#waffley

[blossoms-phan]

dan’s music taste is soooo sexy I genuinely listen to a playlist someone made of his recs mostly from when he talked about it more often in like 2017-18 liveshows all the time I get it’s topical but I’ve heard enough about charli xcx and chappell roan i need to hear him talk about the current range

[enbeemagical]

thinking I'm gonna crosspost shadowbird to tapas

[bha3ls]

using that idea i had earlier about rinn not losing her memory as the basis of her companion verse so. recruiting info and quest below.

companion quest: the surface drow

korinn can be found in two places to recruit- first near the chapel entrance where she is watching the looters from cover. at this time she's disinterested and dismissive of the party, and states that the looters have stolen some items that belong to her. not looking at or speaking to the party directly, the tadpoles will not connect. she will not volunteer any personal information and is evasive if asked about the ship, but an insight check will reveal she is hiding something and her hands are twitching.

if the party promises to attack the looters then she will offer to join as a temporary companion, otherwise there's no way here to recruit her. assuming the party takes her as a temporary ally, then after killing the looters she will offer a token of gratitude where the tadpoles will connect.

if not recruited, the party will come across her again in waukeens rest being threatened by one of the flaming fist survivors who think she was with the goblins and attacking drow. she will have retrieved her armour and weapons. if the party found the body of a looter when leaving the crypt then they'll notice that there's smeared blood across her torso and arms that someone has tried to wash away. this time the tadpoles will connect, and the visions that appear are disconnected flashes of her torture at kressa's hands.

it is much easier to recruit her here, the party only needing to defend her by saying she wasn't a part of this attack and then stating they're searching for a cure for the tadpoles. once recruited, she will be very insistent on going to moonrise "for the cure" and will feign amnesia, claiming that the head injury has caused her to forget nearly everything except being kidnapped from baldurs gate by the mindflayers. if passing certain checks, then she will go to the extent of revealing she has always lived in baldurs gate and works in a temple in the lower city.

she takes a similar role to astarion and lazael in camp, generally approving of evil choices and disapproving of helping others. will comment on how they don't have a lot of time to fix their affliction and shouldn't waste their time on anything but finding a cure.

her companion quest will generally note that she's never lived in the underdark, is unfamiliar with actual drow culture, and that she seems to know more than she lets on about the absolute. if she's in the party when going to the goblin camp, and thus experiencing the vision, then she can be questioned about her anger over the voices of the absolute.

following the goblin camp, after a long rest the party will find the brutalised corpse of a bard somewhere along the road similar to the dead boar. if she's present, then a successful check will note she seems amused by the body. you can either roll a persuasion or (a much higher) intimidation dialogue here, if successful then she will admit it's certainly a ritual sacrifice but claim the symbol is too damaged to recognise who its for.

in act ii, on visiting moonrise she will be recognised enough to be pressed about it by the party. if there's a high enough approval here then she will admit that she is a bhaalspawn and was a part of masterminding the tadpoles but was betrayed before the plan was enacted, otherwise ketheric will reveal it before their fight and question if they know who they're fighting beside.

there's two options here besides her becoming hostile; depending on the approval levels and type of playthrough then either the party can convince her to take revenge on the three who betrayed her and destroy the absolute plan...or to take revenge by killing thorm/orin/gortash and taking control of the absolute with them rather than for bhaal. in subsequent conversations she can reveal that she was initially using the party to get back to moonrise and hopefully just kill orin, finding them interesting enough allies that she stuck with them even after that, and that she lied about the amnesia as she knew they wouldn't help a bhaalspawn/the person who caused their condition.

[guesst]

i have like . one scene left and maybe an extra one i moght add and then edits and then fake grandson au is Fini FINITO finished ! yipee

[partlyironic]

Steven was trying sooo hard to defend Shane it was adorable, but in the survival mode episode we can see how much both Steven and Ryan when together can really fuck with Shane and it’s so fun. I need more of this lmao

YESSSSSSSSS ok but Shane and Steven are SO cute and this dynamic comes up a lot where Ryan, a gremlin and a menace, will poke at one of them and the other will jump in and defend them. or sometimes when Ryan gets in a 1v1 convo with one of them, they will make an effort to bring the other back into the convo (usually this is Shane to Steven).

it is so cute. they're so... sweet with one another??? in the way where you can tell it is borne of genuine affection but also because it isn't a relationship where that kind of harder teasing would occur often, unlike the one they both share with ryan. its why seeing moments where they DO tease one another is so novel. and special. to ME.

[thewolfruns]

okay idk how long it's gonna take me to start crying, but i've started tlou over again to get me in the mood for ... heartland. a thewolfruns/@someotherdog joint. it's a zombie apocalypse indie group verse. are you interested? hit the heart.

[buckyschair]

just popping on here to manifest a cozy affordable apartment in the town i want 🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️

[baited-beth]

I just had an interesting realisation.

The friend who cut me off 2 years ago for my crimes of terfism was always super judgemental when people didn’t abide by social mores, whereas my mentality was more live and let live/ let’s consider why they’re acting as they are. E.g. there was a grad who she always judged for being ‘unprofessional’ when it turns out she was really struggling to fit in and was trying her hardest without being given appropriate support. My ex-friend’s attitude did used to really bug me because she would dismiss people who had a lot to offer because they didn’t follow her strict ‘this is how you should act in social situations’ rules.

It’s unsurprising that she couldn’t cope with me refusing to abide by the new social more of gender ideology, even though I had made clear I was quite happy to remain friends who disagreed. Belief in gender is a rule book for how to act in social situations. I’ve never been good at following rules if I can’t see the reason for them.

[britishchick09]

a rewrite christine i drew last night! ;)

[siph-by-induction]

67 :3

67- what are your hobbies?

Playing flute is my main Thing. atm I am learning

no 8 from tricky jazz singles by russell stokes. there is no actual recordings online so all i can give you is this weird midi snippet. it’s super pretty. the flexibility it requires though, is a bit scary, those jumps between registers are beyond me at times.

vivaldi concerto no 2 which is just lovely. i especially like the fourth movt (starts at 5:03). and the second movt (starts at 2:28ish). though i play it quite differently to ol’ Mr Galway in the second movement, my articulation and dynamics is far less stylistically accurate for baroque music, but sounds far better.

allegro malincolico by poulenc (though with great reluctance, it’s such a boring piece and I hate it and wish I could do the Burton sonatina instead but that’s significantly harder so I must stick with this 😔), for which I will not provide a link because I wish not to impose the horrors on you all as well! I didn’t used to hate this, but lately I’ve just grown so sick of it.

And those are all ones I’m learning properly for my grade 8 so i’m all formally doing them. (Can you tell that I just choose pieces based on what has lots of double / triple tonguing? 😂 I find double tonguing fun and i’m getting pretty good at it now. partially due to it becoming a stim to just go TKTKTKTKTKTKTKTKTKKTK.)

I’m also learning

the first movement of the Burton sonatina. very very beautiful. also it’s fortissississimo a lot and I like to play loud so that’s good. but this is seriously a stunning piece, listen to it to give your ears bliss.

the great train race by ian clarke. SO FUN I FUCKIG ADORE IT it involves making train whistles with the flute and humming while playing and all sorts it’s so fun. my flute teacher has a model train big enough to sit on and he said one time i should play this piece while going round on the model train and i agree wouldn’t that be fantastic

and the chaminade concertino! SO FUN BUT SO FRIGHTHENING! I accompanied somebody else playing this piece a few months ago, which was great. Music starts at 2:18 in the vid. I’m very proud of how well I can play the scary fast middle section at 5:53 (well. “well” in this case is messy, out of tune and tonally inconsistent, but i’m still proud because it’s very very difficult).

Though those are more me doing extra things so my teacher’s less involved in them, I really love all three of those pieces.

I actually had an orchestra rehearsal this morning! In that, I’m playing the Farandole by Bizet (from Arlesienne), which is very exciting as the flute part is big and important, and as I’ve played it a lot it’s no longer embarrassing to play it and fumble over the semiquavers.

I also play the piano, but I’m bad at that, whereas with flute I play well sometimes. I’m learning a bunch of Tom Lehrer music on the piano atm (masochism tango I can do, and we will all go together when we go I’ve been struggling to learn because it’s hard, and poisoning pigeons in the park i’m in the process of learning).

Also, I’ve not been doing it as much lately due to exams, but I like to edit wikipedia and research / study things in my spare time a lot because I’m a nerd. not sure if that counts as a hobby but i think it probably should count.

I also really want to get into spec bio. That’s something I shall try out after exams.

[kelticangel]

Psychology tidbit of the day

Social influence and power are categorized as:

- coercive: influencer has control over punishment

- reward: influencer has control over rewards or resources

- expert: influencer is believed to have superior ability, skills, or influence

- referent: target person is attracted to, likes, or identifies with influencer

- legitimate: target person believes influencer has legitimate authority

- informational: influencer possesses specific information needed by the target person

What I found super fascinating was how each of my relationships line up with this. Friends, husband, parents, in-laws, etc. Accepting influence from another person is a way to create more connection. When I think about how often I feel disconnected and which ways I allow myself to accept influence, it creates a really interesting picture

[crabsnpersimmons]

m

marriage

marriage me, head chef bot

uhhhhhh.... i would like to order uhhhhhhhhhh

uhhhhhhhhhhh

1 candle lit date with head chef bot pls

Aw hey Crabs! 👋🏻✨

He doesn't really know what to do but I ran him down with the basics -

Go get her, sport!

Oh and go easy on him, okay - He's a little slow when it comes to romantic interactions but he does genuinely try to accommodate!

He's open to handholding or just letting you hang off his arm, short hugs and headpats. He'll even try to spoon feed you awkwardly?? I guess?? And no worries, he'll escort you properly home afterwards too and maybe maybe you could kiss him on the cheek as a thank you! Ah. He short-circuited cuz' I forgot to mention that's what people do sometimes... Hurms. No biggie, he'll be alright!

Also, he just auto defaulted to giving a thumbs up 😀💥 HAHAHA you're pretty, he just doesn't know how to articulate that.

Anyways, have him back by 8pm, ya hear!! Now, go have fun!! :]

Tagging @kaprisvn too cuz I can and also cuz ya like him! Enjoy 🥰🫶🏻✨

Link to his original reference sheet!

[drdemonprince]

All these vanilla "service tops" would definitely be happier if they were able to understand and acknowledge the role their desire plays in the interaction. It's never just "I wanna make my partner feel good" it's always "I wanna make my partner feel good by doing specific things to them that *I* think are hot" and when you learn to own that desire it makes for more satisfying experiences for both you and your partners. I got out of the waffley "I want whatever you want" service top mindset (basically the top counterpart to inexperienced bottoms who are like "just do whatever you want to me I'm down for anything" and can't own their actual desires) and now I can just tell people specifically "I want to fuck your hole" and it saves me so much time finding people who both want that and are physically prepared to receive it. (Also helps me skip past people who think me calling myself a "top" as a trans guy is somehow equivalent to "actually vers or like a dominant bottom"? No I literally mean I want MY penis inside YOU what's not clicking)

fucking thank you! exactly. it is exactly like the toxic uncommunicative bottom thing. and when a person prioritizes appealing to a potential partner over what they want, it is a massive turnoff! someone who really wants to fuck some hole is so much hotter 🙂‍↕️

[ineffable-suffering]

Why Aziraphale is an unreliable narrator

Part 1: The Story of Job

I'm absolutely not the first one to talk about this on here and I probably shan't be the last either. Alas, here's my take on why all of the minisodes in Season 2 should be enjoyed with great care – and taken with a grain of angelic salt.

I'm gonna split this into 3 parts, aka the three minisodes we are shown, since I tend to get a bit waffley in my posts and want to still be able to include all the little details. Once I've written them, I'll link Part 2 & Part 3 here as well!

Alright, let's get into it under the cut of doom.

Episode 2 opens with the Story of Job. Right off the bat, I noticed that it sort of looks like an old film playing. At first I didn't read that much into it, but once we see the cut-away to Aziraphale at the bookshop, currently reading that part of the Bible (presumably), I immediately thought: "Oh! It's because it's his memory. He's remembering how it went down and therefore it plays like a figurative film in his head."

This, I then came to realize, is a very crucial difference to all the flashbacks of S1, which were exclusively told and narrated by God. May her intensions be as ineffable as they are: She did tell us all of these stories from an objective outsider's point of view. Now, however, it's Aziraphale who's re-telling those stories to us from memory.

And if there's one thing that's for certain, it's that a memory is something entirely different to an objective narration of a story. Just think about how you yourself remember things. Especially things that happened years, maybe even decades (or, in an angel's case, millenia) ago. What is it, that you really remember? Can you know for sure, that a conversation was held with those exact words? Are you 100% certain that the clothes someone wore weren't different? Had it really been snowing or would that make very little sense given what you're remembering happened in May? And did it even happen in May? Or does that just happen to be your favourite month, the current weather, your preferred style of clothing and what it was that you would imagine someone would have said to you?

What I'm trying to say is: The further away it is that something happened, the more your brain has to fill in the gaps. This is why, for example, your parents will remember the family summer holiday entirely different when you ask them about it 20 years later.

"No, it was Sarah who puked on the car ride home!" "Nonsense, Sarah never puked as a child. Bobby had that gone-off pizza, he's the one that was sick the whole ride long!"

We've all been there. Bobby made it out alive. Don't buy gas station pizza.

Alright, back to the plot: Naturally, Aziraphale is not actually human, so it is a pure assumption on my part that the way his memory works is similar to ours. However, the whole topic of "memory" is actually quite a recurring one on Good Omens.

Crowley seems to have lost his in the Fall, yet somehow managed to get most of it back. Not all of it, though, he clearly has some major gaps ("You used to jump on me back, little monkey in the waistcoat!"). Beelzebub helps Gabriel store all his memories in their little fly container before they get wiped entirely too, by the Metatron and/or Saraqael. Crowley and Aziraphale (and possibly Jimbriel) perform a miracle together that makes everyone in Heaven and Hell forget who Garbiel is or what he looks like. And we know that the Book of Life apparently has the ability to completely erase someone from existence – ergo also erasing them from everyone's memory and making it is as though the person had never been in them at all.

So, clearly, angels and demons being able to remember, forget, reconstruct and, if you're the Metadork, wipe memories, is very much canon. Apart from that very last one, it does make them quite human-like in a way. We too can forget or (wrongfully and incompletely) reconstruct memories, due to things like trauma, illness or simply a lot of time having passed.

So, just like Crowley remembers going into battle but doesn't remember Furfur being there, or just like Jimbriel has entierly forgotten who he is but still remembers the tune and lyrics to Buddy Holly's song Everyday, and just like archangel Michael was miraculously made to forget Gabriel and yet says "Don't I know you?" when seeing him again – just like that, Aziraphale's memories of the story of Job, the story of wee Morag and the story of the magic show in 1941, might not actually be the whole truth.

So, time to look at where the furniture isn't.

Now, it could very well be that the costume designers of S2 thought: "Fuck it, let's go crazy" – but given that this show has a track record of meticulously making sure to stick to accurate and cohesive character design, doesn't it strike you as odd that Crowley would go from this look at the Flood in Mesopotamia, 3004 BC:

... to the (very iconic, don't get me wrong) Bildad the Shuhuite drip in 2500 BC:

... back to this at the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in 33 AD:

I mean ... I mean– come on, that seems like a bit of a far stretch, even for someone as enthusiastically experimental with fashion as Crowley.

And it's not just that: Where did the sunglasses come from, all of a sudden? And why do they look like some sort of obscure, ancient optometrist's device? It's a known historical fact that the Romans were the ones to have invented sunglasses, somewhere around 50-ish AD. Which actually matches perfectly with when Crowley and Aziraphale meet again in Rome 8 years after the crucifixion (51 AD).

So, where do the weird spectacles come from, over 2000 years too early? Maybe from Aziraphale's brain filling in some gaps? Hasn't Crowley always worn those ridiculous sunglasses? Was it Rome? Or Golgotha? Wessex? Oh, blimey, what does it matter!

And it's not just Crowley: Aziraphale's own clothes, as well as the other angels', seem to be very different from the rather plain linen we see him wear before and after the story of Job.

They're laced with golden embroidery along the neckline and sleeves. The remind almost of the clothes angels are depicted wearing in biblical and historical drawings. Ornate and decadent. Not at all like we see Aziraphale in the other flashbacks of S1.

Even Bildad the Shuhite's hair within the minisode keeps changing, going from all pouffy and voluminous to rather deflated and straight-looking:

The costume department either had to fix up two seperate wigs or manually straighten out the volume of the one again to give it a more sleek look. I'm not a professional in this field, but if there's anything I've learned from watching hours of behind-the-scenes material of movies and shows, it's that very little about costume, character, prop and set design is purely coincidental.

You know what it could be, though? An accurate representation of how memories aren't linear, historically correct and objective representations of a certain event, but rather an ever-changing, jumbled mess of impressions, emotions and exaggerations.

More specifically: Aziraphale's impression, emotions and exaggerations.

Like "remembering" Crowley with sunglasses because he's been wearing them for so long.

Like "remembering" himself wearing more luxurious, angelic clothes because that's how he thinks of the difference between Heaven and Hell.

Like "remembering" the permit as a ridiculously long scroll that folded out over an entire valley.

Like "remembering" Job's children to be weirdly sassy in an almost Aziraphale-esque way (Enon: "Don't be silly!") for the fact that Job would have probably taught them to be more humble and obedient in the presence of a literal angel.

Like "remembering" eating an entire fucking Ox after having just one bite of it while Crowley watched him lustfully, sipping on his wine.

Like "remembering" Crowley calling him 'angel', despite them having barely known each other back then.

There's a reason why the flashbacks in S2 seem so much more alive, quirky and, at many points, confusing and all over the place. Because they're not objective stories being told by a third party. They're Aziraphale's. So much of his own thoughts and feelings at the time get projected onto them because that's simply how memory works!

It's subjective. It's unrealiable.

It's not that I'm calling Aziraphale a liar. He's no more a liar than your parents are, mixing up Sarah and Bobby. Or you, remembering snow instead of sunshine. Memories aren't lies. They can simply be faulty, focus on things that you thought were more important and leaving out or changing things that weren't, to you.

The real challenge in all of this, is trying to filter through Aziraphale's stories to see what it actually is they're telling us. Where it is that the furniture isn't. And I think in this case, that's 6 main things (eff you, God, I know you like sevens, but I don't care):

God and Satan (still) talk to each other We see that Aziraphale is quite surprised when Muriel mentions that the whole Job thing is God's bet with Satan. But clearly, despite having made him and the rest fall, God still converses with Her number one traitor about whether or not the humans simply love Her because she gives them nice things or because they truly believe in Her.

God and Satan (and Heaven and Hell) can and do collaborate with each other when they feel like it So much for choosing sides, huh? Truthfully, this is not the first time this is shown to us, but still. It's another piece of evidence on the growing pile.

Aziraphale understands the World and humans way better than any of the other angels "Well, you see ... Citis is 58 ..."

Aziraphale, despite having troubles voicing it, absolutely disagrees and even condemns God's plan of destroying Job's children (and goats and camels and––)

Aziraphale is willing to lie and thwart the will of God Also not the first time we're being shown this but again, piiiile of evidence.

Angels don't automatically Fall simply by doing the above To me, this is one of the most important take aways. It's already hinted in S1 as well that 'Falling' seems to have been a one time even back when the first war broke out in Heaven. And I actually believe that ever since then, no other angels have Fallen again. Aziraphale is the best example for this. He has gone against God's plan numerous times and even lied to her very face (voice?) about it. And yet, nothing ever happened to him. Why exactly that is the case remains a topic for another meta (that I might or might not be working on already, teehee).

Alright, that concludes this first look at the Job minisode! If there's anything I missed, feel free to share it with me. I'll try and add Part 2 (the story of wee Morag) and Part 3 (the magic show of 1941) soon.

Update: Part 2 and Part 3 have officially been written, you can find it them right here:

Part 2: The Story of wee Morag

Part 3: The Story of the Magic Show in 1941

Hugs and kisses, (God)!

[demigodsanswer]

Waffley Wedded

They had written their own vows, and those had already made Percy cry. And he still didn’t really consider himself a crier. Eight years with Annabeth had brought it out of him a bit more, sure, but he really didn’t cry much. And certainly not in front of fifty-something people. But today the tears barely stopped. 

He couldn’t help it. He loved her. And they were finally getting married. Forever. They were going to be together forever. They were going to be married! They were going to have babies! She was going to be his wife! He could finally introduce her as his wife! He was so excited. (They’d had to do a few small quests for Hera to get her approval, but eventually they had the blessing of the queen of the gods, and they could start planning their day.) 

It still didn’t feel entirely real that they’d made it this far. But of course they had. They were together, and as long as they were together, they could make it through anything. 

Annabeth’s dress had been the only surprise so far. She’d never been particularly girly. Even her prom dresses had been relatively simple. So the light blue Cinderella ball gown complete with frills had been a surprise. But a welcome one at that. She looked stunning, and so, so happy to finally be up there with him. 

Grover had his part of course, as the officiant, he was in charge of making sure he and Annabeth didn’t veer off track too much. He’d done a good job. They had made it to the official, old school vows without hiccups to delays. 

“Repeat after me,” Grover said to him. “I, Percy Jackson …” 

“I, Percy Jackson …” his heart was beating fast with anticipation and maybe just a few nerves. Not nervous about marrying her, just nerves that somehow it still wouldn’t happen. Like he’d wake up in two seconds and be twelve years old again. But then, he figured, he’d get to go through everything with Annabeth again. And that wouldn’t be so bad, maybe. 

“Take thee Annabeth …” 

“Take thee Annabeth …” Great, he said the right name! Not that there ever was another name he could have said, but it was nice to get it right when it really counted. 

“To be my lawfully wedded wife …” 

“To be my waffley wedded…” wait. Had he said waffle? Annabeth’s lips were pressed together in a tight smile as she tried not to laugh. Oh he’d absolutely said waffley. 

The thing about Annabeth was that even when she was laughing at him for doing something stupid, she somehow managed to never make him feel bad about it. Percy always felt like he was in on the joke with her. It helped that Annabeth was often prettiest when she was laughing, with or at him. He loved her laugh, and how easily her laugh climbed from something small to a high pitched scream, before sound disappeared from her completely. 

Of course, during their vows wasn’t exactly the time he wanted to say something stupid and make her laugh. 

A giggle escaped her. A few people in the audience started to giggle too. 

Well, better roll with it, he figured. 

“... and pancakey,” Percy added. 

That did it. That broke Annabeth. Her shoulders started to shake as her full-blown laughter started, and Percy couldn’t help but laugh along. She leaned forward towards him, and he pulled her in close as they, and most of the people watching, started to laugh. 

It took them a few minutes to start again, because every time Percy and Annabeth thought they were done, they just looked at each other, and the fit of giggles started all over. Yeah, he thought, he could easily do this forever. 

Finally, Grover cleared his throat. “Should we try again?” Grover offered. 

“Yeah sure,” Percy said. 

This time he did manage to get through the vows without lisping, slurring, or stuttering. 

“Annabeth,” Grover said, turning to her. She already looked like she was going to cry. And not from laughing at him. “Repeat after me. I, Annabeth Chase …” 

She followed along, not waffling on any of the words, until she got to “In sickness and in health.” 

“At breakfast and at lunch,” she said. 

Percy laughed then; his laugh was the loudest in the room then. He started to pull her in for a kiss, but Grover put a hand between them. 

“Hey, hey, hey!” He chided. “Leave room for Pan! We’re not there yet! Let’s get through the vows and rings?” 

They both nodded. Percy was pretty sure that after that, Annabeth was racing through her vows. 

Finally, they got the rings. He got the ring on her finger like an old pro. They’d been practicing for weeks. At that part, they both did start crying again. 

“You may now,” Grover said, before taking a painfully long pause. Annabeth was bouncing up and down, a small movement that was extremely exaggerated by her flouncy dress, “kiss the bri --” 

Percy swept her up in his arms before Grover could finish the word. 

It had been nine years since their first explosive kiss, and he still never got tired of it. 

~

I saw a video of this happening to a groom, and I knew I had to make it Percabeth.

[ylw-soldier]

*He chuckled to himself half-awkwardly as Gio fumbled his way through an answer, averting his eyes so as to give him at least a tiny bit of reprieve.*

Sorry about that. I was just mesmerised by you...r work. (I swear to God, the Mitchellisms come with the clothes, don't they?) Look, if I knew you were busy as you are right now, I wouldn't have come over. Easy as.

*It was still wonderful, he thought, that he had this opportunity anyway. To the Soldier, Gio's car was nothing short of beautiful — he couldn't imagine the lengths the man must have gone to to get her. Though, of course, it was lovely to see the man himself, even if a little more exposed than usual. And it was funny to imagine the GRN Engineers fucking up his efforts. This also.*

You know, maybe you should consider pestering S— our Engie about your car. He's competent, by what I've seen of your sky-high standards. And I think he does a damn good job. I mean, without him I don't think Stell would've held up nearly as long as she has.

... Just a suggestion though. You don't have to take it. It's just I doubt you always have the time to take care of your pretty little car and I worry.

*He said this with that stupid toothy grin, as he always did and may well always will do. It was as if he was taunting Gio with the prospect of being upstaged in the art of car maintenance, if only just to piss him off. He sure hoped it pissed him off, at least. Seeing the other frustrated was amusing to him, perhaps more than he'd like to admit.

Venya really wished he had a camera on him right now. One of those small numbers that he had quite a few of, so he could save whatever moments and reactions he got today for himself. It sure wasn't helping that Gio was looking like he was cut straight out of a vintage car magazine at that moment, either.

He fished a set of keys out of his pocket, idly twirling them as if as a distraction to himself. Or, maybe to redirect him back to the point.*

Oh, right. What I want? Simple. I asked you to take me out, didn't I? And you've gotten the car all done up, so it'd be really easy right now to just... y'know, drive around town for a bit. Do a bit of whatever men of your kind love doing so much. The likes.

It just depends on if you want to go. If you don't, I can just go back to the base, busy myself up a bit. Your call, love.

Venya slipped into the GRN base once again, this time opting for a different route. Instead of heading straight for Gio’s usual studio, he wandered toward the base itself, mingling with the other GRNs. As he passed by the garage, a familiar tune drifted through the air...seemed like the old radio host had finally put on something worth listening to.

Curious, he peeked inside and spotted Gio, looking thoroughly worn out, slightly damp, and completely in his element. The Spy had just finished polishing up his pride and joy...a 1966 Ford Mustang convertible, sleek and pristine. Compared to Stella? It's a goddamn masterpiece...In gio's eyes anyways

With a pleased sigh, Gio wiped his hands off on a rag, taking a step back to admire his work. His balaclava hung loose around his shoulders, his hands resting on his hips as he flashed the kind of grin that could sell snake oil to a saint.

"Finally! what a beaut! Looks good as new, eh, bambina?"

He let out a rich, satisfied chuckle, shaking his head as he gave the car’s hood a loving pat.

"Ah, but what a tragedy you had me lookin' like some grease monkey out here! Tch don't trust those pesky engineers working with such a beauty like you...Such a shame I had to get my hands dirty..."

He lets out another chuckle and a small smile "But bah! Who cares! look at you now~!! a proper star, just like me~"

@the-silentsnake

*There was something inherently... fascinating about finding the Spy like this. Seeing him actually getting his hands dirty and doing manual labour was sort of like seeing a 19th century aristocrat at the grocery store: In Venya's mind, at least, it just didn't happen.

That weren't to say it wasn't a welcome sight — hell, if he could watch people fix vehicles all day and get paid for it, he would. (Perhaps that's why he was so drawn to a certain somebody.)

He leaned casually against the garage's doorframe and adjusted the collar of the flannel shirt he'd found for the occasion.*

Hey there. Looking g— I mean. Uh. You've been busy, huh? Do you not get out much? Is that why you've been prettying up your car now of all times?

*He walked over, hands in pockets, and admired Gio's handiwork.*

Hmm... Not bad. I wasn't aware you were capable of any physical work, so... Pleasant surprise. She looks wonderful, by the way. I can tell you put effort into it.