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ma3-author2 · 2 years

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Campfire Cooking In Another World x Reader

I recently watched this on Netflix, and I like this sort of theme as it gives me the same vibes as "The Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime." So I thought, why not write a fanfic of it?

I also noticed that not many people wrote about this. Also take note: I followed the manga instead of the anime, but I also put the anime part. In simple terms, I mix it between manga and anime.

Chapter 1 : "Discovery of the new world and amazing skills!"

____________________

"So care to tell me how we end up in this place?"

"You're asking me? I’m as clueless as you."

Everything was surprising, hectic, and clueless to both of you and Mukoda after arriving in this fantasy place with swords and magic. Unlike in the modern world,

At the age of 27 and 28, you two are just on your way to work when suddenly a light emerges out of nowhere, and the first thing you see when you open your eyes is this group of people gathered in a circle, wearing domentor clothes, and a girl who was screaming in tears.

"The summoning ritaul has brought you three warriors to us—please save this kingdom of Rayseer!" The lady in tears exclaimed in agony, hoping for the tree warrior to save them.

"Miss, there are five of us; what do you mean three?" You exclaimed, gaining the attention of Lady Tears, and seeing her surprise look, she too didn’t know why there were five people.

"Eh? Oh-"

"I think we should use the "identifier" spell." One domentor said he was holding a seemingly big mirror, and once he made his way to the tree students in front of you two,

He said it out loud: "One is a swordsman, while the other two are spearsmen with holy magic, fire magic, and water magic." an amazing and powerful skill.

But when it comes to the both of you and Mukoda, you two can’t help but feel embarrassed about it.

"You two are... online shopping and... expresswa then spending?" Even the domentor is clueless about what he reads through the mirror.

"At least I have two skills," you muttered, but soon chuckled as you couldn’t believe how you could still feel proud of having that skill while the other students have a good one.

"...Then what about me?" Mukoda murmured, hiding his now-red face.

"Hey, at least you don’t have the spending part. It's obvious how I love to spend money."

As soon as that was done, you two were brought to the king, and when you saw the size of this so-called king, You already knew why the nation is failing, as all the taxes of the people are inside of him.

Furthermore, the royal family is wearing heavenly jewelry.

As the king began his speech, he told some history in regards to the Rayseer kingdom and told the warriors what they were going to do to help them with this mission. You can’t help but feel annoyed as the tree warrior was given a lovely service while you and Mukoda are still in your working outfit, not even getting acknowledged.

'Hey, isn’t this too suspicious?' Mukoda whispered in which you shush him before he got caught.

'Obviously,'

Sighing as you whispered this, you then raised your hand and said, "Excuse me for my intrusion." As you gained their attention, you continued

"But we two are not warriors, and we don’t want to interfere with your work!" And we both decided to look for something else to do when you guys do your things. "

"A-and do you mind sparing some money?" Mukoda cut your speech by asking for money; you wanted to smack your face because of his forwardness. But you saw his point, as you two are not from this world and you need some money to survive.

They didn’t even question you two, and they handed you a bag of money. Afterward, they tossed you two out like you were nothing but dust.

"At least they didn’t throw us in a dungeon," you muttered, counting the gold coins.

Mukoda just chuckled at your statement, agreeing with what you said. But as you two walked around the place, he noticed that people began to whisper and look at you two with a confused look.

"Hey, why are they looking at us that way?"

"I know your sharp Mukoda-san… but I didn’t know that you were this sharp."

Mukoda can’t help but sweat at your sarcasm, and when he noticed where you were pointing, he couldn’t help but be embarrassed at the obvious part.

"R-right… I forgot. Sorry, Y/N-san."

It was a good thing that there was a nearby clothes store, and as soon as you two went in to fetch a new pair of clothing, the saleslady couldn’t help but coo in delight when she saw you two walk out of the dressing room.

"Well, well, doesn’t this suit you two lovebirds well!?"

"L-love birds!" Mukoda exclaimed that a flush was starting to form on his cheeks and couldn’t help but glance at where you were.

"Ma'am, we're not together." You said you were correcting the lady, but in return, she said how she thought you two were, as she wanted to give you two a discount.

In replying to that, you immediately tagged Mukoda beside you, who wasn’t stopping his shuttering noise. "I sometimes forget—huhu—silly me, aren’t I, honey?" You lied, eyeing him to play along.

"Y-yeah, that’s why I l-love you, sweety~ hehe."

"Don’t worry, it's normal to couple!" and here is your charge; this is an extra gift for you two."

"Is it okay if we sell our clothes?" you ask, taking the paper bag from her hand, and when she says that, you can.

You earned more money than you have; the same goes for Mukoda. Even though you are known for your spending hobby, you are also known for getting more money.

As you thanked the lady in the store, Mukoda on the side still couldn’t brush away his blushing face when you suddenly acted like that. But it soon went back to normal when he remembered how you did that a couple of times before.

"Okay, now the clothing is done... "We need to look for an inn to rest for the day."

As you two are now on the lookout for an inn, it wasn’t that long before you two found one, and hearing the owner say how it’s the most affordable on the town, you doubt it.

"I’ll see you tomorrow."

"Okay"

It was a nice room with a rather uncomfortable bed, but you could survive it in a day, and as soon as you laid down, you stretched your arms and thought how you two ended up in this mess so quickly.

Though you hated to go to work to earn a living and were always tired to continue it, if it weren’t for Mukoda banging on your door every morning, you would have been dead long ago.

Mukoda and you met in high school; he's a chill guy who is sometimes an airhead, and you two just clicked, and in the end, you two ended up being neighbors to being a neighbor to work as well.

‘I should check it out now’

"Status display." Once you said this word, a large screen appeared displaying your name, age, and skill, aka job.

‘Okay, they got my name right... my age... *sigh* Why did it need to remind me that I’m 28’

Anything that was identified that you needed to learn, seeing your level and attack. It reminded you of an MMORPG, but instead of autopilot, You need to do it manually.

‘Great... so, basic skill... ‘ Just seeing the big words, you can’t help but sweat at this, and hearing Mukoda in the other room shouting his, then silent...

‘Okay, let’s try not to shout it.’

With a simple touch on the skill, it pops out like an ad, and seeing the skill in front of you, you can’t help but express your interest in it as it is displayed like the word expressway and spending indicated of it.

"Y/N-san! Come look at this!"

"Okay, wait"

As you closed the skill, you made your way to Mukoda, knocking on the door first and walking inside.

"What is it? Where did you get this food?"

"It’s from my skill, and it’s pretty cheap; I also brought your F/F."

As Mukoda showed you his skill, you couldn’t help but tell him how you have the same skill but that yours has things that he doesn't.

"Oh? Can I see?" And when you showed Mukoda yours,

"Y/N-san… "Why is it blank?"

"I don’t know... That’s the expressway, and this is the spending."

Like him, you can also buy food and other stuff, but instead of paying the same fine as him, you only need to spend half of what he does.

"Hey, isn’t that cheating? Why do you have the lowest price?!"

"I don’t know... oh wait." All of a sudden, there was a pop-up message telling you that you earned a point for spending, and once you complete the bar and earn more points, you can have one item for free.

‘So like... a point to point’

"That’s cheating!!"

With the discovery of both of your skills and how Mukoda still felt that he was robbed, you simply told him that he could have the free item just to make him feel less robbed.

"No, no, you have it, Y/N-san."

"If you say so." Rolling your eyes and chuckling at this, as the morning arrived, you two didn’t wait another minute to stay and are now on your way to another town away from this town.

According to the kids, to get to the border from the capital. You two need to go through the town of Kiels. And there will be a horse cart route connecting to it.

"Thank you, kids, here have this" handing them a freshly baked loaf of bread that you brought on your way, thinking it’s best to eat it on your way to another place.

But seeing their skinny look, you just give it to them.

"Thank you, Nee-san!"

Furthermore, if you need to cross the border, you can just get on the next horse cart route to get to the kingdom of Feenen, but sadly, one of you needs to stay behind.

"Kiels-anybody going to kiels-"

"Excuse me! We like to go!"

"Yes, yes, ah- but there is only one available... I think you need to wait for another one, lad," the coachman said.

You and Mukoda couldn’t help but glance at one another, and before he could say anything, you offered to stay behind and wait for the other one.

"Are you sure?"

"Yup. Mister how long will the next one take?"

"About an hour or so."

Nodding at him, you simply told Mukoda that you could just go back to the inn and stay until the next one returned.

"So what would it be?"

In the end, Mukoda stayed behind as well, and you can’t help but thank him for not leaving you behind. "Of course, I would never leave you."

"Oh, Mukoda-san, that’s too cheezy."

"O-oi! Not in that way!"

"If you say so... so, should we go back to the inn or should we explore?" You didn’t even get to finish talking when you heard a passerby talking, and when you heard their conversation, you couldn’t help but sprint to them.

"Excuse me, I can’t help but hear your conversation... What do you mean by "closing the border and no more horse routes?"

"Didn’t you hear? On this day, the king and queen declared that they were closing the border because they couldn’t afford the expense of the route to it"

"And if they continue it, there will be no more food for us... I can feel their struggle."

‘Struggle? Really?’ You deadpan thought,

"I know what you're thinking, Y/N-san... If only they knew, so... what should we do?"

"I think it’s time to see what my other skill is." With that said, you two made your way to fewer people, and when you opened the skill,

You two can’t help but express your joyful look when you find out that you can use your skill to travel to another location, and with this, you don’t need to wait for another hour to go to another capital.

But the only problem was the expense.

"Why is it expensive?!?" You exclaimed that going to Kiel's cost you 12 golds.

"I can share my coins-" But you didn’t let Mukoda continue his speech when you suggested something, and that suggestion was a good one for him.

"What about this? I can be the ride to the capital while you handle the food."

"Ah, sure. I think that’s okay with me. but I can share my-"

"Okay great! Let’s go"

Mukoda only sighs and sweats as you cut his words again, but soon chuckles as you’re a person who has a lot to spend but is not a person who would ask for money as you spend it with your only money.

As you clicked the name, a warning note popped out telling you that if you're traveling with someone, you need to hold their hands for them to join you and in the further down.

"Caution, you might get a side effect for a first-timer." You expect to see a note on what side effect it was, but "Who would put this without giving the description of the side effect!"

"Maybe you'll just be dizzy," Mukoda says, trying to calm you down.

"I hope it will be... Okay, are you ready?"

"O-oh, yeah." He almost forgot the holding part; it’s not like he didn’t get to hold your hand, but is a high five counted as one?

As soon as you felt his hand on your hand, you clicked the button. and within a minute it sends you off to Kiel's place, if you have to rate the ride.

You would rate it a negative one because as soon as you clicked it and landed on the place, it felt like you two went inside a black hole because your whole body circled in one place.

You thanked that you didn’t eat that bread, as you would have been vomiting like Mukoda on your right side. "I-I think it’s best if we should… *blargh* … find another way."

"I-I agree"

Just like the two guys said, the route to the capital has stopped operating.

"So this is the border? Why do people seem so normal when things are this bad?" Mukoda whispered next to you.

"It’s like when you don’t get your paycheck. You need to force yourself to work to have it," you mutter as you still feel a little dizzy.

"HUh?"

"Let’s just go grab some food; I need some water." You didn’t even get to finish when Mukoda’s stomach grumbled.

"R-right, let’s go!"

You two made your stop at a bar and seeing all the people dressed in heavenly armor, swords, and archers lying on the table or beside the table. You can’t help but wonder how strong they can be to lift that much weight, as you can’t even lift yourself to go to work.

"Mukoda-san, I’m going to order, and you go find a table."

"Ah, Y/N-san... were not in the modern world."

"Oh right, I forgot... then let’s find a table."

As you two found a good table to sit at and eat, Mukoda leant his way toward you, whispering another word. "While we're here, why don’t we ask for some information?"

"Good idea; you go to the left; I’ll go to the right." And so you two made your way to your station to ask for some information. While Mukoda got his, you also got yours.

Thanks to the lady you spoke to, you were right on why the king and queen want to close the border, and as soon as you went back, you needed to tell Mukoda that you two needed to leave before it completely closed thanks to the greedy king and queen.

"Mukoda-san, we need to leave soon."

"I know, but I don’t want to use that again," he muttered, not wanting to remember how much he vomited on your skills.

Nodding at him, you look around, wanting to find an idea or plan to use another way without using these expensive skills of yours, and as your eyes land on the people around you.

"Hmm, why don’t we recruit these adventurers?" They can help us, though it will cost as dearly, but it’s a better route than mine."

"I will take that offer."

As you two made your way to the front desk to ask if they would take a bodyguard's request to escort you two, thankfully, they did, and in your opinion, it cost less than yours.

But because of the closure of the horse cart route, the fee was increased a little bit. And if we two need to catch someone’s attention, eight gold coins would be better.

"Hmm… what do you think, Y/N-san?"

"I think it’s fine... Unless you want to ride mine." You didn’t really say it out loud, but this lady in front has a strong hearing sense.

"Oh my~ you two don’t need to do that here!"

Hearing the lady at the front desk, it took you two minutes to understand what she said, and you immediately corrected the awkward situation.

"I-it’s not like that!" Mukoda exclaimed that redness was now covering his whole body.

"Hehe, it’s okay; it’s normal for couples!"

"We're not a couple!" Now it was your time to exclaim, ‘What is it with people thinking that we're a couple!’ Heck, even back then, can they just think that you two are just close without that word?

"Ehem- er, can we bring food with us?" Mukoda muttered, still flustered by what the lady said.

"That is no problem! I will notify you when someone accepts it. Thank you for coming."

After that conversation, it was a semi-awkward situation, but it quickly settled down, as you and Mukoda needed to prepare for this trip and how you two needed to tip the adventurers.

"Okay, first we need a simple starting pack. A cape or warm clothes to protect from the cold, a sleeping bag, and some water jog."

"Water pouch Y/N-san"

"It’s the same thing, and of course, food."

As you two made your separate way to buy all the necessary stuff with all the money you have. You were not even far from where your separation spot is when you jogged toward Mukoda, tagging his back clothes.

Thanks to this, he got startled.

"Y-Y/N-san? You scared me, I thought a holdaper-"

"We have that skill, why are we still buying it through the market? and it cost less."

"I mean, you're right... But would that be dangerous? I mean, they've never seen it before, and it could be suspicious for them if they saw it."

"You do have a point... Hmm, okay, we will just buy the clothes here, but for the food, we will use the skill."

____________________

‘Holy cow, his handsome’ You thought as the leader of the will of metal, Werner introduced himself, giving you a dilfi aura.

"So you two are the clients?"

"Yes, it’s us. You can call me Mukoda and "Y/N-san." Mukado can’t help but sweat at how much you're staring at Werner and has nagged you to snap out of it.

"Oh, ah. "Hello, thank you for accepting this task."

"Nice to meet you."

Just by shaking his hand, you already knew that he worked hard. Werner then continued to introduce his other team. You met Vincent, another handsome guy; Rita, a cute bubble girl; Lamon, an old cool dude; and lastly, Lamanka.

Another Dilf, but a Milf one.

‘I only saw it in games, but now I can see it in person!’ You were happy that these people would be the ones to guide you; you just hoped that they wouldn’t rob you like any other novel there is.

"Well then, to Feenen!" Vincent exclaimed, followed by Rita's chirping voice.

It was like a movie with a theme of fantasy and action, but instead of just seeing it on the big screen, You're watching it in 3D with a twist of reality.

And you can’t help but clap your hands at how fast they work by defeating some monsters.

"The sun is about to set. "Let's camp here." Werner said, and as soon as he said those words, You let out an exhausted yawn as your feet were killing you.

‘Finally’ only to groan when Mukado tagged you towards him.

"Y/N-san, we should cook them a meal... I mean, they helped us survive."

"You're right, sorry. We should get started. Umm… Is it okay if we cook you guys something in a thank you way?"

"It’s no problem for us, but are you sure?" Werner asks, oh, how you see that he has a pure soul. and prayed that he would never change.

"I’m craving some hotpot all of a sudden with this cold," you whispered, shivering with the cold night.

"I agree, but we need fast and simple food; we don’t have that much on us." Mukoda whispered, chuckling, as he brought out a stove. Thanks to the item box, you two don’t need a big bag to carry this stuff, and you also took yours.

"Hey, Mukado-san, Y/N-san, can use the item box? I no wonder your bags are so small." Vincent saw the magic stove you two brought out, and you and Mukoda immediately told him that it was just a small item box.

"Wow, this magical item looks awesome."

"Oh, haha, we got it from someone we know." Mukoda said, glancing at you, to which you shrugged your shoulders. starting your cooking show.

while Mukoda serves a simple sausage soup with bread from another world. You, on the other hand, serve a sweet corn soup with mashed potatoes on the side, which you brought from another world as well.

But before you fed it to the Will of Metal group, you told Mukoda to taste it first. "So, is it okay?"

"Yeah! It’s delicious!"

"Yours as well; we should hand it to them now... They kept staring at us. " You sweated as you said this, as the group has been watching you two like hawks for the last minute.

"Be careful, it’s hot!"

"Whoaa, it’s really the soup!"

It’s not even a minute when they gulp down all the food in one go, and just hearing their compliments in regards to your food and Mukoda. You smiled in pride at this.

‘At last, someone who appreciates my food!’

"What is this? This is so good! This soft little thingy is so delicious!" Rita exhaled, gulping down the mashed potato. "Thanks to this meal, I feel more youthful than ever!"

"I feel like my body is full of energy now!" Lamanka excalimed.

‘Hey, Y/N-san… What do they mean by that?’

‘Maybe it’s the way they compliment? and I would gladly hear it all day!’

Mukoda sighs, and he can’t help but start to sweat at this. When he heard Lamon talk about mind, he used the skill "evaluation," and when he saw Rita’s status, some were adding up thanks to the food.

He can’t help but spit the soup out of his mouth. And seeing him, you asked if he was alright while patting his back.

"Mukoda-san?! what happen? Are you okay?" Vincent asks

"Oh, no, no. I was choked because of the soup."

‘Y/N-san, check their status."

‘What?’

‘Just say evaluation."

With what he said, you followed it and when you saw it. You almost choke on the mashed potato you're munching on, and may I remind you that it’s soft and not a hard potato.

"Y/N-san! Are you okay?" Werner ask.

"Oh, yeah. Just remembered how amazing you guys are for defeating that monster, hehe."

‘Why the fuck did that go up?’ You glance at Mukoda and seeing him looking at his food. You did it as well. It was a good thing that it was only temporary and not permanent, but still.

The food you two made is a bit dangerous, and just seeing Mukoda's expression, you already know what he was thinking. That is, unless you two don’t shut your mouths.

‘We should keep this a secret’

‘Agree’

Unknown to the both of you two is that the Will of Metal group has their own thoughts, but instead of thinking how dangerous their discovery about the food is, it’s: "These two lovebirds are meant to be’

Five days of traveling and the group hasn’t reached the destination; with that time frame, you're starting to think about having a second thought about using the skill you have.

But at the same time, you don’t want to risk vomiting your soul out.

"Don’t worry, in this state, it would take 2-3 more days."

‘Yehpe…’ You thought, huffing as your feet were getting tired with all the walking and walking, then climbing, then walking again.

"Our current location is quite troublesome. It’s not really dangerous. But we have to be careful in the remaining part of the trip." Werner said, and with his words, everyone cheered.

with you and Mukoda joining them, even if you two have a tired expression.

On the way to the next capital, the group found a giant red monstrous boar, and because it was big and they couldn’t carry it all, you and Mukoda asked the group if you two could put the remains in the item box.

Collecting the fangs, meat, skins an various vulnerable from the previous monsters to sell it, there was one info that you learn from which is to leave half of it.

Despise the fact that you and Mukoda can carry it all; you two agreed that you did not want them to be suspicious as you only have a small tiem box after all.

"I’m excited to cook for tonight! It’s been so long since I tasted meat!" you exclaimed, stretching your arms.

"You said it! "I'm going to cook my favorite food!" Mukoda excitedly said, as he too couldn’t wait for it.

With the meat from the boar, it has the same taste as a regular one in your world. And it’s easy to cook; it despise not knowing what it tastes like at first but after the final result.

You and Mukoda made one another's favorite meat. while he cooks stir-fried red pork with ginger. Yours is just simple fried pork with miso soup on the side. What could be better than soup on the side or bread?

Yummy!

"Itadakimasu!"

Just seeing their reaction is enough to satisfy your two hardships in cooking the meal for tonight. And wow, maybe it’s too good, as they're showing too much expression.

‘I’m starting to think of opening a restaurant because of them’ You whispered to Mudoka, to which he simply chuckled. But, like they said, if it’s too much, it will be bad news.

You two are just sharing where you got the ingredient from when all of them went quiet.

"Why are you guys so quiet? Is there something you don’t like about the food?" You ask, but when they simply tell you that it wasn’t that, but the presence behind you,

‘Behind me?’

What do you know? not only for your happiness with their reaction to the food you two made, or cheering the fact that you can finally eat some meat after so long... but this monster behind you also wants to eat it.

"Humans… Let me eat with you!"

Next Chapter ---> Part 2

#campfire cooking in another world #Tondemo Skill de Isekai Hourou Meshi #Anime #anime food #anime isekai #Isekai #manga #tondemo skill #tondemo skill de isekai hourou meshi #sui #fel #campfire cooking in another world with my absurd skill #food anime

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unperceivable-future · 1 year

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Narcissus [Pilot]

Hawks/Keigo Takami x Reader

Content warning: My own take on the Hanahaki Disease. English is not my best language. Foul language. Angst. May not feel like a Reader-insert considering that Reader has a given quirk and other parameters (except appearance) [I'll be updating the list as I go]

Synopsis: In a world where humans have further evolved into having redundant traits, you are simply trying to survive life while assisting the Winged Hero.

Note: This story concept smacked me on the head when I was having a sad girl moment.

0 1...

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"Don't forget your meeting with the chairwoman at 2 PM." You remind Hawks as you hand him a stack of papers for him to go through and sign.

"Yeah, yeah. Of course." Your boss grumbles as he goes through a casefile.

In a world where humans have further evolved into gaining superhuman abilities, meta abilities as they have first been coined, comes in a rather redundant trait.

You personally think that quirks are an interesting evolutionary trait. They vary and therefore cannot be pinpointed to selective pressures in nature. It is not akin to peppered moths darkening due to the soot that comes with the Industrial Revolution, quirks were random and have no basis.

So did the abilities of humans coughing up petals after petals when they feel strongly for another person.

You have worked with Hawks three months since he started his hero agency. Fresh out of college and simply through nepotism, maybe a little bit of genetic luck. Your quirk and your family ties were what links you to the Wing Hero.

"I'd appreciate it if you actually read through the reports since, you know, Madame Witch herself would like to know how your last mission went. In full detail." You add in annoyance.

You watched him start as a new hero, a new agency and simply a company you joined through the recommendations by your mother. A mysterious boy that came out of nowhere much like you did if anybody were to take tabs.

"When have I actually not?" Hawks retorts, he looks up to you with such a charmingly playful smile.

"Would you actually like me to list that out for you?" You huff out. It took a while for your relationship with your boss to stabilise.

You joined Hawks' hero agency a few months after the agency itself started. Hawks was anal at first, absolutely all over the place after just firing his fifth assistant in the three-month period his company was set up. He grilled you, put you through so many tasks with mind numbing filings and organising paperwork as his previous assitants simply could not keep up. He was intimidating and a bit pissy, already forecasted for you to fail and to be tossed away but you managed. In fact, you exceeded his expectations, having been able to be a step behind him and sometimes a step before.

When you hit your second month in the company, he actually became a bit nicer and more relaxed. Perhaps it is the fact that you were able to clean up the administrative mess that was caused by the start-up of his business plus the fact that you're coping quite well under the pressure of his ever growing popularity and high demands. And that you memorised his personal likes and dislikes.

And now four years later, your dynamic with your boss is much like you being the nagging mother, constantly reminding him of the mundane tasks of hero work while also picking up after him.

"What does next week look like?" He asks, still reading through whatever casefile the Hero Public Safety Commission handed him some time ago.

"No meetings but your new sidekicks are joining in so you're---"

"Training them, yeah, got it." He sighs, snapping the folder shut and shoots you a tired smile.

It is admirable how Hawks can withstand the pressure of being the number 3 hero despite his young age. He breaks records of being the youngest and fastest while looking so cool and effortless that spectators are under the assumption that he is an under challenged prodigy.

But he is not. He is simply human running on constant adrenaline and stress.

"I'll go grab you some coffee. You might wanna look alive for when the chairwoman shows up." You offer, turning your heels and making your way out of his office.

"Have I mentioned that you're such an angel?" He calls out and you can hear the grin in his voice.

"Many times." You retort like clockwork.

He always tries to make himself look like he has got his shit together despite his age. And honestly? That's definitely why a lot of the people in this country cough up sunflowers when they think of him.

#bnha hawks x reader #keigo takami x reader #hawks x reader #bnha hawks

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maddoc05 · 1 year

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Finnegrin doesn’t loom. He doesn’t need to.

Instead, he nodded to Deadwood, and Callum watched as the thing around the creature’s knuckles crackle with lightning. Chained securely to the wall, and Callum already knows that he has no place to escape. His stomach clenched, his mind going curiously numb as it prepares him for the pain.

But at least it wasn’t Ez. It wasn’t Rayla. It wasn’t Soren. Villads.

Callum could take it. He had to.

He looked away.

The feather-light touch of a glove tilted his head upwards. Callum hadn’t even registered the sound of footsteps on the wooden planks. The scent of salt and brine assaulted his senses. So close that it was inescapable. The coin flipped through the fingers of Finnegrin’s hand with ease, an almost idle motion, rocking back and forth like a boat sways on sea.

“I am a reasonable elf, Callum.” Finnegrin said, a low whisper in Callum’s ear. “Just give me what I want, and you and your friends walk free. After all, one of your own has already done it. There is no need for pain. No need for you to hurt your friends.”

Callum jolted, as if struck. “If you even touch them-” His voice dropped to a snarl.

Finnegrin drew back. Amidst the hardness in his dark eyes, Callum saw the glitter of satisfaction. “I won’t even have to raise a finger.” He promised. He nodded to Deadwood, and before Callum could react, the creature took the first swing.

The force slammed him against the wooden pillar. His head snapped back from the power of it, mouth open in a short, harsh cry as the air was readily driven from his lungs, as he felt something crack and break. He tasted copper. His head rang.

“What- ” He wheezed, choking-

“Sound carries well over water.” Finnegrin informed him, his voice almost kind. “Perhaps you would do well to remember that.” The implied threat hung in the air.

The next hit was worse. The lightning ripped through him this time, locking up all his muscles and he couldn’t scream not even if he wanted to with the way that the contact burned his cheeks. The tears that slipped from his eyes was hot, like the pain was hot, a sharp knife caressing through his insides as the creature trailed its charged knuckles across Callum’s face and down the side of his neck and-

It dug in between his shoulder blades, pinning him in place without any give, any place for his body to react. He tasted the ozone first, and then he tossed his head back with a guttural scream.

His vision returned in splotches. His breath came in short, harsh pants, a fine tremor running like a crack over his entire body, and all he felt was the aftermath of the sparks that held his muscles taut and stretched, the second it failed him all at once and he sagged against the only thing holding him in place.

If he closes his eyes, he can almost pretend that he hears Rayla’s voice, calling his name.

He’s given a moment to breathe. Breathe. He just- had to- breathe. He sobbed the next breath as quietly as he could, shaking with the agony that lanced through him. The logical part of him knew that Finnegrin was not going to kill him, not yet, there’s something from him that the Tidebound elf still wanted, but Callum tethers also on the edge, lost within the throes of the desperate struggle to survive.

The blood that trickled from where it split his lip landed on the creature’s arm, staining the wood dark.

It was clear where this was heading.

(Callum, stubborn in his silence. Finnegrin, ruthless in his)

“Suit yourself.” Finnegrin sighed theatrically and the coin stilled in between in his third and fourth finger.

Callum flinched, long before the blows resumed raining down on him.

And all the while the captain watched, with nothing but the cold of the sea in his gaze. The cold of a watery grave. And if Callum was still conscious enough to hear it, the distant mourn of the ship’s crew as they sang well into the evening.

“Arghh!” Rayla yanked against the chains, the steel cold and biting, but that was nothing compared to the chill of the fear in her gut. It could almost be mistaken for the cold of the fog from the sea, but she knew better.

Finnegrin had taken Callum below deck, along with Zym and Bait and the rest of the wee Baitlings, and she had been helpless to do anything to stop it. She met Soren’s gaze grimly, and he returned in their silent conversation by scooting closer to Ezran. “Sea legs, huh?” He said loudly, “I get it now.”

“Aye.” Captain Villads said, uncharacteristically solemn. “It’d be that.”

“Crab-solutely crazy, right?” Soren shook his head.

Rayla let the forced chatter fade. She wondered, what did Finnegrin want?

Callum was- he was the most amazing person that Rayla had ever known. His display with stealing the wind from Finnegrin’s sails was certainly impressive, but now it also had attracted the attention of the wrong person. She thought of her first impression of the Tidebound elf - that shadowed figure, high above in the railings. She did not have to wonder what sort of acts he had done to maintain that sort of control.

Rayla was afraid. Of course she was.

She gave the chains another vicious tug. It did nothing. She eyed the empty chains where Nyx had been, right before she’d been allowed to fly free. There would be no hope of rescue from that one, Rayla thought resentfully. Worst still, she didn’t even know what deal the Skywing elf had cut with Finnegrin in exchange for that freedom.

Her arms ached. She knew that there would be bruises there - in the morning. If she even survived to see one.

“Rayla.” Ezran said softly. “Callum will be alright.”

But there was that same fear mirrored in his eyes.

She should have been comforting him, not the other way around. “I know, Ez.” She said, more confidently than she had any right to at that moment. “Callum, he’s- he’s strong.” Stronger than me. “He’ll be fine.” She hated that the words still felt like an untruth.

“If they wanted us dead, laddie,” Villads consoled, “We would have been all thrown overboard before you could say ‘argh ’.”

“Arghh.” Soren said. He waited a beat. Then smiled. “See, nothing?”

Rayla tried for a smile.

But the moment of levity was short-lived. The distant murmur of voices, too low for her to ever make out, was interrupted by the start of a sharp, pained cry. It was a noise that cut right through her bones and stilled her heart in her chest. She immediately knew who it belonged to.

Ezran’s face went white.

Soren sucked in a breath. Rayla thought she heard him mutter under his breath, “Oh crab.”

She herself barely had time to react, before it was followed by what could only be described as a scream, Callum screaming, she had never heard him make that sort of sound before, she- she had to- Callum- what was Finnegrin doing to him -

Something inside her snapped.

Almost before she registered the thought, her body was already moving. Rayla squared her shoulders and threw herself forward. The chains yanked her back just as viciously, metal grinding in the hot sea air. “CALLUM!” She raised her voice desperately, feet slamming against the part where her part of the chain connected to the deck.

Her eyes caught one of the nearby sailor’s. The man looked away just as quickly.

Something inside of her slipped even further.

Rayla aimed a particularly vicious kick, a low animal growl escaping her as she tried to set herself free. Her enemies were the chains that held her down, and there would be no mercy for that which stopped her from reaching Callum. She felt for weaknesses in the metal, the beginnings of a plan formulating in her mind, but for that she also knew she needed a little bit more time.

The silence of the gaps in between hurt equally like knives in her chest, the terror that bubbled up turning her reckless, even as she tried and failed to desperately grasp onto any semblance of calm that she still could muster. Callum had to be alive, he couldn’t be dead, she would know .

The three things that would haunt Rayla’s nightmares long after was this -

The glittering of salt waters and Ezran’s sniffled tears. The sound of creaking wood and the bite of metal holding her back.

And when Finnegrin had ordered her mage brought out-

Callum, slumped motionless on the deck and on his knees, bloodied and bruised and as defeated as she had ever seen him.

Her chains clicked. It dropped to the deck.

Rayla lunged.

#the dragon prince #tdp #the dragon prince spoilers #s5 spoilers #fic #whump #hurt/no comfort #callum #rayla

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kiss-my-freckle · 14 days

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HI, which are your top 10 scenes of tvd season 6?

I love a lot of their Delena scenes lol

The cupcake scene. Their kiss combined with this scene are written on the opposite side of 3x10 and 3x11, so you might as well just imagine this scene at the end of 3x11. Here, Elena basically gives Damon permission to kiss her any time he wants. This scene is perfect for "spontaneous" Damon.

The moment Elena basically told Damon it should've been him in 3x22. They're written alongside Tyler and Liv in this episode. The only difference is that Damon had time to work through the pain of her choice. Tyler's wound is still fresh. This is my favorite Delena kiss because of the scene in its entirety. They're written around the quote, "If you love someone, let them go. If they come back, they're yours." Elena always finds her way back to Damon because she follows her heart.

"The closer you are to death, the more alive you feel." This scene jumps off scenes in season 4. I love this entire episode. This scene because of Damon's response. He cares how he makes Elena feel, so when she pulls a fake-out, then says this... his smile says it all. I mean... he essentially stabbed her, she made him believe she was dying, then she put this huge smile on his face.

His choice to take the cure. Fans had to know that Stefan would be making a point with his visions. Damon was planning a vampire life with Katherine. While in transition, he watched them drag her into the church and set it on fire. Believing she was dead, he had no intention of completing his transition. He was planning to die. Here, he basically tells Elena that even if she dies, the rest of his miserable existence will be worth the time he did get to spend with her. The fact that he speaks to the rest of his miserable existence means he plans on living the rest of his human life even if she dies, that's how much he loves her. His "smallest chance" comment is a reference to Emily's talisman. They gave Damon the best lines in the show, istg.

Liz's funeral. What Damon couldn't do for Alaric in their season 4 lantern lighting, he does for Liz here. He's expressing his loss with the group. That's growth. What I love about this scene is Damon's words to Caroline and her song... because I love it when she sings. Damon's words to Caroline are his true feelings about her, so fans should also know why Klaus loved her as he did. "You're a beautiful, strong woman, a generous friend, and a bright light in a sea of dark."

This is my favorite Defan scene. Everything Stefan needed. Damon told Bonnie it wasn't just Elena he had to get back home to. He had to get back to Stefan because he knew. Losing a brother is insanely painful, and this came two seasons after Stefan gave Elena advice on mourning Jeremy. It's through his loss of Damon that Stefan felt it... how right Damon was to say that he wasn't enough for Elena when she lost Jeremy. Caroline wasn't enough for him. He had to let her go because he couldn't deal. Anyway, I love Stefan's emotion in this scene. You can feel how much he loves Damon.

Damon and Bonnie in the prison world is written like Damon and Enzo in The Cell. Difference is, Bonnie was able to get word to Damon that she survived... with Ms. Cuddles. This hug represents what could've been for Damon and Enzo, and it came after Liz's funeral, so it was something Damon certainly needed. He said goodbye to one friend and hello to another.

"I mean, you'd think he'd at least flip a coin... heads he picks you, tails he picks..."

Coin tosses are a Salvatore thing, and Kai messed with the wrong women. Damon's girlfriend and his best friend lol... that's a death wish. Fail as he does, when Damon wants someone dead, it's just a matter of time before he gets it right.

This dance scene. Caroline is hot as hell, and I love seeing her without her humanity. She's having so much fun it's insane. I'm pretty sure season 6 is my favorite season for Caroline. I should point out the fact that Liz's death was her moment for Damon. So much so, she took his advice and flipped her switch.

Enzo pulls a Damon move. This could've been his only scene in the show and I'd still love him. Two people Enzo cared about... Damon was upsetting, Caroline topped the cake for him. Stefan doesn't know what it's like to truly be alone. Enzo does. That's why he's angry as hell in this scene. Stefan has everything that he doesn't, and he's wasting it on a fake life. This scene had me cheering.

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pokemon-card-of-the-day · 1 year

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Pokemon Card of the Day #2899: Alolan Raticate-GX (Celestial Storm)

Alolan Raticate-GX was one of those Pokemon that had attacks that only worked in the right situation. You could hit for a bit of damage for no Energy, but only by discarding from the hand. You could hit pretty hard, but only if the coin flip went well. You could get a ton of Item cards to help set up, but then you had to dodge hand disruption and give up your GX attack. This was not going to be enough to get use on its own. Like any other sometimes decent GX, it had some argument to be used with Mewtwo & Mew-GX, and some people did indeed try it. Darkness wasn't a type that hit much that was needed, but there was still a good GX attack and some chip damage to help get more Pokemon into the discard pile to try out.

200 HP was around where most Stage 1 Pokemon-GX ended up, and was mostly able to survive a hit, though there were exceptions really late once Zacian V and Eternatus VMAX came along. The Fighting Weakness was worth noting only right at the beginning in the BKT-On format even though nobody would likely use this there. A Psychic Resistance helped against Mewtwo & Mew-GX in rare cases. The Retreat Cost was also 3, and was quite high. These stats only mattered if you were actually using Alolan Raticate-GX by itself. You'd likely just discard it to be used by Mewtwo & Mew-GX or skip it altogether in reality.

Chuck Away didn't even need any Energy to use. The attack had you discard up to 2 cards from your hand and do 40 damage for each card you discarded. This was a decent way to get more Pokemon into the discard pile to be used by Mewtwo & Mew-GX while also getting chip damage in, so it was a solid set-up move in some spots.

Hyper Fang got 150 damage in, which was quite good for a Darkness and 2 Colorless Energy. The problem was that the attack just failed with a tails flip on the coin you had to toss, making it very unreliable as a result.

Item Maniac GX did cost the team's GX attack for the game but required no Energy. It let you search your deck for up to 6 Item cards to put into your hand. This was a really nice set-up move unless you played with Marnie available (which was where Alolan Raticate-GX seemed to get almost all of its play) in which case you had to hope to dodge that so your Items wouldn't get stuck on the bottom of your deck. Reset Stamp could disrupt this to some extent as well, but this was an early-game move and you had at least some chance to draw back into something. Either way, it was a bit of a risky play, but sometimes you didn't have a better move early on while getting big attacks ready and your opponent wasn't always going to hit that disruptive card on the right turn.

Alolan Raticate-GX was simply a set-up Pokemon that only had some use because it could just get discarded quickly then get used by a Basic Pokemon. Using a Stage 1 for this would have been hard to make work otherwise. Even then, it wasn't the most common inclusion in the deck, getting a bit of use in Rainbow versions of Mewtwo & Mew-GX that just tried to take advantage of common Weaknesses. Alolan Raticate-GX could discard Pokemon and fetch Items, and that was quite useful for that specific deck.

#pokemon #pokemon tcg #card of the day #raticate #alolan raticate #alolan raticate-gx #celestial storm

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nerdyenby · 2 years

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Pink time :D I’m watching Scar

Pregame

I’ve literally watched three scar videos today but I’ve missed him so much <333

I forgot Tubbo and Scar were called slushie duo :(( /pos

Scar praying to Scott for a desertduo buildmart 😭

Boatem team isn’t a want it’s a need

Scar’s “Is that a bad boy??” when he sees Joel across the lobby

“It says ‘gullible’ on the ceiling” “Does it? No, it says ‘3’” “… don’t worry about it” Beky and Tubbo my beloveds

Parkour Tag

Did Ant just say he was… tossing??

It’s literally the bare minimum but people using they/them for Aimsey means everything to me

SCAR SURVIVAL!!!!!

This team’s comms are insane :D

Beky supremacy!!!!

“Vex on vex violence!!” “WHAT DOES THAT MEAN” slushie duo is everything actually

They’re so good at encouraging and hyping each other up :))

Tubbo first swear in the first game lmao

HOW DID THAT WORK????

BEKY SUPREMACYYYYYY!!!!!

Pink parrots 2nd in parkour tag????? They’re so cool <333

Rocket Spleef

Immediate Ant swear lol

Was collecting data for this entire game so I have nothing else to say except sorry for being so neurodivergent today /j

Why do they want sot early??

Sands of Time

I talk fast too so keep in mind that I’m a hypocrite but Ant stresses me out so bad in sot, he’s not even doing anything wrong he just always sounds so frantic that it freaks me out a lil

Tubbo seems a lil high strung rn ngl

Okay yeah, this team is lacking in confidence, I fully believe they could do well but they were all so frazzled and this was a hard sands

Sky Battle

Why is Tubbo so mean to blue??? I know it’s not mean spirited but like, cmon man

Tubbo and Ant are so stressful to listen to 😭

Scar and his barn strat my beloved <333

“I got a kill!!…… myself..” Scar 😂

“They’re not coming from our right, I got that on lock” Scar mvp

Yo they won!!!

Tubbo losing his absolute mind and Scar just “uh hey guys? We won”

Scar’s face when we have the 6th swear by the start of halftime 🙃 lmao

Slushie time :D

Ace Race

“I’m gonna fail at that- I didn’t!!! Did you see that confidence?” So true Scar

“Unfortunate times with Scar today”

Ant saying Scar’s toe tip helped and getting first :))

Battle Box

Ant is such a tryhard /pos

I could not care less if it’s actually concrete, it’s always gonna be wool in our hearts <33

STOP TRASH TALKING BLUE I WILL CHEW YOUR CABLES

Wool time :D

Beating the top three teams and almost no one else is so iconic of them

The way Ant tries to give Tubbo a compliment and he says “No, definitely not” 😂

Grid Runners

It feels like they’re just breezing through these rooms lol

That golf was so clean

Why are Tubbo and Beky saying everything twice lol

Their push-up comms are so painful, it wasn’t bad just chaotic

“Dyslexic duo had some trouble with the hints”

TGTTOSAWAF

Team bonus!!!!

Scar top 15 both rounds so far!!!

“There are like no coins between fourth and fifth” “There’s literally no coins in this game”

Dodgebolt

Tubbo’s commentary 😂

Toby doing the absolute most to avoid acknowledging Ranboo’s existence sure is something lol

Talking about how both of these teams deserve this win is so real

Everyone cheering on False :D

This team wanting a replay :))

#mcc #mcyt #mc championship #mcc 29 #gtwscar #goodtimeswithscar #antfrost #bekyamon #tubbo

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aeondeug · 2 years

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I am uncertain on how I feel about the save system in Fear and Hunger. I've seen that many just use a mod that gives unlimited books of enlightenment or who edit their save files but something about that seems very unsatisfying to me. What is the point then?

I like limited save systems in horror games. I think they're not utilized nearly as often as they perhaps could be. But they're a very love it or hate it thing and there's a fine line between something that adds to the stress in a positive way and something that just makes the game unfun to play.

Fear and Hunger's is...interesting. The coin flip mechanic in general is kind of a bitch. It's the rng of an rpg given a physical form. Instead of the game simply rolling the dice on whether I get hit by an instant kill attack like in most games in the genre, I have to be the one to roll the dice. And I get to see the literal cast and watch in painstaking agony to see what the result is. In battle this is lovely. Especially since many of these can be avoided outright so long as you know when to block.

But with beds it's different. With beds I can't defend at the right time to avoid it. The only thing I can do to mitigate the issue is to use a lucky coin and those are a rare commodity. And even that doesn't guarantee success. I've burned a coin on a failed save attempt and while the thing that attacked me was something I could deal with it still sucked. A lot.

This has changed how I view save points. In rpgs I tend to be very blasé about save points. Why would I give a shit unless it's a NES era dungeon crawler? In 99% of games that still use save points over universal saves it doesn't really matter. Survival is never much of an issue. In survival horror meanwhile save points are generally my favorite fucking thing in the world. They are small areas of respite. I see one and lose my goddamned mind because oh thank fuck I'm safe now. I can save my progress. Now if I die it's ok.

So I don't really think about saving in most survival horror games, with the sole exception being games like Resident Evil 1 where saving is performed with a consumable item. Even then I generally have a decent sense of how much I can push things. I save much more conservatively and I am tense about that, but the tension is bearable. And I generally feel confident enough in my ability to survive early PS1 era survival horror because I am well experienced in the art of running past shit.

Meanwhile in Fear and Hunger I saw a bed the first time and was so happy. Then I laid down and failed a coin toss and got killed by some Pyramid Head looking bitch (this was in the demo, I seemed to need to talk to the statue to avoid the Crow Mauler). This was shocking. And then it happened again. Most of my early deaths in the demo were to this fucking bed.

After getting out of the demo and into the real game I was very excited about the first bed because oh I know how that works. But then I realized something. This is barely anywhere. I have effectively wasted a free save by just rushing it while having made no real progress beyond picking up some food. And then I saw the other beds and felt no joy upon looking at them because I knew they weren't safe. They could be safe but there is heavy emphasis on that could.

I'm still thinking about the beds though. I tuck them away in my memory to a greater degree than I do the random boxes I pass. I have a mental map of where my beds are. Some beds I have lit the sconces near them. This is because I have deemed those beds to be potential strongholds. But for the most part I am just marking them down because I don't want to risk things.

But then that brings up the issue. I eventually got hold of a purified talisman when I knew where the door to the Hexen was and also I had access to an Ancient Book, which I had yet to try out using but figured would be rad as hell given that it warns me before using it. And I was very excited about these things but also it hit me that I could just...Not win the coin flip and die. And then I might not find those things when I load my last save back up. I wanted to save before I popped the book and definitely while I had access to the Hexen but I didn't want to risk the beds. Because what if I die?

But what if I just keep going and then I die anyway? Saving has now become a matter of how much I feel like risking.

Except I then shortly after found a book of enlightenment. Which I had heard what it did but forgot about but popped anyway because I wasn't warned about shit and given a coin flip so I just figured it'd be fine. And then I was presented with the save screen and remembered what this thing is.

And so I now have another complication in my save issue. I can risk it for the biscuit but now the biscuit isn't just how long I feel like going before I lose my shit. Now the biscuit is literally there is a free save option available I just need to be lucky enough to find it. The lucky coins, though still risk filled, offer a similar sort of temptation to keep going.

So there's just a lot of things that are going into encouraging me to keep playing without saving. The coin flips, the fact that lucky coins and books of enlightenment can be found, the fact that the lucky coins have uses other than making saves a bit safer to do... Which is all very neat. One of the things I like a lot about games is how they train you and I find survival horror has some of the coolest forms of conditioning. And this is definitely a very cool form of it. As it has trained me to view the thing I would normally deem safe as dangerous. As something I don't want to try when I've made significant progress, but which I know I have to do if I want to realistically keep that progress.

But this is also incredibly fucking frustrating. I have spent the past few hours of play trying to get past the mines and one of the bumps in the road I come across is the fucking save system. I prepare and get a lucky drop and go oh sick. Then I try and save only to fail the flip and die. Also while wasting a coin but I mean I was dead anyway but like it's extra insult to injury.

At the same time I can't really see myself editing in unlimited books of enlightenment. That would remove something I view as very crucial to the experience. So it's a weird case of there is a system I kind of hate but also which I can't remove because I would like the game less if I did. Which is just incredibly fascinating.

#fear and hunger

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feathery-dreamer · 11 months

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Freefall (webcomic) quotes

fair warning, there's a ton of them

"Coming together to make music and sing is as old as the human race. It was likely the first non-survival related gatherings we did. For what is a community other than a friendly setting where you can make a complete fool of yourself?" ~Gregor

"If microgravity caused rapid fat loss instead of muscle loss, humans would have had a vastly overfunded space program and been an interplanetary species by the 1970's." Sam

"Benevolence. Philanthropy. Altruism. Thinking like an alien makes my brain hurt. Though in this case, totally worth it." Sam

"His Dad's is starting to warm up to me. His Mom, if she warmed up any more, she'd combust." Florence

"Encounters hardship and concentrates on solving the problem rather than complaining or blaming others? That is nonhuman." Tess

"Artificial intelligence won't be fully human for a while. They're too closely supervised. One day you'll read about a bowman's wolf embezzling from the pension fund and then you'll know they've finally reached parity with us." Tess

"In wartime, human officers who fought with the men they were supposed to lead sometimes got fragged. A fragmentation grenade tossed into the tent to remove that officer. What we're seeing here is an unpopular manager getting economically fragged." Sam

"Helix, I'm proud of those guys. I offered one ship, they want three and a station. The robots have learned how to mooch." Sam

"You can be part of humanity without being human. It's culture, not biology. It doesn't matter if you're organic, mechanical, or virtual. If you share the same core values and goals, you're part of our society." -Tess

"If an employee can go on line, create a new account and order a part from Amazon easier than he can get a part out of your own warehouse, you have a problem." Sam

"So we know to get people smarter than us to help. That's a kind of smart all on its own." Sam

"Well, if something is inevitable, the only course of action is to figure out how to profit from it." Sam

"In order to learn from your mistakes, you have to survive them." Sam

"Tell people you're doing something for them out of the goodness of your heart and they'll be suspicious. Tell them you're doing it out of self interest and you'll gain their trust." Sam

"Every now and then, I find it profoundly disturbing that someone trusts me with their life and even more disturbing that I want that trust." Sam

"It is strange. Humans are often more concerned over how something gets done than if something gets done." Rover17

"Most people get along just fine knowing less than one percent about most subjects." Sam

"Negotiation. Extortion. Two sides of the same coin." Sam

Rover17: "Should I take advice from someone who fails to magnetize their feet?" Sam: "People who lack common sense are the best teachers. We've learned from experience!"

Sam: "The Station manager is trying to trick you. By deliberately putting humans in danger, he knew robots would come to the station and provide low cost labor." Rover17: "So to avoid endangering humans, we have to be well paid?" Sam: "Bet you didn't know greed could be altruistic."

"This solar system is filled with people who made the leap to form a new colony. Pioneers, adventures, gamblers and explorers. If given a choice between an overprotected life of ease in the garden of Eden, or a life of hardship with the chance of greatness, they'll go straight for the apple every time." Sam

"You have tiny feet and yet you still find a way to make me worry when the other shoe is about to drop." Niomi

"There's no point in becoming a legend if no one remembers your deeds." Sam

"Hearts and minds sounds good. But if you really want change, you have to get wallets involved." Mr De Morel

"There are those who want power so they may command the wealth of others. Then there are those who want power so their wealth can not be commanded by others." Mr Hillman

"It's also about purpose. It's about being able to contribute to your community. People may not like going to work on Monday. What they like even less are Mondays with no job to go to." Mr Hillman

Mr. Hillman: "Your whole species lives on just one planet? Man, that would make me twitchy! Anything happens to that one planet and BOOM! It's all over." Sam: "Yes. It's a worry I never had until I met humans."

#freefall #webcomic #quotes #wisdom #life #funny #pun #perspective #philosophy #money #capitalism #humanity #people

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flowerfan2 · 2 years

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I posted 600 times in 2022

25 posts created (4%)

575 posts reblogged (96%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@flowerfan2

@kedreeva

@steverogersnotebook

@pterawaters

@dietraumerei

I tagged 221 of my posts in 2022

#ofmd - 40 posts

#our flag means death - 37 posts

#patrick brewer - 22 posts

#david rose - 22 posts

#david x patrick - 22 posts

#schitt's creek - 21 posts

#dan levy - 19 posts

#schitt's creek fic - 16 posts

#reblog - 14 posts

#noah reid - 13 posts

Longest Tag: 103 characters

#i didn’t even realize this post was from a darren fan but my mind went instantly to darren’s italy film

My Top Posts in 2022:

My friend @sunlightsymphony has made a beautiful podfic of Lonesome Road - it’s a joy to listen to. This angsty Zimbits fic with a happy ending is one of my favorites. I wrote it for the Heartbreak Fest in 2017, so please note the tags/tw. Enjoy the podfic, it’s amazing!

Summary: After rehab, Jack leaves home, unable to face his parents and the legacy he failed to uphold. He gets work as a truck driver and enjoys the relative solitude of it for a few years, until the day he picks up a hitch-hiking runaway from Georgia.

22 notes - Posted May 22, 2022

I’m not sure if anyone is still following me for SC content, but my new story is now posting on A03! Chapter 1 is here - I’ll be posting every other day or so, and will post again on Tumblr when it is complete. You can read the first story in the series here: One Night in Milwaukee. Please reblog and spread the love, and thank you for reading!

Summary: Patrick is hiding something from David, and if he’s being honest, David’s hiding something too. It’s making them both miserable. When Marcy asks them to go to the Brewers’ house in Florida as a favor, David agrees. Maybe a week in the sunshine will help them find their way back to each other.

22 notes - Posted February 8, 2022

Lighthouse Tavern

I couldn’t help myself - here’s my take on the inevitable Ed/Stede post-Season 1 reunion. Read on A03 here. And please reblog and spread the love!

⚓️

It’s a slow night in the bar. Ed occupies himself drying glasses and giving the ever-sticky counter another half-hearted swipe. He wishes the group of increasingly drunk regulars in the back would leave already, so that he could go home and be done with his day. Although he’ll just have to get up the next morning and do the same thing over again, so it really doesn’t make much difference.

It’s been almost two years since he was shipwrecked off the coast of this small Caribbean island north of Barbados. Ed’s bar is a simple place, not infamous like Spanish Jackie’s, but appreciated by the fishermen who stop by to forget their troubles. He doesn’t water the liquor - much - and he doesn’t try to give advice. He just serves drinks.

Ed doesn’t see many of the people he used to know. Izzy disappeared after the shipwreck, and most of the crew members that survived didn’t want anything to do with Ed. It was just as well, Ed had realized quickly, because he didn’t have to try to be anything anymore - not what Izzy wanted, not what Stede’s crew wanted, nothing. He could just be Ed, a guy who wanted to run a bar.

Of course that was a joke too. Running a bar wasn’t particularly interesting, or fun. Not by himself.

He limps out from behind the bar and begins wiping down the tables, hoping that the group in the back will take the hint. His knee is hurting more than usual tonight. He had banged it up good during the shipwreck, turning what was already a bum knee into a permanent problem. Even more reason to close up and get home before the wind picks up.

Finally the last patrons leave, the least wrecked of them tossing a tip on the table and giving Ed a sloppy wave goodbye. Ed picks up the coins and their beer glasses, retreating behind the bar once more to close out the till.

After he finishes, he quickly glances around to be sure no one else is hiding in a side booth or passed out under a table, and then withdraws a teacup from a hidden cabinet. It is a dainty thing, adorned with faded pink roses on the outside and a thin gold band along the rim. Ed sets it in front of him on the counter as he makes the tea, then adds a small amount of sugar and raises the cup to his lips, holding his pinky finger out just so as he had seen Stede do.

Ed doesn’t hate himself anymore, not like he used to. His anger at himself and at Stede has long burned out, in the months after he learned of Stede’s death. He likes to think this nightly ritual is an appropriate way of honoring Stede’s memory, one that his friend would have appreciated.

He’s not sure that Stede would approve of the Lighthouse Tavern. It’s got crooked floors and mismatched bar stools and a distinct lack of fine fabrics. Ed’s place is a far cry from the place they had laughed about, Blackbeard’s Bar and Grill with its delicacies and gift shop. Ed couldn’t bear to name it that, and anyway, Blackbeard is long gone. But this place is safe, and it’s his, and Ed can at least live out his days here without engaging in yet more violence and mayhem. If it isn’t exactly what his heart desires, well, he had his chance, and he let it get away from him.

Ed used to wonder why Stede didn’t show up that night, whether he had pushed too hard, or whether Stede decided that the neutered version of Blackbeard that Ed had become wasn’t interesting enough for him. When he was being honest with himself, he knew it wasn’t the latter. In their last conversation on the beach, Stede was happy, Ed was sure of it. Ed knew Stede wasn’t lying when he said that Ed made him happy.

If Stede had then simply gotten scared, scared of committing to a new life with Ed as his unexpected, socially unacceptable partner, well, Ed could understand that. He could forgive it, even, and he had, although not soon enough.

He still can’t help think about what he might have done instead of fleeing to the <i>Revenge</i> and letting the kraken emerge. He might have gone to look for Stede, figured out where he had gone. What would have happened if he had shown up at Stede’s house? Would Mary have invited him in for a cup of tea, served in delicate china trimmed in gold? Would Stede have sat outside with him as the stars came out, explaining what had gone wrong? Would Ed have been able to change his mind about giving up a life with him?

In his long list of regrets, that’s the one that tops them all - that he didn’t go after Stede.

Shaking his head, he finishes his tea and gives the cup a wash, then sets it carefully inside the cabinet. He doesn’t even have a proper saucer to go with it, or a teaspoon. But it’s enough to give him a taste of the pageantry that Stede so sweetly taught him. He smiles, remembering the light and mischief he loved in Stede’s eyes.

Ed is startled by the sound of the door, and curses to himself as he realizes that he forgot to lock it closed. He quickly checks to make sure his gun is within reach as Jim enters and strides over to the bar.

Jim had shown up here six months ago, mad as hell at Ed until Ed happened to mention that he had a lead on where Jim could find Oluwande and the rest of the pirates Ed had left stranded on a tiny island. The fact that Jim hasn’t yet stabbed Ed gives Ed some reassurance that his lead panned out.

“Something to drink, mate?” Ed asks, already placing a heavy whiskey glass on the counter. Jim is soaked through from the rain battering down outside, and Ed is tempted to offer a mug of hot chocolate instead. But Jim might still try to kill him, and he’s not inclined to make nice just yet.

Jim sets their hat down on the counter and nods towards a bottle. “That’ll do.” They drink down the liquid and lean back, fixing Ed with a steady gaze.

“Any luck?”

They both know what Ed is talking about.

“Yup.” A smile flashes quickly across Jim’s face, hidden almost before Ed can see it.

He doesn’t press. He doesn’t need to know where Olu is now, or the details of Jim’s life with him. But he’s glad that they found each other. They didn’t deserve to be caught in the wake of Ed’s self-loathing.

Jim finishes their drink but doesn’t leave, and the hairs on the back of Ed’s neck bristle.

“You still living in that little shithole house on the cliff?” Jim asks.

“Fucking rude.” At least with Jim he doesn’t have to try to interpret any passive aggression. Just pure aggression. “And yes.” The moment stretches, and Jim just stares at him, then lets their gaze wander to the door. “Something else you wanted to say?”

Jim appears to consider this for a long moment, then shakes their head. “No.” They put their hat back on, nod curtly at Ed, and leave, their long coat still dripping rainwater.

Ed sighs. He’s not surprised - never thought that Jim could be a friend, not after everything he did. Okay, maybe he’s a little disappointed that they didn’t at least stay for a few more minutes. But being alone is nothing new. He’s used to it.

See the full post

27 notes - Posted April 19, 2022

56 notes - Posted April 17, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Writing is the only thing that, when I do it, I don’t feel I should be doing something else.

Gloria Steinem

84 notes - Posted June 12, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review

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marauderundercover · 3 years

Text

The Strings that Bind Us: Ch. 3

AO3

Marinette is nervous. It’s worse than any other nerves she’s ever felt. Today was the day she was going to meet Bruce’s sons. They’d been dating for almost two months and even though she’d met Alfred (and often called him to talk and trade recipes), she had yet to meet Bruce’s sons. Mostly because she didn’t want to interrupt their lives. She didn’t want to walk in and meet them and then be gone. Neither of them deserved that. So, she had waited. And now the day was here and she was panicking. She glances around the small grocery store, determined to get the ingredients to make dessert for dinner tonight. Bruce had told her that Dick had an insane sweet tooth, and she didn’t want to bribe the kid, but she really did want him to like her. Bruce had already warned her that Jason was a little less welcoming, but she had hope that the cookies would work on him as well. Grabbing a bag of chocolate chips, she heads over to the frozen section to pick up a few staples.

“I don’t understand why we have to hang out today. I thought you hated us.” A voice says, and she frowns.

“I don’t hate you. And I just wanna warn you, make sure you know that just because she’s here today doesn’t mean she’ll be here tomorrow.” A second voice says. Shaking her head, she moves past, trying hard not to listen to the boys’ conversation as they walk away. It wasn’t her business, after all. She grabs a couple bags of frozen veggies before heading up to the checkout and paying. She leaves the store, taking note of her surroundings as she walks. She looks both ways before crossing the street and heading into the bank. She needed to send some money back home to her parents for the anniversary since she couldn’t be with them in person this year. She’s just about to get to the teller when a loud bang echoes throughout the bank. She whirls around and eyes widen at the man who just entered the building. His suit was interesting, half of it was a solid gray color and the other half was bright and patterned. But that wasn’t what shocked her. What shocked her was the way half his face was completely red and scarred. Well that, and the ten men with guns that walked in behind him. Her eyes dart around the room, searching for anything that may be helpful, when her eyes land on two boys. Both tense as they look at the man, but instead of fear (like everyone else had on their face) the two looked determined.

“Ah, how nice to see the two of you here.” The man says, walking up to the two boys and grabbing the younger one’s wrist tightly. Marinette’s eyes narrow as the boy winces slightly.

“Let him go.” She snaps, storming over and glaring at the man, trying hard to ignore the way the guns were now trained on her.

“Oh and what, you volunteer instead?” He asks, and she scoffs.

“I never said that, now let him go.” She demands, giving the man her worst Ladybug glare. His eyes narrow, but he lets go of the boy and she shifts so that she’s between the two. “Now, why don’t we talk about this like grown ups.” She suggests, crossing her arms.

“Do you know who I am?” The man practically growls. She raises an eyebrow.

“Non. I haven’t been in Gotham for long.” She admits, trying (and failing) to come up with this man’s name. He was obviously one of Gotham’s villains, if the reaction of everyone else was anything to go by. And the fact that he came with goons instead of by himself made her believe he wasn’t your everyday bank robber.

“Tell you what. Since you decided to take the kid’s place, we’ll let the coin decide your fate. Unmarked side, I let you go and you can go on with your day. I’ll even leave the bank.” The man starts, and her stomach drops. Two Face. That was his name. And he was leaving her fate up to chance. To luck. “Scarred side, I shoot you in the head. Or, if you don’t wanna play, we can let the kid play. Whaddya say?” He asks with a grin. She grits her teeth and hopes that her years with Tikki had left her with enough residual luck to make it through this encounter.

“Go ahead. Let the coin decide.” She says, whirling around and hushing the boys behind her who are objecting suddenly. “Not now.” She hisses, terrified that if they object he’ll move along to them next. She turns back to Two Face and nods, watching as he tosses the coin in the air and catches it. Her heart beats out of her chest as she watches him reveal...the unmarked side.

“Looks like lady luck was on your side today.” He says, and his smile almost appears genuine, which makes her stomach churn. “Pack it up boys, we made a deal.” He says, and all of his goons turn to leave with him. They make it all the way out the door before she hears the sirens pulling up. She frowns. The police here were not great at showing up on time, were they? Her eyes widen when she sees Batman drop down, joining the fight. That’s definitely unusual. Turning away from the chaos outside, she turns to the two boys.

“Are you two okay?” She asks, scanning their faces.

“That was really stupid.” The younger one says, a scowl on his face. She ignores him, instead looking at his already bruising wrist.

“May I?” She asks, holding out a hand. He frowns.

“Let her look, Jason.” The older one says, sighing. She smiles at him in thanks before holding the younger boy’s wrist gently. She pokes softly and turns it, trying to make sure there isn’t a break. She glances at the boy’s face to gauge his reactions.

“I don’t think it’s broken, but you should definitely ice it when you get home.” She says softly. The boy just snorts and rolls his eyes, taking his arm back and frowning at her.

“Why’d you do that?” He asks, and her heart aches at how he looks at her. As if he’s suspicious of her. As if someone helping him has to have an ulterior motive.

“Because I don’t appreciate people picking on children.” Marinette says simply. The boy starts to answer, but is cut off by a gruff voice.

“Ma’am, other witnesses are saying you were targeted by Two Face?” She turns and is unsurprised to see Batman.

“Ah, not quite, sir. He actually went straight for these two. I simply diverted his attention somewhere else.” She says.

“Why?” He asks and she blinks in surprise.

“Um, because they’re children? And they’re innocent. I don’t see that there needs to be any more reason than that.” She says. Batman nods.

“The police want your statement. I’ll take the boys’ statements.” He says and she nods, but hesitates to walk away from them.

“Do you boys have someone who can come pick you up?” She asks, not willing to let them walk home alone after something like that. The oldest nods.

“Yeah, we’re fine. Thank you.” He says with a small smile. She sighs and returns the smile, turning to go talk to the police. If she could get through that situation, surely she could survive meeting Bruce’s sons.

---

Marinette squeals as Bruce lifts her and spins her around, before setting her down and kissing her gently.

“What was that for?” She asks, smiling up at him through her lashes.

“Being you.” He says simply. She snorts and whacks his chest gently, rolling her eyes.

“You’re such a goof.” She teases, turning and immediately heading towards the kitchen.

“Where are you going?” He asks, slipping his hand into hers.

“To say hi to Alfred and set down the cookies.” She says, swinging their hands as she drags him to the kitchen.

“Good evening, Miss Marinette.” Alfred says, a soft smile on his face.

“Evening, Alfred. I brought some cookies for dessert. I hope that’s okay.” She says, letting go of Bruce’s hand to give Alfred a quick hug. The two had grown close in the little time they’d known each other, and Marinette could honestly say that she adored the older man’s company. He was funny, and she often got to hear embarrassing stories about Bruce (not that she’d ever tell him that).

“Mari, just a warning, the boys might be a bit...distant tonight.” Bruce says suddenly, stopping the conversation that she and Alfred were having about his latest attempt at macarons. She frowns.

“Are they okay? Should I leave? We could reschedule, I don’t want to-” She starts to ramble, concerned for the boys. She may not have met them yet, but she’d heard enough stories from Bruce.

“They’re fine, please, stay.” Bruce says, grabbing her hands and turning her so that she faces him. He cups her cheek gently, smiling down at her. “They’re fine, love, I promise.” He says. She lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding before nodding.

“Did something happen?” She asks. He sighs and lets go of her face, running a hand over his own.

“They were caught up in a Rogue attack downtown.” He says quietly and she gasps.

“Bruce Thomas Wayne!” She scolds, frowning at him. “They were involved in a villain attack and you expect us to just, meet? I doubt either one of them wants to go through the trouble of meeting some completely random person after going through something like that. Mon Dieu Bruce, they may say they’re fine but that has to be emotionally draining.” She says, shaking her head. She pushes the loose strands of hair out of her face, sighing.

“Mari-” He starts, but she shakes her head.

“Bruce, honey, I don’t want to intrude.” She says, standing on her toes to give him a quick kiss. “We can meet on a day when they haven’t been through something traumatic.”

“Well shit. Looks like we’ve already met you little girlfriend B.” A familiar voice says. She whirls around and her eyes widen at the sight of the two boys from the bank standing in the doorway to the kitchen. She glances at Bruce and raises an eyebrow at his tired expression.

“Jason, what have I said about your language?” He asks tiredly. Jason shrugs.

“To not say things like that.” He says, making both Bruce, and the boy that Marinette assumes is Dick, sigh.

“I can still leave.” Marinette offers the boys, ignoring the frown on Bruce’s face.

“To be fair, you went through something traumatic too. Might as well stick around and deal with the trauma together.” Jason snarks. She smiles, though it’s a little forced as she remembers she had almost watched one of Bruce’s sons be shot today. If she hadn’t stepped in….

“It’s nice to meet you in a, er, calmer environment.” She says with a small wave, resisting the urge to lean into Bruce for support. “I’m Marinette Dupain Cheng, but you can call me Marinette. Or Mari, if you want.”

“I’m Richard, but everyone calls me Dick.” Dick greets with a small nod in greeting.

“And I’m Jason, but you knew that.” Jason says, crossing his arms. Marinette just smiles, but this time it isn’t forced. This was going to be interesting.

---

“So, Jason, Bruce tells me that you enjoy reading. Do you have a favorite author?” Marinette asks, trying to keep the conversation going. Both boys were still hesitant, and she wasn’t sure if it was her or the incident from the bank. She hoped it was the latter.

“Not really.” Jason says, hesitating before adding, “I like classics though.” Marinette grins.

“Really? I could never get into them when I was your age, couldn’t sit still long enough.” She says with a laugh. “But in the last couple of years I’ve found myself really enjoying Hugo and Dumas. Oh! And the Brontë sisters.” She adds, eyes lighting up as Jason grins.

“Have you read Hunchback of Notre Dame?” He asks and she laughs.

“They may have thrown me out of Paris if I hadn’t.” She teases. She feels herself relax as she talks to Jason about books, grinning at the boy’s enthusiasm and genuine love for literature. It reminded her of how much she loved designing before she got so caught up in Hawkmoth. She feels someone hold her hand, and she sneaks a glance at Bruce, smiling softly at him and squeezing his hand before turning her attention back to Jason. The rest of dinner flies by, with the conversation mostly being led by her and Jason. Dick is much less talkative. Which contradicts many of the stories Bruce had told about him. Though, many of those stories were from when he was younger. Once it’s time for dessert, Marinette stands to help Alfred clear the dinner plates.

“Miss Marinette, I can bring in the dessert just fine.” Alfred scolds, gesturing for her to sit down. She just grins.

“I know, Alfred, but you already made a lovely dinner. Let me help.” She says, grabbing some of the plates and following him into the kitchen. Once the kitchen door swings shut, she starts clearing the plates and glances at him nervously. “Do you think the boys like me?” She asks, worried.

“I believe young Master Jason does. And although he may not act like it, I do believe Master Dick does as well. He just needs time to be able to show it.” He says, and Marinette feels the tension in her shoulders seep out. She nods, glancing back towards the dining room.

“I really like him, Alfred.” She says quietly, afraid that Bruce or one of the boys would hear her. “I don’t wanna mess this up.” She admits.

“If I may be frank, Miss, Master Bruce has smiled more in the past two months than I’ve seen in years.” Alfred says, and Marinette blushes. She feels her chest warm and she sighs happily.

“I don’t think I’ve smiled this much in years either.” She admits, smiling softly at Alfred before grabbing the cookies and taking them out to the dining room. This was the happiest she’d been since Hawkmoth first started his reign of terror all those years ago, and she was willing to do anything to keep her little slice of heaven.

Tag list: @maribat-october-rarepairs @stainedglassm @kittenmywaythrulife @laydeekrayzee @doll246 @queenz-z @deathssilentapproach-blog @literaryhiraeth @unoriginalmess @ashbrea381writings

#brucinette #maribat #maribat fanfic #maribat fic #maribat bruce wayne #maribat marinette dupain cheng #maribat jason todd #maribat dick grayson #ao3fic #maribat batman #MaribatHalloween21 #maribatoctrp21 #mominette

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pegasister60 · 3 years

Photo

A thing for @lemliv‘s MCYT Sugar Rush AU!

I wanted to make him a racer but then I remembered I couldn’t draw vehicles.

So you get this instead! Bedwars peeps (aka most of Tiredtwt) in a platformer! The name’s a placeholder but everything else I am confident in.

Aim of the game is to get to the top without dying and to clear as many stages based on Bedwars maps as you can. Heavily inspired by the og Kid Icarus in terms of gameplay with the exception of the default weapon not being a bow.

Below the cut will be more information about the game itself and how it works copied almost exactly from the discord dm where I gushed about it to a friend.

You’ve got story mode, versus mode, free climb, and secret levels.

Story mode is single-player and after the character select screen you cannot change your character. You complete levels and at the end of every level you’ll get some lore. Maybe a mini-boss fight.

Versus mode is just a race. 2 players will try to reach the end of the level without getting left behind. The screen does not split and scrolls upwards faster and faster as the race progresses. If you hit the bottom edge of the screen and vanish off it you take damage and depending on your character that might be it for you. Winner’s character does a boasting animation and the loser’s character does their death animation.

Free climb lets you select a map and then climb and climb and climb until you miss a jump and fall into the void. It does not have enemies and is good practice.

Secret levels are unlocked by beating story mode.

Normally when you play story mode if you get a game over you are given a code to take you back to the beginning of the level you failed in so you don’t have to replay the whole thing to get back. It can be input on the character select screen after holding down red and blue.

When you finish a character’s route you get given a code for a secret level for that character. It unlocks a cool mini-game.

Purpled’s is Dogchamp’s Dinner Rush. You play with Dogchamp following you as you climb through the levels. The only enemies are skeletons that drop bones instead of iron and the objective is to get as many as possible before reaching the end of the level. At the very end, Purpled will toss them to Dogchamp one by one and Dogchamp will jump to crunch them all and then do a happy bark.

It’s cute.

Now some stuff about story mode.

The enemies drop iron and gold and there’s shops you can jump into every few levels to buy stuff from. A potion that gives you extra long jumps for a bit, fireballs that shoot in the direction you’re facing when you use the item button, golden apples that let you take one free hit. You can hold more than one item but you have to use them in the order purchased and it only displays the currently usable item. The controls are pretty simple. There’s the green joystick, red jump, blue crouch, and purple button (tap to attack, hold to use item) along with the black select/start buttons. There’s two sets of controls bc versus mode. When you complete a level, depending on your character, you get either an emerald or a diamond. For Purpled if you get four emeralds you can get an extra life that looks like an enderpearl instead of a player head. When you get down to the extra life Purpled vwhoops onto the nearest free platform with tiny purple particles. This is not always convenient but it’s consistent.

When you lose a life and still have more left your hurt animation is kinda like Sonic’s. Most of your iron and gold scatters and ends up going over the edge, though anything that’s still on the ground you can pick up again.

Killing enemies is the basic jump on top of them, though some are more resilient and you have to actually strike them multiple times with your weapon. Some enemies act as springboards, usually the ones that float across on the horizontal or vertical. Others are just there so you have to actually watch your jumps so you don’t slam into them sideways.

The aim of the game? Advance and survive.

Advance obviously means onwards and upwards.

Survive means keep moving.

If you spend a significantly long time on one screen it rumbles and the dragon roar sounds. The dragon counter resets with every new screen but if you’re absolutely stuck then it’s game over. Dragon swoops up from the bottom of the screen and its wingspan takes out everything on the screen at once, enemies, player 2’s, and all.

When you 100% game over and the continue screen fades out it plays the character retreat animation (Purpled’s is getting picked up by a ufo) and gives you a leaderboard screen.

When you just die normally your character will collapse and their continue screen animation will play. Purpled’s is Dogchamp trotting over to sit next to him. When you insert a coin Dogchamp nudges Purpled and Purpled springs up to keep going.

The character select screen shows all the characters but sometimes they’re not available and their squares are grayed out. When you hover over a character their portrait gets shown along with their stats.

Wallibear has a special fireball jump he can do if you shoot one down. He starts with a fireball. His portrait shows a person in a bear hoodie but his sprite is a blue bear in a hoodie.

Purpled has the highest jump of any character and starts with an emerald. He also has objectively the most Story dialogue because if you don’t play as him he appears in almost every route and becomes the shopekeeper. In his route the shopkeeper varies. And so on.

The more hearts a character has the more damage they can take before they lose a life. All characters have three lives to start with unless you use a cheatcode.

A character’s weaknesses can be compensated for with items though how far into the game you’ll be able to afford them is another matter entirely.

Example being that with a jump boost most mediocre jumpers can match Purpled’s default. And with enough golden apples and enderpearls lined up Purpled can stop being a two-shot.

It isn’t as popular as Sugar Rush but it’s got regulars and it’s nostalgic as hell.

#if anybody draws him as a racer tho please tag me #i wanna see that #my post #i speak #my art #i write #purpled #purpled bedwars #mcyt sugar rush au #sr!purpled #purpled fanart #purpled dsmp #dsmp purpled #dsmp #dream smp

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warcraft-lore-archives · 3 years

Text

The Folk & Fairy Tales of Azeroth Lore Facts

Editor’s Note: “Some of the tales you’ll encounter here may be rooted in canon, or they may be another traveler just telling a tall tale.”

Eyes of the Earth Mother

Though the Earth Mother heard the whispers of the Old Gods, she could not be swayed by them (13).

Pregnant, the Earth Mother sought a place away from the Old Gods’ corruptive influence to give birth to her children. Unable to find such a place, however, she decided to shape the world and, in doing so, create her own safe haven (14).

All of Azeroth’s lands, waters, and even the elements themselves came forth at this moment. They were suffused with enough of the Earth Mother’s essence so soon after their inception that they kept the Old Gods’ powers at bay (14).

The Earth Mother gave birth to twins: first An’she, a beacon of life and warmth, then came Mu’sha, who was to bring rest, tranquility, and healing. The elements called them the “sun” and the “moon” (15).

Eventually, both An’she and Mu’sha developed connections with the elements. An’she found himself able to wield the light and warmth of fire while Mu’sha maintained some control over the tides and winds (15-16).

The twins even went so far as to use the elements to create weapons to spar with. Mu’sha opted for a bow and arrow, whereas An’she’s weapon of choice was a set of blades (16).

To keep her children safe from the Old Gods’ ever-present influence while she slept, the Earth Mother took both An’she and Mu’sha up into her eyes. Their power was so great that she had to keep one eye open at all times (16).

This, however, meant that Azeroth no longer received An’she’s warmth or Mu’sha’s guidance of the wind while the Earth Mother rested. Cold slowly spread across the land and blizzards raged until she finally woke again (18).

The Earth Mother’s cycle between periods of sleep and awakening would come to form the basis of the seasons as we know them, with her time of work the summer and her time of rest the winter (18).

As the twins grew in power, they developed the ability to bring on the change of seasons at will, though they took care to do it slowly and give the world time to adjust. As the Earth Mother rested, An’she and Mu’sha continued to tend to Azeroth from behind her eyes (19).

After waking at one point, the Earth Mother found that there was new life walking the earth. Plucking wheat from the plains to sprinkle over them, the Earth Mother called them “Shu’halo,” - the tauren (19).

Just as the Earth Mother taught her children, both An’she and Mu’sha taught the Shu’halo in the ways of the elements and caring for the land (20).

When the Earth Mother next slept, however, the Old Gods extended their influence to the tauren, causing them to grow violent and turn on their own kind (20).

Saddened to see the tauren fall to such corruption, the Earth Mother shed a single tear. She realized that the land was no longer able to hold the Old Gods’ power at bay, meaning anything it touched could be corrupted (21).

Knowing that she was not safe for her children anymore because of her own connection to the land, the Earth Mother removed An’she and Mu’sha from her eyes and laid down in despair (21-22).

The single tear that the Earth Mother had shed became a blue baby, later named “Lo’sho,” or the Blue Child (22, 24).

Seeking to put an end to the Old Gods after what they had done to the tauren and the despair they instilled in their mother, An’she and Mu’sha fought against some of the eldritch beings’ manifestations. During the battle, An’she was wounded grievously. Though Mu’sha sought to heal him with wind and water, he continued to bleed (24).

The Earth Mother, stirred by her distant children’s dismay, eventually found her way to them. She urged them to take Lo’sho and go to the heavens so they could protect Azeroth from above, while the Earth Mother chose to root herself in the earth and prevent the Old Gods from ever claiming her children (26-27).

Mu’sha, the moon, continues to follow An’she closely across the sky so she can keep tending to his wounds (26).

One Small Tuskarr

The tuskarr etch their clan and family symbols into their tusks. Though this is customary, some do engrave other symbols - such as marks indicating deeds of great distinction - into their tusks as well (32, 36).

The catch master, who weighs the tuskarr’s catches, has a counting staff adorned with cords in the colors of each of the clan’s active fishermen. In accordance with how big a tuskarr’s haul of fish is, the catch master ties a single knot or more into their respective cord. These knots can be traded for tools, weapons, and coins, among other things (32-33).

A single knot is customary for those who meet basic requirements, while additional knots are allotted to those who catch more (33).

One can also earn knots from other tasks, such as fine embroidery, though they do so at a much slower rate than those who fish (38).

Food is shared equally among the tuskarr (33).

The tuskarr perform nomadic journeys that take them to various kalu’ak towns. While the fishers take their own boats, most of the mothers, adolescents, and children trek across the ice (34).

Fishing practices are passed down from parent to child. Though it is unclear if that is “law,” some of the tuskarr refuse to teach others to fish if they are not their own blood, going so far as to withhold information about the currents and places fish gather (36).

Tuskarr sometimes dye their moustaches (36).

It never gets fully dark in Northrend (38).

Oacha’noa is the tuskarr’s deity of both the sea and wisdom. Her symbol is that of a kraken (39).

The spearhead on most tuskarr weapons is made of sharpened bone (42).

A type of manta ray known as the stargazer can be found in Northrend’s waters (44).

The tuskarr can survive in water so cold it would kill other races native to Azeroth in mere minutes (45).

The tuskarr typically fly kites for fun, though they have been known to use them to send signals to others at great distances (48).

Lay Down My Bones

According to Vulpera beliefs, the first of their kind was born from the magic of the desert. Though they are a nomadic people, an old tale about an artifact called the Wailing Bone claims the desert calls their bodies back to where they began when they die. To ensure they find their way back, the vulpera follow the Wailing Bone (55-56).

Once one of their own has passed, it is customary for the next of kin to carry the bone at the head of the caravan while the vulpera wander in search of the proper place to bury them. The journey may take anywhere from days to weeks, but when the Wailing Bone begins to cry, the vulpera know they have found their loved one’s final resting place (56, 61).

A poem is carved into the Wailing Bone: “Wander, roam; bring me home, / Down paths at my behest; / Among the stones, lay down my bones, / So I, at last, may rest”. Few can read the script it is written in, but most all vulpera can recite it from heart (54).

Two vulpera, frustrated at their inability to find their elder’s final resting place, neglected their duty and left his corpse in a river in the hopes that it would bring him there for them. Refusing to obey the Wailing Bone caused it to crack. From that night on, the vulpera of the caravan found themselves cursed for failing to heed the Wailing Bone (62, 65).

Cracking under the pressure of the curse, the two negligent vulpera ultimately died gruesome deaths at each other’s hands. One of their bones was made into the next Wailing Bone (65).

A caravan always needs a Wailing Bone (65).

The Uninvited Guest

One goblin adage goes like so: “Every great goblin invention was born from necessity, bubble gum, or an accident” (69).

The goblins have a nursery rhyme: “In the dark of night and bright of day, / Keep in your hand a tossaway. / Guard your fortune, mind your greed, / Or else the Uninvited Guest will feed” (70).

The Uninvited Guest is a goblin boogeyman of sorts who is attracted by greed so egregious it offends even the dead. It is incorporeal, invisible, and has the ability to move through walls (76).

The Uninvited Guest feeds off of greed, but it can never be satisfied. It will latch onto its host like an invisible parasite to feed, inciting strange charitable behavior in them until they have given away all of their earthly possessions (76-79).

A “tossaway” is a shiny gold-painted coin stamped with the face of the very first trade prince. These fake coins get their name from the way goblins quite literally toss them away in a symbolically superstitious act to protect themselves and their fortunes from the Uninvited Guest (70, 74).

Tossaways were invented by Slixi Boompowder, the wife of one of the former trade princes of the Steamwheedle Cartel, after her own run-in with the Uninvited Guest. She only escaped from it because she distracted it with actual gold galleons, which inspired her to create the tossaways (83).

Legend has it that the Uninvited Guest still roams Azeroth to this day, looking to feed off of hapless greedy goblins (84).

Klaxz Boompowder was one of the former trade princes of the Steamwheedle Cartel. His rival was Rikter Hogsnozzle, the trade prince of the Bilgewater Cartel (70-71).

Tradition dictates that goblins are buried with their most valuable possessions so they can enjoy them at the Everlasting Party, the goblin afterlife. They are then given burial gifts by other goblins from their own riches, though most goblins are too greedy to truly part with anything important (73).

Once the coffin is sealed, goblins dance on top of it to usher the deceased on to the Everlasting Party (75).

Prominent goblins typically serve as pallbearers while goblins contractually obligated to serve as pack mules carry the rear (75).

The goblins used to employ golden galleons as their form of currency, but it fell out of fashion. Nowadays, they are incredibly rare and expensive (74-75).

Trolls have a tale about an invisible evil that sucks the souls from living beings and leaves them mad. It can only be seen in the light of a full moon (80).

Sister is Another Word For Always

Vereesa felt Sylvanas’ death at the hands of Arthas the moment it happened (89-90).

Sylvanas’ eyes were gray as a high elf (91).

In the midst of her sorrow at her sister’s death, Vereesa sought many escapes. At first she tried to sleep, but when rest and forgetfulness would not come, she embarked on a journey across deserts and forests with little in the way of proper food or nourishment except that which she found (90, 93).

It is very possible Vereesa perished at some point on this journey, for she came across a spirit healer, though she was told it was not yet her time. The spirit healer offered Vereesa a deal: if she could bring her the willing soul of Sylvanas without ever touching her, the spirit healer would restore her to life (96-97).

When Sylvanas first died at the hands of Arthas, it seems as though the Arbiter sent her to Ardenweald (98-99).

After she struggles to locate her sister in Ardenweald, Vereesa is inadvertently pulled into the Maw. There, she still has difficulty finding her, and is told by the Jailer that Sylvanas is not there - at least, not yet. He then urges her to leave, telling her she does not belong there (99, 102-103).

Eventually, Vereesa spots a silver glimmer she knows to be Sylvanas, though it is only a fragment of her soul (103-104).

Before she can escape with the soul of her sister, the Jailer stops Vereesa and inadvertently tricks her into touching Sylvanas, rendering her deal with the spirit healer null and void (106).

At the end of this journey, Vereesa awakes at the foot of a statue, her memory of the experience hazy (109).

The Paladin’s Beast

Uther is originally from Stratholme (117).

Introduced as a fable beloved by the princelings and princesses of Lordaeron, the Paladin’s Beast is a tale that follows a young Uther as he finds himself in a mysterious and unfamiliar land. Determined to prove himself and bring back a prize to his fellow paladins, Uther joins a tournament put on by a foreign kingdom despite the protests of its princess. Though he is a strong warrior, she insists the beast of the tournament kills every knight who challenges it. Still, Uther refuses to back down, confident that his faith in the Light will give him the strength he needs to prevail. However, the princess’ words hold true, as every knight who goes to fight the beast before him perishes. When it is his turn, Uther decides to stay his hammer rather than fight, remembering the princess’ words. The beast withdraws, defeated by his act of compassion. It is revealed afterward as Uther goes for his prize that the princess actually was the beast all along, cursed to fight in the tournament for disobeying her father and breaking the royal lineage. She casts a spell on Uther, making it so that when he returns to Lordaeron, he will not remember anything of who she was or his experience there until the day he finds himself in a fiery field. Though the fable ends there, it is said that Uther dreamt of the silver kingdom and its princess for many years to come. It was not until his final moments, trying to fell a beast with weapons rather than compassion, that he would fully remember the princess and her story (111-127).

For Lies and Liberty

Most undead do not get all of their memories back immediately once they are raised (or given free will). It takes time and encouragement (133-134).

On the long-standing issue of whether or not undead have ichor or blood running through their veins, it appears one Jeremiah Pall still has blood in his body, though it has stopped moving on account of his still heart (134).

The story of the “Fearless Flyer” - a man known as Captain Whitney - is famous among some of the Alliance forces. According to the man himself, Whitney and his outfit had been fighting orcs for months to no avail when he hatched a bold plan to launch himself by catapult into their camp and take them by surprise, hence the nickname the “Fearless Flyer”. This story, unfortunately, turned out to be nothing but hyperbole. As it stands, a drunk Whitney accidentally got tangled up in nets, fell in the catapult, and was unceremoniously flung into the orcish camp. Believing themselves to be under attack, the orcs retaliated and killed most of the unsuspecting humans while Captain Whitney hid (136, 142).

Stones, Moss, and Tears

Though female elves traditionally mark their faces after they have achieved a rite of passage, they can continue to add embellishments to commemorate any further deeds (155).

At least one kaldorei lorekeeper was charged with knowing the name of every Sentinel and recording details of their more noteworthy battles (156).

The Bloomblade druids were one of the oldest, unbroken lines of night elf druids (158).

A species of insect known as glowmoths migrate through Mount Hyjal every autumn (164).

The Embrace

The White Lady and the Sun were charged with keeping watch over Azeroth as it dreamed (171, 176).

Though she loved the people of Azeroth dearly, the White Lady found herself growing lonely and in want of a family (173).

The moon cycles are thought to be the White Lady turning away and hiding her face in her sorrow, though she would always look back upon Azeroth to watch over it (174).

It is said that the White Lady loved Azeroth and its denizens so much that a child - the Blue Child - was born of that love (174-175).

The Blue Child, ever curious, began asking the White Lady questions about the mortals that weighed on her heart, as she could not answer (176).

One night the White Lady woke up to find the Blue Child gone. Unable to find her, she swore off her charge until the Blue Child was returned to her (177-178).

Without her guidance, the planet sped up and the tides ceased. The White Lady was only convinced to return to her duty after the Sun urged her, telling her the Blue Child might return if she had the moonlight to guide her (178).

The White Lady began to glow even more brightly over time in the hopes that her child would see, her light quickly growing to rival that of the Sun’s. This, too, caused problems, for crops burned and navigators could not see the stars to travel by (179).

Upon seeing the terrible effect this was having on Azeroth’s denizens, the White Lady dimmed her light and retreated (181).

The Blue Child ultimately returned from her long travels to her mother. They embraced in the sky, creating a beautiful eclipse (182).

Ever curious, the Blue Child was bound to grow restless again and leave for the stars, but the White Lady knew she would always return (183).

When the moon turns red, it is a sign of her anger (177).

Why the Mermaids Left Boralus

Back when Kul Tiras was still a Gilnean colony, Boralus had hardly any walls or structures protecting it from the wind or sea. More often than not, when the Great Sea churned at the city’s edge, it took houses, ships, and even men down into its depths. So many would drown in these incidents that those remaining covered them with weighted nets, causing them to sink to the seafloor (187-188, 190).

Many of the roads out of Boralus flooded during great storms, making it deadly to try to leave the city on foot or by ship (198).

The Kul Tirans declined to build a seawall for fear that it would have done nothing and also because repairing it after a storm would have been just as dangerous as the storms themselves (188).

Most of Boralus’ early inhabitants were seamen of some sort, whether fishers, sea priests, sailors, or pearl-divers (188).

During storms, the tidesages would act as a makeshift seawall and use their power to cut the waves before they made it deeper into the harbor (199).

Mermaids appeared quite openly near Boralus in its early days. Though they lived much deeper than most could naturally dive, they liked to sit on the rocks and watch ships go by, among other things. Most lived in temples beneath the sea that belonged to Kul Tiras’ former inhabitants (189, 191).

According to superstition, sighting a mermaid was bad luck and presaged many inauspicious things including a doomed voyage, a brutal winter, and poor fishing. They were also seen as the harbingers of storms (189-190).

Tidesages were (and still are) always the first and last to disembark from a ship. As a result, they usually went down with their ships (191).

The tidesages’ unrivaled dedication, combined with the frequency of drownings and shipwrecks, often meant they died young (191).

Mermaids are spawned from eggs and leave no corpses when they die (191, 203).

The mermaids had very little understanding of the Kul Tirans’ mistrust towards them (191).

Mermaids have some power over the rocks and water - granted to them by the Tidemother from birth -, but they use it sparingly because it is finite. Once a mermaid runs out of magic, they die. As a result, mermaids can live up to five hundred years (192).

Mermaids consider sirens lazy and murlocs deplorable (192).

According to legend, the bubble seaweed in Boralus Harbor is actually discarded pearls. A mermaid by the name of Halia fell in love with a tidesage and kept secretly gifting them to her as a token of her affection. The tidesage, Ery, was far too pragmatic for such a gift and dumped the pearls back in the water every time (195).

The mermaids believe that the Tidemother will give tails to those who slit their feet from toes to heels and walk into the harbor at dawn (197).

According to legend, Boralus’ great stone seawall was formed through the combined efforts of dozens of mermaids and one lone tidesage. A virulent tempest had come upon Boralus one day, taking men and ships alike with it. Though the city’s tidesages gathered to push back the waves, all but one were lost to the storm over the course of five long days. The last remaining tidesage, Ery, persisted despite her exhaustion while the mermaid Halia, too afraid to watch her lover perish, began using her own magic to craft a seawall. Though the storm repeatedly broke it down, her fellow mermaids joined her, ultimately expending their magic and sacrificing themselves to raise a wall so grand it towered over even the mightiest of ships and waves. Ery herself nearly died after this, though Halia saved her by invoking the Tidemother. She cut Ery’s feet from toes to heels and dragged her into the harbor, performing the ritual necessary for her transformation into a mermaid (198-203).

All but one of the mermaids - Ery notwithstanding - perished to save Boralus, which is why none are seen there today (204-205).

As a result, the sailors of Boralus now see mermaids as a symbol of the highest honor, good luck, and sacrifice (205).

During calm sunsets when the red of the sky is reflected in the harbor, sailors refer to it as “Ery’s blood,” after the tidesage who fought the storm so valiantly. Ery’s blood is a sign of good weather to come (205).

The Courageous Kobold and the Wickless Candle

Kobolds tell a sleep-time story (209).

Kobold families live together in caves. They have their own nests, but congregate in common areas for stories, among other things (210).

Some time ago, the Whiskersnoot kobold tunnels crumbled, submerging the Whiskersnoots in total darkness. They lived like that for generations, having decided it was no longer safe to dig higher after the cave-in. This spawned a saying: “Never pick above your snout, else the darkness snuff you out!” (210-211).

Granny Whiskersnoot, however, dug just a little bit upward every day until one day she broke through to a light above. She intended to lead the other kobolds to it, but could never find her way back through the tunnels again. It wasn’t until her granddaughter persisted in finding it that they made their way back above ground (211, 222).

The kobolds think of the sun as a “Wickless Candle” (211).

Visage Day

On a dragon’s Visage Day, they choose what mortal form they will take. This is significant, as it shows the Aspects trust them to adopt the guise of one of the mortal races and walk among them. It is the dragons’ hope that through choosing a form to embody and relate to mortals, the more mortals can understand dragons in turn (228, 234).

Onyxia, on the other hand, maintains dragons choose visages that allow them to control the mortals (241).

In accordance with tradition, the Visage Day ceremony occurs on the uppermost level of Wyrmrest Temple. Each of the Aspects are usually present for members of their own dragonflight, though Alexstrasza herself has been known to officiate on occasion. It is also customary for each flight to send emissaries (243).

During the ceremony, all attendant dragons take their own mortal forms in honor of the dragon whose Visage Day it is (245).

Before they publicly choose their form, the dragon in question traditionally makes a proclamation (245).

The Visage Day ceremony can be delayed (244).

Nozdormu has helped many bronze dragons prepare for their own Visage Day (230).

When Nozdormu sits in the sands at the heart of the Bronze Dragonshine, intricate patterns form around him (233).

Both Kalecgos and Chromie performed a short incantation to assume their mortal forms, though Nozdormu did not appear to need to (234, 236, 246).

Kalecgos says that he chose a half-elf form - which he calls a “blend of mortal worlds” - in order to symbolize his own attempt to blend together the dragon and human worlds (237).

Onyxia, on the other hand, opted to take the form of a beautiful human woman to better manipulate mortals (241).

The dragons often go by nicknames in their mortal forms because they find their full names sound too formal to humans (238).

The drakonid were fashioned by the dragons to be helpful and loyal (238).

The black dragonflight practices how best to inflict pain (239).

182 notes · View notes

luvdsc · 4 years

Text

too hot! hot damn!

what do you get when you mix red and blue together?

pairing :: lee taeyong x reader genre :: fluff / boyfriend au word count :: 2,121 words warnings :: a tiny paragraph about making out playlist :: cherry kisses (chungha) ⋆ daft pretty boys (bad suns) ⋆ hands on me (taeyeon) ⋆ crash my car (coin) ⋆ shy (hunny) author’s note :: to the insanely talented goddess who wrote the first nct fic i ever read nearly 3 years ago and still love to this day!!! i didn’t think i’d ever get to be friends with one of my favoritest writers on here, but here we are :’) ily els @taeyongtime ♡

“It’s hot.”

You’re draped across the old, yet still very plush couch, the kitschy pattern spread across it now fondly regarded as one of the things that transforms this dingy little place from a shoebox apartment into home. The thin spaghetti strap of your faded tie-dyed tank top from your old sorority days hangs limply off of your shoulder, threatening to fall even more when you slump over to the left. The simple drawstring shorts you have on barely cover your legs, but you contemplate tossing them off still because it’s just. So. Damn. Hot.

“It’s hot!” you whine even louder, throwing your arms up in the air before letting them flop down onto the cushions dramatically. The nearby open window only blows in a measly little breeze that does nothing except dry the sweat on your skin for a few glorious seconds before it reappears like a stubborn stain. Your boyfriend only raises an eyebrow at you from his spot on the floor, sprawled out in front of said window and using one of his Nylon magazines as a makeshift fan.

Taeyong agrees, flapping the glossy pages in front of his face desperately. “It’s too hot.”

Two days consisting of barely surviving the power outage creeps into a third, the prospect of having AC again anytime soon becoming extremely bleak. The transformer had completely blown out, and the electric company finally sent out a crew to fix it earlier this morning. The estimated restoration was initially set to noon, but it was pushed back until 3 p.m., then 6 p.m., then 10 p.m., then 5 a.m., and now the big black bolded letters spelling out “undetermined” mocks you from the screen of your phone that's already set to the lowest brightness setting to conserve battery.

To make it worse, your city was suffering a heat wave, temperatures spiking to 105 degrees Fahrenheit every single day and simmering down to 80 during the night before climbing the thermostat again. The raging thunderstorm that plagued last night only resulted in unexpected humidity, making your clothes stick to you like a second skin.

“Make it less hot,” you moan, blowing air upwards towards your forehead in an attempt to cool down in the slightest way possible.

“I can’t control the weather, babe, but I can get you a popsicle?” Taeyong sluggishly pushes himself into a sitting position to face you. The shiny magazine in his hand still flounders around until he gives up on it and tosses it aside.

You turn your head, cheek pressing into the couch cushion, as you squint at him. “We don’t have any left. We took all our food from the fridge to Doyoung’s place. I can’t believe that bastard has a gigantic generator and is flourishing in his stupid air conditioned apartment and making frozen sangrias, while his best friends are about to die from heatstroke.”

You had sent back a rather crass Snapchat back to Doyoung after he sent one earlier of his perfect, Instagram story worthy, iced alcoholic beverage. It’s honestly a miracle that he didn’t toss your beloved brown sugar boba ice cream bars out onto his pristine balcony with picture perfect potted plants to perish. That man can still hold onto a grudge even after he’s on his deathbed and descending into the fiery pits.

Taeyong stands up and slowly ambles towards the refrigerator. “I saved two popsicles in the freezer. I figured it’d stay cold enough and not melt if we ate them soon.”

“Oh my god, that’s the sexiest thing you’ve ever said to me.” You struggle to push yourself up into a sitting position before finally being able to, watching your boyfriend open the freezer and pull out the last two saving graces.

“Do you want blue raspberry or cherry?”

He holds out the two icy sweets in front of you, one in each hand. You already know that he secretly wants the red one; it’s been his favorite ever since he was five and tried his very first one from the ice cream truck that still comes around his parents’ neighborhood. But you also know that he always lets you choose first and wouldn’t complain if you take that one.

You reach out and pluck the blue one from his grasp, and he smiles happily, eyes crinkling in the corners as he eagerly unwraps the cherry flavored one and shoves it in his mouth, tossing the wrapper into the nearby wicker trash basket.

He drops down onto the empty space next to you, reclining back and slouching in his seat. The two of you sit there peacefully, side by side and enjoying the cold snacks, until he wordlessly slides over, pressing the side of his arm and leg against yours.

“Move back,” you complain, shoving him over to his original position. “It’s hot, and you’re making it worse.”

“So are you calling me hot?” Taeyong wriggles his eyebrows at you before taking a bite of his popsicle, much to your horror. He moves closer to you again for the sole sake of annoying you.

“First off, I’m calling you sweaty. Secondly, did you just bite your ice cream?” You throw him a dirty look before moving over and turning to sit with your back against the arm rest, throwing your legs over his lap.

Taeyong slightly pouts at you, munching on yet another chunk of his popsicle and ignoring the way you wrinkle your nose in disdain. “What’s wrong with that? It’s melting, and I don’t want it to drip and get my hand all sticky.”

You can’t believe that you just discovered your boyfriend is a psychopath. He’s going to the same circle of hell as people who pour milk in before cereal and those who hate mint chocolate chip ice cream once he leaves this earth (He can even say hi to Doyoung as he descends to eternal damnation).

“Why didn’t you say anything about this before we started dating?” You are absolutely appalled. Horrified. Disgusted. This is the biggest relationship deal breaker you have ever come across.

“Next, you’re gonna say you hate me because I don’t like pineapple on pizza,” he says as his free hand settles on the top of your thigh, gently tapping rhythmically against it absentmindedly.

“Oh my god, you absolute heathen.” You really thought Taeyong was the perfect man of your dreams, but you unfortunately realize belatedly that even he has flaws. Some inexcusable ones, in fact.

In the midst of your lamenting, you fail to notice melting sugar slowly trickling down until it leaves a sticky mess all over your hand. Desperately, you toss the empty popsicle stick into the nearby waste basket before licking off the remnants of your icy blue treat from your fingers.

“See? It melted all over you. I told you so,” Taeyong childishly sticks out his tongue as he waves his clean hand and empty popsicle stick around as if to emphasize his point.

“Your tongue’s red,” you say, chuckling slightly, and his eyes widen at this newfound revelation.

“Wait, stick out your tongue,” he demands as he throws away the wooden stick, and you comply with his request. He grins, delighted. “Yours is blue!”

He sticks out his tongue again, almost going cross eyed as he tries to catch a glimpse of his own. At that, your eyes zero in on his cherry stained lips, and an ingenious idea pops up in your mind as the sudden urge to kiss your boyfriend silly makes itself very known.

“Hey, wanna play a game, Yongie?” you ask slyly, and his attention immediately turns to you at the word “game,” interest piqued and eyes fixated on you.

“What kind of game?” he inquires cautiously, taking note of the mischievous glimmer in your eyes. You look like you’re up to no good, and your boyfriend wouldn’t be surprised if you have something up your metaphorical sleeve (Because nobody sane enough would be wearing something with sleeves in this weather from hell. In fact, you’re 66.6% percent certain that those fiery pits are probably cooler compared to here).

“Too hot.”

“Yes, it is,” he acknowledges, shaking his head in agreement, and you laugh, fanning yourself with your hands. “No, silly, I meant the game.”

“It’s called ‘too hot’?” He raises an eyebrow at you, and you confirm, nodding your head. The expression of skepticism on his face says it all, so you throw in your bargaining chip.

“I hid a chocolate bar in the freezer’s ice chest. The winner can have it.”

His doe eyes immediately light up at the mention of his favorite sweet, and he grabs your hand, squeezing it tightly. “Okay, how do I play?”

“We kiss,” you start, and he’s already pulling you towards him enthusiastically, causing soft laughter to bubble up from your throat, before you swat his hands away. “Hey, hey, hey, I wasn’t done explaining it yet! There’s no touching allowed.”

“That’s no fun,” Taeyong whines, lips jutting out into a tiny pout that you want to kiss away already. “You said this is a game. Games are supposed to be fun.”

“But you’re getting kisses, and it’s already hot so it’s better this way,” you coax, and he relents with a drawn out sigh, and you quietly cheer. “Okay, ready?”

Taeyong gives you a tiny nod, and you grin before leaning in, eyes fluttering close. You gently place your lips against his, and he holds still. But then, a few seconds later, you feel his fingers barely grazing your cheek, and you immediately pull away with a frown.

“Baby, I told you that you can’t touch!”

“That rule is dumb,” he complains, crossing his arms over his chest like a petulant child. You frown at him, pouting until he gives in again because it’s you and he’d cross oceans and climb mountains for you.

“Okay, let’s try again,” he grumbles, glowering as he absentmindedly cards his hand through his hair, and you positively beam at him, and the sulking expression on his face softens almost instantly.

“What if we do baby steps first?” You pull your legs up onto the couch, sitting up on your knees and facing him. He fully turns to look at you, head cocked to one side.

“What do you mean?”

You lean forward and peck his cheek before moving back to your original position. “Like that. Now your turn.”

A lightbulb goes off in his head, and Taeyong leans forward and gingerly places a kiss on your forehead with an endearing smile. You inch forward and kiss his other cheek. He plants a tiny kiss to the tip of your nose, and you lean in to delicately leave a kiss on the corner of his mouth. He presses a kiss to the corner of your lips, and you do the same to the opposite side, much to his utter frustration.

This time, Taeyong chases after you when you pull away. You let out a noise of surprise as he gently tugs you forward, crashing his lips against yours and muffling your laughter, and you find yourself straddling your boyfriend. Your hands wind up tangled in his hair, while his arms lock around your waist and hold you close, game be damned.

You can taste a faint trace of cherry, causing the corners of your mouth to curl into the minutest hint of a smile before you press your mouth against his more firmly as he kisses you back eagerly until you both run out of air, pulling away breathlessly with identical smiles.

“You lost,” you tease, poking his cheek with your finger as your other hand curls around his shirt. He makes a face at you, his hands still resting on your waist, and you find that you don’t mind the warmth of them against your skin even in this ruthlessly blazing weather.

“But you’ll share the chocolate, right?” he mumbles, face still flushed and lips redder than before. He traces soft patterns against your hip as you tilt your head to the side, faking your hesitation.

“Hmm, I don’t know, should I? I won fair and square.”

He sticks his tongue out at you. “Meanie.”

You laugh, sliding off his lap and onto the empty seat next to him (albeit a little unwillingly, but it’s still hot as hell unfortunately, and conserving body heat together isn’t helping at all). Your boyfriend frowns, mostly because you’re no longer sitting in his lap, but partly because he doesn’t understand why you’re laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

Your grin widens, eyes sparkling like you know something he doesn’t (because you do). “Baby, your tongue’s purple.”

Taeyong turns a shade brighter than his favorite popsicle flavor.

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scripturiends · 3 years

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stole all the air from my atmosphere

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Summary: Han Joonhwi thinks maybe pulling all-nighters wasn’t so bad after all, even when you’ve practically finished studying ages ago.

Rating: T

Word count: 1,577

Notes: Inspired by a poem by Timothy Joshua. And totally optional, but I recommend listening to this song while reading.

Hey, all. Thanks for waiting patiently for an update. This fic is in response specifically to a request I received here. I know a lot of people have been requesting for a sequel to ‘gave me no compasses, gave me no signs’ as well; truthfully, I’m not sure if this fic is in the same ‘universe’ as that one — all I can definitively say is that this still follows the canon. So, I’ll leave it up to you to decide if it’s the same timeline or not. I have a lot of fic ideas lined up for an “official” sequel, anyway. ;)

The Solhwi brain rot just gets more potent as we anticipate the new episodes — I absolutely love receiving plot ideas from all of you, and while it’s a challenge to interpret it in my own way, I still hope that it’s on par with your expectations. As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments. You can send me a message anytime too! I know I say this often, but your continued support really really keeps me motivated to write. Would love to make new friends as well, if we can help it.

Okay, the note is getting too long now. As usual, the fic is under the cut, and all mistakes in this fic are mine. Enjoy!

There was that moment, when you stole all the air from my atmosphere; when my heart pounded within the might of all the planets.

It’s the third time Han Joonhwi has bit his tongue in the past ten minutes, attempting to stifle his oncoming yawns, trying not to cause any disturbance. He fights his drowsiness as best as he can, hoping that his companion wouldn’t notice — and yet, as his luck would have it, the moment he couldn’t hold it in any longer just so happened to be the exact same moment the person next to him lifted her nose from the book it was buried in.

Without looking at him, she flips another page. Tone commanding but masked with concern, Kang Sol mumbles, “Just go to bed already.”

So much for being lowkey, he thought. Joonhwi stretches himself awake, thinking of the perfect response: casual enough to make it look like he doesn’t care, but caring enough that she wouldn’t push him away. “Not until you’re done,” he finalizes.

Sol scoffs, tossing her pen lightly on the table. “You don’t even take this class.”

Well, of course he knew that. But Kang Sol A — truthfully, he prefers to omit the distinction: no matter how many Kang Sols there are in Korea, or hell, even in the entire world, he’s only got eyes for one — is not getting anything out of him. If getting Joonhwi to admit his true feelings was her goal, she’s far from reaching it.

“You know why I’m here,” he sidetracked.

Unconvinced, she turns to him with a provoking look, and Joonhwi already knows she’s about to go on a long-winded rant. “Yeah, yeah, I do,” she started. “You want to hang out with me but instead of just asking like a normal person, you make up this lame excuse about how I need to study even though I was already planning on doing that anyway. You practically finished studying ages ago so you just sitting there doing nothing is really rubbing salt in my wounds.”

He watches her with both his hands on his head, suppressing a smile. Finding an opening, Sol pushes his chest lightly. “I don’t need you here. Get out.”

She said it so weakly that he knows there’s no way she could have meant it. Making sure she doesn’t lose her balance, Joonhwi quickly takes hold of her wrists and gently places them back on the table. “You talk too much,” he breathed.

Sol purses her lips in annoyance and propped her chin up with her hand. “Yeah, well, that’s why you’re dating me,” she pouted.

If she keeps putting him in his place like this, he might actually have to walk out, but not for the reasons she’d expect him to, like his supposed exhaustion. Joonhwi knows Sol doesn’t do this on purpose, but she naturally has a way of making him flustered, and he’s trying really hard not to lose his cool right now.

She stomps her feet lightly on the ground, groaning. “This is too difficult,” she complains, leaning her head on Joonhwi’s shoulder.

Really, really hard.

It’s funny how Sol can say something one minute and then completely contradict it by the next. She says she doesn’t need him there, but clings onto him like her life depended on it. Not that Joonhwi was complaining — but he does want to have a little fun with her. He wanted to stir her a bit with something like, I thought you didn’t need me here? He knows she hates being called out for snappy remarks that she only ever means as a joke.

But a quick glance at Sol, in her favorite pajamas and one of Joonhwi’s sweaters, on the very rare occasions she has her hair down, bangs falling on her eyes, Joonhwi decided against it. Her vulnerability shouldn’t be treated with ridicule; it should be met with an equal amount of softness. After all, no one else but Joonhwi gets to see Sol like this — he finds that as a privilege which shouldn’t be taken for granted.

“Okay.” He gives in. “Let me have a look.”

Joonhwi holds his palm out to ask for the reading material, which, as usual, Sol rejects. “Didn’t we already talk about this?”

He feigns innocence. “Talk about what?”

Her head feels heavy on his shoulder. “I need to be able to stand on my own if I’m going to survive law school hell,” she reminds him. “You can’t keep coming to my rescue for every little inconvenience.”

“So this is just a minor setback?” Joonhwi teases. He couldn’t help it.

“No,” Sol cries, “it’s a major obstacle.”

She snuggles up against him, and Joonhwi could literally feel the heat rising to his face. Nonetheless, he lightly holds the side of her head for support and asks, “So what? Are you just going to give up?”

“Of course not,” she mumbles, her breath hot on his neck. Joonhwi knows the law well, but he feels like this should be illegal.

“But sometimes I wish I was just naturally smart like you.”

He lets out a soft sigh. Like many other things, the pair have talked about this before, and Joonhwi has never denied that he and many others have had a significant head start over Sol. But this is what he’d always tell her:

“If everyone in this school had half as much of your wit, every crime in the world would have been solved by now.”

To which she’d grimace and respond with, “Yeah, tell that to the F I got in Criminal Code.”

But tonight was different. Sol wasn’t coming from a place of defeat, she was saying this out of frustration. She was probably thinking that maybe, had her life choices been different, she would have had it easier. That maybe, had she been as lucky in wealth and opportunities as everyone else, she wouldn’t need to work twice as hard as them. So that maybe, like Joonhwi, she could just comfortably sit in silence with him and enjoy his company.

Right now, he’s treading murky waters and he’s afraid that one wrong move could give Sol the wrong idea. Joonhwi has never been the type to open up to people, but she never made it difficult for him to do so. With Sol, honesty was just the default. Telling her things he’d never entrust with anyone else came as easy as breathing.

He takes her hand and gingerly intertwines it with his own. “I didn’t have it easy at the beginning either,” he admits. “Law school wasn’t even a part of my plan, and yet here I am.”

This is at least one thing he knows Sol could empathize with. After being betrayed by the last person he’d ever expect to hurt him, Joonhwi’s life took a turn. To an extent, he was motivated by rage. But mostly, he was just trying to find a way to turn that pain into something useful, trying to make sure no one else has to go through what he did. And call him foolish for being too hopeful or optimistic, but he believes this is something he and Sol can do for each other. They’re two sides of the same coin: the law owes Sol an apology, and Joonhwi is coming to terms with the fact that he might never get one, ultimately being robbed of the opportunity after his uncle’s untimely death.

Joonhwi knows his words bear significant weight to Sol. There’s a lot of things he wants to say to her but right now he just settles with, “I think you’re smart enough. If anything, you need to stop going overboard. What if you get sick again?”

She lifts her head and stares at him with doe eyes.

“That’s why I’m here.” He raises their interlocked fingers to show to her. “Why do you think I’m holding your hand? It’s so I can pull you out from under when you’re drowning in all of this.”

Sol slowly breaks out into an endearing smile, trying to repress her laughter but failing. “Heol. Han Joonhwi, since when were you so sentimental?”

Joonhwi doesn’t know where this newfound bravery came from, but he kisses Sol on the forehead lightly. “Since you needed it.”

Sol blinks, her expression unreadable, and Joonhwi fears that he may have done the wrong thing. But much to his disbelief, she instead grabs him by the collar and closes the gap between her lips and his. They crash against one another in perfect rhythm, and Joonhwi mentally slaps himself for not doing this sooner. Never has he felt more at peace than at this very moment, which was ironic considering he was supposed to be the one doing the comforting. And yet, the lines blur when he realizes that even when their methods are vastly different, they’re at their best when they’re in tune with each other’s needs.

And right now, this is what he needs the most.

Much to Joonhwi’s dismay, Sol finally pulls away; they’re both out of breath.

Still in a daze, he musters up the courage to ask such a stupid question. In fact, he’s surprised he could even speak at all. “What was that for?”

“You’re not the only sentimental one here. If you’re going to kiss me, do it right.”

That was when I knew, you were worlds more, than just a first kiss.

Send me your thoughts here!

#jtbc law school #law school #kang sol a #han joon hwi #solhwi #kim bum #ryu hye young #kang sol a x han joon hwi #fics #jtbc #kdrama #korean drama #mine #otp: why couldn't you be here sooner

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