#this is literally one of the best short programs ever

[lil-shiro]

Chaeyeon Kim (KOR), "Tron: Legacy" (Adagio for Tron, The Grid, Derezzed by Daft Punk) SP | Shanghai Trophy 2024 Bonus:

[welcometohighwater]

it’s soooooo funny the way at least one of the air conditioners around here breaks down at least once a summer (or even earlier, like today, sometimes), and the heat very often goes out and needs repair in the winter too. it’s almost like it’s BAD for modern commercial hvac units to be turned off five days of the week and only turned on for about six hours tops two days of the week. like it’s bad to try to cool a large commercial space down from 85° to 70° in like an hour

[allurilove]

Yan classmates kink list.

What are these greasy guys into?

Rated 18 + — mature short content !

Kink list with links for every single one of my characters!

Submissive to Switch to more of the Dominant Characters! I will update this as I go post more fics!

Submissive

“Kenny” | Kendrick

If you really want a submissive guy, he’s your man. Well he’s your husband really. He’s afraid to talk back to his wife, and he does everything around the house. He stays at home, cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the kids. In a AU where women rule the world and men go to The Husband Program to learn to be good husbands, being submissive comes naturally to him. He can be a bit mischievous and a rebel, especially when he was young, but a good little humiliation will put him back into place. So, I guess he’s a masochist.

Loves to eat you out, and likes to be praised afterwards.

Favorite sex position might just be when you’re sitting on his face. Or the classic missionary.

Hes pretty vanilla since men are taught to be more modest.

Dumb Yandere

Most ditsy and dumb man you have ever met. He is a weird ass pervert too. You catch him sniffing and licking the crotch area of your pants and underwear before.

Would bury his face into your behind and lick whatever he could.

Loves compliments and rewards.

He does get scared easily so anything with whips and binds is terrifying.

He doesn't like any position where he cant see you.

Perverted Yandere coming soon!

Yandere Prodigy

He is definitely more on the submissive side. He pretends that he hates you and that he’s cold hearted, but the moment you touch him he melts.

He would be a bit bratty and talk back at you.

Is the type to get a nosebleed at the sight of your bare skin.

He would definitely want to hear your praises, and how much you love listening him play violin.

favorite position might be anything that has him on the bottom.

Yandere Neighbor

He’s done everything to be close to you, and he even bought the space next door to your apartment. He loves to be choked, ordered around, spanked, will love it if you rode him, and he’ll go anything really. He’s the most dedicated man I’ve ever written for the readers.

He would fuck you anywhere. I mean he literally masturbated and licked your door knob for gratification.

Phone sex ? The type to hit you up with a message saying: "What are you wearing?" at 3 am.

Favorite sex position maybe doing it while standing up. He can hold you close and press you against the wall.

Yandere Best Friend

He’s quite new to sex so he doesn’t know much. But he does have a praise kink, and loves it when you call him a “good boy.”

I’m sure he would love to have you teach him new things, and would be pretty open minded, so an experimentalist.

Favorite sex position is probably cow girl or reverse cow girl.

Yandere Survivor

He cut his dick off for you to eat, I mean damn. He sacrificed his whole life because he wanted your attention to be solely on him. Before the apocalypse, he did have the occasional hook ups. He would mostly be a bottom and let people do their thang on him.

Most likely to call you “master” or “mistress”

Before the apocalypse he has had his fair share of hookups, and would occasionally love to bite on ears.

He'll be your pet if you want him to be.

Switch

Yandere Mothman

A possessive man that becomes putty in your hands. He sees you as his mate and life partner.

Overall, he's pretty submissive. He does take over when the mating season comes around. The mating process takes several hours.

Yandere Boyfriend

He’s literally a damn loser. He steals your cups, your underwear, and he would follow you around the world. He likes to have his hair pulled, or pull your hair.

He is pretty vocal during sex and would like to hear you too.

Choke him !

Loves to beg and loves for you to beg him

Loves it when you ride him or are just desperate for him as he is for you. but his fave sex position is doing it from the side, or missionary.

Would probably dress up as anything for you.

Yandere “Blood bag”

Has a knife kink and blood fetish.

He likes to mark his lovers, and bite down on their shoulder as he cums.

He would love it if you drank all of his blood and leave him almost to the brink of death.

Has fantasies of you using him just for his body.

Yandere Yearbook guy

All he needs is a photograph of you. Which he has plenty of.

Savior complex? the thought of you all hopeless or stuck somewhere- you know he’s just going to take advantage of that.

Loves to trigger your senses, and he would drip melted candle wax on you or please you with an ice cube

Pegging is fine with him too. As long as you know what you’re doing.

Favorite position: 69 or missionary with one leg over his shoulder

Yandere Professor

Your professor has an oral fixation for sure. He would stick his fingers into you after they’ve been soaked in your essence, and shove it down your throat.

Has a thing for when you call him “sir” or “professor”

Would have you bend over and spread your legs wide for him, and he’s an adrenaline junkie so would fuck you in public just for fun.

Car sex.

Yandere Knight

He's not a degrader. I mean, he would be mortified to call you a slut or whore. He also likes to play a little hard to get.

Hes a switch. He submits to you because you're a literal royal, and he'll submit to you in bed. He is close to being a dominant, and only submits to people he truly likes.

He does enjoy some good vanilla sex and missionary.

Hes a worshipper, and will compliment you while he is intimate with you.

Dominant

Yandere Farmer

The sweetest guy you will ever meet. He does like to fuck you in front of other people, especially his buddies. He'll tie you up and have you on display. It absolutely pisses him off if people dare to actually touch you though.

He calls you his toy.

His compliments are calling you his sweetest slut.

Yandere Chaebol

Your boss is into your little maid outfit he gave you. And he realized he just likes role play. He also loves to make you crawl to him, and pull you around on a leash.

Loves to sneak around and would probably have threesomes if he could.

He would love to see you sprawled out on his desk.

Yandere Stalker

Would love it if he could just have his way with you.

Blood kink. Like he'll go down on you if you're on your period.

If he were to be a submissive, he would be the brattiest brat you have ever seen. He loves to feel in power and in control.

Would be the type of guy to make a goal to try every position in a single night.

Yandere Husband

Would be into bondage: tying you onto the bed, and trying your limbs together so you can’t move.

A bit of a sadist, and a brat tamer.

Breeding kink. He is also very touchy and physical touch is his love language.

So favorite position might be the mating press. And he also likes to fuck you in front of a mirror.

Calling him "daddy" will give him an ick. He's a literal dad and it feels wrong to hear it be said in an intimate context.

Yandere Dad’s Best Friend

Exhibitonist. I mean he did fuck you outside during the fourth of July block party.

Is into cock warming and just being close to you.

Squirting. And also dumping his load on your face after you give him a blowjob.

Slapping and spanking.

Would bend you over whenever he could.

Yandere Prince

He is more of the ruthless type. He's a dominant and a major degrader.

Hes a sadist, and if he were to partake in any sexual activity, he would like to be the master or owner.

Hes a rigger and likes to tie his partners up.

Him actually fucking you would be pretty rare. If you do get on his nerves, and manage to get him pretty riled up, you'll be dicked down in no time.

Ruining you is his favorite activity.

[ferg0s]

how writing about your favorite Blue Lock boy who can't deny how good his s/o looks in the Blue Lock spandex suit?

BAROU BAROU BAROU 🗣️🦅‼️ not so much s/o but trust me I have a vision…

I haven’t seen PNGlock season 2 😞 so mb for some inconsistencies

If you asked Ego which he liked better, woman’s soccer or men’s soccer, he would say which ever could win a gold medal. He was like a goblin, craving for the shiny smooth surface of a gold medal to glide across his fingers - and he would do whatever it would take to get it. When he had proposed the idea onto the board, they had laughed it off. But he didn’t understand why? Having a woman’s team meant that they had double the chance. More versatility. He didnt want to put his eggs in one basket. Besides he wanted Japan to be the best in the world - in every aspect of the sport.

Pink lock. That’s what the boys at Bluelock started to call the sister program. Even though it was literally just named blue lock. Thats until the practice match. Pink lock was started to look like pain lock the way they were making the boys run across the field. What the boys didn’t know was that the they had to fight harder, the threat of underperforming and having the whole program shut down was looming over them. An extra stress to add to the stress they already had of being kicked out. Their performances not only reflected them but everyone. Misogyny is the name of the blade that mercilessly cuts off the wings of angels.

Though there was one person that seemed to get on Barous nerve. Some girl who kept popping out of no where to block his shots, steal the ball and all in all make it impossible for him to have more then 3 seconds with the ball. He didn’t know her name, just the crazed look in her eyes as she would run past him. Number 67. Fuck her, he thought.

~

You didn’t know how tired you were until you got back to the dorms they had set up for you. The showers had a long line, and it seemed like everyone was taking Atleast a minimum of 30 minutes. The facility hadn’t given you the spandex suits they had given to the boys - the board said they didn’t have the Budget for it. Que another wingless angel. And it seemed like you wouldn’t get them for a while.

The practice test was more a presentation by ego to show the board to her more funding, which it had. After ego threatened to close the men program, the board rolled over and gave into his demands. But the official uniforms would have to wait. It took a while to make them with the same physicality monitoring sensors. Until then, you were stuck wearing frumpy soccer gear. The knee long shorts and over sized shirts. What you had assumed were the initial clothes for the men.

You seemed to pick up on the man who has been eyeing you with nothing but hatred pretty quickly. Having being divided into duos , of course you got stuck with him. It was temporary, ego said, to grow both players abilities, he said. While the other duos flirted and exchanged numbers, you and Barou did nothing but fight. The self proclaimed king didn’t like someone telling him what to do. Especially someone as annoying as you.

“-are you allergic to passing the fucking ball?” You ask as you walk up to him. “Not my fault you can’t keep up-“ he replied back. The other boys started to assume he didn’t swing that way based on how much the two of you fought, Barou seeming to resent the idea of even being on the same planet at you. But in reality, it was just two hard strong stubborn people clashing. Two unstoppable forces trying to merge into one, while also actively trying to avoid it.

You use the helm of your shirt to wipe the sweat off your forehead. It has been 20 minutes and you hadn’t even scored once against the hologram goalie. You look over at your partner, who was equally as tired as you. Both of you had been fighting for the ball rather than trying to figure out how to get past the goalie and score. You needed a minimum of 10 to leave and have dinner. And you were starving, and stuck at 0.

“What the fuck is your problem?” He asked, walking up to you. “The strategy is simple, hand me the ball and-“ “go fuck yourself princess-“ you spat back.

Barou didn’t need to come and taunt you after every missed goal. He didn’t need to walk up to you every time and stand way to close to when he was having another verbal altercation with you. But he couldnt help it. He liked the colour of your eyes :)

Yes. Barou had a crush.

On you.

Barou grew up with sisters so it wasn’t like he hasn’t been around women, but he still acted like it. His way of flirting with teasing and insulting, like an elementary school kid. As much as he bragged about being a womanizing bastard to the other guys in the locker room, he would rather eat cement than talk to a pretty girl alone. Which is why he figured insulting was a good alternative.

Even in the frumpy uniform, hair a mess and sweat covering your face, Barou saw you as someone akin to a model. You had a sort of fire in your eyes that drew him in, like a moth to a flame. Ego had made the duos based on compatible personalities, and you were just as stubborn, goal oriented and hot headed as him. If you had stuck around for longer instead of walking away in a huff to drink some water, you would notice how he seemed to zone out when you were yelling at him.

Out of everyone, you and Barou had the worst score. Leaving you one of the teams near the bottom.

It seemed to get worse when the spandex uniforms came. Landing the two of you at the bottom. He spent more time staring at you more than he did the ball. It should be a sin to look so good, he thought. His eyes would linger longer as you bent over to pick up the water bottle, drinking up the sight of you laying on the ground having from exhaustion. Or in the training room doing squats. It was entirely his fault that you two were at the bottom, which meant more verbal abuse from you. He tried his best to look into your eyes, wondering what specific colour they were on the colour wheel, hoping his years of discipline would stop his eyes from going down further.

It wasn’t until one day when you finally managed to score a point, in under 20 minutes with him, that you finally had a positive attitude towards him. In the midst of your joy, near tears for finally being able to cooperate enough to score 1 goal, you hugged him.

Shortly after that you somehow skyrocket to top 3. You didn’t know why he had Suddenly done a 180.

But Barou thanks who ever decided to put you in that stupid spandex uniform.

__________

kinda burnt out in the end 😞 Mbmb. Bit off more than I could chew

[whispering-ways]

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡ i like you (too much) - part 1 ♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆

♡ summary: you just joined a new high school and you're hoping to make a bunch of new friends. unfortunately, you're paired up with katsuki and he seems to despise you. nevertheless, you're determined to make it work. little do you know that you're first interaction would lead to a wonderful friendship and possibly even more.

♡ pairing: bakugo katsuki x reader

♡ tags: no warnings, just fluff :) but the next couple of parts may or may not have some smut ;)

♡ notes: hi besties! I'm back finally with another fanfic after months. I'm so sorry for my hiatus, but I've been super busy with college. I'm graduating in literally in 5 days which is so exciting (neurosci and psychology BS) and also been working on a patent and been doing patient trials in the neurosci lab I volunteer at and been applying for grad programs, so its been a lot. but I'm back with a new (long) Katsuki fic now that things have finally settled! Really this was a story with my OCs, Drew and Kressie (names still yet to be confirmed but that's what I've got for now) but I thought this would still work with Bakugo. Let me know if y'all want me to post the OC version too :) hope you guys like it!

As you sit in the principal’s office with your parents, you start to drown out the principal’s monotonous voice. All you cared about in the moment was how you would fit in. Middle school had been terrible; a journey chocked full of bullies and spending lunches alone. So when your parents told you that the 3 of you were moving to a new state for your dad’s fancy new job, you thought this was your chance to wipe the slate clean. Start afresh and make some friends this time around. You’d been excited for weeks, but now sitting here about to start your first day, you felt your stomach churn with anxiety. 

The principal calling your name brought you back to reality. “So Y/N are you ready to start your first day? I know it’ll be halfway through your periods, but still your first day if you think about it!” 

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” you replied, picking up your backpack. 

“I’ll take you to your new classroom,” said the principal, standing up and opening the door for you, gesturing you to follow him. After saying goodbye to your parents, you head outside the office with a big sigh, readying yourself. It felt like forever before you reached your classroom. Your principal knocked on the door and stuck his head inside. You heard him say something to the teacher inside, but couldn’t quite make out what. She came out a couple moments afterward and the principal left you in her hands. A short introduction later, she brought you inside to the front of the class.

“Hey everyone, I’m sorry to interrupt you all in the middle of quiet work time, but we’ve got a new student. This is (Y/N) and she’ll be in our class from now on,” she said with a big smile on her face; it was almost too cheery. “I’m hoping since you only came in a week late, it won’t be too hard to catch up with the class.” She scanned around the classroom before continuing, “Looks like we’ll have to place you in the back with Katsuki. We share one big desk between students, so I hope that’s okay with you.” You nod and the teacher turns towards her desk, reaching down to grab a packet. “Here’s what we’re working on right now; answer as best as you can and don’t worry about getting questions wrong. You’ll be sitting right over there,” pointing to the back.

You look toward where she gestured to find a guy in a black hoodie, his eyes covered by his hood and lip curled in disdain. “Fantastic,” you thought, taking the packet from your teacher’s hand. “It’d be my luck to be put right next to someone that looks like they’d kill.” You plop down in your seat and look towards your new deskmate, smiling at him as an olive branch. Maybe he was super nice and just didn’t know how to show it. 

He looked at you up and down, eyebrows furrowed in confusion as if he was wondering why you’d even dare to look over. With a sigh, you turn back around and start to work on your packet. You wouldn’t consider yourself super smart, but definitely above average. But ‘above average’ wasn’t going to cut it for this packet. You chose to take Calculus to challenge you and to look better on college applications, but looking at the work in front of you, you regretted your decision. This stuff was just way too complicated, but you were determined to figure it out. 

You look over at Katsuki to see whether he’s struggling too for some sort of comfort. To your disappointment, you see him flying through the work, his head practically buried in the packet. You tried again to work through the first problem. “Find the derivative of the following function...what even is a derivative?” you thought to yourself. You pulled out your phone, hoping to try and find some sort of video to explain what was going on when you felt a tap on your shoulder. 

You turned around to find your teacher smiling at you once again. “Hey (Y/N), I hope the packet is going good, but in this classroom we don’t use phones to search up answers. If you’re having trouble, why don’t you ask your deskmate to help you out? I’m sure Katsuki would love to help you out!” 

You slipped your phone back into your pocket, giving your teacher a tight-lipped smile in return. “Out of all people, why did I get paired with him,” you pleaded internally. After a few moments, you give up and decide to ask Katsuki for help. “Hey, uh... would you mind helping me out with this question please?” No response. You cleared your throat, hoping to draw attention to your request. Nothing, nada, zilch. It’s then that you noticed he had some earbuds in. “Maybe he really just couldn’t hear me,” you thought. A few moments of contemplation later lead you to tapping his shoulder, hoping to finally get his attention.

He whipped his head around, giving you the chance to get a good look at his face. The first thing you noticed were his eyes. His eyes were red, probably because of contacts, and were coupled with dark circles; it looked like he hadn’t had sleep in weeks. You were finally able to see his hair peeking out from under his hood which had been messily bleached blonde with brown roots growing out. His lips were still in a snarl. “What do you want?” he asked, spitting out each word with anger. “Don’t you know when people are trying to ignore you?”

A hit and a miss. There was no doubting it now; he definitely hated you. You hadn’t even been in the classroom for 20 minutes and your high school dreams of making friends were already coming crashing down. You were just about to reply when he snapped back at you “What? Just going to stare at me forever or something?” 

See, you were nice, but not nice enough to let that sort of behavior go by without saying anything. “What the fuck is your problem dude? I just wanted to ask you about derivatives. Damn, a bitch can’t even be curious about math anymore,” you retorted. You were hoping to put him in his place a little, but instead, you heard him chuckle. 

“Ok fine, I’ll help you out. I’ll admit, that was a little funny. But this doesn’t mean we’re all buddy buddy, okay? I just want you off my back.”

“Sure whatever gets me done with this packet,” you said, flipping through the pages of the problems till you found the one you were looking for. You pointed to the derivative question and said “Just explain this one to me and I’ll be out of your hair. I just don’t really know how to get started with it.”

With an annoyed sigh, Katsuki gets started on explaining it to you. “Okay so basically all you’ve got to do is just differentiate all 3 parts and then add it. Was that too hard for you to understand or something or did you finally get it?”

You didn’t want to say it, but you didn’t get it. What was differentiating? Subtracting? You had no clue. But you couldn’t admit that, not when he was acting so rude; you had way too much pride for that sort of confession. “Let’s say I didn’t get it. I totally did, but if I didn’t, would you be able to explain it more in depth?” you ask him, hoping he wouldn’t pick up on your lie.

Katsuki definitely picked it up. He wasn’t stupid. But he was dreading having to talk to you more. He wasn’t trying to make friends or talk to people and be all chit-chatty; all he wanted was to be left alone, but unfortunately, you didn’t seem to be picking up on that any time soon. He grabbed your sheet and put it right between you two. If you wanted a in-depth explanation, you were going to get one. Bit by bit, he explained every single step of the problem, dragging out each individual part unnecessarily. That’d teach you to bother him again. 

What he did not expect was the beaming smile you gave him in return. “Thank you so much! That actually helped a ton dude! See I knew you could be nice,” you say as you bring the packet back to your side to continue working on the next couple of problems. 

Your response threw him for a loop. Sure, Katsuki was confused over how he could seem nice, but what really had him was your smile. He could’ve sworn it was the sweetest smile he’d ever seen. Slightly crooked, but still shined like the sun. He turned around, pulling his hood down to cover the slight blush that had appeared on his face. He hated the feeling he had his stomach now and it was all your fault. He knew it was a bad idea to help you.

He dove into his work, trying not to focus on you. It felt like decades before the bell rang and people started packing up to move to their last period. Out of the corner of his eye, Katsuki saw you whip out a folded piece of paper, which opened up to reveal your schedule. He heard you sigh as he was packing up and he already knew what was coming. As soon as he came back up from zipping his backpack, he was met with your eyes looking at him and he knew you were about to bother him again. 

“Uh... so I’ve got my next period in room 2301, but I have no idea how to get there. I think its English Lit with Ms. Carlisle, but like we only have 10 minutes to get there and I don’t want to get lost. Do you mind just giving me some quick directions?” you ask.

He wanted to say no and tell you to get lost. But it seemed like his mouth betrayed him when he heard himself saying “Yeah ok, I”ll take you there.”

“Oh! I mean you don’t have to really take me to the room, but I appreciate it a lot!” you reply cheerily with another one of your smiles.

“Do her cheeks never hurt from all that smiling?” Katsuki thought to himself. “It’s whatever, I’m in the same class too so I don’t give a shit.” he said, standing up and slinging his bag over one shoulder.

He starts walking away and you take that as a sign to start walking or be left alone in the classroom. With a wave to your teacher, you speed up to catch up to him. It was a bit awkward walking beside him but not talking. You’d initiate some sort of conversation, but it looked like he was ready to bite your head off and you already felt like you were pushing it. 

Thankfully, Katsuki ended the awkward silence between you two, “So.... like, where did you move from?”

“From Florida, but not like city Florida, think like retirement home type of Florida. North Florida specifically.” you rambled, trying to fill up the silence between you for a bit longer. 

“Cool, so you’ve like seen gators and shit then?” he said, looking down towards you. It was then that he took notice of the height difference between the two of you. He wasn’t super tall by any means, but compared to you he felt like a giant. 

“I mean I’ve seen a couple snakes, gators... and a few lizards too! Nothing too scary though!” you say with a smile. He nodded in response and a silence settled over you two again. You started to rack your brain for something to say to keep the conversation going, when you suddenly felt a yank on your backpack.

“Don’t just fucking walk off, we’re here, English Lit,” Katsuki says, pulling you back to the front of the door after you’d walked right past it. 

“Oh! Thank you” you reply, holding the door open. “After you.”

Katsuki felt weird walking into class and it had nothing to do with the quiz the class had to do today. He walked over to his usual desk and felt you follow behind before sitting down right next to him. You put your bag down in your seat and walked over to the teacher, probably to go introduce yourself. It was obvious to Katsuki that he wasn’t getting rid of you or the weird feeling you gave him every time you smiled anytime soon. 

He was brought out of his thoughts by the sweetest laugh he had ever heard. He turned towards the source of the sound and he wasn’t surprised to see it came from you. It seemed like everything you did added to that weird feeling he felt in his stomach. He hated it. You sat back down next to him, syllabus in hand along with a couple of other forms for you to fill out. 

Class seemed to drag on forever for Katsuki. It took everything in him to focus on what the teacher was saying rather than how your eyebrows were furrowed in concentration and how you chewed your pencil from time to time and how you drew tiny little flowers and hearts on your notes whenever you got bored. The bell finally rang, releasing Katsuki from what seemed to be his own personal hell. He got up wordlessly to walk towards his car, ready to leave and go home. He made it a couple of paces outside of class before he felt a small tap on his arm. 

He turned around to see you looking up at him with big eyes. “Hey.. uhh.. Could I maybe get your number? We have to finish that packet by tomorrow’s class and I know there’s a good chance I could be confused again, so I was hoping to maybe get your help again?” you ask. 

How could he refuse those eyes? With a sigh, he held his phone out to you. You looked up at him quizzically. “Do I need to explain everything to you? Put your number in already. I’ll text you back so you can have mine” he snapped. 

You took his phone and typed in your number, saving your contact while you were at it. “There you go, all saved and everything,” you say. You couldn’t even fully finish your sentence before Katsuki snatched his phone out of your hands. 

“Well, it was nice meeting you Katsuki, but I’ve got to head to the buses soon. I think my bus is leaving in like literally 10 minutes. It was nice meeting you though and hope to see you tomorrow,” you say, running off to catch the bus before you were left without a ride.

“Nice to meet you too, I guess,” he whispered to himself. He hoped you didn’t hear it. He walked to his car, throwing his bag into the backseat and putting his head on the steering wheel. “What’s going on with me? Why is everything so weird all of a sudden?” he thought. He took his phone out from his hoodie, looking for your contact and, more importantly, to put a name to your face.

It wasn’t hard to find since it was the only contact that stuck out like a sore thumb. “Y/N..” he said, reading out your name. He noticed a small smiley face beside your name, a sweet detail that caused an unconscious smile to cross his lips. It didn’t take him long to notice and he immediately shook his head trying to drive his smile away. He put his head back on the wheel with a thud, letting out a frustrated groan. That weird and uneasy feeling in his stomach had come back again and he had a feeling it wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

[itsyagurlchip]

INGRESSIVE INHALE

I. Need. 2018 Raphael. DATE HEADCANONS

(only if you want :3)

☀︎⋆.ೃ࿔*:･Lovely Sights☀︎⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

ᯓᡣ𐭩warnings: none, enjoy :)!

ᯓᡣ𐭩 VOID MY DEARRRRR ❤️❤️❤️ I GOTCHU BAE 🤪 but fr, thx for requesting! (GUYS STOP SAYING "IF YOU WANT TO" GRGGRGRGGR I WOULDVE DELETED THE ASK IF I DIDNT WANT TO USYGSUYGSUHVUSGV) (this was from months ago, we are now divorced. croak you old witch/jjjj)

ᯓᡣ𐭩 Ohhhhh, Raph has a datemateee~

Raph is a huge guy, so that's where all the love's gonna be at today.

He loves it when you sleep on top of him when you guys cuddle, to feel that small pressure on him makes him sleep as well.

While he doesn't like holding you per say, he loves it when you hang onto him.

It makes him feel like he doesn't always have to be aware of himself holding you, and only the things around you two.

Raph feels comforted when you just hold his face, and close your eyes..

Whether it is a breathing practice, or when he needs to calm down, he always likes the feeling of your hands against his face.

Double points if you scratch his neck between those two spikes-!

Oh man, you're the best at those.

I feel like if Raph were approached with a situation where he's feeling possessive, he'd get all shy and nervous about it.

He feels as if it shouldn't be right for him to feel that way, I mean, y-you're already perfect so- why'd you wanna huffy puffy giant over your shoulder?

Nuh uh! He resists it all! Okay, maybe glare at the woman staring at you, and the dude biting his lip.

What's up with everyone and trying to snatch you up!? All the other people were wuss, and Raph got you first!

Eyes off punk!

Sometimes, when you're sitting on the couch, Raph just likes to plant his head on your lap and watch you do whatever you're doing.

The way your face scrunches up when a main character does something stupid.

Or when you giggle at a short video.

And when you subconsciously start rubbing your hand against the back of his neck.

It makes him shiver, with a deep rumble, and relax more into your warmth.

Sometimes you don't even know it, but Raph unknowingly takes your arm and just rests his teeth there.

Not even biting it, just resting his jaw between your arm.

Sometimes he adds pressure to feel the gummy-squish as he nibbles softly.

"Raph, Honey, you're doing it again." You'd say, smiling a bit as Donnie went on to explain what the mission was.

"Mhoin' wha'?" He muffled, looking down at your arm and letting go immediately.

He gets super embarrassed afterwards.

On the line of embarrassed, the MOMENT you leave the lair he's all giggly n stuff.

"Bro who gotchu smilin' like that?"

He brothers tease him so much for it, but he can't help but take it because ALL of what they're saying is TRUE.

Poor guy is lovesick, and all you did was make kandi together :)

Sometimes he likes to gush to Mikey about your most recent date, or the outfit you wore today, and the way you smiled while talking about your favorite food.

Mikey was eatin' it up. He declared Raph 'Downbad, Certified Love Chaser.'

Leo would side eye with every rant, pretending to throw up at every compliment Raph prayed your way.

Like bro, keep that to yourself thank yew very much.

If Raph ever talks to Donnie about you, he would simply be confused.

Why is Raph talking about crushes to Donnie? His heart belongs to the one and only Atomic Lass.

With all those words, he could literally program a bot. But he lets him talk, never really listens though.

I don't think i've ever covered this part of him, but how would Savage Raph feel about you?

Me personally, I see Savage Raph as a defense mechanism to protect himself when he truly thinks he's alone.

And in turn, it sort of makes him more turtle than teenager you know?

Let's look at this two ways;

If he did think you were a threat, he would probably hurt you severely. When snapping turtles find people as threats, they either hide or bite them.(I know many people don't like hearing that, but I think it's true)

If he didn't, then he would protect you as well. Maybe even huddle himself around you to create a barrier between you and the world. When snapping turtles want to show affection, they protect their mates from harm.

Do you see the vision?

Which brings me to my next point:

While Raph never wants to intentionally hurt you, ever, it still happens. Savage Raph, for example.

You guys will find yourselves in moments where you nick your hands or shoulders during cuddling, and Raph apologizes heavily.

He'll panic first, not knowing what to do because his mind's run a blank.

But after a lil pep talk with mind Raph, he gets himself together and grabs you a bandaid from his dresser, not before cleaning the scratch though.

When you guys train together, his punches can leave giant bruises on you and he feels guilty every single time.

You swear you're fine! You could take more!!

But Raph seeing you breath heavily will be like "Nope! Nuh uh, you're going to the med-room. I ain't fightin' you until you take a break!"

All Raph knows, he has a lovely sight to see everyday.

He couldn't believe it took so long to find it.

tehe I made it extra long for you<333

૮₍˶• .•⑅₎ა tags: @kittykittyanon @bonefanatic @oleander-nin @towomatos @thealphagirl

૮₍˶• .•⑅₎ა@ziipzeepzop-eez @wheezdostuff @spongejuice @cyb3r-st4r @matteo-hamato

@clown-froggi

if you would like to be added, check my blog. if you would like to be added, check my blog. SEE? I SAID IT TWICE!!

[ladytabletop]

Do you happen to have any resources regarding accessibility in ttrpg design? About design, colours, phrasing of text or anything else that could be helpful!

I spent wayyyyy too long compiling all this - but it's important, and I appreciate you asking!!

Accessibility is a subject near and dear to my heart, and I will say up front that I'm not sure universal (aka accessible to everyone) design is possible, because people's needs can vary even within the same subset of similar disabilities (such as limited vision or blindness). BUT that doesn't mean we don't try to design for and make our games available to as many people as possible. Mismatch by Kat Holmes is a great read on design for accessibility in general, as is Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez. You might also check out literally anything Alice Wong has ever done.

To start, I recommend this article on the Lenses of Accessibility.

(for reference, this article is about web/graphic design, so I'm going to try and distill the most salient points for game design)

We are going to primarily focus on a few of these lenses:

Color

Font

Images & Icons

Layout

Readability

Structure

Keyboard

More details under the cut.

Color

Why does color matter? Well, for starters, there's a lot of colorblind people out there. Contrast affects readability. Autistic people and people who suffer from occular migraines might be affected by particular vivid colors. There's lots of reasons to consider color and the work it is doing in your piece, but in general you can provide a black and white, high contrast version of your game to help users.

There are tools out there to figure out if your contrast meets certain readability standards, such as this one.

Font

Dyslexia and other visual processing issues can make font choice really important. Plus, some fonts really affect readability. Additionally, line height, justification, and size of text can affect readability.

Best practice would be to provide a plain-text version of your game (and beware of "dyslexia-friendly" fonts which may or may not actually help - sticking to a basic readability font like Arial, Tahoma, or Verdana, is safest). I like this style guide for reference.

Images & Icons

For visually-impaired people, it's important to use alt-text, descriptions, and/or captions to help screenreaders properly translate images. Tons and tons of details that could go into this, but there are better people than me to describe it.

Layout

We've talked about this a bit, but there's tons of resources for this. There was recently a great writeup about Yazeba's Bed and Breakfast in terms of layout that I highly recommend.

Readability

More of the thing we've already talked about - it really is a combination of all the other lenses that comes down to readability. Audio versions of your game are always a good way to avoid the restrictions of screen readers, but can be expensive to produce.

Structure

This is tables. Tables are a nightmare for screenreaders, but including them as images can also be a problem. The short solution is "don't use tables" but that's not necessarily great for seeing people. The section in this blog is really great when talking about options for structure.

Keyboard

Debated on whether to include this, but given how many games are being read as purely digital files, I think it's important to have workable interactive elements that can be navigated through without a mouse. Some of that is going to come down to the programs being used to open your files. But if there are things you can do on your end (such as labeling form fillable fields on an interactive character sheet), they're worth doing!

Please understand that this isn't an exhaustive list. There's tons of resources out there and technology and standards are constantly changing.

It's also is important to note that even doing one of these things is helpful. You might look at this list and go "wow that's too hard" but I promise you, it's worth it. My games do not all have accessible versions! That's something I'm trying to rectify. The biggest part of that for me is thinking about accessibility from the start instead of at the end! But we can start today, and that's better than not starting.

The most important thing to remember are that disabled people are NOT a monolith - needs will differ from person to person. Accessible design makes gaming better for everyone!

Final Resources:

Accessibility in InDesign

Accessible-RPG

A11Y

Accessible Design for Teams

[callalillywrites]

Their Sweet Omega

So, this idea came expressly from this imagining and I'll admit I got a bit carried away by the idea. I really hope @thezombieprostitute doesn't mind that I took this idea and ran with it.

Part 2 / Series Masterlist

Relationship: Alpha!Jake Jensen / Beta!Pre-Serum!Steve Rogers / Omega!Reader

Rating: Pure Fluff

Word Count: ~2100

Summary: Jake and Steve have been searching for an Omega to call their own. Their luck hasn't been all that great until an Omega literally lands in their laps one day.

A/N: I have a lot more I want to add to this little universe, but I'll see how it goes I guess with everything else I've got going on at this point. I do hope you enjoy this little bit of fluff as it's my first ever A/B/O I've ever written. It's proofread but all mistakes are my own.

I also do not give permission for my work to be copied or posted on other sites or fed into an AI machine.

*****

Jake Jensen isn’t your typical Alpha, but he’s a good one according to Steve Rogers, his Beta. Jake isn’t built like other Alphas though he does have an understated strength to him that many overlook, but it’s his gentleness and anti-bullying policies that really made it easy for Steve to align himself and fall in love with Jake.

Steve isn’t always the greatest Beta. He can be headstrong and maybe a little bit reckless especially when he’s seeing something going down that shouldn’t.

He also doesn’t have the greatest health. He’s not nearly as sickly as he might’ve been in, say, the 1930s, but he’s still considered not the healthiest by modern standards, either. He’s also rather short compared to other guys his age. Jake stands about a foot taller than Steve on a good day, even more when chronic illness slumps Steve’s shoulders and keeps him in bed.

Because of his poorer health, Steve has a harder time holding down any type of job for long. That doesn’t bug Jake though as he makes more than enough with his cyber security job and his freelancing software programming gigs on the side.

In fact, he encourages Steve to build up his painting and drawing hobbies, buying Steve the best supplies and even building him a website and social media following. Steve does quite well with it, too, since it allows him to work at his own pace while still feeling like he’s contributing to the household as well.

The only thing really missing in their lives is an Omega they can call their own. It’s not like they haven’t been looking, either, but the few Omegas they had been interested in had left them wanting. They’d either been disappointed that Jake wasn’t ‘Alpha’ enough for them or they didn’t really see Steve as anything more than an attachment of Jake. They refused to give up hope though.

Neither really counted on how one lucky Wednesday morning would change everything for them.

Jake decides to treat Steve to a whole day of pampering and quality time together after the past few busier weeks they’d been enduring. Jake had just finished a major project at work while Steve had finished one of his biggest commissions to date. It was a time to celebrate, relax, and enjoy each other’s company.

It’s why they ended up at the cute little café near their place. Jake stands in line to place their orders while Steve claims a small table and chairs near the windows. Steve likes to people watch and draw whatever he sees, always carrying a small sketchbook for such an occasion everywhere he goes.

Both notice the cute Omega at the front of the line. How could they not? The sweet Omega smells like cinnamon rolls and vanilla. It’s a heady concoction, but they also notice that she’s getting plenty of other attention from other Alphas that she’d probably prefer over Jake anyway. She even seems to be chatting with one of said Alphas while she waited for her order to finish prep.

That changes when her order is called.

When she bids the Alpha a good day, the Alpha bumps her and sends her scrambling and careening into the table where Steve sat. Her drink spills all down her best business outfit while she lands into Steve’s lap. Her impact on his unsuspecting self sends them both to the floor though Steve manages to keep himself under her despite the pain shooting up his spine for his efforts.

Omega is horrified. She sees the small drops of her drink that have landed on Steve’s work and on his clothes. Her apologies can’t come out fast enough as she searches out napkins or anything really to help mop up the mess, not caring about her own dripping state.

It takes Steve a moment to get past the pain shooting up his spine, but he’s doing his best to assure her that his work is fine and that he’s fine. He’s far more concerned to know if she’s okay after the spill she’d taken. Her clothes are matting against her body, and he knows that can’t be comfortable.

What he doesn’t expect is her to stop her frantic cleaning to stare down at his sketch. He really doesn’t expect her to recognize it or him as the online artist, but she does. She even confirms it by whispering, “I can’t believe I messed up your latest masterpiece. I’m so, so sorry” and follows it up with his online name. He’s a bit stunned to say the least.

The Alpha who pushed her is laughing it up, pleased that his little trip had done more than what he’d been hoping for after she had the nerve to turn him down.

Jake, who’d seen everything, steps out of line and rushes over to Steve and the Omega who is still doing her best to apologize to Steve and save the sketch he’d been working on. There are literal tears in her eyes and possibly a bit of fear when Jake approaches.

The Omega recognizes Jake belongs with Steve and the first thing that pops out of her mouth is “I’m so sorry, Alpha, I didn’t mean to make your talented Beta fall for me.”

Oh, Jake is now smitten, especially as he sees Omega’s cheeks grow quite pink and sees her quietly berate herself for her foot-in-mouth syndrome around cute Alphas and Betas.

It also unfortunately gets the other Alpha’s attention, who has taken to snarling his displeasure at her apparent interest in Jake and Steve. He even approaches to cause more trouble when she spots him. Her body goes rigid though her expression shifts to one of pure fire. If the Alpha wants some attention, then she’s going to get him some attention.

In less than two minutes, she has the entire café focused on the scene playing out between her and the Alpha bully. It’s enough to draw the attention of the female Alpha owner as well who bans the bully from her café.

Never in Steve’s or Jake’s experience have they ever seen an Omega take on an Alpha like she does with such expert handling. Both are quite sure they’re a little bit in love with her as she continues to make a stand against the Alpha with the café owner and some other patrons backing her up.

When the Alpha leaves with his proverbial tail between his legs, the owner offers to replace her drink and another set of clothes that she keeps on hand for herself to the Omega if she’d like them. She extends the offer of a free drink to Steve and Jake as well, not wanting to lose two innocent customers to that awful Alpha.

Already late for her big meeting, she declines the clothes but does take up the offer of a new drink. While she waits, she nervously checks in with Jake and Steve to make sure they’re okay and offers to repay them for any damage she might’ve caused thanks to the bullying Alpha.

Both of them assure her it’s fine. They’re just happy that she’s not hurt though they are a bit sad that their interaction is coming to an end.

Before she gets too far though, Jake reaches out to her though he stops just shy of actually touching her. He hasn’t forgotten the brief flash of fear in her eyes upon his earlier approach and can’t stand the thought of possibly frightening her more. When she does turn in his direction, he somehow miraculously doesn’t fumble his words as he asks her to maybe join him and Steve for dinner later that day. He doesn’t need to check with Steve to know he’s also interested in the Omega as well.

A commotion at the shop’s door pulls her attention, and a beautiful smile flits across her features as another Beta walks in with an Omega on his arm.

“What’s taking so long? We’re going to be late. Dear God, what happened to you?” the Beta demands while his Omega tries to shush him.

Their Omega merely shakes her head. “I’m coming, Ran. We had a little mishap, but I’m coming. I know better than to disappoint Ari’s friend.”

Their Omega turns to Jake and nods. “I would love to have dinner with you both if it’s not too much an imposition. Call me in about two hours?”

She slips Jake her business card before vanishing out the café’s door with the other Beta and Omega.

Jake waits exactly two hours before he nervously calls her, putting the call on speaker so Steve could hear everything as well. A small part of him hopes she doesn’t disappoint either of them while on the phone as it’s happened before.

She doesn’t.

Within minutes, they have their plans set to meet at a popular local diner where they could enjoy some good homemade meals while also getting to know one another.

She meets them there in a clean outfit that suits her more than the business suit she’d been wearing that morning. The knee length skirt swishes and twirls around her while the peasant top gives them a decent glimpse of the smooth skin underneath without being too showing. It’s her favorite outfit she admits to them while they wait for their server to arrive.

One of the first questions Steve has for her is how she recognized his work. He’s still a bit gobsmacked about that, especially since he hasn’t been able to get his mind to stop recalling how delicately she’d touched his work. It’d been almost like she’d been touching the Mona Lisa or something equally as valuable. It’s not something he’d experienced firsthand with anyone besides Jake or his few friends.

That’s when they learn Steve helped design her logo and other business media about a year ago. She’d seen his stuff online and had messaged him almost immediately with her ideas and healthy budget to make them a reality. As it turns out, she owns a small homemade candle company, and she’s just landed another retailer who’ll be showcasing her candles after her meeting that morning.

The attention and adoration she’s showing Steve in that moment would make almost any other Alpha jealous of their Beta. After all, she’s practically gushing about how amazing Steve’s art is and how much it’s helped improve her sales as everyone talks about the design. She’s even sent Steve more work because she can’t stop talking about it with her customers. Steve admits he should be giving her something in return for all the referrals and work she’s given him.

Yeah, Jake realizes he should be jealous, but he’s not. He’s the exact opposite at this moment. He’s sitting with someone who values Steve’s talents as much as he does, so how could he possibly be anything other than more smitten with her?

When Steve admits that Jake’s the reason he even has his online business, the talk soon moves to Jake where she learns about his many technical talents. He can see that she’s just as impressed with him as she is with Steve. It’s enough to stroke his ego a bit and have him sitting a bit straighter in his seat.

Their discussion soon moves to hobbies and other things where she soon learns that Jake likes to play one of the most popular first-person shooter games on the market. He admits he can hold his own, but he’s nowhere near as good as some of the other players out there. When he mentions ‘Amaranth Fossa’ as his dream gaming partner, he catches a look he can’t quite figure out that passes over Omega’s face.

They don’t really stop talking all through dinner, but it does eventually have to come to an end. It’s not something any of them want, but they do see that the hour is getting later and the next day is a workday for both Jake and Omega. They end up walking her to her car where she thanks them for a wonderful evening. She doesn’t get into her car until she presses a kiss on each of their cheeks and a promise that they’ll do this again soon.

Jake and Steve share a look, then Jake asks if she’s free the weekend coming up.  

She gives them the sweetest smile and says she is.

Jake and Steve head home after seeing her off. They have a date to plan, and they have no intention of disappointing this sweet Omega that literally dropped into their laps.

*****

Verse Masterlist / Main Masterlist

[anodymalion]

ok I am in fact using this as an excuse to make a long post about this thank you thank you asjksdjfaljdf

---

Interpreting Yuri as asexual is my very very favorite type of headcanon, which is one that 1. is compellingly coded in the source material (even if that wasn't the creator's intent), 2. is thematically relevant to what the piece of media is Trying To Do as a whole, and 3. just means a lot to me, personally, because I said so.

Coded in the source material

Yuri’s short program is “eros”, aka desire (you can interpret what “eros” means in various ways, but YOI itself explicitly refers to sexual love, at least in the English translations). Yuri struggles with this. Hard. He can’t come up with an answer when asked what eros means to him. His big revelatory moment about desire is that it’s how he feels about wanting to eat his favorite food (omg… boy). Even as the season goes on and the way he views the Eros program changes, the program doesn’t ever really embody the idea of eros as sexuality or romance (which was how the other characters expect him to interpret it) but rather as a desire to keep Victor in his life.

Like look. I’m obviously not going to say that the creator intended any kind of ace subtext to be there. I kind of doubt it was her intent. But goddamn is the subtext there.

2. Thematic relevance

The central theme throughout YOI is “love”, and especially loving people in a way that inspires you both to be your best selves: Yuri learning that the people in his life truly love and support him; Victor finding someone who makes him feel joy about skating again.

Like, Yuri’s whole skating theme for the Grand Prix is literally about him exploring what love looks like to him, even when it takes a form that other people don’t totally understand. Viewing all this through a lens of him being ace is really compelling. It adds depth to the idea of learning how to express the way you feel love even when it looks different than what other people expect. I think it’s a really delicious layer that adds even more nuance to what the show is getting at.

Besides, it’s an interesting way of viewing the criticism of the show that occurred for it not being 100% explicit about them being a couple (aka people getting mad because the kiss in ep 7 is blocked by Victor’s arm lmaooo). Like, ok, did you see the ending scene of ep 9? Did you see ep 10??? They definitely, definitely love each other, in whatever way that means for them. Their relationship takes a form that’s pretty different than the other way people in the show are going about romantic relationships, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t real for them. That is very much in line with the main themes of the show.

3. Means a lot to me

In the final scene of the penultimate episode, Yuri tells Victor that they should end their coaching relationship after the Grand Prix ends. This is because he thinks he’s holding Victor back, that Victor would be happier being free to go back to skating on his own instead of being Yuri’s coach. When I watched this (and, I’ll be honest, this is completely me projecting here) I REALLY interpreted this as an ace thing. I think it’s pretty easy to internalize the idea when you’re asexual that you just won’t be… enough, for other people. In my case I ended up a strong impulse to self-sabotage relationships because I would rather be the one to end things than to let someone else tell me that who I am as a person is fundamentally lacking. Yuri destroying a connection he desperately wants because he thinks there’s something about him that is holding Victor back from a life he’d be truly happy with? Oh yeah. I can fucking relate to that.

Also: YOI came out in 2016, which was the absolute peak of hostility to ace people I was seeing on this site. It was bad here. At the same time Tumblr was going wild over this show. Everyone was watching it. Seeing a whole site of people absolutely adore a character I very deeply in my heart believed to be ace? Extremely vindicating.

---

In conclusion Yuri is asexual because it is fun and interesting that way, and also because of this:

[dira333]

Want to love you - Akaashi x Reader

requested by @ur-local-simp , tagging @luvring because I'm legally obligated to do so when it's about Akaashi

The letters aren't even necessary. Akaashi lives down the street, if you want to talk to him you can waddle up to his front door, knock and ask for him to play with you.

But you like letters, the crinkling sound they make, how they smell - yes, you may have overused your mom's perfume, but this is important! - or the fact that you can keep them, a literal moment of a moment shared.

Your school doesn't offer a penpal program. But Akaashi's there to help you out. If you write him, he'll write you back.

You don't go to the same school, so there's always something to write about. Sometimes you even write them together, words hidden from view by a hand held up, until it's time to fold them up and hand them over.

Years pass. Some of your letters travel greater distances. A postcard from the beach, a letter from the countryside, a two-day trip to Korea with your parents.

Akaashi's not one to travel. At least not physically. He reads a lot. Some of his letters are memories of the stories he's moved through and what moved him about them. Some - those are read more often - are his own stories, his ideas brought to paper, brought to life.

He's good at it. He doesn't think so, though.

But this is life. Akaashi who overthinks, who doubts and tries to make sure that nothing ever fails and you, who just jumps ahead, believing and trusting that everything will turn out alright.

But there's still one thing where you cannot risk it. Love.

Because what if you don't love him enough?

-

Tomorrow you're going to leave for your six-month internship. It's your dream job and yet so far away. Korea is only a short flight away but you've never been separated from Akaashi for so long.

What if he forgets you? What if you forget him? What if all these nights of dreaming of being with him don't measure up to the real world?

And it's late, you should get the sleep you'll definitely need tomorrow, but you just can't fall asleep. Your friends have said goodbye, your things are packed, you can hear your parents snoring through the thin walls, but you're still up, twirling a pen in your hands as you think... and think... and start to write.

Dear Akaashi

Beloved

Keiji,

I love you. Have always loved you. And I don't know if I will, don't know if I should, but I'm pretty sure I'll always want to love you.

You're the best friend anyone could wish for. The love of your life should be the person you want to spend the rest of your life with and I can't remember the last time I wanted to spend a day apart.

I'm scared Keiji.

You stop, wipe away the tear that has fallen on the paper. Your hand shakes as you pen down the last few lines.

I'll be back. Braver. Different. Still in love with you.

Wait for me?

-x-

"Oh, Keiji, your friend was here." His mother greets him at the door. "She said she had to catch her flight, but she forgot to give this to you."

He's not surprised to be handed an envelope. Hundreds of those are up in his room, tied together by strings, only to be opened when he feels at his lowest.

He's almost determined to read it later when he's able to breathe a bit lighter, when the reality of your departure has sunken in.

But he can't wait, rips the envelope open with shaking fingers. Something in him urges him to do so even as his mother stands and watches, mumbling something about dinner being ready in a minute.

The paper sails to the floor as he understands and he almost keels over as he catches it before it lands.

"Everything okay?" His mother asks. Behind him there's a knock on the door, the unmistakable voice of his best friend. "Kaashi? Do you wanna come train with me for a bit?"

"I need to get to the airport," he bursts out, almost forgetting his jacket on the way out. "Bokuto, we need to go. What's the fastest way to the airport?"

-

He's too late.

He knows it. Even Bokuto knows it, though he still urges him on. They race to the Check-In Line and Bokuto jumps up and down trying to spot you in the crowd. He's almost ready to scream your name, even breathless as he is when Bokuto grabs his shoulder, pointing at the thick glass walls separating them from the other side.

"There!" He says and Akaashi nods. He can see it too.

His hands shake as he types your number, feeling more than just a little dumb he didn't think of it sooner.

You pick up after the first ring just like he thought you would. He can see you checking your phone after all.

"Akaashi?"

"Keiji," he chokes out. "You need to call me Keiji. Like in your later."

You make a small sound in the back of your throat and he chokes too.

"I can see you," he points out, feeling every bit the lunatic that he is. "Turn around. Can you see us waving?"

And they must be a spectacle, Bokuto in his team colors and he in his sweater vest combo, waving like maniacs until you notice them in the crowd.

"I want to love you too," he says when you wave back, seemingly unable to speak. "For the rest of our lives. I didn't think-"

"I'm coming back," you sob and he can see you walk against the stream of people. Your face disappears in the crowd.

"No," he argues. "No, you need to do this. You need to go. This is your dream job."

"But-"

"I love you," he breathes out and it's suddenly easy. Because this is you and this is him. There's nothing difficult about this.

"And we can make this work. It's just six months."

"But what if it doesn't work out?" You ask and he turns to look at his best friend.

"Bokuto," he asks, "What did you tell me during the Nationals of your third year? Do you remember?"

"Oh!" Bokuto beams and leans in to tell you: "It's not impossible. It's just hard."

"And with you," Akaashi adds, "It's easy."

[fannyyann]

matthew lore: childhood friends & teammates

AKA a vaguely chronological list of current NHL players Matthew knew before he ever played an NHL game

This is already a massive list, so in an effort to keep it as short and organized as possible, I have bolded the names of guys who appear in multiple categories and have only included those who have played at least a full season’s worth of games in the NHL.

For a comprehensive list of his teammates that have ever played an NHL game, this invaluable tool will provide you that information dating back to his first season in the NTDP (2013-2014).

CASEY FITZGERALD gets to go first and uncategorized, because he’s known Matthew longer than anyone else on this list, seems to be the cousin he’s closest to, and is one of the three childhood teammates that became one of Matthew’s NHL teammates. (And roommate!)

THE ST. LOUIS BOYS

LUKE KUNIN is THE guy. Their families are friends (Matthew’s whole fam was at Luke’s wedding, Luke’s whole fam was at Brady’s), and they were teammates for fourteen straight seasons before finally getting separated after their time at the NTDP, which is so long Luke's literally known Matthew longer than Taryn has.

Of the six St. Louis guys drafted in 2016, Luke and Matthew were the only ones born in 1997, so the following have all played with Matthew significantly less than Luke.

CCM Motown Classic 2005

TRENT FREDERIC From what I can find, Trent only played with Matthew during the 2005-2006 St. Louis Rockets season, but he played with Brady and was coached by Keith in the same Junior Blues hockey program, was one of the family friends that got to come around and play mini sticks with David Backes as a kid, and his time at the NTDP overlapped with Matthew’s in the 2014-2015 season (Trent U17, Matthew U18).

2010 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament

CLAYTON KELLER played in the 2010 Quebec International Pee-Wee Tournament with Matthew and likely more but trying to find youth hockey rosters from before 2015 is a herculean task. But he was one of those U17 guys that got to play up with the U18s his first year in the NTDP and played with Matthew for 16 games and then went on to win gold together at the U18 Men's World Championship in 2015.

LOGAN BROWN Other than the 2010 tournament, Logan seems to have played more with Brady than he did with Matthew, and wasn’t in the NTDP like the other guys, but does train with them in the summer.

2011-2012 U15 AAA Junior Blues Team

2013 U16 National Tier One tournament champions

JOSEPH WOLL Unlike the other St. Louis boys, Joseph seems to have played exclusively with Brady, but his time at the NTDP overlapped with Matthew’s the same as Trent’s did. It’s unclear if he trains at the same place as the others during the offseason, but along with the rest of the 2016 St. Louis Draftees, his signed draft day photo is framed in Matthew’s bedroom at his parents' house because of course it is.

THE 1997 JUNIOR BRUINS

This Athletic article is about all the NHL players who played for the 1997 Junior Bruins tournament team over the years, but from what I can find, Matthew only played on the 2010 team with Casey Fitzgerald, NOAH HANIFIN, CHARLIE MCAVOY, COLIN WHITE, and the ever present, Luke Kunin.

Matthew is still close friends with all these guys, but Noah in particular is a Noted Best Friend and with him being from Boston and the Tkachuks having a house in Cape Cod, their summers overlap a lot even when they aren’t teammates.

With Casey, he and Colin White are the only childhood teammates to play with Matthew in the NHL.

THE NTDP BOYS

Okay, this section is where it gets a little chaotic so I split it between the guys who played with Matthew and those he went to school and was familiar with because their time at the NTDP overlapped.

2013-2014 NTDP Teammates Including the gold medal teams for the 2014 U17 World Hockey Challenge & the 2015 U18 World Championship

ZACH WERENSKI

Repeat: Noah Hanifin

2013-2015 NTDP Teammates Including the gold medal teams for the 2014 U17 World Hockey Challenge & the 2015 U18 World Championship

JORDAN GREENWAY

CALEB JONES

CHRISTIAN FISCHER spent his youth hockey years playing against Matthew, and when they both headed off to the NTDP, their parents split billet duties. He is one of Matthew’s best friends, attended Matthew’s draft, and even went with Matthew to Brady’s draft.

JACK ROSLOVIC was linemates with Matthew (and Auston) in the 2014-2015 season and when Matthew went to the 2015 Draft to support all his 1996 boys, Jack was the one he chose to sit with. The next summer, Jack returned the favor (see photo with Christian at Matthew's draft above).

AUSTON MATTHEWS is another family friend. He was Matthew’s center in 2014-2015 and when he broke his leg the previous year, Keith got a bunch of NHL guys to reach out to Auston , and he’s the one who gave us the best story about Matthew texting his own highlights to his friends.

Repeats: Luke Kunin, Casey Fitzgerald, Colin White, Charlie McAvoy

2014-2015 NTDP Teammates Including the 2015 U18 World Championship

TAGE THOMPSON

TROY TERRY

Repeat: Clayton Keller: played up 16 games as a U17

Teammates for a handful of games:

TOMMY NOVAK: 2 games for 2013-2014 U17 team

JAKE OETTINGER: 3 games for 2014-2015 U18 Team, and was part of the team but did not PLAY in the 2015 U18 World Championship

MAX JONES: 2 games for 2014-2015 U18 TeamRYAN DONATO played 4 games for 2014-2015 U18 Team and is now part of the extended Tkachuk family due to Emma, Brady’s wife, being his cousin.

NTDP Overlaps

2013-2014 U18s:

JACK EICHEL

ALEX TUCH

DYLAN LARKIN

2014-2015 U17s:

JOEY ANDERSON

ADAM FOX

RYAN LINDGREN

KAILER YAMAMOTO

repeats: Max Jones, Clayton Keller, Joseph Woll, Trent Frederic, Jake Oettinger

2015-2016 LONDON KNIGHTS

ROBERT THOMAS is practically a third Tkachuk brother at this point. But before Robbie lived with the Tkachuks, his own parents opened their home to Matthew while he trained at Gary Roberts’ the summer of his draft. Then when Robbie’s rookie season came along, it was Matthew who then suggested Robbie live with his parents too.

MITCH MARNER

EVAN BOUCHARD

VICTOR METE

Repeats: Max Jones, Christian Dvorak

2016 WORLD JUNIORS (bronze medal team)

NICK SCHMALTZ

BRANDON CARLO

BROCK BOESER

WILL BORGEN

ALEX DEBRINCAT

ANDERS BJORK

ALEX NEDELJKOVIC

SONNY MILANO

Repeats: Auston Matthews, Zach Werenski, Christian Dvorak, Colin White, Ryan Donato, Charlie McAvoy

HONORABLE MENTIONS

None of the Hughes brothers played with or overlapped with Matthew in the NTDP, but the two families are friends, and as far as I can tell, first met in 2010 when Quinn played on Brady’s Junior Bruins tournament team.

QUINN HUGHES is Brady’s best friend from billeting with him and Keith while in the NTDP and is on this list because Jack called Brady and Matthew QUINN’S BOYS, their families are friends and met at the latest, in 2010 when Quinn played on Brady's Junior Bruins tournament team. On top of that, Quinn he once included Matthew in his answer about watching Chris Tanev play after he got traded to the Flames for no reason at all other than to say he likes to watch him play too.

And last, but certainly not least, is CONNOR MCDAVID.

Matthew spent multiple summers, including the summer before his rookie season, training with Connor at Gary Roberts’ and the two of them are what I like to call STAR CROSSED TEAMMATES. Not only does Matthew swear the Oilers almost drafted him—and there’s certainly enough reports and predictions from before his draft to back up that being the plan—but Connor could’ve been a 1997 Junior Bruin if Brain McDavid wasn’t out to get me.

[breakfastteatime]

The Force has many ways of imparting its message. Sometimes it nudges. Other times it bellows. Now, very (very) early in the morning, the Force is a feather brushing across a bare foot. Jaro awakens with a smile and a certainty.

Cal needs him. Why, he does not know. It is not a bad feeling. Just the knowledge that Jaro’s presence is required.

Leaving the comfort of his bed, Jaro slips on his robe, clips his lightsaber to his belt, and heads out. Cal’s room is nearby, and the hallways are quiet this time of night, the distant and ever-present hum of the engines the only sound to hear.

Reaching Cal’s room, Jaro opens the door and immediately sees he has a problem. It is not an unexpected one, it is merely one he has not had to deal with before. It reminds him of how short a time Cal has been his apprentice. He had been warned the day he took Cal from the creche. Master Entola, noticeably red around the eyes, looked across her desk at Jaro with a fond smile.

“Cal will sleepwalk every now and then. There’s no avoiding it,” she told him. “Not far, and you’ll usually find him talking to a wall, but it is something you should be aware of.”

This morning, Cal has made good on Master Entola’s promise. He is not in his bed. He is not in his room at all. His blanket his strewn across the deck, along with a datapad. His boots are neatly placed alongside the rest of his clothes, meaning wherever he is, he is barefoot.

Knowing he can’t get into too much trouble – there are literally thousands of people aboard this ship, and Cal is likely to bump into at least one of them – Jaro does not immediately rush off or send out a ship-wide announcement telling everyone to keep an eye out for the boy. He shall spare his Padawan whatever blushes he can. Instead, Jaro reaches into the feather soft Force and seeks out Cal’s presence. Shrouded in sleep though he may be, Cal is still Cal.

He is also several decks below Jaro.

Curious, wondering what dream could lead Cal so far away, Jaro takes the nearest turbolift down to where Cal is. He nods to every clone he walks past, all of them snapping to attention and saluting. Jaro does not particularly like it, finds their pre-programmed reverence somewhat distasteful, sentients should be free to choose who they dedicate their lives and loyalty to, yet he does not ask them to desist.

The ‘lift deposits him in a cargo bay. There are many aboard the Brave, but this one is reserved for emergency supplies should they need to evacuate civilian populations. Winding his way through the crates, Jaro becomes aware of a small voice.

“…so tall, you can’t miss him.”

Jaro turns a corner and there he is, Cal, and as promised he is talking to a wall. Well, no, not a wall. A container, apparently containing emergency clothing supplies. From the big smile on Cal’s face, what he sees in his dream does not match the mundanity of reality.

…unless the boy has a fondness for ponchos and rainboots.

“Should I wake him when I find him?” Jaro had asked Master Entola.

“No. Best to simply take him back to bed. He will stay there once you put him back. One little nighttime stroll is all he ever seems to need.”

And so Jaro crouches down and speaks softly. “Cal?”

The boy looks up (and up) to Jaro, smiling brightly. “Here he is!” Cal tells the crate. “See? He’s very tall.” He nods as though the crate is passing comment on Jaro’s height.

“Come.” Jaro places a hand on Cal’s shoulder. “And bring your new friend.”

This, apparently, is precisely what Cal’s dream expects. He chatters brightly, telling his imaginary friend that they’ll be safe now, Master Tapal is a very good Jedi.

“What happened?” Jaro asks, guiding Cal onto the ‘lift.

“She got lost,” Cal tells him. “In the woods. She couldn’t find her family. She found me instead. And then we found you.” The sleeping boy frowns. “Or you found us. I’m not really sure.”

“The outcome is the same either way,” Jaro says as they board the turbolift.

The ‘lift arrives on the residential deck and he and Cal step out. The troopers all salute again, greeting Cal, but Cal is too busy talking about trees and getting lost to notice. Of course, he is also quite literally asleep on his feet. Given that he would have walked past all of them on his sleepwalk through a dream forest, Cal either said enough to silence any concern, or they assumed he was on Jedi business and let him get on with it.

Back in Cal’s room, Jaro steers him back into bed with lots of reassurances that his new friend will be safely escorted back to her family. He tucks him in and opts to remain in the room until, as advertised, Cal simply drifts off into standard Human sleep, the type where he remains in bed with his eyes closed and his voice silent. The Force settles around him, a quiet hum to match the engines, and Jaro finally feels it is safe to leave Cal for the rest of the night.

At a civil hour, Cal emerges from his cabin bright-eyed and completely unaware of his earlier excursion.

“Are you okay, Master? You look tired.”

Oh, to have the energy of youth. “I am well, Padawan.” And will be even better once he consumes a small bucket of caf. “You look very well-rested.”

“Uh huh!”

And, as Jedi tradition dictates, a Jedi Master is allowed to have a little fun in the name of education. “Perhaps you would like to go for a run after breakfast,” Jaro suggests. “A lap of the nearby cargo deck before we resume lightsaber training.”

“Okay!”

Jaro sighs. He cannot win. Perhaps when Cal is in his teens a task like that will result in much stifled complaining and malicious compliance.

[seramilla]

All is happy, Emily and Vaggie are dating and agree charlie is cute but a combination of them sucking at flirting and charlie thinking angels don't do poly makes it hilarious to those watching

Vaggie has had a crush on Charlie since the last Heaven delegation meeting, but they don't happen often enough for her to ever think she has a chance with the literal Princess of Hell. She's not sure how that would go over with Heaven's elders, either. In the meantime, she and Emily have gotten close, since they're both working at the delegation in some capacity: Emily as the sister and apprentice to the High Seraphim, and Vaggie just volunteering with the transition of Hell's souls wherever she can.

They hit it off, Emily talking about how excited she is for Hell's new redemption program, and Vaggie sharing some of her experience with the Exterminations when they were still ongoing. Vaggie felt guilty about it, for a long time, but Emily never judged her; she could see Vaggie trying her best to change for the better, so what is there to hold against her at this point?

At the next Heaven delegation, Vaggie sits with Sera and Emily this time, which is a huge difference from sitting with Carmilla and her girls. The main difference, and the most important one, is that now she's only about eight seats down from Charlie, and oh yeah, she still has a massive crush on the Princess of Hell, and it's a lot more difficult to hide this time. Not that she hid it well last year.

Vaggie's face is about 10 different shades of gold throughout the proceedings. And the worst part is, Charlie's blushing, too, and keeps looking over at her behind her notes, before looking away again. And the other worst part is, Emily has noticed. And the other, other worst part is, she's teasing Vaggie about it relentlessly.

"She's cute, right?" Emily asks, poking Vaggie in the side with her elbow. "You wanna go talk to her afterward?"

Vaggie face-plants into her auditorium seat in shock, to the concern of everyone else sitting around them, including Charlie, who now looks over at her more with worry than enamorment.

"Emily!" Vaggie whisper-shouts, trying not to be heard by the rest of the high council. She puts her face up near her mouth, as if that will muffle her at all. "We are literally dating!"

"I don't mind," Emily says bluntly, wiggling her eyebrow at her girlfriend. Vaggie's body does another spasm, as if she's been hit in the head by a lightning bolt, or a piece of angelic steel. Probably the latter, with how much Vaggie's head is reeling in embarrassment. "Do you want to?"

"I mean...do you want to?" Vaggie asks, looking over at Charlie again, who's obviously started staring at them when she'd thought they weren't looking. The princess "eeps!" and hides behind her notes again, fruitlessly.

"Yeah!" Emily says, pumping her fist. "She's soooo stinkin' adorable! I've honestly had a crush on her for a long time. I'd probably die if she said hello to me, but you can carry me home."

"Emily...you're seriously okay with us having a crush on the same person?"

"Absolutely, girl!" Emily says, wrapping her arm around Vaggie's waist discretely. "Honestly...it's kinda hot."

Vaggie's brain does short circuit at that point, and she practically hides beneath her auditorium desk for the rest of the proceedings. Emily snickers under her breath, patting her head in endearment.

As soon as the proceedings are over, Emily calls Charlie over. The princess looks around for a moment, like Emily must be gesturing to someone else, but when no one else responds, she walks over to them slowly, looking just as nervous and out of sorts as Vaggie is.

What the fuck are we getting ourselves into? Vaggie asks herself, as Charlie holds out her hand in front of her, blushing profusely, and says to them, "Hi-hi there! I'm Charlie Morningstar! Pl-pleased to meet you!"

[msbutterfly5294]

Some Writing Advice I Follow That Works 🦋📚

These May Not Work For Everyone , But For Some These May Help :

📝 Buy a pencil and paper . Get a writing program and a keyboard .

📓 Spill all your ideas into a notebook that will never see the light of day . Write down literally every idea you have that even sort of relates to the scene / chapter / story that you want to write until your thoughts converge on a pointed attack .

✨ Quality vs. Quantity ? No competition . Quantity all the way . The more you write , the better you will know your story . Worry about the quality LATER .

📦 Think about where the idea(s) came from . Go there . Set up a cardboard box and live there . This is your home now .

😎 What is the coolest , most self-indulgent thing you can think of ? That’s what you want to write at this point , until you get some steam .

💭 Short-term goals . And by short-term , I mean a minute from now , ten seconds from now . What are you going to do to write RIGHT NOW ? Stop thinking about an hour from now , stop thinking about a day from now .

🖊️ Write ( As simple as it is , it’s best to put something down then nothing at all . You can come back to it later )

📖 Put one word after another . Find the right word , put it down .

📌 Finish what you’re writing . Whatever you have to do to finish it , finish it .

📚 Put it aside . Read it pretending you’ve never read it before . Show it to friends whose opinion you respect and who like the kind of thing that this is .

🤍 Remember : when people tell you something’s wrong or doesn’t work for them , they are almost always right . When they tell you exactly what they think is wrong and how to fix it , they are almost always wrong .

🔏 Fix it . Remember that , sooner or later , before it ever reaches perfection , you will have to let it go and move on and start to write the next thing . Perfection is like chasing the horizon . Keep moving .

😂 Laugh at your own jokes .

🦋 The main rule of writing is that if you do it with enough assurance and confidence , you’re allowed to do whatever you like ( That may be a rule for life as well as for writing . but it’s definitely true for writing . ) So write your story as it needs to be written . Write it - honestly , and tell it as best as you can . I’m not sure that there are any other rules . Not ones that matter .

[fuzzkaizer]

AKAI - SB1 - Deep Impact

"... for a lengthy spell, bassists that used pedals were given a side-eye.

But as synth pedals continue to be made, it’s hard to believe that some of its earliest heavy-hitters were released in the ‘80s and ‘90s, such as the Korg X-911 and the DigiTech XP300 Space Station. But while those faffed about with a more general kitchen-sink approach to the subject, it was Akai in 200X that came out with the most potent offering to date. This is the Akai SB1 Deep Impact.

Although some places claim the Deep Impact came out in the late ‘90s, nobody that I know is entirely sure when the Deep Impact was released. As far as I can tell, it was 2002. Prior to that, Akai’s “professional” website came out with guns blazing about its silver boxed series that included the VariWah and Intelliphase. However, a short time later, Akai Pro’s website appeared to go dark, resurfacing with pictures of gleaming mixers and MPCs. It’s too bad; the Head Rush, Unibass and Deep Impact were arguably the best pedals Akai ever produced. 

When a pedal’s endorsee list contains players like Bootsy Collins, Chris Wolstenholme and Paul Turner of Jamiroquai, you pretty much know what to expect: throbbing, guttural filter sweeps with a funk chaser. And yeah, you get that. But you get a pretty bang-on stab at a host of synth patches, including fifths, warbling pads and much more. It’s not without its limitations, though.

The Unibass and Deep Impact were centered on the frequency range of the bass guitar; the Unibass generated a fat unison mode with an octave up and subtle thickening, which is easily adaptable to six strings. However,  the Deep Impact in particular made no bones about its applications. When played with a guitar, notes outside of the bass frequency range cut through at a very distinct threshold, and not in a “hardware limitation” kind of way; there is a literal cut-off point. One note in a scale gets enveloped in the circuit, and the very next rings through as if there was no effect at all.

The way it’s used is deceptively complex. Like the old analog synths it seeks to replicate, dialing in a patch takes a little effort, and in the same way as many of them. Two of the unit’s three knobs are for input and output levels—the Input control is accented with a metering system and lets you set the clipping threshold of the unit before setting the output volume. While two-thirds of the knobs are standard fare, the money is in the program system. 

On offer are nine programs with a blank parametric slate. The left footswitch cycles through these programs in ascending order, while an optional footswitch cycles in descending order, and the center control cycles through 10 different parameters (and one preset loading option), all of which are fully adjustable with the rotary encoder in the center of the unit. Most of them correspond to controls on real analog synths, such as (filter) Cutoff, Resonance, Attack and Decay. When you factor in this multi knob, the Deep Impact actually has 12 controls for your tweaking pleasure, far more than the competition. And the ends to which you can adjust the tone are relatively absurd.

While vintage synths of yore can oscillate and destroy your ears when the resonance is cranked, Akai thoughtfully keeps the extent of the parameters usable. With that being said, the Deep Impact will mercilessly punish any subwoofer placed before it. Akai promises a four-oscillator affair within the Deep Impact and while there’s no way to dial it in solely based on those merits, it certainly sounds gargantuan. It’s probably why they are worth so much.

The original designer of the Deep Impact, one Andras Szalay, revived the project well after Akai washed its hand of the line under the company name PandaMIDI and the product name Future Impact I. For a spell, it was tough even to get one of those, and prices encroached upon the original. Now on its third revision, readily available and with a new brand name, the Future Impact continues to carry the torch. There’s just something about that Akai unit, though..."

cred: catalinbread.com/blogs/kulas-cabinet/akai-db1-deep-impact

[genericpuff]

LO Art Analysis (or: A Real Example of Why You Shouldn't Use Multiply for Everything)

I've obviously been spending a lot of time recreating LO art and in that time, I think I've really cracked open some of modern LO's problems with its art. This is a lengthy post so turn on some lo-fi, grab some popcorn and strap in.

One thing in particular that I'm very eager to talk about (and go off about) is Rachel's use of color language and shading.

THERE WILL BE BRIEF FASTPASS PANELS AHEAD IN THIS ANALYSIS. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!

One of the key things that most people seem to agree on when it comes to LO's current art quality is the lack of color language. Back in S1, we had colors that seemed to jump off the page, with gorgeous rendering that created panels that were vast and beautiful to take in. It didn't matter if the anatomy was wonky or if the backgrounds were translated directly from Google Sketchup, the color and compositions made up for its flaws and created unique vignettes that individually contributed to what we found so special about LO back in those days.

That last one especially is still hands-down one of the most well-known and influential LO panels out of the entire series. Many a phone background its graced (my own included, I've literally had this as my phone background for like 3 years now) and it serves as a beautiful standalone example of the mood and emotions LO used to convey. You don't need to know the context of the scene, you don't need to know the characters, the mere posing and color choice alone is enough to invoke a reaction from the viewer. It doesn't even have a lot of shading or final rendering, the composition and texturing is all it needs.

So why does a simple panel like that work, but panels like these don't?

I have such beef with this panel because it does the complete opposite of what the famous Tower 4 panel achieves - it puts on full display everything wrong with LO's current art style, from its character posing to its color language aaaall the way to its final rendering.

First off, the character posing and framing. I finally figured out what RS' male characters have been suffering from lately, and it's a phenomenon that I'm sure many of you will be able to recognize right away.

Seth Macfarlane Syndrome.

You might not watch Family Guy, you might not watch American Dad, or the Cleveland Show, but you'll know exactly what I mean when I talk about Seth MacFarlane Syndrome. It's the stiffness, the lack of movement or bend in joints, the boring posing of characters standing with their arms flatly at their sides and their entire body facing the same direction, eyes unblinking - and when they speak, heads slightly tilting, mouths always being conformed to the same default shapes, while the arms do something random and unrelated to create the illusion of natural movement.

This has been an issue in LO for a while now, incredibly flat posing that lacks any sort of dynamic curvature to it, but it's best exemplified by that Ares panel above because holy shit does he ever look like Stan Smith in it. Boxy shoulders with arms that appear to be WAY too short hanging off the side, elbows flattened, hands straightened out, no natural shaping whatsoever.

But that's not the crux of the issue I want to touch on today.

No, the worst offense of this panel is that it indirectly proves what I've been suspicious of for a while now.

To explain real quick for context, there's this thing in digital art called Blend Modes. It's essentially a basic function in digital art that allows you to change the properties of layers for the purpose of shading, rendering, whatever have you. Most of these Blend Modes are the same across all digital art programs, things like Multiply, Screen, Color Dodge, etc. are all fairly basic tools in the digital artist's toolkit but all have an INCREDIBLY high ceiling of mastery - meaning, blend modes are easy to use on a basic level, but require a lot of skill and understanding of color language to utilize to their full potential. Using them right can transform a passable piece of work into a great one - on the flipside, using them wrong can take a passable piece of work and piss all over it.

The one I want to focus on in this post is Multiply. I use this blend mode myself quite often, it basically 'multiplies' the properties of the layers below it, taking whatever colors are below and 'doubling' them to create darker tones. This makes it a go-to for shading.

But the issue with Multiply is that it often ends up being used when it's not supposed to be. Or rather, people starting out will often use it as a substitute for shading when you'd be better off using your own hand-picked colors. I've got characters with skin tones that I can shade with the same color set to Multiply, zero issues, because the base tone is one that doubles well, it creates a nice rich tone on top that's perfect for shading.

But do you know the one color that DOESN'T multiply well?

Yellow.

Yellow is NOT a color you can just multiply, not without the final result looking flat and almost putrid. Most people will thus recommend you shade yellow with other colors along the same side of the color wheel, including oranges and reds. This is precisely why knowing color theory is such an important skill even in digital art, because using Blend Modes improperly can create flat tones that can ruin a final composition.

Going back to that Ares panel...

Again, I've had this suspicion for a while, especially when looking at panels of Persephone (*pink is ALSO a color that doesn't multiply well)

So I put it to the test. I took the original panel, sampled the yellow, and overlaid it with Multiply to see what I'd get.

Fam.

That putrid deep yellow that I mixed above is literally NEXT DOOR NEIGHBORS WITH WHAT I EYEDROPPED FROM THE PANEL. Copy and paste that and eyedrop it yourself if you want to see it with your own eyes. It's pretty obvious she did the same thing with Hera as well, you can tell her skin tone has been set to multiply and repainted with the same color, same as with her jacket.

They are using Multiply layers for everything as the default. This is not how Multiply is intended to be used - it's lazy shortcutting that's resulting in flat, boring, ugly compositions.

RS has stated herself that she 'changed' how LO is drawn to help 'streamline' the process for her assistants. This isn't streamlining. This is cutting corners.

Streamlining would be having color palettes to refer to during the coloring and shading process. I use them myself for characters that I CAN'T multiply-shade, I literally have characters whose skin tones are too light and yellow-toned for it - using Multiply would wash out their tones and make them look flat and sickly so I have to use a separate color from a different part of the color wheel to shade them (usually a darker tone of red/orange).

Rachel, babe, this isn't streamlining, this is just taking shortcuts to the point of sabotaging your own work. You can't sit there and tell me THAT looks good and is worth the 'streamlining' when panels like THESE used to exist:

Turn off the Multiply layers and color your characters for once, please, I'm begging you. This is such a rookie move for someone who claims to be a professional (and regularly brags about the awards she's won); not to mention a tragic fall from grace because we know Rachel can and has produced better work than this in the past. She knows color language, she knows how to paint, so why is she resorting to shortcuts like this? She has an entire team of people and yet she's still consistently behind enough in her buffer - or just doesn't care enough anymore - that she's resorting to lazy amateur tactics like using Multiply for everything.

And on the off chance that she ever sees this, Rachel, it's not even that hard to use proper colors. You've done it before, you should already have the color palettes available to you.

(P.S. One handy-dandy experiment to tell if your Multiply layers are failing you is the desaturation test. You'll notice that drawings being made primarily with Multiply layers will look a lot 'flatter' when desaturated, because the shading is just the same color on top of itself and 'doubled', there isn't any actual value or depth in the shading itself. These are the exact same panels I showed before, RS' on the left and mine on the right, they've just been desaturated to show the difference that proper color choice can make when defining values and tones in shading!)