#unless I'm bluffing

[bean-writes]

Banana Fish - I Won't Go Back

~THE FINAL CHAPTER~

Yeah, there's actually no quote or snippet from the final chapter that I can put in here without spoilers. So here's some random Banana Fish GIFs to pull on your heartstrings.

Banana Fish - I Won't Go Back

Griff swore to get to the bottom of Max Lobo's mysterious death. But when Griffin turns up dead in his apartment after discovering something that will bring down Dino's empire, the quest for revenge is passed to his brother Ash, the leader of a rival gang. Things get interesting when Ash discovers that Griffin's key to bringing down Dino's empire is 19-year-old Eiji Okumura, a Japanese boy who was Dino's slave. Now they team up to bring down the corrupt gang leader and destroy the dangerous drug Banana Fish.

[Ao3 and FFN]

[sistertotheknowitall]

Don't Take Snacks From Some Guy

Masterpost

Duke knew better than to take food from strangers. Still it was nice of the other man to offer so he kept taking them.

----

Duke watched the kid type away at his laptop. He said kid but the guy was probably a few years older the him. Still, he wasn't supposed to be on the roof of a bank, Gotham National Bank to be specific. He didn't seem to be up to anything nefarious (Duke didn't think you needed to be on the bank to hack it) but he was still on the roof a bank. A closed bank at sunrise on a Sunday.

How did he even get up there? Duke doubted that he took the stairs. Unless he worked for the bank but that didn't answer why he was on the roof.

Making a decision, Duke disappeared and made his way over. He was quiet and cautious as he went to look over the other teens shoulder. He was writing …a paper? From what Duke could read it was a research paper (‘in accordance to what the Daily Planet has stated about the city’s hero’ -).

“Could you not breathe in my ear?” 

Duke flinched back and thankfully didn't make a sound. He was pretty sure he still invisible but tired eyes were staring at him - well, in his general direction. (Just to be sure Duke checked, and, yeah, still not visible.) For a moment they just sat still as Duke contemplated revealing himself. (The other could be bluffing but was it really bluffing if he was right?) The guy had known Duke was there and seemed able to at least sense his general position. He seemed annoyed but not violent. It was also clear that he definitely was not committing cyber crime unless the paper was code. (Could it be code?)

Continuing with caution Duke made himself visible and shifted awkwardly, “um, hi, I’m Signal -”

The other boy had turned back to his computer, appearing to read over what he had written. “You were almost pressed against me, dude.” 

Duke blushed, a little embarrassed, “right, sorry, I was just trying to see what you were doing.”

“I'm Danny and I was not hacking the bank, I promise.”

“Okay?” 

Duke continued to watch Danny as he finished reading and closed the laptop. Standing Danny stretched and started putting the computer away. Duke had winced at the popping of his spine. “So what are you doing up here?”

Shouldering his bag Danny told him, “writing about the sociological impact of superheroes vs vigilantes, or do you not know how to read?” 

Duke contemplated still arresting the man. He could still get him for loitering or trespassing or something. “No, I got that - “

“Did you?”

Ignoring the snippy remark Duke continued and asked “why are you writing on top of the bank? How did you even get up here?”

“The public library’s wifi is awful and this bank has a public password.” 

Duke blinked, “you're up here at sunrise for the wifi?”

“Yeah.”

"…….."

“So… think you could help me get down?”

----

Once back on solid ground Danny had held out a chocolate bar. Duke stared in confusion before realizing it was an offering, “oh thanks, but -” Danny sighed, grabbed Duke's wrist and forced the candy into his hand. Letting go, Danny had patted the vigilante on the shoulder, muttered his thanks and walked off.

Duke watched him go around the corner before considering the chocolate. While the guy hadn't been anything other than a little snarky and rude, Duke wasn't going to eat something a stranger gave him. Even if you didn't grow up in Gotham, accepting food from strangers was not wise. Duke knew this. 

So he had taken the candy bar back to the cave for analysis. 

Upon their seconf meeting nearly a week later Danny had been a lot more cheerful and had apologized to Duke for being grumpy. He then handed him a banana and left. Duke continued to run into Danny on roof tops, fire escapes, and once outside the entrance to a cemetery and while he wasn’t always in a talkative mood when they met (sometimes he would just walk by Duke, shoving food into his hands as he passed) he was always sure to give him something. Duke didn't know what to make of this but he was understandably careful. The banana had been tested like the chocolate, so had the fruit snacks, the granola bar, and the apple. All came back clean.

 It was a few days after the apple was cleared that the bats had come to the conclusion that Danny was not a threat. So when Duke was handed a donut on a stressful Tuesday, he ate it gratefully. Danny had seemed pleased that Duke continued to take the treats and Steph was always happy to eat what Duke didn’t.

Post 5

[annwrites]

⸻ tell me i'm your national anthem. part two. ⸻

· pairing: homelander x collegestudent!reader · type: part of a series · summary: you & john have dinner together again & you finally come to understand him a bit better. at the very least, what you think he wants. and he lets you in just once, wondering if you can be trusted after all. · word count: 2,736

You sleep fitfully that night.

It takes hours before your body manages to calm enough for you to find rest after having exhausted yourself from crying, hugging a pillow to your chest for comfort—utterly terrified that he’ll come back.

Every small noise you hear makes you shoot up in bed, staring at your now-curtained balcony doors, praying to God that he’s gone. That he hadn’t meant what he said about returning. He’d been bluffing, you’re sure.

You need for him to have not been serious.

You drag the next day during your classes.

You stay fairly to yourself, not wishing to talk to anyone. But, of course, all that any of them have on their minds, and seem able to discuss as you pass them in the halls is him. Including your best friend, Emma.

It only serves to turn your stomach. The fact that she worships the ground that his corrupting boots walk upon—that she has no idea that he’s a soulless monster. That he had so easily threatened your life before proceeding to humiliate you before stealing away your first sexual experience for his own benefit.

He’d done it to be cruel, you’re sure. To disrespect you like he’d felt you’d done toward him.

As if refusing to make eye contact while hundreds of others gazed upon him with admiration was anything like what he’d done to you.

Trying to wrap your mind around the incredible difference between who he is in front of a camera versus who he had turned into in your apartment last night… He’s a psychopath, clearly. All you can manage to return to time and again was him staring at you with red eyes, threatening your life. A threat that had rolled off his tongue as easily as asking you about the weather.

You wonder how many lives he’s taken that no one knows about, or that Vought has taken diligent measures to cover up. Wondering why they do it—why they would protect him—has a simple answer: he’s indestructible…right? A man with that much power, and with no remorse—with no weaknesses—is a terrifying thought.

You really fucking hope you never see him again. That whatever he was after he managed to get out of his system last evening. After all, what’re you compared to Queen Maeve, or a model, or fellow actress, or supe?

Thankfully, it’s a slow day at work. Usually it is, in truth. Not many people seem to have much of an appreciation for buying and collecting antiques anymore. Unless it’s Christmas time…the store is almost always dead. A fact you’re quite grateful for today as you arrange a shelf of Precious Moments figurines, avoiding the section of the store dedicated to superheros at all costs.

You ring up maybe half-a-dozen customers in not quite as many hours before heading home for the day, practically dead on your feet.

You take a long shower—the pleasant feel of the hot water nearly serves to put you to sleep—repeatedly telling yourself that you’re safe here. He’s not coming back. This is your home. You’re okay. Everything is okay. You’re sure he’s already forgotten about you by now, anyway.

When you emerge back into your bedroom dressed in a t-shirt and a pair of soft gray sweatpants—ready to just throw something in the microwave so you can go to bed straight after—you halt in your tracks when you see a silhouette with wide shoulders and a billowing cape on the other side of your closed curtains.

Your breath hitches in your throat.

You’re seeing things. He’s been on your mind all day and you’re exhausted on top of that, not to mention starving.

It’s not real. He’s not—

There’s a gentle knock against the glass. “I know you’re in there. I can hear your heart. So, you can either open the door, or I’ll just break a window and let myself in. But, then you’ll end up having to pay to replace the glass, and you’ll have to explain things to your landlord, and, well—”

You come over to the door then, frustrated tears stinging your eyes, and you flip the lock, heading in the direction of the kitchen without a word.

You know it’s useless to try and hide, or pretend like you’re not home.

He lets himself in, gently closing the door behind him.

“Honey, I’m home!” He says in a sing-song tune, following you into the kitchen, leaning against a counter with crossed arms and a smug look on his face.

“So, what’s for dinner?”

You open the freezer, throwing a microwavable dinner on the counter, refusing to even look at him.

And then he sighs, grabbing the meal away from you, throwing it back into the freezer.

He leans down toward you. “What? No home-cooked meal for your favorite superhero tonight? And after all that hard work I put into making a meal out of you just twenty-four hours ago.”

You grip the edges of the counter in each of your hands, dragging your nails across it. “I never asked for any of that. I begged you not to.”

He leans in closer, grabbing your hip painfully as he brings his lips to the shell of your ear. “You’re being very ungrateful right now.”

He pauses. “You’re hurting my feelings.”

Your chin wobbles and your stomach fills with lead.

“Now,” he starts again, sliding his gloved fingers into your hair, gently massaging your scalp. “You are going to be a good little girl and get to cooking. I’m not asking twice. I’ve been hard at work all day. It’s the least you can do for me after bothering to fly all the way here to keep you company.”

You bite your lower lip to try and keep your tears at bay. “What do you want from me?”

“I’ve already told you.”

You turn to the side, facing him, reluctantly looking up, meeting his empty blue eyes. “Thousands—no, millions—of women across the world would love nothing more than to throw themselves at you. To be at your beck and call. What the hell do you want with me?”

He gently caresses your chin between his fingers, smirking softly. “I’m no A-Train, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still love a good chase, sweetheart.”

He smacks your rear then, causing you to squeak in surprise. “Now, feed your man.”

You raid a brow at that. Your what?

You watch as he leans down, removing the milk jug from your fridge and you cross your arms. “I’m not doing all the work while you just sit there and watch.”

He looks at you with a displeased expression from your back-talk, but you don’t back down.

You remove a loaf of bread from the bread box, tossing it on the counter in front of him. “You’re in charge of making toast.”

Quite astonishingly, he doesn’t argue. Instead, he looks at you with a surprised look in his eyes and a gentle smile. “How many slices do you want?”

You have no idea that it gives him a sense of normalcy and home, even if just for a moment. Like you’re a mother instructing her child, giving them a small responsibility to see to at dinner time. You’re making him a part of the process, and he likes that. Appreciates it, even.

You’d begun giggling ridiculously from nerves in the middle of making spaghetti.

Homelander had looked at you with a raised brow and a sour look on his face, until you’d explained, with tears streaming down your own. “I’m cooking dinner with Homelander. You’re—”

You’d gasped for breath, doubling over. “You’re in my apartment! Making toast!”

And then you’d begun to actually cry—your exhaustion catching up to you all at once—hysterically, at that. He’d considered multiple courses of action. One: simply leaving. Two: threatening you to shut the hell up or he’d really give you something to cry about. He’d taken the third option with no fucking idea as to why.

He’d gathered you in his arms, ignored your tiny fists beating against his chest and your demands that he let you go, and held you until you calmed.

Once you did, and your breathing and heart-rate had both returned to normal—the smell of adrenaline no longer coming off of you in waves—he told you it was time to eat.

So, here you sit, slowly eating spaghetti and toast in silence with America’s poster boy.

He takes a long sip of milk, studying you.

“You’re very attractive,” he says, briefly pausing. “In an ordinary ‘girl-next-door’ sort of way, I suppose.”

Your eyes flit to his, swallowing your noodles. “T-thank you.”

He hums in response, a small smile on his lips, fingers splaying outward expectantly.

Your brows furrow for only a moment. “You’re…handsome.”

His smile fades at your unsure tone of empty platitudes. “Why don’t you like me?”

Oh God, not this again.

You shake your head, taking a bite of your toast. “You’re asking that after what you did to me?”

“You mean what I did for you? You seem to forget that I gave you an orgasm without so much as asking for anything in return.”

Bile rises in your throat. “You stole my first sexual experience away from me.”

“I think stolen is a nasty way to word it. I gifted it to you.”

You grip your fork tightly in your fist, having half-a-mind to drive it through the back of his hand. But you know you can’t. You don’t want to even imagine how such an action would end. Probably with your apartment becoming a bloody mess and your twenty-one-year-old life at an end before it ever got a chance to truly begin.

So you set the utensil down.

“You want me to like you?” You ask quietly, having no clue as to why your meaningless opinion of him should matter in the first place.

He shrugs lightly, brow twitching in response.

You fold your hands in your lap, leaning back, staring at him. “Tell me something, then. Something real and that no one else knows.”

He stays quiet, so you continue.

“Because the very opposite of that is why I dislike—no, scratch that—despise you: because you just look like an empty suit to me. Something manufactured by the media. A man unable to think for himself without a teleprompter in front of him instructing his every move.”

He grinds his teeth, his face twitching, his gloved hands now squeezed tightly into fists.

And you immediately fill with regret. Being exhausted typically left you one of three ways—all of which you’d experienced in one evening alone. Giggly and easily amused, emotional, or irritable.

The first two he’d tolerated. This one…you worry it ends with your landlord discovering your corpse the next time rent is due.

“You think they control me?” He asks with a sneer.

“I have yet to find a reason to think otherwise.”

“You think,” he says, leaning in toward you, his boot pressing against your foot beneath the table. “I’m just some puppet manufactured by Big Media? Hm?”

He stands abruptly, chair scraping loudly against the floor and you stand as well, your own toppling over in your panic as he backs you into a corner.

He must like doing this—intimidating. Invoking fear.

He chuckles, cupping your face in his hands. “I’ve done things… Things that would horrify you. Things that even Vought doesn’t know about.”

He shrugs. “They’re just the ones who sign my paychecks. See, they work for me. The whole fuckin’ world does. Including you, honey. I’m the real hero. My little tagline where I say otherwise? It’s bullshit. But the people eat it up. They swallow the garbage I feed them with a grateful smile. You think you’re so…different, though, don’t you?”

You brows furrow and you feel completely terrified, but quickly decide upon trying a new approach.

Aggression is getting you nowhere—it’s only begetting more on his part. And you worry how far you can push him before it ends in catastrophe.

And it’s then that you realize that he does have a weakness after all: he’s desperate for approval. Why the hell else would he be here yet again, demanding to know why he doesn’t yet have yours? Is he just that much of a narcissist, or is it something deeper?

You slowly reach up then, cupping his cheek, your other trembling hand coming to rest gently upon his chest.

Touching him in such a familiar fashion may end horribly for you, but something tells you it's well worth a try.

“What happened to you?” You ask in a whisper.

His features shift—softening—the look in his eyes that of…confusion. He even goes so far as to lean in slightly to your warm, comforting touch.

Your eyes flit between his, taken aback by his embracing your kind, physical gesture. “You haven’t always been like this, have you?”

You take a tiny step closer, bridging the gap between your bodies, since you think this attempt might just finally be getting you somewhere.

“You want me to like you? Trust you? Actually enjoy your company, and, much more, want it? Tell me something no one else knows, then. Something that will make me see past all of it.”

Your eyes trail along his suit, before meeting his own again. “Past this. I have no interest in getting to know Homelander. Because that’s not who you really are, even if you’ve forgotten it. There’s still a man in this costume. A human being.”

You watch with shock as tears gather in his eyes that continue to stare into your own, his lips pressed into a firm line as he remains silent.

You shoosh him softly. “It’s okay. It’s just the two of us. You may not want to believe it, but you can trust me. I haven’t even told anyone about you coming here last night, because I’m not the type to gossip. I have no interest in it.”

That’s not the reason whatsoever, but he can think whatever the hell he likes, so long as it gets him to calm down and give you a moment of vulnerability.

You brush a tear away as it slips down his cheek.

“You want to know what people have told me time and again since I was little? That they feel like they can trust me—even complete strangers. They’ll share things with me that they won’t even tell their closest friends and family. For the longest time I couldn’t understand why—what it was about me—and then I figured it out.”

You gently run your fingertips along his cheek. “I know what it feels like when someone betrays your trust repeatedly. When that one person in all the world you’re supposed to be able to rely and lean upon just…uses the things you tell them against you just to hurt you. Because they’re incapable of empathy. And I refuse to do that to others. Because I won’t be like her. I can’t. I just…I guess people can sense that about me. I hope so, at least. It’s the only explanation I have.”

You pause. “What I’m trying to get at is that you can, too: trust me. You’re safe here.”

He blinks, another tear slipping down his cheek, which you softly wipe away.

“John,” he whispers, finally speaking. “My name is John.”

You smile.

“John,” you repeat, and his chin wobbles at the sound of his name leaving your lips.

“Thank you for telling me. That’s all I wanted: to know something about you. Something that comes from you.”

His face shifts then, his vulnerability quickly vanishing. “If you tell anyone—”

You slip your fingers into his hair. “I won’t. I promise. You have nothing to worry about. It’s okay. Everything is okay.”

His eyes flit between yours, debating, considering.

And then he nods and you release a breath of relief.

He leans down then, pressing his lips to yours—tenderly. A wholly different sensation to how he’d been with you last night.

It’d worked.

You pull back slightly.

“Y/N,” you whisper against his lips.

His own twitches. “I already knew that.”

He’s quiet for a moment. “Who was it? You said ‘her’.”

You swallow, chewing the inside of your cheek. “Can we talk about it tomorrow night?”

He likes that you want him back again. That you’re admitting it. That you’re planning on it.

He smirks. “Sounds like we’re finally on the same page, sweetheart.”

[crossdreamers]

A guide to chromosomal variations

Over at Instagram Melly the Science Geek has published a mind blowing video about how chromosome decide (or do not the decide) the sex of a person.

The world is a a very complicated place, indeed.

And at this point we have not even begun to talk about gender identity.

The Science Vet on XX, XY and all the other variations

Melly's video reminds us of the very popular twitter thread made by the Science Vet back in 2018.

We take the liberty of republishing that thread here:

So. Hi new people! Apparently, we're gonna talk about sex. Like physical sex! Because... there's some confusion.

First, sex defined: We're talking physical sex here, not gender. Body parts, hormones, and genetics (and more).

BLUF: BIOLOGICAL sex is a spectrum

Ok, everyone's super familiar with the XX/XY dichotomy, right? Yeah, what we all learned in like... 4th grade? And that's great, it gives you a starting point. But it's... well it's only the very starting point.

The IDEA is, XX is girl, XY is boy, right?

Welllll... that's not totally right. There are XY people, who have ovaries! And give birth! AH! And XX people who have male bodies and functional sperm! Double AH!

These are usually written off as "abnormalities" and indeed, some cases have medical issues. But many don't (like the XY woman giving birth). And this is really only the very very tip of the iceberg of "wait, that doesn't fit into our M or F box unless we make it bigger"

There's a WHOLE HOST of things that can cause all sorts of "weird" things to happen, ranging from genetic (XXY, XYY, Y, X, XX with translocation, XY with deletion) to hormonal (Androgen Insensitivity, Estradiol failure), and disruptors like dioxins

So, you're a scientist, and you want to research stuff, right? Which means you have to categorize stuff. Without categories, data is hard! So you take allll these people, including the "weird" ones and you plot them on a graph. Logical!

You use all the differences there are, different genetics, different responses to hormones, different effectiveness in signalling pathways, different sizes in Aanteroventral periventricular nucleus (AVPV) (yeah that's a thing) and give everything numbers, add them up.

You get what's called a bimodal distribution (mostly, we'll get to that later) Which looks like this. Those two big peaks are what we call "male" and "female" (even conveniently colored pink for boys and blue for girls - we are using victorian gender colors right?)

/8

Now, when you're trying to look at data, we often group stuff. When we do that with a plot like this, it's called a "histogram." Basically we're breaking down a curved line into discrete "bins." Like this (image stolen from the web).

/9

Traditionally, we've used REALLY BIG bins for this when talking about sex. Basically you either group everything vaguely near a peak into the peak, or you just pretend there's nothing else but the biggest peaks. This makes it super easy, because 2 is simple to do data with.

However, as we've gotten to know more and more about signaling and brains and hormones and started to pay more attention to the outliers where standard stuff just didn't seem to work, we discovered that this isn't a great model to use.

Now I'm not talking feelings here. I'm talking about data. As you start to look at anything interesting, like say the effects of 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-P-dioxin on animals, you start to realize that a 2 bin model doesn't predict your results well.

At first you say, "Well it was just weird." So you redo it, and it still doesn't work. So you look at your model and you say, "Well ok, what if the model's wrong?"

But the model sort of... almost predicts a lot of things, and it worked for years, so...

Some enterprising soul says, "Hey, remember that histogram where we said we'll just model using the peaks?" And everyone goes, "Uh, yeah?" And they say, "What if we... USED that data?" And everyone groans, because complicated data is hard.

But someone sits down and does the work, and lo, wow the model starts to work again. Where TCDD was "randomly" turning some boys into girls but then some girls into boys, now you can see there's a subgroup of what you'd called "female" that responds like the "male"

What's important here is that you haven't MISLABELED males as females. These are functional "females" who can do all the usual "female" things like gestate babies. But they respond to this one endocrine disruptor in a "male" way.

So you add another two categories, call them "Male2" and "Female2" and go on, happy that your model works! You've got 4 sexes now, but you don't really have to tell anyone that, right?

Exceeeept then you remember you've got those XY people that gestate babies. So you add "Intersex1" And then the XX people with penes... and ovaries? Ok, "Intersex2" because all these groups respond differently with signalling and brains when you get into the weeds

And the more you look, the more we LEARN, the more we're able to separate out those fine differences. Depending on what we're doing, we may not care. If a doc is giving you aspirin, it probably isn't a big deal.

But if they're using a steroid on you? Or treating dioxin poisoning? THAT SHIT COULD BE IMPORTANT. It's like saying, "the light's off so the power must not be flowing." It really matters if the light's off because the bulb blew.

If we go back to that histogram plot, we can keep breaking down your biological sex into smaller and smaller differences in brain areas, hormone levels, signalling differences, genetic variances. There's nothing stopping us from binning EVERY INDIVIDUAL into their own bin.

Technically, this wouldn't be "infinite sexes" but 7.4 billion sexes is functionally close for our brains. Now, our medicine isn't advanced enough for THAT level of detail to make any difference. BUT IT MIGHT BE in the future. Individualized medicine!

The thing to remember is that this isn't "new." We're not 'inventing sexes' here. Sex has ALWAYS been this curve. We were just using REALLY BIG bins. And now we're realizing that that's not representative of biology, it's inhibiting understanding of medicine and biology

In case anyone's curious, this isn't ideology. This is because I had to figure out why my data didn't match the prediction. Those rats I mentioned? Yeah, my lab. And lab rats are a really pure genetic monoculture, and they STILL don't fit the two peak model well.

So, since it's come up, an addendum!

Yes, we looked at other things we could do to make our data fit the existing model, that's how science works! The ONLY way the data fit was if we let "sex" be more than just those two narrow peaks.

Models purpose in science is to predict. If they don't predict correctly, first we check if we've measured the data correctly, and repeat the experiment a couple more times. If it still doesn't fit, we have to look at the model.

Intersex! Because I didn't specifically mention this.

"Intersex" is a grouping bin used for a lot of the "middle ground" of the spectrum between the "male" and "female" peaks. Any situation where easily assigning the person to one of those two peaks is challenging.

Intersex! Because I didn't specifically mention this above.

"Intersex" is a term used to collectively speak of the "middle ground" of biology where people can't easily be binned into those two big "male" and "female" peaks. It can include a large range of biology

It is worth noting that I never talk about transgender in this thread. Intersex is not the same as transgender. You can be one without the other, or be both.

For people who think this is just "outliers"

Current estimates are that the intersex population is at least 2%. We know that's low because there are a lot of "invisibly intersex" people. That means AT LEAST 150 million people in the world.

I apologize for the failure to use the word "intersex" higher up in the discussion. Many people in the middle ground (including the XY person who can carry a child, for example) use this term. I cannot go back and edit the thread, and apologize for my overly clinical description. 

Part of the purpose of the thread, which may have failed, was to point out that "intersex" is not a condition, it is not a disease. It's natural with a bimodal distribution. Science not only supports this, it suggests that ignoring intersex people makes your conclusions wrong 

References at the end of this page.

[weaselle]

I once almost stabbed a guy. Being in a position where you are seriously actually for real considering stabbing someone is a wild moment, internally and externally.

So this was way back, baaack in the day, when i went to a lot of parties and also did a bunch of drugs. And my partner at the time and i were scoring some powder drugs from a guy we'd never met before on an acquaintance's sort of recommendation.

and he took so long that our other friend, who also did drugs with us, saw us waiting in the parking lot and stopped to say hi, chatted for a couple minutes, and left.

When the guy finally showed back up, we got a bunch of powder in a taped up zip lock, odd, but our acquaintance had said the product could be trusted, so i handed over a bunch of money and we parted ways

But lo and behold, we get back to the pad, bust out our score, and snort a big ol' victory line ... of chalk dust. It was chalk. Like what you write on a blackboard with. It was ground up to the right consistency, and I had paid a fair bit of money for it, but it was just a big ol bag of chalk dust. Also a sinus full of chalk dust.

Well. Y'know. I took it personal.

The guy was not answering any texts or calls of course (my first text was very reasonable, just sort of "haha, there seems to have been a mistake, but it's an easy fix, you just need to either give me what i paid for or give me my money back) But i was already chasing down other trails

I started backtracking through the acquaintance until i found out where this dealer was. I decide to show up at his door.

As soon as i got his location, i texted him for a third time and it had gotten firmer in tone "hey you either tell when and where to meet you so you can give me what i paid for or my money back, or i'm going to show up where you are and we're going to talk about it in person" Followed 20 minutes later with "I'm parked outside your house on my way to your front door unless you text me back right now."

Okay. i am aware of my situation here. I am about to stare this coked up methed out young twenties dude in his buggy eyeballs at his own front door and accuse him of cheating me on a drug deal. Tee hee hee i'm in danger.

So I came prepared. I had taken a pair of scissors and cut my front right pocket out so i could look like i had my hand casually in my pocket but i could really be holding the handle on an 8 inch knife blade. Which i was.

a line cook with my own knife set, i had chosen this knife, my kitchen utility knife, carefully. I can't find the exact one i had, but this one is very similar

It was long enough to give me significant reach advantage even if he had like a switchblade or pocket knife or something. The size was also selected for intimidation factor. This did also mean that it was heavy enough to slash with, and a good shape for stabbing, with just enough of a heel to act as a solid crossbar and prevent my fingers sliding up over the blade if the tip caught bone on a thrust.

Anyway, i text him as i'm getting out of the car and by the time i'm through his front gate he's running out the front door at me

we both stop in the middle of his front yard, half way between the gate and the front door.

And he's like, quiet-yelling at me, and all up in my face, and threatening me "you're lucky i don't kill you right now"

While i'm thinking my hip pocket is set low and diagonal, if i draw my hand out the right way, my arm will already be in a perfect position to thrust forward with the knife. If he pulls a weapon i have to be ready to get the first strike in

and then I'm like, do i stab him if he hits me? because if i'm fighting without the knife i'm fighting one handed, oh this is not good, how did i think this was going to go!? i have not been as smart as i though i was being.

but i started to realize, he was just blustering and bluffing and sort of panicked. He was definitely not in control of the situation. Which left it to me. And i was weighing whether or not honor meant refusing to be stolen from ripped off or cheated -- and being ready to fight for that. Or if maaaybe real honor was not being the kind of person who stabs another person to death over a stupid drug deal gone wrong.

Oh yeah. To death. If i stabbed him there was going to be a real chance of him dying. I uh. I only know deadly places to hit people with a knife. That's a strange thing you don't think of until you're in that moment, but when you're like, scared of someone, and asking yourself where to strike them with the knife, your list is short and deadly like

across the throat

up through the soft spot under the jaw and into the head

through the diaphragm angled left and up to also get the heart or lung careful don't hang the tip up on the sternum

inside thigh slash for femoral artery

Low front stab for life threatening wound to the intestines

around back same height for possible death through the kidneys careful don't hang the tip up against the spine

Manic slashing back and forth to keep opponent at bay and possibly open up enough wide shallow cuts to bleed them out.

Wherever you pick up your knifing information, there tends not to be a big focus on where to knife someone if you just want to like, scare them away. Or much training on how to stab someone juuuust enough to make them decide to not shoot you. Probably all the knifing information in your head is like "what can i do quickly that will make them dead"

So if I used the knife, it was going to be a real good chance of death, his, unless i fuck it up and he's got a gun, then it's a good chance of it being my death.

And i was like. How much money are we talking. How much money do i decide a human life is worth in this moment. While he threatens me in this weird way, clearly afraid of what his neighbors might hear.

$200? In that moment i thought, man, i would pay two hundred bucks to not have to stab this guy to death right now. And i can! I can walk away from my two hundred bucks and just... not stab this guy. That's a trade i can make right now.

So i said "alright alright, fine, you're right" to myself out loud in the middle of whatever he was ranting about and turned around and left.

I did eventually find out more. Like a month later through mutual acquaintances . Apparently the dude was on his way back to our car with our drugs when he saw our friend stop his car in the parking lot, get out and talk to us for a minute, and leave. And because our friend liked to dress in slacks and a vest and tie (with aviator sunglasses that day) this high on powder drugs dealer got spooked and thought maybe we were undercover and our friend was a cop checking in with us on trying to bust his ass.

So he, paranoid and panicked, goes back to his house and finds something less illegal to substitute, and comes back out and sells us chalk instead. He must have figured the jail time for selling fake drugs had to be less than for real drugs. idk why he didn't just NOT sell us anything, but. That's what happened. And my partner and her friends all were cool with him after they found that out.

But i never was, because he never gave me my money back.

Over hanging out with my so called friends a couple times talkin' bout "oh i already spent it and i'm pretty broke, sorry you know how it is."

And in my head i was like "i could have stabbed you. And i didn't"

But i never did tell him because there wasn't a point, it wouldn't magically make him have $200 (which he didn't have despite selling drugs because when you snort a lot of drugs you tend to be bad with money, and this dude hadn't started off good at it to begin with).

The real lesson was asking myself why was i involved in bad drug deals, and why would my friends be friendly with an asshole who cheated me out of half a paycheck, and relatedly, if my choices had perhaps gotten me deep into a bad lifestyle that i didn't much want to be in, full of people i couldn't trust.

Anyway, that's how i made the only single good decision made by anyone in that whole story, and didn't stab a guy to death over 200 dollars

[ducktracy]

the first clip for "the day the earth blew up" was posted on twitter. can you spare us your thoughts?

@aadrawings: So uh how about that new Looney movie clip?

I MOST CERTAINLY CAN SPARE MY THOUGHTS! TWIST MY ARM! first, i'll link it here in case anyone hasn't seen it:

FIRST (and most obvious) THING'S FIRST: I'M SOOOOOOOOO EXCITED UUUUUUUUUUUUUGHHH!!! the film JUST started premiering in Annecy as we speak and my heart is literally pounding MY FINGERS LITERALLY SHAKING. so i apologize if this turns into a discombobulated mess i'm so so so excited and trying to keep an eagle eye out for any and all details. BUT ANYHOO

IT LOOKS GREAT!!! this is a fully rendered clip of the roughs that were uploaded back in September of 2022, so i'm already pretty familiar with this since i gushed over it to hell and back then, too. i had a few teeny tiny neurotic nitpicks that i would not take too seriously--honestly me nitpicking anything modern LT is a good sign because it means i'm ENGAGED and actively thinking and engaging with the material. there are a lot of modern LT adaptations i cannot say the same for. so it's all out of a labor of love and i also realize that most of these nitpicks are very.. you guys know my level of fanaticism. don't take it too seriously. my standards for this series AND THESE TWO KNUCKLEHEADS IN PARTICULAR who are my favorite characters of all time are so high that even the classics don't meet those expectations half the time. we all know i'm insane. BUT ENOUGH BLUFFING

my biggest critique is that it's going to take me quite a bit to get used to Eric Bauza's Porky. i LOVE Bauza, he is such a sweet guy (he sang me happy birthday as Daffy Duck and i almost exploded) and so talented and it's been really great seeing him rise up the ranks. i used to only know him as "the guy who voiced Stimpy in APC" and so i'm VERY glad to see he's gone on to greener pastures LOL.

but, with that said, the first time i saw these roughs i actually thought Porky's lines were scratch audio. there isn't enough stuttering--it's important for me to note that people give Porky's stutter WAY too much prevalence, in terms of how he sounds and just characterization as a whole. a stutter is not a personality. BUT, in the clips above, he doesn't really sound like Porky unless he's stuttering. it moreso sounds like Daffy talking to himself. Mel Blanc had Porky speak (and even sing!) in full sentences all the time, but it's never noticeable unless pointed out because Porky still sounded like Porky and Blanc knew how to make his personality come out in his voice beyond the vocal fluff of a stutter.

part of it is because i'm so used to Bob Bergen. and, even THEN, if i watch too much LTC or Duck Dodgers in one sitting, i need to "recalibrate" with the originals and hear Blanc. Bergen's Porky is much different than Mel's, more formal, the stutter more concrete in its formula (fun fact: Blanc's Porky has a southern twang in his voice if you listen for it depending on who's voice directing and i love it so much. biggest giveaway is how his "i"'s will often sound like an "ah" instead, not thinking of the stutter. I WARNED YOU we are getting into super pedantic territory here), but, much like how Joe Alaskey's Daffy is a much different interpretation than Blanc's Daffy, he was able to really make it his own. i think Bauza's Porky is still in a little bit of a limbo in finding its identity with that regard. but, also, keep in mind we've only heard him in this clip and Space Jam 2 and i have no plans of revisiting SJ2 to make a point here. sorry

THAT'S MY BIGGEST CRITIQUE i'd say! others are small, such as the design of the landlady is fun but reads like something out of the 2020 Animaniacs than anything based in the LT design philosophy, and you could argue that the fluidity is more Richard Williams-esque in its visual fluffiness and perhaps even excessiveness than, again, anything relating to LT. but i take less stock in that last one because the animation is STILL GORGEOOOOOOOOOOOOUS WHAT THE HECK!!!! so many fluid arcs and i really love that scene of Daffy talking to the landlady. the subtle twitching on Porky's cheek as a secondary action made me laugh.

other than that... you guys know that I. LOVE. LTC. i have been tracking it before it released, and there are posts on this blog (i think i saw one even dating back to its initial announcement in 2018, though it may have been a 2019 post of the 2018 upload. dunno.) dating back before i was even into LT at ALL. i've been keeping an eagle eye on every single development. the day they premiered i watched the entire batch 3 times in a row. i streamed it for you guys too! some people reading this may have been in that room.

ALL THIS TO SAY, i LOVE LTC SO MUCH and it's been the most excited i've been for anything in a very long time. i also have my fair share of nitpicks, but, as i've expressed above, they all come out of a place of love. some of the Porky and Daffy shorts in the LTCs i would have handled differently if i had my hands on them. Porky and Daffy are two characters who are deeply special to me, everyone knows me as The Porky And Daffy person including my coworkers and bosses, my friends who worked on the show and film have told me many times they're eager for my thoughts. the pig and duck are literally a part of my identity. so my critiques come more out of a place of fanaticism and love for the characters and wanting to do them justice and wanting people to see what i see in them, rather than an actual dig at the product

THAT ALL BEING SAID. there are some pitfalls and little traps the P+D (and a lot of LTC in general) shorts run into that i'm expecting to be in the movie as well. there's a little bit here with the screaming and some lines of dialogue that i probably would have shaved off (like "our roof?"). months ago i started typing up mini reviews of each LTC short that i may compile here someday--my Max subscription was about to run out and i wanted to watch all the LTCs one last time while i could. and then i renewed because i couldn't watch quickly enough and now need to return LOL--and it allowed me to lay out some of the nitpicks i have with the series more clearly, which i am fully expecting to also be in the movie. and that's okay!

ALLLL OF THIS RAMBLING IS TO SAY: I AM SO EXCITED. i've been tracking every single detail of this movie and this SERIES like a hawk since it was announced. i was even asked to work on the film back in 2021, but turned it down because i wasn't secure enough in my abilities and didn't know what job security would look like after i finished on the film. i'm glad i stuck with the decision as i did, because i figured i can draw those two any time i want, and the fact that i got asked meant that there are eyes on my work and i may get asked with other LT related offers (which turned out to be true!). needless to say, turning down the offer was genuinely one of the most excruciating things i've ever done and it seriously sent me into a pretty big funk for the next few days and weeks.

so, with all that said, it is ESPECIALLY important for me to see how this movie is and celebrate it and keep my fanatical obsessive eagle eye out. i'm so glad i get to live in a world where this is a movie that is happening and coming out. i've already got plans to see it with a best friend who i've shoved the agenda of the pig and duck down her throat many times. i am so excited to cheer on all my friends and colleagues who worked on this film. it's the most excited i think i have ever been for anything actively coming out in my life.

[salaimoi]

first story from my new, ongoing series: talk to me nice. feel free to leave any constructive criticism! (I can handle it, unlike Gojo)

"Look, I didn't ask for your stupid advice, so don't pretend like you know everything."

Gojo hissed at you, nearly popping a vein from how smug you were being right now.

The only thing you suggested was that he stop dressing like somebody’s grandpa all the time – he had a physique carved by the gods themselves, why not put it to use? Such a waste, honestly.

"Mm~ whatever. So sassy," you replied, followed by an eye roll violent enough to nearly cause your eyes to fall clean off your skull. “Ever heard of constructive criticism?”

"Yeah, yeah. You know, instead of just giving me advice all the time, why don't you compliment me for once? You know, say something nice about me — it's not that hard. "

"Me? Compliment you? Gojo please. Unless you wire me every single yen in your bank account, you won't hear a single praise come out of this mouth.”

Even though he himself felt very frustrated right now, he couldn't stop himself from enjoying the banter – so much so that he would begin to grin as he tried to control himself from bursting out laughing. You were playing a dangerous game here because he could actually make this deal happen, and you were perfectly aware of that — but despite that, you were still trying to push his buttons and he’d make you eat your words because of it.

"You know what, I think I will actually do just that. So let me ask you, what happens when I send over every yen in my bank account, will you genuinely compliment yours truly?" he smirks in that usual arrogant manner, growing more and more interested by the second. "I better get my money’s worth, you know."

Still thinking he was bluffing, you replied, "Obviously. But you only get one compliment."

"Humm~ fine, and it better be the most heart shattering compliment in the history of compliments — soul crushing even. Now, I'll go ahead and transfer you the money," he paused for a moment before remembering something rather important. 

"I need your bank account number to wire the money."

"W-wait … you're not serious are you?”

"Why would I lie? I’m serious about this and you'll also be serious about your part, got it? So I need that bank account number now."

"Are you insane!? I was only kidding, genius!"

"Maybe I am, but I'm doing this because I really want your compliment. So don't try to discourage me because for every minute we spend arguing here, I'm losing my patience.”

And it wasn’t like he needed your flattery; he just wanted to hear you sing his praises as a contrast to your usual behavior. You were always so cold and apathetic around him, but he knew that wasn’t the real you — and he took it upon himself to reveal the side you buried under that stoic facade. 

“So just tell me your bank account number and I'm going to transfer the money to your account right now — the full 59 billion."

Your body froze in utter shock as you realized he was dead serious. Straightening yourself on the mattress, your mouth hung wide open — staring at him in disbelief. The realization of it all was enough to cause one of your eyes to twitch in perplexity.

"Gojo you must've lost your mind if you think I'm gonna accept that,” you scoffed at how insufferable he really was, but secretly loving every second of it. "Who in their right mind would spend ¥59 billion on one compliment?"

"Only people who can afford it, of course,” he smirks cynically, tossing his phone up into the air just for it to land right back onto his palm. “If you ask me, ¥59 billion is too small a price for a compliment directly out of that pretty mouth of yours.” 

“You’re insufferable. For fucks sake, you should have a mental disorder named after you.”

“But you can't actually deny that I'm pretty charming, can you? You might not show a hint of  affection, but I think it's pretty obvious that you like my insufferable attitude. Or are you gonna deny that you don't?"

He unlocked his phone, opening the banking app and going into the transfer section.

You didn’t hesitate to smack the phone out of his hand, causing it to fall down on the bed. 

"Satoru, are you even listening to me!!??"

"Heh~ you're actually quite impressive when you finally get serious. You were really quick there with that tiny hand of yours.”

“This tiny hand of mine will be enclosing around your neck until you’re out of oxygen if you continue to act like an unsupervised child with access to money.”

His expression was thoughtful for a few seconds before he pointed at you, flashing his pearly whites.

"You know, you're actually pretty attractive when you get all aggressive like that. It really looks cute on you. I don't know if I can actually handle someone who's this much of a pain in the ass but still has a cute side to her."

He chortles, leaning back on the headboard before continuing, "See? That’s how you compliment someone, wasn’t that hard now was it? Now you do it.”

Your eyes narrow, two fingers rubbing at your temples as you contemplate the situation.

"You know what. Fine. If you want to recklessly spend your money like this, I'll give you what you want. No comment until I see that money in my bank account, though."

This reply made him burst out laughing, his grin becoming a bit bigger and he began to speak with a playful tone.

"Alright, if you say so. But just remember, it'll be too late to back out after I've already sent the money…”

[One new notification: direct deposit from Gojo Satoru received. New balance: ¥59,000,000,000.024.]

"..."

“Don’t you have anything to say?”

"...you have nice eyes?"

"..."

"..."

“I want a refund right this instant, y/n.”

[forsinnersandsaintsalike]

Billy’s spoiled little sister

Protective Older Brother Energy

Billy absolutely dotes on you, though he'd never admit it out loud. He plays the "tough guy," but he's the first to step in if anyone messes with you.

You never have to ask twice for something. Whether it's a ride, a snack, or even skipping school to avoid a bad day, Billy makes it happen.

He's always slipping you extra cash "just in case," even though you both know it's for things you don't need.

"You're My Favorite, But Don't Push It"

You get away with things no one else can. Stu's even joked that you've got Billy "wrapped around your finger," which earns him a death glare every time.

"Don't tell Dad" becomes Billy's go-to line after he covers for you when you break curfew or skip school.

Billy constantly complains about how much trouble you are, but the moment you look upset, he's back to spoiling you rotten.

Billy takes you shopping whenever you want. Clothes, CDs, makeup-whatever you need, he's got you covered.

"This is the last time I'm buying you something this ridiculous," he says while handing over money for a new pair of boots. Spoiler: it's never the last time.

If anyone so much as looks at you the wrong way, Billy's ready to throw hands-or worse.

"Who made you cry? Tell me their name," is something you hear more often than not. You've learned not to test him because he will follow through.

Stu gets a kick out of Billy's overprotective streak and loves to egg him on. "Man, you act like she's a princess or something."

"She is," Billy snaps back.

He might not be openly affectionate, but he shows his care in little ways. He'll leave your favorite snacks in the kitchen, fix your car when it breaks down, or let you hog the remote during movie nights.

If he notices you're having a bad day, he'll casually suggest grabbing your favorite takeout or letting you pick the next horror movie (even if Stu whines about it).

"You're so annoying," he grumbles after you steal his hoodie for the millionth time, but he never asks for it back.

Stu loves to tease you but also enables your spoiled behavior. "Princess gets whatever she wants, huh?" he jokes while handing you the last slice of pizza.

If Billy's being too overbearing, Stu's your go-to for lightening the mood. "Relax, dude. She's fine. Let her have a life."

Billy has a sixth sense for when someone's flirting with you, and it sets him off instantly.

If it's a random guy at school, Billy steps in, calm but menacing. "Hey, she's not interested. Move along before this gets ugly."

The guy usually backs off, sensing that Billy isn't bluffing, but if they don't, Stu is there to play bad cop to Billy's even-worse cop.

"Ooooh, big mistake, pal," Stu says, slinging an arm around the guy. "You don't mess with Billy's little sis." Cue unsettling laughter.

Billy doesn't like to make a scene unless absolutely necessary, but once the guy's gone, he gives you a stern look. "You need to be more careful."

"Careful of what?" you argue. "I wasn't even doing anything!"

"Careful of attracting idiots," he mutters, dragging you away.

If it's someone Billy knows personally, the reaction is even worse. He feels betrayed and furious.

"Seriously? Out of all the people in the world, you think it's a good idea to hit on my sister?"

The guy will either stammer out an apology or get defensive, but either way, Billy makes it clear: "Don't let me catch you looking at her again."

Stu, meanwhile, finds it hilarious.

"Dude, chill. It's kind of a compliment, right? She's hot."

"Don't ever say that again," Billy snaps.

You've learned that Billy has a tough exterior, but he can't say no to you.

"Billy, I need a huge favor," you start, knowing you're already halfway to getting what you want.

"What now?" he asks, pretending to be annoyed.

"Can you drive me to the city?There's this concert I really, really want to go to, but no one else can take me."

He sighs like you're asking him to move mountains, but after a long pause, he tosses you the car keys.
"Fine. But you're buying me coffee on the way."

Stu loves to tag along during these moments, adding to the chaos. "Road trip! I call shotgun!"

"You're not even invited," Billy groans.

"Please?" you ask, giving Billy your best puppy-dog eyes. Stu joins in, mimicking your expression.

Billy can’t help but roll his eyes and give into you both “Fine. Both of you shut up” You and Stu giggle while you pile into the car.

[ckret2]

I love your writing so much oh my gosh! :D It does make me sad that there will be no karaoke night flashbacks do to the fact this was written pre TBOB however. :( Also If I may ask, could Bill have called Kyptos back or...? Would he have needed to re-do the entire summoning and run out of time before Ford would come in? If so, could he not just do the summoning again at night when everyone is asleep? I am sure Kyptos would eventually pic up phone if he had been bothered enough. Also,

vivian-za-determined-luna-moth asked: -Could Bill break any windows? Perhaps Bill was simply bluffing when he asked if Stan wanted a broken window? I understand not breaking that one considering the long fall and fragile nature of human leg bones however, there should be a handful of windows on the second floor. If he made the statement about the window, then he probably knew how easily they shatter. Did he forget how to break one? Apologies If I sound rude, I simply love your work and am really invested. Toodaloo!

Hey, that doesn't rule out the possibility there could be a future flashback to karaoke night. I don't currently have plans to but it wouldn't be surprising for it to come up eventually.

Yes, Bill would have had to do the whole ritual again to call Kyrptos back; and nah, if Bill had called back, Kryptos would have taken one look at the weird human lady and gone "oh YOU again" and hung up, and probably just stopped answering if he kept getting calls. I'm sure there's some way to turn on a psychic "do not disturb" setting or block a particular caller or something. Bill was right not to try calling Kryptos again without a way to ensure he'd listen.

(This is a subtle hint that Bill is going to find a way to ensure he listens.)

Bill is physically and mentally capable of breaking a glass pane. Under the terms of the no doors no windows curse on him, he's magically prevented from realizing breaking the glass could help him get out the window. If he threatens to break a window, it's like threatening to break a mirror, a chair, or a TV: he doesn't think it would help him escape, it's just a threat of property destruction he thinks the Pines would want to avoid. Because of that, he probably wouldn't actually do it unless he thinks the potential benefit outweighs the potential punishment.

If he did break a window, he'd be surprised and confused to see that the window's now "open" and he can get through it. It would be like if he kicked a football and a fruitcake materialized in his hands. Absolutely no logical connection between the action and the result.

He would be incapable of deliberately repeating the "if I break the glass, somehow it opens the window" feat; the curse would prevent him from making any "X opens the window/door" connections. If he broke another window, he'd be surprised again to discover that opens the window. But as long as he consciously recalls that breaking the glass opens the window, he'd be unable to break the glass again even if opening the window wasn't his actual goal. He'd have to momentarily forget about that side effect.

As long as he's cursed, he's not getting through a closed door/window unless he can completely psychologically divorce his current action from any resemblance to the idea of opening a door/window.

But hey, that's not impossible. You read chapter 6. You know Bill can find ways through unopenable doors.

(And if you haven't reached the chapter where he figures it out—you will soon.)

[an-apowell]

Radahn and Mohg arrive at the border of Caeild. The red haze is the first thing they both notice. Radahn, now the one squinting: We should head to Redmane castle to see if anyone is left.

Mohg: I don't know if I'm overwhelmed or impressed.

As they travel, Mohg lets out an occasional: Ew.

The landscape, ew. The water, ew. Though when he saw one of the birds: Oh, that's where those birds came from.

They tumbled around in a few valleys, running from a few Trex dogs, and they found themselves at Redmane Castle's doorstep.

Mohg with surprise: Oh, a waygate.

Radahn: Don't. It goes directly into the fortress. I'm still not sure how they will react. Don't touch it- Mohg. Stop. Look at me.

Mohg tabbing the way gate in a rhythm: I can't you're on my bad side. Can't hear you either. And when I say can't I mean I'm not-

Radahn hears soldiers approaching before seeing them funneling from the fortress. Radahn nervously: They might think we are enemies- we got to go-

A shout hit them: Radahn! You better not run from me!

Radahn squinted: Jerren? My man! How'd you spot me! Radahn moved to the side of the waygate, blocking Mohg as he saw other soldiers had followed. Radahn exclaimed: AH! Don't come any closer! Just - wait -

Jerren had closed the distance, and threw a bear hug nearly picking him up: I could recognize that mane of hair from any mile. How did this happen? You're alive?! Scarlet rot-free, it seems. Ohbythegodswhatisthat?

Radahn with his hand up and the other blocking the estimated area where Mohg was crouched: Ah- this is my friend! There better not be a problem. Understood?... Lord Mohg, care to meet my soldiers?

Mohg pulled the hood on his cloak over his head, while it didn't hide all of his horns, it softened the silhouette enough to not be too startling. He eased up to his feet. Mohg raised a hand which slightly spooked some: Hello. I've heard vigorous things about you all. Um... I'm here to help with clearing the ...Scarelot Rot...

The soldiers didn't really hear what Mohg was yapping about, they just stared, eyes sharp. Jerren being the first to speak after an unusual pause, dipping into laughter: Radahn, what have you been drinking and where can I find some?! Clearing the - the Scarelot Rot? Befriending an Omen? Has this world gone mad?!

Radahn: Yes, Jerren it has. We were left to ROT. I am DONE rotting for nothing.

Radahn's tone shifted as he stepped forward: Redmane Castle is still mine regardless. Unless you want to try to take it from me.

Jerren taken aback: What? No! No, General.

As Radahn passed his soldiers, they saluted with a fist to their chest. Mohg followed in step with him. No one looked him in the eye. They were a bit further ahead of the group while Jerren barked a repeat order to the soldiers, Mohg under a hushed voice: You totally bluffed all that.

Radahn with a frown and a nod: Like I always do. Still got it.

[luvyeni]

hii i love your works!!! may i request brothers best friend trope with sunghoon?

CAN'T GET ENOUGH | PARK SUNGHOON

pairings. brothersbestfriend!sunghoon x fem!reader

wc. 1k+

warnings. unprotected sex , kitchen sex , dirty talk , name calling

i hope you like it <3

"i'm home!" you yelled out , closing the front door , sitting your things down , before making your way to the kitchen where you knew your brother would be. "as usual you're in the kitchen , eating everything you see." he scoffed , folding his arms. you noticed the other presence in the room , leaning against the counter.

he had been spending the past few days there and you were thanking whoever above that you wore a really cute outfit today. "hello sunghoon." you smiled sweetly , his eyes raked down your body , his tongue sweeping across his bottom lip. "hello y/n , you look nice today." you hummed , "i know."

"sunghoon bro , don't compliment her, it's gonna go straight to her big head." he reached out to ruffle your hair , but you quickly dodged it. "i'll kill you jake , i just got it done." he slapped his hand away. "you wore that to get your hair done?" you shook your head. "no i also went out on a date today, we went to get food."

sunghoon wanted to scoff so bad , he knew you were bluffing , you went to get food with your friends , he knows this because he helped you pick out this outfit before sneaking out of your bedroom that morning before your brother woke up. "was it fun?" sunghoon spoke up. "your date , did you have fun?" you could see his sly smirk.

"it was great , definitely will go out with him again." you looked him dead in the eyes. "i feel bad for him , he doesn't know that you don't actually look like that." jake snickered , you rolled your eyes. "fuck you." you went to swing at him , he quickly dodged it. "sunghoon keep a look out for the pizza , im gonna go shower , i still smell like the gym." your brother quickly ruffled your hair , running up the steps before you could hit him.

"i hate you!" you yelled , trying to flatten it. "i paid a lot of money for this haircut." you pouted , almost forgetting his presence , until he spoke up once again. "you're a shit liar." he chuckled , you turned on your heels. "he believed it didn't he?" you tilted your head to the side. "i guess." he made a come hither motion with his fingers.

you trotted over to him , he pulled your hips against his , holding your jaw forcing you to look him in his lustfilled eyes. "but i don't enjoy you trying to make me jealous." his voice deepened , his hand resting right above your bum. "we both know you didn't have a date today , do you not remember me helping you pick this outfit out this morning." he worked his way up your skirt. "i think it was right after i fucked you into your mattress."

your panties were definitely soaked by this point , and he knew that just by the way your thighs clenched together. "so needy already , did your date not fuck you?" you whined , he was fucking with you now. "sunghoon." he laughed. "what baby , im just wondering how did your date not fuck you , with this skirt you're wearing , i could just flip it up and fuck you." he flipped your bodies around , so now you were pressed against the counter , his hard cock pressed against your ass.

"i would know , i picked it out because that's all i could think about when i saw it." he whispered in your ear , biting your lobe. "su-sunghoon , please fuck me." you pushed against him. "be still." he held your waist , you could hear the sound of his belt unbuckling , your pussy producing more slick just from the sound of his pants falling to the ground.

he bent you over , slapping your ass. "fuck!" you yelped. "be quiet, unless you want your brother to hear me fuck your brains out." he let his cock spring out , pulling your panties down to your ankles. "youre pussy so wet , i barely did anything princess." he rubbed your folds with his fingers. "you're really such a slut for me aren't ya?" he lined his cock up with your cunt , pushing into your waiting hole , both of you moaning out.

"fuck , so wet." he grunted , slowly thrusting his hips. "slid right in." he grabbed both sides if your waist , pushing his cock in and out. "sh-shit , sunghoon." you moaned , gripping the counter. "so big." he smirked , smacking your ass. "you damn right , only my cock can satisfy you right?" you nodded.

"your pussy was made to take my cock only." he groaned , your pussy was gripping him like vice. "so fucking tight." he grabbed your hair , lifting you up , hitting a new angle. "fuck you're squeezing my dick baby , gonna cum hmm? " you nodded , unable to speak. "such a slut , letting your brothers bestfriend fuck you like a whore in your kitchen , anybody could see you , go a head , cum on my cock so i can cum in your pretty pussy like this morning."

he let you go , holding on to the counter as your body began to convulse , cumming hard around him. "o-oh fuck , fuck im gonna cum." his thrust began to get sloppy , his cum shooting into your womb. "fuuuuck." he threw his head back , sighing as he emptied himself inside you. "that's it take my cum like my good little slut."

he came down from his high , slowly pulling out your abused cunt , his cum leaking out , he quickly scooped it up , pushing it back into you. "keep it nice and warm for me." he kissed your cheek , pulling your panties back up helping you fix your skirt , before tucking himself away.

"awe your hair is so messed up." you pouted , slapping his hand away when he tried to fix it. "fuck you , i spent a lot of money on it." he laughed , kissing your forehead. "i'll pay for you to get it done again." you smiled , kissing him back.

"mph , no more kisses , im gonna end up fucking you again , and i think your brother is done his shower." you giggled , giving him one more kiss. "well we always have when he goes to sleep." you purred. "so insatiable , you still want me to fuck you , haven't i ruined you enough?" he pinched your ass.

"can't get enough of me can you?"

©️LUVYENI

[loudhousewriting]

hello! it's me again 😅 I showed the Luke headcannons you made to my sister,she really liked it and wants SOO bad you to make one of Lynn jr (boy) X Y/N, can you do it? thank you again 😁

Man I sure will

Note: I definitely started spiraling towards the end lol

Lynn would never admit his crush on you, his younger sister's best friend. It was stupid, unthinkable, idiotic. He'd soon rather quit sports than admit to himself that he has a childish crush. Even then though, he couldn't help when his eyes wandered.

If he knew you were in the room, he would unconsciously look for you. When he finally spotted you, he would stare until someone pointed it out, and then he'd quickly look away. He couldn't help a gooey feeling that would rise in his chest when he'd see you with another guy.

But, it didn't make sense, because you weren't together. You didn't owe him anything, but he felt strange. He wanted to talk about it, but he didn't want to talk about you specifically. More like talk about you as a nonorganic object.

Luckily for Lynn, Lars couldn't enjoy his show with Lynn groaning and moaning about something.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Lars wasn't really asking. In fact, he was hoping Lynn would take it upstairs to his room. Though, today was not his lucky day.

"No," Lynn begins, but he looks back at his younger brother. "Well, actually..."

"I can sense you want to talk about it... Unless you-"

"There's this person- You don't know them though!"

Lars rolls his eyes as Lynn continues his rant.

"I don't know. I'm always looking for them, even when they're not there."

"Oh?"

"Whenever they talk to someone, I get this icky feeling in my stomach that I wish I could push deep down inside. But the feeling just gets bigger and bigger."

"I don't know who this is?" Lars already knew the answer, but he was going to pretend that he didn't. At least for Lynn's sake.

"I mean... You might know them, but that doesn't matter..." Lynn groans, leaning on the couch, "I don't know... What is this feeling?"

"Do you mean the jealously or the crush?"

"I do not have a crush on Y/n," Lynn quickly covered his mouth as Lars looked at him wide-eyed.

Lars thought he meant Claire, not Y/n.

"You can't tell anyone I said that." Lynn pointed at Lars, who started laughing. "What's funny?"

"I didn't know you meant Y/n. I thought you meant Claire!"

"Claire? I mean, I like Claire, but I don't like like Claire."

"So, you like like Y/n?"

"No- I mean, maybe? I don't know."

"Does Linka know."

"Oh god no." Lynn quickly shakes his head, "I could never do that. Please you can't tell anyone."

"What's in it for me?"

"You blackmailing rat."

-----

It went on for a couple weeks were if Lars wanted something from Lynn, he would use the 'I know your crush' card. Lars had no malicious intent and was never going to actually tell anyone about Lynn's crush. He was bluffing, but Lynn didn't know that. It was more to push Lynn in 'the right direction'.

It finally happened at one of Lynn's games. They had just won and they were celebrating when it happened. Like usual, all Lynn's teammates were hanging out with their significant others and Lynn was left alone.

"Stupid partners. God, this is so dumb." Lynn leaned onto his hand, before groaning. If he hadn't been so stuck in his world, he would of noticed you behind him.

"Out here all alone?"

He froze and quickly looked back at you, before awkwardly smiling, "Y/n."

"Hey Lynn," You go over to him and sit down. "What are you doing out here all alone?"

"Oh, I just needed some fresh air."

You chuckle, "Don't we all."

Lynn tensed up, looking anywhere but you and you picked up on that.

"Are you okay? Did I do something wrong? Do you want me to leave you alone? I know you like your victories-" You stand up and go towards

Lynn's eyes widened and he grabbed your wrist, "No," He let go, after realizing what he had done, "I mean... You can stay, I don't mind."

You go back to sit down, a little taken aback, "I was worried you didn't like me there for a second." You joke.

He straightened his back, "Of course I like you."

"You know, that's good, cause I like you, too."

Lynn froze for a moment, not knowing how to respond to that. His whole body froze, before he looked back at you, "You like me?"

"Of course, I do, Lynn. Who wouldn't like you?"

"What do you mean like?" Lynn clenched his fist and he was sure his face was red.

"Well, do you think I mean?"

"I hoping you mean more than a friend." Lynn didn't know what came over him or why he had suddenly gained such courage, but he leaned in close when he said it.

You blushed and tilted your head, "Maybe I do."

He leaned in closer, your lips inches from each other, "Well, maybe I like you too."

You were so close, but then the door slammed open, causing you both to flinch. It was one of Lynn's teammates.

"Oh, am I interrupting something?"

Lynn glares at him teammate, "What do you think Jack?"

The male scrunched up seeing his captain's glare, "Gosh, I'm sorry, Captain, I didn't even know you had a girlfriend."

Lynn groaned turning back to you, "I'm sorry. I should probably go."

"Yeah, I should probably go too."

"I'll talk to you later?"

"Yeah, I hope so."

Lynn followed his teammate back in before fist bumping himself. He patted his teammate on the back, "Man, you just ruin possibly the best moment of my life, but at least I now hate a girlfriend." He laughs, "Now I'm not the lone guy."

"Did you even ask her out."

Lynn freezes before turning to his teammate, his eyes widened, "Do you think she's still-" He stops, before pushing past his teammate and heading back outside, calling your name.

[l0sercat]

I didn't expect Bertholdt to win lol. Back a couple years when I was in my AoT bullshit I was a die hard fan and simp for him. But many people hated him and would shit on me for liking him so I'm happy to see that people like him. It makes me happy that he is getting the love he deserves :,) So without further ado here is....

Yandere Alphabet w/ Bertholdt Hoover

Affection — how do they show their love and affection?

He'll leave lingering touches on your body and always give you small things. Like flowers he found or something you said you wanted/mentioned.

Blood — how messy are they willing to get when it comes to their darling?

He would get messy but prefers not to. Now he wouldn't massacre a whole town unless necessary, maybe only slit a few throats if need be. He much rather deal with people in other means.

Cruelty — how would they treat their darling once abducted?

He is not too cruel but step outta line and his words will be harsh and if needed you might get slapped. He doesn't want to hurt you but your hurting his feelings by trying to escape and physically hurt him.

Darling — aside from abduction, would they do anything against their darling’s will?

I don't see him forcing himself on you unless somehow someway Reiner got into his head how if he doesn't Darling will never love and respect him. Bertholdt really needs to be pushed over the edge of have some serious convincing by only Reiner that he needs to do it. Bertholdt wants to have you willingly and it makes him psychically ill just to think about forcing himself on you.

Exposed — how vulnerable are they when it comes to their darling?

He can be pretty vulnerable especially when you fall to Stockholm syndrome. He will open up about himself and his past. But in the early stages he is more weary about opening up but still bears some of his heart out for you.

Fight — how would they feel if their darling fought back?

He wouldn't like it and would be upset. On one hand he understands why your acting this way. He kidnapped you away from your loved ones but, on the other you should love him because he protects you and cares for you and will do anything for you. You were meant to be his and he was meant to be yours why can't you except that?

Game — is this a game to them? How much would they enjoy watching their darling try to escape?

He wouldn't like it. It's not fun it's not amusing infact everything but that. It pisses him off and he wishes you wouldn't do this to him. Do you you know how much he panics we he finds you gone from your room. He breaks out into tears and tears up the whole place and spends forever searching for you.

Hell — what would be their darling’s worst experience with them?

He would threaten darling and their family and prove he is not bluffing, comes back with one of the relatives items(or hand). He only did this because darling was acting up and tried to escape.

Ideals — what kind of future do they have in mind for their darling?

One where you can live peacefully in Marley with him. Reiner visits every so often and your a loving stay at home darling. Bertholdt is obviously the money maker and he makes sure his sweet darling has everything they need and want.

Jealousy — do they get jealous? How do they handle it?

He does get jealous because he is a little insecure. When Reiner comes over he can't help but feel jealous of him. He's muscular and confident and great with people. Sure Bertholdt is tall and somewhat strong and can manage conversations here and there. But he doesn't have big muscles and isn't really confident and conversations quickly die as soon as they start. So when Reiner comes over and starts to cling around Darling more than necessary and Bertholdt is getting real jealous. He'll walk over to Reiner and start to push him towards the door and ignore his comments and tells him to leave and he is making Darling uncomfortable. He then quickly grabs Darling in his arms and holds them for a while.

Kisses — how do they act around or with their darling?

He is gentle and kind. He is mostly just a obsessive and possive yandere. So he is still semi normal around you just more clingy and you never go out.

Love letters — how would they go about approaching their darling?

He would probably slowly insert himself in your life. He would appear here and there and try to talk to you. Then he would befriend you and be glued to your side. He would try to date you normally but if that doesn't work when you go on a mission he'll fake your death. But in truth he kidnapped you and now your living in a secret house with him and occasionally Reiner.

Mask — are their true colors drastically different from the way they act around everyone else?

Not really. He still nervous around you, but a little more talkative and bold.

Naughty — how would they punish their darling?

He would chain you up and strip you of your senses. You can't see, hear, and your submerged in water some times. You won't know what's happening until it happens.

Oppression — how many rights would they take away from their darling?

He would take away your freedom. You can't go anywhere until he allows it. If you are allowed outside it's definitely not in town just in the yard and you have a leash on to make sure you don't escape. You have privacy to an extent but abuse it and it's all gone.

Patience — how patient are they with their darling?

He's pretty patient and willing to wait for his darling. Until darling spits in his face and it's looking like they won't submit willing. Then he might snap.

Quite — if their darling dies, leaves, or successfully escapes, would they ever be able to move on?

If darling dies he will be broken and might forget everything and shut himself away. If they leave he's hurt and upset and will stop at nothing to get you back. And when he does he is not the same gentle giant he once was. He will never move on no matter what happens you mean too much to him.

Regret — would they ever feel guilty about abducting their darling?

Yes. He feels bad you can't see your family and friends anymore. But this is what's best for you and you need to understand it. You don't need anybody, but him only he can fulfill your needs.

Stigma — what brought about this side of them (childhood, curiosity, etc)?

He never had anyone special and the person he did love didn't give a damn about him. He always wanted someone to hold and to have.

Tears — how do they feel about seeing their darling scream, cry, and/or isolate themselves?

He hates it. It makes him feel shitty and he wants to comfort you and explain how this is for the best. He hates hearing your broken painful screams. It breaks his heart for you to isolate yourself from him.

Unique — would they do anything different from the classic yandere?

You actually have body autonomy. He doesn't whip you and he's actually very sweet just obsessive and possessive. He won't ever force you to do anything sexually unless you want too. He is aware of how he acts and knows your scared so he let's you know he wont do anything like that to you unless you want it.

Vice — what weakness can their darling exploit in order to escape?

How he can be away for a while and he is sensitive. When he is gone darling can try to escape. Also sensitive in general wether sexually or emotionally. So get him weak and you might have a shot at overpowering him.

Wit’s end — would they ever hurt their darling?

Physically? I don't think so. Emotionally and mentally? Most likely yes. He doesn't want to but if he needs to do be it. And it will be slow and drive Darling crazy to a point they break down.

Xoanon — how much would they revere or worship their darling?

He thinks your a god/goddess sent from above to help him survive in this terrible world. You give him hope and he doesn't want anyone tainting you.

Yearn — how long do they pine after their darling before they snap?

1-2 years. He's a little slower than most yandere's but remember he wants you willing. So if it takes a year or so that's okay for him.

Zenith — would they ever break their darling?

Accidentally yes. He didn't mean to but sometimes things happen. He's a little upset but at least now your compliant.

[threetrenchcoatsinatrenchcoat]

How to win Dirty Laundry.

I'm no expert on lying or deduction, I just take this show pretty serious when I watch it, and I think the patterns to notice in this game offer a cool lens into interpersonal communication.

I. How to not catch liars. Liars largely aren't that spottable. Buckle in for this one: it's usually easier to eliminate ~3 honest people than to find one liar. Liars tend to be hyperaware of everything they do and end up doing nothing. Everyone's all too aware of the concept of tells, so here are some anti-tells that actually work.

The first to talk after hearing the secret read is a truth teller. Seriously. I can maybe count on one hand the number of times the liar spoke first, but everyone alllllllways ends up suspecting the first talker.

If someone unnecessarily implicates themself, they're likely a truth teller. For instance, giving a related anecdote is a strong anti-tell.

Truth tellers will dig deeper into the wording and theorizing cause they're actually trying to find a liar.

Less solidly, the biggest, flashiest accusers tend to be truth tellers. Liars try to fade into the background, so if someone is going ham on a theory--and not simply after they've been targeted--it's often someone unworried about the attention.

II. How to catch liars. There are somewhat tells. Sometimes. There are more in this list than the previous, but this is all less sure. The rest of your natural suspicions will help. The state I'm in when I get more things right is aware of my instincts but not reliant on them.

If everyone thinks someone's the liar, they're right.

Don't let anyone off the hook. Accuse for whatever reason, then see how they react.

Because liars usually act the same each time they lie--going quiet, going loud, accusing, double bluffing, whatever. My theory is people have a strong pre-built idea of what looks suspicious, so they won't be worried about lying the same way as last time as much as being suspicious at all.

Liars sometimes act ignorant and way overdo it. Like folks who say they're unaware of basic relevant world knowledge or fully skipped relevant life experience or just forgot the question. It's possible but it's suspicious.

There are some contestants who are just good liars. There usually aren't multiple in one episode (besides Lily and Grant, but it's safe to ignore them as a baseline). If someone fully outwits me on their first lie, especially by breaking any of the above patterns, and I have no suspects later, I'll just have to suspect them. Aabria Iyengar and Anna Garcia could sell me sand in a desert.

Not sure how the show's edited and how much of this is actually applicable to people in the game, but there's always some meta information for us to use. Everyone will get at least two secrets in the episode somewhere, usually no one will repeat until three distinct people have had a turn, often exactly three, they tend to space out each guest's secrets, and Lily and Grant will rarely appear early or be the episode's title. If someone's been on a previous season, they're probably not gonna bring anything crazier than then.

III. How to lie. Mostly chill out a little bit. Unless you're a trash liar.

Don't talk first. As stated above, you won't fool me, but there's less of me than people with the opposite belief.

Be the second to accuse someone. Everyone remembers the accused and the first accuser, but the quiet "oh yeah I could see X doing that" gives the theory a ton of validity while flying fully under the radar.

Don't say "I know it sounds like me, but this one's not me." (Even though truth-tellers and liars both say this all the time.) The best way to lose heat is to confidently say this couldn't ever have been me.

While you're doing so, make the justification very, very concise. Simple nonsense is more compelling than convoluted truth.

You do have to have good secrets. This is an entertainment product more than a competition, so the show will probably want the craziest story, but an uncharacteristic, mild secret will always fool more people than a buckwild but on-brand one.

[hermesserpent-stuff]

Hmmm

Bar scene for Remy and logan start

Remy takes off on his bike, the heat in his chest too strong to ignore. He is terrified that if he lets some of it out, the whole dam will break and he will blow himself up to kingdom com. His chest glows, the fusha light hidden under his layers and his trench coat.

He zooms down the road, mentally breathing himself for not cataloging every bit of water nearby. He is used to the swamp, where he can just chuck himself in whenever he is having a problem.

But this is not the swamp. This is New York.

He could throw himself in the ocean… but is not a huge fan of his chances of making it back to shore once the energy has left his body.

He drives for a bit and then finds a rather deep pond. Luckily by then the glow had faded and he shakes the last reminates off through the sparking of some cards. He sits down beside the pond, me talking cataloging how long it would take to get here. Too long in an emergency. He needs something closer. Safer. Deeper. He rubs his face, veins still humming lightly. Welp. Sleep is a no go…

He had seen a bar in his frantic driving. Remy hops back on his bike and revs it. There were worse places to go in the middle of the night on a Friday.

He parks his bike out front and confidentially strides in. He sees a poker game on the back and serval games of pool. His body relaxes at the familiar smell of burnt tobacco, poured liquor and old wood.

He slips over to the gambling table and sees out the leader. Or the person with the most sway.

“Monsieur?”

He says softly and the mak glances him over a cigarette in his mouth.

“What do you want? Kids should be here.”

“Can I watch?”

The man narrows his eyes and raises a eyebrow.

“Why?”

“My papa is a gambler. I'm tryin' to learn how to beat him ‘fore I go home for winter break. Be thinkin’ books don't teach everythin’.”

“You play before kid?”

“Yeah. Mais, I lose to my papa. A lot.”

Which is true. But his papa believed in cheating. Remy didn't do it unless he needed to win for the job.

“Pull up a chair. But don't interrupt.”

Remy smiles and nods, tugging up a chair and watching.

This too is familiar. He watches as luck and skill move about the table. He counts cards and thinks through the different bluffs, getting a read on the players. He eventually buys a soda and just keeps watching. A few times, different players will check if he knows this rule or that. Or they'll hold conversation about the town and Remy will politely give a short opinion. He never tries to take over the conversation, rathering to watch on.

“Ugh. Im done. My wifey will kill me if I go over my card playing allowance. Hey, squirt, I'll pay your five dollar buy in if you wanna try your luck.”

“Merci, monsieur! I mean. Thanks.”

He exchanges chairs with the man he knows as Thomas. The first man he had spoken to, Alexander, hums.

“Let's see how you fare.”

Remy nods at Alexanders words.

He plays, letting himself loose a little, then win a little, enjoying the famialr feel of the cards and the company over trying to fleece these people for all they are forth. Alexander watches with knowing eyes, but the others don't seem to realize exactly what Remy is doing.

The night flows on, with people coming and going. Alexander buys Remy another soda after a spectacular round of bluffing, snorting while ruffling his hair. Remy grins at the attention.

Then… someone new enters the bar. Someone who makes Remy blink and recheck his shields, because he would not be feeling anyone's emotions! But he can feel the deep deep swells of calm and contentness.

“Hey Logan, that school of yours still treating you well?”

The bartender asks and Logan hums, nose twitching a bit. Then his eyes lock onto Remy. Remy keeps himself relaxed and rechecks his hand, not knowing what this guys deal is. And not wanting to know. To feel that strongly. Strong enough to brush over Remys thick and tall shields… terrifying.

“I thought you had a no kids rule. Especially at the gambling table.”

Logan's voice is sharp.

“Logan, kids holdin’ his own. You don't need to babysit everyone under the age of 20.”

Alexanders voice is sharper and he ruffles Remys hair.

[thenatashapulleyuniverse]

How playing poker with each Pulleyverse character would go (because I love playing poker it's so fun to gamble and also I won several straight hands in a row so I'm riding a high and want to find a way to connect this to my interests):

Thaniel: His poker face is pretty decent but when he knows he's got a winning hand he'll crack just a little bit. He's not a risky player and will fold immediately when he knows he won't get anything out of his current hand.

Mori: DO NOT PLAY WITH HIM YOU WILL LOSE EVERYTHING. (Clairvoyant or otherwise)

Merrick: He's a bit of a risky player and likes to bluff to mess with his opponents. He'd go all-in with just a high card in his hand every once in a while just for the heck of it. But he's a very good sport about everything, winning or losing, and he'd probably find himself the one dealing the cards if it's a small game with people he knows.

Raphael: Merrick taught him and he's great at it from the get-go. His poker face is killer, but he doesn't develop the same habit as Merrick to play mind games with his fellow competitors. He'll play only a few rounds before calling it quits, and if he wins a straight or a flush he'll stop playing because he knows his limits.

Joe: Instead of a poker face, his mind games include being very good at acting it up about whether or not he has a winning hand (most of the time he does not) (this intimidates his opponents anyway). He's not a very risky player and won't raise the pot unless he's confident about his hand.

Kite: His poker face is a scowl because he just looks like that. He's completely unreadable, even if he wins the pot. Joe's the only one who could read him, but when they're playing against each other it becomes a bit of a battlefield where anybody else playing with them is going "Are they playing mind games to intimidate each other or is this some weird freaky foreplay" to which the answer is both. Always. He's not a risky player but he probably gets accused of bluffing more often than not.

Valery: Oh he has fun with messing with others, like Merrick. And when he's low in chips he'll keep going because the next round might be a winner. He won't go easy on anybody, including Shenkov.

Shenkov: Knows his limits, not very risky, and his poker face could use some work, still it's fun when he knows he's about to win.

January: Not the best player, but the gamble is a thrill. When he needs to conjure up a good poker face, he just imagines his best River impression. When he wins he likes to gloat.

River: Their poker face is on par with Raphael's. You might lose everything if you play with them. Do not attempt to play mind games with them, you will lose. Their opponents consider them incredibly scary, but sometimes they fold just to let January win.