#until i get to that point in the series and just keeping it in my likes for reblogging later xD

[hellobykittys]

𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 ✦ 𝐋𝐍⁴

SUMMARY: Your boyfriend just returned from a Triple Header, and after weeks apart, all you wanted was some attention and affection. But he, on the other hand, seemed more interested in his online games than spending time with you. NOTES: English is not my first language, so there might be some writing mistakes. I apologize for that, and feel free to point out any improvements. WC: 0.9k WARNING: cockwarming and explicit scenes.

MASTERLIST | THE (IM)PERFECT PLAN SERIE

It had been weeks since you and Lando had a decent moment together. Between the chaos of a Triple Header and endless traveling, he was finally back home after more than three weeks away. You'd spent days envisioning this reunion: a cozy couch, a romantic movie, maybe a few glasses of wine, and, hopefully, something… more intimate.

But, of course, Lando had other plans—plans that involved a computer, headphones, and loud laughter with Max during a gaming livestream. He was sunk into his gaming chair, fully absorbed, while you were sprawled out on the living room couch, pretending to care about some random TV show.

Not that you wanted to be that girlfriend who complained about her boyfriend’s hobbies. You knew gaming was Lando’s way of unwinding, something he genuinely enjoyed. But… would it kill him to give you a little attention after you’d spent weeks counting down the days until he got back? You had spent a few hours together earlier in the day, but apparently, for him, that was more than enough. For you? Not even close.

Taking a deep breath, you decided it was time to do something about it.

You got up from the couch and walked into the kitchen. Opening the fridge to grab a can of soda, you could still hear Lando and Max’s laughter echoing through the house. They were debating something about “that camper guy in the middle of the map”—whatever that meant. You rolled your eyes with a small smile. Men.

Back in the living room, you stopped at the doorway to Lando’s gaming setup.

“Babe?” you called out sweetly, hoping that would be enough to get his attention.

Nothing. He raised a hand in a “one-minute” gesture without even glancing away from the screen.

Okay. So he wasn’t going to make this easy.

You climbed onto Lando’s lap, sitting face-to-face with him, wrapping your arms loosely around his waist. It was the perfect position—not just to be close but also to stir up a little mischief.

“Lando, I missed you…” you murmured, drawing out the words as you shifted ever so slightly on his lap. The movement seemed innocent enough, but both of you knew it wasn’t.

He took one hand off the keyboard and placed it firmly on your waist, halting your motions.

“I missed you too, love,” he replied, trying to keep his focus on the screen. “But please, stay still, alright?”

“Okay!” you chirped with mock obedience, which he clearly picked up on but chose to ignore.

You managed to behave… for about three minutes. Then, you started shifting again, sliding gently against him, testing his patience.

“Y/N…” His tone was firm, though you caught the trace of amusement at the end. “If you don’t stop, I’m going to move you.”

“But I just want to spend time with you, please!” you pouted playfully, resting your head on his shoulder and inhaling his familiar, comforting scent.

Lando sighed deeply, as if gathering every ounce of his self-control.

“Then behave,” he said, his voice dropping slightly, though still laced with warning.

Of course, you ignored him. You leaned in closer, leaving a trail of kisses down his neck while continuing your teasing movements, this time more deliberately.

“Y/N…” he started, but his voice sounded different now—lower, drawn out, almost like a groan. “What are you trying to do?”

You smiled against his skin, thrilled by how easily you could make him unravel.

“Nothing… I’m just enjoying my boyfriend, who I missed so much,” you replied with a playful edge, feigning innocence while keeping up your game.

Lando shut his eyes briefly, clearly trying not to lose control.

“You’re impossible, you know that?” he said, finally abandoning the keyboard and turning all his attention to you.

His hands slid to your waist, and in one swift move, he lifted your skirt and pushed your underwear to the side. When his fingers brushed against your heat, he immediately noticed the state you were in.

“So desperate already, huh?” he asked with a smirk. “Three weeks apart, and you turn into a needy little thing.”

“Lan,” you whimpered, his name slipping out like a plea. “I need you.”

“I’ll let you have a little fun,” he said, his tone almost mocking. “But only if you behave and don’t move.” He began lowering his shorts and boxers, freeing himself. “When I’m done with this game, I promise you’ll get all the attention you’re craving. Got it?”

“Okay, I promise I’ll stay still,” you breathed out, far too needy to argue.

Lando positioned himself at your entrance, easing into you slowly. The moment he was fully inside, you couldn’t suppress the moan that escaped your lips.

“Now you’re going to have to stay quiet,” he instructed, his voice firm as his eyes flicked back to the screen. “I’m hopping back on with the guys.”

You nodded, too full of him to form a coherent reply.

“Sorry, guys,” Lando said into the mic, sounding casual despite the situation. “Y/N just needed some help with something.”

And so the match went on, with you obediently staying still for once, too desperate for the attention he promised to risk disobeying.

[charlotteking23]

The Lion's Lamb - Chapter 8 - MV1/33

Max Verstappen x reader

The Lion's Lamb Series: Aesthetics, Ch.1, Ch.2, Ch.3, Ch.4, Ch.5, Ch.6, Ch.7

Anger

That was all Max felt when seeing his little lamb struggling against the man holding you. The tears falling down your face was all it took for him to reach his tipping point. And that's a bad thing for a man who is known for his anger.

Within a second of seeing his girl, he had quickly put his car in park and bolted out of the car straight towards the man and yanking You to safety in his arms.

He could tell you were not comfortable as to how stiff you were while in his arm. It wasn't until you heard his voice that you finally relaxed in Max's arms.

"It's alright man," the man previously holding his little lamb said casually, "My girl and I were just having a little bit of fun, so why don't you mind your own and keep walking."

If looks could kill, this man would have been dead in seconds from the glare Max was currently sending him.

"Your girl?" Max chuckled as he put You behind him and slowly walked closer to the man, "She's not your girl. She's mine. And you just put your hands on her, so now, me and you have an issue."

At this point, Max was in this man's face, ready for him to try to do something stupid just so he could knock this man out.

With a slight smirk and a chuckle, the man looked at You from behind Max and said, "Amelia invited us over so I'll see you at home sweetheart."

The man winked at You and that was all it took for Max to grab him roughly by his collar and pull him close to his face.

"I swear to fucking god, I will kill you if you ever come near her again," Max threatened. One could probably see steam coming out of his ears with the amount of anger in him in that moment.

"Max," Your soft voice broke through his anger as you lightly gripped his arm to grab his attention. He looked back at you and saw your scared and tired eyes and started to relax a bit, "he is not worth it."

Max looked at the man in front of him before shoving him back, "This is your only chance to walk away unscathed."

With one last smirk at the pair, he turned to walk away, "I'll see you later sweetheart."

Max started to go after him again but was held back by his little lamb holding onto him for dear life, "Please Maxie, I want to go home."

With a sigh, he pulled you into a hug and kissed your head as you held onto his shirt so tightly, afraid he'd disappear at any moment.

"Let's get out of here, okay?" You nodded at his soft words and he slowly led you to his car.

They sat in quiet as Max drove. You were trying to digest what had just occurred and how you were going into the same situation at home if what John said was true.

You had texted Amelia about it and all you received was a thumbs up on your message. While you didn't know what that specifically meant, you dreaded the worst.

Max quietness was stemmed from his anger. He sat there clenching his jaw as he tried to calm down. He was afraid to take You home after the man's words and now he was trying to figure out his next move.

You were finally brought out of your own head when you didn't recognize the buildings outside to be anywhere near your own home.

"Where are we going?"

With his jaw still clenched, Max spit out, "Home."

"This isn't the way to my house," Your voice was laced with confusion.

Max hummed in response.

"Max. Where are we going?"

"My house."

"Why are we going there?"

"Because I am not going to take you to a place where he is just going to show up again," Max spit out in anger,  "I refuse to put you in another situation where you are uncomfortable or unsafe, so you will be staying at mine."

You were too stunned to speak at that moment. You weren't sure if his anger was directed at you or the situation at hand, but you were leaning more towards the latter.

"It's fine Max, just take me home," You said innocently, not wanting to be more of a nuisance then you already have been tonight.

"Too late," He mumbled before he got out of the car and quickly made his way to the passenger side to open the door for you.

As You stepped out, you looked at the apartment that was nice, too nice for someone like you. You knew he made money, but she could never have imagined that he made this much money.

"I can't stay here," You stuttered out her last bit of resistance, but was cut off very quickly.

With a roll of his eyes, Max reached down and picked you up and threw you over his shoulder, "It wasn't necessarily a choice, love."

It took a second for you to get over your shock, but you quickly started struggling and wiggling against Max's hold and hitting against his back in frustration, "Let me go!"

"Nope," he stated shortly.

You kept hitting his back and it didn't take long for Max to loosen his arms and for you to slowly start falling. You let out a slight screech as you saw the ground get closer to you, but your fall was stopped and you quickly wrapped your arms around Max's waist.

"Why would you do that?" You asked, your heart racing as the man holding you upside down.

"You had to learn your lesson somehow," He said like it was obvious, "Now, are you going to be a good girl and stop struggling?"

You didn't respond but you did, in fact, stop struggling.

Max carried you up to his house with a smile on his face. His anger is now completely desolate from what it was in the car. Something about you made him calm. Never in his life has anyone been able to get his blood rushing as quickly, and at the same time, calm him down as easily as you do.

You were the thunder before the lightning, yet the sun rays breaking through the clouds at the end of a storm.

Taglist: @shelbyteller, @smithieandy, @fangirlforever2000, @herexpertcollector, @vip-access, @genevieve-blr, @a-beaverhausen

[lvnleah]

Christmas 2030.

find the series masterlist here!

6 & 2 years old | December 2030

“Mumma, boots!” Ellie said as she sat on the bottom step, pointing at a pair of football boots, “Put boots on!” 

“Els it’s Christmas and it’s cold!” Leah laughed as she helped Finley to slip his boots on. “You need your big snow boots to keep you warm, bubs!”

Ellie shook her head before turning her attention to you, “Mummy, no! ‘Ou tell Mumma no!”

You chuckled at Ellie’s stubbornness, kneeling down in front of her as she stared up at you with her big, pleading eyes. Those same eyes Leah could never say no to—Ellie knew exactly what she was doing. 

"Ellie," you began gently, smoothing a hand over her curls, "Mumma’s right. It’s too cold for your football boots today. We’ll wear them when it’s warmer, okay?"

Ellie’s little face scrunched up in frustration, her lower lip trembling like she might argue again. But before she could protest, Leah swooped in, lifting Ellie into her arms and spinning her around. 

"How about this," Leah said with a playful grin, "We’ll put your football boots on after the walk when we get home, and you can show everyone how fast you are inside. Deal?"

Ellie paused, clearly weighing her options. Then, with a slow, deliberate nod, she pointed a tiny finger at Leah. "Deal, Mumma," she said seriously like they were sealing an important agreement.

You smiled, relieved that the potential meltdown had been avoided. Finley, now fully bundled up in his winter gear, came bouncing over, tugging at your hand. "Can we go now, Mum? I wanna show everyone my bike again! And Uncle Snake promised he’d play with me and Henry!”

"Of course, bud," you said, standing up and grabbing his hand. "Let’s head out before it gets too dark."

It was Christmas Eve and like every year, you were joining Leah’s family on their Christmas Eve walk. The walk had changed a lot over the years, from it being just the two of you to you walking it while pregnant with Finley to then adding him and Ellie into the mix. 

Leah grabbed the pram as you made your way outside with the kids, you both knew that Ellie would get tired and end up falling off to sleep. 

“Nana!” Ellie smiled, running over to Amanda, “Walk in woods?”

Amanda scooped Ellie up into her arms, “Yeah, bubba! We’re going for a walk in the woods, are you excited?”

“Chase Finn and Snake?” Ellie said, pointing and Finley who was playing a game of tag with Jacob. 

Ellie wiggled with excitement in Amanda’s arms, her tiny legs kicking. Leah chuckled as she locked the front door and grabbed your hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Looks like we’re in for a lively walk."

You smiled back at her. "At least until Ellie passes out."

Amanda adjusted Ellie on her hip, a knowing smile on her face. "I give it ten minutes. She’s always out like a light after running with those two."

As you all began to walk towards the woods, the familiar sounds of laughter and chatter surrounded you. Leah’s family had already gathered, the kids excitedly running ahead, while the adults strolled at a more leisurely pace. Jacob, of course, was already engaged in an exaggerated game of hide-and-seek with Finley and Henry, ducking behind trees and making the boys squeal with laughter as they tried to find him.

Leah nudged you with her shoulder, smiling as she watched the scene unfold. "Remember when it was just us, sneaking away for this walk after all the Christmas chaos?"

You laughed, squeezing her hand. "I remember. Feels like a lifetime ago, but I wouldn’t trade this for anything."

Ellie had already wriggled out of Amanda’s arms and was determinedly following Finley and Jacob, though her little legs couldn’t quite keep up. You could see her determination, her face scrunched up with focus as she called after them, "Wait! Ellie fast too!"

Leah laughed softly, watching her. "She’s going to be unstoppable when she’s older, you know that?"

"She already is," you said, chuckling as Ellie finally gave up chasing the boys and ran back to Amanda, huffing in frustration. 

Leah wrapped an arm around you as the woods surrounded you all. The air was crisp, but the warmth of the moment was undeniable. This was tradition, the kind that felt timeless and comforting no matter how many years passed.

After a while, Ellie, predictably, started to slow down, her steps growing heavier until she was half-limping, half-stumbling. Leah noticed immediately and scooped her up, snuggling her into the warm folds of her coat.

“Looks like we hit the ten-minute mark,” Leah whispered with a grin, her breath visible in the cold air.

You laughed softly, reaching over to tuck a strand of hair behind Ellie’s ear as her eyes drooped shut. "Told you." You smiled as Leah placed her in the pram. 

As the walk continued, the sun dipped lower, casting a golden hue over the woods. Leah slowed her pace, making sure the kids were always within view. Finley was still full of energy, racing ahead with Jacob and Henry, while Ellie snoozed peacefully in the pram, her cheeks rosy from the cold.

You walked hand in hand with Leah beside Amanda, Jordan and Holly. The cold air nipped at your cheeks, but the warmth of Leah’s hand in yours kept you grounded and comfortable. It felt perfect, this moment where the noise of the world was drowned out by nature and family.

Jordan, laughing at something Holly had said, turned back toward you and Leah. “You two all set for tomorrow? I’m guessing the kids are going to wake up at dawn.”

You exchanged a knowing glance with Leah, who chuckled. “If we’re lucky, it’ll be dawn. Last year, Finley was up before four. Had to convince him to go back to sleep.”

Amanda smiled. “It’s the magic of Christmas. I still remember when you were like that, Le. Couldn’t wait to see what Santa brought.”

Leah smiled at her mum. “Yeah, I remember too. But now it’s payback, right?”

You nudged Leah playfully. “I don’t think either of us were prepared for the chaos that comes with two kids at Christmas.”

Jordan laughed. “Chaos is what makes it fun! Besides, now we have Jacob to distract the kids, right?” She motioned toward Jacob, who was hiding poorly behind a tree from the boys. The kids' laughter echoed through the woods as they “sneaked up” on him.

“They’ve got him wrapped around their fingers,” Leah said, shaking her head with amusement. 

The woods began to open up into a small clearing, the glow from distant houses beginning to illuminate the path. Ellie stirred slightly in the pram but remained asleep, her little fingers peeking out from beneath the blanket. Leah paused for a moment, bending down to tuck the blanket back around her more snugly.

By the time you returned to the house, the kids were worn out but in high spirits, their cheeks flushed from the chilly air. Inside, the warmth enveloped you, and the smell of hot chocolate and Christmas Eve dinner preparations filled the air. 

After getting the kids into their pyjamas and tucking them into bed—Finley still chattering away about the walk, and Ellie too tired to even protest—there was finally a quiet moment for just you and Leah.

You found her in the living room, sitting on the couch with a blanket draped over her legs. You sat beside her, leaning your head against her shoulder, feeling the familiar comfort of her presence.

Leah shifted slightly, "I keep saying it but I can’t believe how big they’re getting," she said softly. "It feels like yesterday when it was just Finley’s first Christmas, and now look at him…and Els too. She’s so big…"

You smiled, “I know. It’s going by so fast."

Leah was quiet for a moment, her hand finding yours and intertwining your fingers. "I’ve been thinking," she said softly, her voice a little hesitant. "About having another baby."

You turned your head slightly to look at her. She met your gaze, her eyes searching yours for a reaction. You’d talked about it a lot since Ellie’s first day of preschool and it was something that you couldn’t stop thinking about. 

"You really want to go have another one?" you asked gently. “And you’re up to carrying a baby?”

Leah exhaled slowly, nodding. "Yeah… I do. I know it won’t be easy, and we might have to face some challenges. But I can’t stop thinking about it. I feel like… I don’t know, like we’re not done yet. I don’t care about missing time from football, I’m craving another baby. I want another tiny little newborn, pretty girl.”

Your heart warmed at the thought of expanding your family. "You’ve been thinking about this for a while, huh?"

Leah smiled softly, a bit sheepish. "Yeah. It’s been on my mind, especially seeing Ellie and Finn together, and how much love they have for each other. And I want that again—another little one to love, to grow with us. I really want to experience pregnancy too.”

You leaned into her more, pressing a soft kiss to her shoulder. "You know I’m with you, whatever happens. We can make it work, just like we always have."

Leah squeezed your hand, her thumb brushing over your knuckles. "I know. I just… I needed to say it out loud. To see if you were on the same page."

You smiled against her shoulder. "We’ve always been on the same page, Le. If this is what you want, we’ll figure it out together."

She looked at you, her eyes a little misty. "Thank you, pretty girl.”

You pulled her closer, wrapping your arms around her. "We’ve got this, no matter what."

[rainecreatesstuff]

right not to get ahead of ourselves but I’ve had the best idea for another life series:

Past Life.

They start off with the normal traffic life system, but other than that, no rules or mechanics other than the very basic ones. Every session, a number of players are randomly selected, and randomly assigned different life seasons. Until the end of the session, they are to play exactly as they would if they were in that season.

Of course, the interpretation of this is entirely up to the individual players. I imagine for most seasons they would be given the actual mechanics for the time they’re playing that season. For example, if someone gets assigned secret life, a task will pop up in their inventory. Limited life players are playing with the clock system until the end of session, double life players are linked to their soulmates (maybe their previously assigned one, maybe a completely new one). Last lifers can gift lives, and maybe have a chance of being assigned boogeyman as well.

Like I said, it’s completely up to the players how they wanna interpret the prompt. Maybe to one person, it just means playing with a new set of rules and mechanics, maybe others decide they are fully embodying their character from that season, and their current alliances and grudges are null and void. Maybe some players tell their allies and others decide not to.

This would not only be a fun return to earlier mechanics and perhaps even character dynamics, it would also return the series (in my opinion) to feel more pvp oriented. You don’t know when your teammate might suddenly become a whole different person and stab you in the back. As well, you don’t know what rules other teams are playing with. Maybe you’re not allowed to team a red with a green, but others are. Maybe you, at times, don’t even know that killing someone will actually drop them, cuz it won’t if they’re on a clock. And if you’ve got the secret life heart system, well, do you keep that a secret? Do you tell people that when you lose health, it’s gone for the session? Is it safer or more dangerous?

I feel like we’re at the point now where a sort of nostalgia cycle is starting to hit people for third and last life especially, and we’ve also seen so many different mechanics that i think some people are starting to feel like it’s distancing itself too much from the original series. I feel like this would be a really fun way to sort of roll back and revisit the older seasons, and might give people who are feeling a bit less connected to the newer mechanics a sort of connection and closure with the older seasons so the creators can move on with bigger things.

Of course, probably none of this will ever happen, but I genuinely think it would be so cool and fun both in a narrative sense and a meta sense.

[touchme-teezme]

hi mimi! idk if u take requests but last pick was everything to me like i lovedddd the book that inspired you 😭🥹 can i PLEASE get a san version with the “did you want to watch me burn” poem? just destroy me. my heart is yourssss

This Time.

PAIRING | collegeboy!san x fab!reader

TAGS | arguments, smut with a plot, kissing, oral, angsty unprotected breakup sex, san has great pull out game, and a (sort of?) cliffhanger… again? idk i suck at writing tags and proper endings lolololol

RATINGS | NSFW 18+ (minors pls DNI/if it makes u uncomfortable don’t read it)

SONGS | No One Noticed - The Marías, Not You Too- Dr*ke & Been Like This - Doja Cat

SUMMARY | The breakup for this couple was on the horizon. One of them was in denial, and it’s not you.

AUTHOR’S NOTE ▸ thank you all for showing Last Pick a lot of love & anon for enjoying it. since a san version was requested, here ya go :) lmk which member should be next if you'd want me to actually make this into an angsty atz smut series. kinda like the idea they’re all connected?¿ like a smutiverse… im a little tipsy rn writing this part. also if u catch mistakes, no u didn’t. kk bye love uou

inspired by a quote from Save Me An Orange by Hayley Grace: what more did you want from me? i gave you my heart my soul my body i let you build a home inside of me but you still went to the store and bought a lighter just to set me on fire did you want to watch me burn?

You’re usually an optimist but it wasn’t until San smashed the vase you bought and painted together at that one arts and crafts store that you realized optimism could only take you so far.

A screaming match broke out immediately. Words bounced off the walls, echoing in your small apartment as fingers were being pointed. He followed you around the entire house as you tried to walk away from the conversation, pinging in your ear like a fly.

San gets emotional when he cares. It was the first thing you liked about him when you first started to talk. How nice would it be to be with someone so well in-tune with their emotions that they don’t why away from it?

If only you’d known it would result in this.

The relationship was done for. It had been for a while. He had been far too busy juggling classes, work, and his new friends who seemed to suddenly fill all the time he used to spend with you. You’d barely even seen him in weeks, and when you did, it was like you were fighting for scraps of his attention.

San’s voice cracked as he shouted behind your head. “You think I don’t know I’ve been busy? I’ve been juggling everything, trying to keep it all together, and you—you—think I don’t feel guilty? You want me to just drop everything? Stop hanging out with my friends? Quit school? What do you want from me?”

He was following you now, not letting you get a moment of peace. You forced yourself to focus on the task of cleaning up the shards, trying to block out his words as you looked for the broom around your house.

“Do you think I want this? You think I want to feel like this? You think I want to hurt you? But you keep demanding more from me, and I can’t do it anymore! I can’t just stop living my life to fix yours!”

“Oh fuck off!” You barked back, finally finding the broom that was in an odd spot in your wardrobe (probably because San had placed it there the last time he used it). You were now growing more annoyed.

“Don’t curse at me! Listen to me for goodness sake!”

Your hands trembled around the broom handle, but you marched towards the vase shards and started sweeping, trying not to hear the poison dripping from his mouth. You had given up on fighting—there was no point anymore. He was too far gone, wrapped up in his own world that was so difficult for him to show up.

“You’re too much, alright?” he spat, his voice cracking with frustration. “I can’t breathe, I can’t think. Every time I try to focus on something else, you’re right there, needing something from me. I can’t fix this. I can’t keep being suffocated—“

You dropped the broom.

You turned slowly, meeting his gaze for the first time, and in that moment, you never felt like this about him before.

“Do you hear yourself?” Your voice was shaking, but it was steady, sharp. “In that whole rant you just forced me to hear, not once did you mention us—not once did you mention me like i’m not in this fucking relationship with you! Not once did you mention all i’ve done for you, and the only time you did was to insult me!”

San opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He just stood there, eyes wide, lips trembling.

You stepped forward as if to challenge his speechlessness, your heart pounding in your chest. “What the fuck are you still doing here then?!”

The room fell silent.

And then, out of nowhere, he tried to reach for you.

It was a movement fuelled by panic if he was truly honest, it was a final desperate attempt to fix things without actually knowing how.

He just knew that he had to have you in his arms and you’d melt. His hand caught yours, pulling you closer, but you yanked it away.

He stepped closer, his breath ragged, reaching for you again with a look in his eyes that was pure guilt you knew all too well.

Your stern face broke when he managed to get you in his large strong arms that wrapped around you.

You stood there, shaking, breathing hard, barely able to hold back the tears.

“Why do you keep doing this to me?” Your cracking voice was muffled against his hard chest.

And then, in his painful silence, he cupped your face and pressed his lips against yours.

You did not stop him.

In fact, you couldn’t.

His next kiss was more desperate and frantic than the last, like he was trying to compensate for all the times he had utterly let you down.

When he finally found the self control to pull back, both of you were panting, faces flushed, hearts racing. He looked at you with a mix of fear, guilt, and longing in his eyes. He wiped your damp cheeks, cupping the sides of your face.

"I don’t mean to," He whispered. “I-I swear, everything I said, I-“

You shook your head in denial, wanting to just shut him up with more kisses knowing if you both talked, you’d eventually argue.

For once, you didn’t want to fight. If the relationship was crashing and burning right now, might as well get one last lick out of it, right?

Metaphorically, and quite literally.

San groaned softly into your mouth, his hands coming up to tangle in your hair and snake to the small of your back as he deepened the kiss with his tongue.

"You drive me insane," He breathed against her lips, breaking the kiss to look into her eyes.

It was true, you always had, in the best and worst ways possible. The feeling was mutual as you stared back at him.

He couldn't resist your pull, the way you were in the moment consumed him entirely. His hands roamed your curves, and reached down to grip your ass firmly as he walked you backwards towards the couch.

You let out a soft gasp, your fingers digging into his waist as you let yourself get sat down with him positioned above you. His knee perched up right between your slightly parted legs.

The friction his knee brushing between your legs sent a jolt of desire straight to your core. He could feel your pulse quickening, and your breath hitching as he sucked and kissed the sides of your neck.

Your hands slipped beneath his black shirt, seeking for skin. With a slight eager tug, he took it off without any argument, revealing his lean muscled torso that you did not hesitate to touch and admire knowing it was going to be the last time.

Instead of letting that knowledge crush you or him, with a low moan, he just leaned into your touch.

“Tell me to stop…” He breathed out, hands on your shoulders to steady himself. He struggled to maintain control as his arousal throbbed against the inside of his zipper.

“Keep going.” You replied in a husky whisper.

With a groan, he gave in to the temptation. His tongue met yours, as his hands slid down to your chest to cup your breasts through the thin fabric of your top, having to bite back a smirk when your back arched into his technique.

Your nimble fingers freed him from his jeans. Unbuttoning, and then zipping down before massaging his hard on through the fabric of his underwear. A breath of relief escaped his lips when his throbbing cock was finally freed.

He helped you out of your top, watching you stroke his impressive length in your hands from above. His hands glided down your back and unclasped your bra, letting your breast sit in all its glory.

He was going to take care of you first until your mouth engulfed him without missing a beat.

“O-oh my god.” His hips bucked involuntarily forward as your skilled hand continued to stroke, the dual sensations of her and her fingers wrapped around his member threatening to overwhelm him.

San’s eyes rolled back as you took him entirely into your mouth. His body weight leaning on his forearms that were on either sides of your head, holding onto the back of the couch for dear life.

Your skilled tongue and throat working in tandem to bring him to the brink of madness. The wet heat blanketing his aching cock was almost too much to bear, each bob of her head sent him more and more over the edge.

"Oh f-fuck!” His mouth hung open as he fisted your hair and fought the urge to thrust deeper.

A part of him couldn’t make sense why this was happening now of all times. He could’ve just taken your desperation to touch him for granted but something about it didn’t feel right.

With effort and a hell lot of focus, San gently stopped you before he could cum. He stroked the side of your face when you looked up at him confused. He shot one of the sweetest dimpled smiles at you.

Seeing that dimpled smile light up your face.

With a hand behind your head, he laid you back on the couch gently. Your hands politely stayed on your own chest, cupping them as you watched his next move.

In one swift motion, he tugged down your underwear with your pyjama shorts and tossed them away.

One of your legs get thrown over his shoulder, and he used his other hand to part your leg wider. His head moved down to your glistening sex and his tongue licked a strip up your folds.

Air got caught in your throat. You let out a shaking deep breath through your lips. His hand on your thigh moved up to your chest, intertwining his fingers with your fingers against your racing heartbeat.

You gripped onto his fingers every time he’d do something that sent shockwaves through your body either with his lips, tongue or his nose. He kissed your sensitive clit, alternating his tongue between that and pounding into your entrance.

“San,” You whined, which only encouraged him to keep going. You tilted your chin upwards, facing the ceiling as tears began welling in your eyes. Unclear if it was the pleasure or the sinking feeling in the out of your stomach.

Then you felt that body shock again, jolting you as you let out a loud moan.

You met his eyes. Those cat-like eyes staring back at you between your legs with laser focus before lazily shutting when he turned his head to the side to lap up your slick arousal from the inner part of your thighs.

He got up and took off his underwear before hovering on-top of you, centring his hard shaft just past your entrance as he supported himself up by the armrest behind your head.

His chain necklace to drop down and dangle in your face.

He gazed into your eyes, reaching down to rub your slick folds once more. He leaned down to kiss you, tasting yourself on his lips as he readjusted his hard dick between your legs. Your hands wrapped themselves in the dip of his waist as your knees pressed against his hips.

“We can’t keep fighting forever,” You told him in a faint whisper.

Leaning down, he distracted you by capturing your lips into a tender loving kiss to slowly pushed in. He felt your teeth on his lip as your walls adjusted to him.

“I know.” Was all he could murmur against your face as a hand cupped one side of your face.

He kept having your lips in between his as he started to move, his hips rolling in a slow rhythm designed to slowly ease into you. Small gasps escaped your lips and you clutched onto his biceps for support while your neck stretched upwards.

“Baby, you feel incredible.” He picked up the pace slightly, his thrusts growing deeper, and more insistent, as he chased the intense feeling coursing through him.

The way your body clenched around his length, the soft gasps falling from your lips.

With your moans of approval, he seized the opportunity to go even deeper and quicken the pace in your wet welcoming heat. He pulled in your mouth for intoxicating searing kisses he couldn’t get enough of.

“I miss you,” You whimpered out the truth between the kisses. “S-so much.”

He snapped forward with new determination accentuated by the lewd sounds of your skin slapping against each other.

He let go of your mouth to focus on your chest. "I'm right here baby." He mumbled over your breasts as he cupped one in his large hands, brushing over your nipples before reaching down to lick.

He alternates between wet kisses and whirling his tongue, aimed to only give you pleasure. In his defence, he hasn't had the opportunity to do this in a while.

You grabbed a side of his face to look into his lustful eyes. “I really did love you.” You breathed out.

“I love you too.” He replied, too entranced by the moment to catch that single word in your sentence.

You crashed your lips against his. The technique of his kissing made you moan loudly into his mouth, and then against his jaw with your eyes shut when he was hitting the perfect spot over and over.

Your body was tensing up tighter and tighter as the pressure of the inside you. You could feel yourself teetering on the edge, ready to shatter into a million pieces at any moment.

“I’m close,” San panted. “Come for me. Come first.”

As a result of his husky words, your walls clench around him, and your climax comes crashing in. One passionate thrust as he buried himself inside your convulsing sex, the intense orgasm shook your entire body violently.

While your final convulsions faded, you slumped against the couch, panting heavily. Meanwhile, San rode off your enjoyment only to abruptly slip out of you before blowing a load inside you without a condom on.

He released himself from your legs that were wrapped around him and hurried to your nearby bathroom, his hard-on in his hands.

You lay there in a daze, trying to make sense of everything, feeling a mix of confusion and shame. You covered your face with your hands, desperate to hide from the reality of the situation.

Slowly, you pulled yourself up from the leather couch to sit up, its surface sticking a little to your sweaty skin, before you reached for your underwear lying forgotten at your feet.

You managed to get most of your clothes back on when he returned. The sight of him—his broad athletic build and that confident stride—distracted you just long enough for him to lean down and kiss you, his hands gently resting on the side of your neck.

You instinctively covered his hand with your own, locking eyes with him.

“Are you okay?” His voice was soft.

You stayed quiet for a moment, the weight of his question sinking in.

He kissed you again, his lips warm and insistent, and for a moment, the thoughts swirling in your head began to fade.

Before you knew it, he lowered himself down onto the floor across from you, wanting to pull you on top of him to straddle him.

“Stop. No more.” you murmured, pushing him away gently.

Your heart pounding as your knees pressed against the hardwood floors when you realised you were already sitting on his thighs.

San sharply sighed, a little disappointed, but he didn’t fight it. He let go of his grip on your waist, and you slowly kicked yourself off him.

The two of you lay on the floor, side by side, your breaths finally slowing after whatever that was. The silence between you wasn’t comforting in the slightest.

He reached for his underwear with his feet, slipping it on slowly, his eyes never leaving you. He was trying to read you, trying to understand what was going on.

You turned your head to look at him. His eyes turned to the ceiling, his expression unreadable, distant even though he was right there.

“San,” you began softly, your voice breaking the stillness. “I think we—”

His phone buzzed, cutting through the tension, and he glanced at it with another sigh. You felt the moment slip away as he got up and fumbled for his phone left in his pants by the couch.

“It’s Mingi,” he muttered.

“San,” you tried again, your tone heavier this time, begging for his attention. But he’d already answered the call.

You stayed on the floor, your chest tightening as fragments of their conversation reached your ears.

“Dude, what? I’m in the middle of… Huh? No, I haven’t heard from her,” San said, his tone sharp but tinged with concern. “She’s been dodging everyone since that night at Yeosang’s when you wouldn’t shut up about your conquests.”

Your frown deepened as you propped yourself up on your elbows to watch him. His brows furrowed, his full attention on the call like you weren’t even there.

“Well, maybe you should go check on her then,” San said, leaning back against the couch. “What, come over? Her place or yours?”

A pause, then his expression shifted—confusion, followed by clear exasperation.

San ran a hand through his messy hair. “Fine, whatever. I’ll come over later.” He hung up, tossing the phone onto the floor like it had personally wronged him.

“Mingi needs help with something,” he said it like that was enough explanation.

You stared at him, baffled and angry, “So you’re going?”

He turned to you, guilt flashing briefly in his eyes before he looked away. “I don’t have a choice,” he said quietly.

The words hit you like a slap, but what was worse than the sting was the inevitability that this was always how it would be. You, waiting for scraps of his time, his attention. Him, running off to play hero for everyone but you.

“San,” you said, your voice trembling. “You always have a choice. You just never choose me.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Isn’t it?” You shot back. “You couldn’t even let me finish breaking up with you before answering his call.”

“What? It’s not like that. This is serious to him—he really likes her—”

“Save it,” you cut him off, your voice sharp. “Since you’re always serious about everyone else, just go.”

He hesitated, his hand hovering near his phone. “You’re being—”

“Go,” you repeated firmly, tears welling in your eyes but your tone unwavering. “And don’t ever come back this time.”

For a moment, he looked like he wanted to defend himself, or to stay, but then he stood up. He pulled the rest of his clothes back on, grabbed his phone, and shoved it into his back pocket without a word.

He glanced at you on his way out, his gaze searching for something, anything, to make this easier. He convinced himself he’d call you tomorrow, that this wasn’t really goodbye like the other times you both have tried to end it. He didn’t realize how serious you were this time.

He walked past the shards and the broom and left. The door clicked shut behind him.

[teeny-tiny-revenge]

Today I'm thinking about Ed's reaction to the marmalade. No, not about that it's very good. (I wanted a gif of this moment and it was the only one I could find.)

I'm thinking about Ed's face after Stede's "Ship's stores are loaded with it. Had to get rid of some gunpowder, but I think it was the right decision."

Ed is surprised, shocked maybe, but you never get the idea that Ed thinks the load of marmalade is frivolous or a waste of space (as a lot of other characters would!). But Ed's eyes are wide with wonder. Ed is impressed. Ed is fucking inspired. (And a little bit in love already, but that's beside the point.)

Because Ed is a survivor. Ed has built his entire life around surviving, and he's successful at it, he's going grey in a career that tends to cut your life pretty short, he's built this entire act and persona up for the sole purpose of ensuring his safety and survival, and when challenged and threatened later in the series (before he completely loses his will to continue surviving like this) we see Ed throw away anything pleasurable in favour of holding up the sword and shield of Blackbeard and the Kraken.

Ed is a guy who has learned to prioritise survival over anything else. Ed's stores are certainly full of gunpowder, no space for even a jar of marmalade left. Ed lived a life, from young age on, that taught him that he doesn't get to have nice, pleasurable, fun and comforting things. He keeps his one nice comforting scrap hidden away inside his leather armour. He has more money than you can shake a stick at, but he doesn't have any luxuries. He doesn't even have comforts. He has knick-knacks. But he doesn't have soft robes to sleep in, he doesn't have the damn good whiskey Stede keeps in his cabin (although he could easily afford it!), and he certainly doesn't have good marmalade. Ed doesn't treat himself. Ed is a survival guy and he has survival necessities. Ed only has gunpowder. He doesn't have marmalade.

And here comes Stede, with his fancy boat full of fancy things that aren't helpful to survive on the seas. It's a ship full of joyful little pleasures. It's got a library, a nice cozy fireplace, two fucking chandeliers (overkill!), it's stocked with good brandy, and two full closets of nice clothes, and its captain prioritised tasty marmalade for breakfasts over gunpowder for survival.

Because the Revenge isn't built for survival. Stede was done surviving (he'd run away from just surviving). He was probably aware he might not have a long life out on the sea, but Stede didn't come to survive. Stede came to live. And he was going to live to the fullest. He stocked his ship with all the things that he found make life worth living. (Stede later learns that he doesn't need all the things to enjoy life, but that he needs friends and his lover, but that's not the point here.) Stede designed his ship to be fun. To be a nice place to live. The Revenge is full of creature comforts. A full bathtub! Can you imagine Ed to have a full bathtub on his old ship? I can't. Because Ed has spend his life so busy surviving that until he's almost dead he doesn't stop to consider what makes his life worth living. And then it's so simple things he comes up with. (Creature comforts!)

Ed has lived a life of denying himself nice things in favour of things he hates but that are "safe". Ed lives in a house full of gunpowder. And he's choking on it, it's killing him, but he doesn't think there's another way. And then comes a guy who goes "oh actually, I replaced a lot of my gunpowder (not all btw) with this super tasty marmalade so I can have nice breakfasts". And to Ed that's life changing. Look at his face next time you rewatch, when he turns to Stede. This is a guy who just had an epiphany, who just had someone crumble his world view in the best of ways. You don't only have to keep gunpowder. You can also have marmalade, because marmalade is nice. You should live rather than just survive.

And we see Ed try to embrace this. With Stede, and for a brief time before Izzy happens to him, even on his own, Ed lets himself have nice things. He wears comforting clothes and eats the marmalade from the stores. Because it's nice to live a little even when you're sad. And then he goes back to just surviving, and he can't do it. He's tasted marmalade, he can't deal with being stuck with nothing but gunpowder anymore.

But he does survive, and Stede comes back, and they spend the night together and the next morning Blackbeard's getup is tossed away tied to a cannonball (a companion to the gunpowder), and for Ed there's toast with marmalade in bed.

Because Ed chose life. And to live means to have things to enjoy. Like good marmalade to start the day.

[soundlesswind]

Mononoke: Karakasa Review

Mononoke - Phantom in the Rain

Now that it's officially out globally, I can finally offer some thoughts and reflections on the long-awaited continuation of the cult-beloved Ayakashi/Mononoke series. My main tagline for this review can be summarized thusly:

I liked it...but it could have been better.

(~ not spoiler free, read at your own discretion ~)

Karakasa: Visually, it's a bang---structurally, it's a bomb. That about sums up how I feel about the movie overall. It's vibrant, beautiful, and full of intricate patterning and details, and is in a way: both a step up and a step down from the original.

...But what do I mean by that really? Well, I think we need to first highlight what makes Karakasa and Mononoke rather different.

Ayakashi/Mononoke has a much slower pacing, with slightly more muted, and washed-aesthetic tone despite its colourful designs. It shifts from being more colourful or more sombre depending on the type of scene it wants to depict. But even at its most saturated, it never gets quite as vibrant in contrast compared to Karakasa. ...However, you could say that may be in part due to the sheer difference in animation techniques developed over the course of nearly a decade between the two (2006/2007 vs 2024).

That isn't to say Karakasa doesn't have moments of dark imagery, but that even at its darkest, it remains distinctly vibrant and high-in-contrast. You could argue for it as a conscientious choice...but personally, at its root: Mononoke is a horror-ghost story; and the gritter, muddled palettes rather add to that charm.

(2007 Mononoke - Noppera-bou, and Nue)

(2024 Karakasa)

To match its mood, Mononoke also has a much slower cadence and story tempo, despite any singular arc being overall shorter than Karakasa. That cadence adds to another difference: which is spookiness. I find Mononoke to be far spookier and more effortlessly imposing than Karakasa. There's a bit of tension and suspense in the way it's presented: both visually and vocally* (a point I'll bring up later). Mononoke is sometimes boldly laid out in seemingly disjointed flashes, but still somehow ends up cohesive and immersive with its themes and motifs; feeding you just enough information to wet your appetite as to where and just how far it wants to take you. And this is of course, done in parts over the span of 2-3 episodes.

Karakasa on the other hand, has a pacing that feels like a marathon. It seems almost lightning fast, despite the first half of the movie being entirely sociopolitical intrigue without much in the way of anything overtly youkai-esque. In fact, our Medicine Seller doesn't even step foot into the Ooku (women's court) until around 40 minutes in...which is nearly half the movie! ...But naturally, since it's a movie, it will be movie-formatted. Everything is going to run as if it were one singular episode long. --- Still, what does that mean for the pacing?

If you don't know what "tea house tales" "is.....it's basically a format of short stories told over several sessions. It's one of the ways people in the historic East used to tell stories. They'd gather around somewhere, drink tea, eat snacks and share a bit of light entertainment. In the same way the episodic nature of Mononoke is somewhat reminiscent of that. Each part feeds you a bit of information, a bit of mystery, a bit of suspense, and a bit of action. It keeps you sufficiently entertained one way or another without stringing you on far too long before any sort of climactic reveal. In this way, Mononoke feels more balanced and evened out than Karakasa. But even the format aside, I found Karakasa a lot less clear and concise with what it's trying to portray. There were parts of the movie I had to re-watch a few times or sit down and think about afterwards just to fully understand what I think it was alluding to, which wasn't an issue with Mononoke whatsoever. The plot, both visually and thematically was always clear as day for the original series, where as Karakasa sort of muddles on and off between mystery and court drama over the course of an hour and a half.

Personally...I think one of the detriments to Karakasa is the sheer size of its cast. There were simply way too many characters (27+), and some of them even have overlapping roles. There were also quite a few without clear rhyme or reason. For example, we get introduced to Tenshi, Mizoragi and the moon twins, and an assortment of other characters who don't really have much of a presence in the movie (other than to to be positional seat warmers) and are shown for a collective total of a few minutes. Karakasa IS a trilogy however, so it's possible that their roles may be elaborated in future movies, but in regards to the current film, they feel like a distraction. I guess they're going grand and all out, but the benefits of a smaller cast is that you get more intimate with each character and their already very limited screentime. It just wasn't possible for me to feel any intimacy or investment into the large cast of Karakasa---Asa and Kame included.

Comparatively; I always felt truly, fully immersed in all the story arcs of the original Ayakashi/Mononoke. I cared about the characters, or was so invested in their sorrowful tale. But I didn't particularly feel that way about Karakasa because whatever message it was trying to convey kind of got lost in-between all the court drama...which, I'm not sure some viewers may even understand or empathize with unless they already have some knowledge of what women in the imperial harem go through or how it functions. (Speaking of which, Asa practically speed ran the exposition towards the end regarding Kitagawa and her own motives.) Just to name a few: there's the rank struggles of Asa and Kame versus the leaders of the Ooku; the political positions of Fuki, Botan and the other consorts, the political household ties of Saburomaru, the grip of Mizoragi's strange cult, and the (lack of) political power that Tenshi (the emperor) holds versus the Shogunate in the Capital (---I'm not entirely sure what timeline we're in right now, but the fact that there IS a Shogunate implies a lot.)

...Anyway, you can see why there are too many distractions in this movie for me to fully feel immersed in whatever it's trying to tell. It's supposed to be a movie of women's suffering (under the weight of men and the social sphere I suppose), but most of the time it felt more like I was just simply suffering watching women cat fight each other until they quickly got picked off by the Karakasa mononoke.

Speaking of the titular "Karakasa", though... it certainly was an interesting choice of youkai. I wonder if it was because traditionally, karakasa aren't violent youkai, they're merely scary tricksters; and it wasn't as if Kitagawa was really out for revenge (though she did pick off a few people).....actually, now that I've written it out that way, Kitagawa's motives are a little unclear. Or maybe it didn't matter anymore as karakasa grew to the point it became uncontrollable. Either way, I think if they had refocused the movie on Kitagawa and actually visually show the parallels between her, her "friend" and Asa/Kame...instead of giving us a verbal speedrun exposition dump towards the end...I might have felt a little more sympathy (...or just simply anything worth feeling towards the story). But alas.

It certainly didn't help that I was a little unsatisfied with some of the voice cast. For the most part, I was okay with the side cast (particularly the males, since the females hardly had lines); but felt it was a waste that Tsuda Kenjiro (Mizoragi) also hardly had any lines (...though I have a feeling he'll play a bigger role in the next movie). He was actually even one of my 3 ideal choices for Kusuriuri's recast (next to Ishida Akira and Toriumi Kousuke). I've said it before and I'll say it again, I love Kamiya Hiroshi, he is one of my favourites...but I think his role as Kusuriuri was a bit lackluster since his vocal range is medium-high and therefore does not go deep or husky enough to carry the same spook factor that Sakurai Takahiro's voice has. Karakasa also lacks the unique staccato often used in the original Mononoke which gave it an overall interesting sound and pace. I loved the odd vocal nuances and pauses in the previous work and was very sad that it's more or less nonexistent in Karakasa.

My second complaint would be with Asa and Kame's cast, which I felt might've benefited more from actresses with more interesting inflections. Kurosawa Tomoyo is an okay actress. She gets the job done but generally does better on long-running series since she takes a long time to fully have a grip on her role. Honestly, she was on auto-pilot and was quite boring throughout Karakasa. Aoi Yuuki on the other hand has a lot of vocal range, but generally suffers from inconsistency and just sounding like nails on a chalkboard. (I won't even mince it; my housemate walked in on me watching Karakasa on the telly and literally flinched at her voice because it severely hurt her eardrums---my condolences).

Generally speaking, I do prefer older seiyuus, they just have qualities I enjoy more, but I do also think the movie would've benefitted more from either a liveaction casting or a Showa casting. Most of the characters (in both Mononoke and Karakasa) kind of...oddly use modern speech instead of feudal Japanese (minus Utayama), and given that the Ooku IS a court drama, doesn't use court language or any regional dialects whatsoever (granted I'm not even sure if this is Kyoto, Edo, or wherever). Awashima and Mugitani do use formal language, but only Utayama uses slightly older diction. With the exception of a few notable names, most of the cast for Karakasa are from a generation of newer/younger voice actors, whereas Mononoke consists of an older one. You probably won't care unless you're a seiyuu buff, but there is actually a clear vocal distinction between those of different acting generations. For example: Sakurai, Kamiya, Ishida, Tsuda, Ogata, Hayashibara, etc...all have particular qualities to their voice that give it a layer of interest (ie. whispiness, huskiness, nasalness, etc). I don't know if it's caused by the difference in learned language or some other factor, but newer generations of voice actors tend to have more clear-toned voices with more modern inflections. Kurosawa and Aoi both have notably modern inflections when they act. You could say it's a battle of old versus new if we're going by story theme...but in which case, the rest of the cast could've been of an older generation to portray that. (But well, I'm glad they chose an older actress for Utayama, at least). The few exceptions to this are a small handful of modern actresses that are so astoundingly skilled they break that barrier. I kind of wished they had casted Hanazawa for Kame instead but she's already Kitagawa...but in which case, toss Sawashiro Miyuki in that role, I think she would've been a bit spookier. Hanazawa as Kame might've made her more endearing to me, but maybe they were going for the double-double: irritable voice and character combo, since Kame wasn't particularly written to be likeable. --- Kame does somewhat feel like a second generation Kayo (MAO), but I think MAO was still more serviceable to my ears. Anyway. I don't think I should hold up this review post any longer with my derailed rant on voice acting. It is what it is, and at the very least: we found out some lore bombshell that there are possibly at most 64 medicine sellers, and that Sakurai (Ri) Kusuriuri and Kamiya (Kon) Kusuriuri are different characters altogether (---a lot of fans rejoiced about that), making the possibility of two or more existing at one time. Wouldn't that be exciting to see?

Moving on to the music. In contrast to the trailers, the soundtrack in the movie sometimes feel like background white noise. It almost seems like a trend with newer anime, but nowadays, I hardly hear the tracks compared to older shows. Well, in Karakasa in particular, the movie is moving at such a jilted pace: most of the sounds you will hear is either dialogue or the occasional clinks and clangs. They don't really blast OSTs like they used to (...unlike Hollywood movies where I hear too much BGM). --- But following the odd quirks of Ayakashi: some of the vocal themes for Karakasa still are that weird mash of modern and traditional sounds with the occasional rapping. Particularly during the fight scene, there were some hardcore bass rap on cue. I'm not sure if I like or dislike it, but it is different. My favourite track is the Okami-esque flute theme used during the Birth Celebration Ceremony towards the end. But whether it's Mononoke or Karakasa, what stands out in both is not the score, but the sound effects which have always been the distinctive noise of the series.

The teased title for the next installment is "Ashes of Rage". I wonder what that could mean? We're left on a bunch of cliffhangers, such as why did Kusuriuri smile while looking at the clouds, what's the deal with the seal in the well, and what was Mizoragi doing in the cellar pouring water over what looked like an enclosed basin? Moreover, why on earth did they lore drop so much on the background of the medicine sellers...not in the movie but during the side interviews! The fact that they have a home base, or that the Shingi (alters) are different people... So do you mean to tell me, I still can dream of an Ishida Akira Kusuriuri!? There are at most 8 trigram Taima swords, and 2 of which are Sakurai and Kamiya's. Does that mean there's still room for another 6 Kusuriuris? That's so fruity!

If you made it this far, thank you for reading. I also I hope you watched the movie before perusing this given that it's so spoiler heavy. While it does seem like I had a lot of complaints, make no mistake: the movie was gorgeous. It was made with painstaking visual efforts and intricate architecture. Every stroke and splash is a work of art, making it one of the most visually interesting movie in a long time.

While it doesn't replace the old Mononoke in my heart, the Karakasa trilogy is a nice addition; something different and its own thing. A lot more action and a lot more abstract if you dig that sort of presentation.

Given that the trilogy isn't over, I have no doubt the rest of it will continue on with Kamiya's (Kon) Kusuriuri...but I do hope the series continues to keep receiving love so I can eventually have a whole Sentai Kamen rider group of Kusuriuris.

Until next time...~!

[achilles-rage]

achilles-rage's twelve days of christmas

day two: baby, it's cold outside (ft. donovan rocker)

summary: after spending the week in a cabin with a group of friends, you and rocker get snowed in.

word count: 5.3k

series masterlist

a/n: this sorta got away from me lol. usually my fics end up being around 2-3k words so idk how this happened. also i don't love how this ended, but it was like 3am when i was finishing it and i was exhausted lol. anyway, enjoy<3

warnings: smut, no use of y/n, fem!reader, plus size!reader, race inclusive!reader

MDNI- 18+ only!

You really, truly, hadn’t meant to put yourself in this situation, as much as it makes butterflies swarm in your belly.

For the holidays, you and some friends decided to rent a cabin in Northern California. It ended up being an odd mismatch of people going, since many of your friends were visiting family for most of December. You ended up with your best friend, her boyfriend, your two good friends that you met through your best friend, and one of her boyfriend’s friends, who you just happened to work with.

You haven’t spoken much to Rocker, but that didn’t stop all of you from enjoying your week; going skiing, taking walks in the forest around the cabin, and spending evenings in the hot tub on the back deck with festive cocktails that your friend found the recipe for online.

Honestly, Rocker was glad to be invited. Even more so when he came out onto the back deck the first night and saw you wearing your black bikini. His mouth went dry as he took in all of your dips and curves that were on display for his eyes, and as he lowered himself into the hot tub, he was extremely glad that you and your best friend were in the middle of loudly telling a story and no one was paying attention to him. 

If anyone were to tear their eyes away from your and your best friend talking over each other and cutting each other off in a fit of drunken giggles, they would’ve seen the very obvious bulge in his swim trunks, and he doesn’t think he’d be able to simply explain his situation away.

Each night when everyone ended the day in the hot tub, he couldn’t help that his eyes were glued to you. 

Glued to the way your tits sat in your bikini. 

Glued to the way your tummy moved when you laughed, or when you leaned over him to grab your phone sitting on your towel beside him. 

Glued to the way your eyes lit up when you told a story, or the way you looked so excited to be with people that you loved.

He couldn’t get enough of you.

It’s one thing to see you at work, dressed in your work appropriate outfits and acting like a put together professional. But it’s a complete other thing to see you like this.

Even so, he didn’t talk to you more than he had to. He had to keep it friendly enough that you wouldn’t think he disliked you, but professional enough that it wouldn’t make things awkward at work, which was proving difficult. All he wanted to do when he talked to you was make you smile and laugh, and to tell you how gorgeous you were, but he knew he couldn’t.

When the last night of your trip finally comes and goes, your best friend, her boyfriend, and your two other friends leave early in the morning, having to drive further to get to their families for Christmas. You, however, decide to sleep in. Your checkout time isn’t until 2:00 anyway, so you decide that it wouldn’t hurt to stay in your big, warm bed just a little bit longer. 

It only becomes a problem when you go downstairs to make yourself some coffee and see the flurry of snow outside the windows.

Your footsteps halt as you look out the sliding door to the back deck, seeing that there’s at least a foot of snow on the ground already, and it doesn’t look like the snow is stopping anytime soon. Shit, you think, what the hell are you gonna do now? Your car most definitely cannot get through all that snow, and everyone has already left.

You continue to the kitchen to make your coffee, knowing that there’s no point in panicking. Surely the owner of the cabin will understand that you have no way of leaving. And either way, you remember them saying that there was no other booking for the cabin for another few days when you first got here, anyway.

As you begin walking over to the couch from the kitchen, walking carefully with the steaming mug between your hands in a desperate attempt to warm yourself up, the door opens with a slam. You jump slightly, causing a few drops of coffee to spill over the rim of the mug and onto the hardwood floor.

“I thought you already left.” is all you say when you look up to see Rocker in the doorway, completely covered in snow.

“Wanted to take a hike before I left. Didn’t see snow in the forecast.” he grumbles as he begins to wipe the snow from his coat while stomping his feet on the doormat.

When he finally looks up from his feet, barely worried about the puddle now accumulating on the floor beneath him, he sees you in your tank top and sleep shorts, and he has to fight back a groan.

His eyes trail down your body once, only once, he makes sure of it, and then he strips off his coat, hat, gloves, and boots. His jeans are completely covered in snow, which is now sticking to the fabric as it begins to melt, and you feel yourself shiver as you take in his appearance.

“I guess we’re stuck here for a while.” you say in a timid voice, that fact just now registering in your brain as you stare at him. 

You’ve always thought he was attractive; from the moment you saw him at work you thought so. You couldn’t do anything about it, though, obviously. Neither of you were the other’s superior or anything, but if you even tried to flirt with him and things went wrong, it would just make things weird. And either way, you’re not sure he even likes you, not even as a friend. 

Sure, you spent the week together, but this was with a group of mutual friends, and you barely spoke to each other one on one. 

“I guess so.” is all he can bring himself to say. The thought of being here alone with you has his stomach in knots, and he can already tell that this is going to test his willpower. Even now, cold to the bone and face bright red from the cold wind, all he wants to do is feel your soft body against his, feel his lips on your skin.

With nothing more than a mumble about going to take a shower, he’s gone. You only snap out of your daze when he’s up the stairs and out of sight. You lick your lips, trying to calm your racing heart as the panic begins to settle in. 

You’re stuck in the middle of the woods, in a cabin that you don’t own, and with quite possibly the most attractive man you’ve ever met. What could go wrong?

You blink a few times, then remember the coffee you just spilled on the floor, and turn back towards the kitchen to get a paper towel. Once you’re finished with that, you head upstairs to change, figuring it would probably be better to actually be wearing a bra the next time you see Rocker. 

When he finally comes out of the bathroom and downstairs to the living room, you’re curled up on the couch in black leggings and a white cable knit sweater, absentmindedly reading the book you brought, but hadn’t actually had the time to pick up until now. 

“Made you a coffee. Figured you’d need it.” you tell him when he sits down on the other end of the couch. He lets out a soft sigh as he settles on the couch, giving you a small smile at your words.

“You didn’t have to-” he trails off, but leans forward to pick up the mug anyway. He can feel the coffee warm him up as soon as he takes a sip, but he’s sure that what actually makes his skin feel hot is that you thought to do this for him.

“You looked like you needed it. I’m surprised you made it back in one piece through all that snow.” you reply, and he grunts, a scowl making its way onto his face as he remembers the numbing cold he experienced when it started to snow at the furthest part of his hike.

“What are you still doing here? I thought everyone was leaving early?” he asks, turning to angle his body towards your side of the couch.

You shake your head, closing your book and setting it down in your lap. It’s not like you were really reading it anyway.

“Wanted to sleep in. Didn’t have anywhere to go, so I thought I’d take advantage of having the place to myself.” you tell him with a shrug, and he nods, humming softly.

“Sorry,” he says, and you furrow your brows, confused. “For ruining your alone time.” You smile at the sentiment, shaking your head quickly. 

“No, don’t worry about it. I’m glad I’m not here alone.” you reassure him, and he feels heat rush to his cheeks at the way you’re looking at him. He feels his heart racing at having your attention on him, and he barely knows what to do. He’s never felt like this before around a woman.

“Well, I’m gonna go see what we’ve got left in the kitchen. Let you get back to your book.” he says after a moment of silence. You nod, giving him a smile. 

You want to tell him no, that you want him to stay right where he is, but you don’t. All you do is pick your book back up, not looking away from him until he’s up from the couch and his back is towards you as he makes his way to the kitchen.

The next few hours pass by in silence, for the most part. When Rocker’s done in the kitchen, he goes up to his room to grab his own book, then settles in his spot on the couch again. 

As you both get entranced in your books, the silence is hardly awkward. It’s comfortable. It’s not until it’s almost dark outside that you’re torn from your book, feeling the couch shift under you as Rocker stands up.

“You getting hungry? I found some cans of soup in the kitchen.” he asks. You lower your book, then move to stand, but he stops you before you can.

“That’s okay, you stay here. I’ll make it.” he tells you, holding a hand out. “Tomato or chicken noodle?” 

“Chicken noodle, obviously.” you say, and he chuckles softly before nodding. 

You let out a sigh when he goes to the kitchen, listening to the banging of pots and pans moving as you look out the window, just barely able to see the snowflakes falling as the sun falls below the horizon.

When the soup is done, he brings both bowls over to the couch, and you turn on the TV so you don’t have to sit in silence. When the TV hums to life, a Christmas movie is just starting, so you leave it on whatever channel it’s on. 

When you’re both almost done with your bowls, the lights flicker a few times, then go out completely, leaving you both in complete darkness. All that’s heard is the clanking of bowls hitting the coffee table in front of you before both of your phone flashlights turn on, illuminating the room in an eerie glow as panic begins to set into your body.

Rocker can immediately tell that you’re on edge, and he scoots closer to you, looking at you with a soft gaze.

“Hey, it’s okay. It’s just the storm. I’m sure it’ll be back on soon.” he says in an attempt to calm you, but the wheels in your head are already turning as you look around the now suddenly too big cabin you’re in. This feels like the set of a horror movie. 

“We’re gonna freeze in here.” is all you say. You know it would be silly to actually voice the thoughts at the forefront of your brain; that a murderer is probably outside the cabin with an axe and a sinister smile on his face as he realizes he was successful at cutting the power.

“We’re not gonna freeze. It’ll take a while for it to actually get cold in here. And, we have a fireplace.” he says in a soothing voice, motioning to the beautiful brick fireplace that the TV is sitting on. You nod slowly as your eyes move over to the fireplace; your grip painfully tight on your phone. You should’ve charged it earlier, you think.

“Hey, you never told me how that story ended.” he says after a moment, watching your eyes dart from the windows lining the back wall of the house, to the fireplace, to the front door.

“What?” you ask in a slight daze, your gaze finally darting over to meet his. He repeats his sentence, and when you stare blankly at him, he clarifies.

“The story you told last night, about when you and Carter went on your road trip.” 

You can’t help but smile at the thought, a silent laugh escaping your throat. After you finished college, you and your best friend went on a road trip to celebrate, and last night in the hot tub, you both drunkenly tried to tell the story of when you stayed the night in Yosemite, but got distracted before you could finish it.

“Well, we got there at, like, one in the morning, so we obviously didn’t want to set up the tent. We slept in the car, but it got so hot that Carter rolled down the windows, but just a little bit, because of the bears.” you begin with a fond smile, a faraway look in your eyes as you recount the memory.

“I was passed out during the whole thing, but when I woke up, she was laying half out of the car, the back door wide open and her feet propped up on the seat. When we woke up, our whole bodies hurt from sleeping in the car, so we didn’t even hike or anything, we just sat in silence at the campsite. No tent or anything set up, just two lawn chairs out, because we were so cranky.” you finish, laughing softly. 

You finally focus on him again when you hear his chuckle, and when your eyes lock, he lets out a sigh of relief. You seem to be calming down, which he’s thankful for. 

“I thought Carter said that you were the one that slept outside of the car.” he teases after a moment, and you scoff, rolling your eyes.

“She’s a dirty little liar.” you reply with a laugh, which makes him laugh again.

You talk for about an hour, bringing up old stories, and anything else that happens to come up, when a shiver rips through your body. The house is getting cold without heat, and even with your thick sweater on and the blanket over your lap, you still feel the cold settling into your bones.

“Are you cold?” Rocker asks, his brows furrowing in concern. He doesn’t give you the time to answer, though, before he’s up and over to the fireplace, quickly working to get the fire started.

“Now I’m really glad you’re here. I’d definitely freeze if it was just me.” you say as you watch him. Your eyes focus on his broad shoulders, and you almost can’t believe that you can still see the outline of muscle even through his sweater as his body moves. 

You’ve seen him in tight shirts at work, of course, which is hard enough, but now, you can’t tear your eyes away from him. He just looks so soft. You can still see the firmness of his muscles, but with his sweater paired with seeing him in such a domestic setting, you think your heart is about to beat out of your chest.

You feel the flash of heat immediately when the spark of fire lights up the room, and you finally turn off your phone flashlight as the glow gets brighter.

You continue to talk until well into the night, and the gap between you two gets smaller and smaller as the time goes on. It’s not until you’re slumped against the back of the couch, eyelids threatening to fall shut that Rocker notices just how tired he is as well. 

He barely even noticed as he spoke to you, eyes locked on yours as he takes in the soft look on your face, and how adorable you look curled up on the couch beside him. If he was sure you felt the same about him, he would’ve pulled you into his arms hours ago and let you nuzzle into his chest to keep you warm.

“We should probably go to bed. Maybe the power will be back on in the morning, or the road will be cleared.” You nod with a quiet sigh. You really don’t want to go to bed. Mostly because you’d have to get out from under the blanket and go upstairs; you’re already cold enough sitting in front of the fire, but also because you don’t want to be any further away from him than how close you are now. 

His leg is touching yours ever so slightly, and one of his arms is draped over the back of the couch, his fingertips so close to touching the fabric of your sweater.

“We should sleep down here. It’s probably freezing upstairs.” he speaks again when you don’t respond. Your face brightens at the idea, but then almost immediately, your heart rate quickens at the idea of sleeping in here with him. 

You reach down to grab your phone, but your hand brushes his on the way to it, and he practically hisses as he feels your fingertips along the back of his hand.

“You’re freezing.” he says, his eyes wide as his eyes move up to meet yours. You shrug, pursing your lips slightly.

“It’s freezing in here.” you reply, and he huffs. He hates the idea of you being uncomfortable, and he wants more than anything to be able to fix it.

“How about we drag a mattress down here, set it up right in front of the fire. That should keep us warm.” Your throat goes dry at the idea. You immediately pick up on the fact that he says us and not you. Is he implying that you’re both going to sleep on the mattress?

“Okay.” you murmur after a moment, realizing that you’ve taken a second too long to reply. You give him a smile before you both stand up and make your way up to your rooms. You change into sweatpants and a hoodie, then make your way down the stairs with a few blankets and pillows from your own bed.

He’s already downstairs, his mattress, blankets, and pillows already all set up. You throw your blankets down on the foot of the bed, then settle in beside him, inviting the all-consuming smell of him filling your nostrils. 

Once you both have the blankets up to your hips, you both work to layer your blankets on top of his before lying down and pulling the blankets up to your chins, and you can’t help the giggle that escapes past your lips at the sight of all of the blankets covering your legs. 

You lay in silence for a few moments, and you’re still practically shivering, even under your mountain of blankets.

“Are you still cold?” Rocker asks, his voice cutting through the silence and snapping you out of your own head. 

Your head turns to face him, and you nod slightly, the tip of your nose and your fingers and toes ice cold.

“Come here.” is all he says, and you swallow, eyes darting down to the way he opens his arms and rolls over onto his side. 

You bite your lip as you turn around and move to press up against his chest. You let out a content sigh when you feel his warmth radiating through the fabric of both of your hoodies, heating you up back to front as his arm wraps around your plush middle and pulls your back flush against his chest.

“If I knew all it took was getting snowed in in a cabin to get you in my arms, I would’ve booked this trip a long time ago.” he says after a minute or two. His eyes widen slightly when he realizes what the hell he just said. He’s not sure if it’s the cold, or how good it feels to have you pressed up against him, but his whole body goes tense, waiting for your reaction.

“What?” you ask softly, your brows furrowing together. You don’t dare to turn back around, you’re afraid that if you do, he’ll see the slight upward turn of your lips.

“What, you didn’t think that I’ve been dying to get you like this? That I want you so bad it makes me look stupid?” he continues, having heard the hint of happiness in your voice. It’s now or never, he thinks.

“I don’t know, I just didn’t think you liked me.” It’s true; all week he hadn’t bothered to speak to you much, and there were times today where he was just so goddamn nervous to talk to you that he could barely look at you. You didn’t see the nervousness though; he hid it well. Instead, you took it as disinterest.

“Didn’t like you? Sweetheart, if it was up to me, you’d already be mine.” he says, his voice full of disbelief as he raises up onto his elbow, forcing you to turn your upper body until your back hits the mattress, letting him look into your eyes.

“Yeah?” you whisper breathlessly, feeling like you just got the wind knocked out of you. You can see the way his eyes gleam in the soft glow of the fireplace, the way it highlights his jawline and the furrow of his brows, and all you want to do is kiss him.

“Yeah.” he replies in the same tone, and before you know it, his lips are on yours. 

The kiss starts out slow, as if he’s afraid you’ll pull away, but when you don’t, he lets the hand that was previously draped over your soft tummy grab your jaw, kissing you deeper.

A soft whimper escapes your lips as his tongue licks into your mouth, and you feel dizzy when he tilts your head up into the kiss just slightly.

“God, you’re beautiful.” he whispers against your lips, and you hum softly, your frigid hands now holding onto his face. 

While one arm holds himself up, the other hand that’s holding your jaw trails down your body until it gets to the waistband of your sweatpants. His fingers dance along the waistband while he continues to kiss you greedily, and when he pulls back for a second to gauge your reaction, all you can muster is a desperate “please.”

He wastes no time, and dips his fingers under your sweatpants and panties, moving down to your dripping core. You whimper as his fingers glide across your wet folds, and his takes this time to attach his lips to your neck, making you tilt your head back. 

You bite your lip as he pushes two fingers into you, moving achingly slow as he feels you stretch around his fingers. He pulls back from your neck and looks into your eyes, his eyes full of lust and pupils blown.

“Let me hear you, sweetheart.” he tells you when he sees you biting your lip, increasing the pace of his fingers without warning. Your entire body feels hot as his thumb finds your clit, rubbing lazy circles over the sensitive bud, and you moan, bucking your hips against his hand.

He continues to kiss and nip at your neck, teeth digging into the flesh, and tongue moving across spots in an attempt to soothe your skin as he continues to move his fingers in and out of you quicker. You mewl loudly, however, when he curls his fingers, hitting that spot inside you that has your toes curling.

“Donovan.” you whisper breathlessly as you arch your back, feeling yourself approaching the edge. He leans back from your neck to look into your eyes, continuing to circle your puffy clit with his thumb as his two fingers continue to curl up against you.

“Cum for me, baby.” he whispers, and after a few moments, you’re cumming, clenching around his fingers as you moan loudly.

You watch with hooded eyes as he pulls his fingers away from your pulsing cunt, then raises them to his mouth and licks them clean. You swallow, chest heaving as he sucks your juices from his skin, making sure to get everything he can.

“You taste so good, sweetheart. If I wouldn’t suffocate under all those blankets, I’d make you cum on my tongue before I fuck you.” he practically growls, and you can’t stop the quiet laugh from escaping your lips.

“Next time.” is all you say before you bring your lips to his again, moaning when you taste your sweetness on his tongue. 

You both work to get your sweatpants off, the fabric catching on the bedsheets and blankets as you try to kick them off. When you finally get them off, your hands are back on his cheeks again, kissing him sloppily.

Suddenly, you’re overwhelmed by your need for him, your desperation for him. You can’t wait any longer, and in one swift movement, you’re pushing him onto his back and straddling his lap.

He lets out a huff of surprise, but he welcomes your weight on him, his hands immediately going to your hips as you begin to grind against his lap. You can feel his hard cock against your clit as you grind against him, and you can’t take it anymore. 

You lift your hips off him just enough to take him out of his sweatpants, and when you do, you lower onto him without warning, mewling as you adjust to his size. 

He’s sure he’s never felt anything so good, so heavenly, as you sink onto him, your walls clenching around him as he grips your thighs tightly. When you begin to move, he has to squeeze his eyes shut for a moment, knowing that if he doesn’t pull it together, that he’s going to cum too soon. 

When you begin to bounce on his cock, his hands move up and claw at your hoodie, desperate to see your soft tummy and your tits bounce with each movement. 

You reach down to the hem of your hoodie and pull it off in one swift motion, giggling breathlessly as his hands immediately move to the clasp of your bra. You let him slide the straps down your arms when it’s unclasped, and he groans when he sees your bare tits spring free.

Once you’re completely bare, you reach down and try to push his hoodie up his torso, and he takes the hint, lifting his back off the bed slightly to pull it off and throw it somewhere to be found later.

You continue to sink down onto his cock, momentarily moving in unrhythmic bounces as you reach behind you and pull the blankets up to rest against your back. It’s still cold in here, as much as he is lighting a fire inside of you.

You lean forward, your hands falling on either side of his head to keep the blanket up over you, and Rocker thinks he’s died and gone to heaven as he watches your face twist in pleasure.

“So good for me, baby. Keeping bouncing on my cock.” he purrs, and you moan as his hands move up to cup and squeeze your breasts.

“Feel so good.” you murmur as you continue to move against him, switching between moving up and down on his cock, and grinding against his lap. He moves his hands back down to your thighs, squeezing the supple flesh hard, and he raises his mouth up to one of your breasts, taking one of your nipples into his mouth and swirling his tongue around the bud. 

You whimper loudly as he licks and sucks on your breast, leaving bite marks and dark spots in his wake before switching to the other one. 

He can feel your movements become sloppy, and he knows you’re getting close to the edge again. He lowers his head back to the pillow, and his fingers move up from your thighs to your hips before he grips them tightly and bucks his hips up against yours. 

He feels impossibly deeper with each thrust, and you can feel your legs starting to shake as you get dangerously close to the edge. It’s only when you feel his cock twitching that you know he’s close too.

“You want me to cum inside you, pretty girl? Fill you up?” he rasps, and all you can do is nod, moaning loudly. You look deep into each other's eyes as you both breathe heavily, both desperately chasing your highs, and in a few more thrusts, Rocker’s balls tighten, and he lets go with a loud groan. 

You feel his cum painting the inside of your cunt, and that’s all it takes for you to fall over the edge as well, body going taut as you clench around his cock.

You practically collapse onto his chest, cheek pressed against his hot skin as you come down from your highs. You can feel him softening inside you, and your mixed releases dripping out of your fucked out cunt, but you can’t bring yourself to care. One of his hands is rubbing your back absentmindedly while the other holds your thigh, and your body feels so warm now that you’re pressed against him like this. 

After a few minutes, your breathing is back to normal, and you finally lift yourself off of him, whining softly as you clench around nothing. 

Then, you move to lay in front of him again, letting him pull your back against his chest as he presses a chaste kiss to the back of your neck.

“You’re so good, baby. Love having you like this.” he whispers in your ear, and you feel yourself shiver when his hot breath hits your skin, leaving goosebumps in its wake. 

“And all it took was a snow storm.” you joke softly as your eyelids become heavy. You feel his chest vibrate as he chuckles quietly, then he presses a kiss to your bare shoulder.

“You warming up now?” he asks as your hand comes up to rest against his, the one holding your soft tummy, and it’s not ice cold. You nod, smiling softly as your eyes flutter closed.

“Good. Go to sleep, baby.” he says, and you nod again, humming softly.

It doesn’t take either of you long to fall asleep, and when you wake up in the morning to see that the power is back on, you’re both a little disappointed. You still stay in bed for a while, however, limbs entangled with each other’s and lips finding the other’s as you talk in whispered tones, afraid that if you talk any louder, you’ll disturb the atmosphere you’ve created just by being together.

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[skaruresonic]

...We're just gonna ignore how he straight-up said there was no one reason for the change, implying Sega had this idea in mind for a while now?

I also love how Ian was like "do not dogpile the trolls," as if slapping a Band-Aid on a gaping wound is going to help at this point. At least now he has the faintest veneer of plausible deniability ig lol.

I could also go on about how Ian's scolded his chat for harassment before, but since mentioning that part would probably start another shitstorm, I'm not going to dwell too long on it.

Just something to keep in mind, though. Trust me, randos on Twitter criticizing his clips "out of context" (nothing is ever considered IN context to these people, interestingly enough) is not the problem when it's the chat sending inappropriate questions to the show and ragging on people. Like I've been saying for years, the call has always come from inside the house. It's just taken Sega until now to actually do something about it.

For the record, he also clarified that Sega will not vet his answers, just the questions he receives. He's thoroughly disavowed any official connection between his podcast and Sega's official views on the series. Now watch as everyone misses the memo and insists his answers can now be nothing other than 100% accurate because of this supposed vetting process.

Because that's what they've been fucking saying for the past five years: "Ian's work is good/canon/quality/kosher because Sega approved it!" As though some intern glancing at his stuff and giving it the vaguest vibe check means Takashi Iizuka personally oversaw his off-the-clock bullshitting.

However. I feel like if you monetize saying stupid shit online, which ventures from merely stating your opinion in an equal forum to one where the power imbalance shifts because people are paying you cash money to confirm their fanon... well, that's not automatically exempt from criticism, either. Mostly because money is involved. That's why he was careful to emphasize how the show will refund people if their questions get rejected, and why, ultimately, I can see this fueling the anti-ST fire even more: "Big meanie Sega is making Flynn go broke because they rejected my question about Sonic characters slapping asses and forced him to refund me >:o"

The discourse will change flavor, vaguely, but as always, folks will ignore the truth of the matter to suit their agenda.

So apparently all Sonic-related questions on the Bumblekast are now going to be peer-reviewed by Sega first due to people posting clips on Twitter out of context to try and villainize Ian and/or Sega.

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes, I guess.

Well it's about fucking time. And hahaha no. SEGA are clamping down on this because they're sick and tired of him acting like he's word of God, TAKING MONEY FOR IT and answering risque questions such as ass-smacking about characters that don't belong to him.

[poomphuripan]

endless poom phuripan gifs [27/?]

↳ Question: Which NC scene in the drama is your favorite? in Let's Chat: EP 1-3

[stormyoceans]

LINE READING SO DEVASTATING I NEED TO DIE ABOUT IT

[volfoss]

it is beyond infuriating how anne rice seems to insist on marius being a positive force in anyone's life ever. like she can't fully commit to exploring the fact he groomed armand and has repeatedly taken away his consent for what marius thinks is best (take the end of TVA as an example) and just kind of flatly puts it in the narrative. there's not really much interest in how these horrific events make marius come across as the worst because EVERYONE loves him. for gods sake, lestat learns from armand exactly what marius did to him in TVL and then proceeds to go find marius and be super friendly to him in the same fucking book. even armand and pandora, two of the people who have MORE than enough right to hate him, do not. it doesnt feel like shes trying to explore the toxicity of the abusive dynamic he traps them in, it just is there. and like yeah ofc the toxic vampire romance series but i think that this should be handled with more care. and it is not ever really framed in a way that she is interested in exploring how marius should easily be one of the most horrific characters in this series because it kind of feels like sa/rape/grooming/other things of that sort are just put there to further plot and not to really get the respect that they deserve in a medium.

[pipperoo]

how the fuck is it already november 25th?!!?!!?

(time is so fucked up)

anyway, happy one year anniversary to my fic “if only there was more time” and posting on ao3 for the first time!

sincerely can’t believe that i’ve been writing for a year, how did that happen???

[secriden]

#(also sorry @prev for the absolute avalench of notifs you're about to get from me your joongdunk tag is a treasure trove#that i'm determined to mine because i have a LOT to catch up on after discovering them recently)

oh no need to apologize, i've been very much enjoying reading your tags in my notifs!!!! and you're also putting old posts into my notifs that i had completely forgotten about so like, that's a nice trip down memory lane so thank youf or that!!

and i'm super happy my JD tag is of help to you, enjoyyyyy <333 (it's mostly got stuff from the past year because my preference is to know as little about actos as possible outside their series and so i didn't fall into the rabbit hole that is joongdunk "off camera" until a year ago, which means there's a whole bunch that isn't actually on my blog djfkgkdf)

hahhaa well i'm glad i'm not the only one having a blast!! a trip down joongdunk memory lane is something that can only be good. >w<

and oh, even the past year is so useful to me since i only learned about them ... pretty much 3 weeks ago so most of what i know has been via THK (which i also accidentally stumbled on because YT recommended it to me. and i've always loved remakes of old classic stories so when i noticed it was based on Taming of The Shrew -- which i thought was accidental -- i was instantly intrigued. and ofc my boys FadelStyle instantly captivated my attention because!!

oops sorry got a little distracted there. QuQ)

but yes. treasure trove, thank you so much!! <3

also i'm so grateful for your one-post compilations like the joongdunk vampire manifesto or when you summarised what went down when joong scolded the fandom for not enough fanfics. thank you so much for making those!! they are particularly valuable for people like me who have so much joongdunk lore to catch up on. xD <3

[meowchela]

guys inanimate insanity is updating again and i kinda dgaf because the hyperfixation died years ago but i just got spoiled (??? i think) for something and ngl its making me kinda intruiged.........these days ive moved on to other things and grown up (which is ironic considering i got into II when i was a little bit over the target age in the first place) but like. should i finish it just to finish it since season 2 is finally wrapping up or nah since idk if i feel like going back to it rn

[inkykeiji]

so i’m finally catching up on jjk because i was like 9 episodes behind whoops and i just,,, i’m having so much trouble actually focusing and paying attention. my issue with jjk is that i LOVE the characters—i think they’re great and fun and so, so interesting, and i love their dynamics with one another—but the story itself, like the plot n all that, bores me to absolute tears 。ﾟ(ﾟﾉД｀ﾟ)ﾟ｡

it’s quite well written, i think, but i’m (personally!) just having such a hard time actually feeling invested in it :(