seal my fate.

“Are you satisfied with your result? Now that you’ve discovered who you truly are, are you ready to be The Jock in the real world? WARNING: If you select Yes, your save will be deleted as a result. These changes are permanent. If you click No, you can continue playing after the credits.”

I accidentally clicked Yes as I was mashing through the text. What the hell was I thinking?! I had no idea that this would change the entire trajectory of my life. At first I felt nothing, as the screen faded to black. Then, I saw the credits start to roll, playing a remix of the joyful title screen music, and that’s when I started to feel all warm inside and I felt a painful shock come from my controller.

I felt a sudden wave of pain rush through my body as my bones started to crack and shift in my body and my muscles began to inflate like balloons. I looked at the credits and noticed that the new jock AlterEgo was doing the things he normally enjoyed doing in the background. But I couldn’t really concentrate on it as I found myself focusing down below. My legs stretched and stretched until I was around 6’4. My feet grew to a size 15 and my thick glutes and ass made me sink deeper into the couch from their weight. The fat in my stomach felt like it was melting as it left behind nothing more than a layer of sweat and a firm six pack of abs. My upper chest formed into a round set of bouncy pecs. Likewise, my biceps and triceps were almost the size of my head now and my soft hands became rough and covered in calluses from intense lifting. I felt my clothes cling tightly to my body as if they were two sizes too small, and they’d easily rip if my body grew any more. My shirt fit more like a crop top on me and my clothes were damp from pit and ass sweat.

I felt my long hair recede into my head until it formed into a shorter cut that was much easier to maintain. As it did that, my chestnut-colored locks lightened into a golden blonde. My soft, round eyes became more sharp and masculine and I could feel them turn from a chocolate brown into an icy shade of blue. My youthful face lost most of its baby fat and buried beneath it was nothing more than the chiseled edges of my jawline. The lower half of my face, which used to be soft and hairless, was now covered in a prickly lawn of stubble. Even my pasty skin turned a shade tanner from the years I spent in the sun throwing balls around. I noticed that my entire body started to sweat profusely to the point that I could smell my own musk and I became absorbed by my new-found masculine scent. I could smell the testosterone that was pumping through my veins like a drug. I felt powerful, dominant, virile, and dare I say it, good… Lastly, I found my lips contort into an obnoxious, conceited smirk. Was I…enjoying this? Judging from the growing feeling in my groin, I was led to believe that I was. And it kept growing and growing and growing…

All the while, the credits continued to play and the happy-go-lucky music felt like it was mocking my painful situation. Despite the strange pleasure I felt, it was only a distraction as my body still writhed in pain through the whole process while I changed entirely into a real life manifestation of my AlterEgo. What the hell is this game? I noticed that the jock avatar stared directly towards the screen, as if he was breaking the fourth wall, and started to walk closer and closer before vanishing from his virtual prison for good. The lively credits started to simmer down, giving the screen a more empty and disquieting feeling. That was the last thing I noticed before I felt a sharp headache ring through my head. I am usually fine playing games for a long period of time so why…Why did my roommate buy me this game anyways, bro? If he was gonna buy me any game, he should’ve gotten me the new CoD or Madden game, not this weird shit. I had to admit, it was kinda addicting. I liked being able to work out or play sports even when I’m at home. Wait, what was that? I felt like I just heard another voice in my head, both sounding similar yet different to my own. Eventually he called out directly to me.

“Hey bro, it’s me. Your AlterEgo. You know, the real you. It’s been fun, dude. Now I get to enter the real world, isn’t that sick? So here’s what’s gonna happen, dude. I am currently inside your mind and I’m making the final changes to turn you into the person you were always meant to be. That’s right dude, we are becoming one singular person in both body and mind. Don’t try to struggle or fight back. You know I’m stronger than you. There’s no going back. So, are you ready to become one with your true self?

No…I thought to myself. I wasn’t a jock. I was never a jock. I’m nothing like my AlterEgo. This is a mistake. This was Cody’s AlterEgo, not mine!

“Chill out, bro. I know you read the warning and you clicked Yes, so you obviously knew the risk. Why did you keep playing if you knew you’d become a jock regardless of the decisions you made? Because you are one deep down. Or maybe you secretly wanted to be one. Maybe you wanted to see what life was like on the other side. Maybe this Cody guy wanted you to try out this save, you know, to see what would happen... Whatever reasoning, it really doesn’t matter dude. I know you can feel me taking over your mind. You’re finding it harder to think. Soon you’ll be The Jock, me. I just wish you realized a little sooner who you really were…”

I felt my brain starting to shut off and my vision starting to become blurry as my AlterEgo took it over. I don’t even know how any of this is possible, even by today’s standards. An AI buried deep within the game was taking over my body and mind entirely, reshaping me in his image. But I continued to resist, to cling onto whatever parts of my personality I could. However, as I felt my mind sink deeper and deeper into this mental void, I felt myself slowly becoming more and more like The Jock. The archetype that was decided on, not by me, but for me. Until that’s all I was.

Everything turned black for a few seconds. I slowly regained consciousness as my brain rebooted itself. Wait…what’s a reboot? I sat and watched the credits with a dim look on my face as it finally ended. I was booted back to the title screen and saw that my save was indeed deleted. This was proof that my AlterEgo was now a part of me and that he was finally whole. I pulled out my phone wanting to learn more about this game, because, dude, it was kinda fucking weird. By scrolling, I couldn’t find much, but I did discover a post from not too long ago on some ancient forum site that was probably made in the early 2000s.

“Is The Game AlterEgo Real?”

“I’ve heard rumors about this game called AlterEgo, but I have very little information on it. It’s said to be incredibly dangerous and could lead to permanent bodily and mental changes. Throughout all of my research, I could not find any copy of the game for sale, nor any definitive proof that it’s real or any information on the company that developed it. If you have any information on this game, please let me know.”

I skimmed through the forum page, not that interested in reading what everyone had to say. Who has time for that anyways? But I did find one reply that caught my eye.

“I can confirm with certainty that AlterEgo does exist. My friend received it as a gift for Christmas and he wouldn’t stop talking about it to me. It’s like he was addicted. A week later, when I saw him next, I could barely even recognize him. His body had grown and changed greatly and he didn’t act like his usual self. I even feel like his memories might be a little distorted. I tried checking his house to find the game in order to figure out what it was all about, but I don’t think he has it anymore. He probably sold it or gave it away since he said he finished it. No matter what, he won’t tell me. If there are any other copies of the game left, please let me know.”

Woah, so this game is fucking weird, dude. Wasn’t just me. I just played it right? But I don’t feel any different. You know, I bet these nerds would pay a lot for a chance to find out about this game. Maybe they might come out as different people. I’ll put it up on eBay for a high price. One of those dweebs just has to take the bait. I wouldn’t mind a little cash though. I’d feel bad for selling Cody’s gift, but just imagine what I could get with that much money.

“Hey bro, you still in here dude?” I heard a familiar voice shout as they opened the door.

“Yo Cody, there you are. What’s up dude?” I was happy to see him. Cody was my roommate and my best friend. We were practically inseparable. When he made eye contact with me, his eyes widened. I couldn’t really blame him for being impressed with my awesome body.

“You beat that game I gave you already?” He seemed surprised, yet almost impressed.

“Yeah, it’s not usually my type, but I enjoyed it dude.”

“Do you…feel any different, bro?” Cody sounded kinda hesitant there. Had he read about the rumors too? I don’t see why he’d have to worry. None of those rumors are true anyways.

“Nah, same as I’ve always been.”

“Alright, good. I was just making sure you were down to get some food. You should be out partying and celebrating your birthday, not playing some nerdy video game. And trust me, I know all the good spots.”

“You’re right bro. I haven’t gotten enough exercise in today. Let’s go.”

“Wait, before you go, your clothes are so sweaty dude. You should change.”

“Oh shit, good idea.”

“Y-you can just wear one of my clothes. They’d probably fit you better.” He was right. As I soon realized, someone shrunk all my clothes as part of a prank.

Me and Cody went to a sports bar to watch the game. If I remember correctly, this was our favorite spot to get food, except you know, anywhere that lets me hit my macros. Since it was my birthday, he even paid for the whole meal. I don’t remember how long I’ve known him, but couldn’t ask for a better bro. On the way home, Cody grabbed a six pack of beer from the frat house and brought it to our dorm to drink the night away. I wasn’t old enough to drink, but it’s not like I never had alcohol before. And besides, today was basically my cheat day.

We got wasted while we watched TV, and we did some things that I probably wouldn’t admit to anyone but him. I couldn’t help it though. I hadn’t gotten laid all weekend and it was my birthday. Quite frankly, I deserved it. Thankfully Cody took one for the team. He said it wasn’t weird because we’ve definitely done it before and that it was our secret. I had to give him credit. His tight hole is better than most girls’. I didn’t know he was a bottom until tonight. I also didn’t remember having a dick this big, but you don’t see me complaining. After all was said and done, I passed out drunk next to him in his bed, our bodies drenched in sweat and each other’s fluids, as I enjoyed the bromance I have with my best bro. This was the best birthday ever.

The next day, I got up extra early to go for a run despite my hangover. Afterwards I went to school, but like usual, I struggled to pay attention. It was like my mind was in a constant fog. My grades are slipping and this football scholarship is the only thing keeping me from dropping out entirely. After classes, I joined Cody and the others at practice. Throughout the day, I kept getting this feeling of uh…dayjah voo? That word that means that you feel like you’ve done something before. I wasn’t exactly sure where it was coming from. I shrugged it off. I was just a jock and I didn’t need to worry about stuff like that.

When I got home, I got an offer for the game Cody gave me. You know, AlterEgo. Some nerd seriously offered $1000 for it. I didn’t actually know it was that rare. I hope he enjoys it more than I did. I’ll sure enjoy the 1000 dollars. I bet he’ll love passing it around to all his other geeky friends. I wonder what their AlterEgos might look like…

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gloriousdreamerland · 1 month ago

Text

Wait for me?

Pairing: George Weasley x Ravenclawn! Fem! Reader

Warning: Bullying (not by George ofc); Insecurities; Bad english and bad writing (really bad)

Words: 4.8K

Autor notes: I'm planning on doing a masterlist soon! Thanks for the love on the first chapter <3 i'm in my exam week, help.

Synopsis: Angelina and Fred are tying the knot and suddenly Y/N has to face unresolved feelings for George, which is even worse considering she never told him they are soulmates. 9 days of partying are more like 9 days of torture, hopefully she will survive, only if he stops giving her a heart attack every five minutes.

Loathing - 02

“I love you not only for what you are but for what I am when I am with you. I love you not only for what you have made of yourself but for what you are making of me. I love you for the part of me that you bring out” -Elizabeth Barrett Browning

“It’s so damn stressful, ya know? I have to see the seamstress again, talk with the buffet guys, the decoration guys, the band and the ceremonialist, and on top of that more family from my and Fred’s side is coming today and Fred will be out all day talking with the suit guy, cuz, apparently someone stole his suit or whatever. Don’t ever let me get married again.”

Angelina barged in Y/N and Katie’s room early in the morning because of the stress, and since then she’s been walking in circles yapping nonstop. Considering all of this and her tired eyes, she probably couldn't catch a blink tonight.

Yet, only because she didn’t sleep, do they need to be woken up out of nowhere? I see how it is.

“Calm down, Angie,-” Katie, who was still in her pajamas in the bed beside Y/N’s, yawned and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes “we’ll figure something out, have you talked with Fred?”

“We tried to solve it yesterday before trying to sleep, but i didn’t see him today. The tailorman asked him to come early, he can’t waste time so he wanted to work early considering that the wedding is in six days. I need your help, girls. please.” Angie pleaded while sitting on Y/N’s empty bead, looking at her friends.

Y/N, who was at the dressing table, tying her hair into a messy braid, smiled at her friend and went to sit with her in her bed.

“Close your eyes.” She took her friend’s hands in hers and waited, but Angie just looked at her in confusion “C’mon!” Angis signed and did as her friend asked her “Now take a deep breath, forget about these problems and think of the wedding, the party, of finally becoming ms. Weasley” finally a smile showed up on her face “You just gotta hold on a little bit more!” She shoved Angie in the sheets and started laughing beside her.

“Bold of me to think you were serious!” Angelina rolled her eyes, but was not really annoyed at the girl.

“You guys didn’t get up already?! Today we’re busy.” Katie showed up out of nowhere beside them, pajamas long gone and hair flawless.

“Ugh i forgot i could use magic to get ready. I’ve spent too much time in the muggle world”

From time to time, Y/N would reflect if it all wasn’t too much effort to get over some guy, in some quiet midnights she would think of what would happen if she decided to go back, then all that anxiety from not being able to erase the past, or, at least warn her younger self about her actions come back. It always comes back. So she stayed, far away from her doubts, running from her feelings forever, but not fast enough to block these thoughts out. Always addicted to the if only.

At Least the muggle world wasn’t bad. She’s from a half muggle half wizard family, so, no matter where she goes, she’s never really alone, and traveling she has met some really good muggles. Yet no one chooses “really good” to marry, right? So the loneliness only crept her ways in the middle of the night, when she’s by herself.

After all, George Weasley wasn't just some guy.

“Let’s distribute tasks. Divide and conquer, right?” Y/N suggested while getting up from the bed.

“No one else can talk to the ceremonialist, or the seamstress, only me, and some people in my family have some allergies I need to discuss with the chef.” Angie pondered.

“Then I'll see the decorations and the band. I'll owe you after, okay? So Y/N will welcome the guests.” Katie concluded, already taking notes.

“Sure! Do you know where you need to go?” Angie asked Katie, her face lightening up from her friends’ help. They were so busy making plans that they didn’t notice Y/N's downcast face.

She will have to talk to all these people? All by herself? In the center of the attention?

Y/N wasn’t sure when her problem with being the center of attention started, maybe when she tried to transform a pen into a cat, but she spelled the spell wrong and a friend behind said pen got turned into a mouse. In front of the whole class. At Least she didn’t live this traumatic experience alone.

Or, maybe it was one time in Snape’s class, when she was supposed to be making a potion that help with hair growth, it was a shared class with the Gryffindors, all of her friends were there, including George, and when Snape was supposed to inspect the potion, something went terribly wrong and the the cauldron started to bubble in a strange way, then the liquid exploded right in Snape's face, not only that, but, for a whole damn week his hair was blue. She heard whispers in the hallways for weeks and Snape didn’t leave her alone for a year. He really should work on getting over the past.

Curiously, none of these times were the reason, and even though she doesn’t like being the center of attention, she always has been outspoken. Well, kinda.

Now, she’ll have to face your fears and speak with too many people. Not only that, she'll have to organize these people, in a house that she literally doesn’t live in, people who she only has met once or twice, if that…

“Babes, you don't understand how much all your support means to me. Dad will be around if you need help finding the rooms. Will you be okay?” Angie asked with concern, she always knew about her friend's problems. She was there in Snape’s incident and wiped the tears from her face, she was there when she tripped in front of the whole school, and when she made her team lose the first and only time she tried to get in quidditch. After all these times, how could Y/N say no to one of the only people who were with her through it all? The answer is simple: She couldn't.

“I know Angie,” She tried to show her friend her best encouraging smile. “I'll be fine, just glad to ease the burden. Don’t worry about me”

Angelina definitely should’ve been worried about her. Only if she knew how catastrophically everything would go really damn wrong.

It all started when the first family arrived. Only three people: Angie’s Uncle, Aunt and cousin, should be easy. Then she forgot where they were supposed to stay.

Before going out, Angelina left a list with the names of the newly arrived and the rooms they were supposed to stay in -like, how much money do you have to earn to make such a big house?-, even if she writes like a three year old toddler, it is better than nothing. Theoretically.

It would be better if Y/N could read shit.

Seriously. The names of the family that just arrived are: Emily, the mother, Bob, the father, and little Timothy, the son, a very lovely family. However, in the list there’s at least scribbles that kinda looks like Bob, only if you squint a little. Now the kid is getting fussy, which means that the mother is now starting to get impatient and the father isn’t looking so pleased either.

She really should go find mr. Johnson.

“Could you wait a second here? I’ll talk with mr.Johnson for a second, okay? I'll be right back!” Y/N said, her voice dripping with sweetness.

The girl stormed out of the front hall in search of the older man. Looked in most rooms, halls, the garden, his office, damn, even in the bathroom -it would be too awkward if he was actually there-, Y/N needed to find him fast, she was too afraid to go back to the front hall without him after making them wait so long.

Ding-dong

Oh no, more people just now?

The witch rushed to the window to have a look at the trouble she got herself in, there is a cab in the front of the house: an older woman hand in hand with an older man, probably the parents, a young girl, probably not older than 12 years old, and… oh no, not she.

Nathasha Johnson, aka the worst girl Y/N L/N has met in her entire life.

When Y/N met Natasha it was in her first year in Hogwarts, when she was still a little girl trying to find her way in this new world. She was the first girl she met in her house, Ravenclaw, from afar she was all smiles and kind intentions. It was just when she got a closer look that she saw the poison dripping from her teeth. Not literally, of course.

It wasn’t obvious at first, her bad intentions. It was a comment about her skills here, or a comment about her appearance, about how she yapped too much, or even when she was too quiet -Is “did the cat get your tongue” the best you can do? really??-, all masked with funny jokes and good intentions, until she got meaner and meaner, so much Y/N couldn’t excuse her behavior anymore and cut her out, sadly along with her, half her house cut Y/N out too. At Least she still got her Gryffindors friends by her side.

Then it all got worse in her fifth year for no reason and got more…aggressive, but she didn’t tell anyone, cuz she didn’t want to bother their busy lives, especially with the war that was inevitable. After all, a school bully is just that: a pathetic school bully, and she wouldn’t have to see her ever again after school because she was a distant cousin of Angie that just happened to be in the same school as them.

It was a good thought until destiny punched her on the face.

She dragged her feet back to the beginning of her journey, hating what she was sure was coming next.

“Making the guests late? I always knew you were slow thinking, but that’s just blatantly rude” Natasha said, her voice snarky as ever. Bold of Y/N to think that people really mature after highschool.

“I-...” Years since the last time she saw her, literally one billion ways to answer that bitch and she can’t think of one. “I’ll see what i can do for you guys,” she turned her attention to the first family “i’m sorry for making you wait, i’m still kinda confused about the organization here. Let me see again on the list where you’ll be staging.” Y/N smiled sincerely at them, she really is sorry, even without Natasha’s comments.

“Years since school and you are still that slow? Too think some people evolve after school”

This time, Y/N couldn’t stop to think of a proper answer cuz she was too busy trying to decipher which one of these rooms Bob’s family will be staying in, literally back to the beginning. Maybe the room down the hall will be a good fit, but hasn’t Angie commented about a family that was extremely allergic to some insects that live in the grass so they needed to be allocated on the second floor? If she guides them to the wrong room it will be a headache to fix it.

“Sweetie, are you having trouble? Maybe you should’ve bringed David here. Where is he? The mother, ms. Daisy, asked. Now Y/n can really see the tiredness in her eyes and how her kid is really close from throwing a fit.

“I’m really sorry, but I don't know where he is. Don’t worry, just give me a second”

“Hasn’t she given you enough time?” Natasha really couldn't let her catch a break.

“You just arrived! You don’t know anything” Y/N can feel herself getting worked up. It would be best to find the damn room before she makes an even worse first impression in that family.

Her mind started running nonstop, thoughts so loud she didn’t feel the presence beside her, or the head looking over her shoulder.

“You can stay in the second room to the left, while Natasha’s family can stay down the hall to the right.” The families started to go on their ways while the girl sighed in fright, George Weasley once again appeared out of nowhere

“George, you scared me! Your mom should put a bell on you.” He barked out a laugh.

“I just helped you and you treat me like this? Next time i’ll turn a blind eye on it”

No, he wouldn’t, and Y/N knew that.

“What are you doing here? I thought you would go with your brother to the tailor.”

“And miss the opportunity to be with you a little more? i’d never.”

“Suuuure” The woman stated sarcastically, dragging the u “Anyway, how did you know which rooms they were staying in? I've been trying to decipher this for at least an hour!”

“Oh i didn’t”

She opened her eyes in surprise.

“George! If Angelina knows you did this I'm screwed!” Y/N crossed arms looking angry at the man.

The twins had this habit of acting without thinking, or not really caring about the consequences, she wasn’t sure.

“You were looking like a fish out of water there, if something happens to the rooms we can help them change later, okay? It'll be fine” The Red head smiled at the girl, who felt the butterflies in her stomach again even being angry at him. “Now stop frowning, it makes you look like a troll” He smirked when she looked at him in pure offense, then she gave him a light slap in the arm.

“How dare you?! You look like a troll!”

“Ouch! You would me, woman.” He rubbed the place she hit with an offended face. “You would be a cute troll”

“George” She warned, trying to hold the smile that was fighting to show up with all this nonsense.

Before they could talk more, a new family showed up by the front door.

“Stop joking around, L/N, we've got a job to do-” He turned to go help the family but she put a hand in his arm to stop him.

“Wait,” Now his attention is back at her “You don't have to do this, i can handle it on my own”

“I can help you tho” His once smirk turned into something sweeter.

“It will take time, like, a lot of time”

“I know”

“These families are impatient”

“I figured”

“You don't have to feel pressured to help me, really, i was just kinda nervous cuz that was the first family that came here, i'm really sure now i can figure something out, really-”

“Hey,-” George took her hand that was still in his arm and held it. She couldn't decipher that look on his face. “I want to help you, and we make a good team anyway.”

“I can’t count all the times that our projects resulted in disaster”

Y/N really couldn't get why on earth would he prefer to spend a whole day helping her. Even her didn’t want to be there.

“But we always got a laugh over it.”

“George.”

“Why? Didn’t you? If I remember correctly, you always did. Am I wrong?” By the look on his face, he wasn’t really unsure of the past, he just wanted to rub it on her face.

As if she would ever have a dull moment with him.

“You're right, but-”

“Will you let me help you?” His free hand also started holding her's, as if he knew the effect it would have on her.

“I…-” She could almost feel the heat in her cheeks. “Sure, but don't blame later when you get tired and bored”

“I'd never get bored with you. You're too funny” Y/N was once again left speechless while George rushed to welcome the new family. “Y/N come on, Don’t be lazy!”

Around the end of the afternoon finally all the hard work had been done, the families were allocated in their rooms.

George was a really helping hand in this, helping with luggage and stepping up when she didn’t know where to send these families, but after some time it became easier.

Now she isn’t really forced to do anything, but cousin Mia asked for a favor, just to bring her mother a glass of water. It's a bit of a silly favor to have to bring someone a cup of water, but Auntie Emilly has always been the sweetest to Y/N, so she didn't mind doing that favor for her.

Emily Johnson has always been her favorite in Angies family -If you don’t count Angie, of course-, she would play hide-in-seek with the kids, give them candy when the other adults weren’t looking, play dress up with the girls and hide the kids when they got into trouble. She has always been the fun aunt and even not knowing Mia that well, Y/N was sure she is a fun mother too.

Knock knock

“Who is it?” Emily’s voice echoed muffled from the other side of her room.

“It’s me, auntie!”

“Oh, Y/N! enter please”

Y/N opened the older woman’s door and stood by the doorframe.

“Hi Emilly, Mia asked me to take you a glass of water. Are you feeling ok?” She asked with concern.

“Come in, sweetie! Don’t just stand there,-” She patted the spot beside her in the bed “Come and sit with me”

With a big smile on her face, Y/N did as told.

“Here, your glass.” She tried to give Emilly the glass, but she refused.

“Don’t worry about me, Ernie gave me a glass before heading out” Her smile grew just by talking about her soulmate.

Ernie was always Emilly’s favorite topic, her first thought in the morning and her favorite person. Soulmates may not be something rare, but their love definitely is. If anyone wondered if true love really exists, just an evening with the couple and this person would never be the same, well, Y/N wasn’t the same.

When Y/N was younger, she used to dream she and George would be exactly like this, so damn in love. It’s sad that such a dream was pushed aside by other people. What's even worse is that she never confide such troubles with anyone, afterall, it was such a burden to carry, she didn’t want any of her loved ones to feel it. It was too heavy.

“He’s still the devoted husband, i see” she said with a grinning smile

“I made it very clear the day we married that the day he stopped caring would also be the day he wouldn’t have a wife anymore. He didn’t let me down in thirty years”

“Well, if you don’t want that water i should take it-” Before she could get up, Emilly stopped her.

“No no no, you’re not going anywhere before spilling the tea,” Y/N laughed out loud “How’s life treating you?”

“I’m fine, my job is doing well, I'm just really glad to see Angie taking the next step, y’know.” Her smile turned sweeter.

“Oh yes, Angie and this Weasley guy make a really cute couple. But what about you, dear? Any sign of your soulmate?”

Well, last time she saw him, he was in the garden.

“I don’t know, maybe I'm just not made for this…” made for love.

“What do you mean?”

“I-...Emilly, when you met Ernie, did you have any doubts?” Life is too short to take secrets to the grave, and, if she was willing to tell anyone a bit of what's happening in her mind, it would definitely be Emilly.

“About him?”

“No, more like…hypothetically speaking, what if your soulmate is good, too good for you, and you’re just…well, you, and maybe destiny made some kind of a sick joke.” She didn’t dare to look at Emilly trying really hard to control her teary eyes.

“Well, hypothetically speaking, i would say is a mistake to not let yourself live this, the day i met Ernie was the best day of my life, and that you are the beauty you see in the world, if there’s something of you in the things that you hate, there’s also something of you in the things that you love, also, there’s a reason for you soulmate to be the way he is, i don’t think bad people end up with bad people. Soulmates are for this, you know, for the good and the bad, for the moments of courage and insecurity, talk with him-,” she kissed her temple tenderly “And if you have…well, if you ever find him, tell me, okay?”

“Okay, i’ll…i’ll think about it,” She stood up with the glass in her hands and headed to the door “Thanks auntie”

“See you later, Sweets”

It’s…definitely a lot to think about. Maybe auntie Emilly is right and Y/N should come clear to George, he’s her soulmate after all, but Emilly didn’t listen to what she did, or saw what she did. It’s hard to believe you’re enough when half of your life people have been telling you the opposite, people that didn’t have a clear reason to. The process isn’t a straight road.

Her mind was so clouded with her thoughts that she didn’t see the other person in the hall, just when she felt a student bump on her shoulder. She really should start to pay attention to her surroundings.

“Still with your head in the clouds, huh? I still wonder how you ended up in Ravenclaw” Natasha, snarky as ever, looked her up and down.

Y/N was still surprised that she actually bumped into her. It wouldn’t be any news in school, but now adulthood is a completely different history.

“Don't you have something better to do? Scare children, perhaps? With that ugly face of yours” Not a good answer, but not bad either. At Least she had enough guts to answer this time.

“You’re such a-...” With anger dripping from her words, she almost threw a tantrum but just in time someone passed in the hallway, reminding them they’re not in school anymore. Natasha doesn't have that power over Y/N anymore.

But that didn’t mean she got less scary.

Turning back to Y/N, her face got a renewed anger, and slowly she got closer to Y/N, step by step, and Y/N tried to get away from her. Then her back hit the wall.

This situation made her heart race, not in a butterflies in stomach way, but in a fight or flight way. Too scary.

“I don’t have to do anything, you’re so useless you’re gonna ruin yourself without my help” The feeling of fear made her back away from the girl, no bothering to argue back.

It’s just sad she didn’t see Natasha’s feed in place just to make her fall.

Bump Crack

In just a second Y/N fell on the ground, the glass broke and the carpet got all wet. Maybe aunty Emilly was wrong, maybe she would never get over highschool and she would just make it all worse.

The sound of steps made her pay more attention, maybe it was Natasha coming back. She didn’t want to know what she came back to do if she really came back.

Great thing it wasn’t her. Bad thing it’s George, she didn’t want to let him see her in that state.

“What- Y/N? What happened here?” He looked at the scene before his eyes with concern.

Slowly she got up.

“I’m fine,-” she waved her hands trying to ease his mind “I just bumped on someone”

He kneeled down beside her, taking her hand in one hand and his wand in the other.

“What are you-”

“You’re hurt, I know you can't stop for a second, but try to stay still.” Now that he pointed it out, she noticed a small cut in the palm of his hand

“Look who’s talking” the lack of response made her notice the concern in his eyes “I'm fine, it's a small cut, it's not even painful”

“If you don’t stop shaking your hand I'm gonna get the spelling wrong and turn you into a frog. Imagine that in the wedding” Y/N giggled at the joke.

“Would be hella weird” She smiled and let him help her. In a blink her hand was cleaned, just like the carpet and the broken glass on the ground.

Satisfied with his work, George got up from the ground and offered the girl a helping hand, which she gladly took, and also got up from the ground with a bit of difficulty, her muscles still stiff from the fall.

“You're still running around? I thought we finished our hard work”

“I thought Auntie Emilly needed a glass of water and I couldn't say no to her, ya know? But she actually didn’t need it and- Anyway, i think i'm done now” She looked deep in his eyes and smiled “Thank you for helping me, even when i was kinda of a nuthead”

“Don’t worry thank me, you gonna pay me back helping me in the shop”

“Free labour?!” Y/N faked offense

“I Carried suitcases all day, it's your turn to carrie boxes all day”

“Oh, of course i will,” She pulled her sleeve up and flexed her arm, showing absolutely no muscle at all “Look at those muscles”

“Wow, look at these. You didn't even need my help” He pretended to be shocked with those “muscles”

“Right?,” she laughed, “But thanks for the help anyway, instead of helping with boxes I could fix us a drink, are you in the mood for tea?”

“I miss moments like this, ya’ know.” George commented before taking a sip of the black tea in his cup.

Following her to the kitchen, Y/N made them black tea and took a couple cookies in the cabinet. Now they're sitting side by side in the garden, on the steps of the tiny stairs.

“My tea?”

“That too, but more important, staying like this, with you” Her heart stepped a beat. It’s not fair how he got to say things so sweets like this without even noticing the effect it had on her.

“I miss it too. I remember we used to sit in the kitchens all the time, drinking tea and hiding from detention.” Y/N smiled. “Even after years i still remember how you like your tea”

“I noticed, i always like it best when you do it for me”

She bumped her shoulder in his.

“Don’t say things like that, your mom might hear it and be sad.”

The two of them stood a moment looking at each other, trying to understand what the other was thinking.

“You know, I always wondered why you never came back. I wasn’t joking when i said i was glad with de wedding cuz it would give me a chance to see you again”

This made her heart stiffen with remorse. When she got away, she didn't notice how selfish she was, putting all this soulmate thing aside. They really were good friends and he has always been good to her, then she goes practically no contact with him for two years.

She should've paid him a visit.

She should've sent him a letter.

She didn’t notice the hurt she was feeling he was feeling as well.

Maybe this is a soulmate kind of thing.

“I think…I think the war hit me hard, I just really needed to get away.” Even though it wasn't true, it wasn't a lie either.

“I’m not saying that to make you feel bad, I'm saying that to make you visit me more, dumbass” He bumped his shoulder in hers trying to lighten up the mood, but she really needed to get this out of her chest.

“I'm sorry for making you worry, I'm sorry for never visiting, I'm sorry for being a bad friend. From now on I'm gonna visit you so much that you're gonna get sick of me” without even thinking she put her cup down and gave George a hug. He also didn’t think much and hugged her tighter.

“I don’t think I could ever get sick of you.” He stated it like a fact.

That definitely is a soulmate kind of thing.

#george weasley x reader #george weasley #george weasley fanfiction #george weasley imagine #soulmate au #soulmates

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chaotickryptonitetree · 1 year ago

Text

grant me easiness and i'll give you everything (it's only fair) | jeremy swayman

what I feel about him is alarming and frighting and yap yap yap. hope you like!

Whoever claimed to enjoy airports had clearly never been an Uber driver.

Sure; the money was significantly better than a normal ride—but the traffic? And the poor temperament? And the confusing lanes? It made you question if it was even worth the money.

But there were bills to pay, so you added tonight to the list of nights you ended up at the rideshare terminal of the airport.

You knew by now that flights usually got in on the 10s (7:10, 8:10, etc), so people would have collected their luggage and made their way to ride shares by the 35s (give or take). Glancing at the dash cam, you read 9:32. As if on cue, your phone pinged with a few alerts.

Typically, you’d choose the one that offered the most money. But it had been a long night, with a lot of rides, and had made enough to finish a bit early. So you picked the one that would put you closest to home. And it happened to be Jeremy, who wanted to end up at a brownstone around 7 minutes from your building.

And you waited.

Just for a minute or two before a knock on the back window stirred you from completely zoning out. Instinctively, you unlocked the car and a body slid into the back seat.

“Jeremy?” You confirmed, not bothering to look back.

“How do you know that?” A cheery voice forced your hand, made you make eye contact with him in the mirror. Mistake.

“Are you Jeremy or not?” You were paid to drive, not indulge lazy jokes. Still, his kind eyes didn’t waver.

“Just messin,” he looked out the window and mockingly placed a light touch to the window. Despite yourself, you tracked the movement, watching his hands (his large, large hands). Mistake. “Driver, take me home.” He sighed a wistful sigh, and even though you didn’t want to, a small smile found its way to your face. Putting on the turn signal, you merged into the departure lane and turned up the stereo.

Checking your blindspot, you pulled onto the freeway—traffic was awful so it would be a long ride despite the short mileage.

“Temperature okay?” You asked politely, following your script.

“Just right!” You could hear the smile in his voice, even though you refused to look at him again.

“Music alright?”

“My favorite!” You raised an eyebrow at his response—top 40 radio was no one’s favorite. But that was your last question that usually made riders feel heard enough to give 5 stars. Slightly relieved (as always), you settled in for the drive.

Usually you spent the time working through a problem in your head, really getting into the whys and hows of something that was bothering you. One of your friends was being distant, so you started there. She had started this behavior about a month ago, so that could mean that—

“I flew in from Alaska,” that cheery voice interrupted your internal monologue completely.

“That’s nice,” your reply was non-committal. You didn’t usually talk to riders that much. Didn’t plan on making it a habit.

“Yup!” He popped the p sound. “I’m from there, and I was visiting my family. It was awesome—I really miss them when I’m here for a long time.”

“Nice.” You were out of practice making small talk with a new person (to put it lightly). He just nodded—the only indication being the sound of fabric moving around his neck as he did so.

“So, where are you from?” He leaned forward in his seat, as if genuinely interested—as if knowing where this stranger grew up was a seriously important part of his night.

“I don’t have to talk to riders just because,” you cringed at how mean you sounded. He didn’t even deflate a little, just leaned back and laughed a slightly weird laugh.

“Fair enough,” his tone made you wonder if he was always this happy, this unphased.

And then the music filled the space as much as your stale air freshener did—even if the air was tinged with a bit of guilt on your part.

“I can feel you looking at me,” your eyes darted to him again in the mirror. Brown eyes forgiving and kind and very, very cute.

“Not tryna hide it.” It could’ve been taken as flirting, but you had the impression that he was just like this with everyone. Still, it warmed your cheeks just a little bit. “I’ve just never had such a pretty Uber driver,” and then a moment later, “well, a pretty one that’s my age, I mean.”

You laughed, despite yourself. “Pining after older women are ya?” He smiled easily, and it definitely was for him—easy.

“Look at this face and tell me I’m not a cougar's dream,” he laughed loudly. You didn’t look back for safety reasons (and convinced yourself that was the only reason). He leaned forward again. “I like it though,” his words felt like an admission, even if he didn’t lower his voice. Everything about him just felt—genuine? In a way that made every breath feel like a secret. “Makes me feel like I have a hot girlfriend who likes me enough to pick me up at the airport.”

You scoffed. If he wanted a hot girlfriend, it definitely wouldn’t be hard—not with his easy charm and pretty face. “I’m only here because I’m being paid.” You hesitated. “And there’s no way you don’t have someone who likes you enough to brave the traffic.”

You could sense his delight through your headrest. “Oh yeah I do,” he looked out the window again, “I have the best friends in the entire world. They were just busy tonight.” He sighed as if the idea of his friends was as good as having them in the seat next to him. It was quiet for a moment. “But no girlfriend, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“I wasn’t asking,” your tone was blunt, but you couldn’t help but smile. He laughed his weird, goofy laugh.

“Call me a romantic,” he addressed you by name—something you typically didn’t like from patrons in your backseat—but it felt different with him. “But I want that—someone who wants to be the first person to see you when you get back, who can’t even wait to kiss you even if it’s in front of a whole terminal.”

“Sounds like you’ve been watching too many rom coms,” but that suddenly felt unkind to such a gentle man, so then a moment later, “I hope you find that.”

“I will,” he seemed absolutely sure. “Oh shoot,” he raised his fists to the sky mockingly. “My phone died. Curses!”

“I have a charger,” you looked around for the cord while still keeping an eye on the road. He stayed quiet for a moment, considering.

“No, I have an android,” he quickly put his phone in his front pocket, eyes squinting with trouble. Trouble that made you think that he definitely didn’t have an android. “Oh wait! I have an idea!” He completely over-sold his facial expressions, making you question where he was going with this little scheme.

“And what would that be?” your tone was dry, eyes still on the road as you took the exit off the freeway, only a few minutes from his destination.

“So I can give you your rightfully earned tip!” He reasoned, “you can give me your phone number so I can send you money once I get my phone charged.” You could feel his hopeful gaze on you, like his plan was the most logical course of action ever spoken.

Logistically, it made no sense. You could tip an Uber days after your ride. “And what—you’ll just remember my number until then?” For some reason that was the first question you asked.

He nodded, serious as you’d seen him. “Of course,” he said incredulously, “I remember important stuff.”

And it didn’t make any sense. And you could’ve said no. And this was probably against some sort of employer code. And he was definitely this charming with everyone. But he looked so endearing and hopeful and there was something very good about him. Something right.

So you rattled off your number, and he mouthed each number after you said it. And you believed him that he would remember it.

And you believed him as he opened the door to leave, wishing you a good night. And you believed him as he waved from the top step. And as he opened the door and turned around for one more look, mouthing goodbye.

Despite yourself, you believed him.

…

Your bed was heaven after a long stint in the car. Practically asleep before your head hit the covers, a notification sounded from your phone.

A message from an unrecognized number was the last thing you saw before sleep.

From: unknown

Sent $50

And then a moment later, after you saved his contact.

From: Jeremy

Any interest in meeting me at Dunkin on Tuesday morning?

You went to sleep smiling. He remembered.

…

You agreed to meet him early—you typically liked to start driving before 11 and he had morning skate.

The sun had just risen as you walked to a Dunkin about halfway between you and him, bundled up in a puffer jacket and a toque. The bell jingled above the door as you entered, blowing warm air into your hands. It was freezing out.

You didn’t even have time to glance around and look for him before a tall, broad body in a black coat walked up to you and held out his arms for a hug. And then you weren’t freezing anymore. Not even a little bit.

He released you with a smile, linking your arms together and pulling you into line. “What do you usually get?” You asked, convincing yourself that you certainly were not leaning into his side. Definitely not.

He peered down at you, tucked into his side, nose red from the cold. “Whatever looks good,” he admitted, “usually the thing with the most cream and sugar.”

You laughed—even if you didn’t really know him, the idea that he didn’t have an order, that he just let himself enjoy whatever he wanted (even if it had a ton of sugar), that seemed very him.

“I’ll get that too,” you definitely snuggled into his side more, but maybe it was so you didn’t have to face his genuine smile so head on. Maybe?

And so he ordered for you both, but not before complimenting the teenage cashier’s pride pin and asking what his favorite donut was.

“Dunno,” the kid had braces and posture that seemed to shrink in on itself, and was clearly not used to anything beyond what can I get for you, “sprinkle looks pretty good today.”

“Then two of those too,” he put the spare change (and a five) in the glass tip jar. “Thanks brother,” he put out his knuckles for a fist bump. The kid tapped his fist lightly to Jeremy’s, completely won over.

Like a puppy, he quickly found something else to entertain himself with while you waited. “We almost have matching jackets!” He gestured to his black north face and your navy one. You pulled a face—how could he find such delight in everything?

“I guess?” You pinched your face together. He didn’t mind.

“Very couple-y of us,” he put his hands up at the look you shot him. “I had to say it,” He shook his head like it was obvious. And it was so cute you didn’t give him a hard time about it.

“Thanks for paying,” you directed the subject elsewhere, “you didn’t have to do that.” He shrugged, eyes fixed on your drinks as the barista (are they called baristas at Dunkin??) set down two identically light and sweet drinks.

“My pleasure,” he grabbed the bag with two sprinkle donuts inside.

“I’ll send you my share,” you made to grab your phone from your pocket. His hand over yours stilled the movement entirely, warmth emanating from his palm.

“You got it next time,” he shrugged—like obviously there would be a next time. And you believed him, hand now interlaced with his.

“I know it’s bad for me,” he groaned as he took a sip, “but it’s actually the best thing I’ve ever tasted.” A completely innocent line, but it felt dirty as he said it. Or maybe you were just losing it over how his thumb moved over yours.

“Oh,” you responded quietly, taking a sip of yours. Total sugar bomb. “Well you’ll work it off anyways in practice I’m sure,” you fumbled over your words just a little bit. He seemed amused. “Like, looking at you, I’d never guess you have a sweet tooth,” you said, even though there was absolutely no reason to keep talking. He titled his head in delight. “Because you look totally in shape—you look, great. Yeah.” A true example of vocal mastery was on display tonight.

He took a bite of donut, his white teeth a sight so intimate it made you blush. He hummed while chewing, nodding. “Oh yeah? I’m not sure why you mean…should we keep talking about how hot I look?” He joked before pulling a very embarrassed you into his side and out into the chilly air. It didn’t feel as cold with his hand around yours though.

You laughed an embarrassed laugh. “Easy, you big dope, I was trying to be nice.” He laughed into your toque, head on top of yours.

“I know, I know.” And then he went into talking about how he wasn’t a fan of Dunkin before moving to New England and now he was addicted. And you just listened, toasty from humiliation and content as he walked you home, hand covering yours.

…

You offered to pick him up from practice later in the week (he had asked you to come to a home game, but you weren’t quite ready for that yet). He was right on time, waving an animated wave as he walked out the door with a few teammates.

You waved back (a bit more timid in the presence of his friends), and turned to que up your next song. He knocked lightly on the window, and you rolled it down. He was bent over, face in the window as he glanced toward the backseat.

“Want to meet my friends?” He asked politely, clearly excited.

You hesitated, which made him continue. “No pressure at all. If you don’t want to, I can hop in the backseat and we can pretend you’re my Uber driver again,” he smiled a grin that was so genuinely happy it made you less nervous. You turned off the engine.

“No way,” you unbuckled your seatbelt. “I wanna meet ‘em.” You opened the door and shut it softly behind you, wrapping your arms around yourself instinctively. He pumped his fist.

“Let’s go!” He seemed overjoyed. It was quite possibly the sweetest reaction to such a nothing event. You rolled your eyes, but let him pull you in front of him, large hands rested on your shoulders, steering you to face his two teammates.

He introduced you to them both (they were sweet, but there was something on their face that made you unsure if they were making fun of you or jeremy–or both–or no one). But listening to them banter back and forth while you stood pressed to the front of him made you realize that they just joked around like that.

Jeremy was usually the punchline–but he didn’t mind. He was easy to laugh, easier to smile, and made a point of pulling you impossibly closer to him. If his friends noticed, they didn’t say anything.

But then the fact that they didn’t say anything made you wonder just how many people he had introduced to his friends. Maybe they were having a non-reaction because they were so used to it? You stiffened slightly under his hands.

And he must’ve felt it, because he placed a feather-light kiss to your hair–which did pull a reaction from his boys.

“If you’re around on new year’s, we’re throwing something and you are obviously invited,” one of them nodded towards you, eyes a little wide.

“Obviously?” You questioned, but felt far more comfortable than a moment ago. The taller one laughed, eyes flickering to Jeremy’s briefly.

“Obviously,” he confirmed. “You think this is our first time hearing about you?” He shook his head, clapping the shorter one on the back. “Sway here wouldn’t shut up about you. If you didn’t respond to his text he was going to make us call every Uber in Boston until one of us got you as a driver.”

You hit his chest as you turned around. “You goof,” you meant to say–but the words died on your tongue when your eyes met his–so full of genuine enjoyment and content that it warmed you from the inside out. You turned toward them again, waving goodbye.

“I’ll see you on new year’s then.”

“Nice to meet you,” they parroted, smirking at Jeremy. “We’ll see ya sway.” He waved and let you pull him into the passenger seat.

“I like your friends,” you rubbed your hands together and blew on them. He smiled a radiant smile.

“You’ll love the rest of the guys,” he pulled your free hand into his lap, both palms wrapped around it, warming you right up. You drove the rest of the way home with one hand so he could keep a grip on you. He gave you a play-by-play of practice (which drills he did best on, what made him laugh the most, what he wanted to focus on for the next game), only coming up for air once.

“I really like you,” he said earnestly, as matter-of-factly as when he spoke about drills. It made you shake your head.

“Obviously I like you too,” the words felt good to be out–like you didn’t realize how true they were until you said them aloud.

He brought your hand to his lips and pressed a chaste kiss to your knuckles. “Obviously?” You could feel his smile on the back of your hand.

“It's, like, impossible not to.” You pulled in front of his building, putting the car in park. Meaning to pull your hand back from him–a little embarrassed–but didn’t even make it over the console before he crushed you in a hug over the center console. The steering wheel dug into your side, nose crushed into his chest, hair static-y all over his puffer. But you couldn’t bring yourself to back out of it–arms rubbing circles against the back of his coat.

You had no idea how much time had passed when he pulled back, grabbed his bag from the trunk, and walked up to the front door. It was probably the longest he had gone without talking around you. But you didn’t mind. You liked him when he talked, when he didn’t, when he smiled, when he breathed.

You smiled all the way home.

…

You agreed to walk to the new year’s eve party together. It was just far enough away for you to prepare to meet more of the people from his world and hear about his last couple road games. Just hearing him talk made your nerves melt away.

He insisted on meeting on your doorstep, however, even though it added 10 minutes to his walk. He texted when he was on his way.

From: J

Be there in a few!

From: you

You need my address?

From: J

Course not.

And then.

I remember important stuff.

You went in for a hug as you opened the door–a new part of your routine.

“Hey,” your greeting was muffled into his puffer. His navy?? Puffer. One identical to your own. You thumbed the material and glanced up at him. “Nice coat?” You raised your eyebrows.

He laughed loudly, tipping his head back. “I wanted to match.” The way he said it made it feel obvious–tone like a noncommittal shrug. Like why wouldn’t he want to match?

The ease of the gesture was lovely. He was lovely. “Well then,” you linked your arm with his, setting off down the stairs and onto the sidewalk, “it is an honor to match with you tonight.”

He let a grin brighten his face. “You smell really good,” he breathed into your hair. “Like you always do. And I like the glitter you have–” He ghosted a thumb over your brow bone, “here.”

And the loveliness haunted you the entire walk over, conversation easy and light. He was so open, so kind, in a way that eased openness and kindness from you as well.

So the night was much better than you had expected. It felt natural to meet his friends, his teammates, their wives, their kids. It didn’t feel like being thrust into a brand new world. It just felt like natural–like getting another piece of Jeremy was a privilege.

And you didn’t feel out of place with how enamored you were with him–everyone here clearly was. He was the heartbeat of this group of people–and you felt lucky to watch him light up the room. And a little part of you felt proud that you were here with him.

The one who everyone wanted to be around–he wanted to be here with you.

“You’re too nice for him,” another new face laughed as he clapped Jeremy on the shoulder, looking down at you.

“Too nice?” You glanced at the palm resting over your stomach. Possibly the most gentle, kind touch you had experienced. How could anyone be too nice for that? “For him?” Your voice raised with confusion.

The young guy in front of you raised his eyebrows at the man behind you. “He didn’t tell you?” His smile was all trouble. “Our boy Sway likes to be a little roughed up,” he laughed at your blush, hidden by you turning around to gape at Jeremy. To wait for a rebuttal.

But it never came. He just laughed good-naturedly and hugged you into his chest. “Hey now, don’t scare her away!” He looked down at you, squeezed tight against his chest. “Lucky to have her here at all.” His smile was just for you.

And so you smiled and let yourself half forget about that comment. Met some more people. Drank some more wine. Smiled a lot.

But you couldn’t forget it entirely.

Some time later, he beckoned you over to where he sat on the couch. You finished up chatting with some of the women and made your way to him.

“Hey,” you stood in between his legs before he pulled you down to sit on one of his thighs with a thud. You felt him sigh into your hair as you leaned back so your head rested on his shoulder, hands reaching around the play with his fingers. He was solid and warm.

“Hey,” if you had to put money on it–you’d bet he was smiling. “Thanks for being a champ about this–they can be a lot.” You traced a nail over the outline of his hand. “But they’re important to me, so it makes me happy that they get to meet you.”

As intimate as a secret, spoken lowly in your ear. As secure as a fact, warming your chest.

“I like them,” you thought for a moment. “Even if they think I’m too nice.”

He rolled his eyes. “They’re just giving you a hard time. It’s a long story.”

You raised your eyebrows. “You can tell me if you want.” You could feel his chest rise and fall under your back.

“When I first signed, I showed up to practice all beat up once. Bruises, all that nonsense.” His eyes shone as he retold the story–like the emotions were just as fresh as they had been. “Told everyone I walked into a doorway–or something stupid like that. In the locker room later, everyone saw the marks this girl had left all over me.” He indicated scratch marks over where you lay on his chest. “All on my back and my neck and stuff. Never heard the end of it–how doors are really fighting back now and all that.” You just listened. “So yeah, they give me a hard time about it. But it’s no big deal–I didn’t want them to scare you or anything. If you’re not into that, don’t worry.”

He ducked his head into the crook of your shoulder, kissing behind your ear. You shivered, trying not to wiggle too much over his lap. Tilting your head towards him, you let your voice drop so only he could hear. “I’m into that.” His eyes went wide. “And I’m into you, so I can still be nice.”

He gulped audibly, making you smirk. “Like, I can be nice and tell you that you’re so good.” His face was as serious as you’d seen him. “Makes me wonder if you’d be so good for me.”

He nodded before he knew what he was nodding at, grip tight around you. “I would be.” His voice was clipped. “I’d be so good for you.”

You nodded back, chest on fire. You believed him.

You let your cheek rest against his sweater, eyes peering up at him–slightly flushed from the party and eyes a little tired. It had to be close to midnight.

As if on cue, the countdown began from the tv. Every voice in the room chanted along…10, 9, 8…but you almost didn’t hear them. Too busy looking at Jeremy. 7, 6, 5. You turned so your legs swung off the couch, sideways in his lap.

“I’ve never had a New Year’s kiss,” he whispered, holding you upright against him. “Like a real one. Not just a friend or something.” 4, 3. You pulled him so close you could see the shine of his lip from his drink, feel the sweat on the back of his neck from his sweater.

2. 1. “Glad to be your first or something,” you grinned into the kiss, teeth knocking against his. He laughed a breathy laugh into your mouth, free hand palming the back of your head. His chest rose and fell next to yours, making you pull back.

“I’m so happy it’s you,” he admitted–probably the most embarrassed you’d seen him. You ran your hands through his hair, settling against his chest so he could put his chin atop your head.

You believed him.

...

happy new year! Love ya

#nhl fic #nhl imagines #jeremy swayman #bruins #boston bruins #david pastrnak #brandon carlo #charlie mcavoy #matt poitras

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stars-and-the-min · 1 year ago

Text

☆ the wrong way to hard launch (9) | OP81

summary : oscar's girlfriend is a walking pr problem for literally everyone (including herself) social media au

pairing : oscar piastri x zhou!fem!singer!oc

a/n reunions galore!

masterlist | last part | part 9 | next part

INSTAGRAM

chrisyamada

liked by eb_jonno and 482,492 others

chrisyamada was on stage w/ the aussies again 🎸 tagged: emptybottles_official

lukaszhang don't come for my job man ↳ chrisyamada @lukaszhang i can't handle lina for extended periods of time dw about your job security

ceciliapham THEY DID THIS FOR ME AND ME ONLY 😭😭😭

piastri_lina now if i didn't know any better, i'd think this was a soft-launch... ↳ piastri_lina @piastri_lina know ur place christopher yamada

oscarpiastri

liked by selinabui and 213,284 others

oscarpiastri Race week recharge 🔋

pi4str1 convinced that if oscar was to open an oscar.jpg account it would just be all lina

selinabui ur so hot do u have a gf ↳ oscarpiastri @ selinabui yeah sorry 🫤

piastri_lina boyfie looking boyfie, wifey looking wifey, what is a girl to do 😭😭😭

logansargeant ask her if we can talk again ↳ selinabui @ logansargeant U TOOK ME SERIOUSLY??? IS THIS WHY I HAVEN'T HEARD FROM U???

TWITTER

↳ pookie piastri @op81ln4 · 2h wait i asked a lina question OH MY GOD PLS PLS PLS CHOOSE THE LINA QUESTION ↳ Williams Racing @ WilliamsRacing · 2h Find out when the episode drops 😉 ↳ jess @OPIXSTRI · 1h OH MY GOD I'M GONNA DIE ↳ Williams Racing @ WilliamsRacing · 1h Don't die just yet

YOUTUBE

INSTAGRAM

selinabui Shenzhen, China

liked by oscarpiastri and 264,938 others

selinabui my own kinda home race? tagged: eb_jonno

eb_jonno *OUR* home town performance ↳ selinabui @eb_jonno my bad bro why did u think i tagged u

oscarpiastri How do you still suck at bowling? ↳ selinabui @ oscarpiastri wdym i won ↳ cameliazzz @ selinabui no you didn't???

pi4str1 same top as the one in oscar's post? ↳ marie_h.sb @pi4str1 pls they think they're so subtle 😭

linasgirl4 SINCE WHEN SELINA. SINCE WHENNNNN ↳ linasgirl4 @linasgirl4 i'm going fucking feral i need to know how long they've been together for my mental health ↳ emptybottlos @linasgirl4 calm the fuck down it's not that serious

MESSAGES

from the phone of selina bui

TWITTER

↳ lina !!! @EB_selina · 1d dude are u kidding me? ↳ kay ♡ @ blackcatluna · 4h she still got that :] energy 🥹

camilina gfs fr @ drummergf · 21h I CAN'T BREATHE I CAN'T BELIEVE I JUST SAW JONATHAN SU AND SELINA BUI LIVE IN THE FLESH AT THE SHENZHEN FENDI POP-UP ↳ camilina gfs fr @ drummergf · 21h i'm not alive i have ascended to a higher plane

president linami @ linaminami · 16h try not to say mother challenge failed. she looks so good wtf

INSTAGRAM

emptybottlesbar

liked by cameliazzz and 332,974 others

emptybottlesbar Jonny and Lina at the Shenzhen FENDI pop-up store. Did you manage to catch them? tagged: emptybottles_official, selinabui and eb_jonno

selinabui wtf are we pokemon or smth??

eb_jonno was i not photogenic enough, i'll work on it ↳ emptybottlesbar @eb_jonno You were very handsome 💚 ↳ eb_jonno @emptybottlesbar well that's a very nice way of saying i look bad in photos

2cami4lina I DID CATCH THEM AND IT WAS SPECTACULAR

TWITTER

lina bui x2 grammy winner @urdaisea · 1h oh ttpd, oh how 2021 lina coded it you are ↳ lina bui x2 grammy winner @urdaisea · 1h i need a lina x i can do it with a broken heart edit STAT

emme @flowersforcami · 42m oomf said i can fix him (no really i can) is super lina in her tommy era coded and i can't unhear it now

↳ kay ♡ @ blackcatluna · 1h @urdaisea baby girl this is for you 😭 ↳ lina bui x2 grammy winner @urdaisea · 44m HOW ARE THEY SO QUICK OH MY GOD IT'S HEARTBREAKING

oscalina real ?! @emptyginbottles · 33m it's only been like a day since it dropped but i've already been blessed with a so high school oscalina edit the lord is good 🙏 ↳ jackpot ☆ @slayridgo · 30m i wanna be on ur fyp bc i've gotten two 'you look like taylor swift' edits of olivia and lina and it's been depressing

piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 2h lina's stories perfectly encapsulates my april 19 experience, she's the chairman of the swiftie f1 girlie department ↳ piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 2h side note she used one of those oscar gifs from f2 and it's so endearing

INSTAGRAM

selinabui just posted to their story

trans: brother yu (she uses the fish 'yu' and not zhou guanyu's actual 'yu', again, it's a pun) is awesome!

✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:

taglist @ririyulife @ashy-kit @fionaschicken @namgification @cherry-piee @urfavsgf

#f1 #oscar piastri #oscar piastri x oc #oscar piastri x reader #oscar piastri fanfic #oscar piastri imagine #oscar piastri smau #formula 1 fanfic #formula 1 smau #f1 fic #f1 smau #f1 imagine #f1 social media au

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shallowseeker · 1 month ago

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Thank you for the blade/penis meta. <3 Do you think when Dean slides him the blade during the Ritzen fight, it's a continuation of this?

The moment that Cas reclaims his blade in 9x06 Heaven Can't Wait is a big one for me. I think it can certainly be read as him reclaiming his virility, his agency. (EDIT: Thanks for this one, dad.)

When we see Cas again in 9x09 Holy Terror, he is wearing a suit, driving a car, and motel-hopping on his own—skills he appears to have no problem accomplishing. (Much like how taking the bus wasn't difficult for him as early as season 5.) This suggests that his time "lying low at the gas station" was about more than just lacking resources.

With the Rit Zien, this decision to live—to not simply exist but to act—contrasts beautifully with his sense of suicidality in Purgatory, and even his earlier breakdown in season 7, where everything felt meaningless/repetitive. This transformation in 9x06 is signals Cas choosing to actively engage with life again. Truly engage with it in a way he hadn't in a long time!

On the darker side, it also mirrors the archetype of the rejoiner: soldiers who find themselves unable to integrate into civilian life. They get drawn back to war for purpose and identity. Cas, too, finds strength and clarity through action—though the cost of this path remains... ambiguous at best.

This is a part of SPN's broader commentary. Rowena’s pointed observation in 13x21—“I know a thing or two about wounded masculine pride,” for example. Rowena tries to soothe Gabriel with sex:

ROWENA: I know a thing or two about wounded masculine pride. [She trails her fingertip over the top of the pestle. They continue eye contact, then Gabriel’s eyes widen as he catches on to her innuendo. Then the scene cuts back to the Winchesters and Cas in the kitchen.]

With Cas, it's a literal reclamation of the blade, but it can function as a virility (penis) symbol all the same:

EPHRAIM: You say you want to live. But you can't see what I see. By choosing a human life, you've already given up. You … chose … death. EPHRAIM lifts a hand to CASTIEL's forehead. DEAN slides the knife across the floor towards CASTIEL. CASTIEL grabs it and stabs EPHRAIM. White light bursts out of EPHRAIM and he screams; DEAN ducks his head to shield his eyes from the blinding white light. A torrent of white light streams out of EPHRAIM's mouth as his scream continues. The body of the formerly-possessed, now-dead, husband falls to the floor. DEAN pants. CASTIEL looks solemn. 9x06

Ephraim accuses Cas of having already surrendered by choosing a human life. (Choosing death!) But Cas isn’t choosing death. He’s choosing life, with all of its complications (one of which is death ofc)…

Anyway, when Dean slides the blade to Cas, Cas takes it and stabs Ephraim—a rejection of being a passive participant in life. It's a violent, sacred affirmation of Cas’s will to keep going despite the pain, a contrast to the checked-out nihilism that plagued him in Season 7, and the struggles with suicide and penance throughout Season 8-9.

Yet, this moment carries dual meanings. On the one hand, Cas's decision to fight IS his desire to live. On the other, it's tied up with the idea that, for him, survival is linked to conflict. (The specter of the rejoiner lingers—has Cas rediscovered his will to live, or is he following the only path that still makes sense to him? I think it's probably both.)

EDIT: I think about this one a lot. Moral injury is just... *waves at it all* It's my thing.

#spn 9x09 #spn 9x06 #spn 13x21 #spn and war and cause #penis meta #grace as virility

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lostyesterday · 11 months ago

Text

My top ten favorite B7 scenes

B’Elanna/Seven is my current favorite Star Trek ship, so I wanted to make a list of my personal favorite scenes featuring the two of them in Voyager. These scenes aren’t necessarily good (although I do think some of them are), and they’re not necessarily the scenes that provide the best “evidence” for B7 as a ship (which isn’t something I care about all that much to be honest). These are just the scenes that I personally enjoyed and have thought about the most.

10. Someone to Watch Over Me

This episode is terrible, but given how much I’ve thought about this particular scene, I couldn’t not include it. This is the Voyager scene that most clearly demonstrates how obsessed Seven is with B’Elanna and particularly with her romantic relationships. To me personally, this screams oblivious gay crush taking the form of jealous obsession. Obviously, B’Elanna is right and Seven is stepping way out of line here. This is probably the worst thing Seven ever did to B’Elanna and she’s so justified in being mad about it.

9. Survival Instinct

I really enjoy this scene because it’s an example of both B’Elanna and Seven trying to change the adversarial nature of their relationship. B’Elanna is trying to help Seven here even though she has difficulty with her. Seven immediately regrets her defensive response to B’Elanna’s attempted helpfulness. I think it’s interesting to see how the two of them have fallen into a pattern, responding defensively to each other because they’re used to their dynamic being adversarial, when they both theoretically have the capacity to understand each other better than most other people understand either of them.

8. Infinite Regress

The infamous cheek bite scene. Is this scene good? No, probably not. Has it lived in my head rent free since I originally saw it? Yes, absolutely. Technically, you could call this the only intentionally sexually coded Seven/B’Elanna scene in the show. Mostly, the thing I can’t stop thinking about is the two of them joking about it afterward. B’Elanna jokingly asking if this qualifies as their second date… I will think about that line forever.

7. The Voyager Conspiracy

I love everything about this. Seven immediately calling B’Elanna as soon as she thinks she’s found a problem with the ship’s systems regardless of how early it is in the morning. The tone of B’Elanna’s response implying this probably isn’t the first time this has happened. B’Elanna actually investigating the problem even though she’s rightfully irritated at Seven for being so annoying. I love them.

6. Course: Oblivion

It’s so, so easy to interpret this scene as Seven being jealous of Tom’s relationship with B’Elanna. Me when the person I have a crush on just got married: Monogamy is stupid, and it would make way more sense and be better if everyone (you) would have sex with anyone they want to, whenever (me, right now).

5. Human Error

Ignoring my issues with this episode, it’s so interesting how one of Seven’s major attempts to become “more human” is to try to connect to B’Elanna in this way. I think she chose B’Elanna here because she’s someone Seven genuinely wants to connect with at this point in the series, but she still struggles with how to make that connection. Also, I cannot stop thinking about Seven thinking in detail about how B’Elanna does her hair. Given the rest of the scene, I think it makes sense to say that she didn’t choose this question/compliment/terrible flirtation randomly and has genuinely just admired B’Elanna’s hair a lot. Which sure is something. And of course I love B’Elanna’s confusion here. She can tell Seven’s trying really hard to be nice, which is so not like Seven that she can hardly believe it.

4. Message in a Bottle

I love how these two scenes represent both the adversarial tension between B’Elanna and Seven, and the potential ways they could relate to and understand each other with time. B’Elanna is clearly deeply frustrated with Seven, and yet she still tries to explain to Seven why people (not just B’Elanna) are reacting negatively to her. And B’Elanna can obviously relate to being perceived by others as rude, which makes her statement that she doesn’t expect Seven to change overnight, with the subtext that she understands deeply how difficult this situation is for Seven too, really fascinating. Seven initially appearing to ignore B’Elanna and then later saying thank you to her compliment is also great. Also, B’Elanna’s reaction to Seven shocking that guy is so fun.

3. Extreme Risk

This is a short interaction, but it’s so interesting. Seven initially tries to engage in their ordinary adversarial back and forth, but when B’Elanna doesn’t respond in the typical way, immediately asks if something is wrong. I love that Seven is the first person in the episode to notice that there’s something wrong with B’Elanna. It’s so interesting that Seven seems almost disturbed by the lack of any hostility in B’Elanna’s responses and by B’Elanna immediately putting Seven in charge of something she was going to do. I think that, in a way, Seven has grown comfortable with her adversarial dynamic with B’Elanna because it’s familiar. Maybe B’Elanna has grown comfortable with it to, to a certain extent, and her lack of willingness to engage in the typical verbal sparring of their relationship in this episode comes from the same place as her lack of desire to participate in the normal routines of her other relationships. I guess I’m suggesting here that maybe Seven and B’Elanna are both more important to each other than the show explicitly portrays.

2. Hope and Fear

The iconic “we’ll be outcasts together” scene. This is probably the single scene that best illustrates the parallels between Seven and B’Elanna – how both of them have been treated like outcasts and deep down expect to continue to be outcasts forever. How both of them feel deeply ambivalent about belonging – desiring it desperately and yet pushing away from it because they believe they can never have it. Also, B’Elanna’s defensive excuse that she was “joking” two seconds after she realizes she was accidentally way too vulnerable is so good.

1. Imperfection

Thinking about this scene makes me want to scream incoherently, but I’ll try to summarize my main thoughts concisely and analytically. This is probably the scene where B’Elanna and Seven genuinely connect and relate to each other most strongly. B’Elanna understands better than anyone else in this episode what Seven needs, and Seven trusts B’Elanna of all people to ask these questions to, to be vulnerable with in this way. B’Elanna saying that Seven’s made an impact on every member of the crew is… a lot. B’Elanna truly listening to Seven here and understanding what it is that’s bothering her and saying the exact right thing in response. The whole framing of this scene with the close-up shots on faces, the softness in B’Elanna’s voice. Fuck.

#star trek voy #b'elanna x seven #lane posts #lane's character and relationship meta

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liopleurodean · 7 months ago

Note

Counter question: What exactly could the Jedi have done that falls under "done more for clone rights"? They're in the middle of fighting a massive war, spread thin as it is. Sad fact is lobbying for policy change, even for important stuff like this, is pretty low on the priority list when Dooku and his ilk are pillaging systems left and right. If Yoda and Mace and the others have choose between discussing military strategy and pushing for legislation in the Senate (which isn't even their job to do), 9 times out of 10 their priority is the former. Not to mention by the time the war had simmered down to a point where they could start advocating for clone rights, Order 66 was literally a phone call away.

hey, thanks for the question! and you're absolutely right, there wasn't a lot the Jedi could do in the realm of politics. in my post I mention the Jedi struggled with "limitations of the war and their contracts with the Senate and Kaminoans" which definitely affected what they were able to do for the clones. however, I was talking less about political value and more about public opinion -- by the end of the war, most civilians resented or even hated the clones and what they represents. while there was some backlash against Jedi, as well, for the most part the Jedi generals were seen as heroes and paraded across the Holonet. the Jedi could have done more using their influence of public opinion toward the clones, especially those more commonly in the spotlight like Obi-Wan and Anakin (both of whom are considered to have the best treatment towards their troops in the first place).

another realm of their influence is the ranking system. take, for instance, Rex and Tarkin: during the Citadel mission both were Captains, but Tarkin automatically held a higher rank by virtue of being nat-born (something Anakin inadvertently encouraged in his encounters with the man). while the Jedi Commanders were better about recognizing their inexperience in battle and letting the clone commanders take the lead, the Generals could have done more to crack down on clone racism (speciesism? clonism?) within the Republic Navy. not only is that their duty as Generals and therefore the top of the command chain regarding their men, but also the Jedi are the legal owners of the clones and are responsible then for their treatment.

which does come to my last point, if we want to talk politically. the Jedi own the clones. legally. (we're not even going to touch the slavery part of this, that's a problem for another day.) the Kaminoans talk big about "their product", but in the end the Jedi (and the Senate) are paying customers and therefore what happens to the clones outside of Tipoca City is none of their concern. yes, there is an existing contract that the Jedi have to honor, but considering that none of the Jedi knew it existed and the Jedi who initiated it is dead, there should have been a reevaluation of the contract terms and what kind of influence Kamino could have. a big part of the issue is that Senator Burtoni, a representative of a Republic system, would speak out to the Senate about clone issues when the clones no longer belonged to Kamino. the Jedi should have done more to crack down on that kind of behavior and reestablish their control over clone treatment. Shaak-Ti obviously did some work in that department during her time on Kamino, but it's truly depressing how much slid by her.

Anyway, I'd love to hear more thoughts on this! this was mostly just me rambling off the top of my head, so if someone has a more clear and concise point that they want to share, I'd love to hear it. I totally agree that the Jedi were cornered into an awful position and were limited in choices, but I do still believe that more could have been done for their men.

#ashla regina astrum #ashla speaks #star wars #the clone wars #jedi #clones #thanks again for the ask anon!#im always down to talk abt star wars

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mayhem-ensues · 2 years ago

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My Top 10 Sulemio moments

It's been a whole week now since our girls' story ended but the brain rot remains, so I'm listing out my favourite Sulemio moments from the show.

List is going under the read more because it is long and has many images.

Number 10 is this small conversation from Episode 9 between Suletta and Shaddiq. The reason I love this so much is that it’s the first time that Suletta really takes pride in the fact that she’s Miorine’s groom. A lot of people are of the belief that Suletta first starts really developing romantic feelings for Miorine after Episode 7, and I think this scene really highlights that change in Suletta’s feelings.

The other noteworthy thing here is that it really illustrates the difference between Suletta and most of the other people in Miorine’s life which is that she actually trusts Miorine to make her own decisions.

Number 9 is the late-night conversation between Suletta and Miorine in Episode 4. I love this scene not just because it’s the first time where they really start to learn more about each other, but also because it does set up the parts of their character that would cause problems for them later. Suletta is proud to carry the expectations of Mercury because she loves the idea that she can be useful to them, whereas Miorine thinks it’s an unfair burden to carry. It’s a nice set-up for the later drama to come when these two aspects of their personalities clash.

And this is something that I really love about Suletta and Miorine’s relationship. When there is friction between them, it always comes from a place that is true to the characters rather than the drama coming from forced “misunderstandings.”

Also, there’s only one bed in Miorine’s living area and Suletta certainly wasn’t leaving to go back to whether she slept before she joined up with Earth House that late at night. They 100% shared that bed.

Speaking of friction between the two characters, here’s Number 8 on the list, the Greenhouse conversation from Episode 16.

I find Miorine’s desperation in this scene to be really heartbreaking, she’s looking for any sign, no matter how small, that Suletta might go against Prospera’s wishes if the circumstances were right, but Suletta’s still in too deep at this point. The fact that Miorine is visibly hurt by the conversation here says so much, considering how far she’s previously gone to maintain her composure. Even during the big emotional moment in Episode 11, she doesn’t want Suletta to see her cry, but here she genuinely breaks emotionally and can’t hold it in at all when Suletta admits that she would kill for her mother.

Number 7 is Suletta reaching Permet Score 5 and it’s a moment I love for more or less the same reason I love the previous scene, any scene where a normally stoic character really shows how much they care is an incredible scene in my opinion.

And of course, everything leading up that is excellent too. Miorine choosing to trust Suletta’s decision to pilot the Calibarn despite the very real dangers, even pushing to activate higher levels of Permet when the others were hesitating is a perfect display of Miorine’s faith in Suletta, and a perfect turnaround from her earlier, misguided attempt to protect Suletta from the Gundam’s Curse.

At Number 6 we have the moment that this show left me with permanent emotional scars.

Miorine forcing herself to abandon Suletta for “her own good” was always going to be heartbreaking, but they really twisted the knife by having Suletta fantasize about their perfect wedding while Miorine’s fingers hovered over the trigger. And then on top of all that, they just had to go and play the damn Happy Birthday song AND have Miorine tossing back cool-san! Like, they really stuck the boot in there.

Like, when I was re-watching the show, I have to admit I found it genuinely difficult to re-watch this scene again and that’s how you know it was really well done. Suletta begging for another chance while her entire life crumbles around her haunts me.

Show of hands, how many people started watching the show because of this exact scene? Cause seeing people talk about this moment was definitely what got me to watch the first episode.

Don’t think I have to elaborate too much on how good this scene is or what it means for their relationship, but I will say that Suletta’s reaction when she finds out she’s engaged is probably still my favourite Suletta face.

Also, Miorine completely sidestepping the potential “but we’re both girls tho?” drama by talking about how common gay marriage is was perfection.

More shows should have that amount of courage.

Number 4 is the happy ending. After everything these two went through over the course of the show and also some of the dumb stuff that was said about their relationship by real people, seeing them end the show married, in love and living their best lives was unbelievably cathartic.

Also, extra bonus points for having Suletta end the show disabled and not having it treated as an awful tragedy that mars the happy ending or having it be something that she can just overcome with sufficient willpower.

While I would have loved to have seen the wedding on-screen, the fact that we ended the show with married sapphic women in as big a franchise as Gundam is already pretty incredible.

Wedding OVA when tho?

At Number 3 we have Suletta and Miorine using healthy communication for the first time!

As I said earlier, one of the things I love about the relationship between Suletta and Miorine is that any drama between them is true to their characters, Suletta is insecure in her relationships and needs to feel “needed” to feel safety in those relationships and Miorine is cold and closed off emotionally since her upbringing makes it hard for her to trust. As such both of them have trouble communicating exactly how they feel.

That being said, in order to be truly great, conflict and drama needs to be followed up with by a satisfying resolution. And in terms of providing a satisfying resolution to all that drama, they absolutely knocked it out of the park in this scene. Miorine explaining to Suletta how much her life has been changed for the better since they met, actively working to accommodate Suletta’s desire to feel useful and asking to be together forever. Like everything here was exactly what it needed to be.

Also, as well-done as the emotions were here, it would be remiss of me not to mention the goofy looney tunes style chase scene that proceeded it was also brilliant.

The number 2 spot on the list goes to the formation of Gund-Arm inc.

When we meet Miorine she is very upfront that her one and only goal is to escape the Benerit Group and go to Earth. Although she passes up on the chance to escape from Earth to save Suletta in Episode 2, she’s still pretty clear about what her ultimate goal is. Although it goes unsaid for several episodes after this, this is the moment that Miorine decides that keeping Suletta safe is more important than making it to Earth by willingly tying herself to a Benerit Group company just to keep Suletta and Aerial safe. Even bowing before her father and begging for his help, probably the last thing that Miorine ever wanted to do, in order to make sure her plan worked. If this scene doesn’t illustrate just how much Miorine was in love with Suletta even at this early stage of the story, I don’t know what will.

In addition to the scene just being completely incredible in every way, the other reason it ends up so high on this list is because this scene marks a pretty clear turning point in Suletta’s feelings for Miorine. I think most people now, generally agree that this scene is probably where Suletta starts falling for Miorine for real, and after rewatching the show I think that idea comes across very clearly. From this point onward, Suletta clearly takes a lot more pride in her title of Groom, she’s a lot more openly affectionate towards Miorine, and also a lot more concerned about how Miorine perceives their relationship.

So yeah, awesome scene, huge turning point in their relationship, Number 2 spot.

And finally, we reach my number one favourite Sulemio scene, their reunion in Episode 22.

Just take everything that I said about the scene from Episode 11 and multiply it by 10. Suletta reappearing in Miorine’s darkest hour to remind her to keep moving forward was everything I needed after a rough couple of episodes for Miorine.

Also, the whole scene is just a perfect show of how Suletta developed over the course of the show. Suletta starts the show shy, insecure in her relationships, not particularly confident in her words, and following orders rather than working toward her own goals.

Here, Suletta is able to speak with complete confidence about how Miorine changed her life, about the things that she’s done wrong and the things she wants do better, and about her desires for the future.

Of all the scenes in this show, this is the one that had me tearing up the most, and for that, it absolutely deserves the number 1 spot on my list.

Also, that handholding. Hoo boy, that is the most emotionally intimate handholding I’ve seen in my life.

So yeah, that's my list of my favourite Sulemio moments. If your favourite scene wasn't one of the ones that made my list, then tell me about what made you love that scene so much because I love this show, and I love these characters and I will read anything about them.

#sulemio #suletta mercury #miorine rembran #gundam witch from mercury #g witch

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msunitedstatesjames · 4 months ago

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Ranking the RPG style games I played in 2024:

Just a note, I'm ranking based mostly on my enjoyment, and this ranking is not meant to be an actual statement of their respective quality. I enjoyed every single one of these games regardless of their ranking, and I played through their complete stories and most or all side quests. Also, as you'll see, this was just a stellar year of RPG gaming for me, so really the worst I can say about any of these games is that they're just good.

9. Greedfall

I made the big mistake of playing this right after finishing Baldur's Gate 3. No RPG was going to compare well to that. Greedfall certainly had an interesting world and story, and I liked the diplomatic aspects of it. Greedfall does attempt to have an interesting companion system by letting you grow your relationship with companions and choose one to romance, though it's really quite a shallow relationship you have even compared to other games from around the same time or earlier. The thing that really bothered me most about the game is the repetition. Environments are almost identical everywhere you go, and the combat gets repetitive after a while too. However, if I remember, this game was made by a fairly small studio with limited resources, so it's actually an impressive achievement in that sense.

8. Mass Effect 1

Don't kill me, internet, but ME1 didn't impress me all that much. I think the best thing about it is the thing that really held the series together from game to game: the characters. The companions are mostly great, even in ME1. It introduces some of the most iconic characters of the series like Garrus (my beloved), Wrex, and Liara. The romances always felt a little lacking and awkward to me in this game, but maybe I was just bitter that you couldn't romance Garrus yet. The combat and leveling up system were still not perfected, and exploring the planets often felt kind of clunky and grindy. But overall, it introduced us to one of the most iconic video game protagonists of modern gaming, and it set the base for the rest of the series, so I can't complain too much.

7. Octopath Traveler II

So, I went into this one with no knowledge of the first one. Now, I fully intend to go back and play it. This game had a lot going for it. You get to know the characters so well through their stories, and somehow the huge variety of tones from story to story made it more engaging instead of jarring. Going from really dark and depressing tales to lighthearted and hopeful ones was actually a lot of fun. I loved the way you got to see where each character was on the map and pick which order to meet them in. The art and visuals were gorgeous, the bosses were awesome, the storytelling was effective, and the different abilities of the characters were fun to use. My only real complaint is that the combat did start to feel repetitive after so many hours of gameplay, often fighting similar enemies. Overall, it was one of my favorite games this year, even if it didn't make it to the top of my RPG list.

6. Sea of Stars

I would die for Garl, that's all that needs to be said, right? I technically played over half of this one in 2023. I put it on pause when BG3 came out and only came back to it months later. I'm glad I did. This was really just a beautiful game. The scenery was beautiful, the attacks and ultimates were beautiful, the character models were beautiful. The story was fun in a classic JRPG style. There were certainly dark moments, but it was overall a hopeful game, which I personally appreciate, and there were several times the humor really knocked it out of the park. The characters certainly could have had more depth, but in this style game I didn't genuinely feel like that was a problem. Like many games in this genre, the combat did become repetitive at times. But this game made me do one thing almost no game does. After finishing the main quest it motivated me to get back in there and finish up the few dangling loose ends that I left behind. And boy was it worth it.

5. Mass Effect 3

Even though I didn't play Mass Effect until this year, I've been a gamer all my life, and I remember the outrage around ME3 when it came out. And some of that I understand. The ending left something to be desired, there were plot holes, many things just felt too convienient, and, of course, Kai Leng. Still, in my opinion, this series has always been built on the back of it's characters, and few if any games have let you build such long lasting and meaningful relationships with the companions. I guess I might have been angry if I romanced someone other than Garrus, but getting to build on that relationship (and the friendships) from game to game was amazing. And I can't discount the fact that ME3 contains perhaps the greatest piece of DLC of all time, The Citadel DLC. So in the end, maybe it all balances out.

4. Dragon Age: The Veilguard

I don't care what anybody says, I loved this game. I genuinely liked all the companions, which (unpopular opinion) is more than I can say for some of the previous Dragon Age games. I found the combat really fun, but I always think playing as a mage is a good time. The Spellblade specialization was a great time, and I liked that mages in this game have the option to get up close and personal, which combats one of the biggest issues with mage gameplay in many RPG games. I didn't think the villains were anything to write home about, but the same could be said for Inquisition. I thought the game made interesting additions to the lore of the world as well. I've seen some complaints about voice acting which is just baffling to me because I thought the acting was stellar. And of course, my beloved Emmrich is going right up there with my favorite Dragon Age companions. He was such a well acted, animated, and written character, and he was a great, fresh take on necromancers. It was interesting playing this in the same year as the ME games because honestly it often played like it was an ME game, but I love them, so no complaints about that here.

3. Mass Effect 2

Most people in the RPG community seem to agree that this is an iconic game. I loved the character focused missions, though at first it took some adjusting. I had to realize that the characters WERE much of the plot. This was perhaps the first game I've played where you get to keep more than just 1 or 2 characters from game to game, and it was probably the only game I'd played where you got to carry over a romantic interest from game to game. Playing the ME games right in a row really allowed me to properly experience the improvements in everything from combat to traversal to character arcs. In any other year, this probably could have been my top game.

2. Disco Elysium

I slept on this game for far too long. I'd heard how weird it was, and while I like a little weird I thought it might be too much for me. But it was on sale and I was still in the post BG3 funk. When I started it, I still didn't think I would like it. But I quickly got invested in the mystery and in the fabulous characters of Harry and Kim, and it was over all too soon. I absolutely loved the attribute/skills system in this game. It genuinely felt like some of the best I've seen, and not only was it a cool and story relevant system, but it legitimately affected the way you played the game and reacted to different situations. The voice acting was equally amazing. The art style worked perfectly with the tone and the setting. It was uncanny and absurd, it was timely and serious, it was heartwarming, it was tense, it was devastating, it did everything so well. Even the music was perfect. My only complaint is that I stupidly played this on Switch, and crashing was a huge issue for me throughout the game. Don't repeat my mistake unless you have no other option.

1.Baldur's Gate 3

Little needs to be said about what makes BG3 great. Sometimes less is more. The character interactions and relationships are among the best I've ever experienced, the acting and animations were top notch, the sheer variety of role playing choices and endings were absolutely the best I've experienced, and this is the rare game that I plan on playing more than once.

Honorable Mentions (Games that are only sort of RPGs)

Stray Gods

If you look at the official title of this game, it has "Roleplaying" right in there. Still, I would say this is RPG-lite. You do make decisions that affect your ending, you do interact with characters, and there are even romance options. On the other hand, you don't really have choices in regards to customization or building your protagonist, there's no skill/level up system that I remember, and there really isn't any fredom of exploration or side quests, so in many ways it didn't feel like a full RPG. More than anything it feels like a visual novel (which is not a complaint). It was a great game. I loved the protagonist. The songs were fun, and getting to change the tone and content of the music was an awesome concept.

Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales

I loved this game. I don't know why I hear so little about it. Much like the other Witcher games, it forces you to make really difficult choices over and over again, often with no real right answer. Meve was a fantastic protagonist, and most of her companions were memorable and interesting. Your choices do ultimately affect the ending and often have basic resource related consequences, but while the actual combat always felt life and death it pretty much never had real consequences. You're often told, "don't fight these guys, we don't have the troops," but you always win and rarely lose troops anyway. Still, it was a great game, and I played for over 60 hours. This one doesn't fully fit into the RPG category for me just because it's primarily a deck builder, but it does have a lot of other RPG traits. It has world exploration, fun companions, and you can level up your army through building your deck. If you haven't played it and you're a Witcher fan, take this as your cue to remedy that.

#baldurs gate 3 #Mass effect #disco elysium #Mass effect 2 #Mass effect 3 #dragon age the veilguard #Greedfall #Stray gods #thronebreaker #sea of stars #octopath traveler 2 #video games #Rpgs #Bioware

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karnalesbian · 4 months ago

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that status effects post got me thinking about how one of my personal marks for when a game's design specifically catches my attention is when they actually put a little effort into how they implement status effects (i.e. thought is clearly put into player vs enemy balance; standard fights vs boss fights; ease of application/removal vs power of effect)

I will now proceed to yap about this (part 1)

off the top of my head some things that immediately annoy me

all bosses are, as a rule, de facto immune to all status effects just because they're bosses (whether legit immunity or, arguably worse, 'actually we'll let you apply them but at 1% effectiveness'). YOU CAN LITERALLY ALWAYS DO BETTER THAN THIS LAZY COPOUT

powerful status effect that very clearly exists exclusively to hinder the player (either affects stats/abilities that only matter to the player OR nominally affects enemies but at a ludicrously high opportunity cost. these also NEVER work on bosses even if they arent status immune) BUT THEY STILL PUT IT INTO YOUR SKILLSET FOR SOME REASON. it's always a mid-lategame unlock and you will literally never be in a position where it makes sense to use. in 9/10 choose-your-party RPGs the poor fucking Designated Status Effect Character that learns this shit will have a permanent seat on the bench. popular candidates for this one are Petrify/Stop/Confuse equivalents and there will also be one normal encounter enemy that exclusively spams this move and exists purely to piss you off

(some or all) status effects are debilitating to the player, with limited removal options, AND OMNIPRESENT FROM THE BEGINNING. if e.g. poison is going to do 25% of my HP a turn and cost 1/2 to 2/3 of my second party member's early game MP bar to cure every time, then i don't want every fucking early game fight to have some shithead rat or snake enemy that comes in packs of 3 and spams some 'poison bite' equivalent every other turn. I'll shit in your fucking dishwasher what do you think this is accomplishing

IN GENERAL status effects should actually be relevant factors to consider in a fight. meaning you should err on the side of making them more impactful rather than annoyances, but conversely they shouldn't be fucking shoehorned into every other normal encounter or be a side effect of every single move. when a party member gets hit by a status it should immediately become a fairly high priority to cleanse them (unless it's a status that has no impact on that member), which by extension means that probably should not be happening to your entire party every turn/every couple of seconds. you can play around with that by adjusting the ease/cost of cleansing as well though (single vs aoe, proximity limitations, cost of item/ability, cast/recovery duration)

the ubiquitous 'Nullify X status' accessories are included, but it's in a game where status effects are actually just a complete joke and you would never realistically give up any other accessory effect to protect against some absolutely useless shit. have a realistic idea of your own design paradigm please. this one gets A BIT of a pass if the game includes an enemy (typically a one-time midgame boss encounter, it gets tedious as fuck if it's a normal encounter or part of the endgame) that has special gimmicks related to a given status that actually make it worth shielding against.

unfortunately those status gimmick fights almost always have their own corresponding problem in that the specific implementation of the nullify X status item is usually the sole determinant of how the fight goes:

single character rpg: boss is a joke if the gimmick is nullified -> why bother having a checklist boss. boss is hard despite shutting down the gimmick -> why did we bother with the gimmick when it could have been a solid fight as-is without making the player feel boxed in with their build options

multi character rpg: is the status null accessory one of a kind? multiple but limited copies? multiple freely available copies? if every party member can get a copy -> see single character rpg section. if a single character can get a copy -> think very carefully: 'am i absolutely sure i want this to be the fight that every single player complains about for the next fifteen years whenever my game is brought up?'.

to me the only generally forgivable implementation is multiple but not unlimited copies -> e.g. 2/4 party members will get to be gimmick immune and the other 2 will have to cry about it. figure out how you want to go about it within your range of options. even with these there's frequently a broadly 'correct' solution but it's already above and beyond the other options and there's sometimes room for creativity. single copy CAN work but frequently devolves into an absolute slog of healer mass cleansing every turn -> chip damage with the remaining party member's turn -> refill healer's mp periodically -> repeat for an hour

I have more complaining to do later and perhaps even some praising but if I save this as a draft I will not revisit it for 12 years at least so... right

#who knows if ill ever finish putting down the other thoughts #game design

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nowoyas · 7 months ago

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vespertine: evening blooms prologue - nishinoya yuu/cat hybrid!reader

Next - M.list - Ao3

A/N: she's here! housekeeping: right now, I hope to update every other wednesday until I've caught a rhythm with this fic, so we're hoping next update will be 10/9. it may come a week sooner, but shouldn't be any later than that--the next chapter is already written, and the ultimate goal is for this fic to update weekly once I've got a more clear plan set in place for it.

Summary: Yuu feels like he's at a dead-end in his life, despite his many accomplishments ranging from a middle school volleyball award to losing his virginity in high school, the proudest of these being befriending the mother cat in the alleyway beside his apartment. She rewards his friendship by introducing him to the dying hybrid behind the dumpsters.

Warnings: blanket series warnings (see vespertine masterlist for details), implied alcohol abuse, light mentions of blood/hospitals

Words: ~3000

prologue: alley cats

Nishinoya Yuu is on the precipice of a mental break, and no one seems to have noticed.

He's not sure anyone would believe him if he bothered to bring it up. He's Yuu, the bright, unrelenting baby of the Nishinoya family and the single best brother his sisters have ever had. (Unrelated, the only brother they've ever had.) He's that Nishinoya, talents ranging from a middle school "best libero" award (the highlight of his life so far, even though he doesn't really play anymore) to finding the wrong time to be at the wrong place and get blamed for shit he had nothing to do with, all because of his kickass hair and inability to keep to himself. He's Yuta, second most popular host at Nakamoto's and soon to be the first, if he keeps up the good work.

It's funny, really, how easy hosting is. He spent all of high school growing used to a reception anywhere from "total disinterest" to "actively making fun of him" if he dared trying to pursue a girl while being only 159 centimeters tall, and here he is, four nights a week, leaning in with bright eyes and nodding along while some beautiful married woman (Misaki, her name is Misaki) tells him he's so cute over a glass of wine. Yeah, he comes back to the apartment most nights totally exhausted, sleeps until noon, is basically forced to drink for work, and has no idea where he's going in life, but what fun is there in knowing that, anyway?

So he leans in. He smiles. When Misaki or one of his other clients comes in for him, he compliments her hair and asks is that a new dress? and flashes a smile, and on his days off, he does what he can to keep the apartment clean enough that Mei doesn't ask questions and forget the taste of alcohol in his mouth.

"Yuta-kun?" Misaki tilts her head with a pout. "What are you thinking about?"

He blinks. Laughs it off. "Sorry, Misaki-chan. You just look so lovely tonight that I keep getting distracted. I'm really lucky that you choose me, you know?"

"Oh, please," she says, a bubbly laugh leaving her lips. "There isn't anyone else for me. You know, the other day, my husband…"

She launches right into another story. He frowns appropriately, files away the details without really processing them, tops off her glass for her when it starts getting low. He's grown skilled at making the mechanical look fluid.

When he tunes back in, she's talking about that damned hybrid, the one her husband brought home and fell in love with. According to her, the single source of every problem in her life: if not for her, her husband would still be interested in her, but instead, he focuses all his attention on a pretty young thing just because she's got doe eyes and a twitchy tail.

"I mean, we have kids! What, am I supposed to tell them their father's sleeping with a deergirl instead of their mother?" she snaps, then sighs. "I'm sorry. You probably don't want to hear about this."

"No, no, tell me. Is Nara still making trouble?"¹

"You wouldn't believe it." She pauses, takes a dramatic sip of her wine glass. "I'll need another bottle tonight if I'm going to get into the stunt she pulled last night. Any recommendations?"

He flashes another toothy smile, reaches for the menu. "Let's take a look."

The night drags on that way—Misaki for two hours, then another regular, then a new customer who blushes and smiles too sweetly to have ever done anything like this before, who looks at him with hearts in her eyes when she names him her preferred host. It's a victory that feels too, too empty, nearly forgotten by the time he's unlocking the door to his apartment and kicking off his shoes, muttering a quiet tadaima! into the room.

No response comes, not that he expected it. Mei left for another business trip this morning, so it's just him here, and she'd be asleep this late, anyway. No one to talk to when he strips off his suit jacket, or tease him for throwing it on the floor, only to immediately pick it back up and gingerly hang it on the coat rack.

He flicks on the lights in the living room, collapses onto the couch. Mei left a note on the whiteboard, enough words to make his head spin with the last vestiges of alcohol in his system. He'd done good tonight, he thinks, managed to get away with only drinking about two glasses' worth of whatever shit his clients had ordered, managed to come home only a little buzzed.

His alcohol tolerance is basically fucked, he thinks as he stares at the note and doesn't comprehend it.

Right. Focus.

Her handwriting, smooth and font-perfect, fills the board.

Yuu! I had to jet out for another trip! I'll be in Hawaii with a client until 9/22. I wasn't able to take the trash down before I left and trash day's tomorrow, so please run that down so it doesn't start to smell! I'll be 19 hours behind you, but just think of me as 5 hours ahead! Please let Mom + the girls know where I'm at and that I'll bring back souvenirs! I'll call when I've touched down. There's leftovers in the fridge and if you're not gonna cook the chicken tomorrow, you should stick it in the freezer. Be good, okay?

PS. The neighbor in 802 was looking for you. I think he wants to hang out next time you're off work!

He groans. Lets his head drop against the back of the couch.

He'll get to it, all of it, in a minute, once he gets changed out of his work clothes and heats up something to snack on. Gone is his button-down, the silver necklace, the too-nice pants and belt. Before he steps into the shower, his reflection catches his eye, and his stomach turns.

He never recognizes himself after work. The stupid one-day hair dye shit he uses to cover his blond streak is convenient—it lets him walk around on his days off with a certain plausible deniability. Misaki or one of his other clients might recognize his face on its own, but given how much they drink with him, it's doubtful. Still, he covers the blond with black on work nights, runs some product through to make it all… swoopy and dreamy, or whatever, instead of the trademark spikes-and-tuft he wears off the clock. It works well, it washes out easy, and it looks fucking nothing like him.

Nothing like him at all.

"The commission's good," he says out loud. "It's good."

He drops the stupid fucking wristwatch a client gave him into the handmade jewelry dish Mei gave him for his "birthday" earlier this year.² The last work thing weighing him down. It doesn't prevent him from feeling the disconnect when he meets his reflection's eyes.

The commission is good. Good enough that it shouldn't matter how long he has to stand under the running water to wash off the shift, the feeling of the alcohol, the cling of twenty women's perfume on his skin, his clothes, in his hair. It shouldn't matter how his nice, expensive, gift-from-Aya watch feels like a cuff on his wrist by the end of the night, or that he can't skip wearing it even one night for risk of losing a client. It's good.

He doesn't need to worry about affording repairs or maintenance for his bike, can go toe-to-toe with Mei for paying the bills, even with her cushy jetsetting consultant job. His clients bring him gifts and spend money just to spend time with him, and none of them are objectionable-looking in the least. Not that he's ever seen a girl he didn't think was at least a little pretty.

He steps out of the shower, slings a loose towel around his waist. His reflection looks a little better now—still clearly exhausted, but at least he can recognize Yuu looking back at him. He finds basketball shorts, a hoodie. His keys and wallet. Throws a burrito in the microwave, throws his towel on top of the hamper.

While his burrito simultaneously over- and under- cooks, ensuring an ideal 3 AM trash-and-cat-run eating experience, he finds a can of cat food in the pantry and dumps it on a plate. He made good money on commission tonight; Mama Kitty can have some of the top-shelf wet food.

One final pat of his pockets as he kicks into some sandals: wallet so he can open the side door after hours, phone, keys, wrapped burrito. Trash bags in one hand, plate of food for Mama Kitty in the other.

She doesn't greet him right away when he makes it outside. Probably, she's tending the kittens and will be with him soon. He sets down the plate on the stoop, flings the trash bag into the dumpster, takes a seat, and waits. She'll probably come out around the time he burns the ever-loving fuck out of his tongue on his burrito.

It's a balmy night. Quiet, for the city. Quieter in contrast to Nakamura's, to obligate conversation, laughter, serenading women with enough money to afford it, or in contrast still to the roar of his motorcycle carrying him back to the apartment. The trains don't run when he gets off work. More small talk at the end of a shift is the last thing he needs. It's too dark in the alleyway to see whether there's clouds in the peek of sky overhead, but there's definitely the sting of rain amid the smell of garbage. It's just bright enough to see Mama Kitty when she hops up on the stoop beside him with a hoarse nyaugh.

He laughs every time he hears it. She meows like a lifelong smoker, like she pulls eighty hour work weeks at the factory and sleeps ten hours a week, tops. Noya takes another bite of his burrito as she watches him expectantly. "Me too, Mama Kitty, me too. Kittens doing okay?"

Mama Kitty doesn't reply. She's tired, too, at three in the morning, but something feels different tonight; it's in the way she doesn't turn to scarf down the food she's brought, the way she stares him down. Ungrateful, he thinks with a quirk of his lips as she eyes his burrito instead.

"You don't want this, sweetheart. It's somehow the hottest thing I've ever eaten and still frozen in the middle. That food you've got there? It's some fancy American brand. Kaede hand-picked it for you. Said it's good for new mothers. Helps them produce enough milk and rebuild their energy so they can take care of the babies. This cat food will change your life, Mama Kitty. You just gotta eat it instead of my dinner."

Her tail flicks at the air, agitated as she lets out another death rattle of a meow. She's insistent, tail flicking even faster.

He raises a challenging eyebrow. "You're not getting my burrito."

Mama Kitty's eyes focus. Her shoulders drop. Sensing that she's about to pounce, he closes his hand over his burrito protectively, letting his keys rest on his lap.

She lunges, instead, for those keys, and, protective as he was of his shitty 100 yen burrito, he doesn't move quick enough to catch her. He lets out a shout, springing to his feet and narrowly snatching his phone out of the air as it slips out of his pocket with the movement.

"Oi, Mama Kitty! If you don't like the new brand, just say so!" he shouts after her as he chases her further down the alley.

He's never really gone this far down. The one time he tried, Mama Kitty had hissed at him something monstrous, sounding close to a horror movie monster and very visibly prepared to make him find out if he dared fuck around any further. That had been after she had her kittens, so he'd always just assumed that she didn't want him near them. No problem, he just wouldn't go past the dumpsters.

This time, she doesn't hiss, doesn't spit; doesn't turn to him with ears pinned and ratty fur fluffed and perfectly replicate the noise the zombies from one of his shooters make. She drops the keys a few meters ahead of the end of the alley, comes to sit just in front of a lump of something he doesn't recognize. He scarfs down the last of his burrito, proud of how easily he manages to fit half a burrito down his throat without choking, and shoves the trash in his hoodie pocket so he can scoop his keys up.

A noise gives him pause.

It's not one of Mama Kitty's—it's too high and not nearly crunchy enough. It doesn't quite sound like a kitten, either—he's caught the kittens' meows once or twice and they're more like squeaky toys, though they've been growing a bit sweeter lately.

No, this was more like a whimper, like a human whimper, and his blood is tinging cold as he looks for the source.

He stuffs his keys in his pocket with the burrito wrapper. It's dark back here, dark enough that Mama Kitty's all but disappeared except for the white in her tabby coat and the reflection of a distant streetlight off her eyes, so he fumbles for his phone's flashlight.

A chorus of the squeaky meows he'd expected to hear raises in protest as the light shines on them. Later, he'll try to remember back and be sure there was four kittens to report to Kaede, but for now, he's focused on the lump they're curled up with, on not dropping his phone as he takes in the sight.

There's the peek of skin, a tangle of hair. What's not visible, as he tries to make sense of what he's half-convinced is a dead body in the alleyway beside his apartment, is draped in hospital gown blue.

Human. A kid, maybe a teenager.

Then: large ears flicking, almost like Mama Kitty's. One ear torn, though where Mama Kitty's left point is jagged from one fight or another, the lump's ear is torn in a way that looks clean, purposeful. Like someone held it down and just snipped the point off.

Another whimper, or maybe a groan. A tail flicks up, wraps over the human-shaped lump's side.

Not human. Hybrid.

"H-hey," Noya says, clearing his throat. It's coated with cheese—fucking burrito—and that's what he'll tell anyone who might ask why he stammers, why his tone comes out sounding so much like fear when that's not a thing he feels. "Are you—are you alright?"

A flick of the ears greets him, but no other movement. He looks to Mama Kitty, who watches him cautiously. No hostility yet. He crouches, reaches for the hybrid, and when his pinkie brushes one of the kittens, he hears a half-hearted hiss from behind.

Message received.

He swallows thickly. "Alright. Help the hybrid, don't touch the babies. Loud and clear, Mama Kitty."

Nyeeaughh.

A soft huff. He shakes the hybrid's shoulder gently—it doesn't react, except for its tail to flick and drape over his forearm. It shivers under his hand, too violently for the weather.

"Hey, c'mon. You gotta wake up."

No response.

He sets the phone aside, tries his best to sit the hybrid upright without too much force or jostling. The good news is that it's light, concerningly light. Clearly a cat hybrid, which, sure, he thinks he remembers they're supposed to be smaller than your average human, but he'd swear that he's slung around toddlers that were heavier. Makes it easy to lift, even as he wonders whether any hybrid is supposed to be this light.

It's awake, he thinks. It looks at him with bleary eyes, pupils constricting harshly when he raises up the flashlight again. "Hey. Can you hear me?"

No response, except to track his lips with its eyes. It occurs to him, belatedly, that some hybrids never learn to talk, and this one might be one of them.

"Can you, like, blink twice at me if you understand me?"

Two blinks.

He exhales a sigh of relief. "Okay. Alright. I don't know what happened to you, but I'm here to help, okay?"

The hybrid's eyes flick to Mama Kitty, and for a split second, Noya swears she nods back.

The hybrid nods in reply.

"Are you hurt? Can you show me where you're hurt?"

It glances down. Noya follows the eyes to the pricks of red beginning to seep into and stain the hospital blue covering its abdomen, and… well, fuck.

He's gonna have to call Kaede for this one.

Footnotes

1. Nara is a deer hybrid, "adopted" from the Nara prefecture itself. Misaki's husband is not very creative with names.

2. Noya, mostly on Mei's insistence, tells clients his birthday is April 10th, six months before his actual birthday. He maintains it half for privacy (if a client tracks him down they're likely to cause issues for Mei, too) and half because it's sort of nice to have a half-year birthday.

Tags: @deeplightgarden @idonthaveanameideayet @dusstory

#my fics #cat hybrid au #nishinoya yuu/reader #nishinoya yuu x reader #yuu nishinoya/reader #yuu nishinoya x reader #noya x reader #noya/reader

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