#under the read more with ye

[mieczyhale]

the destiel news delivery meme format isn't supposed to make light of anything. it's literally just a news delivery format. it has been used for all kind of things.

i fully agree there are some things that should be delivered Not Like That, but i also don't think people (at least most people) are doing it to make light or be disrespectful. not intentionally anyway.

and i think it's very bad faith to assume they are - to see a news delivery meme being used to deliver news and jump to the worst opinion, to immediately get so angry. there are all sorts of people on here and not all of them are going to see things the way you do

also, "read the room"?? not everyone can read a room and you'd think this site of all places would get that. imagine. neurodivergency on the neurodivergency website.

look. try approaching the person if you really have a problem with it. no one is going to see your post and just stop. things don't work like that here, outside of a blogger turning out to be a unicorn of a person

vent on your tumblr all you want but if you have a problem with something someone specific has done you could try being an adult about it, depending on your age i guess, or at least be mature and say "hey so this thing you did was kinda fucked up, here's why" (not exactly like that, please don't word anything exactly like that. try politeness first. if that doesnt work then you do what you want)

i am too old and have been here too long and it's been a wild ride where i have learned A Lot. in that is How To Deal With Certain Things.

take my stupid free wisdom and change the world. or your dash. same thing i guess

[royaltea000]

Me when I’m in a being coerced into parenthood competition and my opponent is sun wukong

[braceletofteeth]

Kiyoi's aversion to acknowledge Hira as a friend

or Kiyoi vs. the word '友達'

[halfbaked00q]

Im soooo weak to when Bond is like casually being used or exploited at his expense for some ostensible Greater Good except the situation doesn't HAVE to come to that, not really, and he's so inured and even numb to it that he barely pays it any mind; meanwhile, Q absolutely minds and is very indignant on his behalf and works overtime to like either try to avert or forestall the situation before it gets to the point where Bond has to dig his own claws into more of his soft underbelly to offer up on the sacrificial alter of politics of all tawdry things, or to manufacture a way in which he does the needless "needful" so as to spare Bond at least one unnecessary additional wound upon his psyche.

bonus if Bond finds out and maybe after being angry or indignant about it - I don't need you to do my job for me, Q, this is what I'm here to do - and either Q tells him/lets slip or he deduces that like, this isn't Q thinking he can't get the job done, this is Q finding him precious and worthy of protecting, and like. he's just very in awe of that and does in fact feel very safe and cherished within the cradle of his Quartermaster's regard

[sunjestic]

director's commentary for the Kintsugi comic i posted last week. i put a lot of thought into it, and i really wanted to talk about it.... i am a yapper

i am once again begging y'all to read this fic-

[crossbackpoke-check]

blessed be (lorscher bienensegen) | telling the bees (wiþ ymbe)

"Bees" [remixed, abridged], Claudia Emerson // "Letter to Someone Living Fifty Years from Now" [remixed. abridged], Matthew Olzmann // "Letter to my Great, Great Grandchild" [remixed, abridged], J.P. Grasser | Len Redkole, Nina Weiss, Brian Babineau, Christian Peterson, Mitchell Leff, Dave Isaac, Megan DeRuchie

[roxannepolice]

And then along comes this noise. All day long, this relentless noise.

OH YEAH AND HOW DOES THAT FEEL, DOCTOR????

[the-way-astray]

let’s be super clear: there is zero canon evidence that alden ever pressured or neglected any of his children. zero. if you want to make him that way for fic or fanon purposes, fine. you do you. but the second you try to use that in a serious anti alden argument, you lose credibility

[mochiri]

sousuke and makoto are emotionally interdependent on each other

i noticed that in the final stroke movies makoto and sousuke watch some of rin and haru's competitions together... alone? Which was interesting because it would show in scenes that their friends were also watching.

but then I realized that for both makoto and sousuke, watching rin and haru race is such a high intensity, emotional moment for both of them... They're both anxious about their best friends' performances and watching them live out their dream... They both agreed that watching them swim made them nervous...

But it seems like they actually start choosing to watch these competitions alone because they know how the other is feeling. Sousuke even watches this haru race with makoto even when rin isn't swimming and reassures him that everyone's feeling the same. To me, it shows that they're relying on each other for support in times of high anxiety.

EDIT: I had to add this. Sousuke sees Haru's overworking himself and tiring himself out. Sousuke also sees people like ikuya and Asahi working hard to help Haru out, cheering him on. Then sousuke goes to say the following:

Although Sousuke is talking about a bunch of their friends, Sousuke already knows Makoto is the most consistently devoted person in Haru's life. he way he frames it—telling Haru to "at least take notice"—suggests that Sousuke has noticed how much Makoto constantly looks out for and thinks about Haru. Sousuke telling haru to pay attention to his friends more (but mostly makoto...) sousuke noticing that in the first place, Sousuke relating to both haru and makoto at the same time... as the friend who didn't take care of himself and the overlooked one maybe that's why they mix the blues and greens for him for some of his outfits.

Another instance Makoto puts a lot of trust in sousuke's care and friendship is after Haru's freestyle race with kaede and he practically passes out after. Makoto knows that Haru needs medical attention (or rest at least). So he runs out to find Haru after the race is finished.

except he doesn't go straight to haru. He actually calls sousuke first. The tachibana makoto who always puts the burden on himself to take care of haru goes out and finds sousuke and relies on his strength and care while being emotionally vulnerable in front of him…..

/the/ makoto who's fiercely protective of haru trusts sousuke enough to carry haru to the clinic... mind you the guy just went thru REHAB..... either makoto trusted sousuke more in carrying him or sousuke offered which in both ways shows their mutual reliability and care for each other.

i also think it shows Makoto who often shoulders responsibility alone (especially when it comes to haru) shows that he's learning to rely on others and sees sousuke as someone who can support him and someone he has a genuine trust and relationship with. While also solidifying sousuke's role among their group of friends/family.

I think it's beautiful the two characters in free! who have emotionally, mentally, and physically sacrificed themselves due to their fierce loyalty and protectiveness of their friend(s) finds solstice in each other despite often times hiding their emotions from those who care about them… By becoming emotional, mental, and physical strengths for each other instead?? (watching high anxiety competitions together, sousuke helping makoto with haru, makoto helping sousuke through rehab).

I'm happy the two have someone they can share their burdens with and someone who matches their own thoughtfulness.

bonus: makoto welcoming sousuke back to the swimming competition world ("Sousuke, okaeri."). he's so proud of how hard sousuke worked especially as the coach who helped him train ;;;

[drjackabbots]

hello!! I really hope this isn't a rude question, bc I'm genuinely curious. I've been wondering for a while now why people who make gifs from a movie or a show or whatever get upset when somebody else uses the gif in something or want credit for it. Is the process difficult? I'm not 100% how to make a gif but I can't imagine it being that arduous. Anyway like I said not trying to be rude have a good day :D

hey there! it's not a rude question if only because you're asking in the first place instead of just discrediting it.

the thing a lot of people don't understand is how much work actually goes into making a gif, because we don't just plug the video into a gifmaking program and call it a day. a lot of us start JUST with the process of pirating the highest quality video we can find, which can be anywhere from an hour or two of downloading to days at a time (my record is five days for all five seasons of the a-team, but that's a story for another day)

so there's already at least a few hours potentially, just from downloading. granted, we do other things obviously but that's still time that's going into the process.

so you have to download those videos, find the clip you want, and then there are several different methods of getting the clip into whatever program you use (i use photoshop). most of the time i have to reformat the video from .mkv to .mp4, because PS doesn't take .mkv but the highest quality videos are typically in that format. so i put that into a reformatting program, which can take at least another hour depending on how long the file is.

so i've finally got the file ready to go in photoshop, and then i can actually start working on the gif itself. i've now spent at MINIMUM two or three hours just getting this video ready. then i personally clip it down to the exact scene i want it and go from there. if you're just doing a random assortment of scenes, you can choose whatever you want. but if you're doing a scene itself, you have to clip that scene in bursts so you can add the subtitles based off the mouth-movement.

so say you're doing a gifset of your favorite character from a tv show. well, you don't want to just have all of the gifs come from the same episode. so you do the reformatting process all over again. more hours. you do that eight or nine or ten times until you have all the scenes you want. and THEN you can start the actual editing process.

what size should it be depending on what kind of gifset you want to do? 540x540? 540x405? do you just crop it first or should you resize it? the resolution might go down depending on how you resize it. do you know what smart sharpen is, and which levels you should have it on in order to make the scene look the best? what's a smart object? what percentage should your frame rate be so it doesn't look too fast? it's completely different between live action and animation, after all. do you know which colors you should use in the adjustment layers, like selective color? does levels or curves work better for what you're trying to do? how do i get rid of the yellow in this scene so it matches the other gifs? what's the difference between linear contrast and medium contrast? should you use exposure or vibrance to get the shadows you want?

you've done all that, it looks good! you go to export it as a proper gif so you can post it to tumblr. but don't forget your settings on that either! transparency dither, web snap, the amount of colors and what size it should be. you do all that and the gif ends up being over the 10mb limit. so now you have to go back and carefully chip away at the frames until it's under the limit, which means you ultimately have to choose what to sacrifice from that scene so you can properly export it.

so you try again. okay, it's on 9.7MB. that's going to read as 10MB on tumblr. back in you go to chip at it again until it's going to read as 9MB instead. finally. you export the gif, add it to tumblr, and then tumblr doesn't like how it looks when you import it and destroys the quality, so you have to go back and try different export settings until it looks the way you want it.

so you do that nine more times. The Entire Process. downloading and reformatting the .mkv, getting the scene you want, clipping it, resizing and cropping it, coloring it, exporting it, and if you're adding subtitles then it's an entirely new process to add on! and don't forget that if you're doing a mix of scenes, you have to color them all depending on their own lighting, so you're basically doing the process again from scratch.

then you try to think of a fun caption. maybe you want to choose a line you feel best summarizes the character or scene. you put that caption through an HTML formatting program so it can be a gradient (the easiest part!), make the caption look pretty, and then tag it and press send.

you've spent HOURS on this process. literal fucking hours. you've been learning how to carefully manipulate the colors to look good, you know what frame rate looks the best, you have all of your settings saved as .psds.

and then someone right clicks, saves the gif (or just copies it) and posts it to twitter with their own funny little caption.

they get 26k likes, who knows how many retweets, a bunch of new follows. they get all the attention for that gif when they put zero work into it. all they did was write a caption and press send.

you got 400 likes and 165 reblogs on your gifset over on tumblr. maybe you get some tags on it if you're really lucky.

so tell me. wouldn't you be a little frustrated, too?

and just in case anyone wants to try and tell me this doesn't happen, you're welcome to compare the stats on this gifset of godzilla versus the repost on twitter.

[cockroachesunite]

Go for broke AU part 2

☞ (Part 1) . (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5)

(masterpost)

[thecollectionsof]

over 500 words of crygi that i wrote while half-asleep a.k.a golden gigi goode

Gigi Goode was golden. 

Golden like the warm tones in the dye she used to cover the hair that she had never felt was “right”. Like the jewelry that she stacked on her hands, wrists, neck… never too much, not like people always accused Crystal of doing. A dainty amount. The right amount. 

She was golden like the sun as it sets over the water, with so much light to spare that it reflects on any nearby surface it can. The warmth of it is almost inescapable, and if it’s in the mood, it can make you feel like you’re the only one in the universe. Two bodies, alone. Crystal and Gigi. 

Gold followed her like she was a firework, even if it wasn’t always visible. It was left in her wake no matter where she went, echoes of her laugh like streaks of gold radiating from her without a thought. It wasn’t something she did, it was something she was—warm and rich, bright and envied, beautiful and admired. 

And unlike Crystal, she was sweet. Sweet like the honey from the stall at the farmer’s market. The syrupy, sticky sweetness that Crystal could never quite pull off was an effortless endeavor in the hands of Gigi, whose steadfast kindness dripped from her but was guarded behind her sometimes-necessary sting. 

It was surrounded by gold that Crystal came to the realization that she was in love. Gigi’s head was resting gently on her shoulder as they sat on a bench, the lingering heat of the day making the touch uncomfortable but not unbearable. But this is what they did, Gigi would say, and it was true. Every day she could, she’d leave her house when the notification arrived that it was 20 minutes to sunset and walk the five blocks it took to get to their bench. And there they would sit, side by side, talking about everything and nothing while golden rays illuminated a golden girl.

The routine was ingrained in them, even as it shifted. From two strangers sharing a bench and pleasant (if not slightly awkward) small talk, they slowly started opening up to each other until Crystal found herself replying to a text Gigi had sent asking for opinions on a skirt she’d found at a thrift store nearby and realized that they were friends. Truly, honestly, friends.

It didn’t take long after that for her to realize that she liked her. 

It was hard not to, when Gigi’s emphatic defense of a weird bumpy lime she saw at the grocery store had them drinking two bottles of cheap red wine over chips and her homemade guacamole (and Gigi was right, the lime was good). It was the first time Gigi slept at her apartment, despite it only being a fifteen minute walk back home, but Gigi didn’t want to walk and Crystal didn’t want her to leave, so they fell asleep on the couch with their feet brushing and necks hurting. 

And it’s happened many more times since then. 

She wouldn’t change it for the world. Their bench, which had burned her legs when she sat on metal unguarded from the harsh summer sun, was theirs. It was a place of sharing stories, of gossiping, of gentle smiles and rowdy laughter. Of sweetness and brightness and warmth and didn’t it just feel right?

Crystal thought so. Being with Gigi, no matter what, just felt right. So she let herself just be, to bask in the gold that threatened to swallow her whole, and looked down at what she could see of Gigi’s expression. It was more than she expected—Gigi was looking up at her already, craning her neck to keep her head on her shoulder but look at her all the same. 

With Gigi’s eyes on her, her gaze equal parts bright and perplexing, she couldn’t help the smile that crept onto her face. The answering smile was as expected as it was perfect, wrapping her in a joy that felt like it shared some of her light. She would give herself into that gold every day, if that’s what let her bask in the gentle rays of the sunset with Gigi.

But Gigi liked her as she was, so she’d stay pining, and she’d stay hoping that she got to be in Gigi’s sunlight, her warmth. Her gold. 

[arahusk]

Day 4: Secrets For HuskWeek2025.

-

Husk heard a whisper that was like the soft hissing of cockroaches.

It was no surprise that it was Niffty who was trying to call him over, giving him a frantic wave as she peeked around the handle of her mop. Almost as if it would hide her, and with her tiny size, it nearly did. Her eye shone like a house on fire, the light of it reflecting off her sharp teeth.

Husk sighed. But he saw nothing else in her hands, and no weird creepy-crawlies in her hair, so he walked over from his bar, moving to the secluded hallway. He expertly bypassed the puddles of pail water that were still soaking the carpets.

"What is it, Niff?"

The maid was gripping the handle until it nearly splintered in her grip. She must have been really excited about something.

"I got a real good secret about the boss for you~!"

He frowned. "What makes you think I want to even know it?"

Niffty giggled, her pupil dilating. "Because it's so tasty."

Curiosity killed the cat, as they say. But he was already dead and buried, way over six feet under. What more could be done to him really?

That, and he knew Niffty wouldn't let up until she told him.

"Fine, spill it."

This was gonna be either stupid or horrifying. But after seeing Alastor devour several sinners alive, he was sure he heard it all. The only secret Niffty could have known was whether Alastor liked his corpses grilled or crispy.

"Okay, but you have to promise you won't tell anyone else!" Niffty quickly leaned her mop against the wall and its peeling wallpaper. "It's a forbidden kind of secret."

He did all he could to not roll his eyes. "Does the boss secretly watch game shows on the TV set downstairs? Promise I won't tell a soul for this awful scandal of his."

But what he didn't expect was when Niffty pulled out something from her pockets. It looked like...some sort of raggedy doll, one that was completely in her liking, down to the single crimson button to serve as an eye. It had black thread sewn on its face for a smile, and even wore her exact style of dress, down to the little blood splatters.

He knew Niffty was absurdly young at heart, but this was pushing it. "So, uh... new hobby of yours?"

It seemed likely when Niffty also pulled out a needle, holding it delicately in her other hand. But she shook her head.

"Alastor made this. I just helped!" She grinned. "He likes sewing up dolls of us!"

Husk instantly knew he wasn't going to like what she would say next.

Niffty balanced the needle in her fingers, looking ready to stab something. She gazed at her mini-self with fondness, even with the numerous patches sewn over its limbs.

"Alastor said he used to make a bunch of these when he was alive. But, he only makes dolls of those he likes and wants to protect! And he gave me this!" She hugged it tightly, giggling off-key. "He says I can be trusted with it now. And that he made sure the hair would always stay soft and that the pretty dress won't rip!"

Husk remained quiet. This was a mistake. He shouldn't have stayed. Yet, it was like those very needles Niffty always carried was pinning him to this very spot.

"He also has a doll of you." She raised her singular eye to him. Engulfing red, with only a tiny pinprick of black. "It's so cute and cuddly! He even uses real fur and feathers for it. He lets me pet it, hehe."

It was his own. He didn't even question it. Husk remembered waking up one morning to find his arm a little less fuzzy. He remembered feeling his wings with stings of pain, as if someone had pulled out the feathers in nondescript places.

"Where is it?" he asked. He didn't specify. But Niffty always had a scarily quick mind.

"Oh, Alastor still has it. It's safest with him, he says. He told me that he always makes sure you're taken care of, since you'd just lose it in a game of blackjack."

Husk gripped his fists. Jackass. His wings shivered. "Niff, why are you telling me this?"

Niffty smiled so ecstatically. "Alastor wanted you to know his secret. Isn't that great?"

No.

Niffty didn't notice his silence. She was still cuddling her doll, made of cotton, stitches, and magic. She then pressed a fingertip against the needle's point, the sharp prick seemingly jogging another memory.

"Also! He said once I told you this..." She laughed, tickled at whatever little comment Alastor must have said. "He said, 'Let Husker know I'm always here to lend him a hand!'''

It was then that Husk felt a palm against the small of his back, fingers shifting through fur.

He whipped his head around, his tail flicking, and his wings outstretched. Yet no one was there. It didn't matter. He felt that same hand tighten, fingers massaging his waist.

It could touch him. It could caress. It could also rip off his spine. Carve into his flesh. Pull him apart limb from limb.

Husk was still. He swallowed, turning back to Niffty. "Yeah. Alright, thanks. Heard that loud and clear."

Niffty smiled, looking so pleased. "You're welcome! Now we both know the boss's darkest secret!" Then she skipped away, leaving the mop behind so she could enjoy her gift from Alastor.

Knowing his boss, he probably Niffty-proofed it so she wouldn't hurt herself. Or maybe, he knew she would love the feel of needles in her skin and that it wouldn't matter. Not for her.

Husk shivered, even long after the hand on him had left.

Maybe at night, he would feel such hands on him again, cradling like he was something so precious. So fragile. So breakable.

The dolls were for their protection, Niffty had said.

He had to believe that with every inch of his soul, or he'd never be able to sleep.

[imaginesleeping]

thinking about that one fic on ao3 where it’s summer and reader and vika are all sweaty laying in bed and they give each other head 😩

[gio-cosmo]

FUCKASS SHOW FUCKASS SHOW FUCKASS SHOWWWW

[mechaness]

First of many

So much had happened. Nasiens had found her biological family, she found out about herself, she almost died... but now her hero was with her again.

When the battle was decided, a few words were exchanged and someone gave Percival a cloak so he could cover up. He hadn't even realized he was naked. He apologized, though it was clear he didn't see the issue.

After a while, her new family (she had to present them to Ordo as soon as she could!) left her alone with him, sharing knowing smiles.

Nasiens couldn't stop looking at him.

Percival... She smiled.

"So you are a fairy now? That's so cool!" Percival's voice was so soothing to her. How had she missed his smile!

"Yes... I'm not used to flying, though..."

"But now we can fly together!" Percy said, laughing. He grabbed her hands and gently lifted them up. Nasiens was shocked but soon started smiling again. A little spin in the air, and she was laughing along with him.

"I just can't get used to the height..." she admitted looking down, feeling cold sweat in her forehead. It had been fine in the battle, but now... She looked up at Percival, thinking how silly she was being. Something gleamed in his eyes.

He threw her one of his winning smiles and she felt her heart stop.

"Well, that's easy! Just keep looking at me!" His face was too close to hers, but then again, he had never been good at respecting people's personal space.

And Nasiens couldn't think of anything better to look at than his eyes. He always managed to calm her down. She could do anything as long as he's with her.

"See? You can fly really high if you want!" Like a spell being broken, she looked down. She almost let out a scream. They were so high up she could barely see the ground!

Her arms moved on their own, hugging Percival. She hid her face in the crook of his neck, trembling.

Percival was shocked. Not because of the hug, he loved Nasiens' hugs, as different as this one felt. However, she felt like dead weight. Had she stopped flying?! Of course she wasn't in any real danger as long as he was there to hold her, but...!

"Nasiens?!" He could hear her mumbling nonono again and again, "I'm sorry! I thought...! Are you ok?" He was so worried about her and Nasiens was still trembling, but she managed to answer,

"Ye-yeah..." she looked up. She was again at a loss for words. She knew Percival was still Percival inside, but he was really big now, and tall, and... she could feel her face aflame. "Yeah, I'm... I'm good. I was shocked, I guess..." she couldn't look him in the eyes anymore.

Percy was silent for while before he spoke again.

"You really feel different now, uh..." Nasiens eyes widened at his comment.

"Wh-what do you mean? Is it bad?" Percival's silence made her a little nervous. He wasn't looking at her anymore. She forgot to ask again though, since they landed in the hollow part of a cave, up in a mountain, and the sight amazed her.

"It's beautiful..." she said. Percy agreed, but he wasn't looking outside. His eyes were fixed on the pretty girl he was holding by the waist.

Screw pretty, he thought. Nasiens had always been beautiful, but now... It was like a whole other level. The way she held herself felt different. Also,

"You got boobs now!" he shouted, almost giving her a heart attack. She almost tripped, blushing like crazy.

"Ye... yeah..." she put her hand on her chest. They weren't even that noticeably, but... "the whole thing feels weird..."

"Bad weird?" he sounded genuinely curious.

"N... no, I don't think so. I never felt bad being called a boy, but now... I like this. Being a girl, I mean. It feels right, but I'm... not used to it yet. Not completely, at least. Is that weird?"

"I don't think so! Anyway, Nasiens is Nasiens, no matter what! You are amazing!" when he looked at her, he could see that gentle smile of hers that he loved so much.

Nasiens was so grateful. Of course Percival wasn't fazed. He was just Percival. He hadn't even questioned her change, something which she she was grateful for. She couldn't even imagine how she could start explain the whole thing to him.

She was thinking how much she loved this side of his and was so deep in her thoughts, she didn't realize when Percival got behind her.

"You gotten slimmer too, right? Right?" his poking sent shivers down her spine. What was his obsession with her back?!

Nasiens felt her face aflame again.

"Please, don't do that!" she almost screamed, taking a step back.

"Why? Can't I touch you?" he sounded so innocent, she almost felt bad. But when she looked up again she saw how serious he was. She felt taken back. He had never looked at her like that before, not like this.

How could she tell him that the only thing she wanted was for him to touch her all over... it was just so embarrassing to admit!

She felt her true feelings coming forward before she could stop herself.

"Well, if you a-!" a flashback made her stop. A painful memory crossed her mind and she felt silent.

Anghalhad.

She felt her blood boil.

"...you know what. I think it's best that you don't." She turned, not before giving him the iciest look he had ever seen. That kind of look was never directed at him! Percy got worried.

"N-Nasiens?! Are you angry at me? I hate it when I make you angry!" he ran to her. He grabbed her hand so she couldn't get further away from him. She flinched and stopped, but she didn't look at him. "I'm sorry, did I say something bad?"

"You got Anghalhad to touch, don't you?" she said, immediately regretting her words. It wasn't Percival fault, or Anghalhad's for that matter. Plus, she knew Percival didn't understand these kind of things! She barely could, after all.

"Yeah, I guess..." Percival's voice made her angrier and she felt so ashamed. She took her hand back, snapping at Percy.

"See?! Go to her for all I care!" she looked down, hiding her eyes as best as she could. She couldn't face him like this...

"Wha...?! No! I don't want to! I want to stay here with you! Nasiens!" he grabbed her by the shoulder, shaking her a little. He had to make her understand...!

Were those tears?

"Nasiens...? What's wrong?" she lifted her arm, trying to wipe her tears with her sleeve.

"I... I'm a horrible friend! I don't hate Anghalhad, I actually like her... but thinking about you two...!" she put her hands on her face, trying to control herself. "Who am I to say anything? You are free to do whatever you want...! But I hate it! I hate the thought of you two-!"

Percy hugged her so tightly she almost couldn't breathe. She felt his hand grabbing her hair, same way he had done early that day.

"P... Percival?"

"I won't touch anyone else!" he exclaimed, shocking her. "I don't really get it, but I thought of some else touching you and that made me angry, so I guess it's the same for you? Is that it?"

"Ye... yeah."

"Is it because you love me?" Nasiens felt trapped. She was about to protest when...

"Cause I love you too!" he said, his smile so bright it blinded her. He caught her so out of guard she almost fainted.

"Well," he continued, "I love all my friends... but with you... love falls short. Does that make sense? I want to hold you forever..." Percy said, snuggling to her. Looking down he saw her eyes, so full of hope and love, he couldn't help but smile. Nasiens smiled back.

"Y-yes, it makes sense. I... I feel the same way." Nasiens couldn't believe it. She confessed! She managed to do it and now...

"Good!" he grabbed her waist again, lifting her from the ground, "then it's settled!"

Nasiens felt tears forming again, this time from happiness. Things could be so easy with him sometimes... but then she remembered their little argument. She blushed again.

"A-about before... I don't mind, you know... but, you have to ask."

Percy was confused for a moment. Then it hit him.

"Really?!" he had pulled her down a little. His face was so close to hers...!

"Ye-yeah."

"Can I, then?" he asked. His lips were so close to hers, she felt her heart about to explode.

"Yes..." she tried to close the distance and...

"NASSIE! Percy! Dinner time! Come on, where-! Oh, there you are!" Tioreh shouted, appearing out of nowhere.

"...what are you two doing?" she asked, innocently.

It was a rare sight, if you asked her. Nassie with her face all red, pushing Percy away. Her hand was on Percy's face and he looked miserable, ignoring Tioreh and trying to get close to Nassie.

"But you said I could...!" he whined.

"QUIET, PLEASE!"

Tioreh had never seen Nassie so embarrassed. It was fun!

Later that night...

Nasiens couldn't believe it. They had almost...!

But the moment had been ruined.

She put her hands on her face, sighing. Maybe some other time... She was fixated in the fire next to the log she was sitting on, deep in thought.

"Nasiens! I was looking for you! Look!" Percival's voice took her out of her trance. She looked up to see him better, confused in what was she supposed to be looking at.

He placed a white flower on her hair.

"I knew it! It suits you!" he said, making her blush yet again. She gently touched the white flower with her fingers. "You look beautiful, you know!" Nasiens felt her blush deepen. She was going to get a fever from blushing so much...

"Thank you, Percival..." she smiled at him and he smiled back, love in his eyes. He sat down next to her and she rested her head on his shoulder, sighing.

"Man, that sucked, uh?" he suddenly said, looking down at her. "I really wanted to kiss you."

Nasiens was definitely getting a fever.

"Re-really? Honestly, I did too..."

Without much thought, Percy turned and grabbed her by the waist, surprising her. He flew them away from the dinner and the rest.

In the air, with the moon shining brightly, he looked at Nasiens. He smiled, closing the distance between them.

"Can I?" he whispered.

Nasiens laughed. He really took it to heart to ask first.

"Of course...!"

Their laughter filled the night. At least for tonight, everything was going to all right.